Lance Fontaine watched with awe as the tower of blue light slowly and silently faded away, leaving the City of Rome in rapidly gathering darkness. From his hotel balcony on the Via Carlo Botta he had witnessed the Coliseum somehow return to its original glory, temporarily cloaked in the blinding blue glow. As it faded, the mysterious event left behind a city without power. As his eyes adjusted Lance could only make out car headlights, hand-held flashlights and battery-powered emergency lights cutting through the winter eveningâ€™s growing darkness. The sounds of frightened people and car horns filled the chilly air. It was going to be a long night.<br/><br/>With the help of his roomâ€™s dim emergency light Lance was able to locate his wallet, jacket and iPhone. Unfortunately the device would not power on, which was strange since it was on its charger all day. Something told him he needed to get out of the building.<br/><br/>The streets were filled with people. Around him Lance could hear criminals taking advantage of the city-wide power outage to smash and grab items from store windows. Only later would they realize that the flatscreen TVs they were stealing wouldnâ€™t do them much good. Other people gathered together in groups hoping to find safety in numbers and some answers. Bars everywhere were offering up free â€˜End of the Worldâ€™ beverages, and the Polizia Municipale were nowhere to be seen. The roads were completely log-jammed with honking cars, as drivers were left in darkness without even traffic lights to guide them. Some people abandoned their cars where they sat, adding to the chaos. Other people did their best to flee the city on foot, terrified of what they just witnessed. A select few, though, felt inexorably drawn to the Coliseum. Lance was one of those.<br/><br/>Before that moment Lance had never felt the calling of anything that resembled destiny. As he stepped through the one of the beautifully reconstructed archways, though, he sensed that he was about to begin his lifeâ€™s work. He saw a few individuals gathered together in the center of the Coliseum floor but could not make out their features in the dim starlight. He approached them.<br/><br/>â€œHello, Iâ€™m Lance. Lance Fontaine.<span style="font-style: italic"> Parli Inglese?</span>â€  [/ Do you speak English?]