This article contains spoilers for Stranger Things season 4.
Stranger Things season 4 featured flashbacks to Eleven's time at Hawkins Lab, but Kali - aka Eight - was surprisingly absent. Eleven's time at Hawkins Lab was hardly pleasant, but Stranger Things season 4 revealed it wasn't quite as isolated as it had often seemed. Flashbacks revealed Eleven had studied alongside other children who shared her talents, although none were quite as powerful as she was.
The idea of other numbered Hawkins children isn't exactly new. Stranger Things season 2 featured a notable subplot in which Eleven tracked down Eight, who now called herself Kali and acted as something of a gang leader. Kali possessed very different powers, with a remarkable ability to project illusions into the minds of others. The two briefly allied together, with Kali helping Eleven gain more mastery of her own powers before they parted ways.
Surprisingly, Kali was absent from Stranger Things season 4's Hawkins Lab flashbacks. There's a simple reason for this; Dr. Brenner was controlling the flow of Eleven's memories through the Nina Project, and he was focusing on events shortly before Eleven broke out in Stranger Things season 1. Kali had herself escaped years ago, using her illusion powers to fool the guards and slip past them. Her absence was clearly felt by the rest of the children, though, because Dr. Martin Brenner still referred to her while training the others.
Stranger Things season 2 seemed to suggest every one of the Hawkins children possessed different powers, but the flashbacks in Stranger Things season 4 revealed that wasn't the case. Instead, Eleven possesses what can be considered the standard Hawkins powerset, albeit at a more powerful level. Kali was the exception, not the norm, which explains why she was able to escape; the guards were used to dealing with telekinesis and telepathy, not illusion-casting. Kali was something of an anomaly, perhaps indicating that the circumstances of the so-called "Lost Sister"'s creation were somehow unusual.
Stranger Things season 2 inspired a wide range of tie-ins exploring the stories of the other Hawkins children, but season 4 effectively renders them non-canon. It's interesting to speculate whether Kali would have survived One's rampage had she stayed at Hawkins Lab; it likely depends on whether she'd kept her illusion-casting secret from him because if so, it could have given her an edge. Unfortunately, One seemed unusually perceptive and skilled at planning, and it's unlikely he would have allowed her to conceal her true powers. There's certainly no way Kali could have done what Eleven managed to do - defeating One and casting him into the Upside-Down. As Eleven realized when she went through the Nina Project in Stranger Things season 4, she was the only one who could possibly defeat One.
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