Somewhere high in the sky, it’s blue with big puffy white clouds. We pan down to see The Bus flying though the skies. We hear a female voice come over the radio.
Radio Woman: S.H.I.E.L.D 6-1-6, you have course confirmation. You are cleared direct to the slingshot. Agent Coulson, everything all right up there? We heard you had a little dustup on the ground.
Coulson: Yeah, we’re all good. It’s gonna be blue skies from here on out.
The plane passes by the screen. Once we get past the wings of the craft an explosion happens in the belly of the plane near that wing. After a second we see someone get sucked out of the plane, they hit an engine and bounce away with a yell.
Cut to inside the plane, there is a computer sounding out a warning beep as the screens flash red. We see an agent up in the air holding onto a chair for dear life. We get close to realize it’s Coulson in the air and his feet are pointed directly at the hole in his plane. We can hear Simmons calling out to him.
Simmons: Coulson, hang on!
Title Screen.
Cut to inside a hanger. Skye’s van is parked right next to the ramp of the plane. She throws out a bag and grabs a hula dancer that was on the dashboard.
Runner at the bottom of the screen says: 19 Hours Earlier.
Skye hops out of the van and shoulders her two bags. She reaches into the van and pulls out a box with her belongings. She takes a moment to look at her van one last time. An airman walks by and she addresses him.
Skye: Hey, no joy rides, okay? That’s my house.
Airman: No worries.
He puts some sort of small black pyramid on the hood of the car and the engine comes to life. Skye scoffs at seeing this.
Skye: Where do they think of this stuff?
She turns and walks onto the plane and the ramp moves upwards closing up the plane as she looks around.
Cut to Coulson and Ward walking into that room with the lit table from last episode. I shall dub it “Planning Room”.
Ward: Skye? That girl’s not qualified to be a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent.
Coulson: Agreed. That’s why I’ve invited her on as a consultant.
We now see May has walked into the room as well, we hear her give a little scoff.
Coulson: S.H.I.E.L.D. does it all the time. Technically, Stark’s a consultant.
Ward: And technically Skye is a member of the Rising Tide. She hacked our RSA implementation –
Coulson: Twice, from a laptop. Imagine what she’ll do with our resources.
Ward: I am. That’s exactly what I’m imagining during this frown. You brought me on for risk assessment, she’s a risk. She doesn’t think like us.
Coulson: Exactly.
Cut to another part of The Bus. A door whirs open and we see Simmons enter the room with a smile. We pan back a bit to see that she is greeting Skye, Fitz is also right behind her to greet the newcomer.
Simmons: Oh, Agent Coulson told us the news. What a wonderful surprise. Isn’t it, Fitz?
Fitz: Yeah.
He does not sound like it’s wonderful at all.
Simmons: No, it’s wonderful.
Fitz: Yeah, a surprise.
Simmons: You must be very excited.
Skye: Yep, first day of school.
Fitz takes the box of out her hands.
Simmons: Okay, so –
She walks between Fitz and Skye.
Simmons: Just – sorry. Yeah.
She starts up the spiral staircase with Skye and Fitz following.
Cut back inside the Planning Room as we left it, May is talking with Coulson with Ward listening in.
May: We have two kids on this Bus who aren’t cleared for combat, you’re adding a third.
Ward: At least Fitz-Simmons are trained S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists. But Skye? You said this was a select team. Assembled to work new cases, to protect people. I don’t see how letting some hacker tag along –
Coulson: I’m looking for an objection I haven’t already anticipated.
He looks to May who stands down.
Coulson: I’m calling this. But, your frown will be on record.
Ward: We’ve been called in to investigate an 0-8-4, we all know what that means.
Coulson: Yes we do. It means, we don’t know what that means.
During their conversation Coulson has been punching things onto a tablet which he hands over to May. She takes it and walks out of the Planning Room. As she goes off camera one way we see Skye, Fitz and Simmons enter from the other.
Fitz: Officially it’s an airborne mobile command station. But we call it The Bus.
They both grin excitedly but Skye looks confused.
Fitz: We find it best to use shorthand when in the field. But, everything has to be just so, you know, because of the danger.
Skye: Yeah, I’ve been up here before, but I didn’t see much because of the bag that Agent Ward put over my head.
Simmons looks contrite as Fitz struggles to continue holding the box while walking.
Simmons: Yes, so sorry about that.
She reached over and grabs a bottle of water holding it out to Skye who takes it.
Simmons: Water?
There is a beep from the intercom and May’s voice sounds out through the plane.
May: Wheels up in two. Lock it or lose it.
Skye: What does that mean?
Simmons: No backing out now. Let’s find a bunk for our guest.
Simmons starts off and Fitz quickly follows after her.
Fitz: Oh, oh yeah, there’s only one bunk left and its right next to mine.
He runs over to an open doorway and sets Skye’s box down on a small bed. There doesn’t appear to be much room in these bunks, a bed, monitor above the bed and a small shelf to hold things. Fitz lingers in the doorway and quickly moves when he realizes it.
Fitz: Sorry , you can –
He hurries away and Skye takes in her two bags and drops them down. Ward appears from off screen and knocks on her door.
Skye: Hey, I know we didn’t really –
He hands her something not interested in making nice talk.
Ward: You may want to read that. This isn’t like other planes.
Skye opens the pamphlet he gave her, it shows the layout of the plane and the many exits off of it.
Skye: You could say that again.
Coulson walks over to join her.
Coulson: Say what again?
Skye gives him a smile.
Skye: Sweet ride.
Coulson: I earned a little good will from Directory Fury when I got hit right before the Battle of New York.
Skye becomes interested.
Skye: You took a bullet?
Coulson: Ish. An Asgardian stabbed me through the heart with a chitauri scepter. The effect was similar.
Skye is looking at him with shock and awe.
Coulson: Got a few weeks R&R and this plane. Had it completely refurbished, studs up, spared no expense.
Skye: Yeah, Agent Ward told me they sent you to Tahiti.
Coulson: It’s a magical place.
Skye: You mentioned that.
They walk over to a booth like table. Skye goes to put her water down but Coulson stops her.
Coulson: Here, use a coaster.
He sets it on the table and sits, she sets down her water and sits too.
Coulson: Buckle up.
They both do so.
Skye: I don’t even know where we’re going.
There is a beeping noise and the lights go out for a moment.
Coulson: Peru. That’s where the 0-8-4 was reported.
Skye: And an 0-8-4 is…?
Coulson: An object of unknown origin. Kind of like you. Team goes in, determines if it’s useful or if it poses a threat. Last one turned out to be pretty interesting.
Skye: And what was the last one?
Coulson: A hammer.
Cut to an outside view of trees and mountains. We pan to see Skye sitting by a window looking out with a little smile.
Cut to inside the cockpit, May is busy at the controls.
Cut back outside the plane to see it land on a dirt runway.
Cut to vehicles moving through the forest, the S.H.I.E.L.D. SUV is being led by a white SUV. They pull into some sort of camp. Incan Archaeological Site, LLactapata, Peru.
Both of the vehicles come to a stop. Coulson gets out of the white SUV while Ward, May, Fitz and Simmons get out of the other.
Ward: Tire tracks, 40 meters back. I’ll check them against the site’s trucks, make sure we’re alone.
May is standing on the bottom frame of the door looking out at everything.
May: Too much exposure here, I’m going to find a place to park.
Fitz and Simmons walk out from behind the SUV looking around.
Fitz: I would love to see a capuchin in the wild.
Simmons smiles at this.
Fitz: Maybe even a yellow-tailed woolly monkey. You know, um, Peru has 32 different species of monkeys.
I didn’t see her get out of the SUV but Skye is also there. Fitz and Simmons walk on one side of the white SUV while Skye walks on the other.
Simmons: Yeah, and close to 200 species of snakes. The shushupe has a fascinating venom. It’s neurotoxic, proteolytic, and hemolytic.
They both laugh at the same time, obviously getting the “joke”.
Fitz: That’s fascinating.
Fitz looks around worriedly.
Simmons: Yeah. Oh, no, I’d be much more concerned with earthquakes, mala –
She reaches up and slaps a bug on the back of Fitz’ neck and laughs.
Simmons: There’s no vaccine for Dengue Fever.
They have now entered the jungle, Simmons gasps when she sees what’s ahead.
Simmons: Ah, look at this.
We pan over to see some sort of temple built into the jungle. It’s a massive structure. At the bottom, near the ground, is a doorway.
We cut over to Coulson and Skye walking into the jungle too.
Skye: We should warn the people who live around here if the 0-8-4 is dangerous. They’re already dealing with anti-mining rebels and the Shining Path Guerillas. I could post something.
Coulson: Remember the panic when that anti-matter meteor splashed down just off the coast of Miami, nearly devoured the City?
Skye: No.
Coulson: Precisely. Because we kept it quite and contained.
Skye: So, what am I doing?
Coulson: Well, if it gets out, I might need you to create some kind of diversion, put the public on the wrong scent.
Skye: So, everything that I’m against.
Coulson: Yep.
He turns away from her just as a man is exiting the temple. Fitz and Simmons are standing next to the door taking a selfie. Coulson walks up the steps to meet the man who exited.
Coulson: Good morning, Professor. I’m Agent Coulson with S.H.I.E.L.D.
He pulls out his credentials and shows the Professor.
Coulson: I understand you’ve made an interesting discovery.
Professor: I – I’m not sure how to explain it. This temple dates back at least 500 years. It’s filled with pre-Incan artifacts. One of them is impossible and looks like it might be dangerous.
Coulson: Well, that’s why we’re here.
The Professor leads Coulson through the door.
Cut to inside the temple. The Professor points at something on the floor of the hall then enters a larger cavern.
Professor: Watch out.
The Professor enters followed by Coulson, Simmons and Fitz. The camera pans over to a wall, we see ancient writing on the wall along with something that is shiny metal with blue glowing lights. It looks like there are some wires running out of the device.
Professor: Exactly as we found it.
Coulson: Who else knows about this?
Professor: Just the ministry. I believe they are the ones who contacted you.
As before, I didn’t see her with them, but Skye is now standing behind Coulson as Fitz and Simmons are behind her. They are opening their equipment and taking things out.
Coulson: Sir, I need you and your team to evacuate the site until we determine the risk associated with this object.
Fitz has brought out his little drones, the Professor looks back then watches them as they pass by.
Simmons: Leave the man alone.
She smiles. The camera goes into the point of view of one of the drone, this one is “02 Sleepy”. It gets close to the device and begins to scan it.
Coulson: Now – for your own safety.
Coulson holds out his arm herding the Professor back to the entryway.
Skye: There’s nothing about this anywhere.
She laughs as she looks at her phone.
Skye: It’s amazing. I searched every data stream . What do we got here, guys?
Skye is now right in front of the device. Sleepy is still hovering around it taking data from various angles. Skye reaches one of her hands up and is just about to touch the device when Fitz stops her.
Fitz: Whoa, car – uh, careful. I – no I wouldn’t do that.
Skye lowers her hand and looks back at Fitz worried.
Simmons: The object’s placement is fossiliferous rock formation suggests it’s been here for at least 1,500 years. That pre-dates this temple by a millennium. Ah! Maybe it’s alien.
This excites Simmons as she looks to Fitz. He’s looking at a readout on his tablet.
Fitz: Yeah, but the shape and craftsmanship, it’s almost German.
Cut to outside the temple. May is standing guard just outside the door and the Professor exits. He walks down the steps and passes by Ward.
Ward: Tires match the Prof’s truck. Where’s your sidearm?
May walks down the steps to meet him.
May: If I need a gun, I’ll take one.
Ward: Right. I forgot I was working with “The Cavalry”.
May tenses hearing this and shoots Ward a glare.
May: Don’t ever call me that.
Ward: Apologies.
They both walk separate directions checking out the jungle around them.
Ward: I’ve heard the stories, what went down in Bahrain, about you in action. You know, it was smart of Coulson to pull you out of retirement. It’s nice to have a trusted friend who has your back.
Ward has walked closer to a large bush. As he speaks he reaches into the bush and pulls out a man holding a gun in camo. Another man in camo comes to May, she grabs his gun before he has a chance to aim it at her. She spins the man down to the ground, taking him out, as another man appears and attacks her. She also flips this man down to the ground. Having disarmed them both she now uses their guns to point at them keeping them in place. We pan over to see Ward standing over the man he took out also holding him with a gun. He looks up when he hears a vehicle approaching. May trains her gun on the road where the vehicle will appear as Ward picks up his man using him as a human shield. Two vehicles have arrived on the scene, one on each side of them. Men pour out of the SUVs and aim at Ward and May with their guns.
Ward: Should have taken more guns.
Commercial Break.
We open back where we left, with a standoff between Ward and May versus a lot of guys in camo. The men in camo are yelling out orders to each other in Spanish. A woman, dressed in camo, gets out of one of the SUVs and walks toward Ward and May.
Cut to inside the temple, Coulson’s walkie-talkie beeps and we hear Ward’s voice.
Ward: Sir?
Coulson: Go.
Ward: We have a situation.
Skye is next to Coulson and hears this.
Skye: Lots of rebels in this area.
Coulson: Not enough gunfire. Keep working.
He clicks the walkie-talkie.
Coulson: I’m on my way.
Coulson walks out as Fitz and Simmons work on the respective tablets.
Cut to outside. Coulson walks out and addresses the soldiers.
Coulson: Buenos Dias. Soy Agent Coulson. Estamos aqui por un asunto de la seguridad internacional.
As he speaks the woman in camo walks closer to him, bringing a couple of guards with her.
Camo Woman: Phillip?
Coulson seems shocked.
Coulson: Camilla? Do you mind?
Camilla: After you.
Coulson nods at Ward, he shoves the soldier he was using a shield away and lowers his gun. May does the same, lowering the two pistols she is holding. Camilla speaks a few words in Spanish and the other soldiers lower their guns as well. Camilla walks up the stairs to stand next to Coulson.
Camilla: And now for a proper hello.
He leans closer to her and she gives him a kiss on each of his cheeks with a big smile.
Coulson: Comandante, a promotion. Congratulations.
She gives him a proud smile.
Camilla: Three years ago, but thank you.
Coulson doesn’t take his eyes off Camilla when he introduces the others.
Coulson: Agent Melinda May, Agent Grant Ward, this is Comandante Camilla Reyes. She’s with the Policia Militar Del Peru. We used to work together back in the day.
May scoffs at this and shoots a look to Ward, who is looking right back at her.
Coulson: Let the team know everything’s okay.
Ward nods his head and he and May walk into the temple.
Camilla: I know you’ve found a strange object on Peruvian soil. We should have a conversation about how to proceed.
Coulson: Of course. But an 0-8-4 supersedes all national claims.
Camilla: You look good.
Coulson: Yeah, I work out.
She gives him a little grin the puts an arm around his shoulders.
Camilla: Come, let me show you something.
Cut back to inside the temple. Fritz is pointing at something on his tablet, there’s some sort of red dot inside the device.
Fitz: Are you seeing this? It’s alive.
Skye is once again standing way too close to the device, she turns and looks at Fitz.
Skye: Wha – alive, alive?
Fitz: It has a functioning power source.
Skye turns and looks at the device.
Simmons: Sleepy’s reading radionuclides, but they don’t match any known isotope.
Fitz: I get temporal matches, but even then, they seem to shift. Is that even possible?
Skye: Depends on the shifting of the temporal radio stuff, so…
They both look up at her with a confused face, obviously missing her joke.
Skye: It’s totally weird, right?
She gives them a smile, but they are still looking at her like she is talking gibberish.
Skye: I’m gonna go check on Coulson.
She goes to start out of the temple, but Ward walks in stopping her.
Ward: We’ve got company. National police.
Simmons: What?
Fitz: Why are they here?
Ward: They heard about this object, they’re probably here to protect it.
Ward has walked over to the device and takes a look at it for himself.
Ward: This area has lots of rebel uprisings.
Skye: Yeah, people are fighting back against the government’s mining policies. It’s pretty kick ass.
This gets her an angry look from Ward.
Ward: Yeah, it’s kick ass, all the violence.
Skye: That’s not what I’m saying.
Ward: No, that’s what you’re typing. In your van, alone, where it’s safe. How much longer?
He addresses this question to Fitz and Simmons.
Simmons: What’s the hurry?
Fitz: Are we in danger?
Ward: Not if everyone does their job.
He looks at Skye.
Ward: What is yours, exactly?
Skye lowers her eyes realizing she has no answer.
Cut back to outside. Camilla is holding something gin her hands and showing it to Coulson.
Camilla: The cacao is from a secret valley in Peru. Very special.
Coulson reaches over and takes a piece of the chocolate.
Camilla: The best chocolate in the world.
Coulson: Could use some sugar.
She laughs.
Camilla: Americans.
Coulson: You know me, Camilla. I’m a pretty simple guy.
She cocks her head making a slight noise of disagreement.
Camilla: There was nothing simple about your last mission here.
Coulson: I had some great help.
Camilla: There isn’t any chance we get to keep the device, is there?
Coulson: It’s not mine to give. But, I’m sure we can find a way to resolve this respectfully, in a way that gives your coun –
An explosion rocks out behind them taking out some sort of building. Both of them, naturally, flinch then turn to see what happened.
The soldiers that were following after the two of them immediately turn and start to fire in the direction of the blast. Coulson and Camilla both take out their guns.
Camilla: Rebels.
Coulson: Stay close. On my six.
They both move in the direction of the fighting. A man wearing a red bandana comes out from the trees firing at them as another man comes out and fires his gun on a truck making it explode.
Cut to inside. The force of the explosion rocks the ground raining down dirt on all inside. Ward goes on immediate alert.
Ward: Sounds like they’re engaging with rebels. Let’s go.
Ward starts to go out and we see it from the vantage point of Sleepy.
Ward: Rebels, they’re coming for it. Let’s move!
Sleepy flies to Fitz who catches it and quickly puts it back in its case as Ward guards the door. Fitz, Simmons and Skye are all trying to pack things away, but Fitz is being picky about where everything goes inside the case.
Fitz: No, no, no, no, no, no.
Skye: It doesn’t matter.
Fitz: It does to me!
Simmons: Please, let us do this.
Skye backs off letting them work.
Simmons: We need a containment case for the 0-8-4.
Ward looks at her like she’s insane.
Ward: There’s no time.
Fitz: But, it has a fluctuating power core, frequencies way above 10 exahertz.
Another explosion rocks the ground around them as Fitz ducks.
Ward walks away from the opening to the device.
Ward: Sorry, science class is over.
Ward goes to the device and beings to pull on it. Fitz turns and sees what he’s doing.
Fitz: Whoa!
The device starts to come from the wall causing Fitz to freak out even more.
Fitz: Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait!
It’s too late, Ward has the device completely out. Ward moves to put the device into a bag.
Fitz: You did not just pull that out of the wall! What is the matter with you?!? Do you realize we do not know the amount of photon emissions coming out of this –
Ward gives him a hard shove making him turn to face the opening of the temple, Fitz gets the message.
Fitz: Okay. We don’t know what will happen if it gets excited.
Ward: Stay close.
Simmons: Fitz, come on!
Fitz is the last one to leave hiking his bag higher on his back.
Cut to outside, chaos is still reining as Coulson and Camilla make their way through. The keep looking around firing from time to time.
Coulson: Come on!
He waves Camilla over to some sort of house. Camilla flips over a table and uses that for cover then yells to her men.
Coulson: Your men need to fall back now, or we’ll never make the runway. Now, you’re truck, let’s go.
They both head out of the building toward her truck. The two of them face opposite sides at each other shoulders covering each other.
Cut to Ward exiting the temple with his gun up and prepared to fire, which he does as soon as he exits. Everyone else pours out after him and stays behind him for cover and protection. They come under heavier fire, Ward puts his arm back. It appears that Coulson and Camilla are watching this happen from the trees.
Ward: Get back!
Skye, Fitz and Simmons all fall back into the opening of the temple out of breath and looking around. Ward pulls something out of his coat, it looks like a small baton. With a flick of his wrist it lengthens to look more like a walking cane. Coulson shoots a quick look to Camilla.
Coulson: Tell your men to get down.
She does so and immediately her men fall to the ground. Ward does a roll off the steps coming to rest on his knees on the ground in front of the temple. He drives the cane into the ground and presses a button on top. A small device pops out of the top, hovers in the air for a moment, then sends out a shockwave of green energy. It hits the rebels in the tress sending them flying back.
Camilla: My truck.
Ward pulls the cane out of the ground tossing it aside. He waves to the others inside the temple that it’s clear. They rush out to meet Ward but there was one rebel who the wave did not knock out. He cocks his gun causing Skye, Fitz and Simmons to all freeze. A SUV arrives between the rebel and our four blocking his bullets.
Ward: Get in! Get in!
The passenger side door opens showing May, Simmons has a relieved smile for her.
Simmons: Yes!
Fitz: Yeah, that’s a good idea.
They hurry down the steps to the SUV.
Cut to Coulson and Camilla, he’s opened a door for her to get in.
Coulson: After you.
Camilla: After you.
Coulson shoots her a look but gets in the car.
Back at the temple May spins out of the area and past the encampment. We see Camilla’s dark truck following closely after her, it’s a truck filled with Camilla’s soldiers. As they pass by a jeep with a lot of rebels on it, it follows them as well. They continue to fire on our SUV as it going through the jungle.
Ward: Coulson’s secure in PMP’s truck. Take the south route to the airfield.
May: Gotcha.
She takes the turn. The road is a bumpy and unpaved one causing Skye, Fitz and Simmons to jangle about in the back.
Fitz: Slow down!
Skye: You’re joking, right?
Fitz: Ward, listen, we have to be careful. There’s a binding energy structure that could overheat.
Simmons gets an excited look.
Simmons: I could roll down a window!
The rebels fire on the truck again causing the three to let out yells.
Skye: Do not roll down a window!
Ward turns and addresses the three in back.
Ward: Stay quiet and keep your heads down!
He next addresses May.
Ward: Head left, the ravine empties.
May follows his directions, and so do the rebels.
Fitz: But, Ward!
Ward & May: Quiet!
May reaches over to the radio area of the car, instead of a radio its some sort of computer screen, she punches a few buttons. The ramp on The Bus begins to lower.
Ward: How fast can you have the wheels up?
May: Fast.
May quickly pulls into The Bus putting the SUV in park. She jumps out and addresses Ward.
May: Ramp!
Ward: On it.
The three in the back get out of the truck with Skye shooting a look to Ward.
Skye: What are you doing?!? Coulson’s still out there!
Ward is at a bank of buttons and switches, pushing and flipping them. He turns to look at Skye.
Ward: Get off the ramp, you’re in the line of fire.
He hurries to walk past her as she backs up, he looks out at Camilla, Coulson and the soldiers. A few of the soldiers stay behind and provide cover for them as they rush to The Bus. The rebels arrive and Ward shoots at them also providing cover. May gets into the cockpit preparing for takeoff. At the ramp Skye, Fitz and Simmons all cower in a corner trying to avoid the bullets ricocheting around them. Finally Coulson, Camilla and her men enter the plane and the ramp closes.
Ward: Cutting it pretty close, sir.
Coulson: Didn’t want to leave anyone behind.
Skye is still sitting with Fitz and Simmons panting from fright.
Skye: I got to say it, I miss my van.
Ward holsters his gun and addresses Fitz.
Ward: Now, what was the problem?
Fitz: As I said before, this device has a high-frequency, fluctuating, sub-material compression –
Ward: Fitz, in English.
Fitz: The 0-8-4 is fueled by Tesseract technology. Hydra. World War II. Captain America.
Skye slowly raises up to her feet nervous.
Fitz: It’s full of lethal amounts of gamma radiation.
Ward: Gamma, you’re saying its nuclear?
Coulson: No. He’s saying it’s much, much worse.
The five of them are standing in a half circle around the bag holding the device. With Coulson’s words they all look down at the bag and then start moving back, away from it.
Commercial Break.
Open showing the plane flying through mostly clear skies. We then cut into the cockpit, May is flying and Coulson is speaking on the radio to a female voice.
Woman on Radio: And the 0-8-4 is in your possession?
Coulson: It’s on board and contains a Tesseract fuel cell, so…there’s that.
Coulson didn’t see it but May shot him a dirty look.
Woman on Radio: Copy. You are a go for check-in guidance through restricted airspace. Safe travels.
Coulson sighs and puts the radio down.
Coulson: Top speed’s a priority, May. Obviously.
May says nothing, keeping her body tense and eyes ahead.
Coulson: I know you didn’t want to see combat, I apologize for that.
He waits a beat, but she still says nothing.
Coulson: Do you need anything else before I go check on the device fueled by evil that’s sitting in our cargo hold?
May remains stoic, she reaches up and flips a switch saying nothing.
Coulson: This was fun.
With that he exits, May shoots a glace to her right, not moving her head then rolls her eyes.
Cut to inside Fitz-Simmons’ lab. They have the bag open and Simmons is carefully lifting the device out.
Simmons: Not to worry, the device is stable.
The camera pans over to show a very worried looking Skye standing there. When Simmons does lift up the device Skye shifts.
Simmons: Not that it couldn’t explode at any minute, especially if hit with machine gun fire. But, things like this happen from time to time when in the field, and at first, it’s very unpleasant, and you regret your decision to leave the lab at all.
So we’ve now learned something about Simmons, she rambles when she’s nervous. We hear the door open saving her from continuing to go on. We hear Fitz talking from off screen.
Fitz: Are you mental?
The camera pans over to see Fitz entering with Ward. Obviously they’ve been having an argument that carried over into this room.
Fitz: I did explain in great detail, exactly what I meant using the Queen’s bloody English!
Ward: I use normal English. Words like “duck” and “run” and “might blow us to pieces”.
Fitz: Oh! Well congratulations, Agent Ward. You managed to string three words together in a sentence.
While arguing Fitz entered with a case. He sets the case down on the table taking out some sort of tool, he fits with it while Ward and he argue.
Cut to Coulson who comes walking down the spiral staircase. He’s in the ramp area of the plane addressing Camilla’s soldiers.
Coulson: Is everyone all right?
Soldier: Banged up, but alive.
He walks over to a case and stows his gun.
Solider: Thank you for the extraction.
Coulson closes the crate and locks it with a pin code.
Camilla: But we lost a lot of men.
Coulson: We’ll make sure the rest of you get home safe.
She and Coulson walk over to the glass wall and look in on Fitz-Simmons’ lab. Fitz and Ward are still arguing over the device while Skye watches.
Camilla: Are we safe? On a plane with that? There’s a PMP airfield in Iquitos, it’s a short distance –
Coulson: We’ll burn as fast as we can for a S.H.I.E.L.D. containment facility.
Camilla’s face falls slight, Coulson doesn’t see this, but she nods her head.
Coulson: There’s no safer place for us to go.
Second Solider: Sir, if I may? You got anything to drink around here?
Coulson: Upstairs. I think you’ll find it quite comfortable up there.
Camilla helps the second solider to stand and all of the soldiers move to the staircase.
Camilla: I expect the grand tour.
Coulson: I know you do.
Coulson turns away from her and the door to the lab opens. As soon as it does we can hear Fitz and Ward screaming at each other and talking over one another.
Fitz: I’m trying to tell you –
Ward: Don’t understand anything you’re saying!
Coulson: Do we have a problem?
They immediately stop fighting and look at him, like chastised children.
Ward: No, sir. Just working on our communication. Not everyone was prepared for a firefight.
He looks over to Simmons then back to Coulson.
Coulson: We got out, didn’t lose anyone, saved a few of theirs, I’d say we did all right. Anything else.
Skye raises her hand.
Skye: Uh, yeah. I have got a small question. Because I’ve been feeling like the tagalong hayseed rookie, but now I get the sense that Ward doesn’t know which ones Simmons and which one’s Fitz, and they’ve seen even less gunfire than me, and I’m not rocket scientist, but is this your first mission together?
Simmons meekly speaks up.
Simmons: No, of course not. It’s our second.
Skye: I was your first? That’s sweet.
Ward: You’re amused?
Skye: I’m terrified. I am in way over my head, but I have been on this team just as long as any of you. I might as well be Team Captain.
Simmons scoffs and looks away as Fitz shoots a look to Ward.
Skye: I was joking, but maybe that’s not a bad idea, because these guys do not like each other much.
Ward: This isn’t about that.
He turns and looks to Coulson.
Ward: I’m a specialist. Today, I could have eliminated the enemy threat myself if I was working alone. But, I had non-combat ready agents –
Fitz: Whoa, whoa. Wait. You work alone?
Simmons has walked around to stand beside Fitz.
Simmons: So typical. Who do you think designs your equipment?
Fitz: Or the polymers for your weaponry?
Skye has walked around the table as Ward focuses on the other two, about to dissolve into a fight again.
Simmons: Yeah.
Fitz: People like us do it.
Simmons: Try going into the field with just your bare bum.
Skye is standing close to Coulson and speaks quietly.
Skye: See the proving the point I just made?
Coulson: You’re not wrong. We still need to iron out the kinks. But, Ward, you can speak six languages. Simmons, you have two PhDs in fields I can’t pronounce, and Fitz, you are a rocket scientist. So work it out.
With that he walks out of the room, with Skye looking after him with disbelief.
Skye: I- I’m – I’m good at stuff too!
Cut to the cockpit, it is not nighttime and May is still flying, she reaches up and flips a switch. We next cut to Skye, she is lying on her bed in her bunk holding her hula girl. She takes a deep sigh and flicks the hula girl making her move. She reaches over and puts the hula girl on the windowsill.
Cut to the living room area of the plane. Camilla’s soldiers are there talking, eating and drinking. We see Camilla and Coulson walking, he is obviously giving her the tour. They both look in on the soldiers then Coulson waves her up a spiral staircase.
Cut to back inside the lab. Fitz puts one of the drones onto what almost looks like a docking station. Simmons is next to him at a big lit table, she also has a drone in a dock next to her. While she speaks she moves her hands around above the table causing a hologram for her to manipulate. (Think Iron Man 2).
Simmons: So, should we work, or just continue to –
Fitz gets his own hologram going and as they speak both of them work with their different views.
Fitz: I’m saying I said there would come a moment when we would regret the decision to go in the field. I didn’t think that would happen in week one.
Simmons scoffs and rolls her eyes.
Simmons: Oh, God.
She pulls up a screen and there is something flashing.
Simmons: This seam in the sedimentary layers suggests some sort of molten cave-in a few decades back.
Fitz has a hologram between his fingers and moves it to be in front of Simmons. He spread it out and it looks like a flat square box. It has bright blue glowing lines inside it.
Fitz: Yeah, well, this here, its optical amplification.
Simmons grabs it and rotates it.
Fitz: Now, I think, well, I’m most likely dead on, that the Tesseract energy excites plasma with an inverse population of energy levels.
Simmons: A laser.
Fitz: A ray of, pure energy, two terajoules. See the amplifier? We’re lucky the drones didn’t trigger it while taking electromagnetic readings.
While he talks some of the areas of blue go red.
Fitz: This is a weapon powerful enough to –
Simmons: Enough to melt through 50 feet of solid rock to bury itself. Imagine what it could do to a person.
Fitz: Yeah, or an airplane.
They share a worried look.
Fitz: For example.
Fitz takes it between his fingers and moves it away.
Cut to a living room section of the plane. Ward sits on a couch reading a book when Skye enters.
Skye: “Hunger Games”?
Ward looks up to her and we see her holding a bottle in her hand.
Ward: Matterhorn.
The camera pans over to show us Camilla’s soldiers sitting at a table playing cards.
Ward: One of a hundred books my S.O. gave me that I’m just getting around to.
She gives him a look of questioning.
Ward: S.O., Supervising Officer.
Skye: Got it. Hackers have lingo too, but I’ll pick yours up. I feel like you and me, wrong foot. Can I…
She raises up the bottle she brought.
Skye: Buy you a drink?
Ward gives her a tiny smile, waves her over and puts his book aside.
Skye: What I said before, when I said the uprising was…whatever I said, a good thing. I don’t want you to think I’m oblivious. What I was talking about was the tweets
Ward: Tweets. Are you trying to make things better or worse?
Skye: Peruvians have organized for the first time in decades. Thousands of suffering people who have never met uniting over a common idea? It’s mind-blowing. And, I don’t want to bring it up because I don’t want to see your hate face…
She shoots him a look as his brow draws down in a frown.
Skye: But, that’s what the Rising Tide is all about.
Ward: Okay.
Skye: Usually, one person doesn’t have the solution. But, 100 people with 1% of the solution, that’ll get it done.
She’s smiling at him hoping he sees what she’s trying to tell him, he continues to have his blank face.
Skye: I think that’s beautiful, pieces solving a puzzle.
While she was talking she was also pouring drinks. Ward lets out a sigh, leans up and takes a glass from her.
Ward: You and I see the world differently is all.
Skye: I’ve never been in a war zone, during a war, until today. That was crazy. I take it you’ve seen that a lot?
He sighs again and takes a drink out of his glass. He lets out a grunt when he leans forward to set the glass down. Skye looks worriedly at his side, we can see a small circle of blood on his shirt.
Skye: Wh – did you get shot?
Ward: Skin deep. Nothing to worry about.
He says this in a very nonchalant way.
Skye: You got shot! Did that happen protecting us?
Ward: Said don’t worry about it.
Skye: Well no wonder you were so pissed.
Ward: I wasn’t pissed. I was trained to be the whole solution, to eliminate variables.
He looks over to the soldiers playing cards.
Ward: And today, they keep adding up.
Skye looks up at the ceiling.
Skye: We’re turning.
Ward: We’ve entered restricted airspace, so we have to follow certain flight paths, regulation. This plane is capable of fully automated flight, but May has to be on the stick herself tonight.
Skye lets out a little laugh.
Skye: You’ve got an S.O. May’s got to be on the stick. Lots of good lingo on this plane.
Ward: Yeah. We just can’t seem to understand each other
Cut to inside Coulson’s office on The Bus. He’s holding something up showing it to Camilla.
Coulson: First walkie-talkie wristwatch. 1936, Poland.
He hands it over to her.
Coulson: They only made 20, I think. Still works.
Camilla has it in her hand turning it back and forth looking it over.
Camilla: I forgot you’re such a sentimentalists, Phillip.
She hands him back the wristwatch and he gives her a little laugh.
Camilla: Romanticizing history, huh?
She walks deeper into his office looking things over. She reaches to touch something, it doesn’t move.
Coulson: Yeah, most of its glued down.
He puts his watch away.
Coulson: There was an elegance to things back then.
Camilla walks around behind him.
Camilla: There we agree.
Coulson: With everything around us changing so quickly, it doesn’t hurt to have a few touchstones to the past.
While he speaks he turns to face her and leans against his desk. Reminds me what’s important.
Camilla: The last thing I want to do is relive days gone by. A few nights, maybe.
She is standing in the doorway, flirting heavily. She reaches behind herself and closes the door giving him a smile. He’s got a smile too, but it doesn’t read as true.
Coulson: I see what you’re doing.
Camilla: I am reminiscing.
She leans against a pillar and gives him a big smile.
Camilla: This plane is such a step up from the R.V. we used to work out of when you were stationed in Cusco.
Coulson: I don’t remember much working.
She laughs.
Coulson: I also don’t remember you being this direct.
He gives her a sly smile and her large smile falters a bit.
Cut back to the living room where Ward, Skye and the soldiers playing cards are at. Ward is watching the soldiers closely, he focuses on one of their drinks, it hasn’t been touched. While Ward is watching one of the soldiers gives a barely perceptible nod to the other, but it was perceptible to Ward. When he speaks his voice is very calm.
Ward: Skye, hand me the bottle.
Skye gives him a confused look and a little laugh.
Skye: Okay, turbo, but you’re still nursing the one you got.
She picks up the bottle and he takes it out of her hand before she can even offer it.
Ward: I’m not the only one.
He throws a look over to the soldiers, without moving his head, and Skye gets the gist.
Cut to inside the lab. Fitz and Simmons are off to one side, they appear to be looking at something in a microscope. Fitz is rubbing his eyes when one of Camilla’s soldiers stands in the doorway.
Cut back to Coulson’s office. Camilla is still trying to seduce Coulson. For his part, he looks uninterested.
Camilla: We’re stuck above the clouds for the next few hours. We might as well enjoy ourselves.
He gives her a disbelieving grin.
Camilla: We could make a few more memories to add to your collection.
She takes a few steps forward putting her hand on her hip.
Camilla: What do you think?
Coulson: I think…
He stands from the desk stepping closer to her.
Coulson: Ward already knows you’ll have to eliminate May from the equation to have a chance, which gives him about 20 seconds to get to her first.
Cut to the living room with Ward, Skye and the soldiers. As soon as we cut to the room Ward grabs Skye pushing her out of the way. One of the soldiers rushes Ward who is prepared for him, the bottle breaks on the table as they fight.
Cut to another soldier. He’s outside a door and puts a device on the door. We hear a whirring sound and see the tip of a drill poke through the other side of the door.
Cut to inside the cockpit, once again May reaches up and flips a switch.
Cut back to Ward fighting the soldiers. He hits one in the face sending him over a half wall. The other rushes at him and Ward tackles into him driving him into a post.
Cut back to the hole in the door, we can no see some sort of smoky gas being fed into the room, the cockpit. May passes out at the controls.
Cut to Coulson’s office, he is now actively fighting against Camilla. We hear some snaps as he grabs her wrist and bends it back. This makes her off balance and he throws her to the couch in his office.
Cut back to Ward, he knocks out the second soldier that rushed him. Coulson rushes down the spiral staircase with Camilla right behind. Everyone freezes and looks around. Coulson looks to a monitor and see one of the soldiers is holding Fitz by a knife to his neck. Another soldier runs up behind Skye and grabs a hold of her arms pinning her. Ward angrily assesses the situation and sighs in frustration. Coulson looks over to Camilla who is holding her injured side, he walks toward her.
Coulson: We were allies. We had history. When did you decide to throw that away?
Her face no longer shows smiles or flirtation, it shows determination.
Camilla: As soon as I saw your team.
Coulson looks back at the monitor showing Fitz still held captive.
Commercial Break.
We open to see The Bus still in the sky. We cut to the cockpit and see one of the soldiers is now flying it. Just like May was fond of doing he reaches up and flips a switch.
Cut to Coulson. He is hit in the face, which is already bloody, while tied to something. The soldier moves away and we see Camilla watching, she nods to the soldier. We pan to Coulson who spits blood out of his mouth.
Coulson: The reason I’m still alive is because you need me to verify the change in routes for your pilot when HQ calls in any minute now.
While he speaks we see they are in the Planning Room, Camilla is walking around the table looking at things.
Camilla: I’d appreciate that
Coulson: But if I don’t S.H.I.E.L.D. will shoot this aircraft out of the sky. That’ll take the 0-8-4 out of your hands. Maybe I should let them.
She stands next to the lit table and leans against it, showing no signs of worry.
Camilla: Oh, no, I think you’ll make the call. You already handed me your plane for the life of one of your little lab rats. If I open the cargo hold, you’ll lose them all. And your such a sentimentalist.
Coulson glances away from her then looks back up to her.
Cut to the cargo hold. We pass by Lola to see Ward, Fitz, Simmons and Skye all tied with their hands behind their backs.
Fitz: This is all my fault. I should’ve learned Kung Fu.
Simmons: Oh, yeah, but I shouldn’t have pushed you into the field in the first place. You weren’t ready.
They all start to speak at the same time.
Ward: It was job to make a proper threat assessment.
Fitz: Uh, we – we weren’t ready.
Skye: This wouldn’t have happened if Agent May wasn’t on the stick.
Simmons looks over and we see that May is still out cold lying next to Skye.
Skye: She would’ve busted out some of her ninja know-how.
Fitz: Agent May? No. No, no, she transferred from administration.
Simmons looks over to Skye with a smile.
Skye: Well, I’ve seen her destroy a guy, so…
All three of them look over to Ward. He glances at them then sighs.
Ward: You’ve heard of The Cavalry?
Fitz & Simmons: Yeah.
Fitz: Everyone in the academy talks about st –
Fitz & Simmons: She’s the Calvary?
They all look quickly over to where May is laying when they hear her voice.
May: I told you, never to call me that.
Simmons gives a little giggle.
Simmons: I can’t believe it. Oh, we’re sure to get out of here now.
She leans around Skye to look at May.
Simmons: Um, how do we get out of here?
May sits up with a grunt.
May: We can’t go through the doors. They’re bolted, tied to the pressurization lines. You two geniuses have nothing?
Fitz and Simmons share a look.
Fitz: Yeah, well, it’s hard to concentrate in these intense situations.
Ward speaks softly to Fitz with compassion.
Ward: Hey, don’t freeze up. Take a breath. You don’t need to come up with the whole solution.
He leans past Fitz and Simmons to look at Skye.
Ward: Just part of it. Right?
Skye nods and smiles.
Skye: Yeah. Pieces solving a puzzle.
Everyone starts to glance around the cargo hold.
Cut to Coulson and Camilla in the Planning Room.
Coulson: You knew this was a weapon all along.
Camilla: But you got to it first. I had to play nice. Yes, Coulson. For once, I’m actually ahead of you. My Country commissioned that weapon decades ago.
She looks over at a soldier that entered then turns her attention back to Coulson.
Camilla: After the fall of Hydra, many scientist followed their Nazi friends to hide on this side of the world.
She is looking out to the room beyond Coulson, we see the 0-8-4 sitting on a table.
Coulson: German engineering.
While she’s looking at the 0-8-4 Coulson is using this distraction to try and loosen the rope holding his hands.
Camilla: The weapon was lost during a clash in the jungle, until today. With it, we’ll end the rebel uprising and finally stabilize my Country.
Coulson: You mean rule your Country.
She looks down and away from the 0-8-4 turning back to face Coulson.
Camilla: You stay in your borders, I’ll stay in mine.
Coulson: Those borders are disappearing. Aliens descended on New York, remember? They don’t care whose colors you wear, they just care who’s in the way. We should be working together, not fighting.
Cut back to inside the cargo hold, they are all looking up to the left as Simmons speaks.
Simmons: Well, that’s clearly the worst idea I’ve heard yet.
Skye: But, it could work.
Ward: Reyes is gonna kill us the minute we land, regardless, and blame it on rebels. This way we have a fighting chance. I’ll take it.
He looks at Fitz.
Ward: What’s first?
Fitz: We can’t get upstairs without going in the lab.
Simmons: And the only way to release the lab doors is from upstairs.
Skye: The first thing is we’re tied to the cargo door, so unless –
While they have been discussing May has been making very small moves. We hear a loud crack that cuts Skye off as she looks over to where it originated from, May. They all flinch.
Fitz: What the hell was that?
Ward: Her wrist.
One of the soldiers is up on a catwalk at the top of the cargo hold, he pauses and looks down on the team. When we look we see that everyone is there, except for May. We pan back to the soldier and see her legs come into frame wrapping around his neck. She throws him over the railing then drops down beside him. She grips her wrist with her other hand and gives it a twist causing more cracks.
May: What’s next?
Skye, Fitz and Simmons are looking at her with awe and shock, Ward has a small smile.
Cut to the Planning Room. Coulson is still down on the floor and Camilla is knelt down in front of him.
Camilla: Was it 11 years ago, now? You swooped in with S.H.I.E.L.D. with so much confidence, so much mystery. You had a 100 men at your disposal. And no –
Coulson: A handpicked team. And, yes, they’re that good.
Camilla: Oh, Phil. You’re not even aware. Your renewed idealism, your collectables, your airborne man-cave, surrounding yourself with young, attractive agents…
She reaches down and pats his leg.
Camilla: You’re having a mid-life crisis.
She stands.
Coulson: More an afterlife thing, really.
She walks away but remains in the room.
Camilla: And I’m not even going to mention the red corvette.
Coulson: Her name’s Lola.
She sits on the far side of the room and laughs.
Camilla: Of course it is. It’s textbook. You built this team so you could feel relevant, to feel needed.
Coulson: They don’t need me. They need time.
Camilla: Well, time is not on their side.
Coulson: No, but you gave them something better, a common enemy.
He gives her a little smirk.
Cut to the cargo hold, they are all in a circle talking things out.
Skye: Okay, we’re sure, right? Everyone’s sure?
Simmons: We’re all on board.
Fitz: Yep. Let’s do this fast.
Ward: No turning back, no freezing up.
Fitz: Because if we do then…
He’s nodding his head, it’s obvious.
Ward: All of us die.
Simmons: We know.
Ward looks at all of the, Skye for a bit longer.
Ward: All right.
The sound of a car engine revving gets their attention. May is standing on the driver’s side door runner of the SUV looking at them all.
May: You guys talk a lot.
She gets into the car closing the door. Simmons and Fitz panic as Ward sweeps them both past him and out of the way. May puts the SUV into drive sending it into the glass doors of the lab. She’s able to easily break the glass giving them a way in.
Cut to the Planning Room. There is a jolt on the ship after May hits the lab. Camilla sits up straighter trying to figure out what happened.
Cut back to the cargo hold, Ward, Fitz, Simmons and Skye enter.
Cut back to the Planning Room, Camilla begins to panic.
Camilla: No, no, no!
She rushes to the door of the room speaking to her soldiers.
Camilla: That’s exactly what they want.
Cut to inside the lab. Simmons stands on a table with a drill, she is using it on the ceiling of the lab, it looks like an air vent. Fitz has some sort of briefcase on one of the tables and opens it up. Skye is at some lockers which she opens and looks through. Simmons gets the grate off the ceiling. May goes to the other set of glass doors and looks through. We find out that the briefcase Fitz opened is one that houses his drones. He gets his tables out and starts firing them up. (Just for fun, in a brief glance we see this one is named “Sneezy”.) May gets the door open and goes out. Fitz gets Sneezy in the air and sends him into the open air vent. Ward is kneeling on the floor above a black bag, he unzips it and pulls out some rope. Skye also has a bag she is digging into and it looks like she pulls out some black straps. Ward also seems to find some sort of chain that he takes. We see Ward strapping the black straps around Skye, Fitz and Simmons waists.
Cut to Camilla in the Planning Room. The female voice comes over the radio.
Radio Female: S.H.I.E.L.D. 6-1-6 we have radar contact. Requesting confirmation on a change of course. Over.
Camilla has walked over to the radio. When the message ends she pulls out her gun and aims it at Coulson and cocks it.
Camilla: Answer it, or they all learn what a 30,000-foot drop feels like.
Radio Female: Agent Coulson, are you there?
Camilla turns her attention back to the radio. When she does Coulson continues working on the rope around his hands.
Radio Female: You have course confirmation. You are cleared direct to the Slingshot.
Coulson seems to hear something, he looks over his shoulder and sees Sneezy.
We get the point of view from Sneezy. He ducks under a table and looks at one of the soldiers.
Cut back to Coulson, he’s gotten his hands nearly untied, he works fast to get the free.
Radio Female: Agent Coulson? Everything all right up there?
He freezes when Camilla turns back to look at him and point her gun.
Radio Female: We heard you had a little dustup on the ground.
Coulson: Yeah, we’re all good. It’s gonna be blue skies from here on out.
Cut to Skye, Fitz and Simmons. It looks like they are now on that catwalk inside the cargo hold.
Fitz: Simmons, forget what I said before. This, is the moment we’ll regret.
We hear a beeping noise from his tablet.
Cut to Sneezy, he’s hovering above something metal, quite possibly the 0-8-4, although it’s hard to tell for sure. Sneezy sends out some sort of pulse and the 0-8-4 begins to get glowing blue lines flowing over it. We hear energy building up and it ejects out of the 0-8-4 in a blue ray. The ray hits the chair in front of it, passes through the chair and punches a hole in The Bus. This is the explosion we saw at the top of the episode. The solider that Sneezy observed is sucked out of the hole in the plane.
Alarms start blaring in the Planning Room as the various screens show the damage to the plane. Camilla is tossed around and tries to hold onto something. Coulson is up in the air holding onto the rope that had bind his hand. He’s groaning with the stress of holding on, if he were to let go he is angled to go right out the hole.
Commercial Break.
Open outside The Bus showing us the hole. We cut inside to see stuff still flying out the hole. We cut to some sort of monitor that shows a green light. The camera pans over to show Ward, we are now with the others in the cargo hold/lab area.
Skye: It worked.
Simmons gives Ward a smile.
Simmons: The drop in cabin pressure released the doors.
Ward: I’ll take care of the soldiers, you guys get to the 0-8-4.
Fit: And Coulson?
Ward: Let’s hope he can handle himself.
Cut to Coulson still in the air hanging on by the rope. Camilla has had no luck finding something to hold on to, she starts sliding on the floor.
Ward opens the door to where the breach is and braces himself against the wind. The other three follow behind him. One of the remaining soldiers begins to fire at them.
Ward: Get back!
The soldier stops firing and runs toward them. He and Ward begin to fight as Skye peeks out. A second soldier appears and brings his gun up to point at Ward. Ward is able to jump over the little half wall and pins the gun against the couch, then kicks that solider in the face. First solider has recovered and lunges at Ward. Ward sees this and uses the man’s momentum to force him to the couch, he uses one of the seatbelts to tie the man’s wrist. He knees the soldier in the throat then binds his other hand.
Ward: Go now! Find the 0-8-4.
Skye, Fitz and Simmons make their way out bracing against the wind. The second soldier tackles Ward from behind. As Skye, Fitz and Simmons pass by we see they are all tethered together. They are getting thrown around and Fitz even gets knocked to the ground.
Fitz: Help!
Cut to inside the cockpit, the solider in there flips a switch as the door behind him opens. He pulls his gun but May is able to deflect it away. She elbows him in the face sending him backwards into the controls. The plane begins to dive sending everyone scrambling.
Cut to the Living Room/Planning Room area. Coulson is still up in the air as Camilla passes under him. She holds her hand up to him.
Camilla: Coulson!
Coulson: Got you!
He grips one of her hands and she wraps the other around his wrist holding tight.
Coulson: Camilla! Hold on! It’s okay!
Cut to Ward still fighting Solider 2. He kicks the man down. We pan over to see the 0-8-4 is embedded in the wall and Simmons is trying to get it. She lets out a big yell and pulls it from the wall.
Simmons: I’ve got it! Fitz!
Skye: We got it, reel us back in!
Fitz: I’ve got you!
As Skye is waiting the pamphlet from Ward flies into her face, she takes it away and looks down at it. She goes to the buckle at her waist freeing herself.
Simmons: What are you doing? We need your help!
Skye: Trust me!
She goes the opposite way from Simmons.
Coulson and Camilla are now on the floor scrambling to get better holding. Coulson pulls on his rope and uses it to tie her hands where his had been.
Coulson: Don’t want you to know what a 30,000-foot drop feels like.
Cut back to the cockpit. May gives the solider another elbow to his face, this time he falls down to the floor out cold. She quickly moves around him and gets to the controls leveling the plane. Once she’s just about got it the solider gets up, grips her hair and slams her face into the controls. She, of course, gets the upper hand, bashing his face on the controls sending out one of the airplane beeping noises in the process. She delivers a hard knee to his face, this time he’s out cold for sure. She looks at him a moment before getting back behind the controls.
Cut back to Ward still fighting against soldier 2, who appears to have the upper hand. We pan over to Skye. She’s at some sort of box on the wall, she opens it and inside is something bright yellow and plastic. She pulls it out and starts moving with it. We see a solider pulling on a black line and Simmons falls to the ground. He is pulling on the section that Skye abandoned.
Simmons: Fitz!
Fitz moves deeper into the room pulling on the line between him and Simmons, bringing her close to him, but the solider still has a hold of the line. Skye is moving along the floor with the bag. The solider has reached Fitz and Simmons and is pulling on the clips that hold them inside their line.
Simmons: Cut him loose!
Fitz beats him to the punch and opens the carabiner on his waist. This frees both Fitz and gives slack to the solider. This sends him backwards knocking into Ward. This momentum pushes Ward into Solider two who is now holding onto Ward’s arm tightly. This shift has pushed him close to the opening in the plane. Ward uses one of his hands to hold onto a post in the room.
Fitz: Sorry!
Simmons: Sorry, Ward!
Ward hasn’t let go of the soldiers hand, the solider uses his free hand to grip Ward’s arm and begin climbing back toward him.
Ward: Hold on!
The soldier has gripped Ward’s shirt, it goes tearing away sending him out the open hole, Ward stares in shock as he goes. We pan over to Skye, she has opened the bag and it starts to inflate into a boat. As it starts to inflate Ward loses his grip on the post and flies toward the opening. The boat arrives just before he does saving him. Solider one still isn’t giving up. He’s on his belly pulling himself closer to a gun on the floor. A foot with a dress shoe arrives to pin his hand as the solider looks up at the owner with anger. Coulson’s fist slams down knocking the solider out, he picks up the gun. Ward, breathing hard, looks around astonished at what happened. Skye looks relieved and leans against a wall. The plane banks and we see May has control once again. Fitz and Simmons both pop their heads over the half wall panting and seeing what happened. Skye has walked over to Ward and holds her hand down to him offering to help him up, he takes the hand and gets to his feet.
Skye: I read the safety pamphlet.
Ward: I think you may be the first.
They all meet up in the Planning Room panting with exertion and relief.
Coulson: No other way in, huh?
Coulson sets a glass down on the table.
Coulson: I was just starting to warm up to this place.
Skye reaches over and grabs a coaster, she moves the glass to sit on top of it. She gives him a little smile.
Fitz: The 0-8-4 is cooling and stable. But we should call H.Q. and get it to the slingshot as soon as possible.
Coulson turns and looks down at Camilla who is still tied to the pole, she slowly looks up at him defeated.
Coulson: I told you they were good.
He gives her a little grin as we pan over to Ward, Skye, Fitz and Simmons who are smiling and giving relieved looks to one another.
Cut to a pan across a desert landscape, a few small building dot the horizon, along with The Bus whose ramp is lowered. We get a runner on the bottom of the screen.
The Slingshot Location: Classified.
Cut to inside the cargo hold, Coulson is leaning over Lola looking it over for damage. Skye walks down the spiral staircase and walks to Coulson.
Skye: Not a scratch, but your plane’s totaled. I hope S.H.I.E.L.D. insurance covers hijackings.
Coulson: Sure, under “incidentals”.
Skye laughs.
Skye: What exactly am I signing up for?
Coulson: Like I said, front-row seat to the craziest show on Earth.
Skye: Yeah, but I didn’t expect the show to get this crazy this fast all for an object you’re just going to destroy.
Coulson: Slingshot is protocol. A weapon like the 0-8-4 is too dangerous for any person or country to have. People like Reyes would always be after it.
While speaking he has pulled out a handkerchief, he wets it with his tongue and takes it to Lola.
Skye: What happened with Reyes, anyway?
Coulson: She’s being held at a S.H.I.E.L.D. detainment facility. I expect the Peruvian government will negotiate for her release. She probably won’t spend much time in jail.
Skye: No, I mean, what happened with you and Reyes?
She gives him a smile.
Skye: You guys totally did it back in the day, right?
He looks up at her and raises his eyebrows.
Coulson: That’s classified.
She laughs as he walks away.
We pan over to Ward and May standing near each other putting things away into briefcases.
Ward: Looks like Skye might end up as more than a consultant, despite our reservations.
May nods and continues to pack.
Ward: She could turn into a solid asset, with some serious work.
May: Well, if she wants to be a field agent, she’ll need a supervising officer, someone disciplined, someone good.
She’s staring at him while he stares at Skye, he’s nodding in agreement until he looks over at her. The two stare at each other for a moment.
Ward: All right. I’ll do it.
May nods and goes back to packing.
Ward: Just to clarify, you were, uh, talking about me, right?
May smiles but says nothing.
The camera pans over to show Fitz and Simmons walking down a spiral staircase. Fitz is holding a cooler and Simmons is holding a beer.
Fitz: We blew up a plane.
Simmons: I had a new experience.
Fitz: Eat that, Professor Vaughn.
Simmons: You had a new experience. But it was new for all of us.
They both have smiles as they head out of the plane.
May: They’re happy.
Fitz turns and looks at May and Ward.
Fitz: Hey, come on. You guys don’t want to miss this.
Fitz and Simmons walk to the end of the ramp and sit on the edge, their legs dangling. Skye, Ward and May all walk to join them.
Fitz: So, it’ll take about 180 days to reach the sun. Now, yes, of course, it would have been faster if they’d use hydrogen-fueled APUs, but they’re having fun.
Simmons has reached into the cooler and is pulling out beers for the others.
Skye: How many of those have you guys had?
Simmons offers one to Skye who turns her down, May and Ward both have one. Simmons scoffs.
Simmons: Skye, it’s important, when in the field, to unwind from time to time.
Fitz: Yeah, yeah, especially after a hard day of everyone almost dying.
Coulson walks up behind Skye.
Simmons: Which doesn’t happen every day, right? It’s an anomaly, an irregularity. Not, the norm.
Her enthusiasm diminishes when she sees Coulson.
Coulson: Speaking of “not the norm” whose idea was it to blow a hole in the plane?
All of their faces drop.
Skye: May said that the doors were tied to the pressurization so I thought –
Simmons: So we thought it was the only way to release them.
Ward: It was everyone’s idea, sir.
Fitz: Yeah, quite genius, really.
Colson: Nice work.
We hear a voice over a loudspeaker.
Voice: All clear for liftoff.
Fitz: Oh, time for blastoff.
Fitz pinches his nose closed giving him a funny sound to his voice.
Fitz: Launching in three, two…
We see a rocket taking flight in front of them.
Fitz: The trajectory will take it beyond the Lagrange Point so that it doesn’t hit Herschel.
Simmons: And there haven’t been any coronal mass ejections, so it shouldn’t lose telemetry.
Ward: Guys, English.
They all watch it fly away with a smile, Ward claps Fitz on the back.
Fitz: Ow.
We hear the noise of something vibrating, Skye looks down and takes her cell phone out of her pocket. There is a message on her phone:
Protocol 24323.211011>INC EMC MSG
SECURE LOGIN USER X3JGD803
> 10 SECOND UNTRACEABLE ENCRYPT
< 09 [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []
---------------------------------------------------
>RISING TIDE IN A HOLDING PATTERN.
>PLANNING TO GO DARK
>WHAT IS YOUR STATUS?
--------------------------------------------------
>>REPLY
As she looks at her screen we see the area where it says “9" with the brackets, is counting down. She looks at the team, who are all still watching the launch, and backs away from them. She looks at them for a long moment then begins to type.
--------------------------------------------------
>>REPLY
>>>I’M IN.
She puts the phone back in her pocket and looks away thinking.
Logo Screen.
Cut back inside the plane, men are working on the repairs. We see Coulson standing there while the work goes on off to his side. We hear a male voice speak, fans of the movie should know this voice but since they haven’t shown the owner yet, neither will I.
Man: Really? Really, Coulson? Six Days?
The camera pans around Coulson to see that it none other than Director Fury addressing Coulson. He is not happy.
Fury: It only took you six days to take a completely renovated piece of state-of-the-art machinery and turn it into scrap?!?
Coulson isn’t showing any emotion whatsoever.
Coulson: My team acted with my authority.
Fury: Don’t talk to me about authority. Do you know how much this plane costs?
Coulson walks over to one said of the plane motioning to something.
Fury: It’s got a bar! A really nice one.
He looks at the bar for a moment then back to Coulson.
Fury: Talking to me about authority. You know, I have the authority to downgrade your ass to a Winnebago.
Coulson: I’m aware of that, sir.
Fury points his finger in Coulson’s face.
Fury: Well, I want it fixed just like you found it. So don’t have Fitz-Simmons going making modifications, like a-a-a damn fish tank.
Coulson: Yes, sir.
Fury starts to walk past him but stops.
Fury: And the new girl, she’s a risk.
Coulson: I know, sir.
Fury: You know, sir?
Fury stares at him a beat then walks past.
Fury: How’s Lola?
Coulson gives a little smile.
Coulson: She’s fine, sir. Thanks for asking.
Fury mutters while he walks out of frame.
Fury: Talking to me about authority.
Coulson’s smile falls, a beat after Fury leaves he puts his finger to his earpiece.
Coulson: Yeah, we’re gonna have to kill the fish tank.
The End.
