The Roman Ruins

## Episode guide

**"The Roman Ruins"** is the second episode of the first season of *Nate Is Late*.

## Synopsis

The way to school is blocked by a construction site. Nate and Malika decide to go through it to save time.

## Plot

The duo are on their way to school in which Malika reminds Nate they have to do a report on the Roman Colosseum which Nate completely forgot about. He asks Malika if he can use her report, grabs it and runs off which her in pursuit to get it back while he looks it over. The chase is halted when they realize their usual route is blocked off by construction. Malika opts to find another way, but Nate sees it as a shortcut and convinces her to take it. As they go through the site, they find it leads underground and, surprisingly, into the ruins of a coliseum. As they explore, they come across a sword and helmet which Nate picks up and goes into one of the rooms but is startled by something.

When Malika comes over, he claims he saw a ghost. She doubts him until said ghost, a young boy in gladiator wear, appears from the wall, causing all three to yell out. However, the ghost is more afraid of them despite it being pointed out that he’s, well, a ghost. After everyone calms down, he introduces himself as Atticus who lived at the time the ruins were active as a gladiator. However, he was scared to participate in battles and hid away. When he died, he was cursed to stay within the ruins until he won a fight.

Nate agrees to help him out by fighting him and taking a dive to lift the curse. Atticus thinks it could work and takes the two to the arena that is buried under the city. Once they get there, however, they see two of the construction workers. The foreman orders one of his employees to bury the colosseum in concrete despite the historical value to it. Malika realizes if they destroy the colosseum, Atticus will be stuck as a ghost forever.

Nate goes out to confront the worker as he’s starting to pour concrete onto the site. The worker chases him while Malika turns off the machine and jams it for good measure with a sword. When the worker tries to stop her, he gets his feet stuck in the poured concrete. A fellow construction worker enters the area and sees what’s happening, but likewise gets his feet caught in the concrete as well when Atticus scares him. Unfortunately, the foreman soon arrives with his guard dog and throws the three into a nearby prison till they get done with their work, having said dog, Cerberus, watch them. Atticus thinks it’s hopeless but Malika states he’s the only one that can stop the workers since he’s a ghost and can phase out of the cell. When he still doubts himself, Malika gives him some encouragement. Seeing he doesn’t have much choice either way, Atticus leaves the cell.

In the amphitheater, the workers are trying to unjam the cement mixer when Atticus confronts the foreman and the two engage in battle with the foreman fighting Atticus with his shovel. As this goes on, Nate and Malika are trying to figure a way out of the cell. Nate notices Cerberus is following him and Malika figures he’s smelling something in his backpack. She searches through it until she finds a biscuit Nate intended to eat later for a snack and throws it out of the cell. Since Cerberus was leashed to the cell door, he manages to rip it open when he goes for the biscuit. Nate comes up with an idea involving a chariot in the room.

In the arena, the foreman manages to get the upper hand on Atticus and backs him into a wall, but just as he goes for the finishing blow. Atticus uses his ghost powers to disappear and reappear behind him, making the foreman he is a ghost, which spooks him. Gaining confidence, Atticus gets his second wind and continue the battle managing to get the foreman on the back foot. The foreman yells for his two workers, who were watching the fight, to help him. But before they can jump in, Nate and Malika ride in on a chariot pulled by Cerberus with some biscuits dangled in front of him. They chase the two workers off, allowing Atticus to finish his battle with the foreman. After whacking him with the broad end of his sword on his behind a few times, he scares the foreman enough to surrender and call off construction to the site before running away.

The battle won, Atticus thanks the pair and gives Nate his helmet as a token of his appreciation as well as some Latin words for “There’s nothing more friendly than a friend in need”. He suddenly starts to glow and disappear which Malika notes that his curse has been lifted and he can finally pass on. As Atticus is lifted into the air, both parties say their goodbyes before he vanishes.

Nate then realizes they’re late for school and the duo rush to it, helped along by Dwayne holding traffic for them. They almost make it but Nate slips on a banana peel just as they’re reaching the door. They’re met by Principal Prudence and explain what happened, with Nate even showing her the helmet. She thinks the story and the helmet are fake, but Nate manages to impress her with the Latin words Atticus taught him. She lets the duo through to go about their school day.

## Characters

Recurring Characters
* Nate
* Malika
* Principal Prudence

Main Characters
* Atticus (debut)
* Foreman (debut)

Supporting Characters
* Construction Workers (debut)
* Cerberus (debut)

Minor Characters
* Policeman Dwayne (debut)
* Howard Bissell (debut, does not speak)

Non-Appearance Roles
* Ernest (indirectly mentioned)

## Trivia

* This was the first episode to air on Nine Network Australia.

### Allusions

* While entering the ruins, Malika says, "I have a bad feeling about this", an iconic line from *Star Wars*.
* One of the objects Malika tosses out of Nate's backpack is a Dreamcast controller.

## Gallery

Click the image to view the gallery for this episode.

## Transcript

Click here to view the transcript for this episode.

## Names in other languages

* **Basque:** Erromatar aztarnak
* **French:** Les ruines romaines
* **German:** Die römischen Ruinen
* **Mandarin (China):** 罗马废墟
* **Spanish (Spain):** Las ruinas romanas

 Season 2 | 1. "The Lady of the Lake" • 2. "The Thunderbird" • 3. "The Crocodile Man" • 4. "The Golem" • 5. "The Hairdresser" • 6. "The Mood Enhancer" • 7. "The Chess Game" • 8. "The Drone" • 9. "The Astronaut" • 10. "The Gorgon" • 11. "The Dimensional Rift" • 12. "The Reptilians" • 13. "The Enchanted Bracelet" • 14. "The Ink Thief" • 15. "The Tiki" • 16. "The Puppet" • 17. "The Mandrake" • 18. "The Vampires" • 19. "The Sphinx" • 20. "The Pendulum" • 21. "The Giant Fish" • 22. "The Wedding Dress" • 23. "The Home Spirit" • 24. "The Great Pili-Pala" • 25. "The Endless Recess" • 26. "The Chicken Cop" • 27. "The Kitsune" • 28. "The Collector" • 29. "The Kappa" • 30. "The Beanstalk" • 31. "The Demigod's Test" • 32. "The Glitch" • 33. "The Tiny Tops" • 34. "The Magician's Top Hat" • 35. "The Chromapix" • 36. "The Gingerbread Family" • 37. "The Alphabet Agency" • 38. "The Wild Beasts" • 39. "The Return of the Cuddly Toys" • 40. "The Race Car" • 41. "Inside Professor Toybos" • 42. "The Asteroid" • 43. "The Time Travellers" • 44. "The Nebulons" • 45. "The Witches' Convention" • 46. "The Kobolds" • 47. "The Superstars" • 48. "The Goblin's Cousin" • 49. "The Golden Crown" • 50. "The Scarecrow" • 51. "The Banana Peel Part I" • 52. "The Banana Peel Part II"