Tony Caine

"I take orders from two people: no one and not you."

- Tony Caine to Melinda May

Anthony "Tony" Caine is a friend and former S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy fellow student of Alphonso Mackenzie who helped S.H.I.E.L.D. to find Gravitonium.

S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy
"I really wasn't a books-and-test kind of guy. That was Mack. Never missed a class, never broke a rule. They called us the Saint and the Sinner."

- Tony Caine

Caine studied at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy of Science and Engineering, where he met his roommate Alphonso Mackenzie in freshman year. The two of them befriended despite the fact that they were diametrically opposed regarding their studies, Caine rarely attending classes. Caine became well-known in the Academy for being able to provide all sort of things, ranging from exam answers to fake IDs. However, Caine was eventually caught and expelled from the Academy.

Operation Paperclip: HYDRA Version
"It was my job to give them new identities, new lives, erase the old ones."

- Tony Caine

HYDRA enlisted the assistance of the company Cybertek in their search for power and their plan to take control over the world. After the HYDRA Uprising, it appeared that several Cybertek scientists had been forced to work for HYDRA with their families being threatened. For those scientists, an operation similar to Operation Paperclip was decided and Caine took an active part in providing the scientists with new identities and helping them to start new lives. To that end, Caine signed fake death certificates for the scientists.

Reconnecting with S.H.I.E.L.D.
"All right, guys, guys, I'm guessing you didn't track me down to relive good memories and awesome haircuts."

- Tony Caine

Caine was found in a parking lot by Phil Coulson and Daisy Johnson, who had discovered that Caine had signed death certificates for the Cybertek scientists. Believing them to be hostile, Caine shot at them before trying to flee in his car, but he was intercepted by Melinda May and Alphonso Mackenzie. At first, Caine was ready to fight them, refusing to drop his weapons, but once he recognized Mackenzie, the conflict was avoided and the two former roommates happily greeted each other. Caine was taken to the Zephyr One, where S.H.I.E.L.D. asked him about the whereabouts of Joseph Getty, who had been the head of a Cybertek team working on Gravitonium. Although Caine was quite surprised by this request, he agreed to take Mackenzie to Getty. As they were getting ready, Caine expressed his amazement at Mackenzie's apparent change in behavior. During the meeting with Getty, Caine explained to Mackenzie that Getty had been forced to work for HYDRA. Thanks to Caine, S.H.I.E.L.D. learned about the lost ship Principia, which had supposedly sank with a cargo of Gravitonium.

Caine returned to the Zephyr One, where they found the Principia floating high in the sky. He then watched the video feed as Coulson, Mackenzie and Johnson infiltrated the ship to find Gravitonium, only to find a small quantity before being attacked by Sleeper Mechs. Once again, Caine displayed awe at the sight of Mackenzie fighting against the androids.

Investigating Cybertek
"About that Deathlok Program, your friends were asking about it, too, so I'm gonna do some digging, see what else I can find."

- Tony Caine to Alphonso Mackenzie

With the S.H.I.E.L.D.'s quest for Gravitonium being relatively successful, Caine was thanked by Phil Coulson for his assistance. Before he left, Alphonso Mackenzie and Melinda May asked Caine to find some information about the Deathlok Program, hoping Caine could find something to help Coulson being cured from his dying condition.

Allies

 * S.H.I.E.L.D.
 * Phil Coulson
 * Alphonso Mackenzie - Former Roommate and Friend
 * Daisy Johnson
 * Melinda May
 * Davis
 * Joseph Getty