Nero the Assassin (2025) s01e04 Episode Script

1
[bird squawks]
[Néro coughing]
[sombre music playing]
How much further to Havreval?
- So basically no one knows where it is.
- [Lothar] Would you shut up?
[Néro] You're not wearing
a necklace that's slowly killing you.
[Hortense] That's the point. Once we have
horses, we can reach Ségur more quickly.
[Néro sarcastically] Ooh, thanks,
Princess. I feel much better.
I'll say it again. It's not a good idea.
[music fades]
[dramatic music playing]
[Lothar] Havreval.
[sinister music playing]
[flies buzzing]
[Perla] What happened here?
[sinister music continues]
[Néro] The penitents.
[music fades]
Open up!
[stones crunch]
[Néro] Stay close to me, Perla.
- [guard] What do you want?
- To enter.
I'm Captain Lothar of Lamartine.
No one can enter. Count's orders.
I said, get lost. No one's coming in.
- [metal rings]
- How about your future sovereign?
I am Hortense de Rochemort,
and I'm en route to my wedding
with the Prince of Ségur.
We were attacked by the penitents.
I doubt my betrothed would be happy
if you don't let me in.
[clattering]
[morose music playing]
[flies buzzing]
[gate closes]
[guard] Wait here.
The Count of Havreval will see you.
[Néro] We need
to get the hell out of here.
[music intensifies]
NÉRO THE ASSASSIN
[music fades]
[count] My dear friends.
Your Highness.
Welcome to Havreval.
[chuckles]
Tristan d'Orfray, Count of Havreval
and the prince's cousin,
which makes us future cousins by marriage.
Uh delighted.
[sighs] "Delighted," my arse.
- We had to fight to be allowed in here.
- I didn't know that. So sorry.
What happened out there?
It's the penitents.
Say no more.
They attacked us too.
We attempted a sortie,
but it was too late.
We couldn't do anything about it.
[eerie music playing]
A savage combat.
But there is a silver lining.
I got to meet you, thanks to them.
You don't bury your dead anymore?
We'll do that soon, yes. The penitents
may still launch an attack on us.
And those?
Deserters.
It's war, sir.
We have no place for cowards.
[clears throat] And uh
do you have any horses left?
Yes, we do.
You can leave for Ségur
this evening to make your wedding.
My congratulations, by the way.
We'll stay on.
If there are still penitents
in the area, we're safer here.
I'll inform the prince,
so he comes to get us with his army.
[intriguing music playing]
Consider here your home, Your Highness.
Adelme will take you to the dovecote
and give you something to write
your message to the prince.
[Hortense] Thank you, my lord.
[music fades]
Uh, sorry, Your Highness, but uh
I do have a small medical emergency
to deal with in Ségur.
Did you see their village?
You really think we should leave now?
But his necklace?
He'll die unless we get to Ségur.
[melancholy music playing]
She's got a point. I'm fine.
[pigeons cooing]
[wings flapping]
[music fades]
So when can we expect the prince?
Very soon.
I promise you.
Your father's going to be okay.
And then what?
Do you think he'll stay in Ségur?
I don't know, Perla.
[Adelme] Would you like to do it?
[sombre music playing]
[gate closes]
[tense music playing]
[Néro groaning softly]
[music fades]
[inhales sharply]
[sighs]
Alright?
It was all good until you arrived.
Eh
Oh
Ooh What's going on here?
Move over.
[moans]
Oh, I feel something hard.
Bit too close.
The soldiers do they seem tense to you?
- Very.
- Like they were hiding something.
[tense music playing]
There was no battle?
They bolted the gates.
They let the village be looted
and did nothing.
How do you know that?
No signs of combat.
And the soldiers
No injuries.
[music continues]
The hanged men,
they're not deserters.
They wanted to help the villagers.
[Lothar] Mmm.
Our lips are sealed. Mum's the word.
[Lothar] Mmm.
[music stops]
We haven't been introduced yet.
I'm Hortense de Rochemort.
And you are?
Ophélie, madam.
Ophélie.
You know, Ophélie,
we too ran into some of the penitents.
[slow suspenseful music playing]
When I see what they did to your village,
I tell myself we were lucky.
And were you in the village
when they attacked?
Did you lose your family?
[Ophélie sniffs]
I'm so sorry.
I did not mean to be indiscreet.
They were rounded up
in the square and massacred.
[music becomes sombre]
[breathing deeply]
[distorted echoing]
- [music fades]
- [footsteps approaching]
[Néro] Would you like
to do something about your hair?
'Cause you can do that?
I'm a professional, me.
[Hortense sighs]
You should talk to your daughter.
I do talk to her.
She's becoming attached to you.
It's not a good idea
to get attached to you.
Why isn't it?
Because you're an assassin
after money and women of ill repute.
Mmm. That's a little reductive, no?
Not really.
- It's not even true.
- Oh, no?
[Néro] Mmm.
So you'll take good care of her
and become a proper family man?
[scissors snipping]
Why not?
[Hortense scoffs]
You know that won't happen.
Tell her the truth.
[dramatic music playing]
[snipping continues]
- [Hortense] Are you done?
- Yes.
It's terrible.
You're welcome.
[insects chirping]
[sinister music playing]
[otherworldly whispering]
[music fades]
[Néro] Mmm.
Thank you, my lord.
For your hospitality and kindness.
[count] A bath, a good meal, some clothes
They're all mere trifles.
But in these troubled times,
it is all we can count on.
- Ah!
- We must remember that we have humanity.
The world is in tatters.
Obscurantism is gaining ground.
We have to stand up to barbarism.
Something wrong, Your Highness?
No.
No, there's nothing wrong.
It's just, uh
We saw so many starving people.
Yes, but depriving ourselves
won't bring them justice.
[eating] Well said.
But I feel you're still vexed.
Your servant told me
about the attack on the village.
[tense music playing]
The poor souls
Yes?
She mentioned they were rounded up
in the square and massacred.
Oh, I am sorry.
She should never have told you about that.
Oh, no. No, no, I asked her about it.
[music intensifies]
I will offer you some counsel.
If you have any questions,
I'm the one to ask.
That's always better than asking my staff.
[footsteps approaching]
[indistinct whispering]
Hmm, who? Where?
A problem?
No, no.
It's just an intruder.
But don't worry.
My men will sort it.
We'll go with them.
Are you implying my soldiers are incapable
of tackling an intruder?
It's just a precaution.
We're being pursued.
A one-eyed woman.
She's dangerous.
[count] Hmm.
[music fades]
[sombre music playing]
[music intensifies]
[guard] What are you doing here?
Answer!
Who are you?
Speak!
[grunts]
Take him to the dungeon.
[music fades]
[wind whistling]
[Néro exhales]
So, it wasn't the One-Eyed Woman.
She might be dead.
I'd say it's been burning
like this for a while.
Once the archbishop's paid you
and you're rid of the necklace,
what will you do?
I'll go celebrate
in the best brothel around here.
[chuckling]
I'm joking.
No, I uh I'll, uh
look for a job as a I don't know
a henchman in Lamartine or elsewhere.
And me?
What about you?
What becomes of me
once I've seen the Archbishop of Ségur?
They'll put you
in a nice orphanage, I suppose.
But I'm not an orphan.
I know you're not an orphan.
It's just until you're a little bit older.
I'll come see you.
You don't want me then?
I'm an assassin, Perla.
So I'll stay at the orphanage,
and with the money you get for me,
you'll be able to live it up.
Yeah.
You win. We'll split it half-and-half.
No, but hang on, not 50-50
'cause you're too young. Sixty
70-30 is a good payout.
70-30, Perla.
Hey
[sinister music playing]
[cell door opens]
[door closes]
I was told that you wanted to confess.
I'm listening, my son.
When the time comes,
the Devil will possess
the body of his last descendant
to make him into the Messiah of Darkness,
who will plunge the world
into the Apocalypse.
The Holy See sent me.
[sinister music continues]
Who is it among you?
[music crescendos and stops]
It's the child.
[villagers chatting indistinctly]
[coughs and retches]
- [flies buzz]
- Ugh!
Come on, move. Move!
[bell ringing]
[sombre music playing]
[music fades]
[prince] You'll be taxed
on the 20th for the mines.
I assume no news of your daughter?
She must've been waylaid,
but I'm sure she'll be here shortly.
[door opens]
Your Majesty,
the archbishop wants to see you.
The archbishop also asks
that you be present, Consul.
[eerie music playing]
[sinister trill]
[music fades]
What is this?
[doctor] We don't know, Your Majesty.
Is it the plague?
No, Your Majesty.
An even greater evil.
The work of the Devil.
A monk from the sepulchre of Lamartine
discovered him in a mass grave.
It seems you know him, Consul.
Yes, he was one of my men.
His name was Toussaint.
And about his death,
can you tell us any more?
Well, to tell the truth, I can't.
I was on the road.
I didn't know he'd died, even.
You do not seem to be aware
of the gravity of these events.
This evil is the result
of very powerful sorcery.
So a witch has returned.
And I'm not talking
about one of those innocents
who are burnt all the time
by obscurantism and human stupidity.
I'm talking about
a deadly envoy from Hell.
Listen, if there really is
a witch in Lamartine,
I will make sure we locate her.
There's not much else I can do.
What can I do about it
if Toussaint kept bad company?
Oh, no, nothing at all.
When this monk from the sepulchre
of Lamartine showed up
at our door with this thing,
at first, I was all at sea,
but I immersed myself in the scripture,
and then
and then I found something that
could perhaps deliver this unfortunate man
from the curse at work here.
[suspenseful music playing]
[speaking in Latin]
[echoing whispers]
[music builds]
Amen.
[music crescendos and ends abruptly]
It seems the evil
within him is too powerful.
[Toussaint groaning]
[breathing heavily]
[gargles]
I need some more time,
but I will get there.
I will succeed
in making him speak, Your Majesty.
[Toussaint wheezing]
[breathing quickens]
[bones crunching]
Don't you worry, my dear friend.
It's me. I'm here at your side.
[Toussaint panting]
Will he live?
Just enough to tell us all that he knows.
[music fades gradually]
[dog snuffles]
[Rochemort] I came
to say goodbye, Joséphine.
I am forced to leave Ségur.
But w w why?
The archbishop wants my head
and he'll do whatever it takes to get it.
I wanted to see you
one last time before I went.
Uh W w
But but I can help you, maybe?
No, Joséphine, it's
too dangerous.
I I am ready to do anything.
[sinister music playing]
[knocking]
[latch clicks]
[music fades]
[Joséphine] G Good evening, F Father.
- Good evening.
- I've come to p pray to Saint Giles.
[door closes]
[soft intriguing music playing]
[Joséphine] Th Th This way.
What What are you going to do?
[ominous music playing]
[Toussaint struggling]
Come help me.
Here, open his mouth.
We'll cut out his tongue.
[stifled groaning]
[crunching]
[screams]
[music fades]
[Rochemort] Right.
Hold his head.
N No, I
He's a demon, Joséphine,
the work of the Devil.
You cannot hold back.
[Joséphine whimpers]
- Joséphine, it's him or me.
- But I
[Toussaint grunting]
[adventurous music playing]
Hold him there.
- [blood splatters]
- [Toussaint groaning]
[Joséphine gasps]
[groaning stops]
[sawing continues]
[gruesome crunching]
[thud]
[Rochemort panting]
[music fades]
Let's leave.
[tense music playing]
[saw clatters]
[shuddering]
[Rochemort] Joséphine
Let's go.
[fire crackling]
[music fades]
You okay?
M meh.
What you did, Joséphine, it was
It was very courageous.
You acted
for the good of Ségur.
Against all those who want
to stop us from changing the world.
[sombre music playing]
And I must say that
talking more personally,
you made me very emotional.
[music intensifies]
[music fades]
- [woman screams]
- [gasps]
[intriguing sombre music playing]
Don't you worry.
But I don't.
[music fades]
[birds squawking]
[clattering]
[footsteps approach]
[clanging]
Perla?
Who's there?
- Ophélie?
- [maid] No, ma'am.
Morning, ma'am.
Where's Ophélie?
She's out of sorts.
[tense music playing]
During the night, I heard a scream.
I don't know, ma'am.
[footsteps recede]
Last night, we heard screaming.
So what was it?
[music fades]
How long have you been a soldier?
Why do you ask me that?
I'm doing my training.
You?
[chuckles]
Why, though?
Just because.
To save lives and ruin the penitents.
We came across them too.
I want them all dead.
I know how to fight too.
Want me to show you?
Or too scared?
I'm not into weapons though.
Want me to show you how to ride one?
[chuckles]
[door opens and closes]
[inhales deeply]
What will happen to Perla in Ségur?
I already said
the archbishop will deal with it.
But what are your plans for her?
- Will you stay with her?
- I haven't thought about that, Néro. It's
The archbishop decides.
And what I say doesn't matter?
Why would it, Néro?
But what is there to say?
You've never done anything for her.
You abandoned her.
You said you'd come to see her,
but you never came.
It was me who cared for her.
It was me who fed her, and me who cared.
And me who punished her.
You are nothing to her.
And she's nothing to you.
[footsteps recede]
[door opens]
[door closes]
[Hortense] Ophélie?
So sorry.
[ominous music plays]
Ophélie!
Ophélie, are you alright?
They said you're unwell,
what's the matter?
Say something!
Hey! Pray, talk to me!
[rasped scream]
[Hortense gasps]
[sombre music playing]
[music fades]
You knew all this, that he let his people
be slaughtered and you didn't say a thing?
And you plan to do nothing?
He's a monster.
He cut out her tongue to silence her.
You'll do nothing?
We can't do anything.
We wait. We'll denounce him
to the prince when he arrives.
Do you believe the prince will make
enemies of the nobles for some peasant?
He can't get away with this.
Sorry, I just won't keep quiet.
Do you want to be hanged?
I'm the future Princess of Ségur.
He wouldn't dare.
[sighs] Cowards,
they don't work like that.
They are the scum of the earth.
[Lothar] He won't hang us.
He'll make us disappear
and tell some story to the prince.
So, we shut our mouths,
we forget all this, and we remain polite.
Or we'll end up corpses.
[sinister music playing]
What do we do with him?
The count doesn't want to take any risks.
[cell door creaks open]
[music fades]
[breathes slowly]
You had a better appetite yesterday, no?
Depends on the meal.
[count] Hmm.
Or is it because no wine
has been served yet?
[footsteps approach]
[tense music playing]
[tense music continues]
So, Ophélie,
have you nothing to say to Her Highness?
[chuckles]
You must comprehend, Your Highness,
that my staff cannot be allowed
to peddle tales about me.
I have a reputation to uphold.
In Lamartine,
you may tolerate slander there,
but here, not so.
[tense music continues]
For me, when it comes to lies,
there is only one course of action.
They are not acceptable.
We fought a brave battle
to defend our territory.
We may have lost,
but I can't have my people
spouting claptrap.
And I must defend the truth here.
I do hope that you comprehend that.
Of course.
[music fades]
Perfect.
To our friendship.
[Perla] Why don't you have any wounded?
Pardon?
In any battle, there are wounded.
[Lothar] Not always, Perla.
Sometimes, it is very difficult to recover
the wounded from the battlefield.
Excellent point.
There were no wounded
because there were no penitents.
[sombre music playing]
[count exhales deeply]
Our scouts saw them.
And the count ordered
that the gates be closed shut.
The whole village was shut out.
The women.
[shakily] The children.
We abandoned them out there.
And the penitents never even came.
[sombre music playing]
To keep our cowardice secret,
we rounded them up in the square.
[count groans softly]
It was a massacre, with our own hands.
We hanged all the soldiers
who refused to obey.
- [gasps]
- [grunts]
[suspenseful music playing]
[music intensifies]
[screams]
[muffled yelling]
[Hortense screams]
Put down your weapons or I'll gut her.
[action music playing]
Horace,
go with Perla.
We'll join you.
No.
Don't worry.
I'll bring her back alive. It's fine.
[eerie music playing]
[both panting]
To me, guards!
Come closer, I'll slit her throat.
[Ophélie and count screaming]
[count gargling]
[Ophélie screaming]
[Néro] Go.
Go!
[eerie music intensifies]
[otherworldly whispering]
[Horace] No!
I'm I'm sorry, Perla.
- What's going on?
- Pray with me with all your strength.
- Pray with me for your salvation.
- [Perla] Stop it!
You're hurting me!
[Horace] Lord, forgive this child.
She's innocent. Please show mercy.
Let me go!
Let me go!
- [bolt whistles]
- [music stops]
Flee.
[sinister music playing]
[bolt whistles]
Flee!
[groaning]
Where's Horace?
[dramatic music playing]
[music fades]
[all panting]
[wind whistling]
[all breathing heavily]
[footsteps approach]
What's happening?
[Perla panting]
He wanted to kill me.
What?
I'm so sorry, Perla.
[sinister music playing]
Uh
What What's happening?
The man that you brought in
The Holy See sent him here.
He came to kill Perla.
Perla has to die, Néro.
She is the last descendant of the Devil.
What?
The witch wants to keep her alive
in order to perform a ritual
to enable the Devil
to take possession of Perla's body.
And once he is on Earth,
he'll summon the Apocalypse.
[Lothar yells]
Shut up! Shut up now!
Get off me.
[Horace] He'll unleash
the Apocalypse, Néro.
[growling] That's such shit!
- It is in the Holy Scriptures
- [Néro] And I followed you!
Like a fool!
He wasn't taking her there to save her!
He was taking her to Ségur
to have her killed!
There's nothing else we can do.
Oh, shut your face.
[tense music playing]
We're leaving.
- [Lothar] Where do you think you're going?
- I dunno. Not Ségur.
You'll go nowhere.
I'm sorry, Perla. I need your father
to denounce Rochemort.
You will die if you don't go to Ségur.
Only the archbishop
can remove your necklace.
- [Hortense grunts]
- [Lothar groans]
We're leaving.
[melancholy music playing]
[music fades]
[Barrin] My God.
Well, the demon came to complete his work.
You think he can still give you answers?
I will notify the Holy See.
If this witch performs her ritual,
we'll have the Devil himself
confronting us here.
[slow medieval music playing]
So, where now?
As far as possible from Ségur.
[music continues]
NÉRO THE ASSASSIN
[jaunty medieval music playing]
[music turns sombre]
[moody orchestral music playing]
[medieval theme music returns]
[music builds rhythmically]
[sinister music playing]
[medieval theme music returns]
[sombre music playing]
[medieval theme music returns]
[wistful music playing]
[music ends]