"That's it." "Forgive me, God, for I have sinned." "I am king." "I am king." "You have made me king." "You have made me king." "...forgiveness for your sins?" "Do you ask God's forgiveness for your sins?" "Dear God!" "Philip." "If you wish Maud to make your son Earl of Shiring," "I need to successfully trade Stephen with Gloucester." "I'll contribute to the ransom fee, if that's your concern." "No, my concern is Stephen." "If he is redeemed, will the war continue?" "Undoubtedly." "Therefore Queen Maud may not rule for long." "And then whose side are we on?" "We need to play both sides." "I intend to do that as negotiator, but your position is not as flexible." "Are you with Maud or are you against her?" "That's what Stephen will think." "And as of this moment, you are most decidedly with." "Well, then, if he wins, you will have to intercede for us." "You presume our position is that of equals." "I need you to serve me, not command me." "Dear Lady, you mistake my meaning entirely." "Well, then, what would Your Eminence have me do?" "Whatever your wish, I am happy to obey." "I wish to be made Archbishop of Canterbury once Stephen regains his throne." "The current one will have to be removed, of course." "Drink this, Brother." "How did I come here?" "I told the executioner that, as the Queen's secretary," "I would answer for your innocence." "But I thought you supported Stephen." "He's as self-serving as his predecessor." "I've become a politician, Philip." "I serve who best serves me." "And I hear you have a cathedral." "Not yet." "I need a few miracles first." "Then let us give thanks, Brother." "This is a day for miracles." "I found you, Maud is now in power, and the dead have returned to life." "They found him crawling from a mass grave." "You're a new man, Jack." "A Lazarus." "I'm sure I stink like Lazarus." "You must have died, too, from the look of you." "Nearly." "God has further plans for me." "For you, too, I suspect." "What plans?" "What do you remember of the last three days?" "Did you pray?" "I was laying with the dead." "I suppose I don't remember." " I dreamt, though." "I remember that." " What of?" "Of Aliena." "Lovely evening." " What are you doing here?" " I just came out to look at the moon." "What?" "No." "No, wait." "Aliena, don't go." "I can't swim very well." "Help!" "Aliena!" "Help!" "Alfred?" "Don't come near me again." "What?" "But I love you!" "I love you!" "The Empress's terms are non-negotiable." "Stephen must sign a document acknowledging her sovereignty and leave the country forever." "In addition, you will pay Maud 1,000 pounds in gold and hand over Robert of Gloucester in good health." "Interesting." "We were gonna ask 1,000 pounds from you." "Why not cancel the ransom fees and proceed from there?" "Your Eminence, may I have a word?" "We need the fee in order to bankrupt them." "Otherwise, what guarantee do we have that Stephen won't ignore anything that he signs and begin a war again?" "We need a guarantee." "If we ignore the ransom fees, we need to hold Stephen's son, Eustace, until his father has left the country and peace has been kept for five years." "King Stephen will never agree." "It's not his decision." "Think about it overnight, dear Richard." "No one at Maud's court knows what Eustace looks like, do they?" "And what's your name?" "Elizabeth." "That's a pretty name." "How old are you, Elizabeth?" "I'm 12." "You're a very pretty girl with very pretty lips." "Has anyone ever told you that?" "Good day, Bishop." "I thought you were for Stephen." " Do you see these people before us, Henry?" " Yes, Mama." "They've come to ask us favors." "Do you know why?" "You're the Queen." "I'm the Empress." "I rechristened myself this morning." "And one day, you will be Emperor, and people will come to ask you favors." "So I want you to listen." "Francis, you may speak first." "And who is this handsome man?" "This is my brother Philip, Empress, the Prior of Kingsbridge." "Handsome, I pray, before God, Empress, but very plain to others." "Humility and humor, a rare combination." "You ask us to grant you a license to hold a market?" "The income from which will be used to finish building a cathedral." "Finish?" "How did you pay for the start of it?" "We had a license, Empress, but it was lost." "King..." "The usurper Stephen refused to grant us another." " Why is that?" " He kept his reasons to himself." "May I speak, My Empress?" "The market at Kingsbridge was closed because it took money from the one at Shiring." "The rule is that markets must be at least 14 miles apart." "Kingsbridge and Shiring are 20." "Stephen nevertheless decided..." "What Stephen decided is of no interest to us." "You also ask for the right to take stone from the Shiring quarry." "We have had those rights for years, Empress, until William..." "I closed the quarry in retaliation for his illegal market." " Who owns the quarry?" " We do, my Empress." "It was the usurper Stephen that allowed Kingsbridge to take the stone." "A foolish bequest, giving quarry rights to one party, yet letting another mine it." "We quite agree." "The quarry and all its mining rights shall belong to Shiring." "Thank you, My Empress." "On the condition that you successfully negotiate the release of our brother Gloucester from the enemy." "Kingsbridge, however, shall have similar market rights to Shiring." "The same condition applies." "Thank you, Empress." "In addition, Henry here would like a toy from each of you." "And I'd like a toy, too." "One hundred pounds, or your requests will be denied." "Next." "Can you borrow it?" "Money lenders charge exorbitant interest." "I could never afford to pay it back." "Is there no one else?" "A merchant, perhaps, who benefits from the market?" " He might find it to his advantage." " She." " What?" " She." "I did her a favor once." " We've just received the word!" " What?" "Martha, what is it?" "Jack's alive!" "Is that Jack Jackson with the Prior?" "You don't look dead to me, Jack." "My God!" "Jack!" "Yes!" "Brother, welcome home." "Welcome home." "Great to see you, lad." "A hundred pounds?" "I'd lend it to you gladly if I could, but I need it to buy next year's wool." " When would you need it returned?" " Early spring." "Can you manage it?" "No." "No, not unless..." "Why can't I sell you next year's wool?" " You haven't got it yet." " But I will, in the spring." " You'd sell it to me in advance?" " Yes." "You pay me now, and I'll give you the wool from the first shearing." "I've never heard of business being done like that." "Why shouldn't it be?" "Well, I'd have to offer you a lower price for it than you get by waiting." "The price for wool, I mean, goes up in the spring." "No matter." "I'd be able to keep building during the winter, and everybody would be employed." "So I give you the 100 pounds, you give it to Maud, and you get a license for the Sunday market?" "Yes." "Yes, the same as Shiring." "In addition to the Sunday market, Shiring has the annual fleece fair." "That's where I make most of my money." "I don't follow." "Why don't we have one here?" "If the license is the same as Shiring's, why can't you host a fleece fair next year to compete with Shiring?" "It would save me transportation." "I could lure the Flemish buyers here." "You would make more money in a week than you would in a year of Sunday markets." "And it would break the Hamleighs' back." "Brilliant!" "William would be as mad as a bull." "Yes, and there's nothing he can do about it." "Welcome back." "Thank you." "I knew you weren't dead." "You shouldn't be here." "They'll see you." "No, even Waleran can't keep me from my son." "Come on!" "What are you doing?" "I'm trying to be helpful." "Walter will take the boy." " Who was that boy you gave them?" " Your son, Eustace, Sire." " That wasn't Eustace." " Well, they don't know that." " Brother." " My dear Maud." "So, war begins again and chaos is king." "I don't see how that benefits us." "When chaos reigns, dear Lady, Satan often forgets about God's humble servants, and we may carry on with our holy work without interference." "Attack!" "We are betrayed!" "Stephen has attacked us once again!" "Does he honestly think we'll spare his son?" "Empress, I fear, sadly, the boy is not his." "He says his name is Charlie and he's missing his pigs." "Richard of Kingsbridge substituted a farmer's child for Eustace." "He resembles the usurper's son near enough." "He even fooled me, Empress." "Kill him anyway." "Stephen will learn that we, at least, keep our promises!" "And we are not to be crossed!" "Dear Sister, once again we're at war." "Advance is slow but sure." "And we hope by spring to defeat Maud and Gloucester." "Of course, since I fight for Stephen, if Maud wins," "I might never regain Shiring and Father's title." "William and his mother have taken Maud's side, for the time being." "But their loyalty is as dependable as snow and goes wherever the winds of power blow it." "Their ally, Bishop Waleran, has already laid the groundwork for siding again with Stephen if he were to win." "You must forgive my despair." "Winter slows the war and gives me too much time to brood." "It has stopped cathedral work, too, I imagine." "But come spring, hope may blossom, the war may end, the church walls may rise ever higher, and I will once again return to your dear self." "Until then, I remain your loving brother, Richard." "One, two, three!" " You started work late today." " Late?" "Well, there's not much we can do without a stock of stones." "Nevertheless, I thought it'd be further along by now." "We can't work in the winter, Prior." " And when we get more stones..." " And if we don't?" "You should've conserved their use, Tom." "Jack's been using too many, carving gargoyles." "Well, you can purchase some more soon." "You paid your debt to Maud." "She's given you a license for a market, hasn't she?" "Maud is losing battle after battle." "What happens to my fee if she's deposed?" "They'll be no more stones, and the coffers will be empty." "Steady hands." "Keep it level." "Perfect." "Da, look!" "If I can do this, I can build a stone vault." "How many times do I have to tell you?" "A stone vault is too heavy." "It can't be supported." "Why don't you listen?" " How many of these have you made?" " Sixteen, so far." "It's a little bit of fun in God's house." "What a waste." "Philip's in a sour mood." "All employers get like this at some point." "See, the work starts to slow down, it costs more than they ever imagined, and all they can think to do is complain." "They can't see the future, which, as a builder, I have to." "As a cathedral builder, especially." "No pessimists allowed." "Realists, yes." "I won't see this church completed." " Da?" " Nor will you, Alfred." "Or you, Jack, most likely." "I may see it roofed." "You might see the interior well on its way." "But it might be 50 years before it's finished, which is why I teach you." "That's why you must never stop learning, even after I'm gone." "Learn from who?" "From your pupils." "Your younger masters, who might find new ways to perfection." "Do you know what this is?" "That's glass." "What if I were to tell you that one day this is what cathedrals will be built from?" "Never." ""Never" is a word you must never use." "Now, this is all I have, right here, to pass on to my successor." "You're both my sons." "Now, I'd like to be able to share ownership between the two of you, but I know that sometimes you work at cross purposes." "I'd really like it if you could try your best to be friends." "And if not, the one that gets this, will be the one that best embodies my vision, my knowledge, and my belief in the future." "Do you understand that?" "Bastard!" "Jack, you bastard, you are not my brother!" "Marry me." " Marry me." " No." "Morning." "Oh, God!" " Don't ever sneak up on me." " I didn't." "I made lots of noise." "You were just so engrossed in that, that you didn't hear me." "I've never heard of a woman with such a library." "Which one is this?" "The Song of Roland." "It's about this knight who has a big horn." " And he blows it so hard that..." " That his head bursts." "You know it?" "My mother told it to me when I was a boy." "But she didn't call him Roland." "She changed the name to Foolish Jack." "How had she heard of it?" "My father told it to her." ""The French seduction" is how she described it." "He was French?" "He was a storyteller." "Apparently she laughed so hard at that one, he got very angry." " Did she know any others?" " She knew a few." "But the best were the ones that I told her." "You?" "Yeah, I made them up, you know." "There once..." "There once was a very brave knight..." " Who..." " Who..." "Who went into battle and received a mortal wound." "And as he lay there, dying," " his soul..." " Flew to the house," " where there lived a woman..." " That he loved." "Yes." "And his soul ate with her, and slept with her, and was so filled with longing for her..." "He flew back to his master and brought him back to life, in hope that one day..." "No." "Don't touch me there." "Don't you ever touch me again!" "Jack!" "Jack!" "Come quick!" " It's Alfred." "He smashed all of your statues!" " What?" "He smashed them all!" "Come on, boys, help me!" "There's fighting." "The scaffolding is not made for that violence!" " It's not the first time, Tom." " Philip, what brother..." "No, no excuses!" "If two of your workers continually fight, destroy property, tear down work that you spent months building up, what do you do?" "I will not have Jack and Alfred working together." " Look..." " One of them must go." "He's an apprentice." "I'm a master stone mason." "Send him away, Da, not me." "I'm your real son!" "If Ma was alive, this wouldn't even be a choice!" "We were a team once, remember?" "I was supposed to be your successor!" "Alfred, you'll have to pay a fine for the damage caused." " One month's wages." " A month?" "I doubt the prior would accept any less." "Could you leave us for a moment?" "Da!" "Go, before I double it." "That one over here?" "I'm sorry, Jack." "Why me?" "I pleaded with Philip, but he wouldn't soften." "This is my life." "He's my son." "I'm your son, too." "You said it." "You're the one that Philip will miss." "Now, Alfred, he's competent." "But you're brilliant." "Now, in a week or a month, the Prior will see his mistake." "And if he doesn't?" "You wouldn't even have a job if it weren't for me." " That's enough." " No, do you hear what I'm saying?" "I burned it down." "I burned the old cathedral so that you would have work." "God forgive you, then." "Get out." "Get out!" "Can I climb it?" "What do you wanna climb all the way up there for, Jonathan?" "Brother Jonathan." " Brother Jonathan." " So I can see Jack." "He's gone away and he hasn't said good-bye." "Sit down." "Jack went away because he'd done something bad." "He hurt Alfred." "Like Cain hurt Abel?" "No, not as bad as that, but, anyway, Jack and Alfred are not really brothers." "Isn't Jack your son?" "I'm raising..." "Was raising Jack, as a favor to Ellen, like Johnny Eightpence raises you." "He isn't my mother, but he likes to think he is." "I know." "My mother's dead." "I know that." "Do you know who my father is?" "Who?" "God." "He's everybody's father." "Of course he is." "Where will you go?" "Wherever they're building cathedrals." "I'll go to Jerusalem if I have to." "Philip is wrong." "He will understand that he made a mistake." "Philip's stubborn." "You push against him and he pushes back." "It would take witchcraft to change his mind." "Come in, Tom." "What are you doing here?" "You saved my life, once." "I know you're a man of mercy." "How did you get inside?" "Not all of the brothers fear me as you do." " Ma." " Let me speak, Jack." "I don't fear you." "I oppose what you stand for, which is hatred of God, and church and morality." "I love God." "Though I don't worship her quite the same way as you do." "My church hasn't as many rules as yours, and is a lot more forgiving." "And as for morality, I use love as my compass, which Christ seemed to approve of, even if you don't." "Ma, you promised to be civil." "Come in." "Close the door." "I spend too much time making decisions on the building." "I need an assistant, who can answer queries on construction, who can keep track of the money and raw materials, who can handle payments to suppliers, who can pay wages." "You wouldn't be carving stone, but you would be supervising the entire design on my behalf." "Really?" "Prior, that's fantastic." "In your spare time, if you had any, you'd learn to speak and read Latin," " you'd serve me during Mass..." " Why would he need to do that?" "Because my assistant must be a monk." "No!" "Your church is not having my son." "That's Jack's decision, not yours." " It burned his father." "It tried to burn me." " Ma!" "If I found the time, could I do some carving?" "Yes, of course." "And I'll have free rein to walk the grounds, speak with whomever I wish?" "You may speak to men, on business, yes." "God wants you, Jack." "Of that, I'm certain." "He saved your life." "He speaks to you through your art, as clearly as he spoke to Augustine," "Gregory, all his artist-saints." "The question is this:" "Do you want God?" "It's a simple choice, not an easy one." "Rise." "Put your hood on." "Kingsbridge is planning a fleece fair, and Shiring shall become a village of ghosts!" "Who told you this?" "Two of the Flemish traders who normally do business with us." "It's planned for the last Sunday in June." "That's two weeks from now." "How can we stop it?" "That is a lovely stone." "No." "This belonged to my father." "It's all I've got left of him." "Queen Maud, as you well know, is fleeing back to France." "Stephen thinks you are both traitors." "How else will I convince him you're not?" "He loves a gift." "Get him to stop the fair." "Dear Lady, the fair will begin as planned, but it will not end as planned." "Will it, William?" "Don't be nervous, My Lord." "Take your lesson from their cathedral." "Some take it as a work of art, a reason for living." "Well, I say destruction is a work of art and requires significant talent." "You have a gift, Lord William." "Let's make your mother proud." "You couldn't ask for a better crowd, could you, Father?" "Or better weather." "God's been good to us today." "Entrance." "Five each." "Entrance fee." "Right in." " Hello, Brother dear." " Kate!" "Kate!" "Have you come to be shriven?" "Sweet Jesus, I pray for this every day." "I came to sell my wares, Cuthbert." "Any of your monks interested in buying?" "Did I see Ellen here?" "Yeah, she came to see her son." "Not me." "She's still angry with me, for going along with your idea." "She's a good woman, Prior." "You should accept her as she is." "You're not going to be able to convert everyone, are you?" "But I can bring her son to God." "He's doing wonderful work." "You should tell her that." "If the good Lord, himself, came down from Heaven to praise him," "I don't think that'd make her happy." "40,000 sheep sold me their winter coats, would you believe it?" "It's cost me 200 pounds, but I'll make 300." "Even I lose my breath when I think about it." "If you need help, I will gladly stick around after I see Jack." "Ellen, I know how hard it must've been for you." "I'm perfectly fine." "It's Jack you should worry about." "He seems happy." "Good, that's all a mother asks for." "What is?" " I don't look that bad, do I?" " You've lost weight." " They're starving you." " They feed me too well, Ma." "You look exhausted." "How many minutes of sleep do they allow you between prayers?" "I skip most of the services, so..." "Do the monks try to sleep with you?" "Ma." "No, I have no interest along those lines, and even if I did, it's forbidden." "Do you have interests along other lines?" " What?" " Well, do you pleasure yourself?" "Ma!" "No, I don't." "No." "It's unnatural." "I want to make a confession, Father." "You're Kate, aren't you?" "Brother Cuthbert's little sister." "I remember you well." " What's it to you?" " You are everything to him." "He prays for you daily." "You are a knife in his heart." "See the dogs fight the bear!" "Six on the brown dog." "Who wants a piece of it?" "Winner takes the pot!" "What are they gonna do with him?" "They're gonna fight him." "Do they kill him?" " In the end, yeah." " That's sad." "Not so much, not for him." "See, he gets to die bravely, fighting for what he longs for." "What's that?" "Honor, really." "And he gets to go to bear heaven, wander around, eat as much fish as he likes." "Come with me, I got a surprise for you." "Up you climb, then." "You really mean it?" "Go on, I'm right with you." "That way." "There you are." "Don't get too close." "I can see everywhere!" "I can see London, and the ocean." " I can see Heaven." " You know, Jonathan..." "I mean, Brother Jonathan, I'm sorry." "There's something I wanna tell you." "I think I can see an angel." "Listen to me." "You know how you and I are friends, yes?" "Well, suppose I was to tell you, we were something closer than friends?" "Now when Jack went away, for me that was sort of like losing a son." " But..." " What's that?" "Ellen, get inside the priory." "William Hamleigh's attacking!" "Get inside the priory!" "William Hamleigh's attacking!" " Alfred, we've got to get away from here." " Let go, I got sixpence on the..." "Never mind that now!" "Get inside, everyone!" "Everybody!" "Run for your life!" " Jack, no!" " Come, Aliena, we need to go!" " I can't!" "No, it's all I have!" " Leave it, Aliena!" "Stay here." "Stay here, Aliena." "Shut these doors." "These doors need shutting." "And you stay here." "Stay!" "Close it!" "It's locked!" "We'll go to the cathedral." "Follow me!" "Open the door!" "For the love of God, let us in!" "Open the doors!" "Somebody get the keys from the monks!" " Remigius, what is it?" "What's happening?" " Prior Philip, there's a riot or something!" " Someone's attacking the fair!" " Well, open the door." "Let them in!" " Don't be a fool!" " Get out of my way!" "Out!" "Dear God!" "Dear God, why?" "Let me through." "Let me through." "I can open it." "Let me through." "Ease back." "Let me through." "Don't worry." "Don't worry." "I can open it." "Quickly!" "Please open it!" "Burn it!" "Burn everything!" "Burn the wool!" "All of it!" " Burn it!" " Burn the wool!" "Burn it!" "Aliena!" "Burn, witch." "No!" "No!" "No!" "Tom!" "Don't meddle, monk." "It was all for nothing, Tom Builder." "Let's go!"