The Man in the Iron Mask Page #22

LIEUTENANT:

Draw blades!

The King's Guards draw their swords, and wait; are all the

old Musketeers dead?

Slowly the figures emerge from the smoke -- in SLOW MOTION,

walking now, no need to run. All are wounded, but all are

still alive.

The Four Musketeers, along with Phillippe, move slowly and

steadily toward the blades of the young Guards; a fight to

the death? So be it.

But the young Lieutenant will have none of it; as one of his

men lifts a sword to plunge it into the chest of d'Artagnan,

the young Lieutenant bats the sword down, with his own.

LIEUTENANT:

Stop!

He steps forward toward d'Artagnan; but instead of thrusting

his sword he salutes with it.

His men follow suit, saluting and bowing to the courage of

these men they have grown up wanting to follow.

King Louis, for the moment, is frozen.

D'Artagnan looks back at Phillippe; he has bullet holes in

two different places at the edges of his clothes, but he is

unwounded.

Then d'Artagnan sees Louis, with his long dagger, leaping at

Phillippe.

D'ARTAGNAN

NO!

D'Artagnan throws himself between the two twins and hurls

Louis backwards, then spins to Phillippe.

D'ARTAGNAN

Phillippe!

PHILLIPPE:

I am unhurt --

Louis bounces off the wall and thrusts back again, driving

the blade into d'Artagnan's back.

D'Artagnan's face jolts; he staggers, his legs buckle.

D'Artagnan falls into the arms of his friends.

Louis stands holding his bloody dagger, everyone staring at

him:
d'Artagnan, the old Musketeers, the young ones.

PHILLIPPE:

You! Vicious... evil...!

He leaps into Louis, overwhelming him in fury, wrenching the

dagger from his brother's hand and gripping his throat.

D'ARTAGNAN

Phillippe...! No... Don't... He is

your brother!

Phillippe releases Louis, who falls, choking, gasping.

Lieutenant Andre is surprised by what he just heard.

LIEUTENANT:

Brother...?

Phillippe darts to d'Artagnan, being cradled by Athos; Athos

lifts a hand from d'Artagnan's back; it is drenched in blood.

D'Artagnan is dying.

Athos, Aramis, Porthos... none of them can speak. They grip

d'Artagnan, as if through their will alone they could keep

his life from leaking away. The young Musketeers stand

transfixed, watching their legendary Captain die. Phillippe

sags; his voice from behind the iron mask is torn by grief.

PHILLIPPE:

All this time... I was a lost

secret. But you were hiding all

your loyalty, all your love. You

were the Man in the Iron Mask.

ATHOS:

D'Artagnan...

D'ARTAGNAN

Shhh. All my life, this is the

death I have wanted. To die among

you. One for all... and all for...

He is gone.

Phillippe rises with a slow, terrible resolve, and moves to

Louis. When Louis tries to rise to his feet he finds the

blade of the young Lieutenant Andre pointed at his chest.

LIEUTENANT:

All my life, all I ever wanted to

be... was him.

He points to d'Artagnan. Phillippe rips away the key that

dangles around Louis' neck.

CUT TO:

AT THE OTHER DOOR

where the soldiers of the BASTILLE'S COMMANDER are finally

breaking through; working the massive door aside they find --

THE KING with his guards, and Aramis, Athos, Porthos, along

with their prisoner, in the Iron Mask.

LIEUTENANT:

We have recaptured the prisoner.

MAN IN THE IRON MASK

No, no! I am your --

A blow in his chest from the Lieutenant stuns the prisoner

and drops him to his knees. The King orders the BASTILLE

GOVERNOR --

KING:

You will put this madman where no

one can hear his insanity. Let him

be fed by a deaf mute. But feed him

well, and let him have a long life

within the Iron Mask.

BASTILLE GOVERNOR

And them?

He means Aramis, Porthos, and Athos.

KING:

They are my loyal servants.

MAN IN THE IRON MASK

No! No...!

But the guards are dragging him to the deepest, darkest

dungeon of the Bastille.

DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. LANE OF ELMS - BESIDE THE PALACE - DAY

At the end of a lane of elms, where the markers of king's

graves stand clustered, royal workmen place a mighty marble

monument stone above the final resting place of d'Artagnan.

Athos, Aramis, Porthos, and the King -- Phillippe, known as

King Louis now -- stand gathered there, as Aramis in his

priest's garments utters the funeral incantations. Aramis'

voice breaks as he does so. Porthos' eyes pour out rivers of

tears. Athos' grief is beyond weeping.

Phillippe holds the arm of his mother. She holds the rose

d'Artagnan left her.

ARAMIS:

Amen.

Athos moves up between Aramis and Porthos, and links them

with his arms.

ATHOS:

He was the best of us all.

Aramis and Porthos move off together, to walk the lane of

elms; Athos remains by the grave, unable to leave.

Phillippe pats Anne's arm.

PHILLIPPE:

I will be with you in a moment,

Mother.

She too moves down the lane of trees, touching the tip of the

rose pedals to her lips as the tears run down her face.

Phillippe moves up to Athos.

PHILLIPPE:

After all you have done, I must ask

you one more service to your king.

I have lost my father. And you have

lost your son. Let me love you like

a son to a father. And I pray you

live for this, to love me like your

son.

Athos can't speak; he can only nod yes. Phillippe moves to

join his mother, leaving Athos to take one final look down at

the grave. Then as Athos moves off to join Aramis and

Porthos, we PAN from the name "D'ARTAGNAN" on the stone, to

the pattern chiseled beneath the name.

It is a mask, of iron.

FADE OUT.

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