Work in Progress

ACT ONE: SCENE ONE

Stage dimly lit – candlelight. Drifting incense. There are two pillars towards the back of the stage – one black and white with a veil draped between them. A statue of the Goddess Isis stands behind the veil. PAULINA is kneeling in the middle of the stage. A sweet high bell chimes three times. A PRIEST robed in white with a gold collar walks across the stage behind PAULINA swinging a censor. He stands beside the black pillar and watches her. MUNDUS, dressed in dark clothes, is half hidden behind the white pillar also watching PAULINA.

PAULINA Praise to thee my Lady Isis, Blessed Queen of Heaven, Great Goddess of the Eternal Wisdom. I honour thee and I honour thy consort Horus and thy son and lover Osiris. I make obeisance to all the gods and goddesses of whom you are the single manifestation – to Hathoor and to Nuit and Maat – to Ceres and sweet Proserpine, to Venus-Aphrodite and her son Eros – to Harpoorkat and to Anubis. Grant me thy blessings my Lady Isis, Universal Mother, Mistress of the Elements, Primordial Child of Time. Thou who dwell in the Elysian Fields, I venerate you and thy son Osiris, who dies and is reborn, in true expression of the mysteries of life.

PAULINA lowers her brow to the ground, holds the position a few moments, then rises and bows to the Goddess. She begins to walk away. MUNDUS follows her and catches her arm.

MUNDUS Nay, Paulina, not so fast. I would speak with you.

PAULINA Mundus!

She shakes off his hand

MUNDUS Ah Paulina – Paulina the Fair – Paulina the Chaste – be less chaste – turn your virtue in another direction.

PAULINA Leave me alone, Mundus.

MUNDUS But I am in despair Paulina. Once again you have returned my gifts.

PAULINA I do not want your gifts – nor your attentions.

MUNDUS I would give you anything Paulina, anything. Take what I offer – and lie with me tonight.

PAULINA No! Don’t touch me!

MUNDUS My hands cannot prevent themselves from reaching out to you. My fingers long to work their way into your secret places, Paulina. My lips desire to meander down your smooth white body –

PAULINA Mundus! Stop! We are outside the Temple of Isis – these are sacred precincts –

MUNDUS And many here have performed the act of love in honour of the Goddess. The hierodules, the temple whores, prostitute themselves here for her. Be my hierodule, Paulina, sacrifice yourself to me in honour of the Goddess.

PAULINA shrugs him off and tries to leave

MUNDUS You must have done it once. It is an obligation of your religion, is it not? All female devotees sell themselves for the Glory of the Goddess at least once in their lifetime – this is well known.

PAULINA I am a married woman now. Saturninus –

MUNDUS Phah! Saturninus does not deserve you. What feasts of passion can that fool offer to a woman like you? He does not burn for you as I do.

PAULINA Saturninus is the best husband a woman could wish for. He is a good man.

MUNDUS And you are a good woman – too good. Be good to me, Paulina. Come – play the holy whore once more.

PAULINA I have performed my sacred duty. We are not required to do it more than once.

MUNDUS Well if you won’t do it for the Goddess – do it for me. I cannot continue to live if I do not have you. I will have you!

PAULINA No –

MUNDUS What can I offer you? Eh? What gift will tempt you? What trinket will make you change your mind?

PAULINA Nothing! I desire nothing of you.

MUNDUS Every woman has a price. What’s yours, Paulina? Money? Here – here (pulls out coins) A hundred thousand drachmae – yes? For one night’s lodging between your thighs?

PAULINA steps back in anger

MUNDUS No? Two hundred thousand then? Think, Paulina what such an amount could do for your family –

PAULINA How dare you! How dare you, Mundus –

MUNDUS Two hundred and fifty thousand drachmae. There – that is my offer – Two hundred and fifty thousand drachmae for one night of bliss with you.

PAULINA begins to back away – but hesitates – wanting to leave but seemingly unable to do so.

MUNDUS Think – think Paulina – how your family’s fortunes would be enhanced by such an amount – I am a generous man – to offer such a grand sum for one night of pleasure – and I assure you, Paulina, the pleasure will be yours too.

PAULINA I will inform my husband of this.

MUNDUS Saturninus would be proud of you. Imagine his delight at having his fortune increased by two hundred and fifty thousand drachmae. He would honour you for adding so much to his store.

PAULINA He would bring you to your knees if he knew of this.

MUNDUS But Paulina, I am already on my knees.

PAULINA He would kill you.

MUNDUS I will die in any event, if I do not have you. I will destroy myself by my own hand – take my offer, Paulina, and save my life.

PAULINA How could you imagine that I could be bought? That I would submit to such blandishments? I do not want your money. I do not want your gifts – and I do not want you.

MUNDUS Ah you treat me cruelly, my lady, so cruelly – when I burn for love of you –

PAULINA What you feel is not love, Mundus, it is lust. Lust is what fires you. Lust and the desire for power – that is not love.

MUNDUS I will have you, madam, you will not deny me. I will have you – or die.

PAULINA Then die, Mundus – die – or turn your attentions onto some other creature.

MUNDUS You want me too – you know you do – why deny it?

PAULINA You are mistaken – but look, there is your freedwoman, Ide – she has eyes for you, as anyone can see – satisfy her longings with your lust – turn your attentions onto her.

MUNDUS Ide? A former slave? I can have her any time. No. Only you, Paulina, only you will satisfy me.

He takes hold of her arm. She pauses then jerks away.

PAULINA Never.

PAULINA finally runs off. IDE approaches hesitantly. MUNDUS shouts after PAULINA.

MUNDUS One day I will have you. One day you will give in.

He turns to face IDE.

Ah, the beautiful Ide.

IDE Mundus? My master?

MUNDUS What am I to do, Ide? Paulina continues to spurn me. She refuses all my gifts – I have even offered her money – but she will have none of it. What am I to do?

IDE She is a virtuous woman –

MUNDUS She can’t be as virtuous as they say. She can’t be – no woman is.

IDE It is true that no woman whose heart was touched could be so cold –

MUNDUS How can her heart not be touched? We were made for each other. She is beautiful – and I am – handsome – and virile too – my prowess is widely known. I would be better for her than that old foot Saturninus. How can she refuse me?

IDE There are others who would not refuse you.

MUNDUS Others? Whom can you mean?

He looks at IDE and she returns his gaze.

MUNDUS Why does she resist? I believe she doesn’t know her own mind – she hesitates – she wants me really-

IDE Well, perhaps you are right – but –

MUNDUS I long for her, Ide. I am insane for her. What can I do? I’ll destroy myself if I do not have her – this pain I feel inside – this over-whelming desire – I burn for her.

IDE Such passion is wasted on such an unresponsive object.

MUNDUS You think that I am mad – perhaps I am. But why does she treat me like this?

IDE It may be that she really does not care for you Mundus. I think she truly loves her husband.

MUNDUS How can she? An old man – so stiff and unyielding – Saturninus is a dried up husk. How can she prefer him to me?

IDE It is unreasonable of her. But no one can account for the vagaries of love. We do not always love where it is appropriate – but we have to make the best of it –

MUNDUS Marriage I can understand – it’s for a purpose – procreation and the upkeep of the household – but no one expects wives to love their husbands – be dutiful yes – and discreet, of course – but they all have lovers – secretly. All women have lovers.

IDE Not all.

MUNDUS She must have someone else. No woman is that chaste. Who could it be? How could she prefer someone else to me? I’ll kill him, whoever he is. Or I’ll kill myself.

IDE You should accept that Paulina does not care for you Mundus. It would be better to forget her.

MUNDUS Forget her? Would that I could. Perhaps if I had her – then I could forget her. One night – that’s all I ask – one night - and I’m willing to pay for it. And once you’ve had it, it’s never quite the same, is it? The flames will cease to lick me quite so fiercely once I’ve had her. Yes, once I’ve supped at her delights – then I’ll forget her – easily.

IDE And give your love to someone more deserving? Someone who desires you in return?

MUNDUS Mmm? Yes – maybe – if only I could get her out of my system. I’ll kill myself – I’m telling you – I’ll kill myself if I don’t succeed in this. I’d rather be dead than suffer these torments – this humiliation. (pulls out a dagger)

IDE No Mundus – NO! (she stays his hand)

MUNDUS I’ll fall on my sword in front of her house – or would that give her too much satisfaction? I’ll poison myself secretly – no – I’ll hurl myself from the top of bath – house –

IDE Mundus – you unman yourself –

MUNDUS She has made a weakling out of me. She has usurped my power. Oh what can I do, Ide? You’re a woman – you know how their minds work – what can I do to win her? I am sure that if something could be done to salve her conscience, she would be willing. But she is worried that her husband will find out – that’s all that stops her –

IDE If that is true – then perhaps a way could be found –

MUNDUS What way?

IDE If you cannot persuade her yourself – there are perhaps others who can manage the affair for you –

MUNDUS What others?

IDE You are still willing to part with money?

MUNDUS I have already offered her money – but it’s no use – she is above that. No – money will not work.

IDE Not with Paulina, no – but these others – perhaps they could be bribed –

MUNDUS Well then, let’s bribe them. Money is nothing to me – and she’s worth a coin or two, eh Ide?

IDE She is very beautiful.

MUNDUS Beautiful, chaste – maybe – and unattainable – that’s why I want her. That’s why I will have her. No one can say Flavius Mundus does not get what he wants. How can she keep on refusing me?

IDE She would not refuse a god.

MUNDUS A god?

IDE An idea takes shape in my mind Mundus.

MUNDUS Yes?

IDE It is this –

MUNDUS Yes yes?

IDE I know a priest in the temple here – a man keen to acquire money – he has his reasons – he would help me, I’m sure – and he would prevail upon the other Priests to keep quiet –

MUNDUS About what?

IDE Tonight the god Anubis will request the pleasure of Paulina’s company in the Temple.

MUNDUS The god Anubis?

IDE He will desire to lie with her.

MUNDUS The god Anubis?

IDE Yes. Listen. Paulina is devout – she is so devout that sometimes it affects her powers of discrimination. She will not refuse a command to lie with the god – and Saturninus will not prevent her – they will see it as a great honour. Only the most virtuous – the most chaste, of the followers of Isis, are honoured by the gods in this way.

MUNDUS I don’t see –?

IDE The priests will pass on a message commanding her to attend on the god Anubis. She will present herself at the Temple tonight, I am sure of it. She herself will be aflame for the love of the god –

MUNDUS And I -?

IDE You will be concealed in the Temple. You will be disguised. When it is dark, and all have left, you will approach Paulina dressed as the god. You, Mundus, will represent Anubis tonight.

MUNDUS The god Anubis, eh? Yes. Yes, I can do it. I can play the god.

Oh yes! And she will believe she has had the god when she has had me.

IDE And so she should. And if, as you say, she desires you in her secret heart, she will be glad of the opportunity –

MUNDUS Oh, she desires me – she must. How can she not?

IDE How can any woman not?

MUNDUS Do this for me, Ide, and I will –

IDE Yes?

MUNDUS I will – I will give you what you most desire –

IDE Do you know what I desire?

MUNDUS I believe I do, Ide, yes, I believe I do.

They gaze at once another once more.

So what will he require as a bribe – this Priest of yours?

IDE Oh, I think fifty thousand drachmae – in all – should be sufficient.

MUNDUS Ide! You are a clever woman. Let me know when it is settled. This evening, eh? I can’t wait. First Paulina – and then-

They smile at one another. Then MUNDUS goes off.

IDE stands a while looking longingly after him.

UNFINISHED – WORK IN PROGRESS

© Copyright Barbara Scott-Emmett 2003. All Rights Reserved.