Chuck Episode 5.05 Chuck Versus the Hack Off

A shackled Casey is led into the San Gabriel County Jail visitation room where a concerned Chuck and Sarah are waiting. Sarah asks Casey how he's holding up; and he tells her the government he's proudly served for over 20 years has locked him up with the scum of the earth, so he's great. Chuck whispers to Casey "hold out your hand" and Chuck tries to discretely place a tiny slip of paper into Casey's palm. They have a plan to get him out with miniature prison blueprints. Casey refuses. He's not going to escape and become a fugitive. Sarah reminds Casey the case against him is a very strong, and he might not get out. Casey is convinced Decker has him in there for a reason. He's going to sit tight and keep his head down. He thinks he'll be okay just as long as Lester (who happens to be in the very same visitation room with Jeff and Morgan) doesn't drive him insane.

Lester is sitting with Jeff and Morgan in San Gabriel County Jail visitation room. Lester admits he tried to poison Jeff but only to keep him "subordinate." Morgan talks about how he recently put the people he loves through some tough times, and true friendship can be confusing. Lester wonders what he has to do to get out of prison. Morgan tells him Jeff agreed to drop all charges as long as he promises not to poison him again. Lester admits he can't guarantee that. Morgan wishes Lester the best of luck because he's probably going to die in prison. Lester in turn doubts they can find a better Indian guy. He walks over to the table where Casey, Chuck and Sarah are sitting and invites him to go bench some poundage. He's going to look like a Hindu Michelangelo by the time he gets out of prison.

Chuck and Sarah exit the prison. He confides to Sarah that he feels Casey being in prison is his fault. It was his idea to start a private spy company. Sarah tells him Decker would have put Casey in jail no matter what. Just as Chuck thanks Sarah for trying to make him feel better, they're both hit on the neck with darts and blackout. They wake up in a parking garage facing Decker who's flanked by two CIA goons. Decker apologizes for the poisoned dart theatrics. He tells them he needs a job done. Sarah wonders how he expects them to work for him when he's put their best friend in jail. Decker admits Casey is just leverage, and he'll free Casey if they do it. Chuck and Sarah reluctantly agree.

Decker hands Chuck a tablet device that demonstrates the destructive power of "The Omen" computer super virus. His tech people have never seen anything like it. It's capable of wiping out every database on the planet in about five seconds. Decker says they got close to finding the origins, but all signs disappeared; and that's why he needs Sarah and Chuck. Only then does Casey walk. Sarah asks Decker what happens if they say no. Decker tells them he has people on the inside who can make Casey's life a living hell. Though Decker thinks Casey can find his own hell all by himself.

Casey walks down one of the prison hallways, murmuring to himself about keeping his nose clean. Just then, two burly inmates appear on either end of the hall blocking Casey's exit. Casey prepares for battle against the two meatheads; but before a punch is thrown, the door behind him opens, and he's grabbed from behind and shoved into a storage closet. It's Verbanski, dressed in a prison guard uniform. Casey immediately inquires about the situation outside, but Verbanski would rather know if he'd like to take advantage of his right to a conjugal visit. Casey admits he would very much like to take advantage, and the two start to get busy in the prison storage closet.

Back in the storage closet, Casey and Verbanski have wrapped up their prison love session. Casey wryly asks, "I'm assuming you don't want to stay over?" They both share a laugh, but Verbanski can tell there's something on his mind. Although he believes Chuck and Sarah are good spies, he's worried about them. He wants Verbanski to help them out. She assumes he wants her whole team involved, but he'd rather just have her replace him. Verbanski isn't thrilled about having to take orders from "Ward and June Cleaver." She initially refuses, but after Casey does his best man-pout, she agrees, telling him, "It is hard saying no to you." Casey responds with, "I know."

At Carmichael Castle, Chuck complains to Morgan and Sarah that they started their own business, so they wouldn't have to answer to anyone. Now they're beholden to Decker. Sarah reminds Chuck they're really just doing it for Casey. Chuck grudgingly agrees before opening a small ice chest next to his desk and taking out a bottle of Chardonnay; he puts his headphones on and takes a chug exclaiming, "Let's find a virus shall we?" Sarah looks over in bemusement and asks Morgan to explain. Morgan gets excited and tells her he hasn't seen this in awhile. Chuck used to have a routine called "the routine" he followed while hacking. Morgan tells Sarah that Chuck has quite the reputation as a hacker. They used call him "The Piranha."

Chuck zeroes in on the virus source and discovers the name Colin Davis, who was part of a technological terrorist group called the Collective and disappeared three months ago. While Sarah and Chuck try to locate Davis, Morgan gets up to leave. He tells them he has to go help Jeff with the Lester situation. Before leaving the Castle, Verbanski appears and asks him to take her to the newlyweds per Casey's request. Morgan initially refuses, but Verbanski pulls out her gun and asks him if he really wants her to use it. He wonders if she'd really shoot him. She reassures him she could always beat him over the head with it. Morgan agrees to bring her up to the Castle.

Sarah and Chuck are huddled in front of a computer narrowing down where Colin Davis might have vanished. They zoom in on a compound in a wooded area. Sarah thinks it could be a separatist militia. Just as Chuck remarks that Casey would have loved this mission, Verbanski walks in and tells them they'll probably die without Casey. Morgan confesses he "decided" to let her in after they had an "adult" conversation. Verbanski tells them she's going on this mission with them. Sarah and Chuck object; but Verbanski tells them they both want Casey out of prison, and they're going to need a sniper. Chuck and Sarah reluctantly agree.

Casey is in line at the prison cafeteria when one of the heavies from the earlier near-confrontation comes up to him and reminds Casey that things can get "real messy, real fast" on the inside and asks him to think about joining them. He expects an answer that night. Lester cuts into line next to Casey and tells him he's seen the prison movie "Caged Heat" and thinks the only way to survive is to call the shots. Casey reminds him that "Caged Heat" is a female prison movie, but Lester dismisses that and tells him he thinks he figured out a way to call the shots. Casey walks away and another inmate walks up to Lester and tells him he's got the "12 gauge he wanted." Lester slips him money and tells him to just drop it in his cell.

Chuck, Sarah and Verbanski (packing a sniper rifle) emerge from a drainage pipe in a wooded area. They immediately hear what sounds like a military drill. Verbanski leaves to take cover and tells Chuck and Sarah to get ready for action. Chuck and Sarah discover the sounds are coming from a circle of naked people chanting and grunting. Chuck thinks they discovered a cult, not a militia group. Sarah immediately starts to disrobe and tells Chuck to do the same. Chuck begrudgingly complies. Just as a now naked Chuck and Sarah walk towards the group, a woman calling herself Valaria approaches them and asks, "Children are you lost?" "We were told to come here to find enlightenment," Chuck tells her. Valaria tells them to put on a robe and welcomes them to the Church of the Eternal Wind. As Chuck and Sarah put on their robes, the woman speaks into a hidden mic and orders someone to find out who the uninvited guests are.

Chuck and Sarah walk with Valaria. Sarah spots a pendant around Valaria's neck that appears to be a razorblade encased in glass. Sarah asks her about its significance. She tells them members of the church wear a pendant to remind them of their past life. Valaria was a Wall Street high roller with a bad drug habit before landing at the church. Meanwhile, Verbanski, via their hidden mics, tells Chuck and Sarah to hurry up and stop with the small talk because she's losing her patience. To hurry things along Chuck tells Valeria their "friend" Colin Davis suggested they come there to find peace. Valaria tells them his name is now "Moon Meadow," and he can be found at the drum circle.

Jeff is listening to classical music in the Buy More stereo room when Morgan arrives to have a heart to heart with him about Lester. Jeff confesses he's starting to forget what Lester looks like. Morgan tells him to close his eyes and think of David Beckham with Lester being a shorter feminine version of his wife. Morgan tells him when he went through his dark period he alienated a lot of his friends but was lucky enough to realize what he was going to lose before it was too late. They need to make Lester realize what's slipping away and what he's about lose.

Chuck and Sarah arrive at the drum circle and spot Davis. They confirm with Verbanski, and she tells them she's ready to shoot "any one of these hippies." Meanwhile Valaria is meditating alone by a lake when one of her henchmen tells her they found Chuck and Sarah's clothes along with their weapons. Back at the drum circle, Chuck is drumming away next to Davis. Chuck and Sarah spot the pendant with a chip in it around Colin's neck. Verbanski tells them to hurry and "wrap up the Phish concert" and make a move. The jam wraps up and Davis compliments Chuck's skills. Chuck asks Davis if he worked in the tech industry because his pendant holds a chip. He asks to see the pendant, but Colin says it's against church policy to remove your pendant.

An alarm sounds, and Valeria runs out of the woods along with several henchman yelling. Verbanski takes out two of the goons, but Davis gets away before Chuck can grab the chip pendant. Chuck goes after Davis, and Sarah runs into the woods to distract the guards. Verbanski can't get a clear shot of Davis. Sarah jumps from a tree and takes out two guards. Valeria confronts Sarah and tells her members come for enlightenment and pay a lot for protection. She tells Sarah, "Looks like you walked into the wrong cult, bitch!" and the two begin to fight. Davis falls. Before Chuck can grab the pendant, he swallows it. Chuck tries the Heimlich before Verbanski neutralizes Davis with a dart. After a contentious fight, Sarah takes out Valaria and meets up with Chuck and Verbanski. They decide they're going to have to carry Davis away.

Back in jail, Casey is playing solitaire in the prison mess room when the inmate with the earlier proposition comes back demanding an answer. Casey tells him he's not interested. The inmate gestures to other inmates in the mess hall, and they systematically begin to attack Casey. He puts up a good fight and takes a couple of them out, but there are too many of them. Just when things are looking grim for Casey, Lester tells everyone to stop or he will "pull the plug" on everyone. All the inmates back off and release Casey. Turns out Lester did find out how to call the shots in prison. He's used his Buy More skills to hook up cable and Internet for the inmates. With the 12-gauge wire he just acquired, it's now even easier.In a Castle holding cell, Davis begs for Chuck to let him go. Chuck tells him they just need the chip to complete its digestive "journey." Davis tells him the virus is just too dangerous. He should have destroyed it but couldn't because it was his finest work. Chuck assures Davis they're the good guys. Davis tells Chuck there are actually two parts to the virus. The chip and the distribution device. Insert the chip into the device, and the virus can be uploaded via any system. He tells them the distribution device is still stored at the Collective. Davis warns Chuck the Collective is dangerous. He agrees to give Chuck the schematics to the Collective's lair. Chuck then offers Davis a snack. He asks Chuck if he has any buttered popcorn-flavored jelly beans. Meanwhile, Sarah and Verbanski are watching Chuck and Davis on a monitor. Sarah senses Verbanski has something on her mind other than the mission, and she asks if it has anything to do with Casey. Verbanski barks back and tells Sarah to stop trying to be her shrink.

At the Buy More, Morgan tells Jeff it's time to launch "Operation Scare Lester Straight." He's noticed Lester goes online from prison around the same time everyday. They ring him up for an online video chat and find him in his cell. Their plan is to entice Lester by bringing in another Indian guy to induce a jealous reaction. The new Indian guy goes in front of the webcam with Morgan and Jeff. Lester is immediately insecure and seems to have second thoughts. As it turns out, the Indian guy is just an actor Morgan hired. As payment, the new Indian guy asks for an iPad.

Back at Castle, Chuck steps into the interrogation room with the popcorn-flavored jelly beans Davis requested only to find he's already eating "jelly beans" provided by Verbanski. Davis tells Verbanski and Chuck that the Collective has one weakness: its security systems can be manipulated from the inside. Davis then says the "jelly beans" taste funny. While putting on rubber gloves, Verbanski admits she's just speeding up the process, and on cue Davis starts to vomit into a trash can. Verbanski then fetches the chip from the barf-laden trash can.

Chuck, Sarah and Verbanski are in a dark, industrial part of town that houses the Collective. After finding an entry point, the ladies take off while Chuck knocks on the nondescript door that leads to the Collective's inner sanctum. The door is answered by a European man named Timur. Chuck tells him "I'm here for a job." Timur asks him if he knows what happens if he doesn't get the job. Chuck acknowledges. They enter a warehouse with a circle of hackers sitting at computers. Timur tells Chuck the Collective is the best of the best. He wants to test Chuck by pitting him against his best hacker Freddie. He tells Chuck if he can prove himself against Freddie he has a job. Chuck is ready for a good old-fashioned hack-off.

Chuck prepares for the hack-off by taking a swig from his bottle of Chardonnay. Timur announces the terms of the hack-off. First person to steal a penny from the Federal Reserve and deposit it into a secure account wins. The hack-off begins and Chuck immediately gains access to the security system, allowing Verbanski and Sarah to enter the server room. While looking for the distribution device, Verbanski admits to Sarah that she does love Casey, and she's been a wreck since he went to prison. But she's fearful of leaving the spy business for a "normal" life. It's all she's ever known. The ladies find the delivery device but not before taking out several bad guys. Back at the hack-off, Chuck intentionally loses the battle and is threatened with death. Just before Timur can shoot Chuck, he hits his keyboard and the room goes dark. When the lights go back up, Chuck is gone. He meets up with the women, and they escape. At the Buy More, Jeff tells Morgan that Lester fell for their "scared straight" plan and finally came to his senses, promising not to poison anyone else. Morgan has a tepid response to their success, and Jeff senses this whole thing wasn't about him and Lester. It's really been about Morgan feeling bad about Casey's lack of forgiveness.

Chuck, Sarah and Verbanski arrive in a parking structure to meet Decker and pass him the virus. Verbanski hides so as to not spook Decker. While waiting for Decker to arrive, Chuck talks to Sarah about life after the spy game. He wonders about getting out of the game. Sarah wonders what she would do. Just then Decker arrives. Chuck gives him the device and asks what he plans to do with it. Decker tells him he's going to release it and put the blame on Chuck. It was all a setup. And Casey is not getting released. Verbanski emerges from her hiding spot and demands Decker release Casey. She walks up to Decker and grabs him by the collar. He tells her it's too late. The bigger plan is in motion. It's too bad Casey is going to have to die. She lets him go and then reveals she lifted the device from him. He checks his pockets and brings out a device that Verbanski promptly detonates, taking out Decker and his cronies. Verbanski says, "He deserved that." Chuck, Sarah and Verbanski speed away.

In the prison storage closet, Verbanski, once again in a prison guard uniform, finishes telling Casey how everything went down. His team needs him now more than ever. She also tells him she needs to go away for a while considering what she did to Decker. Before she leaves, she says, "We could have been something," and Casey responds with, "We still can be." She gives him a long goodbye kiss and tells him they need to get out of there before anyone notices he's gone. Casey wonders how she's going to break him out alone. She says she brought along someone who cares about him as much as she does. And in walks Morgan. He tells Casey, "I missed you big guy." Chuck and Sarah are in the car driving home. Sarah wonders what plan Decker was referring to and why he wanted to frame Chuck. He tells Sarah he was wrong about quitting the spy life saying "because right now we gotta be the best spies we've ever been."