Author's Note: As many of you know and some of you have doubtlessly figured out by now, when I can't write, I re-write. I've been struggling to create new content lately. I'm hoping that by editing older works i will get the inspiration to work on the WiPs I need to finish.
If you've never read this before, this is part one of a four chapter novella.
Chapter 1: Seasons: Summer Storm
Summer Storm
The torrential downpour had been presaged by a clap of thunder so loud it had caused Argo to rear up onto her hind legs. The day had been hot and muggy from the time they'd broken camp and Xena should have realized that the ever fattening clouds portended a late afternoon storm. But she'd kept telling herself that if they rode hard enough, she and Gabrielle would make it to Pylos by nightfall. Eve was supposed to meet them there tomorrow. It had been three months since she had last seen her daughter. Their parting had been somewhat strained. Eve had left the Amazon village after Xena had battled Varia to save Eve's life. And it wasn't the shame of Eve's past deeds that had stood in the air between mother and daughter as they said their goodbyes. The source of the awkwardness was the reason for the whole dust-up with the Amazons in the first place. Ares. Even though they rarely spoke with one another about their respective histories with him, it was hard not to think about him when it was obvious that he had been putting the same old moves on Varia. Another crack of thunder bellowed above. Xena shook off thoughts of Ares as warm, fat raindrops pelted Xena's exposed arms. Returning her attention to her surroundings, Xena saw that the deluge had turned the dirt path into a messy quagmire. With a grimace she faced the ugly fact that they'd have to take shelter for the night.
"Yi, Yi, Argo." Xena jerked the reins hard to the left and yelled over her shoulder to Gabrielle, "I know a place about two miles to the south, follow me."
Gabrielle nodded and urged her horse to follow Argo. "The clouds are eerie looking, the sky's almost green." A spear of lightning split the sky and another loud boom echoed across the heavens. Gabrielle squeezed her sling bag between her ribs and her arms. She didn't want any rain seeping down and ruining the scroll she was currently working on.
Even in her haste to reach shelter, Xena took a moment to enjoy the rich aroma of the dampening earth. It was a heady smell. She hated that it reminded her of Ares. Most people she assumed would be surprised at how clean he smelled. He didn't smell like death, blood, or decay, as one might assume would be the fragrances of the God of War. Instead, underneath the strong scent of leather, he smelled of warm rain and damp cedars, just like a summer storm. And even though she would never tell him the comfort she derived from his personal scent, she revelled in it because in more ways that she cared to admit, it felt like home.
Xena knew taking shelter in his temple was a bad idea but she kept Argo racing along that path anyway. They needed something nearby, something with a roof, and somewhere they could bunker down for the night. The wind picked up. The pines bent at grotesque angles and pebbles of hail joined the sheeting rain. The storm was almost supernatural in its intensity. And if anyone knew about supernatural storms, it was Xena. The gods had once chased her with a tornado, after all. Ares had promised shelter that day too. But there was always a catch. Another bolt of lightning lit the darkening sky, the brilliant flash illuminated the abandoned temple in the near distance. Briefly, she thought about turning tail but Xena snapped Argo's reins harder. A sickening crack barely audible above the whirring wind caused Argo to rear up again. A blade of lightning had sheared a large branch from a towering oak and sent it falling into the road. Xena clenched her thighs hard around Argo's middle to keep from sliding off the saddle and into the slurry below. "Come on girl, it's okay, almost there," Xena soothed the horse and glanced back to see how Gabrielle was faring. Argo calmed quickly and resumed at a full gallop.
When they reached the front of the temple, Xena dismounted and grabbed her saddle bags. She quickly took off all of the horse's tack and told Gabby to do the same with her own steed. Xena knew there was a stable out back and hoped the horses would find it. A "keep out" sign was posted on the temple door and someone had chained it shut with a large iron padlock. It took only one strike of the chakram to sever the thick links.
Once inside Xena dropped her belongings and rifled through her saddle bag for her fire starting kit. It was pitch black in the temple except for the miniscule light coming from the open front door. Another bolt of lightning was all it took for Xena to get eyes on her kit. Within seconds she had a small flame kindled out of dry tinder that she carried. She used it to light a couple of wall sconces. She hoped but doubted there would be wood for the fireplace. The place looked like it had been abandoned for a few years. When they entered the great hall, Xena breathed a sigh of relief.
Ten minutes later, Xena and Gabrielle stood, each of them nude, in front of a roaring fire. Gabrielle had created a clothesline by taking a cord from an old tattered tapestry and attaching the ends to two chairs.
"This place is in shambles." Gabrielle was surprised at just how dilapidated the old temple was. When she'd first seen the ram's horns above the fireplace, she almost chastised Xena for bringing them to one of his temples. But then she remembered the severity of the storm and was thankful for a solid roof.
"Yeah, it is," Xena winced. She wondered how many of his temples had fallen into similar disuse. His stint as a mortal had certainly hurt his following. Not to mention the number that the rising cult of Eli was doing on all of the remaining Olympians.
"I am gonna check and see if our blankets got soaked too," Gabrielle said and she took a torch and headed toward where they'd left the bags in the foyer.
"Okay, and can you bring the food in here, I'm hungry and I doubt there's anything edible in the kitchen. But, I am gonna check the priest's and acolyte's quarters just to make sure we are alone."
"Xena there was no light when we came in, no fire, I seriously doubt. . ."
"Can never be too careful."
Gabrielle knew that disagreeing with Xena was pointless. And who knew maybe there would be some useful items left in the priests' quarters. "If you find some pillows, I'll make you those dumplings you like when we get to Pylos."
Xena excitedly grabbed a torch that was mounted near the fireplace. "Be right back."
"Okay," Gabrielle chuckled and called after Xena as her friend retreated down the dark hallway.
Xena moved soundlessly down the dark corridor. She was so familiar with the temple that she could have found her way to the main bedchamber without the use of the torch but she was glad she didn't have to. The acolytes' rooms were all empty and had been pretty much stripped of everything that wasn't a permanent fixture. When she reached the master bedroom, she silently cursed herself for leaving her weapons behind. Another large lock and chain denied entry. Not for long, however. Xena used the butt end of the torch to strike the lock. It took a couple of whacks but it eventually gave way.
The room was not exactly in pristine condition but it looked much closer to its former glory than did the rest of the temple. She waved the torch in front of the small fireplace along the north-facing wall. Luckily there were a few logs on the grate and a bucket of kindling near the hearth. After she started a fire, Xena hung the torch in a nearby holder and opened a chest which rested at the foot of the queen sized bed. She grabbed two blankets and a pillow for her friend and headed back down the hallway to find Gabrielle had placed their own damp blankets on the line with their drying clothes. Xena tossed Gabrielle one of the blankets and a pillow and started to wrap the other blanket around herself. "I want extra red filling in the dumplings."
"Fine," Gabrielle agreed and took the pillow and blanket, placed them on the table next to the food she had sat out. A half-loaf of bread, a quarter cheese wheel, and a sliced apple sat beside their wineskins. The bard grabbed a cream-colored bundle from a bag and handed it to Xena. "Here, your spare shift was clean and dry, I grabbed it for you."
"Thanks. What about yours?" Xena said as she slipped the shift over her head.
"All soaked," Gabrielle pointed to her spare clothes hanging over the back of a chair.
"There's a bed in there and a second fireplace," Xena threw her head toward the master suite. "So after we eat, if you wanna get some rest."
"Sounds good, you want to travel when the weather lets up or wait for the morning?" Gabrielle asked and picked up a hunk of bread and tore off a healthy piece.
"Morning. Hopefully it'll have quit by then. Looks like just a strong summer storm. The kind that blows hard but quickly through. Still, we need these things to dry, so it'll be best to stay overnight, I think."
"Yeah, me too. So you wanna tell me how you knew this place was here?" Gabrielle knew not to pry too deeply where Ares was concerned but couldn't help herself.
"Gabrielle, I'd rather not get into that discussion right now."
"Okay," her friend agreed but then added, "but you've been here with him before, right?"
"Yes," Xena answered honestly.
"In that bed back there that you're talking about?"
Again Xena opted for the truth. "Yes."
"Hmm-hmm,"
"What?"
"Nothing," Gabrielle shrugged.
"No, you have something to say, say it," Xena stabbed an apple slice with her knife and waited.
"It's just, well, what if he comes here? What if he senses you here or something and comes to start trouble?"
"What if he does? I can handle him. It's not like he's gonna kick us out or anything. He'd just gloat about me being here. I can deal with that," Xena reassured.
Xena. . ."
"Look, if he shows, IF he show's I'll handle him. Don't I always?"
"Oh you HANDLE him alright," Gabrielle smirked.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"I don't know Xena, it's just creepy the way he gets all up on you, and even creepier the way you respond to it sometimes."
"Like I said, can we not talk about this now?"
"Fine."
"Fine!" Xena echoed.
They ate the rest of their meal in uncomfortable silence. After she finished eating, Xena took another long draw from her wineskin, tossed another log on the fire, and sat on the warm stone to let her hair dry. From where she was seated, she had a good view of Ares' vacant throne and the empty altar. If she closed her eyes she knew she would still be able to see it the way it was thirty years ago. Warriors kneeling before him, swearing their loyalty, begging his favor. The altar ripe with jewels, coin, and libations. The room smoky with incense. And her god resplendent in all his glory perched with a natural effortlessness on his throne. For a minute, Xena felt sad for him, sad for all he had lost, and it pissed her off that she had any sympathy for him left at all. She had given him his godhood back and he'd gone right back to being the despicable bastard that he had always been. Why should she care if his temples were in disarray and his altars abandoned? It wasn't like she worshipped him anymore. She took another swig of wine. She was beginning to regret coming here. Gabrielle's probing questions had her second-guessing her own motives. It was the closest place she could think of, Xena told herself.
"I think I'll try to grab some sleep, wanna join me?" Gabrielle asked a bit suggestively. Xena wasn't sure if her friend was trying to lighten the mood or if she really wanted to get frisky. Examining the bard's cheshire grin told Xena that her companion was looking for a little make-up sex.
Xena didn't know why but somehow the thought of having sex with Gabrielle in one of Ares temples turned her stomach. Even more sickening was the thought of screwing her friend in the same bed in which she had once fucked Ares. "I'm good, I think I'll work out, but you should get some rest, while you can. We will have to make up this lost time tomorrow. "
"Have it your way, Xena." Miffed at being turned down, Gabrielle grabbed her blanket and pillow and headed for the bedroom.
Xena hung her head. What was wrong with her? Gabrielle was trying to smooth things over and she had just managed to upset her again. Maybe being there was too unsettling. But why? Xena brought her knees up to chest, folded her arms across them, then laid her head on her arms and nodded off.
AXAXAXAXAXAXAXA
Ares had felt her the second she entered his old, abandoned temple. His gut reaction was to go to her but then he realized what the temple would look like. He was embarrassed. What if she mocked him? He could take anything but that. What was she doing there, anyway? The urge to look was overwhelming. He opened a portal. She was in her shift, eating dinner. The tension between her and the blonde was thick. 'Interesting,' he thought. Ares closed the portal, he didn't like spying on her.
He soon realized that she was taking shelter from the storm. He promised himself he would leave her alone. She had every right to be there. She could have anything of his that she damn well wanted, one night in his temple was no exception. It did surprise him, however, that she would dare to take shelter there. She knew he would know she was there and yet she went there anyway. 'Hmm,' he wondered if this was her way of telling him she wanted to see him without actually calling for him. 'No,' he decided it had been a spur of the moment decision brought about by necessity. Still, a god could dream.
Temptation and curiosity conspired to defeat him, he opened the portal again. Gabrielle was snoring obnoxiously in the master suite. Xena was dozing near the fireplace in the throne room. Her wet locks cascaded over her toned arms. He ached to run his fingers through her raven tresses. Ares couldn't resist. With a thought, he transported himself to his temple and sat on his throne. He tried not to be too perturbed by the cloud of dust that billowed up around him.
His presence jolted Xena awake. She didn't think she had slept long. She could still hear the rumbling of the afternoon storm. When their eyes made contact he was lounging cockily on his throne with one leg draped casually over the armrest. The same natural effortlessness that she'd loved for years now grated on her nerves. Neither of them spoke, they just sat in the firelight taking each other in. A crack of lightning lit the room from the two drape-less windows high above.. A roar of thunder so strong that it rattled the stone building followed on its heels.
Xena hugged herself a little closer. The storm outside didn't frighten her but the one brewing behind the dark eyes of the malevolent god staring at her scared her to her very core. Not because she was afraid of bodily harm but because of the delicious danger he posed to the wicked side she kept under lock and key. Walking the knife edge of that desire thrilled her to the marrow of her bones.
"It's getting closer," Ares smiled sinisterly.
"Tornado?" she asked casually as if the sight of him seated on the throne didn't fill her mind with carnal images of days long dead.
"Nearby," he answered, "you were smart to seek refuge."
She didn't feel very smart right now. She felt like a fish who had jumped out of the proverbial frying pan, right into the fire. "We won't be here long," she promised. She couldn't explain why she suddenly felt like an intruder when earlier she had felt so at home here.
"Oh, don't leave on my account. It's nice to have company," he gestured at the shell that had once been a thriving temple.
The honesty of his response surprised them both. He usually leaned hard on bravado. If machismo were an art, Ares would have been its Phidias. Xena grabbed her wineskin but found it empty.
"Where's the bard?" He asked even though he knew full well she was sleeping soundly in the master bedroom. Xena thumbed toward the back of the temple.
"She gets the big plush bed and you settle for a hard, stone hearth? I really don't get you and this atonement thing. You won't allow yourself even the smallest creature comforts will you?" Ares snapped his fingers and footstool appeared before him. He swung his legs around and propped his feet upon the tufted leather cushion. A goblet of wine appeared in his right hand, and a second one materialized next to Xena on the fireplace's stone surround. He took a deep drink. "There, that's better."
"Unlike you who indulges every chance you get," she spat.
"What is life without pleasure, Xena? That would be incredibly dull, especially for an immortal. Our lives being so full of endless days."
"Did you come here to discuss philosophy, Ares?"
"No, I came . . .," he hesitated. He never knew how to handle her. She was already on edge that much was for sure. He could smell how ripe she was for him even from across the room. Maybe a little push. "I came for my offering."
"What?" Xena's heart hammered. She knew what he was insinuating and she knew one way or another she was going to have to please him. Fight or fuck it was their way. Xena rose from the hearth and scanned the room for her sword and chakram. She couldn't give in to her lust so it was a fight he was going to get. Just as she laid eyes on her weapons resting on the table, they disappeared into thin air.
"Oh, you won't be needing those." His voice moved toward her carrying with it a promise of delight.
"Ares, cut it out." She was not in the mood for his little games.
"You won't be needing that either," he dematerialized her shift from her body leaving her standing in front of him naked. Xena wasn't about to give him the satisfaction of trying to cover herself with her hands. She wasn't a wilting flower and he'd seen it all before anyway. But still she silently chastised her nipples for flaring to full erection under his grinning eyes.
"I am giving you one warning, you two-bit god," Xena said defiantly.
It had been the wrong choice of words. Or maybe it wasn't. Maybe she had meant to cut him to the quick. She knew full well how defensive he was of his recently regained mantle. The violence that always bubbled just under the surface of his skin burst forth in raging fury. He thundered louder than the storm outside, "See, now that's the problem, Xena. Somewhere along the line, you got it in your pretty little mortal head that you could dictate to me, a god."
"Areeeesss. . ." she drew his name out as if she was still in charge of the situation.
In a flash, he had closed the distance between them. He moved in behind her and held her raw back against him. The silver rivets on his vest felt cold along her spine but the warm fur of his chest kissed her shoulder blade. With one arm, Ares encircled her, pinning her against him and cinching her arms in a vice grip. Her smart mouth he covered with his right hand and whispered in her ear, "Did you really think you could just stay here, without placing an offering on the altar of the God of War?"
She tried to speak but her words were shut off by his hand clamped over her mouth, bruising her lips. Forcefully, Ares walked her over to the altar and bent her over. Ares released her torso but grabbed her hips pulling her naked backside into his swolleness. Xena moaned in spite of herself.
"Oh yeah, that's it! You like it, you like it rough. This is what you want Xena! To be taken! To be fucked like a temple whore!" Ares ran his open hand across her firm ass and slid two fingers down knowing he would find her wet and puckered.
Everything was happening so fast. His hands felt so good on her. And Ares knew her so well, sexually. He knew all of her personal kinks. He knew she liked to be manhandled, to be thrown down and fucked hard and furious. The pace he was setting was completely to his advantage. When Ares' fingers found the prize they'd sought and slipped into her wetness, Xena knew if she didn't stop him now, it would too late in the space of heartbeats. "Ares, don't!"
"Why in Hades not, Xena? You are so wet for it!"
"Just no!" She protested and tried to straighten her back.
Ares knew he couldn't let up the frenetic pace or he'd lose her to what she thought were her better instincts. Well he didn't want her better instincts. He wanted her animal ones. Ares pushed her back down on the altar and kept an unyielding hand between her shoulder blades. "I won't be denied Xena, Just once give in to the pleasure, give in to me, to yourself. Tell me this doesn't turn you on, tell me I don't do it for you."
He moved his fingers deeper inside her, Xena could already feel herself rushing headlong toward her first orgasm. If he pushed any farther she was going to slide back into the darkness. Ares continued, "I've tried playing nice, Xena. But you don't want nice! If you did, you'd be in that bed with Blondie. No, you want violent, you want passion, you want power, you want me!"
He'd named it and there was power in that. Power that she couldn't deny. "Yes, Yes, Yes," she panted and ground down hard on his hand as an orgasam ripped her soul wide open.
Then suddenly, it was Ares that was playing catch up. Before he knew what was happening, she had reached around and released the belt holding his leathers in place. She pushed at his pants until she found what she ached for. Xena ran her hands the length of his cock and gave it a few gentle tugs. She flipped over onto her back and pulled him into her center with her strong legs.
"Is this what you want, Ares? Does this offering please you?" She ran her long fingers across her slit and spread her lips showing him her burning pink center fresh with the juice of her release.
"Yes," he managed to mutter.
"Then take me like a god, I'm your own personal mortal whore, Ares. Made for you. My own father meant to sacrifice me to you. Well here I am. Yours. Fuck me like you own me."
He stopped and eyed her warily. Would she ever forgive him if he did this? Her body was saying yes but did she mean yes? Was this really what she wanted? Would she hate herself later?
"What are you waiting for? Fuck me, Fuck me Ares! Rip my cunt wide open with that god cock of yours. Come on Ares, give it to me."
He was confused, it was like being with the old Xena. What was he doing? She didn't owe him anything. This had all just gotten out of hand. If he did this, he'd never get her back for real. He wasn't looking for a quick fuck from her. No. He wanted her, wanted all of her.
Xena could see the tide turning in his eyes. He was pulling back, the storm was subsiding inside of him. Well, fuck him! He had pushed her to get her here. She wasn't going to let him pull back now. She pushed the buttons that she knew would infuriate him. She taunted him.
"What's the matter war god? Going soft? Pathetic! Can't even please your Chosen when she's offering herself to you and on your altar no less. You don't even deserve to be a god, Ares. I should have eaten that apple and taken your mantle for myself." She spat in his face.
Why did she have to be such a bitch? Well, two could play at that game. He spat back in her face, "Oh, you wanna get fucked do you? Is that what you want? Well, hold on Xena!" Ares grabbed her thighs and impaled her with his shaft. Xena arched her back off the altar, half in pleasure and half in pain from being stretched so suddenly by the length and girth of his angry cock. Yes, this was how she liked it, hard, rough, violent, this was sex. This was what Gabrielle could never offer her. He was a savage. Xena craved savage. She cried his name as she came a second time.
Ares was still pure fire. The magma building within him as he continued his relentless assault of her pussy. "You slut, you fucking whore, you want it brutal, is that what you want? Is this what gets you off? Well, I may not deserve to be a god Xena, but I am! That's right, I am a GOD Xena. A GOD and I will fuck you whenever I please, do you get that? You are a pathetic little mortal. You are nothing but my own personal fuck toy! And you aren't finished pleasing me. I like it when you surrender to me. When you give all of yourself to me. Look at what your little offering has done for me Xena. You bowing to me, giving me your body it has renewed me!"
Xena could barely think of time and space. She was close to coming again. This was the fucking she'd needed for years. But she managed to open her eyes and take in her surroundings. And he was right. The temple looked anew. Sconces burned brightly on the wall, braziers were lit in the corners. Brilliantly colored tapestries decorated the walls. It was as if time had not touched the place in thirty years. It was the temple she'd built him in all of its splendor. But she couldn't think about it anymore, her god was commanding her, "Come for me, come for me, Xena!"
"My Lord," Xena wailed and obeyed giving over fully to her god's pleasure.
Ares quickly followed, emptying himself into his beloved then collapsing on top of her momentarily before rolling over and pulling her into his arms. Xena rested her head on his chest until the spell began wearing off. Xena inhaled deeply, letting herself indulge in his clean scent, warm rain and damp cedars, before pulling away and standing up.
Ares felt her posture change. When she wrapped her arms around herself to cover her nakedness, Ares knew he had lost her forever. "Xena. . "
"Don't. . . you got what you wanted. You've wanted to see her for a veeery long time, well there she was. I hope you enjoyed it.
"Xena, I'm sorry. I love you." The words felt hollow, even to him.
"Stop it, stop it right now, don't say that, don't ever say that again."
"Xena."
"No, don't say my name. It's not yours anymore. it's done, you got it? We are through? Don't you get it? That was goodbye, Ares."
"Xena, you don't mean. . ."
"I do, now give me my things back and get lost."
Ares nodded his head in defeat. He materialized her sword, chakram and shift onto the altar. And in a flash of lightning he was gone.
Xena sat on the edge of the hearth. She looked around the temple, alive with light. Incense burning on the altar where their bodies had coupled. Coins, jewels, oils, silks, and spices spilled from the stone slab. Her surrender had done all of that. She knew that she'd held power to make him stronger. It had just been a really long time since she'd seen the physical evidence of it. Xena shook her head in shame. Warm, fat drops of water fell onto the stone floor. As a drop splattered at her feet, she realized that the summer storm outside had stopped. But a different storm churned inside her soul.
