Path of Forgiveness

CHAPTER TWO - THE SACRIFICE

Dinner was amazing, and pretty much uneventful except for when Gabrielle made an off hand remark about mother being sentimental, and ended up having her vegetable in her hair. As I walked out of the hut I put my arms around myself in instinct. It had become pretty cold since the sun went down. I looked up at the sky and saw the full moon rising. The cold breeze sent shivers through my spine and goose bumps formed on my skin.

I walked towards the forest, a good long walk would do my head some good. The twigs cracked beneath my boots, and the leaves rustled from the wind. I have no idea how I’m going to make amends with Varia. Saying “I’m sorry I decapitated your sister and almost murdered you” isn’t exactly going to fix everything. I was a monster, a power hungry blood lusting monster. Mother tells me it wasn’t my fault, that I had her as a mother and Callisto’s soul, and that those are tough odds to beat. But I can’t help but feel that is WAS my fault. Even though I had tough odds, I didn’t fight the darkness at all. I surrendered to it willingly, just wanting to have a purpose in life. Ares told me he could make me a Goddess on Earth, and I became infatuated with the possibility. I didn’t care who I hurt or killed to reach the top, and that disgusts me. Livia, Bitch of Rome. More like Livia, Disgusting Murderous Evil.

I wish things turned out differently. I wish the Gods didn’t try to kill me, and I wish Mother and Gabrielle didn’t have to fake their deaths to save me. I wish I grew up with my mother, I wish I never stepped foot onto Roman soil. But I can’t change the past, only pave a new path for the future. I’m Eve, Messenger of Peace now. But do I feel like it? Not really. But I’ll try none the less.

I walked further through the forest, to the bank of the lake nearby. I stopped as I heard a snap of a branch behind me. I froze instinctively and listened. Everything was quiet, which means whoever’s following me knows I heard that. I pretended to think it was nothing and walked on, keeping a close ear on the person behind me. Now that I’m not lost in my own thoughts I can hear whoever it is quite clearly. I turned the corner and flattened myself against the wall, waiting for whoever it was to turn the corner as well. I saw the shadow of a person approaching and waited, my heart pounding in my throat. I know I’m a match for whoever walks around that corner, but I only like to fight in defense now. They turned the corner and I finally saw who it was.

Varia.

I stepped away from the wall, “Why are you following me?”

She was startled by the sound of my voice, not seeing me in the shadows. She recovered quite quickly however. “What makes you think I’m following you? I’m just taking a walk.”

I raised an eyebrow in doubt, “Remember who you’re talking to. You were oddly quiet to just be taking a walk, and when you stepped on the branch suddenly everything was deathly quiet. I know how being followed sounds.”

“You’re paranoid.” Varia answered.

“Better paranoid then dead.”

Varia didn’t answer, just looked at me. The wind was making her long brown hair fly back behind her shoulders and I could see the goose bumps on her own tanned, muscled, very exposed stomach.

“Are you afraid of me?” I asked, curious.

“No!” She said defensively. “I could take you any day.”

I shook my head, “Not what I meant. I meant do you really feel that threatened by me enough to follow me? Not on a physical level, more on a mental level.”

“I still don’t fully trust you, I guess.” She said, and looked at me with hard eyes.

“So you were following me,” I said.

“You already knew that I was.”

“I just wanted to hear you say it,” I smirked a little, then got serious. “I know you have no reason to trust me, and that nothing I say will make you believe it. But I honestly do want to make things right, more than anything.”

Varia folded her arms across her chest, “I just don’t see how someone can do a complete 180 in their personality and lifestyle.”

I shrug, “My mother did it.”

“But she’s Xena.”

“And I am Xena’s daughter. The same blood runs through my veins that do in hers.”

Varia sighed a little, “Its just hard to believe, is all.”

I looked into her eyes and said, “I swear that I will do everything I can to prove to you that I’m different, and make amends with you somehow.”

She paused for a minute, then looked at me with a slightly vulnerable look on her face, it’s the first time I’ve ever seen her look that way. “Everything?”

I looked at her with honesty and determination, “Everything.”

She looked at me for a long time, I guess trying to figure me out. But her eyes roamed my form, and I felt like everywhere her eyes went my skin burned, leaving hot trails all over my body. I couldn’t figure out what this feeling was, I’ve never had it before. I shivered, but not out of being cold.

Varia’s breathing was a little heavier and she looked like she was going to say something, but then her eyes got big like she realized something frightening and decided against it. She looked away from me quickly and out to the water and said, “I’m gonna head back to camp. I’ll see you around.”

I nodded, “Yeah, you will.”

I watched Varia walk off, wonder what exactly just happened. I decided not to dwell on it though, and headed back to camp myself.

****

I awoke by the sound of screams and the sound of battle. I jumped out of bed and ran outside, only to see complete chaos. The battle must have only just started, because more troops were entering Amazon Territory. I was still half asleep and it took my eyes a few minutes to adjust, but when they did there was no mistaking who was attacking. Romans.

“Gabrielle, protect Eve!” I heard my Mother yell, and turned in time to see Gabrielle run towards me.

“What’s going on?!” I asked, watching the Amazon defense fire arrows at the oncoming Romans, stopping quite a few of them.

Gabrielle threw me a staff, she knows I won’t kill, but I can still defend myself. “Don’t know, they just showed up and started attacking!” A Roman came out of no where and tried to fight Gabrielle, but she had her sais out and caught him off guard, throwing one directly at him and catching him in the stomach, he fell over and she ran to get her sais back.

Mother was fighting about ten of them at once, it looked like. Her battle cry rang through the forest and the sound of her chakram echoed over the trees. Varia was not far away, fighting the commander of the troops. The sound of their swords was deafening, and every time he got a hit in I thought I was gonna be sick.

A Roman tried to slice at me, but I caught his sword with my staff and pushed him away, flipping over him to position myself behind him and hit him hard in the head, knocking him clear out. My attention turned back to Varia and the commander, and my heart leapt in my throat as his sword cut her arm. I saw her stumble back but regain her composure, and now looked more determined and angrier than ever that he shed some of her blood. She went at him with full fury.

The ground was littered with bodies. Both Amazon and Roman. Blood ran over the ground like water and dying screams and metal against metal was all that could be heard. I hit another Roman in the temple as he passed by, going for another Amazon. He fell to the ground.

Mother had a litter of dead Roman’s around her, and had this look on her face to the ones fighting her like “you seriously want to mess with me?”

Then I heard Varia cry out. I looked over, and she was on the ground, and the commander had his sword to her throat. Her anger had blinded her, and he got in a hit she never expected. I heard the word “No!” fly from my lips and before I knew it I had taken off running. I ran through the battle as fast as I could and threw myself over Varia’s body, protecting her with my own. She screamed “Eve don’t!” But I didn’t care. Even if I get killed it will give someone else time to save Varia.

He raised his sword and I closed my eyes, waiting for the blow that I was sure was going to come to my neck. But I heard a whooshing sound and the sound of metal cutting into flesh, and I opened my eyes to see Mother’s chakram wedged deeply in the commander’s chest. My eyes widened as he fell to the ground, dead.

I didn’t move, and neither did Varia. Once the troops saw that their commander was dead they retreated, all but one who Mother grabbed and threw back against a wall. Maybe it was from shock that we both still couldn’t move, but we looked at each other. There was something in her eyes, a mixture of disbelief and thanks. But we had no time to talk. Gabrielle grabbed my hand and pulled me up off of her, and another Amazon helped up Varia.

Some Amazons were tending to the wounded, but Gabrielle pulled me over to where Mother had the captured soldier. Varia followed, being Queen. Mother put the pinch on the man, and he gasped as he tried to breath.

She looked at him menacingly and asked, “You have thirty seconds to live, so you better make this good. Why did you attack the Amazons?”

Blood was flowing from the mans nose and you could tell he was in intense pain. I knew the feeling, she put the pinch on me once. He gasped before answering, “Ares... he said the Amazon’s didn’t want peace.. Wanted to... capture our lands. Take our wives and daughters as their warriors...”

Mother looked like she was going to explode with anger, but took the pinch off the man before knocking him out. “Keep him prisoner.” She said, then walked off. But not before yelling, “Eve! A word. Now.”

I followed my Mother wordlessly to her hut, and when she shut the door I got what I knew was coming.

“Have you lost your mind?? What were you doing? Throwing yourself over Varia like that! You could have been KILLED!”

“She’s the strongest leader the Amazon’s have had in a long time, she has a lot of potential, potential that may have been wasted if she had been killed.” I answered, looking my mother in the eyes.

“And what about your potential? Do you really thing Eli would want his messenger killed so soon?” Mother looked halfway between angry and upset. I couldn’t really blame her.

“I’m a grown woman, Mother. I make my own decisions.”

Mother sighed and put her hands on my shoulders, “I know that honey, but sacrificing yourself isn’t the smartest one you’ve made. You scared me today.”

I look down, “I’m sorry.”

“Just please, don’t do that again... promise me. I saw what was happening with Varia, but if I threw my chakram at him before he raised his sword he could have blocked it. There was no need for you to do that.”

I nodded. I don’t regret what I did, but I am sorry that I scared my Mother. She hugged me, and I hugged her back tightly. When she pulled away, the look of determination was in her eyes again. “Now, to find out what’s going on... ARES!!”

I heard a faint laugh that steadily grew louder and then in a flash Ares appeared before us, looking smug.

TBC....