Motherland: Fort Salem is halfway through its sophomore season, but there’s no second-year slump for the show with the freshest take on magical realism since Harry Potter ran through a wall in King’s Cross. This weekend during Comic Con @ Home, Motherland‘s cast and showrunner met up to discuss how things are progressing…and what we could expect from the second half of the season.

If you haven’t watched Motherland: Fort Salem (you really should), the show is an alternate reality in which instead of witches being wiped out during the Salem witch trials, they make a deal with the U.S. Government to become soldiers, and eventually, in present day, the majority of armed forces throughout the world are comprised of witches and warlocks. Motherland follows three cadets—Tally, Abigail, and Raelle—as they navigate their training and confront the oldest, and most evil, threat to witches.

In case it weren’t obvious, there may be spoilers ahead. Beware of reading if you have not watched Motherland: Fort Salem up through 2×05. Ye be warned.

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If you don’t have the time to sit and watch the entire panel, here are my key takeaways:

(If you do have time to watch the panel, you can do so here.)

1. Women are the power.

As showrunner Eliot Laurence said during the panel, these are “women who can take charge and recreate the world.” Though the cast were deliberately coy when asked about the progression of the rest of season two’s plot, some hints were thrown that Abigail (Ashley Nicole Williams) is much more powerful than anyone expects—and we’re about to see it.

Additionally, there were some hints that the Spree and the Army will ally, at least temporarily, to face their common enemy: the Camarilla. This also means that a reunion for Raelle (Taylor Hickson) and Syclla (Amalia Holm) may be on the horizon, which is good news for the shippers, and for Amalia herself, who described Raelle/Scylla as “endgame.”

2. We’re going to learn more about Alder’s past.

At the beginning of season two, Tally (Jessica Sutton) spent a short period of time as General Alder’s (Lyne Renee) biddy, and since then, a weird sort of telepathic link was formed between the general and cadet. The panelists described Alder’s coldness as a result of loss and heartbreak, and I feel that whichever of Alder’s memories that Tally is glimpsing stem directly from Alder’s past suffering. Tally’s connection to Alder makes the general vulnerable, and I think we’re going to see the ramifications of that connection later on in the season—perhaps the finale. As Eliot Laurence said of their relationship, “[Tally]’s got keys to doors she doesn’t have.”

Speaking of the finale…

3. Big fight scene ahead.

As the panelists talked about their favorite (and least favorite) parts of filming, there was a great deal of discussion about training and preparing for the stunts during the fight scenes. One of the squad let it slip that Demetria McKinney, who plays Anacostia, goes to the training sessions even when she doesn’t have to, to which Lyne Renee added something to the effect of, “Well we need to be prepared for the finale.”

The panelists were pretty tight-lipped about what to expect during the second half of the season, but given the intense amount of training that these actors go through, I think we can expect a big, epic, showdown in episode 10.

 

All episodes are currently streaming on Hulu, and if that isn’t enough for you, you can take the official Motherland: Fort Salem witch test at https://motherlandwitchtest.com/