DISCLAIMER : The characters of Xena and Gabrielle and some others belong in their entirety to Universal/MCA, Renaissance Pictures, and all the other powers that be. No copyright infringement is intended. I wrote this story at the urging of my muse; it should never be used for profit.
This story is a sequel to the story “Lord Conqueror of the Realm”. I strongly recommend you read it first because in this story there are references to events that took place in “Lord Conqueror of the Realm.” Here is where you can find it:
http://www.academyofbards.org/fanfic/w/warriorjudge_lordconqueror1.html
LOVE/SEX WARNING/DISCLAIMER : This story involves both love and sex (at times some rough/raw play with very mild BDSM elements – all consensual - nothing severe) between two adult women. If you're under 18 or if this type of story is illegal in the state or country in which you live, please do not read it.
SPECIAL THANKS : My humble most ardent gratitude to the excellent, most brilliant Beta readers Nancyjean and Alexandriaruth whom I can't thank enough.
Comments, thoughts, questions & feedback : MOST WELCOMED – The more you write me, the quicker I post – I mean it!
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Part 3
Princess Athena was the first to come out from behind her hiding place. She fought hard to maintain her cool exterior as she ran towards her parents as fast as her strong legs could carry her. The Amazons ran after her towards their princess.
Just before Athena reached her destination, the Conqueror scowled in pain as she raised her body off her Queen, feeling the sharp arrowhead moving inside her flesh. She was unable to move her left arm, for the arrow that hit her skewered it to the side of her ribcage.
"My Lady," she said anxiously.
As soon as she felt her Lord's weight coming off her, Queen Gabrielle moved back to kneel before the mortally scathed Amazon. She felt the Conqueror's hand skimming over her body along with an alarmed gaze in search of any signs of injury.
The Queen was quick to assure the Conqueror, "I wasn't harmed, my Lord." Her eyes traveled from the Amazon princess to her Lord. Only then did she see the arrow sticking out of the left side of her Lord's body and the blood leaking from its entering points, and from beneath the lower edges of the Conqueror's light armor.
"My Lord!" she shrieked and was about to remove her bloodied palms, which pressed against the Amazon's wound, in order to attend to her Lord.
The Conqueror looked at the Amazon lying on the ground. "She's hurt far worse than I am," she discouraged her Queen's intended actions.
"She lost so much blood," the Queen whimpered compassionately, as she witnessed the pale Amazon struggling for air.
Princess Athena and the Amazons formed a circle around the Royal couple and princess Terreis.
"Majesties," the terribly concerned Princess Athena let out with labored breath.
"There is no cause for alarm," the Conqueror said firmly.
Queen Melosa and the Shamaness knelt next to the Amazon princess wallowing in a pool of her own blood and rainwater.
"Terreis," Queen Melosa gasped and her sorrow rallied quickly to the surface.
The Shamaness assessed the princess' wound. "It is too sever, my Queen," she finally said gravely, causing Queen Melosa to burst into tears.
Princess Terreis opened her eyes just barely. She looked up at her mother and, knowing she was about to leave these mortal coils, she said with a broken voice, "I am proud to be your daughter."
The grief-stricken Queen Melosa wailed uncontrollably.
Too weak to move her head, princess Terreis moved her pupils to fix her gaze on Queen Gabrielle. "Majesty," she said then coughed out blood in spatters.
"Shhh…" Queen Gabrielle whispered and as her hand tenderly caressed the younger woman's white cheek, her thumb wiped the blood away from her lips. "Save your strength."
"Will you grant me my dying wish?" a terrible gurgling sound irrupted from the princess, as she was slowly drowning in her own blood.
Silent tears washed the Queen's features. "Anything you wish, brave princess."
"Will you take…" she began, but the blood clogged her throat, "Will you take my right of cast?"
The Queen did not understand. She looked up to her Lord and saw her eyes briefly widening. Her Lord did understand and seemed surprised.
"Right of cast?" Queen Gabrielle questioned.
"Daughter, think about what you're doing," Queen Melosa cried out, protesting vehemently, "Her Majesty is not one of us!"
"Mother, at heart, her Majesty is a true Amazon," princess Terreis insisted with her last shreds of strength. "Will you?" she then directed her question to Queen Gabrielle.
"I don't understand… What is this 'right of cast'?” Queen Gabrielle inquired urgently, for she realized the light in the pure-hearted princess' eyes was quickly fading.
"Promise me," came out one last faint whisper from between unmoving lips.
"I promise," Queen Gabrielle said, wishing more than anything to put the princess' mind at rest.
And soon after the promise was made, the princess drifted away to her final respite.
Profound bereavement descended over all present. It was Queen Gabrielle who broke the fraught silence. "My deepest condolences for this great loss, Queen Melosa, however my Lord is in dire need of my care."
"Besides, we are exposed, stationary targets staying here in the open. We need to leave at once," the Conqueror said determinably.
Too distraught for words, the mourning mother just nodded her head.
The Amazon Queen's second in command, Molpadia, ordered the Amazons to load the departed princess' body atop a horse.
Princess Athena brought the Imperial horses to her parents. As she tried to offer the Conqueror her assistance climbing upon the well-groomed animal, the Conqueror rejected the offered help and simply muttered, "A ruler must never show even the slightest sign of weakness," as she mounted her horse without surrendering any indication of the great pain she was in.
The ride into the depth of the thick woods to the Amazon village was quiet, and wet due to the rain. The dimming daylight barely penetrated through the thick treetops and the ground beneath the horses' hooves was muddy. All seemed to be immersed deep in their own thoughts.
The Shamaness, who rode with her apprentice far behind the Conqueror, posed a question to her student, "What did you just see?"
"I saw the Queen of the Realm jumping to save the life of the princess and the princess giving her the right of cast upon her death," answered the inexperienced apprentice.
"That is simply stating the obvious," the Shamaness admonished the novice for what she considered an unsatisfactory answer.
"What did you see?" asked the apprentice in return.
The wise Shamaness waited a few moments before replying, as if giving her apprentice another chance to figure it out for herself. "I saw the ruthless Destroyer of Nations risking her life to save her Queen," she finally responded.
At the head of the riding group, Queen Gabrielle kept a watchful eye over her Lord, just barely keeping up with her Lord's galloping pace.
"How are you feeling, my Lord?" she asked, concerned.
Steering the reigns with her healthy hand, the Conqueror adjusted her position in her saddle in order to alleviate some of her pain. "I'll live," the Conqueror's voice was strained.
"Poor princess Terreis. My heart goes out to Queen Melosa. Losing both her daughter and her consort and in such a short period of time… I don't know what I would do if I ever lost you or our daughter," the Queen said and shook her head as if shaking it could have stopped these thoughts from occupying her mind.
"Try not to worry so much, my Lady," the Conqueror said with a voice strained still.
"What is this 'right of cast' matter?" the Queen inquired.
"You have just promised the late princess to take her place as princess of the Amazon nation and as heir to the Amazon Queen's throne," the Conqueror replied evenly and watched as a surprised expression spread over her wife's face.
After riding for a candle-mark or so, just before darkness pervaded the cloudy skies, they arrived at the village located in the middle of a vast clearing. Wooden huts upon wooden huts approximately two feet above ground with wooden stairs leading to their entrances were built around a grand center. The center was partially paved and had a large podium close to the center.
The princess' body was brought to the Shamaness' hut to be cleansed and prepared for the funeral pyre. The Conqueror and her Queen were rushed to a spacious, candlelit hut next to the Queen's hut.
Once inside their assigned hut, the Conqueror seated herself atop a high stool. She broke the exposed length of the arrow that wasn't impaling her flesh, holding her left arm to her ribcage, and the arrow snapped easily enough. Meanwhile the Queen and the Shamaness ordered the Amazons attending them to gather and bring to them certain herbs, clean pieces of cloth, a needle and a strong thread, potent spirits and warm fresh water.
"Please, my Lord," the Queen handed the Conqueror a piece of wood, "bite on it so that you won't bite your tongue. It's going to hurt."
"That won't be necessary, my Lady," the stubborn and stoic Conqueror claimed while thinking that had been the best attempt on her life yet.
"Very well, my Lord," the Queen receded and moved to stand to the Conqueror's left and the Shamaness joined her. Both women secured their hold on the Conqueror's left arm. "Please relax your arm, my Lord," the Queen requested and the Conqueror relaxed her muscles completely. With one swift and precise motion, the Queen and the Shamaness released the Conqueror's injured arm from the side of her body. Though excruciatingly painful, nothing but a brief tremor of the Conqueror's brow and the quick clench of her jaw implied any discomfort upon her.
As the Amazons and Princess Athena stood around them watching in fascination, the Shamaness and her apprentice assisted Queen Gabrielle with mindfully removing the Conqueror's light armor and allowing access to her wound. Once it was off, the Queen ripped a tear to the left side of the white silk blood stained shirt and exposed the injury.
Next, the Queen took a well-honed dagger and dipped it in the spirits. "Please keep still, my Lord," she said, then skillfully and carefully inserted it where the arrowhead was lodged, till she was able to pull it out in whole. She brought the blood-covered arrowhead to her nostrils and took a sniff to check for the presence of a poison, and was tremendously relieved to find none.
A substantial amount of blood oozed from the Conqueror's gash on the left side of her torso and arm. The Queen quickly washed the open wounds with spirits, and then proceeded to sow them with perfect, even, tiny stitches, all the while knowing they would leave scars.
Once she was done, she crushed and grinded the mixture of herbs she ordered with a mortar and a pestle, then added some oil and spirits until a smooth salve was formed. She lathered it on the Conqueror's wounds, inwardly wishing their audience be gone so she could finally be alone with her Lord. She had so much to say to her. For instance, that if it hadn't been for the light armor, the arrow in all likelihood would have pierced her heart and killed her, or that she was grateful for her Lord's protection yet she shouldn't have done so for the Realm needed its Ruler far more than it needed its Queen.
Queen Melosa entered the hut.
"Majesties," she said. There was no escape discerning her bereavement. "I came to inquire after your Majesty's condition, and to thank her Majesty the Queen for trying to save my daughter's life."
"My Lord is strong and invincible," Queen Gabrielle replied as she wrapped the clean white bandages around the Conqueror's wounds. "As for the late princess, I can only wish that I could have been more successful in saving her precious young life."
“Thank you,” Queen Melosa said to Queen Gabrielle then turned to address the Conqueror, "May I ask, your Majesty, what have you gathered from the recent attack?"
"Judging from the patterns of the shooting, I am sure there are at least three perpetrators, and had it not been for the poor conditions due to the bad weather, we would have suffered greater losses," the Conqueror said as the Queen knotted a large sheet of cloth behind the Conqueror's nape, making a cradle-like sling for the Conqueror to rest her wounded arm in, allowing it to heal properly.
The Conqueror wriggled her fingers discretely, letting her Queen know that her motor functions hadn't been damaged and remained completely intact.
"Whoever did this has been watching us closely from a great distance," the Conqueror continued. "I was able to sense them, but not to see them. I have no doubt in my mind that they were perched on tree branches high above ground, well-hidden betwixt the treetops when they took aim. I'm not entirely sure whether they could discern from that distance that I or my family was present as well and that the group was compiled of more than Amazons."
"I assure you, Majesty, no one could know that the Royal Family would be returning with us," said the Amazon Queen. "They have managed to kill our princess. She was standing next to her Majesty the Queen when the attack began and the furthest from the rest of her sisters, who were closest to the woods, and their safety."
"Indeed," the Conqueror concurred. "Tomorrow at first light I shall return back to the scene with Molpadia and examine the area for any clues. Now, I wish to be left alone with my Queen."
"Very well, your Majesty," replied the Amazon Queen.
All present save for the Conqueror and Queen Gabrielle vacated the hut. Princess Athena was housed in the hut that stood next to her parents.
When footstep could no longer be heard, the Conqueror turned her gaze from the hut's door to her Queen. "What went through your head, Madame?" she scowled.
"My Lord!?" the Queen questioned bewildered, not sure what she had done wrong.
"Risking your own life for a stranger!?"
If it weren't for the proximity of the neighboring huts, the Conqueror's voice would have surely roared.
"She…" the Queen started to say then paused, choosing her words carefully. "Her life was in danger and I was closest to her. I did what I thought was right, my Lord."
"What you thought was right is wrong, Madame," came the Conqueror's vexed retort.
"Why, my Lord?" asked the Queen.
"Because the value of your life is immeasurably greater than hers," the Conqueror answered.
"Why? Because I'm Queen of the Realm?"
The Conqueror neither confirmed nor denied.
"Because you love me?" the Queen tried a different explanation.
"Yes!" the Conqueror responded in a manner that was anything but loving. She was angry, and greatly so, for the Queen's words enabled her to recognize and be confronted with her own selfishness.
"I'm sure Queen Melosa loved her daughter more than anything else on this earth," the Queen replied unapologetically. "I acted upon my impulses, upon my beliefs, upon what is in my heart. I saw a young promising woman in harm's way and my instincts behooved me to help her. It is against my nature to stand by and do nothing. I couldn't have acted any differently, my Lord, and I would do it again, if I had to."
The Conqueror let out a deep sigh. She rubbed her forehead with her healthy hand as she considered her wife's words. "How ludicrous and unreasonable is it," she finally spoke, "that I should be angry with you for possessing the same traits that make me love you so much."
The Queen smiled in relief and happiness, and the tension of the day's events began to ebb away. She walked over to her Lord, who was still seated atop the high stool, and gently wrapped her arms around her beloved, careful not to cause any pain. She breathed in the distinct musky scent of her Lord that blended with the odor of fresh rain and wet leather.
"Besides, my Lord, I never feel fear when I'm in your presence, for I know you will not allow any harm to come to me, so you see, I'm not truly brave." The Queen placed a hastened kiss on the Conqueror's neck, and stroked the long, dark, soaking mane before she released her. "It is you, my Lord, who shouldn't have rushed to place yourself between me and the arrows. The Realm will survive my death, but it might not survive yours."
"That is where you're wrong, my Lady. The Realm might not survive yours," came the Conqueror's grim reply.
"You've made me a promise, my Lord," the Queen reminded what needn't be reminded.
"And I will do my very best to keep my word to you, my Lady. However, that is not what I meant when I said that the Realm might not survive your demise. What I meant to say was that it is you who have shown me the beauty in subtlety, and the strength in compassion. Surely you recognize your effect… the way you balance, if you will, my rule with your light."
The Queen smiled a brilliant smile that surpassed that of the moonlight and dim light emanating from the burning candles in their hut. "Thank you, my gracious Lord," she said simply, thinking these were some of the words she would forever cherish the most.
"You must dry yourself, my love, before you catch your death," the Conqueror muttered and handed her Queen a dried piece of cloth.
The Queen helped the Conqueror out of her soaking regalia, and then helped her dry her damp skin. Only then did she attend to herself.
When warm and dry beneath the covers in their bed, Lord and Lady were lying next to one another restless.
"You can't fall asleep," the Conqueror stated.
"Neither can you," the Queen replied.
"What is troubling you, my love?" inquired the Conqueror.
"I need your carnal embrace, my Lion," answered the Queen as she turned to lie on her side facing her Lord.
The Conqueror chuckled, for her need matched that of her wife, and as always she derived great pleasure from hearing her wife give voice to her desire. "Carnal embrace… I like it,” she enjoyed her wife's novel term for their sexual acts, “Only we're not in Corinth or Thira . Queen Melosa's hut, Athena's hut, and the one behind ours are but a few feet away. Do you still possess the capacity to be quiet in the throes of passion?"
"I shall be as quiet as you shall, my Lion," challenged the Queen with a sly look about her, then her expression took one of concern. "But with your injury… should I climb…"
But the Conqueror didn't let her finish. "No, my love. Tonight my need for you demands..." her voice trailed off, insinuating an unspoken supplication .
The Queen understood. "You need to take me," she said then gladly surrendered her own admission, "I need to be taken."
The Queen moved to kneel on all fours, and her breath quickened as she felt her lover positioning herself behind her. When the Conqueror leaned down over her, the Queen felt the injured arm in the sling she had created press against her bare back, followed by the Conqueror's hot breath and moist lips grazing her nape.
The very knowledge that despite the Conqueror's impairment she would be dominated as desired and be brought to the brink of sublime satiation and beyond aroused Gabrielle above measure. She knew her Lord better than she knew her own heart. There was no doubt in her mind that in order to assert her dominance in light of her diminished physical ability, the Conqueror would grossly compensate in other ways. That thought sent a shudder down her spine and settled between her thighs when she felt one large and powerful hand roughly grab at her hip instead of two, to steady her and better her angle for entry.
There was no soft and slow exploration of her wet folds, no examination of her readiness to be annexed, but a decisive plunge into her depth, which made her gasp curtly. Before Gabrielle had time to absorb and adjust herself to her Lord's demanding intrusion, she sensed her Lord's hand grab the slave collar around her thigh, then pull it hard to widen the spread of her legs. Next she felt the possessive limb being brutally entangled in her golden hair and being balled into a tight fist snaring her tresses in a viselike grip. With incredible force her upper body was hoisted upwards as though it was weightless until she was sitting against the Conqueror's crotch in a kneeling position, deepening her lover's penetration into her. Gabrielle's head was nearly slammed against her Lord's stalwart shoulder. She felt the wild pumping of blood in the artery of the Conqueror's neck thumping against her cheek.
The Conqueror's fingers dug into Gabrielle's scalp, then sharply turned her head as if she was a puppet and sucked her lips till she brought the smaller woman to float at the fine line between pleasure and pain.
Gabrielle moaned into her lover's mouth. She sent her hand backwards to rest upon the clamping and unclamping backside of her Lord, so to feel the piston-like working muscles, as her Lord rammed into her. "I love this beautiful, tight, strong body of yours," she panted between the frenzied kisses and the probing of tongues, "that protects me… that pleasures me… that makes me sweat fire on a cold night and take heel at attention."
As her unscathed hand glided from her wife's hair to her breasts, the Conqueror hummed into her wife's ear, "And I worship this taut, compact body of yours," her fingers squeezed a nipple, "that drips sweet honey," her tongue licked a path from the base of her wife's neck to her sensitive earlobe, "that smells like apples in spring," the chiseled hand continued its journey to the throbbing bud between Gabrielle's thighs, "that receives me with complete trust, and keeps me hard constantly."
The Queen's fingertips fluttered down the Conqueror's arm and joined her Lord's kneading fingers against her drenched need. As her climax was building inside her, her moans and purrs grew louder.
When the Conqueror sensed her beloved Queen was about to achieve her release, her pleasuring hand left the Queen's fingers alone to finish the task of mounting her want and moved quickly upwards to block her Queen's gaping mouth, barring the music of ultimate pleasure when they exploded together.
After milking the last shuttering ripples of their release for all its worth, they crashed down onto the bed.
Lying prone on her back, the Conqueror extended her right arm as an invitation. The sated Queen cuddled closely against her Lord's heated body.
"I knew you could no longer arrest your voice…" the Conqueror chuckled.
"I choose to blame you for it, my Lord," the Queen replied and smirked.
"This is when I feel most powerful," the Conqueror began to say thoughtfully, as her hand adoringly drew random patterns on her wife's back, "Not on the battlefield commanding tens of thousands of warriors, not on my throne making decisions that shape the world, but in times like this, did you know?" the Conqueror asked tenderly.
The Queen shook her head in the negative.
"It is not for the dominance I physically have over you, but for the soft touch of your precious hands, for the feel of your exquisite body against mine, and your delicious lips upon mine. When you accept all that I am with sound love and flawless trust I feel like I can conquer the world all over again with one hand only."
"Kiss me again, my Love," the Queen requested, on the verge of tears for her Lord's words moved her to her very core.