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Season 2, Episode 8 "Extremis Mortem"
Brian makes a deal with the devil and helps Lex Madsen find a ritual that will destroy all vampires. The vampires are determined to stop them, led by the monstrous Slaughter Child. And what is the mysterious Tremis up to behind the scenes? Only the Slayers East can save the day, but save it from who? And how? (Air Date: 17 October, 2000)
Regulars:
Other Characters:
- Meryll Stevens-Knight - Candy's mother
- Lex Madsen - Wealthy new owner of Langborn Estate
- Niles Pipe - Officious aide to Lex Madsen
- Shanks - Mr Pipe's handyman
- The Slaughter Child - vampiric assassin
- Sophie - traumatised teenager
- Heather - depressed teenager
- Tremis - twisted manipulator, working to free R'Thilliach
- Alison - Candy's watcher
Episode Synopsis:
Family meeting. Zak confronts Brian - he knows Brian had a secret meeting with Lex Madsen. Brian says it was for the best. Before this can be resolved, a police detective arrives to ask about Sophie - she could be in a lot of trouble for her assault on Lolly.
Alison calls. She knows Hube left. She can come home if Candy needs her. Candy does, but can't bring herself to say it. Alison can't bring herself to say it either.
Shanks leads Candy and Cynth to a new cyst developing down factory road. They fight the spawn of R'Thilliach, emerge mostly unscathed...
Brian visits Lex again, and is shown his new lab - it has all he could ever want, books, equipment... And Lex thinks it might be a good idea if he took care of Alison's rare books, as well, while she was away. Brian agrees...
Zak visits Sophie, who seems to have given up, and Heather, whose father won't let him in. Later, she calls him, and he tells her he's going to leave, and she should come with him...
As Brian gets in deeper with Pipe and Madsen, Cynth, Zak and Candy decide on an intervention. They confront Brian, who tells them the name of their foe - a creature named Tremis, who gained power by worshipping R'Thilliach. Tremis has been manipulating them for these past months... but this information doesn't restore their trust in him.
Back at Factory Road, Cynth and Candy face Shanks, now a vampire, and his master, the Slaughter Child. They hear that Madsen is a sorceror, and preparing to work a magic that will kill all vampires - but in the process it will make R'Thilliach rise. They have to let the vampires kill Madsen, or the world will be destroyed...
At the Langborn Estate, Madsen and Brian stand together. Madsen asks Brian if he'll help cast the incantation. Brian says, he will. But first he hears from Candy, about the rise of R'Thilliach. Stalling, he is attacked by a vampiric Mr Pipe, who he dusts... meanwhile, Candy, Zak and Cynth bluff their way in past the guards by saying they're here to finally accept Madsen's offer of work...
Trusting Candy, Brian tells Madsen he doesn't think the Beauchamp Theorem is the way. "What other way is there?" Lex storms. "There's our way!" Candy replies. Then Tremis arrives, with an enthralled Sophie and Heather in tow. Everyone in the room is overcome by his presence.
Tremis tries to convince Brian or Lex to complete the incantation, but neither will do it. The best efforts of the group cannot overcome him. He leaves, realising that his work has come to nothing, and that R'Thilliach will continue to slumber.
Aftermath. Brian goes through a box of mementoes of his youth. Cynth rests, exhausted. Sophie is taken back into care. Candy opens the door of her home, to find Alison on the other side, back at last. But Zak has had enough of risking his life. He and Heather take one last look at their Exeter, and then they run away...
Trivia and Notes:
- Pre-production notes for the episode (.pdf file, 93K)
- The synopsis makes this episode seem quite incoherent, but I remember it playing out in compelling fashion. This was the end-of-season and a lot of things that had been building came to a head in this episode.
- All of the performances in this episode were incredible. Zak and Brian's conflict was exceptionally well-handled, and Candy and Cynth had plenty to deal with trying to hold it together pretty much on their own.
- And Tremis, of course, who was using the magic of St Aaron's Wort to intervene in people's lives, is still out there somewhere...