- "I can never forgive you, Father. Never let the coal that burns die down. But freedom.... Freedom is a cause that I would sacrifice all for. So, for now, for today, even in War, there can be a truce."
- —Jeremy Crane to Ichabod Crane
"Freedom" is the thirteenth episode of Season Four of Fox's Sleepy Hollow. It was written by M. Raven Metzner and directed by Russell Fine. It is the sixty-second and final episode of the series and debuted on March 31, 2017.
Synopsis
Dreyfuss finally garners enough power to infiltrate the White House, and his group of minions grow strong enough to take action. Can Team Witness stop Dreyfuss in time?[1]
Recap
Ichabod rides to a field where Malcolm, Jenny, and Henry are waiting. Jenny opens a case holding a pair of dueling pistols, and Henry says that he demands satisfaction. He and Ichabod both take guns, go out into the field to duel. They each walk ten paces away, turn, but they both hesitate. Henry says that their struggle ends that day and vows to be free of Ichabod, and fires. Ichabod collapses--mortally wounded-- but then says that he will free Henry of the world and shoots him. Henry and Ichabod both collapse as Jenny runs to Ichabod.
Ichabod and Jenny emerge from their mystical vision and they realize that Henry has taken on the mantle of War. Jenny says that Alex has been working on a way to run surveillance on Malcolm. At the Vault, Lara looks around and then tells Diana that in the future, Malcolm sent her and Jobe to clear the Vault of artifacts. She asks to meet Molly when it's over so she can tell her that she won't have to live the life that she did. Diana agrees and then realizes that Lara can't go back. Lara says that it was worth the sacrifice to give her younger self a life. Jake finds a reference saying the Horsemen are more powerful together than separate. He asks Alex if they're good, and Alex assures him that they are. Before Jake can follow up on that, the others run in and Alex says that she got an area POV from a half-mile up. Jenny hacks the satellite and they realize that Camp David is ten miles away from Malcolm's compound. They figure that they can't warn the President without sounding crazy, and spot the Horsemen leaving the compound.
The Horsemen ride through the forest. The soldiers on guard spot them and open fire, but the bullets have no effect. The Horseman easily cut them down and then starts cutting through the metal door of the bunker. The Horseman comes in, ignoring the Secret Service agents' bullets, and blasts them down with a swing of his axe. Malcolm and Jobe come in and soon sends out a transmission saying that the President is his prisoner.
At the Vault, Diana reports that the first strike will happen in six hours. Ichabod figures that they need to kill Malcolm to destroy the Horsemen... even though Malcolm is immortal. The team goes through the books trying to find something that will kill Malcolm. Lara says that she spent time with Jobe in the future, and figures that he will help if she tells him he has more to lose than he can imagine. Ichabod, Diana, and Lara go to the sewers and Lara uses her last crystal to summon Jobe. Jobe says that he will come to kill them, but Lara says that Malcolm is growing bored with Jobe and points out that a prince of pain deserves much more. Jobe doesn't see the point, and Ichabod asks him to direct them to something that can kill Malcolm. The demon tells the Witnesses to go to Hell and promises that his master will show them the torment they deserve and disappears. Ichabod realizes that Jobe gave them a directive and they talk with the others. They plan to find a way to hold the horsemen off, while Ichabod and Lara go to his apartment and cast the gateway ritual. Before they can finish it, someone knocks at the door. Ichabod answers it and finds a cable man there. He realizes that he's there on the wrong day, but Ichabod tells him that he's busy.
The Witnesses cast the ritual and appear in Hell to Ichabod it appears as Valley Forge in mid-winter. To Lara it looks like the orphanage where she grew up. Ichabod realizes that Hell shapes itself to their personal perceptions, and sympathizes with Lara about how she is trapped in a different time. He tells Lara that he has found comfort in Diana and Molly, and tells Lara to remember that he has never abandoned her and never will. Ichabod and Lara come to a door with the traditional warning, and go through. Jake tells the others that he's found nothing. Alex checks the shelf that the histories sit on, and one of them conceals a switch. A secret chamber opens, revealing a hidden volume dated 1789. Benjamin and George met in Sleepy Hollow at a decommissioned armory and Benjamin redesigned and improved it.
As Benjamin and George oversee the redesign of the armory into an archive, George asks Benjamin if he has considered the list of candidates that he sent there. The architect admits that the legacy they are creating is helping him to remember how they used Ichabod, and asks George to consider the motto "E Pluribus Unum." A later entry suggests that all of the archive's greatest treasures were to go where the agency went. He realizes that the weapons that the four original agents held may be the weapons designed to fight the Horsemen.
Ichabod and Lara descend down a near-endless spiral staircase and come to a vast lobby. Satan greets them and says that he has a contract with Malcolm. Ichabod tells him that they need a way to kill Malcolm, and Satan points out that the apocalypse will bring down more souls for him to torment. He insists that he has to abide by his contract and says that he's growing bored of the conversation. Ichabod says that Satan can't hold them since they came of their own free will, and asks if they shall strike a deal. Satan stares at him for a moment and then laughs.
Jake says that Alex found writing in invisible ink. It's a floor plan of the Vault with surveyor's marks revealing a hidden compartment.. Diana takes a sledge hammer and breaks through. Inside is a metal locker containing the four weapons. Ichabod and Lara come in and Ichabod shows them the Philosopher's Stone that Satan gave to them. If he gets close enough to Malcolm then he can use the Stone to undo Malcolm's immortality long enough to kill him. When the team wonders if the weapons will work, Ichabod says that all of them have restored the Agency to its former glory. He asks them to trust him and each other, and if Benjamin designed the weapons then they will work and the team shall prevail.
At Camp David, Malcolm watches the helicopters flying over head and praises Henry as his most powerful warrior. Henry says that Ichabod is coming, and explains that Ichabod was able to defeat him. Malcolm tells him that he is no longer alone and should trust in him. Henry laughs and says that they shall victory or a grave. The team approach Camp David through the woods and Lara goes on ahead. Jake and Alex go one way, and Ichabod, Jenny, and Diana the other. Alex worries that the weapons won't work, and Jake assures her that if they lose then they'll go out strong. She says that she's realized she's been working with the one person she can't live without, and kisses Jake. Lara comes back and says that the Horsemen are approaching.
When the team joins back up, Ichabod tells the others to hold the Horsemen at bay while he and Diana take Malcolm down. Diana tells Lara that she has a chance because of her and asks her to be careful, and Ichabod tells them to hold the line. Ichabod and Diane move to the main house, and War steps out to fight them. The three remaining Horsemen approach the team. The team opens fire but the weapons don't work. Ichabod orders War to stop, and says that they've been there before. As the Horsemen approach, the weapons glow and the team opens fire. This time the weapons work. Ichabod begs Henry to stop and War hesitates. It reverts to Henry, who tells Ichabod to say his piece before he dies. Ichabod says that they both value freedom above all else. Henry tells him that his sole purpose is destruction and conflict, but Ichabod tells his son to ask himself if his anger is worth searing servitude to a tyrant. The older man says that he can never forgive Ichabod, but admits that he would sacrifice all for freedom. He tells Ichabod that they have a truce and walks away, and Ichabod and Diana continue on. Lara and Alex engage Famine and Pestilence in hand to hand with their weapons.
Malcolm asks Jobe where his Horsemen are, and Jobe says that Crane's team is fighting them to a standstill. Ichabod and Diana come in and tell Malcolm that it's over, and Ichabod asks why Malcolm is squandering his intellect on a mad quest for power. Malcolm smashes a painting and picks up a piece of glass, and tells Jobe to bring him the President so he can kill him. The Stone glows and Malcolm realizes that he's mortal again. His wound opens and Malcolm complains that his blood has ruined his victory shirt. He asks Jobe why he's not healing, and Ichabod says that he didn't give them a choice. Malcolm begs Jobe for his help, and Jobe tells him that his contract with Satan has come to an end. He grabs Malcolm by the throat and they both disappear in a burst of hellfire. The Horsemen suddenly disappear and the team realizes that they've won.
Diana frees the President and they say that they're with Agency 355. When the others arrive, the President admits that she can't tell the world what happened. She figures that best course of action is for them to continue doing what they're doing, but to report directly to her. Diana suggests that the President transfer her from Homeland Security to the Vault, and want to bring Ichabod and Jenny on. Ichabod points out that he's legally not a U.S. citizen, and the President swears him in.
Later, Ichabod is at his apartment registering to vote when Lara arrives so they can go to meet with Molly. Lara worries that meeting her younger self might cause a temporal rift, but Ichabod figures that she's stalling. She figures that Molly deserves a future that is free and clear now that she's no longer the Witness. Lara says that she's going walkabout to figure what she will do in the present, and they hug. She assures Ichabod that they will see again and Ichabod bows to her before she goes.
At Diana's house, Ichabod tells Diana and Molly about Lara's decision. He says that Molly is free to fight evil or not, and assures her that she bore the Witness mantle with bravery. Diana doesn't have to fight evil any more, but she figures that they're a family and she's found her calling. Jenny calls to summon them to fight a siren, and Ichabod and Diana take off. As they approach the Potomac, Diana asks Ichabod how he got the Stone from Satan. Ichabod shows her a burning pentagram on his wrist and admits that he offered his soul on the moment of his death. He casually dismisses it, explaining that he will fix it, and Diana says that they will fix it. Smiling, Ichabod says that he has no doubt. The giant creature emerges from the water briefly and Ichabod realizes that it's a kraken, not a siren. Diana isn't convinced and they go to work.
Cast
Starring
Guest Starring
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Co-Starring
Uncredited
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Multimedia
Videos
Trivia
Production Notes
- Due to the low ratings, Fox cancelled the show thus making this the last episode of the series.
- Before the Witnesses went to Hell, Ichabod used a quote from Dante's Divine Comedy.