"Incommunicado"

"We have ourselves an entity. Kind of an all encompassing word for we do not know what the hell we're dealing with yet."

—Abbie Mills

"Incommunicado" is the fifteenth episode of Season Three of Fox's Sleepy Hollow. It was written by Shernold Edwards & Heather V. Regnier and directed by Russell Fine. It is the forty-sixth episode of the series overall, and debuted on March 18, 2016.

Synopsis[]

After a supernatural event takes the Witnesses by surprise, both Crane and Abbie are forced to work alongside their most hated foes yet. Meanwhile, Jenny and Joe struggle to salvage their relationship, as they continue to battle their own internal demons.^[1]

Recap[]

A band is rehearsing in when one member, Kyle, stars shredding. Once he finishes, the others remind him that they agreed he wouldn't. He reluctantly starts back up with them, but then their music goes mute. A creature forms out of mist and screams, and the three men clutch at their heads as they die.

At the archive, Crane is examining the split tablet and confirms that touching the metal symbol with bare skin is lethal. Abbie arrives with pastries and Crane admits that when he touched the symbol, he saw her buying them earlier. Sophie calls from the crime scene and tells Abbie to meet her at the office because there is something weird she needs to see.

At the office, Sophie shows Abbie video of the crime scene. The drummer works cyber at the FBI office, and all three men died of ruptured ear drums leading to cerebral hemorrhage. Sophie has got the recording the band made and it shows the creature materializing. Abbie notices that the wood on the walls buckled, and notes that supernatural summonings often leave such signs. She agrees to show it to Crane while Sophie meets with Joe and Jenny to clean up the image.

In the archive, Crane is stunned when the Hidden One enters. He immediately pockets the symbol and confronts the Hidden One who says that Cranes's time has come. He asks where the second Witness is, but Crane refuses to answer. The Hidden One telekinetically slams Crane against the wall and promises he can kill them quickly or slowly. Crane grabs a gun and the Hidden One superheats it, and then summons an energy ball to kill Crane. Crane says that he has died before, and does not fear it. The Hidden One then promises that Abbie's death will be slow and excruciating, and releases the energy. The symbol leaps out of Crane's pocket and absorbs the magic, and then hangs itself in the air.

Abbie is returning to the archive when a barrier of magic repels her from the door. As she heads into the tunnels, she calls Crane and leaves a message when she cannot get through. Pandora steps out of the shadows ahead of her, she tells Abbie that the Emblem of Thura has been activated for the first time in 4,000 years. It was created to imprison gods, and feeds on the energy of the beings it imprisons. The more the Hidden One fights, the closer he will bring them all to destruction, and he will not let himself imprisoned ever again. The power will build, ending in a maelstrom, and Pandora is the only one who can calm her husband down.

Checking, Abbie confirms that all entrances to the archive are magically sealed off. She assumes that Pandora is there to release the Hidden One again, and Pandora points out that she was able to before because the Box was intact and her powers were at her peak. Now they have no choice but to work together to find another way.

At the trailer, Sophie has Joe and Jenny work on the video. There is no sound on the video until the very end when the creature shrieks. They play back the video and realize that the creature is wailing, the hallmark of a Banshee. They call Abbie with the information, who updates them on the situation. Jenny worries that Abbie is going to work with Pandora, but Abbie insists that she has it under control. Jenny points out that Pandora tried to kill them to get the fragment back. Her sister says that they have to free Crane and tells the others to handle the Banshee. Pandora suggests that they use the Banshee to power her Box.

In the archive, Crane comes to up and finds the Hidden One trying to blast through the he barrier. Crane convinces the Hidden One to stop, and the deity assumes that Crane used the Emblem to imprison him. Surprised, Crane picks up the glowing Emblem and realizes that it's more powerful than the Hidden One. He threatens the Hidden One with the emblem and moves around him.

Jenny, Joe, and Sophie go to a bar owned by Connor Dunne, an ex-Belfast gunman and smuggler. He welcomes his friend Jenny and she offers him fresh blood sausage to get on his good side. She asks how she could deal with a Banshee, and Connor advises her to run. Jenny says that isn't an option, and Connor suggests that she use pure iron. He warns that the Banshee can use their own noise against them, spitting it out as destruction. Jenny knows how to attract the Banshee by making a racket. The trio then heads out in an ambulance with the siren going, and obtains pure iron spikes from a 17th century cemetery. Joe isn't impressed with Connor, but Jenny insists that the plan will work. Their voices die off and they realize that the Banshee is nearby. They put in earbuds as the Banshee appears on the road ahead of them and slams a rock into the windshield. They get out and Joe shoots and misses. The banshee wails, but their earbuds protect them from the worst of it. Jenny hits it in the head with one of the fence posts, and the Banshee vanishes.

Jenny calls Abbie, who tells her about Pandora's plan. Capture the banshee alive. As the archive shakes, Jenny warns that Pandora just wants the power. Abbie insists that they need the Banshee alive for Crane's sake.

Crane has a problem to solve and goes through the books. The Hidden One dismisses the information as useless pabulum. Unimpressed with the Hidden One's attitude, Crane puts a Duke Ellington record on and speaks of the art humanity has created over the centuries. The Hidden One says that art has been created to celebrate those who worship him, and Crane points out that gods need worship as much as man needs a higher power to believe in. The god knows that Crane read books in secret during his childhood, and has always lived to please. He says that Crane's life was mapped out before he was born, and then absorbs all of the knowledge from the books in the archive and says that there's nothing in the tomes to save them, and the building starts to shake.

That night in the forest, the Banshee responds to noise from a concert amphitheater, where Joe lassos her with a cable of iron. Sophie covers it over with a sound blanket, and she and Jenny wrap up the creature. As Joe and Jenny struggle with the creature, the Banshee rips through the sound blanket and wails, and Joe is forced to kill it with a crossbow and one of the iron fence posts.

Joe and Jenny return to the archive and tell Abbie what happened. As they explain that Sophie is out looking for another monster, Joe sees the glowing Box fragment. Pandora says that Joe knows that they need a creature and he is one. She explains that the dark energy will be drawn from him at the barrier, breaking it. Joe may or may not die, and his curse may be broken for good. Jenny warns him that he could die, but the building shakes again and Joe agrees.

Crane eats while he works, and traces his bloodline. The tablet shows Napalatu, the Hidden One's ancient enemies and Crane's fore-bearer. Crane suggests that Abbie would seek help from Pandora, but the Hidden One doesn't believe it. Undeterred, Crane has the Hidden One explain what Pandora would do, and asks what they should do to aid them. The Hidden One says that if he withdraws power from the emblem as Pandora works her spell, it could weaken the barrier, however, the timing is critical. Crane suggests that they use the Emblem to communicate with Abbie and time it. The Hidden One then tells him his translation of the Sumerian is incorrect and Crane invites him to translate.

As Abbie and Pandora prepare the spell, Abbie warns Pandora that if she hurts Joe then there will be consequences. Meanwhile, Jenny begs Joe not to go through with it. He says that he has to remove the curse for their sake and they kiss. Pandora begins the spell in the Masonic Cell, and Jenny insists on staying.She warns that Joe must remain within the magical circle that she's drawn, and begins to draw the energy out of Joe. Joe transforms into the Wendigo and advances, and Jenny commands him to stop. Pandora warns that they either have to leave the Wendigo there or ends its life, but Jenny insists that she can get through to Joe. She tells the Wendigo that Joe would never hurt her, and offers him a key to his trailers. The Wendigo advances on her... and stops. Jenny insists that she loves Joe, and after a moment the Wendigo steps back.

Pandora drains the dark energy from the Wendigo, and Joe begins to revert. Abbie wonders what's wrong, and Pandora warns that she needs any fragments of the Box they have to guide the energies. Furious, Abbie says that the entire thing is a con. Pandora insists that she has no secret motive, and finally admits that it is all of her fault. She was the one who told the Hidden One's servants of the Emblem's power, in the hope that it would make them feel safe in their alliance. They used the Emblem against the Hidden One, and Pandora walked the earth for 4,000 years trying to release him. She knew the Witnesses had the Emblem but didn't tell her husband, and tells Abbie to make her choice. The Wendigo slowly dies, and Jenny begs her sister to do it.

In the archive, the Hidden One correctly translates the Sumerian, and Crane activates the emblem correctly and sees Abbie. They watch as Pandora explains that she knew the Witnesses had the emblem, and the Hidden One realizes that Pandora knew. Crane pours himself a drink, toasting his last moments.

Abbie brings Pandora the other fragment and the Box reassembles itself. The energies take the dark power from the Wendigo, and Abbie runs the archive doors.

Inside the archive, the energies envelop the Hidden One, and he disappears.

In the Masonic cell, Joe reverts to his human form.

Abbie runs into the archive, and Crane tells her that he thought all was lost. He thanks her for saving his life - again. Crane confirms that the Emblem has been destroyed, but Abbie figures that facing a god and living is a win. He says that the Hidden One told him that the mantle of Witnesses is passed down through their bloodlines. Abbie suggests that they get donuts and they head out.

Jenny takes Joe back to the trailer, and Joe remembers her saying that she loves him. She says that she told the Wendigo that, and Joe figures that the Wendigo was ripped out of him. Jenny gives him the key to the trailer, and Joe jokingly suggests that he might want his band to rehearse there as they fall into bed together.

Pandora returns to the cave and finds the Hidden One waiting. He notes that she saved him and congratulates her on tricking their enemies into giving her the Box back to bring down the barrier. The Hidden One warns that he's discovered a pressing falsehood and says that they have much to discuss. He demands the truth from Pandora.