Chapter 25

"You hardly said a thing since the attack on Akitziri," Gabrielle watched the solemn commander sit on the floor for the last few hours. It had been days since the attack and men were sent to take care of the bodies. Much to their surprise, they found one of Boareks' sons dead on the ground next to a burning yurt, lying in a pool of his own blood.

She was worried about her and tried not to press her for days, but this had gone long enough. Xena was quiet, a bit too quiet for everyone's liking. Gabrielle tried to stay away from the Adame as there was talk of war plans and everyone, specifically Anastasia, kept asking for Xena, who wouldn't come out of the yurt. It was obvious that she was hurting and didn't know how to process it.

When Boareks destroyed the Khazar tribe, nobody knew who she was and then she obliterated the Atlyn tribe not long after. Boareks was a mystery to the Huns back then but now, her name was well known throughout the Balkans. She made sure her name was spoken everywhere and wasn't afraid to make herself known either. Justinian must have extreme faith in this woman to eradicate the Huns and what a fabulous job she had been doing so far.

Now there were no Atlyns, Khazars, Onogurs, Ashinas or Akitziri and the White Huns were taken over by the Sabir Queen and her army. Now there were just the Nezaks and Pannonians and Bulgurs who assimilated inside Pannonia. Boareks would strike again. She was coming for Pannonia and hiding out in Balaam planning her militia strategies and manning her ballistic weapons for war.

There were so few Huns left now all thanks to the Sabirs and their queen. All this time everyone thought their end was going to be because of the Romans or Magyars, but they were wrong. One person was able to do so much damage and she wasn't finished yet. Her last target was the Pannonian Huns and if Pannonia fell, then the entirety of the empire was gone.

"Xena…" she placed a hand on her fiancée's arm. "Please talk to me."

The commander lifted her puffy teary eyes and it was almost too much to bear for Gabrielle to see. "I'm never going to defeat her." She spoke in a cracked hoarse voice. "I thought this was a game," she inhaled deeply and looked out the small window of the yurt and the sun burned her tear laden eyes. "I thought I could interrogate her. I wanted her to be my toy until now. She has taken everything from me and hurt my family."

"You still have me." Gabrielle smiled and her eyes filled with tears. "And you have Ana, Cera, Arielle, Csaba, Ellac –everyone." Even mentioning the close knit family they had together did not seem to lighten either one of their moods. "We will put an end to this. She can't wipe everyone out."

Xena snorts and wiped her nose with her finger and thumb. She kept staring directly into the sun, not caring whether it burned any longer or not. "I should have been more careful. I should have known about the Sabirs. It is my job to know every single enemy outside these walls. If I had known then none of this would have happened."

"You can't blame yourself for that. We had our own fill with plenty of enemies at our doorstep; Romans, Byzantines, Persians and Visigoths. How would you know about the Sabirs? They were in seclusion."

"It is my job, Gabrielle!"

Gabrielle nodded, sensing anger in herself and in her partner across from her. "You're right. It is your job. You are the commander and maybe you shouldn't be a commander anymore."

Her eyes widened. "W –what?"

"Boareks has caused the extinction of your people –of the people who I call my own people now. She needs to be stopped or she will continue killing every living thing in her path. It is your duty to protect this land and this empire. Are you up for it?"

"But…but how? She is smarter than me, quicker than me…"

"She is not smarter than you. Quicker, yes, but not smarter. She also has a bloodlust that you don't have any more. She doesn't care how many people she kills and she obviously doesn't care about her own children." She noted her son, Iliger, who was left for dead. "She murders children and women, but you never have done that before."

"Yes I have," she regretfully said and the governor held her tongue, ignoring that remark.

"She's a monster, Xena. You are not, not anymore. You haven't been that person in decades yet you are still the best commander I know." She winked and Xena half smiles at the subtle compliment. "I'll stay here with you for as long as you need but I think everyone really needs you. I know I do."

Xena let out a heavy exhale and brushed strands of hair behind her ear. "Everyone always needs me to do something."

"Because you are important! We all care about you. Don't you want this to be a safe place for all of the children to grow up in after we're gone? What about Csaba's child?"

"That stupid boy," she grumbled. "He may have Ellac's face but he is just like Anastasia. He is lucky that his wife is very intelligent."

"And you thought she was a ditz."

Xena frowned and leaned back on the pillows, her eyes drier now than they were earlier from hours of sobbing. "I never said that. She's still a spoiled girl but she is much better than she used to be."

Gabrielle grins and reached over to grab her hand. "So, how are we going to defeat this bitch?" she narrowed eyebrows together and showcased a malicious smile on her lips.

Csaba walked into the guest bedroom that he and Farah were staying in until the construction in his room was complete. He still couldn't believe that his mother agreed to build a bathhouse and extra room onto the Adame just for Farah. He had a towel wrapped around his slender taut waist and combed back his wet hair with his fingers into a bun and tied a ribbon around the mound of hair on his head. He turned to his wife who was sitting on the bed, pressing her fingers against her hips. She had a pained look on her face and he frowned.

"What's the matter?" he asked and sat on the edge of the bed.

"It's nothing." She dismissed it and sniffed the air and leaned over and smelled his clean skin. "You smell like a mint tree vomited all over you."

He chuckled. "I can go back and bathe again if you want. You don't like the smell I can tell."

She rolls her eyes and ran her fingers through her long locks. "Could you get my sister for me? I need her to help me wash my hair."

He raised an eyebrow and traced his fingers along her sleeve covered arm. "I can wash your hair for you." He kissed her hand and scooted closer. She frowned and pushed him away.

"Csaba," she warned and he brushed her hair behind her shoulder and kissed her neck. "Csaba, don't." She tried to hide her smile and felt his lips traveling down to her collar bone and her dress slipped off her shoulder. "Quit it!" she shoved him and he laughed lightly.

"What? You are my wife. I am supposed to show affection to you, right?" he teased and ran his hand down her thigh and his fingers slowly traveled under dress, exposing her slender crisscrossed legs.

She gasped and grabbed his hand before he could go any further. "Csaba, stop. I mean it!" she raised her voice and he lowered his gaze. "I don't want you to look at me."

He scoffed. "I've seen you without your clothes before, Farah."

"Not in a long time!" she snapped and slapped his hand away.

"You'll always look beautiful to me and you're carrying our child so you are even more beautiful to me than before," he winked and her cheeks blushed.

"Well, aren't you two just adorable," Oran interrupted the two and leaned on the doorway. Farah groaned and pulled her dress over her legs and Csaba rose from the bed. "Csaba, the commander wants to see you outside."

The prince nodded and grabbed his pants and vest. "Tell her I'll be out in an hour."

"She said now."

"Okay, fine." He grumbled and slipped his pants on quickly and threw the long sleeved vest over his head and snatched his boots from the floor and sat on the bed, quickly lacing them up. He looked over at Farah and smiled. "I'll come back and wash your hair for you later, yes?"

Oran smirked. "Look at you. Such a kind husband you are. Farah, you lucky kadin." He saluted at her and she folded her arms, leaning back on the pillows.

Csaba grabbed his sword and frowned at his cousin. "Don't you have a wife of your own to bother now?"

"Oh yeah," the shaman Hun snorted. "She's a real ray of sunshine!" he mocked. "She is not bad in bed though."

Farah felt like she was going to be sick and covered her ears listening to the cousins talk in front of the doorway. Csaba's mouth parts slightly. "You already had sex with her?"

"Of course." Oran slapped his cousin on the shoulder. "Must perform my duty, right?" he chuckled. "Come on let's go before your grandmother kicks your ass again."

"She's never kicked my ass."

"You keep telling yourself that, cousin."

Ernak walked into the chamber which held prisoner, Pascal. Kutilzis was ordered to stand by the prince during the daytime until sunset. He felt like he had a sense of freedom here that he never had in Siberia with his brothers and mother. The news of his brother's death didn't affect him as much as he thought it would. Iliger was always rude to him and even as a child, he knew his brother hated him. Balmaq was indifferent and didn't incite him often.

Iliger was fifteen years older than him and Balmaq, twenty five years older than him, so he always felt like he never belonged. Even though his mother was not always kind to his brothers, he was more favored among his siblings. Even their father liked him more and predicted great things for him as King of the Sabirs when the time came. Now that both his elder brothers were dead there was no way he was going to be king of the Sabirs now since the Huns were hunting his mother like dogs.

The Banat prisoner remained chained to the chain and Ernak grumbled as he searched for fresh clothes. Kutilzis stared at Pascal while the Hun grumbled, muttering to himself, walking around the room and pulling drawers out to search for clothes. Pascal smirked at the teenager and Kutilzis frowned.

"Damn." Ernak said and slapped a hand on the Sabir's shoulder. "I'm going to grab clothes from the laundry room for this goat. Stay here and watch him for me. There are guards posted outside if you need them." He gave an order and the boy's eyes widened in fear. "You think you can handle this bastard?" he chuckled.

Kutilzis nodded and Ernak ran out of the room. He heard the door slam shut and lock from the outside. Taking in a deep breath he turned around and the Banat officer had a strange look in his eyes.

Pascal stretched out his legs and relaxed in the chair. He cocked his head to the side, gawking at the Sabir. "So, you're Boareks' son." He states and Kutilzis said nothing in return. "You must have been beside yourself when you saw your brothers dead at your feet, killed by these Huns."

The teen's cheeks soured at the mention of his brothers. "My mother killed my brother in Akitziri."

"Is that what they told you?" Pascal questioned. "Huns lie, boy. They killed your brother and the Hun bitch, Anastasia, killed your other brother. Don't you feel upset about it?" he challenged him and Kutilzis eyes remained focused upon him. "And now they're going to war with your mother. She will die by a Hun sword."

Kutilzis' eyes faltered and he looked the other way, not baring the intense glare he was receiving from the Banat man. "My mother is not a good person. I've watched her kill many Chinese and Persians when I was a child."

Pascal nodded. "She is a conqueror as was your father. She is very skilled with a sword, isn't she? She is the same age as the commander yet she is better at everything. You must be proud of her."

"I am not proud of my mother's conquests. She's killed many Huns and Szekelys. You deserve to be here. You are lucky that the Huns don't kill you."

"Lucky. Yes, I'm so lucky to be alive yet my fiancée was stolen from me. Farah was supposed to be mine and now she is married to a Hun. You see, boy, Huns take everything they set their eyes on, including your mother."

Kutilzis raised his eyebrow. "My mother?"

Pascal hooked the boy's attention and he felt his heart flutter. Trying to hide his eager, he adds, "Why yes of course, boy. Huns rape and pillage. It's what they're best at. You never once questioned why your brothers despised you?"

The Sabir teen froze in place.

"Your mother was raped by Huns when they invaded your homeland." Pascal said and Kutilzis' face paled. "She hates the Huns yet here you are living among them." He planted a seed in the boy's head and saw the boy's mind ticking.

"That –that is a lie. I am a true Sabir from my father's line."

"Are you? Huns say they are tolerant of everyone but you'll never be one of them, Kutilzis. You'll rot here and then they will execute you just like they're going to do to your mother."

The door unlocked and Ernak walked in with clothes and threw them in Pascal's face. "Here's your clothes, worm." He chuckled and nudged Kutilzis' arm. "You can unchain him so he can change. I'll keep my weapon close in case he tries something." He instructed and the boy stood still, unsure of whether to trust the Hun prince now that Pascal told him the unthinkable. "Hello, you gonna do it or what? I don't have all day here, boy. I have other duties to attend to besides babysitting you. Go on!" he pushed him forward.

Pascal smiled and Kutilzis frowned then walked behind him to unshackle his wrists.

Csaba and Oran strolled to the field where Xena and Gabrielle waited patiently for them. The entire Roman army lined up in rows, standing so still that not even the bugs crawling on their legs could bother them. The Hun recruits seemed more or less distracted but were threatened by Xena if they uttered a word. A few of them already got whacked in the shins due to their talkative mouths.

"You wanted to see me?" the prince asked and Oran smiled at the commander and governor.

"Morning ladies," the smooth Hun mused and Gabrielle rolled her eyes and Xena crinkled her nose.

"Oran, get lost." She shooed him out of her territory and he winked at her then ran back down the hill and knocked off a Roman's helmet on purpose to rouse the commander. She groaned and turned to her patient grandson. "Anyway. Csaba, I have a job for you. I want you to teach Gabrielle all of the tactics you learned in China. You're both going to teach the Romans."

He nervously looked at the large of Romans and Huns. He didn't know if he was going to be a good teacher. It wasn't like he was good at it unlike his wife. Farah had a gift for teaching and so did Gabrielle. His mother wasn't good at teaching either which is why she hired tutors for Arielle and Cera which fell through when the Sabirs came along. He was sure that she'd employ Farah to teach his sisters Chinese and other languages.

"You really want me to do that? Doesn't Boareks know the Chinese tactics? She's warred with them for years."

Xena nodded. "That is exactly the point. She's never won against China so I want you to teach Gabrielle everything you know."

"But…what about you? Don't you need to know?"

"No. If you teach Gabrielle the tactics, she will just tell me the commands. All I have to do is say a command and the Romans will follow. I don't care how Boareks is killed but I want her to suffer. So, get to work, boy." She smiled and slapped a hand on his shoulder.

He sighed and looked at the eagerness on Gabrielle's face. "I'm going to need some parchment…" he says awkwardly. "Is this going to take long?"

Gabrielle chortled. "You have a date or something?"

He sheepishly looked at the ground.

"Oh come on," Xena griped and was slapped by her blonde cohort. "Csaba I need you on the field right now. You can see your wife later. This is more important."

"Okay…"

Gabrielle wrapped her arm around his broad shoulders. "We can discuss in the yurt. I have loads of parchment! This is going to be very fun."

"Oh, yeah, sure." He smiled nervously. "Does that mean I am the commander too?"

His grandmother shot him an incredulous look and scoffed. "Just go be teacher and get out of here. I have to continue training. We're going to be working with catapults today so everyone needs to stay out of this area. Tell Dengi to guard the perimeter. Don't want anyone's limbs exploding off their bodies. You get me?" she playfully said.

"Grandma…" he cringed. "You're going to be using live ammunition?"

"I have to make sure they are working properly. Now go, both of you." She waved her hand and Gabrielle pulled him along to the yurt far from where they were.

He walked down the hill with Gabrielle and looked back at the recruits fearing for their lives as they pushed the catapults towards the barren field ahead. "Is she ever going to let me help her train the recruits like she used to?" he asked her.

She shrugged her shoulder. "I think she wants to you to be close to Farah and stay away from the field for awhile. She doesn't want the same thing to happen to Farah like what happened to your mother."

He quirked his mouth and remembered how sad his mother was when he was a child. She wasn't the same when his father supposedly died. She even denied men who tried to court her after she turned eighteen. He knew that his grandmother would never allow any man to come near her anyway.

"I guess but I want to help. This is my land too."

"She's not going to let you go to war, Csaba. In fact, Dengi is going to stay here."

He frowned. "Then who is going?"

She went down the list, "your parents, Fairuza, Tuya, Navaz and Ernak. Ebnedzar and Oran are staying here as well just in case something happens. You should be happy that you aren't going to war."

"Did she decide this?"

"No…" she rubbed the nape of her neck. "Your mother requested you to stay here. She wants you to look after your sisters –"

"In case what? She dies?" he shook his head. "My mother is not going to die. If god wills it, she will cut off Boareks' head and parade her through the streets of Pannonia."

Farah walked into the women's quarters and looked over at Leila and Bakkah sitting together, sharing a large set of tea together. The room was rather empty which was odd at this time of day. She expected to see more women here. She approached them and interrupted their gleeful conversation.

"Have either of you seen my sister?"

"She went to the market in west Pannonia to get fabric." Leila answered and Farah sighed. "Do you need something?"

"No, I just wanted to know where she was. I've been looking for her all morning." She says with a faint smile and Bakkah grabbed her crawling son and set him in her lap. "He's so precious."

Bakkah grinned and ran her hand over Kurt's black hair. "Do you want to watch him for awhile?"

Farah nerves kicked in and she refused. "No that's alright. I'm just going to grab some tea and go back to my room." She started backing away and waved at Kurt and he let out a gurgling laugh.

Yeter entered the room and immediately saw Farah standing by the table filled with an assortment of teas. She gawked at the slender Czarina's backside, dressed in a long black robe that reached the ground. Her waist length hair was tied back in a low ponytail and she was busy pouring sugar in her glass. The Gokturk made her way over to the table and grabbed a glass.

Farah glanced over and saw the pale slender fingers beside hers and inhaled deeply but kept to her own and stirred the sugar in the hot tea. Yeter grinned and reached over to grab the bowl of sugar cubes and then looked at the different herbs in small bowls sprawled across the table.

"Which is your favorite?" she inquired and the Czarina paused and tapped the spoon on the edge of the glass and gently set it down on the table.

She knew that the Gokturk queen wasn't going to leave her alone if she didn't talk to her so she decided to play along. "The cinnamon," she says curtly. She watched Yeter's hand reach for the cinnamon but grabbed the lavender instead.

"Lavender tea is better for you. Calms your muscles," she says and breaks up the stems and sets in the empty glass and grabbed the hot pot then pours the scalding water into the glass.

Farah turned to the Gokturk and placed a hand on her hip. "What are you doing?" she mustered up the courage to finally get to what Yeter was up to.

"Making tea. What does it look like I'm doing?"

"No." she grabbed Yeter's wrist just as the sugar was to be scooped. "Why are you following me? Why are you always trying to talk to me?"

Yeter grinned and stepped closer to the tall Czarina. They were almost equal in height but Yeter stood a couple of inches shorter. "You sent the commander after me. I was interrogated for hours by her. I know it was you."

"Only because you cornered me."

"I was simply trying to talk to you. I know you don't like me."

"You were going to kill me and Csaba. You were working with the Sabir queen. Why should I trust you?"

Yeter snickered and grabbed Farah's shoulder firmly. "You don't have to like me but we do have to live together now. And let me tell you, when all the queens are long gone, we will have each other. I'm not going anywhere, Farah. Our children will grow up together and you will have to see my face every day so we might as well get along. Isn't that what you want? We are not Huns. We are outsiders .We will breed a new race of Huns to conquer. You are a queen now but I am more experienced than you so…make sure to stay out of my way."

Farah held her breath and glared into the woman's dark brown eyes. She then smiled confidently, now understanding this woman's game. "You're right. I am a queen and a princess of the Huns. You are a nobody here so make sure you stay out of my way." She reached over and kissed Yeter's cheek and walked off with her tea.

Yeter's mouth gaped and she turned around swiftly, watching the Czarina waltz out of the room and the robe drag on the wood floor.

Gabrielle slipped into the bath water that evening and Xena was already in the bath, soaking her skin with oil. She dipped her short hair in the hot water and swam over to grab the bottle of oil. "How was catapult training?" she asks casually.

Xena rubbed oil on her neck and then grabbed her very long hair and oiled the ends. "Two boys ran for their lives when they launched the catapult. I thought they were going to piss themselves." She snickered and rubbed the hair shaft in between her oily palms. "Other than that it was very boring but all the machines work. How was your discussion with Csaba?"

"Just between you and me…" she swam closer and whispered, "he's a god awful teacher!" the two looked at each other and began laughing. "I'm serious though. He's terrible but he tried. He was able to explain a lot of tactics that we can use against the Sabirs. I just hope it's enough."

"Knowing her, she's got a few tricks up her sleeves but those cannons are her savior. She relies on them but if we blow them up, she's got nothing." She dunked her hair in the water and ran her hand over the top of her head. "We should talk to Busra and ask how Boareks proceeds in a war. She's got to have some information."

Gabrielle nodded and ran her fingers through her locks. "I'm sure she does. We can ask her tomorrow." She finished oiling her hair and leaned back against the wall of the bath. "But enough talk of work," she grinned. "After we get rid of Boareks, we can finally celebrate like you said, right?"

"Yes Gabrielle, for the last time." She smirked and swam to the opposite end of the pool. "I'm not wearing a dress but feel free to wear whatever you want."

"I think I've learned my lesson about the dresses." The governor rolled her sore shoulders backward and kept eyeing the commander from afar. Her high cheekbones, her silken midnight hair and piercing blue eyes were definitely her features, but her smile, when it was honest and warm, was the best feature.

Xena looked up and saw her partner ogling her. "What?"

"Nothing. I'm just admiring you."

"Oh yeah?" she lifted a brow and swam over to her and brushed a wet lock of hair off her forehead. "Better view now?" she sank deeper in the water and Gabrielle's smile widened. She cornered her in the water and kissed her nose and then her lips softly.

She paused when she heard giggling and lip smacking from nearby. She frowned and turned her head to the bath next to them. Gabrielle wiped the corners of her lips and averted her eyes to where Xena was looking. "What is it?" she whispered.

Xena sank down in the water and swam over and listened to the subtle noises. She pushed back the curtains and both her grandson and Farah gasped loudly, caught with their arms wrapped around one another. Csaba panicked and sank down in the water, afraid that she was able to see anything that he didn't want his grandmother to see. Gabrielle swam over and looked at the guilty couple.

"You do realize this is the women's bathhouse, don't you?" she asked her grandson who was red in the face. She hid her sly smile but Gabrielle sure didn't. She admired his very trim and muscular physique. "Been working out?"

He covered his chest with his arms and Farah brushed her hair behind her ears. "I…I'll be leaving."

"No need to leave now," she said and he swam further away. "Is this why you wanted to leave the field earlier?" she notices his cheeks reddened even more and Gabrielle laughed.

Farah covered for the very embarrassed prince, "he…was helping me wash my hair."

Gabrielle and Xena shared a smug look and then stared at the young couple. "Is that what you were doing." chides the blonde governor. "I didn't know washing hair required so much mouth to mouth. Did you, Xena?" she tapped her cheek.

Xena played along. "Must be some session." She teased her grandson and he wanted to sink further to hide and sulk alone.

"You two have made your point. I'm getting out." Csaba swam to the edge and Farah was over there smiling, enjoying the torture from the two women. "Could you two…turn around?"

"By all means, don't let us stop you." Xena pulled back the curtains and Gabrielle covered her mouth.

"He's in the women's bathhouse!" she whispered whilst cracking up softly.

"I would wash my wife's hair too if she looked like that…" she swam to the opposite side of the bath.

Gabrielle gasped. "Hey! What about me? What am I? Chopped liver?"

Despite impending war, everyone was able to spend ample time together and enjoy it while it lasted. Fairuza, Tuya, Leila, Handan and Bakkah were inside the women's quarters playing a game with dice and drinking wine. The children were with their fathers for the evening which was hard enough to get them to watch the children for a few hours.

Kutilzis walked into the room and quietly closed the doors behind him. His presence went unnoticed by the laughing and chatting women. He had a scowl on his face and glared at the two queens sitting beside each other, talking together while the other women were busy arguing over the silly board game they were playing.

He walked slowly towards the circle of women and Fairuza turned around when Tuya's eyes followed him. She smiled and was surprised to see him here as the other children were not in the room. "Kutilzis, the children are with their fathers." She said and he kept glaring at her with his dark eyes and the other women's conversations quieted down when he didn't say anything.

"Kutilzis?" she says his name again.

He whipped out a sword hidden behind his back and stabbed her through the throat. Handan and Bakkah quickly tried to get away and Tuya jumped up, unarmed. He pulled out another sword and drove it through her abdomen. Fairuza gasped and blood gushed out of her neck and mouth. He pushed her onto the rug and let her bleed out. He grabbed Tuya by the shoulder and forced the blade further into her body and blood seeped out of her mouth and he threw her aside and she fell on top of Fairuza, croaking.

Leila looked for any weapons that she could use. He turned and saw Handan and Bakkah trying to make a quick exit. He ran over to the door and drove both swords into their spines and they face planted onto the large double doors. He pulled out the blades and they slid down and Handan fell on top of Bakkah.

He growled and wiped the blood off his face and Leila poured hot tea onto his arm and he hissed but did not scream. He bit his tongue instead. The Sabir smiled and grabbed her veil and ripped it off her head, pulling her long chestnut brown hair. He then kicked her down to the floor and flipped her over onto her back. She sobbed and tried to fight him off, waving her arms and pushing his face away.

He smiled wickedly and forced the sword to her throat and quickly slit it. She gasped and grabbed her neck to try and stop the blood spewing out. He stood up and looked at his bloody hands in disgust then looked at Leila as she was choking on her own blood so he stabbed her through the chest and her body convulsed then the rug was soaked with crimson.

Sighing he walked over to the table and grabbed a cloth and wiped his face off from Hun blood and then walked over to the doors. He set down the swords and grabbed Handan and Bakkah then dragged them off one by one so he could leave.

He left the women's quarters and closed the doors behind him closely as if nothing happened. He scanned the area to make sure nobody was nearby and looked at his burned arm and now the pain was settling in. Kutilzis hastily went down the hallway to his room so he could undress and clean his face and hair which was drenched in blood.

Arielle frowned and rubbed her chin as she contemplated her next move on the chess board. Ellac waited patiently as he was playing against her, but she was taking an awfully long time to decide. Cera and Anastasia sat together watching the match.

"Anytime Arielle…" he encouraged her.

"Shh." The princess put up her hand. "I'm thinking."

Ana chuckled and Cera covered her mouth, watching her father get more and more frustrated as he sat and waited. "We can beat them because we're a team, right?" she whispered and Cera nodded excitedly. "And we will win because I taught you." And her daughter giggled softly.

Arielle smiled and moved her piece across the board and folded her arms, staring at her stepfather with confidence. Ellac smirked and moved the queen totem and knocked out all of her other pieces. "Check," he said and she gasped.

"What!" she yelled and looked at the board, studying it to see where she made the mistake. "This is so unfair!" she pouted. "You know what, when I am queen, I will win all the games of chess."

"When you're queen huh?" Ellac teased. "Don't be a sore loser, Arielle. It's your mother's and sister's turn now."

"No! I want to go again!"

He raised his eyebrow and looked at his wife. "She sounds like your mother."

Ana rolled her eyes. "My mother is bad at this game. Arielle, come on, it's our turn now. You get to go one more time after us." She said and the bitter princess groaned and crawled across the floor and sat by herself, brooding silently.

Cera stood up and stared down at her older sister. She tapped Arielle's shoulder and pointed to her and made a pouting face to make fun of her and Arielle's mouth gaped. "Mother!"

Ana turned and frowned. "What?"

"Cera is making fun of me."

"Don't be ridiculous. Cera would never do that."

The redheaded princess smiled smugly and Arielle's eyes widened. "But mom!"

"Arielle! It's just a game." She grabbed Cera and told her to sit down across from her. She began setting up the board for a new game and Ellac leaned back, watching the chaos unfold slowly. He sipped the wine and laughed at Arielle's shocked face, knowing very well what Cera just did, but Ana didn't see it.

He scooted closer to his daughter and whispered in her ear, "don't worry you can beat your mother."

Cera grinned and Anastasia raised her eyebrow and finished setting up the chess board. "I am very good at this game, Ellac and you're going to lose. I won twice already."

"Don't be a sore winner, Ana," he said in a teasing tone and winked at her. She hid her shy smile and stared at her daughter, ready to play the game. Ana made her first move and Cera let out a hefty sigh and tapped her cheek. Ellac leaned over and whispered, "You should move the rook piece."

"Ellac, no cheating!"

"Yeah, no cheating," Arielle repeated after her mother. "Why isn't Csaba playing with us?"

"He's with Farah right now," Ana answered and Cera finally moved the piece that her father told her to. She smirked and moved the next piece and the princess sighed heavily, unsure what move to make next.

Arielle folded her arms. "He's always with Farah. She can come play with us too!"

"I don't think anyone would win playing against her," Ellac muttered.

"Is she good at chess too?" the princess asked and the king nodded. "See, then she can come play with us. I bet I can beat her. Me and Csaba can be on a team together and Farah can be with mother."

Ana looked over at her and shook her head. "I would lose against Farah. She built a cannon, Arielle. She is very smart." She saw her husband helping their daughter again and scowled. "Ellac, stop helping!"

"What? I'm just sitting here." He played coy and nudged Cera's arm. The little princess chuckled and moved the knight totem and Ana exhaled out of her nose deeply.

Early in the morning before anyone was awake yet, Kreka walked towards the women's quarters. She was concerned that none of the women left since last night and the men took care of the children all night which they didn't seem to mind, but she knew that the children would wake up soon and probably give their fathers a rude awakening.

She opened the doors and her eyes widened at the bloodbath displayed in front of her. The rug was soaked with blood. She stepped inside and saw Bakkah and Handan lying together with holes in their abdomens and blood soaked through their dark thick cotton dresses. Her face contorted in disgust and she walked in further and Leila was lying on her back with her throat slit and her lifeless eyes wide open.

Both of her sons' wives were slaughtered and she didn't know how to react and she certainly didn't want to see their faces when they saw their wives displayed in this horror show either.

The khatun turned and saw Fairuza with her arm sprawled out on the floor and her eyes wide open, almost as if she knew what was going to happen to her. But that was the question wasn't it? Who did this? She moved Tuya who was lying on top of the redheaded queen and there was a large gut wound through her dress.

She stepped back and looked at her hands, stained with her own people's blood. This was a massacre and it was done in her home. All of these mothers and two queens were gone. She ran out of the room and down the hallway, pushing through a few servant women.

The minute she stepped outside she vomited on the steps and wrapped an arm around her stomach and her eyes filled with tears. She stared at the commander's yurt and breathed heavily. Many soldiers were awake at this early hour and looked her way, concerned for her.

"Xena!" she croaked and walked down the stairs, nearly losing her balance as her head was spinning. "Xena!" she yelled louder and then ran across the field. "XENA!" her voice echoed and she tripped and crawled across the grass before she picked herself up and kept her eyes on the yurt.

She barged into the yurt moments later and ran into the bedroom where Xena and Gabrielle were sleeping soundly. She grabbed Xena's arm and shook her violently. Xena opened her eyes groggily and stared at the frantic khatun standing over her.

Sitting up, she looked down at her arm and saw a bloody handprint and slowly lifted her head at Kreka whose hands were shaking and her dress had blood on it as well. "Kreka…what is this…"

Gabrielle slowly awakened and sat up, ruffling her hair. She looked over and saw blood all over Kreka's hands and on Xena's arm and now she was more awake than she had ever been. "Whose blood is that?" she asked and crawled over to observe the khatun's trembling hands.

Tears fell from the queen's mother eyes and she sobbed uncontrollably as the realization of the women's deaths finally came crashing down upon her.