The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc Page #11

They enter the shell-shattered sanctuary of a gothic

chapel where Aulon directs them to lay Jeanne against the

wall. In the distance we can hear the muffled sounds of

war, but in here it is strangely quiet.

The great war-lords stand in a semi-circle, pathetically

wringing their hands, like the seven dwarves bereaving the

stricken Snow White. The sight of tears trickling down La

Hire's scarred cheeks is as touching as it is pathetic.

Aulon wipes her brow, leaning in very close to feel her

pulse and whether her mouth exhales breath. He turns to

Raymond, who stands close by with Louis --

AULON:

Go and find the physician... I saw

him with the supplies.

Raymond races off...

GILLES:

We have to take out the arrow now.

AULON:

It's in so deep -- I'm afraid she'll

bleed to death if we pull it out...

LA HIRE:

There must be something we can do

for her for Chrissakes!

GILLES:

(sarcastic)

Yes. We can pray.

LA HIRE:

Good idea...

La Hire turns and directs his pledge to the broken

stained-glass image of Christ above the trashed altar...

LA HIRE:

I swear I'll never swear again in my

life if you save her life! But I'm

warning you, if you let her die,

then you're the biggest...

JEANNE:

Don't swear...

Jeanne stirs, her eyes beginning to open...

LA HIRE:

He heard me!

AULON:

Jeanne... we thought we'd lost you!

JEANNE:

Not so... easily. Why aren't you...

fighting...? go on... we're almost

there...

AULON:

Jeanne, you've been badly wounded...

JEANNE:

No, it's... it's nothing, it's...

Speaking provokes a sudden stab of pain. She tries to

clutch the arrow, but Aulon stops her. He peels back her

shirt, exposing the bloody wound above her pale breast.

GILLES:

It's an arrow, and it's in deep...

AULON:

You must stay still till the

physician arrives!

LA HIRE:

Physicians are a waste of time.

You'll have more luck with this

charm of mine... it saved my life at

Agincourt!

JEANNE:

I'd sooner die than use magic!

AULON:

Jeanne, you will die if that arrow

stays in you much longer...

Jeanne suddenly seizes the arrow and yanks it out of her

body. Blood spurts -- the suddenness and violence of her

action catches the men unaware, and it's a moment before

Aulon can stem the flow with his hand. Jeanne looks at

the arrow before throwing it aside...

JEANNE:

At least this one won't bother us

any more. Now let's get back to the

fight!

She tries to get up... and collapses, grabbing Aulon...

AULON:

Jeanne... please... you must stay

calm... you must rest... please!

He lays her back down. Jeanne whispers to him,

intimately.

JEANNE:

Alright... I promise to rest if you

promise... to go back to the battle.

AULON:

I promise...

Jeanne smiles -- then suddenly collapses...

LA HIRE:

Oh sh*t! Jeanne... don't die!

La Hire breaks off as Raymond arrives back with the

Physician...

AULON:

Quickly... do something!

The Physician kneels beside her and listens for any sound

of life. All the Captains crowd closer and closer, and as

we too move closer, we hear the sound of deep breathing,

almost a snore.

PHYSICIAN:

She's sleeping. Like a baby.

La Hire and the others sigh with relief.

EXT. TOURELLES - BATTERY - DUSK

Dunois surveys his army's attempt to storm the English

battery. It is now dusk, and without Jeanne the battle

has become a half-hearted affair. He turns to a trumpeter

as Aulon comes running up...

AULON:

Jeanne's alive!

DUNOIS:

Good.

AULON:

We have to press home the attack!

DUNOIS:

(to the Trumpeter)

Sound the retreat...

AULON:

But I promised Jeanne we'd fight on!

DUNOIS:

I made no such promise. Sound the

retreat for the night!

AULON:

But that was her order!

DUNOIS:

I'm fed up with taking her orders.

She swore she'd defeat the English

before nightfall, instead of which

she goes and plays the fool and gets

herself nearly killed! Look at the

mess we're in! That's her mess, not

mine...! We're worse off then if

she'd never come at all!

(to the Trumpeter)

... now do as I say and Sound the

Retreat!

The Trumpeter obeys and signals the evening wrap. The

English jeer and whistle from their impregnable battery as

the French head back up the sloping sides of the moat.

INT. ST. AUGUSTINE MONASTERY - DUSK

Jeanne lies asleep inside the ruined church, guarded by

her two page boys. A small fire burns nearby to keep her

warm, but she is shivering...

EXT. ORLEANS - JEANNE'S NIGHTMARE - NIGHT

She suddenly awakes with a start, then gets up and goes to

the fire. She kneels down... puts her hands in the

flames... and scoops up a handful of ash. She paints her

face with the black ash, like a native warrior, then

stands back up, turning to face a small army...

JEANNE:

My brave soldiers, do you believe in

God?

The Army cries out "Yeesssss!"

JEANNE:

Then let God's punishment be done:

Eye for eye...

... and a sudden FLASH of lightning transforms some of her

men into skeletons...

JEANNE:

... tooth for tooth...!

(another flash)

... burn for burn...!

(another flash)

... life for a life!

... a final FLASH, and her whole army is now a seething

swarm of SKELETONS. With a curdling cry of vengeance they

race forward, passing either side of her...

Jeanne turns to see the skeleton army heading across a

bizarre bridge and onto the moonlit battery, flowing

either side of the 8 year-old BOY she saw in the woods as

a child. Intrigued, Jeanne follows him, but by the time

she reaches him, the boy has disappeared. The skeletons

have also vanished, to be replaced by an army of little

English boys in man-sized armor, heading toward a distant

figure.

The boy-soldiers are being welcomed by the beautiful MAN

Jeanne saw earlier. He smiles at her, extending his arms

in a Christ-like gesture of embrace...

As Jeanne approaches him, others turn to welcome her --

Aulon, Dunois, Alencon... finally La Hire, holding out his

arms --

LA HIRE:

Jeanne, come here my friend, my

soldier... in my arms!

La Hire scoops her up into his bear-like arms and swings

her round... suddenly, over his shoulder she spots a

familiar figure:
her dead sister.

JEANNE:

Catherine??

She breaks from La Hire and runs to Catherine, throwing

her arms around her and sobbing with joy...

JEANNE:

Catherine... oh, Catherine -- I knew

you wouldn't leave me...!

They stand for a moment, embracing each other, while La

Hire and the other Captains applaud Jeanne's victory. The

beautiful young MAN approaches them, but we now see that

he has a sword clasped behind his back...

Catherine's face contorts in pain. She slumps forward,

the sword in her back. Beyond her, the beautiful MAN has

transformed into the grotesque Blackbeard, who roars with

laughter as Jeanne holds her dying sister...

CATHERINE:

Avenge me... avenge me...!

A circle of fire forms around them, with skeleton soldiers

dancing in the flames...

Blackbeard's echoing laugh is gradually superimposed by

real laughter and a familiar voice...

REDBEARD (O.S.)

Hey... Frenchies... what happened to

your precious angel, huh?

EXT. TOURELLES - FRENCH CAMP - DAWN

All is quiet, the troops lie sleeping. Redbeard calls

through the mist from the raised drawbridge spanning the

dry moat linking the battery to the French camp --

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