Free Titus Andronicus & Timon of Athens by William Shakespeare Page B

complot to betray thy foes.
    TITUS     I know thou dost, and, sweet Revenge, farewell.
    [
Exit Tamora
]
    CHIRON     Tell us, old man, how shall we be employed?
    TITUS     Tut, I have work enough for you to do.—
    Publius, come hither.— Caius and Valentine!
    [
Enter Publius, Caius and Valentine
]
    PUBLIUS     What is your will?
    TITUS     Know you these two?
    PUBLIUS     The empress’ sons, I take them: Chiron, Demetrius.
    TITUS     Fie, Publius, fie, thou art too much deceived:
    The one is Murder, Rape is the other’s name,
    And therefore bind them, gentle Publius.
    Caius and Valentine, lay hands on them.
    Oft have you heard me wish for such an hour,
    They seize Chiron and Demetrius
    And now I find it: therefore bind them sure,
    And stop their mouths, if they begin to cry. 161
    [
Exit
]
    CHIRON     Villains, forbear! 162 We are the empress’ sons.
    PUBLIUS     And therefore 163 do we what we are commanded.
    Stop close their mouths, let them not speak a word.
    Is he sure bound? Look that you bind them fast.
    Enter Titus Andronicus with a knife, and Lavinia with a basin
    TITUS     Come, come, Lavinia: look, thy foes are bound.
    Sirs, stop their mouths, let them not speak to me,
    But let them hear what fearful words I utter.
    O villains, Chiron and Demetrius,
    Here stands the spring 170 whom you have stained with mud,
    This goodly summer with your winter mixed.
    You killed her husband, and for that vile fault
    Two of her brothers were condemned to death,
    My hand cut off and made a merry jest,
    Both her sweet hands, her tongue, and that more dear
    Than hands or tongue, her spotless chastity,
    Inhuman traitors, you constrained and forced.
    What would you say if I should let you speak?
    Villains, for shame you could not beg for grace.
    Hark, wretches, how I mean to martyr 180 you.
    This one hand yet is left to cut your throats,
    Whilst that Lavinia ’tween her stumps doth hold
    The basin that receives your guilty blood.
    You know your mother means to feast with me,
    And calls herself Revenge and thinks me mad:
    Hark, villains, I will grind your bones to dust
    And with your blood and it I’ll make a paste, 187
    And of the paste a coffin 188 I will rear
    And make two pasties 189 of your shameful heads,
    And bid that strumpet , your unhallowed 190 dam,
    Like to the earth swallow her own increase. 191
    This is the feast that I have bid her to,
    And this the banquet she shall surfeit 193 on:
    For worse than Philomel you used my daughter,
    And worse than Progne 195 I will be revenged.
    And now prepare your throats. Lavinia, come,
    Receive the blood, and when that they are dead,
    Let me go grind their bones to powder small
    And with this hateful liquor temper 199 it,
    And in that paste let their vile heads be baked.
    Come, come, be everyone officious 201
    To make this banquet, which I wish might prove
    More stern and bloody than the Centaurs’ feast. 203
    He cuts their throats
    So, now bring them in, for I’ll play the cook,
    And see them ready gainst 205 their mother comes.
    Exeunt
[
with the bodies
]
[Act 5 Scene 3]
    running scene 10 continues
    Enter Lucius, Marcus and the Goths
[
with Aaron prisoner and one carrying the child
]
    LUCIUS     Uncle Marcus, since ’tis my father’s mind
    That I repair to Rome, I am content.
    A GOTH     And ours with thine 3 , befall what fortune will.
    LUCIUS     Good uncle, take you in this barbarous Moor,
    This ravenous tiger, this accursèd devil:
    Let him receive no sustenance, fetter him
    Till he be brought unto the empress’ face
    For testimony of her foul proceedings.
    And see the ambush 9 of our friends be strong:
    I fear the emperor means no good to us.
    AARON     Some devil whisper curses in my ear,
    And prompt me, that my tongue may utter forth
    The venomous malice of my swelling heart.
    LUCIUS     Away, inhuman dog, unhallowed slave!—
    Sirs, help our uncle to