Krull Page #14

YNYR:

Where is he? My son.

WIDOW:

I killed him when he was born.

(pause)

This place is my punishment.

The old man bends his head sadly. When he looks up, he sees

in the mirrors that tears are coursing down the Widow's

cheek. As he watches the tears, the mirrored face turns to

that of a beautiful young girl. And the Widow is stunned to

find that she sees the reflections as he sees them: the face

of a young girl.

WIDOW:

Do not try your trickery on me!

YNYR:

It is no trickery.

WIDOW:

Those are reflections.

(turns to face him)

This is my face!

When she starts to turn, we SEE her as old. But when she

faces Ynyr, we SEE her THROUGH HIS EYES: as a young girl.

YNYR:

You see?

WIDOW:

(smiles)

Yes.

A REVERSE ANGLE explains her smile: she sees him as the

young man who loved her.

YNYR:

Memory is no trick, it is a power.

The power to see.

WIDOW:

Power you have given me. What can my

power give you?

YNYR:

Knowledge.

WIDOW:

Of what?

YNYR:

The Fortress of Krull. When will it

come near here?

WIDOW:

Why must you know?

YNYR:

There is a girl there. Her name is

Lyssa.

WIDOW:

You lie!

YNYR:

(touches her cheek)

Could I lie to you and still see

your beauty?

WIDOW:

(lowers her eyes)

No.

YNYR:

A young man seeks her. A young man

about the age I was when I met you.

WIDOW:

Tomorrow, the Fortress of Krull will

rise with the sun in the Valley of

Reeds. But the knowledge is of no

use to you. No man has ever escaped

the Web. And soon the creature will

come for you, even here.

Ynyr touches his glaive.

WIDOW:

(shakes her head)

It will not help.

YNYR:

Then the other Lyssa will share your

fate. She will grow old in the

Fortress as you have grown old here.

The Widow takes a small gold hourglass from a mirrored

niche.

WIDOW:

Hold out your hand.

She breaks the hourglass and pours the sand into his open

hand.

WIDOW:

Those are the sands of my life. So

long as they remain in your hand,

the creature cannot harm you.

Ynyr closes his hand, but the sand trickles out through his

fingers. He tries clenching it tightly, but the sand

continues to run.

YNYR:

I cannot stop the sand.

WIDOW:

You cannot stop time. Go now, before

it runs out.

YNYR:

You will come with me.

WIDOW:

There is sand enough for only one

life. Go now, save the other.

She watches Ynyr make his way across the web toward the cave

entrance. The ANGLE is BEHIND HER, and we SEE her hands grow

gnarled and mottled, her body become that of an old woman

once again - but when we SWING AROUND IN FRONT OF HER, we

SEE that her face is still that of a young girl.

The crystal spider scuttles across the web to attack Ynyr.

But the old man holds up his clenched fist and shows the

sand running from his fingers.

Stymied, the spider crouches and turns blood red. A scream

of rage fills the cave.

Ynyr reaches the safety of the entrance and looks back: the

blood-red spider scuttles to the center of the web and

smashes open the cubicle. Ynyr looks at his hand: the sand

has run out.

As the old man makes his way sadly down the mountain ...

A SHOT OF THE WIDOW

Shows her encased in a web shroud; and though her body is

old, she retains, even in death, the face of a young girl.

INT. INN - NIGHT

Torquil and his men dandle INN GIRLS on their knees,

laughing, leching, and guzzling. The INNKEEPER bustles

about, assisted by a much-abused serving girl named VEELA,

whose beauty is concealed by kerchiefed hair, frumpy

clothes, and a layer of soot.

Across the room, Colwyn and Ergo sit in front of the fire,

staring gloomily into the flames.

Titch comes in the back door and whispers to Torquil, who

signals his men. They get up and head for the back wall,

where Cyclops is swinging open a pair of large double doors.

Ergo is too glum to notice the sudden diminution of noise,

but Colwyn sees Torquil and his men carrying in a giant

venison pie, ten feet across and five feet high.

TITCH:

(comes up to Ergo)

Ergo?

The little man hunches forward, refusing to answer.

TITCH:

Sir Ergo? ... My honorable Lord

Ergo? ...

ERGO:

First, you desert me, and now you

mock me. Go back to your one-eyed

friend.

Titch reaches out and presses the end of Ergo's nose.

ERGO:

What? Now you poke me in the nose as

well?

TITCH:

I don't think it's working.

ERGO:

Not working? This nose? This nose

works day and night. This nose has

never loafed an hour in its life.

This nose ...

(sniffs)

What?

(sniffs again)

Impossible. This nose asleep while

venison fills the air?

(seizes Titch)

Where is it, boy? Tell me where it

is and I forgive you everything.

TITCH:

It's right behind you.

Ergo turns and his eyes grow as big as the pie.

ERGO:

(awed whisper)

A venison pie as big as a house.

CYCLOPS:

A small house.

ERGO:

And what do you think a small person

lives in, you one-eyed fool? Leaving

me here to mope while you and the

boy were arranging my assassination.

TITCH:

We meant only to please you.

ERGO:

And do you think I'm not going to

eat myself to death this very night?

Huh?

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