Fallout || Stranger Things [2]

thirty-seven || dens & damage

Late winter wind blew through the east side of Hawkins, billowing the grass that lined up with the barbed wire fencing restraining the public from the ruins of Starcourt Mall.

Standing just in front of a section of wire, Tatum crouched with an extended hand and slowly traced a doorway. The metal squealed underneath the energy until it peeled away, offering just enough entry for the two of them.

Tate pushed the fencing back and stepped through, then offered a hand behind her.

Mike took a deep breath before he locked his hand in hers and slid through the gaping wire. Although he wondered if he should have, he didn't let go as they made their way down uneven grounds towards the pit that had formed around the mall remnants.

Several construction vehicles littered the space. Dozens of mounds of dirt and busted materials dotted a path towards what had been the front of the building. Moonlight was their only drive as the slew of florescent work lights that surrounded the property were not powered on.

"Did the town know about the Russians?" Tate asked, not fighting Mike's hold on her hand as she took a slow path down a steep dirt path.

"No, they kept that close to their chest." Mike pushed hair out of his face, eyes near frantic as they took in the destruction. He'd sworn to himself that he'd never come back to this place - he saw it enough when his eyes were closed. "A few commie haters spread rumors, but they didn't know how right they were. And no one believed them anyway."

"And Mayor Kline?"

"Owens said they locked his ass right up. They got him on some real charges, but they didn't take him to a regular prison. I'm sure he'll never see the light of day."

Tate sighed. "Good. He knew what that mall was being built for, even if he didn't believe it all. They had the money, and that's all he cared about. That and reelection."

Mike jumped down off of the last dirt ridge before the ground leveled out, but watched his feet for loose rods and rocks. "They deemed him responsible for everyone that died that night."

"They said all the ones who went missing were found here?"

He nodded. "All the ones that were consumed." A chill ran down his spine, and in the back of his mind he was sure they had crossed over into ground that had once been the mall itself. While he expected to see the second tier ahead of them, he was only met with open night sky. "Which on a technicality, because Azathoth died here, their bodies were inside the mall that night." He sighed. "I wonder how fast we'd get put in a psych ward for talking like this to anyone normal."

"Oh, it would be immediate," Tate replied, only then removing her hand from his. She looked around, taking in that around her before her eyes averted to the broken ground.

Shattered floor tiles still remained, even a few still in tact among the rubble. Evidence of a jackhammer was clear; a very intentional attempt had been made to remove any and all evidence of a mall once towering high in that spot.

"It was somewhere over here," Tate said aloud, running a mental image of what once was side by side to what she was taking in. She turned in a slow circle, almost positive she could see the outline of the glass ceiling that had shattered down over her months before. She kicked away a pile of stones until a patch of tiles made itself clear, but her body chilled before she could move it all.

Red splatter.

Tate's jaw slacked as she stood over rust-colored patches, a quick kick revealing even more.

"No," Mike whispered, "no way." He took an unintentional step backwards, while Tate went to her knees to shove anything and everything out of the way. A hand rose to cover his mouth as the red mass grew, more revealed with each disturbed stone being flung to the side.