Chapter Sixteen: Uncovering the Past

"I'll forget you, I will,
but yet you are still
burning inside my brain."
-Billy Strayhorn

"After all we've been through, I'm with you 'til the end." end...end...end...

The foggy echoes were replaced by the vivid clarity of a darkened room, rock formations and heat surrounded her. She looked off in the distance and could see Xena's body slowly inching toward her daughter, the spawn of Dahak. She watched helplessly, standing among the unconscious bodies of some of the Dark Ones' followers. A loud, deep voice boomed, "you know the stakes Gabrielle, Xena's fate is in your hands" however it could not silence the thoughts raging inside her head. Her child's birth, a baby who filled her with so much promise, the hope, the idea that out of darkness could come light. The shattering realization that her daughter, whose life she had spared, was a cold, calculating killer. The acceptance of her duty to kill the monster she had set loose on the world. Then, there was Xena. Their relationship, once threatened by blind rage and hatred, was now on the road toward forgiveness and love. The past was remembered, but not constantly relived. Her words, "you're the best thing that ever happened to me," reverberated through her thoughts. After everything, she could still say that and mean it with every ounce of her being. Xena is going to die for my mistakes, she thought to herself. The person who taught me how to love and shaped my life is willing to die for something I caused. The cycle was supposed to end with me, yet I've caused the death of too many. The memories pierced through her sending conflicting emotions every which way; love, fear, sadness and guilt created a potent mix of raw, unbridled sensations which ripped through to her very core, her soul. But above all this was the one constant that had been there all along, her love for Xena. Xena lunged at Hope, her dark mirror image, and all at once, Gabrielle felt the doubt within her evaporate, punctuated by the scream, NO! Grasping the staff in her hand, she vaulted herself to the other side of the room. Running at full force, she wrapped her arms around her daughter and continued to fall forward. She turned around to face the person she loved more than her very life once more. She wanted to say that this was for the best. She wasn't going to let Xena pay for her mistakes. She couldn't neglect her duty. She wanted to apologize for all she had put her through, but above all, she wanted to tell her how much she had changed her life too. All she could manage, however, was one solitary look into Xena's eyes. The emotion she saw within those normal icy blue eyes hit her full force. She felt like reaching out, but Xena soon faded away. The heat enveloped her, the dark room disappearing, and her last memory was of hearing Xena call her name. Before she lost consciousness completely, she yelled...

"XENA!" She was falling, falling, falling, until she felt strong hands on her shoulders, but they seemed unfamiliar, cold and unwelcome. Finally, opening her eyes, she was greeted by the sight of a pair of brown eyes staring intently at her with genuine concern.

"You're having a bad dream! Doctor Covington wake up!"

Janice snapped upright causing her old cot to make a loud creaking sound. Her eyes darted back and forth at her surroundings reassuring herself she actually was were she was supposed to be before settling on the woman before her. Cautiously, Janice swung her legs around to the floor, buried her face within her hands and rubbed it a couple of time, wiping the excess sweat that had settled there. Her cotton tank top was soaked with wetness while her hair stuck to her face. She coughed a couple of times before even trying to speak. "I'm sorry. Did...did I wake you?"

Her companion kneeled on the ground and placed a palm on Janice's forehead. "Forget about me. Are you all right?"

"Couldn't be better." Janice rose from her cot and wandered toward the pitcher of now lukewarm water on her table. She poured some into her hands and splashed it against her face. "I...I've been having dreams lately...about..."

"Xena. Well, I could have figured that out by the way you screamed out her name." The tall, slim woman rose from her kneeled position tucking her blonde hair behind her ears.
"Tell me Doctor, are you that obsessed with finding those scrolls?"

Janice smirked while accepting the woman's offering of a towel. "No, but let's just say that I'm more in tune with Xena than most, Madaline." Janice looked around her dimly lit, dirty and dusty tent before settling back down on the cot, the vividness of the dream slowly fading back into her cloudy subconscious. "I'm sorry if I scared you. I must have yelled pretty loud if I woke you up."

The taller and younger Madaline Rosa, clad in khaki shorts and a white cotton top, looked as if she was ready for another day's work in the hot and humid climate. "Actually, I was already getting dressed. I don't really sleep much when I'm in strange places. I still have to get used to all this." Pushing her blonde hair back again away from her face, she leaned up against Janice's small corner table which acted as a combination dining room, desk and occasional uncomfortable bed during those nights she was unlucky enough to fall asleep while reading and writing endless field logs. A pointed silence hung in the air before Madaline broke it, "Doctor Covington, this may seem like a very odd question, but" she breathed in deeply before continuing, "what do you see that we don't?"

Janice rose from her slightly dusty cot while looking at her beautiful and naive companion. "What are you talking about?"

"It's just that from the moment we got here, you've seemed to know exactly where everything is. Your talent seems to extent beyond mere instinct, so I was just wondering if...if..." she stammered slightly inwardly wondering if she should continue or not. "You have this connection with Xena that goes beyond science."

Janice chuckled a bit wondering if the student's powers of perception were keen in all areas. "Madaline, you want a little tip that will help you out in the future; don't think that all of life's answers come from a textbook. There are things in this world science cannot explain." Casually slipping on a clean shirt, Janice motioned for the young woman to follow her out of the small, cramped tent. "Now, let's see how this dig of mine is holding up."

The morning sky was a misty gray punctuated by the occasional stray cloud floating near the horizon, but it was just dark enough so that the stars were still visible. Janice remembered as a young child pointing up into the night sky at the bright and shimmering lights and asking her father to tell her the names of all the constellations. As she looked upon the beautiful night sky now, she wondered if this dark picture had changed much in the thousands of years since her ancestor was looking up at it from this, her home village. Janice shook such musing from as her mind slipped into business mode, her intense focus shifting toward the always lingering question, could anything be done to produce a more efficient dig.

Carefully surveying the rolling hillside in the dim, pre-dawn light, she looked back upon the last couple of weeks in the picturesque beauty of the village once known as Poteidaia. Janice's black eye and cut lip, which were healing nicely, garnered her many odd and questioning looks from some of the university faculty upon their arrival in Greece. Many had heard stories about the brash, harsh archaeologist who, pursing her renegade father's lifelong dream, had made it her mission to find the mythic Xena Scrolls. Any doubts about the Doctor's qualifications, especially on the part of Janice's co-dig leader, Martin Levy, were alleviated after the first briefing meeting. Janice captivated her audience, all four university members of her crew, through her stories of past digs, their objectives for this dig, the recorded history of the region and about the scrolls themselves. Professor Levy and Professor Jonathan Michaels both had their doubts about the existence of the scrolls, but were mesmerized nonetheless by Janice's account of her last dig and the ten scrolls found in Eastern Macedonia. The other two female members of the crew, Professor Rebecca Anderson and Madaline Rosa voiced their excitement of getting the show on the road, so to speak. A mutual trust and respect, vital assets to any team of people working in such close proximity for so long, was established from the very beginning. Janice was pleased at this group of minds the University of South Carolina had assembled for her. With a workman crew of some sixty-five locals from a village five miles away, the excavation was going better than anyone could have imagined. In the past ten days, the crew was able to start substantial digging covering a quarter of a mile adjacent to the bed of a long dried up river. Janice kneeled near the edge of a large hole dug in the earth. Picking up the fine and coarse sediment, she marveled at how some world history was hidden beneath layers of something that could so easily slip through her fingers. Janice sensed they were getting close. She could feel it in every fiber of her being.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a calm voice, "Doctor Covington, how do you get used to all this? Do you realize that right now where I am standing, a whole village once thrived?" Janice found herself smiling at her younger companion's remarks remembering a time when she too found a dig-site to be the source of the ultimate wonder. "I'm sorry, but I still cannot get over the fact that I am actually here."

Janice rose and faced the taller blonde. "Well, you are here. Take it all in, Madaline. After all, there's only one time you can feel the wonder of a first dig."
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The sun was steadily making its way to a higher position in the sky. Although safely hidden away from the sun's rays within the cleaning tent, Janice constantly had to wipe the sweat from her brow. She noticed Professor Anderson shifting uncomfortable in her chair as her shirt stuck to her like a second set of skin. Anderson's red hair hung in wet curls about her face as she took one long swallow of her almost empty canteen, but her light eyes were transfixed on the new artifacts uncovered earlier in the day. One of the diggers found an assortment of jars encased in blocks of sediment...hydria if she wasn't mistaken. They were carefully brought to the cleaning tent where the more experienced Anderson set out upon the difficult task of removing the priceless artifacts from the prison they had been held in for so long.

Janice stared intently at the two clay jars sitting atop the table next to her. Both were in seemingly excellent condition, aside from assorted cracks upon their exteriors. "How are things going, Rebecca?"

Leaning back against her chair, Rebecca lifted her hair up off her neck and fanned herself. "As well as can be expected." She inhaled deeply and shifted in her chair. Gently touching one of the artifacts on the tabletop, she began, "Looks definitely to be from that period and these markings are probably the name of its owner. It would make sense that these jars were found near the riverbed. They were water jugs." Taking another chug of her canteen, she continued, "I gotta tell you. This thing was almost perfectly preserved. All of them seem to be in supreme condition. I'm sure the boys back in Charleston will be happy to hear about this." She smiled warmly and shifted her attention back to the artifacts that still needed her attention.

The mention of Charleston brought a dull aching sensation back to Janice's heart. She had almost successfully detached herself from the world outside the dig-site, but that word brought her close to having emotions she had successfully suppressed dangerously close to the surface. Quickly, Janice regained her focus and nodded at Rebecca's comment. "If you don't mind, I'll probably send Madaline in here to see if she can decipher those markings as anything we can use." Rebecca simply nodded understandingly and continued to chip away the sediment off the third jar.

The day reached its midpoint. The sun reached its zenith in the sky and the heat seemed to rise off everyone's skin. Janice continually ran a wet cloth over her face while aiding some of her workers in the delicate task of removing more artifacts from the fine and coarse sands of Greece. The area near the former riverbed yielded large clay fragments of more jars, but these pieces distinguished themselves by bearing intricate designs. A second area about five hundred yards away also began to yield some interesting pieces included a couple of arrowheads and part of scabbard, but the ultimate prize still laid buried somewhere underneath the sand somewhere. Janice called for the dig foreman to call a break. The sun was beating down mercilessly upon every unlucky soul who happened to be standing in its path.

Sitting on the edge of the large hole her workers created, Janice opened a couple of buttons on her shirt and poured water on her head. The cold water was a welcome relief to her overheated body. Her brain, however, continued to turn. She started to think about the very distinct possibility that she was in the wrong place. Maybe the journal wasn't here. After all, it was obvious from the information she was able to piece together that Gabrielle did not return often to visit her family in this peasant village, but something in her gut refused this logic. They were here...somewhere. She gingerly sipped her water and was completely unaware of the presence behind her until she felt more cold water being poured down her back. She reflexively jumped and was about to knock out whoever it was who was having a good laugh at her expense until she had the familiar deep-throated laugh. "Stavros, that was...that was just..."

"Ah, but I bet it felt good, didn't it?" Stavros kneeled before the younger and now wet head of the dig. He made it a habit to check up on Janice at least once a day. Acting as a liaison between the workers and the university staff, Stavros had many problems to deal with which often made it difficult for him to have any sort of quality time with his adopted daughter/drinking companion. "So what's been turning in that brain of yours?"

Janice sighed. "Am I that easy to read?"

"Well, let's just say I have twenty years practice on how to read the moods and thought processes of a certain archeologist, who shall remain, as always, nameless." He playfully hit Janice on the shoulder.

Janice took off her hat and hit it a couple of times on her leg sending dust into the air. "Sarcasm does not become you Stavros! If you must know, I'm beginning to wonder if I'm barking up the wrong tree. I'm beginning to wonder if I'm just here wasting my time."

"Just because you don't find more scrolls does not mean that the dig will be a waste of time. You've already found some very priceless and beautifully preserved artifacts and I'm sure that there are more things...."

Placing the hat back atop of her head, she brought her legs up to chest and held them with her arms. "I know you're right, but there is still this part of me that...that needs to know and understand. Like if I find this, I'll...I'll understand myself better. Understand why..."

"Why your in love with..."

Janice looked up at the sun, closed her eyes and nodded. "I've tried to get away from it, but all roads lead back to...to her. There's not a minute that goes by that I don't wonder what she is doing at that exact moment halfway across the world. I wonder if she's happy and if...if she even thinks about me." She laughed at herself for saying things she never, ever thought she could say about another human being. "I can't believe that I'm sitting here in the dirt, in Greece, on a dig-site and talking about this. When the hell did I become such a lovesick idiot!"

"Janice, I don't think you're an idiot. You've learned how to love, and I think that is the most beautiful thing on the face of this earth."

"Well, I'm glad someone thinks it's beautiful." Janice chuckled to suppress the growing knot within her throat, but she had only a few seconds to dwell on her feelings when she saw a blur running across the camp. Over Stavros' shoulder, Professor Anderson was running steadily toward her with grim determination on her face. She jumped to her feet, dusted herself off and walked toward the professor. "Rebecca, what's going on? Are you okay?"

Rebecca halted infront of Janice and took a minute to inhale deeply. In between pants, she said in an excited tone, "in one of the jars, I...I found something." Before she could finish, Janice was in a mad-dash toward the cleaning tent with Rebecca only two steps behind.
===========================
"The sediment within the jar was a lot easier to remove for some reason. I didn't think anything of it until I cleared enough of it away and I found this." Professor Anderson carefully picked up a gray, smooth, medium-sized stone from the dusty tabletop. Janice looked at the stone curiously wondering what was so special about it. "I still didn't think anything was out of the ordinary. Of course, there would be various types of sediment inside the jar, but as it examined more thoroughly and I began to notice intricate markings, but the stone has been so worn down that it was hard to make anything out. Then, I dipped it in cleaning solution and..." Rebecca turned the smooth stone over and revealed the other side. Janice's eyes grew wide. It was covered in symbols along with a pattern of some kind in the middle. "I can't even begin to tell you what this is or why it would be inside the jar. I think Madaline should have a look at this."

Janice held the stone in her hand and lightly fingered the smooth surface. The carvings registered on her sensitive fingers unlocking a deep, long buried fear within her. She did not know why, but there was something, a feeling she could not place that something terrible was about to happen. She shook the feelings off when she vaguely heard Rebecca ask her if she was all right. "Your face just turned a lighter shade of pale. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," came Janice's stammered answer. "It's just..." She looked into her colleague's questioning dark eyes and quickly replied, "Madaline should...have a look. Rebecca, record this in the log. I'm going to take a closer look at this piece. There's just something..."

"Sure. Anything I can help you with?"

"No, thanks. I want to take a look at a couple of reference books in my tent. I'll bring it back by tomorrow." Janice carefully wrapped the ancient stone in a soft cloth.
===========================
Janice had no idea why she needed to exam this piece closely, but there was a multitude of feelings running through her body, feelings she could not place. Again, she held the stone in her hand, looking at it desperately as if it would give her answers to some of the greater, unknown questions. She closed her eyes, trying to give her mind some clarity and perhaps giving her mind's eye more focus, but nothing came to her. There was no reason for Janice to believe this stone was any different than any other piece she held in her hand, but something within her told her different. There was darkness, a coldness as if a shot of arctic air ran within her every time she held it in her hand. I must be losing it, she thought to herself. She placed the stone on her desk and rubbed her face a couple of times with her callused, rough hands.

Digging continued well into the afternoon, and only when the sun slowly began its descent into the west did the workers finally call it a day. Aside from the jars and the assorted pieces of weaponry, the workers managed to unearth more fragments of assorted clay items and a couple pieces of petrified wood, presumably from one of the villages many dwellings. As night fell upon the site, the University crew had their nightly briefing meeting, but unlike the nights before, they actually had much to discuss. Gas-powered lanterns provided the only light at night, and they illuminated the inside of the tent. Janice's voice echoed through part of the site as she spoke about their new findings. "I believe that this excavation is going better than anyone could have anticipated, but I think you all know that what we are really looking for is still out there somewhere." Everyone nodded collectively and Janice continued. "I know this is a pretty small dig, at least to what some of you are used to, but I plan on trying to persuade the university to expand this dig. So far their money has yielded some good returns."

Professor Levy pushed up on his wire-framed glasses and smiled. "I will whole-heartedly recommend to Dean Richardson that this excavation be expanded two-fold. I'm sure that we are only covering half of the area in which the village actually existed and the other half is where the scrolls might actually be."

Professor Michaels regarded his colleagues before speaking. "This area is rich with history. The university would be fools to turn their backs on the opportunity for further exploration. This site has yielded some of the best and well-preserved artifacts I have seen in my career."

Janice looked around and smiled to herself. She had never gotten along with a crew so well in her entire career. For once, she did not have to convince anyone that her intentions were true; she didn't have to prove herself. "I'm glad that we are all in agreement. I guess if no one has any new business, this meeting is adjourned."
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"Read 'em and weep boys. Full boat." Janice's lips held a small cigar making her words seem tinged with a bit of anger, but this was all in the spirit of fun. Well, at least Janice was having fun. "Thank you gentleman for your most generous contributions to my entertainment fund." She had won the last four hands and registered the growing looks of playful disdain on her companion's faces.

Professor Michaels was the first to speak, "Not much you can buy with that. What is that about seventy-five cents in American money?" As much as they tried to deny it, Janice knew Professor Martin Levy and Jonathan Michaels had a hard time facing the reality of losing to a woman.

"Jonathan, you've got to learn how to stretch your money and your imagination." All the men let out varied degrees of chuckles. Life on a dig was made just a bit more tolerable by having the presence of some civilized fun and games. Poker was the game of choice on this dig, like most Janice found herself on. She loved it because she liked to see the faces of the macho men on her crew drop when they realized just what a formidable opponent she was at the poker table. She seemed to earn a bit more respect from her men because she could drink them under the table, smoke a good cigar and win their entire salary in less than an hour if she wanted to. "Oh, Martin wipe that pout off your face. It's just not you!"

"Janice, you've had the longest lucky streak I have ever seen and I'm beginning to wonder if this game isn't rigged."

"You're just looking for excuses aren't you!"

"Yes! I do want to have some amount of dignity left for tomorrow morning."

Jonathan ran his finger through his hair and breathed out loud. "I'm still trying to figure out how you got so good at this."

"I had a very good teacher." Janice winked at Stavros who was seated next to her.

"Please Janice, even I'm not this good." Stavros patted her on the back.

"So what do you say boys? One more game or are you too...chicken?" Janice was happy that everyone agreed to one more game. She didn't like the prospect of having to face another long night in her tent by herself. These semi-nightly poker games had become her saving grace during the past week. Her mind, occupied with poker strategies and reading various attempts at poker faces, had little time to dwell on the hollowness she felt in her heart. When she closed her eyes, she knew Melinda's face would be there...in one form or another. The past few nights she had been having more dreams about Xena and they had been increasing in vividness and clarity. This morning's dream had felt real until she woke up in a cold sweat. "And then we'll call it a night." She handed out the cards slowly and smiled inwardly when she looked at her hand.
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Janice looked at it once more rubbing the smooth surface with her index finger, tracing the perfect lines of a human form. The photograph, taken only two month ago, showed Melinda, dressed in full excavation gear, looking off in the distance instead of at the camera. Mel would sometimes have long periods of silent moods where she would just stare off into space. Janice learned to indulge her partner in them, but as their relationship deepened, she often wondered what thoughts swirled through her mind. She sometimes took the picture out when her feelings welled inside her heart. Her finger touched Mel's face, and she silently remembered how the real surface felt against her skin. The warmth, scent and texture enveloped her. The memory slowly invading reality. She thought distance could help her to forget, but it only heightened her sense of loss. The gaping hole seemed to grow everyday, making it more difficult to concentrate. Her life force was slipping away. The only thing that kept her from going completely off the deep end was the memory of Mel's lips touching hers. The memory sustained her, growing more vivid with each recollection. It only took a moment to recall how she smelled, what her body felt underneath her probing hands. She closed her eyes and wondered if she tried hard enough, could she possibly send a message to Melinda's soul, but she quickly opened them again when she realized she didn't know what to say. Love was coupled with anger. If Mel had indeed felt the same way, then why had she agreed to marry Charles? But this was a question Janice had asked herself about a hundred times since her arrival on the dig. She tucked the black and white picture back in her pants pocket and tried to drive all thoughts of Melinda Pappas from her mind.

No sooner had Janice resumed some university paper work than she was interrupted by Madaline's unmistakably voice calling her name. "Doctor Covington, am I disturbing you?"

Janice closed some of the open books scattered about the small tabletop and granted the student entrance to her tent. "What's the matter?"

"No, nothing," Madaline said timidly, "I just heard from Professor Anderson that you have an artifact which you might want me to look at."

"Oh, yeah. I was meaning to talk to you about that, but it's late Madaline and I don't want to keep you up with this right now. So, we can do this tomorrow..."

Madaline interrupted Janice by waving off the comment with her hands, "it's no bother really. I don't get much sleep anyway and from this morning, it looks like you have the same problem." She smiled warmly as she sat in the wooden chair Janice offered her at the table. Madaline's blonde hair hung perfectly around her face as it had been for the past two weeks. Her clothes, a short sleeved shirt and matching khaki shorts accentuated her slim frame and long legs. Janice wondered how she kept up such an appearance under this stressful and less than glamorous situation.

"I usually don't have trouble so you don't have to worry about me." Janice took the stone out of its cloth wrapping and settled it infront of the younger blonde.

But instead of looking at the stone, Madaline continued to look at Janice intently. "Well, if you should ever have trouble going to sleep please feel free to drop by my tent." She smiled knowingly and shifted her sitting position to face Janice directly. "I mean, I'm probably up and I'd love to hear some more of your stories." But before Janice could answer or even move, she shifted her attention to the stone infront of her. "Interesting markings, definitely man-made. I can't believe you found this so perfectly preserved. I've seen artifacts like these only in textbooks."

"Can you decipher it?"

"This pattern in the middle is not of any recorded ancient language that I know of. This stone seems to be part of a larger piece, a tablet perhaps, but why would anyone break this piece off and place it in a jar, I think that's your department Doctor." She looked up for a moment and was a little taken aback at having the good doctor's full attention.

Madaline stared for another few moments, touching the stone as if she wanted it to speak to her. "So, what's the verdict, kid?"

"This is a different dialect than I'm used to and the pattern of verb/noun placement is a bit odd, but I can make out a few words. Here," she pointed at some markings at the top of the stone, "this means 'one,' but it could also be 'supreme.' I've seen it used as both in other cases. We won't know for sure until the entire sentence is deciphered, but...this is strange..."

"What?" Janice leaned in and looked over her shoulder.

"This symbol means 'god.' It says 'One god'" Before Janice had time to voice her doubts, Madaline did it for her. "But that doesn't make any sense, the Greeks were polytheistic."

"You said it could also mean 'supreme god.' It could just be Zeus."

"It's rare that the Ancient Greeks would refer to Zeus as the supreme deity, especially in a town this small. By all known accounts, Potiedaia was a rural community. Zeus cults usually practiced around major cities, Athens, Thebes. When small communities like these prayed and made sacrifices to Zeus, they prayed to a specific power within him; Zeus Herkeios, protecting enclosures, homes; Zeus Ktesios, watching over possessions and Zeus Phratrios, who protects the family." Madaline still looked intently at the stone, pushing her hair back behind her ear. When she finally looked up at Janice, she found her blue-green eyes watching her with a touch of admiration. "I'm doing my graduate dissertation on ancient religions in Greece. Ah, I'd like to know what you think."

Janice was surprised at how much this student knew about the subject. Although Janice found ancient religions interesting, she did not immerse herself within its study, instead concentrating her focus on a certain female warrior. "Ancient religions are not my area of expertise, but an educated guess would be a record of religious practices or a calendar of sacrifices. Is there anything else you can make out?"

"This area is a little bit worn down, so it is a harder to make out, but I believe it's the symbol for 'temple.'" Madaline released the stone from her grasp and set it back on the table. "That's all I can read off-hand. I'm really sorry, but if I can get a bit more time and the right reference books, I'm sure I can figure the rest out. The dialect is unusual, but I've seen harder ones deciphered given some hard work."

"Maybe if you get some sleep too, sweetheart. Madaline, you have to relax. I'm sure getting only a few hours of sleep every night is not doing anything to enhance your mental powers."

"I guess I'm excited that's all. This is my first dig, first time out of the country, and I'm finally getting to live this grand adventure, the kind I'd only heard about. I'm getting to do things that I've only, up 'til now, read about in textbooks. But you're right I do need to get over this excitement or I'll wear myself out before I've even gotten started. Uhm, should I return this to the cleaning tent?" Madaline asked picking up the flat, smooth stone.

"No, I'll put it back tomorrow morning. I still want to do some preliminary examinations before I pack it up." Janice had seen many students like this through the years who came to a dig-site with fantasies in their heads about what being an archaeologist was like, only to have those fantasies shattered when they realized the glamour and glory where only in their minds and in those Hollywood movies, but something about Madaline's innocent air intrigued her. Unlike some of the other students she had encountered, she was willing to do any kind of labor with a smile on her face, and she was obviously qualified and knowledgeable about ancient studies. "Go on, get out of here! Get some sleep."

"Thank you for listening to my babbling," Madaline said as she touched Janice's arm. Janice realized that this was the first time someone had touched her somewhat affectionately in quite a long time. She had to admit, it felt nice. She shook the feeling off, thinking nothing of it until Madaline, before exiting the tent, turned around with a disarming smile and a bit of the devil in her eye said, "and don't forget my offer. I can also be a good listener if you let me."

Janice could not contain a grin slowly taking shape on her lips. She still did not know if she was correctly interpreting the hidden subtext beneath Madaline's words or if it was once again a product of her overactive imagination starved for any type of companionship. She had been known to read too much into things some times, but there was something distinct and tangible in her words. As soon as she left the tent, Janice began to wonder if she should indeed take her up on her offer, and if she did would she be able to go through with it knowing that her heart was thousands of miles away in the United States. Funny, she never before associated sex and love so closely, but now they seemed completely connected, and both carried an image of a tall Southern, blue-eyed beauty with raven hair and the sweetest smile known to man. She had her share of passionate, loveless affairs, but all had left her completely unfulfilled and lonely. But what was she saving herself for? She sighed inwardly as the answer came....a woman who was about to spend her life with someone else. Madaline was intelligent, beautiful and more importantly available.
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"My parents died when I was thirteen. The house caught fire one night, an accident. I was the only one who made it out in time." Madaline's eyes swelled with moisture, but no tears fell, they only made her eyes glow in the soft, low light of the single lantern in the tent. "My life changed completely after that. I moved from St. Louis to Charleston to live with my uncle. My uncle, a sweet man, loved history. He could talk for hours on end about the causes of the First World War or the downfall of the Roman Empire, but he especially loved ancient Greek history, and pretty soon his interest rubbed off on me. Luckily, I was able to foray this interest into a real career. And there's my story in a nutshell, but I'm sure your story is much more interesting than mine."

"Well everyone does have a story, but I just followed in my dad's footstep...as unusual as some may think those footsteps are." Janice shrugged. "But there was never a doubt of what I wanted to do with my life. I grew up on digs, with dirt in my hair and a pick in my hand." Janice shifted in her chair, straddling it, resting her arms on its back. Turning her attention back to Madaline who was sitting Indian style on a small cot, she continued, "I'm sure I missed out on some things, but I wouldn't change any of it."

"So why do you walk around with regret on your face sometimes?" Janice looked up in surprise. "I can read people. Sometimes, your mind seems to be somewhere else or maybe on someone else." Madaline rose from the cot and kneeled infront of the befuddled doctor. "Isn't that why you're here?" Janice swallowed. "Why we're on this dig, to forget, bury yourself in work? To forget how this person wronged you." Madaline smiled, "and why you're here with me now."

Janice let her lips rise into a slight smile before letting out a small chuckle. She wasn't used to this. Usually, she was the one who set things in motion, made the first move, but now she was on the receiving end of sexual sentiments. "If you're so good at reading people, tell me, what is it I'm feeling right now?"

Madaline placed her hand on Janice's face, running it gently up and down her cheek, feeling the warmth rise on her skin. "I'd rather show you." Madaline fiercely claimed Janice's lips, sucking and tugging at them with more passion than Janice had ever experienced. She finally felt herself kissing back, happily tasting everything Madaline had to offer. Hands now made their way to her shirt buttons sending Janice's thoughts swirling out of control. All rationale was slowly being thrown out the window, instead she found herself being lost in the moment and the growing passion within her. She pushed Madaline back onto the cot, lips refusing to break contact, her mind only vaguely aware that her shirt was now open in the front. Her hands finally made their way to Madaline's shirt, which she passionately ripped open causing her to moan into Janice's mouth. Finally, Janice looked into Madaline's brown eyes now dark with desire. She whispered, hotly, "take me, please." Janice gladly complied kissing the blonde woman's neck, making a slow, torturous descent downward. In the dim light, she could see Madaline's eyes shut lost in the moment about to carry them both away. Turning her attention back to the task at hand, Janice moved her shirt completely out of the way tossing it hurriedly to one side, her lips settling back again on the woman's flat stomach. Madaline grabbed Janice's face and seized her lips again, her hands trying to rip Janice's undershirt from her body, in the process flipping her to one side of the cot. Madaline now straddled the smaller woman, pushing herself into her, and smiling with a wicked knowledge of what she was about to do to the good doctor. Grabbing both of Janice's hands, she pinned them above her head while fumbling desperately with her belt buckle. Finally, she managed to pull her pants down around her knees and kissed her deeply for what seemed like the hundredth time.

In the distance, Janice began to hear the faint shouting of her name. Dismissing it as part of a very overactive imagination, she continued enjoying Madaline's attempt at making her forget about it all. The voice came again, louder this time, in a distinct accent she would know anywhere...Stavros. In between kisses, she tried to put the breaks on what was about to happen, "Madaline...there's someone...calling me...we've got to...stop this..." She tried to move her arms, still pinned above her head with little success. This woman was determined. Finally, Janice managed to flip Madaline over on to her side. Kissing her soundly once more, she whispered, "I've got to go, but...thanks for being such a good listener." She rose from the cot, pulling up her pants and slowly buttoning up her shirt.

"Anytime Doctor, anytime."

Still adjusting her shirt, she ran toward the distraught voice in the darkness, increasing her paces when her name was called once more. It had to be about three hours before sunrise. The apprehension grew within her listening to the camp, which was uncomfortably silent with the exception of Stavros' voice echoing. She finally caught sight of him near her tent. "There you are. I was starting to get worried that something might have happened to you."

"I was busy." Janice was surprised to see genuine concern on Stavros' face. "What's the matter?"

"The guard at the cleaning tent was knocked out cold about an hour ago. Raiders, Janice. Raiders!"