Xena: Warrior Princess

“The Battle of Red Cliffs”

Episode 51

by

Bard

Editor

Bleu Gato

Xena: Warrior Princess is copyright MCA/Universal and Renaissance Pictures. All original content of Xena: Warrior Princess 2.0 is copyrighted by the author and is not to be used or modified without permission. All rights reserved.

Contact: bard@xena2.com

Blog: www.xena2.com/blog

TEASER

FADE IN:

EXT. IMPERIAL PALACE – INNER GARDENS - MORNING

Surrounded entirely by the buildings but without losing the wide-open appearance, the enormous, manicured courtyard wraps the visitors in tranquility of plant and stone. The population of the green island counts Gabrielle among its inhabitants.

The bard wears hanfu style clothing, of ornate yet simple cut. Wide-sleeved, knee-length tunic tied with a sash, a narrow, ankle-length skirt, and a sheet of fabric over the front, hanging from the sash to the pointed slippers. The strived for image of delicacy and fragility is really struggling to hide Gabrielle’s muscular build.

Out of the blue, a blade appears in bard’s hand, shattering the benign illusion for good. An OLD MAN, caught sneaking up on Gabrielle, clears his throat loudly to confirm presence and avoid getting stabbed. The long, white beard and blue tunic are back for another round.

OLD MAN, not minding discovery, casually

OLD MAN

They say the teacher looks for students.

Gabrielle, turning to face the OLD MAN, appraisingly

GABRIELLE

Not you.

OLD MAN, with barest glimmer of a smile

OLD MAN

I say the student finds the teacher.

Gabrielle, bowing, respectfully

GABRIELLE

Gabrielle of Potidaea.

OLD MAN, bowing back, mischievously

OLD MAN

Little Dragon.

GABRIELLE

Word travels fast.

OLD MAN

People talk; takes ears to hear, takes mind to understand.

Gabrielle, warming up to the OLD MAN, teasing

GABRIELLE

I think you teachers are the same: either not or speaking in riddles.

OLD MAN, changing the mood, seriously

OLD MAN

Praxiteles found a daughter and raised her; you were your own teacher long before that. You just had wisdom to supplement it on occasion.

The bard immediately looks into OLD MAN’S eyes and tries to read him. She gets nothing.

Gabrielle, uncertain

GABRIELLE

You are a God?

OLD MAN, shaking his head negative, chiding

OLD MAN

Knowledge, infant one, does not bestow power by itself; merely fills the mind and it takes a strong hand to guide its application.

GABRIELLE

I see the truth; I don’t see you.

OLD MAN, delighted

OLD MAN

There is a puzzle for you, as one fond of them and their givers: does absence make one divine or does divine make the absence?

Gabrielle, matching wits

GABRIELLE

What guidance do you have to impart?

OLD MAN, giving away nothing, playfully

OLD MAN

What would you like to learn?

Gabrielle laughs.

Gabrielle, grinning

GABRIELLE

See, I knew it.

OLD MAN, simply

OLD MAN

You win.

Gabrielle, nodding understanding, eagerly

GABRIELLE

What’s today’s lesson?

OLD MAN

There are two rooms in the palace that remain untouched and unvisited. Custom dictates sealing and warding against spirits, yet preserving for peace of the departed.

GABRIELLE

Let me guess: they did not die gently.

OLD MAN

Death is a step. To pronounce that the manner solely concerns the living lacks clarity: sometimes the reverse, sometimes both, sometimes neither comes to pass.

Pause.

OLD MAN, pointing out the direction, solemnly

OLD MAN

Name is Master Lóng.

CUT TO:

INT. IMPERIAL PALACE – BORIAS’ QUARTERS - MIDMORNING

The room hasn’t changed in nearly a decade. Large, rusty stain dominates the space where the late, short-lived Emperor met his last. The amount of blood spilled states nothing but the fact; the volume covering the furnishings and carpets in splatter screams of unchecked fury. Someone truly hated Borias and wanted to destroy him completely. The empty alcohol containers add a note of regret to the scene. The rusted blade that did the deed does not.

Gabrielle, crestfallen

GABRIELLE

Borias … oh, Xena.

Pause.

Gabrielle, accusingly

GABRIELLE

Why?

Master, shrewdly

MASTER

Who killed him?

Gabrielle, unhappy

GABRIELLE

My best friend.

Master, sharply

MASTER

Did not ask who wielded the kindjal, Student.

Pause.

Master, gentler

MASTER

Don’t feel, think an answer.

Gabrielle, complementing

GABRIELLE

Lao Ma is wise in her choice of instructors.

Master, looking Gabrielle straight in the eyes, mysteriously

MASTER

Yes.

The bard frowns, sensing she missed something important.

CUT TO:

INT. IMPERIAL PALACE – OLD EMPEROR’S QUARTERS - MIDMORNING

Again: immaculate, richly decorated room, preserved for posterity at the very moment the occupant passed on.

Gabrielle dismisses the obvious strewn about and starts digging thru fancy wooden cabinets. She strikes gold with a cachet of herbs as Lóng watches.

Master, neutrally

MASTER

They whisper of Empress’ gift of healing.

Gabrielle ignores him, busy sniffing and spot tasting the various plants.

MASTER

However, her opponents do have a habit of catching curious aliments. Always fatal.

The bard spits the latest sample and then wipes her hands on her clothes.

Gabrielle, putting away the herbs, disgusted

GABRIELLE

She poisons them. This isn’t a healer’s stash; more a murder’s row of tools.

Master, lowering his voice, conspiratorially

MASTER

White Lotus.

GABRIELLE

Not the flower, right?

Master, coming over, quietly

MASTER

Lao Ma source of strength: a secret organization behind the throne. Their proudest achievement is the Night of Thousand Knives, when Xena’s personal guard, consisting of her best warriors and leaders, fell to betrayal. She did murder the new Emperor, so there is that.

Gabrielle straightens and her teacher points out the bed. She moves over and throws back the covers.

The solid, human body impression likely took years to create. Besides it, there is nothing remarkable about the bed, aside from the exquisite craftsmanship and exotic materials in its construction and utility.

On a hunch, Gabrielle lifts the flat, thick pillow. The rectangle shows little wear on the top, yet strange smears on the bottom.

Without warning, the surface sinks, revealing a face being pressed into the pillow. Gabrielle’s hands shake but she does not drop it. Instead, she shows the blatant smothering to Lóng.

Master, sad

MASTER

Calculated advantage feasts on weakness and sustains its hunger without devouring the source. Hate snuffs out, drawing pleasure from intimacy of action.

GABRIELLE

The slow drip of venom was not personal enough.

Pause.

Gabrielle, intrigued

GABRIELLE

Why bite the hand that favors?

Master, gesturing towards a comfortable set of low sofas, informationally

MASTER

The Bloody Battle of Red Cliffs begins the lessons.

Gabrielle, spreading her hands

GABRIELLE

And this, the entire before?

MASTER

Understanding.

They both take their seat across each other.

MASTER

Two things we hold true: the great chain of ancestors connects us all, of which we are but a link, and the divination guides us. Fate is preordained, whether given or discerned.

Gabrielle, disagreeing vehemently

GABRIELLE

We make our own.

MASTER

Not our betters, spiritual or earthly?

GABRIELLE

I recognize no such.

MASTER

You lead well but you follow poorly.

Gabrielle, strongly

GABRIELLE

A God foretold my end. I don’t accept that; I cannot accept that.

MASTER

There is righteousness in serving.

FADE OUT:

END OF TEASER

ACT ONE

FADE IN:

EXT. RED CLIFFS - CHIBI HILL – LATE EVENING

Far out on the Yangtze River, a flotilla of torchlight creeps closer. Ships, hundreds of them, pack the river tightly. The decks are overflowing with armed men and their horses and the hulls groan low in the water under their copious cargo.

The first boats reach the near shore and begin disgorging infantry from the holds below. CAO’S SOLDIERS look exhausted and seasick. They trudge down the ramps; many fall to their knees on dry land, emptying out the remnants of their journey.

Xu Shen/Gabrielle, armored in lamellar cuirass with shoulder guards and helmet, crouches in the darkness. Thousands of bodies surround him, prone and barely visible in the dark. From his high vantage, he watches the disembarkation. Suddenly, Xu Shen is interrupted by one of his men.

SHEN’S SECOND, whispering urgently

SHEN’S SECOND

Commander Xu, we should attack.

Xu Shen/Gabrielle, firmly

XU SHEN/GABRIELLE

We hold.

SHEN’S SECOND, low but animated

SHEN’S SECOND

We attack in the confusion now, overrun and drown the cowards; force them to sail again, greatly diminished.

Pause.

SHEN’S SECOND, pushing his argument, adding eagerly

SHEN’S SECOND

The field will be ours and lives spared.

Xu Shen/Gabrielle, pointing, quietly yet passionately

XU SHEN/GABRIELLE

Lin, our orders are wise as are our leaders. The marshes part here and enemy draws false relief. Look at them; look. Animals have better sense.

Proving his point, bone-weary CAO’S SOLDIERS begin to move out, giving the steep hill a wide berth. The pitch-black, cloudy night hides the danger they pass unwittingly.

Xu Shen/Gabrielle, sealing their fate, resolute and unshakable in his faith

XU SHEN/GABRIELLE

We stand.

CUT TO:

INT. IMPERIAL PALACE – OLD EMPEROR’S QUARTERS – LATE MORNING

Gabrielle and Master’s arrangement on the sofas does not change.

Gabrielle, interrupting the tale

GABRIELLE

Circumstance change, you adapt. Xu Shen is a fool. Xena …

Master, stepping in and cutting her off, bluntly

MASTER

Then you are one.

Gabrielle, stubbornly persisting

GABRIELLE

I am not him. Those are not my words or beliefs.

Master, patiently

MASTER

You miss the point.

Gabrielle, emotionally

GABRIELLE

Tracus and Thermopylae sacrificed on the altar of greater good, Troy meant standing and dying by my best friend.

Master, serenely

MASTER

You say cause determines. There are certain things which ought to be done, and must be done for their own sake, because they are morally right. To act on non-moral consideration, to act in profit, even when one does what one is ought to do, strips the righteousness. The superior man comprehends yi (righteousness); the small man comprehends li (profit).

GABRIELLE

We are not rivers, fixed in course. We are water, finding the way.

MASTER

The water does not choose, infant one; it does, trapped strict by its nature.

Pause.

Master, raising a cautioning finger

MASTER

Philosophy not religion: a systemic, reflective thinking on life.

Gabrielle, smartly

GABRIELLE

Thinking on thinking?

Master, self-depreciatively

MASTER

That with which we think about thinking is the same with which we think. If we are skeptical about the capacity of our thinking in regard to life and the universe, we have the same reason to be skeptical about the capacity of our thinking in regard to thinking.

Pause.

Master, softening his tone, profoundly

MASTER

Philosophy satisfies the human desire for that present beyond the actual; it expresses and appreciates moral values; and in living accordingly, those values are experienced.

Gabrielle, nodding, engaged

GABRIELLE

The study centers not on gaining knowledge but developing character in accordance with that knowledge.

Master, stressing the words

MASTER

It is not necessary that a man be religious; but it’s essential that he be philosophical.

CUT TO:

EXT. YANGTZE RIVER – CAO’S COMMAND SHIP - NIGHT

CAO’S SOLDIERS abovedeck gingerly settle in for the night. Most look exhausted; many are ravaged by cough and fever.

A GENERAL OF CAVALRY (GOC) joins Cao, his leader lost in observation of troop deployment.

GOC, clearing his throat loudly, reverentially

GOC

Orders, O great Cao Cao?

CAO CAO

Moor and tie the ships stern to stern, it will lessen the seasickness. Send the northern army to secure the passage between the marshes. We rest and resume downriver in two days’ time.

GOC, wary

GOC

I don’t trust anything that moves under my feet.

Cao Cao, confidently

CAO CAO

Marshes protect our flanks, we own the river, and the only route in is overland. We are secure.

The Chibi Hill looms in the distance, a solid, black shape against the slightly lighter sky.

CUT TO:

EXT. CHIBI HILL – CAO’S CAMP - NIGHT

Two camps slumber on the bank of Yangtze: small one in the shadow of the hill and a huge collection of fires further inland. The SENTRIES, sparse in number and wakefulness, doze along with the other CAO’S SOLDIERS, just upright and not as deeply.

CUT TO:

INT. YANGTZE’S BANK – CAO’S TENT - MIDNIGHT

Groggy, Cao ties the robe around his middle and motions for the MESSENGER to come closer. CAO’S SOLDIERS, who escorted the MESSENGER in, remain alert for any deception or threat.

The MESSENGER, dressed in a manner of a fisherman, steps forward and hands over a letter with a bow. Communication delivered, the MESSENGER withdraws to his previous position.

Cao quickly scans the letter and discards it with a scoff.

Cao Cao, rounding on the MESSENGER, irritated

CAO CAO

Huang Gai wants to surrender? You think me dumb and afflicted?

Pause.

Cao Cao, to CAO’S SOLDIERS, annoyed

CAO CAO

Make an example and stay out of tent until morning or you follow.

Surprisingly, the MESSENGER laughs upon hearing of his impending execution. CAO’S SOLDIERS don’t care and grabbing him, start to drag the MESSENGER out.

Cao Cao, authoritatively

CAO CAO

Wait!

The MESSENGER is immediately released and shoved towards Cao. He stumbles to an awkward stop.

Cao Cao, getting in MESSENGER’S face, trying to rattle him

CAO CAO

Name?

MESSENGER, showing no sign of deceit or lying, collected and unruffled

MESSENGER

Kan Ze.

Cao Cao, measuring the man in front of him, contemplatively

CAO CAO

You are either right or cunning. Which is it?

Ze, glibly

KAN ZE

I bear the truth.

CAO CAO

Huang’s?

Kan Ze, straight faced

KAN ZE

Yes.

The brazenness of the answer almost gets a smile out of Cao. Almost.

Cao Cao, after a moment’s consideration, yawning

CAO CAO

Inform Huang Gai he is welcome among us.

Pause.

Cao Cao, to CAO’S SOLDIERS, tired

CAO CAO

Spread the word of new allies.

CUT TO:

EXT. YANGTZE RIVER – UPSTREAM OF CAO’S FLEET – NEAR DAWN

Ten ships proceed down the river towards the enormous, joined mass of Cao’s boats crowded around Chibi Hill section of the river. No alarm is raised once they are spotted, the natural assumption being that they bring allies.

Without warning, the SAILORS start abandoning the incoming ships, rowing away in multiple boats. The reason for the evacuation becomes clear when all ten go up in flames. Carried by swift current, they spread out randomly and close in fast.

Chaos erupts among horses and men. The animals, smelling smoke, go wild in fear. Breaking the ropes, they trample and bite, spreading panic on the decks.

When the flaming wrecks crash into the connected fleet, the end begins. The growing inferno swiftly overtakes the evacuation, jumping ships to ship and devouring the living, wood, and everything in-between. Screams of men and animals greet the birth of a new day. Cao’s prized, mounted cavalry burns alive and with it, his navy.

FADE OUT:

END OF ACT ONE

ACT TWO

FADE IN:

EXT. RED CLIFFS - CHIBI HILL – PREDAWN

SHEN’S SOLDIERS huddle around their leader.

Below, the river is a smear of red and orange, a surreal painting of destruction.

Xu Shen/Gabrielle, whispering fiercely

XU SHEN/GABRIELLE

The empire, long divided, must unite; the enemy, long ascendant, must fall. Cao Cao cannot stand and we are the hand of fate that brings him low.

Murmurs of agreement sound as Xu Shen stands up. They move out.

CUT TO:

EXT. RED CLIFFS - CHIBI HILL – PREDAWN

Led by Xu Shen, three thousand dark wraiths descend on the small camp and the arriving survivors from the fleet. The SENTRIES are cut down with nary a scream, leaving CAO’S SOLDIERS caught from behind in their assistance.

Leading the way is Xu Shen, terribly proficient, leaving a trail of corpses in his wake. Fire rages on the water and another force of nature dominates on land. With …

CUT TO:

INT. IMPERIAL PALACE – OLD EMPEROR’S QUARTERS – LATE MORNING

Gabrielle, disrupting the storytelling, upset

GABRIELLE

I don’t kill indiscriminately.

MASTER

You did thou.

GABRIELLE

Yes, I have bloody hands; I won’t deny that. Each was a choice - this is not.

Master, reasonably

MASTER

The door remains unlocked and you are unrestrained on the sofa. Why not leave?

Gabrielle, sincerely

GABRIELLE

I don’t walk away from people.

MASTER

You think to change me?

Gabrielle, denying quickly before admitting her tendencies with a chuckle

GABRIELLE

No. Does not mean I won’t try.

Master, pained

MASTER

I don’t put you in stories to hurt you.

Gabrielle, sighing

GABRIELLE

I know yet you do.

Master, seriously

MASTER

I place you to become sage within and emperor without; to be of this world and of another.

GABRIELLE

Aristotle’s philosopher king.

MASTER

Pithy and elegant, quite a pair.

Gabrielle, leaning forward, direct

GABRIELLE

What do you want from me?

Master, smiling

MASTER

I want you to grow up strong, beautiful, and right, Little Dragon.

The bard considers that statement for a spell.

Gabrielle, stating the obvious, certain

GABRIELLE

No one else can see you.

MASTER

True.

GABRIELLE

No one else can hear you.

MASTER

True twice.

GABRIELLE

Why me? Why not Xena?

Master, genuine, candidly

MASTER

Because only you are you.

Gabrielle, sinking back into the comfort of the sofa, accepting

GABRIELLE

Continue.

CUT TO:

EXT. RED CLIFFS - CHIBI HILL – DAWN

CAO’S SOLDIERS inexorably begin to push back. Fed by fresh stream of warm bodies escaping the boats, the sheer volume of reinforcements swings the tide.

Xu Shen and his warriors give ground in recognition of the changing fortunes and start an orderly withdraw to the hill. Leading from the front, Xu Shen is an unstoppable wrecking machine, frequently facing two and more opponents and emerging victorious time and again.

CUT TO:

EXT. RED CLIFFS – FORWARD CAMP – DAWN

While the attention of the SENTRIES and CAO’S SOLDIERS in the larger camp is on the river, another attack comes from the front. In the confusion of the events, many CAO’S SOLDIERS start to drift towards the battle, while the rest watches and waits for orders. The result is a stretched, surprised body rocked by a thundering blow from an unexpected direction.

Waves of LIGHT INFANTRY pour into the base and fall upon the disorganized CAO’S SOLDIERS. Giving significantly in numbers, the attackers nonetheless turn their advantages into a rout before CAO’S SOLDIERS can recover their poise and regroup. The fight becomes a massacre.

CUT TO:

EXT. YANGTZE’S BANK – CAO’S COMMAND POST - EARLY MORNING

The camp lies in trampled, bloody ruins. Thousands of CAO’S CAVALRY are on blessed land, leaving behind charred and smoking wrecks, and by some miracle, a few dozen intact boats. Happily, horses are present in even larger numbers.

Further out, Xu Shen and his severely diminished force make the top of Chibi Hill their temple. Closer, surrounded by COMMANDERS, Cao consults the maps.

GOC, walking up and reporting anxiously

GOC

The raid was a diversion. The northern army is destroyed.

Cao Cao, matter of fact

CAO CAO

Trick costs us the fleet, incompetence infantry. Burn the remaining ships and prepare to march thru the marsh.

GOC

Lord Cao?

CAO CAO

They want a fight on favorable terms – I won’t give them one. We bring the cavalry thru and return at a more opportune moment.

CUT TO:

EXT. RED CLIFFS - CHIBI HILL – DAWN

Xu Shen, wounded and faltering, defends the high ground. Three dozen SHEN’S SOLDIERS, in same or worse shape, keep the faith. There is a break in hostilities, with CAO’S SOLDIERS retreating and keeping their distance.

The reason for it becomes clear and soon. Refusing to give Xu Shen and his men the honor of the last stand, crossbow CAO’S SOLDIERS move to the front and take aim.

Xu Shen/Gabrielle, defiant

XU SHEN/GABRIELLE

Charge!

Xu Shen and SHEN’S SOLDIERS are ruthlessly cut down, none of them succeeding in their last, courageous endeavor. CAO’S SOLDIERS reserve special animosity for Xu Shen, filling his body with a forest of bolts and continuing long past death.

CUT TO:

INT. IMPERIAL PALACE – OLD EMPEROR’S QUARTERS – NOON

Gabrielle, wistfully

GABRIELLE

Leaders consider followers expendable.

MASTER

Ironic we call them our betters.

Gabrielle, dropping pretenses, grinning

GABRIELLE

Did you switch sides? That’s not allowed, now.

Master, modestly

MASTER

That would entail taking one first.

GABRIELLE

Clever, beautifully played.

MASTER

You are truly a worthy opponent in the great game.

Gabrielle, lightly

GABRIELLE

Not revealing it thou.

MASTER

No. Consider the added challenge as respect given.

Gabrielle, grumbling good-naturedly

GABRIELLE

I was right: you and Praxiteles are brothers.

The Master laughs.

FADE OUT:

END OF ACT TWO

ACT THREE

FADE IN:

INT. IMPERIAL PALACE – THRONE ROOM – LATE AFTERNOON

Gabrielle stands before the Empress. They are alone.

Lao Ma, evenly

LAO MA

There are reports of you conversing alone in the gardens.

Gabrielle, caught off-guard but recovering seamlessly, smoothly

GABRIELLE

Those are true.

LAO MA

You are a strange one.

GABRIELLE

Infant one, to be correct, but I prefer Little Dragon.

Lao Ma, raising from the throne and approaching Gabrielle, warningly

LAO MA

I have powers too.

GABRIELLE

No, you don’t.

LAO MA

Careful where you place your opinions or on whom.

GABRIELLE

Granted, the illusion charms the eyes and befuddles intelligence, but believing your own accounts leads to downfall when their use becomes most urgent. I see your soul and your heart. I, Lao Ma, I see you.

Pause.

GABRIELLE

Your powers of life and death derive from well-stocked apothecary, your intuition owes to network of spies, and your impossible reach relies on White Lotus assassins.

Lao Ma, dropping the act, pleased

LAO MA

Singing the truth – I expected no less.

Pause.

Lao Ma, eyes casting about until they settle on a vase with flowers, calmly

LAO MA

But you don’t see everything.

The vase crumbles into shards, sending glass pieces, water, and peonies crashing to the floor.

LAO MA

The cane helps or burdens, Little Dragon. It’s best to walk unassisted.

CUT TO:

INT. IMPERIAL PALACE – EMPRESS’ QUARTERS – EARLY EVENING

The suite is open, with various rooms branching off. The front leads to an unusual bedroom, where a small indoor garden dominates the center of the space. The windows reveal the location to be above and on the right side of the massive entry courtyard.

Gabrielle and Lao Ma are seated on cushions facing each other. The low table is set for a tea ceremony.

GABRIELLE

You elevate the ordinary to ritual.

La Ma, starting to prepare the drink in precise, measured manner, philosophically

LAO MA

The tea ceremony is at once a method and an artistic conception of drinking tea. Yet one must avoid giving it description, for defining tea ceremony wastes time. Further, if a rigid and fixed concept comes to bear, the mystique of tea ceremony is lost.

Gabrielle, fascinated

GABRIELLE

It exists but it’s its own?

LAO MA

Not quite. The essence is harmony. The process, via discipline of rite, guides us towards moral cultivation and we achieve peace. It is seven arts in one heart.

Pause.

LAO MA

It’s a break from life and seeking joy amidst sorrow. It allows us to enjoy a little beauty in an imperfect reality and taste eternity in a sip. Giving it form limits the imagination of tea drinkers and mutes the feeling which comes from individual discovery.

GABRIELLE

The parts are known and defined, yet the whole they assemble is not.

Lao Ma, smiling

LAO MA

Precisely. The moon is reflected in thousand rivers but the reflections are different from each other. The tea ceremony touches the heart. Everyone who drinks tea enjoys the wonderful feeling, but just as hearts are different, so are the reflections.

Pause.

Lao Ma, emphasizing

LAO MA

The way in the ordinary: honor, beauty, harmony, and respect. Starting tomorrow, attend your future husband at meals and court functions.

Gabrielle, biting her tongue

GABRIELLE

Yes, Empress.

CUT TO:

INT. IMPERIAL PALACE – TENG’S QUARTERS – EARLY MORNING

Teng lounges on the pillows, acting the part of a spoiled ruler. Gabrielle sets out breakfast and then takes a seat opposite him.

Teng, clearly expecting to be waited on hand and foot, frowning

TENG

You serve me. So do.

Gabrielle, digging into the food, nonchalantly

GABRIELLE

And why would I do that?

Teng, annoyed at being ignored, petulant

TENG

Because I will be Emperor.

GABRIELLE

And I Empress, that very moment.

TENG

So?

Gabrielle, between bites, simply

GABRIELLE

Your mother rules.

TENG

Because I am too young.

Gabrielle locks eyes with Teng and reads him. It leaves him confused and blinking furiously.

Gabrielle, honest

GABRIELLE

Lao Ma’s husband took sick on his wedding night thanks to her.

Teng, shouting angrily

TENG

You lie!

Five GUARDS rush in and Gabrielle waves them off. They obey without question, not so much as glancing at Teng for confirmation, and it does not go unnoticed by the boy. Their behavior speaks volumes about the balance of power in the room.

Gabrielle, breaking thru the barriers, relentless

GABRIELLE

She strangled him with a pillow to seal an alliance and married Borias.

Teng, starting to cry

TENG

Liar!

GABRIELLE

What do you think she will teach me?

Teng, sniffling

TENG

But you are nice.

Gabrielle, forcefully

GABRIELLE

I’m an Amazon Queen. You don’t have power, Teng. You are your mother’s puppet and one day you will be mine’s.

Teng, desperate

TENG

I can get another concubine!

Gabrielle, sealing his fate, grimly hammering home the truth

GABRIELLE

Empress Dowager already decided. Who in Chin challenges her dictate?

Teng, after a few seconds, sounding defeated, morosely

TENG

… No one.

Gabrielle, with finality

GABRIELLE

I don’t share and there will be no harem.

Pause.

GABRIELLE

Now, eat your food Emperor.

Teng begins to pick at the food, his appetite visibly gone but unable or unwilling to refuse.

Teng, shyly

TENG

What happened to him?

GABRIELLE

She gave him herbs that made him weak; slow poison that leached his strength and vigor; left him a hopeless shell. Then his candle was …

Pause.

Gabrielle, selecting and popping a choice bit into her mouth, with theatrical relish

GABRIELLE

… extinguished.

Teng shudders.

FADE OUT:

THE END

Return to the Academy