#choices marc antony
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Choices Flash Fic! DarkFic; Tobias x F!MC
Angels in Hell
@choicesflashfics #36. Uses prompt #2, "You’re allowed to fall apart a little."
A/N: I started writing this before I thought to grab a prompt, and it went to dark places. It was supplied to be a Harper x Ethan, but F!MC started talking... That's it. This fic is dark and I'm not sure why it came out, since it seems like the first chapter rather than a one shot. // Words: 1150 // Pairing: light f!mc x Tobias, acor MC x Antony (implied) // implied age gap relationship.
I always knew I'd end up working for the Outfit, from the time Uncle Tony caught me with a plastic stethoscope in my hands, to the day that Uncle Sam signed my soul over to the combat medical corps.
We need good people... like you, Chiara. You're the brains and Sy is the brawn. There will always be a place for the both of youse in the Outfit.
Is that because of Mama? I asked as I stood in front of Uncle Tony's desk and watched him swallow his grief along with his Campari, gold rings glittering. The shadow of two days beard was heavy on his jaw, and I yearned to reach out, to touch him, but instead crumpled the acceptance letter to Edenbrook in my pocket into a smaller and smaller ball, trying to keep my breathing steady as I watched him, the hero of my girlhood, the master of us all.
He set the glass down on his desk, the sound of it like the funeral bells that had gonged as the hearse pulled away from the cathedral steps in Little Italy, and I felt my throat tighten too. I swallowed my grief with my wine, clinking his glass in a toast. To her, then. I would always live in her shadow, until I could prove my worth.
Uncle Tony's eyes glistened wetly. Arin was a good woman. Bellissima... my tiger. You remind me of her, Princess. That blonde hair, and those eyes... Dio in paradiso, but she was a hurricane. And you are her very image...
Even though he'd married Octavia, I knew Mama had been the love of his life. Uncle Tony would have died for her, and nearly did. That was why I gave him my pledge of loyalty, right there in that room. A pledge for love, the kind that lasts beyond the grave.
And when I returned, I was no longer Chiara Valentine, Arin Valentine's little princess, but Chiara Valentine, combat medic and fast tracked through medical school due to all the strings pulled by Uncle Tony. It wasn't that I couldn't have done it on my own recognizance, but time was a luxury we didn't have after Doc Claudius had gotten his brains blown out by the Family, out in Drakovia. And Sy was in the clink. Again. For stealing cars from some gang in LA, connected to the Yakuza.
The Campari on the desk turned into the Negroni at the bar, and I was staring up into the golden eyes of my boss's and biggest mistake's biggest rival, the one and only Dr Tobias Carrick.
"Valentine." His upper lip curled, and I itched to smack the smugness right off his face, but I'd probably break a nail. After all, I was the Brains. I'd never fought anyone closer than fifty paces in my life, and we'd been in a tank. "Am I really that ugly, little princess, or do you scowl like that at all the plebs?"
If it were up to me, men like him would be six feet under, but I'd promised to hold my peace on mob soil, and the last thing Uncle Tony needed was a war with the Irish. Not that he'd do it for my sake -- it had been Mama who held his heart, and always would. So when I opened my mouth, what came out next surprised me. "I lost ... I lost someone. Today... it's the anniversary of her death."
"Bartender!" Tobias waved down the hipster serving white claw spritzers to the masses. "Get us a bottle of -- what's your poison, princess?"
"Limoncello." I didn't have to hesitate when the bartender slid the bottle down, and poured us two, on the rocks.
He prepared to knock back the entire glass when I caught him on the sleeve, for a moment looking thrown off his game, like he'd never seen a woman before. "Whoa there, Princess."
"Do you know what they say, Dr Carrick? They say that only the dead have seen the end of war. That's Plato. And don't call me princess." That's Antony's name for me.
"You’re allowed to fall apart a little." He touched my cheek gently, and it was only then that I realized I was crying. "Was it... a patient?"
What could I tell him? Of Afghanistan, and the starless desert skies that seemed to reach into the abyss, or of that single moment when my life changed forever? Or of how my life now seemed laid out before me in a single straight line with only a few stops along the way, Chicago to Afghanistan, to Boston and soon, soon, sooner than anyone could ever know, back again.
A pledge for love, the kind that lasts beyond the grave.
"She's been dead a long time." I wiped my cheek angrily with my sleeve, streaks of mascara coming away on it. "My mother. She died, and no one ever figured out what it was that killed her. That's why I'm here, really." I had never admitted the truth out loud before, to anyone.
Antony had come to find me at the barracks. I'd been barely eighteen, and one year in the army already. We'd drunk Limoncello til midnight, Arin Valentine's favorite drink, and we'd held one another and wept. In the morning, he'd left me with blood still drying on the sheets and an ache in my heart that no amount of Limoncello would ever ease.
A pledge for loyalty, until I stepped out of her shadow and proved my worth.
"Do you want to get out of here?" Tobias rubbed a hand over his stubbled jaw and held out a hand. "We can just walk, Chiara. You look like you need some air. I won't talk about old business tonight, and it's not a trick, I... I promise."
I took his hand, Dio in paradiso, heaven and hell. Eyes as gold as the sunless desert sands. "You can talk about it all you want, Tobias." I don't care if we win, after all, a snap of the fingers, a pouch filled with thirty pieces of silver, a handshake in a back room, that grant will end up lining the pockets of Edenbrook instead of Mass Kenmore, whether Tobias Carrick likes it or not.
I'll be going back to the Outfit, my mother's daughter, back to Antony. For I owe so much more to him than blood. Life and loyalty, and a love that never dies.
"Valentine?" Tobias waited by the door, jacket thrown over one shoulder, looking at me with a troubled question in his eyes. If I slid off the stool now, I'd have to make that choice. I'd have to face the truth about what drove me to this place, to Boston, to Edenbrook, and to stare at my own reflection in a glass of Limoncello as I counted the stars like the drops of blood in a vein, all the way down the bloody years.
Blood on my hands, blood on the sheets, washed clean by my tears.
Demoni in paradiso, angeli all'inferno.
Only the dead have seen the end of war.
#playchoices#open heart#a courtesan of rome#acor#choices oph#f!mc x tobias carrick#mc x tobias carrick#tobias carrick#marc antony#Marc Antony acor#dark fic
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Rereading this sausage parade of a book to record Sabina moments. Ugh...the things I do for love...
Though it's been said 100x by others, this quote will never not be iconic
#I do like that we get to kill#With no remorse#I am anticipating murdering some men in this book#Too bad Marc Antony isn't one of them#I might reread this book more often if I could#The only man I liked#Besides daddy and my bro#Is Syphax#He's cool#All the Romans can go f themselves#ACOR#anti cassius#anti Marc antony#a courtesan of rome#choices#pixelberry#playchoices
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Happy Ides of March!! Marc Antony will always have a tight hold on my heart❤️
#playchoices#choices: stories you play#acor#a courtesan of rome#mc x marc antony#marc antony#pixelberry
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it’s been years and i still haven’t recovered from these. pb peaked here and it’s been downhill ever since
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When fucking Caius Vergenius disturbs your peace at the Forum.
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🛐
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I remember you saying you hate Marc Antony so I assume I can say this… apparently Choices peaked with him, the abusive conquerer?? We are in hell
LOL we really are anon
#we really are#the bar is in hell and so are we#anti Marc Antony#asks#choices stories you play#playchoices#choices stories we play#pixelberry#pixelberry studios#playchoices fandom
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Sorry, last one. I was taught almost nothing about Roman history in school. only a brief very Marxist overview before we carried on to medieval history because my school was like that
meaning the most I know about Julius Caesar and Marc Antony and Cleopatra I learned from a Courtesan romance choose your own adventure game in the Choices app. You know, one where you play a gaul warrior princess and you get to seduce Cassius and Marc Antony and have sex with him at the empty senate floor if you want. Yeah. I didn't do that one but that's cause I didn't have enough free diamonds
#but like I know a little more now and the game was surprisingly kinda accurate for what it was#except for the parts about the courtesan being actively involved in the plot. that I don't think happened#I'm pretty sure.
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Top 10 Choices Villains
1. Azura: pure evil in the form of woman. I will forever hate her for what she did to Leon;
2. Astrid + Vincent Wescott: creating a secret society, sacrificing tons of people and traumatizing their own daughter for power (that made them stop aging). Rich people be crazy... 😳
3. Jason Shaw: sneaky bastard pretending to be nice, corrupt cop, threatened a teenager, killed people. You're on top 3, jerk!
4. Rheya Apostholus: her ability to control almost all vampires still gives me the creeps. But I can't deny her backstory is compelling;
5. Marc Antony: because making people fight 'til death in the Coloseum was just a normal Tuesday for him (and I bet he did worse in real life), this asshole deserves to be on top 5;
6. Barthelemy Beaumont senior: this mf'er killed Liam's mother, took away the heir, usurped the throne, traumatized his own sons and for that I hope he burns in hell;
7. Silas Prescott: destroying an entire city + traumatizing his own son for power. Rich people be crazy - part two;
8. Trystan Richards: disgusting bastard thirsty for power that nearly assaulted MC and almost killed the chosen LI. I loathe him;
9. Guy Ledford: self-centered jerk who used his own daughter to sell coupons for his stupid app and wanted custody of a child when he spent years without paying child support;
10. Vanessa Blackwood: no, you don't deserve forgiveness after what you did, you rich snob!
Honorable mention: Countess Henrietta and Madeleine Amaranth (she's more an antagonist than a villain, but I like to hate her 😂)
Tagging @choicesfandomappreciation
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Choices LIs who should’ve gotten bitch slapped
1) Kieran: kidnapped and abused the MC (I absolutely loathe this man with every molecule of my being)
2) Reagan: controlling and toxic who is ten levels of cringe
3) Bastien: literally kidnapped the MC
4) Marc Antony: he threatened to send my MC back into slavery so...
5) Sam Dalton: controlling, toxic, and way too into getting into the pants of their nanny because 🔥 desire 🔥
6) Poppy Min Sinclair: publicly hate-crimed and humiliated a black woman, was classist and literally bullied and harassed the MC
#I've been working on this for a while#but my god PB really writes some terrible LIs#also not in any particular order#choices#playchoices#choices stories you play#tw: kidnapping#tw: abuse#tw: racism
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James Purefoy as Marc Antony in HBO's Rome sexiest casting choice ever it's true
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Sorry for disturbing... No idea if we interacted before, but... Your fave Love Interests on Choices & RC ???
This is so much fun!!
Choices:
TRR: Liam, Drake, and Max.
Ride or Die: Logan
Bloodbound: Jax
ACOR: Marc Antony
Queen B: Ian
RoE: Leo
OH: Bryce (would have been Raf but PB fucked that up)
Note: I have a series where Riley ends up with Liam, Max, Drake, and Rashad lol. Max and Liam are also a couple in their own right in that one.
Romance Club:
VfV: Louis, Phillipe, Armand.
HaHW: Chand, RJ, Phoebe, Conner
Soulless: Walter
HS: Mimi, Dino, Lucifer, Adi, and Christopher tbh (unpopular opinion but I don't like Astaroth). Austie might get a hate f@ck lol.
Note: I don't see why Lucifer and Mimi's past has to stay in the past just because they both fall for MC. I'm here for a MC/Luci/Mimi throuple!!
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SECOND BATTLE OF PHILIPPI, 23 RD OCT, 42 BC
Following the first battle both sides returned to their original camps to re-group. Brutus, taking over Cassius' camp, sought to stick to his original plan of holding station until the enemy was forced to withdraw through lack of provisions. Brutus did harass the enemy via night attacks on their position and even diverting a river to wash away part of their camp. Lacking supplies and having lost their back-up in the Adriatic, Antony and Octavian had to make their move before winter really set in and forced them to leave the field. Initially, Brutus stoically resisted the repeated taunting by the enemy to come out and face them but eventually, at least according to the ancient Roman historians, ill-discipline got the upper hand and Brutus' army took their own initiative and descended to the plain.
Antony had, meanwhile, also made some daring and decisive moves. First, he took full advantage of a small mound south of Brutus' camp which the Republican leader had left unguarded (and this despite the fact that Cassius had previously stationed a garrison on it). Building a palisade of whicker, four legions were now dangerously close to Brutus' position. At the same time Antony moved ten legions into the central marsh area and two more a little further east. Brutus responded by building a fortified camp facing each of these two blocks of enemy troops but if the battle lines were extended any further then Brutus would be isolated from his supplies and backed up against the mountains -an impossible position to defend. The Republican army, then, had little choice but to engage the enemy with a full-scale assault. The time for dilly-dallying was over.
The use of artillery weapons in the confines of such a tightly-packed battlefield was considered impractical and the opposing armies immediately clashed in fearsome hand-to-hand fighting. Initially, the Republicans did well against the enemy's left wing but Brutus, with fewer troops at his disposal, had stretched his lines thin to ward of an out-flanking manoeuvre. The consequence was Antony relentlessly pushed forward and smashed the enemy centre and, moving left, attacked the rear of Brutus' lines. The order of the Republican troops now completely broke down and chaos ensued. Meanwhile, Octavian had attacked the Republican camp while Antony used his cavalry to chase down Brutus and prevent his escape. The Republican leader had found refuge in the nearby mountains but when his four remaining legions moved to plea for clemency from Antony, Brutus took his own life. In total 14,000 soldiers surrendered and while some others managed to flee by ship to Thasos, the Republican cause was at an end and Julius Caesar's murder had been avenged. In the words of Ovid, "all the daring criminals who in defiance of the gods, defiled the high priest's head [Caesar], have fallen in merited death. Philippi is witness, and those whose scattered bones whiten its earth".
Whilst Antony was hailed as imperator by the victors and losers alike, Octavian, who had dealt more harshly with the defeated, was not so highly esteemed. As Plutarch stated in no uncertain terms, "[Octavian] did nothing worth relating, and all the success and victory were Antony's". The legions were again re-distributed with Antony taking eight to campaign against Parthia whilst Octavian, with three, returned to Italy. The battle, with its 40,000 fatalities and subsequent retaliations against Republican sympathizers, robbed Rome of some of its finest citizens and soldiers, and still the question of just who would rule Rome was not settled.
Sources: Si Sheppard, Philippi 42 BC.
Arthur Weigall, The Life & Times of Marc Antony
#mark antony#marc antony#marcus antonius#battle of philippi#octavian#caesar augustus#second triumvirate#marcus brutus#marcus junius brutus#julius caesar#gaius julius caesar#ancient rome#roman history#roman republic#roman empire#rome#history#otd#this day in history#pawel delag
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I love when straight girls come onto a lesbian's blog and nitpick at their hookup choices options. Saying shit like, "eww, you romanced her??? You shouldn't romance/bang her, she's evil and problematic!" And then turn around and romance men that has the personality of a used dish rag, tout their pwecious male LIs that are so fucking toxic to the Mc or romance or want to romance actual evil murderers. Like why are you talking to me?? At least the wlw will admit their hookup options/LIs can be problematic, you guys will chase ppl off for telling you your LI is toxic or defend LIs like Aerin, Gauis and Marc Antony, making excuses for them. It's ok for men to be problematic but not women apparently. God forbid if women do anything
#Just say you hate women and lesbians#choices#pixelberry#playchoices#loa2#laws of attraction 2#I'm getting tired of male romancers#Some of you guys are so hypocritical
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#playchoices#a courtesan of rome#choices acor#marc antony acor#choices#pb choices#i have no choice but to simp#i'm so happy to see him
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Surprise! We're talking about
Cleopatra.
Or more specifically, the way she's been painted over the centuries.
Unfortunately, not many historical references of Cleopatra's face have survived, and even the Romans didn't clearly know what she looked like- but she was always orally described as someone who wasn't captivating at first glance, but would draw people in with her voice and words. So from this, we can conclude that while she was probably decent-looking, it was her charisma which drew people in.
The only other thing we can use to determine Cleopatra's appearance is her genealogy- she descended from one of Alexander the Great's generals and was part of a family line with Targaryen levels of inbreeding. So there's a real chance that she resembled the Greeks and Macedonians more than the native Egyptians, ergo paler skin and darker hair.
European painters, of course, disregarded this entirely and freely drew her on a spectrum from beguiling Greek Aphrodite to Elizabethan era blonde, complete with the giant dresses they had back then.
The topics, however, were very repetitive- either Cleopatra appearing in front of Caesar, Cleopatra appearing in front of Marc Antony on a boat, Cleopatra doing the pearl-in-vinegar trick at a feast, or Cleopatra killing herself via snakebite. (That last one is particularly popular.)
(Also she was almost always depicted in a seductive manner, even while a snake was about to bite her. Just very femme-fataley, not my cup of tea personally.)
Like, just look at this image. It feels a tad bit more erotic than it needs to be, and that's a very consistent artistic choice that just weirds me out.
I feel like in all these paintings and topics, we're missing many important parts of Cleopatra's life- what was her daily life like? How did she rule, what were her familial relationships like? With that in mind, here's some of my favourite paintings-
These just show her doing presumably mundane activities- testing out poisons, attending Caesar's funeral (obviously fake, but still), meeting with Octavian to negotiate a deal. I think these show a glimpse into what the life of such a powerful leader would be like, and we really need more of those. The "Cleopatra femme fatale" market is overly saturated.
Anyways, that's all for today! If you have any comments or critiques, feel free to fire away in the comments or reblog tags, it'll mean a lot to me.
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