Title: Transcendence (Go to glossary for definition)

Original Airdate: August 21, 2001
Season: 1
Episode: 11

Writer: Ralph Hemecker
Director: David S. Jackson

Music:
Song title? - Artist? 1. 56K 2. 56K 3. 56K 4. 56K 5. 56K 6. 56K
Cry Little Sister (Remix) - Gerald McMann 1. 56K 2. 56K
Midnight Rider - Allman Brothers Band [Lyrics] 56K
Shaking the Tree - Peter Gabriel [Lyrics] 56K
Child Of Mine - Roger Daltrey 56K

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Guest Stars:
Nestor Serrano as Captain Bruno Dante
John Hensley as Gabriel Bowman
Bill McDonald as Jerry Orlinski

Gabriel and Sara are in a large empty building. Sara's making a video testimony about the White Bulls, which Gabriel will broadcast over the Internet.

At Irons' mansion. Ian takes out a sword and walks toward Irons, who's sitting in his chair. Ian is torn between his devotion to Irons and his passion for Sara. Ian kneels before Irons and asks that Irons have mercy and take Ian's life. Irons grabs the sword and tells Ian to leave.

Gabriel's using a cell ripper to keep tabs on Jake. He continues recording Sara's testimony. Gabriel sees someone behind Sara. When Sara turns and sees Ian, Gabriel sees the Witchblade transform into a gauntlet and back into a bracelet on Sara's arm. Ian warns Sara that she needs protection, but not from him. He takes her hand, kisses it and sees the Witchblade glow, confirming danger. Sara grabs Gabriel, leaving the video equipment behind and runs. Dante, Orlinski, Burges and other Bulls members enter, but only find Ian. Sara and Gabriel are hiding behind a small space out of sight from the Bulls. The Bulls point their weapons at Ian. Ian pretends to draw his own guns, but only opens his coat. The Bulls fire on him. Sara watches in shock. Ian falls to a kneel position, turns his head to Sara and telepathically warns her to run if she ever sees him again. Dante shoots Ian in the back and kills him. Gabriel pulls Sara away. Dante calls Irons. Irons knows that Ian's dead before Dante even tells him. Irons orders Dante to have Ian's remains sent to him with his head kept chilled. Dr. Immo reminds Irons that the effects are wearing off. They've run out of Sara's blood. Irons will experience a rapid age reversal if they don't obtain more.

Sara and Gabriel have run out into an alley. Gabriel asks about Sara's bracelet transforming into a gauntlet, which surprises Sara because no one else has ever seen the transformation. They only see the result. Gabriel plans to get some cash and passports for them. Sara leaves to connect with Jake.

At Irons' mansion. The doctor informs Irons that he can't proceed without more of Sara's blood. Irons calls Ian2 to find out if the doctor's concerns about Ian2's aggression levels are correct. A Ian clone steps out from the second floor room and walks down the stairs to meet Irons and Dr. Immo. Ian2 looks the same as the previous Ian except Ian2 has a soul patch instead of a beard and hair slicked back and tied up.

Sara boards a bus and sits by the window. She recalls the times Ian helped her. Danny appears and sits next to her. Sara tears up when the bus passes by the Rialto, where Danny was killed. Sara asks Danny if she can trust Jake. Danny tells her that you never know until the critical moment.

Ian2 knows that his primary mission is to protect Irons. Following that, he protects Sara. He knows that there have others before him and that he only exists because Irons allows it. Irons orders Ian2 to bring him Sara.

Sara's walking on a busy street beneath a freeway. Sara gets into Jake's car. When Sara tells Jake that the Bulls killed Ian, Jake smiles. Jake tells Sara that they keep a safehouse on 111 Richard Street. They can use it to set up Dante. Sara leaves and walks pass Lazar. She turns her head and lowers her sunglasses to get a better look at him. Gabriel is leaning against a wall watching Sara walk off.

At Irons' mansion. Dr. Immo wheels a body away. Irons is sitting on a couch looking at some of Ian's belongings, including a torn picture of him and Ian. Irons wants Dante to drop the case against Sara. Dante receives a call from Jake, telling him that he's got Sara and has arranged a meeting with her. Gabriel listens to the cell ripper and walks off from where he was standing. Irons warns Dante that Dante will die.

Gabriel sees Jake drive off. Danny appears and introduces himself as a friend of Sara's and tells Gabriel to trust Jake.

Sara and Jake walk into the safehouse. Sara doesn't see any FBI agents. Jake assures her that they're there. Jake offers Sara a gun, but Sara's has her own and declines. Dante enters the safehouse and follows their voices to them. Jake tells Sara he's in love with her. Sara sees Dante and tries to run, but Jake grabs her. Sara thinks Jake betrayed her. Dante hands over a gun to Jake. He points it at Sara and then lowers it and says he can't shoot her. Dante holds his gun to Jake and threatens to kill them both. Orlinski walks in. Jake's backup breaks down a wall and enters the room. Jake points his gun at Dante, who's slowly putting his gun down. One of the agents has Orlinski against a wall. Dante sees that Jake has turned his head to listen to Orlinski. Dante gets back up quickly with his gun and turns to shoot Jake. Sara sees Dante and points Jake's gun, which is still in Jake's hand, at Dante. They shoot Dante with a White Bulls bullet. Dante falls to the ground. He's coughing up blood and tells her that he was just following orders when he killed her father. Sara sees a younger Dante shake hands with Irons in a Witchblade flash.

Sara runs out of the safehouse and hails a cab. Sara goes to 1111 Fowse Street. Jake gets out of the safehouse and drives off when he doesn't see Sara. Sara uses the Witchblade eye to bypass the security system and enters the doors to a mansion situated on a large grass plot. The cab driver watches Sara enter and gets out of the cab. The cab driver is Ian2. Sara walks in on Dr. Immo and Irons, who's been waiting for her.

At Gabriel's apartment. Gabriel pays a supplier five hundred dollars for a pair of fake passports. Gabriel shows him the door. Jake shows up and wants to know where Sara is. Gabriel reluctantly tells Jake that Sara's probably at Irons'.

Irons denies having Sara's father, lover and partner killed, but Sara doesn't believe him.

Jake and Gabriel arrive at Irons' mansion. Jake tells Gabriel to dial 911 and report an officer down if he's not out in ten minutes.

Irons' contact with the Witchblade gave him a longer lifespan, but lately the effects have been wearing off. Once Sara passed the Periculum, Sara became the most special human being on the planet. The Witchblade bonded with her at a cellular level, making her body a veritable fountain of new genetic material. She is the most highly evolved lifeform on the planet. Her blood is invaluable. It's life prolonging.

Jake's running over to the entrance of mansion. He looks up and sees Ian2 standing above the entrance. Ian2 jumps down and shoves Jake into a wall. Jake grabs and head butts Ian2, but Ian2 just laughs. Jake then punches, knees and shoves him against the wall. Ian2 pushes off the wall, turns and kicks Jake. Jake falls to the ground.

Gabriel's in the car, looking at the time. He grabs a gun out of the glove compartment and gets out of the car.

Jake is on the ground with blood on the left side of his face. Ian2 picks him up by the throat neck and hurls him onto some grates. Ian2 walks over to Jake and turns him flat on his back with his arms over his head. He holds Jake's hands with his left hand and chokes him with his right. Jake is near death and sees himself surfing big waves. He sees Sara and then appears to be underwater. Jake dies. Ian2 grabs Jake and carries him over his shoulder to the doors leading to the mansion. He leaves the door open, turns his head and smiles and then goes in.

Elizabeth Bronte had a daughter, who never wielded the blade, but she did give birth to Sara. Then someone kidnapped Sara in infancy. Sara has a flash of a man holding her as a baby. She remembers taking a second look at that man on the street after her meeting with Jake in the car earlier. Irons tells her that the man's name is Lazar. Lazar placed her with James Pezzini. Somewhere in her bloodline, herself, Elizabeth Bronte, have formed certain biological anomalies. Irons picks up the knight from a chess board. It is from the preserved stem cells of Elizabeth and the work of his well financed researchers that he was able to create and replicate and improve Ian Nottingham, a perfect fighting machine. Ian2 walks in and lays Jake's body on the floor. Dr. Immo is shocked and runs out of the room. Sara is surprised to see Ian2 and runs over to Jake.

Gabriel finds Jake's badge on the ground outside the entrance. Gabriel walks in and points a gun at Irons. Ian swiftly moves toward Gabriel and grabs Gabriel's gun arm and throat. Sara agrees to exchange her blood for Gabriel's life. She begs Ian to let Gabriel go. Ian offers to free Gabriel from his earthly bonds and snaps Gabriel's neck, killing him. Both Sara and Irons are stunned. Irons grabs his chest in pain. Sara's bracelet remains dormant. She jumps over a couch, grabs a poker and swings it at Ian2. Ian2 grabs her right arm, forcing her to drop the poker. Ian2 holds her right arm behind her back and reminds her of their flesh and blood connection and licks her face. Sara hits him in the face with the back of her head. He throws her over the couch. The Witchblade transforms into a gauntlet. She walks over to Ian and punches him with the gauntlet. Sara ducks Ian2's kick. Ian2 blocks Sara's punch with his arm. Her forward momentum flips her onto the ground. Ian2 kicks her onto the couch. He grabs her by the neck and punches and backhands her. She punches him in the stomach and then backhands him with the gauntlet. He flips and lands on the floor. He flips to get back up. Sara roars. She tries to throw a punch, but he slams her to the floor. Sara gets up. Ian2 grabs onto a chandelier and kicks Sara in the face. Sara falls back down. He drops down from the chandelier. They see Irons aging rapidly in his chair. Sara, on her knees, stabs Ian2 in the chest with the Witchblade sword. There are flashes of them in armor. Ian2 drops down to his knees in pain. Sara punches him in the face. The sword retracts. Ian2 falls and dies. Sara gets up and walks toward Irons. She takes off her helmet and holds her sword at Irons' chest. Irons asks for help and offers to help her. Sara takes the sword away from him and turns around. Irons reaches for a dagger from a stand beside his chair. Sara looks at Gabriel and Jake. Irons leans over and stabs her in the back. They both drop to the floor. Elizabeth Bronte appears and reminds Sara that time is reversible and she should use it. Lazar appears on the second floor warning her that it's a power she can only use once. It comes with a great pain: she will remember very little. Danny appears and tells her to choose. He touches her hair. Sara looks up at Lazar, who leaves. Elizabeth and Danny are also gone too. Irons is lying on his back trying to reach for the bloody dagger. Sara removes the dagger from her back, turns around to Irons, licks the blood from the dagger, and tells Irons over his face, with blood coming down her chin, that she'll never help him. She rises, flings the dagger away, draws out the Witchblade sword, raises it, and hollers. A bolt of electricity stemming from the sword spreads across the universe.

Time reverses, and Sara and Danny are back in their car across from the Rialto Theater waiting for Tommy Gallo's arrival. She takes out the Witchblade bracelet from her pocket and puts it on. They see Gallo, but Sara decides not to pursue him. She starts the car, and they drive off. Lazar is sweeping the street and watches them drive off. He smiles and continues sweeping. Jake is at a pay phone. He sees them drive off and puts the phone down and leaves. Ian is in his armor watching.

• Ian is torn between his loyalty to Irons and his devotion to Sara. Instead of choosing, Ian lets Dante and his men open fire on him.
• Gabriel can see the Witchblade bracelet transform into a gauntlet
• Gabriel can see Danny/Danny can make himself visible to others besides Sara
• Jake tells Sara he's in love with her at the safehouse
• Irons denies having Sara's father, lover and partner killed, but it's likely he did.
• Irons' contact with the Witchblade gave him a longer lifespan, but the effects have been wearing off. Once Sara passed the Periculum, Sara became the most special human being on the planet. The Witchblade bonded with her at a cellular level, making her body a veritable fountain of new genetic material. Sara is the most highly evolved lifeform on the planet. Her blood is invaluable. It's life prolonging.
• Elizabeth Bronte had a daughter, who never wielded the blade, but did give birth to Sara. Lazar kidnapped Sara in infancy and placed her with James Pezzini. Somewhere in her bloodline formed certain biological anomalies.
• More than one Ian exists. They have different levels of agression. Irons created, replicated and improved Ian from preserved stem cells of Elizabeth Bronte and the work of well financed researchers.
• Irons is affected by Gabriel's death. Irons grabs his chest after Ian2 snaps Gabriel's neck.
• Sara has the ability to reverse time, but she can only reverse it once. It comes with a great price. Sara will remember very little.

Jake tells Sara they keep a safehouse on 111 Richard Street. Sara and Jake setup Dante and Orlinski at the safehouse. Jake shoots and kills Dante.

Irons' mansion is on 1111 Fowse Street

Jake tells Gabriel to call 911 and report an officer down if Jake doesn't come out of Irons' mansion in ten minutes

Lazar and Sara walk pass each other on the street after she meets with Jake to discuss a setup against Dante

Sara sees Lazar in a Witchblade vision. Lazar is lifting Sara as a baby.

Lazar appears on the second floor of Irons mansion and warns Sara that she can only reverse time once and that she will remember very little afterwards.

Lazar is sweeping the sidewalk after time is reversed. Sara decides not to pursue Gallo at the Rialto. Lazar watches Sara and Danny drive off and smiles.