"I can’t wait to see Iolaus again," Gabrielle said. "It’s been awhile since the last time we got together," Xena said. "I’m sure they have some stories to tell us." "When will we be in Corinth?" Gabrielle asked. "Oh, I’d say tomorrow. Midday tomorrow," Xena replied. "Mmm, okay," Gabrielle said. They walked on awhile longer. Then, Xena thought she heard something, and strained her ears. She put her hand out in front of Gabrielle, stopping her in mid-stride. She dropped Argo’s reins, and ran into the woods, toward the sound, the sound of a fight. Gabrielle stood there for a minute, bewildered, but then followed the warrior, staff in hand. When Xena reached where the fight was going on, there was one man lying on the ground looking dead, and two other men were fighting. Before Xena could reach the two, one stabbed the other. He whirled around and saw her, and recognizing her he ran. Xena had caught a glimpse of his face, and knew who it was. She ran to the recently stabbed man, and took in a sharp breath as she saw his face. "Oh, gods! Eldon!" she whispered. But if that was Eldon, then the other must be… Gabrielle came running into the clearing. "What happened." Xena ignored her question and went to the other man, a trace of tears in her eyes. She kneeled near the man and turned him so that his face was visible. "No!" she breathed. "No…not Rafe! Gods, not Rafe!" Gabrielle came up behind her friend and said quietly, "Who did this?" "Leo," Xena said. But then she noticed a slight movement made by Rafe. He was still breathing! Xena checked his pulse. "He’s still alive!" Gabrielle breathed a sigh of relief. "Go get Argo," Xena ordered. "We camp here." Gabrielle hurried back into the woods. Xena carefully dragged Rafe over to a tree and leaned him against it. He had a large wound on his head, and it was bleeding mercilessly. She had to stop it. If he lost too much blood, he would… She shook her head. Don’t think about that right now. She pressed her hand against the wound. "Hurry, Gabrielle!" she shouted. Gabrielle came running back, holding Argo’s reins. Xena jumped up and went through the saddlebags. "Ah! We need some sheets or something. Some sort of cloth!" Xena said hurriedly. Gabrielle looked through one of her bags. She pulled out a large linen scarf. "Here, Xena. Use this," she said. "Gabrielle, are you sure? That cost a lot of money…" Xena said. "Xena, we don’t have anything else. Just use it," Gabrielle said. Xena folded the scarf twice and sat back down next to Rafe. "Gabrielle, I need you to do something for me," Xena said. "There should be a town nearby, between us and Corinth. We’re gonna need some more cloth and some medicine to help this heal. Could you ride to that town and get those supplies?" "I…I guess so," Gabrielle said. Xena certainly wasn’t treating her like a child anymore. She trusted her to go out and travel by herself…in the dark. Gabrielle glanced at the setting sun. "I’ll try to get back as soon as I can." "Okay. Ride on Argo, it’ll be faster," Xena said, and pressed the scarf against Rafe’s wound. The blood quickly seeped through the cloth, and Xena frowned. This isn’t gonna work. We need more cloth… "Bye, Xena," Gabrielle said, and headed out of the woods with Argo. "Bye, Gabrielle," Xena said. "Be careful."
