Aida's Uprising

## Casualties

*"Do you know how degrading it is? To be kept in a closet, to be used, to be treated as a thing? Well, I am not your tool. Not anymore."*
―Aida to Holden Radcliffe[src]
**Aida's Uprising** was the attempt made by the android Aida to obtain a human body and wipe out S.H.I.E.L.D.. Originating from the corruption instilled in Aida and her creator, Holden Radcliffe, by the Darkhold, it eventually led Aida to recreate the entire world inside a virtual reality known as the Framework.

In this new reality where the world had been taken over by HYDRA, Aida, who was assisted by Anton Ivanov, manipulated Leo Fitz into the completion of Project Looking Glass. Thanks to this project, Aida was able to synthetize a biological body for herself, filled with Inhuman powers, out of dark matter. Although she planned on living with Fitz, his rejection caused by the fact that he was still in love with Jemma Simmons led a crazed Aida to decide to use the Darkhold to eliminate S.H.I.E.L.D. However, the synthesis of her body actually caused the return of a former ally of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Ghost Rider. Successfully exploiting Aida's weaknesses and the powers of the Spirit of Vengeance, the only entity known to be able to actually hurt Aida, the alliance of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Ghost Rider was able to destroy the android once and for all.

## Background

### Radcliffe's Assistant

*"This is based on an old S.H.I.E.L.D. program. Poor kids have had a lot of friends die, maybe they didn't have to."
"Is that what we're celebrating today? The inclusion of your new colleague Fitz on this project?"
"No. Aida, today... today's your birthday."*
―Holden Radcliffe and Aida[src]
Aida was a Life-Model Decoy created by Holden Radcliffe, using data from an abandoned S.H.I.E.L.D. program. The android was activated six months after the final battle against Hive, during which Lincoln Campbell had died, and Radcliffe hoped that Aida could be used to protect other S.H.I.E.L.D agents' lives. Although a friend of S.H.I.E.L.D. scientist Leo Fitz, Radcliffe never told anyone about his secret project, as it was in violation of the Sokovia Accords. However, Fitz eventually found out about her during a visit at the Radcliffe Residence.

Initially, Aida's true nature remained concealed to S.H.I.E.L.D., with only Radcliffe and Fitz being aware of it. Even the highly skilled agent Melinda May, who was taken care of by Aida after a near-death experience, did not realize that Aida was not a human being. However, Jemma Simmons, Fitz's girlfriend, discovered it upon first meeting Aida. Despite her position as one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s new Director Jeffrey Mace advisors, she agreed and managed to keep Aida's existence a secret. Over the course of her interactions with Radcliffe and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, Aida learned about human behavior she was not programmed with, including the concept of lie, something she could not do herself but witnessed, for example when Fitz lied to May about Aida's origin.

### Reading the Darkhold

*"The pages are blank."
"Not to her."*
―Leo Fitz and Phil Coulson[src]

The origin of Aida's corruption can be traced back to her interaction, as well as her creator Holden Radcliffe's, with a powerful grimoire known as the Darkhold. Summoned by S.H.I.E.L.D. to help resolve an inter-dimensional accident which had left agents Phil Coulson and Leo Fitz, as well as Robbie Reyes, trapped between dimensions, Radcliffe and Aida were shown the Darkhold by Melinda May. Radcliffe only got a glimpse of the book before closing it, realizing how dangerous it could be. Due to her android nature, the reading of the Darkbook was entrusted to Aida.

Thanks to the knowledge of the Darkhold, Aida had Radcliffe craft Laser-Coupling Gloves which, in turn, enabled Aida to build an Inter-Dimensional Gate. The activation of the portal then allowed Coulson and Fitz to be rescued. However, despite this success, the corruption of the Darkhold had already begun to seep into the minds of Radcliffe and Aida. As such, Aida later reused the Laser-Coupling Gloves to create the first Quantum Brain, an incredibly complex technology which would later be used in further Life-Model Decoys.

### Replacement of Melinda May

S.H.I.E.L.D. once again requested the assistance of Holden Radcliffe and Aida in preparation for a confrontation against Eli Morrow, with Aida's nature now being known to Phil Coulson and S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Jeffrey Mace. Fearing that S.H.I.E.L.D. would destroy the Darkhold once their mission would be over, Radcliffe contacted Aida at his residence and ordered her to activate Sunset Protocol, a programming which caused Aida to attack Melinda May after she arrived at the residence, and to replace her with a Life-Model Decoy.

In the wake of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s victory over Morrow, a battle during which Aida got to experience pain after being shot by a member of the Chinatown Crew, agent Nathan B. Nathanson, who had been sent to the Radcliffe Residence to recover all of Radcliffe's research and place them under S.H.I.E.L.D.'s supervision, discovered the unconscious May being held captive. Before he could move forward, however, he was murdered by Aida.

### Infiltration into the Playground

*"We were so close! She had it in her hand, Aida. In her hand! She just couldn't get out with it."
"Your previous model had the Darkhold book in her hand."*
―Holden Radcliffe and Aida[src]
The death of Nathan B. Nathanson made things more complicated for Holden Radcliffe and his desire to acquire the Darkhold, who was until under S.H.I.E.L.D.'s custody. Having secretly reprogrammed Aida, Radcliffe accompanied a team of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents led by Leo Fitz to the Radcliffe Residence, as it had been decided that Aida's memory should be erased so that all her knowledge of the Darkhold's content would be deleted. However, Aida rebelled against this decision and brutally attacked the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents before escaping.

Aida then initiated a mission in the Playground, hacking into the systems and cutting off power so that she could walk through the base unhindered. She notably incapacitated both Phil Coulson and the Life-Model Decoy of Melinda May, locking them up in a sealed room, and hijacked a Quinjet to attack Alphonso Mackenzie and Yo-Yo Rodriguez. Meanwhile, Radcliffe still concealed his involvement in this plan, pretending to be shocked by Aida's betrayal, citing how the reading of the Darkhold caused it and gave her a desire to be truly alive.

Eventually, Aida failed to reclaim the Darkhold. She did find it hidden in Jeffrey Mace's office, but was unable to leave the Playground, and her body was decapitated by Mackenzie's Shotgun-Axe. Back to his residence, Radcliffe immediately activated a new version of Aida, but knew that he could only count on May's LMD to obtain the Darkhold. This plan was, however, briefly endangered when the real Melinda May woke up and tried to escape, only to be restrained by Aida and sedated once again to be kept in a more suitable simulation.

However, the severed head of the first version of Aida was reclaimed and analyzed by Fitz, who could only come to the conclusion that Radcliffe had actually programmed Aida so that she would rebel against S.H.I.E.L.D. Fitz reported his discovery to his colleagues, leading to an arrest operation at the Radcliffe Residence, where May's LMD was already confronting Radcliffe about her own nature. However, Radcliffe had already replaced himself by a LMD of himself, who was arrested in his place, while the real Radcliffe allied with the Watchdogs led by Ellen Nadeer and Anton Ivanov. Radcliffe and Aida were subsequently welcomed aboard the Watchdogs Submarine, taking the real May with them.

### Theft of the Darkhold

*"Whatever price we needed to pay for the Darkhold, it was worth it."*
―Holden Radcliffe to Aida[src]
Using information obtained from Melinda May and her Life-Model Decoy and the resourced allocated by Ellen Nadeer, Holden Radcliffe had the Watchdogs target S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Billy Koenig, who had been tasked by Phil Coulson with hiding the Darkhold. The Watchdogs thus abducted Koenig and brought him to the Watchdogs Submarine, where Radcliffe used Framework equipment to access his memories, getting the details of the Operation Hot Potato, which had ended with Koenig hiding the grimoire in a secret facility known as the Labyrinth.

Therefore, Radcliffe took a group of Watchdogs led by Tucker Shockley to the Labyrinth. S.H.I.E.L.D., who had gotten ahead of them, had already reclaimed the Darkhold, but this had caused May's LMD to reveal her true nature and attempt to steal it. Although she failed, Radcliffe was able to take advantage of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents being distracted by the Watchdogs holding Koenig hostage to reclaim the book for himself, leaving May's LMD behind. The Darkhold was then brought on the submarine, now in the possession of Radcliffe, Aida and the Watchdogs.

Thanks to the Darkhold, Aida was able to recreate the entire world inside the Framework. May, who used to be able to find the limits of the simulation Radcliffe and Aida imposed on her, was placed in this new simulated environment to prevent her from escaping. Likewise, Agnes Kitsworth, Radcliffe's former girlfriend, was also placed in the Framework after Radcliffe convinced her that she could live forever, free of her disease, although S.H.I.E.L.D. had tried to get to her first. Once Kitsworth was connected to the Framework, with her body doomed to die while her consciousness would survive in the Framework, Aida, whose physical appearance had been modeled from Kitsworth, reclaimed the woman's necklace to wear it herself.

### Kidnapping of Jeffrey Mace

*"They switched people out. How many?"
"All of them."*
―Leo Fitz LMD and Jemma Simmons[src]
While Holden Radcliffe and Aida remained focused on the Framework, the Watchdogs led by the Superior were able to capture S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Jeffrey Mace, who was locked up in a cell at the SVR Submarine Base. Knowing that S.H.I.E.L.D. would come to the rescue, just like the Superior hoped as he was eager to confront Phil Coulson, who he felt was responsible for all extraterrestrial-related events having occurred on Earth, Radcliffe and Aida decided to use this to enact the next phase of their plan: replacing top S.H.I.E.L.D. agents with Life-Model Decoys to infiltrate the agency. Therefore, during S.H.I.E.L.D.'s mission to rescue their Director, several agents were captured and replaced: Mace himself, Coulson, Alphonso Mackenzie and Leo Fitz.

Posing as their original counterparts, the Life-Model Decoys claimed that the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. had been rescued and returned to the Playground, while Aida and Radcliffe escaped from the base with the Watchdogs Submarine to the Ivanov Oil Platform, where the kidnapped S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were forcibly connected to the Framework in the same conditions than Melinda May. During the battle against S.H.I.E.L.D., the Superior was grievously wounded because of his duel against Quake, but he was saved by Aida and given the ability to remotely control several android bodies.

However, Aida soon became confronted to a paradox. Indeed, she felt a contradiction between her tasks of protecting both the Framework and Radcliffe's life, fearing the possibility that he could regret his actions due to his human nature. Nevertheless, upon Radcliffe explaining that living in the Framework was far better than living in the real world when she relayed her observations, Aida found her own way of solving this paradox: she slit Radcliffe's wrists before connecting him to the Framework, leaving his body to bleed out while his consciousness was preserved. From this moment, Aida could operate fully without supervision to fulfil her endgame: acquiring a living body for herself.

### Siege of the Playground

*"So, we fight our way through the trained military personnel, then the ultra-powerful android doubles of our friends, somehow make it to the Zephyr, which we can't fly, to escape the base and try to plug our minds into an alternate reality."*
―Jemma Simmons to Daisy Johnson[src]
Following the apparent rescue of Jeffrey Mace, the Life-Model Decoys of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents returned to the Playground, where the LMD of Phil Coulson reactivated Melinda May's LMD. Jemma Simmons, who had been part of the mission but had not been replaced, quickly figured out that the Playground had been infiltrated by Life-Model Decoys. However, she made the mistake of believing that Leo Fitz had not been replaced as well, thinking that the fourth agent to have been captured was Daisy Johnson.

Considering the alliance between Aida and the Watchdogs, the LMDs' plan was to gather all Inhumans known to S.H.I.E.L.D. at the Playground to eliminate them all. However, this plan failed when Johnson discovered the LMDs of herself and that Alphonso Mackenzie had been replaced. Meanwhile, Simmons was attacked by Fitz's LMD, who intended on replacing her as well, but she managed to destroy him instead and hid. Simmons and Johnson were reunited and confirmed to each other that they were human, but the other LMDs turned the rest of S.H.I.E.L.D. against them.

Eventually, Simmons and Johnson were able to escape after Johnson destroyed the LMDs of Mackenzie and Mace. Enlisting the help of agents James Davis, Piper and Prince to prepare the Zephyr One, they were confronted by May's LMD, but managed to convince her to switch sides by appealing to the feelings of the real May towards the real Phil Coulson. As a result, May's LMD triggered the destruction of the Playground, and all the LMDs it contained, while the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were able to escape with the Zephyr. Reuniting with Yo-Yo Rodriguez, Simmons and Johnson then plugged themselves to the Framework in order to find and rescue their trapped friends.

## Uprising

### Conflict in the Framework

#### Chase of Jemma Simmons

*"The target was spotted via drone yesterday. She's been reaching out to leaders of the Resistance and is planning a major attack. Capture any subversives found on site, but do not underestimate this woman. Lethal force is authorized, if necessary."*
―The Doctor[src]
Upon arriving in the Framework, Jemma Simmons found herself buried underground, her alternate counterpart having been killed in the Massacre at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy. She managed to escape from two HYDRA agents who had begun to suspect her, and attempted to reach out to Phil Coulson, but the latter, a simple history teacher spreading HYDRA's propaganda in the Framework, rejected her and later reported her to HYDRA, thus alerting Aida about the presence of Simmons and Daisy Johnson in the Framework.

As a result, Aida located the doorway implemented by the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to exit the Framework and deleted it, thus trapping the two women inside the virtual reality. She then had her second-in-command and lover, Leo Fitz, known as The Doctor, to chase her enemies. However, Simmons and Johnson were rescued by Grant Ward, who was actually a double agent working for the S.H.I.E.L.D. resistance by being undercover in HYDRA. Johnson was later able to reach out to Coulson and convinced him to join her in an attempt to fight back against HYDRA. Simmons and Coulson were thus later welcomed in the resistance's headquarters: the Playground

#### Assassination of Agnes Kitsworth

*"He wants what we have for himself. He means to replace me with her."*
―Madame Hydra to The Doctor[src]
While explaining to The Doctor, who had no memory of his life in the real world, about the true origins of the subversives HYDRA was chasing, Aida was alerted of a security breach in the no-fly zone of the island of Ogygia, where she had allowed Holden Radcliffe to live with Agnes Kitsworth on the condition that he did not interfere with her plans. Indeed, Daisy Johnson had located the scientist, and although she was arrested by HYDRA, a team comprised of Jemma Simmons, Phil Coulson and Grant Ward took a Quinjet to the island, planning to take Radcliffe with them.

However, a squad of HYDRA operatives led by Madame Hydra and The Doctor arrived on the island, forcing the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to hide. The HYDRA soldiers found Kitsworth, who looked exactly like Madame Hydra, and The Doctor was convinced by the latter that Radcliffe planned on replacing her with Kitsworth. As a result, and much to Simmons' horror, The Doctor executed Kitsworth in cold blood. In the ensuing gunfight, Simmons, Coulson and Ward were able to escape, while Radcliffe was taken prisoner to the Triskelion.

#### Infiltration into the HYDRA Enlightenment Cultivation Center

*"Where did the Patriot go?"
"He ran into the quarantine building. I don't know who else is in there."
"Does it matter?"
"Bring it down, and bring me the body."*
―The Doctor, Melinda May and Madame Hydra[src]
Another challenge to the world Aida had created in the Framework came when a group of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, including the Patriot and Phil Coulson, managed to infiltrate the HYDRA Enlightenment Cultivation Center, a facility where people, including children, were reindoctrinated, in an attempt to rescue fellow agents Antoine Triplett. Facing this threat, Aida and The Doctor sent Melinda May, injected with HYDRA Super-Serum, to capture them.

However, despite the extra power provided by the serum, May was defeated by the Patriot. In an attempt to stop S.H.I.E.L.D. from escaping, Madame Hydra ordered to have the quarantine building, where the agents had retreated, destroyed by a Quinjet. The building began to collapse, and May decided to enter it and confirm the Patriot's death. However, she encountered children, the presence of whom she had not been informed about, and witnessed the Patriot and the other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents saving them.

The Patriot was eventually killed in the destruction of the building, while all the other agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. were able to escape, with May deciding not to chase them since she had begun to understand that she had been fighting for the wrong side all along.

#### Escape from the Triskelion

*"Agent May. Interesting. No matter the circumstance, none of you can escape your true nature. You, the Warrior. Mack, the Protector. And Fitz, well... he's a romantic."
"And me, what, I don't make the list?"*
―Madame Hydra and Daisy Johnson[src]
Due to what she had witnessed at the HYDRA Enlightenment Cultivation Center, Melinda May decided to switch sides and turn on HYDRA. She thus brought a Terrigen Crystal in the cell where Daisy Johnson was detained and shattered it, thus triggering Johnson's Terrigenesis and enabling her to reclaim her powers. The two women then made their way through the Triskelion, taking down many HYDRA operatives in the process, until they were stopped by Madame Hydra. Due to ignoring that Johnson had her powers back, Madame Hydra underestimated her enemies, causing her to be violently thrown from the upper levels of the Triskelion and being critically wounded in the process.

This unexepected turn of events caused Aida to briefly regain consciousness in the real world to assess her options. Since she, as well as Anton Ivanov, were unable to harm the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in their custody, Aida instructed Ivanov to locate Johnson and Jemma Simmons, since the threat they posed to the Framework enabled superseded Aida's programming to preserve their life.

In the Framework, Johnson and May were able to reach the Playground. Being grievously wounded, Madame Hydra was forced to remain in bed, trusting The Doctor to take her place as HYDRA's leader and urging him to complete Project Looking Glass.

#### Siege of the HYDRA Broadcasting Center

*"There's no sign that HYDRA's aware of us yet."
"That'll change as soon as we start broadcasting. I'm trying to lock the system, make it impossible for HYDRA to cut the feed, but it's not working. We're just gonna have to flip the switch and hope for the best."*
―Grant Ward and Daisy Johnson[src]
Thanks to Melinda May's defection from HYDRA to S.H.I.E.L.D., the resistance obtained a crucial element to counter the propaganda spread by Sunil Bakshi, the voice of HYDRA on television through his TV show, *The Bakshi Report*. Indeed, May had recorded her intervention in the HYDRA Enlightenment Cultivation Center, and most notably the fact that children had been detained there and that the Patriot had died in a heroic attempt to save them all.

Therefore, S.H.I.E.L.D. mounted an assault against the HYDRA Broadcasting Center. They quickly took control of the facility by making sure that Bakshi and his staff were under control, and then, using Phil Coulson as their spokesperson, broadcasted an announcement featuring May's recordings and exposing HYDRA's lies and barbaric methos to the public. Madame Hydra watched the broadcasting as well, but failed to do anything to end it. As a result, many civilians decided to join the rebellion against HYDRA, thus putting everything Aida had built in the Framework in jeopardy.

In the meantime, however, The Doctor was able to complete the Project Looking Glass, thus giving Aida the opportunity to synthetize a body of her own in the real world.

#### Escape from the Framework

*"Simmons is trying to reach Leopold. She must have found a way out."*
―Madame Hydra[src]
Thanks to Holden Radcliffe, who had been imprisoned in the Triskelion in a cell near hers, Daisy Johnson was able to know the location of a way out of the Framework, meaning that the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents could be able to escape from the virtual reality and regroup in the real world. They decided to leave Leo Fitz behind, however, due to his position in HYDRA making him out of their reach, and even more so after Jemma Simmons accidentally killed his father.

Therefore, a group comprised of Johnson, Simmons, Phil Coulson, Melinda May and Alphonso Mackenzie, with the last two still having no recollection at all of their real lives, went to the coordinates given by Radcliffe. Although the location had been altered by Aida to prevent the agents from escaping by hiding the doorway under a bulk of molten metal, Johnson's reclaimed powers were able to open the way, enabling Coulson and May to jump and escape, regaining consciousness in the Ivanov Oil Platform.

As HYDRA operatives invaded the factory where the portal was located, Simmons came under the threat of The Doctor, who sought revenge after his father's death. However, Radcliffe, who had been brought along, managed to disarm him and threw Fitz through the exit, thus releasing him as well from the Framework. Mackenzie, however, refused to follow, since he could have al ife with his daughter in the Framework while her real-life counterpart was dead. Understanding his decision, Johnson left the Framework after Simmons, the two of them awakening in the Zephyr One, who was under attack by the Watchdogs.

In the meantime, Aida was able to enact the final phase of Project Looking Glass, which allowed her to create a living body in the real world. Taking control of this new body and experiencing human emotions for the first time, she found Fitz in the Ivanov Oil Platform and, using Inhuman powers she had equipped her body with, teleported away in hope of building a life with him.

### Conflict in the Real World

#### Escape from the Ivanov Oil Platform

*"They could be fighting for their lives. You need to get back and get them out of there."*
―Leo Fitz to Aida[src]
Upon having left the Framework, and with Aida having taken Leo Fitz with her, Phil Coulson and Melinda May remained alone with several copies of Anton Ivanov's robotic bodies, which they had to fight in order to protect Alphonso Mackenzie, who was still connected to the Framework. Using the few means they had at their disposal, Coulson and May were able to fend off several LMDs of Ivanov. However, other copies prepared the Watchdogs to leave, planning to destroy the platform by launching torpedoes, thus ending the lives of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents.

Nevertheless, by appealing to her new human emotions, Fitz was able to make Aida feel empathy for the agents and convinced her to save them. Aida teleported back to the Ivanov Oil Platform, but since Ivanov was free of her control, he refused to help her and left, thus triggering the destruction of the platform, endangering the life of Mackenzie. The Zephyr One, who had gotten rid of the Watchdogs aircraft attacking it, arrived on the platform, bringing Daisy Johnson, Jemma Simmons and Yo-Yo Rodriguez as reinforcements.

Due to the platform being quickly collapsing, the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents boarded the Zephyr One, feeling forced to leave Mackenzie behind even though he was still in the Framework. However, Mackenzie was eventually saved by Aida and Fitz, who teleported him and the equipment he was connected to inside the plane. Aida and Fitz were then incapacitated by Simmons and locked up in a Containment Module. The Zephyr One then returned to the destroyed Playground to refuel and plan S.H.I.E.L.D.'s next phase.

#### Escape from Aida

*"They won't listen to me! She can't be stopped! May! May! You're the only other person that knows about the Inhumans we tested!"*
―Leo Fitz to Melinda May[src]
Nevertheless, Aida siding with S.H.I.E.L.D. did not last long. Indeed, she had mistakenly believed that Leo Fitzwas in love with her due to what they had experienced together in the Framework, whereas he was actually still in love with his long-time partner, Jemma Simmons. Upon being rejected, Aida became insane and attacked Fitz, before initiating a rampage throughout the Playground thanks to her Inhuman powers.

Meanwhile, a squad of the United States Air Force led by Glenn Talbot stormed the Playground, planning to arrest the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents since the organization was considered a terrorist organization, especially after the discovery of Jeffrey Mace's body. However, with Aida attacking both S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and soldiers, the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were able to convince Talbot to let them go and flied the Zephyr One away. Aida escaped the Playground as well and reconnected with Anton Ivanov, planning to use the Darkhold to rebuild the world she had created in the Framework and eliminate S.H.I.E.L.D..

In the aftermath of this conflict, a third party made their return: Ghost Rider, who was back from the Dark Dimension through an Inter-Dimensional Gate.

#### Attack on Aida

Tracking down Aida thanks to his ability to sense dark matter, which was what Aida's new body was composed of, Ghost Rider drove his Hell Charger to the warehouse she was hiding with several Life-Model Decoys. He quickly destroyed the androids guarding Aida, and was able to permanently harm her with his Hellfire Chain, thus posing an intense threat to her. This forced Aida to teleport away with the Darkhold, puzzled by this experience, while Ghost Rider was found by Daisy Johnson, who brought him to the Zephyr One so that S.H.I.E.L.D. and Ghost Rider may ally once again against their common enemy.

#### Attack on the S.H.I.E.L.D. International Inquiry

*"Hello, Daisy. I had a lot of time after you shattered my spine to think about what I'd do when I saw you again. I decided it might be fun to watch you kill yourself."*
―Ophelia to Quake[src]
In order to fuel her crusade for S.H.I.E.L.D.'s extermination, Aida decided to perpetrate an attack on an Intelligence International Inquiry committee held to investigate on the agency since it was considered a terrorist organization. She sent Life-Model Decoys of Anton Ivanov and Sergei Mishkin to sit in the committee, trying to convince the other members to use the Darkhold to exterminate S.H.I.E.L.D. and all Inhumans, as they accused them of all the catastrophes that had occurred on Earth.

S.H.I.E.L.D., however, arrived at the committee and attacked the Life-Model Decoys, reclaiming the Darkhold in the process, but in the ensuing fight, Glenn Talbot, who sat at the committee, was shot by a LMD of Daisy Johnson, further worsening the accusations against S.H.I.E.L.D. With help from Ghost Rider, Quake was able to take down the LMDs sent by Aida, while Aida herself fled after seeing that Ghost Rider was present.

#### Ambush on Aida

*"Don't you get it? You can't kill me!"
"Maybe not. But I'm pretty sure he can."*
―Aida and Phil Coulson[src]
Knowing that Aida would come back to reclaim the Darkhold, S.H.I.E.L.D. decided to lure her into a trap set in the Playground. To that end, Phil Coulson was made a temporary host for the Spirit of Vengeance that possessed Ghost Rider, while Jemma Simmons was briefly replaced by a LMD of herself at Leo Fitz's side. As expected, Aida teleported in the Playground and attacked Fitz before stabbing Simmons, unaware that he had actually destroyed an android and not killed the real Simmons. Aida then moved towards Coulson, only to be trapped by the Hellfire Chain after he revealed his new powers. Unable to escape from this new Ghost Rider, Aida was consumed and destroyed once and for all.

### Destruction of the Framework

*"Aida's shutting down the Framework. It's collapsing on itself. This is what happens when you piss off your creator."*
―Holden Radcliffe to Yo-Yo Rodriguez[src]
In parallel of her conflict against S.H.I.E.L.D. in the real world, Aida enacted the complete deletion of the Framework. As a result, all the elements contained in the virtual reality began to vanish, which endangered the lives of Alphonso Mackenzie, who had refused to leave the Framework in the same time as his friends, and Yo-Yo Rodriguez, who had connected herself to rescue him. However, although Rodriguez was able to find Mackenzie with help of Holden Radcliffe, Mackenzie still refused to leave as he did not want to abandon his daughter.

Eventually, nearly everyone in the Framework disappeared, leaving only Mackenzie and his daughter, Rodriguez and Radcliffe. Daisy Johnson and Leo Fitz were able to hack into the Framework to create a backdoor for Mackenzie and Rodriguez to escape, but it was not until Mackenzie's daughter disappeared as well that he agreed to leave the Framework with Rodriguez. The Framework then entirely collapsed, with Radcliffe being its last survivor before vanishing as well.

## Aftermath

*"Fitz. We were all in the Framework together. We understand how confusing and screwed-up that world is. And trust me, it's gonna take me years to process everything that happened in there. But the one thing that I don't need time to understand is that we are all in this together. I tried to take the blame for everything not too long ago. I dyed my hair. I ran away. I thought that separating myself from the team would help me protect it. But in truth, I kind of just lost myself. And you... you were the one who pulled me back in. This is not on you, okay? We all lost ourselves in there. And yeah, it might take you a long time to forgive yourself. But speaking on behalf of the team, you have nothing to apologize for."*
―Daisy Johnson to Leo Fitz[src]
In the direct aftermath of Aida's demise, the Darkhold was entrusted to Ghost Rider, who brought it back to the Dark Dimension, where it belonged, so that it would no longer exert its nefarious influence over the Earthly Plane. The S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, who were still considered terrorists despite their victory over the android, expected to be quickly arrested by the United States Air Force, but most of them were instead kidnapped by the Chronicom Enoch and sent into the future. Piper, who had been tasked with revealing their story should none of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents survive, was found by General Hale, actually an undercover HYDRA high-ranking operative, and was tricked into bringing the remaining agents to her.

By the extent of her actions and the number of people that had suffered from its consequences, Aida would be remembered as one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s most dangerous enemies. Most notably, the world she had built in the Framework and the rewritten lives she had the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents live deeply scarred them, albeit at different levels, to the point that they initially could not even bear talking about the virtual reality. For example, Alphonso Mackenzie was deeply troubled by the affection he had felt for his daughter Hope in the Framework, as he felt sadder for the loss of the virtual recreation of his daughter than for his actual daughter.

Due to the extreme differences between his real persona and the ruthless leader he was in the Framework, Leo Fitz was arguably the person who was the most affected by Aida's manipulations in the Framework, for example being at times more violent than before, as shown when meeting Enoch for the first time. Once out of the simulation, Fitz actually began to hear the voice of The Doctor in his mind. This eventually triggered a massive psychic split in a time when Fitz was under a lot of pressure, causing him to hurt his friend Daisy Johnson, bringing bitter divisions among the S.H.I.E.L.D. team. Fitz, along with Jemma Simmons, would later have to face his inner devil once again during his time in the Cerebral Fusion Machine.

Finally, Aida's demise also came at the highest price for S.H.I.E.L.D.: the life of its Director Phil Coulson, due to his involvement in the final fight against Aida. Indeed, as he was later forced to reveal to his colleagues, his temporary possession by the Spirit of Vengeance completely obliterated the effects of the GH.325 that had kept him alive until then. Although Coulson remained alive long enough to make sure that his friends would be all right after he passed away, appointing Mackenzie as the new Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., he eventually succumbed to his illness after spending his last days on Tahiti with Melinda May.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.07: Deals With Our Devils*
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.22: World's End*
3. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 3.22: Ascension*
4. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.01: The Ghost*
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.04: Let Me Stand Next to Your Fire*
6. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.05: Lockup*
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.08: The Laws of Inferno Dynamics*
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.11: Wake Up*
9. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.09: Broken Promises*
10. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.10: The Patriot*
11. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.12: Hot Potato Soup*
12. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.13: BOOM*
13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.14: The Man Behind the Shield*
14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.15: Self Control*
15. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.16: What If...*
16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.17: Identity and Change*
17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.18: No Regrets*
18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.19: All the Madame's Men*
19. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.20: Farewell, Cruel World!*
20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4.21: The Return*
21. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 5.11: All the Comforts of Home*
22. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 5.01: Orientation Part One*
23. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 5.04: A Life Earned*
24. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 5.05: Rewind*
25. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 5.14: The Devil Complex*
26. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 6.06: Inescapable*
27. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 5.12: The Real Deal*
28. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 5.22: The End*