Chapter 5
Sunday, March 15, 44 B.C.
Rome, Italy
6:30 a.m.
MARTY woke up finding himself in a strange room with the sounds of thunder outside. Looking around, he noticed a female figure standing nearby. "Mom?" he asked, "Is that you?" "There, there." said the mysterious female, "Relax. You've been asleep since yesterday." Indeed, it sounded like his mother. "I had the worst nightmare, Mom." said Marty, "I dreamt that I was in Ben-Hur. But I didn't know how to ride a chariot. I crashed into someone's backyard and interrupted a lady's bath. It was terrible." "Well, you're safe and sound now." said the female, "And in the house of Julius Caesar." "Julius Caesar?" exclaimed Marty as his eyes popped open. As he sprung up, a candle was lit to illuminate the room. He looked at the female. She did look like his mother Lorraine. But she was in a simple garment like a servant girl. Marty looked at her saying "Why, you're my grea...my grea..., who are you?" "My name is Lorrainia." said the servant girl, "I serve Calpurnia." "Calpurnia? exclaimed Marty. "Yes." said Lorrainia, "The wife of Julius Caesar." "Julius Caesar!" exclaimed Marty. "Yes." said Lorrainia, "And you'd be thankful to the gods that Caesar is a kind and considerate man. Other husbands would have you crucified for what you did." "That's a relief." said Marty as he got out of bed. But, when he got out from under the covers, he discovered that he was naked. Marty covered himself again with the bedcovers saying "Where the hell are my clothes." "Over there." said Lorrainia, turning her head away from him. She pointed to a part of the wall where Jennifer's mother's mod outfit was hanging. Wrapping the covers around his waste, Marty approached the garment. It was damp and ruined. Oh no! said Marty to himself, Jennifer's gonna kill me. Then, he remembered something else. The napsack. he said to himself, The remote control was in it when I went into the pool. I hope it's waterproof. Marty looked around for it but it was gone. "Lorrainia!" said Marty. "Yes, uh-what's your name?" asked Lorrainia. Marty looked the ruined outfit and said "Heston. Charlton Heston." "Charlton Heston?" asked Lorrainia, "I never heard of someone named that but it sounds nice." "Thank you." said Marty, "Anyway..." He was interupted by another voice in the room. "Lorrainia." it said. Lorrainia turned to see who it was. It was a balding man who looked with great authority. "Oh the gods." said Lorrainia, "Caesar." Marty turned to the man saying "Caesar?" Caesar turned to Marty saying "So our guest is awake." Then, turning to Lorrainia he said "Go to your mistress. This young man is not your responsibility." "Yes, Caesar." said Lorrainia. "And go easy on her." said Caesar, "She had a rough night." At that, Lorrainia left. Then, Caesar turned to Marty who stood there speachless. Then, he said "You're Julius Caesar." "Of course, young man." said Caesar, "And you are..." "Heston." said Marty, "Charlton Heston." Caesar gave Marty a startled stare. "What man would have a name like that?" he asked. "Where I come from", said Marty, "a lot of people have names like 'Charlton' or 'Heston'." Caesar looked at the outfit on the wall. "What kind of tunic is this?" he asked. "Tunic?" asked Marty, "Oh that! That really belongs to Jennifer." "Jennifer?" asked Caesar. "I mean..." said Marty. Then, he hit himself on the head with the palm of his hand Damn! said Marty to himself, I forgot. This the year 44 B.C. Jennifer isn't event born yet. Then, he asked Caesar "Where's the rest of my stuff?" "Your stuff?" asked Caesar, "Belongings. I've got questions about those and where you got them." Oh no! said Marty, Don't question me about that remote control. Please don't. "McFlius." called out Caesar, "Give our 'guest' some fresh clothes, then bring him out to my study." A man entered. It was the same one that Brutus was intimidating in the tavern the day before. In his arms were some clothes mostly meant for servants. After Caesar left, Marty got a good look at McFlius and found out why Brutus first mistook him for McFlius. He looks just like me. said Marty to himself. "So your the man that fell in the pool while Calpurnia was bathing." said McFlius. "Yeah." said Marty, "And your the one that's been doing Brutus' report." McFlius paused for a minute before asking "How did you know that?" "I overheard the conversation in the tavern." said Marty. "Please, do not tell Caesar." insisted McFlius. "Why?" asked Marty, "Is it because of what might happen to Brutus?" "Well..." hesistated McFlius. "I don't that's gonna happen." said Marty, "At least, not today. Or ever afterwords." "What makes you think that wont happen ever?" asked McFlius. "Well you see..." said Marty, "you'll find out." Marty was finished getting dressed and was escorted to Caesar's study. Caesar had Marty sat down after which he asked him "What were you doing riding a chariot into our pool out there and interupting my wife's bath? A kid your age..." "Well you see", said Marty, "I was running from Brutus..." "Brutus." said Caesar, "I heard. He said that you caused him to crash into a manure cart yesterday. I might be more forgiving for what happened when you interrupted my wife's bath but not Brutus. That was one of his best togas and now it's got shit all over it." Up till then, Marty forgot that he had his translator still on. It survived the water and it turned out to be the only thing that wasn't removed from him. It was still in his ear. Marty felt it saying to himself It could translate that from Latin? "There's another thing," Caesar went on to say, "the chariot you used belongs to someone else." "I know." said Marty, "And I would've returned it if I hadn't crashed it into the pool." Marty cast a look at Caesar. It seems like he wasn't paying attention except for whatever was in his hands. It turned out to be Marty's Nike sneakers. "Since when do the worshippers of the goddess Nike make shoes?" he asked, "These letters are not Greek." "They're not." said Marty. "And what's this "Mad-ee in...What is that letter?" Marty peared at what Caesar was reading and said "'Made in Japan.'" "Oh?" said Caesar, "And where is this Japan." Marty took his translator out of his ear and examined it. He understood what I said because of this? he asked himself. Then, he heard Caesar say something in Latin so he put it back in. "Can you repeat that?" he asked. "Whose slave are you, Heston?" asked Caesar. Marty looked at Caesar and said "No one. Where I come from, we don't believe in slavery." "You don't?" asked Caesar, "Is this place Japan?" "Japan?" asked Marty. "Japan." said Caesar, "The place you came from." "Japan?" repeated Marty, "Get outta town. I don't come from Japan. I come from..." He stopped himself in mid-sentence before he could say "Hill Valley, California." So he said "You wouldn't believe me if I told you." "Try me." said Caesar. Marty immediately changed the subject. "Listen." he said, "I'm looking for a man named 'Emmettus'. Do you know him?" "Emmettus?" asked Caesar. "Yes." said Marty, "A tall man with long puppy dog hair." "Oh him." said Caesar, "I had wine with him once." "You did?" asked Marty. "Yes." said Caesar, "Should I say, one sip. He passed out after that one sip." "I'm not surprised." said Marty, "He's a guy that can't handle his own liquor." "When he came too," said Caesar, "He mentioned something about missing Tylenol. He should be coming over today." "Is he?" asked Marty. "Yes." said Caesar, "Him, Brutus, Cassius and all the rest are coming over here to take me to the Senate today." Then, a voice was heard behind them. It was the woman whose bath he disrupted the previous day. Lorrainia had accompanied her. "Caesar." she said, "You're not planning to go today." "I must." said Caesar, "It is my duty to attend each session." "Make an exception." she said, "I had a terrible dream where your statue was spouting blood and a lot of Romans were washing their hands in it." "Calpurnia." said Caesar, "This is nothing but a childish dream." Then, changing the subject, he brought her to Marty. "Is this the young man that fell in the pool with you yesterday?" he asked. Calpurnia looked at Marty and said "Yes, it is." Caesar turned to Marty and said "Now what do you say, Heston?" Marty turned to Calpurnia and said "I'm sorry, ma'am. But you see, I was running from Brutus and his gang." Then, another servant came in and Caesar asked "What did the augurers say?" "They want you to stay home today." said the servant, "Plucking the entrails of an offering, they couldn't find a heart within the beast." "The gods do this in shame." said Caesar, "I should be the one without a heart if I was to stay home today out of fear." "Then say it was my fear." said Calpurnia, "Send Mark Antony to the Senate to say you are not feeling well today." Caesar turned to his wife and said "I'll have Mark Antony go to the Senate and tell everyone that I will not go today." Turning to Marty, he said "Which means, that I'll be spending more time with you, young man, asking you where you came from." He picked up something else that was in the nap sack. It was the remote. "What is this?" he asked. This is gonna be heavy. said Marty to himself. Then, a man came in. "There's Decius Brutus." said Caesar, "He'll tell them that I'll not come today." "Hail Caesar." said Decius, "And good morning." "Good morning, Decius." said Caesar, "Did you come to fetch me?" "Yes I did." said Decius. "Decius." said Caesar, "I've decided not to come today." "Tell them that he's sick." said Calpurnia. Caesar turned to Calpurnia saying "I don't send lies." Marty looked at Decius. Jesus Christ! he said to himself, That's one of the conspiritors. "Decius." Caesar went onto say, "Just tell them I will not be coming today." "The reason?" asked Decius. "I am Julius Caesar." said Caesar, "I have a right stay and go whenever I like. However, to satisfy your curiosity because I like you, my wife Calpurnia wants me to stay home." "Why?" asked Decius. Looking at Marty, Decius went on to ask "Is this because of this kid falling into the pool with your wife yesterday." It's all over Rome. said Marty to himself, Great. Just great. "No." said Caesar, "It's that last night she dreamt that she saw my statue spout blood and a throng of lusty Romans bathed their hands in it." Decius paused for a minute. Then, he said "This dream is a misinterpretation. The sight of Romans bath means that you have revitalized Rome by pumping new blood into every Roman." "Are you sure?" asked Caesar. "I'm positive." said Decius, "And, I can also say this: The Senate have decided to give you a crown today in which you'll wear it where ever you go except here in Italy. Now, if they recieve word that you're not coming they'll change their minds. Besides, wouldn't it be embarressing if someone said 'Break up the Senate till another time, when Caesar's wife has better dreams.' It's equalling embarressing for you to hide because someone's liable to say 'Caesar is afraid.'" Shades of "What's the matter-chicken?" said Marty to himself. Caesar turned to his wife and said "See how foolish your fears are, Calpurnia. I'm ashamed of you. I shall go to the Senate today." Then, there was a sound of more people coming in. "Well, Publius. I see you come to fetch me as well." Marty turned to see them come in. "Good morning, Caesar." said one of the men. This one had to be Publius. Then Marty recognized some of the men coming in. It was Brutus, Cassius, Casca and Cinna. "Brutus." said Caesar, "What a pleasant surprise. You too, Casca, Cassius, Cinna, Metellus, Trebonius. Good morning all." Then, two more men came in. "Mark Antony." said Caesar, "It's good to see you and Emmettus." Emmettus? said Marty to himself. He looked at one men. It was the Doc. "Doc!" said Marty. Doc looked up. "Marty!" he said. The two approached each other and embraced. The other people in the room looked at each other as if to say "Marty?" Then, Caesar approached Doc and said "This young man was looking for you." "I know." said Doc, "Excuse me, Caesar. Me and my friend need to talk by ourselves." "By all means." said Caesar. Doc and Marty went into the guestroom where Marty spent the night. Once in there, Doc said "Thank God you found me. Now we can go back to the future and I could avoid being involved in the assassination." Then, he noticed something hanging on the wall. It was the ruined outfit that Marty borrowed from Jennifer. "Marty." said Doc, "Isn't this Jennifer's mother's mod outfit?" "It is." said Marty somberly. "You wore this when you went back in time?" asked Doc. "Yes, Doc." said Marty, "And now look at it. Jennifer's gonna kill me." "I'm afraid so." said Doc, "Which idiot suggested you wear that?" "You did." said Marty. "Me?" asked Doc. "Yeah, Doc." said Marty, "Don't you remember." "No." said Doc, "You're forgetting, Marty. Just like when you showed me that photo of my own tombstone when you went back to 1885 to find me, I'm in a reality where none of what my past self did has happened yet." "Oh yeah." said Marty, "Doc, Caesar's got my Nike shoes and remote." "Don't worry, Marty." said Doc, "I've got the sleep inducer. When push comes to shove, who ever is guarding your stuff will be taking forty winks." "You're the doc, Doc." siad Marty. "Now, if you could excuse me," said Doc, "I'll be making my excuses to Brutus and Cassius and then we'll be on our way." "What time is it, Doc?" asked Marty. "Little after eight." said Doc. "Well then, take your time." said Marty, "The DeLorean won't be re-entering until 10:04 this morning." "What, Marty?" asked Doc. "That's right, Doc." said Marty, "Figuring that's the time that I went back to the future in 1955, I decided on that time to have to car return." "Marty." said Doc, "Julius Caesar gets murdered in the Senate sometimes around 9:30 a.m." "What?" exclaimed Marty. "That's right, Marty." said Doc, "When I told you to come to pick me up, I expected 8:00 a.m. 10:04 a.m. is too late. Didn't you read Shakespear's play, Julius Caesar?" "Yes, Doc." said Marty, "But when I read that Decius said 'eight o'clock'. I thought Shakespeare just put it in there for the hell of it." "Marty." said Doc, "The conspirators did arrive at Caesar's house at 8:00 a.m." "Now what do we do?" asked Marty. "We?" asked Doc, "It's what I must do now." "And that is..." said Marty. "Guess." said Doc. Marty thought for a moment. Then, he said "You're not...oh no!" "Marty." said Doc, "I must." "Doc." said Marty, "I won't let you. I don't want to see you kill again just like you did when you bombed the Arizona." "Marty." said Doc, "I don't have a choice." He head to the door but Marty blocked the way. Then, Doc reached into his toga, pulled out his sleep inducer, and used it on Marty. Marty went unconscience.
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When Marty woke up, he was surrounded by McFlius, Lorrainia and some other servants. Calpurnia was there. "What happened." asked Marty. He was looking around. "Doc, Doc?" he asked. Doc was nowhere to be seen. Turning to Calpurnia, he asked "Where's Do-Emmettus?" Calpurnia paused there for a minute. She seemed more upset now than earlier. Then, she said "He went with my husband and his associates to the Senate." "Associates?" exclaimed Marty, "Ma'am. Those 'associates' are gonna kill your husband." Calpurnia looked at Marty in distress. "Oh no." she said, "Where did you hear something like that?" "From my history books" said Marty. Everyone in the room looked around. Then, Marty said "Doc. I've gotta go stop him. Which way is it to the Senate?" "I'm sorry." said Calpurnia, "But my husband has ordered his servants to keep you here until he comes back." Marty turned to Calpurnia saying "He's not coming back. He's gonna get killed." "Oh no." said Calpurnia. "Oh yes." Calpurnia was more distressed than before. The servants around her approached to comfort her. Marty saw an opening to the outside and darted out the door.
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After asking for directions, Marty ran straight for the Senate. Within minutes he was on the steps. There was a commotion inside. Marty peared in. The Senate was in session but the senators were standing in horror like they were seeing something awful happening. Marty looked at what they were looking at. A bloody figure of Caesar was standing at the base of a statue that read "POMPEIVS", surrounded by a group of men who were armed with daggars. And to his horror, Marty saw Doc-ready to stab the man.
End of Chapter 5