The scene opened up on the FBI building again and Vanya's soundwaves destroying the place, keeping Diego, Allison and Klaus pinned down. Diego and Allison discussed getting to Vanya, whilst Klaus, drinking, told them to count him out, telling them they were the heroes and Vanya would understand and has realistic expectations of Klaus just being sexy trash. Klaus then said he didn't want to be a martyr, as they weren't around to enjoy the victory party, as Diego grabbed him and threatened him.
"You know you're more than just sexy trash as you put it Klaus, right?" Allison asked him.
"I'm the screw up, we all know that." Klaus tried to brush it off.
"No, when the chips are down, you do all you can to help, you have our backs." Diego assured him.
"That's my cue." Allison said, slipping past as Diego tried to grab hold of her, pushing herself up and trying to force her way through the buffeting attack towards Vanya. Allison called out to her, the raw energy causing her to bleed as Vanya cycled through her memories, clenching her jaw and not hearing Allison as the power built up more and more within her.
"I can't hurt you, not again." Vanya said, looking terrified at the thought of hurting Allison once again.
"Just like at the cabin, it isn't your fault, Vanya." Allison reassured her, taking her hand in her own and rubbing her thumb over the back, trying to calm her down. "We're a family, we do this, together."
Allison managed to get about halfway to the door before another powerful burst sent her backwards, knocking her unconscious as she slid into the table.
"ALLISON!" Luther and Vanya both cried out at once.
"I'm fine and this won't happen this time, remember?" Allison asked them, "Let's just get through this."
Diego said he was going when Klaus stopped him to tell him he looked like Antonio Banderas, Diego thanking him as he went out, using his knives to try grip onto the floor as Klaus covered his ears, Diego got a bit further than Allison, before realising he couldn't do it.
"It's going to be up to you, Klaus." Ben told him.
"I can't do that!" Klaus protested.
"Yes you can, you're far more powerful than you realise." Ben informed him.
"Klaus! I'm not gonna make it! It's up to you buddy! You gotta save the world!"
"You can do it, Klaus." Five reassured him.
"I know you have it in you, Master Klaus." Pogo stated.
Diego moved over to a nearby water hose, loosening it as he was flung back into Allison, also unconscious, as the hose headed over to Klaus.
"Let's go." Klaus said to himself on the screen, bolstered by the encouragement that they had all given him.
Klaus gave himself a pep talk and got up, Vanya's powers causing his ears and nose to bleed instantly, he pulled himself along the rope, further and further, throwing himself forward, being blasted back as he tried to open the door, being thrown backwards, another figure appeared, Klaus looking at them just before passing out, he saw Ben stood above him, seemingly unaffected, Ben headed towards the room where Vanya was being held, opening the door and stepping inside.
"Can Ben get through all of it?" Luther asked.
"Well he isn't being knocked out on the screen, so I guess so." Diego replied.
"Next time, we're just sending you in." Klaus told Ben who grinned.
Across town, Luther, Five and Old Five headed to the vantage point for Kennedy, Luther and Old Five discussing Old Five's plan to betray Five, whilst Five yelled at people passing by and exhibited more symptoms of Paradox Psychosis. Old Five told Luther to keep Five in check until it came time to kill him.
"You aren't really going to kill me, Luther." Five told him seriously. "You'd be dead before you got the chance."
"I think he really plans too." Diego told Five, watching Luther on screen as Luther scowled. Some of what Old Five said did make sense, Five was definitely far more impacted by it.
Luther hung back to comfort Five, who asked if Old Five was planning to kill him, Luther tried to deny it, until Five pointed out he was a terrible liar. Luther told Five he wasn't going to kill Five, just a version of him, before Five said that he was that version.
"Yeah, I'm that version, so don't even think about it, Ape man." Five glared at Luther who looked offended. Pogo also looked offended at the insult, even if he agreed Luther would not be harming his brother if he could help it.
Five explained their plan to Luther, who was surprised he knew it, Five explained it was what he would do, telling Luther he had seen nothing when Luther said there was a Five too many and he was the one acting insane. Five told Luther he was suffering from daddy issues again, this time with Old Five, before stating that he was the eldest so Luther should obey him.
"Well, if it's your daddy issues, he does have a valid point." Diego told Luther who growled at him.
"I'm the one calling the shots, not any other version of me." Five stated. "Let's just get that straight right now, in case something like this ever does happen. You all do what I say, not another version of me."
"I'M THE DADDY HERE!" Five yelled, as passers by looked at them in worry.
"First Klaus, now you? Do any of you guys not have a daddy kink?" Vanya asked, perplexed.
All of them started coughing, trying to suppress chokes at that, at Vanya being the one to ask it.
Luther realised Old Five had it too when he released gas, as Five asked him what his plan was now, Luther looking conflicted between them.
"Yeah, lost your clear and well reasoned plan there, didn't you?" Klaus teased.
At the Commission, the Handler asked Lila where Diego was, when she tried to give a vague answer, Herb was brought in, who told Lila Diego had left the Commission and he was forced to help him. AJ discreetly got Herb to come to him and showed him a message reading "743" whilst the Handler told Lila to go kill Diego before threatening her, demanding her loyalty, which Lila promised her.
"She won't hurt me." Diego confidently predicted.
"I'm not sure, she's far more loyal to her mother than she would be to us." Allison told him.
"Look at her. There's no way. Look who she's acting. I do wonder what 743 could mean though?" Diego asked.
In the Commission archives, Herb pulled out file 743, ripping a page from it and scurrying away.
"Oh, I know what this is." Five groaned. "This is the mission where I killed her parents, kill order 743. Now she'll know I did it, hopefully the Handler implicated herself in the order as well or else Lila will be coming after me."
"You can take her, can't you?" Luther asked him, as Five nodded.
"Oh yeah, just a lot of hassle though to deal with it."
At the FBI, Vanya was shaking, as was Harlan at the farm, when Ben sat down on her lap, his presence sinking into her, as her powers calmed, leaving her and Harlan both staring blankly at the ceiling.
"Klaus?" Ben asked, as Klaus waved him away, watching the show.
He could see a young girl, stood in the corner of the room. She caught Ben's eye and gave him a sad smile before vanishing. He could have sworn he had seen her somewhere before, not too long ago.
Carl and Sissy found Harlan, unresponsive, eyes white, Carl blamed Vanya before grabbing Harlan and saying he would take him to get the help he needed at an institution. As Carl bundled Harlan into the car and began to drive, Sissy blocked his path, holding a rifle and telling him to get out of the car.
"Go Sissy!" Vanya called out.
"I thought you were angry she's using you to get some gratification?" Klaus asked.
"I am, but Carl is still a piece of shit, especially threatening to take Harlan to a place that will just hurt him. At least Sissy cares for Harlan, Carl just cares for the image of having a family." Vanya explained.
Sissy said she would never get him back if they left, Carl told her that maybe she didn't deserve Harlan. Sissy cocked the rifle, telling Carl to watch how he talked to her for once.
"He better back down unless he wants to be hurt." Diego warned. Sissy would definitely do it.
At the Commission again, Herb was accosted by Lila, who threatened to kill him if he didn't tell her where Diego was, before Herb told her that he was on her side and told her where Diego was, Herb asked if she would kill Diego, she said she would not and threatened Herb for his silence. Herb then told Lila he had to show her something, handing her the page he ripped from the 743 file. Reading it, Lila dropped to the floor in shock.
"Hopefully, that will make her turn against the Handler." Diego hoped.
"With any luck." Five agreed.
At the Grassy Knoll, Old Five loaded his rifle as Five glared at him, muttering about the briefcase. As he jumped, Old Five noticed and jumped too, aiming at Five, Luther grabbed the rifle and told them both to relax and that they could all work together, Five asked Old Five if he wanted it, Old Five said it was his, as Five kicked Luther in the groin, dropping him as the two Five's began to fight one another.
"Why must it always end in someone being kicked in the balls?" Allison asked aloud as Klaus giggled.
"It is the way of the universe." He said sagely, looking over to Ben, who was staring in confusion at the corner still. He decided to ignore it, whatever was eating Benny boy, he'd tell him later, Klaus was sure of it.
As the two of them jumped around, punching and kicking one another, Luther begged them to stop as they jumped in his path, both kicking him as they jumped again.
"Why am I the punch bag?" Luther begged.
"Hey! I'm getting really sick of this!" Luther yelled as the two of them kept jumping around.
"Yes, I am." Luther growled.
"Suck it up big guy." Diego teased him.
At the FBI, inside Vanya, Ben explored the staircase she had went down before, finding the dining room with just a white violin on the table, music emanating from it, as Ben bent over it and studied it, seeing inside the treble carved into it, where Vanya was lying on the floor.
Ben felt weird seeing this, as he watched, everything looked to be in a clearer detail, as if he was seeing all of his family watching this for the first time, as they all sat, enraptured.
Ben approached her, calling her name, as she looked up and saw him.
"I'm sure that was quiet the shock." Allison said, always stunned still when Ben appeared on the screen.
Ben could feel something stirring within him. He was still intimately familiar with the Horror, it wasn't that, this felt….different.
"Vanya. Do you remember me?" Ben asked her.
"No, you're the new random ghost in the corner." Klaus dead-panned.
"I remember everything." Vanya told him shakily. "And I'm doing it again, aren't I?"
"You're not to blame, Vanya." Allison reassured her.
Ben looked down sadly.
Something was definitely happening, Ben could see the young girl again, she smiled at him again.
"You're a good man, Ben Hargreeves." She told him, before vanishing once more, confusing him more.
"What's wrong with me?" Vanya begged him as she cried. "Why can't I control myself like the rest of you guys?"
"There's nothing wrong with you, Vanya!" Five protested. "It's just the asshole."
"It's not too late. You can go back, there's still time." Ben reassured her.
"Yes, it's never too late to change things." Diego nodded.
"I don't deserve to live." Vanya whimpered. "I killed Pogo. I almost killed Allison. I destroyed the world. I'm a monster."
"You are no such things, Miss Vanya!" Pogo insisted. "Surely you see that this time?"
"Aren't I?" Vanya asked sadly. "Clearly when we get out of here, I won't be able to control it, how am I not a monster?"
"You never meant to harm anyone, and with my own death, it was at least partly my fault. I kept these secrets for years from all of you, if anyone is the monster here, it is myself, Miss Vanya." Pogo told her.
"Dad treated you like a bomb before you ever were one." Ben explained to her gently, sitting by her. "He was...so scared of your power, he never let you use it. Drugged you up, kept you numb for years."
"Why didn't you give me any, dad?" Klaus demanded to know.
Ben looked down at his hands, feeling weird, he could see little blue specks, and in the far corner, where the girl had been, there was a door that wasn't there before, it was ajar and he could see a light coming from it.
"That's messed up, Vanya. No wonder you couldn't control it. Dad couldn't handle your anger, that doesn't mean you can't. Maybe you have a right to be pissed off and sad and messed up, but it's a shitty world full of shitty people sometimes. You aren't a monster."
"You really aren't." Luther told her as Vanya gave them all a weak smile.
Ben stood up and walked towards the door, as Klaus turned to him.
"Benny?"
"You're my sister and right now our siblings are risking everything out there trying to save you."
"We will never stop fighting for you!" Allison promised her.
"You aren't alone at the table any more, Vanya. You can do this." Ben said with a smile and a nod.
"You'll never be alone at it again." Five told her, Diego, Allison and Luther nodded. Klaus was focused on Ben, who was slowly walking to the door.
"BEN!" Klaus yelled now, everyone turning to him, even Ben. "What's going on?"
"I don't know, Klaus." Ben said. "Something is telling me to go through the door though."
"What door? Why are you blue?" Klaus asked.
Ben suddenly started to have flecks of blue light streaming off of his hand, as Vanya smiled sadly at him, standing, they saw more of it, all over his body as Ben looked stunned.
"Why do you look like you do on the screen?" Klaus demanded to know as the others gasped.
"Ben, what's happening to you?" Vanya asked, confused.
"That's what I'd like to know." Klaus snarled.
"I can't go back with you." Ben stated.
"What do you mean?" Klaus asked him, tears pricking his eyes as he started to consider an awful truth.
"What do you mean? I'm hurting you, aren't I?" Vanya asked, panicking.
Klaus focused his energy, his hands glowing, as Ben appeared before them all, the blue flecks all around him, as his jacket and hands had started to vanish as well.
"Ben...what's going on?" Vanya asked, stunned.
"It's not your fault." Ben stressed. "I've been holding on as long as I can in here, but..."
"Tell me what this is!" Klaus demanded to know. Everyone else looked stunned, as Ben looked resigned and Reginald, watching it all, gave Number Six a small nod, that Ben noticed, returning it.
"You shouldn't have come for me." Vanya told him.
"Any one of us would have come for you." Five told her. "You're as important as all of us."
"You really are, Vanya." Ben told her with a smile, as more floated away.
"Vanya, I died seventeen years ago. All the rest of this, these years with Klaus, it's all been gravy."
"Then don't go!" Klaus begged him, finally accepting what was happening, as Ben took another step closer to the door.
"I'm sorry, Klaus." Ben told him sadly, his head dropping as they all looked stricken.
"You can't go, Ben!" Luther told him.
"We can't lose you!" Diego cried.
"No, this can't be right." Allison said.
"Ben..." Five simply choked out.
"Please, don't go." Vanya begged.
"Master Bern, it has been an honour to know you." Pogo said simply.
"If this is you leaving, Number Six." Reginald started. "I suppose you have been less of a disappointment than your siblings. I only wish you had all survived that mission."
"At least this time I get to say goodbye." Ben told her with a look of determination.
"Please don't!" They all cried, listening to the screen but ignoring the image, seeing the real thing happening before their eyes.
"It's true, I get to say goodbye, to all of you. I love all of you, and I know, no matter what, you'll do what's right, for yourselves and for the world." Ben assured them. "You guys, you really are heroes."
"Can I ask you a weird favour?" Ben asked her, suddenly looking sad.
"Anything." They all told him, before realising it was the Ben on the screen who had asked, their Ben taking another step closer to the door only he could see, as more blue particles drifted away now, half of him was already gone.
"Anything." Vanya promised.
"I mean it." Vanya fervently told the Ben in the room.
"Can you hug me, as I go? It's been a long time-" Ben was cut off by Vanya throwing her arms around him, both of them happily sinking into the hug.
"Can I?" Vanya asked, moving towards Ben and wrapping her arms around him, expecting to pass through, she was shocked to see she could wrap her arms around him.
As if on cue, a dam broke, and all of them flooded forward, wrapping their arms around Ben and crying, begging him to stay, as he cried with them, more of him floating away as he did.
"Goodbye, everyone." Ben said, breaking free and giving one last, longing, look to them all. "I will always love you all." He said, before stepping through the door, and fading entirely.
"Tell Klaus something for me, will you?" Ben asked before whispering in her ear, still hugging, as he finally vanished, leaving Vanya holding onto nothing.
"Ben." Everyone sniffled, all of them still stunned that he was gone, really gone this time.
Except for Klaus, Klaus looked livid, he had tried summoning Ben back already, he had just gotten a lot of angry ghosts, with a snarl each time, he waved his hand at them, and they all faded from view. Before Klaus could try again, the little girl appeared before him.
"You." Klaus spat, as the others looked at him in confusion.
"They cannot see or hear me." She told him with a bored look. "Your brother is in a better place, why can't you leave it be? You cannot bring him back from there, not even to say hello. Let it go."
"Make me." Klaus dared her.
"I could." She mused. "You'll see your brother again, one day, Klaus. That's all I'll say." She said, before fading from view again.
Vanya awoke, her powers ceasing, Harlan being freed as well as Sissy told Carl to get out of the car on the farm. Carl asked what she would do, Sissy saying she didn't know but he wouldn't take her son. He said he was their son, until Vanya showed up, and they were fine until she did, Sissy argued they weren't fine and lying again and again doesn't make it true. He asked if she loved this unknown Communist, with Sissy admitting, yeah, she did love Vanya.
"She does love me?" Vanya asked, wiping tears away still.
"Maybe she does." Allison said, doing the same.
"Well, maybe she wasn't entirely using me then." Vanya admitted.
Carl said he did right by Sissy and never complained, worked hard and stayed, telling Sissy she can't ask for more than that. Sissy replied she was asking for more, just not from him, as Harlan rushed out of the car.
"I admit that's a tad harsh by her, but yeah, Carl can't just expect her to be happy to have him." Luther said, wiping his own eyes.
Carl called him over as Sissy told him to return to the house, Carl rushed forward for the gun as she was distracted, before it fired, rebounding as Harlan created a forcefield around himself, the bullet striking Carl in the chest, instantly killing him.
"Is it bad I don't feel too sorry for him? I'm sorry he's dead, but he was a bad person overall?" Allison asked as the others shook their heads. They largely all felt the same.
Alarms went off at the Commission as the switchboard operator noticed an incident. The Handler was practising her speech as Lila burst in, saying her parents were killed by the Commission, on the orders of a senior member. The Handler started to panic, until Lila said Five killed her family.
"Well, this will be fun to see her come for me." Five said, having finished wiping his own eyes.
"She's still pretty dangerous." Diego warned him.
"Yeah, but we know I can beat her."
"I just hope you're right, she was clearly holding back in the warehouse against you though." Diego said.
The scene changed back to the assassination, showing Old Five pulling the trigger on them, as she said AJ gave the order to do it, AJ slumped into his bowl, his plan foiled. The Handler then soothed Lila, telling her that she was her family, before poisoning her, saying Diego was trying to hide it, what one Hargreeves knew, they all did. She then further told Lila some lies, as Lila was riled up ready to attack the Hargreeves. As she left, the Handler turned to AJ and ranted at him before swallowing him whole, telling him that fish are no match for a shark.
"If we ever do meet Lila, we need to show her these so she knows it was the Handler who fucked up her life." Diego told the others.
"I guess, if we can." Luther said. "She would be better as an ally."
Five and Old Five, both panting, kept attacking each other as both said "Eat shit Ape Man" when Luther told them to stop, as their combined spatial energies sent them flying, Luther grabbed the rifle, both of them pleading with Luther to shoot the other. Luther aimed at Five and said sorry to him.
"You're not really going to try kill me, are you?!" Five asked, incensed.
"I think I have a plan, just wait." Luther said, waving a dismissive hand to him.
Before smacking Old Five with the butt of the rifle and telling Five to open the portal, Luther grabbed the briefcase as Five did, showing the younger 2019 versions of everyone gathered in the courtyard of the Academy.
"Right back where we started, I see." Pogo chipped in.
Vanya awoke to find herself sat into the chair still, noticing all the dead agents, she got up and found her siblings all feebly stirring, asking if they were all ok. Noticing they had saved the world, Diego checked his watch and rushed off, proclaiming he could still save Kennedy as Allison begged him to wait, chasing after him.
Five walked to the wall and began hitting his head against it, he could be heard muttering "Idiot." as he did.
Diego told her he had time, the explosion caused doomsday, without it, Kennedy can still live. Allison tried to stop him but he fled from the building.
"I don't think that's how time works at all." Allison told Diego gently.
"It isn't!" Five chimed in. "He will just fuck it up again if he does save Kennedy."
As the news broadcaster mentioned their procession, we see a man matching Reginald's description heading onto the Grassy Knoll.
"Dad." Diego growled as Reginald simply stared ahead.
Old Five stirred as Five opened the portal, before he could do anything, Luther aimed the gun at him, Old Five demanded the math so he didn't become a kid. Klaus threw the extingusher still, this tme knocking out Luther as Five explained the Math, seeing his chance, Old Five grabbed the briefcase, going through the portal as it slammed shut, cleaving the briefcase in half and ruining any chance of using it.
"Great, now they're definitely fucked." Five growled. "This is why I work alone, I don't have idiots botching it up."
"Hey, I saved you!" Luther protested.
"Sure you did." Five stated dismissively as Luther glared at him.
Luther and Five argued over who was to blame before realising it was time, everyone watching as Kennedy turned onto Deeley Plaza as Diego rushed across the Grassy Knoll, past the Frankel couple, barrelling into Reginald and knocking him over. He looked to see Reginald's driver, who laughed as gunshots rang out behind Diego, and John Fitzgerald Kennedy died once more.
"Damn you!" Diego said as Reginald simply gave a small smirk.
"Sorry, Number Two, what was that?" Reginald asked. "Did you fail perchance?"
Diego moved to stand but was held back by Luther.
"It isn't worth it, Diego." Luther firmly told him, as Diego slumped back into his seat, enraged at Reginald again.
Diego demanded to know where Reginald was as the driver held up a note from him, that read "Told you so..."
"You're a real asshole." Vanya told Reginald.
"Agreed." Allison said.
The Majestic 12 met in a hotel, celebrating Kennedy being killed as Reginald walked in, furious, telling them that they had promised Kennedy would be unharmed. They told Reginald he had to go as he accused them of lying to him. They informed him that his interests with the dark side of the Moon would be unaffected when they got to the Moon in six years or so due to his tech, with him telling them to never contact him again.
"Wait, you didn't want to kill him?" Diego asked, the wind taken from his sails as he asked.
"No, I admired President Kennedy. I had no desire to see him harmed." Reginald admitted.
The leader said he would keep giving them the tech they wanted otherwise they would tell the world who he really was.
"What does that mean?" Luther asked, confused.
Even Pogo seemed unsure.
Reginald approached them again, removing his jacket, as they laughed at him, before he reached behind his head and began to remove his own face, stunning them as a fish like head appeared.
"What the fuck?" Diego asked.
"What...what is this?" Luther turned to Reginald, all of them staring at the man in confusion and horror.
"I suppose it's time for the truth to finally come out. I'm not from this planet." Reginald said. "Is that what you want me to say?"
"How? What? Why?" Five questioned, stunned.
"Because this is a fools game, a fraud, nothing in that last scene, other than my disdain for the death of the President, was true." Reginald said, as they all looked further confused. "I'm no alien, or whatever that creature was on the screen, probably some Commission creation to sow discord."
None of therm looked convinced at all, but with Reginald sitting back, they had no idea what to do or say to press the conversation.
He left his face on the chair as he attacked them all, their screams and blood flying around the room as he did.
"Jesus Christ..." Allison breathed.
"See, a complete lunacy." Reginald boasted. "How could I, by myself, with no weapons, kill a room full of people? Complete idiocy." Reginald decried the screen as they all continued to look stunned and confused by it all.
The switchboard operator phoned and got the Handler to come visit, telling him what he had seen, she asked if he had told anyone else, when he said no, she killed him before recalling all Commission agents to HQ.
"This won't be good at all." Five grimly stated.
"We're going to war." She said as the video showed Sissy's farm and a glowing barn, before the screen cut to black.
"We're all fucking dead." Five moaned.
"What's happening to Harlan?" Vanya asked, worried and confused.
"WHY COULDN'T IT BE YOU?!" Klaus roared, charging at Reginald. "WHY COULDN'T BEN BE HERE AND YOU BE DEAD, YOU PIECE OF SHIT EXCUSE FOR A FATHER! YOU FISH-HEADED MONSTER!" He turned to Allison. "Rumour him to be dead, right now, or after this, I'm done with you all, I mean it." Klaus told her, grief stricken as he fixed on her gaze. Looking around, she saw everyone else looking paralysed, except for Reginald, who merely smirked. Gathering her courage, she turned to Reginald.
"I heard a rumour..."
Goodbye Ben Hargreeves.