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Once, long ago, we lived in the human world.

The Moroi vampires, who make the rules...

And the Dhampir Guardians,

sworn to protect against our enemy,

the Strigoi.

Undead vampires who live to kill.

Now we live in a world of our own,

one grounded in elemental magic

and steeped in rules no one's challenged in centuries...

until now.

The spark of revolution can come from anywhere.

Even two unlikely friends.

And one night that changed everything.

- Papa. - I came as quickly as I could.

Where is he?

I'm all right, Robert.

I'm fine.

What did you do?

Do you feel as good as you look?

I do.

Sonya was so scared for me.

I guess she did it without thinking.

She can't risk it again, Victor,

even for you.

- It's too hard on her. - I know.

I feel so guilty.

I never would've asked this of her,

knowing what comes with it.

I'll talk to her.

I almost lost you.

I don't know what happened.

I was feeling a bit tired,

a little stressed, but...

it just came out of nowhere.

Not really nowhere, with your family history.

I don't wanna jump to any conclusions.

It could be anything.

You need to see a doctor.

I need to get back to work.

Christian asked me to give this to you.

Weirdly helpful for someone

who unceremoniously dumped me on the dance floor.

I'm sure he had his reasons.

And I have mine for not wanting his help,

even if I need it.

This whole thing's in Old Moroi,

so if something here explains what's going on with me,

I won't be able to read it.

I can help translate.

I'm sure I can make time,

even with my upcoming Benchmark Tests.

- Rose, focus on your tests. - I'll be fine.

You'd be surprised how much free time I have,

now that my whole life's gone to shit.

Are you doing okay?

Honestly, maybe I dodged a bullet.

You should see how they are on the Council.

I don't know how Victor stands it.

Now I'm back to plan A... Graduate and see the world.

- Sign me up. - But I do have to figure

this stuff out first,

'cause when we get to the human world,

I want our heads screwed on tight.

Then that's the plan.

Hey, Rose.

Thank Christian for the book.

I didn't grow up here at court,

and as I formally declare my candidacy,

I see you're surprised.

But it's really Lissa Dragomir

you have to thank.

I'm young and new here,

and so I may seem like a radical choice.

But with a Dhampir best friend

and her association with the Ozera family,

she was the radical.

Untethered from our traditions.

After learning much from my Aunt Irene,

I believe in the Elementalist cause.

My platform will put faith and Moroi needs first.

Moroi don't live in a vacuum.

The Queen backed her horse,

and it stumbled out to the gate.

She waits for the Council to speak.

When you do, I hope you speak my name.

Thank you.

Thank you, Tatiana.

We will take all of this to heart.

Put your tongue back in your mouth, Peter.

There's still time for other candidates to emerge.

This council has serious business to attend to.

We can't rely solely on long-term repopulation

to solve our Guardian shortage issue.

We need a more immediate approach.

I can think of one deceased monk

who might object to another of your aggressive approaches.

Let's keep things civil, Victor.

I propose we lower the age of Guardian enlistment

down to 16, thereby expanding our pool of eligible Dhampirs.

16?

You'd make cannon fodder out of children?

16 is not a child.

If they're properly trained, they're fit to serve.

Isn't that the whole point?

How old is your youngest, Marie?

- And yours, Dane? - Desperate times, Victor.

All in favor of scheduling the vote?

All opposed?

The vote is six to five. Motion carries.

Am I getting old, or is this Benchmark class

full of toddlers?

No initiative from up top.

After the St. Jude's massacre, we have to test every Novice,

even underclassmen.

Those poor kids don't stand a chance.

Welcome, Moroi students.

For the next 24 hours,

your usual Guardians will be replaced

with the Novices you see before you.

Novices, the Benchmark Tests are your chance to show us

what you're made of.

You will be scored on your ability

to protect your assigned Moroi

during simulated surprise attacks.

Guardians will act as Strigoi.

Everyone will be outfitted with these special collars

containing blood squibs.

If you or your charge's squib gets popped,

you're dead.

But if you stay alive

and rack up enough points,

you'll get to attend the Royal Tour

as part of the Guardian security team.

If you're lucky enough, it can lead to a premium

Guardian assignment when you graduate.

- I'm winning this thing. - You better.

I got odds on you.

But you're gonna have to beat Rose.

Difficult, but not impossible.

And I'm fueled by the unflinching expectations

of Janine Hathaway, so..

Lissa and I will try to leave room for you at the top.

Don't worry, Rose.

When I win,

I'll find some way to make it up to you.

That's gonna hurt when you're in traction.

But I'm game if you are.

And nothing less.

Pairings go live in three, two, one.

- What the... - No way.

Fucking Zeklos.

"As such, we may claim this man

"with the golden tongue

doth possess a spirit's fancy."

Fantastic.

Only took me about an hour to figure it out.

And who the hell is this man?

Uh, just a second.

Come in.

Lord Dashkov.

I've informed him that he's only allowed entry

if he is not playing the role of secret Strigoi assassin.

And I've informed him my time is not to be wasted today.

Thank you, Eddie.

It's so late. What's going on?

The Royal Council is trying to take us

back to the Stone Age.

We can't have a government of the Royal Moroi

for the Royal Moroi only.

We need to restore your voting power.

How?

No bloodline quorum means no vote.

Did you find another Dragomir floating around?

No, but two can play at Tatiana Vogel's game,

and I've been busy today.

There's a loophole, like the one she found

to get you disqualified from being queen.

What kind of loophole gets me an instant family?

The kind where you get married.

If you marry, you'll regain your seat at the table.

You've seen enough to know what I'm up against.

The Dragomir vote may be the only thing between us

and a future I don't want to contemplate.

So I'll arrange for suitors to meet with you

while supervised.

What do you say?

Will you help me keep the Dominion on track?

You coming in to keep an eye on me?

You know, I don't mind an audience.

That's gonna be a no.

I'll just stand guard out here.

Suit yourself.

Which reminds me,

when laundry services pass through,

tell them to go easy on the starch.

I'm sensitive.

You should get some sleep.

It's light out. Strigoi can't get in.

Yeah, but I don't trust these motherfuckers.

Better safe than sorry.

You really wanna beat Rose.

Yup, but I also wanna go on the Royal Tour.

My dad is in St. Ignatius Province in Portugal.

Can't he just command to see you?

He's Royal, right?

Right.

It's been a while since he's checked in.

But I guess that's normal for you guys, though.

Yeah. I guess it is.

You don't have to stay.

I'll stand guard in the hall, in case.

Were you expecting anything?

Sorry, I have to.

A lift ticket?

Friday, 3:00 a.m., 43.0485 degrees north,

2.631 degrees west.

It's coordinates.

Who wants to meet you?

- Married? - This is insane.

Victor can't hold the Council alone,

and most Royal Moroi women over 21 are married.

- Yes, over 21. - What's the rush?

Now name me all the love match marriages

you can think of in the Royal Court.

Most Royal marriages are about power

and bloodlines and money and...

Not for your parents

and Victor and Robert.

- The lucky ones. - Why do this at all?

Because if Victor is pressuring you...

He is.

But not for himself.

Okay, so who's the lucky groom?

Well, apparently,

there's only four people with enough Dragomir blood

to count toward me regaining my quorum.

Does that mean you're related?

Only as much as a second cousin

ten times removed.

I pick one. We wed.

They take my name.

I take my vote back.

Okay, so who's on the list?

It's a little depressing.

As your maid of honor, I insist.

Okay.

Anthony Carter,

Ralf Dawoud, Wade Vogel,

and Jesse Zeklos.

Ugh, fuck me.

You wanna marry me off?

It's an opportunity for this family, son.

Your reputation is catching up with you.

You marry now,

gives us a chance at rehabilitation.

Are you serious?

Why is it that every time you send me off to breed,

I feel like I'm the one getting fucked?

Watch your mouth.

Lissa is a lady in title and character.

She needs to be courted, then betrothed, then married,

and that is exactly what you are going to do.

Am I clear?

Good boy.

Most people think it's the perfume,

but what truly makes the hyacinth unique

is the number of varieties.

Care to wager a guess on how many?

Do I have to?

I'd love your opinion on something.

Oh, okay. Sure.

I was thinking of going blond.

Hot or... or not?

I think I would make an excellent husband.

I mean, you wouldn't be my first kiss, exactly.

- I think hot. - And then there's the orchids.

Oh, and don't even get me started on the succulents.

For our next date,

we should go to the Stakehaus.

There's roads of rare books.

Sorry. Too soon?

No, no. Tell me more.

Or maybe streaks would be better.

Hey, come here. Yeah.

How 'bout you streak your ass right up out of here?

How 'bout that?

Keep up, Rose.

Are you trying to make me look bad in front of your friend?

I suggest your remind your little face

it belongs to a Dhampir, yeah?

Yes, I'm late, but it doesn't really matter, does it?

'Cause we both know you're not gonna pick me.

So can we just sit here and talk, just in case?

My dad has eyes everywhere.

So maybe just act like you don't totally hate me,

and then we never have to do this again.

Hmm.

Done.

I have other places I'd rather be too.

Excellent.

Awesome.

What are you guys doing here?

We're kind of in the middle of something.

Dean? Herk? What are you doing here?

Mikhail told me to be here.

Dimitri told me.

Alberta told us.

Shit. It's a trap.

- Strigois! - Come on!

- Jesse, Lissa, get out. - Eddie, you take far guard.

You've been paying attention.

I have a fairly decent teacher.

Fairly decent?

So the rules work?

Still room for improvement.

Ah...

Time!

If your blood squib's intact,

consider yourself a winner.

Benchmarks are done for the night,

so feel free to celebrate later.

You've all earned it. Congrats.

Whoo!

What part of "get out" do you not understand?

What were you thinking back there?

Uh, that it was all pretend?

Relax. None of this is real.

I wasn't actually gonna get murdered.

- Really? - 'Cause I'm ready to kill you

right here, right now.

Dick.

First rule of being a Guardian:

They come first.

More rules. Goody.

Rose.

Jesse told us what you said to him.

I was being hyperbolic.

- He... - He's pissed.

And he's a Royal.

With a snap of his fingers, he can get you decommissioned.

- For trying to save his life? - Look, we get it, Rose.

We're all just one wrong move away from trouble.

So just rein it in, okay?

Other than that, you handled yourself well.

You aided Eddie in protecting his charge,

took on the great Dimitri Belikov

and lived to tell the tale.

Look, you've moved up two positions.

Why is Meredith still in second place?

She hasn't even been on campus.

Pre-approved family visit freezes your ranking.

It's not her fault the Council made us pull up the test.

You could complain more, or you could get some sleep.

I plan on coming for you even harder next time.

Can't wait,

Comrade.

You wanted to see me, Father?

I did indeed.

How was your date?

Oh, cut short by a fake Strigoi attack.

Then you'll need to reschedule immediately.

She's never gonna pick me.

You'll have to reschedule immediately.

Sorry, milady, we don't open for an hour.

I-I just need one book, please.

"Ancient Myths of Moroi Magic."

I just need something that's not written in Old Moroi,

and I haven't been able to find this one anywhere.

- You wouldn't. - That writer was excommunicated.

She's been banned.

Show me the book.

I implore you to reconsider.

16 is simply too young to be a Guardian.

And avoiding the problem won't make it go away.

I think we should vote.

- We? - The High Priestess has

persuaded her sister, the head of the Vogel family,

to give Tatiana her proxy.

She felt it would help raise my profile as I run for Queen.

It certainly does.

- Shall we vote, then? - How?

The only way to know the effects

of fighting a Strigoi on someone that young

is to put them up against a real Strigoi.

This is a nonstarter.

My cousin at St. Jude says

the Royals there are desperate.

We must do something, Victor.

What if... as a stopgap measure, mind you,

while we study alternatives...

We pull Guardians off Non-Royal Moroi, temporarily?

You'd get rid of your husband's protection?

Long enough to stop this lunacy?

Yes, and he would want me to.

I think that's a marvelous idea.

Not hungry today?

I should be.

I just got a lot on my mind.

Something happen with Lissa?

Is it that obvious?

Well, it is to me.

After all,

you're one of my most faithful customers.

There we go. You wanna tell me about it?

What's to say?

She's a princess or at least she was,

while I'm...

A total catch.

Don't listen to the haters.

They don't know you.

But...

my parents did.

And...

And they...

they didn't stick around.

Hey,

your parents loved you.

And they were good people.

Look how you turned out.

And Lissa sees that.

What other people say doesn't matter.

The only thing that matters is what you feel.

Hey.

I need a favor.

I need to go beyond the wards, and... you have a car.

And if I felt like laughing, that would be hilarious.

Fuck off.

You know I'm good with fire.

I could teach you how to stand up to your father.

Is he always like that?

He's just being a dad.

What, you're saying your parents never hit you?

Never.

They were great.

Well, they were also fucking Strigoi.

So I'd pick my dad any day, thanks.

No one's fucking touching him.

But there is something else you could do for me.

I need you to pick up a girl.

I don't want my father to see me with her.

I knew you'd find a way.

Congratulations,

but you can only hold the top spot for so long.

Depends.

You might not get so lucky next time

when it comes to who you're fighting.

- What's that supposed to mean? - Nothing.

Just got a lot riding on this.

All right, moody.

Can you at least just tell me where Christian is?

I need to talk to him.

He's probably out with that snow bunny

he's hooking up with.

A girl?

- Who? - I don't know.

She wrote down a time and coordinates

on some ski lift ticket.

Wait, did he tell you

the ski lift ticket was from a girl?

Not exactly.

I think it was from his parents.

- His parents are dead. - Not dead enough.

Shit.

Shit, Rose, the meeting spot was outside the wards.

- We gotta go. - No!

We have to tell someone.

Tell them I let my Royal go outside the fucking wards?

Look, I've already made the mistake

of breaking that rule once.

Well, I'm his Guardian,

and I say fuck the rules!

- Thanks for the ride. - What is this place?

Wait!

What about Strigoi? We can't just leave him here.

I'll be fine.

- Rose? - You all right?

We need to find Alberta and Mikhail.

I hate staying here and following your fucking rules,

but he needs more than me right now.

Who does? Tell me.

It's Mason.

Christian...

Mom?

My boy.

I'm here.

Where?

I don't want you to see me,

not yet.

- Is Dad here? - Next time.

I have so many questions.

We've missed you so much.

We always meant to come back for you.

But...

why leave me at all?

We wanted to be together forever.

Christian!

- Mom, wait. - I can get rid of them.

Hey.

Hey.

- Hey. - I need you to go.

It's okay. She doesn't wanna hurt me.

If you're talking about your mom,

she's probably less crazy about me.

No, no, no... Mason!

It's not like you think. It's...

Christian!

Orders are to take one alive.

Is that your father?

- Hey. - I'm so sorry I'm late.

It's all right.

I sit here for hours most days anyways.

So I have a little secret.

We captured a Strigoi tonight.

It's our first in a while.

But I had to accompany it to lock off,

which took forever, so...

Hey, you okay?

I have a secret too.

I'm not supposed to tell you, but I want to.

You can tell me anything.

There are some things you don't know about me.

Like?

There's a darkness inside me.

It sometimes makes me...

act out.

In ways that might scare you.

What if I'm not easily scared?

My job is to fight to the death.

Now, I know darkness.

Right now, all I see is light.

Look, I know I should be thanking you,

and I am grateful, but I...

Listen.

I get this place has been hard on you.

But you put a lot of people at risk tonight.

It's my duty to put my life on the line for you.

But when you walk headfirst into danger...

I know.

I'm sorry.

But...

I wanted to see my parents.

They're not your parents anymore.

- I know. - They're Strigoi.

They're monsters, but...

what if that's not all they are?

You want something you can't have, Christian.

That way lies madness.

When I was a kid...

our family had this cat named Harvey.

Wasn't the friendliest.

Except to me, for some reason.

He'd follow me around

and bring me gifts of dead birds.

I know.

I thought it was gross too.

And then I realized

that was his way of showing affection.

I mean, if a cat,

with a brain the size of a pea,

can feel that way...

Maybe my parents still can too.

Mason.

'Cause you just had to snitch, didn't you?

Because of you, I got knocked out of the Benchmarks

and tanked on the leader board.

- I didn't snitch. - I got your shit saved.

Forgive me if I didn't want to see you get hurt or worse.

Don't act like you did this for me.

You just didn't wanna risk your ranking.

- That's bullshit. - You are all about you.

We only hook up when you want it.

We only talk when you need it.

If it's not about you, it doesn't exist.

Do you even know why

I wanted to win today?

Because if I got to go on the Royal Tour,

I was gonna get to see my father.

- Mason, I didn't know that. - Of course you didn't know.

Because you never fucking ask.

Come in.

Lissa, what are you...

Dimitri told me about tonight.

Hey, you could've died, Christian.

I know you don't care about what I think, but...

I care too much about what you think.

I'm sorry.

I never wanna scare you.

Um, what have you got there?

Spirit Use is real...

And it's hiding in plain sight.

Look.

It's Compulsion.

That's St. Vladimir.

He has a golden threaded tongue.

The one I read about. That's the same as you.

Yeah.

This stuff is kind of everywhere,

if you know what you're looking for.

This feels dangerous.

But if it is real and I have this new magic

and I can gain a seat at the table

where decisions are being made...

Yeah, but how?

Using Compulsion on the Council?

No, never.

I'm just saying maybe I'm not powerless anymore,

in more ways than one.

If even a part of this is real,

maybe Compulsion is just the start

of what Spirit Users can do.

In these stories,

there's even Spirit Users who can see auras.

Some can even heal people.

Yeah, there's a darkness that comes with Spirit,

because that kind of power always comes with a price.

Still, I don't know how much of this is true.

Can't do half of these things, but...

if it is true,

can you imagine all the people I could help?

I can imagine.

I think you should get some sleep.

Sure.

Victor?

I thought you'd be at the Council meeting.

I'd rather be with you.

You saw a doctor, didn't you?

I hate that I wasn't there to help.

You don't think you helped?

Because of you,

Christian and Mason survived the night.

All I did was tell you that my friends were in trouble.

I didn't fight.

I just sat here,

while you and the other Guardians saved them.

Mason said that I didn't come after him

to protect my ranking.

He's wrong.

What you did was far harder than fighting tonight,

at least for you.

You're number one because you obeyed

the chain of command.

You did your duty.

Well, it sucked.

Maybe.

But tonight, Roza, you were brave.

Roza?

Sorry.

Every now and then, my Russian childhood comes out.

I like it.

You also live to fight another day,

which brings us to another important rule...

Always be ready, 'cause today is a new day,

and the Benchmarks continue.

Good luck, Roza.

Forgive the late hour,

but a way forward has been suggested.

Has it?

Victor was right

when he said the only way to test a Novice's acumen

is by confronting them with a real Strigoi.

It would appear we now have one available

and the votes to make it happen.

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