t is AD 45, and Macro and Cato are in Rome, waiting for their involvement in a fellow officer’s death to be investigated. But is is not just their future that hangs in the balance. Ruthless pirates have captured three scrolls vital to the future of Rome. The devious Imperial Secretary, Narcissus, orders Macro, Cato and their old enemy Vitellius to set sail with the imperial fleet to crush the pirates. But the pirates have been forewarned and the Romans pay a heavy price. Amidst all the chaos one thing is certain: the Empire will fall if Macro and Cato fail.