𝐄𝐌𝐎𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐋 𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐂𝐔𝐄! ✽ 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗼𝗻

64

❝𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐃𝐎𝐈𝐍𝐆?❞ erica pressed dustin, as he bent down to take the russian's badge. steve was still elated, smiling as he glared down at the unconscious man. while sheridan had released steve, he didn't dare tear himself from her; his arm stayed around her waist, as if she were the true trophy. dani rested her head against his chest. his heartbeat raced, adrenaline pumping—due to two factors now.

"getting us our ticket out of here," dustin replied.

"you want to walk all the way back?!"

"oh, well, we could hangout for a little bit, relax, have a picnic maybe," dustin satirized. sheridan chuckled, burying her face further into steve to prevent them from noticing.

"have a picnic?! we came here for the radio!" erica hollered.

"well, this plan is way better. if i knew steve could knock out a russian, that would've been our plan in the first place!"

"ouch," steve muttered. from around the corner emerged robin. instantly, sherrie noticed her alert expression.

"guys," she called out, successfully gathering everyone else's attention. "there's something up there." dani dropped her arms from steve and jumped ahead of the rest of them. the four followed her as she lead them up the stairs. through a glass pane in the door ahead, they could see a vibrant blue light glowing, beckoning them forward. when they entered the room, they were met with yet another door, but on either side were bay windows, giving the kids a front row seat.

enthralled, sheridan sauntered up to the glass. her mouth grew slightly agape. steve and dustin joined at her side, their expressions slowly transforming to match. "holy shit," dustin cursed.

on the other side of the glass was another comms station, sherrie assumed. lit-up buttons and switches littered the panels. ahead of that room was another glass barrier, shielding the workers from the giant machine that whirred on the other side. it emitted an orange glow, and sparks of electricity shot out from all sides. it spun with fervor; it looked like something straight out of a steve spielberg flick. dani watched as men in red hazmat suits clicked the green vials they'd discovered earlier into place on the machine. and as her eyes followed the contraption down the line, it pointed directly to a familiar wall of flesh; the beam of light emitting from the machine cut right through the middle. "oh my god," she mumbled.

dustin, steve, and sheridan exchanged panicked looks. "the gate," they stated in unison.

"we gotta get out of here," dani asserted. the boys nodded. "let's go!" she exclaimed, motioning for robin and erica to also follow suit. the shaffer girl romped down the metal stairs hastily.

"i don't understand, you've seen this before?" robin quizzed.

"not exactly," steve replied.

"then what, exactly?!"

"all you need to know is it's bad," dustin responded.