Ambush at the Outdoor Theater

"I think I know a way, how to stop Daniels for good. But we would have to use her to draw him either."

- Leo Fitz

The Ambush at the Outdoor Theater was an attempt by Phil Coulson's team of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to capture Marcus Daniels.

Background
"They did things to me there!" "They were trying to contain you." "No! They were trying to make me stronger. And they did."

- Marcus Daniels and Phil Coulson

Marcus Daniels used to work in a physics lab among a team who was studying Darkforce. In the end, Daniels himself was exposed to Darkforce, gaining the ability to absorb any kind of energy along with mental instability, making him a very dangerous individual. Daniels was obsessed with a cellist named Audrey Nathan, who received the support of S.H.I.E.L.D. thanks to Phil Coulson, who became Nathan's lover. Thanks to Coulson, Daniels was arrested and imprisoned in the Fridge. Later, Nathan learned of Coulson's death but ignored that he had been resurrected.

However, S.H.I.E.L.D. was infiltrated by the terrorist organization HYDRA. Instead of trying to contain him, the HYDRA operatives enhanced Daniels' powers. Years later, HYDRA revealed itself to the world and attacked S.H.I.E.L.D., deeply crippling the agency. During a HYDRA raid led by John Garrett and Grant Ward, Daniels was released and intended to find Nathan once more. Having learned of his escape, Coulson's Team decided to arrest him.

Ambush
"Keep playing. I'm sorry I scare you. I know that I'm a monster. But you're the one that can save me."

- Marcus Daniels to Audrey Nathan

Marcus Daniels journeyed to Portland, Oregon and found Audrey Nathan while she was jogging in a park. Afraid, Nathan ran away but Daniels kept chasing her, his powers turning off the lamps in the park. Nathan was eventually found by S.H.I.E.L.D. agents Jemma Simmons and Antoine Triplett, who pretended to be CIA operatives. Nathan got into their car and fled while Phil Coulson and Leo Fitz tried to take down Daniels by exposing him to more light energy that he could absorb, a technique Coulson had used to arrest him in the first place. However, Daniels was more powerful than before and knocked off Coulson and Fitz before running away. Since conventional means were inefficient, Fitz tried to find another plan to capture Daniels. He suggested to use Nathan as a bait to lure Daniels into the Outdoor Theater, where S.H.I.E.L.D. would await him and be ready to use powerful Gamma Power Reserves retrieved from their Jump Jet. At first, Coulson refused, claiming that he could not afford to put his former lover in danger, but Fitz insisted and noticed that Nathan was already in jeopardy.

Nathan, who figured out that Simmons and Triplett were actually S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, agreed to the plan, as trusting S.H.I.E.L.D. the first time had been successful, although she was unaware that Coulson was still alive and overseeing this operation as well. She went on the theater's stage and began playing cello. Daniels, like in the past, showed up at this fake rehearsal while Coulson watched him approaching. Once he was close enough to the stage, Fitz, Simmons and Triplett used their Gamma Power Reserves on him. Although Daniels was affected, he managed to withstand the assault and took down the three S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, prompting Coulson to intervene. As Daniels was closing up to Nathan, Coulson and Triplett activated the Gamma Power Reserves once again. Although Daniels nearly reached Coulson with a spread of Darkforce, he was overpowered by the energy radiations and his body exploded, putting an end to the threat.

Nathan was knocked unconscious in the blast. Coulson leaned to her and whispered that he would always be with her and kissed her on a forehead before leaving, as he thought Nathan needed to move on his death. When Nathan regained consciousness, Simmons told her that she would be safe.

Aftermath
"Sir. Is everything okay?" "She said I never lied to her. Today, I did. But she's alive and safe. We did that, at least."

- Leo Fitz and Phil Coulson

With Marcus Daniels gone, Phil Coulson hoped that Audrey Nathan would no longer be in danger and that she would move on his death. Coulson resolved to tell Nathan the truth about his resurrection some day when she would be ready to hear it.

While Coulson, Leo Fitz, Jemma Simmons and Antoine Triplett had left Providence, however, Eric Koenig was murdered by Grant Ward and Melinda May decided to leave the base alone. Therefore, when they got back, Coulson's Team found the place empty and without the Bus.