I barely had time to process the sight of it.
The Demogorgon's head snapped towards me.
Then it opened.
Those fleshy petals peeled apart, exposing rows upon rows of teeth surrounding the gaping mouth at their centre.
Oh, fuck.
For one brief, ridiculous second, my brain compared it to the Chitauri.
I'd fought those before.
Not just one, either.
Back when my powers had first manifested, I could tear through entire battalions of Chitauri like they were nothing. Hell, I'd taken on one of their fucking Leviathans.
Compared to that, one Demogorgon should have been laughable.
Should have been.
Unfortunately, I didn't have anything close to that kind of power anymore.
Whatever insane surge I'd possessed when my abilities first awakened had faded, leaving me with only a fraction of what I'd been capable of that day.
God, I missed it.
Everything had been so much easier when I could look at an army of murderous aliens and make it their problem.
Now one seven-foot-tall carnivorous flower monster was an actual threat to my life.
Fucking downgrade.
The Demogorgon screeched.
And charged.
"SHIT!"
I threw myself sideways.
Its claws sliced through the air where I had been standing less than a second earlier.
I hit the ground hard, rolled across the dead leaves and immediately forced myself back onto my feet.
So much for reminiscing.
Apparently, the Demogorgon wasn't interested in hearing about my glory days.
It spun towards me.
I tightened my grip around the mace.
Okay.
Step one: attract a Demogorgon.
Done.
Step two: get it to cross dimensions and open a portal.
Hopefully done.
Step three—
The Demogorgon lunged.
I ducked.
Claws swept over my head.
Do not get eaten.
Definitely the most important step.
I swung the mace as hard as I could into its side.
The impact travelled straight up my arm.
The creature stumbled sideways.
Holy shit.
I actually hurt it.
The Demogorgon shrieked and immediately retaliated, one enormous arm sweeping towards my head.
Too fast.
I threw out my hand.
My power slammed into its arm mid-swing.
Not enough to stop it.
Just enough to knock it off course.
Its claws tore through empty air beside my face instead of through it.
Warm blood immediately slipped from my nose.
I released my hold.
Small bursts.
Only when necessary.
I couldn't afford to waste my powers here.
Getting into the Upside Down was only the beginning. Once I was inside, there was no telling how many of these things I might have to deal with before I found Will.
One Demogorgon?
I could fight one Demogorgon.
Several at once after exhausting myself getting through the front door?
Not quite as appealing.
The creature recovered.
My heart hammered.
Every lesson Natasha had drilled into me came rushing back.
Admittedly, Natasha had been preparing me to fight people.
People generally didn't have seven-foot-tall bodies, claws capable of ripping me apart and heads shaped like carnivorous flowers.
But fundamentals were fundamentals. And besides, I hadn't lured this thing here because I wanted to beat it in a fight. I just needed its portal.
And fortunately, I had brought something specifically to help me find it.
The Demogorgon stalked towards me.
I backed away, keeping the mace raised as I slipped my free hand into my pocket.
Slowly.
Easy—
My fingers closed around the compass.
I pulled it out and flipped it open.
The needle immediately went insane.
Instead of settling towards north, it spun wildly before jerking sharply in another direction.
Perfect.
Dustin, that genius little scientist, would eventually figure out that the portals created a massive electromagnetic disruption, screwing with the surrounding magnetic field and making compasses point towards a portal instead of north.
Thankfully, I remembered that.
Which meant I knew exactly how to find one.
Which meant somewhere in that direction—
The Demogorgon lunged.
"Fuck!"
I jumped backwards, nearly dropping the compass as its claws swept past me.
Multitasking while being hunted by an interdimensional monster.
Fantastic idea.
I glanced down.
The needle swung.
Trembled.
Then snapped towards my left.
Left.
I moved.
The Demogorgon came after me.
I didn't try to hit it this time.
I ran.
Another glance at the compass.
The needle jerked again.
I changed direction, ducking around a tree just as claws tore through the space behind me.
The bark exploded beside my head.
Jesus Christ.
Keep moving.
I sprinted between the trees, risking another glance down.
The needle was practically vibrating now.
Close.
Very close.
I looked up.
There.
One of the trees ahead looked… wrong.
The bark near its base had split apart, but there was no pale wood beneath it.
Instead, something wet and organic covered a low opening between the roots.
My breath caught.
The gate.
It wasn't some enormous doorway I could simply walk through.
Of course not.
That would have been too convenient.
It was more like a grotesque rabbit hole, wide enough to crawl through but low enough that I had no chance of entering it standing.
Through the opening, particles drifted through the darkness on the other side like ash.
The Upside Down.
There it was.
My way in.
And somewhere on the other side—
Will.
A screech erupted behind me.
Right.
I shoved the compass back into my pocket.
Now I knew where I needed to go.
The only problem was getting there alive.
I turned.
The Demogorgon was already coming.
I raised the mace.
Unfortunately, seven feet of pissed-off interdimensional predator currently stood between me and the gate.
The Demogorgon launched itself towards me.
This time, I ran straight at it.
It raised its claws.
I waited.
Ten feet.
Eight.
Six.
Every instinct screamed at me to move.
Not yet.
Four.
Now.
I thrust out my hand.
My power struck the Demogorgon from the side.
I wasn't stupid enough to waste my strength trying to overpower the thing.
I only needed to change where it was going.
Its body lurched off course.
Its own momentum did the rest.
The Demogorgon crashed shoulder-first into a tree hard enough to shake the branches above us.
I was already past it.
I ran.
Five metres.
Four.
Three.
Behind me, the Demogorgon shrieked.
I didn't turn around.
I reached the gate and immediately dropped onto my hands and knees.
Oh, this was fucking disgusting.
I shoved the mace ahead of me and crawled after it.
My palms sank into something wet and warm.
Nope.
Not thinking about that.
I forced myself deeper.
The fleshy membrane dragged against my clothes as I squeezed through.
Behind me—
CRACK.
The Demogorgon had recovered.
Shit.
I scrambled faster.
My bow caught against the edge of the opening.
"No, no, no—"
I twisted violently.
It came free.
A screech exploded behind me.
Close.
Way too fucking close.
I crawled harder, dragging myself forward with my elbows and knees.
Then I heard the wet tearing sound of the gate stretching behind me.
I looked back.
The Demogorgon had dropped onto all fours.
And was crawling in after me.
"Oh, come on!"
Of course it could fit.
It had made the fucking gate.
Its long arms dragged its body through the opening, claws digging into the fleshy ground as it came after me.
I crawled faster.
My hand suddenly found nothing.
I pitched forward.
For one horrible second, my stomach dropped—
Then I crashed onto cold, damp ground.
I rolled immediately, grabbed the mace and scrambled onto my feet.
I took two steps.
Then stopped.
I looked back at the gate.
And smiled.
Actually…
This could work.
I moved to the side of the opening and raised the mace.
Then I waited.
A clawed hand emerged.
Then another.
The Demogorgon dragged itself closer.
I stayed perfectly still.
Come on.
Its head began to emerge.
Not yet.
A little farther.
Its head pushed completely through the opening.
Then it screeched, announcing its presence to the entire goddamn dimension.
I really hoped that wasn't its way of calling its friends.
There.
I grinned.
For some reason, the Queen of Hearts chose that exact moment to pop into my head.
Well.
Who was I to argue with royalty?
"Off with its head!"
I swung the mace with everything my ten-year-old body could manage, giving it an extra boost with my telekinesis to make up for the strength I simply didn't have.
The mace sliced straight through its neck.
The Demogorgon's severed head hit the ground.
Its body jerked violently inside the gate before collapsing, half of it still trapped on the other side.
Then the gate began to collapse.
The opening contracted around the creature's neck, the fleshy membrane folding in on itself as the hole rapidly shrank until—
Nothing.
It disappeared completely, taking the rest of the Demogorgon's body with it and leaving only its severed head behind.
I stared down at it.
Its petals were spread open, rows of teeth now completely still.
"Huh."
I rested the mace against my shoulder.
"Maybe the Queen of Hearts had a point. Beheading is kind of fun."
I smirked.
Then I looked down at myself.
I was splattered with the creature's blood, mixed with a little of my own.
Lovely.
Then I remembered where I was.
Right.
I slowly looked around.
The same forest surrounded me.
Except it wasn't the same.
Everything was dead.
Dark vines crawled over the trees. Strange particles floated through the air like ash. The world disappeared into a blue-black darkness beyond the nearest trunks.
Cold, heavy air filled my lungs.
The Upside Down.
I was actually here.
I looked back at the severed head.
One down.
Hopefully not too many more to go.
But considering the Demogorgon had screamed right before I killed it, sticking around to find out whether it had just called every one of its friends in the area seemed like a spectacularly bad idea.
Time to move.
I adjusted the bow on my back and tightened my grip around the mace.
Hold on, Will.
I'm coming.