"I told you my aim was true." "You both saw!" " I don't know what I saw." " Whatever that thing is, it dares to poach from the king's forest." "An offense punishable by death!" "Malcolm, there!" "Behind you! William, Malcolm, follow me! Don't let it escape." "There!" "I told you I hit it." "Malcolm, wait!" "Perhaps you need a larger target." "You'll see." "Someday I'll be the greatest archer in all of Nottingham." "Oh, my!" "I'm to be married to the greatest archer in all of Nottingham?" "How terribly exciting." "I never said I wanted to marry you." "Where are you going?" "Hunting with my father." "Godspeed, my great archer." "Whoa." "Help me." "Are you mad?" "You saw what it did to Roland." "I saw that beast strike him down." "Now I see a man attempting to do the same to a wounded, helpless woman." "William:" "What witchcraft is this?" "Perhaps the answer lies in the blood itself." "A being that bleeds yet does not die." "Who's ever heard of such a thing?" "Malcolm:" "No one." "Which is why we need tell no one of her existence." "Just what the devil are you getting at, Malcolm?" "To be virtually unstoppable in the face of all who stand in your path." "Imagine wielding such power." "Which of us is mad now?" " If Roland was here..." " Roland is dead!" "Which means that I am now sheriff." "And it's I who shall determine what is to be done with her." "Until we can determine who she is, where she came from and her connection to that cursed beast, she'll return with us to Nottingham where we will send word to King Richard seeking his counsel." "King Richard is a bloody fool and so are you if you cannot see what power you have in your hands." "I'm sorry, old friend, but I have sworn an oath as deputy, as did you, to live and die by the laws of the king." "If I cannot depend on you to be silent, so be it, old friend." "Father!" "Run, Robert, run!" "No!" "Young master Robert, come out." "I know what you must be thinking, but the quarrel I had with your father has nothing to do with you." "No harm will come to you, I promise." "These tracks are deep." "Perhaps so are the purses of their makers." "When was the last time you had a proper night of fitful rest?" "When Richard returns at last from the Crusades we can all rest." "Something disturbs your sleep." "You worry too much, John." "Come, I've got a plan." "Man:" "There you are, my dear." "I've turned the castle upside down looking for you." "I was beginning to fear you'd run away." "How am I to run when you'd have me bound in the chains of servitude?" "Must you always be so melodramatic?" "Yes." "If I must still wed Leopold, Earl of Austria." " Duke." " Whichever!" "It's of little importance." "These are dark times, my dear." "With Richard off fighting the Crusades, it's critical that we make Austria our ally rather than our enemy." "Is this to be a marriage or a goodwill mission?" "Duke Leopold is a man of great power and influence." "A man who merely holds a seat of power is not necessarily a powerful man." "Why, look no further than that charlatan Prince John." "Hold your tongue, child!" "Sometimes you remind me so much of your mother with your tempestuousness." "There's not a day goes by that I'm not grateful that you entered this world... the same instant my dear Lily left it." "You were her gift to me." "And yet you would ask me to spend the rest of my life with a man 20 years my senior, one I do not even know, much less love." "With our distant and tenuous blood ties to the throne, you cannot marry for love, only for country and the promise of a more certain future than any I could ever provide." "Get yourself cleaned up." "You'll be in your bridal gown within the hour that you might be presented to Prince John." "Yes, Father." "Thank you." "Look sharp, men!" "This is the domain of outlaws." "Right." "Hyah!" "Good morning, sir." "You look rather taxed." "Perhaps we could lighten your load." "You're making a grave mistake." "We ride from Eden's Gate on behalf of His Majesty Prince John." "Well, you and he can both take great comfort in knowing that your loss shall be the gain of others who I assure you need it far more than you." "Now the question is... what to do with you." "I say we kill 'em!" "Well, get on with it then, and be quick about it." "On your feet." "Come on." "On your feet!" "Let's go." "On your feet! Go on!" "Get on!" "Go on!" "Be sure to give our best to the prince and His Lordship the Dishonorable Sheriff of Nottingham." " Bye!" "Come on, let's drop this off at our camp on the way to Bishops Down." "Don't suppose we've got time to grab a spot of something to eat?" "Did we not already have breakfast?" "Well, it's just likely there'll be serving while we're there and I thought who knows if we'll have time to eat again, right? And what of the chest?" "Man:" "He took it all, milord." "Sounded like he had a bloody army with him." "It all happened so quickly." "We were surrounded, outnumbered." "I'd say more like outsmarted." "It was him, sire, the hooded man." "It's a wonder he even remains at large." "Sire, he is nothing if not cunning." "We have scoured all of Sherwood for his encampment." "Clearly, you've not looked hard enough." "Robin Hood is a champion of the people." " They harbor his encampment." " Then they must be made to pay." "I want all taxes raised immediately." "We'll leave them no choice but to give up their beloved champion." "You do not think this a proper course of action?" "Tightening the purse strings is always good for business, but surely another present can be found." "That chest has been in my family for generations... bestowed upon my father at his own coronation." "It must be recovered!" "Yes, sire." "I told you to fetch Marian." "The prince demands to see her at once." "Marian's gone." "The chest and now this." "Need I remind you, Malcolm, the importance of this impending alliance with Austria?" "No, sire." "And I believe I have an idea how we may best find your cousin so that the wedding can go ahead as planned, while striking a blow against the people at the same time." "Whatever you have to do, do it!" "Make arrests." "Burn Nottingham to the ground if you must." "I want her and that chest returned to me." "Robin Hood will be fitted for a noose within the week." "See that he is." "Or else you'll be taking his place." "You nearly killed me!" "No, I nearly killed the deer and surely would have had you not upset an otherwise perfect shot, good sir." "Poaching in the forest of the king is an offense punishable by death." "The king cannot be found in the wood today, I'm afraid." "Nor in all of England!" "And until such time as he returns to reclaim his throne," "I shall continue to borrow from those who can afford to lose it." "Borrow?" "You would steal from Prince John?" "Why, you're nothing more than a common thief." "A thief perhaps, but a most uncommon one, I assure you." "And what might your business be in the wood this fine morning, sir?" "You who not only speaks on behalf of the prince, but also wears his crest." "Perhaps you're one of the sheriff's traveling tax collectors, your pockets flush with the purses of hungry peasants." "I have no quarrel with you, sir." "I only wish to continue on my way." "And I shall be happy to allow you to do so, but first I must demand a one-time, non-refundable traveling tax." "Do not challenge me, thief." "I have no desire to harm you." "Oh, duly noted." "You fight well, particularly for a girl." "I daresay you're one of the most worthy opponents I've ever bested, not to mention one of the loveliest." "You fight well, for a thief." "You all right, Robin?" "It sounded like you were fighting the sheriff's whole bloody guard." " Just having a friendly spar, teaching a few tricks to our new friend here." "Looks like she might have taught you one or two herself." "Huh." "Oh my God." "It's you, isn't it?" " You're..." " John:" "Robin Hood, the golden archer of Sherwood, defender of truth, upholder of justice..." "Thank you, John." "I believe that will suffice." "John:" "Friend to the needy and the righteous, foe to the greedy and the tyrannical," " champion of the people..." " Blackguard thief." "Ooh." "Or at least according to the sheriff of Nottingham." "And who might you be?" "His promoters, perhaps?" "The lad is Gareth." "And I am Little John." " Little?" " It's a family name." "And you... you hardly look at all like they've depicted you in the wanted posters." "Really?" "A bit more rugged?" "Rakishly handsome?" " Shorter." "Might we know your name, milady?" "You do not already?" "Well, I'm quite certain I would remember such a face." "Lily." "My name is Lily." "Well, Lily... please allow us to escort you to your destination." "I have none." "I was just out for a walk." "A walk?" "In Sherwood?" "It's hardly the place for a lady to travel alone, even one that pretends to be a man." " It's all right, honestly." "I was just..." " No, please." "I must insist." "These woods are fraught with danger and I know every leaf like the back of my hand." "Very well then." "Let him be." " Open it." " But, sir..." "I've waited years for this perfect opportunity." "Open it now!" "Malcolm:" "Alina?" "Oh." "The hooded man has struck again." "What do you know of that?" "I wonder... which is worse... that you believe you know his true identity or that you may die before ever knowing if you're right?" "You pathetic creature!" "I'll not have you mock me!" "What's it to be then?" "More torture?" "Bloodletting?" "A proposition." "You understand what must be done?" "If that which you ask is the price I must pay for my freedom... so be it." "Malcolm:" "Go!" "Seek out Robin Hood." "Search every farm and every shop and every home in Nottingham." "Let hearts run cold with fear and streets red with blood." "My liege, how can you be sure that she'll obey?" "Or that she'll return?" "Malcolm:" "Because I have something she desperately needs more than her freedom, more than anything else in this world... a little insurance policy I took out years ago." "It's Robin!" "Come on." "Robin!" "Robin!" "One for you and one for you." "Thank you." "Gareth." "Have you none left?" "Really?" "What about these?" "Go give Little John a hand." "Tell him we must leave soon if we're to reach the friar's church by nightfall." " There you are." " God bless you." "God bless you." " A little left here." " Thank you." "He's got fast hands, your little thief." "He doesn't say much, does he?" "The sheriff's men took Gareth's parents as well as their land." "And then they took his tongue." "These people, I don't know how they manage to survive." "Well, it's no thanks to your liege," "His Majesty the Prince." "Despite what you may think," "I have no allegiance to the prince." "I consider no man a leader simply because he declares himself to be one." "A belief like that could get a young lady hanged in certain circles." "No wonder you've chosen to run away." "Whoever said I've run away?" "A woman who speaks with such a sharp tongue, yet travels in disguise as a man clearly flees from something." "I have my reasons for leaving home and they remain my own." "Why do you do this?" "You put yourself at risk for so many, and yet I sense you take no pleasure in it." "Your friends, I see the joy in their faces to match those of the peasants they are helping." "For you, it's as if it's a compulsion..." " a burden, even." " Milady." "Have you no home to call your own?" "No." "No possessions then?" " A family?" " No." "Surely there must have once been something, even someone you held close to your heart." "I'm curious whatever would prompt a man to choose such a life." "Believe me, no man would willingly choose this life." " I simply meant..." " All that I once possessed in this world has been taken from me." "Get back." "I want more." "Oi!" "Leave him alone!" "Who's next?" "My chicken." "Man's voice:" "Alina." "Alina." "You are part of the world of man now." "As such, no longer allowed among us." " I'm sorry, but it is the law." "There he is, the famous outlaw." "John:" "We have many friends here." "This place is like home to Robin." "Not a very happy one, it would seem." "What's this?" "They've raised my bounty." "Dead or alive." " You get more popular all the time." "Excuse me, young butcher." "Have you got a spot of something to spare for an old traveling gypsy?" "Bugger off." "Oh, that's not nice, is it?" "Will, it's me Robin." "I come bearing gifts for you and your father." "Blood money stolen from the prince?" "Charity at such a price we can do without, thank you." "Where is your father?" "My father is laid up at home with two broken ribs, courtesy of the sheriff's taxmen and no thanks to you." "And after all that my father's done for you, bringing you into our home, treating you as if you were his own son, and this is how you repay us?" " I don't understand." " Everyone who knew your father says that he lived as he died..." "a hero." "Now you may be full of noble intentions, Robin, but your actions are hardly those of a noble man." "You're not worthy of your father's name." "Well, I'm not sure what happened here, but I assure you we can help." "You've done enough already, mate." "Now you and your companions had best be on your way." "There's a lot of people in this village who are liable to turn you in simply to keep a roof over their family's heads and a hot meal in their bellies." "Go on, go." "You shouldn't wield a blade unless you intend to use it, friend." "What, is that a threat, big man?" "I'll carve you up like a Christmas goose." "Let's go." "Will." "What are you gonna do now, eh?" " What are you gonna do now?" " Alms for the Church." "Alms for the Church." "Help the poor, help yourself." "Ah." "Very kind of you, sir." "The Church thanks you." "Eh, now if you and your associates would make another generous donation," "I might just know where a weary traveler can find the finest mead in Nottingham." "Robin:" "Will and I grew up together." "We were like brothers once." "And yet, today I saw in his eyes he was prepared to draw blood." "He's hardly alone in that sentiment." "People are saying you've gone too far this time." "Because of your attack on those riders from Eden's Gate this morning," "Prince John has decided to raise taxes." "Well, I say we've struck a nerve." "Friar Tuck:" "Yes, word is you've stolen something quite valuable." "Uh..." "Money intended for the Duke of Austria as a gift upon his marriage to the Lady Marian." "Marian?" "We didn't even know there was to be a wedding." "Yes, and yet somehow you've managed to make off with the bride." "Why didn't you just tell me that you were Edmund Fitzwater's daughter?" "It is not my fault that you did not think to ask about my father." "Lily." "You would even use your mother's name to make a fool of me?" " That was not my intention." " Yet you have willfully deceived me!" "Well, forgive me!" "I hardly thought it possible to pull the cloak over the eyes of Robin Hood, the great golden archer of Sherwood." "15 years is a long time." "It could have been 15 and 20 more and I still would have known it was you, Robert." "And now here you are all these years later... equally as obtuse and twice as stubborn." "And you, content to serve the wishes of a false king by agreeing to marry Leopold?" "You speak as if I had a say in the matter." "My mother's family is of noble blood." "My father seeks to extend that royal lineage." "Even if it means helping Prince John keep his filthy paws on that crown?" "!" "So now we know why I've run away." "Why did you?" "It's better that you don't know." "Someday, God willing, all will be made right again... when the sheriff and Prince John are but a memory and Richard returns to unite England." "Until then, my path is clear." "It's all that I have left." "You're up rather early." "Perhaps they're right." "Maybe I have gone too far." "Nonsense." "You've simply ruffled more than just the sheriff's feathers this time, that's all." "Malcolm must be loving this." "All his various attempts to thwart me and here I've gone and single-handedly given him reason to turn all of Nottingham against me." "You know... of everything you've given the people, the most valuable is hope." "And that is what Malcolm seeks to take from them." "For if their hope falls, then so does Sherwood." "And once Sherwood is his..." "She's turned into quite the lady, your Marian." "She's not mine." "She belongs to Leopold, Earl of Austria." "Who is currently a groom without a bride." "She is here with you." "Perhaps you should ask yourself why." "Much has changed since we last saw each other, Friar." "Has it? Have Gareth fetch my bow." "We're too late!" "Will:" "You!" "You're responsible for bringing this plague upon us!" "Will, behind you!" " Robin, what is it?" " I don't know! Hey!" "Hey!" "Over here, come on!" "Are you all right?" "Come on, how's about we have some fun?" "Robin:" "John! Tuck!" " No!" "Give this to Robin." "Let's you and I have another go, eh?" "Robin:" "Ready my arrows." "John:" "We've wounded it." "Yeah, as a tick wounds a dog." "Robin!" "Let's get him to the church before that thing decides to return." "He's resting now." "I don't know what more I can do for him." "He's lost a lot of blood." "Suppose I owe you one, saving my hide like that." "You would have done the same, given the chance." "I've never seen an animal like that before, have you?" "I mean, what sort of beast bleeds but doesn't die?" "A being that bleeds but does not die." "Who's ever heard of such a thing? Dark Woods..." "Friar." "Must travel beyond Sherwood Forest." " I'll fetch Robin and the others." " No time." "No time." "Go to the Dark Woods." "Only one way to stop the beast." "Find... the keepers of the trees." "Of course." "Is he gone?" "He was talking about the creature." "And then he..." "I'm so sorry." "May there be enough mead in heaven that your cup never run dry, old friend." "Where are you going?" "That thing was sent here for a reason." "If I stay it'll only return." " So what do you intend to do, then?" " To give the sheriff what he wants." " Me." " Marian:" "Wait." "The friar said there is but one way to stop the beast." "We must travel to the Dark Woods and find the keepers of the trees." " What Dark Woods are these?" " I'm not sure." "He said somewhere beyond Sherwood." "I know the place the friar speaks of." "Pack our things." "We leave for the Dark Woods in an hour." "Who's there?" "Show yourself!" "Ah, woman," "I hope you have good reason to return empty-handed." "What has happened here?" "I found Robin Hood, milord." "The Lady Marian is with him." "The merchant village behind the old stone church." "Then show me quickly while we still have daylight!" "Please, sir, no more." "Surely you can endure a few more hours of pain." "It's not simply that." "After all those years, I'd nearly forgotten." "The transformation..." "I fear that someday I may lose control entirely." "Perhaps if I had that which you've taken from me..." " No!" " Your Lordship, please!" "I beg you!" "Once Robin Hood has been captured... then I will give you that which is yours and I will send Sir Guy to find you a cure." "And at last you will be human." "You have my word." "Now where did you say they were? The creature returns." "It's brought company." " Marian:" "What's that?" " Robin:" "A place to hide." " Is he not going with us?" " No, and you're staying with him." " What?" " You'll hide here until they pass and then you'll head to our camp." "You'll be safe there." "Once we get to Dark Woods, I can't promise I can protect you from the sheriff's men or that thing." "I am more than capable of protecting myself." " There's no time to argue, Marian." " You're not leaving me again." "Why you arrogant, pig-headed..." "Cheeky bastard." "Well, I think we lost them." "For the time being." "Those are the Dark Woods then?" "What have you found?" "They entered here, but only three." "There's no sign of the boy." "He's hidden the boy and Marian in some safe place." "What strangeness is this now?" "Do we follow, milord?" "Clearly the woods do not wish us to enter." "It's all right." "Be patient, Alina." "They would have only dared enter the woods for one reason only." "As for Marian and the boy..." "Can we not take a moment's rest?" "Right." "Have we not come through this way before?" "Big man's right." "This is madness." "We don't even know where we're going." "Uh, Robin, did anyone else see a different path here not a moment ago?" "Merely a trick of the eyes." "Yeah, more like a trick of the trees." "Lived in Sherwood my whole life, never even knew these woods existed." "It's probably because anyone who's ever entered it has never made it back out alive." "Did anyone happen to remember to bring any food?" "I am so hungry, I would even stomach some of Robin's squirrel stew about now." "Bloody hell!" "How do you feel about bat?" "A little small, but beggars can't be... There's too many of them." "Good thinking, John." "Try it again." "Well done." "Maybe these keepers of the trees will find us now that you've alerted them or anyone within 12 miles of our presence." "I swear, I'll never speak ill of your thunderous snoring ever again." " Are we almost there?" "What?" "What is it?" "It's all right, Gareth." "It's only a girl." "Here." "Hello there." "We won't harm you." "Thank you." "My word, what's happened to you?" "The work of the sheriff's men, no doubt." "Well, lucky we came upon you." "There's a terrible creature lurking about these woods." "We seek the safety and shelter of Robin Hood's camp." "You must come with us." "Can you walk?" "I think so." "All right." "Come along." "You saved my life and now you intend to end it?" "I thought you were one of the sheriff's men, or worse, come to kill us while we sleep." "What are you on about?" "I despise this place." "Oh, you've been here before?" "Once, a long time ago." "The day my father was..." "You know, my own father spoken often of William of Locksley... of his greatness, his honor, his integrity." "I'd always wished that I'd had a chance to meet the man." "Now I have." "We should move on." "There's no more light here in the day than there is at night." "The sooner we find the keeper of the trees, the sooner we can leave this place." "Okay." "Here you go, love." "Thanks." "So you're the Marian he's always been on about." " I'm sorry?" " Skinny little thing, aren't you?" "Come on, love, eat up." "Could I bother you for one more?" "That's the spirit, love." "Here you go." "We'll have you plumped up in no time." "Thank you." "You should eat something." "Thank you." "It looks so different out here away from Nottingham." "It's been a long time since I've gazed upon such a moon myself." "Do you live in these woods?" "Among the trees, yes." "But not these." "Where I'm from is very different." "I should very much like to see it then." "I myself can never return." "Why not?" "I am not like my people." "I'm an outsider." "You and I have much in common." "You're in exile as well?" "My father's fault, really." "After a lifetime of being ignored and virtually imprisoned in that castle... a girl has to do something, you know?" "I've longed for freedom." "I'd give anything in the world if only to live a normal life." "Such is our curse." "I beg your pardon?" "To be a woman in a world of boys." "It's lucky we have each other then." "Are you all right?" "It's just that it will be dawn soon." " I fear that..." " Don't worry." "You're safe here." "You're extraordinarily kind." "Not really." "Just human, I guess." " What's that noise?" "It's just a toad." " What was that?" "A bird of some sort, I would imagine." "I do not want to know what that was." " There's someone out there." "Some thing anyway." "Come on, we've got to keep moving." " You there!" "Will!" "Well, whoever it was, we lost them." "If there was ever anyone there at all." "John!" "Will!" "John!" "He couldn't have strayed that far." "He should be right here." "Robin!" "John!" "Will! Who goes there?" "Show yourself!" "This is madness." "Well well, if it isn't the runaway bride." "Who are you?" "What is this place?" "It is the Temple of the Elders." "Are you the keepers of the trees?" "Yes." "We are the Sylvans." "Alina!" "Let them go." "You've done well, Alina." "Sir Guy, put these three in irons." "The rest of you, search the camp for survivors." "If you find any, kill them." "Let him go!" "Come here!" "Come here!" "These look okay to me." "What do you think?" "I think you were born with a bottomless abyss where your stomach should be." "How can anything like this grow in a place without sunlight?" " What is it?" "We're not alone." "Hey, little fella." "Are you hungry?" "Here you go." "Something tells me he's not exactly a herbivore." "I must find my friends." "We entered your forest together." "Will." "John." "Where are they?" "I must help them." "You will never reach them in time." "No." "Please!" "I'll have your men brought here." "You shall all be safe as long as you are among us." "Alina cannot harm you for she has been banished from our forest." "Alina?" "That thing?" "Do you mean to say it has a name? You must believe me." "I never intended to lead them here." "It is as you say, we're of the same class." "You and I are nothing alike." "I have no choice but to do as he asks." "Each of us has a choice." "You simply made yours selfishly." "You do not understand." "What are you?" "Sylvan:" "Though she was born a Sylvan," "Alina's mother Saffira never felt she belonged among us." "She never felt the laws applied to her." "One day curiosity led her to seek out the world beyond the Dark Woods." "She returned weeks later, her womb flush with the seed of life." "She refused to divulge what had happened to her." "When Alina was born, she was fine, healthy." "But Saffira herself was not." "Her experience in the world beyond had changed her." "But like many Sylvans, she was immortal." "Last I knew there was only one way to cure her condition... the desmoria." "Alina:" "You must understand." "The Sylvan society is one of order and perfection." "There's nothing out of place except for my mother and me, her half-breed child;" "both of us shunned, until they forced her to ingest the desmoria." "Desmoria?" "A very rare mystical plant." "They called it a cure." "It was really a punishment for breaking the law and leaving the Dark Woods." "And this desmoria... it killed her?" "It took away her immortality." "And then they killed her." "After my mother was gone, the others refused to accept me." "In their mind, I would always be an outsider, a constant reminder of my mother's defiance, a blight on their perfect utopia." "And thus I spent a great deal of time by myself." "Each day I ventured further and further away from the Temple of the Elders, all the others, my mind filled with the many stories my mother had told of life beyond the woods." "And then one day I found it... the entrance to your world." "It was more beautiful than my mother had said or than I'd ever imagined." "It was then I discovered that which had laid dormant inside me all those years." "Sylvan:" "Alina crossed the threshold into your world, thereby unleashing the curse her mother had inflicted upon her." "I followed her, saw her for what she really was... a creature that lives only to harm and destroy." "A monster." "It was agreed she must either succumb and take the desmoria or be cast out of the Dark Woods forever." "So I chose to live among your kind." "I quickly realized that while your world holds the key to my affection... sunlight... it also held it in great abundance." "And the creature that killed Robert's father... it was you, wasn't it?" "I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about." "Three men encounter a strange winged creature found in the king's forest." "Roland and William, his successor, are killed battling this creature." "Malcolm becomes sheriff." "And now all these years later... the winged creature suddenly returns." "I remember that day." "One man fell by the claws of the beast, it's true, but the other..." "it was him." "I've remained his prisoner ever since." "He promised to do what I cannot..." "fetch the desmoria." "And you took this man at his word?" "I must." "He took the very beating heart from my chest." "Only he knows where it may be." "Robin:" "I don't understand." "Where has this half-woman half-beast been all this time?" "Why has she suddenly reappeared?" "The man you stand in defiance against..." "The sheriff." "...he alone knows the answer to that question." " John." "Will." " John:" "Robin." "He has lost much life blood." "Will he be all right?" "Time will tell." "The chest." "Prince John will be pleased." "Of that I'm not so sure." "Family heirloom, eh?" "Well, no wonder he didn't want this falling into the wrong hands." "What is that, milord?" "Bring the Lady Marian to me at once." "Where can I find it?" "The Tree of Life can be found atop the Weeping Wall, a half a day's walk to the north." "Can you take us there?" "We choose not to become involved in matters that concern your world." "The beast wouldn't be in our world had you not kicked it out of yours." "If the power of men like the sheriff is allowed to continue unchecked, it may only be a matter of time before their tyranny spreads to your world." "It is simply the way it must be." "It is the law of the woods." "Where I come from, it is men, not the trees who make the laws." "Right then." "Will, are you all right?" "Can you walk?" "Yeah, well enough." "Robin, wait." "What are you doing?" "These people have no desire to help us." "Right now we're the only chance anyone has of stopping this creature, thwarting the sheriff's plans and putting all this right again." "And we haven't time to stand here talking about it." "Malcolm:" "Ah, the Lady Marian." "Please sit." "That will be all." "STell me about your new friend, the outlaw thief who's terrorizing Sherwood, trespassing in the king's forest, plundering whatever and from whomever he sees fit." "He's the most heroic man I've ever known." "No true hero would disgrace his country by stealing from her in so bold a manner." "I wonder." "Does the same hold true for sheriffs and princes as well?" "Ah, well," "I don't think we'll have to worry about His Highness Prince John much longer." "Why?" "You see, I've recovered this." "It was a gift sent up from Eden's Gate, stolen by your golden archer, a gift intended for the royal family of Austria at your wedding." "You can keep it." "The wedding's been canceled." "But, my dear, you don't even know what's inside." "Money and power are the only things men of your kind care about and only one's fit to be put in a chest." "On the contrary, this parchment was inside." "It specifies King Richard's whereabouts." "Apparently your hand in marriage and a cartful of gold were payment for King Richard's assassination." "Making England a vassal state to Austria." "Unless I should turn this over to the people, in which case they'll be clamoring to see Prince John swing from the gallows." "After your hero, of course." "So much power." "Pardon?" "It's just... you have so much power at your disposal." " If only..." " If only what?" "Never mind, Your Lordship." "It's hardly my place to say." "Please speak freely." "I insist." "By possessing that parchment as proof of Prince John's treachery, you have an opportunity to succeed where the prince has failed... by currying favor with the people." "Then use your knowledge." "Think of all that could come of it." "You'd be heralded a hero, your legend greater even than that of Robin Hood himself." "You are a shrewd young woman." "I'm beginning to think the wrong Fitzwater has held a seat on the council all these years." "But there may be a place for you yet, given that your father was so eager to secure his own nobility." "He agreed to trade your chastity to Austria." "I wonder what he'd give for the safe return of his daughter." "Let me and the boy go and I'll give it back." "You'd use me as a lure to get to Robin Hood." "Now you have a choice... the prince or Robin Hood." "Whom do you wish to see fall more?" "You'd best make up your mind quickly." "Burn it!" "The very knowledge of its mere existence is proof enough to put Prince John in his place." "Very well then." "Such a spirited girl." "Will:" "So he said this plant, the desmoria, is where?" "Up at the top." "I don't see a plant." "I don't see a top." "Well, there's only one way to find out." "Will, you stay here." "You'll need your strength for when we return to Sherwood." "John!" " Hang on." " Don't have much choice at this point." "Are you all right?" "All the way up there, eh?" "Shall we proceed?" "I'm afraid my love for gooseberry tarts has caught up with me." "The fact that you've come this far is more than any man could ask." "For the promise of good companionship and the occasional hot meal," "I'd follow you to the fiery furnaces of hell, Rob, you know that." "I'll see you on the ground." "All right." "Robin?" "I'm all right." "Is that it then?" "The desmoria?" "All right, can we leave this cursed place now?" " Yes." " Finally." "If I never see these woods again, it'll be too soon." "So the people's champion has returned at last." "Where are your companions?" "Looking down from heaven and listening even now, I should hope." "The Dark Woods are fraught with many dangers." "I myself barely escaped." "Sir Guy, relieve our hero of his prize." "Tell your man if he values his life, he'll stand down." "I'm beginning to see why you two got on so well, Marian." "You share a healthy enthusiasm for arrogant defiance." "You may be comforted to know that your comrades' deaths were mercifully swift." "Is that the same mercy you showed my father that day in Sherwood Forest?" "So it is you." "Take him! No!" "Robin!" "The desmoria." "My liege!" "Let her go." "I no longer have a need of her." "Spread the word far and wide that tomorrow will be a most joyous day in Nottingham, for the villainous outlaw Robin Hood will be hanged along with his thieving young friend and his beautiful but treacherous consort." "Marian:" "All this time you've known that Malcolm killed your father and yet you've never told anyone." "Robin:" "I was only a boy." "My father was murdered so that he would be silenced." "I simply could not risk anyone else I cared for suffering the same fate." "Mark my word... to my last breath," "I will see to it that he suffers an eternity in hell... and you with the man to whom your heart belongs." "Robin." "There's something I must tell you about my engagement." "Despair not, milady." "All is not lost." "If you and I cannot be together, then..." "I will see to it that Leopold has his bride." "Oh, for heaven's sake, if you would just listen for a moment." "Here." "I figure you must be starving by now." "Not really." "I've lost my appetite." "All right, I'd say we've got about five hours to reach Nottingham, get in the castle and break them out of the dungeon." "Guess all we need now is a plan." "Ah, Your Highness." "A most excellent day for a hanging, don't you think?" "A bit brisk for my taste." "Merely the winds of change." "When the people gather here at midday to see Robin Hood finally brought to justice, they will witness the birth of a new order, a new England." "Marian:" "Would you stop pacing?" "I'm plotting." "Then perhaps you could try and plot a bit more quietly then." "If only we could get word to your father." "Yes, I know." "But how?" "I'm working on it." "Gareth, you managed to swipe that?" "Now if we only had a bow to go with it, you might have something." "Good man." "Give it here." "Now what? The keys." "I can hit them from here." "That's a one-in-a-million shot." "Well, lucky for you, you happen to be incarcerated with a one-in-a-million sort of fellow." "Assuming you could get that arrow through that ring of keys with that contraption and not wake the guard, you'd need some way of getting them from there to here." "Oh." "Here we go." "Godspeed, my great archer." "You've missed!" "Keys but not the table." "Good work, Gareth." "Idiot! Robin!" "Gareth!" "Let me out." "Hand me this one." "Little John, Will." "What are you two doing here?" "We came to rescue you." "And we got captured." "It all sort of worked out though, didn't it?" "Uh, a little help here!" "Right." "Guard!" "All right, Little John, take them to Sherwood." "Meet me by the great elm along the North Road." "You're not coming with us?" "I've got to get the parchment from the sheriff." "With it, we can bring down both he and the prince." "But the sheriff doesn't have the parchment." " What parchment?" " But I thought you said" " you saw the parchment?" " It's gone." " I burnt it." " Whatever for?" " It was meant as a bluff." " A bluff?" " I was trying to escape." " You should never bluff." "Well, I'm sorry, but given the circumstances, I didn't..." "Would someone please explain what the devil's going on?" "Allow me." "This is the point where the legend of Robin Hood ends and the legend of Malcolm the Great begins." "I was only planning a hanging for three, but the more the merrier." "Let them go." "This is between us." "It always has been." "I'll deal with him." "Watch the others." "I've waited a long time for this." "That makes two of us." "I promise you, this is one fight you'll walk away from with more than just a scar." "And I promise you it's one you'll not walk away from." "Robin!" "You won't do it." "I've turned your most ardent followers against you, but we both know the truth... you're no killer." "I am but what you have made me." " Robin!" "Any last words, thief?" "I have been robbed... of home of country and of family." "I have nothing left to lose, thus nothing left to fear." "Not even death!" "Noble and valiant to the end, just like your father." "Kill me and you'll never know where it's hidden." "Take the desmoria, you'll become one of them." "But without your heart you'll die like one of them." "No! Well then, Nottingham certainly owes you a great debt." "As do I." "I hereby declare you no longer betrothed to Leopold of Austria." "Thank you, Your Highness." "And the parchment?" "Where is it now?" "Robin:" "Somewhere safe... where it shall remain." "Your brother Richard is a great man." "All of Sherwood will be anxious to see how you manage his safe return." "What was that you said before about bluffing?" "That one should only do it if one is absolutely sure it will work, milady." "She could have lived forever." "That wasn't living." "She's free now." "So are you." "Robin, I think there might be a boy underneath all this dirt." "What will you do now?" "Rebuild... there." "Let Sherwood remain our home until Richard returns to Nottingham." "Let it be mine as well." "And I shall remain simply Marian until such a time that..." "I can be properly wed in the eyes of the king to the man that I love and of my own volition." "Perhaps here at the friar's church then?" "I rather like that idea." "You assume, Robert of Locksley, that by properly wed I meant to you."