INHERITOR - A Thesis on Violence in Four Acts

[Urahra 5781]

INHERITOR
A Thesis on Violence in Four Acts

Penned by Bianca La Fleur

 

Published 1783

 

Part of the Black Rose Quartet

On The Shores of Paradise        Lorin + Siegmund      Lorin + Augustus        Inheritor

 

This play is a work of fiction meant for entertainment only. Changes have been made for the purposes of simplifying the story for the stage. It is not to be treated as a historically accurate text for purposes of education.

 

---

 

CAST

 

Tiberius Blackmont - The son of the notorious bandit lord, Augustus Blackmont. Green eyes, auburn hair, and more like his father than he wants to admit.

 

Rosalie Chivay - The beautiful princess of Kaedrin. Daughter of Thomas and Lynesse Chivay. Fierce and passionate as Chivays tend to be. Red hair, green eyes.

 

Brandon Valois - Rosalie’s betrothed. Black hair, brown eyes. 

 

Drelik Letholdus - The right-hand man of Augustus Blackmont and mentor to Tiberius.

 

Thomas Chivay - Rosalie’s father, the king of Kaedrin. The founder of the White Rose Order.

 

Alistair the Savage - The kennel master of the Blackmonts. Drelik’s lackey.

 

Tanith - The princess’s dark elven nursemaid and servant.

 

---

 

ACT 1

 

Spoiler

 

A serene forest. FROGS chirp musically in the background.

 

A youth - TIBERIUS BLACKMONT - charges into the scene. Breathless. He doubles over, hands upon his knees, and casts a fevered glance behind.

 

TIBERIUS
O legs, I beg you, fail me not now -- ! 
Bear me swift from the lands of my father
To those green fields glimpsed beyond the Dreadfort!
Not one more day can I live in bondage,
The tool of my father's lust for power!
Not one more night can I spend lying still,
Fearful of making a single whisper!

 

DOGS bark offstage.

 

TIBERIUS
Alistair’s hounds bear hot upon my heels,
But, O, my limbs are as heavy as stones.
Run for miles I have. Not another step
Can I force from my blistered, bleeding feet.
But there! A shrub in which to take refuge!
Kind hedge, conceal me from the devil's sight!

 

Tiberius hides himself within a bush.

 

ENTER PRINCESS ROSALIE and her attendant TANITH, a dark elf.

 

TIBERIUS
(aside)
Who is this? A daughter of Julia
Alongside the darkened kin of Malin?

 

TANITH
Your Highness, we have wandered far afield
And draw ever closer to the border
Betwixt the lands of your sainted father
And the dreaded holdings of the Blackmonts.
I fear what might happen should we cross it!
Methinks we ought return to Ard Kerrack
And seek the safety promised by the Rose,
Lest we anger the henchmen of the Flay!

 

ROSALIE
Sweet Tanith, my nursemaid since childhood,
Ever my gentle and protecting guide,
Unfounded are your concerns for us two.
After all, the Blackmonts are my cousins.
Dare they endanger our sires' treaties
By bringing harm upon Kaedrin's princess -
Rosalie, the daughter of King Thomas?
Brutes they are, but surely not so foolish!
Deeper we must delve into these green woods.
I seek a bumpy toad to be my pet --
For Rosalie is one who finds beauty
In those creatures scorned by other girls' sight.

 

Rosalie begins to search the bushes.

 

TIBERIUS
(aside)
What an aengul to grace my wretched eyes.
No maiden may set foot in the Dreadfort
Aside from my mother and my sister.
This princess is the first to bless my view
In so many a solitary year.
O, how my lonely heart begins to stir
As I gaze upon those scarlet-hued curls!
Her kissing lips as pink as rose's bloom,
Her hands as tender as the cooing dove,
Limbs slender as a springtime sapling's bough...
Dear Rosalie, you claim to love those scorned
And reviled in the sight of others?
Dare I hope you could have such love for me --
Tiberius, the spawn of the Dreadfort,
Despised by all of Oren from my birth,
Heir to the legacy of Augustus?

 

Tiberius SNAPS a twig by accident.

 

ROSALIE
There! Within that bush, I'll find my bonny friend!

 

Rosalie HURRIES over to search the bush. 

 

She parts the boughs and finds Tiberius. Rosalie lets out a frightened squeak!

 

ROSALIE
Why! 'Tis not a toad at all! 'Tis a boy!

 

TANITH
Flee, my princess! He may a bandit be!

 

TIBERIUS
Good ladies, fear me not! I mean no harm!
I beg you, silence your terrified shrieks!
You’ve discovered a skittish fugitive
Seeking shelter from his cruel pursuers.
Should you shout, you would alert my hunters
And bring misfortune onto all of us!

They call me Tiberius, for I am --

 

ROSALIE

Tiberius? I know that name, surely!

You are the child of my kinswoman -

The son of Lorin and Augustus Flay!

I should call you my darling cousin!

 

ENTER DRELIK and ALISTAIR, accompanied by DOGS.

 

ALISTAIR
At last, my hounds have sniffed the young lord out!

 

DRELIK
And who are these that aid in his escape? 

 

ALISTAIR
Ha! It matters not to me, Ser Drelik!
I’ll render them as mincemeat to reward
The acuity of our canines’ sense! 

 

TIBERIUS
Drelik, I beg of you, bring them no harm!

 

Drelik LAUGHS.

 

DRELIK
The lordling thinks I might heed his command?
This petted child not yet steeped in blood?
Alistair, seize the lad and bring him here.

 

Alistair moves to grasp the boy, but ROSALIE stands in his way!

 

ROSALIE
Unhand my cousin, I command you! 

 

TANITH
O no, Your Highness!

 

ALISTAIR
Pray, tell me the name of this little b i t c h
Who barks so very loud and terrible?

 

ROSALIE
Do you dare refer to Kaedrin’s princess
In such vulgar terms? Cross me not, Flay men,
Lest you imperil that dear alliance
Between the red bandanas and the Rose.

 

ALISTAIR
Insolent pup! Let’s hear how shrill you yelp!

 

Alistair raises his hand to SLAP Rosalie…

 

But Drelik STOPS him.

 

DRELIK
Stay your gauntlet, Ser Alistair.
To strike her would incite a brutal war
Which would bring ruin to both our houses. 
If the little princess demands the boy,
Then she may have him. And better for it --
A lad this weak cannot hope to lead us.
So let him hide behind his lady fair,
That simpering coward he’s proved to be!

 

Alistair SPITS at Rosalie’s feet. He and Drelik EXIT with the dogs.

 

TIBERIUS
Do my eyes deceive me? Have I been freed
By the hand of sweet Princess Rosalie?

 

ROSALIE
Long have I wished to meet you, my cousin,
But prevented by your father’s cruelty!
Now at last we are known to each other.
I came to these woods in search of a pet,
But instead I found a far dearer friend!
Please, come back with me to Ard Kerrack,
Amidst fair Kaedrin’s swaying, golden fields.
My father will take you into his keep
And raise you as a ward of the White Rose.

 

TIBERIUS
And so I might stay with you, Rosalie?
I lack any reason to deny you.
No desire in me to inherit
The cursed mantle of my cruel father.
Rather than the son of a bandit be,
Shedding blood and taking what is not mine,
Instead, let me be a man of the Rose -
Your loyal knight, sworn to serve at your side.

 

Tiberius, Rosalie, and Tanith EXIT.

 

CURTAIN FALLS.

 

 

---

 

ACT 2

 

Spoiler

 

Ard Kerrack, the famed fortress of the White Rose. ENTER Rosalie, Tanith, and Tiberius.

 

TIBERIUS
What is this place, so different from my home?
The dark, frigid Dreadfort - roost of the Flays -
Appears a vision of Hell when compared
To the eminent walls of Ard Kerrack.
No aging bloodstains to mottle these floors,
Nor lingering smells behind sealed off doors,
No tormented screams from dungeon’s bowels,
Nor grimacing soldiers in gore-stained cowls.
Instead, a feeling of brotherly cheer --
O, praise the Lord that I’ve arrived here!

 

TANITH
Woe, that you called such a foul redoubt your home!

 

ROSALIE
Tanith, would you summon my father hence?

 

TANITH
As my lady commands, so shall I act.

 

Tanith CURTSIES and EXITS.

 

TIBERIUS
How strange your good servant seems to my eyes,
That she sweetly adheres to your command
Without first extracting her price in blood.

 

ROSALIE
Tanith? Why, I could not imagine it!
So kindly her manners and her bearing.

 

TIBERIUS
At the Dreadfort, the men made sport of me --
Thrashing me and laughing at my shed tears.
They cared not I was their liege’s son.
In their minds, it was to make me stronger
And worthy of my father’s legacy,
But I could no longer bear their torments,
So in cowardice I fled their fortress.
I revealed myself as a sad weakling,
Unworthy to rule that House called Blackmont.

 

ROSALIE
Tiberius! Do you not hear yourself?
How could anyone ask you to remain
In a home so plain intolerable?
Not home at all! Indeed, it was your Hell!
What sin did you commit to earn this fate?
Why, none, I say! Merely that you were born
Under an unfortunate parentage.
No one deserves to endure those tortures.
A gentle soul such as you are deserves
Only the best -- and that is what you’ll get.

 

TIBERIUS
(aside)
The best? Dare I hope that promise includes
The tender love of Princess Rosalie?

 

Enter TANITH, followed by THOMAS CHIVAY and his squire, BRANDON VALOIS.

 

TANITH
My lady, your lord father approaches.

 

Rosalie CURTSIES. Tiberius BOWS.

 

THOMAS
Ho! What creature has my dear girl procured
From the deep green heart of the king’s forest?
A sad and ragged thing, he looks to be.

 

ROSALIE
O Father, do you not recognize him?
Look, ‘tis Tiberius, son of Lorin!

 

THOMAS
Lorin’s bairn! What joy to meet him at last!

 

Thomas CROSSES OVER toward Tiberius.

 

Tiberius SHRINKS, fearful of being struck, but instead finds himself SWEPT UP in a hug.

 

THOMAS
Lorin was my most favored of kin,
Possessing wit and beauty both in spades.
How blessed I am by her dear son’s presence!
What brings Tiberius to Ard Kerrack?

 

TIBERIUS
If Your Majesty extends his license,
I would pledge myself unto the White Rose
For to serve as footman to the Chivays
Would - in my esteem - exceed the lordship
Of that wicked House hated by all Oren.

 

THOMAS
So humble! Do you think I would condemn
My nephew to the station of footman?
Nay, Tiberius, my squire you shall be
With Brandon Valois, the lad betrothed
To my daughter dear - red-haired Rosalie.

 

Thomas GESTURES to Brandon. Tiberius and Brandon LOCK EYES as two bulls might lock horns.

 

TIBERIUS
(aside)
And so my rival does reveal himself.

 

THOMAS
Tanith, go and fetch the boy his colors.

 

TANITH
My young lord, if you would away with me.

 

TIBERIUS
Aye, lead on, good ‘ker.

 

Tanith EXITS and Tiberius FOLLOWS.

 

But as he does, he STOMPS on Brandon’s foot.  

 

The two boys GLARE at one another as the CURTAIN FALLS.

 

 

---

 

ACT 3

 

Spoiler

 

Tiberius PACES restlessly back and forth across the stone floors of Ard Kerrack. He now wears a WHITE ROSE SURCOAT.

 

TIBERIUS
What quality does Lord Valois possess
That I do not have in equal measure?
Charm? Why, he is more charmless than me --
As smug and self-satisfied as the fox
Who found him a hole in the farmyard fence.
Strength? In combat, I could surely best him --
For my tutors were Oren’s fiercest men.
Is it intellect? By my admission,
I am not so learned as other nobles.
Drelik endowed me with the skills of war
Long before I had ever touched a book.
Why, O why, does Rosalie opt for him?
How did he seduce a maiden so fair?
Plot though I might, I cannot seem to win 
And claim she who is my most deserved prize.
But hark, here comes that aengul by whose hand
This unfortunate boy was fished from Hell.

 

ENTER Rosalie and Brandon, hand in hand.

 

ROSALIE
What ho, dear cousin! You look so haggard!
What foul trouble lies upon your spirit?

 

BRANDON
(sarcastic)
Troubled? Not Tiberius, never!
No stormy tides within his tranquil breast.
A picture of gentle repose is he.
His soul is like unto a mirror still,
Reflecting a cloudless and placid sky.
Rosalie, we would do to learn from him.
Alas, alack, if only that were true --
Nay, he is troubled, but ‘tis his nature.
Such belligerence in his veins is writ.
His father’s blood runs too strongly in him.
To ask why Tiberius is troubled
Is to ask the sea why it licks the shore.

 

TIBERIUS
Fie, Brandon!
Would that I could silence your snarling tongue!

 

ROSALIE
Peace, peace! Can you not be pleasant for once?
For weeks now, you have both served as squires --
And yet not exchanged a single kind word!

 

BRANDON
Let us not clash then, kin of my betrothed,
For our harsh words do upset the Princess.
I’ll rescind my speech.

 

TIBERIUS
‘Quarrel not,’ says he who started the bout!
Rosalie, do you not see how vicious
Your husband-to-be acts toward your cousin?
Methinks he is envious of our bond.

 

BRANDON
Envy? Is that your assessment of me?
Yet again, you play the woeful victim…
Pray, when will you cease this limpid charade?
Dear Rose, allow me to make plain the truth.
These late weeks, he has sought to usurp me
In both you and your lord father’s esteem.
He has slandered me in your father’s ear,
Telling fables in which there is no truth,
And made mock of me amongst the footmen.
He portrays himself as a sad martyr
And professes breathlessly to friendship,
Yet when my back is turned, he slides the knife.
Even now, he seeks to turn the tables
And make me as the aggressor appear  --
As though he’s not been bedeviling me
Every hour for weeks -- nay, months! -- on end!
Truly, he is the son of a bandit.
Much like his sire, he feels entitled
To own those things that he desires most --
Snatching his treasures from whomst they belong.
And just as Augustus never did claim
The much-sought crown of frozen Hanseti,
So too will Tiberius be denied
The hand of the fair Princess Rosalie.

 

TIBERIUS
Persist you in these cruel comparisons?
How dare you liken me to that devil
Who made me the object of his abuse!

 

ROSALIE
Peace, I entreat you!

 

BRANDON
O, seek not my pity for your torments,
Should you then turn ‘round and torment others!

 

Tiberius DRAWS his SWORD. Brandon PUSHES Rosalie behind him and also DRAWS.

 

They FIGHT, but Tiberius is stronger -- and wins handily.

 

TIBERIUS
Now I’ll make you regret those bitter words!
Two options lie now before you, Valois --
Revoke at once your claim on Rosalie
Or your blood will wash Ard Kerrack’s stones!

 

BRANDON
Claim? What claim have I on Rosalie’s heart?
‘Twas she who pursued me, Tiberius.

 

TIBERIUS
What odd boasts you make -- !

 

ROSALIE
Tiberius, how dare you threaten him!
You will stow that bloodthirsty blade at once,
So I command as Kaedrin’s princess!

 

TIBERIUS
Brandon is not strong enough to keep you,
As I have thusly shown --  why defend him?

 

ROSALIE
Fool! Do you think me some prize to be claimed
By the strongest arm or the sharpest blade?
Think me a plot of land to be conquered
By the crude, trampling feet of an army?
Nay! You might thrash Brandon a thousand times --
It would not alter the sway of my heart!

 

Tiberius GRABS Rosalie by the arm.

 

TIBERIUS
Did you not promise me a better life --
Complete with all the things I deserve most?
Does not that promise also include your love?

 

Tiberius FORCES A KISS on her.

 

To which Rosalie SLAPS him.

 

ROSALIE
Only I decide who deserves my love!

 

Tiberius REELS, stunned. He STUMBLES backward, dropping his sword and releasing Rosalie.

 

TIBERIUS
Fie upon you both! You will rue this day
You denied me what I am entitled!

 

He FLEES.

 

CURTAIN FALLS.

 

 

---

 

ACT 4

 

SCENE 1

 

Spoiler

 

Tiberius stumbles through the woods.

 

TIBERIUS
Did I misunderstand? Did she not say
That I deserved a better life than this?
She rescued me from that black mouth of Hell,
And by her hand, she promised to bestow
Balms to soothe the aching wounds of my soul.
She swears to love the things others revile --
Yet no love for me, who warrants it the most.
Is this girl not bound by the oath she made?
Am I not then entitled to her love?

 

DRELIK
(off-stage)
If not granted what is yours by your right,
Then you must seize it by your bloodied sword!

 

ENTER DRELIK.

 

DRELIK
It is the nature of Blackmont to strive -
To be denied and then to fight again,
To take those things that we know to be ours
And to punish those that stand in our way.
At first, I condemned you as a weakling, 
But now I see it -- your father’s aspect --
A consuming desire to attain
That which you view as rightfully your own.
Whether ‘tis the noble throne of Haense, or 
The hand of a princess to call your bride --
So long as its lack fills you with hatred,
You possess the power to be our lord.

 

Drelik TAKES A KNEE. He DRAWS HIS SWORD, then flips it so that he is offering Tiberius the handle.

 

After a moment of hesitation… Tiberius TAKES the hilt in hand.

 

 

SCENE 2

 

Spoiler

 

The woods. Enter ROSALIE and BRANDON.

 

BRANDON
Many happy hours have I spent here,
Wandering at darling Rosalie’s side.
How lightly she did trod upon the earth,
Like unto a flowery nymph of spring.
Yet today her steps seem far heavier.
What burden weighs my lovely faerie down?
Normally, these walks do cheer your spirit.

 

ROSALIE
O, my mouth is full of lamentations
And my heart is as weighty as a stone,
For I know how my dear cousin suffers
In the horrendous Dreadfort all alone.
I wonder if he has returned there now
To those who abused him so terribly?

 

BRANDON
Rosalie, you must not trouble yourself --
His happiness cannot be your contract.
If he returned to that fearful fortress,
Then he is the author of his agony.
If truly he cared for you as he claimed,
He would not make demands upon your heart.
Succumb not to his manipulations
And in your decision, my love, stand firm.

 

ROSALIE
I did but wish to grant him a reprieve
And guide him toward a kinder destiny,
Yet he slapped my helping hand away
Because it did not offer what he sought.
I ought to be less kind in the future --
It would save me a great deal of heartache.

 

BRANDON
Let not this misfortune harden your heart,
For it is that tender heart I love so –

 

TIBERIUS
(off-stage)
O, may that heart be cut from her breast
Before she surrenders it unto you!

 

ENTER Tiberius, clad in Blackmont colors and bandana, followed by DRELIK. Swords drawn.

 

TIBERIUS
You once called me the son of a bandit,
And so that mantle I have thusly claimed.
Now, relinquish that which you value most --
Or it will be mine by use of my sword.

 

Brandon DRAWS and they FIGHT. But, again, Tiberius wins handily.

 

He knocks Brandon off his feet and prepares to slay him -- but Rosalie flings herself over Brandon as protection.

 

ROSALIE
You told me once how much you reviled
That unfair legacy forced upon you --
To be scorned by all of Orenia
And cursed as the son of Augustus Flay --
That man who enacted on you torments
Like unto a soul suffering in Hell!
What jape is this then?
That the sufferer should now choose to bear
The colors of he who once abused him?
How very like Augustus you appear, 
The one whom you swore not to emulate!
If you would slay Brandon, then kill me first 
And become as bloody as your father!

 

Tiberius FALTERS.

 

TIBERIUS
O, woe! I cannot!

 

He DROPS his sword and FALLS to his knees.

 

TIBERIUS
I cannot become that cruel torturer --
Not when I know the outcome of these acts.
By force, my father stole his bride away.
The result was a cold, loveless union
That produced this lonely, unwanted son.
Here I am now, repeating what he did.
Would I then inflict those same punishments
Against my own innocent family?
Spiraling downwards into deeper Hells,
Following that path laid by my father?
O Lord, I cannot!

 

He yanks the bandana from his face.

 

TIBERIUS
Though my heart only longs for Rosalie,
Her hand cannot through violence be seized --
For bloodshed begets bloodshed endlessly,
In a vicious lust that cannot be pleased.
That widening spiral spins ever ‘round!
Forgive me, my love! O, please forgive me!

 

DRELIK
Enough. Let us now end this bleak pageant.

 

Drelik walks up behind Tiberius and STABS HIM. 

 

Tiberius collapses in a pool of blood. Rosalie SCREAMS.

 

DRELIK
I would not allow my lord’s famous name
To be besmirched by such a weakling boy.
Alas, he was not the inheritor
Augustus promised to his crimson men.
Take this wretch and bury him in secret,
For he shan’t be recognized as Blackmont.

 

Drelik EXITS.

 

Rosalie crawls to the body, taking it in her arms.

 

ROSALIE
O, my cousin, before your soul departs,
Know it was not your fate to inherit
That legacy so stained in Oren’s blood.
You escaped from that widening spiral
And die now cleansed of your sire’s dark sin.
In the Seven Skies, you shall have better --
All those lovely things promised once to you,
That world of joy you thought beyond your reach.
Rest now, Tiberius, my dear cousin.
Rest and be at ease.

 

Slowly, Tiberius closes his eyes.

 

CURTAIN FALLS.

 

 

[yopplwasupxxx 5946]

“Aha, another work from the famous Miss La Fleur! Such a prolific playwright. I cannot wait to read its content later this night.”

[Ivoreyy 2303]

Elizabeth reads La Fleur’s latest work with her morning cup of coffee, alongside her recovering Father HIH the Duke of Helena. ”Oh – Miss Styrne has outdone herself once again!” She muses ”Such a story... I find myself thoroughly invested in poor Tiberius, Rosalie and Brandon. I should hope to see this production staged as well!”