Ten minutes after the fake body explosion at the Hawkins Morgue, Dr. Martin Brennan at the Hawkins National Laboratory also received news of a "Masked Girl" suspected to be Eleven appearing at the morgue's gates. The opponent had used unknown means to deliberately trigger the fake body's self-destruction, publicly exposing the dark secret that the body was a mannequin.
If the means of detonating the fake body were untraceable, then the possibility of the "Masked Girl" being Eleven was extremely high, because only sci-fi-esque superpowers would make the whole thing seem untraceable from a normal perspective.
Eleven's appearance filled Dr. Brennan's eyes with joy. He didn't even care about the impact the fake body's exposure would have on the credibility of The Lab and the state government, nor did he care how much the federal agents assisting The Lab in hunting Eleven were harmed by her appearance; he only cared about Eleven.
"Agent Frazier, please lead your team again as soon as your injuries are treated. You must bring Eleven back to me before dawn tomorrow. I Will also participate in this capture operation," Dr. Brennan said over the phone. "No matter who is deceiving her now or who she is hanging out with, as long as I personally go to invite her, she Will definitely return to my side."
Dr. Brennan was still being self-righteous, firmly believing that Eleven needed him, that she was attached to him, and that only he could fully develop her talents. Because he was Eleven's Papa, the "relative" who gave her an embrace after every instance of pain!
..."Kid, do you have any idea what you're doing!?" Chief Hopper flew into a rage after returning home, nearly shouting right in Richard's face. "How could you let Eleven appear in such a public place and even let the news media capture her image?"
"At least she was masked." Richard shrugged. "And this is exactly the effect I wanted—to make people notice Eleven's existence. I want the people from The Lab to come looking for us."
Hearing this, Chief Hopper immediately guessed: "You have a countermeasure?"
"Exposing the truth of the fake body is only the first step of the plan." Richard nodded and explained, "After this, we'll split into two groups. One group Will go to The Lab and enter The Upside Down through the gate there to save people. The other group Will accompany Eleven to evade The Lab's pursuit, drawing their people away while preparing to hunt the monster."
"This... this is too dangerous!" Chief Hopper commented in a heavy voice after hearing Richard's plan.
Richard countered, "According to Eleven's observations, that kid who was taken into The Upside Down probably won't last more than two days. And that's in the best-case scenario where he hasn't been caught by the monster. Time is precious; are you really going to wait until the last day to act?"
"Besides, the news of the fake body being exposed has already caused a massive public outcry. The Federal Government must be scrambling right now. We can't give them time to cover their tracks. We need to take this opportunity to get evidence of The Lab's crimes. With both witnesses and physical evidence, those people at The Lab Will never be able to recover," Richard said seriously.
As he spoke, Richard walked toward the wavering Hopper, grabbed his shoulders, and said softly, in a tone like a devil tempting a human to fall, "I can also take this opportunity to destroy all information about Eleven in The Lab, and then give her a new name. How about 'Jane Hopper'? Hey, Chief, you don't want Eleven to be unable to walk in the sunlight forever, do you?"
Chief Hopper's heart trembled, and he wavered instantly. He looked at that young, expectant face and was already imagining his future life as a father to Eleven.
It had to be said that in less than a week of spending time together, Chief Hopper had grown deeply fond of this little girl whose emotions were as pure as a blank sheet of paper. It was precisely her simplicity and kindness that touched him, reminding him of his late daughter. But he also knew that Eleven was different from his daughter; they only overlapped in the attribute of being a daughter. If possible, he truly hoped to adopt Eleven as his own.
His early war experiences had exposed Hopper to a severe chemical gas experiment, which killed many of his comrades. Although he had luckily survived, his body had long since been unknowingly affected by that experiment. This resulted in his offspring being very prone to cancerous genes, which was how his biological daughter had died.
Being as he was, it was almost certain he could no longer have children like a normal person. Perhaps adopting the helpless Eleven was the right choice for his future life; it would also be his redemption.
"OK, how should we split up? What other help do we need?" Hopper's gaze became firm as he looked at the incredible black-haired youth. He chose to believe that the other could bring him beautiful hope.
Richard chuckled and began to explain his plan in detail... "El?" Passing through the living room to get water from the kitchen, Mike suddenly heard the town's news broadcast and became very concerned. As he stepped closer to examine the blurry images on the TV, he recognized the girl in the motorcycle helmet instantly. Whether it was due to sensitivity or because he had been truly lovesick these past few days, having deeply etched Little Eleven's silhouette into his very DNA, Mike knew it was her.
"Sounds crazy. The Federal Government really can't be trusted these days." Unlike Mike's focus, Mike's father, Ted, was clearly more concerned with the core message of the report. "Both bodies were fake, and they even exploded."
"The bodies exploded..." Mike mulled over his father Ted's words, his expression shifting. Suddenly, as if thinking of a possibility, he immediately bolted into the basement.
Ted glanced at his hurried son, his composure remaining as steady as the eternal Andes Mountains as he calmly drank the plain water from the table beside him.
"Emergency, emergency! Anyone receiving this signal, please respond." After reaching the basement, Mike immediately pulled his Walkie-talkie from a drawer, extended the antenna, adjusted the signal, and sent out a call to his friends in their respective homes.
Before long, Will was the first to answer Mike: "Copy that, copy that. This is Will."
Then Dustin and Lucas both replied to Mike one after another.
"What happened? Over." Dustin had just finished dinner and was leisurely stroking his Large Orange Cat.
Mike then told everyone about the news he had seen and his thoughts.
After hearing Mike's account, the other three also realized that the "motorcycle weirdo duo" mentioned in the news was highly unusual and very likely Richard and Eleven themselves.
"Why would they suddenly do that? Isn't it dangerous if they're not careful?" Will expressed his confusion.
Although Lucas's mind was sometimes a bit muddled, he also noticed something strange. He said, "Is it just to expose the truth about the bodies and then guide public opinion? But wouldn't that just attract the people from The Lab? They've finally found Eleven's whereabouts."
At Lucas's words, everyone's hearts skipped a beat. Wait, what if this was intentional?
Dustin had a bad feeling, but he remained calm and rational as he spoke his mind. "Hey guys, I have a bad feeling. Something is definitely wrong."
"Obviously, we guessed that too," Lucas said, rolling his eyes in his room.
"No, let me finish," Dustin began his analysis. "Assuming the goal was just to expose the fake body conspiracy, Richard and Eleven could have definitely done it in secret without being noticed. With Eleven's powers being so strong, she could have secretly attacked from a distance."
Sitting on the sofa in his basement with the Walkie-talkie in one hand, Mike asked in confusion, "So is there a problem with that?"
"That's the key." Dustin grinned and said, "They could have gone unnoticed, yet they chose to appear so openly before everyone. This means their actions were intentionally meant to be seen. And who did they want to see them?"
Faced with Dustin's meticulous analysis, it all clicked for the others, and they said the name in unison: "The Lab!"
"Exactly!" Dustin clapped his hands on his end and said seriously, "This is Richard and the others actively sending a signal of challenge to The Lab. They're ready to go to war with them!"
"But if they're going to war, why didn't they notify us?" Lucas looked frustrated. "It couldn't be just because they see us as kids, right?"
"Don't doubt it, it is," Dustin enlightened everyone.
Mike took a deep breath and said, "Guys, I think we should do something. What do you think?"
"Agreed!" The three friends laughed together across the airwaves, shouting with wide grins.