Where Gladiators Fought

Part I Where gladiators fought for life, we meet to fight for love The constellations in the Roman night sky, celestial spectators, bathe the Colosseum in the white blood of light The night is throbbing with the heat of our battle, our cries, more passionate than any that have gone before Part II A short while earlier A well paid bribe found us in the remains of the Ludus Magnus, the remains of the old Gladiator School in Rome where lies buried a hidden entrance to an underground tunnel You pull me with you into dark underground world of legend By light of a flickering torch, we travel into the entrails of the behemoth, coming in time upon the holding rooms My breath catches I hear the sounds of man and beast carrying through the thin layers of time: Slaves, criminals, debtors, all awaiting their fate… Animals pawing, grunting, starved for food Dying to kill to stave the gnawing pain Waiting…. Waiting to be lifted up into the arena Waiting to fight Waiting to live or die Part III We break into the hypogeum The crispness of the night air stings us The vastness of it all paralyzes all thought Rome comes ALIVE The resurrection of history enflames us, and as we mount those final stairs up to the arena, I feel your excitement blazing through me Your grasp is almost painful in jubilee “We are here…HERE!” Your voice is laced with the sacred. Between those famed arches…XIX and XX We stand You and I all and 50,000 ghost spectators Here at the East Entrance The Gate of Life Looms above us True gladiators passed through these very gates Here the applause coursed through their veins And thundered to the captives below… Here I stand Quivering with the knowledge of all this night means to me That thunder reverberates through MY body I can hardly breathe Your eyes are looking up at tiered levels while mine look ahead There is the walkway connecting the east to west At the far side is the Libitinarian, the Gate of Death, through which dead gladiators were dragged, their bodies dumped in the Spoliarium to be stripped of clothes and armor Life and death Here, they converged Here, they fought On this night I know I will strip myself of my clothing and armor I will let down my defenses and give in to your onslaught of passion Here… I will die to all but your eyes Part IV I walk, quietly, with purpose Here….in this place... my virgin blood will be spilt Halfway between life and death, I stop I turn towards you My voice reaches you on the night wind “Come to me!” I see you move towards me My mighty gladiator You who have fought my demons You who have slain my nightmares You who have held in check A savage desire for possession As you stand before me I wonder if you know Tonight is the night You will plunder and ravage to your heart's delight your just reward Part V You find a place to keep the torch upright You see the blanket I’ve spread on the ground I answer the question in your eyes With the curve of my lips I steady my hands as they work to undress me I feel my body burn in the warmth of your presence Your eyes undress me faster than my hands can, and yet... you are....immovable You stand transfixed You wait until my only covering Is my flowing hair "Make love to me Here, now...be my gladiator Come...claim your prize." I reach out my hand to you and in a moment before my next intake of breath you've come to life and crush me in your arms Your mouth claims mine like never before seeking more your tongue explores demanding, commanding it takes what it will You pull me in to you Your hand in my hair, my breath is raptured by your sheer strength Your mouth travels along my neck Hungry….like a famished animal finally set free to feast You devour as you reach my cleavage I lean back to let you savor my breasts For the first time to taste You’re down on your knees your tongue encircling my navel going round and round and dipping inside This prophetic dance of what is to come washes over me as you lower me to the ground In a moment, I’m looking at the stars The two brightest ones being your eyes You are above me You are everywhere Kissing tasting touching feeling pleasing Finding my voice, I pant... “Don't...be gentle not...now!" I’m gasping with the effort of all I need to say... of the weight of feelings... raging within me "Don't...hold back anymore Take me... Take me...now." Your hands reach for mine and pin them down My breasts heave, my body rocks as I feel you plunging into the moistness that your very presence always creates in me But never...to this luxuriant degree Pain mixes with pleasure again and again As I hear your grunt and groan Your ecstasy comes in manish moan And I close my eyes to the Roman night sky I sigh I die To the world I am reborn in you I hear your victory cry And feel your jubilant release inside Part VI They fought for life We fought for love My fingers run through your hair Your head is pillowed on my breast My heart beat a reminder Of what you have won A gladiator’s reward... LIFE found in the arms of the woman you LOVE For Justin Bordner’s Contest Make Love to Me in that Ancient Place November 16, 2014