Braveheart Page #34

INT. TOWER DUNGEON

Wallace stands in medieval restraints worthy of Hannibal

Lecter. Before him are six scarlet-robed royal magistrates.

ROYAL MAGISTRATE

William Wallace! You stand in taint

of high treason.

We PUSH IN on the iron mask that binds his face. We can only

see his eyes -- but they are bright.

WALLACE:

Treason. Against whom?

MAGISTRATE:

Against thy king, thou vile fool!

Hast thou anything to say?

WALLACE:

Never, in my whole life, did I swear

allegiance to your king --

MAGISTRATE:

It matters not, he is thy king!

WALLACE:

-- while many who serve him have

taken and broken his oath many times.

I cannot commit treason, if I have

never been his subject!

MAGISTRATE:

Confess, and you may receive a quick

death. Deny, and you must be purified

by pain. Do you confess? ...DO YOU

CONFESS?!

WALLACE:

I do not confess.

MAGISTRATE:

Then on the morrow, thou shalt receive

they purification... And in the end,

I promise you'll beg for the axe.

EXT. ESTABLISHING - THE TOWER

The stone prison, and the wretched stone section known to

this day as the Wallace Tower.

INT. PRISON - NIGHT

Wallace is alone in his cell, still in the garish restraints.

We can only see his eyes, as he prays.

WALLACE:

I am so afraid... Give me strength.

OUTSIDE THE CELL DOOR

The jailers jump to their feet as the Princess enters.

JAILER:

Your Highness!

PRINCESS:

I will see the prisoner.

JAILER:

We've orders from the king --

PRINCESS:

The king will be dead in a month!

And his son is a weakling! Who do

you think will rule this kingdom?

Now OPEN THIS DOOR!

The jailer obeys. The Princess can barely contain her shock

at the sight of Wallace; the jailers snatch him upright.

JAILER:

On your feet, you filth!

PRINCESS:

Stop! Leave me!

(they hesitate)

There is no way out of this hell!

Leave me with him!

Reluctantly the jailers shuffle out of the cell, but they

can still see her back and hear her. Looking at Wallace's

eyes through the mask, she can't quite hold back her tears --

dangerous tears, that threaten to say too much. Wallace tries

to distract her.

WALLACE:

M'lady... what kindness of you to

visit a stranger.

PRINCESS:

Sir, I... come to beg you to confess

all, and swear allegiance to the

king, that he might show you mercy.

WALLACE:

Will he show mercy to my country?

Will he take back his soldiers, and

let us rule ourselves?

PRINCESS:

Mercy... is to die quickly. Perhaps

even live in the Tower. In time, who

knows what can happen, if you can

only live.

WALLACE:

If I swear to him, then everything I

am is dead already.

She wants to plead, she wants to scream. She can't stop the

tears. And the jailers are watching.

WALLACE:

Your people are lucky to have a

princess so kind that she can grieve

at the death of a stranger.

She almost goes too far now, pulling closer to him -- but

she doesn't care. She whispers, pleading...

PRINCESS:

You will die! It will be awful!

WALLACE:

Every man dies. Not every man really

lives.

She pulls out a hidden vial, and whispers...

PRINCESS:

Drink this! It will dull your pain.

WALLACE:

It will numb my wits, and I must

have them all. If I'm senseless, or

if I wail, then Longshanks will have

broken me.

PRINCESS:

I can't bear the thought of your

torture. Take it!

On the verge of hysteria, she presses the vial to the air

hole at his mouth and pours in the drug. The jailers, seeing

suspicious movement, shift inside the cell; she backs up,

her eyes wide, full of love and goodbye. From inside the

mask, he watches her go. When the door CLANGS shut, he spits

the purple drug out through the mouth hole.

INT. LONGSHANKS' BEDCHAMBER - NIGHT

Longshanks lies helpless, his body racked with consumption.

Edward sits against the wall, watching him die, glee in his

eyes. The Princess enters, and marches to the bedside.

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