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For much of the concluding season of *Stranger Things*, the young Holly Wheeler and Max Mayfield are held captive inside a mental fortress built from the recollections of Henry Creel. Their quest for a way out in episode 6 leads them to experience a defining event from Henry's childhood—a discovery that may just hold the key to defeating him for good.

Heads Up: This article details significant events for the concluding episodes.

A Journey Into the Tunnel

When she finds Max in the world called Camazotz, Max reveals she is hiding out in a chamber that Henry is terrified of. An accidental discovery a spyglass taken from Henry's old home lets Holly see that the true terror lies beyond the cave. Matching her view to the cut-out, she and Max plummet into a abandoned tunnel.

In this place, they observe a Henry as a boy encounter an man who is hurt and scared. Attempting assistance, the man panics and shoots, wounding the boy in the hand. Fighting for his life, Henry kills the man with a rock. "Is this what corrupted him?" Holly asks tearfully. It was a factor, but the act involved more than a simple act of survival.

Like many elements in volume 2, the full story behind the mine shaft incident was first explored the stage play Stranger Things: The First Shadow.

An Interdimensional Incident and Secret Science

This backstory explains the infamous Philadelphia Experiment, which transported a vessel into a plane later called the Abyss. The ship was attacked, and the sole survivor was the captain, who emerged in a unresponsive state with an altered blood type.

The captain's son, Martin Brenner, wanted to repeat this experiment in Nevada. One of his scientists pilfered lab samples to hand over to the Soviets, who were eager to begin their version of the tests. This spy in the cavern is that employee.

The Briefcase's Contents

Given what is revealed about Brenner's work, the container almost certainly contained samples of the unique blood type. As shown, Henry is wounded and bleeding. He likely becomes contaminated upon handling the contents, which triggered the development of his psychic abilities—abilities he would later pass on to the children in Hawkins Lab.

Alternatively, the case could have held dark matter that later made its way to the secret facility, where it helps stabilize the Upside Down. The prequel shows that young Henry somehow wound up in the Abyss, returning hours later as a different person. Throughout the play, he fights the whispers of a dark entity, similar to how the character Will was possessed by the Mind Flayer in an earlier season.

Confronting Terror

The reason Henry avoids the cave associated with the mine highlights how profoundly traumatic the incident was for him. While he commands the army of monsters and seeks to merge the Abyss into Hawkins, a part of him lingers. Vecna uses fear, and the series is building toward a climactic battle between him and Will, who has overcome his greatest terrors to gain strength.

Will's growth has effectively disarmed Vecna. More importantly, Will now understands what the monster's own weakness, and this may grant a decisive edge in the endgame conflict that awaits.