[4] Upon returning to his homeland, Prince Serebryany discovers that during his absence, Tsar Ivan the Terrible has instituted the oppressive *oprichnina*, granting his oprichnik enforcers unchecked power to commit atrocities in the name of the crown.
Upon arriving in Moscow, he learns that his beloved Elena was forced into marriage with the disgraced old nobleman Druzina Morozov to escape the advances of the brutal oprichnik Prince Vyazemsky, who is consumed by unrequited love for her.
The tensions among Ivan’s inner circle deepen as Vyazemsky, Skuratov, and Fyodor Basmanov vie for power, weaving a web of accusations and betrayal.
Vyazemsky, with the tacit approval of the tsar, attacks Morozov’s home, abducting Elena and assaulting her, but she escapes and seeks refuge in a convent.
Basmanov, fearing his waning favor with the tsar, accuses Vyazemsky of practicing witchcraft to harm Ivan while secretly acquiring a protective talisman from the same sorcerer.