Original subtitles

I've hit it.

Open it.

I beg you to reconsider, Dr. Sutton. If you want to be something more than a

perpetual graduate student, you'll open the casket, Reg.

You know the legends better than I do. This can only spell disaster for all of

us. It's the last time, Reg.

Open the casket.

Hand me the magician's book.

There's a card.

Read.

She who takes this book from me takes with it the curse of eternity.

It's the magician's curse.

It's meant to scare you. Well, it worked.

Hand me the magician's book.

I can't.

I won't.

Pity. You had a promising academic future.

The book, Reg.

Professor?

You said you wouldn't hurt me, baby.

But then you said goodbye.

Well, if that ain't hurting, baby, I'd hate to see you try.

Cause we just said.

Sinclair. Single malt. Neat.

Hey.

You know, it's funny. I've never seen you drink anything stronger than spring

water. What's up?

That was my dad's drink.

Sinclair, single malt.

You wouldn't drink anything else.

Everything seemed fine yesterday. What's so different about today?

Today's his father's birthday.

Oh, God, Johnny, I'm sorry, man. I wasn't even thinking.

How do you know that?

We have a common friend who's told me a great deal about you. Yeah, friend?

Who would that be?

I believe you know Dr.

Walton?

Yeah.

Doc. He helped me after my accident.

The lightning.

I know.

You seem to know a lot.

Who are you?

I'm Judy Thorpe, Walton's research assistant.

The doctor is currently on a world lecture to a stuck in Romania.

Care to join me for a drink?

We have a matter of grave importance to discuss.

We'd love to.

It's a confidential matter, I'm afraid.

You need anything, you just shout.

Excuse me.

It was a great show.

We don't get that kind of soulful music in Cambridge.

What brought you all the way out here from England?

Do you believe in magic, Johnny?

Have you ever heard of a book called The Necromancer's Tale? No. Sounds like

fiction. It isn't entirely fiction.

It was written by a man calling himself the Lord of Magicians.

His name was Andre Barzun.

Barzun's book purportedly contained fragments of an original Sumerian

manuscript. This manuscript was thought to be lost around the end of the first

millennium. Destroyed by the Catholic Church.

But it wasn't. At least... One copy survived the Inquisition. Barzun's was

the first hint in over a thousand years that powerful Sumerian magic rites might

still exist.

You of all people know the power of this book.

Once opened, the Death Gate Tide will sweep the entire world.

You'll never be able to close it.

You underestimate me.

As a scientist, you'll be throwing away everything you've ever sworn allegiance

to. Truth, natural law, the universal order.

I didn't fail them. They failed me.

I won't fail her.

Captain's wife, Lucy, was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. For the past

four months, she's been bedridden.

Four days ago, according to Red...

Her round-the-clock nurses were kind of late, and Rachel wasn't allowed to see

Lucy anymore.

Rise!

Rise! Rise!

Are you telling me that Sutton is trying to use this book to raise his wife from

the dead?

Yes. And you think it's possible?

Is it really you?

What is that?

You're alive.

I'm... You're alive.

It worked.

It truly worked.

The old magician did have the secret of necromancy.

An everlasting life.

The university stood doing with a bullet in his chest and an open grave.

A curse.

What curse?

The old magician's curse.

Andre Barzun, lord of the magicians. A dark sorcerer.

Well, I don't believe in sorcery and I certainly don't believe in curses. I'm

guessing what killed this man was a 38 special.

Curse is real.

That is fact.

The bullet is only a symptom of this man's greed.

Fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.

And only fools despise wisdom and instruction.

I have seen the curse with my own eyes.

But I have run away.

As have others before me.

You mean this isn't the first time this gravesite has been dug up?

Neither the first nor the last.

Treasure draws many.

Stolen waters are sweet.

And bread that is eaten in secret is pleasant.

But he knoweth not that the dead are there.

And that his guests are in the depths of hell.

Bread.

Johnny! Johnny!

You of all people should know that there are things that science can't explain.

The reason the book hasn't destroyed the world is because it's been hidden by

those who know its power.

But you say that it hasn't been used in some small way to shape the course of

history.

Remember, I can only think of his thoughts if they're evil.

I'm well aware of your limitations, Tony.

Yes. What can I do for you?

I don't know if you'll remember me, Dr. Sutton.

My name's Trudy Thorpe, and I'm... Walton sent you, didn't he?

Yes, actually.

Or rather, I was in the fitting he asked if I'd pay my respects.

This is Johnny Domino.

The musician.

Yes.

My wife and I came to see one of your shows about a year or so ago.

Nice to meet you.

Please come in. I'm delighted to have the company.

Thank you.

I apologize for the mess.

The maid seems to have up and left us during the night.

Us?

My wife, of course.

No one.

Oh, yes, your wife.

How is your wife? I heard she was ill.

Yes, quite ill.

But she's had the most remarkable recovery.

Oh. Will she be joining us?

No.

She's been resting all morning. Her illness left her fatigued, I'm afraid.

Care for brandy?

I'd love a tea, thanks.

Water, please.

Free sugar?

Uh, no, thanks.

Think nothing of it May I use your bathroom? Of course Upstairs, down the

hall, two doors to your left Thanks

Whoa! You shouldn't think I want people.

You could be Daniel.

You have a strong heart.

Sounds positively delicious.

Don't be frightened of me.

You don't belong here.

You're not natural.

Dear boy, your concept of natural is about to change.

He's going to return the world to the old one.

He will give to the dead power over the living.

There is nothing to fear in death.

I kind of like it when the dead stay dead.

Rules change.

Life is weight on the living.

Blinded, all right. Yeah, I've found it. We'd better go.

So soon?

Yes, but thank you for seeing it, Doctor.

It's been a pleasure.

I couldn't get anything into him. How about you? He didn't buy chance for a

lucidity ticket. Oh, I found her.

Looks pretty good for a dead person.

Oh,

he does have a book. He's overused it.

He's going to use it again.

He said he wants to return the world to the old order.

I don't think she was talking about Sutton. Then who?

I need to get Raleigh in on this.

He can research Sutton on the internet.

We need all the help we can get.

Did she give you any clue?

She was beginning to make a point.

Dr. Winslow Sutton, professor at cultural anthropology at Bay City

University, is the leading expert on the life and teachings of Bay City local

Andre Barzun, the self-proclaimed lord of magicians. Dr. Sutton's forthcoming

book traces the roots of the magician's sordid past and examines his role as the

modern-day messiah of cultural energy. Okay, I got that info you wanted about

the cemetery stiff.

What'd you find, Nance? Okay, the guy was an anthropology student, but he was

working as a research assistant to a doctor... Wait.

Let me guess.

Dr. Winslow Sutton.

I guess that's why you have the corner office.

I think I should go pay this Sutton a visit.

I'd like to hear his views on the rotting infrastructure and moral decay

of contemporary society.

The what?

Okay, fine.

I'll do this the old fashioned way.

Your father was a handsome man.

Rugged looking.

Would you like another?

Sorry.

Perhaps we should get down to business, hmm?

Uh, were you able to... I was able to pick up bits and pieces from both of

them.

Sutton and Lucy are going to do whatever they're going to do, and they're going

to do it tonight.

That soon?

It's going to be difficult to prepare any kind of countermeasure.

There's one more thing.

When I picked up on Lucy's vibe...

It was like it wasn't her. It was her body.

But it was like another soul had taken her place.

Does that make any sense?

Perfect sense.

Dr. Walton always believed that in a normal death process, the soul is

released from the body and then moves on to the next level. But when the soul is

tormented and refuses to acknowledge its own passing, it lingers on Earth as a

ghost.

Or worse.

You hear stories of zombies and ghouls, and many occultists believe that it's

these disembodied and tortured spirits that enter a corpse, reanimating it, but

only for a very short time before the body decomposes beyond any sort of

function.

So the spells in the book make these things happen.

Yes.

Johnny, I found that book, The Necromancer's Tale, and you've got...

Hey. Sorry about last night.

I wasn't sure if you were aware of Johnny's unique insight into the

criminal mind.

We're partners.

Look.

Anyway, both of you, you've got to listen to this.

Okay, here it is.

The gate may only be opened by special ordinance and may not stay open beyond

the hour of Tiamat, lest the abyss break forth upon the earth and the dead rise

to eat the living. For it is writ, I will cause the dead to rise and devour

the living. I will give to the dead... Power over the living that they may

outnumber the living.

How's that for demented?

I'd call it disgusting.

He will give the dead power over the living.

That's what Lucy said.

She must be talking about Tiamat.

I was afraid of that.

We gather together, the light and the dark,

through the mist-shrouded mountains, at the hour of

Tiamat.

Andre Barzun believed that he was the incarnation of Tiamat and that it was

his destiny to return his rule.

So, how do we stop him?

We'll find a way.

I

call

to thee, ancient lords, to hear me.

And fill this circle with your light.

You

can

stop right there, Sutton. Whoever you are, you can't stop them now.

The ancient ones are already gathering.

You have to do better than that.

Well done, magician.

It is an honor to serve you, master.

But I had my reasons.

Yes, of course.

You want immortality.

So that you can die happily ever after with my daughter.

And who might you be?

I'm the one that's going to put you back in your grave.

You're hardly in a position to threaten me.

After all, I am the Lord of the Dead.

But we're the living.

You have no rule over us.

That is about to change.

You must close the gate. If you don't, the dead will rise and devour the

living.

Hurry, it's already begun.

What?

It?

The raising of the dead. Oh, you know, maybe we shouldn't go rushing in there.

Come on, let's play.

Okay.

I am the incarnation of Tiamat.

I am come to give the dead power over the living, as I promised.

I can't allow this, Lucy.

Even if it means we can't be together.

I won't be the cause of the death of all living things.

The living had their chance.

I've missed you, Daddy.

Now, the dead are knocking, knocking, knocking.

Demanding what is rightfully theirs.

Tired of this lunatic.

It's almost midnight. The hour of Tiamat.

Over here.

What the?

As Nightman, defender of the faked evil worst nightmare.

I'll take that.

You're too late.

Midnight.

It's beginning.

Look at how to use this thing.

Close the gate. Then use the spell of banishings and get it far away so that

he won't reopen it tomorrow.

Get him.

You're no magician, little girl.

Marduk, I call thee to this place of incompetence. Hear me.

I've had quite enough of your annoyances.

My happy place.

I'm in my happy place.

I think

it's working.

It's working. Keep going.

The best magicians have the best memories.

The night may be yours, but the game is still afoot.

Stop them!

Are you all right?

I think so.

But I wasn't able to cast the spell of banishing.

He'll be back to reopen the gates tomorrow.

Only now.

We won't have the ammunition to...

All right.

If I were dead and walking around Bay City, where would I go?

You

guys

looking for some action?

Hi.

You know it's dangerous to be out in the streets at this time of night?

Oh, yeah, you know.

Could be very, uh... Dangerous.

Thing is... We just blew the last few bucks we had,

so... Yeah, but... Good for him.

I doubt that.

You don't have to insult me like that.

We don't even know.

Must be a student, now a PhD.

Do you notice anything else?

Three persons dead, another person missing. This case just gets weirder by

the minute. Oh, and the two guys you found in red light? Yeah.

Same M.O.s the maid you dug up last night. They had their hearts whipped

from a chest cavity.

Looks like we may have a serial.

You want me to seal off the cemetery?

No, I don't think the families of these people would appreciate that. Hell, I

got mad around here somewhere.

No, I'm guessing whoever did this got what they came for.

Yeah, a ten-year-old corpse.

Yeah. You do know that it's someone with no appreciation for Renaissance art.

Or literature.

The fever's getting worse.

The burns on your hands aren't getting any better.

I gotta get you to the doctor.

It's no use.

It's Marduk's magic. It's too strong to fight.

Here.

You have to fight it.

It's too strong.

Maybe we should call Doc Walton.

I tried.

I can't get a hold of him.

What are we going to do?

Trudy said that Barzun was probably going to try that zombie-making crap

again tonight at the hour of Tiamat.

We'll have to stop him.

How? The book's gone, and the only guy who can remember the spell for banishing

is the guy we're trying to banish. We'll find a way.

Wait a minute. Wait a minute.

Maybe this will help.

But Trudy did say that some of this book came from the original text.

If this Lord of the Dead were eventually going to rise from his grave to destroy

all the living, he wouldn't have written down how to destroy himself.

Probably not.

Fourth edition.

Yeah, so?

So the first book was published in 69.

Right.

Trudy said that Barzun started as a white magician.

A good guy in the 60s and 70s.

When was this book published?

Sometime around 84.

84.

He never would have written about black magic before the 80s. So you think that

each edition chronicles his descent onto the dark side.

Yeah. Yeah, maybe.

We have to find the first edition.

Can I help you?

I hope so. I've been everywhere else.

I pride myself on carrying books that other, more modern stores do not.

I'm looking for the Necromancer's Tale.

You're in luck. We have several copies. Good.

This is the revised edition.

I need the first edition.

Well, that is an order not even I can fill.

You see, it's quite a rare book. And quite valuable.

Do you know where I might find one? It's urgent.

Well, I do know of a man in Lisbon who might have a copy.

There's no time.

It's a matter of life.

More importantly, death.

Did you say a matter of death?

Yeah. Who are you?

Only a humble custodian.

Can you help me?

The Lord Creator sent you to me.

You want the book.

Why?

It'll sound crazy.

Try me.

A magician named Barzun, who died over a decade ago, rose from his grave last

night and tried to raise the rest of the dead so they could... So they could

devour the living.

Right. And you need the spell of banishings, that you might banish the

old dark wizard once and for all. How do you know so much?

I believed in Andre Barzun once upon a time.

And then I saw him plummet to the depths of hell. And I heard him vow to bring

back the ancient ones.

Then you can't help it. You can use the spell against him. No.

I've renounced the path that leads to destruction. I walk the path of

salvation.

The only other person who knows how to do this is dying because of Barzun's

magic. Yes, and she will die.

You do not stop him.

The task has been given to you by the Lords of Light.

You must succeed, or we're all doomed to eternal night.

The woman who's dying said, not just anyone can use these spells.

You have to know the fundamentals of magic, true.

But he that diligently seeketh after good procureth favor.

And he that diligently seeketh after mischief, surely it will come unto him.

You have already passed the first and most important threshold, belief.

For the next eight hours, I'm going to teach you everything I can.

When the hour of Tiamat arrives, you'll be on your own.

What took you? She's not doing too well.

I found it.

Yeah.

Let's hope I can use it. All right, let's go. We're almost out of time. No.

No, I'm doing this alone.

You stay with her.

If everything goes right, the spell will break.

So will our fever.

Yeah, but... No, I'm doing this alone.

Tiamat, serpent king of the underworld, the hour of your greatness is upon you.

Ardu, servant of the light, vanquisher of the dark lords, hear me.

Remember the words, Tiamat. Remember the words.

Remember the words. Remember the words.

Remember the

words.

to Flower and Main 311.

Truth always remains in the heart.

We cannot forget the truth unless we choose to forget.

The words are there. In your heart. Time to join the dead.

I will not allow this.

Tiamat will not allow this.

Lord of the Light, vanquish this Barsoom to the farthest reaches of your realm.

May he do no more evil in this world.

Restore equilibrium.

Restore the natural order.

Listen in, Andre Barsoom.

I banish thee from this world forever.

Lunga, Demo, Ankiya, Batuu!

Well done, Chosen One.