Unspeakable Crew Oneshots

Queen of Kings (James x reader)

My shoulders rolled back as I stretched my neck, getting ready for my fight. My scythe hung loosely between only a few fingers as I waited for the gate on my cell to be raised. I could already hear the roar of the lions from the other side of the arena. I smiled grimly at my situation. The emperor's son had fallen in love with me, and I had reciprocated those feelings. Though, since the empire only saw me as a common thief, I was sentenced to death in the Colosseum. I fixed the gilded armor on my arms and legs before adjusting my skirt.

The gate above me groaned as it raised up above my head. My sandals crunched the sand underfoot as I exited my tiny cell into the massive open area of the Colosseum. Sitting all around in the stands high above my head were people cheering and clapping their hands as they watched me face my death. In the middle of the stands sat an elevated box ornately decorated where the king and his family watched the shows held in the Colosseum. The king had a smile on his face that nearly wanted to make me empty what little was in my stomach. His olive branch crown was sat on top of his head and there was nothing I wanted to do more than climb over the high walls and choke him with it. Instead, I made direct eye contact with him and drew my thumb across my throat. His eyes narrowed at my gesture, but I didn't care. He had sentenced me to my death, and I would be his.

My gaze flicked next to Caesar Cassius, because next to him was his son. His olive branch crown was askew, but he looked as handsome as the day I had met him. His golden hair shone in the sunlight like an angel and his eyes were as deep as the sea, but those eyes held deep fear. I locked eyes with him and subtly nodded my head. His hands moved from grasping the railing as tightly as he could to squeezing them in his lap. I knew he was worried about me, but I knew I could do this. I could take care of myself. I could win this fight.

The groaning of the far off gate opening caught my attention. I looked toward where the lions were going to come from and gripped my scythe more securely. Four lions bounded out of the cage on the other side of the arena, growling and baring their teeth. My back straightened as I walked closer toward my execution method. When the lions saw me, they stopped pawing at the ground and started circling around me. I spun around, keeping my eyes on as many lions as I could. One let out a roar before charging toward me.

I dropped to the sandy ground and rolled to the side as the lion sailed over me, teeth and claws ready to rip me apart. I hopped up and looked around the circle of lions. The one that had tried to pounce on me had skidded between two more, all four lions in front of me. I backed up and gripped my scythe tighter. My eyes closed for a moment while I took a deep breath. I didn't want to kill these lions, but they wouldn't stop until I was dead. I mumbled a silent prayer to whatever god was listening.

One of the lions roared and I opened my eyes just in time to see one jumping at me, teeth aimed for my throat. I spun to the left, the handle of my scythe hitting the lion in the chest. It growled and swiped at me with its claws. The razor blades on the end of its paw easily tore through my leather armor and dug into my abdomen. I hissed in pain and prayed harder, hoping somebody-anybody-would answer and save me.

Some bizarre feeling wrapped me in a blanket. I didn't have too much time to think about it before another lion leaped at me again. I swung my scythe and the blade left a deep gash in the lion's front leg. It yelped and backed away, licking its wound. I didn't have time to think about the injury I had just caused when another lion jumped at me. My body went on autopilot as I swung the scythe around, injuring whichever lion tried to attack me. Everything was going fine until I turned around.

When I had my back turned while facing down one injured lion, another roared louder than the others and pounced on me. I couldn't get out of the way in time and the lion pinned me to the sand. I could smell its horrible breath as it snarled in my face. My eyes screwed shut as I waited for it to kill me.