Agents of SHIELD May Have Revealed Who Destroyed Earth

SPOILERS for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. 'The Devil Complex' ahead

The latest Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. episode may have revealed who really destroyed Earth. We break down our theory about General Hale, Hydra and the Kree. Since the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 5 premiere, the show has established a major mystery: Who destroyed the Earth? The agents were told by those in the future that Daisy Johnson aka. Quake broke the Earth apart with her powers. However, as many viewers have theorized, the "facts" of how the Earth was destroyed could have been changed by whoever was telling the story. Remember, humans had been subjugated by Kree in the future, so the aliens were the ones writing the history.

Then, of course, Gravitonium was reintroduced to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and its continued involvement in season 5 indicates it's a key part of the overall mystery. Further, the future version of Yo-Yo offered her younger self some advice on how to save the planet. Namely, S.H.I.E.L.D. must let Phil Coulson die to save Earth. It's not clear yet why Coulson must die to save the world, but the 100th episode revealed he's dying from The Avengers injury that originally killed him. That was before he was revived using Kree technology. Now, this week's episode, 'The Devil Complex' offers some major new hints at who really destroys the Earth.

Related: All the Gravitonium in the MCU

Back in the present, Coulson and the agents track down General Hale, the high-ranking U.S. military officer who replaced General Glenn Talbot. She explains to Coulson that she's trying to save humanity from extinction, which seems to indicate she knows something about the future. Further, the final scene of the episode features an exchange between Hale and a mysterious new character in a curious-looking room. So, we break down this last scene, what it reveals about Hale's plans and how it ties into both Hydra and the Kree.

Hale's Mysterious Meeting Explained

Ever since Hale was introduced earlier in season 5, viewers have known she answers to someone other than the U.S. government since she shot and killed two of her subordinates. Ever since the agents returned to the present, we've seen her start to amass a team of individuals with certain abilities. This includes her daughter Ruby, the son of a high-ranking Hydra officer Werner von Strucker, and Carl Creel aka. Absorbing Man. In last week's episode, 'Principia', Hale revealed she's building "something new" out of the ashes of Hydra. Now, the final scene in this week's episode reveals what that something new seems to be.

In the scene, Hale appears in a shadowy room with blue writing on the walls. She's approached by a new character who remains in shadow for the duration of the scene (more on him later). The mystery man criticizes Hale because she hasn't yet delivered on what she has promised. He says, "You're here because the Confederacy allows it. You want a seat at the table, you must prove you are deserving of it." Based on this statement, we now know that Hale's goal is to join this Confederacy, and presumably everything she's done has been in pursuit of that goal.

It also seems, from this exchange, that the Confederacy is pulling her strings. Earlier in the episode when she's being interrogated by Coulson, she reveals she's trying to "prevent our extinction." She also says, "I have orders not to let you escape by any means." If she's working at the behest of the Confederacy, they're the ones who don't want SHIELD to escape. For a further hint at who exactly the Confederacy is - though we have heard that term before (more on that later) - the man also gives Hale some Odium and tells her it's tradition to take it before failure so as to go out fighting in a blaze of glory. As we learned earlier in the season, that's a very specific Kree tradition.

So, we know the man is Kree, but why does he bid Hale farewell with the phrase, "Hail Hydra"? Well, the history of Hydra, as has been established on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., is linked with Inhumans, who were originally created by the Kree after the alien race performed experiments on humans. Hydra originated as a group devoted to worshipping the ancient Inhuman known as Hive. But, what does this all have to do with the present and the imminent destruction of the Earth? We have an idea.

Who is Qovas?

Based on the cast list provided by ABC in the press release for 'The Devil Complex', we determined the man speaking to Hale is actor Peter Mensah and his character name is Qovas. That doesn't reveal much, unfortunately, as Qovas isn't a character from the Marvel comics. However, we're offered a number of clues to his identity throughout the final scene of 'The Devil Complex.'

First is the mention of the Confederacy. We heard that term earlier in season 5 used by Kasius. In the episode 'Past Life', Kasius revealed his father and his father's Confederacy wanted to conquer Earth. From what Kasius said, his father was intently focused on taking the Earth for his own and if S.H.I.E.L.D. wasn't around, his father wouldn't have been met with any opposition. We know little else about Kasius' father's plan to take over the Earth, but it presumably occurs before the planet is destroyed and may even be how the world is cracked apart. Kasius also spoke about how his father rewards warriors and those who fight, which leads to the other clue.

In 'Past Life,' Kasius also introduced Odium, a substance taken by members of his family as a last resort in battle. In 'The Devil Complex', Qovas gives Odium to Hale as a last resort if her plans fail. When she says she'll die before she fails, he says, "Before you do that, there's a tradition within the Confederacy. If one faces failure, you drink the Odium." While Qovas changes the association of Odium from Kasius' family to the Confederacy as a whole, it's still a significant indicator of who this new character could be.

Based on Qovas' dealings with Hale, it's possible Mensah's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. character is Kasius' father. If that's not the case, Qovas could be someone who works for Kasius' father, perhaps a different high-ranking member of the Confederacy. But one thing is for certain, whoever Qovas' is, his dealings with Hale and his role within the Confederacy confirm he's somehow connected to Kasius' father.

How Hale, Hydra & the Kree Tie Together

Dominic Rains as Kasius in Agents of SHIELD

So how do all these pieces tie together? Well, it would seem that Kasius' father's plan to conquer Earth is to use a human pawn - Hale - to get rid of the only thing standing in his way: S.H.I.E.L.D. To do so, he would have had to get Hale to trust him, and it seems he used her past dealings with Hydra to win her over, possibly by convincing her that Hydra's ultimate leaders are the Kree since they created Hive. Also, given Hale's insistence to Coulson that she's trying to save humanity, it's likely the Confederacy has convinced her they're the only way to save the world, even though they plan to conquer it instead. If these particular events are what inevitably lead to the Earth being destroyed, it's possible that occurs during a fight between S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Confederacy.

Of course, there's still the question of why Hale, and likely the Confederacy, want Coulson. We know that his life is somehow tied to the Earth's destruction. We previously theorized that the agents will strike a deal with Kasius' father to save Coulson, or leave the planet open to an attack by the Kree in an effort to save their leader another way. However, now that we know Coulson is dying from the injury inflicted during The Avengers and it's unrelated to the Kree, it's even less clear how trying to save him brings about the end of the world. That said, Hale says in her meeting with Qovas that she's gotten her hands on the final piece of her plan - and that could be Coulson.

What we do know is that Hale is mixed up with the Kree Confederacy lead by Kasius' father and events are already in motion that lead to the planet's doom. If Daisy didn't destroy Earth - like we and many viewers believe - then it's likely brought about by the Confederacy. Now that we know Hale is working with the Confederacy, more about their plan will be revealed in the coming episodes of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Plus, as more about this season-long mystery is uncovered, we may learn whether the agents really can save Coulson.

Next: Agents of SHIELD Should End With Director Daisy Johnson

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 5 continues Friday March 30th with 'Rise and Shine' at 9pm on ABC.