A/N: this took a while b/c i procrastinated on it and the first chapter was short so this one is twice as long. i can't write fight scenes and i have a lot of trouble picturing them in my head and writing them in sequential order, so i hope this turned out okay. also may be a little longer than anticipated, but i wanted to up the ante a little with the plot. most of the xena fics i come across are smut so idk what's cliche/overdone but gabrielle is really fun to write.
It wasn't that she thought Xena's advice unworthy of heeding - no, the petite girl knew better - but Gabrielle had developed a penchant for tuning out the stern undertones in her companion's words of warning. Learning on her own terms was best, she figured; even if her lessons were often taught the hard way. And being the case as it was, it should have come as no surprise when Gabrielle realised – too late – that she'd marched headlong into a trap.
A pair of rough hands; those of a brute with no self restraint, latched onto her upper arms, spinning her to the right and shoving her forcefully into the clutches of another thug. He grabbed her without flinching and unfastened a rope from the side of his breeches. Gabrielle's arms were yanked and pulled so tight behind her back she feared they might break, and she felt a sudden lurch in her stomach as she was bound and thrown against the ground like a sack of rotting meat.
A cough drifted through her chest, struggling against clouds of dust winding through her nostrils, but a filthy piece of torn fabric stuffed roughly into her mouth threatened to choke her. The clumsy, crumpled ball tickled the back of her throat, taunting her some more as her nose scrunched in discomfort. Just her awful, stinking luck. She craned her head to the side, with her stiff neck cracking and shouting at her with a throbbing ache, as she tried to piece together what was going on around her. Her thoughts raged in a confused, frightened swirl. Lucky I don't have a broken arm right now. Tactless, conniving brutes!
A stomping on the dirt, a sharp snapping of fallen branches and crushed leaves and the deep, throaty laughter above her filled her ears. She heard snickering from several different men; a count of voices told her there were at least 10 gathered around her young and defenceless frame and she hastily prayed to the gods on Mount Olympus that she hadn't well and truly done herself in this time.
Gabrielle's throat burned with the growing need to cough as debris kicked up by hefty leather boots left a thick coat on her cheeks. She squeezed her eyes shut. Suffering in silence, her thoughts seemed to be stuck in a continuous loop. If Salmoneus ever gets us dragged into a situation like this again, I swear I'll be the one to personally dish out his comeuppance. Squirming was futile; she knew full well she was only going to give herself rope burn, and the tears threatening to prick in the corner of her eyes were beginning to itch at her skin. Hurry, Xena. What's keeping you?
Argo tore through the woods under Xena's authoritative yell, kicking up a spray of rubble and leaves each time her hooves lifted from the ground. She galloped in powerful strides, covering as much ground as she could in as little time. Come on, Xena thought, her teeth gritting together in frustration. The redhead's desperate cry pounded in her ears with each passing moment that yielded no sign of Gabrielle. A heavy wash of worry fogged any coherent thought Xena might have otherwise entertained.
"Gabrielle!" she called again.
"Sounds like she's finally found us," grunted a surly voice. Its owner, a man missing several teeth and reeking of spilled ale, plastered a grin to his charred face. "About time, eh lads?"
Laughter milled around the clearing as men bit from dried slices of meat and rubbed the droppings from their beards with grubby hands.
"This is gonna be fun," a short, stocky man smirked.
A shrill cry resounded through the air, pricking the neck hairs of every piggish brute gathered to watch Xena leap from Argo and flip into a graceful dismount. Immediately she was surrounded, the overwhelming numbers spilling into battle, but Xena had done this all too many times. Her defensive reflexes were sharp as she shielded herself from a meaty punch, using the thug's own weight to send him spinning with a kick to boot. Xena drew her sword in one hasty, well-practiced motion, raising it in time to clash with the blade of another enemy.
With the collective strength of 10 men and a steel hard resolve, Xena pushed back her attacker and turned in time to dodge a cunning lunge from another thug. Gabrielle watched in disbelief; both in awe at Xena's vigour and amazement that once again she'd shown up just in time. She'd seen Xena fight on plenty of occasions, but to believe that she always, always swept in at just the right moment was something she couldn't bring herself to do easily.
She was almost too engrossed in the seasoned warrior's movements to notice a particularly weedy man making a beeline for her in the chaos. He was crouched over, his pace slow and calculated as he stalked toward her, and were it not for a sudden jolt as one of his compatriots was sent flying in his direction, Gabrielle might've been sporting a nice new dagger wound in her back. She looked up, startled by the whoosh of air that had swept past her, and saw the man approaching her.
Her predator wasn't swayed from his advances for longer than a split second, and Gabrielle tried feebly to roll as far away from him as possible. As he closed in, toothy smile creasing the folds in his war weary face, Gabrielle forced a muffled scream in a vain attempt to alert Xena, praying she wasn't surrounded by too many enemies to make a break. Gabrielle scrunched her eyes shut, waiting for a severe pain to penetrate her soft, pale flesh.
"Oof!"
Her eyes flew open, stunned gaze following a familiar pair of palomino legs upwards, tracing over a well-worn saddle with a gleaming frying pan haphazardly tied onto it. If Gabrielle had been able to smile, her grin would have cracked a permanent line across her face. Never had she been so pleased to see Argo. Rolling onto her stomach, she hoped her saviour would see the predicament she was in and potentially bite the ropes, effectively untying her. In hindsight, perhaps Gabrielle had been on display in the blinding morning sun for a touch too long.
"What are you doing?" asked Xena as she jogged over, the aftermath of sprawled, beaten men dissolving into a blur behind her. Nuzzling Argo, Xena raised a sceptical brow at the wriggling mass of sidekick on the ground. Gabrielle rolled over again to face her so that Xena could see the gag in her mouth, blushing slightly.
"Ah," Xena sighed. She can't answer. That's probably for the better. She knelt down to pull the cloth from Gabrielle's mouth and swiftly cut the ties that were suffocating her limbs.
Gabrielle coughed and sputtered a little, sniffled, rubbed her face, and then looked at Xena incredulously.
"How do you manage to do that?" she asked, rubbing her itchy, irritated nose.
"Do what?"
"You know, always show up at just the right moment. It's like you plan things this way."
"Oh, I do. I enjoy chasing you halfway through the woods and cleaning up your mess. C'mon, let's get out of here."
Just as Xena rose to her feet and extended a hand to help pull Gabrielle up, a light shone in their peripheral vision. Materialising only a few feet from them was Ares, God of War.
Xena's eyes narrowed as she hefted her sidekick to her feet.
"What do you want?"
"My, my, that's not much of a warm welcome," Ares drawled, his velvety voice irritating the lining on Xena's stomach.
"I never have been much of warm person," Xena shot back, refraining from looking him dead in the eyes. Ares never dropped by just to say hello and she pondered whether or not his ulterior motive was the same as ever.
"You raise a valid point. Witty and beautiful, two of my favourite things in a woman. Which brings me to my point."
Xena retied their belongings onto Argo's saddle, to make sure nothing would fall loose once they set off travelling again.
"Still beating that old dead horse?" she asked, no small amount of mirth lining her voice.
"You see, Xena, these buffoons here just couldn't get the job done. I had no choice but to come and persuade you personally." Ares scratched at his facial hair absentmindedly, waiting for the snarky response the girls were sure to give.
"You sent these men after us?" Gabrielle spat, her trusty staff now back in hand. Her fingers clenched around it, ready to defend herself in case anything else happened.
"No," Ares corrected, the ghost of a smile playing at his lips. "Do you really think Talmadeus' men are foolish enough to seek revenge for their failed leader? Any man with half a brain would know that going after Xena is a suicide mission. I sent those men after you. I knew Xena would follow once she realised that once again, her bratty little sidekick needed rescuing. Do you ever get tired of that, Xena?"
"You're despicable," Gabrielle snarled. "Why are you so intent on getting Xena back on your side? She's changed. She's not the heartless warlord that she used to be and she won't wage war with you."
Ares clucked his tongue.
"You and I know two very different sides of Xena. I believe her old self is in there somewhere. Buried, but not dead. Together we would be one mighty force to be reckoned with. If only she'd give up her little tirade of 'doing good'. I simply entertained the thought that if she realised what a burden you are, she'd drop the act."
"There is no act, Ares. Xena has changed her ways. She's good."
"Gabrielle."
Xena placed a calming hand on the girl's shoulder, shuffling past her to face Ares directly now. Her blue eyes bore into the slick, charming mask coating his face.
"I'm not going anywhere with you, Ares. And you'd do well to stay away from my friend."
Ares chuckled.
"I tried to do this the nice way, but it appears you leave me no choice."
A challenge had been thrown down. Xena had sparred against Ares before and was confident she could hold her own against him. As he attempted a sweeping kick, she leapt into the air, feet kicking out at his chest. Ares backed away quickly, and then whistled. Hidden mercenaries emerged from the tree tops, dropping a densely woven net over Xena's frame. As she fought her way to freedom, Ares moved in behind her, landing a harsh, cowardly blow against the back of her head.
"Xena!" cried Gabrielle, sprinting towards her fallen friend.
Catching her limp, unconscious body, Ares then vanished.
"No," Gabrielle breathed. She couldn't believe it. Argo whinnied, nudging her softly.
"No, no you're right, girl." Swallowing coarsely, Gabrielle tried to steady her wits. She was going to need them. "Who knows what he'll try to do to her? We have to get her back."
