HI THERE! I WANT TO TAKE A SEC TO THANK MY REVIEWERS- I WISH I KNEW YOUR NAMES SO THAT I CAN PROPERLY ADDRESS MY ACKNOWLEDGMENTS, BUT THANK YOU ANYWAY, FOR TAKING THE TIME TO SHARE WITH ME YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT MY FICTIONS, I REALLY APPRECIATE IT.

THANK YOU CRIMOSN ROSE - THE NEWEST GUEST- AND A HUGE THANK YOU TO MY OLD GANG, THANK YOU, GIRLS FOR YOUR INFINITE PATIENCE:)

Several minutes of cowardly running later, the War God stopped and rested his hands on his knees, desperate to catch his breath. He was no longer chased by those crazed priestesses and he greedily inhaled a few gulps of that dry, dusty desert air that he hated so much, filling his lungs to refusal despite the fact that the hotness scorched his insides, in such a rough, unpleasant way that he instantly wished he were in the mountains of Macedonia instead of this horrible, unwelcoming place.

Seconds later, when he could finally think about something else except for saving his own butt, he just had to marvel at how utterly pathetic he might have looked just before- an attitude that was anything but worthy of the otherwise fearless son of Zeus. Probably as a precaution, he carefully scanned the area one more time, looking around for any kind of movement that would have indicated the presence of another human being. Once he noticed that there was no one in his immediate vicinity, a sigh of relief escaped his lips.

As a silent conclusion, he then shook his head in utter disappointment in himself….Ares, God of War, running around like a headless chicken from a bunch of women….This was indeed a sad day for humanity…I mean sure, we could find a decent enough excuse for him if we really wanted to, and we could motivate his ludicrous reaction by saying that there was nothing else he could have done really- given that slaughtering a foreign God's priestesses in his own temple was considered in any country on the planet an unpardonable offense, a heinous crime from the consequences of which not even the Olympian King himself could have saved him- but on the other hand, Ares had never been known for his wisdom…

Trying to snap out of his deplorable state, he finally straightened up and did his best to push those shameful images out of his mind, preferring to focus instead on his task. Just as the always busy wheels of his brain began turning at a dazzling speed while analyzing the rate of success of his backup plan – cause he had every intention to go through with it- an hysterical laughter broke out from somewhere behind him, thus interrupting his any effort to thoroughly mull over his remaining options.

" I gotta say, I haven't laughed this much since the Sed Festival when Anubis got so drunk that he began fucking his dogs….." the amused feminine voice announced right before stepping out of the blinding vortex that had transported her where the uninvited Greek guest now stood.

" Hathor…" the God burst out- a bit taken aback by the woman's presence- looking not even half as bemused by the event as she was ." A memorable moment indeed." he agreed, arching an eyebrow at the strikingly beautiful immortal who was now approaching him with slow, cat-like steps, and unconsciously, his gaze lingered for a few seconds on her gorgeous, exotic face….She was a sight to see….

With every step she took, her long white satin dress rustled a bit in the light afternoon breeze, and while her waist long dark tresses danced alluringly up and down her chest- spreading their sweet, juniper fragrance into the air- an endless string of memories rushed into Ares' mind….Despite the passing of time, now that he once again had her before him, he could recall every single minute of their relationship as if it had only happened the day before - that distinct softness of her bed sheets, the candlelight dinners, the long promenades along the Nile, the poems he wrote praising her beauty, their endless chatter about their future, the routine….In conclusion, she ended up boring him to death and between you, me and the gatepost he had only bothered spending more than a night with her because Zeus wanted an alliance with the Egyptian Pantheon- and given that the War God was always available for a hot fuck, he appeared to be the perfect candidate….Who would have thought that the refined Hathor would fall madly in love with him- and that it would cost him nearly a decade of his long immortal life to break their little spiritual union without any major consequences for Greece…?

...The fact that she now hated him with a passion didn't really matter that much, for the War God expertly avoided her- with an incredible effectiveness too- at every banquet, orgy or other social gathering they had attended together-…Truth be told, he couldn't care less about her or her feelings...that till the day he needed her help…Till today- to be more precise-….Now as he looked at her, reading the spite and contempt in her eyes, he finally understood why most people go for clean breakups whenever the unfortunate event takes place.

" I'm glad to hear that I can still entertain you, after all this time…" he completed, not really knowing what else to say , wanting to break somehow that eerie silence that had fallen between them.

" You have always been am amazing buffoon." she acidly bit back, a wide, mischievous smile painted on her blood red lips.

" That's mean….." he simply murmured, giving her a penetrating look while nonchalantly cutting in the remaining distance between them until they were but a breath away…" Very, very, very mean…." he pointed out, tilting his head a little- an irresistible invitation that combined with his smooth, darkly alluring voice, was like a lethal cocktail of sensuality and temptation, impossible to refuse, really.

"What are you doing here?" the Goddess simply asked, apparently unaffected by his charm, determined to keep her head cool and her heart out of his childish games….She knew this treacherous jerk far to well to still fall for his antics- but still she had to admit it, resisting his any request had always been the hardest thing she had to do…

" Would you believe me if I told you I miss you terribly and that my life has never been the same since we broke up?" the question popped out of his mouth accompanied by a sweet puppy face that could have melted any heart, no matter how thick the layer of ice surrounding it…..- sadly for him, Hathor's was the one exception to that rule.

"No." was the short, cold, dangerously straightforward response that virtually slapped him right across the face, shattering his sand castle within the blink of an eye. She was not in the mood for his lame jokes, and she could hardly stand his smug, patronizing presence anyway…With Ares it was a one way street and she had learned it the hard way- a woman had to either accept the idea that she was going to be used until he got tired of her- a tragic moment in which he would casually move on to someone new and exciting- or she could as well live in a fantasy land- the creation of which he would gladly fuel with the sweetest words and gestures- that, until the day he were to leave without a word, without a glance behind. Either way, for him it was always a win-win, while for the poor soul he had dug his claws into, it was always a tough drama, almost impossible to bear…And no, she was not willing to relieve that, not for all the ambrosia in the world.

" …plus…" she continued, struggling to use an equally indifferent tone, just like before, but the War God could easily detect each drop of poison that had accidentally escaped in her every word.

" I thought I made it quite clear the last time we had a strikingly similar conversation, that if you ever set foot on Egyptian land again, I'll make sure your skeleton rots at the feet of the Sphinx!"

" You did?! I thought that was Yue Lao…."

"What?"

" Never mind….The thing is, you don't look like the type of woman to hold a grudge...plus the past belong to yesterday. Why don't we look forward to embracing tomorrow?" he suggested, gently caressing her face, a feather like touch that made her breath catch in her throat.

" Big words…" she said, forcing herself to hold her ground, stubbornly refusing to take even the slightest step away from him- which she just knew she should have done minutes before. "…too bad they're nothing more than that…words…." she snapped, in a rather desperate attempt to pull herself together. She couldn't give in….she couldn't. "Now, I'll ask you one last time…what are you doing here, Ares?" she inquired, her question being this time accompanied by a Hind's blood dagger that materialized simultaneously in her hand, and judging by the rage gleaming on the surface of her glassy eyes, she was pretty determined to put it to good use….

" I need your help…" he finally confessed, not really impressed by the presence of that accursed blade- that everyone seemed to have these days- but rather stressed because of his dramatic lack of time….He needed to find that cure and he needed to get to Xena….Saving his Princess was a priority and with every minute of delay she was getting closer and closer to the irreversible oblivion her mind was going to be thrown into….

" My help?" she asked, barely stifling a laugh. "You need my help?"

" You heard me."

"And just what in the name of Ra makes you think that I'd actually lift a finger to do anything for you? " she sneered, unable to believe her ears. This Bastard was either delusional or...

" Please…any favour, any time, anywhere….."

" I don't need your favours, Ares! I don't need anything from you…Not anymore. You don't have anything I could possibly want!" she barked, right there, two inches away from his lips, as frustrated as the Furies themselves for not being able to have what she actually wanted…..

" Just…think about it…..I only need an information in exchange of whatever it is you wish…" he insisted, in a manner very unlike his usually arrogant self.

This time, the Goddess burst into a fit of loud, uncontrollable laughter…..This situation was getting more and more interesting by the second.

" So let's see….You've just proved that you can ask nicely – well , more like that you can grovel, it would be a much more accurate word- play seductive and lay the world at my feet if that's what I desire and all this in less than a minute…I'd say you're desperate…."

" Not really desperate…Just in a hurry…" he cleverly corrected, not wanting to give the impression that she was completely in control of the situation. Unfortunately for him though, the Goddess effortlessly saw right through his strategy….

"Is that so?" she inquired, chuckling mockingly at his futile attempts to throw a veil over her eyes, her hand now resting casually on his chest. " Do tell…what does my stupidly reckless ex lover want to know?"

" I kinda stumbled over a text…." the God started, arching a sharp eyebrow as her fingers slid teasingly under his leather vest and began exploring every single inch of it…

" A text?"

"An ancient text I guess….though as I see, it could simply be a folktale…."

" Folktales are as ancient as the sky and the stars so….you're not as far away from the truth as you think…." she replied, her nails scraping now the area right above his heart.

" Yeah…." he absently answered, losing himself in the magic of her incredibly skillful fingers for a few moments. " Well ... I...uh... it said something about the essence of pure love….."

"Aaaand?"

" And I want to know what the fuck that is…." he whispered, sounding almost pleading while tracing delicately the bow shape of her lip with his thumb- definitely wanting to convince her not to change her mind about offering him this information….If she did, he was screwed- he could as well start building a funeral pyre for his Xena.

Contrary to his expectations, as if having sensed his anxiety, Hathor appeared even more adamant to stall as much as she could….For some reason, time was important to her ex, and she wanted to make sure that he had as little as possible at his disposal….

" Hmmm….that's a very tricky question….And, it so happens that it depends a lot on the context. I'm afraid you'll have to be a tad more precise, lover…" she said, looking at him with a great deal of interest. Since when was the God of War interested in such matters?!

Despite having hesitated a bit to reveal that information to her, Ares knew he had no choice. It was a risk he needed to take, and the only thing he could do was to pray to the Fates that it whatever it was he had to do, it wasn't an impossible task.

" It is said to heal the effects produced by the Dreams of the Damned…"

A heavy silence fell between them like a lead curtain, and centuries seemed to have past for the War God until she finally spoke.

" The Dreams of the Damned…..whose the unlucky Olympian you're struggling to save?"

His heart skipped a beat at hearing her question….He hadn't expected this…

" I'm not playing hero…I'm just looking for answers…."

Once again, the Goddess started laughing.

" I'm no fool Ares…..You wouldn't have taken the chance to come back here after the stunt you pulled unless someone's close to dying….Someone who's worth the effort….Someone for the sake of whom you'd even kiss the soles of my feet if that's what I asked…..Someone like Aphrodite…." she added, her eyes glistening with an almost psychotic joy. She couldn't believe her luck! That Greek harlot was finally going to be out of her way…For good!

Just as Ares was about to contradict her though, not really certain if it was a good idea to let her believe such nonsense, she interrupted him again, this time though sounding a bit more humane and willing to cooperate than before.

" Don't….don't even try it….I know how much you would have liked me to be a bit more gullible, but lucky me, that's not the case. I'll help you. Dite did me a favour once – and though we're not the best of friends any more- we haven't been in a pretty long time- I always pay my debts. Just make sure to mention this to her once she wakes up. I owe her nothing! "

This time, the War God didn't say anything, he just silently nodded his acceptance. When he saw that she was still expecting a verbal reply, he just uttered a loud and clear "Fine" and focused on memorizing every single detail of the information that the Goddess had started to share with him.

" There's just one way for you to save her, and one single place where you can find the essence of pure love…" she started, taking a long theatrical pause before going on with her line. "….in the heart of a child….."

" What does that mean?" Ares asked, narrowing his eyes at her, not quite getting the point.

"A child's love for his mother is the most innocent of them all….completely disinterested and truthful….It is love in its purest form…."

"The essence of love…"

"The essence of love….." she repeated, sealing their pact with a light, superficial kiss that the War God did not refuse, his mind still wrapped around what she had just told him.

" So what am I supposed to do?" he inquired- a bit embarrassed that he unable to make the connections.

" You're kinda slow sometimes aren't you?" Hathor mocked, refusing to miss out on such rare opportunity. " Find a child and rip his heart out. Take it to Aphrodite and place it on her chest and shazam, the curse will break, and all the poison will be absorbed inside this young, love filled organ….."

" What?! Are you for real?! A child?!"

" A child….out of the many living on this accursed planet. It shouldn't be too hard for you to find one. Ah! Before I forget….The sacrifice needs to be made at the temple of the Fates, and you have to specify for whom exactly it is that you are doing it….." she also let him know, taking a mental note of just how shocked he was by the news.

" Are you sure this will work?" the God asked, staring blankly into the horizon.

" Positive. It takes a life to save a life….Dark magic, lover, just like the content of that lethal cocktail your sister drank…"

" Thank you…" Ares hardly had the time to say that the Goddess was already gone, and once again, he was all alone in the middle of that burning , golden ocean of sand, and for the first time in his life he felt more lonely than ever…..

XXX

Simultaneously, Hathor who had just returned to her temple, had the most evil, victorious grin painted on her face…Finally, her most hated rival, her eternal competition was going straight to Tartarus- or wherever dead gods go- and to top it all, by her own brother's hand...

GOTCHA ! WERE YOU EXPECTING IT?