Act One: Scene Seven
Location: Ruins of Vancouver, Canada. Two thousand years later. The Throne Room of the King & Queen of the land.
*The king and queen of the land are sitting on their thrones pouring over scrolls of diplomatic importance. The king, King Lo, is a muscular man of Asian descent. His wife, Queen Lee, is beautiful and slender, and also of Asian descent. As the royal couple are engaged in their matters of state, men dressed in black slip through the shadows towards the two royals. Silently they draw daggers from their belts. As they creep towards their targets, one of the royal guards catches a glimpse of candlelight reflect off of the assassin's blade.*
Guard: Assassins!
*The assassin silences the guard by throwing his dagger into his throat. Too late, for the other royal guards heard the alert and form ranks around their king and queen. The assassins charge their prey, engaging the royal guards in a deadly battle. A couple of the assassins slip through the guards and attempt to slay the rulers. They discover that neither the king nor his queen are entirely helpless. The royal couple dispatch the two assassins with a dazzling display of martial art prowess. The assassin who killed the guard that shouted the warning turns and flees.*
King Lo: Sabian! Damn it, where is that sorcerer when I need him?
Act One: Scene Eight
*As the fleeing assassin is running down the hall, a cloud of green mist appears in front of him. The mist solidifies into the form of a lean and muscular man with a skullet and fu man chu style goatee. The assassin stops dead in his tracks. For a moment there's a look of relief on his face. Then the sorcerer raises his hand and incinerates the assassin with a blast of magical energy. The king and queen arrive with a host of palace guards just as the assassin's charred bones hit the floor.*
King Lo: Sabian! Where were you? Why weren't you around to help prevent this outrage?
Sabian: A thousand apologies your highness. I was attending to Princess Ariel's studies. When I had heard the commotion, I first had to make sure she was safe before I could come to your aid.
King Lo: I see. Yes, of course. You were right. Our daughter's well being is far more important than either of us.
Sabian: And as you can see, I did return in time to see that this hired blade did not escape.
Queen Lee: Unfortunately you didn't take him alive. I would have liked to learn where these men came from, and why they tried to kill us.
Sabian: Likely hired by some wizard too cowardly to test his magical might against mine.
Queen Lee: Then he is both cowardly and wise, for I have yet to see a sorcerer who can match you with spells.
*Sabian dips into a deep bow.*
Sabian: I am honored you think so highly of me, milady. You are as gracious as you are beautiful.
King Lo: Where is our daughter?
Sabian: Come with me, Your Highness. I shall take you to her.
Act One: Scene Nine
*Sabian takes the king and queen to The Royal Library. There is a small company of elite royal guards outside the library doors. They stand at attention and step aside as the royal couple approach. Sabian holds his hand out to the library doors. Crackling energy leaps from his palm and strikes the doorknob. The large double doors unlock and swing inwards. Inside there are shelves upon shelves of books lining all of the walls. In the center of the room is a long table surrounded by chairs. Standing about the table are several more of the elite royal guards. Sitting at the table is a little Chinese girl of about 8 years old, Princess Ariel, and several of her nannies and servants.*
Princess Ariel: Mommy! Daddy!
King Lo: Ariel!
*Princess Ariel hops off of her chair and runs over to her parents. King Lo scoops up his daughter and whirls her around, then hugs her close.*
Princess Ariel: Uncle Sabian said bad men were trying to hurt you and Mommy.
King Lo: Uncle Sabian is right. But our guards are very good, and Uncle Sabian's magic is very powerful.
Sabian: With your leave, milord, I would like to retire to my private sanctuary. I may yet be able to divine the identity of the perpetrator of tonight's attack. But I will need time and privacy to do so.
King Lo: Of course, my friend. I pray you find the scoundrel soon, so that we may repay them for tonight's cowardice.
Sabian: Of course, milord.
*Sabian bows deeply and leaves.*
Act One Scene Ten
Location: Sabian's Private Spell Chamber
*Deep beneath the castle, the steel door to Sabian's spell chamber slides open. The sorcerer enters the dimly lit chamber. The walls are bare stone. Shelves are covered with bottles and jars of exotic ingredients for magical components. The skulls of all sorts of creatures, from animals, to humans, to mutants, hang from the ceiling. There's a long table in the center of the room covered in alchemical equipment. Beakers and test tubes filled with all manner of concoctions bubble and hiss over candles. Sabian walks over to a book case against one wall. He selects a book on the shelf and pulls it out. The book case swings out revealing a hidden room. Sabian enters. There's a stone table in the middle of the room with a naked young woman chained to it. On the floor is carved a large pentagram, set within two concentric circles. Between the two circles are carved dozens of mystical runes and symbols of power. The woman struggles against her iron bonds.
Girl: Please, milord! Let me go! I won't tell anyone of what I've seen here, I promise!
*Sabian silently walks over to the far side of the chamber, where a lone table sits against the wall. He removes his metal gauntlets, revealing gray, gnarled hands which end in wicked, sharp claws. He picks up an ornate dagger, the hilt designed to look like a she-demon, her bat-like wings spread wide forming the cross guard and her arms held up above her head holding a cruel looking flamberge designed blade. He turns back towards the girl and heads towards her.*
Girl: I'll do whatever you want! Just please, please let me go!
*Sabian stops at the head of the stone table. The girl looks up at him, desperation in her eyes. He looks down at her with cold detachment. He quickly brings the dagger to her throat. Her eyes widen and she opens her mouth to scream. Sabian cuts deeply, slicing through her corodid artery and jugular vein in one quick slash. No sound escapes her lips. Her life's blood pours out of her neck wound. The girl chokes and gurgles on her own blood as she attempts desperately to cling to life. The blood spurts up out of the neck wound with the expended air as she tries to breathe. Sabian stands back and watches as the blood empties into little reservoirs carved into the table. The blood flows along these reservoirs, down to the floor, filling the pentagram, the two concentric circles, and the mystical symbols between them. As the blood flows, Sabian chants in a strange tongue. When the last symbol on the floor is filled with blood, bolts of energy, like green lightning, leap from the five points of the star and meet in the air in the center of the pentagram. The disembodied head of some horrid looking horned beast floats above the sacrificial table. It's green, like the energy still leaping up from the five points of the pentagram. Below the head, the light blue translucent spirit of the sacrificed girl sits up out of her slain body. She looks upon the beast above her with horror.*
Demon: You have a lot of nerve summoning me, sorcerer!
Sabian: I seek your aid, oh mighty demon.
Demon: And what makes you think I would aid one such as yourself? We demons are not known for our generosity, or charity!
Sabian: I ask for no charity. Only a favor, for which you would be greatly rewarded. As a token of my good will, I have already provided you with a soul just for meeting with me.
Demon: (Looks at the girl's spirit)I see she is pure. Very well.I shall hear your request, wizard. But your promised reward had better be worth this inconvenience!
Sabian: I ask only for you to share your power with me. Give me the power I need to destroy this feeble king and queen, and make the kingdom of Couver my own!
Demon: And what, pray tell, do I get in return?
Sabian: (Bows) Whatever thy black heart desires.
Demon: My price is high, wizard!
Sabian: Name it!
Demon: I wish to walk the mortal realm! To rule over Mankind! To be flesh!
Sabian: How can I grant you this boon?
Demon: I will need to inhabit the body of a mortal. A sorcerer. One powerful enough to contain my raw infernal power.
Sabian: I know just the mortal. The royal princess, Ariel. She is just a child, but she has already shown the potential to become a powerful sorceress. Once she has matured, she will be a most excellent vassal for your unholiness.
Demon: Do not try to deceive me, wizard! Whatever I give you, I can take away just as easily!
Sabian: I swear, mighty demon, on the eve of her twenty first birthday Princess Ariel will be yours!
Demon: Then, wizard, I grant you your boon!
*Twin beams of green light shoot forth from the demon's eyes. The beams strike Sabian in the eyes. He screams in agony, but cannot break away. The head lowers towards the table, where the spirit of the sacrificed girl is cowering next to her body. The twin beams of green energy continue to hold the wizard in place. When the demon's disembodied head touches the girl's spirit, the spirit and the demon disappear in a flash of green light, which knocks Sabian off his feet. He collapses onto the floor, unconscious. When he awakens some time later, he gets up and walks over to his private altar. Hanging on the wall is a mirror. In the dim candle light, he can see the price of his power. His eyes are glowing green with sorcery. The skin of his face is gray and lifeless. His teeth have all turned into predatory fangs. And despite all this, he smiles. He closes his eyes in concentration, and a moment later his face looks perfectly human once more. Sabian puts his metal gauntlets back on his deformed hands, and exits his summoning chamber.*
Act One: Scene Eleven
Location: The Royal Throne Room Of King Lo & Queen Lee
Time: The Next Day
*King Lo and Queen Lee are sitting at their thrones, discussing the previous days events. The wizard Sabian glides in and bows before the rulers with a facade of humility.*
King Lo: Ah! Sabian! So good to see you! Have you had any luck in deciphering who sent last nights assassins?
Sabian: Plenty, Your Majesty. Unfortunately, it was all bad. Whoever this villain is, he has succeeded in evading my most powerful divinations. I'm afraid he may be more formidable than I had first suspected.
Queen Lee: Any thoughts on who this could be?
Sabian: There are plenty of powerful wizards throughout the known world, milady, who command such profane power. Gemini of Manhatt, for one. The Wizard Of A Thousand Eyes, Argoth of Vanou, one of the Seven Citadels Of Sorcery is another. I hear tell that the wizard Mindok is also obscenely powerful. He has ruled his lands since before my own parents were even born. It could easily be any of those, or it could easily be someone from so far away that even I have not heard of him.
King Lo: Damn! There's nothing worse than a cowardly enemy who refuses to face you with honor.
Queen Lee: We have already doubled the palace guard. We're also calling on our military reserves, just in case these attacks escalate.
Sabian: An excellent strategy, milady. And might I suggest also these.
*Sabian reaches into his cloak and withdraws two glass vials filled with mysterious coloured liquid, one purple and one red. He hands the purple vial to King Lo and the red vial to Queen Lee.*
King Lo: What are these?
Sabian: Magical elixirs. Drink these potions tonight before you go to bed, and no harm shall befall you while you sleep.
Queen Lee: Why are they different colours?
Sabian: The magic is attuned to the person it was meant for. If any other person drinks your potion, it would be fatal. So the magic enchants each potion so that it glows a different colour for each person, so that no one makes a fatal error when drinking it. Princess Ariel's, for example, is a light blue in colour.
Queen Lee: I see. You are most wise my friend.
Sabian: (Bowing) I live only to serve, Majesty. Now if you will excuse me, I believe it is time for your daughter's tutorial.
King Lo: Of course. Ariel is quite fond of you, you know.
Sabian: And I of her. I could not love her more if she were my own child.
King Lo: Which makes you the perfect body guard for her.
Sabian: (Bowing again) With your leave . . .
King Lo: Of course.
*Sabian leaves the royal couple to their business and returns to his own 'duties'.*
Act I: Scene 12
Location: The Royal Bed Chamber
Time: Later that night.
*The king and queen are preparing for bed. They quickly quaff down the magical potions Sabian had given them. Both of them make a sour face at the taste of their elixirs.*
Queen Lee: (Looking distastefully as her vial) Reminds me of when I was a child and my mother fed me caster oil whenever I was ill.
King Lo: Well, Sabian said the potions were powerful. Not tasty.
Queen Lee: (Laughing) I suppose that's true. (Steps close to the king) But I know of a way we can wash that horrid taste out of our mouths. (She kisses her husband)
King Lo: Now? With the guards just outside?
Queen Lee: Would you prefer I asked them to come in and watch? I never knew you were so adventurous.
King Lo: (Grabbing his queen about the waist) Leave them outside.
*The king kisses his wife. They make their way over to their enormous bed, kissing each other and removing each others bed clothes as they do so. They collapse onto the bed, their naked bodies entangled in an intimate embrace. They writhe together in an intense bout of love making. Their bodies glisten with sweat in the moonlight. They climax simultaneously, and fall into a deep sleep while wrapped in a lover's embrace. As she sleeps, the queen thrashes about in the midst of a terrible nightmare. The king, meanwhile, sleeps most peacefully. *
Act I: Scene 13
Location: Inside the Queen's nightmare.
* The queen is being held down by several men in black robes. Their faces are masked, obscuring their identities. Several more are holding the king down. Even with all his strength and martial skill, he cannot break free. She watches helplessly as one of these robed figures grabs her daughter and runs away with her. Another robed figure draws a flamberge bladed dagger and slashes the kings throat. She screams in denial. Then the one with the dagger comes towards her, ready to strike. *
Act I: Scene 14
Location: The Royal Bed Chamber.
* The Queen wakes up screaming. Her eyes are glowing bright red. The King, lying next to her, is sound asleep and oblivious to her screams. She grabs a dagger from her night stand and plunges it into the kings heart repeatedly. *
Act I: Scene 15
Location: The hallway just outside the Royal Bed Chamber.
* The wizard, Sabian, is walking down the hall when he hears the queen's screams. The two guards standing just outside the door try to get in to see what's wrong, but the door is locked. They fumble for the keys, unlock the door, then barge in with Sabian close behind. *
Act I: Scene 16
Location: Inside The Royal Bed Chamber.
* Sabian and the two guards come barging into the room. They see their queen kneeling naked on her bed, a bloody dagger in her hand, and the king lying dead next to her. *
Guard #1: Your Highness! What happened?
Guard #2: What have you done?
Sabian: She's done nothing!
* Both guards turn and look at the wizard. Sabian's eyes glow an eery green. The guards' own eyes begin to glow, and their faces become slack and emotionless. *
Sabian: Assassins have found their way into the Royal Bed Chamber and killed the king. The queen fought them off. Sound the alarm, and search for the intruders. I shall stay with the queen.
* Sabian's eyes stop glowing, as do the guards'. When they are no longer hypnotized, their emotionless expressions are replaced by those of fear and anger. *
Guard #!: Assassins have found their way into the Royal Bed Chamber!
Guard #2: Sound the alarm!
Guard #1: Sorcerer! Can you stay with the queen and keep her safe while we search for the intruder?
Sabian: Of course! Go! Find the fiends who murdered our beloved king! And check in on the princess while you're at it! She must be kept safe from harm!
Guard #2: We'll send a company to her room right away!
* The guards leave the Royal Bed Chamber. Sabian walks over to the bed and sits down on the edge of the bed. The queen buries her face in Sabian's shoulder and cries. *
Queen Lee: Whatever am I going to do?
Sabian: Continue to rule in your husband's stead.
Queen Lee: How can I? I killed him. By our laws, my life is forfeit.
Sabian: Look at me.
* The queen looks into Sabian's eyes. Once more they're glowing green. Her eyes, too, glow green*
Sabian: You did not kill your king. You woke up and found him dead. The assassin is still at large.
* Sabian's eyes stop glowing, as does the queen's. *
Sabian: Did you get a look at the killer?
Queen Lee: No. He was gone when I awoke. I was having a terrible nightmare that we were being killed. Then I woke up, and it was all too true. How could this have happened? Why did your potions of protection not work?
Sabian: The wizard who sent the assassins after you must have given them magic powerful enough to render my elixirs useless. I am so very sorry. I should have anticipated that.
Queen Lee: It is not your fault, my friend. You did what you could. No one could ask for more.
Sabian: I just wish that it were enough.
Queen Lee: As do I. Now I think I should put some clothes on. It wouldn't be right for people to see us together like this.
Sabian: Of course, Majesty.
Act I: Scene 17
Location: The Royal Cemetery
* The elite royal guard are carrying the king's body to his tomb. Queen Lee stands by and watches the procession, with young Princess Ariel and the royal sorcerer, Sabian, by her side. She is surrounded by her royal soldiers. Her subjects come out by the hundreds to pay final tribute to their king. Mournful music is played as they seal the body into its final resting place. Sabian takes the queen by the shoulder and gently leads her away. *
Act I: Scene 18
Location: The Royal Courtyard
Time: One Year Later
* Sabian and Queen Lee are married in a grand ceremony. The entire kingdom comes out to bear witness to the royal couple's union. The wizard Sabian is now officially, the King of Couver. Sabian and Queen Lee retire to their bedchamber. Slowly, sensually, they undress each other. Queen Lee lies naked upon her bed and extends her arms out to her new husband. Sabian accepts her invitation. They kiss. They suck on each others nipples. They perform oral sex on each other. They make love in a variety of positions. At random moments throughout their lovemaking, Sabian's eyes flash with a green glow. Seconds later, Queen Lee's eyes flash with a similar green glow. Each time this happens, Sabian's magical glamor, which hides his deformities, begins to disappear. He looks less and less human every minute that they're making love, and Queen Lee never even notices. Eventually they lie together on their bed, sweaty and exhausted, entangled in a lover's embrace, Sabian's disguise completely gone, and Queen Lee completely under his thrall. *