Over the next few hours, Faye and Eleven's abilities are pushed to the extreme.
First, Kali instructs Eleven to draw an old train carriage to them using only her mind. The largest object Faye has ever seen Eleven move was the Hawkins Lab van she flipped in mid-air last year. This carriage is easily three times the size. Faye watches as Eleven extends her arm towards the train and concentrates hard. There is a loud creaking sound and the carriage wobbles, but doesn't move. Eleven's arm shakes as she focuses, unblinking, on her target. The creaking gets louder and for a split second one end of the train lifts a few inches off the ground before slamming down again.
"I can't," Eleven pants. Faye puts a hand on her back.
"Last night you told me you lifted a van once," says Kali.
Eleven nods "Yes."
"The bad men were trying to take you away again and that made you angry. Find that anger, focus on that, not the train," Kali guides.
Faye smiles at her "You can do it."
Eleven lifts her arm and tries again. Kali advises her to think of something which makes her angry, and to channel the anger. Eleven grits her teeth and blood begins to seep from her nostril- whatever memory she is using, it works. Sparks erupt from the wheels of the carriage as it slowly begins to drag along the ground towards them. All the while, Kali encourages her; feeding Eleven's anger, reminding her of everything she has suffered. The train gets faster and Eleven lets out a high-pitched scream. Only when the carriage is a few feet in front of them does she finally let go, collapsing to her knees in exhaustion. Faye grabs her before she can hit the ground and Eleven slumps into her arms. The rest of the gang cheer and applaud from the sidelines.
"Well done Jane," Kali smiles.
Faye pulls Eleven back onto her feet, keeping an arm around her waist to steady her. Kali turns to Faye.
"Your turn."
One by one, Kali asks Faye to read each of their minds. It quickly becomes clear that the better Faye knows someone, the easier it is to establish a connection. With Eleven it is hardly any effort at all, but with Kali's companions (whom she has known less than 24 hours) it is incredibly strenuous. Particularly when they resist her. Axel initially refuses, stating "No way is that little punk getting in my head!" A few stern words from Kali and he relents, but Faye is pretty sure he still tries to throw her off as his mind is choppy and distorted.
"No-one is going to offer up their thoughts willingly," says Kali "You must break through their barriers, make it so that they can't shut you out."
Faye dabs at the blood streaming from her nose "How?"
"The same way Jane did. Find something that makes you angry and use that anger. Allow it to flow through you, to give you strength."
Faye doesn't really understand what Kali means, how can anger give a person strength? But she is aware of everyone watching her and feels like she has to at least try. She replaces her hands on Axel's temples and closes her eyes. Faye casts her mind back to the times she has felt truly incensed: yelling at Eleven after Will's body was pulled from the quarry, watching the monster take control of Will at the hospital, learning what the scientists did to her mom. She replays each of these events over and over again in her head, each time rekindling her fury. Once the anger is bubbling hotly in her stomach, she redirects her attention to Axel's thoughts, attempting to push through his defenses- but now it seems to be even harder. If anything, her anger is distracting her not helping her.
"Ow, get off!" Axel knocks her arms away "You're digging your nails into my skull you little-"
"Axel!" Kali snaps. She puts her hands on Faye's shoulders "Don't worry, you'll get there. Jane and I have been practicing our whole lives, you're still new at this."
Faye can only nod in response, too out of breath to speak. Eleven hands her a tissue and she pinches the bridge of her nose to stop the bleeding. The group gather around a wall plastered with yet more newspaper cuttings (it's a wonder the entire building hasn't gone up in flames yet), all of which feature large black and white photographs. Kali asks Eleven whether she knows any of the people pictured and Eleven points to a middle-aged bald man. She pulls the cutting off the wall and scowls at it.
"He hurt mama."
"His name is Ray Carroll, and he did more than hurt your mother," says Kali.
Faye suddenly remembers an image from Kali's memories of a man who looked similar to Ray and a young girl with dark hair. It wasn't a clear image, but whatever the man was doing it made the girl scream in agony. It doesn't take long for Eleven to locate Ray with her mind and in the blink of an eye everyone is on their feet, marching around and gathering supplies. It all looks very systematic, as if they have done this many times before. Faye swallows thickly when she sees Axel retrieve a loaded gun from the closet and slips her hand into her pocket to make sure the knife is still there. Dottie ushers Faye and Eleven upstairs and begins circling them, her eyes shifting up and down as she goes.
"Um, what are you doing?" Faye asks.
Dottie grins "If you wanna come out with us, you gotta look the part."
She begins rifling through a chest of drawers and selects several items of clothing, handing a pile each to Faye and Eleven. Faye's consists of a black skirt and tights, grey shirt and patched denim jacket. It's not the sort of thing Faye would usually wear, but her appearance isn't high on her list of priorities at the moment. Once they are changed, Dottie goes to take their old clothing but Faye quickly snatches back Will's sweater and ties it around her waist. Dottie grabs her arm and sits her down, then proceeds to apply makeup to Faye's face and brush out her hair. Faye winces as the bristles twist and yank the strands, wondering whether Dottie is trying to pull her hair out altogether. When she is finished, Dottie holds up an old mirror and Faye hardly recognizes herself. Her eyes are rimmed with thick black eyeliner- extending out into a winged effect- and her lips are a deep red. More than anything she looks older- with this makeup, she could easily pass as Nancy's twin rather than Mike's.
Once Dottie has worked her magic on Eleven (who now has slicked-back hair and dark eye makeup similar to Faye's), the group head outside and Axel reveals an old van hidden under a sheet of tarp. While the others prep the vehicle, Faye walks up beside Eleven.
"What are we doing?" she whispers.
Eleven's expression is determined "We're making the bad man pay."
Faye turns to her "And by pay you mean kill?"
Eleven doesn't respond to this and Faye steps in front of her "You really want to go out and kill someone?"
"I've done it before."
"When you were forced," Faye points out "This is different. This is murder." Faye feels herself start to panic as she says the word "Taking someone's life deliberately, without provocation!"
"He hurt mama," Eleven snaps.
"I know and that was wrong. I'm angry too, but..." Faye looks Eleven directly in the eye "This isn't right. This isn't us. We're not like them."
"Yes we are."
"No we're not! We have families, we have homes, people who care about us, who protect us!"
Sadness creeps into Eleven's face "You do."
"So do you!" Faye insists "You have us! Me, Will, Dustin, Lucas, Chief Hopper... Mike."
Eleven's lip starts to tremble at the mention of his name. Faye stares at her imploringly "I saw him in my mind last night. He wants you to come home, for us both to come home."
There is a pause and the determination is slipping from Eleven's face when Kali calls out to them "Jane! Faye! Time to go!"
The two girls look at each other before slowly walking over to the van. It's a tight squeeze and Faye ends up stuck in a corner next to Dottie. The journey has to be the most unpleasant of Faye's entire life; the nerves make her nauseous and the stench of cigarette smoke almost pushes her over the edge. Eventually she is forced to pull the collar of her jacket over her nose, fighting the urge to vomit. All the while, the others are blasting music and Dottie's hair keeps flicking into Faye's face from her headbanging. Kali grabs a bag from under one of the seats and hands out some cheap-looking Halloween masks. After about 45 minutes, they stop at a gas station and Faye is out of the van the second it comes to a halt. She vows never to take fresh air for granted again.
"What are we doing?" Eleven asks.
"Stocking up," answers Kali.
Faye narrows her eyes at the older girl. Are they going to rob the gas station? As far as she's aware, the only money they have is locked in a safe back at the warehouse. The others head inside and Eleven turns around at the door.
"Faye?"
Faye shakes her head "No fucking way. You do what you want, but I'm not going in there."
Eleven hesitates for a moment before following the others. Faye leans against the side of the van and exhales deeply. How did she end up here? A few days ago, she was Trick or Treating with her friends and everything was normal. Now she's miles from home with people she hardly knows (dangerous people, at that), on their way to kill someone. Faye almost doesn't believe it- like everything that's happened since the day on the field is one long nightmare she can't wake up from. Faye's heart clenches. She has tried so hard not to think about it. Ever since she left Hawkins she has put what happened with Will to the back of her mind, she hasn't even told Eleven. But she can't hide from it anymore. What would Will say if he could see her now? See what she's become. A runaway. A thief. An accessory to murder... It is only now that Faye realizes she broke her promise. She promised Will she would get him out, stop the monster from taking over him. But she didn't. She left. She abandoned him. And Mike. And everyone. Faye clasps her hands over her face.
She has to get out of here. To go home.
Faye considers her options. She could find a phone and call her mom, but that would bring up too many questions. She could turn on the tears and get someone to feel sorry for her and give her a ride to the bus station. That could work. She'd have to lose Kali and the others first, something tells her they won't just let her walk away. But she can't go without Eleven- she won't abandon her, too.
The sound of approaching sirens interrupts her thoughts and the door to the gas station suddenly bursts open. They all pile back into the van (which is now even more crowded thanks to the stolen goods) and tear down the street. Miraculously, they manage to outrun the police and are soon back on the road to Ray Carroll's residence. Faye feels somewhat calmer now that she has a plan. She just needs to get Eleven alone first. By the time they pull up outside the nondescript apartment block, it's already dark. Kali asks Eleven to confirm that Ray is inside, which she does. The group then don their Halloween masks and make their way to the front door.
Faye's heart is pounding as they tiptoe up the stairs. To her knowledge, her own house has never been broken into, but the thought has always scared her- never in a million years did she think she'd be the one doing the breaking. Eleven unlocks the door and they step inside. Ray is in the living room, bending over the TV set with his back to them. They creep through the kitchen and come to a stop behind him.
"Hello Ray," says Kali.
Ray spins round in alarm and his eyes widen with panic. "Jesus Christ!" he exclaims, attempting to make a break for the door, but Funshine blocks his path.
"Sit down," Funshine growls, throwing Ray into a chair when he doesn't comply. Faye fidgets uncomfortably.
"Please, just take what you want," Ray squeaks.
"Oh, we will," says Axel.
"Where's your wallet?" asks Dottie.
"My bedroom, in my jeans," Ray stutters.
Dottie and Axel disappear down the hall and Kali walks across the room towards shaking Ray. She removes her mask, gesturing for Eleven to do the same. Faye lingers anxiously in the doorway.
"Do you remember us?" asks Kali.
Ray shakes his head. As Faye watches him, her vision suddenly becomes blurred and she grabs onto a sideboard to steady herself. For a moment, she thinks she is going to pass out, and then an image of two young girls flashes in her mind. They are crouched in a corner, crying and holding each other's hands. Faye has never seen them before, but the image is crystal clear- as if they are right in front of her. As quickly as it appeared, the vision is gone and Faye has to take her mask off to wipe the blood from her nose. She accidentally knocks over a photograph on the sideboard and as she reaches for it, she sees the same two little girls in the frame. Faye glances at Ray and the realization hits. She just saw into Ray's mind... without physical contact. Without even having to try. The two little girls must be his daughters.
Without warning, Ray's body flies across the room and smashes into the wall in front of her. Faye springs out of the way and looks up to see Eleven's arm outstretched, blood dripping from her nostril. A gaping wound has opened on Ray's forehead and he sobs quietly.
"Please, I just did what he told me to do. He said she was sick!"
Kali shakes her head "You had a choice Ray, and you chose to follow a man you knew was evil."
"Please!" Ray begs "I can help. I can help you find him."
"Find who?" asks Kali.
"Brenner. I can take you to him."
Eleven grits her teeth "Papa is gone."
"No, he is alive," says Ray.
Faye stares at Ray and once again an image flashes into her mind, this time of Dr. Brenner.
"Do not lie to us Ray," Kali threatens.
"He's not lying," Faye asserts. The others turn to her "I can see it."
Kali glares at Faye, as if she doesn't trust her. Eleven looks torn between anger and fear.
"Either way, it won't save you," Kali announces as Ray dissolves into tears "Do it Jane."
Faye steps forward "El no-"
"Stay back!" Kali bites "Do it!"
Faye pulls the knife out of her pocket.