We'll be seeing more action in chapter 4 and onward.

Chapter 3 –Hear Your People Cry

The last two weeks were stressful and relationships inside the clan household were strained and tense. Arielle and Ku had barely spoken to each other and Ku wouldn't even sleep in the same bed with her queen. They only put on somewhat happy faces when Aurora was around but even then, that was difficult. Ku knew that the princess wasn't stupid. Aurora could sense the tension between her mother and caregiver.

While Gabrielle was helping Ernak pack the caravans for the trip tomorrow, Xena helped her granddaughter sort out clothing and armor in the bedroom. Arielle stood over the bed and stuffed several blouses into a large chest to be put on one of the wagons.

Aurora jumped up and down on the bed while her mother was packing. She was extremely hyper since Farah gave her some sweets in the morning which Arielle hated when her brother's wife gave whatever she pleased to her daughter without permission.

Xena sat in a chair, instructing her on what to pack and what not to pack. Arielle remained quiet during the packing and had to put back several pairs of pants that wouldn't fit in the chest. She hadn't even gotten to her armor pieces yet and she was running out of space.

The sugar-induced princess plopped down onto the bed, breathing heavily. "How long is this trip?" she asks.

Arielle frowned softly. "I'm not sure."

"Hopefully not long!"

Xena smiled warmly at the girl's optimism. It reminded her of the many questions Anastasia asked as a child when she went away on long missions. She tried not to stay away for more than two months at a time up until Ana was ten and then her excursions lasted far longer than that.

"When's grandma Ana coming back? I miss her."

Arielle inhaled deeply. "I don't know, Aurora. You've asked me that three times this week."

"I just wanna know…"

Xena reached over and placed a hand on the princess' knee. "She'll come back soon. She's visiting Cera."

Her eyes lit up. "Cera!" she grinned, missing her aunt and sitting in the art classes in school. "Is she coming back?"

"She got married, remember? She has to live with her husband in her new tribe."

Aurora nodded. "Oh yeah. Mommy, will you see Cera?"

Her mother groaned. "No. I told you I'm going to China. Ku will be in charge of watching you. I want you to be on your best behavior for her. If you need anything just ask Teyze Farah, Ursula or Nisa. They will be here for you."

"But I'm always good!"

Arielle cupped her daughter's cheek. "I know, I'm just reminding you." she closed the chest of clothes and latched the locks. "Alright, we can carry this to the caravan now." She lifted one side and Xena grabbed the other handle.

Gabrielle checked off everything on the list and inspected the wagons for tomorrow's departure. Xena and Arielle threw the chest of clothes onto a wagon and Gabrielle frowned at them. "That should go on the other wagon. This one is just for grain and supply."

"I'm not picking that thing up again but you go right ahead," Xena smiled at her wife.

Sighing, she crossed the last thing on her list. "Arielle's clothing: check." She stepped over to the chest and tried to move it with all her strength and she struggled, pushing with her back and dug her boots into the ground. She spun around to the young commander.

"Arielle, what in god's name do you have in there?"

"My armor and clothes. I packed the lightest armor I have."

The governor whistled to a couple of soldiers to transport the chest to the proper wagon otherwise it was going to bother her throughout the entire journey. She looked to Arielle and sensed that there something going on in that head of hers and she had a feeling it was due to seeing Bayan after being a part for nine months now.

"I know you're still married to Bayan and you're supposed to share a tent together when we meet up," she mentioned and the commander's eyes narrowed. "But you can share a tent with me and your grandmother if you'd like?"

Arielle was still young and had much to learn about the world but she wasn't a naïve teenager anymore. She didn't appreciate the way Bayan completely left her for someone else especially without telling her. Perhaps she would've been more receptive if he'd been honest with her in the beginning and maybe she could be at least cordial with the woman, but that now that was impossible. She didn't want their relationship to ruin this mission and most of all she didn't want to disappoint her family.

"You two shouldn't have to sacrifice your space just for me. I will share a tent with Bayan during the trip."

Gabrielle nodded and stuffed her journal into a satchel slung over her shoulder. "We just don't want you to be uncomfortable. If you change your mind, we'll be there for you."

Arielle folded her arms, watching all of the soldiers gather their bags and weaponry. They were supposed to head out with Ernak earlier than everyone else since they were going to travel on foot majority of the way towards Mongolia and it was a long journey from Pannonia.

"Grandma is only coming along so she can keep an eye on me."

"She cares about you."

Arielle brushed her fingers through her hair and sighed. "Is she ever going to trust me with the army? I know that she misses being commander. I feel like she's going to override my commands during the mission."

Gabrielle had the same thoughts but her wife reassured her that she had no intention of thwarting Arielle's orders and position. "You must understand that this is only thing she's known her entire life. She had to drastically change her life and put her trust completely in you, Arielle. She took a rank much lower than she deserves so she could be with you. She wants you to succeed as commander so when she's gone…" she hated to even put that in her mind, "that you will lead the empire to victory."

"But she has a lot more experience than I do. I don't know if I could ever be as good as her!"

"Arielle, you're being too hard on yourself. Your grandmother is three times your age. That's how she got the experience, and trust me, she's lost several times. You won't win all the time. If that's what you're worried about then you are leading yourself down a path of disappointment."

She added, "and what is the most important lesson we taught you?"

Arielle raised her eyebrow. "Always keep your fists close to your face and never drop your sword?"

The governor chuckled. "Yes, but, if you can avoid a conflict or war, do it. War is costly –not just with coin but with lives as well. Remember that."

"Got it," Arielle nodded. "Thanks, Gabrielle. You're so much easier to talk to than my mother and grandma sometimes. They're always yelling at me or something."

"You are a difficult girl, Arielle. You've always been difficult but that's not always a bad thing!" she assured her and the commander looked at her doubtfully. "It's the perfect attitude to have as a commander but don't forget to switch gears when you're around family. Your grandmother had a hard time doing that her entire life. She's a lot better now."

"Yeah right."

Gabrielle gripped the queen's shoulder. "I swear to you, she's a different person now. You never saw her when she was in her prime. You have a good head on your shoulders just as she said."

"She said that?"

"Gabrielle!" Xena yelled across the field.

The blonde groaned. "But she is still bossy," she whispered. "What the hell do you want? Can't you see that I am having a conversation?" she walked towards her wife.

Xena scoffed. "You organized these caravans in the wrong order."

"I did not."

"Yes you did."

Arielle rolled her eyes at the two women bickering over something that really had no relevance. Those two really acted like an old married couple and it showed.

Mirac returned to the camp later than expected. He didn't know that his brothers were going to be so picky when it came to buying weapons and other supplies needed for the tribe. He crept into his yurt and took off his fur coat and gently placed it on the couch. He tried not to make a lot of noise coming in as it was late at night and everyone in the camp was asleep.

When he arrived he saw Hun guards posted outside of a large yurt and he knew that Cera's mother was here. He felt that he needed to greet her first thing in the morning and apologize for his tardiness.

As he was undressing from his layers upon layers of warm clothes, he looked to his slumbering wife on their bed. He crawled on his side of the bed gently and stared at the black lace dress she was wearing and her auburn hair glistening in the candlelight.

Cera exhaled heavily, awakening from the movement beside her. She rolled over and smiled seeing Mirac after being a part for awhile, she was glad to see another familiar face around here.

He smoothed out his short raven hair and settled into bed. "I was trying not to wake you," he whispered.

She lifted her arm from beneath the blankets and signed tiredly, "I missed you."

"It's nice to be missed," he says softly and she responded with a deep yawn. "I brought gifts for you and your mother. Does she like necklaces?" he asked unsurely.

Cera waved her hand back and forth, uncertain of whether her mother cared for jewelry or not. "I am sure she will love them," she signed and placed her hand over her heart.

He nestled close to her and grazed his fingers through her long red hair. He leaned downward to kiss her and then heard what sounded like people running with heavy boots on. Cera sat up and brought the blankets close to her chest. He slowly rose from the bed and grabbed his sword beside him and cautiously made his way to the doorway.

"Stay here," he told her.

He walked out of the yurt and Cera frowned, waiting patiently for a few moments until a flaming arrow pierced through the top of the yurt. The fire spread across the ornate rug and she quickly climbed her way out of the bed and grabbed her coat.

She ran outside, barefoot in the snow and saw men attacking everyone in sight. They were pulling women out of their yurts and dragging them across the snow. She darted to a secluded area and watched as these men invaded the homes of the Nezak Huns, slitting throats and stabbing everyone profusely.

Her eyes went to her mother's yurt and she opened her mouth, briefly forgetting that she had no voice to emit. She almost ran out from behind the yurt until she saw her mother on her horse, riding out to the mountains with the Pannonian guards. She squinted her eyes to look to the mountains and saw torches lit along the wall and flaming arrows raining down on the tribe.

The sounds of children and infants crying caught her attention and she ran out from behind the yurt. The invaders had a horde of children with them and one of the men held a baby up by its leg upside down. She grit her teeth and ripped the spear off the yurt's mantle and ran towards the chaos.

She plowed the spear through the soldier holding the infant and he fell over, dropping the child. She reached out and grabbed the wailing baby in her arm before it hit the cold snow. She was so distracted by the baby that she didn't even realize there were several other soldiers around her.

They looked over to her and she eyed the children being held hostage by the men. She scooped up the infant in her arms and wasn't sure what to do. She wanted to save the others but she was outnumbered and had nothing to defend herself with.

Cera took off running into the flaming camp and once the men slaughtered the remaining children they set their eyes on the fleeing princess. She looked over her shoulder and four of the men followed her. She ran through the snow and stepped over burning debris, burning the soles of her feet.

She gasped upon meeting more men who now surrounded her. Backing away slowly, two of them grabbed her arms and she clung to the crying infant, refusing to let go. One of the men whacked her midsection and she hissed, doubling over.

He snatched the child from her arms and she reached outward but was held in another man's arms, squeezing her tightly. The man held the children in one arm and smiled at the princess. His black eyes glistened in the fires around him. Cera's eyes widened and welled with tears.

He wrapped his large hand around the infant's small neck and Cera struggled to get free. With a quick snap he broke the child's neck and Cera watched the horror before her eyes as the baby was thrown into a fiery pile of debris.

"Put her in the wagon with the others," he demanded.

Anastasia slowed with a yank of her steed's reins and stared at the men in the mountains. Badr rode up beside her. "Your highness, there are too many men here. It will take too long to ride to the top of the mountains."

She snarled at the shadows slowly disappearing into the mountains and the torches were blown out. "It is too dark to see anyone. Spread out!" she ordered. "Man the perimeters of the entire camp!"

Badr waved his hand to the ten men and they rode in separate directions while he was stationed near his queen. He looked to the mountains and couldn't see a thing, although he knew men were hiding, he just didn't know who.

"What do you want to do now?"

She circled around and observed that the invaders had fled from the encampment and there were hundreds dead, all women and children, the men had survived. She raised her eyebrow and icy breath escaped her mouth from a deep exhale.

"I will alert Bey Malka about this. Gather all the men in the tribe and tell them to put the fires out."

Badr nodded. "What do you wish me to do with the corpses, khatun?"

Ana hated to see so many dead women but the children especially tugged at her heart. "Burn them."

Mirac ran through the camp, barefoot, clothes tattered, body covered in blood, searching for his wife. The first place he looked was their yurt and he saw it was burned down to the ground. He ran over and slashed through the thick felt fabric with his sword.

Angrily he ripped open the fabric and walked on top of hot lattice frame and burned his hand lifting up the wooden frame only to find it was completely empty. He looked around and ran through the camp, calling out for her.

"Cera!" he frantically searched and entered a couple of yurts that were somehow saved from the massacre. "Cera!"

He kept searching and saw his older sisters kneeling on the ground, sobbing loudly. He approached them and peered over their shoulders and wrapped a hand over his mouth. He ran to the side and vomited violently, coughing and hacking. He was never going to get the image of his nephews and nieces mutilated out of his mind.

Badr galloped into the camp and halted in front of Mirac. "Son of Kerem," he addressed curtly.

Mirac lifted his teary blue eyes, staring at the Pannonian Hun soldier, still horrified at what he just witnessed.

"The queen commands that all men should put out the fires and burn the bodies. Relay the message." He turned to leave.

Mirac got to his feet and grabbed Badr's arm. "Wait…" he says breathlessly, "Cera is missing."

The Hun army traveled across Pannonia and north of the Black Sea so they wouldn't be seen by Justinian's men in the south. The further north they went the colder it was and blizzards were bound to occur soon if they didn't find shelter. Ernak lead the army in the front with Arielle.

Gabrielle trotted slowly with Xena in the back of the army, looking at a large map laid out on her saddle. She hated the winter months and preferred to live in southern Pannonia but that just wasn't an option anymore. She also hated traveling at this time of year. Her skin was flushed from the cold breeze rushing against her face.

Gazing at the map she shivered and cuddled inside her fur coat. Her eyes glanced over at her wife who didn't seem to be disturbed by the cold at all, although she had a fur hat to keep her warm and Gabrielle had nothing but the cloak's hood to keep her warm.

It was going to take them a long time, probably a month to reach Mongolia and they weren't even to the Caspian Sea yet. She traced her gloved finger along the map and there were a couple of roadblocks along the way. She sought to avoid all conflict during this journey.

"Should we stop in Balaam along the way or go around the Caspian Sea? Either way we're going to walk through Persian territories," she asks her wife.

Xena raised her eyebrows and leaned over to take a look at the map. "What do you suggest?"

"But I asked you."

"You're the governor," she smiled.

Gabrielle grunted and saw that Kazakhstan bordered China and Mongolia and parts of the Persian lands. "We should go around the Caspian Sea. It's probably safer that way."

"Alright, mountains it is." She winked at her wife then rode to the front of the army to alert Arielle and Ernak of the plan.

She came to a slow trot and Arielle unraveled the scarf away from her face. Xena smiled and pointed north. "Gabrielle suggested we go through lower Kazakhstan to get to Mongolia instead of going to Balaam and Persian territories."

Arielle looked back at the cold governor sitting on her horse, waiting patiently. "I hope she likes blizzards," she teased. She raised her arm in the air and directed them to steer their path further north for the remainder of the journey.

"How does it feel to be beneath your wife and granddaughter in rank?"

Xena frowned at Arielle's smug face. "I've already done your job a thousand times over. Don't get cocky, Arielle."

"You only came along because you don't trust me."

"No, I came along so I could help you plus I've never been to China. It will be fun," Xena gave a big smile and the commander grumbled. "You need all the help you can get. Ideally, there should be two commanders for an army this size, but you'll just have to deal with me instead. Take the help when it is offered to you."

She turned and galloped back to her station with her wife in the back. Arielle sighed and wrapped the scarf around her face, dreading the rest of this journey. She also didn't want to see Bayan's face when they met up in Mongolia but she had a long while to calm herself before their reunion.

Navaz received an urgent message from the Nezak Huns and he immediately went to his wife's room. Safiya sat in front of the mirror, braiding her long thick hair until he rushed in. She turned in the chair and widened her eyes, staring at his flushed face.

"What's with you?"

"Anastasia sent this to me. She is in Kazakhstan and she said that someone invaded Kerem's tribe," he told her and he saw his wife's eyes narrow, obviously still sour of that one night years ago. "She said that Cera is missing. She believes someone took her during the attack."

Safiya wrapped a ribbon around the tail end of her plait and grabbed a red headdress with a very long veil attached to it. She gently set it atop her hair and smoothed the veil around her face. Navaz grew impatient as she was taking her sweet time to get ready when she had hours to do so.

"What do you want me to do? Go to Kazakhstan to aid them?" she asks and stood up slowly.

"That would be nice and take Soran with you. I don't know what he's been doing lately but he needs to stop leaving the Adame for days at a time. I have no idea where he runs off to."

Safiya briefly smiles and took the letter right out of his hands. "Neither of your children listens to you and here I thought they were taking after their mothers but perhaps they get that from you." She underhandedly insulted both of his ex-wives.

Navaz frowned and watched her leave the bedroom and circle around the hall to Soran's room.

She knocked on her stepson's door and waited patiently then knocked again. "Soran, I need to talk to you." she calls out. While she was waiting she looked at the letter handwritten by Anastasia and folded it up and tucked it into her belt.

He opened the door and was finishing dressing himself. "Come in," he stepped aside and his stepmother entered the messy room and raised an eyebrow.

"Soran, why is your room so dirty?" she inquired and picked up a pair of pants that she hadn't seen before. She also saw a pair of female boots beside the bed. "And whose shoes are those?" she pointed the boots out.

The eighteen year old blushed and picked up the feminine boots and tossed them into a hamper. "Nobody's."

She felt a bit nosy looking around his room but she saw a tunic that didn't belong to him. He was a rather slender teenager and didn't have the large build that his father had and this tunic would swallow him. She definitely knew people had been in his room.

"Soran, what have you been doing in here? Having wild orgies with strangers?"

He laughed nervously. "No, Safiya!" he grabbed the tunic and stuffed it into the hamper. "A few of my friends spent the night here for a few days."

"A few days!"

"Safiya," he cleared his throat, "why did you need to speak with me?"

She was not to forget what he told her but for now they had bigger things to worry about. She says to him, "your father wants both of us to go to Kazakhstan. Princess Cera has been kidnapped or something of the rather."

He widens his light eyes. "What?!" he scrambled to put on his boots. "When did this happen?"

"I am not sure but given the time it takes for a message to be sent, probably a couple of weeks ago."

She knew that Soran was very fond of Cera since they were only a few months a part in age, but she never thought he'd react so strongly to this news. She wasn't exactly sure if he would react the same way if something happened to Arielle; his actual blood relative.

He didn't bother to comb his short raven hair and ran to the doors. "What are we waiting for? Let's go!"

"Soran!" she yelled and he ran back into the room and leaned on the doorway. "We need to gather a group of men. We can't leave unattended."

He nods. "Alright let's do that then. I'll gather the soldiers and we can leave tonight." He remained adamant while she was reluctant about going entirely.

Gabrielle huddled around the campfire in the Mongolian desert while Xena was busy scoping out the place with her silent eyes. She shifted and moved closer to her wife for warmth but even that wasn't helping and she just had to embrace the cold.

They arrived in Mongolia a few hours ago and arrived a lot earlier than anticipated due to Arielle's diligence and unwillingness to stop. The meeting between Bayan and everyone was awkward to say the least but he hadn't spoken to his wife since they arrived. Everyone suspected that there was to be yelling shortly but hours had passed and the camp was silent.

They camped out in the Zubu region and it was a flat desert, a flat cold desert, Gabrielle repeated several times. She despised winter and the further north they traveled the worse the weather was. Luckily for them there were no blizzards during the journey up here and the chieftain said that there were hardly any snowstorms in the area.

"So, this was Kreka's tribe," Gabrielle's teeth chattered.

Xena chuckled and wrapped an arm around her shivering wife. "Yes. It looks a lot different since I was last here."

"Well Xena, that was over thirty years ago!"

She slowly nods and took a good look at the hundreds of yurts scattered across the desert. She felt a sense of nostalgia being in this place. She didn't stay long but it was the first time she ever laid eyes on the khatun and her family. She remembered every detail and also remembered how Attila was so smitten with Kreka from the moment they exchanged words.

"I miss her."

Gabrielle leaned her head on her wife's shoulder. "I know you do. I never thought I'd hear you say those words considering how you two behaved around each other."

"She acted tough but in reality, she was just a big softie," Xena joked. "Except when she's angry."

Ernak took a seat on a bench across from them and he already had his wine handy. "Evening ladies," he greeted and Xena rolled her eyes. "Isn't this a great tribe? I can't believe my mother lived here. I'm glad she gave this area to me. I was thinking I should move Nisa and my sons here."

The governor wrapped her arms around her knees and leaned closer to the fire. "Really? You would leave Pannonia indefinitely?"

"Why not? This is my tribe now too plus I really hate being away from my family for months at a time. It's bad enough that Nisa will give birth without me there," he sighed. "But I know Ursula will take good care of her. Csaba already has precedence over Pannonia anyway. It's the perfect arrangement for everyone."

"If that's what you think is best. You must feel happy to be in your mother's old region."

He smiled, looking around while sipping the wine. "Yes, it's nice. It's like she's always with me when I am here."

Xena half smiled and laced her gloved fingers together. "You have a heart of gold, Ernak. I suppose you get that from her except…you show it better," she teased.

He looked over at the couple who were entering their tent together. "Ooo, look over there. Arielle is going in with Bayan. Prepare your swords, ladies! Get ready to hear yelling and foul words from the commander's mouth!" he laughed.

Gabrielle grumbled. "Ernak that is not funny. She doesn't deserve anything that's happened to her."

"She also hasn't moved on from it," muttered Xena.

"He's been having an affair for two years!" she slapped her wife's knee. "Have a heart, would you?"

"I'm not heartless, Gabrielle!"

Ernak coughed, interrupting the fight that was smoldering between them. "In all seriousness, I love Arielle and would gladly beat Bayan's ass if I had to. Hopefully I won't have to do that on this mission. Excuse me, but I must go mingle with my friends."

Gabrielle exhaled and bit her bottom lip, gazing up at her irritated wife. "Do you want to go in the tent now? I can't stay outside anymore unless I want to get frostbite later."

"It's not that cold."

"Please!"

"Alright, I don't want to hear any more whining from you about the snow or cold weather," she mocked her wife.

Gabrielle gasped and stumbled in the snow and grabbed onto her wife's fur collar. "Listen here, Xena, you know I hate the cold. I should have never agreed to come with you. All you do is make fun of my suffering."

"And you make it so easy."

Arielle and Bayan stood on opposite sides of bed roll on the floor, staring at each other. He could see that she was furious and holding it inside by the grace of the gods. He hoped he wasn't going to be mauled in his sleep and in fact he wanted to offer to sleep outside because of the tension inside the tent.

He broke the ice, "You can take the bed. I will sleep in the corner." He took his blanket and coat then moved by her, careful not to touch her, and began his own bed on the far side of the tent. The space was small but large enough to fit three people if need be.

Her fists loosened and she relaxed her hands by her sides. She had plenty of time to get over being angry at her husband but seeing him for the first time in almost a year was difficult for her and he probably wouldn't understand, she thought.

"It's too cold outside. We can share the bed," she offered.

Bayan raised his eyebrows and smoothed out the wool blanket, staring at her backside. "It's okay. I don't mind sleeping over here."

She turned around and now the two locked eyes once again. "Don't be ridiculous, Bayan. Get in the bed."

He licked his dry upper lip and awkwardly stood up, grabbing his things, and hesitantly walked back over to where he stood. He dropped the blanket and coat on the floor and they were back to square one again. He didn't feel like arguing with her so he just complied with whatever she said.

Lowering her eyes, she sat down on the makeshift bed and began taking off her boots. That was his cue to sit down as well and they had their backs turned from each other. Arielle peered over her shoulder for a brief moment and eyed the tattoos on his wrists which she hadn't seen before.

"Aurora asks about you. She misses you."

He smiled. "I miss her too."

Arielle placed her boots neatly beside her sword and coat then released a heavy sigh. "Why her?"

"What?"

"Why did you pick her? You've been seeing her for two years while also being married to me."

He knew this conversation was going to come up and he didn't want to deal with it at all. He was getting enough of it at home in Harran.

"An apology isn't going to fix things."

She turned and folded her legs. "But it would be nice to hear it. You haven't apologized to me at all, Bayan. You lied to me for two years and you also…you brought her around our daughter! How could you betray me like that? I feel so embarrassed and you bring shame to my entire family. They don't want to be associated with you."

He allowed her to speak and while she did, he didn't know what to say back to her. "I'm sorry."

"Is she better looking than me? What does she have that I don't?"

Bayan pinched the bridge of his nose and put up his hand. "Arielle, I'm not going to compare Sarnai with you."

"You didn't answer my questions."

"No….she's not more attractive than you."

"Then what is it! I would love to know!" she stood up and he sighed heavily.

"Sit down. Please?"

Arielle folded her arms and sat back down, glaring at him, waiting for some answers.

"The truth is; I was upset that you took your grandmother's offer to be commander. I didn't get to spend any time with you and taking care of Aurora was difficult without you. I didn't even realize what I was doing until she told me that she…was pregnant," he said quietly. "And then I knew that I made a horrible mistake."

"So instead of talking to me about your feelings, you went and had sex with another woman? Do you know how stupid you sound right now?"

"Yes!" he raised his voice and then calmed down. "Yes, I know. It was very foolish of me and I'm sorry. I don't know what else to say because now I have to either marry her or she'll leave."

Arielle had some sympathy for him and she didn't think that she would especially a few months ago when she was seething with fury. She saw how stressed he was and he was probably just as unhappy as she was but she really couldn't forgive him, at least not right now.

"Did she have a boy or a girl?"

Her question caught him off guard and he tilted his head. "A boy. He's named after me."

She nodded and then lay down on her side, facing away from him. She blew out the candle and stared into the darkness. Sleep would not come to her tonight, she thought. She felt him behind her, shifting underneath the blankets and he was so far away that she couldn't feel his warmth at all.

"Bayan."

"Yes?"

"I…will sign a divorce decree so you can marry her if you want."

She heard him exhale softly.

"We will talk about it later," he answered tiredly.

Bey Malka came to Chieftain Kerem's tribe later than expected after he received Anastasia's letter weeks ago. He sent his soldiers out to scout the entirety of Kazakhstan to look for the missing princess and the invaders. He hated to report that he found nothing that lead to either one.

"Your highness, I am sorry to meet under these circumstances," he addressed her properly. He also bowed to the chieftain and his eldest daughter, chieftess Yana.

"Your men haven't found anything leading to Cera or the attackers?" she dives in with immediate questioning.

Malka shook his head. "We have searched everywhere. It is why I am so late to meet with you."

She grunted. "It is pointless to stay in Kazakhstan at this point. Cera is long gone and far from here. She may not be alive for all I know."

"Don't say that, your highness," the Bey tried to reassure her doubts. "There are four possible groups that could have attacked this area," he began and Ana frowned, awaiting for more, he adds, "Persians, Mongols, Chinese or the Yakuts. We are on good terms with China thanks to your son and we have no quarrels with the Mongols. That leaves us with Persians and Yakuts."

She folded her arms and instantly thought of Madhiya. "Kerem has told me that the Yakuts relocated. Do you know their new location now?"

Malka looked to the chieftain. "I was not aware of the Yakut's relocation."

"Madhiya took her tribe elsewhere because she did not want to remain in the same place. She stopped communicating with the northern tribes as soon as we cut off her grain supply," said Kerem.

Anastasia eyed both men and could see there was a bit of a miscommunication in the Nezak tribes. Kazakhstan was such a large state that it would be somewhat hard to get the message across to every single tribe there is. The area was five times that of Pannonia and had three times as many tribes. Kerem's family just happened to have the second largest tribe in the state next to Malka.

"Find out where Madhiya's new location is," she ordered Bey Malka. "Find out who she does trade with now. She is not included in the empire so she could be trading with Persians for all we know or even Justinian."

"Ömm Anastasia!" Soran yelled as he trotted towards the encampment.

She turned and what a surprise it was to see Soran and Safiya riding with a legion of White Hun soldiers. She was pleased to see that Navaz agreed to help her, although clearly, Safiya was not eager or willing to help by the disdain upon her soft features.

The prince dismounted and greeted everyone in the tribe. He shook hands with Mirac and smiled. "Pleased to meet you. Prince Soran of Balaam, Armenia."

Mirac nodded, unsure of whom this teenager was but smiled anyway. "Mirac, Son of Kerem."

"Ah, you are Cera's husband! I've heard good things about you. I hope you have treated her well."

"Y-yes…of course," Mirac looked at Safiya confusedly. "Are you a relative of Cera's?" he didn't want to sound rude.

Soran grinned. "I am her stepbrother, sort of. It's complicated. She is like my sister. I heard she was kidnapped and I brought my stepmother to help. We will find Cera, don't worry."

He didn't know this prince at all but he could tell he cared a great deal for Cera and if the queen trusted Soran then he felt the need to return the trust.

Anastasia greeted Safiya after being several years apart from one another. "Thank you for coming to help."

"You are the empire's queen. I am obligated to come to your aid," says Safiya coldly. "Navaz asked me to assist you and so here I am."

Weeks of traveling weighed heavily on Cera. She felt like she was losing her mind and she had no idea where she was whenever she opened her eyes. She was always in a new place and the scenery looked drastically different than any place she'd ever been. She knew she was being drugged ever since she woke up after days being asleep.

She refused food from then on out but kept drinking water that the men gave her which apparently also had some kind of herb that knocked her out. At least she wasn't dead, she kept reminding herself. Now she was waking up to a new location once again. In a cage with a few other young women, she felt like a caged animal.

Her vision cleared after a few moments and she looked at the dark gloomy morning sky and she could smell water nearby. The other four young women in the wagon with her kept gawking at her. Cera rubbed her eyes and looked down at her shackled ankles and wrists chained together. These people weren't going to let anyone escape.

All four women in the wagon were from Mirac's tribe and they were among the most beautiful in the tribe. They weren't the plain or ordinary women. No, they were probably dead, Cera imagined. She didn't want to think of all those dead children, babies and women back at the camp.

"Princess, will the queen come for us? Will she find us?" the light haired brunette whispered.

Cera gaped at the young woman and shrugged her shoulder. At this point she didn't know where she was and if she didn't know then her mother definitely wouldn't know of her whereabouts.

She turned and looked through the iron bars at the people staring curiously at them. Everyone here looked different. The more she studied these people's faces she had an idea where she and the others might be. China…

The caravan abruptly halted and the driver came round and opened the cage. He grabbed the women one by one, pushing them out. He grabbed Cera's arm and she climbed out with her aching legs and nearly collapsed onto the ground. He gathered them up and pushed them forward to a dock filled with several ships.

Cera raised an eyebrow and squinted her eyes at the ships as she kept walking in step with the other girls.

The driver told them to wait and he approached a merchant located at the docks. "Which ship sails to Kusuba?"

"My ship is sailing to Kusuba at the moment, sir," the merchant told him.

"Excellent. I have some women that need to be delivered to the Imperial Palace." He pulled out a purse filled with coin and shoved it in the merchant's palm. "I trust you can get them there."

"Of course sir," the short merchant bowed his head respectfully and eyed the five women waiting in chains.

Kusuba? Where is that? Cera overheard the men chatting and suddenly she was being forced onto the ship. She descended onto the deck and a lot of men looked her way and she grimaced. She was pushed forward by the ship merchant and she stumbled forward awkwardly with the weight of the shackles on her ankles. She clung to the main mast.

The ship rocked gently and Cera's eyes widened as they drifted further and further away from the docks. The other girls huddled together around her and she heard the ship merchant yelling in his native tongue to the sailors.

"Nihon e no fune ni notte!" he yelled. "Nihon e no fune ni notte! Kusuba!"

She recognized that word from somewhere. Cera desperately tried to remember all of the lessons she had back home with Gabrielle, Farah and Nisa. There were so many places on the map she hadn't been to but she memorized many. Nihon, she repeated over and over in her head. Mouthing the word she closed her eyes, thinking back all of her geography lessons.

She recalled a lesson her grandmother taught in her classroom one day. She stopped in occasionally to listen in when her art classes had yet to begin for the day.

"The Katana is a very sharp sword. It is one of the sharpest swords in the world. Some may say the sharpest. Japonya'nin Katana," Xena told her students. "Or formally known as the Nihonto."

Cera's eyes shot wide open and she looked to the open waters and frightened women. Japonya. I am far from home –very far from home.

Ömm= respected mother