Remaining quiet, Gabrielle followed Leonidas through the keep. They moved past numerous people as they came and went doing various daily tasks. Gabrielle couldn't help but wonder just what so many people did within those walls. Surely, they couldn't all be captives or slaves. They outnumbered the Conqueror so many times that surely they could easily overthrow one woman, no matter how fearsome and ruthlessness she may be. So if these people weren't owned by the woman, that meant that they had chosen to be there. Chosen to follow and serve her willingly. But why? Were they being lied to by the Conqueror, or were they all cut from the same cloth and just as evil and heartless as she was? But if this were true, then why was this soldier or high-ranking member of her army, Leonidas, always so kind to Gabrielle? Was it all an act? No, something told Gabrielle that he genuinely seemed to be a kind man. Yet if that was true, then why was he a clearly willing member of the Conqueror's army? And Elle, she seemed so kind as well. Whereas Xena, the Conqueror herself, while she hadn't yet physically harmed her, with everything she had heard and after seeing first hand what Xena was capable of, Gabrielle was completely terrified of the woman. Was that what made these people serve the Conqueror, fear? Honestly, the more Gabrielle thought about everything, the less it made sense. It all just felt like one long bizarre nightmare, one that Gabrielle wished more than anything that she would just wake from already. But sadly, as much as she wished it not to be, Gabrielle knew that it was all real. This was her life now, and it seemed as though there was nothing she could do to change it. After walking through several hallways and descending a long flight of stairs, Gabrielle was finally brought to a pair of large doors as Leonidas stopped in front of them and smiled at her as he pushed them open.
LEONIDAS
Here we are, the archives. Now come on, let's see where my lovely wife is.
Leonidas walked into the enormous room ahead of Gabrielle, who looked around in sheer awe of just how much literature and writing appeared to be stored in the room. Coming from such a small village, she had never could've imagined so many scrolls and writings being held in one place.
LEONIDAS
Sara, where are you, my dear? I've brought you a surprise that I think you'll like.
?
Look out below!
Hearing the sudden shout from above, Gabrielle was pulled from her admiration of the archives as she hastily stepped back and barely avoided being hit by a large satchel of scrolls and books as they dropped to the floor at her feet.
?
Oh! I'm so sorry. Are you okay?
Gabrielle looked up from the bag as a woman slid down the ladder that Gabrielle had been walking by and landed in front of her.
?
Those didn't hit you, did they?
GABRIELLE
Um no, I'm okay.
The woman smiled.
?
Oh, good. The last thing I need is to knock someone out with my clumsiness again.
GABRIELLE
(Thinking to herself) Again?!
Gabrielle heard Leonidas chuckle a bit as he stepped forward and picked up the satchel.
LEONIDAS
Well I suppose that'll teach me to scare someone holding on mountains worth of writings on a ladder.
?
(Joking) At least you learned your lesson without getting too much brain damage.
Leonidas laughed.
LEONIDAS
Well I can't be so certain about that, but I'd say it was well worth it in the end given that's how we met my dear.
Leonidas smiled as he gestured to Gabrielle and introduced her and the other woman.
LEONIDAS
Well, anyway, I'm here to bring you a little gift courtesy of the lord Conqueror herself. This is Gabrielle, our newest arrival in the keep. The lord Conqueror thought she would be of some use to help you keep this place in working order.
He then glanced at Gabrielle with a smile on his face as he continued.
LEONIDAS
And this lovely woman right here little one, is the most wonderful, beautiful and amazing woman in all of Greece, my lovely wife Sara.
The woman smiled as she shook her head in mock disapproval as she was pulled in close by Leonidas and given a kiss on the cheek, and she laughed as she patted his armored chest.
SARA
Don't mind him, he's ridiculous. But anyway, it's a pleasure to meet you, Gabrielle. It'll be nice to hopefully finally have some competent help around here.
The woman pulled out of her husband's arms and offered her hand to Gabrielle, who took it and greeted her in return.
GABRIELLE
Nice to meet you too.
Sara had medium length, wavy, dark brown hair. With dark brown eyes to match. As with most of the other women around, she was taller than Gabrielle, but still didn't compete with the stature of the Conqueror. She wore a long sleeved pink blouse with a dark blue overcoat with brown trim which had shorter sleeves and came down to her elbows as the blouse continued all the way down her arms and tucked under a pair of dark brown leather bracers that started at her wrists and ended midway up her forearms. Around her midsection, Sara had what looked to be a brown leather corset that was tied in a crisscross pattern in the front. She also wore a pair of well-fitted pants that were the same color as her overcoat and tucked into a pair of nearly knee-high boots that matched the color of her bracers. Honestly, she wasn't exactly what Gabrielle had pictured someone who works in an archive would looklike. And apparently her face said as much, as Sara laughed.
SARA
(Joking tone) What, did you think you'd see some shriveled up old woman wandering around in here?
GABRIELLE
Oh, sorry, I didn't mean… I didn't really know what to expect. The past several days have just been a lot and I don't really know what to make of all of it.
Sara smiled.
SARA
No need to apologize. The lord Conqueror can be a pretty intense woman, so it's easy to assume that she surrounds herself with similar personalities.
GABRIELLE
(Thinking to herself) Intense? Now there's a giant understatement if I ever heard one.
LEONIDAS
Well if you don't have any use for me here, I think I'll just leave you ladies to it.
He looked at Gabrielle as he turned to leave.
LEONIDAS
The keep is a big place, so either myself or someone else will escort you back to your room later. Don't need you getting lost, now do we?
Gabrielle didn't respond as Leonidas walked out, and it was just her and Sara left in the archives.
SARA
I can't tell you how good it is to finally have some help in here. Hopefully, you'll do better than that last bit of "help" I got.
Gabrielle could tell from the woman's tone that whoever was in there with her last, she obviously didn't view as being helpful at all as Sara began walking towards a shelf that sat opposite to the one she had just been looking at.
SARA
Come on Gabrielle, we'll start off easy over here.
It was nearing sunset several days later as Xena sat in a large chair looking out the window at the view as she sipped her wine and tried to relax from the day's work she had recently finished. There was a knock on the door and she called for the visitor to enter.
LEONIDAS
Evening my lord.
Xena responded with just a grunt as she kept her watch out the window.
LEONIDAS
I have the report for the girl's performance as you requested.
XENA
And?
LEONIDAS
Well, it seems that Sara couldn't be happier with the help. And she says the little one is doing quite well. She seems to be a very fast learner and a hard worker.
Xena raised her eyebrow as a thought crossed her mind.
XENA
The little one? Leonidas why is it that you call her that?
The man shrugged.
LEONIDAS
Well, she seems to be a fairly sweet girl who happens to be a bit small in stature. So it seems fitting, my lord. Why do you ask?
The Conqueror took a sip from her cup and placed it on the table beside her as she reclined further into the chair.
XENA
No reason. Just curious, is all. If that's it, you may take your leave now.
LEONIDAS
Of course my lord. Have a good rest of the night.
Leonidas left the room and shut the doors behind him, as the Conqueror spent the rest of the night alone.
XENA
So in conclusion, I've heard your request for assistance in warding of the giant and as I'm sending this letter I'll have already sent out a battalion of my men to despatch of the problem.
Xena continued wrapping up the final lines of the letter as Gabrielle wrote them down and after a quick review from Xena, Gabrielle rolled up and sealed the letter as she had for many others. Several weeks had gone by since Gabrielle had first been brought to the Conqueror's keep. Her time had been split between working with Sara in the archives and being the personal scribe for the Conqueror. Why the woman had picked her out of all the other people there, Gabrielle had no idea. But she figured that if she did as she was told, then hopefully she wouldn't be on the receiving end of the Conqueror's wrath. She was beginning to get the layout of the keep and, for the most part, didn't need an escort to find the few places that she would go on her daily business. Despite the fact that back home, Gabrielle was always a highly talkative person, since coming in contact with the Conqueror, she found herself not speaking as much. Mostly due to the fact that she was worried that she might say something wrong and, in all honesty, Gabrielle really did not want to see the kind of brutality and violence that she had witnessed from the Conqueror be directed at her. Because even after what she had seen happen to the leader of Olympia, since being brought to the keep, Gabrielle had heard the Conqueror lose her temper multiple times. She would be on the other side of a hallway and would hear the Conqueror's yelling out various obscenities along with loud thuds and crashes as she would notice most of the others avoid going anywhere near the Conqueror's direction. Gabrielle thought herself fortunate that she hadn't yet gotten caught up in the woman's path while she was in a rage. But what bothered her almost as much as how frightful the Conqueror could be was the fact that nearly everyone else around her seemed to be used to it and, when she would be flying off in a rage, would just go about their duties as usual. Almost as if it didn't really phase them. And because of that, Gabrielle wasn't sure whether it was them or the Conqueror who was madder in the end. As she questioned if she was in fact the only sane person in the whole place. But as Gabrielle started yet another day in the keep, she had no way of knowing what the day would have in store as she would bear witness to the unexpected depths that dwelled deep within the Conqueror's soul.
TO BE CONTINUED…