The Magi: Memories

Part 2

In the Town

(Fade in. Edge of the forest. Party is talking, a girl runs past fear in eyes.)

Spike: This does not bode well…

(Party comes to the beginning of a town. Nobody around. Old man comes out of a close by house and rushes up to party.)

Man: Katherine! (finally gets to party) Please, kind warriors, help my daughter. (catches breath) She’s delusional. I don’t know how long she will last out there.

Kain: (turns to Nanesse) Nanesse, we’re going after her. (looks to others) You scout for information; I want to know everything about where we are. This should only take a second. (turns to Nanesse) Let’s go.

(Kain and Nanesse jump to tree branches and run along them back into the forest)

Bruce: (looks at man) How did you know we’re warriors?

Man: (mean look) Well, at first I thought you were a wandering band of minstrels, but once I saw your armor and weapons it all came together. (walks away, muttering under his breath) Idiot.

Gabriella: (looks at empty town) Something doesn’t seem right.

Spike: Be on guard, I sense trouble.

(Switch to Katherine running through the forest looking over shoulder. She looks up and sees leaves rustling above. Looks forward and runs faster)

Nanesse: (lands in front of her) Your father is worried about you.

Katherine: He’s not my father! (turns and runs the other direction) I can’t go back! (runs into Kain)

Kain: Sssshhh (waves hand in front of her face)

Girl: (dozing off) Can’t go back…(out cold)

Nanesse: Do you think she’ll be alright?

Kain: (picks her up and they start walking) She’s fine, just sleeping.

Nanesse: That’s what you said about the guy in Corin.

Kain: How was I supposed to know he was dead? I’m a Mage, not a nurse.

(cut back to the edge of the forest. Kain and Nanesse walking into town Kain carrying girl)

Kain: I’m not going to do it.

Nanesse: Please…

Kain: For the last time, no!

Nanesse: (pouting) Oooohh….

Kain: (sighs) Fine… But not right now.

Nanesse: Yay!

(Kain looks over to the other group. They are dinking around the fountain. Bruce runs up to them.)

Bruce: Is she ok?

Kain: yeah, I just put her to sleep. What did you find out? (walks into the house the old man came out of.)

Bruce: (follows him in) There’s nobody to ask. Haven’t seen a single person since the old guy left.

Nanesse: Spoooooky…

Bruce: Judging from all the smithies, it looks like an old armory town. Most likely left over after the war.

Kain: (places girl on a chair) Everything is far too clean to be abandoned. There must be people somewhere.

Gabriella: (from outside) Kain! We have a problem!

(Kain, Bruce, and Nanesse rush outside. Spike is standing with his hand on his sword, facing away from the rest of the group. Gabriella is concerned)

Kain: (walks up to her): What’s wrong?

Gabriella: (pulls sword halfway out of the sheath. It’s resonating lightly) This.

Kain: (looks at it) And what does that mean? (looks back up)

Gabriella: (pulls sword completely out as she speaks. It’s resonating faster) Trouble.

Spike: There! (looks to the right and points)

(camera shifts past houses to the one Spike is pointing at. Shadows move past a window. Three more buildings have shadows. A door in the middle opens and a young boy walks out. All the shadows duck out of sight)

Kain: (turns to Bruce) You see, people still live here. (turns to kid) Hey! Where is everybody?

(kid comes closer. He’s walking with jerky movements. His head bobs up and down, a half-smile never leaves his face. Clouds begin to cover up the sun, making it darker.)

Gabriella: (half of her face is hidden behind Kain, but the visible half is not happy) Kill it…

Kain: (looks over but doesn’t turn his head.) What? He’s just a kid.

(Gabriella doesn’t wait for Kain to finish. She rushes past him and goes straight for the kid. Her sword goes from her shoulder straight to the kid’s neck. Meanwhile his head bobs up to look at her. He doesn’t blink or even wince as Gabriella takes his head off. Nanesse screams and puts her hands over her mouth. Everyone looks shocked, even Spike.)

Kain: (eyes bulging) Wh-wh-why…?

(Gabriella angrily grabs the kid’s body by its shirt and pulls it up. The front of the neck isn’t bleeding. Gabriella wipes a ton of sawdust off its neck, showing wood grain)

Bruce: (eyes get bigger) What the hell is that?

Gabriella: (lifts it higher, speaks angrily) A puppet. (yells as she hucks it into the middle of the street) Show yourself! I know you’re out there!

(Everybody looks around. The shadows return, but in every window, and way faster. The sun is completely covered by the clouds)

Gabriella: Here they come… Get ready.

Bruce: Finally (stretches back and arm muscles and pops his neck) Some real action. (reaches for his sword, but it isn’t there. He looks down) Where’s my sword…? Where’s my sword!?

Nanesse: You didn’t have one silly.

(Quick flash. Freeze frame of him walking into the dragon’s den. Frame of him wrinkling his nose, and one of him putting it down and sitting on the gold. One of him gone and his sword still there)

Bruce: DAMNIT! Oh well… Guess I’ll just have to buy another one (pats the pouch he put the gold in).

Spike: Ssshhh… Something’s happening.

(Two more puppets “walk” out of the same house as the first. The shadows are going uber-fast inside the other windows. Two more doors slowly open. Five puppets walk out of each house, slowly and single file.)

Spike: (smirks) I fail to see the threat.

(All the other doors in the immediate vicinity blow open, two off its hinges. A steady stream of puppets hobble out of every house around the circle. Party gives Spike a dirty look.)

Spike: What?

Kain: (turns to Nanesse) This could be dangerous, so I want you to get up there (points to the fountain) and pick them off as they come out. Do you have enough arrows?

Nanesse: (nods her head) mmhh hmm. Be careful. (climbs up)

(Kain smiles and turns to oncoming puppets. The party spreads out around the fountain, facing outward in fighting stances)

Kain: (looks left, right, then forward) Go.

(Both sides collide. Kain pulls swords from their sheath and uses one in each hand. Bruce is beating the crap out of the puppets. Nanesse picks off some of the bigger ones as they come out. A steady stream of puppets come out the houses. Fighting goes on for about 5 minutes. A scream comes from the house Katherine was put down.)

Katherine: (being dragged out of her house by puppets) Help me!

Nanesse: (shoots 2 arrows at the same time which hit the puppets in the head and pin them to the wall) Get inside and lock the doors!

(Katherine runs back into the house and closes the door. More puppets come out of the houses. Even more come from the mountain pass.)

Nanesse: I’m running out of arrows!

Spike: There’s too many! (guts a puppet)

(Nanesse screams. Kain turns. Three puppets are climbing up the fountain towards her. She holds up her hands and closes her eyes. A huge gust blows the puppets 30 feet through a window of a house. Past her Bruce has picked up a puppet by the feet and is swinging it Link style around in a circle knocking down a circle of them. Camera goes back to Kain. Flash but no flashback. He hears a voice in his head.)

Sen: Class, are we ready to move on to the next lesson?

(Kain slices a puppet across the face, lopping off half its head, but it takes two more hits to take it down. Another flash, this time it’s flashback mode. Six kids are sitting in a semicircle around a man <Sen> who looks like he’s in his mid 30’s. Young Nanesse is sitting on a low tree branch not far behind Sen. All the kids have either brown or dark blonde hair, Nanesse doesn’t have her streaks yet.)

Class:(in unison) Yes, Master Sen.

Sen: I am assuming that you all understand the basic elemental theory, considering we spent three weeks on it. (begins pacing) This may seem stupid now, but once you pass your test, you will be doing this for real. We don’t want you randomly blasting fireballs at each other. Believe me, I’ve seen it happen.

(Nanesse waves at Kain, who tries to shoo her away. Sen catches a glimpse of him doing that shooing motion with his hands and frowns.)

Sen: So if you don’t pay attention now, you’ll be a walking disaster area later. Do you all understand?

Class: Yes Master Sen.

Sen: Good. Our lesson today is elemental combinations. By mixing certain elemental spells, powerful hybrids can be cast. For example; (holds up his left hand) take a simple breeze. (circles his hand)

(a small breeze picks up. Everybody’s hair whips around a bit. Nanesse catches herself before she falls off the branch.)

Sen: Add an ice spell (holds up his right hand. A blue hue rises above it.)

(Sen movies his hands together. The wind goes a little harder. The class shivers. A little bit of snow, then small ice chunks start to swirl around him. He motions both hands toward a man sized target made out of brick about 10 feet away. The ice spins around the target faster and faster until it’s barely visible. The wind settles down then stops. The target has a blue glaze around it.)

Sen: Vincent, why don’t you test the target’s stabililty via the projectile at your feet.

Vince: (confused) Wha?

Camille: Throw that rock at it and see if it falls down, stupid.

Vince: Oooooh. I can do that. (throws rock)

(The rock goes straight through the target like glass. After a second the whole thing falls apart. The class cheers.)

Sen: All right, settle down. As you can see, hybridizing spells can give you the advantage in battle. Hundreds of combinations are possible. (stern) However, some can be very dangerous. By mixing opposing elements you are creating a very destructive force. I wouldn’t recommend this unless you run out of alternatives. Do you understand?

Class: Yes Master Sen.

Sen: Did our Elven friend in the tree also catch that?

(This surprises Nanesse causing her to yelp and fall out of the tree. The kids run over to see if she’s ok. Sen sighs and sits down. Back to the battle.)

Kain: I have an idea! Get in the fountain!

(Kain holds both swords with one hand at mid chest level. He kicks a puppet. He waves his hand over one blade, and it lets off a red hue as if super heated. He then flips it over and waves his hand over the other blade, which turns blue and lets off a light mist. Kain takes a swipe at a group of puppets. This causes a small whirlwind to knock them back about 15 feet.

Kain: I said get in the fountain! (clears a circle around the fountain)

(Kain gets past the rest of the party and jumps up to the third tier of the fountain. He takes the handles of his swords and clasps them together. He then starts spinning them above his head. The water falling from the tiers begin falling at an angle. All the water in the fountain starts swirling clockwise.)

Kain: Nanesse, I need wind!

Nanesse: I’ll give as much as I can. (raises hands)

(A heavy updraft hits the fountain. Everybody’s hair flies straight up. The water starts flowing upward in a spiral. It becomes a big wet tornado. Kain starts yelling and spinning his swords faster. The tornado gets wider, catches fire, and starts picking up puppets. It becomes a huge spiral of water, fire, and wooden appendages. Once all the puppets have been picked up Kain slows down. Nanesse and Kain both put down their hands and the tornado stops. Kain drops his swords are fall to his knees, breathing heavily. He then falls off onto the second tier. Nanesse props his head onto her lap and Kain opens his eyes. Someone is clapping in the distance. Camera moves to the inn’s rooftop. Five dark figures are standing on the roof, one is clapping.)

Azriel: Well done Kain. I don’t remember ever seeing you use that attack before. But then again, you probably don’t remember it either. (laughs)

Gabriella: Who are you!

Azriel: Follow us and find out. However, you might want to untie the villagers first, they’re probably famished. When you are ready, we will be waiting there (points to the mountain). Until then (waves)

(The figures begin to fade until there is nothing left of them. The son begins to shine. Everyone gets out of the fountain.)

Kain: Ugh. (stands up) You heard the man. Time to release the captives. (gets of the fountain and walks past Spike)

Spike: That was reckless; we could have been killed.

Kain: (exhausted and miffed) Why does everyone always say that? (keeps walking) It’s never; Hey Kain, thanks for killing the giant bird demon. Or Wow Kain, bang-up job stopping the army of evil puppets. Nooooooo. It’s always; Kain that was dangerous. Are you crazy Kain? You could have killed us all. (leaving earshot) Kain are you out of your mind! (walks into a house without a door)

Nanesse: (looks at Spike mean) I hope you’re happy. (runs after Kain)

Spike: (sighs) Bruce, you check those houses over there, Gabriella and I will check the inn.

(they all split up. Cut to Spike and Gabriella walking through the inn looking into rooms)

Gabriella: Is anybody here?

(from behind a door comes a muffled peoples. Spike tries to open the door, but it’s locked, so he kicks it open. About 30 people are tied up with gags in their mouths. Gabriella gasps and runs over to untie one, she looks over at spike while she’s untying. Spike is standing with his hand on his sword hilt and his eyes closed. He opens his eyes and quickly does an unsheathing attack into the air. The ropes on 10 people snap in half)

Gabriella: Isn’t that dangerous?

Spike: (resheaths sword) Only if I sneeze.

(fade back to Katherine’s house, party is sitting on comfy sitting thingies. The village chief is standing in front of them.)

Chief: And that’s when the bastards tied us up. But anyway, I would like to formally thank you for rescuing us from those deranged lunatics.

Kain: Is there anything else you can tell us about them?

Chief: (lowers his head) No… I’m sorry. But anyway, on to business. I suppose you will be going after them.

Kain: Yes, first thing in the morning.

Chief: As I thought. Then we have work to do. (claps his hands) Please stand up.

(a dozen young ladies run in and begin measuring the party. They finish up and run out)

Chief: Of course you will stay at our inn, no charge. If you don’t mind, I am very tired from all this excitement.

Kain: I understand. Goodnight. Let’s go.

(everybody gets up and follows Kain out the door. Bruce walks up to Kain and taps him on the shoulder)

Bruce: I need to pick up a new sword. I think I might go insane without one…

Kain: I know what you mean; we’ll be at the inn.

Bruce: (walks away) This should only take a minute.

Kain: Don’t miss dinner.

Bruce: (camera follows him.) I won’t!

(Bruce walks into the shop, a bell dingles above him. A the shop owner is cleaning sawdust off his counter and looks up)

Owner: (mutters under his breath) Damn puppets cutting themselves on my merchandise… What can I do you for?

Bruce: I need a sword. A GOOD sword.

Owner: I see. I have just the one for you. (pulls down a nice sword) Oversized blood groove, solid gold pommel…

Bruce: Too fancy.

Owner: I see… How about this one? (goes for another one)

Bruce: Too small.

Owner: Ok, ok. You are obviously a man who knows what he wants. I found this beauty in the Fulstrom catacombs. It was supposedly blessed by the Earth Spirit (pulls a big-ass sword from under his desk) It’s quite pricey.

Bruce: I’ll take it. (empties the contents of his pouch on the table)

Owner: This should be enough (rakes in all the treasure except for a gold flute and a gold piece)

(Bruce frowns and pockets the flute. He picks up the sword and smiles.)

End

Part 2