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Starring:
Adrian Paul (Duncan MacLeod) Guests:
Andrew Divoff
Written by Richard Gilbert Hill |
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Rev. Bell: "Don't thank me, thank the Lord. He was the one who gave you your gift, now."
Derek: "Amen to that."
Derek leaves, humming to himself. As he walks down the street, Larca drives up and shoots him. Rev. Bell runs out and Larca drives off. Bell runs to Derek, but he's already dead.
In the morgue, Derek is lying on a table, covered in a sheet. Larca, dressed in long white robe, comes in and stands beside him (Carefully making sure the table light is directly behind his head). He pulls the sheet down, and presses his hands to Derek's chest as he revives.
Larca: "Rise up, Derek."
Derek sits up: "I'm alive."
Larca: "You are."
Derek: "Where am I?"
Larca: "In the morgue." He tells him he was dead but, "I healed your wounds so that you could glorify my name. I have brought you safely through the shadows of the valley of death, and I have called upon you to serve me in a holy war against my enemy."
Derek: "Who are you?"
Larca: "I am God, Derek. I am God."
Luke: "I know who you are."
Luke slashes, but Duncan ducks and pushes him down. He runs to the T-bird, pulling out a remote control and opening the top as he runs up. He jumps into the seat and grabs his sword, just as Derek comes out, followed by a third immortal, Enrique.
Duncan: "You can't do this. This is against the rules."
Derek: "Rules? This isn't a game."
Duncan makes a break, disengaging Derek and running towards a nearby cemetery. The three split up to find him, and he lies in wait behind a tree and accosts Derek, holding his sword to his throat.
Duncan: "Who are you?"
Derek: "An angel of the Lord."
Duncan: "Yeah, and I'm Father Christmas."
He makes Derek walk the rest of the way to the cemetery, then starts asking him what's going on. Derek, scared, starts quoting Psalm 23, and Duncan tries to reassure him.
Duncan: "I'm not gonna hurt you."
Derek keeps on, and Duncan raises his sword to his neck, saying pleasantly, "Will you shut up?"
Derek does.
Duncan, lowering his sword: "You have no idea what you are, do you?"
Derek: "I told you."
Duncan: "Yeah, you're an angel. So what does that make me?"
Derek: "You know what you are. Satan."
Duncan chuckles: "I'm the Devil. You believe that? All right, Bright Eyes, if I'm the Devil, why did I bring you to holy ground?"
Before Derek can answer, the other two immortals arrive.
Enrique: "It's time to send you back to hell."
Duncan: "You know the rules. Put up your sword. This is holy ground, we can't fight here."
They don't, and Duncan raises his sword.
Duncan, mildly panicked: "Are you crazy? What are you doing? We can't fight here."
Derek: "He's right. Remember what God said? Even the Devil can claim sanctuary here."
Larca: "Well said, Derek." He comes out of the trees, still in his robe, hands raised beatifically. "He speaks the truth, my children. Even the Devil fears Armageddon."
Duncan looks at him: "Larca."
Paco: "I hope they are friendly."
Duncan: "What tribe?"
Paco: "They should not be here."
Duncan: "No, we should not be here."
They are tied up and taken to a village beneath a huge stone temple. As they reach the base of the temple, and Duncan senses another immortal. He looks up and sees Larca emerge, wearing robes of gold plates and carrying a mask on a staff. He walks to the top of the stairs, holding the mask in front of him, and the people kneel. He orders Duncan and Paco to be brought up to him. Duncan introduces himself, and Larca says, "I am Gavriel Larca, God of the Mochi (sp?) people."
Cut to Duncan sitting in the temple, sharing a meal with Larca. He thanks the girl (Coyantu) who pours his drink, but Larca says she "understands nothing of your language or your world." He touches Coyantu's hair, saying that he saw her born, and grow up, and he will cherish her until the day of her death.
Duncan: "You're a lucky man."
Larca: "To them I am more than a man."
Duncan: "You don't really believe that you're a god, do you?"
Larca: "The Mochi are an ancient people. Their arts and sciences rival the best of the Inca, yet they preceded them by one thousand years. Some of their traditions go back one hundred generations. They called me a god. Who was I to argue?"
Duncan looks up, and notices for the first time the figure on the wall. It's a stylized representation of a man, crowned with lightning, holding a sickle in one hand, and a severed head in another.
Duncan: "So, you're not the first immortal these people have called God. That doesn't make it right."
Larca: "What makes a god, MacLeod? What but the faith of his followers. And they do need faith."
Duncan: "Faith in you?"
Larca says he has protected them for 300 years, hidden them from Cortez and his like, and kept them free.
Duncan: "They're your slaves."
Larca: "And I am theirs. They are my people. They choose to worship me, and in return they are cared for. Is that not a god's covenant with his chosen?" Asks if Duncan will challenge him because of it.
Duncan: "I have no fight with you, Larca."
Larca: "Then you may leave in the morning."
Duncan gets up, saying they'll leave now. As Larca speaks, his form wavers, and his voice begins to echo. He says that Duncan can go, but his friend can't.
Duncan, swaying: "Paco goes with me."
Larca says Duncan can be trusted, but Paco can't. Duncan tries to tell him that Paco can be trusted, but Larca is adamant. Duncan finally clues in that he's been drugged, but it's too late and he collapses. He wakes later, tied to a pillar. Outside, Paco is dragged to the slab in the front of the temple. As Duncan watches through the hangings, Larca kills him as the people look on, chanting (I swear it sounds like they're saying, "Toga, toga..." Nah, couldn't be. ;)). Afterward, Larca comes in and Duncan asks if he's next.
Larca: "Only if you won't listen to reason."
Duncan: "There's no reason in murder."
Larca: "This was not murder. This was ritual sacrifice. With his death, my people take the strength of the enemy, that is the Mochi tradition."
Duncan: "We have traditions of our own. I told you I had no reason to fight you, well now I do."
Larca asks if Duncan will stay and take care of the Mochi.
Duncan: "I'll not play God."
Larca: "I thought not." He says that the next week is the Festival of the Moon, where the Mochi worship their god, the Decapitator, who holds a severed head in one hand and a sword in the other. He says that at the Festival, "they shall see his powers."
Duncan: "He's not a god. He's an immortal. We're all immortals."
Larca says he will speak to the "Evil One" alone, and the three leave, Duncan still trying to tell them that Larca's powers are no different than theirs.
Duncan: "What have you been teaching them?"
Larca: "To serve God and Heaven in a holy cause."
Duncan: "You fight your own battles, Larca. You and me, now, off holy ground." He starts to walk off
Larca: "I think not. My disciples do battle for me." He says that one of them will take Duncan's head, and then will offer his up to Larca.
Duncan: "Three on one. What about honor? That mean nothing to you?"
Larca: "You destroyed everything I built, everything I loved. You turned my people against me. I shall have my sacrifice."
Larca: "I breathed and your lungs filled with life. I whispered, and I gave you purpose. Is this not true?"
All three: "Yes, my Lord."
Larca: "You have not yet felt the sting of my rage." He says he's angry because they failed to bring him Satan.
Larca: "I smell doubt. Derek?"
Derek admits that he's been thinking about MacLeod.
Larca: "Satan."
Derek: "He could have killed me. Why didn't he?"
Larca says Duncan spared him because he willed it so, that Derek is under his protection.
Larca: "Have you lost your faith? Did I not give you life?" Says they must believe, and believe absolutely.
At Joe's. Joe Dawson is reading to MacLeod from a folder, saying that Larca's Chronicle goes back to the 15th Century, in Portugal.
Joe: "Dig this. Says he was a lawyer."
Duncan: "Interesting choice."
Joe says by 1510 he was a pirate.
Duncan: "How do you watch a pirate?"
Joe: "Well, you become one." Duncan looks surprised, and skeptical. "Hey, who says a Watcher can't be a pirate? Say your guy likes the opera, you go to the opera. Say your guy takes a notion to . . . go to the New World? You grab a hand spike, you sign on."
Duncan: "You trying to tell me something here?"
Joe asks him if remembers a guy name Rodney Fergus, who was in his regiment at Waterloo, and who sailed with him to America in 1816.
Duncan: "You mean that short guy? With the weak stomach? Hung over the rail all the time?"
Joe says he followed him to Montana, then retired.
Joe: "I think the Watcher pension at that time was five acres and five head of cattle."
They go back to discussing Larca, and find out that he landed in Peru in 1526, and disappeared 18 months later.
Joe: "They thought maybe a tribe of headhunters got him."
Duncan: "No, he got them."
Larca: "No. I will not permit it." He says that tomorrow he will take MacLeod's head, "and the sky shall open up with my miracle."
Coyantu begs him not to wait, that so many will die by tomorrow.
Coyantu: "Our people ask why our god has not protected us from all of this."
Larca: "Do you question me?"
Coyantu begs him to heal them, and tells him that she has the sickness, too. When he hears this, Larca promises to go through with it. Larca goes in to Duncan and says it's time.
Duncan: "Taking my head, Larca, won't change anything. They're dying, and there's nothing you can do about it."
Larca: "You brought the sick one here. You have destroyed my people."
As Duncan is taken off, he says that they didn't choose to come here, that it was the ritual that killed the people, the "blood sacrifice." Duncan is put on the slab, and Larca says that his Quickening will cure the Mochi. He raises his sword over Duncan's head, but before he can strike one of the Mochi shoots him with a poison dart. Duncan rolls away and runs off, leaving the people still chanting.
Duncan, voiceover: "Larca promised to protect them. When they saw he couldn't, they turned on him."
Duncan: "I barely got out of there alive." He says if he hadn't been immortal, he wouldn't have made it.
He asks if there's anything else on Larca, and Joe says nothing until about two years ago, when he showed up Lima.
Joe: "But do you think that punk really would have taken you on holy ground?"
Duncan: "Yes. He was ready to kill me, Dawson." His voice turns to disbelief. "On holy ground. God only knows what would have happened."
Joe: "In all of our records, there's only one mention of an immortal killing on holy ground."
Duncan, interested: "Yeah?"
Joe says it's never been confirmed, but there's a legend of "two guys going at it at a temple in Italy."
Duncan: Yeah, and . . ."
Joe: "It was in Pompeii. 79 AD."
Duncan: "The volcano."
Joe: "Who knows."
But he says they have other things to worry about, like three punks going after Duncan. Duncan says they just don't know the rules, the Larca has them convinced that he's God.
Joe: "Faith can be a very powerful thing, MacLeod."
Duncan says he has to talk to them, without Larca.
Joe: "Well how do you do that?"
Duncan says he caught a name, Derek.
Duncan: "If he's new, and he died around here . . ."
Joe: "The obituaries." Joe asks what he's going to do if he finds him.
Duncan: "I'll talk to him. Tell him what he is, who his God is. I don't want to kill him."
Joe: "What if he doesn't listen to you?"
Duncan: "Then he may have to die."
Rev. Bell: "Derek?"
Derek, wiping his eyes: "Yeah, Rev. It's me. Crazy huh?" He says he shouldn't have come back, but he didn't know where else to go.
Rev. Bell: "I saw you die."
Derek: "I did die."
Rev. Bell touches him: "I'm not dreaming."
Derek: "You believe in miracles?"
Rev. Bell: "How could I not? When the Lord has brought you back to us."
Derek asks why God would choose to bring him back. Rev. Bell says only God knows, but that he knows that Derek has a good heart.
Derek: "What if my heart tells me one thing, and God tells me another. What if God tells me to kill?"
Rev. Bell: "Are you sure it's God telling you to do these things?"
Derek: "Yes. He brought me back to life. He healed me with his touch. Reverend Bell, I'm scared."
Rev. Bell: "Derek, God is love. God is not fear."
Derek says that Rev. Bell doesn't understand.
Derek: "The God I'm dealing with, this God hates."
Derek senses another immortal then, and turns. Rev. Bell asks him what's wrong.
Derek: "Someone's here. One of God's warriors, or one of Satan's. We can feel each other coming."
Duncan walks in, and Derek tells the Reverend he ought to go. Duncan says he's come to talk to Derek alone.
Derek: "I've got nothing to say to you."
Duncan: "But there are things you have to hear." Adds that he thinks the Reverend should go, too.
Rev. Bell refuses. Duncan says he won't hurt Derek, but only Derek can hear what he has to say.
Duncan: "I'm trying to save his life. Look to your heart, and ask it if it can trust me."
Rev. Bell: "I won't be far."
Cut to Larca lighting a candle. He senses the buzz. Behind him Enrique and Luke enter.
Larca: "I sense only two of you, where is Derek?"
Luke: "We don't know."
Larca: "The time is near when you shall face Macleod again."
Luke: "This time he'll die."
Larca: "One of you will draw him into battle alone."
Enrique: "One of us alone doesn't stand a chance."
Larca: "Exactly. The devil will claim the victory and when he takes the head of one of my chosen, all my goodness will flow into him and bring him to his knees. When he is weak you must strike his head from his shoulders and then you shall come to know the full glory of your god. I will reward you, one of you will die the noblest death in my service."
Luke: "Who will die?"
Larca turns to face them.
Larca: "Derek will be my martyr."
Cut back to the church.
Derek: "I won't listen to you."
Duncan: "You have to listen to me. Derek, you're not an angel, I'm not the Devil. We're immortals, like Larca. We have our own battle, but it's not like this."
Derek insists that God brought him back to fight Duncan, but Duncan says again that Larca isn't God, that he didn't bring him back, and he didn't choose him. Derek says Larca protected him from Duncan, and from death, but Duncan tells him that he's protected because of what he is, and "if someone cuts off your head you'll die like anyone else. Just like Larca. Just like me. He's no different than you or I."
Derek pushes him away, shouting that he's lying, and runs off. Duncan follows, but Rev. Bell demands to know what he did to Derek.
Duncan: "I told him the truth."
Rev. Bell: "Which is?"
Duncan: "I'm sorry, Reverend."
He starts to leave, but Bell follows.
Rev. Bell: "I have just witnessed a miracle, and I need to know why."
Duncan: "I can't."
Bell swears he won't tell anyone.
Rev. Bell: "Look, a minute ago you asked me to ask my heart if I could trust you. Now I'm asking you the same."
Duncan: "It's a long story."
Rev. Bell: "I like long stories."
Duncan: "You would." Takes his arm. "Maybe we should do this inside." They start inside the church, Duncan saying, "It's about immortals. Men who live forever, unless they're beheaded. Men like me."
Rev. Bell stops him: "Um, instead of doing this in the church, maybe we can do this someplace where I could get a drink."
At Joe's. Rev. Bell is saying that Derek was in 15 foster homes by the time he was ten.
Duncan: "Then he found you?"
Rev. Bell: "Then he found God. I just happened to be there at the time." He talks about Derek's faith, and about "when he sings, aah, you could feel the Lord coming down just to listen. Then he died."
Duncan says Larca knew about Derek's faith, that "he counted on it to manipulate him."
Joe: "Guy got a taste for being worshipped. That kind of power is addictive. It's gotta be a real temptation for any immortal."
Duncan: "Or any man."
Rev. Bell: "This man Larca, does he have long hair, cold dark eyes that seem to look through you?"
Duncan: "You've seen him?"
Rev. Bell: "I saw him kill Derek. He took him away from everything and everyone he loved to make him into this thing . . . this killer, and he thinks he has the right? If this man can convinve Derek . . ." etc.
Duncan: "No, it doesn't mean that. Larca's the lie."
Rev. Bell asks what if he gathers more followers. "He has to be stopped."
Duncan: "He will be stopped."
Joe says that he put some people on it, and found out that Larca has rented a chapel next to an old cemetery.
Rev. Bell: "Holy ground. He'll be safe from you."
Duncan: "Not for long." Offers, a little too quickly, to take the Reverend home.
Rev. Bell: "No, I think I'd rather walk."
Duncan shakes his hand and thanks him for "trusting in me."
Rev. Bell: "Faith is my specialty."
He leaves, and Duncan turns to find Joe looking at him.
Duncan: "What? I'm going out there."
Joe shakes his head: "To the chapel? MacLeod, it's gonna be four on one."
Duncan: "Hm, that makes five."
Derek: "I'm ready."
Outside, Rev. Bell steps through the gate, humming "Amazing Grace." He's carrying a gun in one hand and a sword in the other. He walks to the chapel, saying "And he said I will strike down upon them with great vengeance and furious anger, those who attempt to poison and destroy that promise." Goes on humming, and approaches the door.
Larca is indignant as Rev. Bell walks in, asking, "Who dares?"
Rev. Bell and Derek look at each other.
Derek: "What are you doing here?"
Rev. Bell: "What are you doing here? You know this man isn't God." To Larca. "What did you tell him? Did you tell him he'd go to Hell if he didn't follow you?"
Larca: "I offered him my love and my protection. I gave him eternal life. What more can a God do for His soldiers?"
Rev. Bell: "You're not God. You're an abomination." Rev. Bell raises the gun, saying that Larca may be safe from MacLeod on holy ground, but "he's not safe from me."
He fires at Larca, but Enrique leaps in front and takes the bullet.
Rev. Bell: "Oh, Lord."
Larca orders Luke to stop Bell, but Luke cowers back as Bell raises the gun again. This time, Derek steps in front.
Rev. Bell: "Get out of the way, Derek."
Derek takes hold of the gun: "I can't let you do this."
Rev. Bell: "Derek, get out of the way!"
Larca comes up and takes the gun from them, and tells Derek to bring the body outside, beyond the cemetery (I can't make out quite what he says, but from the later course of events I assume he's telling Derek not to take the body to the cemetery! :)).
Outside, in the woods, they lay the body on the ground.
Larca: "You did very well, Derek. You proved yourself a faithful servant." Turns to the body. "Enrique gave his life in my service. I shall reward him." He raises his hands, then kneels and touches the body, saying "Live again, my son. Your God commands it." Enrique revives, and Larca turns to Luke.
Larca: "As for you, Luke, you failed me when I needed you most. You lost your faith." Tells him to kneel. "I shall cleanse you of your sin, my son." He turns his back to Luke, arms raised.
Meanwhile, Duncan drives up and gets out of the car.
In the grove, Larca turns back, drawing his sword, and beheads Luke. As the Quickening begins, Rev. Bell falls to his knees, praying. Duncan sees the Quickening and heads for it. After the Quickening, Larca orders Derek to "step away from the preacher." Instead, Derek steps in front of him.
Derek: "No."
Larca raises the gun: "It is written, thou shalt have no other gods before me. Step away, Derek. I command it."
When Derek continues to refuse, Larca pushes him aside and aims the gun at Rev. Bell, while Enrique looks on.
Rev. Bell: "May God have mercy on you both."
Larca: "I am God!"
He feels an immortal then, just before Duncan tackles him to the ground. Duncan shouts for the Reverend to go, and he obeys. Duncan draws his sword and faces both Enrique and Derek.
Larca: "Enrique, Derek. Serve me well."
They advance, but Derek moves to the side and puts his blade to Enrique's neck, ordering him to put his sword down.
Larca: "What are you doing?"
Derek: "If you're God, you don't need us." To Enrique. "I told you once." Punches him out.
Duncan: "Well..." Picks up Larca's sword. "I guess it's just you and me." Drives the sword into the ground and backs away. "By the rules."
Larca picks up the sword: "Because of you all my people died. They took their revenge on me. I was entombed for one hundred and fifty years!"
They begin to fight.
Duncan: "You set yourself up as a god, Larca, you got what you deserved."
They fight on, with Larca retreating until finally Duncan catches him and runs him through.
Larca: "I am God!"
Duncan: "No. You're not,"
He takes his head. During the Quickening, the image of the god's crown that was on the temple appears in lightning over Duncan's head, then the stylized lightning bolts are burned into the ground around him (Extremely cool!). When it's over, it's night, and it's raining. Derek comes up to MacLeod.
Derek: "Forgive me."
Duncan shakes his head: "You're an immortal, Derek. As I am. You're gonna have to learn what that means. But that doesn't mean that we're gods. Not now, not ever."
They walk away, and behind them the cross on the church spire glows in the darkness.
Duncan: "Dear MacLeod, Derek is doing okay and the kid's got one hell of a slider. Regards, Carl Robinson."
Joe: "Really?" Hands him another postcard on his way around. "Well, you know Reverend Bell says that Carl has one hell of a baritone."
Duncan snatches the card. "You made him a Watcher?"
Joe: "Let's just say a special correspondent. Opportunity knocked."
Duncan: "I guess that's one way of making sure he won't tell what he saw."
Joe: "Were you worried that he would?"
Duncan: "Nah."
Joe starts puting away the bottles: "You know what he said, that some of the gods and prophets of history were just immortals with delusions of grandeur, like Larca."
Duncan walks behind the bar and appropriates one of the bottles.
Duncan: "He was just upset."
Joe: "Well, yeah. But is it a possibility?"
Duncan, pouring two drinks: "No, it's not."
Joe: "How could you be so sure?"
Duncan: "Well, I could quote a whole bunch of people, Joe. But it basically boils down to one thing."
Joe: "And that is?"
Duncan: "Faith, Joe. Faith."
Next week: "The Messenger"!!! Yippee!!! :)
These pages are written by Jinjifore and are translated into HTML and maintained by Ian.
Disclaimer: All the dialogue, characters, situations, and darn near everything else belong to a bunch of fine and talented folks at Rysher Entertainment and Panzer/Davis, and in particular the dialogue belongs to the credited writer of this episode. Me, I just wrote the rest down in my own words, which belong to me, but the episode itself was made by the aforementioned people and is owned by them. This humble synopsis isn't meant to infringe on their rights, and I'm sure as heck not making any money from doing these.
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