Reactions And Resolutions
Chapter 2
by DQiscool
Hercules awoke slowly and immediately held his head at the sudden sharp pain. He looked around confused as to where he was. He didn’t remember much of anything. He spotted Iolaus and then his mother. "Iolaus, mother," Hercules said slowly and softly. His head was beginning to throb. He then groaned at the pain and laid back down. Iolaus was soon sitting next to him and his mother sat at his head massaging his aching temples. "What, where, what happened?" Hercules managed to get out.
"You passed out from exhaustion," His mother replied smiling down at him. She brushed a strand of her brown hair out of her face.
"Exhaustion?" Hercules asked confused.
"You were on the rampage," Iolaus reminded his friend of how he tore up the house. Hercules tried to remember what had gone on. Xena being dead was the first thing that he remembered.
"She’s gone," Hercules said quietly. Iolaus nodded confirming that it was true. "How?" Hercules asked.
Iolaus repeated the tale of the Warrior Princess’s death for his friend. Hercules shed tears once he had finished. "Gabrielle said she was taking her to Amphipolis to be buried," Iolaus said.
"Then that’s where we’re going. Once I’ve visited her I have another place that I have to go," Hercules said. He tried to stand up but his head prevented him from doing so.
"You’re in no condition to travel," Alcemene warned her son.
"As soon as my head is better I’m going," Hercules replied.
"I’ll go with you," Iolaus added. Hercules glared at his friend but Iolaus wouldn’t back down. He was going and that was final. Hercules eventually passed out from the pain and Iolaus set out helping Alcemene try to salvage parts of the house. Hercules would have quite a job once he was better fixing it.
Hercules, meanwhile was dreaming. He no sooner had fallen asleep when he found himself in a strange country side with no headache. He looked around taking in the breathtaking view. He was standing on top of a tall hill that was covered with green grass and blue flowers. He noticed a brook running to his right and there were hundreds upon hundreds of trees to his left. He saw a village in the distance that had all red rooftops and little people walking around minding their own business. He then heard someone behind him and spun around. He was shocked to find who was there. Xena stood there, her black hair blowing in the wind, her blue eyes sparkling with exercise, and her face lit up with a smile. The sun seemed to shine right down on her and she looked beautiful. She was wearing her battle leathers but her armor was no here to be found. She smiled at him innocently and trustingly. She then ran to him and embraced him tightly. He picked her up and spun her around like a child. She laughed and the two fell down in the tall grass and wrestled. Suddenly Xena stood up. She began to change in front of him. A large bruise began to form on her left temple and blood began to flow from it. Her mouth began to quiver and a small bit of blood came from there as well. Her face became dirty and her eyes became lifeless. Her body crumpled as she fell. Hercules ran to her side and held her head on his lap. "No," He said.
"Where were you?" She asked. She then closed her eyes and was gone. Hercules jumped up in anger.
"NO!" He screamed. He resumed tossing and turning and Alcemene held him.
Meanwhile, Xena and Gabrielle rode as fast as they could, trying to get to Thebes. They had to stop along the way to gather supplies. They stopped in Carodea, a small village far from Thebes. They noticed that people looked at them strangely. Xena shrugged it off and went about her business. Gabrielle bargained for goods while Xena gave glares to the merchants. They then went to the tavern to get some food and bed down for the night. Xena rarely liked to sleep inside but,Gabrielle wasn’t used to being pushed so much. Xena approached the bartender. "I’ll take a cup of mead and my friend will have some water," Xena said. "Oh, and we’d like a room for the night," She added.
"Sorry we’re full up," The man said. Xena didn’t believe him. It was the tone of his voice, and she knew a lie when she heard one.
"No you’re not," Xena replied.
"How would you know?" The man asked getting scared.
"I know these things," Xena replied. Gabrielle decided to join her friend at the bar since she was getting bored of waiting.
"Xena!" She called. "Did you get the room yet?"
"X, Xena," The man said. The room became silent. Everyone stared at the Warrior Princess in fear.
"You got a problem with my name?" Xena asked.
"The Warrior Princess is dead," Someone called out.
"As you can see, rumors of my demise were greatly exaggerated. I died but I came back," Xena said turning to face all the frightened people.
"That’s impossible," The bartender said.
"Not quite," Gabrielle said. She then began to tell the tale of the ambrosia and the king of thieves. The people were on the edge of their seat and Xena merely stood there embarrassed at the bard’s tale.
The people didn’t know what to think. They had heard that she was dead yet she stood there as real and alive as they were. It seemed impossible to come back to life but the ambrosia explained a lot. But, since she ate ambrosia, was she a god? That was the question that was going through everyone’s mind. Xena herself wasn’t sure. She didn’t feel like one. They bartender gave her the drinks and the best room in the house. They sat down and people left them alone. They sat at a back table so that Xena could observe the entire room without anyone behind her. Not that anyone behind her could surprise her. She just didn’t want to risk leaving Gabrielle again right away. Xena didn’t want to admit it, but she was scared, really terrified for the first time in her life. She was almost jumpy. She knew that it would pass, but for the time being, she wasn’t really herself. She put on a good show, even Gabrielle didn’t notice the change, but it was there. Dying had shattered everything. She really realized for the first time that she was not invincible. She had always thought that if she did her best, she’d never make mistakes and always win the fight. For the first time in a long time, she had lost. This time it wasn’t just the use of her legs, it was her life. "Come on Gabrielle, let’s go to bed," Xena said. Gabrielle smiled at her friend glad that she was back. She finished her drink and then went up to bed.
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