From: davideml@bellsouth.net   
      
   3-16 When in Rome.   
      
      
      
   The episode starts out in Gaul with Roman soldiers fighting other soldiers   
   (Gaulians? Gaulites?)   
   inside a walled village. The Romans are defeated and run off, but the leader   
   of the Gauls,   
   Vercinix, says they will regroup and attack again. But it gives the women and   
   children, including   
   his, time to escape to the hills. The Romans attack again but this time they   
   defeat the Gauls and   
   Vercinix is captured. Caesar rides into the village and says the people of   
   Gaul mean nothing to   
   him, but with Vercinix's capture he will secure an empire.   
      
   Next scene is in Syria. Roman soldiers are captured by Syrian soldiers. One of   
   the Romans, Crassus,   
   is about to be executed when swords wrapped in a blanket flies through the air   
   and lands near the   
   Romans and they begin to fight the Syrians. Xena rides in, ropes Crassus, and   
   Gab-drags him out of   
   the village where Gabrielle is waiting. Xena tells Crassus he is going to be   
   traded for Vercinix.   
   Crassus knows Vercinix was captured.   
      
   On a ship back to Rome, Gabrielle and Crassus talk. Gabrielle says she hates   
   him because he is a   
   friend of Caesar. He says no. Then Xena explains he is part of the ruling   
   triumvirate with Caesar   
   and Pompey.  Xena takes Crassus' ring to prove to Caesar she has him. He   
   accuses Xena of using   
   Vercinix to get to Caesar to assassinate him. Gabrielle tells him he's wrong.   
      
   The scene cuts to Caesar and Pompey arguing about whose power is stronger -   
   Caesar being love by   
   the people of Rome, or Pompey's army. Then Xena and Gabrielle walk in, much to   
   Caesar's shock.   
   Pompey introduces himself to Xena. Xena shows Caesar Crassus' ring and says   
   she wants to trade him   
   for Vercinix. He  doesn't believe Crassus is alive, so Gabrielle volunteers to   
   stay while Xena   
   takes Caesar to see Crassus.   
      
   Caesar tells Crassus the trade can't happen right away because of a party he   
   has planned to show   
   Vercinix has been captured. He then tells Crassus that he plans to use   
   Gabrielle against whatever   
   Xena has planned.   
      
   On the road Xena and Gabrielle make plans to get Crassus into a Roman jail to   
   swap him with   
   Vercinix since she knows Caesar isn't going to go along with the trade.   
   Gabrielle wants to know if   
   part of Xena's plan is to assassinate Caesar. Xena assures her it isn't, but   
   when she tells   
   Gabrielle that Crassus could get killed, Gabrielle balks, not wanting to be   
   responsible for his   
   death. Xena says that's up to Caesar.   
      
   At Caesar's party, Xena is carried in on a four-man litter wearing a bright   
   red dress. Xena and   
   Pompey talk and he says not everyone would cry over Caesar's death.   
      
   Vercinix is brought in bound in chains. Caesar throws his drink in his face.   
      
   On the ship Crassus interrogates Gabrielle about Xena and her not telling   
   Gabrielle her all her   
   plans. When Gabrielle confronts him about the crucifixion of the one hundred   
   women and children of   
   the village of Gardenis, he says he was away when it happened.   
      
   Xena goes down to the dungeon to talk to Vercinix and tells him his wife sent   
   for her and she   
   (Xena) is working on getting him free. At the same time she is making an   
   impression of the cell key   
   in clay while standing next to the jailer. Caesar tries to seduce Xena but she   
   resists and leaves   
   him standing there.   
      
   While Gabrielle sleeps, Crassus uses a candle to burn through the ropes on his   
   hands and tries to   
   escape, but Xena has returned and knocks him out. Xena gives Gabrielle the key   
   she had made. Xena   
   says Vercinix is more of a prize than she realizes, and when they make the   
   swap in the dungeon,   
   Crassus will executed despite the fact Caesar will know he's not Vercinix.   
      
   The next morning Gabrielle tries to get Xena to figure out another way to free   
   Vercinix without   
   Crassus dying. Xena says if the plan can happen without him dying, good. If   
   not, then too bad.   
   Gabrielle wants to know why she is so causal about it and Xena says it's about   
   focus. Gabrielle   
   accuses her of focusing on Caesar. She tells Gabrielle to drop it, it's about   
   saving Vercinix.   
      
   Gabrielle has Crassus' hands tied as they walk from the ship to Rome. Both are   
   wearing hooded   
   robes. When they stop at a road-side well for water, Crassus tries to run away   
   but Gabrielle throws   
   her staff and knocks him down. Crassus accuses her of being like Xena when it   
   come to his death.   
   Gabrielle says she will give him the ring back after the swap so the guards   
   will know it's him. She   
   gets a ladle of water and puts a fizzy powder in it and gives it to him to   
   drink.   
      
   Xena is back in the palace and sees a knife on the table. Pompey comes in and   
   tells her Caesar sent   
   Brutus to find Gabrielle. He tells her the knife is a gift that will get her   
   past his army outside   
   the city.   
      
   In the city, Gabrielle is pretending to be drunk and destroying property.   
   Roman guards take her and   
   a doped up Crassus to a cell across from the one Vercinix is in. She tells him   
   Xena sent her and   
   the next day he was going to walk out of there.   
      
   Xena sneaks into a window to kill Caesar with the knife but is captured and   
   thrown into the cell   
   with Vercinix. Gabrielle throws the key to her and Xena knocks out the guard   
   with the cell door.   
      
   The next day Caesar, Brutus and Pompey are sitting in the stands overlooking   
   an arena. The place is   
   filled with people to see Vercinix's execution. Xena is brought out and has to   
   fight two gladiators   
   on horses.   
      
   Vercinix puts his clothes on Crassus. Gabrielle starts to put the ring on his   
   finger but Vercinix   
   tells her his dying niece told him Crassus was responsible for crucifying the   
   people in Gardenia.   
      
    Xena gets Gab-dragged and beat up some until she sees Gabrielle, then defeats   
   the gladiators.   
   Caesar has her taken back to the dungeon. Vercinix is there and tells her   
   Gabrielle  will meet them   
   in the stable.   
      
   Caesar has Vercinix/Crassus brought out wearing a hood. When he sees it's   
   Crassus, he hesitates,   
   but Pompey reminds him he has to give the people what the want. Gabrielle is   
   watching the execution   
   until just before it happens then walks away. She flinches when she hears the   
   headsman's axe   
   execute Crassus.   
      
   Back on the ship Gabrielle is having trouble understanding what has happened   
   to her. Xena blames   
   herself for putting Gabrielle into a no-win situation. She says if she could   
   have found another way   
   without including Gabrielle she would. But Gabrielle says she would be hurt if   
   Xena did.   
      
   Xena wants to know how many more times Gabrielle is going to follow her into   
   battle. And how many   
   more times she is going to hurt Gabrielle. Gabrielle says she is there because   
   she wants to be. And   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)