Chapter 20
Chapter 20
Xena rode steadily thorough the night, only stopping for brief moments to water and cool Argo. She spared no thought for herself as she pushed on, her primary goal to get to Gabrielle before it was too late. As dawn crested the horizon, Xena was only a short distance from the village that Ara had confiscated. She could smell the blacksmiths forge heavy odor as he crafted more weapons for the army.
Xena stopped at a crest of a hill overlooking the valley to gather her thoughts. Morning shadow concealed much of the damage, but the common grave on the southern end of town, among the formerly pristine fields, was starkly obvious. Xena's eyes turned grim as she contemplated the lost lives buried so matter of factly in that obscene way. That's where it will happen, she decided, and returned her attention immediately to the village nestled to the north.
Her well trained eyes picked out the guard posts at all the common entrances, but noticed that there were no additional guards on the roofline. Looks like I'll be building hopping again. Xena smiled in spite of herself and reigned Argo about to find cover to hide the horse.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, a beautiful stallion charged over the hill. It had appeared soundlessly, and before either rider knew what was happening, the horses struck, sending both riders toppling to the ground. Xena recovered first, sitting up and flipping her black hair over her shoulder.
"Didn't anyone ever teach you it's not..." she began, only to stop and stare at the sight before her.
The other rider, knocked unconscious from hitting her head on a rock, was Gabrielle. She was dressed in warriors garb, fitted perfectly to her petite form. Her long blonde hair, instead of whipping freely around her face, was being held tight in a braid and secured with a leather thong.
Xena had never seen her friend in an outfit like that, at least one that actually fit. She remembered the time when Gabrielle had dressed up in her clothing to fool a warlord, but then, it had hung on her shoulders awkwardly. This fit to perfection. Then she noticed the sword. She wore it the same way Xena did, slung high over her shoulder for ease of reach.
Well, it doesn't look like I'll have to sneak into town after all. Gabrielle moved not an inch as Xena stealthily crept around behind the unaware form, steadily working so as to not awaken the girl. The swords grip was in her hand when she realized, if I don't replace this with something else, she'll notice the absence of weight immediately. The only object she had near at hand was her own sword. She hesitated only momentarily before releasing the entity's sword and removing her own. Gabrielle's life means much more to me than my sword does. She carefully unsheathed the weapon, and looked at it one final time. There's a good chance I'll never get it back. But any loss Xena felt she discarded immediately.
She laid the point of her sword down next to the hilt of the other weapon and began the meticulous switch between the two. The hilt of Ara's sword fit heavily in her hand as she slid it out, then hurriedly slid her own into place. Gabrielle's eyes barely twitched at the exchange. Xena knew that once the entity discovered the deception, she'd automatically know who was to blame.
I do wish I could check that head injury, though, she thought, as a small trickle of blood fell down the sides of the rock. No, she'll be alright. So moving carefully, Xena retraced her footsteps to Argo. As she rode away, Xena thanked Hermes for his gift to her and hoped that it wasn't in vain.