Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for The Terminal List: Dark Wolf finale.When it was first announced that The Terminal List was getting a prequel series, some were understandably concerned that it wouldn’t fit the style and excitement of the original. And yet, The Terminal List: Dark Wolf has, in many ways, surpassed the Chris Pratt thriller, highlighting the complexities of Taylor Kitsch‘s Ben Edwards beyond what the flagship series ever could. In the final moments of the Season 1 finale, the show teased audiences regarding Ben’s future with the CIA, namely through the introduction of a character played by Pablo Schreiber.

‘Dark Wolf’ Introduced Pablo Schreiber as Newcomer Hank “Dash” Dashnaw

At the very end of The Terminal List: Dark Wolf‘s season finale “The Wolf You Feed,” Ben Edwards is met by Schreiber’s Hank “Dash” Dashnaw, who shows up at the end of the climactic hour as if we should know exactly who he is. Dash arrives to make Ben an offer. Having been impressed with the way he handled everything with Jed Haverford (Robert Wisdom), he opens the door for more adventures in the world of espionage through Ground Branch, giving Ben the chance to join the CIA in a more official capacity. But the truth is, we really don’t know much about Dash. While it’s established that he was a former member of Delta Force (aka U.S. Army’s Combat Application Group, often called CAG) who has since been inducted into “the agency,” that is truly the extent to what we know.

Unlike James Reece (Pratt) or Raife Hastings (Tom Hopper), Dash wasn’t a member of their SEAL unit serving overseas. He was Army, but it appears that was another life. From what we can tell, he got out of the Delta Force game some time ago and has established new connections within the world of international intelligence that may be of interest to Ben. Of course, by the episode’s end, Ben accepts Dash’s proposal, with the season ending with the former operator taking a lie detector test at Langley. How that will factor into Dark Wolf remains to be seen, but it seems likely that Dash is more than just a one-and-done cameo appearance from Pablo Schreiber. If we’re lucky, he may just become another recurring face in The Terminal List franchise.

In an exclusive interview with Collider, Taylor Kitsch teased the way in which Dash’s eleventh-hour appearance pushes the narrative forward. More specifically, how this venture with Ground Branch will truly shape him into the man we know from the original Terminal List series. Referring to the real-life soldiers who helped Kitsch prepare for the show, Kitsch said, “We did have a Ground Branch guy on, and he’s going to be heavy with me if I’m lucky to do Season 2, because obviously I’m in Ground Branch at the end. Where it picks up is fucking insane, which is cool, and way darker, psychologically, for Ben.“

Dash Doesn’t Appear in ‘The Terminal List’ Books, but He Name-drops Someone Who Does

But there is one thing that happens during Dash’s introduction scene in “The Wolf You Feed” that speaks to the larger world of The Terminal List. Well, one name, really. When speaking with Ben about this great career opportunity, Dash name-drops a figure by the name of Vic Rodriguez. For casual viewers, his name will mean just as little as Dash’s does, but for fans familiar with the original Jack Carr-penned novels about James Reece, this is one name that will stand out. In the books, Vic is a CIA contact of Reece’s who tips both him and Raife off to a Russian mafia attack heading their way in the third novel, Savage Son. In that same novel, Reece even contacts Vic to join the CIA, following Ben’s footsteps in moving on from the teams to the world of espionage. After that, he has appeared in several other James Reece novels, including The Devil’s Hand and Red Sky Mourning.

While Dash is seemingly an original character to The Terminal List live-action franchise, Vic Rodriguez is vital to Reece’s arc throughout the rest of the Jack Carr-written books. To that end, it seems that Dark Wolf is using the character in the same way that it did with Raife Hastings, introducing them earlier in the timeline so that audiences have a frame of reference for the character come the next season of the flagship The Terminal List series, this time inspired by the second novel, True Believer. With that in mind, a whole new meaning is added to this simple scene between old friends.

Could Dash Become Ben’s New CIA Partner in Future ‘Dark Wolf’ Seasons?

But going back to Dash, it seems that this character will be featured a bit more heavily in the next (potential) season of Dark Wolf. Given that unlike the story of James Reece — which is chronicled in several thriller novels — Ben Edwards is a bit of a mystery, the prequel is really at an advantage in that it can chart its own course beyond the books entirely. Fans of the books can continue to enjoy the James Reece adaptations with each new season of the original Prime Video thriller, but those who have fallen for these characters can now follow Ben’s story without any potential for spoilers — save for the knowledge of his eventual betrayal. In the words of Taylor Kitsch, Dash’s offer will usher Ben into the next steps that will compromise him in ways we have yet to fully understand. “A lot of it’s based on one of the SEAL’s true life, when he was in Ground Branch. He went dark for eight months by himself and uncovered a lot of crazy shit. You’ll see the toll that it finally takes on Ben, and you’ll finally see him fall.”

With both Reece and Raife now separated from Ben, off finding his own path with Ground Branch, it’s likely that Dash will be his next “partner” going forward. We’ve seen Ben and Reece team up, and the dynamic between Ben and Raife was arguably one of the best parts of Dark Wolf Season 1, but since Dash doesn’t appear (nor is he mentioned) in the original Terminal List series, the jury’s still out regarding his ultimate fate. We could easily see this character continue with Ben for several years before the show catches up with the present, and if you’re a fan of Pablo Schreiber, that would certainly be the dream. But whether we get more Dark Wolf or not, we can only hope that this thread is followed further in future franchise installments.

The Terminal List: Dark Wolf is available for streaming on Prime Video.