Gabrielle looked at the large group of people around her and smiled warmly into the fire as she slowly caught her breath. All around her the amazons were laughing and smiling, while they ate their well seasoned beef. She took the waterskin at her side and gulped down some of the chilly water to calm her hoarse throat. The autumn that had painted these lands in red, orange and yellow also meant that is was getting a whole lot colder than she had hoped. At least the gods had deigned not to bury them in snow yet.
After nearly a minute of silence was broken, when Deirdre her black haired young helper and newfound friend suddenly asked: "Okay that really was a good story. Xena had to see you all die and had to endure weeks of waking up to the same day in that story, just because two love struck teens couldn't be bothered to do things right and elope in the first. Please Gabrielle couldn't you tell us a funny story like the one about Aphrodite cursing you, Xena and Joxer to follow your obsessions? Just one more please". All around Deirdre heads were nodding vigorously.
Gabrielle smiled. She had taken up storytelling to entertain the amazon warriors on their trip northeast. At first some of the others had taken some of the load of her by singing, playing instruments or even telling stories of their own, but for a few days now her warriors had gotten a little greedy. Now they demanded at least two stories before they would give her peace or let someone else entertain. She didn't mind and she did have more than enough to tell even for a trip to the coast of Japan and back, but her voice was getting hoarse from use and once in a while when she told some of the more emotional stories it tore her up inside. Still this time they asked for a funny story. Nodding to herself Gabrielle chose to tell the story of Xena getting caught in the body of a little girl when one of Aphrodite's spell went wrong again. She had been on quite an adventure with Aphrodite to get the cure and she had the word of many audiences that it was really funny. "Alright but it is the last one for tonight. It is a story I've chosen to call: "Little Trouble" and it all began like this…"
Later when the laughter had died down and only a few guards were still awake Gabrielle lay inside the tent she shared with Deirdre and a few others. Gabrielle stared up at the roof of animal skins and thought back at the good and bad times she had seen with Xena. Sometimes she was tempted to only think of the good times, but her life with her friend hadn't been a dance on roses and while she was sure that if she hadn't met her there would be less of her to actually call Gabrielle she didn't want to cast her memories in to rosy a color either. There had been times where she had been angry and hurt by the actions of her friend. There had been times when she had nearly died, where she had killed and even done terrible things, and if she held up all the good she lived through versus all the bad that had happened to her it hadn't been an altogether happy life they had led. Now she lived it alone and while it was much harder, lonelier and she now had to do the things that had been Xena's tasks before, she found that life in general like then was still good enough to be lived.
"Are you still awake?" Deirdre's tired voice asked across the tent.
"Yeah I was just contemplating my life. I do that almost every night before I go to sleep. It's in a way to reason for my problems getting up in the morning. But don't mind me Deirdre just go to sleep", Gabrielle answered and covered her arm with the thick animal fur as it was getting cold out in the air of their tent.
"I wasn't complaining. I just wanted to tell you that I really like your stories. You seem so much happier when you're storytelling", Deirdre explained.
"Oh", was all that Gabrielle could reply for a while. "You know I've never thought about it Deirdre, but I think I like it because it was the first thing I got really good at after I left home. I took me a good long while longer to become a warrior or admit to myself that it really was what I was meant to be", Gabrielle explained wistfully.
"But when you told us the story of how you and Xena met you said that you had asked her to make you a warrior", Deirdre commented.
"True but as I learned a little later fighting was not glorious or at all like the stories told. People got killed in fights so I swore it off, but in the end I was a fighter inside. I care about people you see and when I see people in trouble I want to help. You can't really help many people, when they're about to get beheaded by some guy, who doesn't care if you're so full of love that you can heal the sick and wounded. You have to get in his face and make him see the error of his ways; ensure that he finds his destiny either in prison or in some other way that he deserves. In the end before I let it happen I had become a fervent believer in non-violence. But it didn't work out, because my life with Xena constantly demonstrated that such a life was ultimately one of self-sacrifice. And while I at that point was weighted down by guilt and things of the past to a point where I would gladly have given my life I wasn't able to give the life of my friend just to uphold a belief I was beginning to feel conflicted about", Gabrielle explained in a whisper so that she didn't wake the two other amazons they shared a tent with. She thought about the battle with Pompeii after Ephiny's death and how close she had come to abandoning her way of love then. And then her little transgression on the wharf a few days later when she had saved the life of Amarice by tripping a man or her even more misguided smoke compact. She had sought to fight even when she had meant not to.
"Alright I guess that explains it. Why do you tell me these things?" Deirdre sounded like she was afraid to learn more fearing maybe that she learned secret that should only be shared with Xena.
"Deirdre, you're my friend. I want you to understand why I am the way I am sometimes", Gabrielle explained.
"So the sadness you show. It is regret over the loss of your innocence", Deirdre said and Gabrielle caught the glint of light in the water of her eyes from across the tent as she was amazed by the astute nature of her new friend.
"Yeah, it is a little stupid. I again and again tell everyone who will listen to me that I don't regret the life I have chosen. But I guess there is still a twinge or two of both a little disappointment and regret in my soul. Somehow that is a part of who I am too", Gabrielle explained.
For a while no one spoke and soon Gabrielle was treated to the sound of Deirdre's breath as she slept. Gabrielle turned over on her side and closed her tired eyes, while whispering: "Goodnight Xena" as she had done many nights since the death of her beloved friend.
"Queen Gabrielle", a faint voice called out to her, just as she saw the samurai lop the head of Xena for the hundredth time. A cold hand touched her warm shoulders. Fire surged out into her veins she lunged awake. "Whoa", the same voice replied as Deirdre suddenly found herself lying on the ground with the Chakram pressed against her throat. Gabrielle blinked in surprise and looked into the startled eyes of her friend.
"Don't ever do that Deirdre, how many times must I warn you of that. I have slept on the ground in bandit ravaged lands for almost all my adult years. My instincts are to strike first and ask later", Gabrielle admonished her younger dark haired friend, who had suffered this fate several time already.
"I forgot", the young amazon answered and sounded sorry. Gabrielle smiled and let her up. She notices that the air was even colder this morning even inside their tent. Soon they would have to build bigger tent capable of containing a fire if they wanted to keep warm she mused. As Deirdre stood before she held out a hand and said: "I am sorry I attacked you Deirdre. But I've told you already. Talk to me until I am awake. Call my name until I am up even if I take my time. The only reason not to do it is if we're under attack and I don't hear cries of alarm outside, so…"
Gabrielle smiled reassuringly to her remorseful helper and set about dressing in her winter clothes. "Why were you in a hurry?" Gabrielle asked with her back to Deirdre.
"Well I was up early and I saw something I thought you would want to know about", Deirdre admitted and looked pointedly towards the tent opening.
Gabrielle raised one of her pencil thin and slightly darker blond eyebrows and walked over to the tent flap. She drew the cold fabric aside and looked out over a snow covered camp. "Damn it", she cursed and turned back to Deirdre.
"Good this means we'll have to change our plans a little. We need to unpack the heavier winter clothing we had made and gather more firewood. Oh, and we need to shorten the length we ride each day as the horses will tire faster and suffer more in the cold. We'll also need to keep them warmer at night from now on. Deirdre would you get Kati and anyone else who are capable seamstresses to rebuild our tents into larger models capable of having a fire burning inside. We'll need the warmth to survive. After you've started that get some of the hunters to go out and look for game, we will be staying here for at least two days". Gabrielle found it increasingly easier to command her troops and she felt she was doing an adequate job at it.
Just as Deirdre was about to leave she said: "Deirdre thank you for waking me early this really was important". She was rewarded with a smile. Gabrielle quickly donned her coat and went off to the woman she had set in command of the guards. She needed to ensure that she was told about all weather changes in the future.
The snow continued to follow them as they traversed the mountainous region on the other side of the sea that they had gone around. Gabrielle looked out over the pass covered by masses of white and marveled at the glory of nature around her.
"Breathtaking isn't it", Kati asked. Kati was the quartermaster of her troops and usually handled many of the mundane tasks of setting up cooking fires and tents for her 40 women strong force.
"Yes, it never ceases to amaze me. I remember the last time I went through here going east it was summer. The high passes which are always covered in snow looked much like this and we chose to go through these passes instead. I should have realized that they would be filled with snow and ice in the winter. Funny thing is these mountains are nothing compared to the massive giants lying between the fertile jungles and valleys of Indus and the many provinces of Chin. We won't be seeing them on this trip as we're heading further north, but I can tell you that some of them go so high they seem to touch the sky", Gabrielle explained wistfully with eyes glazed over by memories.
"That's great you two like the view, but do I have to remind you that we need to find a way through there as well. And we must also find a way to mark the right pass of Cyane to find", Deirdre added caustically. Gabrielle had learned to her amusement that the amazon coming from the British Isles, where there could also be hard winters seemed to abhor cold weather with a deadly passion.
"Well my dear friend, if you think so, I better go do just that", Gabrielle said with a smile and nudged Ghost into a gentle trot.
"Hold my Queen", Deirdre and several other amazons said. Gabrielle turned and her eyebrows disappearing up into the nearly white shock of hair that fell down over her forehead.
Deirdre and the amazons that Gabrielle had associated most with sat on their horses looking at her defiantly. "You should not risk your life on such an endeavor one of us will go in your stead", Deirdre said.
Gabrielle fixed each of the amazons with a withering stare. She hadn't expected that her friends would ask her not to do anything. "I am the only one who has any experience with traveling through treacherous passes full of snow. I won't stay behind and risk someone else. Why should I?" Gabrielle looked defiantly around at the group.
"Because you are too important to risk, we are expendable and frankly I don't think your experience counts for much. We have no local guides, so you'll have to guess the way through anyhow", Kati countered.
"No one is expendable. People will never be pointlessly expended just to ensure the safety of my life, if it is best for me to do the job", Gabrielle said anger slowly creeping into her tone. Still a little voice in her mind reminded her of her actions at Helicon. Gabrielle commanded it to be quiet.
"Don't be stupid. We need you. Each and every one of us is completely expendable and you know it. You just don't want to be in a position to see anymore of your friends die", Deirdre said showing the understanding of Gabrielle's personality that she had built over the last few weeks of their trip.
Realizing that she wasn't thinking with her mind again, Gabrielle forced herself to look at the situation from a fully intellectual point of view. If she perished there was no clear cut leader of the group. There would have to be challenges to determine the leader and then there was the added problem of Varia, who still rode sullenly in her column of warriors. Gabrielle knew she would try to regain control of the amazons the moment she was able to. Gabrielle didn't regret bringing her along. Varia was not only a great warrior and brilliant hunter, but also a strong leader. And then there was the plan she had for her.
There was no logical argument for her to go either. Even if she had traversed snow covered mountains before, she knew as her warriors had that it was different on each mountain and no one here had any local knowledge about this particular pass anyway.
Gabrielle's shoulders slumped in defeat. "Alright someone else can go, but don't question me in public again. It is counterproductive and ruins morale", Gabrielle commanded them, and very well knowing that no one of the remaining amazons were even within earshot.
"I'll go", Deirdre volunteered and Gabrielle reluctantly approved with a nod.
Gabrielle watched nervously as her newfound friend rode ahead with the rest of the column of amazons followed at least a hundred paces behind her. Gabrielle commanded them all to remain completely silent on their way through the snow. She had seen avalanches before and she didn't want to die pointlessly in one now.
Deirdre reached the snow covered path that they believed to lead up through the mountain pass and down onto a plain that would bring them directly to their new forest. She dismounted and began walking in front of her horse carefully testing the snow drifts as she began the hard work of finding a good path for both her and her horse forward. Behind her the amazons had formed up into a single file on Gabrielle's orders and began following the path she marked.
A long day and night followed as they had traversed the dangerous path in silence, snow and wind pelting them from time to time. It was simply to cold to stop and there was no cover to be found, so they just had to keep walking.
Deirdre relentlessly pressed on, her thighs burning with fatigue, her head swimming from the lack of sleep as they began the walk down from the top of the pass by midnight. And worse still the ice cold wind went through her clothing like daggers of ice. But she would not disappoint her queen. She would never give up or show weakness in front of the short blonde powerhouse that now walked only a few paces behind her. She marched on into the night nearly blinded by the stinging wind.
Morning and coming relief should have given her renewed strength but Deirdre found nothing refreshed inside as the far horizon began to lighten. They were traversing a section of the pass, where rain or melting water had been frozen by the icy weather of the night covering the snow in a hard shell of ice. Suddenly the ground beneath her horse seemed to shiver and it fell through the ground behind her. Suddenly the snow below her legs gave out under her as well and she fell. She felt her head hit something hard and cold. Everything went dark for a while.
Gabrielle saw Deirdre's horse disappear from sight her rider quickly following. The air currently still, after the severe winds that had attacked them on the top of the pass, resounded with strange cracking noises from the area of snow, where Deirdre had stood.
Quickly she motioned for everyone to stop. The tired amazons stopped wearily in the heavy snow. For the merest moment she considered what to do. "Kati you're in command. If anything happens, move the amazons back up the mountain for while then look for a safe way down. I'll go fetch Deirdre", Gabrielle reached over to the side of Ghost and grabbed her whip and forced her legs to run, jumping more than walking down the white path made by Deirdre and her horse. The cracking noises seemed to get worse all the time.
Gabrielle slowed down as she came near. Carefully but feeling pressed for time still quickly she worked her way forward testing the ground with each step. As she reached to edge, she glanced carefully down into the hole in the snow that Deirdre had disappeared into.
She could see both Deirdre and her horse. Deirdre lay still on top of a large amount of powdery white but looked alright; she was too far down to reach by hand. Her horse was lost though. It seemed to have fallen and broken its neck.
The cracking noises became louder and some sections of snow fell into the cave like structure in which Deirdre lay. "Crap we standing on the top of an avalanche in the making", Gabrielle turned and gestured towards the amazons not daring to speak. Kati, who was next in the column, just looked at her curiously as Gabrielle motioned for her and the amazons to withdraw further up the mountain.
They didn't move.
Gabrielle sighed and looked back down at Deirdre. She seemed to be coming to. Quickly Gabrielle took out the whip.
Deirdre awoke and turned over to look up at her in confusion.
Gabrielle held out her whip. Deirdre cocked her head to the side in confusion. Gabrielle swore that she would have to teach her amazons hand signals after this if they survived.
She heard Deirdre draw breath to speak, but she managed to lay a finger to her lips in time.
Gabrielle decided to try a trick. She reached for the amazon.
Confused by Gabrielle as there was no way for her to reach Deirdre, she still held out her hand reaching towards Gabrielle's.
Gabrielle smiled mischievously and quickly withdrew her hand, while quickly flicking the whip forward. It wrapped its tip and some of its length around the outstretched arm. Gabrielle grunted heavily as she walked back from the edge carrying the surprised amazon out of the hole. But her eyes weren't focused on the hole or on Deirdre. The cracking noises were turning into a low rumble. She was looking around for a large section of ice that seemed thicker than the rest.
Deirdre found herself back on top of the masses of ice covered snow. She fell to the ground almost incapable of movement. She saw something red smeared across the ice, where her hands and head had been. She was wounded, but the cold seemed to have numbed her to the pain for now. She looked up to find Gabrielle running towards her at a high speed.
Gabrielle yelled towards the amazons, who still sat by their horses awaiting her command: "Run back up the mountain! This section of ice is about to come loose! Get down the mountain after the avalanche! If we survive, Deirdre and I will join you there".
Gabrielle grabbed the fallen amazon barely noticing that both Deirdre's hands and head had several cuts. She freed her whip from Deirdre's wrist and dragged the amazon towards the section of ice she had in mind.
Behind her the amazons and their horses sprinted up the mountain just managing to get above the section of snow and ice about to fall.
Gabrielle felt the ground begin to slide away beneath them. She took better hold of her friend and jumped forward managing to vault into the air and land on her feet again on top of the thicker section of ice.
With a great rumble the entire ground suddenly became almost like water. It thundered down the mountain making more noise than a thunderstorm as it moved.
Snow and air whipped around Gabrielle as she instinctively planted her feet onto the 5 paces across section of ice, which they had landed on and so far seemed intact. But as she balanced the piece of solid mass of ice on the churning masses below their feet riding the raging mass of snow like a leaf on water, she realized that there was no way that they would survive the ride atop this.
All around her stones and trees were being destroyed or thrown away like pebbles on a beach during a storm.
Cracks began to appear in their sheet of ice just as Deirdre seemed to come to her senses.
Their safe place was disintegrating by the moment.
A dip in the landscape approached, but Gabrielle steadily tried to guide them sideways, where the ground fell off and a sheer drop all the way to the foot of the mountain stood in its place.
"What are you doing?!" Deirdre screamed as she saw the ground disappear not too far to their left.
"Saving our lives. Hold onto me with all your strength", Gabrielle retorted and smiled wildly. She let her instincts guide her movements forcing herself to act before they would be torn into shreds or buried beneath the raging snow.
Suddenly the mass of snow dipped and their section of ice cracked and then broke under the stress.
But Gabrielle was ready. Deirdre held herself hard against her. Just before she had nothing more to stand on her she forced all her strength into her legs to jump her up and to the side out over the edge and into the open air.
The air rushed by them.
To their side Deirdre saw the ground churning with snow become replaced white and grey mountain rock as they freely fell of the mountain. In her mind the words: "Out of danger into terror", appeared. She became aware of Gabrielle's hands and arms working incredibly fast.
"Get ready", Gabrielle screamed over the thunder of the avalanche. Suddenly the Chakram was thrown down into the mountain side. Deirdre saw the metal ring hammer into the stone wall. In a time shorter than it took her to breathe the length of the whip stretched forward and wrapped itself around the edge the Chakram.
"Oh, shit", Deirdre screamed as they suddenly lurched to a stop and hammered into the side of the mountain.
After a few moments to cope with the pain she looked down and saw nothing but air. "What the hell do we do now", Deirdre asked. A little snow from the avalanche continued to rain past for awhile longer as Gabrielle remained silent.
"We climb", Gabrielle said through clenched teeth reminding Deirdre that her queen was holding the both of them in her arms. Deirdre looked up at the rough cliff wall. The climb wasn't impossible. It was just damn close. Her already hurt hands had already begun protesting the pain that would soon follow. At least they would only need to climb four times the length of a horse on a sheer cliff wall to get back up to safe ground.
Gingerly she reached forth and found a hold on the cliff wall. There was no other option. She forced her already tired and wounded arms and hands to hold her, while Gabrielle disappeared, crawling up the length of the whip to the precious Chakram.
Two candlemarks and change later they both lay weary to the bones on top of the much less snowy ground of the pass. Neither ready nor able to move as the morning dawned and gave their ice cold bodies some much needed warmth.
"We must go down the mountain and find the amazons. If we stay here we will freeze to death", Gabrielle explained and staggered to her feet after another half candlemark.
Deirdre barely got to her feet.
"Say Deidre, what do you say, could we support each other down the mountain?" Gabrielle asked as a few steps revealed that neither was very sure on their feet, but at least they had lost all fear of any coming avalanches for the near future.
"I thought great heroes never got tired", Deirdre replied dryly.
"They never do. But then I am only a simple farmer's daughter from Poteidaia in Greece, so I can be", Gabrielle answered and offered Deirdre her arm. Slowly the pair staggered down the mountain, while Gabrielle told Deirdre about how it was to grow up in Poteidaia.
A few hours later they reunited with the amazons, who had been just about to send out search parties at the behest of both Kati and Varia.
Some weeks later…
The dry plain stretched out in front of them, rolling hills and flat areas covered with high grasses in green and all shades yellow and brown. The wind could be seen as waves passing over a sea of green. Here and there small bushes grouped together to form what little cover these lands held. The land had a stark beauty much like a desert and felt just as empty compared to the varied lands of the Roman Empire. Somewhere out there in the east laid the primal forest that she would settle the amazons in. Gabrielle turned in the saddle of Ghost and looked out over her amazons.
They seemed fully recovered from the hard trek through the mountains and seemed much more at home on these plains than they had appeared everywhere else on their already long journey. More than two full turns of the moon they had slowly traveled the lands, marking the best path for the larger column of amazons that was following them somewhere way past the horizon.
Gabrielle had entered her 25th year, she realized. There had been no pranks, no surprise party or celebration. Their supplies were tight and while their hunters brought in ample amounts of game they didn't have time to stop to hunt that often, so she hadn't deigned to tell her by now good friends about her birthday.
She wasn't even sure if she could call them her friends at all. They were removed from her by their own regard of her royalty and held in her in such an awe especially Deirdre that they acted more like her fanatically loyal followers than someone she could relate to. They held onto her every word like it was from the mouth of Artemis herself. And it wasn't even limited to Deirdre or Kati anymore. There was a core group of about 10 amazon warriors, who seemed ready to ride into Tarterus itself if she asked them to. She had seen such people before, but they had always been on the side of her enemies and it scared her a little. She distanced herself from them hoping that it would lessen their regard for her, but it didn't seem to be working. But she needed perform her duty and they were a great help in that regard, so she forced herself to ignore their troubling behavior.
"My queen, the hunters are coming back", Varia reported dryly. She seemed to still resent her. Gabrielle looked at Varia without revealing her emotions in her expression. She had brought Varia along not only to protect Cyane from any political manipulations from the powerful warrior, but also to enact a carefully laid out plan in which she figured greatly. She had initiated a campaign to not only restore Varia's honor in the eyes of the warriors, but also to impart some of her own philosophy on the aggressive woman, continuing the work begun by Xena, when they had been hunted by Prince Morloch.
"Varia, why did you come along when I asked you? You could have stayed with the amazons, who didn't want to come along", Gabrielle asked and looked over at the amazon seated on her brown mare.
Varia seemed silent. "I came because I wanted to protect my amazon sisters. I don't agree with your plan, but I lost my challenge and so you are my queen. You asked and a true amazon can do no less than follow the commands of the chosen queen of her tribe", Varia explained formally clearly revealing her tone the underlying resent that she still held for her current position.
"Can't you see why I did it? What would have been lost if you had stayed?" Gabrielle asked trying to sound if she was surprised at Varia continued failure to understand her plan.
"No", Varia countered.
"If I asked you to think about it with your mind instead of your heart for a while would you do it?" Gabrielle asked smiling wanly.
Varia looked at her for a few moments then nodded soundlessly as the leader of the hunters approached Gabrielle to report their success in downing two large elk for their consumption. She didn't understand why Gabrielle continued to talk to her even ask for her opinion so often recently. If she had defeated Gabrielle in their battle she had fully intended to cast her out of the ranks of the amazons or maybe even killing her. But she could not understand why the blonde queen who seemed filled with enough inner reserves to never appear tired before her troops, who seemed to have an answer to every problem and who could not even see that even the least of her warriors would attack a force many times their size sure of their death if only it allowed their queen to live. She had made them all love her and she hadn't even been trying to be charming. Varia had realized after Gabrielle's daring rescue on the mountain that she was not the great hero of the amazons that Marga had envisioned her to be. She was at best only the second best amazon queen and Cyane was growing up fast so to speak. Soon she realized she would also regard Gabrielle as her queen if she didn't already. Her shoulders slumped as she considered the question Gabrielle had posed to her. She didn't want to think about it intellectually. Her hurt emotions were her only defense her shield against the images of her past.
Weeks later, the rain was drenching the guards to the skin. The rest of the encamped amazons sat in their tents. Deirdre, Kati and the rest of the amazons who considered themselves the most loyal amazons was cramped together in a single tent meant for 7 but holding 12.
"Our queen is blissfully unaware of this meeting and it must remain like that", Deirdre explained.
"We are gathered here, because we all are of the same opinion. Queen Gabrielle should receive better protection. She has no royal guard like the other queens nor will she ask for them. But we are all walking around her the entire day. I propose that we swear a binding pact that we pledge our lives to protect the Queen in action and word until our dying day. Our lives for hers", Deirdre explained with a fanatic sound in her voice.
All around her heads nodded and arms were freed from their coverings. 12 women cut a gasp across their wrist and swore a blood oath to protect their queen now and always in one voice.
Meanwhile Gabrielle, Varia and a couple of hunters was riding across the plain.
"Are you sure, my queen?" Varia asked again.
"Yes. That type of bear usually sticks to forested regions near fresh water, so the forest must be close by or we will at least find a place to replenish our water supply, Varia. And would you quit with the 'my queen' stuff I get enough of that from everyone even Deirdre and Kati", Gabrielle explained sounding unhappy.
"Really, I thought you would have gotten them off the habit by now. I remember that you always hate being called Queen. I used to think it was because you didn't feel worthy, but now I guess it is because you don't want us to see you as more than the person you are", Varia had spent a whole lot of time with Gabrielle these last weeks and some of her personality was rubbing off even if Varia hadn't noticed.
"I thought I had gotten through to them, but after our little mountain trek they are back to their old form. I think they're even trying to protect me by acting as a kind of bodyguards. And I really don't want that", Gabrielle explained as they crested another hill and suddenly found themselves looking out over the beginning of a forest that looked like it stretched beyond the horizon.
"Yes!" Gabrielle exulted and vaulted of her horse to dance randomly but happily on the ground. Varia and the hunters smiled and joined in.
After they had settled back down Varia walked over to Gabrielle again to continue their conversation. "About Deirdre and the others… I think it's kind of your own fault in a way. You present us with the truth about you making no allusions to your own greatness, but then you tell all those fantastic adventures about you and Xena in which you manage to reach greatness even while having human flaws. On top of that day by day you show them what a brilliant leader and person you are even after all the hardships of your life. Quite frankly they have every reason to be impressed. I am nearly in awe of you and I didn't even like you that much to begin with".
"Oh, no not you too", Gabrielle groaned.
"Don't worry about me my queen I've beaten the crap out of you once. I am not about to fall on my butt and worship you as the mortal incarnation of Artemis or something, but I do acknowledge that you're a better leader than I am. Especially now that you've moved beyond the insecurities you had at Helicon", Varia told her and put an arm around her shoulder while smiling.
"I guess", Gabrielle said and looked up at the slightly taller amazon, knowing in her heart that she had won the battle for Varia's heart that had been one of the main goals of her plan.
"My queen I think we should go back and tell your loyal followers that you've found the forest they've been looking for", Varia said with a smirk, while Gabrielle groaned again at the thought of another notch on her belt.
A day later the jubilant but at the orders of their queen still careful group of amazons rode into the foreign forest.