ACT ONE

FADE IN:

EXT. CAMPSITE - MORNING

Gabrielle is very deeply asleep, having spent most of the night chasing away Xena’s nightmares.  It is only with the breaking of the dawn that she is finally able to close her eyes for some sorely needed rest.

Xena, on the other hand, is up and ready for the day.  She’s already killed and skinned several rabbits and is frying them in the pan after coating them with several spices stolen from Gabrielle’s secret stash.  A smaller pot is warming water for tea.

Crouched over the fire and poking at the frying rabbit with a thin, metal spatula-like item, she stiffens as she catches the sound of someone trying to sneak up on the camp.

Without looking, she holds up the spatula, pointing it in the direction of the still hidden-from-sight marauder.

XENA

I wouldn’t, if I were you.

All sounds cease as the bandit freezes in his tracks, surprised at being noticed.

A moment later, he chances moving forward again, seeing Xena calmly return to her cooking duties.

XENA

(cont’d)

I’m not kidding.

Xena gestures behind her with the spatula.

XENA

(cont’d)

She gets really cranky when

she doesn’t have enough sleep.

The bandit looks past the covering of trees and into the camp, where he sees Gabrielle peacefully slumbering on a jumbled pile of furs.  He laughs and starts forward again.

Xena sighs, though her eyes are sparkling.

XENA

(cont’d)

Don’t say I didn’t warn ya.

Without looking up, Xena expertly flings the spatula, sinking it into the arm of the bandit, causing him to grunt and drop his weapon.  His companions rush past him and into the clearing, their own weapons raised.

Diving over the fire, Xena rolls and comes up between two of the men, grabbing them by the fronts of their mismatched armor and slamming their heads together.  Dropping one, she lifts the other and heaves him over her shoulder, where he lands, with a thud, to the left of a still sleeping Gabrielle.

GABRIELLE

Not now, Xena.

Gabrielle rolls on her other side and snuggles back down into her furs.

Grinning, Xena fells yet another attacker with a swift uppercut to the chin, then throws him over her shoulder where he lands unconscious on the other side of Gabrielle.

GABRIELLE

(cont’d)

Xena… please?

Xena turns just in time to avoid being sliced open by the bandit leader who has retrieved his weapon and is striking at her with a clumsy, left-handed blow. 

Ducking under the swing, she comes up, head-butts him, and pushes him backward.  He stumbles back through the fire and lands in a heap at Gabrielle’s feet.

Gabrielle has had enough.  Rolling onto her back, she sits up, angrily wiping the bangs from her eyes just in time to see a grinning Xena holding the frying pan she managed to rescue from the stumbling bandit. 

Gabrielle looks at their three guests, then back at Xena.  Her eyes narrow, focused on the frying pan.

GABRIELLE

(cont’d)

You didn’t.

Xena’s grin is unrepentant.

XENA

Breakfast?

CUT TO:

EXT. FOREST TRAIL - MID MORNING

The weather has turned cold, and Xena and Gabrielle are both wrapped in their fur cloaks as they travel down the forest trail.  Gabrielle, in deference to her recently healed back and legs, is riding Argo while Xena walks ahead leading the horse.

Gabrielle shifts in the saddle and sighs.

GABRIELLE

Xena.

XENA

Mm?

GABRIELLE

Can we stop now?  I want to

get down and walk a little.

XENA

Gabrielle, I know you think I’m coddling

you, but if we want to make it to Poteidia

in time for Solstice, we need to move quickly,

and I don’t want to overstress your muscles.

GABRIELLE

I know that, but....

Xena stops, turns and approaches her partner, laying a hand on her knee.

XENA

If you really want to walk, I won’t stop

you.  I just… don’t like to see you in pain.

Gabrielle reads many messages in Xena’s anguished features, and sighs once again.

GABRIELLE

Okay.  I suppose a little more

time on this beast won’t kill me.

Argo whinnies, highly offended.

GABRIELLE

(cont’d)

Sorry, Argo.

Argo whinnies again.

Smiling, Xena pats Gabrielle’s leg, but before she can turn, she freezes, head cocked.

GABRIELLE

(cont’d)

More bandits?

XENA

Six. Just ahead.

Gabrielle rolls her eyes.

GABRIELLE

What’s going on? I thought we’d already

used up our requisite one fight per day.

XENA

Apparently not.

(beat)

Gabrielle....

GABRIELLE

(heatedly)

Don’t tell me to wait here, Xena, ‘cause I’ll

bop you over the head with my staff if you

so much as utter one word of that command.

Xena grins. 

XENA

Just be ready.

The air is suddenly alive with the sounds of shouting men.  Bandits charge at them, single file along the narrow trail. 

Chuckling to herself, Xena grabs the first bandit, turns him and shoves him toward Gabrielle, who carries out part of her previous threat and bops him on the head with her staff.  He falls in a puddle to the ground.

Bandits number two, three, four and five are dispatched in the same manner until Argo is all but surrounded by unconscious men.  She voices her displeasure quite loudly.

Shaking her head, Xena grabs Argo’s reins and leads both horse and rider away from the remains of their attackers.

CUT TO:

EXT. FOREST GLEN - EARLY AFTERNOON

A small stream, partially iced over, runs through the glen.  Argo laps at the water while Xena and Gabrielle wrap up the last of their light lunch, preparing to get back on the trail.  As they do, both hear the unmistakable sounds of yet another group of bandits heading in their direction.

GABRIELLE

Not again!

Gabrielle looks up at the sky.

GABRIELLE

(cont’d)

Who peed in your

porridge this morning?

Two young men not even old enough to shave yet burst into the clearing, weapons raised.  Their swords are almost as long as they are and it’s obvious they’ve never seen a day’s fighting in their lives.

Xena sidesteps the first, who runs past and almost into Gabrielle.  She disarms him easily, then pokes his behind with the point of her sai, sending him yelping into the woods.

Xena jabs the neck of the second boy, who instantly drops to his knees, with a tiny trail of blood trickling from his nose.

Xena crouches over him, glowering.

XENA

You know the drill.

YOUTH

(choking)

Thirty seconds… no blood… dead….

XENA

Smart boy.  So smart, I’m sure you’ll be able

to answer my question with no trouble at all.

The youth nods.

XENA

(cont'd)

Why the sudden interest in attacking us?  Is

there another bounty that I don’t know about?

YOUTH

S… soft.

Xena looks at Gabrielle, who shrugs.

XENA

Soft?

YOUTH

You!  Gone… soft… no chakram…

easy to… kill… .be famous… please!

GABRIELLE

Xena....

Huffing out a breath of air, Xena takes the pinch off the boy, then hauls him up by the front of his jerkin, holding him easily two feet off the ground with no visible effort at all.

XENA

This look ‘soft’ to you, kid?

The boy’s eyes are wide as saucers.

YOUTH

N-no.

XENA

Good answer.

Switching hands, Xena reaches down and unhooks her chakram from its clip.  She holds it up so the youth can easily see it.

XENA

(cont’d)

Since you’re so good at answering

questions, I got another one

for ya. What do you call this?

YOUTH

Your chakram.

XENA

Right again.  I knew you

were a smart kid.

(beat)

Sooo... if this is my chakram,

what does that mean?

Silence as the young man thinks about it.  The answer comes to him and his eyes widen even more, almost seeming to swallow his peach-fuzzed face.

YOUTH

You got it back!

Xena displays her teeth in a less than joyful grin.

XENA

Right again.

YOUTH

From the G-God of War!  You…

you got your chakram back from Ares!!

Xena sets the young man down on his feet.

XENA

Congratulations. You win the prize.

YOUTH

My… my life?

XENA

Well, that, and a friendly piece of advice.

(beat)

Go back home till you’re old

enough to shave.  And after that….

The boy nods, looking anxiously at her.

XENA

(cont’d)

I’d choose another line of work

if I were you.  You’re too

smart to be a bandit.

YOUTH

(happily)

Y-yes, Ma’am!

Xena straightens and looks to Gabrielle.

XENA

(mouthing)

Ma’am?

Gabrielle crosses her arms and smirks.

XENA

(cont’d)

G’wan, get outta here before

I change my mind.

The young man runs away as quickly as his legs can carry him, which is rather quickly.

CUT TO:

EXT.  MEADOW TRAIL - MID AFTERNOON

Xena and Gabrielle are walking down a rutted wagon trail that weaves its way through a vast meadow.  The grasses are brown and brittle and a chill, biting wind whispers and moans.  Shivering, Gabrielle pulls her cloak more tightly around her.  Seeing this, Xena puts an arm around her partner’s shoulders and pulls her in close.

Gabrielle smiles up at her.

GABRIELLE

Thanks.

XENA

My pleasure.

The two hear a faint rumbling sound, and stop, looking to the east.

GABRIELLE

Here we go again.

XENA

If they’re raiders,

there’s an army of ‘em.

Another faint sound reaches their ears.

GABRIELLE

Riding sheep?

Argo whinnies and backs off, pulling at her reins.  Xena and Gabrielle step back just in time to avoid being trampled by a small flock of stampeding sheep crossing their path.

A moment later, a young shepherd boy comes into view and stops in front of them, bending over and gasping for breath.

SHEPHERD

Help me. Oh please, help me.

XENA

Those your sheep?

SHEPHERD

Yes, and it’s my first day.  My pa told

me not to let them out of the pasture,

but something spooked them, and….

GABRIELLE

It’s okay. We understand.

SHEPHERD

My pa’ll tan my hide if I lose them, I know

he will!  And they’re headed for the cliff!!

Sighing, Xena releases Gabrielle and moves toward Argo.

SHEPHERD

(cont’d)

No!  They’re afraid of horses!

You’ll spook em even more for sure!

Oh, my pa is gonna kill me!

Shaking her head, Xena hands Gabrielle Argo’s reins and walks over to the boy.

XENA

Stay here and be ready to herd them

when they come back this way.

SHEPHERD

But how?

XENA

Leave that to me.

Yelling out her battle cry, Xena goes racing after the fleeing sheep.  Her cry startles them, and they slow for just a moment before picking up steam once again.  The momentary hesitation is all Xena needs.  She reaches the rear of the stampeding flock and jumps, tucking into a tight flip and landing in front of them, mere feet away from the cliff’s edge.  She throws her arms up.

XENA

(cont’d)

HAH!!!

Unable to stop, the sheep plow into her, almost trampling her beneath their smelly, writhing bodies.  Digging her feet in, she holds the line, almost choking on the stench. The sheep finally come to a confused stop.  Xena’s heels literally dangle off the cliff edge, and she spits out a mouthful of wet wool.

Resisting the almost overwhelming urge to turn her unwanted charges into lamb chops, she instead pushes the lead sheep around so that he is facing the Shepherd and Gabrielle.

XENA

(cont’d)

G’wan!  Get!

The sheep look at her, bleating.

XENA

(cont’d)

NOW!!!

The flock turns as one and begins running back in the direction it came.  Gabrielle backs Argo out of the way, and the young shepherd runs forward, pulling a pan flute out of his carry sack, and begins playing.

The sheep instantly calm and approach the boy, surrounding him and ‘baaing’ happily.

Xena walks up to the group, wiping sheep muck from her arms and legs and looking decidedly grumpy.  Gabrielle approaches her, then backs away, fanning the air in front of her face.  Xena gives her a look.  Gabrielle grins.

SHEPHERD

Thank you, oh thank you!

You saved them and me too!

XENA

(smiling weakly)

Not a problem.

SHEPHERD

Well, I have to go now before

Pa finds out I’m gone.

(beat)

Hey!  Next time you’re in this neck of

the woods, come by for a visit!  We’ve

got the largest sheep ranch in the area!

GABRIELLE

We’ll do that.

SHEPHERD

Can’t miss us.

XENA

(dryly)

I don’t imagine we could, no.

SHEPHERD

Just look for the sign that

says PEEP.  That’s my pa.

(beaming)

I’m Beau.

So saying, the young lad skips merrily back into the woods, leading his lost sheep home.

CUT TO:

EXT. RIVER BANK - LATE AFTERNOON

Xena and Gabrielle have reached a rather high mountain plateau and have stopped before a wide, frozen river.

Gabrielle looks doubtfully at the river.

GABRIELLE

Think the ice is thick enough

to hold us?  It’s pretty

early in the season.

XENA

It’s not us I’m worried

about.  It’s Argo.

Argo whinnies in agreement.

Just as Xena steps off the bank to test the strength of the ice, a piercing sound is heard echoing through the air.

GABRIELLE

Was that a scream?

They look up as a gigantic CRACK is followed by more terrified screaming.

XENA

Come on!

The pair runs along the river bank and around a broad curve until they can see the cause of the screaming.

A group of young children are halfway across the river, but a gigantic crack in the ice has stranded them, making it impossible to move forward or back without risking a fall into the icy waters below.

As the duo watches, the ice cracks again, leaving the group stranded on an unstable ice floe that bobs in the turbulent, rushing waters.  They scream again, holding tightly to one another to avoid being pitched off into the river.

GABRIELLE

Xena!

XENA

I see it.  Hang on.

Reaching into the saddlebags, Xena pulls out a long length of rope.  Tying one end around Argo’s saddle horn, she cinches the other tightly around her waist.  Then she goes back to Gabrielle.

XENA

(cont’d)

I need you to stay here and

guide Argo for me.  Make sure

she doesn’t spook, okay?