"Well, Gran, so we're organized again. Now what?" Cupid wanted to know.

"That's up to you and him," Hera answered, indicating the new God of the Forge. "If he's as good as his reputation, he can protect us all. In the meantime, everyone stay clear of her until then - brave fools we don't need. And don't forget your temples - we're Gods only as long as the mortals believe in us."

The gods and goddesses all vanished to their domains, save two who stayed behind at Hera's request. The God of War and the Goddess of the Hunt looked at each other, barely concealing their contempt. To Apollo, Velasca was a jumped-up Mortal with ideas above her station. To Velasca, Apollo was a mere man - and only a boy, at that.

"Velasca, you wanted to take revenge on Artemis for abandoning you - you've got her job, so prove you're more than just an opportunist looking out for those who wronged you," Hera began, alluding to the clash with Gabrielle and Xena.

"Do not tempt my wrath, Velasca," she continued. "My arm is very long and can reach you wherever you are."

The Huntress nodded sullenly and strode out to her Olympian sector.

"So, Mom, what's with the war gig? Are we gonna knock 'em bandy, or what?" Apollo said casually, running his fingers along Ares' former sword of power.

The Queen of the Gods rolled her eyes and sighed. It was one thing for him to mess around with Mortals when he was God of the Sun, quite another as God of War. Ah well, it was going to be a learning curve for most of them - but for some, the curve will end a lot sooner.

"Apollo, you are my favourite son, yet you are the one who must face the most danger," she stated solemnly. "As God of War, it is in your power to ferment battles, skirmishes and wars, but know this: Xena will face you at every turn and defeat your armies, but you may not face her in single combat until we are ready."

"Aww, that blows!" the ex-Sun God pouted. "How can I rock as God of War if I have to run away from some piddling little mortal?"

"You may not have noticed, but that 'piddling little mortal' as you called her has just dispatched most of the major Olympians and turned another - hardly someone to take lightly!" Hera said sharply. "I've lost some of my family - I don't intend to lose any more!"

"Chill, Mom! She can't be everywhere at once and I have forever to live - she doesn't! It's gonna be a blast! Woohoo!" he said breezily, somersaulting onto his hoverboard and careering out of Olympus.

Hera watched her son leave, with a shake of her head, then sat back on her throne for a while, thinking ahead.

"Yes Hera?" Mnemosyne answered, on being summoned by the Queen of the Gods.

"Mnemosyne, we can't take revenge on Xena and her clan yet, but we still have some scores to settle with our adversaries," she explained. "What do you suggest we do to counter their powers?"

"I'll look into it," the Goddess replied and vanished to her Halls of Learning.

"Gabrielle, what's wrong"? Xena whispered quietly as the small party moved through the woodland, horses following on behind. "You look troubled."

"Xena, am I cursed?" her friend asked worriedly. "All my friends seem to be doomed as they begin to know me. Why me, Xena"?

"Gabrielle, you're not bad luck - you're good luck," the Warrioress said earnestly. "You've brought such joy and love into people's lives. Only the gods know what I would have done if I'd never met you. You are everything to me, Gabrielle."

The cropped-haired warrior bard's low spirits lifted at the support from her friend, the two threw an arm around each other's necks in a hug as they ambled through the wood. Behind them, Eve and Ares were walking the horses at a distance from each other, though that was proving a bit tricky in the narrow confines of the copse.

Ares drew Argo to a halt with an impatient sigh, forcing Eve and her mount borrowed from Gabrielle, whom she was leading, to an abrupt halt. The young woman looked anxiously for the cause of the halted march.

"Eve, what's with the cloak and hood, hmm?" Ares quizzed her. "Afraid of what people might see?"

There was no answer, only a head bowed within her garment and half-turned away.

"Or afraid of what you see in yourself?" he added, doffing her hood and lifting her head into the light.

"I'm a killer, Ares," she answered, her eyes staring back with an indefinable dullness. "There's blood on my hands."

"No, you're not!" he laughed. "You've decimated some villages, trashed temples and won a few battles - hardly the Destroyer of Nations, are you?"

"But - but what about all the senseless killing of innocents I undertook every day"? she asked worriedly. "How can I ever be forgiven for that?"

"You were a Roman general," Ares replied with a shrug. "Efficiency and ruthlessness are a must-have as part of the Curriculum Vitae. And as for murdering Joxer - well, that's a bit of a grey area."

"Grey area?" queried Eve hesitantly.

"I couldn't abide him myself, but he was your mother's and Gabrielle's best friend," the ex-God explained. "But on the other hand, it was the clincher that led you to realising who you were and not who you became."

"Maybe I should talk to Mother about it?" she suggested.

But whatever Ares was going to say in reply was halted abruptly by the sight of a icily calm Xena looking daggers at him, her hand itching to let loose her chakram.

"So, having another cosy chat, are we Ares? Trying to get your warrior queen back again?" Xena called out, her body as tense and taut as a crouched panther.

"There's no such thing as a replacement for the real thing, Xena," he shrugged in answer.

"You seemed to have tried pretty hard with my daughter while you thought I was dead," she said tartly. "Or was that the only reason you saved her?"

"Fine! Think what you bloody well like!" Ares roared, losing his temper. "I've told you the truth - if you don't want to believe me, then don't!"

He stormed off through the wood ahead of them, heading off to a nearby village in the distance.

"Well mother, that was a smart thing to do!" Eve snapped. "He was only talking to me on my history as Livia - hardly a crime, was it?"

"Eve, I was just thinking of you," Xena said soothingly. "You just can't trust him, he's always up to something."

"Yeah, well in case you'd forgotten, he saved our hides," her daughter countered. "To me that means I at least owe him the time of day, despite his past with you."

"And what of his past with you?" Xena asked pointedly.

"He's a Mortal now," Eve shrugged. "He gave up everything for us - that makes us even. And what sort of imposing figure is he going to cut if he's not a God anymore?"

"He'll find a way, he's more cunning and devious than a den of foxes," the warrior princess answered darkly.

"Not the trusting type, are you Mother?" Eve said sardonically.

"Only family and friends," the warrior princess replied shortly.

The frank, almost direct, discussion between mother and daughter was halted by the sight and sound of a tetchy Gabrielle tapping her foot impatiently.

"So there's a cat amongst the pigeons? Why should that change things between the three of us?" she asked rhetorically. "Xena, he saved your life and ours, in the face of everything he stood for - Isn't that worth something? And Eve, now you're a civilian, you have to learn to read people and not rush to judgments, though a little cynicism goes a long way."

"Okay," Xena said grudgingly, and Eve concurred, as they mounted up and set off at a gentle trot, with Gabrielle walking in between.

"Where are we headed to, anyway?" Eve asked, after a while.

"To the next village for some supplies," Gabrielle answered evenly. "And some lunch," she added as an afterthought.

"Uh-huh," Xena commented, with a knowing smile.

"Oh yeah, you told me about that, Mother," Eve replied casually. "Something about how it was a miracle someone ate so much but weighed so little. And how it was an education seeing you in full flow at meal time."

"Really," Gabrielle said tartly. "Then your mother and I must have a little chat sometime about what else she tells you. "

"But surely we don't have any secrets from each other?," the Warrior Princess said innocently.

"Hmm," her friend ended suspiciously, as the hamlet loomed into view.

The village ahead was little more than a few houses scratched together, with the odd farm dotted around, the inn being the principal building.

"Looks like a one-horse town," Eve noted doubtfully.

"I think someone ate it," Xena said flatly. She shrugged and dismounted, leading Argo on the rough track towards the tavern. Eve followed suit, and the trio trooped in into the village.

"Hey," Xena hailed a man leaning against the tavern, "is there a stable around here?"

"Nope, just what you see," he replied. He thought for a moment and pointed to a ramshackle barn. "Them's a disused barn with a hole in the roof, but there be some hay in there."

"Thanks," Xena said and took Argo and Eve's horse to the barn.

"You'm not from round these parts, then?" he asked warily, taking in the armour of the Warrior Princess, the rags of Eve and the leather outfit of Gabrielle, in a wide-eyed glance.

"Er, not exactly no," Gabrielle answered hesitantly. "We're from up the north coast."

"Ah, more foreigners," the man said with conviction. "You'm going to the tavern then?"

"Yes, we will as soon as-" Gabrielle halted mid-sentence as she reheard what the man just said to her. "Did you say more foreigners?"

"Yus. One come in the tavern a fair while back, in a fair old temper," the man grinned. "He's alright now though - bin supping some of our local brew!"

"Ares!" Gabrielle muttered to herself.

"Oh, what's Dad been saying now?" Eve said, rolling her eyes and shaking her head. "Did he say he was the God of War?"

Dad? Gabrielle mouthed in surprise to Eve.

"Um, now you come to mention it, he did say that," the yokel replied, scratching his head. "We weren't too sure, 'cos he do look like him."

"You don't want to take any notice of him, he's just having a laugh, y'know?" Eve winked conspiratorially. "Bit too much of the drink and he'll say anything!"

"Ah, is that all it is?" he laughed in relief. "Interesting flavour, has our brew. Made of apples - well, mostly apples."

"Guess we'd better go and rescue dear old 'Dad', hadn't we?" Gabrielle said sharply, with a stern glance to Eve.

"Yes, Mother will be so relieved to see him again," Eve said innocently, with a glint in her eye.

"I'll be relieved to see who again?" Xena wanted to know, as she rejoined Eve and Gabrielle.

"Your dear old Dad," Gabrielle said sweetly. "He's getting roaring drunk in there after the 'chat' you had with him this morning."

"Oh, is he?" Xena said disinterestedly, knowing full well who Gabrielle was referring to.

"He's been saying he's the God of War," the man added. "And something about some Warrior woman he loved."

"Well, these things happen," Xena replied with a shrug, ignoring the frowns of her daughter and best friend. "Love blows."

Ares' slurred voice could be heard through the door, though his words were less than clear; But barely had the words "Amphipolis" and "she seduced me" been heard, than Xena marched in without hesitation, and hauled the ex-God over her shoulder.

"He's family," was her only explanation as she heaved him out through the door and dumped him in the street.

A nearby rainbutt was emptied over him and he flinched as he was hit by the cold fresh air - the villager hurried into the tavern and the three women grimaced as Ares emptied his stomach onto the roadside.

"Still can't handle your drink Ares?" Xena asked harshly.

"Piss off Xena," Ares responded through clenched teeth, holding his head steady to stop it spinning round, as he struggled to his feet. "I don't want to talk to you no more."

"Well, you seemed very keen on talking about me in that bar just now."

"Like you care what I think of you?"

"Nope, not in the slightest, but that doesn't include slandering my reputation in front of a whole village!"

"Oh, and you were clearly thinking of your reputation when you were in your home village, just 'waiting' for me?"

"Oh, so you're bringing that up again, are you? You know full well that was only to fool you into protecting Eve!"

"And the hundreds of times we've been making whoopee, that was all to protect Eve as well, right? And the loads of times you dreamt or lusted about me, that was all Eve too."

"So all your promises of love were just talk - Ha! I thought as much! I'm just a roll in the hay to you, nothing more."

"Well, if you say so, it must be right; after all, everyone knows Xena's never wrong,"

"And you're always right, I suppose?"

"Well, as a matter of fact......"

"They're going to be at it for some time, aren't they?" Eve sighed.

"Yeah, pretty much," Gabrielle said, rolling her eyes. "Come on into the tavern."

The two combatants were still hard at it, scoring petty debating points off each other, not noticing Eve and Gabrielle slip away into the tavern. They sat down together at a table with a mug of ale, while they waited for the wench from the kitchen to bring the tavern special over.

"This isn't the local brew is it?" Eve asked Gabrielle warily. "Local village brews tend to be a bit 'potent' to strangers."

"When you've been around the known world as I have Eve," the warrior bard answered confidently, with a swig from her mug, "you'll learn to spot the average ales from the - Guuuurk!"

Gabrielle sat bolt upright, as the before/during/ and aftereffects of the drink hit her, her eyes glazed over and her body rigid. Eve was beside her in a flash, checking to see if she was ok and ignoring the sniggers from the assembled locals.

"Are you alright Gabrielle?" Eve asked urgently "Gabrielle?"

Her entreaties seemingly unheard, the Amazon stared into open space with a look of panic on her face, then slowly recovered herself, taking deep long breaths.

"Gabrielle, are you ok?" Eve repeated.

"Eve, I-I-I just had the oddest vision," Gabrielle said hesitantly. "It was like a warning!"

"You mean it wasn't just the ale that made you go stiff like that?" Eve frowned.

"No, no, no, it was more than that," Gabrielle said breathlessly, with a baleful look at the bubbling mug of drink beside her. "It was as if someone wanted me to beware of the future."

"Sit tight, Gabrielle, I'll fetch Mother," Eve said reassuringly, pressing her hand on her shoulder and turning to the door, saw Xena in the doorway.

"Eve, what happened to Gabrielle?" Xena asked, on seeing her best friend pale and shaking.

"Mother, she had a sip of the ale and she says she had a vision," her daughter said worriedly.

"Gimme a mug of water, quick," Xena demanded and the barman obliged. She pulled up a stool and sat down by Gabrielle, putting her arm around her. "What's up Gabrielle, what did you see?"

"Xena!" Gabrielle said with relief, grasping the mug of water Xena passed to her and drinking it gratefully. "One moment I was with Eve here having a drink, the next I was back in the Bards' Academy in Athens and Homer was asking a riddle."

Xena sniffed the drink suspiciously, then carefully sipped it.

"Watch out Mother, it knocked Gabrielle for six," Eve warned.

"Naah, just the potent local ale to catch the unwary and foolish," Xena said easily, downing the mug without a qualm and giving her friend a pitying look. "So what was the riddle?"

"Well," Gabrielle began, having the grace to look sheepish, "Homer asked: 1,2,3. Three to perish, Three to die, the Three shall know the reason why. The Creator, the Nurturer, the Destroyer - 1,2,3."

"Seems straightforward enough," Xena said thoughtfully.

"There's more," Gabrielle continued. "Then the bards started calling out guesses - 'Crassus, Pompey and Caesar'; 'Poseidon, Zeus and Hades'; 'Lao Ma, Boudiccea and Cleopatra'; Homer shook his head - 'No, those are already gone - the Three are yet to go.' No-one knew the answer, then Homer turned to me and said, 'But Gabrielle knows - don't you?'

"And that's when I came round again."

...More coming soon!

Please take the time to write to Jerry at studmuffin_jer@yahoo.com, and let him know how you like the story so far!

COPYRIGHT DISCLAIMER:
Xena: Warrior Princess, Xena, Gabrielle, Eve, Ares, and all other characters who have appeared in the series, together with the names, titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of StudiosUSA and Renaissance Pictures. The lyrics to "All The Way" are owned by the appropriate copyright holders. No infringement of copyrights or trademarks is intended in the writing of this fan fiction. This story is copyright © 2000 by Jerry Hendy and is his sole property along with the story idea. This story cannot be sold or used for profit in any way. Copies of this story may be made for private use only and must include all disclaimers and copyright notices.