Disclaimer: Do not own Marvel, DC or The 100
Warnings for violence typical of the Roman era and the gladiator fights, warnings for period typical xenophobia and misogyny and homophobia, and definitely alludes to rape and talk of someone having sexually assaulted young girls.
The future empress
Chapter one
Twenty-two-year-old Clarke of the Griffin house, walked behind her father, Jakob, the emperor, and tried hard not to snort at the number of people who gave their overwrought praises of how "great," "honorable," and "exalted" their emperor was.
Emperor Jakob, the illegitimate son of the previous emperor, who had fought for his right to be the next emperor, who had made allies and had proven himself in the eyes of the consul again and again, and had ended up in power, reigned supreme in Rome, and was revered by almost all of Rome.
Clarke adored her father. Worshipped him as many of the other citizens did. But she often scoffed at her father's followers' adoration.
Especially, as she knew she wouldn't ever be allowed to be the next one who ruled.
All that mattered to anyone, was that her father was a man.
And she was a woman.
That was all that mattered to anyone. She was a woman, and would never be what her father would be worth, even if she was his only child, and considered by many, more intelligent than all the men on the consul.
Clarke knew her mother, Abbigail, wished to be in control, but she would never be as intelligent as Clarke.
Was Clarke perhaps too proud? Probably. But she knew she was smart. Smarter than any of the men on the consul. And smarter than her mother.
Her father valued her, though. It was why he had made sure that her mother couldn't marry her off. Should Clarke wish to marry? Her father would not interfere, unless that was he felt that the one who she expressed interest in would hurt her or not respect her in any way.
The emperor of Rome, and his daughter and wife, made their way to the top of the coliseum, standing over the rows and rows full of people shouting and cheering. Jakob smiled, putting on a show, to prove that he was a good patron and all that.
And he sat in the middle between his wife and daughter.
As Clarke sat down, trying not to snort at the number of happy, preening citizens. They truly were so deluded by the "sovereignty" of the role of the emperor.
It was honestly pathetic.
The gates of the coliseum opened up, and several gladiators ran out, all armed with shields, swords, maces and axes.
Curious, Clarke looked down into the pit. One thing that caught her attention? The diversity of these gladiators.
Men and women alike. Diversity in skin color, was far from rare with gladiators. But it was rare when men and women alike fought amongst each other.
Her eyes widened slightly, when she caught sight of some of these men and women.
One was a well-built, white man with blonde hair, with a shield and sword.
Another was a white woman with red hair a few inches past her shoulder, bearing an ax and a shield.
There was a huge white man with a beard, and a helmet with slight wings on it, he held a hammer and a shield.
There was a tall, white woman with long black hair, and a spiky gray helmet on, who had a long, sharp trident and shield.
There was a white woman with long, dark brown, who held a spiked mace, helmet and shield.
There was a woman with light brown skin, black hair tied back in a ponytail, bearing a sword and a shield.
There was a man with short curls of dark hair with gray in it, with a sword and shield.
There was a muscled woman, with almost shoulder length, blonde hair, with a shield and mace.
And several others.
Clarke's eyes watched each of these gladiators that caught her attention. And she licked her lips.
The other gladiators that came out, that were meant to fight the gladiators she was looking at, didn't draw her attention the way these gladiators did.
She hoped they won this fight and survived.
Clarke understood the shiver that ran through her, when she stared at these men and women, for what it was.
While Clarke had never married, she certainly knew what sexual desire was like and certainly what sexual pleasure was like.
She knew that because of the standards that Rome had for women, even for women in powerful positions, it was deemed as unseemly that women be promiscuous in any manner.
However, her father, knowing what his daughter's proclivities were, had stood back and allowed Clarke to have her affairs, pretending to be unaware and shielding his daughter from scrutiny.
Clarke knew her mother was repulsed by Clarke's sexual hungers. But she knew better than to say or do anything. Any actions or even words, would bring attention to them, and so, she stayed silent.
So, she didn't say anything, when she saw Clarke with her various sexual partners.
Men and yes, women too.
She knew that sex between women was seen as strictly something to be quiet about, and if it wasn't, it was considered to only be put on as a show for men.
It was never considered that sex between women was supposed be between the women and not at all about the men.
Saying that, of course, would get disbelieving and offended remarks from said men.
Clarke had taken precautions when she had sex with men. Had drank the liquid with herbs that was provided for women who wished not to have children-it was provided often for those on the consul, who had mistresses, and who the consul members, would order them to, so that they would not have illegitimate children.
And Clarke, during the past five years, had her share of lovers, men and women alike.
And she knew from personal experience, that despite what standards her culture had for men and women, the women who had been her lovers, could at times be just as rough as men. And some of the men who had been her lovers, could at times be just as gentle as women.
And these gladiators, who she was staring at, should they survive, would not be the first gladiators who she had had please her.
The gladiators who she would select to tend to her sexual needs, men and women alike, each had the choice to be with her sexually. Now, because of their status and position in life, they were at a disadvantage from her.
But she had made it clear to each of them, that they would not be punished if they refused, and regardless of whether they pleased her or not, she would give them a great deal of gold for their success as a gladiator and let them be.
And for those that had politely refused, she had followed through with her promise. And those that had happily taken up on Clarke's offer, had fucked Clarke hard.
Every single one, she had ordered, had ordered them to sit on the bed, and allow her to ride them in one way or another.
The fight between the two groups of gladiators began.
The head gladiator from the other side, one that Clarke had seen before in the ring before, one that she found most ugly, piggish, greedy, disgusting and contemptable, named Bellamy, wore a shield, a light brown helmet and a spiked mace.
His sister, Octavia, just as piggish as her brother, was next to him, on his left, bearing a sword and a shield.
To Bellamy's right, was a dark-skinned woman, Raven, with her hair in a ponytail, and bearing a sword and a shield.
Their other companions, Jasper, Miller and Murphy-they both liked calling themselves by their last names.
John Mbege, Dax, Atom, Roma, Jones and Andrew.
Clarke had never had sex with these gladiators. And never would. They were repulsive to her. Honestly, she would feel bile sometimes in her throat whenever she'd lay eyes on Bellamy.
Apparently, when he first had been captured and brought to Rome to be thrown into the gladiators, as it turned out, Bellamy, had raped several young girls, as young as thirteen or fourteen.
And when one of the girls' brothers had tried to stop him, he'd cut the boy's throat.
Often, Clarke wished for Bellamy's death.
She knew that her fellow Romans unfortunately, didn't only enslave those that had committed horrid acts.
No, sadly, she knew that all one had to be was in the wrong situation, and a person was made into a slave. It was troubling. And one of the many things about this culture, which her father was trying to change.
But she knew it wouldn't happen. Rome was full of people who liked their luxuries, and sadly, one of those luxuries, was apparently, the right to own another human being.
So, Clarke knew that Rome would never put an end to enslaving people or throwing them into the gladiator fights. Or selling them to be raped, amongst other things.
Should her father ever try to end slavery in Rome, Clarke knew he'd immediately be assassinated.
But if nothing else? She supposed this was one satisfactory situation where one of the gladiators, hopefully got what he deserved.
But what she knew was right, right now, was to stand back and wait.
She hoped to Mars and Bellona, the god of war, that these new gladiators, would be victorious, and hoped to Pluto, the god of the underworld, would send Bellamy, his sister and the rest of their horrid friends, to Tartarus.
And hoped to Venus, that should the gladiators who she hoped to bed, survived, that they would accept her offer of pleasure.
The fight began and things happened startlingly fast.
One of the new gladiators, the big one with the beard, the hammer and the helmet with the wings, lunged forward with startling speed.
He swung his hammer down and struck the hammer down across Murphy, who had no helmet on his head.
Clarke gasped, eyes widening, when she watched as Murphy's head cracked open, blood and brains spurting out and staining the hammer. As Murphy crashed to the sand of the pit, the big man with the hammer, raised his hammer up and rammed it back down again and again, crushing Murphy's skull.
There were a series of low gasps and cries.
Clarke didn't doubt that she must have let loose one of these sounds.
Because Bellamy and his group, were considered the best of the best.
And now….?
No one would have imagined that any of them could have been killed-especially not so easily.
And that was when the other new gladiators struck, using Bellamy and his companions' shock, to their advantage.
The blonde woman with the spiked mace, crashed her weapon into Jasper's head, cracking it open and pulled away as he collapsed, then she swung and cracked the spiked mace into Miller's head, killing him.
And as she struck, so did the dark-haired woman with the spiked mace, smashed the mace right against the side of Octavia's head, splitting the wretched girl's head, and killing her.
Bellamy screamed, finally acting, when he saw his sister be brutally killed.
He swung his sword, and his sword aimed for the woman with the spiked mace.
The woman with red hair and the ax lunged forward and slammed her ax against Bellamy's sword, keeping the sword from hitting her companion.
Raven hissed and lunged at the woman with the ax, but the one of the other new gladiators, a black woman with short, black hair and twin swords in her grip, and she slapped the swords forward, crossing them in front of her, clamping Raven's sword in place, keeping it from stabbing her redheaded friend.
The blonde man with the sword used his shield as a barrier between him and the sword that Andrew was wielding.
The big blonde man lunged forward, pressing the shield against the sword and keeping Andrew busy with that as he swung his sword back and thrust it deep into Andrew's stomach, pushing the blade all the way through Andrew's body.
The big blonde man pulled the sword out and allowed Andrew's blood to spill out and stepped back as Andrew collapsed to his knees on the pit's ground as he bled out.
The black woman with the twin swords, kicked her leg out, swiping Raven's legs out from under her and Raven hit the bottom of the pit, falling to her side, and the black woman thrust both her swords into Raven's neck, and pulled them out, blood flooding out of both punctures of Raven's neck and Raven shook against the ground, eyes rolling in her head as she bled to death.
Dax was stabbed through his throat by the woman with the spiked helmet.
Atom was decapitated in seconds by two women, one with white hair and the other with green hair.
Jones was stabbed in the stomach by one of the women with long, blonde hair and he was bleeding out on the floor.
Roma's throat was slit by one of the new gladiators, with brown hair, the brown-haired woman stepped back and smirked as it happened.
Mbege's head was crushed in, by a spiked mace, that was bore by an older gladiator man, with black hair and a small beard.
And Bellamy? The last of their distasteful number? Screamed, enraged, as the redheaded woman shoved him back and as he lunged at the woman again, the woman swung her ax down and chopped it into Bellamy's legs, blood spurting out of both of them as she dodged out of the way of his sword.
The man collapsed onto the ground, moaning in pain, blood flooding out from beneath his legs.
Clarke's mouth dropped and she felt a smile cross her face when she heard a sound that she had never heard come from Bellamy before.
Crying.
In that moment, she thanked Bellona and Mars. For he had smiled upon these gladiators, who she desired.
Bellamy now, disgraced, and with his sister and the rest of his companions killed in front of him, now would gain nothing by fighting back.
But still, he raised his sword, glaring with hate at the gladiators above him. He spat at them loudly, "You fucking savages!"
But the redhead moved quickly. She struck hard, lifting up her ax and slashing down, her ax slamming down on Bellamy's right arm, cutting it open, then raising it up, then slashing it down again, cutting and cutting, the meat exposing itself on Bellamy's arm, and eventually, she cut his arm right off.
The redhead nodded to the others.
And they leapt on Bellamy.
The blonde-haired man cut off Bellamy's other arm.
The woman with the dark hair that had killed Octavia, raised her mace and rammed it down onto Bellamy's left leg, cracking his bones and Bellamy's screams of pain were piercing.
They sounded like music to Clarke.
One of the other gladiators came over and sliced down, cutting Bellamy's leg off, making him bleed out.
Then the man with the hammer approached, raising it up and smashed his hammer down onto Bellamy's skull.
The helmet hadn't helped him. For the man with the hammer slammed it into the side of Bellamy's head, blood coming out.
Bellamy began shaking on the ground, his skull cracked open, blood flooding out.
He was still alive though.
But he wouldn't be for long, and the redheaded woman with the ax came over, raised her ax up and swung it down, aiming the blade for Bellamy's throat.
She slammed the ax down onto Bellamy's throat, and began slicing into it and she raised the ax up again, and cut into his neck again and again.
Then she raised her ax again and finally, brought it down and decapitated Bellamy.
Clarke gasped and was unable to hold back the crow of victory from her mouth, howling in happiness.
She heard her mother's appalled words at her daughter's overjoyed reaction.
However, Clarke could feel her father's grin. He clearly was happy to hear his daughter's enthusiasm.
Now, with Bellamy and his group's total annihilation, all that was left, for the masses of people watching from the rows of the coliseum, to cheer, to howl with awe and shock.
The clapping and howling of jubilation caused Jakob to stand up from his chair and waved both his hands, urging people to quiet down.
Jakob might have been an emperor of Rome, but he respected the people of Rome in a way in which very few previous emperors ever had.
And the people quieted down slowly.
"Well done," he praised the victorious gladiators, "Well done. Your names?"
The surviving gladiators looked at each other, then turned their heads to look up at where Jakob stood.
Those that had helmets on, removed them and stepped forward. Those without helmets, stepped forward as well.
And Clarke gasped, as she saw their beautiful features more.
By Jupiter…these must have been demigods.
They must have the blood of the gods in them.
The woman with the ax, red haired, with emerald green eyes, the black woman with short hair and brown eyes and the twin swords, the tall, muscled woman with black-almost blue hair and dark brown eyes…simply gorgeous.
The blonde man without the beard and had blue eyes, and the man with the hammer and the beard, so handsome.
All of them; if they were not proof that the gods had half-human children, she didn't know who was.
The men and women gave their names.
Natasha Romanoff, Wanda Maximoff, Yelena Belova, Melina Vostokoff-from their names, most likely brought in from some other part of Europe-Russia likely, Maria Hill, Steven Rogers, Pepper Potts, Diana Prince-apparently, a daughter of the Amazons, Brunnhilde Gunnarsdotter, Tora Olafsdotter, Hela Odinsdotter, Thor Odinson, Loki Laufeyson-clearly from their names, Nordic people brought here, Mari McCabe, Beatriz da Costa, Sigrid Nansen, Carol Danvers, Felicia Hardy, Bruce Banner, Niylah Vance and Anthony Stark.
"Excellent," Jakob said, "You have all done well. Now, then, what do you wish for in return for your service to the good people of Rome?"
Clarke almost snorted and she may just have, had she not known that she and her mother and father were being watched, and were she not so taken with the gladiators below.
Would slaves regard the culture that stood by and did noting as they were treated as property, as "good people?"
Needless to say, these gladiators could not ask for their freedom.
And after this day, what was the likelihood of that, given that they had just provided Jakob and the people of Rome, great entertainment?
Several of the gladiators, looked Clarke's way and Clarke's eyes widened when she saw the heat there. Was she imagining this?
Jupiter and Juno forgive her, but she thought that perhaps, these men and women wanted her too.
Speaking aloud their desire, of course, would not be a wise thing for the gladiators. For no gladiator would be allowed to touch any of royal blood.
At least, not in public.
She watched as these gladiators demanded their prize.
Which was surprising for Clarke.
Regular and extra freedoms and luxuries for them and their friends in the barracks of the gladiators. Better lodging, better food, better wine, and better protection for the gladiator women against any gladiator man that wished to assault them.
This brought on shocked silence and Clarke looked at her father, watching as his eyebrows jumped up, then he smiled and surprised everyone seated in the coliseum, as he granted these gladiators' wish.
The gladiators were allowed to leave the pit.
And as they did? They walked back, their heads turned to Clarke, their hungry eyes watching Clarke as they left.
Clarke's breath was stuck in her throat.
Where had the Legionnaires found these gladiators?
"Clarke," Clarke's father spoke to her softly and she turned her head to look at her father.
He looked at her and smiled, "I don't think I've ever seen that particular look on your face before."
Clarke shifted, nervous. Her father knew of Clarke's activities. Knew that she had been pleased by gladiators before.
She knew her mother knew too. But her mother was humiliated by Clarke's actions and tried to ignore it.
Her father was happy to indulge her hungers by standing aside and allowing her to do it.
But hearing her father say that, that she had never looked at previous gladiators like the way she had with these gladiators, it caused her to be struck hard.
No, she realized, she felt differently for these gladiators than she had for previous gladiators.
She wanted them in a way she never had wanted any gladiator she had before.
She hoped these twenty-one gladiators would accept her offer of pleasure.
She suspected, as their attractiveness was proof of demigods existing, that they would not accept, for the sheer fact alone that she wasn't even close to matching them, daughter of the emperor or not.
"Thank you for noticing, father," Clarke chuckled, self-conscious.
Jakob smirked, aware that Clarke would not talk with him about that.
They moved away from the platform, walking from the coliseum and down the hall, on their way to their home, they entered their palace, the stone effigies of some of the Roman gods; Jupiter, Neptune, Pluto, Juno, Bellona, Mars, Diana and Helios. At the front of all of them, spreading his arms up and in the physical stance of about to fly, acting as the messenger and ambassador, was Mercury.
Clarke followed her mother, father, and the centurions flanking them, to the building.
They entered the building and walked through the alabaster stone halls, with all the alabaster statues of previous rulers and of Roman gods and goddesses.
To the left of the hall, which was where Jakob, his wife and daughter and their guards were walking, was the proud, imposing statue of Juno, warlike with her goatskin.
The figures of Mars and Bellona, flanked the door to the room they entered. This room, understandably, was known as "the war room."
They entered and Jakob watched those across from him, making sure they understood not to judge that he had his wife and daughter in this room as well.
The men across from him, Thelonius Jaha, Wells Jaha-Thelonius's son, Dante Wallace and Cage Wallace-Dante Wallace's son, looked back to him and nodded.
The doors closed behind Jakob, Clarke and Abigail, as they sat down across from the others.
"We are so pleased you could see us, emperor," Thelonius greeted.
"Yes," Cage said, giving Clarke a nasty smile, "So pleased."
Jakob nodded to them, and began to speak, "Well, there's some matters you need to discuss."
They nodded across from Jakob and began to speak about some of the affairs in the city.
Clarke tried not to glare at Cage.
She knew what this was. Pleasant talk and diplomatic matters, until it was time for Cage to demand her hand in marriage.
In the barracks of the gladiator halls, the many gladiators who had won on this day, sat down and watched their friends cheering and laughing together as some of the others played drums, making music for the others to dance to.
The group of gladiators which had won the battle today, looked at each other.
"Wanda, Steven," Natasha said, smirking, "You saw the daughter of the emperor today? You saw how she looked at us."
"Yes," Steven said, grinning, "She seemed most intrigued by us."
Mari chuckled, "It seems we might just gain her attention. Soon."
Hungrily, the gladiators, which the emperor, Jakob Griffin's daughter, Clarke Griffin, had come to desire, were pleased.
This was the first time Clarke had seen them.
But it was far from the first time the gladiators had seen Clarke.
They all had desired her, for a long time. And well, her bold and kind actions toward those in positions like theirs…..made them feel for her.
They had witnessed her actions again and again, from a distance. And knew what they felt for her. What they wanted from her.
They knew of her….habits, as well. They knew that she most likely would arrange for a meeting between her and them, soon enough.
And that was good with them. When they had her in their grasp, they would make sure that she understood that she was not going to be the one in control.
They weren't as new gladiators as many likely thought they were. Many of them were captured together. And they had planned to gain control for a while.
Some of them had allowed themselves to be captured to protect their friends, the Bartons, Clint and Laura Barton and their children, and Clint's brother, Bernard and his wife, Simone, who were safe and that was all that mattered.
But when they had kept themselves shut away in the barracks? They had seen things, whenever their fellow gladiators had been sent out to fight and die.
They had seen the daughter of the emperor. A gentle, but strangely unyielding girl, eventually, grown into a woman now, who didn't bend to the foolish men around her, who disregarded her. Intelligent, cunning, kind, beautiful, strong, compassionate and fearless.
They had wanted her for a long time. Her strength, her compassion, her defiance of the men around her, made them want her and feel for her.
But she would not be the one in control when she was in the hands of these gladiators.
Natasha, Mari, Wanda, Diana, Maria, Steven, Hela and Thor all shared a grin.
Clarke would be writhing under them for the rest of her life, when they got their hands on her and made it clear that it wouldn't be a one-time thing.
Even if she was the emperor's daughter and them mere gladiators. They'd find a way.
Back at the palace, in the war room, Jakob leaned back against his chair as he regarded Dante and said, "Now that we're finished with the matters of the grainery and the flour mills, I think I can guess why you are here. It's about my daughter, is it not?"
"Yes, it is," Dante said, regarding his emperor, "You see, it's troubling that your daughter is not married yet. Questions have begun to arise, asking if there is something wrong," he nodded to Cage and Clarke tensed, "My son would make a good match for your daughter, wouldn't he?"
Clarke's stomach turned and she tried not to feel sick. Cage Wallace disturbed her. For many reasons.
But not least of them, because she was certain, he would like hurting her.
Wells glared at Dante and Cage and Clarke fought a smile at his protectiveness of her.
Thelonius Jaha and Jakob Griffin, had been friends for many a year. They had been on the consul together, and when Jakob had gained complete control and become the official heir of his father? Thelonius Jaha had been a close friend and confidante.
Thelonius's son, Wells, had become like a brother to Clarke. And even if neither of them had any romantic feelings for the other, it would actually work out wonderfully, if they were to marry, as Wells, Clarke knew, would never hurt her, never abuse his power, never expect anything untoward from her. And wouldn't judge any of her sexual activities, any more than she would his.
But she knew that that wasn't who her mother wanted her to marry. Her mother wanted her to marry Cage Wallace.
No, it had nothing to do with Wells being black. At least, Clarke didn't believe it to be so.
No, for Abigail, it was all about what she was hoping Cage would do to Clarke. Clarke's mother hoped that Cage would put Clarke in her place. Abigail hoped that Cage Wallace would beat Clarke into submission, so that Clarke never questioned authority again.
Clarke knew this to be true. She had seen the pleased way that her mother had looked at Cage.
"I'm afraid, dear friend," Jakob said, "I must decline. I have already chosen a husband for my daughter."
Clarke turned her head, startled.
Jakob looked across the table at Wells. "Wells?" He said, "You are suitable to marry my daughter."
Wells's eyes widened and Jakob turned to Clarke, ignoring his wife's shocked gasp.
"If this is what pleases you, daughter?" He asked.
Clarke grinned, recovering from her shock, then looking to Wells, who now had the same grin on his face.
It appeared that things were going to work out very well for them.
Clarke and Wells were a great deal alike in that they learned that they both desired both men and women.
Clarke had never judged Wells's time with any of his men or women lovers. Nor had he ever judged her with the men or women that she had been with.
They held no romantic feelings for each other, though they had slept together one time.
Clarke tried not to grin wider at the look of fury on Cage's face.
"Jakob," Abigail began, shock in her voice, "With all due respect, a black emperor?"
Clarke tried not to snort. Well, her mother might not have judged based on the color of one's skin, but it didn't mean that she wouldn't use it to her advantage.
And there had been black emperors before.
Most notably, Septimius Severus.
There would be talk, of course. There always would be.
But Clarke was to marry her best friend and confidante, Wells. And she saw every reason in the world to be happy.
In this world, as anyone knew, marrying a partner who you were in love with, often was not an option.
However, Clarke had the next best option, as did Wells.
"That is my decision," Jakob said, "Clarke is to marry Wells, as this is her wish."
Clarke tried not to snicker at her mother, enjoying her mother's flummoxed reaction.
However, Abigail quickly said, "I'm sorry for saying this, Thelonius, but Jakob, my love, Wells would not be a good emperor. He's too gentle. Too forgiving. The people will see him as weak."
"Oh?" Jakob asked, glancing at his wife, "Well, then," he grinned at his daughter, "I'm sure his wife will have strength enough for both of them, to wield the ruthlessness that's required."
Clarke almost laughed. Her father-the greatest emperor Rome had ever seen. He knew he couldn't get rid of the command that kept women out of the consul and from obtaining power, so, he did the next best thing.
Or at least, that was what she thought, till her father spoke again.
He said, "And since you worry so much about my choice of husband for our daughter making a weak emperor, then I shall make my daughter, Clarke, my heir. The new empress."
Clarke was glad that she hadn't been drinking anything, because if she had, she knew she would have spit out her drink in shock.
She and Wells shared a shocked look, and gradually they both smiled, albeit, still shocked beyond belief.
Wells didn't hunger for power the way many men in this empire did. He just wanted himself and Clarke to be safe from anyone that might try to take advantage of them.
Clarke and Wells? They would share equal power together. Of that, Clarke would make sure.
And Clarke in no way, missed the amused smirk on Thelonius's face, realizing that regardless of who was made into his old friend's heir, that his son would have a great deal of power at his fingertips.
And Clarke didn't miss either, how her mother, Dante and Cage Wallace watched, with hate and contempt.
She didn't need to look at them longer, to know that this was going to lead to trouble.
Author's note
Please understand that I barely know anything about the Roman culture or history. I took serious liberties with this story.