The Dark Wizard M.I. High

'When the moon was ripped from its orbit,

'flood waters tore across the Earth

'and civilisation as we know it was destroyed.

'There came a time of myth and magic,

'when the cruel reign of the Dark Wizard

'cast a long shadow over the ravaged land.

'Until a small band of adventurers set out on a quest

'to save the world and in doing so,

'truly learned what it means to be a hero.'

'The 21st century faces a new kind of threat.

'And MI9 must create a new breed of skilled undercover agent.'

'Hidden in a place no villain will think to look.

'Welcome to M.I. High.'

"Luke raised his sword to the heavens,

"a defiant silhouette against the foreboding sky.

"'I bid you welcome, tomorrow,'" he declared to his friends,

"'For tomorrow will herald a new opportunity to defeat evil.'"

Who would've thought that one day

there would be 29 books in the series

and that BladeCon would be taking place right here at St Heart's

this very weekend.

Headmaster, don't you think it would be better for the class

to learn the classics?

That is precisely the point, Mr McNab.

Blade Quest IS a classic.

The struggle between good and evil is a tale as old

as storytelling itself.

And Luke Blade sets a wonderful example for today's youth.

"You can put me in chains, but you cannot defeat my spirit.

"You will not triumph this day, nor tomorrow. Good will prevail!"

BELL RINGS

Thank you, everyone.

Unbelievable.

Swords and sorcery isn't my thing,

but it's cool to be that into something.

What's your problem with Blade Quest?

It's just so simplistic - good versus evil.

-Isn't that what WE do?

-When we go on a mission, real lives are at stake.

Blade Quest... It's just make-believe.

There's been a spate of thefts of specialised scientific equipment

from laboratories around the world.

-Dan, THAT'S what I want for my birthday.

-An amplification crystal?

Whatever goes in, comes out exponentially more powerful.

Is this an old case? It seems familiar.

All the robberies are the work of a single thief.

We believe she's stealing the items to order for the usual suspects -

enemy governments, terrorists and, of course, mad scientists.

The Order of the Red Claw! That's why it's so familiar!

-I-it's a story-line from Blade Quest.

-You can't be serious?

The Order's this group of mercenary thieves.

In one story they stole this magical jewel, called the Eye of Namzruk.

-Story time's over, Tom.

-MI9 finally caught a lead after the last theft,

when we intercepted this transmission, which we believe

is from the thief's boss.

'Congratulations on another successful mission, Roona.

'I'll meet you at BladeCon. Bring the crystal to me there.'

Looks like you're going to BladeCon, after all.

'I am Xanadu, the elf.

'The bow is my friend and my arrows fly true.'

'I'm Dollop, the ogre. Despite my thick skin,

'I'm sensitive and loyal to my trusted companions.'

'Fred Grungle at your service.

'Blacksmith by trade, adventurer by happenstance.

'Betwixt you and I, questing isn't good for my nerves.'

'I'm Grandalf, the wise old sorcerer.

'I don't know much about potions but I'm a whiz with gadgets.'

'And I'm Luke Blade, some kind of heroic knight.

'I have the courage of a lion and the heart of a warrior...apparently.'

Oh, this is so cool. This is like Blade Quest come to life.

Tom, I'm sorry. I need you in the base on this one.

You can monitor every inch of the school from there.

-But I want to be at BladeCon.

-The mission comes first.

You said yourself questing wasn't good for your nerves.

At least you'll get to stay in a nice warm cave.

Thanks, Neish. That's really funny (!)

"Want to stay in the basement with him..."

Dan, give me the shield.

Now, get mingling and watch out for anyone acting strangely.

As far as I can tell, everyone IS acting strangely.

"You have foiled my plans for the last time, Luke Blade.

"Prepare to die!"

"Take that, evil one! And don't be bothering us no more."

"Thank you, Fred Grungle. You saved my life."

It's not fair. I'm just as good as Dan.

I should be up there... Not down here, in my hutch.

All right, everyone. Ooh!

Settle down. Take your seats, please. Settle down, thank you.

Because I would like to welcome you all to BladeCon! Woo!

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

And, yes, and without further ado,

I'd like to introduce you to the author of 29 Blade Quest books, yes!

And our guest of honour, Mr William Todd-Williams!

-CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

-Thank you.

Woo!

Thank you, thank you!

Thank you very much.

But if I may, I would like to make one small correction.

As of today, I am the author of 30 books.

GASPS

I present Apocalypse Of The Sword,

the final chapter of the Blade Quest saga,

available to buy NOW!

Come on, come one, come on!

Could you sign my copy, please?

# A legendary hero rode into battle

# His courage was great His sword was metal

# Where evil lurked... #

Shut up!

This is so unfair.

What if...

These people need to get a life!

-SHE GASPS

-Why thank you, brave knight.

You're most dashing.

There's a maiden-rescuing contest later.

-I thought perhaps...you and I...?

-I, er...

I need one of these to protect me from Melissa.

I've modified it, to detect the missing amplification crystal.

You're a truly great and powerful wizard.

If you don't mind, I'd like to get this mission over and done with.

-How many crystals are we looking for?

-Just the one.

Er, guys, they're selling replicas of the crystal.

Perfect (!)

What I've loved about writing Blade Quest is being

in total control of the world I've created.

'Literally, I can do whatever I want.'

'So, if you don't mind me asking, why are you ending the series?'

-'It's just time for a new challenge.'

-I know the feeling!

This is a nightmare.

Anyone of these people could be who we're looking for.

See that girl over there? There's something odd about her.

Yeah, tell me something I don't know!

Everyone else is reading the book, apart from her.

That's pretty flimsy. We can't arrest the poor girl for not reading a book.

We're going to lose her.

Excuse me, can we have a word?

Luke Blade.

'Dan, Neish, quick,'

tweak your nose, scratch your right ear and cough twice.

Do what?!

'Tweak your nose, scratch your right ear and cough twice. Trust me.'

SHE CLEARS HER THROAT

-SHE COUGHS

-Comrade.

Would someone mind telling me what just happened?

'Neish just used the secret greeting of the Order of the Red Claw.

'Your turn.'

Be not bashful, young knight.

Are you also here to meet the Great One?

Aye, we're that. Lead on.

The Great One. That's from the books, too.

-Of course I've just realised who's behind all the robberies.

-Who?

The Dark Wizard.

What she means is someone pretending to be The Dark Wizard.

That's not a lot of help, Tom.

Remember when we stole the Ark of the Scrolls?

Er, yes, it was a fine day, indeed. Many a song was sung in celebration.

Fine?! We lost many comrades on that blighted day.

Yes, blighted indeed were we... on that blighted day.

What were the names of our comrades who fell that day?

A little help here.

Uh-oh.

Soonam!

Soonam. I still miss him.

Soonam was my sister!

-Oops...

-OK, let's do this the old-fashioned way.

Useless toy sword!

Watch out for the Red Claw gambit!

What's that?!

BOTH: Argh!

That.

MI9 tranquilliser. Gets them every time.

It's the one we're looking for.

-Now, who are you really?

-I told you. My name is Roona.

I'm a member of the Order of the Red Claw. I serve the Great One.

She had the crystal on her, but she won't budge.

She insists on pretending she's some character from those books.

You speak in riddles.

Smile.

Let's find out who you are.

-Doreen Doidge.

-That name rings a bell.

Lives at 33 Chestnut Grove, Little Walkham-on-the-Haze.

'She's a model citizen. Volunteers at Oxfam, Chair of the W.I.'

Where did she get the skills to bypass the high security

-at those labs?

-Yeah, and fight like that?

You will rue the day you crossed swords with the Great One.

It's weird how she won't come out of character.

Unless...she really believes she's a member of the Order of the Red Claw?

Are you suggesting she was able to pull off all of those robberies

just by thinking she's a super thief?

Don't underestimate the power of the imagination, Dan.

I knew I knew her!

Doreen Doidge runs the Blade Quest Fan Club!

If she's that into the books, maybe she mixed up fantasy and reality.

OK, so Doreen's just another Blade Quest saddo!

We still have to catch this Grey Wizard bloke.

-'Dark Wizard.'

-Whatever.

-He could be another delusional fan.

We need to find out where they were going to meet.

If she still thinks she's Roona she'll never spill the beans.

-Where do we go from here?

-Hang on a minute...

Of course! In the Order of the Red Claw book, the thief delivers

the Eye of Namzruk to the Cave of Souls!

-How's that help us?

-Well the cave's been recreated for BladeCon!

-Aneisha, have you got the crystal?

-Yes.

-Don't get lost in the mist.

That's not mist. That's the spirits of dead warriors.

# The song of the siren beckons them on

# To the Soul of Caves where the warriors belong

# The waters run red with the blood of the fallen

# The ghosts of the past for ever a-calling... #

Oh, hello. Nice costume. (There you go...)

-Frank, can you come and take a look at this?

-What is it?

It's an idea I've been trying out. I was thinking, what if,

instead of being stolen for loads of different bad guys,

everything was stolen for just one person?

-To make one device?

-Exactly. I've been trying to make something

out of the pieces but... I keep getting stuck.

It's like a jigsaw puzzle, without a picture of what the finished thing

-is supposed to look like.

-No, I've tried that already.

What about this?

I'm not just a pretty face!

Is that what I think it is?

What kept you?

Forgive me, oh, Great One. Our foes are everywhere.

I had to be careful.

Do you have the crystal?

You have done well, child.

'Neish, whatever you do, do not let The Dark Wizard have that crystal.'

-He's built a gravity weapon.

-With the amplification crystal

he could use it to do anything!

It'll be powerful enough to pick up Big Ben and throw it like a javelin!

'Dan, Zoe, get in there and find Aneisha.

'We can't let the Dark Wizard have that crystal.'

Excuse me... As I was saying...

Dibbs?

Prepare to die, traitor!

I wouldn't do that if I were you!

Wha...? Where did he go?

Don't worry about me. Just go get HIM!

He's vanished.

What do you expect? The Dark Wizard is a master of illusion.

It's not a dark wizard, someone's pretending!

Calm down, Dan. Tom, monitor the exits. Make sure he doesn't leave.

The rest of you, keep looking. He must still be in the school.

I just don't get it!

Roly, you know a lot about Blade Quest, don't you?

I am familiar with the chronicles, yes.

If I wanted to find the Dark Wizard where would be a good place to look?

-Have you tried his mountaintop citadel?

-Silly me for asking(!)

Beware! It's protected by a bunch of his rabid banshees.

I'm sure it is. Can I ask you something else?

What's so great about Blade Quest?

Thou doth jest!

No...really.

What am I missing?

I know people laugh at me because I like Blade Quest,

but when I read it, I'm there!

-I'm

-Luke Blade. I get to defeat the villains and protect the princess.

Good shall prevail.

Fare thee well, good knight.

Fare thee well...Luke.

'Dan!'

I've cross-checked the list of attendees with our database

of known criminals. There are no matches.

And shall I sign it to Nora?

William Todd-Williams - he's a guest, right? Not an attendee?

He could be the Dark Wizard.

-He knows Blade Quest better than anyone.

-'Not a chance.'

'He used the profits from his last book to build an orphanage

'in the Himalayas. He's a lovely man.'

Still, I'm going to profile the Dark Wizard and see if it matches him.

He must be obsessed with Blade Quest, must have massive ego

and be brilliant.

'What've you got?'

Oh, never mind.

Boyfriend?

Ew! No, erm, just a nerdy friend who's obsessed with Blade Quest.

-Oh, sorry, no offence.

-Oh, none taken.

-Is he here today?

-He really wanted to be.

Well, I'm sorry to hear that. May I?

What's your friend's name?

Shouldn't you be looking for you-know-who?

Don't tell Frank, but I wanted you to have this.

I know how disappointed you are

-about missing the convention.

-Apocalypse Of The Sword!

Look inside.

"To Tom. The end is only the beginning. William Todd-Williams."

Does this mean I have to be nice to you?

I better go. Frank'll do his nut if he catches me.

Your magic may have defeated me

but the Dark Wizard is more powerful than you can comprehend.

Just go with it.

-No sign of the Dark Wizard?

-'I've been monitoring all the exits.

'He definitely hasn't left the building.'

He knows we're on to him. Why stay and risk being captured?

Unless...he has to have the crystal today because the gravity weapon

is already in the school... ready to be used!

The gravity weapon will have a distinctive energy signature.

'See if you can locate it.'

Nothing! How is that possible?

We'll keep searching. We HAVE to find that weapon.

Why is the Dark Wizard planning to fire the gravity weapon at BladeCon.

What's so special about today?

Oh, no!

'Er...guys, you better get down here.'

What is it, Tom?

I know why the Dark Wizard brought the gravity weapon to BladeCon.

"The moon shimmered and the seas churned,

"unleashing waves as high as skyscrapers..."

-And your point is?

-Today's a super moon,

-when the moon's at its closest to the Earth.

-So?

He'll will use the gravity device to drag the moon out of orbit.

If the moon's orbit shifts even a little it would be disastrous.

There'd be tsunamis and flooding on an unprecedented scale everywhere.

Entire countries would be submerged, only mountainous areas survive.

-Exactly!

-But why?

-The Dark Wizard wants to destroy our world

and replace it with the world of Blade Quest,

-a world where he is the absolute ruler.

-That's crazy.

Maybe that's what he is - a fan that's so obsessed with Blade Quest

that he wants to turn it into reality.

HISSING SOUND

Gas!

Their tracking device.

ALARM

It's disabled our defences.

INTERCOM: 'Warning, security breached.'

'Warning, security breached.'

'Warning, security breached.'

EVIL LAUGH

'Warning, security breached.'

'Warning, security breached.'

I don't believe it!

The Dark Wizard killed Luke Blade!

The end is only the beginning.

What was that?

Dan...it's started. He must've fired the gravity weapon.

-Stay calm, everybody! It's fine!

-Stay calm!

Everybody, leave the building! No running!

Now, let me through, let me... I mean run for your lives!

SCREAMING

The gravity weapon.

Luke Blade.

You're too late!

Aaaaaaargh!

You!

I don't understand. Why?

I've grown weary of make-believe.

Once civilisation has been levelled

I will have a real world to mould as I see fit!

Stay calm! Everybody follow...

What's going on?!

SCREAMING

If we don't realign the moon back into its orbit

-it will be the end of the world.

-And the dawn of a glorious new one!

-Do you know how to realign the moon?

-Oh, I'll figure it out.

Uh-oh...

Careful, Tom! One wrong move and the moon could crash into the Earth.

OK, I think I've got the hang of it. I just need two minutes.

We don't have two minutes! The Thames has burst its banks! HURRY!

Excuse me...

but I really must get to the safety of my mountaintop retreat.

You know - the one I built for those poor orphans!

I will have the best view possible of the end of the world!

Get your hands off of her!

Let's see how you do in a real fight.

Ha-ha! You've come to rescue your princess!

Right, Mr Dark Wazzock!

Now, hang on a minute.

And now to seal your fate.

Say goodbye...Fred Grungle!

VOICE ECHOES: 'Don't underestimate the power of the imagination, Dan.'

'The power of the imagination, Dan... Power of the imagination, Dan...'

Yeah!

'Power of the imagination, Dan... Imagination, Dan...'

Wait!

You think you've won? You're wrong!

You can put me in chains but you will not defeat my spirit.

ALL: You will not triumph this day, nor tomorrow!

Good will prevail! ALL: Yeah!

I've done it!

No-o-o-o-o-o-o!!

Oi!

Sign this!

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Oh! Oh...

# The fate of the world was in the balance

-# The heroes' weapons were... #

-Shut up!

Let me through. Excuse me.

-Let me through, let me through.

-(Here we go!)

Good job, guys, but we've blown our cover.

Oh, I say! What a clever way to end BladeCon!

And who would've thought that Daniel Morgan would agree to portray

Luke Blade saving the world?

But sorry, sorry, if you were watching that you'd know it was...

it was Fred Grungle who saved the world?

Yes, yes. And what a marvellous performance from Mr Todd-Williams.

Bravo! Bravo!

-Oh, you thought this was...

-Uh-hm!

-Bravo!

Amazing!

Wonderful, wonderful costumes! Especially yours, Frank.

The publishers have generously donated copies of the new edition

of the final Blade Quest book. There you go.

Apparently, the one in which the Dark Wizard kills Luke Blade

was all part of an elaborate publicity stunt...

So...what do you think about Blade Quest now?

Everyone's entitled to be a hero.

I'm lucky. Because I work for MI9 and I get to defeat the villain and...

rescue the princess for real.

Hey, sometimes it's the princess who rescues the knight. Remember?

So you're not worried about it all being make-believe?

When we're up against KORPS, belief's the most powerful weapon we have.

-What's this?!

-It's the other 29 books in the series.

I thought since you're such a big fan now, you'd like to borrow them.

'Luke raised his sword to the heavens,

'a defiant silhouette against the foreboding sky.

'"I bid you welcome tomorrow," he declared to his friends,

'for tomorrow will herald a new opportunity to defeat evil.'

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd