Copyright Disclaimers: Xena and Gabrielle are the property of MCA/Universal and Renaissance Pictures. The story is purely for entertainment purposes. The author does not benefit fanatically in any way from this story.
Violence Warning/Disclaimer: This story depicts scenes of violence and/or their aftermath. Readers who are disturbed by or sensitive to this type of depiction may wish to read something other than this story.
Sexual Violence Warning/Disclaimer: This story depicts scenes of sexual violence and/or their aftermath. Some readers may be disturbed by this type of depiction and anyone who is sensitive to this particular issue may wish to read something other than this story.
Love/Sex Warning/Disclaimer: There are blatant discussions, references and description of sexual relations between consenting adults. You must be over the age of 18 and it must not be a crime to read material of this nature at your present location. Some of the scenes depicted are explicit. If this bothers you, you should find other reading material.
Summary: It is the year 2036, the United States has built a maximum-security prison where you go in and can never get out. It is built in the middle of the desert where it is a four-day walk in any direction and is monitored by motion sensors and satellite imaginary.
It is called The William Jefferson Clinton Memorial Federal Prison (inside joke). The prisoners call it the Seven Circles of Hell. It is a lifer prison with no guards and no rules. The prisoners make their own rules. A tall, dark, blue-eyed female warrior who calls herself the Conqueror has ruled it for six years.
A young, green-eyed, golden-haired blond reporter is sent to Hell for a crime she didn't commit. A powerful and ruthless corporate raider must silence the young woman who learned too many secrets. Upon entering Hell, the young woman is given a vital mission that will lead her to the Conqueror.
Part 6
Chapter 5: The Third Circle
The ranches on the Third Circle were used for raising sheep. Much of the clothing produced in Hell is made of wool provided by these sheep. Gay didn't know anything the raising didn't care. The sheep were healthy and multiplying fine, but there was something wrong here.
She had raided her sixth rebel camp and found it empty. The camp had been evacuated recently and she knew this could only mean that were gathering for one big fight. The scouts only knew the direction of the flight, not how far it went or where they planned to turn and fight.
The work with the ranches was going well. They had a good size army and were training hundreds of potential healers. Yet, the whereabouts of the opposing army was still hidden from her scouts.
It was our sixth day on the Third Circle when the raids started. They had moving from one ranch to another and the scouts were out looking for the rebel army. Suddenly a group of twelve warriors attacked the wagon train. They killed all twelve attackers, but not before they lost three healers, two drivers, six guards, one Amazon, Chin and Jabbar.
The loss of Jabbar had really hurt Gay. She felt somehow responsible for what happened to him. Additionally, she had promised to protect him and had failed. After they buried their dead, they continued on. Gay put out more flankers.
The following day snipers killed one of the flankers without being detected. All that day the sniper struck. When he had killed 6 people, they cornered the sniper. He killed himself to avoid capture.
Gay began to worry. Killing yourself to avoid capture was the act of dedication that defied Gay's notion of whom these warriors were. Gay was discussion this topic with her war council when a commotion in the camp occurred. The council scrambled outside to help beat off an attack of over two hundred warriors. Seventeen lives, several smaller carts and many supplies were lost. Only one enemy warrior was lost.
The next day Gay sent out her scouts in mass. She had heavy flanker activity. This slowed their progress immensely. Gay in desperation camped early and quadrupled the guard. Then she called an expert for advice.
"Conqueror, come in please. Conqueror, come in please. Over."
"Warlord Gay, this Counselor Vaughn, the Conqueror holding court is this important?"
"Counselor, it is damn important. Get her."
After a short pause, she heard, "Gay, this is Dana. I just got some bad news and will bet that's why you called."
"What's your news and I'll tell you why I called."
"I'll tell you mine if tell me yours is that it?"
"Something like that."
"Okay, the outpost between the Third and Fourth Circle was overrun a large cross two days ago onto the Third Circle. What's map quadrant they may be behind you."
"We're at quadrant A5 head east on route 7. We've been hit with hit and run tactics designed to slow us down. Every rebel site we've entered has been abandoned. Now, I know why. Damn. We're in a vise, huh?"
"You're in a vise. The only way to fight this is defeat one before the others close. My advice to hit the group behind you while leaving a rear guard to slow down the army in front of you."
"Thanks for the advice. I'm going to call my war council together. I'm going to commit most of my scouts to the delaying action. It's going to be bad, huh."
"You'll lose 70 to 80 percent of rear guard. With fighting back to back actions, you'll lose 30 to 50 percent of primary force. Gay, command's not easy. But you are their best chance of survival."
"I don't know if I can do this. All those lives that are going lost are because of my orders."
"Gay, your orders, but not your fault. We didn't make this world. We were forced into it. We're trying to make it better, right?"
"Yes, we are making it better. This is going to destroy me, Dana."
"No, don't let it. Gay, you're a strong person. You can do this. It's going to change you, but only you can let it destroy you. Oh, remember no mercy. You can't afford it this time. You know Honey's going to have to lead that rear guard. You got no one else you can afford to lose."
"I know, that's what I'm afraid's gonna to kill me."
Warlord Dread waited for his scouts to return as he march hard to close the trap. He had only minor losses when he overran the Fourth Circle outpost. He expected to have fewer when he surprised the Golden Bitch.
The plan was for her to be engage with Ragnar's army when he attack her from the rear. He had his contacts looking for her reserve units. He needed to eliminate them before he attacked.
His scouts must have located the units, because they were late getting back from this trip. He decided to move his units forward in anticipation of engaging the Bitch soon. His started to break camp, when arrows started landing everywhere. He barely had enough time to be confused when an arrow lodged in his neck. When he ripped it from his neck he opened an artery. He died in seconds.
Earlier that morning, Wash came up to Gay as she marched to meet the rear army. Gay greeted him and said, "Report."
"Gay, we spotted his lead scouts before they spotted us. We got lucky. None escape. I then backtracked them and found an army nooning not two hours from here, behind those hills."
"We can use some luck. He's blind, huh?"
"Yeah, I thought maybe I could take what archers we have left and work them around their camp and wait for them to start breaking camp. Then open up on them."
"Great idea, Wash. There is so much confusion when you're breaking camp. That will give us time to get into position for an attack. Give an idea of terrain."
Two more flights of arrows came down upon the panicked troops. Those not hit were trying to hide from falling arrows. So they didn't see the horde of screaming Amazons that had descended upon them yelling, "NO QUARTER."
It was a short but bloody battle. At first several of the surprised troops of the Fourth Circle tried to surrender, but they were cut down. So it became a battle of no quarter, none given and none taken.
While Wash and his bow persons were circling for position, Gay was addressing the troops, "My Amazons, today we face two armies. We can give no quarter to the first army. We cannot have live troops at our rear, when we go to meet the second army. We must kill every warrior on that field. It is with a heavy heart I give this order, but no quarter will be our battle cry."
Gay quickly reorganized her troops. She left the doctor and his healers to help the injured while she turned her army back around to meet the second enemy. She looked into their tired eyes and said, "Many of your sisters are dying while trying to delay the enemy long enough for us to defeat this army and then rescue them. The longer you wait here and rest the more of them that will die. I for one will run to aid, who is with me."
Her warriors all stood and said, "I am."
Even many of the wounded stood and in a wild charge the Amazons charged into an unknown situation to free their sisters.
Ragnar's army had been fighting the rear guard for almost three hours now. He had lost over 200 men nearly a third of his army and reports were he was facing fewer than a hundred bowmen. Resistance had started to subside some. He was about to order a recall to reorganize for one final push, when a horde of screaming women attacked his troops.
A golden-haired beauty was weaving a deadly dance with a staff towards him. None seemed to even slow her or break her rhythmic flow. It could only be the Golden Bitch. He knew he had to give Dread time to close on her rear. So he charged the Golden Bitch. He was not afraid, he was the best swordsman this side of the Conqueror.
He met her with a smile. His sword jabbed, slashed and parried in a bright tapestry of skill. He could feel her give ground. But each of his blows was gently being turned away. He stepped up the pressure. He pressed hard, but his effort was wasted. He never penetrated her defense. He smiled, "You time is running out Bitch."
"You mean Dread, he's dead," she said as she launched her counterattack, "You are quite alone. I would advise you to surrender before you meet his fate."
Three quick moves as he contemplated her words had him disarmed and on the ground, which prompted him to say, "We surrender. Horn, sound surrender."
Gay found Honey on a hill over looking the final battlefield. Her headquarters had been overrun shortly before Gay arrived. She had just comment the last of her reserves and she had been alone when ten men charged the position. Four of them laid were dead around her.
Honey saw her love and said, "Don't blame yourself. Without you I would have been the bed slave of one of son-of-bitches. Look ten to one and took out four of them and wounded two others. You showed me how. I'm just sorry I won't be there to ease your pain any more."
"Don't say that sweetheart. The Doctor will fix you up. When you get better, you can show me some more ways to spend our off hours."
"I wish I could. You know I love you. Wish you loved me, but I die happy in the knowledge I had you for a short time. Good B...," she said as died.
Tears ran down her face as she released a scream of anguish that caused her guard to come running to her aid. She was cradling her friend and lover in her lap when they found her. She looked up at her guard. The green light that was always in her eyes was gone and many of warriors had tears in their eyes at the sight.
She looked up and said, "Make camp and bring her to my tent. I will mourn her there."
The Doctor reported, "212 dead. We loose 20 or 30 more by tomorrow, but that's it. They lost nearly a thousand men. That's probably a good percentage of the population of this place. Listen, I am so sorry about Honey. I... I just... don't know how to comfort you."
"There is no comfort for me, Doctor. After today, there is no more comfort for me, only pain and revenge."
"Gay, think. Is that what Honey would want? Do you think she would see you sacrifice your soul for vengeance? Don't you dare belittle her memory! You haven't the right."
"I haven't the right. Doctor, I promised her that I would protect her and failed her twice."
"Gay, you never failed her. You made her strong and complete. I was jealous of what you two had. You see I loved her, too."
"You, Doc, why didn't you tell her."
"I'm a man. She won't have like that."
"Doc...," was all she could say before the tears flooded upon her and weep like she had never weep before. Doc pulled her into his chest and let her weep until she collapsed in exhaustion.
The funeral was massive 234 pyres lit the sky. All the warriors mourned losses. Gay stood stoically while the pyres were lit. Then, from somewhere deep within her soul came a dance. A dance, so ancient that modern memory didn't record it, but all knew that it was a celebration dance for the dead. Slowly, one after another, her warriors copied the dance. It lasted three days.
Gay sat on a small cot in a hut on a ranch on the Third Circle of Hell; she had not said a word for five days now. Honey was ashes and her heart dead from the pain. Her eyes no longer were alive, but cold dead orbs that made everyone who looked into them terrible with fear.
The Conqueror had tried each day to contact her, but she refused to respond. The Conqueror had sent a messenger, who had arrived that morning. He had given her the message and when she didn't open it, he got insistent. Then, he got hurt. He limped back to the Conqueror without receiving a response.
The Doctor was worried. He knew clinical depression when he saw it. He wanted to help her, but it a luxury that they couldn't afford. Gay had to snap out of this or a lot of people were going to suffer. He was at loss at what to do.
Wash sent out the patrols and received their reports and each day he would report to Gay, who listen without answering. It broke his heart to see this way. The warriors were getting restless. There was talk. There were rumors. And Wash did his best to quell them, but without Gay this was going to get ugly.
Tucker was making improvements on the irrigation system. He was reducing their water usage, while increasing the irrigation efficiency. He had gotten a rocking chair in trade for his services. He was going to give it to Gay. She deserved a little comfort in her life. He hoped it would help.
For the third time in an hour, the Conqueror called her Warlord and got no response, she was getting frustrated. She was getting mad. She was getting very worried. 'I've broken her,' she thought, 'I pushed too hard on a gentle soul that just couldn't take the death. I can't blame her for not being dead inside like me. She was so much like Lou. He might have taken, I'll never know. I wish I were there. I know I could help her.'
Suddenly, she made a decision. She was going to Gay and help her. "Scribbler get my servants. Tell Hazzard to get my guard, we move out in two hours."
"Yes, Your Majesty," replied her clerk as he started leave.
Suddenly a familiar voice weak with pain spoke over the radio, "Breaker, Breaker, Come Back."
For the first time he could remember, he saw tears in the Conqueror eyes. She said, "Wait, Scribbler. Forget those orders and come back in two hours."
"Yes, Your Majesty," he replied as he retreated from the room.
Unconsciously, the hard Conqueror wiped a tear from her cheek and answered, "I thought you had stopped doing that."
"I wanted to piss you off."
"Well, it worked. How bad was it? You had me worried."
"I managed to kill a third of my army, but we won."
"How many on the other side?"
"A thousand give or take."
"That's probably every man they had available. You losses were lighter than they should have been. You did good."
"We got lucky with the initial engagement. We caught the army behind us with their pants around their ankles. We gave no quarter."
"You did right," she said, but she knew it gave the woman no comfort.
"Honey's dead. We cremated her. She's ashes."
"I knew that when you didn't call right away. I know this is little comfort, but I'm sorry she had to die. She was good people. I liked her."
"You hurt her. I saw the marks. You hurt her bad."
"Gay, I gave her what she wanted. Honey was a lovely person, but she had desires that were dark and I'm sorry I gave into my demons to use her demons. I wish it had never happened."
"You do?"
"Yes, I did it for the wrong reasons. I did it out of fear and jealousy. I think, I don't know. I was preparing to come and see you when you called. Do you need me to?"
"You were? Thank you, but you need to stay put. That is probably what they want to get you in the open where they can kill you."
"They may think that's they want, but it isn't. Take a hot bath. Soak for at least an hour. Then call me back."
"Thanks, see ya."
Gay hadn't left her tent in nearly a week. So when she came out of her tent in exercise clothes the camp stopped to look. She took off in a fast jog toward the edge of camp. Her shocked guards valiantly trade to keep pace.
Wash smiled as he saw her start on her jog. He knew those guards were in a hopeless situation. She was back and her jogs were trips into hell for anyone who wasn't in her nearly perfect physical conditioning. He decided to start a pool he gave them 5 minutes. He had to hurry if he was going make any thing on this deal.
The Doctor also smiled. He knew those guards would be lucky to last 3 minutes. I wonder if Wash had started a pool. He thought, 'I better hurry. Those guards aren't going to last that long.'
Tucker smiled. He had just finished work on the irrigation system. He was collecting his tools and his payment. He decided to surprise her while she was on her run. He picked up the small comfortable rocker and headed toward Gay's tent. He glanced at the guards struggling to keep pace with her and shook his head and thought, 'I wonder if there's a pool. I'll Wash after I drop off the rock. I better hurry.'
Gay sat in her new rocker and glanced at Tucker with a smile that made him blush. Doc and Wash had rewarded Tucker for his gift with a beer bash. They knew he deserved it. When Gay had gotten back from her jog, she saw the rocker and spent several minutes excitedly trying to find out who had left her such a wonderful gift. Tucker had been spotted by a couple of the Amazons. She gave him a huge hug and a kiss, which made him blush to his knees.
Doc and Wash were so pleased to see her shining again that they took Tucker over to the kegs of beer and tapped a new one. Everyone one of her warriors stopped by to thank Tucker for making their leader smile again.
It was such a simple gift, but everyone knew that Gay had always said what she missed most from her home was sitting in her favorite rocker petting her neighbor's cat, which always came in her window when it was open. Now the entire camp was on the lookout for a cat.
Because Gay had been incapacitated, the judgment of the prisoners had been put on hold. So that after noon, she sat in her new rocking chair with on leg over the side listening to each case.
In most cases the prisoner was released and sent back to his home village to find a wife or husband and settle down. In a rare case involving a war crime, the prisoner was executed. Finally, Ragnar was brought before her.
"Who is your master, Ragnar?"
"I have no master. I am my own master, Golden Bitch. You are the one who is the lap dog whore of the Conqueror."
" 'Golden Bitch', is that what they call me? Kind of colorful don't you think, Doc."
Doc shook his head with a smile. He knew the man was trying to goad the ungoadable.
"Ragnar, if I am the Conqueror's whore than her bed must be very cold and lonely, because I have never met the woman in person. And mail sex is just lacking intimacy. But I did have a lover. A beautiful woman named Honey. I really liked her," she said with sadness in her voice.
Then her gaze hardened and eyes locked onto Ragnar's eyes and he saw nothing. Then his bravado deserted him. He knew fear. And her voice became hard and ruthless as she said; "He will be stripped of his clothes and run a gauntlet of all my warriors. If he should survive, then he will be allowed to live as a camp slave."
He survived the gauntlet. Gay made sure of that. Her warriors were allow no weapon and could only hit him with an open hand and no palm thrusts. He was battered and bruised, but quite alive. His testicles and penis had been particular targets. After being allowed two days to heal, he given no clothes and put to work doing menial labor. At night you could hear his screams as Honey's friends played with their new toy.
Gay first night's sleep after the recovery was fitful and full of nightmares.
Gay was screaming, "No quarter, no mercy, attack, attack."
Her staff was everywhere crushing skull after skull. No one could stand before her. She was not pulling a single blow. As she swept the legs of one warrior, she caught his eyes. They were green like hers. He was just a boy, no more than 17 or 18. He looked just like her brother Jay. Tears were running down his cheeks and she saw the fear. He was holding up his hands begging for his life. Gay closed her eyes and jabbed her staff into his right eye, killing the boy.
She woke up screaming.
With the defeat of the two armies, only minor areas of lawlessness existed on the Third Circle. These were quickly squashed. All the ranches were made places of health. Gay recovered many of her lost warriors from the local ranches.
They were ready to leave for the next circle a full week before the training of the Second Circle healers was complete, so Gay camped and gave everyone not on duty time off. That first night she found three cats in her tent.