The Unnamed Saga: Sisters and Song Script, Chapter Fourteen: "Holding the Sun"

Chapter Fourteen:  Holding the Sun

Open on Anthem from a distance.  Show the morning light hitting the hills of Anthem.  The buildings gleam.  The sky is clear and the sea steady.  A few ships bob in the water, and some are tethered to the pier.  Seagulls dance high on the wind.

Cut to the narrow streets of Anthem.  They are mostly empty and edged by tall buildings with numerous windows.  The buildings block the sun, casting deep shadows in the street.

Show a few people waking up and stretching as they step out of their homes.

Show the cathedral exterior from the front.  The area behind the archway is dark inside.  The sun is hitting the pillars and making them glow.

Cut to the cathedral interior.  The light is spilling in through the side-arches.  The pillars cast long shadows across the hall.  The pews are empty, and the palanquin sits stoically in the back of the room behind a podium.  The stained glass behind it burns with light.  Zara is standing beside the palanquin.

Show Zara more closely.  She is wearing a travel cloak and has the hood up.  The curtain is pulled back, and she is gazing inside.

Show the palanquin interior with Zara’s upper-body inside.  Aria is inside staring blankly ahead.  Her veil has been refastened.

 

Zara: “See, I told you I would be back.  An Estein always keeps their promises, my mother used to say.”

Zara pulls her hood back.

Zara: “Do you remember me? I’m Zara.  We spoke just yesterday.”

Zara climbs inside and sits cross-legged.

Zara: “Okay, so, I’ve been thinking, and I know that this is a part of this town’s culture and all, but it still seems so cruel, whatever the reason, and you don’t seem too happy about it either.  In fact, you seem altogether terrified.  Beyond that, there’s something wrong with mutilating girls like you, so, I’ve decided to help.  So, if you would like, I want to help you escape.  So…”

Zara holds out her hand.

Zara: “What do you say? Do you want to come with me?”

Show them sitting in the palanquin.  Zara has her hand extended, and Aria continues to stare emptily.

Zara leans forward and takes Aria’s hand.

Zara: “Well, I’ll take that as a yes.  At the very least, we’ll get you out and about.  I’ll introduce you to Elsea and Mary, and maybe we can all go together to find Glenn, Zelos, and Dawn.  Then, we can just leave, and you can leave with us.”

Zara pauses and looks at the veil.

Zara: “And Elsea is the best healer there is.  If anyone can fix what they’ve done to you, she can.  I promise.  So, come along.”

 

Show the cathedral interior from the entrance.  Show the palanquin at the far end of the hall.  One of the curtains is lifted.

Zara steps out.

Zara helps Aria down from the palanquin.

Zara: And, after we’re all reunited, we can travel together somewhere safe, somewhere far away from this place, and we can figure out what to do next.  We’ll be going back to Silvara, someday.  If you like, you’re welcome to come along.  I’m sure we can…”

Zara stops and stares ahead.

Zara: “Uh oh.”

Show the cathedral entrance from behind Zara.  At the front stands President Thaddeus and a collection of Anthem soldiers.  All of the soldiers have bows drawn.

 

Thaddeus: “I knew you would be trouble.”

 

Zara: “You can’t hurt me.  I’m your guest.”

 

Thaddeus: “Perhaps, but you’ve been a very poor guest, haven’t you, stealing my property.”

 

Zara: “Property? This girl isn’t property, she’s a person!”

 

Thaddeus: “She’s a vessel, and she’s integral to the safety of not only this nation, but of the world.”

 

Zara scowls.

 

Zara: “I never should have come here.”

 

Thaddeus: “Listen well, girl, I welcomed you only because of the dealings I had with your father, but you’ve crossed the line.  Let her go, now, or I will have you killed.”

 

Zara: “And if you do that, then you will have to explain it to Elsea and Mary, the two strongest magicians the world have ever known.  So, I’m calling your bluff.”

 

Thaddeus: “They frighten me considerably less than the monster inside of that girl.  Now, once more, let her go immediately.”

President Thaddeus raises his hand.

The archers line up their shots.

Show Zara holding Aria’s hand.

She looks back at Aria, and then she releases her hand.

Show President Thaddeus smile.

Thaddeus: “There’s a good girl.  Guards.”

 

The Anthem soldiers surround Zara and take her by the wrists.

 

Zara: “Where are you taking me?”

 

Thaddeus: “To prison.  You’re right about one thing, I don’t want those two on me.  I’ll dispose of you later, perhaps in a method more fitting than simple execution.”

 

Zara screams until the soldiers gag her.

Show Zara being dragged away through the cathedral entrance.

Show Aria standing with President Thaddeus at her side.

 

Cut to the Anthem mansion exterior.  Show the open front gate.  Birds are resting on it.  Flowers bloom around the entry way.

Show the stairs leading up the mansion from the outside.  Windows on the mansion walls gleam in the sunlight.  A balcony is above, just out of view.

Cut to the mansion interior, inside of a guest room.  Show Elsea, Mary, and Glenn all standing over a bed.  Zelos is in the bed with a blanket pulled up around his waist and a wet rag on his forehead.  His face is flushed and his eyes are closed.

 

Mary: “My oh my!  I am glad, don’t you misunderstand, but I am also quite surprised that you found him at all.  The odds were, as you know, not in your favor.”

 

Glenn: “Honestly, I’m surprised, too.  How is he, Elsea?”

 

Elsea: “His fever is strong, but he is breathing, so that’s good.  And…”

 

Mary: “Ah!  So you, too, have felt the unmistakable, I take it.”

 

Elsea nods.

Glenn looks between them.

 

Glenn: “Uh, felt what?”

 

Mary: “The little pumpkin is practically oozing magical energy.  I do fear what has happened to him in my absence, and I fear even more what might come out of him.”

Mary looks around the room.

Mary: “Mayhap we should move his care outside, where there is more open space and less things…”

Beat.

Mary: “Flammable.”

 

Glenn: “Mary.”

 

Mary: “A simple suggestion, sir knight.”

 

Glenn: “Will he be okay?”

 

Elsea: “I will do my best.”

 

Glenn nods.

 

Mary: “Yes, of course, sir knight, the good Lady Elsea’s healing hands are quite spectacular.  Truth told, I’ve never met someone so adept at the art than herself, and I’ve met quite a few people in my long life.  What we should focus our worry on is the young princess.  It seems that in Zelos’ absence she has taken it upon herself to stir up trouble, because the peace would just be too much to suffer through, of course.”

 

Elsea: “What do you mean?”

 

Mary: “Well, good lady, and I ask you understand and show me that characteristic mercy of yours, for I fear I have told you a lie.  Or, rather, I have omitted the truth, but a lie is still a lie, I suppose, regardless of its fashion.  The princess swore me to the strictest secrecy, you see, a vow I would carry to my grave, or at least to the point of inconvenience, and now that the prince is here, I fear it has grown ever so cumbersome.”

 

Elsea: “Please, Miss Mary, just tell me.”

 

Mary: “It seems that our dear princess has taken keen interest in the young lady what represents this city’s faith.  A dangerous interest, if my memory should serve me.”

 

Elsea: “Oh no! Where is she now?”

 

Mary: “The cathedral, I imagine.  She left early this morn, just after the sun rose.”

 

Glenn sighs.

 

Glenn: “Great.  You two, take care of him.  I’ll go find her.”

 

Mary: “Good man, sir knight, always there for a damsel in need!”

 

Glenn grunts as he leaves.

 

Cut to the Fionan forests.  Show Dawn pacing back and forth under the canopy.  She has her hands on her hips.  Her hair is a mess, and she has bags under her eyes.

Show Diando a short distance away.  He is under another canopy with a group of men.  They are coordinating an attack.  A map is laid out on a box in the middle of them and has crude drawings on it.  There is a circle drawn on a port city near Black Well.

Show Niva lying on her back and staring up at the sky.

Show the sky.  The moon and stars are out.  Clouds are moving slowly into view.

Show Dawn pacing again.  Remi approaches her from outside of the canopy.

 

Remi: “You should rest.”

 

Dawn stops to look at Remi.

She laughs.

 

Dawn: “Easier said than done.”

 

Remi: “Easily done with how hard you’ve been working.”

 

Dawn: “I wish.”

 

They settle on a stump together.  Dawn is hunched over and rubbing her hands together.  She stares at the ground.

Remi rubs her back.

 

Remi: “Would you like to talk about it?”

 

Dawn: “Nothing to talk about.  I’m just nervous, like everyone else is.”

 

Remi: “I suppose.  I do wish there was a way to convince you against this, princess.”

 

Dawn: “I told you already, there’s no turning back.”

 

Remi: “It will kill you.”

 

Dawn: “I’m already dead.”

 

Remi: “No, no you’re not.  The nation still needs you, Dawn.  You’re all…”

 

Dawn: “They have Zara.”

 

Remi: “Yes, but…”

 

Dawn: “My mind is made up.”

 

Remi: “Of course it is.”

Remi hangs his head and sighs.

Remi: “And do you think we can stop it?”

 

Dawn shrugs.

 

Dawn: “I think we can try, and I think we’ll make ourselves known, or at least remembered.”

 

Remi: “Just a paragraph in a Fionan history book?  Doesn’t sound very good to me.”

 

Dawn: “Then we’ll just have to make it a whole chapter.”

 

They look at each other and laugh.

 

Remi: “Then you can tell me the truth, at least.”

 

Dawn: “The truth is I’m scared, Remi.  I’ve lost so much already, and I’m getting ready to lose more.  People are going to die, and I know that’s war, but…”

Dawn looks out at the forest.

Show soldiers talking or sleeping.

Show Diando drinking with his men.

Show Niva lying on her back with her arms folded under her head.  She is wagging her foot.

Dawn: “I just don’t know if the price will be worth the results.”

 

Remi: “We can always turn back.  It’s not too late.”

 

Dawn: “No, it is.  There’s no turning back, not after all of this.”

 

Remi: “Princess, don’t let your vanity get everyone killed.”

 

Dawn: “It’s not vanity, Remi.  Zara is in Anthem.  We have to protect her.”

 

Remi sighs again.

 

Remi: “Then, if that’s the case, we’ll just have to sink that ship.”

 

Dawn: “Yup.”

Beat.

Dawn: “Easier said than done, huh?”

 

Remi: “This time, princess, I fear you may be right.”

 

Cut to the Anthem mansion interior, to Zelos’ guest room.  Zelos is lying in bed with a blanket pulled up to his shoulders.  He has a rag on his head.  Elsea sits beside him.

Show them from a side angle.  The window is open beside them and a breeze moves the curtains.  Elsea looks exhausted.

Show Elsea nodding off.

She jerks awake.

She wipes her eyes.

She looks over Zelos and takes the rag.

She rinses it in a water basin.

She replaces it on his head.

Cut to black.

Open on Elsea in her chair again.  She has her hands on her lap and her head down, and she is sleeping.

Zoom in on Elsea’s sleeping face.

Show Zelos sleeping.  Water runs down his head.  He is breathing heavily.

Cut to a foggy altar overgrown with vines.  The altar is circular and has twelve tiles cut around it in a pattern.  It has a circular wedge in the center.  Each tile has a different design on them, corresponding to the zodiac.  There is a stag to the north, a fox to the north-east, a moth just below that, a worm to the far east, a phoenix just below that, an owl to the south-east, a wolf to the south, a lion to the south-west, a swan just above that, a roc to the far west, a whale just above that, and a serpent to the north-west.  In the circular, center tile is a dragon.   Elsea stands on the dragon tile.  The area is bright with color.

She looks around and stumbles around.  Her cloak drags across the ground.

She stops when she sees a shadowed figure standing on the phoenix tile.

The figure turns.  It is Zelos, and both of his eyes are gleaming with golden light.

Zelos smiles at her.

Elsea looks frightened and runs away.

At the far end of the altar she reaches the edge and nearly falls over.

Show an image of her looking over at the vast darkness below.  Countless stars stretch out in the darkness, some larger than others.  Beyond them is the world.

Elsea turns.

Show Zelos in a travel cloak with the hood up.  The cloak is red and orange and writhes like fire.  His golden eyes gleam out of it like beacons in the darkness of his hood.  Every other feature is dark.

 

Elsea: “Who are you?  What are you?”

 

Zelos stumbles forward.  Each step leaves a smoking foot print.

Zelos is hunched over and shaking.

He throws his head back and laughs, and flames roar out of his hood and illuminate the altar.

Elsea screams.

The screen goes black.

 

Zelos, off-screen: “Soon, soon he will burn until nothing is left.  Then, you will all burn. Everything will burn.”

 

Elsea screams against the black screen.

 

Mary, off-screen: “Good lady Elsea, are you well?”

 

Open on Elsea in her chair.  She is wide-eyed and sweating.  Her arms are still crossed.  Zelos is sleeping quietly in front of her, and Mary is kneeled down beside his bed.  She is looking at Elsea.

Elsea turns to her.

 

Elsea: “Miss Mary.”

Elsea adjusts herself in her seat and wipes her forehead.

Elsea: “I apologize, I must have…”

 

Mary: “You fell asleep, is all, dear, no harm in that.  I must ask, though, were you dreaming? You were making an awful ruckus.”

 

Elsea: “I did.”

 

Mary: “And what, might I ask, had you so fitful?”

 

Elsea: “I’m not sure.”

Elsea looks at Zelos.

Show Zelos sleeping.

Elsea: “Fire, I think.”

 

Mary: “Yes, dreams are often hazy things, ephemeral in their nature.  Full of texture in the moment, but entirely without meaning after.  Still, they have value, don’t you think?”

 

Elsea: “I—I suppose.”

 

Mary: “Now then, you’ve been with him quite long enough.  Go, take your leave, and find proper sleep in a proper bed.”

 

Elsea: “N-No, I’m fine, I can…”

 

Mary: “Please, dear, I must insist.  Should events choose to transpire in the night, as I fear they might, we will need you well-rested, wouldn’t you think?  I shouldn’t want another limp body what to carry around on my shoulders as we make our daring escape and all.”

 

Elsea sighs and nods.

She stands and goes to the door.

 

Elsea: “Good night, Miss Mary, and to the prince, as well.”

 

Mary: “Thank you, dear, and I shall be certain to pass your wishes along to the prince once he wakes.”

Elsea pauses.

Elsea leaves.

Mary stands beside Zelos’ bed and looks at him.

Mary: “Whether he will appreciate the sentiment, however, depends on the temperament of our fiery little guest, though.”

Mary settles in the chair and watches Zelos.

Mary: “Take your time, if you wish, old thing.  I’ve the same eternity to wait, if you insist upon the waiting.”