Van Helsing S02E10: “Base Pair” — A man walks through the woods to Crooked Falls. He follows the maps attached to the deflated red balloons. Unfortunately, he fails to reach his destination because a vampire attacks him.
Vanessa sees the visions in her dreams. She wakes up in an unfamiliar place. She hears a man calling out to her in the vent. Someone then knocks on her door. She opens it and meets a startled woman. She pins her to the wall and asks her where she is and where her friends are. Vanessa walks away before the woman could answer.
Vanessa is in a scientific facility called Blak Tek. She sees vampires imprisoned in glass cages. She attacks every person she sees until she comes across Dr. Bruce Harrison. Harrison introduces himself as the one who runs the facility. He assures her that she is safe. Vanessa asks about her friends. She knocks him out when he answers they left them behind. Vanessa then enters a room that features a panoramic view of the mountains. She realizes she is in a facility at a mountain top.
The woman she attacked earlier approaches her again. The woman introduces herself as Abigail, and tells Vanessa they’ve been looking for her since the Rising began. She asks if it is true that Vanessa can change people back. Vanessa replies that she needs to get back to her friends to make sure they are ok until then she is not answering any questions. Abigail comments on Dr. Harrison’s method of kidnapping Vanessa. But she firmly believes that with Vanessa’s help, the work Dr. Harrison is doing could save them all.
Vanessa talks to Dr. Harrison in his office. He mentions that the government hired him to try to find a cure for vampirism before the Rising. Vanessa thinks that she has seen Dr. Harrison before. He mentions that his father did some work at the Farm. She asks him what he wants with her. He answers he is not sure and inquires if she can turn vampires to humans. Vanessa does not answer. He invites her to come with him instead. She grabs his key card before she follows him.
Now at the lab, Dr. Harrison shows her Martin, a volunteer test subject who is now a vampire. He explains that they injected Martin with the newest trial inoculate using a dead version of what they believed was a vampiric virus. The serum turned him into a vampire instead of protecting him. He wants Vanessa to turn him back to being human so he could study his blood before, during, and after transformation. He hopes that maybe they could find a cure with Vanessa’s help. Vanessa answers him she has to think about it, then walks away. Abigail runs after her and calls her Essa. Vanessa stops at the sound of the familiar name. Abigail explains that she knew her mother back at the Farm, and she used to call her Essa when she was little. Vanessa is intrigued by Abigail’s revelation.
The man on the other room talks to Vanessa again. He warns her to be careful who she trusts because most people have no idea what is going on. Their conversation, however, is cut short.
Vanessa grabs the key card and proceeds to Dr. Harrison’s office. There, she finds a book about vampires.
Abigail approaches her while she reads the book. She talks about Vanessa’s mother. She narrates how her mother accidentally got infected with an experimental serum developed from the DNA of a very special vampire while she was pregnant with her twins. That when the military found out that Vanessa and Scarlett are special, their mother had to run and hide them. Vanessa asks if her mother is alive. Abigail could not answer, then excuses herself. Vanessa then sees the inscription A.V.H in the book. She stops Abigail from walking away and asks if her name is Abigail Van Helsing. “You’re my mother.” She concludes.
Abigail explains to Vanessa why she had to put her in hiding. Vanessa mentions that Scarlett was with her at the Farm. Her mother is surprised that Scarlett is alive. She is horrified when she realizes that her people left Scarlett behind when they took Vanessa. Vanessa consoles her and offers to help Dr. Harrison cure the vampire Martin.
The man on the other room talks to Vanessa again. He says it is good that she is helping, but there is so much more she can do. The man convinces Vanessa to follow her visions and let the Elder out. He adds that she should tell her mother about the visions because only she can help her.
Back at the lab, the vampire manages to free his hand and attacks Abigail. Vanessa and a technician come to her rescue. The vampire chokes the technician to death. Vanessa then grabs the vampire’s arm and bit him.
Martin is now human again. Vanessa asks him why he volunteered to be a test subject. Martin narrates his story leading to his decision. Abegail and Dr. Harrison start arguing. Vanessa checks up on her mother. Abigail relays that Dr. Harrison did not get the test result he wanted and that he wants Abigail to convince Vanessa to find the Elder and harvest his DNA to find recessive genes. Vanessa discloses that the Elder is calling to her. Abigail instructs her daughter to read the book about the Elder. He is the beginning of everything, she says. She then asks where the key is. Vanessa answers that Scarlett has it. Abigail warns her not to mention her visions nor the key to anyone.
Vanessa breaks into Dr. Harrison’s office again to investigate. She sees Dmitri’s file, as well as an old picture of a team of doctors, among which are Dr. Harrison and Abigail. She realizes why Dr. Harrison is familiar — he was at the Farm when she was still a little girl.
Dr. Harrison informs Abigail that he did the blood work again, and it shows that Vanessa’s DNA does not have the answers. She asks her if she already talked to Vanessa about the Elder, and what is she not telling him. “I would rather be anywhere but here with you” Abigail answers.
Dr. Harrison goes to his office. Vanessa attacks him the moment he enters the door. She confronts him about not getting older. She accuses him of not working on a cure. He comes clean and explains that he developed the longevity drug on the Farm by accident and that he will die if does not continue taking it. Of course, Vanessa does not believe him. She knows he is only using her for selfish reasons. He tries to convince her still to go to the Elder for the sake of humanity. Vanessa then knocks him out again.
Vanessa walks in on her mother conducting an autopsy on Martin. Abigail explains that Martin crashed about an hour after he was turned. Vanessa is suspicious. She confirms that her mother knew Dr. Harrison is taking a longevity drug. But Abigail defends Dr. Harrison. She notes that Vanessa did not change. Her daughter is still quick to judge, slow to trust. But Vanessa says it does not mean she is wrong. She asks Abigail if she knows about the man in the room next to hers. She declares they are getting out of the facility, and they are taking the man with them.
Vanessa and Abigail are in search for the man. Vanessa opens his room with an ax. No one is there. She opens the vent and finds a speaker and realizes it was Harrison.
The emergency alarm goes off. They are looking for Vanessa and Abigail. They get cornered by the guards. Vanessa breaks the lock system and releases the vampires. The vampires attack the guards while she and Abigail run.
Vanessa is determined to escape from the facility. Abigail orders Vanessa to stop and to grow up for once. They need to stay and work with Harrison, she says. She adds that they need to get Scarlett and the key. The two of them can then follow their visions and lead them to the crypt. Abigail is sure it is the only way of finding the cure.
But Vanessa is skeptical. She asks Abigail if she knows about the voice in the vent. The man said the same thing about following her visions and freeing the Elder. She then asks Abigail where she hid the key to the crypt. Abigail answers he does not remember. “You are not my mom!” Vanessa exclaims. Abigail then shots Vanessa. “We’ll have your sister within the day, so we don’t need you anymore,” she says. She shots Vanessa again and adds that Scarlett has the key, has the same visions, and can lead them to the Elder. “Your mother did call you Essa, you know. She loved you with all her heart”, she says before shooting Vanessa again.
