Reflections Part I

## Official Summary

Upon being extracted from the ruins of the Congregation of the Gentle Hand's secret sanctum, our operatives undergo the debrief process, with Pierce's motivations falling under suspicion.

Darren Feldman asks for Kiera and Pierce by name, requesting a visit in exchange for valuable information. He reveals that the extent of his unexplained knowledge goes far greater than ORPHEUS expected, and is ready to make a deal.

Meanwhile, in hypnotherapy with Dr. Stewart, Mitch recovers the memory of a lost face from his youth. This strand of recollection leads him to regain a crucial event that set him on the path that ended with his death in Jerusalem.

## Detailed Recap

Mitch examines the containment unit he recovered after slaying Trevor Norton. It's cold to the touch and shows frost on its exterior.

An ORPHEUS aircraft lands about an hour after the destruction of the abomination. Diana, a severe-looking, alert woman in uniform, greets them. Her rank insignia indicates that she is extremely high in the organization: assistant director of operations. Mitch automatically hands her the case, which she passes on to lab techs. Pierce gives her the tissue samples he took. When she asks for the journal, he hands that over, as well, although his attention remains on the book.

Diana asks Kiera to read Pierce's mind while she questions him, to determine whether he's telling the truth. Kiera is shocked by this request, but agrees. Diana asks what happened at the bar, and he accurately recounts the events. Diana is disgusted at the mention of Jack, even though Pierce carefully omits the fact that Jack has become a creature that eats human flesh. She asks where Jack and Nadra are, and he says he doesn't know. Kiera says she believes Pierce is telling the truth.

Diana asks about the true goal of the Congregation of the Gentle Hand. Pierce explains that Elijah wanted to father a dangerous, otherworldly being. Pierce's job was to facilitate the successful pregnancy and childbirth, but many women died, and Piece believes a successful outcome was in fact impossible because no human could survive long enough. She asks him about the containment unit, but he says he's never seen it before. He also mentions that Elijah never let him read the journal, which he considers foolish, because the journal would have helped him help them. Diana says it was fortunate PIerce didn't see the journal, which confuses him; she has to remind him that Elijah's end goal was actually a bad thing and his failure was actually a good thing, something Pierce seems to have momentarily lost sight of. Kiera again confirms that Pierce is telling the truth as far as she knows.

Diana asks where Munnin is. Pierce says he has no idea, but he'd love to know. Diana suggests that other people in ORPHEUS want to know even more ardently. Diana finally asks Pierce how Darren could have possibly known his whereabouts. Pierce is taken aback by this, as Kiera and Mitch haven't mentioned how they found him. He says he doesn't know, and that shouldn't be possible. Diana wraps up the conversation, but Pierce offers one more bit of information to assure her of his compliance and trustworthiness: He says Elijah tried to read his mind, but he thinks he was successful in keeping him out, because he's good at avoiding that. Kiera points out that this means he might be fooling her right now, but he denies that he is.

Pierce mentions the journal again, asking if he can requisition it later. Diana says that might be possible. When Diana makes eye contact with Kiera, Kiera feels like she's being stared down by a predator, but Pierce doesn't get that feeling. Mitch is feeling emotions he can't identify about the experience of defeating a challenge as part of a team.

Pierce and Kiera are dropped off at an ORPHEUS transportation facility. They are sent to Sanctuary to speak to Darren again, who asked for the two of them rather than just Kiera, promising more valuable information. They are hearsed once more. When they arrive, Pierce barfs on Rollins's shoes. Kiera is pleased to discover they've installed safety cables on the catwalk over the abyss. She jokes around with Hersh and reads his mind, discovering that he's terrified of the singing creature that almost killed her last time, and revealing the ORPHEUS wants to kill the creature but doesn't know how, and its efforts to contain it are slipping. Hersh does feel even more afraid of something "further down" in Sanctuary. Pierce tries to learn simply by looking around and asking questions.

In the same viewing room as before, Darren is still chained to the chair, in nearly the exact same pose as when Kiera and Mitch left him. He is scarecrow-thin and pallid, nothing like the vital man Pierce remembers, and Pierce feels uncomfortable and pitying. Pierce calls Darren "buddy" and jokingly suggests that he owes him information because he got him high so many times in college. Darren proposes a quid pro quo: He will give them names and locations that will lead them to helpful things ORPHEUS needs. He hopes this will lead to an improvement in his conditions.

Darren asks Pierce how it was in Florida. Pierce says it was horrible, because a lot of girls died, and a lot of people killed themselves. But then he says it lacked the "purity" that his time with Darren had. This unsettles Hersh, who seems to be considering attacking Pierce, saying he knows he's just like Darren.

Darren gives them the name Hailee Pennington and the location Chester, Illinois. He suggests that Mitch will have a significant reaction when they tell him this.

Shortly thereafter, Mitch is in an appointment with Dr. Stewart. Dr. Stewart tells Mitch that the therapy they're doing is "very important to the organization." Mitch is distressed about the deaths he couldn't prevent, and disturbed by the idea that the concept of kindness could be corrupted to use and hurt innocents. Dr. Stewart shows signs of excitement, and asks Mitch why he's okay being used himself, but not okay with other people being used. Mitch says he has capabilities that help him survive being used, and Dr. Stewart asks him if he means that the strong should protect the weak; he agrees. Dr. Stewart asks him how it felt to stand beside others with special capabilities, and Mitch says it felt righteous.

They do another hypnosis exercise, and Mitch imagines himself at the lake once more. He sees a young man standing on the surface of the water, shining from within so Mitch can't make out his face clearly. The young man looks at Mitch as though Mitch is familiar to him. Mitch also sees a regal woman, and longs to join her and the young man. For a moment, he comes up out of the water and walks on the surface, feeling joyful -- but then something pulls him down by the ankle into dark, cold water. He sees long fingernails and floating hair. He wakes up screaming the name "Hailee," and doesn't know why.

Later that night, he pulls out his yearbook, and sees her photo. He believes she was his friend. He falls asleep, and has a vivid dream of his past.

## Quotes

* "I don't remember the last time I was sorry I was careful." - Diana
* "I lay down, and I roll over when I'm told, so I get my treats." - Pierce

## Music Credits

* Three Chain Links - Magic Hour
* Kevin MacLeod - Apprehension
* Sergey Cheremisiniov - Tavern
* free dramatic scores - Horror Music - Shards (Sad Mysterious Drama with Music Box)
* Kevin MacLeod - Long Note Four
* Kai Engel - Cloudburst
* Sergey Cheremisinov - Pulsar
* Opening and Closing Themes by Nathan Kross and Rob Stith