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Emperors had lived on Palatine Hill since the age of Augustus. The palace was a collaborative work of architecture, having been renovated and restored many times since the days of the Republic, in styles that were not always in harmony. One emperor had installed a revolving ballroom, another a labyrinth for his enemies. Each man had different requirements and desires, be it a bathhouse or stables, a gymnasium or an art gallery. Claudia wondered what her contribution would be.

She imagined them all watching her as she walked along a colonnade lined with imperial busts.

What would they think of a woman ruling Rome? Augustus had banished and denounced his own daughter for defying his order. Tiberius the First wasn’t known for his compassion. Caligula was more likely to torture her than give her the right to rule. Claudia knew little of the personal views of her grandfather Claudius, while her father, the second Tiberius, had never shown much interest in the rights and liberties of women, including herself and her mother.

Still, he would’ve been disgusted by the idea, she was sure.

Her gaze lingered on his recently installed bust but she pushed him out of her mind, continuing on into the atrium.

‘This is so surreal,’ said Gia. ‘I can’t believe I’m here. I wonder what my mother would think.’

Gia’s mother had died in the eruption, buried along with the taberna where Gia used to live.

Claudia squeezed her hand in the silence that followed.

‘Just imagine the places where we might kiss,’ said Claudia, to distract her. ‘It hardly gets more romantic than the balcony of a palace.’

‘What about seated on a throne?’

‘Both of us?’

‘You’ll be on my lap,’ said Gia.

Claudia flushed, smiling despite herself.

‘I shall have to arrange a palace tour,’ she said, ‘of all the most inviting spots for us to… sanctify.’

‘I look forward to it, my empress.’

They ceased talking as Cassius and Dom strode past them, little Athena tagging along behind with the dog.

‘It’s so biiiig!’ Athena hollered, her voice echoing through the enormous space. ‘Just look at this, Viatrix!’

Dom had allowed her to name the dog, and Athena had settled on Viatrix, Gia’s gladiator name, owing to the dog being lean and muscular. Gia had seemed oddly touched by this dedication, though Claudia feared it might be confusing.

‘This is where we live now!’

Athena ran in giddy circles, whooping so loud it was probably heard up in Elysium.

Claudia winced but Gia was amused by the girl’s excitement, slapping Athena’s palms as she ran past.

Soldiers, freed slaves and other survivors who had nowhere else to go streamed into the walled palace grounds, lugging lumpy sacks, crying children and disgruntled livestock.

Claudia had invited them to stay in the public wing of the palace until they could arrange proper accommodation; her first decree. The request was met with disbelief by the group of advisors, senators and cultists who’d been there to meet her ship, their faces falling when they saw Claudia and not Decimus.

Him dead, her alive and wearing his crown. That made things difficult, and her calling herself empress only complicated matters further.

In the palace temple, gilded statues lined the walls in alcoves, depicting each of the major deities of the pantheon, all seated on thrones and holding weapons, surrounded by their emblematic symbols and beasts. Each emperor had built a temple to the god they served, until they formed an entire pantheon, its sculpted deities divided by red columns.

Viatrix the dog barked happily, sniffing at the crotch of Jupiter.

As sunlight bled in through the roof of the atrium, the figures glinted mystically, their gemstone eyes full of life.

‘Do you ever get the sense that you’re being watched?’ said Gia.

‘We likely are, at all times.’

‘Ever since we spent the night lost in a labyrinth, I’m not so fond of statues.’