The Letter for the King (2020) s01e03 Episode Script

[bell tolling]
Is there any word from Ristridin?
Not yet, Your Highness.
It's the wrong time to be leaving.
King Favian is insisting on the summit.
I'm not sure you have any choice.
[Queen Alianor] I can't hope to understand
the loss you must be feeling.
You know my son is innocent.
What I know
and what I can act upon
are two different things.
But while I'm away, I will protect you.
You think I need protecting?
In the darkness that is coming,
you will scarcely be able
to protect yourself.
The crown of Dagonaut
Means nothing.
Your power means nothing.
There are forces at work
which you cannot comprehend
let alone control.
And your only task
is to stay out of the way
of those of us who do.
[Lavinia] Grey Riders, Red Riders,
most of your friends.
[chuckles] Everyone in the White Hart.
Is there anyone in the three kingdoms
who doesn't want you dead?
Any time you want to head back
to Mistrinaut, be my guest.
All because of this.
Be careful with that.
Who's it for?
I'm not telling you.
- What's it about, then?
- I don't know.
[Lavinia]
How can anyone be in this much trouble
and know so little about it?
I'm opening it.
No, you're not.
I saw you trying to open this
in the White Hart.
You want to know what's in it
just as much as I do. Ow!
Happy now?
[Ardanwen whinnies]
- Put it away.
- Why?
Are you worried the bunnies
and the squirrels are going to read it?
Huh? [laughs]
There's no one around for miles.
Hello?
[echoing]
Hello? Hello? Hello?
I mean it. I can't go on.
My legs are killing me.
Say that once more,
and I'm gonna kill you.
Where are they taking us?
If they're gonna kill us,
why don't they do it?
What are they waiting for?
[Foldo] They're not going to kill us.
They're Red Riders. They kill everyone.
Father says the Red Riders are so steeped
in war and bloodshed,
they've forgotten what it is to be human.
This can't be happening.
I'm too young to die.
I've got so much to offer the world.
[Jaro laughs]
Debatable.
Giddy up.
Giddy up!
No slacking!
Nice knife.
Bronze hilt, cocked hat pommel
silver cross-guard.
Eviellan hunting dagger, right?
Who'd you rob that from, huh?
Bold girl.
Here, let me.
You may think
by making yourself known to me,
things will turn out differently.
They won't.
Get back with the others!
What was that about?
None of your business.
- Did he say what they'll do to us?
- Isn't it obvious?
[Jussipo] No.
It isn't obvious.
This is it.
This is where they're going to do it.
Please, I'm begging you, don't do this.
We all want the same thing, right?
The boy.
So when you think about it,
we're all on the same side.
They killed Ristridin.
You're on the same side as that?
I'm trying to save my neck here.
If you wanna die, do it on your own time.
Where were we?
Keep
moving.
[Piak] You said it was obvious.
What's obvious?
Are they still there?
Yes.
[Jussipo] What are they doing?
Nothing.
They're not coming after us.
No, they're just
watching.
This is our chance.
Ten more steps, and we start running.
- No.
- Don't tell me no.
Maybe he's right.
Maybe we can make it to those trees.
No one's running anywhere.
I decide that.
Think. Why do you suppose
they're back there, and we're out here?
I don't know, Iona.
Why is your stupid face covered in snow?
My face isn't
- [gasps]
- [Piak] Ooh!
You will pay for that.
Hey. Hey, Iona. Iona, no!
[Iona grunts]
[Novices laugh]
No, wait. Hey
[Jussipo] Not the lute! Not the lute!
Unbelievable.
Stop hitting the lute!
Pack it in!
And keep walking!
Why are we out here,
and they're back there?
[snow creaking]
That's why.
They're using us
to test if the snow is stable.
[snow creaking]
What happens
if the snow isn't stable?
[snow cracking]
Oh, God.
Huh.
Not stable.
[chuckles]
Too bad. I kinda liked those kids.
[horn playing fanfare]
[carriage approaching]
All hail King Favian of Unauwen.
All hail!
Come. I've got you.
[King Favian] Oh! Careful! Careful.
Watch it. Ah! [grunts]
The ground gets lower every year.
[sighs]
Ah, my queen.
My king.
As pretty as your father was wise.
A sparkling, delicate jewel
in the crown of Dagonaut.
To the feast!
To the feast!
Now, get me some mead.
Oh, and a bowl of sweetmeats.
And be quick about it.
You know
in his youth, he was an athlete.
- Really?
- Hmm.
As I recall, his sports were chop eating,
farting, and noxious belching.
It was something to behold.
In all seriousness
here's to a productive summit.
May Dagonaut and Unauwen
forge a lifelong alliance.
Indeed.
An alliance which will
How shall I put this?
transcend the merely political?
Oh, stop it.
I'll catch fire.
[gasps]
[coughs]
[shivering]
Foldo?
Jussipo?
Arman?
[Jaro] Afraid not.
Just me.
Seriously?
How many times does a Red Rider
have to kill you before he's satisfied?
Surviving that
pretty impressive.
You're stronger than you look.
[chuckles] So killing people
and, uh, stating the obvious
those would be the main qualifications
for being a Red Rider, would they?
Give it back.
I have no idea what you're talking about.
[sighs]
Drowning
good way to die.
Freezing to death,
another excellent option.
But being dispatched with my bare hands
take my word for it
not a lot of fun.
[chuckles] Oh.
You mean this?
That's my girl.
Sorry. It was so beautiful
I couldn't resist.
[Jaro chuckles]
[laughs] Bold.
[Jaro groans]
You're a piece of work.
You really think you can beat me?
Go on then.
Do it.
You didn't learn that in a castle.
You'll never make a knight
in Dagonaut, you know?
Street scum like you and me
have to look a little further afield
for our opportunities.
[Jaro singing]
It's a lovely day to get butchered ♪
It's a lovely day to get knifed ♪
[laughs]
[panting]
Okay. Okay, guys. Half-freezing, wow.
Very, very cold.
[coughs]
[Foldo] Foot is in my face.
[Arman] Forget your face!
My poulaines are ruined.
Yes! She made it!
[sighs with relief]
Oh, good.
[wind howling]
Don't close your eyes.
If you close your eyes,
you won't open them again.
I'm not closing my eyes.
I mean it.
What was that for?
Eat.
[sniffs]
- What is it?
- Cured pig intestines.
I'd rather freeze to death.
Fine. But know this:
If you die, I will eat you to survive.
What?
When I tell you to duck
duck.
Have no fear.
We come in peace.
Duck!
Your caution is well placed.
Not everyone in the mountains
wishes a lost traveler well.
We're not lost.
We are all lost in one way or another.
Aren't we, my child?
[Lavinia] We're not doing this.
We're getting out of here right now
and finding my road.
[Tiuri] No, we're not.
[Lavinia] Are you mad?
[Tiuri] Ardanwen needs to rest.
If we stay out here, we'll die for sure.
[Lavinia] Look at these freaks.
I'll take my chances with the weather.
They're monks
who've taken a vow to help lost travelers
through the mountains.
You will literally believe
anything you're told, won't you?
We are here.
Welcome to the Monastery
at the End of the World.
[thunder cracking]
To our humble home, I bid you welcome.
Follow me.
Your beast is being stabled and fed.
I take it all back.
You were absolutely right.
No need to worry about this place.
[man screaming in distance]
We are a somewhat unusual order.
What you might call
a community of lost souls:
brigands, killers,
mercenaries
[chuckles] We even have the odd pirate.
My life's work has been
to find all these people
and bring them here
to cleanse their souls
and show them a holier life is possible
for even the worst of the world's sinners.
[screaming]
[growls]
Brother William's made
the most extraordinary progress
in the time he has been with us.
But until that progress is complete
our regard for him must be leveled
with a little restraint.
It's coming.
It's coming.
This cloister
is not to be entered unaccompanied.
Is that clear?
Is that clear?
- Yes.
- Yes.
[Tiuri] But we are safe here?
Oh, yes, quite safe.
Their bark is much worse than their bite.
What, even the murderers?
Especially the murderers.
Show a man kindness,
show him affection and acceptance,
and in return,
he will show you his true nature.
And a man's true nature is only ever
Love.
Love, you fools.
What is man but love
inverted into a form
and cast upon the world to do love's work?
Some people just need
a little help to see it.
Will it suffice?
We live a simple life here,
but it's warm and dry.
And there are cheese and bread
if you're hungry.
Oh.
And your knife?
I'm not giving it up.
I wouldn't expect you to, my child.
But if you can keep it hidden,
I would be very grateful.
Otherwise,
it might trigger unfortunate appetites
in some of our weaker brothers.
[Lavinia] And what of your appetites?
Any of them unfortunate?
[Tiuri] I'm sorry, Father.
She didn't mean that.
Not at all.
It is a very good question.
Undoubtedly, my own appetites
are some of the darkest of all.
Sometimes,
I miss it, of course.
There is nothing quite like the sound
of a skull beneath your boot.
But there's no going back, not now.
And at my age
who's got the energy? [laughs]
Please, stay as long as you wish.
One night! We're only staying one night!
It's a pirate ship.
Five miles up a mountain,
run by murderers.
Reformed murderers.
[scoffs] Only according to the murderers.
[thunder rumbling]
Listen to that.
I don't see we have any choice.
And besides
I liked him.
That stark raving lunatic.
Everyone has demons.
He's doing his best to fight them.
Is he?
Or is he a spider
sitting in the corner of this ghastly web,
looking at us like two fat, fresh flies?
You think you see the world so clearly.
But maybe all you're seeing is yourself.
Oh, how profound you are!
You can trust him all you like,
but I'll be sleeping with one eye open.
Forgive me, my lord.
The messenger
he's still waiting.
Greetings, sire.
I have been sent by your father,
His Majesty King Favian of Unauwen.
He bids you a warm welcome home
and sends this gift.
[chirps]
I believe it is a wren, sire.
No.
It's a kinglet.
Or that's what they call them
in the villages of the north.
'Cause of its yellow crown.
It's what my father used to call me.
Tell me.
Do you know the story of the kinglet
or the contest among the birds
to see who could fly highest
and be crowned king of them all?
The eagle won, of course
until
the tiny little bird
that had hidden
under its feathers jumped out
flew higher.
Take my sword to the king.
Tell him I seek only peace
and to hold
my father's warm embrace once more.
Sire.
No.
[Lavinia snoring]
[Tiuri breathing heavily]
[creaking]
[gasps]
Trouble sleeping?
[Tiuri]
I was just looking for my talisman.
[Abbot] So when the voices come
They go just as quickly.
And they come unbidden?
Always.
And from nature.
Birds
trees, roots
Fascinating.
Take it.
Trust me, Tiuri. Take the sword.
It's too heavy for me.
On the contrary,
that heaviness, that weight,
that's what we carry around
in our hearts our whole lives.
Grip the sword.
Observe it.
Now breathe.
Breathe.
Into your heart, boy,
breathe into your heart.
I can't.
What's in there?
What's in that heart of yours
that dare not speak?
You will have been told to ignore it
to pretend it's not there.
But ignoring it
is like choosing a lighter sword.
And what comes from turning our back
on the heaviness inside?
It destroys us.
You have to face it.
You have to face the heaviness.
Because the heaviness
is what's keeping you
from being who you really are.
Embrace it.
Look into your heart with clear eyes
and move with it.
Let out the boy you are inside,
the boy you've never known
the boy
who's never dared step into the light.
Face the heaviness
that's stopping that boy
and name it.
Loss.
My heart is heavy with loss.
Loss of my father.
Loss of my home.
Loss of my mother
who even now
is trying to fight for her life.
It's not the pain which ruins us,
my child.
It's the things we do to avoid the pain.
I fear it might break me.
Then break.
Break.
Let spirit crack you open.
Let yourself be forged
in the crucible of your own agony
transformed into the most perfect
instrument of destiny.
For that's what I sense you are.
From the moment I saw you,
I felt the power in you
the power of Eviellan.
If you can embrace
the fullness of your pain,
you can embrace the fullness
of that power.
Again.
- It's coming.
- [gasps]
[Brother William]
It's coming. It's coming.
[Lavinia panting]
What are you doing here?
Get your hands off me.
[grunts]
We found her with Brother William.
[sighs]
[Abbot] We have very few rules here.
I thought I told you not to enter
that cloister unaccompanied.
[Lavinia] I didn't want to enter it.
All I want to do is get as far away
from this madhouse as I possibly can.
It's not running away you need, my child.
It is looking deep into your
[Lavinia] Don't tell me.
My heart. Right?
Well, forget about my heart.
It's none of your business.
[chuckles] And I'm not your child.
Maybe we should go.
Fine by me.
Just one last thing.
If you wouldn't mind
replacing that candlestick.
What candlestick?
[candlestick clanks to floor]
It's mine.
I, uh, brought it from home.
I'll take care of it.
Thank you, Father.
Come on.
What is wrong with you?
There's nothing wrong with me.
It's you who's communing with the madmen.
So you thought stealing from them
would be the best way to keep things calm?
[laughs] It was a candlestick.
You stole a horse.
I didn't steal anything.
I'm telling you
There is something wrong with this place.
There's something wrong with that Abbot.
- In your opinion.
- Fine.
But we are leaving, Tiuri,
the moment this storm has passed, agreed?
I haven't said "agreed" yet.
Well, maybe we can get down to business
before the drinking starts again.
That'll give us about five minutes.
Shut up.
So, madam,
you know what we're here to discuss?
A renewal of the bonds
between our two great nations
- by means of a royal marriage.
- Precisely.
And you're not adverse
to the coupling with my son?
I think of it more as a union.
But yes, Crown Prince Iridian
will do very well.
[King Fabian] But you're not marrying
Crown Prince Iridian.
You're marrying his brother,
Prince Viridian.
There's been much consternation
about how Prince Viridian will react
when he returns from the greatest victory
in 1,000 years
to see his unbloodied brother
take to the throne.
People are worried. I'm worried.
Now, if you ask me, I think
he has every right
to expect a reward.
And that's when I thought of you.
If I have him marry you,
both of my sons will have thrones.
Hmm?
King of Unauwen
and King of Dagonaut.
And all chance of conflict will fade.
I may be a dissolute old sow,
but my brain is still as sharp
as my sword.
Father.
I will need time
to consider your proposal.
Fine.
Consider it.
But after that, you'll marry my son.
All personal preferences be damned.
Because that's what we do,
us kings and queens.
Our lives are politics.
Our marriages are politics.
And this is good politics.
Arrange for them to meet.
What is it you see
in these visions?
I heard you talking to the Abbot.
It sounds unhinged.
[chuckles]
From you, I'd expect nothing less.
I see a face
I suppose.
I hear voices
trying to tell me something.
[chain clanking]
[Tiuri] Some power they want me to find.
And have you found it?
What do you think?
[chuckles]
[sighs] [chuckles] I'm freezing.
That's what I think.
So, what about you?
No mystery here.
What you see is what you get.
Lavinia, the straight shooter.
That's honestly how you see yourself?
The first day I met you,
I knew every single word out of your mouth
was a lie.
[laughs]
Fine.
What do you wanna know?
I had the pleasure
of meeting your father, of course.
- That was regrettable.
- [chuckles]
Apology not accepted.
What's your mother like?
I don't know.
She left
a long time ago.
She went back to Dangria,
where she was from.
Yeah, she came from money.
No need to look so surprised.
In the stories
doesn't the ancient road
through the mountains lead to Dangria?
It's got nothing to do with my mother.
No, I wasn't
Goodnight, Tiuri.
[thunder cracking]
[sighs deeply]
[gasps]
[breathing heavily]
[chain clanking]
Lavinia!
It's coming.
It's coming.
Wait!
- Get him out.
- No.
Put the knife down.
- What?
- The knife, put it down.
It's coming.
What's coming?
My talisman.
Take him!
[struggling]
No! He doesn't want to hurt you!
He doesn't wanna hurt anyone!
The demons in this person's soul
scare even me.
So I can face my demons,
and I can let who I really am
out into the light,
but this man has to be kept alone
in the dark at the end of a chain?
- Where's the love in that?
- Take him out!
Please! Stop!
Stop!
Stop!
[breathing heavily]
It's come.
What are you?
[dramatic music playing]