"How I miss
these little discussions of ours," the blonde swordswoman commented,
not missing a beat in their dance. "The give and take. That
soul-filling satisfaction I get afterwards. Frankly, I just don't see
what you see in that little bard of yours. She can't be as entertaining
as me."
The ghostly onlooker gaped in astonishment. 'What in Hades is she
saying?' she wondered to herself. 'She must be mad! Yes, that must be
it. It's just part of the madness. This is all Xee-nah's fault.'
With her trademark yell, Xena jumped straight up. As Callisto looked up
to track the raven-haired woman's movements, the chakram flew through
the space Xena had just occupied and tore into the blonde's side before
bouncing off the table and onto the floor.
The insane warrior struggled to shut out the pain as the hated Xee-nah
came back down, sending a strong kick which propelled the blonde over
the table and into her former chair, which toppled over from the
impact. Callisto's sword was lost somewhere but she saw something else
she could use. Xena's footsteps got closer as she crawled the few steps
she needed before she encountered Xena's legs.
The heroine looked down at Callisto as she looked up from below. The
blonde girl coughed up a little blood. "Well, I suppose that's enough
talking for today," she said, coughing some more. "If I didn't know any
better, I'd start believing that you didn't like me. What, with all the
hints you throw around. Good thing I have such a sunny disposition or I
would be deeply hurt."
"You've lost Callisto," said the standing warrior, sheathing her sword
over her back. "Where are Gabrielle and my mother?"
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"Mother, mom,
mommy, momma," blithered the deranged youngster. "You know, I had a
mother once. A sister too. Then the fire took them away. Took
everything away and left me with nothing. Xee-nah, it's time I returned
the favor!"
She had a maniacal smile now, as she flung the bloody chakram she had
been holding after picking it up from the ground. Xena stepped back and
watched the chakram slice a rope behind the throne before it careened
off a wall and back to Callisto who caught it deftly. She examined the
chakram, then licked some of her blood off.
The tapestry behind the throne fell down to reveal an alcove running
the length of the back wall. Gabrielle and Cyrene were gagged and
shackled to the walls at the ends of the alcove, facing each other.
Both were drenched in some sort of liquid. A lit torch hung above each
captive, each torch held by a rope that ran along the ceiling to meet
in the center of the alcove, where they dropped down and were tied to a
metal ring.
Another lit torch had been moved by the falling tapestry and had
started to burn through both ropes where they were tied down. The
Warrior Princess took in the whole scene in a second, then raced
forward and caught both ropes just as they burned through. She glanced
at Gabrielle, who was wide-eyed with fear, before looking back at the
chakram-holding blonde.
"Let's start the after-dinner entertainment, shall we?" bubbled the
happy killer as she painfully stood up, still holding Xena's chakram.
"Our contestants for today are one irritatingly cheerful bard, one
Destroyer of Nations and murderer of hundreds, and the mother of the
aforementioned murderer."
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