SVS10 - E02 - Demon in the Dark

Episode Guide	Teaser	Act 1	Act 2	Act 3	Act 4

ACT FOUR FADE IN: EXT. OUTSIDE OF MINES - DAY Standing off to one side and holding the birdcage and his tools, Vanus watches with interest. Xena and Gabrielle examine the dirt-packed ground just outside the mines' entrance, looking for clues. GABRIELLE Find anything? XENA Not yet. The dirt is tightly packed and hard to read. Looking very closely, Xena can just see scuff marks indicating human boot prints. All appear to be heading in the direction of the mine entrance. Despite meticulous examination, she can find none going the other way. XENA (cont’d, softly) Not good. GABRIELLE What is it? Xena gestures to the marks she's found and after a long moment, Gabrielle nods gravely. GABRIELLE (cont’d) They went in, but nobody came out, right? XENA Looks that way, yes. Turning to Vanus, she takes the birdcage from his hand and walks toward the entrance. GABRIELLE Xena.... XENA Relax. I'm not gonna go that far. Be right back. CUT TO: INT. CAVE - DAY Entering the cave with the cage and a torch in her hands, Xena notices first off a heavy, musky scent, indicating that an animal had used the mines for a den. She checks the ground for spoor, but can find none. What she does find are dozens of gems scattered all over the ground. Most are crushed or badly chipped. Seeing this, Xena frowns. Gems are, in her experience, a very hard mineral, not usually capable of being crushed by a careless step or drop. Squatting down, she picks up one of the more whole ones and examines it by the light of the flickering torch. A frown creases her brow. After a moment, she carefully replaces the stone, then rises. Taking the bird cage, she walks several more long steps until the light of her torch is the only light seen, then sets it down in the middle of the path. The bird twitters up at her as it hops about on its perch. XENA (cont’d) That's right. You keep singing, and everything's gonna be just fine. With a final look around, she turns and strides back to the entrance, welcoming the sun as it shines down upon her. CUT TO: EXT. MINES - DAY Xena opens the door to the cage and the bird flies quickly away, chirping happily. GABRIELLE Guess we're set then, huh? XENA Yup. Visibly gathering his nerve, Vanus hefts his tools and torch and takes a step forward. VANUS I'm ready. XENA It's better if you stay here.... VANUS What? What do you mean stay here?! It was my idea to come here in the first place! I'm not going to.... GABRIELLE (interrupting) Vanus, listen. What Xena means it that we need someone standing guard at the entrance. We think that's why none of you know what happened to the miners, because there was no one on guard who could come back and tell the tale. It's a very important job. VANUS (huffily) Very important. Hah! My mother could do this job standing on her head. XENA (silkenly) Your mother isn't here now, is she? VANUS But.... VOICE (off camera) Finally! After much huffing and puffing the old man from the inn appears, red-faced from exertion. OLD MAN Figured ya'd need someone ta pull guard duty out here. I ain't young enough ta go gallavantin’ in them mines, but I reckon I can stand out here in the sun easy enough. Xena and Gabrielle cast the man equally dubious looks, then look at one another. After a moment, Xena shrugs, and the old man grins, toasting them with whatever he's got stashed in his waterskin. OLD MAN (cont’d) Good luck to ya, then.... And don't worry. If I hear a single peep outta place, I'll be outta here so fast you'd think my feet was on fire. Xena stares at the now cackling codger, then eyes her two companions. XENA Let's go. CUT TO: INT. MINE - DAY The mine shaft is long, narrow and very, very dark. The combined light of three torches casts only a feeble, flickering light that does little to dispel the gloominess within. As they walk deeper into the mine, the musky stench becomes almost overpowering. Vanus pulls up the neck of his shirt to cover his nose and mouth. Gabrielle waves a hand in front of her face, her eyes watering. Xena seems unaffected. GABRIELLE Xena? XENA Mm? GABRIELLE Are you sure that whatever's making this smell isn't in here with us? XENA I didn't say that. GABRIELLE Oh. They continue walking. Suddenly, Vanus steps forward, holding his torch high so that it casts a wider circle of light. The floor seems to come alive with a sparkling myriad of pure color. VANUS (whispering) By the gods.... There must be thousands in here! We've been saved!! He begins to run, only to be held up by Xena's hand clamping down hard on his arm. XENA Don't touch them. VANUS (shocked) Don't... what? Why not?? Don't you know what this means? Gabrielle pats him fondly on the shoulder. GABRIELLE A little piece of advice, my friend. When Xena says don't do something.. don't do it. VANUS But.... GABRIELLE Come on. We've got work to do. VANUS But.... He finds himself yanked almost off his feet, and his words cut off, unuttered. CUT TO: INT. MINES - DAY It is an hour later, and the party has stopped briefly to wrap and light new torches. Gems litter the floor in greater numbers than before. Vanus stands to one side, staring at them and sucking from a waterskin. Gabrielle stands near the opposite wall, staring closely at it. GABRIELLE Xena? XENA Yes? GABRIELLE Come here a second, would you please? A second later, Xena materializes over her shoulder. XENA Yeessss? Gabrielle looks over her shoulder and grins. Then she turns back and cocks her head at what she's found on the wall. GABRIELLE What is this? Xena looks on. There is a large brownish-black streak on the wall. It shines as if wet, but when she touches it, it is very smooth, and very dry. There are several more such marks further back, and on the opposite wall as well. Her eyebrow raises. GABRIELLE (cont’d) You know something. XENA I might. These look like scorch marks. GABRIELLE Scorch marks? But they look wet! XENA Fire melted the rock beneath. See? GABRIELLE Wow. That must have been some hot fire. XENA Mm. CUT TO: INT. MINES - DAY The trio continues their trek. It has steadily become hotter and danker as they have traveled, and all are liberally covered with sweat. Gabrielle quickens her pace to come alongside Xena. Xena looks down at her. GABRIELLE (whispering) Where are the bodies? I mean, if those men were killed, wouldn't we see evidence of it? Bodies? A cave in? Something? Xena lifts an eyebrow. GABRIELLE (cont’d) You do know something. XENA I'm workin' on it. Vanus! A few steps behind her, Vanus straightens guiltily. XENA (cont’d) Put it back. VANUS I.... XENA Now. As Xena stalks ahead, Gabrielle drops back to make sure Vanus replaces the gem he's picked up. VANUS Does she have.... GABRIELLE Yes. VANUS Oh. GABRIELLE Come on. I have a feeling, whatever the answer to this mystery is, it's close. They both quickly catch up to Xena. Gabrielle is attracted by something near the far wall and surges ahead. At the same time, Vanus looks over at the opposite wall, and his jaw drops. Halfway buried in the rock is the biggest gemstone he's ever seen. Eyes dazzled, he crosses the shaft as if pulled and reaches for it. GABRIELLE (cont’d) Xena! XENA Vanus!! Don't! She leaps toward him, but it's too late. Unhearing, Vanus tugs hard, and the gem slips into his hand. There's a loud rumble, and the ground begins to shake. XENA Gabrielle!!! GABRIELLE Xena!!! Before either can move, the rumble becomes a roar and a section of the mine caves in directly in front of Xena and Vanus. Vanus jumps back to avoid being crushed. Xena surges forward, beating the rocks back with the sword suddenly in her hand. XENA Gabrielle!!! GABRIELLE!!! The last of the rocks falls, leaving a dusty silence behind. XENA (cont’d) GABRIELLE!!!! A beat of silence, then.... GABRIELLE (very softly) Xena? XENA Gabrielle! Thank the gods! Are you all right? Can you move? Are you hurt? GABRIELLE I'm okay, I think. I lost my torch in the cave-in and I can't see anything, but I'm all right. XENA Can you move? Another long beat of silence. GABRIELLE My leg. It's stuck. I think it's pinned between two rocks or something. XENA Ok. It's ok. You're gonna be all right, Gabrielle. Vanus and I will start digging from this side. Just sit tight. We'll have you outta there in no time. Xena looks over at Vanus, who is standing there with the gem in hand, staring at her in shock. XENA (cont’d) MOVE! NOW!! Dropping the gem as if it's burning his fingers, Vanus grabs his pick-axe and moves toward the rock pile as Xena begins grabbing huge rocks and tossing them out of her way. Suddenly, another rumble sounds. This time, however, the noise is a bit different. Xena's eyes narrow and a snarl curls her lips as the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. VANUS Wh... what was that? XENA Keep digging. GABRIELLE (nervously) Xena? Xena, I... I think there's something in here with me. XENA Just hold tight, Gabrielle. Do you hear me? Just hold tight. I'm coming. The rumbling becomes an unearthly roar, a sound that none of them has ever heard before. Vanus drops his axe, but can get no more than a step away before he's grabbed by Xena. XENA (cont’d) Run, and you die here. VANUS B-b-but.... XENA Keep digging. GABRIELLE!! GABRIELLE XENAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaa! Her voice quickly fades away. Like a woman possessed, Xena begins throwing rocks half her size and larger against the walls of the mine, shattering them. Vanus gulps, then wades in to help. CUT TO: INT. MINES - DAY Xena has dug out a hole big enough for her to squirm through. Before she does so, she looks back at Vanus, dirt-covered and contrite. VANUS Xena, I--I'm sor.... XENA Stay here. And don't touch any of those stones. Not even one. Understand? VANUS I swear it. XENA Good. Turning, she tosses a lit torch through the hole, then squirms through to follow it. Coming to her feet, she looks at the ground near the caved in wall. She sees something wet and squats down. She runs her fingers against it and snarls. XENA (cont’d, quietly) Blood.... I'm coming, Gabrielle. Standing, she sets off down the shaft at a quick run. She begins to notice that there is a faint, colorful light up ahead. The shaft continues to get brighter as she approaches, and she tosses down her torch, having no more need for it. The musky odor has become almost overpowering as well. In the near distance, where the light is the brightest, the shaft appears to widen out, and she slows her steps, coming to a stop where the narrow walls end. Cautiously, she peers inside to see a gem-covered room, and in the middle is the largest creature she's ever seen. She remembers seeing representations of this creature many times in Chin, but never thought to see one in person, as it were. Perched comfortably next to the creature is Gabrielle, whose face lights up when she sees Xena. GABRIELLE (happily) Xena! Xena draws her sword and steps forward. CUT TO: INT. CHAMBER - DAY XENA Gabrielle.... Xena jumps to the side, barely missing becoming a pile of soot by a streaming jet of fire directed at her. GABRIELLE Now, Penelope, that isn't nice. She's a friend. XENA Penelope?!? GABRIELLE It's better than Dagmar, isn't it? Penelope, I'd like you to meet my friend, Xena. Xena, this is Penelope. She's a.... XENA Dragon. Yes, I know. GABRIELLE (shocked) You knew this whole time? Xena shrugs. GABRIELLE (cont’d) I suppose that doesn't matter right now. What does matter is that Penelope told me.... XENA Wait a minute. You can talk... to a dragon? Penelope rumbles. Smoke comes from her nostrils as she nuzzles against Gabrielle's side. GABRIELLE Well, not talk exactly. I mean, really, Xena. She's a dragon, and I'm... well... not. Anyway, it's more like... we understand one another. XENA You... understand... one another. Gabrielle smirks. GABRIELLE Xena, Xena, Xena. It's not as if I'm a novice at interpreting the grunts of armor plated females who breathe fire, now, is it? Xena opens her mouth to say something, then closes it again, conceding the point. Gabrielle's smirk broadens. Xena sighs. XENA (grudgingly) So, what do you understand about this dragon? GABRIELLE Well, I understand that she's probably the last adult of her kind. She continues, spurred on by Xena's raised eyebrow. GABRIELLE (cont’d) Well, think about it, Xena! How many other dragons have you seen in all your travels? I mean, if anyone stood the chance of running into a real live dragon, it would be you, right? XENA Gabrielle.... GABRIELLE Just go with it for a minute, okay? XENA Fine. GABRIELLE Right. And what I also understand, mainly because I saw it happening before my eyes, is that these gems here are really.... XENA Her eggs. GABRIELLE Yes and no. I think they belong to her colony. And you stopped Vanus, because you knew that if he touched them, she'd be forced to protect her family, like she did with the other miners, and we'd all be in big trouble. XENA Somethin' like that, yeah. GABRIELLE Well, in this case, I happen to agree with you. Xena rolls her eyes. GABRIELLE (cont’d) Xena, she's not evil. I can feel the goodness in her. She was only trying to protect the last chance for her colony to survive. XENA I understand that, Gabrielle, but when the townspeople find out that there's a dragon hiding in their mines, a dragon that just happened to fry half their men to a crisp.... GABRIELLE Do they have to? Find out I mean? Couldn't we just tell them that the mines are haunted? Or that there was a cave in? Xena narrows her eyes. Gabrielle widens hers, achieving true puppy dog status. GABRIELLE (cont’d) Xena, you know what'll happen if we tell them the truth. They'll send in an army to try to kill her, and she'll have no choice but to fight back. Is the truth worth their lives? Is it worth hers? Who knows how many of her kind they've already unknowingly killed? Xena thinks for a moment as Gabrielle looks on hopefully. XENA You said you saw something happening before your eyes. Was it an egg hatching? Gabrielle beams. GABRIELLE Oh, Xena, it was the most beautiful thing. There were so many of them, all hatching at once. They were so cute! Their little wings unfurled, and they stumbled around a little, and then they just... took off! Gabrielle looks up, toward a slice of sky showing through a crevice in the top of the chamber very high above. GABRIELLE (cont’d) But Xena, they need her... need her to guide them to adulthood before she really is the last dragon left. Who knows better than her what it takes for a baby dragon to become a full-fledged adult dragon? XENA Hm. Making eye contact with the dragon, Xena very carefully goes to her haunches, and slowly lifts an egg near her boot. The dragon rumbles and shifts a bit, but keeps her peace as Xena carefully examines the egg. GABRIELLE What is it? XENA These eggs are different than the ones outside this chamber. More milky in the center. I'm betting that the ones outside of here are unfertilized. The dragon colony must have laid thousands of eggs knowing that only a few hundred would hatch and fewer still survive to adulthood. She looks up at the dragon and Gabrielle. XENA (cont’d) If I'm right, and she allows us to harvest them, that will get the King off the town's back, with a little left over for them to make a fresh start. We can use the cave-in back there as an excuse to close off the shaft entirely and make sure that no one ever comes in here again. Replacing the egg, she stands. XENA (cont’d) IF she lets us harvest them. Xena and Gabrielle both look at the dragon, who honestly appears to be thinking the proposition over. After a moment, the creature gives an almost human sigh, and bends to nuzzle Gabrielle with its neck. Gabrielle grins. GABRIELLE I think that was a yes. Just then, many more eggs hatch, and then the air is filled with tiny dragons racing toward the sky like fireflies sparkling in the night. GABRIELLE (cont’d) Isn't it beautiful? Xena grunts. GABRIELLE (cont’d) Well, I guess we've still got a lot of work to do. Goodbye, Penelope. Good luck with the babies. Rumbling, the dragon nuzzles Gabrielle once again. Gabrielle giggles, as Xena shakes her head. XENA (softly) Another one's fallen for her. GABRIELLE What? I didn't hear you. XENA I said, let's get a move on. We've got a town to save. GABRIELLE Yeah. That's what I thought you said. FADE OUT. END OF ACT FOUR TAG FADE IN: EXT. CAMPSITE - NIGHT A well-laid campfire is set in the middle of a small clearing. Nearby, dirty dishes sit outside the ring of stones. Xena sits on a log, sharpening a sword that hasn't been needed this week while Gabrielle paces before her, arms swinging wildly as she recites her tale. GABRIELLE ... and so the King's daughter was married in a gown made of the finest gemstones ever seen. The townspeople were happy, for they were once again wealthy. And the dragon and her children lived happily ever after. The End. As Gabrielle bows, Xena grins up at her. XENA See? Didn't I say you'd soon be back to your old self again? GABRIELLE You promised me bath oils and massages, Warrior Princess, not cave-ins and dragons. Xena shrugs. XENA Whatever works. Gabrielle stares down at her, hands on hips. GABRIELLE Hmmmph. Smirking, Xena snags their saddlebags, opens the flap and pulls out a long vial, twisting it temptingly in the light. XENA Although I do always like to keep my promises. GABRIELLE (breathlessly) You do, huh? XENA Oh yeah. FADE OUT.
DISCLAIMER No Hortas were harmed during the making of this motion picture.