An Evening at Joe's (6 page)

You are a
prisoner
.

You are admired, adored, envied for your remarkable powers. I will even admit, that in the beginning my own hatred of you was not devoid of envy. At the start. For hundreds of years you have been a warrior defending what you perceive to be good. And people think "what a gift, to live forever, to have no fear as the brief candle burns down." But I have come to learn the truth, which is that you are trapped. Trapped
in
time, trapped
by
time, going only one way, forward, ever forward, with the desires and aspirations of a mortal and the terrible solitude of always losing that which you cherish; and always going on to lose again. You are a man who tries to resist the terrible temptation to look back over his shoulder, searching for a last glimpse of something, someone, you have lost but cannot bear to lose. For ever.

I, on the other hand, who am not immortal in terms that you can understand, by my very mortality can do what you cannot. When I understood this, my envy of you died. I have learned over these years that the true power of immortality can only be attained by those for whom physical death is inevitable. Indeed, this is one of the lessons of the figure of Christ himself.

But access to immortality is a terribly dangerous thing, Duncan, because of the surging power, much greater, much more all-embracing than a quickening. And this is the power of Ahriman. Yes. We now must speak of good and evil. I believe that your brand of good, MacLeod, is limited, and dangerous, and I have shown you why. I have seen terrible things, Duncan, horrors I cannot begin to describe, which you will never know, unless you pass over to the other side, and that, you cannot do. The potential for evil out there, beyond the looking glass, is so huge as to make me deeply fearful, in a way that you have never made me fearful. I have seen Ahriman face to face. I have supped with him and, for a time, he beguiled me, won me over to use me against you and others like you.

And now we come to the reason for this missive. You see, Duncan, I have realised, that though my sentiments concerning immortals, and yourself in particular, were founded on genuine beliefs and were even justified, I was
misguided
. Far greater evils menace mankind than you. In fact, I have realised that, though you too are misguided and naive, your hostility to Ahriman is a thing of value in the middle-term. For he must be opposed. He must be fought against, overthrown and crushed in the dust if mankind is to have the slightest chance of survival in a civilized world. And that is why, Duncan, I wish to make a truce. We have fought hard and long and I can now admit that I have grown to respect you, despite, perhaps even because of, your weaknesses. I flatter myself to believe that you have a little respect for me, too.

Duncan, we must unite! Bury our hatred and unite to destroy the powers of the black rose, coloured by the blood of the innocent. There has been enough useless killing. In that you are right. If we do not unite, if we squander our forces on mutual hostility, Ahriman's plan will succeed and the planet will plunge into a darkness that even our most pessimistic prophets have not foreseen. Meet me, Duncan, and let us make a plan. I have learned much, and have much to tell. I have been told that you feel the time is come to retire from the battle, to hand your power on to another, just as yours was passed to you so long ago. This is something only you can know. But if you do so, Duncan, then that immortal will be even more vulnerable than you are. Make him come to me, to speak, to learn, to make vows. To conquer Ahriman.

I live in hope.

James

Pants

by Donna Lettow

ASSOCIATE CREATIVE CONSULTANT: Donna Lettow

"Creative Consultant" is a title that's used in television for a member of the writing staff who, for whatever reason, doesn't fit one of the traditionally defined writing jobs. Donna Lettow joined the
Highlander
staff as Script Coordinator at the beginning of season 3; she was promoted to Associate Creative Consultant at the start of season 6.

Regarding the evolution of "Pants," Donna tells us: "Not every television show has a staff archaeologist, but for seasons 4 through 6,
Highlander
had its 'Dr. Amy.' Sadly, every summer we would lose Amy for several months, as she went off to the ruins of Pompeii to teach field archaeology techniques... and to attempt to rescue the Immortals we all know are still buried there beneath the ash. Once we got over our initial jealousy of her other life, we missed her terribly, and would mail her story outlines from new episodes, stills from dailies, and occasional bits of foolishness to brighten the lonely nights she spent in a stifling tent with a dim flashlight and no TV. 'Pants' is a story I wrote for Dr. Amy while I was watching the 1996 Summer Olympics and wishing I could share them with her.

"OTAVIO CONSONE": Anthony De Longis

Very rarely were parts on Highlander cast for swordfighting ability. Guest stars were cast for their acting chops, in the belief that the skills of our star, swordmaster, and film editors could make the swordfights look good. And quite often they could. But when actor Anthony De Longis, a swordmaster in his own right, appeared as Lyman Kurlow in the second-season episode "Blackmail," everyone saw the difference. The final swordfight in that episode was a stunning showpiece, and Adrian Paul asked to have his extraordinary opponent brought back for a return engagement. The production team was happy to agree, and the writers and producers kept Anthony on their short "wish list," but it was three years before the ideal role was found—and again, it occurred in an unusual way. For as roles were not usually cast with swordfighting ability in mind, neither were scripts usually based on swordfighting styles. But when Anthony came to Head Writer David Abramowitz with a suggestion for a story revolving around the Spanish "Mysterious Circle," at the same time as Adrian Paul was studying flamenco dancing, something clicked.

The "Duende" episode features a number of complex rapier-and-
dagger fights which could never have been accomplished without the skills Anthony and Adrian brought to the set. This episode stands out in the memory of many as one of Highlanders finest.