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1959 Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. series 2

S.H.I.E.L.D. has been running pretty smoothly for some time now. But a pair of terrible twins are about to disrupt things for the team…Fenris! They are older (77) in 1959 (their age is related to where The Gifted is in this timeline) and some of their story will be told in flashback.

They have been setting up Hellfire Club chapters around the world, trying to manipulate world events in the club's favour. They create terrorist incidents and blame them on other factions, plant misinformation etc. They have also been finding or rescuing promising mutants then enticing/forcing them to join.

Nathaniel Essex is referred to as "our employer" but never by name. No one has been able to work out how the bombs were planted in these incidents, but Howard works out that Fenris are the bomb, managing to link these incidents together and build up a profile for the now elderly Von Struckers. 

In a slight rework from the original The Gifted timeline, the London incident should be 1915 and it's the Police in pursuit, Rio should be 1930 with SSR investigating and pursuing. They manage to evade capture until this series. 

They chase them across the world after the latest incident in Plac Zamkovy, which kills hundreds. They can't figure out what gives them this power (no one knows about mutants, except Otto Strucker). They finally catch up with them and Andrea is killed before they can detonate. Andreas flees to grieve and consider his next move.

They have embedded themselves in Hydra to disguise their true allegiance.

Peggy, Howard, the Howling Commandos, Brian and Jacqueline Falsworth are all present but Adam Brashear is now off world and Sousa 'died' in 1955 as per original AoS s7 continuity. James Braddock (actor tbc) is more prominent here after being a background character previously, also he had "mystically given" powers, but kept them secret from all but a select few, also a great scientist. Very useful for S.H.I.E.L.D. and S.T.R.I.K.E.

As a second arc in this series Howard and Anton Vanko finalise their prototype for the arc reactor. Howard wants to keep developing it in secret, with a view to sharing it when he is sure it can't be copied or duplicated without them both. He has learned his lesson from season 1 of Agent Carter where some of his technology was dangerously flawed or misappropriated. He doesn't want the arc reactor rushed. He doesn't want the technology to fall into the wrong hands. Vanko wants to patent it and start selling the idea straight away. 

Vanko: It's too important not to share it right now.

Stark: I see that it could help the world right now, but I am not prepared to compromise on safety or security. If we rush out a design that could be reverse engineered relatively easily it could start another world war.

V: You just don't want to share the technology with Russia, do you? You think Russia is Leviathan? You think I am with Leviathan? I have known you 13 years Howard…

S: Now Anton, it's not like that, I just need to put in some checks and bal-

V: You want to take all the credit! Where is the proof I was involved in the design if there is no patent?

S: Now wait a minute Anton-

V: You want all the profit too?

S (scoffs): This shouldn't be about money.

V: This is easy for you to say. You live in America like a billionaire,  I live here like a Russian immigrant.

S: I pay you well enough Anton…Let's just…let's just cool off…talk about this in the morning. We can work this out.

V (tersely): Good night, Mr Stark.

By the next morning, Vanko has gone and so have the blueprints. S.H.I.E.L.D. tracks him down and recover the blueprints and hand him over to the company lawyers who have him charged and deported. Howard is too angry to object to the industrial espionage charges or the deportation. He does, however, offer to pay Vanko his share of any profits their design makes. Vanko refuses, arrogantly thinking he can recreate the designs on his own in Russia. He cannot and ends up drunk and destitute setting up Iron Man 2.

Post credits:-

With the Fenris bomb duo out of the picture, we see Sebastian Shaw at the Las Vegas chapter of the Hellfire Club taking a phone call from his employer saying he "would be delighted to be the new black king". After he hangs up he says "now to find myself a queen".

1970 Agents of Shield series 3

Episode 1:

We start with Magneto receiving a distress call from Mystique. He is not happy that she has found him, as this means the government can find him too. She says she has no one else to turn to. Charles is falling apart after losing his ability to walk, being betrayed by his best friend, losing his fiancée (Moira) and most of his young charges being drafted for the war. The Brotherhood is gone and everyone else is dead, drafted or after her. He reluctantly agrees and clandestinely goes to her location, a nearby dive bar. When he meets her, she charms him into momentarily letting his guard down. She immediately clamps a hidden power dampening collar on him. A squad of government enforcement agents with plastic rifles and rubber bullets cram into the bar followed by Dr Valerie Cooper.

Mystique: Did we pass?

Cooper: You apprehended the most dangerous mutant on the planet without bloodshed…you will be an asset to the team. Welcome aboard Raven.

Erik Lehnsherr, I am arresting you for the assassination of President John F. Kennedy…

Magneto (while Cooper continues): Why did you betray me?

Mystique (quietly): Erik, everything I said is true. You will be much safer where you're going.

Cut to Peggy in discussion with her team, which now consists of:

Howard Stark - R&D (and science)

Hank Pym - science (and R&D)

Jacqueline Falsworth - demolition, espionage 

Brian Falsworth - combat, espionage 

James Braddock - pilot, combat, espionage

Having been made aware of mutants through their battles with Fenris, Xavier's X-Gene theory and the events of First Class they are urged to look into the disappearance of Evangeline Whedon, a noted human rights lawyer who is secretly a mutant. She had been working for the U.N. when she vanished. The urging came from Moira McTaggart who has seen a number of her mutant contacts disappear.

The S.H.I.E.L.D. team head to the U.N. building in New York. They are interviewing building staff and diplomats and investigating Whedon's office. Stark and Pym have found singed carpet fibres in an otherwise immaculate office. The interviewees remember Whedon arriving that day but no one saw her leave.

Suddenly Valerie Cooper marches in with her men, and demands to know what they think they're doing. They explain who they are and why they're there. She tells them that the matter they are investigating is a matter of national security and is highly classified. Jacqui asks if that means they knew where Whedon was. Cooper repeats that it is highly classified and forces them to halt their investigation. Braddock goes to call Peggy. Stark and Pym get in an argument with Cooper's men who are trying to confiscate their gathered evidence and equipment. Forge, all suited and booted, tries to reach a compromise where the evidence is confiscated but not the equipment. Cooper is not keen.

In all the commotion, Jacqui is pulled aside by a diplomat and is told that he saw Whedon being taken away by Cooper and her team. Jacqui tries to encourage them to come forward but they are very reluctant and manage to break away and go round a corner. When Jacqui catches up there is only a young woman coming towards her.

Jacqui (to woman): Have you seen a gentleman come this way? Older gentleman, grey hair?

Woman (pointing to the stairwell): Oh, I saw a man duck through those doors there.

Jacqui (hurrying to the doors): Thank you Miss…?

Woman (calling after her): Darkhölme, Doctor Darkhölme.

Raven smiles to herself and goes to join Forge and Cooper.

The next day, Peggy is in a debrief with the team as Val is with hers.

We switch between them:

Peggy wants to know what happened to the mystery diplomat. Jacqui is still surprised that he was sprightly enough to get away from her.

******

Val, meanwhile, is telling off Forge for undermining her while she was trying to control the situation. Forge insists he was trying to calm things down so that they could get what they needed and leave without conflict. Val snaps that he shouldn't back down to a rival agency when there's so much at stake.

*****

Howard informs the team that the singed carpet fibres did not match the carpet in the office (he knows as the analysing machine had already finished before the samples were confiscated). And Brian had informally charmed Whedon's secretary and she confirmed that the office had been completely redecorated the day she disappeared.

*****

Forge: Would it be so bad if S.H.I.E.L.D. found out? We could cooperate, share resources…

Val: No. We cannot risk mutants becoming public knowledge. Not until we have the situation under control.

Irene Adler: Miss Whedon, you have been very quiet. It is you they're looking for after all.

Evangaline (now revealed as part of Val's team): Val, you know my feelings on the matter. I'd much rather go home.

Val: NO! You cannot go home. Not until we have-

Raven (interrupting): When will that be!

(Meeting descends into chaos)

*****

Peggy wonders if anybody found out what agency they were with, as they didn't show their badges. James believes, from their uniforms, that they were CIA. Peggy resolves to talk to President Nixon about it.

Pym is irate that his technology nearly fell into the CIA's hands. “Your technology?” queries Howard. They bicker over whose technology it is. (Meeting descends into chaos)

*****

A man wearing a dark green suit and glasses, and sporting a crop of bright orange hair enters the fray.

It is Henry Peter Gyrich.

Gyrich: Enough! Agent Cooper answers to me and my answer is also no! No one is going home, we are not cooperating with anyone and we will deal with S.H.I.E.L.D. when the time comes.

Now, more importantly, you have your new target.

Raven: Magneto isn't enough?

Gyrich: Oh Magneto was just the beginning…

*****

Peggy: Moira McTaggart has had a tip off about another target. We believe this man, known as Azazel, is next. He is known to S.H.I.E.L.D. from an attack on one of our U.S. bases in ‘62. Very dangerous, killed several agents. Also believed to have been part of a mutant terrorist organisation known as the Brotherhood. Believed to be hiding in Germany.

Howard (looking at his photograph on the projector screen): Shouldn't be too hard to spot.

*****

Gyrich dismisses everyone and reminds them that they will receive their assignments from Agent Cooper separately from now on and that information will be given on a need to know basis only, no more leaks! And vows that they will find the traitor, with warnings of dire consequences for them. Dr. Darkhölme does not leave and sits staring at the image on the projector screen.

Val: Something the matter Dr. Darkhölme?

Raven: I thought, as Miss Whedon is staying on base, I could complete her profile. I haven't had a chance to speak to her yet.

V (crouching next to Raven's seat, speaking quietly): I know you were once…close…with Azazel. But he's one of our most wanted. Very dangerous. And we can't bring him in without you.

R (also softly, looking down): I can't. 

V: The deal was for the Brotherhood. All of them. So if you want that pardon…

Gyrich (noticing the furtive conversation): Problem, Darkhölme? 

R (standing): No problem.

(Shoots Val a dirty look before she leaves)

Flashback to around a year earlier. We see Raven in an off the book, makeshift maternity suite. She is close to giving birth. The ‘doctor’ has the ‘nurse’ mop their brow. The medical team look nervous. An anxious Azazel paces the room.

Azazel: Is there a problem with the delivery?

‘Doctor’ (sweating and shifty): No, no problem.

A (to Raven): I don't like this, we're too exposed.

Raven (tersely): Where would you have me do this? Mm? On the stained linoleum floor of that crappy ‘safehouse’ apartment? The neighbours would have heard me screaming and called 911 on us.

A: This doctor seems nervous. What school did you say you graduated from anyway?

‘Doctor’ (shakily): I've been very honest with you. I told you I dropped out of medical school, but I can deliver babies. I've done it successfully 14 times.

A: How many times have you done it unsuccessfully?

R: Have you considered they may be nervous because there's a man who looks like a demon angrily questioning their credentials?

A: …

R: What normal hospital would let you stalk around the delivery room? I told you to disappear before we got here…

A: No way. I'm not leaving you. Not here with these Sapiens.

R: …and it's not like Eric gives us health insurance. I should never have reached out to you in the first place.

There is a disturbance down the hallway. Raven tells Azazel to go as she can pass as a Sapien but he obviously can't. He wants to take her but she doesn't want to risk teleportation with a baby still inside her.

He bampfs away just as Val Cooper and her agents burst into the room despite the protestations of the staff.

Val (brushing off a ‘nurse’): May I remind you that the only reason you aren't all being arrested for running an illegal maternity hospital is the information we were given.

I am pleased the information was good. But where is the demon?

‘Doctor’ (sheepishly): He left.

Raven (glaring at the doctor as she is cuffed and has a power dampening collar fitted): Azazel was right. It was you.

‘Doctor’ (sighs): Yes. They offered me a medical license and funding for a legitimate community clinic.

V: Do remember, there are to be no more mutants here. That was the deal.

‘Doctor’: Do remember that we are delivering a baby here! You were supposed to wait outside.

V: We couldn't risk an escape…do what you need to do. 

The staff, trying to ignore the armed agents, and Raven successfully deliver the baby. The baby is blue, marked from birth as a mutant. Cooper offers to take care of the baby. Raven is having none of it and calls for Azazel. He bampfs in and grabs the baby, he tries to get to Raven but is met with lots of gun barrels pointing at him.

Kayla, a nurse, grabs Cooper by the back of the neck and tells her to point her own gun against her head. She is compelled to do so by Kayla's touch as she is a mutant too.

As Azael reaches out for Raven an agent sneaks up behind Kayla and snaps a collar on her. Cooper is released and lowers her weapon. In the confusion Raven screams at Azazel to leave with the baby. Reluctantly he does so.

Raven (both devastated and furious): You are lucky I still need medical treatment,  otherwise I would have wiped the floor with your agents and dived through the window. 

Val (to Raven): We'll make sure you get the care that you need.

Val (to ‘Doctor’): Any other mutants in here I should know about?

Our deal is now off, by the way.

Val (to agents): This nurse may be of interest to Stryker. Take them away.

1970 Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. series 3 Episode 2

Open on Azazel running, bamfing all over the place. Special forces are armed and in pursuit. It doesn't seem to matter where he bampfs to, someone is always there, or nearby, to intercept.

We cut to the S.H.I.E.L.D. team in their headquarters, tracking Azazel's movements and trying to coordinate teams. It seems like they are the ones pursuing him. But then on the third intercept, in Kazakhstan, they are almost beaten to it by another special forces team. They get in each other's way and Azazel is gone again. The two teams argue.

We cut to Val, who is livid. She wants to know how S.H.I.E.L.D. is one step ahead, how they are everywhere our teams are supposed to be. She is very suspicious of Irene as she is directing the manhunt with her (secretly) precognitive powers. She denies it but Val knows that Gyrich will have serious questions.

Azazel bampfs to location near his and Mystique's old apartment. Under his breath he wonders what made him come back here. He tries to clear his head for his next move when he spies…across the street…could it be? It's Mystique, gesturing for him to come over to a closed down store. He does and follows her inside without being spotted.

Mystique: Are you okay? Are you being chased?...Who's chasing you?...Azazel…

Listen, I know we're not together anymore but of course I'll help you…

Azazel: You can't. They keep showing up everywhere I go. I don't know how they know where I was going to. I don’t even know where I'm going to…

Wait, how did you know where I'd be?

M: …

A: Mystique? 

M: …I have…a friend who can see into the future.

A: Does your friend work with a SWAT team? Because that would explain a lot.

M (not answering the question): I can get you out of here, but you're going to have to trust me.

A: And why should I do that?

M: I trusted you to take the baby somewhere safe, didn't I?

A: …Yes

M: …Where did you take it…?

A: Those armed goons could be here any minute…please.

M: …Okay. See that truck across the street?

A: Yeah.

M: Take us to the trailer.

*bampf*

A: Wow. There is a lot of gear in here. Is Magneto helping you out?

M: No. I don't work for him anymore.

A: Who do you work for?

M: Myself…

I can tell you who's chasing you…

A: Who?

M: If you tell me where you took the baby.

A: Your foresight friend can't tell you that?

M: If I knew where we were going before and I got caught then…

A: They might get it out of you.

M: Where did you take the baby?

A: You mean our baby? Jeez.

M: Answer the damn question Azazel.

A (hesitantly): …Germany.

M (overlapping dialogue): Germany!?/

A: Shit!/ I knew if you found out you'd be angry…but…

M: Why Germany? I mean Canada or maybe even Mexico, but…damn right/ I'm angry about that!

A: I/ just wanted to…

M: Germany is nearly 4000/ miles away! By air!

A: I just wanted/ to…

M: You think/ it will be easy to get on an aeroplane?

A: Good God! Let me finish…I wanted to make sure the he was someplace safe.

A: Where the sapiens wouldn't find him.

A: With people I could trust.

M: …It…

A: Mystique.

M: Not ‘him', it.

M: Unless I'm holding that baby in my arms I don't want to think of it as a person. No connection. It is an it.

A: Then why do you care where ‘it' is?

M: Because I still want it in my arms…Irene says there's a 43% chance that we leave here and go to find the baby, you and me.

A: Irene?

M: My…foresight friend.

A: Your friend…is a girl? Just when you had me thinking I had competition.

M: Oh grow up.

A: There are less complicated ways to ask a guy out you know.

M: Don't flatter yourself. This is not about us. This is about freedom and finding our child.

This dialogue is cut here with S.H.I.E.L.D. and Val's troops continuing the search, maps being looked at, the rival teams in Kazakhstan arguing etc. Towards the end of the sequence we see Val realise she hasn't seen Raven for a while. She approaches Irene, leans in and whispers in her ear, “Where is Raven Darkhölme?”.

Mystique leaves Azazel in the back as he is ‘too conspicuous’ in the front. She genuinely thinks about making a run for it, but Val has discovered the double cross and contacts her on a secure frequency, convincing her to come back for Irene. She says Irene is not strong like Mystique and the finger of suspicion is already pointing at her and she can't protect her from Gyrich.

Mystique reluctantly agrees to bring him in to protect Irene. Azazel gets the jitters and wants out but realises he can't bampf away, he just materialises in the same spot, he is trapped in the van. Mystique hedged her bets and brought a van designed by Forge to neutralise his power. He bangs on the truck for her to let him out.

Good girl says Val in her ear. She yanks out the earpiece but goes back to hq anyway, for Irene.

Meanwhile, Peggy is having a somewhat heated exchange with the President. Peggy is adamant that she must speak to the team that is targeting mutants as she believes there is a more humane way to deal with the issue. Nixon is adamant that there is no such team. That he has never approved any agency to carry out these actions. But he does recognise the rise of these ‘mutants’ as a threat.

Peggy is not fooled by any of this and reiterates her concern and reminds him that S.H.I.E.L.D. has a deal with the American government where they don't keep secrets from each other.

After she hangs up she asks Howard if he is ready to trace the President's next call. Howard and the others are worried what will happen if the President finds out his call was traced. Peggy just says, “Then make sure he never finds out”.

Nixon is rattled and calls Henry Peter Gyrich to tell him that S.H.I.E.L.D. are on to them.

Gyrich believes the team's next target could be useful in this situation. Sean Cassidy has been seen/heard approaching New Jersey. He believes Cassidy is making his way to Camp Lehigh. Gyrich actually sees this as an opportunity to solve three problems:

Confirm and expose Raven Darkhölme as a traitor 

Capture Sean Cassidy and reduce the threat posed by him and Moira McTaggart. 

Destroy S.H.I.E.L.D.

He prepares to tell the team their next target.

We cut to Peggy on the phone to Moira McTaggart the next day. Moira warns them Sean is coming. Their source has told them Freedom Force's next target was Angel Salvadore and he wanted to be involved with the counter operation (Angel was once his friend).

The team start to wonder what that noise is. Moira says, that'll be Sean, you hear him before you see him.

Sean Cassidy comes in and introduces himself. He says the information only came in last night and he got there as quick as he could. The team are impressed with his powers.

He tells them where Angel is expected to be and when Cooper's team are expected to strike. They prepare to head out.

Cut to Val's small team. A couple of undercover agents are reporting on Salvadore's movements.

As they are preparing to go Jacqui melts together the doors of the store Freedom Force was hiding in, forcing them to find another exit and buying time.

Meanwhile Sean has intercepted Angel and is trying to convince her to come with him. She is caught off guard and torn between flying off and listening to him. She stays and he tries to convince her a government agency is after her. She reminds him that is nothing new for her. He tells her they have Magneto and Azazel, that they are coming for any and all mutants. This gives her pause.

As they are talking the Freedom Force (FF) agents have found an alternative route and swarm to their location.

Cassidy takes out the first with a sonic scream. Angel takes out another with her hardening goo spit thing (that is totally stolen from Toad in the 2000 movie). The agents keep on coming. Brian appears, bends the barrel of an agent's gun and then uses that agent to take out a bunch of others.

Jacqui arrives and puts a protective ring of fire around the group, with the threat of expanding it if they are threatened further.

Above, two snipers are taking aim at Jacqui. They ask for confirmation on the shot.

Howard pulls up with Hank. Asks him if he's sure his contraption will work. ‘Oh it'll work’ says Hank, testily.

He exits the car, puts on the mk I helmet, jumps and shrinks. This propels him way up the fire escape. He reaches the top of the building in two leaps. ‘Well I'll be…’ admires Howard.

The first sniper goes to check the noise from the fire escape. As his partner receives the go ahead for the shot, the first sniper is seemingly beaten up by an invisible assailant. As the 2nd sniper radios through an incomprehensible message about an attack by the invisible man, Hank's suit fails and he appears, full size. Dumbfounded for a second, the sniper is just recovering his wits (and his weapon) when Hank just charges him, knocking them both off the roof. They battle on the way down.

Hank's suit finally releases the Pym Particles and he leaps safely from the falling sniper and lands within Jacqui's flame barrier and returns to full size. Everyone is surprised as Hank had kept his project secret from everyone.

The sniper lands on his Freedom Force Colleagues and they are given permission to shoot through the flames.

As they open fire, James Braddock pulls up in an unmarked S.H.I.E.L.D. van. They bundle in, Angel Salvadore and all, and speed away.

After evading the agents at the scene,  they realise they are being followed by a black sedan on the highway. A window rolls down on the sedan and an FF agent fires.

Hank: Brian, open the doors.

Angel: Are you crazy? They're shooting at us!

H: I'm gonna stop them shooting.

James (Calling from the front): There's no need. Stark bullet-proofed it.

H: But what if they follow us to Camp Lehigh? What if they shoot out the tyres?

Jacqui: Dr. Pym, please! You'll be killed…

H (to Brian): Just…open the doors Falsworth! I know what I'm doing. 

Brian obliges and Hank leaps out of the back of the van, shrinking as he does so.

The process fails halfway through and he smashes, full size, into the windscreen of the Sedan. His speed relative to theirs and his super secret Pym Tech suit protect him from serious injury.

Hank and the FF agents are dazed. They recover first and the shooter readies their pistol. Fortunately the suit tech works this time and he shrinks and enters the vehicle through the open window. While the agents wonder where he went, he operates the hood release causing it to catch the wind and flap up, obstructing their view. He catches sight of Howard speeding behind them to catch up and radios for him to pull up alongside.

As the FF Sedan crashes into a barrier, Pym leaps into the cabriolet. Howard swerves to avoid the crashing vehicle and the S.H.I.E.L.D. vehicles speed off to Camp Lehigh. 

When the rescue team return to base,  they start to celebrate and Sean is catching up with Angel.

Peggy upbraids them and tells them not to celebrate as she knows there will be consequences for what they have just done.

Back at FF headquarters, Val Cooper brings the ‘bad news’ of Salvadore’s escape to Gyrich. He is not upset, he simply smiles, points out that S.H.I.E.L.D. have ‘crossed the line’ and adds…

“Release the hounds…”

We flashback to Irene's psychology evaluation from a few weeks before.

Dr Darkhölme gets her to state her name and job title for her recording. They go through some details of her past, but not too deep yet.

Raven circles back to Irene's job.

Raven: You are in their foresight division.

Irene: Yes.

R: It's your job to predict what is going to happen before it happens.

I: Yes.

R: And you're usually correct. Is that right?

(*Irene nods*)

That's quite a skill.

I (after a pause): May we stop the recording for a moment.

R: Agent Cooper prefers that we get this all on tape.

I: I would like it to be private.

R: …

I: After you have heard it you may decide whether to put it on tape.

R: …Interview paused at 4:45pm.

(*stop the tape*)

What did you have to say that couldn't be on the recording Irene?

I: My predictions are not a skill.

R: No? What are they then?

I: …A gift…Like yours.

R (somewhat rattled): …What do you mean?...A gift from who?

I: I am a mutant. Like you.

R: …Did Cooper put you up to this?

I: No. Frau Cooper does not want us to know each other's secret.

That we are not the only one.

That we are both mutants, both being held here against our will.

R: How do I know Cooper's not listening right now?

I: She is not. No one is. The others trust you. Cooper trusts you.

R: Why should I trust you?

I: You will come to trust me because my precognitions are accurate…

My probabilities are accurate…

They will save lives…

Mutant lives…

I believe we will do this work together. I believe that it is our destiny.

R: Irene…I…I'm just trying to survive here.

I: Well…you have been tasked with capturing the other Brotherhood members, yes?

R: …Yes.

I: There is a 43% chance that when you find Azazel you will leave with him to find your child. I can give you the time to get away.

R: …You can do that? You can get me out of this. And get me to the baby.

I: Yes. The chance is only based on the path you choose. If you decide to leave with Azael then you will be successful.

R: And if I do leave? What happens to you and the others?

I: …Nothing is for certain. It all depends on the choices we make.

R: What about working together? Our ‘destiny’?

I: That is your decision to make.

*There is a loud knock on the door*

Guard (from the other side): Dr Darkhölme! Cooper says to wrap it up. You're needed in the command centre. 

*A moment's silence…aaaaand scene.*