Dagon Shwe Yar - Pearl Devi

It was two o'clock in the morning, but the people of Caesarea, on the Syrian coast, were still awake, talking and moving about the streets, talking about the great lion fights and human battles to be held the next day. Those who had come from all over the country, in carts, boats, and horses, had gathered on the beach.

They were camped near the road and the city, and every open space, including houses, restaurants, and gardens, was filled with guests.

At that time, thanks to the Romans , King Agrippa, who was the king of the whole of Palestine, was at the height of his glory, and the great festival that was being held was also a grand feast held in honor of the Roman Emperor Claudius.

Both the townspeople and visitors were betting on the exciting massacre.

The prison, built of brown stone on a hilltop, was surrounded by moats and high walls. At the foot of the hill was a large playground. In the outer courtyard of the prison building, there were about a hundred criminals convicted of various political crimes. Among them were many Jews.

They were to entertain the audience by fighting against Arab barbarians, twice their number, who had been captured in border battles. The Arabs were not to wear armor, but were to ride horses and fight with swords and spears. To make the fight fair, the Jews were to wear armor, carry swords, and carry shields. The time limit for the fight was about 20 minutes, according to the hourglass used at that time. If a coward dared to fight and survived, he would be allowed to go free as a prisoner, and even if he was wounded, he would be allowed to go free if he had someone to feed him.

In one part of the prison there was a group of about fifty or sixty people who were not like the prisoners. They were the strong and healthy ones who had been selected, and the rest were the disabled, the old men, the nobles, the women, and the children. They were Christians. At that time, Christianity was just emerging, and was against the law, and the various Jewish sects did not like it. Not only the Jews, but also other sects and priests approached the Aryan king and tried to oppress the Christians. The king, like the wealthy Romans, understood only worldly wealth and had no firm religious doctrine. However, he was a man who knew how to act in a way that would not conflict with the people of the country. Thus, in the end, after listening to the flattery of the various sects, the king persecuted and killed the Christian minority. Some were put on scaffolds and killed, Some were handed over to the Jews and stoned to death. The men were forced to fight in human-to-human combat, the beautiful women were sold into slavery, and the older women were fed to lions in the great theaters to entertain the audience.

The above-mentioned group of Christians, including old men, women, and children, after the slaughter and other games, were brought into the open space in the middle of the arena, where they were to be devoured by lions who were starving for food and water. In order to show that he was kind even in feeding the lions, he announced that he would give clothes and a little money to those who did not eat the lions.

The attitude and morals of the people of that time can be seen from the fact that they were eager to see women and children eaten alive by lions for the crime of worshipping "Jesus". Not only that, they even made bets on how many people would be eaten by lions and how many would be left. So, those who bet that few would be left would bribe the guards to spray the clothes and hair of the people who were to be eaten by lions with a medicinal herb that lions like to eat, so that the lions would crave more than the food. Similarly, those who bet that many would be left would make plans to make the lions eat them.

Under a large bench not far from the gate, where the guards were walking back and forth with their spears, sat two women, whose appearance was strikingly different. One was a young Jewish woman, not more than twenty years old, and her face was too thin to be called beautiful. But her eyes were dark and lovely. She had the features of those descended from noble lineage. She was the widowed wife of Demeter, a Greek and Syrian. Rachel was the only daughter of Benoni, the richest merchant in Tyre. The other was of a rather peculiar appearance, and was about forty years old. She was an Arab woman who had been kidnapped by the Phoenicians when she was young and sold as a slave in Tyre. Her skin was copper-colored, He had dark, straight hair, sharp eyes, and was thin and tall, with a very agile and graceful demeanor.

But his face, even in the face of such a calamity, showed no sign of fear, but was stern and hard. His name was Nehutsaba, which was the name given to him when he was bought in the slave market, and it meant "copper." But in his native land he was called Nuh. He had called him by this name when Rachel's mother was still alive, and Rachel called him by this name. He looked at Rachel with kind eyes.

The moon was shining brightly in the cloudless sky, and Rachel was looking up at the sky, praying, and then she let out a deep sigh.

"Tonight, Nure, is the last night we will spend on Earth. The moon is waning, so we will never see the future again. Thinking about these things, I feel a strange feeling in my heart."

"Why shouldn't you see, my lady? If what we've learned is true, then you should see it. And I don't think either of us will die tomorrow."

"Why not, Nure? Lions won't give anyone wealth."

"I want to be rich. In our country, when our father trained lions, I had to feed them with my own hands like puppies."

"Those lions are dead, too, my dear. If they don't die, how can they remember? Besides, tomorrow, when King Agrippa honors the Roman emperor, we will all be killed."

"So instead of dying with different legs, different arms, different heads, different bodies, let's die at once. There is poison hidden in my hair. Let's drink this poison and die, quickly and without feeling anything."

“It’s not right to do this, Nu, according to the law, you can’t kill yourself.” “If the master dies, the child in your womb will also die, right? What’s the difference between tonight and tomorrow?”

Who can say, Nure, tomorrow we will not die, but the king will die. These things are according to God's will.

Gritting my teeth -

"Mistress - I became a Christian because of you. As long as I live, I will not let you be torn to pieces by lions. Oh - I will kill you right there with my sword. If you take away the sword, I will strangle you. If you do not, I will beat your head with a stake."

"Then you should be punished, Nu..."

"Your soul is my life, isn't it? Since you were young, I have held you in my arms and nurtured you. So, so that you don't see your pain, I will kill you first, then kill myself and lie on top of you."

"Don't do this, Nu..."

Nuh, who was sobbing, kissed Rachel's cheek passionately. At that moment, he heard the roar of lions from the tower, and his ears perked up. At that moment, he heard a guard speak from the door. It was Rufat, the jailer, who was holding a large sword in his hand.

"Ha ha ha, listen to the kittens, they're screaming, don't get too angry. Tonight you'll have to eat until you're full."

After counting the roars of each one, Nihuttaw said -

"I'll win, all of them, even the nine big ones."

Even as she spoke, Rachel felt as if she was suffocating, saying, "Please, I'm exhausted," and leaning against Nihuster, she fainted.

With his strong arms, Niehuster took his mistress by the hand and led her to the fountain in the middle of the courtyard, where he sprinkled water on her face, and she soon came to herself. It was a cool and pleasant place, and they sat there for a long time. At that moment, the gate opened and a group of men, women, and children were ushered in. The gatekeeper said to the group, "Come in. Come in. There is plenty of bread and wine for the Christian friends. After you have eaten your fill, you will go into the lion's belly."

"Inna, who was trembling at the end of the crowd, pointed her staff at the mocking gatekeeper and said, 'Why is the demon so disrespectful? I am the "Inna" who can tell the future, you know? Today is your last day."

The man cursed and drew his sword. "Cut, cut, it's still good to kill with a sword."

Then the old woman stopped talking and followed the companions in front, leaving the gatekeeper, pale and trembling with fear. He had heard some of the news about Anna. When the crowd reached the fountain, Rachel greeted them with, "May they be well," and the crowd responded, "May they be well in the name of the Lord Jesus." Finally, when she saw the old woman, whose hair was white, Rachel said:

"Oh... Mother Anna, don't you know me? I am Rachel, the daughter of Vinnie."

“Oh... Rachel, why are you here?”

"We have come the way Christians always go. O mother, rest a moment."

Anna nodded and sat down on the steps of the fountain, asking for water, which Rachel repeatedly gave her by clapping her hands. After drinking the water, Anna asked about Rachel. Rachel told her that she had been with a merchant named "Demarcus," that Demarcus had been killed in Berenice, and that she was already months pregnant. They were very much in love, but that about a month after their marriage, they converted to Christianity. Her father was so angry that he could not listen to her that he complained to the Romans. Then they were both arrested and spent many months in prison in Caesarea. One day, she pitifully told him that her husband, Demetrius, had been taken to Beroea and had refused to participate in the massacre, but that King Agrippa had ordered him to be killed and that their property had been confiscated as his treasury, leaving only her and her faithful servant, Nichotus, left.

"Don't cry, my dear, you will be happy to see your husband and your savior."

"I am happy. But my sorrow is for this unborn child. If only he could live for an hour, then the three of us would be happy in heaven after this child is born. But now this is not possible."

Anna looked at Rachel with piercing eyes and told her that the fate of people was in God's hands.

"What Mother said is true. I will calm down. They have called me for the final wedding, Mother."

So Rachel walked toward the large benches. When she was out of earshot, Nehut said,

"It is said that a mother can foretell the future. But... will Rachel still have a child?"