"I want to help you." "Oh!" "Wait!" " Tell me what it says!" "You're safe now." "We live dangerous lives in dangerous times." "All I want is for Giulio to have a happy, peaceful life." "But you are also the new Mother of Florence." "Do not ignore your people." "Lorenzo de Medici, your place is with us." "I would sooner drown." "Sixtus cannot be trusted." "No assurance of safety." "He may be the only thing that keeps Florence from crumbling." "We should offer our support!" " Enough!" "Go on, finish it." "Close the circle, or you can choose." "Wake up!" "Take the page to Florence." "I swear to you Leo will be there and he'll help you." "Go." "We will find the page with or without your help." "Genoa!" "Genoa pledges 6,000 longbow men and 1,000 infantry." "Venice pledges 200 galleys." "Last we heard, you had 500 warships at your disposal." "And how many lanze spezzate does His Holiness pledge?" "The entire papal army should be engaged!" "Turk!" "Bastard Turk!" "Guards!" "Guards!" "Stop him!" "After all, this is your Crusade." "As you're so apt to remind us!" "Where is my nephew?" "Turk!" "Guard!" "The eyes seem normal." "How are you feeling?" "Alive." "Against all reason." "You poisoned me?" "The Labyrinth's conditioning was extensive." "But I pushed harder." "I had to approach curing you the same way." "The worst is over." "Not when I must live with what I've done." "Are we sure this is wise?" "Just trust yourself." "Start over." "Your next choice is the one that defines you." "Are those new designs?" "Hmm?" "Yeah." "Look." "In fact, you know, I should show you..." "Look here." "This... this device, it launches bombards without the use..." "Is he...?" "He believes me to be cured, signora." "Are you of the same mind?" "I'm of sound mind... for the first time in quite a while." "What I have done, it, um... it cannot be forgiven." "Girolamo, it is not for you to decide." "Has something happened?" "The streets are chaotic." "Lorenzo de Medici has returned." "What?" "Shall I take him?" " No." "There's no need for that." "Maestro!" "Lorenzo has returned, but..." "It's fine, it's fine." "Um..." "A moment, please." "Everyone, please." "It's so good to see you." "And you, brother." "I mean, uh, I'm relieved, but..." "Surprised?" "I assume you needed the armor to escape, but why wear it all the way to Florence?" "I was unsure how far up the coast their... their troops had advanced." "They had you in servitude?" ""Prisoners of value"" "held for ransom." "Or to be bartered." "And it soon became clear we were to be their playthings." "Digging pits for the bodies of our dead and dying." "And then at night, the Turks would burn them." "A bonfire in celebration of their victory." "And then one morning... there was this child... who had not yet succumbed to her wounds." "And she pleaded for me to help her." "I assumed she meant escape until I saw the blade lodged into her back." "Her father tried to spare his child the horrors to come." "But he only succeeded in taking half her life." "And I took the rest." "That night..." "when the guard on watch had drunk himself to distraction," "I thrust the blade into his neck, stripped him of his armor, and buried him in her ashes." "His Holiness requests your presence." "Demands it, actually." "He needs the face of the Crusade by his side." "If I ever threaten you again, you must protect yourself." "That will not be necessary." "You will promise me, or you will return me to my chains." "We have raised an army since you were captured." "All of Italy is united." "A Crusade, armed with new weapons, the likes of which the world has never seen." "I've taken precautions this time." "I've guarded my thoughts as well as my... as well as my actions." "The Turks will not have these designs." "Lorenzo." "Take me to her." "How did it happen?" "She'd gone to Rome on a mission of vengeance." "I learned of our financial losses in the hands of my bastard uncle." "Did she suffer?" "No." " Please..." "I want to know." "She was struck from behind." "It appears she died instantly." "How was she found?" "Her... her hands and feet were nailed to a post." "This is my doing." "I've betrayed her." "Abandoned my family." "Her death is my penance." "While I was hunting Clarice's killer..." "I found a letter." "She... expresses regret for her failure in your absence and prays for your forgiveness." "Even in death she humbles me." "And what of you?" "Have you forgiven Lucrezia?" "The last time I was in her company," "I tried to kill her, and you helped her escape." "I haven't seen her since." "You look unwell, daughter." "Perhaps now you are ready to talk." "I've told you everything I know." "How many others did Lupo hold captive?" "When I arrived, there was one." "There might have been more, but..." "Oh, there were." "We found the bodies of three girls hidden under the house." "And yet a fourth." "She has the page, doesn't she?" "Tell us where she is taking it." "I can't tell you what I don't know." "If you won't tell me, you will tell her." "We must assume they're prepared to strike." "What has Lorenzo said of their movements?" "Lorenzo is, uh..." "is not yet ready to engage." "But I expect his intelligence to be constructive." "Once he's willing to offer it." "And what say you, nephew?" "They, um... they will focus on sacking Salerno and Capua before engaging Naples directly." "And once they've taken that, it is a three-day march to Rome." "If we fall, you fall." "We must strike preemptively." "A surprise attack could be the opportunity we need to weaken their numbers." "If we use their combined fleets..." "And send in our ground troops to flank them." "And bypass the Apulia coast and attack from the south." "Where we bombard them from all sides." "And put an end to this scourge once and for all." "They'll never see it coming." "In Otranto, the Turks anticipated our every move." "How do we know this time will be different?" "We don't." "But this time my plans are well concealed, and I have discovered ways to defeat my old designs." "What of their armor?" " We know its origins." "It was built for the Order of the Dragon by Prince Vlad of Wallachia." "The beast who denied our call to arms." "Obviously, we can't expect his help, but I have been deciphering the secrets of the armor myself." "Mm." "I'm close to the answer." "Close will get us all killed." "Now, tell me again... where is the page?" "I don't know." "Can you read it?" "I've never even seen it." "What are your plans for it?" " My plans..." "I don't know what it does." "You are working for the Crusade." "What?" "No." "Enough." "Well?" "You were right." "She knows where the page has been taken." "It is on its way to Rome." "Do you know why?" "To be used against the Turks." "Against you." "Your treachery will be repaid." "I promise you." "With all of our troops on the battlefield, who will protect our cities?" "I assure you, signore, the citizens of Florence are safe." "And yet my wife was murdered, as was my captain." "And I walked in here virtually unchallenged." "What makes you think that the first Turk assassin will also be the last?" "His..." "His Holiness has united all of Italy." "With our amassed armies, we will finally put an end to their savagery." "Sixtus has no say over the affairs of Florence." "His Holiness, the Crusade, and all those who support it, can go fuck themselves." "II Magnifico, I stand with you." "Rome is our longest standing enemy." "You are right to distrust them." "The Council has already voted." "Yes!" "I am rescinding the order." "Florence's troops will withdraw from the Crusade immediately!" "You have no authority here!" "And who will challenge it?" "You?" "A man who draws his fortune from the papal teat." "This is still a republic." " Yeah!" "Despite attempts by your family to destroy it." "By your philandering brother impregnating local whores!" "And your beloved Clarice bedding your own relation... leading our city into chaos." "Yes!" "Oh, my dear Lorenzo... have you not heard?" "Oh, how embarrassing." "This is my fucking city!" "And I will defend it at any cost." "I declare our independence from Rome, from the Church, from all of Italy!" "From this day forth," "Florence stands alone." "Why did you lie to them?" "You've questioned me before." "I know what you can do." "Reached inside my head and found the truth." "We both know the page isn't on his way to Rome." "The page is headed to Florence." "Well, then I don't understand." "Why... why would you protect me?" "It is not you I am protecting." "Well, then who?" "No..." "Sophia." "She's your daughter, isn't she?" "One night while I was trapped," "I awoke to find her speaking to someone who wasn't there." "She said her mother brought her messages and that this particular message was for me." "I asked you to take her to her brother." "Leonardo and Sophia are brother and sister?" "Are they safe?" "Wait, you don't know?" "You can't see them?" "The information I receive, it is scattered." "I cannot keep watch over them both." "Why now?" "Why do you want to unite them now after all this time?" "It is the only way to save them." "Why should I believe you?" "This is my punishment... for refusing to sacrifice my children." "You are not Sons of Mithras?" " I was once." "They keep me alive only because they find me useful." "But they cannot punish me more than I have punished myself... for not protecting Leonardo." "That's why you put Sophia in the convent." "To keep her safe." "Al-Rahim, your father, they don't even know she exists." "Please, help me keep it that way." "Ah here we are." "Yeah, perhaps I should go in alone." "Do I appear that frail?" "Then do not treat me as such." "Well, fuck me, Maestro." "What's it today?" "Buzzin' in the honey hole, poking' the badger?" "Tempting." "That's, uh... that's very tempting, but you know why we're here." "Mm." "Okay." "In you go." "Ahhh." "Uh-uh-uh." "I'm afraid Lorenzo does not wish to be interrupted." "Unless, of course, you intend to participate." "Enough, enough." "Enough." "Lorenzo?" "You are interrupting my grieving." "I can only imagine what you have been through and, by the grace of God, survived." "I can assure you God had nothing to do with it." "Lorenzo, you have to support the Crusade." "We need you." "No." "You scorn the very thing that offers Florence salvation." "After everything that the Turks have done to you and your family, how can you abandon us?" "You see this?" "This is from Bernardo Baroncelli of Sienna." "This, Francesco Pazzi of Tuscany, when he murdered my brother and attempted to assassinate me at the behest of..." "Pope Sixtus." "And these, these are courtesy of King Ferrante of Naples and his bastard son Alfonso... who only released me from my chains so that I might fight alongside him in defense of his city." "So tell me, please, tell me... who is Florence's enemy?" "Who is my enemy?" "No, signora," "I will not join your Crusade." "I will fight for Florence, as I have always done." "Well, what do you think I've been doing?" "Huh?" "I had to align with Sixtus, for fuck's sake!" "That was your mistake, not mine." "An alliance with Rome is the only way we win." "We cannot win!" "We can only survive." "And that is exactly what you will help me do." "Your weapons will now defend Florence." "No, no..." "Lorenzo, those weapons are meant for the Crusade." "Not anymore." " Lorenzo!" "I want you and your "carne levare"" "out of my city now." "Madame Singh, have these unwanted guests removed from the premises." "Oh, and, uh... have your men confiscate everything from da Vinci's workshop." "What?" "Lorenzo, no, please." "Look, you can't do this." "You have made your choice... brother." "Don't touch me." "Please leave us." "I'm so sorry, Nico." "I heard of your dismissal from court." "You and Giulio are all that matter." "Pack up your things." "Vanessa, we must leave." "And go where?" "For now, we'll stay with the Maestro." "And then what?" "And then we'll... we'll get as far from Florence as we can." "My father will give us money, and then we can find someplace to settle down." "I can look after you and the baby." "Nico, I can't leave." "Lorenzo would never give up his heir." "And I'm not going anywhere without my son." "But you saw what Lorenzo did." "He beat a man to death right before our eyes." "How can you stay here knowing that a monster sleeps in the next room." "If that's what I have to do for him, then so be it." "Please." "You must go before Lorenzo sees you in my chambers." "Fuck off!" "These designs are no use to me." "Da Vinci has drafted them in code." "I asked the cooks to prepare your favorite." "Although I admit I did not know what to expect." "Lamb." "Where is my lamb?" "Pour il Magnifico's wine and then you may leave us." "Ah." "If you keep up that pace, you'll make yourself ill." "What is it that you want?" "It was a long day." "I wanted to make sure we had a chance to talk." "You disapprove of my actions." "No." "It's just... well, we've been friends for a long time." "I..." "I'll miss his company." "Councilman Cellini?" " Signor Machiavelli." "Cellini was an obnoxious prick whose loyalty to Rome was as disgusting as it was unwise." "I shall not miss him." "Admittedly, your actions were extreme, but these are extreme times." "Machiavelli, eh?" "He's da Vinci's charge, is he not?" "He provided a much needed counsel in your absence." "Still, you deserve more esteemed company than that of a child." "Did you not consider me a child before you left for Naples?" "Nico and I were both against the Crusade." "All evidence to the contrary." "I lack your fortitude." "But my stance shifted after much deliberation." "It must've been difficult... with even da Vinci on their side." "You were in an impossible position, and you did what you thought was best." "So you're not... angry?" "Of course not." "You're more like your brother than I realized." "My brother was a better man than I." "He did not have to carry your burdens." "I suppose not." "Your lamb, il Magnifico." "They did not forget." "Say what you will of my brother." "I envy his taste in women." "A keen eye I clearly do not possess." "For all Clarice's sins, never doubt that she loved you." "You remind me of her." "Strong-willed... unafraid to offer your mind in the face of opposition." "I will say or do whatever I need to protect my son." "My only concern is for your nephew and Florence." "As is mine." "The Crusade is done." "City-states are dropping like flies now that Florence has pulled out." "Even if you manage to recreate all your designs, who in bloody hell's gonna wield them?" "You're right." "You couldn't wait for Nico to get back?" "It would be great for someone to bear witness to these declarations." "Lately your instincts have been right more often than mine." "Why is this?" "Are you dying?" "Even with my weapons... we don't stand a chance against the Ottoman army." "We don't have the manpower." "Fuck this." "Shit." "Take what's left... and just get somewhere safe while you still can." "And what of you?" "I will follow the Pageant of Arms to Rome." "See if anything can be salvaged of our cause." "No." "If it means losing everyone I love," "I'm not going anywhere." "Zo, there's nothing more for you to do here." "I am not running away." "And you're not going to Rome." "We may not have the manpower... but I know of one man powerful enough to turn the tide in our favor." "No." "God, I cannot take on..." "Absolutely not you, shithead." "I don't believe I'm about to suggest this." "Zo?" "Vlad." "Vlad?" " Vlad." "Vlad, the son of Dracul." "Ruler of the Order of the Dragon." "Prince of fucking Darkness." "The man that you stole from and I poisoned and we set fire to and we pushed him out of a window." "Yeah, yeah." "I didn't say it was a perfect plan." "Even if he is alive and he doesn't slit our throats on sight, what exactly is our pitch?" "The Ottomans stole his armor." "You get the armor's secrets, and the Crusade gets the man who made it." "Da bom-bom!" "Inimicus inimici mei amicus meus est." "The enemy of the enemy..." " Is my friend." "Zo... that might work." "This is not your fault." " Isn't it?" "Surely I've played a part in our current circumstance." "Lorenzo's people always believed him to be a fair and just leader." "The Turks turned him into a tyrant, not you." "Regardless, our Crusade lies in ruins." "We have lost Sienna." "Venice." "How are we to move forward?" "One foot in front of the other." "We shall find a way." "The Crusade is alive as long as we are." "And Lorenzo will be left to watch as his beloved Florence burns." ""Though our sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow." "Though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool."" "If the Lord can forgive us our trespasses, we can forgive Lorenzo... as I have forgiven you." "I don't deserve such kindness." "I do not deserve you." "Lucrezia?" "Lucrezia?" "What?" "What is it?" "The Crusade's in jeopardy." "He is leaving Florence." " Leonardo?" "My children will not meet." "Without each other, they face unspeakable horror." "Can you not appear to him as you did to Sophia?" "He doesn't trust me." "He will not listen." "There may be another way." "You must warn him." "Right." "These are the recreations of the designs Lorenzo confiscated." "Unlike my originals, those aren't written in code, so your engineer should be able to begin assembly immediately." "Then you'll not be traveling with us?" "No." "I intend to take a short detour." "We need to supplement our ranks." "I hope to enlist the Order of the Dragon." "I don't need to tell you..." " No, you don't." "Can I at least offer you an escort?" "We can spare a few men." "No." "That may send the wrong message." "Maestro!" "Not exactly the Swiss Guard." "Better." "Come on!" "Enough chatter!" "Let us leave this wretched city." "Good luck." "I will see you in Rome." "And we're certain he's all right?" "Physically, yes, but I can't account for the emotional toll." "You found it!" "Yep." "Tossed out with Lorenzo's kitchen scraps." "Nico had to wade through a mountain of cabbage." "Yeah, sorry about the smell." " Yeah, you absolutely stink." "I'm glad to have you back." "Both of you." "It's good to be needed." "One day you will open your eyes, signora." "And what will I see?" "That tyranny is brutal and lonely." "Especially for those who serve the tyrant." "Leonardo?" "Leonardo?" "I'm here." "Leonardo?" "I'm here." "Am I dreaming?" "I was thinking the same thing." "How do I know this isn't a trick?" "Even if you're only in my head, I don't care." "Leo..." "I have a message... from your mother." "What?" "Well, where is she?" "Are you with her?" "I know you don't trust her, but I do, so I need you to trust me." "Everything I'm about to tell you is the truth." "There's a girl, Sophia, she has the page, Leo." "The... the page?" " Yes." "From the Book of Leaves?" "Oh, fuck me." "She's your sister." "She's in danger and so are you." "You need to find her before it's too late." "My mother told you this?" " Yes." "I found it." "I found the page for you." "Your mother said the Crusade would be hopeless without it." "Save Sophia." "Get the page." "You are the only one who can save us now." "Zo?" "Zo?" "Zo, it's me." "Look, I have to leave." "All right?" " What?" "Where the fuck are you going?" "I, uh..." "I received a message." "In the middle of bloody nowhere?" "It was Lucrezia." "She appeared to me." "What do you mean she appeared?" "She said I have to go home." "Back to Vinci where it all started." "Hey, I know it sounds strange." "Yeah." "It's fucking insane is what it is." "You have to go." " Come with me." "There's no time." "They're expecting us in Rome." "Nico and I can handle Vlad." "Zo..." " We've been friends a long time," "Leo, I know how this works." "I know it will work." "Somehow." "It's fine." "You'll need the armor." "See you in Rome?" "Well, yeah." "The first round's on me." " Yeah." "I don't..." "I don't understand." "I thought I was supposed to go to Florence." "It is not safe there." "You must go to Vinci instead." "How will I find him?" " He will find you." "Your brother will protect you." "You will protect each other." "My brother?" "Leonardo?" "Sophia, please, you must..."