Four little letters, yet so very powerful when put together.
Powerful enough to send a person on a quest for justice. A quest for
revenge.
So very powerful, it could eat you alive if you let it.
But ~Wike wouldn't let that happen. She knew how to control her anger. And
her hatred. Her soul wasn't in jeopardy, or, in need of saving for that
matter. What did this Lyrical know about hate? About losing loved ones?
About watching your family and friends die and not being able to do
anything about it? She couldn't possibly know, no one could know what
that's like.
Hate was the only thing she had left. It was what had kept her alive all
these years, it was what made her the warrior she is today.
It is who she is.
"What do you mean by that?" ~Wike asked with a thread of steel to her
voice. She was on guard now. She wouldn't talk about this with Lyrical. Or
anyone for that matter. One thing a warrior didn't do was give away
secrets.
Lyrical knew she'd hit a soft spot with that question. She was leery to ask
more, but she also knew that her friend was in pain. A pain so deep and so
imbedded that it was a part of who she is. When you looked at ~Wike, you
could see it, you could feel it. And it made a person want to either run
and hide from it or help her ease it.
"I'm sorry if my question upset you my friend, but I know a little of what
you're going through. I've been there myself. All of us here have been
through it one time or another in our lives. But you can't let it get the
best of you. You have to let it go and move on. It's the only way you can
truly be free to live a happy life."
"Yeah, well, I tried happy once. And look what it got me." ~Wike said
angrily. "And how could you possibly know how I feel?! Have you held your
mother and father in your arms and watched them die? Knowing there was
nothing you could do to help them? Have you? I don't recommend it."
She finished with a stiff nod and turned to leave the lean to before she
gave Lyrical even more weapons to use against her.
For in ~Wike's mind, the kind of information she'd just let slip was enough
to get her killed. Some where in the back of her mind she knew that Lyrical
and the others were friends, or at least as close as a friend she'd ever
made in her life. For she lived by the theory that if you trust no one,
you'll live longer. It was natural for her not to trust Lyrical, or the
others, with this kind of ammunition to use against her. It was better to
leave than to make an enemy of someone she had come to care about. It was
safer too. It was time for her to move on.
This wasn't her fight anyway. She just happened to be in the right place
and the right mood for a good brawl. But now it was time to finish what
she'd started 10 years ago.
Lyrical just couldn't put into words what she wanted to say to this strong,
stubborn minded Amazon. What could one say to a question like that. And her
control was amazing. Lyrical sensed that ~Wike was about to break and was
amazed that she held herself together so well. Looking at her you would
never have known it. Her face was like a mask, hiding all the pain inside.
It was almost eerie how impassive her eyes were.
"Look hon, I didn't mean anything by that. I just want to help you. You
seem lost and I just thought you could use a friendly ear to talk to. I
didn't mean to pry. Please know that if you ever need me, I'm here for
you." Lyrical said in a soft, soothing voice. It was meant to calm and
relax her new friend, but it seemed to make her even more agitated.
" A friend is something I haven't had the luxury of having in my life for a
long time. I thank you for the offer, but it is time that I get back to
what I set out to do years ago." " Take care of yourself and maybe our
paths will cross again one day." ~Wike said. As she turned to leave, she
remembered something that an old friend had told her.
"Be Strong In A World That's Weak."
With that she left the lean to.
~~~~~~~~~~**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"~Wike! Thanx the gods you're still here! You've got to help me get her
inside. I can't get her to move on her own, and she's to heavy for me to
carry by myself." Calee said in a panicked voice. "She seems to have what
Lyri had. I just happened to see her sitting here and the next thing I
know,she's laying in the dirt. Get RC here and make it fast!"
There was no help for it now.
Her quest would have to wait.
If the gods were willing, maybe this time Callisto would come to her.
Kendaa and Calee approached the lean-tos where Lyrical and Aquillea both
were. Kendaa had hoped for the best but her heart sank further when Calee
described what had happened to two of her strongest Amazons fighters. They
had not been Amazons that long but they had come to them like many sisters,
from a terrible tragedy in their lives.
They both fought so hard to master the skills of an Amazon. Skills that
were obviously completely foreign to their previous lives. They struggled
with weaponry, fighting skills, battle strategy, logistics, tactics and
survival skills. And they came through their training with flying colors.
Of all the Amazons Kendaa had seen and worked with over the years, these
two learned their skills more thoroughly and faster than most.
Calee stopped short with a short intake of breath. Kendaa stopped, too, and
looked to see Hercules coming out of the lean-to where his Lyrical lay. He
saw them and smiled at them. It wasn't a great big smile but it was enough
to let them know that things with Lyrical must be better than they thought.
"Oh, Hercules," Kendaa said smiling back at him. "I'm glad to see you
smiling and in one piece after the battle. And Lyrical?"
He walked over to where they stood looking relieved. "She's going to be
fine, thanks to several individuals ... well, thanks to RainCloud and
Aphrodite and even Zeus. Not to mention the attention the healer from
Antianos gave her."
Calee looked puzzled. "RainCloud's ankle ... its better?"
"Yeah, my sister healed it so we could get this herb from the cave where
the monster ... " he stopped in midsentence and half-smiled and shrugged
his shoulders.
"Oh, sure," Calee said rolling her eyes and putting her hands on her hips,
"we understand. It's the same old story with you and Iolaus--injuries,
poisonings, deathly illness, monsters, goddesses, gods, miracles and
everything turns out fine. Why was I ever concerned?"
She gave him a big grin. Kendaa burst out laughing at Calee's speech.
"Like Iolaus says, monsters are you!" Kendaa joked.
"Yeah, Iolaus," Herc looked up remembering his friend and his predicament.
"I don't know how he and Aquillea are doing. Alec is probably with them
now."
The two Amazons and the demi-god started at the same time in the direction
where Aquillea was. It was only a few yards away from where Lyrical was.
Iolaus came out of the shelter alone looking distraught. He didn't see them
an walked in the direction of a tree. Autolycus came out of the shelter and
went straight over to the Golden Hunter.
Herc and the two women thought the worst when they saw Iolaus. They stood
for a few second not sure what to do next. As Auto talked to Iolaus they
came to the conclusion that Iolaus' dark Amazon was still among the living
but obviously not very well.
A young boy appeared, ran up to Iolaus pleased with something he had found.
Iolaus was obviously pleased with it himself.
A woman and man Kendaa had never seen before came out of the lean-to Quilla
was in and started over to Iolaus and Auto.
Calee touched her Amazon commander on the arm and nodded toward the man.
"That's Alec the healer from Antianos. He can tell us about Quilla."
"Oh, .. by the gods, is that you, Kendaa?"
Hearing RainCloud's familiar voice, Kendaa turned her head to speak to her
tribe's healer. RainCloud was just coming out of Lyrical's lean-to when
Iolaus, Auto and Alec hurried back to Aquillea's lean-to.
"RainCloud, please tell me what is happening here?"
But before the healer could tell her anything, Calee let out a small cry
and ran over to a familiar figure who was collapsed in a heap on the
ground. It was Xena.
Eeyoraus stood gazing at the sunset in a daze of confusion. She knew she
had to move on into it. She could not allow the treacherous Murlock and his
baneful legerdemain close to her beloved new family again. It was just too
risky to stay and she knew he would be back, but she, also, knew she didn't
want to leave. She didn't want to be alone. She knew her sisters and
friends and her father and grandmother would fight with her but Murlock's
powers were too great. He could, he would hurt or kill anyone who tried to
keep her from him. He'd done it before.
She, also, knew she'd have to leave Michael behind. This wouldn't be easy.
She would not be able to simply sneak away from him. He rarely let her out
of his sight. If she told him why she was leaving, he'd want to protect
her. With his powers so diminished, he'd be no match for the beautiful fury
of the spellbinder.
She could not come up with a lie strong enough to sway him. Even if she
only told the truth, that she had a husband and a daughter and must find
them and left out the part about Murlock and his plans for her, Michael
would know there was more to the story. She was not a being who would just
forget people she loved, pieces of herself, nor was she one who would lie
about her love for him. He'd surely guess that something horrible was
behind this.
She didn't want to be without Michael's love either. She needed the power
that came from it. Just a few hours ago she believed it to be the purest,
most powerful emotion of her life but it had never been pure. It was beyond
tarnished at it's conception. It had been born rusted through. It was what
she had longed for for twenty years and it was no good. None at all.
She adored him. He was perfect. He was splendid, transfixing, awesome.
He was a substitute.
How could she tell him goodbye? How could she tell him anything? How could
she not? Just her silence was malicious to him. She could feel his hurt and
bewilderment. It made her own so much greater.
The time was here however. As she felt the strong but tender hands slip
around her waist from behind her and pull her gently against his pounding
chest she knew that the time for consideration was lost. The moment of
truth was now.
The crisp winter air had soaked into her and she felt it's sickening chill
through and through. Her body trembled against the warmth of her loving
Celt.
Brushing her hair back from her temple he kissed it gently, allowing his
fingers to roam and play with the fiery curls. His chest heaved as his
unrequited passions arose once more. He wanted this woman body and soul.
His desire was all consuming.
He was losing her and he knew it.
What had happened, he wondered. She had been sad…concerned for her beloved
friend , but loving and happy towards him, then without warning or reason a
change had come over her. There was terror in her eyes. Her sanity had
slipped away right before him. She was much more irrational than even her
eccentric personality allowed. Her actions, her words, even her movements
made no sense at all.
She had run outside into the freezing wind and returned red-faced and
sweating. She had been hell-bent on saving Aquillea and with one eye-to-eye
look from Shait, she abandoned all and ran away. She had loved him and
returned his lustful gazes with powerful stares of her own, then cut him
off without a word of explanation.
Now as he held her she seemed to be pulling away and holding on for life,
changing her mind with every heartbeat.
"My darling Eeyoraus. What has happened? Tell me! I will understand. I have
to. All I have and all I am is wrapped up in you. Whatever this is, is
happening to me too! I'm only at the great disadvantage of not having a
clue as to what it is."
Being E! excited and intense at birth and more so with each passing day,
she opened her mouth to slowly pour out some reasonable lie she would
concoct as she went along and instead in a flurry of wild words, jerking
movements, and white water emotion she sprayed him with the whole awful
truth.
He wrenched away in fear and amazement. Spent half seconds in many emotions
, anger at Murlock , anger at her, compassion, jealousy, grief, rage, love.
Then he grabbed her, spun her around to face him, took her wet face his
large hands and kissed her with all the passion he had held back his whole
life. He held her so close she could barely breath. He could not find words
yet. He was choking for air himself, but the one fragment of clarity in
either of them was his knowledge that he could not lose this woman.
"We're in this together. We'll figure out where I belong in your life after
we get rid of the beast. It's you and me, kid."
"Oh, so after that kiss , you're gonna be my buddy? Sure Comrade , why
don't you just die a horrible death for me so I can spend the rest of my
life with a man I haven't seen for twenty years? Well, how nice of you to
offer but ..., Eeyoraus ranted sarcastically.
"I can't let you come with me. I do love you Michael. I love you and I want
you. I don't know if Seth still loves me or not. I don't know if he's
anything like what he was before. I don't know if he has another woman. He
may even have a family. Most of all I don't know where he is.
"Only Murlock can lead me to him. I don't know if he knows I'm alive . I
don't know if he's looking for me or has forgotten me too. I know no more
about Amora than I do about Seth.
"I have to go out alone and appear vulnerable. Murlock will be watching.
You can bet he is watching now. He will find me and that will be the only
chance I have of finding them. BUT I can't risk you or anyone I love. I
have to do this alone!"
(Far away in a castle too beautiful to imagine a young girl leaned over an
enchanted pool fighting back the tears that could disrupt her vision.
"We're watching you too, Mama. And he does still love you. We both do. Stay
where you are. Please, stay, mama and we'll find you. Stay there safe with
your friends. We'll be there. We'll be there soon. I promise. I love you,
Mama." She whispered.
Then she turned and ran to find her father. With urgency she'd never felt
before she screamed his name. He appeared and without a word, they were on
their way.)
A feeling of great hatred crept into Eeyoraus' mental upheaval. Sometimes,
feeling the emotions of others was too much too handle. She knew exactly
who she would find standing next to her. The evil was not nearly as intense
as Murlock's but it's source was even more powerful. She didn't know why he
hated her so or why Hera would want her dead, but she knew the only
wickedness that demanded the respect of the demonic magician was Hera
herself.
One glance at Aka, now standing at her side, confirmed what she already
knew. The peacock feather he proudly displayed was Hera's calling card.
"I'll help you too!" The young puppet announced. "I'll be glad too."
"I'll bet you will…just when you thought things couldn't get any worse…"
"Now, let me get this straight," Joxer said as he looked up at Kalas from
his seat against the metallic wall, "your father, King Bartok, is a Klingon
from the distant future. He is the brother of Mogh, Worf's biological
father. So that makes Worf your cousin, right?"
"That is correct," Worf stated and looked down with curiosity at this
strange man from Earth's past. Joxer swung his head around to look up at
the Klingon warrior who stood at his opposite side. At such close proximity
his strength and size was almost overpowering. Man, oh man, just who was he
kidding? He was in way over his head.
Putting his uncertainties behind him for the moment, he turned back to
Kalas and continued, "And Bartok was one of a special group of warriors who
was surgically altered and sent to 'Earth', as you call it, to secretly
study the humans, then report back to the Klingon Empire. But what went
wrong? Did something happen to them to cause them to go back into the
past?" He was still trying to grasp the fact that there were worlds beyond
New Greeceland. Space and huge ships that traveled through it were part of
this reality. At this very moment they were on one of those spaceships
travelling through the stars. It was a revelation he knew he would have to
keep to himself.
Kalas tried to answer his questions. "The ship they traveled on came upon a
strange time continuum wave in the outer reaches of space. It flung them
into Earth's past. The group of warriors separated and each went their own
way. My father made the best of things, using his possessions to find his
kingdom, which he has ruled for most of his life. He revealed some of this
to me when I was a young lad. But only recently, right before I came to
Antianos, as a matter of fact, did he tell me the entire story."
"I know you are only half Klingon, Kalas, so why did you change appearance
when we time traveled into the future?" Joxer asked, his curiosity getting
the better of him.
Kalas shrugged his broad shoulders. "Who can say? It happened when I came
here before. Once we are back in our time my appearance changes back to my
former self. It must have something to do the effect time travel has on my
Klingon blood."
"Enough talk!" Worf suddenly exclaimed, startling the two of them. "There
are things we need to do before we leave." Picking up two bat'telhs from
the cache of weapons Kalas had removed earlier, he moved towards Joxer.
"Come, ancient Greek one, it is time you learned what it is to be a
warrior. I will help you become what you were meant to be."
Joxer slowly got up from his seat, which immediately disappeared into the
wall. He deftly caught the odd weapon Worf tossed his way as he moved to
stand in front of the Klingon. He moved his hands along the cold steel of
the weapon, feeling the smooth strangeness of its sharp curves. He mimicked
Worf's hold as he turned the weapon out, making it an extension of himself.
With a slight smile, Worf nodded his approval.
"That's right, Joxer, feel the power of the bat'telh. It is a part of your
strength, a part of you. Now, meet my attack!" He sliced upwards with the
weapon, hitting Joxer's bat'telh with a resounding metallic ring. Joxer
felt the blow down to his very bones. But he didn't hesitate. He slid his
bat'telh away from the Klingon, bringing it downward and around to meet the
second blow of his opponent's curved blade. Crouching low, he slowly
circled Worf, a smile coming to his boyish features. "Not so fast, my
Klingon friend, I'm beginning to get the hang of this thing. You do know I
am known as Joxer The Mighty," he said as he brought his blade up in a
strong blow of his own.
Worf laughed and met the blow, parrying with a swift move. "Okay, Joxer The
Mighty, let me show you what to do once you have disabled your opponent."
He moved forward and swung his bat'telh around, catching Joxer off guard.
Quickly, he brought the weapon up, stopping just short of the strong column
of Joxer's throat.
"Great, that's great! Now, show me that move again, if you don't mind,"
Joxer said, his brown eyes wide in awe. Worf moved back and started to
oblige him when suddenly a brilliant flash of light lit up the room.
"Well, what have we here? Surely, you aren't going to kill him, are you,
Worf?" The slightly sarcastic voice broke through the silence.
Worf turned and met the newcomer, his dark eyes filled with dismay. "Q,
what in the name of Kahless are you doing here?"
"Who is this and what does he want? What do you mean things could get
worse?" He asked Eeyoraus
"This is Aka. He works for Hera and he's here to kill me, ya see." She
answered in a peculiarly light, even whimsical tone.
Both men gasped and stepped back looking first at the red-haired Amazon and
then at one another.
"What?"
" How did you know that?"
" What's going on here?"
Questions were coming at her so quickly Eeyoraus could not keep up with who
was asking which one. The fact that both men had drawn there weapons didn't
make thinking any easier.
She stepped between the ready warriors almost giggling. Michael was sure
she had reached the point of delirium. Aka presumed it must be the evil
Hera had told him of that made her laugh. The half-goddess wasn't sure why
she found it funny, she just did.
"Wait, wait, wait!" she s******ed, shaking her head with a hand held palm
out towards either man. " I need neither killing nor defending."
"Michael obviously the lad has been misinformed as must be true for
anyone voluntarily in Hera's service. Let's give him a chance to explain.
There is a great sadness compelling him to believe her and hate me.
Turning to Aka she asked him, "What lie has that monster told you? Why does
she say I should die?"
Aka had joined the forces of pure bewilderment in Eeyoraus presence. "How
did you know this much about me. You are the witch she said you were . You
destroyed my home, my entire village! You killed my family! If I ever
wished to see them again you must die! Hera promised."
Michael started to speak at her defense but she laid a finger over his
lips, "Shhhhh. I'll handle this." the look of merriment still her eye.
He obeyed. She was beginning to scare him, too.
"Young man, I have been a donkey for the past twenty years, my power, which
does not include the ability to wipe out entire villages by the way, was
practically useless to me during that time. So unless, this has happened in
the last four days I could not even be a suspect. Your village was not
destroyed by a rouge donkey was it?"
"How can you make light of my family's death? You must be evil! She told me
you would lie!"
"I'm sorry. I am sorry about your family, but believing I did this…trusting
anything Hera had to say is just as ridiculous. I am the daughter of Cupid.
My power is one of love…*usually*, but I would never have killed innocent
people. I don't know why Hera told you this in order to have me killed, but
I am telling you the truth."
Aka fell silent. He had considered the source. His village had in fact
worshipped Aphrodite and feared Hera, but that night when she came to him,
the only survivor…..
Eeyoraus countenance changed as well. She must be serious. Aka was deadly
serious. Why would Hera care if she lived or died.
Michael was totally shaken. With story she had told him just before the
intruder spoke up , he didn't know what or who to believe.
A warm, unnatural wind encircled the trio as they stood together, yet
worlds apart, separated by their thoughts.
All eyes were focused on Iolaus and his discussion with the gods as Maddie
began to slowly edge her way to the exit of the lean-to. Their
pre-occupation with Aquillea's situation would allow her to leave
unnoticed, she hoped. A sudden and constant ringing in her ears told her
instinctively that she did not have much time before something happened.
What that would be she didn't know. She did know that she couldn't risk
finding out there and then.
She made slow, backward movements, barely perceptible, actually. She wished
to stay but knew that she could do no more good herself and might do some
damage if things did not work out well. As Maddie took a last look at her
sleeping yet restless friend, she prayed that at least she would be safe
and whole by morning. She then quietly slipped out.
Outside, she took a deep breath as the ringing grew louder. The sun seemed
to sink more quickly than it ever had before. There appeared to be a
growing commotion outside the lean-tos as another wounded person drew
growing attention. Could that be Xena on the ground unconscious?
Maddie made her way past the newly-formed crowd grabbing a full wineskin
and a blanket from the provisions as she passed. A night in the forest
wouldn't be so bad, she thought. It would probably be the best night's
sleep she'd gotten in some time. Unless she did something inconvenient . .
.
. . . like turning into a wolf, or something.
The last traces of daylight were slipping away as Maddie sprinted towards
the edge of the woods.
"The truth is out there." Eeyoraus thought, wondering why that phrase
seemed so familiar.
All at once it came to her.
Murlock had never hidden his purpose. It was part of his seduction to tell
her about the power she would become a part of when his rune was complete.
She thought back on the days when she was coming of age. His spiteful
beauty had infected her. Lust for what she feared most grew common. The hot
blooded young daughter of corporeal love could not look away from
impassioned blue gaze of her devourer. Why did he have to be so
magnificent? She had almost given herself to him willingly. The fight had
spent much of her youthful energies. Pretending that all was well was so
close to impossible.
Only Granny knew her torment and had waited for the day she would have to
concoct a circumstance to allow her to free her granddaughter of her fear
by imprisoning her in lowly form with great skill in setting up the
scenario. It was one of the saddest situations of the goddesses' eternity.
They had no choice.
She saw and even understood Eeyoraus' dilemma. Murlock had tried his charms
on her after all , hoping to have her give him the power he yearned for on
a silver platter. Even she found him nearly hopeless to resist . He
reminded her of her brother Ares, with presence both evil and shockingly
desirable. The penetrating blue eyes were the main and most dangerous
difference. It had taken all her strength to deny him. She knew Eeyoraus
had no chance without her help even though his plans for the child were so
much more terrible. Fighter that she was, resisting this magic man would be
a tremendous battle for a harden warrior. The darkness himself could never
have conjured such mortifying attractiveness.
However when Murlock saw that the young half-goddess would indeed fight
him, he had offered her the thing he found irresistible, omnipotence. She
would not have it herself ,of course, but how much more a part of something
could she possibly be? He had asked her to become flesh of his flesh in the
most complete and unseverable way. How could anyone resist total dominion
over all things?
And this was where her answer lay. If he had what he wanted from her he
would be supreme, dominating even the gods, even Hera. Now it seemed so
obvious. The hateful queen of the gods had discovered his plan and had to
stop it. For Hera the death of this pesky halfling was the simple and
obvious answer to her problem.
