Hey, everyone - I'm working my way back. I've had a large commission art piece that's been driving me daft and my hands haven't wanted to work for a couple of weeks or more (50 years of power typing, crafting and Viking's disease - thanks, Dad). I will be posting more regularly.
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Amazon Darkness
Awakening 14
Hunter
Ash
ripperbard7@yahoo.com
frost29@post.com
Disclaimers
Ownership: Repeat
after me: I don’t own Xena, Gabrielle, etc. I’m borrowing them
for entertainment purposes
Violence: less than a
typical TV episode.
Subtext/Alt
Fiction/Sex: the story assumes a loving and sexual relationship
between people of the same gender and of the opposite sex.
Feedback: always
welcome and responded to!
Storyline: Xena,
Gabrielle, Solan and Sasha are with the Northern Amazons for the
winter when things get complicated.
================================================================
The Amazon Shaman moved
around the circle of dancers and drummers slowly, chanting and moving
to the beat of the drums. Behind her was the Shaman apprentice,
Ulrike, carrying the bowls of sacred ingredients.
Xena leaned over and
whispered to her son, Solan, describing their surroundings and the
actions to the blind teenager.
"Yakut is in
traditional Shaman clothes," she whispered as they sat outside
the circle. "Leather headdress with beads, feathers, fur and
shortened antlers. Her clothing is buckskin, fringed with fur and
beads. Her face is streaked with paint, one side is the design of
the sacred spiral of life and their Earth Goddess, and the other side
is stripes, indicating the claws and their connection to nature."
Solan nodded, quietly
swaying with the drumbeat.
"She's carrying a
staff with intricate carvings, fur covering, beads, feathers and
topped with a large crystal," Xena continued. "Behind her
is her apprentice Ulrika carrying wooden bowls of something."
Xena found herself
swaying to the intoxicating beat as well.
Yakut moved to the
outside of the northern part the circle of dancing and sitting
Amazons and raised her arms to the sky in invocation.
"Yakut is invoking
the spirits of the Air to join the ritual and protect those here,"
Xena whispered.
Ulrike moved forward
with a bowl of burning incense and waved the smoke about and followed
Yakut to the East, then the South, the West and finally back to the
North. "Her apprentice offered smoke from incense to the Air
Spirits." Xena whispered.
Yakut raised her arms
again in invocation and Ulrike poured fresh spring water on the
ground. "Now they're invoking the Water Spirits and offering
fresh water." Once more the circle was completed.
The Shaman again
invoked in a loud and firm voice and Ulrike followed with an offering
of honey mead to the earth. "Invoking the Earth spirits and
offering mead." Xena explained as the Shaman and apprentice
completed another circle.
The final invocation
and offering included a ritualistic dance with two torches woven in a
complicated pattern and the circle was formed once again. "To
the Fire Spirits, with torches."
Yakut moved to the
altar to the north of the fire pit and the drumming grew calmer and
the chanting grew silent. Otere, the new Amazon Queen, moved forward
from the crowd to stand next to the shaman and turned to face her
Amazons.
"My Sisters,"
she began, "Tonight we welcome new members into our tribe and
celebrate!"
The Amazons cheered
loudly and Xena felt herself grinning and saw Solan was doing
likewise.
Yakut raised her arms
and head to the sky.
"Taevataat, god of
wisdom and life, be with us!
Ukko, God of Thunder;
Akko, goddess of life, be with us!
Raunni, goddess of the
woods, Paiva of the Sun, Kuu of the Moon, be with us!
The Great Bear Otava,
Ilma of the air, Luonnota the sacred mother of Vainamoinen, be with
us!
The daughter of the
Moon, Kuuta; Daughter of the Sun, Paivatar, be with us!
Aske, god of the moon,
Pellervoinen of the fields and plants, be with us now!
Metsola of the forests,
Mehilainen, bee of messages; be with us!
Forest family: Tapio
the father, Mielikki the mother, Nyrrikki the son, Tuulikki the
daughter, be with us!
The water family: Ahti
the god, Vellamo his wife, Vetehinen and Tursas the daughters, and
the Veden Haltia, the water spirits. Turn your evil away from us and
bless us with your good!
Metsola, protect us
from Lempo, Paha and Hiisi!
Earth Mother, protect
us, bless us and join us!"
Solan leaned closer to
his mom. "They invoke male deities too?" he questioned.
"Yes, they see
their deities as closer to each other and to the land and the people
than the Greeks. You'll notice they don't have a god of Justice or
Victory but more along the lines of many nature deities and they
don't have as much reluctance in dealing with male spirits."
Xena whispered.
"Maybe their male
gods don't go around acting like male jerks," Solan suggested
with a grin and bit his lip to keep from laughing as Xena lightly
shoved him playfully.
The Amazons took up the
chant to the deities of the Northerners and the drumbeat increased in
speed and loudness. The dancers took up a frenzied dance as Yakut
watched and judged the raising of the energy. Xena and Solan could
both feel the energy flowing from the circle, their own breath and
pulse increasing.
At a signal from Yakut
the dancers dropped to their hands and knees, the drummers and
chanters stopped cold. It almost felt like a physical blow to the
warrior and her son.
After a moment, Otere
raised her head and nodded to the shadows outside the circle.
Xena turned and saw a
blindfolded and bound figure being led to the circle by two Amazon
warriors with drawn swords. The Warrior Princess felt her heart skip
a beat as she caught sight of the figure. Xena knew it was part of
the ritual of the Northern Amazons for the binding of the initiate
but it still made the warrior nervous to see her mate like that.
Gabrielle also looked stunning. The
Amazon Queen was dressed in white leathers, designed much like her
wedding tunic and the leathers were of soft deerskin and hugged the
bard’s body nicely and was sleeveless, revealing the warrior bard's
well-developed arms. Instead of Gabrielle's usual boots with sais
sheathed alongside, tonight she was wearing white deerskin boots
without the sais. Xena also knew that the bard wasn't wearing her
knife either.
The only adornment on
her mate was the twisted metal of gold and silver at her wrist, her
bracelet symbolizing her bonding to the warrior. Xena had a matching
one on her wrist, usually tucked under her bracer.
Xena frowned slightly
when two other warriors approached her and Solan. She stood up, her
face questioning.
"We’re the escorts for you and the boy
when it’s over," one explained softly and the warrior nodded
and sat back down on the log.
She leaned over to
Solan and described how Gabrielle looked and about the two Amazons
who had joined them.
"Still say you
should be invited too!" Solan hissed quietly.
"No, I'll probably
never be invited to join the tribe and you know it," Xena
explained. "They've forgiven me for the murders all those years
ago but it doesn't erase what I did."
"You and Gabrielle
both fought Alti to fix that," Solan insisted.
"Yes, that's why
they've forgiven me my crime and are honoring Gabrielle tonight. It's
alright, Solan, really," Xena insisted.
"Still...."
"No, I understand
it and accept it," Xena said firmly. “I’m very glad that
you and Sasha have been formally adopted as Gabrielle’s children
and are acknowledged by the tribe.”
The Amazons led
Gabrielle to the edge of the circle where Queen Otere faced them.
Xena’s pulse quickened as the Queen raised a sword to the base of
Gabrielle’s throat. Xena could see Gabrielle raise her head
slightly, feeling the point of the blade.
“Gabrielle of Greece,
you have been invited to join this tribe. You are an Amazon Queen
and our Sister, will you join with us?” Otere asked loud enough for
everyone to hear.
Xena held her breath.
The debate over the last two weeks had been endless concerning her
bard’s status in the village.
It had only been three
weeks since the Greek family had traveled to the colder northern
climate to visit the Northern Amazons. There had been two goals in
mind for the family of Xena and Gabrielle, to make amends for what
Xena had done to the tribe many years ago and for Sasha to be
recognized as Gabrielle’s adopted daughter and accepted into the
tribe. The tribe had readily agreed to the second goal, welcoming
Sasha as Gabrielle’s adopted daughter and even accepting Xena as
the Amazon Queen’s Consort.
The difficult part had
been the first goal. Many summer seasons before had seen the army of
Xena and Borias in the area and Xena intent on conquering everything
in sight, including the Amazons. The Warlord met someone even more
ambitious than she was, Alti. The evil shaman had shown Xena the
power of darkness and used Xena to gain even more by persuading the
warrior to slaughter the Amazon Queen and most of the Amazon leaders
in a most brutal manner.
Xena and Gabrielle had
gone to the Northern Amazons ready to face Xena’s past and make
amends, whatever that meant. What had shocked the two women was
finding out that Alti had captured the souls of the Amazons Xena had
killed and held them prisoner in the Land of the Dead, not allowing
them to move onto the Isle of the Dead. The evil magician used their
never-ending energy to fuel her dark magics.
Xena and Gabrielle
joined with the Amazons to defeat Alti, hopefully for once and for
all. It had been a difficult fight and difficult choices had been
made. The plan had been for Gabrielle to lead several Amazon
warriors in the Spirit Realm against Alti and the tortured Spirit
Amazons while Xena and the main Amazon warriors fought their way
through Alti’s physical troops. Xena planned on killing Alti’s
body while Gabrielle kept the Shaman’s spirit occupied in the
Spirit Realm.
It had been a good plan
until Alti used Gabrielle’s dark bacchae influence to surface,
turning the bard into a full bacchae in the Spirit Realm. To break
the spell, the Queen of the Amazons, Arja, had willingly sacrificed
herself to Gabrielle’s fangs.
The distraction had
been long enough for Xena to fight her way to Alti’s tent and slay
the evil shaman, but only after fierce fighting and taking several
serious sword wounds.
When Xena had regained
consciousness she found Gabrielle catatonic from the shock of killing
the Northern Amazon Queen. It had taken Xena over two days to bring
the bard out of it.
Then the debate had
begun, the tribe still wanted to invite Gabrielle in as a full member
of the tribe and as royalty. Gabrielle protested she wasn’t worthy
after killing their Queen, even if Arja had intentionally sacrificed
herself. Otere, the new Queen, Yakut, and the Elders had all
protested that it hadn’t been Gabrielle’s fault, that the bard
was as much a victim of Alti as Arja was, but Gabrielle had been
stubborn.
Finally, the Elders had
won the argument by pointing out that Gabrielle had to be accepted
into the tribe before Sasha could be accepted. Wanting the status
for Sasha, Gabrielle had finally agreed but Xena knew that the bard
still didn’t think it was right and was still feeling guilty about
the death.
Now was the moment of
decision for the bard and Xena held her breath and could feel the
tension all around her. Every Amazon in the tribe knew how Gabrielle
felt about the killing and her acceptance of it.
“I would join with my
Sisters of the North,” Gabrielle answered firmly.
Xena felt her body
relax as she began to breath again. She felt Solan’s hand reach
out for hers and squeeze it encouragingly.
Yakut moved forward and
walked behind the bard and cut her bounds.
“To join us, you must
enter this circle that represents the never ending cycle of life,
with a pure heart and with love for your tribe. Let there be no
doubt of your commitment to this tribe. If there is doubt in your
heart or soul, if you look there and find that you could not bring
yourself to die for your Sisters, then fall forward on this sword or
walk away. You are free to choose.” Otere challenged the young
woman.
“I would gladly give
my life for my Sisters of all the tribes.” Gabrielle answered,
holding her place.
Otere sheathed her
sword and stepped back. Yakut gently guided Gabrielle into the
circle and to the altar, still leaving the bard blindfolded.
“Who speaks for this
woman?” Otere demanded.
“I do,” Yakut
stated and stepped forward to stand next to Gabrielle.
“You are recognized
as an honored member of this tribe and as its shaman. Do you stand
for this woman?” Queen Otere challenged.
“Yes, My Queen, I
claim she is worthy to be our sister and challenge any who say
otherwise,” Yakut answered easily.
Xena could see
Gabrielle shift uneasily on her feet and the warrior could see the
torment on the bard’s face. Xena knew that Gabrielle didn’t feel
worthy at all, no matter who stood for her.
“Is there a
challenge?” Otere asked.
Gabrielle began to
reach for her blindfold.
“I stand for
Gabrielle as well and claim her worthy!” a voice suddenly called
out and everyone went silent.
Xena found herself on
her feet as she took in the sight of the warrior standing in the
center of the circle. The Amazons that were standing went to their
knees, including Otere and Yakut.
Gabrielle’s
face was one of confusion; she could sense the awesome silence around
her.
“Remove
your blindfold, Gabrielle, and face the truth,” the voice ordered.
The
bard slowly removed the blindfold and blinked in the firelight,
trying to get her eyes to focus. After a moment, Xena saw her mate’s
face go pale and Gabrielle went to her knee and bowed her head.
“Queen
Arja,” she whispered.
“Gabrielle,
taking the blame for my death stops tonight. I claim you are worthy
to be part of my tribe,” the spirit said simply.
“But….”
Gabrielle started to protest but the Spirit held up her hand to stop
any spoken protests from the bard.
“No,
no challenges and no more blame. You are a worthy Amazon and you are
a worthy Queen.”
Gabrielle
and the other Amazons blinked when they realized that Queen Arja was
no longer standing in the circle with them.
Yakut
and Otere stood slowly and looked at each other and then at
Gabrielle. The bard blushed under their stares of wonderment.
After
a few stunned moments, Otere shook her head and continued.
“You
have already faced spiritual testing, as attested to by our Queen and
Shaman and the spirit of our Queen Arja. Are you ready to face the
physical test?” Otere questioned the bard.
Xena
frowned; Gabrielle hadn’t mentioned anything about a physical test.
“I
am,” Gabrielle answered firmly.
Two
Amazon warriors moved from the main body watching the ritual to stand
on either side of the bard. From her position to the North of the
circle, Xena could see into Gabrielle’s eyes very clearly and
frowned when she saw concern.
The
warrior started to stand, eyes narrowing, when a firm hand came down
on her shoulder, restraining her. Before she could react, another
hand came down on her other shoulder and a dagger was being held at
her throat.
“Listen,
Consort, we know that you can take us, just listen. This is Queen
Gabrielle’s choice, alright?” one of the warriors whispered in
her ear.
Xena
struggled to maintain control and caught Gabrielle’s worried eyes
and nodded slightly and watched the bard relax and nod to Otere and
Yakut. Xena could feel Solan shift uneasily on the log.
“Solan,
Gabrielle is going to go through a difficult part of the ritual and
they want to make sure I stay quiet,” Xena whispered, trying to
explain.
“It's
the pain part, isn’t it?” he whispered back.
Xena
gritted her teeth. “I think so,” she whispered back.
“It’ll
be over quickly, Consort,” one of the Amazons whispered only to be
answered by a growl from the Warrior Princess.
"What
do you know of it, Solan?" Xena whispered as her son reached out
and took her hand in his again.
"I'm
not sure about the Amazons, the Centaurs have a blood letting part of
the ritual to manhood when a boy is officially recognized as a man or
a new member is accepted into the tribe. We heard the Amazons had
similar rituals,” he whispered back.
At
a signal from Yakut the chanting and drumming began again and many of
the Amazons began dancing around the circle. Otere handed Gabrielle
a goblet and Xena watched as her mate drank the entire contents and
then leaned back into the music and closed her eyes. It wasn't long
before the bard was swaying with the music with the other Amazons,
her face taking on that trance look Xena knew well.
Gabrielle
was susceptible to the hypnotic energy of music and altered easily to
it. Xena also wondered what had been in the drink as she watched
Gabrielle's body relax for the first time in weeks.
The
bard's eyes didn't even open when Otere moved closer and unlaced
Gabrielle's tunic and lifted it off over her head, leaving the
initiate bare to the waist.
Xena's
felt her pulse begin pounding in her head and her heartbeat quicken.
Solan, sensing the change in his mother, squeezed Xena's hand
reassuringly.
As
Otere moved behind the bard, the two Amazons on either side took
Gabrielle's wrists in their hands as the bard went to her knees, her
eyes still closed and body still swaying to the music.
The
music picked up in beat and energy, tension filling the air and Xena
felt her other hand tighten into a fist. The hands on the warrior's
shoulders tightened as Otere pulled an object from her belt and held
it high for all to see. Xena felt a whimper escape her throat.
"What
is it, Mom?" Solan whispered.
"A
bear claw," Xena answered, her voice strained.
The
Amazons holding Gabrielle's wrist stepped to the side, pulling the
bard's arms out to the side and tightened their hold as Otere
approached the bard's naked back, already lightly laced with scars
from the lashings she had received as a Roman slave and the brand of
a Gladiator slave.
"A
tribal marking," Solan commented and tightened his grip on
Xena's hand.
Otere
leaned forward and whispered something in Gabrielle's ear and the
warrior saw her mate nod slightly. The Northern Amazon Queen stepped
back slightly and lashed out with blinding speed with the claws,
racking right across the brand that marred the bard’s shoulder from
her time as a slave in Rome.
The
chanting and music stopped suddenly.
The
Amazons holding Xena used both hands each to hold the warrior down as
she instinctively tried to jump up. The former Warlord whimpered at
the sight of Gabrielle's pain racked face as the bard bit her lower
lip to keep from screaming. Sweat pouring off her body and face.
Yakut
went behind the bard and caught some of the blood pouring from the
four slashes along Gabrielle's shoulder and went to the altar and
poured the blood over it.
"Your
blood has joined that of your Sister Amazons and you will carry those
scars as a sign and reminder of your pact with us," Yakut
declared.
Xena
could see the Amazons holding Gabrielle relax their hold and she
could tell from Gabrielle's eyes the bard was in an altered state
from the music, the pain and the drink. The two Amazons helped
Gabrielle to her feet, holding her steady.
They
slowly led the bard through the crowd of Amazons and out of the
circle towards the Shaman's hut.
"They'll
tend to the wounds and make her comfortable for the night, she'll
have vision dreams tonight, Consort," one of the Amazons holding
onto Xena whispered to her. The warrior relaxed and the Amazon
warriors removed their hands.
"Time
for you and your son to retire to your hut, the Amazons will
celebrate inside the sacred circle until dawn,” the other Amazon
suggested and Xena nodded, pulling Solan to his feet.
The
warrior felt drained and frustrated. She wanted to go and comfort
Gabrielle but, having been through shaman rituals herself, Xena knew
that wasn't the best thing right then.
Xena knew it would be a long night.
Xena knew she wasn’t
going to get much sleep but also knew that Gabrielle needed the space
on this journey. Reluctantly, she let the warriors escort her and
Solan back to their hut.
The warrior finally
smiled when she saw Sasha curled up on the sleeping furs with one of
the older girls sitting nearby, sewing some leather into something,
keeping an eye on the youngster.
The girl, Lempi, smiled
and went quietly out the door.
“Is Gabrielle
alright?” Solan asked softly as he sat down on his sleeping furs
and began to remove his boots.
“She
will be, I think. It’s just hard seeing her hurt,” the warrior
muttered.
“I
know, like when I was hurt,” Solan commented. “I knew it almost
killed you.”
Xena
brushed away a tear. There wasn’t a day that she didn’t curse
Brutus and the Roman soldiers who had blinded her beloved son.
“Yes,
I would do anything to change that, you know that.”
“Yup,
just like you’d take all the pain for Gabrielle if you could and
we’d do the same for you.”
“I
love you, squirt.”
“Back
at you, Mom.”
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Xena
found herself outside her hut with chakram in hand when another
scream ripped through the night. The warrior growled and rushed
towards the Shaman’s hut when two Amazon warriors stepped out of
the shadows with their swords drawn, blocking her.
“Xena!”
Yakut cried out as she stepped out of the hut. “It’s alright,
it’s only a nightmare. Gabrielle is fine!” the shaman attempted
to reassure the warrior as Xena blinked rapidly, trying to think.
“She’s
alright?” she demanded.
“I
give you my word, it’s just the dreams,” Yakut said simply and
Xena lowered the chakram. The two Amazon warriors melted back into
the shadows.
“I’m
sorry, automatic reaction,” Xena mumbled as Yakut walked up to her
and began leading the warrior back to the guest hut.
Xena
felt a shiver run over her body and looked down, realizing that she
was only in her sleeping shift and nothing else, not even boots.
Yakut
grinned. “You heard Gabrielle scream and was half way across the
common ground before you even realized you had your eyes open,”
Yakut guessed.
Xena
blushed and smiled a small smile herself. “Yeah, that’s about
it,” she agreed.
“I
wouldn’t have expected less, Xena,” Yakut grinned and entered the
hut with Xena.
“Mom?”
she heard Solan’s voice in the semi-darkness. Sasha was still
sleeping, fortunately.
“It’s
me. Sorry about waking you.”
“I
heard Gabby Mom,” he muttered, running a hand through his hair.
“She
was having a nightmare, Yakut says that Gabrielle’s okay,” Xena
turned to the shaman and nodded. “I won’t interfere or try and
see her,” Xena promised.
“I
know, a natural reaction for a blood bonded couple,” The shaman
commented as she walked out the door.
Xena
tried to settle back down into her sleeping furs, trying to get the
sound of Gabrielle’s screams out of her mind. The warrior didn’t
sleep well the rest of the night.
The
next morning found Gabrielle waiting for her outside the Shaman’s
hut. Xena approached her bard slowly and was glad to see Gabrielle’s
welcoming smile as the bard stood up to meet her mate.
Xena
drew the bard into her arms, careful of the wounds across Gabrielle’s
shoulder and kissed her lightly. Xena drew back slightly to look
deep into the bard’s green eyes.
“Are
you alright?” she asked.
“Yes,
no…. I don’t know. I’m still trying to sort through the dreams
and visions,” Gabrielle answered, dark circles under her eyes.
“Anything
I can do?” Xena asked, her face concerned.
“Maybe
later,” Gabrielle muttered, eyes suddenly distant and looking
troubled.
“How
about breakfast?” Xena suggested and got the smile she expected and
laughed at her mate. “That always gets you,” she teased and
delighted when Gabrielle blushed. “I love you, Gabrielle.”
“And
I love you, my warrior.” The bard answered as they began walking
towards the food hut.
“Why
didn’t you tell me about the scarring?” Xena asked as they
walked.
“I
couldn’t. They didn’t tell me what the ritual was, just that it
involved some pain and I couldn’t tell you anything about it,”
Gabrielle answered with a frown.
“Why
not? I wouldn’t have stopped you.”
“You
were allowed to be there outside the tribe because you’re my
Consort and Champion and Solan because he’s our son and blind. No
one else has seen the rituals outside of Amazons.”
“It
was just hard for me seeing you hurt. How are the wounds?”
“Okay,
hurts like Tartarus but the salve they put on it has taken most of
the pain away,” Gabrielle answered as they started into the food
hut.
“With
your god-given gifts, how will that scar?” Xena asked softly.
“Yakut
knows about my rapid healing abilities and will put a light touch of
tattoo ink in the healing wounds. It won’t be as dark as a tattoo
but the slashes will scar.”
Xena
shook her head, still hating to see the cloth wrapping her bard’s
wounds.
Gabrielle
smiled softly and reached up to stroke Xena’s cheek.
“I
love you too.”
The
next few days puzzled the warrior. Xena expected Gabrielle to open
up about her visions; instead the bard withdrew into herself. She
continued to spend time with the kids and Xena and also time learning
the ways of the Northern Amazons but emotionally she seemed withdrawn
to the warrior.
The
bard was also having bad nightmares again. Even worse than when she
had returned from her captivity as a gladiator and slave. Each night
Xena would wake up and soothe the dreams away until Gabrielle settled
back down to sleep in her arms. The bard was getting less and less
sleep and it was beginning to show.
On
the fifth night after the ritual, Xena woke up in the dark, reaching
for her bard to discover that side of the sleeping furs empty. The
warrior frowned and waited several minutes for her mate to return. A
quick glance told the warrior that Sasha and Solan were still asleep
in their furs and Xena pulled the blankets and furs off and reached
for her boots.
Xena
found Gabrielle sitting on the same logs Solan and Xena had sat on
five nights before, outside the ritual circle. The bard looked even
smaller than usual wrapped in her fur cloak and huddled over into
herself. The warrior knew that Gabrielle heard her approaching but
the bard didn’t even look up. Xena sat down slowly.
“What’s
up, little one,” she asked softly.
Gabrielle
felt her heart skip a beat at Xena’s question and felt herself
biting back tears. The bard knew she was exhausted but also scared
to face the dreams. She leaned heavily against her mate’s shoulder
and didn’t answer.
“Gabrielle?”
“I
can’t, Xena,” she whispered.
“Can’t
what, my love?” Xena encouraged, leaning her head over onto
Gabrielle’s.
“I
keep seeing the images in my head!”
“Ready
to talk about it, little one?”
“I’ve
talked with Yakut about it and I’m just more confused,” Gabrielle
complained, her voice tense.
“Can
you talk to me about it?” Xena questioned softly.
“Yes,
no secrets. Can we move to the fire?”
“Of
course,” Xena stood up and pulled Gabrielle along with her, the
warrior wrapping an arm around the bard’s shoulders as they headed
to the main campfire. Xena knew that several of the guards around
the village had spotted them and were giving them privacy.
The
couple sat down against a log, the bard leaning into Xena’s arms.
“There’s
so many images, I still can’t sort them out,” the bard
complained, running a hand through her short hair. “The one that
is so clear scares me, my love.”
“I’m
here,” Xena said, trying to reassure her mate.
“It’s
us, there’s snow outside and we’re lying in a large gray place,
rough ground,” Gabrielle hesitated. The bard could feel the
coldness of the image creeping into her bones and huddled even closer
into Xena’s arms. “We’re not moving and there’s blood
everywhere. We’ve been attacked by dogs and killed.”
Xena
tightened her embrace around the bard. She had been on a few
shamanism journeys before and knew how real the images were to the
vision traveler.
“You
know I don’t believe in unchangeable Fate,” Xena said softly,
gently rocking the bard as she felt Gabrielle begin crying.
“I
know, I keep telling myself that. What you and Hercules always say
about how we make our own fate.”
“What
else did you see?” Xena asked softly.
“Some
guy in a long cloak and wide hat, wolves, ravens and us with Axel and
the Germans. And…”
“Go
on, Gabrielle.”
“Blood,
always, blood,” The bard answered softly.
“The
cravings back?” the warrior asked with a frown. She was hoping
that being away from Greece and the influence of Bacchus would reduce
Gabrielle’s craving for blood.
Once
again Xena softly cursed Bacchus and felt Gabrielle begin crying
again. Xena fought back tears herself, knowing this continued to
tear at her bard’s soul. Especially after killing Arja during the
battle with Alti.
“Yes,
getting hard to ignore,” Gabrielle finally answered.
“Yakut
knows about the bacchae influence, have you asked her for advice?”
“Yes,
she says that all the visions tell her is that I have to face the
darkness to change the outcome of that fate. Yakut didn’t know how
to do that,” the bard answered, her crying finally stopping.
“Have
you tried Apollo?” Xena asked softly.
“Yes,”
Gabrielle had been surprised Xena would suggest it, knowing how the
warrior felt about dealing with the gods, but the God of the Sun was
her father, after all. “He didn’t show. Neither did Artemis.”
Xena
frowned. She knew that Gabrielle was hurt that Artemis hadn’t made
an appearance to the bard when the Amazons were killed in Germania,
even when the bard had mourned deeply, holding an Amazon grieving
ritual and sacrificing at Artemis’ temple. Xena was puzzled by the
behavior of the goddess and didn’t think it was because they found
out that Apollo was Gabrielle’s father, Apollo and Artemis usually
got along fairly well. It was Ares that Artemis kept trying to use
for archery practice, Xena thought with a smile.
“Raw
meat?” Xena suggested.
“Been
there, done that. It’s getting to a point where it’s not
helping,” Xena could hear the bitterness in Gabrielle’s voice and
her heart ached at the sound of it. She held the bard closer in her
arms.
“Animal
blood?”
Gabrielle
shuddered. “I… I haven’t yet,” she whispered.
“Might
help,” Xena encouraged. “I could go out with the next hunting
party.”
Xena
drew the bard into her arms as Gabrielle broke down totally, crying
and Xena carried her mate back to their hut and sleeping furs. The
warrior held the tortured woman until she fell asleep again.
The
warrior, however, didn’t sleep any more that night. Xena kept
remembering the conversation with her mother before the Greek family
had traveled north to the Amazons.
“I’m not sure what to tell you,
Xena. Rare meat, even drinking animal blood might not be enough at
times.” Cyrene frowned.
Xena felt a shudder. “You mean she might need human blood?”
“I don’t know. You know the
Bacchae need blood to survive but it’s not just the blood. If it
were they would feed on animals.” Cyrene noted.
“It’s the sexual energy that goes
with the blood, the arousal and fear of a Bacchae feeding.” Xena
whispered.
Xena
didn’t say anything to Gabrielle when she returned the next evening
from the day’s hunting, she merely handed the bard a wine flask and
held the young woman tightly. The warrior tried to ignore the tears
filling Gabrielle’s eyes as the bard left the hut, tears filling
Xena’s eyes as well.
Xena
wiped the blood from her hand and left the hut to find Solan and
Sasha before dinner to get them cleaned up.
Gabrielle
didn’t say anything about the animal blood but Xena noticed the
bard slept the night through for the first time in days.
Xena
could tell that Gabrielle was pleased when the warrior suggested that
they stay with the Northern Amazons for the Winter season and travel
to see their adopted Germanic family at the first frost thaw in the
Spring. She knew Hercules, Iolaus and Ketli, would be visiting Axel
and Eddvar about that time as well.
Xena
was put to work with the blacksmith, Hillevi; and Gabrielle
alternated between learning the Northern Amazon ways and the language
and teaching the Northern Amazons the ways of the Southern Amazons so
the rituals and traditions would be saved.
Both
Gabrielle and Xena knew that special exceptions were being made for
the Greek family in letting Solan stay inside the village. Males
weren’t permitted to stay long in any Amazon village but his
position as the adopted son of an Amazon Queen complicated things.
So did his being blind. The Amazons couldn’t expect him to be
welcome in any nearby village nor be able to camp outside Amazon
territory in the middle of winter in Siberia.
In
the end, he stayed in the village, always with an escort whenever he
left the hut. Having been raised with Centaurs and allied with the
Amazons, the boy understood and accepted the condition. In turn, the
scouts and warriors delighted in teaching the boy fighting moves that
he could do even without sight and everyone was amazed with his skill
with a bow and throwing knives if he could hear the target.
Sasha
and Solan also joined in learning the languages with Gabrielle.
Sasha also started learning the basics of being an Amazon, from
customs, to playful exercise and storytelling that passed along the
history and myths of the tribe. Gabrielle had once told Xena that
Sasha was smart and the Amazons were also quick to inform the warrior
that she had an exceptional child, bringing a blush to the proud
mother.
Xena,
naturally, also helped train the warriors and scouts.
The
warrior was walking across the common grounds towards the training
yard when a familiar laugh caught her attention. Xena grinned and
leaned against a tree as she watched Sasha and Gabrielle playing with
Solan in the snow. Her mate and daughter would yell out and try to
dodge as Solan launched snowballs at them while they tried to get
closer to him.
Eventually
the "fight" ended up as a wrestling match in the snow with
a lot of laughter.
Xena
turned and grinned as Otere walked up and joined the warrior watching
the Southern Amazon Queen and kids.
"You'll
need to get that bunch into the sauna hut by the time they're done,"
Otere grinned.
"Yup,"
Xena agreed with a smile.
"I'm
glad you decided to stay with us for the winter," the Queen
smiled as they watched Gabrielle trying to get a handful of snow down
the back of Solan's jacket and Sasha tackling the bard's legs. "I
was worried that Gabrielle might not forgive herself enough to stay
with us."
"So
was I," Xena admitted. "The rest will do us all some good.
It's been a rough few years."
"Gabrielle
has told me a little bit about it. She doesn't talk a lot about the
time she was held by the Romans, is she alright with it?"
Xena
lost her smile. "As well as any woman can be with being beaten,
raped repeatedly, whipped, and forced into a life she never wanted."
"I'm
sorry," Otere whispered.
"It's
alright, I guess I still feel guilty for not protecting her,"
the warrior answered.
"She
doesn't blame you," Otere said softly.
"I
know and I don't blame her, doesn't help the guilt a lot," Xena
smiled a grim smile.
"It
will ease, Consort," Otere encouraged.
"Hey!"
Xena yelped suddenly as a snowball landed right at the base of her
neck, sending cold wet slush down the inside of her leather jacket.
The
warrior and Amazon Queen looked over to see Solan grinning from ear
to ear, still sitting in the snow and Gabrielle and Sasha trying to
look innocent but giggling nonetheless.
Otere
decided on a strategic retreat behind the tree while the warrior
rushed over to join the wrestling match with her mate and kids before
dragging them to the sauna hut to warm up.
Otere
watched the interaction of the family and grinned. The Amazon Queen
spotted several of the guards grinning as well and was pleased with
the Council's decision to forgive Xena her debt to the village after
the battle with Alti. They were a welcome addition to the Amazons.
Yakut
joined her Queen as Otere watched Xena helping her mate and kids to
their feet, brushing at the wet snow sticking to their leathers.
Everyone was wet, cold and laughing. The warrior wrapped her arm
around Gabrielle's shoulders as Solan picked up Sasha and they headed
towards the sauna hut.
"I
grew up with stories of the monster Xena," Yakut spoke as she
and Queen Otere began to walk towards the training yard. "How
my mother was killed brutally, betrayed by Xena. Hearing about the
blood rituals and how ruthless she and Alti both were." Yakut
pointed at the family entering the sauna hut. "That's not the
same Xena."
"No,"
Otere agreed. "I'll tell you something, though. I'm glad this
Xena is on our side, I have a feeling she's as deadly as her former
self if anything happened to her family."
"Yes,"
Yakut agreed.
Later
that evening, the family sat in the meeting hall, watching some of
the Amazons practicing dance moves and drumming. Several small
groups were playing various games consisting of bone toss and dice.
Solan was with a small group of the Amazon Scouts arm wrestling and
Sasha was with the other children of the village in a play area.
Xena and Gabrielle leaned against the wall near one of the fire pits,
Gabrielle leaning back against her mate with Xena’s arms wrapped
snuggly around her.
“Thank
you,” Gabrielle said, surprising Xena with the comment from
nowhere.
“What for, little
one?”
“For talking me into
staying,” the bard answered, echoing Otere’s thoughts of earlier.
Xena grinned and hugged
Gabrielle in a loving hug.
“My pleasure. I’m
glad we stayed too,” Xena agreed. “Are you telling a story
tonight?”
“No, not tonight.
Sasha asked if she could stay with her friend Maiju and her parents
for the night and Solan has offered to stay in the small guest hut,”
Gabrielle informed her mate with a smile.
Xena felt additional
warmth spread through her body and leaned down to lightly nuzzle her
bard’s neck, sending shivers down Gabrielle’s spine. Gabrielle
sighed and leaned further back into Xena’s embrace, leaning up to
capture Xena’s lips with hers.
Xena leaned back after
a long kiss and grinned. “You mean we’re alone for the night.”
“Yes,” Gabrielle
confirmed with a grin.
“After that battle
today, I’m a little tired, maybe we should turn in early,” Xena
suggested with an evil grin that caused Gabrielle’s heart to skip a
beat.
“I agree, that was a
ferocious battle today, our leathers are still soaking wet,”
Gabrielle agreed.
Svetlana grinned and
pointed to the couple leaving the main hut to her Queen as they
discussed winter supplies. Otere looked up and smiled as well.
“Good, they need some
time,” Otere muttered.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Deep
into the third month with the Amazons, the snow was thick and most of
the time was spent inside the huts, working on indoor crafts;
repairing weapons, making new ones, sewing new clothing and repairing
old, teaching snow skills to the youngsters and the Greeks, and
telling stories and histories of the Amazons.
It
also meant long hours of darkness with almost no sun at all,
something the Greeks weren’t accustomed to and the Amazons worked
hard at keeping them busy, knowing that the lack of sun and being
caught indoors for long periods of time could be deadly on the mind
and spirit.
Towards
the end of the month Gabrielle began tossing and turning in her
sleep, caught up in nightmares again. The bard also noticed her
appetite decreasing, which was astounding, as Xena would tease her if
she noticed. Gabrielle began trying to avoid sleeping, which was
difficult with Xena right by her side. The bard silently cursed the
warriors astounding instincts. The warrior always seemed to know
when Gabrielle tossed and turned and was awake instantly.
The
bard also noticed her hands shaking more and her nerves on edge more
and more.
Xena
had noticed Gabrielle’s lack of sleep and nervousness and suspected
what was causing it. What concerned her was that Gabrielle hadn’t
come to her with it yet.
After
a week of the situation building up, Xena was determined to get her
bard to talk to her. The warrior waited until she saw Gabrielle
talking with Otere outside the main hut and approached them slowly.
Unfortunately, Gabrielle was engrossed in whatever she and Otere were
talking about and tired; she didn’t hear the warrior approach from
behind.
When
Xena walked up behind the bard and placed a hand on the woman’s
shoulder she was surprised when Gabrielle yelped and spun on her
heel, bringing her fist up in a defensive blow. Only the warrior’s
years of well-honed experience and instincts kept the bard’s fist
from connecting with her nose. Her hand caught Gabrielle’s wrist
and stopped the fist just short of her nose.
Gabrielle’s
eyes went wide with shock as she slowly lowered her hand.
“Xena!
I’m sorry!”
Xena
grinned as Otere and the bard tried to calm their breathing. “It’s
okay, no harm. I should have said something.”
“I
almost hit you!” Gabrielle protested, falling into Xena’s arms,
tears welling up in her eyes.
“You
almost got me too, quick reflexes!” Xena smiled, holding the bard
tight. The warrior looked up and Otere nodded and went back inside
the hut, leaving the two alone. “Time to talk, little one,” the
warrior said softly.
“Okay,”
Gabrielle agreed, not meeting Xena’s eyes.
The
warrior led them back to their hut, knowing that Solan was off
helping with the cooking and Sasha was learning Amazon history. She
stirred up the fire and sat down on the furs. Gabrielle, instead of
snuggling in Xena’s arms, sat a couple of feet away on the furs
next to the fire.
Xena’s
heart felt heavy as she saw the pain in her mate’s eyes.
“The
cravings are back and getting strong again,” Gabrielle said simply,
her hands clenched into fists.
“How
can I help, raw meat?” Xena asked, the concern thick in her voice.
“Been
doing that all week,” Gabrielle said bitterly, turning her eyes
away from Xena and staring into the fire. “When do the hunters go
out again?”
“Svetlana
says in the morning, actually. I’ll go with them,” Xena said
simply.
“Okay,”
the bard said softly.
Xena
reached forward to wipe a tear away from Gabrielle’s cheek and
gently drew the bard into her arms.
Xena
found the wine skin she had used the month before hanging on the door
when she got up early before Gabrielle and Solan.
The
warrior wiped away a tear of her own as she looked down on her
sleeping mate.
Later
that day Gabrielle entered the dark hut to grab her new quill from
her packs when a noise from the shadows stopped her hand in mid
reach.
“Who’s
there?” she called, eyes narrowing in the semi dark room.
The
Amazon Queen’s eyebrows rose in surprise and question as Solan and
his escort stepped into the light from the smoke hole in the ceiling.
Both were blushing furiously. The escort, Reija, was pulling at her
tunic to straighten it.
“Oh
Hades,” the bard muttered, realizing what she had just walked in on
and what that could mean on Amazon land. “Reija, would you leave
me with my son, please?” she asked calmly. “And light the lamps
on your way out.”
“Yes,
Queen Gabrielle,” the girl muttered.
Gabrielle
didn’t correct the young Amazon teen in her preferred non-use of
her title, instead letting the Amazon acknowledge her fear through
the use of Gabrielle’s title.
The
girl quickly lit the lamps and scurried out the door, hiding her face
in the hood of her cloak.
Solan
shifted on his feet, his head lowered.
Gabrielle
sat down on the furs next to the fire.
“Sit
down, Solan,” she ordered, her voice firm but betraying no
emotions.
He
sat quickly and waited and Gabrielle made him wait for several
moments.
“Want
to explain?” she finally asked.
“Not
really,” he grinned a lopsided grin, reminding the bard of his
mother.
“Give!”
she ordered.
“I
don’t know,” his face changed to one of distress. “We’ve
gotten close and everything gets confused whenever she’s around.
It’s like I can’t think straight, I can’t focus, and I hear her
voice or scent of her special soap and my heart stops and I can’t
breath.”
“Oh
gods, you’re in love,” the bard muttered, running a hand through
her short hair and shrugging off her coat.
“Is
this what it feels like?” he asked softly.
“I
don’t know. You’re both young,” she frowned.
“How
old were you when you met Mom?” he questioned, shifting on the
furs.
“Seventeen
summers and you’re only sixteen winters old, how old is Reija?”
she asked.
“Seventeen
winters,” he muttered.
“Terrific,”
Gabrielle muttered. “Does she feel the same?”
“Yes,
she knew the consequences if we got caught,” he muttered.
“Do
you know the consequences?” Gabrielle demanded.
“Yes,”
he answered, dropping his head again.
“Tell
me,” Gabrielle insisted.
“Blinding,
castration, death, banishment, becoming a slave to the Queen,
depending on how…” he stammered.
“Depending
on how far the violation went,” Gabrielle finished for him.
“It
was consensual!” he protested.
“I
know that, I never suspected otherwise. It could still be serious
for both of you. Banishment for her and worse for you,” Gabrielle
shook her head. “Why didn’t you come to me?”
“I
don’t know,” he whispered, suddenly sounding young again. “We
thought we could handle it and it wouldn’t go anywhere.”
“Terrific,”
the Amazon Queen muttered. “How long have you two been making
out?”
Solan
began blushing even more. “I… uh…”
“Give!”
Gabrielle growled.
“I…
uh… this was the fifth time,” he finally admitted.
“Oh
Hades!” Gabrielle snapped. “This is serious. How far have you
two gotten?”
“Mom!”
the young teen protested.
“Talk!”
“Just
kissing!” he protested.
“And?”
she demanded.
The
boy began blushing an even brighter red. “I’ve felt under her
shirt,” he whispered.
“And
how far did she get?” Gabrielle asked.
“My
shirt off and teasing my… uh…”
“Nipples
or lower?”
“Mom!”
Solan squeaked. “Nipples.”
“Okay,
it might help that you’re both still virgins,” she muttered.
“MOM!”
“Quiet,
I need to think about what to do with both of you,” she ordered.
“Could
we just keep quiet?” he asked hopefully.
“No,
I’m an Amazon Queen, damn it! I can’t just ignore something this
major!”
“Ignore
what, my love?”
Both
son and mate turned to see Xena entering the door. Solan began
blushing all over again while Gabrielle turned to look at him and
glare.
Xena
raised her eyebrows at Gabrielle’s obvious anger and her son’s
distress. She was surprised when the bard got to her feet, taking
her coat with her.
“Ask
your grown up son,” Gabrielle muttered as she brushed past the
warrior and out the door. “I need to think.”
Xena
turned to find Solan’s head lowered and the teenager still
blushing.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Xena
found Gabrielle in the exercise hut, practicing with her sais, going
through complicated gladiator fighting moves. The bard had worked up
a sweat and had an intense look on her face.
Her
jaw tightened when she noticed Xena enter the hut. Gabrielle
finished the set of moves and approached her mate.
Xena
noted the bard's stubborn jaw and her cat-like walk and knew
Gabrielle was still upset. The warrior sat down on one of the
benches and waited for her mate to join her.
"Don't
ask me to ignore this," Gabrielle stated flatly.
"I
won't."
"Oh
gods, this is serious, Xena," Gabrielle sat down and leaned on
the warrior's shoulder.
"Even
more serious than you think," Xena said softly and Gabrielle sat
up to look in her mate's eyes. "Reija is willing to leave the
tribe for Solan, they were planning on running away to Greece in the
Spring."
"By
the gods!" Gabrielle whispered in shock. An Amazon willing to
leave her tribe and lifetime of training and dedication for a male
was almost unheard of. Usually if an Amazon fell in love with a
male, he would live near the village and the Amazon would spend time
with him but her first loyalty was to the tribe.
Xena
nodded, unhappily. This was complicated and probably going to get
more complicated very quickly.
"Where's
the girl?"
"I
don't know, I sent her out of the hut when I caught them."
Xena
smiled a small smile. "That must have been interesting!"
Gabrielle
lightly punched her warrior on the arm with a smile and then became
serious again. "Good thing it was me, any other Amazon might
have killed him before thinking or asking questions."
"I
know and they were bound to be caught eventually. What do we do?"
"I
want to talk to the girl and Solan and then we go to Queen Otere,"
Gabrielle
said simply. "Meet me back at our hut?"
she asked as she stood up.
Xena
rose to her feet and lightly kissed her bard's lips. "Yes,"
she responded.
The
warrior watched the bard put her coat on and head for the door, her
walk still determined. Xena looked around at the training area and
was tempted to whack a couple of the wooden post with her sword as
well. She sighed heavily and headed towards their hut.
Gabrielle
quickly tracked the young scout down in the main food hall. The
young teenager was sitting quietly with her friends at a table. Most
everyone glanced up when Gabrielle entered the long hall and nodded
in recognition and went back to their games, food, or talking. Reija
went pale and her friends surrounding her noticed the look on her
face and how quiet she was when the Southern Queen entered.
As
Gabrielle walked towards the table everyone sitting went quiet,
sensing something out of place and feeling the tension.
"Reija,
come with me, please," Gabrielle ordered simply, her face firm.
Without waiting for a response she turned on her heel and walked
towards the door.
A
low hum of interest sprung up around the room as the Amazons began
wondering what that intense scene had been about. Gabrielle could
imagine the girl blushing and brushing off whispered questions as she
rose to follow the bard.
The
bard entered the hut and hung up her coat without a word and motioned
for the scout to sit on the furs next to the fire pit, Xena and Solan
already sitting down. Xena kept quiet, letting Gabrielle take
control of the situation. As an Amazon Queen the bard was better
equipped to deal with this. She sat down, her face still serious.
Xena
had watched the scout enter the hut after her wife and took close
notice of the Amazon. She had trained a few times under Xena, the
warrior reflected. She knew Reija was a good scout, adequate warrior
and excellent cook. The girl was the same height as Solan and looked
like she was at the end of most of her growth, Xena thought to
herself. The boy would probably end up a few inches taller in a
year. Whereas Solan's hair was blond and fine, Reija's was dark and
thick, cut short like a lot of the scouts. Her blue eyes were a deep
blue and she was cute and would be beautiful, Xena concluded.
Not
that Solan could see her beauty. A bad sign, Xena thought, which
reduced the possibility that it was lust that could be handled.
"Reija,
Solan, you've both had time to think. You both know you should have
come to us before it got this far, you also know what the
consequences could be. What solution would you come up with?"
Gabrielle questioned.
Neither
teenager spoke, both Gabrielle and Xena's quick eyes caught Reija's
hand reaching out to Solan's.
"Reija,
what do you feel for Solan? You knew the risk you were taking,"
Gabrielle said, her face softening a little.
"I
don't want to live without him, it's like he's a light in my life."
"Why
didn't you come to us or the Elders? You know they probably would
approve a match between the two of you," Gabrielle asked.
"I
didn't want an Amazon bonding," Reija answered softly.
Gabrielle
and Xena were stunned.
"Have
you heard of this?" Xena asked softly.
"Not
at her age," Gabrielle answered. There were cases of teenagers
deciding they wanted the life outside the village and they were
released from the tribe if they could find a family to take them in.
Never had an Amazon of Reija's age been willing to leave the life for
any reason, even for marriage.
"Solan
wants to return to Greece but he would be willing to stay here and
live outside the village but that's not what I want. I want a
regular marriage with Solan." Reija answered.
Gabrielle
looked at her mate and frowned when Xena merely shrugged, indicating
she didn't know what to do either.
"Solan?"
Gabrielle asked.
"I
love her, Mom, and I want to marry her."
"We
have to go to the council," Gabrielle looked at her mate and the
warrior nodded in agreement.
"Mattita
is the Council Elder and has decision in law, she won't agree!"
Reija protested, tightening her grip in Solan's hand.
"Why
not, if you're not happy in the village and it's a good match, he is
the son of an Amazon Queen," Xena asked.
"She's
my mother," Reija whispered, a tear running down her cheek.
"Oh
gods," Gabrielle muttered. Mattita
was one of the most traditionally minded Amazons Gabrielle had ever
known. She had voted against Solan staying in the village in the
first place, Gabrielle remembered. Mattita was very anti-male and
anti-world in general.
"We
don't have a choice, little one," Xena said simply.
"I
know. Who to go to first and how?" Gabrielle mused while the
teenagers shifted uneasily. "Xena, you'll stay with Solan until
someone comes to escort the two of you, probably to the Queen's hut."
Xena nodded. "I'll take Reija to Yakut."
"Why
Yakut?" Xena questioned and was surprised when the bard started
blushing.
"So
she can swear to the Council that Reija hasn't been touched by Solan
beyond the lips," she muttered. Xena joined her mate and
teenagers in blushing as well with a muttered curse.
"I
won't let him be hurt," Xena warned.
"I
know, if it comes to it, we'll leave the village," Gabrielle
agreed.
"Gabrielle,"
Xena started to protest.
"No,
Xena, if it comes to it we'll all leave together," Gabrielle cut
short the warriors argument that she and Solan would leave and leave
Gabrielle and Sasha safe.
Xena
grumbled but nodded muttering a curse that her mate knew her so well.
The
bard motioned for the young Amazon to follow her and grabbed her coat
again.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The
arguing went on for two days between the Elders, Queens, and the
teenagers.
It
was the evening of the second day when Otere finally exited the
meeting hut and dashed across the snow to the Southern Queen's hut.
Slamming the door against the wind, she took a moment for her eyes to
adjust and took in the occupants looking at her, trying to read her
expression.
Solan
was sitting against the wall with an older Amazon warrior standing
beside him, his new escort. Sasha playing at his feet with a wooden
horse and soldier. Reija was sitting near the fire pit with
Gabrielle, while Xena sat on a stool, sharpening her sword. Otere
noticed the warrior was wearing her chakram as well. A quick glance
at the other Amazon Queen confirmed her sudden suspicion. Gabrielle
had her sais in their boot sheaths and a dagger at her belt.
Otere
suddenly wasn't sure if they could take the boy easily from his two
moms if it came to that.
“The
Council has decided for immediate banishment of them both,” she
said quietly, trying to keep her face neutral.
“Over
my dead body,” Xena growled with her eyes narrowing.
“You
know that sending them out this time of season would mean their
deaths if the nearest village or farmstead didn’t take them in!”
Gabrielle protested.
“I
know,” Otere said, her weariness suddenly showing plainly to
everyone, even Solan could hear it in her voice. “I’ve been
fighting with the Council for two days, Gabrielle. Mattita has many
friends on the Council and a couple of others owe her. It’s the
decision.”
“How
can a mother send her child out to die?” Xena demanded.
“Mattita,
my mother, gave up on me a long time ago,” Reija stated. “We
never agreed on contact with outsiders and especially about contact
with men. Her plan is to have men as slaves to keep the Amazon tribe
alive but nothing more than slaves.”
“For
work and breeding only?” Gabrielle demanded.
“Yes,”
Reija nodded. “I disagreed loudly and she disowned me as her
daughter.”
“Then
we’ll leave in the morning,” Gabrielle stated, her eyes blazing
in anger.
“Not
you Gabrielle, just Solan and Reija,” Otere protested.
“That’s
my son!” Gabrielle snapped back, “If he leaves, we all leave.”
“You
can’t take Sasha out in this!” Otere frowned.
“Not
my choice!” Gabrielle snapped back.
Otere
held up her hands to try and calm the moment. “Let me talk to the
Council again, we were afraid of this,” she muttered, heading back
out the door.
“What
if they won’t let me and Sasha leave?” Gabrielle asked Xena as
the warrior continued sharpening her sword, her face with a deep
scowl.
“I
don’t know and I don’t want to know,” Xena muttered.
“We
can’t fight the Amazons,” Gabrielle muttered.
“I
know, love, I know,” Xena muttered back.
It
was another candle mark before Otere returned. By then Sasha was
asleep and Reija lightly dozing. The scout hadn’t gotten much
sleep over the two days of debating and it was finally catching up
with her and she lay with her head in Gabrielle’s lap. Xena tried
not to grin at the tenderness the bard was showing to the wayward
Amazon. She knew Gabrielle couldn’t help it, no matter how mad she
wanted to be at the two teenagers.
Reija
woke up at the chilled wind crashing through the hut when Otere
opened and entered the dwelling, leaning against the door to shut it
behind her.
“The
Council has decided to hold off banishment until the Ice Month.”
Gabrielle
turned to Xena, “Three moons from now,” the warrior answered.
“Until
then?” Gabrielle turned back to Otere.
“Until
then Solan will have an older escort, as will Reija. They will be
allowed to see each other with other Amazons present. Since he is
the son of an Amazon Queen, a marriage ritual will be performed in
the Ice Month before they leave the village and any daughters they
have will be accepted as Amazons,” Otere stated.
Xena
was still frowning. “The Ice Month is also known as the Moon of
Death. There’s no game, food is short, and the snow melts and then
freezes into ice. Walking through that is like walking through a
field of knives, Otere,” she growled.
Gabrielle
matched her frown and turned to the Northern Queen, her face
questioning.
Otere
clenched her jaw. “Yes, the odds aren’t good for surviving but
it’s the best I could do.”
“All
right, enough for now,” Gabrielle ordered. “Everyone’s alive,
no one’s fighting and we’ve reached a compromise we can live with
for now.”
“Reija,
go join your sisters in your hut,” Otere ordered and the teenager
jumped to her feet. She glanced over towards Solan, confusion on her
face. “Don’t think about it, just go for now,” Otere advised.
“Goodnight,
everyone. Queen Gabrielle, Xena, thank you for fighting for us,”
the girl said softly.
“Of
course, you’re about to become family,” Gabrielle countered with
a smile and opened her arms for the youngster and hugged the teen.
Xena
smiled at her mate’s warmth again. No one could stay mad at
Gabrielle or resist her for long. It always amazed Xena that the
bard didn’t seem to even know she possessed that quality.
“What
are the conditions on Solan’s escort, does she now live with us?”
Gabrielle questioned.
“No,
just don’t let him out of your sight or assign him an escort if one
of you isn’t going to be with him.”
The
escort left the hut with her Northern Queen, leaving the Greek family
alone again.
“Get
Sasha to bed and you follow, Solan,” Xena ordered, putting her
sword aside with a sigh.
She
looked up to find Gabrielle standing near her. The bard went behind
her warrior and began massaging Xena’s shoulders. They were all
tired after the stress of the two days.
“Mom,”
Xena looked up to see Solan standing nearby, his head low.
“Yes?”
“I’m
sorry and thank you,” he said, shuffling his feet.
“It’s
okay and you’re welcome. Nobody asks to fall in love, it just hits
you.”
The
young man moved off towards his sleeping furs.
“How
bad is the weather in the Ice Month?” Gabrielle whispered, as the
young man got ready for bed.
“There’s
a chance if we can get to a river that’s thawing and canoe down to
warmer weather. It’s a slim chance though and I don’t think the
Amazons are going to let you and Sasha take that chance,” Xena
growled.
“What
do you mean?” Gabrielle asked, working on the warrior’s muscles.
“You
are both Amazon royalty. I don’t think they’d let you risk
that.”
“You
think they’d try to hold us against our wills and send the rest of
you out?” Gabrielle frowned. She knew Otere wouldn’t do that but
what about Mattita? The bard could imagine the older Amazon using it
as a chance to force Gabrielle into renouncing her tie to the tribe.
“I
don’t know and I don’t know what we’d do if they tried. Like
you said, we can’t fight Amazons,” Xena muttered.
“Let’s
think about it tomorrow, I’m tired,” Gabrielle suggested.
“Yes,
keep your weapons close though,” Xena advised.
Gabrielle shook her head in disbelief that
they might be attacked by the Amazons during the night but kept her
sais close at to hand.
The
next full moon found Gabrielle with her intense cravings again and no
fresh meat. It took three days of hunting for the small band of
Amazon scouts to bring down a thin deer. The time it took for the
hunt had left Gabrielle plagued by the cravings.
When
Xena returned from the hunt she found Gabrielle curled in their
sleeping furs, almost in tears from the blood need. The warrior
quickly shut the door and dropped the fur coverings against the cold
wind and crossed to Gabrielle’s side with the wine skin filled with
the dark red liquid the bard couldn’t seem to live without.
Without taking time to take off her coat and fur wrappings, she knelt
by the bard and touched Gabrielle’s shoulder.
Only
years of warrior experience kept the surprise off Xena’s face when
Gabrielle opened her eyes and Xena saw the green eyes were mostly
yellow now with the blood need.
Without
a word the bard took the wine skin and turned away from her mate.
Fighting back a lump in her throat, Xena turned and began climbing
out of her coat and layers of fur. By the time she had finished
stripping down to comfortable layers and returned to the fire,
Gabrielle had finished off the wine skin’s contents and was sitting
up.
The
bard wouldn’t meet her eyes.
Xena
sat down next to Gabrielle, resisting taking the woman into her arms
immediately. “Where are the kids?” she asked simply.
“With
Yakut and Karita. I didn’t want them around me right now,”
Gabrielle whispered.
“Been
bad?” Xena’s face showed the compassion and pain she was feeling
for her wife.
“Yes,”
Gabrielle admitted. “Thank you.”
Xena
reached her arm out and drew Gabrielle close to her and felt the bard
beginning to relax.
“What
happens when you can’t find any game?” the bard whispered after a
few minutes.
“I’ve
talked with Yakut, they slaughter a couple of sheep next month,
she’ll make sure we get some of the blood.”
“Oh
gods, I can’t believe this is happening!”
“I
know, little one, but we’ll get through it.”
Xena
wasn’t surprised when the bard fell asleep in her arms a short time
later. She had known that Gabrielle hadn’t slept well in a week.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
At
the beginning of the month of the Ice Moon Xena was surprised to find
Gabrielle, Yakut and Otere huddled in the Queen’s hut for hours at
a time and was beginning to get frustrated when none of them would
tell the warrior anything after three days of being secluded away.
She
was relieved when Gabrielle asked Xena to join the trio in the
Queen’s Hut after the evening meal.
As
Xena approached the Queen’s Hut and entered the door she was
surprised to find that there weren’t any guards anywhere in sight.
She frowned as she took in the numerous scrolls spread across the
table of the Queen’s hut. Gabrielle got up from a chair and leaned
up to kiss her mate. Xena welcomed the bard into her arms and
frowned when she looked into Gabrielle’s eyes.
“Okay,
what’s up? None of you have slept for three days,” she demanded.
“We
need to leave, Xena,” Gabrielle said simply.
“The
Moon isn’t for another two weeks,” Xena frowned.
“According
to Northern Amazon law, any Amazon can be held against their will
during the winter months to prevent them from leaving the village if
their lives are in danger,” Otere stated.
“What?”
“It’s
used to justify locking up those Amazons that occasionally go snow
mad from being locked up all winter. We lock them in the prisoner
hut and talk with them and work them out of their madness,” Otere
answered.
“You
plan on holding Gabrielle and Sasha against their wills when you
force Solan, Reija and I out of the Village?” Xena demanded with
her eyes narrowing.
“No,
not us, but the Council.”
“Not
me, Xena, just Sasha,” Gabrielle explained further.
“Our
daughter? They want to take Sasha from us?”
Yakut
winced at the anger flashing through the clear blue eyes dancing over
them, demanding answers. Otere couldn’t face those eyes either and
dropped her head.
“Yes,
Mattita wants Sasha out of revenge for Reija leaving,” Gabrielle
said bitterly.
“We
won’t let them, they won’t fight us,” Xena stated in a flat
voice.
“Yes,
they will. According to Northern Amazon law, you can’t challenge
the Law Speaker and the Amazons would be forced to take Sasha from
you, by force, if necessary,” Otere answered.
“I
take it since the three of you have been pouring over the scrolls for
three days and nights, you aren’t in favor of Mattita’s plans and
that you haven’t found a legal way to fight her,” Xena deduced
and the three of them nodded unhappily.
“We
have to get out of here, we don’t know when she’s going to make
her move. She resents Otere being given the right of caste by Arja
and resents me as an outsider,” Gabrielle explained.
“And
she hates me because I know her secret,” Xena said grimly.
Three
sets of eyebrows rose in question.
“The
day of my attack, Mattita was there. When the Amazons chased me to
the trees and the killing began, she ran,” Xena explained.
Otere’s
eyes were wide with surprise and Yakut sat down heavily in her chair.
“She
says that she was scouting away from the area that day,” Otere
muttered.
“Cyrene
was counting on her to watch her lieutenant’s back and Mattita ran,
leaving the lieutenant open to my traps.”
“Her
Lieutenant?” Yakut asked softly.
“Yes,
she was caught on one of the tree branches,” Xena answered.
“Kaisu,
her name was Kaisu,” Yakut whispered and Otere quickly moved around
the table and wrapped her arms around her friend and shaman.
Xena
sank into a chair, realization hitting her. “Your mother, that was
your mother?” she whispered.
“Yes,
and Mattita betrayed her?” Yakut demanded, eyes flashing brightly
with anger.
“Terrific,”
Gabrielle muttered, running a hand through her short hair. “Can
this help us fight her?”
“I
don’t know,” Otere said thoughtfully. “I don’t think so.
Xena is accepted and forgiven but Mattita’s word would probably be
taken over hers about anything happening on that day.”
“But
she’s planning on using your support of us as the beginning of a
coup, if we point out that she’s not worthy of being a Queen then
she can’t try it,” Gabrielle protested.
“She’s
got a lot of support, it would cause a civil war,” Otere countered.
“So
the solution is still for us to make a run for it,” Gabrielle
commented bitterly.
“Yes,”
Yakut agreed.
“What’s
the plan then?” Xena asked.
“You’re
the soldier,” Gabrielle muttered, resting her head in her hands,
elbows on the table.
“First
thing, they’ll know something’s up, everyone knows you three have
been in here non-stop for three days. We need to come up with
something to distract them and divert their attention,” Xena
suggested.
“We’ll
tell them the truth, that we’ve been pouring over the scrolls
trying to find an answer to keeping Reija from being banished into
the winter snow,” Otere suggested.
“Good,
convince everyone of that, nothing about the plan to keep Sasha,”
Xena urged.
"Won't
Mattita use this against you if we leave?" Gabrielle asked.
"She'll
try but nothing's been officially decided about holding you or Sasha
here yet," Otere grinned.
“Now, we plan on getting out of here.”
Xena bent over the map.
Xena
had decided to make a run for it from the village using canoes along
the river until they hit the coast and then double back onto land and
make a run for the lands of the Germans.
The
plan had been simple, wait until the next feast night, slip out and
make a run for it in the night with several trusted Amazons helping
them get out of the Village.
The
conspirators had noticed an increase in tension around the village
and several of Mattita's trusted Amazons hanging around the Greek
family more.
The
night of the Solstice celebration found all the Amazons but a handful
in the main hall for the celebration of the longest night of the
year. Only a few scouts were away from the village in scout huts
along the perimeter of the Amazon territory. Since being out in the
middle of winter in the Russian north was suicide, the scouts
wouldn't be venturing outside their huts during the night and very
little during the day either.
Xena
was counting on that.
The
warrior noticed Mattita watching her and Gabrielle closely and
concentrated on the celebration, breaking into a grin when she
spotted Gabrielle teaching Sasha and several of the children some of
the dance moves of the Southern Amazons to the delight of most of the
Amazons as well.
Gabrielle
looked over at her mate and grinned, sending a flush over Xena's
body. The warrior noticed Mattita's scowl and smiled to herself.
Leaving the kids to fend for themselves with their new dance steps,
Gabrielle approached Xena slowly, leaning up to kiss the warrior's
lips as they sat down on one of the benches lining the walls, Xena
drawing the bard into her arms.
It
was obvious to everyone who happened to glance at the couple that
they would probably be retiring to their sleeping furs early and not
to sleep.
Yakut
was standing next to Otere as they both also noticed the Greek couple
embracing on one of the benches. Yakut grinned at Otere and
shrugged, seemingly amused by the obvious devotion and passion of the
two. Mattita didn’t notice that all four were also taking notice
of her scowl and observation of them.
“It’s
going well,” Yakut commented softly to Otere. “Solan’s in the
guest hut, guarded by one of your guards during the feasting and
those two have got me convinced they should leave and find a corner
somewhere.”
Otere
grinned and nodded in agreement as they watched Gabrielle’s hands
run through Xena’s hair as they kissed passionately and both of
them caught their breath as the warrior’s head moved down and her
teeth lightly nipped Gabrielle’s neck, causing the bard to toss her
head back in arousal.
No
one was surprised when Gabrielle stood up quickly and pulled Xena to
her feet after her. Several grins and a couple of scowls followed
the couple as they headed for the door.
“I’ll
follow in a few minutes, taking Sasha to the guest hut,” Yakut
confirmed.
“Right.
My guard is already taking Reija to the guest hut. Our Amazons have
already been slipping out during the night. The canoes should be
packed and ready to go by the time you get to the hut. Xena and
Gabrielle will meet you at the canoes.”
“Just
keep that bitch’s attention when I leave with Sasha,” Yakut
muttered.
Otere
nodded and moved off to the food table.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"Xena,
what is it?" Gabrielle's voice drifted through the cold night
air to the warrior along with the sounds of the river flowing around
the canoes.
"Ice
blocking the river, we'll see if we can clear a path," Xena
called back softly, listening to the sound of the canoe following
hers scrap against the ice filling most of the river as Gabrielle,
Sasha and Reija slowed to a stop behind Solan and Xena.
"Solan,
take the axe," Xena instructed, handing over the axe handle
first to the boy's outstretched hand. "Lean out and see if you
can whack through it."
The
teenager began hacking away at the ice and then stopped suddenly at
the sound of a voice coming out of the darkness.
"Gabrielle!"
"Mattita!"
Reija hissed, leaning over into the canoe, hoping they would blend
into the shadows of the ice chunks flowing in the river.
"Quiet,
everyone!" Xena growled.
"Gabrielle!
We know you're there," the harsh voice called.
“Xena?”
the bard called softly.
“Move
up here as close as you can, Solan, keep chopping!” Xena ordered.
“Gabrielle,
just come back to the village with Sasha, nothing will happen to
you!” Mattita called.
“Mum?”
Sasha’s voice caught the bard’s attention from her position in
the canoe in between Gabrielle and Reija.
“What,
Sasha?” the bard whispered as Reija guided their canoe up just
behind Xena and Solan’s.
“She’s
lying,” the child whispered from around her fur clothing.
“What
about?”
“She
wants to hurt you,” the child whispered tearfully.
“How
do you know that?” Gabrielle’s eyebrows furrowed in thought.
“I
don’t know, I just do.”
“Okay,
you let me know whenever you know something like that,” the bard
instructed and noted the child’s nodding head. “Mattita, let us
go. We’re leaving the village like the council wanted.”
“Your
daughter is too valuable to risk to the snow and ice of the Ice
Month,” the voice called back, slightly further down the bank.
“You
can’t expect Xena to leave her mate and child behind? Are you
insane?” Gabrielle called as her ears kept notice of Solan’s
chopping.
“Come
back to the village, I’ll suspend the banishment until the Spring
thaw, Solan and Reija can leave in safety and you, Xena and Sasha can
stay in the village.” Mattita answered.
“She’s
moving down the river on the embankment with several warriors on both
sides of the river,” Xena called softly to the bard.
“I
know, probably archers, Sasha says she’s lying.”
“How
does she know that? Never mind, child of gods,” the warrior
muttered.
“You
can’t force us to stay in the village past the winter!” Gabrielle
shouted back.
The
bard felt both canoes move slightly as Xena’s canoe moved forward a
few feet through the chopped ice and Reija’s canoe followed.
“Sasha
is special and must stay!” Mattita yelled.
“Why?
You don’t want me as part of your tribe? Why Sasha?”
“She’s
the child of gods! I heard you talking to Yakut about her! Whatever
her powers turn out to be, they can benefit the tribe!”
“Xena?”
Gabrielle hissed into the darkness.
“Damnit!
She’ll kill us and take Sasha back,” Xena answered.
“The
ice?”
“Almost
there, it sounds clear for a good stretch past this point, get
ready.”
“How
could I trust your word?” Gabrielle demanded to the darkness. “How
could I trust an Amazon that shows cowardice in a fight and leaves
her lieutenant, Yakut’s mother, to die?”
Angry
silence greeted the bard’s accusation.
“Now!”
Xena hissed as her canoe began to move through the narrow passage
Solan had created with the axe.
“Archers!”
Mattita’s voice commanded in the dark and fire arrows lit up the
sky, revealing the canoes on the iced river.
“No!”
Xena screamed, “Solan, down!”
Gabrielle
turned and covered Sasha’s body with her own as Reija watched Xena
begin paddling frantically as arrows came flying out of the dark.
Gabrielle
yelped as an arrow embedded itself into the canoe two inches in front
of her nose.
“Amazons
would kill a Queen and her children?” she demanded to the Amazons
in the dark.
“Don’t
force this, Gabrielle!” Mattita called.
“She’s
insane!” Reija hissed.
More
arrows began raining on them. Reija’s eyes widened in fear as she
saw Xena trying to lean forward to protect Solan. Both Reija and
Gabrielle screamed as they watched the warrior snatch two arrows out
of the air before they could land in the boy’s back but the next
two arrows landed in Xena’s back.
The
warrior fell forward in the canoe.
“Mom?”
Solan called out.
“She’s
hurt, Solan, keep paddling, get out of there! Let the current take
you!” Reija ordered.
“Xena!”
Gabrielle called.
Reija
paddled their canoe through the narrow passage when another round of
arrows came out of the darkness.
Gabrielle
yelped as an arrow hit her shoulder. She quickly caught the paddle
before it hit the water.
“Damnit!”
she cursed, her left arm useless.
“Just
let the current take us,” Reija ordered.
Gabrielle
bit her lip to keep focused on guiding the canoe, thankful when the
arrows stopped landing in the canoe and water around them as they
began to put some distance between them and the Amazons.
“Solan?”
she called out as the shouts of the Amazons died down.
“Mom
won’t answer me!” he shouted back.
“Keep
going! We’ve got to put some miles between us and the Amazons!”
Reija urged.
“She’s
right, try keeping the canoe pointed straight,” Gabrielle yelled.
“How
do I know that?” he complained.
“If
it feels like you’re turning in the water, try and paddle the other
way,” Reija instructed.
After
a few minutes, Gabrielle was leaning heavily to one side and the
paddle felt like a weight in her hand. The bard pulled it inside the
canoe before she dropped it.
“I think I’m losing a lot of blood,
Reija and we need to see about Xena,” she said simply as blackness
began to overtake her.
Gabrielle
moaned and opened her eyes slowly.
“Mom?”
she heard Solan’s voice asking as his hand touched her face.
“Yes,
what happened?” she whispered, looking around.
“You
passed out, Reija and I made camp and carried you both up here,” he
answered.
Gabrielle
noticed they were right by the river in a small clearing. Somehow
they had found dry ground and Reija had two fires going and they had
put the bard and Xena in between them. Xena was lying on the
sleeping furs, face down, still unconscious.
“How
is she?” Gabrielle asked and then moaned at the flash of pain in
her shoulder. She raised the furs and looked at the bandage and
tested the shoulder and nearly screamed at the pain.
“She
won’t wake up. I thought with the god healing thing she would be
okay,” he said in a rush, his emotions over-riding his words.
“Help
me over there,” she said simply.
Reija
walked over from the other side of the fire and helped Solan gently
raise the bard to a sitting position and let her move slowly around
until she was next to Xena. They both waited while Gabrielle
examined the wounds. The bard looked at Reija and saw that the
Amazon knew how serious the wounds were.
“Solan,
one of the arrows may have pierced her heart,” the bard whispered.
“No,
please!” the boy begged.
“We
need to find shelter, she needs to recover.”
“Mattita
will keep on, we can’t stay here!” Reija protested.
“She
can’t be moved much more!” Gabrielle countered, feeling
lightheaded.
“There’s
a trapper cabin a couple of miles down the river, we can make for
that and hope the Amazons won’t follow,” Reija suggested.
“Okay, at first light,” Gabrielle
muttered, only vaguely realizing darkness was claiming her again.
The
bard opened her eyes as she felt herself gently swaying and found
herself looking into extremely blue eyes and smiled softly.
“Sasha,”
she whispered, discovering her throat was dry.
“Mum,”
the child smiled, holding the bard’s hand as the stretcher swayed
along.
Gabrielle
looked up and found Solan carrying one end and assumed that Reija was
carrying the other.
“Xena?”
she questioned.
“Already
in the cabin. We moved her first,” Solan answered.
The
next few days were spent with Solan and Reija caring for the two
wounded women and one small child. Gabrielle was up and moving about
within two days. Xena remained unconscious for those two days and
drifted in and out for two more after that.
Together
the three adults managed to keep soup and water in the warrior to
help maintain her strength and healing herbs in her wounds.
It
was frustrating because there wasn’t much they could do for the
wounds, especially the one that had punctured the heart of the
warrior. Gabrielle knew that it was only Xena’s demi-god status
that had saved her from instant death. The bard still wasn’t sure
the warrior would make it.
Gabrielle
brushed some dark hair off the warrior’s forehead and the bard bit
her lip.
“I
wish you had that dryad bone with you, my love,” she whispered,
yellow showing in her eyes.
When
Xena was finally able to focus she found Sasha sitting next to her,
gently holding the warrior’s hand and wiping her mother’s
forehead with a cool cloth.
“Sasha,”
she whispered and was rewarded with a huge smile from her daughter.
“Mom!”
the youngster cried out delightedly.
Solan
came into focus as well from across the room as he made his way to
her side. He knelt down, feeling her face and smiling when she
kissed his fingertips.
The
warrior spotted Reija by the fire, a frown held the Amazon’s face.
“Where’s
Gabrielle?” Xena demanded, her voice harsh. She tried to sit up
and collapsed back onto the sleeping fur, gasping for breath.
“We
don’t know,” Solan said softly, holding Xena back down on the
furs. “You were both wounded and she lost a lot of blood. The
arrows that hit you, nicked your heart, Mom.”
“What?”
“We
figure it’s because of whom your parents are that you’re even
alive,” he said simply.
“Gabrielle?”
she whispered as he helped her take a drink of water.
“Like
I said, a lot of blood loss but she seemed to be mending. Then it
was like she was sick, Mom. She began shaking all the time, couldn’t
eat, couldn’t sleep and then she started cramping, bad stomach
cramps.”
“She
can’t get sick,” Xena muttered.
“That’s
what we thought too,” Solan agreed, the anguish showing on his
face. “Then she wouldn’t let any of us near her,” the youth
hesitated. “Mom, she said it was the blood craving only worse.”
“Damnit!
Loosing a lot of blood and no animal blood for two months. What
happened next?” she muttered.
“Yesterday
she wouldn’t look at any of us,” Reija answered as she walked
over and knelt by Solan. “Her eyes were almost totally yellow,
Xena.”
“Then
a little after dark we noticed she was gone. I swear none of us
heard her slip out. Reija tried tracking her today but lost her
tracks in the rocks. There’s some rough rock hills to the east of
here.”
“She’s
trying to get away to keep from hurting any of us,” the warrior
muttered.
“She
wouldn’t hurt any of us,” Solan protested.
“A
man dying of thirst would kill his best friend for water,” the
warrior said flatly.
“What
do we do? If she’s dangerous I don’t want Reija going after her
and you can’t,” Solan demanded.
“I
have to go after her, I’m the only one that has a chance to reach
her.”
“You
can’t even move, it’ll take at least a week before you’re out
of that bed,” Reija protested.
“I’ve
got to try!” Xena insisted and attempted to sit up and fell back
gasping again. “Don’t you get it, she’s gone off to die rather
than hurt any of us!”
“Maybe
I can help, Xena.”
Reija
turned with her dagger in her hand and moved in between Solan, Xena,
Sasha and the voice coming out of the shadows of the cabin’s far
north wall.
A
figured stepped out into the light and Solan felt Xena relax as he
held her arm, keeping the warrior down on the fur bedding. Reija
could tell it was a woman in a long dark cloak and deep hood, but
could tell little else.
“Relax,
young one, I’m not here to hurt you,” the elderly voice said as
the woman pulled back her hood.
“Hecate,”
Xena whispered.
“Who’s
Hecate?” Reija demanded, “and how did she get here?”
“She’s
one of our dark goddesses and she’s my Grandmother,” Solan
answered.
“I
thought Cyrene was Xena’s mom,” Reija asked.
“She
is. It’s complicated. Hecate and Cyrene are Xena’s mothers and
my grandmothers. Mom is the daughter of gods and humans,” Solan
tried to explain while Hecate stood listening with a smile on her
face.
“How
can you help, Hecate?” Xena asked her breath ragged.
The
older looking woman walked past the defensive Amazon warrior and
knelt beside Solan and Sasha next to their warrior mother. The
Goddess placed one hand on the warrior’s chest and waved the other
over Xena’s upper body.
Xena’s
body jerked violently and the warrior’s eyes rolled back up in her
head for a moment as Hecate’s firm hand kept its pressure on the
warrior’s chest. After a moment Xena opened her eyes and appeared
stunned.
Hecate
gently removed Solan’s hand and Xena sat up with a surprised look
on her face.
“Mom’s
okay!” Sasha squealed delightedly.
“Mom?”
Solan asked softly.
“No
pain, no wounds,” Xena answered, looking to Hecate for the answers.
“Find
your mate, Xena.” Hecate urged. “Without you she will die.”
“How
can I help her?” Xena asked in an anguished voice.
“Do
you remember my advice to you when you went on your shaman journey?”
Hecate asked gently.
“That
love always wins over darkness,” the warrior answered.
“And
that of your mother about the bacchae?”
“Human
blood is needed at times,” Xena responded.
Solan
and Reija sat down next to the furs, listening closely to the Goddess
and the daughter of gods.
“And
what does Gabrielle always need from you?”
Xena
thought a moment and tears filled her eyes as she looked back up at
Hecate.
“Love,”
she stated.
“Yes,
go to her. Come with me, daughter, time to save your mate,” Hecate
ordered and offered her hand to the warrior.
Xena
got to her feet easily, her body seemingly unaffected from nearly
dying and laying in a coma for several days. She dressed quickly in
her thick clothing and grabbed her weapons.
“I’ll
be back soon with Gabrielle,” she told her children and Reija.
“And
if you don’t?” Reija asked, voicing the question Solan didn’t
want to ask.
“Then make for the nearest village and
then for Greece in the spring. Don’t get near Gabrielle if I can’t
reach her,” the warrior advised flatly.
The
warrior found herself standing near a small rock cave in a rocky and
forlorn mountain ridge. She could smell the smoke of a fire and was
encouraged by that sign, it meant the bard was struggling to survive
and not giving herself up to the snow just yet.
“Hecate?”
the warrior whispered and wasn’t surprised when the goddess
appeared next to her.
“Yes,
daughter?”
“Why
are you helping us? You know how I feel about the gods helping.”
The
goddess laughed softly. “You’ll be surprised very soon,
daughter. You’re my daughter and I’m fond of you and wish to
help. Others will help you along the way because it’s necessary to
balance things.”
“What
do you mean?” Xena asked.
“Just
like Gabrielle’s father intervened in her birth because Ares had
messed with your destiny, other gods also make the same choices.”
“You’re
speaking in riddles,” Xena complained.
“Yes,
I’m sorry. The Northern Gods stepped into your life and probably
will again as well as some of the Greek ones.”
“Why?
What do we have to do with them?” Xena demanded.
“Sasha
is destined to play a part in their future and that destiny was
interfered with,” Hecate explained. “Gabrielle wasn’t meant to
be separated from you when Sasha was born. That’s why the Valkyrie
was sent to aid you.”
Xena
felt a chill run up her spine and her eyes narrowed in thought.
“Someone
interfered with Fate? Gabrielle wasn’t meant to be a slave?” she
asked through clenched teeth.
“Yes,”
Hecate confirmed.
“Someone
set her up to be taken, raped, beaten and forced into fighting?”
“Yes,
and to get her away from you,” Hecate confirmed.
“Ares!”
“Yes,
because of that being set in motion, she died on that cross and
Apollo had to accept the bacchae side coming out in her to save her
life, but deal with that later, focus on saving her life right now.”
“Right,”
Xena agreed, turning her focus back to the cave. “She knows I’m
here.”
“She
can hear your heart, the blood in your veins. Be careful, daughter.
“Right.”
Xena
approached the cave slowly, letting her eyes adjust to the dimness of
the cave, lit only by a small fire.
“Gabrielle?”
Xena called softly, “I know you can hear me.”
Receiving
no answer, the warrior entered further into the cave and spotted a
huddled mass near the fire. Xena moved closer, keeping the fire
between her and the figure. The warrior finally moved close enough to
get a look at the furs and bit her lip to keep from crying out in
pain at the sight of her beloved huddled under a fur cloak.
Gabrielle
was curled into a fetal position with her arms wrapped around her
drawn up legs and even though the bard’s eyes were open, Xena
wasn’t sure if Gabrielle was seeing her. It almost stopped Xena’s
heart to see the once-green eyes now totally yellow and red rimmed
and the warrior could see both lower and upper canines were
pronounced fangs as the bard clenched her teeth in pain.
The
bard’s body shook and sweat was pouring off her as her muscles
jerked. Xena had once seen a soldier who had been addicted to a
powerful pain-killing herb after suffering a major injury. When it
had become too much for his life, they had locked him in a cell until
the drugs were out of his system. Gabrielle looked exactly like he
had when he had been going through withdrawals.
“She’s
dying, daughter,” a voice drifted into Xena’s mind.
Xena
studied her mate for a moment then her jaw tightened and eyes
narrowed in decision.
Keeping
her eyes on her mate, Xena began removing most of her fur and leather
clothing, stripping down to her cotton tunic and trousers. The
warrior sat down very slowly next to the bard and studied Gabrielle
for a few moments.
“Gabrielle,
can you hear me?” Xena asked softly, her voice cracking with
emotion.
Xena
pulled out her belt dagger and pulled her mate into her arms. The
warrior was surprised that the bard didn’t even struggle against
the contact. Gabrielle’s head fell back and she appeared almost
comatose.
Xena
managed to hold Gabrielle and put the dagger in her left hand. With
a quick and efficient movement the warrior sliced her wrist open and
held the wound up to her mate’s lips.
The
warrior was worried she was too late when the Bacchae Gabrielle
didn’t even seem to notice. Then the bard’s eyes closed and her
mouth wrapped around the wound. A moment later her hand reached out
and held the wrist in place at her mouth.
Xena
felt her body shudder as her blood began to flow freely into
Gabrielle’s mouth. As she became light headed, Xena could almost
feel the strength being transferred to her mate as Gabrielle’s body
shifted and her grip on the warrior’s arm became stronger.
Gabrielle
shifted and pulled back from the wounded wrist and turned to meet
Xena’s lips with her own. The warrior could taste her own blood on
the bard’s lips, metallic and yet enticing. Gabrielle shifted and
pushed the warrior over onto her back on the furs and followed,
covering Xena’s body with her own, her tongue demanding entrance
past the warrior’s lips.
Xena
groaned as electric currents shot through her body as her tongue
played back and felt Gabrielle’s fangs. The Bacchae Gabrielle
growled deep in her throat and pulled back from Xena’s lips long
enough to pull the warrior’s tunic off and ducked her head to
capture Xena’s nipples in her lips and teeth.
Xena
arched her back and then felt Gabrielle stiffen. Opening her eyes,
Xena found herself looking into green/yellow/red eyes of her bard.
“Xena?”
Gabrielle whispered.
“It’s
me, little one,” Xena responded and pulled the bard into her arms,
laying the young woman next to her. “It’s okay.”
Gabrielle
frowned, lifting Xena’s wounded arm up closer to see in the
firelight.
“I
drank from you, didn’t I?”
“Yes,
I offered it willing,” Xena answered.
“That’s
supposed to make a difference?” Gabrielle demanded bitterly.
“Yes,
damnit!” Xena snapped. She pulled the bard’s face up to look at
her. “You need blood and sometimes it has to be human. I’m also
your first blood and your mate, it should be me and I want it to be
me. With the human blood you need the sexual excitement that goes
with it, who better than me?”
“Terrific,
I can feed on you like a stock animal?!” Gabrielle raised herself
up on her elbow, her eyes blazing.
“No,
my love,” Xena’s eyes filled with tears. “This is just another
part of our connection. We’re already blood bound, this is just
another aspect of our love for each other.”
“This
isn’t love!” Gabrielle protested, “It’s feeding on you!”
“No,
there’s more there or the animal blood would be enough. You need
more than just the blood, Gabrielle, and you know it,” Xena
pressed.
“No!”
the bard sat up turning her head away to look into the fire. The
warrior could see that her mate’s eyes were still mostly yellow and
the fangs hadn’t receded much.
“Yes!
We’ve talked about it enough; we were both so turned on when you
bit me in Bacchus’ lair that we couldn’t stand it. The Bacchae
crave that along with the blood. Take that from me, little one.”
“So
I take not only your blood but use your body as well?” Gabrielle
demanded, her eyes flashing even more intensely.
Xena’s
eyes flashed as well, “Do you remember what Hecate said about the
darkness?”
Gabrielle
frowned and her eyebrows furrowed in thought. “Love winning out
over darkness always.”
“That’s
what you’ve got to face, Gabrielle. You’ve got to accept this
part of yourself and accept my love for you. Accept my love. You
would for me.”
The
bard continued to frown. “You mean make it an act of love instead
of letting the bacchae darkness control it?”
“Yes,
exactly!” Xena reached out and gently stroked the bard’s jaw
line.
Gabrielle
reached out and held the warrior’s wounded wrist to the light.
With a small sigh she gently ran her tongue along the wound and the
warrior was stunned to see it close, leaving no trace. The bard
shrugged at Xena’s expression.
“It’s
a form of survival, that’s why you never saw bite marks on me
before I turned last time,” she explained. “Xena,” the bard
hesitated.
“Yes,
my love?” Xena asked as she drew Gabrielle into her arms again,
holding the smaller woman close.
“That
wasn’t enough,” came a tortured whisper.
“I
know, it’s okay, I’m here for you.”
“You
can’t take anymore!” the bard protested, pulling back slightly to
look Xena in the eyes. “You were wounded and lost a lot of blood
too!”
Xena
grinned a lopsided grin. “I kinda got some help in that area.”
Gabrielle’s
eyes narrowed.
“Hecate
showed up and healed me and led me here,” Xena explained.
Gabrielle
seemed lost in thought until the warrior pulled her face up and
captured the bard’s lips, her tongue fighting past the lips and
fangs to duel with Gabrielle’s tongue.
The
bard moaned and then growled deep in her chest and pushed Xena back
down onto the furs, following once again, covering the warrior with
her body as her tongue fought with Xena, the kiss deep and
passionate.
Gabrielle
suddenly pulled back and her face looked pained. When she opened her
eyes there was no trace of green any longer. Xena tried to convey
the love she felt for the bard and the desire she was feeling right
then.
“It’s
okay, Gabrielle, take it!” she hissed. “Take me!”
Bacchae
Gabrielle growled again and thrust her hand down the front of Xena’s
woolen trousers and the warrior cried out as the bard’s fingers
entered her roughly and Gabrielle’s teeth pulled at a nipple.
Xena,
her body already responding to the subtle magic of the Bacchae
feeding, arched her body, trying to meet more of the bard’s
fingers. The warrior’s hands were gripping at the furs under her.
The
bard raised her head again. “Xena?” she whispered.
“Yes,
do it!” the warrior encouraged.
Gabrielle
thrust roughly into her mate again, her thumb finding Xena’s
swollen clit and her teeth finding the warrior’s neck all in the
same moment.
Xena
cried out with the intensity as her body began shaking. With the
feeding minutes before, the warrior’s body responded quickly to the
bard’s attention. As her blood flowed out of her neck Xena became
even lighter headed, especially as waves began to build in her body.
The
warrior couldn’t tell which was sending her higher, the pull of the
blood through her mate’s fangs or the bard’s knowing touch within
her body and on her clit. Every time Gabrielle touched her was
amazing to the warrior but this was even more intense. It felt like
two electric eels were at either end of her body, sending currents
back and forth, causing her muscles to jerk, her back to arch and her
hips to strain against the bard’s hand.
As
Xena felt her body growing weaker and the waves building, she felt
herself approaching that point that only Gabrielle could get her
past. The point of total surrender, the point of allowing her body
to collapse into those waves, no control left.
“Don’t
stop, baby, please!” Xena heard herself beg as her body rocked with
Gabrielle’s fingers entering and pulling back. The warrior wondered
how much blood she had lost and realized she didn’t care at that
moment; she just wanted it to continue.
The
warrior felt herself falling into grayness the waves overtook her and
Xena felt a scream pulled from her body as wave after wave hit her.
“Xena?”
Gabrielle said softly, gently rocking the warrior in her arms as
tears streamed down the bard’s face. “Please come back to me!”
“Hey,”
a voice brought the bard’s green eyes open to stare into clear blue
ones.
“Oh
Gods, Xena, I’m sorry!” Gabrielle cried. “I couldn’t stop!”
“I’m
okay, little one,” Xena smiled. “I probably would have killed you
if you had stopped before you did.”
Gabrielle
felt confusion on top of the guilt. Her body was also absorbing the
affects of the blood feeding, her body tingling, muscles twitching
with excess energy and senses heightened.
“What?”
she demanded.
“My
love, I don’t think I’ve ever felt anything like that!” Xena
said softly, letting the bard hold her.
“Me
either, it was…” Gabrielle felt herself struggling for the words.
“Incredible.”
“Can
you describe it?” Xena asked, settling between the bard’s legs as
Gabrielle leaned against the wall of the cave. A change of their
usual position, Xena reflected.
“I
could feel your blood rushing through your body, your heart was
pounding so loudly in my ears. The taste changes as you approach
orgasm, I don’t know how to describe the taste and how it changes,
it just does,” Gabrielle found herself blushing at the memory. “My
own body responded to yours, like it always does.”
“How
do you feel now?” the warrior asked.
“I
know I should be feeling more guilty than I am but I feel so calm for
the first time in forever.” Gabrielle frowned, assessing her
feelings. “Xena, this feels different than when we were in Bacchus’
cave. This feels… right?”
“Yes,
we’re blood mates, Gabrielle. This is just a different aspect of
that special bonding. No one will use that against you again.”
Xena said sleepily.
“Rest,
my warrior,” Gabrielle said gently, pulling the furs up over them.
“We’ll go back to the cabin in the morning.
“Yeah,”
Xena muttered, “we’ve got to get to Axel’s steading.”
“Anywhere
as long as we’re together,” Gabrielle whispered as she settled
down next to the warrior, curled in Xena’s arms.
“Together,”
the warrior muttered, “Always. I’m going to kill Ares.”
“What?”
Gabrielle asked but received no answer from her sleeping warrior.
‘What in Tartarus does Ares have to do with this?’ she wondered
and then let sleep overtake her as well.
