The Strain

Previously on The Strain.

Too long I've lived, too much I've seen.

Strigoi!

I've seen 'em in the tunnels.

Turning people into hungry vermin.

They are no longer people, and to think they are is very dangerous.

You do not have the luxury of choice anymore.

All we can do now is fight.

ls the war already lost' ?

Are we destined to be cattle for monsters?

Or, now that the enemy has shown his face,

do we have a fighting chance?

I've kept my part of the agreement.

The Master will keep his.

Behold.

What about Mom, Dad?

I don't know where she is, but I'll find her.

- No. - Mom!

It's not her anymore!

No! Mom!

The Master will use your wife's love. - Eph,don't.

For her son to pursue us to the ends of the earth.

Let him try.

Despite all evidence to the contrary,

you cling to the delusion that you will prevail?

The great game is over, Jew.

Not while I still breathe.

Abraham Setrakian, come and have your soup.

Abraham!

I'm not hungry.

Tell me one more story, Bubbeh.

It's late now, Abraham.

There's barely enough time for a tale.

Maybe while you finish your soup.

What story do you want to hear?

Sardu, Bubbeh will you tell me his story?

Sardu? Again?

Even if it is a scary one?

Very well, Abraham.

But I want a clean plate at the end of it all.

There once was a great nobleman named Jusef Sardu.

Since childhood, he suffered from gigantism.

His body was aged,

his bones were bent and riddled with aches,

so he was forced to walk with a cane.

His was a beautiful sword cane

with a white gold handle and a silver blade.

His disease made him aware of the frailty of life.

So, as a result,

he was very kind to others,

especially children.

However; Sardu is brother; the Baron,

was shamed by his sibling's affliction.

He organized a hunting trio with his brother and his cousins

because he believed the blood of the great gray wolf

could cure the disease afflicting Jusef.

Day after day

they walked in search of the great gray wolf.

But...

something other than a wolf was alive in the woods.

And it started hunting them.

One by one

the members of the hunting party left?

until Jusef found himself completely alone.

A certainty grew in his heart,

his brethren were dead,

and it was up to him to kill the beast

or die trying.

Finish your soup, Abraham, and I'll finish my tale.

When he finally encountered the creature,

it was not a wolf at all.

It was an ancient, hungry being.

And as it gazed at the giant's body,

it smiled.

Young hunter.

So, you think you're going to kill me

with that?

I can smell the silver on the blade.

Do you think you are faster

than me?

_

This body is frail, brittle.

My will, my soul,

I pass on to you.

As a blessing, I bestow them.

Sardu returned to his village weeks later

but was never again seen outside his castle walls.

Not in daylight, that is.

Some say he was much changed.

And soon young children began disappearing from the village,

vanishing from their beds at night.

And while no one ever saw Sardu again,

some said they heard his cane in the night.

Evil lurks in the world, Abraham.

In many forms.

Some familiar, some not.

You must stop it.

We all must.

In the name of all that is holy!

- Show yourself! - I'm right here.

Where is he?

I was wondering the same thing myself.

- Who are you? - My name is Vaun.

Never thought I'd be nostalgic for rats.

Yeah.

Well, vampire-proofing is a lot more labor intensive than rat-proofing.

- Where's Setrakian? - He left before I got up.

Where to?

He's not big on leaving notes.

Hey, you want to help me out with this?

He said sunlight would kill that thing.

We chased it into the sun. It got away.

Everybody makes mistakes.

Even vampire hunters.

Even doctors.

So you're still on board.

You're still ready to follow him down every dark tunnel in the city.

Yeah. But I got my own plan.

Which is?

I'm going to secure my place, then next door,

then the block and then the next block.

The ground game isn't for me.

So what are you going to do?

Well, seeing as how, as a vampire hunter, I'm total shit,

I'm going to go back to being a doctor.

At a press conference in the Rose Garden earlier today,

the president announced that he has ordered.

Nora?

Another 2,000 National Guard troops to deploy in Manhattan.

Nora?

To secure government buildings and crucial infrastructure.

You ready? Yeah.

This brings the total number of National Guard troops in the city to 10,000.

Zack is still asleep.

Dutch?

You could use some ventilation.

Yeah, and a latte with almond milk and a massage from the Four Seasons.

When Zack gets up, will you make sure he gets some breakfast?

- Where are you going? - Out.

Got it. Yeah, no problem.

I'll feed your kid and make sure this place is vampire-safe for you.

Is there a problem? I just said there wasn't a problem.

Sounds like there's a problem.

If there was a problem, I'd tell you there was a problem.

You're just so bloody presumptuous.

- Am I? - God, yes.

Please and thank you. Whatever and you're welcome.

Mein Master.

I'm removing the bag now.

Any sudden moves and I'll kill you.

Nod if you understand.

Wha-

I know this guy. Give me my cane.

No way, old man.

He owns a pawn shop in my neighborhood in Harlem.

He's not a threat.

You're the idiot brother

of the man-child who stole my clock.

I brought you your clock back.

Okay, shut up. Come on. Let's go.

That way.

You work for this filth?

You know what they say.

You gotta stay on top of the food chain, OG.

You and five strigoi.

Not very smart.

Silence. You will approach with all due respect.

They exist.

The Ancients.

They're sleeping now, but they can hear and understand everything.

I speak for them.

What do you know of the seventh one of their kind?

The- The seventh?

The one you call the Master, you injured him.

How do you know this?

The seven share a common mind.

But the seventh has the power to disrupt thought.

When you injured him, he lost control.

So they saw you fighting.

And now he has recovered enough to shield himself from you once again.

What do you want?

They want to make an alliance with you.

Sometimes great enemies become allies so they can fight a common foe.

Do they know how to kill him?

I think, for obvious reasons, they won't answer that question.

Then I don't see how they can help me.

No.

You're here to help them.

Over the millennia, they have gathered vast resources that could help you in your hunt.

A legend has passed down through the centuries

concerning a book,

an ancient tome of uncertain provenance

and some say divine inspiration.

The Occido Lumen.

And what do you know of this book?

I now have proof that it exists.

What are they saying?

They're trying to decide whether you should live.

I vowed to hunt the Master until the day I died.

If today is that day, then so be it.