Seven Soldiers

Overview:

The powerful Roman Empire is in the hands of a madman. The emperor Nero, hoping to make space for a new palace hatches a plot to burn the old city of Rome, and blame the Christians for the fire. The orders are given for every Christian in the Empire to be put to death, but what if the soldiers sent to do the killing are soldiers of the cross?

Trivia:

Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus became Fifth Emperor of Rome at the age of 17 and ruled from 54-68 CE. Historians cannot prove definitely that Nero was responsible for the great fire of Rome; but that he blamed the Christians arbitrarily, licensed their persecution, and tried to build a palace on the ashes is fact. It was during his reign that the apostles Peter and Paul were martyred.

Our story is an adaptation of the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste, who were elite soldiers of Rome under a ruler some 250 years later when the persecution of Christians was acute. There is another version of the story involving wrestlers in Rome in the time of Nero, but the source cannot be verified.