This timeline is intended as a guide to the events depicted in the series Kindred: The Embraced, as well as the internal history described in that series. The format of the timeline should be very easy to read, and was partially inspired by Kim dela Fuente, but is otherwise based more or less on that found in Star Trek Chronology: A History of the Future, by Michael Okuda and Denise Okuda. The series is, of course, © 1996 Spelling Television Inc. and John Leekley Productions, and this timeline is in no way affiliated with them.
Six main sources were used in constructing this timeline:
Under every entry, there is an explanation of how I arrived at the date in question. For simplicity, I have assumed that a day only ends when it is shown to be daylight again, even if technically, the events might have taken place after midnight. I am not going to try and figure out when midnight falls.
The main supposition I made that is not based on any of the above sources is that the series itself takes place towards the end of 1996. I made this assumption based on general clues as to the weather (breath fogging outdoors in some episodes, for example), as well as the simple fact that 1996 was the year the series aired.
A Note on the World of Darkness: Although Kindred: The Embraced was originally based on Vampire: The Masquerade (Second Edition) by Mark Rein·Hagen, there are numerous differences between the world of the television series and that developed by White Wolf Game Studio. Rather than interpreting these as "errors," the series should instead be seen to offer its own unique and separate version of that mythology, working from similar themes. For the same reason, I have also not included any information from The Book of Nod, even though a copy of it is included with the later DVD release of the series.
If you should dispute any of the dates on the timeline, or you want to provide your own speculations, feel free to contact me with your thoughts. You can find many more fictional timelines at The History of Things That Never Were.
Since the dawn of time, the Kindred evolve alongside humans. Wherever there are humans and hominid creatures, the Kindred prey upon and feed off them. In ancient times, the Kindred are savage, merciless killers who hunt humans at night. Among their unspeakable atrocities is the practice of stealing babies and draining their blood.
["Nightstalker," "Bad Moon Rising," "Skull," and the Kindred website. Julian tells Frank that the Kindred have to leave behind what they were, "beasts like Starkweather," referring to the constant battle they must fight against their primitive instincts. He later defends himself against Frank's accusations by reminding him that humans have their own atrocities to account for. "Skull" was to revolve around the titular object causing various characters to regress back to primal Kindred behaviour.]
The first clan to evolve on the plains of Ethiopia is the Nosferatu, whose primitive form includes fangs, claws, and reptilian eyes. They will come to rule the other clans, who fear them for their power.
["Bad Moon Rising," "Skull," and "Extra Gets Embraced!!" Daedalus condemns Goth in front of their clan for giving himself up to "the forces we as Nosferatu have spent millennia struggling against." According to "Skull," the missing link between human and Kindred was the first Nosferatu. The online article affirms that the Nosferatu are the oldest clan.]
Clan Brujah forms later than Clan Ventrue. They are the last clan to come into being.
["The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori." In explaining to Julian why the Brujah should be allowed to conduct their business as they see fit, Cyrus says the Brujah are "a newer clan" than the Ventrue. The Kindred website describes them as the most recent clan to come into being.]
If Zane is to be believed, the Toreador create music.
["Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse." Zane tells Lillie, "Before us, music didn't exist." Music was already flourishing when the first written records were made, so this would have to be in the prehistoric past, assuming it's true.]
The Brujah and the Gangrel become mortal enemies.
["Romeo and Juliet." Cash tells Sasha that "Brujah Clan and Gangrel Clan have always been enemies," and Julian tells her that Cash has "a few thousand years of clan rivalry to forget." By definition, they would have to become enemies after the Brujah came into existence.]
Around this year, the Nosferatu take sides in a Kindred war for the last time. They decide to stay neutral for their own survival.
["Romeo and Juliet." Daedalus tells Julian that the Nosferatu have survived five thousand years by not being crusaders.]
Regional populations of Kindred begin being ruled by Princes. This system survives to the present day; there is a Prince in every city, and he or she is the leader of all local Kindred.
[Kindred website. The historical description says that groups of Kindred have been ruled by Princes "ever since the civilized world was divided into city-states." Splintered groups began establishing themselves into city-states in Greece and Asia Minor around this period.]
The Nosferatu discover how the sacrificing of human babies, the use of blood rites, and the Black Arts can give them enormous power. A ritual for drinking the blood of a baby is developed which involves erecting the Stones of Vernassus on the night of a full moon.
["Bad Moon Rising." Daedalus describes how these practices have brought power "from the ancient times of the Druids." The earliest known records of the Druids come from this period.]
The Nosferatu allow the Ventrue to live above ground and to become bankers and politicians so that they can maintain power.
["Bad Moon Rising." Goth bitterly describes this history to his clan, asking them where they are "a thousand years later."]
Around this time, Camilla has eight children, two of which are stillborn, before she and Goth are Embraced. She loves the whole cycle of fertility and birthing, "a baby suckling at my breast."
["Bad Moon Rising." The date is completely conjectural, as most dialogue references to the past are very vague. Camilla tells Caitlin about her children, "We had them back then to work in the fields," implying she came from a pre-industrial society, and Daedalus describes Goth as one of the "ancient ones." It is entirely possible, however, that the two were Embraced at vastly different times.]
Around this time, humans make record of the Kindred, their clan divisions, and at least some of their powers.
["Prince of the City." Frank reads out that humans called "them" Kindred 800 years ago, along with the fact that they are divided into clans and their ability to see a past event by looking into an object.]
Pope Sixtus IV publishes the Papal bull Exigit Sinceras Devotionis Affectus, authorising a Spanish Inquisition controlled by the monarchy. Humans catch and torture the Kindred because they are thought to be evil. Kindred are hunted down and burned alive by those who fear them and call them monsters. As a result of this persecution, the clans join together to maintain the Masquerade, a set of laws punishable by death that are intended to keep the Kindred from being seen as anything other than human, and the Nosferatu are able to live peacefully out of sight of humans below ground. A central tenet of the Masquerade is that Kindred must follow the Laws of Man. This rule begins as a practical way of preventing Kindred from being imprisoned or otherwise subjected to scrutiny, but over time, it takes on a more purely moral agenda.
[Historical accounts, "Prince of the City," "Bad Moon Rising," and the Kindred website. Sonny reads aloud from a book Frank finds in the library, and Daedalus discusses this history with his clan, possibly speaking from personal experience.]
At this time, Daedalus is still human, and such a thing as a video camera or being Nosferatu cannot be imagined by any human.
["Daedalus: Last Will and Testament." Daedalus mentions the specific year.]
Humans invent the word "vampire" to describe the Kindred because they need a name for their fears in the night.
["Cabin in the Woods." Julian informs Caitlin of the misnomer. The word "vampire" is of Slavic origin, first appearing in reports that proliferated in Hungary from 1730 to 1735.]
A century-long war erupts amongst the Kindred.
["The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori." Julian tells Eddie that "Archon stopped a hundred years of bloodshed between the clans," thus the war began 100 years before he took San Francisco by force. It is unclear from the dialogue how geographically widespread the fighting was.]
The first colonising party arrives to found the Presidio of San Francisco and the Franciscan Mission Dolores.
[Historical accounts.]
Archon Raine is born somewhere in Europe.
["Cabin in the Woods." Archon's birthdate is on his tombstone, which describes him as a "Purveyor of Spirits to the New World," thus implying his birthplace.]
Julian Luna is born in New Orleans.
["The Embraced" and "Cabin in the Woods." Julian's birthdate is on his tombstone. His place of birth comes from the Kindred website.]
The future Evelyn Luna is born.
["The Embraced." Evelyn's birthdate is on her tombstone.]
Archon Raine becomes Prince of San Francisco by force, taking nothing and giving the Kindred peace. In the coming years, he will fight off Mexican soldiers, the Church and its witch-hunters, goldminers and silver barons, the Triads and the cops, "the whole wave of mankind." Although he is able to keep the peace, Archon's rule is characterised by his ruthless control of the clans.
["The Embraced," "The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori," and "Cabin in the Woods." Archon tells Julian that "the Ventrue Clan has led the Kindred for a hundred and fifty years," but it is clear from Cyrus ruling Los Angeles, if nothing else, that this is not the case for all Kindred everywhere, so Archon is probably referring to the history of San Francisco specifically.]
James Marshall discovers gold in the South Fork of the American River, at the site where General John A. Sutter is building a sawmill. Thus begins the California Gold Rush.
[Historical accounts.]
About eighty thousand "forty-niners" stampede to the West Coast, looking for gold. Among the people who follow the Gold Rush to California are 19-year-old Julian Luna (who settles in the mining country of the Sierra Nevada Mountains), Alexandra Serris's father, and "Skinny Legs" Swenson.
[Historical accounts, "The Embraced," "Cabin in the Woods," and the Kindred website. Alexandra reveals her father's history to Frank, and Julian tells Caitlin about Swenson coming out in 1849, although he denies knowing him personally. The website explains Julian's reasons for coming to California.]
Archon Raine is recorded as having died in this year.
["Cabin in the Woods." The date is on his tombstone.]
Stevie Ray is Embraced into Clan Gangrel.
[Conjecture. The coroner stated in "The Embraced" says that his organs "are way past a hundred years," giving only a vague clue as to his true age.]
Emilie Charlotte Le Breton is born in Saint Saviour on the Isle of Jersey to the Very Reverend William Corbet Le Breton, Dean of Jersey, and Emilie Davis. She will one day go by the stage name Lillie Langtry.
[Historical accounts.]
Julian and Evelyn Luna are married. Soon after, John Luna is born to them in Napa Valley, but Evelyn dies in childbirth. John Luna eventually grows up and fills the Napa Valley with his own children.
["The Embraced" and the Kindred website. Julian describes his family history to Lillie, who for some reason has never been told this before. The date comes from Evelyn's tombstone; John's name and the identical year for Julian's marriage come from the Kindred website.]
Julian is devastated by the death of his wife and can't go on living, so Archon Raine chooses to Embrace him into Clan Ventrue. He becomes Archon's enforcer, although Archon's judgment is sometimes too ruthless. As the Ventrue gunman, Archon sends Julian to "do the dirty work," and he does many violent things in his service.
["The Embraced," "Bad Moon Rising," and "Cabin in the Woods." Julian mentions his despair to Lillie and she later reminds Julian before his battle with Goth that he is Prince now and not a gunman anymore. Julian also tells Caitlin about his former position under Archon: "He was the judge, I was the executioner."]
The City and County of San Francisco is formed, and a new county called "San Mateo" is created out of the remainder of the old County of San Francisco.
[Historical accounts.]
Joshua A. Norton proclaims himself Emperor of the United States. Emperor Norton becomes one of the more colourful figures in San Francisco history.
[Historical accounts. At least one live-action chronicle that I am aware of featured Emperor Norton as a Malkavian character.]
"Skinny Legs" Swenson dies on his claim when a ten-pound gold nugget falls on his head and kills him.
["Cabin in the Woods." Julian tells Caitlin, "He worked a claim for fifteen years and never found gold," until this happened.]
The first westbound train arrives in San Francisco.
[Historical accounts.]
Emilie Le Breton marries Edward Langtry at St Saviours Parish Church on the Isle of Jersey.
[Historical accounts.]
Alexandra Serris is born in a mine.
["The Embraced." Alexandra tells Frank her story.]
George Hearst accepts a small daily newspaper, the San Francisco Examiner, as payment for a gambling debt. A few years later, he will allow his son, William Randolph Hearst, to take over the paper.
[Historical accounts.]
Emperor Norton drops dead on California Street.
[Historical accounts.]
Lillie Langtry causes a sensation in England by being the first society woman to go on the stage, performing the role of Lady Clara in A Fair Encounter at Twickenham Town Hall.
[Historical accounts.]
August Octavia Luna is born in Napa Valley, the first child of John Luna. Julian Luna will come to admire him more than any other human being and to wish he could be more like him. August isn't afraid to be alive, and his whole life is a celebration.
[Conjecture. Assumes John has his first son at the same age Julian did. This would make him an impressive 114 at the time of his death, but he can't be too much younger. The description of August's zeal for life comes from Julian's speech at his wake in "The Embraced."]
Lillie Langtry invests most of her savings in the United States.
[Historical accounts.]
While in San Francisco in July, Lillie Langtry renounces her British allegiance and applies for naturalisation as a citizen of the United States.
[Historical accounts.]
Lillie is Embraced into Clan Toreador.
[Conjecture. Assumes Lillie was Embraced shortly after arriving in San Francisco, which would help explain why she ultimately returned there. The Kindred website only offers that she was Embraced "more than a hundred years ago." Conveniently, this date is also consistent with Lillie's apparent age.]
Lillie Langtry and her paramour, Freddie Gebhard (whom Oscar Wilde had introduced to her in New York), purchase 4200 acres of the Guenoc Valley in Lake County, 90 miles north of San Francisco. They plan to raise thoroughbred racehorses, make "the greatest claret in the country," and build a love nest away from the prying eyes of the press. A portrait of her by George Frederic Watts becomes the label she places on the wine produced at the Langtry Estate, but she only visits there once.
[Historical accounts. Lillie's quoted wish sounds oddly like Julian's description of August's wishes in "The Embraced." "Claret" also happens to be a slang term for blood. This and the other real facts about Lillie mentioned in this timeline are only a very superficial gloss on the historical Lillie Langtry. I've only included those major events which I felt might prove enlightening for the character we see in the series. She had a fascinating life (none of which was actually referred to in the series, strangely enough) which can't all be detailed here due to space restrictions, so I would recommend doing more independent research into Lillie Langtry's story.]
Breaking under the strain of working with Paul Gauguin and trying to form an Impressionist community in southern France, Vincent van Gogh cuts off part of his left ear.
[Historical accounts. In "Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse," Sasha tells Zane that all Toreadors are like van Gogh: "you cut off your ear because people don't understand, just like he did."]
In despair of ever overcoming his loneliness or being cured of his mental illness, Vincent van Gogh shoots himself in Auvers-sur-Oise, near Paris. He dies two days later.
[Historical accounts. In "Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse," Zane tells Sasha that van Gogh "killed himself for love," which isn't really accurate. Ironically, Sasha seems to know the artist's life better than Zane does. The Kindred website claims that van Gogh was actually Embraced by the Toreador "when he decided he couldn't live among human beings anymore," which series creator John Leekley reiterates on the DVD commentary for the Extended Pilot, further confounding the issue.]
Lillie Langtry begins an on-again, off-again love affair with Julian Luna. The pair eventually share the same home, but they break up for "all the wrong reasons," complicated matters such as petty jealousies and Julian "just being a man." Although they cease to be lovers, the two remain friends and business associates.
["The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori," "Bad Moon Rising," "Cabin in the Woods," and "Extra Gets Embraced!!" Lillie tells Frank that the relationship is "a longtime thing. He's had others and so have I." This may be a cryptic reference to Alexandra, implying that their relationship came first. She later tells Caitlin that "Julian and I were lovers a long time ago," and similarly affirms Cameron's statement that she has "been with the Prince for a long time." Julian also has trouble explaining to Caitlin why Lillie lives in his mansion. The specific date is conjecture, assuming that the two would've gotten together fairly soon after Lillie was Embraced.]
Edward Langtry dies, leaving Lillie Langtry a widow.
[Historical accounts. Given the infidelities attributed to the historical Lillie, there is no real conflict with her becoming involved with Julian during her first marriage.]
Bram Stoker is hired by the Kindred to write the novel Dracula in order to propagate myths about vampires, which include the notions that they sleep in coffins or dirt, come from Transylvania, have two big fangs, are invisible in mirrors, that they can be warded off with silver bullets, garlic strings, or crosses, bats flying around, and so on. This is part of the Masquerade, and it keeps humans occupied looking for those signs, when in fact, the Kindred could be sitting on the park bench next to them. Other storytellers like him are also hired to spread these falsehoods.
[Kindred website and AOL chat. It would appear that a specific reference to this was intended to be made at some unproduced point in the series.]
Lillie Langtry marries Hugo Gerald de Bathe, once again at St Saviours Church.
[Historical accounts.]
Julian Luna is recorded as having died in this year.
["The Embraced" and "Cabin in the Woods." The date is on his tombstone.]
Lillie Langtry turns the old Aquarium Theatre in London into the Imperial Theatre (modelled on a Greek temple) and opens it under her own management, but she will sell it two years later.
[Historical accounts. This is consistent with Lillie's later remodelling of The Haven's exterior, and her being in England during this period might explain how Julian could become involved with Alexandra to begin with.]
Lillie Langtry sells her estate in Guenoc Valley, though it retains her name.
[Historical accounts.]
Julian Luna meets and falls in love with Alexandra Serris. They are lovers for a long time, and he gives her a locket with a picture of a rose inside it. Even though he loves her enough to Embrace her into Clan Ventrue, however, he can't overcome the memory of his former wife and child enough to marry her. The relationship ends with Alexandra bitter towards Julian for taking her innocence by force, although she keeps the locket by her heart for many years.
["The Embraced," "Prince of the City," and "Extra Gets Embraced!!" The date is conjecture based on Alexandra's apparent age. The online article states that "Alexandra patiently waits 50 years for Julian to come around, and then throws in the towel," implying the period of their initial relationship, but this is inconsistent with Alexandra's explicit birthdate.]
At 5:12 AM, San Francisco is wrecked by an earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale. There are 135 aftershocks that day, and 22 the next. The damage leads to the city's seventh Great Fire.
[Historical accounts.]
Hugo Gerald de Bathe becomes a baronet, and Lillie Langtry comes to be called Lady de Bathe.
[Historical accounts.]
Lillie Langtry performs on the stage for the last time.
[Historical accounts.]
Lillie Langtry is recorded as having died on this date in Monte Carlo. A marble bust marks her grave at a churchyard in St Saviour on the Isle of Jersey.
[Historical accounts. As we all know, there is no actual body buried in that grave.]
August Octavia Luna asks his family if they'll help him start a winery. It is in the depths of the Depression and Prohibition stands in his way, but August has a very simple idea: to replant with vines from the finest bordeaux, to vinify in stainless steel, to age in small French oak, and to make the finest wine in America. The family agrees and the Luna Winery is born, making fortunes for many in the family as well as making the finest wine.
["The Embraced." Julian describes the history of the winery in his speech at August's funeral.]
Alcatraz Island is made into a prison.
[Historical accounts.]
A maritime strike begins in San Francisco, which escalates into violence between unionists and police on July 3. The riot on July 5 comes to be known as "Bloody Thursday."
[Historical accounts.]
The San Francisco Museum of Art opens.
[Historical accounts.]
The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge opens.
[Historical accounts.]
The Golden Gate Bridge opens to pedestrian traffic.
[Historical accounts.]
The United Nations Charter is signed in San Francisco.
[Historical accounts.]
Jack Kerouac coins the term "beat" to describe his style of poetry. The Beat Generation is largely centred in the bohemian artist community of San Francisco's North Beach.
[Historical accounts.]
The Supreme Court of California rules in Stoumen v. Reilly that bars cannot be discriminated against because they choose to cater to gays or lesbians after the San Francisco Police Department and the State Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission attempt to close down The Black Cat, a gay bar in San Francisco.
[Historical accounts.]
Julian Luna and Lillie Langtry see Elvis Presley, "that hillbilly with blue suede shoes," in the Memphis performance that made him a legend. Julian remembers that he looked nervous.
["Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse." Julian and Lillie reminisce as they watch Zane perform at The Haven.]
Alcatraz Island ceases to be used as a prison with the closing of the Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary.
[Historical accounts.]
A New Year's Eve costume ball at California Hall to raise funds for the Council on Religion and the Homosexual is harassed by police. It becomes a turning point in the San Francisco gay rights movement.
[Historical accounts.]
Frank Kohanek is born.
[Conjecture based on the age of actor C. Thomas Howell.]
Caitlin Byrne is born. She comes from an Irish heritage.
["The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori." Caitlin celebrated her birthday in that episode. The fact she was turning 30 comes from the Kindred website, making Caitlin two years older than actress Kelly Rutherford. "Extra Gets Embraced!!" describes her as "a fiery Irish lass."]
As many as a hundred thousand hippies and other people from around the world converge on the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco over the course of several months in a counterculture event that comes to be known as the Summer of Love.
[Historical accounts.]
A group called "Indians of All Tribes" occupies Alcatraz Island in an unsuccessful attempt to gain title from the US government. They will stay there for the next two years.
[Historical accounts. Interestingly, this happened to take place on Caitlin's third birthday.]
Janis Joplin dies of a heroin overdose complicated by alcohol in Los Angeles.
[Historical accounts. In "Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse," Lillie used Joplin as an example to Zane of a young musician who was out of control.]
Cash is born in San Francisco.
[Conjecture. Assumes Cash is the same age as Zane. This would make Cash two years younger than actor Channon Roe.]
Jim Morrison dies of a heart attack in Paris. At the same moment, Zane is born in San Francisco.
[Historical accounts. In "Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse," Zane told Caitlin he was born the same day Morrison died and told Lillie that San Francisco is his home. This makes Zane a mere two months younger than actor Ivan Sergei. Lillie also used Morrison as an example to Zane of a young musician who was out of control.]
Stevie Ray is recorded as being born in this year.
["The Embraced." The coroner says he wasn't 24 as stated in the police reports.]
Around this time, Starkweather's parents keep him out of school for two years. His father, "a real believer in home schooling," locks him in their basement closet, systematically abusing and later abandoning his son. This trauma eventually turns Starkweather into an insane killer.
["Nightstalker." Starkweather tells Doctor Mestres about his childhood, and Julian refers to these events when talking to Frank. The date is conjecture, assuming that Starkweather is 25 and that his parents kept him at home as a young child, when he didn't know any better.]
Zane's grandmother tells him a metaphor for morality, that we all have a black dog and a white dog. The one we feed the most eventually eats the other one.
["Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse." Zane tells Cash this story. The date is conjecture, but would have to occur before Zane became a street kid.]
Elvis Presley dies suddenly in Memphis. His death is attributed to natural causes.
[Historical accounts. In "Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse," Lillie compares Zane's rising fame to that of Elvis, and Julian warns her to "remember what happened to that hillbilly from Tupelo."]
Sasha Luna is born in Napa Valley. She is the last of Julian Luna's mortal descendants, and he is present at her birth. Sasha is a handful from the beginning, shaking her fist at people from her crib.
[Kindred DVD and Kindred website. Her birthplace is conjecture. In a deleted scene from "Nightstalker," available on the later DVD release of the series, Julian mentions being there for Sasha's birth and describes how she has always been a handful. Sasha's age makes her six years younger than actress Brigid Walsh. Despite the website's description of Sasha as Julian's great-granddaughter, she is his grandson's granddaughter, and therefore his great-great-granddaughter. Sasha is also a diminutive form of Alexandra, so that may be her real name...could Julian have used his influence to have her named after his former love?]
Dan White shoots and kills Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk inside San Francisco City Hall.
[Historical accounts.]
Ruth Doyle is born. Her father leaves her at a young age, and she grows up without being properly taken care of and loved.
["Bad Moon Rising." In describing her own pregnancy to Camilla, Caitlin says she was 17, "the same age as this girl's mom." Ruth tells Caitlin her father "hasn't had anything to do with me in years," and she swears that her daughter Jessie won't have to grow up the way she did.]
Dianne Feinstein wins the runoff election for Mayor of San Francisco, having already been appointed Acting Mayor the previous year after the assassination of Mayor George Moscone.
[Historical accounts. Feinstein was the incumbent mayor of the city when Julian Luna became Prince of San Francisco.]
As kids, Cash and Zane play on a set of tracks outside San Francisco.
["Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse." Zane says he loves the area around the tracks because it hasn't changed since they were kids. The date is conjecture, but this would have to happen after Zane became a street kid.]
Sasha Luna's mother tells her, "Never stare into the sun." Sasha also hears the family rumours about Julian Luna, "the uncle from the city, the one who never looks older," and even wants them to be true.
["Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse" and "Extra Gets Embraced!!" Sasha tells Zane the story about her mother, and the online article "quotes" Sasha saying she's heard the rumours all her life. The date is conjecture, and the two events do not have to go together, but would have to occur before Sasha's parents died.]
Caitlin Byrne becomes unexpectedly pregnant. Her boyfriend tells her that she's beautiful and that he loves her, but then he disappears. Alone and scared, her family is able to pressure her into giving the child away by convincing her that she'd be bad for her own baby. She carries her guilt over what she did for many years, closing herself off from further intimacy with others.
["Bad Moon Rising." Caitlin says she was 17 when this happened. Although she was born in 1966, her late birthday would indicate that this probably occurred early the following year.]
A Louis Roederer Cristal of this year's vintage is the most expensive bottle in Julian Luna's wine inventory.
["Nightstalker." One of Julian's servants informs Caitlin of this. Oddly enough, this champagne vintage costs "only" around $400 US a bottle, and there are plenty of more expensive wines Julian could afford to keep in his cellar.]
Cameron is Embraced into Clan Brujah.
["Cabin in the Woods." Cameron tells Lillie that he cares about the clansmen who Embraced him "ten years ago," but by definition, he would have to Embraced before they and his Sire were killed in the Manzanita massacre.]
There is a war between the clans in San Francisco. The Gangrel and the Toreador make peace, but the Brujah want power, so Julian and the Ventrue have to fight back.
["Cabin in the Woods." Julian describes this to Caitlin as the prelude to the Manzanita massacre. As usual, the Nosferatu would've been neutral in this war.]
Archon Raine orders Julian to wipe out a group of Brujah at the Old Mission Winery in Manzanita. He tells Julian, and everyone else, that these Brujah had slaughtered unarmed Ventrue and it was a mission of justice, but in reality, he has a score to settle with their leader; they had committed no crime except being Brujah. It is a personal vendetta, and Archon makes Julian his "angel of wrath." This fight is different from the others Julian had been involved in, however--the Brujah keep coming at him, and he keeps killing, until half the Brujah in the area are dead, including Cameron's Sire and a loved one of Sorrel's whom he watches die before his eyes. Late in the night, neighbours hear gunfire and screaming, and call the police. When the fight is done, Julian destroys the winery by burning it down. Flames light the sky, and when the police finally come, they have to wait for the fire to die. Inside, they find bullet holes and blood everywhere, but not one body remains. The crime remains unsolved, and the Old Mission Winery becomes more famous for it than it does for its wine. Cameron is the only Brujah Julian doesn't burn, though the Kindred in the city assume that all the Brujah there are dead.
["Cabin in the Woods." This is by far the most thoroughly described incident in the entire series. Several characters refer to this happening "ten years ago," but Caitlin reads aloud from the guidebook that the crime took place in 1985. Sorrel and Cameron discuss what happened (despite the fact they were both there), and Archon mistakenly assures Lillie that if any Brujah in Manzanita still lived, "we would have heard of it." At the final conclave, Cameron bitterly describes how his clansmen did not deserve "to be ripped apart and thrown on some bonfire to be burned alive."]
Julian realises that he is becoming like the Brujah, nothing more than a monster that has to be stopped, and he knows he can't kill for Archon anymore. He lays his weapons down, and Archon, in turn, realises that Julian's time has come, and he will lead the Kindred further than Archon ever could. His ferociousness helped win the war for the Ventrue, but his hunger for peace unites the clans, so Archon steps down as Prince and puts Julian in his place, remaining as Ventrue Primogen to advise him.
["Cabin in the Woods." Julian describes what happened to Caitlin and Archon describes it to Daedalus simultaneously. Cash also makes a brief reference to the fact that Julian stopped the last clan war when talking to Sasha, so he is up on local history. Although the Kindred website says that Julian has been Prince for "seven years," it seems unlikely that Archon would wait four years to carry out his reformation, so to speak.]
Archon, freed from his position as Prince, begins trying to "reach the light," since he feels he lost his soul when he sent Julian to Manzanita. He never tells Julian the truth about what he did wrong, though, because "Julian couldn't have lived with himself had he known." Instead, Archon hopes his crime will simply die with those Brujah and that vengeance will never come. What holds him back from attaining his goal is not a lack of age or wisdom, but the weight of his past--the bloodshed, the killings, and the vendettas like the one he called on the Brujah.
["Cabin in the Woods." This is more of the aftermath of the Manzanita massacre, as described by Archon.]
Sorrel sends Cameron to San Francisco to learn the ways of the Kindred in the city, telling him never to come home until Archon and Julian are dead, and Cameron is in their place. Cameron stands by and watches Eddie Fiori kiss Julian's hand "year after gutless year," but he does learn from this that he can't become Prince just by taking it--he must first earn the respect of every clan and their leaders. He also becomes aware of Eddie's mistaken belief that being Prince means having Lillie Langtry as a lover, and how that is part of the reason Eddie wants the job.
["Cabin in the Woods." This would have to be almost immediately after the massacre.]
Abel's mother leaves him at Bay General Hospital, and the doctors there take him in.
["Romeo and Juliet." Abel tells Daedalus that he was "always there" at the hospital. The date is conjecture based on the age of actor Emile Hirsch.]
The AIDS Memorial Quilt is started by a small group of strangers in San Francisco.
[Historical accounts.]
Goth, Nosferatu Primogen and a rival of Daedalus, begins experimenting with ancient blood rites in order to grow stronger, but those rites are too dangerous and put the Kindred at risk of exposure to humans. He challenges Julian Luna for power, against the laws of the Kindred, and ultimately has to be overthrown to protect the Masquerade. It is a time of tension between the clans in San Francisco and Julian has the chance to execute him, but he spares Goth's life, banishing him from the city and warning him that if he returns, his life will be forfeit. After his exile, Goth performs Blood Ritual to revert to the Nosferatu's primitive form.
["Bad Moon Rising" and AOL chat. The specific date is conjecture. Sonny says, "He was banished years ago," and the dialogue references generally imply that the incident occurred fairly soon after Julian became Prince. Camilla's comments to Goth indicate that the clans were not at peace and supporting him at the time as they are now. Writer PK Simonds clarifies in the AOL chat that Goth "held the position of Primogen before Daedalus" and elaborates on his original transgressions.]
Julian Luna visits his family in Napa Valley, including 11-year-old Sasha Luna, who wears "pigtails and frilly dresses." He takes the opportunity to visit his wife's grave.
["The Embraced." Julian says in "Cabin in the Woods" that he hasn't left San Francisco in seven years, which would seem to coincide with this visit.]
At 5:04 PM, an earthquake measuring 7.1 on the Richter scale strikes Loma Prieta, affecting the entire San Francisco Bay Area.
[Historical accounts.]
Frank Kohanek's wife commits suicide by jumping out a window. He continues wearing his wedding ring nevertheless.
["The Embraced." Frank tells Alexandra about his wife's death. The date is conjecture, though the Kindred website states that she killed herself "some years ago." The fact he still wears the wedding ring comes from "Extra Gets Embraced!!"]
Zane practices his music by banging on an old fender, and Cash tells him he'll never make it. Eventually, the two friends drift apart.
["Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse." The date and their drifting apart are conjecture, as it is the only explanation I can think of for why Zane, such a close friend of Cash's, was not Embraced at the same time or under the same circumstances as he was.]
Cash and a number of other street kids are Embraced by Stevie Ray into Clan Gangrel.
[Conjecture based on Cash's apparent age. He describes Stevie Ray as his Sire and that of the other Gangrel in "The Embraced."]
Sasha Luna's parents die, cause unknown.
["Prince of the City." Sasha says that "since my folks are all gone, I take care of myself," so she must've been at least a teenager when they died. Since their death probably also caused her change in personality, it must have been after the last time Julian saw her. Her self-reliance contradicts facts about the Luna family given in "The Embraced," however. For example, if Julian's human relatives are all dead, who were the people attending August's funeral?]
August Luna teaches his granddaughter, Sasha, how to fix a Harley using a wrench and bailing wire. Sasha considers him the only member of her family who gives a damn about her.
["The Embraced." Describing this is Sasha's version of a tribute at August's funeral. He would've presumably taught her this after her parents died and her "Harley leather" phase started.]
Looters and vandals hit downtown San Francisco following the Rodney King beating verdict.
[Historical accounts.]
Kurt Cobain kills himself with a gunshot wound to the head in Seattle.
[Historical accounts. In "Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse," Lillie used Cobain as an example to Zane of a young musician who was out of control.]
Cyrus lays the groundwork for the Brujah to take over Los Angeles by muscle, with him becoming Prince. Eddie Fiori helps in the takeover.
["The Embraced" and "The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori." This probably took place before Eddie's actions in San Francisco. Lillie's comments in "The Embraced" would seem to imply that Eddie took LA personally, but this is clearly not the case.]
Julian Luna forms "an agreement" with Cyrus for the latter to stay out of San Francisco.
["The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori." Julian was probably aware of Cyrus's desire to take over all of California, so as soon as he became Prince of Los Angeles, he would forbid him entrance to his city.]
Ruth Doyle becomes unexpectedly pregnant. Her boyfriend tells her he loves her, but when she informs him of the pregnancy, he stops talking to her. Both her parents and her best friend insist that she get an abortion, but she sticks to her guns and carries the baby to term.
["Bad Moon Rising." Ruth tells Caitlin what happened. Naturally, this would be within nine months of Jessie being born. After not having anything to do with Ruth for so long, why would her father return just to insist that she get rid of her baby?]
Lillie Langtry discovers Zane, a street kid poisoned with dope and singing songs on the sidewalk for spare change. Sensing the real music locked up inside of him, she pulls him off the street, Embracing him into Clan Toreador and looking after his musical career. The two also become lovers. Zane reunites with his old friend Cash, and Cash tells him some things about the Kindred, such as the fact that Gangrel and Brujah are "like oil and water."
["Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse." Lillie says that Zane was on the streets "a year ago," and that when her bed was empty, Zane was there to fill it. He would have to reunite with Cash and learn about the clans from him after his Embrace.]
Willie Brown is elected Mayor of San Francisco.
[Historical accounts. Brown was the incumbent mayor of the city during the events of the series.]
Jessica Doyle is born is San Francisco. Her grandmother tries to convince her mother to give her up to a "real" family, but Ruth is determined not to abandon her child the way she was abandoned.
["Bad Moon Rising." The baby appears to be less than a year old.]
Eddie Fiori muscles his way into record companies belonging to the Toreador. This is part of an ongoing campaign by the Brujah to move on the other clans.
["The Embraced." Lillie describes Eddie's actions to Julian. This would've presumably been some of the official impetus for the police investigation.]
Around this date, the San Francisco Police Department begins an investigation into Eddie Fiori and Julian Luna, who they believe are involved in a gang syndicate. Frank Kohanek and Sonny Toussaint are the detectives assigned to the case, but despite the assumed targets, it is actually Julian himself who arranges it for Sonny to go after Fiori. This investigation includes searching for Julian Luna's bodyguard, Stevie Ray.
["The Embraced" and "Prince of the City." Frank says he and Sonny have been looking for Stevie Ray for two months.]
Frank Kohanek's superiors instruct him to stop the investigation into Julian Luna, but Frank suspects something and continues to follow him anyway.
["The Embraced." Julian mentions this to Archon.]
The SFPD gets a signed statement from Paulie Boyle, Vice-President of the Dock Worker's Union, that Eddie Fiori was taking bribes from the big shipping lines in return for concessions from the union. Boyle himself had accepted a million dollars in bribes.
["Prince of the City." The investigation has already been going on for a while, but the police wouldn't wait more than a few weeks to plan a sting operation. Kwan's reminder to Frank to leave Julian Luna alone implies that this information is unrelated to him.]
In the course of investigating Fiori, Frank meets Julian's "longtime squeeze," Alexandra Serris, and asks her out on a date. They become lovers, and she shows him colours he didn't even know existed. Alexandra doesn't count on falling in love again, but Frank's simplicity and humanity have her daring to risk it, only this time she is the Kindred and her love the ordinary human.
["The Embraced," "Prince of the City," and "Extra Gets Embraced!!" Sonny discusses the history of the relationship, first with Frank and later with Julian, despite the fact that everyone concerned already knows what happened. Julian tells Alexandra he found out secondhand about her and "the cop who hunts me," implying that the relationship began after Frank got into his role of hunting Julian.]
Caitlin Byrne comes up with the idea of writing an article about obscure businessman Julian Luna and begins asking questions about him around the city. In the course of her research for the article, she learns that the Luna family used to live not far from Manzanita Springs and that the Luna Winery is presently located on the other side of Napa Valley from there.
["Prince of the City" and "Cabin in the Woods." Caitlin has enough time to become thoroughly familiar with Julian's lack of official documentation, but she is only meeting him for the first time at The Haven.]
Eddie Fiori and the Brujah are able to temporarily capture Stevie Ray. They question him about Julian Luna, but he tells them nothing and eventually manages to escape.
[Shortly before "The Embraced," as it begins with Stevie Ray being chased by the Brujah.]
Frank gets a phone call from an informant with a disguised voice telling him he will find Stevie Ray, Julian Luna's bodyguard, on the roof of a certain warehouse at dawn. He "wakes up" Sonny to get him to come down with him.
[Just prior to "The Embraced."]
"The Embraced"
Eddie Fiori kills Stevie Ray, Gangrel Primogen, by stabbing him with an antenna at dawn on the roof of an eight-storey warehouse. Frank and Sonny arrive just as that happens and the Brujah get away.
Frank and Sonny take Stevie Ray's body to the Coroner's Office and tell the coroner, Charon, that the body burst into flames due to spontaneous combustion.
Archon Raine and Julian discuss Stevie Ray's murder and the quick arrival of the cops, concluding that there is a traitor among the Kindred.
Alexandra and Frank have dinner at a suburban restaurant, where Alexandra drinks the blood of a cocaine user and warns Frank to stay away from Julian. Afterwards, they make love at Alexandra's apartment, and Frank gets called away to follow Julian.
Julian makes his way to The Haven to meet with Lillie Langtry.
Julian hires Cash as his new bodyguard. As they talk outside The Haven, Eddie Fiori and the Brujah stage a drive-by shooting. Frank and Sonny arrive moments later.
Julian asks Daedalus to "pay a visit" to both Eddie Fiori and the County Coroner.
Charon phones Frank at home to report the peculiarities in Stevie Ray's autopsy. Frank tells him not to talk to anyone about his findings. As Charon hangs up the phone, Daedalus arrives, Dominates him into slicing open his arm, and drains his blood.
Frank arrives at the morgue and finds Charon's dying body.
August Octavia Luna dies of heart failure while working in the vineyards of his winery. He is the last of Julian Luna's grandchildren to die and the one Julian was most proud of--"the pride of my life, come to his peaceful rest."
Julian almost has red wine with Lillie, sharing his worries concerning Frank Kohanek and Alexandra. Archon appears and informs Julian about the death of his grandson.
Julian talks to Alexandra before leaving for Napa Valley. She asks him to allow her and Frank to leave the city and lead a normal life, but he refuses.
[Sonny complains to Frank about being woken up on a Sunday morning. I have used "The Embraced" as the name of the pilot episode because that was the title given for it on the Kindred website, though it was later titled "Original Saga" on the initial VHS and DVD boxsets followed by (the more expansive but less descriptive) "Kindred: The Embraced" on the later DVD release.]
Julian visits the grave of his late wife Evelyn in Napa Valley. He melds with the earth to lie with her.
Julian places a bottle of every vintage of wine his grandson August ever made for consumption in the room where his wake is to be held.
Julian makes a moving speech about his grandson at the request of the family.
Sasha Luna arrives at the wake on her motorcycle. She makes her own speech about August.
Meanwhile, in San Francisco, Frank has rough sex with Alexandra.
Alexandra licks a cut on Frank's face, healing it. Frank begins to suspect the truth about her.
Julian talks with Archon about the difficulties in keeping the clans together.
Spotting a henchman of Julian's, Alexandra feeds off him and drops his unconscious body off at Julian's place.
Lillie meets with Fiori at a gym, offering him club dates for his singers in return for his helping her get rid of Alexandra.
Julian holds a primogen meeting about the murder of Stevie Ray and Alexandra's breaking of the Masquerade. He calls a Blood Hunt on her.
Alexandra tries to break it off with Frank for his own safety, but he doesn't heed her warnings.
Alexandra reveals the truth about herself to Frank. He asks to be Embraced, but she refuses. After he feels the effects of her blood, she turns into a wolf and disappears.
Frank tries to convince Sonny of the existence of vampires, but Sonny plays dumb and scoffs at Frank's story, accusing him of going crazy.
Julian meets with Alexandra one last time. He tries to get her to seek sanctuary in his home or leave the city, but she refuses both offers, instead asking him to protect Frank and giving him back her locket. Julian swears he will not let Frank die.
Lillie asks Julian why he met Alexandra and he tells her. She says it no longer matters.
Alexandra is chased down by other Kindred. She jumps into a cab, but Daedalus is at the wheel. Daedalus is merciful, taking her close to the Golden Gate Bridge and telling her the water is her sanctuary.
Frank is informed of her location, reaching her just as she takes a "flaming dive" into San Francisco Bay.
Sonny calls Frank, telling him what is going on and where he can find Luna. He is calling from Fiori's place, and after the call, Fiori boasts of how he will be Prince and give Sonny whatever he wants.
Frank confronts Julian in Alexandra's rose garden, shooting him twice.
Julian walks away from the confrontation, leaving behind the locket, which Frank keeps. He returns home alone to grieve the loss of Alexandra.
[In "Prince of the City," Julian says that Cash has "just joined" his security, and Cash is shown moving into Julian's compound, implying that the events of this episode happened quite recently.]
Lillie orders renovations to The Haven, presumably because of damage from the Brujah attack. Amongst the new features are an Asian-style side street entrance with a wooden sign and wheelchair accessibility.
[Conjecture. In "The Embraced," The Haven had a corner entrance with a neon sign and a valet parking attendant, unlike the club we are familiar with from later episodes. The neon sign later makes a reappearance over The Haven's rear entrance in "Cabin in the Woods."]
Frank begins acting strangely at work, talking about vampires and beating up suspects.
["Prince of the City." One of the Internal Affairs investigators refers to Frank's change in behaviour. Granted, this is hardly enough time for a chronic problem to develop, but it makes less sense for Cash to take his time moving into Julian's compound during a delicate security situation.]
Sasha gets into a fight with an off-duty cop in the parking lot of a roadhouse outside San Francisco, clubbing him to the ground. He was arguing with his wife and pushing her around at the time. Sasha tries to make it into the city limits, but she is caught and arrested. She gives the police Julian's name, as he is the only person she can think of who might be willing to bail her out.
[The night before "Prince of the City."]
"Prince of the City"
Frank and Sonny meet with their lieutenant about a planned sting operation on Eddie Fiori using Paulie Boyle. Lieutenant Kwan orders Frank to leave Julian Luna alone.
At nine in the evening, Boyle and the police arrive at the Administration Offices of the union. Boyle talks to Fiori and Nino Donelli with a wire, but they catch on to him, and Donelli impales him with a longshoreman's spike. The police come in and find Frank holding the spike, immediately suspecting him of the murder.
A wolf runs Frank down, turning into Fiori. Fiori warns Frank to stay away from him.
Julian arrives to bail Sasha out of a city jail and take her home. She rebels at that idea, but the police have released her into his custody. He drives her back to his compound.
The San Francisco Times carries an article on the murder of Paulie Boyle.
Two cops from Internal Affairs take statements from all of Frank's co-workers and question him about Boyle's murder. Lieutenant Kwan tells Frank he will get a fair hearing, but he storms out.
Cash arrives at the Luna compound with his things and meets Sasha for the first time.
Julian goes to The Haven to meet with Caitlin Byrne, who explains her interest in writing an article about his mysterious background. He agrees to grant Caitlin an interview on the condition that for every question he answers, she must answer one as well.
[In "Cabin in the Woods," Caitlin says that she and Julian have been "seeing each other for almost two months," so I placed their first meeting exactly two months before that statement. This is the basis for most of the episode dates in the series. The newspaper article about Boyle is implied in Julian's comments to the editorial board in "Bad Moon Rising."]
While these events are occurring, Starkweather meets a dark Gangrel woman in the therapy ward of a psychiatric hospital. They have sex in a closet, where she claws his chest open and proceeds to Embrace him. Afterwards, she simply leaves him there with blood in his mouth.
["Nightstalker." Starkweather tells Cash his story, saying it happened a week ago.]
A nurse at Bay General Hospital tips the San Francisco Times about the conditions there, saying that all the children are anaemic and malnourished. Caitlin begins an investigative piece on the hospital, considering it one of those awful stories that has to be told. In the course of the investigation, the nurse takes undercover photos of the conditions in question, and Caitlin only talks about the hospital with her reporters and Julian.
["Romeo and Juliet." Caitlin tells Frank that she has been working on this piece for "a few weeks," which would predate her becoming editor. Given her sense of duty in reporting this story, she probably exercised her editorial authority to take charge of the investigation.]
Julian meets Frank at the Nighthawks Diner. He offers to make the IA investigation "go away" and make sure justice is done in the Boyle murder.
Frank goes to the library to do research on vampires. Sonny accompanies him. Amazingly, some of the old texts he pores over feature the artwork of Timothy Bradstreet.
Julian has dinner with Caitlin at the Montezinos Restaurant, where Caitlin conducts her interview. She leaves because Julian is asking personal questions. He produces a birth certificate for her, but the ink is still wet.
Sasha's bike is brought into the Luna garage on a trailer, and Cash starts working on it. Sasha and Cash share an innuendo-filled exchange. They kiss, and he gives her a ride to The Haven.
Julian and Lillie make love, after which she asks him what he plans to do with Caitlin. Julian decides to buy the San Francisco Times.
Julian is surprised to find Sasha at The Haven and orders Cash to take her home, with a veiled threat should Cash take advantage of her.
Fiori and Donelli spy on Frank and consider Embracing him.
Julian surprises Caitlin on her doorstep. She has him over for dinner and they kiss.
Julian goes to The Haven and introduces Frank to Lillie. Frank gives Boyle's pinky ring to Julian for use in implicating Fiori.
Fiori meets with Sonny and tells him to go to Julian.
Sonny does go to Julian, but he is not the traitor he appears to be. He, Julian, and Archon discuss how to finish off Fiori.
Frank finds a phosphorus gun with dragon's breath rounds in his house. He immediately receives a phone call from Sonny explaining the situation.
Julian calls a conclave, who use the ring to determine that Nino Donelli killed Boyle. Julian calls a Blood Hunt on him and asks the conclave to decide Fiori's life. The vote is even.
Donelli goes to Frank's house to Embrace him, but Frank shoots him with the phosphorus gun.
Frank meets Julian under a streetlight. Julian warns him what will happen if he declares war on the Kindred.
[Caitlin mentions to Julian that she has already finished her article on him, implying that it will be published shortly. There would've been no reason for her to sit on it, so to speak, if Julian hadn't bought the newspaper the next day...]
While these events are occurring, Starkweather escapes from the psychiatric hospital where he is being kept, which has Kindred on its staff. He had previously been diagnosed as schizophrenic and highly dangerous.
["Nightstalker." Archon explains what happened, saying it happened five days ago.]
The San Francisco Times is purchased by several corporations who are owned by other corporations who are owned by Julian Luna.
Conveniently, its city editor finalises his retirement plans.
Julian goes to Caitlin's house, informs her about the true nature of the purchase, and makes her the paper's new city editor. At 29, she is the youngest editor in the history of San Francisco.
Archon warns Julian of the danger Caitlin poses, especially because of his interest in her.
The San Francisco Times publishes Caitlin Byrne's article on Julian Luna, "The Most Powerful Man You've Never Met."
By the dawn's first light, Julian flies to Caitlin's home and watches her as she sleeps. She gets up and looks out her window, but Julian has already left.
[Caitlin's article would probably be published the day after she wrote it, but she would want to include the important fact that Julian just bought her newspaper. This could be why, for all his secrecy in this episode, Julian is very open about owning the paper later on in the series.]
Because Julian never leaves answering machine messages, Caitlin is forced to start picking up the phone as opposed to screening all her calls.
["The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori." Caitlin jokingly tells Julian he has ruined her whole life by doing this. Caitlin would've had to change her policy fairly quickly after she and Julian started seeing each other.]
"Nightstalker"
Daedalus tells Julian of his love for the singer, Elaine Robb.
Starkweather enters The Haven, which alerts the other Kindred. The floor manager tries to get him a drink and Cash tries to talk to him, but he begins tearing the place apart. Cash brawls with him so they will both be taken away by the police.
Elaine finds a note from Daedalus in her dressing room. She is called back to sing, and Daedalus takes the hair from her brush.
Later that night, Daedalus clandestinely watches Elaine in her hotel room.
Cash and Starkweather are held at the Suncrest Psychiatric Hospital for observation. Starkweather tells Cash what happened to him, and Cash explains that he is now a Kindred. Cash then Dominates an orderly into entering the observation room so Starkweather can feed from him.
Archon and Julian discuss Starkweather. Sasha walks in on the conversation and confronts Julian about the situation between her and Cash.
Doctor Mestres, a psychiatrist at the hospital, interviews Starkweather about his childhood. Starkweather kills the doctor, writing "Blood Brother" on the walls of the observation room with his blood.
Just as this is happening, Julian has managed to free Cash, who overheard the attack. He demands that they open the door to the observation room, and they find the doctor dead.
Frank and Sonny arrive at the crime scene, along with Caitlin.
Julian calls an unofficial conclave about Starkweather and Frank. (Fiori is not present.) He declares a Blood Hunt on Starkweather. Cash tries to talk to Julian about Sasha, but he "doesn't have time for that."
Julian talks to Daedalus about his feelings for Elaine and the dangers of alchemy.
Starkweather goes to his father's house and kills him by putting him in a trunk and sticking swords in it like a magician.
Julian has Caitlin over for dinner--lobster and wine. They share an intimate conversation.
Daedalus leaves a necklace in Elaine's hotel room, and the two share a conversation. He Dominates her so she won't report him to the police.
[Frank tells Caitlin he heard she was "the new city editor of the Times," implying that the events of "Prince of the City" occurred quite recently. The events of "The Embraced" are also referred to by Lillie. Julian and Caitlin's breath is fogging outdoors during the dinner scene.]
Frank, Sonny, and the police arrive at the scene of the latest murder. Frank warns Sonny that more murders are to come.
Starkweather kills seven more people.
[In the next scene after Frank's comments, Julian refers to the passage of time by saying, "Unbelievable. In one week, he's killed seven people." Meanwhile, he is looking at several photos of a corpse with the number "9" next to her body, as in the ninth victim.]
The front page of the San Francisco Times reads "Night Stalker Strikes Again" and carries a black & white photo of the ninth murder victim.
Julian tries to suppress certain elements of the murder spree in the paper, but Caitlin stands firm on her policy of trusting people with the truth.
Daedalus is frustrated that the alchemy isn't working as he wants it to. Lillie tells him to go to Elaine, since that's what they both want.
Julian talks to Frank at the Nighthawks Diner, trying to convince him that Starkweather is different from other Kindred and offering to help find him.
Daedalus goes back to Elaine's hotel room. The alchemy has worked--he looks human, complete with long curly hair. The two of them make love.
The front page of the San Francisco Times reads "The Hunt Is On For This Man" and carries Starkweather's mug shot. Other headlines on the front page include "Heat Will Be On As Trial Begins" and an article about a scientific claim.
Daedalus wakes up and realises the alchemy has worn off. He leaves, but not before Elaine sees his true form.
Elaine calls the police. They and the press (i.e. Frank, Sonny, and Caitlin) arrive at the Waldorf, where Elaine is staying. She swears she's seen the Night Stalker.
Starkweather witnesses this and is outraged at the "trick" of Elaine's false accusation.
Lillie assures Julian that they'll find Starkweather and reminds him that she, unlike any human, has always been there for him.
Starkweather replaces a police escort and drives Elaine to The Haven. Daedalus sees them leave the hotel.
Julian goes to Daedalus' cavern to share a drink with him, assuring him that he did the right thing. Daedalus sees the newspaper and tells Julian that Starkweather is with Elaine.
Frank gets a call from Julian about the situation.
Frank confronts Starkweather at The Haven, but he overpowers Frank and hangs him by an electrical cord. Julian arrives and confronts Starkweather himself, decapitating him.
Julian meets Caitlin for dinner. She gives him the "good news" about Starkweather, but realises that Julian already knew. She asks about the mystery that permeates him, and they kiss.
Frank reports to his superiors that he came into The Haven looking for Elaine Robb, the singer, and stumbled across Starkweather with his head cut off.
["Nightstalker." Frank tells Julian that this is what he is going to tell the police.]
Caitlin sends Julian the undercover photos of conditions at Bay General Hospital. He is shocked by what he sees. Caitlin still has to confirm that the attending physician is involved and he won't talk to the press, so she sends out her reporters to dig up proof.
[Shortly before "Romeo and Juliet," as they are seen discussing the photos for the first time in that episode.]
A Brujah named Martin shoots Jamie, a Gangrel, off his bike and drives over him a couple of times, killing him.
[The night before "Romeo and Juliet." Both Martin and Lorraina describe what happened.]
"Romeo and Juliet"
Sasha and Cash meet in secret at a loft where he crashes sometimes.
The Brujah meet at the Dock Worker's Union offices, talking about the escalating tension between the clans. Eddie plots to set Julian off-balance.
After Cash and Sasha make love, Lorraina, another Gangrel, arrives at Cash's place and tells him about Jamie's death. Cash leaves and tells Sasha to stay at Julian's compound.
The Brujah men arrive at The Haven, followed by a trio of Gangrel, including Cash. Sasha also arrives to see Cash, who warns her away. Julian and Lillie watch from above and comment. Sasha responds to Cash's actions by dancing with Martin, one of the Brujah, which causes Julian to throw him over a table. Eddie now knows what makes Julian angry.
Cash comes to Julian, warning him about the Brujah and asking permission to Embrace Sasha.
Julian meets with Caitlin in her office to discuss the investigative article on Bay General Hospital.
Julian asks Daedalus to "visit" the Kindred doctor at the hospital.
Daedalus executes the doctor on Julian's order, burning his body in the incinerator. Abel witnesses the event, and Daedalus takes him in.
Daedalus discovers that Abel can recognise Kindred. He asks Julian to Embrace him, but Julian refuses, telling Daedalus to take him back to the hospital.
[Caitlin tells Julian the investigative piece is almost ready to go to press, but says she wants it "ready for Sunday," as opposed to tomorrow.]
Sasha goes to The Haven and tells Julian that she loves Cash. She knows there is something different about Julian and the Kindred, and she wants to be like him.
Julian tells Cash that he has decided to allow Sasha to be Embraced.
Sasha is forcibly Embraced by Martin into Clan Brujah just as Cash arrives at his loft.
Cash storms in on Julian and Archon and tells Julian what happened.
In a rage, Julian goes to Fiori and says he will pay for what he has done. Fiori replies that he doesn't accept Julian's law. Julian demands Sasha and the Brujah who Embraced her.
Lillie tries to comfort Julian. He asks Lillie to help him find Sasha.
Sonny and Detective O'Fallon, another Kindred, try to eliminate the evidence of the Kindred doctor's murder, but Frank arrives on the scene, discovering skeletal remains in the incinerator.
Julian asks Daedalus what the Nosferatu will do if there's a clan war. Daedalus reminds him that the Nosferatu don't take sides in any war. Julian also says that Abel must be taken back, now.
Daedalus takes Abel back to the hospital. Abel asks him to use his "magic" to help him. Daedalus says he can't, but promises to come back for him.
Julian writes a cheque for a million dollars to Bay General Hospital.
A nurse, Frank, and Sonny find Abel. He says nothing but stares at Sonny.
Cash steals Sasha away from the Brujah in front of The Haven on his motorcycle.
Cash takes Sasha to a secluded park and explains what's happened. She says she still loves him, even though they are of warring clans.
Archon, Julian, and Lillie discuss the political situation regarding Eddie, and Julian's feelings about Sasha. He says if Eddie wants war so badly, he'll give it to him.
As the sun rises, Cash gives Sasha some of his blood to ease the Hunger.
Frank questions Abel, but he is not forthcoming. Caitlin tries to interview Abel herself, but Frank doesn't let her. Frank questions Julian's actions, saying his donation to the hospital smacks of a cover-up.
Just then, he notices that Abel has disappeared. He runs after him but is stopped by Daedalus, who tries to kill him. Sonny stops him, which Frank sees, but Sonny makes him forget everything. Daedalus takes Abel away.
Caitlin confronts Julian about the events at the hospital. His only response is to tell her that he is a ruthless businessman, and not what she thinks.
Daedalus returns Abel to the hospital again, giving him a potion that causes him to go into remission.
Caitlin tells Julian about Abel. The two of them share an intimate moment in which they both share their feelings.
The Ventrue and the Gangrel face off against the Brujah in an empty warehouse. Lillie arrives with the Toreador and Sasha. Just as the standoff becomes armed, Daedalus and the Nosferatu appear. He asks for Martin as the "price" of his clan's services. He gets it, and Eddie is disarmed and taken away.
Sasha tells Julian she feels like she screwed up. Julian assures her that she will always be his blood.
The San Francisco Times runs the exposé on conditions at Bay General Hospital.
Eddie is dumped outdoors in broad daylight. After a few moments of suffering, Julian permits him to enter his limousine trunk, assuring Eddie that he exists only because Julian allows it.
[Although Caitlin originally wanted the article to run in Sunday's paper, the doctor's murder changed matters. On Sunday, she was still investigating at the hospital, so the article would presumably be printed in a revised form the next day.]
Sasha and two other Brujah rip off a gas station. Sasha is the driver.
[Just prior to "Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse."]
"Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse"
Zane performs at The Haven as Julian and Lillie watch from above and comment.
Sasha comes in with some Brujah as Zane performs. She sees Cash but locks eyes with Zane. Julian asks her to come home, but she refuses. She exchanges a few words with Zane, telling him she knows what he feels.
Zane talks to Cash about Sasha, then to Lillie and Julian. Julian warns him to "play by his rules" in San Francisco.
Sasha and Zane hit on each other outside The Haven, but Zane leaves with someone else.
Zane Embraces Grace on the tracks and leaves her there.
Grace wanders the streets, hearing the heartbeats of those she passes, and gets hit by a car. She is rushed to a hospital, where the attendants struggle to "revive" her.
Cash confronts Zane on the tracks about his reckless Embracing. Zane says he can't help it.
[It's shown to be the night of a full moon after Zane Embraces Grace. Conveniently, this also means that Zane performs at The Haven on a Saturday night.]
At 2:24 AM, Grace Dugan is pronounced DOA at the hospital. At 2:27 AM, just as a priest is performing Last Rites on her, Grace gets up and walks out of the emergency room.
Meanwhile, Cash continues to tell Zane to fight his urges.
Frank, Sonny, and Caitlin arrive on the scene (as usual) and question the attending physician. They start looking for Grace, who is mere feet away.
Julian finds Sasha's room trashed. He tries to convince her to stay, but Cash interrupts with the news about Grace. When Julian re-enters the room, Sasha is gone.
Grace tries to hold up the hospital pharmacy for drugs, but Caitlin and Frank arrive and disarm her. She jumps out a window, lands on top of a car, and takes off. She later trashes her father's house.
Julian confronts Zane and Sasha at an art gallery. Zane causes an outburst, and Sasha leaves with him.
Cash picks Grace up at a bus stop and takes her back to Julian's compound.
Julian explains what happened to Grace and allows her to feed from him.
Grace's father, Bill Dugan, reports her missing to the police (i.e. Frank and Sonny). Caitlin tries to get a lead on the story out of Frank, and he tells her to take it to Julian.
Sasha and her two Brujah cohorts pull a heist at a Tong gaming casino in Chinatown, but the cashier there sees Sasha's face.
Frank goes to The Haven and asks Lillie about Grace. Julian shows up, and the two agree to work together to stop Zane. Julian tells Lillie he wants Zane out of his city tonight.
Lillie warns Zane about the dangers of Embracing groupies and violating the Masquerade. She tells Zane he has to leave the city tonight or he will die.
Caitlin and Julian discuss Grace's story at her office. Caitlin tells Julian that if she finds out people are getting "designer drugs" at The Haven, it won't matter who the owner is. Julian promises he will print whatever information she finds out.
Riannon, another groupie, drags Zane away for a ride, but Grace shows up at The Haven and angrily confronts Zane about what he did to her. The floor manager kicks her out and Frank tries to detain Zane for questioning, but he gets away.
Julian yells at Lillie for letting Zane leave. When Julian says he'll kill Zane himself, Lillie asks that she be the one to do it.
Zane buys a tacky skeleton earring. He meets Sasha in a park, where they talk and he gives the earring to her. The two kiss and make love where they are.
[This is the only exception in the series to the rule that a new day starts when daylight is shown, because the doctor in the emergency room states the specific time Grace was pronounced dead.]
Lillie is about to kill Zane with a stiletto when he recites a new song he is writing about her, weakening her resolve. He tells her Julian is a Ventrue and can't understand Toreador ways. She begs him to leave tonight, and he promises he will.
Frank goes to The Haven to ask Riannon about Zane, but she has already been Embraced and tells him to stay away from her. Grace's father shows up looking for her, but Frank tells him she's lost.
Julian gives the Tong back the money Sasha stole and has Cash bring her to him. He tells her he can't keep protecting her, to which she replies that she doesn't want him to. She wants for her and Zane to be left alone. Julian regrets having to kill Zane, but Cash understands that Zane is too far gone and accepts the assignment to find him.
Frank asks Lillie where Zane is, and she tells him to let Zane go. He says he can't, because bringing down criminals is his job.
Caitlin asks Zane some questions backstage at The Haven. He says everything she needs to know about him is in his music.
Frank sees Zane backstage and goes after him. Zane attacks him outside The Haven, but Cash races in, whom Zane also attacks. Frank pulls a phosphorus gun on Zane, but takes him to Julian instead of the police station.
Julian informs Zane that he will never destroy another life, but Zane blames the Kindred. He never wanted to be part of their world. Julian locks Zane downstairs in the Prison of Light, a cage of high-intensity ultraviolet laser beams.
Julian holds a conclave to decide Zane's fate. The primogens agree that Zane must die for what he did.
Sasha confronts Zane at the Prison of Light, asking him if it's true he Embraced girls against their will. He denies it, and she lets him out.
Shortly before dawn, Zane takes Sasha to the tracks to face down a train. Julian, Lillie, and Cash arrive, and Julian steps on the tracks, too. Sasha chooses Julian over Zane.
Lillie kills Zane on the tracks by plunging a wolf's claw into him.
Caitlin finishes writing an article on Zane in her office as Julian watches on and talks to her.
A shrine to Zane is erected at The Haven, and fans, including Grace and Riannon, leave remembrances as Lillie stands nearby. Sasha lets Cash hold her.
The San Francisco Times publishes Caitlin Byrne's article on Zane, "The Rise and Fall of a Rock and Roll Legend."
[One day after the end of "Live Hard, Die Young, and Leave a Good Looking Corpse."]
Frank's co-workers think he is crazy because he speaks of creatures who live in the night, so he gets tabloid covers taped all over his locker and sensationalistic photos are sent to him.
["The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori." Frank discusses his deteriorating reputation with Lillie. Admittedly, this treatment of Frank has probably been going on for a while already.]
Eddie Fiori asks Cyrus to come meet him in San Francisco to help him dispose of Julian Luna. Cyrus contacts and hires Marissa, an Assamite, to take care of the actual murder.
[Shortly before "The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori," enough time for Cyrus to "lay the groundwork," as he puts it.]
Caitlin's assistant lets Julian know that her birthday is coming up.
["The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori." Caitlin says she'll never forgive her assistant for "spilling the beans." Julian would need at least enough advance warning to purchase the telescope for her.]
"The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori"
Lillie spies on Julian and Caitlin spending a romantic evening together at Caitlin's house.
Lillie speaks with a private eye named Benning on the phone and arranges to meet him at the Nighthawks Diner. She hires him to take pictures of Julian and Caitlin together. She gives him Caitlin's home and business addresses, as well as a lot of money.
Cyrus meets Eddie at his office and tells him all about the Assamites.
Marissa, the Assamite, goes to Caitlin's house as Caitlin arrives there and receives a phone invitation to The Haven from Julian.
Julian and Archon have a meeting with Eddie and Cyrus at The Haven about Brujah business in San Francisco.
Sasha crosses over to Cash, but he says he's working and pushes her away. She responds to his snub by shattering the empty glass in her hand.
Sasha goes to talk with Lillie in her chamber as she watches Julian, Cash, and Archon. Sasha asks Lillie why her feelings won't subside. Lillie replies that she wishes she knew what to do about that.
Benning is already at The Haven, following Julian.
Julian brings Caitlin a birthday present, even though she told him not to get her anything. Benning photographs Julian going into Caitlin's house.
Cash checks around Caitlin's house and finds Sasha. They talk about their relationship. Meanwhile, the Assamite decapitates Julian's driver, Billy, with a Gurkha knife and shapeshifts into his form.
Julian reveals his present, an astronomical telescope, to Caitlin. The two share an intimate moment, as do Cash and Sasha, but Cash hears Benning's camera go off and investigates. He finds Billy's body and warns Julian about the impostor. Julian and the Assamite have a struggle, which Benning photographs, but the Assamite gets away.
Marissa returns to Eddie's. Eddie and Cyrus discuss the situation now that Julian knows. Cyrus asks Eddie who Julian trusts and is close to. Eddie realises that at this point, either Julian is dead, or he is.
Sasha and Julian talk things over at his home. She blames him for what's happened to her.
Lorraina and the other Gangrels confront Cash at The Haven about Sasha and what happened to Billy. Sasha tells Cash he was right, it's over between them.
Benning leaves the photo negatives of the fight with Frank, an old friend of his.
[Breath is fogging outdoors during the scenes outside of Caitlin's house.]
Benning shows Lillie the photos of what went on. She demands the negatives, but he wants more money.
Lillie follows Benning to Frank's apartment. She says she's reconsidered his offer, but uses the opportunity to feed from him in the elevator of Frank's building and leave him there, unconscious.
Lillie goes to Frank's to get the negatives "back." He says they're hers, and she kisses him.
Frank takes the pictures to Caitlin and warns her to stay away from Julian.
Caitlin confronts Julian at his mansion with the photographs. She is scared of Julian and his world, so she breaks it off with him.
Eddie asks Lillie to arrange a meeting with Julian, as well as whether he will have the Toreador on his side. Cyrus has sent the Assamite ahead. Eddie tells him things are arranged, and that he knows Cyrus' true plan.
Lillie talks to Caitlin at The Haven. She tells Lillie that she and Julian have broken up, and talks about how hard it is to get over him.
Julian orders a constant perimeter patrol around his compound.
Marissa, disguised as Lillie, asks Julian to hold her, but he figures out the deception and knocks her down before she can stab him. She chases him, shapeshifting into Julian to fool Cash. Eddie is also fooled and shoots her in Julian's library, believing she is Luna. He tells Lillie as much when she arrives, and Cash cradles "him" in his arms.
Just then, the real Julian appears. He tells Cash what happened, saying that no one can know he's alive until he has Fiori.
Lillie tells Daedalus that Julian is dead. Daedalus erupts in rage.
Eddie has the primogens over to the docks for a conference in order to discuss his new role as Prince. Julian arrives with Ventrue to challenge him, and Lillie takes advantage of the moment to decapitate Eddie with one of his own katanas.
Julian offers Eddie's body to Cyrus, but he declines. Julian tells the assembled Brujah that they now have to choose a new Brujah primogen.
Caitlin goes to Julian's mansion and reconciles with him. What scares her more than Julian himself is the thought of losing him.
[Although there is no period of daylight in the last few scenes of this episode, Julian indicates at the primogen meeting that the attempt on his life was the night before.]
Fierce fighting begins between the Brujah to see who will be their new primogen. The Gangrel are not too upset about this state of affairs.
["Bad Moon Rising." Lillie mentions the internecine struggle during a conclave. Sasha rebukes Cash and his clan for not caring about "Eddie and his bodyguards being blown away," but that is quite clearly not what happened in the previous episode.]
Presumably as a result of the attempt on Julian's life, it is mutually agreed, for security reasons, that conclaves will now be held in a room on the second floor of The Haven.
[Conjecture. All the conclaves seen during "Bad Moon Rising" and "Cabin in the Woods" occur in such a room. Ironically, Eddie Fiori has twice been responsible for indirect change.]
"Bad Moon Rising"
Julian has a meeting of the editors from the San Francisco Times at his mansion. He urges them to "take the high road" in their reporting of recent events, focussing on the police work involved rather than the sensational details.
After the meeting, Caitlin is surprised to find Lillie in Julian's home, and discovers that she also lives there. Caitlin and Julian make plans for dinner.
Goth steals a baby named Jessie Doyle while she is picnicking in Golden Gate Park with her mom, Ruth.
Ruth tells the police (i.e. Frank and Sonny) what happened to her baby. A reporter from the Times, Mai Song, is on hand as she describes the kidnapper as a monster with lizard eyes.
Julian and Caitlin are kissing after dinner when she freezes, telling him that she can't be his lover or anyone else's. Just then, she receives a phone call from Mai Song about the kidnapped baby.
A composite artist takes a sketch of the kidnapper as described by Ruth.
Meanwhile, Frank, Sonny, and Lieutenant Kwan discuss the case. Kwan says Ruth is unofficially a suspect in the disappearance of her own baby. Frank believes her story, but Sonny warns him that his behaviour will get him thrown off the force. Frank says he's going to see Julian Luna to get to the bottom of this.
Daedalus, Sonny, Archon, and Julian discuss the situation concerning Goth, and potentially Camilla. Julian decides he will have Cash and his Gangrels track them to recover the baby.
Julian explains the situation to Frank at the Nighthawks Diner, telling Frank he will need time. Frank says he'll find Goth and the baby with or without Julian's help, while Julian tries to warn him away.
Goth and Camilla discuss their plans to sacrifice the baby at their haven in the park.
[In his comments to the editorial board, Julian refers to the newspaper's coverage of events in both "Prince of the City" and "Nightstalker."]
Julian discusses the kidnapping story with Caitlin--he has signed off on the article and photos, but not the police sketch of the kidnapper. Ruth arrives, and Julian uses his powers to sense if she is telling the truth. Afterwards, Ruth tells Caitlin her story, and Caitlin says she'll help her find her baby.
Julian holds a conclave in Lillie's chamber at The Haven to discuss the situation with Goth. Julian orders Daedalus to gather all the Nosferatu and warn them of Goth's plan.
Cash talks to Sasha about their status. He tells her he doesn't care about the blood between them, and she infers that he is being sent to hunt down Goth. They both say they love each other.
Daedalus gathers the Nosferatu in his haven as ordered, but Goth shows up, promising to restore the Nosferatu to their ancient glory. This effectively splits the clan.
The front page of the San Francisco Times reads "Mom or Monster?" with the sub-headline "Baby Disappears In Park," and carries one colour photo of Ruth, another of Ruth and Jessie together, and possibly the composite sketch. Other headlines on the front page include "Payoff Talk Keeps Jones Out Of Office," "Scientists Say Temperature Takes Turn For The Worse," "Future Ocean Currents May Change The Way We Look At Recycling," and strangely enough, the repeated "Heat Will Be On As Trial Begins."
The SFPD searches Golden Gate Park for Jessie Doyle using helicopters, infrared scanners, search and rescue dogs, and more, but they find nothing.
Ruth goes through the park, desperately looking for her baby. Frank shows up and offers to get her something to eat, saying he believes her story. Ruth leaves Jessie's favourite teddy bear in the park.
Julian meets with Daedalus, who offers to kill Goth. Julian says he will do so himself, and the two have a glass of wine. Daedalus has poured a few drops of his blood into Julian's wine to strengthen him.
Frank gets Ruth some fries at the Nighthawks Diner and reveals to her what he knows about the Kindred. He assures her that they'll find Jessie.
Lillie tells Julian about his duty as Prince and asks him how he can love Caitlin.
Cash, Archon, and Daedalus enter the room and plan Goth's execution. Cash gives Goth's location, Archon provides the blade, and Daedalus dispenses advice.
[The layout for this day's paper was shown in a scene which took place the day before, and the prop itself seems to be at least a partial reuse of the newspaper seen in "Nightstalker." Although the newspaper mockup has an actual date on it (Wednesday, March 13, 1996), that date is inconsistent with other indicators of time in the series. While Ruth is walking through Golden Gate Park, she rustles through quite a few leaves, supporting the supposition that it is fall at the time of this episode.]
Lillie brings Caitlin a cheque for twenty-five thousand dollars as a reward for information leading to the recovery of the baby. Caitlin offers her some red wine, and the two talk about Julian. Lillie puts a powder in Caitlin's drink which puts her into a deep trance. She gives Caitlin directions to where she can find the baby in the hopes that Goth might kill her.
Frank walks Ruth through Golden Gate Park, retracing her steps. Meanwhile, Caitlin follows Lillie's suggestion and is seen by Camilla.
Julian confronts Goth at his Stones of Vernassus, offering himself in exchange for the baby. Goth knocks him out and takes him as an additional prisoner instead.
Caitlin sees Goth exiting his haven and sneaks in, finding the baby. Camilla follows her in and tells her about the Kindred. Still under the influence of Lillie's drug, Caitlin tells Camilla about the baby she gave away, a conversation which Julian overhears. Camilla Dominates Caitlin to leave her burden and her memories behind, and to rest.
Julian convinces Camilla to take him as sacrifice in exchange for the baby. They leave Jessie in her cradle hanging from a tree, where Frank and Ruth find her.
Julian and Camilla arrive at the ritual site, and Julian goads Goth into a fight. With help from Daedalus' blood, Julian succeeds in decapitating him.
Julian takes Caitlin home, telling her that the police called him after they found her unconscious and rescued the baby. Caitlin is finally able to make love to Julian for the first time.
[It's shown to be the night of a full moon, besides the fact it is a pivotal plot point. During the climactic battle scene, Julian and Goth's breath is fogging. Lillie's cheque from The Haven also has a date on it (May 1, 1996), but it is inconsistent both with other indicators of time in the series and with the date on the newspaper mockup in the earlier scene.]
The SFPD investigates a number of Eddie Fiori's old haunts, which are filled with bullet holes and blood, but never any bodies. Frank gets a hold of photos taken at these possible crime scenes.
[Shortly before "Cabin in the Woods," as Frank seems to be looking at the photos for the first time in that episode. It is unknown whether or not he is actually part of the investigation, but since he was assigned to the original Fiori case, the likelihood is high.]
Cameron is unable to stand by any longer, and he begins cementing his place as the new Brujah Primogen.
[Shortly before "Cabin in the Woods," since he is not yet Primogen in the previous episode, but probably after the bodiless blood baths the police come upon.]
Caitlin begins secretly planning a weekend trip out to Manzanita because she feels like she barely knows Julian. She asks around about the Old Mission Winery and reads a guidebook about the area which discusses it as well as the old cemetery, a local curiosity in which "half of the history of California" is buried--"old Gold Rush miners and outlaws and madams." The rental people she talks to recommend a bottle of wine from The Old Mission Winery's last vintage. She then asks Julian to come away with her. Cameron somehow finds out about the trip.
[Shortly before "Cabin in the Woods." Cameron tells Sorrel what Caitlin has been up to, and Caitlin talks to Julian about what she learned from the guidebook.]
"Cabin in the Woods"
Archon angrily objects to Julian's planned trip out of the city with Caitlin. Julian assures Archon that he, as the former Prince, knows how to keep the peace while Julian is gone.
Caitlin drives Julian in his Mercedes out to Manzanita Springs in Sonoma County.
Cameron meets with his Brujah compatriots, Sorrel, Clyde, and Boyd, at the ruins of the Old Mission Winery, telling them that Julian is coming. Sorrel sends him back to San Francisco to finish off Archon, while he and the other Brujah split up and track Julian.
Caitlin and Julian have a glass of wine from the Old Mission Winery at the cabin, the last vintage before it burned down. They make love in front of the roaring fire as Sorrel watches on in secret.
Cash finds out from Caitlin's assistant that Julian went to Manzanita.
In Julian's absence, the Brujah's internecine fighting escalates.
Archon holds a conclave in Lillie's chamber at The Haven to discuss Julian's departure. A fight almost breaks out between Archon and Cash.
[On the drive to Manzanita, Caitlin refers to the article she wrote in "Prince of the City," as well as the fact that she and Julian have been seeing each other for "almost two months," setting up many of the episode dates. Julian says it's been "a long time" since he's been to Manzanita, but he went there before the funeral in "The Embraced," a clear inconsistency. Caitlin's assistant is also not very discreet. Between telling Cash where Julian went and giving away Caitlin's birthday in "The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori," it's a wonder if her assistant keeps anything a secret.]
Caitlin and Julian wake up in the late afternoon. Caitlin wants to explore and see the sights, and Julian agrees to do that with her.
Frank and Sonny talk at the police station about a string of bodiless blood baths at Eddie Fiori's former haunts. Frank insists, once again, that they're vampires, and Sonny warns him not to mess with this crowd. Frank asks Sonny what he knows, and reiterates why he says Frank's crazy--no matter what happens, he can't leave this alone.
Caitlin and Julian go to the cemetery. Caitlin asks Julian if he had anything to do with the burning down of the Old Mission Winery and admits she is falling in love with him. Julian offers that he once worked in the service of a ruthless man with powerful connections but that is all in the past now, and he refuses to say anymore. Caitlin goes for a walk alone.
The Brujah attack Caitlin in the woods. Julian arrives in wolf form and fights them, getting stabbed several times. Sorrel transforms into a wolf himself and runs off. Julian does the same and fights him in front of his own tombstone. Caitlin arrives and offers to take him to the hospital, but Julian tells her to take him back to the cabin, implicitly revealing his nature.
[Although establishing shots in this episode show a full moon (two nights in a row, no less), a month cannot have passed since "Bad Moon Rising," so the date for this episode is the weekend after the last one, which would at least have a somewhat gibbous moon. Conveniently, this also means that Caitlin scheduled her trip with Julian for the weekend after American Thanksgiving.]
Cameron arrives at Frank's police station and tells Frank to stop hunting Brujah, or he will hunt Frank, for Julian Luna is dead and can't protect him.
Julian wakes up at the cabin and explains his origins to Caitlin. Meanwhile, Archon feels Julian's life slipping away, and he reveals his lie to Daedalus.
As Julian is explaining the Kindred, Sorrel breaks through the window and grabs Caitlin for her blood. Julian fights him and is about to stab him with a poker when he dies from his previous wounds. Caitlin realises Julian's own weakened state and slices open her arm to feed Julian her blood.
Sasha and Cash are talking outside The Haven about a possible clan war when Cameron arrives. He chides Sasha for making time with the Gangrel primogen and tells Cash that Julian is dead. He orders the Brujah to get Cash out of his sight and drags Sasha away himself.
Julian wakes up and realises that Caitlin fed him, saving his life. She says she accepts him, but he knows that isn't true.
Cameron and some other Brujah go into The Haven. Cameron confronts Lillie, then orders his cohorts to keep her at The Haven, lest they answer to him.
Julian, now completely healed, tells Caitlin he has to go back to San Francisco. Caitlin tells him things can be the same even though she knows about him, but Julian tells her she has to be made to forget because of Kindred law. He Dominates her into unconsciousness.
Later that night, Julian drives Caitlin home, telling her she had a fever over the weekend in Manzanita. She only remembers the weekend as a vague nightmare where she "really went through the wringer."
Archon confronts Cameron on the terrace of Julian's mansion and confesses the truth to him, throwing his phosphorus rifle aside because he knows the debt will be paid and he will now "step into the light."
Cameron shoots Archon just as Julian arrives and notices the empty gun case. Julian finds Archon floating in the terrace fountain, already dead, and he cries.
Archon's body is cremated.
Julian, Daedalus, Lillie, Sasha, Cash, and Sonny hold a funeral for Archon, burying the urn with his remains along with a rose in a coffin at his gravesite. Frank sees Sonny at the funeral.
[Cash and Sasha's breath is fogging while they talk outside The Haven. There is plenty of rain in that scene, as well as when Julian is driving back to San Francisco and in the funeral scene, supporting the supposition that this episode takes place close to winter. During their conversation, Julian refers to Caitlin's comment in "Nightstalker" that "anyone who would cut people open and drink their blood must be a monster." When Caitlin wakes up in Julian's car, she says she doesn't remember anything after Friday night.]
Julian arrives at the conclave in The Haven and sees Cameron. He almost attacks, but Daedalus stops him, allowing Cameron to reveal the truth about Archon.
Cameron allows the conclave to decide if his actions were just, but he, technically, is free of blame. Julian warns him that if he performs even one action against Kindred law, he will receive the same justice he gave Archon.
Julian hears Archon's spirit tell him that he regrets concealing the truth, and he urges Julian to lead the Kindred far. Caitlin arrives, saying she heard the name Archon in her "dream." She asks him what it meant, and he replies that it was her dream. She asks, "Was it?"
"Skull"
A strange skull is found by a biologist on the plains of Ethiopia. This skull is different from any others ever found--especially the long incisors, which look like fangs--and it is found alongside a pile of hominid bones, which have been tossed into the corner of a cave. The bones show markings from sharp incisors, as if the hominids had been eaten.
The scientists who examine the skull believe they have found one of the missing links in the evolution of man from ape. It is a missing link, but not between man and ape. It is the missing link in evolution between man and Kindred. This skull is the earliest Nosferatu, and it has enormous power. Just by touching it, each of the Kindred revert to the savageness of their beginnings as they were on the plains of Africa, hunting humans at night.
This savagery nearly destroys Julian Luna and those close to him. Julian is nearly driven mad because he reverts to the far more savage nature of the apes. He wakes up in the morning with Caitlin Byrne, seeing blood on his pillow, and fears he will harm her, leading him to go back to Lillie Langtry.
At this point, Caitlin is aware of the existence of vampires, but still doesn't know Julian is one of them. Tragically, the more she is able to believe, the closer she comes to the day when she must either die for her knowledge or be Embraced.
[Kindred website and AOL chat. This episode was intended to be produced for the second season of the series, possibly as its season premiere, in an attempt to explore the mythology of how the Kindred evolved.]
Alexandra Serris returns to San Francisco, causing a rift in the bond between Julian Luna and Frank Kohanek. Eventually, Julian and Frank go to war.
[Kindred DVD. On the audio commentary for the Extended Pilot, series creator John Leekley indicates that Alexandra's return was planned in a future episode of the series; and on the audio commentary for "Cabin in the Woods," he refers to the planned conflict between Julian and Frank.]
Caitlin Byrne begins looking for the child she once gave up for adoption.
[Kindred DVD. On the audio commentary for "Cabin in the Woods," series creator John Leekley discusses this story arc for Caitlin, intended as one of the lingering aftereffects of her experiences in that episode. At this point in time, Caitlin's child would be at least 13 years old.]
Sasha Luna becomes Primogen of the Brujah Clan in San Francisco.
[Kindred DVD. On the audio commentary for "Cabin in the Woods," series creator John Leekley mentions this fate for Sasha, as the Brujah bloodline becomes more powerful within her. It is unknown how or when she would take over from Cameron.]
Abel comes to Julian Luna and asks to be one of the Kindred. Julian sees in him the future, and so Embraces him into Clan Ventrue.
["Daedalus: Last Will and Testament." By definition, this would have to happen whilst Julian was still alive. Since Daedalus is urging Abel to take his place amongst the Ventrue, his clan is implicit, and I have assumed this means that Julian was his Sire, especially given that Daedalus originally asked Julian to Embrace Abel in "Romeo and Juliet."]
The Ancient One, the Methuselah who sleeps beneath San Francisco, awakes. Julian Luna dies so that the Kindred can survive.
["Daedalus: Last Will and Testament." Daedalus says that Julian was "lost to us years ago." This echoes the fate of the late Mark Frankel, and the video clip is dedicated to his memory.]
There is endless war between the clans, and the search goes on without success for a Prince who can bring peace, who is both human and Kindred. Throughout all this, however, Daedalus remains Primogen of the Nosferatu Clan in San Francisco.
["Daedalus: Last Will and Testament." Daedalus indicates that the war has been happening "since (Julian)'s been gone," suggesting that San Francisco has had no Prince at all in the intervening years. Since Daedalus introduces himself as Primogen in his video recording, he presumably retained that title continuously.]
Protests against the government of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria turn into an armed conflict after his forces respond with violent crackdowns, thus beginning the Syrian Civil War. Over time, various groups form and join each side of the conflict, while the involvement of other countries in supporting both the government and the rebel opposition makes the uprising into a proxy war. Humans once again hide in caves, just as they did long ago, because of the slaughter there.
[Historical accounts and "Daedalus: Last Will and Testament." The initial protests escalated in early 2011, though their roots date back much further. Daedalus shows nothing but disdain for the ongoing violence: "Humans call us depraved, yet look what they are capable of."]
People hiding in a cave in Syria discover a Kindred skull that is seventy thousand years old, along with the bones of humans who had been devoured.
["Daedalus: Last Will and Testament." Daedalus says the skull was "discovered last year," and his reference to "humans...hiding in caves" implies that such humans were the ones who found it. This sounds very similar to the intended premise of "Skull," but given the different locations and circumstances where the skulls were found and the explicit reference to a previous conflict with the Methuselah, I'm willing to grant that both events occurred.]
The skull is brought back to San Francisco to be put on display in a "bone museum," but Daedalus takes it back instead.
["Daedalus: Last Will and Testament." Daedalus describes these events.]
The Ancient One can feel the power of the Kindred skull, "the oldest link back to Caine," and he awakens again from his long sleep. The Methuselah is hungry and comes for the oldest amongst the Kindred, the ones with power, so Daedalus decides that it will be him that the Methuselah devours, realising that he will be drawn to his haven because Daedalus has the relic he wants.
[Shortly before "Daedalus: Last Will and Testament." It is unclear exactly how much time it takes the Ancient One to rise from his torpor, but Daedalus is only now making his sacrifice to stop him, so the Methuselah has presumably not been wreaking havoc for very long.]
"Daedalus: Last Will and Testament"
Knowing that the time of Gehenna is here and feeling that the Ancient One is coming for his flesh and power as well as the Kindred skull he possesses, Daedalus makes a video recording to serve as his last will and testament, since there is no time left to write it out by hand. His words are meant only for Abel, explaining what is happening and why, and instructing him on what to do once he finds the recording. Daedalus hopes that coming for the skull and for him will be enough for the Methuselah so that he can sleep again, but also states that a Prince must be found to save the Kindred and that Abel should be that Prince. He assures Abel that tonight, he "will finally reach Golconda, transcendence of the living and the dead," and asks Abel not to mourn his passing, as he is doing only what is right for both of them and for all the Kindred. After telling Abel to look for him in the light, the video cuts off abruptly as the Ancient One arrives and consumes Daedalus, leaving only a skeletal corpse behind.
[Since Daedalus says that "(t)onight will be (his) last night on Earth" and that Abel should look for him "(w)hen the dawn comes," he would've made this recording the night before Abel comes for him and finds him gone. Coincidentally, this date is within a week of the original release date of the DVD boxset which includes this video clip.]
Abel comes for Daedalus in the morning, but finds only a fragment of Daedalus's last will and testament recorded on a video camera in his underground haven.
["Daedalus: Last Will and Testament." After playing a (partially deleted) scene from "Romeo and Juliet," an onscreen caption indicates that the fragment is found "17 years later," and this date is exactly 17 years after the scene in question. Daedalus expresses his certainty that he "will be gone" and that Abel will find the recording.]
Abel plays the video recording for the other clans and takes his "rightful place" as Primogen of the Ventrue Clan and Prince of San Francisco.
[Conjecture. Assumes Daedalus is correct that the other clans "will honour (his) last command."]