Scroll I – Chapter ii – Chariots of War
The Warrior Princess Xena and I had been traveling together for only a few days, yet during that time the air had at last shed its humidity. The autumn solstice was at hand. I soon discovered how difficult it was to live on the road, even with someone as dependable as Xena. Just the previous night, for instance, we hadn't given much thought as to where we would sleep or what we would eat. Xena told me that most of the time we would just have to wing it. Since we set off from Amphipolis, Xena made it clear to me that she was ready to abandon her past self, her past hates, and her thirst for power. But since she made the decision to fight for the good of all, she had a tendency to behave as though a battle could ignite at any given moment. I did not like this habit of hers because I had a fair amount of trouble communicating with her when she was like that. She became hardened and closed off and busied me with favors in order to send me away. I did what ever she asked of me. I was overjoyed when it was my turn to cook the meal. I was very helpful when it came time to prepare and disassemble the camp site day after day. I ran errands. I tended to Argo. I even agreed to do the laundry (every once in a while.) But she still made no effort to open up to me, which provoked me to no end.
Today, after traveling by foot on the road for several hours, we came upon a town which neither of us had ever visited before. Worn out and famished, the two of us decided to take a quick rest stop at the nearest available tavern. On the way, we past crowds of busy and bustling townsfolk. I was delighted to be experiencing new places and cultures for the first time. Even the crowded tavern we had entered held my interest. Xena, however, was always on guard. She eyed everyone in sight, memorizing their features and scanning them for weapons. The two of us had been standing at the bar for a few minutes, Xena continuing to remain in "warrior-mode," while I merely sat there waiting for the bartender to finally take our orders. I couldn't help, but feel that I was the only one of us enjoying the lively atmosphere of this place. Xena seemed elsewhere, another planet perhaps. Planet of the warriors. When the bartender got my attention, I tapped Xena to get hers. "Hey Xena," I said, waving my palm before her unblinking eyes. "Earth to Xena…Xena!"
"What?" she said snapping out of it.
"The bartender would like to take our orders now." I informed her.
"Oh well it's about time," she said to the man, "I'll have a mug of ale please, and the lady here will have a pint of water."
"Hey!" I piped in, feeling her words to be rather insulting. "You know maybe I'd like a mug of ale too, but of course you didn't bother to ask me."
"Should I have to?" she asked raising an eyebrow. "You're far to young to have a drink."
"Says who? I can drink what ever I please. I am a 'lady' after all." I argued.
"Will you or will you not have a pint of water, Miss?" droned the bartender.
"Yes, it'll be water for me. Thank you, sir." I said scowling at Xena. She smirked as the bartender left to fetch us our drinks, and I figured that she was only trying to get me riled up. The day before, she had discovered how easy it was for her to do that to me. We had only known each other for a short amount of time, yet we both knew how to drive each other up the wall. In fact, I had a plan to get her back. "How would you like me to tell you a story." I suggested, smiling at her sweet as can be.
"Gods, no." she said pressing her face into her palm.
"Come on, just a quick story." I persisted. "I promise it's a good one, and it'll help pass the time while we wait for the drinks."
"Spare me Gabrielle." She said emotionlessly.
"Once long ago, in a faraway land, there lived a bold young man and an adventurous young woman." I began.
"Zeus, where is that ale?"
In the time that it took for us to relax with our drinks, I told Xena a love story in an attempt to bring out her soft side. But she did not seem the least bit interested in what I was saying. "So Zeus, in his appreciation, turned the two lovers into oak trees," I concluded, "And then do you know what happened?" I asked to see if she was still paying attention.
"Somebody built a boat out of them?" Xena suggested impassively as she took the last sip of her ale.
"No," I responded trying to sound patient, "their branches intertwined and they spent the rest of their days in each other's embrace."
"What's the point?" Xena asked.
"Come on, Xena. I believe everyone will find their tree in the forest someday. Even you."
"I find the strongest trees in the forest stand alone." She said indifferently.
"You don't have to be strong all the time, Xena." I affirmed. "Sometimes it's good for the soul to be soft."
"Oh, yeah." Xena said with a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "Look, I'm gonna ride up ahead and see if we can ford the Meleatus River. Otherwise, we'll have to double back two days. Let's find some place you can wait for me."
"What's wrong with this place?" I inquired. Just then a drunkard staggered up to me and wrapped his hairy arm around my shoulders. Startled I looked up at him just as he belched obnoxiously in my face. "Hello, beautiful!" he breathed looking as though he would vomit in his blissfully drunken state. I gaped at him, thoroughly disgusted, and instantly made up my mind. "Another place sounds good." I said shrinking out from under his weight. In fact, another place sounded great. "Come on blondie, tell me a story." The man implored and gave another great belch. Xena swiftly ushered me out.
Later on, she dropped me off at an inn where she trusted that I would be safe. "Don't forget about me." I called to her as she mounted Argo.
"I won't." Xena promised and rode away. As I knew I would, I watched her go until she was out of sight. Then I entered the inn, convincing myself to stay in high spirits. Xena would only be gone for a short amount of time, and I supposed that it would be good for me to be on my own for a little while. The inn was not as crowded as the last tavern, but I noticed that I was the only woman there. I felt anxious at first, but thankfully none of the men decided to approach me or worse, belch loudly in my face. They were all deeply engaged in their own personal activities.
I found an empty table with a lit candle placed in the center in a secluded corner of the room. I claimed this table for myself and pulled up a chair. After settling there I opened up my knapsack to find something to entertain myself with while I awaited Xena's return. In the last town we visited, Xena took me to a scroll shop where I purchased a blank scroll and quill. I picked these out and began to write. I had been craving some time alone to write about my previous adventure with Xena, and there had been no better time to do it than right at that moment. It had all seemed like a fantastic dream to me, but the memory of beginning my journey was still strong, and I did not want to lose it. I entitled the story, Sins of the Past, and sat at my table engrossed in the wonders of the written word for hours as customers came and went. I found that the act of writing out my inner thoughts took me right back to the very day that Xena entered my life. It was a glorious day of discovery and liberation. I would never have to forget it now.
The inn was nearly empty when I realized just how late it had become. I peered out of the nearest window and discovered that it was pitch black outside. If not for the candle light I would not have been able to write for all of those hours. I pocketed my scroll and quill and put on my knapsack hoping that Xena would be back soon. But I waited yet another hour for her at my table and still she had not arrived. I had felt so accomplished before, having finally written something of worth. But now I grew impatient, thirsty, and a little worried. After what seemed like an eternity, I approached the bar seeking assistance.
"Excuse me Sir," I said to the innkeeper behind the counter, "Would you tell me, have you seen a tall, dark-haired woman wearing a ton of leather? Her name is Xena. I have been waiting here for at least four hours for her to come and pick me up."
"You're the only woman I've seen all day," grumbled the man, "and you haven't bought one thing to drink."
"Oh, I'm sorry," I said trying to sound sincere. I paced back and forth in front of the bar, wringing my hands nervously as I did so. "I'm sure she'll be here any minute. She's very dependable. Of course, she also takes a lot of risks."
"You gonna have a drink or not?" asked the innkeeper annoyed.
"Yes, thanks." I replied with gratitude, succumbing to my thirst.
"It's not a gift." He added, pouring a think liquid into a mug intended for me.
"What?" I asked, unsure of what he meant at first. "Oh. Hah! I have money." I explained feeling foolish. I opened my knapsack to take out my change purse when I changed my mind. "Actually, I'm not a big drinker. Do you have any water?"
The innkeeper glared at me and switched mugs. I could see that I had not made a very good impression on him so far, so I tried to flatter him. "You have a very nice establishment." I said. "How late are you open?"
"Late." Was all he said, and that was the end of our conversation. He handed me my water and I sat back down at my table to drink it. I was thankful that the tavern was open late because another hour passed and I grew weary of waiting. I approached the counter again, nearly collapsing with fatigue, and beseeched the innkeeper to let me stay the night. He didn't seem thrilled that I could not pay.
"Please," I begged, "When Xena gets here, I promise to make her pay for my room. After all, it is her fault that I have no where to stay. She'll have to-"
"Alright," the innkeeper broke in exasperated, "I'll let you stay for one night only. But you may not leave here until all of my services are paid for."
"You got it." I said relieved. I prayed to the gods that Xena would return during the night so that I could leave the inn as soon as possible. I was beginning to worry about her safety. I knew that she would not leave me waiting there alone intentionally. Something must have happened to her on her way to the river. I fought back my urge to panic and took a few deep breaths. She would be alright. She was the Warrior Princess after all. She could take on any challenge that came her way and excel beyond anyone's expectations. Right?
The innkeeper showed me upstairs to a little room complete with a small wooden desk and chair, a matching dresser, a lamp, a dusty mirror, and a very poorly-made bed. "Here is your key." He said, handing me a thick rusty key. "Have a good night." He grumbled. And with that he retired to his room across the hall. I entered my room quietly and shut the door gently so as not to disturb my neighbors. I carefully lit the lamp and made my way across the room and set my backpack down on the little desk. The bed looked terribly uninviting. I sat myself down upon it to feel the mattress. It was as I anticipated, lumpy and hard. For the first time since I left, I missed my soft warm bed back home. I wondered how Lila was doing with the room all to herself. Did she even really miss me at all? I had not written to her as I had promised myself I would, and I decided that I had to do it soon or she and my parents would worry about me, the way that I was worrying about Xena.
It was difficult to sleep even though I was lying in a bed for the first time in about a week. It was easier to sleep when I had company, even if I was on the floor. I was used to sharing a bedroom with Lila, and over the past few nights I had shared a campsite with Xena. I did not like how the floor of the room creaked or how the wind whistled against the window pane. I missed the sound of cicadas in the forest trees and looking up at the stars through their branches. I missed the hickory scent of the campfire and the lingering taste of smoked meat in my mouth.
I realized then how badly I hungered for a meal. I had not eaten since the afternoon, and that was only some left-over fish from the night before. I hoped that Xena would get back soon. It was her company that I craved most of all. If she had been there, I might have been able to sleep the night away in the lonely little inn room. Figures, I was even dependent on her to help me fall asleep.
The next morning, I woke up to the sound of wild drinking parties emanating from the lower level. Once I realized I was awake, I sat bolt upright and looked out of the window next to me. I was not sure how late in the morning it was, but I didn't care. I hurriedly made the bed and dressed, ignoring the slight back pains that the mattress had left me with. With my hand I wiped some of the dust off of the mirror. Looking closely at my familiar reflection, I twisted some of my hair back just the way I liked it. I couldn't imagine that Xena had returned, otherwise she would have come up to my room to fetch me. But perhaps she was being respectful by letting me sleep, and I would find her downstairs after all.
After readying myself for the day, I descended into the bar area with my change purse to find that Xena still had not arrived. Disappointed and agitated, I made my way through the many crowds of drunkards. I looked around me at the noisy, rambunctious fellows, and was astounded that anyone could be drinking this early in the day. Intimidated by the crowds, I moved closer to the bar where I felt protected by the innkeeper. "It's a bit early for a celebration." I said to him regarding the state of his tavern. He smiled in agreement, much to my surprise. I supposed he did with a good nights sleep and was in a good mood. "Can I have some water, please?" I asked him while I was sure that he was still pleased.
The man was about to pour me some much needed water when I was approached by a lanky goat-like thug wearing an eye patch. I instinctively stiffened, ready to slip into defense mode. "Let me buy you a mug of ale," he said attempting to be flirtatious, "but then you'll owe me."
"How generous." I said secretly appalled. "Of course I have to decline. What would people think? I mean, me a- a young, innocent girl taking gifts from a swarthy stranger? Hmm! The gossip alone would send this town reeling."
"Is that a 'yes?'" asked the thug. Great, I thought, an idiot.
"Well, not in the customary sense of the word." I said, trying to let him down easy. "But maybe you could help me. I'm looking for a friend of mine."
"I can be your friend." The thug smiled, showing an array of crooked, yellow teeth. He knelt forward to touch my face. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the bartender look on at us, but he did nothing to try and help me ward off this creep. Well this was slowly turning into a nightmare. What was I thinking asking for help from a sketchy older man? I must have been out of my mind!
"I'm serious," I warned trying to push him off, "and you'd better back off before I find her. It's Xena."
The thug seemed to recognize the name. "The Warrior Princess?" he asked.
"Yeah." I said matter-of-factly, hoping that my threat would send him running.
"Well, I like it." He smiled creepily again. "I could be a friend to both of you."
He knelt forward to try and touch my face again. I should have slapped his hand away, but I was beginning to feel frightened. I did not like the way he kept perusing me after I had repeatedly told him off, and his beer breath was so unappealing. Even though I was against being the damsel in distress, I knew that I had to find a suitable young man…
"And I'm looking for my boyfriend." I lied turning away from his hand to look for a man, any man, who would appear to be a threat. Maybe this time he could take a hint. "Big, strong, jealous type, huh! And there he is now." I said pointing to a handsome young warrior clad in heavy armor sitting by himself at a table for two. He seemed to be the only sober individual in sight. Perfect. "Hmm! He's resting, after polishing his giant, lethal sword collection." I stated boldly. I thought that perhaps if I described him the way that I would normally describe Xena, it would be more effective. This unfortunately did not work as well as I had hoped.
"He's not your boyfriend." The thug said.
"Oh, you don't think so?" I challenged, not entirely sure where I was taking this.
"No, I don't." replied the thug leaning forward once more.
I was completely lost for words. If he did not trust me, then I was going to have to prove somehow that the stranger sitting alone was my boyfriend. This would mean breaking the code of respect that I was used following. But certainly not every village was like mine, and as I had recently discovered, not every warrior was evil. I did not want to do it, but to avoid the stranger's touch, I strode up to the solitary young man with a look of confidence upon my would-be embarrassed face. He looked up in time to see me approaching him just before I took his face in my hands and pressed my lips against his. Then I sat, smirking at the thug, onto his lap. The young man, whose lap that I was not given permission to plant myself upon, gawked dazedly at me. "Pretend you know me." I whispered pleadingly into his ear.
"Ah, no problem," the man replied as if it were his lucky day. At least he was not offended. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the thug stare at us in amazement and then stagger away. "Oh, that was close." I sighed and got up to sit on the chair opposite the man to whom I had just given my first kiss. I never expected that my first kiss would be so…unexpected. "Thank you, and I apologize" I said. "That creep just wouldn't leave me alone. If you wouldn't mind pretending to be my boyfriend for a few more minutes..." I was afraid that the thug might approach me again if he saw me alone. The man took the hint.
"It's fine," he said smiling at me, still bewildered. "I'm Sphaerus by the way. So, um, how long have we been seeing each other, ah-"
"Gabrielle," I said grinning in spite of myself, "and you fell madly in love with me the moment we met." I joked.
"Well, it's no wonder." Sphaerus said sincerely, "The- the way you kiss." At this, I felt a blush coming on, and I started to forget where I was. His eyes were hazel saucers set under delicate lids that could have belonged to a woman, except he was very rugged. How could I have missed that he was absolutely breath-taking? Noticing my obvious attraction to him, he changed the subject quickly. "Uh, what brings you to this place?" he asked.
"Ah, I'm looking for my best friend." I replied, suddenly remembering my purpose for being there. "Maybe you've seen her? Six feet tall, dark hair, lots of leather. She fights like the Harpies in a bad mood. Her name's Xena."
"Ah, no, uh, sorry." Sphaerus said uncertainly, almost guiltily. "This friend of yours, you were, you were close?"
"Are you kidding? Like this." I said, holding up my crossed fingers. "I don't know what I'm worried about. If anyone can take care of herself, it's Xena."
After mentally convincing myself that Xena was definitely alright, I allowed myself to continue paying attention to the sweet young man sitting directly opposite me. I noticed his tangled thick brown hair and muscular arms. It made me wonder if he really was a warrior or if I had just assumed that he was. "So what do you do?" I asked curiously.
"I, uh, I work for my father." Sphaerus responded, not meeting my eyes. "I took over for my brother after he died in battle. But, he makes me do things I never thought I would. Things I regret."
"Mm, I can understand that." I said nodding sympathetically. "My mother always wanted me to get married and have kids. And I remember, telling her that I'd always be grateful for the way that she raised me. But she couldn't expect me to pay for that with my future."
Sphaerus looked at me again seeming appreciative. "That's um, that's very insightful." He said admiringly.
"It's a gift." I explained. "Anyway, I came to a point in my life where I had to make a choice. And I thought about who I really was, and I made it."
Sphaerus nodded and said, "Well, look, um I better go. Um, maybe I'll see you around sometime?"
We exchanged smiles before he stood up and, to my disappointment, exited the inn. I sat there blushing like a little girl. It had been a while since I felt attracted to anyone. I secretly hoped that he was the man that the gods had sent for me. He just had to be my tree in the forest. There was something about him that spoke to me from within, that told me that we were right for each other. Then it occurred to me that I never asked him where he worked, and all at once my hope of ever seeing Sphaerus again faded. Sadness welled up in my heart as I sat alone at the place where we had met, dreaming of the day that we might meet once more.
I eventually got sick of waiting around for Xena, and I set off to go look for her. It seemed as though looking for Xena was all that I did with my spare time, and it made me feel weak. And the truth is that I was dependent on her for absolutely everything. I had never lived on my own before, and even though this was what I wanted for myself, I was scared. I had no money, no experience, and I had barely made it through one night alone. I thought that she must not have realized just how dependent I really was on her protection. I hated to trouble her so often, but after spending about a week together, she did not seem to mind having a companion to travel with, even if my incessant story-telling bothered her quite a lot. All I really wanted was to be her friend and to learn all that there was to know from her. She was much older than me, twenty-nine to be exact, and so she was far more learned than I, but there were so many things about her that I still did not know. I could not wait to find out any longer. I had to meet up with her.
I was able to leave the inn without the innkeeper noticing. I felt guilty that I could not pay him, but if I had waited any longer I surely would have had an anxiety attack. Xena said, the day she left me, that she was going to ride up ahead and see if we could ford the Meleatus River, so I headed in that direction. I knew where it was because I had studied the map for so long. It took me a while, but I did find it eventually. I was searching the river bank when I heard the familiar yet distant sound of a horse trotting. Argo perhaps? It couldn't be…but it was! I was so relieved when I looked behind me to see that it really was Xena and Argo. I waved to her frantically. "Xena, it's me!" I called. She saw me immediately and shook her head, smirking. I rushed to catch up to her, pushing away at the shrubs blocking my path.
"Where have you been? I've been looking all over for you." I exclaimed out of breath as she dismounted Argo and approached me, seemingly guilt-ridden.
"I ran into a little trouble." She explained.
"You? Trouble? That's a surprise!" I chided. "You couldn't send a messenger? I was worried sick!" I sounded like her mother.
"I'm sorry." She uttered almost inaudibly as I turned away. I turned back around.
"Did you just apologize?" I asked, believing I must not have heard correctly.
"There's a farmhouse down the road." She said looking at me again. "Nice people. I want you to wait for me there."
"Where are you going?" I asked incredulous. She glared at me, attempting to appear threatening. "No, no." I shook my head, ignoring her threatening glance. I should have known that she would send me off somewhere else. I was beginning to think that this was typical of Xena. "No, I'm not waiting around while you have all the fun." I insisted, giving her a look to try and prove that I would not simply give in. I turned to strut down the path, leading the way this time. "Now, come on. You just going to stand there all day?"
She got the point. I would go with her no matter what. We walked a little ways down the road and I told her about Sphaerus, the lovely young man that I had met while waiting for her at the inn. "I think I might have found my tree in the forest." I said, blushing at the mere thought of him. "He was cute, in sort of a- a rugged, outdoorsy way, at least I thought so. Anyway, things were going fine until we started talking about his father. And then he just gets up and leaves. Well, now, I have no way of finding this guy, again. What if I'm supposed to intertwine with him and have kids? Now I'll wind up some lonely, pathetic woman, like-" At this, I was afraid that Xena would give me the death stare, as she did once before when I tried to bring up the subject of her love life, but this time she did not. Her expression remained serious, as it usually was when ever she expected an attack. "Never mind." I muttered. "You haven't heard a word I said." Then I realized that there was a reason for her tuning me out. Something was wrong. "Xena, what is it?" I demanded worriedly.
"Get on the horse." She instructed peering toward the distance. I looked in the same direction, down the stream, and saw two chariots full of soldiers racing toward us. Trouble…
"No, no, no. I want to help you." I insisted even though I was mildly afraid.
"You can help by getting on the horse." Said Xena anxiously. "I need someone to distract them."
She wanted me to be the target? Now this I could not do. I stared fixedly at the soldiers, silently pondering another way to escape them. Seeing that this was no time for coming up with my own plan, Xena took my hand and led me towards Argo's stirrups. I made up any excuse, as I usually did in times of desperation. "I'm not very good at this horse thing." I said uncertainly after Xena had helped me onto Argo.
"Just head downstream and don't stop." She said and slapped the mare's rear to get her running. "Whoa!" I yelped trying to hang on. It was difficult. Argo was a fast runner. Every so often I made sure to check behind me. Both chariots seemed to be gaining on me with each glance, and I wished to the gods that Xena had not made me their objective. Argo and I were very far downstream when I saw Xena riding up close by in a chariot, which she had apparently taken by force. She was still behind the other chariot and she needed to catch up to me. "Xena this way!" I directed her. Just then Argo unexpectedly changed routs. "Never mind, this way!" I cried desperately. Then I looked behind me and saw that Xena was no longer there.
"Hold on, Gabrielle!" Xena called to me seeing my panicked expression. She had plunged out of the tall grass in her chariot. She had taken a short cut. Good thinking Xena! I leaned my head to the side to see her, but I began to slip off of Argo.
"Xena, I'm gonna fall!" I shouted. "Hurry!"
"Hold on, I'm coming." She assured me. Then she was right next to me. "Jump!" she commanded.
"Are you crazy?" I screamed.
"Jump!" she insisted once more.
"If I die, I'll never talk to you again!" I threatened foolishly.
"Jump, Gabrielle! Come on!" She was pleading with me now. "Jump!"
I could no longer take the pressure. I leaped off of Argo and into the chariot, but I did not land on my feet. Rubbing my bruised leg, I did not fully realize that I was still alive. I thought perhaps I was either riding in a chariot with Xena or I was riding in a chariot through Tartarus. Either way, I despised the feeling of it.
"You call that a jump?" Xena yelled, yanking me up by the scruff of my shirt.
"No, it was a frantic leap!" I yelled back. "Best I could do!" Just then, the second chariot rode up next to us, and the soldier closest to me tried to break the chain that connected our chariot to our horses. I opened my mouth to scream, but there was no sound. I had forgotten to breath first.
"Hold the reigns." Xena said, thrusting the reigns of the chariot into my sweaty palms. She searched her belt with her hands, and feeling nothing she looked down. When she looked back up at me, her expression made my heart stop. "I've lost my chakram!" she exclaimed, her blue eyes wide with shock.
"Is that supposed to be funny?" I shrieked. Suddenly, the soldier made to strike at her with his sword. She was fast enough to whip out her sword to defend herself, but just barely. I could not believe what was happening. I was steering a chariot, which might as well have had no driver at all, and Xena was busy fending off a mysterious attacker. I should not have looked away from the road in case there was an obstacle, but my gut told me to make sure that Xena was alright. Of course she was doing fine, I should have known. But as I looked over at Xena, I caught sight of the other soldier, who was steering their chariot. He was completely decked out from head to toe in chain mail armor, but there was no mistaking his face. It was Sphaerus. "You?" I exclaimed. Then I saw the warlord next to him, attacking Xena. He was much older and had similar facial features. I knew immediately who he was, but I just could not believe it. "That's your overbearing father?"
"Stay out of my way!" he ordered. I must have looked heartbroken because Xena picked up on it immediately, though she was quite busy defending herself against Sphaerus's father. I could tell that she was thinking quickly. The next thing I knew, she was breaking the connection between their horses and their chariot, which sent them hurtling off onto their backs. I looked on to see if Sphaerus had made it alright, but Xena was laughing with glee. None of us noticed a large log blocking our path.
We did not have time to react once we saw the log. Our horses made a sharp turn and we crashed against it. The two of us flew off of our unstable chariot and landed hard on our sides. We rolled a little ways until we were able to get a grip on the earth below us. I coughed into the dirt and Xena turned her face toward me. It was the death stare. "Don't tell me that's him." she blurted.
"Afraid so." I uttered in response. She stood up slowly, shaking her head. I staggered to my feet, feeling ashamed of myself.
"Remind me to talk to you sometime about your taste in men." she said sharply. As if my feelings could be hurt any more. Just then, Sphaerus and his father were running toward us, weapons drawn. Xena pushed me to get me to run out of their way, but Sphaerus cornered me in my defenseless state. His warlord father had blocked Xena from getting to me, but she was ready and on guard.
"Xena," sneered the warlord, "I've waited a long time for this moment."
"Have we ever met?" asked Xena looking about as confused as I was.
"It was the battle of Corinth," he growled, "You killed my son. You remember the name, Stentor?"
"Stentor?" Xena recalled the name, "He died trying to make peace." She said in protest.
"Not true," the warlord persisted, "he was a brave warrior and you stabbed him in the back."
"He came to me under a banner of peace," Xena confirmed, "his own men killed him."
"You'll pay for that foul lie." The warlord turned to his son, the man who I thought I had loved. "What are you waiting for?" he demanded. "Kill her!" He meant me. Sphaerus ambled forward, raising his sword to slaughter me.
"No," I pleaded, putting my hands up, as if it did any good, "this is it, Sphaerus." I said half begging, "This is your moment of choice." He stared at me, his expression a mixture of anger and sadness. My eyes pressed him to make the right choice despite his rage towards Xena.
The warlord grew impatient when Sphaerus did not butcher me on the spot, and he began a fight with his Xena himself. The two of us looked on as Xena demolished his strength. Her legs and arms acted as her sword, for she had dropped it when we were flung from our chariot. Even weaponless, she was still able to hold her own in a fight. "Father! Enough!" Sphaerus shouted after seeing all that he could handle. He ran in front of Xena, not to guard her, but to show the warlord that he was switching sides. "The killing stops here!"
"Get out of my way!" the warlord shouted aggressively at his son. Xena walked to my side while he was preoccupied. "I'll protect you." She said to me.
"No." Sphaerus stood his ground. "No one else has to die." He said. My heart soared with the joy of knowing that he really was being true to himself, but I couldn't help but wonder what changed his mind. Could he have finally gotten it into his head that his father had made up that whole story of his brother just to push him into helping him get rid of Xena?
"You're wrong." Said the warlord, brandishing his heavy sword. "At least one more has to die. And if it has to be my cowardly son, so be it." The man made to swipe at his son, but Sphaerus bravely fought back. "Peace is an illusion, coward." stated the warlord. "There's only war, death, victory, and vanquish. There's no compromise. Give up, you can't defeat me."
At this point I would have given the man a piece of my mind, even though I knew in my heart that there was really no point. People as evil and corrupt as Sphaerus's father can never be changed. His own son died under a banner of peace and there he was trying to play it off as though an innocent woman had murdered him in battle. For someone like him, that may have been considered the more honorable way to die. He just wanted an excuse to kill Xena, I was sure of it. Or perhaps the death of his son hardened him so much that he looked to blame anyone for his death. He could not admit that Stentor's own men had killed him. He was trying to make a bloodthirsty warlord out of Sphaerus to make up for where he supposedly failed in raising peaceful Stentor. Thankfully I was not given the opportunity to say what I wanted.
"Xena!" called an unfamiliar male voice. The two of us turned to see a middle-aged peasant man riding atop his horse. When he reached us, he quickly descended and handed Xena her chakram. "Here!" he said. I wondered who on earth that man could be and how he possibly could have happened upon Xena's chakram, but I paid more attention to Sphaerus's conversation with his father.
"No, you're right." Sphaerus admitted. "I can't, but I can still win." With that, he flung his sword to the ground. "I'm not gonna fight anymore, ever! My brother died for peace! I'm no better or worse than he!"
"I should have done this long ago." The warlord raised his sword ready to plunge it into Sphaerus when Xena threw her chakram and knocked his sword sideways. With a piercing cry, she flipped into battle. In a matter of seconds, she appeared between them in a blaze of glory with Sphaerus's sword in hand. Sphaerus and I stood together to watch her take him on, this time with weaponry. She fought bravely, and of course he was no match for her. She struck his stomach hard, kicked his chest with the heel of her boot, and sent him sprawling to the ground in agony. I scrutinized Xena in shock as she unremorsefully tossed the sword to the ground. I knew that she was capable of taking human life, but I had never witnessed her do it. The man on his back was gasping for air and his bloody hands clutched at his stomach. I never thought that I would have to see this side of Xena, but I forgave her for this one. That man made my skin crawl for planting such lies and messages of hate into Sphaerus's head. I figured Sphaerus must have been very selfless and good-natured to see through those messages and believe what lay in his heart.
As the warlord drew his last breaths, Sphaerus crouched beside him as any honorable son would. The dying man looked up into the still hazel eyes of his remaining child and whispered, "If you had done this, I would have died proud." Harsh last words. I half expected this to diminish Sphaerus's golden spirit, but it did not. In fact, he seemed glad to finally be rid of his dictatorial father.
After the warlord passed away, Sphaerus turned to the unfamiliar yet attractive peasant man standing beside Xena and his horse. Sphaerus said solemnly, "Call your people together again. No tricks. We will have peace."
On our way into the man's village, Xena explained everything to me. She told me that she had been shot by an arrow fired by Sphaerus whilst defending a peaceful village much like my own from Cycnus's men. Cycnus was the name of Sphaerus's warlord father. Sphaerus was the reason why Xena's return was so delayed. He shot her because she had saved a young boy from the falling timbers of a barn that his men had purposefully destroyed. I did not want to believe her, but I understood then why Sphaerus had seemed so uncertain and guilty when I brought up the subject of Xena in the tavern. He seemed even more uncomfortable when the subject of his father came up. I hoped that the only reason he attacked the village in the first place was because his father ordered him to do so, and not of his own free will.
While I waited for Xena at the inn, she was busy recuperating in the care of one of the village families, hence the man who we were riding with into town. Xena said that the man's name was Darius, and that he had removed the arrow from her side and treated her wound in his own home because it was his son who she had saved. The man was a widower and was raising three children on his own. With the addition of Xena, his house-hold became awfully full. I thought that Darius's actions toward Xena were generous and selfless, but that was not all. The village leader told Darius to make Xena leave because, like the men of my own village, he did not trust warriors. But Darius had insisted that he keep her there until she was fully healed. He accepted and cared for her because she'd saved his son, and for that he saw beyond her violent nature.
He reminded me a lot of myself and I was grateful to him in some ways for taking such care of my friend, but I felt saddened that I had been incapable of doing the same myself. I wished that Xena had taken me with her and let me take care of her instead of Darius. She seemed to have become very close to the family in the time that they spent together, and soon we would have to leave them. It would break her heart to say good-bye to the people that made her happy, but she would not have had to say good-bye to me. If I had been there to take care of her she would not have to be sad over letting them go, and I would not have to be sad over parting with Sphaerus. But perhaps it was better this way. Perhaps Xena, Darius, and Darius's children needed each other at the time. And just perhaps Xena could have used someone other than me to convince her that she had a good heart. Besides, I was sure Sphaerus and I were meant to cross paths, even though he turned out not my tree in the forest after all.
Sphaerus and I had only known each other for a couple of hours, yet he had become very special to me. I felt blessed that he came into my life right when the both of us needed some help getting our acts together. He reminded me a lot of Xena in the way that he was able to turn his life around. I was so proud of him for standing up to his father, even though it cost him his life, and I let him know so after the peace negotiations were made between Sphaerus's men and Darius's villagers.
I found him sitting alone by the fire place in Darius's farm house where the peace negotiations were taking place. I approached him somewhat timidly despite my yearning to embrace him. "Hey, stranger!" I said to get his attention. He got up to greet me immediately. "Hi. I, uh, understand you're leaving." He said. I could hear the hint of despair in his voice, and I was secretly pleased that he felt the same way I did. "Yeah. I wanted to say to you that, well that, I really don't know what to say to you." I sputtered, taking a seat by the fireplace. He joined me. "You, you know, you did a, a wonderful thing today. You saved a lot of people."
"I know he was a terrible man, but he was my father." Sphaerus admitted. I thought that he might have felt sorry for not living up to his father's expectations. "Do you remember what I said about making a choice?" I reminded him.
"I don't have any regrets." He assured me. That was what I wanted to hear.
Then there was an awkward silence. We had nothing more to say to one another. I looked around me and I saw that Xena was nearly finished saying her good-byes as well. "I have to go." I said and turned to leave.
"Gabrielle?" he stopped me, standing up.
"Yes?" I said happily turning to look him in the face. It seemed to intimidate him because he dropped his gaze immediately, as if what he was about to say would embarrass him. "Thanks." He said.
"No problem." I responded grinning from ear to ear, the blush refusing to leave my cheeks. I felt his eyes on my back as I left him standing alone by the fireplace.
"To prosperity!" "To the future!" I overheard the villagers shout gleefully as I made my way out of the farmhouse. It felt good to be leaving the village knowing that everything had been settled for its people. I advanced toward Argo, who stood exactly where we'd left her before. "Hey girl," I said taking her reigns. The two of us waited outside for Xena for a few minutes. I was beginning to feel that Argo was as much my horse as she was Xena's. After all, I had ridden her that afternoon, though I wasn't keen on going through that again any time soon. When I finally saw Xena exit Darius's abode, there was a look of sadness upon her face as I had expected there would be. "Are you alright?" I asked gently as she approached us.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Xena said seemingly distracted. She took Argo's reigns from me when Darius and his children peered out of their front door to watch us leave. Then she looked at me again and asked me a completely random question. "Do you ever miss your family?"
I was taken by surprise that she would ask about my family, but at the same time I was endeared. I thought of the night that I had spent alone at the inn and remembered how I missed my family. I had not given as much though to them since I began my travels with Xena and after she was gone, I did. "Sometimes, but not as much when I'm with you." I replied truthfully. I might have been mistaken, but at that moment I could have sworn I saw her half smile.
"So do you want me to drive?" I asked changing the subject.
"Not on your life. Not on my life." Xena said smirking.
"Hey!" I said putting my hands on my hips. Xena began to walk a little ways down the road and I walked beside her feeling strangely content with life.
"You sure you don't want to ride?" she asked knowing full well that my answer was a definite "no."
"Not till they make those things closer to the ground." I insisted. Once we had left Darius's village behind, I turned to Xena said, "I learned something really important today."
"That you can find goodness in unlikely places?" Xena guessed.
"Yes, and that I really, really hate chariots."
13