Content: Could be classified as a Hurt/Comfort story. Moderate language. The story centers around a war/battle and does contain what some may consider extreme violence (PG-13), but it is not described in graphic detail. There is a level of subtext in this story, but I've tried to be as faithful to the series as possible, so there is no more subtext than what you would see on the show.

Spoiler Warning: Takes place between "The Debt I & II" and "Maternal Instincts" episodes of Xena Warrior Princess. You may want to watch the "The Deliverer," "Gabrielle's Hope" and "The Debt I & II" episodes if you have not already seen them, since several aspects of these episodes are directly dealt with.

Acknowledgements: This story would never have been possible without the help of my sister, Sam, whose thankless job (at least, that's what she thinks) it was to advise me in the ways of the Xenaverse. Since I am not as well scripted as she in all those simple little quirks of Xena and Gabrielle's, she chose to stick her nose in and nit-pick my entire story. But, if truth be told, if Ididn't have her to nit-pick my story, to urge me on and to be there when I call late at night just to ask: "Sam, does this sound right?" "Sam, do you think Xena would do this?", I wouldn't have a story to begin with. So, I need to take a moment here just to say: "Thanks, Sam." I would also like to thank my Dad, who is an excellent writer in his own right, for his great editing work and ideas that really pulled my story together and made it work.

I would love to hear from all Xena fans out there and am willing to take a little objective criticism, but please take into consideration that I am quite fragile and could crack under pressure. Drop me a line at jennygl@cajun.net.

Part 1

Part I: Soulmates

Chapter One

A Beautiful Day

"It's such a beautiful day! Don't you think so, Xena?" Gabrielle said, as the couple walked along through a wooded path. "The sun is bright and warm, a cool breeze is rustling in the trees, birds are singing. It's so refreshing." Gabrielle's happy smile was radiant as she walked with her staff in hand, strawberry-blond hair blowing about in the breeze, taking in the clean scent of the air. Xena's expression, as usual, lacked Gabrielle's enthusiasm. Unlike Gabrielle, whose senses were tuned in to the beauty around her, Xena's keen senses were always more in tune to the potential of danger around her: the snapping of a twig, rustling of the bushes or the stench of a swarthy stranger. Her horse Argo, being gently led by the reins showed about as much interest as Xena who answered Gabrielle's praises of the day with a bored grunt.

Gabrielle was accustomed to Xena's boredom with the mediocre, but she wasn't known as 'the irritating blond' for nothing. She intended to be heard. So, as she continued to walk ahead, she said with exaggerated gestures, "Xena, the sun is shining! A cool breeze is blowing through the trees! The birds are singing." When she heard no reply, she turned to find Xena had stopped and appeared annoyed, maybe even a little angry. Why would it annoy her to hear the day being complimented on, for Gaia's sake? "What is wrong with you this morning? Is it the time of your cycle or something?" However, after a second look, Gabrielle realized that it was not her babbling that had captured Xena's attention.

Xena's eyes shifted from what had caught her attention to actually fixing on Gabrielle. Then, a frown creased Xena's face and she asked, "What?" She seemed surprised and kind of annoyed by Gabrielle's question.

This was not the first time Xena's keen senses had picked up on something to which Gabrielle was totally unaware. On the other hand, if Xena would pay attention to her on occasion, maybe she could get a point across ?. occasionally. "Okay, fine, I get the picture?" Gabrielle said indulgently.

"Gabrielle?" Xena said absently, looking past her again.

Paying no attention to the direction of Xena's gaze, Gabrielle said, "No, no. If you don't want to listen to me, don't, that's just fine, but listen to the sounds around you, Xena?"

"Gabrielle!" Xena interrupted, a little more irritated.

But, Gabrielle chattered on, "?Listen to the birds, Xena. Smell that wonderful smell in the air."

"Gabrielle," Xena almost shouted. "That wonderful smell is the smell of smoke."

"Huh?" Gabrielle said.

Xena walked up to Gabrielle, took her by the shoulders and spun her around, pointing over her shoulder at thick, black smoke rising above the treetops. Gabrielle's eyes widened in surprise as she turned to Xena and asked, "What do you think it is?", as the adrenaline rush to which she had become accustomed to from traveling with Xena quickly spread through her body.

"I think its smoke," Xena said sarcastically.

With an exasperated smirk, Gabrielle said, "Funny. Is this serious or not?"

"I don't know. Let's find out," Xena said, leading Argo in the direction of the smoke. Gabrielle had to trot to keep up. "You know, it could just be travelers?with a big fire," she said, as she leveled her pace with Xena's.

"Could be, but I don't think so. Smell the smoke, Gabrielle. It doesn't smell like a big bon-fire. It's stronger, acrid."

Gabrielle began to have a sense of foreboding. At the same time, however, she felt the excitement these encounters always brought her. Xena looked tense, but naturally on full alert. Her stride and the look in her eyes said in short, that she was ready for battle. In response, Gabrielle no longer used her staff for walking. She held it in both hands, ready for the unexpected.

A rustling in the bushes behind them brought them to a halt. Xena whipped around and moved Argo behind her. She took her sword from the scabbard strapped to her back and carefully advanced holding an open hand behind her, informing Gabrielle to stay behind. There were times when Gabrielle knew not to protest. Anything could come at them from within that brush. Though she stood at full alert with her sword ready, Xena did not seem overly surprised to see a hand emerge from the bush. Still, as she moved toward it, her sword was ready. Then a man emerged from the bushes, dragging his torn and bleeding body onto the dirt road before them. Xena stopped and eyed him carefully.

The blood drained from Gabrielle's face as she beheld the tattered man. She took a hasty step backwards and nearly dropped her staff. Xena lowered her sword as soon as it was evident that the man was not a threat and watched him drag himself out onto the open road, leaving behind a trail of blood. He managed to crawl to the middle of the road before collapsing. Xena replaced her sword to its sheath and quickly knelt beside him, lifting a near lifeless body into her arms. Her face was a mask of compassion as she beheld the extent of his damaged body. She could scarcely believe he was still alive. Though one eye had been torn from his face, he looked at them in fear with the other.

Following behind Xena, Gabrielle knelt and took one of the man's bloody hands between hers and said, "Don't worry. We're here to help." Unfortunately, her words didn't change his pained, fearful expression.

Xena was inspecting him, looking to see how badly he was hurt. He had been stabbed several times and both his legs were broken. This was not a mere case of being cut down in battle. It was a savage assault, the intent being to purposely mutilate and humiliate this man. Why would one human do something like this to another? Were they trying to force out of him some sort of information? Was the man a traitor? Did he break some law that warranted this kind of brutal punishment? "What happened to you?" Xena asked.

In a harsh and guttural voice the man managed to say, "Dead ? all ? dead."

"Who's dead?" Xena asked.

"Everyone ? men ... women ... children ? even our livestock."

"Who did this?"

"A man ? black armor ? an army ? they came ? no warning ? everyone dead ?" he sobbed, blood oozing from his mouth and nose.

"Where did this happen?" Gabrielle asked, her tender concern for this wretched soul showing in her troubled eyes. He painfully pointed back in the direction he had come, the direction of the smoke that still rose over the treetops.

Suddenly, clutching at Xena's armor, he lifted himself partly up and looked directly at her with his one eye, his bloody face creasing with one last look of determination. "Stop him ? you must stop him ? or he'll kill everyone ? please, stop him." His grip on Xena loosened, but his eye never left hers. Slowly he slipped back down and died in Xena's arms. His dead eye still pleaded with her to stop the man whose army had murdered everyone in his village.

Gabrielle reached over and closed his eye. Xena could only stare down at the man. She did not even know his name. His condition recalled haunting memories she did not even want to remember. How many men had she and her army killed? How much suffering had she caused to poor people like this? Of course, she and her army had been satisfied to kill and plunder. Maiming and mutilating had not been her style, nor had she allowed it. In this instance, it seemed someone much worse than she had ever been was doing the killing. Gabrielle sensed what Xena was feeling and understood. They had discussed it many times. Sensitive to Xena's feelings she reached over and touched her arm, "Xena?" she said softly.

Looking up into Gabrielle's concerned eyes, Xena felt fear and worry for her, as well as love and appreciation for so dear a friend. Despite the apparent danger, she was, as always, concerned for more than just her own safety. She touched her fingers to Gabrielle's hand and said appreciatively, "I'm okay Gabrielle. Help me get him onto Argo. We have to find that village."

As they lifted the dead man's mangled body onto Argo, the horse snorted and shifted beneath the weight. She found the whole idea distasteful, but even in her simple mind she understood the futility of neighing about it, so she just followed obediently as Xena conducted them through the brush. Xena was hoping it was the quickest route to the dead man's village.

It appeared that in his flight the man had been trying to remain undetected, because following the trail of the man's blood kept them for the most part in heavy brush. Finally however, they broke through the brush and found themselves looking out onto a large clearing. To their disgusted horror the man's dying words had been vindicated. Bodies were everywhere littering the entire area. Burned bodies lay inside their smoldering huts. A woman lay dead near her hut, underneath a line of laundry she had obviously been hanging when she was killed. Her small child lay dead next to her.

"By the gods," Gabrielle said, her voice only a whisper.

As they walked into the small village, Xena examined the hoof prints on the ground. The makeshift huts still burned around them, sending up the thick, black smoke that they had seen from the road. Up ahead, at the edge of the clearing, a group of children lay on the ground. One still held a large piece of parchment in his hand. They had been had been cut down mercilessly while playing a game. The fresh blood still flowing from their bodies and the many others strewn about told Xena that the perpetrator of this horrendous crime had not been gone very long. It must have happened earlier that morning.

Farther up ahead, towards the edge of the clearing, they found a set of unmistakable chariot tracks. There had been only one chariot, the rest of the army was either on foot or on horseback and from the number of hoof prints, the army had been large, perhaps numbering in the hundreds. Xena knelt down and examined the tracks the chariot had made. It had come from points unknown, west of the clearing, and had stopped here for a while, the occupant apparently watching the slaughter. Then together with the army, they had continued on eastward.

If a killing rampage were the quest of this army, other villages in the area would surely be threatened. To the best of Xena's knowledge there was a village about a half days ride from there to the North. That could possibly be their next target. Xena knew the area to the north was heavily wooded and the army would have to go around, if in fact, that was their intention. They could not be very far off. Maybe she and Gabrielle could get there first. While Xena studied the tracks, Gabrielle was taking the clothing from the laundry on the dead woman's line and covering up as many bodies as she could. Through tear stained eyes she asked in a fragile voice, "Xena, who would do something like this?"

Xena stood and faced her stricken friend. "I don't know, Gabrielle," she said, seeing the pain on Gabrielle's face for the death of people she did not even know. "But it was a large army," she went on. "The leader was in the chariot, the rest on foot and horseback. They came. They killed. And they left."

"Why? What could these people have possibly done?"

"My guess is nothing. They were just an easy target, and anyone else they come across will get the same." Xena knew what she would have to do. She just wasn't sure if she wanted Gabrielle along for the trip. These warriors were ruthless killers. They seemed to be killing anything in their path. She needed to get directly in their path, and find a way to divert them.

"Gabrielle," she said pointedly, drawing a knowing look from her friend. "This army will continue to attack more villages unless something is done to stop them. You know what I have to do."

Gabrielle stood up from where she knelt to cover a body and added forcefully, "What we have to do, Xena."

"Gabrielle?"

"No," she said, walking over to where Xena stood. "I'm not going to let you do this alone. We stick together."

"This could get very dangerous. I know people like this, Gabrielle. They won't care who they kill. I think you would be safer?"

"Xena, believe it or not, I know what you're feeling. I know what this is bringing back for you. And you're not sure if the goodness that's in your heart now can keep you from reverting to what you were. But, it doesn't matter. We've been here for each other through a lot of rough times lately. I'm not going to back out on you now. We'll need each other to get through this."

With a growing smile Xena said, "You're right. We stick together. But, we do this my way, okay? If things get too dangerous, I want you to get yourself out of harm's way. I've brought you into too many dangerous situations already, and we've paid the price for them. Promise me, if anything happens, you'll leave. You'll go and get help. Promise me, Gabrielle."

"I promise," Gabrielle answered reluctantly, downshifting her eyes. Xena knew Gabrielle didn't like the idea and that, in a pinch, she could not be trusted to keep her word. She would do what she thought was best at the moment. But, she had promised, so there was little Xena could do but accept her word for all it was worth. What a dear and wonderful friend she had proven to be. Taking Gabrielle in her arms she held her closely, then turned to survey the damage once more.

"There's not much we can do here now, Gabrielle," she said with a sigh. "We'll have to get help and come back to care for the dead." As they turned to leave, Xena noticed something glinting in the sunlight near the chariot tracks. Gabrielle followed her curious stare and saw the glint as well.

"What is it?" Gabrielle asked, as Xena knelt and picked up a small metal stick from the ground. It took a careful examination, before it dawned on her what she was holding. Her thoughtful, wondering expression enhanced Gabrielle's questioning eyes.

"It's a lock-pick," Xena said with a frown. "Like Autolycus would use."

"Autolycus? Do you think he was here?"

"I hope not," she said, staring at the pick. After a moment she stood and placed the pick behind her breastplate and turned toward the woods to the north saying, "Let's get out of here. There's a village not far from here. It could be this army's next target. We need to warn them."

That evening, just as the sun was going down, the trio emerged from the woods just outside the northern village, looking up at its large wooden gate. Thankfully, they had beaten the army there, but Xena had a feeling that if they were, in fact, intending to attack this village they could not be far away, though she doubted they would attack at night. Fortunately, the town was well fortified. The large gate and the high walls of huge hewn stones, probably imported from some mountain range, provided a solid defense. They must have seen their share of battles and felt the need to better protect their town and their people. Xena was impressed but wondered how their city would fare against this new foe.

Gaining entrance through the gate, they were greeted by a lively crowd. Banners were up pronouncing the beginning of the Harvest Festival the next day. People were out in the streets preparing for the festival, visiting the taverns that were still open, and just having a good time and being happy. Gabrielle tried to feel their happiness, but she could not shake her feeling of foreboding.

"Oh, my backside is killing me," Gabrielle said, rubbing her butt as she dismounted. Gabrielle, of course, disliked riding the horse, but Xena had insisted they would get there faster if they rode. Walking would have probably delayed them until mid-morning.

"Sorry, Argo was our only chance of getting here in time," Xena said, looking around, trying to find someone or someplace she could go to inform the town leaders of the danger they were in. That was when she noticed a man wearing a big smile walking towards them. "Gabrielle."

"What?" she asked.

"Stop rubbing your butt. Somebody's coming."

Gabrielle quickly removed her hands from her backside and folded them neatly in front of her in a lady-like manner.

"Good evening," the man said as he bowed in a gesture of greeting. "Welcome to Phestia. My name is Minion {pronounced Minnie-un, not minyun}. Have you come for the Harvest Festival?"

"No," Xena told him. "My friend Gabrielle and I have come to seek an audience with your town leaders."

"The Magistrates?" Minion asked curiously.

"Yes. It's very important."

"I'm sorry," Minion said, trying to maintain his smile, "but that won't be possible tonight. The Magistrates are celebrating the eve of the festival with their families."

"Listen, Minion," Xena said impatiently. "Do me a favor? I want you to go to each of your Magistrates and tell them that Xena has something very important to tell them. And if they don't listen to what I have to say, they just might not have a festival to celebrate tomorrow."

Minion's expression suddenly changed from smiling to concern and then to fear. "Z-Z-Xena? The W-w-w-warrior P-p-princess?"

"That's her," Gabrielle said proudly.

Minion stepped back and swallowed deeply. "Yes, ma'am. Right away, ma'am," he said, as he turned and hurried into the city.

"We'll be waiting in the tavern," Xena called to him as he moved away.

The tavern, it turned out, was one of the first buildings in town. Leaving Argo tied to the hitching post, Xena turned toward the tavern door, but Gabrielle stepped in front of her, bowing as Minion had and opened the door for her. "After you, ma'am," she teased.

"Don't you start," Xena warned, playfully pointing her finger.

Gabrielle laughed and followed her inside where they encountered boisterous laughter and merriment. "What can I get you?" the bartender asked as they seating themselves at the bar.

"Ale," Xena answered. When the bartender turned his attention to Gabrielle she said, "Oh gods, I'm dying of thirst. I think I'll have a cider, thank you."

As Gabrielle received her cider, Xena was savoring her first taste of the sparkling brew with obvious delight. There was a large group of people gathered around one corner of the tavern. They seemed to be bidding on something, haggling for prices.

One huge, burly man in somewhat tattered clothes, called out, "Three dinars." Another, more dignified looking gentleman bid, "Five dinars."

The person obviously in charge answered saying, "I heard three, now five. Do I hear ten dinars?" After a moment of silence he said, "Eight dinars?"

Gabrielle turned to Xena and asked, "Does that sound like who I think it sounds like?"

"If it sounds like Salmoneus, yes," Xena said.

"That's great," Gabrielle said lamentably. Not only would she have Xena to be concerned about, but now with Salmoneus in town, her concerns would be centered on him as well. "What's he doing here?"

"Oh, come on, people. This is quality stuff!" Salmoneus said.

Then a man from another table, who had been watching the bidding, stood and called to the bidders, "If I were you, I wouldn't buy anything from this man!"

Muffled voices could be heard saying, "Who's that?" and "What's he talking about?"

"He's a liar and a cheat!" the man said angrily. "He sold some of his 'stuff' to me two days ago and it wasn't worth the money I paid for it."

One of the biggest and burliest of the men grabbed Salmoneus by the collar and pulled him close, demanding, "Is this true?"

Salmoneus, obviously repulsed by the man's bad breath, answered defensively, "Of course, not! I don't even know that ? that ? kind gentleman over there!"

"Liar!" the accuser shouted, his eyes blazing with anger. Shouts and accusations flew around the room. Xena looked at Gabrielle, shrugged her shoulders with amused tolerance, then got up and approached the group, pushing two men aside.

"What's going on here?" she demanded.

"Xena!" Salmoneus exclaimed, his face brightening.

"What?" said the big man, quickly releasing Salmoneus' collar.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Atreaus," Salmoneus said confidently. "Have you met my very good friend, Xena? You know, the Warrior Princess?"

"Uh, no, no, I haven't," Atreaus said, caution apparent in his voice. "It's a p-pleasure to meet you."

Offering him her famous steely gaze with a raised eyebrow, she said, "Same here. Now, what's going on, Salmoneus?"

"Nothing. I'm just trying to make an honest dinar here."

"Honest? Ha!" the accusing man said in disgust.

Xena offered him the same gaze then turned back to Salmoneus. "What is this 'stuff' you're trying to sell?" she asked, moving past him without waiting for an answer. There were several large sacks on the table. One of them had been sliced open showing a thick, white powder inside. She took a pinch of it and rubbed it between her two fingers. "Salmoneus?" she asked suspiciously.

"What! It's flour!"

With a distrusting "yeah right" expression, Xena sniffed the powder, then tasted a bit on the tip of her tongue.

"See. I told you," Salmoneus said defensively.

"It's rotten," the accusing man shouted. "The stuff doesn't even rise!" Egged on by their numbers, the men began shouting and hollering again. Salmoneus cowered behind Xena as they threaten all sorts of things.

"All right! All right! Quiet down!" Xena said in a commanding tone. "I'm sure we can find a way to settle this."

Gabrielle, who had been standing next to Xena the whole time, stepped up and tasted the flour as well. Making a disgusted face she complained, "He's right, Salmoneus! This flour is rotten!" This, of course, only incited the shouting once again.

"See what I told you? See!" the accuser said with determination.

"Thanks a lot, Gabrielle," Xena said, turning to her.

"Sorry, Xena," she responded, with a smile of regret on her face.

At least three of the men lifted sacks above their heads, shouting, "Let's get him!" Xena and Gabrielle managed to back away before the flour began to fly. Salmoneus was not so lucky. Shielding his face with his hands, he cried out, "NOOOOOO!"

A few seconds later, Xena and Gabrielle made their way outside the tavern, snickering to themselves, and waited for Salmoneus' hasty retreat. From just inside the tavern, they could hear him saying, with a sarcasm typical of Salmoneus, "Oh no, really. I can show myself out. It was nice meeting all of you, enjoyed the hospitality. Have a nice evening." In the next moment, Salmoneus' ghostly figure exited the tavern. Gabrielle felt a mite responsible and tried hard not to laugh, but failed miserably. Xena swatted her on the arm, but could barely keep a straight face herself.

"Xena," Salmoneus said, smiling insincerely through the flour. "I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you for not getting involved. A true businessman must always be ready to accept the anger of an unsatisfied customer."

Xena's composure failed her when she said, "Well, we've got you covered." With that she and Gabrielle both lost it and doubled over in laughter. It felt good to laugh after a day such as this.

"Go ahead. Laugh, I deserve it," Salmoneus said, licking flour from his upper lip. His expression displayed disgust similar to Gabrielle's. "Ugh. It really does taste rotten!"

Just then, Minion returned with a wavering smile and outstretched arms. "Miss Xena. Miss Gabrielle," he exclaimed as he approached.

Still laughing they both answered, "Yeah."

"The Magistrates will see you now. Right this way," he said, bowing again.

"Right this way, Miss Xena," Gabrielle teased, bowing down, as Minion had, with an outstretched arm.

Repeating Gabrielle's gesture, Xena said, "Oh no, after you, Miss Gabrielle."

They laughed again and walked together after Minion. Salmoneus followed close behind dusting flour. After a few steps he asked, "So, we're going see the Magistrates. What for?"

"We'll explain it to you when we get back," Xena said, then stopped and said to Salmoneus over her shoulder. "Actually, you should leave Phestia while you still can."

"Why?" he asked, curiously.

The laughter had left Xena's eyes. They were now deadly serious. "The next couple of days are going to be really bad."

Salmoneus watched them walk away, with curiosity and concern in his eyes.

Chapter Two

Meeting The Magistrates

Minion led them into a large building that could only have been their courts. Five older men sat at a long table and wore robes that assigned them some sort of position. The man seated in the middle stood and looked them over curiously. He was tall and heavy set, bald and heavily bearded. He said, "I am High Magistrate Nallos. Which one of you is Xena, The Warrior Princess?"

"I am, High Magistrate," Xena said, stepping forward. "I'm sorry if I've interrupted your celebration?"

"Yes, you have interrupted our celebration," Nallos retorted. "My family and I were just about to sit down and have our Harvest supper when Minion came to me with this threat of yours?"

"It wasn't a threat, High Magistrate," Xena said, struggling to maintain her composure. The pompous attitude of people in power was a source of irritation to her. "It was a warning," she went on. "I have reason to believe a very deadly army may soon attack your village. Just this morning, my friend and I came across a large clearing about a half days ride south of here riddled with dead bodies that were victims of this army."

"You must be referring to the nomads. Every year around this time, they settle down in that area. The soil is rich there. They plant, they harvest and they move on."

"Well, they won't be moving on this year."

"What do you mean?"

Gabrielle spoke up. "Everyone there was killed, Sir. Man, woman?and child. Even their livestock was slaughtered."

Nallos stared at her wide-eyed, contemplating her statement, then sat back down, his face twisted in concern. The other Magistrates whispered amongst themselves.

Xena's frustration had waned some but her eyes widened in disbelief when he said, "I can't believe this. Who could do such a thing?" Obviously the man was still not listening seriously. Had the concern she saw in his eyes been more for his celebration than for the danger?

With a sigh, Xena answered, "We don't know who did it, but there were unmistakable tracks left by a war chariot and the ground was littered with hoof prints. It was a large and deadly army."

"By the gods. And on Harvest Eve." Nallos shook his head in sad disgust. "So, you think an army of warriors did this?"

"The dead were all over the place. The men could have possibly held their own if it had been a small band. All the evidence points to a large and ruthless army of merciless killers."

Skeptically Nallos asked, "But, why those people? They've never harmed anyone. What could they possibly have gained by killing nomads?"

"An army like this is in the killing business. I don't think it mattered to them who the people were. They were there, in their path. Nothing else mattered. An army that will kill women and children do not concern themselves with identity. They just kill. And from the direction they were traveling, I believe your village could be the next one in their path."

Sitting up and leaning forward, Nallos faced Xena squarely and asked, "How can you know for sure that they're coming here?"

"I can't, not positively. But are you willing to bet your life and the lives of the people in this village on the possibility that I could be wrong?"

Unfortunately, Xena was dealing with an office and a title. Her frustration was making her aggressive and the man's pride was being offended. Gabrielle could see where this was heading so she spoke up saying, "High Magistrate Nallos, I've been traveling with Xena for several years now and I know when to trust her instincts. She wouldn't come to you now if she didn't think the lives of your people were in danger."

"I realize that, and I appreciate your concern. But, did you not see how well fortified the village of Phestia is? We have been through battle after battle and always our gate and our walls have kept us safe."

"I'm sure they have," Xena said, frustration showing in her face. This man just did not seem willing to take her seriously. "But just to be on the safe side you should evacuate some of your citizens, at least the women, children and the elderly to safety."

"Evacuate them to where may I ask?"

"Into the woods. I know of some caves near here."

"Caves!" Nallos said, incredulously. "By the gods, woman! Have you lost your mind? My people would not agree to spending any time in caves just because you think we might be attacked!"

"Oh, I see," Xena said, her upper lip curling in angry frustration. "I guess they'd be more agreeable to being six feet under the dirt than spending a couple of days in a cave. You and your family included!"

"Now, look here!" Nallos said, standing back up in anger and staring with hooded eyes.

Xena met his stance with a cold stare, walked up to the long table and slammed her palms down with a bang. "NO! You look here! I didn't come all this way just to hear you say thanks but no thanks! I came here to save your miserable life and the lives of the people in your village."

"We are quite capable of taking care of ourselves," Nallos said, leaning across the table. "We have our own soldiers, our own weapons and our own strength! We do not need yours! Now, in case you have forgotten, we are holding our annual Harvest Festival. People come from all over the land every year. Imagine what would happen if I canceled the festival over one woman's claims."

"They are not claims, they are fact! Those people are dead, just like you and your village will be if you do not take action to protect yourselves! You are placing this ridiculous festival over the lives of your people!"

Nallos stared down at Xena in haughty disregard. "This festival is not only a celebration of the harvest time, but it is a festival to the gods for all the bounty they've brought us. I fear a worse fate would befall us if we did not continue the festival. The gods will protect us."

"You pathetic old fool, the gods don't care about you. All they care about is their own interest. When are you people gonna wise up?"

"How dare you speak to me that way!"

Gabrielle could see that things were getting out of hand, so she walked up and gently tugged at Xena's arm. In her anger, Xena had not seen Gabrielle approaching and whipped around defensively, but calmed quickly when she recognized who it was.

"Let's go," Gabrielle said, tugging at her arm again. "There's no point in arguing. They're not going to believe you."

"That's right!" Nallos said angrily. "Go. Leave Phestia and do not dare to return."

Xena shrugged Gabrielle's hand off her arm and leaned across the table herself meeting Nallos angry stare. In a threatening tone she said, "Either you're going to call off this ridiculous festival and warn your people, or I will!"

"You will do nothing of the kind. Guards!"

Two guards standing at the entrance of the building came quickly to the long table. "Arrest this woman!" Nallos demanded.

"No! Wait! You can't do this!" Gabrielle said in indignation. The two guards grabbed Xena, and Gabrielle readied herself to join the battle, but Xena did not resist. In any normal situation, Xena would have fought and easily freed herself of just two guards. She had something in mind, Gabrielle was sure, a plan of some sort. This situation, however, did not seem to be lending to a successful mission.

"Stop this!" she demanded as the guards began to take Xena away. "You have no right to do this!"

"I have every right as High Magistrate! I accuse her of 'Inciting violence' and 'Disturbing the peace'."

"That's crazy! She was trying to help you!"

"Do you wish to join her?" he warned.

Gabrielle could again see where this was going, so she said nothing. Both of them in jail could not serve any useful purpose. She silently backed away and scolded the Magistrate with her piercing stare.

"That's what I thought. Now, if you behave yourself, I will allow you to stay in Phestia until her trial is over. You might get a chance to enjoy the festival tomorrow. Minion, show her out."

"Yes, High Magistrate." Minion obeyed, attempting to take Gabrielle by the arm.

Snatching her arm away she said angrily, "Get your hands off me! I can find my own way out." With that, she stormed from the building, fuming.

Salmoneus, now having dusted most of the flour from his clothing, had been waiting for them outside the building. He was mildly surprised when Gabrielle came storming out all by herself. When he called out to her she met him with an angry stare.

"Whoa, what's wrong with you?" he said defensively. "And where's Xena?"

"Those idiots in there arrested her!"

"Arrested her? What for?"

"Come on," Gabrielle said, grabbing Salmoneus' arm. "I'll explain it to you on the way."

"On the way to where?"

"I have to get in the jail to see her. I've got to talk to her."

On the way, Gabrielle told Salmoneus about the nomad settlement and the possible threat. Knowing Xena as he did, he did not, like Nallos, shrug off her wisdom in matters such as these. However, being a man of limited fighting ability himself, this posed a serious threat to him, so he asked in a worried tone, "When are they supposed to attack?"

"I don't know. But, I do know that Xena wanted to start evacuating the village as soon as possible. Nallos just wouldn't listen. His festival is more important."

Salmoneus groaned and wiped sweat from his brow. "Why is it every time I get around you guys or Hercules and Iolaus something bad always happens?" Gabrielle did not grace that question with an answer. "Oh," Salmoneus moaned, picturing himself cut and bleeding. "I knew I should have listened to Xena when she told me to get lost. But, no, I had to be curious."

"Don't even think about leaving, Salmoneus," Gabrielle demanded. "I'm going to need your help."

"How did I know you were going to say that?" he said with a pained expression.

At the jailhouse, Gabrielle banged loud and long enough on the door to get a guard's attention. "I need to see Xena," she demanded when he stepped out.

Inside, Xena sat in her cell, devising a plan in her mind. When she heard the familiar sound of Gabrielle's voice, she quickly stood up and walked to the metal bars that caged her.

"Sorry, but you'll have to come back in the morning," the guard said to the blonde-haired girl disinterestedly. "Visiting hours are over."

"No, I need to see her tonight. It's very important."

"Yeah? Well, so is my supper. Now, come back in the morning!"

"Look, you big ? oaf!" Gabrielle said, making ready her staff.

Laughing nervously, Salmoneus took her by the shoulders, restraining her forward advance and in an attempt to calm things said, "Now, now, darling. Let's not make the big man upset. You'll have to forgive her. She's got quite a temper. In fact, she's been known to cause serious injuries in some instances when she doesn't get what she wants."

Gabrielle recognized Salmoneus' tactic and her face took on a darker, more deadly look. "I want to see Xena!" she growled.

An open window on the far side of the cell house drew Xena's attention and she listened closely. Xena smiled, picturing the look on Gabrielle's face as she began this crazy woman act.

"Well, you have to get through me little girl," the guard said in a show of superiority.

Salmoneus, laying it on thick, stood in front of Gabrielle as though holding her back and said to the guard, "Oh, no. Don't say that. The last time somebody told her that?she went clean through him."

These tactics were taking her acting ability to a bit of an extreme and she wished she could tell him to calm it down some but, she clenched her teeth and growled like a crazed woman to make the claims more believable. "Let me at him!" she demanded straining to reach past Salmoneus. "I'll rip him to pieces! I'll rip off his head and spit down his neck!"

Xena's stomach was in stitches, trying to hold back from laughing out loud.

"Please, let her see Xena!" Salmoneus pleaded. "I don't want to be held responsible for another massacre."

The guard observed this display of insanity with growing concern and took note of the word, "Massacre?"

His nervous expression enhanced Gabrielle's determination. Screeching like a banshee she reached past Salmoneus saying, "I want to see Xena! Xena, Xena! I want to see her NOW!"

By this time, Xena was in tears and so weak with laughter she had to hold onto the bars of her cell to support herself. People were starting to stick their heads out of doors, some stopping on the street to see what all the commotion was about.

Disruptions in and about the jail when he was on duty could result in serious repercussions from the Magistrates. So, to keep from causing a scene, the guard gave in. "All right! All right! Just make it quick," he said, moving back to let them in.

"May the gods bless you. You won't regret this. I promise," Salmoneus said smiling. Gabrielle growled and barked at the guard as they passed, a couple of times yelping Xena's name. The guard stuck his head out and checked up and down the street, hoping the spectacle would be quickly forgotten, then shut the door behind them. Since Gabrielle was still faking threat of injury, he decided not to go in with them, but rather instructed Salmoneus, "Let me know if you need help."

"Oh, don't worry about me. I can handle her. Just keep that door closed. You don't want her getting loose."

"Okay, right!" he said apprehensively, and quickly closed and locked the door. Gabrielle dropped the dog act as the door closed and began searching the cells for Xena. All the cells where empty except for one.

"Gabrielle," Xena said looking out from behind the bars and smiling. As Gabrielle drew near, Xena shook her head and laughed. "Nice dog act."

"Salmoneus' idea," Gabrielle said, rolling her eyes.

As he watched the door, Salmoneus said, "She was pretty good, huh?"

"Oh, it was a work of art," Xena smirked. "I knew it wouldn't take you long to work your way in here."

Gabrielle, though, was serious as she reached just beyond the bars and took Xena's hand. "Xena, why did you let them do this?" she asked with tender scolding.

"It wasn't my original plan, but getting kicked out of the city won't help these people. We won't be any good to these people outside of the village."

"But, Xena, what good are you going to do locked up in here?"

"Staying in jail isn't part of the plan, Gabrielle," Xena smiled.

"What about staying in Phestia?" Salmoneus asked concerned. "If this army is going to attack like you say, shouldn't we just get out of here?"

"We can't abandon these people, Salmoneus. Not yet."

"I knew you were going to say that," Salmoneus said, his expression drooping.

"I need a favor of the two of you."

"A favor," Salmoneus said. "Why does that make me feel very uneasy?"

"Anything," Gabrielle spoke up, ignoring Salmoneus. "Just name it."

"Stay in Phestia."

Breaking into a sweat, Salmoneus answered his own question. "Oh, that's why. Stay in Phestia?! Xena, are you crazy?"

They both gave Salmoneus a look of annoyance, then turned back to each other. "You want us to stay here in the village?" Gabrielle asked.

"Yes. You need to let the people know that their lives are in danger. Tell as many people as you can, but do it discreetly. You don't want the Magistrates to get wind of it. If they do they'll either lock you up or throw you out of town."

Gabrielle could sense what direction this was heading. With concern in her eyes, she broke in, "Wait a minute. Are you leaving?"

"Gabrielle, I have to. If that army is camped somewhere out there waiting to strike, I have to find them and try to stop them."

"Then, let me come with you. You can't face an entire army on your own. You could get killed."

"I need you here, Gabrielle. If I can at least slow them up, that will give you and Salmoneus more time to get people out of here."

"We're supposed to stick together, remember?"

"I remember. But this is the only way."

"Xena," Gabrielle moaned, recognizing Xena's strategy. "What if you don't come back?" The guard called through the little trap in the door warning them that their time was almost up.

Xena glanced at the door, but her eyes quickly returned to Gabrielle. "If they attack before I come back, don't stay here. Take who you can and bring them to safety. Don't spend time on someone who resists you. If we can save a handful, we'll be doing good." Xena could see the worry in Gabrielle's eyes and wished there was some way to reassure her, but she was going to have to trust Xena's instincts on this one.

"All right. I don't like it, but I'll do it," Gabrielle said reluctantly.

Xena brushed her knuckles across Gabrielle's cheek and gave her a smile. "Be brave."

"I will be. You just make sure you come back."

Xena generally considered her chances better than average when in battle, but this time she had a lower expectation for obvious reasons. Gabrielle could read that in her eyes, and it served to deepen the feeling of foreboding she had been having since this all began. She glanced at Salmoneus as he called for the guard, then whispered to Xena, "Be careful." They looked at each for a long moment, and then Gabrielle slowly turned away.

Xena's eyes trailed after Gabrielle as she followed Salmoneus back outside. Gabrielle flashed one more glance at Xena before she went through the doorway and Xena tried to smile encouragingly for her sake. But, Xena's smiled disappeared along with Gabrielle. "Goodbye, Gabrielle," Xena said in an undertone, knowing it was a distinct possibility.

As Gabrielle and Salmoneus exited the jailhouse, Gabrielle hugged herself against the chilled night air. The bright and beautiful day she had felt so moved to brag about was not only gone but had turned ominous. Xena was only trying to protect her and Gabrielle knew it, but that didn't still her irritation. She hated being left behind, not to mention that she was worried near to tears. She didn't doubt Xena's ability to take care of herself, of course. That had been demonstrated too many times. However, this time, Xena would be one against an army.

"So, what do we do now?" Salmoneus asked.

"We do just what Xena told us to do. We start warning the people."

"Gabrielle, you know, that sounds real nice, but how are the two of us going to warn a village of hundreds and still go unnoticed by the Magistrates?"

"Well, we definitely can't shout it from the roof tops. But, if we can convince enough people of the danger and then get them to help, the word can be spread easily."

Salmoneus' expression became thoughtful as a smile spread across his face. Taking Gabrielle by the arm he said with a confident smile, "And I know just the person to talk to. Come on." Working their way through the merriment in the darkening street as the evening became twilight, Salmoneus lead Gabrielle to another tavern. It seemed somewhat more secluded and less bustling than had the other one. Here, the men seemed to be more intent in their interest toward the women and the women were much more scantly clad. It took only a moment for Gabrielle to realize she was in a brothel.

"Salmoneus!" she said uncomfortably. "This is a?a?by the gods! What are we doing here?!"

"You said you needed someone who could persuade the people to listen, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but not here!

"The person you're looking for works here. Trust me, Gabrielle. I know what I'm doing."

"That remains to be seen," she said, noticing a drunk man stumbling toward them, eyeing Gabrielle with unconcealed lust. Only the gods knew how long it had been since this wretched man's last bath, if in fact he had ever had one. Reeking of liquor, sweat and other indignities, he was glaring at Gabrielle with a toothless grin.

Speaking to Salmoneus the drunk man asked, "Is she yours or are ya sharin'? I'll pay whatever you're askin'."

"She's not for sale," Salmoneus said, standing between them.

This walking heap of garbage, obviously not terribly appalled by his own filth, reached to touch her blonde hair with his dirty fingers only to experience her wrath. In repulsion, Gabrielle hissed, "Keep your disgusting hands off me!" She whacked him to the ground with one swing of her staff. Always ready to enjoy a good fight, this drew the attention of the crowd, but the incident was already over.

From within the crowd a woman stood up and eyed them with surprise. She was an older, but still attractive woman with curly red hair and a big smile, though showing the ware and tare of a hard life.

"Sal, honey!" she called out, running toward them.

"'Honey'?" Gabrielle teased.

With a slight blush, Salmoneus said, "We're good friends."

"I bet you are."

"Salea, how are you?" Salmoneus said with a smile, as she hugged and kissed him.

"Oh, it's so good to see you," she said, the delight showing in her eyes. "How long has it been?"

"A long time," Salmoneus answered.

"And who's this pretty young lady with you? She's not your girlfriend, is she, Sal?" Salea said, a bit of mischief in her tone.

"No," he answered, with a nervous laugh.

"Not hardly," Gabrielle said. "We're just friends. I'm Gabrielle." She extended her hand to Salea, a good-natured woman she couldn't help but like. She possessed a personality that could challenge Gabrielle's wit and humor. It was an anticipation Gabrielle relished.

"Well, it's just a pleasure to meet you, Gabrielle. Any friend of Sal's is a friend of mine."

"Actually, Salea," Salmoneus said. "We came to talk to you. We need your help."

"You need my help? Whatever for?"

"If we could talk someplace a little more private," Gabrielle said, gesturing toward the crowd. "I'd be more than happy to explain it to you."

"Oh, sure. Let's get out of this rotten old place." Salea led them from the bustling pub out into the equally bustling city streets, through the crowds and into the shadows of the night. Soon they were in one of the more secluded areas of Phestia, standing before a temple dedicated to Ares, the god of war.

As they entered, Salmoneus eyed the surroundings, his eyes wide with foreboding. "My, what a great place to hold a private meeting," he said with a nervous smile.

"Well, you wanted to talk privately," Salea said. "This is the one place in Phestia were people don't come. The Magistrates have actually been talking of tearing it down."

"They want to tear down a temple to Ares? That's not good," Gabrielle said allowing her eyes to survey the area. From past experience she half expected to see Ares flicker into existence before them.

Actually he did, but not visibly. He was more interested in eavesdropping. "No, it's not good," he spoke in a determined voice though they couldn't hear him.

"I guess they figure they don't need him much anymore," Salea said in a matter of fact tone.

"Oh, they don't?" Ares said, his brows had drawn together in a scowl. "They're gonna wish they did."

"The Magistrates are all idiots anyway," Salea chuckled. "Between the five of them they share a brain the size of a pea."

Ares chuckled with her. This was an opinion he heartily shared.

Salea sat on the edge of a large pedestal long devoid of any statue and asked, "So what did you want to talk to me about?"

"The Magistrates are what I want to talk to you about," Gabrielle said. "I come to you with a message from Xena?"

"Xena?" Salea exclaimed with widening eyes. "You mean Xena, the Warrior Princess?"

"Yes," Gabrielle and Ares both answered tolerantly.

"Oh my gods, I've always wanted to meet her. I aspire to be like her."

"Really," Gabrielle said surprised. "I'm sure she'd be glad to hear that."

"Oh my gods, is she here somewhere? Is she in Phestia?"

"Well, sort of," Gabrielle answered with a sheepish smile.

Not thinking, Salmoneus blurted out, "She's in jail."

Ares and Salea both exclaimed, "She's in jail!"

"Let me explain," Gabrielle said, gesturing for silence with both hands. 'Why does it feel so crowded in here? ', she thought to herself, then went on. "This morning Xena and I came across a settlement that had been completely devastated. It was awful. An unknown army raided the settlement and killed every man, woman and child."

Ares makes a curious face as if this were news to him. In fact, it is. For the god of war to not know that a war was being waged was not good news. He was suddenly very interested in this army and its purpose, not to mention angry at having been kept in the dark about it all.

"According to High Magistrate Nallos," Gabrielle continued, "they were nomads."

Salea's eyes widened in horror. "I know those people," she whispered. Her fingertips covered her mouth and her eyes filled with tears. "I had friends among them. Were there any left at all?"

Gabrielle shook her head in dismay and said, "I'm sorry." She rested a sympathetic hand on Salea's shoulder.

"Move on, Gabrielle," Ares said impatiently.

"Anyway, it appeared to Xena from the way this army was moving eastward that Phestia may be their next target."

"Phestia? They're coming here?" Salea said, her face paling.

"That's what Xena believes," Gabrielle continued. "We came here to warn your people, but the Magistrates refused to listen to us."

Salmoneus spoke up saying, "They are more worried about their festival going off without a hitch and raking in the dinars. They think the gods will protect them."

"Well, they better think again," Ares said with a serious look in his eyes.

"The only reason Xena allowed herself to be taken to jail," Gabrielle interjected, "is because the Magistrates threatened to throw us out of the village. She knew we would not be able to help any of you like that. So, she sent Salmoneus and I to try to find someone who would listen and help us."

"But, what about Xena?" Salea questioned with worry. "What's she going to do?"

Gabrielle was heartsick when she said, "Xena plans on breaking out tonight. She's going to find this army and try to stop them."

"All by herself? Is she crazy?"

"That's my Xena," a proud Ares said with a look of reminiscence.

"I tried to convince her that it wasn't a good idea," Gabrielle said with a hopeless shrug, "but she had already made up her mind. When Xena's made up her mind, you can't change it."

"Well, what do you need from me?" Salea asked.

"Help us to warn your people. If we can convince enough people that their lives and the lives of their families are in danger, we can get a lot of people out of here before they attack."

Grimacing uncomfortably, Salea slowly responded with a shake of her head, "That's not going to be easy."

"Why not?" Salmoneus asked.

"Because, most of the people here think just like their Magistrates. You'll be hard pressed to convince these people that they're not safe right here in these walls." Salea watched Gabrielle face change as it took on a look of deep concentration. She could almost see the wheels of thought turning inside her head.

Gabrielle's eyes searched the floor for something that wasn't there, her finger tapping absentmindedly at her lower lip. "There has to be something we can do," she said with a sigh, an irritation growing inside her. Pride, apathy and ignorance were threatening these people by preventing them from acting rationally. There had to be a way. She did not relish the idea of seeing more people slaughtered. "How many people are there like you, Salea? People who don't put their entire trust in the magistrates?"

"I can think of a lot of people, but I can guarantee you that the middle and upper class won't put much trust in them."

"Why do you say that?" Gabrielle asked curiously.

"Because, they are lower class just like me," Salea responded sadly. "Do you really think an upper class person would listen to what a prostitute has to say? Believe me, our considerations come last."

Gabrielle looked at Salea for a moment as her words began to sink in. "I'm sorry," she shook her head, frowning. "I forget sometimes that not everybody thinks the way I do." Gabrielle always saw people as equals. Just because one person had more knowledge or money than another didn't make them any better or worse in her mind. So, the thought of class distinctions didn't even cross her mind. Gabrielle paced the room for a minute, thinking. By the Gods, she could be walking in blood up to her ankles soon if something wasn't done, and fast. Turning back to Salea and Salmoneus after a moment she said, "Go to these people and bring them back here to the temple. Tell them that their families' lives depend upon them being here tonight. Even if you can only get a handful of people. We'll start small and work our way from there. We may only have until dawn. We have to spread the word tonight and deal with the consequences tomorrow."

Salea nodded, but she didn't seem in a hurry. Actually, her mind seemed to be on something else. "You know, Gabrielle, there is someone who might be willing to listen to what you have to say. It's hard to say exactly how he'd react to all this, because sometimes he can be a real ass. But, he's a good man. He might be of some use to you."

"Who?" Gabrielle asked curiously, hope in her eyes.

"'Who' is the problem. He's the General of Phestia's army. The bad thing is he takes his orders directly from the Magistrates."

Gabrielle's hopes were quickly dashed. She shook her head and said, "As much as I'd like the help, Salea, I don't think we should deal with anyone that close to the Magistrates. Xena said we should do this discreetly. If just one whiff of this were to get out?"

Salea nodded in understanding and said, "I know, honey. Don't worry. We'll do our best." Turning to Salmoneus, she grabbed his arm and said, "Come on, Sal. Let's get to work." Salmoneus followed reluctantly.

Gabrielle stood in the doorway watching their shadowy figures disappear into the night. There was a determination on her face. How many times had Xena bragged that Gabrielle never gave up on anything? Yet, beneath it all she felt fearful. What would happen if she failed? How could she live with herself?

Ares stepped up to her and looked with interest at her sober expression. It wasn't hard to read. An evil smile crossed his face. He was enjoying her pain, a reaction born of a cold heart. Like most of the gods, he was petty and cruel. "Not scared, are you, Gabrielle?" he said with a wicked grin, though he knew she couldn't hear him. "You're taking on a big responsibility?without help from Xena. She just throws you into this and expects you to handle it. How does that make you feel?"

Though she didn't realize it, the thoughts were transmitting into her mind. It was a huge responsibility, having the lives of an entire village placed on her shoulders. An anger unbecoming of her shown in Gabrielle's eyes and Ares could see the she was trembling. Suddenly she stamped her staff down on the stone floor in frustration. Ares smiled wickedly at her reaction. However, his own pettiness made him fail to realize Gabrielle's strong willed dedication to her principles. Taking a deep breath and gesturing a command that she should calm down, she walked away from the anger, tucking it away for later.

Ares watched as Gabrielle walked away from him, an amused smile crossing his face. "I think I'm going to stick around for a while. This ought to be interesting."

Xena, in the meantime, was busy picking the cell door lock with the pick they had found on the road. She wiggled it in the lock until she heard a click. Once she heard it, she opened the door a notch just to be sure; a sly smile spreading across her face as she pulled it closed again. She then returned the pick behind her breastplate and called to the guard. From the other room, the guard, bored senseless by his monotonous job, snapped to attention from a near slumber at the sound of her voice. He'd been having nightmares about a blonde-haired girl who barked and drooled like a dog just before she ripped off your head off and spat down your neck. Standing, he stretched, yawned and wiped his eyes as he leaned into the door.

"What do you want in there?" he barked, trying to sound dangerous.

Xena called out, "Hey! I need some help. There's a big rat in here! Could you come and kill it before it gets into my cell!"

The guard began to laugh as the entered the room. "So, the great Warrior Princess is afraid of rats, huh?"

Looking meek and embarrassed, Xena blushed and said, "Yeah, I'm sacred to death of'em. I hate'em."

Approaching the cell, he eyed Xena and surveyed the cell with a teasing smirk. "They're more afraid of you than you are of them, believe me. Besides, I don't see any rat."

"I guess he must have run off when he saw you coming?" Xena said with a mesmerizing look in her eyes.

The guard looked Xena up and down lustfully, allowing his stare to linger on her cleavage. "What else are you afraid of?" he asked, not attempting to conceal the roving of his eyes.

"I'm ... sometimes ... afraid of myself ... when I'm around big, strong men, like you. Makes me shiver," she said in childish yet seductive tone.

Of course, he knew she was not afraid of him. Stories of the Warrior Princess were not in short demand. But, he was thinking there might be an invitation in this little game aimed at getting him to help her escape. He moved a little closer to the cell door and met her eyes. "I have been know to make a few ladies shiver," he said suggestively. He would, of course, never allow her to escape but was more than willing to take what he could get from her if she tried it.

Putting on her best set of bedroom eyes she said seductively, "I'm not surprised." Her grip on the bars of the cell door were more to hold it closed rather than cling to it as it seemed. She watched him fumble to remove the keys from his belt and begin searching for the right one. 'Wait for the right moment, then make your move, ' she thought to herself. The guard found his key and reached to insert it into the lock. "So," he said, thinking of Gabrielle's visit. "What did dog-girl have to say?"

With a sneer, Xena's voice lowered to a menacing tone. "Woof," was the answer he heard just before the door slammed into his face crashing him against the cell across the hall where he crumbled to the floor unconscious. Stepping out she lifted the guard by his collar and locked him in the cell. Moving quickly down the hall and into the other room, she locked that door behind her, as well and retrieved her sword and chakram. As she turned to leave the unconscious guard's relief stepped into the jailhouse office. Instinctively suspicious, he drew his sword and demanded, "What do you think you're doing? Where's Philipi?"

"He's taking a nap," Xena said with a menacing smile, her sword drawn and ready. With a snarl and a growl, the guard attacked, angrily wielding his sword. Xena met his sword blow for blow, the clang of the metal ringing until she flung his weapon from his hand and over his shoulder. Though surprised, the guard was not stupid enough to turn his back on any one with a sword just to regain his own. The only defense he now had was his own two hands. So, the guard balled up his fists and danced about like a boxer in a ring.

"What's the matter warrior princess?" he asked, leering. "Afraid to fight without your weapons?"

Frustrated and already behind in her escape, Xena returned her sword to it's sheath and her chakram at her belt, rolling her eyes at the 'dancing' guard. 'I don't have time for this,' she thought. With a cry, Xena back flipped, her foot making contact with the guard's face. He stumbled back, hitting the wall. As Xena's feet touched the ground, the angry guard rebounded off the wall and came at Xena again. He's a lot tougher than he looks, she thought. With all her strength, Xena growled and threw a right punch too quickly for the guard to react. The punch knocked him over the officer's desk, to the other side in a heap. Xena shook her right hand in a effort to shake off the pain from her contact with the guard's skull, then with a sigh, she moved to the back of the desk and grabbed at the guard's lapels. Not wanting him to alert the city of her escape, she dragged him down the hall and locked him in the cell with his buddy. Cautiously, she exited the jailhouse watching for signs of any other guards.

Avoiding the crowds at the front gate, she used her chakram and her whip to get herself over the high wall where she did one of her famous big flips to the other side, only without the usual war cry. On the ground she searched the darkness with cat-like eyes and attentive ears. The adrenaline pumped fiercely through her veins as she ran off into the night, leaving the sound of the harvest celebrations behind her.

Later that evening, once most of the celebrating had begun to die down and most people were in bed, Gabrielle, Salea and Salmoneus were convening a meeting with fifteen men and women of the city. The warning that had summoned them had them mumbling and questioning each other. Salea was known, if not respected, among them, but they were wondering about the young woman and the ominous news she claimed to have. Gabrielle could well understand the uncertainty and fear in the people's eyes. They were, of course, interested in protecting their families, if indeed, a real threat existed.

"Okay, everybody, listen up," Salea called out, quieting the mumbling. "This is the young woman I told you about. Her name is Gabrielle."

"What is this all about?" one man said, stepping forward from the crowd. "You said we are in danger. In danger of what?"

"Yeah." "That's right, what?" the crowd demanded. It was apparent that the crowd had a tendency to be hostile about having their festival interrupted.

Gabrielle began her oration with an apprehensive sigh. "I've asked you all here tonight to warn you. There is a very deadly army encamped somewhere outside your village. We have reason to believe that they could be planning to attack Phestia."

"Army? What army?" was among the murmurs that came from among the crowd as their uneasiness intensified. The man who had spoken first and who seemed tobe a spokesman for the people asked, "How do you know this? Have you seen them?"

"No, not the army themselves, but I have seen what they do," Gabrielle said deploying her best bard talents. This brought the crowd to silence. Just what had she seen? She had called this a 'deadly army'. Just what were they facing? "You're familiar with the nomads that come to your providence during the harvest each year?" Gabrielle said gesturing toward the south. Several of the people present nodded, their attention becoming more riveted on Gabrielle's words. "Well, we came upon their settlement this morning. Every man, woman and child were dead ... mercilessly slaughtered." Alarm began to show in the faces of the crowd. If this was true it definitely posed a serious threat. Yet, they still seemed skeptical. It's strange how people seem to think ignoring something will make it go away. Gabrielle didn't want this to happen so she spoke with greater urgency. "This is a real army. They seem to have come from the west and left the clearing heading east. If they circle the forest, your village will be directly in their path. You must not brush this off! There is a very good chance that they will attack you!"

"Why didn't you go to the Magistrates with this news?" asked the first gentleman.

"They did!" Salmoneus spoke up. "That's why we've called you here! The Magistrates will not listen."

An older woman with graying hair and peasant garb spoke up and asked, "What do you mean 'they won't listen'? They would not be so foolish." A mumble of agreement rose from the crowd.

Gabrielle raised her hands to quiet them saying, "Xena and I came here directly from the nomad camp and went to the magistrates about this." This drew more murmuring. She could hear them repeating Xena's name. The reputation of the warrior princess was something many people had reason to fear. Going on, Gabrielle said, "Xena told them everything that I've told you here. That the nomads were slaughtered like animals and their killers are very likely headed in this direction. If they attack Phestia it will be to do the same thing to you and your families. But your High Magistrate Nallos refused to take any action to warn you or to prepare the village for an attack."

"Why?" "Why would he do that?" "Does he not care?" were the irritated questions she received.

"I'm sure he does care and has your best interest at heart, but he is blinded by the large walls and the heavy gate that enclose your village. He has not seen first hand what devastation this army is capable of. He didn't see the many hoof prints on the ground or smell the burning huts or see the dead children lying in the streets like garbage." The horror of what she was saying, as well as the anger and anguish in her voice brought the crowd to silence as an intense sadness overshadowed the entire room. Salmoneus could not recall ever seeing Gabrielle this way, so intense, so bold, so much in command. "These bastards are determined to destroy everything in their path. They won't care if you are a man, a woman, a child or a dog. Xena and I are committed to helping you as much as we can but I hope we are not still inside these walls if and when they attack. I don't believe the walls and gates will stop them."

Genuine fear began to show in the faces of the crowd. The spokesman spoke up over the murmuring and asked, "You said you were with Xena. Where is she? Is she going to help us?"

"Xena has gone to try to stop the army from ever reaching Phestia. If anyone can do it she can and I know she'll be back," she said, trying more to convince herself than the audience.

"And what are we supposed to do in the meantime?" another man said. "Wait around to be slaughtered as well?"

The crown roared, "Yeah!" "What will we do?" "What about our children?"

"Xena is doing the best she can but we can't wait for her to come back. We have to prepare ourselves now."

The spokesman spoke again, "And how do you expect us to do that? The bunch of us are gonna take on a whole army?"

"Marcus, where's your brains?" Salea said, hands on her hips. "Did you leave'em at home?" There was nervous laughter in the crowd though they really didn't have a lot to laugh about. "Of course, we're not going to take on the whole army. What we have to do is start walkin' and talkin'. We've gotta take on a whole city and make them understand what's going to be happening here real soon."

"We have to spread the message," Gabrielle said. "Go to everyone you know, everyone you think will listen to you and warn them. Make sure they all hear it. Not just the adults, but the children as well. Their safety is the most important of anyone's."

Salea spoke again saying, "We have to get the town stirred up before the Magistrates hear of it or they may try to stop us. They're thinking profits from the festival and closing their eyes."

"And we start evacuating tonight," Gabrielle said in a commanding tone.

"Evacuating?" Marcus exclaimed.

"Yes, as many people as we can, but mostly the women, children and the elderly. I can already tell that most of you don't like the idea, but we have no other choice. If you stay in Phestia, tomorrow's daylight may be the last you'll ever see. We have to tell this to everyone. Convince them any way you can that they must evacuate their families if they want them to live."

"Evacuate to where?" another woman asked.

"There are some caves several miles from here. I'll lead the first group out and from then on Salmoneus will take charge of the evacuation."

"I will?" he said, his expression questioning her, but the look on her face said she wanted no arguments. "I will," he agreed with a weak smile.

Marcus asked, "When do we start doing this?"

"Right now," Gabrielle forcefully responded. "We don't have a moment to loose. They may strike at dawn. How many of you are with us on this?" The people look from one to the other. They obviously want to, but are reasonably afraid.

Salea stood up on a chair and stared out over the crowd. "Hey!" she said in a determined voice. "How long have we lived in this village together? Don't we take care of one another here? Come on, let's see some hands out there." One timid hand after another rose until each of the villagers had their hands raised.

"Thank you," Gabrielle said with an appreciative smile.

One man stepped forward, his expression determined and said, "My name is Zantus. I'm a simple farmer, not a warrior like Xena, but I'm not hiding in any caves. I'm gonna fight. I've lived in this village my whole life and won't see it destroyed in one day. I'll do what you ask, Gabrielle. I'll warn everyone I can but I'm also gonna find those who want to stay and fight to defend our village."

Gabrielle didn't know this man very well, but she immediately liked him. His brave heart and determination reminded her of her now deceased husband, Perdicus. Moved with compassion for him and for the ones she knew would join his effort, Gabrielle drew back her shoulders and spoke as determined as he had. "Then you've just found your first recruit, Zantus," and held out her staff in both hands to the people. "I stay and fight with the people of Phestia." Xena's words rang in her ears: 'Don't Stay', but as usual she followed her heart rather than her head.

Zantus grabbed Gabrielle's staff as if sealing an agreement between the two of them. The rest of the people hesitate for just a moment, eyeing each other, then together with Salea, reach out to grab the staff. Salmoneus was a bit more reluctant than the others were, but then even he felt compelled to join the effort. Once all that needed to be evacuated were safe they would defend this village to the last man.

His boots crunched in grass that was fast collecting dew. It was late, but he did not feel tired. His mind was on the conquest ahead of him and on his master plan so intricately formulated in his head. He felt unstoppable. He felt like a god. No, he knew he was a god. Not like the fanciful gods that these Greeks had created in their heads. He was more than that and when his plans had come to fruition, he would be more powerful than all gods put together. No one would be able to stop him then.

But for now, he would have to make do with the powers he had. The powers that made even his bravest warriors cower in fear of him-the ability to peer into a person's mind and read their thoughts, to see their memories, and manipulate their mind. His senses were so attuned to the people around him, that he could sense every waking thought and sleeping dream of his warriors. It is this very power that caused him to pause in his reverie. He felt a chill work its way down his spine. He could sense someone-someone other than his warriors. It was a woman. She was so close he could almost feel her.

He continued walking as though unaware but he could feel that the woman was very close. She was watching from above. She could see him walking. There was an intense hatred in her. He found the feeling exhilarating, like absorbing a drug, and smiled wickedly. He sensed her vision of his handiwork as she watched him. She was here to stop him and she was a formidable foe. Who was she? He tuned his mind to hers. Xena, yes, that was her name. "Xena," he said aloud, just to get a feel for it. He could not wait to meet her.

Xena crouched on the tree branch peering into the army's encampment. There was not much to see. It was a small open area housing about a hundred men and their horses. Two tents had been erected in the center of the clearing. A war chariot stood near it. There were guards posted here and there, mostly by the tents. But, most of the men were asleep. Except for one man who was walking calmly through the grass, his hands clasped behind his back. Something about his stance and demeanor told Xena that he had to be the leader. He was the monster ordering the death of innocent children. He was the one she had to kill in order to stop the forward progress of this killer army. She could take his head from here with her chakram but, no, that would be too easy. She flipped off the tree and onto the ground without a sound. Never had her army had been so terrible as to do the things this one was doing. She was going to have to come up with a plan.

He walked slowly back to the tent. He was in no rush, because he knew Xena's plan and he already had his own in the working. He walked up to one of the guards by the tent and said to him as if making conversation: "We have an intruder."

"Sir?" the guard asked, not changing his position.

"You heard me," he said in threatening tone.

"Yes, Lord Gaelen. We have an intruder. Do you want me to take care of him?"

"No. You stay right where you are. Don't worry, she'll be coming soon enough."

"She, sir?"

"Yes, Xena. Perhaps you've heard of her."

"Yes, sir," the guard said daring to shoot a worried look in his superior officer's direction. "Everyone knows who Xena is."

"I don't," Gaelen said smiling. "But, I will."

Xena had quietly made the circle around the encampment, her adrenaline pumping faster and faster keeping her senses keen and her mind alert. Sneaking in through the back of the encampment the horses were at first startled by her presence, but soothing horses was among her many skills. The smell of horseflesh made her wish she had not left Argo behind with Gabrielle. They didn't really get along very well.

Just beyond the horses was a field full of sleeping soldiers, but she is not intimidated. Walking quietly between them, she reached the two tents unscathed. Her mission was to kill the leader. If she killed him, the men may not be so willing to continue with this senseless killing. In which tent though might he be found? The one on her right seemed to draw her so she decided to check it out first.

Slipping underneath the tent into the pitch-black interior, she hesitated a moment to allow her eyes a chance to adjust to the dark. Crouching just inside the tent, Xena gradually made out a figure lying on a cot. The person's legs were crossed and his hands were behind his head. Unsheathing her sword, she stood and crossed the distance to the cot in three big steps. Not even sure of who she was about to kill, she raised her sword high into the air. It did not matter who died. After what they had done, they all deserved to die.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," came a voice from behind.

Surprised by the voice, Xena halted the descent of her sword. Instantly, her chakram was in hand and was directed towards the sound behind her. It was not her intention for it to come back. She had delivered a killing blow. True to her desire the chakram did not return ? but the voice did. In the darkness, Xena could hear him laughing. There was a flash of light as the man lit a lantern to brighten the small tent. A tall, thin stranger met her stare with dark, forbidding eyes. Instinct told her that he was the evil behind this killing spree. A scar wound its way down his face from just above his right eyebrow. His hair was cropped close to his scalp and a goatee framed his mouth. In his right hand, he held Xena's chakram.

"Interesting weapon you have," the man said, regarding the chakram closely. He looked back up at Xena. "I've never seen it's kind before."

Xena stared at him in disbelieving awe. The only other person that ever caught her chakram in motion was Callisto, but that had been outside in the sunlight. This man had caught it in the pitch-blackness of the tent and at close range. She was awed and frightened of him at the same time.

"You came all this way to kill," Gaelen said amused. "Are you not even slightly interested to know who you were going to murder?"

Turning back to the cot, Xena looked down on a frail-looking teenage girl bound with her legs crossed and her hands behind her head. She was gagged and her eyes, held wide open in fear, were flowing with fresh tears. Xena felt complete horror for what she had been about to do. She knew in that instant that she had been set up. Somehow, he knew she was coming and had planned all this.

"Go ahead, Xena," Gaelen said nonchalantly, testing the sharpness of her chakram with his thumb. "Bring your sword down upon her. Pierce her heart. Feel the lifeblood pour from her young body. With all the blood on your hands what difference would it make? Do it now before she has the chance to grow up and become just like you."

Xena turned from the poor girl, seething with anger and hatred, facing this man who seemed to somehow peer into her soul. She screamed with rage and moved to attack him, her sword ready to pierce his heart. But, the man did not move from where his was standing. He simply reached his hand out. Xena's sword suddenly leapt from her hand as if it had a life of its own and flew into his own.

"I'll take that, thank you," he said, grinning wickedly with Xena's sword and chakram in his hands. Though openly surprised, Xena quickly responded by clenching her hands into tight fists and backhanding him with all her power. Strangely however, he again did not move. He actually allowed her to hit him square in the jaw. Judging from what he had done with her sword and chakram, Xena half expected her blows to pass through him, but he stumbled back and looked up at Xena with a split bloody lip. The lack of surprise or concern in his expression was a mite unnerving, but Xena was not yet finished with him. She did a roundhouse and slammed her foot into the side of his face, this time sending him to the ground in a heap.

With that, Xena thought she had him beaten, but then she heard his insanely arrogant laughing again. A bruise was beginning to set in around his eye where her foot had connected, but it did not seem to be bothering him. The cut on his lip split even wider as he laughed.

Spitting blood to the ground, he regained his feet and said, "You're good. You're very good." Holding up her weapons he added, "But, you don't have these." Xena had to duck one swing of her own sword and jump over another, but as she leaped she kicked out and connected with his chin. He again stumbled back falling to the ground, only now there was some irritation to read in his expression. "Okay, now you're pissing me off," he yelled. "GUARDS!" Five armored men with swords came rushing in. "Attack her, but don't kill her! I want her alive!"

His face was full of arrogant confidence, but of course, Gaelen was underestimating Xena by expecting only five men to best her. Xena's open palm rammed up against the nose of the first attacker sending him to the ground writhing in pain. The sword of the next assailant was caught in mid-air between her hands and before he could even think to react, she kicked him in the stomach, snatched the sword from his hand and used the blunt end on top of his head. She then hurled the sword at Gaelen, in effect telling him that she did not need a weapon to fight. With her attention diverted by the other attackers, she failed to see the anger that crossed his face or his movement.

Another soldier came at Xena, but she kicked him out of her way. The last two charge at once. Xena did a flip into the air sounding her war cry, and delivered a foot to the face of each, sending them both to the ground unconscious. The one she had kicked out of her way was attempting to charge her from behind, but a fist in the face over her shoulder put him down for the count once again.

"Xena!" Gaelen called in a teasing yet menacing voice. She spun around to find him standing at the other side of the tent holding the girl in front of him by the hair with Xena's chakram at her throat. She was still bound and gagged, but strangely the tears were starting to dry from her eyes. She stared off blankly into space as if oblivious to the danger she was in.

"No! Don't hurt her," Xena said, gesturing with both hands.

"Ah, she speaks," Gaelen said, sarcastically. "I was beginning to wonder if you could."

"Let her go. It's me you want, not her. She's just a child."

"Yes, she is. But, you all die the same. I can kill her as easily as I killed her mother and father?and her little brother."

"What do you want?" she asked, straining to conceal the intense hatred she was feeling.

"You," Gaelen said matter-of-factly. "Surrender yourself to me unconditionally and I'll spare the child's life."

Xena was accustomed to lusty stares or roving eyes despite her reputation as a warrior and the many tales told of her conquest in battle. Surrender yourself unconditionally generally would mean one thing coming from most men. She didn't necessarily see that in this man but still she had to question his motives. "Surrender?" she asked, her eyes examining his.

Gaelen rolled his eyes and sighed. "You're a beautiful woman, Xena, but I have no such need of you. There are other things I have in mind for you. That, however, is a subject for another time. For now, what do you say? Should I slit her throat ? or not?"

Xena had no doubt that he would kill that poor girl if she defied him. She couldn't let that happen. Besides, whatever he had in mind for her, perhaps could be used to her advantage. She must find a way to stall his plans for Phestia and give her a chance to somehow severely damage his army and free herself, and this girl. She could only hope that Gabrielle was readying the people.

Her defiant expression was thus no longer serving her purpose. It was time for a little diplomacy to be employed, so she allowed her eyes to slowly downshift into a seeming expression of defeat. Smiling smugly, Gaelen released the girl only to have her fall onto the ground because her legs were still bound. Looking at the girl, Xena noticed, that through all of this, the girl showed no emotion at all.

Gaelen, triumph in his expression, stepped up to and circled around her as if inspecting merchandise. From behind, he kicked the back of her knee, forcing her to kneel, then moved to face her without breaking his stride. Lacing his fingers together he looked her over with lifted brows, seeming curious as though awaiting a reaction, but she deliberately avoided his eyes. She wanted him to believe he had her under his full control. Of course, she did not realize that he could sense everything she was thinking. Though he knew what kind of control he had over Xena for the moment, he also knew what she was capable of, and yet she did nothing. From his way of thinking that seemed unbelievable. That she would now sacrifice herself for this scrawny child, who only minutes ago she was ready to kill without a second thought, was a challenge to his reasoning. Making her regret this decision would, however, be a source of great satisfaction. She wanted to make him think he had control? Well she would soon know just how much control he actually had. Placing two fingers beneath Xena's chin, he lifted her face to him. Only then did Xena look into his eyes. Like the girl, she showed no emotion.

"This is only a taste of what you have to look forward to," he said, delivering a vicious backhand to her cheek in retaliation. She had twice kicked him in the face so he spun around and returned that favor before kneeling to be at eye level with her. "How does that feel?" he asked, his eyes as cold as death.

Xena wiped the blood from her lip and eyed him menacingly. "Is that all you've got?" she said through clenched teeth.

"Oh? You want more?" he asked, his mouth curling into a sneer. "Here, feel this." And he snapped two fingers to either side of her temples until his fingers practically dug into her head. Xena's head was suddenly racked with the most excruciating pain she had ever felt. Her head felt like it was going to explode. The last time she had felt pain like this was when M'Lila had put the pinch on her. Her screams of anguish only served Gaelen's delight, relishing the pain he was causing her. Xena could sense that this had nothing to do with revenge or even anger. This horrendous man simply enjoyed torturing people.

When she could take no more, Xena drew up enough strength to knock his arms away and rammed the heel of her palm into his face. He fell backwards, but so did Xena from exhaustion. Whatever he had done to her had completely wiped her out. Her head was still in pain and she could not raise herself.

Gaelen rose to his feet and begin delivering a barrage of kicks to Xena's stomach, back and finally her head, knocking her unconscious. Breathing heavily, he looked down on her with a disgusted smile, again relishing the mess he had made of Xena, the mighty warrior princess.

Turning his attention back to the girl watching from her place on the ground, he motioned toward the battered figure lying before him and said, "She's fascinating, isn't she? There's so much hate in her I can taste it. Yet, she won't fight me. And it's all for you, someone she doesn't even know. I should kill you now, just to see her reaction when she wakes up to see it was all for nothing." It seemed at first an intriguing idea, as he paced and deliberated it, but then he said, "No, I won't do that. At least, not now. There are other things I want to do first."

The soldiers Xena had vanquished were still unconscious, so Gaelen began kicking them awake, shouting, "Wake up, you idiots!"

As they stumbled to their feet, the soldiers attempted to shake off their dizziness and attain some semblance of dignity as they stand weakly at attention. Gaelen points at the seemingly lifeless body of Xena on the ground before them.

"Look at the mighty Xena. Take a good look. I did this to her. I finished what the five of you could not even start! I should execute every single one of you, but unfortunately you're more valuable alive. However, I will leave you with this warning?" he said, reaching out a hand to one of the soldiers without actually touching him. Gaelen slowly began to clench his hand into a fist. As he did, the other soldiers watched as their fellow soldier began to choke. He clawed at his neck and fell to his knees. Blood began to flow from his mouth and nose. His eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed to the ground dead. Without the slightest remorse, Gaelen scanned the eyes of the others and said, "I hope I've made myself clear."

"Yes, sir!" they answered in unison, obviously terrified of this mad man.

"Now, get rid of his worthless body and take Xena and the girl into the other tent. Make sure you chain them both extremely well. If either one of them escapes all four of you will suffer deaths worse than his." Needless to say, the soldiers carry out the order promptly, leaving Gaelen alone in his tent.

Close to dawn, Barleus, Gaelen's second in command, stood at the entrance of Gaelen's tent requesting permission to enter. Gaelen was bent over a worktable, going over their plan of attack on Phestia.

"Lord Gaelen," Barleus said, standing at full attention. "It's almost dawn. Should I assemble the men?"

"No."

"But, sir, I thought we were to attack?"

"We will, but not this morning. It will have to wait." Turning from his work he met Barleus' eyes accusingly. "Last night, we had an intruder."

"Intruder, sir?"

"Yes, Xena, the warrior princess. You've heard of her?"

The look in Gaelen's eyes sent a cold chill down Barleus' spine. He knew his commander to be an exacting and demanding man. An intruder managing to enter the camp would fall mainly on his shoulders. With a deep sigh of apprehension he said, "Yes, sir, I've heard of Xena. I had no idea she was in the area, sir, or I would have?"

"Enough! It's not your fault. I allowed her to intrude and now she's my captive."

"You captured Xena?" he asked, incredulously.

Gaelen lifted an eyebrow and said, "If you don't believe me, go into the next tent. You'll see what the real warrior princess is made of?nothing."

"Begging your pardon, Lord Gaelen," Barleus stammered. "I didn't mean to imply?"

"Enough, I said. Go tell the men that we attack tonight just after sunset. And send a small brigade-about fifty men-to camp just outside the walls. I want the people of Phestia to know that they are all getting ready to die."

"Yes, sir," he answered and turned to leave.

"And Barleus ? when you return, I'll give you the honor of assisting me in Xena's torture."

"Thank you, sir. I would appreciate that," Barleus said, his chest swelling in pride. Even a share in killing the warrior princess would mean fame. As he took his leave, Gaelen smiled and returned to his plans.

He didn't see the flicker of light that flashed behind him as Ares, god of war appeared, his arms crossed over his chest. Curiously, he sized up the man at the table, who seemed to have no need of the god of war, just like the people of Phestia. Well this would have to be dealt with also, but before making any decisions on Gaelen's fate, Ares wanted to know just what he was up to.

"So, you've captured the mighty Xena?" Ares said, startling Gaelen.

There was another presence in the room but Gaelen had not sensed it. There were no thoughts to read. It was as if he were not even there. He spun around to face a tall man dressed in black warrior's garb. His hair was shoulder length and his sideburns met his goatee in thin strips. He had full lips that smiled arrogantly, light-brown eyes that seemed unimpressed with the power he obviously knew Gaelen possessed.

"What's the matter, Gaelen?" Ares taunted. "Can't read my mind? Well?" Ares said, opening his hand. A gold coin suddenly appeared in his hand, which he tossed at Gaelen. "Here's a dinar for your thoughts, anyway."

Gaelen recoiled, fearing to even touch it and let it fall at his feet. "Who are you and how did you get in here?" Gaelen demanded, wary of this strange man who seemed not at all wary of him.

"I am Ares, god of war. I guess I should have known better than to expect you to know who I am. How do you expect to wage war without the god of war?"

Gaelen's wariness became impudence as he stood and eyed his rival with disdain. "Oh, please. I'm supposed to believe you are the god of war?"

"Such arrogance." Ares laughed for a moment before allowing his face to become serious. "I usually like that in my warriors. But with you it just irritates me."

Gaelen's irritation was more apparent on his face when he said, "I have no intentions of standing here arguing with an idiot. If you won't leave of your own accord, I'll just have to dispose of you." Gaelen reached out a hand as he had toward his soldier and Ares found himself in a chokehold. He began clawing at his neck. This man was possessed of an unusual power. As Gaelen's hand tightened into a fist, Ares grabbed at the power or essence that was choking him, as if pulling fingers from his neck. Gaelen watched his hand begin to open on its own and put more force into it, but to no avail. This strange man who claimed to be a god was over powering him. He could scarcely believe it. Not only was he being over powered, but when finally the man succeeded in releasing Gaelen's power from him it felt as though his own arm had been ripped from his body and he screamed out in pain.

With hatred burning in Ares' eyes, he took the power in his hands and rolled it into a ball of fire, turning Gaelen's power into his own. "I don't know where you got this power of yours," he said, rubbing his throat, "but unless you want to feel the force of it combined with my own, I suggest you start talking."

Gaelen still did not intend to take orders from this so-called god, but Ares' had incapacitated him in a most humiliating and painful way, so he called for his guards in desperation. Ares turned from Gaelen momentarily and held out an open palm towards the tent door. Two guards came running, but when they reached the tent door it was as if they hit a brick wall. They bounced back and hit the ground. The other guards approached much more cautiously.

With Ares attention diverted, Gaelen reached behind him, carefully picked up a dagger from the table andhurled it at the big, leather-clad man standing before him. The dagger found its mark and buried itself into Ares' stomach, doubling him up, but he did not let go of the fireball.

Gaelen stared in awe when Ares straightened himself and pulled the dagger from his stomach, the only look on his face being one of annoyance. He looked at the dagger and threw it down on the ground at Gaelen's feet along with the coin. "You forgot the Hind's blood," Ares said.

"What are you?"

"I though we discussed this already. I am the god of war."

"I don't believe in any god, especially the Greek gods. They come from the imagination of weak minds. But, if the 'god of war' is what you insist upon calling yourself, then I'd like to know what makes you think you can walk into my encampment and question me?"

"It makes no difference to me whether you believe in the existence of the gods or not, but war is my domain and you just stepped in it. You want to wage war; you talk to me first. Otherwise, you don't wage a thing."

"I don't need you or any of you so-called gods to fight my battles," Gaelen said in derision, regaining his strength, working his arm free of the pain there.

"Really? Then why do you need Xena? I watched the entire scene last night. You're setting her up for something and I want to know what it is."

Gaelen realized that this man could not actually read his mind or he would have the answers he was requesting. He seemed to have some sort of visual contact and knew much of what was going on. However, his inability to read this intruder's mind ('If he has one,' Gaelen thought) was really upsetting. It placed him at a disadvantage to which he was not accustomed. The element of fore knowledge was a boon he did not enjoy being without. "I have my own purpose, my own plans for the warrior princess. I don't have to tell you anything."

Ares looked down at the fireball in his hand, then eyed Gaelen from under his brows. "No, you don't," he said confidently. "You're a free mortal on this earth. You don't have to say a thing." With that, he allowed his expression to harden before saying, "Unless I make you."

Gaelen was not used to feeling threatened. He was usually the one doing the threatening. However, the prospect of having that fireball, containing his own power and the power of a man who calls himself the god of war, thrown at him did little to enhance his confidence.

"Let me put it this way," Ares said, bouncing the fireball in his hand. "Either I fight with you ? or I fight against you. Now, that's entirely your decision to make. But, if I were you, I'd think hard about the consequences of going against me."

Gaelen gave himself several seconds to mill the offer over in his mind, though knowing, much to his distaste, that he was being forced to accept. However, if this 'god of war' wanted to swap wits, so be it. At least, for the time being he would fake compliance and tell him only what was necessary, offering nothing voluntarily. Perhaps the combination of powers could prove to be an advantage. If Ares turned out to be a nuisance, he would have time to discover a way to discard him as easily as he would discard one of his soldiers.

"Very well, 'war god'. I want Xena as part of my army. I could use her skill as a fighter, and a killer. I find everything about her fascinating."

Ares smiled. He took Gaelen's words to mean that not only was he attracted to the warrior side of Xena, but the woman as well. In this instance, he was wrong. Gaelen's only interest in Xena is her warrior side. He was not moved sexually to any degree. Ares smiled and closed his hand over the fireball, making it disappear. "Yes, she is fascinating, isn't she?" he asked lustfully. "Of course, she is what I made her. She wouldn't be who she is today if not for me."

"Even the part of her that wants to help people?"

"I molded the warrior?not the do-gooder," Ares said, offended. "That was my brother's fault."

"Yes, what ridiculous ideals they both share. Especially when Xena is capable of so much more. You did an excellent job. I'll give you that. But, like you said, you only made the warrior. I intend to make the monster."

"Monster?" Ares repeated, curious but not sure if he was going to like the idea.

"Yes. I'm going to take what's good in her and make her hate it. Her memories?and her emotions will become her bitter enemies. I will twist her mind so that she doesn't even remember what it was like to be good. She will remember only the hate, the anger. When I'm through with her, she will kill anyone who stands in my way. Be it family, friend or child."

"You're forgetting one thing, Gaelen."

"And what might that be?"

"Xena is mine. I created her. She belongs to me. And I can take her from you at any time."

"What are you saying?" Gaelen asked suspiciously.

"I'm saying I have a vested interest in Xena. I don't intend to interfere, if that's what you're thinking. But nothing is to be done to Xena without first consulting with me."

"What are you? Her father?"

Ares viewed Gaelen with a glint in his eye that evoked considerable curiosity, and was a mite hesitant before saying, "What I am to Xena is not your concern. Just don't you forget what I said. And one final warning. I'll be watching you at all times. If you come within even a hairsbreadth of trying to kill her, I'll drop you so quick you won't even know it happened."

"Your threats don't frighten me," Gaelen said, trying to seem indifferent as he turned back to the plans strewn over his table.

"No?" Ares said, causing the fireball to reappear in his hand. "But I know this does. I'll keep this in hand, just in case you ever try to cross me."

"I'll try to remember that. I hope this means you're going to leave now. I'm tiring of this conversation."

"Oh no. I'm not finished with you. I still haven't heard why you're here."

"What exactly do you want to know?" Gaelen asked civilly, playing along.

"Everything. From beginning to end. And if you keep anything from me, don't think for a minute that I won't find out."

Gaelen turned his back, fingering his chin and considered this request for a moment. "Everything, huh? Well?prepare yourself."

The Next Morning

Xena's eyes suddenly snapped open only to find that she was chained and practically hanging from two metal posts. The pain in her wrists was agonizing. Her legs touched the ground where she knelt, but the rest of her hung from the posts. All of her armor had been removed including her boots, leaving her only in her leathers. Her face and body still hurt from when the man, whose name she didn't even know, had kicked her. But, she had gotten in a few good licks herself and hopefully he was suffering some discomfort as well. Adding to her agony, her stomach growled for food. She hadn't eaten since the morning before. She ignored it, though. It wasn't the first time she'd gone without food and she was sure that this wouldn't be the last.

Across from her in the dimly lit tent was the girl, her hands and feet still bound, lying on the cold ground. Her eyes were unblinking, connected with nothing. She seemed to be somewhere else in her mind, perhaps somewhere safe. Xena longed to reach out to her and comfort her, but her chains would not permit it. Maybe if she spoke to her in Gabrielle's soothing manner she might be able to draw her from her shell.

"Hey, what's your name?" she asked in just more than a whisper. The girl did not answer or indicated that she had even heard. "My name's Xena. We're kind'a in the same mess, huh?" Xena said, trying to sound encouraging. Oh, what do I say, Gabrielle? , she cried out in her mind. Sweet Gabrielle, so unaware of just how powerful she was in cases like this. What would she say to the girl if she were here?

"I know you must be really scared. Who can blame you? That monster told me about your mother and father?and your little brother. I know how alone you must feel without them. But I promise you I won't let him hurt you again." She remembered the child that was Callisto and wondered what kind of person she might have been had Xena not been responsible for the death of her parents. By the same token, what kind of person would this child turn out to be? Would she become a monster like Callisto because of the horrible things that she witnessed and experienced? A tear worked its way down Xena's cheek as she looked at the girl. Her heart went out to this young person. How could she comfort her? How could she ease the pain?

"I knew a girl like you once," Xena said softly. "She was just about your age. Her family was killed by a vicious warlord, too." Xena paused and swallowed a lump in her throat, vivid memories flooding her mind. Several seconds passed by before she was finally able to say, "?Me. My army raided her village and her family was killed in a fire. She lost her soul that day and all she gained was hatred, hatred for me, because of what I did to her family. She became a monster worse than I was because of the hate in her. It was the only thing she could feel, because she never allowed herself to feel anything else. She locked up the pain, the anguish, the heartbreak and the sadness and let the hate overtake her. Then, no one's life mattered to her anymore, not even her own. I'm telling you this because I don't want to see you end up the same way. It's okay to cry. It's okay to feel the pain and anger screaming inside you. Don't hold those feelings in. Let them out or they'll destroy you."

Xena was almost pleading with her, when she noticed the girl's bottom lip begin to quiver and a tear of her own began to work its way down her cheek. It wasn't much, but at least it appeared she'd gotten through to her. It had been some time since Xena had felt such deep emotion for someone she didn't even know, even a child like this. "That's it. Don't hold back. I promise you, you'll get through this no matter what happens. We both will."

As she sat watching the girl react to the moment, the hair on the back of her neck began to tingle. There was a very familiar presence in the room. Drawing a deep breath, Xena sighed heavily and said, "You can come out now, Ares. I know you're there."

Flashing into visibility, Ares clapped his hands. "That was just beautiful, Xena," he said with a wicked smile. "I'm sure Callisto would have appreciated it?if she were here."

"Callisto is where she belongs and you know it."

"That may very well be," he said. Looking her over curiously, Ares laughed. "You know, I like you in this position. Kneeling before a god, like you should be."

"What do you want, Ares? If all you came here for was to gloat, you can leave."

"Gloat? Oh no, Xena. I only wish I could take the credit for this one."

"Why not? Are you losing control of your warriors," she said accusingly.

Ares expression changed from one of amusement to anger and irritation as he squarely met Xena's stare. "That's where you're wrong, Xena. Gaelen is no loyal subject of mine," he said hotly, offering no explanation of his cryptic comment.

To Xena it posed a troubling thought, however. She had assumed the man was working for Ares. Ares was no prize by any means, but in his own twisted way she knew he cared about her, and for this reason she had a measure of control over him. But, if Ares had no control over this dangerous man, then there was no telling what she could expect.

"That's why I'm here Xena," he said, kneeling on one knee before her and lifting his hand onto hers. "In a few minutes, Gaelen will come walking through that door, and what he has planned for you, no normal human being could live through. You've felt the kind of pain he can inflict." It was a rare expression of tenderness and feeling that Xena was seeing in his eyes, the odd affection that made him vulnerable. For the most part he kept it well hidden, but she knew it was there and now it was showing. With intensity in his eyes he said, "He wants to turn you into a monster, Xena, a killing machine with no conscience and no feeling, killing anything in your sight. I don't want to see that happen because that isn't you, Xena. That isn't the warrior that I created."

Xena eyed him from beneath her brows, the hint of a smile on her lips. "You don't want to see that happen because you're afraid I'll come and kill you, too."

Ares sat back on his haunches and questioned her with his eyes. This was no ordinary woman. She had lethal fighting skills and had no need to make idle threats. The only man that had ever bested her was his do-gooder brother and even he had not found her to be an easy conquest. Being on her list of victims was not an envious place to be. Fingering the hair on his chin he asked, "Meaning?"

"You know that if I were to become cold and heartless enough, I wouldn't hesitate to kill you the same as anyone else. I want you to get one thing straight, Ares. You don't own me! Neither you or that sorry excuse for a man you call ? what was it? ? Gaelen? I refuse to be either one of your creations. I am what I've made of myself and what good people like Hercules and Gabrielle have helped me to become. I am very much in control of my own life. So, if I choose to face my own torture, then I will. And if this Gaelen thinks he can make me into a monster, he is free to try. But, I will not be beaten into whatever shape either of you want. So, whatever it is you came to say, Ares, save it and get lost. I can do this on my own."

Ares was left speechless by Xena's 'I-am-woman-hear-me-roar' speech. Nothing he could ever do would humble her even slightly. He stood, stared angrily at her for a moment, then disappeared just as Gaelen entered the tent. The bright morning sunlight jumped through the open flap of the tent and met Xena's eyes like a slap in the face, making her have to squint as it pierced the darkness. It dilated the lenses of her eyes enough that it took a few moments to see that another man was with him wearing the armor of a soldier.

"Have a pleasant evening?" Gaelen asked, sarcastically.

"I have nothing to say to you," she said, her lip curled in disgust.

"That's a pity. Ares gets a lecture, but I don't," he laughed, his companion joining in. This surprised her. He knew that she had been speaking to Ares, yet he had not been in the tent. There was something beyond the norm about this man.

"How did you know?" she said, fishing for an explanation.

"I am aware of many things that would surprise you. For instance, I know you saw what I left of the nomads' little settlement and I also know that you left someone behind in Phestia to warn the people of my arrival. What was her name again? Ah yes, Gabrielle. Your best friend."

Xena's stomach turned at the mention of Gabrielle's name, but he was correct about one thing, he had surprised her. How did he know about Gabrielle? Had he sent spies into the village? Was Gabrielle not being as cautious as she should be? With the experienced of a warrior, Xena kept the fear from showing on her face, only allowing the anger and hatred to surface. And she didn't give him the satisfaction of responding to his obvious threat to Gabrielle.

"How do you think she will react when she sees me with your sword and chakram? Perhaps she'll think I killed you. I'll bet you're imagining, right now, the look of horror on her pretty face, knowing her as you do. It would be like ramming a knife right through her heart, or maybe your sword would be better. Actually, that's a good idea. Your sword right through her heart. Don't you think so, Barleus?"

"Yes, sir."

Gaelen paced slowly before Xena, saying as he walked, "When I attack Phestia tonight, I'll find your precious Gabrielle and kill her with your sword. What an honor that should be for her, to be killed by the sword of her best friend. Yes, I like it. I'll run your sword through her heart. Of course, I hate to think of you losing your friend completely, so to keep you from being all alone after she's dead, I'll bring you her head." Kneeling on one knee and drawing his face close to hers, he gestured behind him and said, "I'll sit it right across from you on the ground, and each time you open your eyes you'll be able to see her."

Every fiber of Xena's being was straining to maintain control. The mental visions she saw from his description ripped at her heart like the claws of a lion. A scream of rage was just inside her lips, but that would please this savage person and she would not give him that. She had not yet comprehended that he was aware of her feelings and thoughts, or that the anger and hatred emitting from her were enough for him. He drank in her emotions and fed off them like a blood-sucking insect. Standing before her again, he smiled wickedly and said, "You know, Xena, it's amazing how much alike the two of us are. We are both relentless in the pursuit of what we want. Neither of us would allow anything to stand in our way, not even a life. Yes, you're a cold-blooded killer just like me."

"I am nothing like you," Xena said through clenched teeth.

"Oh but you are, Xena. That's why I like you so much. Your skills as a fighter and a killer are like none I've ever seen before. Why would you want to fight against me, Xena, when you could fight with me? Your so-called god of war has decided to fight with me, why not you? Then you would not have to suffer this way, and your friend would not have to die. You could lead my army to victory with your friend at your side?"

Barleus, hearing that Xena could possibly take his position if she accepted this offer dared to say, "Lead, sir?"

"Did I ask you to speak?" Gaelen looked up and asked in a menacing tone.

"No, sir," the injured officer answered impassively. Yet when Gaelen turned back to Xena, Barleus eyed Xena with an intense hatred and a heart full of jealousy. 'No damn woman, even if she is a warrior princess, is going to lead this army', Barleus thought. 'I have no intentions of leaving her well enough to lead any army to victory. '

Gaelen, of course, was aware of Barleus' feelings, but he was also aware that Xena would refuse him, so he felt no concern. Still kneeling before her he asked, "So, what do you say, Xena? Lead my army, save your friend and save yourself a lot of pain."

Xena's reaction was one of repulsion and disgust. Unable to conceal what she felt for this man she spat directly in his face. It was a sudden, instinctive reaction requiring almost no thought, so Gaelen didn't expect it. Not only had he been caught completely off guard, he had been assaulted in a most disgusting manner. Stumbling backward, he stared at her in shock for a moment as the rage exploded within him. "You bitch!" he shouted, slamming his foot into the side of her face. Wiping the spit from his face as he regained his feet, he said seething, "You've made your choice, so I hope you're prepared to accept the consequences." Xena was still reeling from the blow to her head when he stepped forward and kicked her in the stomach, forcing all the wind from her lungs. Yet still she eyed him with loathing and hatred.

Gaelen stepped back and, with a gesture, offered Barleus the pleasure of joining in the fun, which he readily accepted. Xena shifted her eyes to the soldier, as he approached, readying his hammering fist. She braced herself for a very long and painful day, but gave the soldier an evil look that promised him a future taste of her revenge. The last good thing that passed through Xena's mind was Gabrielle, hoping that she was safe as Barleus crushing blow enshrouded her in darkness.

Chapter Three

Gabrielle's Big Day

Slumped against an observation post in the wall, Gabrielle awakened with a start. Her waking thought became a word: "Xena!" A deep sense of dread passed through her. She tried to pass it off as pre-battle jitters, but the feeling would not go away.

Gabrielle figured that she must have dozed off in the wait, since she and their village army had stayed up most of the night waiting for some sign of the army. The night before, Zantus had been able to gather a large group of men. Most were simple citizens who did not want to see their village brought to ruins. But, there were some Phestian soldiers that Zantus had been able to convince to join them. Gabrielle had been worried that they would report to their General, the man Salea had told her about, who would in turn give word of what was going on to the Magistrates. But, the soldiers had given their word. Some of them, like Salea, said that their General would fight with them, but Gabrielle did not want to chance it.

Salmoneus and Salea had gotten almost all of the people out of Phestia and to the caves. Argo had been teemed up with the other horses to transport the older people and what goods they could manage to get into the wagons. The only ones left in town were some of the more affluent families, such as the families of the Magistrates. Gabrielle had deliberately kept the alarm from them for fear of interference. Almost all of the lower class families had been able to evacuate. Of course, there were still a few who refused to listen, and one who'd said he intended to go to the Magistrates about what they were doing. Fortunately, he was not allowed to see them until morning and by then Gabrielle had been able to move all who were willing to evacuate.

Zantus and a few other soldiers were standing at the lookout positions located at the top of the heavy, stone wall near the large gate. Gabrielle stood and scanned the area. Most of the soldiers were still sleeping. Yet, Zantus and those with him seemed quite intent as they peered into the distance. That was when she understood the reason for her dread. Xena was no where to be seen. With a knot in her stomach, she quickly walked toward the gate for an update.

At that moment, Nallos was rising from his bed, wondering at the strange quietness he was hearing. He expected to wake to the sounds of people continuing to celebrate the Harvest Festival. Clad in nightclothes, he walked over to the open window and savored the cool morning breeze. The serenity was short lived, however, as he stared in amazement at deserted streets and soldiers posted at observation posts around the wall, a thing not seen in Phestia for many years. His mind cleared quickly and he knew exactly what was going on. "Xena!" he said, pounding his fists down on the windowsill. He dressed quickly and left to gather the other Magistrates for an emergency meeting.

"Good morning, Gabrielle," Zantus said somberly as Gabrielle climbed the steps to the lookout post.

"Good morning, Zantus. Have you seen anything?"

"Nothing so far. I've been up all night and haven't seen hide nor hair of any army." There was a bit of skepticism in his voice.

"Has Xena come back?" Gabrielle asked, scanning the area nervously.

Zantus glanced over his shoulder and noted the worry in her eyes. There was no mistaking the bond between those two. "No," he said sympathetically. "I haven't seen her and no one's reported her to me." He felt truly sorry for this energetic young woman trying so hard to be brave in a potentially dangerous situation. 'Potentially', however, was the word worrying him. With the coming of daylight, would be the presence of the magistrates. "I sure hope we're not making a big mistake here, Gabrielle," he said nervously.

"Mistake?" she asked.

"If there's no army, we have to face the magistrates."

"That's true, but then, which enemy would you prefer?" she teased.

Zantus eyed her with a growing smile. "I suppose you do have a point."

Gabrielle rested a hand on his shoulder and forced a smile. "Well, if I'm wrong, we'll just consider this a drill. If there is no army, we'll have a real reason to be celebrating."

Zantus could tell the smile was forced. She believed this to be a real threat. All things considered, he hoped she was wrong.

"If you do happen to see Xena, I want to be the first to know."

"Of course. I'll keep an eye out for her."

"Thank you."

In their most pompous finery, the four Magistrates descended upon the empty streets of Phestia headed toward the jailhouse. Nallos, as head Magistrate, held a key to the guardhouse since he fully suspected he would need it. Not at all surprised, he used it to unlock the door allowing the other Magistrates to proceed him inside, where he scanned the room with squinted eyes. So far all of his suspicions had become reality. "Where are the guards?" he asked, more as a statement than a question. His companions could only shrug and mumble in reply. Banging and hollering from the cells suddenly caught their attention. Unlocking the connecting door, Nallos and the other Magistrates enter to find their two guards locked behind bars.

"What happened?" he demanded.

One guard stammered, "I'm sorry, sir. It was Xena. She's escaped."

"You let her escape, you fool!"

Realizing he was in a heap of trouble but fearing to lie, he said. "She said there was ? a rat ? in her cell ? she was afraid?"

"You idiot! Xena isn't afraid of anything!"

"I tried to stop her, but?," the second guard said.

"I'll have you both demoted for this! You'll be cleaning these cells instead of guarding them!" Handing the keys to one of the other Magistrates so he could release the two guards, Nallos walked out in a huff. He was going to find this meddling Xena woman and remove her from his village.

Gabrielle was descending the last steps of the lookout as a deep frown creased her face in her worry for Xena. She should have been back by now. It was possible, though, that Xena had found a way to stop the army, which would make sense, because they had not attacked. But, the dread Gabrielle had felt in the pit of her stomach when she awakened hadn't gone away either. If anything, it was growing.

Up ahead, Gabrielle caught sight of High Magistrate Nallos and his companions. They were nudging the sleeping soldiers to their feet and demanding to know what was going on and where 'the woman named Xena' was. With them were three other soldiers, including one that looked and acted like the General the soldiers and Salea had told her about. He was tall, with long sun-bleached hair. His beard was similar in color. Gabrielle thought he would have been cute if it was not for the angry scowl that, over time, had creased his face into fine lines.

Nallos was in a rage, throwing too many confusing questions at the soldiers before they could answer. In a surprising display of authority, the General put a rough hand on Nallos' shoulder and carefully moved him aside. The High Magistrate seemed a mite taken aback by the gesture, and ceased his questioning, eyeing the General in dismay. Gabrielle would have been moved to laugh if not for the General's gruff expression.

The nervous soldiers were still jabbering away trying to answer Nallos' questions when the general called to them. "Attention! Quiet down! Now I want some answers! Where have all the people gone?"

"To the caves where they'll be safe," Gabrielle said as she approached. It was a spontaneous answer, characteristic of her personality, to which she attached little thought before speaking. The General turned a tolerant look in her direction, being unaware of her presence. Unaccustomed to having anyone speak to him in such a straightforward manner, the look on his face is not a pleasant one.

"She's one of them!" Nallos shouted, pointing. "She was with that Xena woman."

"Who in Tartarus are you?" the General demanded

Gabrielle smiled a sweet, nervous smile at the General, hoping it would cool his anger. It didn't, unfortunately, but she smiled anyway and held out a hand to the General. "Hi, it's nice to meet you?I'm sorry, I didn't get your name."

"It's General Greeger. We didn't get to who you are, yet?"

"You're absolutely right. Where are my manners? My name is Gabrielle. I'm a good friend of Xena's. I'm sure you've heard of her," Gabrielle said, phrasing the last sentence in pride.

"I fought against her army years ago. Of course, I've heard of her." An old anger blazed in his eyes and Gabrielle began to feel uneasy.

"Really?" Gabrielle said, clearing her throat. "Well, that was a long time ago and Xena is a different person now. She came to Phestia to help you and your people, not to fight against you."

"I'll tell you, young lady, what I told her," Nallos blurted out. "We don't need your help! We have one of the finest armies in the land?"

Greeger put his hands on his hips and rolled his eyes in irritation, as if he had heard the speech a thousand times.

"?and a fortress which has withstood many sieges. We are well protected from any attack."

"Attack?" Greeger said drawing his brows together as he turned to Nallos. "You didn't tell me anything about an attack!"

"That's because there won't be one."

"If there isn't an attack, Nallos," Gabrielle said hotly, "it will be because Xena has already stopped their army."

"What army?" Greeger demanded. "Would somebody talk to me here?"

"We don't know who they are, General, but they destroyed the nomad settlement yesterday morning, and killed everyone there, even the children. Xena believes that they are headed this way."

Greeger again turned his attention to Nallos and asked in an accusing tone, "Why wasn't I told about this?"

"Well?" Nallos began arrogantly.

Gabrielle spoke up, not allowing him to finish. "Xena and I came here to Phestia last night and warned him, but the Magistrates refused to do anything because of the festival. When Xena tried to force the issue and demanded that something be done, he locked her up."

Greeger stood erect and stared down at Nallos in stern reserve. "You are warned of a possible attack and you tell me nothing?"

Nallos outranked Greeger, of course, but in truth he had no plausible answer, so he said nothing. He crossed his arms across his chest defiantly and let his eyes warn the general to be cautious. On the other hand, Greeger knew that Nallos could not replace him or even began to do his job so he felt no need to be concerned.

Dismissing Nallos, Greeger turned back to Gabrielle and asked, "Where's Xena now?"

"She broke out of jail last night and told me she was going to stop them."

"Stop them? An entire army? I always knew she was crazy, but I didn't think she was stupid," he said, stirring an angry reply in Gabrielle that she decided to swallow. "I'm assuming she hasn't returned."

"No. I haven't seen or heard from her," Gabrielle said, hoping her worry wasn't showing.

"Well, did she tell you anything about this army?"

"Just that there seem to be about a hundred of them, maybe more. When they attacked the nomads' settlement, quite a few were on horseback and one rode in a chariot."

"Then they're not renegade. Someone is commanding this army. What kind of a madman would murder a village full of farmers? Those people didn't have a soldier among them." Greeger paused for a second, giving Gabrielle's story some thought. "What makes Xena think that they're headed for Phestia, anyway?"

"They're not exactly headed for Phestia," Gabrielle continued grimly. "They're headed east and Phestia just happens to be in the way."

Greeger took in that information with a heavy sigh. That didn't sound good at all. Then, his thoughts shifted to Gabrielle's first words to him. He eyed Gabrielle curiously and asked. "So, you brought all the people to the caves, huh? How did you know to do that?"

"Well, it was actually Xena's idea?but I did organize the move." Gabrielle watched Greeger shake his head, but it was not in anger. He actually looked amazed. "What?" Gabrielle asked.

"I made those caves for the very purpose of evacuating people should the need ever arise. You know, when I fought against Xena all those years ago, she always knew when and how to counteract every move I made. I used to think she could read my mind and I hated her for it. Now, she's doing it again."

"At least this time she's on your side," Gabrielle said with a relieved smile.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Greeger said, grumbling skeptically. "So, you got everybody out?"

"Not everybody. Some families refused to go and we couldn't get to most of the more affluent people, like the Magistrates' families."

Greeger sighed. "We have to start getting them moved out as well, then."

"In protest to this ridiculous affair," Nallos said haughtily. "My family refuses to go anywhere, neither do the other families."

"You'll go if I say go," Greeger said sternly.

Concerned for his own family, one of the other Magistrates said, "High Magistrate Nallos, I don't think we should argue with General Greeger. If he thinks we should leave, then I'm sure he has his reasons."

"Go if you want to, you coward, but my family stays here."

Greeger eyed Nallos impatiently, his mouth set in a thin, white line. "If I've got to bind you, your wife and children in chains and haul you off like common criminals, I will, Nallos. Now get your family ready."

Nallos looked at Greeger appalled. But, Greeger ignored him and turned to call two of his soldiers. "You two gather the rest of the families in the square. I want them ready to leave within the hour." Turning back to Nallos and the other Magistrates he said, "That includes you five. Go get your families ready to leave."

There was a stern protest on Nallos' lips but he knew that in a military conflict the general outranked him and that he had the authority to carry out his threats. Pointing a finger at the general he said, "There will be reprisals for this undermining of my authority should this be the hoax I suspect it is, General. You can be sure." He then turned with a huff and obeyed the order.

"When they're ready to go, Gabrielle," Greeger said. "I want you to lead them to the caves. Make sure?"

"Hey, wait," Gabrielle protested, lifting her staff and placing it carefully at Greeger's chest. "I promised the people that I would stay and fight to defend their village."

Greeger looked down at her staff with his usual scowl, then looked back up at Gabrielle and grinned. The smile almost broke her resolve. It turned his scowling face into a very handsome one. She wondered why he didn't smile more often. She was nearly disposed to give in and say 'Okay, whatever you say,' until his next words broke the mood.

"Listen, little girl?" he said, moving the staff from his chest.

Gabrielle returned the staff to his chest with more force and said angrily. "I am not a 'little girl'. You can send one of your soldiers to lead the rest of the people, but I'm staying here."

Annoyed, Greeger asked, "You're staying here to fight in a battle, while I send one of my soldiers on a mission of mercy?"

"Yes," she said flatly. She didn't see why he would have a problem with that.

"You and your little stick," he said, condescendingly.

Placing a hand on her hip, Gabrielle said with a huff, "It's called an Amazon fighting staff, for your information. If you have any qualms about my ability to fight with it, not only do I have the skill of the Amazons, I also learned from Xena."

Greeger laughed heartily, encouraging his soldiers to join in. Gabrielle could not believe it. They had backed her ever since last night, and now all of a sudden, they were laughing at her.

"Oooh, Xena taught you how to fight," Greeger laughed. Suddenly, Greeger had his sword drawn and swung it in Gabrielle's direction.

Instinctively, she blocked his blow with her staff, surprised and suddenly fearful. "What are you doing?!" she exclaimed in dismay.

"Defend yourself!" Greeger shouted, wielding another blow. She blocked his sword once more and sidestepped another causing Greeger to have to change his position. The man's blows were powerful and steady. It took all the skill she had to keep them from connecting. Gabrielle ducked under one blow aimed at her head and claimed the opportunity to jab the edge of her staff into his stomach with devastating force as she had been taught. She could hear Xena saying, "Fighting is no game, Gabrielle. If you're going to fight, give it your best. Fight to win." But, fighting had not been her aim in coming here. At least not fighting with the townsfolk, and not with their general. Yet this man seemed to be seriously trying to kill her. Of course, she was wise enough to realize that this could also be a test. He would kill her if he could because she had defied him in the face of his men, or he would use her in the fight against the army if she proved herself worthy. Her determination enhanced by that last thought, Gabrielle sidestepped another blow and jabbed her staff into his midriff, doubling him up with a loud "oooff" and then used her staff to knock his sword from his hand. With a spin, she swung the staff to the back of his legs and knocked his feet out from under him. He was on the ground in seconds. Quickly, Gabrielle was over him and was prepared to deliver a crushing blow to his face. It would take only a second to end it unless he surrendered. Greeger was reasonably shocked. He had admired the girl's courage but surely had not expected to be bested by her. Instinctively, he covered his face with his hands hoping to fend off the blow somehow, but it didn't happen. This girl was a fighter but obviously not a killer. He looked up to see not the staff, but Gabrielle's hand outstretched to help him up. He took it reluctantly realizing that a woman had defeated him in the face of his men. It was humiliating but it also afforded him the opportunity to show himself a man of integrity and humility despite his rank and authority.

He quickly regained his feet and stepped over to his sword. As he lifted it, Gabrielle readied herself for another assault. Dusting himself off he met her eyes with his scowl plastered to his face and she fully expected him to attack again. Slowly, however, the scowl melted from his face and was replaced with the handsome smile Gabrielle had appreciated earlier. Gabrielle smiled in return. She had assessed him accurately. It was a test. How she loved being right.

"Okay, you can stay," he said breaking into a laugh.

"That's more like it," she said, standing at attention as was appropriate to a man of his rank. " Thank you, Greeger," she said with a nod of her head.

Stepping close enough to whisper he said, "Around the men it's General Greeger. Okay?"

"Oh. Thank you, 'General' Greeger," she said, granting him a beautiful smile that he was able to appreciate as much as she had appreciated his.

Greeger then called over one of the younger soldiers. "Doophus!" he said to the lad.

"Yes, sir, General Greeger, sir!"

"You know how to get to the caves, right?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Good. When the families are ready, I want you to escort them." Greeger clapped a hand on Doophus' shoulder, good-naturedly, causing the boy obvious pain.

"Yes, sir!" the lad said, trying to maintain a soldier's stance, then turned to leave.

"Please tell me that's not his real name," Gabrielle stated with disbelief.

"His mother never liked him much."

"Oh, that's so sad. I can't believe a mother would name her child that."

The General broke into a hardy laugh and buddy punched her on the shoulder like he would one of his soldiers. Gabrielle looked up at him curiously.

"That's his nickname! You are so gullible. This is going to be fun?even if we do go into battle," he said, laughing even more. Gabrielle failed to see the humor in even a nickname such as that, and tried to laugh with him, but she could not go beyond a bland smile. Suddenly, they heard a yell and turned to see Zantus waving at some of the men below to open the gate.

"Hey! What in Tartarus do you think you're doing?!" Greeger said running toward them. "Don't open that gate!" But, his cries fall on deaf ears. The heavy wooden bars were lifted and the large gate slowly swung open. Before the doors were completely opened a woman on horseback practically flew in through the gate. For a moment, Gabrielle thought her prayers had been answered and that Xena had returned, but no, it was Salea who jumped from the horse as soon as it was at a standstill and ran towards them.

"Salea!" Gabrielle called to her.

"Close the gate! Close the gate! They're coming!" Salea yelled in a near panic.

"Close the gate!" Greeger called out and ran to help the men at the gate. The few moments it took to close the big and heavy doors seemed like an eternity considering the urgency in Salea's voice and Gabrielle breathed a sigh of relief when two men dropped the heavy wooden bars back into place. Greeger, his armor rattling, ran to the stairs that brought him to the lookouts. Gabrielle and Salea followed. From above, they watched the cavalry of horses that rode up to the walls. A formation broke and many of the men on horses began to circle the city.

"They're surrounding us," Greeger said, obviously assessing the situation and planning his defense.

"Are you all right, Salea?" Gabrielle asked.

"Yeah. I came back just to make sure there were no stragglers and I practically ran into them. I didn't stop 'till I got here."

"You were right, Gabrielle," Greeger said, resting an appreciative hand on her shoulder. "Thank the gods you reacted as quickly as you did."

"Don't thank the gods. They had nothing to do with it. It's Xena you should be thanking?" she said, suddenly realizing that if they were attacking, then Xena was not successful in stopping them. If Xena was not successful, that must mean that Xena was ? No! She was not going to let herself think like that. Xena was fine. She would make it back in time and save them all.

"Where's Xena?" Salea asked looking around. "Did she ever come back?"

Gabrielle lightly chewed her bottom lip and shook her head sadly.

By then most of the horses had surrounded the walled city, leaving a small line poised in front. One horse moved forward and it's rider looked up at them. Greeger looked down at him then allowed his eyes to scan the area. "This isn't the whole army," he said, thoughtfully. "There's no more than about fifty or so men out there. They're here simply to stir up trouble and panic the people."

"And keep us in our place," Gabrielle inserted. "We won't be able to evacuate the rest of the people now."

Greeger noted a deep sadness in Gabrielle's voice, but wasn't sure if it was for the people or for Xena since he had heard Salea's question and saw Gabrielle's reaction. Perhaps it was for both. He could tell she had a kind heart when she spoke of the deaths of those nomads. Her being here also indicated that her heart had reached out to the people of Phestia as well.

The rider below raised himself up in his stirrups and called out: "People of Phestia! I come in the name of Gaelen, The Destroyer! He has come to claim your land, your city and its people!"

Greeger extended his sword toward the man and called back, "You tell Gaelen we will surrender to no one!"

"Fight or surrender, it doesn't matter! Either way, your city is now Gaelen's!"

"He'll have to take my head, before I let him take this city!"

"So be it!" the warrior said, commanding with a gesture. With amazing swiftness, two other warriors raised bows and released arrows, barely giving Greeger time to shout out a warning when two of the men on the highest position just above the gates were taken out. One was dead when he hit the deck; the other fell over the side. Gabrielle squeezed her eyes shut before he hit the ground. Amazingly, he was not dead. He squirmed and tried to get up, but one of Gaelen's warriors walked up to him with his sword drawn. Gabrielle had to turn away as the soldier raised his sword and took the soldier's head.

Again the warrior called out, "We'll take your heads one by one if we have to!"

Greeger watched them take his soldier's head and hold it high into the air, roaring and cheering over their small victory. "You bastards!" Greeger screamed. The warriors continued to cheer themselves on and more bows were raised up to the lookouts. "Get down!" Greeger shouted. Attuned to the danger now, the men ducked behind the wall and the arrows flew uselessly overhead. Greeger turned to Gabrielle and Salea saying, "You two get out of here. I'll meet you below in a second."

"Come on, Gabrielle," Salea said leading Gabrielle down the stairs. Most of the townspeople were filing out into the streets by then, their faces full of fear and concern. Outside the walls, the army continued to cheer and sound war cries filling the hearts of the people with dread. A few stragglers were only now poking their heads out of doors or windows in fear and curiosity.

High Magistrate Nallos walked up to Gabrielle and placed shaky hands on her arms. "What is that? What is that sound?" he asked wide-eyed.

She could only look into the man's eyes sadly. "They're here," she said, knowing what must be going through his mind.

Nallos looked at her in horror. He had ignored the warning and had not protected his people from this threat. Now, they all were in danger because of his pride and stupidity. "You have to get my family out of here. Please," he pleaded.

Salea blurted out angrily, "It's a little late now, Nallos. We're stuck. You should have listened to Xena when you had the chance."

"The army has surrounded the city," Gabrielle said a bit more gently. "We can't leave now." Nallos suddenly looked much older than his years and, despite all, Gabrielle felt pity for him. How many pompous men such as this had she seen brought to their knees this way in her time with Xena? When would they ever learn?

Back at the lookout, Greeger grabbed the shoulder of a young man and turned him about. "Zantus, is that you?"

"Yes, General."

"What are you doing up here? I thought you were a farmer. Didn't you tell me a couple of years ago that you had no interest in being a soldier?"

"That was before today, sir."

"Well, ? thanks. I can use all the men I can get right now. Have you been manning the lookouts all night?"

"Yes, sir."

"Then you'll need a relief. See to the body of our soldier up there and help man the rest of the lookouts around the village. Once your done, have Milos relieve you. You'll need to rest up." He turned to leave, but stopped and looked back over his shoulder. "After today, Zantus, you go back to your fields. Understood?"

Smiling, Zantus said, "Yes, sir."

Greeger left the lookouts and met Gabrielle and Salea below as a crowd of people began to gather. Most of them were the people that had not evacuated. Others were the soldiers who hadn't been told of the impending attack and who'd woke up to a surprise. They all looked to Greeger for answers.

Speaking to everyone he said, "In case any of you haven't figured it out already, we are under attack. An army is here to take our village. They're just the first wave. More of them will be coming. With them making their move this morning, I expect them to make their final attack sometime tonight, most likely at dusk. So, we have to prepare ourselves."

A rich man with expensive robes walked forward with his child in his arms. "What about us? We're not soldiers! How will we protect our children?" he said desperately.

"Don't worry," Gabrielle said, touching the child's hand. "We'll find someplace to hide you. You'll be safe. Right?" She addressed the question to Greeger.

He knew and understood what she was doing and though there was uncertainty in his eyes, his voice did not betray her confidence. "That's right. My soldiers and I will make sure that you and your children are well protected. High Magistrate Nallos," he said, locating him in the group. "Perhaps you could take the people into the courthouse. You'll be safe there, for now."

Nallos, seizing the opportunity to feel important again, nodded and led the group of citizens with him into the courthouse. Free to speak now, Gabrielle approached Greeger and said, "You certainly sound confident, Greeger, but your eyes say something else."

"Are you always this outspoken?" Greeger said, annoyed.

"Pretty much, yeah." After a beat, she continued, "So, how do you plan on protecting these people from that bloodthirsty mob out there?"

"I have a plan, Gabrielle?I don't know how well it's going to work?"

"Well, at least he has a plan," Salea remarked sarcastically and without any respect for his station. Gabrielle looked at Salea curiously. She couldn't believe that Salea had just spoken to General Greeger that way. She was only a citizen and a prostitute at that.

"And you?" he demanded of Salea. "What are you doing here?"

Salea stepped back, put her hands on her hips and gave Greeger a derisive up and down look. "I don't recall needing your permission," she said in an icy tone.

Ignoring her disrespect, Greeger said angrily, "You know, you could have gotten yourself killed back there. What in Tartarus were you thinking?" There was an obvious tone of concern in his voice and it changed her attitude from nasty to seductive.

Gabrielle was standing in between them, when she suddenly realized these two no longer saw her. They walked closer to each other, locked in one another's gaze. Salea reached out, grabbed at Greeger's armor and drew him to her. Gabrielle was forced to jump out of the way so as not to risk being sandwiched between the two obvious lovebirds. In a tone of voice worthy of her profession, Salea peered into Greeger's eyes and said, "Only about you." She then pressed her lips to his in a lingering kiss that held some interesting promises.

"I guess you two must know each other?" Gabrielle grinned.

Some of Greeger's men were making catcalls and chanting: "Go, Greeger, go!"

When they broke from the kiss, Greeger was grinning from ear to ear. In answer to Gabrielle's question Greeger said huskily, "I'm a regular customer."

"Yeah, I can see that," Gabrielle said, averting her eyes.

"Not regular enough, if you ask me," Salea stated matteroffactly.

Gabrielle was getting embarrassed so she said, "Okay. Let's not go into that conversation."

"Good idea," Greeger agreed. To Salea, he added, "Besides you still haven't answered my question."

Salea backed away from Greeger and placed her hands on her hips defiantly. "Oh, really? What question would that be?"

"'What are you doing here?'" Greeger repeated his question more forcefully. "You should be at the caves with the rest of the people."

"Like I told Gabrielle, I came back for stragglers when I ran into that brigade."

Greeger took that statement with a grain of salt as his skeptical frown indicated. He knew Salea was not one to cower when there was a fight. "Stragglers? Is that the only reason you came back?" he said.

"Now, you know me, Greeger," she said in patient tone. "I'm not the kind to huddle in a cave like a barefoot and pregnant woman waiting for her man to come back. You know I can fight. I've fought by your side many times." This came as news to Gabrielle. Her image of Salea suddenly shifted track and Gabrielle began to think of her in a different way. She wondered if Salmoneus was aware of this. Would it even matter? All the same, it was interesting.

"If I weren't so pressed for time and if I really didn't need the help, you'd go back to the caves in a heartbeat. Even if I had to drag you all the way back myself."

"You don't own me, Greeger," she said defiantly. "I just give you a cheap thrill every now and then. I can go where I please."

The couple stood glaring at each other for a moment and it appeared a confrontation was possible, so trying to change the subject, Gabrielle cleared her throat and said, "So, what was that plan you were talking about, General Greeger?"

Greeger held his stance before Salea for a moment more, before turning to Gabrielle. "We'll talk about it later. I have troops to organize," he said as he turned to leave, but after a couple of steps he stopped and turned back to them. "Oh and see about getting these people something to eat."

Gabrielle was the designated cook in her alliance with Xena. She had hoped for more recognition in this situation. "When did we get relegated to cooking duties?" she asked defiantly.

Greeger smiled and said, "Just now." And he walked away chuckling.

"Great!" Gabrielle said, stamping her staff on the ground. "I came here to fight and now I have to cook."

Salea had been down that road more times than she cared to remember and it amused her to see someone else getting the treatment. "Well, they have to eat, don't they?" she said teasing. Gabrielle huffed and puffed to burn away some of her frustration, but after a moment followed when Salea said, "Come on."

As they walked along, Gabrielle's mind was in it's normal state of high velocity momentum, allowing her thinking to dwell on more than what was eminently at hand. She was curious about a man of his standing being so closely attached to someone like Salea. After a moment, she teasingly said, "I get this feeling you and Greeger sort of like each other."

Responding to her joke in like manner, Salea asked, "Whatever would make you think that?"

"I can sense those sorts of things," she continued, sarcastically. "It's a gift I have. But, I can't figure out what you see in him."

Salea looked at her with a frown. "Are you crazy or just ill?"

"Don't get me wrong. He seems like a really nice guy and that smile of his would melt a heart of stone."

"Don't I know it," Salea said, nodding in understanding.

"I just get the sense that he has a low opinion of women."

"Low opinion? Not for a minute. No, Greeger is the kind that says one thing, but means another. Try never to take him seriously unless he's being military. You can always tell if he likes you, when he starts picking at you."

"And those are the qualities you look for in a man?" Gabrielle laughed.

"I admit, he can be a jackass sometimes. But, when he puts on the charm, honey, watch out! It's not just his five dinars I'm looking for when he comes around."

"That's shameful, Salea."

"Don't knock it until you've tried it honey, and don't try it if you don't have to. They're not all as much fun as Greeger."

Greeger was readying his men and trying to get them mentally ready for a tough battle. They outnumbered the force outside the city at present, but he had a feeling that the arrival of the rest of their army would change that little advantage. Out numbered, it would take more than fighting men, so he set about making booby traps. Once Gabrielle was finished with her cooking and feeding, she assisted him in making the traps. He thought he was well adept in trap making until she showed him some of the ones Xena had taught her. He was more than happy to use them. A lot of frenzied work went into building and setting these traps. Logs were hung from the walls on rope slings that could be released from above. Men stood ready with hot boiling tar in large containers just above the gate. Covered trenches with sharp spears and wooden spikes inside were dug and prepared several feet inside the gate. Firebombs were prepared. Archers were placed in crucial locations so they could pick off any that managed to breach the wall.

Gabrielle and Salea listened intently to the plan of defense, as Greeger explained it to his men. Gabrielle threw in a few ideas that Xena had used in other battles they had shared. Greeger was somewhat irritated by her interruptions, but he couldn't deny the wisdom he was hearing from such a young woman. He accepted and implemented each idea eagerly.

By mid afternoon, all plans were completed; all except one. Greeger took Gabrielle and Salea off to the side and speaking to them in hushed tones, said in a whisper, "Now, about that plan I talked about?"

"Why are we whispering?" Gabrielle asked, inching her face a little closer to his.

"Because, no one knows about this but me, and I'd like to keep it that way. So, you have to promise you won't breathe a word."

"Okay, I promise," Gabrielle assured him.

"Just get on with it, Greeger," Salea said impatiently

Ignoring Salea, he continued, "I have another way to take the rest of the citizens to the caves."

"You do? How do you expect to get them all out without the soldiers seeing?"

"After the caves were built, I had an underground tunnel constructed that runs directly to them for emergency situations like this."

"That's perfect!" Gabrielle said elated. "We can get the rest of the people out and use it to escape ourselves if we have to."

"There is a slight problem," he said, sheepishly.

Salea sighed and shook her head. "First it's a plan, now it's a problem. I hope it's a problem we can fix real easy?"

"Maybe?" he said, lifting their hopes. "Maybe not," he added, dashing their hopes with two simple words. Fidgeting uneasily he said, "The construction was never completed. The designer died suddenly in a house fire in the middle of construction. All his building plans burned with him. I had asked him to hold them for safe keeping."

"How not finished is it?" Gabrielle asked fearing the answer.

Without answering, Greeger turned and led Gabrielle and Salea to his own humble abode and showed them a trap door hidden underneath a rug and a chair. He knelt to open the trap door, but stopped and looked up thoughtfully at the two women. "Uh, I guess you better back up. I haven't opened this door in a long time. The gods only know what could have decided to take up residence."

"That's doesn't sound very reassuring," Gabrielle said to Salea with a wrinkled nose. As they backed away, Greeger lifted the trap door to reveal an overgrowth of weeds, roots and moss. They could just barely make out that there was a hole in the earth at all. It was just large enough to accommodate one person at a time.

Greeger grunted as he pulled at the moss and weeds. "I had a ladder down here," Greeger said, searching through the maze of growth. "Ah-ha! There it is," he said, pulling it up from the hole.

Suddenly, a frightened rat jumped from the ladder onto the floor, skittering right in Gabrielle and Salea's direction. They, of course, scattered, screaming girlishly, Gabrielle onto a chair and Salea onto the bed. Greeger rolled back on his butt laughing as he watched them both seek higher ground. The rat, unimpressed, scampered through the open door and out to safety. One would think it should be the more frightened one, but Greeger wasn't sure. He was still roaring with laughter, especially since they were hesitating to come down off their perch for fear of another such intruder. After a moment, they both returned to the floor cautiously, embarrassed by his laughing.

"Oh, that was funny. Hades himself would have laughed at that one! You want to battle an army and are afraid of a rat. This is priceless," he said wiping tears from his eyes.

"Oh, shut up!" Salea demanded.

The ladder was old looking and did not appear to be very sturdy. Greeger tried to press his thumb into it to test for rot and crumbling. "It seems useable?sort of," he said with shallow conviction. Still chuckling and shaking his head, Greeger lit three lanterns and handed one to each of them saying, "Well, ladies, are we ready to descend into the pit of Tartarus?"

"Let's just get this over with," Gabrielle said, attempting to regain the status of her bravery by stepping up to the hole, ready to enter.

Greeger descended into the pitch-black darkness of the tunnel first. Gabrielle took a deep breath and followed him, her eyes wary for any more rats. The climb down was longer than she expected. It seemed she would never find bottom. Inside, their lanterns gleamed upon the rocky surface of the tunnel walls. From lack of use and upkeep, roots had begun to burrow through the rock. They hung from the ceiling in long strips like lifeless snakes; an idea that did not ease Gabrielle's nerves any. She could hear skittering and slithering sounds that echoed just out of reach of the lantern's lights. Water was trickling somewhere in the distance.

"How long has it been since anyone's been down here?" Gabrielle asked, her voice echoing from the walls.

"Oh its been a year or so," Greeger responded.

Gabrielle looked around her in dismay at the crumbling tunnel walls. "Are you sure this is a safe place for people to cross to the caves?"

"I don't know, but it'll sure beat running through a hail of arrows." At the bottom of the ladder they were standing in a large open area, perhaps forty or more feet across. It was large enough to accommodate quite a few people and the opening of the tunnel was directly across. Moving across, Greeger shined his lantern inside the entrance to the tunnel. It was covered with the same kind of hanging roots and moss. "We built the tunnel right inside the underlying bedrock, so that it would be sturdy and easy to maintain. I never would have guessed it'd end up in this bad condition. I'm going to have to go farther in and check it out. There may have been cave-ins." He looked up and around him. "Another thing. People are going to want to bring torches to light their way. All the roots and moss will catch fire for sure. We're going to have to cut it all down."

Salea spoke up saying, "I have a better idea. Why don't you go and get some of them rich, young men with the gold hanging off their fingers to come cut down your little roots? They didn't want to listen to us when we told them how they could get out the easy way, so let them see what it's like to get out the hard way."

"That's a damn good idea! Why don't you two go back up top and bring back every male of that bunch. Make sure they each have swords, knives, hoes, shovels or whatever in Tartarus they can get their hands on to cut this stuff with."

"And what are you going to do while we're gone?" Gabrielle asked.

"I'll check for cave-ins, like I said."

"Alone? Are you sure that's wise?"

"He's a big boy," Salea said, taking Gabrielle's arm. "He can take care of himself."

"Gabrielle!" Greeger said as they turned to leave. "I want reports every half hour. Let me know the minute they change their routine out there."

Gabrielle realized that Greeger was choosing her has his right-hand-man ? well ? right-hand-woman. She felt a keen sense of pride at his trust in her. The same kind of pride she had felt when Xena trusted her abilities enough to allow her to fight on her own. She could remember telling her sister the night she left that farm life was not what she was cut out for. This, she thought proudly, was what she had been referring to. Smiling brightly she said, "Yes sir, General Greeger."

As the glow of Greeger's lantern faded into the tunnel, the ladies worked their way back up the ladder and headed for the courthouse. As they approached, Gabrielle stopped and examined the sky.

"What is it?" Salea asked.

"Nothing. I'm just checking the position of the sun. We only have about five good hours of daylight left."

"Is that a bad thing?"

"Not necessarily. It all depends on how much we can get done in five hours. Come on."