Chapter 24
Ankh stopped before the temple door, she touched Xena's arm lightly.
"No matter what, if anything happens to me, or if it doesn't look good, get out of there. Please." She asked the tall warrior softly. Xena nodded her assent. Ankh paused for a moment, then opened the temple door and stepped through, leading in with her sword.
"Welcome my sister. You made it with little time to spare. It won't be long before you will be mine completely." Aillia purred from her position before the altar. She was running her fingers through Sharia's dark hair. Sharia did not speak, hatred a cold flame in her eyes. To one side she saw Zanten with a contingent of fighters and on the other she saw Dhomb with a mirror force.
"I got a little distracted. You know how that is, start a project here, save a village there. Sorry, have you been waiting long?" Ankh stepped out into the room, glancing around, looking for Arnaia and not seeing her.
"Nice act, looking for Arnaia when you know we found dead this morning by your hand. What a coincidence to see you with a sword again." Zanten sneered across at her.
Ankh did not let his words affect her expression, she could tell by the glitter in Aillia's eyes who had killed Arnaia. Sweet Arnaia. Ankh looked over at Dhomb, searching his face to see if the same hatred burned in his eyes. Instead, she saw only confusion and sadness.
"Arnaia...Gods, by my folly...Please, no more unnecessary deaths." This was going to be harder than she thought. She saw the glitter in Aillia's eyes and the cold fury in Sharia's.
"Aren't you supposed to be over here?" Aillia purred at Callisto. The blonde warrior met her gaze, "I've found a new playmate, thanks." Callisto nodded towards Ankh.
Ankh watched Sharia rise from her seated position. Sharia fixed Ankh in her gaze, her voice dripping venom, "So, this is how you come back to me? Sword in one hand and your harlot in the other? In league with the Destroyer of Nations? Creeping like the bastard child you are, killing former comrades...And you have the arrogance to stand before us with the same pathetic look of what? Compassion? Pride filled determination? Ever noble aren't you? So right. Even when you are destroying you think you do it with a just heart? This facade no longer fools me. I'll kill your new slut and make you beg me to kill you." She gestured with one hand and the troops behind Dhomb and Zanten moved forward.
Aillia smiled broadly at Ankh. Dhomb saw that smile and knew with sickening certainty that everything Sharia had told them about Ankh here was a lie. Sharia's tone was not new to him, he had heard her speak that way to Ankh before, behind closed doors at Inns, in hushed furious tones as they walked ahead or behind the rest. He saw Ankh flinch slightly at Sharia's words, but her eyes never left Sharia's face. Dhomb knew that it would do no good to try and stop the regiment. They had been duped to kill Ankh for Aillia. He glanced over at Zanten but saw only the fighter waiting there poised. Strong hand wrapped around the hilt of his sheathed broadsword, itching to join the fray and cut out Ankh's heart. When Dhomb caught Aillia's eye, the look of triumph in them made his heart freeze. He knew that he was standing at a crossroad and there would be a price to pay.
Ankh hefted her sword and fell back slightly. Around her Xena, Gabrielle and Callisto did the same, gauging the number of soldiers. Ankh took a deep breath, remembering to stay focused on the battle at hand. A line of soldiers rushed the 4 women, with battle cries, flashing swords, and whirling staff the battle was engaged.
Dhomb watched silently happy that they were making such easy work of the troops. Ankh with a sword in her hand was a dancer of flesh and metal. The blonde woman and the one called Xena were veritable kinetic symphonies of violence. The blonde one, she was not a mere mortal. Her sword only did part of the damage - the rest came from her glowing hand and the fire that she released. She was a goddess. Dhomb smiled inwardly, leave it to Ankh to choose a Goddess as her new lover. The young woman he had helped to escape was not defenseless either. The sound of Zanten's war cry made him turn. "Gods no." Dhomb's amusement turning to terror as he saw Zanten rushing towards Ankh's exposed back as she battled three attackers bearing down on her. She had heard Zanten's warcry as well and as she turned ever so slightly to catch sight of him, one of her attackers took advantage of the break in her concentration. The hilt of his sword slammed into her jaw. She reeled back, defending against the renewed attack as she tried to clear her head.
Zanten raced towards Ankh, saw the blow she took and knew this was his chance. Broadsword in both hands, he raised it over his shoulder for a decapitating stroke. Just as he was almost close enough to strike, he was surprised to see the blonde warrior land lithely before him. "I don't think so meat brain." She snarled as her blade slit open his stomach, then stepping aside, letting his momentum drag the impaled blade across his gut, opening him further. He released his sword as his hands went to clutch his midsection. His sword flew through the air and skimmed over Ankh's shoulder, opening a bright scarlet ribbon up her back and over her shoulder. Ankh fell forward to one knee, two of her attackers dead, she managed to keep the last one from landing a killing stroke before a ball of fire exploded against him and he flared before her like a pillar of fire before stumbling away and collapsing. Ankh rose unsteadily to her feet, stepping back away from the fray. She looked down and saw Zanten's stunned visage at her feet. The sight made her stumble, she would have fallen again but Callisto stepped in and wrapped her arm around her waist, supporting her.
Dhomb screamed inside when he watched Zanten's form fall, then he watched Ankh stumble and fall from Zanten's freed sword. He felt the blood rushing from his heart, his murderous thoughts turned to the woman beside him, the one who did scream aloud when Zanten was felled.