The Brink

In Islamabad, Pakistan, low-level State Department bureaucrat Alex Talbott asks his driver Rafiq to take him to a local bazaar to score some weed. The two encounter a mass protest that turns violent, and end up fleeing their car and taking refuge in the house Rafiq shares with his parents and sister. In Washington, D.C., Secretary of State Walter Larson is fetched from a hotel tryst by his seen-it-all aide, Kendra Peterson, to attend an emergency White House meeting on the growing unrest in Pakistan. After learning that General Umair Zaman is paranoid and threatening the region with destruction, the president and the ultra-hawkish Secretary of Defense put a plan in motion to remove Pakistan's nuclear arsenal, against Walter's advice that such an operation is risky and reckless. The group soon discovers that Alex is their only source of hard information on the ground in Pakistan. Meanwhile, onboard an aircraft carrier in the region, ace pilot Zeke "Z-Pak" Tilson calls his ex-wife Ashley in Florida, urging her to send more "product" for his lucrative drug side business. Later, Zeke's mounting troubles are put on hold when he and his co-pilot Glenn are ordered to take off on a mission Zeke knows could lead to catastrophe.

With President Navarro and Defense Secretary Grey ordering a military response to General Zaman's threats, Walter argues that an air strike could unleash a world war. He and Kendra must track down a moderate contact inside the Pakistan government to defuse the crisis. Meanwhile, after learning that classified information has been sent from Rafiq's house, Zaman's men storm the place and, after threatening Rafiq's family, end up dragging Alex to an undisclosed location for interrogation of the worst kind. In the skies over Pakistan, with Walter and the President looking on via an airborne camera, Zeke tries to sober up a drug-addled Glenn, but his partner accidentally launches a missile that creates high anxiety in three different world capitals.

At the ISI headquarters in Islamabad, Alex watches his interrogator Haroon Raja practice his golf swing while he complains about his estranged half-brother Umair Zaman. Raja tasks Alex with getting a message to Walter Larson, threatening him and Rafiq's family with execution should Alex fail.

As Walter fights through his dire medical condition, he gives Alex what he needs to make his negotiations with General Raja. Zeke weighs his options for his future while he and Glenn are on a new misssion.

Zeke and Glenn narrowly escape two armed men in a tribal region. Alex and Rafiq go to Fareeda's school. Walter pays an unscheduled visit to the Israeli foreign minister.

Walter encounters Joanne in Tel Aviv; Zeke and Glenn are held hostage by Martin and Vanessa; Alex meets with Kittredge.

Zeke and Glenn get thrown into an even more life threatening situation than before. Walter fakes a medical emergency to land in Switzerland and looks for General Raja. Alex and Rafiq attempt to sneak Fareeda's students out of the embassy.

Walter attempts to defuse the tensions in The Situation Room and stop the President from starting World War 3. Alex and Rafiq have to figure out a new plan as Fareeda, her students and the rest of the embassy are being evacuated. Zeke has to make decisions on both the women in his life right before he and Glenn prepare for their latest mission.

Walter negotiates with Zaman's highest ranking general to take over Pakistan, while Alex and Rafiq are taken hostage. Zeke and Glenn are grounded from their newest mission.

Zeke and Glenn are sent to take down a plane armed with nuclear weapons heading to Tel Aviv. Alex must play a mental game with Zaman in order to convince him to recall that plane. Walter speaks with leaders around the world to prevent a global catastrophe.