Linx007: Yeah, I went in hard on the last chapters. It was difficult, and I might end up killing someone or someones important later, but the fortunate thing about Isu technology is it might not be all that permenant. Yes, I was referencing Cortana! And the mass effect crossover will take place 3000 years after The Empire is formed, so it will definitely be a reincarnation story. Like Arthurian legend, returning when your people need you most type deal.

Alex kom kongeda. You're right about Anya, when I was typing this chapter I realized I didn't have a word for a member of the Imperial Harem, so I went back and edited it, I just didn't remember to edit Anya's title. Supernatural is a possibility, though I've only watched the first season. Never watched Doctor Who, so I couldn't do one there. I wouldn't be adverse to someone else using the Creed-verse to do so, as long as proper credit was given. In fact, I would enjoy it immensely.

BeserkBookWorm: Yeah, I can't have everything be sunshine and roses. Even with the show making things go wrong that shouldn't for the sake of drama (one of the things I hated) real life does have hiccups, and destroying Polis would be a very Templar thing to do.

BardicDogs: welcome to the party, my friend! I try to avoid having my stories be cliché-ridden smut fests. I like some plot with my porn, hahaha.

JusticeVallence: Yeah, I hated Finn. Such a shitty character, very low quality used for cheap drama. And what is eventually going to happen is the Relic Weapons will be locked safely in a vault, used only when the need is dire.

Betagamma: Well said, my friend. Sequel won't be for maybe another dozen chapters or so, but it will hopefully live up to your expectations :D

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Nothing Is True

Chapter 17

The Ashes of Victory

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When two thirds of the surviving unified army of the Coalition arrived at Polis the day after their victory over The Mountain, it was not wild cheering and jubilant crowds that greeted them, but the sound of still-crackling embers and coals and the cloying stench of fire and death. It hung in the air like a fog, a thick blanket of pain and misery that leeched hope and absorbed light, drawing all that was good into its corruptive embrace. A solemn Clarke sat before them astride Sleipnir, with only Lexa as a Companion, the others remaining behind in Avalon with extreme protest and reluctance. Costia had led the others in demanding to be allowed to come along, but Clarke had been resolute. Only after strenuous argument was Lexa permitted to come, as her absence would give Nia a powerful propaganda tool. Clarke felt like crying as her eyes slowly travelled over the blackened, smoldering husk that had been the legacy of her ancestor's guidance and Lexa's dedication to her people.

She turned to face the army, her own pain and anger reflected in them, and there too did she feel guilt, for some eight hundred warriors, nearly a third of the overall force, had died. Either in battle or as a result of wounds sustained. As they discovered from compiled reports, the minigun Clarke had destroyed had been one of two, and the other had made mincemeat of countless warriors before another group was able to flank it and kill it's operators.

The silver lining, if such a phrase could even be applied to this situation, was that barely an eight of those loses had come from loyalist tribes like the Tree or Boat Clans, but rather had fallen on…certain other tribes, who had refused to have a radio-carrier along with them, and thus had no methods of being fore-warned. An arrogant, and costly, decision. One that Nia would no doubt attempt to put in such a light so as it make it appear that the loyalists had deliberately sacrificed her warriors and those of her closest allies. Few, however, would believe her propaganda who weren't already under her banner or influence.

"Warriors, our great victory as been tainted greatly by the cowardly and dishonorable actions of Cage Wallace, but we will not allow ourselves to be taken by rage and grief. We will not allow it to make oath-breakers of us, nor will we falter in despair from the task that lies before us. We will go forth into this horror what was once our beloved capital, and though we may weep and cry out against our loss, we will search every nook and cranny for survivors. We will find them, for surely even the Maunon weapon has its limits. Your officers have your search areas. Maker guide you all." She returned her attention to Lexa, voice low as she continued.

"We know exactly where the survivors are, but the search will give them some closure. You and I will head for the Vault, its imperative that we secure the rest of the cure. The Maunon and our most loyal warriors must be able to move about freely as soon as possible." She instructed her First Companion, who nodded tersely in agreement and followed her into Polis as officers bellowed orders and the army split up to comb through the wreckage.

It took them nearly two hours to reach their objective given the appalling amount of damage and numerous totally blocked paths further away from epicenters. Their path only became easier to traverse when they grew very close to the center of the city, as there was very little in the way of…well, anything there anymore. Here had the weapons detonated, and there was little more than ashes, blast shadows, and craters.

The elevator shaft had been brutally damaged by the destruction, forcing them to climb down the cables, through the emergency hatch of the lift itself, and then finally go through the doors as normal. As they entered the main room, the Triad flashed into view, projected images staring down at the pair.

"So, you have returned victorious, despite your losses in the city above. I know that those loses are agonizing and paralyzing, that they will make you doubt your judgment, but you cannot allow it to cripple you. This is what it means to be a leader: to lose people, especially those that you love, and still carry on. To fail and yet move forward. To fall and rise again. In doing so, you inspire those who look to you for guidance to do the same. 'Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm'. The sea is not calm and will not be for some time, yet at the helm do you stand." Minerva said in a blunt, yet somehow mildly comforting manner, the other two nodding soberly in stern agreement.

"It's a good thing you came when you did. Avalon is a mighty citadel, but its caretaker may be a significant threat. After so long alone, the probability that its sanity is…questionable is very high. We need to being preparing countermeasures in case she goes rampant." Jupiter added, sounding rather less than pleased with both the circumstance and the admission that it existed in the first place.

"What are the consequences of this…rampancy, exactly?" Clarke asked slowly, not attempting to defend the helpful AI. If its creators thought that there may be an issue, she certainly wasn't qualified to rebuke or refute them. Even if she instinctively wished to do so.

"Insanity, for want of a better explanation. She will become violent, unstable, cruel, and I don't think we need to explain how overwhelmingly dangerous she could prove to be if she is in control of Avalon by the time she finally snaps." Juno explained, and the pair of mortals grimaced, fully capable of imagining just how bad that could be. Still, it felt very much like the betrayal of a friend, this discussion. Necessary but unpalatable, no doubt the first of many such decisions she would have to make. She just prayed she never reached the point where people became chess pieces and numbers on a page.

"The ideal situation, I presume, would be to create another Ai to ensure her defeat and the continuity of the services that she provides." She mused aloud, contemplatively, as she thought upon the subject. Amazingly, it was the technologically inept Lexa that spoke the most obvious and most ideal solution.

"Why not make some of us like you? You said you are imprints, echoes of the real ones, right? Can you make echoes of us?" she said innocently, fidgeting uncomfortably as they all stared at her in response. With an exclamation of praise, Clarke bent the Commander backwards in a deep kiss with no small amount of tongue. Leaving the girl swaying there numbly, she looked up at the Triad.

"Can you do it? Take one or more of us and imprint us into an AI?" she asked eagerly, and the three appeared thoughtful.

"With how long you and your four slaves were within the Animus, we should have more than sufficient data to create personality matrixes for several AI. They would be young and inexperienced, but with some practice the five of them should be able to succeed against ALIE when working in concert." Jaha said slowly, clearly deep in thought. "It will take them time to reach her current level individually, of course, given her immense lead in experience and age."

"Besides which, making imprints of people utterly loyal to you will allow you to help guide humanity long after you die of age." Minerva added almost excitedly, and Clarke grinned at that before frowning slightly.

"I think it would be best to only make the four Slaves' imprints. I don't want our descendants to be without advice, but I don't want them to become utterly reliant on even an echo of me either. They need to be able to discover and create their own futures." She declared, getting an approving nod from Lexa and appraising looks from the others.

"Very well, we will beging immediately. Meanwhile, the next batch of the cure isready. I suggest you take it and return above ground to help 'search' for survivors. Good press for you is vital right now." Jupiter responded before the Triad vanished once more, leaving the mortals to themselves.

"Lexa, remind me to gather the warriors of the harem when we get back. We have a great deal of work to do if we want to secure the future of our people, especially with Nia waiting in the wings to spread chaos." Clarke ordered as she picked up the cases of the cure with ease despite their not-insignificant size and weight. "You did very well to come up with so elegant an ideal solution, Lexa. Well done, you may have helped solve a potentially apocalyptic threat to Mankind."

Lexa swelled a little at the praise, pleased that she had come up with a solution, especially for a situation so far outside of her realm or expertise or even most basic knowledge. She had gotten the idea from the Safehold books, and the fact that her favorite book series had solved such an issue filled her with an almost giddy sense of amused excitement. The duo returned to the surface with their price, ready for the next step in saving their race from destruction.

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Aboard the Ark, things were proceeding very nicely indeed. The population had thrown themselves into their tasks with vigor, eager to reach the ground and begin new, freer lives than they had ever imagined was possible. The Skybox kids were receiving physical training and detailed crash courses in Earth Survival, much higher quality than Earth Skills (which was little more than a way to keep the kids busy) had ever been able to deliver.

As they planned, Shumay and Sidney had gotten themselves chosen as the adults to go down with the kids, deftly manipulating Jaha into getting rid of his 'greatest rival' for control over the Ark, especially Mecha Station. They were confident that their plans would prove to be enacted with ease, as they naturally hadn't the slightest idea that the Mountain had fallen, nor that their plot was well-known to Clarke and the Tribes.

Fox's group of Clarke-fans spent their down-time keeping up with their physical training, much to the bafflement of the rest of the Skybox and many of the guards, though none of them were complaining about the sights they were able to enjoy during such times. They were also the best students in the condensed Earth Survival class, mastering every task and technique before them with a fervor that was unnerving to observe for the uninitiated, and initiated there were. Other girls noted the changes wrought on the group due to the fitness training, and decided to join them and learn for themselves. Fox and her fellows welcomed these new recruits with open arms, glad that some of their fellow teens were actually taking survival seriously. Even if they started out for the sake of looking good for bots, the fact was that learning would keep them from being literal deadweight ground-side. None of the new recruits felt the same all-encompassing admiration and loyalty for Clarke that the core group did, but that would probably change when they walked on the ground again. Besides, soldiers didn't need to love their general to serve them loyally.

This meant, of course, that they told no one all the details that they possessed about the events that led to the current situation. They had no interest in the Council discovering how much they knew, how well-trained that they were. They also weren't going to tell anyone that Kan was suspicious of the two 'altruistic' adults' motives, and they trusted his judgment despite the lack of any concrete evidence on his part. He had spent his entire life honing his skills in investigation, measuring people up, knowing who to trust and how to discern it. If all those skills, all of that experience, said to be wary…well, they were going to be wary, by God!

It was something of a surprise, then, when they were summoned to see the Council just after lunch on the same day that (though no one on the Ark knew it) Clarke destroyed the Mountain and lost Polis in turn. Cautiously agreeing (as if they had a choice) they allowed themselves to be escorted to the Council Chambers. There sat the Council, around their circular conference table, staring at them seriously. They did not allow themselves to be discomfited, instead waiting silently to be addressed by their 'betters'.

"The guards tell me that you girls are training hard, and teaching others to do the same with no instruction or command from a person of authority. Why?" Jaha said finally, resting his elbows on the table and gazing at them over steepled fingers.

"Only the foolish and the arrogant would assume that Mount Weather and its supplies will be in pristine condition. If they are, they will eventually run out, and either way people capable of hunting and tracking will be nothing less than vital to survival. Real hunting too, not guns, which would just scare animals away." Fox scoffed contemptuously, and Mel followed on immediately.

"Not to mention that radiation has likely made previously harmless and easy to hunt prey into potentially dangerous foes. God only knows the exact details, but preparing for the worst situation is advisable." Her voice was, as usually, calm and even, though there was a touch of smug censure lurking in its depths.

"They have a point, Thelonius. Preparing for worst-case scenarios is the best way to ensure success. Besides, there's nothing wrong with being in shape. I wish more kids would do it, adults too for that matter." Dr. Griffin commented pointedly, making it clear she was on the girls' side in this matter. Not that there was really an argument underway in the classical sense. Fortunately, Kane and Sinclair voiced their own agreement, cutting of any potential escalation into an argument.

"I think that you are all overestimating the possibilities, but I suppose that being prepared for any situation, no matter how outlandish, is the responsible thing to do." The Chancellor grumbled tiredly, shaking his head behind his hands. "If nothing else, it is keeping you kids busy before you join the others on the ground."

None of the girls responded, but then Jaha probably wasn't expecting one. Hell, they could tell he had dismissed them from notice the moment he had finished speaking, the bastard. Unsurprising though, given what he had done to Clarke, Raven, and Octavia.

Inclining their heads silently, they allowed themselves to be ushered from the room by their accompanying guards. None of them, over the course of their journey back to the Skybox, noticed that a hate-filled glare was following them.

It's bearer, Finn, had just seen what he considered definitive proof that Fox's group of bitches were in league with The Council. They had conspired to have Clarke and the others sent away so they could be the Queen Bees of the Ark. Or at least that was how his twisted little mind saw it, unable to group that he was a self-centered prick that no self-respecting woman would ever want him, no matter how 'cute' he was.

He wasn't stupid enough to go after them on the Ark, though. The fucking Chancellor would never let him punish the sluts for their treachery. No, he was going to have to get himself into the Skybox and down to Earth. He could set himself up as the boss down there, break those backstabbing cunts to sex toys and punish them the rest of their lives.

Getting sent to the Skybox would, fortunately, be very easy. All he had to do was punch out a guard while scream about Raven and they would assume grief drove him to physical violence. They wouldn't look any deeper than that, wouldn't consider ulterior motives, and just chuck him into the 'box. He'd give it a few more days, though, no reason to get locked up too quickly. Wouldn't be all that fun, so the less time in lockup the better. Plus, he couldn't get laid in the Skybox, all of his booty calls were still walking free.

Speaking of booty calls, he kind of wanted to get off right now. All he needed to do was figure out which of them was free to get fucked and he could enjoy the rest of his day.

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"The reports are all in agreement, mighty Queen. Polis was destroyed utterly, a third of the army died, the Mountain fell, and the City of Light has appeared." The messenger, a member of one of the scouting parties she constantly had deployed, spoke from his place kneeling at the foot of her dais. Doubtlessly these reports were from what few scouts had survived whatever catastrophe had annihilated the Coalition's capital.

"This could be a powerful weapon against those fools, but delicacy will be required. You're dismissed, return to your post immediately. We must ensure our information remains as up-to-date as possible." She ordered, gesturing for her guard-captain to attend to her as the messenger withdrew. The warrior knelt beside her, silently awaiting a command, one she gave after some thought. "Pass the word for our soldiers to being preparing for battle, we will crush the surviving armies and take control of this world."

"My Queen, I live only to serve you, but it will not be so simple. It will take several weeks for our forces to properly assemble and mobilize south. Shall I have all generals return here for strategy meetings?" the captain responded dutifully, and she nodded her permission. The captain vanished to send forth the commands of the Ice Queen, and Nia smirked as she thought of how nicely things would work in her favour.

Capturing Polis and putting the heads of the Heda and the Sky Princess over the gates would have been a potent symbol to rally support and invoke fearful obedience. To instead display them above the gates of the legendary City of Light itself would virtually deify her and ensure Ice Nation supremacy for all time. It wouldn't even be hard to do, thanks to the devastating losses the army had suffered, and the total loss of Polis. The people would be baying for blood, and that rage and grief would be easy to direct right at Clarke, and Lexa by association. After all, never had such losses been suffered until they took the reins, so naturally they must have blundered terribly…or deliberately allowed it.

Such an idea was beyond absurd, of course, Lexa would never allow harm to come to her people if it was preventable. A truly massive weakness she and others had exploited in the past. The people, however, allowed their emotions to rule them, which meant she could mislead them easily. By whipping them into a frenzy, she could use them to claim power before they realized they had been played to bring low their greatest supporter and ally. Then it would be too late, the power would rest solely in her hands, and there it would stay.

While she was loathe to give her enemies any time for rest and recuperation, preferring to strike while they were weak in body and in spirit, her army wasn't concentrated enough to strike while the iron was hot. In hindsight, she should have had them ready to attack regardless of the Mountain falling or not, but she hadn't and would have to make do with the situation at hand. A not-insurmountable task, simply a time-consuming one. She was not without the patience needed to achieve victory in this, for Ice was slow and implacable. Though it might take years, it could overcome, erode, and subvert any obstacle before it.

She had waited decades to claim her rightful place, another month or two would pose little anxiety on her part.

The most important thing would be to ensure a clean sweep. If either of the two Mountain-Slayers escaped to rally support against her regime, it would be costly and long to eradicate, even if such resistance would be ultimately futile. The problem was that her four tributes seemed to have been subverted by the Sky Princess completely. They could not be relied on to assassinate her enemies if such an order was given to them by her agents. This would bear deep thought and a great deal of cunning.

For now, she would relax and await her minion' return to Gaithers. Her planning couldn't really get underway without more information and her generals anyway.

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Caris, Clan Head of the Desert Clan to the West, and a quiet but strong supporter of Heda Lexa, picked her way through the rubble of what used to be her clan's estate here in Polis. She was fortunate to have survived the destruction of the city, for her clan had been left to safeguard TonDC from any bandits, given their far fewer number of warriors. She had planned on riding to Polis to withdraw some texts from the archives, but a dispute between two civilians in TondDC had scuppered her plans, thus she had not been in or near the capital when it was destroyed.

When the army had passed through on its way to search the ruins, she had joined them immediately, unwilling to stay behind in such circumstances. When finally they saw what had happened to their beloved city, a great rumble of rage and hatred had swept through the mass of humanity. At the Mountain Men, at the Heda, even at the Sky Princess. Caris had thought that the army might kill the pair then and there, but the Sky Princess had soothed and redirected their emotions deftly to pride and solemn sorrow.

It probably helped that they could all see and hear the cloak of pain and regret that was wrapped around the blond woman.

"No survivors, Clan Leader, not from our section. We've searched everywhere worth searching here, and we have little hope that they might have survived in the obscenely damaged areas. I suggest we move on to assist in another area." One of her group addressed her respectfully, and she nodded her agreement in solemn silence. There was little sense in wasting time and effort on a lost cause when they could spend it on a less-damaged area, one more likely to have survivors.

"Alright, we'll head to the next section over and support their efforts, hopefully to a better result. To think that the Maunon had such weapons all along but didn't use them…" she shook her head in horrified disbelief. "The Old World must have been a truly terrible place, to create such things."

"The Wisdoms of the First Heda would agree. She had little good to say about the Old World." The warrior observed in a spectacular case of understatement. The First Heda's contempt for the Old World had permeated her writings and advice, collectively called 'The Wisdoms', a contempt that was beginning to become quite reasonable to The Tribes. Such weapons lacked both honor and courage to use, and the fact that they were once commonplace said much of the Old World and its inhabitants.

They soon arrived in the next section, a portion of the waterfront being searched by River Clan members. The combined clans, close neighbors and trade partners, praised The Maker when they found over a dozen survivors, including several children. Trapped in the cellar of what used to be a tavern, they had seen the rocket-born flames approaching and had grabbed all the food they could inside the building and holed up in the hopes that the fire couldn't go through Old World concrete. Their gamble had fortunately paid off.

The rest of their efforts in that section were fruitless, but as they shifted to others word spread that many survivors (considering the circumstances) were being found around the edge of the city. In the end, some three hundred citizens were found and extracted safely. A paltry sum, less than a hundredth of the city's population.

"Put the survivors on horses or carts if you can. Aid those that you can't. Once we reach Avalon, the City of Light, you will be directed towards medical facilities. All of you will then be dispersed to barracks. Remember, this is a city of the First Ones. There will be things you do not understand, but nothing within the city will harm you." The Sky Princess declared as they congregated once more at the ruins of the main gate, soot and ash staining their bodies and clothes.

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Three hours later, they breached the treeline and found themselves gazing in awe at the towering white marble walls, dotted with towers and defensive emplacements, that surrounded the mythical City of Light. That awe grew as they passed through the three rows of massive gates and the full glory of Avalon revealed itself to them.

Cobblestone streets lined by gardens and magnificent homes. Fountains and statues, icons and lightposts, memorials and benches…all dotted the landscape and added to the beauty all around them. In the distance loomed the Great Arena, alabaster stone gleaming in the sunlight. Whatever they had imagined that The City would be like, it was pale before the reality.

The survivors were taken to a massive building filled with beds and contraptions that they did not recognize. Those assisting them were reluctant to leave their people with shining metals and plastics that they neither understood nor could imagine the use for, but the Wanheda had proclaimed them Relics of the First Ones, and The Wisdoms proclaimed such things to be powerful tools, destined to ensure the well-being of the tribes.

They were soon shown to barracks, which were palaces compared to those that they had spent their lives in. Caris, as a Clan Leader, was invited to join the other high-ranking individuals at the Imperial Palace, where Wanheda and the Heda stayed with their closest advisors and allies. She could see why it possessed the name it did, for only a palace could be so sprawling and opulent.

"I'm glad that you survived, Caris. I had feared I had lost noy just an ally but a dear friend. I was sure that you would have been in my library when the Maunon weapons struck." Lexa embraced her warmly the moment they were safely within the palace.

"I would have been, if it were not for a petty dispute between two civilians in TonDC. They delayed me so much that I hadn't even departed yet when the weapon struck." She returned the embrace gladly, looking the others over. "I'm glad to see all of you in good health as well. I was worried you had fallen inside the Mountain when I did not see you with the Army."

"Octavia was shot during the battle, and Clarke didn't handle it all that well when combined with the destruction of Polis. She brought us all here and ordered us to stay until she returned. Only after a great deal of argument was Lexa permitted to go." Anya explained, and Caris' eyebrows raised. The wording was as deliberate as its meaning was obvious: Clarke ruled now.

She wasn't sure how she felt about that. The Loss of Polis was all too fresh in her mind, and a part of her still held a grudge against the blonde for it. The far greater part, however, knew it was foolish, for she had not only slain The Mountain, but brought forth the City of Light. If ever there had been any cause to doubt the Prophecy, it had been thoroughly dispelled. A new era was rising, and only the foolish or the suicidal would attempt to stymie or destroy it. She was neither.

"I agree with her in this. What we saw in the ruins of Polis…" she said aloud, shaking her head in sad disbelief. "I wish that I had been sparred it. I am very glad that none of you bore witness."

"Enough of sad things, old friend. Come, let us get you cleaned off and into a soothing bath. There is a most enormous one here in the palace, you simply must try it." Costia cut in firmly, gripping Caris' hand in one of her own and tugging her along. Bemused, Caris allowed it, the rest following along behind. A long, hot soak in a bath sounded heavenly after the day she had just endured.

Nearly an hour later found everyone but Clarke herself and the Maunon male lounging in the massive pool of heated water and wafting steam. Caris had been less than pleased to see the two Maunon girls, but they had been assets during the conquest (or so she had been told) and thus she kept her mouth shut. Far be it for her to question the decisions of the women around her. No, she knew better than to do that. Let others make fools of themselves with complaints and resistance. She wasn't stupid or arrogant enough to try and stop the coming future.

"So your people are to the north-west beyond the Trikru lands?" the Sky Girl named Raven asked curiously, and when she nodded the dusky-skinned woman hummed thoughtfully. "That means you and the River Clan interact with the traders from the West the most. What can you tell us about them?"

Caris furrowed her brow in confusion. Why care about those so incredibly far from their own lands? When she asked as much, Raven smirked knowingly, an expression mirrored by the other tribal women present.

"Clarke is meant to unify Man, is she not? That means the West will enter the fold willingly…or be dragged into it. One way or another, they will eventually become a part of the Empire of Man."

"How odd is it that I don't recall declaring my intent to invade the Western Lands." Clarke commented dryly, sliding into the bath, unnoticed until she spoke. Raven simply smirked all the broader, and she sighed. "Raven, our future is already going to be filled with enough death and violence and suffering, we don't need to go seeking it out."

"Clarke, baby, for the Empire to be strong, to succeed, you have to unify Humanity under one banner. We can't risk the factionalism that destroyed the Old World making a comeback. We have a chance to break the cycle our race has been in since Cain and Abel." Raven said softly, her smirk vanishing at the raw emotion, the pain in her lover's voice. Gesturing to the other women, she continued. "All of us here have dedicated ourselves to achieving that goal, or rather to aid you in achieving it. We can't give up now."

"From us will come your legacy, domina. That legacy must be one as close to perfection as mortals may create in this misery-infested world." Luna added ,her fellows nodding in agreement. "We must make it so that our deaths will not allow the efforts and sacrifices we have made to be in vain."

"Now we must turn our attention to overthrowing my mother and preserving my people. It will not take long for her to begin making her moves, if she hasn't already." Sylvanas changed the subjected deftly, much to Clarke's gratitude. She wasn't really comfortable thinking in dynastic terms just yet.

"Obviously, we need to begin phasing out potentially disloyal units. Sending them home to 'rest and recover' from capturing the Mountain should provide ample excuse to disperse them." Echo offered, tilting her head back as she thought. "Either that, or we put people in place to kill them quickly when war does break out."

"Cold and cruel, but an effective tactic. One that would deny our enemies the warriors entirely. The only issue with that is that it would force us to leave units behind to deal with them when the time came." Anya mused, and Clarke spoke again.

"Better to send them all away. I intend to teach the loyal warriors tactics and methods of fighting that should make them extraordinarily difficult indeed to engage, never mind defeating them. The ways of warfare that allowed a small village named Rome to create an enormous, continent-spanning Empire that lasted over one thousand years."

"Good idea. Nia will have little in the way of a counter for Roman Legionary tactics. We'll also not lose nearly as many people as we would with the Coalition's current method of warfare." Octavia voiced her approval immediately, Raven nodding in agreement.

"What were these oh-so-impressive methods of war?" Caris inquired, mildly affronted one the behalf of all warriors alive and dead.

"ALIE, display footage of Roman victories and an over-view of Roman tactics and equipment loadouts." Clarke ordered to the ever-present, ever-unseen AI. Immediately, various clips of the Roman's military prowess began playing, doubtless recorded by First One technology.

The display, followed by one describing the equipment that they carried, deeply impressed the watchers. They could see why their Sky friends had been so quick to praise these Romans. It also gave those who had been present for the first discussion about the Empire of Man some more insight into where portions of it had come from.

In particular, saturation bombardment by artillery and archers followed by a sweeping infantry advance in shield wall formation. The Coalition, by and large, did not fight in an formations or cohesive units. Instead, each warrior fought as an individual, and so they would be immensely vulnerable to the utter unity and synchronicity of the proposed tactics.

"I retract my previous statement. When you had made such a bold statement I though it arrogance and nothing more. It seems you were correct, not conventional army of warriors would be able to stand before such an army. I presume you have a way to procure and provide all of this equipment as well as training methods?" Caris said after several moments of silence when the litany of images and information had ended, and the other Grounders nodded silently, mulling over what they had seen and heard.

"Yes, quite easily. With the technology of this city, I can produce more than enough to supply our loyalist warriors several times over. Production can begin immediately, and training can begin once the army has recovered and the questionable warriors sent away." Clarke responded promptly and with certainty.

"The best thing to do might be to declare the formation of the Empire now. Invite all the Clans to a Triumph of the Roman tradition. Nia will leap at the chance to get herself and warriors inside Avalon. She'll look to eliminate us in one fell swoop and have her army capture the city. We can bait her into a confrontation on our own terms." Anya suggested, and many gazes sharpened with appraisal as they considered the merits of such a plan.

"Bold, cunning, and utterly devastating. We could win the war in a single decisive battle, totally preventing any harm from coming to your civilians, Sylvanas. Furthermore, controlling the situation so utterly will make good propaganda and severely cut down on our losses." Lexa said approvingly with a warm, bright smile for her mentor and oldest friend.

"We begin preparations at once, then. We musn't allow ourselves to become complacent. Furthermore, we will invite every clan to send civilians here to repopulate part of the city. They will provide witness and atmosphere alike to Avalon. The survivors of Polis will be seated in places of honor, both for compassion and propaganda." Clarke declared, her tone and bearing regal. "By my command."

"By your command." They echoed dutifully.

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Alright, now we are getting into the Ice Nation Arc. The 100 will be coming down during this arc, so look forward to that!