Mortal Beloved
(whispering) Help me.
YOUNG WOMAN
Who's there?
What do you want?
(whispering) Please. Help us all.
A ghost. I saw a ghost.
XENA
Where?
YOUNG WOMAN
In the woods, outside of town.
GABRIELLE
What makes you think it was a ghost?
YOUNG WOMAN
It was around me, everywhere I moved. It seemed
to glide over the earth. It was horrible.
XENA
I'll go take a look. (to Gabrielle) You stay here.
GABRIELLE
No problem. (to Young Woman) It's all right.
EXTRA
A ghost, eh?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
(whispers) Xena.
Xena, I'm here.
What do you want?
MARCUS
You, Xena. You.
XENA
Marcus? Marcus.
Behind you.
I'm a ghost, Xena. The living can't touch me.
XENA
I've missed you so much.
MARCUS
I've missed you too, Xena.
XENA
I'm glad you came. I've got a lot I want to talk to
you about.
MARCUS
We don't have time for that now.
XENA
What's wrong? Why are you here?
MARCUS
Something terrible has gone wrong in the Underworld.
Good souls are in danger. We need your help.
XENA
How?
MARCUS
The Alconian lake. If you just-
Xena!
XENA
Marcus!
MARCUS
Hurry! Xena!
Listen. Would you just listen? Now, I know that
you care for Marcus, but you shouldn't be doing this.
XENA
Why?
GABRIELLE
Well, for starters, he didn't finish his instructions.
Maybe he didn't mean for you to dive to the bottom
of the lake, known for being unusually deep.
XENA
What else could he have meant?
GABRIELLE
Consider the consequences if you're wrong. Even
if you reach the bottom, you won't have enough
air left to make it back to the surface.
XENA
Then I'll make it to the Underworld one way
or another.
GABRIELLE
It's not funny.
XENA
Gabrielle. The man I love has asked for my help
to save good souls. I have to try this. Gabrielle?
Yes, you do. Well, I'll camp here and I'll wait.
ACT ONE
(singing) Like the men of Trasor, of freaky odds,
She could get a white gown and one gold
Without taking a breath.
While the flute played-
You must be Charon.
CHARON
No, I'm Tallulah, the dancing girl. Of course I'm
Charon. Who else would be crazy enough to be
down here? Mind you, with all the changes that
are going on, I could be losing a job soon.
Ah-ah-ah-ah! No more Mr. Nice Guy. I refuse to
take any more dead people across, unless they
got a coin.
XENA
Charon, I'm not dead.
CHARON
You're not dead?
XENA
No.
CHARON
You mean you're alive?
XENA
Yes.
CHARON
Ay-yi-yi. What is it all coming to?
XENA
Charon, I know something's gone wrong on the
other side.
CHARON
Oh, I know something's gone wrong on the other
side. Yeah, well, you can say that again. We got
everything turned upside-down. All the wicked
are in the Elysian fields. All the good guys are
down in Tartarus. And now we got tourists already.
XENA
I want to help set things right.
CHARON
You wanna help set things right? When Hades
can't do anything?
This, I gotta see. Here, get on board. She's gonna
help solve the problem.
(singing) Like the men of Trasor, of freaky odds,
She could get a white gown and one gold
Without taking a breath.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hey, you're gonna be back, you know, under
different circumstances, if you know what I mean.
XENA
Can't wait.
CHARON
Yeah, well, bring a coin next time.
Don't be scared. I'm not going to hurt you. Here.
I'm here to set things right.
EXTRA
Thank you. Have you seen my Mommy?
MARCUS
Xena.
XENA
Marcus.
It feels so good to hold you. I've thought about
you a lot.
MARCUS
I know. Whenever a living being thinks of us, we
can hear it. Thanks. It's meant a lot to me.
XENA
I know the problem. the Innocents are here in
Tartarus. How did this happen?
MARCUS
You ever hear of a mad-man named Atyminius?
XENA
Yeah, of course. The old men in my village used
to try and scare young girls by saying that, if we
didn't behave, he'd come and get us. The story
had it that he specialized in killing brides before
their weddings.
MARCUS
Not just killing them. He liked cutting them into little
pieces. This guy stands out as a bad one even
down here. He's somehow managed to steal
Hades' helmet of invisibility, and he used it to confine
Hades and turn this place upside down. He loves
torturing innocents and rewarding fiends.
XENA
Where is he now?
MARCUS
Well, he moves around, but he likes the pleasures
of the Elysian Fields. That's the best place to find him.
XENA
Can we go there?
MARCUS
Yeah. I know way.
XENA
When we go in there, will anyone notice we don't belong?
MARCUS
No one pays that much attention to anything in the
Elysian Fields.
Come here wench!
EXTRA
Come on! Try it!
EXTRA
Come here!
EXTRA
Come!
They have everything they could possibly want
and yet they want more.
MARCUS
Strange thing. They're not happy even in Paradise.
TOXEUS
Xena!
MARCUS
You know him?
XENA
I killed him.
MARCUS
Oh.
You ended up with the wicked after all, Xena. I
guess it's hard to make up for a lifetime of evil
with a few good deeds at the end. Tell me,
who had the pleasure of killing you?
XENA
No one. My horse threw me and I broke my little neck.
TOXEUS
Oh, I love that. You didn't even get to go out like
a hero. Well, listen, I want you to know, there's
no hard feelings. Sure, I hated you for a while.
But when this change happened down here, I
was actually grateful to you. It's great to be wicked
and dead!
XENA
I hear we owe all this to Atyminius. Is he running
the place?
TOXEUS
For the moment. Between me and you, Xena, this
is one very sick man.
XENA
You'd know.
MARCUS
Is he around?
TOXEUS
He may be. You never know. He can make himself
invisible with Hades' helmet.
XENA
So he could be standing here right now, listening
to our conversation. He might even have heard
you call him a sicko.
TOXEUS
Yeah, I guess he could have. (speaking louder) I
meant that as a compliment, of course.
XENA
Of course.
TOXEUS
You enjoying yourself so far?
XENA
I'm not sure. I still haven't figured out all the rules.
TOXEUS
That's the great thing. There are none...at least
for us. We have the run of the whole place, even
Tartarus, if we want. The good, on the other hand,
have to stay where they are. Isn't death grand?
Let's keep looking around.
XENA
Marcus.
MARCUS
Yeah.
XENA
How were you able to travel from Tartarus to the
Elysian Fields if only the wicked have the run of
the place?
MARCUS
Xena, the place is in chaos. I just-
XENA
Tell me the truth, Marcus. You were put with the
wicked when you died, weren't you?
MARCUS
Well, like your friend says, it's hard to make up
for a lifetime of evil with a single good deed
at the end.
XENA
So if we succeed in putting things right, you'll
spend the rest of eternity in Tartarus with the very
people you're about to betray. Why are you doing
this, Marcus?
MARCUS
Xena, I died doing a selfless act. You taught me
how sweet that could be. And I knew you'd do the
same thing if you were in my place.
You'll pardon me, will you? You can't hit what
you can't see!
I take it Atyminius has arrived.
Why all the glum faces? I'm in a wonderful mood.
The thought of traveling always cheers me up.
TOXEUS
Where are you going, Atyminius?
I understand you were a leader among the living, Toxeus.
Well, here, you are my slave. It is Lord Atyminius
to you.
TOXEUS
Of course. What's the matter, Lord Atyminius?
ATYMINIUS
I smell mortality. One of the living is among us.
Mmmm! It's that woman there. We need to make
her one of us!
EXTRA
Kill her!
EXTRA
Get her!
END OF ACT ONE
ACT TWO
It's not gonna work, Atyminius. Go ahead, try to
kill me. You'll just find he's lied to you. He's
trying to cast suspicion on me because he knows
I've been asking the wrong questions.
ATYMINIUS
Questions, what questions? Nonsense!
XENA
Like, why do you get to keep the helmet?
MARCUS
That's right. Just because he stole it from Hades,
doesn't give him the right to lord it over all of us
for eternity!
XENA
Toxeus, how do you feel about being bullied by
this maniac?
ATYMINIUS
This is ridiculous! Put a sword through her and
see if she's telling the truth!
I might be dead, but I'm not gonna let you mutilate me
without a fight. Of course, that's what he wants,
isn't it? Us fighting amongst ourselves, when we
could be fighting for the helmet.
Good point, Xena.
Come on, get her! Kill the women!
I want the helmet!
TOXEUS
Your reign is over, Atyminius!
ATYMINIUS
It's mine! It's mine!
Atyminius, you're mine!
Ah-h-h-h-h-h! Oh!
ATYMINIUS
Enjoy eternity without a body, Toxeus!
We'll never get to Atyminius in this mess. Let's
get out of here while we can.
You going to the festival?
GABRIELLE
No, I'm waiting for a friend.
TRAVELER
Is she coming from the other side of the lake?
GABRIELLE
Sort of.
TRAVELER
Bye.
I need to talk to Hades.
MARCUS
Well, reaching him won't be easy. Atyminius has
guards around Hades' palace.
Well, we've fought guards before.
MARCUS
No, not like these.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
What are they?
MARCUS
The harpies.
Get back! Get back! Be careful, Xena!
Eat this!
They're not real keen on fire.
Marcus! Marcus!
MARCUS
Xena!
Thanks.
What?
XENA
You lost some weight.
MARCUS
It gets hot down here.
Hades.
Xena. What are you doing here?
XENA
I could ask you the same thing. Why aren't you
trying to get the helmet back from Atyminius?
HADES
Without the helmet of invisibility, I'm almost powerless.
XENA
You have got to do something. Atyminius plans
to go up to the world of the living and start
his killing spree again. He'll be sending more
innocents to Tartarus.
HADES
What did you say?
XENA
He'll be sending more innocents-
HADES
No, about the land of the living.
MARCUS
That was his plan. He could be there now, for
all we know.
HADES
He may have made a key mistake.
XENA
What do you mean?
HADES
Normally, when one of the dead goes to the land
of the living, they're only a shade, a ghost, unable
to do anything but scare little children. He certainly
couldn't kill anybody. But wearing that helmet will
bring him back to life, he'll be mortal again.
MARCUS
I'm sure that's what he wants.
XENA
He loves his mortality, and the suffering it can cause.
HADES
Yes, but, once he's mortal, he can be killed
again. But when he dies, the helmet will return
with him to the other side.
XENA
Send Marcus and me up to the world of the living.
We'll get him.
HADES
You're not dead, you're free to go at any time, but your
friend's a ghost. Not much help against Atyminius.
XENA
Then give Marcus his life back.
HADES
You don't know what you're asking.
XENA
I am telling you I can't do it without him. Has the
great god Hades become so powerless, that
he can't do this one small thing to save his kingdom?
HADES
All right, but I can only manage forty-eight hours.
Then he dies again. Take this passage here.
You can avoid the Harpies that way.
XENA
Which way would Atyminius have gone?
HADES
If he wants to return to the world as a living mortal,
he'll have to travel as a mortal. I suspect he left
the same way you came in.
XENA
Thank you.
Xena? Is that you?
Hello, little one.
GABRIELLE
Who's there?
You aren't about to be married, are you?
GABRIELLE
Who are you?
ATYMINIUS
No, I suppose that would be too much good luck.
Still, you'll do for a start.
GABRIELLE
Where did you come from?
ATYMINIUS
O-o-oh, the look of fear in those beautiful eyes,
how I've missed that. That's why I had to appear
in front of you in flesh and blood. The anticipation
is the best part.
Oh-h! A struggle. What a nice bonus.
Look!
No!
ACT THREE
Missed me, Xena.
How does it feel? Your fear excites me.
XENA
Marcus, the footprints.
There!
Gabrielle? Gabrielle.
Xena. Where's that maniac?
XENA
We drove him off.
GABRIELLE
Did you see the nosebleed I gave him? There was
blood everywhere. Then he kicked me in the head,
and--and then the next thing I saw was you. It's a
very pleasant sight.
Are you all right? You look like you saw a ghost.
MARCUS
I lost him. He took to the trees.
XENA
Gabrielle, this is Marcus.
GABRIELLE
Oh, I've heard so much about you. I'm sorry we didn't
get to meet before you were...killed. You're dead.
XENA
He's alive again, for a while. We'll explain as we
move. But, right now we've gotta to go after Atyminius.
And remember, he could be anywhere.
MARCUS
Let's go.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here it is.
This must be where he came out of the trees.
Looks like they lead out of the forest. He's got a
good head start on us.
GABRIELLE
Maybe his wound will slow him down.
XENA
No, the bleeding's already lightened to a few drops.
MARCUS
There's none up here. Must be a minor wound.
XENA
We'll keep going, and try to close the gap as much
as possible before nightfall. There's no way we'll
be able to follow his trail in the dark. And if we don't
find him by sunset, we'll have to make camp.
GABRIELLE
Camp? Who's gonna sleep with that monster
roaming around?
MARCUS
I wouldn't worry about it. He's trying to put as much
space between him and us as possible. He already
knows the punishment we can hand out.
XENA
Besides, he won't attack us at night. It puts him
on the same footing as us. He can't see us in the
dark either. No, the advantage of being invisible
comes with daylight.
GABRIELLE
Just the same, I don't plan to close my eyes all night.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
She had a rough day.
MARCUS
You should get some sleep yourself.
XENA
And what about you?
MARCUS
Nah. I want to be awake for every moment of life
I have left to me. You know, you don't realize the
kinds of things the living take for granted, until
you don't have them anymore. Like the evening
air. It just settles on you like a cool blanket. And
the sky. There's nothing like it on the other side.
You know what I missed most?
XENA
Ah, would that be me?
MARCUS
Yes, that would be you. There's something
I wanted to say to you.
XENA
What?
MARCUS
My death was not your fault. Things had to play
out the way they did.
XENA
Sometimes, I think if I had just said things a little
differently, then maybe you'd have come around
before it was too late.
MARCUS
No. Xena, it was a miracle you got to me at all.
See, I was convinced I could never change. But
your words finally found their way to my heart.
You did everything right. Don't be so hard on
yourself. And don't give up on love.
XENA
You heard those thoughts too?
MARCUS
Yes.
XENA
It's just that I found out how much you meant to
me one moment, and you were gone the next.
It hurt too much, I guess. I started wondering if
it was ever worth it to care that much.
MARCUS
Oh, but it is. One thing that I've learned, is that
love is the strongest power in the universe. It's
stronger than evil. It's even stronger than death.
My feelings for you were the only thing that kept
me going down there in Tartarus. It was like I
was carrying my own Elysian fields around inside
of me.
XENA
There's something I've been wanting to say to you, too.
MARCUS
What?
XENA
I love you.
Help us, please!
XENA
What happened here?
TRAVELER
I don't know. We were on our way to the festival,
when, something attacked us. It came from nowhere.
Some invisible power.
XENA
You're going to be all right. Where did you say you
were headed?
TRAVELER
The festival near Pylos.
XENA
What kind of a festival?
TRAVELER
A wedding.
XENA
Now we know where Atyminius was headed.
When was the marriage to take place?
TRAVELER
Tomorrow. Tonight's the ceremonial bathing.
XENA
We've gotta hurry. The bride's in great danger.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Are you all right?
I hate jugglers.
Be glad you're not a mime.
Where's the bride's father?
EXTRA
Over there. He's in the house.
Hey. He's acting like he's seen a ghost.
XENA
Look, there.
Are you all right?
EXTRA
I think so.
Are you the father of the bride?
BRIDE'S FATHER
Yes.
XENA
I need to talk to you.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I thought Atyminius was killed years ago.
XENA
I heard that too, but believe me he's here in Pylos now.
MARCUS
For your daughter's sake, please, let us help you.
BRIDE'S FATHER
All right. I'll cooperate. What do you need?
XENA
Atyminius frequently struck at the ceremonial
bathing of the bride. I want you to let me take
her place in the ceremony. The traditional veil
will keep my identity concealed until the last moment.
MARCUS
And hopefully he'll strike by then. And when he
does, Xena and I will handle him.
BRIDE'S FATHER
And my daughter?
XENA
She should stay here in her quarters. No one
will suspect that the bride is home in bed on the
night of her bathing.
What are you saying?
BRIDE'S FATHER
Dear, I have some terrible news for you.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
It's better if you can just get some rest.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
ACT FOUR
I knew that you'd hear every word.
How long I've waited.
Send you to Hades forever!
Enjoy Paradise a while longer, Atyminius.
Stay here. Marcus and I have something we've
got to do.
What's the matter?
MARCUS
This helmet kept Atyminius mortal. He could still
appear in the flesh, but wearing it from time to
time kept him alive.
XENA
What's your point?
MARCUS
If it worked for him, it could work for me.
XENA
Marcus, do you know what you're saying?
MARCUS
Yeah. We could live out our lives together. Without
the helmet of invisibility, the wicked have no power
over Hades. He could put things back the way
they were. What about it, Xena?
XENA
Is that what you want?
MARCUS
It's what I want, but that's the problem, isn't it?
XENA
What do you mean?
MARCUS
You taught me that life and death are not about
what I want. It's about what's right. What if
Hades can't do it without the helmet? It's too big
a chance to take.
XENA
I guess I was too good a teacher.
MARCUS
You were the perfect teacher.
XENA
I can't stand the thought of you spending eternity
in Tartarus. You are a good, good soul.
MARCUS
That's the way it has to be.
(singing) ...to the feasting of the gods.
Are you dead this time?
XENA
No, neither is he.
CHARON
Wait a second, I know this guy, he's been dead
a while.
XENA
Well, he's not dead anymore.
CHARON
I don't believe this. There are no rules anymore.
All right, that is it. I'm drawing the line right here,
somebody has to. So, I'm not taking either of you
across unless you give me a gold coin. Now there'll
be no exceptions, no bargains, no compromises,
and absolutely no deals.
Welcome aboard. Hope you have a great time.
Come on. Please, make yourselves comfortable.
And, uh, keep your hands inside the boat. Now,
looking to the left, you will see the caves of despair.
And, uh, just coming up ahead on the right, you
will see the hanging gardens of disgusting diseases.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I've got a bad feeling about this.
Marcus!
Xena! Hurry!
Marcus.
I'm slipping!
Did you find the helmet?
XENA
Yes.
HADES
Well, where is it?
XENA
I hid it.
HADES
Why?
XENA
If you want to get it back, you'll have to put Marcus
among the good. If I don't tell you what I did with
it, you may never get it back.
HADES
I can't do that. It's impossible.
XENA
Don't give me that, you're a god.
HADES
Every man and woman can be judged only once
when they die. Not even I can change that.
XENA
When they die? All I'm asking is that you give
Marcus a hearing when he dies. You gave him his
life back for forty-eight hours, remember? He'll die
again soon. He deserves another judgment.
Well, have fun looking for that helmet.
HADES
No, wait. All right, I give you my word. I will judge
him again. But, keep in mind that all his past bad
deeds will still weigh heavily against him.
XENA
I want to speak on his behalf.
HADES
That won't be necessary. I know everything that
Marcus has done.
XENA
I don't just wanna talk about what he's done. I
wanna talk about what's in his heart.
HADES
All right, you can talk for him. Now, where's the helmet?
XENA
Marcus.
Your time is up, Marcus.
MARCUS
Xena. Let's get it over with.
He could have kept that helmet and lived out his life.
You know that, you see everything. He was tempted,
but in the end, he did the right thing. Look into
his heart. He told me once, that in Tartarus, he
learned to carry the Elysian Fields inside him. Let
him bring that love to Paradise where it belongs. Please.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
You must go now, Xena. Marcus is in the Elysian
fields forever. Now, say good-bye.
MARCUS
Keep thinking of me.
Xena!
He's in the Elysian fields.
GABRIELLE
You'll be together again one day.
XENA
We'll never be apart. He's in here.
Forever.
END OF ACT FOUR
STARRING
Lucy Lawless as Xena
Renee O'Connor as Gabrielle
GUEST CAST
Bobby Hosea as Marcus
Paul Willis as Atyminius
Erik Thomson as Hades
Michael Hurst as Charon
Chris Graham as Toxeus
John Palmer as Traveler
Michelle Armstrong as Young Woman
Geoff Clendon as Bride's Father
Chantelle Brownlee as Bride
Written by: R.J. Stewart
Directed by: Garthy Maxwell
Disclaimer: No Winged Harpies were harmed or sent to a fiery grave during the production of this motion picture.
