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NERO
By Pueros Chapter XXIX - Tutors (Dacia, Iul. DCCCLIX, in the 8th year of the reign of the Emperor Trajan [July, AD 106]) 'A happy life is one which is in accordance with its own nature.' - Seneca the Younger As I enter the second month of recording my long life, with the aid of my very patient and worthy scribe, my mind cannot help but frequently remember the faces seen by Apollinus and me at Caius Silius' great banquet, which took place not long after I had arrived in Rome to be castrated and enslaved. The splendid feast was very significant in my life and that of my friend for a number of reasons. For example, the banquet represented the initial occasions that I came across the Emperor Claudius and Apollinus met Britannicus. Between us, we also for the first time espied many other personages who feature in my saga, many of whom were to die tragically because of the actions of fellow diners. As you, reader, should already be aware, by the time this particular chapter picks up my tale, less than three years after Caius Silius' great banquet, the host and five of his guests had already perished, none by natural causes. These people were, of course, my first master himself and his Imperial mistress, Messalina, as well as Marcus Licinius Crassus Frugi, Valerius Asiaticus, Lucius Junius Silanus and Lollia Paulina. Unfortunately, the unnatural attrition rate amongst the guests, resulting from rivalries with fellow diners present, was to continue for many more years. I wonder, reader, can you guess the eventual total number, of those who attended the great banquet, who subsequently died through unnatural causes, none accidental and usually very bloody? Please forgive me for not providing the answer now, but I shall remind you of the relevant volume of murders, executions and forced suicides towards the end of my saga, after I have described the whole awful inventory. Fortunately, Caius Silius' great banquet does not just convey doom and gloom to my memory, for my beloved Gaius was to arrive in Rome the next day, as a mere 16 year-old looking to leave his mark on civilisation. I shall go to my own grave happy in the knowledge that the beautiful youth from Volsinii succeeded in his ambition, and not just through his main preoccupation. One of the main reasons why I narrate my life is to record for posterity the full range of significant worthy contributions made to my era by Gaius, and other heroes who might otherwise have been subsequently unknown to, and unsung in, later history.
(Imperial palace, Rome, 57 years earlier, dies Veneris A.D. XII Kal. Iul. DCCCII A.V.C., in the 8th year of the reign of the Emperor Claudius [Friday, 20th June, AD 49]) 'Difficulties strengthen the mind, as labour does the body.' - Seneca the Younger Fortunately for Britannicus, the return from exile to Rome of one particular man, who is now to become a central character in my saga, was to help temporarily to reduce the venomous disregard towards him of both Agrippina and her son. His intervention ensured that the young princes immediate future was not as distressing as the loathsome stepmother and stepbrother had originally planned. The person concerned was ironically to achieve this feat by cunningly playing on the nasty duos personal aspirations for the future, albeit with genuine loyal benevolent interest for their wellbeing, as well as that of Britannicus. Agrippina had been instrumental in encouraging her new husband to allow the persuasive personage to return to Rome. She now allowed the man a private audience with her, as soon as he had travelled to the Imperial capital from Ostia, where he had just disembarked from the ship that had carried him from his Corsican exile. The Empress herself had recently witnessed the execution of some of Britannicus innocent tutors, whilst the surviving teachers of the young prince had departed the Empire's primary city to anonymous lives in distant and obscure parts, thankful that they had at least retained their heads. Welcome back to Rome, the Empress greeted the man, who had been in exile for eight years but whose return had been facilitated by the demise of Claudius' third wife. He had originally been accused by Messalina, who despised him, early in her husband's reign, of adultery with Julia Livilla, the youngest daughter of the long-dead popular military hero, Germanicus, and therefore niece of the present Princeps and sister to both his predecessor, Gaius Caligula, and Agrippina. As my scribe has already kindly mentioned in an earlier chapter of my saga, both Agrippina and her younger sister, having been incestuous paramours of their brother, had eventually been banished from Rome by Gaius Caligula for becoming involved in lovers' plots against their mad male sibling, then the Emperor. However, on the succession of their uncle, Claudius, who liked his young nieces, they were allowed to return to the capital. Unfortunately, being favourites of the new Princeps only made them targets for his third wife, Messalina, who considered them to be enemies and potential rivals. Consequently, Messalina sought ways to eliminate the pair of Imperial nieces. However, Agrippina was careful to maintain a facade of virtuousness at the time, just as her eponymous mother had truly been, and was not easily maligned even by the then Empress. Agrippina managed to stay in Rome by successfully cultivating public favour, actually largely based on her late fathers immense popularity, and not doing anything that could provide Messalina with ammunition that could be used against her. She also so well disguised the probable murder for his money of her second husband, Sallustius Passienus Crispus, that even this deplorable act could not be utilised to bring about her downfall. However, her more sexually gregarious younger sister was not so lucky, although it is ironic, given Julia Livilla's promiscuity, that the married man, with whom she was accused of perpetrating adultery, was actually a close platonic friend not lover. Messalina's highly hypocritical but skillfully delivered false accusation of illegal adultery, under the law known as the 'Lex de Adulteriis', caused the deplored Claudius to exile Julia Livilla without a hearing, whilst her alleged married lover was sent for trial. After suffering severe humiliation in court, the man was found guilty and sentenced to death. However, the Emperor subsequently commuted the sentence to banishment for life on the isle of Corsica. The man's gratitude for this reduction of sentence was somewhat tempered by both the death of his young son from natural causes and the execution of the exiled Julia Livilla soon afterwards. Messalina had been unhappy with the mere banishment of her supposed potential rival, as Agrippina had subsequently been with Lollia Paulina, a circumstance mentioned by my scribe in the previous chapter of my saga. Consequently, the then Empress had provided enough fresh false allegations of perfidy against her young female target to secure the eventual approval of her husband for his niece's death. Agrippina had known and liked the falsely condemned man ever since he had been a highly pleasant, useful and genuinely platonic confidant of Julia Livilla. She was additionally fully aware of not only his innocence of adultery with her sister but also his immense intellectual and rhetorical capabilities, which truly made him one of the most brilliant figures of his time. She had never forgotten him and now had a use for him. Agrippina wanted the best possible tutor for her own son, for whom she wanted an ideal education in readiness for his ultimate accession to the purple, and an excellent confidential adviser for herself. The man was more than happy to accept these employment conditions in return for the end of his lengthy lonely exile. "Thank you for securing my return," 53 year-old Lucius Annaeus Seneca Minor, uncle of Lucanus, responded to Agrippina's greeting. (A grammaticus of Palaemon, plebeian quarter, Rome, same time) 'There is a noble manner of being poor, and who does not know it will never be rich.' - Seneca the Younger By this time, a number of the younger characters in my saga had added another year to our ages because we had coincidentally been born at various times and places in the earlier months of the calendar. These personages included, in alphabetical order, Apollinus, Aulus Plautius junior, Axenius, Gaius, Helius, Hylas, Lucanus, Otho, Persius, Quintilianus, Rubellius Plautus, Silius Italicus, Suffuscus and Titus, as well as myself. Despite the fact that the day was the last of the term and thoughts were beginning to turn to the long summer holidays ahead, four of the boys named, including the young nephew of Lucius Annaeus Seneca Minor, were currently trying their best to listen earnestly to their own tutor, Cornutus, in one of the grammatici of Palaemon. The three roommates, comprising Lucanus, Persius and Quintilianus, shared a bench with their new friend, the now literate and numerate Helius. The first youngster was now a 10 year-old, whilst his three older, very pleasant and pretty companions were all now 15 year-olds. Helius had learnt the basics of reading and writing in Latin, as well as arithmetic, very quickly in the adjacent elementary facility for younger pupils, aged between 7 and 10, with his rapidity undoubtedly assisted by embarrassment. The sight of the then 14 year-old sitting amongst his fellow younger and more diminutive pupils had caused much humiliating amusement amongst, and derision from, the older scholars in the grammaticus next door. However, after originally joining in this mocking ribaldry, Persius and Quintilianus eventually decided that the boy had suffered enough, respect for his willingness to become literate and numerate in such embarrassing circumstances finally overcoming their initial hilarity at the situation. This compassionate attitude of P and Q was assisted by becoming aware that the newcomer was known to be an acquaintance of the renowned proprietor of their school, Palaemon himself, as well as Gaius, Hylas and me, with whom they still maintained regular contact. After the infamous successful vengeance Persius and Quintilianus had secured against Otho's gang, the fellow grammaticus pupils of P and Q admired and respected the pair sufficiently not only not to want to upset them but also to follow their lead. Accordingly, when the duo declared that enough was enough in respect of making fun of Helius, the abuse ceased forthwith. The newcomer subsequently appreciated who had been responsible for this happy change and the result was friendship, developed via after-school meetings. These post-curricula afternoon liaisons usually involved a return to the room shared by Persius, Quintilianus and Lucanus, in the pleasant domus provided by Palaemon for his residential pupils. There, P, Q and L assisted the newly nicknamed 'H' to speed up his crash course in Latin and arithmetic by giving him private lessons most days, until it was time for their guest to return to the Imperial palace and Doryphoros. In the event, the three upper class boys had been so successful in supplementing the young plebeian's education that, assisted by the former slave's inherent natural intelligence, the new young freedman had rapidly acquired the necessary basic literacy and numeracy, enabling a swift and welcome transfer to the grammaticus. Both of Helius' palace superiors, Narcissus and Doryphoros, were very pleased with, and impressed by, the boy's remarkably fast educational progress. They had therefore decided that he should continue the development of his mind by learning something about Greek and Roman literature and philosophy, even though his knowledge was years behind that of similarly-aged pupils in Palaemons grammaticus. The Imperial secretary and his assistant realised that the new young palace servant would probably never become as well versed in the topics as these other scholars but nevertheless believed that anything he managed to pick up was bound to be useful. Narcissus and Doryphoros also had confidence in the ability of Helius' tutor, Cornutus, of whose increasing reputation they were aware, to develop the boy in an appropriate manner, despite the fact that palace duties only allowed his latest pupil to frequent school on a part-time basis. Attendance actually generally involved only the afternoon sessions because most formal Imperial business, when the new young freedman was needed for duty, took place in the mornings, before the adults also involved usually went off, for the rest of the day, to their leisurely baths and cenas. Cornutus' current expert erudition coincidentally concerned works by Lucius Annaeus Seneca Minor. (Imperial palace, Rome, same time) 'The bravest sight in the world is to see a great man struggling against adversity.' - Seneca the Younger Lucius Annaeus Seneca Minor was the second son of a wealthy equestrian and great rhetorician of the same name, hence the suffix 'Minor', or 'the Younger', and his wife, Helvia, who was not a typical Roman matron. While she was a model housekeeper and mother, she was also very strong and disciplined without breaking tradition. One of her middle son's later works, 'Ad Helviam', written in exile on Corsica, shows how wonderful all of her offspring thought she was. Lucius Annaeus Seneca Minor, whom I shall call hereon simply 'Seneca', was, like his father, a native of Cordova in Hispania, from where Quintilianus also emanated. His older brother, Gallio, will feature three years in the future in my saga, because he meets someone else my tale has been tracking. His younger brother was the father of Lucanus, making the new 53 year-old arrival at the Imperial court the 10 year-old boy's uncle From infancy, the highly intelligent Seneca had been of a delicate constitution. He had accordingly devoted himself from an early age to rhetorical and philosophical studies rather than physical pursuits. An aunt eventually took him as a boy to Rome, where he was trained as an orator and educated in philosophy in the school of the Sextii, where Attlus the stoic, Demetrius the Cynic and Sotion the Pythagorean helped to cultivate his natural intellectual gifts, by blending stoicism with cynicism and an ascetic neo-Pythagoreanism. Unfortunately, Seneca's health began to suffer in Rome and consequently he went to recuperate in Aegyptia, where his aunt was the wife of the prefect, Gaius Galerius. Her influence was such that, after being nursed back to health and returning to the Imperial capital during Tiberius' reign at the age of 35, her nephew was elected to the important position of Quaestor just two years later, after earlier gaining some minor public posts, including a curatorship of the Imperial Mint. He also began to practise law and proved so capable that he quickly won a reputation as a great legal advocate. Seneca made enough money in jurisprudence to enable him to make the perhaps unwise move into Senatorial politics, in which sphere, because of his ability and increasing popularity, he eventually fell foul of Gaius Caligula. This Emperor was always jealous of, and troubled by, prominent people with superior capabilities who gain public acclaim. Fortunately, Gaius Caligula was eventually deterred from killing Seneca by the argument that the politicians life was sure to be short because he was supposed to have developed consumption. Equally fortunately, this distressing forecast proved to be incorrect. The eight weary and lonely years of waiting for his return to the centre of the known world, spent on Corsica, were relieved by study, particularly of philosophy and natural science, and authorship. Seneca's writings on the island included occasional attempts to procure his reprieve from exile via such gross flattery of Claudius as is found in his three treatises on consolation, appropriately entitled 'Consolationes'. He also composed eight tragedies based on various Greek myths, including Medea and Thyestes. These are melodramatic, and often brutally violent and bloody, but went on to be amongst his most famous works. "Let me introduce you to my protector," Agrippina invited Seneca, whilst gesturing to a man, now dressed in Praetorian uniform and standing so quietly and discretely in the corner of the Empress' audience chamber that his presence had been unrecognised by the former exile. "This is Sextus Afranius Burrus," Claudius' fourth wife declared, as the military officer advanced to offer his own greetings to the returnee, "who's been given to me by my husband to be my chief bodyguard." Burrus, still also an Imperial Procurator, had, of course, previously played a key role, along with the Emperor's freedmen, in foiling the bid for ultimate power from Messalina and Caius Silius. Neither Seneca or Burrus appreciated it at the time but they were to form a close partnership of great significance to Rome. (Domus of Palaemon, Rome, same time) 'We never reflect how pleasant it is to ask for nothing.' - Seneca the Younger "You can't," suggested a deeply shocked Axenius to Palaemon, "as I'm not worthy. I'm only an ignorant barbarian eunuch slave!" The renowned teacher, advancing in years and beginning to be increasingly aware of his own mortality, had just advised the young blonde blue-eyed Germanian, now 19 but, like me, looking a few years younger, possibly as a result of his gelding, that he was to be the famous tutor's heir. "Nonsense," retorted Palaemon before he began to demolish gently the beautiful Axenius' personally undervaluing and overly humble contention bit by bit. "I've been teaching you privately myself," the famous tutor reminded, "and, throwing all modesty aside, you'll receive no better education, in receipt of which you've additionally proved a very able and sage pupil. You're no barbarian, as you not only have adapted seamlessly to Roman ways but also originate, in my opinion, from a meritorious people. It's true that you're a eunuch but that's no disability to being an excellent heir, and you're no longer a slave because I grant you your long overdue freedom forthwith!" Axenius, genuinely but incorrectly unsure of his worthiness for his unexpected advancement, which was significant given Palaemon's educational and business interests and wealth, realised the futility of further argument against such a renowned expert debater. The 19 year-old instead began to cry in happiness at the honour bestowed on him, whilst he lovingly hugged his much older patron in real devotion. The famous tutor returned the embrace, with joyful tears in his own eyes. However, he subsequently found himself having to perform one last gentle admonition. "I hope that my inheritance never materialises," Axenius had eventually sulkily confessed, whilst still hugging Palaemon and with his disclosure expressing the true extent of his affection rather than intending to insult the proffered gift, "because I have, for some time now, secretly not wanted to outlive you. I wished instead either to accompany you to the underworld or pre-decease you, so that I could be waiting for you there, because I don't think life without you will be worth living!" On hearing these words, which Palaemon knew had been meant, the renowned teacher immediately broke off the tight embrace in order to look into his young lover's still gorgeously sensuous but now lachrymose and, as a consequence, sparkling blue eyes. The famous teacher then responded, whilst using his manly fingers to wipe some of the tears from Axenius' sublime cheeks, "Never even think such things! I've already had a much better and longer life than most humans are afforded on this world and I want you to enjoy the same. In fact, I won't be prepared to meet you in the underworld until you do!" The last comment, delivered with subtle humour and a grin, managed to secure the semblance of a smile on the young Germanian's face. "Anyway," Palaemon advised, "I'm also be leaving you with work to do. There are my servants to care for and my educational legacy to look after and develop further. I also want you to find your own path to help improve the world, perhaps in partnership with a worthy young paramour, who'll love you as much as I have done ever since I saw you outside the temple of Cybele. I have never told you this but I pray in thanks to the Great Mother Goddess every day for your deliverance to me from her sanctuary, as well as paying for similar to be performed daily in her temple by the Archigallus. I've always been sure, since the day we met, that the Magna Mater planned our meeting for a purpose, and I'm now convinced that her intent had several motives." Cybele gave me, Palaemon continued, someone who would love me in such a way that my life was transformed. She also gave me someone who could ably carry on my works after my death. However, probably most importantly, she gave me someone for whom I could provide the means to fulfil a great personal destiny. I insist you do the latter before we meet in Hades, or you'll have a lot of explaining to do when we rejoin for eternity!" Palaemon now allowed Axenius, who was overwhelmed by a mixture of gratitude for his older lover's various generous proclamations and sadness that death might soon part them, to hug him tightly again, whilst many mutual tears resumed flowing. However, gradually, their intimacy eventually allowed desire to overcome melancholy and, as if they were making up for a lack of future time together, the subsequent night was amongst was the most passionate the famous tutor and beautiful eunuch ever spent in each other's arms. (Imperial palace, Rome, same time) 'Happy the man who can endure the highest and the lowest fortune. He, who has endured such vicissitudes with equanimity, has deprived misfortune of its power.' - Seneca the Younger "I don't think you need me as a tutor anymore," the 19 year-old Gaius announced proudly, in the palace quarters I shared with Apollinus, "as there's nothing more that I can teach you that you can't gain by reading. As the Emperor has given you access to the Imperial library, which is far better than my own, I also suggest that that's a pastime for which you no longer need my help!" "But how can we continue to justify your daily visits?" I anxiously retorted, now as a 17 year-old looking little more than 15. Since Agrippina's marriage four months previously to Claudius, and her subsequent arrival to live at the resplendent Imperial palace on the Palatine Hill with her son, Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, I had scrupulously tried my best to avoid the latter whilst off duty. However, I continued to be the Emperor's principal eunuch food taster and was consequently in his presence often, even when he was not formally dining because I had to sample any drinks and snacks he might fancy at other times. Accordingly, I was frequently with the Princeps when he granted an audience to his new stepson, whom he would have to legally adopt if the boy was to improve further his chances of subverting Britannicus as the heir to the purple. Attempts to achieve such a development had not yet been pursued, apparently because Agrippina was biding her time to use her undoubted influence over her husband to secure such fundamental change in her son's status, which would have clear repercussions for the order of succession. The new Empress presumably did not want to be so prematurely presumptuous that she rashly overplayed her hand by proceeding too early, thereby perhaps fatally undermining her own position and that of her offspring. She was astute enough to know that she still had many powerful enemies amongst ambitious rival families, as well as in the Senate and at the Imperial court, not least in the form of Narcissus and his allied freedmen. The positions of the latter, after their recent role in saving Claudius' Principate from the treachery of Messalina and Caius Silius, were currently unassailable. The Emperor's fourth wife perceptively appreciated not only this fact but also that this Imperial favour might alter with time, particularly if she slowly and delicately drip fed criticism. As I have mentioned, my court function meant that I was present at many of the audiences granted by Claudius to Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus. In the Emperor's presence, the 11 year-old never commented that he recognised me from my previous role in Caius Silius' household, although it was clear to me, from smirking glances, that he had done so. I have to confess that, when I first encountered Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus at these audiences with his new stepfather, I wondered whether his character had actually changed. The boy was exceedingly pleasant and courteous to Claudius, as well as everyone else who might be around during these regular appointments, which, at Agrippina's connivance, were beginning to out-number those afforded to Britannicus, despite Narcissus' efforts to prevent this unsettling development. However, I soon learnt that the 11 year-old was just exhibiting how proficient he was at disguising his obsequiousness. This expertise was made evident to me when the tactically carefully fawning, pleasant facade of Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus slipped, after we once met by chance in one of the few corridors of the Imperial palace. Such passageways are infrequent in current architecture because there is a preference to interlink rooms merely by use of connecting doorways. When Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus spotted me in the corridor, as I returned to my quarters after being released by Claudius whilst the Emperor enjoyed his usual afternoon nap, the boy immediately advanced towards me to interrupt my progress. "Hello, No-Balls!" the smirking 11 year-old greeted me, with the derogatory but truthful appellation he had allocated to me when I knew him in my earlier life. "It's nice to see you again," Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus then advised, although I immediately recognised, from his sneer, that the sincerity of this statement stemmed not from renewed friendship, because that had never existed, but undoubtedly from the opportunities my cohabitation in the Imperial palace might afford him to resume our previous acquaintanceship. This association had previously invariably entailed trying to humiliate and hurt me. The boy had, of course, originally been given the chance to single me out for such attention by Sribonia and Tullia, in their pre-Britannicus manifestations, but I never found out why he seemed to want to pursue his torment thereafter. "How's your bottom," Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, who was six years younger than me, now enquired, whilst broadening his smirk, "as I do hope that it's fully recovered from the attentions I used to give it with a cane? Perhaps I should check sometime. Alternatively, perhaps you'll provide me with the opportunity to practise the art of flagellation again, for........" A sinister pause then ensued before the obnoxious boy then menacingly continued "....I'll be watching your every move, No-Balls! I can assure you that, if you give me the chance, I'll be entertaining you in the palace dungeons!" With that worrying remark resounding in my ears, the 11 year-old boy walked away to his own destination, sneer wider than ever. I naturally mentioned these threatening remarks to Gaius when we met shortly afterwards to read Livy and make love. "Just make sure that you keep out of his way," was all the handsome young man from Volsinii could realistically advise, before trying his best to keep my mind off the disturbing subject by entertaining me with his substantial rampant cock. Meanwhile, the inevitable but considerately quiet and discreet Hylas sat nearby on the floor of my quarters. The now 7 year-old boy was continuing to read one of the 142 scrolled volumes of Titus Livius' history of Rome, the whole mammoth work actually entitled 'Ab Urbe Condita', or 'From the Foundation of the City'. Later, in my current meeting with Gaius, my lover reassured me about the continuance of our daily afternoon meetings, by advising "Don't worry, Narcissus is happy for our liaisons to be maintained, as he is for Apollinus to continue to receive visits from Petronius." The handsome young man did not have to mention that the Imperial secretary's acquiescence had undoubtedly been achieved by virtue of the fact that he and two of his assistants, Doryphoros and Helius, were now constant invitees to Palaemon's regular intimate dinners. Ever since they met at the time of the failed coup of Messalina and Caius Silius, Gaius, Palaemon and Petronius had nurtured Narcissus' friendship. This development had arisen for two reasons, neither of which related to seeking personal advancement in Imperial circles. My free adult friends instead wanted influence over the Imperial secretary only because, being in charge of the Emperor's household, he had formal penultimate control over Apollinus and me. They also liked the man. Narcissus regularly reciprocated the renowned teachers invitations to dinner by holding his own resplendent cenas at the palace. These occasions were invariably enjoyable because of the very affable company provided by the guests, who, as at the famous tutors domus, usually included Gaius and Hylas and Petronius and Apollinus, besides Doryphoros and Helius and Palaemon and Axenius. The fact that Apollinus was an Imperial slave did not deter Narcissus from treating him at the feasts as if he were an important young upper class freeman. The mans attitude did not just stem from the identity of the 17 year-olds lover. The Imperial secretary also now perceived the very handsome youth as another potential key ally in trying to protect Britannicus from the scheming animosity of Agrippina and her son. Meanwhile, as an existing confederate of Narcissus, the Imperial secretary extended similar consideration to me. I attended the banquets at both the palace and Palaemons domus, to be with Gaius, whenever my chores for the Emperor permitted. Fortunately, at this time, Agrippina was still acting as a sexually dutiful wife, presumably in order to help the further consolidation of her own position. As a result, Claudius and his new spouse frequently retired early to bed, releasing me for the night to be present for at least some part of the feasts hosted by Imperial secretary and renowned teacher. Having once more reassured me about my welfare, Gaius now began, with his usual excitement, to take my clothes off. However, on this occasion, Hylas had curled up to fall asleep on the floor nearby, presumably finally bored with the seemingly never-ending tomes of Livy. (Imperial palace, Rome, later that day) 'Remove severe restraint and what will become of virtue?' - Seneca the Younger Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus had been accustomed to tutors whom he could bully and dominate despite his tender years. However, after being introduced by his mother to Seneca, the boy immediately appreciated that this was a man he could by no means influence so easily. In fact, as Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus retired to bed unusually early, on the firm unyielding instructions of his new tutor, backed up by the sudden menacing appearance of a cane, the 11 year-old realised that, if there was to be a dominant partner in the relationship, it would be the 53 year-old man. (Imperial trireme, Ostia, three days later, Rome, dies Lunae A.D. IX Kal. Iul. DCCCII A.V.C., in the 8th year of the reign of the Emperor Claudius [Monday, 23rd June, AD 49]) 'Our plans miscarry because they have no aim. When a man does not know what harbour he is making for, no wind is the right wind.' - Seneca the Younger Servius was once again the recipient of sexual attention. However, as he had many times been since his recovery from castration, the handsome 18 year-old was faced with the prospect of not just servicing one cock but up to thirty. The young eunuch was now the trireme crew's regular sex toy and, on this occasion, the sailors wanted some preliminary penile pleasure before disembarking from their ship for a night in the taverns and brothels of Rome's main port. As usual, the preliminaries for sexual service had involved the permanently naked Servius being dragged onto the upper deck of the trireme, still in his chains, before being washed free of his grime with several leather buckets of cold seawater. The 18 year-old had subsequently orally served several cocks, the evidence for which now dripped down his chin, and was waiting to attend to the next. However, the disembarkation from a nearby merchant ship of a number of young nude slave women and girls, destined for the relevant markets in Rome, had suddenly drawn the crew's attentions to the side of their trireme that was adjacent to the quay. They carelessly left the young eunuch temporarily unguarded, presumably assuming that there was nowhere he could escape. Servius proved the folly of this assumption when he took the opportunity to stand up, from the degrading kneeling position assumed for his demeaning acts of multiple fellatio, and raced as best he could for the seaward side of the narrow trireme. Some sailors heard the rattle of the desperate young eunuch's chains but, after turning to discover what was causing the noise, they were too late to prevent the gelded 18 year-old from jumping overboard into the deep water. As Servius' chains ensured that the young eunuch immediately sank quickly to the bottom of the harbour, he thanked the gods for finally granting him the opportunity to commit suicide. Meanwhile, above him, the crew shrugged their shoulders at the inconsequential loss and returned to the other side of their vessel to drool again over the naked females. (Imperial palace, Rome, same time) 'There is no delight in owning anything unshared.' - Seneca the Younger Three days previously, Seneca had used his great rhetorical skill to persuade Agrippina to let him approach his new roles as he saw fit. He was helped in securing a satisfactory conclusion to the lengthy negotiations by the Empress' clear admiration for his abilities and by gaining the vocal support of Burrus, who was to prove a very capable ally in the years ahead. Senecas motivation for assisting Agrippina was not just to avoid a return to exile or worse, for he was truly more altruistic. Being initially ignorant of the Empress underlying perfidious nature, he also thought that helping to consolidate her position at court could only reinforce the Empire by strengthening the Imperial household. Senecas original attitude towards Agrippina was assisted by his acceptance of her convincing explanations as to the earlier need to dispose of Lollia Paulina and Britannicus tutors. Although he was quickly to become aware that the Empress was being untruthful and what her ultimate ambitions were, he decided to remain in post, believing that he could tame the invidious side of her nature for the ultimate benefit of Rome. Senecas initial policy towards the Imperial succession was nonchalant in terms of the identity of the individual who inherited the purple. Instead, his principal interest was that the person who did become the next Emperor was worthy of the dignity, for his main concern was for the future wellbeing of Rome. Accordingly, he was currently happy to go along with Agrippinas vision of her sons elevation, in preference to Britannicus, if Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, who was, after all, also of the Julio-Claudian bloodline, proved to be the best candidate. Meanwhile, Seneca had insisted that Agrippina adopt a more subtle policy towards the strengthening of her own court position, which he recognised was an essential prerequisite for his own furtive but worthy ambition to help secure the best future for Rome. He eventually included in his demands an improvement in her attitude towards Britannicus, after discovering, over subsequent days, how the young prince had recently been treated and having astutely perceived why. Seneca actually managed to secure better immediate treatment for the 8 year-old by asking the Empress two questions. What do you think will happen to you, he enquired, if, for some reason, your son does not survive to inherit the purple, as, by sidelining and maltreating Britannicus, you would have put all your eggs in one basket? Also, if the younger prince does somehow eventually succeed his father, how do you think hell treat you for the way in which you treated him? Surely, its best to deal well with Claudius male offspring as if he were your reserve candidate for the purple. This argument, promoting the advantages to the Empress of better handling of her stepson, happily won the debate. The victory subsequently enabled Seneca to go to the now far less pleasant quarters of Britannicus to meet the lovely younger boy for the first time, reassure him about his own future welfare and to appraise him of the identity of his own new tutors. That night, after Apollinus had advised the young prince that he could have no better teachers, the 8 year-old slept soundly for the first time for a long time. (Perga, Roman Imperial Province of Pamphylia, same time) 'Constant exposure to dangers will breed contempt for them.' - Seneca the Younger Paul, in the company of Barnabas and continuing to live dangerously, as well as subsist by virtue of local hospitality from local well-wishers and by continuing his profession of tent making, was readying himself in Perga for a return to Jerusalem. Another Christian council had been called, one that would have immense repercussions for the foreskins of many future human males. Paul, now contemptuous of personal peril, was presently resting from his recent arduous travels, from cities further inland on the Anatolian peninsula. He was, as always in whatever situation he found himself, also concurrently acting as a religious tutor to help to promote his new faith, to which he had gained a very sudden attachment over 15 years previously. I shall, reader, appraise you of the full details of this incident in due course, when it is time for me to tell you the tale from the participant's own recollection. Perga, situated on the south coast of Asia Minor, about eight Roman miles inland from the Mare Internum, at the junction of a small stream with the River Cestris, is a Greek city, renowned for its association with the worship of Artemis, primarily considered locally to be a nature goddess. Paul and Barnabas were present here at this time because the metropolis is situated at the head of the Maeander valley, from which they had just emerged and which is a much-frequented route into and out of Phrygia. Alexander the Great, almost 400 years previously, had made the place the starting-point of his invasion of inner Anatolia. The walled city has a magnificent acropolis, forum and baths, and two superb basilicas to gods of the Greek pantheon. However, I have to confess, having subsequently visited, that the most notable edifice is the resplendent theatre, which seats 13,000 and lies outside the walls on the southwest, near the stadium. This is as perfect as those of Myra and Patara, but larger than either, and yields the local palm only to those of Aspendus and Side. Nevertheless, when I was a caller as an aged adult, perhaps the greatest significance that the city afforded me was recall of my own lovely Apollinus, because the metropolis had been the birthplace, almost 400 years before my visit, of a great Greek mathematician of a similar appellation. As my scribe has kindly previously advised, my friend, with a misspelling involving an unfortunate missing 'i', was originally named after the great poet, Apollinius of Rhodus. Meanwhile, the local Apollinius of Perga was famous for his works on geometry, in particular his famous book, 'Conics', which had introduced such terms as parabola, ellipse and hyperbola.
As Perga is upriver of the Mare Inturnum, small boats can reach the city and return travellers downstream to waiting sea-going vessels. Paul and Barnabas had decided that they could rest and preach for a month before they embarked upon that particular journey. Nevertheless, Paul, for some reason at this moment in time, and whilst thinking of his own imminent potentially dangerous voyage, prayed for all who might currently be in peril at sea. (Ostia, same time) 'Fate leads the willing, and drags along the reluctant.' - Seneca the Younger Palaemon, accompanied by a small young human throng, comprising Axenius, Gaius, Hylas and Helius, had personally escorted Lucanus, Quintilianus and Persius to the passenger ship at Ostia that would take the three latter boys to Hispania. L and Q were going home for the summer to Cordova. P, a native of Volterra in Italia, had decided to forego the pleasure of spending the summer with his loveless uncaring widower father in favour of holidaying with his roommates, who were also his best friends. L, P and Q were about to board their vessel when a loud splash could be heard nearby. (Imperial palace, Rome, next morning, Rome, dies Martis A.D. VIII Kal. Iul. DCCCII A.V.C., in the 8th year of the reign of the Emperor Claudius [Tuesday, 24th June, AD 49]) 'Why do I not seek some real good, one which I could feel, not one which I could display?' - Seneca the Younger "Hello, sirs," Britannicus, with a grinning Apollinus at his side, politely greeted his two principal new tutors. "Hello, Sire," both Palaemon and Cornutus replied simultaneously. (To be continued in chapter XXX - 'Olympus')
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