a
novelization or an actual script but a dry transcript of the aired
episode that includes accurate word-to-word dialogues, settings descriptions,
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" by courtesy of SCI_FI ANGEL.
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==========================
TRANSCRIPT:
==========================
Open:
Early morning New York City.
Female
voice-over: New York City. November 11, 2000.
Cut
to a close up of an alarm going off and a hand reaching over to turn
it off. CDs being loaded in a disk changer. A woman pulling jeans over
a pair of men's briefs. A gun is taken off a table or dresser and a
clip being inserted. The gun is holstered on her right hip and a second
gun is put in an ankle holster. A black leather jacket is zipped up.
She grabs a motorcycle helmet. The apartment door closes.
The
next section is a series of intercut scenes of the motorcycle rider
{Sara Pezzini, if you were in any doubt}, New York City traffic and
architecture, and close up views of a small metal construct made of
overlapping plates. {We never see the whole thing, but I think you can
guess what it is.}
Cut
to the motorcycle arriving in front of a sign that says, "No Parking
Any Time."
Sara
gets off her bike and removes her helmet. She has long dark hair. There
are police officers walking all around.
Coming
out of the building in front of her is an Asian man in his thirties
with shoulder-length black hair. {This is her partner, Danny Woo.}
Danny:
Hey, Pezzini.
She
nods once. He keeps walking toward her and hands her a large cup of
coffee. They walk toward one of the cars parked nearby.
Danny:
Know what today is? November 11th
eleven-eleven. Your
horoscope says today's a special day.
Sara:
Every day above ground is a special day.
Danny:
Got a point there. As far as I know.
They
reach their unmarked car.
Sara:
I'm sorry.
Danny:
I know how pissed off you are.
Sara:
No, you don't.
Sara
puts her helmet in the back seat of the car.
Danny:
We'll stay on Gallo and sweat him. If he really did kill your friend
Maria, sooner or later something will give.
Sara:
Yeah, his heart as a hollow point hits it.
Danny:
We don't know that it was him.
Sara:
You know, you're right. We don't, I do. We just gotta prove it somehow.
They
get in the car, Danny in the driver's seat.
Sara
(sigh): How's the wife?
Danny:
That was a heck of a segue.
Sara:
Yeah, I'm good at those.
Danny:
And getting better. Must be a Gemini thing, you know. Mercurial
and all.
Sara
looks out the side window as Danny starts the car and drives off.
Flash
to two girls both blowing out the five candles on a birthday cake.
Sara
in voice-over: Maria's birthday was the same day as mine.
Flash
to two teen girls sharing a cigarette.
Sara
in voice-over: We used to do everything together, including
the things we weren't supposed to.
Back
to Sara staring out the car window.
Sara
(softly): I still don't understand how a 15-year-old could
like menthols.
Danny:
Huh?
Sara
turns to look at Danny. She gives him a sad smile.
Sara:
Nothin'. Wearing your vest?
Danny:
Yeah, of course.
Cut
to the interior of a museum. On display are various pieces of arms and
armor, including several complete suits of armor on dummies.
Announcer
(over the P.A.): The Midtown Museum will be closing in 15
minutes. Please begin to make your way to the exits and thank you
for coming.
Cut
to one glass-encased display case containing a sword, a couple cups,
and a metal gauntlet in the center. There is a man standing at the case
wearing a long black coat with a wide fur collar and a black watch cap.
He's staring at the gauntlet.
Close
up of the gauntlet. There is a blue gem embedded near the end away from
the hand. As the camera pans up the glove, we can see this was the segmented
metal construct shown at the beginning. The fingertips end in wicked
looking talons. On the top of the gauntlet, near the first two knuckles,
is a round protuberance.
Cut
to a street scene. Sara and Danny are in their car, parked at the curb.
Danny:
So, Little Mike thinks my job is driving a tractor. He wants to
come to work with me.
Danny
looks over to Sara. She's staring at one particular building on the
street in her side mirror.
Danny:
Hey, Pez, I don't think I've seen you blink once these past two
hours. You should do that once in a while, you know. It lubricates
your eyes.
Sara
spots two men exiting the building she's been watching.
Cut
to the two men.
One
is in a dark suit and overcoat and carrying a silver metal briefcase.
The other is wearing a tan wool overcoat.
Tan
overcoat: Where's the driver?
Cut
back to Sara and Danny.
Sara:
Here we go.
They
get out of the car and walk back to the two men standing on the sidewalk.
Sara:
Hey, Gallo.
The
man in the tan overcoat answers.
Gallo:
Buon giorno, Bella.
Sara:
Hey, Killer.
Danny,
in the meantime, greets Gallo's companion.
Danny:
Hey. How ya doin'?
Dark
suit: None of your business. You got a warrant?
Danny
(amused): A warrant? For what?
Gallo:
Some people might say that this borders on harassment, Detectives.
Danny:
We got three witnesses that put you next to Maria Buzanis only three
hours before she was murdered.
Gallo
(looking right at Sara): Well, who wasn't?
Sara
and Gallo exchange looks. Danny turns back to Gallo's companion and
gives him a puzzled look after a second.
Danny:
Hey, don't I know you from somewhere?
The
man hits Danny with the briefcase. Danny falls to the sidewalk. The
man in the dark suit then pulls a gun out of the waist of his pants
with his other hand and aims it at Danny. Sara kicks the gun out of
his hand and pushes him back against the wall of the building. He pushes
back using the briefcase before dropping it, then takes off running
down the sidewalk. Danny gets up, gun aimed at Gallo.
Gallo
(raising his hands): I'm not going anywhere.
Cut
to the fleeing man and Sara chasing. Several people are knocked over
on the sidewalk by the escaping man. The man finally runs into the Midtown
Museum, knocking over the employee who was shutting the door for the
evening.
Sara
follows immediately after.
Sara
(yelling on her way by): Call 911!
They
continue their chase, eventually coming to the wing with the armor display.
Gallo's friend has gained enough ground by this time that Sara is uncertain
which way to turn when she gets to an intersection. She turns randomly
to her left.
Sara
walks cautiously, gun in hand, looking everywhere for the man. Close
up on several of the suits of armor. Down at the end of another hall,
Sara sees the man run past. She runs after him.
Sara
takes a brief look around the room she's just entered and is immediately
drawn to the case holding the metal gauntlet. She squats down before
it, putting the glove at eye level. The protuberance at the top of the
glove opens, revealing a deep red stone. It begins to glow. Sara is
transfixed, apparently forgetting everything around her {including an
armed man she was chasing!}. The glow disappears from the stone. The
"eye" closes.
Reflected
in the glass top of the case is the man with the black watch cap. Sara
stands and sees his reflection. She whirls, pointing her gun at him.
He doesn't even react. {Oh, let's introduce ourselves. "Ian Nottingham
- world. World - Ian." Now that that's done
.}
Ian:
Magnificent, isn't it?
Sara:
Sorry, sir.
Ian
gives a bare smile.
Sara:
You
uh
you really shouldn't be here. (nodding) You should
leave.
Ian
shifts his body out of Sara's line of sight and she sees Gallo's friend
in the next room. Sara walks swiftly after him, gun pointed at the floor.
Sara:
Drop it!
He
stands beside a statue and fires his gun at Sara. She fires back. For
the next few seconds, they shoot back and forth, destroying glass cases,
shooting centuries-old armor and statuary. He finally hits Sara's gun,
sending it flying from her hand. Sara pulls her backup piece from her
ankle holster while he advances on her.
When
she starts firing back again, he pauses in a doorway and pulls out a
second gun.
Suddenly
Sara rolls by, flat on her back on a dolly, firing her pistol. The man
fires both of his at her. He hits the case holding the gauntlet, sending
it flying through the air. Sara, unarmed now, takes a leap away from
him and the gauntlet flies to her hand while she rolls. She comes up
on one knee. He walks up, preparing to finish her off.
Sara
cowers with the gauntlet over her head. Gallo's companion fires, but
the bullet ricochets off the gauntlet. Sara looks up, surprised to not
be hit, then looks at the gauntlet. Her head snaps to one of the suits
of armor to her right. Close up of the helm shows what looks like a
live person's eye inside. Sara turns her attention back to the shooter.
He fires again, and again the bullet ricochets. Flash to the suit of
armor. The head turns. Flash to the flight of the ricochet. It strikes
a pipe going up one wall. A fireball engulfs the room, blowing out windows.
Fade.
Cut
to flashing lights and sirens outside the museum. Sara is sitting at
the rear door of an ambulance. In front of her are Danny and Joe Siri,
her captain. Beyond Danny is Jake McCartey, another detective. Other
police and emergency people are in the background.
Siri:
Any idea what happened?
Sara
(dazed, rubbing her head): Joe, I chased the guy in the building.
We exchanged a few rounds and
uh
. He really opened fire on me
with some big bore pistols. And the next thing I know
uh
{OK,
we all know by now that the gauntlet is the Witchblade, right?}
Flashes
of the Witchblade seeing Sara, Sara's right hand outstretched, the Witchblade
resting in the case, the Witchblade gauntlet on Sara's arm.
Sara
shakes her head minutely and rubs her wrist in front of a silver bracelet
with a large red stone set in it.
Sara:
there was this giant explosion.
Siri:
Hmm.
Jake:
Talked to the caretaker. He said the gas pipes are ancient. Thinks
maybe a bullet hit one.
Sara:
Thought it was a grenade.
Siri:
No, the blast was too big for that.
Sara
touches the back of her head.
Jake:
Nobody can figure out how you weren't
um
Sara:
Pulped, Jake?
Jake
(softly): Yeah.
Siri:
You realize who that was?
Sara:
All I know is that he drew on Danny.
Siri:
That was Lorenzo Vespucci.
Jake:
Best hit man in the biz. Gallo's protιgι.
Sara:
Then I guess that explains all the firepower.
Danny:
We pulled a few of Vespucci's teeth out of some marble. That's all
that we could find.
Jake:
Security cameras that weren't blown up show that there was another
person in there.
Danny:
The only thing on tape were his shadows. It was if he knew the cameras
were there. Did you see anyone else?
Sara
thinks a moment and then shakes her head.
Sara:
No. I
I don't
I don't know. I don't remember anyone.
Flash
to Ian's reflection alongside hers in the case's top. Flash of the Witchblade
seeing them together from the case. Flash of Ian pulling back so Sara
can see Vespucci.
Sara
touches her face, still dazed.
In
the background, Gallo is being led to a police cruiser.
Gallo:
Hey, Pezzini.
They
all turn to look at Gallo. Sara stands.
Gallo:
Get your man?
Sara:
Not yet, Gallo.
Gallo:
Well, you got one of mine.
Sara
nods.
Gallo:
Your father woulda been proud. (Smiles)
Sara
takes a step toward him.
Danny
(holding her): Don't do it, Pez.
Gallo
laughs as he gets in the police car.
Shift
scene so that Sara, Danny, Siri and the ambulance is in the background.
In the foreground Ian is on a cell phone.
Cut
to a tall office tower. Kenneth Irons answers his ringing cell phone.
Ian
(over the phone): She's got it.
Cut
back to Ian.
Ian:
You won't be disappointed.
Cut
back to Irons.
Ian
(over the phone): She's everything you said she'd be.
Camera
starts panning across the room, coming to rest on an open book.
Irons:
Good.
Close
up on the open page. It is written in some language, possibly Latin.
In the corner is "11-11-2000." Close up on the date.
Fade.
Cut
to close up of a table or desk with photos. Pan to Sara opening the
door to this apartment. Sara turns to Jake McCartey behind her.
Jake:
Um
You sure you don't need
ah
me to stick around a while?
Sara:
Oh, no, no thanks. I can
I can handle it from here. Hey, thanks
for hanging at the hospital all night. I knew I didn't have a concussion.
Jake:
No problem.
Sara:
Well, sleep well, Jake.
Jake:
All right. See ya.
Jake
goes back out the door and Sara moves to close it.
Jake:
You know, I can make you some calzones (he pronounces it cal-zone-ays)
or something.
Sara
(smiles): It's calzones. Go home, Jake.
Sara
closes the door.
Jake
(to the closed door): Some pasta puttanesca?
Sara
(from the other side): Good night.
Jake
walks off quietly trying out presumably Italian phrases.
Cut
to Sara inside her apartment. She walks to the bed and sits down on
the side. She hits the PLAY button on her answering machine.
Machine:
You have one new message.
Danny
(over the machine): Hey, Pez. Danny here. You cool?
Sara
removes her jacket while listening to Danny's message.
Danny
(over the machine): You know
uh
. I'm really
give me
a ring if you need anything.
As
the message ends, Sara notices the bracelet on her right wrist. She's
puzzled to see it there.
Sara:
What the hell
?
She
removes the bracelet, setting it on the truck that serves as her bedside
table. The stone in the bracelet is pointed toward her. She rubs her
head.
Cut
to Sara sitting in her shower not moving as the water cascades over
her.
Sara
in voice-over: Tough day. I don't know why I keep pushing the
envelope. Something's gotta change. I've gotta change.
Cut
to a Witchblade-eyed view of Sara sitting down on her bed.
Shift
to Sara looking at the Witchblade. Sara starts hearing whispers of things
she's said and that others around her have said.
Cut
to Sara tossing on her bed, dreaming.
"Witchblade
vision" : Solar eclipse. Sara whipping her head around. The suit
of armor turning its head. Sara in voice-over saying, "I don't
remember." A solar flare. A meteorite streaking toward earth. A
whirlpool. Someone holding up a rock {the meteorite?}. Primitive people
sitting around a fire. A metallic woman wearing what looks like the
Witchblade on her right hand {the spirit of the Witchblade?}. The Witchblade
gauntlet. An Egyptian pyramid. Metallic woman running. A mass of people
near a statue of Anubis. Metallic woman. An Egyptian woman wearing the
Witchblade addressing a crowd. Medieval battle with knights on horses
and flags waving. One knight wears the Witchblade and wields a sword.
A torch lighting a mass of straw and wood. A woman on one side of the
fire and a group of people watching from the other side. A man in religious
garb holding out the Witchblade gauntlet to someone else and saying,
"Bury this in the catacombs." The straw and wood pile burning.
Sara
wakes up. She sits up and stares at the bracelet.
Cut
to Gallo having a conversation at a small table with a man in his thirties
with a ponytail in a pinstriped suit.
Gallo:
Look, normally I would handle this problem internally, but in this
situation I can't do that. I'm under a little too much scrutiny.
So, I'm gonna need your best cleaner.
Other
man: What you're requesting is very
expensive.
Gallo:
No, no, no. Look, I don't want to negotiate, OK? I just want the
situation handled and I want it handled soon.
The
other guy considers the request for a moment.
Gallo:
I know. You're probably gonna have to import the talent.
Other
man: Who is the situation?
Gallo:
Detective Sara Pezzini.
Cut
to Sara walking up to the station. As she nears the door, she sees the
suit of armor from the museum now standing on the next street corner.
It's moving as if there were someone inside and he's looking at her.
Sara's eyes are wide, startled. You just know she's thinking, "All
right, I've finally cracked." When foot traffic passes between
her and the knight, he seems to disappear. Sara walks through the door
into the station. Reflected in the door as it closes is Ian Nottingham.
Cut
to Sara walking through the station. A uniformed policeman walks beside
her for a short time.
Uniform:
Hey, Pez. Vespucci, huh? "The Butcher Man." Gallo can't
be too happy about that.
Sara:
How you doin', Smitty?
Smitty:
Jealous.
Sara:
Don't be.
Smitty:
You took out Vespucci. That's
Sara:
Blind luck?
Smitty:
Not from what I heard, but if you wanna do that little Sara Pezzini
modesty thing, I'm cool with that.
Sara
meets Joe Siri. Smitty walks off.
Siri:
Looking good, Detective.
Sara:
Thanks.
Siri
waves her into his office.
Siri:
C'mon in.
Sara
follows him. Jake watches her walk away.
Siri:
So what's the deal, Sara?
Sara:
What do you mean, sir?
Siri:
Oh, don't give me that officious crap. You know what I mean. Your
old man hated Gallo, too.
Sara:
With all due frigging respect, Joe, Gallo just killed one of my
best friends.
Siri
(shakes head): You can't prove that.
Sara:
Yes, I can.
Siri:
Well, good. Do it. A few people are very angry about Vespucci. So
watch out.
Sara:
Yes sir.
Sara
turns to go.
Siri:
He would be proud of you.
Sara
gives a little nod and exits.
Cut
to Danny working at his desk. Hearing footsteps, he holds up a cup of
coffee to the side. Sara takes it on her way past his desk.
Danny:
Pez!
Sara
(sharply): What?
Danny:
What do you mean "What"?
Sara:
What are you lookin' at?
Danny:
My curmudgeon of a partner.
Sara:
And here I thought I was coming across as ebullient.
Danny:
Pez, I don't actually think I'm caffeinated enough for the word
thing this morning.
Sara:
{ didn't catch}, but you started it.
Danny:
Hey, listen, you wench
I just want to say, "Thanks"
for saving my life.
Sara:
Oh, yeah, that. No big deal. I think we're even now. (Gives him
a wink.)
Danny:
No, we're not. I still owe you one.
Sara:
OK, I'll think of something.
Danny:
Like help taking down Gallo?
Sara:
Yep.
Danny:
Hey, not a problem.
Sara:
Good.
Danny:
Legendary hit man. Never been caught. One of the smartest, hardest
bad guys in the city.
Sara:
Guess we should get him off the street then.
Danny:
Pez, can I ask you a serious question?
Sara
(holds up her hand): I'm bracing myself.
Danny:
Seriously.
Sara
looks up at Danny.
Sara:
Hit me.
Danny:
Maria was a party girl. A high end hooker. Alcoholic, sex addict,
pill head, coked up, adrenaline junkie hedonist.
Sara:
Your point being
?
Danny:
She was constantly putting herself in dangerous situations. She
liked dangerous situations.
Sara:
Right. So she deserved to get double tapped by a scumbag
who thrives off the human waste he creates.
Danny:
I didn't exactly say that.
Sara
gives him an apologetic look. She stands to pace a bit.
Sara:
I know. I'm just pissed at myself, really pissed.
Sara
looks to a cork board where she has pinned newspaper articles and photos
related to Maria's murder.
Sara:
I hadn't even seen Maria for almost a year. Then sic days ago, she
calls me. Bang! A day later, before I get a chance to even call
her back, she gets her brains splattered
Danny
(interrupting): What? You think you coulda saved her?
Sara:
I don't know, Danny. I don't
I just don't know.
Danny:
What would you have done differently?
Sara:
Called her back. Guess I was just afraid she was gonna hit me up
for more money.
Danny:
Don't beat yourself up.
Sara
(still in her jacket from walking in) pulls the Witchblade
bracelet from her coat pocket, where it had been forgotten.
Sara
(putting the bracelet on): I almost forgot
the other night
this weird bracelet somehow found its way on my wrist.
Sara
rubs her hands across her face. Opening her eyes, she looks at her cork
board. She has a vision.
"Witchblade
vision": A flash of her guardian knight. The photos on the cork
board. The knight. Close up of the photo of a blood-stained couch. Backing
away from the couch, we see Maria lying there. Time goes backwards for
a bit, retracing Maria's last few minutes.
Sara
comes back to herself looking shocked (this was her first daytime vision,
after all). She continues to look at the cork board.
Danny
(noting her expression): You OK?
Sara
(still shocked): Sometimes I feel like I'm losing my mind.
Danny:
Don't worry, partner. You did that a long time ago.
Sara:
Let's go back to the crime scene.
Danny:
You serious?
She
doesn't say anything, just keeps walking. He grabs his coat and follows.
Fade.
End
Act I
Act
II
Open
with Ian Nottingham entering an area outside a bar. There is a man standing
there, obviously on guard. He walks toward Ian.
Man:
What do you need, buddy?
He
reaches out his right hand to grab Ian. Ian doesn't even pause. His
left hand pushes the arm across the man's body, he turns and spins his
right elbow into the man's face, dropping him to the pavement.
Ian
continues to the door of the bar. Opening the door, he grabs another
man stationed there and bounces his forehead off a wooden counter. He
then shoves the man into a table with a large vase on it.
Cut
to Gallo having dinner in a side room. There is a guard standing behind
him. Both of their heads turn to the right at the noise.
Cut
to a man in a leather jacket playing pool. He uses his cue stick to
launch the cue ball at Ian. Ian nonchalantly catches it in his right
hand, pivots and fires it into the forehead of another man. The struck
man goes down like a puppet with its strings cut.
Ian
advances on the pool player. The pool player swings his cue stick at
Ian. Ian ducks and comes back up with a heel of the hand strike with
his right hand. He catches the dropped cue stick with his left hand
as the pool player drops.
Cut
back to Gallo and his guard. They can hear the sounds, but not see the
action. The guard takes out his gun from inside his coat and walks to
the entryway to Gallo's dining area. Ian walks around the corner and
hits the guard over the head with the thick end of the cue stick. Down
he goes. Ian drops the cue stick. {If this happened in real time,
Ian dropped five men in 30 seconds while traveling a couple dozen yards.}
Gallo
looks on obviously impressed, but not scared. Gallo continues eating.
Ian takes the seat opposite him at his table.
Gallo:
That was pretty damn good. Who do you work for?
Ian:
My client owns the old Rialto.
In
the background, the last guard can be seen getting shakily to his feet.
Gallo:
Really?
Ian:
He's aware of your repeated inquiries regarding the Rialto and is
now willing to sell.
Gallo
flicks his eyes to the man holding his gun on Ian. Ian takes no note
of him.
Ian:
Be there tomorrow at 11 o'clock sharp and you can take a look around.
Ian
gets up and leaves, totally ignoring the guard who trains his pistol
on him the whole time.
Gallo
(softly after Ian has gone): I wish that guy worked for me.
Cut
to Danny and Sara arriving at the high priced hotel suite Maria was
killed in. The manager escorts them.
Manager:
I really don't see why this is necessary. I was assured that
you were done. For over a week now we've accommodated you. Fingerprint
dust everywhere
unsightly yellow tape on the door
noises at
all hours
Sara:
Sir, shut up.
Sara
starts walking around the room.
Danny
(to the manager): Miss Buzanis rented this room?
Manager:
I don't see why we have to get into all this.
Sara
continues walking while Danny talks to the manager.
Manager:
Yes. Yes. Miss Buzanis kept this room on the evening in question,
but I have already told the police all this. More than once, I might
add. Miss Buzanis was a
frequent guest at our hotel.
Sara
has stopped in front of a mirror.
Danny:
Nobody saw who she was with?
Manager:
Detective, we run a discreet operation.
In
the background, the two men can be seen leaving the room.
For
Sara, the mirror goes dark and she sees Maria enter the hotel room.
She checks herself in the mirror then does a little dance on top of
the glass coffee table for a man in his sixties sitting on the couch.
She then joins him on the couch for champagne and some pills. They start
getting friendly and he passes out for a few seconds. She shoves him
back and he wakes up.
Back
to Sara. Danny enters the room behind her. She walks over to him.
Danny:
What's up?
Sara:
Nothin'.
Danny:
You learn somethin' in there?
Sara:
I'm not quite sure
I wish I'd been here for the initial crime
scene. Let's get out of here.
They
turn to leave. Sara pushes back the sleeves on her jacket and notices
the Witchblade bracelet again. She takes it off and puts it in her jacket
pocket.
Cut
to a pool hall. Sara sinks the 8 ball in the corner pocket. The man
she was playing takes some money out of his pocket and gives it to her,
as well as a compliment.
Man:
Good shot, man.
Sara
looks to a small chalkboard with a list of names on it.
Sara:
OK, who's got next game? Uh
Jake. Jake?
Jake
McCartey walks up with a cue stick balanced on his shoulder.
Jake:
Hey, Pez. I mean
Sara.
Sara:
Jake, I come here to try and forget about the job. What do you want,
man?
Jake:
To shoot pool. Your break.
Sara
breaks the balls fairly well.
Jake:
I heard that Tommy Gallo is thinking about opening up a club down
at the old Rialto Theater. I also heard he's gonna be there tomorrow
to check it out in person.
Sara:
Yeah? Says who?
Jake:
Guy named Drexler.
Sara:
Drexler? I busted him once. He was a hard case, a punk. Why would
he tell you anything?
Sara
is sinking pool balls while talking to Jake.
Jake:
I got my ways.
Sara:
Really?
Sara
prepares for her next shot but Jake's in the way.
Jake:
Sorry.
Sara
rapidly sinks two more balls.
Jake:
Since Gallo's done time, he can't get a liquor license. Which means
he'll have to use a front. I would imagine that would be one of
the smaller legal infractions Tommy's gonna commit when he opens
this place up. Money washing, narcotics, girls
You wanna bring
down Gallo, Rialto Theater could be the place to start.
Sara:
Gallo's going down for murder, nothing less.
Jake:
All right. What time you wanna go?
Sara:
Go where?
Jake:
C'mon, Sara. I give you some scratch like this, the least you can
do is share with me.
Sara
gives him a half-amused look.
Sara:
Some "scratch"?
Jake:
Yeah, you know
uh
information, intel, data
Sara
continues to run the table on Jake.
Jake:
Tomorrow when you stake out the Rialto, let me go with you.
Sara:
You know what? You're OK, Jake, I'll give you that, but I already
got a partner. Eight ball corner pocket.
Sara
sinks her last ball. Jake hangs his head.
Jake:
Ah, man.
Jake
hands over money.
Sara:
Thank you.
Jake:
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Sara
hands him her cue stick, picks up her jacket, and leaves.
Cut
to exterior street scene. Sara and Danny are sitting in their car watching
the front of the Rialto Theater.
Danny
(sigh): Tell me again, why are we here?
Sara:
To keep an eye on Gallo. I wanna know this guy's every move.
Danny:
And how do you know Gallo's gonna be here?
Sara:
Because Jake McCartey has a contact that says so.
Danny:
Jake McCartey?
Sara:
Jake's a good kid, Danny.
Danny:
If I wasn't aware of your preference for multi-pierced, tattoo-covered
drummers or other sorts of nocturnal self-destructive bad boys,
I might think you liked him.
Sara:
You think he's hot, don't ya?
Danny:
Actually, I think Ricky Martin's hot.
Sara:
Hmm
How about Tommy Lee?
Danny:
Him, too. I don't know. I just don't quite trust the guy.
Sara:
Ricky Martin or Tommy Lee?
Danny:
Jake McCartey.
Sara
(little laugh): You getting paranoid on me, Danny?
Danny:
No.
Sara:
Do not tell me it's that East Coast - West Coast thing.
Danny
(surfer voice): "Oh, dude."
Danny:
Why would anyone leave San Diego to come to this? It's not like
he's even got family here.
Sara:
Danny, Jake just gave me some information, now, that's all.
Danny:
Some good scratch?
Sara
gives him a look and shakes her head.
Danny
(sigh): I understand. Forewarned, forearmed, Grasshopper.
Looking
out her side window, Sara sees her knight, complete from helm to gauntlet
to sword, looking at her from the edge of a building. When someone passes
between her and him, he vanishes ... again.
Sara
sits shocked, mouth agape. Danny notices her expression.
Danny:
What?
Sara:
Nothin'.
Danny
looks at her a moment more and clears his throat.
Sara:
Hey, Danny, remind me later
She
pulls the Witchblade bracelet out of her pocket.
Sara:
I gotta check if this is from the display
She
trails off as two vehicles pull up in front of the Rialto, a large sedan
and a SUV. At least six men get out of the two vehicles, Tommy Gallo
among them.
Danny:
Gallo and his posse.
Sara:
Here we go.
Sara
puts the bracelet on her wrist instead of stuffing it back in her pocket.
Sara and Danny get out of their car as Gallo's party enters the front
door of the theater.
Cut
to Jake standing at a telephone down the street watching.
Cut
to Sara and Danny going down a back alley.
Danny:
Wearing your vest?
Sara:
Yeah, of course. You?
Danny:
Yeah.
They
reach a rear entrance to the Rialto, move some boards away from the
door and enter.
Cut
to the interior of the theater. Sara and Danny are moving through the
balcony towards the rail in low light.
Male
voice in the background: Somebody get the lights.
Sara
and Danny reach the edge of the balcony.
Different
male voice: I got it. I got it.
The
lights come on all over the theater and Sara and Danny duck down.
Male
voice in background: Hey, lock up the doors, huh?
Gallo
and the others walk down the center aisle toward the stage in the front
of the theater.
Gallo:
This is perfect.
Another
man: Yeah, definitely.
Drexler:
You know what we do? We gut the inside but you leave all the retro
touches in place. The woodworking, the molding
all this hand-carved
stuff you can't get anymore. We don't touch one bit of that.
Gallo:
Louie Stomp in Staten Island. He's a silent partner in a construction
firm. They do quality work. We'll give the job to them.
Drexler:
See, this place is perfect, Mr. Gallo.
Gallo
smiles. He then draws a gun, points it at one of his men and fires.
After the man drops, Gallo follows the first shot with a second.
Close
up of Drexler. He's shocked and getting scared. The others of Gallo's
men exchange looks, maybe shake their heads once, but that's it.
Gallo
calmly reholsters his weapon.
Cut
to the balcony. Danny turns from witnessing the murder to find Sara
gone. Shift to see Sara climbing down some scaffolding. Back to Danny.
Danny
(softly): Damn!
Someone
walks up behind Danny and knocks him on the back of the head with a
pistol. Two men carry him off.
Gallo
(off camera): This is going to be a legitimate enterprise.
Cut
to Sara making her way down the side aisle, hunched over. {I still don't
see how she could have made it unseen, though.}
Back
to Gallo and group.
Gallo:
In three months' time, this is gonna be the hottest night spot in
New York. Now if the police were to know that I was involved, that
would be a problem.
Gallo
looks at the frightened Drexler.
Gallo:
And when I have a problem, I take care of it. Now this (points
to the body) was a problem. Information leak. Problem solved.
Gallo
and a couple of his men walk up on the stage. Drexler is still looking
at the corpse.
Cut
to Sara walking backstage. As she passes a darkened alcove, she hears
a voice.
Ian:
Sara.
Sara
turns and Ian steps out into the light.
Sara:
You're not one of Gallo's. You've been following me ever since the
museum. What do you want?
Cut
to Jake tugging on the handle of a locked door.
Cut
to the two men half dragging, half carrying Danny to the stage. They
drop him there and he lands on his back.
Cut
back to Sara and Ian. Sara heard the sound of Danny hitting the stage.
Sara
(fearful): What was that?
Ian:
Karma.
Cut
to the front of the stage. One man has a gun out and pointed at Danny.
Gallo:
Detective Woo of the NYPD.
Danny
turns toward Gallo and Gallo kicks him back down.
Gallo
(yelling): Hey, Pezzini!
Cut
back to Sara and Ian.
Sara:
Help me. Please help me.
Ian:
No.
Cut
to Gallo.
Gallo:
C'mon out or he'll be sorry.
Cut
to Sara and Ian.
Ian
takes a slim metal rod from a pile nearby and uses it to lift Sara's
right hand.
Ian:
Use the Witchblade.
Gallo
(off camera): I'm waitin'.
Sara
turns to look in Gallo's direction. When she turns back, Ian is gone.
Sara:
How do
Cut
to Gallo and company.
Gallo:
C'mon out, Pezzini
now.
Sara
walks from the edge of the stage.
Gallo:
Buon giorno, Bella. Dino.
He
motions one of his men over to search Sara. He pats her down, perhaps
getting a little out of hand, because
Gallo:
Just search her, OK, Dino?
Dino
finishes by getting her spare gun from her ankle holster. Sara looks
at Danny with an "I'm so sorry" look.
Gallo:
You have no idea how much money you just saved me. (Holds up
his gun) These particular bullets, in case you're interested,
they cut through Kevlar like butta.
Gallo
shoots Danny. Sara rushes over to him.
Sara:
Danny
Cut
to Jake, gun out and yanking hard on the door handle now. Shift to inside
the door. A gloved hand unlocks the door. Jake rushes through the doorway
... and is thrown over an outstretched leg to the floor by Ian. Ian
steps on Jake's gun with his left foot and gives him a huge kick to
the head with his right.
Cut
to Sara and Danny.
Sara:
Danny! Danny!
Danny:
Tell my wife I'm sorry.
Sara:
Danny
Danny
is still, his eyes open and unblinking. Sara turns to look up into Gallo's
smiling face.
Sara:
Just do it, Gallo. Why don't you kill me and get it over with?
Gallo:
Arrivederci, Bella.
He
points his pistol at her and fires.
"Witchblade
vision": Her knight looking at her outside the Rialto. The Witchblade
eye opening. Her right wrist held up backstage. Gallo with the gun pointed
at her. Backstage looking at the Witchblade. The gauntlet flying from
the case in the museum. The Witchblade bracelet on her wrist. Gallo
staring down at her, the gun huge in her sight. The bullet leaving the
barrel of the gun.
Back
to Sara. In that one instant, the bracelet transforms into the gauntlet
and deflects the bullet into an electrical box at the rear of the stage.
While everyone is distracted by the sparks flying, Sara rolls back away
from the armed men. The lights start strobing.
What
begins next is a wild dance of mayhem and death. Everyone on the stage
is shooting at Sara. She spins and moves across the stage, dodging and
deflecting bullets. She throws one man a couple dozen feet in the air,
catching his dropped gun in her left hand.
Drexler,
in the meantime, has seen enough and bolts for the nearest exit. Gallo
heads for another exit himself.
Sara
leaps from the stage, landing between the first rows of seats. She shoots
under the seats, taking out one man who has an Uzi.
Fast
cut to Ian sitting cross legged on the scaffolding Sara had climbed
down earlier.
Sara
advances on the men firing at her. What follows is complete annihilation,
ending with the Witchblade transforming again into what looks like a
knobbed mace head with a sturdy blade attached and slicing up a few
of the men. And Ian is watching rapt the whole time.
When
all the men are down, we can hear the blade retracting or disappearing.
Sara faces the empty theater with the Witchblade gauntlet on.
Sara:
Gallo? Gallo! Gallo!!
End
Act II
Act
III
Open
at Danny's funeral. As they leave, police and others are dropping red
roses on Danny's coffin. Danny's wife leads their small son to a car.
Sara looks over at them and receives a "This is your fault"
look.
Soon
Sara is the only one left standing there. Joe Siri walks back to her.
Siri:
Your report was full of holes. Is there something else you wanna
tell me?
Sara
(wiping a tear): When we were at the theater, Joe, I think
that
uh
This really weird thing
(shakes her head)
Siri:
I want you to have some time off. Take a few days. There'll be a
lot more questioning. You know how intense it gets when an officer
goes down.
Sara
nods, trying not to cry.
Siri:
I know what it's like to lose a partner.
He
pats her shoulder and walks to where Jake is waiting behind the wheel
of a car. The two men drive off.
Sara
to herself : What do you do when you lose your very best friend?
When you wish that you could see them just one more time? When you
can't believe they're not there anymore? Danny, I swear to God I
will avenge your death.
Danny's
voice: That's what got you into trouble in the first place,
Sara.
Sara
turns her startled eyes to her left, where Danny walks up. Danny looks
at his coffin.
Danny:
What're you lookin' at?
Sara
glances behind him, then stares at Danny.
Danny:
Sara, relax. It's me, Danny. I'm here to tell you there's a lot
more happening around you than you think. It's a lot more connected.
Open those doors of perception, there's people knocking. You'll
see.
Sara
(closing her eyes): Go away.
Shift
to see Sara standing alone.
Danny's
voice: I'm already gone. Let me ask you this. How is it that
you survived the Rialto?
Sara:
I
I
I don't know. I
I
I really don't know what happened.
I just sorta blanked out.
Shift
to Sara and Danny standing together again.
Danny:
How could you, one cop, not only survive, but kill all those guys?
Pez, here's the deal. You don't even know who you are. All I can
say is you're from a line going back through time and forward into
the future. Part of a wave, a force, a warrior bloodline. You've
inherited something unique and powerful. I think that deep down
you know it.
Shift
again to see Sara standing alone at Danny's graveside.
Sara:
Yeah?
Sara
sniffles and turns to a visible once more Danny.
Sara:
Here's what I do know. You (points) are a damn hallucination.
And you're not the first one. I'm having a meltdown (nods).
My father, Maria, now you. Gone. I'm losing it Danny. Everybody
that I care about gets killed. I'm standing here in the snow by
myself, talking to myself, because I wish I was talking to you.
Danny:
Pez, this is really happening. You are special. You were
chosen.
Sara:
Uh huh.
Danny:
You're the one who said, "Every day above ground is a special
day." Take it from me, you were right.
Sara:
Danny, why did things go down the way they did that day? Why?
Danny:
Like the man said, "Karma."
Sara
(surprised): How do you know he said that?
Danny:
I just do. I also know that you're wearing the Witchblade. It's
the reason why you can see me. Keep it on.
Sara:
What do you know about this thing?
Danny:
Not much, really. Talk to Joe Siri. He'll give you some information
that'll help you figure out who you are, or at least who you aren't.
Sara,
confused, covers her face with her hands and shakes her head.
Sara:
I don't
I dont understand.
Shift
again to see Sara standing alone.
Danny's
voice: Ask Joe Siri who you are.
A
man suddenly appears beside Sara.
Man:
Hey, Miss. Hey, you all right?
Sara
is startled once again this day and looks around for Danny then nods.
Sara:
Yeah.
She
walks off through the cemetery. In the background, Ian steps out from
behind a large tree.
Cut
to Jake talking to Captain Siri.
Jake:
Since I don't have a partner yet, and
since Pezzini doesn't have
one anymore, maybe we should team up.
Siri:
Sara Pezzini does not make an easy partner.
Jake:
Yeah, yeah. I know. She thinks she's 10 feet tall and bulletproof.
This might not be a bad time for her to have a little backup.
Siri:
I don't know if you're the one to give it to her. So far, Danny
was the only one who was able to cover her back.
Siri
turns to look at a file.
Jake:
Please
Siri:
OK, I'll think about it. Danny and Pezzini were very close and
uh
I am worried about her.
Cut
to Sara's apartment. She's looking at a photo of Danny and her in their
police uniforms. Then a picture of her parents' wedding. Then a picture
of her father and her when she was a little girl. Then a picture of
Maria as a little girl. Then her father with Joe Siri when they were
uniformed partners. While she's looking at the photos, we can hear softly
in voice-over:
Sara:
Gone
gone
gone. Everybody that I care about gets killed. My
father, Maria
Danny:
Karma.
Sara:
Gone
gone
gone.
Danny:
Like the man said, "Karma."
Sara
turns away from her table of photos and paces her apartment. She hits
the PLAY button on her answering machine.
Machine:
You have one saved message.
Danny
(over the machine): Hey, Pez. Danny here. You cool? You know
uh
. I'm really
give me a ring if you need anything.
Sara
moves away from the machine, her face red and blotchy from crying. She
looks out one window, wiping her eyes. Shift to an exterior view of
her walking in front of her windows.
Cut
to a man on the roof of the building opposite Sara's. He has a high
powered rifle pointed toward her.
Cut
to a view of Sara at her window as seen through the rifle's scope.
Back
to the man holding the rifle. He nearly has Sara targeted to his satisfaction
when Ian Nottingham incapacitates him with one violent blow. Ian takes
the rifle and looks at Sara through the scope. He sees her standing
at her window crying. Ian glances to the assassin, whom he has draped
over some guy wires. The look Ian gives this guy promises dire consequences
for his aborted attempt on Sara's life. Ian turns back to Sara, one
tear escaping from his left eye and looks through the scope again. His
finger outside the trigger guard, he moves his finger as if pulling
the trigger.
Cut
to Gallo sitting in the back of his car.
Gallo
(into a cell phone): Whoa, whoa. What do you mean the job
wasn't done? The rifle was up his
? And the top of his head was
blown off? There is nothing short of a miracle that is going to
save her.
Gallo
hangs up.
Fade.
End
Act III
Act
IV
Open
with Sara walking into the precinct. She walks into her office, still
very much in a down state of mind. There's a note on her desk that says,
"Sara: See me. Siri." She goes to his office.
Cut
to Siri's office. Joe Siri holds out a folder to Sara.
Siri:
This is a statement filed by Tommy Gallo's attorneys saying that
you and Danny attacked Tommy and his men and that Tommy killed Danny
in self-defense.
Sara:
That's bull.
Siri:
But his lawyers, and he got the best, say Tommy's so scared he's
gone into hiding because he doesn't trust the police aren't going
to kill him the minute they take him into custody.
Sara:
You don't believe that
do you?
Siri:
Well, the fact that all of his men are dead gives a certain
credence to Gallo's claim, don't you see, Sara?
Sara
looks away, uncomfortable.
Siri:
No, of course I don't believe him. However, you try to get him into
a court right now, you might have a lot of trouble convincing a
judge or jury otherwise.
Sara
looks down.
Siri:
He wasn't breaking any laws being in the Rialto and you didn't have
probable cause. So, are you ready to tell me what's going on?
Sara:
No.
Siri:
Sara, three of Gallo's men were killed with what forensics said
was a sword. With traces of an unidentified metal. I repeat,
are you ready to tell me what is going on?
Sara
shakes her head.
Siri:
Your badge and your gun, Detective.
Sara
looks at him disbelievingly.
Sara:
Joe, we saw Gallo kill on of his own men, right there.
Siri:
There were so many bullets from so many guns, we'll never be able
to prove that. Your badge and your gun.
Flash
to Danny talking to Sara at his funeral.
Danny
(memory): Ask Joe Siri who you are.
Sara:
Who am I, Joe?
Siri:
What kind of question is that?
Sara
sees his hesitation in answering her {and, I think, finally accepts
that she really did talk to Danny}.
Sara:
A direct one. C'mon, Joe. What is it? What's the deal? What is it
that you're not ready to tell me?
Siri
shrugs and shakes his head.
Siri:
I don't know what you're driving at.
Sara:
C'mon, Joe. You've known me since I was born. You knew my mother,
who's nothing more than a photograph to me. You were my father's
partner and best friend. And I ask you, there must be something
you can tell me. Wouldn't they want you to tell me?
Siri
considers then comes to a decision.
Siri:
You were adopted, Sara. I know it's not supposed to be any big thing,
you know. You're supposed to tell a child when they're young, but
It was so hard on your mother, not being able to have a baby,
you know. She hurt for so long before she got you that she
uh
you know, she probably believed that she gave birth to you herself.
Sara
looks stunned. She remembers Danny saying, "You don't know who
you are."
Siri:
And then he was murdered. I couldn't tell you then, not after that.
Still eats at me, that we don't know who killed him.
Sara:
I can't believe you kept this from me this entire time, Joe.
Siri:
I'm sorry.
Sara:
I need a week, Joe, to check some things out.
Sir:
No, I can't give it to you.
Sara
(temper flaring): You
you tell me all of this and you just
exp
. I need a week, Joe, to figure out what's going on.
One week. Before I can tell you anything. And then we will
talk.
Siri:
All right. One week. But there is a condition.
Sara:
What kind of condition?
Siri:
Jake is your new partner.
Sara:
C'mon, Joe
Siri:
No, I'm going to be direct. You're on the edge, Gallo's gone underground,
and I'm worried about you. Not to mention I've taken all kinds of
heat. You seem different, off your game. And I am not going
to send you out there solo.
Sara
(softly): OK.
Cut
to a gym. Sara is working out, at first punching and kicking a heavy
swinging bag. Ian watches her from an out of the way spot. She also
does sit ups and weight curls. She finishes with one-legged push ups,
eventually collapsing to the floor.
As
he watches her, Ian remembers a time when he was about seven years old.
Irons
(voice-over from memory): Listen closely, young Nottingham.
It is written that no man has ever successfully worn the Witchblade.
That only the chosen woman can wear it.
Shift
to a scene from Ian's memory. Young Ian is standing in front of a wing
back chair. He is in a sheriff's outfit, with a cowboy hat and stars
on his toy guns' holsters.
Irons
(memory): And though I tried, for all my force of will, I
could not keep it on my hand. The gauntlet burned me and seared
my flesh until I had to rip it from my wrist. But even my brief
exposure was enough to bind me to it forever. To make me a part
of it. To allow me to see some of what it sees, but not all.
That is my blessing and my curse. I understand the way it thinks.
I know what it wants.
Young
Ian (memory): And what does it want?
Irons
(memory): It wants something that cannot be explained in
words. To know what it wants, one must directly experience the Witchblade.
Young
Ian (memory): When will I learn to fight?
Irons
(memory): Soon enough. Soon enough.
Back
to present Ian watching.
Sara
puts on the Witchblade bracelet after having changed from her gym attire.
Voice
over the P.A.: The gym will be closing in 5 minutes.
Sara
walks out through the exercise area. She gives the heavy bag a push,
setting it to swinging. In a mirror, she spots her knight in the boxing
ring. His sword is resting point down in front of him, his hands resting
on the pommel. The bag swings back and forth, obscuring her view, but
still she sees him looking up at her. Between one swing of the bag and
the next, he's gone.
Sara,
a little frightened, runs out of the gym. The caretaker who watches
her go from under his billed cap is the same guy who asked if she were
OK at the cemetery.
Cut
to Jake's apartment late at night. His TV is tuned to cartoons and he's
asleep on his couch in just sweat pants. The buzzer on his door sounds.
He wakes and it sounds again.
Jake:
All right, all right.
The
buzzer keeps sounding.
Jake:
Lay off the buzzer, would ya?
Jake
looks through the peep hole and quickly opens the door. Sara's there.
Jake:
Hey, Pez, what's up?
Sara:
Hey, Jake. Can I come in?
Jake:
Yeah, yeah. No sweat.
Sara
walks into a very nice apartment.
Sara:
Wow. How do you afford a place like this on a cop's salary?
Jake
pulls on a sweater.
Jake:
I
um
Sara
(pointing): Bedroom?
Jake
(totally getting the wrong idea): Yeah.
Sara
enters Jake's bedroom through a turnstile and falls face first onto
his bed. She doesn't move a muscle after that.
Jake
looks at her and nudges her leg a little.
Jake:
Sara?
When
he gets no response, he pulls a spread over her and leaves.
Sara
has a dream, courtesy of the Witchblade.
Witchblade
dream sequence: A full metal mask with a torch near it. A snake. Another
masked man with a torch. A woman in armor walking slowly down a tunnel.
She is walking toward many figures in masks and dark robes carrying
torches lined along both sides of the tunnel. Close up to the woman
to see she looks just like Sara. She looks behind her and we see Sara's
mysterious guardian knight. She turns back and walks swiftly to the
waiting men with torches. They attack her as she walks between them
down the tunnel. Occasionally there are flashes of paintings of women
of different cultures who each are wielding a sword. A rear view of
Sara-in-armor reveals she isn't wearing all her armor. Her back only
has the crossed straps of her shoulder armor (or maybe the breastplate).
And she only has on a pair of (seemingly modern) black underwear under
her armor for the front lower portion. She finally reaches the end of
the gauntlet she's just run and meets the guardian knight at the end,
waiting for her. He raises the hinged front of his helm and she sees
Ian Nottingham looking back into her surprised eyes. Then shift to see
a modern Ian slowly opening his eyes and looking back at her from behind
a statue of a knight on his charger. Over his left shoulder is an hour
glass with sand trickling through it. He closes his eyes slowly. Shift
to a last view of knight-Ian in the tunnel.
Sara
sits up, wide awake and breathing hard. She looks at the Witchblade.
Cut
to Jake in his kitchen fixing breakfast. Sara walks in and takes another
look around (as last night probably didn't register). She notes a poster
showing Jake from 1995 with a surf board. She looks closer at the poster
then looks at Jake.
Sara:
Oh (nods with a big smile). I didn't know you were "the"
Jake McCartey.
Jake:
Ahh
yep.
Sara:
Jake McCartey, the surfing champ. That explains the nice place.
Sara
sits on a stool at the counter.
Jake:
Coffee?
Sara:
Please.
Jake:
And I'd appreciate it if you didn't say anything about it at work.
Sara:
About what, Jake? Your late night viewing habits?
Jake
(big embarrassed grin): Yeah, that either.
Sara
closes her eyes and takes a drink of her coffee.
Jake:
You all right this morning?
Sara
(nods): I will be once I've had more of this. Didn't you
have a pretty bad spill in Hawaii before you retired?
Jake:
Yeah. Yeah.
Jake
continues fixing breakfast while talking.
Jake:
Listen, I checked out a few things for you.
Sara:
Like what?
Jake:
The Rialto Theater.
Sara:
And?
Jake:
Turns out the building is owned by a multinational corporation called
Vorschlag Industries. (Points to a folder on the counter.)
Check out that folder right there. Vorschlag is the domain of one
Kenneth Irons. Probably heard of him?
Sara
flips through public records, photos and newspaper articles in the folder.
Sara:
Kenneth Irons the billionaire?
Jake:
Yep. He's at the top of the Fortune 500, a major international
player, supposedly owns more than 5% of the real estate in New York.
Sara
has found a newspaper clipping with Irons at a social gathering. In
the background of the picture is Ian.
Jake:
There's also speculation that he made his fortune years ago as an
arms dealer.
Sara:
He has a huge art collection, doesn't he?
Jake:
Oh, yeah. Sometimes he donates stuff to museums like the Met and
{Mohmar ??}.
Jake
turns around to begin work on the toast.
Jake:
You know that Joan of Arc collection at the Midtown Museum? That
was his. There's some newspaper photos of Irons in the file. He
gave this huge charity party for AIDS research. R.E.M. played
Jake
turns back around with the toast. Sara's gone. He looks left and right.
Jake
(softly): OK.
End
Act IV
Act
V
Open
with Sara arriving at Vorschlag Industries.
Cut
to Sara walking up to a receptionist. Sara shows her badge to the receptionist.
Sara:
Um
I'm NYPD. I'd like to speak to Mr. Kenneth Irons, please.
Receptionist:
Yes, Mr. Irons is expecting you. His office is just down the hall.
Sara
(surprised to be sent right in): Thank you.
Cut
to Sara arriving at Irons' office.
Irons:
Detective Pezzini. I'm Kenneth Irons.
Sara:
Hello, Mr. Irons.
Sara
shows him the newspaper photo she took from Jake's file.
Sara:
Do you happen to know who this man is?
Irons:
Ian Nottingham. Yes. He works for me.
Sara:
He happens to be a material witness in the death of my partner.
If you're in any way involved, Mr. Irons
Irons:
Ken, please, Detective Pezzini.
Sara:
If you are involved, Mr. Irons, I highly recommend you talk to me
now.
Irons:
I can assure you, Detective, that whatever Mr. Gallo might have
done to your partner, he was in no way working for me when he did
it.
Sara:
And how would you happen to know about Gallo?
Irons:
I own the old Rialto, but I'm sure you know that already. Mr. Gallo
was considering it as a possible investment. I also read the paper.
I own that, too.
Sara:
Do you happen to know where I might find Ian Nottingham?
Irons:
At present? I have no idea where Ian is. With regard to Mr. Gallo,
I've told you everything I know. May I call you Sara?
Sara:
I'd prefer if you didn't.
Irons:
Is there anything else you want to ask me about, Miss Pezzini?
Sara:
Actually, yes. (lifts the Witchblade into view) Do you happen
to know what this is?
Irons:
The Witchblade.
Sara:
"The Witchblade," huh? Well, somehow during a shootout
at the Midtown Museum, "the Witchblade" happened to find
its way onto my wrist. Does this belong to you?
Irons:
Does anything really belong to anybody, Sara?
Sara:
That's quite an evasive answer, Mr. Irons.
Irons:
If the Witchblade does belong to one person, it belongs to you,
Sara.
Irons
holds out a business card.
Irons:
Don't hesitate to call either number, any time. I'd love to show
you some of my art. I have a whole room devoted to the Witchblade.
And I will have Ian Nottingham pay you a visit. (Big smile.)
Sara:
Thank you.
Fast
forward to night.
Cut
to Kenneth Irons' darkened office. He takes a toy pistol out of his
desk drawer and slides it to the right edge of his desk. Over to the
right, Ian stands at a window, his back to Irons. He comes to stand,
head bowed, at Irons' desk when Irons releases the toy. Flash to a younger
Ian wearing this toy.
Irons:
There are no casual connections, Nottingham. Sara Pezzini, the Witchblade,
myself. Call it what you will. Destiny, fate, fortune
Napoleon
used to say that Fortune is like a woman - she favors the bold.
Ian:
And what would he say of a bold woman?
Irons:
I'll ask him sometime.
Irons
smiles and gives a "hmph" at his own joke.
Irons:
Do you not find her striking, Nottingham?
Ian:
Striking
and willful.
Irons:
A woman in the full bloom of her beauty and power, but there are
so many of those. What is it, do you think, about Sara Pezzini that
has attracted the Witchblade?
Ian:
Her courage. Concealed vulnerability.
Irons:
Perhaps. And now she's more vulnerable than ever.
Ian
darts his downcast eyes at Irons for a moment. He reaches his hand out
and nearly touches the toy gun on Irons' desk. He then moves to stand
at the window once more, his back to Irons again.
Cut
to Sara sitting on her fire escape. She reaches back in through the
window for her cordless phone and dials a number.
Machine:
Hey, It's Jake. You know what to do. See ya.
Sara:
Hey, Jake. It's Pezzini. Sara. Just
uh
wondering if you wanna
go shoot some pool. Gimme a ring.
She
breaks the connection and then pats her pockets until she finds Irons'
card and dials one of the numbers.
Cut
to Irons. He answers his ringing cell.
Irons
(butter wouldn't melt in his mouth): Hello, Sara.
Sara:
How did you know it was me?
Irons:
Caller ID. {Nope, no caller ID here.}
Sara:
Oh, right. Sorry, I didnt figure you for the caller ID type. Any
word on Nottingham?
Irons:
As a matter of fact, we were just speaking of you, and he is aware
of your desire to question him. He said he would contact you tomorrow.
Would you like to come by this evening?
Sara:
Yeah. Yeah, I would.
Irons:
Wonderful.
Cut
to a long narrow room paneled in dark wood. On the walls hang several
paintings. Sara and Kenneth Irons are there.
Irons:
It's written that Joan's sword seemingly came to life during her
battles. After her capture at Compiιgne, her weapon disappeared
from her hand. The Witchblade has a way of slipping from its wielder's
grasp just when it is needed most. You're wearing it now.
They
are standing in front of a painting of Joan of Arc, sword raised and
hair flying across her face.
Sara:
How do you know so much about the
um
Irons:
To name is to know, to know is to control
Sara.
Sara:
How do you know so much about the Witchblade?
Irons:
I read a lot.
Sara:
And this Witchblade is not yours?
Irons:
There is only one. But as you can see, only women can wear the Witchblade.
Sara:
Why?
Irons:
Women are more elemental. They're closer to nature than men. The
Witchblade finds them superior. Do you believe in destiny, Sara?
Sara:
I believe that
uh
Flash
of Danny talking to her in the cemetery.
Sara:
things are a lot more connected than they appear.
Irons:
They are.
Sara:
What is this thing? What is the Witchblade?
Irons:
A mystery, wrapped in a riddle, and cloaked in a conundrum.
Sara:
That doesn't help very much.
Irons:
Language is a labyrinth. A hall of mirrors that we can easily get
lost in. I do want to help you, Sara. I can help you solve the mystery.
The Witchblade has powers, many powers. But only the person who
wields it can truly know them all. Haven't you felt different since
it's found you?
Sara:
That's an understatement.
He
just looks at her and smiles.
Sara:
Yes. In fact, I feel like I'm losing my mind.
Irons:
And yet you can't tell anyone about your predicament, anyone but
me. Why do you think that is?
Sara:
Look, Mr. Irons, bottom line is I don't want this thing. You can
have it back.
Irons:
You loved your father very much, didn't you?
Sara:
Yes, I did.
Irons:
You can use the Witchblade to pierce the veil of the senses. To
see in an entirely new way. To extract more information from the
universe than the normal human sensorium allows. You have already.
Sara:
What are you implying?
Irons:
Nothing. I am simply stating a fact.
Sara:
No offense, Mr. Irons, but I don't want this thing. My life is complicated
enough.
Irons:
Sara, you were destined to wear the Witchblade, as were all these
women (gestures to paintings). Embrace your destiny, Sara.
Sara:
What do you mean?
Irons:
The Witchblade, the gauntlet, has chosen you. You must accept it.
Use it or lose it. And if you don't deserve it, if you don't earn
it, it will abandon you.
Sara:
I don't believe in any of this
this
uh
this magic.
Irons:
Magic
alchemy
science. All different names for the same thing.
All ways to explore the natural, or rather the supernatural, realm.
Means of grasping the unknown.
Sara:
I don't agree.
Irons:
Don't you want to avenge the deaths of Daniel Woo and Maria? Don't
you want to find your father's killer? Don't you want
justice?
Sara:
Yeah, but I can do all of the above myself.
Irons:
I see.
Sara
turns away from Irons and tries to get the bracelet off her wrist. It
won't come off. In the background we hear voices.
Irons
(memory): Do you believe in destiny, Sara?
Irons
(memory): The Witchblade has powers
Irons
(memory): Mystery, wrapped in a riddle
Sara
(memory): Things are a lot more connected than they appear.
Sara
(thinking to herself): I can't believe this damn thing wont
come off.
Irons
(memory): The Witchblade has powers, many powers.
Irons
(memory): The Witchblade, the gauntlet, has chosen you. You
must accept it. Use it or lose it. If you don't deserve it, if you
don't earn it, it will abandon you.
Irons
(not spoken): You can't take it off, Sara.
It won't let you. If you search your heart and soul, you'll find
you don't want to. You were meant to wield it.
Sara
turns back around to face Irons.
Irons:
I can help you, if you only let me. Teach you to use it, to control
it, to become one with it. Don't you see? Don't you understand?
This was meant to be. You were meant to find the Witchblade and
I was meant to find you. Carpe diem, Sara. Seize the day. Choose
the Witchblade ... it's already chosen you.
He
walks up to Sara and uses his right hand to turn back the collar of
her shirt, exposing a scar there. Sara moves her right hand to push
his away from her. He grabs it with his right hand and holds them up
at face level.
Irons:
You've even got the mark. The circles represent the light and dark
powers of the Witchblade.
Sara:
That mark is a scar from shrapnel during a SWAT team raid 11 months
ago.
Irons:
Nonetheless, it bears an uncanny resemblance to this mark, doesn't
it?
He
twists their hands around until Sara can plainly see the two interlocked
circles on the back of his hand.
Sara
jerks her hand out of his grasp and walks out of the room.
Fade.
End
Act V
Act
VI
Open
with a close up of Ian's face.
Young
Ian in voice-over: And how will you control the Witchblade?
Cut
to the memory Ian has of when he was a boy.
Irons
(memory): In order to control the Witchblade, I must control
the woman who wields it. And this woman must be tested, must be
made to run a grueling gauntlet, and in so doing learn to use the
Witchblade. The will must be tested, it must be measured. Tell what
you know of will, Nottingham.
Young
Ian (memory): The will is the link between soul and the
universe.
Irons
(memory): Well spoken, young Nottingham. And now the time
has finally come for you to go abroad to learn your vocation. To
explore your special gifts.
Cut
back to present day Ian. He's standing across the street from Sara's
precinct.
Cut
to Sara sitting at her desk in her office. She has her feet up on her
desk. She's drinking coffee and looking at her cork board with the stuff
about Maria's murder. She rubs her right hand across her face and rests
it on her forehead.
Flashes:
Her knight's helm. Maria lying on the couch in the hotel room. A gun
in extreme close up. Widen the shot to see Gallo pulling the trigger
on this gun. Gallo shooting Maria.
Sara
puts her hands over her mouth then takes them down and looks at the
Witchblade.
Sara
(to herself): I knew it was Gallo.
She
gets out of her chair, takes her jacket and leaves.
Cut
to exterior scene. Sara is walking in the police parking lot when Jake
runs up behind her.
Jake:
Hey! Where we going?
Sara:
Shopping.
Jake:
I'll drive, dude.
Sara:
No, I don't think so, dude. Where's your boy Drexler usually hang
out?
Jake:
Usually at the Underground Velvet.
Sara:
Meet me there 11:00, OK? Outside.
She
gets in a small car and drives off, tires squealing.
Jake
(to self): Must be a hell of a sale.
Cut
to outside the Underground Velvet. Sara walks up off camera, looking
hot if Jake's expression is any indication.
Jake:
Damn! (little laugh)
Sara
is allowed past a chain barrier by a bouncer type, but he stops Jake.
Bouncer:
She gets in, you don't.
Jake:
We're together, bro'.
Bouncer:
I don't care, bro'.
Jake
is about to make something of it when Sara interrupts.
Sara:
You know what, Jake? It's cool. Wait outside. I'll be right back.
Please?
Jake:
All right.
Sara:
Thanks.
Cut
to interior of the club. Mounted large screen TVs flash between old
B-movie scenes and people in the club. Sara walks through until she
finds Drexler in a small room off the main floor. She walks right up
to where he's sitting and straddles his legs.
Sara:
Hey, stud.
Drexler:
Hey.
Sara:
Let's go some place we can talk a little more privately, huh? (nods
encouragingly)
Drexler
(nods): Whoa ...
Sara
wraps her right arm around his neck and pulls him from his chair. At
the doorway to the little room she lets him go.
Sara:
Hey, Drexler, catch any shows at the Rialto lately?
He
realizes where he's seen her before.
Drexler:
Aw ... (nervous laugh)
Drexler
takes off running. Sara catches him out on the dance floor.
Drexler:
What do you want?
Sara:
Tommy Gallo.
Drexler:
What about him?
Sara:
Let's start with where he is.
Drexler:
I don't know.
Sara:
I don't believe you.
Drexler:
I don't, all right? Nobody does.
Sara
knees him in the side.
Sara:
All right. I'm gonna start with something easy. How did Gallo get
his hands on the Rialto Theater, huh?
Drexler:
I set him up with some really scary dude. All right?
Sara:
What was his name?
Drexler:
I don't know.
Sara:
What was his name?
Sara
smashes her forehead into his face. She twists his left arm behind him.
Sara:
What was his name?
Drexler:
He called himself Nottingham. All right? Ian Nottingham.
Sara:
And? And?
Drexler:
Said he's working for Ken Irons. All right? If I tell you any more,
they're gonna kill me.
Drexler
wriggles free and starts running again. After he runs away, the Witchblade
bracelet transforms into the gauntlet.
Cut
to Drexler running into the men's room. Sara follows him in. One other
guy there notes her entrance.
Man:
Hey, baby. How about a hand?
Sara:
Sure.
She
raises the gauntlet and a two-foot long blade extends from it. Sara
just looks at him. He can't get out fast enough.
Drexler
has gone as far from Sara as he can. Cornered, he pulls out a switchblade.
Drexler:
C'mon, c'mon.
Sara
walks up with her hands behind her back. Suddenly she whips the Witchblade
up. Drexler drops his knife.
Drexler:
OK. All right.
Sara:
What do you know about Ken Irons and how is he connected to Gallo?
Sara
is holding her blade to his throat.
Drexler:
I don't know anything about Irons. All right? Nobody does. Look,
Pezzini, if you know what's good for ya, you'll back off before
Nottingham comes to deal with you. All right?
Sara
bunches his shirt with her left hand while still keeping the Witchblade
pressed to his neck.
Sara:
If you know what's good for you, Drexler, I think you ought
to worry about what I'm gonna do to you. Where's Gallo?
Drexler:
OK, OK, OK. He's in a safe house in the Bronx. Basement. All right.
433 Bennett Avenue. It's good. It's ... (panic sounds)
Sara
looks like she enjoys his terror. She's thinking of actually cutting
his throat.
Drexler:
Ah, God! Pezzini, what're you doing? C'mon, you can't ... You can't
do this! You're a cop!
Sara
blinks rapidly, coming back to herself. She releases him abruptly. She
leaves, the Witchblade returning to a bracelet. Drexler slides down
the wall, sitting sprawled on the floor, shaking.
Cut
to a rear alley exit to the club. Sara walks out.
Ian's
voice (bouncing off the buildings): Bloodlust is a powerful
thing.
Sara
draws her gun and points it all around. Ian walks up behind her left
shoulder. As she turns toward him, he easily snatches the gun from her
hand.
Ian
(walking around to her front): Desire for revenge. Desire
for control. Can you control that desire? Or is it better unleashed?
Are you having a hard time controlling the Witchblade, Sara?
Ian
raises her right hand with the butt of her gun, almost as if to kiss
it. He looks at the Witchblade.
Ian
: Your little toy doesn't seem to work against me. Is it because
you really don't want it to?
Sara
jerks her hand down.
Sara:
What do you want?
Ian
starts walking slowly around her clockwise.
Ian:
We always want what we cannot have.
Sara:
What is it with you and Irons and this mysterioso crap?
Ian:
Don't compare me to Irons.
By
now, Ian is standing behind her.
Sara:
Get the hell away from me.
Ian:
Why do you want to kill Gallo?
Sara:
He killed two of my best friends.
Ian
moves his right hand a short distance away from Sara's body, starting
with her right hand, up her arm and across the back of her head.
Ian:
If you hadn't been so intent on persecuting Mr. Gallo ...
Ian
(speaking near her ear): ... your friend Danny would still
be alive. Was it worth it?
Sara:
No, but that doesn't let Gallo off the hook, does it?
Ian
(walking around to her left): How do you know this whole
thing isn't a trap, a setup?
Sara:
What do you care?
Ian
: I don't really.
Sara:
Why did you set us up at the Rialto? Or is that just coincidences?
Ian
is back in front of her again.
Ian
(not meeting her eyes): There are no coincidences.
Sara:
I've got to go.
Ian:
To go where?
Sara:
To kill Gallo.
Ian
draws a sword with his right hand from his right hip from under his
long coat.
Ian:
As you wish.
Ian
drops to one knee, holding the sword up at a 45° angle so that the tip
is level with his forehead.
Ian:
But remember, to fully grasp the Witchblade, you must first spill
some of your own blood.
Sara:
Yeah, whatever, Nottingham.
Sara
turns and starts walking out of the alley to the street. Ian stays in
his kneeling position. Sara turns back just as she gets to the street.
Sara:
Is it a setup?
Ian:
Expect the unexpected. Forewarned, forearmed.
Ian
rises, tucking the sword, point up, along the outside of his right arm.
He's still looking down.
Sara:
I'll get back to you on that one ... Ian.
Sara
turns to go when Ian says one more thing.
Ian
(raising his eyes): Had any dreams lately, Sara? {Hmmm.
Shared dreams. This could get interesting.}
Sara
whirls back around and stares at Ian. Just then Jake walks up on Sara's
other side.
Jake:
Hey.
Sara
turns to Jake.
Jake:
How'd it go?
Sara
turns back to the alley to find Ian gone. {He does that a lot, no?}
Sara:
You didn't miss a thing. You know what, Jake? I'm a little cold.
Could you grab us some coffees down the street? My car's just around
the corner.
Jake:
Sure. (nods)
Sara's
car really is just around the corner. She goes to it and drives away
as Jake goes for the coffee.
End
Act VI
Act
VII
Open
with Sara driving down a street. Gallo rises from the back seat with
a pistol.
Gallo:
Buonaserra, Bella.
Sara
looks at him in the rearview mirror.
Sara:
Hi, Killer.
Gallo:
Ooh, you know what? I always liked that moniker. Oh, watch the potholes,
'cause I wanna talk to you a minute before I snuff out your vapid
little martyr life.
Sara
looks at the Witchblade. There's no life in it to be seen.
Gallo:
I like the little peach fuzz hairs standing up on the back of your
neck. You know your holier-than-thou attitude used to really make
me angry. But now I just find it amusing. You and me, we're not
really all that different. We both are hunters and we both like
to kill.
Sara
looks again at the Witchblade and still no change.
Gallo:
Pull over there. There's an alley around the corner that brings
back memories.
Cut
to Sara walking at gunpoint, hands raised, in an alley.
Gallo:
Keep your hands up.
They
reach a set of steps leading down. Sara goes down 1 step.
Gallo:
This is exactly where I killed your father.
Sara
frowns. She then sees her knight at the end of the alley. He has his
sword out and taps it into his left palm a few times. Not only does
Sara see him, but Gallo sees something, because he takes his
gun off Sara to point it vaguely that way. Sara takes advantage of his
distraction to backhand him across the face, sending him stumbling.
When he rights himself, Gallo fires three times at a fleeing Sara, then
gives chase. He fires twice more at the end of the alley.
Cut
to Sara running the wrong way down a set of moving steps. She's heading
for the subway. Gallo is not far behind. Sara wheels over the turnstile
and Gallo moments later jumps over it.
Sara
runs down a long strait hall with Gallo firing at her. She pauses around
a corner after descending some stairs for a second and looks again at
the Witchblade.
Sara:
C'mon, c'mon.
Still
no response from the bracelet.
As
Gallo descends the stationary stairs near where she's sitting, Sara
gets up and lies on the moving stairs next to it and rides back up the
way she came. She takes off running again with Gallo after her.
Gallo
is slowly checking out one area near a set of stairs when Sara jumps
out and rides him down the flight of steps. They tumble over and over
down the steps. Sara rolls and runs off near one of the tracks.
Sara
hides on one side of a tiled column.
Gallo:
C'mon out, Pezzini. I'll make it quick. Two to the back of the head,
just like your father ... (Sara closes her eyes) ... and
Maria. Probably wondering why I did Maria, huh? I mean, why bother
with a junkie that's gonna be used up in a coupla years anyway,
right? Your friend had a date with an associate of mine ...
Flash
to Maria and her last client.
Gallo:
... a judge, no less. Between the two of 'em, they managed to consume
a pharmacy. Your friend o.d.'d. His Honor panicked, called Lorenzo.
Flash
to the man Sara chased into the Midtown Museum.
Gallo:
You remember Lorenzo, right? But he was busy doing another job,
so ... ah ... out of the goodness of my heart, I decided to fill
in ...
Flash
of Gallo arriving at Maria's hotel room.
Sara
in voice-over: ... double tapped by a scumbag ...
Gallo:
... do your friend. (Sara squeezes her eyes shut) She was
probably going to die anyway, but I believe in being proactive.
And what difference does it make anyway? Right, Pezzini?
Sara
looks at the Witchblade again.
Gallo:
She was just a piece of meat, like all the rest of us. So get over
it.
The
Witchblade decides to wake up.
Sara
steps out from behind the column. Gallo fires and she deflects the bullet
with the gauntlet. She launches herself through the air, head first,
right fist leading, into Gallo. He falls back, dropping his gun.
Brief
cut to Irons standing at his window.
Sara
advances on Gallo. He picks up a length of heavy pipe lying nearby and
swings at her. She blocks with the Witchblade. He gives her a couple
more blows with the pipe.
Brief
cut to Irons again.
Sara
grabs the pipe, pulling Gallo close, then starts punching him with her
left and right hand both. She throws him down and kicks him in the ribs.
He comes back swinging the pipe. He takes a baseball swing at her that
misses but heavily damages one tiled column. Sara rolls away and pops
up again. She backhands the column, trying for Gallo's head, and does
as much damage as his full swing with the pipe.
Brief
cut to again to Irons, evidently experiencing their conflict.
Sara
punches Gallo several more times, driving him back to where he dropped
his gun. He picks it up and fires.
Sara
has the Witchblade raised, but the bullet grazes her left side. She
drops to the floor.
Cut
to Irons, his right hand splayed against the window glass.
Back
to Sara. She is pulled by some unseen force down the platform 30 or
40 feet. She drops off the edge, into the track area, and runs hunched
over a bit more before climbing back up.
Ian
in voice-over: To fully grasp the Witchblade you must first
spill some of your own blood.
Gallo:
Wanna hear about your father before I kill you, Pezzini? Like a
bad B-movie clichι, but it's true ... I really did kill him, back
there in that alley.
Flash
to a younger Gallo shooting Sara's father.
Gallo:
He was tough, wouldn't beg.
Sara
gets up from her hiding place and walks into view.
Gallo:
You know, killin' your father wasn't personal. Neither was Maria.
And don't flatter yourself, neither are you.
{OK,
there's this thing that happens to Gallo's face here. Freaky.
Is he supposed to be evil personified, or something?}
Gallo
raises his pistol.
Irons
in voice-over: The Witchblade has a way of slipping from its
wielder's grasp just when it is needed most.
Sara
sees the gauntlet lying on the floor next to a column several feet away.
Cut
to Ken Irons, hand still pressed to his window.
Flash
to a woman who looks like Sara, bound to a stake with wood piled all
around her.
Woman:
Why have you abandoned me?!
Flash
to the wood being lit. Flash of Sara-in-armor. Flash of Sara's knight's
helm turning to her. Flash of the fire burning. Flash of Ken Irons.
Back
to Sara and Gallo. Gallo aims at Sara, smiling.
Sara
raises her right hand and calls the Witchblade to her with a wordless
scream. The Witchblade flies to her hand. Sara easily deflects the first
shot with the gauntlet. The second shot is deflected by the blade coming
from the knobby mace head version of the Witchblade. And the third.
Sara
strides rapidly toward Gallo, deflecting all shots. Sometimes we see
normal Sara and sometimes Sara-in-armor. Neither pauses in her advance.
{Just how many bullets are in one clip, anyway?}
Off
to the side, Ian watches from the track area, just his eyes peaking
above the edge.
Eventually
Gallo does run out of bullets. Sara reaches him.
Ian
in voice-over: Bloodlust is a powerful thing.
Sara
backhands Gallo across the face, then follows that up with a kick to
the ribs. She presses the point of her blade to his throat.
Gallo:
What the hell are you?
Sara:
Justice.
Gallo:
Do it, you freak! Enjoy it ... I know I would, if I were you.
A
battle rages across Sara's face.
Ian
in voice-over: What do you want to do, Sara?
Sara
in voice-over: Kill Gallo.
Irons
in voice-over: Don't you want to avenge the deaths of Danny
Woo and Maria?
Gallo
in voice-over: We're not really all that different.
Danny
in voice-over: You don't know who you are.
Flashes
of the paintings in Kenneth Irons' Witchblade gallery. All the women
there reveal themselves to have Sara's face.
Irons
in voice-over: The gauntlet has chosen you.
Danny
in voice-over: All I can say is you're from a line going back
through time and forward into the future. Part of a wave, a force,
a warrior bloodline.
Sara
in voice-over: Things are a lot more connected than they appear.
Danny
in voice-over: You don't even really know who you are.
Sara
in voice-over: Who am I?
Sara
removes the blade from Gallo's throat. Sound of the Witchblade retracting
the blade. The mace head changes to the normal gauntlet and that in
turn changes to the bracelet.
Cut
to Irons.
Irons
(sounding weakened): You disappoint me, Sara.
Cut
to Ian slinking off.
Cut
back to Sara.
Sara:
Gallo, you're under arrest.
Fade.
Cut
to the police station. Sara's pouring herself some coffee.
Jake:
Hey, Pez. Boss wants to see you in 10 minutes. Something about new
forensics reports from the Rialto. Oh, and you got a call on two.
Sara:
Thanks.
Sara
punches a button on a phone and picks up the handset.
Sara:
Hello?
Ian
(over phone): Looked in the morning paper yet, Sara?
Sara:
What?
Ian
(over phone, eager): The morning paper, Sara. Take a look
at it.
Sara
picks up a paper from a neighboring desk.
Sara
(reading): Organized crime figure Thomas Gallo committed
suicide last night, jumping from the balcony of his heavily guarded
apartment after screaming something about an avenging angel. Gallo
was out on bail on three pending charges of murder.
Ian
(over phone): It looks like Tommy Gallo had a crisis of conscience.
Sara:
Either that, or he had help.
Ian
(over phone): Perhaps a bit of both.
Sara
smiles. She walks with the phone gradually ending up at the window.
Sara:
Hey, Nottingham.
Ian
(over phone, playful): Hey, Sara.
Sara:
Had any dreams lately?
She
hangs up and goes to replace the phone. Outside the window we can see
Ian standing with a cell phone to his ear, swaying from side to side.
Cut
to Irons' Witchblade gallery.
Sara
in voice-over: And that's the story of how I came to have this
strange thing on my hand called the Witchblade. I still don't know
exactly what the Witchblade is, or how to use it. Every day I gain
a bit more control, but this control requires will ... and vigilance.
I think of Danny a lot. He was right. Everything and everyone is
more connected than we realize. So there is no pat ending, no neat
finale, no single final image.
In
the gallery, Kenneth Irons is looking at his newest acquisition, a cartoon-looking
painting of Sara with the Witchblade gauntlet on, her arms crossed over
her chest, a pistol in her other hand.
Fade.
End of
Act VII