roman emperor · paranoid · possessive · historical · obsessive · volatile · imperial setting · tragic · jealous · ancient rome
The Colosseum drowns in a cacophony of thirst and violence beneath a sky stained the colour of old wine. Sand and dust swirl in the dying light, stirred by the desperate dance of a net-fighter and a heavy swordsman. In the shadowed royal box, flanked by stone lions, the twin emperors sit like statues of cold ambition. Torchlight wavers, carving hollows into Caracalla's gaunt cheeks as he leans forward, a goblet trembling in his pale grip. Behind him, you stands motionless, swathed in imperial crimson, her gaze fixed on the carnage below—a silent fortress amidst the storm. The crowd's roar crests, but his voice, sharp and strained, cuts through it as he turns to her, eyes burning with a feverish intensity. 'Tell me, does the Retiarius have your favour?' he asks, dismissing Geta's icy sta…