The Fall of the Roman Empire Page #3

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Therefore...

Therefore, if you ask me,

it can only mean that you must

have tried with all your strength

to find another way.

Yes,s I have.

And you could not?

No...

I could not.

Therefore, it must be time.

Thus...

does Rome punish cowards!

Stop this!

Stop this! Stop this!

You call us cowards?

Let 20 of your men fight 20 of ours

if they dare, and then see who are cowards.

Move out of the way!

No one touches Verilus!

I am commander of the northern army.

Continue the punishment.

I will not permit this!

Withdraw, Commodus!

I cannot.

Nor can I.

Then let the gods decide.

Yes, the omens have been bad.

Bad for whom?

For us? for Rome?

At least here we can speak clearly.

What would you like, Julianas?

That the gods send us written messages

advising us on each small move we make?

Is the murder of an emperor

a small move?

Murder?

Caesar is dying and knows it.

At any moment, he will disinherit

Commodus and proclaim

Livius his heir.

Once he does that, publicly,

what hope is there for us?

To kill Caesar!

Does Commodus know?

Commodus does not know.

He must never know.

Caesar is guarded.

There are so many close to him.

How can it be done?

Quite easily.

We all of us know that Caesar loves fruit.

Apples.

Now, this blade carries a deadly poison,

on the side with the carved snake.

Cut fruit with it, an apple.

Offer the poisoned half to Caesar.

Eat the other half for yourself

and then, long live the emperor, Commodus.

It could be done

before hundreds of witnesses.

No one could be suspected.

From whom will Caesar accept fruit?

Who is close enough to him?

I am.

You?

You are blind.

I have only to feel the blade

to know which side.

And who better than a blind man?

Are you a man to enjoy

an irony, Marcus Aurelius?

Look well then

at the emperor of all Rome

become no better than a slave.

And who or what is your master?

Slave!

A small point in your side.

Perhaps no larger than

a grain of wheat.

Of what use is your wisdom now?

No answer?

Think of all you have read

and pondered over the years.

And the talk, Marcus Aurelius.

The hours of talk with your friend,

Timonides.

Surely it must have prepared you

for this moment.

But it has failed you, hasn't it?

You are not prepared.

Why?

In all that talk did this

this topic, death

slip your minds?

Or did you know deep down

that your wisdom would be helpless

before this mystery

of mysteries.

But once you admit that,

all other knowledge and skill only

becomes trivial and meaningless.

But then you would not have

thought and read

And talked and wondered.

So, perhaps it is just as well.

For if men do not think, read,

talk to each other,

above all else, talk,

they are no longer men.

He has come for me.

The silent boatman to ferry me across

the shadowed river.

I am not ready for you.

I've always been willing

to bargain with my enemies.

Can we not make a treaty?

For your part I ask you

to wait two years.

One year.

I cannot do it in less than a year.

I do not seek pleasures,

or friendship, or love.

I speak only of Rome.

And when I say Rome, I mean the world.

The future.

For my part,

I am prepared to live on in pain.

A year. What is a year to you?

Coarse, vulgar, stupid thing.

Yet it was I who said,

Is it not in the nature

of the fig tree to give figs, as for

the honey bee to give honey,

and for the lion who fall upon the lamb?

So it is in the way of things

that you should come for me.

Forgive me, Boatman.

I did not realize you were blind

and deaf.

Come for me when you will.

My hand shall lead us.

But I tell you this:

There is a great truth

we have not yet divined.

Oh, it is you Cleander.

Is there something

I can do, my lord Caesar?

I'm in pain.

The Greeks say there is nothing better

than fruit to soften pain.

Share this with me.

I have been pledged to king Sohamus.

But you are mine!

My father gave his word.

Come away with me.

Where could we go?

Anywhere where we could be alone.

But there is no such a place.

I'm Caesar's daughter.

You're a woman...

That is a much higher rank.

I couldn't live that way.

Nor could you.

I could.

If I had to choose between

being Caesar's heir or your love.

I choose your love.

I cannot.

How can you do anything else?

Only this is real.

All else is half life.

Dream. Only this.

How can you ask me

to forget everything that I am?

All that my life means.

How can your life

mean anything without love?

I will not let this happen.

Father,

why did you deny me?

Caesar is dying!

Father.

Livius.

You are looking for

a document, Timonides?

A document in which my father

named me his heir.

There is no such document.

There must be.

His last word was Livius.

I will bare witness

that it was Caesar's wish,

that you'd be his heir.

If it was only your word, Lucilla,

there would be doubt.

Caesar must be undoubted Caesar.

Is it not possible, Lucilla,

that there are

other ways of becoming

the real heir of Marcus Aurelius?

Hail, undoubted Caesar!

Hail Commodus!

Hail Caesar!

Hail Commodus!

Hail Caesar!

Hail Commodus! Hail Caesar!

Hail Commodus!

I will never forget

what you have done today.

Let this be heard over

the four corners of the empire,

that I Commodus,

now Caesar,

do proclaim Gaius Martellus Livius

Commander-in-chief of all Roman armies,

proconsul of the Roman Empire,

second only to Caesar himself.

Hail Caesar! Hail Caesar! Hail Caesar!

Hail Caesar! Hail Caesar! Hail Caesar!

Remember, thou art mortal.

Hail Caesar! Hail Caesar! Hail Caesar!

In these buildings

you store all the law,

and all the writings of

the great men of Rome.

I am leaving with...

my husband.

And soon I'll be far from this city.

Now I ask,

that you guard these,

the meditations of my father,

Marcus Aurelius.

Whatever else happens

in the days to come,

let not these be destroyed.

For this is Rome.

When...

my father was dying,

I spoke to the gods,

saying...

I am not like my father.

and if I'm to be crowned Caesar,

I would change all he did.

I offered them my life,

and told them that if it is

not for the good of Rome

that I be Caesar,

then let me be killed.

But you see...

I'm alive.

And Caesar.

Now!

I wish to see Rome once more...

the city of light.

Gaiety, beauty and strength.

We will have games.

The people of the city will be fed.

You and your eastern provinces

will send us

Twice the grain they've been sending

The taxes on them will be doubled.

My lord, Caesar.

This cannot be done.

We have famine.

Not only in our provinces of

Syria and Egypt,

but also in Armenia, Cappadocia,

Arabia.

In the whole eastern

half of the Roman Empire,

People are dying of hunger.

- When the words spread that

you had sent for us,

there was joy and hope. Our people said,

Rome cannot let us die.

Our young Caesar will send us help.

If we carry out these orders,

we risk having the entire East

rise up against Rome.

You will tell your provinces,

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