slay 'em dead//Steve Harrington

12

Nancy, Jonathan, and I have no plans on going to school this morning. We're going to the park to meet with Barb's mom. Well rather hoping someone from Hawkin's lab finds us.

The three of us sit on a bench. Waiting.

Nancy checks her watch. "It's 15 past."

"Yeah, I know," Jonathan tells her.

"Just give him time," I offer.

Nancy gestures to a guy sitting at a picnic table reading the newspaper. "That guy. There."

"What?" Jonathan asks.

"He just... just talked to himself," Nancy tells us.

The guy notices that we're looking at him. I look around. A guy is feeding ducks. Kids are playing duck duck goose.

"I think we should go," Nancy says.

We get up from the bench and make our way to Jonathan's car. When Jonathan tries to start it, the engine won't turn over.

The man who was reading the newspaper knocks on the window. "Trouble with your car, miss? I can give you three a lift if you like."

Another man is standing on the other side of the car.

"Jonathan," Nancy says.

Another man is standing at the front of the car.

"You sure you don't need that ride?" the man asks.

Nancy, Jonathan, and I are taken to Hawkins Lab. We're put in an integration room and left there.

Nancy stands up to face the security camera. "Hey! Hey, assholes! Let us out of here!"

A man in a lab coat walks into the room. "Oh! Not very pleasant in here, is it? Sorry about that. Hospitality's not our strong suit. You know, scientists and all." None of us say anything. The man checks his watch. "Yeah. Okay. You up for a little walk?" He walks out the door. "I'm assuming you're behind me."

Jonathan, Nancy, and I follow after the man. What other choice do we have?

""Men of science have made abundant mistakes of every kind." George Sarton said that," the man, Owens, tells us. "You guys know who George Sarton is? Doesn't really matter. The point is mistakes have been made. Yes."

"Mistakes?" Nancy asks.

"Yes," Owens says.

"You killed Barbara," Nancy states.

"Abundant mistakes, but the men involved with those mistakes, the ones responsible for what happened to your brother and Miss Holland's death, they're gone. They're gone, and for better for worse, I'm the schmuck they brought in to make things better," Owens tells us. "But I can't make things better without your help."

"You mean without us shutting up?" Nancy asks.

Owens sighs. "She's tough, this one. Wanna see what really killed your friend?"

Owens leads us into a control room. "Teddy, I brought you an audience today. I hope you don't mind."

"More the merrier, sir."

In the wall outside the control room, it looks like there's a gash. A gash that's alive. The gate to the Upside Down.

"I'd call it one hell of a mistake. Wouldn't you?" Owens says. "See, the thing is, we can't seem to erase our mistake... but we can stop it from spreading. Like, it's like pulling weeds. But imagine for a moment if a foreign state, let's say, the Soviets... If they heard about our mistake... do you think they would even, consider that a mistake? What if they tried to replicate that?"