Previously on Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D...
Chasing us is a waste of resources, General.
We're the good guys.
What's your assessment of Hartley's people?
They're mercenaries, here for the money.
The enemy has the advantage. We need one of our own.
You risked that for a Quinjet?
For what we can do with one. Disappear.
Fitz said he could engineer cloaking,
but the damage to his temporal lobe was too extensive.
Since Simmons left, he's only getting worse.
Talking to himself more and more.
It's not just an 084. It's the first.
And all Fury knew about was the trail of bodies that follows it.
Hey, Idaho.
Idaho, can you hear me?
Come on, damn it, come on!
Creel's on foot. But he won't be for long.
- Hartley and Idaho? - Dead.
There's no use. It's jammed.
We have to get you out of here.
My leg is pinned. Don't worry about me. There's no time.
Soldiers are coming.
Creel has the damn thing that burned Hartley. You need to get him. Go!
Good luck.
Hands on your head! On your knees!
What the hell was Hunter thinking?
He was trying to save Hartley.
And you're absolutely sure?
They're gone. It was bad, Coulson.
Two agents down, another captured.
This shouldn't have happened.
We got a hit. 911 just picked up a stolen vehicle call
up the road from you.
Older model, red and white pickup.
That's got to be Creel.
May, you're approaching a civilian area without backup.
Do not engage, you copy?
Do you copy?
May, that doesn't sound covert.
I've got him. Closing in.
No, drop back. Do not engage. I repeat, do not engage.
He's not looking. I have a shot.
- Negative! - We can't just let him go, Coulson.
Creel isn't working alone, and I wanna know who he answers to.
Drop back into surveillance mode, now.
That's an order, Agent May!
Yes, sir.
I still can't raise Hunter or Hartley on the comms.
Not surprised. Radio silence on the op is protocol.
Still, Hartley was in pretty bad shape when we left her.
You'd think we'd have heard something by now.
No need to think the worst till it shakes your hand and says, "Hello."
Is that another one of your grandma's sayings?
Fortune cookie. I had some Kung Pao chicken the other night.
Maybe Coulson's heard from them.
We need a complete inventory by the time Agent Koenig returns.
- Food, fuel, and ammo. Understood? - Yes, sir.
You got the Quinjet. Well done.
Thank you, sir.
Any word about Hartley?
Not now.
Let Mack know the jet's here.
I want him reverse-engineering that cloaking hardware right away.
Sooner he does, sooner we get the bus operational again.
Roger that.
Something else?
The item that messed up Hartley's arm?
It had those weird symbols on it. The ones you've had me researching.
The same symbols?
- You sure? - Yes.
They came up out of the object. It reminded me of Braille.
It was like Hartley triggered something by touching it.
What the hell is that thing?
I have no idea. But good work.
"Good work"?
How about, "Holy crap, Skye, we gotta get on that"?
After a month of combing the planet for these things, we finally got a clue...
Right now, we have more important problems.
A five-alarm fire, otherwise known as Lance Hunter.
- Is he... - Captured.
But if he talks, our entire operation's compromised.
We'll have to burn the base and evacuate.
I know. And we just retiled the bathrooms.
Oh, just as I was dropping off to sleep.
Thank you very much.
Excuse me, gents, can I get a glass of
water?
Mr. Hunter. I don't believe we've had the pleasure.
Brigadier General Glenn Talbot.
Looks like you need a lift, soldier.
- So this is cloaking hardware? - Uh-huh.
Let's take a peek under the hood.
Fitz would be crushed if he saw this.
He's been working on cloaking since before Simmons took off.
Still can't believe she abandoned him like that.
She abandoned all of us.
But Fitz has been clinging to his work like a lifeline.
Maybe we shouldn't tell him.
Coulson wants a retro version of this for the bus.
He said that no one knows the avionics on this thing like Fitz.
Think he can handle it?
I don't know. Why don't you ask him?
- Hey, Fitz. - Hey. What's up, man?
How are you?
So, that's the, um...
That's the...
Cloaking. In all its glory.
You know, you weren't that far off. Check out the transmitter core.
Yeah, to negate the resonant, the...
The resonant?
No. Um...
It's okay. Just take your time.
What he's trying to say is,
there's an audio component to cloaking that inverts sound waves.
Like noise-canceling headphones?
- Yeah. Same concept. - Okay.
Think you can give me a hand with this?
Um, under the circumstances... Uh...
Well, the trick is, you would...
The trick would be in the metamaterials.
Uh... Oh, yeah. But you'd have to alter the, um...
Fitz...
Oh, yeah, could everyone just stop talking for one second?
No, sorry. I'm gonna have to go.
It's like sometimes he's the same old Fitz, and other times...
Not.
I'll take your word for it.
In the meantime, I'm still gonna need an extra pair of hands.
Is everyone back from the mission?
Not everyone.
Sierra Leone, three years ago. Ring a bell?
How about Basra, '08? Operation Panther's Claw.
Come on, Lieutenant. Tell me the stories are true.
I'm not a lieutenant anymore, sir.
Why is that, son?
With your record, five commendations for distinguished service?
Merits for basket weaving, pottery. Don't forget those.
Just trying to figure out how a guy like you, one of the SAS's finest,
winds up running with a bunch of mouth-breathing mercs.
Why does any man do anything, General?
I met a girl.
Look, Hunter, I think we're pretty like-minded guys,
so let's not waste each other's time.
You know what I'm after.
Guessing it's not Carl Creel?
Creel's small-time. Think big fish.
Coulson.
He's a vigilante.
A zealot who will risk anything to further his own agenda.
But lucky for you, I've got a senator with very deep pockets that wants him.
So you go ahead. Name your price.
You must be joking.
I don't have a sense of humor.
And if I don't give you Coulson, what?
I go for a swim?
You should know I've been "helped" out of a chopper before, sir.
Coulson broke into a secure government facility.
He let a psychopath on the loose,
sacrificed the lives of his own men, your friends. For what?
Hunter, I'm not here to play bad cop.
I shouldn't have to.
- I want two million. - Done.
And a proper burial.
- Excuse me? - For Hartley.
She's a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent.
She'll be branded a terrorist after what you said on TV.
Probably dumped in a pauper's grave,
her family wondering what happened to her.
They deserve better.
She deserves better. I'll make sure she gets it.
Hmm.
Keep an eye out for this.
I just wanted to report that Mack and Trip are working on cloaking.
So I'm free if you want me back in the field.
That won't be necessary. May's still out there.
What about Hartley and Idaho?
They're not out there, are they?
It was that thing, wasn't it? The object?
It was Creel.
Sir, I need to get back out there and help May take him down.
- No. - She's my S.O.
I'm a field agent now, and I can handle myself.
That's not what this is about.
Then what is it about? The object? The symbols?
Because I can't help if I don't know what's going on.
If you'd like to help, go down to the bunks, pack up Hartley's things.
Okay.
I know you're the boss, and you have to compartmentalize everything.
But it's not healthy.
You need to loosen up.
Try yoga or something.
I tried it, but I'm really not flexible.
But thanks.
We were so close.
If they'd just given us a little bit more time to calculate the object's...
Refractive index, yeah.
That's the problem these days. Everyone needs answers immediately.
No one has any patience anymore.
Yeah.
I bet they're relishing the fact that we couldn't crack the cloaking device.
Don't be silly, Fitz.
Everyone here knows how valuable you are to the team.
Well, they avoid me like the plague.
They do not.
They just have their own problems right now.
Oh, yeah. The Creel business.
In fact, perhaps they need our assistance
if they're looking for a way to neutralize Creel's ability.
No one has our experience with Gifteds.
Of course, we can't just hijack the project from them.
That would shatter their confidence.
- Yeah, no. Do not wanna do that. - No.
- Or do we? - Fitz.
Yeah, no. No. Stupid, silly idea. I don't know why I...
Hey. Look!
There's a whole packet of research they just left laying about,
all willy-nilly for anyone to see.
It's Creel's DNA results.
Interesting! Shall we see what we can do with these?
Yes, we shall, Simmons.
Yes, we shall.
You all good, hon? Are you still waiting on a friend?
Yeah, I'm still waiting.
All right, then, no hurry. Here, let me clear that. Excuse me.
I'm sorry. I think I got a shock.
Static electricity or something.
What's the status on Creel?
He's been in there for over an hour.
Either he's waiting for a drop, or he's getting drunk off his ass.
Something's happening, Coulson. I'm going in.
Everybody, get back!
I don't know what happened! All she did was touch the guy.
Then he took off.
- Help me. - Hang on.
All the woman did was touch his arm.
We know that Creel absorbs the properties of whatever he touches.
He must've absorbed the Obelisk and its deadly powers.
But why hurt a waitress?
I don't think it was intentional.
You're saying he's losing control?
He had some control issues when S.H.I.E.L.D. first came across him.
If that's what's happening, anyone near him is at risk.
I should've engaged when I had the chance.
Then you'd be dead, too. If this is on anyone...
Just because you're Director, doesn't mean everything's on you, Phil.
Yes, it does. Go dark. Get back when you can.
Now what?
Nice ride. Some rich guy loan it to you?
Yeah, something like that. Shame about the rims, though, eh?
Yeah. Probably cost a grand each.
- At least. - Mmm.
This isn't a friendly stop, is it?
Nope. Hands on the car.
How the hell did you lose him?
Why haven't you got every agent out there looking for Creel right now?
You think you're entitled to answers?
He killed two of my friends. I think that's entitlement enough.
- Well, it's not. - You should've aborted the mission.
Hartley should've followed my orders.
Yeah, well, she tried to.
Izzy's only mistake was listening to me.
Is that why you came back?
Guilt? A desire for revenge?
Or was it because of what Talbot promised you?
All of the above.
So you took the deal?
I have 48 hours to deliver you.
Or else you're a dead man.
Words to that effect, yeah.
Talbot. And you didn't give him our location?
Don't get me wrong, I thought about it.
He put a four-man detail on me. Took three hours to shake them.
I could've led them right to your door.
So kind of you to reconsider.
And in exchange for me, you get what exactly?
A proper burial for Isabelle Hartley.
I wanted to make sure her record was cleared,
that her family were properly notified.
Really? That's all?
Look, between you and Talbot, I know you'll get to Creel first.
He's the only thing I want.
Well, that and the money you owe me.
You're kidding, right? 'Cause sometimes I can't tell.
Mmm, no, I'm not. I want my pay.
And not just mine, either. I want Hartley's and Idaho's, too.
Okay, now you're kidding.
It's for their families.
I think they deserve something for their loss, don't you think?
I'll take care of it.
Good. Once we have Creel, I'll be in the wind.
Or three sheets to it.
Why are they going the biochemical route?
They're using an adenovirus vector to counter Creel's ability.
Yeah. Well, it's pointless, really, since the injected, um...
Injected vector will never bind to his cellular membranes.
Yeah. So, well, then they'd have to find a way to destabilize the...
The molecular structure of Creel's epidermal cells, yeah.
Destabilize!
Oh...
I... I didn't solve this today.
Who are you talking to?
- What? No one. - Me.
Yeah, you like talking to yourself. It's cool. Lot of people do.
You know, I like singing in the shower.
Yeah, I know, it's not really the same thing
but I wouldn't want anyone to hear it.
What do you want?
For cloaking, were you thinking about putting it under avionics or...
Enough about cloaking. I'm busy with something.
Sounds like you're just blowing me off. You wanna be alone? That's cool.
You know, I think I like him. He's honest.
Blunt, I'd say.
I call them like I see them.
No, he doesn't talk to you like the others.
It's quite refreshing, actually.
Yo, Fitz.
Your mind go wandering again?
- What? No. - See?
What do you got there?
This is just...
Go ahead and show him. What harm would it do?
Does it have something to do with stopping Creel?
Yeah. I think.
I think that we're...
I have...
I didn't solve this today.
You think you can?
Izzy's sister, Jane.
Her favorite person in the world. After me, of course.
Looks like they liked each other.
Yeah. Those two, when they got together,
there was a lot laughs and bottles of wine.
Izzy was good when it came to family.
Which is why I'm taking this.
Belonged to their mum.
Died of breast cancer about five years back.
Jane has it now, too.
That's awful.
Yeah. Life can be a mean drunk that way.
Never knows when to stop punching.
How'd you guys meet?
Through my psychotic ex-wife.
Mmm-hmm.
Those two were good friends back in the day.
I'm really sorry.
Tough to lose people you care about.
Secret to that? Don't get attached.
Tried that. Didn't work.
For you either.
You know, you remind me a bit of Izzy.
- Raw but sharp. You got skills. - Mmm.
Type that could earn you some real money in the private sector.
As a mercenary? Yeah, I don't think so.
We prefer the term "private military contractors."
Don't knock it. Everyone needs an exit strategy eventually.
Not me. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s my life now.
S.H.I.E.L.D. isn't a life.
It's just a job. Means to an end.
Remember that.
You hear anything more about Creel, let me know.
Who's this?
Good evening, Mr. Creel. We've been trying to reach you.
Where the hell were you? I waited at the drop site for an hour.
Calm down, Mr. Creel. There's no need to panic.
We're being cautious now that S.H.I.E.L.D. is a factor.
Forget them. I got a real problem. That thing really messed me up.
I turned to rubber when I touched it.
Thought that it would protect me, but it infected me, too.
We're well aware of your condition.
But believe me when I say
that Mr. Whitehall wouldn't have selected you for this job
if you weren't capable of completing it.
You don't know what it's doing to me. I can't keep it off.
Once we have the Obelisk,
you will be taken care of, the way HYDRA has always taken care of you.
Please proceed to the secondary drop site
and I shall meet you at the appropriate time. Good night.
Hello?
What? What are you looking at?
Leave them alone, Mr. Creel.
We have far more important things to discuss.
I know you from somewhere?
My name is Raina.
And I'm a huge admirer of yours and your gifts.
Beat it, lady, I'm not into groupies.
You misunderstand.
I know you recently acquired something extremely precious and rare.
Something I'm very interested in.
Whatever you're offering, it ain't enough.
Maybe not.
But aren't you the least bit curious as to what it might be?
It's called carbyne. An allotrope of carbon found in stardust.
Three times harder than diamond.
With an added bonus.
It can store energy.
Beautiful, isn't it?
So filled with potential.
Am I supposed to be impressed?
I'll settle for interested.
You have no idea who you're dealing with, lady.
You ever hear of HYDRA?
Name rings a bell.
Let me give you a tip. Run.
'Cause if the guy I'm working for gets a hold of you,
I'd hate to see what he's gonna do to that pretty little face of yours.
Looks like you need some help there, Mr. Creel.
I'm not the one who needs help, lady.
You do if you touched the Obelisk.
I'll tell you what. I'm gonna do you a solid and not tell my boss about you.
What about the carbyne?
It's the cost of doing business.
He couldn't have gone far.
Local authorities have his description. Road blocks are up.
Talbot's people are still out there.
Why was Creel at the bar?
He was waiting for someone.
We just don't know if that person ever showed.
We need a solve for Creel's powers and we need it yesterday.
- How's the lab coming? - Nothing yet.
You remember that encrypted HYDRA frequency we shut down?
Well, it's back up.
Someone sent a message.
A message for us with a phone number to call.
Yeah, it could be Creel.
Creel? A phone number? What, is he lonely?
I doubt it, the guy's jacked.
And he can turn any body part into any material.
- Okay, thank you for that. - Mmm-hmm.
- Call the number. - Okay.
- Hello? - Who is this?
Agent Coulson! I'm glad you got my message.
Raina! As I live and breathe.
Been a while since we've spoken.
I'm kind of in the middle of a manhunt. Can we make this quick?
Why? You need time to trace this call, don't you?
I take it then you haven't tracked down Mr. Creel or the item he stole?
What do you know about that?
I know HYDRA's about to get their hands on it.
Congratulations.
Let me be clear.
Mr. Creel is working for HYDRA, I am not.
Why the breakup? Bad dental plan?
HYDRA only has one thing on their minds. World domination.
Which is so 1945.
What do you want, Raina?
It's what I don't want.
Which is the Obelisk falling into the hands of people
who don't understand it.
I'm thinking you might.
And I'm thinking you're gonna tell me why.
John Garrett understood it.
The moment he was injected with the same drug that saved you,
he had visions.
He started carving those visions into the walls.
Garrett was a madman.
Garrett was enlightened.
He witnessed our fate. What we become.
Have you?
You're not calling to talk about fate. You want us to catch Creel.
You read my mind, Agent Coulson.
Truth is, Mr. Creel stole something from me.
Fortunately, for the both of us, it has an embedded tracker.
But you'd better hurry. He's growing less stable by the second.
The moment that tracker's frequency comes through,
I want everyone on the move.
If Creel's handing off the item to HYDRA,
we need to see where that leads.
What if Creel melts down again?
The lab hasn't figured out how to shut down his powers yet.
If he's an immediate threat to civilians, Trip's got the backup plan.
What kind of backup plan?
The heavy-duty kind. With armor-piercing rounds.
Will that work?
We get close enough to him, catch him off guard.
Hopefully we won't have to find out.
Where do you want me?
That depends. Can you follow an order?
Absolutely, sir.
Because part of me wants you here running backend.
The other part knows we need boots on the ground,
and I've only got a few good pairs.
I'll be good. Scout's honor.
Please, sir. I owe Hartley one.
We could use him.
Suit up.
It's all about the... The resonant.
I didn't solve this today.
What is this, some kind of sonic thing like the cloaking device?
No! I didn't...
Forget about the cloaking device. No one's blaming you for that.
But right now we've just got to focus on taking down Creel.
Whoa, whoa, calm the hell down.
Hey, beat it! You pissed him off.
Okay.
- Take it easy. - Look, I didn't solve this today!
Yeah, I know! You said that already!
I didn't solve this today.
Wait, are you saying you didn't solve this today, but you solved this before?
Yes.
You're looking for an old design?
Yes! Yeah. Yeah.
All right, okay. All right. I'm with ya.
- Yeah. - I'm with you, Turbo. All right.
No.
Go back one. Go back one.
Yeah. Yeah.
ICERs? Great. How did we get stuck with a nonlethal option?
Coin flip. Trip called tails.
Just getting word from the lab.
Fitz might have something we can use to neutralize Creel's powers.
Best news we've had all day.
Raina's tracker just popped. Creel's here.
Trip, are you in position?
Locked, loaded and lookin'...
Found him. He's got the package.
Looks like Creel is talking to the guy with his back to him.
That's his HYDRA contact. The deal's going down. Skye?
Running facial recognition now. Let's put a name to that face.
Let the exchange happen.
Skye and Hunter, follow the new player.
May, stay with Creel.
Everyone copy?
- Copy that. - Copy.
Copy that, sir.
The package is still in place.
Wonder why Creel hasn't made the exchange yet.
Can we get a laser mic on him?
Skye, you copy?
Skye?
Oh, hell, no!
You're not listening.
It's spreading all over. I can barely contain it.
Pass me the case and I'll help you.
Help me and I won't do to you what I did to the waitress.
Calm down, Mr. Creel.
Take a deep breath and clear your mind.
Remember your training.
Remember, compliance will be rewarded.
I'm happy to comply.
Good. Very good.
Everybody, out! Move!
I'm not gonna sugarcoat it, pal. This is really gonna hurt.
"Scout's honor"?
You were never a Boy Scout, were you?
Present, huh!
Order, huh!
Breaking into cars now?
Following up on a promise.
Thanks to you.
General Talbot's not the only one with friends.
Though, I am sorry about that two million you wanted.
That I can't swing.
Oh, you knew about that, too, eh?
I'm the director of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Well, that's just marvelous.
Talbot wants me dead and now I have no funds to run with. Any tips?
Yeah. Don't run. Work for me instead.
Creel must've hit you in the head. I shot three of your agents.
Including Agent May. Not a smart move.
She the type that holds a grudge?
Savors it, actually.
No doubt, you've made some mistakes.
So have I. Like letting you go after Creel.
But I felt for you.
Yeah, and I took advantage of that. How do you know I won't do it again?
I don't.
But the reality is, I don't have a fleet of Helicarriers or Quinjets
or thousands of agents at my disposal anymore.
We're lucky we still have our George Foreman grill.
You need warm bodies. Is that it?
I need skilled assets in the field who are willing to step over the line.
To do the wrong thing, but for the right reason.
I need you because I can't be you. Not anymore.
Yeah, well, you're better off. Trust me.
Look, it's your choice.
But good people, people I respect, vouched for you.
I'd like to find out why.
Hell if I know.
But I'm curious.
Good enough.
Oh.
I just need you to do one thing.
Oh, yeah?
Sell me out.
The sound waves disrupted the molecular, um...
The molecular... The, um...
Well, you should understand, you modified it.
Well, you know how some guys can play a tune by ear?
Well, I need sheet music.
The original one.
You built this with this Agent Simmons I keep hearing about?
Yeah. What about Simmons?
Oh, no. I heard that she was cool. Heard that you two were pretty tight.
Yeah.
It's tough to lose a good partner.
How have you been holding up since she left?
I'm okay.
I'm glad he's talking to someone.
I've got to admit, I'm having a tough time with it.
It's understandable. He's changed.
We all have. Even the director.
Coulson has a lot on his plate. Rebuilding S.H.I.E.L.D.
I wouldn't know. He's not exactly the sharing type these days.
He has the world to worry about. Not just us. Not just the team.
That's not it, May.
I have been watching him for months
and I know he's keeping something from me.
And it's not just because he's the director of S.H.I.E.L.D.
I think something is wrong with him.
- Skye... - No, May, be honest.
Is Coulson okay?
Of course.
What is wrong with you?
You're Director now, not some Level 1 field agent.
There are no levels anymore. I got rid of those.
You never should've gone into the field like that.
- You're welcome. - It's not funny, Phil.
I know you.
And I know when you're overly stressed.
It's been 18 days since your last episode.
- Seventeen. - Eighteen.
Which means you're due for another one.
Overdue.
And I'm tired of fighting it.
So don't.
That's why I'm here.
You did well.
Thank you. I...
Now pick it up.
- You want me... - I need to know.
So do you.
Pick it up.
It worked!
No.
It let you live.
There's a difference.
Show me. Please.
Bring me my daughter
and I'll show the both of you.
Set up a perimeter.
Yes, sir.
Glenn.
Can I call you "Glenn"?
No. Where's Hunter?
Watching Cake Boss, I believe. Sorry, I changed the terms of your deal.
Well, he kept up his end. You're here. Question is, why?
I felt bad for kidnapping you, so I brought you a peace offering.
Carl Creel.
I thought Creel was dead.
He's turned to stone, but he could always do that
so I'm not sure how long it'll hold.
I've got him in a cryostasis chamber in the back of the van
for 58 more minutes, before the juice runs out.
I'd get him someplace secure pretty quick.
Maybe a little more secure than last time. Just saying.
Very generous of you.
Like I told you before, General, we're the good guys.
So, how about we make a deal?
S.H.I.E.L.D. will keep dropping off presents like this,
you keep getting promoted.
All we ask for in return is a little breathing room.
Sound good?
You...
You must have some big brass ones, Coulson.
Coming out here by yourself to meet me.
Face-to-face. No backup.
Let's face facts.
You and your little band of misfits are hardly S.H.I.E.L.D.
Our intel says you don't have enough manpower or artillery
to take down a convenience store.
So, I'm sorry, I'm gonna have to say no to that deal.
I don't know,
I think we're good in artillery.
And in case you get any ideas, General, that's just the tip of the iceberg.
Let's get out of here before the iceberg runs out of fuel.