Chapter Thirty-Three: Trapped

(The Battle Of Starcourt, Pt. 4)

***

Alistair gritted his teeth as he kept a hold around El, him, Mike and Max helping her to Nancy's car. Hugin nested in his curls, worry for El seeping through their bond and heightening Alistair's own worry. In front of them, Rowan, Will, Cami, Lucas, Nancy and Jonathan walked ahead, looking as tense as Alistair felt. The fear of the Mind Flayer finding them crackled in the air, a tangible thing, and Alistair held El tighter, refusing to let the bastard get her again.

"El, you're bleeding," Max murmured, and Alistair looked down, seeing spots of blood on El's bandage. Worry churned even more viciously in Alistair's gut as  Mike asked, "Are you okay?"

Despite the pain contorting her face, El nodded and said, "Yeah."

Alistair bit his lip. He knew El was probably lying, but he hoped she hadn't been. That she was in slightly less pain now.

Eventually, they hobbled their way to the car. Max let Mike and Alistair help El get to the back as she got into the car with Lucas, Cami and Will, Rowan ordering, "Get inside, gremlins," before she followed after. Together, Mike and Alistair helped El inside as much as they could without causing her any more pain, Mike murmuring, "Here, lay down."

When she was sat down and more or less comfortable, Mike and Alistair got in, Hugin flying onto El's lap and giving a comforting croak to the injured girl.

With everyone now inside, Nancy turned on the ignition to start driving away, but instead of the car coming to life, a stuttering noise came instead.

Worry spiked in Alistair as his sister said, "Uh, Nance, now would be the time to go."

"I know," Nancy replied as she twisted the keys again, but only that stuttering noise came. Alistair shared a worried, confused look with Mike  as the car remained stationary.

"What's wrong?" Jonathan asked, sounding just as worried.

"I don't... I don't know," Nancy answered, wrenching the keys again. But only that noise responded, as worry transmuted into dread, coiling around Alistair's heart.

"You can't be serious. Come on!" Nancy yelled at the car.

"Didn't your mom just buy this car?" Lucas asked.

"Yes, I'm sure it's fine," Nancy snapped, but it sounded like she was trying to convince herself of that, too.

"Brand new cars don't make noises like that, Nance," Rowan pointed out.

"I know, Rowan!" Nancy snapped.

"Did you leave the lights on?" Will asked.

"No," Nancy responded irritably.

"Do we have gas?" Lucas questioned.

"Yes!" Nancy exclaimed as she once again turned the keys, making the car roar with that stuttering noise as she yelled, "Come on!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Just stop, stop!" Jonathan ordered. Nancy did, and in the central mirror Alistair saw her give Jonathan a frustrated look.

"Pop the hood," Jonathan said.

Nancy did and they got out of the car, leaving the rest of them to wait. Alistair resisted the urge to pick at his nails as he, El and Mike shared a confused and uneasy look. Alistair looked at Will, wanting to hold his hand, but unable to.

But the waiting—and whatever Nancy and Jonathan had found responsible for the car not moving—was cut short when a loud, revving noise splintered the night.

They immediately turned and Alistair's heart stopped when he saw the familiar blue Camaro at the far end of the parking lot, headlights burning the night. A part of Alistair had been hoping that Billy had been among the Flayed melted into the Mind Flayer's weapon, but he should have known that would be too much to hope for, and now fear was flooding his system because if Billy was here...

That meant the Mind Flayer wouldn't be far behind.

Shit.

Something banged against the window and Alistair's soul nearly left his body as he whirled, seeing Nancy at the window at the back passenger's side, yelling, "Back in the mall! Back in the mall!"

There was no need to be told twice as Lucas opened the door and Rowan pushed him, Will, Cami and Max out, yelling, "Go, gremlins! Move, move, move!"

Once they were out, she was behind them, slamming the door and sprinting over to them, opening the door, Jonathan and Will right behind her and helping Alistair and Mike with El, Max behind Rowan as she took Rowan's place in helping El, Will saying, "Be careful!"

"Come on, let's go!" Rowan yelled as they ran back to Starcourt, Nancy shouting, "Go! Go, go, go!"

"Back inside! BACK INSIDE!" Rowan hollered as they ran—or at least, Mike, Max, El and Alistair tried to run.

"Go! Go, go, go!" Nancy and Jonathan shouted as they made a break for the mall, Billy still revving up the car and not moving a single inch in all that time.

Alistair didn't know whether that was a good or bad thing.

But he knew one thing as they made their way inside—Billy was responsible for them being unable to leave.

And that meant they were trapped.

***

"Scoops Troop, do you copy? Scoops Troop, do you copy? Scoops Troop, do you copy? Scoops Troop, I repeat, do you copy?" Mike said into the walkie, repeating the same message into it ever since they were trapped in Starcourt thanks to Billy—and trying to get into contact and get a ride from Dustin's team that had been dubbed as Scoops Troop to get the hell out of there before the Mind Flayer found them.

But none of them had picked up.

Alistair tried not to worry about it as he stood with Cami and El, Hugin next to him, feathers ruffled. In front of them, Lucas prepped his wrist rocket and Rowan practiced her powers, the air crackling with lightning as she summoned sparks before letting them fade and repeating the process, over and over. And each time, the sparks burned hotter and brighter, making the air around Rowan ripple with crackling heat as her eyes and veins burned a brighter and brighter blue, until it looked like there was lightning writhing underneath her skin instead of blood.

She stopped when the sparks she summoned burned so bright they were blinding and Alistair could faintly feel their heat, as they spat and hissed wildly, her veins fading and eyes dimming as she wiped the blood away from her nose as she looked at Mike, who paced and said into the walkie, "We're trapped in the mall and in need of emergency transportation. Scoops Troop, do you copy? Billy has found us. He has disabled our car and we are trapped in the mall. Repeat, Billy has disabled our car and we are trapped in the mall. Scoops Troop!"

As Mike made to repeat the message, Rowan headed over to where Nancy, Jonathan, Max and Will were—where Alistair presumed Nancy was taking a gun from a dead Russian.

Looking at Cami, he noticed she looked scared.

"Hey, I'm sure Valerie's fine," he assured, sending her a comforting smile.

Cami swallowed. "Yeah, I know. So why aren't any of them picking up?"

"Maybe they're on a different channel," he reasoned. He paused, before grinning. "This is weird."

"What's weird?" El questioned, looking genuinely confused.

"Cami's supposed to be the positive one, and I'm the one who's usually doom and gloom," Alistair informed.

Cami choked out a laugh as El smiled, before Cami looked to El and asked, "How are you feeling El? Is your leg okay?"

"I'm fine," El murmured, sending a reassuring smile to Cami. She tried to return it, but it faltered slightly.

"Scoops Troop, I repeat, we are in need of emergency transportation! Do you copy? Scoops Troop, do you copy?" Mike exclaimed, making the four of them jump, Hugin cawing angrily at Mike as Rowan said loudly, "Mike, just give it up already. We're on our own."

Alistair gulped, the words freezing him. We're on our own.

If Scoops Troop really didn't pick up soon, then they were indeed on their own. And unless they found a way out of here...

They'd be sitting ducks for the Mind Flayer.

A hand grabbed his, and Alistair looked to see El holding it, squeezing it softly. He squeezed it back, feeling a part of him slightly calm down.

"Steve, do you copy? Dustin!" Mike shouted, winding up to repeat the message again—only for Rowan to snatch the walkie out of Mike's hand.

"Hey!" he yelled.

"Quit it, Wheeler. They're not picking up," Rowan said. She pointed behind her to the car—the car that El had used to bowl over the Russians. "Besides, we've got ourselves another way out."

Alistair frowned—how would a car that totalled get them out?

Until he realised Rowan meant something inside the car could help them escape.

Alistair's eyes widened, and he looked at Cami, her eyes similarly wide. They hopped off the bench they'd been sitting on, heading over to the car alongside Mike, Lucas, Max, Jonathan, Nancy and Rowan. El stayed behind, due to her injured leg, and Will stayed behind, too, as they all got behind the car after Rowan told them the plan, ready to push it and get that ignition cable.

"On three," Jonathan said as they all placed their hands on the car. "One, two, three—push!"

They pushed, grunting and heaving. Alistair clenched his jaw, hearing encouragement from Hugin as the raven also tried to push the car by using his head, pushing with everything in him—as they all pushed with everything in them—but the car wouldn't budge.

"Push!" Jonathan yelled and they all pushed again. The car scraped forward a few inches, but remained in place.

"Shit!" Lucas swore as they all stopped pushing, Hugin flapping onto Alistair's shoulder, croaking exhaustion as Alistair petted his head and murmured, "You did good, buddy."

"Let me try," El offered.

"El," Mike tried to protest, but El stepped forward and said firmly, "I can do it."

Everyone looked at each other, Mike the most hesitant—not that Alistair could blame him—but he knew these were El's powers, that she understood her limits and that it was her decision.

So they all got out from behind the car, standing behind El as she raised her hand and pushed her powers onto the car. It shook, the metal groaning as El tried to move it and get it onto its wheels, but it wasn't budging.

Alistair frowned. That wasn't a good sign. What was going on with El?

After another minute of trying to move it, El's hand dropped with a grunt. Alistair instantly moved to her side, holding her as he saw the shock and confusion on her face, murmuring, "It's okay, El. You did your best."

Hugin croaked to affirm it, but El didn't say anything, as if what happened had stunned her into silence. Alistair looked back to Rowan, as everyone looked to her, but before they could ask, Rowan said, "My telekinesis is still pretty low. It'd be the same result."

To prove it, she demonstrated as the car scraped by a couple inches or so before stopping, as blood trickled down from Rowan's nose. She wiped it away and pointed to it. "See?"

"Okay. We can still move it. I have an idea," Mike said.

Alistair arched a brow, but he was curious to see what Mike's plan would be.

So that was how they were all behind the car again—after Mike explained his idea and how physics would help—counter stools in their hands that would, supposedly, help get the car onto its wheels.

"Alright, on three. One, two, three, push!" Jonathan commanded. They did so, using the stools to push against the car. It rattled, moving forward, and hope burned in Alistair's chest.

Holy shit, this could work.

"All right, great. All right, now all the way. Ready?" Jonathan said, and they nodded.

"Three, two, one. Push!"

They pushed, grunting and heaving as metal scraped against the floor before, finally, it flipped back onto its wheels.

Cami let out a laugh of shock that it had actually worked as Alistair stared, his sister leaning on her stool as Mike said, "Told you. Physics."

They all hopped off the counter, Mike, Max and Alistair standing together near El, who still looked confused over how she couldn't move the car. By the car were Will, Lucas, Nancy, Jonathan and Rowan, the latter three getting to work on finding the cable.

"How do we get it open?" Alistair heard Nancy ask as she leaned toward the car.

"Uh, there should be a latch. Check under the wheel," Jonathan told her.

Nancy did, Rowan helping her by making a ball of electricity to let her see the latch better.

"You two see it?" Jonathan asked.

"I don't know, hold on. Rowan?" Nancy said, and Rowan obliged, making it burn brighter as she said, "I don't see it either, Byers. Not yet."

Alistair looked away, turning back to his friends as Max looked over to El. Alistair followed her direction, seeing El hunched over a garbage can and frantically searching through it.

"What's she doing?" Max asked as they stared at El.

"I don't know," Alistair said, as El found what she was looking for—an empty can of Coke.

She headed over to a pillar and set it down, staring at it intently. Alistair frowned, jerking his head.

"Come on, let's go," he said, and they headed over to El, seeing as blood trickled from her nose before she let out a gasp, staring at the can in confusion—and fear.

That stoked Alistair's worry from earlier as Mike asked, "El. Are you okay?"

El looked at them, but didn't answer—like she didn't want to say it.

Alistair frowned and he moved to her, giving her a comforting shoulder rub. El stared at him, before whispering, "Al, my powers. I think..."

She paused, tears glinting in her eyes, as she said again, "I think they're—"

But she didn't get the chance to say it, as Max whispered, voice quivering with fear, "Mike. Al."

Mike and Alistair looked up.

And every part of Alistair's body froze.

There, on the ceiling was a dark shape. A very familiar shape.

Their time had run out.

The ceiling wobbled and cracked and Mike screamed, "NANCY!" as Rowan shouted, "ALISTAIR!"—right as the ceiling shattered at last.

Mike grabbed El's arm and Alistair grabbed Max's as they sprinted to the closest hiding place—a kiosk selling 4th of July decorations, hiding just in time as the Mind Flayer landed in the mall, the lights blazing erratically as it roared. Alistair pressed himself against the kiosk, his heart thumping against his rib cage, his panic and Hugin's melding together, as Mike, Max and El were also pressed against him, so close Alistair heard their heartbeats, felt their panic, their fear.

Alistair desperately prayed everyone else had managed to hide in time.

The five of them hunkered behind the kiosk as the Mind Flayer roared and snarled, searching the mall, the floor itself shaking under its gigantic weight. Its awful smell radiated from its body and Alistair nearly gagged, but he was too terrified to be sick, he could only focus on hiding and praying the Mind Flayer wouldn't find them, find the others, find his sister, find Cami, find Will.

There was a thump, and Alistair prayed that was a dead Russian and not the others.

It was then that the near-silence was shattered and the walkie blazed to life—Scoops Troop, responding back far too late now.

"Griswold Family, this is Scoops Troop! Do you copy? Over!" Dustin yelled through the walkie. 

Alistair gulped. He was tempted to slip out of his body and answer but it was far too risky, the ghosts telling him about the ghosts who'd been Flayed ringing too true in his head. If the Mind Flayer got too close to him...

He couldn't risk it.

Dustin continued, undeterred, yelling desperately, ""Griswold Family, I repeat, this is Scoops Troop! Do you copy? Griswold Family, do you copy? DO YOU COPY?!"

Someone picked up. But it wasn't anyone human.

The Mind Flayer had finally noticed the walkie and it roared into it, a roar that chilled everything inside Alistair, a roar that was nothing he'd ever heard. It was loud, screeching and monstrous and, as Alistair realised with horror, full of agonised screams, screaming over and over and over and Alistair could hear screams in his head, screams he realised were the ghosts screaming, and all those screams were full of such terror and pain, but the Mind Flayer's roar was the loudest, full of a vengeance incomprehensible to humans before it finished roaring and a shattering noise came—the walkie destroyed, after delivering its message.

A warning, and a promise of death.

Alistair's heart slammed harder against his chest, panic ratcheting up another level, as Dustin's voice spoke through again, choppy and distorted from both the destroyed walkie and his own panic.

"Griswold Family, this is Scoops Troop! Please confirm your safety! Griswold Family, this is Scoops Troop! Please confirm your safety! Are you en route to Bald Eagle's nest? Please confirm your safety! Someone, please, just answer! Is anyone there? Just answer! Anyone please—Griswold Family, do you copy? Griswold Family, do you copy? Griswold Family, do you copy? Do y—" got through before it was cut off completely.

The Mind Flayer continued its search and Alistair's heart raced at a too-fast beat, as Mike risked a look over the edge of the kiosk counter before he ducked back down and whispered, "It's turned away. If we go up the stairs now, we'll make it."

"No way, not with El's leg," Max whispered back, and Alistair nodded in agreement.

"We have to try," Mike whispered.

"Mike, there's no way we can make it," Alistair told him, Hugin giving a quiet caw of agreement.

"What else should we do?" Mike fired back.

"There's another way, to get out," El whispered, touching Mike's shoulder, jerking her head to the side. "Through The Gap."

Mike, Alistair, Max and Hugin looked at The Gap—at the straight shot they had at the store and the delivery corridor beyond, leading to safety. That could work.

Mike looked back, scoping out the Mind Flayer before he turned back and whispered, "Okay. Now."

Together, they helped El up and made a break for it. But as they entered, El knocked over some metal poles and fell down with a pained cry, the noise of the poles clattering down shattering the tense silence.

And alerting the Mind Flayer to them.

"Shit!" Alistair hissed as he helped El up, the four of them sprinting behind a shelf—and just in time as the Mind Flayer roared, alarmingly close. Alistair held Hugin in a death grip, he, Max, Mike and El pressed together as the monster snarled, searching before it gave a cry of triumph and grabbed something, thinking it was one of them or maybe just El—only for it be proven wrong.

It gave a cry of rage and slammed what Alistair now saw was a mannequin wearing El's outfit straight into the wall, the mannequin landing inches from them. Alistair stared at it, his heart thumping against his chest, terror of how close the Mind Flayer came to find them stark on his face, reflected on Mike's, Max's and El's faces. Together, they crept to another plinth, crowding behind it and desperately hoping they were not seen as the Mind Flayer snarled, still searching for them.

If they didn't move, it would find them. But if they moved now, it would find them still. They had to do something to distract it.

Well, Alistair could.

He could feel his power reaching out, brushing along the dead. Alistair wanted to push it away, but he had no choice—it was either reveal the secret he'd been keeping, or have the Mind Flayer find him, Max, Mike, El and Hugin and them all dying.

He chose the former.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, an apology—for keeping it a secret, for knowing this would have them look at him in fear and perhaps disgust—as he closed his eyes and concentrated on his power, letting it tangle around one of the dead, waiting for his command to raise it up.

He let it as his eyes flew open, burning white with power as the temperature plummeted.

He felt more than saw the dead soldier twitch and rise jerkily to its feet, turning to the Mind Flayer and raising the gun. He heard Mike breathe, "Holy shit," as he, Max and El saw the reanimated dead Russian, realised that Alistair had raised it up, was controlling it like a puppet. Realised what Alistair had been keeping secret for months, ever since Lynn and he had a hunch about his powers that his final test confirmed.

He could raise humans from the dead.

He'd thrown up when it was confirmed, after reanimating the corpse of one of his dead ancestors, and made his grandmother, Aunt Hazel and Uncle Percy promise to never tell anyone in their family—not even Rowan—as he promised to himself he would never tell his friends about it. He knew that would have them look at him differently, look at him with the same fear Alistair felt about what he could now do. Because dead animals were one thing—dead humans, however...

That was something entirely different. Something violating about Alistair using dead human bodies and reanimating them to life, to use as his puppets.

He never thought he'd use it again. Until now.

The Mind Flayer shrieked as bullets were fired into its body and Alistair gritted his teeth, keeping his iron control on the reanimated Russian, hoping this would buy time and distract the Mind Flayer long enough for the five of them to get out, that—

But the distraction didn't last long, as the bullets emptied and Alistair felt the tentacle grab his zombie soldier and throw it into the wall. It didn't get back up as Alistair panted, head swimming as blood poured from his nose, his energy drained. Exhausted from using it, and what he had used his powers on earlier.

Any time it had bought was shattered as the Mind Flayer resumed its search, and now Alistair could see a flesh tentacle come nearer and nearer to their hiding spot, icy fear running through his veins as he, Mike, Max and El watched it in frozen fear as the Mind Flayer snarled louder, the tentacle now beside them, any second it would turn and see them and it knew it was close to finding them, as it snarled in triumph—

POP!

A noise shattered the tense silence and the tentacle retreated as the Mind Flayer turned, roaring and running over to the other noise—a decoy. And a distraction.

One they couldn't waste.

"Let's go!" Mike yelled as they helped El to her feet, bolting for the delivery corridor as Mike kept screaming, "Go, go, go! Come on!"

They ran through it, Alistair slamming the door closed as they bolted through the corridor, to the entrance of the mall, to safety.

But it wouldn't last long.

***

>:)

This chapter was an absolute BLAST to write! I loved writing it a lot and it was a lot of fun to write—though it's the opposite for Alistair

This mall scene is, I believe, one of the most tense things ion the entire show, and every time I watch it, I'm afraid the Mind Flayer's gonna find Mike, Max and El this time. So I hoped I conveyed the tension well!

And something I have been keeping secret is that Alistair can also raise humans from the dead! It's a power that had terrified and revolted Alistair and he refused to let anyone know or use it. Unfortunately, the Mind Flayer had other plans...

And now, we're nearing the end—and what I have planned >:)

Please read, comment and vote!

GhostWriterGirl out!