Lance Hunter

"Join S.H.I.E.L.D. Travel to exotic, distant lands; meet exciting, unusual people - and kill them."

- Lance Hunter

Lance Hunter is a former British soldier and mercenary that joined the second incarnation of S.H.I.E.L.D. based on the recommendations of Isabelle Hartley and his ex-wife, Bobbi Morse.

Early Life and Career
"Hunter." "What?" "Don't be yourself right now."

- Isabelle Hartley and Hunter

Lance Hunter was a Lieutenant in the (SAS) of the British Armed Forces. In 2008, he participated in an operation in Basra, Iraq and another in Sierra Leone in 2011 before becoming a mercenary for hire.

Hunter went on a mission to Dubai where he met the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents Bobbi Morse and Alphonso Mackenzie; the three became close friends during the mission, but Hunter was not given all pertinent information because he was not an agent.

He was introduced to Jane and Isabelle Hartley through his ex-wife. After leaving the SAS and becoming a mercenary, he joined Hartley's team.

S.H.I.E.L.D. Mercenary
"Look, you both have your S.H.I.E.L.D. traditions and all that nonsense, and personal reasons for being dedicated to the cause, but you've known me a long time, Izzy. And what gets me out of bed in the morning..."

- Lance Hunter to Isabelle Hartley and Phil Coulson

Lance Hunter, Isabelle Hartley, and Idaho went undercover to meet with Roger Browning, an ex-S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who had acquired a file on an 0-8-4 and its location. During negotiations, the meeting was interrupted by a HYDRA assassin who killed Browning, stole the file. Hunter, Hartley and Idaho fired their guns at the assassin, with seemingly no effect, he then leapt from a twenty-five foot high window and escaped. When the team arrived back at the Playground, a secret S.H.I.E.L.D. base, they were informed by Sam Koenig that they were due for a debrief meeting with Director Phil Coulson. Before they had the meeting, Hunter joked to Idaho that he should not look Coulson in the eye, trying to make his friend nervous, Hartley ordered them not to be themselves in the meeting. Coulson saw Hunter and the others they debriefed him on what happened in Alexandria, Hunter constantly drank his beer and reminded Coulson that he was working for the money. Melinda May arrived and confirmed that their attacker was Index member Carl Creel who had the power to absorb any substance and transform his body into that substance, which explained how he was able to absorb the bullets and protect himself.

When S.H.I.E.L.D. learnt that Creel was planning on attacking General Glenn Talbot, Hunter assisted by taking the of US soldier Tyler. While Melinda May and Skye protected Talbot from Creel, Hunter assisted in the kidnapping of Glenn Talbot by tricking him into following them into a S.H.I.E.L.D. SUV. After Coulson questioned Tablot for a while, he let him go free and dropped him off in the middle of nowhere, when Talbot called for assistance, S.H.I.E.L.D. were able to trace the call to learn the exact location of both Carl Creel and the 0-8-4, Hunter was sent with Melinda May, Skye, Antoine Triplett, Idaho, and Hartley to obtain the artifact. Hartley found it, but, she was discovered by Carl Creel. As she tried to defend herself against Creel, she touched the Obelisk bare-handed, it began to turn her arm into stone. Hunter was able to shoot at Creel causing him to flee, as the Obelisk began to kill Hartley, Skye called Phil Coulson for orders. The military soon arrived, Skye called Phil Coulson for orders on wether to seek medical care for Hartley or to continue the mission, effectively sentencing Hartley to death. Hunter chose to disobey Coulson's orders to get her medical attention. Inside the S.H.I.E.L.D. SUV driven by Idaho, Hartley felt the Obelisk was killing her and they would not get medical attention soon enough, so she handed Hunter her knife and ordered him to cut off her arm, Hunter initially refused but Hartley insisted. Hunter amputated Hartley's hand to save her, he was successful and removed her arm, saving her life. However, when Idaho looked back to see if Hartley had survived, he looked back to the road to see Carl Creel in the middle of the road. Creel transformed into concrete and caused a major car crash. Hartley and Idaho were killed due to severe head injuries but Hunter survived. Seeing Creel approach, Hunter then pretended to be dead as Creel took the Obelisk and left.

Joining S.H.I.E.L.D.
"I need you because I can't be you, not any more."

- Phil Coulson to Hunter

Hunter called out to Idaho to see if he was alive, but his friend didn't answer. May managed to find Hunter and he reported of Hartley and Idaho's deaths. Hunter ordered May to escape, after May gave him a Mouse Hole to escape the S.H.I.E.L.D. SUV, Hunter was captured by the United States Armed Forces. The soldiers dropped Hunter in a field where he was confronted by Glenn Talbot, who offered him a lift via helicopter. In the helicopter, Talbot attempted to convince Hunter to give up the location of Phil Coulson. Hunter seemingly agreed in exchange for two million dollars and a proper burial for Hartley, claiming her family deserved to know what happened to her. After arriving at the Playground and being checked by Antoine Triplett, Hunter was called for a meeting with Director Coulson. Hunter demanded to know why the other agents weren't out searching for Creel and why Coulson didn't abort the mission why Hartley's life became endangered. Coulson asked what Talbot offered him to sell him out. Hunter was honest, telling him it was two million dollars and a proper burial for Hartley. Hunter demanded Coulson give him the money he was owed, and the money he owed Idaho and Hartley, intending to give it to their families, Coulson agreed to the deal. Hunter talked to Skye and shared stories about his time with Isabelle Hartley. He told her to remember that S.H.I.E.L.D. was not a life, just a job. When the team finally tracked Carl Creel down, Coulson ordered Hunter to stay at the base. However Hunter begged Coulson to let him go into the field again, promising to follow orders. He gave a boy scouts salute to show his his seriousness. Coulson agreed.

As the team prepared to initiate the plan Hunter knocked Melinda May, Skye, and Triplett unconscious with an I.C.E.R., unwilling to let Creel go or take him down non-lethally after Creel killed Isabelle Hartley. He found Triplett and shot him with an I.C.E.R. as well. He then took Triplett's rifle and ran to the plaza where Creel was preparing to make an exchange with his HYDRA contact, who managed to calm Creel down enough to stop the growth of the Obelisk's material over Creel's body. Hunter attempted to kill Carl Creel, but is spotted at the last second and Creel successfully transformed and deflected the lethal bullet. Creel chased Hunter and almost killed him, revealing that he could push a small amount of the Obelisk through his palm to petrify whomever he wanted with a touch. Hunter was saved when Coulson snuck up behind Creel and neutralized him with the Overkill Device, turning Creel to stone. Hunter went to watch Isabelle Hartley's funeral, keeping his distance. He left Isabelle's pendant in her sister Jane's car. Coulson appeared and offered him a job, saying that he needed someone who would do the wrong thing for the right reasons. After some consideration, and despite the loss of the two million dollars and the warning that May will "savour" a grudge after Hunter had shot her, Hunter accepted the offer and officially joined Coulson's team.

The Moroccan Mission
Alphonso Mackenzie won his bet with Hunter that Skye did not attend S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy, causing Hunter to do inventory. Before he went, he asked Skye if she had ever killed, she said that she hadn't. Later, he, Skye and May were sent to Morocco to apprehend Donnie Gill on a HYDRA freighter. During the assignment, Director Coulson learned from Leo Fitz that Gill was brainwashed by HYDRA and ordered Hunter not to allow Gill to communicate with any of its agents. Hunter found Gill talking to Jemma Simmons, Coulson's mole in HYDRA whom Hunter never met. Before he could fire on her, May hit Hunter with an I.C.E.R. bullet. This alerted Gill and Simmons to their presence and they ran. Gill then trapped Hunter and May within the freighter by freezing the door.

When everyone returned to the Playground, Hunter asked May if they were now even from when he shot her. Looking at Triplett, she said that she was even.

Double Trouble
"Guys, drop everything!" "No. This is worth a fortune; I'm not going to drop it." "Just put it down."

- Lance Hunter and Leo Fitz

Hunter was given an undercover mission to seduce Bridget, the executive assistant of Gabriel Soto, so he could pick her purse and steal a ticket that Skye needed to duplicate to give access to a fund raiser organized by Soto. The fund raiser was dedicated to the Santa Maria de las Flores church that once housed a 500 year old painting with the Words of Creation inscribed on its back;  Phil Coulson and Melinda May wanted to infiltrate the fund raiser in order to retrieve the painting. When he returned to the Bus, he bored the others with stories of his ex-wife. Agent 33, disguised as Melinda May, planted a virus in the Bus' systems that would have cause it to explode. When this was discovered Fitz took Hunter with him into the control room, Fitz explained that he needed Hunter's hands to rewire the plane because Fitz's were too unsteady. Despite a few near misses which almost destroyed the Bus, they were successful in stopping the cascade effect and restoring power.

To celebrate a successful mission, Hunter brought beer for the others to drink. After Fitz talked about a girl who didn't return his feelings, Alphonso Mackenzie and Hunter had a toast with him about "moving on."

Meeting the Ex-Wife
Later, the team was contacted by Raina who wanted to meet up with Coulson. Coulson met Raina at La Comtesse Furieuse while Hunter, May, and Skye watched from other positions within the restaurant. During the conversation, Raina admitted she knew Skye's Father and threatened to blow Jemma Simmons cover unless she was given Skye. Coulson, already having a back-up plan, refused the deal. Turning the tables on Raina, Coulson got her to admit where Skye's father was and had her agree to draw out Daniel Whitehall in exchange for protection. Hunter tagged her, so she could be found when needed. Back at the Playground, Hunter was horrified to met his ex-wife again, Bobbi Morse, who had just returned from an undercover mission where she had saved Agent Jemma Simmons from HYDRA. Shocked and surprised to see her and not liking her new dyed hair, he asked Coulson what she was doing there. Coulson told Hunter to "play nice." He also learnt that the reason he was there was because Morse had recommended him to Coulson.

Playing Nice
"I'm a merc, mate, like you lot. And if you're looking to take out a few S.H.I.E.L.D. agents higher up the food chain, I happen to know a couple. They just need about - 90 seconds to get in position."

- Lance Hunter to Marcus Scarlotti

Phil Coulson told Hunter that he can leave if working with Bobbi Morse would be a problem. He assigned them to go to Okinawa, Japan with Melinda May to learn the involvement of Toshiro Mori in the Splinter Bombs used by Marcus Scarlotti in an attack on the United Nations designed to discredit S.H.I.E.L.D. During the flight to Japan, Morse and Hunter argued, while May piloted the Quinjet. Hunter vouched for Morse's skills in espionage when they decided to use her undercover identity as a HYDRA Laboratories' head of security to get the information. When Mori kissed Morse, May teased him for allowing her to go solo. He intercepted a file transfer that Mori received, showing Morse betraying HYDRA, and helped save her from assassination. As he shot Mori, he told her that he saved her life twice.

The trio went to Bruges and Hunter acted as distraction as the women crashed through the windows of the safe house that were occupied by Scarlotti and his mercenaries. During the fight, Hunter saved Morse again.

During Scarlotti's arrest by Glenn Talbot, Hunter started to gather his things. Morse used reverse psychology to convince him to stay with S.H.I.E.L.D. Hunter was stationed in a bus to Boston that Grant Ward boarded in Atlanta after he escaped federal custody.

In Boston, Hunter then watched Ward enter Goldbrix Tavern and reported this to field commander Melinda May. Later, he saw Sunil Bakshi, with two other HYDRA agents enter the establishment.

As May prepared her field agents to raid the tavern, Hunter bickered with Bobbi Morse on how her cover was blown in Atlanta while his cover, despite his wearing a cowboy hat, was not. As part of the raiding party, he witnessed Sunil Bakshi, unconscious and tied to a chair, left for pick-up by Ward.

At the Playground, Hunter was among the senior agents assembled as Phil Coulson gave the new mission: find the city that matched the City Blueprints before HYDRA does. As the others researched Daniel Whitehall and what possible connection he had to the Red Skull, Hunter helped Bobbi Morse with her interrogation of Sunil Bakshi. He provided her with updates on the latest discoveries. However, when Bakshi attempted suicide with a cyanide pill, he questioned if Morse wanted the HYDRA operative dead, because he might reveal some secret. Morse assured Hunter that she does not keep secrets from him, especially when they have started to grow closer. The two went to a S.H.I.E.L.D. SUV to have sex.

Afterwards, Hunter and Morse laughed and smiled as Alphonso Mackenzie watched. Mack asked Morse if Hunter knew like Isabelle Hartley did before she died. Morse responded that Hunter would not be involved.

Protecting Raina
"Don't die out there, ok?" "It's Canada."

- Bobbi Morse and Lance Hunter

Hunter was part of Melinda May's team that was sent to Vancouver to extract Raina from a safe house as HYDRA pursued her. Hunter spotted an assassin following Sam Koenig, Hunter snuck out on the assassin and knocked him out, calling to the pedestrians claiming the man had passed out, he and Koenig walked away together, Hunter mistakenly called Sam Billy, Sam claimed that his brother was shorter than he was. When Hunter arrived at the safe house, he found Skye being attacked by an assassin, he helped Skye finish her battle and knocked out the assassin. When he saw her disfigured face that looked exactly like Melinda May, he was horrified, Skye explained that she was formerly Agent 33. He and Skye moved Raina outside to the extraction point, Hunter located Agent May, when Raina tried to surrender to HYDRA, they drove the SUV into the side of the HYDRA Agents and made their escape with Raina. Aboard the Bus, they were attacked by HYDRA Aircraft, Hunter was one of the agents who tried to protect the other agents. They surrounded the arriving HYDRA Agent, who turned out to be former S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent, Grant Ward, Hunter and the other Agents aimed their guns at Ward. Ward explained they had traced the tracker in Raina to find her. Ward ordered Skye and Raina to leave with him, Hunter and the others had no choice but to allow it to prevent a fire fight, as the plane was surrounded by four HYDRA Quinjets.

Battle for the Kree City
Hunter and the others survived the Quinjets' attack through the combined piloting skills of Melinda May and Antoine Triplett. The Bus then went to Puerto Rico to meet with Phil Coulson's team; Hunter found Bobbi Morse in the garage of Alphonso Mackenzie. As he talked to her, Morse tried desperately to hide the flash drive she obtained; Hunter told her that, as long as it was not about them, he did not care about it. Diego then called to meet with her and he followed. In San Juan, Hunter and Morse avoided HYDRA long enough for Diego to relay to them that the terrorists were stationed in Ponce de León Theater. Hunter, May, Morse, and Coulson then prepared for the Battle for the Kree City.

When Hunter and Morse got to the bottom of the theater, they found May outside the hole created by the Plasma Drill. She told them to flee because there were explosives set to destroy the Kree City beneath them. As they ran, they felt an earthquake.

The Lie
Upon return from the Kree City, Phil Coulson had a late night meeting with his senior agents on what to do with Sunil Bakshi. During the meeting, Hunter showed hesitation to following Coulson's plan. Ultimately, an argument began when Alphonso Mackenzie challenged Coulson's orders as unsound. When Melinda May told Mackenzie to respect the Director's rank, Hunter joined the squabble, disbelieving that May invoked such a position. Coulson ended the argument by telling everyone that the newly deceased Antoine Triplett would have just followed orders. The next morning, Hunter pretended to be a mercenary hired by HYDRA to free Bakshi from S.H.I.E.L.D. custody. After a false firefight where Bakshi and Hunter escaped in a S.H.I.E.L.D. SUV, Hunter lied to him that he was to be terminated by Hunter's employer. Bakshi believed that the HYDRA leaders were attempting to keep him from his rightful position as Daniel Whitehall's successor.

Bakshi took Hunter to the mansion of Octavian Bloom, but told him to wait for the proper signal before entering. While he was waiting, Bobbi Morse who followed on the S.H.I.E.L.D. Motorcycle joined him in the SUV. Hunter asked her, wondering if they were allies in some scheme, why she was trying to keep Mackenzie quiet during the squabble; Morse told him that she and Mackenzie were in a support group for those emotionally scarred by the betrayal that happened in the S.H.I.E.L.D. Civil War. Hunter laughed, but found it pleasing that she was getting professional help. The SUV was then surrounded by gunmen, firing multiple rounds. Hunter activated the vehicle's offense systems and killed them, before crashing the gate and entering the mansion. Inside, Hunter killed Bloom with a single gunshot to the forehead as Morse arrested Bakshi. Bakshi was told by Hunter that he would be dead had he not been promised to Glenn Talbot. Bakshi then realized that Hunter's lie caused him to have three leaders of HYDRA killed.

Later, Hunter was at the vigil the senior agents had for Triplett, silently withholding tears.

Permanent Member
Hunter was called into Phil Coulson's office. He believed that Coulson was going to reprimand him for having a sexual relationship with Bobbi Morse; however, Coulson asked Hunter to permanently join S.H.I.E.L.D. since there was one less senior agent after Antoine Triplett's death. Hunter told Morse about the incident after a romantic interlude and decided that it would be good for him and their relationship, citing that now they can be together, since Morse constantly used being an agent to stay distant. Hunter then went to Portugal with the other senior agents to investigate who was battling Sif on a beach there. He told Leo Fitz and Alphonso Mackenzie that he was a permanent member as he enthusiastically helped in the investigation. However, Mackenzie was not enthusiastic about Hunter's decision and when Morse asked if he could join in their mission, Mackenzie sternly refused. He told Morse to become distant from her lover. Consequently, when Hunter approached Morse about a sexual break from her work, Morse was aloof and only wanted to continue her research into the Truncheon. Hunter in anger left her alone. Later, Hunter stormed onto the Bus and confronted Alphonso Mackenzie, wanting full disclosure on his mission with Bobbi Morse. He said that he knows that there is no support group, that Morse had a flash drive, and that the two of them have been conspiring. Mackenzie tried to calm his friend down, then panicked, placed Hunter in a choke hold, and put him to sleep, Mack put Hunter into the boot of his car and drove him away from the Playground.

Learning of the Other S.H.I.E.L.D.
Hunter was locked in a bathroom in a S.H.I.E.L.D. Safe House; when he heard Alphonso Mackenzie speaking to Bobbi Morse on the phone, he yelled out how furious he was. Mackenzie later bought Hunter a pizza and beer. Hunter demanded to know what Mackenzie and Morse were involved in, Mackenzie assured him that he would find out soon enough.

Meanwhile, Phil Coulson asked Morse why Hunter was not at work. Coulson revealed that he knew that the two were sleeping together. Morse lied that Hunter ran off when she ended the relationship and Mackenzie went to find him.

A little while later, Hunter was blindfolded and taken to a mysterious base. Mackenzie revealed that he and Morse had been working for another branch of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Personality
Initially, Hunter was only perceived as a common mercenary, only caring about being paid by Coulson for the job and possesses a sarcastic sense of humor. However, he does care for his comrades as he chose to save Hartley against orders to try and save her life. After his friends' deaths, he became extremely vengeful against Carl Creel and knocked out Skye, May and Antoine Triplett in a failed attempt to kill him. He has a sense of honor as he chose to join S.H.I.E.L.D. because of Isabelle Hartley, despite the loss of two million dollars from Glenn Talbot.

Since joining, he showed remorse for his actions, repeatedly apologizing to May; however his apologies were only considered when she shot him to protect Jemma Simmons. He shares a complicated romantic history with Bobbi Morse as they were both married at one point and separated for unknown reasons. Initially, he was reluctant about working with her, but he stayed anyway and they even reignited their relationship.

Abilities
"Lose the accent; you sound like a douchebag."
 * Expert Marksman: Lance Hunter is very proficient with many different weapons and is extremely accurate with all of them. He favors the use of assault rifles and sub-machine guns when acting as member of a tactical team, and usually carries a handgun as his sidearm. Hunter killed Octavian Bloom with a single shot to the forehead.

- Bobbi Morse


 * Expert Spy: Hunter maintained a convincing cover and quickly created a romantic relationship with Bridget, in order to pickpocket a ticket for fundraiser event from her. Hunter was able to trick Sunil Bakshi into exposing the leadership of HYDRA. However, he has acknowledged many times that his ex-wife, Bobbi Morse, is a professional spy that outranks him; he knows her well enough though to be able to tell when she is lying.
 * Expert Martial Artist: Hunter is an expert martial artist and has taken down many trained HYDRA mercenaries at the same time, and he also handled himself against the super-powered Carl Creel.

Equipment

 * Weapons: As a former soldier and experienced mercenary, Lance Hunter is proficient with a wide range of firearms.
 * : Hunter's sidearm
 * : Hunter used a Milkor MGL Grenade Launcher to shoot an Electric Net Grenade and capture Vin-Tak.
 * I.C.E.R.: Hunter used an I.C.E.R. against Skye, Melinda May and Antoine Triplett when he wanted revenge against Carl Creel.
 * : Hunter used a Milkor MGL Grenade Launcher to shoot an Electric Net Grenade and capture Vin-Tak.
 * I.C.E.R.: Hunter used an I.C.E.R. against Skye, Melinda May and Antoine Triplett when he wanted revenge against Carl Creel.

Allies

 * S.H.I.E.L.D. (Second Incarnation)
 * Phil Coulson - Director
 * Bobbi Morse - Lover, Former Wife, and Colleague
 * Isabelle Hartley † - Colleague and Friend
 * Idaho † - Colleague and Friend
 * Melinda May - Colleague
 * Skye - Colleague
 * Antoine Triplett † - Colleague
 * Leo Fitz - Colleague
 * Jemma Simmons - Colleague
 * Alphonso Mackenzie - Colleague
 * Billy Koenig - Colleague
 * Sam Koenig - Colleague
 * Glenn Talbot - Situational Ally

Enemies

 * HYDRA
 * Carl Creel/Absorbing Man
 * Marcus Scarlotti
 * Sunil Bakshi
 * Octavian Bloom - Victim
 * Toshiro Mori - Victim
 * Grant Ward
 * Raina
 * Vin-Tak

Trivia

 * In the comics, Lance Hunter is the director of STRIKE, the British equivalent of S.H.I.E.L.D.
 * In the comics, Hawkeye is the ex-husband of Bobbi Morse, but in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that role is filled by Lance Hunter.
 * According to Alphonso Mackenzie, Hunter's favorite type of pizza is Hawaiian.