Chapter: [The Portuguese court.]

                Enter VICEROY OF PORTINGAL, NOBLES, ALEXANDRO, VILLUPPO.

  VICEROY.  Infortunate condition of kings,
    Seated amidst so many helpless doubts!
    First, we are plac'd upon extremest height,
    And oft supplanted with exceeding hate,
    But ever subject to the wheel of chance;
    And at our highest never joy we so
    As we doubt and dread our overthrow.
    So striveth not the waves with sundry winds
    As fortune toileth in the affairs of kings,
    That would be fear'd, yet fear to be belov'd,
    Sith fear and love to kings is flattery.
    For instance, lordings, look upon your king,
    By hate deprived of his dearest son,
    The only hope of our successive line.

  NOB.  I had not thought that Alexandro's heart
    Had been envenom'd with such extreme hate;
    But now I see that words have several works,
    And there's no credit in the countenance.

  VIL.  No, for, my lord, had you beheld the train
    That feigned love had colour'd in his looks
    When he in camp consorted Balthazar,
    Far more inconstant had you thought the sun,
    That hourly coasts the center of the earth,
    Then Alexandro's purpose to the prince.

  VICE.  No more, Villuppo! thou hast said enough,
    And with thy words thou slay'st our wounded thoughts.
    Nor shall I longer dally with the world,
    Procrastinating Alexandro's death.
    Go, some of you, and fetch the traitor forth,
    That, as he is condemned, he may die.

                Enter ALEXANDRO, with a NOBLE-MAN and
                HALBERTS.

  NOB. In such extremes will nought but patience serve.

  ALEX.  But in extremes what patience shall I use?
    Nor discontents it me to leave the world,
    With whom there nothing can prevail but wrong.

  NOB.  Yet hope the best.

  ALEX.                         'Tis heav'n is my hope:
    As for the earth, it is too much infect
    To yield me hope of any of her mould.

  VICE.  Why linger ye? bring forth that daring fiend,
    And let him die for his accursed deed.

  ALEX.  Not that I fear the extremity of death--
    For nobles cannot stoop to servile fear--
    Do I, O king, thus discontented live;
    But this, O this, torments my labouring soul,
    That thus I die suspected of a sin
    Whereof, as Heav'ns have known my secret thoughts,
    So am I free from this suggestion!

  VICE.  No more, I say; to the tortures!  when?
    Bind him, and burn his body in those flames,

                They bind him to the stake.

    That shall prefigure those unquenched fires
    Of Phlegethon prepared for his soul.

  ALEX.  My guiltless death will be aveng'd on thee!
    On thee, Villuppo, that hath malice'd thus,
    Or for thy meed hast falsely me accus'd!

  VIL.  Nay, Alexandro, if thou menace me,
    I'll lend a hand to send thee to the lake
    Where those thy words shall perish with thy works,
    Injurious traitor, monstrous homicide!

                Enter AMBASSADOR.

  AMBASS.  Stay!  hold a-while!
    And here, with pardon of his Majesty,
    Lay hands upon Villuppo!

  VICE.                        Ambassador,
   What news hath urg'd this sudden enterance?

  AMBASS.  Know, sovereign lord, that Balthazar doth live.

  VICE.  What say'st thou?  liveth Balthazar, our son?

  AMBASS.  Your Highness' son, Lord Balthazar doth live,
    And, well entreated in the court of Spain,
    Humbly commends him to your Majesty.
    These eyes beheld; and these my followers,
    With these, the letters of the king's commends,

                Gives him letters.

    Are happy witnesses of his Highness' health.

                The KING looks on the letters, and proceeds.

  VICE. [reads]  "Thy son doth live; your tribute is receiv'd;
    Thy peace is made, and we are satisfied.
    The rest resolve upon as things propos'd
    For both our honours and thy benefit."

  AMBASS.  These are his Highness' farther articles.

                He gives him more letters.

  VICE.  Accursed wretch to intimate these ills
    Against the life and reputation
    Of noble Alexandro!  come, my lord, unbind him!
    [To ALEXANDRO]  Let him unbind thee that is bound to death,
    To make acquittal for thy discontent.

                They unbind him.

  ALEX.  Dread lord, in kindness you could do no less,
    Upon report of such a damned fact;
    But thus we see our innocence hath sav'd
    The hopeless life which thou, Villuppo, sought
    By thy suggestions to have massacred.

  VICE.  Say, false Villuppo, wherefore didst thou thus
    Falsely betray Lord Alexandro's life?
    Him whom thou know'st that no unkindness else
    But even the slaughter of our dearest son
    Could once have mov'd us to have misconceiv'd.

  ALEX.  Say, treacherous Villuppo; tell the King!
    Or wherein hath Alexandro us'd thee ill?

  VIL.  Rent with remembrance of so foul a deed,
    My guilty soul submits me to thy doom,
    For, not for Alexandro's injuries,
    But for reward and hope to be prefer'd,
    Thus have I shamelessly hazarded his life.

  VICE.  Which, villain, shall be ransom'd with thy death,
    And not so mean a torment as we here
    Devis'd for him who thou said'st slew our son,
    But with the bitterest torments and extremes
    That may be yet invented for thine end.

                ALEXANDRO seems to entreat.

    Entreat me not!  Go, take the traitor hence!

                Exit VILLUPPO.

    And, Alexandro, let us honour thee
    With public notice of thy loyalty.
    To end those things articulated here
    By our great lord, the mighty king of Spain,
    We with our council will deliberate.
    Come, Alexandro, keep us company.

                Exeunt.

 Okay, now we're back in Portugal to check back in on our subplot. The Viceroy is still being a crybaby. He spends his time gloomily complaining about how badly Fortune has dealt with him, the hardships of ruling a nation, and his son's supposed death. You of course remember that Villupo told the viceroy that Alexandro backstabbingly murdered Balthazar. And at this point, the Portuguese ruler is no mood for delayed punishment. Revenge may take time, but kings can kill when the mood suits them . The viceroy tells Alexandro to prepare to die. Alexander says something like, "that's cool, but I hate dying while you're mad at me." The hard-hitting torture dudes roll up, but just as they begin to set him on fire , the Portuguese ambassador returns from his trip to Spain. Hold the fire. The ambassador informs everyone that Balthazar is alive and well and quickly calls for Villupo's arrest. The viceroy calls for Alexandro to be untied and apologies to him . When Villupo is asked why he pulled this scheme, the ambitious weasel says he had nothing against Alexandro and was just looking for a reward. That's low, man. Well, for a reward he gets tortured far worse than they ever planned for Alexandro. It's nice to know that a special form of torture is saved for a special kind of villain.

