As the fifth episode of Stranger Things' fifth season unfolds, we find ourselves back at the military compound, where Will's powers have unleashed a frenzy, obliterating the Demogorgons. With his newfound abilities, Will is plunged into despair, realizing that Vecna has all twelve children in his clutches. Helicopters hover overhead, surveying the mayhem in Hawkins, as the group races into the tunnels. Lucas, though slashed off-screen by a Demogorgon, emerges unscathed.
With Will and the gang tending to his wounds, we delve deeper into what he can do: unlike a perpetual powerhouse, Will functions more like Rogue from the X-Men, siphoning Vecna's energies and channeling them to steal Henry's abilities. But this feat requires him to be in close proximity to the hive mind. Joyce poses the intriguing question of whether there's a way to hack into the hive mind and use Vecna's powers against him.
Meanwhile, Derek is among the kidnapped kids, who find themselves awakening inside Vecna's realm with Holly. Henry, having journeyed far from their world, has discovered a land free of monsters: "the light." He explains that a darkness is spreading across the world and that it will soon be too late to stop it, but he's found a way to defeat it. Henry wants to work with the kids, drawing this new world to theirs, which will in turn expel the darkness.
Holly seizes an opportunity to sneak away and relays this information to Max. However, Derek follows, eager to be part of the group. In the end, Holly and Max decide to use Derek as bait, luring him over to the cave so Henry will follow. Max believes that once they find the first memory of Holly, they can follow the trail to the night Vecna captured her and the exit should be there.
Elsewhere, Dr. Kay examines Number 8, Kali, and realizes it's a mirage. She's been busted out and is currently en-route across the Upside Down with El and Hopper.
Eleven's brow furrowed as she realized Hopper's impending demise was yet another failure-safe measure. She explained that it was a last-ditch effort to ensure the worst-case scenario was mitigated. Meanwhile, El desired to harness Kali's powers and channel them together to vanquish Vecna once and for all. Kali divulged her ordeal within the lab, detailing her failed escape attempt. As she was making her way out, she stumbled upon the soldiers conducting gruesome experiments, injecting her blood into unborn fetuses to create new military weapons. The number of victims was incalculable, but it was clear that this secret government program aimed to reanimate what Papa had achieved years ago. Their ultimate goal, however, was to capture Eleven, the purest of them all, the closest they had to a match for Vecna's power.
As Dustin and his friends traversed the Upside Down en route to Hawkins Lab, they held the belief that a magical shield generator existed in this region. If they could find it, they might be able to destroy the walls within the Upside Down that were trapping Holly and the kids. Upon reaching the Lab, the gang split up to cover more ground. Steve and Dustin clashed over their plan and Dustin's admiration for Eddie, leading to a heated argument. However, in their bickering, Dustin stumbled upon a large office filled with important trinkets, including Brenner's diary.
Back in Hawkins, Joyce and the gang arrived at the radio shack, where Murray and Robin were also present after surviving their attack by the Demogorgon. They bickered and tried to come up with a solution but eventually opted for a meal when Murray suggested regrouping. Erika decided she wanted Mr. Clarke involved, using his scientific mind, while Lucas believed they should use the same tactics as with Billy - heating him up until the Hive Mind was activated, allowing Will to connect and find Vecna.
Robin and Will set to work constructing an antenna at the top of the radio shack. Once completed, Will and the group used the Demogorgon corpse as a conduit to channel Will's powers once again. It seemed to work just in time as Vecna had tracked down Holly and Max within the Upside Down. Will used his powers to save Max's life by delaying Vecna and taking control of his body. He instructed them to run, but Henry pushed back, blasting Will down.
As the episode drew to a close, Nancy and Jonathan found the shield generator on the rooftop. As they threw something at the shield, Dustin realized he had made a monumental mistake and scrambled to catch up. He radioed through, warning them not to shoot or go near the energy. Unfortunately, his signal was garbled and nobody heard him. This couldn't have come at a worse time as Nancy raised her shotgun and fired at the energy.
