Now the women dressed and warmed themselves by the fire in the early light that morning, Queen Odessa brought out the maps of Sparta and the surrounding terrain as she instructed her warriors having hand selected everyone for each prescribed task on this perilous mission. "I shall send 30 of you to the market place, in the center of the city, after midnight, when the Spartans are asleep and dreaming of tomorrow in their beds. Your objective.., set the market place on fire and kill all those who come to put out the flames." Odessa paused drawing in the sand with her a finger a large diagram of the streets for all to see "The palace sits atop a small hill overlooking the Spartan plain, now I shall send 30 more of you to the royal stables, near the palace.., when you see the flames rise up from the center of the city you are to let loose all the horses out into the street, then burn the stables to the ground. This stampede will send out sheer panic and chaos to everyone, including the Captain of the King's Guard, Haithor, and his security force, they will all be in utter disarray. 20 of you, whom I have especially chosen, shall go into the palace with me, and we will slay all those we find, who try to stop us, or defend Thera and her children from us. We shall take Thera by force, but if she is to fierce in the fighting.., I will be forced to slit her throat." Odessa paused seeing this scenario play out in her mind."I.., I will be the one to take Princess Sparta out. When this is accomplished we shall ride out together and make our escape out into the wheat fields and up into the mountains." Odessa paused seeing this all in her head "Captain Katarina will lead the rear guard, you shall assume battle formation and wait for the Spartans, and any of Thera's women.., our former sisters if any of those traitors have survived the surprise attack. Now the Spartans will need at least half of an hour to suit up for combat and assemble their troops of retaliation, however, that might take a little longer with their town burning down!" Odessa laughed along with the rest of her eager and willing assassins.
"Well said! Well said.., my Queen." Katarina smiled.
"Ah yes, fire has been a friend to us, indeed." the Queen reflected upon their tactics. "Now.., when they come you may be out numbered." Odessa paused a look as serious as the grave came over her face along with a glimmer of the thrilling horror of killing lit up her blue eyes. "Listen you all.., listen well, should your division be separated, and you are forced to make a retreat, then flee to the north east, across the Parnon mountains in to Argolis." here she drew the area in the sand adding this to her battle field diagram "Where there grows the Sacred Grove of Argos, this is a holy, sacred place to all the Greeks, never would any of them ever dare to enter therein, nor trod the sacrosanct ground, you will be safe there until we wait until morning to regroup. If we do not all meet up at Megara.., then we will know to come back for you."
"We shall protect you, oh Queen and your brave warriors, with all the power and might of our bodies and our mind's determined will! Our lines shall not be broken and we will slaughter all the Spartans soaking their fertile ground with a river of their own warm blood!" Katarina shouted feeling the excitement of warfare boiling up in her heart. All the women shouted in full and total agreement with the Captain's statement and they all felt the surging rush of energy flowing through them in their mutual lust for blood. 'The thrilling horror of killing', as they were used to calling it. This was, in their minds, necessary for well they knew, life feeds on life, feeds on strife, feeds on life. Yet these Themiscyrans still had much more living, and killing, to do.
"99 warriors shall fight with you Captain Katarina, and I pray that when we met in Megara I shall have 99 warriors with which to embrace and reward." Queen Odessa said looking over the many enthusiastic faces of those who would go out and fight, and possibly loose their lives, all in the name of Unity, Loyalty, Respect and Honor for a Queen and a Nation they loved.
"We shall come, fervently to kiss your sweet face, and bow at your feet, drenched in the blood of our enemies." one of her brave ladies shouted over to her from across the warm bonfire her voice lifted above the crash of the waves on the beach.
"That leaves 20 of you." Odessa sat back her hands in her lap as she knelt in the sand bathed in the orange glow of the flames as the sun reflected off a few wisps of amethyst clouds hanging low in bright blue sky. "You all have the most important job.., for you must break camp as we march, traveling up over the mountains and have everything ready for us when we ride in, bloody and weary from battle." So it was, each and every last one of them had a job, and served a purpose, this was how they formed a well trained and better disciplined fighting unit than any of the men who ruled the world during this time and age. 700 hundred years of warfare, military expeditions and victories, the battle tactics and secrets of their ancient lineage would serve these vicious ladies well, for they were bound and determined to serve Queen Odessa and the Nation of Themiscyra with the terrible violence of their hands. Odessa gave the order to feed and water their horses and to prepare their hearts, minds and bodies for battle, as they had a long march north to Sparta ahead of them, where Death was surely waiting to open up that dread door to the threshold of his dark, eternal world.
"Well said! Well said.., my Queen." Katarina smiled.
"Ah yes, fire has been a friend to us, indeed." the Queen reflected upon their tactics. "Now.., when they come you may be out numbered." Odessa paused a look as serious as the grave came over her face along with a glimmer of the thrilling horror of killing lit up her blue eyes. "Listen you all.., listen well, should your division be separated, and you are forced to make a retreat, then flee to the north east, across the Parnon mountains in to Argolis." here she drew the area in the sand adding this to her battle field diagram "Where there grows the Sacred Grove of Argos, this is a holy, sacred place to all the Greeks, never would any of them ever dare to enter therein, nor trod the sacrosanct ground, you will be safe there until we wait until morning to regroup. If we do not all meet up at Megara.., then we will know to come back for you."
"We shall protect you, oh Queen and your brave warriors, with all the power and might of our bodies and our mind's determined will! Our lines shall not be broken and we will slaughter all the Spartans soaking their fertile ground with a river of their own warm blood!" Katarina shouted feeling the excitement of warfare boiling up in her heart. All the women shouted in full and total agreement with the Captain's statement and they all felt the surging rush of energy flowing through them in their mutual lust for blood. 'The thrilling horror of killing', as they were used to calling it. This was, in their minds, necessary for well they knew, life feeds on life, feeds on strife, feeds on life. Yet these Themiscyrans still had much more living, and killing, to do.
"99 warriors shall fight with you Captain Katarina, and I pray that when we met in Megara I shall have 99 warriors with which to embrace and reward." Queen Odessa said looking over the many enthusiastic faces of those who would go out and fight, and possibly loose their lives, all in the name of Unity, Loyalty, Respect and Honor for a Queen and a Nation they loved.
"We shall come, fervently to kiss your sweet face, and bow at your feet, drenched in the blood of our enemies." one of her brave ladies shouted over to her from across the warm bonfire her voice lifted above the crash of the waves on the beach.
"That leaves 20 of you." Odessa sat back her hands in her lap as she knelt in the sand bathed in the orange glow of the flames as the sun reflected off a few wisps of amethyst clouds hanging low in bright blue sky. "You all have the most important job.., for you must break camp as we march, traveling up over the mountains and have everything ready for us when we ride in, bloody and weary from battle." So it was, each and every last one of them had a job, and served a purpose, this was how they formed a well trained and better disciplined fighting unit than any of the men who ruled the world during this time and age. 700 hundred years of warfare, military expeditions and victories, the battle tactics and secrets of their ancient lineage would serve these vicious ladies well, for they were bound and determined to serve Queen Odessa and the Nation of Themiscyra with the terrible violence of their hands. Odessa gave the order to feed and water their horses and to prepare their hearts, minds and bodies for battle, as they had a long march north to Sparta ahead of them, where Death was surely waiting to open up that dread door to the threshold of his dark, eternal world.
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