Passage of the Lex Titia
The Roman Senate votes to ratify the Lex Titia, formally establishing the Second Triumvirate between Octavian, Mark Antony, and Lepidus, marking the end of the Roman Republic.
Setting
The Curia Julia in the Roman Forum, the heart of political life in Rome. The Senate chamber is a grand, rectangular hall with high ceilings, its walls adorned with frescoes depicting Rome's legendary history. The space is filled with rows of wooden benches arranged in a semi-circle around a central dais where the three Triumvirs stand.
Characters
Octavian
primary
A slender young man of 19 years with sharp, calculating grey-blue eyes that seem older than his years. His clean-shaven face has delicate features inherited from his mother's side, framed by neatly trimmed dark brown hair. Though not physically imposing, his posture radiates quiet authority.
Mark Antony
primary
A powerfully built man in his early 40s with a thick neck and muscular frame, his face weathered from years of military campaigns. His dark hair is cropped short in military fashion, with streaks of gray beginning to show at the temples. A strong jawline and intense dark eyes give him a commanding presence.
Lepidus
secondary
A middle-aged Roman statesman with a lean but dignified build, his face lined with the marks of political life. His dark hair is streaked with gray, combed back in the traditional Roman patrician style. His sharp eyes betray a calculating mind beneath his composed exterior.
Senator
secondary
An elderly Roman senator with a gaunt face, deep-set eyes, and a prominent aquiline nose. His thinning white hair is carefully combed back, and his posture, though slightly stooped with age, still carries the dignity of his rank. His hands, resting on his lap, show the signs of years of public service, with veins prominent beneath the skin.
Scribe
background
A middle-aged man with a lean build, hunched shoulders from years of bending over scrolls, and ink-stained fingers. His sharp features are accentuated by deep-set eyes that dart nervously around the chamber.
Dialog
Senator
By the gods, what have we done? The Republic, our sacred inheritance, now entrusted to three men...
Octavian
The Senate speaks with wisdom today. Rome requires unity, not division. As my divine father Julius once said, 'In war, resolution; in peace, vigilance.'
Mark Antony
By Mars' sword! Enough pretty words. The mob remembers Caesar's blood on the Senate floor. They'll have order - or they'll have our heads next!
Octavian
Then let us show them order through law, Antony. The Lex Titia binds us together as it binds Rome's wounds.
Mark Antony
Bind wounds? Ha! I'll bind our enemies to crosses if that's what peace requires!
Senator
Conscript fathers... does no one recall Cato's warning against such concentrations of power?
Octavian
We recall many things, honored senator. Including how Cato's principles bled out with Pompey at Pharsalus. The world has changed.