"That's Sebastian!" "Captain oft he palace guard." "You can see he's still in favor." "The Queen has her favorites too." "That's Mammea Morgana." "She's slept her way from Bath to Rome." "He's the one who set our bedchamber on fire." "Put him to death!" "Pancras, no!" "Spare him!" "Strip him of his rank!" "And would you believe it..." "Sebastian was later sent, as a common soldier to the same remote camp to which I was unexpectedly posted." "In the camp there was Sebastian myself, six other soldiers, and Severus, the Captain." "We were in exile." "Nowhere to go, no one to fight, nothing to do." "Hail messenger of dawn." "The young God has arisen." "The chariot is prepared." "The horses of dawn fly forth to conquer the Goddess of night." "The reeds sigh when the young God rises." "The waters sing when the young God rises." "Mankind awakens from sleep." "The scarlet cock struts when the young God rises." "The lily gives forth perfume when the young God rises." "He is glorious in the dawn light." "He sparkles like the gold in the sacred lapis." "He sparkles like dew on the spider's web." "His smile brings color to the morning." "The world is united in peace." "Come on, men!" "Fight!" "Bastard!" "Come on, men!" "Fight!" "Sebastian, fight!" "I'm not fighting anymore." "What's the point of it?" " Pick it up!" " No!" "Go on, Sebastian." "Pick it up." "Why make trouble?" "Christians don't fight." "You'll fight!" "To me, Maximus, to me!" "Here, Adrian!" "Watch out, julian!" "Stop it, Anthony!" "I told you to leave me alone." "Hey, justin, you creep." "Take this." " Throw the ball to me, justin." " Where are you going, Adrian?" "Back to your mother?" "Why don't you screw him, Anthony?" "That's what you've always wanted." "Yeah!" "Shove it up him." "That'll fix the brat." "Hail, God ofthe golden sun." "The heavens and earth are united in gold." "Comb your hair in the golden rays of light." "In your hands the roses of ecstasy burn." "The wheel turns full circle." "Cooled by breezes from the four quarters." "The swallow has risen in the east." "The doors are open." "Your body, your naked body." "Initiated into the mysteries, step forth." "That beauty that made all colors different." "Comes forth into the world." "Hail, God ofthe golden fire." "Your beauty holds my heart captive." "justin!" "Clean all these swords!" "Proceed!" "Bastard!" "Let's see." "Adrian, have a look." "You're worse than a girl, Adrian." "Don't you want to lose your virginity?" "Or have you got piles?" "That's Sebastian." "Getting it again." "Severus is really bashing the meat this evening." "One forjupiter." "Two for Bacchus." "Three forjuno." "Four for Romulus." "Five for Pluto." "Six for Venus." "Seven, Diana." "Eight, Minerva." "I'm still not going to fight." "You'll stay there until you change your mind." "Sebastian." "Sebastian, be careful." "justin, my friend, why?" "He can do as he likes." "The truth is beautiful." "A present from Rome." "Oh, shit!" "Hey, Maximus." "Get this." "Roll up, roll up!" "The Vestal Virgins versus the Sabine women." "A glorious rape in color." "Here comes Messalina." "Girls, tend your fires." "Or she'll be in by the back door." "Here comes Maximus's aunt, Agrippina." "Old black ass." "Ram it home, Aunt Agrippina." "This one's Boadicea." "She's on top of Messalina." "Six legs in black leather." "What more could a virgin want?" "Come on, Boadicea!" "Here comes Aunty again." "She's on her back." "One, two, three." "Bad luck Boadicea." "And now, Citizens of Rome..." "The terror of civilization, Maria Domus Alba." "As heavy as Hannibal and leader ofthe Vestal Virgins." "Oh, byjove, she's in the arms ofSappho." "Sappho's got her by the tits." "Roll her over, Sappho!" "What's your name, little girl?" "You made a mistake with Maximus's Aunt Agrippina, girl." "That corpse is Dido." "The Kamikaze of Carthage." "Your turn, Sebastian." "Fucking show-off!" "Oh, shut up, Maximus!" "You'rejust the same." "What a waste oftime sitting in this desert doing gymnastics all day." "When I get back to civilization I'm going to screw the first whore I find." "You are the best." "That's for me to decide." "Put everything away!" "So you're still a Christian?" "Yes." "Then remove my armor." "And the rest." "Anthony, Adrian, come over here!" "Put him over there!" "Move!" "Tighter!" "Adrian!" "Tighter!" "Tighter!" "Get back to the camp!" "It's a fat one!" "Let's chase it to the sea!" "Chase it to the sea!" "Where are you going, justin?" "Why are they doing this?" "His eyes are so beautiful." "He has sky blue eyes." "What is this?" "What are you talking about?" "His hair is like the sun's rays." "His body is golden like molten gold." "This hand of his will smooth away these wounds." "justin..." "He is as beautiful as the sun." "This sun which caresses me is his burning desire." "He is Phoebus Apollo." "The sun is his burning kiss." "This is madness." "Why don't you run?" "You can't die here in the desert." "His beauty is enhanced by his anger." "It is his anger which is divine." "His punishments are like Christ's promise." "He takes me in his arm and caresses my bleeding body." "I want to be with him." "I love him." "justin, you don't understand." "Take it away." "Good pork, this." "I could eat a pig a day." "Better than the usual crap." "Pork always keeps the jews away!" "Some people love punishment." "I'll bet he's got a sore ass." "Some go singing to their deaths." "Let me make love." "Let me make love!" "You must eat." "Why are you doing this?" "I love him." "He is beautiful." "More beautiful than Adonis." "Last night Severus nearly killed him." "Who cares!" "One less!" "Stupid Christian." "He should be in Hades." "Throw them to the lions, I say." "In Nero's day hundreds ofthem were crucified, while he sang to his golden lyre." "Mocking their cause." "And at his dinner parties he burnt them as human torches." "Nothing compares to that now." "Look at the Coliseum." "A skeleton ofwhat it was two hundred years ago!" "No one keeps it in repair." "It's hardly ever used now." "And what's left ofthe games?" "A few clapped-out Syrian archers." "And Greek faggots with nets against some tamed elephants." "Last year, one mangy old lion fell asleep." "When I was young there were real orgies." "And the chariot races ofthe famous Cecilli Mille the director from Silva Sacra." "He usually produced shows with hundreds of dancing girls every night." "A few years ago a new man from the east called Philistini scoured all the brothels of Rome and as far as freezing Britain looking for pretty boys for his production of Satyricon." "Twenty years ago..." "Who could have dreamt of such perversity?" "I saw it myself at the Olympia." "What enormous expense." "Enough to make an earthquake." "But his orgies weren't a patch on old Mille's." "Now he knew a good bit when he saw one!" "I'll never forget Claudia Frigida." "The costume she wore cost more than Greek statues;" "unbelievably extravagant." "But they left nothing to the imagination." "In those days, men were men." "Remember Stephanon Paidon the great charioteer?" "When I was in Rome, I danced for the Emperor." " Danced?" " Yes, after his triumph" "He gave me a golden crown." "What is your dance called?" "The dance ofthe sun on the water." "Dancing girl!" "Christian whore!" "Why don't you put on a dress?" "You ignorant Christian." "Christian faggot!" "Maximus!" "Back to the barracks and clean the armor." "You are marvelous and dance like a god." "Not like a god,justin, but for God." "Severus understands your dance?" "Yes, he understands." "Leave him alone!" "He's a Christian." "The Emperor's already punished him." "He's unrepentant." "Get on with it!" "Hey, Marius, Claudius!" "Get this for a dance!" "This is the dance!" "How the whore Sebastian danced each night with a centurion." "And how the centurion saved her from a fate worse than death." "You are a darling." "Stone her, Christian pig!" "What can you see, justin?" "A beautiful shell." "Look!" "A pearl shell." "Can you reach it?" "Here, Sebastian." "It's for you." "What do you hear?" "I hear the old gods sighing." "And you?" "Nothing." "Wait!" "A seagull crying in a great storm." "I hearyour name, Sebastian." "Sebastian!" "Much loved Sebastian!" "Here!" "You listen." "I hear a song as wonderful as the nightingale." "It reminds me of childhood and old, half-forgotten voices." "I hear it." "Now it's a lullaby." "With seagulls crying louder and louder." "Who wants to fight?" "Who dares?" "Hey,justin!" "Come here, you coward." "I will!" "Come on, motherfucker!" "Stop it!" "Go to hell!" "Stop it, Maximus!" "Christian lover!" "Come over here!" "Five." "Seven." "Twelve." "You owe me half your salt ration, Claudius." "Nine." "Ten." "Three." "Lucky at dice, unlucky in love, eh, Maximus!" "Hey, Adrian, pass that wine over." "You're too young to drink." "Don't worry, baby!" "Your Anthony will protect you." "Every Cleopatra must have her Anthony." " I'd better be careful then." " Yeah!" "He might have asps up his..." "Crude bugger!" "I don't know why you fancy boys so much, Anthony." "You're worse than a Greek." "They're okay for a quick one." "But I can't wait for Rome and a real woman." "Do you remember Mammea Morgana?" "The one with the huge tits and the red hair." "We saw her at the Coliseum." "After their triumph, the whole regiment marched into her and got lost." "This wine is terrible." "Hey!" "justin!" "What are you thinking about?" "Some Roman whore." "Smeared all over with makeup." "I'm going to get drunk." "Whore!" "Christian!" "Sebastian!" "Where is Sebastian?" "In the dormitory." "Sebastian, come with me." "Don't, Sebastian." "He's drunk." "Into my room!" "I won't let you go, Sebastian." "Fucking Christian lover." "I'll take care of him, Captain." "Now you'll see." "Poor Severus." "You think your drunken lust compares to the love of God." "You're so drunk you're impotent." "You're going to get it." "Ask for it, you Christian whore." "Sebastian, I love you." "You are so beautiful." "Sebastian, love me." "You impotent fool." "You'll never have me, and you've never had me." "Never!" "Fetch the others." "Sebastian is to be killed."