() Epilogue: The Myth of the Anbreasia Stone ()
Eons ago, when the great Mount Olympus first came into existence as a place for the gods, in its greatest hall there sat an amethyst stone - shaped as a dagger. It sat directly behind and above the throne for the King of the Gods, surrounded by the other thrones of the twelve greatest Olympians. Since the hall had been built in Chronus' time, none of the gods knew of its origins or uses, but it was rumored to be extremely powerful.
Much debate ran through the Olympian chamber, of what to do with the stone. Zeus wanted it left alone, knowing full well how terribly powerful Chronus' creations were liable to be. Zeus was through playing with the designs of his cruel father.
The other gods were not so easily convinced, but the original siblings eventually agreed to leave their father's work alone. If they started with this stone, soon another would be rumored, and then all of Olympus would be torn to shreds looking for power. Besides, nobody knew what exactly it was supposed to do.
But as the younger gods were born, raised, and took their place among the twelve of the council, the debates sprung up again. They were not so afraid of Chronus as the previous generation had been - after all Zeus, his own son, had killed him. That did not lend much credence to their fear of him.
These gods were young and wanted the potential power the stone could contain - either for themselves or for their pantheon. Finally, Zeus had had enough. One day the stone was simply gone, "Somewhere safe," he said.
He wanted the stone forgotten. And, for a time, it was. Rumors still circulated about the 'Anbreasia Stone,' but nobody knew where it was or how to get at it, and so the rumors died as quickly as they had appeared. The gods had mortals to play with, duties to attend to, plots to make, and vengeances to exact. One little amethyst was easily forgotten.
Until it was discovered missing. Zeus was outraged, threatening harsh punishments on whoever was found to have taken it. But who could have? None of the gods knew where it had been hidden, some had never even seen it. The mystery was left unsolved.
It was not until centuries and centuries later that the stone reappeared. This time, in the hands of a mortal - Xena.
The Anbreasia Stone had been taken by the one person who was good at finding out Zeus' secrets, and the only one vengeful enough to take it without using it - Hera. The queen of the gods had not trusted her husband with the stone, having seen first hand how he was willing to use any weapon he had when angered enough. But she'd also known that she could not keep it.
And so she'd passed it on, as a gift attached with a threat. Ares, who was perhaps ambitious enough to desire the stone, was not usually stupid enough to disobey his mother. He had already been rumored to have it, so it was wise not to keep it. Or so Hera had demanded of him.
Ares gave the stone up easily enough - he had found a way to keep it without actually having it. The God of War had realized that he could not be near the stone without using it, and to use it would surely result in a dangerous response from his fellow gods.
Xena, his prized warrior and the first woman to inspire his loyalty rather than her own, was the perfect loophole. Ares gave her the stone as a gift to prove their bond, one that he had deemed unbreakable. Whatever she chose to do with it, she was with him, and so the stone was still within his sphere of influence. It was quite the plan.
Until Xena left her warlord days, and him, far behind her. The stone, however, she could not leave behind.
Since it was a testament to her bond with the God of War, Xena had made several attempts to discard it upon severing her ties with him. It didn't matter what she said, how hard she tried - she could never bring herself to get rid of the small, dagger shaped amethyst.
Though Ares had told her as much of the story as he knew, Xena had not focused any energy on unlocking the stone's secrets. Its power was ancient and sounded dangerous - Xena was more concerned with her empire than angering the rest of the gods. Once she turned to the side of good, discovering its power only seemed like a route back to her evil self.
It was a symbol of her bond to Ares and, as such, had only ever displayed one power. Once she'd received the stone, carried on her always, she could sense the God of War's presence before he appeared. They were, connected, and the stone recognized that.
Her own inability to get rid of it, along with the stone's ability to allow her to sense Ares' presence, had convinced Xena to keep it safe - and to leave it alone.
And so the Anbreasia Stone resided next to the breast dagger of the Warrior Princess, safe from greedy gods and prying mortals, still shrouded in mystery and myth.
The End
Author's Note: Completed at 39 pages, 15,511 words. Finally. - July 27, 2006.