Hello my beautiful readers.

new chap! I hope you'll like it! Only two left!

Diana

30-

Naevia approached Gabrielle, while they were both attending their owner who was sitting on the triclinium on the balcony, watching the gladiators training:

"I hate seeing Spartacus like this." whispered the slave in the blonde woman's ear, putting a hand on her left shoulder. Gabrielle raised her hand and covered Naevia's with her own.

"I know, he must be feeling miserable. I know how he feels" Gabrielle whispered back, her voice broken

"You do?" Naevia inquired, suddenly curious about her friend's statement.

"Silence, Ladies. Your whispers are annoying...like the buzzing of a fly." Lucretia's voice brought them back to the real world. A world where no feelings were allowed to show.

"Apologies, domina".

"You should let me check that wound on your ribs" said Xena, looking at Spartacus with worried eyes "It doesn't look good"

"Just a scratch"

Xena knew that feeling. The guilt one can feel when they cause the death of someone they love. "Spartacus, I know I'm the last person in this ludus with whom you'd like to talk right now, but I want you to know something..." they exchanged a look. And strangely enough, she thought she could detect some sort of interest in his eyes. She sat next to him and continued "I know you know me. I know you know all the things I did when I was...well, who I was. But you don't know why, I became that person. I was a young girl and a warlord, Cortese, attacked my town. And I convinced my people to fight back. My younger brother was killed in battle. And I never forgave myself for his death. If I hadn't decided to fight, he'd be alive today. My own mother disowned me. My people hated me. And this slowly led to my own personal path of destruction. Don't let them do the same to you. It was not your fault. If you hadn't done that, you would be laying there, dead, next to your friend. And nothing would have changed except for the count of the dead in this fucking house."

"He had a wife. A family. He was a good man...he was my friend. Have you seen the look on his wife's face when I told her? She hates me! He died a slave and in a death with no honor. By a hand with no honor" he got up and left but she followed him "Spartacus, think about what I said. Everything I said. And... put something on that wound. It doesn't look good"

"And who would see to your brother's family?" Spartacus' voice echoed in the bath chamber. They were all busy bathing and removing sand and grime from their bodies when the man's piercing voice filled the room. Xena saw him approach Duro, one of the newest gladiators, and butthead him lightly "with both of you dead, who would see to his wife?!" shouted the angry man, pointing at Duro's brother, Agron "His child?!"

"My brother has no wife or child!" answered the other, with a puzzled look on his face.

Xena saw him move away yelling "Wait!" as he followed no one through the gates of the gladiators' baths.

"Fucking Thracians!" exclaimed Crixus as the scene unfolded. She turned to him and yelled "You can be a real pain in the ass, sometimes, stupid Gaul!" She got up from where she was sitting and went up to him, saying "Can't you see he's hurting and is probably feverish? Have you no feelings? Why can you only think about yourself?!"

He stood up, their angry eyes met. "Me? Everyone here thinks about himself. We are no pussies. I still don't like you, Xena. Not even the other filthy Thracian likes you! You should save your worries for other matters" he clenched his jaw "Think about your girlfriend, instead. Mind your own business!"

"Do you want to know what I don't understand, Crixus?" Xena put her hands on her bare hips and said "What I don't understand is why you all cannot get along. We are all slaves! There's no difference between us: Thracians, Gauls, Angles. We are all on a chariot to Tartarus. We are all gonna die and we only have each other"

"Said the woman who massacred and wiped-out entire nations!" he smiled, showing pearl white teeth "Do me a favor, Xena: don't think that we're the best of friends just because you healed my wounds. I am the real champion here! I don't trust you."

"Oh, you don't?" replied Xena, wrapping a towel around her body "You don't? Really? Think about these words again, Crixus." she lowered her voice and whispered in his ears "You know I know...and, I think I'm worthy of trust". He saw him gritting his teeth, the lineaments of his face hardening and twisting.

"See you tomorrow" and with this being said, she headed towards her cot.

"Fucking Thracians, indeed"

The following day, it became apparent during training, that Spartacus' wound was, in fact, deteriorating his health: it was filled with pus and was red and swollen. He had developed an infection and was, indeed, feverish. Medicus also asked to have Xena check the wound and asked for her opinion. They agreed that the first thing they had to do was to bring the fever down, so that it couldn't reach his brain. They wrote a list of herbs which could help him fight back the illness.

Of course, some couldn't but rejoice at the thought of a sick Spartacus. Crixus, was in fact happy as ever to know that he was chosen to replace his enemy in the arena for the Primus, fighting against Perikles in one of the most anticipated games of the year: the one against Pompeii. A fight that Batiatus had been able to secure thanks to Spartacus but the Gaul was sure he could re-establish himself as champion, and was overjoyed.

The commotion caused by the sudden illness of the Thracian, gave Gabrielle time to visit Xena unnoticed by Ashur's scheming eyes: she had overheard a tiny bit of a conversation between Lucretia and Batiatus and was sure those two were plotting something and, in fact, the Syrian was nowhere in the ludus. Batiatus was livid for the worthless loss of one of his most promising gladiators. A loss that would bring him nowhere, since the magistrate refused to help him enter into politics because of his humble origins, despite the respect he had shown the magistrate and his family. Gabrielle noticed tension in Lucretia's behavior since she was also waiting for Ilithyia to ensure her husband's patronage for the House of Batiatus.

She went to Naevia after the couple had gone to bed and asked the girl to give her the key to the gates. She hid it in her cleavage and went straight to the cellar, opened the gate and called for Xena. After a few endless moments, she saw Xena's body appear from the dark corridor, and she was finally able to exhale.

"Gabrielle, what are you doing here? Are you sure no one followed you?" she asked, looking around.

"Yes, no one is here. They are sleeping. Ashur is nowhere to be found. Something is strange, Xena" she whispered.

"Tell me what isn't! They are a bunch of nuts." she took Gabrielle's hand and kissed it "How are you?"

"I'm fine but, Xena, believe me, something is wrong here. They have been more secretive than usual and they always order us out of their room when they talk. Ashur is nowhere in the house. Have you noticed?"

"No, I was busy with other things...like not getting killed tomorrow in the arena" she said, curling her lip in a strange smile

"You know you won't." replied Gabrielle, chuckling.

"Gabrielle... I need you to be my eyes and ears in the villa. I want to leave this place as soon as possible. I've tried to talk to the gladiators but I don't know what's wrong with them, in their mind they are not slaves, but Gladiators...heroes of the crowd, stars on earth. I really don't understand" she put her fingers on the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes.

"Well...they are men, you know them better than I do. They like to think they are big in every situation." they chuckled, then Gabrielle added "I'll try to talk to Naevia and Mira...she seems very fond of Spartacus."

"Yeah and he treats her like shit most of the times. The girl is in love, I think. But, let's try. We have to leave Gabrielle. And once we leave, I need a word with Caesar, that bastard!" she hugged her companion until their bodies almost melted together.

"Xena, I think they are planning to kill the magistrate" whispered Gabrielle in her ear.

"Be careful, Gabrielle. Don't forget to tell me everything. Come back tomorrow." they exchanged a light kiss and parted.