[In the very first episode of Xena - ''Sins of the Past'', Xena rescued Gabrielle and the women of Poteidaia from Draco's men. But what if she didn't?]
Choices and Consequences
Prologue
Xena watched from the bushes as the young women were being herded away from their village toward the river. Chains linked iron collars around each of their necks. Heavily armed men, a dozen at least, walked on either side of them, cursing the ones who didn't move fast enough. And striking those who stumbled.
'. . . Six, eight, ten.' She counted silently as the last one passed. She knew they would be taken by boat to the sea, and then loaded on a large ship heading to one of the many slave markets, probably never to be seen again by their families.
As they disappeared from sight, Xena cautiously emerged from her hiding place. Shaking her head sadly, she mounted her horse and headed in the opposite direction, away from the river.
'Wish I could have helped them,' she thought to herself. 'But if I'm going to try to turn my life around, the last thing I need is more enemies. Not much I could have done without my weapons, anyway.'
"Besides," she said out loud, "In these hard times, at least they'll be fed and have a roof over their heads. So what if they have to work a little harder, once they learn the rules they won't be whipped. Well, not too much. Good slaves are a valuable commodity. A few of them were very pretty, they'll end up as harem favorites, or at the very least, as household servants. No hard labor for them."
But as hard as she tried to convince herself they were better off, she couldn't shake the feeling that she should have done -- something!
Suddenly, Xena whipped her horse into a fast gallop, as if trying to run away from it. Before she realized it, she was riding into a small village. It was obvious there had been a battle of some kind recently. Dead and wounded men were still lying in the street, some being tended to by old women, and by the few men who weren't too badly hurt.
As she dismounted to see if she could help, one of the men came up to her. "Did you see them? The young women of our village? They were taken away by Draco's men. Did you see?"
"I saw them. They're taking them to the river. There's probably a boat waiting to take them to one of the slave markets."
Hearing this, several of the women began to wail and cry out loud, lamenting the fate of their daughters or sisters.
"If we can get enough men together, can you lead us to them?" Another man said.
"I don't know if that's such a good idea. I know Draco, and I know the kind if men that follow him. If you try to attack them, they may kill the girls for spite. I know you don't want THAT."
"But we can't just do nothing!" A third man said angrily. "These are our daughters! What kind of men would we be if we just let them be taken to be sold into slavery?"
"Alive, that's what kind! From what I can see, you don't have anywhere near enough men to attack them. You are all too hurt or too old, and you are not warriors. If you want to risk the lives of your daughters and commit suicide at the same time, that's up to you. But don't expect me to lead you to your deaths. I've seen enough bloodshed and killing for three lifetimes."
There were a few feeble protests, but they all knew Xena was right. Most of all the young, strong men in the village were either already dead, or dying, or so badly wounded they would never raise a sword again.
After one last look around, saddened by the carnage, Xena mounted her horse to leave. There was nothing for her here. As she rode out of town, she heard some old man crying out to one of the gods, she didn't know which one, it didn't matter. She had never put much faith in them anyway.
"Why? Why have you let this happen to us? Have we offended you somehow? What will happen to our town without our daughters? After we are dead there will be no grandchildren to take our places! Our village with wither and die!"
As Xena traveled farther from the small town, the old man's wailings and pleadings faded away. But one thing stuck in her mind. Some time, during his laments, the old man had cried out the name of the village -- "Poteidaia."
Chapter One
The midsummer sun beat down mercilessly as the nine young women were left standing in the middle of a small grassy field. The iron collars around their necks absorbed the heat, leaving burn marks where it touched the skin. Suddenly, one of the girls fainted and fell to the ground. The short length of chain connecting the collars pulled the girls on either side of her down also. Which caused a chain reaction, and all of them were pulled off their feet. And just as suddenly, a whip cracked, striking two of them, ripping through their blouses and drawing blood.
"On your feet! NOW! I want you all on your feet or you'll die where you lay!"
As the women desperately tried to help each other to stand, the whip cracked twice more, cutting flesh with each stroke. As the guard started to use the whip again, a messenger ran up to him, stopping him.
"What?" the guard bellowed, tempted to strike the messenger.
"SHE wants you." He whispered loudly to the guard. "Right now! Before you do any more harm to them."
The guard snarled at the small man, and cracked the whip in the direction of the line of girls, who had finally struggled to their feet. Before turning to follow the messenger to a large tent at the edge of the field, he yelled out to them, "The next who falls, dies, and the one next to her as well!
As the guard entered the tent, he removed his helmet in respect for the angry looking woman seated behind a table. He stood silent, waiting for her to finish reading the scroll she was holding.
Without looking up, she said, "Esar, how many times have I asked that you not damage the goods?"
When he didn't answer, she looked up at him. "Well?"
"I don't remember. Many times."
She took a deep breath, trying to control her anger.
"And yet, you continue to whip and cut and scar them."
Without realizing it, she absently ran her finger down an old scar that ran from above her right eyebrow, over her cheek, and down past the corner of her mouth.
"How am I to get a decent price for them if they are mutilated? No one wants an ugly servant."
"No ma'am," he answered, looking at the floor.
She took another breath. "How many did you lose this time?"
"Only one. But she was a troublemaker. I, we, had no choice."
"I suppose she was another one with blond hair?"
"Red and blond, mixed together."
"What is it with those girls? Are they all so stupid? The others never cause any problems."
"No ma'am, not much."
Another deep breath.
"So tell me, are any of them still virgins?"
Esar looked uncomfortable, his eyes still on the dirt floor of the tent.
"I see. Well, maybe we can get by with lying about their virtue. I guess I might as well take a look at them, see what kind of damage you've done."
The woman stood up and walked around the table and past Esar. As she walked out into the midday sun, he followed behind, putting on his helmet and retrieving his whip from a sentry.
As she walked up to the young women, had they noticed, they would have seen that Esar's attitude was now changed. He was following the woman like a little lost puppy, yet he was twice her size. Behind him, two more guards followed.
"They need water," she said to no one. Immediately one of the guards ran off to find a water skin.
With no gentleness about her, she inspected the cuts from the whip.
"Have these wounds tended to." The second guard ran off to find the Healer.
"At least you managed to avoid cutting up their faces this time."
"Yes ma'am." Esar replied.
"Lock them up and remove the collars. Feed them, and tomorrow I'll see about figuring what kind of price I should be able to get for them."
Just then one of the girls spoke up. "You have no right to sell us as slaves! No right at all! We're all free women of . . . ."
Without hesitation, Esar swung the butt of his whip against the side of her head, knocking her unconscious. As she fell, the others fell with her.
"Another blond! The girl's as stupid I was -- once," the woman said, walking back to her tent. "Keep her in line. But try not to leave too many marks. Even with her sharp tongue, she's pretty enough to fetch a good price."
"Yes ma'am. No ma'am. Yes ma'am."
Esar turned back to the captives, and cracking his whip, directed them to a temporary cage made of sapling trees on the opposite side of the field.
In the meantime, the woman went back to her chair and sat down wearily.
"Long day?" A voice from behind her said.
"No, not particularly, just frustrating, and hot. I hate this hot weather."
"Maybe this will help."
Large masculine hands began massaging her neck and shoulders, working out the knots and draining the tension from her.
"Not many girls this time." He commented.
"Unfortunately not. I think it might be time to move on. Not many left around here."
"I hear there are plenty of young, strong, pretty ones west of here, near Mt Olympus."
The woman looked up at the man behind her. He had dark eyes and hair, with a neatly trimmed beard. And he was dress in black leather.
"Any reason in particular you think there's good hunting there?"
"No. Should there be?"
"Ares, you're such a liar!" The woman laughed as she pulled him down to her, and kissed him hard.
As their lips parted slightly, Ares whispered, "You know, Gabrielle . . . ."
But she latched on to his bottom lip with her teeth, and said, biting him as hard as she could, "I told you NEVER to call me that!" she said between her teeth. Ares patiently waited until she let him go. She was causing him no pain, and she knew it.
Chapter Two
From the corner table she watched her men drinking and laughing at the bar of the tavern. They had stopped to celebrate after selling off the girls to the slave traders. Even though there weren't as many this trip, they sold for more than she had hoped. The cheapest went for fifty dinars.
She watched as they wasted their pay on women and gambling and strong wine. Slowly she raised her own goblet of wine and sipped it slowly. The remains of her meal were still before her.
As she watched, she became aware of someone standing next to her. She slowly turned her head to see a young boy, about five or six, staring at her. Staring at the scar that ran down her face. For a few more heartbeats he continued to look at it, then suddenly turned and ran off.
Her hand went to the scar and gently felt its raised ridge on her cheek.
As she sat feeling it, her mind went back to the day she had gotten it. How long had it been? Six, eight years ago? She couldn't remember right off. But she remembered the day they came, Draco and his men. They attacked the village at daybreak.
The battle was over before the sun had cleared the trees. Many of the men of her village were dead or dying. And she, and all young women they could find, were chained together with collars of iron around their necks. These neck irons had been removed as they were being loaded on the boat waiting to take them to some slave market somewhere. Her sister, Lila, weak from the long, forced trek, had tripped on the hem of her skirt.
'Lila! How long it has been since I last thought of you?' She mused. 'I wonder whatever happened to you.'
Lila had fallen, and was hit with a cat-o-nine tails across the back, drawing blood. Gabrielle immediately struck out at the man, knocking him down. He had dropped his whip into the river, so as he jumped to his feet, he pulled his sword out and swung it down at her, intending to split her skull. Gabrielle threw herself back to avoid being killed, but she tripped, and as she fell, the tip of the sword slashed her face from eyebrow to chin. She screamed out in pain as her hands went to her face, blood pouring down her arms and dripping off her elbows.
The man advanced on her, intending to finish her off, when he was knocked down from behind. Through the pain, Gabrielle saw it was Draco who knocked the man down.
"Have you lost your mind?" He screamed at the man, and kicked him in the back.
"Do you know how much I could have gotten for her? Now look what you've done! Her face is ruined! Who's going to pay good money for her now?"
The man slowly got to his feet. He tried to meet Draco's angry stare but couldn't.
"Well, maybe it won't be a total loss," Draco said, calming a little. "They can always use another slave in the copper mines."
Then to other men standing there, he said, "Strip him and put the chains on. And let this be a lesson to the rest of you -- NEVER damage the goods."
Draco went to Gabrielle and grabbed her hair with one hand. With the other he jerked her hands away from her bloody face to look at her wound.
"Fix her up!" he yelled out to nobody in particular.
"What a waste!" he said walking away. "I'll be lucky if I can get ten dinars for her now."
Just then a bottle of wine was slammed down on the table, jerking the woman from her reverie.
"Rielle!" A large, dirty, and slightly drunk warrior shouted out as he plopped down in the chair next to her. "How ya been? Long time, no see!"
"Zymat." She said. "Yes, it has been a while."
"From the way they're spending, your men must have gotten a good payday this time."
"Yeah, we did pretty fair. Most of the girls were pretty enough that I got a good price for them. Not a many of them as I'd hoped for, though."
"You're not celebrating much, afraid to spend all that money?"
Rielle smiled at him. Despite the fact that he was crude, smelly, drunk most of the time, and was too loud, she liked him. She always knew where she stood with him, he wasn't one to pull punches. He always said what he felt. And she knew, for the most part, she could trust him.
"Saving it up," she replied. "Some day I'm going to have enough to quit all this and settle down somewhere. Retire, you know?"
Zymat laughed out loud. "Rielle! People like us don't retire! We battle on until someone puts a sword through our gut. Or a trusted lieutenant stabs us in the back." And laughing again he took a long swallow out of the bottle of wine. "Or poisons us!"
Rielle smiled again. "You're probably right."
Zymat finished the bottle and ordered another. And kept on talking. Rielle wasn't really listening to him, but was watching him, trying to decide if she wanted to spend the night with him. It wouldn't be the first time. Although she really wasn't in the mood, she didn't want to be alone tonight, either.
She stood up.
"Come on." She said, pulling him to his feet. "Let's dance."
"You ain't gotta ask me twice!" he roared, a big smile on his face, revealing yellowed and broken teeth.
They weren't going to dance, it was a private joke. It meant they were going to spend the night together. There was no real love between them. However, there was respect for each other's fighting abilities, and there was the common bond that comes from facing death on the field of battle.
As Zymat lay on top of her, grunting and panting with the exertion, Rielle found herself oddly distracted. It was as if she were watching it happen to someone else.
She smelled the stale wine on his breath, and she could feel his weight on her, and she could feel him as he moved in and out of her. But the feeling, the passion she wanted to feel, wasn't there.
She found herself thinking back to her first time. She'd had no choice in the matter. And it was painful and violent.
She was the last to be sold. Her face was swollen and discolored. Blood and pus seeped from the scab that was newly formed over the gash. The auctioneer had stripped her naked, hoping her delightfully well-proportioned young body would make her more desirable. But even though many shouted out lewd comments about her nakedness, the bidders were silent. She finally was sold to the only bidder for fifteen dinars, pitifully low, but it was better than nothing.
Lila had sold for seventy-five dinars, and the last time Gabrielle ever saw her, she was being loaded into a cart with several other girls. And as they were driven away, she was sobbing and crying out to Gabrielle.
The soldier who had slashed and marred her for life was sold for fifty dinars. He was strong and would last for years in the mines.
Gabrielle, and four other women, were bought by a warlord named Xandiv. They had their ankles tied to each other with rope and were marched for several days until they reached his camp. Once there, the women were untied and put into a cell constructed of saplings criss-crossed and tied with leather thongs, forming a crude holding pen. One by one the girls were led away. Two were resold, at a substantial mark up, and two remained to be trained as servants, and to be used by the soldiers as a reward for outstanding service to the warlord.
For two days Gabrielle was alone in the cage, until late in the afternoon she was taken to Xandiv. She stood waiting in his tent until he had concluded some business with three of his captains. As they left the tent, each had a knowing smile as they passed her. Xandiv walked up to her, first looking at her disfigured cheek, then walking around her, looking her up and down. When he was in front of her again he reached out and tore her tattered blouse from her. Her skirt was next. Then the flimsy undergarment she was wearing.
"Not bad." He said as he once again walked around her. "Not bad at all."
Xandiv reached out and grabbed one firm, full breast with his dirty, calloused hand. Gabrielle jerked away from him and slapped at his face. But he only felt the wind from it.
"So, you're a tough one, are you?" He said laughing.
And without warning, he backhanded her across the mouth, knocking her to the ground. He then bent down and grabbed a handful of hair and pulled her to her feet. Gabrielle's teeth were stained with her blood, and she tried spitting at him, but the blood-thickened saliva only ran down her chin.
"Yeah, you're a tough little girl, all right. Let's see how tough you really are."
Still holding her by the hair, he dragged her toward his bed. When she realized what was about to happen, she began fighting him -- screaming, kicking, and scratching at his hand, trying to pull away from him. He threw her to the bed, and as she bounded back up, he hit her, and then again as she tried getting away from him. This blow knocked her senseless for a moment, long enough for him to climb on top of her.
The rest was mostly a blur. But she did remember his foul breath, the pain of the blows, and most of all, the pain of the violent penetration.
Rielle felt relieved when Zymat finally rolled off of her, panting and wheezing.
"Oh, that was good!" He said between pants. "You always were the best."
"Sure I am." She answered. "Until the next whore comes along."
But her reply was wasted on him, he was already sleeping, or passed out.
Rielle got out of bed and went to the small table where Zymat's half-empty bottle of wine was. She picked it up, and a large bowl, then went to one corner, squatted down and put the bowl on the floor under her. She then poured wine into her hand and began cleaning herself. She did this several times, taking large swallows of the wine in between.
When the wine was gone, she dried herself with one corner of the blanket that had been thrown from the bed, then lay down next to the snoring, naked man, and soon she, too, was sleeping.
Chapter Three
The raid, like most, was at early dawn, just as the villagers were starting their day -- opening shops, arranging their wares in the open market, heading to the fields and orchards and vineyards. Doing all the things necessary to make a living.
But not one of them ever expected to be raided by slavers. No one ever thought about their women being rounded up and marched away, leaving dead and wounded men behind. Rielle was satisfied, more than satisfied, elated even, at the large number of females she was able to capture. It was as if each town was the first. Somehow, the word about the raiding never seemed to travel to the surrounding villages.
"I have to admit," Rielle said. "You were right. The pickings here border on spectacular."
"And you doubted me?" Ares answered as he poured more of his special wine into her goblet.
"With you, I never know. I'm not stupid, Ares. I know you always have an ulterior motive. I just haven't figured out what it is this time."
Ares laughed loud and long.
"Go ahead and laugh," she continued. "I'll figure it out sooner or later."
"Oh, Gabri -- I mean Rielle, why can't you just take things at face value? You want to make money by selling women to the slavers, and I want to help you. What makes you think there's more to it than that?"
Rielle didn't answer. He'd never admit he was up to something, but she knew he was.
"You want to dance?" he asked, leering at her, changing the subject.
"Sure, why not. I haven't had a good dance since, well, I don't really know when it was."
"All right, what happened? And don’t leave anything out."
Esar cleared his throat and wet his lips. This was the first time he'd ever had bad news to report, and he was trying to think of some way to tell it so it wouldn't sound too bad.
"I'm waiting." She warned.
"Okay," he began. "The raid went just as planned. We attacked at daybreak. A dozen or more villagers tried to fight us but we killed all of them. The old women tried hiding their daughters, but we found them easy enough. There were fifteen or sixteen of them. We tied them together, no problems. We headed them out of town, no problems. And we were a full day away from the village and camped for the night, no problems. Then we broke camp the next morning, still no problems."
"HEY!" Rielle yelled out. "I don't care about 'no problems!' I want to know what happened when there WAS a problem!"
"Yes ma'am. Well, about midday we came across this small farm. Wasn't much to it. A small house, small barn, a field with some chickens and some goats and a cow. There was a garden with vegetables in it, so I figured it wouldn't hurt to stop and butcher the animals, and maybe get the girls to pick the vegetables."
"Okay, that was pretty good thinking. So then what happened?"
"Well, about the time a couple of my men start after the goats, this woman comes out of the house. And she yells what do we think we're doing? So I tell her to shut up and go back into the house unless she wants to end up in the slave auction. Then she says something like no way in Tartarus, and picks up a hoe and goes after my men. Well, we all thought we were going to get a good laugh, but before we knew it, both my men were down! Next she comes after the rest of us.
Esar gulped, not really wanting to explain the next part, knowing it would sound very far fetched. . "I'm telling you, I have NEVER seen a woman fight like she did -- with a HOE! Even when the handle broke in two, she used both pieces, one in each hand! She jumped higher than a man on horseback, spinning and kicking and punching like a madman, or madwoman. And then it was over. All of us were down, knocked out, legs and arms broken. See? My arm is almost useless. And then she untied the women and told them to run back to their village. And to spread the word about us."
By this time, Rielle was pacing, angry and concerned. This couldn't be good for business -- her business.
"So she just let you all go?" She asked.
"Yeah. She said if we EVER showed up again, we would be taking our dead back with us the next time."
Rielle was still angry, but she had to have time to think, to plan, to figure out what to do about the woman. She wasn’t going to get away with attacking her men!
"All right. Get out of my sight! Make sure everyone is tended to. Just let me think. Go on! Get out!"
Esar hurried out of the tent, relieved he hadn't been flogged, or worse.
The next morning Esar was back in Rielle's tent.
"So this woman defeated ten of my men. All right, then this time you will take twenty. If you follow my plan you shouldn't need all of them, but I want them there just in case you foul up things, again!"
"Yes ma'am."
The plan was simple. The next morning, when there was barely enough light to see, half the men would silently surround the house. A few would stay back about twenty paces, just in case, while a half dozen skilled archers would stand at the ready should the woman try to make an escape. Large piles of hay and straw would be piled in front of the door and under each of the three small windows. At a signal, torches would be lit and thrown on top of the thatched roof and into the piles of hay. Then the woman inside would be given the choice to either surrender, or be burned alive. If she tried to escape, archers would cut her down before she could run a half dozen steps.
Rielle had the feeling that the woman would not let herself be incinerated. Nor would she surrender peacefully. So the archers were directed to only shoot her legs. She emphasized that if the woman were killed, her slayer would also die. She wanted this woman alive, and bound with leg, wrist, and neck irons. She had her suspicions about who this woman might be, but wanted to be sure. For if she was who she thought, then she had special plans for her.
The men set out at dusk. They would be traveling most of the night to arrive at the small farm before dawn. The moon was more than half full, so they would have enough light to see.
Rielle expected them to arrive back a little after sunset the next evening, but it was early the second morning before a messenger, riding hard, arrived with the news that the woman had been captured and they would be in camp before midday.
When they finally arrived Rielle counted only six men in the saddle. The rest of the men were draped over their horses, and half of them were dead. Behind the horses, someone was leading a cow and five goats. But she didn't see the woman, and grew angry. It was only when she saw Esar leading a horse with the woman tied hand and foot and lying across the horse, and tied to it, did she relax.
"Put the woman in the cage." She ordered Esar. "Make the horses comfortable. Have the wounded tended to. Bury the dead. Then report to me. I want to know why you allowed so many of my men to die."
Rielle waited impatiently for Esar. Only knowing the woman was imprisoned and was at her mercy eased her anger. Esar finally entered her tent.
"It's about time!" She chastised him. "You have something to tell me?"
Esar dropped his eyes to the floor and tried to think where to begin.
"Look at me!" She told him. "I want to see your eyes. I want to know if you lie to me."
Esar tentatively met her harsh stare and began his story.
"Things were going just like you planned. We got there in plenty of time, got the straw put under the windows and in front of the door. And then we set everything on fire. And I yelled at her four or five times to come out or be burned to death. But she never answered. The whole house burned down! Of course we checked in the barn, but only the cow and the goats and chickens were in there. Well, we didn't know what to do. We thought maybe she had gone off somewhere, maybe visiting relatives or something. So after everything cooled down we decided to go through what was left to see if there was anything worth taking. Well, there wasn't much.''
Esar took a deep breath, then continued, "And just as we were talking about leaving, somebody noticed that part of the floor, a real wood floor, seemed to be different. So we thought maybe something like gold or silver might be hidden under it, and just as we pulled it up, out jumped the woman! And it was just like the first time, only now she had this horrible war cry, and before anyone knows it, instead of a hoe, she has two swords, one in each hand. And she is swinging them so fast you can't hardly see 'em. And there is blood everywhere! Arms and hands were cut off ! Men were lying dead everywhere! So I yell for the archers to shoot. And they do, but she is so fast she never got hit, but a few of our own men were shot by mistake. Then all of a sudden, she just runs up the side of a tree and disappears in the branches. Well, we finally see her, and I tell the archers to start shooting up at her. But she just knocks the arrows away, or catches them and throws them back at us. Then she starts running along the limbs and then jumps to the next tree, and then the next. I thought she was going to get away for sure."
Rielle was getting tired of the story. "So how did you finally capture her?"
"Well, like I said, she was jumping from tree to tree, then we got lucky because one of the limbs broke off. She tried grabbing another one as she fell, but it broke too. When she hit the ground, it knocked her out. So we tied her up, and threw her over a horse, and then did what we could for the men she had wounded."
Rielle shook her head. 'What inept fools I'm leading!' She thought to herself.
"All right. Get out!"
Esar hurried out of the tent.
Rielle reached for a bottle of wine and poured her goblet full. Normally she didn't drink wine until the midday meal, but she felt it was needed. For most of the day she kept thinking about the woman. Something didn't seem to fit, but she couldn't figure out what it was.
Just before dusk, she had Esar bring the captive to her, with an iron collar around her neck, and chains running to shackles around her wrists and ankles.When the woman was standing before her, Rielle dismissed the guards. With her prisoner bound with chain, she knew there was no escape. Rielle picked up a long dagger, for show, and slowly circled her. She was tall, barely a half a hand's width shorter than Esar. Rielle stopped when she had circled back around in front of her.
"What's your name?" Rielle asked.
The woman looked down at her, but didn't answer.
"You might as well tell me, I already know who you are."
The barest hint of a smile came to Xena's lips. "If you know who I am, then why do I need to tell you my name?"
Rielle smiled slightly. "Let me rephrase that -- You might as well tell me your name because I know WHAT you are."
Interest showed in Xena's eyes. "And that is . . . ?"
"It's obvious -- you're an Amazon."
"An Amazon? And what makes you think that?" Xena asked.
"Your size, your self-confidence, and your fighting ability. I know of no woman who could have beaten so many of my men unless she was an Amazon. Except for me, of course."
Rielle waited for Xena to answer, and waited. "You know, I can find out who you are. I have many contacts. So you can tell me who you are, or -- I can have your likeness drawn on parchment and have messengers sent out to as many villages as it takes until someone recognizes you. The choice is yours."
Xena was silent a little longer. Finally, she said, "My name is Cyrene."
"Cyrene, huh? Well, maybe, maybe not, but I'll accept that for now. You know, there's something that puzzles me. I know a little about the Amazons, and I know that if you aren't with them, then you have been expelled, exiled for some reason, for some crime against the tribe. Now with the skills you have, whatever it was that you did must have been really bad, but not bad enough to be executed. So I keep asking myself just what crime you could have committed? And the only thing I can think of is that you were found in a compromising situation with a man. Am I right?"
"You can think whatever you like."
"That's not much of an answer, but I suppose it doesn't matter. I'm tired of this. Guards! Take the prisoner back to her cage."
Chapter Four
The next morning Rielle stood at the door of her tent, looking across the field at the cage, and the prisoner inside. Whenever she took the time, she never failed to notice how much it resembled the cage she was locked in whenever Xandiv wasn't using her for his pleasure.
Every time she was dragged from the cage she fought. It seemed that she was never brought to Xandiv without a bloody mouth. Sometimes she wondered how she was able to keep all her teeth.
"She's quite a fighter." Bramo the Scribe said laughing, as once again Gabrielle was thrown down at the feet of Xandiv.
"Yes. And I grow tired of her struggles."
"I wonder what she would do with a sword in her hand."
"I'm sure she would try her best to murder us all." Xandiv said.
"I have a thought." Bramo said. "Is it not true that your brother-in-law's cousin trains slaves to fight in the arena? I hear they are always looking for something different, and I would be willing to bet that he would buy her from you if he thought she could provide a bit of entertainment."
"I may consider it, if the price is right. Send a message to him. Arrange the meeting."
"This woman thinks she is a fighter?" Elmon asked. "Surely she doesn't think she can compete with my men."
"I didn't say she was a fighter," Xandiv replied. "I said she fights like a tigress. You will see for yourself. Of course if you pair her against your best, it won't be much of a contest."
"I have chosen a beginner. So, let's see your champion."
Gabrielle was dragged from her cell, fighting and scratching, until she was thrown to the floor in the center of a large dining hall. Looking around she saw Xandiv seated with several other men. Just then a sword was thrown down next to her. And then a boy about her age was brought into the hall. He was carrying his sword.
"You, girl!" Xandiv yelled out. "This is your chance. If you make the kill, you win your freedom. If not -- you die."
Gabrielle slowly let her hand move to the sword. As she did, her opponent went into a fighting stance. She picked up the sword and got to her feet. Just as she did, he attacked! Barely in time she raised the sword high enough that the fighter's own sword clanged against the blade. The force of the blow knocked Gabrielle back several steps as she tried to keep her balance. He swung again, and she barely was able to duck out of the way.
In desperation, Gabrielle swung her weapon with both hands but he danced out of the way. She swung a second and then a third time, trying to keep him at a distance. But the sword was heavy, too heavy for a woman her size, and she was tiring quickly. As the young fighter charged in, Gabrielle stumbled backward over her own feet and fell flat on her back.
He raised his sword to strike the killing blow, but Gabrielle managed to pull her own weapon across her chest, and by holding it by the handle and the blade, barely was able to block it, but she felt the air of it on her face. Screaming in anticipation of a kill, the man raised his sword again, but Gabrielle kicked out with both feet at his legs and connected with one knee. He stumbled back, limping slightly and in some pain.
Furious that he was having so much trouble defeating this girl, and embarrassed in front of the Trainer, and his owner, he threw his sword to one side and dove down on her, his hands closing around her neck. As he tightened his grip, Gabrielle began to claw at his face and eyes, and bucking up with her hips, trying to throw him off of her or to get his hands from around her throat. Twice he pounded her head on the stone floor. But still she fought.
Just as she was losing consciousness, Elmon waved one hand, and the Trainer bent down and pulled the boy off of her, tossing him aside as if he was so much garbage.
"The girl has fire. She might provide some entertainment." Elmon said. "I'll give you ten dinars for her."
"Ten dinars!" Xandiv exclaimed. "I paid fifty for her!"
"I know you better than that." Elmon said laughing. "There is no way you'd pay that much for a woman who was so disfigured. I'll pay you twenty pieces of gold and no more."
"Done!" Xandiv said. "Twenty it is."
When Gabrielle had recovered enough, the Trainer reached down to her. Looking up, she saw a hand that was missing all or parts of every finger. His face was badly scarred. And one ear was completely gone. She wasn't sure what to do.
"Come on, Girl." He rasped. "It's over."
"I'm free?" Gabrielle asked with unbelieving hope in her voice.
"Free! You didn't kill nobody. You belong to me now."
Suddenly she found herself jerked to her feet.
"But before I'm through with you, you'll be real killer!" He said laughing at his own joke.
As he led her away, with chains on her ankles, he asked, "What's your name, Girl?"
"It's Gabrielle." She said to his back, trying to keep up.
"You have to speak up, don't hear so good. You say Rielle?"
"No, it's GAB - rielle."
"Oh, Rielle."
"No! It's GAB -- Gab - ri - elle."
But 'Rielle' was already set in his mind. And from then on, that was what she was called.
As Rielle stood staring across the field at her prisoner, she made a decision.
"Esar!"
"Yes, you called?"
"I want to test the prisoner. I need to know if she's as good as you say she is. Have archers surround the field. Release her from her chains and give her a sword."
"But -- but is that wise? You haven't seen her . . . ."
"Do as I say! Instruct her to move to the middle of the field."
Returning to her tent, Rielle selected her weapon, a sword as long as her arm, both edges honed to a razor sharpness. But she also fastened a long knife to the small of her back parallel to her waist so all she would have to do is put her left hand behind her and the handle would be in her palm.
Xena was already in the field, a sword in her hand, but with the point resting on the ground. Rielle walked toward her, slowly swinging her sword in circles using only the motion of her wrist.When she was fifteen paces away she stopped.
"We are going to have a little contest." Rielle said to her. "I'm curious to see just how good you are."
"Not much of a contest." Xena replied. "You, and all your archers, against me."
"They are here just to insure that you don't try to escape. They won't interfere."
"And if I kill you?"
"I told you, this is just a contest, not a fight to the death."
Xena nodded, and slowly brought the end of the sword up until it was pointing at Rielle, the tip making small circles. Rielle began circling until the rising sun was in Xena's eyes. But she was too smart for that, and when Rielle stopped, Xena circled until the sun was to the side of both of them.
Without warning, Rielle attacked! She sliced downward, but Xena turned her body to let the blade pass harmlessly by.
Rielle spun around then thrust the sword at Xena's midsection, but Xena used her sword to deflect it. Rielle remained on the offense, slicing and jabbing and swinging her sword while Xena parried and dodged, blocking the blows with little effort.
"Well, your defense is -- adequate." Rielle said, stepping back to catch her breath. Beads of sweat were running down her face. "But so far I haven't seen any offense."
"So it's offense you want?" Xena asked. "I'll see what I can do."
Suddenly Xena's sword was flashing in the morning light, driving Rielle back. Xena was circling her, thrusting and slicing the air around her. And then Xena flipped completely over Rielle, and as she landed behind her, Rielle felt Xena's hand on her back.
As she spun around to defend herself, she saw that Xena had lowered her sword. On her face was an irritating 'look-what-I-have' expression. In her left hand she was holding up the dagger by its tip. Rielle's hand went behind her but the knife was gone! Xena slowly let her hand drop down, and then underhanded, tossed the dagger back to Rielle, who caught it easily.
As the two women stood a half dozen paces apart, staring at each other, Rielle realized that Cyrene had won. It shouldn’t have been so, but she was better and faster. And they both knew it. Rielle's eyes dropped to the sword still in Cyrene's hand. Xena looked down at it, raised it waist high, then tossed it to the ground. And with a subtle, triumphant look at Rielle, Xena turned and walked back to her cage.
Watching her as she walked away, Rielle knew she had to know more about this woman. There was more to her than just being an Amazon, there had to be. There were too many unanswered questions.
Rielle returned to her tent and released the flap to cover the entrance for privacy. She then stripped down and emptied several water skins to wash the dust and the sweat off.
"Esar!" she yelled out after she had dressed. "Clean the prisoner, then bring her here. And have my midday meal prepared for two."
Esar knew better than to argue, but he hesitated.
"Is there a problem?" She asked.
"No! No problem!" And he hurried away to do as he was told.
When Xena entered the tent, Rielle was already sitting. The table between them was piled high with various fruits, cheese, bread, and meat. The meat was already cut into bite-size pieces. There were no knives or other eating utensils to be seen. On either side of the opening and behind Rielle were archers, with arrows ready, if necessary. Xena's hands and feet were shackled. It was obvious that cleaning her up only involved throwing buckets of water on her for her clothes and hair were wet.
"Release her hands." Rielle instructed. "Then leave us."
Esar did as he was told. The archers remained.
Rielle gestured to the chair opposite her. "Sit. Eat."
Xena slowly sat down, and placed her hands on the table where they could be seen. Rielle leaned forward and pushed a goblet of wine to Xena. If she drank enough, maybe it would loosen her tongue.
But Xena didn't move.
"You don't drink wine?" Rielle asked.
"I'd like some water." Xena answered.
Rielle got up and filled a second goblet with water and placed it on the table. Slowly Xena picked it up and drank it down.
"Thank you," she said.
Rielle took the goblet and filled it with wine and set next to the first.
"Just in case you think I have drugged your wine, I'll let you choose which one you want. Then I'll drink the other."
Xena picked up one of them and waited for Rielle to take the other. Smiling, Rielle picked up the remaining cup and drank half of the wine at one time.
"You see? No tricks. Now will you drink?"
Xena picked up the goblet, took a small swallow, then set it back down. Next, Xena tore off a hunk of bread and picked up a piece of meat to go with it. Rielle did the same, and the meal began.
Chapter Five
When they had finished eating, Rielle had two more bottles of wine brought out. She was determined to find out everything she could about this woman, this 'Cyrene.' As they sat, neither one spoke, but their eyes were locked, each waiting for the other to break the stare. It was then that Rielle realized how blue, and how beautiful 'Cyrene's' eyes were.
Finally Rielle asked, "Why would an Amazon with your fighting skills be working a dirt farm out in the middle of nowhere?"
Xena didn't answer.
"Okay. Since you don't want to talk, I will. I have a proposition for you. I see that got your interest. As you know, I am in the business of acquiring, and selling, young women, mostly. And the money is excellent. But I was just thinking how much more I could get for real Amazon women. There are those who would pay hundreds of dinars for just one of them. And I was also thinking that if you have been exiled from your tribe, you might want a little payback, you know -- revenge? And what better way to get back at them than to help me capture ten or twelve of them, or the entire tribe! And if things work out, you and I might form a partnership of some kind. So -- what do you say? Interested?"
There was nothing more disgusting and loathsome to Xena than slave traders, but she decided now wasn't the time to say anything, so she said nothing.
Rielle waited for an answer. After a while, she said, "You know, this is a real opportunity for you. Together we can make some real money. But if you refuse, then I only have two options. I can put the word out that I have an Amazon for sale, and let you go to the highest bidder. Or I can put you back in that cage until you decide to cooperate."
"Or you could release me." Xena said quietly.
Rielle smiled a little. "Unfortunately, for you, that isn't an option."
Again they stared at each other. And despite herself, Rielle realized she was starting to like this 'Cyrene,' if that was really her name. But it's just the wine, she concluded as she poured the remainder of the second bottle into her and Xena's cups
Rielle quickly downed the wine in one gulp, the slammed the cup to the table, as if inviting Xena to do the same. Xena picked up her goblet, took a small sip, and put it back down.
"Well, it looks like we're getting nowhere." Rielle said at last. "Esar! Take her back to her cage."
As Xena walked out of the tent, Rielle stopped Esar. "Give her a full skin of water, a blanket, and a pot to relieve herself."
Esar nodded. He couldn't understand why Rielle suddenly seemed so charitable, but he knew better than to question her motives.
Rielle dropped the flap of the tent then laid down on her bed to think. Her thoughts were jumbled as she tried to make sense of the mystery this woman brought. Foremost among her thoughts was how easily 'Cyrene' had beaten her. It shouldn't have happened. Rielle had been trained by the best.
Her first days in the training camp were as bad as the time she'd spent with Xandiv, maybe worse. The other men thought she was brought in for their pleasures, and took her whenever they wanted. She soon realized that only by playing up to the biggest and most feared of them, a large slave called Calrem that the others left her alone. Having to sleep with one was far more preferable than being taken by whoever wanted her for the night.
But her training was still considered a joke. Even though she had been raised on a farm, and was strong for a girl, her strength still was much less than that of a man. To compensate, she pushed herself harder than the men. In the evenings, instead of resting as the others did, she would continue to train. Rielle would run in place until she was exhausted, building her stamina. She would do sit-ups and push-ups and pull-ups long into the night.
When wrestling, she learned to use their weight and momentum against them. And to use her smaller size and speed to get in close to attack the vulnerable spots. And it didn't take her long to realize her long blond hair made it too easy for the men to grab on to it and jerk her around with it. So she had her hair cut to the length of her little finger. Her weapon of choice was the short sword, barely as long as her arm. It was light enough for her to use effectively, but still sturdy enough to ward off the blades of her opponents.
Before a half a year had passed, Rielle was no longer a joke. She was tough, merciless, and successful -- in practice. She had yet to enter the arena. It was another quarter of a year before she had her first contest. It was the first match up out of ten, pitting the fighters of Elmon against those of another warlord - Tradar.
Rielle was wearing a linen cloth wrapped several times around her chest, binding her breasts tightly, so she wouldn't appear too feminine. A leather skirt went half way to her knees. In the small of her back a short dagger was slipped into a sheath, to be used if she was in close and needed it. The only interest in her match was because she was a woman. No one expected her to win, so no one made any bets.
"You got to get in close as fast as you can," the Trainer was telling her. "This is his first contest as well, and he's got to be feeling insulted because he has to fight a girl. So don't give him a chance."
Rielle nodded. She couldn't speak, she was too scared. This was it. She had to kill her opponent. There were no stalemates, no ties; they would fight until one was dead or dying.
They entered the sand covered arena from opposite sides. Rielle's mouth was dry, and her hands were shaking. She took several slow breaths and tried to relax. Suddenly the young man, not much older than she was, raced across the arena, his sword already slashing at her. She dropped to the sand and as the blade passed over her, and struck at the boy's thigh, her blade going halfway to the bone.
He screamed out and fell to one knee, his wounded leg unable to support his weight. Rielle immediately swung her sword at his neck. But she hit him too high, striking just above his ear. The force of the blow knocked him to the ground. Just as he turned over to his back, Rielle plunged her sword into his heart with both hands. The sword went through his ribs, through his heart, and the tip became stuck in the inside of his shoulder blade. He died immediately.
As she jerked her sword out of the dead boy, she heard shouts and cheers. When she looked up, she saw approval on the faces of those watching. She had surprised them all. It was her obligation to cut off both ears of her dead opponent. One was presented to her owner, Elmon. And she was expected to wear the other on a leather string around her neck. The more ears she had, the more successful, and more popular, she would become.
With the battle over, and her adrenaline level dropping, Rielle began to realize what she had done - she had taken a human life! And to make it worse, she had to cut the ears off the poor unfortunate boy. She barely made it out of the arena, and out of site of the spectators, before she fell to her hands and knees and vomited. And when her stomach was empty, she continued to vomit.
Finally, the Trainer pulled her to her feet. "The first time's always the worst." He said. "It gets easier."
But it didn't, not her second kill, not her ninth. Over and over she would tell herself it was kill or be killed. But after having to mutilate her adversaries, she still would vomit. It wasn't until her tenth contest did she stop throwing up.
Rielle awoke with a jerk. Sitting up on her bed, she tried to remember the dream that woke her up, but it was fading away. She only knew it frightened her. She walked to the front of her tent and pulled back the flap. The sun was already showing over the trees. She walked back to her bed and sat down on it. She closed her eyes, wishing she could go back to sleep.
"Rough night?" Ares asked.
Rielle got up off the bed to get a drink of water.
"I've had better." She finally said.
"You seem a little preoccupied."
"I guess I am. I have a decision to make, and it's not as easy as it should be."
"Maybe I can help." Ares volunteered.
"Well, we captured an Amazon . . . ."
"An Amazon? There aren't any Amazons around here."
"It was just one. She was living as a farmer about a day's ride from here."
"Doesn't sound like any Amazon I've ever heard about."
"I thought it was strange, too. But the way she took out so many of my men, she has to be one. Anyway, I told her if she'd let me know how to capture more of them, I might go easy on her. But she didn't seem to want to cooperate. So, do I auction her off and get what I can for her, or hope she'll come around?"
"Tough decision. I think I'd like to see this Amazon."
"Sure. Esar! Bring the prisoner. And make sure she's chained securely!"
But Esar couldn't move. The sight of the God of War standing in front of him was overwhelming.
"Right now!" Rielle yelled at him. Esar turned and ran across the field to obey.
"If she's not an Amazon, I don't know what else she could be." Rielle said.
As Xena walked into the tent, her hands chained behind her back, Rielle said, "Ares, this is . . . ."
"Xena!" He shouted out, a big grin on his face.
"Ares." Xena said, her voice cold and her expression colder.
"You two know each other?" Rielle asked.
"Oh yeah!" Ares replied. "We go way back, don't we Xena?"
Rielle had a puzzled look on her face. "Xena? Her name's Xena? Where have I heard that name before?"
"So, Xena," Ares continued. "What have you been up to?"
"What do you want?" She asked, venom in her voice
"What do you think I want? I want you back!"
Suddenly it came to her, and Rielle said, "The Warrior Princess? She's . . . ?"
"Yes she is." Ares said happily. "I knew you could find her."
"What? You knew I could -- Is that what this was all about? All these years all I was doing was looking for HER?"
"Sure. What did you think? That I was trying to make you rich?"
"But - but, I thought . . . How could you use me like that?"
Becoming angry, Rielle grabbed Ares' arm, but with a flick of his hand she was sent flying across the room to land partially on her bed.
"So how about it, Xena? Tired of all this poverty and this -- farming?"
"Ares, there's no way I'd ever go back with you! I'd rather spend the rest of my life in these chains than do that!"
Ares waved his hand and the chains disappeared.
"What chains?" He asked.
"Forget it. My life with you is over. I'll never let you change me back into the bloodthirsty warrior I once was. Never!"
"Well, you obviously need time to think about it. I'll be back in a day or two." And in a flash of light, he disappeared.
Chapter Six
Rielle sat on the edge of her bed, shocked and stunned, not wanting to believe that Ares had been using her just to find Xena.
Xena walked over to her. "Don't take it so hard," She said. "Ares uses people all the time. It's what he does best."
Rielle looked up at her as if she was just seeing her for the first time. "You're really Xena?" she asked.
"Yep." Xena answered matter-of-factly.
"I always thought the stories I heard about you were just that -- stories. Like you were some kind of mythical character."
"Nope. I'm really real."
Rielle was quiet for a time, studying her hands resting in her lap, and Xena stood there, waiting. Rielle looked up at her again.
"Who is Cyrene?"
"That was my mother's name."
Rielle nodded slightly, and then said, "I guess you're pretty much free to go. I'm sure by now Esar has spread the word about you and Ares."
"Probably."
When Xena didn't move, Rielle asked, "So why are you still here? You know no one would dare stop you now."
"I'll leave soon enough. But right now I'm -- concerned."
Rielle looked puzzled.
"Concerned? About what?"
"About you," Xena replied softly.
Rielle was even more confused.
"Why would you care anything about me?"
"Because I know what Ares did to you, did to your mind, and it disgusts me!"
Rielle didn't know what to say. She went back to looking at her hands. Then as if she were talking to them, she said, "I can't believe the things I've done. I was a slave myself, yet I doomed hundreds of women to the same horrible fate."
She looked up at Xena again, tears running down her face. "How could I have been so -- so callous? So unfeeling? By the gods, what a monster I turned into!"
Xena sat down on the bed next to Rielle and put one hand on her shoulder. "Rielle, you can't blame yourself. It was Ares! You had no choice, you couldn't help yourself."
"Couldn't I? I just feel like I should have realized -- something. I don't know. I just don't know!"
Rielle sat shaking her head, unable to stop the tears.
Xena's hand went from Rielle's near shoulder to her other one and slowly pulled her to her until Rielle's head was resting on Xena's. After a while, Rielle sat up, and wiping her tears away, gave Xena a grateful look.
Xena got up and poured a cup of water and handed it to Rielle.
"Thanks." She said and drank it down.
Xena sat back down next to Rielle. "Rielle, how did you ever get mixed up with Ares?"
Rielle took a deep breath. Her brow furrowed as she thought back over the years.
"I told you I was a slave. And due to -- circumstances, I was purchased to be trained to fight in the arena. And I was good, too. Better than anyone expected. I won all my fights, obviously, since I'm here. I had a necklace of ears that rivaled anyone's."
Rielle gave a short, humorless laugh.
"We were heroes. We got the best food, large, clean sleeping quarters. The men had their pick of the whores. I could have had men, but mostly I chose not to. But even so, we were still slaves. And the one subject that is always on a slave's mind is escape. One day we got in a dozen or more new trainees. Foreigners, I don't know where they were from. I guess they were captured in a battle somewhere. The Trainer tried making fighters out of them, but I could tell they were going to cause trouble. A few months later, word went around that they were going to make an escape during one of the Contests that was held every once in a while against some other warlord's Fighters. Of course, we all were going to go along with it, I mean, we wanted our freedom! We thought we had a good chance to escape, we were every bit as good as the soldiers.
Rielle looked at Xena and saw concern in her eyes, then continued. "So when the day came, everyone was just waiting for the right time. But something wasn't -- right. I had a feeling that Elmon, he was our warlord, knew something was going to happen. I'm sure there was a spy planted among us. And then the revolt started. At first I was fighting for our freedom as hard as the rest of the slaves. Somehow, I battled my way into one of the rooms, looking for more of Elmon's men. And Elmon was in there, hiding. And I didn't know what to do. Should I kill him and cut an ear off? Or capture him so we could parade him around to show other warlords that we were not to be trifled with? We just stood looking at each other. Then I heard it, through the window was the sound of horses, a lot of them. And I knew they were soldiers, reinforcements, who had come to put down the rebellion. Just then, two of the foreigners came into the room with blood in their eye. And I realized I had to make a decision -- do I stay with the rebellion and probably die? Or do what I had to do to stay alive? In a heartbeat, I knew. So I killed the foreign slaves. And for I don't know how long, I protected Elmon against eight, maybe ten of the slaves who found their way into the room. I did that until the soldiers found us and rescued Elmon."
"Go on," Xena prompted when Rielle paused.
"So, in gratitude, he granted me my freedom, but only if I would remain in his service. Of course I agreed. And I was surprised when he made me the captain of a small legion. We were the back-up troops. If reinforcements were needed somewhere, we were sent. But mostly we just trained, and occasionally were used to put down small rebellions here and there. And then came the day we were sent to help the main force battling against some other warlord. But by the time we arrived, most of our men were already dead. As near as I can remember the odds were something like five to one against us. But we beat them! I lost a lot of men, but we were victorious. Well, I was raised in rank to be one of Elmon's generals. And I was given a full legion of fifty men to lead.''
"Impressive," Xena commented.
"Several days later, I was getting ready for bed, there was a flash of light, and standing before me was Ares. Although, at the time I didn't know who he was, he didn't waste any time introducing himself. Well, naturally, I was very intimidated. I mean, how many people can say they've even seen one of the gods, much less have one of them pay you a visit? He told me how impressed he was when I defeated the warlord. It seems that he had recruited him himself. And he said he thought I'd be perfect for a campaign he was planning. He wanted me to start raiding villages to capture the women. He said if the women were gone, and most of the men were killed, then his chosen warlords would have no trouble taking over the regions. When I asked what I was to do with all the prisoners, he suggested I sell them to slave traders. That way I would be rid of them, and would make a nice profit at the same time. At first I was horrified at the idea! But the more he talked about it, the more logical and sensible it sounded. I guess he was doing something to my mind."
"Sure he was." Xena told her. "He does whatever it takes to get whatever he wants."
"So, I agreed. And without a word to Elmon, my men and I just left. And as the months went by, I discovered just how easy things can be when the God of War is on your side. No matter how hard the townspeople fought against us, no matter what kind of defense they put up, we always got what we were after -- young women to sell into slavery."
Rielle was still staring into her hands. "I always felt he had an ulterior motive, and now I guess I know what it was -- he had us hunting for you. And it seems that whatever he was doing to my mind he's stopped doing, because now I realize how manipulated I've been all these years."
Rielle sat up straight and took a deep breath.
"So now what do I do?" She asked herself. "Now that I'm of no use to him anymore, I don't see much of a future for me. I doubt if very many of my men are going to want me to continue leading them. It's pretty evident it was Ares' influence that kept them loyal to me all this time."
"You can always walk away."
"What? You mean just leave? Just like that?"
"Sure. I did."
"But where will I go? What will I do?"
"You can always come with me."
Rielle looked at Xena, still not sure what to think. "Why? After all the horrible things I've done, why would anyone want me around?"
Xena smiled. "If you think you can match atrocity for atrocity with me, you've got a long, long way to go."
"You really want me to ride with you?"
"I wouldn't have suggested it if I didn't."
The more she thought about it, the more Rielle realized how much she liked the idea.
"So we just -- leave?"
"Sure."
"But what about my men? They may not like us just taking off like that."
"So break out the wine. Tell them it's a celebration in Ares' honor, and tomorrow morning while they're still sleeping, we mount up and ride out. By the time they realize we're gone it'll be too late."
"I'll do it! If you say it's that easy, then who am I to doubt the word of a Warrior Princess?"
By dusk, the celebration was well under way. While the men were drinking, and laughing, and gambling, Xena and Rielle were making their plans.
"You know, I was raised on a farm," Rielle told her. "But I really don't think I want to go back to that."
"Well, we don't have to farm. In fact, I was getting a little tired of it myself. Rielle, we can do whatever we want; whatever you want."
"That does sound pretty good. Oh, and by the way, since I'm not going to be soldiering any more, why don't you call me by my given name? It's Gabrielle."
"Gabrielle it is. So, Gabrielle, is there anything you think you'd to see, or any place you’d like to go?"
"Well, I think I might like to go home again. I haven't even thought about going back until now. I know everything's changed, but I'd still like to go, if for no other reason, just to see if my parents are still alive."
"Sure, that sounds like an excellent idea. So what's the name of the town? Maybe I've been through it."
"Oh, I doubt it. It's just a small, out-of-the-way little farming village not too far from the sea. It's called Poteidaia."
Xena felt as if someone had stabbed her in the gut with a red hot dagger.
Poteidaia!
Suddenly the memory of the day she saw those poor girls being marched away from their home to be sold into slavery came back to her, and the memory of her refusal to help mount a rescue when she had been asked. Once again, Xena began to feel the guilt from her decision to do nothing at all. And she knew she had to tell Gabrielle, it was a secret she couldn't keep.
"Gabrielle, there's something I have to tell you. There's something you need to know."
Xena's voice was strained, almost breaking.
"What is it? You make it sound like something really -- terrible."
"It is. In fact, after I tell you, it may be that it will sicken you just to look at me. And you might even wish I were dead."
"Xena, it can't be that bad. What is it?"
It was Xena's turn to take a deep breath.
"Years ago I was near a small village when I decided I'd had enough of the killing, and in the woods nearby I buried my weapons and breastplate. About that time I saw maybe a dozen or so young women chained together and being taken to be sold into slavery. And I just watched as they were led away. I could have recovered my weapons and freed those girls, but I didn't. I told myself that times were hard and they would probably be better off, but I knew better. I even rode into their village, and when the men asked if I would lead them to rescue the girls, I refused. I had two opportunities to save them, but I did nothing! Nothing but make excuses not to!"
"Xena, okay, maybe you should have done something, and you're feeling guilty that you didn't, but that was all in the past. You can't keep blaming yourself for something you didn't do."
"Gabrielle, you don't understand. That village, the ones those poor women were taken from, it was Poteidaia!"
Gabrielle got a puzzled look on her face, as if there was something she should understand. Then slowly the realization of what Xena was telling her began to sink in! She felt as if the air had been knocked out of her, and she slowly sat back down on her bed. She began to understand what Xena was telling her. Because she did nothing, Gabrielle would probably never see her dear, beloved Lila again! And if Xena had done what she should have done, all the beatings and rapes and degradation she suffered wouldn't have happened.
Gabrielle thought of all the men she had killed. And all those innocent girls that she had torn from their families to suffer untold horrors. All because Xena did nothing! Gabrielle's hands went up to cover her face, tears pouring through her fingers. Slowly she leaned down until the backs of her hands were resting on the tops of her thighs.
It was more than she could take!
First, was the discovery that Ares had been using her, and that all the evil things she had done was because he had invaded her mind and controlled her thoughts. And then hearing that the past eight years of her life could have been so much different, so much happier, if it hadn't been for Xena's failure to do the right thing was just too much for her to bear.
With tears coming from her own eyes, Xena sat next to her and gently placed one hand on Gabrielle's back. At the touch, Gabrielle jerked up, then turned and buried her face in her pillow. Xena watched as her back heaved, trying to catch her breath between the sobs.
For a long time, Xena didn't move. But when she felt Gabrielle's breathing become steady and regular, she knew she had cried herself to sleep. Xena quietly rose from the bed and drank from the water skin. Then she was aware of someone standing at the entrance of the tent. It was Esar. Xena walked over to him.
"Is there something wrong with Rielle?" he asked. Xena could smell wine on his breath, and he slurred his words slightly.
"She's fine. She doesn't want to be disturbed." Xena told him.
Esar started to walk around Xena to look for himself, but her hand in the middle of his chest stopped him. For a heartbeat he started to force himself, but the icy cold stare of Xena’s deep blue eyes changed his mind. That, and knowing she was now allied with Ares.
"I'll come back later," he mumbled and hurried off.
Xena let the flap fall, then lit a small torch for light. It was now well past sundown.
Chapter Seven
Xena absently walked around the tent Gabrielle called home, looking at this, touching that. Then she walked back to Gabrielle, and looking down at the sleeping woman Xena pondered. 'Should I just leave while she's asleep? Or should I stay, and try to make it up to her, somehow?'
As Xena stood watching Gabrielle, she couldn't help but think how fragile she looked. Not at all like the battle-hardened warrior she was. Xena made her decision, she would stay, unless Gabrielle wanted her out of her life. She sat gently down on the bed and put her hand softly on Gabrielle's back. At the touch Gabrielle jerked awake. She sat up quickly, momentarily confused. Then she saw Xena, and it all came back to her.
"Gabrielle," Xena started to say, but she was cut off when Gabrielle put her hand up between them and looked away from Xena.
Gabrielle got up from the bed and went to a trunk, opened it, and took about a bottle of wine. With her teeth, she pulled the cork out of it and turned the bottle up, drinking long and hard. She then put the cork back in the bottle and set it on the table.
Xena tried again. "Gabrielle, I know I don't have the right to ask you to forgive me. And I know I can never give back all those years you suffered through, but if you'll let me try . . . ."
Gabrielle interrupted. "No, Xena, I don't hate you. I feel like I should, but I don't."
Gabrielle hesitated. She knew what she wanted to say, but struggled to find the right words. Xena waited patiently, knowing whatever it was she was trying to tell her was important.
Finally, Gabrielle said, "Xena, there's nothing to forgive. You couldn't have known what the future would be. It doesn't matter if we do one thing, or another, or do nothing at all, there's no way we can know what will happen. I can't hold you responsible for how my life turned out. Although, I suppose I can blame Ares for the past few years."
"I'll make it up to you, Gabrielle, I swear! Somehow, some way, I will. You have to believe me."
Gabrielle smiled at her. "Well, between you trying to ease your guilt, and me trying to get over mine, we should make quite a pair!"
Xena stood up and put her hand out. "If you'll help me, I'll help you."
Gabrielle took the offered hand, but only to pull Xena to her so she could put her arms around her. Xena didn't hesitate to do the same, and the two warriors held each other close, cementing a bond that was becoming unbreakable.
The next morning before daybreak Xena and Gabrielle rode out of the camp, knowing it would be mid morning before they were missed.
At noon they stopped to rest the horses and eat lunch.
"Xena. What about Ares?"
"What about him?"
"Won't he be angry? I mean, you turned him down, and now we're sneaking away. Aren't we just asking for trouble?"
Xena laughed. "Don't worry about Ares."
"But he's a god! And the War God on top of that! Aren't you afraid he'll -- want revenge, or something?"
"Let me tell you about Ares. He's like a spoiled little child. When he sees something he thinks will be useful to him, he wants it. And when he doesn't get his way he can be a little hard to get along with. And, yes, he can be vindictive, but strangely enough, he isn't really cruel. But like I was saying, when he wants something, he's not too concerned how long it takes. Don't forget he's immortal. So if he doesn't get it this year, then next year is fine with him, or twenty years from now. You see what I'm getting at?"
"I think so. But there's something else I don't understand -- he's a god, so why did he have me look for you? It took me years, but he should have been able to find you in the blink of an eye."
"I told you, he's like a child. To him everything's a game -- war, life, people's emotions. He was probably just letting me get comfortable, and thinking that I didn't have to worry about being found. He probably figured it was going to take a few years, and then when I was finally discovered and taken captive, I'd be overjoyed that he was there to rescue me."
"Well, you seem to know him pretty good."
"As well as anyone can know the gods, I suppose. And since we're talking about Ares, there's something I was wondering about."
"What is it?"
"It's about your scar."
Gabrielle's hand automatically went to it.
"What about it?"
"Why is it you never asked Ares to remove it?"
"He mentioned it a couple of times, but I thought it would be better if I kept it."
"Why?"
"I felt it would make my men respect me more if I was a little battle scarred."
"Makes sense, I suppose. So, are you about ready move out? It's a long ride to Poteidaia."
"Sure."
Just before they mounted up, Gabrielle put her hand on Xena's arm, stopping her. She then put her arms around Xena and held her tightly. Xena returned the hug.
"What was that for?" She asked.
"Just trying to say thank you."
"For what?"
"For giving me hope again. And for not letting me hate myself. And most of all, for being my friend. You should know, I haven't had one in such a long time that I don't know if I remember how to be one, so you may have to be a little patient with me."
Xena caressed Gabrielle's hair lovingly. "Just be yourself. If I do something to make you angry, tell me. If I make a mistake, help me to correct it. And if I make you happy, let me know. That's all there is to it."
Both women blinked back tears, embraced again, then climbed on their horses and rode away from the smoldering campfire in the direction of Poteidaia.
As they rode out of sight, Ares was standing there, watching them go. "So they're together now, huh?" He said to himself. "Well, there's got to be some way to make this work for me. All I have to do is figure out the details. And I will."
He raised his voice a little. "You'll be hearing from me, Xena! You and your new little friend. Count on it!"
"Xena, did you hear something?"
"I don't think so. Why, did you?"
"Yeah. It sounded kind of like thunder, except there's not a cloud in the sky."
"I wouldn't worry about it. It's probably nothing."
THE END
( for now )
daviderl
[David E. Milligan]