A SINGLE STEP
By Kennedy Northcutt ©2015
For disclaimers and stuff, see Part 1
Part 11
Chapter 14
“Excuse me, what town is this?” Virgil asked a passerby as he dismounted and looked around. The town was bustling with activity. Several wagons were parked along the main road. There were a few horses tethered outside a rather dilapidated inn, which looked as if the roof were about to cave in at any moment. The blacksmith’s across the way was grimy and rundown, but the sound of hammer on anvil was loud enough to wake the dead.
“Heraklea,” the man replied and kept right on walking without a backward glance.
“Heraklea?” Virgil looked to Gabrielle.
“Northern Thrace,” she responded as she tied her horse to the wooden post. “We’re closer to Aryndahl than I thought. We’ll pick up supplies for the rest of the journey, get a good night’s sleep and head out at dawn. We should be in there in a day or two.”
Virgil glanced around again. “You think those Romans are still on our trail? We haven’t seen any sign of them for a few days.”
Gabrielle pulled her hood up over her braided hair. “We’re fairly close to the main trade route that heads straight into Byzantium, so there’s no telling where a Roman installation might be. This is one of the last Grecian ports in Northern Thrace. It’s possible that the Romans have a presence here. Those guys will probably check in with them and pick up supplies, like we’re doing.”
“Oh, goody,” Virgil grabbed his pack and threw it over his shoulder. “I’m really tired of being chased across northern Greece by those guys.”
“Better than the alternative,” Gabrielle said as she headed inside the inn.
Despite the rundown exterior, the place was packed with people of all walks of life. Traders, merchants, farmers and townsfolk. It was loud and cramped. Gabrielle headed straight for a man in an apron who was drying mugs behind a long, wooden bar. He had red hair that stuck out in all directions, a red beard that was braided down the middle, and he was the size of an small oak tree.
“We need two rooms, please,” she said as she placed several coins in front of him. “And hot food. Also, where are the stables? We have horses that need boarding.”
“Got no rooms available ‘ere,” the man replied gruffly. “There ain’t no rooms available in all o’ Heraklea. Whole place is full o’ folk.” He glanced from Gabrielle to Virgil. “’Tis Festival. Ya came at the busiest time o’ year, traveler.”
Gabrielle pulled several more coins from her purse and laid them on the bar. “You sure?” She then pointed over you’ll ever hear.”
“Got one room at the top o’ the stairs above the kitchen,” he said as he grabbed the coins and shoved them into a pocket. “I’ll send a boy for your horses. Stable’s just up the way. If’n ya got good stories, then the meals‘re included. Hasn’t been a bard in these parts fer an age. Not since the edict.”
“What edict?” Virgil asked.
“T’one forbiddin’ all storytellin’ within a hundred leagues of Aryndahl, by order of the Lord High Adviser ta the Queen. The penalty for storytellin’ is death.” The man smiled a gap-toothed smile. “If’n yer willin’ ta give ‘er a go, then I’m willin’ ta look t’other way. Folk in these parts ‘re starvin’ fer a good tale. Sure couln’t hurt business none.” He chuckled.
“Um,” Virgil swallowed noticeably as he glanced at Gabrielle. “Okay. I…um…I suppose?” He couldn’t keep a quaver from his voice.
Gabrielle patted his shoulder, then turned back to the barkeep. “He won’t disappoint.”
The man nodded his red head. “Good. I’ll get ta word out.”
“Won’t that…” Virgil said, but the man had already turned and headed for another part of the bar. So Virgil turned to Gabrielle. “You really think this is a good idea? What if the Romans already know we’re here?” He said in a low tone for her ears alone.
“I’ll keep an eye out for trouble, no worries,” Gabrielle said cheerily. “Besides, it’ll be nice to sleep in a bed tonight. I don’t think he would have budged on the room, otherwise. And I already saw the notices around town. Looks like Aryana was right about this new threat. There is definitely something going on and it has spread farther than just the immediate kingdom.” Gabrielle suddenly noticed Virgil wasn’t listening. “What is it, Virgil?”
He nervously swiped his forehead. “I…uh,” he glanced around at all the people, then turned his back on the crowd and stared down at his folded hands. “It’s been a really long time since I did any storytelling,” he confided.
“How long?” Gabrielle eyed him.
He swallowed. “Well, about ten years. Give or take a few years.” He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I don’t have a lot of time to do that now that I own an inn.”
She motioned to the barkeep and tossed two coins onto the bar as he approached. “Can we get a couple tankards of your best ale, my friend?”
“Right,” he said as he took the coins and went to fill their order.
Gabrielle waited until the tankards were in front of them before continuing. “Cheers,” she said as she grabbed one and downed most of its contents, then set the tankard on the bar in front of him. “And I completely understand.”
“You do?” Virgil lifted his tankard to his lips and took several swallows, then set the tankard back on the bar. “That’s not bad ale, considering the state of this place.” He glanced around at the shabby interior. He eyed the dusty relic of a bear’s head above the mantle. The thing’s mouth was agape in what looked like mid-roar. Rotting teeth gave the mouth a less than appealing look.
Gabrielle surveyed the crowd before turning her full attention on him. “Look, Virgil. It’s like riding a horse. You never forget how to tell a story. You’ll do fine. It’s in your blood.”
“And if they don’t like the story or how I tell it?” He looked nervously around at the other patrons. “This is a pretty rough crowd. Why don’t you tell them a story? You’re the famous Bard of Potidaea.”
“And give away who we are?” Gabrielle gave him a knowing look. “I don’t think so. We’re trying to blend in, not attract attention.”
“Who would know the difference here? It’s not like we’re in the middle of civilization. This is Northern Thrace. The wilds. We’re practically in barbarian country.”
Gabrielle considered that for a moment. Who would know who she was? What would it hurt to try her hand at telling a story? “Maybe you’re right. It’s been nearly forty years since I did the bard thing. This lot won’t have a clue who I am.”
“Just don’t tell a Xena story and we’ll be fine,” Virgil added with a grin.
“Or maybe that’s exactly what I will do.” She picked up her tankard and finished it off in a few gulps, then grabbed her satchel. “Let’s get settled into our room first. I need to freshen up before we do this.”
“Oh, boy,” Virgil said as he finished off his ale before following Gabrielle up the stairs.
***
“What are we doing here, Ares?”
He stopped next to a dusty stone altar and turned. “Would you please stop doing that?”
A snicker. “Why? It’s so entertaining to see you jump half out of your skin.”
“Xena, I swear…”
“What? You’ll banish me to…Let’s see, where in the world could you possibly send me and how, exactly, would you do it? I’m not really here. You can’t even see me. You have no idea where I am.”
He swiped at the air around him in anger.
“Missed me.” He swiped again. “Missed again.” She chuckled.
He took another swing and another. Swing after swing after swing after frustrating swing. Ares finally shadow-boxed himself out and leaned over with his hands resting on his knees, as he tried to catch his breath.
“Are you finished?” Came Xena’s disconnected voice.
“You suck.”
“Yeah, yeah,” she moved to a dark corner of the room, where her image became slightly visible. “Love what you’ve done with the place, by the way.” She blew on a cobweb and dust motes floated into some sunshine coming in a cracked window. “Why are we here?”
“Why are you following me, Xena?” He straightened up and moved to stand in front of her. “Don’t you have better things to do than follow me around?”
Xena threw her arms out to the sides. “If I did, do you think I would be here with you? I can’t actually control this, Ares. If I could, I would be with Gabrielle. But, for some odd reason, I am attached to your sorry ass. I have no clue why and no way to make it stop. Believe me, I would if I could, but I can’t, so…Deal with it.”
“Arrrrrrr!” He turned and punched the stone wall with such force that more dust shook loose from the ceiling and landed on his head. Then something weird happened. Every torch in the place suddenly ignited and filled the room with light. “What the…”
Xena disappeared again. “Well, this sucks. What did you do, Ares?”
Ares looked at his hands. “Did I do that?”
“No. I did.”
Ares spun around and stared at the newcomer in shock. “Aphrodite?”
She wiggled and jiggled, throwing up her arms with a big grin. “In the flesh, big bro!” She then ran to him and jumped into his arms, giving him a big hug. “Ohhh, I missed you!” She then gave him a big kiss on the lips.
Ares pushed her away and wiped his mouth with his arm. “Ugh! What the…”
“Sorry,” she linked arms with him. “Got a little carried away. I just miss ya, so much.”
“Yeah, I got that,” he turned to look at her. “What’s going on? Where did you come from? How did you get here? How did you…” He waved a hand at the torches, “…do that?”
“Whoa, slow down, bro,” she glanced around with a frown. She then tentatively stepped over a pile of something on the floor. “Um, this place…”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. It’s a dump. I know.”
“It could use a good scrubbing, that’s for sure.”
“Or you could just let the torches burn the place down,” Xena’s disjointed voice came from the corner.
Aphrodite turned and stared in Xena’s general direction. “What? Who?” She gave Ares a confused look.
“Xena’s ghost,” he supplied with a shrug and a tired eye roll. “She seems to be tethered to me, for some inexplicable reason.”
Aphrodite moved toward the corner, stuck a hand out and waved it up and down. “Xena?”
“Hey!” Xena exclaimed. “Watch it, would ya?” There was a chuckle from the other side of the room. “Just kidding.”
“Seriously, Xena?” Aphrodite looked closer, then waved her hand toward a torch that flickered out. She did this to two others that were in close proximity to the opposite corner. As they sputtered out, Xena’s ghostly image appeared faint, but visible. “There you are!” She clapped her hands enthusiastically. “Wow! You’re really here!”
“Yeah, here I am,” Xena looked down at herself. “Not exactly here physically, but here, in a manner of speaking.”
“That’s way cool!” Aphrodite beamed and clapped as she excitedly bounded to the corner where Xena leaned against the wall. “When the lights are on, nobody’s home. When they go out…Poof! You’re there in the…well, not flesh, exactly.” She looked Xena up and down with a frown. “Still wearing the leather, I see. You couldn’t come up with something a little more imaginative? Like, say…”
“What you’re wearing?” Xena supplied with a distasteful frown at Aphrodite’s negligé. “I like this look. It suits me.”
Ares cleared his throat and the two turned to look at him. “Um, can we get back to the business at hand? How did you get here, sis?”
Aphrodite waved a hand and shimmering hearts flew from her fingertips. “I have followers again. It’s so totally awesome!” She jumped up and down, clapping her hands with glee. “Gabs helped get one of my temples in Athens up and running again. A few of the girls from around the tavern spruced things up and…voilá! They do services three times a day and now I can…” She snapped a finger and the torches sparked to life again. “It’s not much, but it’s way more than I ever expected. Kinda cool!”
Ares looked on with interest. “Better than nothin’.” He waved a hand and nothing happened. So he walked over to a bench and slumped down onto it dejectedly. “I miss the good ol’ days.”
“Awww,” Aphrodite gave him a sympathetic pouty face and sat on his lap. “You still have me, bro. Maybe we can put our heads together and come up with a way to get you some followers. Clean up your digs here and get you back up and causing mayhem and havoc. Just like the good ol’ days.”
“Exactly how do you propose we do that with no one to help us?” He looked past her. “It’s not like Xena can go scare up some followers with her disconnected ghosty voice.”
“No, but…” Aphrodite hopped off his lap and started pacing. “But Gabs was able to get me the followers I needed. Maybe she can do the same for you!”
He looked doubtful. “Except that Gabrielle isn’t here, and she and I haven’t exactly been on the best of terms, lately.”
“Wait, you saw Gabrielle?” Xena said. “When? Where?”
Ares shrugged. “We had a run-in upstairs. It was no biggie.”
Suddenly Xena’s voice was right there next to him. “She’s dead? When did this happen? How? Why didn’t I know about this?”
“Whoa, there, WP!” Aphrodite held her hands out. “You don’t know that Gabs is, like, dead. She may have just been there for a visit. You know how it works.”
“He just said…”
“I didn’t say she was dead,” Ares corrected. “I said I spoke to her upstairs.” He looked around with a frown. “Or, whatever. I’m pretty sure she was still…” He stopped and considered thoughtfully. “Then again, maybe she was dead. That would explain why she was there in the first place.”
“Where?”
“Where?”
Both women asked in unison.
Ares pressed a hand to his forehead in thought. “The white room with the seer’s bowl. The one that allows you to keep track of what’s happening down here in the mortal realm, as long as you concentrate on a particular mortal.”
“The one that Michael controls?” Xena asked.
“Exactly,” said Ares. “The place where you and I met up.”
“Gabrielle’s dead? But how? When?” Xena’s voice trailed off as she moved away from them.
“We still don’t know that she’s dead, Xena,” Aphrodite said. “She could just be…”
“Immortal?” Xena snorted. “That’s highly unlikely. I need to go find her. If she’s still there, I need to go to her.”
“Go where?” Ares said. “You don’t know where she is. And if Michael has her…” He let his words trail off.
“I have to go,” Xena said as her voice moved around the room.
“Maybe I can find her for you,” Aphrodite offered. “I’ll let you know, one way or the other.” She raised her arm to snap her fingers, but Ares grabbed it before she could.
“Be careful, sis,” he warned. “If Michael is involved, he might not like seeing you with powers again.”
“Awww, it’s so cute that you care,” she gave him a bright smile, pinched his cheek, then sobered. “I’ll be careful. Promise.”
She raised her hand and snapped her fingers before he could say anything else. She then disappeared in a shower of sparkling hearts that fell to the floor at his feet. He looked at Xena who was smirking at him.
“Just…don’t.”
“What?” She turned away from him with a big smile on her face.
Ares just rolled his eyes and looked around with hands on hips and a determined frown. There was work to do and, since he was the only one there, he decided he would do whatever it took to get his temple back up and running.
***
“And that’s how the Warrior Princess defeated Dahok and…”
“Wait. Wait. Wait just a corn-pickin,’ goat-herdin’ minute. That ain’t how I heard it.”
“What?” Virgil looked the man in the eye. “Are you saying…”
“I’m sayin’ you’re tellin’ it wrong, bard. When Agragard told it, Hercules defeated Dahok by banishing the demon to the farthest reaches of the nether realm. Hercules was the real hero.”
Several in the crowd nodded and agreed, leaving Virgil flatfooted. He looked around until his gaze rested on the far corner.
“It’s true,” Gabrielle said from where she sat in the corner. “But Xena defeated Dahok first.”
“And you are?” The man turned to glare at her.
Everyone in the room turned in Gabrielle’s direction.
She shrugged. “The mother of Dahok’s child.”
A murmur spread through the crowd as folks shifted uncomfortably.
“Dahok didn’t have no child,” the man said. “Demons don’t spawn anythin’ but more demon spawn.”
“Her name was Hope and she was part human and part demon,” Gabrielle added. “She had Dahok’s powers and my humanity. Unfortunately, hers was the darker side of humanity.”
“I heard tell of a evil female sorceress, but that was way back in the day of my grand,” another man said. “No ways you was ‘er mother. Yer too young.”
Gabrielle gave the man a pointed look. “You can thank Ares for that. And the ice cave Xena and I spent twenty-five years in.”
The first man guffawed. “That’s a tale, fer sure! Pity it ain’t truth. Ever’one knows Xena’s a myth—a legend. No one’s seen hide nor hair of that she-devil fer nigh on a generation. No way you knew ‘er.”
“She didn’t just know her,” Virgil chimed in. “Meet Gabrielle, the Bard of Potidaea. Companion of Xena, Amazon Queen, and Mother of Hope, Spawn of Dahok.”
Murmurs traveled around the great room, until all eyes settled on Gabrielle again. Several people shouted. Several others expressed their disbelief. Most just waited for the words to become more.
“If y’re the famous Bard of Potidaea, then tell us a tale,” the man stood up and pointed at Gabrielle. He then motioned to Virgil. “If’n ya are who he says ya are, then yer tale’ll be one of legend. Like, might be ya would tell the tale of the Twilight. Since yer closely acquainted with the Olympians ‘n all.” He chuckled, then sat back down and drank deeply of his tankard. Several others around him chuckled and shook their heads. “Tell ya what, I’ll even pay yer room an’ board fer ta night, if’n ya tell us somethin’ worthy. I bet ya got nothin’.”
Gabrielle sat there for another few moments as she considered her options. She glared at Virgil, who merely shrugged his shoulders and stepped away from the makeshift stage near the fireplace. He returned to their table and lifted his tankard of ale to his lips, then drank deeply.
“You don’t have to, you know,” he said behind his mug. “They don’t deserve to hear one of your tales. I just made enough coin to pay for everything.”
Gabrielle pushed away from the table and stood. “No, it’s time. The world needs to know what really happened. This is as good a place as any to do what I should have done all those years ago.” She put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed before walking to the stage.
She stood before everyone and waited for a hush to fall over the room. It was so quiet, in fact, that Gabrielle didn’t have to speak above her normal tone. “The gods of Olympus once ruled over all creation. They took over after the Titans were banished and forgotten. Then they toyed with mortals in order to satisfy their curiosities. They manipulated us and carried out their schemes with no thought to anyone but themselves. After all, they were gods. But they were selfish, self-centered and cruel. They could no more care about humanity than they cared about each other.
“Zeus, the father of the gods, set the example. He instigated the squabbles that pitted the gods against each other and led to most of the turmoil that humanity has experienced under their cruel tyranny. Only when their very existence was threatened by a prophesy did they finally band together to stop the prophesy from being fulfilled. They never believed that anything or anyone could destroy them—until the prophesy actually came to pass. A child was born into the mortal world without a father. That child was the final undoing of the gods of Olympus. In the end, they themselves fulfilled the prophesy when they banded together to kill the child.
“The Twilight of the Gods happened because they refused to listen to reason. Xena gave birth to Eve, the child of prophesy. And Xena, Destroyer of Nations, Warrior Princess, and killer of the gods, would not, could not, allow the gods to kill another child of hers. I know what happened in those final days of the Twilight, because I was there. I was right there when Eve was born, and when Zeus came to kill her himself. I was with Xena when she gave Eve to Augustus for safekeeping. We tricked the gods into thinking that we had all died when our chariot plunged off a cliff. But we were very much alive. I was there with Xena when she and I awoke in an ice cave and discovered that Ares, God of War, had placed us there twenty-five years prior. I was by Xena’s side when she confronted Livia, Conqueror of Rome, and helped her understand who she really was. I watched as the prophet, Eli, came to Eve in a flaming vision and tasked her with becoming the Messenger of Peace. And I was there when the Furies learned who Eve was and the gods came after us again.”
Virgil was enthralled. He had never heard Gabrielle tell one of her tales before. He happened to glance around the room and not one person was moving. Tankards were forgotten as Gabrielle continued to weave a tale the likes of which had never been heard before. When his attention returned to Gabrielle, he noticed a glow emanating from her that hadn’t been there before. It was like some ethereal spirit was right there with her. Every ounce of her being was caught up in the memories of events only she could see in her mind’s eye. But her words painted a picture that brought the characters to life. Ares. Hades. Athena. Eve. And most of all, Xena.
As Gabrielle described Xena in minute detail, it was as if her spirit were actually materializing right there next to Gabrielle. Dark hair, tan skin and brown leather. Virgil had met Xena all those years ago, so he already knew what she looked like. But as Gabrielle’s tale continued, it was as if Xena had suddenly appeared right next to her.
And then Virgil saw the unthinkable. Xena winked at him and smiled. He did a double-take. She was there. Right next to Gabrielle. Actually there. Not in the flesh, but there, just the same. He looked around to see if anyone else was seeing what he was seeing. No one else seemed to notice the ethereal figure standing right next to Gabrielle. Their focus was on the bard as she came to a climactic conclusion of her tale. Her voice reached a crescendo and then all was silent. No one breathed. Nothing moved.
After what seemed like an eternity, the entire tavern erupted in cheers and applause.
“That was well worth the price of a room for the night!” The patron who had offered to put them up for the night in exchange for a tale jumped to his feet and wrapped an arm around Gabrielle’s shoulders. “Let’s hear it for the famous Bard of Potidaea! Gabrielle!”
There were more cheers and then Gabrielle returned to her place next to Virgil. She sat and downed a tankard of ale in a few swallows. Virgil was too busy looking for Xena to really notice when Gabrielle poured herself another tankard and downed it.
“That went pretty well,” Gabrielle said as she set the empty tankard on the table. “I guess I wasn’t as rusty as I thought I would be.”
“Huh?” Virgil responded absently.
Gabrielle frowned. “What’s the matter, Virgil?”
“Huh? Oh, I…” Virgil shook himself out of his reverie.
The tavern owner came over and deposited two large bowls of stew and a loaf of brown bread in front of them. “Compliments of yer adoring fans,” he said to Gabrielle. “Send word down in the mornin’ and there’ll be bread and cheese for your journey. I’m grateful to ya, Bard. That was a tale that’ll keep these good folk engaged for a good long time. Business’ll be boomin’ for weeks to come.”
“Thank you,” Gabrielle dug into her stew with gusto, while Virgil was still a little off kilter. “It’s delicious. My compliments to the cook.”
The tavern owner left them to their meal. Gabrielle then noticed Virgil was still distracted.
“Are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost, Virgil,” Gabrielle said between bites.
“I…” he swallowed and then cocked his head as he watched her. “Gabrielle?”
“Hm?”
“Did you…” he nervously fidgeted with his ear. “Did you happen to notice anything… odd while you were up there telling your tale?”
She stopped eating and stared at him in confusion. “Like?”
He shrugged. “Oh, I don’t know. Like there might have been someone up there with you? Maybe? Perhaps?” He shrugged and glanced around. Then he moved closer to her and lowered his voice. “Did you sense anything…different?”
She frowned and slowly finished chewing the food in her mouth. “Not really. Why?”
“Um,” he shifted uncomfortably. “Well…um…I’m not really sure…uh…”
“Out with it, Virgil,” she said impatiently.
“Xena.”
“What about her?”
“She was…” he motioned toward where she had stood while telling her tale. “I’m pretty sure she was there.”
Gabrielle looked skeptical and then incredulous. “That’s not possible. Xena’s dead.”
“Eeeyeah, well,” he swiped a hand down his face. “She was standing right next to you. I saw her. I thought I was just imagining it, until she…” he waved a hand, “…winked at me?”
Gabrielle poured herself more ale and took a sip. “You saw Xena and she…winked? At you?”
He breathed out a breath. “Yeah.”
Gabrielle laughed and then returned her attention to her food. “Okay, Virgil. I think you’re overtired. Or maybe you’ve had one too many sips of this excellent ale.”
“No,” he sobered instantly. “I saw her, Gabrielle. She was standing right next to you. And then you finished your tale and she…vanished.”
Gabrielle set her spoon down and then looked around. “Okay, fine. She’s not here now. Is she?”
“No,” he confirmed. “She disappeared once your tale was finished.”
“And she actually winked at you?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
He shrugged. “How would I know? Maybe she wanted to make sure I knew it was actually her and not some figment of my imagination. What do you think it means?”
She thought about it for a moment. “I have no idea. And I’m not going to get my hopes up that she’s found some way back from the dead. It’s been too long. If she was going to come back, she would have done it years ago.”
“Maybe she couldn’t.”
Gabrielle returned to her meal as she contemplated that. Was it possible Xena really was trying to find a way back? Flashes of memory raced through her mind. What had Michael said to her? Her trip to Olympus was fading quickly from memory, so she wasn’t really sure she had even been there in the first place. She thought about it. Had he said he had no idea where Xena was? Yes. That much she remembered. He said all he knew was Xena had been there and then she wasn’t there anymore. Could it be she was actually close by and just didn’t have the means to make her presence known?
Gabrielle took a sip of ale. The fermented drink was making her a little dizzy. Downing two full tankards probably wasn’t the best idea, except she had been thirsty after doing the bard thing. She set the tankard down and rested her chin on a fist.
She glanced at Virgil who was eating his own stew and bread with gusto. Why had Xena appeared to Virgil? What was up with that? Gabrielle pondered that for several heartbeats. Was there something she was doing to keep from seeing her soulmate? Was her anger at Xena still a factor? Possibly. And she was still angry. That she knew, for sure. The noise and activity in the room intensified as her thoughts continued to whirl around in her head.
“I need some air,” Gabrielle abruptly got up and headed for the door.
Virgil just sat there in confusion and watched her leave the inn.
***