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| - KILGHRARRAHIn a land of myth and a time of magic, the destiny of a great kingdom rests on the shoulders of a young boy. His name: Merlin. -- VALIANT I understand you have a shield for me. DEVLIN With your swordcraft and this shield, I guarantee you'll win. VALIANT Show me how it works. DEVLIN Certainly. Tharanai im bis entra ofra honra stolle. [The painted snakes on the shield come to life and slither out of the shield.] When you're competing in the tournament, you pin your opponent under the shield, a snake strikes. Your opponent will be paralyzed. [Devlin hands him the shield.] The snakes are now under your command. They will do anything that you tell them to do. VALIANT Anything? DEVLIN Just say the word. [They both laugh.] VALIANT Kill him. -- VALIANT Knight Valiant of the Western Isles. I'm here for the tournament. STEWARD Welcome to Camelot. -- -- ARTHUR Ready? MERLIN Would it make any difference if I said no? ARTHUR Not really. ARTHUR Body. Shield. Body. Shield. MERLIN Shield. ARTHUR Head. MERLIN Head? Ow. ARTHUR Come on, Merlin. You're not even trying. MERLIN Ow! I am. ARTHUR Once more. MERLIN Oh, no. ARTHUR To the left. To the right. And left. Head. MERLIN Ow! ARTHUR Come on, Merlin! I've got a tournament to win. MERLIN Can we stop now, please? Ow! Shield. Body. ARTHUR Shield. MERLIN Shield. Ah. MERLIN Ow. ARTHUR You're braver than you look. Most servants collapse after the first blow. MERLIN Is it over? ARTHUR That was just the warm up. How's your mace work coming along? MERLIN [sighs] -- GAIUS [chuckles] So, how was your first day as Arthur's servant? MERLIN Do you hear clanging? MERLIN Ah! It was horrible and I've still got to learn all about tournament etiquette by the morning. OnhrÃne achtung bregdan! GAIUS Oi! [He slaps the back of Merlin's head.] What've I told you about using magic like this? MERLIN If I could actually feel my arms, I'd pick up the book myself. GAIUS Never mind your arms. What do I do if you get caught? MERLIN What would you do? GAIUS Well, you just make sure it doesn't happen, for both our sakes. MERLIN Ah! I save Arthur from being killed and I end up as a servant. How is that fair? GAIUS I'm not sure fairness comes into it. You never know, it might be fun. MERLIN [scoffs] You think mucking out Arthur's horses is going to be fun? You should hear my list of duties. GAIUS We all have our duties. Even Arthur. MERLIN It must be so tough for him with all the girls and the glory. GAIUS He is a future king. People expect so much of him. He's under a lot of pressure. MERLIN Ah! That makes two of us. -- GWEN So, you've got voiders on the arms. MERLIN Mmhhmmm. GWEN The hauberk goes over your chest. MERLIN The chest. The arms. The chest. GWEN I guess you know what to do with the helmet. MERLIN Erm, yeah. Yeah, that was the only bit I'd figured out. GWEN [giggles] MERLIN How come you're so much better at this than me? GWEN I'm the blacksmith's daughter. I know pretty much everything there is to know about armour, which is actually kind of sad. MERLIN No, it's brilliant! -- ARTHUR You do know the tournament starts today? MERLIN Yes, Sire. MERLIN You nervous? ARTHUR I don't get nervous. MERLIN Really? I thought everyone got nervous. ARTHUR Will you shut up! MERLIN Great, yeah. I think you're all set. ARTHUR Aren't you forgetting something? My sword. MERLIN Oh, yeah. Yeah, sorry. Guess, uh, you'll be needing that. MERLIN That went well. -- UTHER Knights of the realm, it's a great honour to welcome you to a tournament at Camelot. Over the next three days, you will come to put your bravery to the test, your skills as warriors, and of course, to challenge the reigning champion, my son, Prince Arthur. Only one can have the honour of being crowned champion, and he will receive a prize of 1,000 gold pieces. UTHER It is in combat that we learn a knight's true nature, whether he is indeed a warrior or a coward. The tournament begins! UTHER I trust you will make me proud. MERLIN Yeah! Come on! MERLIN Yeah! MERLIN Knight Valiant looks pretty handy with a sword. VALIANT May I offer my congratulations on your victories today? ARTHUR Likewise. VALIANT I hope to see you at the reception this evening. MERLIN Creep. ARTHUR [snorts] MERLIN [snorts] ARTHUR Uh, for tomorrow you need to repair my shield, wash my tunic, clean my boots, sharpen my sword, and polish my chainmail. -- GAIUS Are you using magic again? MERLIN No. GAIUS What's all this, then? MERLIN [shrugs] GAIUS I just came to tell you that supper's ready. -- VALIANT Knight Valiant of the Western Isles, My Lord. UTHER I saw you fighting today. You have a very aggressive style. VALIANT Well, as My Lord said, "To lose is to be disgraced." UTHER I couldn't agree more. Knight Valiant, may I present the Lady Morgana, my ward. VALIANT My Lady. MORGANA I saw you competing today. VALIANT I saw you watching. I understand the tournament champion has the honour of escorting My Lady to the feast. MORGANA That's correct. VALIANT Then I will give everything to win the tournament. VALIANT My Lady. UTHER Arthur. ARTHUR Father. MORGANA They all seem rather impressed by Knight Valiant. ARTHUR They're not the only ones. MORGANA You're not jealous, are you? ARTHUR I don't see there's anything to be jealous of. MORGANA [to Guinevere, in a low voice] Could Arthur be any more annoying? I so hope Knight Valiant wins the tournament. GUINEVERE You don't really mean that. MORGANA Yes, I do. -- MERLIN Hello? Is there someone there? VALIANT Can I help you with something, boy? MERLIN Nope. I'm good. I, I was just... I was, erm, gathering my master's armour. VALIANT Then you'd best be on your way. MERLIN Right, yeah. No problem. -- ARTHUR You did all this on your own? MERLIN Yes, Sire. ARTHUR Now let's see if you can get me into it without forgetting anything. ARTHUR That was much better. Not that it could have got any worse. MERLIN I'm a fast learner. ARTHUR I hope, for you sake, that's true. MERLIN Good luck. -- GAIUS Is it my imagination, or are you beginning to enjoy yourself? MERLIN It... [sighs] It isn't totally horrible all the time. MERLIN Yes! [claps] VALIANT Strike him. VALIANT Strike him! MERLIN I think he's badly hurt. -- MERLIN How is he? GAIUS It's most odd. Look at this. See these two small wounds. Looks like a snake bite. Merlin How could he've been bitten by a snake? He was injured in the sword fight. GAIUS But the symptoms are consistent with poisoning: slow pulse, fever, paralysis. MERLIN Can you heal him? GAIUS Well, if it is a snake bite, I'll have to extract venom from the snake that bit him to make an antidote. MERLIN What happens if he doesn't get the antidote? GAIUS Then I'm afraid there's nothing more I can do for him. He's going to die. MERLIN He was fighting Knight Valiant. GAIUS What's that? MERLIN Nothing. -- VALIANT Dinner time. Come on. -- MERLIN I've just seen one of the snakes in Valiant's shield come alive. He's using magic. GAIUS Are you sure? MERLIN The snake ate a mouse - one swallow, straight down. Sir Ewan was fighting Valiant when he collapsed. It must've been one of the snakes from the shield. I have to tell Arthur. GAIUS Is there any chance you might be mistaken? MERLIN I know magic when I see it. GAIUS Perhaps, but have you any proof? MERLIN Don't you believe me? GAIUS I fear you'll land yourself in trouble. How will you explain why you were in Valiant's chambers? MERLIN What does that matter? He's using magic to cheat in the tournament! GAIUS But you can't go accusing a knight of using magic without proof. The King would never accept the word of servant over the word of a knight. MERLIN What? So what I say doesn't count for anything? GAIUS I'm afraid it counts for very little as far as the King is concerned. That's the way it is. -- MERLIN You're telling me you've got to fight that? ARTHUR Yes, and he's strong as a bear. But he's slow. MERLIN Ah, and you're fast. ARTHUR Exactly. GWEN You're not worried, are you? MORGANA No. GAIUS How're you getting on? MERLIN Fine. Just doing my job. Minding my own business. MERLIN Valiant's going to fight Arthur in the final. He'll use the shield to kill him. -- GAIUS Merlin, about what I said yesterday... Look, Uther wouldn't really listen to you or me, but you are right. We can't let Valiant get away with this. MERLIN But we don't have any proof. GAIUS Well, if we could cure Ewan, he could tell the King that Valiant was using magic. The King would believe another knight. But how we get the antidote...Well, that's another matter. GAIUS Merlin? -- KNIGHTS Long live Valiant! UTHER So Valiant, do you think you stand a chance of defeating my son? VALIANT He is a great warrior, My Lord. I do hope to be a worthy opponent. UTHER You should stay in Camelot after the tournament. I could do with more knights like you. VALIANT I'd be honoured, My Lord. -- capture2012-04-15-15h00m26s238.png MERLIN [casts a spell] -- GAIUS I'll get started preparing the antidote. MERLIN I'm going to tell Arthur. GAIUS You'll need this. GAIUS And Merlin, what you did was very brave. -- ARTHUR [sceptically] You? You chopped its head off? MERLIN Ewan was bitten by a snake from the shield when he was fighting Valiant. You can talk to Gaius, you can see the puncture wounds in Ewan's neck where the snake bit him. Ewan was beating him, he had to cheat. ARTHUR Valiant wouldn't dare use magic in Camelot. MERLIN Ewan was pinned under Valiant's shield. No one could see the snake bite him. ARTHUR I don't like the guy, but that doesn't mean he's cheating. MERLIN Gaius is preparing an antidote to the snake venom. When Ewan's conscious, he'll tell you what happened. If you fight Valiant in the final, he'll use the shield. It's the only way he can beat you. Look at it! MERLIN Have you ever seen any snakes like this in Camelot? MERLIN I know I'm just a servant and my word doesn't count for anything. I wouldn't lie to you. ARTHUR I want you to swear to me what you're telling me is true. MERLIN I swear it's true. ARTHUR Then I believe you. -- GAIUS Welcome back. EWAN There was a snake on his shield. It came alive. GAIUS You're weak. The snake's venom is still in your system. EWAN I must warn Arthur. GAIUS Arthur already knows. He's requested an audience with the King. Now, they'll want to talk to you. Rest. You'll need your strength. I need to fetch more herbs. I'll be right back. -- UTHER Why have you summoned the court? ARTHUR I believe Knight Valiant is using a magic shield to cheat in the tournament. UTHER Valiant, what do you have to say to this? VALIANT My Lord, this is ridiculous. I've never used magic. Does your son have any evidence to support this outrageous accusation? UTHER Do you have evidence? ARTHUR I do. -- GAIUS I'm afraid this potion tastes like toad water, but it'll get you back on your feet. Ewan?
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