Ascende Superius

Summary:

We all know Lexa as the mighty Heda of the twelve clans, fearless and wise beyond her years. But how exactly did that come to pass? This is a story that shows us a glimpse into the life of a girl trained since the age of two to lead her people. We follow her through life, love, battles and the game of polictics as she takes the first steps to leadership.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with the 100 – (If I did, Lexa would still be alive) – I will own a couple of minor characters but they shall be listed when the show up.

Prologue

Dawn had broken bringing with it a gentle mist that rolled across the hills in the distance, the brightness of the sun chased away the remnants of the darkness that night had brought in its brief reign of the land as birds began to sing their joys of a new day, the air had a slight chill to it but soon that would be heated gently by the warmth of the sun as it's golden rays covered the areas it could reach as it rose high into the azure skies above, the occasion puffy white cloud graced the skies with their presence but all in all today seemed quite a pleasant day as opposed to the day before where the ground was still wet in many places from the heavy downpour.

Hooves clattered across the sodden ground of the forest trail kicking up flakes of mud and dirt in their wake as the dark chestnut mare raced down the trail with a rider upon her broad back, the rider was a young girl no older than her early teens and she was dressed in black makeshift armor created out of leather and scrap metal with her braided, long, dark blonde hair flowing in the breeze behind her as she spurred the horse on to move faster while in her left arm she clutched a tiny bundle of fur blanket close to her.

She had been traveling for the better part of the night racing from a small village in the south all the way up to the capital city of Polis in the north of Trikru territory, although she saw no threat it didn't mean that there was none as she carried out the very last order from her mentor who had entrusted this young warrior with the biggest responsibility of them all, the words repeating in her head as she watched the light of her mentor's life fade when she succumbed to the sickness that'd claimed her life.

'Beja…Onya…Beja…look after her…she needs to get to…Polis…she is a natblida…' the failing warrior rasped as the icy fingers of death crept upon her, she reached out for the younger blondes hand grasping it firmly as her moss green eyes met the girl's hazel ones '…protect her…with your life…' the words were getting more and more desperate as the warrior began to fade…

'Ai swega em kiln, Amin Freya…' the girl promised as she held her mentor's hand that was quickly growing cold in her own '…I will watch over her until my dying breath…' she assured her trying to contain the sadness the held over her teacher's imminent passing.

It wasn't too long after this that the girl departed on the final orders with the child held tightly in her arms, for now the baby girl slept peacefully unaware that her mother was now gone and that her little life was about to change more than anyone could ever imagine, her blood carried a rare genetic property that could one day lead her to greatness should she survive the trials that would be set before her when the time is right, one day this infant girl may join the line of Commanders – leaders of the people.

The young warrior stayed alert as she gave the occasional glance around the forest that shadowed them where the sunlight had to fight through the tree tops just to bring a little bit of light, for now things seemed as peaceful as could be but she knew that Azgeda had been spotted in several areas near her current location a couple of days ago and if they found out that a child of natblida origin was so close to them then maybe they would try and get said child for their own gain, she was not going to let that happen.

Her name was Anya though in the language of her people it was pronounced 'Onya' in Trigedasleng, a language that had surfaced many years ago among the different clans though mainly used by the Trikru clan or rather the Woods Clan who lived mainly in the forests of their territory, though with this being said the old language of those before was still around but now known as 'Gonasleng' or rather 'Warrior-language' spoken only by warriors from the different clans.

While she looked around there was soon a stirring in the blanket bundled tot she'd been carrying for the better part of six hours, her hazel eyes drifted down to look at the tiny child whose greyish green eyes had just began to open from her slumber, a whimper escaping from the child that for a moment worried her protector that she'd start crying.

"Shh…little one…" she told the baby "…make no sound…it'll be alright" she whispered as she looked ahead seeing the end of the forest quickly approaching and knowing that Polis was just a couple of miles away now, she tried to think of a way to sooth the child in hopes that she'd not start wailing as many babies usually did and the first thing that came to her mind was a grounder lullaby that the child's mother had hummed regularly both before and after the little girl had been born, there were no words to it as far as she knew but the young warrior remembered the tune of the lullaby and soon enough she had begun to hum it just as her mentor had before.

It had taken a couple of minutes and a few whimpers had filled the space between the quiet humming but soon the child had fallen silent as she looked up with eyes wide and full of wonder, the strangest thing soon followed moments later when the little girl's lips curved in a sort of smile only for a brief few seconds but it was enough to warm the teen warrior's heart.

A small while passed by before they eventually got to the straights leading towards the capital city whose tower reached high into the skies above but it was well fortified by the districts of the city and also the heavily guarded gate ahead of them right at this moment, she'd given the order for the warhorse to slow down to a trot and soon they were on a slower approach towards the gate as heads appeared over top of the wall guarding the city, it had been a while since she last came to this place but she still got the same nervous feeling she'd had first time she came here a couple of years ago to see the leader of the Grounders and the current Commander who lived in the tower of Polis far ahead of where she sat on horseback at the moment.

"HOD OP!"

A voice bellowed from the wall as three archers appeared in the guard posts, their arrows pointed towards her whilst she tugged on the leather reins in her right hand commanding the horse to a stop as she looked up at them trying to find the one who seemed to be in charge of this posting.

"State your business!"

That same voice bellowed before she noticed a figure adorned in a leathery armor standing next to the gate on the platform, the person themselves seemed to be a ebony-skinned young woman who seemed in her later teens compared to Anya, she had black hair tied back in braids and a warriors tattoo on the right-hand side of her face of a crescent moon-like shape by her temple down to her cheekbone, she had a sword at her waist and kept her dark brown eyes in a steely gaze on the younger warrior.

"I said: State your business!" she ordered once again.

"I heard you the first time…" the young fighter called back with a hint of sarcasm in her voice as she kept her gaze upon the older girl on the towering wall, there was a moment as she saw the less than impressed look upon the guard's hardened features before she continued "…I wish to speak with the Fleimkepa, a matter I will discuss with him alone…" she called up not wanting to take her eyes from this unknown girl who seemed to take a dislike to the girl's sarcasm.

There was a couple of seconds of silence between them before a visible sigh escaped the dark-skinned guard and with it she turned to an unseen warrior saying something to them, soon enough she turned back to look at Anya eyeing her suspiciously before speaking once more.

"Is it just you and the child?"

"Yes"

"Very well, you may enter but one wrong move will have dire consequences – do you hear me, girl?" the threat from the older girl came across pretty clear but even when faced with this the young warrior just let a casual smirk cross her lips as she remained calm yet with a hint of cockiness about her while she looked up at the guard.

"I'm not the one with the hearing problem…" the blonde replied as the gate eventually creaked to life slowly being pulled open, in this time the warriors had kept their eyes on one another the tension that had been worsened slightly by the teen's slightly unruly attitude towards authority was clearly visible "…just saying" she added with slight smirk still present on her lips before she clicked her tongue getting her warhorse to slowly trot forwards to pass the gates.

As they passed through the gate she steered the horse over towards a hitching post before she carefully dismounted keeping a tight hold of her precious cargo, one of the warriors at the post offered his hand to take the reins so he could tie them to the post for her since her hands were otherwise occupied, she handed the reins over with a nod of thanks as she watched him tie the leather straps to the worn horizontal wooden beam still seemed very sturdy despite its age.

"Follow me" the gruff tone of the warrior then spoke out as he waved his hand for her to follow him towards the cobbled path leading through to the huge but busy capital city, the man in his mid to late twenties, was easily six and a half feet tall and muscular compared to the girls mere five foot three and scrawny frame and his head was shaven at the sides leaving a thick strip of hair in a somewhat short black Mohawk, his face bore no tribal tattoos though he did have a long scar running down through his left eye from above his eyebrow to his cheek though his eye seemed intact, he had stubble but no beard and despite all this he seemed rather intimidating so she wasted no time in following him and staying close with the baby in her arms.

The streets of the city were filled with the usual hubbub of the warriors and townsfolk alike going about their daily lives, she passed the likes of a small posting filled with guards tending to their weapons and just relaxing in the peaceful time of the day, soon she made it into the civilian sector where houses and huts filled as far as the eye could see it looked almost too peaceful to the young fighter who had spent the last five years of her life living in fortified outposts on constant guard in case the enemy attacked when they least expected.

Children played in the streets without a care in the world, their laughs and cheers as they chased one another through the market place while Anya followed the mountain of a man past the stalls filled with the finer things of life such as fresh fruit and vegetables, fresh meat at the butchers stall and even nicer things including the likes of fine fabrics, garments and other luxuries she had almost forgotten to exist outside of her armor and weaponry, the basic things she required.

She glanced down at the infant in her arms and wondered for a moment what kind of a life the child would have in a place such as this; she knew that the child would be expected to learn how to fight in order to conquer the challenges that will be presented before her, this path that her little life would embark on would not be an easy one and even if she survives the trials ahead of her to one day become the leader then she must put her people first before anything else – with so much expected of the child, Anya had faith that the girl would overcome anything the life threw at her.

It didn't take as long as she thought it would to reach her destination of the tower, as they approached it she couldn't help but stare up at it in awe of just how huge the building was compared to when she had seen it from miles away, she wondered just how many floors the tower held and would not even begin to wonder how many rooms it held either, lost in her thoughts she was jolted out of them when she almost walked into her guide who had stopped to look back at her.

"Hey…pay attention" he told her with a sigh as she tried to pass off her surprise with a slight frown.

"Can you at least warn me next time you decide to stop like that?" she grumbled before checking the infant.

"Watch your mouth, kid" he grumbled back at her attitude while he looked down at her.

"I can't…my nose is in the way" she smirked unable to help coming back with that as she watched him shake his head with a frustrated sigh and cuss something in Trigedasleng, he was about to speak when another voice sounded from across the courtyard.

"Welcome to Polis, you must be the visitor Indra's warrior came to tell me about?" he said in a slightly accented tone as he walked towards them dressed in religious long robes that nearly swept the dust laden floor on his way over, he was in his early thirties and his head was shaven with a tattoo like marking around the dome of his head, it seemed to have some kind of meaning towards the religion that all flamekeepers had vowed themselves to "I am Titus, the fleimkepa for this city…" he introduced himself as he eyed her carefully "…you wished to speak with me?" he asked.

For some reason her attitude had sank out of sight as she looked at the older man while her guard remained respectfully silent in the presence of the resident Fleimkepa, she straightened up the way she stood and cleared her throat ready to speak to him.

"Yes, I came here on behalf of my late teacher with a matter of importance…" she begun "…this infant is a nightblood and I promised her mother that I would get her here" she explained to him as he seemed to listen to her intently even more so at the mention of the type of blood flowing through the child's veins, she looked down at the baby before looking back at Titus who glanced down at the little green-eyed girl before looking at the teen.

"I will need to see proof of this before I can permit her to stay…" he told the teen as a matter of fact only to see the young warrior look a little surprised.

"Is my word not enough?" she asked him a little skeptically as he looked at her "…fine…what will convince you of this?" she sighed after a moment before looking down at the cherubic face of the five month old child in her arms.

"Just a small cut, enough to draw a tiny bit of blood…" he told her not seeing the problem in this as he had performed the test many times with supposed nightblood children who have passed through here in his years of duty to the flame and the commanders who ruled before, he watched as a slightly unsure look cross the teen's expression as she shook her head.

"She's just a child…"

"I know but the test is a must if she is to stay…I promise you that she will be perfectly fine" he told her understanding how protective she must have been over the child "Please?" he asked wanting to be sure he had her permission at least since the process would be much smoother than if he was to just do it even if she refused.

Anya had thought about refusing this and walking away with the baby and raising her if she had to but she doubted that she could give the little girl as good of a life as this place could, a sigh escaped her lips as she looked at the fleimkeeper and reluctantly nodded.

"Do what you must…" she told him quietly "…I promised my mentor I would look after her daughter" she stated as she hesitantly opened the blanket enough to take hold of the child's hand while out the corner of her eye she saw Titus taking a small sharply pointed thing from his belt and almost instantly she began feeling guilt as she looked down at the baby girl who was oblivious to what was happening as she gripped the teens finger with a playful coo.

"You feel a duty to protect her…I understand" he nodded as he took hold of the needle-like object and observed it's sharpness for a second "This will be quick, I promise" he told her as he slowly moved to take a hold of the baby's hand and selected her tiny index finger while he angled the point of the needle "You'll need to comfort her, I shan't lie about that" he warned the teen before he took a breath and began to press the razor sharp metallic point against the skin at the tip of the little girls finger.

Sure enough as soon as this began happening the happy oblivious coo of the baby girl turned to a whimper as the point broke through her skin deep enough to draw blood, the whimper turned to a wailing cry from the tiny infant as he instantly withdrew the needle and lightly squeezed the tip of her finger to coax the smallest amount of blood to the surface.

Anya had refused to watch the test as she held the child close trying to sooth her with the gentle humming once more though it would take more than a lullaby to sooth the slightly distressed infant, she glanced at the fleimkepa as he coaxed a small dome of jet black blood to the tip of the little girl's finger finally giving him the proof that she was really a nightblood child, he looked at the teen and nodded whilst giving a slightly apologetic look.

"Is that enough proof for you?" she asked above the cries as he let go of the child's hand after wiping the blood from the microscopic wound, she shifted the child to rest against her as she gently rocked her with a soft "Shhhhh…" she said slowly swaying her as the wails turned to quiet whimpers after a small while.

"What is your name, child?" he asked as he looked at the teen.

"Onya" she replied as she watched him for the moment while she still worked on soothing the youngster.

"And the infant?" he asked "What's her name?"

"Her mother named her, Aleksandria…" she told him as the whimpers got quieter the more she took to rubbing the baby's back through the grey fur blanket that surrounded the child keeping her warm in the early spring morning "…I call her Leksa for short…" she admitted as the shorter name was easier to say in a hurry.

"Leksa" the fleimkepa repeated with a small smile and a nod "A name that will be great someday…" he mused before looking over his shoulder at the tower and then to Anya "…if you'll follow me, I will find you both a place to stay…" he told her before turning to walk towards the tower.

The young warrior was still trying to get her head around the difference this place had presented her with as compared to what she was used to living on the move from post to post but now she was within the city and would be staying there for as long as she needed to, she slowly began to follow the taller man while the guard had long since left them to return to his post, she had only just noticed his absence as she looked around while baby Lexa had settled down against the teen resting her little head against her shoulder as the older girl walked.

"We're home, Leksa…" she whispered to the little girl "…you don't ever have to worry about me leaving you"

A promise she intended to keep.

AN: Well here is the first chapter of my story, I would firstly like to thank a very important person who had helped me on this when I needed it so a huge shout out to the lovely 'Arizona Green' for her help when I found myself up against the dreaded writer's block, I decided to write this as a better insight Lexa's life from way before she became the commander we all knew and loved – she deserved better.

Stay tuned for the next chapter!

xS19x