Work Text:
Scene 1
On a field, outside King Duncan's castle, strewn with banners and tents.
Enter a young Macbeth and many other thanes
King Duncan - I bid good morrow to all present,
As my two sons, Malcolm, and Donalbain, have reached
An age halfway to manhood, royal order decrees a bout.
All Thanes shall compete against each other in a tournament,
Thane against Thane, till one remains.
He who shines brightest will be crowned,
Strongest of all, and most fit
For the service of my sovereignty,
And that of the future of Malcolm and Donalbain.
Macbeth(aside) - A tournament!
Why this here is my chance! My fleeting moment
To prove my value as a thane,
And show all how bright I truly am.
King Duncan - Macbeth, you are to take on Banquo soon,
And after, Macduff, to go against Lenox.
You shall bear arms by the tents
Wooden swords for all,
With accompanying arm and knee guards,
Is this understood by all?
A murmur of agreement ensues
Menteth - I share sorrow for you Macbeth,
I do not know if I were to house the capability
To do battle against my own good man.
Macbeth - I thank you for your sympathy,
But it is of no worry in my mind,
In truth I look sanguinely to it,
We shall duel, and we shall duel fairly.
Banquo - I concur, and too
Look forward to this battle.
Menteth - Well then I say good luck.
Good luck to both of you, and may the best man win.
Exeunt all
Scene 2
Enter Macbeth and Banquo, both equipped to fight
Banquo - How are you, good friend Macbeth?
Macbeth - Like a fading light.
Banquo - Well I do pray that light soon sparks a conflagration, I would not take any less as an opponent.
Enter King Duncan
King Duncan - I see you two are ready.
Here I hold two mock-crowns,
Ready to bestow upon each of you,
Your aim within this duel
Is to knock the crown off your opposition,
Whilst minding your own.
Only once your crown abuts the floor,
Will either of you have lost.
King Duncan places the crowns atop each of their heads
Are you both ready?
Macbeth(In unison with Banquo) - Yes.
King Duncan - Then the duel may commence,
May the stronger man take his win.
They begin to battle
Macbeth - You are quick Banquo,
I must admit. But speed may never overstep
The boundaries set in place by strategy.
Only through a strong plan,
Can a true man achieve his desires.
Banquo - A true man achieves his desires through action,
Not through speech, as is presented by you.
I will demonstrate this once I win this duel.
Macbeth - You are mistaken, you idiotic fool!
And are simply blinded by the light I emit in my glory.
Banquo(shocked) - From whence did this new man emerge?
I have not ever known you to be one such as this.
Common rabble-rousing is fair play, but this?
This is simply foul.
Macbeth - Only now do you notice my superiority,
As I best you in a duel? You are hysterical Banquo.
Banquo - Your tongue may have the power to offset an opponent,
But I doubt your sword skills share that ability!
Banquo lunges for Macbeth’s crown
Banquo - My belief was correct,
For now your crown, your very lifeblood within this duel,
Dangles from the edge of my blade.
Macbeth - You are correct in your observation,
But misguided in your belief, For I am yet to yield,
Nor do I face the end of this tournament, so it still remains present
That I may rise from my faltering, and soar high above you.
Banquo - You are not the Macbeth I know,
You are some foul heathen spirit, inhabiting his flesh,
Whose fading light has flickered out, leaving only a mass of
Pure, unadulterated darkness.
Macbeth - I am the Macbeth you are aware of, and I will win this duel.
And once I win this duel, I shall be crowned King of Thanes.
Banquo - Well you cannot be king, For if you were then,
You would be more than a man, And in your current state of stupor,
You are less than a delirious peasant wench high on dreams of grandiosity.
Macbeth - You say all this, Yet it appears as though fate were on my side,
For if chance had given me any other to duel,
I surely would have lost by now. I guess chance,
May indeed, Crown me after all.
Banquo - If chance will have you king,
Why, Chance may crown you.
Banquo tosses his crown to the ground
Macbeth - Curse you!
King Duncan - Calm yourself Macbeth, It was a fair duel,
And you would be right to show some fair sportsmanship.
Macbeth - You are right, your highness.
I apologise for my actions. [To Banquo]
And I commend you for your skill in battle.
Good day to you all.
Exeunt Macbeth
Enter Macbeth, Walking alongside a brick road.
Macbeth - Damn them all, damn that idiotic Banquo.
His stupid quips follow and taunt me,
As though they were vengeful spirits.
He cannot be right. It is impossible.
I have only ever been taught by my parents,
That if I dream to be a strong man when I grow old,
I have to achieve this through knowledge,
Through my ability to understand and reason.
Oh how I was wrong!
I believed I could win that tournament,
And prove myself worthy of the title of manhood.
Oh how wrong I was!
I believed a true man succeeded in life through strategy,
Through his ability to plan out what lies ahead, and let it enfold itself.
Oh how wrong I was!
To have my world flipped upside down, spins my head round and makes me ill.
But, after regathering my bearings, and reviewing what has occurred,
I see in a new light the events of today.
I have been taught a lesson, a lesson on the dangers of over reliance on the mind,
Succession seems to be achievable, only through one's ability to enact,
And enact, regardless of scenario.
I still look wistfully at my past beliefs,
And oh how I wish they were true,
But alas, I have been exposed now, to the true nature of life.
And know now, to long and plan for something is fruitless.
Only through action can I hope to attain my dreams.