Da Vinci's Demons (2013–2015): Season 3, Episode 6 - Liberum Arbitrium - full transcript

Sixtus: We are
still under the threat

of an assassin.

Prove yourself the master

and I shall pledge my support.

Laura: But we have
a mutual enemy.

Our very existence
is on the line.

Is it true you intend to
stand against the crusade?

We will not trade one
invasion for another.

The page. She
will find the page.

- Who?
- The daughter.

Lucrezia.



There was a page
in the Book of Leaves.

Do you have it?

You should not have come.

Your weapons were
designed by da Vinci.

If he were to build
similar for the crusade...

Captain Dragonetti?

Leonardo: He's here.

We are the horns
of the increate.

We shall not fear
the speaker of lies.

We shall not be deceived.

We are one. We shall not.

Why have I been forsaken?

You are the Monster of Italy.

Everyone is hunting for you.



Why?

They want to kill you.

But I...

I...

I want...

But I want to cure you.

Have you lost your mind?

That's the first lucid
thing you've said for hours.

Yet it is strangely comforting

to know my old
rival's still in there.

Somewhere.

Was I drugged?

Sedated.

You left me no choice.

You were poisoned, as
was I, by the Labyrinth.

But I'm working on an antidote.

Release me immediately.

No. I can't do that.

It's for your own safety.

And the safety of Florence.

I am no longer your enemy.

How many times
must I prove it to you?

You are at one
with the Labyrinth.

Leonardo, what
are you speaking of?

I speak of your lies.

I'm speaking of your Labyrinth.

Of the damned Sons of Mithras.

I'm speaking of the Turks,

of the so-called Pope Sixtus,

of any and all who
demand blind allegiance

whilst at the same time
claiming the name of God

as license to destroy...

A god that I'm not
even sure exists.

But if He does...

He would be horrified

at what's being
perpetrated in His image.

I feel your loss, signorina.

I know Captain Dragonetti

was a wise and
powerful ally of yours.

But the Turks will
continue to spread terror

unless we fight back.

We must be united.

Florence is honoring our
obligation to host a festival,

but that is the extent
of our commitment.

We live dangerous
lives in dangerous times.

To survive, you need allies.

Isolation will ensure only
Florence's destruction.

You are in a position
of power, signorina.

I suggest you use it.

No amount of money or power
can guarantee one's safety.

In fact, the more I
have, the less safe I feel.

All I want is for Giulio to
have a happy, peaceful life.

There can be no peace
while others endure such pain.

As a mother, your life
is no longer your own.

It belongs to your child.

But you are also the
new Mother of Florence.

Do not ignore your people.

Let us take the
fight to the Turks

and drive them from
our happy home.

Now tell me, while I have you,

do you believe in free will?

Playing god, are
we now, da Vinci?

Or a lesser god, maybe.

But if I created something as
diabolical as a human being,

the last thing I'd do
is give it the power

to choose between good and evil.

Ah!

Now, that is the
genius of our Lord.

Unlike the bird in the sky
and the beast in the field,

we must make a
choice... Saint or sinner.

Ah! So you're saying
that we are capable

of both great deeds
and terrible acts.

Mm-hmm.

And you clearly believe
I've made the darker choice.

Again I ask, what
do you accuse me of?

Well, my current theory
is that you have become

the physical manifestation
of man's eternal inner struggle

between good and evil.

You see, one part
of you seeks piety.

The other's a killer.

I'm the physical...

Mmm. And, um...

who do you claim I've killed?

Well, in Rome,
Cardinal Rodrigo...

and the poor
bathhouse proprietor...

and Clarice Orsini.

And in Florence,
Captain Dragonetti

of the Officers of the Night.

I'm not... I didn't... I...

You are the killer I described.

- The pious man...
- I couldn't...

Who kills with regret

and then exhibits his victims

as works of religious art.

Oh. Oh.

Oh, my God.

What...

Why?

Why have I done this?

I... for the glory of the
Labyrinth, I assume.

No, no, no. I have never
killed at their behest.

No, no. The Labyrinth
seeks to make all men pious,

to be of one mind before God.

You see?

Faith...

somehow...

It's made you a sinner.

The Architect said resistance
can take many forms.

Do you know, when I... When
I was under their influence...

I made touch with an...

An another world,
another reality...

born of my resistance.

But yours?

Yours was different.

And it caused you to act out.

To kill.

I... I...

I have doubted
their instruction.

I have questioned their motives.

I... I've...

I am not one.

I never was.

My heart must be so black.

My soul so riven with cruelty.

I cannot be saved.

Well, you saved me, didn't you?

After all we've
been through, I...

I could not watch you die.

Well...

then the Riario I
know is still in there.

There's still time.

I can heal you.

Body and soul.

We can eliminate the sinner.

I will not be so
easy to dispatch,

you sick son of a whore!

I don't want to harm
you. I want to help you.

Your help is to
blame for all this.

You infected him with
your enlightened ideas,

introduced him to
guilt, shame, remorse...

Riddled him with confusion.

I refuse to suffer his pathetic
whimpering any longer.

I will crush this
worm inside me,

then wring the sacred
life out of your damn throat,

Leonardo da Vinci!

Sophia: Yes.

I understand. I promise.

Yes, I'll tell her.

Sophia.

Oh, I'm sorry I woke you.

No, it's fine.

Who are you talking to?

I was talking to my mother.

It may sound a bit mad, but...

sometimes she appears to me.

Doesn't sound mad.

- When did she...
- Oh, she's not dead.

She's...

I'm not entirely sure.

I can't actually see her.

She speaks to me in my mind.

Here.

Come here.

Get some sleep.

You don't believe me.

I do believe you.
What does she say?

She had a message...

for you.

She said you must
take me to him...

To Leonardo da Vinci.

Yes.

Poison arrow frog venom.

Oh, that's nasty stuff.

If I add that to the
charcoal suspension,

that should speed the process.

Girolamo: He admires
you, you know?

The worm inside me.

He envies your conviction,

the ease with which
you make your choices.

But I see through you, da Vinci.

I know your
conviction is hollow.

Your passion hides your fear...

Your fear that you have
already lost your struggle.

Shall I elaborate?

Please.

I think you'd appreciate
a righteous kill...

Enjoy the sight

of a gutted soul still alive,

heart beating...

lungs inflating...

and deflating.

Then as the blood spills,

the rhythm eases...

Death rattles.

And for their last
living act on earth,

the sinners...

they shit their pants.

Even your beloved
Clarice Orsini.

I released her with a
sweet cut of my blade.

That was lovely.

Girolamo: Mm-hmm.

Sadly, you'll be
gone soon enough.

The worm, as you
call him, will survive.

Uh... oh! I hear
doubt in your voice.

You know I'm too strong
to be erased by alchemy.

I will die when the worm does

in a pool of our own shit.

Leonardo: It's an
aberration of the mind.

You know? You're nothing more.

You're a product of
some twisted chemistry.

Are you afraid of
the truth, da Vinci?

- Am I too much?
- No.

The dark mirror to
your own war within?

I never fear the truth,

even from the
mouths of the liars.

Oh, let's get to the truth.

What did you learn from Otranto?

I designed defensive
weapons to protect Florence.

Shh, shh, shh.

Truth, da Vinci.

Leonardo.

Can I call you Leo?

Did you, um...

Did you secretly relish
the sight of your creations

doing what you
designed them for?

Killing? Slaughtering? Maiming?

A bombard has no
morality, no motive.

It is simply a tool
designed for a purpose.

My weapons were stolen.

Your designs, nevertheless.

Tell me, what...

What manner of man can dream up

such efficient devices
of mass murder?

Remember, it was the worm

who first recognized
your genius for destruction.

Men like us,

our inspiration comes
not from heaven.

We do the devil's work.

- We are hardly the same.
- You said we were.

- When?
- You... you said

you saw in my work
the soul of an artist.

A kindred spirit like you,

only, uh, I am a
mere apprentice.

I kill only the few.

You... you are the
master, da Vinci.

You kill the many.

You are the true

Monster of Italy,

and I know what
drew you to Otranto.

The hunt for Carlo de Medici,

the bastard who slew your
beloved mentor Verrocchio

right here before
your very eyes.

- I sought justice.
- Oh, I...

- What?
- So you've heard, then?

Heard what?

The Monster of Italy
has come to Florence.

Everyone's locking their doors.

- Yes. Yeah.
- Uh, hello?

I thought we were
going to Wallachia

to find answers about the armor.

No. I don't need you today.

Girolamo: Is that your lover?

Has he come for his
morning knob slob?

Shlurp shlurp!

Who the fuck is that?

Oh, tell him.
Tell him, da Vinci.

Tell your mongrel
bitch of my artistry.

Then he can claim the bounty
that is undoubtedly on my head

and have the wherewithal...

Tell him, da Vinci.

Unlike you, I
can face the truth.

Leo, what the
hell are you doing?

Tell him, artista.
Tell them all.

Riario's the Monster of Italy.

He killed Clarice
and Dragonetti.

But it's not his
fault. He's ill.

I'm curing him.

Man: Kill him!

Kill the foreign scum!

Kill! Kill the monster!

He killed our captain!

It's chaos.

You demanded the
captain's killer dead or alive.

- What did you expect, signorina?
- I expected justice.

And you would have had it
if not for your beloved artista.

He let the killer
escape his grasp.

The crusade festival
is soon upon us.

Dignitaries from around
Italy will not stay long

in a city rife with turmoil.

It would be an
embarrassment to Florence,

one not soon forgotten.

I appreciate your concern for
our reputation, Signora Cereta.

The Officers of the Night
want revenge, not justice.

Their captain was murdered,

and they won't stop
until they find the killer.

And what do you suggest?

They need a new captain.

Let's give them one.

I suggest our new councilwoman

nominates one of her associates.

Singh: If the Turks
can get to Dragonetti,

they can get to anyone.

You and Guilio
must be protected.

My men can ensure your
family and city that protection.

This treatment should, in time,

revert him back
to the old Riario.

Zoroaster: I say we
excise both of them.

I had terrifying nightmares.

But waking up
to face this reality

is far, far worse.

How could I do
such terrible things?

You really don't remember.

No.

But when Leonardo told me, I...

I knew in my heart
that he was correct.

Sorry. I'm struggling.

When he... when he told
you you were a monster

who wasn't a monster

because you didn't know
you were a monster...

No, Zo, he's not responsible.

It was a consequence of
the Labyrinth conditioning.

His mind couldn't
handle it, broke in two,

I think because he was
already compromised.

Compromised?

When you were in the New World,

you spoke of your first kill.

Your mother.

Strangled in her own home,
orchestrated by your father.

Perhaps you rejected
the Labyrinth's conditioning

because your psyche
was already fractured.

Then there is no hope for me.

Your cure will not work.

No, I can... I can
flush the toxins

and heal your body.

I just... well, we
may need to find

another solution for the mind

to release you from
this internal struggle.

To wake you up...

as I had to in my
alternate reality.

Zoroaster: Hmm. That's great.

Fascinating, really.

May I remind you that
everyone in Florence

is hunting this man right now.

They want him dead.

Well, we can't let that happen.

I need him.

The crusade needs him.

Girolamo: We don't
have much time.

His Holiness is
coming to Florence.

Pope Sixtus?

In Florence?

To secure the allegiance
of the city-states.

To launch his crusade.

- When?
- At the Pageant of Arms

to see the demonstration
of your weapon.

When his Holiness
learns that the Vatican killer

- is here in Florence...
- Leonardo: He will retreat.

His crusade will fall apart

and the Turks
will overrun Italy.

You know what you must do.

Tell the truth. Deliver
me to the council.

And collect the bounty.
Sounds like a good plan to me.

No. Riario is the
face of the crusade.

It would never
survive the revelation.

Please, Leonardo.

Let me pay for my sins.

Let my death serve Italy.

No. No, that won't be necessary.

I have a plan, but...

- we will need help.
- Help?

We can't give them Riario,

but we can deliver a monster
to the people of Florence.

And Nico's going to catch him.

Hey, little one. It's okay.

What's happening?

My men have cornered
the killer outside the palace

and your little prince
is leading the charge.

Nico?

There he is.

Man: Knock him off!

Oh, shit, that was close.

How long was I asleep?

The day has come and gone.

Night has fallen. He's coming.

No. Wait. Listen to me.

Look at me. Look
at me. Look at me.

I need you to listen
to me for a minute.

What you told me last
night that your mother said...

The message.

- I know him.
- What?

Da Vinci. I know him.

I'm not sure what it means,

but I think the person
that Lupo is looking for,

I think it might be you.

He's going to take you,

but I swear to God, I
won't let him hurt you.

I swear.

You've got to trust
me. Can you do that?

I have a way of
getting us out of here.

I have a plan. I have a plan.

Lupo: You know how this works.

Not you!

Tell me this is your good side.

Good.

The serum appears to be holding.

You are due another dose.

What I still fail to
grasp is my true motive.

Cardinal Rodrigo
was a man of the cloth.

I had no quarrel with him.

Well, perhaps you did.

When you returned
to the Vatican,

you found Cardinal
Rodrigo in place

at the pope's right hand.

I confess, I... I felt
somewhat threatened

by their alliance, yes.

Clarice was hunting Carlo.

That was a threat to
your newfound faith.

And Captain Dragonetti
was vehemently

against your crusade.

Your saint was threatened,

retreated into a
nightmare world,

and let your sinner reign free.

Are you ready?

I have no desire to hurt you.

He, on the other hand...

The page showed me your convent.

Showed me you.

But I cannot decipher it.

I'm certain that one of you can.

And you're the only one left.

Tell me its secrets...

and no harm will come to you.

If I'd known, I'd never have
agreed to host the presentation.

That's exactly why we
were kept in the dark.

Your Holiness,
may I introduce...

Signorina Moschella.

I expected Count Riario
among my welcomers.

He sent word. Did
you not receive it?

He's back in Rome
gathering troops

for the Condottieri Legion.

A legion which still does
not include Florentines.

It's a pity how
shortsighted a city could be

after so recently
suffering excommunication,

cut off from the
rest of the country,

no assurance of safety.

Well, try as you
might to threaten us,

I assure you, there is
nothing Rome can provide

that we cannot
provide ourselves.

Hmm.

I hear your men captured
a brutal killer today.

- Yes, we...
- One man...

captured with great difficulty.

Imagine when a
horde of thousands

of these same ungodly
heathens attack...

all at once!

The holy fist of a unified Italy

will crush our enemies.

But if you do not join us,

there will be no protection.

My dear, would you
rather your son grew up

to be ruler amongst the dead

or amongst the living?

Mm-hmm.

Tell me what it says.

I don't know.

I'm sorry.

Wait!

Tell me what it says!

Wait!

Wait.

I think...

What?

If you run, he will find you.

Why did you have to come here,

Lucrezia Donati?

Lucrezia: Lupo.

Is he...?

You're safe now.

Oh.

Right. We're setting
up overlooking the Arno.

And I just wanted you
to unfurl the sketches

and just hang them...

Oh, no! Careful!
Careful! Careful!

Just...

We... we will give you

quite the spectacle
tonight, signora.

I think you will
be very pleased.

All the spectacle
in the world is moot

if the crusade lacks leadership.

I am at my wits' end.

Where could Count
Riario be? I fear the worst.

The monster has been vanquished,

so the count's in no danger.

Every time an officer appears,

I expect to hear they found
Girolamo's body crucified.

Riario is a warrior at heart.

It would take more than an
Ottoman assassin to stop him.

Would you excuse me?

Of course.

Leonardo: No, no. What are
you doing? That's upside down.

Man: Open up!

- Come on! Oi!
- Shit.

Man: Open up in there!

On the orders of
the Doge of Venice,

we are looking for Count Riario!

Shh.

Men: Open up!

Open up!

Get up! Open the door now!

Quiet.

- Open the door!
- Don't...

even think about it.

Damn it.

- Up here! Follow me!
- Riario: Help! Help!

- They're going to murder me!
- Zoroaster: No, no, no, no.

Wait, wait, wait, wait.

Release me from this bondage.

Don't.

No.

Jesus.

Oh, fuck.

Leonardo: Gentlemen,
this is a cannon

that I will be demonstrating
at tonight's Pageant of Arms.

Now, this is just a prototype.

The model we take into battle
will be of a still larger caliber.

What lies in this chamber?

It's an acidic substance.

It's designed to weaken
the Ottoman armor.

On impact, the second
chamber explodes,

penetrating further
into the metal.

It will leave only shrapnel

and vanquished
enemies in its wake.

The wrath of God in a
single, neat package.

Indeed.

We've heard of hellish
Turkish weapons...

Exotic devices that spit
fire and are invincible.

Girolamo.

Yet you claim this
weapon will thwart them?

- Da Vinci!
- I apologize...

Look who has been returned
to us by the grace of God.

Yes.

Uh, where has the count been?

As I was telling the signora,

I was gravely ill,

being tended to
by a dear friend.

I appear to have
missed all the fun.

Seems to have affected his eyes.

Perhaps da Vinci has encountered
such a phenomenon before.

Yes. Come...

Come back with me to my studio.

I may have a salve or a solution

that can help ease your pain.

And miss your triumph, da Vinci?

Oh. Oh, thank God.
I feared the worst.

What happened?

He's left your studio
in quite a mess.

Let's put it this way.
There's a lot of blood.

He can't do much damage here,
not with all these people around.

I wouldn't be so sure.

The monster is acting out on
anyone who threatens Riario.

- Vanessa.
- Mmm.

Look, take her somewhere
safe and just keep her close.

Yeah, keep your sword closer.

Man: Signor da Vinci!

Your demonstration!

Showtime.

The army of the Ottoman Empire

is the greatest
and most powerful

this world has ever seen.

Their engineering
is far advanced,

and their weapons
are second to none.

Until now.

Load the warhead!

Man: Stand back.

Please, ladies and
gentlemen, stand back.

- Please. Stand back, please.
- Man #2: Clear the way.

Loaded.

Shame it doesn't really work.

It's all about the show.

In the distance...

an Ottoman warship approaches.

Light the fuse.

Zoroaster: Leo...

Leo...

Leo, hey!

I can't see him.

Riario's gone.

Take the south. I'll head north.

Riario!

Ah.

A fellow artist...

come to critique my work.

Leonardo: No, no, no, no!

Wait, wait. Look.

I have come to
tell you the truth.

I am like you.

I, too, struggle with myself
more than any enemy.

Let me tell you of Otranto.

As I walked through the carnage,

through the smoke, the...

blood, the death...

for one ugly, dark moment,

I reveled...

in awe of my machines of death,

the glorious bloodshed that
my creations had wrought.

I hate that part
of myself so much

that I sometimes wish that
I could open up my veins

and drain the evil from my soul.

A very sad state,

yet not like me at all.

I wish only to express myself

through my chosen medium.

No. No, no,
Riario. Don't. Don't.

Now let me open her up for you,

show you her beating heart.

Leonardo: No, no, no!

That's not why you
want her to bleed.

Is it?

She's tempting you, isn't she?

Her obvious affections,

they're stirring up
feelings inside you,

feelings you have
forbade yourself to feel.

She loves you...

as your own mother did.

That's a love you cannot
allow yourself to return.

And that's why she must die,

because she reminds
you of the origins

of your broken soul,

of what started it all.

But you are too much
of a coward to face it.

So, go on, finish it.

Finish it.

Close the circle.

But don't use a
blade. Use your hands.

Strangle the life out of her

like you did your
own flesh and blood.

Or...

you can choose.

It's free will, Girolamo.

You can choose to hide

in your nightmares as I did...

or you can choose to wake up.

Wake up.

It is the only way
to defeat the sinner.

Wake up.

Wake up!

Sophia: Lucrezia?

Yes?

Oh, we should get going.

It's a two-day ride to Florence.

What's in Florence?

Leonardo da Vinci.

Go. Get in the house.

Do you know them? Who are they?

Uh, okay. Listen.

I don't have much
time to explain,

- but I need you to be brave.
- Why? Why?

Here.

Take this and hide.

Look at me. Look at me.

Pick your moment and run.

Bring this to Florence.

I swear to you,
Leo will be there

and he'll help you.

- Okay.
- Okay.

Go. Go!

Out.

Now.

Not surprised to see me?

"The daughter
will find the page."

Our soothsayer
rarely misses the mark.

Well, she did this time.

Find it.

Start here.

- Where is Lupo Mercuri?
- He's here.

Well, the parts of him that
his vile dog couldn't stomach.

I know you came for the page.

And I can only assume you
intend to use it against me.

- Look everywhere.
- You're right.

I would have,

but the page isn't here.

It drove Lupo insane

and he destroyed it
in front of my eyes.

Nothing.

Francesco: We
will find the page.

With or without your help.