"LEFTERIS! MARINOS!"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! CRACK! The entire east wing barracks awoke to the sound of a door being kicked and finally breaking. What they heard next caused them to stay in their shared rooms.
"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU WERE DOING!?" a feminine, but growling, voice yelled, followed by the sound of two bodies hitting the floor.
"W-we just..."
"JUST THOUGHT THAT YOU WERE GOING TO GET SOME HUH?" Two excruciating kicks resulting in a gross cracking sound was enough to make the two's bunkmates evacuate.
"We're sorry!" Lefteris sobs out, while lying on the floor clutching his surely broken ribs.
"We didn't know who she was." Marinos defends through gasps.
Eithne, who was now kneeling over them, leans in close to their faces and spits out
"I don't care if she was a prostitute. If someone says NO, they mean NO." emphasizing each no with a rough hit to each of their faces, ensuring black eyes. "I heard that you two were a bit disrespectful, and I had heard some stories about some vulgar behavior around town, but now that I know it's true I want it to stop. I will terminate both of you in every sense of the word if I hear anything."
Standing and brushing off her pants, Eithne states calmly
"Gabrielle is very important and you will not so much as look at her unless addressed. Is that clear?"
"Yes 'mam." they both say with matching sounds of pain.
Motioning to the terrified bunkmates in the doorway to assist the fallen men
"Get them to the infirmary."
Strolling out of the room and into the dark hallway, Eithne is met with the unmistakable shadow of the Supreme Commander of Stympheae's military, Theodorus.
"You were a little hard on them weren't you?" his voice stern but peppered with fragments of sleepiness. Eithne brushes past him with a large grin on her face causing the man to follow her into the armory.
"I don't think so."
"No?"
"No. If you don't catch insubordinance early then it grows and they think it's okay to do whatever they want." unlatching her scaled armor and placing it in her trunk carefully.
"They didn't do anything." Theo yawns, lounging on the trunk next to her.
"But they were going to. I've seen that look on many men and even you can't ignore the stupid things they do."
"They are jokers and they probably did have some ideas."
"It's fine to joke among the other soldiers, but they were in public and we can't have the public fear their own army."
"You're right. You always are, but I guess it doesn't help that they were talking to the bard, Gabrielle. Why are you so protective of her anyway?"
After locking her chest, she straightens her black leather pants and shifts up her bustier.
"I have somewhere to be. Goodnight." and with that, she exits through the hallway and out of the barracks into the chilled night air, leaving Theo wondering what hold a bard could have over the normally unruffled girl.
"Hehehe.. Xena stop." Gabrielle giggles in her sleep and turns over, causing Xena to pause and look back from her place at the window
'I can't be that good.' Xena thinks just as Gabrielle lets out a muffled moan.
'Maybe I am' a smile spreading across her face.
A good amount of the city can be seen from their window. The stadium, closed stands, the palace, in the distance, and houses mostly. A few guards making their rounds and a stray cat are all that disturb the still of the night. Xena had already made her rounds, phasing in and out of other guests' rooms, most of them sleeping, a couple of them not. This thought made Xena shudder and shake her head in attempts to forget the image. She peeped into some of the surrounding buildings, with nothing catching her interest, she returned to their room. Nothing had her attention until a dark figure appeared on the rooftop of a far building. It made its way stealthily across the rooftops towards the tavern until Xena no longer could see them and heard a soft thud. She made her way across the room and stuck her head through the wall to look into the hallway. A small trapdoor opened in the ceiling a few doors down and the figure dropped down, pulling the hatch closed with it. The figure approaches Gabrielle's room and puts their ear to the door, while Xena finally recognizes the figure as Eithne.
Xena almost goes to wake Gabrielle when Eithne pulls away from the door and sits down next to it.
"How the hell am I supposed to tell them without scaring them? I barely believe Ares myself?" she laughs to herself.
At the mention of Ares Xena steps into the hallway just as the girl looks up, she can't be sure in the darkness of the hallway, but it looks like Eithne glances her way. To test a theory, Xena makes her way in front of the hired hand and sits down.
"Why do you know Ares? Why are you outside of our room?"
The girl makes no move to look at or answer Xena, so she goes with a different strategy. Suddenly, she strikes her hand out and is surprisingly met with a satisfying slap.
"Ow, by the gods that hurt!" Eithne quietly says, while rubbing her cheek that is now emitting a soft fading light in the shape of Xena's hand.
"I can touch you! Why can I touch you?" Xena also whispers while marvelling at her own hand which is also glowing.
"I have many skills."
"Hey, that's my line. Wait, so you can hear me." suddenly inspired, Xena lunges forward and grabs Eithne by the throat "What do you want with Gabrielle? Why are you following us?"
The close proximity causes the strange glow to grow stronger on both of the women, causing Xena to release the young girl's throat.
Holding her throat and looking deeply into Xena's eyes "I-I think you and Gabrielle are my mothers."
"I think I would remember Gabrielle or I having a child, but nice try."
Xena strikes out her right fist only to be blocked by a swift movement and a flash of light. A series of punches and kicks are met with blocks and flashes of light.
"Please just listen to me." She begs quietly, hoping nobody finds her fighting nothing.
"Fine." Xena relents "But if I think your story is bull, I'll send you straight to Tartarus."
"Okay okay." Eithne places her hands in the air to show that she is not a threat
"Are we not going to address the glowing or..?"
"Just explain." Xena spits out
Eithne sits down in defeat and leans her head against the wall, eyes closed
"My whole life Ares has asked me to lead his army with him always saying 'I created you from the greatest warrior and the one who completed her.' and 'I probably put too much of the annoying blonde one in you. That's why you won't join me.' but I never wanted any part in his stupid game." pausing for a response and only being met with a deadset face, she continued
"I never really believed him until I heard stories of the Warrior Princess and the Travelling Bard. The descriptions seemed to fit so perfectly, but they were only stories until the news spread that you guys rose from the dead and found your daughter Eve. I was about fifteen years old at the time and decided to search for you guys, hoping that finally I could figure out who I was. When the news spread that you died in Chin, Ares appeared in a rage saying that since he no longer had any chance of having his Warrior Princess lead his army he would make his prodigy lead. WE fought, and when he realized I wouldn't give in he destroyed the tavern that used to be here and disappeared" she shrugged.
"So why was Gabrielle sent for?" Xena asked, while sitting across from the girl. She was beginning to think that she was just some fan, who had become so obsessed that she made up her own origin story.
"I didn't even know she was coming until they put up the banners a couple of days ago. Of course, I did everything in my power to find out why, and King Alexis said that he heard her tell some stories when he was younger and that she was the best bard that ever existed. I'm following her now because I don't want Ares coming back and trying to hurt her." she stated as though it was common knowledge.
"And why should I believe any of that?" Xena says, unimpressed
"I guess there is no reason you should. Look," sitting up on her knees, "I just want to keep Gabrielle safe just like you, but if you don't believe me maybe you should talk to Ares."
Standing and motioning around her "Well I can't since he's not here, so I guess your story will go unvalidated. Time for you to leave." beginning to shoo her away.
"Actually…. He is."
"What?"
