OrmPeople of Atlantis, hear me! My brother has come from the surface... to challenge me for the throne! Let us settle this in the ancient way: by bloodshed do the gods make known their will!
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[last lines]
Arthur Curry[narrates]My father was a lighthouse keeper. My mother was a queen. They were never meant to meet. But their love saved the world. They made me what I am: a son of the land, a king of the seas. I am the protector of the deep. I am... Aquaman.
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Arthur CurryWe should turn back. We can still warn the surface, try and prepare them for what's coming...
Arthur CurryLook, I learned from a young age not to show weakness, okay? I solve my problems with my anger and my fists. I'm a blunt instrument and I'm damn good at it. I've done nothing but get my ass kicked this whole trip. I'm no leader. I'm not a king. I do not work or play well with others. And I can't let you die, trying to turn me into something I'm not.
MeraYou think you're unworthy to lead because you're of two different worlds? But that is exactly why you are worthy! You are the bridge between land and sea! I can see that now. The question is, can you?
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MeraAtlantis has always had a king. Now it needs something more.
Arthur CurryWell, what could be greater than a king?
Queen AtlannaA hero. A king fights only for his own nation. You fight for everyone.
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[Aquaman smashes into a submarine captured by pirates]
OrmDown here, we have a legend about the Karathen, an ancient sea monster so powerful that even King Atlan himself couldn't contain it. So he imprisoned it in the depths of the ocean. In that abyss, the creature bides its time, waiting to rise again. Atlantis has been lying in wait, and now the beast has awakened.
Arthur CurryYou know, there was a time when I wanted to meet you one day, get to know my little brother, let him know that he wasn't alone, and we could hang out together. If only I'd know what a dick you'd turn out to be.
OrmYou were the reason our mother was executed. And I've hated you for it ever since. But I do not want to kill you, Arthur. I am going to give you one chance. Go home. Do not ever come back to Atlantis. You are not going to win this. A war is coming to the surface whether you like or not. And I am bringing the wrath of the Seven Seas with me.
Arthur Curry[narrates]My mother had fled an arranged marriage, left her whole world behind, but in my father's lighthouse, she had found something unexpected. And my father found the love of his life.
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OrmThe Trident doesn't change what you are! You're a half-breed bastard! Atlantis will never accept you as its king!
Arthur CurryThen by bloodshed, do the gods make known their will!
King Atlan[transmission]In this trident resides the power of Atlantis. In the wrong hands, it would bring destruction. In the hands of the true heir, it will unite all our kingdoms above and below. If you seek my power, you must prove your worth. Journey beyond the edge of the world to the hidden sea. Look inside the bottle for the chartered path. Only in the hands of the true king can he truly see.
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[Orm and Arthur tap their tridents together, to begin their duel]
OrmYou wield our mother's trident. Powerful, but flawed. Like her. I wield my father's, and it has never known defeat!
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[from trailer]
Queen Atlanna[to young Arthur]Legend has it that one day... a new king will come. Who will use the power of the trident to put Atlantis back together again.
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Queen Atlanna[to Thomas]I will return to you when it's safe. One day, right here, at sunrise, we'll be together again.
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[in a bar]
Arthur CurryHow is it that I can breathe underwater, but you can still drink me under the table?
Nuidis VulkoWe can do so much more than talk. Being Atlantean is more than just being able to breathe under water, your body is equipped to survive in the extreme cold and pressure, and your eyes adjust to see in the darkness.
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MeraAtlanteans are many wonderful things, but forgiving is not one of them.
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[Atlanna keeps her promise, and meets Thomas at sunrise]
David KaneI can't take that piece of junk. It's the love of your life.
Jesse KaneI never told you the story behind it. This was your grandfather's. He was one of the Navy's first frogmen during World War II. He was so stealthy in the water, his unit nicknamed him Manta. But after the war, his country forgot about him, so he went back to the sea, scavenging and surviving with his wit and this knife. He gave it to me when I was your age. And now it's yours, son.
KarathenYou do not belong here. I have guarded the Trident against false kings since the beginning and for a thousand years. I have seen the greatest champions try and failed, but never have I sensed one as unworthy as you. You dare to come here with your tainted mongrel blood to claim Atlantis's greatest treasure?
[Arthur goes for the Trident, but is swatted away]
KarathenSo be it. Half-breed! You thought yourself worthy? You thought yourself king? You dishonor this place with your presence!
Arthur CurryStop! You're right, I am a half-breed mongrel. But I did not come here because I thought I was worthy. I know I'm not.
KarathenNo mortal has conversed with me since King Atlan. Who are you?
Arthur CurryI'm nobody. I came because I have no choice. I came to save my home, and the people that I love. I came because the Trident is our only hope. And if that's not good enough... then screw you!
Karathen[withdraws]No man has ever freed the Trident from Atlan's grip. Should he deem you unworthy... well, I haven't feasted in eons, and I am famished.
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Mera[in a plane for the first time]I've never been this high before... or this far away from home.
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MeraMy obligation isn't to love; it's to my family and my nation, and I've turned my back on both. Sometimes we have to do what's right, even if our heart aches against it.
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Manta[quotes Lovecraft]Loathsomeness waits and dreams in the deep, and decay spreads over the tottering cities of men!
Arthur Curry[narrates]Jules Verne once wrote: "Put two ships in the open sea, without wind or tide... they will come together". That's how my parents met: like two ships destined for each other.
Nuidis VulkoYour mother loved you more than anything in the world, but she had to return to Atlantis to keep you safe. Her marriage to King Orvax was arranged a long time ago so she had to marry him and bear him a son, Prince Orm. But Orvax eventually found out about you, he became overwhelmed with jealousy and sacrificed her to the creatures of the Trench.
Young Arthur (Sixteen Years Old)Are you saying they executed her because she had me?
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OrmVulko, my trusted vizier, you have stood by the throne since my father sat upon it. Have you any advice for me, as this war begins?
Nuidis VulkoI have already given it, my king. But I will stand by your decision, as always.
OrmMy decision. To protect it... while you betray it? You think I do not know of your treachery, that you were ever loyal to my mother's bastard son, that you have spent years training him to take the throne from me. Do not deny it!
Nuidis Vulko[to guards]Take him. But make sure he gets a view.
[Orm smiles ruefully]
Arthur Curry[as Orm is led past him]When you're ready... let's talk.
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Queen Atlanna[telling a story to baby Arthur]... and the Trident could only be wielded by the strongest Atlantean. And it gave the king master of the Seven Seas. It made him so powerful, that the ocean became so jealous, and sent a terrible earthquake to destroy Atlantis. Down it fell, to the bottom of the ocean. But legend has it that one day, a new king will come who will use the power of the Trident to put Atlantis back together again.
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Nuidis VulkoHow could you be so foolish as to let Orm bait you into a fight?
Arthur CurryIt seems to me that'll solve all our problems. I beat him in battle, the war's over, I'm getting home.
Nuidis VulkoYou're a formidable fighter on land, but here you're out of your element, literally.
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Mera[as Arthur communicates with a whale]What are you doing?
MeraThose were Orm's elite commandoes. The one who led them, he wasn't Atlantean; I've never seen him before.
Arthur CurryYeah, I have. He and his father were pirates. And he blames me for his father's death.
MeraThey picked a dangerous line of trade. It's not your fault.
Arthur CurryThat's not how it feels. It was up to me, and I let him die. I could've saved him, but I didn't. And now I've made an enemy. And he could have hurt you. And that would have been my fault.
MeraWell, he's behind us now. It's what lies ahead that should concern us.
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Mera[to Orm]Your Highness, there is no victory in vanquishing the foolish! Your brother is clearly an imbecile!
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Nuidis VulkoIf we're going to prevent this war, you must dethrone him now.
Arthur CurryI've already told you, I don't want to be king!
MeraYou don't understand! Once he is named Ocean Master, it'll be too late! The power at his disposal will be unlike anything you've ever seen.
Arthur CurryI'm from the surface, no one's going to take me seriously. I don't even know where to begin!
Nuidis VulkoBy winning the hearts and minds of the people, by proving to them that you're worthy! And retrieving this.
[opens a scroll showing a drawing of a trident]
Arthur Curry[shows off his trident]I already got one of those.
Nuidis VulkoNot like this one you don't. This is the lost Trident of Atlantis.
Nuidis VulkoIt's more than a story, it's real. It was forged by the greatest weapon masters in history. Crafted from Poseidon's steel for King Atlan, the first ruler of Atlantis. Legend says, the Trident was built with the power to command the sea.
Nuidis VulkoTo know that, is to go back to the time before the Great Fall, when King Atlan ruled over all that was, the Kingdoms of Atlantis were one. It was a time of great prosperity and technological advancement. We had unlocked the secret to unlimited energy at a time when the rest of the world still thought the earth was flat. But we became too ambitious, too hungry for power. The ocean swallowed us and Atlantis sank. But the very power that collapsed our civilization also paved the way to our future. It gave us ability to breathe underwater. And so, we evolved. Others regressed, became savage. And the king lived out the remainder of his days in self imposed exile. Neither he, nor the Trident were ever seen again.
[holds up a device]
Nuidis VulkoOne of our archaeological teams uncovered this a few months ago. It's an ancient recording dating back to the first dynasty. I believe it contains Atlan's final message to his people and the whereabouts of the sacred Trident.
Nuidis VulkoThe cylinder bears the marking of the Deserter Kingdom. You must take it there and retrieve the message. The clue to Atlan's final resting place is inside this.
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Nuidis VulkoWe invite you, King Nereus, to be the first to join King Orm's alliance!
King NereusAs if we had a choice, Vulko! By law, you need four of the Seven Kingdoms to ascend and attack. The Lost Nation and the Deserters have long perished. The Trench? Nothing but animals. The Brine will never join you, and the Fishermen are cowards - without me and my army to convince them, your plans are stillborn. But I know what you really want. Once you've obtained the friendship of four kingdoms, you will be renamed... Ocean Master.
King NereusAre you? What of the rumors that there is another? An Atlantean living amongst the surface? One of royal blood?... You may sit on the throne of Atlantis, but your claim to it is weak. How can you possibly hope to unite the empire?
OrmMy mother's bastard has never even been to Atlantis! His loyalty is to the surf...
King OrmWelcome to Atlantis, brother. I can't believe you're finally here. I've heard so many stories about you. All these years, I've been ashamed of our mother for defiling herself with a surface-dweller, ashamed of the fact that I have a half-breed brother whose heart I wanted to run my trident through. But now that you're finally here before me, I must admit... I'm conflicted.
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David KaneI'll make you a deal: you don't tell me how to pirate, and I don't tell you how to captain.
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[from trailer]
Arthur Curry[to Mera]This is the exact spot where Vulko gave me my first swimming lesson.
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[in the middle of the Sahara desert, Mera checks her tracker again]
Arthur CurryNo, no, no, no! Will you just stop it with that? No!
[slaps it out of her hand]
Arthur CurryYour stupid Atlantean GPS just told you to jump out of an airplane over the middle of a desert, and now we are stranded...!
[a sinkhole opens beneath him, and he falls in with a yell]
Mera[sighs]If you're the next true king, we're doomed.
Queen AtlannaI am. You're both my children, and I love you so much. But you have been misguided. Your father told you that there were two worlds. He was wrong. The land and the sea are one.
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[watching TV]
Thomas CurryI knew you couldn't stand on the sidelines forever. Your mother always knew you were special.
MeraYou are the firstborn son of Queen Atlanna. The throne is yours by birthright. The only way to stop this war and save both worlds is for you to take your rightful place as King.
Arthur Curry[laughs]You think if I just show up, Orm will give up the throne? I'm the bastard son of a queen your people executed. Trust me, I'm no king.
MeraIt's not a myth. With the sacred Trident, people will listen to you. You can then claim your birthright and dethrone Orm.
Arthur CurryMy birthright? It died with my mother. But I'll promise you this: if Orm attacks, I'll treat him the same way your people treated her, with no mercy.
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[after falling down a sinkhole and finding the entrance to the Kingdom of the Deserters]
Arthur Curry[laughs]That was awesome. Oh, look what I found.
[Tom brings an unconscious Atlanna in from the storm]
TV commercialWe are something else. Try Arthur Treacher's!
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OrmYou will lead my finest commandos as your personal army to hunt down that half-breed abomination. I can't touch him, but you can. He's fled to your world. Kill him, and the woman he's with, and you will be rewarded.
