Not for the first time, Xena wondered if all the warriors she was encountering belonged to Mavrikios's band, or whether they were in the midst of a swarm of bounty hunters who happened to be in the right place at the wrong time. Towards evening, however, they did manage to break through a screening picket and were even able to pick up Mavrikios's trail before it got too dark to see.

Xena had concluded that it wasn't going to be safe to leave Patroclese anywhere in their present locality. So, much against her normal instincts, she had kept the healer with her. She did have to admit, even if only grudgingly to herself, that Patroclese was far from the liability that she thought he'd be. He had shown some skill with a short sword that he carried on his saddle, as well as his previously shown ability with a bow.

The physician was also proving useful with his healing skills. Her shoulder continued to pain her and had required re-bandaging twice as blood soaked through the cloth where the stitches pulled open. The Warrior Princess was feeling more than a little unsteady from loss of blood, but she was too stubborn to give into the pain from the chipped bone, and the wound, when she knew she had to get to Gabrielle. She was aware that a little rest would work wonders with her body's normally phenomenal healing capabilities, she just needed to get far enough ahead of the pursuit to make it safe for her to take that rest.

Patroclese' silent disapproval was almost thunderous. He'd urged Xena to rest several times, worried about the amount of blood loss she had taken. However, after a stop to change the bandage, and the third time he'd suggested they rest, she'd pinned him up against a tree with his feet four inches off of the ground and told him, "I'll leave you hanging from a branch the next time you mention it again." Patroclese had the scant satisfaction of seeing her stagger a little after she released him, but he'd learnt his lesson and now kept his mouth firmly shut. It didn't, however, stop him from 'voicing' his opinion with pointed looks.

By the tracks, it looked as if Mavrikios was heading for the port city of Acanthus where, no doubt, he intended to catch a ship headed in the direction of Rome. So despite Patroclese's concerns about her welfare, and the one's he'd expressed about losing the trail in the gathering darkness, Xena elected to press on. She had two distinct reasons for doing so. Firstly to keep ahead of the pursuit that dogged them, and secondly, to make up ground on those they were pursuing in turn.

Xena felt an urgency pressing her to catch up with those ahead of her. With all of the dodging and diving that they'd had to do during the day, they were way behind and the Warrior Princess knew that Mavrikios wouldn't be wasting any time. That and the fact that Acanthus was barely four days away from them.

It was late into the evening when exhaustion finally forced Xena to agree to a stop: not so much her own benifit, but for that of the horses. They made a cold camp and munched down some trail bread and cheese before catching a few candlemarks much needed sleep. They were back into their saddles well before sunrise heading south, and trusting to the gods, and Xena's abilities, to be able to pick up Mavrikios's trail.

The short stop had worked wonders for Xena's fitness. Her shoulder was still painful, but the bleeding had stopped and the wound looked clean when Patroclese had redressed it. More importantly, the weakness she had been experiencing due to the loss of blood had vanished. All in all, the healer felt in far worse shape, than his patient seemed to be.

At first light, Xena took time to cast back and forth across the likely area looking for the signs that would tell them they were still on the right trail. It took her about a candlemark, but she found what she was looking for and she informed Patroclese that, not only were they following the correct path, but that they were actually less than a day behind those she sought.

Gabrielle had spent an uncomfortable day chained in the back of the cook wagon. The wagon had no springs and jolted alarmingly over every minor bump in the road. She felt bruised and sore, but the fact that it was a far better way to travel then the previous day's mode of transport was not lost on her. Neither was the chance to explore the wagon's contents under the guise of working out the evening's menu.

She had hoped that Xena would catch up with them before they stopped for the evening, that had been plan 'Alpha'. Plan 'Beta' was a little more exotic and relied totally on her own skills - Although - she thought to herself - it would be useful if Xena happened to turn up at the right time to help -.

A well seasoned stew was the dish of the day, as she had promised Mavrikios. Her inspection of the wagon's stores had provided her with a variety of vegetables, salt pork, spices and the relevant cookware ... and one other very important ingredient that was vital to her planning.

Munching gleefully on trail bread and cheese as she diced vegetables and cut up meat, Gabrielle carefully thought through the actions she would need to take to effect her escape, and thought about Xena's surprise when she managed to find her. - It's going to make a change for Xena not to have to rescue me, - she decided - and it might make her realise that I'm not as helpless as she sometimes thinks! -

The evening meal was greatly appreciated by the men and the bard was repeatedly congratulated upon producing the first decent food that they'd had in seven days. She accepted the compliments and had even told a few more stories while they were eating. She'd prepared plenty of the stew, knowing the warriors were likely going to be very hungry, so there was more than enough for those men who returned for second helpings. She even got a grudging compliment from Mavrikios. Gabrielle smiled to herself, certain that her plan was going to work.

Some two to three candlemarks after the meal was finished and the plates cleared away, the first stirrings of the bards stratagem began to emerge. Men began to make their way into the brush with increasing regularity, many failed to re-emerge, all victims of a violent gripping of the bowels. Groans echoed around the camp, with no one being immune. When she judged it appropriate, the bard loudly demanded her need for the 'bathroom'.

Mavrikios, no less effected than his men, turned an accusing finger at her and snarled, "You've poisoned me and my men!"

Gabrielle, effectively feigning the symptoms of the malady assailing every man in the camp, retorted, "It's not my fault if you've brought rotten rations!" then she added, "And I'm hardly likely to poison myself, am I? It's far more likely, anyway, that this was due to last night's so called meal!"

Mavrikios found it very difficult to dispute that argument, especially as he'd seen the bard dish herself up a healthy portion of the stew and sit and eat it. However, he was unaware of the rather clever sleight of hand the blonde had used to get rid of the food, learnt after she first encountered Xena's cooking and had found herself in need of getting rid of it without hurrting her friend's feelings.

"I need to go now!" Gabrielle told him bluntly, clutching her stomach and doubling herself over.

Mavrikios, struggling with his own problems, threw the leg iron key to one of his men and ordered him to escort the bard to the bushes. The warrior exhibited a thin sheen of perspiration on his brow and had the look of uncertain control in his eyes, that was testament to her unusual culinary skills.

Once safely screened in the bushes, Gabrielle hunkered down and waited. After close to five minutes in sheer agony, the warrior could remain in position no longer. He abandoned his end of the leg iron and his post, in the certain knowledge that the prisoner would not be in any condition to go anywhere in the immediate future, and dived into a bush of his own.

As soon as Gabrielle saw the guard run for the bushes, she gathered in the free chain and set off into the surrounding woods as quickly and quietly as she could. She was certain that Mavrikios and his men wouldn't be in any condition to mount a search for her until at least morning, so she wanted to put as much distance between herself and them as possible. With luck, she might even stumble across Xena.

The further away from the camp she got, the quicker and less furtive were her movements. She was quite happy to sacrifice stealth for speed, besides which, the chains she was still wearing made silent movement all but impossible. Still, she felt that she was making reasonable progress and she endeavoured to employ much of the knowledge that Xena had instilled into her to keep herself on a straight heading back towards where she hoped to find the warrior.

She was stumbling along a fairly deep gully, when she thought she heard a noise that was alien to the environment. Freezing into a motionless crouch, she tried to attune her hearing to the sounds of the forest around her. - I wish I had a tenth of Xena's senses, - she thought for about the millionth time - She'd know what was out there by now ... and where it is. -

Now, hearing nothing but the sounds of a forest shrouded in night, Gabrielle finally decided to take a look over the gully edge. Moving as slowly and quietly as she was able, she inched her way up to the rim to find herself confronted by a pair of boots and the point of a sword that hovered mesmerizingly close to her nose.

Swallowing hard, she followed the sword upwards, until she saw a blonde haired young man with bright blue eyes looking down at her, "Um ...," she began thinking fast, "You're probably wondering what I'm doing running around in a forest, in the middle of the night, in these," she said rattling the chains she was wearing.

The man made no answer, nor did the point of the sword waver. She was about to try another tack when a familiar voice spoke from behind her saying, "Don't sweat it Gabrielle. He's with me." and she nearly collapsed in relief as Xena jumped into the gully to give the bard a quick hug and a check over to make sure she was unharmed.

"Are you all right?" demanded the blonde remembering the arrow wound that Mavrikios had told her Xena had taken.

"I'm fine," responded the Warrior Princess, "My friend over there," she said nodding towards Patroclese, "took care of it." Xena's eyes took in the manacles and the leg irons and quipped, "Who did they think you were? Cerberus, or something?"

Gabrielle's quickly stifled giggle held more than a hint of relief in it, showing her pleasure in being back in friendly company, "I think Mavrikios was trying to discourage me from escaping," she replied.

"I think he blew that one, " the Warrior Princess returned with a totally straight face and a very dry tone. She quickly inspected the shackles before drawing her sword. Gabrielle had no time to think or protest before Xena sheered through the leg iron with one, precise, clean blow. Checking around for something she could use as an anvil, Xena spotted a large rock a few steps away, and pulled the bard after her as she headed for it, "Stretch your hands apart over that rock, " she instructed.

"Now, Xena," Gabrielle began hesitantly as she complied with the order, "remember I need my hands and any attached fingers for writing and ... and ..." she screwed her eyes tightly closed as two quick blows from her friend's sword sliced through the metal cuffs without leaving a scratch on the bard's flesh.

"Wow! that was amazing," spoke Patroclese for the first time in Gabrielle's presence. "Hi, by the way. My name's Patroclese, and you must be Gabrielle."

The bard seemed a little distracted as she replied, "Um, hi," the healer noted that she seemed to be counting her fingers.

"Come on Gabrielle," pressed Xena, springing up out of the gully in an easy bound, "We've got to get moving before Mavrikios catches up to you," she said as she reached down a hand to haul the blonde up beside her with astonishing ease.

Gabrielle blinked a few times, refocused her eyes and then responded, "Oh, don't worry about that. He's going to be a bit busy for a while."

Xena looked at her suspiciously, "Just how did you manage to get away from Mavrikios?" she questioned, "He's not an easy man to best."

"Why, Xena," the bard replied in a supercilious tone, "You're not the only one who can make and act on plans. We don't all need to use brawn when brains will get you the result."

Xena quirked an eyebrow at her and drawled lazily in a no nonsense way, "Gabrielle!"

The bard laughed her light, clear, innocent peel that nearly always made Xena feel better for hearing it, "Oh, Xena, it was so easy!" she giggled, "The food was so terrible in the camp, and the men were near mutiny over it, so I talked Mavrikios into letting me cook supper this evening."

"And?" pressed the Warrior Princess.

"And," grinned Gabrielle with childlike mischief twinkling in her eyes, "the stew I cooked for supper somehow came into contact with quite a large dose of cascara. The last I saw of Mavrikios and his men, they were all prospecting suitable spaces amongst rows of overcrowded bushes."

"That was brilliant!" exclaimed Patroclese impressed by the girls ingenuity. "True genius."

"Of course, I knew that Xena would be out here somewhere," continued Gabrielle smugly, "so it was just a case of keeping going until she found me."

Xena gave her a hard, yet somehow worried look, "Yeah, well, with the amount of warriors around after that bounty, you're just lucky you didn't stumble into them."

"You're kidding, right?" stated Gabrielle, with a half smile.

"No, Gabrielle," Xena told her as she gave a sharp whistle for Argo, "As a matter of fact I'm not."

"But ... but, that's not possible!" declared the bard. "Mavrikios told me that he wasn't going to lose men chasing after you. He knew you'd try and get me back, and even if you didn't he'd get a good price from Caesar for me." She saw the 'look' appear on Xena's face and quietly mouthed, "Oops!"

"Uh huh," grunted the Warrior Princess, as she stepped lightly into Argo's saddle and reached down to pull the bard up behind her, "Well that settles one thing," she said with a note of finality.

"Now, Xena," began Gabrielle adopting a stubborn tone as she settled herself behind her friend.

"No, Gabrielle," the warrior cut her off, "It's getting way too dangerous. You can visit with the Amazons for a moon or two, while I draw the hunters away from here." She waited until she saw Patroclese into his own saddle then started the horse moving.

The bard wasn't going to give in easily, "But, Xena!" she began to protest.

"No buts, Gabrielle," replied the warrior with an unshakable firmness that the blonde recognised as immovable, "I'm gonna have to do an awful lot of quick travelling and hard work to quieten this down. One or two people might need to be taught a lesson, and I won't be able to concentrate on things if I'm worried about you."

"Not Caesar," the bard put in quickly worried that the raven haired woman would seek to end matters with the Roman, risking her life in the process.

"No, not Caesar," agreed Xena, regret evident in her voice.

"Xena, I can help you. You know I'm not a little girl anymore,' she pressed valiantly, but knew that her friend's mind was made up on the point.

"No Gabrielle. In this situation I'm safer if I just have myself to worry about," she could feel the hurt in the blonde's eyes, even if she couldn't see it, "Besides, you're the Amazon Queen. You should spend some time with them now and again," she said softly. Then, laying a hand on the bards leg she added in a quiet voice, "Please, Gabrielle, do this for me."

"Hera's teeth," swore the bard with deep feeling, "I hate it when you resort to dirty tricks!" If Xena had tried to bully her into staying with the Amazon's she would never have agreed to it, but by simply asking .. something Xena rarely did .. Gabrielle felt, morally, that she couldn't refuse her friend.

Xena smiled into the darkness, unseen by either the bard or the healer, "We've got quite a way to go, and I wanna keep well ahead of the pursuit." She looked over to where Patroclese rode beside them, "I've also got to find somewhere safe to leave the healer. He's been helpful and it wouldn't be fair to leave him some place where some toughs can rough him up."

Patroclese spoke up for himself, "I'm capable of looking after myself," he told her indignantly.

"I know you are," assured the Warrior Princess.

"But," continued the healer, "If it's all right with you, I'd like to take the trip to the Amazon's with you. It'll probably be my only chance to get to see them."

Gabrielle was certain that Xena was going to say no to the young man, but she felt that Patroclese deserved something for helping her friend, so she chirped in quickly, "Of course you can come. It'll make a change to have someone to talk to while we travel. You've probably noticed that Xena, doesn't tend to say a lot." she said getting a dig in at her taciturn friend.

Patroclese, wisely forbore to make any comment, while Xena grunted non-committally as she concentrated on guiding them safely towards the path they wanted. Her mind was occupied elsewhere on how to draw off Mavrikios and all of the other hunters in the area. She was fairly certain she'd be able to accomplish it without too much difficulty, once she was unencumbered with worries for others. She should be able to leave the hunters sniffing aimlessly through eastern Greece, whilst she took a quick trip to Narbonensis. Nothing was going to cool off the ardour of the hunt faster than a cold trail.