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Based on the Novel by Michael Kokkinaris “The Therapist”
SYNOPSIS
Rhodes, 15th century. The Magistrate of the Knights of the Order of Saint John who are occupying the island is called upon to solve the mystery of the mass murder of the peasants whose bodies bear the marks of a large animal’s nails. The sole survivor on the scene of the crime is a little boy, Andronicus Honiatis, who is unable to provide a clear witness of the murderer or murderers. A few years later, when it becomes known that the hands of the now young man, Andronicus, have healing powers, a ruthless chase to kidnap him begins. And as the medieval story of the Knights of the island of Rhodes unfolds, so does another story, this one far darker and more odious with its unpredictable twists and turns, when into Andronicus’ life enters Louise d’Anjou, to whom his pursuer, who is eventually bound in some way to be connected not only to the murder of the peasantry but also to that of Andronicus’ parents, is also fatally attracted. What follows in the narrative is beyond the bounds of human imagination which are tested to the limit when the lives of our protagonists are invaded by the supernatural and it dawns on them that what their future holds is uncertain.
Treatment
MAP OF THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA IN LATE 15th CENTURY. EGYPT. THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE. THE KNIGHTS’ TERRITORIES. CAMERA DOLLIES IN THE ISLAND OF RHODES…
TITLE CARD FADES IN:
MAY 23, 1480
ISLAND OF RHODES
…A large Ottoman fleet of 170 ships appears before the port of Rhodes, carrying an invading army of 100,000 men under the command of Mesih Pasha (originally a Greek by the name of Michael Palaiologos who had converted to Islam after the conquest of Constantinople by the Turks).
The Knights of Saint John are defending Rhodes, under the guidance of “Grand Master” of the Order Pierre d’Aubusson, were reinforced from France by 500 knights and 2.000 soldiers under Pierre d'Aubusson's brother Antoine. Among the fighters defending Rhodes, next to Pierre d’ Aubusson is a young knight named ANDRONICUS (aka ANDRONICOS) HONIATIS.
The first attempt of Mezih Paleologos to seize Rhodes is fragmentary and painful for the Turks. Andronicus Honiatis will live closely the atrocity of the war and fight for the freedom of Rhodes. Louise D’ Anzou will “relive” the nightmare of her severe wounding and her mental state will be upset.
CUT TO (FLASH BACK) TWENTY YEARS AGO:
In early 1460, while the raids of the Turks against the island are multiplied, corpses of peasants are discovered, having the disfiguring marks of the claws of a big animal (a carnivorous beast).
The news about this strange massive murder, which was firstly attributed to a raid of Turks, arrive at a totally inappropriate time, while the Magistrate is trying to confirm the appointment of Dimitrios Sofianos, as an ambassador of the Sultan Mohammed B at the seat (headquarters) of the Order by the Council of Knights.
The only survivor is a small boy, Andronicus Honiatis, who states at the Council of Knights that it must have been “wolves” the murderers of his mother, Eudokia Andegavini. (Eudokia was orgininally from a noble family, a well-known generation of French Andegavini, who owned the island of Rhodes for a period of time).
Although d’ Aubusson managed to confirm the appointment of Sofianos, at the same time he also wanted to know the truth. So, under the pretext that the wolves which tore up so many people must be wiped out, he sends his secret advisor, Count Antoine Romilly, accompanied by a small group of Knights to arrest the murderers. When the detachment returns at the castle, it brings the “hides” (“skins”) of the wolves and a prisoner, Mehmet Ovrenoglou, one of the two raiders (rangers), who was an illegitimate son of the sultan Mourat B, father of Mohammed the Conqueror.
The Turk is imprisoned, or better “disappears”, in the dungeons of the castle’s prisons and young Andronikos Honiatis grows up with the Franciscan monks, who practice medicine in the Hospital of the Knights.
The years pass by and Andronikos Honiatis will become witness of the “supernatural” ability that his hands have to heal the wounds of the human body, when he heals the hand of a German knight who was in danger of dying, unless mangled, because of gangrene.
The unexpected therapy of the knight has its award. He proposes to the Greek therapist to be nominated knight in the “language” of the Germans, if he passed some specific trials.
Therefore, the charm of being a knight, as well as his parental heritage, make young Andronikos accept the challenge and prepare for the final trial for the nomination of being a knight. However, his German trainer will seek to destroy him for his impudence to claim the title of a knight.
When he finally passes this trial, his wounds are severe and he is transferred to the hospital in a bad condition. The same night his sudden therapy by the miraculous ability of his hands, will make his friend, Fra Jacob Manchini, a Franciscan monk and surgeon in the hospital of the knights, to nail him on the bed with gauzes and cataplasms in fear of others considering him a magician and burn him alive.
As a result, his obligatory treatment in the hospital is prolonged, when, one night, the castle gets upset by the news that the niece of the secret advisor of the Magistrate, Louise D’ Anzou, has been kidnapped. The kidnapper lays just one condition, to release the prisoner Mehmet Ovrenoglou…
The Turk is about to die from the hardships and Romilly’s position is hopeless. The idea of his transfer to the hospital and his exchange with Louise seems rather as a solution of desperation…
When the soldiers transfer Ovrenoglou to the hospital, neither Manchini nor Honiatis know his real identity and his relation with Louise’s kidnapping.
The Greek therapist will do his miracle again.
The Turk recovers, but what really impresses Andronikos is the strange reaction of Mehmet Ovrenoglou to the persistent howling of the wolf, which is heard outside the castle.
And when the Turk gains power from the howl of the animal, the memories of the death of the mother of Honiatis from the wolves are awakened and arm his will to kill him.
Manchini, who is now aware of the truth, stops him at the last minute and the exchange results to the release of Louise D’ Anzou. However, when her horse passes the moat, a new tragedy occurs…
Louise is severely wounded by the claws of a big animal on the face, neck and chest. Her uncle, Romilly, refuses to turn her over to the “hands” of the Greek therapist, because he considers the whole story as “charlatanism” of the Franciscan monks. But he is wrong…
Louise recovers, and what she mostly remembers, is the tender kiss on her forehead by Andronicus Honiatis, while his hands miraculously were healing her wounded body and soul.
** *
The unexpected salvation of Mehmet Ovrenoglou and mostly his therapy by the hands of Andronikos Honiatis, will attract the attention of the Turk spy, who was from the beginning of the story behind the assassination of the peasants, Andronicus’ mother and the kidnapping of Louise D’ Anzou.
He was a strange creature that everyone who knew him, could not tell if he was a “wild beast” or a sadistic human being, a creature like everyone else or a demon living among humans…
So, this person, Suleiman, who was working at the time for the Great Vizier, Mezih Paleologos, informed him about the Greek therapist and the supernatural abilities that his hands had.
Mezih Paleologos before attempting to seize Rhodes, promises to the sultan Mohammed that among the loot he will bring from Rhodes, there will be the Greek therapist alive, in order to give him health and longevity. The elixir of the eternal life.
The preparations for the siege begin and the action of spies gets more intense. Within this atmosphere of waiting, Suleiman returns to Rhodes and forces an old Turkish man, Osman, to state that he is an apprentice in his blacksmith’s, when the census of the foreigners staying in the island takes place, by giving him a few gold coins.
The price of the blacksmith’s tolerance will be the love affair of Suleiman with his daughter, Fatima, who will become a puppet in Suleiman’s hands and totally dependent on the wild erotic mood that he causes to her.
CUT TO SIEGE OF RHODES IN 1480:
…While waiting the new attack of Mezih Paleologos, Suleiman will seek and find people willing to help him in his dirty game. The best bet seems to be the German knight Matias Neumann, who will become his informer about the Greek therapist, Andronikos Honiatis.
So, when it is decided that Louise must leave the castle in order to see new places and relax, Suleiman plans the kidnapping of the Greek therapist, who is in charge of the detachment accompanying her.
The attempt fails and the two young people come closer, seeking ways to consummate their relationship. And since love is resourceful, Louise D’ Anzou plans to fall into the arms of her beloved one, getting out of the Kastello wearing her servant’s clothes, who is staying at the English “language”[1] in an attic.
Francesco Foscari a young apprentice in the hospital of the knights, was the postman of their love letters, who, unfortunately for him, was traced by Suleiman and with Fatima’s help, will try to intimidate him, in order to collaborate at the kidnapping of Andronicus Honiatis.
The night that Louise and Andronicus will finally come together at her servant’s attic, Bianca, neither of them noticed two eyes burning as coal, watching them in the dark.
And as hatred combined with jealousy and passion dominate Suleiman’s attitude towards Fatima, she’s getting jealous under the impression that the man who rules her, scorns her for another woman. And the only one who knows, who this woman is, is the postman, Francesco Foscari…
Foscari’s murder, the secret relationship of Andronicus with Louise D’ Anzou, the danger after all, of all these being connected, make Fra Jacob Manchini enter the game of searching the guilty ones and solving a conspiracy, which was far more serious that it seemed at the beginning.
As a consequence, while the Turks begin this time the systematic siege of the town, Manchini composes with persistence and patience the puzzle of the guilty persons, using the evidence he has.
In fact, when he mentions his suspicions to the Magistrate’s secret advisor, count Romilly, for the possible action of spies in the castle, the latter sends for help a… beggar, who manages to reach the end of the line and connect the evidence he has to the persons. However, the beggar’s assassination and the likely seizure of the castle by the Turks, force the Franciscan monk to bring justice himself, as he knows at least one person who is guilty, the Turkish Fatima.
While the Turks have already seized the Italian rampart and their flag is waving at the castle, Fra Jacob Manchini, who was going to arrest Fatima, is assassinated by her.
Suleiman, the devilish spy, overconfident that Mezih Paleologos has seized the castle of Rhodes, goes to grab the object of his secret desire, Louise D’ Anzou. She commits suicide in despair and the only thing that Suleiman manages to do, is to stick his nails in her clothes to suppress his maniacal rage…
When he gets out of the Castello, a surprise is waiting for him…
In parallel action while everything seemed lost in the Italian rampart and the Hellenic-Jewish neighborhood of Rhodes, D’ Aubusson makes a strategic twist and turn, when he recovers from the five wounds he received from the Turks with the aid of the Greek therapist, who is fighting in his personal guard. The sea turned red from the blood of the 4.000 Ottoman soldiers that died that day.
The Turks have been defeated and are chased by the Hospitaller Knights. The Knights are reaching the camp and the tent of the Great Vezir.
When the siege ends, Andronikos Honiatis buries everyone he loved LouiseAnzou, Fra Jacob Manchini and count Emery Romilly, whom he tried in vain to save, when the latter was deadly wounded fighting to save the Castle of Rhodes.
* * *
THE THERAPIST,THE RETURN
TITLE CARD FADES IN:RHODES,42 YEARS LATER
… the castle of Rhodes stands impregnable in the East and the Turks are planning its seizure again. Now Suleiman the Great is sultan and he even hesitates to think about the second siege of the castle of Rhodes…when a Turkish fugitive, Hosamedin Ebeoglou delivers a strange message.
Admiral Andre Amaral, the Portuguese chancellor of the Order of Knights wants to help him conquer Rhodes. As a proof of his intentions, he gives him the names of the network of spies acting under secret identities at the coastline of Asia Minor.
The spies are arrested, they confess and the ploy to conquer Rhodes begins. A fearsome creature from the old days, untouched by time, Suleiman, is the liaison between the Sultan and Amaral…
Suleiman’s return in Rhodes, a person that no one still understands if he is human or a creature of imagination, is a fact. His first message to Amaral is transferred by Fatima. Fatima Sasioglou, the daughter of Osman…the murderess that got again together with the only man she loved.
When Suleiman meets the traitor Amaral and they define their deal for the betrayal, he asks what happened to the Greek therapist, Andronicus Honiatis, the man he still hated, although forty or so years had passed…
If he was still alive, he wanted Amaral to deliver Andronikos to him…”as part of their agreement…”
In the years that passed, Andronicus Honiatis, now a count in the guard of the Order of Saint John, lived isolated in a dilapidated mansion near the fortress of Faraklou, in agony that time had forgotten him…
The reliable servant of Andre Amaral, Pedro Diez, will confirm Suleiman’s information about Andronicus Honiatis, by even searching for the existence of a tomb with the name of Louise D’ Anzou on it. When he finally traces it, in surprise, he will report to his master that Andronikos Honiatis is alive.
Amaral carefully plans the return of count Andronicus Honiatis to Rhodes. A big reception for him takes place, because he is the living symbol of the resistance and the victory of the knights in the years of the Great Magistrate, Pierre D’ Aubusson.
So, four decades later, the Greek therapist in a torturous dejavu faces all over again everything that had hurt him and was buried deep inside his soul , awakening inside him the feeling of punishment for those who destroyed his life.
A Franciscan monk also played a role in this decision, because he found and handed to Andronikos the will and the personal objects of the assassinated monk Fra Jacob Manchini, together with his personal diary that gave answers to questions, buried for forty or so years…
The Turks, disembark on the island with a different strategic plan and organisation. They have 400 ships and 200.000 men. The Knights under Grand Master Philippe Villiers d L’Isle Adam, have about 7.000 men-at-arms and their fortifications.
The conquest of the castle of Rhodes is inevitable.
The Jewish community leaders deliver gold coins and jewellery to the Knights (“For freedom”) to buy food supplies, and gun powder for the bombard-mortars, effectively keeping Rhodes free from the Ottoman occupation.
While the siege is on progress, Andronikos Honiatis seeks the traces of the murderess, as she is described in Manchini’s diary, in the English “language”. There, he will meet a young girl from Rhodes, Victoria, in the face of whom he will seek again the opportunity to live on today. At the same time, he will reach Fatima’s traces, who is in charge of a network of spies that give away specifics about the defence and the armoury (bombard-mortars) of the castle.
At their last meeting, Suleiman will ask the traitor Amaral to finish with the issue of Andronicus.
So, at the expiration of the events that are in progress, Andronicus will ask the Magistrate’s permission to arrest Fatima, while Amaral’s servant, Diez, with paid assassins will attempt to arrest the Greek therapist in the “language”(langue) of Germany. The attempt to arrest Honiatis ends to Victoria’s horrible assassination and Diez’s arrest. Diez confesses the conspiracy and the chancellor of the Order, the traitor Andreas Amaral is imprisoned and sentenced to death after a stormy trial. At the same trial, Fatima, as well as her collaborators, will be sentenced. Their execution by hanging will take place the following day.
When darkness fell, the lament turned into howling and it did not stop until the next day, at dawn, when the canons started again hitting with their balls the ramparts and the bastions of the castle town of Rhodes, till they collapsed in ruins…
* * *
After revealing Amaral’s conspiracy, the people have lost their courage and two months later, an agreement of surrender of Rhodes is signed, with the condition that the knights and inhabitants of Rhodes who wish to leave, could do it harmless. All the rest behind will learn firsthand the revenge and the ferocity of an army that lost 100.000 men outside the walls of the castle of Rhodes…
TITLE CARD FADES IN:
JANUARY 1, 1523
…As the ships are taking away to the relatively safe ground of Crete the defeated Knights, 4.000 people, and archbishop Klemes, Andronicus and Suleiman’s final and fierce man-to-man confrontation will take place, so that their hatred, lasting so many years, would reach a cathartic finale.
Suleiman falls dead and Andronicus cuts off his head. Andronicus fights alone against the Turks (one Knight against thousands of enemies) like Leonidas in Thermopyles. Falls dead pierced by hundreds of arrows and swords.
ANDRONICUS sees in his illusion the figure of the woman he loved. Louise d’Anjou…She came to take him away…FLASH CUTS of their romance and love story.
He falls dead. Somewhere in Heaven they are going to meet each other again, after so many trials and tribulations.
FADE TO BLACK
END TITLES
[1] * Languages: the seven nations, seven tongues/langues of the Order, which were identified with their national language (Portugal, France, German, England, Provence, Castille-Aragon, Navarre )
THE THERAPIST By Michael Kokkinaris,based on Novel The Therapist(El Hakim). MAP OF THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA IN LATE 15th CENTURY. EGYPT. THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE. THE KNIGHTS’TERRITORIES. CAMERA DOLLIES IN THE ISLAND OF RHODES. TITLE CARD FADES IN: DECEMBER 4,1479. CASTLE OF RHODES 1 EXT.CASTLE-MORNING It’s a rainy day. On the marine bulwark of Saint Nicolas(right in front of the port) the soldiers are in a foul mood,standing as they are,immobile in the wet,which seems to be soaking everything,even the steel they wear close to their skin. Further away,one would thing that the castle town has been cloaked in silence...and all of sudden,the horn of the marine sentry pierces the air with its striden tone. The head guardsman leaps to his feet in alarm and is almost thrown by the force of the wind and rain. At the same moment,the horn sounds again,accompained by the shouts of the soldiers who are pointing something out of him at sea. Some distance away,illuminated by the flach of lightning that streaked across the sky,a large Ottoman fleet of 170 ships appears before the port of the Rhodes,carrying an invading army of 100.000 men under the command of MESIH PASHA(ANGLE ON his terrible face). At that point the gate of the bulwark opens and a knight burst out straight for the portside Castle gate. By the time the knight reached the bridge it had already been lowered across the moat. KNIGHT Galleys are coming in fighting trim from the direction of the promontory of Saint Nicolas! Sound the alarm... Sound the alarm...now! A few moments later the galleys had already arrived opposite the seaward bastion. Afterwards,they shoot as many canon balls as they could at the seaward walls of the promonotory of Saint Nicolas and the invaders maneuvered their ships to the land opposite the great marine bastion. At the same time we see the Magistrate of the Knights of the Order of Saint Ioannis,PIERRE D’AUBUSSON,who climbs up on the rampart of the bastion of the port gate and bore witness with his own eyes that the time had come for him to confront the Ottoman Sultan. On the rampart,among the fighters,next to Magistrate,is a young knight,ANDRONICUS HONIATIS(DOLLY IN his eyes and the time comes back quikly). CUT TO (FLASH BACK) TITLE CARDS FADES IN FIFTEEN YEARS AGO. JUNE 1464 EXT-THE CASTLE-CLOUDY DAY It has been quite a while now since the marine armed guard of the promontory of St. Nicolas,SIMEON,leaves his outpost, wades through the water and then climbs onto the rock that emerges abruptly from the bowels of the sea. It seemed to him that he had seen a fleeting glimmer. He was not mistaken! Further away towards the domain of the East the black sky forebode rain which was drawing all the nearer to the island. Nothing. He could see nothing at all. As if by instinct he grabs the strap that fastened the horn to his body, ready to send the message that the sea had spewed up wild beasts.He could not have been so mistaken. Someone or something was out at sea. And he was proved right the moment a flash of lightning lit the sky; But it’s too late. An enormous barber's knife skillfully flung stifled even the cry of pain that would emerged from deep inside him. He opened his eyes wide for one last time to see the beasts that had come to sow terror everywhere. Simeon’s body slowly dipped into the element from whose fathomless abyss on that morning the reaper had brought out those whom fate had chosen to inflict pain and wreak havoc. A couple of pitch-black wolves surged onto the plain, ready to tear to shreds anyone who got in their way. And if a farm-hand happened to cross their path he would not even have the time to realize what had cut the thread of his life. Lightning struck once again and the sky came to rest upon the earth; and they became one, the unprecedented sight of which urged the lady of the plain, EUDOKIA ANDEGAVINI, who determined to reach the castle walls and then return to her lodgings, just as she had been in the habit of doing since she was small. Just like that, because it was her fate, so it was said, at some time to touch the sky, something she had been trying to do in vain to that very day. Her nurse's objections were in vain - so too was her pleading. And as the unfortunate woman watched little ANDRONICUS(six years old) mounting the white steed to ride pillion behind his mother she fell to her knees unable to stop this madness. The steed galloped freely as if it had no riders at all and made straight for the wheat fields where he could unleash all his might. ANDRONICUS clung tightly onto his mother who recklessly let go of the horse's reins to form her arms in the shape of wings, to touch the sky. The steed galloped through the wheat fields feeling the ears of corn pushing aside on his passing. The beasts too were running to find a hole in which to hide, shredding the flesh of any one they came across to pieces. These were deadly wolves and there appeared a farm-laborer who placed himself between EUDOKIA and the beasts, determined to change her fate. As the steed galloped and the wolves howled, EUDOKIA was doing her utmost to touch the edge of the sky. The farm-hand received a stab in the chest and was left with arms outstretched staring for the last time at EUDOKIA's white steed rushing her towards her death. ANDRONICUS managed to catch a glimpse of two black wolves before falling off the steed when it reared up in terror as the beasts stood motionless before it. EUDOKIA felt the lance entering her breast, searching in vain to see the coward who had cut the thread of her life. She too only saw two wolves with fiery eyes which stood but for a moment in front of her terror-struck steed. The child doubled up and his mother fell beside him; something which saved his life even as the moments of her own were numbered. Free now, though marked by the blood of his lady, the steed galloped frantically towards the vicinity of the castle, as if he wanted to escape the wild beasts which were hiding in the wheat fields. And while EUDOKIA was at her last breath with the lance sunk into her body she made a futile attempt to embrace her son. To this end she searched for the little child's lips to give him her final breath, together with her blessing, which she could only do with great difficulty. But her end was to be far worse. The streak of lightning sent by the lord of the sky to finish off the wild beasts set fire to the wheat fields and spread at once with the first breath of wind. The flames wrapped around the farm-hands' bodies which bore the marks of the beasts that had passed through the plain and in a flash reached EUDOKIA to finish her off. The unfortunate woman leaned forward to embrace the body of the child, tugging at the lance that had mowed her down. And as she had ANDRONICUS in her arms giving him her final breath, she died, giving up her body to the flames. And just before the steed arrived at the southern gate of the castle, a heavy downpour began to wash away the embers.As soon as the sentry at the southern castle gate saw the white steed standing restlessly at the edge of the moat he gave a horn signal to the head guardsman that this was not a coincidence with all that was happening on the plain.And as the bad weather swept towards the west, the sun appeared in all its glory bringing bad omens - Simon's body adrift amongst the rocks in front of the castle gate facing the sea, the burnt wheat fields, the blood-stained steed with the ANDEGAVINOS coat of arms and then the voice of MANOUIL HONIATIS, the commander of the Grecos who was in the castle's employment. MANOUIL HONIATIS This steed belongs to Eudokia; it bears the Andegavinos emblem. And the blood... it’s human blood. MANOUIL’S face hardened, he felt a tightening in his heart. He could bear anything - even a stab in the chest - the only thing he could not bear was for any harm to have come to EUDOKIA, the very breath of his soul. Nor did the HEAD GUARDSMAN have the time to stop MANOUIL who galloped off unarmed, grudgingly followed closely by only two swordsmen. And what he decided to do was indeed an act of great daring, for were the spies sent by the Sultan of Turkey to arrive, they would surely finish him off without breathing a word about it. The commander's eyes glazed over as he passed the scorched field-workers, looking around him in alarm in the hope of catching sight of EUDOKIA. And he did; the unfortunate woman - an unrecognizable heap of scorched flesh. MANOUIL knelt down beside her unable to bear his misfortune, finding his very reason for being, and he wept like a child at having been left completely alone in the dark. And as the swordsmen watched him at a loss for words, what seemed to be a child's voice was heard coming from the burnt flesh. It was little Andronicus looking at them dumbfounded, holding in his hands the lance that had deprived him of his mother's caress. MANOUIL ordered one of the two swordsmen to take the orphan back to the castle and dashed off unrestrained in order to find the murderers. And as soon as they were hot on their heels it seems that some shadow fell over them which made the horses rear up. MANOUIL caught sight of two wolves coming out of nowhere and before he had managed to draw his sword, an arrow cut the thread of his life. 3 INT. KNIGHT’S HOSPITAL/DAY In a large room, on wooden benches are lined up naked corpses, with traces of fire and most hideous wounds mostly on the face and neck. ?n the hall come two men, Count Romilly, First Counsel, and the Great Magistrate. They wear black uniforms seminaries. Shoulders Magistrate covers purple tunic embroidered with a white cross. Men pass in front of the corpses, which illuminate the lamps and finally stand in a corpse that is not burnt. ROMILLY stands silently beside the Magistrate who in vain sought answers to his questions. In the glowing light of the lanterns the First Counsel could make out the Magistrate's enigmatic frown as he took up a surgical tool to once again examine the wounds of the field-laborer whose body had emerged from the fire intact. Afterwards, when he had finished, he looks Romilly straight in the eye and says. MAGISTRATE Alright, let’s assume that the murderer was tall and that he sank his sword from the height of his head into the trachea of the unfortunate field-worker. How did the marks, though, on the right shoulder of the dead man happen? ROMILLY bows forward to observe these strange marks which resembled those which had been etched on his own body when as a little child he had got in the way of a fierce dog. But yet again, he could not believe that these scratches had been caused by the nails of a wolf. They were too big and too deep to have been caused by an animal. And because the Magistrate could read his thoughts, he said aloud. MAGISTRATE Go ahead, Romilly, tell me your theory so that we can get it over with. The First Counsel scrutinizes their surroundings and once he assures that no one was around, he says almost in whisper. COUNT ROMILLY Your Excellence, Sultan Mehmetbeis has sent us a message. If he were to send spies to measure the walls and the strength of the castle, he would do so without leaving any trace. It is something else that he wanted to show your lordship. D'Aubusson, who in his heart of hearts believed the same, made as if not to understand. MAGISTRATE Go ahead, then, Romilly, come to the point. The First Counsel knew his lord's 'language' only too well; his tone of voice often betrayed him. So he lowered his voice a little more and added meaningfully. COUNT ROMILLY Now that I see the bodies again, they were probably done over by a wolf; or by wolves. That's what we will tell the Council, your excellence, and we will have as our witness the son of the Commander of the Grecos, the late Honiatis. As far as the 'wolves' are concerned, I'll send hunters. And when they find them they will hang them outside the palace so that the murderers will be on view for all to see. 4 EXT. CASTLE-DAYBREAK. At daybreak, as the sentry's horn sounded the signal of mourning for the loss of the Commander of the Grecos, the funeral took place and MANOUIL HONIATIS and EUDOKIA ANDEGAVINI were buried side by side as was the custom of the Byzantines. And when the funeral was over, two swordsmen took litle Andronicus and brought him to the castle to give the Council his testimony about what had happened the day before. On ROMILLY’S orders, the swordsmen allowed the child to calm down after which he himself was to go and give him counsel, so he thought, on all the possible questions the knights - and the Great Magistrate - might ask. But when he actually saw ANDRONICUS, the First Counsel was caught completely unprepared for what he saw and what he heard and for what happened to him. The child neither cringed in fright nor did he feel awed by ROMILLY’S title. ROMILLY too supposedly pretended not to know whether they were wolves or men. ANDRONICUS They were wolves, monsieur, wolves. There's no mistaking it. COUNT ROMILLY Let it be wolves, then, ANDRONICUS HONIATIS. That's what you'll say if by any chance the Council should ask you, isn't that so?" ANDRONICUS It is so, lord First Counsel, even if it was a lance that cut the thread of my mother's life; my mother whom I adored. His words enraged Romilly and then, so as not to frighten the child, he once again softened the tone of his voice. COUNT ROMILLY Was it a wolf, Andronicus, my child? ANDRONICUS They were wolves,monsieur! COUNT ROMILLY Well, then, where did the lance come from? Tell me all about what happened in the wheat fields from the beginning - I want to understand. And as the child comes to the end of his account, the First Counsel lookes him straight in the eyes and in a commanding voice, as if he were a soldier, orderes him to tell the Council one and only thing; that wolves are the wild beasts that had cut the thread of EUDOKIA ANDEGAVINI life. As for his father, Manouil, he had seen nothing and did not know how he had died... 5 INT.COUNSEL’S HALL-DAY In homo centric circles seats full Knights with priestly vestments,seat to the preordained arrangements of the “tongues” of the Order of the Knights. In the center of the throne hall of the Grand Magistrate and around the seats of Commanders of the Order. The big oakdoor opens and the head of guard announces. HEAD OF GUARD His Excellency,Fra Pierre d’Aubusson. ? Count Romilly bows to council and orders. COUNT ROMILLY To come forward the witness Andronicus Honiatis! The door opens and enters the litlle boy. And just when Andronicus he was about to fall down in a heap he felt the First Counsel standing beside him as if he were his lawyer who had taken on the task of asking him questions. COUNT ROMILLY Your name is? ANDRONICUS Andronicus Honiatis, monsieur, son of Manouil Honiatis and Eudokia Andegavini. COUNT ROMILLY What did you see yesterday, Andronicus? ANDRONICUS I looked at death’s face, monsieur. COUNT ROMILLY And what was death like, my child? ANDRONICUS It was like a black wolf, a cursed black wolf which sank its nails into my mother's body. COUNT ROMILLY And how you managed to escape? ANDRONICUS Eudokia put her arms around me and protected me. A faint smile came to Romilly's lips and before anyone else could ask any more questions he announced d'Aubusson's decision to take the orphan under his wing and to bring him up as his own son. Afterwards, as if the case were over, he commanded that the child be taken to his lord's palace and requested that the investigation be considered closed. THE SOUND OF a murmur was heard, someone said something out loud and then MATEO ORSINI, a knight from Genova who was one of the oldest in the Order, asked for permission to speak. The Magistrate gave him a nod of agreement and without mincing his words, he proceeded to put everything in its right place. MATEO ORSINI Your Excellency, whether the murderers were wolves or wild beasts that emerged from the sea is of little importance. What is important is that one day the sea will bring other ferocious wild beasts and this is what we should all bear in mind... So as to wipe out the impact that his words had made on the Council, Romilly rushed in to interrupt him. COUNT ROMILLY We are all of us, monsieur, responsible for the defense of the island. Right now we're trying to solve the murder of so many people." Without hesitation, Orsini addressed him in a loud but tempered voice. MATEO ORSINI Lord First Counsel, it is something else that you fear - that by some twist of fate we will not vote for the ambassador of the Sultan to remain on the island. That is what you fear. After that, GEORG OFFENBACH of the German 'tongue' took the stand as if Romilly himself had put him up to vouching for DIMITRIOS SOPHIANOS, who supposedly meant them no harm despite being the Sultan's ambassador. Other knights stood up and spoke and a lot was said until the Great Magistrate requested that they vote that it was in their interest to accept Dimitrios Sophianos as the ambassador of Sultan MEHMETBEIS their interest to accept Dimitrios Sophianos as, for you do not bite the hand that feeds you. 6 EXT. DAY/ AUT ONTO THE PLAIN. A company of soldiers with reinforcements passes through the southern gate of the castle and spreas out onto the plain. A few paces behind them follows hunters with their many hounds raising such a clamor that all the people comes running out. But all this was no coincidence and the company of soldiers had not come out hunting. Nor were the hunters hunting wolves. For this reason the First Counselor himself, disguised in a commander's uniform so as not to be recognized, passed through the gate in order to lead his men to where he thought the 'wolves' might be hiding. However, Romilly was not searching at random. He was confident that the spies had to hid the estate a renegade from Rhodes, Antonios Meligalos, who at that time happened to be in the employment of the Great Vizier, Mezih Paleologos. And ultimately, Romilly was not mistaken. Led by the hounds, the company of soldiers surrounded the estate of Meligalos and everyone thought that the hunt was over. Spies was finally two. ?ne managed to escape. The other was caught alive. Romilly approached in person in order to see the hostage. With the tip of his sword, the First Counsel snipped the cord that held the cloak on his shoulders which revealed the silk shirt that he wore close to his skin to protect him from the chain-mail breastplate decorated with a golden coat of arms. He came closer still, raising his sword to the level of his throat and then he spoke to him almost in a whisper. COUNT ROMILLY If you happen to give me the wrong answer to any of my questions this lovely head of yours will forever lose its golden breastplate, monsieur. The hostage answered without a hint of fear, looking at him face to face. MEHMET OVRENOGLOU Mehmet Ovrenoglou, commander. COUNT ROMILLY And where do you hail from? MECHMET OVRENOGLOU From Andrianoupolis. COUNT ROMILLY And what did your master, Sultan Mehmet beis, send you to do on this island? MEHMET OVRENOGLOU My master didn't send me - I came of my own accord, and so did my companion, and now I am ready to pay the price. ROMILLY lowered his sword and ordered his men to tie him up skillfully, in such a way as not to hurt him, for his master would surely pay many pouches of coppers in order to set him free. At daybreak the company of soldiers started moving towards the castle and amongst them was their hostage who was tied with his hands behind his back and whom they had dressed in the clothes of a field-laborer. And at the head of the company were the hunters with the hides of two wolves which had been caught the day before - so that the murderers of the innocent would be there for all to see. The gates of the monastery of Saint Catherine opened for the troops to pass through and all along the way to the Castello large crowds gathered to see for themselves the wolves that had mauled so many people. And among them was the Turkish ambassador, Sophianos, who seemed to be looking for someone amongst the swordsmen heading for their barracks.