THE LONGEST NIGHT OF ALL

Xena walked towards the barracks, the four other men who'd been wounded had already been taken to the healer's main room to be dealt with. She eyed the barracks outer door which were wide open along both inner doors. She slowly walked through them with Demetrius watching as Iona came in to view she was lying on her side unconscious. There was blood streaming down from her nose and her mouth, two swords were sticking out of the floor boards close to her. She stepped closer looking at Phantasos who had just finishing sticking up the wound on her arm. He'd already stitched up the one on her leg her arm was defiantly broken as it was at an odd angle.

She watched as the healer turned her on to her back putting her broken arm gently against her chest. He breathed in sadly as he turned to her. "Hello Empress." Xena stepped closer. "Is she going to be okay?" Phantasos put a hand through his beard. "She'll live, sadly though she won't be able to fight again for two months or maybe more." He shook his head sadly as he began the slow process of checking the broken bone in her arm, hoping that it was clean break. "Gabrielle clearly made a point with her actions. She was only interested in the four men in Iona's unit who had her in chains and Iona herself. The other fifteen men in the unit were left alone."

He eyed the woman's wounds. "It was all about honour they had to suffer for making her suffer." He closed his eyes before turning to meet the Empress's concerned gaze. "Your probably going to be her next target, as it was your word that caused all her suffering last night." He eyed Iona breathing out in relief as he felt a clean break. He eased up her arm putting pressure on it hearing the sharp crack as the bone was repositioned in the correct place. "You did cause her a lot of pain last night." He slowly began to bind Iona's arm. "And it seems that she is a person of honour." Xena put a hand through her hair in frustration she now really wished that she could change everything that had happened at the royal banquet last night. She had never expected repercussions like this, Fedora was right she had poked the lion to many times and now it was biting back, something deep down in side her gut told her that this was only to get worse.

Demetrius put a hand on his beard eyeing Iona. "Gods this is such a mess." Xena took in a deep breath closing her eyes for a second before reopening them. "Demetrius take me to Gabrielle's room." Demetrius nodded as he turned to her. "Yes Empress." Xena eyed him as they started walking. "You have nothing to say to me?" Demetrius eyed her for a long moment. "I feel there is little need, everyone else has already told you how wrong your actions were and that the repercussions from them have already begun." Xena shook her head. "That is not what I asked." Demetrius stopped walking he slowly turned to face her. "I'm very disappointed in you Empress, I expected so much better from you." He breathed in deeply. "I'm even more disappointed that you allowed Iona to be your voice in Gabrielle's whole affair. I have always been the one you seek advice from, yet you allowed her to do as she wished when it is very clear that she was never on Gabrielle's side. She saw a monster not a depressed young woman and she wanted to make her life a living Tartarus."

Xena looked up slightly. "You saw a monster as well in the beginning." Demetrius lowered his gaze. "Yes I did I won't lie, I feared Gabrielle more than anyone but that day when I brought her to your study and you were unkind to her, I saw a young woman who was in a lot of pain. I was even more surprised when I told her that she could go back to her room alone but she didn't do so." He shook his head sadly. "I spoke to you then came back only to find her waiting for me she was sitting on the floor opposite your room smoking on her pipe. I asked her why she didn't go back to her room, she said she had to be escorted back to her room and she had to honour the agreement." Xena blinked in surprise. "That was not in my agreement to her, I only asked Iona to send her back to room, not to follow her there."

Demetrius narrowed his gaze. "Well Iona clearly bent and twisted your agreement." He adjusted his chest plate. "I also visited Gabrielle this morning to give her a new set of clothes she was in a very depressed mood and had locked herself away in the bathroom. I could smell opium clearly her mood was so low that she's smoking a very intense drug to make herself feel better." He sighed aloud. "Like you she has a weakness, you are an alcoholic, while she's an opium smoker." Xena narrowed her gaze feeling the anger start to boil up in her stomach before she could stop it. "I am not an alcoholic!" Demetrius raised his hand. "Yes you are Empress, everyone else in this palace turns a blind eye to it, but I don't. I know that you drink yourself to sleep, I know that some mornings you wake up with a serious hang over but you mask it and try to hide it and you've become very good at it."

He shook his head. "I've never said anything because up until now you're drinking has never been an issue. That is until last night when it started to rule both your actions and your frame of mind. I have no issue with you drinking you are the Empress what you do in your own personal time is your business, what I object to is your drinking conflicting your judgment and causing other people unnecessary harm." He narrowed his gaze. "The royal guests should never have been shown Gabrielle, she shouldn't have been tormented by them ether or chained up for show and made to dance like a bear." He looked up slightly. "What bothers me even more is that most of them knew about her. The servants here are sworn to secrecy as are the royal guards so some one here is clearly a spy and they've been leaking private information beyond these walls."

He eyed the white marble fountain opposite which was spilling out water. "I heard you and Phrixus talking, clearly Gabrielle is a royal figure and a leader with as much power as you have among her own people. This only adds to our now mounting problems, if her people hear this rumour and that she's here and has been treated poorly they may declare war on us as Phrixus stated." He paused taking in a deep breath. "You will have to set everything right with Gabrielle's people and quickly and do everything in your power to correct all the wrongs you've done against Gabrielle." He started walking watching as she followed him clearly in deep thought. "But I don't need to tell you that, you are the Empress I'm sure you will do what is right, you always have it is why you are so loved as leader."

8

Gabrielle looked around her room as she eased off her clothes throwing them to one side in a violent motion. She took in a deep breath as she stood in the centre of her room naked feeling the cold air on her body as it blew through the tattered curtains. She narrowed her gaze feeling her transformation start she raised her hand ignoring the pain as her fingers began to lengthen. No one was going to keep her from her prize in the throne room, she'd hurt anyone who got in her way! She felt the floor as she hit it on her knees closing her eyes as the pain began as it always did. It wouldn't be long before everyone realized that she'd taken down Iona soon this whole palace would be alive with action.

She would now be a treat and it would be fitting that she died before she caused anymore harm, she felt her eyes snap open as her transformation ended. She took in a deep breath as she snarled inhumanly feeling the sound vibrate through her bigger lungs. She shook her mane of golden fur as she looked around her at her room. She slowly stood up on her hind legs walking in to the bathroom. She eyed the mirror catching sight of her velvet antlers which were now growing again and were now much bigger than yesterday. She had hoped that they'd never grow back after they'd fallen out she hated them with a passion. They reminded her that she was a failed leader among a dying race.

She felt her hand form a fist as her rage started to burn once more she'd never accomplished anything as Horn Hind! She was nothing but a joke she couldn't even fathom why she'd been picked to lead her own race as all those before her had been far better leaders than her! She didn't think as she grabbed the heavy dolphin mirror throwing it at the other wall watching as it smashed apart sending pieces of glass flying across the room. It was just a cruel joke just like everything else in her life! She eyed the marble flooring normally when she was this angry or deeply depressed she smoked opium because it calmed her nerves and sent her mind to other places, but even smoking it this morning had done nothing to ease her pain. The anger she felt was far too bright and far too strong for her to control. She kneeled down eyeing the decorative form of Aphrodite she didn't think as she slammed her clawed hands in to the decorative mosaic tearing it apart as she ran her claws through it. There was no point in trying to controlling that rage anymore, she hated this place hardly anyone had been kind to her so why should she be kind back?

She eyed the now destroyed image of Aphrodite as she grabbed the heavy marble washing area which had the washing basin on it tearing it completely from place on the wall causing its bronze taps and piping to bend and buckle as water sprayed out violently from them. She didn't think as she roared throwing the heavy marble section right in to the tub watching as it cracked down the centre with the share force of the blow which in turn caused its bronze taps to spray water everywhere. She shook her mane before turning to the bathroom door she didn't think as she walked through grabbing it and pulling it with all her might hearing the violent creek as it started to come away from the frame. She heard the hinges finally shatter as she pulled it free, she didn't think as she threw it at the stone balcony watching as it hit it shattering apart.

She grabbed the curtains which she'd already tattered pulling them forcefully down hearing the crack as the heavy bronze curtain rail came loose causing it to come down smashing in to the ground destroying part of the marble floor. She turned eyeing the bed she walked up it moving her clawed hand in a lightening last motion watching as it flipped over before crashing down on the floor opposite. She felt a cold smile form as she grabbed the heavy wooden desk lifting it up slowly eyeing the double doors to her room. She forced her clawed feet in to the ground as she lined herself up with them she'd been wanting to do this from the moment she'd realized that this room was her prison!

Chara moved towards down the wide hall she'd heard the crashing sounds from Gabrielle's room and she wasn't the only one. Four other servants were following her she'd already heard the news that Iona had been seriously wounded by Gabrielle in battle. Frankly though she couldn't care less about Iona she'd had, had it coming. Clearly though something very bad was going on now in Gabrielle's room and the thought of that scared her, Gabrielle wasn't violent by nature. She raised her hand eyeing the others. "Stay there." She edged closer only to watch in horror as the double doors were smashed apart as a huge heavy wooden desk flew through them.

She ran back as it hit the wall opposite smashing apart before its pieces slammed in to the ground. She could see that both of the doors were now hanging of their hinges. Her gaze darted as a low inhuman growl hit as the air as Gabrielle walked out on all fours her attention drifted towards them she could see the beginnings of the horns on her head which were much bigger now. Gabrielle eyed the servants she slowly stood up on her hind legs forcing her clawed hands in to the wall hearing the stone grind as she left deep long claw marks in it. "Get out!" Chara breathed in sharply as she took a slow step forward watching as the other servants backed away the fear in their eyes. "Gabrielle please stop, you don't have to do this!" Gabrielle stepped towards her she turned knocking one of the expensive vases of its stand watching as it shattered. "Oh and whose going to stop me you?" Chara took in a deep breath steadying herself despite her fear. "You're scaring everyone." Gabrielle turned eyeing the other woman. "Why should I care?"

Chara looked up slowly as she spoke keeping her voice gentle. "Because Thaleia believes you're a good person and I agree with her." Gabrielle moved in front of her she leaned down so their faces were almost touching. "Take a good long look at me there's nothing good about me, I'm not even human!" Chara eyed the protruding teeth and the snout. "You know I hate Iona to, I'm glad you beat her senseless she had it coming." She paused taking in a deep breath. "You don't have to do this though, you don't have to scare these people to make a point about how you feel, what the Empress did to you was terrible, you deserve better." Gabrielle eyed her for a long moment. "You misunderstand I'm not doing this to make a point of scaring people, you people are already afraid of me, your fear and prejudice has led to my suffering while I've been imprisoned here!"

She raised a clawed finger. "No I'm doing this because your Empress killed someone I loved then had him stuffed and mounted in her throne room! I'm doing this for him!" She eyed the bronze ring on her other hand. "He was the love of my life and he was taken from me! What we had together was very special, he loved me for who I am, something which none of the other men and women I slept with ever did!" She stepped back knocking over another vase watching as it shattered. "I'm not doing this for me I'm doing this for him! Because he didn't even get a proper burial worthy of the man he was!" Chara breathed in watching as Gabrielle went down on all fours running through the hall away from her the servants moved sharply getting out of her way as she ran past them, she took in a deep painful breath gods this was awful.

End of part 28

Silvermoonlight

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