Continued
Since they started out long after midday, they didn't journey too far, even with the long summer evening. Yet, after over a moon of almost total inactivity, Xena was grateful when they finally stopped to make camp. The heavy weight of the shackles and the wooden beam, coupled with her bruised and abused body, left her feeling totally drained. In particular, her calf muscles felt as though they were on fire from such a long period of little use.
She gratefully lowered herself to the ground when they stopped. The wooden tie across her back made things uncomfortable and she couldn't lie down as she would have liked, but it was a relief to get off her feet. - The bastard was right, - she thought moodily, - I am out of condition. -
Camp was quickly set up and tents were erected for the soldiers who weren't on guard duty, as well as for Caesar of course. The wafting smell of a stew reached her and she realised that she was hungry and thirsty. Patroclese had made sure that she was given water on the march, but she hadn't eaten all day.
She noted with interest the twin posts being set into the ground in the centre of the camp. She had little doubt that they had something to do with her, but she was willing to be patient and wait to see what Caesar had in mind, - Probably something to do with the sparring session he's got planned, - the thought drifted across her mind and a wild light hit her eyes. - If they put a sword in my hand, I'll damn well show them how to spar, - she thought grimly.
By the time that the posts were readied, Xena had recovered from the hardships of the days march. Her legs felt a little tight and stiff, but she'd been in worse condition and the thought of letting loose some of her pent up anger and frustration was a balm to her soul. It was with a wild eagerness that she looked forward to the chance to fight. She knew that she should suppress it, that her dark self drove and encouraged her wild exhilaration in combat, but she needed the thrill that testing herself, and pushing her abilities, gave her. In a way it was what she lived for. Only in battle did she truly come alive, her skills made her who she was.
- It isn't all of me, - she conceded to herself, - but if I'm ever to come to terms with myself, I have to recognise that it is an important part of my being. The wild dangerous part that's capable of perpetrating the great evils of my past, like Cirra, or the good deeds that Gabrielle has helped me to achieve. - It irked her, however, that by allowing the lust for combat to rise in anticipation within her, she was granting Caesar some small measure to dictate her life. - But, - she decided, - as long as I recognise that, and know that I'm doing this for my benefit and not his, then I'll go along with his little game. I'm going to have to be at peak fitness when it comes time to break out. -
It wasn't long before Flaccus came and ordered her to move over to the posts. The belt was released and replaced by a long thick chain that was wrapped around her waist and held in place behind her back by a stout padlock. The ends of the chain were then secured to the post.
- Clever, - she admitted to herself as she tested the limits that the restriction was going to impose. She stood still as Flaccus removed all of the other fetters that loaded down her limbs, and removed the leashes from the collar. She revelled briefly in the relative freedom, stretching her muscles, making absolutely certain she could move well enough to fight, even testing the situation with a small tightly controlled backflip, bouncing immediately into its forward counterpart.
- Gods that felt good, - she could feel some of the tension draining out of her. Her body and psyche thrived on action and physical work. Being shut up and chained for long days had been a major contributing factor to the frustration that goaded her into baiting Caesar and, to a far lesser extent, causing her clashes with Flaccus. She shook her arms, loosening the tight muscles and waited to see just what they had in mind for practice.
Flaccus had detailed six big men for the sparring session. They'd stripped off their armour and discarded their weapons, Xena noted with disappointment. Caesar was obviously not going to trust her with a weapon in her hand in this situation. It was a pity, but unarmed combat could prove to be enjoyable. "Okay boys," the half smile played on her lips as the feral light shone from her deep blue eyes, "one at a time or altogether?"
Flaccus ordered the first man in. The soldiers, technically had the advantage being free to alter their angles of attack, while the Warrior Princess was limited by her bonds. Even so the first man was wary of her. He knew exactly how well she could fight. Moving to her left he attempted to come in at her making the most of the chain's restriction. He was met by a booted foot planted firmly in his gut that doubled him over to just the right height to meet the backhanded punch delivered with enough force to somersault him sideways to land with a crashing impact on the ground.
Xena growled in victory, her blood surging, pushing all thought from her mind of everything but the combat. She revelled in the surge of power that she felt and stood ready to take on the next opponent, or opponents as it turned out. Flaccus sent the next two men forward.
- More of a challenge this time, - she thought with satisfaction, - They're gonna come at me from either side. Good thinking, - she acknowledged to herself, - but really far too predictable. -
She readied herself for the concerted lunge she knew that they would make, and as soon as they came into range she leapt into the air, kicking out with both feet and getting solid connections under their chins, putting them out of the game.
As she made the leap, she realised she had put in too much power, feeling the chain tighten at her waist and pull her back to the ground, where she landed a little heavily. Yet it was a certain feeling, that she had identified at the apex of the leap, that suddenly quickened her thoughts. She had felt the chain give!
With no time to dwell on the thought, the final three men were waved into the fray. Working as a team, they took their time in trying to get themselves into a position where they could at least get in a blow against their formidable opponent.
Xena didn't wait for them to get their chance. She lunged against the restraint of the chain, getting herself close enough to the soldier in the middle to deck him with a solid blow to the nose, feeling the cartilage and bone shatter under the force of the blow. She also registered that the links of the chain were definitely beginning to give.
She skipped aside from the punch aimed by the man on the left, and rode out the worst from the one on the right who caught her on the shoulder, but with little force. Screaming her fabled battlecry, "Ay,yi,yi,yi,yi,yi!" she leapt high off the ground into a tucked backflip that produced enough momentum to snap her free from the chain at her waist and into enough clear space to give her the opportunity of glancing around quickly and see an opening that offered her the chance for escape.
Her mind on fire from battle, even of this minor nature, and wild with the thought of escape from Caesar, she sprinted for the opening taking out a soldier, who moved into her path, with a stunning head butt and relieving him of his sword in one fluid movement.
Two more men tried to block her passage of escape, and she cut them down with savage ease as all of the pent up anger and frustration she had been harbouring took control. She noted almost absently that the legionaries were beginning to swing into action, the initial shock of her breaking loose being overcome by discipline and the knowledge that their lives were at stake if she escaped them. A wild light danced in her eyes as she raced towards a group of twenty that had organised themselves ahead of her.
She didn't engage them. She just wanted to get past them, yelling out her warcry, she forward flipped over them and sprinted away just as fast as her long legs would carry her. In the exhilaration of her sudden freedom, she almost failed to register the pin pricks that hit her in the back and right arm.
As she continued to run, she picked at the slight pain on her arm and felt the small dart there, pulling it out. - Damn! - she thought. - I should have known that was too easy. The bastard's set me up. -
Pushing on hard, she could feel her body becoming sluggish as she continued to lope along, easily out distancing the pursuit. It took some time but slowly her mind became foggy and she began to stumble, - Need to find someplace to hide. Give this a chance to wear off before they can find me. -
She had tried to head towards where she guessed the town of Vershin to be. She hoped she'd be able to find a place to hide and later, maybe, after the drugs had worn off she planned to steal herself a horse. She knew that Caesar wasn't carrying messenger pigeons on this trip and that gave her hope that she might manage to beat his plans for Gabrielle by somehow reaching her first. - Even if I have to call on the gods for help! - she growled to herself. - They owe me! -
Shaking her head, she slowed her pace. Concentration was becoming increasingly difficult, control over her muscles was very limited. Everything was beginning to spin, and only her iron will and determination kept her going until she stumbled across a shallow depression in the ground that was partially filled with a bed of leaves, left there since the autumn fall. Knowing that she had no other viable choice, Xena collapsed into the dead foliage and forced her lethargic arms to cover herself with them as best she could. Aware that she could do no more, she finally gave into the demands of the drug and collapsed into unconsciousness.
"What do you mean you can't find her!" demanded Caesar angrily. "Did your men, or did they not, hit her with those darts."
"Yes General," affirmed Flaccus, "All four men swore that they got her."
Caesar scowled at Patroclese who shrugged and responded, "That amount of Curamin was enough to knock out a bull in its prime. You know, my Lord, what Xena's strength is like. I warned you that you were taking a risk."
"Yes, yes," snapped Caesar, "I can do without your 'I told you so's' Patroclese." He turned his glare back at Flaccus, "Widen the search area. She obviously got further than we anticipated." He thought of something and motioned Flaccus to remain a moment longer, "How long will that amount of the drug keep her unconscious?" he asked the healer.
"A normal man would be incapacitated for at least two full days," Patroclese responded promptly, "with Xena," he pursed his lips as he tried to assess an accurate estimate of the likely time, "between eight candlemarks and a full day. I can't be more precise than that."
Flaccus nodded his understanding and left Caesar's tent, bellowing out orders as he marched commandingly through the encampment, "Get me torches and the best trackers we've got. We'll search all night if we have to, but I want that slave re-captured and chained by first light or you'll all wish you'd never been born."
Caesar watched the search parties move out and slammed his right fist into his left palm. His idea had been good. Xena needed to experience the exhilaration of freedom, only to have it snatched away. If he was going to crush her will he had to use every trick available to him. Physical punishment was something she could stand up to very well. He needed to be able to break her inside. Wear down her resistance and replace it with total obedience. This had been one of the steps in the process. The crushing disappointment of failure, on its own, would hardly achieve his ends, but over a period of time, with other clever manipulations it should bear fruit.
- It still will, - he declared to himself, - if we can just get her back again. -
Sunlight was just beginning to crest the surrounding hills as Flaccus and his men noticed the soft patch of blue cloth peeking through a pile of dead leaves. They had combed every inch of ground in a ten mile radius from the camp, and were just about to back track on themselves, thinking that they must have missed her .. because it was almost beyond belief that she could have come this far .. when the Senior Centurion had spotted that odd piece of blue material betraying the hidden escapee. Signalling his men, they surrounded the depression and one of them began to sweep aside the leaves, only to yelp in pain as a startlingly strong hand closed around his wrist and tightened mercilessly. The soldier scrambled back, pulling Xena from the bed of leaves as he did so. Her eyes were unfocused, she was groggy and disorientated, but an insistent voice, in the depths of her mind, told her that she had to fight or she would lose her freedom once more.
Flaccus had a ten man squad with him and he knew that they were in for a struggle. He brought his vine staff down hard on her knuckles, forcing her to release the soldier she had grabbed, and snapped, "Get her!"
The legionaries piled in on top of the Warrior Princess who had little chance of fighting off their combined weight. She still had very little control over her limbs and her mind was fuzzy and unresponsive. She did manage to get in a couple of solid punches and one really vicious kick to one man's groin, but then they had her pinned on the ground and Flaccus was locking the manacles back onto her wrists.
Gripped by an urgent frenzy she resumed her struggle, throwing off all but two of the soldiers with her wild thrashings, before they piled back on turning her face down, pushing her head into the damp dewy grass, while Flaccus took the opportunity to tightly secure the belt back around her waist. Two men lay across her legs as the irons were locked into place on her ankles, and a chain attached to her collar.
"Get her up," growled Flaccus as he surreptitiously rubbed his jaw. He'd been caught by one of her flying fists and it hurt like Hades. "Lets get her back to camp before she can cause any more trouble."
Xena had been hauled to her feet and then dragged back the ten miles to Caesar's camp, as she continued to fight the debilitating effects of the drug that had been used on her. Her mind screamed in anger at her failure to thwart Caesar's plan, yet a quiet corner stubbornly reminded her that if she had succeeded, she could have doomed her friends, and Gabrielle in particular.
