1. As always, your entrance is proud.Copy !req
2. I come as fast as my hands
and knees will carry me.Copy !req
3. As always, sardonic and unassailable.Copy !req
4. Unassailable?Copy !req
5. I've never been so readily, so happily,Copy !req
6. So expertly vanquished in my life.Copy !req
7. I believe everything
except the word "vanquished".Copy !req
8. I should like to vanquish you, Marcus,Copy !req
9. like the spider who eats her mate.Copy !req
10. When he's no longer necessary?Copy !req
11. Something like that.Copy !req
12. I heard you're planning
to leave for Sicily.Copy !req
13. I must. Three years away,
there is too much to look after.Copy !req
14. Will you go via Rome?Copy !req
15. Rome? That's rather an indirect route.Copy !req
16. I know about your little Christian
hostage vanishing.Copy !req
17. I have eyes and ears
in the praetorian guard.Copy !req
18. And an arm or two to fit your waist?Copy !req
19. Possibly. Did you find her, Marcus?Copy !req
20. Naturally. Only to find myself a foolCopy !req
21. And sever her chains.Copy !req
22. You severed them thoroughly?Copy !req
23. Thoroughly.Copy !req
24. Marcus.Copy !req
25. You know how I consoled myselfCopy !req
26. When you vanished from the feast?Copy !req
27. I consoled myself,Copy !req
28. with the thought of your death.Copy !req
29. I fondled your bodiless head,Copy !req
30. making you smile and frown.Copy !req
31. What stopped you?Copy !req
32. It's foolish to kill those you hate.Copy !req
33. Once dead, they' re beyond pain.Copy !req
34. I hated you.Copy !req
35. I welcome your change of heart.Copy !req
36. If ever she bewitches you again,Copy !req
37. I shall know. Since I have
no hatred for her,Copy !req
38. I do not care whether she feels pain.Copy !req
39. You'd never turn the other cheek
to me, would you?Copy !req
40. I don't know what you mean.Copy !req
41. But my mouth is here.Copy !req
42. Have you called Petronius?Copy !req
43. - Yes, Caesar.
- Summon him again. Tell him...Copy !req
44. As ever, I'm impatient for you.Copy !req
45. I have missed you, divinity.Copy !req
46. Forgive me if I've slighted you.Copy !req
47. I've been steeped in my genius.Copy !req
48. I sense a fresh inspiration.Copy !req
49. Your senses shall leap to it.Copy !req
50. Attend me. Attend me, all.Copy !req
51. My lack of consideration for youCopy !req
52. During the past few days
in keeping you from my presenceCopy !req
53. Forces me to impress upon youCopy !req
54. The tribulations of the true artist.Copy !req
55. When I play and sing,Copy !req
56. I have visions of things
I never dreamed existed.Copy !req
57. The world is mine and mine to end.Copy !req
58. Music opens up new worlds for me.Copy !req
59. I can see Olympus,Copy !req
60. and a breeze blows on me
from beyond the earth.Copy !req
61. And in those moments,Copy !req
62. I, a god, feelCopy !req
63. as diminutive as dust.Copy !req
64. This is a day for sincerity.Copy !req
65. Let me open my soul to you.Copy !req
66. Do you think I do not know
That there are people in RomeCopy !req
67. Who call me a matricide, a wife killer?Copy !req
68. Call me a monster, a tyrant.Copy !req
69. There is something they do not realize.Copy !req
70. A man's acts may be cruel,Copy !req
71. while he himself is not cruel.Copy !req
72. And there are moments,
my dear Petronius, when...Copy !req
73. when music caresses my soul,Copy !req
74. I feel as gentle as a child in a cradle.Copy !req
75. Believe me?Copy !req
76. All men should know you
as we do, divinity.Copy !req
77. Only then would they appreciate you.Copy !req
78. Some say I am mad.Copy !req
79. I'm only seeking.Copy !req
80. The flatness and misery
of common life depress me.Copy !req
81. I must exceed the stature of manCopy !req
82. in both good and evil.Copy !req
83. Greater than man.Copy !req
84. Only then will I be the supreme artist.Copy !req
85. Do you know why I condemned bothCopy !req
86. my wife and my mother to death?Copy !req
87. I did it in order to layCopy !req
88. at the gates of an unknown worldCopy !req
89. The greatest sacrifice
a man can put there.Copy !req
90. "Now, "I thought, doors will open,Copy !req
91. beyond which I shall catch
a glimpse of the unknown".Copy !req
92. Let it be wonderful!Copy !req
93. Or let it be awful,Copy !req
94. so long as it is uncommon!Copy !req
95. So now...Copy !req
96. Behold, dear Petronius!Copy !req
97. My new Rome.Copy !req
98. It shall rise in gleaming white beauty,Copy !req
99. Master gem of the world's crown.Copy !req
100. It shall have a new name,Copy !req
101. Neropolis, city of Nero.Copy !req
102. Hail divinity!Copy !req
103. Something the world has never seen,
but what of the RomeCopy !req
104. That has stood for 1,000 years?Copy !req
105. The old Rome, our Rome,Copy !req
106. Dirty and magnificent,Copy !req
107. But still our be loved RomeCopy !req
108. It still stands.Copy !req
109. Does it?Copy !req
110. It still stands?Copy !req
111. We never thought of that, did we?Copy !req
112. Or does it, Tigellinus?Copy !req
113. Rome is a sea of flames!Copy !req
114. You hear that? That is my epic!Copy !req
115. To demolish and create anew!Copy !req
116. Now, to your chariots!Copy !req
117. You shall
come with me to the funeral pyre.Copy !req
118. You shall hear my dirge
over burning Rome!Copy !req
119. Its flames shall carry me
higher than the gods!Copy !req
120. All of Rome is burning?Copy !req
121. All but the palatine area, naturally.Copy !req
122. - What of the section across the river?
- A creeping inferno.Copy !req
123. Marcus!Copy !req
124. Stop Vinicius!Copy !req
125. You! You halt!Copy !req
126. Now, indeed,Copy !req
127. Nero has his place in history.
There's one of Nero's soldiersCopy !req
128. He burned Rome!Copy !req
129. The people in this house here,
have you seen them?Copy !req
130. They left. Don't kill me!Copy !req
131. Mama! Mama!Copy !req
132. Mama!Copy !req
133. Mama! Mama!Copy !req
134. Here! Go on!Copy !req
135. Take care of her!Copy !req
136. The sewers lead to the river!Copy !req
137. Into the sewers!Copy !req
138. - Lygia!
- Marcus!Copy !req
139. Lygia!Copy !req
140. Oh, Marcus! I prayed to see you!Copy !req
141. Marcus, Miriam is dead, in the fire.Copy !req
142. She...Copy !req
143. A wall fell on my mother.Copy !req
144. We'll get you out of this.Copy !req
145. The praetorians are holding the bridge!Copy !req
146. Open up!Copy !req
147. - Who is in command here?
- I am.Copy !req
148. - Open this barricade!
- Imperial orders.Copy !req
149. We' re to keep them from entering
the palatine area.Copy !req
150. Break ranks! Let them through!
Hold your line there!Copy !req
151. I'm in charge, commander!Copy !req
152. Break ranks, I say!Copy !req
153. Petronius!Copy !req
154. Look what I've created!Copy !req
155. Tigellinus, my robe of grief.Copy !req
156. Terpnos!Copy !req
157. Lyre.Copy !req
158. History will judge my song.Copy !req
159. I'm seized with the fear
it won't be great enough.Copy !req
160. You will be worthy of the spectacle,Copy !req
161. As it is worthy of you.Copy !req
162. You encourage me, but I must compete.Copy !req
163. With those who sang
at the burning of Troy.Copy !req
164. My song must be greater,
as Rome is greater than Troy!Copy !req
165. Silence, ye spheres,Copy !req
166. be still, ye hurt ling stars,Copy !req
167. open wide vaulted skies above me.Copy !req
168. Now at last, I, I see OlympusCopy !req
169. and a light from its summit
dote illumine meCopy !req
170. I am one with the gods immortalCopy !req
171. I am Nero, the artist who creates
with fire.Copy !req
172. That the dreams of my life may come true.Copy !req
173. To the flames now, I give the past,Copy !req
174. to the flames and soilCopy !req
175. take thou this Rome.Copy !req
176. Oh, receive her now, you flames,Copy !req
177. consume her as would a furnace.Copy !req
178. Burn on, o ancient Rome!Copy !req
179. Burn on!Copy !req
180. Burn on!Copy !req
181. The mob from burned areas.Copy !req
182. They want to survive.Copy !req
183. Who asked them to survive?Copy !req
184. Tigellinus!Copy !req
185. The palace is fully guarded.
They will never pass my praetorianCopy !req
186. The night is chilly.Copy !req
187. Let us withdraw.Copy !req
188. Is it possible that human beingsCopy !req
189. can produce such a sound?Copy !req
190. Yes, when they've been driven too far.Copy !req
191. Death to the incendiary!Copy !req
192. They'll break through!
Summon all the detachments.Copy !req
193. Death to the incendiary!Copy !req
194. What are they shouting?Copy !req
195. They have given you
a new title, divinity.Copy !req
196. Incendiary.Copy !req
197. I've sent for reinforcements.Copy !req
198. Speak to the mob.
Make them some promises.Copy !req
199. I don't ask. I confirm. Speak to them.Copy !req
200. Speak to them in my name.Copy !req
201. Not until other detachments arrive.Copy !req
202. They had stone me to death now.Copy !req
203. In what better cause could you die?Copy !req
204. This was your architect's dream.Copy !req
205. Go tell them, Phaon.
This is all for them.Copy !req
206. How can we admit that?Copy !req
207. How could I expect that mobCopy !req
208. To share my vision?Copy !req
209. The mob is a wild animal.Copy !req
210. With an animal you cannot reason.Copy !req
211. I'm surrounded by eunuchs!Copy !req
212. Why do you stand aloof? Counsel me!Copy !req
213. Let them enter.
We shall all die, all except you.Copy !req
214. You, being a god, are immortal.Copy !req
215. They'll destroy you, also.Copy !req
216. I do not share your passionCopy !req
217. For self-preservation. I love Rome.Copy !req
218. I am not eager to survive it.Copy !req
219. Petronius, they think you're
their friend.Copy !req
220. Speak to them! Make promises!Copy !req
221. Grain! oil! Wine!Copy !req
222. They will take them, Nero,Copy !req
223. Without your permission.
Insatiable and thank less mob!Copy !req
224. What do they want?
Justice.Copy !req
225. No mob ever wants justice.
They want vengeance,Copy !req
226. A victim.Copy !req
227. Tigellinus, it was you who
burnt Rome.Copy !req
228. At your command, Nero.Copy !req
229. Tigellinus, do you love me?Copy !req
230. You know it, lord.Copy !req
231. Then prove it.
Go to the mob. Bare your guilt.Copy !req
232. I would do so gladly,Copy !req
233. But I am head of the praetorian guard.Copy !req
234. If I die, they may turn against you.Copy !req
235. I cannot subject you to that danger.Copy !req
236. Are you threatening me?Copy !req
237. Do you hear him threaten me
with the praetorian guard?Copy !req
238. You're all willing to desert me!Copy !req
239. I know it! I feel it!Copy !req
240. Nero, my be loved, you were right.Copy !req
241. Give the people what they want.Copy !req
242. Give them blood and vengeance,Copy !req
243. Not one victim, but a thousand.Copy !req
244. What victims?Copy !req
245. They worship one they say
is higher than you.Copy !req
246. They're the enemies of
the human race and of you.Copy !req
247. Who are they?Copy !req
248. They despise our templesCopy !req
249. And prophesy that the end of the worldCopy !req
250. shall be caused by fire.Copy !req
251. Well, let it end for them.Copy !req
252. - Who are they?
- They call themselves Christians.Copy !req
253. Christians. Yes, I've heard of them.Copy !req
254. The empress speaks rightly.Copy !req
255. Christians are the enemies
of Rome and of the state.Copy !req
256. Let the people have vengeance.Copy !req
257. The people suspect you.Copy !req
258. Let their suspicion turn
in this more beneficial direction.Copy !req
259. They must pay.Copy !req
260. Do you hear?Copy !req
261. The Christians are plotting
to destroy me.Copy !req
262. You often remind us of the
judgment of history.Copy !req
263. What will its verdict be,
if you punish the innocentCopy !req
264. and betray your greatness?Copy !req
265. "Nero, a god, burned Rome,Copy !req
266. "because he was as powerful as patter.Copy !req
267. "He loved poetry so much,Copy !req
268. He sacrificed Rome for a song. "Copy !req
269. History need not say the burning
of Rome was good,Copy !req
270. but it must say that
it was colossal, uncommon.Copy !req
271. I cannot listen to any suggestionCopy !req
272. that my emperor is a coward.Copy !req
273. You were too cowardly
to risk your life for him.Copy !req
274. Petronius is right.Copy !req
275. He wants to preserve your enemies.Copy !req
276. Why do you defend them?Copy !req
277. Because his nephew Vinicius
loves a Christian girl.Copy !req
278. Maybe Petronius is a Christian.Copy !req
279. Petronius, are you a Christian?Copy !req
280. I am not.Copy !req
281. The Christians teach youCopy !req
282. to love your neighbour,Copy !req
283. and as I see what men are,Copy !req
284. I cannot love my fellow man.Copy !req
285. He does not love you, gentlemen.Copy !req
286. A tablet, Phaon.Copy !req
287. The people shall have their vengeance.Copy !req
288. I hereby proclaim that the guiltCopy !req
289. of the burning of our be loved city.Copy !req
290. Rests with the foul sect,Copy !req
291. which calls itself Christian.Copy !req
292. They have spread the lie,Copy !req
293. that it was Nero who burnt Rome.Copy !req
294. I will exterminate these criminalsCopy !req
295. in a manner matchingCopy !req
296. the enormity of their crime. *,Copy !req
297. Their punishment will be a warning...Copy !req
298. a spectacle of terrorCopy !req
299. To all evil men...Copy !req
300. everywhere and forever.Copy !req
301. Who would harm you...Copy !req
302. or harm Rome...Copy !req
303. or harm your emperor.Copy !req
304. Who loves you.Copy !req
305. Pause before you sign this.Copy !req
306. Rome has given
the world justice and order.Copy !req
307. Sign that, and roman justiceCopy !req
308. Will receive a blow
from which it may never recover.Copy !req
309. Condemn these Christians,Copy !req
310. and you'll make martyrs of them
and insure their immortality.Copy !req
311. Condemn them,
and in the eyes of history,Copy !req
312. you'll condemn yourself.Copy !req
313. When I have finished
with these Christians, Petronius,Copy !req
314. history will not be sure
that they ever existed.Copy !req
315. When I grow up, I'm going
to be a sailor.Copy !req
316. Nothing burns at sea.Copy !req
317. Nero can burn the whole ocean.Copy !req
318. Marcus!Copy !req
319. Did you rest well?Copy !req
320. I was impatient to see the sun rise,Copy !req
321. And here you are.Copy !req
322. You should have slept longer.Copy !req
323. Your journey from Antium
and last night must have...Copy !req
324. I've been asleep
too long in many ways, Lygia.Copy !req
325. I must return to the city
and meet with Nerva and the others.Copy !req
326. Something must be done about this maniac.Copy !req
327. There must be an answer,
quickly, decisive.Copy !req
328. You do know the answer.Copy !req
329. You do understand.Copy !req
330. There can be no turning the other cheek.Copy !req
331. If I've not returned by nightfall,
I'll send word.Copy !req
332. Marcus Vinicius?Copy !req
333. I've heard of you.Copy !req
334. You must realize how grateful we are,Copy !req
335. for what you have done,
for your concern for Lygia.Copy !req
336. My only concern is for Lygia.Copy !req
337. Hold yourself straight, youngster.Copy !req
338. A man must be a soldier.Copy !req
339. I don't want to be a soldier.Copy !req
340. Let's talk about our journey.Copy !req
341. We'll be meeting Paul in Greece.Copy !req
342. That's good. You'll like Greece,
Lazarus.Copy !req
343. You'll help me fish for men.Copy !req
344. We'll fish for fish, too.Copy !req
345. - Are we leaving soon?
- As soon as we eat.Copy !req
346. We shall be starting within the hour.Copy !req
347. I'm glad...Copy !req
348. Because I don't like it here anymore.Copy !req
349. Yes, indeed.Copy !req
350. We shall be fishermen together.Copy !req
351. Please, my lord.Copy !req
352. Do not trouble yourself so.Copy !req
353. It's a moment for thoughts.Copy !req
354. Yesterday I could have gone to the mobCopy !req
355. Aad told them that Nero burned Rome.Copy !req
356. I could have offered them
a new emperor in general Galba.Copy !req
357. and so set my seal upon the times.Copy !req
358. Do you know why I did not?Copy !req
359. I know nothing of these things.Copy !req
360. Because I love Nero, perhaps?Copy !req
361. He fills me with loathing.Copy !req
362. No.Copy !req
363. Because out of force of long habit,Copy !req
364. I've become content to be
an amused cynic,Copy !req
365. a selfish on lookers,Copy !req
366. lLeaving others to shape the world.Copy !req
367. Marcus! I was worried about you.Copy !req
368. You know Nerva here.
My third in command, Justin Scipio.Copy !req
369. We meet in a ghastly hour.Copy !req
370. The time has comeCopy !req
371. for Galba to replace Nero.Copy !req
372. Justin is taking this message to him,Copy !req
373. asking him to come with his legions.Copy !req
374. Your signature added to theseCopy !req
375. will make Galba confident
of his reception.Copy !req
376. I sign it with humility,Copy !req
377. on your way.Copy !req
378. You're a marked man.
You scorned Poppaea.Copy !req
379. She has death in her eye
for you and your Lygia.Copy !req
380. I'll chance that.Copy !req
381. Take Lygia and leave Rome quickly.Copy !req
382. Nero is about to extinguish
his conflagration,Copy !req
383. in a sea of blood.Copy !req
384. Whose blood?
Didn't you hear his orators?Copy !req
385. The people are being given the
story, along with grain and winCopy !req
386. that the Christians set fire to Rome.Copy !req
387. - They won't believe that.
- People will believe any lieCopy !req
388. If it's fantastic enough.Copy !req
389. We'll meet at your house by midday.Copy !req
390. We'll keep you informed.Copy !req
391. Farewell, Marcus.Copy !req
392. Farewell.Copy !req
393. Farewell?
What do you mean, my lord?Copy !req
394. Nero sent to inquire after my health.Copy !req
395. A praetorian officer
brought his solicitude.Copy !req
396. He means to amuse himself,Copy !req
397. By making a sport of my extermination.Copy !req
398. But then you must...Copy !req
399. No, no.
I have the means to disappoint him.Copy !req
400. Send Anaxander to me.Copy !req
401. I'll give him the names of those
few I love.Copy !req
402. He'll ask them to dine with us tonight.Copy !req
403. Where is general Plautius' family?Copy !req
404. They're all ready in prison.Copy !req
405. The praetorians collected
the whole scurvy lot!Copy !req
406. Me, raising my children
by the house of dirty Christians!Copy !req
407. Burn the city, will they?Copy !req
408. Put them in number four.Copy !req
409. Is the family of general Plautius here?Copy !req
410. See if we have them.Copy !req
411. I have an order for their release.Copy !req
412. A signed order? By whom?Copy !req
413. I do not accept questions, praetorian.Copy !req
414. A seasoned campaigner, trapped by love.Copy !req
415. We've been expecting you.Copy !req
416. Soldiers hope to dieCopy !req
417. A quick and noble death,Copy !req
418. but Nero plans for youCopy !req
419. something more leisurely
and certainly ignoble.Copy !req
420. Put him with his Christian friends.Copy !req
421. Marcus!Copy !req
422. Why did they take you?Copy !req
423. This is none of your doing.
I carry my share of the blame.Copy !req
424. We knew they were after you,
but we had no way to send warningCopy !req
425. I once accused you. I'm proved wrong.Copy !req
426. It's no triumph for me to find you here.Copy !req
427. The lions! It is the lions!Copy !req
428. No! No!Copy !req
429. Please, god, no!Copy !req
430. No, dear, no.Copy !req
431. We must be strong in him,Copy !req
432. In each other.
If he is all-powerful,Copy !req
433. Why do we find ourselves here?Copy !req
434. Stand firm.Copy !req
435. Our children to be sold into slavery,Copy !req
436. is that what the redeemer promised us?Copy !req
437. Only by faith,Copy !req
438. will we endure the ordeal.Copy !req
439. I thank god Peter and Paul were spared,Copy !req
440. but I miss their spiritCopy !req
441. and their courage.Copy !req
442. I think it's going to rain.Copy !req
443. We'd better look for shelter.Copy !req
444. Peter, don't you think so?Copy !req
445. What troubles you?
You've hardly spoken all morning.Copy !req
446. Oh, I'm sorry, Nazarius.Copy !req
447. Are you very tired?Copy !req
448. My mind is as heavy as my body.Copy !req
449. There is something wrong...
with our people, perhaps.Copy !req
450. I need our lord's counsel.Copy !req
451. If only he would speak to me...Copy !req
452. Look! Those treetops there.Copy !req
453. They do not bend with the wind.Copy !req
454. Yes, that is so.Copy !req
455. That sudden brightness coming...Copy !req
456. Do you see it, Nazarius?Copy !req
457. It is the light of the lord.Copy !req
458. I have seen it.Copy !req
459. Christ Jesus, you are here.Copy !req
460. What is wrong, o Lord?Copy !req
461. What should I do?Copy !req
462. I am weary.Copy !req
463. How should I follow thee now?Copy !req
464. Quo Vadis, Domine?Copy !req
465. Whither Goest Though, lord?Copy !req
466. My people in Rome...Copy !req
467. have need of thee.Copy !req
468. What did you say, Nazarius?Copy !req
469. My people in Rome have need of thee.Copy !req
470. If thou desert my people,Copy !req
471. I shall go to Rome,Copy !req
472. to be crucified a second time.Copy !req
473. Nazarius, blessed child, speak on!Copy !req
474. Speak!
oh Peter, you've stumbled.Copy !req
475. Say the words again.Copy !req
476. I didn't say anything.Copy !req
477. You said, "if thou desert my people,Copy !req
478. "I shall go to Rome to be crucified
a second time."Copy !req
479. But I said nothing.Copy !req
480. Yes.Copy !req
481. He has again spoken to me.Copy !req
482. Come, Nazarius.Copy !req
483. - Where are you going?
- To Rome.Copy !req
484. I have invited you tonight, my friends,Copy !req
485. You who have been steadfast,Copy !req
486. through the years.Copy !req
487. That you have come proves
not only your recklessness,Copy !req
488. but your devotion.
You have the wit to bring yourselfCopy !req
489. into his favour again.Copy !req
490. No. Tigellinus has won.Copy !req
491. Nero, our master, is at the momentCopy !req
492. anticipating how he will make me suffer.Copy !req
493. I shall deprive him of that pleasure.Copy !req
494. This is an evening of farewell.Copy !req
495. Where will you go, my lord?Copy !req
496. You've called me your lord long enough.Copy !req
497. My name is Gaius.Copy !req
498. And you've worn this emblem
of slavery for far too long.Copy !req
499. Henceforth, you are free.Copy !req
500. This villa, its treasures,Copy !req
501. its gardens will be yours.Copy !req
502. Why do you say this?Copy !req
503. Because this evening,Copy !req
504. with its warmth and feeling...Copy !req
505. This evening is my signature,Copy !req
506. the last flourish.Copy !req
507. Tell the physician to come in.Copy !req
508. It is not enough to live well,Copy !req
509. one must die well.Copy !req
510. No, my lord! No!Copy !req
511. Please don't let him!Copy !req
512. I understand the Christians sayCopy !req
513. death is but a transition
to a better life.Copy !req
514. It will be interesting to discover.Copy !req
515. - Oh, my lord!
- My dear, no tears before our guests.Copy !req
516. Petronius.Copy !req
517. If the Christians are right,Copy !req
518. Ttis will be but a brief parting.Copy !req
519. We can't. We can't part.Copy !req
520. Eunice!Copy !req
521. Did you think I could live
without you?Copy !req
522. No! Bind her wrist!Copy !req
523. For the first time, Gaius,
I disobey you.Copy !req
524. What have I doneCopy !req
525. that forever I should hear
the sweet thunder of your heart?Copy !req
526. You have given me your love.Copy !req
527. And now, my friends,Copy !req
528. I wish to write a letterCopy !req
529. to our emperor. Scribe.Copy !req
530. Will you permit me?Copy !req
531. Let us hear it, Petronius.Copy !req
532. To Nero, emperor of Rome,Copy !req
533. master of the world, divine pontiff.Copy !req
534. I know that my death will be
a disappointment to you,Copy !req
535. since you wished to render me
this service yourself.Copy !req
536. To be born in your reignCopy !req
537. is a miscalculation,Copy !req
538. but to die in it is a joy.Copy !req
539. I can forgive you for murderingCopy !req
540. your wife and your mother,Copy !req
541. for burning our beloved Rome,Copy !req
542. for befouling our fair country,Copy !req
543. with the stench of your crimes.Copy !req
544. But one thing I cannot forgive,Copy !req
545. the boredom of having to listenCopy !req
546. to your verses,Copy !req
547. your second-rate songs,Copy !req
548. your mediocre performances.Copy !req
549. Adhere to your special gifts, Nero,Copy !req
550. murder and arson, betrayal and terror.Copy !req
551. Mutilate your subjects if you must,Copy !req
552. but with my last breath, I beg you,Copy !req
553. do not mutilate the arts.Copy !req
554. Farewell,Copy !req
555. but compose no more music.Copy !req
556. Brutalize the people,Copy !req
557. but do not bore them,Copy !req
558. as you have bored to deathCopy !req
559. your friend,Copy !req
560. the late Gaius Petronius.Copy !req
561. Seneca, I entrust to youCopy !req
562. the delivery of this letter.Copy !req
563. I'll deliver it.Copy !req
564. Farewell, Petronius.Copy !req
565. With you perishes the best
of our roman world.Copy !req
566. Petronius?Copy !req
567. Dead?Copy !req
568. By his own hand?Copy !req
569. - I don't believe it.
- I witnessed it, divinity.Copy !req
570. I shall never forgive him for this!Copy !req
571. Never!Copy !req
572. Without my permission?Copy !req
573. It's rebellion.Copy !req
574. It's blasphemy!Copy !req
575. He left you a message of farewell.Copy !req
576. Then he did think of me.Copy !req
577. His last thoughts were of me.Copy !req
578. How I loved you, Petronius!Copy !req
579. You were my one friend.Copy !req
580. You alone understood my soul.Copy !req
581. Tigellinus, the weeping vase.Copy !req
582. Who will listen to my songs now?Copy !req
583. Who will appreciate the true valueCopy !req
584. of my verses?Copy !req
585. I weep for you, Petronius.Copy !req
586. One tear for you.Copy !req
587. One for me.Copy !req
588. Seal up these fruits of my sorrow,Copy !req
589. so that posterity may knowCopy !req
590. how Nero grieved for his dearest friendCopy !req
591. and truest critic.Copy !req
592. And now for his tender words.Copy !req
593. Destroy!Copy !req
594. Destroy his house! Every stone to dust!Copy !req
595. Burn his books, slaughter his animals!Copy !req
596. Kill his servants, male, female...Copy !req
597. Every one!
Beat his memory into the ground!Copy !req
598. Where is the emperor?Copy !req
599. Let Nero start the games!Copy !req
600. The lions are hungry!Copy !req
601. Bring on those house burners!Copy !req
602. I doubt if we can chance anything today.Copy !req
603. Have you heard news of the commander?Copy !req
604. Only that he's been taken.Copy !req
605. O holy gods of Rome,Copy !req
606. in the name of Nero,Copy !req
607. emperor and supreme pontiff,Copy !req
608. we beseech you to receive in sacrificeCopy !req
609. the lives of those who sought to destroyCopy !req
610. this sacred and eternal city.Copy !req
611. Have strength as he did.Copy !req
612. It will not be long.Copy !req
613. Oh, dear lord Jesus, help them!Copy !req
614. Help them.Copy !req
615. Don't. Don't torture yourself.Copy !req
616. I'll be as close to her as I can.Copy !req
617. You may give the signal, divinity.Copy !req
618. Peace to the martyrs!Copy !req
619. - Peter!
- Peace!Copy !req
620. Peace to them!Copy !req
621. Take thy children, lord.Copy !req
622. Numb their wounds. Soften their pain.Copy !req
623. Give them strength, o saviour!Copy !req
624. - Seize that man!
- Blessed are you, my children,Copy !req
625. Who die in the name of Jesus,Copy !req
626. this day you shall be with himCopy !req
627. in paradise.Copy !req
628. Here where Nero rules today,Copy !req
629. Christ shall rule forever!Copy !req
630. - Who is that man?
- I think he is their leader,Copy !req
631. a man called Peter.Copy !req
632. But he said Christ would replace me,Copy !req
633. What sort of...Copy !req
634. By the light of the dawn of a glorious...Copy !req
635. They' re singing.Copy !req
636. In his triumph, the son of god aroseCopy !req
637. and the trumpets of angels made greeting,Copy !req
638. Christ is King,Copy !req
639. Christ is King.Copy !req
640. Alleluia!Copy !req
641. Lift your eyes and your heartsCopy !req
642. To the glory on high...Copy !req
643. These dogs have effrontery.Copy !req
644. The lions will sing louder.Copy !req
645. Who arose on that paschal dayCopy !req
646. He shall reignCopy !req
647. He shall reign eternal...Copy !req
648. Peter!Copy !req
649. Peter!Copy !req
650. Could our lord at least
not have saved you?Copy !req
651. Oh, peter, why did you come back?Copy !req
652. It was the lord's will.Copy !req
653. Nazarius is safe.Copy !req
654. Some good people sheltered him
outside the city.Copy !req
655. By the light of the dawn,Copy !req
656. in his triumph,Copy !req
657. the son of God arose.Copy !req
658. Sing to him
as he now opens his arms to you.Copy !req
659. Sing to the welcome of Christ,
our Lord.Copy !req
660. Christ is King.Copy !req
661. Christ is King. Alleluia!Copy !req
662. More singing! Why aren't they afraid?Copy !req
663. They should have been tortured first,Copy !req
664. their insolence destroyed.Copy !req
665. What of Vinicius and Lygia?Copy !req
666. Shall we bring them after these?Copy !req
667. Yes. Alone,Copy !req
668. with the hungriest lion.Copy !req
669. Not yet.Copy !req
670. I want Vinicius and his flowerCopy !req
671. held in reserve.Copy !req
672. I am planning something...Copy !req
673. - A surprise for you.
- What is it, Poppaea?Copy !req
674. It will not be a surprise, then.Copy !req
675. Please.Copy !req
676. Have I ever disappointed you
in conceiving new delights?Copy !req
677. New thrills?Copy !req
678. True. You haven't.Copy !req
679. Singing.Copy !req
680. How can they?Copy !req
681. Beyond understanding.Copy !req
682. Don't clear the arena
at the end of the day.Copy !req
683. I'm most curious.Copy !req
684. No face on this one at all.Copy !req
685. Oh, look! There's another one smiling.Copy !req
686. It's monstrous of them to die smiling.Copy !req
687. It's inhuman.Copy !req
688. Yet they look like ordinary people.Copy !req
689. Peter put an evil spell on them.Copy !req
690. Yes, Peter.Copy !req
691. Something singular
must be done with him.Copy !req
692. Marcus?Copy !req
693. Yes?Copy !req
694. "Nothing do I see that is not
perfection".Copy !req
695. That night you said it,Copy !req
696. Even though you were most
predatory about it,Copy !req
697. even then my heart must have
told me,Copy !req
698. that is the man you will love.Copy !req
699. Only then you wouldn't let me.Copy !req
700. Hear my heart talking, Marcus.Copy !req
701. I said a great deal, I remember,Copy !req
702. All of it loud and empty.Copy !req
703. I would so loved to have given
you a son.Copy !req
704. Lygia!Copy !req
705. Oh, Marcus, no matter what,Copy !req
706. I want to be your wife.Copy !req
707. Now.Copy !req
708. Peter will say the words over us.Copy !req
709. I want it to be that way before
they take us,Copy !req
710. so it will be that way,Copy !req
711. when we are together again.Copy !req
712. You would never wish me
to pretend, would you?Copy !req
713. Pretend?Copy !req
714. That I feel myself Christian.Copy !req
715. It's still strange, new.Copy !req
716. There's something I can't quite...Copy !req
717. I mean...Copy !req
718. Yes,Copy !req
719. It's proven good, full of courage,
right here.Copy !req
720. But there are many things
I cannot believe, understand.Copy !req
721. Christ is within you, Marcus.Copy !req
722. You feel him more strongly
than you know.Copy !req
723. Come.Copy !req
724. Peter.Copy !req
725. Before I die,Copy !req
726. I want to marry Marcus.Copy !req
727. This is a holy thing, my son.Copy !req
728. It concerns Lygia.Copy !req
729. I look upon it as holy.Copy !req
730. Marcus,Copy !req
731. Lygia,Copy !req
732. may he who blessed the marriage
at Cana,Copy !req
733. bless you also.Copy !req
734. Love one another from this
moment forward,Copy !req
735. as man and wife in his holy name.Copy !req
736. In the name of the Father.Copy !req
737. And of the Son, and of the
Holy Ghost,Copy !req
738. in this life and the next,Copy !req
739. now and forevermore.Copy !req
740. Marcus...Copy !req
741. My husband.Copy !req
742. Here he is, your majesty.
Do you approve?Copy !req
743. Very much so.Copy !req
744. It will be like a fresco from Crete...Copy !req
745. The maiden sacrificed to the Minotaur.Copy !req
746. It will be a spectacle worthy
of the emperor.Copy !req
747. Superb conception.Copy !req
748. You seem sad, my black friend.Copy !req
749. Do not grieve. I promise you
a playmate.Copy !req
750. For your lonely horns
to fondle and caress.Copy !req
751. You are the man Peter?Copy !req
752. I am Simon, called Peter.Copy !req
753. "Peter has been heard
to preach rebellion,Copy !req
754. against the rule of the emperor.Copy !req
755. It is decreed that
he be taken to Vatican hill,Copy !req
756. where he made his first preachment,Copy !req
757. to be crucified and left there
as a warning,Copy !req
758. to all who wish to call themselves
Christians".Copy !req
759. To die as our lord died,Copy !req
760. is more than I deserve.Copy !req
761. We can change that.Copy !req
762. You'll notice, divinity,Copy !req
763. They've stopped singing.Copy !req
764. They have, haven't they?Copy !req
765. - Do I know that man?
- General Plautius.Copy !req
766. He conquered Parthia when you
were a boy.Copy !req
767. Rome made him famous.Copy !req
768. He repaid her with treason.Copy !req
769. What a dramatic reversal!Copy !req
770. I shall write a poem.Copy !req
771. People of Rome!Copy !req
772. I am Aulus Plautius,Copy !req
773. once general of your armies.Copy !req
774. Rome is ruled by a monster,Copy !req
775. who tells you the Christians
burned Rome,Copy !req
776. but he lies!Copy !req
777. You lie, Nero!Copy !req
778. You are the incendiary!Copy !req
779. Nero kill s Christians
to deceive you.Copy !req
780. He alone is guilty!Copy !req
781. I swear it by my death and by my...Copy !req
782. I begin to envy Petronius.Copy !req
783. I have envied him long since.Copy !req
784. This is a blot on Roman justice.Copy !req
785. The mob isn't as happy as it was.Copy !req
786. Heaven's son,Copy !req
787. eternal Lord,Copy !req
788. who reigns above,Copy !req
789. we pray to thee,Copy !req
790. As night goes on.Copy !req
791. O shield us!Copy !req
792. They are singing!Copy !req
793. With thy fatherly love,Copy !req
794. securely sheltered,Copy !req
795. From all fear,Copy !req
796. Thy grace abounding,Copy !req
797. let us rest.Copy !req
798. He said something to Nero.Copy !req
799. I could not hear the words.Copy !req
800. Nero's looking at a man
That knows how to die.Copy !req
801. Take him!Copy !req
802. Commander?Copy !req
803. They're not parting us.Copy !req
804. Prepare her.Copy !req
805. Here is our honoured guest.Copy !req
806. - Why is he not in the arena?
- He will be...Copy !req
807. in spirit.Copy !req
808. It's a giant!Copy !req
809. It's Hercules himself.Copy !req
810. Let us see him guard the girl
from death.Copy !req
811. But what is the contest?Copy !req
812. Look!
They brought Marcus here to face this!Copy !req
813. Do not fret, Vinicius.Copy !req
814. Remember I said I did not hate her.Copy !req
815. I wish her no pain...Copy !req
816. Lasting pain, that is.Copy !req
817. I am devastated, dear Petronius
is not hereCopy !req
818. to witness our pleasure, Vinicius.Copy !req
819. "Sing no more", he said.Copy !req
820. Upon these lilies I heap now,Copy !req
821. red roses upon red,Copy !req
822. a blood-red tide shall surge,Copy !req
823. upon her milk-white flesh.Copy !req
824. You do have some taste,Copy !req
825. but she's too narrow in the hips.Copy !req
826. They know how to die.Copy !req
827. In death you will squeal.Copy !req
828. - Give him the sword!
- No! Stay!Copy !req
829. My lord, would you deprive himCopy !req
830. of his final pleasure?Copy !req
831. Superb, Poppaea! Magnificent!Copy !req
832. A fair contest.Copy !req
833. Nero's justice is proverbial.Copy !req
834. If the bull wins, the girl dies.Copy !req
835. If our Hercules destroys
the poor animal,Copy !req
836. I shall spare her life,Copy !req
837. for Vinicius to breed more Christians.Copy !req
838. Christ! Christ, give him strength!Copy !req
839. Seize him!Copy !req
840. Burner of Rome!
Thumbs up!Copy !req
841. Burner of Rome!Copy !req
842. Ready up there?Copy !req
843. First line, follow me.Copy !req
844. Citizens of Rome!Copy !req
845. I am Marcus Vinicius,Copy !req
846. Commander of your 14th legion.Copy !req
847. This man burned Rome,Copy !req
848. killed innocents for his crime.Copy !req
849. The rule of this madman has ended.Copy !req
850. Rome is yours again!Copy !req
851. Tonight general Galba marches
from the north,Copy !req
852. your army has risen.Copy !req
853. Hail Galba!Copy !req
854. Galba, new emperor of Rome!Copy !req
855. A sword from Plautius!Copy !req
856. Where are the praetorian guard?Copy !req
857. Dead or in revolt.Copy !req
858. Dead! All dead!Copy !req
859. My dear mama, Octavia,
the wife I loved,Copy !req
860. My friend, Petronius...Copy !req
861. All dead.Copy !req
862. Dead.Copy !req
863. You alone are left.Copy !req
864. "Kill the Christians", you said.Copy !req
865. It was you. It was you who
turned my people,Copy !req
866. my faithful subjectsCopy !req
867. Against me.Copy !req
868. You are my evil genius!Copy !req
869. What are you doing here? I banished you!Copy !req
870. I told you that when you needed me,Copy !req
871. I would come.
You defied me! Be gone!Copy !req
872. Acte, what will they do to me?Copy !req
873. They will kill you.
They won't get in!Copy !req
874. You've lived like a monster,Copy !req
875. now die like an emperor,Copy !req
876. by your own hand.Copy !req
877. I didn't wish to be a monster.Copy !req
878. The gods willed it!
Now, or they will find you here.Copy !req
879. Is this, then, the end of Nero?Copy !req
880. Yes, my lord. To be lord
of the earthCopy !req
881. and my own executioner.Copy !req
882. Quickly!Copy !req
883. How taste less life will be without...Copy !req
884. How can they face such a world?Copy !req
885. How can they endure it?Copy !req
886. Now, my lord.Copy !req
887. Help me, Acte.Copy !req
888. Hail Galba!Copy !req
889. Hail Galba!Copy !req
890. Hail!Copy !req
891. Hail Galba!Copy !req
892. Hail!Copy !req
893. Hail Galba!Copy !req
894. Galba has a task ahead of him,Copy !req
895. rebuild Rome and bring back justice.Copy !req
896. The glory that was RomeCopy !req
897. will never be reached again.Copy !req
898. Babylon, Egypt, Greece, Rome...Copy !req
899. What follows?Copy !req
900. A more permanent world, I hope,Copy !req
901. or a more permanent faith.Copy !req
902. One is not possible without the other.Copy !req
903. What is it, commander?Copy !req
904. In this very spot, Peter and I
turned back to Rome.Copy !req
905. It was here the lord spoke to him.Copy !req
906. It's a blessed spot.Copy !req