"Why do you care?"
"I just want to get your perspective on things."I said as I grabbed my
Papyrus scroll and quill.
"Why the sudden urge for this perspective?" She asked rather rudely.
"I don't want to write about the same old things. Hero's battling for the
greater good." I explained.
She looked at me with her one eyebrow raised.
"Sorry, I didn't mean for that to sound..."
"It's alright. I've learned long ago not to care about what people think about
me. She explained to me. She stared ahead, her eyes forever darting around
searching for the unseen enemy. The air had a chill to it, so she pulled her
fur jacket closer and tied it. Her long brown hair flew in the harsh and biting
wind, she had some strands tied back, into a silver metal clip with a classic Greek design on
it, but as the wind blew about it started to unravel.
The dark brown horse she lead behind us carried everything from her weapons,
to her food, to her bed roll.
"So how do we start this thing?"She asked still looking around.
"You just talk and I'll start writing, basically pretend I'm not here. "I stated as
I licked the tip of my quill and touched it to the scroll.I struggled to hold
onto both seeing as my hands were starting to go slightly numb.
"What do I start talking about?"She asked as she fixed those dark green eyes
onto me.
"What made you want to become a warrior. When did you go on your first big adventure."I
asked, having to stare from her harsh gaze.
"Well," she said as she moved ahead, I started behind her,"my father worked as
a blacksmith. I was always fascinated by the armour and weapons he made.
Although I was told never to touch them, I would often stare at them for long
hours while they cooled. I longed to hold them, wield them and hopefully have
one of my own someday. My mother wanted me to be a normal little girl, to play
with the other girls, pick flowers. But none of that interested me. Often a
warrior would ride through town and I couldn't help but gaze proudly at them from
the safety of the kitchen window. I thought,'I'm going to be a warrior one day,
a hero'"
I quickly wrote down what she said and I waited earnestly for what would spill out
of her mouth next. To my surprise there was the longest pause, I looked up and
I saw her wipe away the tears quickly.
"Why are you crying?" I asked in a hushed whisper. She turned quickly to me.
"I was not crying. Warriors do not cry, the cold wind got into my eyes."She
explained, I nodded my head but didn't accept that answer for a minute.
"So who taught you to fight, to hold a sword?"I asked her trying to change
the subject rather quickly.
"One day, I was about ten, when a warrior ravaged our city, she killed my father.
I didn't know what to do so I ran, but when I got to a safe distance and saw
my town being burned I wanted to die. I hated myself for turning and running,I
should have stayed and fought. Like what a normal warrior should do. So rather
than returning to what was left of my town I ran away."She explained, she started
to lead us into a dense forest, I had to admit I was a little scared.
"So after what seemed like forever, a tall dark haired woman rode up beside me.
She stared down at me from her tall steed, her hair was as black as the night
and her eyes as blue as the deepest ocean. She asked me 'What are you doing out
here child?' I told her that a warrior had ravaged our town and burned it I was
so ashamed of turning and running that I decided not to go back. That it would be
better if I ran.' She continued to stare at me, only I saw hurt, and pity take
shape in her eyes. She jumped down from her horse and stood before me.
'What if I taught you how to defend yourself, so that you won't ever have to
turn and run again?' 'Oh yes, I would love that." She said, her eyes even now
glowing with excitement. She lead us and her horse over fallen trees and jagged
rocks sticking up from the ground.
"So what happened?" I asked almost as excited by the story as she was by telling
it.
"She taught me how to hold a sword and defend myself, right there on that
little trail." She let out a little laugh, almost thinking about the irony, "I was
grateful that she taught me how."
"Did you find out who she was?"I asked.
"Yes, her name was Xena," Her voice seemed to resound with anger and hatred, "I found
out later that it was her army who destroyed my town, and killed my father."She said,
the anger most likely filling her heart.
"So did anyone survive? Did you go back?"I asked her.
"Yes, I found out that my mother survived. My sister was sold into slavery and
when I thought I had found her, she was killed right in front of me. For
being a 'traitor'"
"So where are you going today? What will you be doing?"I asked, desperate to
change the subject so she wouldn't be blind with hatred and kill anything around
her.
"Today is my mom's birthday. On the other side of this forest is the small town." She
said, she had to stop a moment, she listened, she reached for her sword on
her horse. She didn't unsheathe it, instead she continued to look around and
when she felt it safe she started back up the path.
"What was it?"I asked a little concerned, that maybe I didn't need to die for
a story.
"You must always be careful in this forest. This is the dead forest."She said
as if it was nothing.
"The..de...dead forest.."I stuttered a little scared.
"Don't worry, it's only a name."I continued to look around, trees had fallen
down,and rocks shot up through the ground. I tripped over one that I didn't
see for the yellow and red leaves which had fallen from the trees, littered the
ground.
"You must always be on your guard in this forest. The leaves don't just cover
the rocks, they cover the deep pits which have been dug by bandits, to
hide in and attack the next passing victim.
I continued to stare around, I fixed my gaze on any pile of leaves that looked
suspicious, but I wouldn't get too worried, only if she pulled out her weapons.
We continued to walk in silence, I wrote down everything she did, how it
seemed that her body was listening to the sounds around her.
After a few minutes I saw the opening to the forest and another small path
up a tiny, but steep hill. When we cleared the forest I saw a person walking away
from the forest, she had a tiny dog with her, it never left her side even when
it started to growl at us.
The warrior growled back at the dog and it ran away yelping. She started to lead her
steed up the steep hill, I followed behind it, nearly losing my footing and
falling back down.
Once I reached the top it was quite amazing, a thriving, prospering village stood
infront of us. It was so quiet when we left the forest and now that we stood on
this tiny hill you could hear the bustling of the town. She started to lead
her horse through the meadow and towards the town.
I looked around and noticed some people pointing and whispering, I looked
towards her and she didn't seem to notice or she just didn't care. It didn't matter
the length of time she had been gone, or the good deeds she had done. She carried
a sword and knew how to use it, that was enough to make her harmful.
We walked towards this little house just on the other side of town, the
streets were small and crammed with vendors selling everything from fabrics to
sheep meat. I had to literally run from one vendor, he tried to tell me that his
fabrics were one of a kind, but anyone could see that you can get them anywhere.
She tied her horse to the post in front of the house and pulled something
out from one of her saddle bags. I waited and then walked into the house behind
her.
"Mother, this is a writer. She wants to write my perspective on being a
warrior." She explained to her mother.
"Oh, well any friend of my daughter's is a friend of mine."She explained as
she welcomed me and we all sat down at the kitchen table.
"I have brought you something mother." She explained and put forth the package.
"Oh Dear, you didn't have too. Just seeing you is enough to warm my heart. Her
mother explained, after an awkward pause she then grabbed the package and unwrapped it.
It was a little doll, apparently very special to her mother because she hugged it
tight and then her daughter.
"Thank you so much. I have a collection of these." Her mother explained to me. I
continued to write about the love between the warrior and her mother, but there was some
unseen tension as well.
"Well I must be going mother." She said as she rose from her seat and started for
the door.
"Are you absolutely sure, dear. I mean it is my birthday."She asked, almost
desperately pleading with her daughter.
"I have to mom, people out there need me. And I still haven't found who I am
looking for." She explained.
"Alright, if you must go." She said, she gave her daughter a hug and reluctantly
had to let go.
"You have a beautiful home."I explained as I left after her.
Once we got back outside and away from her mother's home I had to ask,"why are
you leaving so soon, you barely spent an hour with her."
"Look, this is a warrior's way. You never hold anyone close to your heart,
because they will always get hurt by. You never stay in one place, you make yourself an
easy target. You wanted my perspective on things, this is it." She stated angrily, she
grabbed her horse and started to mount it.
"This is where we part ways." She stated, I tried to object, but the stern look she
shot at me, made me decide to end the interview and declare the day over.
"One quick question, who are you looking for?"I asked.
"The one who destroyed my town."
"Didn't she also teach you to fight?"I asked.
"She taught me how to defend myself, my warrior's heart taught me to fight." She
said and took off, her coat and hair both flying wildly in the breeze as I
lost sight of her.
I wondered if I would see her again, if she would succeed in her mission, or fail.
As I rolled up my scroll and placed it along with my quill in my bag I
wondered why a warrior's life had to be so hard, why anyone would choose to
become one. I couldn't see the logical reason in wanting to fight.
When I returned home I started to rewrite my work, my sister tried to see
what I had been up to, but I refused. As I was getting the water from the well
a man with a dark complexion rode up with his army and started to attack my
village.
Two men grabbed me and my sister and rounded us up with another small group
of people.
I tried to break free, but I couldn't I was so scared. The leader of the army had
left once everything was under control. The second in command was talking to some
of his troops and toying with some of the captured.
All of a sudden a tremendous cry rang out, "Yi,yi,yi,yi,yi"
A dark haired woman, similar to the one that had been described in our
interview, dressed in a white underclothe, was battling the soldiers. She was
knocked to the ground and she seemed to be searching for something underneath
the soil. Suddenly her hands shot up and she held a sword and a round shiny thing.
She fought with the bravest of skills, the fury in her kicks, the determination in her
cries, I knew from that moment what being a warrior was all about, and I wanted to be just
like her.
Just then one soldier guarding us had been knocked down, as his back was turned one
of the men of my village lead us safely away. I was reluctant to leave, I wanted to see her
finish this battle. But apart of me knew that it wasn't the last time I would see her, I knew
I was going to leave with this woman. That she would teach me everything she knew.
And my life as a simple peasant girl, would be changed forever.
"I just want to get your perspective on things."I said as I grabbed my
Papyrus scroll and quill.
"Why the sudden urge for this perspective?" She asked rather rudely.
"I don't want to write about the same old things. Hero's battling for the
greater good." I explained.
She looked at me with her one eyebrow raised.
"Sorry, I didn't mean for that to sound..."
"It's alright. I've learned long ago not to care about what people think about
me. She explained to me. She stared ahead, her eyes forever darting around
searching for the unseen enemy. The air had a chill to it, so she pulled her
fur jacket closer and tied it. Her long brown hair flew in the harsh and biting
wind, she had some strands tied back, into a silver metal clip with a classic Greek design on
it, but as the wind blew about it started to unravel.
The dark brown horse she lead behind us carried everything from her weapons,
to her food, to her bed roll.
"So how do we start this thing?"She asked still looking around.
"You just talk and I'll start writing, basically pretend I'm not here. "I stated as
I licked the tip of my quill and touched it to the scroll.I struggled to hold
onto both seeing as my hands were starting to go slightly numb.
"What do I start talking about?"She asked as she fixed those dark green eyes
onto me.
"What made you want to become a warrior. When did you go on your first big adventure."I
asked, having to stare from her harsh gaze.
"Well," she said as she moved ahead, I started behind her,"my father worked as
a blacksmith. I was always fascinated by the armour and weapons he made.
Although I was told never to touch them, I would often stare at them for long
hours while they cooled. I longed to hold them, wield them and hopefully have
one of my own someday. My mother wanted me to be a normal little girl, to play
with the other girls, pick flowers. But none of that interested me. Often a
warrior would ride through town and I couldn't help but gaze proudly at them from
the safety of the kitchen window. I thought,'I'm going to be a warrior one day,
a hero'"
I quickly wrote down what she said and I waited earnestly for what would spill out
of her mouth next. To my surprise there was the longest pause, I looked up and
I saw her wipe away the tears quickly.
"Why are you crying?" I asked in a hushed whisper. She turned quickly to me.
"I was not crying. Warriors do not cry, the cold wind got into my eyes."She
explained, I nodded my head but didn't accept that answer for a minute.
"So who taught you to fight, to hold a sword?"I asked her trying to change
the subject rather quickly.
"One day, I was about ten, when a warrior ravaged our city, she killed my father.
I didn't know what to do so I ran, but when I got to a safe distance and saw
my town being burned I wanted to die. I hated myself for turning and running,I
should have stayed and fought. Like what a normal warrior should do. So rather
than returning to what was left of my town I ran away."She explained, she started
to lead us into a dense forest, I had to admit I was a little scared.
"So after what seemed like forever, a tall dark haired woman rode up beside me.
She stared down at me from her tall steed, her hair was as black as the night
and her eyes as blue as the deepest ocean. She asked me 'What are you doing out
here child?' I told her that a warrior had ravaged our town and burned it I was
so ashamed of turning and running that I decided not to go back. That it would be
better if I ran.' She continued to stare at me, only I saw hurt, and pity take
shape in her eyes. She jumped down from her horse and stood before me.
'What if I taught you how to defend yourself, so that you won't ever have to
turn and run again?' 'Oh yes, I would love that." She said, her eyes even now
glowing with excitement. She lead us and her horse over fallen trees and jagged
rocks sticking up from the ground.
"So what happened?" I asked almost as excited by the story as she was by telling
it.
"She taught me how to hold a sword and defend myself, right there on that
little trail." She let out a little laugh, almost thinking about the irony, "I was
grateful that she taught me how."
"Did you find out who she was?"I asked.
"Yes, her name was Xena," Her voice seemed to resound with anger and hatred, "I found
out later that it was her army who destroyed my town, and killed my father."She said,
the anger most likely filling her heart.
"So did anyone survive? Did you go back?"I asked her.
"Yes, I found out that my mother survived. My sister was sold into slavery and
when I thought I had found her, she was killed right in front of me. For
being a 'traitor'"
"So where are you going today? What will you be doing?"I asked, desperate to
change the subject so she wouldn't be blind with hatred and kill anything around
her.
"Today is my mom's birthday. On the other side of this forest is the small town." She
said, she had to stop a moment, she listened, she reached for her sword on
her horse. She didn't unsheathe it, instead she continued to look around and
when she felt it safe she started back up the path.
"What was it?"I asked a little concerned, that maybe I didn't need to die for
a story.
"You must always be careful in this forest. This is the dead forest."She said
as if it was nothing.
"The..de...dead forest.."I stuttered a little scared.
"Don't worry, it's only a name."I continued to look around, trees had fallen
down,and rocks shot up through the ground. I tripped over one that I didn't
see for the yellow and red leaves which had fallen from the trees, littered the
ground.
"You must always be on your guard in this forest. The leaves don't just cover
the rocks, they cover the deep pits which have been dug by bandits, to
hide in and attack the next passing victim.
I continued to stare around, I fixed my gaze on any pile of leaves that looked
suspicious, but I wouldn't get too worried, only if she pulled out her weapons.
We continued to walk in silence, I wrote down everything she did, how it
seemed that her body was listening to the sounds around her.
After a few minutes I saw the opening to the forest and another small path
up a tiny, but steep hill. When we cleared the forest I saw a person walking away
from the forest, she had a tiny dog with her, it never left her side even when
it started to growl at us.
The warrior growled back at the dog and it ran away yelping. She started to lead her
steed up the steep hill, I followed behind it, nearly losing my footing and
falling back down.
Once I reached the top it was quite amazing, a thriving, prospering village stood
infront of us. It was so quiet when we left the forest and now that we stood on
this tiny hill you could hear the bustling of the town. She started to lead
her horse through the meadow and towards the town.
I looked around and noticed some people pointing and whispering, I looked
towards her and she didn't seem to notice or she just didn't care. It didn't matter
the length of time she had been gone, or the good deeds she had done. She carried
a sword and knew how to use it, that was enough to make her harmful.
We walked towards this little house just on the other side of town, the
streets were small and crammed with vendors selling everything from fabrics to
sheep meat. I had to literally run from one vendor, he tried to tell me that his
fabrics were one of a kind, but anyone could see that you can get them anywhere.
She tied her horse to the post in front of the house and pulled something
out from one of her saddle bags. I waited and then walked into the house behind
her.
"Mother, this is a writer. She wants to write my perspective on being a
warrior." She explained to her mother.
"Oh, well any friend of my daughter's is a friend of mine."She explained as
she welcomed me and we all sat down at the kitchen table.
"I have brought you something mother." She explained and put forth the package.
"Oh Dear, you didn't have too. Just seeing you is enough to warm my heart. Her
mother explained, after an awkward pause she then grabbed the package and unwrapped it.
It was a little doll, apparently very special to her mother because she hugged it
tight and then her daughter.
"Thank you so much. I have a collection of these." Her mother explained to me. I
continued to write about the love between the warrior and her mother, but there was some
unseen tension as well.
"Well I must be going mother." She said as she rose from her seat and started for
the door.
"Are you absolutely sure, dear. I mean it is my birthday."She asked, almost
desperately pleading with her daughter.
"I have to mom, people out there need me. And I still haven't found who I am
looking for." She explained.
"Alright, if you must go." She said, she gave her daughter a hug and reluctantly
had to let go.
"You have a beautiful home."I explained as I left after her.
Once we got back outside and away from her mother's home I had to ask,"why are
you leaving so soon, you barely spent an hour with her."
"Look, this is a warrior's way. You never hold anyone close to your heart,
because they will always get hurt by. You never stay in one place, you make yourself an
easy target. You wanted my perspective on things, this is it." She stated angrily, she
grabbed her horse and started to mount it.
"This is where we part ways." She stated, I tried to object, but the stern look she
shot at me, made me decide to end the interview and declare the day over.
"One quick question, who are you looking for?"I asked.
"The one who destroyed my town."
"Didn't she also teach you to fight?"I asked.
"She taught me how to defend myself, my warrior's heart taught me to fight." She
said and took off, her coat and hair both flying wildly in the breeze as I
lost sight of her.
I wondered if I would see her again, if she would succeed in her mission, or fail.
As I rolled up my scroll and placed it along with my quill in my bag I
wondered why a warrior's life had to be so hard, why anyone would choose to
become one. I couldn't see the logical reason in wanting to fight.
When I returned home I started to rewrite my work, my sister tried to see
what I had been up to, but I refused. As I was getting the water from the well
a man with a dark complexion rode up with his army and started to attack my
village.
Two men grabbed me and my sister and rounded us up with another small group
of people.
I tried to break free, but I couldn't I was so scared. The leader of the army had
left once everything was under control. The second in command was talking to some
of his troops and toying with some of the captured.
All of a sudden a tremendous cry rang out, "Yi,yi,yi,yi,yi"
A dark haired woman, similar to the one that had been described in our
interview, dressed in a white underclothe, was battling the soldiers. She was
knocked to the ground and she seemed to be searching for something underneath
the soil. Suddenly her hands shot up and she held a sword and a round shiny thing.
She fought with the bravest of skills, the fury in her kicks, the determination in her
cries, I knew from that moment what being a warrior was all about, and I wanted to be just
like her.
Just then one soldier guarding us had been knocked down, as his back was turned one
of the men of my village lead us safely away. I was reluctant to leave, I wanted to see her
finish this battle. But apart of me knew that it wasn't the last time I would see her, I knew
I was going to leave with this woman. That she would teach me everything she knew.
And my life as a simple peasant girl, would be changed forever.