Xena: Warrior Princess are copyright property of MCA/Universal and Renaissance Pictures. No copyright infringement was intended in the writing of this fan fiction. All other characters in this story and the story itself are the sole property of the author. This story can not be used or sold for profit in any way. This story has been written solely for the reading enjoyment of Xena: Warrior Princess fans of the internet.

Setting: This story takes place during the fifth season of Xena: Warrior Princess

Note to Reader: My fourth Xena story has: a goddesses of light, an arrow attack by night, a sailing crew, a gathering of both old friends and new, an ancient serpent feared by man, and a mythical deadly island.

GabbysHOPE@aol.com

Chapter 1:

"So tell me Gabrielle." Xena asked as she held her chakrum up in front of her. "How exactly did this happen again?"

Gabrielle was seated across from her friend on the other side of the evening campfire. She was finishing her meal and still looking to her plate as she responded. "Well, like I said, while you were catching the fish, it just sort of happened."

Xena brought the chakrum closer to her face and sniffed at it slightly. She made a face at the strong smell of trout that stayed with her prized weapon. She looked to the chakrum and then to Gabrielle. Then she looked to the chakrum and to Gabrielle again. "Mmm hmm."

Gabrielle for her part was busy running her finger around the inside of the plate, getting every last piece of their evening meal. She was far too busy to bother to look up and meet Xena's studying eyes. "When you were pulling the fish out of the water, I guess one of them must have run across it. It happens now and then." She nodded supportively to her friend.

"Oh does it now?" The faintest expression of a smile played across Xena's lips, but she held it in check. It was a practiced skill that made her sarcasm sound a lot like a threat in certain circumstances. That had always served her well in the past. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she looked to Gabrielle awhile longer.

Gabrielle looked up briefly and rewarded her with an open, innocent smile. Xena turned the chakrum around in a circle in front of her. She sniffed all along the inside and outside of it. "Pretty big fish to smell it up all the way to the center." She watched Gabrielle for any signs of guilt.

Gabrielle shrugged and looked to her plate again. She glanced up briefly while Xena looked away to her side. Xena was still sniffing at her chakrum, turning it around in the air. Gabrielle let out a quiet laugh.

That drew Xena's attention back to her. She watched as Gabrielle buried her eyes down in her pouch looking for something. When Gabrielle looked up, she still held an innocent, patient look to her that made Xena all the more suspicious. She shook her head lightly and placed her chakrum to her side. Gabrielle had come along way since they first met. She wasn't always sure if that was for the better.

"So, um how much longer will it be?" Gabrielle asked hoping to change the subject. She had taken out a needle and thread to fix a small tear in her boot.

Xena leaned back against the old tree stump and let her hands rest at her side. "Oh not too long." She looked up and took a deep relaxing breath. "We should be at the port by tomorrow night. Tomorrow evening if we push it. We'll have to find a good stable for Argo of course."

"Of course." Gabrielle nodded, still fixing her boot. She looked up. "Why not let Argo run out in the fields? You know like she did before." She thought it was a good idea anyway.

"Oh no." Xena shook her head. She made sure Argo could clearly hear what was being said. "I tried that just a few weeks ago if you'll remember. No, Argo will be staying in a nice clean stable. She is developing too much love for apples."

Argo let out a small sound of dissatisfaction and Gabrielle laughed at that. Actually she was also laughing at Xena sniffing at a chakrum as well, but she wouldn't let her know that. She remembered three weeks ago when she and Xena had run themselves to near exhaustion not far from a farmer's apple orchard. It had taken an entire day for Xena to work out a plan where Gabrielle successfully chased Argo over to Xena. Xena gave out one of her battle cries and back flipped in the air to land in her saddle. Argo's response was to just stand there as though nothing had ever happened.

"Nothing but good quality oats for her this time around. Right girl?" Xena looked back behind her.

Argo just stood there.

"I hope we get to meet some famous people." Gabrielle looked up from her scroll with a wishful attitude. "I mean, judging by the scroll, that invitation could be open to anyone. Heroes of any kind."

"Yeah, I guess it could." Xena was looking to the campfire now, but her thoughts were on something else. She could see the flames catching out to a few leaves nearby. Her boot kicked some dirt in that direction and the leaves died out in no time. "That's fine with me. No need for all the glory on this one, just as long as the job gets done."

"Really? Modesty from the warrior princess." Gabrielle smiled to her, clearly teasing her.

Xena returned her smile. "I like to try it now and then." She tossed a stick into the fire and then pointed to the scroll. "You getting that down."

Gabrielle nodded. "Oh I am. And that too." She pointed to the chakrum and smiled again.

"Oh yeah?" Xena asked her.

"Yeah." Gabrielle responded playfully.

"Well you just do that." Xena smiled and closed her eyes, relaxing more. She must have laid there for about half an hour before the sound of Gabrielle's scroll being rolled up focused her attention. Gabrielle had gotten up and was preparing to go over to put her writings in Argo's pack. Xena reached over to pick up her plate.

"Are you feeling alright Xena?" Gabrielle looked to her with just a touch of concern.

"I don't know. I think I might have caught my foot in between a couple of rocks while I was fishing."

"Do you want me to look at it?" Gabrielle walked over and took the plate.

Xena waved her away. "No, that's alright. I just need to rest it for the night. That's all.

Gabrielle nodded her head, accepting her friends statement. "Sure. I'll just put these back in the pack."

"Ok, you do that." Xena watched her walk over to Argo.

Gabrielle rubbed as much of the food off of the plates as she could with some large tree leaves near her. She would wash them more properly tomorrow morning. She put the plates in a side pouch and then walked to the other side of Argo to put her scrolls in another pouch. "Good girl." Gabrielle gently patted Argo's side. Argo let out a low happy sound.

Gabrielle returned to the camp to find Xena already resting on her blankets. "We'd better get some sleep. We've got along day ahead Gabrielle."

"Right." Gabrielle went over to her bedding and pulled the cover over her as well. "Goodnight Xena. Oh and Xena?"

"Yes?" Xena turned to look in her direction.

"Why is there a piece of your trout meal lying under my blanket?" She asked.

"Heh heh." Xena let out a small laugh and turned back to face away from Gabrielle. She fell asleep with a smile on her face.

Chapter 2:

Gabrielle's first sight of the day was Xena standing up over her. Xena had her usual grin whenever she said. "Rise and shine!"

Gabrielle moaned and tried to pull the blanket back over her. She mumbled. "Do I have to?"

Xena reached down and took the blanket. "Oh yeah, you have to." She watched as her sleepy friend moaned again before finally sitting up. Xena walked over to the campfire and stirred some more dirt into it to make sure it went out. By the time she finished with the campfire, Gabrielle was standing and already folding up her blankets. Xena smiled. Her friend's timing was improving considerably. She would make a morning person out of Gabrielle yet.

In no time at all the two of them were walking down to the lake. Both of them cleaned themselves up. Gabrielle then quickly washed their plates from the night before as Xena led Argo over to drink some water. They both finished their chores at about the same time and so they started down the small trail once again.

The day was sunny and warm. A slight breeze would pass by them from time to time, making the leaves in the trees rustle on both sides of the path. It was one of those perfect days where nothing could go wrong. So of course, Gabrielle reasoned to herself, we have to go looking for trouble in some far away land.

Xena and Gabrielle continued along the path for some time before Gabrielle spoke up. "I hear this woman is powerful and dangerous. Whole armies of men have traveled to her caves to defeat her and never returned again."

Xena raised her eyebrows up in mild amusement. She could tell that her friend was giving this situation careful consideration with a bard's interest for adventure. She smiled slightly. "Actually its an island Gabrielle, and not a cave. And yes, there have been a few groups that have traveled out there to deal with her. None of them returned."

Gabrielle looked confused. "But I thought... I mean didn't Perseus take care of her? That's what I heard."

"That's what I've heard too." Xena frowned at the thought of a job not finished. Something wasn't right about that, but there was no need to worry Gabrielle about it. "I guess that's why King Oreastes sent that scroll out. Gather up enough adventurers and sooner or later somebody will get to her."

Gabrielle looked hopeful. "Well, with Hercules and Iolaus' help I don't imagine there will be any problem."

"Uh uh." Xena shook her head as they continued along. "Hercules and Iolaus won't be able to make it. At least not in time for the boat anyway." She noticed her friend growing more concerned after hearing that. Gabrielle still held a heroic admiration toward those two. Xena understood that of course. Hercules and Iolaus' reputation for helping others was quickly growing into tales of legendary journeys. Xena herself held a great amount of respect for the two of them. But you couldn't spend the rest of your life depending on others to help you in bad situations. You had to learn to make do with your own abilities.

"Hey." Xena tapped Gabrielle on the shoulder lightly. "If it comes down to it, we've always got the secret weapon." Gabrielle gave her a questioning glance and Xena responded. "Joxer's gravy." That brought a smile to Gabrielle's face.

They continued to the port of Lerain without any problems. The weather stayed as warm and as inviting as the few people they happened to meet on the way there. Starting out early had paid off as Xena had promised, they managed to walk into the small port town by evening. There was still a couple of hours left of sunlight and the traffic of people on the streets was light.

Gabrielle agreed to take Argo to a nearby stable while Xena went to speak to the dockmaster. Xena watched her two friends head further into town and then she turned to walk over to the dock. She could see the dockmaster was busy instructing a couple of workers about unloading a ship's supplies. There were several crates and boxes on the end of the dock.

Xena looked up to the large sailing ship, the Sargasso. It looked to be in good condition. The sails were undamaged and the sides of the ship appeared to cleaned regularly. Xena could smell the saltwater of the sea. She hoped the sea would be more inviting that it had been in past situations.

Xena introduced herself to the dock master and showed him the scroll she had received from King Oreastes. He told her that guests of the king would be meeting soon in a nearby tavern. He pointed it out to her. This was the ship they would be taking. Her captain was a seasoned naval officer by the name of Herabes. Xena thanked him and headed back toward town. She could see that Gabrielle was standing not far from where they had parted.

"Did you get what you needed?" Gabrielle asked.

"Yes, we're supposed to meet in a tavern nearby. That's where everyone will be." Xena explained.

"I can take us there. I saw it on the way to the stables." Gabrielle led the way. Then entered a small tavern that didn't even have a name. There were already a few people there. Xena nodded a greeting to a few of them before sitting at a table near the wall. Gabrielle joined her.

After an hour passed by, the small tavern was almost full. There were about thirty faces in the crowd. Xena recognized a few of the faces in the room. Judging by the dirty looks she received from a couple of them, there were a few people that recognized her as well. Just then the door opened an a strong middle-aged man entered. Several of the people in the room greeted him openly.

"Jason." Gabrielle said out loud, thrilled to see the well known hero. Jason greeted a few of his old friends as well as the others. His eyes passed over the room and briefly recognized Xena. He frowned slightly and turned to someone else, talking to a long held friend. Gabrielle had noticed his reaction to Xena. She turned to look to her.

Xena picked up on Gabrielle's concerned look. She spoke quietly so nobody else but Gabrielle could hear. "He and I had some past differences. "

Gabrielle nodded quietly. She looked back over to Jason who was now sitting with a couple of other men. Jason was a good friend of Hercules. She was sure that the past could be left in the past. Maybe she would talk to him sometime during the voyage.

Captain Herabes arrived several minutes later and walked up to the bar. He turned to face the crowd. "As some of you know, my name is Herabes, captain of the Sargasso. King Oreastes has made it known to you that there is a problem to be dealt without on the Gorgon's island. This town is a part of that." Herabes reached over and took a drink of ale before continuing with his speech.

"Several weeks ago an adventurer by the name of Perseus traveled to the island and supposedly defeated the monster. Then reports were received by the king saying that some of the townspeople of Lorien were gone. One even said that a person had been turned to stone out by the shore," Herabes noticed the mumbling in the crowd. "but that was never proven."

Xena and Gabrielle looked to each other briefly while they listened to Herabes. "My point is there is definitely something going on out on that mountain. The fact that Persues returned at all makes me confident that what he said was true. The monster Medusa is dead." Somebody mumbled a question of why they would need to return if that was the case. Herabes ignored him. "The king has instructed me to reward the victors of this adventure a prize of sixteen-hundred dinars for the securing of the island."

There was a lot of talk in the crowd now. Sixteen-hundred dinars was a considerable amount of money. Herabes continued. "We'll be shipping out in a couple of hours from now and use the nighttime for our voyage. We should reach the island by tomorrow morning. I suggest that each of you find your place on the ship and get some sleep as soon as possible. A few more adventurers have already arrived and boarded." With that said, Herabes made his closing remarks and wished everyone well. He left for the ship. Several people were starting to pack up their things and head out to the Sargasso.

"So what do you think Xena?" Gabrielle looked to her.

Xena looked over to her friend thoughtfully. "Bad things seldom come alone Gabrielle. There's something out there on that island alright. I suppose we won't find out exactly what it is until tomorrow."

Xena and Gabrielle picked up their things and headed out of the tavern to the ship like most everybody else. She had recognized more than a few faces in that tavern. Some of them like Darinus were from her dark past. He had been a third lieutenant to Draco at one time. Others like Jason were not quite convinced or at least not quite comfortable with her growing reputation as a reformed warlord. She couldn't say that she blamed them too much. A reforming warlord was an uncommon thing to see.

They made their way onto the ship and were luckily given a room for just the two of them. The room was small of course and there was barely enough space to put down their possessions, but Xena liked it that way. The two of them agreed to put their things in the room and then explore the ship for awhile to pass the time.

Chapter 3:

Dockworkers and crewmen from the ship yelled out instructions to each other as the last of the lines and the boarding ramp were separated from the ship. Xena and Gabrielle stood at the edge of the ship's deck, looking down to the dock. Most of the other passengers were on deck as well. Some of them were talking to one another while others looked out to the sea or the town. Gabrielle was waving to some children down on the dock.

Gabrielle imagined the children had gathered to see the ship set sail before their morning chores would be expected of them. "That's a good sign you know," She commented to Xena. "Children are always a good sign." She continued to wave out to them as the ship left the port.

"Until you have to change and feed them." Xena remarked. She was busy looking to the other passengers on the deck. There were a total of about eight men and women whom she recognized. Only one of them had thought to approach her and say hello. He was a retired soldier from the Greek army. Xena had fought with him once when she helped repel criminals from a farming town. That happened a long time ago before she met Gabrielle.

"Always the optimist Xena." Gabrielle sighed and turned to face her. The ship was slowly changing course and taking the dock out of view. "Xena... have you ever thought... " Her voice trailed off as she thought about asking a question.

"Forty-six." Xena said calmly. Gabrielle asked her what she meant by that. She explained. "Forty-six passengers. I spoke to the captain earlier. He said there were forty-nine scheduled." Xena stopped for a second, recognizing that Gabrielle had started a question. "Have I ever thought about what?"

"I don't know." Gabrielle shrugged. "Children. I was just thinking about the kids on the dock."

Xena nodded thoughtfully. She gave a halfhearted smile to her friend. "I think about it from time to time. I don't know... it just doesn't seem like something in the immediate future." Gabrielle agreed with her. Xena decided not to say anything more about the subject. Neither one of them had had the best history with children.

After a few awkward minutes, Xena broke the silence. "I'm going to go meet a few of these people. I want to see just who we'll be dealing with." Gabrielle nodded. "If I have to fight with them, I want to get to know them first." Xena left her, approaching a couple of men and a woman who were talking.

Gabrielle turned back to look out to the sea. The water went out as far as the horizon. She closed her eyes and felt a slight cool mist of sea air brush across her face. In her mind, she tried to imagine what it would be like for her and Xena to be mother's once again. Hopefully the next time around, it would be something more as she had imagined it to be. She had plans on being a mother again someday, though she wasn't sure exactly what the circumstances would be. Gabrielle sighed letting her imagination of a perfect family keep her company for now.

Xena was now standing in the center of the deck on her own, looking up at the top of the mast. She was trying to determine the age of the sails. They appeared to be older than she had first thought, but they didn't seem to show any wear or tear. Most sails showed some damage from storms or broken lines and masts. She surmised Herabus must be a very thorough captain to see to such detail.

She was still looking up when she heard a man walk up behind her and speak. His voice was deep and aged. "You can tell the quality of a man by his ship." Xena turned to see the former king of Corinth. She smiled at his comment, as his ships had held a reputation for excellence during his rule.

"Yeah. Not too bad, though there's the smallest build up of salt around the lower edges." She pointed out a few spots. She was surprised he had approached her. In her earlier days, when she was still intent on conquering the world, she had attacked her fair share of outlying Corinth provinces. She had heard there was a considerable bounty on her head in those days.

"Well, I'm sure Herabus will have his crew cleaning them soon. He's good at that." Jason said. There was a few seconds of silence as they looked to the sails. "I hear you come with good recommendations." Xena turned to look at him. "Hercules sends his best."

She nodded. "Is he doing alright?" Xena had heard about his mother passing away some time ago but had only been able to send a letter of condolence to Alcemene's home. She was also aware of Jason's marriage to her. That had been another reason she had hesitated to visit.

"He's fine. Hercules and Iolaus are as inseparable as always." Jason laughed at that. "Though what Hercules sees in Iolaus as a friend I never could tell." They both laughed at his remark.

"Hercules is a good judge of character. He's had good friends I hear." Xena commented.

Jason looked to her. "That he does." He turned to wave to a man that had said hello to him and then returned his attention to her. "I'm glad to see you came along on this adventure. We'll need the best swords we can get." Xena smiled at his compliment and thanked him. He excused himself to speak with an old army friend. Xena stood there by herself, thinking that maybe old grudges between them could be forgotten.

"So what did you say, huh?" Gabrielle asked. She had approached Xena as soon as Jason left. She stood there smiling, pleased to see the two of them had spoken to each other without her having to force Xena to do it.

"Oh, you know, things." Xena knew that would only make Gabrielle more curious. That was what she had intended to do. "We're making progress."

"That's good." Gabrielle looked behind Xena for a few seconds before speaking. "Xena why is that man over there looking at you like he could chew through a rope?"

"Let me guess." Xena had an amused look on her face. "Big, strong and dumn looking with a scar on his left cheek." Gabrielle nodded. "That's Beorn. He's a second rate warlord I made the mistake of teaming up with a couple of years before we met. What can I say, I was desperate."

Gabrielle could tell by her sarcasm that Xena was insulting Beorn more than herself. "Well, um the big dumn looking warlord is coming over here."

Xena kept facing forward as he closed in toward her. With a sudden speed, she reached out for a mop in front of her and swung around. The mop struck the side of Beorn's ankle. He fell to the deck and a few of the others around him chuckled. They stopped quickly as his growl made them reconsider their laughter. He was about to get up when the mop handle hit his chest forcefully. "I wouldn't do that just yet." Xena warned him. Her eyes were narrowed and her voice was low and threatening.

"Nice to see you again Xena. What's it been? A few years and a few men?" His anger was clearly showing.

"Its not my fault your men knew a better deal when they saw one. Your operation was sloppy." Beorn growled and reached up for the mop handle, but Xena struck him in the side with it a couple of times before hitting his chest again.

"I'll not have any fighting on my ship. Save it for the island." Herabus' tone was sharp. He had been told about the incident between the two of them. Xena and Beorn looked to him and after some time they grudgingly agreed to forget the incident. Beorn reached a hand up so she could help him stand. She frowned at him and declined to give any assistance. He laughed at that, got up and returned to his talks with a warrior far away.

Xena shook her head as Gabrielle walked up to her. "Some people never change. They stay just as dumb as they always were."

"Come on, Xena." Gabrielle pointed to one of the crew from the ship's galley. He was directing the passengers and some of the crew to the mess hall. "A nice hot meal will make you feel better."

"Yeah, well just a little bit." Xena glanced back in Beorn's direction. "As long as I don't get too full and loose my edge. You can't afford that with this crowd." She let Gabrielle lead her over to the mess hall.

Chapter 4:

The evening meal had been as good as Gabrielle had promised. All kinds of wine and juices were available. There was fresh bread, meats, gravy and desserts. Xena decided on a simple beef and vegetable tray. She smiled as she looked over to Gabrielle's tray. Her friend wasn't being too shy about her servings. Xena made a quiet joke about it and got a look from Gabrielle. She laughed and continued to eat her own meal.

They were all sitting on the top deck once again. It was the only place on the ship that could hold so many people. The food had been in the galley below. Everyone took a plate and mug and worked their way through the line and then headed back up to the top. Gabrielle had agreed to sit with Xena near the entrance where everyone was heading back out onto the deck. She said it would be a good chance to get a better look at everyone. There were still several people she had not met yet.

Gabrielle could tell that that bothered her. Preparation was always an important factor to Xena. She needed to know as much about a situation as she possibly could before she chose her actions. That was kind of ironic to Gabrielle, since she always thought of herself as the one more likely to weight the pros and cons of a decision. Xena told her that is situations like this with such high stakes, you could never have too much information.

Xena finished the last of her meal and set her plate down. "I think I'm going to go over to Veren and Maltees. See if they want to get in a little sword practice before we reach the island."

Gabrielle looked over to the two men. "You see something special in them?" To Gabrielle they looked like most of the other passengers.

"I spoke to them yesterday and they seemed to have sharp minds. Veren used to be a soldier in the Athenian army. Maltees was a trainer in a village militia not far from the Persian border." Xena explained. "There probably two of the more honest people on this trip."

Gabrielle nodded and watched her friend stand and walk over to them. She had some more of her fish and biscuits to finish. She was curious about how the captain could afford such fine food. She had always thought poor food was expected on ships. Maybe the king had given Harabus some extra money for that. She would certainly thank him if she ever got the chance. The food was very good.

"Enjoying your meal?" A woman's gentle voice called out to her. She stood near Gabrielle, drawing a light cloak over her shoulders.

Gabrielle looked up and sat their motionless for a few seconds. "Na-- Najara?"

"It's me Gabrielle. How have you been?" Najara smiled. She seemed at peace with herself.

"Oh, um I've been fine." Gabrielle returned her smile slightly. "Weren't you-- I mean the last time--"

"Wasn't I back in prison." Najara finished her sentence. She noticed that Gabrielle seemed uncomfortable. "Good behavior gets your time reduced considerably. Jailers have little need for a woman who dealt with slavers and pirates. They recognized the greater threats to society."

Gabrielle wasn't sure if that was an accusation or just her imagination. She didn't imagine Najara could be too pleased with her and Xena for returning her to prison. Gabrielle couldn't see any injuries in her chest from where the dagger had hit her. She supposed that was a good thing.

"Well, I'm glad to see you are doing well." Gabrielle offered, noticing that Najara sat down near her without the need of being invited to do so.

Najara gave a simple smile. "So am I."

"What have you been doing with your time?" Gabrielle asked curiously.

"I've been traveling around, here and there. Helping people when I can and then I read a scroll that had been posted in a town square. It mentioned this adventure and so here I am." Najara explained.

"And the... Jinn?" Gabrielle didn't want to sound disrespectful when she asked the question.

"The Jinn still guides me." Najara nodded.

"Wonderful." Gabrielle and Najara turned at the sound of Xena's voice. "This trip just keeps getting better and better." Xena's voice was low and sarcastic.

"Hello Xena." Najara greeted her with a pleasant look before standing. "Gabrielle and I were just catching up on a few things."

Xena didn't look interested. "Really? Tell me, why didn't we see you earlier?"

"I chose to stay below decks." Najara pointed to three other passengers. "Those two over there, I took their armies away from them when I had my soldiers. I don't think they would like to see me."

"You think so?" Xena responded with a mix of tiredness and sarcasm.

"The other one is a common criminal pretending to be a hero." She explained. "He'll hold back and wait for everyone else to fall before he moves. I'd watch him if I were you."

Despite her dislike for Najara, Xena looked intently to the criminal and made a point of recognizing his face in a crowd. She declined to thank Najara though. "I'll remember." Xena thought for a few seconds. "So you're one of the three Herabes said was below deck."

"Yes." Najara replied. "Me and two others, though one of them had a bad stomach flu. I don't think he'll be much help once we get there."

"With the way things are likely to go, he'll probably be the lucky one. " Xena commented.

"Lucky?" Gabrielle asked. "I don't understand."

"I think what Xena's trying to say is that we're not the first group of people to try and stop this problem. If others have failed, then there must be something that stopped them." Najara explained.

Xena reached out to take Gabrielle's hand, pulling her to her feet. She made a slight nod of her head to suggest they move on to another part of the deck. "Thanks for clearing that up Najara. Far be it for me to speak for myself. Come on Gabrielle."

Najara gave them a simple, warm smile as she watched them walk away. Xena had given her a slight frown as she turned back to look at her. Najara leaned back in the seat and looked out to the sea.

"Xena?" Gabrielle asked again. "What exactly was she implying by that?" She had stopped walking away and gave Xena a look that suggested she wanted answers.

Xena sighed before answering. "Listen Gabrielle... we've been through a lot together and I know we've held our own through several bad situations..." Her voice trailed off as she searched for the right words. "but with this one it might be different."

Gabrielle started to look concern. "What do you mean? This isn't another vision of yours is it?"

Xena shook her head. "No. No vision. More of a feel for these kind of things." Actually she hadn't had any visions since they were crucified. She shook her head slightly at the thought of that. "All I'm saying is that well... she could be right."

Xena shrugged and offered a brief smile to put her friend at ease. They both walked over to the front of the ship where a young woman was telling a mystical tale of long ago. There were several people there, a few retired soldiers, a mercenary Xena recognized, an Amazon and a few others. Gabrielle glanced over to the Amazon a few times but the woman didn't respond much. She looked as though she were lost in thought. Xena recognized the look in her eyes as Gabrielle asked about her. She explained it away as the young woman trying to stay focused for the upcoming challenge. To herself, Xena thought it was more likely the look of someone thinking of past regrets. At least that was how she interpreted it.

The storyteller was a very skilled bard. Her name was Karissa. She seemed every bit as full of life and energy as the detailed images she conveyed to those around her. At the same time she held a reserved, delicate nature that captured Gabrielle's attention even more. The woman has a certain fire in her eyes as she used her gift to tell of an ancient curse and the island ahead. Everyone around her listened with great enthusiasm. Gabrielle promised herself that she would make a point of meeting Karissa later if she could.

Karissa spoke of the ancient gorgons and of the one known as Medusa. She was one of three sisters, the only mortal among them. Originally she was rumored to be a rather fair looking woman. She made a tragic mistake however in developing a romantic relation with the god Poseidon. They shared a kiss in the temple of Athena on night and the goddess had become angered by that. She had later cursed Medusa into looking as she did when Perseus beheaded her. Her hair had been turned to a nest of poisonous snakes, her lower body changed to that of a serpent and her gaze could turn mortal man into stone.

According to Karissa's tale, the hero Perseus and several of his men had gone to the island just a few months ago to rid the world of the gorgon beast. Many heroic men lost their lives on that island, not only to Medusa but to her two headed dog as well. Xena had a random thought of Hades when Karissa mentioned that. He had such a pet as well. She wondered if they might be one in the same.

A light breeze blew across the deck causing Gabrielle to reach for her shawl and wrap it around her shoulders. The others who were gathered there for the story began to leave as Karissa finished her tale. She cautioned them that while Perseus was credited with the defeat of Medusa, nothing was ever said of her two gorgon sisters. Karissa smiled slightly as the tale left its mystical message of warning. It was a subtle skill Gabrielle herself had yet to learn.

Gabrielle stood and walked over to introduce herself. Karissa greeted her warmly and asked of her new friend.. The two women sat and talked for some time. Gabrielle was pleased to spend time with another bard. She and Xena did not meet many other than a time long ago at a bard academy. Karissa agreed that meeting bards was rare. It was a gift she credited her grandmother with. They both smiled at that and continued with their conversation.

Xena made her way over to the lone Amazon and received a brief nod. She introduced herself and to her surprise the young woman said she already knew her. Xena thought for awhile but didn't remember the woman herself. She studied her for a few seconds before the woman introduced herself as Amber. She had heard of Xena passing through her home village of Stronbren a year ago. The local villagers had said Xena was hunting a wild animal that attacked some of the people there.

She remembered the village now. It was a few weeks after Xena had suffered the loss of Gabrielle to the lava pit. That had been a time in her life when she had returned to her old dark ways. Xena mentioned that she never did actually catch the beast, but she had certainly chased it far away from the village. Amber didn't respond for some time. Xena studied her further wondering if she had suffered some loss as well.

Xena had gotten into a fight in a tavern and stayed in a room upstairs, trying to sleep off her misery of loosing her closest friend. She awoke from a nightmare to find the tavern owner talking to a concerned villager. There had been a report of a beast of some kind. She had joined the tavern owner and they had went to a barn. Inside were the remains of the beasts meal. Xena tried to get the image out of her mind. It hadn't been very pleasant.

She asked the young Amazon about any rumors she had heard since that time. The young woman shrugged and said little more. All she would say is that she joined the Amazon's shortly after that, as she had always said she would. Her mother would have wanted that. Xena nodded quietly deciding not to ask for any more details than the woman was willing to share with her.

Gabrielle approached them both. Xena looked up and saw that Karissa along with several others were returning to their assigned cabins for the night. It was approaching that time where everyone needed to sleep. Gabrielle and Amber exchanged greetings. Amber mentioned she was from the tribe led by the Amazon queen Lilith. Gabrielle complimented the queen when she heard her name. Ephiny had mentioned good things of her.

Xena stood and suggested that they all get a good nights sleep. The other two women agreed and they all headed to their own rooms. Xena and Gabrielle made their way down the galley stairway toward the back of the boat. Their room was the first door to the left. It was barely big enough for the two of them but they had just enough room. Small shelves sat on the opposite side of the center area. Xena dug her sword blade lightly into the wooden deck of the floor and propped the hilt under the door handle. The sword was meant to serve as a door stop. Gabrielle asked if there were any limits to her creativity. Xena just smiled saying she wanted to make sure nobody could force their way in. Both of them rested back on their bunks and drifted to sleep.

Chapter 5:

The night was rather quiet with the exception of a few mild noises. There was always that dull creaking noise of wood against wood. It was heard on every ship that sailed the open seas. That wasn't what was keeping Gabrielle awake. She was just in one of those moods where sleep was not cooperating with her. Xena had told her once it was because she thought to much before she went to sleep. Xena had said it wasn't a problem for her. Gabrielle smiled at the memory. She had mentioned the admission of not thinking to Xena and had received a clever response. In some small way, it was comforting to know that Xena could share in light hearted teasing. There were times when even the warrior princess let her guard down to relax.

Gabrielle had noticed that about Xena lately. Maybe it was because of what they had went through not long ago. Their ordeal in the Apennine mountains had been rather extreme. She still had the scars on her hands and feet from where the nails had been driven into her by the Romans. They continued to heal of course and would eventually fade away given enough time. Gabrielle sighed. It was something she and Xena had not fully come to terms with. Neither of them openly volunteered to bring the subject up. Gabrielle assumed it was concern for her own feelings on Xena's part. That at least was why she didn't bring it up in conversation with Xena. It was an ironic thing really, especially for her being a bard, but sometimes you didn't have to say anything in order to deliver a message.

Xena had been helpful after their return of course. What she had done to those Roman soldiers had been very upsetting emotionally for her. Even moreso afterwards when she had time to think about it. Xena talked to her openly one evening about it and thanked her for her actions. She reasoned with Gabrielle that perhaps it was some small step to her next life as a warrior. Gabrielle hadn't been sure about that, but the more she thought of it, the more she had faith in Xena's interpretation. Who better to know of the way of a warrior than Xena. Xena had mentioned that if she were to be the mother of peace in her own next life, then spending time with Gabrielle now was probably the best thing she could do.

Gabrielle turned her head slightly to look over to Xena. The room had no window in it, so she could just barely see her friend sleeping across the room from her. There was just the smallest hint of moonlight which passed under the door. It was enough that Gabrielle could see that Xena was sleeping on her back. The calm, even sound of her voice let Gabrielle know that Xena must be enjoying a good sleep right now. She wish she could sleep as well.

She looked to the door as she heard the sound of footsteps near the room. Someone from one of the other rooms probably couldn't sleep either and was now walking up to the main deck. Gabrielle understood how they felt. Sometimes she was like that herself. Whenever there was an important battle or confrontation the next day, Gabrielle found it hard to relax and sleep. Xena had no trouble with it though. Gabrielle imagined all those years of being a warrior had conditioned her to being used to the situation.

An unexpected idea entered her mind. It was one of those stray thoughts that a person had when they were lying there with nothing to do but think of things. Gabrielle looked to the door for a few seconds. She could have sworn that something was not quite right. She wasn't sure of course, afterall this entire adventure they were on wasn't quite right by her definition of the term. Still it was something that was bothering Gabrielle. She realized then that is was something so minor she had almost missed it.

Whoever had passed by their room to go updeck hadn't gone all the way up deck. Gabrielle supposed that it was boredom or perhaps it was Xena's mentioning earlier that their were forty-nine passengers, but whatever it was Gabrielle's mind was stuck on numbers. She hadn't heard the correct number of footsteps from the person out in the hall. There had been far too few sounds of boots walking up the stairs. Four or five steps up missing by her count. That caused her a bit of concern.

She looked over to Xena again. Xena was still sleeping peacefully. She stirred somewhat and turned to her side so that she faced Gabrielle but she was still sleeping. Gabrielle glanced around the room slowly as best as she could in the dark. She could just barely make out the shape of Xena's sword propped under the door handle. Gabrielle knew that would hold the door shut. It wasn't that she was worried exactly. She was just awake for some reason tonight and the thought of the sound had struck her as unusual.

Then she heard a second person walking through the hallway. They were headed toward the stairs as well. Gabrielle looked to the door and saw the person's shadow cut across the moonlit crack under the door. Whoever was out their walked quietly up the stairs and then the sound of their boots against the wooden deck stopped. Gabrielle's became more alert and awake at that sound. She knew for a fact that there were more than just six steps up to the main deck. She was beginning to feel a bit uneasy.

A sudden crashing sound caused her to jump up and call out for Xena. Someone had tried to break down the door, but the sword had done its job. It had been pushed a couple of inches into the deck floor and was holding the door steady. Xena awoke and looked up and over to Gabrielle. She could see that her friend was startled and for good reason. Someone was trying to break into the room and get at them.

Someone hit the door again and the wooden frame started to split. Another hit and they would be through. Xena stood quickly and motioned for Gabrielle to stay where she was. She reached forward quickly and took her sword. Just as she did so someone rammed into the door and flew wide open. A large man came flying in, loosing his balance at the sudden weakness of the door. He fell toward Xena and both of them went down.

"Aaiieyyahh!" Xena punched him in the face and his head turned to the side. They wrestled on the floor and knocked into Gabrielle's bunk. She was already standing on her bunk looking down at the two of them. Gabrielle looked to the door and saw a second man enter the room. He was a rough looking man with a dark tan. She could see he had the look of trouble by his hateful snarl. The man looked down to his friend and Xena wrestling on the floor and he drew a dagger.

The dagger left his hand quickly though. Gabrielle's new staff smacked him hard on the wrist and he let out a yelp as the dagger hit the floor. Xena's foot kicked it out into the hallway as she traded punches with the first attacker. They were an even match in the dark and were both content with a fist fight for now.

Gabrielle leapt over them to Xena's bunk. She could see the second attacker had returned to the hallway to search for his dagger. She decided to stay where she was. Then a third man approached the door. Gabrielle hadn't heard him in the hallway before and assumed he had not had time to position himself for the attack. She recognized him instantly of course. He was the warlord Xena had referred to as Beorn.

Gabrielle ignored the sound of fighting next to her and jabbed the end of her staff into Beorn's chest. He stumbled back but managed to grab the staff and pull it to the side. Gabrielle was knocked off balance and fell onto the man Xena was struggling with. There was a bit of chaos as the three of them tried to stand. The second attacker from outside used the confusion to his advantage and rushed into the room with his dagger once more.

The only thing the second attacker found in the room was the sharp end of Xena's sword. She had somehow managed to bring the sword up into the air as he ran forward. The second attacker yelled and fell back to the floor. Beorn was getting ready to run up into the room and attack but he was tacked by a couple of men. Gabrielle couldn't see who they were but she was grateful for their help.

Xena knocked the wind out of the first attacker with a couple of hits to his chest. The man fell and she could tell the energy to fight was no longer in him. Her eyes glanced up sharply to Gabrielle to check on her friend's safety and then to the hallway outside. There was still some sounds of struggling, but she could tell by the frustration in Beorn's voice that he was on the loosing end of the fight.

Xena and Gabrielle quickly stood up and walked out into the hall to see what was going on. Several of the other passengers were also awake now and were standing at the far end of the hallway. Xena looked down to see that Jason and another man had managed to pin Beorn to the ground. Captain Herabus ran down the stairs from the main deck just a few seconds later.

"What's the meaning of this?" He glared at Beorn, who had now stopped struggling. "I thought I'd made myself clear." A couple of men from the ship's crew hurried down the steps and took hold of Beorn. Jason and the other man stood up and took a few relaxing breaths.

Herabus continued. "Alright men. Take him and his two thugs up on deck. I think we can get this misplaced energy out of their systems." The crewmen nodded and dragged the reluctant warlord up the stairs. The man who had helped Jason was now helping a few other adventures with taking the other attackers up to the main deck also. The one who had met with Xena's sword was no longer a threat. He was dead.

Jason walked over and put a hand on Xena's shoulder. "You sure do have a lot of friends." He smiled to her trying to make a lighter mood of the situation.

Xena returned his smile. "What can I say, Beorn's a friendly kind of guy." Jason let out a mild laugh. "Thanks for the help."

Jason nodded. "Anytime." He walked back down the hall and spoke to the others who had gathered around. "Alright folks, shows over. Time to get some more sleep." A few of the people gathered around wanted to stay for awhile longer but Jason encouraged them all to go. They agreed and started to return to their rooms.

"What do you think they'll do to him Xena?" Gabrielle looked to her friend.

"I don't know and to be honest I don't really care." Xena sighed. "I was right in the middle of a good dream too."

"Oh? Wanna share a little on that?" Gabrielle asked her curiously.

Xena looked over to her with a tired smile. "Not really. Now lets try to get some sleep." Before her friend could think of a response, Xena stepped over the broken doorframe and returned to her bed. Gabrielle realized she would get nothing more from Xena tonight so she returned to her bunk as well. Thankfully, she managed to fall asleep in no time at all.

Chapter 6:

Gabrielle woke up to the faint sound of seagulls in the distance. She yawned and propped herself up on her elbows. Xena must have let her sleep for some time. She hadn't remembered getting this much of a rest for several days. Gabrielle looked over to thank her friend but Xena was already gone. Somehow that didn't surprise her. Xena always woke early in the morning.

She sat up and reached for her staff. Her boots were still on from the night before. She didn't think they were much of a concern last night with all things considered. Gabrielle could see that the door was still lying on the deck halfway in the room and halfway in the hall. Nobody had thought to move it, though more than likely they had chosen not to do anything so that she could sleep. She was grateful for that.

The room was well lit from the bright morning light falling down the nearby stairs. She looked around and saw that all of her things were still where she had placed them. At least those men had not taken anything. Gabrielle stood up and took her pack. She looked for anything else of use to her and walked out of the room and up the steps to the main deck.

When she finally made her way up to the deck, Gabrielle saw that several of the passengers and crew were already there. A couple of men were climbing the sail masts to secure the ship's speed while one or two others were either cleaning the deck or putting away some supplies. A couple of passengers were helping the crew while many others were standing in small groups talking about the days ahead. She glanced over behind her, to the small area at the very back of the ship and saw Xena talking to Captain Herabus.

"Good morning Gabrielle." Xena greeted her friend with a smile as Gabrielle walked up next to her. "The Captain and I have come to a mutual agreement about last night." Xena pointed out to the open sea behind them.

Gabrielle looked out behind the ship and saw one of the safety boats following as best it could through the waves. It was tied to the ship by a thick rope. Three men were inside the boat. Two of them were frantically trying to keep pace with the larger ship by paddling their oars on both sides. Gabrielle recognized them as the men that had attacked their cabin the night before. Beorn and one of his thugs were each using their oars while the third man who had met with Xena's sword rested across the front of the boat.

Captain Herabus smirked. "That's been keeping them busy for several hours now."

Xena notices a slight look of concern on her friends face. "Beorn's strong. By the time we reach the island, he'll be too tired to put up much of a fight."

Gabrielle appeared more relaxed after hearing Xena's reassurances. Xena smiled slightly. She was impressed with her regard for life. Gabrielle had mentioned something of her beliefs long ago when they had both dealt with Callisto and Velaska, something about forgiving others so they she could move on with her life. Xena had tried to use that idea as best she could. Gabrielle excused herself and headed toward the front of the ship. She had seen the storyteller Karissa and had wanted to speak to her again. Xena imagined they had much in common. They probably enjoyed their conversations as much as she enjoyed speaking with warriors. A common bond always proved interesting.

Xena glanced back over to Captain Herabus. "These must be trying times for you."

"Oh? How so?" He was still looking to Beorn and the boat behind them.

Both men were using their oars to keep pace with the larger ship. If they were to fall behind, the waves and the steady pace of the Sargasso would pull them under. The waves crashing against the boat and filled it with water. Every few minutes Beorn's soldier would stop rowing to bail a few buckets of water out of the boat. Then he would grab the oar quickly and continue.

Xena studied him. He didn't appear to be too concerned about their destination. She wasn't sure if it was just the confident nature of a seasoned sea captain or something else. You never could tell with older, experienced soldiers. "Well, considering where it is that we're going and with the past failed attempts. I would think it might make you a bit concerned."

Herabus looked over to her. "It makes me concerned alright. This is the fourth crew to approach that island." He looked down slightly, adjusting the half moon necklace around his neck. "I made a promise to myself to make that beast... or whatever it is on that island, pay for its crimes. I intend to live up to that promise."

Xena nodded in silent agreement. "I don't suppose loosing a crew can ever be easy."

"No. It isn't." He responded.

She could see that he was twisting a small piece of rope in his hand. He continued with his part of the conversation. "We'd been turned out to sea. Slightly off course due to a storm and we had spotted the island. It seemed peaceful enough, so we went their just to relax and look for a few simple supplies."

He sighed slightly. "We could have kept going I suppose but I didn't see anything wrong by it." Herabus tossed the small piece of rope over the side and into the water. "I wish I'd just have kept going."

Xena stood there listening. She didn't think to ask further on that part of the subject, but she had to know more. "So what exactly are we facing on that island?"

"I don't know exactly." He shrugged. "Whoever they are or whatever they are, they picked off my crew one at a time. I barely had enough luck and crew to get away when I did. Of course, when king Oreastes heard about what had happened, he immediately sent me back with a fresh crew to take the island. Kings can be that way you know."

"Yes, they can." She understood well. She had seen her fair share of wars and battles start because of a king's pride. It was generally the soldiers that paid for such a shortsighted vision.

"We stayed off shore of the island and sent a couple of groups in. They were good men. They didn't return. So we sent a third group in and it was pretty much the same thing." He explained. "I had the good sense to turn back while we could."

"And then Oreastes sent word out for skilled warriors." Xena stated calmly. In fact, she had received a scroll from the first invitation of warriors but she had neglected to tell Gabrielle. Her friend had wanted to visit a village library known for its historical records and Xena had agreed to go there.

"Yes, skilled warriors." Herabus nodded his head in agreement. "So I set sail again for the island. A good number of Thracian militia were on that trip. Skilled and brave too I might add. But in the end it all met with the same result. There's so much vegetation there, you really have to scout around before you can see a means to attack."

"Any particular reason why you haven't shared any of this with the rest of the passengers?" Xena's dark gaze studied his actions for a response. The tight lipped response he gave alerted her to a deeper, unspoken concern.

"I will in time I guess. Well, I had better be getting on to running this ship." He nodded to her and walked off in the opposite direction. She just stood there for a few minutes, thinking of what he had said. She imagined that there was more to the story than he had told, but she wouldn't press him on the issue for now. She had noticed his growing unease with the topic. It was another one of the skills learned in battle. She often judged another person's resolve by the manner in which they responded to questions. It said alot about a person.

The sound of the ocean waves drew her attention back to the small boat struggling to follow the larger ship. Beorn and his soldier were still busy fighting the raging waves. The line between the boat and ship grew tight every once in awhile and jerked the small boat forward. Each time that it did, the two men in the boat dug into the water with renewed strength. Xena couldn't help but smile slightly. They deserved as much.

As she turned her attention back to the rest of the people on the main deck, Xena could see that Gabrielle was talking to the storyteller Karissa once again. The two of them sat in the center of the deck, not far from the base of the central mast. Xena was curious about Karissa. She wasn't sure exactly why the woman was on a mission such as this. She reminded herself that Gabrielle was a bard as well, but that was different. She was a skilled fighter by her own right and she was traveling with Xena afterall. In truth, the two of them had been traveling together for so long, it seemed out of place to not have Gabrielle join her on this mission. That troubled Xena.

She didn't want to be the one to cause harm to her friend as she had up in the Apennine mountains. Xena knew of course that Gabrielle would likely correct her about that feeling. The two of them had done what had to be done. Gabrielle seemed to be coming to terms about her departure from the way of peace. Xena had tried to comfort her as best she knew how. She had mentioned something of the warrior and bard being opposites that balanced. It had been a small bit of philosophy she had learned while traveling in the Orient. Gabrielle had seemed to accept that. Xena had learned to believe in her own words as well. It amazed her in some ways how she could reflect on the Lao Mau's teachings after all this time and still draw something new and useful from the experience.

Gabrielle noticed her as she approached and invited her to sit down. She was about to do so when one of the men at the top of the mast yelled out. "Landfall. Straight ahead!"

All eyes turned to focus on the front of the ship. Xena could see both Gabrielle and Karissa turn to look ahead. Her eyes narrowed as she also tried to search for the sighting of land. There was a considerable amount of mist drifting up from the front of the ship. It clouded her sight slightly, but with time she could begin to see differences in color. After about ten or fifteen minutes the difference was unmistakable. A large area of dark gray was forming on the horizon.

Xena would have preferred to be standing atop the mast with the two crewmen above. The mist would have provided no distractions to her vision from up there. She sighed. By the time she could climb up the rigging, the island would be clearly visible from where she was. She resigned herself to stay where she was for now.

The Sargasso continued to sail through the moderate waves of the ocean. The sky above was of a consistent gray cloudiness. There was no immediate promise of a rain storm and yet everyone knew that it was certain before the day was over. The clean smell in the air made that rather obvious. Some of the crew were already talking to each other about how to handle the sails before the rain set in.

Captain Herabus passed by Xena's right side. He walked confidently up the center of the deck and then passed over to the right side. He leaned against the railing to get a better view and then stood back straight. Herabus called out to the crew. "Alright! Look alive! Set the sails for a slow approach. Steering, I want us in nice and easy. Prepare to drop anchor on my command."

Crewmen hurried to their respective positions. One or two other men rushed pass Xena as they made their way to the sails and other duties. Gabrielle and Karissa got up from where they stood and walked over to Xena's side. A crewman approached where they had been sitting and started to help with the sails. Xena could see that they were preparing to let down some of the sails to slow their approach to the island. Herabus knew what he was doing. He had been here before afterall.

The sound of waves crashing against the lower sides of the Sargasso could be heard even from the center of the main deck. Gabrielle and Karissa stood to the left side of Xena exchanging a few comments to themselves. Xena continued to gaze out to the quiet island ahead. She could now begin to see individual shapes against its dark appearance. Herabus had been right. There were alot of trees on the island. Enough of them to create a problem from a tactical point of view.

Xena imagined that any number of creatures might be living in the small forest on the island. Creatures who were no doubt well aware of the ship's approach by now. The ship would certainly stand out from the ocean background by now. She found herself wondering of the number of cautious eyes studying the ship. Was there a gorgon on the island as she and most of the others suspected? Were their several? Or pirates perhaps taking advantage of a local fear of the place? It was hard to tell. The only way to be sure was to mount an expedition onto the island, just as the previous ships' crews had done before.

"Port side! Port side!" One of the men up in the central sailing mast yelled out.

Several of the passengers and a couple of crewmen looked over to the left side of the ship. Xena looked as well but she could see nothing out as far as the horizon. Then one of the adventurers looked down to the side of the ship out in the waters. He yelled out and pointed. Captain Herabus quickly ran over to the port side and began to yell as soon as he looked down. Xena and Gabrielle walked over to the port side to look down into the water.

"Stand down!" Herabus shouted. "Stop or I'll send men down to stop you!"

Xena and Gabrielle looked down into the waters to see that the boat which had been tied behind the Sargasso now sailed free. The warlord Beorn and his soldier were frantically trying do distance themselves from the Sargasso. They were slowly making their way farther out to the side of the large ship. From this close everyone could see that the third person in the boat was dead. He had been the one to meet up with Xena's sword in the cabin last night.

Captain Herabus repeated his warning but Beorn ignored him. He and his soldier continued to sail away. Herabus took a dagger from his boot and threw it at Beorn. The escaping warlord managed to dodge the flying weapon just in time. The dagger struck into the seat just behind him. Beorn continued to paddle as quickly as he could.

"Prepare the long boat." Herabus commanded. Several of the crew rushed to the back of the boat where a second slightly larger boat was tied down. The boat that Beorn and his men were in was just big enough for about four people. This larger boat looked as though it could comfortably seat seven or eight men. It hadn't been easy for Herabus to find the room for the two boats, but he had managed somehow.

By now it was clear that Beorn intended to steer his boat toward the island. It was the only place he could go to get away from them. Xena didn't know whether to be impressed with him or disappointed. He was either brave or foolish to risk landing on the island. With her past dealings with the man, either possibility was a good one. Then an interesting thought struck her mind.

"Captain." Xena called out to Herabus as he and others were making preparations to hoist the boat down into the water. Herabus turned to her curiously. "Why not use Beorn to our advantage. Let him scout the island."

"Not a bad idea." Herabus answered. "But I still don't like the idea of him getting away. And there's the boat to consider. I don't trust him to keep it from getting damaged somehow." He nodded to the crewmen. They began to slowly carry the boat to the side of the ship with help from some of the passengers. Crewmembers were tossing lines to one another. A simple system of ropes and pulleys was quickly being made to lower the boat down into the water. Xena and Gabrielle walked up closer to where the men were working.

Xena spoke to the captain again. "Let me lead the scouting party." She ignored Gabrielle's quiet protest and kept her eyes focused on the Captain. He seemed to be considering her offer.

"I wouldn't mind stretching these old sea legs myself." Jason smiled to her as he leaned against a barrel.

"Mmm. Verywell." Herabus nodded. "I suppose the two of you can go. I want four others to go with you as well. I don't want any chances of you being outnumbered." Xena and Jason easily agreed to the captain's command.

"Xena. Do you really have to go now? Herabus and his men can see to it. They know the seas afterall." Gabrielle appeared concerned for her friend and Xena appreciated that.

"They may know the sea Gabrielle, but once were on land it'll be up to Jason and I to track Beorn down. Don't forget I used to travel with the man for a short time." She explained. "I know a little about how he thinks."

Gabrielle nodded quietly, recognizing a firm resolve in Xena's voice. When she spoke with such certainty, it was hard to convince her otherwise. Gabrielle watched along with her friend Karissa as Xena and Jason boarded the boat. The boat was now alongside the Sargasso, sitting up in the air. Two crewmen and two other adventurers boarded the boat. Each of them carefully sat down and held onto the sides of the boat as it was lowered down into the water.

Gabrielle walked over to the edge of the ship and looked down. Crewmen to the sides of her pulled a few lines and the ship was cleared. The two crewmen in the boat below quickly rowed out away from the larger ship and began to head toward the island. Jason was sitting toward the front of the boat while Xena sat in the middle. Both of them were exchanging words to each other. Gabrielle imagined their words were ideas on what to do once they reached the island. As the ship made its way further toward the island, she prayed silently that they wouldn't become more casualties of an island known for its dark secrets.

CHAPTER: 7

Xena continued to hold onto the sides of the boat as it made its way to the island. The two crewmen behind her continued with their steady rowing pace. Jason and the two adventurers in front of her looked forward to the island as well. All of them saw the same thing. An abandoned boat and a body each lie on the small dirt beach ahead.

Beorn and his soldier had reached the island a full ten to fifteen minutes ago. It would likely be another ten minutes before they reached the shore. That gave Beorn a considerable amount of time to find a place to hide. He could easily lie low for a few more hours until the sun began to slowly sink into the western sky. Xena knew that they didn't have much time.

Jason had spoken to her earlier about their efforts once they reached the island. He wanted to take the two adventurers into the trees to the left of where Beorn's boat was. Xena agreed to that. She would go to the right. Both of the crewmen who were steering the boat to shore would remain with the boat. It would be just like Beorn to double back and try to either wreck or steal their boat once they started to search inland.

The boat began to rock with a more sudden rhythm as the waves became more noticeable. They were feeling the return waves from the shore rush up against the waves sending them forward. It had the effect of jarring the boat slightly. After a few more minutes however they would be alright. Xena tried to focus her thoughts on calming her stomach. Unfortunately, her stomach had its own ideas on the issue. She smiled briefly, thankful that Gabrielle wasn't here to see her momentary seasickness. She was sure her friend would tease her to no end.

The boat finally reached close enough to the shore that one of the other adventures jumped out over the side of the boat. The water came up halfway to his chest. He helped to drag the boat further along until the water came down to his waste. At that time, Jason and one of the two men using the oars jumped out into the water as well. In no time, they managed to drag the ship up onto the dirt. Xena and the other two men left the boat as well. All six of them looked to the line of trees ahead and to the set of two footprints that headed up to the trees.

Jason nodded to the two adventurers and they followed him along to the left side of the beach. Xena turned to the boat to see that the two crewmen were already dragging the boat further up the shore. She exchanged glances with one of them and started up to the tree-line toward the right of where the footprints were. She and Jason had already agreed to meet in the middle later on. They would try to flush Beorn and his soldier back to the shore where the two crewmen were. Xena looked back one last time to the men, seeing that they were now looking to Beorn's dead soldier and the stolen boat. Then Xena made her way into the forest.

The trees were very thick where she was. She had to constantly hold her sword in front of her so that branches hanging out from the trees didn't hit her in the face. She frowned as she continued forward. The rustling sound of the branches being pushed back was creating far more noise than she had wanted. If Beorn had chosen to stop and rest for awhile, he could probably hear her approach from a distance.

She glanced around her position, trying to take in the surroundings. By most respects the forest looked just like any other she had seen in Greece. There were many different kinds of trees, weeds and flowers scattered all around her. She saw the occasion area of dead leaves which had fallen to the ground. She even saw one or two rabbits hopping away from her in the distance. It all seemed so peaceful and pleasant, hardly the likely location for a fabled monster of myth. She half expected to hear someone cry out for help, but it hadn't happened. She thanked the Fates for that small bit of luck.

After some time she began to turn in toward the left. She wasn't sure just how far Jason had intended to go into the forest, but this seemed about the right distance. She stopped for a quick rest a few minutes later and heard some rustling in the distance to her left. She stood perfectly still and tried to look in that direction. The covering of branches and leaves between her and the sound made it impossible for her to get a clear look as to who or what was approaching. She could tell by the slow manner in which the sounds were approaching her that whoever it was, they were in no great hurry. That calmed her down somewhat.

Xena saw the outline of a man and then two others. She recognized them then as Jason and the two adventurers who had went with him. She approached them and they soon met up with each other. Both of them exchanged the same stories. Unfortunately, neither had found any sign of Beorn or his soldier so far. Jason suggested there was a good chance that the two of them were caught in between where they had already searched. All they had to do now was head back to the shore and force Beorn back to the boats.

As the four of them started back, it became clear that they were not going to have an easy time of finding Beorn. There were no obvious signs such as disturbed leaves or snapped branches for them to draw a likely lead upon. One of the adventurers to her side made the short comment of Beorn having disappeared into thin air. Xena frowned slightly but said nothing. She hoped the man wasn't given to superstitions. That could become a real burden on a mission like this.

They reached the shore once more. Jason sighed in frustration. Beorn had apparently vanished without a trace just as the man had suggested. Xena looked out to the two crewmen. They still stood by their boat, waiting for either Beorn or Jason and Xena to return. One of them nodded with a bit of relief upon seeing the four of them return. Xena followed Jason and the others back to the boats where they all regrouped to think of a new plan.

"Well, it seems our warlord friend is more resourceful than we gave him credit." Jason explained.

One of the two crewmen spoke. "He can't get far. These boats are the only way off the island."

"He doesn't want to get off of the island. Not yet." Xena explained. The man looked to her with a lack of understanding. She continued. "Beorn will wait until more of us come to the island and then he'll try to blend in with the rest of us."

"What for Xena?" Jason asked. "They're not likely to accept him now that the captain has made his intentions clear."

Xena looked over to Jason and explained herself. "I wouldn't be too sure about that Jason. Old battles make strange alliances. I saw Beorn talk to enough people on deck to bet he could get a couple of them to help him hide out if need be. He likes to work in the background. It explained why I took over his army so easily."

Jason couldn't help but smile slightly at her comment. One of the other adventurers laughed under his breath as well. He had seen her knock Beorn onto the deck the previous day and had been impressed. Xena for her part was too busy scanning the ocean horizon to take much notice. The Sargasso sat comfortably out there, far away from the island.

Jason was the first to speak up. "We should be heading back to the ship."

Everyone agreed with him. The two crewmen, Xena and Jason drug the bigger boat out to the water while the other two adventurers agreed to take the smaller boat back to the ship. The crewmen had already placed the dead body of Beorn's soldier into the larger boat. He would most likely be buried at sea after a few days. It seemed a more fitting end for a person who traveled the seas. It was more fitting than just lying on the open dirt shore at any rate. Jason and one of the crewmen jumped up into the boat when the water reached their chests. The crewmen started to row the boat out into the water. The other boat was alongside them and keeping up with their pace. Xena glanced back to look at the island. She had no great love for Beorn. That was certain. Still, she wondered how he would do remaining overnight on the island.

CHAPTER: 8

Back further into the wooded area of the island, a light breeze picked up against a pile of leaves. A few of the leaves were blown up gently into the air. A rustling sound could be heard and then another. Shortly thereafter, the faces of the warlord Beorn and his soldier glanced up at the trees above them. They quickly worked their way out of the pile of leaves and stood. Each of them brushed themselves off and looked around them.

"Hah hah hah." Beorn laughed. He brushed some leaves out of his unkept hair. "I thought they would miss us. I learned that little trick from Xena." His voice took on a mocking tone. The other soldier was continuing to brush off leaves as Beorn continued, speaking to no one in particular. "Didn't remember that one did you warrior princess?"

The two of them could see that the people that had given chase were long gone by now. Beorn reached down for his sword somewhere in the leaves and he managed to find it. He put it back into his scabbard and instructed his soldier to follow. The man did as he was told.

They headed forward until they reached the end of the trees. The dirt shore lie ahead. Beorn could see the footprints where Xena and the others had likely been walking around. He had seen their boat lowered into the waters as he and his soldier had reached the shore. There hadn't been enough time to do much about the man Xena had killed. Beorn gave a light shrug. The guy was dead anyway, what did he care.

"Go back to where we hid the supplies and bring them back. I'll keep watch and make sure they don't return. I wanna camp here just outside their line of sight. That way we can see when they start out tomorrow." Beorn explained.

"Sure." His soldier replied. The man returned in the direction they had just came from.

He and Beorn had managed to sneak a couple of small supply ration packs with them on the dead man's body. Nobody had thought to check the man. It had been a clever idea from one of the adventurers on the ship. Ronin was his name. He had a similar dislike for Xena for some reason. Beorn didn't care why, he was just grateful for the assistance from an unexpected friend.

Beorn imagined that there were probably several of the men on the ship who wouldn't mind a chance at settling an old score with Xena. She had that kind of effect on people. He knew he certainly wanted to resolve some past differences. That woman was going to pay for messing up his chances at taking the villages in the Anerenci valley.

He nodded to himself and mumbled. "Oh yeah lady. You're gonna pay big."

Beorn could hear his soldier making his way through the leaves far behind him. He frowned. The guy wasn't the brightest around but he was all Beorn could find on such short notice. The same could be said for the other unlucky soldier that had been taken down by Xena. When he could get a piece of the reward for taking care of business here, then he would be in action again. He would have enough gold dinars to start up a small army and grow from there.

"You forget where the stuff is already?!" Beorn called out. He could hear the rustling far behind him again. It sounded as though the man was moving along without a care in the world. Beorn shook his head.

"I told ya earlier. It was right between us. Just feel around for it." Beorn was growing frustrated. "I swear. If I have to go get it myself...."

Beorn stood and looked back to the area where he and his soldier had been hiding. It was some ways back into the forest and he could just barely see it. There were a few too many branches with leaves in the way to get a clear view.

"Hey! What are you doing back there?" He continued to look in that direction. There was no response. Beorn could hear the slight sound of leaves rustling as though the man was still searching.

"Answer me when I'm talking to you! I don't expect to keep repeating myself! You know!" Again there was no response except for a light rustling of the leaves. Beorn stood there for a few seconds. He grumbled to himself and started to walk back to where the soldier was. By the time he reached the area where they had hid earlier, he was really mad. He pushed back a branch to look at the man. "How can you search that long and not find it?"

Beorn's eyes widened at what he saw in front of him. It hadn't been the soldier who had been making the rustling sound in the leaves. Whatever it was, all Beorn could see of his soldier was the guy's boots as they hung out of the thing's mouth. Beorn stumbled back against and tree and numbly reached for his sword. He spun around and ran as fast as he could toward the beach ahead. He could hear the sound of leaves rustling closely behind him.

CHAPTER: 9

"Did you hear something Xena?" Gabrielle asked as she looked up and turned her ear to the ocean.

"Hear something?" Xena looked up from the string she was winding around her hand.

"Yeah. It sounded like a man yelling in the distance." Gabrielle looked out to the water beyond the ship. The sky held shades of dark blue and dark orange. Sunset had already begun and the colors were keeping the young bard entertained up until now.

Xena shrugged. "It's nothing. Probably Beorn gloating over the fact that we missed him. He's like that."

Gabrielle nodded and looked to her writings once more. The two of them were sitting on the main deck toward the front of the ship. Gabrielle had mentioned something of wanting to see the sunset, so Xena had went below deck to get their meals and they ate them here undisturbed. Xena had opted for fish and bread while her friend had chosen some of the dried meats carried onboard with a few vegetables. Both had finished their meals and the empty plates sat on the deck beside them.

"What do you think of my ablaut?" Gabrielle asked.

"Your what?" Xena looked up to her. She was still trying to wind the string up into a loose ball. She had found it just lying there on the deck earlier. Gabrielle told her it was a fixation with her. Everything had to have its place. Xena had just smiled to her in a sarcastic way. Still, she had picked up the string anyway and had shrugged at the time. No need for good string to just lie around unwound.

Gabrielle looked to her and sighed. "Ablaut. You know the way some words sound when you change a letter here and there." She looked back to her scroll and began to write again. She was humming a short song to herself. "Sing sang song sung. Sing sang song sung." She repeated it a few more times. Xena glanced up to her and smiled, shaking her head at Gabrielle's activities. She finished winding up the string and looped the end of it back through the center before finishing.

"That's an obsession with you you know." Gabrielle was grinning as she looked over to Xena.

"You think so?" Xena tossed the rolled up string to her and it landed around the end of the quill the bard was writing with. Xena gave a smile of satisfaction at making her target.

Gabrielle pulled her quill out from the string and set the string to her side. "I know its an obsession alright." She nodded.

Xena looked over to her writings. "So what's all this with something you're going to sing or sang song sung or whatever?"

Gabrielle repeated herself. "Sing. Sang. Song. Sung. That's ablaut."

"I'll say it is." Xena responded jokingly. "That's about all the ways you can say the word anyway."

Gabrielle laughed lightly. "Not about. Ablaut. Its something Karissa mentioned to me. We were talking earlier about methods of writing. You know not just telling a tale, but trying to use patterns within a story as well. She says it gives something extra to the tale."

"Oh." Xena looked around for a few seconds. "Well, I think your stories are fine just the way they are."

"Thank you Xena." Gabrielle returned to her writing in her scroll.

Xena looked around her to the others. A few adventurers were standing farther back to the side. A crewman was positioned in the lookout tower above. Another crewmember nodded to her as he walked on toward his assigned place on deck. Xena imagined he was part of the night watch. She looked out to the ocean. There were only the slightest traces of dark orange and dark blue in the sky. Blackness was reclaiming the night once more and most of the people on the ship were slowly returning below deck to get some more sleep.

Xena thought about suggesting the same for her and Gabrielle, but she knew her friend to well to make any comments on that. Gabrielle was far too busy writing some kind of tale on her scrolls for the moment. She was glad to see that Karissa and her were getting along well. She only hoped that her stories didn't change to much from the way they were usually being written. Xena thought they were just fine actually.

Their supplies, including several of Gabrielle's other scrolls, were still in the same cabin where they had stayed the night before. The door was still missing of course, but Xena didn't mind that much. After her taking on Beorn and his thugs, Xena had noticed an increase in respect shown to her by the others onboard. Jason had offered to change rooms with one of the men next to her room. Xena thanked him for his concern. She assured him she could take care of any trouble that might repeat itself.

A couple of other adventurers walked along the deck off to the right. They were both women. One was a warrior dressed in a mixed assembly of Greek and Roman clothing and the other woman was the Amazon Xena had met before. She recalled the woman's name as Amber. She couldn't hear what the two of them were talking about and so she looked back to Gabrielle.

A sharp cry of pain caused her to look back at the women. The woman next to Amber had been hit with an arrow. Xena looked to the arrow and noticed the direction it pointed back to just before the woman fell. She had been hit in the chest and the arrow had went halfway through. Amber dropped to the deck floor quickly, partially to help her friend and also to avoid be the next target. Xena reached forward to grab Gabrielle. She pulled her down to the deck where she was just as another arrow flew in the air above them.

"Hey. What's the--?" Gabrielle asked as she was jerked down to the deck. Her scroll and quill were tossed to the side. She looked to Xena and saw that her friend was wound up and focused. Then she looked behind her to the side of a nearby barrel. Something was sticking out of it. "It looks like--"

"--an arrow. Yeah I know." Xena nodded. "It came from out there. Out on the island." Xena looked behind her to the few others that were on the deck. "Everybody stay down! Keep low!"

Xena could hear the guy up on the lookout tower mumbling to himself faintly. "What in the world is that thing?" They were the last words he said. He let out a yelp of pain and stumbled back into the tower where he fell down.

Xena looked over to Amber who was crawling over to them. "You alright?"

Amber nodded. "Sure. Took me by surprise. That's all. Who is it?"

"Its not Beorn. That's for sure." Xena repeated her warning to the others on deck. Some of the other people yelled the same thing out to others further back on the ship. A few more arrows could be heard flying through the air. Someone in the far back of the ship yelled out and the sound of a barrel being knocked over could be heard.

"By the gods, Xena" Gabrielle looked to her with concern.

Amber smiled slightly. "Sure wouldn't like to meet that person in an archery contest."

Xena looked over to Amber to make sure she was alright and then to Gabrielle. A few arrows were being fired here and there. None of them were hitting anybody for now. Xena crawled over to the railing of the ship. She slowly started to raise her head over the wooden banister to get a look at the island. She heard a familiar sound and ducked quickly. The sound of an arrow hit the other side of the boat. Xena looked puzzled for a few seconds. Then she looked over to Amber.

"Think you can get me that arrow over there without getting hit?" Xena pointed to the barrel.

"Sure." Amber began to crawl backwards, nearing the side of the barrel. She grabbed a wooden broom handle and raised it up to smack against the arrow in the barrel. Two more arrows quickly shot out at the barrel. Each of them sunk halfway into it. Amber jumped in fright and then got angry. She smacked the arrow as hard as she could and the arrow broke. She grabbed the other half and started to return to Xena.

Just then they heard someone else cry out in pain as a few arrows flew to the back of the ship. Someone had been hit. Most likely they had just come up on deck and had been unaware of what was going on. People from all over the deck were yelling out warnings again of everybody staying down. Xena looked over to see Amber on the other side of Gabrielle. Amber tossed the arrow to her.

Xena looked to it and was instantly amazed to see it was made of stone. The design was unmistakable. The scaled pattern of the arrow was an exact match of a snake. She quickly tossed the arrow half over the side into the ocean. Gabrielle had already seen it though and was noticeably worried.

Amber raised her broom handle and smacked it across the railing just to show her defiance. The action was quickly met with a series of arrows shot off in their direction. The grain sacks that were leaning against the room further back had several arrows in them now.

"Um, I think they got your message Amber." Gabrielle stated quietly. She could hear a couple of more arrows hit the outside of the boat.

"Yeah. Guess you're right." Amber quickly pulled the broom handle down and rested next to Gabrielle. All of them were lying on their stomachs. Xena turned and looked behind her on both sides. She could see at least eight other people were doing the same. There were probably even more further back.

"Oh yeah." Xena commented to herself. "This is going to be a fun night."

CHAPTER 10:

"Xena?" Gabrielle whispered. She shook Xena's shoulder gently. "Are you awake?"

"I am now, Gabrielle." She opened her eyes and yawned slightly.

It was daylight now. The sun had been up for only an hour or so. Xena reached her hand up and rubbed her eyes. She knew she hadn't had enough sleep last night, but that couldn't be helped. With the attack that had happened last night, she had promised herself she would stay alert just in case something became bold enough to board the ship. She had half expected something like that to happen.

Xena looked toward Gabrielle to see if she were alright and then back to the rest of the ship. Other people were stirring around. A few crawled back to the entry to the decks below. Crewmen tried their best to continue with their duties though they were crouched down in case of another attack. Xena turned her head to look in the other direction. She didn't much care for what she saw.

"You're a heavy sleeper. I didn't think you were like that." The soft voice of Najara greeted her.

Xena frowned to herself slightly. "Where did you come from? The last thing I remember, Amber was on the other side of Gabrielle."

"I sent Amber back to check on the others Xena." Gabrielle responded. Xena nodded hearing that.

"I heard yelling last night and came up on deck." Najara explained. "Someone said to get down and I found myself just narrowly avoiding a stray arrow."

Xena tried to ignore an amusing thought of the arrow's bad timing. Gabrielle probably wouldn't approve of it. She looked around the ship. There were many arrows stuck into the deck, barrels and grainsacks. Each of them was made of stone. All resembled the appearance of a snake. She turned her attention back to Najara.

"The important thing is to make sure we're no longer threatened. We can't even set sail to get out of this place with conditions as they are." Xena told them. She was reaching up for the wooden handrail as she spoke.

Gabrielle looked to her actions. "What are you doing Xena?"

Xena raised her head up above the railing and took a quick look at the island. She lowered her head for a few seconds and then looked up again. In the morning sunlight, she could see much more than she had on the previous evening. The shore appeared undisturbed except for where Jason had led them on the rescue. There were some faint signs of footprints leading out to the ocean. There was also an unusual pattern in the dirt. She couldn't quite make it out from here, but she was certain it was probably from whatever had attacked the ship last night.

Xena looked back to Gabrielle. "Its alright. I think we're safe for now."

Gabrielle looked reluctant. She slowly stood up however and looked around as well. She couldn't see anything on the island either. "Whoever they are they move fast."

Xena nodded. "And skillfully. Those arrows were striking targets as far away as the back of the ship."

"Divine intervention?" Najara offered her opinion.

"Maybe." Xena didn't want to give her the satisfaction of admitting it, but she might be right on some level.

"I've never seen an archer's attack move with that kind of speed."

Amber returned from the right side of the ship. She heard the last part of the conversation. "Well, Artemis maybe. But that doesn't seem her style."

"Right." Xena looked to the young Amazon. She appeared awake and alert for whatever dangers lie ahead. "I don't think Artemis would do something like that. No, we're dealing with something godly alright, but it sure isn't divine."

All of them looked back to the island for a few seconds. The shoreline appeared as peaceful and calm as the day before. Amber spoke up. "Five dead. One wounded. Lucky for the mercenary he was still standing halfway behind a door or it would have been six."

Xena shook her head. "This was a warning. Stay away."

"A rather effective warning by the looks of it." Najara replied.

"Yeah, well I don't scare so easily." Xena told her. She leaned forward on the handrail and looked down to the front of the ship that was facing the island. There were well over thirty arrows stuck into the ship's hull. Xena knew that meant a lot of minor repair work once they reached port. It was nothing serious. None of the damage would interfere with ship's operations, but it would need to fixed all the same.

"I wonder what's happened to Beorn?" Gabrielle asked. She was looking to the island again.

Xena tried to comfort her friend. "He'll find a way to make it."

Gabrielle didn't see how the man could survive given that kind of hostile environment. She appreciated Xena's attempt to make her feel better though. She tried to appear relaxed. Amber turned to her and asked if she were alright. She responded that she was. She smiled slightly to the young Amazon and assured her not to worry about her health. Amber agreed and asked to return to help the others. Gabrielle allowed for it.

"She sure has taken a liking to you Gabrielle." Najara commented. "You seem to have that effect on people."

"Well, I am an unofficial queen of the Amazons." Gabrielle explained.

Najara nodded and looked to Xena before walking to the back of the main deck. "See. I told you she was special." She smiled to Xena lightly and walked away.

"What was that about?" Gabrielle asked.

"Nothing important. You can bet on that." Xena frowned slightly and shook her head. "Listen Gabrielle. I'm going to be going back to the island today. After what's happened, I'm sure captain Herabus will be heading back inland. He wont take last night's attack lightly."

"Let me guess. You want me to stay here?" She considered Xena's unspoken request for a few seconds and then nodded. "No complaints here."

Xena smiled at her friend's quick response. She touched Gabrielle's shoulder and joked with her. "Don't worry. If I find something big, mean and ugly, I'll save it for you." Both of them laughed lightly.

Gabrielle mentioned that she would go back on the main deck and help with the wounded. Xena thought that was a good idea. She excused herself and headed back in that general direction as well. As Gabrielle passed a few turned over barrels she reached down and broke off another arrow. It had the same design as the one's Xena had been looking at before, gray stone with a snake's design. Gabrielle shook her head. She wondered what kind of creature could be capable of such speed and accuracy.

As she passed behind the first small storage building on the main deck, Gabrielle could see that Amber and some of the other's were trying to treat the wounded as best they could. There were only a few people there to help. Gabrielle could see Amber and Karissa among them. She assumed that most of the passengers and crew were below deck. They were probably coming up with a plan of attack for the day.

Gabrielle wasn't sure how, but she eventually become the one in charge of treating the others. She knew why Amber regarded her as the leader of course. News of her honorary status among the Amazon Nation was becoming well known by now. Amber had asked her earlier why she had turned down the offer to lead the Amazons. Gabrielle had politely made the comment that she knew Chilapa well. She would do a fine job.

In truth, she didn't feel like the best choice for leading the Amazon's at present. She spent so much time with Xena on her travels, that she was unaware of the daily responsibilities that were a part of Amazon life. Amber had suggested the day before that she could quickly fall back into the role of a queen with little effort. Gabrielle thanked her for the compliment. She had stated only that she felt a different calling in her life for now. Amber had seemed to accept that explanation, though she still held Gabrielle in high regard.

Gabrielle instructed the others with her to rearrange the wounded on deck. The dead would be placed on one side and the wounded on the opposite side with a clear path in between. There were only two men wounded. Amber had spoken of one standing partially behind a door. The second had fallen back onto some broken glass in order to avoid last night's arrows. He had a few deep cuts in his arm.

She looked up to the sky for a second. When Gabrielle looked across to the three sailing masts, she quickly recalled the night watchman who had been hit up above them. She sent to men to the front sailing mast. They quickly climbed up the rope ladders and made their way to the watch tower. When they returned, they carried the dead body of the watchman. He had been hit in the side with an arrow.

Amber pulled out the arrow slowly and managed to keep in it one piece as she took it out. She quickly handed the arrow to Gabrielle and looked for something to bandage the man's side with. He was dead of course, but there was no sense in letting flood spill onto the deck. As she held her hand against the wound and got some bandages, Gabrielle held the arrow up in front of her. It was a stone, snake arrow like all the others. She could that the snake's mouth was open at the front of the arrow. Fangs could clearly be seen. She assumed the arrows to be poisonous.

Karissa approached her and mentioned the casualty list. Two crewmen and three adventurers were dead. Karissa told her that none of them had any valuables on them. Gabrielle instructed Karissa and another crewmember helping them to take what the people had and distribute it to those that needed more supplies. It was a strategy she had seen Xena use in several battles and it made sense.

Gabrielle was lost in thought when she saw the reflection of sunlight hit across something near her. She looked down but saw nothing. Karissa was near her leaning next to one of the wounded men. She was holding his side and talking softly to him. Gabrielle smiled. Her new friend had a bard's touch with words. That was certain. Gabrielle stood up and walked over to the back of the deck, not noticing the healed place on the wounded man's side Karissa had touched.

Captain Herabus and several of the adventurers walked up the steps and onto the main deck. All of them passed by her including Xena. Xena looked to her briefly before continuing along with the others. The captain stopped when Gabrielle held her hand out to him. She told him of those wounded and no longer living.

The frustration on Herabus' voice was obvious. "I hope she's satisfied."

Before she could ask the captain what he had meant by that, Herabus and the others were already making their way to the two boats. Crewmen were preparing them for launch. Gabrielle looked to the people who were going to the island: Xena, Jason, Najara, and a few others she had met on the trip. She hoped that they would all be careful and return safely.

CHAPTER 11:

Ocean mist sprayed against Xena's face as the two boats made their way once more to the island. She, Jason and two others approached the shore in the small boat while Najara and five others followed along in the larger boat. The waves appeared to be calmer than they were the day before and Xena was at least thankful for that. She had no desire to experience the feeling of seasickness again.

Eventually the boats came to rest not far from where Beorn had abandoned his yesterday. Xena carefully studied the shoreline along with the trees just beyond. The dirt appeared smooth and untouched for the most part. She looked far off to the right and noticed a set of deep footprints heading out to the ocean. She imagined they must have belonged to Beorn. Xena frowned slightly. His yelling from last night must have been a cry for help. Considering whatever lived on this island, she could only imagine what threat he had faced.

There hadn't been much she or any of the others could have done for him of course. Just like now, it would have taken fifteen to twenty minutes to reach him. If he was being attacked, that would have been far to long to be of any use to him. It would have also placed more of the crew and passengers in harms way as they would have been out in the open. They would have been easy targets.

Jason and a couple of the men jumped out of the boat. They helped to drag the boat to shore before Xena and the rest of them jumped out. With four people helping, pulling the boat up on the dirt shore was an easy task. Xena looked over to the boat that Najara had ridden in. The six people over their were dragging their boat up from the water just as easily.

A total of ten men and women stood on the shoreline. The group consisted of Xena, Jason, Najara, the two men Xena had sparred with the day before, a couple of rogue mercenaries and three crewmen from the Sargasso. With some help from the others, two of the crewmen began to take the two boats back to the ship so they could bring back another set of people to help. Large numbers would be a big help in this struggle. Xena was certain of that.

The third member of the Sargasso crew agreed to stay with the rest of them. When the second attacking party arrived, he would go back and inform captain Herabus of the decisions being made on the island. He mentioned that the captain always liked to keep informed as to the activities of passengers and crew. Jason made the comment that that was a good policy.

Xena and Jason spoke to one another. They both agreed that as with the evening before, they should proceed in two groups. Xena was quick to insist that Jason take Najara on his team. The fact that Xena wanted nothing to do with her caused Jason to ask of the woman's skill. Xena assured him that the woman was capable enough with a sword. It was a personal issue that would keep her distracted. Jason understood and agreed to her request.

Jason's team would consist of himself, Najara and the third crewman. They would remain near the shore to ensure the next group of adventurers could arrive without interference. Xena's team would consist of the two mercenaries, Veren the retired Athenian soldier and Maltees the militia trainer. She trusted the last two men. The three of them had come to understand each other rather well. Xena looked to the others that were to follow her and pointed her sword forward. All of them took their weapons in hand and headed toward the trees.

Jason stood back and watched as Xena and her group disappeared behind the trees. He silently wished them well. He looked over to the other two people next to him. The crewman was already looking back to the Sargasso. He could see that the two boats had almost reached the ship. Another group of passengers were lined up against the side of the ship. They would reach the island in about twenty minutes.

Najara was studying Jason. He looked over to her and smiled. "Other than the danger here, its not so bad a place."

She smiled to him. "A person could even plan on retiring here if they wanted." She tilted her head up and took a deep breath of the clean ocean air. She then looked back to him. "Ex-king of Corinth? You're a long way from home aren't you?"

Jason shrugged. "I have to pay the bills somehow." He noticed her peaceful smile as he spoke. This Najara seemed pleasant enough to him. Maybe Xena had just read her wrong.

"I could use with some financing as well. It's difficult to help other's on an empty pouch." She walked over to him so that they were closer. She appeared very calm for a person facing the dangers of this island.

"Not to worry." Jason suggested. "I'm sure Xena's plan will work. She's to go down the middle and draw attention to herself. Then pull back. By the time she's pulling back, our two groups should be on either side of her. We'll allow whatever it is out there to follow her back here and then circle behind them. She'll move forward again and then we'll have them circled."

Najara nodded. "Oh I have every confidence in Xena. I'm not worried at all."

Jason smiled to her politely, though to himself he was just the slightest bit concerned now. This woman was telling the truth. She didn't appear to be worried at all. That was a concern in his view. Anyone who could go into a potentially dangerous situation such as this without some concerns was either poor at reading their surroundings or overly confident of their abilities. Both possibilities spoke of a bad outcome.

The sound of water splashing against wood caused the two of them to look back to the shore. The two boats were returning. Each was full again. Ten more people to head in to shore and two more crewmen to head back. The boats finally reached in close enough that some of the passengers jumped out to help pull the boats up to the dirt. The crewman on the shore exchanged places with one of his fellow shipmates. He would head back to the Sargasso with news of their progress, while the new crew member kept his place here to await the next set of boats.

The two crewmen in the boats started back again. They mentioned that the next group would consist of less men. They need just enough to guard the boats, probably three or four men total. They also wanted to keep their numbers down just in case those people already on the island needed a quick escape route. The crewman who stayed behind assured them that if need be, excess people could hang onto the boats from the outside and help swim forward to speed up the trip back.

There were ten people standing on the shore now. They included Jason, Najara, the new crewman, a mean looking woman swordfighter, a mercenary, a couple of men who looked like pirates, a man that claimed to be an ex-slaver, a retired soldier of Corinth who knew Jason well and a woman who had kept to herself for most of the trip. Najara recognized her as being one of the two other passengers that had stayed below decks beside herself.

Jason decided that the woman who was keeping to herself should remain behind. She thought to protest the decision but he reminded her that someone had to protect the crewman. With three teams being sent in it was unlikely that she and the remaining crewmen would be in any harm. That seemed to satisfy her. Jason would take his friend Cordow and two of the pirates as his team. They would go to the right of where Xena had entered the trees. Najara would take the woman swordfighter, the mercenary and the ex-slaver as her team and she would approach to the left of where Xena had entered the trees. Najara thought to protest the choice of the ex-slaver being with her, especially since he was one of the men her army had dealt with in the past, but she decided not to. To bring attention to the fact would only create an open invitation for trouble.

The two teams separated and made their way up to the trees. Each of them disappeared into the forest. The mysterious woman and the lone crewman were on their own. The crewman thought to make some light conversation, but the woman only returned his comments with a cold, silent stare. He sighed and turned to look back at the Sargasso.

Chapter 12:

Gabrielle looked over to one of the crewmen who wasn't busy securing the lines to the two boats. She called out to him. "Do we have any more clean bandages? We'll be running out soon."

The man promised to go and see. He quickly left and she could see that he went down the stairs that led past her and Xena's room to the main galley. There would probably be several clean cloths there. Gabrielle sighed at the sight before her. There were only two people now that need to be cared for. Those who had died from the arrows had been placed over to the side. Amber had asked a couple of crewmen to help her lay the bodies in a neat row and they had done so. Karissa sat near the wounded man now. His scars seemed to have miraculously healed somehow. Gabrielle asked how that was possible and Karissa's response had been a believe in the blessings of the gods. Gabrielle wasn't so sure it was that, but anything of help was good enough for her.

Right now, she was helping to wrap a bandage around a crewman's hand. He had injured it while the second set of boats had been lowered down to the water. His hand had become caught between the ropes as the heavy boats had released. The weight had pulled the rope in tightly on his hand and a deep bruise mark could be seen all around his left hand. There was even some blood on the side. Gabrielle wasn't bothered by that though. She had seen her fair share of blood on her travels. It would probably take a couple of weeks to fully heal.

When she finished with the new wrappings, she asked if Karissa would mind watching over him. Karissa promised to and the man thanked Gabrielle for her help. She smiled warmly to him and stood, walking over to the captain as he watched the third set of passengers slowly depart for the island. Gabrielle could see that the boats weren't as fully loaded as they had been. Instead, only three crewmen and a warrior by the name of Darinus traveled with them. Gabrielle thought the man looked familiar and then she remembered something Xena had said at the tavern. Darinus had traveled with the warlord Draco some time ago.

"Well, that about does it." Captain Herabus stood back from the side of the ship. He instructed a couple of crew to be ready in case of the boats' quick return. Then he turned to Gabrielle to speak again. "Something I can do for you?"

"Only a few men this time?" Gabrielle looked back to the boat which was being lowered.

"Yes." Herabus replied. "No need to risk a bunch of people until I get news from the others. You had a question or something?"

"Um yes, I was wondering actually when we might get around to the burial for those who didn't make it from last night's attack." She requested. "I heard it was customary for the captain of a ship to give a burial at sea."

Herabus nodded. "Yes, that it is. But that will have to wait for now. I'll need my men ready in case of any trouble. They can keep for now."

His response seemed a little uncaring to Gabrielle. She turned to head back to the wounded man when he spoke to her again. "Oh yeah, and make sure you leave their valuables on them. They like it that way."

Gabrielle turned to him with a curious glance. "They?"

"You know. The relatives and such." He shrugged a bit in frustration. "Nobody likes to think their loved ones have been looted just after they died."

She understood that of course. It had been her understanding though that none of those who had died had any relatives. That didn't matter to Herabus right now. He said they would still like it better that way. Gabrielle frowned at his mention of they if there were no relatives, but she let that pass. She excused herself and made her way back to where Karissa was sitting with the wounded. Amber approached her as she stood next to the far back railing.

"So what's the word?" Amber asked.

"He said to leave them as they are." Gabrielle explained. "It's the way they want it most likely. The relatives back on shore that is."

Amber nodded and said she would do that. She tossed a couple of bloody cloths over the side of the railing down to the ocean. Gabrielle asked if they might not have been washed instead of thrown over the side. Amber shrugged and reasoned that with a sixteen-hundred dinar reward waiting for them all, the captain could always buy some more bandages. Gabrielle smiled at Amber's reasoning and the two of them walked over to Karissa.

Out in the ocean below, a man was just barely holding onto the side of the Sargasso hull. He spat out some more water as he tried to stay up and alert. Dirty bandages hitting him on the head didn't improve the situation. Beorn cursed the ship silently as he dug his fingertips into the wet, shifting hull of the ship.

CHAPTER: 13

Veren and Maltees stood on either side of Xena as all of them slowly continued into the forest. She had requested that the two men position themselves that way. The two mercenaries were staying back some distance in order to cover their back sides. Xena knew that in close surroundings such as these, it paid to spread your men out if at all possible. All of them had their swords in their hands. The tension among the members of the group was high. Last night's attack on the Sargasso had proven something was here, even if it chose not to show itself.

Xena looked down and noticed that the path was becoming full of leaves. She looked up briefly and noted that there were a lot of trees on the island. That wasn't exactly a surprise to her. The rainfall that this island saw was probably considerable. That was enough to make all kinds of vegetation well grown all over. It explained why the beach was so narrow. Trees and grass grew up to about twenty feet close to the ocean. On a lot of islands she had seen, the distance between the ocean and the vegetation had been far greater.

It was just another bit of unpleasant irony to this island. All of the trees, the grass, the plantlife and flowers suggested a peaceful location full of life. She looked to the left and right for any signs of movement but she didn't see any. She saw nothing but more trees and plants. The fullness of natural growth around her was deceptive. She knew that somewhere on this island there was a deadly creature of some kind. She had resolved herself to that thought. Nothing could have fired off that many arrows so constantly and not have been alive.

Maltees pushed back a large branch and moved forward ahead of them. Xena followed and then Veren and the two mercenaries. They had reached a larger clearing where there was a lot of leaves. Maltees pointed to the odd piling of leaves in front of them. Xena looked to where he pointed and told him this was where Beorn and his soldier had hid. Xena and Jason had passed by here at a distance of only about twenty feet or so. It angered her to think that the man could have escaped her notice that easily, but then again he had nowhere to go. She reasoned his cleverness hadn't really earned him much.

One of the mercenaries was kicking his boots through the leaves slightly. Xena turned to face him and was about to warn him against making so much noise when she heard his boot hit something. The rest of them looked to him as he reached down into the leaves to find out what it was that he had hit. He pulled up a pack of something. It was wrapped in a simple cloth. The mercenary unwrapped the cloth and held up a small pack of food. Xena was sure now that this had been where Beorn had hid out the day before.

The mercenary kicked at something else and reached down again. He pulled up a boot. The two mercenaries laughed slightly at that. One of them said that Beorn must have been pretty scared to escape if he didn't even leave himself enough time to put his boots on. Veren brought his finger up to his lips to silence the two mercenaries. He had caught a look in Maltees' eyes. The man had his head tilted over to the side. The rest of them quieted down to see what it was Maltees was focusing on.

Maltees tilted his head further to listen to the forest out in front of him. There was the slightest sound of rustling leaves in the distance. The sound was unmistakable. He raised up a single finger to alert the others that it was only one sound. Xena nodded at his gesture. She had come to the same conclusion as well, though she was concerned that a single sound could drag out for so long.

They stood still for a few minutes more. The sound continued. It sounded as though it was heading in their general direction but it was difficult to be exactly sure. The length of the rustling made it hard to pinpoint exactly where the start of the sound was coming from. They looked to one another hoping that someone might have an idea. Nobody offered any suggestions. The sounds stopped suddenly and they heard a very frightening sound. Something was hissing in the distance.

Xena's eyes widened. She hadn't thought that the creature would have been a snake. The sound though was much louder and deeper than she had expected. Almost as though the snake was larger than it should have been. She looked over to Veren and read the expression that was on his face. Deep concern. Then she remembered why snakes generally stopped their movements to hiss. The large snake was tasting the air around him. He was trying to get a direction on a new scent. Their scent.

The rustling sound of the leaves started again. It was much quicker and growing louder. Xena didn't need to give the command. All five of them turned quickly and ran back in the direction they had come from. They were running on instinct, not needing to coordinate with each other which way to go. One of the two mercenaries was in the lead and the rest of them were following.

The rustling sound of the continued to grow louder and faster. Xena could tell that whatever it was, it was gaining distance on them. She forced her legs forward as fast as she could. Xena was trying to keep up her fast pace, but the amount of leaves under her boots were making her strides uneven and too deep. She could see the same thing was true with the others. The inevitable problem happened. One of the mercenaries got his boot hung up on an outlying root. He fell to the ground and struggled to stand. The others had ran past him by the time he was on his knees and the sound was right behind him.

Xena, Veren and Maltees stopped and turned around to help the man. The other mercenary didn't have such a generous thought on his mind. He kept running as fast as he could. Xena could hear his labored breaths and his sharp exhales as he was forced to jump over a couple of roots. She was going to stand her ground. Veren and Maltees were thinking the same thing. All three of them drew their swords and raced back to help the fallen mercenary to his feet.

Out from the brush they had just passed, a huge serpents head appeared. The serpent snapped his mouth forward. Before the mercenary could even finish standing, he yelled out in pain as the jaws of the great snake clamped down on him. Xena and Veren attempted to rush the great beast while Maltees tried to circle around to the side. The attempt was futile. The great snake shook its head back and forth quickly, trying to shake the very life out of the mercenary.

Veren swung his sword out at the beast but by the time his blade reached forward the creature was no longer there. It was moving too fast for either of them to cause it any damage. They tried anyhow. Maltees yelled out to it from the side, but it's attention remained fixed on the prey in its mouth. Xena could tell by the lifeless way the mercenaries arms and legs swung in the air, that he was already dead.

The huge serpent flung the mercenary out of its mouth and the man flew through the air twenty or thirty feet before he fell to the soft, leaf-covered ground. Maltees yelled out again and this time the huge snake took notice of him. Xena could feel her nerves building. If she didn't do something quick, Maltees would become its next meal. She let out one of her war cries and the great serpent turned to face her again.

It's attention was clearly divided between two targets. Between Maltees and Xena's yells, the huge snake couldn't decide. That was all the time Veren needed to strike out again with his sword. His blade cut into the snake's side slightly. The huge beast shifted its body and its tail lashed out with lightning speed. Veren was sent flying into the air. He landed several feet behind Xena.

Xena turned her back to the snake to check on Veren's health. He was breathing irregularly, but he still managed to stand. Maltees noticed the huge serpent's gaze on Xena and Veren. It drew its head back as though it were ready to strike. Maltees let out another yell and the beast turned in his direction. It spit out a spray of venom at him but he was quick. He managed to dodge the acidic spray and hide on the other side of the tree. The huge serpent was clever though. It's tail shot out to the tree Maltees was hiding behind and it wrapped around the tree.

Maltees was pinned to the side of the tree as the great serpent's tail coiled around the tree trunk. Xena turned to the beast and saw what had happened. She picked up a rock and threw it at the creature. It bounced off its side and the snake turned to face her. It hissed at her and she could smell the strong breath of its previous meals. The strength of the smell made her cover her nose with her arm.

It quickly turned its attention back to the tree. It's tail started to constrict. Xena and Veren could both hear Maltees cry out as the life was squeezed out of him. Then the tail roughly let go of its prize. Maltees lifeless body fell to the ground. By this time Veren was standing. He grabbed a strong hold on Xena's shoulder and pulled her forward. They had to get moving again or they would become the great serpent's next victims. As Xena forced her legs forward, she heard the rustling of leaves closely behind her.

CHAPTER 14:

Jason and Cordow were using their swords to cut a path in the brush in front of them. Between the two of them they were keeping up a steady pace. The two pirates followed along, looking out to either side. Jason had developed a certain trust with Cordow over the years. He was sorry the two of them hadn't crossed paths more often than they did. Cordow was an accomplished swordsman and a decorated soldier.

Jason smiled. He was thinking of his days as the king of Corinth. It had been an exciting time. Of course he had excitement in his life now. This little adventure was proof of that. He supposed it was a longing for the simple things in life. Having been trained from the time he was a young man to become king, Jason had seen the role as only natural. It had proven challenging enough, but there had always been that confidence in knowing he was ready for the position. Cheiron's academy had taught him well.

Cordow stopped cutting at the weeds in front of them. Jason turned to look at his friend and heard the sound of footsteps approaching. By the sound of them, someone was running in their direction rather quickly. Jason turned to the other three men next to him. "Alright. It's time."

All four of the men crouched down low. Jason raised his head up slightly to look at the noise. A man was approaching from the direction Xena had gone. By the look of him and by his labored breathing, Jason knew the man had been running as fast as he could.

Cordow let out a whistle and the man slowed down slightly. He looked to the brush and saw the four of them. There was a look of panic in his eyes and Jason thought for a moment that he might continue with his running all the way to the shore, but the man hurried over to where they were. His eyes darted back the way he came and he kept his hand on his sword.

"What happened?" Jason whispered. He placed a comforting hand on the frightened man's shoulder. It didn't seem to calm the man. He looked over to Jason and tried to take a deep breath.

"Big. Real big. Snake." The man's thoughts were coming quickly to him as he spoke.

Jason nodded. He didn't know exactly what the man meant by that, but he had an uneasy feeling they would all find out soon enough. Jason looked back in the direction the man had come from and heard the distant sound of movement. His eyes tensed and his hand reached toward his sword. The sound of running in the distance quickly became the image of Xena and Veren. Both of them were running as fast as they could. Jason thought to call out to them, but he knew that would only distract them.

Xena and Veren raced past Jason's group on their left side. Jason's eyes followed the pair as they continued toward the shore until a louder sound caused him to focus back to where they had come from. His eyes widened as he saw a huge serpent slither out from the forest floor. The thing must have been at least sixty feet long. It passed by them quickly, crushing the vegetation under it as it moved.

Jason stood and started to advance forward when the surviving mercenary from Xena's group let out a yell in shock. The sight of the giant snake must have been an unpleasant reminder of his narrow escape. Jason looked back to the giant serpent. It stopped immediately and turned its head with amazing speed. In no time at all it was upon them. Cordow reached up to grab Jason's chest and pull him down.

The giant serpent passing by blurred Jason's vision. All he could see were scales moving quickly over him followed by the cry of a man bitten. Jason and Cordow backed off and held their swords out to defend themselves. They didn't have time to determine the situation. The serpent's tale lashed out in their direction and swept both of them off of their feet.

Jason's sword flew out of his hand and into some waste-high weeds. He crawled for the spot as fast as he could. He almost made it when the loud sound of hissing could be heard. The great serpent was upon him and Cordow. Jason could see one of the pirates trying to stab the creature with his sword. Its body kept moving back and forth, causing him to fall back and advance. Jason couldn't see the other pirate or the mercenary. He looked back up to the big serpent as it moved toward Cordow.

"Aiyiyiyieee!" Xena let out a war cry as she jumped up into the air and landed on the great serpent's upper back. It's body shook slightly at the increased weight and it lost focus on Cordow. The man managed to get to his feet, grab his sword and retreat to a safe distance. Seeing that Jason was busy looking for his sword, Cordow moved over to his left to cover his friend just in case.

Xena had a tight hug on the snake's scaly body. It was shaking its body back and forth fiercely to get rid of her. She could feel her legs and waist fly up into the air and land back down hard against the great serpent's body. Each time she did so, the force made her loose her breath. Much more of this and she would slip off.

One of the pirates made a clean stab and the snake's tail and it jerked to the side suddenly. The snake shot forward to bite into the pirate and Xena felt her body lunge forward with the same intent. She looked forward briefly and saw the pirate jump and roll to the side. He was safe. The snake stopped in response and turned to survey the others.

Xena took the opportunity to push herself back from the serpent's body. Its eyes immediately turned to her and she could hear it hiss as it tasted her scent in the air. With a loud battle cry, she caused its attention to be lost. She kicked off from its side and flipped through the air once more to land on its head.

The beast began to move and Xena started to slip. She barely managed to grab the cool skin on the top of its head. Her feet hung down along the side. The snake began to shake its head back and forth. She could feel her body weight working against her hold on the beast. Thankfully, Cordow's sword in its side caused the snake to stop trying to shake her off.

She reached for her sword and drew it out. Just as she did so, the snake shot forward toward Cordow and she slid to the side of the snake. Her left hand held firmly onto the beast. She saw the serpent clamp its jaws down on one of the pirates. The man yelled out and the snake stopped its movements briefly to bite into the man. As it did so, Xena's sword found her mark and she thrusted it into the snakes head.

The great serpent dropped the pirate body and shook its head violently. Xena lost her grip on the beast's head and held tightly onto the sword handle. With a couple of quick flips the sword flew out of the snake's head and Xena found herself flying through the air. She landed and rolled out of the fall as best as she could. She noticed a nearby tree and quickly leaned on the opposite side.

Her victory was short lived. The serpents tail went around her and the tree. Her eyes followed it as it did so four times. Xena tried to lower herself but the tail drew in suddenly and she found herself slammed into the trees side. She lost focus for a few seconds and was sure this would be the last thing she would ever see.

Xena opened her eyes slowly after a few seconds. She was still alive. She let out a sigh of relief. The great serpent's tail clung loosely around her. Xena pushed against it with both of her hands and it moved back from her. With the help of Jason, she managed to remove herself from the serpent's deadly grasp. They joined Cordow and the surviving pirate. Both men were testing the snake with their swords to make sure it was dead.

Xena walked up to the head of the snake and looked to its eyes. There was a slow steady haze building in the pupils. It was as though a fog of death had fallen over the great serpent. Xena told the others that though it did little to comfort them. She didn't blame them for that. She was still feeling wound up herself.

Jason smiled slightly and looked to Xena. "Guess we're done for the day right?"

Xena looked to him and nodded, understanding his quiet joke. "I wish it were that simple."

The pirate finished sticking his sword into the snake a few times and looked to the two of them. "What? You mean there's more of these things?"

"Where there's one, there's more to follow." Cordow explained.

Xena didn't hear exactly what the pirate said in response. She was sure it wasn't anything too optimistic. She was too busy looking at the serpent. Xena didn't see any strange markings. That was a good thing she imagined. She was still curious as to how a snake could grow this big. Sixty feet was longer than she had ever seen of any serpent.

Jason breathed deeply and watched her. "So... where's this Najara friend of yours? I thought she was supposed to help us attack it from the other side?"

Xena looked over to him. She had forgotten about that. "I don't know. That's a good question."

"Probably eaten by this thing here." The pirate offered his own reply.

"I doubt it." Xena responded. "It's stomach isn't full enough." She turned to Jason. "I want you to take the rest of the men back to the shore. We need to regroup and get more numbers."

"What about you Xena?" Jason asked her.

Xena's eyes narrowed and her tired breath showed a level of building frustration. "I'm gonna look for a good friend of mine named Najara and see where she is. She has some explaining to do."

"Before you do that, there's something you should know about this beast. Cordow pointed to the great serpent with his sword. Xena glanced over to him and gave him a questioning look. "This thing was a female." Xena's eyes widen slightly at that, not liking what it implied.

CHAPTER 15:

"You know, you've shown a great deal of compassion and caring toward these men Gabrielle." Karissa smiled as she wound up a small piece of cloth. She tied up the loose end of the cloth inside the edge and placed it down on the deck. A few wooden planks, cloth strips and fishing line were there. They had been used to sew up the wounds of the crewmen and passengers.

"You think so?" Gabrielle smiled. She sat back against an empty barrel and looked to her new friend. "I was just about to say the same thing to you."

Karissa smiled in return. "I suppose I've always had an interest in healing others. Its a gift."

Gabrielle nodded. "I understand what you mean. I've always felt this calling to... I don't know, reach out to others I guess. I thought about a hospice one time." She looked off in the distance, thinking of another passenger now on the island.

"You decided against it then?" Karissa looked to her.

"I still have an interest in it. Its just... well I suppose with my travels I manage to help people too. Either way is satisfying." Gabrielle thought about that for a few seconds. "Xena and I have done a lot of good for a lot of people. I'd like to think we've changed people's lives for the better."

"That is a very honorable path in life Gabrielle." Karissa watched as Gabrielle finished dressing the wound on a crewman's arm. "You should stay with it as best you can."

Gabrielle turned to look at her. "You sound like you know quite a bit about that. Helping people I mean."

Karissa nodded her head gently. "I do in a way. It is something I have set for myself as a life's goal. Making others feel better, whether through healing or storytelling. It gives my life a more lighter purpose."

Gabrielle and Karissa continued to speak of their interests for some time. Each explained how they had come to be on the ship. Karissa had only said she felt the need to be here. She didn't mention any news of receiving a message from the king. That didn't seem too unlikely for Gabrielle to believe. With the frequent problems she and Xena found themselves facing, such opportunities always seemed around the corner.

Amber approached from the side and knelt down on one knee near them. She watched the other two women for a few seconds before speaking. "The captain wanted to extend his thanks for all that you two are doing."

"Well, he has been rather busy with the passengers." Karissa explained. "I imagine some relief in his duties would be appreciated."

"Yeah." Amber responded. She looked toward the back of the ship and then to them once more.

"What is the captain doing now?" Gabrielle asked.

Amber looked toward the back of the ship again. "He sent another ship out. The smaller one. A couple of crewmen were supposed to go farther down the shore and check to see on the progress."

"I hope that they are well armed." Karissa's voice sounded concerned.

"I guess so. He didn't say." Amber shrugged. "But then I guess they're his men, so he must know what he's doing, right?"

It did seem unsafe for him to send a couple of men to the island alone, but Gabrielle agreed with Amber. Captain Herabus had been sailing these waters for some time. He probably knew what was best. Gabrielle looked to Amber once more and noticed the young woman was studying the area of the boat behind them. Her eyes seemed to narrow slightly as though she were concentrating on something.

"Anything wrong Amber?" Gabrielle asked.

"Huh?" Amber looked to her slowly. "Oh nothing. I was just wondering why that crewman over there keeps staring at me now and then."

"Maybe he likes you?" Karissa responded with a light smile.

"No." Amber shook her head briefly. "Its not that. I've never met him before." Amber saw the man look to her once more before he looked away. He walked away from the railing and headed down the stairs which were near him. Amber excused herself and approached the stairway.

Gabrielle stood up to stretch and told Karissa she would return. She walked slowly along the main deck taking in a few deep breaths of fresh air. The sun was shining brightly. She gradually made her way over to the railing where the man had been standing. Gabrielle smiled to herself. Amber most likely had an admirer. She was probably just responding in the way most Amazon's did when a man showed interest.

She reached out for the railing and ran her hands along it. Something rough caught her attention. Gabrielle looked down to see a piece of rope tied around the railing. It had been behind the area where the man had been standing. She curiously leaned forward and looked down to the sea below. The rope extended all the way to the water. Gabrielle could see nothing. She frowned slightly thinking the situation a little curious.

Then her thoughts drifted to Amber once more.

By this time, Amber had walked down the stairway and passed the room where Xena and Gabrielle had stayed. There was still no door there and Amber was curious as to why it hadn't been replaced. She imagined that a warrior and queen could defend themselves well enough. She had thought the personal privacy would have been wanted though.

Amber walked further down the hallway and passed the galley. She could see a couple of crewmen and passengers alike still there. The passengers were eating while the crewmen continued to prepare the galley for the next meal. Just two doors down from the galley was another set of stairs leading down to the hold. Amber looked around for any sign of the man, but she saw nothing. She went down the stairs.

There were just three doors at the bottom of the stairs. Amber stood there quietly for a minute and tried to listen for any sound. There was none. She decided to go to the room in the center and slowly opened the door. She was greeted with nothing but the general background noises of the ship. The wood creaked slightly as the ship changed direction in the waves. Some grain could be heard spilling from a small hole in a bag. That was the activity she could hear in the room.

She walked further into the room and looked around. There was enough lighting coming through the upper floor decks that she could comfortably see around her. This was the main storage hold. All kinds of crates, barrels, sacks and containers were here. Most of them were stored away in an orderly manner, but there were a few set out in the floor. Amber imagined they held food which was more likely to be used.

Amber stepped toward the far end of the hold and her boot hit something made of metal. There was a higher pitch to the sound that made her think of a smaller piece of metal. She reached down to pick it up and was amazed to see that she held a small gold coin. She turned it over a few times looking to the writing. Her boot hit a few more and realized someone must have stored their valuables down here.

Next to the side wall, she saw something under a large wrap. Curiosity got the better of her and she made her way over to the object. The wrap was tied down over the object tightly but she managed to pull the corner up. Her eyes widened at what she saw. The object looked like part of a stone statue, a statue of a person. She dropped the wrap and quickly turned around. As she did, she saw something big fly toward her face.

Amber fell back against the object and then to the ground. She was unconscious. A man stood up and stepped out from behind a nearby crate. Beorn laughed quietly as he dropped the piece of wood used to hit the woman. He turned and headed toward the door.

Chapter 16:

Xena quietly made her way through the forest. She pushed aside branches and continued to move forward. Looking to each side slowly, she could see nothing. The leaves and brush were thick in this area of the forest which cut down on visibility considerably. That fact made her more displeased than before. She wasn't holding too much promise on the results of this search. Even if it did prove successful, she doubted to woman involved would provide a very clear answer.

Najara was like that. She held a calm detachment from others that Xena found unsettling. It wasn't the cold experience of a ruthless warrior or the calm spiritual sureness of a peaceful person. It was something else. Something she wasn't quite sure of. Personally she thought it was the sure sign of a touch of madness. Najara's actions in the past seemed to support that conclusion. Still, the woman appeared clear thinking enough to make it throughout the daily challenges of life. Xena shook her head.

A sudden rustle of leaves off to the left caused Xena to rush forward with renewed alertness. She reached out and grabbed hold on something. Pulling it forcefully toward her, Xena could see the surprised look on a woman swordfighter's face. The woman was one of those people from Najara's group.

"Where have you been?" Xena asked the woman coldly.

The woman responded in a whisper. "I was told to wait back here in case the rest of you showed."

"That didn't answer my question." Xena voice was low. "We needed help and it wasn't there."

The woman looked down slightly before meeting her gaze again. "All I know is that she heard a rustling in the brush and told us to follow her. What we found later... well it seemed worth the diversion."

Xena gave her an uncertain look, not being certain what the woman meant by that. She let go of her and motioned with her hand. The woman understood what she meant and began to lead Xena through the brush. It didn't take long for them to reach Najara and the other two men. One was an ex-slaver and the other one was a mercenary. All of them had their backs to Xena, quietly looking through some tree branches to the area ahead.

Xena passed up along Najara's side and gave her a slight frown. "Nice to see you again."

Najara looked to her briefly and pointed to the area in front of them. She whispered. "We found this by accident really. I was going to go back, but one of the men said he saw some movement. I wanted to get a better look."

Xena sighed and decided to remind Najara of her mistake later. She decided to look forward to where the others' attention had been drawn. What she saw surprised her. Past a number of trees and waist high brush was a stone building. It appeared to be a crude form of a temple. There were vines and plants growing up the columns and in cracks along the stone. The edges of the stone steps and columns appeared worn smooth slightly due to the weather. Xena was sure the place had been there for a great many years.

"Anyone been up there?" Xena asked.

Najara turned to her. "Not yet." She pointed briefly to the man next to her who was an ex-slaver. "We walked up closer to it by some distance before the sound of something rustling on the far side of the brush caused us to turn around. I didn't want to take any chances with just the few of us."

Xena wondered if the great serpent that she and the others had dealt with could have been this far inland, but she doubted it. The timing of when she and Veren had met the snake and when Najara had arrived here was wrong. That caused her to frown. Cordow had mentioned that the great serpent was dead. She didn't like what that implied. One giant snake was more than enough from her point of view.

The female sword fighter tossed a rock in there direction. Xena and Najara turned toward the woman. She made a few gestures with her hands that said something was headed toward them from behind. All five of them reached for their swords or daggers and waited.

Within a few minutes Jason and some more adventurers appeared. There were ten of them in all. Cordow instructed the men and women to take up positions along the rest of the people already there. The new group of adventurers consisted of Jason, Cordow, Veren, the pirate who had helped with the great serpent, a couple of barbarian men, a female archer, an escaped prisoner most likely, Darinus the former soldier of Draco and a thief Xena recognized only too well. He was the man Najara had warned her about being too untrustworthy. All things considered, this was going about as bad as Xena had anticipated.

She looked over to Jason as he approached her. The two of them shared what they knew of the current situation. Xena mentioned the temple up ahead and the sounds that Najara had heard. Jason mentioned returning to shore and finding a crewman lying on the beach. The mysterious woman who had stayed behind with him could not be found and was most likely responsible for the man's fatal dagger wound.

As the two of them talked, the escaped prisoner who had just arrived with Jason's group yelled out and fell to the ground. Xena and everyone else looked to him immediately and saw a stone snake arrow sticking out of his back. Light whistling sounds started to rain through the forest. Everyone took cover behind trees and a few large boulders as more poisoned arrows flew out at them from the temple.

The mercenary that had traveled with Najara yelled out in surprise as an arrow buried itself into the tree he was hiding behind. Xena could see that he was unharmed though. She tried to look around the side of the tree and quickly leaned back. Two stone snake arrows hit deep into the opposite side of the tree. Despite the creature's deadly accuracy, Xena had still caught a shadowy glimpse of it. It had stayed still only briefly. The creature had seemed to be roughly like a person, but she couldn't be sure. She hadn't had a lot of time to really size up the situation.

The female archer stood from behind a nearby tree and chanced a shot toward the temple. Someone else warned the woman to get back and as she tried to do so, she stumbled and fell to the ground. She was a clear and open target. Veren reached out from the tree he was hiding behind and grabbed her shirt. He felt a sharp pain in his shoulder and fell to the ground. One of the snake arrows had grazed across his shoulder and the poison was already beginning to take effect.

Xena looked over to her injured friend and took action. With her head down low, she crept forward quickly from behind the tree and let out one of her battle cries. Jason thought to call out to her, but a series of arrows directed toward his general direction caused him to get behind a tree quickly. He looked to his side to see one of the two barbarians pull Veren and the woman archer aside with just one hand. The archer was already using a small knife to cut Veren's shoulder and draw out the poison.

The brush and weeds were just tall enough that Xena could continue to safely walk forward. She kept down as much as she could, hearing a few arrows pass over her back. Just as she was about to look up, she noticed a sudden movement over to her right. Something jumped over to her and knocked her to the ground. She didn't have time to think of who it was as another person's hands went for her throat. Xena instinctively reached out to the person's shoulders and she tried to push them back as best she could.

The other person countered her move with a knee to her stomach. Xena tensed as the pain hit her. She felt it again and again before she finally managed to get her footing. She freed herself slightly and spun around, her foot connecting with the other person's back. The attacker fell forward in the weeds. Xena started to rush toward the person, but a few sounds of snake arrows forced her back to the ground.

Her attacker wasn't so concerned. The mysterious woman got up on her feet slightly and crept back to her. She hit Xena in the jaw and knocked the warrior princess down. Before Xena could get her bearings, the woman was on top of her again. Her attacker had a viselike grip on her neck that she couldn't easily break free from.

Just then a light breeze brushed the weeds aside and the attacker looked up. She was more in the open to the arrows and knelt down. Xena used the distraction to force her feet up. With a sharp kick, Xena's attacker flew up in the air and Xena managed to roll to the side closer toward the temple. The attacker landed. Xena prepared to defend herself, but the woman continued to lie there unmoving. Xena saw that four snake arrows rested in the woman's side from when she had been in the air briefly.

Xena was impressed and more than concerned at the creature's accuracy. Enough of the surrounding weeds had been pressed down during her fight that she couldn't safely move. She would have to remain as she was until the situation changed somehow. Xena doubted it would change in her favor but she was wrong.

A burst of light blue and white flame appeared near the trees where the other's were hidden. Xena could hear more arrows pass above her and fly out to the new target, but nobody yelled out in pain. Xena dared to look up slightly and saw that Karissa now stood there out in the open. Several of the arrows flew out toward her but they appeared to bust into pieces when they hit her. Karissa raised her hand slightly and Xena could see a sudden bright light flash in the storyteller's hand.

The series of arrows shot out toward the trees stopped abruptly. Xena remained where she was for several minutes, unwilling to risk her life just to satisfy her curiosity. She looked up after about ten minutes to see Karissa calmly walking toward her. She stopped near the attacker's dead body and looked to her briefly before going to Xena.

"What the...?" Xena was at a loss of words.

Karissa smiled down to her gently and looked for any wounds. "Not to worry. She wont be shooting any more arrows at us." Karissa held her hand out.

Xena took it and allowed herself to be pulled up to her feet. "Yeah, but how in the world did you do that?"

"It was nothing really." Karissa explained. "A simple family power. I just prefer not to use it much that's all."

Xena looked back to the temple and stared at it for some time. She slowly made her way over to her attacker, never fully taking her eyes off of where the deadly arrows had come from. Xena turned the body over and recognized the person instantly. "Satrina."

Karissa asked who that was. Xena explained that Satrina was an enemy from long ago that she and Gabrielle had met. A student of warfare who had served Xena during her dark past to learn of her strengths. Satrina had been responsible for the death of Borias. Xena gave Karissa the clear impression that her death was no great loss as far as she was concerned.

One by one the others slowly worked their way forward up to where Karissa and Xena were. Jason asked what had happened, but all Karissa would offer as an explanation was that it had been within her power to help so she had done so. She told them that their problem was by no mean solved, however. Their greatest challenge lie ahead in the temple of the gorgon.

Xena recognized the name gorgon as being part of the story Karissa had told on the first night of the boat. The gorgons were the sisters of Medusa. Karissa told her that she was right. Medusa herself was dead, slain by a hero named Perseus weeks ago. Medusa was only a half gorgon however, cursed by the gods. The beast inside was her sister, a full gorgon with much more deadly potential.

Jason asked how she knew all this but Karissa would only say that she knew. He thought to ask more but considering the fact that they were pressed for time at the moment he chose not to. Karissa stood and said that she would be returning to the boat. She would take the injured. Xena looked over to the thief Najara had warned her about earlier and suggested he be taken as well. The man protested, but one of the barbarians grabbed him by the shoulder. The thief became silent.

Karissa wished Xena well and tried to assure her that all would be better soon. With that said, Karissa disappeared in a blaze of light blue and white fire. Veren, the female archer, the thief, the ex-prisoner and Satrina's bodies disappeared in a similar manner.

Xena and the others regrouped in their efforts to go into the temple. It was agreed that Xena would lead the raid. Jason and a few would stand outside in case a second group was needed. Najara would take a few men around the back side of the temple to cover any exits. They all approached the steps in front of the temple slowly. There had been many snakes on the steps before, but now there was only ashes which the light breeze swept aside.

Everyone took their time to gain their focus before the attack started. With a quick pointing command, Xena sent Najara and the female swordfighter around one side of the temple and one of the two barbarians around the other side. Xena would take Darinus, the other barbarian and the mercenary with her. That would leave Jason with Cordow, the ex-slaver and the pirate should their efforts prove unsuccessful.

Xena and her group stood against the front wall to the left of the entrance while Jason's group stood to the right side of the entrance. The barbarian walked forward past Xena and stood directly in front of the doorway. There was a short stone wall that directly blocked the entrance, but had openings on either side. It kept either side from seeing beyond it. The barbarian let out a fearsome growl to announce his strength.

Xena shook her head at the man's arrogance. She would be sure to have him enter last. He was too big and too bold, an easy target. Just then the sound of stone cracking made her reach out to the wall beside her. Others did the same thing. She was concerned the stone foundation beneath them might be falling apart but it wasn't. She looked up to the entrance and her eyes widened. The barbarian no longer stood there. In his place was a seven foot statue. Something inside the temple had turned the man into stone.

Chapter 17:

"Excuse me. Have you seen a dark blonde woman in hunting clothes? Her name is Amber?" Gabrielle asked.

The crewman shook his head. He said he had been cleaning the deck most of the morning and had not taken notice of anything other than the mop and bucket. Gabrielle thanked him for his time and continued on her way. She wasn't too concerned over not finding Amber, it was just that once she set her mind to a task she liked to see that it was finished.

Two other crewmen had agreed to watch over the few wounded on deck while Gabrielle took a chance to rest for the first time that day. The job of changing bandages and speaking with the people had taken up much time. Gabrielle had hoped to speak with the captain about the progress on the island, but she hadn't seen him in several hours. She walked around the main deck slowly, thinking to herself and greeting the occasional crewman that walked by.

She stopped and remembered her talk to Amber. Amber had mentioned something of a man looking at her on the deck. Gabrielle thought about the rope again. That was strange to see a rope just hanging over the side of the ship like that. That was another thing she intended to speak to Captain Herabus about. She looked toward the back of the boat and the railing and started to walk back that way.

The stairs were not far from where she was now so she went down them and glanced over to the room she shared with Xena. It looked undisturbed. She decided to continue along and saw that there were a few people in the galley. She asked one of them if he had seen Amber. The man mentioned that a woman matching her description had passed by about a half hour ago, but that she had not stopped in there.

Gabrielle thanked him and continued down the hallway until she reached the stairs going down to the holds. There were only a few other doors in front of her and it was very unlikely that Amber would have went into any of the personal rooms. Gabrielle took a few moments to consider before she walked down the stairs to see three hold doors. She tried the middle door.

The room appeared to be fairly lit from light that drifted through the uneven floor planks above. She could see several types of containers and crates. Something moving caught her eye. She walked over and to her amazement, she saw Amber lying on the ground. The Amazon was stirring from sleep.

"Well, well. My lucky day." A man with a deep voice said. He stood in the entrance of the room. Gabrielle turned to face him and recognized him as the man who had been looking at Amber up on the main deck.

"What happened to Amber?" She had the slightest trace of anger in her voice.

The man put his hands forward as if to suggest he had no idea. "You found her just before I. But its just as well." He gave a mean grin and walked further into the room.

Gabrielle quickly grabbed a round lid off of one of the crates near her and threw it at the man. He ducked his head quickly but the lid still hit him hard in the shoulder and caused him to take a step back. He growled and looked to his shoulder before looking up again.

"That's going to cost you woman." It was the last thing he said though. Gabrielle had already picked up a heavy fishing weight. It was sailing through the air even as he spoke. He blinked in surprise as the fishing weight hit him in the head and knocked him to the floor unconscious.

Gabrielle made sure he was out of action. She used some spare fishing line to tie his hands and feet together before she returned to Amber. She knelt down beside the Amazon and raised her head slightly. "Amber. Amber. Are you alright?"

Amber shook her head slowly, fighting off the effects of being knocked out. She looked up and smiled weakly to Gabrielle before sitting up. When she finally did manage to sit up fully, Amber looked over to the man who Gabrielle had hit with the fishing weight. She let out a slight laugh.

"There's something not quite right here Gabrielle." Amber looked behind her. "There's a statue of someone back there under a wrap. And there's all kinds of gold and possessions just lying on the deck down here."

Gabrielle reached over to where Amber was looking and picked up a coin. She held it in the air and read its markings. "Thracian." Gabrielle remembered something about Xena telling her about the captain's previous journeys to the island. She had remembered something Thracian soldiers being mentioned. This didn't sound very good at all.

"Was he the one that did this to you?" Gabrielle asked. She stood and reached out to Amber.

Amber shook her head. "No, but it wouldn't surprise me too much if he hadn't had something to do with this." Amber stood up with Gabrielle's help.

"You two are clever aren't ya?" Gabrielle and Amber looked to the entrance and saw the warlord Beorn and a second man, a criminal Beorn had spoken to several times on the main deck. Both of them held pieces of wood with nails sticking out of them. Beorn sneered at the two women and started to walk toward them.

Chapter 18:

Xena tried her best to be considerate about the problem, but there really was no way to avoid it. As the others tried to move the stone barbarian to the side, he tipped over and broke into many pieces. They all stood there for a few seconds, worried for some unspoken reason. There was no need to be. The barbarian had been turned into solid stone all the way through. Xena took some small comfort in the fact that he had been dead the second the curse had took effect.

She didn't like the results of what had just happened though. She could tell on the others' faces that the tension within the group had just doubled. Seeing the strong, brave man reduced to rubble in a matter of seconds brought back all the fearful childhood tales of this place. It was having a noticeable effect.

Xena pointed toward Darinus, the mercenary and now the ex-slaver as well. She wanted at least four people in there if it was possible. Jason, Cordow and the pirate would remain just outside. She instructed the men to follow her in slowly one at a time. She wanted this to be spaced out and timed properly. There was no sense in any more than one person at a time risking entry into the temple.

She pulled her sword out of its scabbard and held it in front of her. Xena gave Jason a quick look of confidence and slowly walked toward the entrance. A wall of stone stood just within the entrance, blocking her view of the inside area. She did manage to see the inside area briefly from either side. She turned around and stood with her back to the wall so she could face back out toward the entrance. Darinus was ready to enter on her word and the other's appeared ready as well. She motioned for Darinus to join her and he did.

Darinus was proving to be useful on this adventure. She had had her doubts of him, considering the way she had parted with the warlord Draco. She and Draco hadn't seen each other in a few years. His men had probably been no more pleased to learn she had turned on Draco any more than Draco had been himself, but for his part Darinus hadn't said anything. How long that would stay true after this was dealt with remained to be seen. She was already thinking of who would likely turn against the group afterwards. It was always good to be prepared.

Xena stuck her head out from the side of the stone wall and looked into the main chamber of the temple. She quickly drew her head back behind the wall. She hadn't seen anything or anyone that looked like it might attack. That was good enough for her right now. She knew of course that would change soon enough.

The temple was big. It had many columns in the central area and many tapestries and decorations along the wall and in the front. She thought she had caught a brief glance of a table or two up front, but she decided against a second look. That wasn't important just yet. The columns were set unevenly in the main room. That made it more difficult for her to see the creature. She hoped the same was true for it.

She nodded her head to Darinus and lowered herself. A few quick steps and she was out in the open area of the temple, standing behind one of the columns that was in the back corner near the entrance. She dared to look out once more at the many columns. She stood back quickly. This time Xena had seen something move in the distance. Something tall and dark.

Darinus did the same thing as she did but in the opposite direction of her. He now stood behind a column on the opposite side of the entrance. The mercenary was standing behind the stone wall and the ex-slaver had just joined him. Both held their swords up and to the side ready to strike out if need be. Xena tried to calm her breathing and ready herself for the attack.

The main chamber was wide enough for five rows of columns. Each were separated by about ten to fifteen feet of open space. One or two columns had been knocked down, but that was not a problem for them. There were about twenty rows of columns running forward. She wasn't sure exactly. The only thing she had not counted on was the number of stone statues and discarded weapons lying around on the floor. It was more than obvious that they had not been the first to travel to this forsaken place.

Xena moved quickly and ran up to the next column. She caught the movements of the mercenary out of the corner of her eye. He took up the position behind her that she had just left. Looking across the temple, she could see that Darinus was doing the same thing. He moved forward and the ex-slaver took his former position.

An uneven sound could be heard ahead. It was like something being dragged against the smooth marble floor. If Xena was any judge of history and tales, The creature they would be facing had a serpent like body. It explained a lot. The great serpent near the shoreline, the hundreds of snakes on the temple steps. This was a gorgon alright. A hideous female creature with the upper body of a female and the lower body of a serpent. One false move... a single look into her eyes and a person could be turned to stone in seconds. The barbarian was proof of that.

Darinus moved forward again to another column. The ex-slaver behind him took up the position opposite of Xena. She frowned slightly. Darinus was getting a little too eager. They had agreed she would make the leading moves. She let it go for now and walked around the column to approach the third column. The sound of a poisonous snake arrow hit the column behind her and shattered into pieces. She ran and slid down behind the third column for safety.

Darinus used the distraction run forward toward the fourth column. The mercenary followed close behind him to take up a position behind the third column. Xena made a slight face as she stood up behind the column. Darinus was breaking with her plan. That wasn't good. She had wanted to keep the beast occupied on both sides for as long as possible. Better to have it on the defensive that attacking.

The ex-slaver behind her made a bold move and ran sideways to the column just in front of the stone wall near the entrance. Two more arrows flew through the air, striking the stone wall and breaking to pieces. The ex-slaver jumped at the sound of grinding stone. All of them looked back. Xena realized the arrows hadn't been shot at random. There were small triggers on the back side of the stone wall that made it slide forward. The gorgon intended to seal them inside the temple so they couldn't get out or receive any help.

The ex-slaver panicked and ran to the wall, past the column to the edges. He was trying to stop the wall from sliding forward. Xena could hear from the other side that Jason and the others were up against the wall, trying to push it back as well. She yelled out to the man to take cover but he refused. A couple of arrows hit the stone wall again and the man ducked down quickly.

A loud shaking of the temple near the entrance announced the sealing of the temple. They were trapped inside. She quickly realized her mistake as soon as the sound died down. They had all taken their attentions off of the front of the temple. The sound of the gorgon slithering along the ancient marble floor could be heard off to the other side. She glanced up and saw the creature barely as it passed behind a far column. Its hair danced in the flickering torch light as snakes hissed and looked for a target to strike.

The gorgon glared at her and she quickly looked down. A painful headache gripped her hard and she brought her free hand up to her head. The back of the temple where she was looking at seemed to turn a pale color of gray briefly and then it returned to normal. When her senses returned, she realized she must have just caught a glance of the gorgon's stone cold eyes. Fortunately, a second or two less than needed had saved her.

Darinus ran toward a column in the middle and fell down. He had done so to avoid an arrow meant for his side. The mercenary behind him reacted quickly and made a large sound off to the right. The gorgon looked toward him and fired off a couple of arrows which missed. Darinus had the time he needed to regain his footing. He grabbed a small shield which was resting on the floor.

Xena saw a blur in front of her and recognized the ex-slaver. He made a run toward the next column in front of her. A spear had been resting against it. The man made it to the column but also yelled out. One of the gorgon's arrows managed to graze into his side and the poison no doubt felt like wildfire.

She thought to join him and check on him, but the gorgon still had its attention in her general direction. Arrows were hitting the wall on either side of her column. Each exploding on impact into small pieces of rock and debris. She stood there quietly for a few seconds and heard the familiar sound of something passing through the air. Xena's hand shot out to her side and she caught one of the stone snake arrows. She quickly drew her hand back before another one hit her.

The ex-slaver looked to her clearly impressed. He held the spear in this hands and took her initiative as a sign to do the same. A few quick moves back and forth to dodge arrows and he was another column's distance from her. He was trying to position himself behind the beast.

Darinus was still trapped behind a column, but he had at least tested the small shield he had reached out for. It took the arrows without breaking, though he had to hold it tightly so it wasn't pulled from his hand each time. The mercenary still had his sword and had managed to cut down one of the hanging tapestries along the wall. He had fixed his sword blade out to distract the gorgon and it was working enough for the ex-slaver to make his move to another column.

Xena heard something big fly through the air and slam into Darinus' sword. He grunted and thrown back slightly. The gorgon had thrown a spear at the shield and knocked it free from his hand. The beast seemed almost entirely fixed on Darinus and Xena. It had realized the mercenaries diversion with the sword and tapestry by now. It was then that Xena realized the creature's battle skill.

The quick sound of scales slithering across the floor announced the gorgon's sudden movement. It was heading directly toward the ex-slaver. It hadn't been distracted as they had thought. It wanted to give the man time to distance himself from the others. He would be an easier target now.

Xena yelled out for the man to be on guard. She heard the gorgon's movements continue along the floor. Looking around the corner of the column, she could see that Darinus had taken hold of the shield once more and was staying toward the center of the chamber. The mercenary rushed forward along the opposite wall. She tried to motion for him to move back so he did not distance himself too far as well, but he ignored her warning. Two columns separated her and Darinus. Four columns separated Darinus and the mercenary.

The sound of a wooden pole striking stone could be heard in the distance. It was quickly followed by the scream of the ex-slaver. The gorgon's weapon had found its mark. Xena closed her eyes briefly. She was still having some trouble concentrating. She could hear his body slump down to the ground as well as his wooden spear's hollow sounding rattle as it fell to the marble floor.

Xena quickly made a few calculations in her head. She thought of the columns and all of the walls before reaching to her side. The gorgon was moving back the way it had came, toward Darinus. She reached up with the chakrum in her hand and threw it at the nearest wall. It began to ricochet against one column after another, creating enough echoing noise that the gorgon was became confused. Its dark face glanced back and forth at the sound. It managed to drop down just in time to avoid the flying weapon.

The Chakrum continued to ricochet off the columns until it worked its way back to Xena. She reached out and quickly took hold of it, placing it back at her side. No sooner had she placed it back where it belonged, than she heard the mercenary yell out as he charged toward the beast. His stabbed at the gorgon's tail and hit it on the second try.

The creature let out a deafening roar and used its tail to hit the mercenary. He was sent sailing through the air where he landed hard against the side wall. The air had been knocked out of him and he gasped for breath. When he looked up the burning white eyes of the gorgon drew down upon him. He looked up to it to hold it back and quickly turned into stone.

Xena rushed forward two column's distance and picked up the spear the ex-slaver had dropped. She cleared herself of the column and drew her arm back. The spear flew through the air and was but a second away from striking the creature in the back when it suddenly moved to the right. The spear hit the back wall and fell to the ground.

Darinus used the distraction to rush forward and swing out with his sword. His sword tip caught the beast and it let out a second roar of rage. It tried to stare at him but he brought the shield up to cover his eyes. It tried to quickly stab him with a sword of its own but he brought the shield down again.

Xena ran to the creature's side as Darinus kept it busy. She swung her sword forward quickly and cut into the gorgon deep. It's body slid away from her as it cried out in pain. Darinus smiled to her briefly. That was all the time the creature needed. It thrusted its sword forward as he protected his eyes. Darinus groaned and dropped the sword. The creature quickly lifted him into the air and the two of them made eye contact. By the time the gorgon had thrown him clear, he had already turned into stone and busted into many pieces as soon as he hit the floor.

Xena tried to react fast by running behind a column, but the creatures hands reached out and tripped her. She swung her sword back to stab its hands, not even mindful if she happened to cut herself in the process. Her sword was knocked from her hand and clattered on the floor to the side.

She found herself being flipped over onto her back, drug forward toward the gorgon. Xena closed her eyes and took wild punches at the beast, none of which did any good. In no time at all, the four armed creature held her up. Two of its hands held her hands up and to the side so she was suspended in the air. Its other two hands reached out to her face. It was intent on forcing her eyes open so it could turn her to stone.

Xena brought her feet forward and kicked off the gorgon's chest. The momentum allowed her to flip backwards in the air and her feet connected with the top of the creature's head. It released her and she dropped to the ground. Her shoulders were aching with pain from the sudden twisting they had been through, but she still managed to reach for the chakrum. The sound of it hitting against the many columns in the temple distracted the gorgon once more.

She reached out for her sword and brought it up in front of her. The chakrum had hit a bad angle and fell to the floor. It was too far for her to reach. She looked to her sword one last time and blinked as the shine of temple torches reflected into her face. The creature reached out for her once again and she felt herself suddenly raised up into the air by the shoulders. With a quick movement, Xena raised the sword up so the creature could look at it. It caught a reflection of torchlight in its eyes and dropped her once more.

She got up on her feet and stood her ground. As the beast opened its eyes with rage, its looked directly at her. All it saw was the woman holding the flat side of the sword toward it. Then it saw the hideous image of its own reflection before letting out a roar that cut short by its turning to stone.

Xena backed away from the creature and fell to the floor. Her breathing was labored and her voice was forced. She let out an exhausted laugh. The sound of stone moving in the distance caused her to look back to the entrance. The others were managing to push the stone wall back. She could see the other barbarian run around the corner of the wall. He walked out in the open with his two-handed sword held up high.

Everyone else entered the temple shortly after that. Jason ran over to her and asked how she felt. She assured him that she would survive. He helped her up as the others made a quick survey of the temple. There were no hidden room or second floors, just a couple of simple rooms in the back. The barbarian and others were near the back where gold coins and jewels had been stacked up. Xena rubbed the side of her face slightly and looked to the gorgon.

It's mighty strength was now reduced to solid stone as with its victims. Xena looked across its face and her eyes stopped at the gorgon's neck. There was a small necklace made of stone hanging there. It was in the shape of a half moon. The same shape as the necklace worn by Captain Herabus. Xena quickly told Jason. Jason ordered the other's to leave. They had to reach the shoreline as soon as possible.

Chapter 19:

Gabrielle and Amber looked to the two men as they slowly walked forward. Gabrielle reached for a flat crate lid and stood up. She held it out to hit Beorn with it but he took it from her hand with a single swing. The nails in his piece of wood pulled it away from her hold on it. She brought her foot down on his and he made a face of pain. The pirate that was with him brought his own piece of wood against the back of Gabrielle's leg.

She yelled out and fell back as the nails cut into her leg. Before she hit the floor, Beorn reached out and roughly grabbed her. He spun her in the air and pressed her back up against his chest. Amber tried to defend herself from the pirate, but the close area limited her movements. He smacked Amber hard in the side with his piece of would.

Amber fell leaned forward and the pirate's boot connecting with her jaw quickly sent the young Amazon flying back against the crates behind her. Gabrielle yelled out and tried to brake free from the warlord's grasp, but he was too strong for her. She could seen blood at Amber's side. She hoped the wounds were not as serious as they looked.

Beorn carried the struggling bard with him back to the entrance. He took note of a couple of full barrels of explosive powder and told the pirate to stay down here. If he didn't send back the right signal, the pirate was to set the barrels to explode and run up to the main deck as fast as he could. The pirate agreed.

Gabrielle continued in vain to struggle against the warlord's grip, but it did her no good. In no time at all, the two of them were making their way up the stairs, pass the galley and back up stairs that led to the main deck. A couple of crewmembers saw Beorn holding Gabrielle forcefully and quickly ran off to the front of the ship.

Adventurers and crewmen alike began to slowly surround the warlord. He didn't appear too concerned. As long as he held the girl and a dagger near her side, none of them would be so foolish as to rush him. It took no time at all for the captain to reach the back of the ship and demand what Beorn was doing.

Beorn waved the dagger around threateningly, making sure everyone kept their distance. He yelled to all who could hear him. "Seems the captain here's been keeping a little secret! Haven't ya?!"

Herabus gave him an ugly look but kept silent. Beorn sneered at him and continued. "Captain here's got himself a lot of gold! Thracian gold in fact! Anybody wanna bet who the last set of passengers was?!"

Some of the crew and passengers looked over to the captain. "He's lying!" Herabus replied.

"Oh am I now am I?!" Beorn yelled out. He brushed the dagger lightly across Gabrielle's side and she yelled out lightly in pain. A couple of the crewmen thought to rush the warlord but he waved the dagger in the air and warned them back. They backed off. "Tell them woman!"

Gabrielle yelled out in frustration. She felt little sympathy toward a captain that might be risking his passengers and crew, but she didn't want to help this warlord in any way either. "Its true. I saw the coins with my own eyes. They're Thracian."

"And there's more too!" Beorn continued. "He's got a stone statue out there! For all ya know, he's the one that's been delivering men to that beast!"

That last statement had the intended effect. The sympathy of those on board was beginning to turn against the captain and he could sense it. Herabus held up his hands. "Hold on! Hold on! There's a good explanation for that! Lets not take our minds off whose got a knife at a young woman's side!"

Several among the crew and passengers were grumbling to themselves, but they did recognize the more immediate threat. They started to approach Beorn slowly despite his waving the dagger in the air.

Beorn yelled out to them again. "I want a boat off of this ship and I want safe passage! If I don't get both, my man down below will light the explosive crates and this whole ship will go up!"

Captain Herabus looked to a couple of crewmembers and they nodded their heads. There were explosives in the hold that could do the job. Herabus could have jumped across the deck at Beorn, but he knew when he was cornered.

Just then one of the lookouts from above shouted out. "Boats ahead! Boats ahead!"

Everyone turned slightly to see that two of the boats were returning from the island. Everyone was surprised to see them. Beorn saw them as well. He saw them as a further threat.

Beorn raised his dagger to Gabrielle's side once more and threatened them all. "The girl gets cut and the ship blows unless you raise the anchor and set sail now." Someone asked about the boats and Beorn made it clear he intended to leave them stranded on the island. Nobody much liked the idea but they could do little else.

Out in the lead boat Xena could see several of the people on the ship gathered toward the rear of the main deck. She tried to focus her eyes and saw that the warlord Beorn was onboard holding a dagger to Gabrielle's side. Jason quickly mentioned that the Sargasso was raising her anchor. Xena realized too well what he was up to. She looked up and down the length of the ship, trying to think of something.

Beorn yelled out to the pirate below to see if he was ready but he received no response. He yelled out twice more and still heard nothing. Finally, someone walked up the stairs to the main deck. It was Amber. Everyone could tell by the red color of her boot dagger, that the threat of the pirate was no long a problem. All eyes turned toward Beorn.

Beorn was smart enough to keep the dagger at Gabrielle's side. He threatened her a few times as the crew and passengers slowly started to close in on him. As they did, a sharp crack could be heard overhead. Several of the people on deck looked up. Gabrielle looked up as well and was surprised to see a chakrum stuck into the sailing mast.

The chakrum cut through the rigging and one of the sails was falling down toward all of them. Everyone ran to the sides and forward to avoid it. Beorn looked up and was stunned enough by the sight that Gabrielle managed to break free of his hold. The sail was still connected to a side mast beam on one end. It caught against the railing before sliding over the side. The other end of the sail and the sail itself fell on top of Beorn.

Beorn struggled as best he could but the sailing was too heavy and he only ended up wrapping himself up in the sail further. As the other end of the sail fell over the side and down toward the water, the sudden change in weight pulled him toward the railing. Gabrielle quickly took the initiative and pushed him as hard as she could. Beorn tripped over the railing and fell down toward the water below.

Lines of rope from above still held the sail in place. Beorn was now caught in the sail like a fish in a net, hanging over the side of the boat unable to free himself. Amber and the others went over to Gabrielle and complimented her on her quick thinking. Other crewmen ran to the sides of the ship to draw the boats back up to the deck. Herabus joined the crew in congratulating Gabrielle. They were not impressed. He soon found himself surrounded by four crewmen who quickly escorted him to his cabin where he would probably have a lot of explaining to do.

Chapter 20..... Conclusion:

Xena and Gabrielle sat on the wooden bench near the galley stairs where they had seen the ship leave the dock days before. Both were exhausted, but they smiled and nodded to the well-wishers who passed by. In between their visitors they spoke to each other, sharing in their activities.

"I knew it couldn't be Beorn." Xena explained about the night of the arrow attack on the main deck. "It was too smart for him."

They both smiled at that. The second mate had told Xena that King Oreastes guards would take Beorn and Captain Herabus into custody as soon as they got back to port. It was welcomed news as far as Xena was concerned. Beorn was not to be trusted. His actions had proven that much.

Gabrielle expressed some minor sympathy toward Herabus. Despite the troubles they had been through, he had appeared to be a troubled man to her. Xena agreed with his being troubled. She explained that when she saw the half-moon necklace around the gorgon's neck, she remembered the same necklace around his neck. She knew the connection instantly. Herabus served her. The small ship with two men that had been sent to the island was probably intended to loot the slain adventurers on the island. Fortunately, this time the group had been successful.

The sun was beginning to set and the port town could now be seen in the distance. The ship would reach the small town just before nightfall. Xena looked out over the ocean's surface and enjoyed the changing blue and purple colors of the fading sun. She turned to face Gabrielle after hearing the bard ask a question.

"So how are you going to spend your part in the reward?" Gabrielle looked to her curiously.

Xena sat there for a few seconds. She thought about all the possibilities. Their share of the sixteen-hundred dinars promised to the remaining adventurers could buy a lot of things. Xena allowed herself the thought of riches and fine clothes. Maybe she would look into a small piece of land or a few nights of relaxation in a nice room in town. She kept an eager bard waiting a few minutes more before answering. "Oats."

"Oats?" Gabrielle asked her with a light laugh. "The first thing you think of is oats."

Xena turned to her friend and smiled. "Oh, that isn't the first thing I thought of at all. First we'll need to get a good cooking knife. That way you won't be using my chakrum."

Gabrielle smiled and shook her head. Xena did as well. Both of the women looked out to the dark orange sun as it slowly began to sink below the horizon. The night was reclaiming the seas once again. Thanks to both their efforts there was at least one small island that could start the next day with a new sense of peace.

THE END.