Uther and the Secret of the Dragon

by David William Kirby

  be armed but they remain peasants under their armour.

  I have been brewing a plan that will terrify them and

  hopefully most of them will turn and run before a

  single arrow is shot.

  ULAN

  Is that the contraption I have seen you building, the silver

  drum with the funnels that make it spin? I wondered what

  it was, when the steam comes from those funnels that thing

  turns so fast my eyes get dizzy. What is its purpose?

  MERLAIN

  You’ll see, tonight you’ll see.

  ULAN

  Well all I need is my sword, lance and horse. With these

  three things I feel invincible,

  ESUIT

  I’ve seen you on that horse, you are very good and

  you like to use that lance a lot.

  UTHUR

  That’s what I will call you from now on my friend.

  ULAN

  What, Sir Invincible?

  UTHUR

  No, not Sir Invincible, but Sir Lancelot.

  ULAN

  Oh, very funny.

  MERLAIN

  Let’s put our jest aside, we have a fight to start.

  UTHUR

  And to win; you, my friend, shall set the scene.

  MERLAN

  I will need my engine under a small fire close to the

  enemies camp, the copper leads I have fashioned are

  only five hundred metres long and that’s the furthest

  I can be from my engine.

  ULAN

  And what pray is an engine?

  UTHUR

  More science. But those Germanic barbarians will think

  lightening has fallen from the sky. They will run for the sea...

  ESUIT

  Let’s hope so...

  UTHUR

  Esuit? Why you are dressed for battle, I thought....

  ESUIT

  You thought I’d stay back with the women and children,

  huddle in terror while the you and the men, men I have

  trained; go and die! You have known me long enough

  to know that I will lead from the front, by your side.

  UTHUR

  But I will spend the whole time looking out for you,

  I would not be able to concentrate on the deed at

  hand knowing that somewhere in the fray you may

  need my hand.

  ESUIT

  I can look after myself; just worry about your

  own skin husband.

  MERLAIN

  She’s right, you know she is.

  The others leave the two alone and ESUIT steps to her husband and passes him his sword.

  ESUIT

  Brothers in arms?

  UTHUR

  Brothers in arms.

  SCENE 53 NIGHT, ERICKS CAMP

  The so called Duke of Cornwall has left his wooden fort and gathered his men in a clearing near to where his spies have told him UTHUR’s army awaits. He is being attended to by his servants when a strange droning sound fills the night air. Suddenly a guard calls out to him.

  GUARD

  Master, come, see this.

  ERICK

  What is that infernal noise?

  GUARD

  Quickly master. An apparition in the trees.

  ERICK follows the guard and together with a group of his soldiers they look towards a small hill where the noise is coming from. Suddenly bright lights illuminate the hill top and the men gasp at its beauty.

  ERICK

  What is this?

  They see a shrouded figure dressed in long white robes and a deep hood appear in the lights. The figure points down towards ERICK and a voice booms out across the land.

  MERLAIN

  I call here those who serve the devil named Erick; let

  you hear these words and know the truth.

  GUARD

  It’s the sorcerer Merlin, I’ve heard He’s very powerful.

  ERICK

  Rubbish.

  MERLAIN

  The gods of this place have sworn to protect

  the rightful heir to this land. Land you now invade.

  I am here to give just one warning to those of you

  who are righteous and of blessed virtue.

  Turn away from the devil and go back home,

  only death awaits tonight;

  to greet the vein, the greedy and the weak.

  Go, go now and save yourself.

  ERICK

  You men, quickly. Go up that hill and kill that man.

  GUARD

  Who, us?

  ERICK

  Stop shaking and go, you there

 

  (he points at a group of four others)

 

  ....go with this man and help him.

  The five grab their swords and start to climb the hill. On the other side, UTHUR and a couple of others hold shiny tin mirrors behind the engine as it spins casting the light from the flickering fire up the hill and illuminating MERLAIN. A long leather strap is being turned against a copper tube and wires lead from this up towards the illuminated figure.

  UTHUR

  What’s happening?

  MERLAIN (in a whisper)

  Quiet, they’re coming.

  The five swords men approach and as ERICKs army looks on from the valley below the first points his sword towards Merlain. The old man gestures towards the swordsman and the hidden copper wire secreted under his long sleeve lets out a burst of static electricity that fires across the hill and contacts the man’s bronze sword. He screams and the sword goes flying into the darkness. The man drops, stunned by the charge.

  ERICKs men gasp in horror seeing the second swordsman approach, his weapon held tightly in front. |Again MERLAIN gestures and a bolt of blue static electricity shoots from his fingers and into the man’s sword, this time the man sparks and shakes and begins to scream before throwing his sword and running from the hill

  ERICK

  What is this sorcery?

  Another swordsman approaches and he too is shocked into throwing his sword before turning and running away. The two others turn in terror and follow him.

  ERICK

  What are you doing, don’t run. Go back.

  The terrified men run past him and away through the camp, closely followed by many more.

  Come back you cowards.

  MERLAIN

  The gods of this land are angry, go or only death

  awaits.

  ERICK

  Yes, your death.

  Suddenly a hail of arrows fall on ERICKs camp and many others fall fatally injured.

  ERICK calls to another guard.

  Quick, bring my armour, the fight is on.

  As these words leave his lips an arrow strikes the guard and he falls dead.

  Bahhh.

  ERICK goes and dresses himself before calling for a horse. As one is led to him he hears the sound of thunder coming from the trees.

  What now.

  They look towards the sound and suddenly a hundred men on horseback appear from the trees riding through the crowd and slicing down anyone who moves. Hundreds of ERICKS men scream and run away. ULAN, w ho is leading the horsemen throws his lance at ERICK and it pierces the ground near his feet. Attached to the lance is UTHURS crest.

  As ERICKs men armour up the see a thick line of armed me coming towards them from either end of their encampment. The men carry long shields adorned with UTHUR’s crest and between each shield a long a long barbed lance protrudes which spear ERICKs men as they try to form their fighting units.

  ERICK can see his men falling like blossom from a spring tree and as he peers through the darkness notices Uthur, resplendent in gold coloured armour, plumbed helmet and raised sword directing the battle from the hill Merlain had announced the fight from.

  Who is this warr
ior king? This isn’t the stone age

  savage I have come to expect in this land, who IS HE!

  ERIC K rides among his men and screams

  A thousand gold coins to the man who brings

  me that warrior’s head.

  Hearing this a group of men mount their horses and break away, they approach the hill towards UTHUR who stands his ground, As they approach the crest they see a line of archers which a second line behind and yet a third line behind them. As the horsemen approach

  UTHUR breaks through a gap in his men and the lower line of archers fire, as they start to set their bows the second row fire and as they reset the third row fire by which time the first row fire aging and the pattern is repeated causing an impenetrable wall or arrows to cut the riders down. The archers then move forwards and begin firing down onto ERICKs camp.

  as his line of men gets thinner and thinner and UTHURs men start to trample the bodies of the dead underfoot ERICK sees the battle lost

  Back to the fort men, fall back to the fort.

 

  A trumpet sounds and ERIC KS men start to retreat

  The rest of ERICKs men follow his horse through the night towards the fort. They are cut down on the way by UTHURs horsemen and eventually the fort’s doors are closed against a hail of arrows,

  GUARD

  Master, we have lost the supplies and water. If it is

  a siege they want we will only last for a week.

  ERICK

  That’s not what I want to hear, get the walls protected

  and tell my generals to come to my quarters.

  SCENE 54 INT NIGHT

  UTHURs camp,

  UTHUR

  The plan went exactly to the letter.

  ULAN

  Now we have this rat where we want him it only

  remains to put part two of our plan into action.

  SCENE 55 EXT DAY

  As the sun rises across the sea and waves crash over the rocks below the wooden fort ERICKs remaining men look over the parapet nervously. Beside a crow singing loudly above their heads the scene is eerily quiet. They do not see ESUIT and another of UTHURs men stealthily climbing the rocks from the shore towards the rear of the fort.

  They carry bags of small bronze balls filled with black powder and a flint to light their fuses. Once just under the forts external wall they hunker down and use the ferns and bushes to hide until the time was right.

  ERICKs men see a dust cloud rising up in the distance and strain their eyes to make out a heavy cart being pulled by eight oxen On the cart stands MERLAIN and behind him a large wooden box. When the cart is close enough for those in the fort to hear MERLAIN shout the cart grinds to a halt.

  One of ERICKs men uses a long bow to fire an arrow towards the cart but it falls short MERLAIN had previously worked out the geometry between the fort and the distance and where the cart stopped. MERLAIN un-tethered the cart and the oxen strolled away in the direction from which they came.

  MERLAIN

  You there, with the bow. Tell your fat master to stop

  quivering from fear and come to speak to me.

  The archer looks behind and ERICK pushes him to one side.

  ERICK

  I live in fear of no man, sorcerer. What do you want?

  MERLAIN

  I have been sent by the true and only King of this

  realm with a message.

  ERICK

  Oh yes?

  MERLAIN

  He offers you your life under the condition you leave

  this realm before the end of this day.

  ERICK

  He does, does he?

  MERLAIN

  Yes, and to make this offer business-like

  he will allow you to take this with you.

  MERLAIN opens the top of the box and ERICK sees it is filled to the top with gold coins.

  This gold will enable you to go back to your land a

  victor, rich enough to build your own castle and live

  the rest of your life at ease with the world.

  ERICK

  The mines of this land earn gold every day of the week.

  MERLAIN

  True, but to accumulate this much gold how many

  backs have to be broken under the whip; how many

  lives enslaved? Here is the offer, what you say?

  ERICK

  Look here sorcerer. I am comfortable where I am,

  I have food and water and could stay here in

  this place for many months without

  venturing outside these walls.

  I shall have to think about this for a while.

  I will give you my answer tomorrow.

  MERLAIN

  Tomorrow the offer will be gone; it’s today or death.

  ERICK

  Death? You can’t touch me here. Not even your magic

  can scale these walls; go and tell your master that

  I will give him an answer tomorrow.

  MERLAIN

  You are wrong.

  He reaches down and pulls a horn from beneath his cloak.

  I have already told you; the true and rightful king

  of this realm is protected by the spirits of the land.

  They are powerful devils and you are not safe anywhere

  from their touch; not even behind these walls.

  ERICK

  Lies! I don’t believe in your magic and I don’t believe in you.

  MERLAIN

  I only have to blow this horn to bring thunder from the

  clouds and the finger of death will strike your men;

  wherever they hide.

  ERICK

  LIES!

  ARCHER

  Don’t provoke him master. You have seen how

  powerful he is.

  ERICK

  Bahh! Lies, all lies.

  MERLAIN places the horn to his lips and a long low note echoes through the hills. ESUIT upon hearing this ignites one of the grenade fuses and throws it high above the walls and it explodes with a thundering bang level with one of the guard towers. The men in the tower fall dead with deep wounds caused by the grenade’s shrapnel.

  ARCHER

  Look sire, they have been struck dead by the spirits.

  ERICK

  How does he do that?

  MERLAIN

  Shall I kill more of your men or will you take this

  generous offer?

  He places the horn to his lips again and blows another long low note. ESUIT again throws a grenade and it explodes beside another tower killing those men inside.

  ERICK

  Stop!

  MERLAIN

  Is your answer yes?

  ERICK

  I have another offer sorcerer.

  MERLAIN

  I am not here to negotiate, what are you going

  to do,

  leave or die here like insects in a trap?

  ERICK

  Tell your master that I will leave, with his gold, but with

  a condition of my own.

  MERLAIN

  Oh, what you say?

  ERICK

  Tell him to come fight me, like a man. With any weapon

  he chooses and in any nearby place.

  Whoever lives will be

  the rightful ruler of this land and the owner of that crate

  of gold; what you say to that?

  MERLAIN

  Why should he fight you when I could kill you all without

  even moving from this place?

  ERICK

  A cowards choice; no, tell him to come and fight me

  like a man. Or do the spirits of this place not go that far to

  protect him?

  A horse approaches and Uthur stops beside his friend before removing his bronze helmet.

  Is this your master, this thin boy. Is this the so called

  rightful King we have all heard about?

  U
THUR

  You can laugh, but I have heard your challenge and

  come to meet it, here, now. Come down and fight me

  if that is your wish. I shall be happy to sever your head

  this day.

  MERLAIN

  Uthur, there’s no need for this. We have him already.

  UTHUR

  Quiet friend. I can take him.

  He looks up to where ERICK stands

  I have my weapon, this sword is all I need .

  He takes the sword AMBER had given them and holds it up in the sunlight.

  ERICK smirks and leaves the top of the wall. In a few moments the gates of the fort are opened and he steps into the sunlit area between the fort and the cart.

  ERICK

  Call your sorcerer dog off; this fight is between you

  and I boy.

  MERLAIN

  Uthur, please.

  UTHUR

  It’s okay, I have to do this. For the sake of my people, my

  land and for the sake of my father.

  He turns to face ERICK and dismounts throwing his helmet to MERLAIN.

  I have waited a long time for this moment.

  ERICK

  So Have I.

  The sound of horses alerts them and both look back to see ULAN coming upon them. He stops his horse by MERLAIN and looks towards UTHUR

  ULAN

  Shall I kill him now?

  UTHUR

  Stop where you are. I am going to do this myself.

  Suddenly a scream rings out and they all look towards the fort to see Gwen being held by a guard.

  GWEN

  Father, help me.

  ULAN