Original subtitles

I heard the sound like,

like,

A beating of wings?

How do you know?

You're wide open like an old whore.

Your bed spawns only evils?

Who taught you that? You're a beggar from the desert.

He

says that sin

has eaten away your womb.

You've given me no children.

I haven't.

I don't mean those.

Your brother was a man.

I gave him children.

Salome,

even from across the sea, she poisons my brain.

I've carried her longer in my head

than you did in your belly.

What are you looking at?

The moon.

The astrologers say that tonight her light may die.

Now this is the night I choose to hear a beating of wings.

A message for you, Herod.

From Jerusalem?

No. The emperor's envoy is awake.

He wishes to speak to you.

You. Did you hear?

Did you hear? He wishes to speak.

The big leg wakes up and realizes he can't speak.

He can also make you crawl on all fours and grunt.

I know.

Why did he come?

There was a litter in his caravan with drawn curtains.

Why this forced march across the desert?

Perhaps they too heard a beating of wings.

I wonder what venom you have been drinking to their ears.

Without them, you'd still be in a Bedouin tent sleeping with a goat.

They didn't need me to discover your scheming against the emperor.

This is my palace and my kingdom,

and I'm accountable to no one.

To no one.

Yes.

You are the mighty Herod,

but send me the foreigner.

I'll have a meeting out of my hand.

I'll leave him elsewhere if he likes.

Yogananda is right.

You aren't seen.

Did you feed him?

He wouldn't eat.

Did he cry out?

Not a sound.

Prophet,

are you suffering?

If I have displeased the heavens,

they will cast a black veil over us and abandon us in the dark.

Forever?

And I don't know with the gods.

You must do something.

Shouldn't you sacrifice an animal to the mother goddess?

I don't think so.

You can earn?

Can you hear me?

Do you think we should offer up the blood of an animal?

Answer

me.

Happy he's dead.

I've been a great

Yohanan.

Listen, Yohanan.

I heard you're beating the wings.

Wings. What does it mean?

What's wrong?

Is it because I put you in here?

You were howling like an old woman, Yucanana,

and you're no longer in the desert.

Listen.

Listen.

Something very important is about love.

The emperor is old.

Let the foreigner go back the way he came,

with the sand in his eyes.

You smell of sin.

It is her

smell.

You can't imagine the thing she makes me do.

Send her away.

Then will you baptize me

and let me rule over all Judea?

King of Judea.

You won't avoid killing me.

Do you long for death so badly?

I must diminish.

Diminish?

And become a dwarf.

A beating of wings, prophet.

A dove flew down. It wasn't a dove. It was black.

How can you recognize this real sin?

Have you ever mounted a woman?

I baptize you in water,

but he will baptize you by fire.

Repent.

I repent, Yoganand. I repent.

Don't you feel the lashes anymore?

The army of heaven will lash the universe.

I'm cast this black rail.

Tonight?

It will lash the universe

with its flames.

Who won't see the sky again?

You won't see the sky again. Scream.

You never scream when you should.

Oh, your corpse will be so heavy.

So heavy.

Forgive me, Yokenna.

It was the milk of a woman I

I'll take your

You'll feel better in a minute.

There.

Keep still.

Are you sure your men don't need a rest?

Look at my blood, Heron.

Keep still.

What do you make of it?

I am definite.

There's no imbalance of the humors,

no excess atrial at all.

I can't breathe.

Keep your liver. Your zotic breath is good.

Smell it.

It's healthy, almost metallic.

There was

a a curtain glitter in your caravan.

Wasn't there?

A curtain glitter?

Mhmm.

There might have been And that coin, give it to

me.

These coins you mint, they don't bear the emperor's effigy.

Our love forbids us to the peak living beings.

Poor empire.

So many creeds.

So many nations.

Well,

the emperor loves money, even more than he loves himself.

She has fallen.

Great Babylon has fallen.

Don't listen to him. He's just a madman.

A beggar from the desert.

Excuse me.

To whom are you speaking?

To every race, tribe, and nation.

The angel's message was for all, terrible, old earth.

You were a lizard in the desert,

and now you're a frog in a well.

Does he have the power to heal you?

Eretz,

you are living in Unholy Junior with a woman fucked by the beast.

What does he mean? Your wife?

Prophet, what are you trying to tell us?

Make yourself clear.

He who worships the beast

and its statue

and accepts its mark will chase the wine of the

conqueror's wrath.

My people don't appreciate Herodias as they should.

But you can't cut out everyone's tongue, can you?

No.

But but one can set an example now and then.

I anoint you with this holy water.

I'm not sure you fully grasp our way of thinking.

A queen has no right to shed tears

and no right to be comforted.

You are the granddaughter of Herod the Great and princess

Mariana.

Their dynasty dates back to the time when the gods still

inhabited our planet.

Command

This is your land.

This is what you care for.

Look.

Everything you can see is

yours,

even the stars.

The emperor couldn't recall your face,

but he still remembers your hair.

A man who slept in my hair takes that memory to his grave.

Cut me a lock.

Present this to the emperor as a token of my loyalty.

I'll keep it.

I'm sure he'd prefer a lock of Herod's hand.

You have nothing to fear.

Judea sleeps and dreams of the empire.

The emperor's concern is for the loyalty of his friends.

He's an old man now.

The empire's grown too big for him.

You know, I find it difficult to breathe in this atmosphere.

Macarus is on a mountain.

The air is thin but pure.

These children are strangely equipped.

Pleasure is forbidden, Menacris.

Does Herod often meet the commander of the Jerusalem garrison?

Herod is in love. Your generals no longer interest him.

They are too fat, and they smell bad.

He's in love. With a prophet.

Salimander the feeds on fire,

they breed in thousands in the desert.

My head is spinning.

I met this prophet.

He says a beast has left its mark on you.

I know.

A real mark?

What a shame that would be

for the empire,

which I had considered, perhaps,

allowing you to rule alone.

Alone?

You may stay.

You'll see that the only beast that's left its mark on me is time.

Ah, but you're still beautiful,

and I'm not fitted out like one of your slaves.

You're in conquered territory.

You may sleep in my hair.

Now the eyes of that child

appear a word will be worth more than mine.

Move my robe.

Now,

where would the beast have planted its claws?

In my side as it took me.

On my back.

Or on my belly as it forced its way.

Why are you afraid? Are you different from the rest of us?

Have I dispelled your doubts?

Will you be able to give the emperor a full description of my sorrow.

You may go.

Wait.

You refused to look at your mother?

Thank the emperor for for his kindness.

I bade him blindly and remain childless.

Is he finally returning her to me?

Well, that's for her to decide.

Selemay.

Selemay.

I lost so much of you.

Your gains, your laughter, your tears,

the budding of your breasts,

all because the emperor wanted a hostage.

I was his guest.

Do they say I was a bad mother?

Let me see your eyes.

They couldn't take away your beauty.

What have they told you about me?

Nothing.

My poor child.

The devastator

will turn your honey into blood.

We will cast away the stone from your tomb

and display your corruption before all.

No slab of marble will be heavy enough to protect your rotting body.

Must he place that ranting prophet beneath my window?

Have they spoken to you about your father?

He died.

Do you know how?

They had him murdered by his own guards.

My friends,

I looked at his throat, and it's,

white like the throat of a pig.

And when the time comes,

you will plunge your knives into

it.

When, Harold? When?

Look,

I brought you a little of his blood.

It's thin and pale.

As clear as wine.

A bucket full of blood is what we should draw from him.

Not this nut.

Where is it?

Now is the time to strike. Why is alone?

No.

No. No. No. No. No. Not now.

How much longer do we have to wait?

You brought us from the desert and threw us into this prison?

My friends, it's too early to strike.

Tonight, the Jerusalem garrison is to rise up.

Power is about to change hands.

Just wait for the banquet.

And when I drop my handkerchief,

I know who's in that curtain litter.

Who? Can't see.

Luke.

Do you recognize him?

Oh,

he's as dark as night.

Why have they brought her back?

It's a message of death.

Of death?

Does she know?

Poor Herod.

Lying in his coffin,

he wonders if the gravedigger knows he's dead.

They want to remove you and give her your crown.

He told her the palace belonged to her.

You'll tell her you killed her father.

She mustn't come to the banquet.

We must hide her.

Your Bedouins are waiting. Cut the Forna's throat now.

Not yet. We're not ready.

You will never be ready.

You're too busy holding your bowels.

Hey.

What's all this about?

Ah, the victory of our lone god over the old ones.

Oh, what god?

Oh, boy.

No. No.

His room is quite unfounded.

He was still able to speak for a whole hour every day.

And his bed's never empty.

He talks and talks and talks and talks.

That man is full of words.

When will he finally be empty?

When you're finally full.

She can't possibly remember.

Children have a memory.

They mix dreams in life.

Who mixes dreams in life?

You, Aaron.

Yes. Me.

You worry me.

What's this I hear?

You were converted only recently.

What do you mean?

Two short generations?

It was Herodias, wasn't it, who brought you legitimacy?

Her blood flows through history.

Aristobulus,

Alessandro, Marieme.

My father was a great king, But the son of a barbarian,

it seems they haven't forgotten.

Well, who are they?

Slaves,

dwarves, priests.

They say you shelter rebellion within your own palace.

I? That prophet, it appears you've lied to me.

He usually moves about freely, greets foreigners,

preaches outside the temple, and the people listen.

It's the truth, Herod. Nonsense.

The tongues of priests are too quick.

If they came face to face with god,

they wouldn't recognize him.

That's not what priests are for.

I wouldn't take these things too lightly, Heron.

Your stomach is gurgling.

What?

Stomach.

This region is unhealthy for foreigners.

Their bellies puff out, and they die overnight.

Prophet,

I'm suffering.

My

soul is aching.

You're disturbing me.

I brought her a present.

She is a real princess.

This is my prophet.

Kiss his hands.

See how fierce he is?

Things are not going well for you up there.

They want to cut your throat.

Death is a transition.

The gates of the city are broken down.

The houses are are burning.

I've seen.

See how gentle this woman is?

Do you think,

she can soothe my pain?

Fire will not quench fire.

Oh, you're so stupid, Yukanan.

You're so stupid.

Have you ever weighed a woman's breasts?

She cost me a fortune.

As she holds in all of

her.

Tell me.

How far back can someone's memory go?

As far back as we can remember.

Blame to me.

I need

I'll give you camels,

goats.

I chase away all the other prophets.

I baptize those who come to me,

their hearts brimming with repentance.

But I am overflowing with the repentance.

Please.

Her color has changed, hasn't it?

Is she painter?

Uh-uh. Redder.

Don't you see blood stains?

No.

Perhaps the blood is in your eyes.

Do you think so?

Look.

You you know on a limb that

that I heard a beating of wings.

You already told me.

That's very bad.

Have you noticed that

that even fool's dream?

I never dream.

That's very good.

I'll make you an officer.

I was right. He wanted to be at the banquet.

Get your Bedouins.

You want Salome?

Let him know that.

What's he going to do with that?

Make her queen.

Then I can send you away, I marry her.

He wants a queen.

Son him a whore.

Dress her up as a prostitute.

A prostitute?

They were woven by the queens of Judea.

There are now seven.

This one was made by princess Alexandra.

This one by princess Mariameli.

I wove the last one.

It's fine as a spider's where the scion could tear it.

One day, you'll spin an even finer one.

And when the last queen of Judea weaves the thousandth

veil, it'll be lighter than a breath of wind.

You'll wear them to the banquet. It's our custom.

All the guests are men tonight.

I have never thought of men.

Their legs make yours feel softer.

Their arms reassure you when you're not afraid.

Sometimes in their sleep, their swords rise.

They're so weak.

Miranda's broken.

It's a bad sign.

There will be no eighth queen?

I know why you're a virgin.

You want to be your father's widow.

I needed one.

Who is she?

Winston Salem?

I prefer his screams.

It's a land of never ending night.

The cold cracks the armor of our soldiers.

Yet even frozen to death,

they mark the boundaries of our empire in the north.

Some of them have been there.

Others will go even further.

This is princess Saruman,

the pride of our empire.

A great future lies ahead of her in the east.

The flower

that I planted in this desert has bloomed overnight.

He must be mad. Happiness has transformed you too.

Happiness and gratitude.

You see how generous the empire can be?

Tell me,

is this where your husband was murdered?

Yes.

Why do you ask?

One's heard so many rumors.

It was a long time ago.

People forget.

You haven't.

What about you, Harren?

What about me? He was your brother.

How did he die?

Why do we die, Nerva?

Because we are mortal.

I know.

I'll send that prophet to the emperor,

a big up for a princess.

It seems he's not afraid of pain.

It should be very entertaining. What do you say?

A horseman has a right for you.

Kill him. Do you hear me?

No. Kill him. No.

He wants to take your profit away.

I have made too many enemies.

But it's time I repented.

Salome,

do you remember me?

I dreamt of a blackbird.

Yes.

One day, the earth shook,

and the throne burst out of the ground with the first king of

Judea.

Who taught you that?

They did.

But I tell you, it's the truth.

Those two hyenas dressed her up like a whore. A whore.

I can't hear him.

The Jerusalem garrison has been overpowered and the

conspirators disarmed.

And they lead out.

Any news from the capital?

Hold is quiet. The ceremony will be held tomorrow.

Your troops are at an hour's march.

That means we have to hold out another hour.

What do you

want?

Pearls?

Emeralds?

Brocades?

Listen to me.

I'll give you,

performing animals.

Sapphire's that trap the colors of the night.

Dance.

Show them

that you forgive me.

That I forgive you.

I will dance for you.

Oh.

Do you want the stars to sneak up?

Her? I know you deserve more.

Just tell me what you want.

She can keep the glass beads.

You,

you have the right to half of my kingdom.

It means your half, of course.

Have you seen the

the Blue Hills to the north?

The plane that runs along the river?

They're yours.

They're yours if you don't.

If you cast off this obey, he'll start defile you.

Harren,

the emperor is amongst us.

The emperor?

Yes.

He sent you an entertainment dear to his heart.

At every new moon, all flesh will come before him

and adore him.

And he will see the corpses,

those who have rebelled.

The worm that feeds on

them will never die.

Everything would be alright.

Before day breaks, you will be queen.

Look at them.

Look at them.

A man was murdered here twelve years ago.

They strangled

him.

Do you know who he was?

Doing this?

No.

You see them?

They're doomed.

I wonder what they're doing in there.

Hey.

You couldn't answer me.

I'm bored up here, and it's all your fault.

Is he in there?

I want to see him. Throw in the torch.

No. He's not an animal.

Don't you know that I'm queen?

The famous prostitute.

What did he say?

It's your

veils.

Open the grate. I want to go in. He's dangerous.

Do as I say.

The Scarlet Woman.

You're burning.

You are not one

one of our kind.

The beast and the king are devoured by a fierce heat,

and they curse the name of him who rules the fire.

I love your words,

but I don't understand them.

Who is the beast?

Where is it?

A warrior from heaven empties his cup over the throne of the

beast, and darkness

takes hold of her kingdom.

Are you talking about my mother?

I am Salome, daughter of Herodias.

Take it.

Purify me.

Don't you want to? Are you just another maker of phrases?

Take it.

I am the next queen of Judea.

Purify me.

You're beautiful.

Where are you from?

Your skin is

as white as snow in the mountains.

Do you come from the mountains?

We a shepherd.

Oh, mountain grapes.

He presses seven cups of blood brimming with the wrath of god.

Is it the blood of Herodias you want?

I'll give it to you.

If I dance, Herold will let me have whatever I want.

I'll be sick blood when their mouth is parched with shame.

Shame. You are the one who speaks only of blood.

I just want to kiss your mouth.

I've never seen anything as red as your mouth.

I've never kissed a man before.

Let me kiss your mouth.

Go away. You carried the scent.

What scent?

I'm pure. My skin is as smooth as yours.

I want to rest my cheek against your skin.

You're like a silver lance.

I've heard that women kneel before

you.

Let me lie at your feet.

I love you, Yogena.

I want to adore you.

No.

You're a child of the beast. No. No.

I'm not. Take them off.

I'm the part of the empire.

They told me so.

Remember the signal, the handkerchief.

I can set you free.

Harrowd will grant me anything I ask for.

Someone mightier will free me.

But first, I must die.

Soon, I'll be queen, and I'll make you king beside me.

Let me kiss your mouth.

Our planet must perish.

All flesh must disappear.

When a thousand thousand years have passed,

new beings will come to live on it.

I love you, Yocanin.

I don't want you to die.

Death has the purity of dawn.

Over there, you shall kiss my mouth.

But they'll hurt you again and again.

I must diminish.

Diminish?

To make way for the one who's coming.

They haven't seen anything yet.

Will I be able to adore you over there?

Then I want to diminish with you.

Were you a shepherd in the mountains?

Yes.

They're waiting, Herod.

Waiting for what? You must decide their fate.

I will doubts for you, Herod.

Enough blood.

Mustn't damage the emperor's gift.

Harold.

Come on.

It's your fault, Herod.

That woman's dance has offended the heavens.

Do you hear?

Do you hear that sound?

Men?

Men marching?

And hear An

army.

I I hear an army.

This is your punishment from heaven.

The army of heaven.

The army of heaven.

Don't listen to them.

You made a promise, and I danced.

Yes.

What do you want?

You're half of the kingdom?

No.

I want the life of the prophet.

His life?

You mean his death?

No. No. No. That's not possible.

You can't ask me for that.

If you don't keep your word,

the light will never return.

Do you think so?

Yes, Harith.

But how can the the death of a prophet light up the stars and

silence an army?

I was pure, and I danced for you.

But what will you do with this man's life?

He will haunt your knight.

I know him.

He'll give you no peace.

Listen.

Listen.

I'll give you my palace in Galliro.

It's Thor. It's it's made up mother of pearl.

I'll give you my crown.

My crown.

Or

or will you like me at the cloak of the high priest?

Herodias' hair.

The temple veil.

Why do you want

my prophet to die?

Why?

Because

because I too want to diminish.

You want to?

Go narrow, boss.

You lied to me.

They they killed the prophet. You lied to me.

There's still no light.

You lied to me.

I can still hear him. You lied to me.

He hears an army.

You do have sharp ears, Herod.

That comforting sound

is the imperial legion approaching.

You're looking for your monkeys?

Your wife pointed them out to us.

Oh, I'm afraid I have some sad news.

The emperor is dead.

The funeral will be held tomorrow.

The succession is, of course, assured.

The empire

has never been stronger.

Take them away. Let them greet our troops.

Only one god,

Reunite the royal couple.

We might find some use for them.

I guess you're mad at yoga then.

Kill

her.