02x11 - Palindrome

[bunniefuu]

FCROWD CHEERING]

From the beginning of time,
blood has paid for blood.

ALL:
Yeah!

MAN :
Let's do it.

Blood sacrifice appeased wrathful gods...

...but in our sick
and so-called civilized society...

...we have turned away
from this primal truth.

And so the v*olence got turned back
upon ourselves.

ALL:
Yeah!

And that is why we have heart disease
and cancer and dementia.

And you die alone in a diaper...

...in some room
that smells of disinfectant.

MAN :
Yeah, come on.

Well, tonight, brothers...

...Spartacus Ring unleashes
the power of the blood.

The power of the blood.

ALL:
Yeah.

And my champion...

...the Pagan,
king of the Spartacus Ring...

...will be challenged by the man
who has earned that right.

FCROWD CHEERING]

What? What? What is the word?

ALL:
Blood!

What is the word?

ALL:
Blood!

The only rule...

The only rule
is that you are your only w*apon.

There is no time limit.

There are no rest breaks.

You fight until it's over.

It's a natural law, law of the jungle.

Winner take all.

This is the match y'all been waiting for.

There's a hundred thousand dollars.

See if you can take it.

There is no substitute for victory.

Let's clash!

FBELL RINGING]

FCROWD CHEERING]

FBOTH GRUNTING]

FCHUCKLING]

SARA:
Carlos Ramon, age .

Did two years at Rikers for armed robbery,
paroled a year ago.

He was dropped off in front of his mother's
apartment in Spanish Harlem this morning.

She got an anonymous call
saying it was there.

Yeah, this guy was pulverized
by fists and feet.

His neck was also broken.

My guess, he was att*cked by a g*ng.

Looks like he put up a hell of a fight.

DANNY:
Maybe you wanna try talking to the mother.

She's still here and taking it pretty hard.

FSIGHS]

Don't they all?

Mrs. Ramon, if there's anything at all
you can tell me about Carlos...

...it might help us find the people
who did this.

What is this, Mrs. Ramon?

MRS. RAMON:
He drew it.

It was the symbol for the club
he got into through work.

What kind of a club?

The Spartacus Ring, it was called.

He said it was invitation only,
that only men could join.

Did he say why he joined
this Spartacus Ring?

He said it was going to help him
to be free.

Now he is...

fMRS. RAMON CRYING]

DANNY:
The Spartacus Ring?

Yeah, some kind
of underground fight club.

Invitation only, male only, very secretive.

And from the looks of Carlos,
hazardous to your health.

- Sounds like a cult.
- What's the play?

Well, Ramon was a stevedore
at the Port of New Jersey.

You two ought to spend a little time
with the longshoremen.

What makes you think
they'll ask us to join?

Your mutual penchant for fisticuffs.

FGRO ANS]

Wake up, chump.

- What's that?
- You heard me.

No, I didn't. Obviously you can't walk
and talk at the same time.

Oh, yeah? You want a piece, huh?

You want a piece?
Worried you're gonna mess your hair?

FDANNY MUMBLES]

- What?
- Which way you wanna fall?

FBOTH GRUNTING]

There's a fight! A fight!

JAKE:
Come on, dog. What's up?

FMEN TAUNTING INDISTINCTLY]

Oh, it's on.

Come on.

FOREMAN:
Okay, that's enough.

You don't get paid to fight.

There's nothing going on here.
Now, get back to work.

FMEN CHATTERING]

FHORN BLOWS]

It's not that swollen.

Your eye's not that black.

- What do you got?
- Same thing your mom always makes me.

It's good.

- What's up, man?
- Looks like you two kissed and made up.

Oh, it was nothing.
We was just blowing off steam.

Nothing like fist hitting face
to start your day, though.

- Yeah.
- There's only one thing I like better.

We're all slaves, you know.

We slaves to the clock.
We're slaves to the bosses.

Slaves to the man.

sh**t, we even slaves to the woman.

- You know what I'm talking about, right?
- I hear what you're saying.

Modern society
has made all us men slaves.

But inside, we're still the same
as we was the last million years.

What if we could break out of that?
What if we could break those chains?

Start breaking.

I know you guys like to fight.

But can you keep a secret?

We're in.
Spartacus Ring meets tomorrow night.

- Really, where?
- Don't know exactly yet.

We're supposed to meet at the Gristle,
post-fight watering hole.

Our contact is gonna take us
from there to the fight.

Excellent. I'll just hang at the Gristle.

And see if I can scrape up anything
worth chewing on.

Now, this time it's gonna be for real.
You guys up to this?

You're the expert on the pugilistic arts.
Got any tips?

Well, yes, I do, Jake. The sly rap.
Stand up.

- Hands up.
JAKE: Yeah?

You're gonna fake low,
and when he drops his hands...

...bam, you're gonna nail him.

Nice. Sly rap.

I'll save that for someone special.

JAKE:
Okay, give me a call.

- What's up, man?
- What's up?

JAKE: Wanna get a beer?
- No, no.

- It's time to go.
- All right, let's do it.

FSPEAKS IN LATIN]

FMETAL DETECTOR BEEPS]

SECURITY GUARD:
What's that?

All right.

What's that smell?

Beer, testosterone and cash.

FPHONE RINGING]

- Hang on.
- Yeah.

- You ready, champ?
- Oh, yeah, let's do it, man.

Let's go.

Yeah, it's two blocks south. You can
watch all comers from where you are.

IRONS:
Parallel lines always meet, lan.

Be prepared when they do.

Sara Pezzini will precipitate
this convergence.

And then what?

Conflict, pain, and perhaps a fortuitous
shift in the preferences of the Witchblade.

There is another.

FCROWD APPLAUDING AND CHEERING]

That must be Eddie Pan.

I asked around. He's the head guy.

FCROWD CHEERING]

Yeah!

MAN:
Tell us what it's about!

People talk about evolution.

There is no evolution.

There is only devolution.

Men once were gods.

Our true nature has been shackled
and chained...

...but inside, fire still burns.

Blood is our sacrament.

With fire and blood,
we set ourselves free again.

What is the word?

ALL:
Blood.

- What is the word?
ALL: Blood.

- What is the word?
ALL: Blood.

- What is the word?
ALL: Blood.

- What is the word?
ALL: Blood.

- What is the word?
ALL: Blood.

- What is the word?
ALL: Blood.

Let's clash!

Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!

FBELL RINGING]

FBOTH GRUNTING]

- Somebody should stop this.
- Who, the ref?

You okay, man?

I'm surprised more people
don't get k*lled.

You're up next.

Hey, all right. Who wants this guy?

You? You?

DANNY:
Sara?

FMAN GRUNTS]

You okay?

FJAKE AND MAN GRUNTING]

Were you able to procure
Valentino's scimitar...

...Mr. Bowman?

Yes.

It's a pleasure doing business with you,
Mr. Nottingham.

Uh, I've got a great connection for
all sorts of Hollywood esoterica and artifacts.

If you need anything else just...

Just, uh... Just give me a call.

FCLEARS HIS THRO AT]

Um...

Isn't this, uh... Isn't this where
Kenneth Irons used to live?

Yes. This is one of Mr. Irons'
many real-estate holdings.

Thank you, Mr. Bowman,
for your prompt delivery.

Sure.

Who is this other?

IRONS:
Sit down, my son, and I shall explain.

Five generations ago...

DANNY:
Pez.

Hey, whoa.

You two look like you've been through
the meat grinder.

More like the woodchopper,
but we both won.

SARA: Really?
JAKE: Yeah.

- Did you use the sly rap?
- No, not yet.

DANNY:
What were you doing there?

- Me?
- Yeah.

- Didn't I see you talking to Eddie Pan?
- Who's that?

You might call him the spiritual leader
of Spartacus Ring. He runs it all.

I could have sworn I saw you, but...
I don't know, it was crowded.

It wasn't me. Thanks.

I thought that women weren't allowed.

Thanks.

SARA:
So, uh, what did you find out?

The buzz is that Carlos was taken down
by this guy called the Pagan.

- He's the reigning king of the ring.
- They say that the Pagan pulverized Carlos.

Yeah, as in k*lled him?

Yeah. Supposedly Pan and Pagan
are a team.

SARA:
How many people were there tonight?

I don't know, maybe a hundred.

All of them with lots of dough
to throw around.

It's an incognito
but very high-end crowd.

Well, next time the Spartacus Club meets,
we're gonna take them down.

Spectators, participants,
the whole enchilada.

Right on.

Hey, look.

Who's...? Who's that?

JAKE:
Oh, he's one of the fighters.

Took a hell of a b*ating tonight,
but he came back and won.

You okay?

Huh?

- Yeah.
- You know the guy?

Uh, no, I thought I recognized him,
but, uh, no.

Why don't you two go talk to him?
See what you can find out.

All right.

- I'll get you his number.
- Funny, Danny.

FJAKE CLEARS THRO AT]

I thought you Irishmen
liked your beer warm.

- My glass is cold.
- Ha, ha.

What's up, man? I'm Paul.

- Ralph.
- Conchobar.

You're new to the Spartacus Ring.

Aye, you did good.

Thanks.

- That was a hell of a comeback.
- Well, you do what you have to.

- Hmm. How long you been fighting for?
- About years.

I'm a singer really,
but I misplaced my muse.

Yeah, I know what you mean.

- Do you now?
- Yeah.

Well, did you know that:

The blood-dimmed tide is loosed

And everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned?

That mean anything to you?

It means you know your Yeats.

Man, your pupils are a little dilated.

You might wanna check out a doctor
at some point.

Hey, give my friends a beer.

Make it dark and bitter.

Tough guy, huh?

Oh, my brother was the tough one.

- Was?
CONCHOBAR: He was k*lled.

In the Spartacus Ring?

- No, he wasn't k*lled that way.
- Thanks.

He was k*lled in Ireland last year
by the usual suspects.

Sorry to hear that, man.

Look, you both seem
like nice lads, but...

If ever we meet in that circle...

Excuse me.

JAKE:
Yeah, sure.

Excuse me, miss.

Can I help you?

- Do we know each other?
- I don't think so.

I mean, uh, what's your name?

Conchobar.

- What's yours?
- Sara.

Well, that's a... That's a pretty name.

I wrote a song about a girl
named Sara once.

She was just something I imagined,
but she might have looked a bit like you...

...if she was real.

I'd love to hear that song,
you know, sometime.

Well, could I get your phone number?
I'll call you.

Uh, you can give me yours.

All right.

SARA:
Thank you.

Good night.

What was that about?

SARA fCRYING]:
No.

No, no.

FGASPS]

FPHONE RINGS]

Hello?

Hello?

FDIAL TONE]

DANNY:
The only problem with a raid tonight...

...is Pagan won't be there
since he isn't fighting.

So we corral Eddie Pan, the ringleader...

...and question him
in a very aggressive manner...

...until he tells us who the Pagan is.

It looks good on paper.

What, do you guys wanna
keep on fighting?

No, but we do wanna get Pagan.

We do wanna put Eddie Pan away
for as long as possible.

That means we should probably wait
until the big fight against Pagan.

I know, but somebody could get hurt
before that...

...including one of you two cowboys.

It's not like anyone's forcing
these guys to fight. They like it.

If you ask me, the guys fighting
are as guilty as Eddie Pan.

Well, tell that to Carlos Ramon's mom.

See, I think that the whole thing
is orchestrated...

...and that Eddie Pan plans for a k*lling
in the championship.

It's show business at its bloody best.

The sooner we get rid of this guy,
the better.

I'm gonna have SWAT there tonight.

Alls I'm saying is
if you wait one more night...

...you have a better chance
of getting Eddie Pan and the Pagan.

We don't wanna jeopardize the case
by jumping in too early.

Yeah, but we don't wanna add
to the body count either.

How are you doing tonight, Sara?

I'm pretty good. You?

I'd be doing better if you'd called.

I did.

- That was you?
- Yeah.

- Well, I'm doing better, then.
- Ah, good.

I know who you are.

You're a cop.

- And I know why you're here.
- Um...

Don't worry, I won't tell nobody.

If you know who I am and why I'm here,
you shouldn't go in there.

Carlos Ramon was a good friend of mine.

I want the Pagan as badly as you do,
and I want the money.

How did you know?

His mother told me...

...she spoke with a nice woman
police officer with green eyes.

I knew who you were
the second I saw you.

So that thing out on the street
was just a come-on?

No.

No, this is gonna sound crazy,
but I already knew...

Never mind.

No, wait.

I dreamt about you last night.

I was dying, I don't know what from,
but I could feel my life draining out of me.

CONCHOBAR:
You saved what was left of me and I lived.

I had the same dream.

FPHONE RINGS]

Can you...?

Pezzini. Hold on.

I've got to go.

Are you gonna be waiting for me
when I come back?

Or am I gonna be carted away
in a paddy wagon?

Um, just be careful, okay?

Uh, yeah, yeah, I'm here.

SWAT MEMBER fO VER PHONE]:
I'm standing by. What's going on?

Is it a go?

Flag, flag on the play tonight.

- Are you sure?
- Yes.

Flag on the play. Let's not interfere.

Okay, we're pulling out.

Hey.

Later, Pezzini.

Let's go.

FCROWD CHEERING]

FBOTH GRUNTING]

JAKE:
We got a little problem.

Look who I drew.

- He shouldn't be fighting.
- No kidding.

You think she called it off?

You shouldn't be fighting.

Worry about yourself.

Stay down!

Stay down!

CROWD fCHANTING]:
Blood! Blood! Blood!

- You did what you had to do.
- Yeah.

- You still won?
- Yeah.

SARA:
Whoa. Whoa.

- Come here. Are you all right?
- Oh, yeah. I should...

Oh, I don't know.

Everything's so dark.

Oh, my gosh.

Come on, we gotta get you
to the hospital. Easy.

It's gonna be okay.

It's gonna be okay. Come on.

- Oh, so, what's the word?
- He's suffering from a concussion.

More significantly, cerebral swelling.

We'll try to bring it down
with some medication...

...but failing that, I'll have to operate.

SARA fWHISPERS]:
Thank you.

SARA:
Hi.

SARA:
Hey.

We just talked to the doctor
and she said you're gonna be just fine.

Anyone you want us to call?

I don't want to worry them.

I've missed you.

We'll check in on you later.

That's some weird theater in there.

That's for damn sure.
What do you make of it?

I'm trying real hard
not to make anything of it.

FDOOR OPENS]

FARAS CLEARS THRO AT]

Are you in, Nottingham?

Yes, Aras.

And though you don't realize it,
I know you.

Is that so?

I know you very well.

Hmm.

Who is Sara? What is the Witchblade?

And how do you know so much
about these things?

Are you quite sure you wanna know?

I wouldn't be here if I wasn't.

FBOTH CHUCKLE]

Please, sit down.

There's much I have to tell you.

But first, you have to cancel your plans
this evening.

FEKG BEEPING]

FMOUTHS]
Hi.

I just needed to be here.

I swear to God,
you don't seem like a stranger.

But I guess angels never do.

I'm not a stranger.

You know, you should just,
uh, take it easy.

Carlos was a friend of mine.

He was a good kid.

The Pagan k*lled him.

He put up a good fight, valiant even,
but, ah, he was outmatched.

That part was okay,
but after he was knocked out...

...Pagan k*lled him.

Snapped his neck.

FBONES cr*ck]

For what?

His mom, she loved him.

Get the Pagan for me.

Get the Pagan for Carlos' mom.

Get him for all the moms
who've ever lost their son.

I've missed you, Sara.

FWHISPERING]
I've missed you too.

FSINGING]
Oh, Sara is the pageant we play

Forever and eternally fated

Oh, Sara, I can't follow...

fEKG FLATLINING]

No. Conchobar?

Oh, my God. Conchobar, wait.

You're gonna have to leave
the room, ma'am.

NOTTINGHAM:
Five generations ago...

...two of the unfertilized eggs
germinated.

It was a mistake, in a sense.

From that point forward,
two parallel bloodlines existed.

One, the royal line of succession,
if you will...

...was destined to wield the Witchblade.

The other bloodline was filled
with a hunger and warrior spirit...

...but destined never to find fulfillment.

- Cursed?
- Yes.

Like the descendants of Cain...

...for their father is the darkness
and not the light.

You're a liar.
You're trying to destroy my mind.

You have a void inside of you.

Your own private piece of the abyss.

You have never known peace
and you never will.

You're left-handed.

Your DNA and hers are identical,
only Sara's spirals to the right.

Either hand can k*ll.

Go ahead.

Death has been waiting for me
like a glove with no hand in it.

FCHUCKLES]

I'd k*ll you in a second,
but you don't mean anything.

I wanna find out where this Sara is.

FCHUCKLES]

FSARA GRUNTS]

Who tipped you off?

I don't know what you're talking about.

What happened to the championship fight
that was supposed to go down tonight?

I'm a lover, not a fighter.
I still don't know what you're talking about.

Who is the Pagan?

Take a look in the mirror.

FLAUGHING]

SARA:
Shut up.

We are gonna keep this guy right here...

...until boredom, dehydration
and sleep deprivation change his mind...

...because hitting him's not gonna work.

- Why don't you guys go get some sleep?
- All right.

DANNY:
See you.

FPHONE RINGS]

SARA:
Yeah, Pezzini.

ARAS fO VER PHONE]:
Hello, wielder.

Who is this?

ARAS:
Your palindromic nemesis.

Your naughty, naughty doppelganger.

Basically your worst nightmare ever.

Take a look in the mirror.

- Didn't I see you talking to Eddie Pan?
- Me?

What do you want?

I want to see your, or my,
face, as I crush it.

See, the championship fight
is still on tonight.

Only the stakes are much higher
than a hundred thou.

FBONES cr*ck]

- Oh, my God, Pagan.
- Got it.

See, if I win,
I get your pretty little bracelet.

And if you win, you get
your pretty comatose friend, Conchobar.

He's still in a coma.

Are...? Are you my sister?

FSCOFFS]

Honey, genealogy is so boring.

I'm the next wielder of the Witchblade.

If you live, you can ask your friend lan
to explain to you who I am.

We don't have to do this.

Oh, yes, we do.

But not in the way that you think.

Give me your pretty bracelet.

FGRUNTS]

FGASPS]

He can't even feel it.

I want your pretty bracelet.

Just take it.

No!

Okay. Okay.

Okay?

FGRO ANS]

FARAS GRO ANING]

FYELLS]

Your ambition exceeds your grasp.

- Who are you?
NOTTINGHAM: Aras.

She's of your bloodline.

She's a replicate of you.

SARA: Not anymore.
- Sara, don't.

Or what?

She's of your bloodline.
The Witchblade can't hurt her.

Well, maybe this will work.

- Lf you k*ll her, I'll k*ll you.
- I'm all aquiver, lan.

You must take your friend to the hospital.
I'll tend to her.

Or not.

Trade?