The sound of Gwenyth’s brown warrior boots echoed softly throughout the temple’s main hall as she approached Dahak’s throne setting upon a slightly raised stone platform. Her dark lord was seated upon a black marble throne with his eyes closed in deep meditation. When she stood before him, Gwenyth went down on bent knees, bowed her head and waited for her presence to be acknowledged.

"Arise Gwenyth." Dahak opened his eyes and fixed his gaze on the faithful servant now standing before him. "Have you any news to report from Talon yet?"

"No, Dark One," Gwenyth replied.

"We should have found a willing host," Minos said as he walked through a black curtain behind the throne and now stood on Dahak’s right side. "If he had control of the body, we should have heard something from him by now."

"We needed someone close to her and this mortal was the best choice." Dahak gave Minos a sideward glance before focusing on Gwenyth again. "Talon will be in control of the body very soon, so I want you to keep monitoring the whereabouts of the mortal."

"As you wish Dark One." Gwenyth bowed once more then left the main hall.

"The mortal we chose for Talon is obviously a lot stronger than we anticipated. I think we should have stayed with the plan to convert him," Minos said once they were alone.

"The mortal was on Kos four days and resisted conversion to the Disciples Minos. Then Xena showed up soon after that so forced possession was our only option."

"But we have never had success with forced possessions."

"True, but Talon was always one who enjoyed a challenge," Dahak said with a sinister smile. "He will wear down the mortal’s resolve to fight him. And when Talon gains control of the mortal’s body, I will soon have Xena exactly where I want her, right by my side."

Ethereal white clouds dotted the pale blue sky as the sun rose above the forest. Waking from their nocturnal slumber, birds filled the air with musical chatter. Other creatures in the forest awakened to another day in the forest as well. One was a four-legged creature, which moved silently through the forest alone. The creature had the body of a deer but the torso of a woman. Protruding through its silky golden mane were two golden horns. Its face and body were also golden in color. It was a Golden Hind.

The Hind approached a massive chestnut tree and extended a golden arm. A small red bird descended from a tree branch and landed on her arm. Her golden lips formed into a smile as a slender finger stroked the red feathered back of the small bird. The Hind fed the bird some seeds, then extended her arm into the air again and watched the small bird make its ascent into the blue sky.

Free from any danger in the tranquillity of the forest, the Golden Hind was taken completely off-guard when she suddenly felt a weight atop her back. The Hind began to buck; trying to shake whatever sat atop her loose. She turned her head and saw what appeared to be a human female dressed in black leather and lace with a porcelain face sitting atop her back. The Hind was use to human males scouting the forest to hunt her kind for their golden horns and hooves but this was the first time she ever encountered one of their females out for gold treasure. The Hind was usually able to hear her attackers well in advance and was surprised this one was able to sneak up on her.

The Hind now stood on her rear legs as she tried to shake her unwelcome rider off her back to no avail. Suddenly, the Hind felt a sharp pain between her shoulder blades and let out a loud wail, which echoed throughout the forest. The Hind glanced back and saw the black mane of her attacker tossed wildly about along with her small form but she maintained her grip on the golden fur back. When the Hind was finally able to see the woman’s face again, it was contorted in rage and her blood red lips were drawn up in an angry snarl as she again drove a dagger with a long jagged blade into the flesh of the Golden Hind. Another ear-piercing cry escaped the golden lips of the Hind as she called out to her sisters for help. The desperate moves of the panicked creature only increased the bloodlust of her attacker who with superhuman strength grabbed hold of the Hind’s slender golden neck and ran the dagger deeply across the delicate flesh.

The Hind felt her attacker jump from her back as she fell over on her side to the soft green grass below. Gurgles and gasps for air escaped the Hind’s golden lips as blood gushed out of the wound on her neck and began to redden the lush green grass. The creature’s vision started to darken as death approached but she did get a final glimpse of her attacker who kneeled by her head and held a goatskin to her throat to collect her blood which poured from the wound. The Hind also heard her attacker speak before her life ended.

"Your death will have great meaning, my golden friend," the woman cooed as she ran a long blood-red fingernail down a golden cheek. "Your blood will give me the power I rightfully deserve."

When the goatskin was filled to capacity, the woman stood, capped the goatskin and smiled as she gazed down at the lifeless body of the Golden Hind. If Zeus ever found out she went back in time to retrieve Hind’s blood, Discord knew she would be severely punished. Her eyes turned black as she continued to stare at the Hind’s remains. Suddenly, the creature’s body was consumed in flames, which quickly vanished leaving the grass where the creature had lay scorch-free. Tomorrow, Zeus would bombard the forest with thunderbolts, which would send the Hind into extinction, except for a sole survivor, Serena.

Ares saved Serena by giving her the ability to take mortal form. He wanted to use her blood against the other gods but grew fond of her. In the end, Ares made Serena entirely mortal to keep Hercules from killing him with the Hind’s blood. Discord thought Ares had been a fool. He should have killed Serena from the start and used her blood to overthrow the other gods. Ares let his fondness for the creature stand in the way of achieving ultimate power. Discord firmly held the goatskin filled with Hind’s blood in her right hand. Dahak would certainly not let such an opportunity to obtain ultimate power slip by him. She had definitely made the right choice in allying herself with the One Great Evil. Discord’s blood red lips transformed into a wicked grin as she vanished in a puff of smoke, headed for the present.

Minos stood by a hearth where a roaring fire boiled the contents of a large cast-iron pot. He stirred the contents of the pot with a large wooden spoon before picking some dried herbs which hung from the ceiling and throwing them into the pot. The high priest’s gaze turned towards a table where his dark lord stood, absentmindedly inspecting many oddly shaped glasses filled with various liquids in many colors.

"I know I will be meeting your contact on Olympus today but couldn’t you give me her name before she arrives?"

"Ah Minos, you must learn to work on your patience. But you have served me well and you are my closest confidant so I will share with you my contact’s name." He saw the look of anticipation on the face of the high priest. "Her name is Discord."

When Minos watched over Xena for Ares he did have the opportunity to meet the goddess on a few occasions. The two had flirted with each other, which sometimes, had gotten pretty hot and heavy but nothing beyond that had ever developed. The priest let a chuckle escape his lips. Oh, the irony of it he thought. Minos knew with Strife being dead, Discord was Ares’ closest confidant on Olympus and now she was betraying him. "You made a wise choice picking her to be your contact," Minos said with his mouth drawn up in a devilish grin.

"I figured you’d think so." Dahak turned his gaze from his high priest to the other side of the room where a puff of white smoke suddenly appeared then dispersed leaving in its place Discord. "Well, did you get it?" he anxiously asked while approaching where she stood.

"I sure did," she said with a giddy grin while bringing her right arm which had been behind her back in front of her and holding up the goatskin containing the Hind’s blood.

"Fantastic!" Dahak declared with a pleased smile as he grasped the goatskin with a hand while pulling Discord to him and planting a kiss atop the head of the petite goddess.

Discord glanced at the attractive brown haired man who was approaching where they stood. "Well, who do we have here…a face from the past? I thought Ares killed you years ago?"

"Ah Discord, so nice to know that you remembered me after all these years," Minos said with a wicked grin when he stood before the couple. The high priest took one of the goddess’ hands and kissed the back. "And you are right, Ares did kill me but my unique skills were needed by the Dark One so I was resurrected and once again serve him."

"You know Minos, you were one of the few mortals I actually liked and I’m glad you are among the living again," Discord said. "We have a lot in common. Ares has treated us both pretty rotten."

"And now Ares will pay the price for such mistreatment," Dahak stated. "Here Minos, you know what to do with this." He handed the high priest the goatskin containing the Hind’s blood.

"And what exactly is Minos going to do with the blood?" Discord watched the high priest take the blood over to a long table and pour some into a glass container.

"Minos is going to put the blood into a more suitable form so you can poison the other gods at the celebration of their fifth millennium reign."

"Ahh, in just four weeks, the reign of the Olympian gods will be history and our reign as King and Queen will begin. I can hardly wait." Discord had a dreamy look in her eyes.

Dahak pulled Discord to him as his crystal blue eyes bore into hers with a lust-filled gaze. "Minos is more than capable of handling this task without our presence so I say we take care of a more urgent matter," he said in a low deep voice.

"We could take care of that urgent matter right here and let Minos witness how the gods do it," Discord said in a playful tone as she stared up into his crystal blue eyes. She then looked pass Dahak to the high priest standing at a table on the other side of the room, already engrossed in his task concerning the altering of the Hind’s blood. "Why just look at him, I bet all he has done since being resurrected is work and hasn’t allowed himself to enjoy the simple pleasures of life that I know he had to miss all those years rotting in the earth."

Dahak took hold of Discord’s chin so she was now gazing up at him again. "For your information my dear, Minos has taken time off from his busy duties to make himself quite familiar with my female followers." He pressed Discord closer to his body and allowed her to feel the desire growing within him.

"But I know what Minos desires most is to join us. Besides, I have always been curious about him as a lover and I know he is curious about me as well. So, you wouldn’t mind a threesome would you?" There was a devilish gleam in her eyes as she gazed up into the handsome face of the evil god before her.

"Three’s a crowd for what I have planned." Dahak grabbed Discord by both wrists, brought her hands up to his lips and kissed their backs. The goddess momentarily closed her eyes at the tingly sensation she felt when his lips touched her skin. "You are all mine and I refuse to share you with anyone." Discord found his possessiveness rather arousing. "Shall we go?"

"Yes," she gasped while staring into his eyes with a lust-filled gaze.

A moment later, both gods vanished in a flame of fire.

The rays of the morning sun glistened off the golden silk sheets as Xena stretched luxuriously in the large bed before wrapping a sheet tightly around her as she rolled over in the bed and snuggled against a large plush pillow. The sun had risen a few hours ago but she had the rare opportunity of sleeping in for a change.

It was very late when Xena and Cyrus had finished going through the five chests full of scrolls. Xena was going to turn in for the night when a servant entered the study and informed them that three more chests had been found identical to the earlier five. Cyrus insisted she go to bed. Since he was immortal, and didn’t need as much sleep, he would stay up and rummage through the newly discovered chests. Cyrus insisted Xena get all the rest she needed after her long journey to Persia, even if it meant rising well after daybreak which he remembered was rare for her. So she decided to follow his wishes.

The plush mattress felt like sleeping on a cloud. It sure beat a bedroll on the hard ground. The luxuriousness reminded her of another bed and she wished she could stop thinking about its owner --- Ares. Xena hated the fact that thoughts about the war god were bombarding her mind and the worst yet, she was having dreams about him! And these dreams were so vivid, erotic, and with every detail burned into her brain. Could she be falling for him again?

"Sleeping in is just not me," Xena murmured as she removed the sheet covering her head. She was about to get up when she heard someone turn the knob of her bedchamber door. Xena assumed it was someone from Cyrus’ ever-efficient staff, coming to bring her fresh fruit and other goodies for breakfast. Her eyes were still closed and she decided to remain in the bed until the servant completed their duties.

"See, I toldja it wouldn’t be locked," a soft young voice whispered.

"We shouldn’t be in here Lycus, let’s just go," another soft young voice whispered.

"We will in a sec Lysia, I just wanna see her for myself," Lycus whispered.

On hearing the names of the two people who had just entered her room, Xena had to smile. She would finally get the chance to meet her son and daughter who she had not seen since they were sent to India, shortly after their birth, six years ago. Xena didn’t know why they had entered her room but she was glad they did. She pretended to be asleep just to see what had brought them there. Both children assumed she was asleep and continued to whisper.

"Why are we here again?" Lysia asked.

"I toldja, I heard Jasper and Selene talkin’ and they said there is a woman in this room who is a warrior princess." Lycus walked around the bed, his gaze fixed on Xena’s sleeping form. "They said her name is Xena."

"She doesn’t look like a warrior to me." Lysia glanced over at Xena’s sleeping form.

"That’s ‘cause she’s sleepin’." Lycus spotted Xena’s leather and weapons setting atop a table in a corner on the other side of the room. "I bet she looks a whole lot different when she has this stuff on." He walked over to the table and held up Xena’s leather bodice. "Yeah, she probably looks real tough in this." His eyes beamed with excitement as they took in the leather. "And check this out." He handed Xena’s breastplate to Lysia who now stood beside him at the table. The girl positioned the breastplate where she thought it should go. It practically covered her small torso.

Since their attention was elsewhere, Xena opened her eyes and from the bed, watched the children as they inspected her clothes. She almost let out a laugh when Lysia put the breastplate up to her torso, which disappeared from sight beneath the decorative metal. The young girl was now checking out her armbands as the young boy inspected her gauntlets. Xena thought they looked so cute as they satisfied their curiosity about her clothes. Being this close to them really brought out how much they look like their parents. Lycus had her eyes, but everything else about him was clearly Ares. He had the same curly black hair, the same nose, the same mouth, the bone structure of his face, even when he wrinkled up his brow. Xena always wondered what Ares looked like as a boy, now she knew. Lysia’s deep brown eyes and long curly black hair were inherited from her father but the rest of her physical appearance; she inherited from her mother. She had Xena’s nose; mouth, chin and even raised an eyebrow when something intrigued her.

Xena was enjoying watching the children unbeknownst to them and decided to do so a while longer before letting them know she was indeed awake.

"What’s this round thing?" Lysia held up Xena’s chakram with a perplexed look on her face. She handed the object to her brother.

"I heard about these in India." Lycus held the metal object up and let his crystal blue eyes wander over it. "It’s a chakram." There was a look of excitement in the young boy’s eyes.

"What’s it do?"

"It’s a weapon. Ya throw it and it bounces off stuff and cuts people." Lycus made a motion as if to throw the round object. "It’s suppose to come back to the person who throws it. I would sure like to see this in action."

Lysia’s attention turned to Xena’s whip, which the young girl now inspected. Lycus put down the chakram when he spotted Xena’s sword in a scabbard lying on the table. The young boy was pulling the sword out of the scabbard when Xena decided to let them know she was indeed awake.

"Be careful with that sword. It’s the real thing and not a toy."

Startled, both children turned towards the bed to stare at Xena who sat propped against the pillows.

"See Lycus, I toldja we shouldn’t be in here. Now we woke her up."

"It’s okay, I was about to get up anyway," Xena said.

Both children approached the large bed.

"I’m Lycus."

"And I’m Lysia."

"Your name is Xena, right?" Lycus asked.

"Yes," she replied.

"Lycus says you’re a warrior princess, is that true?" Lysia asked with a touch of skepticism.

"It was a title given to me long ago, but I really don’t go by it much these days."

Lycus sat on the side of the bed facing Xena. His crystal blue eyes were filled with excitement. "I’ve bet you’ve killed lots of people...and you’ve fought in lots of battles...have ya fought any monsters like a dragon or a griffin or a..."

"Whoa, slow down a minute," Xena said with a chuckle.

"That’s all Lycus cares about...warriors and war...yuck." Lysia still held Xena’s whip and wrapped it around one of her small arms. She stood by her brother’s side as he sat on Xena’s bed.

"It’s better than stayin’ in a stuffy lab." Lycus playfully yanked the end of Xena’s whip wrapped around his sister’s arm. "Xena, can ya show me how the chakram works. I wanna see it bounce off stuff and ya catch it?"

"I guess I could throw it around for you later," Xena replied with a smile as she stared into the boy’s crystal blue eyes.

"Cool!" Lycus replied with a huge smile of his own.

"Here you two are, I’ve been looking all over for you," a female voice said from the doorway of Xena’s bedchamber.

"Vashti! You’re back!" Both children immediately went to the young woman.

Vashti squatted down and embraced both children in a big hug.

"When didja get back?" Lysia asked.

"I arrived an hour ago. I filled Uncle Cyrus in on my trip then came to see you guys. You two weren’t in your rooms so I went looking for you. I heard your voices and came in here. Did you two wake up Xena?" There was a suspicious look in the young woman’s brown almond shaped eyes.

Both children slightly bowed their heads. "Well, we uh..."

"I was about to get up when these two entered my room," Xena interjected. "The children heard about a guest staying in here and wanted to introduce themselves."

"Vashti, didja know Xena is a warrior princess and uses a chakram?" Lycus asked.

"I know all about Xena," Vashti replied with a smile, looking at Xena then Lycus. "She’s the one who brought me to live with Uncle Cyrus when I was a few years older than you guys." Vashti playfully ran a hand through Lycus’ curly hair. "You’ll both be happy to know I brought you each something back from my trip."

"Ooh presents! What didja get us?" Lysia asked with excitement.

"You will both have to go to your rooms and see for yourselves," Vashti replied.

"Let’s go!" Lycus declared. Both children ran out of Xena’s bedchamber and headed for their own bedrooms.

"I was so excited when Uncle Cyrus told me you were here." Vashti rose to her full height and approached Xena who now stood by the bed. "It really is good to see you again Xena." The young woman embraced Xena is a tight hug.

"The feeling is mutual." Xena returned the hug. When they broke the hug, she stepped away from Vashti but held the young woman’s hands in hers. "Let’s have a look at you."

The last time Xena had seen Vashti, she was just entering her teens. Now she was a grown woman. Vashti still had smooth golden brown skin, silky black hair that fell to her waist and brown almond shape eyes. But she was now almost as tall as Xena and had the shapely curves of a woman, which were attractively visible in the peach frock she wore.

"I always thought you were a pretty girl and you have grown into an even more beautiful young woman. You must have left many men with broken hearts in India."

"I’ve had a few relationships here and there. But I am happy with my life the way it is now, taking care of Lycus and Lysia."

The two women sat on the side of Xena’s bed facing each other.

"I want to thank you for being there for Lycus and Lysia," Xena said. "You’ve done a wonderful job with them."

"Taking care of the twins has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I couldn’t love them more if they were my own children. They are really a couple of great kids and you should be proud." Vashti took one of Xena’s hands and held it in hers as she stared into her eyes. "It really is a blessing you are here. Now all three of you will get to spend some time together."

"And I plan on making the most of that time," Xena said with a smile.

"I should let you get dressed." Vashti rose from the bedside. "Maybe later, we can get together and I can tell you some stories about Lycus and Lysia."

"I would really like that. Cyrus has told me a few stories but I would never tire of hearing more."

Vashti embraced Xena in a tight hug one last time before she left the bedchamber.

After Vashti’s departure, Xena got dressed and decided to see if Cyrus needed some help with the newly discovered chests. She found him in the study, seated at a large table ciphering through the contents of a chest.

"Did you sleep well?" Cyrus asked when she entered the study.

"I sure did," Xena sighed with a huge smile as she helped herself to some melon slices on a tray setting atop a nearby table. "I even had some visitors stop by my room."

"Oh really?" Cyrus had a look of curiosity in his hazel eyes.

"Lycus and Lysia heard the servants talking about your recent houseguest...a warrior woman and had to satisfy their curiosity." The joy over this chance meeting was evident in Xena’s voice and visible on her face as she took a couple bites out of a melon slice she had on a small plate.

"Did you get a chance to talk to them?"

"We really didn’t get that far past introductions," Xena replied after swallowing the melon. "Lycus did express interest in my life as a warrior and wants me to show him how my chakram works. I sure hope you are right and this interest of his in warriors and warfare is only a phase."

"I would bet this estate that’s all it is. Two months ago, he was interested in architecture. In a couple months, it will be something else."

"Well, you do know him better than me so I will just have to trust your instincts," she said "I also got to talk with Vashti for a while when she came looking for the children."

"I’m glad you got to see her. I, too, had an introduction this morning." There was a sly smile on the face of the former Watcher. "I met your traveling companion...Joxer and he really seems like a very nice young man. It’s good that he travels with you and you’re not out there righting the wrongs of the world by yourself."

"Through the sorrow and grief of the last few months, Joxer has proven beyond measure to be a rock who I am proud to call a friend. Where is he by the way? I would sure like to know how his trip into Persepolis went. But I can check on him later. Helping you with the scrolls comes first." Xena downed the last of the melon slices and was about to join Cyrus at the table.

"What’s on the table is the last of what was found in the cellar. There were no scrolls of value to us among the contents of this chest, so I’m almost done here. You might as well check up on Joxer and find out about his trip into Persepolis. He said he would be in the stables with Braxton."

Xena left the study and headed for the stables.

"Okay, let’s take it from the beginning," Joxer said to the many boys and girls before him. "And a one, and a two, and a three..."

Joxer the Mighty,

Joxer runs over to an old mirror hanging on a post protruding from a wooden beam and tries to give one of his most debonair poses as the children continue to sing...

If you’re in jeopardy

Joxer now holds his staff and swings it as if combating an imaginary opponent as the children continue to sing...

He’s every man’s trustee

Joxer is now standing on several blocks of hay, which tumble over from his weight depositing him in the straw covering the stable floor.

"I see you are having a productive morning." Xena had entered the stables a few minutes ago and stood by Braxton who also had been watching the short musical number.

"Oh, hi Xena." Joxer had returned to his feet and was brushing straw from his clothes. Many boys and girls now surrounded him.

"So, how did we do Joxer?" one little boy asked.

"After only a couple hours of practice, you guys sounded great." Joxer now gazed at his traveling companion who was approaching him. "Hey kids, I want you to say hello to my friend Xena."

"Hello Xena," the children said in unison.

"Hi kids," Xena said with smile as she now stood by Joxer.

"Are ya Joxer’s sidekick?" another little boy asked.

Xena raised an eyebrow and looked at Joxer.

"What Xena and I have is an equal partnership," Joxer quickly stated before Xena could respond. "Uh, you kids should be running along to school now."

The many children headed for the door of the stables except for one little girl who still stood before Joxer.

"What about the story of how ya saved the beautiful maiden Gabrielle from the evil warlord Draco. Ya promised to tell us the story," the little girl whined.

Joxer let out a soft chuckle as he glanced at the smirk on Xena’s face before setting his gaze on the small child standing before him. "I’ll tell you guys the story later. Right now you better get to school." He gave the girl a gentle shove in the direction of the stable door.

"I think you may be in some trouble Joxer," Braxton stated with a chuckle as he led a horse by the reins out of the stables.

"So, you’ve been entertaining the children with stories of your adventures?" Xena had an amused look on her face.

"Okay, so I may have told the children a few stories where I was the hero all the time and you sorta tagged along but no harm was really done," Joxer said in a bashful way. "Besides, the children really enjoyed them and I don’t think they believed everything I said anyway."

"If the children found your stories entertaining, that’s all that really matters. So, how did your trip into Persepolis go?"

"It was great! Braxton gave me a quick tour of the city before we went to a tavern that sells honey mead. First time I ever had that but it was good. Then we went to a gambling hall that had the prettiest dancing girls. Oh, and I did play a few games but my winnings were small compared to Braxton’s. If he ever turned pro, he could make a great living."

"Well, I’m glad you had a good time in the city."

"Oh, and I met your friend Cyrus during breakfast and he is a very nice guy," Joxer said. "I also met his two wards, a little boy and girl. They are orphans too but they live with Cyrus in India."

"You mean Lycus and Lysia. I met them this morning too," she said. "When we go back to Greece, they will be coming with us."

"Uh, Xena, what we have to do to defeat Dahak will be dangerous. Should the children really be coming with us?"

"There will be danger involved but the children will be protected from any harm," Xena assured. "The children have certain...gifts which may prove to be useful in our fight against Dahak."

"Oh," was all Joxer could say. He wondered what special gifts two small children could have that could help in their fight against the One Great Evil.

"We will be leaving for Greece at sunrise tomorrow so I need you to get our gear together" she said. "Braxton can help you with replenishing our supplies and getting what Cyrus and the children will need for the trip."

"I’ll get started right now then."

Xena left Joxer to his duties and started walking back towards the palace.

On her return to the palace, Xena traveled a different path, which brought her along several small buildings used to store supplies for the large estate. Her attention was drawn to one of the buildings when she saw three young boys sneak into it. Xena knew all the children should be at the schoolhouse and decided to investigate and see what had brought them to the building. From one of the windows, Xena watched the children undetected.

The three boys approached two other children, a boy and a girl who had arrived at the building ahead of them. It was Lycus and Lysia! Xena wondered what they were doing here and was planted firmly where she stood to find out just that.

One of the boys had a tear stained face and held his left arm protectively, like the limb had been injured.

"C’mon Lysia, ya havta do it," Lycus pleaded.

"But Uncle Cyrus told us not to use our powers in front of other people," Lysia reminded him.

"Uncle Cyrus doesn’t havta know," Lycus said.

"Then why can’t you do it?" she asked.

"I tried but nothin’ happened. I guess I don’t have that power," he replied. "But ya probably do. You’re always hangin’ out at hospices with Uncle Cyrus."

"I never used my powers on those people" she said.

"But ya did when Vashti cut her leg. It disappeared like it was never there." Lycus saw the scared look on his sister’s face. "If ya don’t help Ishmael, he is gonna be in big trouble with Selene. She told him not to climb that large maple tree. If she finds out he climbed the tree on a dare then fell and broke his arm, who knows what she will do to him or me and the other boys for darin’ him to do it."

Lysia didn’t want Lycus, Ishmael and the other boys to be punished. "Okay, I’ll do it," she said grudgingly.

"You’re the best sister in the world," Lycus said with a big smile.

Lysia approached Ishmael who still held his left arm protectively. She took hold of his left arm and tried to gently stretch it out in front of him but the young boy winced in pain anyway. Lysia gently placed both her small hands on the boys outstretched arm.

"Hey, my arm is warmin’ up," Ishmael said with true surprise after a few minutes of contact.

"That means it must be workin’. Keep it up Lysia," Lycus said anxiously.

Lysia touched Ishmael’s arm a few moments more. "I think it’s done," she said with uncertainty. The little girl had only done this once before and really didn’t know what to expect. "How does your arm feel now?"

Ishmael cautiously moved his arm around and finally bent it. His eyes widened in surprise as his whole face lit up. "It feels great! Like it was never broken at all!"

"I knew ya could do it Lysia!" Lycus gave his sister an affectionate tap on her right shoulder.

"Hey, how’d she do that?" one of the two other boys asked as he eyed Lysia curiously.

"Never mind how she did it," Lycus firmly stated. "Ya three gotta promise not to tell anyone what ya saw Lysia do."

"We promise," all three boys said in unison.

"Aren’t you kids late for school?" Xena decided to make her presence known and stood in the doorway of the small building. Her sudden presence startled all five children.

"Oh, hi Xena," Lycus said nervously. "What are ya doin’ here?"

"What I’m doing here is not important. You guys are late for school and better get going." Xena stepped aside as the five children walked passed her and headed for the schoolhouse. "Lycus and Lysia, stay, I want to talk with you two."

Lycus and Lysia had nervous looks on their faces as they watched their friends head for the schoolhouse.

Xena squatted down so she was closer to eye level with the children when she spoke to them. "I saw what you did in there Lysia."

"Please don’t tell Uncle Cyrus, he’ll be so mad," the girl quickly pleaded.

"Lysia was only tryin’ to protect me and the other boys," Lycus quickly interjected. "Ishmael wouldn’t have been hurt if we hadn’t dared him to climb that tree."

"Your Uncle Cyrus told me about your powers and I must say, they are pretty impressive when you see them first hand," Xena said. "I won’t tell your Uncle Cyrus this time. But from now on, you must obey his wish and not display your unique gifts in front of others."

"But why do our powers havta be a secret when we can help alotta people?" Lysia asked.

"Uncle Cyrus has his ways of helpin’ people. This could be ours," Lycus said.

"I think it’s great you two want to help people but if you were to openly display your powers, certain people...bad people would come up with ways to use you both to possibly hurt others. These people would try to take you from your Uncle Cyrus and Vashti."

"We don’t want that," Lysia said with wide brown eyes.

"Of course you don’t, that’s why there will be no more power displays in front of others," Xena firmly stated as she ran a hand through the young girl’s long black curly locks. "And no more dangerous dares," she said in a firm tone as she held Lycus’ chin with a hand and stared into the boy’s crystal blue eyes which mirrored her own. "Now, you two better run along to the schoolhouse." Xena rose to her full height and now towered over the children.

As Lycus looked up at Xena, he let his eyes take in the leather and armor. He certainly had been right when he said she would look tough when she wore her warrior clothes. "Don’t forget, ya promised to show me how your chakram works."

"I haven’t forgotten. Now off to school the both of you,"

Xena watched both children head for the schoolhouse a few minutes more before she resumed her walk towards the palace. As she approached the large stone archway leading into the palace, her mind was still absorbing what she had witnessed. Cyrus had told her the children could move objects and form fireballs but he mentioned nothing about the ability to heal. He also had told her he wasn’t sure of the extent of their abilities and they could be as powerful as full gods. Maybe that’s why Dahak was trying to reach Lycus through his dreams. He knew of the potential power the twins possessed and probably wanted to corrupt both starting with Lycus. Xena had taken sacrificial steps to make sure their father couldn’t use them in his quest for world power and she was determined to squelch whatever dark plans their grandfather had for them as well.

Moonlight glistened off the blackness of the Great Sea casting eerie shadows as six large ships moved silently through the deep, murky waters. On the lead ship, a young man stood on the bow and inspected the sea ahead of them with a telescope.

"General Pelias, the isle of Kos should be in sight within the hour," the young man said when he lowered the telescope and addressed the older man dressed in full battle gear.

"Very well sailor, I will be in my cabin until land is in sight." General Pelias retreated to his cabin below deck.

Once in his cabin, General Pelias removed his helmet and sat on the side of the cot. The general loved a good battle just like the next warrior but he hated ones where he had to get to his destination by sea. He preferred traveling over land and the movement of the ship was not sitting too well with his stomach. General Pelias was about to lay back on the cot when a puff of smoke appeared then dispersed, leaving in its place the God of War standing at the foot of the cot.

"Lord Ares, I wasn’t expecting you." General Pelias quickly grabbed his helmet and shoved it on his head.

"At ease General. I just came to remind you that all the inhabitants of Kos and the two smaller neighboring islands must be killed, including the women and the children."

"I normally have a policy of leaving the innocent unharmed but if you want them all dead, I will obey your orders." Apprehension was clear in General Pelias’ voice and on his face.

"Who you will be killing are not innocent, General. All three islands are infested with a great evil." Ares stared hard into the general’s eyes. "These people are controlled by Dahak."

The general’s eyes widened with understanding when he heard his lord’s last statement. "I will personally make sure that by daybreak, not a single inhabitant of those islands is left alive."

"Good," Ares said with a smile, then he vanished in a puff of smoke.

Ever since the Disciples of Natas ceased recruiting new members, life on the isle of Kos returned somewhat to the normalcy it had been before the arrival of the mysterious cult. In the town of Mantis, most was quiet except for those who loved the nightlife. The music of minstrels could be heard along with hearty laughter coming from the town’s only tavern. A man and a woman stumbled through the tavern doors out into the quiet of the town’s main street. Both were still laughing as they stumbled their way down the street, their arms around each other, after consuming too much mead.

"You surprised me Cassander," the woman said when both finally ceased their laughter "I didn’t know you could be so funny."

"There’s alotta ‘bout me ya dunno Leda," he slurred in a drunken stupor as he pulled her closer to him.

"Well, I would like it if you would show me. We can go to my room over at the Olive Grove Inn," Leda whispered seductively in an ear.

"We don’t need no room, I could show ya right here." Cassender pulled Leda into a dark alleyway. He pushed her up against a stone wall, and claimed her mouth in a sloppy kiss, as his meaty hands groped her body. Cassander reeked of mead but Leda didn’t care because she was just as drunk as he was.

"Ooh, you really are getting me hot, Cassander," Leda said in between sloppy kisses as his meaty hands had yanked up the skirt of her dress and explored her thighs. "The earth is even starting to move," she said with a silly giggle.

"Hey, thas not us." Cassander really felt the earth move and pulled away from her to look around the alleyway. A soft rumble could be heard as the ground continued to shake. "It must be the volcano," he stated as sudden sobriety started to take form. He pulled Leda along with him towards the entrance of the alleyway at the street.

The street had already started to fill with people from the tavern who had heard and felt the rumblings too. All were now gazing up at the volcanic peak visible to view due to the rays of the full moon but it sat in deafening silence. "If it’s not the mountain, then what is it?" some asked as the rumbling intensified.

"LOOK!" Leda yelled as she stood facing the opposite direction of the others, pointing a quivering finger.

The light of the full moon made visible the dust churned up by the hooves of many horses galloping over the hills headed towards Mantis. On their backs were armor-clad warriors, some with their swords already drawn.

"RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!" Leda screamed as she sought shelter in a nearby building.

Some of the others standing about followed suit just as the warriors on horseback began galloping down the main street of Mantis.

The ground was now violently trembling as horses galloped down all the streets of Mantis, their warrior riders hurling lit torches onto the roofs of buildings, quickly setting them ablaze.

Those that had been asleep in their beds were awakened by the screams of their neighbors and quickly evacuated their homes as they were engulfed in bright orange flames.

The swords of warriors on foot met those that sought safety in the streets. The large, armor-clad men chased after people fleeing for their lives and when they caught them, followed the orders they were given and ran them through with their swords. Mothers screamed for their children to be spared, but they were pried from their arms, and daggers plunged into their small chests. Cassender was one of the firsts to be run through by the sword of a passing soldier as he stood in the street amidst the chaos that had overtaken Mantis. A warrior found Leda hiding in a structure that had been spared by the consuming flames and killed her instantly by plunging a dagger into her heart.

No one was to be spared…not women and not children. These were the orders the warriors were given and they carried them out unwaveringly.

On a hill over-looking Mantis, General Pelias sat atop a large black horse. Using a telescope, he quickly scanned the carnage committed by his warriors. Thick black smoke from burning structures rose into the night sky over Mantis. Bodies of dead villagers laid about the streets as warriors rounded up the few survivors for the dark fate that awaited them. General Pelias lowered his telescope when a young warrior on horseback approached him. "Well, Lieutenant Creon?"

"The men have killed most of the residents of the village including the women and children, as you ordered sir," the lieutenant replied. "A few managed to flee into the forest, but they won’t get far with our men tracking them on horseback."

"Good," the general said with a pleased smile. "It appears our mission on this island is a success which will greatly please our lord. Let’s hope that Generals Gorgias and Heiron are just as successful on the neighboring islands."

The sun was ascending into the sky, marking the start of a new day. Ares draped a leg over an armrest as he sat comfortably on his throne inside his temple in Attica. He took another sip of the blood red ambrosia wine from the golden goblet he held in his right hand. His sensuous full lips formed into a smile. The actions of his warriors would certainly set back Dahak’s plans to overthrow Olympus.

Ever since Xena had informed him of Dahak using the residents of Kos to house the spirits of recently freed fallen Watchers, Ares knew he had to slow down Dahak’s progress until the Holy Saber was found and he could stop the One Great Evil permanently. Since Olympus was clueless to his actions, Dahak could get bold in his attempts to free the rest of the fallen Watchers. The attack on Kos and the surrounding islands would be unexpected and throw Dahak off any timetable he had planned and just might force him to make a desperate move which could expose him to Olympus. Then those fools would see that he had been right all along about Dahak’s arrival. Ares already had a plan in the works to defeat Dahak but would welcome the other gods if they decided to join the fight. He would of course dispose of them once Dahak was defeated and he claimed the power within the Holy Saber.

Ares was taking another sip from the goblet when the large door to the temple opened and in walked, General Pelias followed by two warriors. All three made their way to stand before Ares’ throne and dropped to their knees. Only the general rose to stand before their lord.

"Ah General Pelias, your presence here must mean your mission was a success?"

"Well...yes and no," General Pelias stammered.

Ares narrowed his gaze as he stared at the general. "What does that mean? You did follow my orders and killed all on Kos and the neighboring islands?"

"Yes my lord, all the inhabitants of the three islands are dead but..." The general abruptly stopped speaking as he lost his train of thought.

Mortals can be such dolts sometimes thought Ares as he removed his leg from the armrest and sat up straight on the throne. He was still waiting for General Pelias to continue with his report of the events on Kos. For the first time he noticed how pale the man was compared to the previous night. Even the two warriors who accompanied him seemed a bit haggard for a mission that should have been easy, killing simple villagers.

"Out with it General. What happened after you killed the villagers?"

"I’m sorry my lord. I don’t mean to act so out of it but in all my years as a warrior, I have never seen anything like this." General Pelias then recounted for Ares what happened in Mantis after the villagers were killed...

"If you talk with generals Gorgias and Heiron, they will give you stories identical to mine in regard to the two neighboring islands," General Pelias said once he had recounted to Ares all that happened after the residents of Kos were killed. "When I sailed to Kos, I had over 500 men. When I made the return trip, I only had 50 men left. The rest were killed...taken over by that...that...eerie black smoke. I think this time, my lord, Dahak may be impossible to stop."

"Dahak!" both warriors who accompanied the general whispered in unison as they quickly glanced at the general then their lord. Shock and fear was clearly etched on their faces.

"My dear General, I won’t deny that defeating Dahak will be difficult but it is not impossible and I will do just that," Ares firmly stated. "Return to your camp and wait for further orders."

"Yes my lord." General Pelias bowed before leaving the temple followed by the two warriors.

Now alone, Ares got up and started to pace the floor as the anger within him quickly boiled to the surface. A low rumble could be felt throughout the temple.

At that moment, a low ranking priest entered the hall, quickly picked up the jagged pieces of the goblet and started wiping at the stained mural with a cloth he held.

"You can do that later! Get out of here!" Ares growled.

Frightened by his lord’s tone, the priest immediately retreated.

Ares seated himself back in his throne. He was in deep thought as he firmly gripped the armrest. He should have anticipated what happened to his warriors on Kos. He should have remembered he was dealing with the spirit world and they couldn’t be destroyed so easily.

General Pelias and his men were simple mortals who were frightened by what they had witnessed and didn’t truly comprehend what had happened on Kos and its neighboring islands. But Ares knew. When the dead villagers’ bodies were placed in burning fires throughout Mantis, the fallen Watchers inhabiting their bodies were released and sought the closest new hosts they could find---the warriors. Those men were dead all right but now their bodies were inhabited by the most evil beings to have ever existed.

Ares had miscalculated and Dahak would be the beneficiary. Before, all he had were the bodies of simple villagers to carry out his plans for world domination. But thanks to the sneak attack on Kos and its neighboring islands, Ares had provided him with the bodies of big and strong, well trained warriors.

He would now have to plan a recovery from such a blunder. He had another general trying to uncover the location of the secret base he knew Dahak had to have. But even if he were to discover its location, steps would have to be taken to make sure what happened on Kos didn’t happen in an attack on this base. But Ares truly could not think of a way to protect his warriors from being possessed by these fallen Watchers. But there was someone about to journey to Greece who would know how to neutralize his evil brethren---Cyrus.

Cyrus had agreed to accompany Xena to Greece in order to translate the Watcher Chronicles so they could find the Holy Saber and kill Dahak. Ares would now also get out of the former Watcher what he needed to destroy those evil spirits.

Thoughts of Xena’s return trip to Greece, reminded Ares that not only would Cyrus be accompanying her but his son and daughter, whose existence he had discovered unbeknownst to either Xena or Cyrus. He already had a plan worked out for when the traveling party entered Olympian territory. Ares would patiently wait until that time, and then he would finally meet his children who had been kept from him since their birth six years ago.

A bright orange sun was rising in the pale blue sky over Persepolis signaling the dawn of a new day. At Cyrus’ estate on the outskirts of Persia’s capital, the staff at the stables was already busy making the final preparations for their lord’s trip to Greece.

"Well Joxer, all three horses are saddled up and the necessary gear is packed, so you guys can leave whenever you’re ready," said Braxton. He was holding the reins for Argo, Otis and Cyrus’ horse Xerxes as he led them out the stables.

"Thanks for all your help Braxton." Joxer took hold of Otis’ reins. "If I’m ever in Persepolis again, maybe you could show me your winning technique for craps."

"It would be my pleasure." Braxton was smiling as he gripped Joxer’s right forearm in a gesture of friendship.

"Hey Joxer, when will we be leavin’?" Lycus gracefully walked atop a nearby wooden fence.

Ever since last night, at dinner, when his Uncle Cyrus had told Lycus that he and Lysia would be joining him, Xena and Joxer on their trip to Greece, the young boy had been wired with excitement. He had heard so many stories about the myths and legends of Greece. His Uncle Cyrus knew a lot of people and maybe he’d get to meet a hero like Hercules or maybe the gods of Olympus.

"We will be leaving as soon as Xena and your Uncle Cyrus get here." Joxer looked in amazement at how the young boy managed to balance himself atop a fence at least six feet high and only about two inches wide. Lycus walked atop the fence as if he were on the ground.

"Where are we goin’ in Greece?" Lysia sat on a wooden bench and braided the hair of the doll in her lap.

"You two will be going to Amphipolis to stay with Xena’s mother while we take care of some serious stuff."

"Why can’t we go with you guys?" Lycus asked.

"Because Amphipolis is the safest place for you to be and you’ll have a good time there." Xena approached the foursome standing outside the stables with the horses. Cyrus was close behind her, talking with Vashti who was by his side.

"Oh good, everybody’s here, so we can go now." Lycus jumped from the fence top and landed noiselessly on the ground. "Xena, can I ride with ya?"

"Of course you can," she replied while a smile.

The three adults mounted their horses. Braxton lifted the children up onto their mounts, Lycus with Xena and Lysia with Cyrus.

"Maybe you should leave the doll here Lysia." Vashti gazed up at the young girl sitting in front of Cyrus on his large stallion Xerxes. "She may get lost during the long trip."

"I won’t lose her." Lysia held Vashti’s surprise present tightly in her arms. "Will ya take care of Mei-Jin for me?"

"I promise, Mei-Jin will receive good care while you’re gone." Vashti affectionately patted the young girl’s left leg as it dangled down the horse’s side.

"Who’s Mei-Jin?" Joxer asked.

"Mei-Jin is that yappin’ little fur ball Lysia says is a dog," Lycus sneered. "It’s got big brown eyes, a dark face that looks pushed in and a puffy tail."

"A year ago, I had business in Chin with a merchant whose dog had a litter of puppies. I knew Lysia would think they were cute so I brought one of the puppies back with me," Cyrus said.

Xena recalled seeing such dogs when she was in Chin. Nobility could only own the dogs and they were so small, people carried them in the wide sleeves of their robes.

"Lycus is just mad that Mei-Jin got to come with us to Persia and he hadta leave Shakti in India," Lysia said.

"And who’s Shakti?" Joxer asked.

"Shakti is my tiger," Lycus proudly replied. "A real pet."

"Mei-Jin is a real pet too," Lysia insisted.

"Mei-Jin is an okay pet...if you’re a girl," Lycus said. "But Shakti is a boy’s pet."

"I can see you two are definitely going to make this trip interesting," Xena said with an amused grin on her face.

"Good-bye Joxer. It was nice meeting you." Vashti was smiling as she shyly looked up at him. She thought he looked rather handsome as he sat atop his large horse.

"It was nice meeting you too Vashti," he shyly replied, smiling back.

Joxer had finally met Vashti last evening when the traveling group had dinner together. Joxer knew the young girl Xena described on their trip to Persia would be all grown up now but he hadn’t expected her to be such a beauty. Gazing on that creamy brown skin, those deep brown almond shaped eyes, her waist length black hair that shined like silk and that curvaceous figure made a lump form in Joxer’s throat whenever he just said a few words to her. He was surprised when he discovered she shared his talent for playing the lute, which she displayed for them all after dinner the previous evening. That common interest had made it somewhat easier for Joxer to talk with her last night. Maybe when this Dahak stuff was over, he could return to Persia and discover what other interests he and Vashti possibly shared.

When everyone had said their good-byes, the three horses made their way to the gate of Cyrus’ estate. Argo lead the way with Xena and Lycus on her back, followed by Cyrus and Lysia atop Xerxes and Joxer atop Otis took up the rear.

"Tell me a story Xena," Lycus said after they had made their way through Persepolis and had reached the main road which lead out of Persia. He had been inspecting his brand-new slingshot, the surprise gift from Vashti, and now tucked it safely in a pant pocket.

"What would you like to hear?"

"Tell me a story about one of your adventures."

"All right," Xena said hesitantly. She really wished Gabrielle was there. Xena hated talking about herself and the bard was a much better storyteller than she was. "I’ll tell you about the time Hercules and I freed Prometheus."

"Wow! Ya know Hercules? Do ya think I can meet him when we get to Greece?"

"We’ll see," she softly replied as she watched the young boy settle himself against her and prepared to hear the tale.

Xena had made the decision to confide in her mother about the twins since they would be staying with her in Amphipolis but she was very apprehensive about anyone else seeing them. Xena knew she was being paranoid, but she feared if Hercules met the twins, he might see a resemblance and put the whole story together. Then she would be bombarded with countless questions, which would demand answers. Xena knew Tartarus would freeze over before Hercules ever told Ares about the twins, but just the same, she didn’t want anyone else to know about them.

"As the large bird soared through the sky, I was dangling by a rope. The bird flew toward a rocky mountain peak that would have surely killed me if I collided with it so that’s when I..." Xena stopped mid-sentence when she suddenly noticed how limp Lycus felt as he leaned against her. She finally looked down at him to see that his eyes were closed as his chest rhythmically rose and fell.

"How do you like that? He asks me to tell him a story then he falls asleep before it’s even over," Xena jokingly remarked to herself. "And I thought I was doing a pretty good job of story telling too."

"Lysia has fallen asleep too." Cyrus had heard her comments and he brought Xerxes up to trot next to Argo. One of his arms was wrapped around the little girl whose head rested against his chest as she peacefully slept.

"They were very excited when you told them they were coming to Greece with us," Joxer added. "They were so wired, they probably didn’t get much sleep last night."

"You’re probably right Joxer," Cyrus said. "And they did have to get up very early, so a nap will do them both good.

Xena had a smile on her face as she wrapped an arm securely around her son’s waist as he snuggled closer to her and got more comfortable as he slept.

It was a few hours before sunset when the traveling party made camp for the night in the forest. Both children had awakened hours ago and eagerly helped the adults set up their temporary camp. Having spent their whole lives in a palace surrounded by servants, both children were surprisingly enthusiastic about a week of sleeping under the stars and even bathing in streams. Their young minds saw it as an adventure.

Lysia helped Xena tend to the horses; Lycus went with Cyrus to gather firewood, while Joxer replenished their water-skins at a large lake near their camp.

As Joxer filled the water-skins, he was really glad he came with Xena to Persia. Joxer thought about the fun he had with Braxton in Persepolis and the happy faces of the children in the orphanage as they listened to his stories of heroism. He couldn’t leave out Vashti, who brought a smile to his lips, as he thought about her.

But that smile slowly faded from Joxer’s lips and was replaced with a frown as he felt a throb in his left temple. "Oh, why now?" he groaned. Joxer set the water-skin he held on the ground and gently massaged his left temple with his left hand and closed his eyes.

Joxer had been suffering from these headaches ever since his return from the isle of Kos. He was beginning to think that maybe Gwenyth hitting him on the head caused some damage. Joxer had to chuckle at the thought, considering all the times he had conked himself on the head from clumsiness. But to ease his mind, when they got to Amphipolis, he would pay a visit to the town physician.

After a brief moment, the pain subsided. Joxer picked up the water-skin again and filled it to capacity. He filled the rest and was on the last one when a searing pain shot through his head. The pain was so intense, he dropped the water-skin. Joxer was about to fall over and had to steady himself by placing his hands on the ground.

"Stop fighting me Joxer!!!" He heard a voice yell in his head. Joxer suddenly felt very weak, like he was going to pass out.

"Hey Joxer, are you done filling those water-skins yet? You got some thirsty people back here." Xena yelled from their campsite.

Joxer shook his head as the dizziness and searing pain faded. "The water’s coming in a sec, Xena." He picked up the water-skin he dropped, filled it, collected the other filled ones, and walked towards their campsite.

"You can’t hold out forever Joxer!!!" He heard the same voice yell in his head. Joxer shook his head again to clear his mind as he made his way back to the camp.

When Joxer returned to the campsite, Cyrus and Lysia were seated around the roaring fire, helping themselves to the last of the food the kitchen staff had prepared for them that morning, while Lycus had Xena embroiled in conversation.

"C’mon Xena, ya promised to show me how your chakram works."

"Can I quench my thirst first?" she jested while catching the water-skin Joxer tossed to her. Xena uncapped the water-skin, and took a swig of the cool liquid.

Joxer deposited the other water-skins before joining Cyrus and Lysia around the fire and helping himself to some of the food.

"Okay, here it goes." Xena unhooked the chakram from her waist and tossed it in the air.

Lycus’ crystal blue eyes sparkled with amazement as he watched the chakram whiz through the air. The round metal object bounced off a few trees, a fallen log and a large rock on the outskirts of their camp.

During the chakram’s flight through the air around the campsite, Cyrus had moved away from the fire and stood by a large rock on the outskirts of the camp. When the round metal object whizzed in his direction, he raised an arm and caught it in mid-flight.

"Wow! That was awesome!" Lycus ran over to where Cyrus stood by the large rock. "I didn’t know ya could catch a chakram!"

"Cyrus should be able to catch it, since he’s the one who gave it to me," Xena said.

"Can I have a chakram too?" Lycus now held the round metal object with a small hand while running his fingers over the design etched in the metal.

"Maybe, when you’re older," Cyrus replied. "Now you and Xena better help yourselves to what is left of the food.

"I’m sorry I fell asleep on your story Xena," Lycus said after everyone had finished eating. "If ya tell another one, I promise to stay awake ‘til the end."

"Well..."

"I could tell you guys a story," Joxer interjected before Xena finished her reply.

"And you could use these." Xena opened the saddlebag that lay next to her and displayed its contents.

"Ooh great! You brought Gabrielle’s scrolls," Joxer said. "They will certainly make telling a story a lot easier." He picked some up and unrolled them, trying to decide which one to read to the children.

"Who’s Gabrielle?" Lysia asked.

"She was my best friend who traveled with me everywhere," Xena replied. "She was a gifted bard who recorded our adventures together in these scrolls."

"She was in the Prometheus story," Lycus added. "What happened to her?

"She died a few months ago," Xena softly replied.

"Ya must miss her an awful lot." Lysia sat down beside Xena.

"I do," Xena sighed. "But she is still with me, in my heart, and I will always have the memories of the friendship we shared." Her lips formed into a faint smile as she brushed a hand through the young girl’s long black curly locks.

"I would sure like to take a look at those scrolls," Cyrus said. "I’ve tried to follow your life since we last saw each other but those writings would certainly fill in the gaps."

"You can look at them whenever you want," Xena said.

"Okay kids, I think I found a story you guys will really like." Joxer was still inspecting the contents of the scrolls. Joxer grabbed an oblong piece of wood and lit it for a torch. "It’s a clear night, so we can go sit down by the lake." Joxer headed for the lake followed by the twins.

"This belongs to you." Cyrus handed Xena back her chakram then sat on the opposite side of the roaring fire. "I am curious to know what happened to the one I gave you?"

"This chakram is identical to that one, " Xena said with true surprise. "What gave it away?"

"I didn’t get a good look at the chakram the last time you were in Persia. It is an impeccable likeness but you are dealing with an immortal that can easily detect the metal of the gods. You must have gotten this one from Ares."

"I did. But I still have the one you gave me."

"Where is it?"

"It’s a long story but I can summarize it for you," she replied. "When Ares made me his top warlord, some of the others were not too happy that a woman got the coveted position. A big, ugly warlord named Thales challenged me. I won our brutal fight but the chakram you gave me was broken. Ares had Hephaestus repair the chakram by coating it with a divine metal. So the chakram you gave me is still here, but it’s under this godly metal." Xena patted the palm of a hand against the round metal object.

"The chakram I gave you may be under there but it has been drastically changed and is not the same anymore. And continuing to hold onto that chakram only maintains the bond between you and Ares."

"Now Cyrus, you know as well as I do that the bond I share with Ares transcends this chakram so chucking it would really change nothing."

"Speaking of that bond, I can see that all is going well between you and the twins."

"They have taken to me pretty quick," Xena said with large smile. "And I am enjoying every moment I can spend with them, something I thought I would never have."

"I know you are, I can see it in your face whenever you look at them," Cyrus said with a smile.

"But no matter how much I’m enjoying this time with them, I can’t forget that when this mess with Dahak is over, I will have to say goodbye to them again," Xena said in a somber tone.

"Maybe circumstances will work a way where you won’t have to say goodbye."

"I love your eternal optimism Cyrus but I’m a realist. Considering whom we are going to meet in Greece, I know no matter the changes I’ve made that I can never be a part of the lives of those two precious children. It’s something I accepted a long time ago."

The screech of a bat awoke Xena from sleep. She gazed at the smoldering campfire then the bedrolls positioned around it. Cyrus was sleeping silently, Joxer laid on his back softly snoring, Lysia slept with a faint smile on her face, as one arm clutched the doll Vashti had given her. She must be having a nice dream Xena thought. When she gazed in the direction of Lycus’ bedroll, it was empty. Xena didn’t want him wandering around an unfamiliar forest and went to find him.

Xena figured he might be down by the lake, so that’s where she headed. When she reached the lake, three large rocks were moving some feet above the dark waters. The rocks were moving slowly, then picked up speed as they dropped to water level and skimmed the surface of the lake. As the large rocks approached land, they rose high in the air again, then abruptly dropped with a soft thud at the water’s edge.

"You need to work on your landings, that one was kinda rough."

"Oh, hi Xena," Lycus said in a glum tone. The young boy was lounging on a fallen tree with his arms folded behind his head.

"You sound kinda down, did you have a bad dream?" Xena sat on the end of the fallen tree.

"No bad dream" Lycus sighed. "I was thinkin’ about my powers. I can do this really cool stuff...and so can Lysia. But we can’t show anyone...not even our friends and sometimes I feel like I’m gonna explode. And why can’t the other kids do this stuff?"

As Xena listened to Lycus, she was hit with the realization that despite all her hopes and wishes that the twins have normal lives that would never be fully possible with the godly blood running through their veins. "The gods sometimes give mortals special gifts. You and your sister could be two such mortals."

"Yeah, that’s what Uncle Cyrus says but I think it has somethin’ to do with our parents. I wish they were here." Lycus now stood on the fallen tree, pulled out his slingshot and started shooting pebbles into the lake. "Back in India, me and Lysia would watch the other kids with their moms and dads and wish ours were still alive."

"You may not have your mom and dad but you do have your Uncle Cyrus and Vashti who love you dearly."

"Yeah, I know but I still would like to have a mom and dad like the other kids," Lycus sighed.

Xena pretended she had something in an eye as she wiped away a lone tear. "You shouldn’t have wandered away from the campsite Lycus," she quickly stated. "When I woke up and saw you weren’t in your bedroll, I was worried something could happen to you."

"I’m sorry." Lycus shot the last of the pebbles into the lake. "Xena, what’s the God of War like?"

"How do you know about him?" Xena was somewhat startled by the child’s unexpected question.

"He was in the story Joxer told us."

Xena rolled her eyes. Joxer would have to pick a story with Ares in it. She wanted to respond to Lycus’ question by saying dark, soulless and manipulative but instead just said, "Ares is very powerful."

"Like all gods, right?"

"Yes," Xena quickly replied. The last person she wanted to talk about with Lycus was Ares. "We really should get back to the campsite and into our bedrolls. We have a long day of travel ahead of us tomorrow and sleeping on the back of a horse is not something you want to make a habit."

Lycus had a frown on his face after her last statement. "But I’m not sleepy."

"You’re just having trouble sleeping in that bedroll because you’re not use to it. I bet I could sing you a song which would put you to sleep."

"Ya sing too?" the young boy curiously asked.

"I have many skills which would amaze you."

Lycus now sat next to Xena on the fallen tree. As she began to sing, he rested his head against her right arm. Her voice was soft, soothing and hypnotic. And despite his earlier protests of not being sleepy, Lycus found his eyelids growing heavy as Xena continued to sing.

Xena lifted the boy onto her lap and rested his head against her leather-covered breasts as she sang the last verse of the song. When she looked down at Lycus he was in a deep sleep and long black lashes framed his closed eyelids. A soft smile crossed Xena’s lips. The song she had sang to Lycus was the very same song she would sing to him and his sister when they were growing in her womb. The song would still the movements of the unborn babies with sleep and it still had the same effect. Xena affectionately ran a hand through the boy’s soft, curly black hair before she rose from the fallen tree, cradling her son in her arms.

As she carried him back to the campsite, Xena’s emotions overwhelmed her and she couldn’t hold back the urge to hold him closer. When she reached the campsite, she gently laid the boy in his bedroll. After she covered his small body, she softly kissed him atop his head. She gazed at his sleeping form one last time before getting into her own bedroll and drifting off to sleep.

Aratus softly whistled the melody of the song he had heard at a nearby tavern earlier that night. He thought the woman who sang the song had the voice of an enchantress and the beauty to rival any goddess on Mt. Olympus. Aratus was now considering venturing into town tomorrow night just to hear this beautiful woman sing again.

Aratus held the reins of his horse in one hand as he took a quick swig from the bottle of wine on the bench next to him in the wagon. He looked up at the clear night sky and could see part of the moon through tree branches. Aratus took the wagon off the main road and onto a narrow trail surrounded by trees. The wagon had gone some distance into the dark forest when Aratus pulled back on the reins of the lone horse, bringing it to a stop outside what appeared to be an abandoned barn.

Aratus jumped down from the bench and went to the back of the wagon. He lifted the gray tarp covering the wagon’s contents, momentarily gazed at his precious cargo, causing a sinister smile to cross his thin lips, and then he strolled into the old barn.

"Are you sure that’s the man?" Ephiny asked as she and a small band of Amazons crouched behind thick foliage and gazed at the man who just went into the old barn.

"Yes my queen," Aurora firmly replied. "He told me he hadn’t seen the girls but when he mounted his horse, an Amazon medallion fell out one of his pockets. When I tried to chase after him, he urged his horse to go faster. I know I would have caught him, but my horse threw a shoe so I had to abandoned the chase."

"Do you think he sold them to a slave trader?" Solari asked.

"He better not have," Aurora said with a touch of anger.

"If this man knows where the girls are, he will tell us," Ephiny firmly stated.

Ten days ago, the Amazons began their week long rite of passage for young teens. The young girls would have to use their knowledge as Amazons to survive a week in the forest alone. The ceremony ended three days ago, but two of the girls failed to return to the Amazon village, Cyone, Aurora’s daughter, and her best friend Tyra. Aurora had trained with Cyone and Tyra for months and was confident the girls could survive a week alone in the forest. So when Cyone and Tyra failed to return to the Amazon village with the other teenage girls, Aurora knew something must have happened to them. Even Queen Ephiny was disturbed by the disappearance of the two teens since no Amazon had failed to return from a rite of passage in over a decade. While investigating the disappearance of the girls, Aurora ran into Aratus in a village on the outskirts of the forest. It took her two days to track down this man who had lied about seeing the Amazon teens and Aurora was determined to get him to reveal the whereabouts of her daughter and the other girl.

Shrouded by the darkness of the night, Ephiny, Solari, Aurora and a small band of Amazons quietly approached the old barn. Standing outside the worn wooden structure, all could see a yellow glow seeping through a plank. It was decided that the small band would stand watch outside the barn, while Ephiny, Solari and Aurora found a way inside.

A small door was ajar on the barn’s upper level from which hung a rope. Using a nearby wagon to stand upon and reach the rope, the three Amazons climbed up the rope and quietly entered the barn through the narrow opening. All three immediately noticed the unbearable stuffiness of the barn’s interior. But breathing the stuffy air was a small hardship worth bearing if it would lead them to the missing girls. As the three Amazons stood in the barn’s loft, they distinctly heard two male voices engaged in conversation.

"So, he has a friend. I wonder are there any more?" Aurora whispered.

"I think it’s just the two of them but if there are more, we got the others outside to back us up," Solari whispered.

Ephiny remained silent as she led the way, and quietly crawled to the edge of the loft to get a view of what was in the barn. "By the goddess Artemis!" she whispered as the site below took her breath away. Solari and Aurora quickly joined her at the loft’s edge and now all three gazed down in shock at the barn’s first level.

They now had an explanation for the stuffiness of the barn. It was being used as a greenhouse to grow plants the Amazons had never seen before. Each plant had a thick, dark green stem and a large flower with red-orange colored petals shaped like the flames of a fire. Almost the entire first level of the barn was lined with rows of the unusual plants.

The man they had followed to the barn and his cohort each stood by a large plant using shovels to turn the dirt surrounding the plants. Above their heads, suspended by ropes and hanging by their ankles were the pale lifeless bodies of two men. Both had deep jagged cuts running from ear to ear across their throats. Dark red blood poured from the cuts onto the chocolate brown dirt, which the men stirred into the dirt, deepening its color.

"What a couple of sick bastards!" Solari whispered.

"They are using human blood to fertilize plants!" Aurora was in shock over what she was witnessing. "I pray to Artemis that Cyone and Tyra didn’t suffer the same fate as those two men."

"Unfortunately, that may be a possibility we all might have to accept," Ephiny said in a grim tone. "But we won’t know that until we confront those two men down there."

"That’s it, soak up this nourishment like a good plant," Aratus cooed lovingly as he stirred the blood into the dirt around the large plant before him.

"You sound like a fool talking to that plant," the other man snickered as he also stirred blood into the dirt around the large plant before him.

"For your information Pheidon, I happen to know that talking to plants in a soothing tone helps them to grow," Aratus said.

"That may be true for most plants, but these are different," Pheidon said. He noticed the blood now barely trickled from the corpse hanging above the plant. "Well, this guy is down to his last drop, what about yours?"

"Yeah, he’s almost empty too." Aratus gazed up at the corpse hanging above the plant.

"I will go get some fresh ones from the storage room." Pheidon removed himself from the row of plants and departed for the storage room.

Aratus started whistling that earlier tune still stuck in his head as he continued to turn the dirt around the plant before him.

"All right, don’t move," a voice whispered behind Aratus as he felt what he thought was the point of a sword in his back.

The shovel he held was immediately kicked from his grasp as a person moved to stand in front of him. Aratus stared at the curly blond haired woman standing before him holding the blade of a dagger at the skin of his throat. From the way she was dressed he figured she was an Amazon, just like the two girls he stumbled upon in the forest a couple days ago.

"Does this look familiar?" Ephiny held up an Amazon medallion that belonged to one of the girls. "It should. You dropped it the other day when you took off in a hurry after being asked some questions concerning two missing Amazon teens." Ephiny stared hard into the man’s eyes and nicked the skin of his throat with the dagger. "For your sake, they better not have ended up like these two men."

On his way to the storage room, Pheidon started whistling the same tune as Aratus. "Oh great, now the tune is stuck in my head," he muttered.

When Pheidon reached the storage room, he retrieved a lit torch from the wall before unlocking the door. When the door was unlocked, he walked in and cast the light of the torch around the dark room. People with dirty clothes and faces sat on the straw covered floor with bound arms and legs. Moans and groans could be heard as people tried to shield their sensitive eyes from the light with bound hands. Pheidon let the light of the torch settle on a man and a woman hovering in one corner.

"You two will do nicely." Pheidon walked over to the pair, grabbed the woman by her bound hands and dragged her towards the door.

"Please...don’t kill me," she mumbled. Due to lack of food, the woman was too weak to put up any kind of struggle.

A bound man tried to come to her aid, but was quickly knocked unconscious when Pheidon hit him on the head with the end of the torch. The others just turned their heads as the woman was dragged away to the fate that awaited them all.

Pheidon had just reached the storage room door with the bound woman when Solari jumped out in front of him. Her sudden appearance startled him so he didn’t have time to react when she delivered a blow to his neck, dropping him to his knees, coughing. Solari then delivered a blow to the back of his head, knocking him unconscious. She immediately knelt by the side of the woman lying next to him and used a dagger to cut her arms and legs loose.

"The others...you have to free them too," the woman weakly mumbled.

Solari picked up the fallen torch and shined it around the dark storage room.

"Hey Aurora, get in here. There’s something you gotta see that will bring a smile to your face." Solari let the light of the torch settle on the two missing Amazon teens.

"Why are you killing people to feed plants?" Ephiny asked with disgust.

Aratus stared at her with defiance from his bound position sitting in the dirt and refused to give her a response. The other Amazons had entered the barn and cut down the two corpses, prepared to give them a proper burial.

"We found the girls." Aurora was grinning from ear to ear and had her arms wrapped around Cyone and Tyra as she walked between them. "Both are very weak from lack of food but they will survive."

"Did you get anything out of that sicko?" Solari followed behind Aurora and the Amazon teens. She was dragging along Pheidon who had regained consciousness. Behind them were the other captives from the storage room."

"He refuses to talk." Ephiny stared down at Aratus, sitting before her.

"This one won’t say anything either." Solari shoved Pheidon in front of her.

"Let me have a moment alone with him. I bet I could get him to talk." Aurora walked over to Pheidon and viciously kneed him in the groin, getting a howl of pain out of the man as he dropped to his knees again. Aurora pulled out a dagger, ready to slice the man’s throat.

"That’s enough Aurora!" Ephiny yelled. "I understand your anger concerning these men but I will not allow you to kill them in cold blood. We will turn them over to the magistrate in the nearest town."

"But my queen, they should be taken back to our village and face Amazon justice," Solari said. Aurora nodded in agreement.

"Our two Amazons were found alive. But these two dead men and I fear others were not so lucky, so justice for their killings must be handed down by their people and not the Amazons," Ephiny said.

"Yes my queen," Solari and Aurora said in unison.

"Someone’s coming," one of their Amazons sisters reported.

All could now hear the hooves of a horse and the wheels of a wagon as they got closer to the old barn.

"Get out of here Cleon! We’ve been discovered!" Aratus yelled as he rose as quickly as he could with his hands bound behind his back and headed for the barn door.

Before Aratus reached the barn door, he was tackled to the ground by some Amazons and in the process, knocked over a wooden barrel containing oil.

Cleon had heard Aratus’ cries and quickly turned the wagon around. All could hear the wagon as it went back down the narrow road at a quick pace.

The commotion with Aratus distracted the Amazons and gave Pheidon the opportunity to grab a pitchfork, partly covered in the dirt, which he used to pierce the leg of a distracted Amazon standing with her back to him. When she screamed out in pain, the others turned around.

"You’re not taking me to any magistrate!" Pheidon held the pitchfork like a weapon, ready to attack any Amazon who came near him.

"Get the girls and these people out of here," Aurora said. "I can handle him." She slowly approached Pheidon, ready to do battle.

"Do as she says," Ephiny ordered.

Solari and the other Amazons got the girls, the other freed captives and a bound Aratus out of the barn and left Aurora to handle Pheidon.

"You may have found this barn but you won’t stop us. You will die along with all the others." Pheidon lunged at Aurora with the pitchfork, which she easily kicked, from his grasp.

Now desperate, Pheidon grabbed a torch hanging on a nearby wall and came at Aurora swinging it. Aurora moved back as she dodged the flames so she didn’t see the spilt oil covering the ground behind her. She slipped on the oil, falling backwards and her head hit the ground hard. Aurora was momentarily dizzy, which gave Pheidon the opportunity to yank her sword from her grasp. He now stood over her fallen form and held the sword in both hands high above his head.

"For you Dark One," he shouted before bringing the sword down upon the fallen Amazon.

Before the sword could pierce Aurora’s body, Pheidon let out a gasp as blood poured from his mouth. He looked down to see a sword sticking through his chest. There was a look of surprise in his eyes as he fell to the ground next to Aurora.

Aurora looked up to see Solari standing before her with a sword covered in Pheidon’s blood.

"Thanks," Aurora said.

"We better get out of here." Solari offered Aurora a hand to help her to her feet.

When Pheidon grabbed Aurora’s sword, he tossed aside the torch, which fell in some of the spilt oil, starting a fire, which would soon consume the entire barn.

Aurora and Solari quickly made their way out of the old barn as the fire fed off the spilt oil and crept towards a wall.

The fire quickly moved up the dry old wood and soon the wall was nothing but a huge block of bright orange flames bringing light to the previously dark forest.

"Thank Artemis you are both all right. When we saw the fire start, we were afraid you would be lost in it," Ephiny said. "The man is dead?"

"He left me no choice, I had to kill him," Solari replied.

Ephiny nodded in understanding.

Aurora went to stand by Cyone and Tyra as all watched the fire consume the old barn. What was left of the old wooden structure fell to the ground in fiery flames spewing ash into the night air. As all stood there staring at the fiery heap, the golden ashes seemed to hover over the burning remnants of the barn.

"Look, at that, I’ve never seen anything like it," Solari said.

"Neither have I," Ephiny replied.

At that moment, the golden ashes moved away from the fire and quickly approached those gathered.

"Get away from me!" one of the freed female captives screamed as she violently swatted at the golden flames swarming around her. Soon, everyone was swatting at the eerie golden flames, which now swarmed around all like bees.

Ephiny spotted some large round metal objects leaning against an old fence near the barn.

"Amazons, we can use these to ward off that strange ash," Ephiny shouted as she now held one of the objects like a shield and stood near the old fence. Her Amazon sisters followed her lead and each picked up one of the round metal objects and now stood by her side. "All you people, get behind an Amazon and they will use these as shields to protect you."

The people did as Ephiny instructed and gathered behind the Amazons holding the large round metal objects.

The strange golden ash tried to approach those gathered but was warded off by the Amazons using the large round metal objects like shields as the freed captives huddled behind them with fear. But all heads turned when they heard agonizing screams.

Aratus had refused to stand behind an Amazon and was now engulfed in a swarm of the strange golden ash. Since his arms were still bound behind him, he was completely helpless as the swarming ash covered his body. He let out one blood-curdling scream before he collapsed to the ground. The ash covered his body a few moments more then dissipated leaving Aratus’ body visible to view. He lay motionless on the ground.

The Amazons lowered the round metal objects as Solari and Aurora approached Aratus’ body.

"He’s dead!" Aurora said with true surprise as she knelt over his body.

"How can someone be killed by ash?" Solari asked.

"Something really weird is going on here," Aurora said.

At that moment, Aratus’ arms moved, shredding the thick bonds around his wrist like twine. He immediately sat up and with lightening quick speed, roughly grabbed Aurora’s left arm. As she stared into his face with true shock, she couldn’t help but notice the fiery redness of his eyes.

"Let me go!" Aurora yanked her arm from Aratus’ grasp and quickly moved away from him.

"We’re free!" he gasped with awe. "We’re flesh again!" he shouted as he ran his hands over his face, arms and chest. Aratus rose to his feet and started laughing hysterically as he ran off into the dark forest.

Aurora and Solari were prepared to chase after him.

"Let him go," Ephiny ordered. "We must get these people back to their homes."

The Amazons got the people ready for their walk through the dark forest headed towards the nearest village.

Solari noticed that her queen seemed to be engrossed with the design on one of the large round metal objects they had used as shields to protect the people.

"Is something wrong my queen?" Solari asked.

"It’s this design," Ephiny replied. "Come see it."

Solari did as her queen commanded. When she finally looked at the design, she let out a gasp of shock. "I thought they were gone for good."

"Well, it appears they are a very determined bunch," Ephiny said as both women stood gazing at the design, remembering the last time they had seen it.

When Ephiny got word of Gabrielle’s death, she, Solari and a few Amazons wanted to see the place where their queen had given her life so they went to Dahak’s temple. A recent earthquake had reduced most of the temple to rubble but they were able to go inside what was left of the structure. There were rocks and debris scattered about the ruins and among them, broken shields with designs etched in the metal identical to the one before them now.

"This would certainly explain the bizarre killings we found in the barn and that strange ash," Solari said. "If Dahak’s followers have regrouped and are killing in his name, we must stop them."

"Oh, we will stop them all right," Ephiny firmly stated. "But first, we must find Xena. This may be just what she needs to gain back the fight she seemed to have lost after Gabrielle’s death."

After almost a week of travel, the three horses and their five riders were on the road, which led into Amphipolis.

"A circus is in town!" Lycus’ crystal blue eyes beamed with excitement as he gazed at the colorful top of a tent visible above the trees.

"I think you’re right," Xena said from behind him as the pair sat atop Argo, who trotted closer towards Amphipolis.

"Ooh, can we go see the circus?" Lysia turned to gaze up at Cyrus who sat behind her on Xerxes.

"I don’t see why not," Cyrus replied. "While you are staying with Xena’s mother, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind taking you."

"But I wanna go now." Lycus was anxious for some fun after spending hours on the back of a horse.

"We are all going to the tavern, so you two can meet Xena’s mom and unpack your things," Cyrus firmly stated. "You can go to the circus later."

Both children had disappointed looks on their faces.

"Ever since I was a kid, I always loved it when a circus was in town and before we leave, I sure would love the chance to check this one out too," Joxer said with child like excitement. "I could take the kids to the circus, while you two take their things to the tavern."

"Well?" The children anxiously asked in unison as they waited for a response from Cyrus.

"You both can go," Cyrus replied. Both children now had pleased smiles on their faces.

When the traveling party reached Amphipolis, the streets were filled with people who had come to see the circus. Joxer dismounted Otis then helped both children down from the backs of Argo and Xerxes. Xena held Otis’ reins so the horse would follow Argo as she and Cyrus made their way to the tavern while Joxer and the twins headed for the circus.

Xena and Cyrus took the horses to the stables, unloaded the children’s things and headed for the tavern. When they reached the tavern, the place was packed with people who had come to see the circus. Xena lead their way through the crowd, headed for the kitchen where she figured her mother would be.

Cyrene closed the cellar door located in the floor of the kitchen, then picked up the two large jugs of ale and headed for the barroom.

"Xena, you’re back!" Cyrene said with surprise when she saw her daughter walk through the kitchen door. She set the two large jugs on a nearby table, then embraced Xena in a big hug.

"And, I’m in one piece." Xena returned the hug. "I want you to meet the dear friend I told you would be coming back with me," she said when they broke the hug and Cyrene took notice of the man with long curly blond hair standing behind Xena. "Mother, this is Cyrus."

"It’s a pleasure to finally meet you Cyrene," Cyrus said with a big smile.

"I’m always happy to meet one of Xena’s good friends." Cyrene thought Xena’s friend looked very competent and reliable which somewhat diminished her fears over her daughter’s alliance with the God of War. At least now, Xena wouldn’t be around Ares alone. Recent events in Xena’s life made Cyrene doubt her daughter’s judgment concerning the war god.

"Where is Joxer?"

"He took the children traveling with us to see the circus," Xena replied.

"What children?"

"They are Cyrus’ wards, a boy and a girl...twins, to be exact." When it was initially decided that the children would go to Greece, Xena had also made the decision to tell Cyrene they were her children. But now, Xena knew once Cyrene was told she would badger her about the identity of the father. If Cyrene knew the father was Ares, it would just lead to a rehash about her fears regarding their alliance so Xena decided to stay silent about the children’s parents. "I figured they could stay here, while we meet with Ares. You don’t mind do you?"

"No, of course not," Cyrene replied. "It will be nice to hear the laughter of children around here. I can put them in the two rooms across from mine."

"C’mon Cyrus, we can take their things up to the rooms, I’ll show you the way."

"You two can do that later," Cyrene said. "I’m taking these two jugs out to the bar, then I’ll be back and I want you two sitting at that table over there, eating the stew I just prepared which should be a welcomed meal for you both after a week of eating what the forest provides." Cyrene quickly exited the kitchen.

"I guess a home cooked meal is in order," Xena admitted.

"Oh, I’ll say," Cyrus added. "I don’t know how you make it eating that stuff we found in the forest on a daily basis."

"It’s an acquired taste," Xena jested.

"Well, you can have it," Cyrus stated flatly. "Give me home cooking any day." He deposited the children’s belongings on the floor, grabbed a bowl sitting on the table and helped himself to the freshly prepared stew simmering over the hearth. Xena got a bowl of stew also then joined Cyrus at the table.

"There’s one more thing I got to handle, then I will join you two," Cyrene said as she briefly came back into the kitchen to get another jug then departed to the tavern again. "Oh, and I expect to hear all about your trip back to Greece," Cyrene said as she stuck her head through the door then disappeared into the tavern.

"I don’t think she wants us to leave," Cyrus said when they were alone in the kitchen.

Xena knew her mother disapproved of her alliance with Ares and wouldn’t be surprised if she was trying to stall their meeting with the war god.

"You are probably right," Xena said. "But we will leave. There is too much at stake and my mother is one of the few people who knows that better than anyone."

Joxer and the twins were having a good time as they explored the variety of entertainment the circus had to offer. The children cheered Joxer on as he participated in a few events. He was only victorious in one. For his prize, he picked out a large green stuffed toy dragon, which he gave to Lysia. Joxer stopped at the booth of a vendor selling candy and decided to buy some for the trio.

"Let’s check out the tent that looks like a rainbow," Lycus said after Joxer rejoined them.

The trio was approaching a small tent that had red, blue, orange, green, yellow and purple vertical stripes.

"Come learn all from Agatha the sooth...sayer," Lysia said as she read the sign outside the tent. "Joxer, what’s a soothsayer?"

"It’s a person who knows stuff before it happens," he replied.

"Cool, let’s go in," Lycus said with excitement.

The trio made their way through the strands of blue and black beads hanging from the doorway of the tent. Once inside, they immediately noticed how dark it was despite the bright sunshine of the afternoon and were overwhelmed by the smell of floral incense.

"This place is creepy, let’s go." Lysia tightly held Joxer’s left arm.

At that moment, the trio was startled by the sound of a lamp being lit. The lone bright orange flame made the contents of the small tent visible to view so their gaze focused on a round table draped with a black cloth set in the middle of the tent. At the table sat a figure wearing a black cloak with a large hood.

"C’mon over dearies, I wun’t bite," the cloaked figure cackled in a scraggily voice.

Joxer and Lysia cautiously approached the table but Lycus boldly strolled over to the table and sat in the only chair across from the soothsayer. Joxer and Lysia stood on either side of him.

"I’m Agatha and fer one deener, I’ll tell yer future,"

Joxer reached in his money pouch and pulled out one dinar, which he set on the table between them. A wrinkled hand with bony fingers, knobby knuckles, and long sharp yellow nails quickly reached out and grabbed the lone dinar.

"Put yur hands on the table boy," Agatha ordered.

Lycus did as she commanded. The soothsayer quickly grabbed his small hands with her bony ones which somewhat startled the child and his two companions. Lycus thought her hands felt rough and ice cold against his. Despite the large hood and the shadows it cast, Lycus was able to see some of Agatha’s face. It was very wrinkled and thin. She had a pointy chin with a few gray hairs growing from it. Strands of snowy white hair stuck out of the large hood. Lycus could see her gray old eyes peeping out from the shadows of the hood, staring intently at his face.

"You boy are named Lycus," Agatha said in a raspy voice. "The girl standin’ next to ya is yer...sister...Lysia." The soothsayer’s gray old eyes were now staring at Lysia and made the young girl feel somewhat uncomfortable.

"Put yur hands on the table," Agatha commanded as she continued to stare at Lysia.

Reluctantly, Lysia set her small hands on the table next to her brother’s. Agatha still held Lycus’ right hand as she now held Lysia’s in a firm grasp. The young girl had to fight the urge to yank her hand away because the soothsayer’s felt so cold and rough.

"I feel a power...a great power...comin’ from ya both," Agatha whispered. "A power like the gods."

The soothsayer’s words were no surprise to the twins since their Uncle Cyrus had told them their powers were gifts from the gods. And Xena had told Joxer the children had special gifts so the soothsayer’s words were no surprise to him either as he stood there silently watching the soothsayer read the twins’ fortune.

The soothsayer quickly turned over the right hands of both children and ran her boney fingers over the small palms. Her gray old eyes stared intently at the two small palms she held in each hand.

"I see a woman...a warrior woman..."

"It must be Xena!" Lycus interjected with excitement.

"Quiet, ya must remain quiet, ‘til the readin’ is dun," Agatha stated in a firm raspy voice.

"Oh, sorry," Lycus whispered.

"I see a warrior woman...and...the war god," Agatha said. "They must protect ya from a great evil...the Demon Snake. He wants ya both but he’s goin’ for the boy first."

Lycus was excited about the possibility of meeting a god but the soothsayer’s words regarding a demon snake sent chills through his body. It reminded him of the snake man in his nightmares who was coming after him. "Will the demon snake get me?" Lycus anxiously asked, forgetting to remain silent until the reading was over.

"I can not say...it is too clouded," Agatha softly replied, her face in a frown, adding to the wrinkles. "You girl...are the key...to the power that can stop the demon snake." The soothsayer’s gray old eyes now stared at Lysia.

"How will I do that?" Lysia had a perplexed look on her face also forgetting the silence rule.

"When the time is right, you’ll know. Many things will happen in the months ahead and ya both must be strong." With her last words, Agatha sat back in her chair.

"Is that all?" Lycus asked.

"Yep, for only one deener, that’s all ya get," the old soothsayer replied. "It will cost ya five deeners a piece to get the rest."

The twins were curious to hear more and now looked at Joxer expectantly.

"Ten dinars! That’s highway robbery!" Joxer declared. "C’mon kids, we are leaving." He ushered the twins towards the opening in the tent.

"But dun’t ya wanna know yer own future? It’ll only cost one deener," Agatha said to Joxer’s departing form.

"Do it Joxer," Lycus said.

"Yeah do it," Lysia added.

If they couldn’t hear all that awaited them, they wanted to hear at least what was in store for Joxer in the future.

"Oh...all right," Joxer said grudgingly as he walked back over to the table and tossed a dinar onto the black tablecloth. He sat in the lone chair across from the old soothsayer and then put both hands on the tabletop. The twins stood on either side of him.

The soothsayer grabbed his hands and ran her boney fingers over his palms just as she had done with the children.

"I see...that warrior woman again...you are fightin’ by her side, and I see...another woman...she is very close to ya...she is very beautiful with long curly auburn hair."

Joxer knew the warrior woman the soothsayer referred to had to be Xena. He had no clue who the other woman was. He obviously hadn’t met her yet and this rather intrigued him.

"I see something else." Agatha’s face was drawn up in a twisted frown.

"Ooh what is it?" Lycus asked with excitement.

"It’s very dark...very angry and very..." Agatha’s voice dropped off as she peeped through the hood of the black cloak she wore and stared hard into Joxer’s face with old gray eyes. A wail escaped her thin lips and her body began to shake under the black cloak as she quickly released Joxer’s hands from her grasp. "Ya must go now," she said abruptly.

"But what didja see?" Lysia asked.

"I saw nuthin’," Agatha quickly replied. "Go...please just go!" she demanded as she covered her wrinkled face with her bony hands.

"Let’s do as she says." Joxer rose from the table. He led the twins out of the soothsayer’s tent.

"I saw evil...a great evil," Agatha whispered after the trio had departed. Her bony hands were shaking as she brought a bottle from underneath the black tablecloth and quickly put it to her quivering thin lips.

Once outside the soothsayer’s tent, the trio started walking in the direction of the big top.

"What was wrong with Agatha?" Lycus asked.

"I think she saw somethin’ that really scared her," Lysia said.

"Agatha was an old drunk who didn’t know what she was talking about so just ignore everything she said." Joxer had smelled the wine on her the minute they walked over to the table. "Now, you two are really going to love the acts under the big top. They have acrobats...as a kid they were always my favorite part of the show...and trained animals from around the world."

Joxer and the children were crossing into the Town Square when yelling could be heard above the usual chatter in the street.

"Why don’t you watch where you’re going you clumsy oaf!" One man shouted.

"You’re calling me a clumsy oaf?!?!" The second man yelled. "You’re the one who bumped into me!!! And look what you did to the vase I bought for my wife."

Joxer and the twins quickly made their way through the gathered crowd to view the disturbance. Two men stood facing each other, about to come to blows, while the turquoise colored ceramic pieces of a vase lay on the ground around them.

"That vase cost me twenty dinars and you’re going to replace it," the second man yelled as he gave the first a rough shove.

"You were a sucker to pay that!" the first man yelled shoving him back. "And I’m not shelling out dinars for your clumsiness!"

Joxer had learned a lot fighting alongside Xena these past few months and took it upon himself to squelch this quarrel before it turned into a brawl. "Gentlemen please!" he said in a raised voice while stepping forward out of the crowd and approaching the two men. "There must be some way for you to settle your differences without turning this into a fist fight."

"You should mind your own business!" the second man growled as he swung a fist at Joxer, which connected with his jaw, knocking him to the ground.

"Hey, leave the guy alone!" a man yelled as he stepped out of the gathered crowd. "He was only trying to help!" The man swung a punch at the second man.

Soon, several men, not wanting to be left out of a good fight, joined in the ruckus.

"C’mon Lysia, let’s get outta here." Lycus dragged his sister away from the growing crowd.

"But what about Joxer?"

"Oh, he’ll be okay." Lycus took a quick glimpse at Joxer who was lying on the ground, rubbing his jaw. "Let’s go have some fun." There was a devilish smile on the young boy’s face.

Lycus was drawn to a dart-throwing booth, so that’s where he dragged his sister. A game between a few people had just concluded and a new one was about to get underway.

"Hey mister, can I play?" Lycus asked when he and Lysia stood before the vendor running the booth.

"I’m afraid not sonny," the vendor said as he gazed down at the children. "You’re too young."

"But my brother is really good," Lysia said. "He always beats the servants."

"The servants, huh?" the vendor said with a chuckle.

"Oh c’mon Pindar, let the little boy play," a man, standing at the booth said. "What are you, afraid he’ll actually win and clean you out of merchandise?"

Some others gathered snickered at this comment which angered Pindar. "The kid has no money, so he can’t play!" Pindar snapped.

"But yes I do." Lycus pulled a dinar from a pocket.

"See, the kid does have money, so let him play," the man said. Others gathered voiced the same sentiments.

"Oh, all right," Pindar muttered as he took the dinar from Lycus and handed him some darts.

"Lycus, where didja get that dinar?" Lysia whispered in his head.

"I got it from Joxer’s money pouch when he wasn’t lookin’," he replied.

"But that’s stealing!" The girl stared at her brother wide-eyed.

"Joxer had so many, he won’t miss it,"

Lysia just stood there staring at Lycus as he took his spot next to the others about to participate in the next game of darts. Sometimes she wondered how he could be her brother and this was one of those times. Lysia was brought out of her thoughts when she felt something wet on her left hand. She looked down to see a black mastiff licking her hand.

"Are you lookin’ for a friend?" Lysia asked the dog as she now stood before it, held its face between her hands and stared into the animal’s big, brown, soulful eyes. "We can both watch Lycus win the dart game." She rubbed her hands behind the dog’s ears, which the animal seemed to really like. Then they both found a spot to watch Lycus play darts.

Joxer rubbed his sore jaw as he wandered down another street looking for the twins. Joxer thought he had an understanding with the kids---a truce---no more pranks---against him anyway. He had shrugged off the incident in the forest regarding his clothes. Joxer remembered the pranks Jett would coerce him into pulling and what the twins did to him paled in comparison. He thought with volunteering to take them to the circus and the good time they were having that they were now friends. But the twins had proven that underneath those innocent faces were the devious minds of little harpies who ditched him the moment they were given the chance. Joxer had been looking for the twins for almost an hour when he noticed the hoopla gathered around the dart-throwing booth. He decided to take some time out from his search for the twins to check out what had everybody so psyched.

Lycus had won ten games in a row, which had drawn quite a crowd around the dart-throwing booth with people amazed at the ability of such a young child.

"Here’s a dinar, let me play the kid, I know I can beat him," a man said as he stepped from the gathered crowd.

"I’ll give it a shot too," another man said as he stepped forward.

Lycus eagerly accepted the challenges.

Lysia stood nearby, holding a sack full of toys her brother had won. The black mastiff still stood next to her. Lysia was looking around the crowd, when she saw a familiar shirt pass in a blur. She moved some ways through the crowd, until she saw the familiar shirt again and its wearer.

"Uh oh, trouble," she murmured then she headed back towards the dart-throwing booth.

"Lycus, Joxer is comin’ this way!" the boy heard his sister shout in his head.

"Uh, I gotta go now," Lycus quickly stated to Pindar and the two men getting ready to challenge him.

"But the game is just getting started," Pindar said.

"Sorry, but I’m just a little kid and I gotta go home...so bye." Lycus quickly departed from the booth, found Lysia and then both quickly moved through the crowd, followed by the large dog.

Once out of the crowd, the children started running down the street.

"Hey you two, wait!" they heard a voice cry out to them when they had gone some distance down the street.

Lysia turned around to see who was calling to them. It was some man she didn’t recognize.

"C’mon Lysia, we havta keep goin’." Lycus pulled at her arm.

"But it’s not Joxer, it’s someone else." Lysia came to a stop.

Lycus groaned in disapproval but stopped with his sister.

"Boy...you two...certainly move fast," the man gasped when he stood before the children.

"Why were ya yellin’ at us?" Lysia asked.

"I have a little girl around your age who I promised I would get a stuffed toy griffin at the circus. The last one available in the entire circus was the one you picked at the dart-throwing booth. You have a bag full of toys and I was wondering if you would let me have the griffin."

"We’ll let ya have it for five dinars," Lycus stated.

"Five dinars! That’s a lot of money for a stuffed toy griffin," the man said.

"Gee Lycus, that is an awful lot for a stuffed toy griffin," Lysia agreed.

"Not for the only stuffed griffin left in the whole circus," Lycus firmly stated. "Besides, the man promised his little girl he would get her one and I know how I feel when grown-ups don’t keep promises. So, how badly do ya wannit?"

Grudgingly, the man took five dinars from a pouch and handed them to Lycus. Lysia retrieved the stuffed toy griffin from the sack she held and gave it to the man who then departed the way he came.

"Now I can give back the dinar I took from Joxer and still have four dinars left for us," Lycus said with a sly smile. "Where did that dog come from?" He finally noticed the large animal standing next to his sister.

"Oh him, he was standin’ by the dart-throwin’ booth." Lysia looked down at the dog. "He musta followed us when we ran down the street."

"Well, if he wants to follow us, I guess he can." Lycus rubbed a hand over the dog’s back.

The children, along with the dog, turned down an alley to avoid Joxer who they knew was still looking for them. The alley opened onto another street, which led to the big top. The street was packed with people headed for the large tent to see the show, which would begin in a matter of minutes. The trio quickly moved through the crowd and ended up at the makeshift camp of the circus performers behind the big top.

"We’ve been runnin’ around for an awful long time. We should let Joxer find us now," Lysia said as the trio walked down one of the many rows of circus wagons.

"We’ll go find Joxer but I wanna see if there’s any cool stuff back here." Lycus’ eyes quickly scanned their surroundings.

"There’s nothin’ but old wagons back here," Lysia complained.

"Hey, I didn’t know a circus in Greece would have one of these!" Lycus ran over to a large cage.

"This one is bigger than Shakti." Lysia now stood by him. Both children were gazing at a large tiger that nervously paced the length of the cage. The animal acknowledged their presence by roaring at them but continued to pace the cage.

"Shakti is still a cub but he’ll probably get as big as this one." Lycus put a small hand through the metal bars. The tiger bared its large sharp teeth and growled as it approached the hand inside the cage. The animal sniffed the small hand as its golden eyes stared into the calm blueness of the young boy’s eyes. Suddenly, the animal lay down and began rubbing its large furry face against the small hand. Lysia now inserted a hand through the metal bars and began petting the tiger too.

The black mastiff was still with the children and did not appreciate another animal getting all their attention and started barking and jumping up and down.

"What’s the matter with him?" Lycus glanced at the barking dog.

"I guess he feels left out." Lysia stopped petting the tiger and kneeled before the dog. The animal happily wagged its tail as it covered the young girl’s face with licks, causing her to giggle.

But the dog was not satisfied with only Lysia noticing him. The animal went for Lycus who had his back to him, as he was still engrossed with the caged tiger. The dog grabbed the slingshot sticking out of the boy’s pants and took off running.

"Bring that back!" Lycus took off after the dog, followed by Lysia.

The black mastiff held the slingshot securely between its jaws as it raced up and down the rows of circus wagons followed by the twins. The animal was confident its two legged pursuers were no matches for the speed of its four legs. But that confidence quickly evaporated when the large dog ran down a row of wagons which led to a dead end. The animal turned around and watched as the children steadily approached it.

"Drop the slingshot!" Lycus slowly approached the cornered animal. Lysia was next to him as they moved closer to the dog.

Obeying the command, the dog immediately dropped the slingshot, backed several feet from it, and then sat down.

Lycus picked up his slingshot and inspected it for damage. "You’re lucky there are no teeth marks." He angrily stared at the dog.

"He probably took it ‘cause he wannit ya to play with him too." Lysia now stood by the dog and gently rubbed a hand down its black back.

"Yeah, I guess." Lycus shoved the slingshot into a pant pocket. "We better go find Joxer now." Lycus had started walking back the way they came when a blinding bright light suddenly appeared in front of him. "Hey, what’s goin’ on!?!?" The child quickly brought his hands up to his eyes to shield them from the brightness.

When the brightness appeared to dim, Lycus removed his hands from his eyes and that’s when he noticed someone standing in front of him. The row was still shrouded in a thick haze making it difficult for him to see but Lycus knew whoever stood before him was not the large dog or Lysia. The young boy was gazing upward to get a glimpse of the stranger’s face, when a large hand reached down and touched his left shoulder, then everything faded to blackness.

Lysia had also shielded her eyes from the blinding light and uncovered them when the brightness dimmed. She tried to scan the thick haze looking for Lycus but didn’t see him. Lysia had cautiously started moving through the thick haze, with the large dog by her side, when she got a glimpse of a tall dark figure moving towards her. The child stopped moving and remained planted where she stood, fear beginning to race through her body. Lysia couldn’t see a face but it did look like whoever it was held something in an arm. As the figure got closer, she realized the something held in an arm was Lycus!

Lysia shrugged off the fear as she stared at her brother’s limp form and took off headed for the tall dark figure.

"What didja do to Lycus!?!?" she yelled, getting ever nearer to the tall dark figure. "What didja do to my bro..."

Lysia’s question was cut short when the figure reached down; touched her right shoulder and all faded to blackness.

Before she could hit the ground, the tall dark figure scooped her up in his free arm. The tall dark figure, now holding the limp forms of both children in his arms, was still shrouded by the haze, when a soft whistle escaped his lips. The black mastiff immediately ran over and stood by his side. Then as quickly as it had appeared, the thick haze vanished, along with its four occupants.

"Lycus was definitely wrong for doing it but I can’t help but laugh ...every time...I think of Joxer... climbing that tree...BUCK NAKED...trying to get his clothes...off that branch," Xena said in between hysterical giggles. "When he finally reached them...they fell out of the tree... on their own."

"And when Joxer realized...how high up he was...he was too scared to come down...and you had to climb up after him," Cyrus giggled. "I guess Joxer...would have sat...NAKED...in that tree...all day...if Lysia hadn’t told us... where he was." Cyrus broke into uproarious laughter along with Xena and Cyrene.

"After that humiliation, Joxer was afraid to take a bath for the rest of the trip," Xena said when the laughter died down.

"Well, it certainly sounds like Lycus made the trip enjoyable for all, except Joxer," Cyrene said with a chuckle. "During the children’s stay, I will have to make sure I don’t end up the victim of such pranks."

"You should be able to handle them just fine," Xena assured. "You have far more experience dealing with children than Joxer."

"Oh, I’ll say. I’ve had plenty of practice dealing with children, who love to play pranks." Cyrene narrowed her gaze on Xena.

"Oh c’mon mother, I wasn’t that bad." Xena took a sip from the mug she held in a hand.

"So, Xena liked to play pranks too?" Cyrus asked with an intrigued look on his face.

"She was always up to something and Lyceus right along with her," Cyrene replied. "Toris tried to keep an eye on them but they always managed to ditch him."

"That certainly sounds familiar." Cyrus stared at his friend with an amused grin.

"We never did any harm...just your typical childish pranks," Xena said. "But we did keep mother and Toris on their toes, wondering what we would do next."

"Well Cyrene, get ready to be on your toes again because these two will definitely keep you there," Cyrus said. "If it was just Lysia, I could say it would be a smooth sail. But when you add Lycus and how he manages every time to coerce his sister into participating in his mischievous pranks one must be prepared for ANYTHING...and I truly mean that. But with your mothering skills and experience, I have no doubt whatsoever that you will be able to handle whatever those two throw at you."

"Why thank you for the vote of confidence." Cyrene tapped her mug against the one Cyrus held before putting it to her lips.

"I would say Joxer seems to have mastered child care considering how long they have been gone," Xena said.

"And that means both kids should be bone tired when they get here, so we can just feed them and then send them off to bed," Cyrus said. "I think it’s time I got their belongings settled in their rooms." Cyrus rose from the table and retrieved the children’s belongings sitting in a corner of the kitchen.

"When you go up the stairs, their rooms are at the end of the hall, the two doors on the right," Cyrene said. Cyrus departed the kitchen, headed for the children’s rooms.

"Xena, when will you and Cyrus be leaving to meet with Ares?" Cyrene rose from the table and started to collect the dirty dishes.

"When Joxer and the children return from the circus and we get them settled in here. Are you still worried about my alliance with Ares?"

"I would be lying if I said no but knowing Cyrus will be working with you has eased some of my concerns," Cyrene replied.

"I’m glad he will be working with us too." Xena rose from the table and headed for the kitchen door.

"Where are you going?" Cyrene quickly asked.

"Argo was favoring her right front leg, so I’m going to the stables to make sure it’s nothing serious." Xena wondered what had her mother so jumpy. "Is that okay?"

"Oh yes...of course," Cyrene replied with a chuckle as she wiped off the table with a damp cloth.

Xena eyed her mother curiously. Cyrene was definitely up to something, she was sure. But right now, she didn’t have the time to figure out just what and departed for the stables.

"Was that Xena I saw leaving the tavern?" a man asked when he entered the kitchen a few minutes later.

"Yes it was Castor." Cyrene deposited the dirty bowls into a bucket of water.

"Well, did you tell her?" Castor anxiously asked.

"No," Cyrene sighed. "We agreed to do it together."

"How do think Xena will react when she hears the news?"

"At first, she will probably be in shock. But then she’ll be so overcome with joy, there are no words to describe it." Cyrene had a huge smile planted on her face, as did Castor. "Considering what Xena is about to face, this is the best news she can get."

Phaedra strolled into the stables humming softly to herself. She had spent most of the day inspecting the sights, wonders and crowds that came with the circus which arrived in Amphipolis a few days ago. Phaedra had enjoyed the seclusion of Castor’s cottage deep in the forest but it was truly invigorating being around so many people. It also inspired her to write and that was the reason for her coming to the stables since it was the only quiet place in town.

Four days ago, Phaedra arrived in Amphipolis with Castor in search of Xena, who both thought could help them find Hope and possibly help with the problem her mother wouldn’t share with them. Ever since Phaedra discovered the warrior woman from her dreams was indeed a real person, she was curious to meet her. But now her reason for wanting to meet Xena had taken on a whole new meaning.

Considering she was the product of a union between a god and a half-god and had grown from a tiny infant to a young woman in a span of only three months, Phaedra knew she was quite unique. But two days ago, she discovered mysteries about herself, which completely overshadowed her unusual origins. Something happened to her that was so amazing; she couldn’t contain her feelings and had to express them in words.

Phaedra opened the leather bag, which hung at her waist, gazed at its contents and smiled. She had just bought a fresh new scroll, a quill and a bottle of ink from a merchant and was all set to record her unusual experience to someday share with others. Phaedra decided the hayloft would be a comfortable place to write and was about to climb the ladder when a familiar sight caught her eye. Phaedra walked over to the golden horse with a white mane, standing in a stall next to two other horses.

"If Argo is here, that means Xena is back," she said with a giddy smile as she approached the horse.

"I wonder if you can tell it’s me even though I don’t look the same." Phaedra stood in front of Argo and held the mare’s face between her hands. "I never thought you liked me and only tolerated my presence for Xena’s sake, but did you miss me Argo?" She stared into the horse’s big brown eyes.

Argo snorted and swooshed her long white tail.

"I don’t know if that is a yes, but just the same, I am glad to see you." Phaedra smiled as she rubbed a hand down Argo’s golden face.

"Well Argo, I see you’ve made a new friend." Xena stood by the stable’s doorway.

"I was just admiring her golden coat and white mane. She is a beauty," Phaedra said nervously. For the past two days, she had longed for this moment, but Xena’s sudden arrival had caught her completely off-guard.

"Don’t say that too loud, or you’ll give her a bigger head than she already has," Xena jested as she approached the mare.

Argo whinnied in protest.

Phaedra silently watched as Xena inspected Argo’s front right leg and walked the horse around some.

"I guess it was just fatigue from the long journey. You appear to be all right now girl." Xena patted Argo on the side. "By the way, my name’s Xena. What’s yours?"

"I’m...Phaedra."

"Well, nice to meet you Phaedra," Xena said with a smile. She then proceeded to the stable’s doorway to leave.

When Phaedra made her startling discovery two days ago and shared it with Castor and Cyrene, the older woman had requested to be present when Phaedra talked with Xena. But the young woman was so overcome with joy over seeing Xena, that she decided to share her discovery with the warrior woman with just the two of them present.

"Wait Xena! You are just the person I came to Amphipolis to see," Phaedra anxiously stated.

"Oh, really?" Xena halted her approach towards the stable door and now faced the young woman. There was a curious look in her eyes.

"I guess I should start from the beginning." Phaedra nervously pulled on the strap of the leather bag, which hung from a shoulder.

At that moment, if she could shake herself, Phaedra would have. For the last two days, she had gone over the moment when she was finally face to face with Xena countless times and now that the moment was here; she was actually having trouble finding the right words.

"A few weeks ago, I started having horrible dreams in which I saw my own death," Phaedra said softly. "I also had visions where I saw you." Xena moved from her position by the stable door and now stood closer to Phaedra as the young woman continued to speak. "Castor…the dear friend traveling with me… thought the godly blood running through my veins was the cause for the dreams and the visions."

On hearing Phaedra’s connection to the gods, Xena raised an eyebrow and had a look of intrigue on her face.

"Four months ago, my mother brought me into the world with Castor’s help." Phaedra stared directly into Xena’s crystal blue eyes when she spoke her next words. "My mother’s name is Hope."

Xena’s eyes widened with realization then took on a hard edge. "So, Hope survived the fall into the lava pit. I really shouldn’t be surprised. Gabrielle should have named her Phoenix." Xena began circling Phaedra like cornered prey. "That makes you the first of the dreaded destroyers."

Xena looked Phaedra up and down. The young woman had an attractive oval face, olive complexion, straight nose, full rose colored lips, emerald green eyes and long curly auburn hair pulled back and tied with a black bow with a few curly strands framing her face. She was almost as tall as Xena and slender built. She wore a royal blue shirt, olive green skirt and black walking boots. She looked no different than any other village maiden.

"You don’t look evil, but then again, neither did Hope." Xena stopped circling Phaedra and stood facing her. The hardness of her face revealed her intentions as she unsheathed her sword and pointed it at the young woman before her.

Phaedra’s green eyes widened with surprise as she quickly stepped back to increase the distance between herself and the deadly blade. "I understand your angry feelings regarding Hope but you must hear all I have to say."

"I have heard all I need to." Xena viciously swung her sword at the young woman’s neck.

Phaedra quickly dodged the deadly blow; her eyes fixed on Xena, as she continued to move away from the warrior woman.

"Did your evil grandfather send you here thinking you would be able to persuade me to join him?" Xena continued to pursue Phaedra around the stables, her sword held firmly in her right hand and ready for attack.

"I’m not working with Dahak. I’m here because I want to help you defeat him." Phaedra was so focused on Xena and her drawn sword, she didn’t notice the pitchfork lying in her path directly behind her until she tripped over it. Fear was in her green eyes as she laid on her back and tried to move away from Xena who was steadily approaching her. But one of her arms was tangled in the strap of the leather purse and slowed her movements.

"Do you really expect me to believe that?" Xena now stood over Phaedra’s fallen form. She raised her sword above her head and prepared to bring it down upon the young woman lying before her.

Phaedra knew she had to stop Xena before she did something she would truly regret. Phaedra had never shown much interest in her godly powers but she did experiment with a few tricks.

"Xena, DON’T!"

Xena was bringing her sword down for a blow that would surely kill Phaedra when she felt a strong force yank her sword from her grasp. Her eyes widened with surprise as she watched her sword impale itself in the wall at the other end of the stables. No longer able to use her sword, Xena unhooked her chakram from her waist. But before she could attack the fallen young woman with the deadly round object, it too was pulled from her grasp and embedded in the ceiling of the stables. With her two trusty weapons gone, Xena was still determined to attack Phaedra, and approached the fallen young woman with a murderous gleam in her eyes as she desperately tried to crawl away from her.

"Please Xena, STOP!" Phaedra used her powers to hurl Xena into a wall.

Xena hit the stable wall with a loud crash then slumped to the floor. The collision with the wall left her severely dazed as she tried to stand only to collapse to the floor again. Her glazed over eyes tried to focus on Phaedra as the young woman finally rose to her feet again.

"I didn’t want to do that Xena, but you left me no choice. You have to LISTEN to me."

Xena only groaned and rubbed the back of her bowed head with a hand.

"Let me tell you how I die in the nightmare I mentioned earlier," Phaedra said. "I am falling and heading straight for bubbling lava. The lava is in a pit and as I look up, I see you kneeling by the edge of the pit and you yell out to me one last time...you say my name...Gabrielle."

Ignoring the ache in her head, Xena quickly raised her bowed head and stared at Phaedra.

"I know my words come as a shock to you Xena. I was in shock too when I discovered my true identity," Phaedra said. "Two days ago, after waking from that same horrible nightmare yet again, memories of my life flooded my mind...Potidaea, my parents, Lila, Perdicus, even Joxer but most of all you." Phaedra’s emerald green eyes stared into Xena’s crystal blue ones.

"You can’t be Gabrielle," Xena said hoarsely. "Hope and Dahak drove her to her death and she is gone forever."

"I am her Xena and I can prove it," Phaedra pleaded as she stared at the fallen warrior woman who rolled her eyes and let out a snort upon hearing her words. "I remember your last words to me before we went into Dahak’s temple. You didn’t want me to feel guilty when you were gone."

"Lucky guess," Xena said nonchalantly as she finally stood and began to brush away the straw clinging to her limbs.

"You said a lot had happened to us over the past year and there were times when we were both confused," Phaedra said softly. Xena had stopped brushing the straw from her person and now stood staring at Phaedra struck by her last words. "But you still thought I was the best thing that ever happened to you and I gave your life meaning and joy..." Phaedra lost her voice and just stood there staring at Xena.

As her mind absorbed Phaedra’s last words, Xena thought of all the mornings she would awake wishing the tragic events of Dahak’s temple just a nightmare and her beloved Gabrielle was still alive, sleeping peacefully in the bedroll next to hers only to be hit with the cold reality of the bard being gone forever.

Now she stood face to face with a young woman who had just recited the last words she spoke to Gabrielle the day the bard died. And to top it all off, Phaedra was claiming to be Gabrielle. Was it the truth or the art of deceit inherited from her evil grandfather? Throughout her many travels, Xena had seen many unexplained wonders and supernatural fetes so Gabrielle being brought back to life was fathomable but could something she secretly prayed for have actually come true? Xena stared hard at the young woman before her. Her appearance was completely different from Gabrielle’s but Xena had to admit there was a familiarness in those green eyes she hadn’t noticed before.

"Gabrielle...is it really you?" she asked, her voice starting to crack.

"Yes, Xena...it’s me," Gabrielle said with tears of joy in her eyes as she started to approach Xena.

"Oh, Gabrielle," Xena sobbed as walked to meet her in the middle of the stables.

All was quiet in the stables except for the sobs of joy pouring from the mouths of the two women, as they stood in the middle of the stables, tightly embracing each other. Then, abruptly, Xena broke their embrace. A large smile was planted on her face stained with tears of sheer joy.

"This is the happiest day of my life...you’re alive Gabrielle," she said. "YOU’RE ALIVE!!!" she shouted as she began to playfully spin them around the stables. As they spun around the stables, Xena shouted "You’re alive!!!" again and again. Gabrielle’s joyous laughter mingled with the shouts of her friend. She had never seen Xena so emotional before and truly liked it. Argo glanced up from the hay she was nibbling to stare at the spinning women for a few moments before returning her attention to the tasty hay.

Both women were starting to feel dizzy from the spinning and collapsed on a large pile of hay in a corner of the stables. Both were laughing hysterically as they lay on their backs in the pile of hay. Xena flailed her arms around, tossing some hay in the air, which landed on them both. They laughed so hard, their sides were aching and when the laughter finally ceased, they gazed into each other’s eyes.

"Oh Gabrielle, how I’ve missed you." Xena pulled her friend close for a tight embrace.

"I missed you too Xena." Gabrielle tightly hugged her friend back.

The search for the twins was well into its second hour and Joxer was starting to panic. He was so sure he would have found them by now after speaking to the vendor at the dart-throwing booth and several in the crowd gathered around it. When Joxer had given a description of the twins, all had immediately recognized them as the boy who was an extraordinary dart player and the little girl who held his toy winnings. They had abruptly run off only a few minutes before Joxer arrived at the booth. He had quickly taken off in the direction they were last seen headed. But the crowd had grown so large due to the show about to get underway at the big top, so it was like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

Joxer was beginning to think he would never find the twins. And to make matters worse, he could feel a headache forming in the back of his head. Joxer hoped this one didn’t bring along that angry voice. Once this mess with the twins was settled, he would definitely make an appointment with the town physician to find out what was going on inside his head.

Joxer thought maybe by some small chance, the twins had made their way to Cyrene’s tavern and that’s where they were right now. The little harpies were probably sitting around a table laughing at how they had ditched him and made their way to the tavern by themselves. He decided to head for the tavern and hoped Lycus and Lysia would already be there.

When Joxer arrived at the tavern, it was filled with people who had just left the show under the big top. Chatter about the amazing fetes just witnessed could be heard throughout the room as people satisfied their thirst and filled their stomachs.

Joxer’s brown eyes quickly scanned the room, looking for the twins among the crowd but didn’t see them. They may be upstairs, in their rooms, he thought. Joxer was making his way through the crowded tables, headed towards the stairs when he heard a familiar voice call out to him.

"So Joxer, I see you survived your outing with the twins at the circus."

Joxer hesitantly turned in the direction the voice had come. He saw Cyrus, with a mug in his right hand heading directly towards him.

"Yeah, I made it back in one piece all right," Joxer said when Cyrus stood before him. "We all had a great time. The kids were really no trouble at all."

"Well, that’s good to hear," Cyrus said with a pleased smile. "Where are the twins?"

"Oh, the kids are upstairs, checking out their rooms."

"But how can that be when they don’t even know which rooms are theirs?" Cyrus narrowed the gaze of his hazel eyes. "So where are the kids really Joxer?"

"Nothing gets past you does it? " Joxer chuckled. "What I meant to say was that the kids wanted to check out their rooms and ran off looking for you so you could tell them which ones are theirs. They are somewhere in this crowd." Joxer stood tiptoed and scanned the crowd like he was trying to locate the twins.

"You don’t know where they are, do you?" Cyrus calmly asked.

"Of course I do," Joxer chuckled. "They are in this tavern...somewhere." He continued to pretend to be searching for the twins among the crowd.

"It’s okay Joxer, you don’t have to pretend anymore, I know the twins are not here." Cyrus put a hand on Joxer’s shoulder. "I should have warned you something like this could happen. Lycus loves to ditch adult supervision so he and Lysia can explore by themselves."

"Uh, now that you’ve mentioned it...the twins did ditch me when I tried to break up a fight," Joxer admitted, slightly bowing his head. "I have been trying to find them for the last two hours. The vendor at a dart booth and others remembered seeing the twins but after that nothing. It’s like they vanished."

"They haven’t vanished Joxer, they just don’t want to be found. We better go find them. It will be dark soon." Cyrus put his empty mug on the bar, then departed the tavern with Joxer.

"Since they are hiding from us, how will we find them?" Joxer asked as the pair started walking down the street.

"Lycus and Lysia know I don’t tolerate these pranks, so when they see me, they will know the game is OVER," Cyrus firmly replied.

Despite the sun descending in the sky, the streets of Amphipolis were still filled with people. The circus was putting on an evening show under the big top and people were preparing for it. Joxer took Cyrus down the street, past the dart vendor and through an alley. They ended up on the street that took them directly to the makeshift campsite of the circus performers located behind the big top.

"Do you really think the kids would come back here?" Joxer gazed around at the many wagons. "There’s nothing back here that would catch their attention."

"They might have if they figured it was the last place you would look for them."

"That’s true, and I never did search back here," Joxer admitted.

The pair decided to check the wagons to see if any of the performers had seen the kids and split up to cover more ground.

Cyrus went down to the last row of wagons alongside some cages. He didn’t see any of the circus performers in sight as he approached a cage containing a tiger. The large animal paced back and forth and let out a growl when Cyrus approached the cage. On the ground, by the cage, was lying a gray sack. Cyrus picked up the sack and inspected its contents. The sack contained many stuffed toy animals along with a wooden toy soldier and an Egyptian princess doll. Cyrus remembered Joxer recounting for him, his conversation with the dart vendor who had said that Lycus had won several prizes at his booth, all toys.

Cyrus gazed at the dirt around the cage and noticed several footprints the size of children’s walking boots. There were also the prints of an animal, probably a dog. Cyrus was sure the prints were those of the twins and the bag of toys was probably theirs too. The children wouldn’t just leave the toys and had to be close by, maybe in one of the wagons. Holding the sack of toys firmly in a hand, Cyrus started walking down a row of wagons, hoping he would find the twins in one of them.

Joxer was walking down a row of wagons, when he saw a young woman, come out of a purple tent on top of one and proceeded to hang what look like several costumes on a clothes line. She was petite, with long brown hair and a slender athletic body. Joxer figured she was probably one of the acrobats performing in the circus.

"Excuse me miss, can I have a word with you?" Joxer asked when he stood on the other side of the clothesline, facing her.

"What’s this about?" The woman hung the last costume on the line and then gave Joxer her full attention.

Joxer crossed under the clothesline and now stood before her. "I was wondering if you had seen some kids back here...a boy and a girl...dark hair, tan complexions, about so tall?"

"As a matter of fact, I did see some kids like you described but that was at least an hour ago. I was in my wagon trying to get some sleep...I have a show to do tonight...when I heard yelling. I looked out my tent and saw a little boy and girl chasing a dog down the row of wagons. I just figured it was kids being kids and went on to take my nap." The woman noticed the disappointed look on Joxer’s face. "Sorry I can’t be of more help but I do hope you find them." The woman retreated into her tent atop the wagon to get ready for the night show under the big top.

At least he now knew the twins had indeed made their way to the makeshift camp, so Joxer wasn’t completely disappointed. If one person had seen them, maybe others had as well, and maybe they were still in the camp, in one of the wagons.

Cyrus was exiting a wagon after talking with a circus performer who hadn’t seen the children and about to head for the next wagon when he realized he had reached a dead end. The wagon he had just exited was right up against a stone wall of a large building. Cyrus was about to head back the way he had come when he noticed again, footprints the size of children’s walking boots in the dirt near the wall and the wagon. Cyrus was in a crouch position over the small prints in deep thought. The children had indeed been back there, but where were they now? The children had to know he had joined Joxer in the search for them, so why were they continuing the prank? As he rose to his full height, Cyrus had to admit he was starting to worry about the twins.

The dead end prevented Cyrus from checking more wagons so he headed back the way he came. He had only gotten halfway down the row, when a blinding bright light suddenly appeared before him, which he immediately shielded his eyes from with his hands. When the brightness dimmed, Cyrus removed his hands from his eyes. He was still shrouded by a haze but the outlines of the wagons on either side of him were visible to view. Cyrus had slowly started walking down the row, when he suddenly saw a tall dark figure moving through the haze towards him. At first, he couldn’t see a face, but as the person moved closer, the features of a face slowly came into view until Cyrus knew exactly who was approaching him.

"Ares...why am I not surprised this is your doing?" Cyrus shook his head in disgust. "What are you up to now?" The former Watcher’s hazel eyes suddenly widened with realization. "The children! What have you..."

Cyrus’ question regarding the children was cut short when Ares’ right fist made hard contact with his jaw, knocking the former Watcher back several feet, right into the stone wall, which he slumped against, unconscious on the ground, the sack of toys he had held lying next to him.

The circus performer Cyrus had been talking to just a few minutes earlier, heard the commotion, peeked out his tent, saw the strange haze, didn’t like it and retreated into the safety of his tent again.

Ares now stood over Cyrus’ unconscious form with a scowl on his face, which masked the anger boiling just below the surface. With one hand, he lifted Cyrus by the collar of his shirt, off the ground. The war god stared with contempt at the unconscious face of the former Watcher a few moments, before they both vanished along with the haze.

"I am so sorry I tried to kill you." Xena’s face riddled with guilt as a hand softly caressed her friend’s left cheek.

"It’s okay Xena," Gabrielle assured. A hand now held onto Xena’s which was caressing her face. "I had essentially just told you I was the destroyer, so your actions were understandable. Besides, I was never really in any danger." There was a confident smile on Gabrielle’s face.

"Oh, I’ll say. You handled yourself rather well indeed." Xena rubbed the back of her head.

"I tried to be as gentle as I could," Gabrielle sheepishly stated. "But I haven’t been comfortable with the powers that came along with this body and don’t use them very often, so I guess I’m kinda rusty."

"From now on when you use those powers, just make sure I’m not the target."

"I promise," Gabrielle said with a faint smile.

"Now, could you please remove my chakram from the ceiling?"

"It would be my pleasure." Gabrielle gazed up at the chakram embedded in a wood plank of the ceiling. A moment later, the chakram dislodged itself from the ceiling and floated down to land in the hay next to Xena, who hooked the round metal object to her waist.

"So, who do I have to thank for this welcomed miracle?" Xena’s crystal blue eyes sparkled as they gazed at her best friend. Both were now sitting crossed legged on the pile of hay, facing each other.

Gabrielle took Xena’s hands in hers and squeezed them with affection. "Hope is the one who saved me." She stared into her friend’s eyes waiting for her reaction.

"Hope?" Xena whispered as she removed her hands from Gabrielle’s grasp. "You are telling me that Hope brought you back to life after you tried to kill her for the second time?" Xena had an eyebrow raised in disbelief as she leaned back on her hands.

"I know it’s a surprise considering her history, but she’s the one who actually brought me back."

"Well, I can’t wait to hear this," Xena snorted.

"After I plunged into the lava pit with Hope, we were both falling, then we hit the boiling lava. I lost sight of Hope. My screams of pain practically ruptured my eardrums as the lava consumed my flesh." Gabrielle saw the look of sympathy in Xena’s eyes as she listened to how she died. "Then, I must have died because all went black and I didn’t feel the burning pain any more. After that, I was bombarded with all these emotions, anger, rage, jealousy, loneliness, bitterness...and it was so dark and so cold. I was afraid I had ended up in Tartarus, then I heard Hope’s voice call out to me. She told me my body had been destroyed by the lava but she had captured my spirit and it now resided in her."

Xena’s head rested on her hands as her bent arms rested on her thighs. She was thoroughly entranced as she listened to Gabrielle’s tale.

"Hope’s body now housed both our spirits. I could see, feel and hear things again but through her body. We were still in the lava, weightlessly floating. The lava could not destroy Hope’s body since she had taken on immortality after her rebirth," Gabrielle said. "What I experienced was so incredible, that the only thing I can compare it to was the time your spirit entered my body and we shared a consciousness. Being that close to Hope finally allowed me to see my daughter from a completely different perspective. On the outside, she appeared to be a grown woman but on the inside, she was still a child...a very scared and confused one at that."

Xena rolled her eyes, but remained silent. Hope was the one person on which they would probably always have different opinions.

"All those emotions I felt earlier were coming from Hope and the most powerful one was jealousy. Hope was very jealous of you." Gabrielle stared into her friend’s crystal blue eyes. Xena had a look of genuine surprise on her face. "Hope always believed I loved you far more than her, my own daughter. I abandoned her in Britannia, I poisoned her after she killed your son Solan, then I tried to kill her again and myself when I plunged us both into that lava pit so you could live. And in Hope’s mind, everything I did was because I loved you and hated her," she said, slightly bowing her head. "In the centaur village, I told Hope that I loved her and I meant it. What I hated were the acts she committed in the name of her father and that’s why I had to stop her." Gabrielle had a look of agony on her face with her last words.

"My mother felt the same way about me," Xena softly stated. "She hated the horrible things I did as a warlord but she never stopped loving me."

"Hope didn’t believe that’s how I truly felt about her until we shared the same consciousness. Just as I could feel her emotions, Hope could feel mine and was finally able to believe that I did indeed love her," Gabrielle said. "This discovery had a profound effect on Hope, so much so, that the Destroyer still growing inside her was in danger of dying." Xena had a perplexed look on her face upon hearing this. "The child fed off Hope’s dark emotions...jealousy, anger, fear, rage. These emotions made it strong...gave it life. When Hope realized I loved her, the power of those dark emotions started to fade and with it, the life force of the Destroyer. The child was near death when Hope transferred my spirit into the body of the dying destroyer. With no dark emotions on which to feed, the spirit of the Destroyer died but its body remained unharmed and it became the new home for my spirit. The Destroyer would have been male and a hideous monster but the goodness of my essence altered the sex and the appearance," she said. "After I entered the body of the destroyer, all the memories of my life faded and didn’t start to return until my rapid growth spurts. The last one put me at the age you see me now and with it, came all the memories of my life as Gabrielle."

Xena had never heard such an amazing story and was truly in awe. "I always knew you were the stronger one and after hearing what you went through, there’s not a doubt in my mind that is true," she said. "You said earlier that you came to Amphipolis with a friend. Is Hope here too?"

"Hope left us over a month ago so I don’t know where she is. That was my original reason for coming to see you. Castor and I thought you could help us find her. But since then, Castor has filled me in on what Hope told him about her reasons for leaving and I can only assume she is with Dahak." Gabrielle bowed her head.

"The unique experience you shared with Hope strengthened your mother-daughter bond but I’m afraid her bond with her father is much stronger...maybe even unbreakable."

"No Xena, I refuse to believe that," Gabrielle firmly stated, as she stared at her friend. "Castor and I were there when Hope left and she was truly broken up about it. And now I know the only reason she left was to protect Castor and me from Dahak. She is no longer consumed with her father’s plans for this world."

"Well, for your sake Gabrielle, I pray that you are right."

"Cyrene will probably be mad that I told you I’m alive without her. She wanted to see the joy on your face when you heard the news, so we agreed to do it together."

"I think she will understand that it worked out for the best with us being alone when you told me. These last two days must have been hard for you, not knowing when or if I would show up."

"I was pretty anxious to see you but I had Castor for support. And your mother did a good job of passing the time by telling me what happened during my absence. She told me all about your confrontation with Dahak and her finally revealing to you that he is your real father. You could have knocked me over with a feather when I heard that one."

"I didn’t want to believe Dahak when he first told me about our ‘connection’ but by the time mother admitted his words were indeed the truth I had pretty much prepared myself for that possibility." Xena rose from the hay and leaned against the wall of a nearby empty stall. "At least now I know why I was so good at being evil." A slight chuckle escaped her lips.

"C’mon Xena, this is Gabrielle, your best friend, back from the dead, so you can tell me how you really feel about this news concerning Dahak." She had also risen from the hay and now stood facing Xena.

"There really is nothing more to say about that subject." Xena saw the skeptical look etched on her friend’s face. "I will be just fine Gabrielle. I really haven’t given much thought to Dahak being my father and have focused all my energies on killing him."

Gabrielle knew discovering Dahak was her father had to be tearing Xena up inside. The bard also knew she was the one person who could get Xena to share her true feelings regarding this shocking discovery. But she also knew with all that was happening, the timing was not right to get into a deep discussion about her friend’s father and decided to just drop the issue for now at least.

"I see Cyrene was not exaggerating when she told me how determined you were to stop Dahak despite recent discoveries. From what I understand, you are so focused on defeating the One Great Evil that you have even allied yourself with someone who should be your enemy."

"I see mother has filled you in on my alliance with Ares, and from your tone, I take it you share her sentiments that this alliance is a big mistake."

"Yes I do," Gabrielle firmly replied. "I understand and wholeheartedly support your decision to be in the fight against Dahak. But I don’t understand why you have to team up with Ares to do it. You know he can’t be trusted."

"I teamed up with Ares because the other gods are oblivious to Dahak’s return and won’t help," Xena said. "And Ares has in his possession scrolls which will lead us to a sword that can kill Dahak. And I happen to know the one person who can translate those scrolls and lead us to that sword."

"I know all about your friend coming to Greece to help in the fight against Dahak and I think it’s great but it doesn’t erase the concerns I share with your mother regarding this alliance with Ares and when I think of what’s happening between you two and..." Gabrielle’s voice trailed off as she bowed her head.

"What do you think is happening?" Xena moved closer to her friend. "My mother told you something, didn’t she?"

"It’s nothing, just forget I said anything," Gabrielle quickly stated, a blush forming in her cheeks.

"What did my mother say?" Xena held Gabrielle’s chin and forced the bard to look at her. "C’mon Gabrielle, out with it."

"Cyrene is afraid you will go back to Ares." Gabrielle removed her chin from Xena’s grasp as she avoided looking at her friend.

"And what reason did my mother give you for thinking this?"

The bard continued to avoid her friend’s gaze and remained silent. The red hue painting her face deepened in color.

"I’m waiting for an answer to my question Gabrielle."

Gabrielle fidgeted a little before finally answering Xena’s question. "Cyrene told me you...you slept with Ares." The last part was barely audible but Xena was able to hear every word.

"I can’t believe her!!!" Xena slammed a fist against the stall wall. She turned from Gabrielle and started walking around the stables. "You certainly weren’t exaggerating when you said my mother told ALL that happened during your absence." Gabrielle’s eyes followed her friend as she angrily stalked the stables. Xena now stood by her sword embedded in a stable wall, which she dislodged and placed in the scabbard on her back. "And silly me assumed you two would have had plenty to talk about with your resurrection and Dahak’s arrival. But those two topics obviously were not as stimulating as I thought because you two felt the need to delve into the recent developments of my sex life." Her words dripped heavy with sarcasm. Xena now stood inside an empty stall, facing Gabrielle, with one of its walls between them. Her hands firmly gripped the top of the wall.

"Cyrene only told me Xena because she knows just like I do, how much you despise Ares and for you to...to sleep with him is a definite sign you are not thinking clearly."

"You know, I expected this kind of reaction and that’s why I never wanted either of you to know."

"Since you already knew how your mother and I would react, this tryst with Ares being a HUGE mistake has crossed your mind too?"

"Yeah, the thought did cross my mind but only for a brief moment…and despite your and my mother’s certainty that my actions were those of a woman with a clouded mind, sleeping with Ares was the first clear-headed decision I made after your death."

"Xena!" Etched on Gabrielle’s face was a look mixed with fear and shock. She didn’t believe that Xena really meant a word of what she just said. Gabrielle figured she was just being stubborn because she felt like her mother and best friend were ganging up on her.

"I’m not trying to scare you Gabrielle," Xena sighed. "We haven’t talked much about my past with Ares but I know how perceptive you are so you probably figured out some time ago that we are former lovers."

"Yeah, I did figure that out quite a while back," Gabrielle admitted.

"After your death, I tried to continue helping people like you would have wanted but I felt myself reverting into the evil person I use to be. I thought coming back to Amphipolis would help me regain the focus I needed to stay on the right path but it didn’t. I was so afraid that I wouldn’t be able to keep the promise I made to you and become a monster again." Xena gazed at the sympathetic look on Gabrielle’s face. "In shark smelling blood fashion, Ares showed up and delivered his same old pitch about me joining him but this time he threw in Dahak’s arrival and us working together to defeat him." Xena leaned against the stall wall between them. "For the umpteenth time, I turned him down but he refused to take no as my answer so we ended up crossing swords. What happened after that was totally unexpected by either of us."

A chill went down Gabrielle’s spine as she thought about her friend letting a snake like Ares touch her.

"When Ares first kissed me, I knew it was wrong and resisted. But when he kissed me the second time, it brought back memories of what it was like being with him and a lot of those memories were actually good," Xena confessed. "I know this will sound like a contradiction, with Ares being a war god and all, but I always felt safe and at peace whenever he held me in his arms." Xena stared intently at Gabrielle’s face. The bard’s eyes were filled with confusion as she listened to her best friend explain recent intimacies with the god who was always causing trouble in their lives. "I guess the best way to describe what was happening to me is to declare it a war...the person I am now, thanks mostly to you versus my old evil self. I was afraid the old me might win so I was desperate to find peace and as shocking as it may sound, being with Ares actually helped me find that peace and I was able to keep my promise to you."

Both women now stood in silence facing each other. Gabrielle knew Xena was anxious for her to say something. After hearing Xena’s explanation of these rather shocking events, Gabrielle had to admit that maybe her friend’s brief tryst with Ares wasn’t as bad as she thought.

"This is something I never pictured myself saying but if being with Ares helped you stay on the hero’s path, then maybe, it wasn’t so wrong after all."

"I know my mother will always see it as wrong but I am glad that at least you see it my way," Xena said with a faint smile.

"After everything you told me…yeah…I guess I can see it your way," Gabrielle admitted. "I would have loved to have seen Ares’ face the morning after, when you told him you were going to continue helping people." Gabrielle now had a devilish grin planted on her face. "Talk about major disappointment."

"No, Ares was not too happy when I told him. But knowing him like I do, he only sees this as a minor setback and is already concocting yet another scheme to get me back."

"No one would ever say Ares lacks persistence," Gabrielle snickered. "He probably sees what happened between you two as a partial success since he did manage to get you back in his bed."

"Gabrielle!" Now it was Xena’s turn to have the color of her face deepen to red hues.

"Oh, c’mon Xena, I have seen the way Ares looks at you," Gabrielle teased. "He does not just want you back to lead his armies. He wants you back as a lover too."

"Really, Gabrielle..."

"And we can’t leave out that massive ego of his," the bard interjected. "The conceited bastard probably thinks that with the right seduction ploy he can get you horizontal again, and this time around, he will be irresistible and you will finally come back to him."

Gabrielle now had a very proud look on her face. She hadn’t known Ares as long as Xena but she felt she had known him long enough to figure out how his mind worked and was confident with her speculations regarding the war god’s next move to try to win Xena back. But she was completely oblivious to the uncomfortable look on Xena’s face, which clearly indicated she longed for a conclusion to this topic that she wished had remained private.

"But Ares will soon discover that any romantic intention he has towards you won’t get any further than the fantasies of his diluted mind. What happened between you two was a one time thing which you have no intention of ever repeating." Gabrielle finally looked at Xena and saw the uncomfortable frown on her face. At that moment, a sickening thought entered her mind. "Oh gods Xena, please tell me what happened between you and Ares was a one time thing."

The moment of silence seemed to last forever before Xena finally spoke.

"Well, what happened was really a two time thing." Xena avoided Gabrielle’s gaze as she started picking at splintered wood protruding from the top of the stall wall.

"TWICE!!! You slept with him TWICE!!!

Gabrielle turned her back to her friend and plopped down on a block of hay, situated on the other side of the stall wall. A long exhausted sigh escaped her lips.

"I guess you are back to siding with my mother again?" Xena no longer stood inside the stall and was now facing her friend.

"Gee, what part of my reaction gave it away?" Gabrielle snorted as she folded her arms across her chest.

"Oh for Zeus’ sake, it was just sex...and it’s not like I’ve never done it with him before!" Xena just wanted this subject to die already. When she dreamed of Gabrielle’s miraculous return, this was the last thing she pictured they would be discussing.

"How can you say that Xena? We are not just talking about some plain ol’ harmless mortal man. We are talking about Ares, the god who threatened to kill you if you didn’t come back to him, put Callisto in your body and sent you to Tartarus, had the Furies punish you with insanity and his most recent stunt which we can be sure won’t be his last was to have the Fates cut your life-thread if you killed Hope."

"I don’t need to be reminded of how Ares has tormented me."

"Well, I think you do need reminding because on two separate occasions, you willingly had sex with the god who is responsible for so much trouble in our lives." Gabrielle stared hard into the crystal blue eyes of her friend. "Xena, do you want to go back to Ares?"

"No, of course not," Xena quickly replied.

"Even if it’s just some small part…waaaay down deep inside that wants this you could tell me you know...because now…it’s pretty obvious to me that some part of you must still be attracted to him despite all that he has done...for you to do what you did with him."

"Oh, all right Gabrielle, I will admit it. A part of me is still very much attracted to Ares," Xena confessed in a weary tone. "The attraction has always been there and for a long time, I did a pretty good job of suppressing it...until recently." Xena saw the color drain from Gabrielle’s olive face as she spoke her last words. "I truly believe the first time had a purpose beyond pleasure and that was keeping me on the path I traveled with you...helping people. After the second time, I knew continuing to give into this attraction would lead me right back to Ares and my old life which is my past and has NO place whatsoever in my future." There was a firmness to Xena’s voice that matched the determination in her crystal blue eyes.

"You don’t know how relieved I am to hear that," Gabrielle sighed while staring up at her friend. "I hope you know the only reason I keep harping on such an intimate topic is because I only want the best for you, which in my mind clearly ain’t Ares. What he has done to you...to us...is burned into my brain and I don’t want to see you get hurt."

"It’s okay Gabrielle," Xena sighed as she let a hand brush back a curly auburn strand hanging in her friend’s face. "I know what you said was out of love and concern for my well being. I would do the same for you." Xena took Gabrielle’s hands in hers, squeezing them affectionately as she stared into the bard’s green eyes. "But I don’t want you to worry about me and Ares anymore. The only thing between us now is this alliance to defeat Dahak and once that is accomplished, things will go back to the way they were."

"I’m saying a lot of things today I thought I never would but I’m actually looking forward to the same old, same old because working alongside Ares will be downright bizarre," Gabrielle said with a smirk. "And since he never liked me, I can’t wait to see his face when he discovers I’m alive."

"No, he won’t be happy. And it will really tick him off that you were saved by using the body of his own child. But that’s his problem and I really don’t care if you being alive bothers him. I’m ecstatic you’re alive!" Xena pulled Gabrielle to her feet and gave the bard a tight hug. When they broke the hug, there was a large smile planted on Xena’s face. She ran a finger down Gabrielle’s left cheek. "Your new look will take some getting use to and you’re almost as tall as me now but I will adjust."

"My new look will be a lot easier to adjust to than when we thought you would be stuck in Callisto’s body," Gabrielle said with a sly smile.

"That’s true," Xena said. "And wait ‘til Joxer sees you. He’s gonna flip. And wait ‘til you see him, he really has changed and for the better."

"Cyrene told me he has become very skilled with a staff. I may be kinda rusty and might have to spar with him to get myself up to speed again."

"I know Joxer would love that," Xena said. "And when we tell Joxer about this welcomed miracle, we’ll make sure mother is present to make up for her missing when I was told."

"Let’s go tell him now, Joxer’s at the tavern right?"

"He took the kids traveling with us to the circus but that was a few hours ago, so they should be at the tavern by now."

"Kids? Cyrene didn’t mention anything about children traveling with you."

"That’s because they originally weren’t suppose to be coming with us but there was a last minute change," Xena said. "The children are Cyrus’ wards. They are six year old twins, a boy and a girl to be exact and they really are two great kids." Xena’s eyes were sparkling and a smile was planted on her face as she spoke of the twins.

"I can see you have taken pretty quick to these kids." Gabrielle couldn’t help but notice the sparkle in her friend’s eyes and the huge smile on her face.

"You will be too when you meet them," Xena said, still smiling. "They are friendly, funny, loving, smart and oh so cute."

"Well, these kids have definitely captured your heart, which I know is not easy to do so let’s get back to the tavern so I can meet the children who accomplished such a fete," Gabrielle said with a wicked grin.

There was a clear sky on this autumn night. Large torches lit up the streets of Amphipolis as some residents enjoyed the various games offered by circus vendors while others hurried through the streets to attend the last big event of that day, the evening show under the big top.

"I can’t believe that this could happen to me twice in one day," Joxer muttered. "First the twins and now Cyrus." He had spent the last hour wandering up and down the rows of wagons which made up the makeshift camp of the circus performers searching for the missing twins and Cyrus who appeared to have disappeared as well.

Only a few of the performers Joxer caught in their tents remembered speaking with Cyrus about the twins but none had seen him since. And none recalled seeing the children. Most of the performers seemed to be in a hurry to prepare for the evening show under the big top and not willing to give Joxer’s questions much attention. When the sky had blackened to night, Joxer decided to give up the search.

Walking slowly, Joxer maneuvered his way down a crowded street, headed for Cyrene’s tavern.

"Oh, my head is killing me," he groaned while rubbing the fingers of his right hand against a temple to soothe the building pain. Joxer had no idea how he was going to tell Xena he lost first the twins then Cyrus.

When he reached the tavern, Joxer wearily walked through the door. The tavern was still pretty full with people. He decided he needed something to soothe his aching head before he talked to Xena so he headed towards the kitchen. Joxer had just reached the kitchen door and was about to walk through it when suddenly; he was grabbed by a shoulder and swiftly turned around to face the bar again.

"It’s about time you got here. I thought we would have to send out a search party," Cyrene said with a huge smile before embracing Joxer in a big hug. "So, did you and the children have a good time at the circus?"

"Yes, but..."

"You can tell me all about the show later," Cyrene quickly interrupted. "There are some people you must meet." Her eyes sparkled and a large smile was planted on her beaming face. She firmly held Joxer by the left elbow and led him through packed tables to a somewhat quiet corner in the tavern.

"Can’t I meet them later? I have to get something for this headache," Joxer pleaded as he rubbed his right temple with his free hand all the while being dragged through the tavern by Cyrene.

"Spending the whole day with small children can do that to you when you’re not use to it," Cyrene chuckled. "I’ll get something for your headache. You just sit down at this table." Cyrene departed for the kitchen to get Joxer some relief from his headache.

"I see you survived your excursion to the circus." Xena was seated at the table Joxer stood before "Did the kids have a good time?"

"Yes, we all did…Uh Xena, about the kids..."

"You can tell me about the fun you guys had later," Xena interrupted. "There are some people I would like you to meet." Xena’s eyes were sparkling just like Cyrene’s and a huge smile was planted on her beaming face.

Joxer noticed his friend’s glowing demeanor and thought these people must be something very special as he finally looked at the two individuals seated at the table with Xena. The first was a brown-skin man with curly black hair who Joxer had never seen before. Even from his sitting position the man looked very large. He was definitely someone Joxer did not want to have as an enemy. Joxer couldn’t help but stare when he let his gaze fall on the second person sitting at the table with Xena. It was a beautiful young woman with emerald green eyes, an olive oval face, and long curly auburn hair pulled back with a large black bow. Some stray curls framed her lovely face. Joxer thought there was something familiar about the young woman when he remembered what Agatha, the soothsayer, had revealed to him. So, the drunken old hag had been right after all about him meeting a beautiful young woman with auburn hair. As Joxer pulled up a chair to join the trio at the table, he hoped the large man with the beautiful young woman was not her husband.

"Joxer, this is Castor," Xena said. "He was a warrior in my army but he had the good sense to leave that life long before I did."

"It’s good to finally meet you Joxer." Castor gripped Joxer’s right forearm in a friendly gesture. "In the last two days, I have heard quite a lot about you." Castor’s words made Joxer all the more curious to know the importance of these two strangers seated at the table.

"And this young woman sitting next to me is...well, I think I’ll let her tell you who she is," Xena said with a huge smile.

As Joxer stared at the woman sitting next to Xena, waiting for her to introduce herself, he suddenly notice a familiarness about her green eyes but at the moment couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was.

"You don’t know how many times I dreamed of this moment and here it is." Joxer’s voice was about to crack and his brown eyes were somewhat misty. "Someone, pinch me to make sure I’m awake."

"Sure," Cyrene said. She had returned to the table and now sat with the four. There was a sly grin on her beaming face as she made a move to pinch a big hunk of Joxer’s arm as he sat next to her.

"Whoa, I was just kidding." Joxer moved his arm away from Cyrene’s reach. "I know this is not a dream." Joxer gazed into the green eyes of the woman sitting across the table from him, remembering their familiarness, as he held her hands. "You really are alive."

"Yes Joxer, it’s me," she said with a big smile on her face. "I know I look a whole lot different but I’m still the same Gabrielle you’ve known for two years."

"I don’t care what you look like so long as you are back." Joxer had a huge smile on his face as he let a hand touch one of her cheeks with affection. "And to think that Hope is responsible for you being here...unbelievable."

"Yeah, that one threw me for a loop too," Xena said. "But according to Gabrielle and Castor, Hope has changed and no longer wants to slaughter humanity for her father. In fact, it appears she wants to stop him just like we do."

"That’s why I must find Hope and let her know she doesn’t have to fight Dahak alone and we can help her," Castor said.

"And Hope could tell us exactly what Dahak’s plans are regarding those fallen Watchers you told us about Xena," Gabrielle said.

"It would be good to have someone on the inside who could tell us Dahak’s timetable on freeing the others," Xena admitted. "But since we don’t know where Hope is, we have to concentrate on getting those scrolls translated and finding that sword which can kill him. Speaking of those scrolls, mother, have you seen Cyrus, I want him to meet Gabrielle and Castor?"

"Come to think of it, I haven’t seen Cyrus in quite a while." Cyrene gazed around the crowd in the tavern. "Maybe he’s upstairs with the kids, getting them settled in their rooms. I would sure like to meet them before they go to bed."

"Me too. C’mon Xena, let’s go upstairs so I can meet these kids you’ve been raving about," Gabrielle rose from her chair, along with Xena, Castor and Cyrene.

"Uh, before you guys go upstairs, there’s something I gotta tell you." Joxer remained seated in his chair. "You better sit back down."

"All right Joxer, did something happen that I should know about?" Xena asked after all had reseated themselves at the table. Her gaze was fixed on Joxer, waiting for him to reveal what he knew.

"Cyrus and the twins aren’t upstairs," Joxer softly replied.

"Then where are they?" Cyrene asked.

"I don’t know where they are," Joxer quickly mumbled then he took a quick sip from the mug he held in a hand.

"What do you mean you don’t know where they are?" The twins should have come back with you from the circus." Xena said.

"Well the truth is...I lost the twins hours ago," Joxer stammered

"What!?!?" the others at the table said in unison.

Joxer was caught off guard by everyone’s reaction and spilt some of the mead out of the mug he held in a hand.

"Joxer, tell me the whole story now," Xena ordered.

Joxer set the mug he held on the table and cleared his throat before he spoke. "When I couldn’t find them by myself...I came back here and Cyrus went back out with me to search for them...said the kids liked to ditch adult supervision and should have warned me about it. We went to the camp of the circus performers...we split up to cover more ground. I talked to some who had seen the kids and when I went to find Cyrus to see how things were going with him...he-he was gone...I searched until sundown but did not find him or the kids...it’s like they vanished."

"Why didn’t you say something when you first got here?" Xena asked, trying to stay calm.

"I tried, but first I had to get something for my headache...and then Cyrene brought me over to this table...and I guess it slipped my mind with all the news about Gabrielle being alive," Joxer sheepishly stated as he slightly bowed his head. "I’m sorry Xena."

"It’s okay Joxer," Xena assured. The features of her face softened somewhat as she gently placed a hand on his shoulder. Joxer already felt bad enough and she didn’t want to make him feel worse.

"You know, the last show under the big top just got under way, I bet that’s where Cyrus and the kids are," Castor said.

"You’re probably right," Gabrielle said. "From what Xena told me about these kids, it certainly sounded like they could be very persuasive. Maybe they convinced Cyrus to take them despite the running off incident with Joxer."

"Why didn’t I think of that?" Joxer slapped a hand on the tabletop. "I’m going to the big top and see if I can find them in the crowd." Joxer rose from the table.

"Wait Joxer, there is something else I want you to do instead," Xena said. "I found out that Hercules is visiting his brother King Iphicles in Corinth. I need you to go there and tell him he must come to Ares’ fortress in Macedon as soon as possible."

"Sure thing Xena. I will get Otis ready and leave right away." Joxer departed for the stables.

"Hey Joxer, wait up, I’ll give you a hand." Castor rose from the table and headed after Joxer.

"Everything seems under control here, so I guess I will tend to those dirty dishes." Cyrene departed for the kitchen.

"Boy, did I pick the right time to show up," Gabrielle said when she and Xena were alone. "So, Hercules is going to join us in having to put up with Ares. Are you sure this alliance thing will work?"

"The world is at stake here Gabrielle so we all will have to make it work." Xena had a faraway look in her eyes as she rose from the table and headed for the tavern door.

"Uh Xena, where are you going?" Gabrielle had also risen from the table and trailed after her friend.

"I’m going to find Cyrus and the twins."

Gabrielle felt something wasn’t right and closely followed her friend as they exited the tavern.

Ares gently brushed a long curly black lock off the child’s sleeping face then let a finger trace her jaw-line. A soft smile crossed his lips. She looked so much like Xena, the same nose, mouth, and chin. She even had her mother’s fire. He was very impressed with how she shrugged off her fear and charged him when she thought he had harmed her brother. Ares rolled up a sleeve of the child’s shirt and gazed at the birthmark on the little girl’s upper right arm. The star-shaped mark greatly resembled the star carved in the blade of the Holy Saber - the sword that contained unfathomable power and meant Dahak’s destruction. A soft chuckle escaped his lips as he ran a finger over the mark on the child’s arm. The ultimate power that he had craved for centuries would finally be his and he would owe it all to the very fruit of his own loins.

Ares turned his attention to the child lying next to her on the lounge chair. He ran a hand through the child’s thick curly black hair. Just like the girl, the boy had inherited his hair. Ares gently held the child’s chin and stared at his sleeping face. Again, a soft smile crossed his lips. Darius had certainly been right when he said the boy was the spitting image of him. The child had his cheekbones, chin, mouth and nose. The boy had also inherited other traits from his father, which Ares intended to bring to the forefront in the child. He released the child’s chin and just sat on a side of the lounge chair, staring in awe at the faces of both sleeping children.

Ares had often wondered about the kind of child he could have produced with Xena and he had been somewhat disappointed that there was none from the time when they were lovers. But a week ago, he discovered that was not true - and not only one child but two were born out of that relationship. Ares was anxious to meet these children that had been deliberately hidden from him, and started monitoring the movements of Xena’s traveling party as soon as it was made possible by their entrance into Olympian territory, looking for the opportune moment to grab both children.

The moment came when Joxer volunteered to take the children to the circus. Ares used a little divine intervention to cause a fight between two men knowing Xena’s new "sidekick" wouldn’t be able to resist the urge to play peacemaker. From frequent monitoring, Ares had been able to pick up on Lycus’ love of mischief, so he whispered in the boy’s head, the idea of ditching Joxer, which the child eagerly did, along with his sister. Ares watched the activities at the dart throwing both and was very impressed with the boy’s skills with darts and now longed to get some weapons in his hands. Both children had great endurance and the power of telepathy. But those abilities barely scratched the surface of the children’s true potential. Ares knew there was far more and planned on testing both children to see the true extent of the godly powers they possessed.

Ares rose from the lounge chair, went behind his throne and pulled a velvet rope hanging from the gray stone wall. A moment later, two female servants in black robes entered the hall.

"Yes, my lord," the two servants said in unison.

"Take the children to the rooms prepared for them."

The two servants immediately went to the lounge chair; each picked up a sleeping child then exited the throne room.

Ares had a wicked grin on his face as he thought about Xena. She would be in for a surprise when his messenger informed her of the changes he had made to her plans regarding the children’s stay in Greece. Now Ares had to check on the condition of his most recent guest.

Cyrus let out a low groan as he slowly opened his eyes. For some reason, his whole body seemed to ache. "It’s times like these that make me wish I had remained a Watcher," he muttered.

He realized he was lying on a hard stone floor. Slowly and with much discomfort, he raised himself into a sitting position. Cyrus was seated on the floor next to a table with a set of chairs. Using one of the chairs for support, he slowly rose to his feet and immediately sat himself in the chair. Since his neck felt stiff, Cyrus maneuvered his whole body on the chair so he could take in his surroundings. He was in a stone walled room with no windows with many lit candles for light. Two of the four walls were lined with shelves loaded with numerous scrolls.

Being immortal meant he couldn’t die but unfortunately he could feel pain if inflicted by another immortal. Cyrus let out another groan as he leaned back in the chair and began to rub his sore jaw as memories of what happened flooded his mind. He remembered searching for the twins in the wagon camp of the circus performers when Ares suddenly appeared before him in a haze of light. He had deduced that Ares was responsible for the disappearance of the children and proceeded to question him about them when the war god punched him in the face.

Cyrus closed his eyes as he cradled his bowed head in his hands while his arms rested on the table. The fear Xena had expressed before their trip to Greece had unfortunately come true. Somehow, Ares had found out about the children. And now that they were in his possession, Ares would never let them go. Cyrus wondered if Xena knew yet that Ares had the children. When she did find out, he hoped she wouldn’t do anything drastic. Cyrus had opened his eyes and was raising his bowed head when Ares suddenly appeared standing in front of one of the scroll-covered shelves. The war god still had the same aura of darkness and danger, which encompassed his whole being as when Cyrus first met him over six years ago. The former Watcher also noticed the anger in the war god’s eyes, which was clearly directed at him.

"I see you have finally recovered from that punch I delivered to your jaw." Ares let a slight chuckle escape his lips. "You are very fortunate to be immortal because if you weren’t, that punch would have instantly snapped your neck."

"Where are the children and what are you up to Ares?"

"The children are somewhere safe, sleeping peacefully. As for what I’m up to, I am only taking back what belongs to ME."

"The children are not your property Ares."

"But that’s where you are wrong Cyrus. Do I need to remind you of the laws of the country in which you reside that clearly state that children are the sole property of the father?"

"I am quite familiar with the laws of Persia," Cyrus replied tartly.

Ares now stood in front of the table where Cyrus sat and leaned his hands on it as he stared hard into the hazel eyes of the former Watcher. "How do you think Ahura Mazda will react when he finds out one of his closest confidants, someone he thought the epitome of honor and truth, looked him dead in the face and LIED to him?"

"Ahura Mazda follows the letter of the law and I respect him for that but I did what I thought was right and would gladly do it again."

"And who are you to decide that I should be denied access to my own children?"

"It’s what Xena wanted and I agreed," Cyrus replied.

"Xena was angry, confused and didn’t know what she wanted!" Ares snapped.

"Yes, when Xena showed up on my doorstep in Persia she was all of those things which only increased when she discovered she was pregnant," Cyrus said. "In the months that followed, Xena did some soul-searching and made the decision to leave the life of war behind and start fresh, somewhere far away with the children. But that changed when you showed up in Persia. You just couldn’t let her go then and from what I understand you still can’t now. Why is that?"

"Those reasons are my business and I don’t have to explain myself to you," Ares curtly replied as he rose to his full height.

"You know Xena will never let you get away with this Ares and I will help her." Cyrus stared hard at the war god standing before him.

"There really is nothing either of you can do since you don’t know exactly where the children are," Ares nonchalantly replied as he inspected the dagger he now held in a hand, longing to slice open the throat of the meddling do-gooder with it.

"How do you expect us to all work together when you pull a stunt like this?"

"Oh, you will find a way," Ares calmly replied. "I know how much mortals mean to you and Xena and you two would never let your anger against me jeopardize their fate." There was a confident grin on the god’s face as he sheathed the dagger on his person. "You know, if you weren’t so crucial to me destroying Dahak, I would already be tormenting you for meddling in my personal affairs but since that is not to be, at least for the moment, you might as well get to work on what you were brought here to do."

Ares waved a hand over the table at which Cyrus sat and it was immediately covered with numerous scrolls. Cyrus picked up one of the scrolls and unrolled it for inspection. It was written in the language he spoke as a Watcher, Celestic.

"This is just a fraction of the scrolls you will need to translate for us to find the Holy saber. When you translate these, I will make the rest available to you." Ares was through talking with the former Watcher and was ready to leave him to his translating duties.

"Wait!" Cyrus said in a raised voice before Ares vanished from sight. The god stared at him with a hard look on his face. "I would like to see the children...make sure they are all right."

Ares let out an annoyed sigh. "The children are fine Cyrus. They are now with their father where they should have been all along and your concern for them is no longer warranted!" With his last statement, Ares vanished in a puff of white smoke.

"Why are we going to the stables Xena when Cyrus and the children are probably at the big top near the edge of town?" Gabrielle asked as they entered the large wooden structure.

"Cyrus and the children are not under the big top," Xena replied.

"Then where exactly are they?"

"I don’t know where they are exactly but I know who took them...Dahak."

"Dahak!" repeated Gabrielle with true surprise as her mind began rationalizing the motive behind such actions. "So, you think Dahak found out about Cyrus, why he came to Greece and grabbed him so he couldn’t translate the scrolls that will lead us to the Holy Saber?"

"Yes, I do." Xena now stood in the stall next to Argo and tightened the saddle on the mare’s back.

"And I guess Dahak grabbed the kids to use as leverage to stop us from coming after him, which I think is really evil," Gabrielle said with a twisted frown.

"Oh, it is more than just leverage he’s after," Xena said. "Lycus has been troubled by a nightmare about a horrible monster coming for him and I know Dahak is behind it."

"Wow, that’s got to be frightening." Gabrielle’s arms were wrapped tightly about her as a creepy chill went down her spine. "But what could Dahak possibly gain by tormenting a little boy with nightmares?"

"Dahak may be thinking of using Lycus in the evil he has planned for the world. But I think first and foremost he is trying to rattle me and figured this would be the best way, especially after what he did to Solan." Xena saw the puzzled look on Gabrielle’s face after her last statement. She turned her attention from Argo and now stood facing her friend, gently placing her hands on the bard’s shoulders as she stared into her face. "The twins are not just two orphans in Cyrus’ care...they are my son and daughter."

Gabrielle’s green eyes widened as her mind fully absorbed what Xena had just confessed. "The children are yours? Why didn’t you ever tell me? Surely you knew I could be trusted with such a secret?"

"It’s not that I didn’t trust you Gabrielle. In fact, I did plan on telling you about them but then we got caught up in Hope’s rebirth, Dahak and then… you died. I’ve always had to be very careful that the children’s existence remained hidden from their father."

"Who is their father?"

Before Xena could answer Gabrielle’s question, both women heard a strange noise on the roof of the stables.

"What was that?" Gabrielle gazed up at the stable’s ceiling.

"I don’t know but I intend to find out," Xena said.

Both women walked over to the stable door and slowly opened it. The full moon provided enough light making the area outside the stables clear to view. The flutter of bird wings could be heard as both women were now shrouded in a large shadow. Within moments, the shadow was gone, exposing the area outside the stables to moonlight once again.

"Xena, look!"

Sitting on a wooden fence, some feet from the stables was a fierce-looking large bird.

"It’s a vulture," Xena stated.

"A vulture! There’s nothing dead lying around so why is it here?" Gabrielle tried to hide her fear.

"This vulture isn’t looking for food." Xena started to approach the bird.

"What are you doing!?!?" Gabrielle tightly held Xena’s left arm halting her approach towards the menacing bird.

"It’s all right Gabrielle. I know this particular vulture. We go back a long way."

"You know this...vulture?"

"Yes, his name is Ibycus. He belongs to Ares."

"Why am I not surprised?" Gabrielle muttered. "Ares’ choice of pets leaves a lot to be desired."

"Ibycus isn’t a pet Gabrielle. He’s a messenger." Xena now stood directly in front of the large bird still perched atop the wooden fence.

An amethyst stone hung from a silver chain around the large bird’s feathered neck. Upon closer inspection, Xena found a folded piece of parchment strapped to one of the bird’s legs, which she removed. She unfolded the parchment sheet and read its contents...

"Oh Zeus, he knows!!!" Xena whispered with a wide-eyed stare on her face. "But how!?!?" Xena forgot about the bird and quickly went back into the stables, still clutching the sheet of parchment. Gabrielle followed Xena back into the stables, her mind paying close attention to her friend’s reaction to Ares’ letter. "We were so careful," Xena muttered as she viciously tore up the sheet of parchment, the shreds falling to the stable floor. "I knew it was a mistake to bring the children to Greece. I KNEW IT!!"

"So, it wasn’t Dahak who took the twins but Ares and I guess he has Cyrus too, right?" Gabrielle asked in a slightly raised voice, which made Xena suddenly remember she was not alone and she turned to face her friend.

"Yes," she replied softly, slightly bowing her head.

"He’s the one you’ve been keeping the existence of the children from," Gabrielle stated with solid certainty. Her mind was quickly registering the shocking conclusion she knew her last statement implied and she found it difficult to voice her thoughts. "So, that means...that Ares...that the twins...that he’s..."

"Their father," Xena finished as she stared into the stunned face of her best friend. "That’s right Gabrielle, Ares is the twins’ father."

For an autumn night, it was unusually mild. A soft breeze blew through the forest loosening dead leaves from partially bare tree branches to find resting places on the already leaf-covered forest floor. The beige colored full moon provided light that cast eerie shadows throughout the forest. Joxer was a lone traveler as he sat atop Otis who rhythmically trotted down the narrow trail.

A shooting star soared across the black backdrop of the clear night sky and Joxer momentarily closed his eyes and made a wish. Joxer thought going to Corinth in search of Hercules would be relaxing after the day he just had.

He hoped the twins had a nice time at the circus with Cyrus but also wanted them to be punished for the scare they put him through. Despite the medicine Cyrene gave him, Joxer could still feel a slight ache in the top of his head, most likely due to tension and the fact that he hadn’t eaten much since he spent most of the day searching for the wayward twins. He pulled out some beef jerky in a sack on the side of the saddle and ravenously chewed on it.

Joxer’s day had been for the most part, very hectic but he did have to admit there was one bright spot and that was Gabrielle’s return. Just thinking about it, brought a huge smile to his lips. This was a happening that Joxer had prayed for---dreamed of the last few months---something he wanted more than anything---and it actually came true. And now that Gabrielle was back, Joxer would have to find the courage to tell the spirited bard how he felt about her. He had told her several times when he believed her spirit to be in the Elysian Fields, hearing his thoughts regarding his unspoken love. Those talks had been relatively easy but re-enacting them face to face was something that scared Joxer and most of all, what her reaction to his confession would be.

Joxer did have the small comfort of knowing that Castor was not his competition. When he first saw Castor with Gabrielle and how close they were, Joxer was afraid the bard was in love with the reformed warrior. But that worry was erased when Castor accompanied him to the stables to help with preparations for his journey to Corinth. All the former warrior could talk about was Hope and how he had to find her. This was proof enough for Joxer that Castor was in love with Hope, clearing the field for Gabrielle entirely for him which he now had to put to his advantage before someone did come along and swept the bard off her feet. For Joxer knew that Gabrielle was a beautiful, funny, intelligent woman who could have any man she wanted. He now just prayed that she would want him when he confessed his love for her.

Joxer had eaten almost the entire sack of beef jerky and was rather thirsty. As he reached for the water-skin, Joxer felt a sharp pain in his head.

"Oh no, not again," he groaned. Joxer bowed his head, closed his eyes and sat perfectly still atop Otis who continued to trot down the trail.

A few moments later, the pain subsided and Joxer finally retrieved the water-skin and the headache powder he had also packed. He had put the powder in his mouth and was going to down it with some water, when again, he felt a sharp pain in his head, this time far more intense. Joxer dropped the water-skin, spit out the bitter tasting headache powder as he held his aching head between his hands. He squinted at the road and the forest ahead of him but all looked blurry and began to spin. Joxer tried to remain upright on Otis’ back but the dizziness increased and he soon lost his balance and fell off the moving horse to the ground below.

"What’s happening to me?" Joxer moaned as he clutched his aching head and began to roll slightly back and forth across the ground.

"Give up Joxer! I’ve grown too strong and you can’t stop me!" A raspy voice yelled from inside Joxer’s head.

"Who are you?" Joxer moaned as he held his head tighter.

"I’m Talon and your body is now MINE!!!"

"No...No...you’re not real...I must be losing my mind," Joxer moaned

"Oh, but I am real Joxer, so stop fighting...you can’t win!" The raspy voice hissed.

Joxer was still clutching his aching head between his hands as he began to thrash about the ground as if fighting an invisible foe. Otis whinnied as he stood nearby and watched his master’s wild movements.

"Leave me alone...it’s my body...I’m Joxer and I won’t give up," he wailed as his body continued to thrash about the ground. Joxer’s eyes widened as the pain in his head increased to an intensity that felt as if it would explode. "NOOOOOOO!" he yelled in an ear-piercing scream. The thrashing suddenly ceased and Joxer lay on the ground completely motionless, his eyes closed.

Otis let out a snort as he stared at his master’s seemingly lifeless body. The earlier breeze had ceased and Joxer’s shallow breathing was the only sound heard in the forest. A moment later, Joxer opened his eyes and abruptly moved into a sitting position. He stared at his hands then tentatively touched his face with them. He ran his hands over his chest and arms. A pleased smile crossed his lips. Joxer slowly stood and surveyed his surroundings for a few minutes before retrieving the water-skin lying in the grass a few feet from him. When he approached Otis, the gelding whinnied and backed away from him, somewhat skittish.

"Easy boy," Joxer said in a calm voice as he cautiously approached the animal. Otis let out a snort, but remained still. When he stood before the horse, he gently rubbed his brown face to calm him. "I’m sorry that strange attack I had frightened you but it will never happen again," cooed Joxer into the horse’s right ear. Otis snorted and swooshed his long brown tail. Joxer was putting the water-skin in its place on the saddle when he heard a rustling noise from some nearby foliage. "All right, I know you’re there, so come on out," he said in a demanding tone, his eyes glued on the foliage.

The bushes ruffled some more, then a moment later, an athletic and very attractive looking young woman with curly blond hair cut in a bob, emerged from her hiding place in the thick foliage.

"I witnessed everything that just happened. I take it, I am now speaking with Talon?" The young woman approached the man before her.

"I’m Talon all right," he said with a devilish smile. "And you are?"

"Gwenyth…a priestess in the order of Dahak."

"So Meta...I mean Dahak sent you to keep an eye on me?" Talon’s eyes raked over Gwenyth’s well-toned form scantily clad in brown leather.

"He wanted to be certain you gained control of the mortal’s body," Gwenyth replied.

"Well, I finally gained control. This body’s not bad." Talon ran his hands over his arms and chest and walked around like he was trying on new clothes for the first time.

"I’m the one who obtained this body for you," Gwenyth said with a touch of pride.

"Did you now? I was never one to back away from a challenge but this Joxer fellow was pretty tough and resisted my taking over his body for the longest time. I finally gained control because he was so worn down after the very stressful day he had." Talon let out a soft chuckle as he thought about the events of that day he witnessed through Joxer’s eyes.

"I’m sorry gaining possession was difficult but it couldn’t be helped. Joxer is a very good friend of Dahak’s daughter Xena. She trusts him implicitly so that should make your job somewhat easier." Gwenyth handed Talon a bloated goatskin.

Talon uncapped the goatskin and let a drop of its contents fall on his hand. The tiny droplet was crimson in color. A sinister smile crossed his lips.

"When the time is right, you will know how best to use that. Did you discover anything I should report to Dahak?"

"Boy did I ever!" Talon snorted.

Gwenyth looked at him expectantly.

"Before I say anything, there is something I want you to first do for me." Talon gazed at Gwenyth with a lust-filled look in his eyes.

"I am a priestess, NOT a harlot," Gwenyth firmly stated as she watched Talon’s eyes rake over her body.

"Oh c’mon Gwenyth, even back in my day, priestesses were sleeping with the gods they served. Don’t tell me that’s changed?"

"I don’t serve Dahak that way." Gwenyth folded her arms across her chest. "And besides, you are not a god anymore. You are mortal just like me."

"True, but I still have that godly sexual prowess." Talon suddenly grabbed Gwenyth and pulled her roughly to him.

Gwenyth was pressed so tightly against Talon’s body, she could feel the hardness of his manhood through her brown leather skirt. She tried to wriggle free from his tight embrace.

"What in Tartarus do you think you’re doinmmm…"

Gwenyth’s protests were muffled by Talon quickly claiming her pouty lips in a hungry kiss.

When he met with the Dark One, Talon would have to thank him for sending this hot little priestess to watch over him. It was exhilarating to be flesh again! And what better way to break in this body, his new home, than an activity in which he excelled and the one he had truly missed the most during his many centuries of imprisonment in the earth’s heated core. His only company had been other disembodied entities like himself, filled with rage and longing for freedom. Well, that day had finally come and he had company more to his liking, a beautiful young woman.

Her lips were soft and luscious, just like he figured, when they had earlier captured his gaze. Talon broke the hungry kiss and began to softly nibble on Gwenyth’s right earlobe. One of his hands was buried in her curly blond hair, holding her head steady. Her hair felt like silk and smelled like wild flowers. His eager mouth abandoned her earlobe to move to her slender neck. Her skin was so soft and tasted like honey. By all the gods of this world, it felt so damn good to feel the touch of a woman again!

"Please, stop," Gwenyth gasped. Despite her words, she was actually aroused by Talon’s expert touch. "Let me go," she moaned. Her earlier wriggling for freedom was now reduced to almost non-existence.

"You don’t really want me to stop Gwenyth." Talon was still kissing her neck and feasting off the sweet taste of her soft skin. "I don’t hear any conviction in your voice." His hands quickly undid the ties of her leather halter-top, then tossed the article of clothing in the grass. Talon reclaimed Gwenyth’s pouty lips, which she surprisingly welcomed as a hand squeezed a perky breast.

As Gwenyth hungrily returned Talon’s kisses, she was surprised how aroused this horny demon had got her. The touch of his lips against hers and his hands exploring her body had ignited within her a passion unknown to her before. She had heard some of the female followers of Dahak speak of such passion after having the pleasure of spending the night with the Dark One in his bedchamber. Stories of his sexual prowess had Gwenyth anxiously awaiting a summons to the hallowed bed but none ever came. She did truly serve Dahak as a priestess only and that did somewhat disappoint her. But she was given important duties which the others never did, like the duty she had now, which she had almost let slip her mind due to the desire Talon had awakened within her.

Abruptly, Gwenyth broke her kiss with Talon. "We really can’t do this!" she gasped through labored breathing as she completely broke free from Talon’s embrace. Gwenyth scanned the grass for her leather halter-top. When she found the piece of clothing, she turned her back to Talon and covered herself with it. "Just tell me what you uncovered which will be of interest to Dahak. Then I can be on my way, and you can pretend to be Joxer and warm up to Xena." Her hands were shaking as she tried to tie the leather strings around her neck.

"I will gladly reveal all that I uncovered but first we have some unfinished business." Talon grabbed Gwenyth from behind and pulled her against him.

"No, Talon," she said weakly. Gwenyth knew she had the training to easily beat the crap out of him but his touch seemed to drain her will to fight.

"I respect your commitment to your duties and Dahak but you are also a woman, who has obviously neglected her own needs for quite some time." Talon nuzzled her neck. "I can satisfy those needs for you Gwenyth."

A soft sigh escaped Gwenyth’s pouty lips as a wave of desire raced through her body. Talon’s words were so true. She was so wrapped up in her duties to Dahak, that her personal needs had taken a back seat. It had been a long time since Gwenyth had felt the touch of a man.

"It’s been so long for me too Gwenyth. I need this," Talon softly whispered in an ear. One of his hands had untied the leather strings around her neck and again tossed aside her halter-top. "And you need this." His hands squeezed her bare breasts then began to softly caress them. Gwenyth leaned into him and closed her eyes. "I was always a very skilled lover so I can guarantee you will be pleased." Gwenyth began rubbing her slender body against his while his skilled fingers teased her aroused nipples to hardness.

"You’re right Talon, we both do need this," Gwenyth moaned.

Talon abruptly removed his hands from Gwenyth’s breasts and turned her around to face him. He gazed into her light brown exotic eyes and saw the desire overflowing in them. Gwenyth stared at Talon’s face and had to admit she thought Joxer rather cute the first time she met him. And the devilish demon now residing in his body made him even more attractive.

"You can tell me what Dahak needs to know after we finish our business," Gwenyth growled in a lust-filled tone as her hands reached for Talon’s face and pulled it towards hers for another hungry kiss.

Talon could feel Gwenyth’s pebbly nipples pressing against his shirt-cover chest, arousing him all the more. His hands frantically explored the silky smoothness of her well-toned legs, traveled under her short brown leather skirt, and squeezed the round cheeks of her firm ass through her undergarment.

"There’s something I have wanted you to do to me since I first laid eyes on that luscious mouth of yours," Talon gasped in between kisses. Gwenyth looked at him expectantly. Talon grasped her shoulders and pushed her down until she was on her knees before him.

Gwenyth fixed her gaze on the bulge in Talon’s crotch then she looked up into his face and let a knowing smile cross her pouty lips. Her slender fingers unfastened his pants, then a hand reached in and pulled out his hardening member. With one hand, she gripped his member around the thick base while the other stroked his hardening shaft. A pleased sigh escaped Talon’s lips. Gwenyth looked up into Talon’s face and watched the pleasure grow in his features as she continued stroking his shaft with her slender fingers.

Gwenyth knew Talon wanted to feel more than the touch of her fingers so she replaced them with her titillating tongue. Talon moaned with pleasure as her tongue traveled the length of his shaft from base to tip. When she got to the head, she took it in her mouth and sucked hard on it. Gwenyth began to taste his seed as droplets escaped the head, which she teased with her tongue. Again she gazed up at Talon’s face and could see the urgent need for release in his eyes.

Gwenyth stopped her sucking and took as much of his throbbing member into her mouth as she could.

"Ohhh yesss, that’s it," Talon moaned in between shallow breaths, reveling in the feel of her warm mouth on his stiff rod.

Gwenyth slid his throbbing member in and out of her luscious mouth several more times before Talon held her head steady with his hands and thrust himself into her mouth, shooting his seed down her waiting throat.

Talon felt a pleasurable shock surge through his new body. "Ahhh," he moaned as he thrust deeper into her mouth.

When his orgasm finally subsided, he slumped against the large tree directly behind him. Gwenyth wiped his cum dribbling from her chin with the back of a hand then with an eagerness, reached for his member and began to stroke it with her fingers.

"Now that you’ve had your satisfaction, I want mine," she said with a sly smile as she gazed up at him, never breaking the rhythm of her strokes on his member.

"You don’t have to worry about that baby. The way I feel right now, I will be up all night." He immediately joined Gwenyth on the thick soft grass of the forest floor.

For some time now, Gabrielle had been sitting on a sturdy block of hay. Her green eyes were fixed on Xena who sat across from her on another block of hay. She listened to her best friend reveal the circumstances behind her stay in Persia six years ago, the birth of the twins, and how her friend Cyrus sent the newborns to India so Ares wouldn’t discover their existence.

"When I looked at the tiny faces of those babies for the last time, I knew sending them away was the right thing to do," Xena said softly. "It hurt like Tartarus but I had to accept that I would never see the twins again."

Gabrielle had a look of sympathy on her face. "I know giving up Solan was hard for you, but to go through that again and with two babies this time...I just can’t imagine it."

"And what made it so worse with the twins was that I was prepared to keep them. When I had Solan, I was a self-centered kid and not ready to make the necessary changes and sacrifices that the responsibilities of motherhood would have required. Giving him up was painful but it was the best thing for both of us." Xena absentmindedly pulled on a strand of hay sticking out of the large block. "When I was pregnant with the twins, I was still pretty much wrapped up in myself but this time I was in Persia, far away from an army, battlefields and Ares. With Cyrus’ help, for the first time in a long time, I was actually able to believe I could have a normal life, be a mother to my children and leave the ways of war behind for good. I made all these plans and envisioned the life we would have but it just was not meant to be." Xena let a soft chuckle escape her lips as her eyes got watery.

"I am amazed you were able to go back to Ares after that," Gabrielle said. "You had every right to hate him...want him dead even since you were forced to give up your babies because of him."

"Oh, it was hard being around Ares all right." Xena quickly wiped away the tears that started pouring from her eyes. "Our relationship was strictly conquests and wars after that. But I couldn’t blame him entirely. I had willingly chosen to follow him after all and had to be prepared to accept the consequences whatever they might be."

"But giving up one’s children seems like such a high price to pay, Xena." Gabrielle let a hand caress a cheek of her friend who sat across from her. "At least you got to spend some time with them, something you thought you would never do."

"Yeah, being with them this past week has been great," Xena confessed with a slight chuckle. "Despite their infamous parents, they really are a couple of terrific kids."

"You never did tell me why the children were brought to Greece," Gabrielle said.

Gabrielle already knew some of the details behind Lycus’ nightmare regarding Dahak and her concerns for the boy’s safety. So she summarized Lysia’s connection to the Holy Saber through the birthmark the little girl had on her right arm which was an exact match for the four pointed star etched in the sword’s blade.

"I had my misgivings about bringing the children to Greece but I was actually starting to believe we could defeat Dahak, then whisk the kids back to India without Ares ever discovering them but unfortunately I was wrong," Xena said in a somber tone.

"How do you think Ares found out about them?"

"I know when we entered Olympian territory, Cyrus and I agreed not to speak of the twins’ parentage because we figured Ares might be monitoring our movements, so that only leaves Persia," Xena replied. "Ares has made a point of having spies located throughout the other pantheons so he knows what’s going on in areas outside his jurisdiction. He probably had one of them watching us."

Xena rose from the hay block, walked over to Argo’s stall and led the mare out by the reins.

"I guess you are now going to wherever Ares has taken them?"

"In the letter, Ares mentioned his fortress in the mountains of Macedon and that’s where I’m going." Xena put a boot in a stirrup and mounted Argo. "Are you coming?"

"I really think we should wait until daybreak to go to Macedon, Xena." Gabrielle rose from the hay block and approached her friend sitting atop Argo.

"Gabrielle, you do realize we are talking about two young children being left in the care of Ares? And who knows what he is going to do to Cyrus for the part he played in keeping the children from him."

"You don’t have to remind me of what a snake Ares is but they are his children too, so I doubt if they are in any real danger," Gabrielle said. "And he may want to hurt your friend but he won’t since Cyrus is still needed to translate those scrolls.

"For now, he won’t hurt Cyrus but I’m more worried about what he will say to the kids," Xena said. "Lycus is fascinated with warriors and warfare. Cyrus thinks it is just a phase but spending time with Ares may evolve it into something more." Xena closed her eyes, bowed her head with a hand resting on her forehead. "Oh Zeus," she softly groaned.

"What is it Xena? What’s the matter?" Gabrielle tightly held onto Xena’s leg dangling down Argo’s side as she gazed up at her best friend.

"Ares has probably told the children that he is their father and I am their mother. He will probably twist everything around and have them thinking I gave them up because I didn’t want them." She offered a hand down to Gabrielle to help her onto Argo’s back. "We have to get to Macedon right away."

"Ares probably did tell the children who you two really are but even I don’t think he would turn them against you." Gabrielle backed away from her friend’s offered hand. "And rushing off to Macedon this instant isn’t going to remedy the situation."

"But Gabrielle, that would be just like him. In his mind, it would be the perfect punishment for me keeping the children from him all these years. We were all getting along so well too. I don’t think I could stand it if they hated me Gabrielle."

The bard had great sympathy for her friend as she gazed up at her face riddled with worry and pain. "Xena, even if we take off for Macedon right now and when we get there, discover that Ares has done what you fear, do you even know what you will say to the children to counter what he has told them?"

Xena slightly shook her bowed head.

"You just arrived in Amphipolis after a long trip from Persia. You’ve go to be tired and now you want to rush off to Macedon to take on Ares regarding the children and you haven’t given much thought to how you will do that," Gabrielle said. "I really think rest is in order. Once you’ve had some sleep, you should know how to best handle this situation with Ares and the children."

"You’re right Gabrielle. I am exhausted." Xena let out a soft yawn before dismounting from Argo. Then she led the mare back into the stall. "What I tried to prevent has unfortunately come true and I will have to be at my best if I am to now deal with it."

"I’m sure after a good night’s sleep, you will have a whole new perspective on this explosive situation." Gabrielle watched her friend get Argo settled for the night.

"We will leave for Macedon at daybreak."

"I’m still not a morning person, but you will get no argument out of me." Gabrielle gave her friend an affectionate pat on the back as they left the stables and headed for Cyrene’s tavern.

"You two were certainly gone for a long time," Cyrene said when Xena and Gabrielle entered the tavern. The place was empty of patrons. She was wiping down the bar and Castor was sweeping the floor. "So where are Cyrus and the children?"

"They weren’t at the circus." Xena seated herself at the bar joined by Gabrielle.

"If they weren’t at the circus, then where are they?" Cyrene asked. "By the gods, I hope nothing terrible has happened to them." On hearing that the children and Cyrus were not at the circus as believed, Castor now stood by Gabrielle, leaning on the broom he held in a hand. A concerned look was etched on his face.

"No harm has come to either Cyrus or the children, mother." Xena grabbed two clean mugs sitting on the bar, placed them in front of Gabrielle and herself, then filled them with the liquid in a jug setting on the bar top.

"Well, don’t keep me in suspense, where are they?" Cyrene asked.

"Ares sent a messenger to inform me Cyrus and the twins are with him," Xena calmly replied after taking a sip from the mug she held in a hand.

"Ares?" Cyrene and Castor said in unison. Both had perplexed looks on their faces.

"Ares was really gung ho on Cyrus getting to work right away on translating those scrolls," Gabrielle said with a chuckle as she took a sip from her own mug.

"Oh, I’ll say," Xena added. "When Ares found out Cyrus was here, he couldn’t wait for us to meet with him later. So he transported Cyrus, along with the children to his castle in Macedon. Why as we speak, I bet Cyrus is very busy translating those scrolls."

"It certainly would have been nice if Ares informed us of his intentions a bit sooner," Cyrene complained. "He had to know we would worry. But this is pretty typical for a self-centered god." Cyrene picked up a tray loaded with dirty mugs and disappeared into the kitchen.

"But Ares did send a messenger," Castor reminded her.

"A little too late if you ask me," Cyrene yelled from the kitchen.

"Gabrielle and I will be leaving for Macedon at daybreak," Xena said in a loud voice.

"Then you probably should be heading off to bed now," Cyrene said as she came back through the kitchen door.

"Hey Cyrene, is there any of that stew left? I am starving," Gabrielle said.

"I see you still have the same stomach," Xena muttered with a sly smile before taking another sip from her mug.

"I certainly do and it’s growling to be filled," Gabrielle replied.

"There is some stew left. You sit tight and I’ll bring a bowl out to you," Cyrene said. "Would you like some too Xena? I haven’t seen you eat much since you got here."

"No thanks, I’m not hungry." Xena downed the last of the beverage in her mug.

"I don’t know where you get the energy to fight the scum of this world when I hardly see you eat." Cyrene eyed her daughter curiously. "Is there something going on that I should know about Xena?"

"No mother, everything is fine," she replied with a faint smile.

Cyrene was convinced that all was not fine but decided to let it rest for now as she disappeared into the kitchen to get Gabrielle her bowl of stew.

"Castor, we need to talk." Gabrielle hopped off the barstool, took hold of Castor’s right arm and led him to a table where the two sat facing each other.

"I just wanted to let you know that me going off tomorrow to Macedon with Xena doesn’t mean I have forgotten about the search for Hope." Gabrielle affectionately squeezed Castor hands.

"There’s no need for an explanation. You and Xena have been miraculously reunited and I completely understand you wanting to spend time with her," Castor said with a smile. "When you guys leave tomorrow, I guess I will be heading out pretty soon myself to resume the search for Hope."

"Dahak and his followers are very dangerous, so please promise me Castor that you will be careful." Gabrielle let a hand caress his face.

"I promise," Castor replied with a smile as he laid a hand over Gabrielle’s caressing his face. "You watch yourself too."

"I will," Gabrielle replied while returning his smile. "And when you do find Hope, please let her know I remember everything. And that I love her very much."

"I’ll do that," Castor said as the pair rose from the table and embraced each other in a tight hug.

"Here’s your bowl of stew," Cyrene announced as she came through the kitchen door carrying a tray with a steaming bowl set upon it, which she placed on the bar.

"I’ll devour this in my room." Gabrielle was standing at the bar. She greedily gazed at the steaming bowl sitting on the tray she held in her hands. "After I eat this, I know I will sleep like a baby."

"Enjoy your sleep, but just remember to be ready to leave for Macedon at daybreak," Xena reminded her as she rose from her stool and headed for the stairs.

"Oh, I’ll be ready," Gabrielle replied as she followed Xena up the stairs.

"I don’t think your mother fully bought that story about Ares’ reasons for taking Cyrus and the children," Gabrielle said when she stood outside the doorway to her room across the hall from Xena’s.

"I don’t think she did either but we will be leaving at daybreak, so she won’t have any time to pry the whole story out of either one of us," Xena said with a slight smile.

"Maybe, you should just tell her the truth, she is your mother after all."

"It’s too long and too complicated Gabrielle," Xena wearily sighed. "When this whole mess with Dahak is settled, I will sit down with her and tell her everything."

"Yeah, I guess you’re right," Gabrielle sighed.

Both women opened the doors to their perspective rooms.

"Good night Xena."

"Good night Gabrielle."

Gabrielle could hear the weariness in Xena’s voice and saw it too when she gazed at her face one last time, as her friend was about to close her bedroom door. "Oh and Xena?"

"Yes Gabrielle?"

"Please try to get some sleep."

"I’ll try," Xena softly replied before closing her bedroom door.

Gabrielle stood in the opened door of her bedroom and stared at the door to Xena’s. She knew her friend wouldn’t get any sleep and would probably be up most of the night. But in the morning, one would never know because she would look well rested. Gabrielle had always been baffled at how Xena could get by on so little sleep. She on the other hand would look like the walking dead and have the disposition of a bear if she got no sleep. Gabrielle chalked it up to one of Xena’s many skills and finally closed the door to her own room.

Dahak let out a pleased sigh as he refastened his black leather pants. He let the gaze of his crystal blue eyes fall on the beautiful woman kneeling before him as he sat on his large throne. He ran a hand through her fiery red tresses. One of the best ways to get the blood surging through his body at the start of a new day was oral sex. And this particular priestess had shown extraordinary talents for the job. She gazed up at him with sky blue eyes as she licked her pouty rose colored lips with a pink tongue.

"I am not finished with you. Be in my bedchamber tonight," Dahak said in a lusty deep voice. One of his hands caressed a rosy cheek.

"As you wish my lord," the priestess said in a sensual voice, her eyelids softly fluttering. She rose from her kneeling position then left the great hall.

"Now down to business," Dahak muttered as he sat up straight in the large throne. A moment later, a man wearing a black robe entered the hall and dropped to his knees when he stood a few feet away from Dahak’s raised throne. "Arise Cleon."

Cleon did as his dark lord commanded but his head was still slightly bowed.

"I understand that a few nights ago, some Amazons discovered our operations at an old barn in the forest near Mycenae?"

"Yes my lord. They were looking for two Amazon teens Aratus found in the forest near the old barn."

"Why were the two Amazon teens grabbed when you were given strict orders to chose mortals with no ties to anyone?"

"Aratus was afraid the girls had seen our operations and would tell others and thought he had no choice but to grab them." Cleon’s body was starting to tremble as he sensed the anger rising in his dark lord.

"But the girls had really seen nothing and grabbing them only alerted their Amazon sisters of our operations which are now a TOTAL LOSS!!!" His hands had been tightly gripping the ends of the marble armrests, which broke off in his hands.

"All was n-not l-lost m-my l-lord," Cleon stammered as he tried desperately to regain his composure before speaking again. "I did manage to save a wagon load of lava that has been sent to another location."

"Yes, you did save the lava," Dahak admitted as he let the chunks of the armrest he held in both hands fall to the floor. "But we did lose an entire barn full of mature lava plants and that can’t go unpunished."

"But my lord, that was all Aratus’ doing and he paid with his life as did Pheidon." Cleon finally looked directly at his lord, fear clearly in his eyes.

"All three of you were in charge of that operation and therefore shared responsibility for any setbacks that arose." Dahak narrowed the gaze of his crystal blue eyes on the trembling man standing before him. "Aratus and Pheidon received what they deserved for their failure and now so will you!"

"But my lord, please give me another chance," Cleon pleaded, his eyes widening as he backed away from his dark lord. "I promise, I won’t fail you ever again. NOOOOOOOOOO!"

Cleon’s ear-piercing scream could be heard throughout the hall as a fireball Dahak hurled at him consumed his body. When the scream faded, all that remained of Cleon was a smoldering ash heap, which was quickly swept away by a lowly temple servant.

"The lava plants in the old barn near Mycenae were destroyed Dark One but the fallen residing in them were not lost," Minos said as he came through the black curtain behind Dahak’s marble throne and now stood on his right side.

"True, but they all resided in Aratus’ body and it was a struggle trying to get only one to stay while the others returned to the lava" Dahak said. "And now they will have to wait for more lava plants to mature before they find permanent homes in mortal bodies."

"Those spirits that had to go back to the lava are, as we speak, being transported to Elios where there are mature lava plants ready and waiting for them."

"You are efficient as always Minos," Dahak said with a pleased smile. "So, give me an update on the replacements we have on Kos."

"All is going smoothly. The trained soldiers will fit our purpose so much better than backward peasants."

"Ah yes, Ares did do us a favor when he decided to come at us with a surprise attack on Kos and its neighboring islands," Dahak said with a slight chuckle. "I guess he is kicking himself for that blunder and it will cost him dearly." Dahak erupted into evil laughter and was joined by Minos.

"Dark One, it appears Talon has finally gained possession of the mortal’s body," Minos said when the laughter ceased. "Gwenyth is waiting to give us his report."

"Well send her in," Dahak said.

A few moments later, Gwenyth entered the hall, walked over to the raised platform where Dahak’s throne was set and dropped to her knees, her head bowed. Her dark lord was still talking to exalted high priest Minos and she waited for him to acknowledge her presence.

Gwenyth felt a slight touch of guilt because she could have given this information to her dark lord last night, if she hadn’t been so preoccupied with Talon. A blush formed in her cheeks as she thought about their lovemaking on the forest floor. Talon in Joxer’s body had proven to be a skilled lover and she longed to be with him again. She knew it would be difficult with him traveling with Xena but maybe somehow, she could arrange it.

"Arise Gwenyth," Dahak said from where he sat on his large marble throne.

Gwenyth was jolted out of her carnal thoughts concerning Talon and did as her dark lord commanded. She now stood staring at him and Minos who still stood by the large throne.

"I understand you have news to report from Talon?" Dahak asked.

"Yes my lord." Gwenyth had heard the agonizing screams coming from the great hall when she stood outside the door waiting for an audience with her lord and knew someone had been fatally punished. A chill went down Gwenyth’s spine as she prepared to tell her lord what Talon revealed to her, praying at the same time, that after he heard the report, he wouldn’t take his anger out on the messenger.

The barking of a dog woke Lycus from his peaceful slumber. Slowly, he opened his eyes to the brightness of the sun’s rays permeating the room. He rubbed his eyes with small fists to adjust to the brightness, before taking in his surroundings. He was staring up at a gray stone ceiling, high above his head. Suddenly, he felt a wet tongue licking his face as he stared into the soulful brown eyes of a large dog.

"Okay, I’m awake," Lycus giggled as the dog continued to attack his face with licks while furiously wagging it’s black tail. "Cut it out." Lycus rose to a sitting position. The dog immediately stopped licking his face and sat itself in a corner of the bed where it quietly watched him. The bed Lycus had been sleeping in was very large and covered with a royal blue sheet. The child gazed down at the clothes he wore and ran his small hands over them. He was wearing black pajamas littered with tiny gold swords. As he continued to stare at the pajamas, Lycus tried to recall what had happened.

Lycus remembered he and Lysia ditching Joxer at the circus to explore by themselves. A stray dog had started following them around. Lycus stared at the dog sitting on a corner of the bed. It looked like the dog that had followed them around but something about it was different. He remembered chasing that dog around a bunch of wagons after it grabbed his slingshot. Lycus had got his slingshot from the dog, and he and Lysia were going to find Joxer when a bright light appeared which blinded him. The child remembered someone being in the bright light with him but couldn’t recall anything after that.

Lycus gazed at all the lit candles around the room. Whoever had brought him to this place must have known about his nightmares. Lycus rose from the bed and blew out all the candles. The large dog joined him when he went over to the room’s large window and gazed at the scenery. The dog stood on its hind legs and gazed out the window too. Lycus really didn’t have much to see, except for the snow-covered peaks of nearby mountains surrounded by halos of clouds. When he gazed downward, all Lycus could see was a foggy white haze, which he figured was more clouds.

"Wow! We must really be high up," he said in soft voice.

The dog standing next to him let out a single bark, its pink tongue dangling from its mouth.

When he heard his growling stomach, Lycus suddenly realized how hungry he was. Sitting in a corner, was a table with a tray of fruit, cheese and bread setting upon it. Lycus immediately went to the table and helped himself to the food on the tray. He took a big bite out of the hunk of cheese before biting into a round loaf of bread. He didn’t bother to pour the water into a mug and just brought the whole pitcher to his waiting mouth. The large black dog had followed him over to the table and now sat staring at him with soulful brown eyes. When Lycus set the pitcher back on the table, he grabbed a handful of grapes and placed them in front of the dog’s face, which the animal greedily accepted.

The dog quickly gobbled up the grapes then turned its attention toward the blood red colored drapes hanging from a stone wall. Lycus was now munching on a pear as he watched the dog sniff the floor around the drapes then walk through an opening in them. His curiosity piqued, Lycus walked over to the drapes and pulled them back.

"Awesome!" the child whispered as he gazed at what was hidden behind the blood red drapes.

Lycus pulled the long drapes completely apart, exposing what was hidden behind them to the rays of the sun. He then joined the dog that stood on its hind legs gazing at the objects on a large table. The animal was happily barking and wagging it’s long black tail back and forth.

"Ya said it boy, this stuff is cool!" Lycus set down the partially eaten pear and picked up one of the objects on the large table. It was a soldier dressed in full battle gear with a tiny sword and shield. The table was covered with six inch tall toy soldiers, divided into two opposing armies preparing to do battle as they stood off against each other in what appeared to be a grassy plain according to the table’s green top. Lycus slowly walked around the table, gazing at the objects upon it, as he picked up another one. This one was a toy soldier sitting atop a toy battle elephant. Lycus had seen battle elephants in India but this one’s ears were a lot bigger and floppier. Some toy soldiers sat atop toy horses, rode in toy chariots or were on foot. Both opposing armies even had miniature catapults.

"Awesome!" Lycus breathed again as he started to move the soldiers around according to a battle an old solider in India had described to him. The child had recorded to memory every detail of the battle. The dog now sat quietly with its pink tongue hanging from a side of its mouth as it watched the child play with the toy soldiers. Lycus had no idea why he was in this strange place but was beginning to think that wherever he was, it wasn’t so bad.

"Thank you." Lysia patted the large dog on the head as she retrieved the toy chair it held in its mouth and placed it at a table in the large dollhouse. The little girl took a male doll dressed in a gold and white tunic and sat him in the chair along with the other dolls already seated at the table dressed in their best Grecian finery.

The child wore an eggplant purple nightgown and sat crossed leg on the rug covered floor of a bedchamber, facing the biggest doll house she had ever seen. Lysia picked up the hostess of the party and checked the doll’s brown hair she had fixed atop her head one last time before seating her at the long table with all her guests.

Lysia thought this doll collection equaled the one she had back in India. Her Uncle Cyrus had gotten her dolls from Chin, India, Nipon, Egypt, Syria, Persia, Rome, Greece, Germania, Judea, Gaul, Iberia and as far away as Britannia. But those dolls were immaculately kept on a shelf in her room and didn’t have a big house like this. Lysia let her eyes gaze at the whole dollhouse. It was almost as tall as she was when she was standing. There was even a golden chariot with two toy horses hitched to it. She picked up two strawberries on the plate next to her on the floor and put one in her mouth as she tossed the other to the dog that greedily accepted the sweet morsel.

She ran a finger over the black mane of one of the toy horses as she stared at the large black dog. Lysia was sure it was the same one that had been with her and Lycus at the circus. The last thing Lysia remembered from that incident was charging a tall form she saw holding her brother’s limp body in an arm but nothing after that.

Lysia rose from the floor and went over to the large window. The view hadn’t changed from the last time she had looked. The only things she could see were the snow covered peaks of nearby mountains surrounded by clouds. Lysia turned her gaze from the window and stared at the dog lying on the floor by the large dollhouse. If she and the dog were here wherever here was, maybe Lycus was here too. If her brother was here, she had to know. Lysia closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and reached out for her brother with her mind.

Lysia stood at the window a few moments with her eyes closed praying her brother was there and he had heard her call.

A smile crossed the young girl’s face. "I’m in some room in a place way up in the clouds…the dog from the circus is here too...I’m locked in and can’t get out. I’m startin’ to get scared Lycus. Why are we here?"

"I don’t know why we are here...try not to be scared...I’ll come find ya," Lycus said.

"I don’t know yet but I will," Lycus replied.

Lysia opened her eyes as she broke the mind link with her brother. She stepped away from the large window and went over to the chair on which sat her neatly folded clothes and started to get dressed. The large dog still lay by the dollhouse and curiously watched her. Lysia had no idea how Lycus would find her but she knew her brother well enough to know he would somehow find a way.

After Lycus broke the mind link with Lysia, he had completely lost interest in the table littered with toy soldiers and quickly got dressed. Lysia said she had tried the door to her room, which had been locked. Lycus had never bothered to try the door to his room and decided to do so now.

Lycus put his small hands on the golden knob of the large wooden door and tried to turn it, but it wouldn’t budge. He pulled at the knob with all his might and it still wouldn’t budge. Lycus did not like the fact that he was locked in this room which only brought the child’s fierce temper to the surface.

"Let me out!" he yelled while banging his small fists on the large wooden door. The large dog sat nearby, tongue still hanging out of its mouth as it curiously watched him. "LET ME OUT!!! LET ME OUT!!!"

When Lycus realized no one would answer his cries and free him, he moved some feet from the door. The young child’s face was twisted in an angry scowl as he stood staring at door and let out a growl as he hurled a fireball at it. When the large dog saw Lycus hurl a fireball at the door, it quickly ran to the side of the bed where it hid, peeping around a corner. The fireball didn’t even singe the door and only seemed to be absorbed by it which left a stunned look on the little boy’s face as well as the dog watching the whole scene.

"What’s this door made of?" Lycus curiously mumbled as he now stood before the door again and ran his small hands over it.

Since the door was not about to open, Lycus knew he had to find another way out of the room. He glanced at the window. It was too high up and he couldn’t tell how far it was from the ground so he quickly dismissed that as a way to escape. The large dog had risen from the floor and now stood by the large unused hearth that encompassed almost an entire wall. Abruptly, the dog stood up on its hind legs and began barking at the hearth.

"What is it boy?" Lycus walked over to the dog who now stood on all four legs in front of the hearth.

The dog let out one bark and continued to gaze at the large stone hearth. Lycus now gazed at the hearth too. It looked no different than any other he had seen. It was dark inside and the floor was littered with ashes. Lycus could have easily walked inside the stone structure. The stone archway was decorated with several stone bird heads.

"Hmm...I wonder," Lycus murmured, as he stared up at the bird head design on the stone archway. He quickly grabbed a chair in a corner of the large room, carried it over to the hearth and set it under the archway.

Lycus recalled Vashti telling him and Lysia tales about secret passageways in places such as this, so he decided to see if there was any truth to those stories. The child stood on the chair and was now at eye level with the decorative stone of the archway. The large dog now stood by the chair and let out two barks and moved about on its four paws as if agitated.

"I guess that’s to let me know I’m on the right track," Lycus murmured to himself.

With a small hand, Lycus tightly gripped one of the stone bird heads protruding from the archway. He pulled at it, tried to turn it, but the stone object wouldn’t bulge. He moved to the next one and repeated his actions but still no passageway opened up. Lycus tried to pull or move five more stone bird heads but still none budge. The child gazed at the archway and there were still quite a lot of bird heads to try.

"Do you know which one it is boy?" Lycus asked as he gazed down at the dog that still stood by the chair. The large dog let out a whimper, then a weary sigh as it plopped down, resting its head on its front legs.

Lycus was beginning to think he had made a mistake. The young boy once again stood on the floor as he checked out the stone bird heads at an end of the archway. Lycus was pulling the last stone bird head on an end of the archway when he heard a click sound, then stone scraping against stone. He gazed at the back stone wall of the hearth, which slowly opened, revealing a passageway just on the other side. The large dog was now standing, as it happily barked, its tail wagging a mile a minute as it rejoiced in Lycus’ discovery.

After pulling on all those stone bird heads, it figures the one that opens to a passageway would be the very last one. But Lycus was glad to know the stories Vashti had told about secret passageways had been right.

Lycus walked into the hearth and stood staring at the opening in its back wall. It was very dark and cobwebs hung from the roof and the sides. Cautiously, Lycus walked into the newly discovered opening, gazing from his right then his left. The passageway was pitch black inside so Lycus couldn’t see anything and only felt a cool breeze softly moving down its length.

The large black dog was standing inside the hearth; its brown eyes fixed on the newly discovered opening, when Lycus re-entered the stone structure. The child went back into the large room and retrieved a candle off a table. A tiny golden spark flew from the child’s crystal blue eyes to re-light the candle he held in his small hands. Now he didn’t have to explore the secret passageway in the dark.

"C’mon boy, let’s go find Lysia." Lycus re-entered the hearth and stepped into the passageway followed by the large black dog.

Every since she broke the mind link with her brother, Lysia had been restless. After getting dressed, she had gazed out the room’s only window countless times. She nibbled some more on the food setting atop a table but didn’t have much of an appetite. She had even changed the clothes of the hostess of the doll party, her hair too before sitting the doll at the table with her guests again. Now Lysia just lay on the large bed, staring up at the stone ceiling while twirling a long curly raven lock around an index finger. The large black dog they picked up at the circus lay next to her on the large bed. The child let out a bored sigh. Lysia wondered if Lycus had been able to get out of his room or if he had just given up and now waited for someone to unlock the door.

Suddenly, the large dog lying next to her rose on its four legs, let out a single bark then leaped off the bed and now stood gazing at the large unused hearth, which encompassed almost an entire wall.

"What is it boy?" Lysia rose into a sitting position on the large bed. She walked over to the large hearth where the dog stood.

The dog let out a single bark as it continued to stare at the hearth, its black tail furiously wagging. A moment later, both heard a click sound then saw the back stone wall of the hearth slowly open and out walked Lycus holding a lit candle with a large black dog standing by his side.

"Oh Lycus, ya found a way out of ya room and ya came for me." Lysia embraced her brother in a tight hug.

The two dogs greeted each other with barks and sniffs as both furiously wagged their tails.

"I toldja I’d find a way out then come for ya," Lycus said when they broke their hug. "C’mon, let’s get outta here." Lycus stepped into the hearth, ready to re-enter the passageway.

"I’m not goin’ in there." Lysia stepped back from the hearth.

"Why not? Are ya afraid?" Lycus taunted as he stepped back out of the hearth and now stood before his sister again. "Without this candle, it’s real dark in there...and it’s covered with cobwebs...so big spiders probably live in there." Lycus ran one of his hands up Lysia’s right arm, imitating the crawling of a spider.

"I’m not afraid." Lysia smacked his hand off her arm. "I just don’t wanna get my clothes all dirty." She started twirling with her hair again as she stared at her brother’s clothes, slightly dusty with soot. "I think we should stay here and wait for someone to let us out." Lysia went over to the large bed, sat on the edge and folded her arms across her chest.

"Stay here!? Are ya nuts!? And who cares about gettin’ clothes dirty when I found a way out and we can now check out this place and find out where we are." Lycus’ crystal blue eyes beamed with the anticipation of adventure.

"I’m still not goin’," Lysia firmly stated.

"Stay here then." Lycus shrugged his shoulders. He turned his back to Lysia and headed into the passageway behind the hearth, followed by the large dog that had accompanied him.

Lysia sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the opening in the hearth’s back wall; she had seen her brother walk through just a moment ago. The large dog that remained with her padded into the hearth and the passageway before turning to face her, barking and wagging its tail.

"I’m not goin’ in there," Lysia firmly stated again.

The dog padded over to the bed where Lysia sat on its edge and used its jaws to pull at her leg. The longer she sat on the edge of the bed; Lysia’s resolve not to go into the passageway quickly crumbled.

"Hey Lycus! Wait up!" She hopped off the bed and ran into the opening in the hearth’s back wall along with the large dog that was barking and wagging its long black tail.

Lysia could still see the flicker of the candle Lycus held as she and the dog ran down the passageway to catch up with his retreating form and that of the dog with him. "Yuck," she murmured while brushing cobwebs from her face and hair as she and the dog continued to run down the dark passageway.

"I knew ya would change ya mind," Lycus said when she finally caught up to him. The candle he held revealed a sly grin etched on his face.

"I didn’t want ya to have all the fun," she said.

"C’mon then, let’s go," he said.

Lysia tightly held Lycus’ free arm as they made their way down the dark passageway. The two large dogs walked alongside the twins. The glow of the candle was their only means of light in the dark passageway. Lysia continued to brush cobwebs from her face and couldn’t wait to get out of the icky passageway.

The children and the two dogs reached a part of the passageway, which descended in a deep slope then, leveled off again. They had gone some distance at this lower level when the children spotted what appeared to be light pouring through a crack in the passageway wall. When the children stood before the crack, it appeared to be an outline shaped like a door. The two dogs sniffed around the apparent door. Lysia now held the candle while Lycus ran his small hands over the door, looking for a way to open it.

"Ya can’t open it...we are gonna get stuck in here," Lysia complained. "Let’s go back the way we came."

"Wait a minute, I feel somethin’," Lycus grunted as he crouched on the floor, running his hands over the bottom of the apparent door. "There, I think I found it."

A moment later, the children heard a click, then the sound of stone scraping against stone as a door opened. With tails happily wagging, the two dogs went immediately through the newly discovered opening. The children followed after them.

"Wow! Awesome!" Lycus walked around, taking in their surroundings.

The door in the passageway the children had discovered opened into a large room filled with all sorts of weapons.

"Who would want so many weapons?" Lysia brushed the last of the cobwebs from her hair and face and the soot from her clothes. She was truly relieved to be out of that icky passageway.

"An army," Lycus replied. "Hey, maybe this is the castle of some warlord. He kidnapped us and now Xena, Uncle Cyrus and Joxer will have to come and rescue us." Lycus began to walk around the room, inspecting the weapons lying on the tables around him.

"Well, I hope not," Lysia said

"This stuff is so cool." Lycus’ crystal blue eyes were filled with awe as he held up a dagger with a long jagged blade.

The two dogs watched the children from where they now lay on a bear skin rug.

Lysia was standing by a table covered with all kinds of helmets. Some helmets were plain while others were covered with intricate designs and many colors. One helmet, which she inspected, was in the shape of a lion’s head. Another helmet had highly decorative cheek-pieces in the form of a beard. She ran a hand over the natural horsehair crest decorating the top of the helmet.

"I wanna hold one of those." Lycus was gazing up at some spears lying neatly on a wrack protruding from the stone wall high above his head.

"You’ll never reach it." Lysia now stood in front of a large shield. The creature etched on the shield fascinated the young girl. It had the head and wings of a bird but the front part looked to be that of a horse while the back part looked like a dragon.

"Oh yeah? Just watch me." Lycus stared hard at the spears lying across the wrack. Instantly, one of the spears detached itself from the wrack, and slowly floated down to the waiting hands of the young boy. It was much heavier than he anticipated, so he immediately set it on the floor in a vertical position. "Toldja, I’d get one," he said with a sly grin. The spear he retrieved from the wrack was at least twelve feet long and towered well over the child as it rested on the floor beside him.

"What are ya gonna do with it now? It’s waaay bigger than ya," she chuckled.

"I’m not gonna do anything with it, I just wanna see the bronze tip," he replied

Lysia gazed up at the stone wall and saw an object that caught her attention. Like her brother, she used her powers to detach it from its hanging spot high on the wall and brought it to her waiting hands.

"Hey Lycus, what do ya think this does?" Lysia was holding up a five-pointed metal star.

"I dunno, I’ve never seen one of those before," he replied absentmindedly as his attention returned to the intricate design on the pole of the spear. The pattern on it reminded Lycus of the scales on a fish. Due to the scaly pattern, the wood felt very rough against his palm. He figured it was to give the soldier holding it a better grip. Lycus lowered the spear to the stone floor to get a better look at the bronze tip. As he knelt over the tip, Lycus thought it looked no different than others he had seen. It was just a little larger and longer. He let a finger touch the pointy tip. It was very sharp. Lycus remembered a soldier in India telling him that spears such as the one before him were called thrusting spears. The child rose to his feet and once again held the spear in a vertical position; his eyes still fixed upon it.

"Hey, ya know what this thing reminds me of?" Lysia’s question invaded Lycus’ thoughts about the spear. "The starfish we saw at the beach," she replied with a chuckle. In the middle of the five-pointed star was a handgrip. "Hmm...I wonder..."

"Lysia, DON’T!!!"

Lycus had finally gazed in the direction of his sister but had yelled too late. Lysia threw the object, which now whizzed around the room with lightening quick speed. It bounced hard off a stone wall. Lycus quickly stepped aside as it sliced through the spear he held in a vertical position. Lysia let out a scream when the whizzing object ricocheted off the large shield planted on the floor next to her. The two dogs had risen from the bear skin rug and now stood curiously watching the weapon whiz about the room.

The five pointed metal object did not appear to be slowing down any time soon as it continued to ricochet off objects in the room. It whizzed by some dark red velvet drapes, cutting them in half and filling the room with the bright rays of the sun, which poured through the now exposed window.

As the object continued to whiz above their heads, Lycus quickly grabbed his sister and the two scurried under a black cloth covered table. When the star headed in their direction, the two dogs quickly hurried under the table too.

"Why didja throw that thing?" Lycus quickly asked as the two crouched under the table.

"I dunno, I guess I wanted to see how it works," Lysia meekly replied.

"Well, now ya see it. Now how do we stop it?" Lycus said.

As they crouched under the table, the children couldn’t see the whizzing object but could hear it as it bounced off stone walls and sliced through whatever got in its path. Then abruptly, the whizzing sound of the object could no longer be heard. Surprised by the sudden silence, the children crawled from under the table along with the two dogs.

"Wow! Look at this mess." Lycus surveyed the damage the small metal object had caused.

Weapons that had been neatly hanging on the walls now covered the floor and some were broken.

"Boy, whoever owns this stuff is really gonna be mad at you." Lycus looked at his sister.

"Me!?!? It was that...that thing," Lysia insisted. "How was I to know it would do all this?" The little girl surveyed the disarray around them. The two dogs were sniffing at the weapons, which now littered the floor. "Hey, where is that thing anyway...and what made it stop?"

"I think I know why it stopped." Lycus let out a gulp and tapped his sister’s left arm to get her attention. The two dogs let out a single bark and looked in the direction the boy pointed.

Lysia finally turned around and gazed too in the direction her brother pointed.

Standing by the unused hearth on the other side of the room was a very tall, muscular man with shoulder length curly black hair, a black mustache and a closely trimmed beard. He was wearing a black vest spotted with silver studs, black leather pants and black leather boots, all glistening in the sunlight, which poured through the recently exposed window. At his waist, on his left side hung a scabbard containing a very large sword. On his face was painted a look of amusement and in his right hand, he held the five pointed metal weapon.