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TRANSCRIPT:
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Act
I
Open
in a church at night or the pre-dawn hours. A priest is kneeling in
prayer.
Priest:
Lord, let this cup pass from me. Not my will be done, but thine.
The
priest hears or senses something and looks around a moment.
Priest
(struggling a little): Lord, let this cup pass from me. Not
thy will ...
He
looks around again. A wind blows out the votives on one table. The priest
turns to look over his right shoulder and a shadow falls across his
face.
Cut
to early morning in the church. An elderly woman is walking up the central
aisle of the church. She sees the priest at the front of the church.
Woman:
Father? Father Bellamy? What are you doing? It ... It ... It's time
for mass.
She
puts on her glasses and sees the blood dripping down his face.
Woman:
Ah ... oh! Oh, oh no! Oh, no! Oh, help! Somebody! Somebody, help!
Cut
to the exterior of the church shown on TV.
Newscaster
(off camera): This is a Vorschlag News emergency interrupt.
A
female newscaster is sitting at a desk with the letters VCN in the background.
Newscaster:
The New York Police are in a full-scale manhunt for the killer of
Monsignor John Bellamy.
Flash
to various scenes of police helicopters and cop cars.
Newscaster:
Suspect in the murder is Edward Nolan, a counsellee of Monsignor
Bellamy with a history of criminal activity and mental illness.
Cut
to a young man running down a fire escape into an alley. He jumps down
the last few feet. A man with a shotgun comes out of the door at the
top of the fire escape. The young man runs down the alley. Sara and
Jake drive up, blocking his way. Both get out of their car with guns
drawn.
Jake:
Police! Hold it!
The
young man turns and runs the other way down the alley. It turns out
the man with the shotgun is Captain Dante.
Dante
(into radio): Suspect is on foot in the alley between Adams
and Fitzgerald.
A
cruiser pulls up at the other end of the alley, blocking the suspect's
path. Uniformed officers get out with guns drawn.
Uniform:
Hold it!
The
young man turns back again and goes to the middle of the alley. There's
now a sharpshooter on the fire escape with Dante.
Dante
(into radio): Prepare to fire.
Sara
looks up at that.
Young
man (yelling): My name is Legion. For we are many.
He
reaches into his coat as if to pull something out.
Dante
(into radio): Fire on my command.
Sara:
Fire? Is the guy even armed?
The
Witchblade glows and Sara gets a few flashes: The suspect reaching into
his jacket for nothing, a KKK gathering, a burning village, one person
surrounded by 6 or 7 police.
Sara
runs toward the alley.
Dante:
Pezzini, what the ...?
Jake:
Sara, no!
Dante
(into radio): Hold fire.
Sara
jumps on the young man. They land on a stack of garbage bags. When she
looks into his eyes, they glow yellow briefly. She drags him to his
feet. Evil laughing is heard.
Cut
to Ken Irons' office. He is seated at his desk watching a news report.
Ian Nottingham is standing behind and to the side of his chair.
Newscaster:
The police poised for a firefight when Detective Sara Pezzini broke
cover and single-handedly subdued the suspect.
Irons:
She grows bolder.
Ian:
It's to be expected.
Irons:
And what if she dies foolishly? Wastes her life on some piece of
gutter trash?
Ian
(turns to Irons): Would the blade allow that?
Ian
turns his head back when Irons turns to him.
Irons:
Never presume to know what the Witchblade would or would not allow.
Ian's
head drops so his chin is resting on his chest.
Cut
to the front entrance of the police station. Two uniformed officers
bring Edward Nolan in the door and shove him over a counter.
Sara:
Hey, hey! Easy! He's not even resisting.
Officer
seated at the counter: Then I say he shouldn't be breathing.
Sara:
Can it, Burgess.
Sara
continues walking, but turns back when she hears the 2 uniforms hitting
Nolan. He drops to the floor.
Sara:
Hey! Get him into holding, now. Easy!
Sara
stares up into Burgess' face as Nolan is lead away.
Burgess:
What?
She
turns around and catches Dante looking on. he says nothing and she walks
off. Behind her, a priest enters the station.
Priest:
Uh, Detective Pezzini?
Sara:
Yes?
Priest:
I'm Father Petrosian. Aloysha. I ... I need to see Eddie Nolan.
Sara:
Oh, you're his priest.
Father
Aloysha: Yeah, I am now.
Sara:
You'll have to wait till he's out of processing, but ... ah (looks
around the station) ... Do me a favor, just ... um ... keep
him in your sights.
Father
Aloysha: OK. He's innocent, you know.
Sara:
Until proven guilty. At least, that's the theory.
Father
Aloysha: He would never have killed Monsignor Bellamy. They
were like father and son.
Sara:
We get our share of those, too.
Father
Aloysha: John was Eddie's confessor, his friend. He spent half
his time trying to deal with Eddie's … um … his problems.
Sara:
Look, I'm … I'm just a cop, Father. You're going to need to tell
this to an attorney, maybe the D.A.
Father
Aloysha: But the real killer is still out there.
Sara:
With Mr. Nolan's history of psychological problems …
Father
Aloysha: His problems aren't psychological, they're spiritual.
Sara:
OK.
Aloysha:
Father Bellamy believed Eddie was … ah … is … possessed.
Sara
raises one eyebrow.
Cut
to a small room with Sara, Jake and Dante. Dante throws a hammer in
an evidence bag onto a table.
Dante:
Murder weapon.
Sara:
Unconfirmed.
Jake
(holding up another bag): Keys to the church - confirmed.
Dante:
All found in Nolan's apartment.
Sara:
Why the show-and-tell?
Dante:
You saved a guilty man.
Sara:
I arrested a suspect.
Jake:
Who'll probably plead insanity and do soft time. If he doesn't walk
altogether. (Glances at Dante.)
Sara:
Hey, you know what, McCartey? Run for judge. Me, I like my job.
A
man clears his throat behind Sara.
Man:
Excuse me. I'm not interrupting, am I?
Dante:
No, no, no, no. Father DelToro. This is Detective Pezzini and Detective
McCartey. Father Dennis is the Cardinal's attorney.
DelToro
shakes Sara's offered hand then kisses it. He then shakes Jake's hand.
DelToro:
I prefer "good and faithful servant."
Jake:
Wow, a lawyer priest? That mean you can forgive your own sins?
DelToro:
I wish. Seriously, I'm here to help if any help is needed. John
Bellamy wasn't just a colleague, he was a dear friend. And I did
try to warn him.
Sara:
Warn him about what?
DelToro:
Edward Nolan's mental problems were very severe. He needed medication
and constant attention. And despite his best intentions, Monsignor
Bellamy was preventing him from getting the help he so desperately
needed.
Sara:
So what you're saying is, Bellamy thought Nolan was possessed?
Jake:
What?
Dante:
Pezzini …
DelToro:
No, she's right. John was … he was New York's leading authority
on demonic possession. He truly believed Edward's psychosis was
the work of (laugh) demons. (He smiles and chuckles)
Unfortunately, Father Bellamy was also senile and he unwittingly
fostered Edward's overdependence. I … we … we feared something like
this might happen.
Dante:
Thank you, Father.
DelToro:
Very good. Thank you. (He leaves)
Cut
to Sara entering an area of jail cells. She stops outside Edward Nolan's
cell. Edward is sitting cross legged on his bunk.
Sara:
Hello, Edward. I'm Detective Sara Pezzini.
Edward:
I know. You saved my life today.
Sara:
Did you kill Monsignor Bellamy?
Edward:
He was my best friend.
Sara:
Did you kill him?
Shift
to Edward's viewpoint. We see Sara-in-armor outside the cell. The figure
raises the Witchblade across her chest. The image flashes several times
between normal Sara and the armored one.
Edward
(complete personality shift): Yes. I killed the old queen.
You wanna make something of it?
Sara:
What did you use to kill him?
Edward:
You know what I used.
Sara:
Yes, I do, Edward. Do you?
Edward:
Do you actually think that I might be innocent?
Sara:
Please just answer the question.
Edward
gets up and walks to the bars of his cell.
Edward:
Do the world a favor. You weld this cell shut. You lower it into
the earth. And you pour concrete over it.
Sara:
Is that you talking, Edward? Or is there someone in there with you?
Edward:
C'mon, Detective! Does it really make a difference?
Cut
to Bellamy's church. Sara and Father Aloysha are entering Father Bellamy's
rooms.
Sara:
So tell me more about exorcism, Father.
Aloysha:
Well, the rites are very ancient. The Church has updated the mass
and the sacrament, but they haven't changed the exorcism ritual
in 1500 years.
Sara:
No, I mean, how do you feel about it? Do you believe that
there's an actual Devil? A personality that can inhabit certain
people?
Aloysha:
Well, Church canon says …
Sara:
Because I think there is. I've seen enough to make me believe.
Aloysha:
Yes, I believe some people have problems psychotherapy cannot even
begin to touch.
Sara:
I love honest people. I get to meet so few. Now, what I don't know
is that if Edward Nolan really is possessed or if he's just stark
raving bonkers.
Aloysha:
It's not that simple. Some people the world calls possessed are
actually willing vessels of evil.
Sara:
Huh. I think I've met a few of those.
Aloysha:
Yeah, they're the truly scary ones. As someone who's possessed may
be completely blameless. They don't choose Satan, he chooses them.
Sara:
Is that what Bellamy thought about Nolan?
Aloysha:
He was convinced. You're not?
Sara:
I'm not even really convinced he killed him. Was Father Bellamy
getting senile?
Aloysha:
He was old and forgetful, but for the most part he was very lucid.
Sara
looks off to the side of the Monsignor's study.
Sara:
What are these?
Aloysha:
Uh … John's journals. He kept them from the time he was a novice.
Uh …
Sara
sees a set of fine bound books in a bookcase, each with a year embossed
on the spine: 1933, 1934, etc. There is a gap in the row of books.
Sara:
Except from 1936 to '44.
Aloysha:
That's strange.
Danny's
voice: World War II.
Sara
turns her head to see Danny sitting in the chair behind Bellamy's desk.
Sara:
Um … You know what, Father? It would really help me out if I could
just be here alone for a while. I kinda like to sort of tune in
to the dead guy.
Sara
has by this time ushered Father Aloysha to the door to the Monsignor's
apartments.
Danny:
Oh, that's clever.
Sara
(low voice to Danny): Shut up.
Aloysha:
What?
Sara:
The door. Could you shut it when you leave?
Aloysha:
Oh, I … I don't know if I can …
Sara:
I'm a trained investigator. I won't hurt a thing.
Aloysha:
OK. (Shuts the door)
Sara
(turning to Danny): That was not cool.
Danny:
You know the great thing about being dead? Cool doesn't matter any
more.
Sara:
What did you say about World War II?
Danny:
The war years. The victim's missing journals. Maybe there's a connection.
Sara:
Yeah. Like he was a chaplain in the service and he didn't have time
to write?
Danny:
Yeah, sure. That's probably it.
Sara
(joking): Hey. You're dead, Danny. Why don't ya ask him?
Danny
gets an almost panicked look and opens his mouth without saying anything
before Sara jumps on her idea.
Sara
(excited): Could you do that?
Danny:
Not a good idea.
Sara:
But you could?
Danny:
Sara …
Sara:
Wait. This thing lets me talk to you, right? Does that mean I can
talk to other dead people? Like my victim in this case?
Danny:
Sara, please.
Sara:
This is every cop's dream, Danny. Every homicide cop.
Danny:
Sara!
Sara:
Maybe that's why I was chosen to wear this thing.
She
looks up and Danny has disappeared. She rolls her eyes upward.
Fade.
End
Act I
Act
II
Open
in a small interview room in the police station. Edward Nolan is sitting
on one side of a table, Captain Dante on the other. On the table is
a microphone and a tape recorder. Jake is standing off to one side.
Dante:
Your decision to confess is a wise one, Mr. Nolan. Why don't you
tell us the whole story.
Edward:
The whole story?
Dante:
Yeah, sure. Feel free. Talk to us.
Edward:
Wow. OK. I think it all started when … my mother seduced her own
father. Then she had the bad taste to get pregnant by him. Oh, he
punished her severely. You know, they say trauma to the mother can
harm a baby in utero. What do you think about that, Detective?
Jake:
This is ridiculous.
Jake
moves to turn off the tape recorder, but Dante stops him.
Dante:
Keep going.
Edward:
Sure. Actually, you couldn't prove that theory based on me. Because
mom also tried to abort me using a vacuum cleaner hose. (laughing)
I guess you could say she sorta saw me comin', huh?
Jake:
We have to listen to this …
Edward:
Hey! You said you wanted the whole story.
Dante
turns off the recorder and rubs his eyes.
Dante
(to Jake): Get me some coffee.
Cut
to the street outside Bellamy's church. Sara and her new beau, Conchobar,
are walking down the sidewalk.
Conchobar:
I don't really know much about all that stuff, Sara. The Church
pronounced me "irredeemable" when I was 12. I never went
back.
Sara:
Get out. The Church doesn't do that.
She
waits for him to say "Just kidding," but he doesn't.
Sara:
To a 12-year-old boy?
Conchobar:
Almost 12. Easter Week, 1985. All good Catholic children go to confession
to receive communion on Resurrection Day. Monsignor Edward Bradley,
red-nosed, drunken old Limerickman … I knelt in the dark and gave
him my litany of little boy's sins. Stole an apple, lusted after
Mary Bernadette Walsh, masturbated …
Sara:
Go on.
Conchobar:
He called me a wretched Demas.
Sara:
What's that?
Conchobar:
Well, he explained it to me in detail. A character from the Bible
who professed penitence for his sins but wasn't sincere. The old
fart told me I was just going through the motions. That my remorse
was not sincere and he'd be violating sacrament if he granted me
absolution. So, he told me to go away and come back when I was truly
sorry. Like I said, I never went back.
Sara:
That's awful.
Conchobar
(sigh): He wasn't wrong, you know.
Sara:
He was so wrong.
Conchobar:
No, he wasn't. I wasn't sorry. Especially not for lusting after
Mary Bernadette. Oh, you should have seen her …
They
stop and face each other on the sidewalk.
Conchobar:
… dark hair, green eyes, slim, saucy, moved like a cat …
Sara:
You know what you need?
Conchobar:
Bet you're gonna tell me.
Sara:
Some long overdue penance in my apartment tomorrow night.
Conchobar:
Good Lord! I think I've seen the light.
They
kiss deeply, with a brief flash of Cathain kissing her Conchobar. {See
Sacrifice.}
Cut
to Father Aloysha entering the confessional of his and Father Bellamy's
church, the Church of the Sacred Blood of the Martyrs.
Aloysha
(to his confessor): Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.
It has been one week since my last confession. These are my sins.
I suffer a lust for a woman in my heart.
Confessor:
Without temptation, what reason would there be for strength?
Aloysha:
There is another vow I'm considering breaking. A vow of secrecy.
Confessor:
Go on.
Aloysha:
I promised a friend to keep a secret. That friend was recently killed.
His death may have to do with the secret. Am I still bound?
Confessor:
A difficult question. It requires our prayerful consideration. Say
five Our Fathers and five Hail Marys and visit me again tomorrow.
(Latin phrases here signifying absolution and dismissal.)
Aloysha
exits the confessional and goes to his prayers.
His
confessor exits the confessional, meets up with Father DelToro and has
a short whispered conversation.
Cut
to Sara's apartment. She's just finished, as she once noted to Gabriel,
"banging" on her drums. Behind her, Danny appears, clapping.
Sara:
Two visits in one day. Must be important.
Danny:
You called for it.
Sara
is wiping the sweat from her face with a towel.
Sara
(face behind towel): Yeah? Called for what?
When
she looks up, Danny's not there. The Witchblade starts glowing. She
looks over to her kitchen area. There's Father Bellamy.
Sara:
I don't believe this is happening.
Bellamy:
Believing is having faith in what you cannot see. And you see me,
Sara.
Sara:
How is this possible?
Danny
walks up behind her again.
Bellamy:
The same way you see your friend …
Sara
turns to see Danny.
Bellamy:
… Digitabulum Magae. Your bracelet.
Sara:
How do you know its name?
Bellamy
doesn't answer.
Sara:
You came here to talk to me, Father, so … so talk.
Bellamy:
Digitabulum Magae was taken from Jeanne d'Arc by the bishop who
ordered her burned. …
Flash
of Joan burning at the stake.
Bellamy:
… then locked in the bowels of the Vatican for 500 years …
Flash
of a bishop handing the gauntlet off to be buried in the Catacombs.
Bellamy:
… allowed out only in the most extreme emergencies.
Sara:
Who did this to you, Father? Who killed you?
Bellamy:
Satan himself.
Sara:
You mean Eddie Nolan?
Bellamy:
A good boy. Tell him I miss him.
Sara:
Father …
Bellamy:
The church was dark. I was struck from behind. I never saw my killer's
face.
Sara:
Well, who else could have done this to you?
Bellamy:
So many: He is Legion.
Sara:
That's another name for the Devil, right? I need a human
suspect, Father.
Bellamy:
1936. I was newly ordained and trained as a linguist. I was blessed
with a wonderful assignment. Living in the Vatican, translating
the correspondence of the Cardinals, even the Holy Father himself.
Sara:
That's nice …
Bellamy:
The war was brewing. We all feared for the Church's fate. Sworn
to secrecy, I translated letters from Pope Pious to Adolf Hitler.
They struck an unholy bargain. The Fuhrer agreed to leave the Vatican
and its treasures untouched. The Pope promised the Church would
remain silent about the Nazis and their atrocities. Hitler was an
avid collector of objects of power. He knew the Digitabulum was
in the Pope's hands. As a guarantee of Pious' sincerity, he asked
for a token.
Sara:
The Witchblade?
Bellamy
nods.
Bellamy:
The Vatican knows that you have it now. And rest assured, they are
certain it is theirs. And they do want it back.
Bellamy
turns away from her.
Sara:
No, wait a minute, please. Father, don't go. (Holds up the Witchblade)
Is this the reason that you were killed? Is this in your journals?
They're missing.
Bellamy:
That is not why I was killed. It was Satan himself.
Sara
(turning back to Danny): But you said, World War II … a connection
…
She
turns back and Father Bellamy is gone. She turns around and finds Danny
has gone, too. She kneels to a spot on the floor and finds that it is
blood.
Sara
(low voice): Damn it.
Fade.
End
Act II
Act
III
Open
with Sara sitting on the floor outside Eddie Nolan's cell.
Sara:
You didn't kill him.
Edward:
I confessed. Didn't you hear?
Sara:
You promised to confess. Trying to get your own rocks off. Trying
to impress my colleagues with how bad you are.
Edward:
Well, it's not my fault they scare easy.
Sara:
I don't. I think you're innocent.
Edward:
Now, that's a first.
Sara:
Worse, I bet Bellamy didn't even believe you were possessed. Kind
old man that he was, he was probably trying just to keep you out
of some state run institution. I think you're a poser, Nolan. You're
not possessed. You're just a garden variety nutbag.
Edward:
Then why don't you come in here and test that theory?!
Sara
(yelling): Jailer!
A
buzz sounds and the door to Eddie's cell slides open. Sara walks in.
Sara:
You think you're crazy? Hmm? I just spent my evening talking to
Monsignor Bellamy. Yeah, that's right. The late Monsignor
Bellamy. And he bent over backward to clear ya. He even said he
missed you.
Edward
(smile): He missed me.
Sara:
You didn't kill him, did you, Nolan? You just want someone to put
you out of your misery. Suicide by cop, right?
Edward:
No.
Sara:
Especially with Bellamy gone. Who's gonna listen to your "Poor
me" rap? Life's not worth living any more, is it, Nolan? Is
it?!
Eddie
sits on his bunk, nearly in tears.
Edward:
The Monsignor was my best friend.
Sara:
Yeah, well, I'm your new best friend. So tell me. If Satan is alive
and well in New York City, who the hell is he using as a taxi?
Cut
to Sara working out in the precinct's gym area. She is punching the
heavy bag. Jake walks up and holds the bag.
Jake:
We gotta talk.
Sara:
Talk.
Jake:
Since I've been your partner, I've seen things, weird things.
Sara:
Yeah? Welcome to New York.
Jake:
You're supposed to be my training officer, but you leave me out
of the loop all the time. The other guys say they were joined at
the hip to their senior partner for the whole first year. Me, I'm
stumbling around in the dark.
Sara:
All right. You wanna help? Leave Nolan off the list of suspects.
Jake:
But he's a prime …
Sara:
You want in, just soak in the whole ambiance of this murder. Church,
priest, Satan, possession … and then you spew, gut level, first
thing pops in your head.
Jake:
Even the Devil can quote scripture for his purpose.
Sara:
Yeah. And?
Jake:
So who's been quoting scripture around here?
Flash
of DelToro kissing Sara's hand.
Cut
to Sara and DelToro exiting the church.
DelToro:
I don't need to posit the existence of a Devil, Detective Pezzini.
With Columbine and Santana, who needs Satan?
Sara:
So you don't believe in demonic possession?
DelToro:
Please, promise you won't tell the Cardinal.
Sara:
Eddie Nolan's not guilty, Father.
DelToro:
Your captain seems to think otherwise.
Sara:
It's my case, not his. I noticed you've admired this (lifts Witchblade).
DelToro:
Ah, yes. A copy, of course. I've seen the original in the … Pazzi
Gallery in Fiorenze.
Sara:
Oh, not possible. This is the original, one and only.
DelToro:
I'd ask for my money back if I were you.
Sara:
You're the Cardinal's spin doctor. How did you deal with the Pope's
recent apology about the Church's silence during the Holocaust?
DelToro:
I try to learn from Japanese culture. They took the art of apology
all the way to ritual suicide. Now, that is one hell of a way to
say you're sorry, don't you think?
Sara:
I heard a ... uh ... token was exchanged between Hitler and Pope
Pious to seal that deal.
DelToro:
I thought this discussion was about a murder inquiry, Detective.
Sara:
Oh, but it is. If someone wanted to kill Monsignor Bellamy and cover
it up, could there possibly be a better scapegoat than Edward Nolan?
DelToro:
Ridiculous. I mean, who else would want to kill John Bellamy?
Sara:
I don't know, Father. You said it yourself, he was New York's
leading expert on exorcism.
DelToro:
Proverbs, Chapter 1, Sara. "The net is spread in vain before
the eyes of them that have wings."
He
turns and walks back into the church. Sara walks over to where Jake
is standing by their car.
Jake:
Did he bite?
Sara:
Not yet.
Jake:
What do you say we head over to Felipe's, hoist a brew, be normal
cops for once?
Sara:
I can't, Jake. I ... uh ... I have a date.
They
get in the car and drive off. Up on the roof of the church, Ian is rocking
back and forth against the railing around the edge.
Cut
to Sara's apartment. She and Conchobar are entwined on her bed. Sara
is lying on her back and Conchobar is raised on one elbow to her side.
Sara:
I think he did you a favor.
Conchobar:
Who?
Sara:
That priest. The one who wouldn't absolve you.
Conchobar:
Oh, yeah. Racked with the terrors of hell, yet still trapped within
my own humanity.
Sara:
You're an artist. You're supposed to suffer.
Conchobar
(smile): Right!
He
rolls over on top of her. Sara laughs.
Conchobar:
Sometimes I still feel ... I don't know ... like I'm split in half.
Do you ever feel that way?
Sara:
Like you'll never know.
Conchobar:
So this priest, how did he do me a favor?
Sara:
He defined you. He taught you who you were. That you are a very
bad, bad little boy.
She
rolls him over, laughing. She wrestles his arms down.
Conchobar:
Oh, right. I can't believe this. Me and a cop.
Sara:
Cops aren't so bad.
Conchobar:
Maybe you'll arrest me for sexual harassment.
Sara:
I believe that for harassment to occur, the victim has to be unwilling.
They
kiss and roll off the bed onto a blanket already there. At some point,
they make it back onto the bed. They are making love when the Witchblade
glows when Sara's hand touches a tattoo of Conchobar's rune. {At least
it looked like it. This may be a coincidence, maybe not. But as Ian
once said, "There are no coincidences."}
Cut
briefly to Ken Irons. If this is one of those things the Witchblade
chooses to show him, he doesn't react.
Cut
back to Sara and Conchobar making love. The Witchblade glows again,
this time in proximity to the band of tattoos around his left bicep.
Cut
to Ian Nottingham. He is hunched down in a pool of street light, leaning
against a corner pillar of the wall surrounding Bellamy's church. He
is definitely experiencing something. {Shippy heart that I am, I at
first thought he was devastated that Sara had taken Conchobar for a
lover, but I'm inclined to think he was somehow experiencing their passion.}
Cut
back to Sara and Conchobar making love.
Cut
to the holding cells at the precinct. The guard (and it's our friend
Burgess from Act I) who's supposed to be watching the monitors on the
cells instead has his back to the monitors. He's looking at a girlie
magazine.
Edward's
voice (over monitor): I try and I try. Just can't help
it. She does things to me ...
The
guard reaches over and turns the sound off to Edward's monitor.
Cut
to Edward's cell. Edward is sitting on his bunk facing Father DelToro,
who's sitting on the steel toilet.
Edward:
She thinks ... She gets me to tell her things. I try to keep my
thoughts pure. I try so hard ...
Shift
to an overhead view of the cell. Edward is talking to no one visible.
Edward:
... but I can't stop the visions in my head.
Shift
back to Edward and DelToro.
Edward:
There's this woman I want. And I just wanna do unspeakable things
to her. (crying)
DelToro:
I know this woman, don't I? It's all right. You're talking about
Sara Pezzini, aren't you? It's OK. I understand. I have the same
feelings.
Edward:
But you're a priest.
DelToro:
I'm also a man. When we have these vile, sinful, evil thoughts,
we must take extreme measures.
Edward
(eyes a little unfocused): Yes ...
DelToro:
Yes.
Edward:
Whatever Jesus wants.
DelToro:
Whatever Jesus wants.
Edward
stands up from his bunk.
Edward:
Whatever it takes.
DelToro:
Whatever it takes.
Edward
walks, eyes raised, near one of the cinder block walls.
Edward:
Thank you, Jesus. Thank you for ending my pain.
Edward
leans forward and walks rapidly head first into the wall. DelToro looks
on. Edward backs up a few feet and repeats. And repeats .... DelToro
wipes some blood off his cheek.
Cut
back to the monitoring booth. On Edward's monitor we see him beating
his brains in while the guard looks at his magazine.
End
Act III
Act
IV
Open
with Sara and Conchobar in her bed asleep, facing each other. The phone
rings. Sara rolls to answer it.
Conchobar:
Don't.
Sara:
I have to.
Conchobar
(more enticingly): Don't.
They
kiss. Sara's answering machine picks up.
Machine
(Sara's voice): Pezzini. Go.
Jake
(over machine): Pezzini, it's Jake. You better get down to
the precinct. We have a problem.
Cut
to the precinct holding cells. Edward's body is being zipped into a
body bag. Sara walks in.
Sara:
What in hell happened?
Jake:
Severe skull fracture. Paramedics say it's self-induced.
Sara:
Self-induced? How is that even ... ?
The
body is wheeled past. Sara sees Edward banging his head into the wall.
She also sees DelToro there and an upright creature with a tail and
tattered membranous wings.
Sara:
Sergeant, who was his last visitor?
Burgess:
Actually, Pezzini, it was you.
Sara:
What about the priest, Father DelToro?
Burgess:
Like I said, no one since you.
Sara
shifts her eyes to look at Jake. He raises his eyebrows and gives a
little shrug.
Burgess:
What? You wanna check to log:
Sara:
The log you keep?
Burgess:
The log is the log. What are you tryin' to say?
Sara:
Nothin', Burgess.
Sara
turns and walks out.
Burgess
(low voice): Bitch.
Cut
to Aloysha's residence. Sara knocks on a door answered by Aloysha.
Aloysha:
Sara. Hi ... uh ... what can I ... uh ... do for you?
Sara:
Edward Nolan is dead.
Aloysha:
No ...
Sara:
Where's Father DelToro?
Aloysha:
I ... uh ... I think I saw him heading toward the sanctuary.
Sara:
Thank you. (She turns and walks off)
Aloysha:
Uh ...
Cut
to Sara entering the church. DelToro is there, hands folded flat across
his chest.
DelToro:
Hello, Sara.
Sara:
Come here often?
DelToro:
You don't believe old wives' tales, do you?
Sara:
Have you seen Edward Nolan lately? You know he died last night.
DelToro:
Nolan has tried to commit suicide three times. If he finally succeeded,
then it's no great loss.
Sara:
I didn't say he committed suicide. I'm thinking that he had a little
push. Maybe not so little.
DelToro:
Police work surely should be more than speculation.
Sara:
You killed Monsignor Bellamy. Nolan's suicide just closes the loop.
DelToro:
More speculation.
Sara:
Not when I have your voice on the 911 tape calling in the murder
just mere moments after it was discovered.
DelToro:
I live across the driveway ...
Father
Aloysha comes quietly into the church, sitting low in a pew.
DelToro:
... I heard the old woman screaming.
Sara:
Really? Did she scream out the name of the fall guy? What did you
do with Monsignor Bellamy's missing journals?
Monsignor
Bellamy is standing behind Aloysha.
Sara:
You know, the ones about Pope's ... uh ... bargain with Hitler ...
and this (holds up Witchblade).
DelToro:
Ah ... yes. Digitabulum ...
Ian
sits down in a back pew.
DelToro:
... It belongs to the Church, Sara. You should give it back.
Sara:
To you? No, I don't think so. See, I think that Nolan was a poser.
You ... I think you're the real thing. So tell me, Father, are you
really possessed, or are you just a willing vessel of evil?
DelToro
smiles and starts chuckling.
DelToro
(voice deepening as he goes): I know things to make your
flesh hump! To make your hair turn white! I know starving bodies
sick, broken babies thick. I know what fresh blood taste like when
it's still warm. The sound a man makes while his skin is peeled
away. Do you really think that you're a match for me, Sara Pezzini?
DelToro
gives another evil laugh. Sara has a look upon her face that quite plainly
says "Oh, crap! What've I let myself in for here?" Ian looks
on a little worried. Monsignor Bellamy looks on, too.
Sara:
So Bellamy knew who you were, and he was going to expose the truth.
DelToro:
Digitabulum Magae ... give it to me. Now!
Sounds
of the Witchblade changing to the gauntlet.
Sara:
You want it? Take it.
DelToro
(obviously not, but we'll keep calling him that) throws a table full
of votive candles at her. She blocks it. The blade extends a foot or
so from the gauntlet. DelToro runs and tackles Sara.
Aloysha
watches open-mouthed and wide-eyed.
Sara
and DelToro wrestle. She's on top, trying to skewer him with the blade.
He uses his legs to launch her high in the air. She hangs there suspended.
He leaps to join her. They swing around each other, legs entangled.
Occasionally DelToro's visage will change to that of a demonic being.
Eventually, Sara shoves him toward the floor. She follows him down.
DelToro
grabs a heavy candlestick, about four feet in length, and swings at
her. She rolls out of the way. He swings several more times, and each
time she ducks and shifts away. By now the Witchblade has changed to
its heavy blade coming from a macehead form. Sara blocks one swing with
the blade, trapping DelToro's weapon. Aloysha watches stunned. Sara
blocks the next swing, too, twisting so she can hack the candlestick
in two.
DelToro
uses one piece of the heavy candlestick to push Sara to the floor. She
twists out from underneath him and grabs him by the throat with the
Witchblade, which has returned to its gauntlet form.
Sara:
Be gone, Satan! Inventor and master of all deceit. Enemy of man's
salvation. Be gone!
He
disappears, but we hear evil laughter and ...
DelToro's
voice: Don't believe in old wives' tales, do you?
A
brief flash of light appears in front of Sara then is gone.
Cut
to Ken Irons and Ian in his office. Irons holds open a book with a hand-written
page. Ian stands to Irons' side, head down, eyes forward.
Irons:
How much did she learn?
Ian:
It's impossible to tell. She was conversing with other realms.
Irons
closes the book.
Irons:
You should have stopped it.
Irons
starts to walk behind Ian to put the book away.
Ian:
Perhaps ...
Irons
stops to look at Ian, a bit shocked.
Ian
(head rising): ... or perhaps such an intervention will prove
to be more valuable later on.
Irons
takes his hand and forces Ian's head back down, meeting some resistance
at first. Irons continues walking with the book.
Irons:
Up until now, I've done quite well trusting you to your own initiative.
But I can see that I will start having to be more explicit in my
directions.
Irons
places the book on a table with several other like volumes. Ian walks
out. Close up of the spines of the books reveal they are Bellamy's missing
journals.
Cut
to Sara standing with Father Aloysha near the church.
Sara:
Look, Aloysha. Um ... What you saw yesterday ...
Aloysha:
Will remain locked in my heart for the rest of my life. I kept John
Bellamy's secrets, I think I can keep yours. Besides ... uh ...
I honestly don't really know what happened.
Sara:
What's the Church's stand on reincarnation?
Aloysha:
Officially, we don't believe in it. Unofficially, I often wonder.
Sara:
Well, in your next life, maybe you don't come back as a priest.
He
laughs and she kisses him on the cheek. Sara walks off.
Aloysha
(softly): Oh.
Fade.
End
Act IV
END OF EPISODE
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