noon
Soon the noise died away in the distance . `` There is no time to lose . I must go , '' said Marcellus ; and he turned away . `` O dark , dark , dark , amid the blaze of noon . Irrevocably dark , total eclipse , Without all hope of day ! '' Upon his return to the Catacombs he was welcomed with tears of joy . Most eagerly they listened to the account of his interview with his superiors ; and while they sympathized with his troubles , they rejoiced that he had been found worthy to suffer for Christ .