Motherland: Fort Salem (2020) s02e03 Episode Script

[WOMAN] Previously on Motherland
[MAN] It's a day Vice President
Silver and his family
will not soon forget.
This young woman is of the blood.
Goddess knows how many
more are out there.
We need to get to them
before the Camarilla does.
They don't know how,
but this force protects us
when we're threatened.
So you'll continue testing Raelle.
You will die!
I would like to offer you
something very rare.
An opportunity to resume
your life as it was.
[PANTING]
[GROANS]
[MAN GRUNTS]
Do you see a person there?
It's her.
She's real! [GASPS]
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
[ALDER] I thought we were in agreement.
This order is ready for you to sign.
We need to open test centers now.
[WADE] Asking every young
woman of conscription age
to report for testing is
not gonna be popular.
We know that there are
more witches out there
like your daughter.
That they need to be kept safe.
She's not gonna be safer in the army!
Mr. Vice President, your daughter's
proven to be a witch.
It is the duty of every witch
to report for military service.
She's no exception.
This isn't right.
And the President has assured me
she won't be signing any such order.
Is this true?
If I sign this, there
will be a public outcry.
They need to be
identified and protected.
I'm not sure I can turn
this nation upside down
without hard evidence
[BIDDIES MUTTER AND GROWL]
[INDISTINCT WHISPER]
We have the bodies to
prove it, Madame President.
I'm not sure, Blanton.
The more I think about it
these young women have
no idea what's coming
no idea what's coming after them.
Madame President,
with all due respect
New witches need be protected.
[GROWLING NOISES]
[THEME MUSIC PLAYING]
Next time you learn some new weather,
a heads-up before you
unleash it would be great.
It was a reflex action.
I learned it last week.
In Weatherwork.
I hate that we're on
separate tracks now.
It's supposed to make
us better soldiers.
Try wetter soldiers.
My Sight was a mess today, too.
I just can't stop thinking
about that redacted soldier
from the photo.
Maybe she messed up.
Just because something's need to know
doesn't mean it's a mystery.
How's witchbomb testing?
Izadora wants me to try and sing Seeds
to make it go off without
me having to die, so
Don't knock the process.
You've got the opportunity to
do something completely new.
To make your own name for yourself.
That's huge.
I can't even speak one full sentence
in Mothertongue, you know?
And that's basic war college stuff.
So whatever's happening with me, it's
If you say "advanced,"
I'm gonna throw a
waterspout at you again.
You got this.
You did that on purpose?
[ABIGAIL CHUCKLES]
[WHISPERS] Who's the old lady?
The old lady is the Imperatrix.
The Matriarch of the Imperative.
Not only am I responsible for the growth
and continuation of witch bloodlines,
I can flatten you to pulp with
any number of Workings
before you knew what had hit you.
You must be our Outcross.
The Fixer with the rebellious streak.
What's an "outcross"?
Means your mom crossed
lines with a civilian.
Are you our Matrifocal daughter?
Yes, ma'am.
- Matriarch
- Matriarch.
Yes, Matriarch. Sorry.
Eager to please, and guileless.
Very on-point for your upbringing.
And our Bellweather.
Our North star.
The envy of War College.
I highly doubt that.
Modesty is beneath you.
Avoid it. Completely.
So, why am I here, blessing
you with my presence?
Because today,
the Matrimonial Season begins.
[GIRLS WHISPER AND GASP]
Tomorrow night,
you will attend the Paragon
Reception in Bellweather Hall.
This is when you'll start
narrowing down your choices
of the men who will be a
part of furthering your line.
Dress uniforms, ladies,
and no lipstick, please.
So cloying.
[EXCITED WHISPERS]
[BELL CHIMING]
Pardon the colloquialism,
but you Bellweathers are at
the end of the line, Petra.
Abigail had better take
this process seriously.
Fewer witches are being born,
and we're facing a new threat.
Abigail will come around.
It's in her blood.
And we have found one new bloodline.
We may find more with the testing
More Outcrossed lines,
which I suppose have their place.
But they're no replacement
for the power of purity.
Perhaps, the Imperative
should reflect upon the fact
that it lost track of these
bloodlines, to begin with.
Witches are as powerful as they
are because of the Imperative.
- Your duty
- I know my duty.
The Imperative serves an
important purpose, Matriarch,
but know your place.
I will not stand here while
you impugn my authority
to appease your ego.
I don't report to you.
Now, leave my office.
The arrogance of that woman
That's the danger of having no
one but yourself to answer to.
How goes our hunt for the Camarilla?
I've got operatives in the field
tryna figure out how they
got to the rest of my line
before we even knew they existed.
Has The Hague gotten back to you
on the Plague samples we sent?
Not yet, but everybody's
being cooperative for once.
You're very good at getting
people to see things your way.
Good day, General.
[SINGING A SEED]
[PANTS]
Izadora, that's basically
every Seed I know.
Why won't it do anything?
Her, not it.
Show some respect.
To the mushroom?
She has certain fungal properties, yes.
The truth is,
I've been studying Her for many years,
and I still know so little.
She's ancient.
She responds to stimuli,
especially to threats.
You do not want to be
the target of Her enmity.
Or the bearer of it?
You're more than just a conduit for Her.
She chose to form a symbiosis with you.
[INHALES]
It's late.
I'll see you here tomorrow evening.
This thing you gave me,
I don't want.
Can't even use.
[SCOFFS]
Abigail would love it.
But you gave it to me.
Why?
[SIGHS]
Why is it that I have to die
for you to do anything?
[MYCELIUM SIZZLES]
Izadora?
[SINGING A SEED]
It's a Death-Cap.
Is that what you want?
That Seed?
[SIGHS]
[SINGING THE SEED]
[GASPING FOR AIR]
- [HIGH PITCHED NOISE]
- [GASPING AND GROANING]
[RATTLING SOUND]
[GASPING FOR AIR]
[HIGH-PITCHED NOISE GETTING LOUDER]
[NOISE STOPS]
[GASPING]
Are you all right?
Yeah.
[PANTING]
I think I got Her attention.
The integrity of your line
is one of my greatest triumphs.
All of the traits that mark a
Bellweather are present in you.
I'm more than just traits.
I've worked hard.
Skills help us win the battle,
but breeding lets us win the war, dear.
We're stronger, over time, for it.
And you want me to handfast with
Gregorio Shellbark?
Pass.
You are so like your mother.
She also had her flighty side.
Petra Bellweather? Flighty?
At the end of the day,
I at least got her to narrow
the field to the three men
that we chose to father you.
Then extend me the same courtesy.
The Earthquake boy.
- How do you
- I have eyes and ears everywhere.
A Bellweather being
handfasted to someone
who's not even in the military.
How did you think that would go?
Your timetable will be accelerated.
And what does that mean, exactly?
Your handfasting will take
place at the end of this year.
Did it taste weird?
Yes, Tally, it tasted weird.
Now so does everything else.
But you got cleared for duty.
Clean bill of health.
They're running the sound I made
against the seeds in the library
to see if anyone's made
it on record before.
So you're a top-secret
military experiment.
And she's reliving
Alder's greatest battles.
And me, though, I don't
even get to choose
who the father of my
children is going to be.
Well, does it help anything
that neither of us can do
what we've been doing on purpose?
A little.
Yeah.
- [BELL CHIMES]
- Oh, shoot. See you later.
[HOLDING A NOTE]
[STRUGGLING OUT OF BREATH]
[SIGHS]
I'm never going to be able to do this.
General Alder needs to pick
a different poster child
for the Test Center opening.
You're so close. You had the note,
but you're not singing with your throat.
That's the opposite of
what we're taught in choir.
I don't know what it's
supposed to feel like.
Yes, you do. You've done it before.
Okay, sing what you sang in church.
Find the Seed in the song.
I saw the video. You were terrific.
Yeah, until I melted the priceless
stained-glass windows
with Satan's high C.
I saw my dad's face change.
He went from encouraging me
to looking at me like he didn't know me.
My mom and I have always been close.
I had a dispensation from the army,
but I answered the call anyway.
She was furious.
Why did you join?
To serve.
To be a part of something
bigger than myself.
You can't do this if
you hate who you are.
You did it before.
Memories are powerful.
[SIGHS]
Remember how it felt then,
how the music carried you.
[SINGS]
[HOLDS THE NOTE]
[HER VOICE BECOMES DISTANT]
Holy shit.
I feel so bad for the Vice President.
And for it to happen at church.
His daughter's in the army now,
- learning how to kill.
- [SCOFFING] I guess, it's a good thing
the army doesn't kill normal people.
Those Spree do, though.
Isn't the army fighting the Spree?
Sure, in Bangladesh or whatever.
But what about keeping us safe at home?
The Spree is going after
our American institutions.
Our malls. Ball fields. Restaurants.
We gotta go out.
Can't just hide in our basements
until the witches stop fighting.
We don't even know who they
are and aren't anymore.
Yeah, Amelia, you get it.
I had to tell Brianna
that she can't play
with her friend Tiffany anymore.
They found out she's a witch.
How?
Our friend said they
had some kind of test.
[KNOCK ON DOOR]
Excuse me.
Speak of the devil.
Jack, hi!
We were just talking about you.
- Sorry to interrupt.
- [SHANE] No bother at all.
Um, Bonny
Didn't I see that guy at
the bar the other night?
Ah, yeah, that's Jack Orsatti.
We met him at our first vigil.
He helps organize.
He's been a real Godsend to us.
Giving Shane an outlet
for his frustrations.
Well, at least Shane
doesn't have to worry
about your girl being a witch, right?
[SCOFFS]
I don't know what we'd do if
we wound up with a Tiffany.
Should we?
Can I top you?
Bonnie said Orsatti pays them
to attend the vigils, too.
Stir things up. So if anybody's
a link to a Camarilla higher-up,
it's this guy.
It's amazing what you can learn
when you're laying it
on so thick, Amelia.
Meaning?
Revealing that you clocked
Orsatti at the bar was too much.
Amelia is awfully attentive, isn't she?
All I'm saying is just sometimes,
subtle is better.
If you have an issue
- with my method
- I'm used to working alone.
- That's my issue.
- Not anymore.
[SIGHING] Right.
Orsatti's leaving.
You want me to run him
off the road, Justine?
Just drive.
[ENGINE STARTS]
I'm not quite sure what
to do with you two.
Tally, as a Merry-Begot, our
traditions are new to you.
I'm a quick study.
Admirable.
As for you
you are something of
a delightful mystery.
From a Fixer-heavy line,
but now augmented.
Perhaps, there's opportunity
for an Outcross
to bloom after all.
I'm not interested in handfasting
or men.
But you are still required
to fulfill your obligations.
Your mother did not handfast properly.
I suggest you not follow
in her footsteps.
- Rae
- My mother was a damn war hero.
And I will make my own arrangements.
- Just like she did.
- Rae
[SPEAKING IN MOTHERTONGUE]
[SPEAKING IN MOTHERTONGUE]
[INHALES]
Where did that come from?
[WHISPERS] I have no idea.
Workings allow for combat at a distance.
But we're not just fighting
witches anymore.
You need to learn how to
defeat your adversaries
without Work.
That means close-up combat
and practical defense.
Take her down, Shellbark.
Bellweather, fight back.
[SHELLBARK GRUNTING]
Are you mad at me?
I'm mad because of you.
Come at me, Camarilla.
Nothing personal.
[BOTH GRUNTING]
Switch.
M, what the hell?
[PANTING]
Did I get you by accident?
It isn't my blood.
The blade's clean, Tally.
[KNOCK ON DOOR]
You asked to see me?
[LOUD VOICES]
[VOICES SUDDENLY STOP]
The sound you made is composed
of thousands of layered voices,
one on top of the other.
I've never heard anything
so complex before.
Or beautiful.
Well, how can I make so many
voices if I only have the one?
The vocal and ventricular
folds have changed.
The epiglottis and epiglottal fold
They're mycelial threads.
The Mycelium has colonized her larynx.
[STUTTERING] Hol
Hold on. It-it did what?
Your update mentioned
that you are now able
to effortlessly speak Mothertongue, yes?
[SPEAKING MOTHERTONGUE]
I'd like you to try singing
to Her one more time.
Last time I did, she jumped
down my throat.
Please, Raelle.
We need every soldier,
every weapon for what's coming.
You know what they're capable of.
[EXHALES]
[EXHALES]
[SINGING ONE NOTE]
[MORE VOICES JOIN IN]
[SINGING A HIGHER NOTE]
She's big.
In the Tarim, her gift
transmuted organic matter.
And now, with control,
it broke down inorganic matter.
Do you think you can do it again?
Can't believe you're gonna
miss the reception tonight.
Yeah, that's the only good
thing about my weapons test.
I don't even really
know what I'm doing yet.
You'll be fine. Where's the test?
No idea. Like they'd tell me that.
- [SIGHS]
- At least you have something
that sets you apart
other than your womb.
- Maybe I'll skip, too.
- Oh, we can't. Remember?
Cadets need to get busy
finding men and making babies.
You don't sound particularly
rah, rah, rah about it.
Maybe I've decided I
want more for myself.
Mmm. Do tell.
Do you ever feel like you're
living somebody else's life
instead of your own?
Yeah. That's going around.
[SCOFFS]
Okay. Maybe, you two just
need to enjoy yourselves
with some pretty boys,
and stop worrying about
everything else for the night.
Have a few drinks on me.
Why stop at a few?
[EXHALES]
This is the fourth school
Orsatti's been to today.
It's time we find out why.
Wait. He's seen you.
He's seen you, too.
I can manage.
Besides, you were a base brat.
And I know my way around these places.
Just be careful.
You don't trust me?
I don't trust the situation.
We're in this together.
[HIGH-PITCHED NOISE]
[HIGH-PITCHED NOISE GETTING LOUDER]
[HIGH-PITCHED NOISE]
[ORSATTI] I take it
that one was negative?
We might get more positives
as we move into the
older groups next month.
Since kids' ears develop
as they get older.
Let me know if you get any more hits.
I heard you nearly sent
Gregorio to the fixers.
He had it coming.
Hey, you wanna talk about it?
Not really, no.
I'll just admire the art, then, too.
[SIGHS] Jem seems quite formidable.
Yeah, so formidable
that we've been standing
in her shadow ever since.
She stopped a battle cold with a Working
that no one had ever seen before,
and no witch has been able
to successfully repeat.
Though, to be fair,
it's been under lock and key
since before my grandma's time.
Goddess forbid anyone try to outdo Jem.
Well, there's nothing wrong
with revering one's elders,
especially if they've passed.
Being defined by them is
something else entirely.
Well, that's kind of the basis
of tradition. No one's in it.
Don't you think tradition's gotten
you in enough trouble already?
Your tribe just laid down and died
instead of fighting the Camarilla.
My tribe
was ambushed and murdered, Abigail.
And you of all people know
how the Camarilla operate.
I do.
I do, and the way to fight them
isn't through observing tradition,
by playing nice and making babies
that'll grow up into soldiers,
or by waiting for the enemy
to come close enough
for hand-to-hand.
If Jem made a Working
that could stop a battle,
then maybe it's time
for another Bellweather
to build a Working.
One that can end the war.
I haven't seen a combat
charm like that in a while.
Was it your mother's?
Yes, ma'am.
She left it for me when she
deployed for the last time.
It's a silly superstition, anyway
but I guess, I'm just nervous.
Nerves can be good.
They keep you on edge.
But you're not heading
into battle tonight, Cadet.
With all due respect,
I'm not sure what I'm heading into.
With a bit of luck, the history books.
[TALLY] Where have you been?
And why aren't you in your Blues?
I'm not going.
I just stopped by to wish you good luck.
Abigail, you promised you'd come along
so I wouldn't have to do it alone?
You're gonna do great.
Something important's come up.
- Can I come help?
- No.
I have to do this myself.
Tell everyone I said, "hi".
Also, don't tell anyone what I'm doing.
Well, you haven't told me,
so it shouldn't be that hard.
[SIGHS]
[WOMAN SHOUTING IN THE DISTANCE]
[RAIN PATTERS]
Where are we?
On a part of Base where
we don't have to worry
about prying eyes.
Raelle
We can't have you holding anything back.
Has anyone ever been
able to do what I can?
[STORM RUMBLES]
New Work is exceedingly rare.
But what you can do
[WHISPERS] I've never
seen anything like it.
Good. No pressure, then.
General, we're ready for you.
He must be making a drop.
I wonder how many schools the
Camarilla are running that test in?
I wouldn't be surprised
if it's nation-wide.
It seems like it's been
going on for a while.
Which explains how they
found the lost Bellweathers.
How do they know that
tone does what it does?
The Camarilla's been hunting
witches for centuries.
If they figured out how
to steal our voices,
it's not that much of a larger leap
that they know how our ears work, too.
You will sit here and chat all night
or should I go see what he's doing?
Just wait, it
[HIGH-PITCHED SOUND]
[GRUNTS]
[HIGH-PITCHED SOUND GETTING LOUDER]
Who are you?
Wanna know who we are, Camarilla?
[MAN GROANS]
[SPEAKING MOTHERTONGUE]
[ANACOSTIA GRUNTS]
Thanks.
We're in this together, right?
[SIGHS]
The paragon reception, in all its glory.
- Mm.
- You ready?
Well, it's just you, me,
and the Imperatrix,
planning our futures.
No pressure.
Don't worry. I got your back.
[SIGHS]
Let's go find someone
worthy of the Craven name.
General Sharma,
thank you for joining us.
General Alder.
I have a meeting in Brussels
tomorrow with General Amis,
as I'm sure you're aware.
Perhaps you'll have something additional
to discuss with her after
this demonstration.
Mr. Vice President,
this is a pleasant surprise.
I was expecting President Wade.
- No offense.
- She wanted to be here,
but she's come down with
some sort of a nasty bug.
Then I hope you'll have good
news to bring back, as well.
You ready, Cadet?
Ready as I can be, right?
[QUIETLY] Here we go.
[SINGING LOW NOTE]
[MORE VOICES JOIN IN]
[VOICES GETTING LOUDER AND HIGHER]
My great-grandfather's third cousin
was Lieutenant Perdida Tinning.
Sorry, who?
She was the first witch to
employ the Balkan Composition
in the Battle of the Urals?
We read about her in fourth grade.
She was mentioned in the textbook.
Um, we read different books in NorCal
[NICTE CRYING]
They're killing themselves.
You stole my Work.
[ALDER] Sergeant Batan!
It had to be done.
You know that.
They already surrendered.
Your heart is black, Sarah.
Nicte!
[GASPING]
[GASPING]
What happened?
Alder's memories
This one
This one was so much
worse than the others.
What was it about?
Death.
A lot of death.
And Alder and that redacted soldier.
Her name is Nicte.
They were both in the
middle of all of it.
Tell me about your night. Please.
[SCOFFS] I
I blew up a shitload of stuff
in front of the Vice President
and brass from The Hague.
Wow.
Sorry. Sorry.
Um, hey, did did Bells
not come home last night?
She had that much fun
at the reception, huh?
[CHUCKLES]
She didn't come.
[STORM RUMBLING OUTSIDE]
[SKY RUMBLES]
Abigail.
[MAKING LOW SOUND]
Abigail!
What did you do?
[GRUNTS]
[COUGHING]
[GASPING FOR AIR]
[THEME MUSIC PLAYING]