- We're in the courtyard of Proximo's estate, and he begins speaking to the gladiators.
- He tells them that he only bought them to make money from their death. He's convinced they'll all die fighting in gladiatorial combat, and he will be there to watch it all.
- While he is giving this none-too-pleasant speech, we see a guy getting whipped, several others tied up on scaffolds, and a guy feeding a piece of meat to a hungry lion.
- Well, the scene's certainly set. Proximo is one unethical dude: it's all about money.
- The camera pans out, before zooming back in. Guys are training in the courtyard.
- Proximo wants to see what Maximus (whom he calls "the Spaniard") can do.
- Maximus won't fight back, and his training partner hits him several times. Proximo, however, stops it soon enough.
- The scene shifts indoors, and Maximus is doing something to his arm near his wound.
- A guy asks him why he doesn't fight.
- Maximus says nothing, and then we see that he's cutting out his tattoo.
- The guy—whose name is Juba—is puzzled, and asks if that tattoo is a sign of his gods. When Maximus doesn't respond, he asks, "Will that not anger them?"
- Maximus smiles.
- These two might just become friends.