Dark Prince: The True Story of Dracula

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Romania.

For years, the Ottoman Turks

have occupied my country,

enslaving

the Romanian people.

Collaborating with the Turks

are traitorous Romanian nobles,

a privileged class of men

who seek profit

at the expense

of their fellow countrymen.

Hungary, fearing further

Turk aggression, has raised an army

of Romanian patriots to drive

the Sultan's forces out.

Our commander

Prince Vlad Dracula,

feared by his enemies,

who know him as "Vlad Tsepesh,"-

Vlad the Impaler-

yet beloved

by his own people.

And he has returned

to battle the Turks

and crush those nobles

who support them.

Hurry up!

Vlad Tsepesh is coming!

Hurry up!

Vlad Tsepesh is coming!

Hurry up, hurry up!

Hurry up!

Hurry up!

God damn it!

You are a traitor

to your people.

And a thief.

I...

I didn't.

These are now yours.

Noooo!

Nooo!

Nooo!

Noooo!

I've sent you messages.

You've disregarded them.

Father Stefan,

I am fighting a war.

You cannot ignore the Church.

We shall see.

If the Church denounces you,

when you die they will drive

a steel spike into your heart

as one of the godless.

And neither your son,

nor his sons nor his sons,

will ever be accepted as

Prince of Romania by the people.

Thus, I recommend a morsel

of humility with the Church.

You've never met

these men before.

They only know you by reputation,

as Vlad Tsepesh or The Impaler.

You must tell your story

honestly and completely,

if you expect absolution

from the Orthodox Church.

But I don't expect it.

They know the Pope

helped finance this campaign.

I am fighting to free

their country from Turk tyranny!

These men ought to thank me,

not question my methods

or allegiances!

Prince Vlad Dracula,

having performed

many cruel and unspeakable deeds,

is charged with conspiring and

colluding with the Papacy in Rome

and of abandoning

the eternal world of Orthodoxy.

In converting his own faith-

to join into matrimony

with a Roman Catholic woman,

he has forsaken the truth

and the light

and accepted darkness.

My views on

the Roman Catholic Church

are no secret.

The Pope and the Sultan

stink alike.

Vlad Dracula,

in the event of your death,

would you want

your son to succeed you?

Of course.

Then he will need our protection,

not the Pope's.

For without our blessing,

he'll never become

Prince of Romania.

And your dynasty will end.

We have questions

that you will answer.

Where were you born?

My father's house...

Castle Dracul,

in the region of Transylvania.

We are

particularly interested

in the circumstances

of your birth.

Vlad:
I know

what you are implying.

You needn't waste your time.

I've heard the folk tales.

Who first told you these stories?

Your mother?

Hardly. My mother died offever

when I was two.

And your father?

My father was

in charge of my education.

If I was destined

to be the Anti-Christ

I'm sure

he would have mentioned it.

I could do no wrong

in my father's eyes.

Good, Vlad.

It was not the same with

my brother Radu, however.

Come on, Radu!

Come on!

Fight! Be a man!

Come on, Radu!

You are not a baby anymore!

Finish him, Vlad.

Finish him!

One day, my father

gave me his ring

that commemorated his induction

into the Order of the Dragon.

Wear this always.

It will keep you from harm.

If anything ever happens to me,

see King Janos in Hungary.

He is a friend.

Why did your father assume

something might happen to him?

The Turkish Sultan

was demanding his yearly tribute.

and 500 young boys.

As Prince of Romania,

my father was refusing.

He was leaving for Tirgoviste

to meet with our country's nobles,

and convince them

to unite against the Sultan.

I remember asking...

Is that possible?

To unite the nobles?

Many have made separate

arrangements with the Sultan.

They profit.

But their people

are no better off than slaves.

Greed is a force more powerful

than any army.

As long as

we are forced to pay tribute,

we will never

truly be free.

Vlad, while I'm away,

you must look after Radu.

He is weak,

but he is your brother.

Guard and protect him

with your life.

I promise, Father.

No!

After what seemed

like days of travel,

we finally arrived

at the Turkish camp.

For the first time

in my life,

I saw the world...

naked and unbridled.

It terrified me.

Do you know who I am?

The Sultan Mehmed.

And do you know

why you are here?

Because our father

refused to pay tribute.

Precisely.

When he relents,

you may be returned to Romania.

Meanwhile,

you have no reason to fear me.

You will be allowed

to keep your Jesus.

You will be also

taught Islam,

and many other

useful things.

The Sultan's

immediate interest in Radu

was quite obvious.

This one.

You are

a very lucky boy.

When history

will be written,

I will be placed

alongside Alexander,

Caesar, and Hannibal.

No!

Mmmph!

I saw less and less

of my brother after that.

One night,

he came to me in tears.

Father's dead.

Who told you that?

The Sultan.

- He's lying.

- No.

Vlad, it's hideous.

What? Radu?

He was murdered.

Buried alive.

I told Radu

that if Father was dead,

they would have no reason

not to kill us.

Stefan:
But your father

had been murdered,

supposedly

by Romanian nobles,

because your father

Vlad Dracul

refused to accept the nobles'

compliance with the Sultan.

Yes.

And yet the Sultan

Iet you live.

I made myself live.

They starved me, they beat me,

they tortured me.

They threatened to blind me

unless I surrendered to the Sultan.

And then one day,

as if by miracle,

your suffering ended.

I was given

a horse and supplies,

and ordered back

to Romania.

But instead,

as my father had instructed me

years ago,

I decided to seek help

from King Janos of Hungary.

As I left,

I made three vows:

to avenge

my father's murder;

to unite my country;

and to liberate Radu

from the Sultan.

Tell King Janos that Vlad,

son of Dracul, is here to see him.

Give him this.

Your father was a politician

to the marrow.

Unfortunately, he ended up

being all things to no people.

Do you know

who killed him?

Such is the nature

of politics in the Balkans.

One never really knows

who one's enemy is-

- aside from the Turk, that is.

- Your Majesty.

Aside from the Turk,

your real enemies are

the Romanian nobles

who aid the Turkish Sultan.

These are the same men

who murdered my father.

And how can you be

so sure-

so sure

it was the nobles?

Because had my father

fulfilled his mission,

it was them who had

everything to lose.

And your mission?

Is it one of a patriot

or of a vengeful son?

Both.

You see, he wasn't just murdered,

Your Majesty.

They say

he was buried alive.

King Janos. Help me.

With your support,

I can make Romania strong.

Come.

We should not discuss such matters

on an empty stomach.

Oh, young man,

where did you learn

your table manners?

If you're asking about my origins,

I was born in Transylvania.

- Romania.

- I know where it is.

I am Romanian.

You are Romanian?

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