Geezy, it's been a while. Sorry guys. I guess I stopped because I can't think of what will happen next, but I'll give it a shot. Here's a little something to chew on while I put together a nice action-y chapter of Eve-saving. Gods, I said at the end of the last chapter that I "don't like to keep you guys waiting." Sorry about that. If it makes you feel any better, I didn't enjoy the wait either.


Xena pulled away from him.

"Ok, Ares, you want to help? Well, what's your plan."

A grin of relief spread over Ares' face. He was half expecting Xena to refuse his help. It wouldn't have been the first time.

"Well," he said, his voice becoming very business-like, "There are obviously too many of them to fight, if they were able to..." he paused, "Well. Point is we can't fight them."

Xena raised an eyebrow. "Is this the mighty God of War declining to take part in a possible brawl?"

Ares smiled grimly. "Trust me, there's nothing I'd like better than to be, you know, fighting by your side, the two of us against an army..." he trailed off, then shook himself mentally. "I'm not stupid, though. You know as well as I do that a fight is not what we need at the moment. Besides, our prize is fragile." His face was dead serious. Xena nodded.

"Right. So, what are we going to do?"

Ares took a deep breath. "Well, one of us has got to distract them while the other runs in and grabs Eve."

"Even if they were distracted they wouldn't leave, they would know I'd be hiding somewhere close by."

Now Ares grinned impishly. "Not if they thought they already knew where you were."

Xena gasped. Ares' skin had begun to ripple and change. His beard and mustache disappeared, his hair grew long and straight. Within a matter of seconds, a perfect copy of Xena was standing where Ares had just been.

"I never thought that ability would come in handy," Xena muttered, thinking of the time Ares had transformed himself into her father. Ares (or was it Xena now?) grinned sheepishly.

"Ready?" he said. Even his voice matched hers perfectly.

Xena eyed her false twin uneasily. Talking to the image of yourself standing right in front of you can easily throw someone off balance. "As read as I'll ever be."

Ares reached out to touch her hand, and closed his eyes. With a thought, the two of them vanished in a cloud of blue sparks.


Kind of weird and sci-fi-y, huh? Ok, I'll try to be back to you with the next chapter at least within a week or two.