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During the bulk of season 5 of the popular Netflix show, the young Holly Wheeler and Max are imprisoned inside a mental fortress forged from the recollections of Henry Creel. Their quest for a way out in episode 6 forces them to relive a traumatic incident from Henry's early years—an event that may just hold the secret to his downfall permanently.

Editor's Note: The following contains major spoilers for the second part of the final season.

Unearthing the Secrets of the Tunnel

After locating Max in the world known as Camazotz, it becomes clear she is hiding out in a cave that Henry is terrified of. By leaving the lens cap on a telescope pilfered from Henry's old home allows Holly to realize that the source of fear lies not within the cave. Matching her view to the cut-out, she and Max plummet into a deep mine shaft.

There, they witness a child version of Henry encounter an wounded, fearful individual. When Henry tries to help, the man reacts violently, hitting him in the hand. To protect himself, Henry ends the threat with a rock. "Is this what corrupted him?" Holly wonders aloud. The answer is affirmative, but the act went deeper than a fight for life.

Similar to other plot points in volume 2, the significance of the events in the tunnel originates in the stage play the prequel play.

The Philadelphia Experiment and Secret Science

The play reveals the infamous Philadelphia Experiment, which reportedly teleported a vessel into a realm known as the Abyss. The ship was attacked, and the sole survivor was the ship's commander, who returned in a catatonic condition with an entirely new blood.

This man's son, Martin Brenner, wanted to repeat this phenomenon in the Nevada desert. However, a treacherous employee stole research materials to hand over to the Soviets, who were eager to begin their own interdimensional projects. The man in the mine shaft is that employee.

The Briefcase's Contents

Considering what is known about Brenner's work, the briefcase almost certainly contained vials of Captain Brenner's infected blood. At that moment, Henry is wounded and bleeding. Exposure likely occurred upon opening the case, leading to the origin of his telekinetic gifts—powers he would later pass on to the children in Hawkins Lab.

A second theory, the container could have held strange particles that later made its way to the secret facility, where it acts to anchor the Upside Down. The stage play explains that the boy somehow wound up in the Abyss, reappearing hours later as a different person. From then on, he struggles with the influence of a malevolent force, similar to how the character Will was influenced by the Mind Flayer in an earlier season.

Confronting Terror

Henry's enduring terror of that cave demonstrates how deeply scarring the encounter was for him. While he orchestrates the Hive Mind and seeks to merge the Abyss into Hawkins, a part of him remains. The villain weaponizes terror, and the show is setting up a showdown between Vecna and Will, who has deliberately faced his own deepest fears to become stronger.

His confrontation has effectively disarmed Vecna. Furthermore, Will now knows what Vecna himself fears, which could provide a decisive edge in the endgame conflict that awaits.