"It's there", Aphrodite whispered, nodding her head in the direction behind Xena.
Xena swung around and saw an old rusty gate stood on its own behind her. She was surprised at the dark nothingness on either side of it, she had expected a wall or hedge or something. She strode towards it and could tell that once it had been beautiful and ornate but it had since fallen into disrepair. Peering between the bars she could see a large green field that stretched as far as the eye could see in every direction. "Any idea what is guarding it?" she asked quietly.
Aphrodite rolled her eyes, "Like I took any notice of what Athena was doing. I was allowed in there whenever I wanted when she was alive."
"And now she is dead?"
"Well, I haven't really tried. I've heard enough stories of trespassers over the years though." Aphrodite gave a delicate shudder.
Not wanting the gate to creak as it opened, which would alert anyone guarding it, Xena began to climb it. After a few minutes she realised that she was no closer to the top.
Aphrodite let loose a small giggle, "You're not going to be able to climb it babe, you'll have to go through it."
"That's what I was afraid of," Xena sighed. It really wasn't ever simple. Bracing herself for an attack she gently pushed on the gate, surprised when it swung open easily with a loud creak.
"Good luck, just call me when you're out," Aphrodite said with a small smile before vanishing from sight.
Xena stepped into the field, tensed for a fight but nobody jumped out at her. She relaxed slightly but still stayed alert, her ears straining for any sounds of attack. She had only taken a few steps forward when the gate suddenly snapped shut and disappeared from view. She was now standing in the middle of the large field, with nothing but grass to see for miles around. "Great," she muttered quietly to herself, why hadn't she thought to ask Aphrodite how to find her way around?
She decided just to walk forward until she found something, keeping her eyes fixed on the horizon and her body alert for attacks she set off. The silence was deafening and the landscape was unchanging. Xena couldn't see anything other than grass for miles around, there were no trees or flowers anywhere. She quickly became frustrated, she wasn't any closer to finding the flowers and had been walking for what felt like hours, though the sun hadn't moved in the sky. How was she supposed to help Gabrielle if she was trapped in this garden?
"Hello?" she called quietly, hoping to provoke a response from the garden. When nothing happened she called louder, "Is anybody here?"
Suddenly, the ground began to tremble violently causing Xena to drop to her knees. Green hedges were beginning to sprout up wherever she looked, scrambling to her feet Xena began to run, jumping over the hedges that were in her way but she wasn't fast enough. The hedges got too big to jump and there was no way to climb them. She was trapped in the middle of a large maze.
Xena was glad that something had finally happened, even though she was stuck in a maze, it made her feel like she was doing something. She started to walk cautiously, taking random turns and only backtracking when she came to a dead end. The whole time she kept her ears strained, hoping to hear something that would lead her to someone. At least if she found another person she might be able to ask them where she had to go to find the yellow Forget-Me-Nots, or at the very least force them to tell her.
After taking twelve random turns, Xena finally saw a clearing ahead of her. She sped up towards it, only slowing down when she was within a few steps of it. All she could see was the colour red and for a second she wondered if her eyes had stopped working, upon closer inspection however, she realised the the opening in front of her was a large square field overflowing with red plants. She took a few steps into the field, her body braced for an attack. The smell was cloying, a hundred different scents mingling in the hot air.
She heard the arrow before she saw it. She spun on the spot and grabbed it easily, halting its process. Stood before her was a young woman clad in silver, a bow in her hand. Xena recognised her as one of Athenas archers.
"Who are you? What are you doing here?"
Xena decided to ignore the first question, "I'm here to find yellow Forget-Me-Nots, I need them to save my friend."
The young woman's eyes narrowed slightly, "This is Athenas sacred garden and I'm sworn to protect it. You need to leave."
"I'm not leaving without that flower," Xena growled through gritted teeth.
The woman notched another arrow on her bow, "Then you're not leaving."
"One way or another I'm getting that flower. Now you can help me voluntarily or I'll make you help me."
"I guess you'll have to make me," she responded, firing an arrow at Xena.