Chapter Two

A friendly silence grew between the warrior and the boy as Argo slowly made her way along an over-grown trail. The setting of the sun brought a chill to the air, and Xena wrapped her arms tighter around Solan, and drew him further into her comforting embrace.

"Why don't you tell me more about the centaurs you're visiting, Solan? This must be a new camp for them. They weren't here last year when I passed through the area."

"No,they haven't been here long. Lorenz and the others..."

"Lorenz?" Xena stiffened slightly at the sound of the name. She knew a centaur by that name, but it was so long ago...

"Sure. He's Uncle Kaleipus' cousin. Big, strong, red hair. And you should hear him laugh! You can hear him in every part of the village!"

Xena closed her eyes briefly as old memories flooded her thoughts. She knew the centaur, but back then he had not been known for his laughter. She and her army had practically destroyed his whole nation. It was before Borias had joined up with her, and it was her first attempt to capture the Ixian stone. Acting upon a rumor that Lorenz and his centaurs had the stone, Xena and her men had set a trap for the half-beasts. When Lorenz insisted that he did not have the gem, Xena's rage had erupted with deadly force. So many had died in that senseless battle, before the remaining centaurs had managed to drive back her warriors. Even after losing much of her army, the warlord that Xena used to be had still been determined to find that stone. Now she was thankful she never had.

Solan felt Xena's arms tighten slightly in tension around him. "Xena?"

"Stop where you are," a deep voice rumbled.

Lost in her thoughts, Xena had relaxed her guard while letting Argo carry them to the village. She looked up at the familiar voice to find a red haired centaur and five companions holding loaded crossbows, all aimed at her.

"Set the boy down, barbarian. I won't let you hurt him." The other centaurs surrounded Xena, boxing her in and cutting off any chance of escape.

The crossbows never wavered as Xena easily lifted the boy from the horse, and lowered him to the ground. She knew she could probably fight her way out of this situation, but these people were now part of Solan's family. She didn't want her son to have to take sides if there was a fight, and she needed to be sure that he was safe. She kept her hands in clear view and away from her weapons, resting them lightly on the pommel of the saddle.

"But, Lorenz! This is Xena, my friend..."

"Xena, Destroyer of Nations, has no friends, Solan. Just be grateful she didn't succeed in kidnapping you, or hurting you." The big centaur lowered his crossbow briefly so he could push the boy behind him, and act like a shield for the child. He then nodded knowingly to the centaur behind the woman.

"Lorenz, let me...," was all Xena got to say before the butt of a crossbow hit her on the back of her head. She slumped forward onto Argo's neck, somehow managing to still have the saddlehorn in her grasp.

"Xena!" Solan shouted, and rushed to the horse's side to keep the warrior from falling off. Turning fearful eyes to the big centaur, he whispered, "Why?" The boy felt like his whole world had turned upside down in the last few moments, and his heart beat painfully in his chest when he heard Lorenz' answer.

"She has to pay for her crimes. And she has a lot of debt to be answered for."

"Lorenz," the boy tried. "She wasn't kidnapping me. She was bringing me home to you. Please don't hurt her, she's my friend!" Solan didn't know what he could do to convince him that the warrior wasn't dangerous. His thoughts whirled between trying to figure a way to get the big centaur to let Xena go, and berating himself in not telling her that Lorenz was the lead centaur of the village he was visiting. Solan remembered all too well how both he and his Uncle Kaleipus had reacted when they ran into Xena and the bard the previous year. They had both been suspicious of them; he should have known that Lorenz would feel the same way. "Please, Lorenz. She was just passing through. If you let her go, she'll probably just leave and never come back." The boy glanced up his friend when he heard a low groan from the woman. She still hadn't moved even though Argo was restlessly stamping her feet.

"Solan," Lorenz gently called to the young boy. Holding out his hand, he gestured to Solan to take it. When the boy did, he held it firmly in his grasp and leaned down a bit lower so he could be on eye level with the youngster. "Solan, I can see you care for...this woman. How she convinced you that she is harmless, I don't know. She is the most formidable warrior I have ever had to face. Once we get rid of her, no village will ever have to fear an attack from the Destroyer of Nations again."

The boy wrenched his hand away from the red centaur. "No! She's not like that! She helped me..."

"That's enough, Solan! Now you can either climb on my back and ride to our village, or you can walk...which do you want to do?"

Xena groaned again, and shifted in the saddle. The boy tried to rush to her side, only to find that a large hand held him back. "Solan, get on my back, and don't make me lose my temper!" Lorenz turned to the centaur at Xena's back, shaking slightly as he tried to control his anger. "Terek, tie the woman to the horse, and make sure she doesn't come around. I want her safe and secure in a cell before she wakes up."

Nodding in understanding, Terek took some ropes that he found in Xena's saddlebags, and tied the warrior's hands around the neck of the horse, and then bound her legs together, wrapping the extra lengths of rope around the light colored mare. The young centaur then ran his fingers through Xena's hair, at last finding a large sized bump with a dark bruise beginning to form. Still unsatisfied, he moved up to look into the woman's face. Raising one of her eyelids and getting no response from the silent prisoner, he continued to poke and prod the warrior, constantly checking to see if he could get any reaction or movement out of her. At last satisfied that she wasn't faking her unconsciousness, Terek again nodded to Lorenz. "We're all set. I think you should take this horse's lead, and I'll follow behind. I want to keep a close eye on this one."

Lorenz grabbed Argo's reins, and jerked the horse forward. The remaining four centaurs surrounded the group, still keeping their crossbows at the ready and aimed at the slumped form on the mare. Terek fell into step behind, constantly on the alert from any movement from Xena, or any unexpected action from the nearby trees. Although Solan hadn't said anything, Terek was sure that the woman was not our here alone. She had to have her army camped somewhere, even though his keen hearing hadn't picked up any unusual noises. The young centaur divided his attention between the glade and the prisoner, never dropping his guard.

Solan remained silent as he held onto Lorenz' shoulders. He kept looking back at Xena, hoping for some change in the woman, but she had even stopped groaning, and simply hung lifelessly on Argo's back. The boy blamed himself again and again for letting the capture happen. His stomach was in knots with worry about what Lorenz planned to do to his friend. He had only seen the cells where the centaurs kept their prisoners once. All he could remember was that they were cold, damp, and extremely dark. Blinking back tears, he clutched unconsciously at his cousin's arms. He knew he couldn't get Xena out by himself, and the only person he knew that would help was Gabrielle.

The ride into the village was silent as each of the centaurs carried out his duties. Even though the warrior had not moved since being tied to her horse, each of the armed guards kept their attention on the woman. They all knew how treacherous and devious the Destroyer of Nations could be. Terek was the most observant of all, knowing that he would be watching over the prisoner until he would hand her over to the prison guards. He almost wished that Xena would move, so he could have the satisfaction of clubbing her again.

Rounding a bend in the trail, a shout went out as Lorenz' group was spotted by a sentry. Word quickly spread that their leader had captured the warrior princess, so when they finally reached the village, all the centaurs were in the main square, eager to catch a glimpse of their enemy. Several held large rocks in their hands, ready to throw them at the motionless woman when Lorenz held up his hand.

"Wait! No one is to hit the woman until after the trial!" the red haired centaur shouted.

Laughter, jeers, and curses directed towards Xena followed Lorenz' command. Not even one centaur had any doubt about what the outcome of the trial would be. Bets were taken on how long the hearing would be, and several jailers had received bribes from over eager centaurs willing to do prison work for the next week or so. Only Lorenz noticed when Solan dropped to the ground, and approached the warrior princess, brushing the hair off her face.

"Solan! Stay away from her! She may come around at any moment, and I don't trust her!"

The boy stepped away from Argo. He planned to get to Gabrielle as soon as he was able to sneak away, and getting Lorenz mad at him would only make things more difficult. Xena still hadn't moved since Terek knocked her out, and Solan was starting to worry that she was hurt more badly than he thought. All he could tell was that she was still breathing; he wished that she would at least open her eyes so he could let her know he was going to help her.

Terek approached the warrior cautiously, first untying her hands from around the mare's neck, and then retying them more securely behind her back. Slipping the bindings from her legs, the young centaur gave a quick jerk, and the bound woman fell from her horse, landing in a boneless heap face down in the dirt.

Solan winced when he heard the woman moan at this new source of pain, but at the same time he was hopeful that this meant she was regaining consciousness. He slowly backed away from Xena and the others, when Lorenz called his name.

"Solan, take her horse and put it in the stables. We'll decide what to do with it later."

The youngster approached the big warhorse and hesitantly took the reins. Argo was a little nervous around all the strange people, and she didn't like it that Xena had laid oddly on her, or hadn't given her any commands as they walked to the village. But the boy was familiar, and the horse nickered as her nose was scratched by little fingers. She followed Solan into a stable, and made herself at home by quickly finding some sweet hay to eat.

Solan removed the saddle, and brushed down the horse. After Argo had a satisfying drink of water, the boy led her to a stall and closed the gate door after them. Scratching the mare's nose again, the youngster leaned his forehead against the warm neck, and then threw his arms around the sturdy horse, letting a sob escape. He knew he had to get to Gabrielle, and tell her what happened, but what could the two of them do against Lorenz, Terek, and the others? Everyone seemed so happy that Xena was captured, they just weren't going to let her go because Solan wanted them to. Sniffing back his tears, Solan wiped at his eyes with the heels of his hands, and then ran his fingers through his hair. After patting Argo one more time, Solan let himself out of the stall. "I won't be long, Argo. You get some rest now, and be ready when I get back."

When Solan left the stable, the crowd had already gathered around the jail. There was a line in the dirt, marking the trail Xena had left when one of the centaurs dragged her along the rough ground. Winding his way through the rowdy crowd, the boy was able to find a way to the front of the group.

Xena looked worse than before; her legs were scratched and bleeding from being scraped along the cobblestone square of the centaur village, and Solan noticed that she now had a black eye that was already beginning to swell closed. Even though Lorenz had ordered that no one should hit the woman until after she was found guilty, it seemed he didn't mind if a few bruises appeared, as long as he didn't see it happen.

Terek grabbed hold of the bindings at Xena's wrists, not caring to see how deeply the tightly wound ropes bit into her skin. He dragged her along the muddy corridor of the prison, at last shoving her unceremoniously into a holding cell. As she fell limply onto the packed dirt, those centaurs who could see what was going on cheered their approval. Solan wrapped his fingers around the bars of the cell, hating what he was seeing, yet unable to stop watching. A centaur he didn't know clapped him on his back.

"This is your lucky day, lad. No one before has been able to capture the Warrior Princess. Justice will be done!" Mistaking the reason for the look of fear in Solan's eyes, the burly centaur consoled, "Don't worry, son. She can't escape. Just you wait."

Solan tore his eyes away from his neighbor to see that Terek was removing Xena's boots, armbraces, and leathers. Leaving the woman in only her black shift, the cautious jailer searched for more weapons. Satisfied that she didn't have anything else concealed on her body, he dragged her to the back of the holding cell, and propped her up against the wet wall. The young centaur quickly untied the warrior's hands, and then attached shackles to both wrists, bringing her arms up over her head, and attaching the irons to a ring imbedded in the rock structure. From this position, Xena could either stand or sit, but it was far from a comfortable position.

Terek leaned down and grasped Xena's chin in his hand. Turning her face from side to side, he shook his head in disgust. "So this is the mighty 'Destroyer of Nations'," he mocked, and then viciously slapped her face. Hearing the roar from the crowd behind him, Terek turned around and threw his clenched fists above his head. The cheering grew louder as those in front could see a trickle of blood winding down Xena's chin.

Solan slipped away from the crowd, feeling close to tears again. He was fairly sure that Lorenz and the others would be too busy gloating over the prisoner's capture to notice that he had gone. He found the rail that led to the stream, and as soon as he was out of sight of the village, he broke into a run, pumping his legs as fast as he could to reach Gabrielle.

Gabrielle had finished all the camp chores, cleaning up after dinner, gathering enough firewood for the night, and had just repaired a rip in Xena's sleeping shift when she decided to practice with her staff. Even though it was getting late and Xena hadn't returned yet, the bard wasn't concerned. They rarely got to see Solan, so she was happy that her friend could spend some time with her son. She was probably just getting to know the boy's family in this centaur village, and checking that everything with the youngster was ok. Closing her eyes, she relaxed her breathing rhythm and began a warm up kata with her staff, when she heard a loud crashing sound advancing towards her from the trail. Her eyes flew open; she knew instinctively it wasn't Argo, but it was someone or something coming her way. She backed away slowly from the trail's end, twirling her weapon in defensive patterns, waiting to see who the visitor might be. For the second time that day, she was surprised that it was Solan.

The boy burst into the camp, and staggered to a halt before the blonde. Bent at the waist, Solan rested his hands on his knees, and took great gulps of air trying to stop his heaving chest. Gabrielle reached for her water bag and wordlessly handed it to the young boy. "Solan, where's Xena? Why are you here without her?" The bard tried to keep the panic out of her voice, but she was sure that he could hear it.

After taking a long pull of the water, Solan sank to the ground and sat back on his heels. Still breathing heavily, he looked at Gabrielle quickly, but couldn't keep eye contact with her. Closing his blue eyes, he felt tears seep out from the closed lids. "It's all my fault!"

The woman knelt in front of the youngster, and held both his hands in hers. "Tell me, Solan. Tell me."

Still crying silently, Solan whispered, "It's my family. Lorenz. My cousin. He...he captured her. And Terek...he hit her. They tied her up and threw her in a cell. Everyone's calling her 'Destroyer of Nations'. Terek knocked her out, and I didn't know what to do." A wordless sob escaped the boy's throat. "They're going to kill her."

When Gabrielle heard Solan's words, she unconsciously clenched his hands in hers as she closed her eyes in pain. Her heart beat wildly against her ribs in fear and panic. How was she going to go up against an entire village that wanted revenge on someone who no longer existed? Opening her eyes, she drew Solan into an embrace. "Honey, it's not your fault," she said as she wiped the tears from his face. "It's no one's fault. But we have to get her out of there. Take me to the village."