Dedicated
with love to Ayelet Yaari who inspired me a lot, especially on the Ares
aspect.
This
story one first place in the ''Israeli Xena-Con 2000'' fanfic contest.
''Xena!'' I yelled, battling
my way to the top of the hill. I arrived to the last of the soldiers on
my way, and with a couple of swift staff-strokes, I was there. From the
top, I looked down at the raging battle beneath me.
''Xena!'' I yelled down
the hill. Of course, no one could hear me, especially not Xena, who was
nowhere in sight.
What do I do now?
There must be a couple
of thousands of soldiers down there! Two armies, and we're not fighting
for any of them. Or actually, fighting both. We were just trying to reach
the kings to convince them to stop the killing. King Barosous, the one
I was sent to, is a friend of Xena and I. King Eronious on the other hand,
needs to be convinced into stopping the fighting, and so Xena went for
him, for that's what she does best. Xena said that once Barosous sees me,
he'll know I'm with her and would listen to everything I have to say. She
was right about him knowing me, however as for stopping the killing....
And now I have to
reach her as fast as I can. I have to go through all of this, this... battlefield.
Walk past all the dead man, the dying soldiers, the....
Get yourself together,
Gabrielle. This is war!
That's probably what
Xena would have told me. Or maybe I'm just being paranoid?
Well, no matter what
she said, I have to go find her, and tell her that Barosous wouldn't stop
the fighting without seeing Eronious do the same. And it seemed as if neither
sides were going to stop. I hate wars. But what's important now is that
I find her.
***
I hate it when a plan
goes wrong. King Eronious was hard to find, and even harder to negotiate
with. I could have forced him to stop the war, but unfortunately he had
a point. The two sides must stop fighting at once, or else one of them
would be slaughtered.
I assume King Barosous
must think the same, but he's friendlier to us. That's why I sent Gabrielle
to him and not to Eronious.
Huh! These soldiers...
They don't recognize my uniform, so they assume automatically that I'm
hostile. That's why I don't kill them. Besides, I'm here to stop the killing,
not help it.
But what do we do
now? We tried convincing the leaders to stop the killings, and the soldiers
are all trying to kill us.
To kill us, kill me...
Kill Gabrielle.... Wherever she was now.
She'd do fine. She's
been to war before, and always made it out. Then again, I was always there
to protect her.
I've got to find her!
She can't.... If she.... If she dies, I'll kill both kings myself, and let
their kingdoms fight each other to death, and kill their successors, and...
No, I can't even think
that. Gabrielle is fine. I know it.
Still, I better make
my way to the other side of the battlefield, to Barosous' camp. It'll take
me time to get there, but that's where Gabrielle is.
***
-So unc', what now?
-Now that we've made
sure Xena and her little friend couldn't interfere, we have time to consider
this all through.
-But, but... I don't
get it; I thought we wanted a war.
-We do, but you know
the drill!
-Yeh, Yeh: Wars started
by mortals should be first observed by the god of war to see if he has
anything to gain or lose from it, and only than should he or any of his
minions engage any action in this or that, or whatever.
-And you know something,
Deimos? I am the god of war!
-Showoff... Ah, ah,
ok, sorry...
-Good. Now let's see.
King Barosous and King Eronious hate each other, right?
-Yeh, Yeh...
-And this war started,
why?
-Eronious... Agh... Stole
Barosous' favorite dress? Ouch! Ok, kidding, gods, get a sense of... OUCH!
-Why do I let you
hang by my side again?
-Ahmmm....
-(Sigh) This war started
because King Barosous claims that these fields belong to his kingdom, and
so does King Eronious.
-So this war is about
territory?
-Not just territory,
my friend, oh no... We're talking about a huge land, almost half the size
of Greece!
-I don't get it unc',
they're already sharing it, and it doesn't seem as if it would matter who's
land is it officially, so... What are they fighting about, anyway?
-Deimos, I never dreamed
I'd say this, but... You have a point! But you see, mortals have this need
to... claim for... territory. Both sides already have one in this case, each
at his side of the land, but they both want it all for themselves.
-Didn't their mommy
ever teach them to share?
-It's not just them,
Deimos; it's the human nature.
-Human nature's defective,
they need to learn how to behave.
-Yeh, well, but if
mortals weren't stupid, they wouldn't need me, or any god for that matter.
-(*Muttering*) As
if gods aren't stupid enough sometimes...
-What was that?
-Ugh? Ooh, ooh... Nothing,
nothing...
-Tell me, now... how
come I haven't fried you yet after all that time?
-You always either
have a headache or you're not in the mood.
-Anyhow, we shall
wait to see how things turn out, and then we shall decide whether we should
interfere or not.
-Hehe, I love watching
a good war... Hihihihihi
***
I know this guy... Setius
is his name. I saw him when I was at Barosous' camp. He's Barosous' war
minister, I think. Yes, that's him. He's a very well fighter. Better than
me, naturally. Attacked by four, maybe five men at once, he manages somehow
to knock them all out, killing some, injuring the others.
I duck as a soldier
notices me and attacks me with a swift reckless slash of his sword. With
my back now at the soldier, still running at me, I swing my staff aside,
making the soldier trip over. He's trying to get up, but I hit him again,
knocking him unconscious.
I look around me,
hoping maybe to see Xena. After scanning the area and not finding her,
I then turn and run to Setius.
I knock my staff on
the back of the last soldier battling with him, knocking him down to the
ground.
''Gabrielle, what are
you doing here?'' he asked me, recognizing me immediately.
''I'm looking for Xena,
to tell her King Barosous didn't agree to truce''.
Seeing I was talking
with him, Barosous' soldiers next to us now thought I was friendly, and
turned their attention to Eronious' soldier.
''Gabrielle, these
soldiers don't care if you're from Eronious' camp or from our camp,'' he
said as another soldier attacked us. He stopped the soldier's slash from
hitting me with his sword, and I on the other hand hit the soldier's exposed
chest, and then hit him again on his back.
''Gabrielle, you and
Xena are friends to Barosous, I w...''
''I'm not sure Xena
would agree when I tell her his reaction to her request'' I cut him off.
''Well, not that it's
any of your business, but I'm on my way to Eronious, to discuss possibly
a truce''.
That came as a surprise.
Barosous told me himself he would not call for Îcease fighting' unless
Eronious would show some will to stop the killings as well.
''How can you stop
the fighting if you keep killing anyone you see?'' she asked him with a
criticizing voice.
''Gabrielle, in order
to get to Eronious I need to fight my way through. There is no other way.
Even my horse was killed!''
He was probably right.
Eronious' soldiers wouldn't stop the fighting without an order from their
commander, so the command from both camps had to come from the same place,
at the same time.
''I'm coming with you,''
I told him, as we started to walk forward with the rest of the squad.
''You can do whatever
you want, however I strongly advise that you...''
''Xena is at Eronious'
camp. When she sees me with you it'll guarantee your safety''.
''Very well'' he said.
Just then we met with another squad of Eronious' soldiers who attacked
us, and after almost a minute of silence in our area, once again the sound
of clashing swords hit my mind.
***
Gabrielle was nowhere
in sight. When I entered Barosous' camp, Barosous seemed surprised to see
me.
''Where's Gabrielle?''
was my first question.
''She left to find
you, some long time ago'' he answered. ''Xena, you can not interfere with
this''.
Gabrielle left.... This
was not good. She was just one innocent village girl, in the middle of
a huge battle, between thousands of soldiers.
An innocent village
girl... That's a thought about her I still haven't managed to lose. She's
gone through so much; she's no longer the girl she used to be. She was
now a fighter, a woman.
But I've been through
this so many times, I still amaze myself how I still think of her sometimes
as the villager I picked up at Potedia.
She'd survive, that
I knew. It still didn't keep me from worrying.
''Barosous, you must
come with me,'' I said. If I could get both kings together, there's a higher
chance of getting them to negotiate, and call truce. If they issue an order
for a cease-fire together, it'll be far more efficient.
''Xena, I can't. I
have to stay here to command the battle, you know that''.
''Well where is Setius?''
I searched for his minister of war.
''I sent him with a
squad... To... To negotiate with Eronious,'' he answered.
Damn it! Setius would
be slaughtered if I wouldn't be there.
''So why didn't Gabrielle
stay here like I told her?'' she asked.
''Because when she
asked me, I told her I wouldn't call for cease fighting. Xena, I need to
see Eronious calling to stop the fighting as well, otherwise I'm just sending
my soldiers to slaughter''.
He was right. Could
I have been wrong?
Yes. My plan was flawed.
Funny that Eronious told me the same. My word that Barosous will ordered
to stop the fighting in that same moment was not enough for him. However
I have better things to do than whine about what went wrong. I need to
get back to Eronious before Setius gets there. I need to make sure they
agree on calling truce.
And I must find Gabrielle!
***
-This is a very interesting
turning indeed.
-Can we go home now,
Unc'?
-Look around you,
idiot. Does it look as if the war is over?
-Well, there are soldiers,
killings, and screams...
-Oh Yeh, Yeh! Uhm,
I mean, I've noticed, naturally, that's my point. Deimos, they've only
talked about perhaps talking about truce. Now they're still fighting.
-So, what do we do
now?
-We'll go see if Barosous'
squad makes it to Eronious' camp. We still do not interfere, though. We'll
see what would be the outcomes of the negotiations. Then we decide.
-Hihihihihi, I like
it when you talk decisive...
-Ocgh!
***
There's still no sight
of Xena. Then again, there are thousands of soldiers in the entire battle,
and finding one specific person, even if he was as... noticeable as Xena...
We've fought our way
through the battlefield, slowly advancing towards Eronious' base. We've
encountered some resistance thus far, but we do not expect any more of
it before we get to Eronious' base.
''It's not far now,''
Setius said.
A small group of soldiers
appeared from beyond the hill in front of us. Being in the first raw, Setius
and I took on the first three soldiers, and the rest of the soldiers next
to us took the other three.
''I think that's the
last of their forces in this area,'' Setius said. Between the camps and
the battle itself there was usually silence. We walked up the hill and
suddenly saw three squads, about twenty soldiers in every one.
''Do we attack or surrender?''
asked one of the soldiers.
''These are not the
base's guards. If we surrender to them they'll kill us''.
''You really think
we can make it past 60 soldiers? There are only twenty of us!''
''It's been done before
with less against more,'' said Setius and turned to me. ''You sure you want
to come with us, you're safer if you stay here''.
''I'm sure'' I nodded.
''Ok, but be careful!''
he said and I nodded again.
''Ok people, stay sharp,
and watch each other's six. CHARGE!''
We all started running
down the hill, and with the yelling of the men the soldiers down the hill
turned to us and quickly formed up in a protective structure. The fight
began, and after taking down some soldiers, I noticed that all around me
our soldiers were being killed. I've noticed five so far.
Our soldiers? Funny.
Before I arrived to Barosous' camp, I was the enemy to them all. Both sides
wanted me dead. Now I've teamed up with one of them.
After some time, there
was little left of us, five or six perhaps, but on the other hand there
were only about twenty or thirty of Eronious' soldiers left. Still, we
could never get through.
''Setius!'' I yelled
at him. He looked at me, looked around him, and nodded.
''RETREAT!'' he yelled,
and the squad, or what was left of it, finished its current battle and
started running back.
''Stop, let them go''
I heard their commander say.
''What now?'' I asked
Setius as we ran back.
''We're going to go
back to Barosous and tell him we couldn't start the negotiations,'' he answered.
And I'll wait for Xena there. Barosous is friendly to Xena and I, so it
would be better to wait for her. As for the war... Doesn't seem Xena and
I can help any longer.
***
I rode Argo as fast
as she could handle! I've got to get to Eronious' base as fast as I can!
I've got to get there before Gabrielle gets there. Otherwise she'd be killed,
and I... I.... I'll hunt Eronious to the next life if I have to!
I arrived to Eronious'
camp and saw there were neither any of Barosous' soldiers there nor were
there dead soldiers.
I entered his command
tent, and his face wore a surprised look.
''Xena, what... I thought
we've agreed,'' he started, but I immediately went to him and pinched his
neck.
''Everybody, back off
or he dies'' I yelled at the guards, and with Eronious' nod they did.
''Now listen to me''
I turned to him and pressed him against the wall. ''You will come with me
now. We're going to Barosous' camp, to talk peace! Do anything stupid as
trying to get rid of me or attacking Barosous, and I cut your head off!
Is that clear?''
Eronious nodded slowly,
and I took the pinch off.
''Get me the squads,''
he said. ''We're going to talk peace with Barosous''.
I nodded at him and
looked out the tent. It won't be long before Setius and Gabrielle arrive
here, so we'll meet them on the way. When we do, they'll team up with us,
and so when we arrive to Barosous' camp, we could get in with no trouble.
I hope.
***
-This is not over yet
-But... But... But.... Oh
come on! Can't we interfere even a little? A tiny mini winy... OUW! I want
a war!
-You know the rules,
Deimos. Besides, the negotiations might still fail.
-Come on, unc'! Can
we really take that chance? I mean, think of the battle... Eronious' top
squads against Barosous'... So far we've only seen random clashes between
small squads...
-You know what? I
like it...
-Hihihihihi... Yeh!
Think of the bloodshed, think of the fighting....
-The duels...
-Yes, yes... Ooh! Ooh!
Of course!
-What?
-The way things are,
if they start fighting, well... Xena and her little blond chick... Hihahah!
They'll be fighting each other! Hahahah!
-You know something
Deimos?
-Hihihihihi... Eh...
Ohoh.
-I like it! I like
it a lot!
-Ahihihihi! Good!
Good!
-Listen now; this
is what you should do...
***
We arrived back to
Barosous' camp without any trouble. He came out to us quickly, hoping for
good news.
''We had to retreat''
said Setius. ''They slaughtered us''.
''Damn!'' he yelled.
Barosous entered his command tent and Setius and I followed.
''So what do we do
now?'' asked Setius.
''We prepare for an
all out war'' suddenly a new voice said, and Xena came in as well.
''Xena!'' I screamed
with relief, or was it joy, and started walking to her.
She nodded at me and
pushed me aside, walking directly to Barosous. If I could see my face in
that moment, it would be filled with the bitter surprise of an unexpected
betrayal.
But Xena was just
nervous, war does that to her.
''I'm coming back from
Eronious' camp,'' she said.
''Seems like your negotiations
have failed'' Setius said.
''The negotiations
never took place,'' Xena answered. ''Eronious is now on his way here with
a squad to attack you''.
''What? This is not
good!'' Barosous yelled. ''But have it his way. He wants war? We'll give
him one! Get squads three to six back! We're going to wipe them out! All
of them!''
''Yes sir'' Setius nodded.
It was final now - we're going to war!
''I'm going to warn
the front defenses,'' she said to me and headed out.
''Wait'' I yelled.
''No, Gabrielle! You
stay here''.
''But Xena,'' I started.
''You know what? On
second thought...'' she spoke kinda weird. ''Join Setius on the fight. You
could help them a lot on the front''.
''Ok'' I nodded and
she left the tent in a rush. What was so important about warning the front
defenses?
Wait, there were no
front defenses when we came back! She lied to me. But whatever the reason,
I knew I had no choice now but to join Setius' fighting. Whatever Xena
is up to, if she didn't want me to know, then... Maybe I don't want to either.
***
''Here it is!'' said
Eronious.
''This is strange,''
I said. ''They're all formed up for battle''. From the top of the hill we
could see them all facing us, waiting for something. Waiting for us.
They started running
towards us. Eronious looked at me and I nodded.
''Drop your weapons,''
he yelled. ''We'll surrender to them and talk peace''.
Everyone slowly dropped
his weapon, and I sheathed my sword back.
Eronious stepped back
a couple of lines, so in case anything happened he would be safe. I came
with him to make sure he doesn't escape.
Form the back we could
see Eronious' general walking forward, raising his arms, and probably calling
to say they surrender. With his arms up in the air, the sword had no problem
running straight through him. With their swords down, the soldiers next
to him were also easy targets.
''CHARGE!'' someone
yelled, and they all picked up their swords and the duel began!
''No!'' I yelled, and
took out my sword to defend myself from the soldier that just got to me.
I blocked his sword and kicked up in the face, making him fall back.
''Listen to me, we've
got to stop this!'' I yelled, but no one listened. I kicked back another
soldier, and then I realized there was no point to this. I have to fight
my way to Barosous' camp, and find Gabrielle.
I ducked from an arrow,
and jumped aside when another soldier tried to attack me. This was going
to be a long way...
***
-Well done, Deimos!
You actually did it this time!
-Hehe! I guess I did!
I am the meanest war-starting sunovabitch! Uhh, except from you, of course.
-You did well. This
is what I call war! Look at that... See him? That's what I call a fighter!
Write his name down, we might take him to the army.
-Yes, Yes... Whatever.
I also made sure to tell Barosous they were bringing one squad, so he'll
set up three! Haha!
-And since they were
bringing three squads, the balance of power is in nobody's favor... Very
impressive!
-We're coming up to
the really juicy part.
-Yes... Xena and her
little friend are about to meet.
-And it isn't going
to be much of a friendly encounter this time, ha? Haha... Hihihihihi!
***
I hate it when I get
like that. Whenever I'm in combat, there's this point where I stop thinking.
I just fight, act without senses. Let my reflexes guide me, instead of
my eyes. It makes me fight better, yes. But I hate it.
This is how I am now.
Ducking, hitting, kicking. Ducking - hitting - kicking. Like a machine,
I didn't even see what I was hitting. But whatever came at me, I hit with
my still trustworthy staff.
A sword came down
at me. I ducked, and with my staff tripped the attacker and hit him in
the head, knocking him down. Another attacker came from behind, and with
a swift-turn my staff hit him, and as I continued to turn the other end
hit him again, knocking him totally down. I turned back around and immediately
ducked from another attacker. I instinctively went for his feet with the
staff, and he almost fell but instead jumped up, kicking me right in the
face, throwing me back. The attacker quickly sent down his sword at me,
but then froze.
***
War.
I know war.
I don't think at war.
My instincts think
for me, and I just follow.
That's what's being
a warrior is all about. Your instincts act while you calculate the next
step. I don't even notice what I'm doing. I don't see any faces, swords,
or people... I just act.
I ducked a sword and
kicked the soldier's chest, throwing him back. I blocked another strike
that came form behind and with a jump I sent my legs backwards, quickly
wrapping them around my attacker's knees, tripping him.
My mind was blank.
I jumped aside, and
another group of soldiers attacked me. I kicked two of them back, and one
of them almost got me, but I blocked his attack in the last second, sending
his sword back, and then kicking him again. I heard someone behind me.
I turned and saw no one, but suddenly something hit my legs. I immediately
jumped in air, instinctively kicking whoever it was beneath me. I sent
my sword quickly down at him, and then I froze.
''Gabrielle?'' I asked
with shock. What was she doing here? Why was she fighting?
''Xena!'' she said.
I put the sword aside and helped her up, embracing her.
''Gabrielle, what are
you doing here? Why didn't you stay at Barosous' base?''
''You told me to come
here and....''
''I... told... you?'' I
asked surprised. This was not right. Gabrielle raised her questioning eyes
at me, and I looked back at her and then it hit me.
''Ares!'' I said. ''He
must be somewhere around here!''
Gabrielle's expression
said something like ÎNot again'.
This time however,
Ares was not what worried me. I knew what I had to do.
''Come on'' I said,
and turned to look for Eronious.
***
-It was short, but
it sure was fun.
-Yeh, you didn't expect
her to kill her, did you?
-No, Deimos. I knew
she wouldn't. Still it was interesting.
-Oh, oh, look, they're
up to something.
-I see, seems like
she's talking to Eronious. She's telling him... To... come with her to talk
with Barosous about... Peace...
-No! No! She's going
to ruin everything!
-Wait now, we're going
to wait and see how things turn out.
-But I thought we...
-I said - we are going
to wait and see what happens!
-But I don't get it!
I thought you said you wanted this war.
-I wanted to see this
battle, for the fun. Still, I don't think we have much to gain from an
all out war between these two kingdoms.
-I... I...
-For once, Deimos,
would you think? They fight on who's going to have the land they both already
have. This war is pointless.
-But I thought...
-NEVER, interrupt
me! Anyhow, as I was saying, this war is pointless. These two kingdoms
have some pretty fair warriors; and a good fighter is a terrible thing
to waste...
-So we're pro-peace?
-No, you idiot! We
let Xena and her little friend try to make peace between them. However
if they fail...
-War! War! War! War!
War!
-Thank you, Thank
you...
***
''This is not going
to work,'' said Eronious.
''When he sees you're
with me he'll let us in,'' Xena answered.
''How do I know I can
trust you?'' he asked and looked at the both of us.
''I leave you not much
choice now, do I?'' she asked and turned back forward. Another group of
soldiers attacked us, and Xena and I took them down quickly.
''There he is'' Xena
said. Up the hill, next to a mobile tent, stood Barosous and Setius, observing
the battle. Some guards approached us, and Barosous looked down at us.
''It's Xena, let her
through'' he yelled to his guards who let us get through and up the hill.
''Xena, you were right.
They were coming for an attack''.
''What? We were coming
to talk about peace!'' Eronious protested.
''Who is he?'' asked
Barosous.
''This is Eronious'',
Xena said.
''What?'' the men around
us drew their swords and started approaching.
''No, it's true'' I
said. ''He was coming to make peace''.
''But you said...'' Barosous
turned to Xena.
''I said nothing, the
woman you saw was an impostor!'' she replied.
''Is this true, Eronious?
Have you really come here for peace?'' Barosous turned to him.
''Only if you're willing
to stop the fighting!'' he answered.
''I am if you will''
Barosous said.
''Stop it together!''
Xena suggested.
Barosous looked back
at Eronious, and they both nodded.
''Truce!'' they both
said. The atmosphere still was of war - they didn't even shake hands. But
at least the fighting is now going to stop.
***
It's been an hour since
all fighting stopped, and the sun was already setting. Everyone was waiting
outside the tent, waiting for the negotiations to be over. Especially Gabrielle
and I, who now sat the edge of the hill, looking down at all the soldiers,
both from Eronious' and Barosous' army, who slowly gathered from the battle-field
and together waited for their leaders to come out of the tent.
Then suddenly Barosous
came out of the tent, and everyone in the humongous crowd started whispering.
Right after him came Eronious. They stood on the edge of the mountain for
everyone to see, face each other, and with a huge smile on both their faces,
sent their hands forward and shook each other's hand.
The crowd cheered.
After years of political
tension, after months of war-like atmosphere, after loosing so many people
to this endless debate, finally...
Barosous and Eronious
turned to the crowd, and raised their shaking hands, and then Barosous
with his loud bass voice screamed: ''PEACE!''
The crowd cheered
even louder, and I looked down at my little bard and when I saw her smile
I hugged her as strong as I could. I was so proud of her. And I knew, that
deep inside, she was proud of me.
***
-We never get to see
a real war! The last time was years ago.
-This is how it turned
out, Deimos, than this is how it will be.
-This isn't fun!
-Oh, shut up!
-Oh, ok.
-Come now, Deimos.
We've got to get back to the halls and prepare for tomorrow night.
-Why, Ares? What do
we do tomorrow night?
-Same thing we do
every night, Deimos - try to start over a war!
-Ahihihihi!
They're
Deimos, They're Deimos and the God, God, God of War!
(Tadadada,
ta!)