*** Be warned: The following contains spoilers for Stranger Things Season 5 Volume 1. Don't venture any further unless you've seen all four episodes released so far ***
The Stranger Things rabbit hole seems to go so deep that we could find ourselves in the Upside Down trying to reach its bottom. Season 5 Volume 1 is finally here, and it creates no shortage of unnerving mysteries for audiences to try to uncover, such as: What is this new "Kryptonite" that's able to incapacitate Eleven in a heartbeat? Why does Vecna need to kidnap 12 kids to execute his master plan? And why does Will Byers have powers all of a sudden? There are many lingering questions begging to be answered, but few of them are as intriguing as the true meaning behind one strange and desolate cave.
Back in Stranger Things Season 4, Henry Creel was introduced as the big bad of the show, responsible for all the tragedies befalling the quiet town of Hawkins. It was revealed that he took control of the Upside Down's hive mind, shaping it into the Mind Flayer and using it to give orders to all of the creatures connected to it. There's no humanity left in this monster who has been pulling the strings from the very beginning and won't stop until he conquers mankind as a whole. So why, then, is he scared of a cave that exists only in a memory?
Before we solve this riddle, it's important to note that we'll discuss potential spoilers for Stranger Things Season 5 Volume 2. Furthermore, we'll also break down some story tidbits from Stranger Things: First Shadow. So if you prefer to wait until the next batch of episodes to uncover the mystery, consider this a final warning. Otherwise, let's dive right into it.
The Cave is where Henry Creel first traveled to the Upside Down
Stranger Things Season 4 led us to believe that Henry Creel was always a troubled and disturbed child who was born with psychic powers. However, that's far from being the truth. Furthermore, the series suggested that the first time he ever traveled to the Upside Down was as an adult, when Eleven used her powers to imprison him there. This was also a misdirection that kept audiences from figuring out the truth.
See, the stage play Stranger Things: The First Shadow revealed that Captain Brenner (a.k.a. Brenner Sr.) was among the first to ever travel to the Upside Down back in 1943 when attempting to create a naval ship that could sustain a force field, rendering it invisible. While in the strange realm, Demogorgons attacked the ship's crew and killed everyone but Brenner Sr., who was able to return to the real world after the altercation. He wouldn't be back for long, though, as he soon met his end, but not before telling his son about this mysterious new place called Dimension X.
From that very moment, it became Martin Brenner's personal mission to go back to the strange place that was directly responsible for the death of his father and uncover what really happened. Martin almost had success, as he founded the Nevada Experiments, and his team created the necessary equipment to open a gate to Dimension X once again. There was only one problem: One of his men was an undercover Soviet Spy who stole the equipment before it could be activated and took it to a cave near the laboratory.
Before the Creel family moved to Hawkins, they lived in Nevada, and by a stroke of luck, Henry managed to stumble upon the very same cave where the Soviet Spy was hiding. Henry accidentally activated the equipment stolen from Martin Brenner and traveled to Dimension X for the very first time in his life. It was there that the Mind Flayer corrupted him and potentially gave him psychic powers. When Henry managed to return to the real world, he was a completely different person.
See, Stranger Things: The First Shadow revealed that the Mind Flayer is the true big bad of this story. Henry Creel/Vecna has simply been doing the creature's bidding. That's the reason why Will Byers actor Noah Schnapp revealed that Vecna is "lowkey" the most misunderstood villain of the series, as the character is simply under the Mind Flayer's control.
The cave that Henry Creel sees in his memories (and where Max Mayfield lives) is the very same place where he first stumbled upon the equipment that transported him to the Upside Down. This is where the nightmare first began. Henry's human side is terrified of this cave because that's when his life changed for the worse. From that very moment, he became a murderous machine that answers to a higher being. The cave represents the very moment Henry lost his humanity.
Of course, we'll have to wait until Stranger Things Season 5 Volume 2 gives us some concrete answers. But, for the time being, it seems Stranger Things: First Shadow has already spilled the tea.
Stranger Things Season 5 Volume 2 will be released on December 25 on Netflix.