Thing is, no one exactly knows what happened to the crying man that summer.

Some say that he drowned in the lake, But others say that they've seen his ghost, Wandering these woods, in search for his lost sister.

Actually, they say if you're quiet and listen real hard You can still hear him crying.

Mr.

Cross, that was, like, the worst crying man ever.

Really? I thought it was pretty good.

You guys think we're kidding.

Just remember to stick close to the campfire tonight, okay? Hey, guys.

Do you hear that? Hear what? That humming sound.

Stay here.

I'm gonna take a look around the campground.

What humming? W-where's Mr.

Cross going? He's just trying to scare us.

So lame.

Come on, guys.

Grab a s'more.

Well, that's for you.

Ooh, I want the marsh marshmallows! I know Tommy, you like chocolates.

Here.

Don't hog the marshmallows, okay? Everyone to the truck now! Go, go! Go! Go hooom.

What the hell Is everything OK.

? Mr.

Cross? Mr.

Cross! Come on, guys.

Let's go look for him.

Whoa.

Is he nuts? Stay close.

Mr.

Cross, are you okay? we just go back? Working up a good sweat there, sir? I don't sweat.

I glisten.

Blood pressure, heart rate, biochems all normal.

All that's left is the blood sample.

You should know I'm not a fan of getting poked.

Have you been feeling under the weather lately? Why? I just noticed from your chart that you're not due for a physical for another 3 months I made a mistake took a call from my physical therapist.

Asked how I was feeling.

I said, "a little rusty.

" Next thing you know, I'm wired to this hamster wheel.

Well, you can officially tell your physical therapist That you're fit as the proverbial fiddle, Especially for a man of your age.

A man of my age? That's something you say to an old person.

Is it? Well, let's get you some electrolytes, shall we? Sorry, Fitz.

It's close, but it's just not right.

'Cause agent Coulson had no problems.

It's an ounce too heavy.

An ounce? Seriously? It's the difference between success and failure.

When you're on a rooftop with a 15-mile-an-hour wind, Your target is 500 yards away Yeah, but we do have a rifle.

Lose the ounce.

Yeah, okay.

On it.

"Lose the ounce.

" I'm agent Grant Ward, And I can shoot the legs off a flea from 500 yards, As long as it's not windy.

Hey.

That's a sound I haven't heard in a bit.

Yeah, well, you wouldn't be laughing a whole lot If you were living in Ward's doghouse.

You made the rounds, apologized to us all.

What more can he ask? I don't know.

I have been busting my ass, Memorizing every S.

H.

I.

E.

L.

D.

protocol manual, Following every order.

"Yes, sir.

" "No, sir.

" I even let them tag me like a stray dog.

I mean, I know I lied to you guys, But I was trying to protect my boyfriend.

You know, we all make mistakes.

I don't car who cares about your ex-boyfriend? It's not like I'm comparing Ward to Miles, I didn't have to worry about passive-aggressive stuff.

There was no mind games.

We spoke the same language, you know? - Yeah.

Yeah, a bit like we do.

-Totally.

You and Simmons are so tight, like you're psychically linked.

No, you no.

Actually, no.

I don't think so.

So, Ward was here? Let me guess the night-night pistol again? Yeah, and he said it was off by an ounce.

Of course he did.

I'm agent Grant Ward, and I could rupture your spleen with my left pinky Blind-folded! That is dead on.

Hey.

Hustle up and grab your gear.

We're on a mission.

Something funny? Poor, silly Fitz.

He mistakenly left a dummy round in the pistol.

Should be proper now.

Great.

Thanks.

Troop leader's name was Adam Cross.

He said he heard something in the woods, went to check it out, that's where the electrostatic anomaly occurred.

What I don't understand is, usually, They're caused by a massive electrical storm Within a thousand Miles of here last night.

This anomaly's different It has a side effect we've never seen before.

The battery blew straight up through the hood.

Landed over here.

Hell of a force to create that kind of trajectory.

What are you doing? I'm shadowing my supervising officer.

Shadowing, not smothering.

There's scorch marks all over that tree.

Lucky the whole forest didn't burn down.

I don't get it.

Seems to me like this electroshock thingy Was some freak lightning strike.

I mean, why call us? What's the big Never mind.

So sad a man died this way And yet, so amazing.

Fitz-Simmons, any idea what could cause an effect like this? Judging by the horizontal There's the soliton hypothesis perhaps, nanobatteries electrical discharge, it could be Time.

Let's try that again.

Any idea what could cause an effect like this? - The hell if I know.

No, no clue.

Seems to me we're dealing with some freak natural event or a new high-tech weapon.

Or could it be someone from your uber-secret index? There's no one on the index with this type of power.

I'll contact agent Blake at S.

H.

I.

E.

L.

D.

HQ, Have him check it out.

Whoever or whatever's responsible, we can't let this happen again.

Fitz, see his forehead? Look at that endothelial discoloration.

Yeah, same dispersal pattern as the strike on the truck.

Could be an entry wound cauterized immediately.

Freaky.

Freeeaaa-ky.

You found something on Cross? Many things, actually, but you already knew that, thanks to my fancy SHIELD house-arrest gizmo tracking my every key swipe, My online activity, my cholesterol.

Just wish it came in another color came off.

The victim? Adam Cross single, no kids, Originally from Wrigley, Pennsylvania, Not far from here.

Been there.

They have a nice little strawberry festival in the spring.

Occupation? Phys-ed teacher at the local high school And Varsity baseball coach And troop leader and volunteer firefighter.

This guy makes Captain America look like "The Dude.

" "The Big Lebowski.

" Seriously? What about a criminal record, restraining order, something that might give us a suspect? Nada not even a parking ticket.

I skimmed all his posts, anyone linked to his pages, hoping for a crazy ex or superpowered stalker.

It's clean.

Everybody looks clean on their first go-round.

Ward's right.

We're missing something.

Dig deeper.

You've been pretty tough on her.

She lied to us, contacted the Rising Tide while we were on mission.

If she wants our trust back, she's got to earn it.

The background she ran on Cross is a good start.

Put it up on the server.

I want may to have a look when she's done with her interrogation.

Have a cookie.

Excellent timing, sir.

I've been analyzing sagittal and coronal images of the victim's brain.

What Fitz found up there? He detected a strange energy coming off the body.

He's afraid of it, isn't he? -It's the smell! -There's no shame in it, Fitz.

It's perfectly natural to be afraid.

No, the only thing I'm afraid of Is putrid, decaying flesh Corrupting my pristine workspace.

Remember when you brought a dead thing into the lab? - Not the stupid cat again.

The cat? -OUR lab, not yours! You left his liver next to my lunch! Guys! Can we please - Yes, sir.

As I was saying, this is the victim's brain.

Looks like a burnt baked potato.

That's what happens when it's hit with close to electrostatic energy.

That's almost double the power of a lightning bolt.

Kid's clean.

You figure out why the body was floating? Not yet.

The molecular density of the victim was temporarily altered by an unknown energy source.

I'm hoping to shed some light on its effects Once I extract a brain-tissue sample.

It's happening again! It's science, Fitz! I have to dissect something.

No.

The satelite is picking up another electrostatic event not 20 kilometers from here.

Fitz, what's the latest reading? We're at 324 Mjoules and growing stronger dangerous territory, sir.

There's a farmhouse a mile north of you, right at the center of the signal.

that's got to be it.

Skye, dig up everything you can On whoever lives at that farm.

We need to know who we're dealing with.

Hold on, now.

What just happened? Um, it's gone.

-What's gone? -The electrostatic signal It seemed to pulse, then disappear.

We need a shortcut.

Door's barred from the inside.

Hayloft's open.

We could ram it with the truck.

Or Scan the perimeter.

Whoever did this couldn't have gotten far.

Barricaded himself inside.

Went for his shotgun.

He was scared, trying to protect himself.

From who? How did they get to him? Another burn mark on the forehead.

No sign of anyone No tracks, no vehicles down the road.

Skye, we need real-time sat surveillance on this area right now.

Hang on.

I think I found something you might want to see first.

Sending it over now.

The guy who owns the farm's name is Frank Whalen.

He's a volunteer firefighter at the same station house as our first victim, Adam Cross.

How our victims know each other? They were both responders when the aliens crashed New York.

Two victims from the same firehouse, Found in the same weird way.

We're looking for a killer.

Gotcha! Hey, um, anyone else notice all the metal scattered around the body, like an electromagnetic field was present? The question is, what created it? We need to get this body back to the lab as soon as possible.

Something about these wounds Skye, what did you find out about the firehouse? It turns out they sent an engine to New York with a dozen volunteers after the chitauri invasion, including Cross and Whalen.

Maybe it has something to do with why they were targeted? Or how they were killed.

You mean like An alien weapon? Let's just make sure we get to those firefighters before anyone else does.

Evening, gentlemen.

Agent Phil Coulson with S.

H.

I.

E.

L.

D.

We were on the ground with you in New York.

S.

H.

I.

E.

L.

D.

, right.

What's this all about? We'd like to ask you a few questions, take a look around.

Hey, guys.

What's what's going on? What are you looking for? - A scented candle.

Not you.

This wound something doesn't quite make sense.

Initially, I thought these were entry wounds from gun shots, But they're not they're exit wounds.

What do you mean? Frankie's dead? - I'm very sorry.

You know how it happened? The same way your other friend, Mr.

Cross, died the day before.

Which was how, exactly? I'm sorry.

Your name is? Tony.

Tony Diaz.

You okay, Mr.

Diaz? Actually I'm actually not feeling so hot.

Ward, cover the back door.

Nobody comes in or out.

What if this weapon overloaded the brain past the threshold of its electrical capacity, causing it to discharge, like an E.

M.

P.

? You're assuming we're dealing with an external source.

I'm saying it was something from inside him.

Something's happening The satellite's picking up another reading.

It's coming from the firehouse.

That humming noise you hear that? No.

I don't.

Were you in New York with Mr.

Cross and Mr.

Whalen after the Chitauri invasion? Come on.

You don't hear that? It's driving me nuts.

Mr.

Diaz, are you with me? Whatever you're doing, make it stop.

I-I'm not doing anything! Where's the weapon? The what? Coulson, I found it.

It's a chitauri helmet.

Fitz-Simmons, are you seeing this? It's not a weapon, Yet it caused a cranial discharge.

What are you doing with the helmet? What, the alien thing? I-it's a souvenir.

Aah! Not again! Answer the question, Mr.

Diaz What are you doing with the helmet? The first time anyone's touched it since New York was a couple nights ago.

-Why? It had rust all over it.

We were cleaning it.

That wasn't rust.

May, don't touch it! Sir, he's not using a weapon he's infected.

I think the helmet was the source of an alien virus.

All we did was clean it I swear.

Me, Frankie, and Adam we We were bored on the third shift, so so we decided to clean it.

Adam and Frankie Mr.

Diaz, I'm putting the gun away now, okay? Sir, he's at 600 megajoules and climbing.

Sir? Clear everybody out.

Clear everybody out now.

I-I'm gonna wind up like them, aren't I? Why don't you have a seat? You have any family wife, kids? Is there anyone you want to talk to? Anything I can do? Sir, you have to get out of there right now! He's going to Listen to me.

I've been where you are right now.

So please believe me when I tell you you don't have to be afraid.

What are you what are you talking about? Your job Gets pretty dangerous, doesn't it? Mine, too.

I got hurt once pretty bad.

And I I died.

Some say it was only for 8 seconds, but I know it was more than that.

I know I wasn't here anymore.

I was there.

What's it like? It's beautiful.

You better get going, buddy.

Go.

All clean no traces of electrostatic energy.

What about the other firefighters? They'll be quarantined and observed at a S.

H.

I.

E.

L.

D.

biohazard facility.

Anyone else notice They're putting the infected alien thing on our truck? We're flying it to the sandbox.

Sandbox? It's a S.

H.

I.

E.

L.

D.

research facility across the Atlantic.

They specialize in hazardous materials.

If what you suspect is true, that this is a virus, Then those firefighters could be infected, And they're gonna need a cure.

Find one.

Yes, sir.

What's our E.

T.

A.

? Gonna be a long 4 hours and 26 minutes.

You okay? Fine.

I just want this alien thing off our plane as soon as humanly possible.

You want to talk about your physical? Nothing to tell.

My physical therapist requested it.

He's updating his files or something.

You'd tell me if something was wrong.

Of course.

Sir, I think I've discovered something.

Could you come down to the lab? - I'll be right there.

Phil.

The fireman You did everything you could for him.

So, what am I looking for exactly? Wait for it.

What was that? A groundbreaking discovery! I believe the firefighters initially contracted the virus when they cleaned the helmet, the friction activating some long-decaying chitauri organism Hang on! These cells are from the body of firefighters? Brain cells, yes the last vestiges of the infection.

Some viruses "sleep" inside host cells for years before reproducing, as they did inside the helmet the initial source.

But what those cells tell us is that we're dealing with a propagating virus, which means The virus can move from person to person.

Exactly! And that's the most exciting part of how is spread Not through the air or through direct fluid transfer, But through electric static shock.

It's like nothing we've ever seen on earth.

I didn't think it possible a virus could alter its host's molecular density and polarity.

That explains the floating.

I can't wait till the virologists At the CDC and S.

H.

I.

E.

L.

D.

HQ see this.

Sir, is something wrong? I'm so sorry, Jemma.

No.

Simmons believes she contracted the virus approximately 36 hours ago when she received an electrostatic shock from the first victim.

How much time does she have? Based on when the firemen were infected, how quickly their symptoms manifested Two hours at most.

That's enough time, right? I mean, SHIELD.

has dozens of labs and scientists working on this thing, don't they? They do.

How soon can you get us on the ground? Three hours.

Our path to the sandbox has us in the middle of the Atlantic.

Sir, correct me if I'm wrong, but if we can't land in time Simmons will release a pulse that will blow this plane right out of the sky.

We can't just sit here and watch her die.

We have to do something.

There's only one person on this plane Capable of finding a solution for this, And I'm willing to bet my life that she will.

She's just a kid.

I believe we have a winner.

Fast and efficient, the perfect delivery mechanism.

Not that it was easy to find a manner of light solution that that could suspend the vaccine and conduct electricity.

I wish you wouldn't use the word "vaccine.

" It's really more of an antiserum.

Okay, so These antibodies should be able to target the virus' antigens, If this bloody alien virus even has antigens.

Come on, now.

Come on.

That wasn't very cooperative of him, was it? Why aren't you down there? They don't need an audience.

You can stay If you want.

I hate this.

I just feel so Helpless.

Yeah.

I wanted it to be a person, some superpowered psychopath someone I could hurt, someone I could Punish.

That I could do.

What I can't do is protect you guys from stuff I can't even see or understand.

So, what do we do? We wait and get ready.

Ready for what? For whatever it is we're called upon to do.

Coulson, nice to see you're not dead.

Did you get our analysis of the virus? We did, and S.

H.

I.

E.

L.

D.

has no record of anything like it.

No one does.

So it's imperative it reach the sandbox without incident.

In case of a pandemic, we're going to need it.

I'm aware, but don't need more orders or ultimatums.

I need answers.

I wish I had some for you.

I'm sorry, Coulson I've been ordered to inform you that if you have infected cargo, you need to dump it.

Do you copy me, Coulson? The orders are coming from up top.

I'm sorry bad connection.

Didn't get that last part.

Don't even think it.

I don't have to.

That's your job.

It's all right.

Everything's gonna be fine.

Please stop saying that.

I see you looking at your watch.

Are you sure you don't need my help just to Are you sure this thing even works? Yeah, well, you know it does.

My device isn't the issue it's the vaccine.

Antiserum! And all I'm wondering is whether you calibrated it correctly.

It's not the device.

Don't put this on me.

I was doing just fine tucked away in a safe, indoor, non-mobile lab at the academy! Then you had to go and drag us into this flying circus! Didn't even pass our field assessments, for God's sake! Please, as if I forced you to follow me anywhere.

You said, and I quote "Fitz, "it's the most perfect opportunity "for us to see the world! We'd be fools to pass this one up!" I hate it when you use that voice.

That's not even how I sound.

And you were just afraid of going into the field.

Haven't been the highlight of your entire pasty life! Pasty? Really? Well, when did you become so sun-kissed? Because I'm pretty sure that every minute of every day, You've been stuck in a lab right beside me.

At the academy, at sci-ops, this plane You've been beside me the whole damn time! You have to fix this.

I don't know how, Fitz.

The antibodies from the three firefighters aren't strong enough to fight this virus.

It's born from alien DNA.

There's no one to create an antiserum from because no one's actually survived this except -The chitauri.

-The chitauri.

The minky bastard who actually wore the helmet had the virus and managed without ever emitting an electrostatic pulse because it was immune.

Yes.

She she was just the carrier, like typhoid Mary.

"She"? Well, no, wait.

That you don't really think that okay, doesn't matter.

So if if I can scrape some epithelial cells from the inside of the helmet, we can create a vaccine? Yes! Antiserum, but yes.

Isn't that Fitz! No You can't be in here.

Too late.

It's done.

Just try and do your best To keep your hands off me, yeah? Fitz, I don't know what you think you're doing, but I'm doing what we always do.

We're gonna fix this together.

Third time's a charm.

May I do the honors? I can't breathe.

We did it.

No.

Sir I know the protocol in these circumstances, But could you please tell my dad first? I just think my mum would take it better if it comes from him.

We're not there yet.

There's still time.

Sir, please.

Would you mind if I had a brief moment alone with Fitz? Come on.

Let's go.

The electrostatic pulse from the third rat seemed much less, So we're making progress.

If we can calibrate the antiserum Antiserum, yes.

You finally got it right, Fitz.

I'm so sorry.

Aah! Agent Blake is on the line.

He wants to know what's going on.

If you won't answer, he asked for Ward.

Sir What are our orders? They're unchanged.

What is that? Someone's lowering the cargo-hold ramp.

Hey.

It worked.

The pulse just knocked the rat uncon scious.

Jemma? Jemma! Jemma, it worked! Please, don't! Jemma! Jemma, don't! Jemma! Jemma! The antiserum worked, but she jumped! Don't get me wrong.

I'm happy you're both alive truly.

And I realize you were trying to save the team, But what you did today that was not your call.

Just getting you out of the water Do you have any idea what a pain it is dealing with the Moroccan office? Don't you ever pull a stunt like that again.

We'd hate to lose you, Jemma.

Thank you, sir.

Does that mean we're to leave now? So, what did you think of your first time skydiving? Honestly, I'd rather not to think about it anymore.

I thought what you did was incredibly brave.

I suppose now's as good a time as any to tell you that I may have misled you earlier.

You see, when I gave you back the night-night pistol, I lied it's still an ounce off.

I know.

You do? Of course.

After all I'm agent Grant Ward.

I just jumped out of a plane without a parachute on And saved your life! Actually, that's not quite it.

It's a bit more nasally than that.

Hello, skye.

How was Simmons? Amazingly resilient.

You'd never know she almost died.

Experience like that it takes awhile to sink in.

That's her medical report? Mine, actually.

Blood work finally came back.

I'm perfectly normal little heavy on the iron.

But don't worry You don't have to start calling me "Iron Man.

" Wasn't planning on it.

My doctors never requested any tests.

I ordered them for myself, but you knew that.

This piece of paper is telling me that everything's fine, but I don't feel fine.

I feel different.

Take off your shirt.

Excuse me? Your shirt Unbutton it.

Whether it was 8 seconds or 40, you died.

There's no way you can go through a trauma like that and not come out of it changed.

You know how long it's taken me to I know.

The point of these things is to remind us that there is no going back There's only moving forward.

You feel different Because you are different.

I was going to do it.

-I know you were.

I had the antiserum, the chute everything.

I just couldn't get the straps on.

Fitz, please Maybe I couldn't do the "James Bond in midair" thing.

Fitz, shut up.

Please, just Ward did an amazing thing, yes, But it wasn't Ward by my side in that lab, searching for a cure.

It wasn't Ward giving me hope when I had none.

It was you.

You're the hero.

Yeah? Yeah.

Thank you.

We'll be back in a moment.

Blake.

Coulson.

That's the best you could come up with, you got a bad connection - I was pressed for time.

Bold move.

You know our chat wasn't exactly private.

I didn't have that long.

I don't know what happened to you in New York, if you really flatlined or that's just what they tell when we reach level 7, But whatever did happen doesn't give you license to disobey a direct order from HQ.

You keep pulling stunts like that, someone might decide to take this little dream team away from you.

I'd like to see them try.

That doesn't sound like the Phil Coulson I used to know.

No, I suppose it doesn't.

Get used to it.