We return to the aftermath of the attack and to the revelation of Will’s strength, echoing Vecna’s own words. Mike hugs him: “You’re the Sorcerer.” But the moment lasts less than five minutes. Will states the obvious: Vecna has all twelve children. They failed. There was no victory to celebrate.

They have to run.

The children wake up inside Vecna’s fantasy house, unaware that they’re being manipulated. Holly is with them, pretending she knows nothing.

At the military base, Dr. Kay discovers that Kali escaped with Eleven and Hopper. But there’s a problem: Eleven starts to suspect that Hopper is planning to sacrifice himself to save everyone — and she refuses to accept that. As if that weren’t enough, Hopper and Kali don’t trust each other.

Will finds Lucas injured in the tunnel. Even so, Lucas — like Mike — gets excited about Will being the Mage. He shares his theory: Hawkins ends on November 6. In other words, the very next day. Joyce convinces Will to try entering Vecna’s mind to locate him. Her argument is simple and precise: the villain underestimated her son.

In the Upside Down, Nancy, Jonathan, Steve, and Dustin try to figure out how to destroy that reality. Dustin offers a theory inspired by Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. The tension among them thickens the air. So much so that, when they’re alone, Steve and Dustin come to blows. Steve speaks badly of Eddie, and Dustin snaps, refusing to criticize the friend who gave his life for him. They split up. By chance, Dustin finds the lab notes.

Holly breaks her promise not to talk to Max again — and discovers Vecna’s final plan: to merge the two dimensions in Hawkins. They’re interrupted by Derek, who follows Holly and wants to help. And he does: he distracts Henry while they escape.

Joyce’s plan doesn’t convince anyone, but it’s all they have for now. Will will try to enter Vecna’s mind. Lucas and Erica set other plans in motion, in parallel. Joyce decides to bet on everything at once.

Kali and Eleven talk, but Kali is blunt: they’re not going to succeed. And she explains why. Dr. Kay wants to restart the project that created them. But only one of them is like Vecna: Eleven. That’s why Kay won’t stop until she captures her.

Derek helps Holly escape while Will prepares to enter Vecna’s mind. To do that, they need to find Holly’s first memory with Henry. They move through places and moments from the past. The problem is that Vecna realizes Derek is helping Max and Holly, and terrorizes the boy, threatening to kill his entire family. Holly and Max walk through memories belonging to both her and Vecna, all saturated with violence.

Alone with Robin, Will thanks her for their conversation and asks how she managed to “accept herself.” Robin surprises him by saying it happened after talking to Steve, back in season three. And that it was a relief.

Reading the lab notes, Dustin uncovers the truth: there isn’t exactly an Upside Down — there’s a bridge to another dimension. The problem is that Nancy and Jonathan — also at odds with each other — are standing right in front of the energy source and don’t hear Dustin’s warnings not to touch anything.

They hesitate.

Nancy fires.

Uh-oh.