4
The five friends spent the rest of the day and the evening talking about ways how they might deal with Hades once they were in the underworld, but none of them came up with any workable idea. They fell asleep late that night under the watchful and watching eyes of the ship’s crew.
The next morning Anthony was the first to wake up. There was something unpleasant in his mouth and he had trouble breathing. He opened his eyes and tried to move his hands to his face to rub his eyes. He couldn’t. Then he understood. His hands and feet were tied together and his mouth was gagged. He looked around in horror and tried to scream but the gag in his mouth only let out a quiet sound. He turned his head to look for the others. Edward was sleeping next to him. Anthony turned on his side and kicked Edward with his two feet tied together. One by one the others woke up.
The ship’s captain walked over to them. He kicked Philomenus and laughed cruelly.
“Thank you for that bag of gold, old fool. The question is what to do with you now? Two slaves I’d just throw overboard, but what about those children? Will anyone pay a ransom for them, eh?”
He removed the gag from the mouth of Philomenus and kicked him.
“So old man, what about ransom, eh?”
Philomenus looked at his captor in distaste. What could he say? They were on the run from Roman justice. Far from anyone paying a ransom for them the Romans were more likely to pay the ship’s crew for murdering them. There was nothing to say. He turned his face away and looked at the clear blue sky. A beautiful sky. Would it be the last time they could see it before they too had to descend into the dark underworld?
“So that’s how it is,” the evil captain said. “Well, well, no loss of mine.” He shook the bag of gold coins in Philomenus’ face and laughed.
“Ship ho!” one of the sailors called.
The captain left the doomed prisoners and hurried to the foredeck. With everyone looking at the prisoners another ship had approached unseen. It was closing fast. The captain realized what kind of ship it was and stood petrified for a few moments.
“Pirates!” he shouted finally and gave some hurried orders. Men rushed to the oars and began to row furiously. The ship gained speed. Everyone watched the pirate ship with fear. They all knew that if the pirates caught up with them they had no hope. For a while the pirate ship seemed to fall back but then three rows of oars descended into the water and the pirate ship was propelled forward with force.
The five captives lay on deck helplessly and unable to see what was going on. They could hear the ship’s crew talking in fear about the pirates and wondered what would happen to them if the pirates did overpower their ship?
“The captain of our vessel already wants to kill us,” Edward thought, “so maybe it’s good if the pirates catch us. Things can’t get any worse at any rate.”
Alas, how many times have people in a bad situation thought things couldn’t get any worse?
The pirate ship closed fast and the crews on both vessels prepared for a fight. The pirates posted archers at the bow and started to shoot when they got in range. The first few arrows fell short, but then arrows began to hit the ship and the defending crewmen cowered behind wooden planks.
The captain yelled at the rowers to ‘put their backs into it’, but then what did they care? They were slaves anyway.
The pirates got closer and the archers now had a clear shot of almost the whole ship. They changed tactics with devastating results. The next arrows that came flying left a thin dark trail as they flew threw the air. Fire arrows! As soon as the first hit the sail it caught fire. The fire spread rapidly and without the force of the wind to push the ship forward it quickly lost speed in spite of the best efforts of the rowers.
The end came suddenly. The pirate ship caught up, a wooden boarding bridge came crashing down and the pirates rushed across. They were heavily armed and overpowered the crew in just a few minutes.
The deck was wet and slippery with red blood and men lay about crying in agony, the scene of all battles – a time of misery and pain where loved ones can never come home again.
The ship was on fire and could not be rescued anymore. The pirates ransacked the vessel and took everything of value. They also freed the slaves who were rowing below from their chains and untied our five heroes. With the hull burning fiercely they all went aboard the pirate ship.
The freed rowers stood separate from Edward and his friends. The pirate captain, a tall strong man with dark hair, blazing eyes and a big beard looked at them.
“Men,” he called to the rowers, “you were taken from your homes, put into chains and made to work until you die. I am Captain Cynbel. You are slaves no more! Join us, have your revenge on those who enslaved you! Join us and an equal share of everything we take from those who oppressed you!”
The freed slaves cheered.
Only one man was quiet. When the cheers subsided he stepped forth.
“And if someone does not want to join you, Captain? What then?”
Captain Cynbel peered at him curiously. He himself had been a slave years ago before he had managed to flee.
“The choice is yours,” he said calmly. “We only want those of you with us who do so of their own free will. If you don’t want to join us you’re free to go where you will the next time we get to shore.”
The captain turned to our heroes.
“Well then, what have we here,” he said. “Prisoners on board a trading ship.”
The pirates had removed the gags from their mouths, yet their hands were still tied behind their backs.
“Sir,” Edward said politely, “we paid the captain of the ship a lot of money to take to us Matapan with all haste, but when we were sleeping his men bound us and robbed our gold.”
“Gold you say? Are you sure you’re telling the truth?”
“What the boy says is quite true,” Philomenus said. He told the captain the amount they had paid for the journey and how many gold coins were still left in the bag.
The pirate captain looked angry and turned round. On the other side of the deck were the prisoners they had taken including the captain.
“Just minutes ago,” Captain Cynbel said to the prisoners, “you told me you had no money, nothing of any value. And now I hear that there must be quite a lot of gold in your possession.”
“And it’s true,” the fearful captain replied. “Everything we had went down in our ship.”
“You liar!” Geetu shouted across the deck. “We all saw you put the bag of gold under your clothes just before we were attacked.”
The captain went all red in the face and the pirates laughed.
“Search him,” Captain Cynbel ordered.
Two of his men obeyed and moments later they pulled out a heavy bag. Captain Cynbel took it and looked inside.
“By the immortal gods!” he said. “There’s more gold in here than we’d normally find on ten ships of this kind.”
His men cheered loudly.
“So you thought you could lie to me and deceive me?” he said to the captain who was whimpering and whining.
“Mercy,” he pleaded. “Have mercy!”
“And what were you going to do with your passengers?” Captain Cynbel asked icily.
“Set them free,” the captain replied.
“You said you would kill us all,” Anthony shouted.
“Men!” Captain Cynbel called to his crew. “You’ve heard everything. This man took passengers on his ship who paid him well. Did he do his work? He robbed them and bound them and wanted to kill them. He had a ship full of slaves. He lied to me and tried to deceive me. He wanted to cheat you out of all this gold!”
He held the bag up high.
“What are we to do with him? Tell me your verdict!”
“Throw him overboard! Cut his throat! Death! Death!” the men shouted.
The terrified captain lay on the deck and began to cry loudly.
Captain Cynbel laughed.
“Now you cry, dog! Where was your me
rcy and your pity when you had the power?”
He pulled out a long sharp knife and walked to the weeping man.”
“Please, Captain Cynbel!” Edward said loudly. “Don’t kill that man.”
Captain Cynbel looked surprised.
“Why not? Did this man not want to kill you? What is he to you?”
Edward looked at Captain Cynbel bravely.
“Because to kill someone like that, with his hands tied, would be murder. Maybe he was a murderer, but you are a better man than him.”
Captain Cynbel walked to Edward with his knife in his hand and gazed at him.
“So you’re saying if I kill that scoundrel now, you’d call me a murderer? Do you know what ship you’re on?”
Edward nodded.
“And still you plead for that man’s life, that villain who would have murdered you if we had not come in time?”
Edward swallowed hard. The shiny blade of the pirate’s knife was close to his face. He looked Captain Cynbel in the eye.
“You’re a free man, sir. I am standing here as your prisoner just as I was that man’s prisoner. Enough people have died. Don’t kill anymore, please.”
Captain Cynbel looked at him thoughtfully.
“And if the Romans caught me, would you plead for my life as you’re now pleading for his?”
Edward nodded.
“By Hercules! Have you heard, my men? If this isn’t the bravest boy I’ve ever met then I don’t know who is. And yet, we still have a problem. If I don’t kill those villains, what am I to do with them? I can’t let them go or they’d tell the Roman fleet about us.”
“Let them row,” Alric said. “They forced slaves to row for them, now let them have what they did to others.”
Captain Cynbel smiled. “And so it shall be.”
He gave an order and several of his men dragged the former captain and what was left of his crew down below deck where they were chained to wooden benches that were beside oars.
Up on deck Captain Cynbel drew his knife again and went to Edward. Edward froze in fear and his shocked friends held their breath. Captain Cynbel grabbed Edward by his shoulder, turned him round and cut the rope with which his hands were tied.
“Here,” he said and gave Edward his knife. “Take this and free your friends.”
5
Captain Cynbel was from the isles in the far west of the Roman Empire. From the day he was robbed from his home as a young boy his life had been one filled with cruelty and hardship, yet at heart he was a kind man. He listened with sympathy to the story Edward and his friends had to tell. At last he shook his head.
“Venture down into the underworld,” he said in disbelief. He gazed at the distant horizon across the blue sea. “If ever there was a journey that needed courage, then this is it. And you five are willing to do this for the sake of one Roman girl?”
“We must do so,” Geetu said. “She’s our friend.”
Captain Cynbel jumped up. “Do you hear that, my men? A girl who has the courage to face Hades himself. Are we to be put to shame by a girl?”
“Let’s help them!” his men roared back.
“Set sail for Matapan!” Captain Cynbel ordered.
The pirates proved to be far less ferocious and cruel than expected and during the two days it took them to reach Matapan they came close to making friends.
On the last evening before reaching their destination Captain Cynbel invited them for dinner in his cabin. They ate and drank in silence.
“Tomorrow, before sunrise,” Captain Cynbel said, “we’ll be at Matapan.” He paused and took a deep breath. “Then will be the time to say fare well, for you must go your way as we must go on our way. But there’s one thing I want to do for you before we part.”
He snipped his fingers and one of his men brought in a wooden box which he carefully placed in front of Captain Cynbel.
They all looked at the box with curiosity. A gift from a pirate captain was the last thing they had expected.
The captain lifted the lid and took out an instrument. It was a beautiful lyre with a gold frame and shiny silver strings.
The magic lyre
They all made big eyes and Captain Cynbel smiled at their wonder.
“Yes,” he said, “it is stunningly beautiful, isn’t it?”
“And you’re really giving this to us?” Anthony said in disbelief.
“It must be worth a fortune,” Edward said.
“No, not a fortune,” Captain Cynbel said. “It’s priceless. The true value of this instrument is not so much what it’s made of, but what it is.”
“What do you mean?” Philomenus asked.
This is the very same lyre that Orpheus once played when he enchanted Hades with his mesmerizing music. It is a magic lyre.”
He handed it to Philomenus who inspected the instrument carefully. He was about to pluck a string but Captain Cynbel quickly stayed his hand.
“Only play it when you really need it. You can only use it once.”
“Why?” Anthony asked.
The captain laughed. Only a child would ask ‘why’.
“It’s the magic that was given to this marvellous instrument. It grants its owner but one time the pleasure of hearing it. And now,” he said turning to Philomenus, “it is yours.”
Philomenus bowed in gratitude.
“Thank you, Captain Cynbel. It is most generous of you. Your heart is in the right place. May I offer your heart a gift in return?”
“A gift for my heart?”
Philomenus nodded.
“When we were first on your ship you freed the slaves and offered them the chance to take revenge.”
“That’s right,” Captain Cynbel said. He suddenly had a hard stony look in his eyes, the look of a man hardened by years of suffering.
“A wise man once said, ‘All of a man’s affairs become diseased when he wants to cure evils by evils’. The more you seek revenge, Captain Cynbel, the more you fight and kill those who you think wronged you, the bitterer your heart will become until it is all eaten up by hatred. You will never find happiness like this, only bitterness.”
“Then what is your gift for me?”
“Only this. Learn to let go. You cannot change what happened many years ago. Take your ship and sail away while you still can, far away to a distant land where you can live in peace, where you can find love and true happiness.”
No one said anything for a while wondering how Captain Cynbel would respond. It is not every day that a pirate captain is asked to sail away and find a life of peace and love.
“Who said that?” he asked after a while.
Philomenus looked confused.
“About my affairs becoming diseased if I cure evils by evils. Who said that?”
“Sophocles, his name was Sophocles. He was a Greek playwright.”
“I see,” Captain Cynbel said. He looked at the children. “And what do you think, my young friends? You already saved the life of the man who wanted to murder you. What do you think I should do?”
Edward thought for a moment.
“I think you should find happiness. We only live once. Why waste your life in hatred and bitterness if you are free to go somewhere where you can be happy?”
“So simple,” Captain Cynbel said in disbelief. “Can it really be so simple? And yet maybe you’re right.”
Captain Cynbel thought of the years he had spent fighting, robbing traders and killing men. The more he sought revenge, the more his hatred grew and yet he never seemed to find the one thing he wanted most: to forget the day slave traders murdered his parents and took him captive, to find peace in his heart.
He looked from Edward to Philomenus and said “Maybe your words are the best gift I’ve ever received. You’re right. My heart was poisoned by seeking revenge. When I have taken you to Matapan we’ll sail to distant shores in pursuit of happiness.
6
Rome, at the villa of Flavia’s father Lucius Caecilius Flavus and her mother Cla
udia Pulchra.
Flavia lay in her death bed. She was wearing a white dress and there was a wreath of flowers around her head. Her father placed a silver coin in her mouth, then her mother kissed her one last time and closed her eyes. All her family were gathered around the bed. Some were crying quietly, others wept without restraint.
Six bearers entered. They took position on both sides of the death bed, then lifted it onto their shoulders. Flavia was carried out feet first. When she crossed the front door a group of musicians began playing the most mournful, sad melody. They led the way through the busy streets of Rome while Flavia’s family walked behind. When they crossed the city’s sacred boundary the sides of the road were lined with wailing women who cried and wept and tore their clothing and hair in sadness and despair.
Flavia’s last journey was over soon. They reached the tomb that would be her last resting place and she was gently lowered into the dark space.
Her father held a short speech remembering her life. At the end there was a brief silence after which her family chanted a holy prayer. Her father and mother gazed upon the sweet face of their daughter, their only child, one last time. Then the tomb was closed. Flavia had entered the world of darkness.
The very next day Senator Lucius Caecilius Flavus joined Julius Caesar and some 4000 legionaries. They marched from Rome to Ostia where they boarded transport ships. Their destination: Egypt.
Full of bitterness Senator Flavus watched the shoreline recede. He knew the killers of his child had gone this way and he was determined to find them and have his revenge.
Roman fleet
7
A sailor rowed them ashore near the caves of Matapan the next morning. Philomenus clutched the magic lyre and a bag of silver coins, while the others carried food and drink and some other important things. From the little cove where they landed they walked along a narrow path that led upwards. After a few minutes of hard climbing up the steep path they came out into the open. Below them the beautiful blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea stretched all the way to the horizon, and in that vast expanse the pirate ship sailed towards the west with all its sails hoisted.
Captain Cynbel had made up his mind to turn a new leaf in his life and go in search of peace and happiness far beyond the reach of the Roman Empire. Much to his own surprise most of his men had proved very willing to accompany him.
Our heroes gazed down at the ship and waved farewell. They saw a little figure wave back.
“Oh, I do hope Captain Cynbel finds a new home for himself,” Geetu said.
“Who knows?” Alric replied pessimistically. His own experience in life had taught him not to expect anything good.
“To the temple then,” Edward said.
There was a temple built above the entrance to the caves that led to the underworld and Philomenus insisted that they go and make a sacrifice to the gods before attempting to enter the underworld.
“We must show our humility to the gods,” Philomenus said, “or we are doomed before we even begin our journey.”
The temple was a curious round building, quite different from any other temple they had ever seen. They passed through the entrance into the dark, smoke filled interior. The outside world was shut out and an eerie silence pervaded the hall. They stopped and looked about in awe.
“Strange,” Anthony said. “I can hear whispers.”
They all strained their ears, and it was true. There was the sound of many people whispering, yet when they looked about they couldn’t see anyone.
“Let’s not waste time,” Edward said.
Philomenus nodded and approached the altar. He placed several coins in the appointed place and lit some incense. The aromatic smoke rose up and added its scent to the smoke in the hall. Philomenus said a prayer to mighty Zeus and the immortal gods and then they sang a short holy song together.
They were all happy when they could leave the temple again.
“What a weird place,” Geetu said.
“Where we’re heading for now will be a thousand times stranger and scarier,” Philomenus said. “Make your peace with the gods and the world, my friends, then follow me.”
From the temple it was a few minutes’ walk down to the shore where the entrance to the underworld lay. Several men and women knelt around the entrance praying for their loved ones who had entered the underworld. A priest dressed all in white accepted their offerings and gave his blessings. Behind him was the dark opening to the underworld from which white and yellow fumes emerged. The priests alone had the ability to enter the cave and come out again alive. Philomenus gave the priest an offering and asked him to pray for him and his companions.
“But you’re still alive,” the surprised priest protested.
Our heroes ignored him and walked towards the dark cave. Alric carried some torches which they lit before entering the dreaded opening to a world no one wanted to cross. The air was filled with suffocating fumes and they found it almost impossible to breathe. They hurried along through the narrow dark space that led down deep into the earth. As they descended deeper and deeper into the rocky darkness they struggled to get their breath until they were forced to tie cloths soaked in water in front of their mouths. Then quite suddenly everything changed. The narrow space of the passage opened up into a large area and the suffocating fumes cleared and they were able to inhale clear cool air again. They stood on the bank of a river! It extended from one side to the other and the light of their torches was lost into the distance.
“The River Acheron,” Philomenus said gravely.
“What is it?” Anthony asked.
“It’s the river of woe,” Philomenus said, “we have to cross it to reach the underworld. It is here that we’ll need the silver coins we brought along.”
“Look!” Geetu said. “There are people moving along the river bank.”
“They’re waiting for Charon,” Philomenus said sadly. “He’s the ferryman who takes the dead across the river, but only those who have a silver coin to pay him are taken.”
“So what happens to the others?” Anthony asked.
“They’re stuck here for ever,” Philomenus replied. “They can’t go back to the world of the living and they can’t get across the River Acheron to the underworld.”
“I don’t like this place,” Alric said. “Let’s do what we have to do and get it over with as fast as possible.”
“Quite right, Alric,” Philomenus said and walked towards the river.
When they reached the riverbank the envious shadows of the dead moved aside to let them pass through. Charon the ferryman was waiting. He looked at them critically. He wore a dark cloak and a hood was pulled over his head. His face was hidden in the dark, only his eyes emitted a faint red glow.