- After nearly two centuries as your queen,
it is time to name the next.
- The queen waits for the Council to speak.
When you do, I hope you speak my name.
- I'd sooner die than see you on the throne.
...to officially announce my candidacy for Monarch.
- I'm actually a spirit user just like St. Vladimir.
- The darkness will always find you until you remember!
- Leave me alone!
- Are you sure this is a good thing?
- If I can just talk to the guy who owns
the collection at the museum.
- Where is this mystery man?
- On the Royal Tour.
I don't like you, and you don't like me.
But I have to marry someone with enough Dragomir blood
to get my quorum back.
They are going on the Royal Tour, right?
- You are everything that I have ever hoped for.
- Mikhail?
Mikhail.
- Rose, everything changes today.
The Molnija is a sacred tattoo given to a guardian
for each Strigoi kill
and one of the highest honors a Guardian can receive.
Your first Molnija mark is a rite of passage.
I wish I could be there, but duty comes first.
- Thanks, Mikhail.
- Mikhail!
I can't. I can't.
- You have to stop blaming yourself.
- I killed one of my only friends.
- You didn't kill Mikhail. You killed a Strigoi.
You saved us, Rose. All of us.
So Jesse Zeklos?
That's the best you could do?
- Look, I've got him under control.
- Lissa. - I'm not compelling him.
And I won't.
But this is why I have to go on the Royal Tour.
This Ivashkov guy...
I mean, he can know a lot more about spirit
and this darkness that I've been feeling.
And you know I need my quorum back
'cause if I can help even a little
to stop what happened to Mikhail from happening again,
I have to try.
Jesse's really the only viable option for all of that.
- In a nice, neat pervert package.
- I'll do what I have to do. - Victor.
- Robert, this election is too important.
There's something wrong with the moral center of our society
when we start calling a training exercise
that leaves seven dead a success.
- Dhampirs are expendable.
- No one said that.
- But that's what they think.
Is Meredith going on the tour?
- Yeah, she made the cut.
- Make sure you spend time with her, as much as possible.
- Sonya...
The time that you spent with Mikhail...
he'll always have that.
He will always be with you.
- Dad's medication schedule.
Make sure he follows it.
- And make sure he gets plenty of rest between events.
- I already built breaks into the schedule
and compiled all of the intel we need for the campaign
so Dad doesn't need to lift a finger.
Oh, the car's early.
- Mia Karp. - Yeah?
- You're required to report for an ecclesiastic reprimand
for willfully using your magic against a Royal.
- But I'm going on the tour.
- Failure to report will result in your expulsion
from St. Vladimir's Academy.
- * Jesse.
- Mia, did you?
- It's not a big deal. - Using magic as a weapon
is forbidden.
It's a sin.
- You can forget about the Royal Tour.
- But you can't go on your own.
- I can go.
Let me help.
- The Royal Tour has always been an ideal excuse
for excess and indulgence,
as we party hop from one province to another,
reuniting with old friends.
But this year is different.
Tonight, I welcome you all
as we begin our caucus
to choose the next heir to the throne.
But first, we need to discuss the future of the Dominion.
Many of you simply want me to choose an heir,
but the level of divisiveness in our society
now makes that impossible.
The decision is now in your hands,
a decision that could impact the next 200 years.
So I implore you,
set aside your party politics
and choose an heir that can unite the Dominion,
not tear it apart.
- My dad's pressuring me for a Marking Ceremony date.
- And I'll be happy to give him one, once I get what I want.
An invitation to the Ivashkov Trust Party.
- There's no way I'm getting you an invitation to that.
You have to be on some * exclusive list.
- Lady Dragomir. Son.
- Well, then, I'll have to try someone with some real power.
Lord Zeklos.
- Mia always overcomplicates things.
What?
- Dad, no. Dad, don't.
Please, please, no, Dad!
- You're a disgrace. You'll ruin this family.
- You okay?
- Um, Mia says a lot.
Lord Zeklos is ashamed of Jesse,
and Jesse's terrified of his dad.
- Mm, a family of secrets.
I can work with that.
There's a lot of good stuff in Mia's notes.
- We may have underestimated Sonya Karp.
He seems to be taking her advice.
He's targeting your base.
Dane Zeklos could effect other votes for him.
- It's all just a numbers game, really.
Our dear Lady Vogel here, she understands.
More bodies in the field
means stronger security in the long run.
- Only one novice died in the Benchmark Tests.
They're clearly capable at a younger age.
The rest of the dead were seasoned Guardians.
Perhaps they need to be tested more regularly
to make sure they're not past their prime.
- Is she serious right now?
- Who's the * with Tatiana?
- Mason's dad, Stefan Carter.
- You mean the guy Mason idolized till he was 12?
He's throwing all of us under the bus.
- Not just us.
Non-Royals, too.
He's making bank moving nine Royals
from the villages that lost their Guardians
to the Relocation Centers.
He gets 5,000 mira per head.
- Slimy *.
I heard they're pulling Guardians off detail
to help with the relocation.
- Wait, which villages?
- All of them.
St. Ignatius, St. Judes, St. Vladimir Provinces.
- Mikhail was from Caroni Village
here in St. Ignatius, right?
- I think so.
- I want in on relocation duty.
Caroni Village.
I can do it. - No.
Novices were brought here to shadow the Tour.
- I'm the first Novice since my mother to kill a Strigoi.
My talents would be better suited elsewhere,
don't you think?
- Fine. Report to Head Command
for the Caroni relocation immediately.
Great.
Who's Head Command?
- I am.
- Two Martinis.
One bloody. - Yes, ma'am. Right away.
- Silver, what the hell are you doing here?
This is * invitation only.
- Well, the invitation said plus one.
Who'd bring you as their plus one?
- Your dad's business partner.
He likes the unconventional
in all kinds of ways.
Enjoy your night.
You should ditch that geezer and come explore with me.
Lots of private spots in a place like this.
No.
I like that geezer.
- What's so * special about him?
- Nothing at all.
But he takes me places,
and he's not ashamed to be seen with me in public.
Imagine that.
- What the hell do you think you're playing at?
- Your partner brought her.
- Well, Lars can * whoever he likes.
But as long as you are heir to the Zeklos name,
- If you * up things with Lissa,
I'll cut them off.
- We're leaving.
- We need to wait for the convoy back to the hotel.
- We go when I say so.
- I hate this place.
It's just a bunch of power-hungry *s
* it up for everybody else.
You must miss the human world.
- It's no better out there.
Something happen with Lissa?
- Yeah.
But it's a lot of things.
- Well, one thing I can tell you, love is never easy.
- Thanks for always listening.
- Anything for you. You know that.
Thank you for walking me. Now, go find some fun.
You okay?
- You ever just wanna say * it?
- All the time.
- Can you show me how to use my magic the way you do?
- Are you sure you want to do this?
- I can't sleep.
I keep seeing him.
Mikhail.
So I thought if I come here
and see his sister Sasha
and their father to ask their forgiveness,
maybe it would make my dreams a little better.
Sasha.
- * you, Rose.
- I guess I should have expected that.
- I'll talk to her.
- Leave us, please.
Forgive my daughter.
She was very close to her brother.
- So was I.
- He talked about you.
Rose Hathaway.
The brilliant wild card.
- You're Moroi.
You raise Dhampirs.
- We sometimes forget we're an oddity.
When their mother died, I couldn't let them be raised
by strangers in some commune.
We became a family here.
This is home.
May I...see it?
The Molnija.
- I didn't--
I couldn't disrespect his memory like that.
- The one thing Mikhail feared
more than anything
was to be turned Strigoi.
You saved him from that.
- But the Molnija, it--
- Honors his life,
not the thing he became.
My son would have done the same for you.
- Eddie.
- Can we get on with it?
- Get back in the car! - Now!
- You disobeyed your settlement orders,
allowing all these Moroi to stay behind,
and spoke treason against the Council.
- They murdered my brother.
- Mikhail was--
was lost in battle.
- A battle they caused.
And now they want my father to die,
going to some Resettlement Center
instead of at the home he loves.
Why do they get to decide how we live or die?
- Because the Elements will it.
Now, you will stand down and come with us to face Tribunal.
- * you.
- This is why they sent us?
- They sent us to relocate the stragglers.
They sent me to bring in Sasha Tanner.
- Why didn't you tell me?
- I knew you wouldn't like it. - You're damn right.
Those stragglers aren't just here
out of respect for Kieran.
They stayed because Sasha's the only one
who gave a shit about them
after the Council took their Guardians.
She is a *--
- Rose, what's wrong?
- It's Lissa.
Secure the perimeter!
- Other side!
- Meredith, no!
- Call for backup!
- Eddie!
- There's too many!
- *. *. - Stay calm, Jesse.
- Meredith, watch out!
- No, Jesse! No, no!
- Jesse!
- Stay back!
- No, no! Meredith!
- Meredith!
Meredith, can you hear me?
Someone call an ambulance.
- Go after them, you two. - Check the rear.
- Get the Royals out of here!
No! No, no, no!
No, no, please, wait! Give me a second!
Please! Please! Wait, no!
- Is that all of them?
- It slashed the shit out of her.
- Okay, get them outta here.
- Let's go, yeah.
- Okay, good.
Yeah, good, Mia.
Now, pull it back.
Mia, pull it back. - Yeah, I got it.
- Yeah, but you have to pull it back.
Mia, Mia, it's gonna-- Mia!
- Not bad. - You see, this is exactly
what happened with Jesse.
It's like it just ran away from me.
- Come on. Let's sit down.
- Thanks.
Don't think I've ever heard you say that word before.
- I'm not that bad.
- Or I don't mean to be.
- Magic can be scary.
Thing is, all you got to do is learn how to control it
so it doesn't control you.
- How long have you been practicing?
- After my parents...
you know.
my Aunt Tasha came to stay with me,
and she taught me everything,
even though it was taboo.
It's how I--
It's how I got through the worst of it.
- Christian, I know about St. Jude's and your parents.
My dad's special advisor to the Queen.
I hear a lot of things I wish I hadn't.
I just wanted you to know that, in case you ever
wanted to, you know, talk.
- You could have gotten us all killed.
- How's that on me, huh?
It was the Guardians' job to protect--
- You didn't have to leave the party before the convoy.
Do you ever get tired of being such a selfish prick?
- I've heard enough of this.
We need to start the wedding rituals.
What am I gonna tell my dad?
- I don't have time for this.
- Make * time.
- What?
Is this you trying to be a man for your father?
You're neither, you know that?
Now get out of my way
and get out of my sight.
From Lord Zeklos?
Thank you.
- That's my girl.
Now, go get it done.
- I'm so sorry.
He was--
He was my friend.
Is that to scare off the Strigoi?
- They'll come tonight to feed.
This isn't for them.
This is for my father's funeral pyre.
The doctor said he won't make it through the night.
- Then you should be in there, with him.
Not out here, fighting.
Let me take your place out here tonight.
I'll keep watch for you.
Please.
- Rose.
Guardian HQ says Lissa is fine.
- I know.
- We need to get moving.
- I'm not going anywhere, and neither are they.
- We're risking lives if we stay.
- It's their lives to risk, to give Kieran peace.
You don't want to talk to me anymore, fine.
Do your duty. Be the good soldier.
But I'm done following the orders of people
who don't put me first.
Of course I want to put you first, but I can't.
Guardians follow orders, Rose, or the system crumbles.
- The system is broken.
Look at what ignoring the rules did for Mikhail's family.
Can you imagine what our lives would be like
if we'd had a father who actually cared about us?
I know practically nothing about mine.
Mason is better off knowing nothing about his.
- I know too much about my father.
I want to be nothing like him.
With no rules, I'm afraid I would be.
I have to follow orders.
- I don't.
And if you don't like it, you can take me in
right alongside Sasha.
- How were you not expelled?
- They wanted to keep things quiet.
Some investigation they're doing,
trying to figure out how my parents snuck the boxes
into my room to begin with.
- And Lissa doesn't know about any of this?
- Some of it.
I mean, there's no point telling her now
that she's off getting engaged.
- I can see you're handling that well.
You know, there's a lot swirling around in here.
I still have a ton of questions for my parents,
which you must think is crazy.
- No, I kinda get it.
I tried to find my birth parents a few years ago.
- Huh. - I wanted to find out
why they left me as a baby.
But then my birth parents weren't...
Strigoi.
- But what if they just wanted--
- What?
Be a happy Strigoi family with you?
Christian, you can't be that naive.
- No, I--
Hello?
Sonya?
Wait, what's happened?
Is Dad okay? - It's not Dad.
Something's happened to Meredith.
- Mia? Mia!
- Mia?
- See, this is what Strigoi do, in case you forgot.
- Shh, I'm healing here.
You okay?
- Okay is a relative term.
What the-- - Oh, uh--
Yeah, Jesse told them I used my magic against him.
- *.
I'll kill him when I see him again.
- Hey, healing, remember?
You can't use your magic like that again.
They'll do worse next time.
- I don't care.
Welcome to my private sanctuary.
- It's beautiful.
The painting from your touring collection, "The Message,"
it had these same hinges. - You have a sharp eye.
They're both part of a larger altarpiece.
I haven't found all the missing panels yet, but I will.
- So what do you know about St. Vladimir?
- More than the average Moroi.
- Okay. So then what does this painting depict?
That is St. Vladimir,
entering a man's dream.
- Do you know what the other panels look like?
- I have an idea.
Follow me.
Voila, the centerpiece.
- The Darkness.
- Should we get to that drink now?
- Thank you for having us.
- You won't regret it. - All right.
- It must be hard to put on a smile
while bearing such a loss.
Mikhail was a good man.
- He was.
- What happened to him wasn't his fault.
It was ours.
And I'm sorry.
We should have known he was unfit for field duty.
- What?
No, he was a great Guardian.
- But maybe better suited for a desk job.
When I become queen and institute better testing,
we'll know if someone is an incompetent fighter.
- But he wasn't.
That's a lie.
He was one of the best.
- I understand.
Maybe it's best to remember him that way.
- The perimeter fires were a good idea.
- Shouldn't you be keeping a careful eye on Sasha?
- Yes.
But maybe--
You need this fight, Rose.
I know you're hurting.
And I'd do anything to make it stop.
- Thank you.
They're here.
- Our faith is the foundation of our society.
Wouldn't you agree?
We can't allow the Dominion
to fall into the hands of the faithless.
- We can't have a sovereign who plays at faith,
which is precisely what Victor Dashkov does.
Victor has forsaken his commitment to the Moroi.
- Lissa all but said she would never marry me.
- You are less than * worthless.
A Blood * would be more use to this family than you.
- Rose!
Rose!
- Victor has incited the Dhampirs
to neglect their sacred duty to protect us.
His own daughter's Dhampir lover betrayed us by allowing
himself to be turned Strigoi.
With Victor's help, Mikhail Tanner was a traitor.
- Sonya!
- Victor, the press got everything.
It's playing non-stop.
Sonya looks like a rabid animal.
What happened? Call me back.
- I'm sorry. - Shh.
It's okay, love.
I should have taken better care of you.
I'll get you help, I promise.
- Better soon to leave him behind.
- It'd be wise not to.
- Anything that doesn't fit stays behind.
Log everyone for the accountants.
I get paid by the head.
- Where's Sasha?
What did you do?
- I told her to run.
- For *'s sake, Rose. Now she's AWOL.
Do you have any idea what they'll do to her
if they find her?
What they'll do to you if they find out that you helped?
- I'm not sorry.
- You never are.
- We risk our lives to keep lowly little shits
like that alive.
Sasha shouldn't be punished for speaking the truth
or for wanting something for herself.
She deserves better.
We all do.
- You ready to move?
- I know it wasn't the answer you were hoping for,
but I may still be able to help you.
- You don't get it.
This is about more than just a bunch of paintings.
- I get more than you think, Lissa.
And I can help you.
But only if you come back.
- Back from where?
- Wake up!
Sorry to wake you.
- You Dream Walked.
You're a Spirit User, like me.
- You up for an adventure?
Get some of those answers that you want.
- Where's Guardian Tanner? - Sir, if I may--
- No, you may not, Novice.
I apologize for the late debrief.
Guardian Tanner died doing her duty in a Strigoi attack.
You can pay your respects at the funeral pyre.
- Here, grab that one, too.
- There you are.
- Let's keep it going.
- Why?
- We should get moving.
- Not yet.
There's something you need to do first.