Another Place, Another Time (Page 2)
by Andreya
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The warrior had been conscious for some time. Battle training taught her to lie still and view what she could through slit eyes, without moving her head. She hurt all over but the pain was worse in her left side. She could feel the weight of a blanket on her and from the soft sounds around she had ascertained that there was one other person in close proximity and that a horse was stabled nearby. An acrid odour also told her there was a fire burning. Who was this person, a rescuer! A captor! She did not know. Groaning, she rolled her head to one side to get a better view but kept her eyes closed, still feigning unconsciousness. The sounds ceased but after a short while started up again. The warrior opened her eyes a slit and saw the back of a strawberry blonde head.
The peasant had had plenty of time to think on what she had done. The warrior had been out since the battle yesterday and the whole of today; time the girl had put to good use. After leaving the battlefield she had put a respectable distance between before even thinking of somewhere safe to hide. She was forced to stop many times to readjust the weight of the stricken warrior. The horse had appeared to be taking the lead and as she had no idea where she was, had, in the end, given the horse its head and concentrated on keeping the warrior's position steady. She saw the cave just before dusk and they had been ensconced there ever since. She had laid the warrior on the dirt floor and tended her wound as best she could, staunching the bleeding and cleaning it with water from a skin she had found in the saddlebag. She had seen a few bad wounds on the farms around her village but nothing like this. She could do no more but hope that the warrior was strong.
She had also been to a ransacked village they had passed and procured a few essential items to make the stay in the cave more comfortable. The peasant had been back to the village twice. She had been too scared of the horse to take it with her to aid transportation. In fact, as soon as she had got the warrior into the cave she had left the horse to its own devices. It had been in no hurry to move on and had stood inside the cave entrance as if it belonged.
Yes, she had had plenty of time to think on what she had done. She sat next to the fire preparing a meal, her back to the unconscious warrior, in thought. There was no denying she had been terrified when the warrior woman had come at her. After all, this had to be The Destroyer of Nations; Xena the Warrior Princess. She had all but passed out on the spot. As she looked directly into the blue eyes she had seen wild battle lust, a fighting frenzy but as she stared she had, fleetingly, seen something else. She had looked past the hatred, the fury and saw...what? What, exactly, had she seen. She acknowledged now it had been a soul tormented by something; she did not know what. A tortured soul that cried out for help. Her pure spirit had witnessed a direct act of brutality right in front of her eyes and all she knew was she had to help the warrior. The warrior groaned and she stopped and turned round. She was still out. The girl spent a second night sitting between the warrior and the fire, carefully tending to both as the need arose.
Xena's eyes watched the young woman as she moved around the cave. She watched her hesitant attempts to unsaddle the war-horse and make her as snug as she could without getting too close. Watched as she stashed the saddle and her weapons in a corner, along with her body armour, greaves, bracers and boots. Fragments of the last few days drifted in and out of her mind. The terrible pain. The soft voice and gentle hands. She shook her head in disgust. She was going soft. Then darkness took her again.
When the warrior woke the pain had lessened. A young woman knelt beside her holding a waterskin and damp cloth. The young woman from the battlefield. The warrior growled. The girl although scared held her ground.
"How did I get here?"
The girl was intrigued by the rich voice. No-one totally evil could possess a voice like that!
"The horse brought us..."
"Argo." The warrior's voice lightened.
"Oh, is that his name?" the girl replied softly.
"It's a mare!" The warrior growled again.
"Sorry..."
Xena's eyes scanned the cave; her cave, an old haunt from her early days as a warlord. She had all but forgotten it but Argo had remembered.
"Why am I here? Are you holding me captive for ransom?"
The girl laughed softly.
"No, you're not a captive, you're free to go any time you want."
She knew the warrior would not be going anywhere for a while but she was relieved that she still had some fight in her. It was a good sign that she would heal.
Xena tried to get up but pain stabbed in her side and she fell back, thumping the earth in frustration with her fist. She turned away and stared at the wall. The peasant stood up and moved back to the fire.
A candlemark later she returned to the prostrate warrior with a bowl of broth and knelt down by her side.
"You'd better try to eat something," she said gently.
Xena looked at the bowl and turned away again not sure she could stomach anything yet but the aroma wafting from the broth smelled good. She turned back and tried to sit up.
"Careful, don't move too much or you'll open the wound again. Here, let me help."
She placed the steaming bowl on the floor and lifted Xena's head slightly; began spooning the hot liquid between the warriors lips.
Xena raised an eyebrow and looked up.
"It's good," she said grudgingly.
The girl smiled.
"Who are you?" the warrior asked between spoonfuls.
"Gabrielle, from Potidaea in...."
"I know where Potidaea is...but do you know who I am?"
A pause. "Yes, you're Xena, Warrior Pr..."
"And that doesn't scare you some?"
Gabrielle laughed softly again.
"I don't think I'm in much danger at the moment. Do you?"
Xena scowled but went on. " So what do you intend doing with me?"
The younger woman did not answer and her face took on a puzzled look. What indeed was she going to do with the Warrior Princess. It was probably more of a case of what the Warrior Princess would do with her. There was little doubt that once she had healed she would finish the job started on the battlefield before leaving to pursue Ares' bidding once more.
"You'll have to try to lie still or the wound will open again. I can't do any more with it. I'm sorry."
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The above work is the property of Andreya and may not be used, copied or distributed without her permission.
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