Author's Note: Squick warning. This chapter contains graphic violence as well as the implied (i.e. "off-screen") sexual abuse of children. Hey, this story is rated M for a reason, folks.
Miltiades, in all his tattooed, shirtless glory, was enjoying sleeping in the day after his victory. At some point along the path to wakefulness he became aware of a long shadow over his bedding. Realizing that meant someone was in his tent, he bolted awake, his half-head of hair strewn carelessly over his face. He started to call out for his guards when he saw the two of them lying in a heap in the corner of the tent, right behind the tall woman who was looming large in front of him. "Xena," he mouthed, never taking his eyes off of the warrior as he groped for a sword, his armor, anything to make him feel less defenseless. It was no use.
"Hello, Miltiades. I hear you've been a bad boy."
"You'll never make it out of this camp alive, Xena. I'll draw my whole army down on your head with one shout."
"Like I'm afraid of a ragtag bunch of thugs and desperate kids you pull out of villages you destroy. It won't matter to you, anyway. You'll be crossing the river Styx before you even finish your call."
"Well what are you waiting for? Finish it, if that's what you're here for." Though he kept his face upturned, he was still fumbling for the sword he knew was somewhere in his bedding. His goal was to keep the Warrior Princess talking until he had the opportunity to strike first.
"What, you don't want a chance to save your sorry hide?"
"So you're hoping to make a deal, is that it? Well, name your terms."
Outside, crouched in the brushline that delimited the raiding party's camp, Gabrielle, the wild woman, and her cat were watching for any signs of life. They had seen Xena sneak into Miltiades's tent effortlessly while most of the soldiers were still asleep and the rest were occupied with early morning duties. Since then, however, there had been no indication as to what was going on. The Destroyer, in particular, was getting restless.
"What's taking Xena so long?" the young woman complained, fidgeting. "She shoulda dealt with that creep already."
"She knows what she's doing. We stick to the plan. You promised, remember?"
"Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm stayin' put." She restlessly stroked her cat's beautiful coat of fur. "I just don't like it, that's all."
"After all these years I know better than to worry about Xena," Gabrielle lied. I'm concerned about what's going on too, but I can't show Tira Darkheart that I have any doubts or she might go off on her own and then who knows what could happen. Part of me is glad we've got her muscle on our side. It's better than having to babysit Joxer, anyhow. But I can't shake this feeling that her being here is going to do more harm than good. Gabrielle's train of thought was broken by a high-pitched scream coming from a tent near where the two adventurers were hiding. The Destroyer noticed it too, instantly stretching her head forward and listening intently.
More sounds came from the tent, muffled cries and sobs. Gabrielle and her companion watched in horror as soldiers emerged at last, pulling dirty and disheveled children in their wake. "By the Gods," the bard gasped. "That's why the raiding party isn't moving very fast. They have children from the village. They're going to make slaves of them, maybe sell them."
Beside Gabrielle, the Destroyer said nothing. She stared expressionless at the children. The blonde woman was too focused on the soldiers and their young captives to notice her ally's breathing quicken. What she saw next horrified her more than anything she had seen in years, despite all she had been through. At the end of the line, some older children were being dragged from the tent. Their clothing was either badly torn or missing completely. One girl who was crying particularly hard took small, ginger steps and held her arms over her bare chest as the man who pulled her by the hair leered at her. "Oh shit," the bard swore, "they didn't. They did…"
Gabrielle was startled out of her revulsion at the abuse of the children by a rumbling beside her. She turned to look at the Destroyer and her blood ran cold. The young woman was growling like a rabid animal, her jaw hanging open to reveal her deadly canine teeth. Most disturbingly, her companion's normally brown-black eyes had gone completely to black, and the whites of those eyes now glowed faintly red. "Tira Darkheart?" she sputtered weakly, not certain if the creature that was beside her could even understand anymore.
Mendi also noticed the change in his friend. The cat's hair stood on end, and he flattened his ears against his head. "This bad," he hissed, backing away from his companion slowly.
"What?" Gabrielle asked numbly, her reactions slowed by shock.
"You back!" Mendi yelped, tugging at Gabrielle's skirt with his teeth until they both fell backwards. Simultaneously the Destroyer burst forth from the bushes, roaring as fiercely as any wild beast and clutching her oversized knife tightly in her hand.
"So you really expect me to tell my boys to disperse?" Miltiades guffawed. He didn't dare look away from the Warrior Princess, but he had to find his sword. He knew he was running out of time.
"Well, or I could show them your head and tell them myself," Xena purred. She smiled down at Miltiades almost sweetly. She was somewhat amused that he didn't seem to think she could see him searching for a weapon. She was waiting for him to make his one sorry attempt to overcome her so that she could disarm him and give him his very last chance to take her threat seriously.
Both the warlord and Xena were momentarily startled, however, by a commotion outside that shattered the privacy of their negotiations. Tira Darkheart, son of a bitch! Xena cursed inwardly, glancing over her shoulder out the flap of the tent.
Miltiades saw his moment and seized it. He leapt to his feet and grabbed one of the short spears that leaned against the side of his tent. With a yell he charged the Warrior Princess.
Xena was not impressed. However, the momentary distraction of her plan going awry made her lose the absolute focus required to be certain of disabling her foe without serious harm. She had no choice. She turned rapidly and kicked the spear to the side, drawing her sword as she did so. The shining blade cut down neatly between Miltiades's neck and shoulder, ending him with one stroke. Blood splashed against the back of the tent as the spear clattered uselessly to the ground. "Pathetic," Xena spat before running out of the tent, ready for nearly anything.
She was not prepared for the sight that met her as she shot through the tent flap. Across the camp she saw not only men, but pieces of men, fly through the air as a blur of brown and red whipped through Miltiades's raiding party. The soldiers who had been marching the children out of their tent never had a chance and were the first to go. The wave of men who came to investigate tried to fight the thing that had so brutally cut down their comrades, but they met the same fate. By the time Xena was able to recognize clearly what was going on, all the remaining men in the camp were fleeing. The warrior saw the Destroyer chase one man down with nearly superhuman speed, like a predator making a full-effort sprint to catch its last meal. When the creature caught up with the screaming man she tackled him, plunging her blade deep into the space in his armor under his shoulder. When he was down she rent his throat from his neck with her teeth. Never hesitating, the Destroyer leapt up from the corpse and moved on to the next soldier she could catch. There was another scream and another torrent of blood as an artery was opened.
Fuck! was the only reaction the Warrior Princess could muster as she ran head-on for the rampaging Destroyer, the only threat left in the camp as far as she was concerned. She could plainly see the transformation that had taken place in the young woman. She was prepared to deal with Dahak's spawn by any means necessary.
Now out of targets to mangle, the Destroyer turned her attention to Xena and faced her down with a twisted, open-mouthed grin, panting and snarling. She stood her ground, blood dripping from every surface of her body. At the same time, Gabrielle and Mendi ran towards the combatants from the flank. "Xena!" the bard called out.
"Gabrielle, stay back! Whatever this thing is, it's not the Tira Darkheart we knew anymore!"
"No, I'm not running away from this!" Gabrielle shouted back, taking a stand at Xena's side. Mendi broke from the bard and positioned himself between his mistress and the pair that faced her down. Both Xena and Gabrielle noticed the way he looked back fearfully at the girl he normally followed without hesitation.
Before either Xena or the Destroyer could make the first move, the silence was broken by a loud sniffle. The Destroyer closed her mouth and stood up very straight. She slowly turned her head to see the group of child slaves staring at her in terror, crying and shaking. The young woman's brown eyes widened and lost their glow. She remained stock-still and looked from one child to the next without saying a word. She was suddenly very aware of the heavy coat of blood she wore. At last the oldest girl in the crowd screamed and ran, and all the other children followed her as they made for the treeline opposite the cliffs abutting the campsite. The Destroyer numbly sheathed her blade.
When Xena saw the brown-haired woman's face again, it was unrecognizable as the same opponent she had faced but a moment before. The Destroyer was deathly pale and trembling. She stared at Xena wide-eyed and swallowed hard. Without warning she sprinted for the bushes where she had been hiding before with Gabrielle and Mendi, opposite of the direction the children had gone.
"Gabrielle, go round up those children and keep them safe," Xena commanded as she made ready to pursue the Destroyer. Mendi dashed in front of the warrior, fur bristling.
"Don't follow," the big cat snarled, but the tall woman ran straight towards the animal and, with her signature war cry, leapt up into a high flip, easily clearing Mendi. She landed without losing a step and was gone in the bushes in another instant. Mendi, already exhausted from running and from fear, collapsed in a heap in the center of what had been the raiders' camp. "Please be all right," he whined into his paws.