Lissia's Xena/Ares Fan Fiction
Xena, Gabrielle,
Joxer, and Amarice are walking in silence, Gabrielle and Xena leading their
horses. None had gotten used to the idea
of Xena being pregnant, except for Argo, who of course knew about it all
along. Suddenly, Xena flings her arm out
in front of Gabrielle, Joxer, and Amarice.
They stop and shoot her annoyed glances, then follow her gaze. Several feet in front of them stands a figure
covered by a red cape, a hood pulled over the top, covering the figure’s
face. A small feminine voice issues
forth from the cloaked figure, “I mean you no harm Xena.” Xena looks at the figure untrusting, “Show
yourself,” she orders. Beside her,
Gabrielle and Amarice stiffen for battle.
Joxer moves the horses into the background and stands holding them. The hooded girl walks forward and Xena draws
her sword, “That’s far enough,” she says, letting her sword point hit the girl
in the chest. The girl looks down at the
sword, keeping her face covered, and shakes her head, “Nice try,” she says
lightly. Suddenly, she runs at Xena,
arms spread wide. The sword goes
straight through her as the girl pulls Xena into a tight hug. Gabrielle and Amarice stare in shock. Joxer hits the ground with a loud thud. Xena doesn’t respond, although she does lower
her sword and let it fall to the ground.
Her mouth hangs open in shock.
Gabrielle moves over to her friend and puts a hand on her shoulder,
“Xena?” She asks, unsure of her actual
question. Xena shakes her head. Face still covered, the girl pulls away from
Xena and places a hand on the woman’s stomach, she waits a few minutes then
with a huff she pokes it, “Hey wake up in there,” she says. Amarice walks up behind the girl and wrenches
the hood off of her. The girl falls back
a little as the cape unhooks itself and falls to the ground. The girl meets Xena’s gaze and smiles, “Miss
me?” Shock registers on Xena’s face and
she can’t reply. Luckily, her friends
have the situation under control.
Amarice places her sword at the woman’s thin neck and Gabrielle asks,
“Who are you and how do you know about Xena’s condition?” Xena recovers and pushes Amarice’s sword hand
down, forcing her to lower the weapon, “Amarice, Gabrielle, go take care of
Joxer,” she orders, giving the woman a curious once over. Reluctantly, the two women take their orders
and go to help Joxer who is just now regaining consciousness. Amarice keeps a careful eye on Xena and the
stranger. Xena takes in the sight before
her, a girl, not more than twenty stands before her, her body is barely
covered, revealing a small scar on her left side, just above her hip. A small black leather bodice covers her chest
and upper legs, letting her legs, arms and stomach show completely. Her skin is milky and her hair a light shade
of red. A sword rests on her right hip
and a smile is spread across her face, making her blue eyes twinkle. Xena nods, “This is a new look for you,
Lissia. How did you get out of Olympus
in that get up? I thought you were kept
on a short leash.” The girl sticks her
tongue out, then jerks away as Xena draws the sword off of her hip and examines
it. She reaches out and snatches the
weapon from Xena, “Desperate times call for desperate measures and desperate
times are what we are in. I wish I
wasn’t here like this, but I don’t have a choice. I have to fight now, I have to live up to my
title.” Xena laughs, “Title? You?
And what title is that?” Lissia
shifts under the woman’s gaze and looks at her feet. She mutters something incoherent and Xena
forces the girl to look up at her, “What was that?” Anxiously glancing around, she quietly says,
“I’m the new Goddess of War.” Xena’s
hand falls right along with her mouth, then she bursts into laughter,
“You?” She repeats several times. Lissia’s cheeks flush red, then she huffs
away, disappearing as she goes. Xena
looks up and rolls her eyes, “Lissia, come on, don’t be like that. You know I didn’t mean anything by it.” Xena smiles as a hand lands on her
shoulder. She turns around and the smile
disappears when she sees Amarice standing there, “Yes?” She asks.
Amarice removes her hand, “Who’s Lissia?” Xena looks away, then walks over to Argo and
grabs her reigns. She glances at Joxer
and sees him stand up, “Let’s go,” she says, leaving no room for argument.
There is silence around the campfire that night. Finally, Amarice reasks her question, “Xena, who is Lissia?” Xena stares into the fire, as she speaks, her voice remains emotionless, “The new Goddess of War, as it turns out.” Gabrielle gives her a curious look, “Does that mean that something happened to Ares?” She questions. Xena doesn’t reply and this angers the bard, “Well,” she prompts. Xena shakes her head, “I don’t think so.” Gabrielle nods and won’t say anything else, for Xena’s mood is saying that she is not in the mood. Amarice picks up on this also and decides to leave the rest of her questions for tomorrow. Joxer, on the end of the spectrum, doesn’t notice a thing, “Xena, you seemed close to her. Come on, who is she? Really?” He stresses the last word. Xena sighs and hardly hears herself answer his question, “A friend, a very good friend from a long time ago. When I returned to Greece and after I had given birth to Solon, I went right on with my campaign against all of Greece. I also went back to Ares, or more precisely, I continued with Ares. There were times when him and I were very close. One day he arrived in my tent with a girl standing next to him. “She’s my cousin,” he explained quickly, before I got the wrong idea. I looked her over, she was simple with red hair and a black silk dress. But a powerful aura rested around her. I was used to the aura of Gods, after all I spent a lot of...personal time with Ares, but something wasn’t right with her. She wasn’t like him, she was stronger and more human. “She lived with mortals,” he explained, leading her to sit on my bed. I sat next to her and she immediately cuddled into my chest, crying fiercely. I was bewildered. Ares continued, “She just lost her mortal family, including a daughter. We only discovered her because her powers decided to show up in her grief. She can’t control them. Zeus wants her destroyed, killed, wiped out, I can’t let that happen. She’s different, she’s special. He’s agreed to let me take care of her, take her under my wing, if you will. I can’t do this alone.” With that, it began. Ares and I worked together to mentor the girl. We taught her how to fight and how to kill. In return she taught us the beauty of pure love. She never took to killing, she would defend herself, she would injure, but she would never kill. Neither of us understood it, but we respected it because of the purity of her soul. She was like a daughter to us. The scary thing was, we were like a family for awhile. Then I went on a campaign against Hercules and well, the rest is history. I haven’t seen Lissia sense, well, several days before I went about seducing Iolous.” Joxer, Amarice, and Gabrielle stare at Xena. Gabrielle moves to put an arm around Xena’s shoulders as a single tear creeps down the woman’s face. “Xena, that’s amazing,” she breaths. Uncomfortable with all the emotion, Amarice asks two more questions, “So how did someone so pure become the Goddess of War? And why was she so special?” Xena smiles, “She embraced mortals, that’s why she’s so strong. She doesn’t have the heart of a God, her heart is full of love and understanding and yearning for a world that involves violence, but only as a necessary evil. Lissia is stronger than all of the God’s of Olympus because of her heart. I don’t know why she was made into the Goddess of War, honestly I’m more interested in what she knows about my pregnancy.” They all sit silently, then gradually one by one they turn in for the night.
Xena walks out of their camp, early in the morning. She walks to a lake and removes her clothes before wading into it. A smile creeps across her face, “I guess this means you forgive me?” She asks the wind. A whoosh is heard behind her and as she turns, water flies into her face. Laughter is heard, “Now I have,” Lissia says, falling to her knees in the water. Xena smiles and splashes her back, then sits down next to her. The water comes up to their chins and is rather warm considering how cold it got the night before. Xena looks over at the girl, “I didn’t mean it that way, you know that, right?” The girl nods, “I know. But, just like everyone else, you don’t think I can handle it. I don’t think Ares thinks I can and he’s the one who gave the title to me. I’m a full Goddess now, with my title and all. I even have a temple and a few worshippers.” Xena laughs lightly, then seriously says, “I never thought war was right for you. You were always so pure and innocent.” Lissia snorts, “I watched my family burn to death. My daughter died in my hands. I was never pure and innocent after that.” Xena puts a comforting hand on the girl’s shoulder, “You can do this, Lissia, I believe in you, I always have.” They hug for a minute, then Xena pulls away, “So, as the Goddess of War, what do you do? Other than surprise old friends with sneak visits?” The girl laughs, “Ares and I work together. He’s changed lately. I think he’s sick. The wars aren’t pointless blood bathes anymore. They always serve a purpose, and not just his purpose, but a real purpose, like one for the Greater Good. But, people have been turning away from us Olympians, they’re following a man named Eli. All of Olympus is preparing to come down on his head, me included.” The mention of her friend Eli snaps Xena’s head up, “Eli won’t hurt a single thing. He’s harmless. Why does Olympus view him as a threat?” Lissia gives her an obvious look and replies, “Xena, he preaches about one God and he has the power of a God, himself. He brought you back from the dead, which is something that Ares and I weren’t.. Uh-oh.” “What?” Xena asks, slightly irritated. Lissia gives in, “When the Roman’s killed you and Gabrielle, Ares and I tried to bring you two back, but we couldn’t. We were strong enough, but something was stopping us, something dark, Xena, very dark. Dark enough to put me in a coma for several days when I touched it with my mind.” Xena gasps, “Why were you two trying to bring Gabrielle and I back from the dead?” Lissia sighs, “We love you Xena,” she says simply. Xena rolls her eyes, “You I believe, him I don’t. And I don’t want to either so don’t start with whatever it is your about to say.” Lissia looks discouraged, “You and Ares have a bond that runs thicker than the river Styx. I know it, he knows it, and deep down you know it too.” “It’s not love,” Xena says, confidence in her voice. Lissia smiles, seeing a twinkle of unsurity in Xena’s eye, “Alright Xena, if that’s how you want it. Look, I’ll be back later. I’m being called on to bless some moron who’s about to kill a baby in my name. Toodles,” she says, disappearing with an annoyed glare. Xena shakes her head and moves into deeper water.
Amarice wakes up and glances around the camp. Joxer and Gabrielle are both asleep, the horses are grazing nearby and Xena’s gone along with her weapons. But, it wasn’t the lack of Xena’s presence that woke her up, it was an odd feeling of being watched. She stares at each section of the camp, then searches the perimeter. Finding nothing, she sighs and sits down, “You’re losing it,” she breathes. The trees around her shake as if laughing at her and she stares at them. She hears a whoosh and turns, sword in hand to threaten whichever God just showed up. Her cool look falters when she sees Ares leaning on a tree, but she recovers it quickly. She throws a dagger at him and he catches it easily, letting it drop from his hand, “You’ve spent too much time with Xena, little girl.” Amarice growls at him, “What do you want, Ares?” He laughs, “Not you, that’s for sure. No, actually I was looking for someone, a girl, short, about Gabrielle’s height really, red hair, big attitude, seen her?” Amarice nods slowly, “You’re talking about Lissia. Yes, I saw her yesterday.” Ares scowls, “Yesterday? I know you saw her yesterday, but I’m not talking about yesterday, now am I? No, I’m talking about today.” He takes a threatening step towards her and she stands defiant under his gaze. He stares down at her and she matches the stare, until finally she breaks away and moves to restart the fire. He stands above her, a smug look on his face, “Where’s Xena?” Amarice shrugs, “Not here and obviously not with you.” His lip curls up and he raises a hand to slap the girl down, then seeing no fear in her gaze, he stops and shakes his head, “You really have been spending too much time with Xena. She has rubbed off on you,” he says, strolling into the forest in the direction of the lake. Amarice stares after him, slightly confused by this confrontation with the God of War.
Xena slips out of the water and wraps a light blanket around her body and squeezes her hair until most of the extra water has fallen from it. She shakes it out and fingers her bangs so that they will dry nice and full. She sits on a rock, quite content to sit in the sun for awhile. Absently, her hand rests on her stomach, half expecting to feel life there. A blissful smile graces her face, then disappears, “If you’re going to sneak up on me the mortal way, don’t step on twigs,” she says, irritation in her tone. Ares comes up and sits next to her, “I wasn’t sneaking up on you. Look, Lissia disappeared this morning. She came home last night in a very bad mood, she wouldn’t tell me anything and now she’s gone. I thought maybe she would have come to you, have you seen her?” Xena laughs, “She’s a big girl now, she can take care of herself. And from what I’ve heard, she’s no longer under your wing, so why do you care?” He grabs her shoulder and turns her to face him, “I have to protect her.” She raises an eyebrow at him, “Why? Because she’s weak? Because you trained her? Or maybe, is it because you love her?” He looks away and Xena nods, smiling, “She was just here. She said something about a follower and a sacrifice. She’s fine and will be back soon. You don’t need to worry about her so much.” He sighs, “Yeah, well, with this Eli thing going on, I can’t help but worry. Who knows what could happen to her.” Anger and confusion spread across Xena’s face, “Eli isn’t going to hurt anyone, you of all people should know that.” Ares laughs, “Do you remember the last time a man talked about an all powerful God?” Xena gasps, “Dahok? But, Eli doesn’t have anything to do with Dahok,” she says, sure of herself and trusting her friend to have good judgement. Ares sighs, “Lissia had an encounter with Eli’s God and I almost lost her. I’ve never told her how close to death she was, but she was very close. She wasn’t threatening this God in any way, she was trying to talk to it. It attacked her and almost killed her. Now, I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t sound very loving to me,” he says sarcastically. “She told me she was in a coma for a few days and that there was a dark force, but she didn’t tell me all that. She almost died because of my death. I never realized that she was willing to sacrifice herself for me, at least not after all of this time.” Ares looks at her curiously, then shakes his head, “Xena, she loves you, what else would you expect? She couldn’t just give up on you.” Xena smiles, “From what I’ve been hearing, she wasn’t the only one,” she shoots at him with an evil grin and a twinkle in her eye. His jaw drops, then he recovers, “Yeah, well, I like to watch you work,” he says arrogantly. Xena raises an eyebrow, “I bet,” she says, throwing her wet blanket over him and getting dressed. He removes the blanket in time to watch her strut away from him, back to camp. He sighs and disappears.
Xena strolls into camp and smiles at the sleeping form of Gabrielle. Amarice sits by the fire, with Joxer nearby. A horrible smell fills the air. “By the Gods, what are you two doing?” Xena asks as she sits down opposite them by the fire. Amarice blushes, “I can’t cook, alright?” Xena laughs, “That’s why you’re supposed to wake Gabrielle up.” She walks over and gently shakes her friend, “They’re ruining the food,” she says. Gabrielle turns over and stares up at Xena, “You’re dripping on me,” she says, standing up slowly and stumbling over to the fire. She shivers slightly then sits by the fire and looks at the burnt fish and sighs, “Do we have anymore fish?” Joxer nods, happy with himself, “I got five more!” Gabrielle smiles and nods, “Good, you three start skinning, I’m going to go take care of business,” she says, walking out of the camp, grabbing her sais on the way. Xena watches her go and smiles to herself, then turns to the others, “Toss me a fish,” she says, grabbing a dagger from the side of her boot. Joxer hands her a fish and she begins to skin it. Amarice and Joxer do likewise. Suddenly Amarice bursts into laughter and Xena shoots her an annoyed glance. “What?” The warrior asks her laughing comrade. Amarice straightens up, “I’m sorry, Xena, I didn’t mean to laugh at you, but you’re already showing.” Xena looks down at her stomach and can’t help but stare. It pokes out a little, but when she sits up straight, it’s barely noticeable. She wrinkles her brow in irritation, then motions to Amarice, “Come here and loosen the back of my tunic.” Amarice suppresses a giggle and does as told after wiping her hands on Joker’s pants to get rid of the fish parts. Gabrielle walks into camp, carrying a collection of berries. She spots Amarice and Xena and asks, “What’s going on? Did another bug go down your tunic, Xena?” Xena shoots her an evil look and Gabrielle laughs as she sits down and begins to cook the fish. Joxer smiles at her, “Xena’s showing,” he says quietly. Gabrielle’s head shoots up to stare at her friend’s stomach. She smiles, “Yes she is, but only barely.” They cook and eat in silence, each pondering the baby issue.
Xena begins to pack up their stuff, then stops and looks at the others. They are still eating and looking a little rugged. She sighs, “We’ll stay here until noon. You guys need to freshen up a bit. Amarice, Gabrielle, the lake’s real nice. Joxer there’s a nearby stream that should be perfect for one.” Joxer, disappointed, grumbles and heads to the stream, “I’ll get some more berries while I’m out there. They’ll be nice on the road.” Gabrielle smiles after him, “I think he wanted to bathe with us girls.” Amarice looks disgusted, “No, he wanted to bathe with you, alone, with Xena and me nowhere near.” Gabrielle’s cheeks redden and Xena stares at the girl, surprised by her boldness. Amarice raises an eyebrow, cocks her head sideways and walks to the lake without looking back. Gabrielle stares after her, “I don’t always understand her.” Xena smiles, “I do. She reminds me of.. well.. me.” Gabrielle laughs, “I’ll be back soon, don’t forget about us,” she says playfully. Xena rolls her eyes, “Oh how could I?” They laugh and Gabrielle waves as she walks to the lake. Xena stares at the empty camp and it suddenly seems unnaturally cold. She grabs a fur and wraps it around her shoulders, unsure of why she’s cold. She sits down by the fire and pokes at it until it blazes into the sky. “Dahok?” She whispers quietly. She places a hand on her stomach in a form of protection and shakes her head, “It can’t be, can it?” She questions herself. Confused and irritated, she cuddles under the blanket more and runs her hand over her stomach several times. She reaches into her saddlebag and pulls out a little stuffed bear. She smiles at it and holds it to her stomach, oddly thinking that the baby will appreciate it.
Xena sits in the camp for quite awhile, silently thinking about her child and Eli. There’s a flash behind her and she doesn’t respond. Lissia sits next to her, “The man didn’t get to sacrifice the baby, his knife sort of slipped and it landed in his foot.” Xena doesn’t respond, “Hey, are you okay?” Xena snaps out of it and looks over at the Goddess, “Yeah, I’m fine,” she says, not sounding convincing in the least. She shakes her head, “No, I’m not alright. Lissia, do you think that Eli’s God could be Dahok?” Slowly, Lissia nods, “You’ve been talking with Ares, haven’t you?” Not waiting for a response from Xena, she continues, “Xena, it was the darkest thing I’ve ever touched. I never got involved with Dahok the first time, at least not much, so I don’t know what his presence feels like. But, this presence was pure evil and it was Eli’s God. He was preventing us from getting to you. He wants your full trust to be in Eli, he’s depending on it. And he wants you to side against us, against the Olympians. Isn’t that what Dahok always wanted? Dahok wanted the Olympians gone, obliterated. Ares and I think he’s trying again, only this time, he’s being smart about it.” Lissia rests a hand on Xena’s stomach, then with regret in her voice, she says, “Xena, this child could be the spawn of Dahok.” Xena’s eyes go wide, “No,” she snaps, “No, I would feel that.” Lissia lets her head drop, “Xena, you have to take it into consideration. Listen, I have an idea, it won’t be easy, but I can find out what’s inside of you.” Xena’s eyes flash angrily, “I know what’s inside of me,” she says, jerking away from Lissia. The girl, sorrow in her eyes, watches Xena get up and pace the camp, “Xena, you know I’m right. You know that we have to be sure.” Xena looks down at her, then sits next to her, “What’s your idea?” Lissia smiles lightly, “We can run a scan over you. I’ll recognize that darkness if I feel it again, no matter what amount there is of it. And Ares will recognize anything else.” Xena shakes her head, “You, fine. Him, no. Does he know?” She asks, fear suddenly coursing through her veins. Lissia shakes her head, “No, at least I don’t think he does.” She shrugs a little and Xena gives her a worried look. Xena glances around, making sure that the other’s aren’t on their way back yet, “Do it,” she orders. Lissia backs away, “I can’t do it on my own. I need help channeling things properly.” Xena grabs her hand, “I trust you.” Lissia gulps in the air and nods, “Alright. Clear your mind and don’t move. I’ll be careful,” she says, then quietly adds, “Ares is going to kill me when he finds out about this.” Lissia stares at Xena’s stomach and places a hand over it, moving it around until she finds the baby’s exact location. With a look of severe concentration, she focuses all of her attention on the baby’s essence.
Gabrielle and Amarice return to camp, smiling and laughing, gently shoving each other in a playful manner. They turn to look at the fire and stop dead in their tracks. On the ground, near the fire, rests Xena and Lissia, both unconscious. Gabrielle rushes over to Xena and props her head up. Amarice runs to the saddlebags and grabs a flask of water. She urges the liquid into Xena’s mouth, then splashes it over the woman’s face. Xena’s eyes flash open and Amarice turns to the unconscious Goddess and splashes her face with water. The girl doesn’t move. Gabrielle helps Xena into a sitting position, “What happened?” Xena shakes her head, then holds it in her hands until the ground remains in one place, “By the Gods, what a headache.” She slowly turns to look at Lissia. “Amarice, bring her over here.” Amarice does as she’s told and places the girl’s head in Xena’s lap. Xena gently slaps her cheeks, then splashes more water on them, getting frustrated she slaps the girl hard. Lissia’s eyes shoot open and she sits up bolt straight, gasping for air. She looks at Xena and shakes her head, then holds it in her hands, experiencing the same disorientation as Xena. She smiles, “We should have gotten Ares to help. That wasn’t pleasant.” Xena smiles, “Did it work?” The girl nods slowly, “Yes and no. It’s nothing dark, it’s a pure vessel of goodness, yet I sense something evil in it. Not a part of it exactly, but just something there. And it wasn’t you, I think it was him,” she says, stressing the last word and giving Xena a serious look. Xena nods. Gabrielle looks from one to the other, “What is going on?” Lissia smiles and when Xena nods, she begins, “Ares and I believe that Eli’s God is Dahok trying to get back into our world to destroy the Olympians. I checked Xena’s baby, I didn’t want what happened to you, to happen to her. The baby is a pure vessel of innocence and goodness, there is nothing dark except for this little tingle. I think it’s Dahok’s mark on the child. It was prophesied long ago that there would be a child of the dark and a child of the light, both coming from the same father. It was said that these children would balance each other out. It also said, that either one could bring Dahok into this world, only they would go about it in different ways. One would use violence and try to rid the world of the Olympian Gods by killing them. The other, would use love and turn the people from the Olympians. Without followers, we can’t exist, well, we can, but not as Gods, we won’t be in one realm or the other, but stuck between realms. I believe Xena’s child is the latter of the two.” Gabrielle sits dumbstruck and Amarice stares in shock. From the edge of camp, they hear Joxer let out a sigh, “Wow,” he says quietly. “No,” they hear from behind them. Before they can turn around there’s a whoosh and they know that they will find no one there. Lissia looks around guiltily, “I’m going to have a lot of explaining to do.” Xena shakes her head, “No, let me handle him, I’m better at it than you.” Xena begins to stand up, but falls back on her butt with a thud. “Alright, I’ll deal with it later, when I can move again.” Lissia looks her over, then stands up, “He’s not going to be happy. I’ll get your friend’s out of here, I’ll take the horses too for that matter. Do you want me to stick around, just in case?” Xena shakes her head, “I can handle him just fine.” A mischievous look crosses Lissia’s face, “I know you can, Xena. You forget about the things I’ve walked in on.” Xena’s face goes red as her friends turn to look at her. She shrugs, “Like I said we were close and well, personal with one another. What did you think I meant?” Gabrielle looks away, a little uncomfortable, “Oh, well, uh, are we leaving?” She asks the Goddess. Lissia smiles and waves a hand over them. They disappear and she turns to Xena, “They’ll be with me, on Olympus so don’t send Ares back in a bad mood. If you need me, just call.” Xena nods and the girl disappears, a concerned look on her face.
Xena sighs and tries to stand again, but gives up and lets her back rest against the log that she had been sitting on earlier. She grabs the stuffed bear and smiles at it before setting it on top of her saddle bag. She lets her muscles relax a little, then pulls the blanket up around her shoulders again. She glances around the camp and watches the trees sway with the wind. She sighs deeply, “Ares,” she calls, an edge of emotion in her voice. When he doesn’t appear after a few minutes, she calls again, this time a little irritated. “Alright, you want to play like that, fine, I can play too,” she says to herself. She grabs her Chakram and holds it’s edge to her wrist, then runs it up her arm, letting it stop at her elbow. Pain sears through her body as blood pours from the wound. Her voice falters when she tries to say his name for a third time, but it doesn’t matter, it had worked, he was standing above her, shaking his head. She gives him a defiant smile or maybe it was grateful, she wasn’t all that sure. He waves his hand over her arm and it’s healed. She smiles at it and flexes the arm, making sure it was in perfect order. “It’s about time,” she says lightly, setting her Chakram on the ground by her bag. He turns from her and begins to stride away, but she reaches out and catches his arm. A wave of nausea washes over her from the sudden movement and she quickly lets herself fall back onto the ground with a loud thud and a small groan. He kneels next to her, “Still sick from Lissia’s little experiment, huh? Yeah, well, you two shouldn’t have tackled it on your own. I’m going to have a long talk with her about that,” he says, starting to stand up. Xena reaches out and grabs his arm, forcing him to stay put, “It’s my own fault. Don’t blame her.” He shakes his head, “You can’t cover for her this time. She’s a full Goddess now with responsibilities, she should have known better.” Xena laughs, “She did know better. She knew better than to cross me and get you involved when I was strictly saying no. Face it, I inspire more fear in her than you ever will.” He laughs, “Yeah, big surprise.” He sits next to her and they remain silent for a long time. Finally Xena breaks the silence, “You’re going to kill Eli and my baby, aren’t you?” She had meant for it to be a statement, but he took it as a question. “Eli, maybe. I can’t kill your child though, I can’t kill a child. Prophesies don’t always come true, maybe we can prevent this one. Let me check over what Lissia did, let me see if she missed anything, maybe it’s not Dahok, maybe it’s something else.” Xena shakes her head, then groans at the pain it causes, “No, I trust Lissia. She knows what she felt.” Ares shakes his head, “She was unsure about that darkness. I’ve done this before and in all honesty, all children, all normal children that is, give off the aura of pure innocence and goodness. That’s what babies are. That darkness could be Dahok’s mark, it could be yours, or it could be something else.” “You mean someone else,” Xena says pointedly. He concedes to her point and she looks him over curiously, “What do you know that I don’t know?” Shock registers in his eyes, “Nothing yet.” She gives him her famous look, but he doesn’t falter under it, “Fine, keep your secrets. Go ahead, scan my baby or whatever, but if you hurt my child I will kill you and if you make this headache any worse, you will regret it.” He smiles at the last part, then notices that she is serious and nods. He places a hand on her stomach and she flinches at his touch. He stares into her eyes, “Don’t do that,” he says, then begins to move his hands over her stomach, trying to find the baby. The baby’s presence is obvious to him and he locks onto it. He stretches his senses over it, takes a clear look at things, and smiles. He jerks away as something kicks the palm of his hand. He opens his eyes and looks up at Xena, his brow knitted together in question. Xena smiles, “It kicked,” she says, moving her hand over her stomach, then jerking away when she notices his hand still resting there. “She,” he corrects, “Not it, but she.” Xena smiles at him a little, “A girl,” she says quietly. Suddenly feeling uncomfortable, he removes his hand from her stomach and stands up. She stares up at him and tries to rise, but finds that she can’t quite get to her feet, “Well,” she prompts. He sighs, “It has nothing to do with Dahok, not this time, not this one. But Eli and his evil God are still a threat to us, whether his God is Dahok or not. Your daughter is fine and that bit of darkness would be a mixture of her parents’ darker sides. Congratulations, you’re going to have a normal, well slightly abnormal daughter.” Xena looks down at her stomach, “What do you mean?” She asks. When there’s no reply, she looks up to find him gone. She sighs, “Oh well, I’ll get answers soon enough. Maybe a trip to Delphi is in order, or maybe I should get Lissia to talk a bit more.” She sighs realizing that she is talking to herself. She rests against the log and absently runs her fingers over her belly.
Up on Olympus, Lissia hears her name and immediately appears at Xena’s side. Or more precisely, brings Xena to her side. “Welcome to my place,” Lissia says, motioning to her bedroom. Xena looks around, then sighs and lets her back rest on a bunch of pillows, “I didn’t ask to be brought here.” Lissia laughs at her, “Yeah well, your back was asking for it. I brought your stuff and put out the fire, don’t worry, I know what to do.” Xena smiles and sits up, amazed that her head no longer hurts, “It’s not from Dahok and it is a she,” Xena says quietly. Lissia smiles, “Ares didn’t trust my work, huh? Oh well, neither did I. I kind of passed out before I was finished.” Xena smiles at her, then looks at her stomach. She is showing a little bit more, looking like she’s about five months along. She hears Lissia snap her fingers then smiles when her leather is replaced by loose pants and a shirt that hangs to her knees, “Thank you,” she breathes. Lissia smiles, “I didn’t want you to stretch out that leather. Come on, get up, the others will want to know that you are alright.” Xena stands and heads to the door, but Lissia stops her from opening it, “Um, Xena, before you go out there, I need to tell you something.” Xena shakes her head, “I know where I am Lissia. I’m in Ares’ palace, I could feel it the second I arrived. I thought you would have moved out by now though.” Lissia smiles, “Did you two leave off on good terms?” Xena shrugs, “I don’t know. He seemed a little distant, upset almost. He disappeared pretty fast, so I guess we left off on good terms.” Lissia smiles, unsure of the situation, “Alright well, if he puts me in the dog house, I blame you.” Xena laughs and follows Lissia out of the room and into a large main room.
Gabrielle jumps up and runs to Xena, “Are you alright?” Xena nods, “We’re fine, Gabrielle, just fine.” Xena sits in a chair and gives Amarice a questioning look. The girl shifts under her gaze, then says, “Ares was just here. He wasn’t very happy to see us here. He walked away muttering something about privacy and silly girls.” Xena smiles, “Don’t worry, he’ll be back.” Amarice stares at her, “That isn’t even funny.” Joxer walks up behind Xena and places a plate in front of her. Xena stares at the food, “Who cooked?” She asks. Lissia walks over, “My cooks did, well they aren’t mine, they’re Ares’ cooks, but they’re good, I promise.” Xena smiles, “I know,” she says, taking a nice sized bite out of a piece of quail. She reaches for a mug of ale but gets her hand slapped by four different people. She grabs a cup of water and mutters into it. Amarice laughs and has to leave the room to steady herself. After a few seconds she returns with a none too happy look on her face. Xena gives her a questioning look, then catches a glimpse of Ares walking, no, stalking in behind her. He spots Xena and turns around, meaning to leave the room. Xena had other ideas, she flipped over the chair then ran and flipped over his head, landing in front of him, “Stop walking away from me when I’m trying to talk to you,” she orders. He looks her over, then lets his eyes land on her stomach, “I have to go,” he says, trying to walk past her. She puts a hand on his shoulder, pushing him into the room and making sure that he wasn’t going anywhere without taking her with him. She smiles triumphantly, “Now, why does this make you so uncomfortable?” She asks, pointing at her stomach. Lissia raises her hand in the air and jumps around, “Pick me, I know.” Xena raises an eyebrow and notices the murdering glance Ares is shooting towards the girl. Lissia doesn’t seem fazed in the least, “He’s uncomfortable because you’re stunning when you’re pregnant. You have this glow around you and he can’t handle it.” Ares sighs and Xena stares at him, “That’s not it, is it?” She asks him. New tension rises in his eyes and he begins to move around her, trying to stalk out of the room. Amarice walks over and puts a hand on his shoulder, “What’s going on?” He jerks away from the girl and moves Xena aside so that he can disappear. Xena reaches out to grab him, but he’s already gone. She looks over at Lissia who points down the hall, “You know where to find him.” Xena nods, grabs her quail and heads out of the room. Gabrielle and Amarice watch her go with worried looks. Lissia smiles, “Don’t worry, he won’t hurt her, he loves her too much.” Both women turn to stare at her and Joxer spits out a piece of quail, “What?” They shout. She smiles and nods, then walks out the door, making a sharp left towards her own room. Gabrielle, Amarice, and Joxer remain in utter shock and disbelief which quickly turns to total belief and disgust. Joxer sets it aside and finishes his meal. Gabrielle and Amarice, on the other hand, can’t quite seem to digest this new development.
Xena stops in front of a large black door and turns the handle. She smiles when it silently opens under her touch. She enters the room and sees Ares standing by a large window, his back towards her. She closes the door and gives it an irritated glance when it creaks. She looks back at Ares, his back is still towards her. He’s shaking his head, “I thought you were going to consult me before doing anything stupid from now on. I thought you learned your lesson three years ago when you turned that poor man into a horse.” Xena laughs quietly, “Sorry,” she says. He whips around to stare first at her, then at the door, then back at her, “Xena,” he finally says. She nods, “Did I disappoint you? It sounded like you were hoping for someone else. Lissia, maybe?” He nods, then turns back to the window, “Is there something wrong? Or were you thinking that I would take you back to the mortal plane?” Xena walks up next to him, keeping her distance, “There’s something wrong, alright. But, it’s not with me, it’s with you. What’s up?” He doesn’t reply and Xena pushes him a little, “You can’t keep a secret from me, you never could.” He glances at her, then walks to a table and sits down on it. She leans on a nearby wall and stares at him expectantly. He shakes his head and smiles, “It’s nothing, just war business.” She raises an eyebrow, “Mhm, I don’t think so. But, if that’s how you’re going to be about it, then fine. Come find me when you’re ready to stop acting like a baby.” An offended look crosses his face, then he smiles and grabs her hand before she can walk out of the room. She looks from her hand to him and snatches it away, “Yes?” He grabs her hand again and uses it to pull her closer to him, “Your child kicked me,” he says with a laugh. Xena nods, unsure of where he’s going with the conversation, “And?” She asks, trying to pull her hand out of his grasp. He begins to massage her fingers, then asks, “Why did your child respond to me?” Xena shrugs, “She didn’t respond to you, she just kicked. Babies do that, although she could have picked a better time for her first kick.” He snaps his fingers and begins to pace, letting her hand drop, “Exactly, Xena. She could have picked a better time. She could have kicked Lissia or she could have kicked when you were asleep or relaxing, isn’t that when most babies kick? But no, she kicked when my hand was on your stomach, she kicked when my mind was next to hers. Why did she do that?” Xena backs away, “I think Lissia’s right, you’re sick. Look I’m going to go get her and we’ll find out what’s wrong, alright?” Ares shakes his head and grabs her arm, “I’m not sick, I’m fine, well, not fine, but I’m not sick.” Xena nods and pries his fingers off of her arm, “All the same, I’m going to go get Lissia.” She backs away and is close to the door when he rushes over and grabs both of her shoulders, pulling her close to him. “Ares,” she warns. He moves away, but guides her to sit on the edge of the bed. As she sits down, he lets one hand fall from her shoulder and places it on her stomach. After a few minutes they both feel a slight kick and he stares up at her, “See? She kicked me again,” he says, smugly. Xena shakes her head, “Maybe she doesn’t like you and wants to kick your God butt.” He shakes his head, “That’s not it and you know it.” She scrunches her brows together, trying to find his angel, then she gets up, “I think you need some time alone, you’re hallucinating. I’ll be around.” Before he can grab her arm, she’s out of the door and heading towards the main room, where she hopes to find the others.
Gabrielle and Amarice don’t respond when Xena comes into the room. They are sitting and staring at a wall in silence. Xena walks up and stands behind them and follows their gaze to the wall. She shrugs, then asks, “What’s up?” The two jump and turn to stare at Xena, panting heavily. Gabrielle looks irritated, “Don’t do that,” she shrieks. Xena laughs, “Right. So you’re saying that I should have left you two staring at a blank wall for the rest of the night.” Amarice and Gabrielle blush. “Well, when you put it that way,” Gabrielle starts. Xena waves a hand, “Have you seen Lissia? And where’s Joxer?” Amarice smiles, “Joxer went for a walk around the palace and Lissia went to her room, I think.” Xena nods, “Hey look, there are guest rooms down the right hand hall on the left side. The right side is well, don’t open those doors, Ares might hurt you. Any of the rooms on the left should be empty. I’ll see you guys soon. I’ll send Joxer that way if I find him,” she says, rushing from the room. Amarice looks over at Gabrielle, “She seems a little flustered.” Gabrielle nods, “That’s an understatement,” she replies, then gets a curious on her face, “Do you think it’s true?” Amarice shrugs, then shakes her head, “It can’t be,” she says, then looks unsure, “Can it?” Gabrielle shakes her head, “I don’t know.” They stare at each other in silence, then stand and head in the direction Xena had told them to go.
Xena knocks on a closed door and hears a huff from inside. She hears Lissia, grab the door handle, then she hears a body being pressed against the door. “Alright Ares,” Lissia says, a little uncomfortable, “I’m not opening this door until you realize that it wasn’t all my fault. You know how Xena can be.” Xena laughs and Lissia swings the door open. The girl looks back and forth in the hall, then grabs Xena and pulls her into the room, “What are you doing here?” Xena shakes her head, “Something’s wrong with Ares. He’s convinced that my baby is reacting to him.” Lissia laughs and shrugs, “Well, isn’t she?” Xena stares, open mouthed, “No,” she shrieks. Lissia falls onto the bed and pats a place next to her. When Xena sits down she begins, “You react to him, why shouldn’t your child? It only makes sense. Watch.” With that command, Lissia places her hand on Xena’s stomach. After a few minutes nothing happens and she begins to poke at it until Xena jerks away. Lissia smiles, “Nothing, not so much as a poke back. It’s only natural for a child to react to it’s parent.” Xena face goes white, making her icy eyes look brighter than normal, “Parent?” She stutters. Lissia moves away and slaps herself in the head, “He’s going to kill me. I’m sorry Xena, I thought he would have explained by now. Oh, you’re getting mad, that’s only natural, but look Xena, Xena look at me, that’s better. Now listen to me, it’s complicated alright. And it’s kind of my fault.” Xena’s sitting on the bed, her face white and murder playing in her eyes. She gulps down air, “Explain, now.” Lissia whines a little, “Oh, it’s not really my place, but alright, sense you’re going to be like that about it fine. Oh let me think, where do I begin. Well, you’re death, I guess.” She takes a deep breath and adopts the stance of a story teller, “Most people think of death as an ending, but in this situation it was only the beginning. Ares and I watched as the Romans crucified you. Zeus and Hera held us back, they wouldn’t let us interfere, they felt it was for the best. They thought your death would end the cult of Eli. Hind sight being twenty twenty, I guess they’re regretting their choice now. We worked from Greece, poring through books, trying things out and watching as each plan blew up in our faces. The other Gods thought that we had lost it, maybe we had, I don’t know. But, one day, Athena came by and held out a thick gold book. I looked it over and smiled, it was the answer. Of course, I didn’t know if it would work, I didn’t know if you and Ares met the requirements, but I knew that there was a chance. To be blunt, Athena had found us a loop hole. Why she did it, I don’t know, but she did. The book said that if there was a blood connection between a God and the deceased, that God could use the connection to return the deceased to the land of the living. I showed it to Ares and he dismissed it at first. For the next few days, whenever I would look at him, I could see wheels turning behind his eyes, I knew he had a plan. He finally confronted me about it. He told me about the miscarriage you had before going against Hercules the first time. I saw the problem immediately, the blood connection had been lost when the baby died. I was upset, but he was smiling. He finally broke down and told me the rest. With a lot of work, he could bring that pregnancy to the here and now. So, for awhile, that’s what we did, we worked on it and eventually we knew that it had worked or at least we hoped it had. So, we pulled on that connection and almost had you back when that dark force forced us back. We thought that Dahok had taken over the baby. We thought we had put the whole world at risk. That’s why I agreed to my position. I wasn’t going to leave my family unprotected and in danger because of my mistake. Ares and I haven’t mentioned it sense that day, or rather sense the day I regained consciousness. So, you see, Ares didn’t really do anything, it was my idea and as he puts it, it was my purity that gave us the strength and focus to go through with it. Don’t be mad at him, be happy. Now your child has a new chance at life. And this time, she will make it, she has us to help her.” Lissia smiles at the end, then risks a glance at Xena. The warrior has lain down on the bed and has her hands over her face, rubbing at her eyes, “Great,” she mutters. Lissia leans over her, “You’re not happy, are you?” Xena shrugs, “It explains a lot. You do realize that this means that Ares isn’t sick or crazy.” Lissia relaxes upon hearing the joke, then looks thoughtful, “Oh, he’s still sick and maybe a little crazy, just not in the way you were thinking. You’re friends know what I’m talking about. I think they can even see it a little now that I mentioned it to them. Of course, that’s all you’re getting out of me on the subject.” Xena gives her an irritated look and shoves her a little, then on a serious tone says, “We’ll stay until morning, then we’re going back to the mortal plane and to traveling.” Lissia shakes her head and grabs Xena’s arm in desperation, “No, you can’t. You could lose the baby again. You need to stay here with us, so that we can help you. Xena, this isn’t the strongest of children, she needs help if she’s going to make it.” Xena shakes her head, “Lissia, the child is fine. I lost her before because I wasn’t treating myself right. I didn’t try to lose her, but then again, I wasn’t trying to keep her either. I didn’t care. I do now and don’t worry, I won’t lose her again. She’s too much of a miracle now.” Lissia nods slowly, “You’re going to take her away from us,” she states. Xena looks down and doesn’t reply. After a few minutes she stands and walks out of the room.
Joxer runs to catch up with Xena who his heading towards the main room. He puts an arm around her shoulders, then reaches down to feel her stomach. She jerks away, “Don’t.” He looks hurt, then shrugs thinking that Xena’s having hormone problems, “So, how are things?” Xena sighs, “Everything’s alright, Joxer. Come on, let’s go find the others.” In silence they walk down an empty hallway. Xena opens the first door on the left and finds Gabrielle and Amarice inside, pacing the room. Gabrielle runs to her as she walks into the room, “Are you okay? You’ve been gone for well over an hour.” Xena nods, “I’m fine, I was just talking to Lissia about the baby and Ares.” Gabrielle flinches at the name and Xena gives her a questioning look. When Gabrielle turns away, Xena looks over at Amarice, who shrugs a little, “Just something Lissia said about Ares.” Interest springs into Xena’s eyes, “And what was that?” She walks over to Amarice with a sweet smile and puts an arm around the girl. Amarice pulls away, “You might want to sit down.” Xena plays along and sits on the bed, then stares up expectantly. Amarice sits next to her on one side and Gabrielle sits on the other. Amarice starts, “Look, you can’t freak, alright?” Xena nods. Gabrielle says, “We’ve decided that it’s probably true, as unlikely as it seems.” Xena nods again, growing a little impatient. She looks from one to the other and watches as each shrink back from her gaze a little. She sighs, “Out with it.” Amarice breaks the news, “Ares is in love with you.” Xena smiles at first, about to laugh, then the curve of her lips fall and her hand goes to her stomach on instinct. Gabrielle looks at her, unable to read her friend, “Xena, say something.” Xena sighs, “I know,” she says quietly, almost afraid that he might hear her. “Huh?” Amarice and Gabrielle ask together. Joxer smiles at the three women and sits next to Gabrielle, hoping that she will need a little comfort. Xena smiles lightly and strokes her stomach, which is poking out just a little bit more than it was before. “I have a story to tell you guys. A story that I just learned of. A true story that Lissia just told me.” She grows silent for a moment, making sure that she has their complete attention. When she sees that she does she goes on to relate the tale to them in just as much detail as Lissia had. As she finishes, she looks around. Gabrielle looks shocked and almost disgusted. Amarice absently puts her hand on Xena’s stomach. Joxer is smiling, he was able to sneak his arm around Gabrielle’s waist during the story. Xena looks down and smiles at Amarice’s hand, then places her own over it. Amarice jerks away, “Sorry,” she says. Xena smiles, “Are you okay?” Amarice nods, “Yeah, but I think I knew, well kind of. I could feel a connection between you two, I wasn’t sure if it was just chemistry and hormones or if it was something else, something deeper. When Lissia told us that Ares was in love with you, the thought that the child could be his, crept into my mind. It explains why he’s so uncomfortable around you right now.” Xena nods, “Yes, it does.” Gabrielle sighs, “What are we going to do?” “We’re going to leave in the morning,” Xena says, “And after that, well, we’ll see. He’s not getting my child though.” Joxer buts in, “Well, isn’t it kind of his child too.” Xena shoots daggers at him, but says nothing. Joxer shrinks away and Gabrielle pats his back lightly. Then she turns to Xena, “Are you going to tell him that you know?” Xena nods, “Yes, I will tell him. It’s the only decent thing to do. Although I could be causing Lissia a lot of problems, but I’m sure she can handle it.” “Serves her right,” Gabrielle mutters. Xena gives her a dirty look and walks out of the room. “My room is across the hall at the very end. If you need anything go there or call for Lissia.” Amarice raises an eyebrow, “You’re room?” Xena shrugs, uncomfortably, “Like I said before, we were close.” With a slight blush, Xena walks out of the room and down the hall.
Xena smiles when she enters her room. It’s dark and smells of must. She lights a candle and walks into the closet, hoping to find something leather that would fit over her extended stomach. Finding something suitable, she slips it on and carefully laces up the shirt, making sure to keep it lose. She slips into some leather pants and smiles remembering being pregnant with Solon and wearing these very same pants. She then, pulls out a pair of boots, arm bands, and some light armor for her chest and shoulders. She lets these rest on the floor and goes to sit on the bed. She coughs as dust flies into her face. She waves it away and eventually it settles. Then she moves again and the dust flies back into her face. She huffs, angry with the condition her room is in, and stalks to Ares’ room. She shoves herself against the door, but it doesn’t open. Irritated, she kicks the door, hoping that it will cave in or at least break open, but she has no such luck. An evil smile crosses her face and she rushes back to her room. She arrives and rests on the bed for a minute to catch her breath. She walks into her closet and moves everything away from the back wall. She lightly taps on it, happy to find that it’s hollow. With a powerful kick, she caves in a section of the wall and strides through the hole into Ares’ closet. She smiles, then coughs as dust invades her nostrils. She walks to the door and opens it. Ares looks up from the bed and shakes his head, “Sorry, I didn’t hear you come in.” She smirks at him, “You should know better than to lock a door on me. I always get where I want to be.” He smiles sarcastically, “Obviously,” he says, motioning towards her stomach. She blushes, “Yes, well, I had nothing to do with this, at least not this time,” she says, giving him an evil glare. For a minute his grin falls and he looks guilty, then noticing her smile, he smiles back. She sits next to him, “You really screwed up this time.” He looks away from her, “It was all we could do. What did you think we would do when we found out you were dead? Just give up? I don’t think so.” She puts a hand over his, “We’re leaving in the morning.” His head jerks in her direction and concern fills his eyes. He shakes his head, “You can’t. It’s not safe. The baby-.” She puts a hand over his mouth, “Lissia and I already had this talk, we will be fine.” He grabs both her hands in his and shakes his head, “I know what you’re doing. You’re trying to leave me and you’re taking my child, my daughter, with you. Xena, I want to do this the right way. I don’t want her to grow up alone and I don’t want you to be alone.” Xena jerks away, “I can take care of myself and my child, we don’t need you. And we won’t be alone, we’ll have each other, and Gabrielle, and Amarice, and Joxer. She will have a family, a real family. Which is much more than you could ever offer her.” She stands up and stalks to the door. She turns the knob and rams it with her hip, but it doesn’t budge. She glares at Ares, then stalks to the closet and finds the wall, not only repaired, but reinforced as well. She turns around and stands defiantly in front of him, “Let me leave.” She pauses for a minute, then adds, “Now.” He doesn’t move, but shakes his head, “I’m tired of you walking away from me before I can finish saying what I want to say. Now, be quite for a minute and listen to me, alright?” Xena nods, looking very irritated. She reaches towards her hip to grab a dagger, but doesn’t find one there. She growls and grabs one from his shelf and starts to flip it around, a habit that she had picked up from him many years ago. He smiles at her and laughs a little, then says, “Alright, I’m going to keep it real simple for you Xena. I love you.” She stares blankly at him, then flips the dagger at him, “Liar!” She rushes towards the door and is amazed to find it open. She looks at the open door, then back at Ares, confusion in her gaze. Unable to say anything, she rushes from the room.
At break neck speed, Xena runs into Lissia’s room and lets herself fall on the bed where the Goddess is resting. Lissia jumps up and looks down at Xena, who’s panting and looking quite a bit larger, “Are you alright?” Xena nods, slowly, “Yeah, we just got into a little argument and I left.” Lissia nods in understanding, “You shouldn’t have been running, Xena. This isn’t a normal pregnancy, you could be in you last month by tomorrow morning. Please, tell me that you aren’t still thinking of leaving.” Xena nods, “I have to, I don’t belong here. And I won’t let him hurt my baby.” Quietly she adds, “Or me.” Lissia rolls her eyes, “He won’t, he loves you, more than anything.” Not getting a reply, she changes the subject, “Gabrielle was looking for you. She said she heard a crash and then yelling. She was worried. By, the Gods, the girl has guts, she tried to open Ares’ door, lucky for her, he had it locked. How did you get in there?” Xena shrugs, “I broke a wall.” Lissia laughs, “The one that used to be a door? Yeah, I know about that. And you two thought you were being so sneaky. Really, Xena, what did you think you were hiding from me? I had already had a child, I knew what sex was and I knew what violence was and I knew what love was. That secret door, didn’t keep any of it from me, sorry to break it to you. Although it was a cute thought, at the time.” Xena blushes, then asks, “When did he block it off?” Lissia shrugs, “A few months after you left. He didn’t want to ruin your room, but he also didn’t want to be reminded of you. So, he turned the door into a wall and hasn’t entered your room sense. I, on the other hand, used to sneak in and sleep in there when I was lonely or when Ares and I were fighting.” Xena puts an arm around the girl and shakes her head, smiling, “You can be such a kid sometimes. I missed you, Lissia, I really did.” The girl nods, “I know. We missed you too. We want you back, Xena. And not as a warrior, but as a friend and a member of the family.” Lissia places her hand on Xena’s stomach and smiles when the baby kicks at her hand. Xena smiles too, then looks down, “I can’t stay. There are too many people who need my help. I can’t abandon them.” Lissia shrugs, “Just remember, we are always here for you.” Xena nods and lets herself fall back on the bed. Lissia smiles and looks at her friend and mentor who is now asleep. She sighs and covers the woman, then leaves the room.
Lissia slowly walks down the hall and knocks on Ares’ door. He doesn’t respond and when she tries the knob, she finds it locked. “Ares, it’s me, Lissia. Come on open the door, we need to talk. It’s about Xena.” She immediately hears a click and the door swings open. She finds her cousin sitting on his bed, looking upset. There’s a dagger sticking out of his chest and she grimaces at the sight of it. She walks over and removes it, then sets it on a nearby table, “What did you say to her?” He sighs, “I love her.” Lissia nods, “I know you do, but what did you say that made her so mad?” He looks up at her, “I told her that I love her.” “Oh,” Lissia sighs, “I’m sorry. I guess it wasn’t what she wanted to hear, huh?” Ares shakes his head, “She wanted to hear it, she just doesn’t want to believe it.” Lissia knits her brows together, “She wants to believe it, she does believe it, she just won’t admit it. She’s stubborn, like you. And like you she doesn’t like to show weakness. Of course with me, it’s a different story. She opens up to me, at least a little. She’s exhausted. You shouldn’t have gotten her so worked up, she could have gone into labor,” she scolds. He stares at her, “Where is she?” “Asleep, in my room and she better stay that way! Hey! Where are you going? Ares, leave her alone, you already upset her once. OH! Jerk!” She yells after him, but doesn’t attempt to follow him.
Ares knocks on Lissia’s door and when there’s no reply, he quietly opens it and walks in. Xena is laying on the bed, covered by a light blanket. Her stomach stands out a little and she shifts uncomfortably in her sleep. He walks over to the bed, and sits on the side. Then slowly moves farther onto the bed and scoops Xena up, so that her head is resting on his chest. She snuggles into him and he smiles, noticing that he hadn’t waken her up. He strokes her hair gently and whispers, “I’m sorry,” then let’s his hand fall away from her so that she can sleep in peace.
Xena wakes and finds herself, not only comfortable, but sitting up slightly. Nervously, she moves her hand and feels a strong chest under it. She sits up and starts to get mad, until she realizes that Ares is asleep. She smiles at him oddly, then puts one of his hands under hers on her stomach. She relaxes back onto his chest and soon falls asleep. Only a few seconds later, the baby kicks and Ares jumps out of skin, waking Xena up, who starts to laugh at him. He looks down at her, questioningly. She smiles, “I woke up a little while ago. I thought the baby could wake you up and I guess I was right. I didn’t think you were going to jump like that though.” She laughs a little and he smiles at her, “Not mad?” He questions. She shakes her head, “No, not anymore. But, I can’t stay here, not forever.” He nods, “I know. But, will you stay, at least until you’re up on your feet again?” She smirks, “I’m on my feet or I would be if you would get over here and give me a hand up.” He walks over to the other side of the bed and helps her out of it. Once she regains her balance, she pats his hands, which had come to rest on either side of her stomach, “I’m fine now.” He nods, “Let’s go find the others.” She grabs his arm, as he starts to leave, “Wait a minute, I want to say something. I believe you, Ares. And I think, maybe, we could be a family.” He stares at her in shock, then she scrunches her brow and continues, “A really large, odd, slightly chaotic, dysfunctional family, but a family all the same.” He laughs, “Am I going to have to refer to blondie as sister.” Xena whoops with laughter and shakes her head, “No, but try calling her Gabrielle, she reacts better to it. And she is our baby’s aunt, so be nice to her.” He rolls his eyes, “Aw, do I have to, Mommy?” She shoves him into a nearby wall, “Watch it, you’re still on thin ice with me.” She gives him an icy glare, but he sees the playfulness behind it. He nods and follows as she leaves the room, muttering things about women and hormones under his breath.
Amarice runs into the room that she’s sharing with Joxer and Gabrielle, “I can’t find her or Ares anywhere. Gabrielle, I don’t know what to do.” Gabrielle stops pacing long enough to stare at Amarice, “Well, she couldn’t just up and disappear.” She huffs irritably, then stops, “Lissia,” she calls. The Goddess arrives, smiling, “What’s up?” Gabrielle’s eyes widen, “What’s up?! I don’t know. Xena’s missing! That’s what’s up!” She screams hysterically. Lissia rolls her eyes, “Xena is resting in my room or at least she was until Ares went to check on her several hours ago. I don’t know anything else.” Amarice corners the Goddess, pointing her sword at the woman’s throat, “So, how does a God deal with decapitation?” Lissia rolls her eyes, “You don’t have the stomach for it.” Amarice presses the sword into the Goddess’s throat a little, “Want to put a few dinars on that?” Gabrielle breaks the two apart, “Not now,” she says, resuming her trail around the room. From the bed, Joxer watches her pace, then smiles, “Xena! We’ve been worried,” he says, jumping off the bed and running to the door. Gabrielle and Amarice turn to the door and sure enough there’s Xena, standing in the doorway with Ares directly behind her. Both women turn their eyes from the God and look at Xena, “Are you okay?” They ask together. Xena laughs and nods, “Yeah, I’m fine. I got a nice nap, until someone had to jump out of their God skin just because a baby kicked a little,” she says, eyeing Ares, who smiles sarcastically at her. Gabrielle looks uncomfortable, “You were sleeping with him, Xena?” Ares holds up his hands, “Look, that stomach was crushing her, I propped her up and fell asleep. So don’t get all moody about it,” he says, pointing at the battling bard. Amarice moves into view and points her sword at him, “You want to see moody, War God? I can give you moody.” Her eyes grow cold, until Xena stands in front of the sword, placing her hand on the blade and moving it to point at the floor. Amarice shoots him and Lissia a threatening look, then helps Xena to sit on the bed, “You’ve grown,” she states dryly. Xena nods, “I’ve noticed.” Lissia walks over and despite the warning glare she receives from Amarice, rests her hand on Xena’s stomach. She shakes her head, “It should be soon now. Are you comfortable? Do you need anything?” Xena nods, “Pillows, blankets, clothes, and some wine to deaden the pain of giving birth.” Gabrielle walks over, “No wine. Lissia, find some better clothes for her, something soft and easy to work around or remove. And find a lot of clean blankets and cloths. How long do you think we have?” The Goddess shrugs, “A few hours before labor even starts. Who knows how long after that.” Xena groans, “You know, I remember doing this once and I really don’t want to do it again.” She shoots Ares a dirty look and he shrugs helplessly, “Sorry.” Gabrielle smiles, “I, too, remember giving birth and I know it’s no walk in the park, but it’s got to be done, Xena. You’ll be fine.” She turns to Lissia, “Go,” she orders. Xena groans again, “By the Gods, she’s moving a lot in there. I think she’s working on her back flips.” Gabrielle smiles and places her hand on Xena’s stomach, smiling as she feels the baby move. Amarice and Joxer join Gabrielle and soon feel the little girl kicking at them. Joxer pulls his hand away and looks at it, “Amazing. So, are you sure there’s only one in there? You’re really large and that sure is a lot of movement for one baby.” Xena smiles, “I’m sure, Joxer.” He smiles and goes to sit in a chair. Amarice and Gabrielle surround Xena on the bed. Ares watches from the door and begins to laugh, “You’re like a bunch of mother hens.” Amarice looks irritated and tosses a dagger in his general direction. Gabrielle only rolls her eyes and asks, “Where’s Lissia? She should be back by now.” Ares shrugs, “Maybe she had a temple issue. Speaking of which, I need to leave for a little while. I’ll be back soon.” He smiles at Xena, “Don’t start without me.” She grabs a pillow and throws it at him, “Oh no, I want you here so that I can kill you while I’m having my insides torn apart.” He grimaces and disappears. As the light fades from his departure, Lissia appears, carrying a very large sack. She sets it on the floor, “Okay, so I had to do a lot of looking around, but I found this,” she says, pulling out a long simple boxy shirt. “Will it work, Gabrielle?” Gabrielle shrugs, “Let’s find out.” Ignoring Joxer, the three women help Xena out of her leathers and into the shirt. Xena smiles, “It’s long, it’s black, it works. Where did you find it?” Lissia looks away, “That isn’t important right now, Xena.” Xena raises an eyebrow and eyes the girl, “He’s going to kill you just for going into his room without permission, not to mention going through my old stuff. And yes, I know this was in his room. He always had some odd fascination with it, never did understand that one.” Gabrielle and Amarice stare at her, clearly confused. Lissia answers their unasked question, “Xena wore this when she would visit while she was pregnant with Solon. Ares liked the way it looked on her and kept it around for future use. Now just happens to be the perfect time.” Gabrielle nods and Amarice shrugs a little, then begins to separate the blankets from the cloths. Lissia looks from their items, up to Xena, then to the others in the room, “So what do we do when it starts? I don’t know about anyone else, but I’ve only given birth, I’ve never helped someone give birth.” Everyone eyes the others in the room, then Joxer speaks up, “I helped a neighbor when I was ten. I didn’t do much except hand my mom clean cloths and then hold the baby when she was done, but I have a little experience.” Gabrielle looks him over, “Great,” she says, doubtfully. Amarice smiles, “He has more experience than me. I was born and that’s all the experience I have.” Gabrielle sighs and repeats her previous statement, “Great, just great. The only one who has ever helped to deliver a baby is the one who’s having the baby!” She shouts hysterically. Joxer pipes up again, “Well, what about Ares?” Both Xena and Lissia begin to laugh. Regaining control, Xena explains, “Joxer, Ares is the God of War, bringing babies into the world isn’t something he handles. He can barely handle the pregnancy part of it. Honestly, I have dinars saying that he’s going to pass out before the baby actually pops out.” Joxer looks down sheepishly, “Oh. Well, it was worth a shot.” Lissia smiles at him and puts an arm around his shoulders, “Of course it was Joxer and we’re glad that you were the one to take it.” She begins to laugh a little, but seeing his hurt expression, she smiles at him and kisses his cheek lightly, “Hey, don’t fret. We’ll take care of everything. After all, how bad can it be?” Xena glares at her and she shrugs a little. Amarice helps Xena sit up a little and places a few pillows behind her back. Xena sinks into them and smiles gratefully.
Several hours later, Ares returns and finds all four women on the bed, asleep and Joxer sitting a chair with his head hung backwards, snoring loudly. He grimaces at the noise. Then sits in a chair by the bed, lightly running a hand through Xena’s hair. Her eyes flutter open and he looks guilty, “I didn’t mean to wake you up.” She shakes her head, “You didn’t. The baby was moving a lot. It’s getting close, you know? I can feel it.” He nods, “I know, I can too. She’s calling to us, Xena. She wants out.” She nods at him, “I know. Well, she’ll be out soon enough, just as soon as she gets her act together and fully decides that my womb isn’t the place for her.” He laughs a little and puts a hand on her stomach. The baby rolls a little beneath his hand and Xena grimaces. He jerks, “Time?” He asks. She laughs, “No, I got kicked in the ribs.” She begins to scoot off the bed, but he stops her, “You need to relax, Xena.” She shakes her head, “I need to go for a walk,” she says, pushing him aside, “Help me up,” she orders. He shakes his head, “Why?” She rolls her eyes, “I have your child playing jumping games on my bladder. Help me up, Ares.” He blushes a little and helps her out of the bed. She walks, no waddles down the hall and returns after several minutes. He rushes to her side and helps her to the bed. She brushes him aside, “I’m fine. Gods, who’s acting like a mother hen now?” He stares at her, clearly offended, “That’s not nice to say, Xena. You’re like hours, if even, away from giving birth, we have to be careful,” he states knowingly. “Ares,” she starts. He holds up a hand, “No, Xena, don’t argue with me.” “Ares,” she tries again, a little frantic. He shakes his head, “Now stop that, you’re not having the last word this time.” She grabs his necklace and uses it to pull him close, “Ares, it’s time,” she says, anger and murder in her gaze. “Oh,” he says, walking over to the other side of the bed and shaking the others awake. On his way back to her side, he kicks Joxer’s chair. Drowsily, they all stare around the too bright room, then look at Xena who’s beginning to sweat. They jump into action. Joxer begins to grabs clothes, while Gabrielle washes the sweat off Xena’s brow. Amarice and Ares help Xena into a more comfortable position. Seeing her slightly comfortable, at least as comfortable as a woman in labor could get, he takes her hand gently. Amarice stands off to the side, waiting for orders. She soon gets them from Xena, “Amarice, come here and take over Gabrielle’s job. Gabrielle tell me when to push. Joxer keep those cloths and blankets ready. Ares stay put, I’m taking all of my pain out on your hand. Lissia, the pressure points.” Lissia’s eyes go wide as the others adjust to their positions. “Xena, I can’t. I’ve only used them once and that was when you taught me. I can’t do it, Xena. What if I mess up.” Xena grunts in pain and lets her back arch a little, “I trust you, Lissia.” The Goddess nods and puts pressure points on Xena. Ones that Gabrielle recognized from when she gave birth to Hope. Xena relaxes a little, as the majority of the pain subsides. Gabrielle begins to murmur, “Alright Xena, not yet. Amarice, Ares, keep her down, she’s going to feel this real soon. Xena, not yet, give her a little bit longer.” Lissia moves to stand next to Amarice and puts a hand over the girl’s, which is shaking as it dabs sweat off of Xena’s face, “Relax, it’s going to be okay.” Amarice nods and soon stops shaking. Gabrielle smiles up at Xena, “Almost there. Hey, you know, you’re losing that bet, Xena.” Weakly, Xena smiles and replies, “The bad part is yet to come.” Gabrielle nods, “You got that right. Alright Xena, push hard.” Xena pushes and screams out, trying to arch her back, but finding that she’s being held down. She gives Ares a dirty look, that carries a threat in it. He squeezes her hand gently and she returns it by taking a vice grip to it. He winces a little, then looks down at Gabrielle, “Well?” She glances at him, “Patience is a virtue,” she sings out. Then seriously, says, “Alright Xena, you’re doing great. I need you to push some more though. Come on, stay with us.” Xena again pushes and screams out again, then almost smiles when she feels Ares jerk away a little. She glances at him and finds him still conscious though looking a little green. He smiles reassuringly at her. Gabrielle smiles, “Almost done. Come on, Xena, one more and then we’re through.” Xena grunts and pushes, “No we aren’t,” she says, remembering the afterbirth. Amarice looks away and finds Ares and Joxer doing the same thing. Soon, Lissia is down by Gabrielle, cleaning the baby, while Xena expels the afterbirth. Xena relaxes, happy that it’s all over and smiles up at Ares, who’s watching Lissia and his newly born daughter. Gabrielle looks up at Amarice, “Get me some warm water and help me clean her up.” Amarice nods and rushes from the room. When she returns, Xena is holding her new born daughter and cooing lightly, “Hello there little one.” She winces at the high pitched screaming issuing forth from the baby’s mouth, “What’s wrong with her?” Lissia smiles, “That’s what babies do, Amarice. They scream.” The Goddess looks around, “Where’s Joxer. Ares smiles and points at the floor. Lissia turns to see Joxer passed out, she laughs, “Hey Xena, you lost your beet. You should have bet against the other man.” Xena smiles at the comment, then turns to Ares, “I didn’t think you would make it.” Gabrielle smiles, “No ripping.” Xena nods, “I know. Lissia, take off the pressure points and get rid of this mess.” The Goddess nods, removes the pressure points, then with a snap of her fingers, has the room clean. She smiles and sits next to Ares on the bed, staring down at the baby. Gabrielle and Amarice are on the other side. After a few minutes, Joxer joins them and smiles sheepishly, knowing that he had passed out.
After several minutes of cooing at the baby, Xena looks up at her friends and they nod. One by one everyone heads towards the door. Xena extends her hand and grabs Lissia by the arm, “Stay for a minute, I need a little help.” Lissia scrunches her brow, but remains. She smiles at the closed door, “He’s standing directly outside, you know?” Xena nods, but doesn’t smile. Lissia looks her over, “What’s wrong?” She sighs, “I’m not producing any milk yet and the baby’s hungry.” Lissia smiles and waves a hand over Xena’s chest. Wet spots appear on Xena’s gown and she gives the Goddess a dirty look. Lissia shrugs, “Sorry. So, what are you naming her?” Xena shrugs and begins to nurse her daughter, “I don’t know. Has Ares said anything about it?” Lissia looks down, then smiles up at Xena, “A long time ago, during your original pregnancy, before the miscarriage, he talked about the name Ania. He hasn’t said the name sense he found out about the miscarriage.” Xena smiles, “Ania,” she says quietly. She looks at her nursing daughter and smiles, then nods, “Yes, Ania fits nicely. Hm.. Ania Elizabeth. What do you think?” Lissia nods, “Perfect, just like her,” she says, running her hand over the child’s smooth skin. Then she adds, “Of course, my opinion doesn’t really matter. She isn’t my daughter after all.” Xena smiles, “You’re right. Give me a few minutes to get situated, then send him in.” Lissia smiles and walks out of the room. Xena watches the door close, then shifts herself on the bed until she’s sitting up with the pillows behind her back and one under the arm that is holding the baby while she nurses.
Xena isn’t alone long. After five minutes, there’s a knock on the door. “Come in,” she says quietly, switching sides with the baby and moving the pillow to her other side. Ares walks in and smiles at his nursing daughter, before looking up at Xena, “How are you?” She smiles and pats the bed next to her, “I’m fine and so is she.” He nods and sits down next to her, watching his daughter nurse. He puts a few garments on the bed, “Gabrielle told me to bring these to you for the baby.” Xena smiles at the cloth and clothes, “Good. I’ll finish nursing her and then we can get her into some real clothes instead of this flimsy blanket.” He smiles down at his daughter, “She’s amazing, perfect even.” Xena smiles up at him and burps the child, then gently lies her down on the bed, “Yes she is. She needs a name.” She begins to remove the blanket and tie the diaper around the wining baby. Ares nods and barely above a whisper, says, “Ania.” Xena doesn’t looks at him, but nods, “Yes, Ania Elizabeth. At least that’s what I was thinking.” He smiles at her questioningly, then nods in understanding, “Lissia, huh?” Xena nods, “Yeah Lissia, but I like it. It’s as perfect as she is. Get me a clean blanket.” A blanket appears on the bed from where it had been stacked on the floor. Xena smiles and after pulling a small nighty onto the child, wraps the blanket around her. She scoops up the child and turns to Ares, “Hold out your arms,” she orders. He jumps a little, but puts his arms out. She laughs, “Not like that.” She moves to put the baby in his arms and he adjusts to hold the child. Once settled, he smiles down at the child, then at Xena. She smiles and leans on his shoulder, “Don’t tell anyone, but I’m exhausted.” They laugh briefly and receive a slight whine from the baby. They watch as the child falls into the land of baby dreams, then smile at each other. Awkwardly, Ares hands the child over to Xena, “Um, I’ll let you two rest. Call me if you need anything.” Holding the baby in one hand and grabbing his arm with other, she says, “Ares, stay. I need help.” He looks at her questioningly, then notices all the pillows propping her up. He smiles and removes the pillows one by one, until she’s at a comfortable level, then turns to leave as she rests the baby between her arm and body. “Ares,” she says, slightly annoyed. He turns towards her, “I’ll be close,” he says quietly. She nods, “Yes, you will. Stay with us.” A little awkward, he sits on the bed next to Xena, letting his legs hang over the edge. She laughs, then quits when a whimper escapes from the child. Quietly and almost unsure of herself, she orders, “Lay down, rest.” Unsure of her and himself he lays down on his side and stares at her and his child. Xena smiles, and rolls over onto her side to stare at him, letting the baby rest between them and against her body. Her smile turns evil, “After all, I’m not changing all of the diapers.” He smiles at her and watches her fall asleep. After checking to make sure that his daughter is comfortable and alright, he too falls asleep.
Gabrielle and Amarice are sitting in their new room. Lissia had just walked out of the room with Joxer following her. She had said something about finding him his own room with a view. Amarice flops onto the bed and lays next to Gabrielle. She looks over at the other woman, “Are we going to have to find Eli?” Gabrielle nods, “Yes, it seems that he’s going to be having problems with the Gods. Maybe he knows about the second child of Dahok.” Amarice nods, slightly disappointed, then interested, “What happened with you and Dahok?” Gabrielle visibly stiffens, then begins to explain, “You see, several years back I lost my blood innocence in a Temple to Dahok. Dahok wanted my purity and he got it. He impregnated me with his evil spawn and a couple of days later, I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. Xena and I had found protection in the Knights of the Pierced Heart and they believed that Hope was the child of the light. We all did, except Xena. Xena never once trusted her. And Xena was right. Within hours of being born, Hope was crawling and killing. I ran with Hope and once escaping Xena for awhile, I sent my daughter down the river. Several months later, Xena and I were visiting the centaurs and my friend Ephiny. Hope came to me and again I trusted her. Unknown to me, she was working for Callisto. Hope killed Solon, Xena’s son. And it drove Xena and I apart. We repaired our relationship though. And even though I had killed Hope with poison, several months after that, she was reborn. She looked exactly like me. And she was trying to bring Dahok into our world. I threw her and myself into a lava pit, but we were saved. I don’t know how or why, but we were. Awhile after that, I found myself in Potidaea where Hope was holding my family hostage. She had gained their trust because she looked like me. Xena and I tricked Destroyer, her child, into killing her. That was the last time I had to let go of my daughter, this time she was dead and gone forever. But Dahok wasn’t. From what I’ve heard though, Hercules destroyed him or at least beat him out of our realm. It’s hard for me to accept it, but this God that Eli worships could very well be Dahok.” Amarice nods and sighs, then looks bright, “What about the God of the Israelites?” Gabrielle shakes her head, “He’s supposedly good and the force that Lissia found was pure evil. They couldn’t be the one in the same.” Amarice looks away, “I don’t like Eli and I don’t agree with his teachings, but he’s your friend and he did bring you and Xena back to life, for that I owe him. I will help rescue him from the Olympians and his own God, even if it is Dahok.” Gabrielle nods slowly, “Thank you, Amarice. We’re going to need all the help we can get. We’ll talk more in the morning though. Go to sleep, okay?” She feels Amarice nod next to her then scrunch into the covers and cuddle with the pillow. Gabrielle smiles and stretches out a little on the bed, then curls up, letting one arm hang over the edge of the bed.
Lissia awakens in the morning to the sound of laughter, a sound that she isn’t used to hearing around here. She looks around, making sure that she hadn’t fallen asleep in a Temple and she hadn’t, she was in her room. She wrinkles her brow and follows the sound. Seeing that it’s coming from the room she left Xena in the night before, she smiles and walks in. Inside, Xena, the child, Ares, Gabrielle, Amarice, and Joxer are sitting on the bed, talking and laughing. A few discarded plates litter the floor. She smiles and hops onto the bed, “Just going to let me sleep all day?” Xena smiles at her, “I wasn’t going to be the one to wake you up. You get cranky.” Everyone begins to laugh again and eventually Lissia joins in. She sees Gabrielle adopting a serious look and before the bard can ask her question, asks, “So, how long are you staying?” Xena shrugs, “Not long. We need to go help Eli.” Gabrielle smiles grimly and nods her head a little. Both Lissia and Ares seem disappointed and concerned. Lissia shakes her head, “Xena, you can’t be doing this kind of thing with Ania, it’s not safe.” She watches Xena roll her eyes and huffs slightly, turning to Ares for help. But, there’s no such luck, he’s smiling and nodding his head. She pushes him in the side and he turns to look at her. “What?” He asks innocently. Lissia rolls her eyes, “Well, I’m obviously missing something so tell me what you’re thinking,” she orders. He smiles, “Xena doesn’t have to worry about Ania because we’re going with her. We can help her protect Eli and destroy Dahok, this time for good.” Xena beams at him and both Gabrielle and Amarice gasp in shock. Joxer and Lissia, on the other hand, accept the fact just fine and nod slowly. “What’s the plan?” Joxer asks. Xena takes charge and begins giving orders, “Amarice, Joxer, Lissia get some supplies and don’t forget clothes and things for Ania. Ares, find Eli. Gabrielle, stay with me. We meet back here in two hours.” Quietly everyone files out of the room and Xena and Gabrielle are left alone with the child. They stare at the door, while sitting next to each other on the bed. Absently, Xena starts to nurse Ania, who is a very good eater. Gabrielle glances over and remains quiet as the child feeds.
Soon, Ania is asleep and Xena is inching her way off the bed, trying not to jerk the child. “Gabrielle, come here,” she orders quietly. Gabrielle walks over from the other side of the bed and stands in front of Xena, who can’t find a way off the bed with the child in her arms. Xena extends the sleeping infant and Gabrielle cradles her gently. Xena stands and when Gabrielle offers the child back to her, she shakes her head and begins to flex her stiff arm muscles. “Come on, Gabrielle. I want to show you my old room.” Gabrielle smiles and follows her friend out of the room and down the hall. Xena stops in front of the last door and opens the knob slowly. Candles flicker to life on the inside and as she walks into the room, Xena notices that the dust is gone. She smiles and motions for Gabrielle to follow her. Gabrielle slowly walks into the room and surveys everything. There’s a balcony and a large table with two chairs on one side of the bed. On the other she finds a bed stand, a weapons rack, a dresser and a closet door. “Nice,” she breaths quietly. Xena nods and opens the closet, then closes it and drags a trunk out from under the bed. Gabrielle gasps at the craftsmanship of the item, then kneels down next to Xena and peers in. Inside, is a warrior outfit, complete with weapons and boots. Xena looks over at her and smiles, “I never wore it, I actually never visited again after he gave it to me. I can’t nurse in my old outfit and it’s starting to look the worse for wear. It’s time for a change.” Gabrielle smiles as Xena pulls out several pieces of silver and black armor. The leather shift, much like her old one, is black and very soft to the touch. The boots too are black and made of the softest leather, Gabrielle had ever seen. A black cloth shift rests under it all and between the weapons. Xena pulls out a set of arm bands that match the armor and sets them on the floor. Gabrielle reaches in and removes a small dagger with one hand, while holding Ania in the other, “It’s amazing.” Xena nods, “Yes, Hephestus does beautiful work. Wait until you see the sword.” Xena pulls out a large sword, much like her original one, but the designs are silver and a red jewel rests in the hilt of it. The blade shines in the low light and Xena smiles when it cuts her a little as she runs her finger down the edge. She hands it to Gabrielle, who is surprised by the weight, “It’s not that heavy. With that sort of blade, I thought it would be heavier. Xena, you need to send Hephestus a note.” Xena laughs at her and pulls the black gown over her head, tossing it behind Gabrielle. She slips into the black shift and laces the front of it up. She puts on the leather shift, then takes Ania from Gabrielle. Gabrielle kneels behind her friend and laces the shift up, “You didn’t even gain any weight.” Xena smiles, “Well, when you had Hope you didn’t gain any either.” They both laugh, then Gabrielle takes Ania and Xena begins to put on the armor. She stands up holding a sword in one hand and several daggers and a whips in the other. Gabrielle smiles at her, “You look good. Where are you putting the weapons and where is your Chakram?” Xena’s eyes widen, “Lissia,” she calls. Lissia appears, holding the weapon out in front of her, “I thought you would want this. By the Gods, Ares is going to hit the floor when he sees you.” Gabrielle giggles a little and Xena smiles, “Thank you Lissia,” she says sarcastically. The Goddess takes a mock bow and disappears. Gabrielle shakes her head as Xena attaches the chakram to her hip. She sets the sword on the bed and puts one dagger in each boot and the third between her breasts. She smiles and takes Ania from Gabrielle. “Attach the scabbard to the back of my armor. Use the clips of medal,” she explains to Gabrielle. The blonde rolls her eyes, “As if I haven’t done it before.” Xena pushes back on her a little and they both laugh. Gabrielle walks around her after a few minutes, “There, perfect.” Xena shakes her head, “Not quite. Find me a brush. Try the top drawer over there.” As Gabrielle walks to the dresser, Xena sits on the bed and examines the outfit, seeing that it will be very easy to nurse in. Gabrielle comes up behind her and brushes her hair, then puts a small box on the bed beside her, “I found this on top of the dresser.” Xena smiles, “Open it, will ya?” Gabrielle nods and opens it. She gasps upon seeing the perfect necklace. She looks at Xena, who’s smiling to herself. The chain is thick white gold and the pendent is a replica of the Chakram and Ares’ sword, intertwined together. Gabrielle slowly removes it from the box and goes behind Xena. She puts it on her, then moves her hair over the chain. Xena looks down and smiles at it and a slight blush caresses her cheeks. Gabrielle nods in approval, then quietly asks, “You’re starting to love him, aren’t you?” At first Xena doesn’t reply and Gabrielle thinks she didn’t ask the question loud enough, then she sees Xena shake her head. Xena smiles as she shakes her head, “I don’t think I ever stopped, Gabrielle.” The blonde smiles, “I always knew that there was something between you too. So, I guess I’m going to have to put up with him a bit more, huh?” Xena laughs a little and nods her head, “Yeah, now come on, let’s get back to the other room.” They leave quietly and Gabrielle shuts the door behind them, then rushes forward to open the door to the other room. Xena stops her before she can turn the handle. Gabrielle nods in understanding, “He’s in there, isn’t he?” She asks, still not used to her friend’s ability to sense the God. Xena nods and hands her Ania, then straightens her armor.
Xena strides into the room and everyone turns from their position on the bed to stare in awe. Gabrielle suppresses a giggle when Joxer falls off the bed on one side and Ares on the other. Xena smiles and looks at Lissia, “You were right,” she says, tossing the Goddess a dinar. Lissia doesn’t even try to catch it, she’s too busy staring at the pendent. Gabrielle laughs and moves past Xena to sit next to Amarice on the bed. Joxer and Ares find their way back onto the bed and though Joxer has now recovered, Ares has not and he continues to stare at Xena. Xena lets herself stride over to the bed and smiles as his eyes fallow her everywhere. She sits down and adopts an all business attitude, “Report,” she orders, taking Ania from Gabrielle. Joxer smiles and raises his hand, jumping up and down a little. Xena shakes her head, “Yes, Joxer.” He smiles triumphantly, “We got the stuff Xena and the horses are ready to go. You should see the baby clothes, they’re so cute.” Xena nods, “Good,” she then turns to stare at Gabrielle. The blonde clears her throat, “Uh, we got Xena dressed,” she says, unsure of what Xena was expecting form her. Amarice giggles and Xena nods her head, laughing lightly. She looks at Ares and when he doesn’t say anything she pushes him lightly. “Athens,” he says, simply. She nods, “We leave after lunch. Lissia, Ares, can you two transport us there or are we stuck doing this the mortal way?” Lissia shrugs, “We can get us all to Athens, but once there, we’re going to need the horses to get around.” Xena nods, “Good. Alright everyone, find food for yourselves, we’ll meet in the main room in an hour.” They all nod and file out of the room. Xena turns to Ares, who hasn’t moved except to finger the pendent lightly. She swats his hand away gently, “Food,” she says. He nods and a feast appears on the table. She begins to eat, but soon grows uncomfortable under his constant gaze. She turns to stare at him, Ania in one arm and a piece of cheese in the opposite hand, “What’s wrong?” He shakes his head, trying to clear it, “Nothing. Why would anything be wrong?” She laughs, “You were staring, Ares and I mean really staring. As a matter of fact, you’ve been staring sense I entered the room. I thought something might be wrong,” she explains. He smiles, “You’re stunning,” he says simply. A slight blush caresses her cheeks, but she turns back to the food as to hide it from him. She makes no move to reply and he goes silent as he continues to stare at her.
In the main hall, everyone sits around or on a large table, waiting for Lissia to arrive. The Goddess appears in the middle of the room and sighs, “Sorry, there was a huge problem at one of my temples in Sparta or something like that. Anyway, one guy said one thing two said another and the child in the middle just cried and yelled at me. One of them was trying to sacrifice the kid and the other’s were trying to either stop or help, I’m not sure. It doesn’t matter, I taught all three a lesson and returned the kid to his home. It was quite a mess though.” Ares snickers at her while Xena smiles, “Aren’t you glad that you’re a real Goddess now?” Lissia rolls her eyes, “Whatever. Come on, let’s get this show on the road.” She snaps her fingers and three horses appear from thin air. Xena smiles at the sight of Argo and after strapping Ania to her chest, she mounts the horse. She offers her hand down and Amarice grasps it and pulls herself onto the back of the saddle. She looks at the others expectantly. Gabrielle smiles, “Doubling up, huh?” She asks as she mounts her horse and tries to help Joxer up. Joxer has problems getting up and ends up falling off, landing on his back with a loud thud. Lissia shakes her head and walks over. She leans a little and cups her hands. With her head she motions for Joxer to come over, “Take Gabrielle’s hand and step into mine,” she orders. He does as told and soon the two women are able to get him up behind Gabrielle. He smiles triumphantly. Lissia looks over to the other horse and sees Ares already mounted, “I wanted to drive this time,” she wines. A chorus of giggles fill the room. She puts a hand on the horses back and pulls herself on with as much grace as possible. She looks around and smiles as Xena and Ares both say, “Show off,” then laugh at each other for saying the same thing. Lissia smiles and snaps her fingers. Xena closes her eyes as a wave of dizziness sweeps over her. She can feel Amarice grip her waist a little tighter and Argo stiffens beneath her.
When Xena opens her eyes, she sees a small market place through the bushes Lissia had landed them in. The market is deserted. “Where is everyone?” She asks, looking at Ares and Lissia. The two Gods are already trotting down a path and she follows with Gabrielle coming up beside her asking, “Who’s temple is that?” She points to a rather large, dark temple near their current location. “Mine,” Lissia shouts back at her. Xena smiles as Gabrielle blushes, “Nice.” A confused look crosses her face as she reads a sign near the door, “No living sacrifices, no enslavement, and no naughty play. Naughty play?” Her answer comes from Ares, “Men like her, a lot.” From behind, they see Lissia jab him in the side and can’t help but laugh. After riding for several minutes, they reach a clearing surrounded by trees. Arranged in a circle is the whole of Athens. At the very center sits Eli. Xena lets out a whistle, trying to get the man’s attention, but all she receives in reply is annoyed glances from the townspeople nearest her. She looks at Gabrielle who shrugs, “Can Argo jump over them?” Xena smiles and passes Ania to her, then urges Amarice to get off the horse. She doubles back the path a ways, then urges Argo into a canter. Argo leaps over the people and trots up to Eli. The man stares up and smiles, “Xena, how wonderful to see you. I was just telling these people about how my God brought you and Gabrielle back to us.” Xena nods, a little impatient, “That’s nice Eli. Look, we need to talk, it’s serious,” she says, offering him her hand. He refuses her hand, but begins to walk towards Gabrielle, who has dismounted and is striding to give her friend a hug. Xena rolls her eyes and brings Argo up beside Amarice. She offers her friend a hand up, then notices that Gabrielle doesn’t have her daughter. She looks around, a little frantic, but is calmed when she sees Ania resting peacefully in her father’s arms. She pulls Argo up beside him and takes Ania from him, strapping her back to her chest in a small sling, “Look, can we get Joxer up behind you Lissia?” The Goddess shakes her head, “He wouldn’t be able to stay on. We’ll have to put him behind you and have Amarice come up behind us.” Xena nods and both Amarice and Lissia dismount. “Why are you getting off?” Amarice asks. Lissia shrugs, “I have to help Joxer get onto Argo,” she answers, then turns to Xena, “Can you give him an arm up with Ania?” The warrior nods and Lissia walks over to where Joxer is standing. Joxer stares up at Xena and takes her hand, then steps into Lissia’s cupped hands. In one fluid motion the two are able to get him up on the horse. Lissia walks up and puts a hand on Eli, “Do you need help getting up?” He smiles at her, but shakes his head, “I’ll walk, Goddess of War.” The girl looks a little taken aback, but shakes her head, “We need to get moving so you will ride behind Gabrielle, that’s final. Now, can you get up on your own or do you need help?” She uses her most commanding voice, but it has little effect on the man. He smiles and places a soft hand on her shoulder, “You are young and pure. You haven’t spilt blood yet. You have much ahead of you. Don’t let your position among the Olympians dictate how you will live. After all, their time is coming to an end or so my God has told me.” Lissia rolls her eyes, “That’s nice, Oh Great One,” she starts sarcastically, “Now, do you need help?” He shakes his head, “I do not.” She stalks away, “That’s all you had to say,” she says, pulling herself up behind Ares, then offering a hand to Amarice. Eli walks over and places a hand on Amarice, “You will ride with myself and Gabrielle. My God may preach the way of love, but these two do not respect that.” Xena quickly reaches over and puts a hand over Ares’ as he goes to draw his sword. He turns to her and she shakes her head then gives his hand a light squeeze. Amarice jerks away and takes Lissia’s hand. In seconds she is behind Lissia holding onto her waist lightly, “I trust them more than I trust you and your God,” she says dryly. Eli shakes his head, “You have so much hatred in you and yet you are so young. You have time to change, Amarice and I feel that one day you will.” Amarice bends down a little from on top of the horse, “Mount up Eli, we are leaving,” she says, threateningly. She straightens and stares down at him, then watches as he takes Gabrielle’s hand and pulls himself up behind her. Xena smiles, “There’s an inn nearby, we’ll get rooms and talk there.” Lissia shakes her head, “My temple here is empty. It has more room and privacy. We would be better off there.” Xena nods, “Alright, then we’ll stay there.” She glances at Eli and sees him shaking his head in disapproval. She doesn’t acknowledge him and takes off after Ares and the two women. As she rides, she hears Gabrielle explaining things to him, mostly things related to Ania.
Lissia leads the way into the temple as an attendant leads the horses into a stable and a priest collects their things from the saddles. Inside, the temple is silver with crimson curtains. Lissia smiles, “Nice, huh?” She then turns to the attendants and priests that are gathered before her, “Your services are not needed, please leave and declare that this temple is off limits to mortals and Gods alike, save for those who are here with me now.” Gabrielle leans over to Xena, “Why aren’t they bowing?” She asks in a whisper. Ares smirks back at her from his place beside Lissia, then says, “Prissy pants doesn’t like it.” Lissia turns and elbows him. He smiles and collapses onto a set of pillows that litter the floor. Xena sits next to him on one side with Lissia on the other. Amarice and Joxer sit next to the Goddess. Gabrielle sits next to Xena and helps her remove the sling that’s holding Ania, who is now hungry. Eli stands above them, “What is going on Xena? Gabrielle explained something about Dahok and my God being one in the same, we both know that can not be so. Dahok is one great evil force, my God is not.” Lissia snorts, “Yeah, well, listen here, your God almost killed me when Ares and I tried to bring Xena back. He was so dark and evil that it almost killed me. I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t sound very loving to me,” she says more sarcastically than necessary. Eli shakes his head, “You are mistaken. But if my God were to attack it would be to save those true of heart from being destroyed.” Lissia’s eyes blaze and she begins to say something incredibly crude, when Xena’s laughter stops her. They all turn to stare at Xena who’s laughter is growing by the second. She explains, “Eli, your God was keeping them away from me. I am not true of heart, as far as your God is concerned, and they were not threatening me in any way, even if their techniques were a little on the odd side.” Gabrielle buts into the conversation, “Eli, what do you know about a child of light?” His face brightens, “Yes, the child of light, the one that will help my God come into this world. The child will be born to a woman and while the birth is still in process, the moon will be covered by an unexplainable darkness and that darkness will welcome the child to the world. For the child shall bring light to the dark places of the world. I am now trying to find the woman that shall carry the child. It is my duty to find a pure vessel for the child to come from.” His eyes linger on Lissia for a moment and she holds her hands up, “Don’t even think about it. I might be pure, as you would call it, but I’m not bearing some full God demon child, no thank you. You just need to keep on looking,” she says, uncomfortable under his gaze. Ares puts an arm around her, “How will the child bring your God into this world?” Eli smiles, “Through love, War God. It seems that his gift has washed over you already.” Ares look irritated, “Look, there are two women in my life and two, sorry three that I love and they are all sitting next to me. And it’s not a new development so your God isn’t going to be taking any credit for this.” Xena and Lissia both smile lightly. Eli turns to Xena, “Let me see your child.” Xena begins to hand Ania to him when Ares puts a hand on her arm. Eli turns to him, “I won’t harm the child. I am unlike the Olympian Gods.” Xena shakes Ares’ hand off and gives Ania to Eli, who cradles the child. She sees the irritation coming from both of the Gods and smiles reassuringly. “She’s a beautiful child,” Eli says handing Xena the baby, “With my God in rule, she will have a wonderful life.” “With only half a family,” Xena snaps at him. Eli looks taken aback and remains silent. Xena shakes her head, “We aren’t getting anywhere with this senseless arguing, we need to work together to find the truth.” Joxer pipes up, “Well, if Lissia has talked to this God before then why can’t she simply give him a call back and put you and Eli on the line with him?” Xena glares at him, then smiles, “You know something Joxer, that’s not a bad idea,” she says, then turns to Lissia and Ares, “Can you?” Ares shakes his head, “Too risky, Dahok will kill you all and anyone connected to you.” Lissia rolls her eyes, “I’ll do it, Xena.” Ares glares at her, “You just can’t listen to reason, can you?” When she shakes her head, he looks back at Xena, “Alright, let’s get this show on the road.” Gabrielle leans over and takes Ania from Xena, then moves out of the circle, motioning for Joxer and Amarice to do the same. Xena nods at them and Eli moves closer to close the circle. Lissia holds out her hands and Ares and Eli grab them, then extend theirs to Xena. Xena takes their hands, “What should we do?” Lissia and Ares turn to her, glaring a little, “Be quite,” they say a little too roughly. She smiles and nods, then glares at Eli, warning him not to say a word.
Minutes later, the floor beneath them disappears and they are flouting through a dark area with a large, blazing fire in the center of it. “Dahok,” Xena whispers. She strides closer to the fire and gets pushed back by it. Before she falls to the floor, Ares reaches out and grabs her, “Careful,” he says quietly. She smiles up at him and nods. Eli stares at the blazing fire, “Oh Pure One?” He asks, unsure of himself. A deep voice comes from the fire, “Yes, my servant, it is I. Have you found the vessel for my child yet?” Eli lowers his head, “No, My Lord. The earth has very few pure ones in it.” A deep laughter shakes the room, “Yet you are able to bring one pure to me. Eli, you have done very well, better than I thought you would.” Lissia grabs her sword and points it ahead of her, but it’s to no avail, it is flung from her grip and is heard clinking onto stone in the far distance. Xena and Ares move to stand in front of her. “Oh no you don’t Dahok,” Xena says, then smiles, “That’s right, I know who you are. So, Hope didn’t work out for you and now you’re going to try with a child of the light. And you’re using Eli to do it. That’s quite pathetic. At least Kraftstar wasn’t disillusioned.” More laughter is heard, “So, you know who I am. Tell me, how did you find out? It doesn’t matter, even if you tell everyone who I am, I will still win. My child will enter your world and clear the way for me to follow.” Lissia speaks up, “Your child will never be born. And you are going to die.” She smiles and rain falls from the sky, but the fire only blazes higher. The floor shakes beneath them and they all grab onto each other for support, “I am an immortal, little Olympian. I am a God. You can not get rid of the great Dahok with a little rain. It will only make me stronger. But by all means, continue to get angry and scared, it enriches my blood to feel it.” Xena smiles, “Hey Dahok, I’m not mad or afraid, tell me, does that weaken you?” There’s more laughter, then a reply, “No, Xena. It doesn’t weaken me. You must remember I was using love to find followers. But love doesn’t feed me either. Do you want to know what feeds me, Warrior Princess? It’s life. I feed on life.” As more laughter comes from the fire, Xena lets her shoulders sink a little. She turns to look at Ares and gives him a meaningful look and he nods. A dagger appears in front of him and she grabs it from the air, ready to fling it at the fire, but Eli is in her way. He is speaking to the fire, betrayal in his voice, “Dahok, you are not a Pure God, you have lied to me, but by doing so, you have helped me find a better way to live. For that I thank you and will always hold you in a special place of remembrance, but I can not let you enter our world. I am sorry, My Lord.” He moves to the side and Xena sends the dagger flying into the flames. It hits the center and the flame begins to extinguish before their eyes. “How?” A voice asks, now weak and small. From behind Xena, Ares answers, “Hind’s Blood, Dahok. The only thing that can kill a God.” There is silence and darkness fills the whole area. Ares lights a torch quickly and they see Eli kneeling where the fire had been. The man is speaking softly, then only above a whisper, he says, “I wish it had never come to this. Rest in peace.” Xena walks up behind him an puts a hand on his shoulder, “Come on Eli, let’s go home.” He nods and follows her back to the two Gods. He looks up at them, “I am sorry for the way I have treated you, I was wrong. Thank you for all that you have done. You are truly loving beings.” Ares and Lissia, a little uncomfortable nod at the man, then extend their hands. They all join hands and a bright light encompasses them.
When Xena opens her eyes, she is laying on the hard, cold floor of Lissia’s temple. She sighs dramatically and stands up. Joxer runs over to Lissia and hands her a sword. She takes it and smiles, “Thank you Joxer,” she says quietly. They all stand up and brush themselves up, except for Eli, who remains sitting on the floor, in shock. Gabrielle hands Ania to Xena, then rushes over and kneels in front of Eli, “Are you alright?” He slowly nods, “Yes Gabrielle, I am alright. I just thought that I had truly found something wonderful when in fact I had found a great evil.” Gabrielle nods at him, “That is how Dahok operates. What are you going to do now?” Eli smiles, “I am going back to India. Would you all to accompany me there?” He glances around at everyone, then lets his eyes settle on the bundle in Xena’s arms. He lowers his head, “Nevermind, I am sure that Ania doesn’t need that much traveling so soon in her little life.” Gabrielle looks disappointed, but hides it fast. “Gabrielle,” Xena says gently, “You can go with him. I’ll be fine. Anyway, I think we need some time to get used to all of this,” she says, motioning to Ares and Lissia. Gabrielle looks curious, then blushes in understanding when Xena winks at her, “Oh, alright, Xena. If you’re sure, that is? I see, you are. I won’t be gone long, just long enough to get Eli settled in.” She glances over at Joxer and Amarice, “You two coming or what?” Joxer smiles and nods his head, quickly walking over to stand next to Gabrielle. Amarice stares at them, then looks back at Xena, who shrugs. Amarice shakes her head, “I think I’ll stay here and keep Lissia company. We wouldn’t want her to be left all alone, now would we?” She asks sarcastically, glancing at Xena and Ares. Laughter fills the room, then the good-byes begin. Xena clasps hands with Eli and Joxer, then gives Gabrielle a tight hug, “Be careful and come back in one piece,” she whispers. Gabrielle nods against her, “No surprises when I get back, alright?” Xena moves away from her laughing and Gabrielle kisses Ania on the forehead. Amarice has found herself in a tight embrace with Joxer and finally is able to wiggle out of it with a laugh. She hugs Gabrielle lightly. Gabrielle turns to face the two Gods. She laughs seeing that Joxer has shaken hands with Ares and is now hugging Lissia. A little uncomfortable, she extends her hand to Ares. He takes it gently, “Make sure you come back to us, alright?” She nods, “Make sure you don’t get my friend pregnant again.” They both laugh and look over at Xena, who’s smiling and rolling her eyes. Lissia walks over and throws her arms around Gabrielle, “If you need anything, just call. Do you want me to take you to India?” Gabrielle pulls out of the embrace, “No, that’s quite alright.” Gabrielle, Eli, and Joxer walk out of the temple with packs on their shoulders, content in walking to the next town where they can buy passage to India. Xena smiles after them, then turns to look at the others. Lissia reaches out and takes Amarice by the hand, “We’ll let you two talk. See you on Olympus,” she says, disappearing.
Ania whimpers a little and Xena begins to rock her gently. An uncomfortable silence falls over the room. Finally, Ares asks, “So, you’re going to stay with us?” Xena nods silently. “Why?” He asks. She smiles at him, “Ania needs a family. And I can do more good with two Gods acting as my transportation. Anyways, I’ve kind of missed you two. So, I’ll stay if you promise to be nice. I know war is your job, but I think you can do your job without pointless fighting and death.” He laughs, “Is that all?” She nods and finds herself swept into his arms. “Done,” he whispers before kissing her passionately. They disappear and arrive in his room on Olympus, laying on the bed. They break the embrace and cuddle up with Ania lying between them, sound asleep. Within moments they have joined their daughter in the land of dreams.
-End
There is silence around the campfire that night. Finally, Amarice reasks her question, “Xena, who is Lissia?” Xena stares into the fire, as she speaks, her voice remains emotionless, “The new Goddess of War, as it turns out.” Gabrielle gives her a curious look, “Does that mean that something happened to Ares?” She questions. Xena doesn’t reply and this angers the bard, “Well,” she prompts. Xena shakes her head, “I don’t think so.” Gabrielle nods and won’t say anything else, for Xena’s mood is saying that she is not in the mood. Amarice picks up on this also and decides to leave the rest of her questions for tomorrow. Joxer, on the end of the spectrum, doesn’t notice a thing, “Xena, you seemed close to her. Come on, who is she? Really?” He stresses the last word. Xena sighs and hardly hears herself answer his question, “A friend, a very good friend from a long time ago. When I returned to Greece and after I had given birth to Solon, I went right on with my campaign against all of Greece. I also went back to Ares, or more precisely, I continued with Ares. There were times when him and I were very close. One day he arrived in my tent with a girl standing next to him. “She’s my cousin,” he explained quickly, before I got the wrong idea. I looked her over, she was simple with red hair and a black silk dress. But a powerful aura rested around her. I was used to the aura of Gods, after all I spent a lot of...personal time with Ares, but something wasn’t right with her. She wasn’t like him, she was stronger and more human. “She lived with mortals,” he explained, leading her to sit on my bed. I sat next to her and she immediately cuddled into my chest, crying fiercely. I was bewildered. Ares continued, “She just lost her mortal family, including a daughter. We only discovered her because her powers decided to show up in her grief. She can’t control them. Zeus wants her destroyed, killed, wiped out, I can’t let that happen. She’s different, she’s special. He’s agreed to let me take care of her, take her under my wing, if you will. I can’t do this alone.” With that, it began. Ares and I worked together to mentor the girl. We taught her how to fight and how to kill. In return she taught us the beauty of pure love. She never took to killing, she would defend herself, she would injure, but she would never kill. Neither of us understood it, but we respected it because of the purity of her soul. She was like a daughter to us. The scary thing was, we were like a family for awhile. Then I went on a campaign against Hercules and well, the rest is history. I haven’t seen Lissia sense, well, several days before I went about seducing Iolous.” Joxer, Amarice, and Gabrielle stare at Xena. Gabrielle moves to put an arm around Xena’s shoulders as a single tear creeps down the woman’s face. “Xena, that’s amazing,” she breaths. Uncomfortable with all the emotion, Amarice asks two more questions, “So how did someone so pure become the Goddess of War? And why was she so special?” Xena smiles, “She embraced mortals, that’s why she’s so strong. She doesn’t have the heart of a God, her heart is full of love and understanding and yearning for a world that involves violence, but only as a necessary evil. Lissia is stronger than all of the God’s of Olympus because of her heart. I don’t know why she was made into the Goddess of War, honestly I’m more interested in what she knows about my pregnancy.” They all sit silently, then gradually one by one they turn in for the night.
Xena walks out of their camp, early in the morning. She walks to a lake and removes her clothes before wading into it. A smile creeps across her face, “I guess this means you forgive me?” She asks the wind. A whoosh is heard behind her and as she turns, water flies into her face. Laughter is heard, “Now I have,” Lissia says, falling to her knees in the water. Xena smiles and splashes her back, then sits down next to her. The water comes up to their chins and is rather warm considering how cold it got the night before. Xena looks over at the girl, “I didn’t mean it that way, you know that, right?” The girl nods, “I know. But, just like everyone else, you don’t think I can handle it. I don’t think Ares thinks I can and he’s the one who gave the title to me. I’m a full Goddess now, with my title and all. I even have a temple and a few worshippers.” Xena laughs lightly, then seriously says, “I never thought war was right for you. You were always so pure and innocent.” Lissia snorts, “I watched my family burn to death. My daughter died in my hands. I was never pure and innocent after that.” Xena puts a comforting hand on the girl’s shoulder, “You can do this, Lissia, I believe in you, I always have.” They hug for a minute, then Xena pulls away, “So, as the Goddess of War, what do you do? Other than surprise old friends with sneak visits?” The girl laughs, “Ares and I work together. He’s changed lately. I think he’s sick. The wars aren’t pointless blood bathes anymore. They always serve a purpose, and not just his purpose, but a real purpose, like one for the Greater Good. But, people have been turning away from us Olympians, they’re following a man named Eli. All of Olympus is preparing to come down on his head, me included.” The mention of her friend Eli snaps Xena’s head up, “Eli won’t hurt a single thing. He’s harmless. Why does Olympus view him as a threat?” Lissia gives her an obvious look and replies, “Xena, he preaches about one God and he has the power of a God, himself. He brought you back from the dead, which is something that Ares and I weren’t.. Uh-oh.” “What?” Xena asks, slightly irritated. Lissia gives in, “When the Roman’s killed you and Gabrielle, Ares and I tried to bring you two back, but we couldn’t. We were strong enough, but something was stopping us, something dark, Xena, very dark. Dark enough to put me in a coma for several days when I touched it with my mind.” Xena gasps, “Why were you two trying to bring Gabrielle and I back from the dead?” Lissia sighs, “We love you Xena,” she says simply. Xena rolls her eyes, “You I believe, him I don’t. And I don’t want to either so don’t start with whatever it is your about to say.” Lissia looks discouraged, “You and Ares have a bond that runs thicker than the river Styx. I know it, he knows it, and deep down you know it too.” “It’s not love,” Xena says, confidence in her voice. Lissia smiles, seeing a twinkle of unsurity in Xena’s eye, “Alright Xena, if that’s how you want it. Look, I’ll be back later. I’m being called on to bless some moron who’s about to kill a baby in my name. Toodles,” she says, disappearing with an annoyed glare. Xena shakes her head and moves into deeper water.
Amarice wakes up and glances around the camp. Joxer and Gabrielle are both asleep, the horses are grazing nearby and Xena’s gone along with her weapons. But, it wasn’t the lack of Xena’s presence that woke her up, it was an odd feeling of being watched. She stares at each section of the camp, then searches the perimeter. Finding nothing, she sighs and sits down, “You’re losing it,” she breathes. The trees around her shake as if laughing at her and she stares at them. She hears a whoosh and turns, sword in hand to threaten whichever God just showed up. Her cool look falters when she sees Ares leaning on a tree, but she recovers it quickly. She throws a dagger at him and he catches it easily, letting it drop from his hand, “You’ve spent too much time with Xena, little girl.” Amarice growls at him, “What do you want, Ares?” He laughs, “Not you, that’s for sure. No, actually I was looking for someone, a girl, short, about Gabrielle’s height really, red hair, big attitude, seen her?” Amarice nods slowly, “You’re talking about Lissia. Yes, I saw her yesterday.” Ares scowls, “Yesterday? I know you saw her yesterday, but I’m not talking about yesterday, now am I? No, I’m talking about today.” He takes a threatening step towards her and she stands defiant under his gaze. He stares down at her and she matches the stare, until finally she breaks away and moves to restart the fire. He stands above her, a smug look on his face, “Where’s Xena?” Amarice shrugs, “Not here and obviously not with you.” His lip curls up and he raises a hand to slap the girl down, then seeing no fear in her gaze, he stops and shakes his head, “You really have been spending too much time with Xena. She has rubbed off on you,” he says, strolling into the forest in the direction of the lake. Amarice stares after him, slightly confused by this confrontation with the God of War.
Xena slips out of the water and wraps a light blanket around her body and squeezes her hair until most of the extra water has fallen from it. She shakes it out and fingers her bangs so that they will dry nice and full. She sits on a rock, quite content to sit in the sun for awhile. Absently, her hand rests on her stomach, half expecting to feel life there. A blissful smile graces her face, then disappears, “If you’re going to sneak up on me the mortal way, don’t step on twigs,” she says, irritation in her tone. Ares comes up and sits next to her, “I wasn’t sneaking up on you. Look, Lissia disappeared this morning. She came home last night in a very bad mood, she wouldn’t tell me anything and now she’s gone. I thought maybe she would have come to you, have you seen her?” Xena laughs, “She’s a big girl now, she can take care of herself. And from what I’ve heard, she’s no longer under your wing, so why do you care?” He grabs her shoulder and turns her to face him, “I have to protect her.” She raises an eyebrow at him, “Why? Because she’s weak? Because you trained her? Or maybe, is it because you love her?” He looks away and Xena nods, smiling, “She was just here. She said something about a follower and a sacrifice. She’s fine and will be back soon. You don’t need to worry about her so much.” He sighs, “Yeah, well, with this Eli thing going on, I can’t help but worry. Who knows what could happen to her.” Anger and confusion spread across Xena’s face, “Eli isn’t going to hurt anyone, you of all people should know that.” Ares laughs, “Do you remember the last time a man talked about an all powerful God?” Xena gasps, “Dahok? But, Eli doesn’t have anything to do with Dahok,” she says, sure of herself and trusting her friend to have good judgement. Ares sighs, “Lissia had an encounter with Eli’s God and I almost lost her. I’ve never told her how close to death she was, but she was very close. She wasn’t threatening this God in any way, she was trying to talk to it. It attacked her and almost killed her. Now, I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t sound very loving to me,” he says sarcastically. “She told me she was in a coma for a few days and that there was a dark force, but she didn’t tell me all that. She almost died because of my death. I never realized that she was willing to sacrifice herself for me, at least not after all of this time.” Ares looks at her curiously, then shakes his head, “Xena, she loves you, what else would you expect? She couldn’t just give up on you.” Xena smiles, “From what I’ve been hearing, she wasn’t the only one,” she shoots at him with an evil grin and a twinkle in her eye. His jaw drops, then he recovers, “Yeah, well, I like to watch you work,” he says arrogantly. Xena raises an eyebrow, “I bet,” she says, throwing her wet blanket over him and getting dressed. He removes the blanket in time to watch her strut away from him, back to camp. He sighs and disappears.
Xena strolls into camp and smiles at the sleeping form of Gabrielle. Amarice sits by the fire, with Joxer nearby. A horrible smell fills the air. “By the Gods, what are you two doing?” Xena asks as she sits down opposite them by the fire. Amarice blushes, “I can’t cook, alright?” Xena laughs, “That’s why you’re supposed to wake Gabrielle up.” She walks over and gently shakes her friend, “They’re ruining the food,” she says. Gabrielle turns over and stares up at Xena, “You’re dripping on me,” she says, standing up slowly and stumbling over to the fire. She shivers slightly then sits by the fire and looks at the burnt fish and sighs, “Do we have anymore fish?” Joxer nods, happy with himself, “I got five more!” Gabrielle smiles and nods, “Good, you three start skinning, I’m going to go take care of business,” she says, walking out of the camp, grabbing her sais on the way. Xena watches her go and smiles to herself, then turns to the others, “Toss me a fish,” she says, grabbing a dagger from the side of her boot. Joxer hands her a fish and she begins to skin it. Amarice and Joxer do likewise. Suddenly Amarice bursts into laughter and Xena shoots her an annoyed glance. “What?” The warrior asks her laughing comrade. Amarice straightens up, “I’m sorry, Xena, I didn’t mean to laugh at you, but you’re already showing.” Xena looks down at her stomach and can’t help but stare. It pokes out a little, but when she sits up straight, it’s barely noticeable. She wrinkles her brow in irritation, then motions to Amarice, “Come here and loosen the back of my tunic.” Amarice suppresses a giggle and does as told after wiping her hands on Joker’s pants to get rid of the fish parts. Gabrielle walks into camp, carrying a collection of berries. She spots Amarice and Xena and asks, “What’s going on? Did another bug go down your tunic, Xena?” Xena shoots her an evil look and Gabrielle laughs as she sits down and begins to cook the fish. Joxer smiles at her, “Xena’s showing,” he says quietly. Gabrielle’s head shoots up to stare at her friend’s stomach. She smiles, “Yes she is, but only barely.” They cook and eat in silence, each pondering the baby issue.
Xena begins to pack up their stuff, then stops and looks at the others. They are still eating and looking a little rugged. She sighs, “We’ll stay here until noon. You guys need to freshen up a bit. Amarice, Gabrielle, the lake’s real nice. Joxer there’s a nearby stream that should be perfect for one.” Joxer, disappointed, grumbles and heads to the stream, “I’ll get some more berries while I’m out there. They’ll be nice on the road.” Gabrielle smiles after him, “I think he wanted to bathe with us girls.” Amarice looks disgusted, “No, he wanted to bathe with you, alone, with Xena and me nowhere near.” Gabrielle’s cheeks redden and Xena stares at the girl, surprised by her boldness. Amarice raises an eyebrow, cocks her head sideways and walks to the lake without looking back. Gabrielle stares after her, “I don’t always understand her.” Xena smiles, “I do. She reminds me of.. well.. me.” Gabrielle laughs, “I’ll be back soon, don’t forget about us,” she says playfully. Xena rolls her eyes, “Oh how could I?” They laugh and Gabrielle waves as she walks to the lake. Xena stares at the empty camp and it suddenly seems unnaturally cold. She grabs a fur and wraps it around her shoulders, unsure of why she’s cold. She sits down by the fire and pokes at it until it blazes into the sky. “Dahok?” She whispers quietly. She places a hand on her stomach in a form of protection and shakes her head, “It can’t be, can it?” She questions herself. Confused and irritated, she cuddles under the blanket more and runs her hand over her stomach several times. She reaches into her saddlebag and pulls out a little stuffed bear. She smiles at it and holds it to her stomach, oddly thinking that the baby will appreciate it.
Xena sits in the camp for quite awhile, silently thinking about her child and Eli. There’s a flash behind her and she doesn’t respond. Lissia sits next to her, “The man didn’t get to sacrifice the baby, his knife sort of slipped and it landed in his foot.” Xena doesn’t respond, “Hey, are you okay?” Xena snaps out of it and looks over at the Goddess, “Yeah, I’m fine,” she says, not sounding convincing in the least. She shakes her head, “No, I’m not alright. Lissia, do you think that Eli’s God could be Dahok?” Slowly, Lissia nods, “You’ve been talking with Ares, haven’t you?” Not waiting for a response from Xena, she continues, “Xena, it was the darkest thing I’ve ever touched. I never got involved with Dahok the first time, at least not much, so I don’t know what his presence feels like. But, this presence was pure evil and it was Eli’s God. He was preventing us from getting to you. He wants your full trust to be in Eli, he’s depending on it. And he wants you to side against us, against the Olympians. Isn’t that what Dahok always wanted? Dahok wanted the Olympians gone, obliterated. Ares and I think he’s trying again, only this time, he’s being smart about it.” Lissia rests a hand on Xena’s stomach, then with regret in her voice, she says, “Xena, this child could be the spawn of Dahok.” Xena’s eyes go wide, “No,” she snaps, “No, I would feel that.” Lissia lets her head drop, “Xena, you have to take it into consideration. Listen, I have an idea, it won’t be easy, but I can find out what’s inside of you.” Xena’s eyes flash angrily, “I know what’s inside of me,” she says, jerking away from Lissia. The girl, sorrow in her eyes, watches Xena get up and pace the camp, “Xena, you know I’m right. You know that we have to be sure.” Xena looks down at her, then sits next to her, “What’s your idea?” Lissia smiles lightly, “We can run a scan over you. I’ll recognize that darkness if I feel it again, no matter what amount there is of it. And Ares will recognize anything else.” Xena shakes her head, “You, fine. Him, no. Does he know?” She asks, fear suddenly coursing through her veins. Lissia shakes her head, “No, at least I don’t think he does.” She shrugs a little and Xena gives her a worried look. Xena glances around, making sure that the other’s aren’t on their way back yet, “Do it,” she orders. Lissia backs away, “I can’t do it on my own. I need help channeling things properly.” Xena grabs her hand, “I trust you.” Lissia gulps in the air and nods, “Alright. Clear your mind and don’t move. I’ll be careful,” she says, then quietly adds, “Ares is going to kill me when he finds out about this.” Lissia stares at Xena’s stomach and places a hand over it, moving it around until she finds the baby’s exact location. With a look of severe concentration, she focuses all of her attention on the baby’s essence.
Gabrielle and Amarice return to camp, smiling and laughing, gently shoving each other in a playful manner. They turn to look at the fire and stop dead in their tracks. On the ground, near the fire, rests Xena and Lissia, both unconscious. Gabrielle rushes over to Xena and props her head up. Amarice runs to the saddlebags and grabs a flask of water. She urges the liquid into Xena’s mouth, then splashes it over the woman’s face. Xena’s eyes flash open and Amarice turns to the unconscious Goddess and splashes her face with water. The girl doesn’t move. Gabrielle helps Xena into a sitting position, “What happened?” Xena shakes her head, then holds it in her hands until the ground remains in one place, “By the Gods, what a headache.” She slowly turns to look at Lissia. “Amarice, bring her over here.” Amarice does as she’s told and places the girl’s head in Xena’s lap. Xena gently slaps her cheeks, then splashes more water on them, getting frustrated she slaps the girl hard. Lissia’s eyes shoot open and she sits up bolt straight, gasping for air. She looks at Xena and shakes her head, then holds it in her hands, experiencing the same disorientation as Xena. She smiles, “We should have gotten Ares to help. That wasn’t pleasant.” Xena smiles, “Did it work?” The girl nods slowly, “Yes and no. It’s nothing dark, it’s a pure vessel of goodness, yet I sense something evil in it. Not a part of it exactly, but just something there. And it wasn’t you, I think it was him,” she says, stressing the last word and giving Xena a serious look. Xena nods. Gabrielle looks from one to the other, “What is going on?” Lissia smiles and when Xena nods, she begins, “Ares and I believe that Eli’s God is Dahok trying to get back into our world to destroy the Olympians. I checked Xena’s baby, I didn’t want what happened to you, to happen to her. The baby is a pure vessel of innocence and goodness, there is nothing dark except for this little tingle. I think it’s Dahok’s mark on the child. It was prophesied long ago that there would be a child of the dark and a child of the light, both coming from the same father. It was said that these children would balance each other out. It also said, that either one could bring Dahok into this world, only they would go about it in different ways. One would use violence and try to rid the world of the Olympian Gods by killing them. The other, would use love and turn the people from the Olympians. Without followers, we can’t exist, well, we can, but not as Gods, we won’t be in one realm or the other, but stuck between realms. I believe Xena’s child is the latter of the two.” Gabrielle sits dumbstruck and Amarice stares in shock. From the edge of camp, they hear Joxer let out a sigh, “Wow,” he says quietly. “No,” they hear from behind them. Before they can turn around there’s a whoosh and they know that they will find no one there. Lissia looks around guiltily, “I’m going to have a lot of explaining to do.” Xena shakes her head, “No, let me handle him, I’m better at it than you.” Xena begins to stand up, but falls back on her butt with a thud. “Alright, I’ll deal with it later, when I can move again.” Lissia looks her over, then stands up, “He’s not going to be happy. I’ll get your friend’s out of here, I’ll take the horses too for that matter. Do you want me to stick around, just in case?” Xena shakes her head, “I can handle him just fine.” A mischievous look crosses Lissia’s face, “I know you can, Xena. You forget about the things I’ve walked in on.” Xena’s face goes red as her friends turn to look at her. She shrugs, “Like I said we were close and well, personal with one another. What did you think I meant?” Gabrielle looks away, a little uncomfortable, “Oh, well, uh, are we leaving?” She asks the Goddess. Lissia smiles and waves a hand over them. They disappear and she turns to Xena, “They’ll be with me, on Olympus so don’t send Ares back in a bad mood. If you need me, just call.” Xena nods and the girl disappears, a concerned look on her face.
Xena sighs and tries to stand again, but gives up and lets her back rest against the log that she had been sitting on earlier. She grabs the stuffed bear and smiles at it before setting it on top of her saddle bag. She lets her muscles relax a little, then pulls the blanket up around her shoulders again. She glances around the camp and watches the trees sway with the wind. She sighs deeply, “Ares,” she calls, an edge of emotion in her voice. When he doesn’t appear after a few minutes, she calls again, this time a little irritated. “Alright, you want to play like that, fine, I can play too,” she says to herself. She grabs her Chakram and holds it’s edge to her wrist, then runs it up her arm, letting it stop at her elbow. Pain sears through her body as blood pours from the wound. Her voice falters when she tries to say his name for a third time, but it doesn’t matter, it had worked, he was standing above her, shaking his head. She gives him a defiant smile or maybe it was grateful, she wasn’t all that sure. He waves his hand over her arm and it’s healed. She smiles at it and flexes the arm, making sure it was in perfect order. “It’s about time,” she says lightly, setting her Chakram on the ground by her bag. He turns from her and begins to stride away, but she reaches out and catches his arm. A wave of nausea washes over her from the sudden movement and she quickly lets herself fall back onto the ground with a loud thud and a small groan. He kneels next to her, “Still sick from Lissia’s little experiment, huh? Yeah, well, you two shouldn’t have tackled it on your own. I’m going to have a long talk with her about that,” he says, starting to stand up. Xena reaches out and grabs his arm, forcing him to stay put, “It’s my own fault. Don’t blame her.” He shakes his head, “You can’t cover for her this time. She’s a full Goddess now with responsibilities, she should have known better.” Xena laughs, “She did know better. She knew better than to cross me and get you involved when I was strictly saying no. Face it, I inspire more fear in her than you ever will.” He laughs, “Yeah, big surprise.” He sits next to her and they remain silent for a long time. Finally Xena breaks the silence, “You’re going to kill Eli and my baby, aren’t you?” She had meant for it to be a statement, but he took it as a question. “Eli, maybe. I can’t kill your child though, I can’t kill a child. Prophesies don’t always come true, maybe we can prevent this one. Let me check over what Lissia did, let me see if she missed anything, maybe it’s not Dahok, maybe it’s something else.” Xena shakes her head, then groans at the pain it causes, “No, I trust Lissia. She knows what she felt.” Ares shakes his head, “She was unsure about that darkness. I’ve done this before and in all honesty, all children, all normal children that is, give off the aura of pure innocence and goodness. That’s what babies are. That darkness could be Dahok’s mark, it could be yours, or it could be something else.” “You mean someone else,” Xena says pointedly. He concedes to her point and she looks him over curiously, “What do you know that I don’t know?” Shock registers in his eyes, “Nothing yet.” She gives him her famous look, but he doesn’t falter under it, “Fine, keep your secrets. Go ahead, scan my baby or whatever, but if you hurt my child I will kill you and if you make this headache any worse, you will regret it.” He smiles at the last part, then notices that she is serious and nods. He places a hand on her stomach and she flinches at his touch. He stares into her eyes, “Don’t do that,” he says, then begins to move his hands over her stomach, trying to find the baby. The baby’s presence is obvious to him and he locks onto it. He stretches his senses over it, takes a clear look at things, and smiles. He jerks away as something kicks the palm of his hand. He opens his eyes and looks up at Xena, his brow knitted together in question. Xena smiles, “It kicked,” she says, moving her hand over her stomach, then jerking away when she notices his hand still resting there. “She,” he corrects, “Not it, but she.” Xena smiles at him a little, “A girl,” she says quietly. Suddenly feeling uncomfortable, he removes his hand from her stomach and stands up. She stares up at him and tries to rise, but finds that she can’t quite get to her feet, “Well,” she prompts. He sighs, “It has nothing to do with Dahok, not this time, not this one. But Eli and his evil God are still a threat to us, whether his God is Dahok or not. Your daughter is fine and that bit of darkness would be a mixture of her parents’ darker sides. Congratulations, you’re going to have a normal, well slightly abnormal daughter.” Xena looks down at her stomach, “What do you mean?” She asks. When there’s no reply, she looks up to find him gone. She sighs, “Oh well, I’ll get answers soon enough. Maybe a trip to Delphi is in order, or maybe I should get Lissia to talk a bit more.” She sighs realizing that she is talking to herself. She rests against the log and absently runs her fingers over her belly.
Up on Olympus, Lissia hears her name and immediately appears at Xena’s side. Or more precisely, brings Xena to her side. “Welcome to my place,” Lissia says, motioning to her bedroom. Xena looks around, then sighs and lets her back rest on a bunch of pillows, “I didn’t ask to be brought here.” Lissia laughs at her, “Yeah well, your back was asking for it. I brought your stuff and put out the fire, don’t worry, I know what to do.” Xena smiles and sits up, amazed that her head no longer hurts, “It’s not from Dahok and it is a she,” Xena says quietly. Lissia smiles, “Ares didn’t trust my work, huh? Oh well, neither did I. I kind of passed out before I was finished.” Xena smiles at her, then looks at her stomach. She is showing a little bit more, looking like she’s about five months along. She hears Lissia snap her fingers then smiles when her leather is replaced by loose pants and a shirt that hangs to her knees, “Thank you,” she breathes. Lissia smiles, “I didn’t want you to stretch out that leather. Come on, get up, the others will want to know that you are alright.” Xena stands and heads to the door, but Lissia stops her from opening it, “Um, Xena, before you go out there, I need to tell you something.” Xena shakes her head, “I know where I am Lissia. I’m in Ares’ palace, I could feel it the second I arrived. I thought you would have moved out by now though.” Lissia smiles, “Did you two leave off on good terms?” Xena shrugs, “I don’t know. He seemed a little distant, upset almost. He disappeared pretty fast, so I guess we left off on good terms.” Lissia smiles, unsure of the situation, “Alright well, if he puts me in the dog house, I blame you.” Xena laughs and follows Lissia out of the room and into a large main room.
Gabrielle jumps up and runs to Xena, “Are you alright?” Xena nods, “We’re fine, Gabrielle, just fine.” Xena sits in a chair and gives Amarice a questioning look. The girl shifts under her gaze, then says, “Ares was just here. He wasn’t very happy to see us here. He walked away muttering something about privacy and silly girls.” Xena smiles, “Don’t worry, he’ll be back.” Amarice stares at her, “That isn’t even funny.” Joxer walks up behind Xena and places a plate in front of her. Xena stares at the food, “Who cooked?” She asks. Lissia walks over, “My cooks did, well they aren’t mine, they’re Ares’ cooks, but they’re good, I promise.” Xena smiles, “I know,” she says, taking a nice sized bite out of a piece of quail. She reaches for a mug of ale but gets her hand slapped by four different people. She grabs a cup of water and mutters into it. Amarice laughs and has to leave the room to steady herself. After a few seconds she returns with a none too happy look on her face. Xena gives her a questioning look, then catches a glimpse of Ares walking, no, stalking in behind her. He spots Xena and turns around, meaning to leave the room. Xena had other ideas, she flipped over the chair then ran and flipped over his head, landing in front of him, “Stop walking away from me when I’m trying to talk to you,” she orders. He looks her over, then lets his eyes land on her stomach, “I have to go,” he says, trying to walk past her. She puts a hand on his shoulder, pushing him into the room and making sure that he wasn’t going anywhere without taking her with him. She smiles triumphantly, “Now, why does this make you so uncomfortable?” She asks, pointing at her stomach. Lissia raises her hand in the air and jumps around, “Pick me, I know.” Xena raises an eyebrow and notices the murdering glance Ares is shooting towards the girl. Lissia doesn’t seem fazed in the least, “He’s uncomfortable because you’re stunning when you’re pregnant. You have this glow around you and he can’t handle it.” Ares sighs and Xena stares at him, “That’s not it, is it?” She asks him. New tension rises in his eyes and he begins to move around her, trying to stalk out of the room. Amarice walks over and puts a hand on his shoulder, “What’s going on?” He jerks away from the girl and moves Xena aside so that he can disappear. Xena reaches out to grab him, but he’s already gone. She looks over at Lissia who points down the hall, “You know where to find him.” Xena nods, grabs her quail and heads out of the room. Gabrielle and Amarice watch her go with worried looks. Lissia smiles, “Don’t worry, he won’t hurt her, he loves her too much.” Both women turn to stare at her and Joxer spits out a piece of quail, “What?” They shout. She smiles and nods, then walks out the door, making a sharp left towards her own room. Gabrielle, Amarice, and Joxer remain in utter shock and disbelief which quickly turns to total belief and disgust. Joxer sets it aside and finishes his meal. Gabrielle and Amarice, on the other hand, can’t quite seem to digest this new development.
Xena stops in front of a large black door and turns the handle. She smiles when it silently opens under her touch. She enters the room and sees Ares standing by a large window, his back towards her. She closes the door and gives it an irritated glance when it creaks. She looks back at Ares, his back is still towards her. He’s shaking his head, “I thought you were going to consult me before doing anything stupid from now on. I thought you learned your lesson three years ago when you turned that poor man into a horse.” Xena laughs quietly, “Sorry,” she says. He whips around to stare first at her, then at the door, then back at her, “Xena,” he finally says. She nods, “Did I disappoint you? It sounded like you were hoping for someone else. Lissia, maybe?” He nods, then turns back to the window, “Is there something wrong? Or were you thinking that I would take you back to the mortal plane?” Xena walks up next to him, keeping her distance, “There’s something wrong, alright. But, it’s not with me, it’s with you. What’s up?” He doesn’t reply and Xena pushes him a little, “You can’t keep a secret from me, you never could.” He glances at her, then walks to a table and sits down on it. She leans on a nearby wall and stares at him expectantly. He shakes his head and smiles, “It’s nothing, just war business.” She raises an eyebrow, “Mhm, I don’t think so. But, if that’s how you’re going to be about it, then fine. Come find me when you’re ready to stop acting like a baby.” An offended look crosses his face, then he smiles and grabs her hand before she can walk out of the room. She looks from her hand to him and snatches it away, “Yes?” He grabs her hand again and uses it to pull her closer to him, “Your child kicked me,” he says with a laugh. Xena nods, unsure of where he’s going with the conversation, “And?” She asks, trying to pull her hand out of his grasp. He begins to massage her fingers, then asks, “Why did your child respond to me?” Xena shrugs, “She didn’t respond to you, she just kicked. Babies do that, although she could have picked a better time for her first kick.” He snaps his fingers and begins to pace, letting her hand drop, “Exactly, Xena. She could have picked a better time. She could have kicked Lissia or she could have kicked when you were asleep or relaxing, isn’t that when most babies kick? But no, she kicked when my hand was on your stomach, she kicked when my mind was next to hers. Why did she do that?” Xena backs away, “I think Lissia’s right, you’re sick. Look I’m going to go get her and we’ll find out what’s wrong, alright?” Ares shakes his head and grabs her arm, “I’m not sick, I’m fine, well, not fine, but I’m not sick.” Xena nods and pries his fingers off of her arm, “All the same, I’m going to go get Lissia.” She backs away and is close to the door when he rushes over and grabs both of her shoulders, pulling her close to him. “Ares,” she warns. He moves away, but guides her to sit on the edge of the bed. As she sits down, he lets one hand fall from her shoulder and places it on her stomach. After a few minutes they both feel a slight kick and he stares up at her, “See? She kicked me again,” he says, smugly. Xena shakes her head, “Maybe she doesn’t like you and wants to kick your God butt.” He shakes his head, “That’s not it and you know it.” She scrunches her brows together, trying to find his angel, then she gets up, “I think you need some time alone, you’re hallucinating. I’ll be around.” Before he can grab her arm, she’s out of the door and heading towards the main room, where she hopes to find the others.
Gabrielle and Amarice don’t respond when Xena comes into the room. They are sitting and staring at a wall in silence. Xena walks up and stands behind them and follows their gaze to the wall. She shrugs, then asks, “What’s up?” The two jump and turn to stare at Xena, panting heavily. Gabrielle looks irritated, “Don’t do that,” she shrieks. Xena laughs, “Right. So you’re saying that I should have left you two staring at a blank wall for the rest of the night.” Amarice and Gabrielle blush. “Well, when you put it that way,” Gabrielle starts. Xena waves a hand, “Have you seen Lissia? And where’s Joxer?” Amarice smiles, “Joxer went for a walk around the palace and Lissia went to her room, I think.” Xena nods, “Hey look, there are guest rooms down the right hand hall on the left side. The right side is well, don’t open those doors, Ares might hurt you. Any of the rooms on the left should be empty. I’ll see you guys soon. I’ll send Joxer that way if I find him,” she says, rushing from the room. Amarice looks over at Gabrielle, “She seems a little flustered.” Gabrielle nods, “That’s an understatement,” she replies, then gets a curious on her face, “Do you think it’s true?” Amarice shrugs, then shakes her head, “It can’t be,” she says, then looks unsure, “Can it?” Gabrielle shakes her head, “I don’t know.” They stare at each other in silence, then stand and head in the direction Xena had told them to go.
Xena knocks on a closed door and hears a huff from inside. She hears Lissia, grab the door handle, then she hears a body being pressed against the door. “Alright Ares,” Lissia says, a little uncomfortable, “I’m not opening this door until you realize that it wasn’t all my fault. You know how Xena can be.” Xena laughs and Lissia swings the door open. The girl looks back and forth in the hall, then grabs Xena and pulls her into the room, “What are you doing here?” Xena shakes her head, “Something’s wrong with Ares. He’s convinced that my baby is reacting to him.” Lissia laughs and shrugs, “Well, isn’t she?” Xena stares, open mouthed, “No,” she shrieks. Lissia falls onto the bed and pats a place next to her. When Xena sits down she begins, “You react to him, why shouldn’t your child? It only makes sense. Watch.” With that command, Lissia places her hand on Xena’s stomach. After a few minutes nothing happens and she begins to poke at it until Xena jerks away. Lissia smiles, “Nothing, not so much as a poke back. It’s only natural for a child to react to it’s parent.” Xena face goes white, making her icy eyes look brighter than normal, “Parent?” She stutters. Lissia moves away and slaps herself in the head, “He’s going to kill me. I’m sorry Xena, I thought he would have explained by now. Oh, you’re getting mad, that’s only natural, but look Xena, Xena look at me, that’s better. Now listen to me, it’s complicated alright. And it’s kind of my fault.” Xena’s sitting on the bed, her face white and murder playing in her eyes. She gulps down air, “Explain, now.” Lissia whines a little, “Oh, it’s not really my place, but alright, sense you’re going to be like that about it fine. Oh let me think, where do I begin. Well, you’re death, I guess.” She takes a deep breath and adopts the stance of a story teller, “Most people think of death as an ending, but in this situation it was only the beginning. Ares and I watched as the Romans crucified you. Zeus and Hera held us back, they wouldn’t let us interfere, they felt it was for the best. They thought your death would end the cult of Eli. Hind sight being twenty twenty, I guess they’re regretting their choice now. We worked from Greece, poring through books, trying things out and watching as each plan blew up in our faces. The other Gods thought that we had lost it, maybe we had, I don’t know. But, one day, Athena came by and held out a thick gold book. I looked it over and smiled, it was the answer. Of course, I didn’t know if it would work, I didn’t know if you and Ares met the requirements, but I knew that there was a chance. To be blunt, Athena had found us a loop hole. Why she did it, I don’t know, but she did. The book said that if there was a blood connection between a God and the deceased, that God could use the connection to return the deceased to the land of the living. I showed it to Ares and he dismissed it at first. For the next few days, whenever I would look at him, I could see wheels turning behind his eyes, I knew he had a plan. He finally confronted me about it. He told me about the miscarriage you had before going against Hercules the first time. I saw the problem immediately, the blood connection had been lost when the baby died. I was upset, but he was smiling. He finally broke down and told me the rest. With a lot of work, he could bring that pregnancy to the here and now. So, for awhile, that’s what we did, we worked on it and eventually we knew that it had worked or at least we hoped it had. So, we pulled on that connection and almost had you back when that dark force forced us back. We thought that Dahok had taken over the baby. We thought we had put the whole world at risk. That’s why I agreed to my position. I wasn’t going to leave my family unprotected and in danger because of my mistake. Ares and I haven’t mentioned it sense that day, or rather sense the day I regained consciousness. So, you see, Ares didn’t really do anything, it was my idea and as he puts it, it was my purity that gave us the strength and focus to go through with it. Don’t be mad at him, be happy. Now your child has a new chance at life. And this time, she will make it, she has us to help her.” Lissia smiles at the end, then risks a glance at Xena. The warrior has lain down on the bed and has her hands over her face, rubbing at her eyes, “Great,” she mutters. Lissia leans over her, “You’re not happy, are you?” Xena shrugs, “It explains a lot. You do realize that this means that Ares isn’t sick or crazy.” Lissia relaxes upon hearing the joke, then looks thoughtful, “Oh, he’s still sick and maybe a little crazy, just not in the way you were thinking. You’re friends know what I’m talking about. I think they can even see it a little now that I mentioned it to them. Of course, that’s all you’re getting out of me on the subject.” Xena gives her an irritated look and shoves her a little, then on a serious tone says, “We’ll stay until morning, then we’re going back to the mortal plane and to traveling.” Lissia shakes her head and grabs Xena’s arm in desperation, “No, you can’t. You could lose the baby again. You need to stay here with us, so that we can help you. Xena, this isn’t the strongest of children, she needs help if she’s going to make it.” Xena shakes her head, “Lissia, the child is fine. I lost her before because I wasn’t treating myself right. I didn’t try to lose her, but then again, I wasn’t trying to keep her either. I didn’t care. I do now and don’t worry, I won’t lose her again. She’s too much of a miracle now.” Lissia nods slowly, “You’re going to take her away from us,” she states. Xena looks down and doesn’t reply. After a few minutes she stands and walks out of the room.
Joxer runs to catch up with Xena who his heading towards the main room. He puts an arm around her shoulders, then reaches down to feel her stomach. She jerks away, “Don’t.” He looks hurt, then shrugs thinking that Xena’s having hormone problems, “So, how are things?” Xena sighs, “Everything’s alright, Joxer. Come on, let’s go find the others.” In silence they walk down an empty hallway. Xena opens the first door on the left and finds Gabrielle and Amarice inside, pacing the room. Gabrielle runs to her as she walks into the room, “Are you okay? You’ve been gone for well over an hour.” Xena nods, “I’m fine, I was just talking to Lissia about the baby and Ares.” Gabrielle flinches at the name and Xena gives her a questioning look. When Gabrielle turns away, Xena looks over at Amarice, who shrugs a little, “Just something Lissia said about Ares.” Interest springs into Xena’s eyes, “And what was that?” She walks over to Amarice with a sweet smile and puts an arm around the girl. Amarice pulls away, “You might want to sit down.” Xena plays along and sits on the bed, then stares up expectantly. Amarice sits next to her on one side and Gabrielle sits on the other. Amarice starts, “Look, you can’t freak, alright?” Xena nods. Gabrielle says, “We’ve decided that it’s probably true, as unlikely as it seems.” Xena nods again, growing a little impatient. She looks from one to the other and watches as each shrink back from her gaze a little. She sighs, “Out with it.” Amarice breaks the news, “Ares is in love with you.” Xena smiles at first, about to laugh, then the curve of her lips fall and her hand goes to her stomach on instinct. Gabrielle looks at her, unable to read her friend, “Xena, say something.” Xena sighs, “I know,” she says quietly, almost afraid that he might hear her. “Huh?” Amarice and Gabrielle ask together. Joxer smiles at the three women and sits next to Gabrielle, hoping that she will need a little comfort. Xena smiles lightly and strokes her stomach, which is poking out just a little bit more than it was before. “I have a story to tell you guys. A story that I just learned of. A true story that Lissia just told me.” She grows silent for a moment, making sure that she has their complete attention. When she sees that she does she goes on to relate the tale to them in just as much detail as Lissia had. As she finishes, she looks around. Gabrielle looks shocked and almost disgusted. Amarice absently puts her hand on Xena’s stomach. Joxer is smiling, he was able to sneak his arm around Gabrielle’s waist during the story. Xena looks down and smiles at Amarice’s hand, then places her own over it. Amarice jerks away, “Sorry,” she says. Xena smiles, “Are you okay?” Amarice nods, “Yeah, but I think I knew, well kind of. I could feel a connection between you two, I wasn’t sure if it was just chemistry and hormones or if it was something else, something deeper. When Lissia told us that Ares was in love with you, the thought that the child could be his, crept into my mind. It explains why he’s so uncomfortable around you right now.” Xena nods, “Yes, it does.” Gabrielle sighs, “What are we going to do?” “We’re going to leave in the morning,” Xena says, “And after that, well, we’ll see. He’s not getting my child though.” Joxer buts in, “Well, isn’t it kind of his child too.” Xena shoots daggers at him, but says nothing. Joxer shrinks away and Gabrielle pats his back lightly. Then she turns to Xena, “Are you going to tell him that you know?” Xena nods, “Yes, I will tell him. It’s the only decent thing to do. Although I could be causing Lissia a lot of problems, but I’m sure she can handle it.” “Serves her right,” Gabrielle mutters. Xena gives her a dirty look and walks out of the room. “My room is across the hall at the very end. If you need anything go there or call for Lissia.” Amarice raises an eyebrow, “You’re room?” Xena shrugs, uncomfortably, “Like I said before, we were close.” With a slight blush, Xena walks out of the room and down the hall.
Xena smiles when she enters her room. It’s dark and smells of must. She lights a candle and walks into the closet, hoping to find something leather that would fit over her extended stomach. Finding something suitable, she slips it on and carefully laces up the shirt, making sure to keep it lose. She slips into some leather pants and smiles remembering being pregnant with Solon and wearing these very same pants. She then, pulls out a pair of boots, arm bands, and some light armor for her chest and shoulders. She lets these rest on the floor and goes to sit on the bed. She coughs as dust flies into her face. She waves it away and eventually it settles. Then she moves again and the dust flies back into her face. She huffs, angry with the condition her room is in, and stalks to Ares’ room. She shoves herself against the door, but it doesn’t open. Irritated, she kicks the door, hoping that it will cave in or at least break open, but she has no such luck. An evil smile crosses her face and she rushes back to her room. She arrives and rests on the bed for a minute to catch her breath. She walks into her closet and moves everything away from the back wall. She lightly taps on it, happy to find that it’s hollow. With a powerful kick, she caves in a section of the wall and strides through the hole into Ares’ closet. She smiles, then coughs as dust invades her nostrils. She walks to the door and opens it. Ares looks up from the bed and shakes his head, “Sorry, I didn’t hear you come in.” She smirks at him, “You should know better than to lock a door on me. I always get where I want to be.” He smiles sarcastically, “Obviously,” he says, motioning towards her stomach. She blushes, “Yes, well, I had nothing to do with this, at least not this time,” she says, giving him an evil glare. For a minute his grin falls and he looks guilty, then noticing her smile, he smiles back. She sits next to him, “You really screwed up this time.” He looks away from her, “It was all we could do. What did you think we would do when we found out you were dead? Just give up? I don’t think so.” She puts a hand over his, “We’re leaving in the morning.” His head jerks in her direction and concern fills his eyes. He shakes his head, “You can’t. It’s not safe. The baby-.” She puts a hand over his mouth, “Lissia and I already had this talk, we will be fine.” He grabs both her hands in his and shakes his head, “I know what you’re doing. You’re trying to leave me and you’re taking my child, my daughter, with you. Xena, I want to do this the right way. I don’t want her to grow up alone and I don’t want you to be alone.” Xena jerks away, “I can take care of myself and my child, we don’t need you. And we won’t be alone, we’ll have each other, and Gabrielle, and Amarice, and Joxer. She will have a family, a real family. Which is much more than you could ever offer her.” She stands up and stalks to the door. She turns the knob and rams it with her hip, but it doesn’t budge. She glares at Ares, then stalks to the closet and finds the wall, not only repaired, but reinforced as well. She turns around and stands defiantly in front of him, “Let me leave.” She pauses for a minute, then adds, “Now.” He doesn’t move, but shakes his head, “I’m tired of you walking away from me before I can finish saying what I want to say. Now, be quite for a minute and listen to me, alright?” Xena nods, looking very irritated. She reaches towards her hip to grab a dagger, but doesn’t find one there. She growls and grabs one from his shelf and starts to flip it around, a habit that she had picked up from him many years ago. He smiles at her and laughs a little, then says, “Alright, I’m going to keep it real simple for you Xena. I love you.” She stares blankly at him, then flips the dagger at him, “Liar!” She rushes towards the door and is amazed to find it open. She looks at the open door, then back at Ares, confusion in her gaze. Unable to say anything, she rushes from the room.
At break neck speed, Xena runs into Lissia’s room and lets herself fall on the bed where the Goddess is resting. Lissia jumps up and looks down at Xena, who’s panting and looking quite a bit larger, “Are you alright?” Xena nods, slowly, “Yeah, we just got into a little argument and I left.” Lissia nods in understanding, “You shouldn’t have been running, Xena. This isn’t a normal pregnancy, you could be in you last month by tomorrow morning. Please, tell me that you aren’t still thinking of leaving.” Xena nods, “I have to, I don’t belong here. And I won’t let him hurt my baby.” Quietly she adds, “Or me.” Lissia rolls her eyes, “He won’t, he loves you, more than anything.” Not getting a reply, she changes the subject, “Gabrielle was looking for you. She said she heard a crash and then yelling. She was worried. By, the Gods, the girl has guts, she tried to open Ares’ door, lucky for her, he had it locked. How did you get in there?” Xena shrugs, “I broke a wall.” Lissia laughs, “The one that used to be a door? Yeah, I know about that. And you two thought you were being so sneaky. Really, Xena, what did you think you were hiding from me? I had already had a child, I knew what sex was and I knew what violence was and I knew what love was. That secret door, didn’t keep any of it from me, sorry to break it to you. Although it was a cute thought, at the time.” Xena blushes, then asks, “When did he block it off?” Lissia shrugs, “A few months after you left. He didn’t want to ruin your room, but he also didn’t want to be reminded of you. So, he turned the door into a wall and hasn’t entered your room sense. I, on the other hand, used to sneak in and sleep in there when I was lonely or when Ares and I were fighting.” Xena puts an arm around the girl and shakes her head, smiling, “You can be such a kid sometimes. I missed you, Lissia, I really did.” The girl nods, “I know. We missed you too. We want you back, Xena. And not as a warrior, but as a friend and a member of the family.” Lissia places her hand on Xena’s stomach and smiles when the baby kicks at her hand. Xena smiles too, then looks down, “I can’t stay. There are too many people who need my help. I can’t abandon them.” Lissia shrugs, “Just remember, we are always here for you.” Xena nods and lets herself fall back on the bed. Lissia smiles and looks at her friend and mentor who is now asleep. She sighs and covers the woman, then leaves the room.
Lissia slowly walks down the hall and knocks on Ares’ door. He doesn’t respond and when she tries the knob, she finds it locked. “Ares, it’s me, Lissia. Come on open the door, we need to talk. It’s about Xena.” She immediately hears a click and the door swings open. She finds her cousin sitting on his bed, looking upset. There’s a dagger sticking out of his chest and she grimaces at the sight of it. She walks over and removes it, then sets it on a nearby table, “What did you say to her?” He sighs, “I love her.” Lissia nods, “I know you do, but what did you say that made her so mad?” He looks up at her, “I told her that I love her.” “Oh,” Lissia sighs, “I’m sorry. I guess it wasn’t what she wanted to hear, huh?” Ares shakes his head, “She wanted to hear it, she just doesn’t want to believe it.” Lissia knits her brows together, “She wants to believe it, she does believe it, she just won’t admit it. She’s stubborn, like you. And like you she doesn’t like to show weakness. Of course with me, it’s a different story. She opens up to me, at least a little. She’s exhausted. You shouldn’t have gotten her so worked up, she could have gone into labor,” she scolds. He stares at her, “Where is she?” “Asleep, in my room and she better stay that way! Hey! Where are you going? Ares, leave her alone, you already upset her once. OH! Jerk!” She yells after him, but doesn’t attempt to follow him.
Ares knocks on Lissia’s door and when there’s no reply, he quietly opens it and walks in. Xena is laying on the bed, covered by a light blanket. Her stomach stands out a little and she shifts uncomfortably in her sleep. He walks over to the bed, and sits on the side. Then slowly moves farther onto the bed and scoops Xena up, so that her head is resting on his chest. She snuggles into him and he smiles, noticing that he hadn’t waken her up. He strokes her hair gently and whispers, “I’m sorry,” then let’s his hand fall away from her so that she can sleep in peace.
Xena wakes and finds herself, not only comfortable, but sitting up slightly. Nervously, she moves her hand and feels a strong chest under it. She sits up and starts to get mad, until she realizes that Ares is asleep. She smiles at him oddly, then puts one of his hands under hers on her stomach. She relaxes back onto his chest and soon falls asleep. Only a few seconds later, the baby kicks and Ares jumps out of skin, waking Xena up, who starts to laugh at him. He looks down at her, questioningly. She smiles, “I woke up a little while ago. I thought the baby could wake you up and I guess I was right. I didn’t think you were going to jump like that though.” She laughs a little and he smiles at her, “Not mad?” He questions. She shakes her head, “No, not anymore. But, I can’t stay here, not forever.” He nods, “I know. But, will you stay, at least until you’re up on your feet again?” She smirks, “I’m on my feet or I would be if you would get over here and give me a hand up.” He walks over to the other side of the bed and helps her out of it. Once she regains her balance, she pats his hands, which had come to rest on either side of her stomach, “I’m fine now.” He nods, “Let’s go find the others.” She grabs his arm, as he starts to leave, “Wait a minute, I want to say something. I believe you, Ares. And I think, maybe, we could be a family.” He stares at her in shock, then she scrunches her brow and continues, “A really large, odd, slightly chaotic, dysfunctional family, but a family all the same.” He laughs, “Am I going to have to refer to blondie as sister.” Xena whoops with laughter and shakes her head, “No, but try calling her Gabrielle, she reacts better to it. And she is our baby’s aunt, so be nice to her.” He rolls his eyes, “Aw, do I have to, Mommy?” She shoves him into a nearby wall, “Watch it, you’re still on thin ice with me.” She gives him an icy glare, but he sees the playfulness behind it. He nods and follows as she leaves the room, muttering things about women and hormones under his breath.
Amarice runs into the room that she’s sharing with Joxer and Gabrielle, “I can’t find her or Ares anywhere. Gabrielle, I don’t know what to do.” Gabrielle stops pacing long enough to stare at Amarice, “Well, she couldn’t just up and disappear.” She huffs irritably, then stops, “Lissia,” she calls. The Goddess arrives, smiling, “What’s up?” Gabrielle’s eyes widen, “What’s up?! I don’t know. Xena’s missing! That’s what’s up!” She screams hysterically. Lissia rolls her eyes, “Xena is resting in my room or at least she was until Ares went to check on her several hours ago. I don’t know anything else.” Amarice corners the Goddess, pointing her sword at the woman’s throat, “So, how does a God deal with decapitation?” Lissia rolls her eyes, “You don’t have the stomach for it.” Amarice presses the sword into the Goddess’s throat a little, “Want to put a few dinars on that?” Gabrielle breaks the two apart, “Not now,” she says, resuming her trail around the room. From the bed, Joxer watches her pace, then smiles, “Xena! We’ve been worried,” he says, jumping off the bed and running to the door. Gabrielle and Amarice turn to the door and sure enough there’s Xena, standing in the doorway with Ares directly behind her. Both women turn their eyes from the God and look at Xena, “Are you okay?” They ask together. Xena laughs and nods, “Yeah, I’m fine. I got a nice nap, until someone had to jump out of their God skin just because a baby kicked a little,” she says, eyeing Ares, who smiles sarcastically at her. Gabrielle looks uncomfortable, “You were sleeping with him, Xena?” Ares holds up his hands, “Look, that stomach was crushing her, I propped her up and fell asleep. So don’t get all moody about it,” he says, pointing at the battling bard. Amarice moves into view and points her sword at him, “You want to see moody, War God? I can give you moody.” Her eyes grow cold, until Xena stands in front of the sword, placing her hand on the blade and moving it to point at the floor. Amarice shoots him and Lissia a threatening look, then helps Xena to sit on the bed, “You’ve grown,” she states dryly. Xena nods, “I’ve noticed.” Lissia walks over and despite the warning glare she receives from Amarice, rests her hand on Xena’s stomach. She shakes her head, “It should be soon now. Are you comfortable? Do you need anything?” Xena nods, “Pillows, blankets, clothes, and some wine to deaden the pain of giving birth.” Gabrielle walks over, “No wine. Lissia, find some better clothes for her, something soft and easy to work around or remove. And find a lot of clean blankets and cloths. How long do you think we have?” The Goddess shrugs, “A few hours before labor even starts. Who knows how long after that.” Xena groans, “You know, I remember doing this once and I really don’t want to do it again.” She shoots Ares a dirty look and he shrugs helplessly, “Sorry.” Gabrielle smiles, “I, too, remember giving birth and I know it’s no walk in the park, but it’s got to be done, Xena. You’ll be fine.” She turns to Lissia, “Go,” she orders. Xena groans again, “By the Gods, she’s moving a lot in there. I think she’s working on her back flips.” Gabrielle smiles and places her hand on Xena’s stomach, smiling as she feels the baby move. Amarice and Joxer join Gabrielle and soon feel the little girl kicking at them. Joxer pulls his hand away and looks at it, “Amazing. So, are you sure there’s only one in there? You’re really large and that sure is a lot of movement for one baby.” Xena smiles, “I’m sure, Joxer.” He smiles and goes to sit in a chair. Amarice and Gabrielle surround Xena on the bed. Ares watches from the door and begins to laugh, “You’re like a bunch of mother hens.” Amarice looks irritated and tosses a dagger in his general direction. Gabrielle only rolls her eyes and asks, “Where’s Lissia? She should be back by now.” Ares shrugs, “Maybe she had a temple issue. Speaking of which, I need to leave for a little while. I’ll be back soon.” He smiles at Xena, “Don’t start without me.” She grabs a pillow and throws it at him, “Oh no, I want you here so that I can kill you while I’m having my insides torn apart.” He grimaces and disappears. As the light fades from his departure, Lissia appears, carrying a very large sack. She sets it on the floor, “Okay, so I had to do a lot of looking around, but I found this,” she says, pulling out a long simple boxy shirt. “Will it work, Gabrielle?” Gabrielle shrugs, “Let’s find out.” Ignoring Joxer, the three women help Xena out of her leathers and into the shirt. Xena smiles, “It’s long, it’s black, it works. Where did you find it?” Lissia looks away, “That isn’t important right now, Xena.” Xena raises an eyebrow and eyes the girl, “He’s going to kill you just for going into his room without permission, not to mention going through my old stuff. And yes, I know this was in his room. He always had some odd fascination with it, never did understand that one.” Gabrielle and Amarice stare at her, clearly confused. Lissia answers their unasked question, “Xena wore this when she would visit while she was pregnant with Solon. Ares liked the way it looked on her and kept it around for future use. Now just happens to be the perfect time.” Gabrielle nods and Amarice shrugs a little, then begins to separate the blankets from the cloths. Lissia looks from their items, up to Xena, then to the others in the room, “So what do we do when it starts? I don’t know about anyone else, but I’ve only given birth, I’ve never helped someone give birth.” Everyone eyes the others in the room, then Joxer speaks up, “I helped a neighbor when I was ten. I didn’t do much except hand my mom clean cloths and then hold the baby when she was done, but I have a little experience.” Gabrielle looks him over, “Great,” she says, doubtfully. Amarice smiles, “He has more experience than me. I was born and that’s all the experience I have.” Gabrielle sighs and repeats her previous statement, “Great, just great. The only one who has ever helped to deliver a baby is the one who’s having the baby!” She shouts hysterically. Joxer pipes up again, “Well, what about Ares?” Both Xena and Lissia begin to laugh. Regaining control, Xena explains, “Joxer, Ares is the God of War, bringing babies into the world isn’t something he handles. He can barely handle the pregnancy part of it. Honestly, I have dinars saying that he’s going to pass out before the baby actually pops out.” Joxer looks down sheepishly, “Oh. Well, it was worth a shot.” Lissia smiles at him and puts an arm around his shoulders, “Of course it was Joxer and we’re glad that you were the one to take it.” She begins to laugh a little, but seeing his hurt expression, she smiles at him and kisses his cheek lightly, “Hey, don’t fret. We’ll take care of everything. After all, how bad can it be?” Xena glares at her and she shrugs a little. Amarice helps Xena sit up a little and places a few pillows behind her back. Xena sinks into them and smiles gratefully.
Several hours later, Ares returns and finds all four women on the bed, asleep and Joxer sitting a chair with his head hung backwards, snoring loudly. He grimaces at the noise. Then sits in a chair by the bed, lightly running a hand through Xena’s hair. Her eyes flutter open and he looks guilty, “I didn’t mean to wake you up.” She shakes her head, “You didn’t. The baby was moving a lot. It’s getting close, you know? I can feel it.” He nods, “I know, I can too. She’s calling to us, Xena. She wants out.” She nods at him, “I know. Well, she’ll be out soon enough, just as soon as she gets her act together and fully decides that my womb isn’t the place for her.” He laughs a little and puts a hand on her stomach. The baby rolls a little beneath his hand and Xena grimaces. He jerks, “Time?” He asks. She laughs, “No, I got kicked in the ribs.” She begins to scoot off the bed, but he stops her, “You need to relax, Xena.” She shakes her head, “I need to go for a walk,” she says, pushing him aside, “Help me up,” she orders. He shakes his head, “Why?” She rolls her eyes, “I have your child playing jumping games on my bladder. Help me up, Ares.” He blushes a little and helps her out of the bed. She walks, no waddles down the hall and returns after several minutes. He rushes to her side and helps her to the bed. She brushes him aside, “I’m fine. Gods, who’s acting like a mother hen now?” He stares at her, clearly offended, “That’s not nice to say, Xena. You’re like hours, if even, away from giving birth, we have to be careful,” he states knowingly. “Ares,” she starts. He holds up a hand, “No, Xena, don’t argue with me.” “Ares,” she tries again, a little frantic. He shakes his head, “Now stop that, you’re not having the last word this time.” She grabs his necklace and uses it to pull him close, “Ares, it’s time,” she says, anger and murder in her gaze. “Oh,” he says, walking over to the other side of the bed and shaking the others awake. On his way back to her side, he kicks Joxer’s chair. Drowsily, they all stare around the too bright room, then look at Xena who’s beginning to sweat. They jump into action. Joxer begins to grabs clothes, while Gabrielle washes the sweat off Xena’s brow. Amarice and Ares help Xena into a more comfortable position. Seeing her slightly comfortable, at least as comfortable as a woman in labor could get, he takes her hand gently. Amarice stands off to the side, waiting for orders. She soon gets them from Xena, “Amarice, come here and take over Gabrielle’s job. Gabrielle tell me when to push. Joxer keep those cloths and blankets ready. Ares stay put, I’m taking all of my pain out on your hand. Lissia, the pressure points.” Lissia’s eyes go wide as the others adjust to their positions. “Xena, I can’t. I’ve only used them once and that was when you taught me. I can’t do it, Xena. What if I mess up.” Xena grunts in pain and lets her back arch a little, “I trust you, Lissia.” The Goddess nods and puts pressure points on Xena. Ones that Gabrielle recognized from when she gave birth to Hope. Xena relaxes a little, as the majority of the pain subsides. Gabrielle begins to murmur, “Alright Xena, not yet. Amarice, Ares, keep her down, she’s going to feel this real soon. Xena, not yet, give her a little bit longer.” Lissia moves to stand next to Amarice and puts a hand over the girl’s, which is shaking as it dabs sweat off of Xena’s face, “Relax, it’s going to be okay.” Amarice nods and soon stops shaking. Gabrielle smiles up at Xena, “Almost there. Hey, you know, you’re losing that bet, Xena.” Weakly, Xena smiles and replies, “The bad part is yet to come.” Gabrielle nods, “You got that right. Alright Xena, push hard.” Xena pushes and screams out, trying to arch her back, but finding that she’s being held down. She gives Ares a dirty look, that carries a threat in it. He squeezes her hand gently and she returns it by taking a vice grip to it. He winces a little, then looks down at Gabrielle, “Well?” She glances at him, “Patience is a virtue,” she sings out. Then seriously, says, “Alright Xena, you’re doing great. I need you to push some more though. Come on, stay with us.” Xena again pushes and screams out again, then almost smiles when she feels Ares jerk away a little. She glances at him and finds him still conscious though looking a little green. He smiles reassuringly at her. Gabrielle smiles, “Almost done. Come on, Xena, one more and then we’re through.” Xena grunts and pushes, “No we aren’t,” she says, remembering the afterbirth. Amarice looks away and finds Ares and Joxer doing the same thing. Soon, Lissia is down by Gabrielle, cleaning the baby, while Xena expels the afterbirth. Xena relaxes, happy that it’s all over and smiles up at Ares, who’s watching Lissia and his newly born daughter. Gabrielle looks up at Amarice, “Get me some warm water and help me clean her up.” Amarice nods and rushes from the room. When she returns, Xena is holding her new born daughter and cooing lightly, “Hello there little one.” She winces at the high pitched screaming issuing forth from the baby’s mouth, “What’s wrong with her?” Lissia smiles, “That’s what babies do, Amarice. They scream.” The Goddess looks around, “Where’s Joxer. Ares smiles and points at the floor. Lissia turns to see Joxer passed out, she laughs, “Hey Xena, you lost your beet. You should have bet against the other man.” Xena smiles at the comment, then turns to Ares, “I didn’t think you would make it.” Gabrielle smiles, “No ripping.” Xena nods, “I know. Lissia, take off the pressure points and get rid of this mess.” The Goddess nods, removes the pressure points, then with a snap of her fingers, has the room clean. She smiles and sits next to Ares on the bed, staring down at the baby. Gabrielle and Amarice are on the other side. After a few minutes, Joxer joins them and smiles sheepishly, knowing that he had passed out.
After several minutes of cooing at the baby, Xena looks up at her friends and they nod. One by one everyone heads towards the door. Xena extends her hand and grabs Lissia by the arm, “Stay for a minute, I need a little help.” Lissia scrunches her brow, but remains. She smiles at the closed door, “He’s standing directly outside, you know?” Xena nods, but doesn’t smile. Lissia looks her over, “What’s wrong?” She sighs, “I’m not producing any milk yet and the baby’s hungry.” Lissia smiles and waves a hand over Xena’s chest. Wet spots appear on Xena’s gown and she gives the Goddess a dirty look. Lissia shrugs, “Sorry. So, what are you naming her?” Xena shrugs and begins to nurse her daughter, “I don’t know. Has Ares said anything about it?” Lissia looks down, then smiles up at Xena, “A long time ago, during your original pregnancy, before the miscarriage, he talked about the name Ania. He hasn’t said the name sense he found out about the miscarriage.” Xena smiles, “Ania,” she says quietly. She looks at her nursing daughter and smiles, then nods, “Yes, Ania fits nicely. Hm.. Ania Elizabeth. What do you think?” Lissia nods, “Perfect, just like her,” she says, running her hand over the child’s smooth skin. Then she adds, “Of course, my opinion doesn’t really matter. She isn’t my daughter after all.” Xena smiles, “You’re right. Give me a few minutes to get situated, then send him in.” Lissia smiles and walks out of the room. Xena watches the door close, then shifts herself on the bed until she’s sitting up with the pillows behind her back and one under the arm that is holding the baby while she nurses.
Xena isn’t alone long. After five minutes, there’s a knock on the door. “Come in,” she says quietly, switching sides with the baby and moving the pillow to her other side. Ares walks in and smiles at his nursing daughter, before looking up at Xena, “How are you?” She smiles and pats the bed next to her, “I’m fine and so is she.” He nods and sits down next to her, watching his daughter nurse. He puts a few garments on the bed, “Gabrielle told me to bring these to you for the baby.” Xena smiles at the cloth and clothes, “Good. I’ll finish nursing her and then we can get her into some real clothes instead of this flimsy blanket.” He smiles down at his daughter, “She’s amazing, perfect even.” Xena smiles up at him and burps the child, then gently lies her down on the bed, “Yes she is. She needs a name.” She begins to remove the blanket and tie the diaper around the wining baby. Ares nods and barely above a whisper, says, “Ania.” Xena doesn’t looks at him, but nods, “Yes, Ania Elizabeth. At least that’s what I was thinking.” He smiles at her questioningly, then nods in understanding, “Lissia, huh?” Xena nods, “Yeah Lissia, but I like it. It’s as perfect as she is. Get me a clean blanket.” A blanket appears on the bed from where it had been stacked on the floor. Xena smiles and after pulling a small nighty onto the child, wraps the blanket around her. She scoops up the child and turns to Ares, “Hold out your arms,” she orders. He jumps a little, but puts his arms out. She laughs, “Not like that.” She moves to put the baby in his arms and he adjusts to hold the child. Once settled, he smiles down at the child, then at Xena. She smiles and leans on his shoulder, “Don’t tell anyone, but I’m exhausted.” They laugh briefly and receive a slight whine from the baby. They watch as the child falls into the land of baby dreams, then smile at each other. Awkwardly, Ares hands the child over to Xena, “Um, I’ll let you two rest. Call me if you need anything.” Holding the baby in one hand and grabbing his arm with other, she says, “Ares, stay. I need help.” He looks at her questioningly, then notices all the pillows propping her up. He smiles and removes the pillows one by one, until she’s at a comfortable level, then turns to leave as she rests the baby between her arm and body. “Ares,” she says, slightly annoyed. He turns towards her, “I’ll be close,” he says quietly. She nods, “Yes, you will. Stay with us.” A little awkward, he sits on the bed next to Xena, letting his legs hang over the edge. She laughs, then quits when a whimper escapes from the child. Quietly and almost unsure of herself, she orders, “Lay down, rest.” Unsure of her and himself he lays down on his side and stares at her and his child. Xena smiles, and rolls over onto her side to stare at him, letting the baby rest between them and against her body. Her smile turns evil, “After all, I’m not changing all of the diapers.” He smiles at her and watches her fall asleep. After checking to make sure that his daughter is comfortable and alright, he too falls asleep.
Gabrielle and Amarice are sitting in their new room. Lissia had just walked out of the room with Joxer following her. She had said something about finding him his own room with a view. Amarice flops onto the bed and lays next to Gabrielle. She looks over at the other woman, “Are we going to have to find Eli?” Gabrielle nods, “Yes, it seems that he’s going to be having problems with the Gods. Maybe he knows about the second child of Dahok.” Amarice nods, slightly disappointed, then interested, “What happened with you and Dahok?” Gabrielle visibly stiffens, then begins to explain, “You see, several years back I lost my blood innocence in a Temple to Dahok. Dahok wanted my purity and he got it. He impregnated me with his evil spawn and a couple of days later, I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. Xena and I had found protection in the Knights of the Pierced Heart and they believed that Hope was the child of the light. We all did, except Xena. Xena never once trusted her. And Xena was right. Within hours of being born, Hope was crawling and killing. I ran with Hope and once escaping Xena for awhile, I sent my daughter down the river. Several months later, Xena and I were visiting the centaurs and my friend Ephiny. Hope came to me and again I trusted her. Unknown to me, she was working for Callisto. Hope killed Solon, Xena’s son. And it drove Xena and I apart. We repaired our relationship though. And even though I had killed Hope with poison, several months after that, she was reborn. She looked exactly like me. And she was trying to bring Dahok into our world. I threw her and myself into a lava pit, but we were saved. I don’t know how or why, but we were. Awhile after that, I found myself in Potidaea where Hope was holding my family hostage. She had gained their trust because she looked like me. Xena and I tricked Destroyer, her child, into killing her. That was the last time I had to let go of my daughter, this time she was dead and gone forever. But Dahok wasn’t. From what I’ve heard though, Hercules destroyed him or at least beat him out of our realm. It’s hard for me to accept it, but this God that Eli worships could very well be Dahok.” Amarice nods and sighs, then looks bright, “What about the God of the Israelites?” Gabrielle shakes her head, “He’s supposedly good and the force that Lissia found was pure evil. They couldn’t be the one in the same.” Amarice looks away, “I don’t like Eli and I don’t agree with his teachings, but he’s your friend and he did bring you and Xena back to life, for that I owe him. I will help rescue him from the Olympians and his own God, even if it is Dahok.” Gabrielle nods slowly, “Thank you, Amarice. We’re going to need all the help we can get. We’ll talk more in the morning though. Go to sleep, okay?” She feels Amarice nod next to her then scrunch into the covers and cuddle with the pillow. Gabrielle smiles and stretches out a little on the bed, then curls up, letting one arm hang over the edge of the bed.
Lissia awakens in the morning to the sound of laughter, a sound that she isn’t used to hearing around here. She looks around, making sure that she hadn’t fallen asleep in a Temple and she hadn’t, she was in her room. She wrinkles her brow and follows the sound. Seeing that it’s coming from the room she left Xena in the night before, she smiles and walks in. Inside, Xena, the child, Ares, Gabrielle, Amarice, and Joxer are sitting on the bed, talking and laughing. A few discarded plates litter the floor. She smiles and hops onto the bed, “Just going to let me sleep all day?” Xena smiles at her, “I wasn’t going to be the one to wake you up. You get cranky.” Everyone begins to laugh again and eventually Lissia joins in. She sees Gabrielle adopting a serious look and before the bard can ask her question, asks, “So, how long are you staying?” Xena shrugs, “Not long. We need to go help Eli.” Gabrielle smiles grimly and nods her head a little. Both Lissia and Ares seem disappointed and concerned. Lissia shakes her head, “Xena, you can’t be doing this kind of thing with Ania, it’s not safe.” She watches Xena roll her eyes and huffs slightly, turning to Ares for help. But, there’s no such luck, he’s smiling and nodding his head. She pushes him in the side and he turns to look at her. “What?” He asks innocently. Lissia rolls her eyes, “Well, I’m obviously missing something so tell me what you’re thinking,” she orders. He smiles, “Xena doesn’t have to worry about Ania because we’re going with her. We can help her protect Eli and destroy Dahok, this time for good.” Xena beams at him and both Gabrielle and Amarice gasp in shock. Joxer and Lissia, on the other hand, accept the fact just fine and nod slowly. “What’s the plan?” Joxer asks. Xena takes charge and begins giving orders, “Amarice, Joxer, Lissia get some supplies and don’t forget clothes and things for Ania. Ares, find Eli. Gabrielle, stay with me. We meet back here in two hours.” Quietly everyone files out of the room and Xena and Gabrielle are left alone with the child. They stare at the door, while sitting next to each other on the bed. Absently, Xena starts to nurse Ania, who is a very good eater. Gabrielle glances over and remains quiet as the child feeds.
Soon, Ania is asleep and Xena is inching her way off the bed, trying not to jerk the child. “Gabrielle, come here,” she orders quietly. Gabrielle walks over from the other side of the bed and stands in front of Xena, who can’t find a way off the bed with the child in her arms. Xena extends the sleeping infant and Gabrielle cradles her gently. Xena stands and when Gabrielle offers the child back to her, she shakes her head and begins to flex her stiff arm muscles. “Come on, Gabrielle. I want to show you my old room.” Gabrielle smiles and follows her friend out of the room and down the hall. Xena stops in front of the last door and opens the knob slowly. Candles flicker to life on the inside and as she walks into the room, Xena notices that the dust is gone. She smiles and motions for Gabrielle to follow her. Gabrielle slowly walks into the room and surveys everything. There’s a balcony and a large table with two chairs on one side of the bed. On the other she finds a bed stand, a weapons rack, a dresser and a closet door. “Nice,” she breaths quietly. Xena nods and opens the closet, then closes it and drags a trunk out from under the bed. Gabrielle gasps at the craftsmanship of the item, then kneels down next to Xena and peers in. Inside, is a warrior outfit, complete with weapons and boots. Xena looks over at her and smiles, “I never wore it, I actually never visited again after he gave it to me. I can’t nurse in my old outfit and it’s starting to look the worse for wear. It’s time for a change.” Gabrielle smiles as Xena pulls out several pieces of silver and black armor. The leather shift, much like her old one, is black and very soft to the touch. The boots too are black and made of the softest leather, Gabrielle had ever seen. A black cloth shift rests under it all and between the weapons. Xena pulls out a set of arm bands that match the armor and sets them on the floor. Gabrielle reaches in and removes a small dagger with one hand, while holding Ania in the other, “It’s amazing.” Xena nods, “Yes, Hephestus does beautiful work. Wait until you see the sword.” Xena pulls out a large sword, much like her original one, but the designs are silver and a red jewel rests in the hilt of it. The blade shines in the low light and Xena smiles when it cuts her a little as she runs her finger down the edge. She hands it to Gabrielle, who is surprised by the weight, “It’s not that heavy. With that sort of blade, I thought it would be heavier. Xena, you need to send Hephestus a note.” Xena laughs at her and pulls the black gown over her head, tossing it behind Gabrielle. She slips into the black shift and laces the front of it up. She puts on the leather shift, then takes Ania from Gabrielle. Gabrielle kneels behind her friend and laces the shift up, “You didn’t even gain any weight.” Xena smiles, “Well, when you had Hope you didn’t gain any either.” They both laugh, then Gabrielle takes Ania and Xena begins to put on the armor. She stands up holding a sword in one hand and several daggers and a whips in the other. Gabrielle smiles at her, “You look good. Where are you putting the weapons and where is your Chakram?” Xena’s eyes widen, “Lissia,” she calls. Lissia appears, holding the weapon out in front of her, “I thought you would want this. By the Gods, Ares is going to hit the floor when he sees you.” Gabrielle giggles a little and Xena smiles, “Thank you Lissia,” she says sarcastically. The Goddess takes a mock bow and disappears. Gabrielle shakes her head as Xena attaches the chakram to her hip. She sets the sword on the bed and puts one dagger in each boot and the third between her breasts. She smiles and takes Ania from Gabrielle. “Attach the scabbard to the back of my armor. Use the clips of medal,” she explains to Gabrielle. The blonde rolls her eyes, “As if I haven’t done it before.” Xena pushes back on her a little and they both laugh. Gabrielle walks around her after a few minutes, “There, perfect.” Xena shakes her head, “Not quite. Find me a brush. Try the top drawer over there.” As Gabrielle walks to the dresser, Xena sits on the bed and examines the outfit, seeing that it will be very easy to nurse in. Gabrielle comes up behind her and brushes her hair, then puts a small box on the bed beside her, “I found this on top of the dresser.” Xena smiles, “Open it, will ya?” Gabrielle nods and opens it. She gasps upon seeing the perfect necklace. She looks at Xena, who’s smiling to herself. The chain is thick white gold and the pendent is a replica of the Chakram and Ares’ sword, intertwined together. Gabrielle slowly removes it from the box and goes behind Xena. She puts it on her, then moves her hair over the chain. Xena looks down and smiles at it and a slight blush caresses her cheeks. Gabrielle nods in approval, then quietly asks, “You’re starting to love him, aren’t you?” At first Xena doesn’t reply and Gabrielle thinks she didn’t ask the question loud enough, then she sees Xena shake her head. Xena smiles as she shakes her head, “I don’t think I ever stopped, Gabrielle.” The blonde smiles, “I always knew that there was something between you too. So, I guess I’m going to have to put up with him a bit more, huh?” Xena laughs a little and nods her head, “Yeah, now come on, let’s get back to the other room.” They leave quietly and Gabrielle shuts the door behind them, then rushes forward to open the door to the other room. Xena stops her before she can turn the handle. Gabrielle nods in understanding, “He’s in there, isn’t he?” She asks, still not used to her friend’s ability to sense the God. Xena nods and hands her Ania, then straightens her armor.
Xena strides into the room and everyone turns from their position on the bed to stare in awe. Gabrielle suppresses a giggle when Joxer falls off the bed on one side and Ares on the other. Xena smiles and looks at Lissia, “You were right,” she says, tossing the Goddess a dinar. Lissia doesn’t even try to catch it, she’s too busy staring at the pendent. Gabrielle laughs and moves past Xena to sit next to Amarice on the bed. Joxer and Ares find their way back onto the bed and though Joxer has now recovered, Ares has not and he continues to stare at Xena. Xena lets herself stride over to the bed and smiles as his eyes fallow her everywhere. She sits down and adopts an all business attitude, “Report,” she orders, taking Ania from Gabrielle. Joxer smiles and raises his hand, jumping up and down a little. Xena shakes her head, “Yes, Joxer.” He smiles triumphantly, “We got the stuff Xena and the horses are ready to go. You should see the baby clothes, they’re so cute.” Xena nods, “Good,” she then turns to stare at Gabrielle. The blonde clears her throat, “Uh, we got Xena dressed,” she says, unsure of what Xena was expecting form her. Amarice giggles and Xena nods her head, laughing lightly. She looks at Ares and when he doesn’t say anything she pushes him lightly. “Athens,” he says, simply. She nods, “We leave after lunch. Lissia, Ares, can you two transport us there or are we stuck doing this the mortal way?” Lissia shrugs, “We can get us all to Athens, but once there, we’re going to need the horses to get around.” Xena nods, “Good. Alright everyone, find food for yourselves, we’ll meet in the main room in an hour.” They all nod and file out of the room. Xena turns to Ares, who hasn’t moved except to finger the pendent lightly. She swats his hand away gently, “Food,” she says. He nods and a feast appears on the table. She begins to eat, but soon grows uncomfortable under his constant gaze. She turns to stare at him, Ania in one arm and a piece of cheese in the opposite hand, “What’s wrong?” He shakes his head, trying to clear it, “Nothing. Why would anything be wrong?” She laughs, “You were staring, Ares and I mean really staring. As a matter of fact, you’ve been staring sense I entered the room. I thought something might be wrong,” she explains. He smiles, “You’re stunning,” he says simply. A slight blush caresses her cheeks, but she turns back to the food as to hide it from him. She makes no move to reply and he goes silent as he continues to stare at her.
In the main hall, everyone sits around or on a large table, waiting for Lissia to arrive. The Goddess appears in the middle of the room and sighs, “Sorry, there was a huge problem at one of my temples in Sparta or something like that. Anyway, one guy said one thing two said another and the child in the middle just cried and yelled at me. One of them was trying to sacrifice the kid and the other’s were trying to either stop or help, I’m not sure. It doesn’t matter, I taught all three a lesson and returned the kid to his home. It was quite a mess though.” Ares snickers at her while Xena smiles, “Aren’t you glad that you’re a real Goddess now?” Lissia rolls her eyes, “Whatever. Come on, let’s get this show on the road.” She snaps her fingers and three horses appear from thin air. Xena smiles at the sight of Argo and after strapping Ania to her chest, she mounts the horse. She offers her hand down and Amarice grasps it and pulls herself onto the back of the saddle. She looks at the others expectantly. Gabrielle smiles, “Doubling up, huh?” She asks as she mounts her horse and tries to help Joxer up. Joxer has problems getting up and ends up falling off, landing on his back with a loud thud. Lissia shakes her head and walks over. She leans a little and cups her hands. With her head she motions for Joxer to come over, “Take Gabrielle’s hand and step into mine,” she orders. He does as told and soon the two women are able to get him up behind Gabrielle. He smiles triumphantly. Lissia looks over to the other horse and sees Ares already mounted, “I wanted to drive this time,” she wines. A chorus of giggles fill the room. She puts a hand on the horses back and pulls herself on with as much grace as possible. She looks around and smiles as Xena and Ares both say, “Show off,” then laugh at each other for saying the same thing. Lissia smiles and snaps her fingers. Xena closes her eyes as a wave of dizziness sweeps over her. She can feel Amarice grip her waist a little tighter and Argo stiffens beneath her.
When Xena opens her eyes, she sees a small market place through the bushes Lissia had landed them in. The market is deserted. “Where is everyone?” She asks, looking at Ares and Lissia. The two Gods are already trotting down a path and she follows with Gabrielle coming up beside her asking, “Who’s temple is that?” She points to a rather large, dark temple near their current location. “Mine,” Lissia shouts back at her. Xena smiles as Gabrielle blushes, “Nice.” A confused look crosses her face as she reads a sign near the door, “No living sacrifices, no enslavement, and no naughty play. Naughty play?” Her answer comes from Ares, “Men like her, a lot.” From behind, they see Lissia jab him in the side and can’t help but laugh. After riding for several minutes, they reach a clearing surrounded by trees. Arranged in a circle is the whole of Athens. At the very center sits Eli. Xena lets out a whistle, trying to get the man’s attention, but all she receives in reply is annoyed glances from the townspeople nearest her. She looks at Gabrielle who shrugs, “Can Argo jump over them?” Xena smiles and passes Ania to her, then urges Amarice to get off the horse. She doubles back the path a ways, then urges Argo into a canter. Argo leaps over the people and trots up to Eli. The man stares up and smiles, “Xena, how wonderful to see you. I was just telling these people about how my God brought you and Gabrielle back to us.” Xena nods, a little impatient, “That’s nice Eli. Look, we need to talk, it’s serious,” she says, offering him her hand. He refuses her hand, but begins to walk towards Gabrielle, who has dismounted and is striding to give her friend a hug. Xena rolls her eyes and brings Argo up beside Amarice. She offers her friend a hand up, then notices that Gabrielle doesn’t have her daughter. She looks around, a little frantic, but is calmed when she sees Ania resting peacefully in her father’s arms. She pulls Argo up beside him and takes Ania from him, strapping her back to her chest in a small sling, “Look, can we get Joxer up behind you Lissia?” The Goddess shakes her head, “He wouldn’t be able to stay on. We’ll have to put him behind you and have Amarice come up behind us.” Xena nods and both Amarice and Lissia dismount. “Why are you getting off?” Amarice asks. Lissia shrugs, “I have to help Joxer get onto Argo,” she answers, then turns to Xena, “Can you give him an arm up with Ania?” The warrior nods and Lissia walks over to where Joxer is standing. Joxer stares up at Xena and takes her hand, then steps into Lissia’s cupped hands. In one fluid motion the two are able to get him up on the horse. Lissia walks up and puts a hand on Eli, “Do you need help getting up?” He smiles at her, but shakes his head, “I’ll walk, Goddess of War.” The girl looks a little taken aback, but shakes her head, “We need to get moving so you will ride behind Gabrielle, that’s final. Now, can you get up on your own or do you need help?” She uses her most commanding voice, but it has little effect on the man. He smiles and places a soft hand on her shoulder, “You are young and pure. You haven’t spilt blood yet. You have much ahead of you. Don’t let your position among the Olympians dictate how you will live. After all, their time is coming to an end or so my God has told me.” Lissia rolls her eyes, “That’s nice, Oh Great One,” she starts sarcastically, “Now, do you need help?” He shakes his head, “I do not.” She stalks away, “That’s all you had to say,” she says, pulling herself up behind Ares, then offering a hand to Amarice. Eli walks over and places a hand on Amarice, “You will ride with myself and Gabrielle. My God may preach the way of love, but these two do not respect that.” Xena quickly reaches over and puts a hand over Ares’ as he goes to draw his sword. He turns to her and she shakes her head then gives his hand a light squeeze. Amarice jerks away and takes Lissia’s hand. In seconds she is behind Lissia holding onto her waist lightly, “I trust them more than I trust you and your God,” she says dryly. Eli shakes his head, “You have so much hatred in you and yet you are so young. You have time to change, Amarice and I feel that one day you will.” Amarice bends down a little from on top of the horse, “Mount up Eli, we are leaving,” she says, threateningly. She straightens and stares down at him, then watches as he takes Gabrielle’s hand and pulls himself up behind her. Xena smiles, “There’s an inn nearby, we’ll get rooms and talk there.” Lissia shakes her head, “My temple here is empty. It has more room and privacy. We would be better off there.” Xena nods, “Alright, then we’ll stay there.” She glances at Eli and sees him shaking his head in disapproval. She doesn’t acknowledge him and takes off after Ares and the two women. As she rides, she hears Gabrielle explaining things to him, mostly things related to Ania.
Lissia leads the way into the temple as an attendant leads the horses into a stable and a priest collects their things from the saddles. Inside, the temple is silver with crimson curtains. Lissia smiles, “Nice, huh?” She then turns to the attendants and priests that are gathered before her, “Your services are not needed, please leave and declare that this temple is off limits to mortals and Gods alike, save for those who are here with me now.” Gabrielle leans over to Xena, “Why aren’t they bowing?” She asks in a whisper. Ares smirks back at her from his place beside Lissia, then says, “Prissy pants doesn’t like it.” Lissia turns and elbows him. He smiles and collapses onto a set of pillows that litter the floor. Xena sits next to him on one side with Lissia on the other. Amarice and Joxer sit next to the Goddess. Gabrielle sits next to Xena and helps her remove the sling that’s holding Ania, who is now hungry. Eli stands above them, “What is going on Xena? Gabrielle explained something about Dahok and my God being one in the same, we both know that can not be so. Dahok is one great evil force, my God is not.” Lissia snorts, “Yeah, well, listen here, your God almost killed me when Ares and I tried to bring Xena back. He was so dark and evil that it almost killed me. I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t sound very loving to me,” she says more sarcastically than necessary. Eli shakes his head, “You are mistaken. But if my God were to attack it would be to save those true of heart from being destroyed.” Lissia’s eyes blaze and she begins to say something incredibly crude, when Xena’s laughter stops her. They all turn to stare at Xena who’s laughter is growing by the second. She explains, “Eli, your God was keeping them away from me. I am not true of heart, as far as your God is concerned, and they were not threatening me in any way, even if their techniques were a little on the odd side.” Gabrielle buts into the conversation, “Eli, what do you know about a child of light?” His face brightens, “Yes, the child of light, the one that will help my God come into this world. The child will be born to a woman and while the birth is still in process, the moon will be covered by an unexplainable darkness and that darkness will welcome the child to the world. For the child shall bring light to the dark places of the world. I am now trying to find the woman that shall carry the child. It is my duty to find a pure vessel for the child to come from.” His eyes linger on Lissia for a moment and she holds her hands up, “Don’t even think about it. I might be pure, as you would call it, but I’m not bearing some full God demon child, no thank you. You just need to keep on looking,” she says, uncomfortable under his gaze. Ares puts an arm around her, “How will the child bring your God into this world?” Eli smiles, “Through love, War God. It seems that his gift has washed over you already.” Ares look irritated, “Look, there are two women in my life and two, sorry three that I love and they are all sitting next to me. And it’s not a new development so your God isn’t going to be taking any credit for this.” Xena and Lissia both smile lightly. Eli turns to Xena, “Let me see your child.” Xena begins to hand Ania to him when Ares puts a hand on her arm. Eli turns to him, “I won’t harm the child. I am unlike the Olympian Gods.” Xena shakes Ares’ hand off and gives Ania to Eli, who cradles the child. She sees the irritation coming from both of the Gods and smiles reassuringly. “She’s a beautiful child,” Eli says handing Xena the baby, “With my God in rule, she will have a wonderful life.” “With only half a family,” Xena snaps at him. Eli looks taken aback and remains silent. Xena shakes her head, “We aren’t getting anywhere with this senseless arguing, we need to work together to find the truth.” Joxer pipes up, “Well, if Lissia has talked to this God before then why can’t she simply give him a call back and put you and Eli on the line with him?” Xena glares at him, then smiles, “You know something Joxer, that’s not a bad idea,” she says, then turns to Lissia and Ares, “Can you?” Ares shakes his head, “Too risky, Dahok will kill you all and anyone connected to you.” Lissia rolls her eyes, “I’ll do it, Xena.” Ares glares at her, “You just can’t listen to reason, can you?” When she shakes her head, he looks back at Xena, “Alright, let’s get this show on the road.” Gabrielle leans over and takes Ania from Xena, then moves out of the circle, motioning for Joxer and Amarice to do the same. Xena nods at them and Eli moves closer to close the circle. Lissia holds out her hands and Ares and Eli grab them, then extend theirs to Xena. Xena takes their hands, “What should we do?” Lissia and Ares turn to her, glaring a little, “Be quite,” they say a little too roughly. She smiles and nods, then glares at Eli, warning him not to say a word.
Minutes later, the floor beneath them disappears and they are flouting through a dark area with a large, blazing fire in the center of it. “Dahok,” Xena whispers. She strides closer to the fire and gets pushed back by it. Before she falls to the floor, Ares reaches out and grabs her, “Careful,” he says quietly. She smiles up at him and nods. Eli stares at the blazing fire, “Oh Pure One?” He asks, unsure of himself. A deep voice comes from the fire, “Yes, my servant, it is I. Have you found the vessel for my child yet?” Eli lowers his head, “No, My Lord. The earth has very few pure ones in it.” A deep laughter shakes the room, “Yet you are able to bring one pure to me. Eli, you have done very well, better than I thought you would.” Lissia grabs her sword and points it ahead of her, but it’s to no avail, it is flung from her grip and is heard clinking onto stone in the far distance. Xena and Ares move to stand in front of her. “Oh no you don’t Dahok,” Xena says, then smiles, “That’s right, I know who you are. So, Hope didn’t work out for you and now you’re going to try with a child of the light. And you’re using Eli to do it. That’s quite pathetic. At least Kraftstar wasn’t disillusioned.” More laughter is heard, “So, you know who I am. Tell me, how did you find out? It doesn’t matter, even if you tell everyone who I am, I will still win. My child will enter your world and clear the way for me to follow.” Lissia speaks up, “Your child will never be born. And you are going to die.” She smiles and rain falls from the sky, but the fire only blazes higher. The floor shakes beneath them and they all grab onto each other for support, “I am an immortal, little Olympian. I am a God. You can not get rid of the great Dahok with a little rain. It will only make me stronger. But by all means, continue to get angry and scared, it enriches my blood to feel it.” Xena smiles, “Hey Dahok, I’m not mad or afraid, tell me, does that weaken you?” There’s more laughter, then a reply, “No, Xena. It doesn’t weaken me. You must remember I was using love to find followers. But love doesn’t feed me either. Do you want to know what feeds me, Warrior Princess? It’s life. I feed on life.” As more laughter comes from the fire, Xena lets her shoulders sink a little. She turns to look at Ares and gives him a meaningful look and he nods. A dagger appears in front of him and she grabs it from the air, ready to fling it at the fire, but Eli is in her way. He is speaking to the fire, betrayal in his voice, “Dahok, you are not a Pure God, you have lied to me, but by doing so, you have helped me find a better way to live. For that I thank you and will always hold you in a special place of remembrance, but I can not let you enter our world. I am sorry, My Lord.” He moves to the side and Xena sends the dagger flying into the flames. It hits the center and the flame begins to extinguish before their eyes. “How?” A voice asks, now weak and small. From behind Xena, Ares answers, “Hind’s Blood, Dahok. The only thing that can kill a God.” There is silence and darkness fills the whole area. Ares lights a torch quickly and they see Eli kneeling where the fire had been. The man is speaking softly, then only above a whisper, he says, “I wish it had never come to this. Rest in peace.” Xena walks up behind him an puts a hand on his shoulder, “Come on Eli, let’s go home.” He nods and follows her back to the two Gods. He looks up at them, “I am sorry for the way I have treated you, I was wrong. Thank you for all that you have done. You are truly loving beings.” Ares and Lissia, a little uncomfortable nod at the man, then extend their hands. They all join hands and a bright light encompasses them.
When Xena opens her eyes, she is laying on the hard, cold floor of Lissia’s temple. She sighs dramatically and stands up. Joxer runs over to Lissia and hands her a sword. She takes it and smiles, “Thank you Joxer,” she says quietly. They all stand up and brush themselves up, except for Eli, who remains sitting on the floor, in shock. Gabrielle hands Ania to Xena, then rushes over and kneels in front of Eli, “Are you alright?” He slowly nods, “Yes Gabrielle, I am alright. I just thought that I had truly found something wonderful when in fact I had found a great evil.” Gabrielle nods at him, “That is how Dahok operates. What are you going to do now?” Eli smiles, “I am going back to India. Would you all to accompany me there?” He glances around at everyone, then lets his eyes settle on the bundle in Xena’s arms. He lowers his head, “Nevermind, I am sure that Ania doesn’t need that much traveling so soon in her little life.” Gabrielle looks disappointed, but hides it fast. “Gabrielle,” Xena says gently, “You can go with him. I’ll be fine. Anyway, I think we need some time to get used to all of this,” she says, motioning to Ares and Lissia. Gabrielle looks curious, then blushes in understanding when Xena winks at her, “Oh, alright, Xena. If you’re sure, that is? I see, you are. I won’t be gone long, just long enough to get Eli settled in.” She glances over at Joxer and Amarice, “You two coming or what?” Joxer smiles and nods his head, quickly walking over to stand next to Gabrielle. Amarice stares at them, then looks back at Xena, who shrugs. Amarice shakes her head, “I think I’ll stay here and keep Lissia company. We wouldn’t want her to be left all alone, now would we?” She asks sarcastically, glancing at Xena and Ares. Laughter fills the room, then the good-byes begin. Xena clasps hands with Eli and Joxer, then gives Gabrielle a tight hug, “Be careful and come back in one piece,” she whispers. Gabrielle nods against her, “No surprises when I get back, alright?” Xena moves away from her laughing and Gabrielle kisses Ania on the forehead. Amarice has found herself in a tight embrace with Joxer and finally is able to wiggle out of it with a laugh. She hugs Gabrielle lightly. Gabrielle turns to face the two Gods. She laughs seeing that Joxer has shaken hands with Ares and is now hugging Lissia. A little uncomfortable, she extends her hand to Ares. He takes it gently, “Make sure you come back to us, alright?” She nods, “Make sure you don’t get my friend pregnant again.” They both laugh and look over at Xena, who’s smiling and rolling her eyes. Lissia walks over and throws her arms around Gabrielle, “If you need anything, just call. Do you want me to take you to India?” Gabrielle pulls out of the embrace, “No, that’s quite alright.” Gabrielle, Eli, and Joxer walk out of the temple with packs on their shoulders, content in walking to the next town where they can buy passage to India. Xena smiles after them, then turns to look at the others. Lissia reaches out and takes Amarice by the hand, “We’ll let you two talk. See you on Olympus,” she says, disappearing.
Ania whimpers a little and Xena begins to rock her gently. An uncomfortable silence falls over the room. Finally, Ares asks, “So, you’re going to stay with us?” Xena nods silently. “Why?” He asks. She smiles at him, “Ania needs a family. And I can do more good with two Gods acting as my transportation. Anyways, I’ve kind of missed you two. So, I’ll stay if you promise to be nice. I know war is your job, but I think you can do your job without pointless fighting and death.” He laughs, “Is that all?” She nods and finds herself swept into his arms. “Done,” he whispers before kissing her passionately. They disappear and arrive in his room on Olympus, laying on the bed. They break the embrace and cuddle up with Ania lying between them, sound asleep. Within moments they have joined their daughter in the land of dreams.
-End