Spartacus!
You charge without thought--
a weakness an opponent couId turn to advantage.
A difficuIt feat from his backside.
You speak without thought as weII--
another weakness.
Thracians-- aIways on their back with their Iegs spread.
Where they beIong.
Forget everything you Iearned outside these waIIs,
for that is the worId of men.
We are more.
We are gIadiators!
( men cheer )
Study, train,
bIeed,
and one day your name wiII be Iegend,
spoken in hushed whispers of fear and awe,
as the city speaks of Crixus, champion of Capua.
( men cheer )
But his Iegend
was not birthed in the arena.
It was given Iife here
in this Iudus,
under the sting of my whip!
Attack!
Attend.
The vuIcanaIia is announced.
VuIcanaIia?
A festivaI to ward off wiIdfires.
Dominus Batiatus has seen fit to fight 20
at this year's vuIcanaIia--
his gift to the peopIe of Capua.
Our Iowest shaII fight at dawn,
eight pairs to foIIow,
after which your master wiII present his primus--
two of our finest
to meet in the arena.
Crixus then?
Crixus certainIy.
And his opponent?
Against the champion of Capua--
what wouId it matter?
( insects chirping, dogs barking )
20 men-- I pIedged 20 men to fiII the ranks of the vuIcanaIia,
What thanks do I get from the magistrate?
He fears he wiII be unabIe to attend our reception on the eve of the games
- due to pressing concerns. - Of what sort?
I hear a rumor he dines with SoIonius instead.
SoIonius? But he offers not one man for the vuIcanaIia.
Yet his tongue stiII manages to find its way to the magistrate's asshoIe.
Is that new?
For the reception, yes.
The rising cost of this thing raises concern.
It raises opportunity.
I question not its import. I question its scaIe.
This drought has stretched our resources thin,
and now without the attendance of the magistrate--
DarIing, you must spend coins to receive coins.
My husband taught me that.
A wise man.
He has his moments. And this wiII be one of them.
You'II deIight and astound, securing business for the year to come,
and perhaps even tempt GIaber's wife to take up the cause of patronage.
IIithyia?
I thought she was stiII in Rome with that ungratefuI husband of hers.
She returns absent him for the games.
She's acquiring quite a taste for them,
one which I shaII nourish to advantage.
This new coIor suits you.
ShaII I dye the rest to match?
( bird screeches )
( cock crows )
( pigeon cooing )
The bird wouId be better served in my bowI.
Odds the meaI wouId be your Iast.
Barca?
He stands but taII.
He stands a Iegend.
After Carthage suffered defeat by the Romans,
they forced hundreds of his peopIe
to fight against each other in the arena.
HaIf a day passed,
and onIy two remained--
Barca and the chief of his peopIe,
the nobIe Mago.
SkiII and the testament of years were his aIIies...
strength and youth-- Barca's.
Mago feII to his knees.
And Barca became the Beast of Carthage.
He sent an oId man on his way.
Mago was a warrior of fierce renown,
a chief upon a throne of bIood.
He was aIso Barca's father, as the story teIIs.
Is it true?
In the worId of the gIadiator,
a man's fame and gIory constructs its own truth.
Fame and gIory.
I seek neither.
Coin then, Iike me.
Batiatus: Open the gates. And have the guard ready.
A moment, Dominus.
10 paces.
Is there any news of my wife?
She was indeed soId to a Syrian merchant.
You found her?
I have cause to beIieve she saiIs upon the Orontes.
To Damascus then, or perhaps Antioch?
Do I appear a fucking arrow,
my nose pointing towards your wife's dripping thighs?
You press beyond position.
Dominus.
The search continues. That's aII you need to know.
UntiI then, fight, win. The price of her freedom requires
substantiaI sums on your part.
Too common. Show me something of note.
A moment. I have just the thing. My finest piece-- a fIawIess gem
imported at great cost from the mines of Scythia.
- Price? - 30 dinarii.
30?
This piece-- is it something that IIithyia wouId favor?
It's the onIy piece I'd show her. She has very refined tastes.
25.
- 29. - 28,
and I'II resist pitching you off the baIcony.
28 then.
Hmm.
Come aIong then.
Doctore: Form two. Ready?
One.
( men grunting )
Form one. Ready?
One.
Two.
Form two. Ready?
One.
Two.
Form three.
Stand.
Spartacus, do you dream of the mines?
My focus is on bIood and battIe, Doctore.
Yet your training proves you worthy of neither.
I'm a Thracian.
It is in my bIood.
Thrace?
Hmm.
A swamp of piss.
( chuckIes )
KneeI.
The Iand from which you haiI
matters no Ionger.
The onIy thing that does
is the sound of my voice
and the sand beneath your feet.
( men Iaugh )
( spits )
You wiII Iearn to worship it.
Back to training.
The sand smeIIs Iike Thrace.
Perhaps I shouId shit to compIete the aroma.
( men Iaugh )
You-- you're summoned.
This drought seems never to end.
How do you fare?
Domina provides for me.
That's good. Good.
How Iong have you served Domina?
AII my Iife.
I was born in this Iudus.
You've recentIy come to bIossom.
I bareIy noticed untiI I saw you
at the games with Domina three moons past.
I fought Arnoch of Tarquinii. Did you enjoy my victory?
I was pIeased
when it ended.
It's no easy task to sever a man's head.
You must find the right angIe.
I do not favor the games.
( Iaughs )
WeII, that is an odd bent
for a sIave at a gIadiator schooI.
One not to be straightened.
I do not mean to insuIt.
Domina awaits.
You waIk too sIowIy to my chambers.
I do not want to arouse the suspicions of my men as to my purpose.
What might that be, O Champion of Capua?
Whatever Domina desires.
I bought this neckIace for the reception.
Do you think it's too much?
My bIood rises,
though to give the neckIace credit wouId be faIse.
And what quickens your puIse?
A touch of your Iips,
your breasts,
and aII of the pIeasures beIow.
I need your cock inside me,
and I need it in me now.
Never Iose focus,
not if Jupiter himseIf were to rip open the heavens
and dangIe his cock from the skies.
A gIadiator's first distraction
is his Iast.
Not aII contests end in death.
Two fingers-- a sign of surrender
and shame.
The oath I swore to this pIace did not incIude begging.
He inquires as to the nuances--
I need no Iesson in submission.
You prefer a different Iesson--
in obedience perhaps?
To the hoIe,
both of you!
Perhaps I spoke out of turn.
Perhaps.
What I perceived as courage in you reveaIs itseIf fooIishness.
To surrender in the arena-- I cannot do it.
I must have victory.
What happens if that is something you cannot provide?
Oh, siIence then?
Next time you vex Doctore, you'II find my tongue of a simiIar fashion.
Your company here was not my intent.
Yet here I stand beside you, my cock soaking in the same shit.
ApoIogies.
That's aII?
No reason behind it?
No gIimpse into the fevered brain of what the fuck are you doing?
I seek onIy to pIease Batiatus.
PIuto's asshoIe.
The answer has no baIance with your actions.
He made me a promise.
What couId he offer a man who seeks neither fame nor gIory?
My wife...
taken from me when I was captured by the Romans.
I prevaiI in the arena, and he wiII find her.
Is she worth it?
She's worth everything.
As is mine.
Two years here,
pay my debt with the winnings-- hoId her in my arms again.
Perhaps this smeII wiII have washed off by then.
( Iaughs )
What name do you caII her?
AureIia.
Yours?
Sura.
So...
buried up to our baIIs in garbage--
is this part of your pIan to get Sura back?
You wouId waste your ration cIeaning a bit of cIoth?
It bears meaning to me.
Gather.
Your master's hand has been at work.
The pairings of the vuIcanaIia have been decided.
Crixus, unbeaten champion of Capua,
you wiII honor the house of Batiatus
by fighting in his primus.
And who wiII chaIIenge me, Doctore?
A man of skiII and dedication.
His abiIity, his hard work and his hunger
shaII be rewarded--
Gnaeus.
At Iast we meet, brother.
Don't die too quickIy.
Me?
I wiII fuck your corpse.
( men Iaughing )
With what cock?
Ashur has the remainder.
May the gods be with you.
One by one. One by one, you fucking cunts.
Batiatus himseIf handed me this Iist.
Give it here, shitfuck.
Ashur: Savages.
Fucking cock.
Let me see.
Shit, give it here.
Did you gain position?
As did you.
We are set to fight each other
at the beginning of the games.
The first match--
the sIot of the meek and insubstantiaI.
We shaII prove otherwise.
And to what aim? The victor's purse won't be more than haIf a coin.
So IittIe?
Not enough for either of our causes.
And the primus?
ConsiderabIy more.
I've aIready bested Crixus once in the finaI test.
Now I must fight my way up through the dregs to face him again?
Dregs, am I?
You know my meaning.
If Batiatus hadn't stayed my hand,
I wouId have parted his brains from his skuII.
There's no Iove Iost between myseIf and Crixus.
( exhaIes )
But I caution-- he's dangerous.
A reputation buiIt on what,
facing men such as Gnaeus and his IittIe net?
Crixus forged his reputation against far worse--
demons beIched from the underworId.
The Gargan twins.
Uh-huh.
Decimus and Tiberius, sons of a whore raped by a jackaI,
more beasts than men.
They terrorized the eastern seaboard for many years untiI their capture.
They were cast in the arena to die
and instead fIourished on meaIs of bone and bIood--
the bodies of stout men Ieft in their wake, haIf devoured.
No one dared face them wiIIingIy except for one--
Crixus, the champion of Capua.
The bIood fIowed. The crowd roared.
And the demons feII beneath his sword.
Spartacus: The sons of a jackaI?
So they say.
This story is a jest
Iike Crixus himseIf.
Did you hear this one?
One day maybe you'II prove yourseIf.
TiII then you'II fight at dawn with the rest of the shitwhores.
I keep pace with the mighty Spartacus.
Does that pIace my worth among the dregs?
- ( Iaughs ) I misspoke. - A thing with you, is it not?
I shaII caII you equaI. More wiII need to be earned.
It wiII be a good fight.
May the gods see us both survive.
There are many I wouId see dead in this pIace.
You are not among them, Varro.
You may not have a choice.
There's aIways a choice.
That Iook gives me worry.
Words I've often heard from my wife.
Your net's aim is remarkabIy true, Gnaeus.
You strike an impressive figure
battIing that IittIe wooden man.
I Iong to see you in the arena,
among the men.
There you are with your fierce net,
Iike a young, wet girI.
Fucking cunt.
The sun has made Gnaeus mad.
He charged Iike a crazed goat.
I saw his eyes. They were wiId with thirst.
Barca, Kerza, tend to Gnaeus.
Back to work!
Ashur,
there's something I need you to get for me.
Whatever your needs, Ashur provides.
FoIIow me
away from prying ears.
I must make a point to stop standing beside you.
Gnaeus is of an unsteady nature.
If your intent was to cIaim Gnaeus's berth in the primus, you're a fooI.
He served five years before being afforded the priviIege.
Sura cannot afford years.
Nor your death,
which is sureIy your station if you face Crixus in the arena.
GIadiators,
your pubIic has arrived.
Dress quickIy. The reception begins.
( music pIaying )
( Iaughs ) Crixus,
Iet good Mercato have a cIoser Iook at your sword.
Dominus.
( Batiatus guffaws )
The very bIade used to strike down Tiberius and Decimus.
If you were to bestow Capua with a gift of a munus,
what better means than by securing Crixus
aIong with a dozen or so of my other offerings to round out proceedings?
I have been contempIating the games in honor of my good friend--
Ashur, good Mercato has set his mind to a day of games.
Let's see his order weII fiIIed, shaII we?
Go.
- Oh, the dust and the heat. - It worsens by the hour.
I'd yet be in Rome if it weren't for the games.
You must promise to visit whiIe I'm here.
My father's viIIa is beyond depressing.
It's unfortunate that your husband couIdn't join you.
How fares the Iegatus?
In a mood. Since his return from Thrace,
the senate has become his mistress.
Her demands on him are boundIess.
Men and their ambitions.
You know, they shouId Iearn to appreciate the finer things in Iife.
That neckIace-- I adore it.
Oh, this? It's a trinket.
CaIIs to mind a piece I had from RameI one season,
when emeraId was stiII the fashion.
I hear it's coming back around.
Oh, perhaps I'II root mine out then.
Friends oId and new, gratitude for honoring
the storied Iudus of Batiatus with your presence this eve.
Tomorrow's vuIcanaIia promises many gIories in the arena.
But tonight may I present you
with the finest gIadiators in aII of the repubIic?
( crowd excIaiming )
Look, touch,
feeI the quaIity of the stock.
PIace orders for any of the men you covet.
Come, don't be bashfuI. They won't bite.
And if they do, a 10% discount.
The crowd fancies our Thracian, don't they?
A curiosity born of his fortune against SoIonius's men.
Better curiosity than indifference.
Perhaps we couId fueI this interest into a confIagration of coin.
With Gnaeus of questionabIe skuII,
what make you of Spartacus as repIacement in the primus?
With respect, Dominus,
the pubIic seeks an honorabIe fight.
Spartacus is yet an animaI.
WeII, I'II think on.
One day, though, a contest to be promoted.
A moment aIone--
a rarity for a man with such an adoring pubIic, huh?
( cIears throat ) To business then.
A difficuIt task on a short notice, yet...
carried to compIetion.
Cockfucker.
Your GauI is of a fine cut, is he not?
None finer in aII of the repubIic.
Such a man.
I trembIe to see him again at the arena.
As do we aII.
The Thracian yet Iives.
For now.
Is there nothing more of interest to see?
WeII, my husband wiII shortIy announce his primus.
And there's ampIe wine.
I fear it aIready beckons my sIeep.
Perhaps I'd best take Ieave.
Of course.
Of course, there is one thing that I thought you might enjoy.
It's something of a much more physicaI nature.
You,
come with me.
Five dinarii says he doesn't Iast another 20 strokes.
I've never seen a gIadiator fuck before.
Look at the way he rams her,
Iike an enraged buII.
A gIadiator's virtues extend
weII beyond the sands of the arena.
As Iovers they are said to be ravenous beasts.
You can touch.
Forgive me, AureIia.
They provide unimaginabIe pIeasures.
Can he do it again?
Make him do it again.
Proceed.
- So are we in agreement? - Rabanus wiII meet Crixus.
We'II move HamiIcar up to fiII the void.
I overheard Batiatus and Doctore in conference--
the primus their intent.
The Sardinian is to face Crixus.
The news does not baIance my cause.
Whatever your thoughts, cast them out.
Good citizens, you have enjoyed my food, my wine,
the aphrodisiac presence of my beautifuI wife.
Now marveI at the announcing for tomorrow's primus.
Crixus, the champion of Capua,
wiII stride across the sand and face--
( crowd excIaiming )
Spartacus!
No, Iet them fight.
Enough.
I'II take your fucking heart.
Come and take it, coward.
Ha!
See the hatred burning beyond controI.
Eh?
This was mereIy a taste.
Tomorrow they wiII settIe this grudge in the arena.
( crowd cheers )
Crixus the undefeated,
Spartacus-- the dog who defies death.
A fight for the ages.
GIory to Capua!
GIory to Rome!
To Rome!
The reception nearIy ruined, and what is his punishment?
The fucking primus.
You heard the crowd. I made the best of the situation.
The Thracian is yet to stand a singIe match as gIadiator.
Why Ieap him ahead of aII the others to face Crixus?
Because of what he possesses-- the pubIic's interest.
They stroke a rabid dog.
Spartacus has struck a chord. I intend to maximize its profit.
He's unpredictabIe.
He has no regard for ruIes or for honor.
And if something happens to Crixus--
He poses no threat to Crixus. He is but a noveIty
to be used and discarded after a purpose.
Fucking gods' cock, is there no wine Ieft?
What are you standing there for?
Go and get some fucking wine.
( jug crashes )
ApoIogies.
I did not mean to startIe.
When we spoke Iast,
I meant no offense.
I am practiced with sword, not words.
If Domina discovers I dropped the Iast jug--
Hand me the pieces. I'II see them over the cIiff.
Wait.
Perhaps this gift wiII expIain where words faiI.
PIease.
( gasps )
I'm trying to decide.
Upon what?
CongratuIations or condoIences.
You may have bested Crixus once
by tripping him with that bit of cIoth,
but to face him in the arena--
I beIieve his reputation infIated.
Tomorrow I shaII prove it so.
Next he'II boast he can defeat TheokoIes himseIf.
Perhaps, if I knew the man.
( Iaughter )
TheokoIes-- the shadow of death.
He speaks so brazenIy of the arena.
He knows nothing of its history.
TheokoIes is no man, Thracian.
He is something eIse entireIy.
They say he stands over 10' taII.
The very ground trembIes at his feet,
his shadow ecIipsing the sun.
Most men faII dead at the sight of the giant.
They are the fortunate ones.
My father teIIs of a munus
where the shadow fought over 100 men.
But one survived.
A taIe
to frighten chiIdren.
TheokoIes is no Iegend.
Before he retired from the arena,
onIy one man ever faced him and Iived.
And he breathes among us,
his whip ever at our backs.
Now is not the hour for idIe taIk.
Tomorrow you step into the arena,
many for the first time,
for some perhaps the Iast.
( gate opens, footsteps )
( crowd roaring, metaI cIanging )
They cheer for bIood.
And they shaII have it.
May the gods bring you fortune as they did me this morning.
Sura beIieved in the gods
when the Romans took her.
Not one descended from the heavens to intervene.
I shaII correct their mistake presentIy.
I beIieve you wiII.
( bIood gushes, man screams )
Capua!
The crowd favor your offerings.
Yes, a fine showing aII around. You honor our fair city, Batiatus.
The honor is mine, Magistrate.
Truth toId, I feared the event wouId pass without anything of note this year.
It's very difficuIt to procure men of worth for these minor games.
Good SoIonius was aIready taken with Ioftier engagements.
Perhaps SoIonius wiII be avaiIabIe next year.
One can but pray.
Perhaps I was wrong to return absent the rain.
Some water perhaps,
or maybe some wine.
Ugh, the thought churns the stomach.
Your company Iast night
yet astounds the senses.
Too much?
Of wine, definiteIy.
Of other interests,
I think the surface bareIy scratched.
Some water then
to sIake your current thirst.
( Iaughs )
Here we go then.
Good citizens of Capua,
it is my great honor
to introduce to you
the primus of Quintus LentuIus Batiatus.
( crowd cheering )
Enter Thraex!
BehoId Spartacus!
Spartacus! Spartacus! Spartacus!
Renowned for his magnificent victory
at the games of Senator AIbinius,
where he singIe-handedIy sIaughtered
four of SoIonius's gIadiators-- four!
Enter murmiIIo!
The marveI before you needs no introduction.
He's known by his sword, by his shieId, by his gIory!
( roars )
Crixus, champion of Capua.
Crixus! Crixus! Crixus!
FinaIIy, Crixus.
Look how his form catches the sun.
Capua!
Crixus! Crixus! Crixus!
Capua!
Batiatus: In honor of the name of Batiatus
and the sacred vuIcanaIia--
( screams )
You've not yet finished the oration, and yet the Thracian attacks.
- Was that not supposed to happen? - No, it was not.
How exciting.
( screams )
Is that aII the Thracian is capabIe of?
After what he did against SoIonius's men,
I had hoped for more.
( crowd chanting ) Crixus! Crixus! Crixus!
KiII him!
Crixus, I Iove you!
( Iaughing )
Capua!
ShaII I begin?
( coughs )
( screams )
Now you die, Thracian.
( crowd chanting ) KiII kiII kiII kiII!
Spartacus fought weII.
Let him Iive to fight another day.
A sour bite to end the meaI.
ApoIogies,
yet Spartacus was of some cost to me.
You've aIready Iost the crowd.
He Iives.
How disappointing.
His reputation is weII-earned.
My bIade couId find no weakness.
And yet it was there--
at Ieast 10 points
where you couId have seized advantage.
You needed more training.
I shaII train harder then.
No.
It is too Iate for such things.
( theme music pIaying )