In the case of the Goddess of Lamentation, Testacles took what little information he could glean from Lord Ares, and easily discerned what he considered to be a fairly full picture of Sorrow's goal. Ultimately, the young goddess did not want to obey some order she had been given, Testacles had to assume, despite Ares' hesitancy to reveal exactly what it was that he wanted from her. That did not matter, really, for Testacles would do as Ares commanded, no matter what the task. However, for his own purposes, he continued to contemplate the mind set of the sad goddess.

Sorrow was young, he understood, and that meant she was most likely immature in her views. Being but a girl, and in trouble, and knowing that most children run to their most powerful parent in times of great need, he was able to easily agree with the God of War that she was on her way to see her father, Poseidon, God of the Sea.

Only one thing caused him a great deal of confusion, though - why was Sorrow not using her godly powers to get to the Temple of Poseidon? It made no sense to Testacles that a powerful goddess, such as she, would choose to travel on foot rather than transport herself there by her own will, and he had no option except to assume that there was some sort of advantage to her method that he could not see just yet. And, to tell the truth, Testacles had to give a nod for her strategy, for the Goddess Sorrow had managed to hide from Ares, God of War, quite easily, and after some thought, Testacles suddenly knew how she'd done it.

"She's got human friends down here helping her!" Testacles growled to his lieutenant.

"Sir?" questioned the lieutenant, for the statement seemed to have come out of nowhere.

"The goddess, you idiot!" Testacles clarified impatiently. "She's bound to have someone human helping her. But, who could it be?"

The lieutenant - the most recent in a long line of failed officers - swallowed hard before venturing, "Hercules was seen on the road yesterday, My Lord . . . is he not her cousin?"

Testacles' eyes lit up at the very mention of the demigod's name, and he added happily, "And, Hercules despises most of his godly relatives! He'd certainly be one to ask for help in such a situation! Good thinking, Meridius!"

Lieutenant Meridius almost sighed in extreme relief at the compliment. He had unfortunately been present at the execution of his predecessor, and was most gratified to see that he would not share that man's fate. ~ Not yet, at least ~ Meridius thought with apprehension. For the moment, his own quick thinking had ensured his safety.

"Yes, Hercules," mused Testacles over a large cup of wine. "And, who's that little pipsqueak that follows him?"

"Joxer the Mighty, sir?" ventured Meridius hesitantly. "The brother of the assassin, Jett?"

"No - that's the buffoon that follows Xena!" Testacles clarified with a rare laugh. "I'm talking about the short, blonde guy who always hangs out with Hercules."

"Oh!" Meridius nodded in sudden understanding. "That would be the warrior, Iolaus of Corinth, Lord Testacles."

"Yeah, that's him!" Testacles agreed emphatically. "Let's send out our first patrols going in both directions with orders to look for Hercules and his little friend. A pretty famous pair like that surely can't travel from Mount Olympus to Iolkos without being recognized by someone! I think, if we can find Hercules, or even his friend, we'll most likely find the goddess as well. I want small patrols set up along the main road and larger patrols on any side roads that may be found. The southward patrols should concentrate on the side roads until they reach the outskirts of Iolkos - then I want them to focus on the main road. The goddess and her friends will most likely try to get into the city by blending in with the usual traffic."

"Yes, Lord Testacles," Meridius saluted.

"Oh, and another thing," Testacles added with a wave of his wine cup. "Under no circumstance should any of the men attempt to fight Hercules or his friend if they find them - just follow them, and have someone report back to me the minute they are found. Do you understand?"

"I understand, my Lord Testacles," Meridius swore with a bow, fully relieved that he had survived yet another strategy session with the psychotic warlord. He exited the tent immediately to deliver his leader's orders to the impatiently waiting soldiers who'd been pulled from the ranks earlier that morning.

Remaining in the strategy tent, Testacles sat back and took another deep drink of his wine and sighed, thinking how glorious it would be to offer up the whereabouts of the Goddess of Lamentation to Lord Ares without even having to truly confront her, or her possibly quite lethal companions. He would gladly leave that up to Ares, but he would certainly enjoy the favors the God of War would surely bestow upon him for finding the goddess Sorrow.

"Like shooting fish in a barrel!" he chuckled to himself before finishing off his dram.

Hercules was quite pleased by the drastic change in the demeanor of his companions, and was elated to see that the sadness that had been haunting both Sorrow and Iolaus all morning had been replaced with a certain joyfulness. Hercules recognized that kind of happiness, and was so glad to see that Iolaus' fears had been put to rest by an obviously receptive Sorrow.

The two lovers now followed Hercules side-by-side on the narrow path, holding hands as they went along, with Iolaus looking so proud and Sorrow blushing constantly. Every once in a while, they would disappear from behind him, and Hercules could easily guess that Iolaus was probably unable to keep from wanting to hold and kiss Sorrow, and judging by the smile on her face each time they suddenly reappeared behind him again, she was a willing accomplice.

~ At this rate, he'd better plan on marrying her soon, and not because of Ares! ~ Hercules thought with an elated smirk. But, the truth was, he was genuinely concerned about Sorrow. He had never had any younger sisters to worry about, and his elder sisters obviously had no need of his concern, but Hercules found himself feeling quite protective of Sorrow's innocence. For the moment, he was quite certain that his young cousin's chastity was quite safe, but it had been a long, long time since he'd seen Iolaus so taken with anyone, be it a woman or a goddess. Hercules decided that he would allow Iolaus such liberties as did not compromise her virtue, but would put his foot down on any further romance until her father could decide if she should be joined with Iolaus.

In truth, Hercules had no need to worry about Sorrow's innocence, for Iolaus was quite aware of her lack of experience, and was quite protective of that fact, himself, and for good reason. Although he had not said so yet, he now had every intention of asking for her hand in marriage the minute they were able to deliver her safely to Poseidon. Of course, he felt nervous about approaching the God of the Sea to ask for such an impossible thing, but every time he looked at Sorrow, he knew it was a chance he would have to take. Those were also the moments that prompted him to suddenly abduct her from their path of travel and steal a shy kiss or two from her behind a tree or bush.

To his infinite joy, Iolaus always found Sorrow to be a willing abductee for these brief interludes, and when they had to catch up with Hercules again, she never let on what they'd been up to in the meantime, and thankfully Hercules never asked. However, Iolaus guessed from Hercules' sly smiles that the demigod was fully aware that their courtship had begun and was in favor of it. In return, Iolaus was determined to be worthy of the trust he was being afforded by Sorrow's very protective, and very strong, cousin. ~ Thank the gods he's my best friend! ~ Iolaus thought with a slight laugh. ~ I'd be a dead man by now, if she were my cousin and I were Hercules! ~

Sorrow looked up at him with her own smile of happiness when he chuckled, and his blue eyes locked onto hers, so deep and green, like the ocean itself. He was so focused on her that he did not see Hercules waving them back, this time for real, and when they almost bumped into the demigod, they both looked up too late to see that they had been surrounded.

"Uh oh," Iolaus breathed as he turned to back up Hercules, pulling Sorrow aside protectively as he did so. Standing in a full circle around them were a band of mercenaries, all armed to the teeth, and every one of them aware that the God of War had a bounty out on the Goddess of Lamentation. Word of Ares' search for her had spread quickly from Testacles' camp, and now it was "open season" on Sorrow, just as Ares had surreptitiously intended.

"Uh oh is right," Hercules replied as he also checked the safety of Sorrow, who was already making up the third side of their defensive triangle and wielding her quarterstaff in full readiness.

The lead mercenary, an ugly man named Herodotus, stepped forward and said, "We have no trouble with you or your friend, Hercules - just give us the goddess, and you may go on your way."

"And, what if I say no?" Hercules asked semi-comically.

"Then, we're going to have a problem!" growled Herodotus, grimacing as he spoke.

Iolaus pitched in semi-seriously, "And I suppose there's absolutely no way we can possibly talk you into not doing this?"

Herodotus shook his head slowly, grinning psychotically, "Not a chance."

"Then," said Hercules with a sense of finality, "I guess we're just going to have to say no."

"No!?" Herodotus echoed, first in disbelief, then again with humor. "No!"

Iolaus turned to Hercules earnestly, "You are speaking Greek, aren't you?"

"You think I should try saying it in Barbarian?" Hercules asked, masking his desire to laugh.

"ENOUGH!" Herodotus bellowed in great irritation, then waved at his men, "Get them!"

Both Hercules and Iolaus had hoped Sorrow would will herself somewhere else for the ensuing battle, but in the end they were glad to have her by their side with her quarterstaff, for she was as good in battle that day as she had been the day before when they encountered the road blocking highwaymen. Sorrow's heart was beating so hard that she almost didn't realize, until after she had already done it, that she had easily deflected two on-rushing thugs by simply bringing up the staff in front of her in time to slam it into their throats, effectively crushing their windpipes.

"Good move!" Iolaus complimented as he clothes-lined another thug with his own forearm.

"Thanks!" Sorrow replied, readying to dispel another mercenary reaching for her.

Hercules and Iolaus were each holding their own quite easily, and both took time here and there to watch out for the young goddess, for though she was strong and her powers were a great bonus to them at the moment, she was not used to fighting. In fact, Iolaus would still have preferred that she not be in the midst of this fight at all, but he realized very quickly that Sorrow was making a strong difference in a battle where the odds were all seemingly stacked against the three travelers, and she fought extremely well for her lack of experience. She was an instinctive fighter, ready to crack a head or knock someone's feet out from beneath them before she even laid eyes on the attacking thug. It was quite a surprising twist to the sweet, demure character of the Goddess of Lamentation, and a most welcome talent when it came to fighting for her own freedom.

When the first wave ended, with many mercenaries and barbarians whimpering as they crawled away, the second wave immediately stepped up to the battle and formed a new circle that began to close in on the three travelers slowly and menacingly.

"What do you think?" Iolaus questioned Hercules, seeing that a third wave was waiting just beyond the second, and beginning to doubt their possibility of winning this particular fight.

"I think maybe we'd better find a way to fight our way out of here," Hercules ventured apprehensively. "Got any ideas?"

"Wait! I've got an idea!" Sorrow cried out as she turned around and held out her staff to Iolaus. She grinned, "Ready to clear out this group quickly?"

Iolaus smiled back at her knowingly and announced, "You bet!"

He took hold of the staff just past where she held onto it on either side of the carved pole, and Hercules ducked just in time to save his own head from getting kicked in as Iolaus spun Sorrow around with enough force to lift her off the ground. Once airborne, her feet began to mercilessly walk across the faces of the attacking soldiers, knocking them down as she did so, and most of the stupid men were back up in time to give Sorrow another chance to lay them out with the force of her legs. Once the second wave was no longer standing, Iolaus slowed the spin until Sorrow landed softly on the grass before him, both laughing at the hilarity of the scene. However, there was no time to enjoy the moment further, for the third wave was already trying to decide whether they were going to make an attempt, and Herodotus was at the boiling point.

"YOU IDIOTS!" Herodotus raged at his soldiers. "Get back up and get back in there! Third Flank, get moving!"

The few soldiers who were left with any consciousness climbed to their feet to join the wave, and the three travelers returned to their fighting stance.

"Well, now what?" Iolaus mused.

"Just take care of business!" Hercules quickly advised as he encountered the first few who dared to attack him. His fists flew, as did the two soldiers who approached him, and most every soldier thereafter. However, he knew that they still had yet to face up to forty more healthy men, none of whom looked happy about their humiliation at the hands of the goddess, the demigod and the pipsqueak blonde sidekick. Hercules grimaced as he realized that this was likely to be a full out assault in a do-or-die effort to overwhelm the trio and collect the prize.

Taking up their defensive roles once more, the trio fought to their own particular strengths. Hercules used his great strength coupled with a mixture of agility that tended to surprise his opponents who did not expect such a big man to be so light on his feet. Sidestepping a thrusting attack from a sword-wielding soldier, the son of Zeus clamped a firm hand on the luckless man's shoulder, and another on his belt, before lifting him effortlessly off his feet and using him as a battering ram against his fellow mercenaries. Bodies flew in all directions as they were struck by the booted feet, or helmeted head of their comrade.

With economy of motion, Hercules swept aside all that came at him, even managing a smile as he threw a comment across his shoulder to his friends, "Seems like they never learn - you'd think by now they'd come up with something new!"

"Don't give 'em ideas, Herc," grinned Iolaus, ducking beneath a mace swung at his head. He kicked out hard, his booted foot folding his opponent up as the air rushed out of him and he stumbled back into the men behind him. "I prefer them like this . . . so much more predictable and easy to handle!" he laughed as he launched himself up into a spinning kick that left three more of the grungy mercenaries seeing stars.

Sorrow listened to the banter between the two heroes as she effortlessly swung her staff at the seemingly never-ending targets. She applied herself to a rhythm that allowed her to defend against an incoming assault and then launch her own counter attack with a speed that was nothing short of supernatural. She was a goddess after all; there had to be some perks to the job. She allowed herself a smile as she realized that fighting like this came naturally to her companions, for they had been in these situations many times and because of that they were able to joke even when in the midst of seemingly overwhelming odds. A swing of her staff deflected a sword, then an instinctive reverse thrust took out a sneaky little runt who was trying to blind-side Iolaus. That move got a her a quick "Thanks!" from her ardent admirer as she threw a solid sweep of her weapon, taking down two more opponents as their ankles were knocked out from under them.

"Anytime!" Sorrow replied, her voice reflecting such loving sincerity that it almost took the blonde sidekick's breath away.

Despite the strong defense the three put up against the mercenaries, still the fight raged on, for the hired soldiers were far more afraid of failing Herodotus than of having to face their three intended victims. Hercules and Iolaus were not known to kill unless forced to, and they had no reason to fear the young goddess, while their leader had ways of making a man wish he were dead long before the event actually took place. So, even though they were getting their butts whipped, they kept up the pressure, hoping that, eventually, the force of their numbers would tell and they'd finally be victorious.

During a slight pause in his defensive battle, Iolaus took advantage of another chance to check on Sorrow's safety and watch her in action. It gave him such a sense of pride to see her using the skills he, himself, had taught her, and also to know that she was destined to be his, and his alone. Sorrow was everything he could have ever asked for, and it was truly a very great feeling.

What did not feel great was the sudden blow to the back of his head from the hilt of a barbarian sword, and he had just a moment to proclaim, "Ow!" before sinking into unconsciousness.

"IOLAUS!" Sorrow shrieked in horror when she saw Iolaus fall to the ground, and she moved quickly to slam her staff unmercifully into the face of the offending soldier before he could stab Iolaus and finish him off.

After that, Sorrow could not explain her ensuing actions, for she fell into a sort of blind rage like she'd never experienced before. Her green eyes began to glow with the force of an anger like no other, and she suddenly balled up her fist and threw it open again in rage. A ball of sizzling energy flew out from her outstretched hand, hitting each offending mercenary in its path and knocking them out of their boots until only Herodotus was left. He turned and ran as the electric force chased him down, and it struck him solidly in the back. Herodotus fell to the ground in unconsciousness.

"Sorrow - stop it!" Hercules demanded as he seized the hysterical goddess and shook her gently until she came back to her senses. She blinked at him a few times as the glow of godly anger slowly receded from her eyes until they, and she, were at last back to normal.

However, Sorrow wasted no time lamenting her choice of action and what damage she had caused as a result of that action. She turned her full attention to her fallen love, who was still laid out flat on the ground in deep unconsciousness.

"Oh, gods, Hercules - what have I done?" she almost wailed as she dropped to her knees beside Iolaus. "I'll never forgive myself if . . ."

Hercules joined her and quickly began checking Iolaus, finding his friend to be alive, but instinctively knowing that the strength of the blow was going to be a factor in whether Iolaus survived or not. He gently felt the back of Iolaus' head to see how he was reacting to the severe trauma. Hercules did not see it happen, but he heard the substantial crack of the sword that hit his loyal friend, and now Hercules could only feel a small knot developing on Iolaus' skull in protest.

"He's not dead," he finally pronounced in a grave tone, "but, he needs a healer - "

"I can heal him," Sorrow interjected anxiously, feeling extremely guilty that she had actually been stupid enough to let Iolaus, and even Hercules, risk their lives for her when her own life had never once been in question.

"You can?" Hercules asked, more out of desperate hope that he hadn't misheard her.

"It's one of the few powers I was blessed with," she answered clinically as she closed her eyes and began to slowly pass her hands over Iolaus' body. She winced from time to time as she encountered various sites of impact, but his fast-developing concussion nearly floored her, and she swayed against Hercules uneasily.

"Hey! Are you okay?" Hercules begged as he steadied her.

Sorrow opened her eyes and said urgently, "He's hurt bad, Hercules. I can help him, but it's going to take a little time and effort on my part. We're going to have to find a safe place where I can do this without interruption, and I'm afraid I don't have the kind of power it takes to transport one human, much less two."

"Just say where," Hercules said with finality as he carefully gathered up Iolaus into his arms.