Chapter 12: The Torches of Rome

The damage to Rome was extensive. It was July 24th, and two-thirds of the capital was destroyed. The fires were mostly contained. The arena that Spiculus and Renias fought in was damaged but intact. Homes were burned to the ground, and marble structures were reduced to shells of their former glory.

The casualties, however, were not as bad as expected, though. A lot of people had the chance to get away as the fires spread. It was generally the elderly or those that we’re unable to move too quickly that consisted of most of the victims. It was not a surprise, though, that some of the casualties were those of looting where the guards could not maintain the chaos. The fires spared none for where it could reach.

The palace of Rome, where the Ceasar lived at was mostly undamaged where the fire could not spread directly at. It was here that Spiculus and Renias sat in a guest lounge as Nero discussed with his aids on what to do. The relief was there, though, as guards and staff helped those in the fire. The flames had ravaged ten of the fourteen districts.

“This is the worst fire ever to happen,” Thaddeus explained to Nero as they stood in the guest lounge of the palace. The palace was busy with people that ran around the area. The smell of smoke and activity-filled even the palace walls as they could overhear the distant sounds throughout the capital.

Spiculus and Renias overheard the conversation as they sat in couches. They looked and spoke to one another as they listened to the discussion. It was afternoon as the day progressed. Relief efforts were the menu of the day as Nero and other staff worked hard to exchange information and orders on what to do next.

“Were they able to culminate the culprits yet?” Nero asked his aide.

“We have arrested a series of looters. Some of these looters consisted of everything from the poor to the downtrodden, however...” Thaddeus explained as he paused.

“What?”

“Some of the looters were actually the guards themselves. One of the guards was found with a torch trying to set fire to the homes.”

Spiculus and Renias looked hard at Nero as he got angry. He stomped around as he shook his fist in the air.

“I want those looters and the guards fed to the lions,” Nero told him. “Have it arranged.”

Thaddeus nodded his head. “There is more to this, as well. One of the guards found this on one of the looters...”

Nero turned to look at Thaddeus’s old hand that held a piece of rolled-up paper that was damaged by the fire. Part of it was destroyed and burned, but it was intact enough that he handed it to Nero as he began to unroll it. His eyes scanned the paper.

“The day will come as Rome burns ... it is foreseen and will happen,” Nero was furious as he practically crumbled the paper and tossed it to the marble and carpeted floor below him. “The Christians kept saying this as well...”

Spiculus and Renias looked at each other. Nero turned to look at the two guests that sat on the chairs, not far from them. He was angry, but he kept his composure.

“Think that the Christians were not involved in this? Here is your proof!” Nero looked at Renias.

Renias had no idea. She looked down, sighed, and shook her head.

Nero then turned back to look at Thaddeus. “Time for me to head out there. I want more soldiers in the areas most affected by the fires. I am happy to hear my wife is alright, at least. Make sure she is well taken care of. Start sending out for masons far and wide. The rebuilding will be hard but not impossible.”

Thaddeus nodded as Nero turned around and walked away from the lounge. Thaddeus turned to look at Spiculus and Renias as he walked away, leaving the two alone for a moment to speak their thoughts without being interrupted or observed.

“This man is dangerous...” Renias said to Spiculus quietly.

“Who Thaddeus?” Spiculus asked.

“No ... you know who I am talking about.”

“Those are the words of treason,” Spiculus replied without hesitation.

“Spiculus,” Renias sighed. “I heard what he does to children. He is insane. I kept hearing rumors about him all the time and...”

“That is enough,” he interrupted her. “We are his guests, and he has treated us ... relatively well. Our new home is undamaged and ready for us to live in thanks to him.”

“Spiculus... , “ she paused. She had not told him the truth yet. With all the recent events going on in Rome, she still hadn’t told him what had happened. “I ... I don’t want to be around him. He has shown signs of insanity.”

“He can be overbearing at times, perhaps too perverted in the arts of pleasure like we have seen him before. It’s no different than what I have seen what some rulers and owners do to their slaves. It’s not enough to warrant him to be insane.”

“He played his fiddle while Rome burned...” Renias told him. “It might have been for separate reasons, but when he played, I sensed no remorse to what happened here. I can smell the smoke from here. It is so strong. He was not thinking of Rome. He was thinking about himself.”

“He has been responsible for helping the people here. Since we have been here, all his actions have been set in trying to make the place better and restoring order.”

“No ... that guard. I think ... I think that guard was under orders to torch Rome’s buildings. I think the chaos is being used to hide something nefarious that Nero is doing.”

“Again, all I hear are the words of treachery. I think...”

“I am pregnant,” Renias interrupted him.

This froze the argument entirely between them. Spiculus stopped and stared at her as he gave a questioning look at her. “How? ... How is that possible? You are not exactly...”

“I have my means. Your child is growing inside me as we speak.”

Spiculus almost laughed a little bit as he wrestled with his emotions. He couldn’t believe what he heard as he looked around. He even put his hands to his head. “Are you sure that you are pregnant?”

“I can tell you that I am pregnant,” she looked around carefully before she leaned and whispered to him quietly. She leaned back on her chair and resumed her normal volume.

“I ... I am ... happy to hear that we will become parents. This is a lot for me to hear. Excuse me...”

Spiculus stood up. He was still in his white tunic, living the good life of luxury. Renias had a smile on her face. She knew she had him.

“Do you feel safe with a man that can do horrible things to our child? Let me ask you that,” she said.

He tried to shake it off. “I can’t be bothered like this. I have not seen any signs that he is dangerous...” he shrugged and threw his hands in the air. “You can’t expect me to think calmly like this, can you? You tell me that we are with a person who will more than likely pose a risk to us and then tell me that you are a mother. It is impossible! I ... I won’t believe this.”

“You don’t believe that I am pregnant?”

“I have seen you before. It would be ... impossible for us to conceive. I might be compatible in some ways, but you wouldn’t be able to do it.”

“Ha, ha,” she laughed. “You don’t believe I am pregnant? Interesting ... I was expecting this conversation to go to many directions, but for you to not believe me, I guess my words about him are not good enough either?”

“No ... he is many things, but I feel loyal to him. If I were one of his guards, I wouldn’t question him.”

Renias stood up. She kept a smile as she put her hands to her hips and slowly walked to him in her white tunic. “Perhaps, you should simply wait. Watch my stomach get bigger and bigger. Watch what the beloved leader does to the Romans before he starts to rip the place apart. He is already doing it. He was doing it long ago, and by the time he is done, his own people will kill him. I honestly don’t care in the end. He can’t hurt me. He lacks that ability, and so do you. I will make this vow, though. When our child is ... born, he or she will not be around this man.”

“Perhaps...” Spiculus sighed. “I will keep your words under advisement. I just ... this is the first time that I can prove to myself of what I can do. I just want to be remembered for more than just the grand champion of combat.”

“You have proven to me,” she told him. “I wanted your child after you beat me. I made sure to make it happen no matter what,” she said as she patted her stomach. “Now it’s happening. I have the perfect place where to make sure our family will grow.”

“I prefer it here in Rome. I don’t know where you got planned.”

“The farther away from here, the better. Besides, you surprise me where I was thinking of delivering our child. You might like what I got planned.”

Spiculus shook his head. “I think that you are trying to pull some sort of trick on me. I don’t believe that a god...” he looked around. “That some woman like you could get pregnant. You have the tendency to be deviant at times. I can see it in your face. I still think this is some trick.”

“We will see... , just wait and watch.”

The arena that Spiculus and Renias fought together was damaged but still operational. Crowds of people lined the seats in attendance. It was a gathering for individuals. All were welcome to attend freely. It was later that night when the crowds of people sat voluntarily. Small pockets of fires still raged in the capital, but there were those called to attend by Nero himself. There was still some sunlight. Nero himself sat at the edge of the fence that led down to the main arena. Spiculus and Renias sat by the Caesar’s table. Guards lined the various entrances and exits to listen to their leader and what he had to say.

In the large table that Nero sat at, his second wife Poppaea Sabina also sat and listened to her husband’s words. Safe from the fires, she sat relieved and at peace. Sabina is remembered to be a good wife to Nero, but there was a price to be paid in marrying him. Sabina herself had a previous husband who was banished. Some even believed that Sabina was pregnant with her former husband’s child. It was rumored that Nero kicked her numerous times to kill the baby inside. No one knew if this was something falsely rumored or if there was some truth to the story.

The crowd that was there were either the ones recently affected and could spare the time to hear from their leader, or the rich and elite that lived in homes away from the fires. There was still enough of the crowd to make a commotion. Smoke still permeated the area, but it did not block the view of the arena and surrounding seats.

Nero had already got out of his seat as he looked at the crowds ahead of him. There were a series of attendants, guards, and poles put up in the center arena. The Roman leader held up his hands as the crowds of people started to quiet down to listen to him talk.

“You know why I called everyone here today and at this time,” the Caesar said. “All of you have been affected by the fires that destroyed many of your homes or places of someone that you know! What started six days still burns brightly, and many of you wonder when it will stop. I can promise you that I will not stop until the fires are put completely.”

There was small applause coming from the crowds of people. Nero waited till the praise died down.

“I know how many of you feel. What caused this fire? Who did it? Who was to blame? What can be done next to prevent this? Do not worry about such things. I have already got masons from all over the Roman Empire that is coming here to help come and fix your homes. I will do everything that I can to make your lives better and resolve this crisis!”

There was applause from the crowds. Spiculus himself even started to applause as Renias began to clap reluctantly. Nero held up his hands to enjoy the moment while at the same time to regain control of the crowd.

“As for the people who caused this...” Nero paused as he walked up to his table and began to unfold the crumpled paper. “I received something interesting from my guards. I am sure that many of you have seen our looters, people that raided, and robbed from the very shops that you setup. I assure you that those looters have been caught and are currently being brought out right now. I have hundreds of prisoners that were caught during the raging fires. What do you think I should do to them?!”

“Feed them to the lions!” yelled two of the crowd members. “Watch them burn!” yelled a random person. “Cut them to pieces!” yelled another random person. Renias and Spiculus remained quiet. The crowd was nodding their heads in agreement.

Nero smiled. “I can see many of you already want to see these people be taken care of. These are people that not only didn’t care about your property but also posed a danger to your families. People that raped others with no care while some of you watched,” he began to look at his paper. “I have here a piece of paper from one of the looters. It says here that Rome will be consumed in the fires of its sins. I don’t know about you, but I feel that I have heard that before. I think that many of you know of whom I am talking about. These so-called ‘Antiochs’ or ‘Christians’ as they sometimes call themselves are responsible for the great fire here. Wouldn’t you agree?”

“Yeah!” yelled one of them. “Kill them!” yelled another. “Show them the justice of Rome!” said another.

Nero laughed a little bit. Spiculus himself seemed to nod in agreement as well. Renias remained quiet.

“I don’t seem to have to argue much,” Nero held his hands up. “These are people who don’t worship our gods. They continually harass us and our way of life. I have no doubt they caused the fire. I don’t know about you, but we made sure to get things all ready arranged for our first series of executions tonight. We have our first series of looters, criminals, and even some of these so-called Christians that will all be fed to the lions tonight. How does that feel to all of you?”