Defending Home

I Don't Own Xena, but This One Time in Band Camp…

It had been a couple days and Xena had recovered significantly, however she had to remain in bed as she had more healing to do. Gabrielle often tended to her, feeding her. All this and she still spent significant time with her children, playing with them, teaching them so they would be happy intelligent adults one day. That's all any parent could ask for.

However there was still something wasn't taken care of. Something that came for Xena. Xena was still not able to exit the bed when a scared villager suddenly entered Gabrielle's house. Gabrielle surprised, turned asking, "What is it?"

The villager replied, voice trembling, "A man at the head of a small army has surrounded the village. He is called Masuke Katsui. He is demanding we give up Xena or he will kill everyone inside the village."

Gabrielle answered with a commandeers authority, "Deploy the militia. I'll go speak to him."

Xena who overhead them, tried to get out of bed saying, "I'm coming to, I'll take care of him."

Gabrielle looked back at Xena as saying sternly, "No your not. Your not well enough."

Xena replied dismissively, "Don't argue me."

Gabrielle retorted full of emotion, "No! You don't argue with me. This time, you listen to me. Stay in this bed."

Xena tried to say, "Gab.." Gabrielle however interrupted her, "No! Someone needs to watch the kids. Protect them. So you have to stay here."

Gabrielle went and grabbed her kids. Bringing to Xena's room. Gabrielle kneeling down to their level said, "Now you two hide under Xena's bed."

Lyceus said somewhat fearfully, "But mom…"

Gabrielle replied back sternly, "That will be quite enough of that. Lyceus, I need you to be brave for your sister. When your under that bed I need you to hold her. You have to take care of her until I get back. Mom is going to get rid of those men."

Lyceus replied, "Yes mom." They both scurried under Xena's bed.

Gabrielle went into the living room and pulled the chakram from the wall. She then returned to Xena's room, chakram in hand. Gabrielle gave the weapon to Xena. Xena's eyes lit up, "My chakram? I'm glad you held onto it."

Gabrielle said, "I held onto it, your breast plate, and your sword. I've kept your sword hidden so that the kids didn't get a hold of it, I'm going to use it to defend this village." Gabrielle grabbed a pair of daggers, handing them to Xena she said, "Take these, you may need them."

Xena said as Gabrielle was walking out of the door, "Gabrielle." Gabrielle stopped. Xena continued "Be careful."

Gabrielle turned back, "Thank you Xena, I will."

Gabrielle went to her room. Hidden on a upper level shelf she grabbed Xena's sword. These people don't know what they are about to do. I will defend my kids, my village, my life from them, if it's the last thing I do.

Gabrielle exited the door of her house, sword in hand. She observed that several people had already armed themselves and were preparing for battle. Gabrielle with two men at her side, one of them being Ellander who was also determined to defend his children, headed to the edge of the village where the Japanese warrior awaited them with an army.

Masuke saw the blonde woman and said, "Your not Xena?"

Gabrielle replied with Authority, "No, I am not. I protect this village, leave now and all shall be forgotten."

A smile grew on Masuke's face as he answered, "I will not, I seek Xena's head. You have Xena, deliver her to me and I shall spare this village."

Gabrielle replied sternly with a steely gaze that penetrated the warrior opposed to her, "This village does not surrender people under our protection, how do we know that you would even keep your word?"

Masuke breathed inward as he replied back, "If that's how you want it." He raised his hand, and then dropped it forward. Two dozen soldiers immediately charged as the people of the village prepared for their attack.

The villages who were a little less than a dozen defended themselves heroically as the soldiers attack. The held their own thanks in large part to Gabrielle's rigorous combat training she had instilled into them for these last few years.

Gabrielle with her sword struck down the first attacker quickly as she caught the sword of the second attacker in her hand. Several villagers were running out to join the battle. Some where not militia, but rather people who were determined to defend their homes.

Gabrielle deflected attack after attack as the enemy could not touch her. Ellander however was falling back and was close to receiving a fatal strike as Gabrielle fell back and stabbed the soldier attacking than bringing another soldier in front of her down with a slash across the exposed throat.

Two soldiers on orders from Masuke avoided the battle and snuck into Gabrielle's house. Xena knowing they were coming was pretending to be comatose as the two soldiers crept close to her. Lyceus held Ephinia close as the foot steps came closer. The first soldier was about to stab Xena, but Xena's eyes opened. It shocked the soldier as Xena with her right hand stabbed him in the chest with her dagger and threw the chakram into the chest of the second soldier, killing him.

In the village the soldiers were losing as Gabrielle and her militia were cutting down each of the attackers. A couple villagers were lost but the soldiers of Masuke were falling fast. Masuke demanded loudly, "How did a simple militia learn to fight like this!"

Gabrielle replied as the last of the soldiers retreated. "I have been here for nearly seven years. You don't think I wouldn't teach them to defend themselves from monsters such as you."

Masuke jumped from his horse enraged yelling in Japanese. Gabrielle almost fell over from the force of his landing, but she held her ground. Ellander ran at him to defend his wife. Gabrielle shouted "No!" Masuke stabbed him in the chest as he fell over to the ground. Gabrielle seeing this shouted enraged, "Not again!" She charged with such aggression that Masuke could not hold his ground before the blonde warrior. He deflected her attacks but she was moving too fast for him to keep up.

He was losing ground, one final effort as he tried to decapitate her, she ducked the blow and shot her sword in the air, under his chin. The sword shot through his skull and out of the top of his head. Gabrielle removed the sword from his head as he stumbled back, Gabrielle said coldly, "You should have stayed dead." He fell over, dead.

Gabrielle ran to Ellander to check on him. She ripped open his shirt removing the blood. Gabrielle looked at the wound, the position of it. Gabrielle breathed in relief. Yes it was his chest, but the position near his shoulder and it missed the major organs. Gabrielle demanded of him tearfully, "Why did you do that?"

He spoke difficultly, "Because I love you."

Gabrielle hugged him saying, "You've got to be careful, I need you, I can't lose you either. C'mon, I'll take you inside and patch it up."

As she entered the house she laid Ellander on a second bed. Gabrielle called out "Lyceus, Ephinia, you can come out now, mommy's back, it's safe. The kids exited from under the bed, running to her. They shouted, "Mommy, mommy," She bent down and hugged them both.

Xena said, "you should be proud of them, not one noise."

Gabrielle replied, "I am proud of them, my brave little children. Now I need to take care of daddy, he's hurt, but he will be ok." The kids nodded.

8

AN: One chapter to go.