Chapter 33
Cera sat on a bench underneath the window and overlooked the mass of Persian soldiers mingling with the Huns. She didn't like being cooped up in the Adame especially with the extra guests. The place was crowded and this home wasn't nearly as large as her home in Pannonia. Everyone was on top of one another and it was bad enough that her mother came to see her three times a day or possibly more. She lost count.
She looked at her husband who came to join her spying on the Persians. Mirac pointed at one of the Persians who bickered with one of Navaz's soldiers. They watched together, laughing at the soldiers shoving each other which then ensued into a larger fight in which three other men had to intervene.
Mirac's laughter died down and he peered at his wife. "Gülüm," he took her hand, "we don't have to stay here. We could go back to Kazakhstan. I know autumn and winter aren't your favorite seasons especially in Kazakhstan but at least it would be…quieter."
Cera sighed and rubbed her thumb on the back of his hand. She did enjoy spending as much time as possible with her family but it was true, it was overwhelming to be here. She occasionally heard her mother cursing the Persian concubines often.
She tried not to think of the fall season approaching. It would only be two months shy of the time she was supposed to deliver her child. Mirac tried his best not to talk about it and his sister was very helpful over the last month but the pain still lingered. She wished that she didn't know that the child she lost was a girl. It only made it harder for her to forget.
Her hand slid off his and curled into her lap. She swiped her hand over her head, gesturing to Mirac that she had a thought.
He leaned in. "Yes?"
"I want to go live with my sister," she signed. "Just for awhile."
"Oh." He wasn't expecting that at all. "You don't want to go back to our tribe?"
Cera faintly smiled. "I don't want your siblings to question me. It would be too much for me." She placed a hand over her heart.
"I understand."
She sighed. "Hopefully my mother will let me go. She's been irritable lately with the Persians here."
They heard something topple over and a soft voice from nearby within the bedroom. Mirac helped Cera to stand off the bench and they walked over to the cause of the noise. There was Aurora holding the kamancheh by the neck, the instrument nearly standing at the same height as her.
Mirac knelt on one knee and set the kamancheh back on its stand. "Princess, what are you doing in here?"
Aurora eyed her aunt and blinked rapidly. "Uhm, I was just curious about this," she pointed to the instrument. "Pamira said Teyze Cera knows how to play it. Can you play it? I wanna hear how it sounds."
Mirac looked back at his wife, unsure of what the reaction was to ensue. He knew that she enjoyed the lessons Pamira gave her daily but she hadn't touched the kamancheh in over a month. The thought of disposing of it had occurred to him since he didn't want the loss of their child to be a constant reminder.
"Princess, I don't know if that is such a good –"
Cera gripped his arm and dropped to her knees and smiled at her little niece. "I would love to play it for you." she couldn't blame Aurora for her curiosity. "I am going to come live with you and your mother soon."
Aurora gasped and took her aunt's hands. "This is so great! We can do all kinds of fun things together! You can help me study too and we can have a party for my birthday! Maybe you can play this for my birthday. Will you do that, Teyze Cera?"
The redheaded princess stifled a laugh and nodded.
"We haven't asked your grandmother if we can come with you to Scythia yet, princess," said Mirac.
Aurora made a face and slipped her hands away from her aunt. "Ohhh…you don't want to talk to grandma khatun. She's not in a good mood. She doesn't like those Persian ladies, I think. She called them fahişeler."
Cera's cheeks reddened and covered the girl's ears. She looked to her husband who was on the verge of laughing uncontrollably.
"I didn't know your mother had such a foul mouth," he alleged.
"What does fahişe mean anyway?" asked Aurora.
Mirac chuckled at the word coming from such an innocent mouth. His wife turned and whacked him in the chest and his laughter trailed off, staring at the naive little princess.
"You don't want to know. Do us all a favor and don't repeat that word. Ever."
Xerxes sat up in bed with the help of his doting mother. He was disappointed to wake up to Arielle's absence two weeks ago. He was even more upset that his brothers decided to take over the empire and dethrone their father. Now he was considered his brothers' enemy. He wished he could say he was surprised but he expected something like this to happen a long time ago.
Once, he was on the side of Kawus and now he was on no one's side. He didn't trust Jamasp at all and with his father's harem in Hun quarters, he felt guilty that he wasn't able to do more. He was briefly greeted by Navaz upon his awakening and reassured that his mother and harem were taken care of.
He just had to focus on recovering but that wasn't going too well either. He was barely above to move his shoulder and since had his arm in a sling. His mother was there early in the mornings and in the evenings to check on him. He felt like such a child.
Nousha smiled, adjusting the blankets and sat beside the bed. "Is there anything I can get for you?"
"Actually there is." He glanced around the room. "Some parchment and ink."
She raised an eyebrow. "For what?"
"I want to write Arielle and let her know that I'm alright."
Nousha grimaced and folded her arms. "I'm sure her father sent her a letter already. You don't need to bother yourself with her, Xerxes. She's busy with her own affairs."
"Mother," he pressed, "get the parchment and ink, please."
"I don't know why you keep on with this charade, Xerxes," she scoffed. "She is neither your wife nor part of your harem. I could arrange a marriage for you with that young woman, Mera, from the House of Varaz. I hear that she is available."
He dug his fingers into his closed fist. "Mother, I don't want an arranged marriage and I don't have a harem anymore! Jamasp probably sold all of those women in the slave market already! I just want to write Arielle. If you don't get the parchment then I will go get it myself."
She hesitated and then walked over to grab some blank parchment and an ink well. She threw the parchment onto his lap and plopped back down into the chair. Her son kindly thanked her with a head nod and situated himself to write a letter against his raised thigh.
"Why her?" she asked softly.
Xerxes twisted the top off the ink well and spat out the cork and eyed his mother.
"I like her, mother," he admits, hiding his shy smile. "I know you don't approve."
"Your father wouldn't approve either."
He stopped writing and glared at his mother. "Father is imprisoned and he doesn't know about my relationship with Arielle. I'd like to keep it that way."
"You aren't thinking of marrying her are you?" she asked, studying her son's dilated eyes. "Xerxes, if you marry her you will lose everything in our empire. You won't be in line for the crown."
"Mother, stop with the third degree." He dipped the pen in the ink. "When I'm finished writing this I want you to give it to General Zolten. He will make sure it gets delivered."
Nousha flashed a quick disapproving smile.
Xena and Gabrielle walked together towards the imperial gardens located in the back of the vast Banat palace. They were set to speak with Bayan about the plan to invade Pannonia. Xena was not looking forward to meeting Bayan and couldn't believe out of all people, Ernak wanted Bayan to have a share of Pannonian land.
She had no doubt that Bayan was useful in the field from what Ernak said but she still wanted to wrap her hands around his neck. She wasn't surprised that Bayan had an affair with another woman. She was convinced that he lured Arielle away from the family, alienating her entirely.
She wasn't quite sure why men left their wives for another. Kreka's son, Dengi, did the same thing to Leila. Much to her surprise, Kreka wasn't shocked that her son had a woman on the side. It was almost like she expected it especially after Dengi's daughter died.
Strange woman Kreka was, she thought.
"We should use him as the bait and send him to Eksama," she whispered.
Gabrielle gave a dramatic eye roll. "Nobody doubts your detest for the man, Xena. But he's on our side. Promise me you won't choke him."
"I make no promises." Xena smiled, hiding her crossed fingers behind her back.
Bayan turned at the muffled voices and footsteps. He bowed his head to the women and gulped. "Governor," he said, "Xena…"
"Bayan." The khanum brought her eyebrows together. "Why is it that we always meet during a time of chaos? Trouble finds you everywhere."
"Ernak said you wanted to speak with me." He didn't want to argue and thought to cut straight to the chase.
Gabrielle inhaled sharply. "You'll be accompanying us to Pannonia. Since Xena and I are recognizable we are going to send you to the tribe in a disguise. You will act as a traveler and scout the area; question the citizens and ask what they think of Eksama."
He nodded, not taking his eye off Xena who was glaring very intensely. "And what will happen after that?"
"You'll report back to us and then we're going to send a soldier to negotiate with Eksama."
He rubbed his chin. "She's going to kill that soldier. Can I make a suggestion?"
"No," Xena barked.
"Xena, let's hear what he has to say. It wouldn't hurt to have suggestions," Gabrielle advised. "Go ahead, Bayan. We're listening."
With hesitancy, he spoke, "this might take longer than your initial plan but we could destroy all of her catapults. When she attacked Banat she had an entire line of catapults and broke through some of the city's wall. Without them she is bound to lose."
Gabrielle smiled, liking the idea, although she could see Xena was not impressed.
He added, "We could also set all the army's horses loose. Eksama relies heavily on horsemen and ballistic weapons. If we got rid of what she depends on the most then the raid will be over in a few days. Maybe."
"We'll take into consideration…"
Nousha tapped the scroll against her palm. She contemplated her options of either sending the letter to General Zolten or disposing of it. In the middle of the hallway she saw the entry doors up ahead and the women's quarters over on her right.
She walked to the women's room and poked her head inside to find the room empty. Smiling, she strolled into the room casually and came to a tall candle nearly the same height as her. She tore the ribbon off the scroll and placed the parchment over the flame, watching the flame slowly engulf the letter.
With a raise of her chin she dropped the burning letter into a silver incense tray. The ends curled, blackening from the flames and smoke filled the corner of the room.
Pamira entered the room in search of tea. She tried to avoid this room as she didn't want to talk to any of the concubines especially since she could understand the language. She never realized how much her own kind talked so poorly of the Huns until she was constantly surrounded by it.
She halted and frowned at the black smoke traveling up to the ceiling. "Banu Nousha?"
Nousha spun around at the voice and smiled. "Pamira. Good afternoon."
"Afternoon." She circled around the pillows and looked at the burning parchment. "I was going to bring tea to Anastasia Khatun. She's on the terrace with Princess Cera and Yana. Would you like to join us?"
"A kind offer," Nousha chided, "but I must decline."
Pamira nodded and walked over to the table, organizing the tea tray with several silver glasses. Her eyes drifted to the burning parchment in the incense. She knew for sure that Nousha was not burning incense by the way she was trying to hide the evidence.
"I know what you're thinking, Banu Nousha, but you would be less miserable if you at least tried to get along with the Hun women."
"Spoken from someone who was kidnapped and forced to marry one of them," retorted Nousha.
Pamira finished pouring the tea and took the tray into her hands, glaring at the petite concubine. "Our people killed my father. He didn't deserve to die. I haven't been mistreated since I've been married to Soran and his father has given you everything you desired. Wipe that scowl off your face."
Nousha's mouth parted, slightly insulted by the teenager's brazen mouth.
"I see that you've acclimated well, child. You now consider yourself one of them," she stepped closer. "You'll never be one of them, Pamira. Your marriage to the prince is a piece of paper and nothing more."
The teen chuckled. "Yet that piece of paper made me a princess. What are you? A simple concubine." She turned and left with tray in hand.
Xena ripped off her headdress and threw it at the wall. She then drew her sword and Gabrielle closed the doors then locked them. She pressed her backside against the doors, watching her wife pace around, waving the blade in the air.
"That little worm!" she screeched. "Just who does he think he is? I've been commanding decades before he existed!"
Gabrielle crept along the wall. "But Xena, his idea is good."
"Whose side are you on, Gabrielle?"
"Whatever side that has the least amount of casualties." She treads cautiously and sat on the bed, smoothing out her cloak. "I know you don't like him. I don't like him either but his idea is good. You have to admit that."
Xena plunged the sword into the floor. "I don't have to admit anything. His idea may be good for a stealth mission but I don't want stealth. I want a head-on attack."
Getting through to her was like talking to a wall. "Why don't we try things his way?"
"I don't want to do it his way!" Xena folded her arms. "I want to do it my way."
Gabrielle cackled. "You sound like Arielle." She looked at the sword that was within her wife's reach. "We'll play it by ear and see what happens. Don't let Bayan upset you. He's already terrified of you. I was sure he was going to wet himself when he saw you."
That brought a smile to Xena's lips. "I see what you're up to, Gabrielle and it's not going to work. I still don't agree with his idea."
"You know, between you and Arielle, it's a miracle that I'm not the one with grey hair."
The locked doors rattled. "Grandma khanum!" the knocking persisted. "It's me, Ede!"
Gabrielle inched towards the doors and pointed to the sword. "You put that away," she whispered. Her wife stood her ground with crossed arms, showing her defiance. "Do it!"
She unlocked the doors and smiled at the prince's beaming face. "Edemen! Look at you," she cupped his cheeks. "You're taller than…me," she said with disappoint.
He chuckled. "Everyone's taller than you, Gabrielle!" he waltzed into the room. "I hear you're going to Pannonia to war with Eksama."
Xena nodded and brought the boy close, pressing his cheek against her chest. "That's right." She ruffled his hair and he groaned audibly.
"Stop that!" he shoved her. "I'm not a little kid," he smoothed out his hair.
"It's astonishing how much you look like your mother."
"Anyway…" he tightened the belt around his waist. "I want to come with you two." He said with a triumphant smile.
Xena and Gabrielle gawked at the boy prince and then broke out into fits of laughter together. Edemen scowled, not finding this situation amusing at all. He was very serious and it looked like all the women in this family thought he was too 'small' and too 'cute' to go on any mission with them. He lumped his mother in that group and now he had these two laughing at his demise.
He grabbed Xena's sword from her hip and pointed it to her chest. All laughter ceased instantly and Xena placed her hands on her hips, eyeing the tip of the blade an inch from her chest.
"I can wield a sword!" he warned. "I've been practicing! Let me come with you!" he begged.
"Put that down before I break your arm, boy."
He held the sword with both hands, challenging her icy stare.
"Do as she says, Edemen. Put it down," said Gabrielle, calmly.
As soon as Xena saw that cocky smile on his face she grabbed him by the arm and flipped him over onto his back. The sword flew into the air and she caught it with one hand and placed her boot on his heaving chest. She pointed the blade to his throat and his eyes amplified in fear.
"You know what you are right now?" she asked and Edemen stared up at her blankly. "Dead."
She took her boot off his chest and grabbed his hand, getting him to his feet. Riddled with embarrassment, he rubbed the sore spot on the small of his back and hid his shameful face from the women.
"Don't ever do that again." She slid the sword into its holster. "Don't be so quick to jump into war, Edemen," she smiled, grazing his cheek. "You have your whole life to do that. You're still a child, so act like one. I don't think you want to give your mother heart attacks just yet." She pat his cheek.
"I don't want mother on my back anymore. She thinks I'm a little kid like my brothers."
Gabrielle wrapped a hand around the nape of his neck. "You can't stop mothers from worrying, Edemen." She sent a warm smile at her spouse. "Your grandmother was very worried about your father and look how old he is!"
The prince lolled his head from side to side and nodded. "I get it, I get it." Still, he remained hopeful. "Can I come on the next raid with you two? Teyze Arielle was able to go with you."
"She was a little bit older than you," Xena reminded him.
"Only by three years!" he spat then received two death stares. "Okay, I won't ask again. When are you leaving for Pannonia? Is it true that Bayan is coming with you? Father says he wishes him dead!"
Gabrielle slapped a hand to her forehead while Xena smugly grinned.
"We'll be leaving in a couple of weeks as soon as we have the supplies gathered."
"Hey do you think Teyze Arielle could train me?" he asked optimistically. "I could see her new palace in Scythia!"
It didn't take much convincing from her mother to allow her to go see Arielle. She didn't know whether she should be insulted by how quickly her mother agreed to the notion or not. On one hand she was happy that she was no longer going to be staying in the crowded Adame but on the other hand she hated to see her mother in such disarray.
Cera shared a caravan with Aurora and Ku who accompanied her to Scythia. She was relieved that she didn't have to ride on a horse for a few days but she felt for Mirac as he trailed behind them on horseback. According to Ku the caravan was only to be used by royalty, or she should say those were Advisor Kuba's words.
After a long nap Aurora became quite a nuisance to Ku as she talked the entire way. She continuously looked out the windows, anxiously waiting to return to her home.
"What should we do first, Teyze Cera? We could paint. Ku can give us some canvases. Right, Ku?"
The Assyrian maid sighed heavily and peeked out the window, hoping the rest of the ride was short.
"Oh wait! I could show you the palace! You're gonna love it," cheered Aurora. "You can get lost if you don't know the way around but don't worry I've inspected the entire place." She waved her hands over her head, indicating the size of her Scythian home.
Cera smiled at her niece's cheery attitude but could tell Ku needed a break from the talkative child. With her visiting the palace she hoped to ease some of Ku's workload. It was as if Aurora had two mothers except Ku did most of the work that Arielle should be doing. She realized her sister was very busy and had a heavy schedule but handing off Aurora to Ku seemed like the easy thing to do. Too easy, she thought.
Hours after crossing the Scythian borders they arrived at the gates. Aurora immediately jumped out of the moving caravan and ran to her mother who was standing, waiting. She ran her mouth and Arielle kept her eye on the extra horses and then saw Cera step out of the carriage with Kuba's assistance.
"Cera!" she picked up her daughter and hurried across the grass. "What are you doing here? I didn't know you were coming." She kissed her sister's cheeks several times.
Cera waft her hand and gently shoved her sister back, wiping her wet cheeks. She was the youngest out of her siblings yet she was taller than both her sister and mother. Still treated like a child, she mused.
"I can show her around the palace!" Aurora offered.
Arielle nodded. "A very good idea. We could eat together in my room. I'm sure you're all very tired," she eyed Ku's sunken eyes. "Especially…Ku," she hated to see her friend so drained. "Come, I will have a room made for you and Mirac. How did you convince mother to let you leave Balaam? I'm surprised she didn't offer to come along."
Holding her sister's hand and daughter resting on her hip, she guided them towards the gates. Kuba ran to the gates and stopped in front of her path.
"Khagana, you have a few letters from Bishop Salman. They need to be addressed by this afternoon."
Arielle groaned. "Alright, fine." She set her daughter on the ground. "I promise once I'm finished working we will talk together."
Cera inclined her head and allowed her sister to disappear quickly with her advisor trailing behind. She held onto Aurora's hand and was able to admire the large towers in front of the palace. From behind, she heard Mirac gasp loudly.
"Well I didn't expect it to look like this," he marveled.
"I'll show you around!" Aurora said, pulling her aunt through the gated wall. "Don't be shy. Let's go inside before it gets cold."
Arielle sat opposite her little sister, admiring the lively color in her cheeks that she missed. No longer were her sister's cheeks pale and eyes flushed from endless tears. She placed a hand on Cera's knee and smiled.
"I'm so happy you're here. You look a lot better since the last time I saw you. Are you feeling okay now?"
Cera nodded her head. "Much better, thank you."
"I guess you couldn't take it anymore with all those Persians there, huh?" she picked at the bowl of grapes. "Aurora is very excited that you're here. How long will you be staying? You could stay until spring if you like. This place can get very lonely sometimes and I have no idea how long grandma and Gabrielle will be gone."
The princess sipped the sherbet and looked around the large bedroom. She gestured a question to ask of their whereabouts.
"They went to Banat. I don't know if my father told you but I decided to combine our empires," said Arielle with wide ecstatic eyes. "I just hope Ernak will sign my treaty. Hey, you could sit in my meetings with me. I'd love for you to see how the Avar Empire operates."
Cera, overwhelmed with the amount of information thrown at her, lightly sighed.
Arielle licked her fingers and ruffled her curly hair. "Sorry. I'm talking too much. I wonder where Aurora gets it from," she joked. "How are things back in Balaam? Has mother gone mad with Nousha around?"
Cera rolled her eyes. "She's been keeping her distance from mother."
"Wise choice. I threatened her before I left." She raised an eyebrow. "I told her to be nice to mother or else."
Cera shook her head at her sister's overzealous behavior. She set down the fruity drink and prepared herself for the storm to come when she brought up this subject. Now that she had her sister's full attention she was overcome with fear.
"I think you give Ku too much responsibility with Aurora," she began.
Arielle creased her eyebrows and leaned her elbow on a large pillow. "What do you mean?"
"Aurora exhausted Ku during the visit in Balaam. You don't do nearly enough for her. You're her mother."
"Well, I had other things to take care of," Arielle scoffed with a diminutive laugh. "Besides, it was Aurora's idea to stay. She wanted to spend more time with mother. Why are you bringing this up?"
Cera sighed. "You've always handed her off to someone else when you're busy, Arielle. Even when she was a baby you made mother take care of her."
The elder sister sat up and slammed the glass on the table. "I was training to be commander at the time! I don't have the capability to be in two places at once." She grunted. "What are you trying to say, Cera? That I'm an incompetent mother?"
Cera stared blankly.
"Leave me alone," Arielle said under her breath. "Defol!" she pointed to the door.
Cera refused to move and her sister's eyes swelled with tears. She smiled softly and scooted over on the pillow and encircled her sister with her arms.
"I'm trying my best, Cera." She wiped her nose. "I really am. I just have so much to do…"
The princess straightened her sobbing sister out and wiped the tears from her cheeks. She flashed a toothy smile.
"I will help you."
Hidden in the woods in Pannonia, Xena watched through the trees at the scattered yurts. Several of the people were fearful to come out and speak to Bayan. Still, he remained vigilant and tried to strike conversation with people that were willing. She was beginning to believe this plan was a huge misfire by the looks of it.
She casually chomped on an apple, glaring at Bayan weaving in and out between the yurts. Luckily, nobody knew who he was. She wished she could hear the conversations he had. She wasn't so sure that the Pannonian people were cursing Anastasia anymore ever since Eksama claimed the territory.
Gabrielle made her way through the brush and yelped as a tree branch scraped her face. Grunting, she shoved the branch and adjusted her cloak collar.
"He's been out there for hours. Do you think it's going well?" she asked.
Xena took another large bite of the apple. "Nope."
"Elaborate, please?"
Xena groaned. "Nobody wants to talk to him. They're probably afraid that Eksama is going to chop their heads off or something. She really has got them scared out of their minds."
On the north side of the tribe a group of horsemen arrived wearing Gepid armor. A man was leading the group straight for the Adame. He dismounted his horse and approached the staircase outside and Eksama emerged with a smile, holding her arms outward to greet her guest.
Xena raised an eyebrow and tossed the unfinished apple behind her. "Hello…" she smiled and walked down the hill, weaving in between the trees. "Who do we have here? Is that Prince Elemund?" she whispered.
"I'm assuming so," the governor held onto her wife's shoulder. "What's he doing here?"
"I have an idea." She turned and slapped Gabrielle's shoulder. "We're aborting the mission!" she walked up the hill, yelling at the soldiers waiting on the sidelines in the forest.
Gabrielle grumbled, rubbing her shoulder. She trailed behind Xena and grabbed her arm. "What do you mean we're aborting the mission?!" she hissed. "We didn't come all the way out here for nothing!"
Xena grinned and pinched her wife's cheeks together. "Bayan said to get rid of what Eksama depends on the most, right?" she asks and Gabrielle cinched her eyebrows. "If Elemund is here then that means his base in Italia is completely unguarded. Do you know what that means?"
Gabrielle shook her head and mumbled incomprehensive words. Xena then released her cheeks and she gasped. "Please tell me you're not thinking of raiding Italia?"
"That's right, Gabrielle!" she snapped her fingers to the soldiers. "Prepare to march towards Italia. I want to be there in a couple of days. We will not stop to make camp!"
Once the soldiers began preparing their horses and gathering their supplies, Gabrielle folded her arms and came round to stand in front of her determined partner.
"Xena, what the hell do you think you're doing? Once Eksama finds out that we've raided the Italia base then she will definitely attack us full force. Are you sure you don't want to go ahead with Bayan's plan? It's a good one –a well thought out one."
"I don't recall Arielle putting you in charge of the army, Gabrielle," she snidely remarked. "Eksama wants to play this game of cat and mouse so we're going to play too. I'll be the cat," she wiggled her eyebrows. "We're going to give her the cheese and corner her into a trap."
She felt her adrenaline rush through her body, something she had missed for a long time. Although, Gabrielle's face was putting a huge damper on her mood.
"Go with the flow, governor," she squeezed the blonde's shoulder. She then walked towards the soldiers, yelling at them to quicken their pace.
"Go with the flow," Gabrielle muttered. "She's insane!"
Over the last two weeks Cera did as promised and helped make sure that Ku-Ilm was able to take time for herself. There were several maids at Arielle's disposal which she didn't want to use because she only trusted Ku with Aurora but Cera was able to convince her otherwise. While Aurora attended her daily classes, the other maids did everything that Ku was instructed to do.
While this gave Ku more time to go to the market and Mass services, she was in a far better mood than she was two weeks ago. Cera also supervised a few of Arielle's meetings with the clergymen that came by once a week to gather funds for their churches across Scythia. Kuba was only one man after all and he too was burnt out from his extensive duties.
Arielle came up with a wild idea to go into the city incognito to see what her subjects thought of her. Cera insisted on joining her only out of fear that her sister might behead someone if they dare spoke ill of her. Mirac offered to accompany them as he too, didn't trust Arielle's temper.
Together, the three walked in the streets with Kuba and two guards at a fair distance so they were not to cause alarm. Arielle dressed in simple clothing and wore a veil over her hair. She was a bit annoyed that Kuba brought soldiers to keep an eye on her.
They stopped at a fruit stand and she inspected the apples one by one. The merchant was very kind and complimented her and Cera then offered them each a free apple.
"Efendi, how is business? Do you have any complaints?" she slyly asked.
The merchant smiled. "Business is doing well, kadin, but I must say the taxes are very high."
Arielle frowned and bit into the apple, folding her arms. "Are you unhappy with the khagana's decisions?"
"Saçmalık, kadin!" he waved his hand.
She chuckled. "You speak the language of your empress. Where are you from?"
"Originally my family is from Armenia but they settled in Scythia about five years ago."
Arielle nodded and handed the apple to her sister. "Armenia. My family is from there. Where in Armenia does your family originate from?"
"In Kharput," he sighed. "I'm afraid to say that the Byzantines have taken over that area recently. I've written the khagana twice this month! I know she is from Armenia. I hoped she would answer and help our people."
She had a cross look about her face and faintly smiled at the merchant. "Thank you for the apples, efendi." She walked off and grabbed Cera's hand.
"Cera, did you hear what he said?" she whispered.
The princess nodded, clinging to her sister's arm.
"That bastard Justinian!" she growled. "Why wasn't I made aware of this? I bet my father has no idea! I need to get back to the palace and look at a map. I don't know where Kharput is but it must be a border city and that's how Justinian is weaseling his way into my territory."
"Cera and I can paint a map for you, khagana," said Mirac. "A really large one."
Arielle snickered. "Don't call me that, Mirac. You're my family. But…that is a good idea." She lightly hit his shoulder. "How long do you think it will take to make it?"
He eyed Cera and hummed quietly. "Maybe a month."
"Excellent." She nodded and peered at a man handing out trays of coffee to a few clergymen. "I will pay you both a salary."
"You don't have to do that, Arielle," he felt odd being paid by his sister in law.
"Nonsense, Mirac." She paddled his arm. "I'll have Kuba write the order as soon as we return to the palace."
The Avar army overlooked the Gepid army below the hill. They were completely oblivious of what was to happen to them. Gabrielle was in charge of the front line, organizing the attack was simple according to Xena's vision. She'd never accompanied her spouse on a raid before and so far, she didn't like it. Raids were different than battles and wars. They were meant to frighten the enemy and wipe out the entire army in one blow.
If this failed then this would be all for nothing. She imagined that Xena was able to conquer several tribes this way during Attila's reign. Xena spoke of her frequent raids and that was how surrounding tribes were able to be under Attila's large umbrella. Conquering tribes was Xena's specialty, although the Gepids weren't Huns and they had a pretty sizable army compared to the small Hunnic tribes.
She remembered when Arielle went on a raid to force the Kidarites to submit to Ellac. She didn't understand why Arielle was so hurt and disturbed after the raid was finished but the truth came out over a year later when it was Bayan she was worried about. Arielle ruined the entire raid as the tribe was nowhere to be found. Hopefully, this wouldn't end the same way.
Gabrielle galloped across the front line of soldiers and met with Bayan standing guard, ready to ride out by Xena's command. He set the fur hat on his head and glared at the governor.
"Do you understand what to do?" she asked him.
Bayan gave an affirmative head nod. "Don't stop attacking until they submit," he repeated his orders. "I don't see why I have to do this. Why isn't Xena leading the charge?"
She smirked. "I think she's testing you, Bayan. She wants to see what you're capable of."
"I shouldn't have to prove my self-worth to her."
"She's been doing this longer than you've been alive," she reminded him. "Right now, she's your superior and you have to follow orders. Wait here for the order to ride out."
He grunted. "She just wants to see a sword plunged into my chest."
Gabrielle hid her smile and galloped up the hill to meet with Xena who sat idly on her horse. "He's angry at you."
"Since when do I give a shit about his feelings?" chided Xena. She raised her hand, eyeing Bayan who was glaring at her from below. She lowered her arm and the soldiers trotted down the hill, heading for the Gepid base.
Immediately the Gepid soldiers frantically grabbed weapons and mounted their horses as soon as the Avar horde approached the camp. Xena narrowed her eyes, watching Bayan's every move as he led the army directly into the camp. She yanked on the horse reins and raised a hand to the second legion of men waiting on standby.
The Avars circled around the entirety of the camp, trapping all of the Gepid soldiers in the center of their base. One of the fortresses that once belong to Emperor Odoacer had one advantage and that was that the fortress was surrounded by a large stone wall. Many of the Gepids ran into the fortress.
Gabrielle brought a hand over her eyes, examining what the Gepids were planning behind the fortress walls. From afar she could see men loading catapults along the wall. Trotting along the field she gripped Xena's arm.
"They have catapults!"
In the mass of confusion and chaos, Xena whipped her head towards the fortress and indeed saw ballistic weapons along the walls, aiming towards the field where she stood with the remainder of the Avar soldiers.
"Well that's just perfect, isn't it?" she grumbled. "Second wave!" she yelled, waving her hand to the soldiers on standby to ride out towards the field. "I guess Bayan was right about one thing; those Gepids love catapults."
She clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth, waving her hand to the ten elite soldiers left behind. She guided them towards the woods as she had no more legions to send out to the base. Entering the forest to hide from any attacks to be aimed at her, she looked around the quiet forest cautiously.
Gabrielle looked around and heard a whistling sound from behind. She turned and then felt something pierce her neck. Grunting loudly, she pulled out a dart from her neck. Within seconds her vision blurred and she fell off the horse, landing on the ground with a loud thud.
Xena steered her horse and drew her sword. "Gabrielle!" she whispered. "Surround her!"
A dart struck her collar bone and she hissed. She yanked out the dart and glanced around the trees, looking for the direction which it came. Her sword fell from her hand and she collapsed against the horse.
The smell of fire roused her awake and she shifted, opening her eyes slowly. She gasped and realized she was bound by ropes tied around her wrists and ankles. She tried to lean forward and was yanked backward by the rope tightly wrapped around her neck. Breathing heavily, her eyes darted to her right and saw Gabrielle on the ground, hog tied.
"Gabrielle!" she whispered. "Gabrielle, get up!"
She tried to wiggle her way close to the unconscious governor but she wasn't close enough. A boot stomped on her thigh and she winced. Lifting her head she gawked at a young man dressed in Byzantine armor.
"Good afternoon," the man said with a smile. "You're trespassing on Byzantine territory."
Xena scoffed. "Justinian doesn't have control over Italia. Who are you?"
"The Emperor's nephew." He knelt down and pinched her chin. "And who do I owe this pleasure?"
She spat in his face and he backhanded her. "Justinian could never do anything himself so he sends his nephew. Of course," she mumbled.
"General Justin at your service," he wiped his face with a handkerchief. "I gather that you're the infamous Xena that my uncle tells me about." He chuckled, glaring into her blue eyes. "Why aren't you dead yet?"
"Oh, is your uncle saddened by that? Tell him that I miss him," she smiled. "It's been a long time since we've chatted."
"Tell him yourself. We're going to Constantinople." Justin walked off, whistling at the soldiers to gather the camp and supplies to leave.
Gabrielle stirred awake and groaned. She rolled over onto her stomach and yanked her hands, panicking. Lifting her chin, there she saw Xena strapped to a tree. It didn't take long for her to realize she was bound and unable to move as her hands and ankles were tied together.
"Xena!" she growled.
"Ah Gabrielle, you're up from your nap," said Xena in a sarcastic tone.
"What is going on?!"
"Justinian's rat of a nephew captured us," she sighed heavily. "This is so humiliating." Her eyes drifted down to her bound ankles.
Gabrielle spat dirt and tried to maneuver her body and rolled over onto her side, wincing at the pinching in the middle of her spine. Staying in this position was humanly impossible and not to mention morally degrading. She felt like an animal waiting to be slaughtered.
"We shouldn't have come here and what do you mean Justinian's nephew? Since when does Justinian control Italia?"
"It seems that Eksama has been concocting a lot of little plans inside the Adame," Xena murmured. "He's taking us to Constantinople."
Gabrielle gasped. "Excuse me! Xena, Justinian is going to kill us!"
She snorted. "No, he's not. He's not stupid enough to do that."
"I wish I could be as confident as you."
General Justin waltzed over to the bound captured women and smiled. "Your carriage awaits you, your eminence," he mocked. He pointed over to a large rod iron cage attached to two pulling horses.
Xena raised an eyebrow. "If you think I'm riding in that then you've lost your mind."
"You don't have much of a choice and I'm certainly not going to untie your legs so you can try and run off." He nudged his head to his men who hoisted Xena off the ground, untying her neck from the tree.
The men grabbed her and threw her over their shoulders, carrying her off. Two more men picked up Gabrielle and she squealed, the ropes rubbing against her raw skin. They placed the captives in the cage and locked the door. Xena slid back against one of the sides of the cage and grimaced at Justin.
"You should be grateful that I'm not making you walk," he leaned his arms against the cage.
Xena looked over at Gabrielle's discomfort and narrowed her eyes at General Justin. "The least you could do is untie her. She's not being prepared to be roasted on a spit, Justin."
He snickered and sauntered away.
Well into the evening, hours passed sunset, Bayan gathered all what was left of the catapult runners who hid behind the fortress walls. He tied up the ten men by their necks and ordered the Avar soldiers to stand behind each and every one of them with a sword to their throats.
He smiled, wiping his face of the blood that stained his flesh. Proudly, he glanced around at the obliterated base. It took longer than expected but he was proud that he was able to do the task. He almost wanted to spit that right back in Xena's face. He knew she was expecting him to fail. So far, he had done well for himself.
The only thing that bothered him was that the men who worked under him during this mission belonged to his ex-wife. As if working for her grandmother wasn't humiliating enough.
"Sibelo!" he called the main archer. "Bring Xena here. Ask her what she wants me to do with these Gepids."
"Your highness, I can't bring the khanum to you."
Bayan spun around. "Why not? I've done what she asked me to do. Bring her here!"
Sibelo bowed. "Sir, her horse, sword and kozak were found in the forest. The governor is also missing. All of the elite soldiers were found dead."
At that, his face paled and all he could think about was the loud mouth kings shouting at him when he returned without the most important person in the entire empire.
"Search the area! Find them!" he shouted to all of the Avar soldiers who stood by. "Now, what to do with you…" he eyed all ten Gepids.
Bayan took a step back and slapped his cheek. "Dammit! Csaba is going to kill me." He grabbed an Avar's arm. "Execute all but one. We will send the live one as a messenger to Eksama."
Navaz swirled the spoon in the almond rice, eyeing Anastasia sitting beside him. She sensed his eyes upon her and covered her full mouth, hiding her smile. He reached across the table and scraped the rest of the rice mixture onto her plate and she gently shoved his arm away.
"Navaz," she mumbled, still chewing her food. "I don't need any more food, please."
"It's not going to hurt you," he lightly laughed and set down the bowl, gesturing her to finish off the rice.
She swallowed and frowned at him. "I've eaten too much already. I think I've consumed enough food for five people over the past month. Those Persian concubines are going to kill me."
He kept grinning and dipped the bread into a cheese spread, admiring her pale eyes. She always complained about her weight especially this month but she looked the same to him, even better than she had in awhile. When Cera was here she had hardly eaten anything so he was glad that her appetite returned.
"You're still going to marry me, right?" he thought to ask.
Anastasia smirked. "I said I would, didn't I?"
"You don't seem too excited about my proposal."
"I've already been married to you before. What's there to be excited about?" she playfully teased and nudged his arm with an elbow. "You're going to have to ask for my mother's permission of course," she slyly added.
"Ah, Anastasia." he dropped the spoon on the plate. "Why do I need her permission? We're both adults."
"Now Navaz," she waved her spoon in his face. "You want to marry me so you have to ask for her permission," she batted her eyelashes. "You didn't ask the first time."
He groaned. "That isn't fair, Anastasia."
"You're going to ask her," she spooned the rice into her mouth. "Besides I just like seeing how uncomfortable you are in front of my mother even after all these years."
"You are a devious woman."
General Zolten interrupted their dinner together and bowed to greet them both. He held a letter in his hand. "Your highness," he said and looked to Anastasia. "Khatun." He said warmly. "I have a letter from your daughter."
Navaz rose to his knees and grabbed the letter. "Arielle, what do you have for me now," he muttered, opening the letter. "Thank you Zolten, you may go," he waved his hand as he kept reading silently.
Anastasia wiped the corners of her mouth and leaned into his arm. "What did she say?"
"Justinian sent his men to sequester Kharput," he tossed the letter onto his plate, scowling. "I'm going to have to send some of my men to that area."
"How did Arielle know about this and you didn't?"
He ran his fingers through his thick beard. "I don't know."
Ana smiled and rubbed his arm. "She's smart, Navaz. Makes you wonder if you should've given her the title of Queen long ago," she said nonchalantly and reached for the plate of lokma. She took a small bite of the honey soaked dough and hovered the plate of dessert in front of his face.
"Lokma?" she offered.
He arched an eyebrow.
"You lost my grandmother?!" Csaba raised himself from the chair, inching forward.
Bayan took a couple of steps backward, lowering his head. He anticipated this meeting not to go well and he was lucky that Csaba was still recovering otherwise he'd probably have two black eyes and internal injuries by now.
Ernak stepped in between them. "There's no need to be violent. Bayan, explain exactly what happened from the moment you arrived in Italia." He put a hand on his nephew, forcing him to take a seat.
Bayan inhaled deeply. "She told me to lead the raid and I led the men into the Gepid base. Xena and Gabrielle stayed behind with the elite guards."
"How many guards were with them?"
"I'm not sure. Maybe ten." He cleared his throat, wary of Csaba's intentions. "The raid lasted for hours, well into the night. By the time I rounded up the left over Gepids, it was reported to me that Xena and Gabrielle were gone. Their horses and weapons were found in the woods. All of the guards were also found. Dead…"
Ernak nodded, rubbing his chin. "Did you send a search party?"
"Of course. They searched all night but didn't find anything."
"I'm going to wring your neck," Csaba threatened. "What am I supposed to tell my mother? What am I supposed to tell my sisters?"
Bayan frowned. "This isn't my fault, Csaba. I was doing what Xena told me to do and that was to raid the base."
"She could be dead!"
Ernak rolled his eyes, intervening before things got out of hand. "We don't need to jump to conclusions, Csaba. It is true that this isn't Bayan's fault. We're going to keep this between us. We won't tell anyone what happened and I'm going to send out a few of Arielle's men to search the area. Italia is large so there's no way they could've searched everywhere in one night."
Csaba stood slowly with an arm wrapped around his sore midsection.
"You better hope she is found, Bayan or I will rip out your innards, boil them and feed them to the goats." He said and hobbled away, pushing the doors open with a forceful hand.
Ernak awkwardly laughed. "He's very passionate." He placed a hand on Bayan's shoulder. "We'll find them."