“Shit.” Daisy supposes most Americans are actually relieved at that news, since he’s gone and become one of the saner members of that cabinet. But she suspects for her fellow Inhumans, this is the worst news possible, and it probably is for them too.
At least it makes her path a little clearer. She gives Jemma her own news: “I’ve gotten into the government’s network. It’s a bit slow, but it’s pretty much running now. It’ll deliver our piggybacked accountability directive to all our agents in the field, at least once they’re able to receive anything, tell them to call in. Hopefully within a few days we’ll know everyone’s status.”
Including May and Coulson. She took a transmitter with her to Tahiti, if only to let them know when he had finally passed away. Also to ask them to fetch her if she decided she wanted to come back. She gave the impression she probably wouldn’t, but now it’s much more likely she will.
Although if they’re both still alive, as far as Daisy’s concerned, they’re not giving up his final days together. She’ll refuse to do a pickup if she has to. They can do that long without May.
Even if she’s desperately hoping she can hand off the position of director. She’s still not ready to do this long term. She can only play “What would Mack do” for so long.
Meanwhile, Jemma is continuing, “We’re nearly back at the Lighthouse. It doesn’t look like anyone who shouldn’t be there has shown up so far.”
“Well, if the government comes after us now, we’ll know it,” says Daisy, coming to a decision on their next action. “I suspect Ross might follow his last boss’ custom and neglect certain parts of the country he doesn’t like, but now that we can keep track of their activities we’ll go help where they haven’t, at least for the next few days. We should monitor everything related to New Attilan as well. Apparently they’re pretty self-sufficient, but we don’t know who they’ve lost, and it’s even possible Ross might find some pretext to attack them.”
“Attack refugees who agreed their new island could be U.S. protectorate,” sighed Jemma, and it wasn’t any expression of disbelief. The whole story of a bunch of Inhuman refugees arriving from the moon while they’d been in the future was a bit of a crazy one, but the most incredulous part to Daisy remained where they’d been allowed to keep their own King and have their own island without even having to call it U.S. territory (where’d they even *find* one?), and Ross hadn’t stopped that, or even some Earth-born Inhumans from migrating there.
“Also, when we land,” Daisy continues, because Jemma will want to hear this part, “we plug the new space readings right into the computer. Barring another alien attack or other crazy event going on at the time, the moment we have a possible location for Fitz, we’re heading out to space again. Earth needs all the help it can get right now, and it’s probably going to do so for at least the next few months. And so do we.”
“Thank you,” Jemma breathes, and she absolutely means it. But there’s sadness too, at both the losses they’ve suffered, as if Coulson hadn’t been bad enough, and the knowledge that she and Fitz won’t be leaving for some time yet; Daisy’s pretty sure that had he lived, the two of them would be far away now.
They have to hope all the while, of course, that he’s still alive. But they can’t find that out until they find him.
But as she looks down at her tablet screen, Daisy gets her first reason to smile since Mack and Elena and Agent Piper all crumbled to dust before her eyes. “We’ve got our first response already. Mike Peterson. He’s still alive.”