Chapter 7

They were still following the path lying before them, even when its course itself was not longer the same.

It was only a few moments ago that they had heard an unknown voice calling through the mist. Could it be that there was someone else here, maybe someone who needed help?

They were heading in this direction, even when Callisto told them that she thought this was a bad idea. But on the other hand, they had no idea where they were going anyway. The area around them seemed to be changing, so this direction was ultimately just as good or better said just as bad, as any other one.

"Do you really think there's someone else who is lost here?" Sarah asked Callisto.

"Who knows? " she replied stoically. She had been against taking any more risks from the beginning, but they weren´t even sure if it made any difference in what direction they were going.

"If you ask me, we should have just taken the book and get away from here as fast as possible," Discord stated.

"We tried to do exactly that until a few minutes ago," Ares replied. "But we have no idea where we are going. That is exactly the problem. If we had done things my way, we would have already left this place."

While they were on their way, they tried to ask their new captive a few questions.

"Who are you? What is your name?" Xena1 asked him. "I am Xena. This here is Ares," she pointed to her left, "…the God of War. I am sure you have heard of him."

"It doesn´t matter," he answered.

"What doesn´t matter?"

"Everything. It doesn't matter who you are, it doesn't matter if you are human or god. You will all perish or you will become like us," he stated.

They all shuddered at the awareness that he was right, they were not sure which fate was worse.

And suddenly, a very unpleasant feeling that all of them knew far too well, began to rise within them: fear. They all knew how to deal with it though. They were experienced warriors and immortal who had faced countless dangerous situations before.

"So tell me, what exactly is going on in this town? I am curious. What is the deeper meaning ?" Xena asked him.

"Unbeliever, you truly want me to tell you?" he said. A smile apperared on his deformed face. At least she thought it was meant to be one. But with his barely human lips it was hard to tell.

"If I think about it, I guess it makes no difference, since soon you will be either dead or one of us anyway. So I might as well tell you." The satisfaction in his distorted voice was hard not to overhear.

"My name is Lyraeus, chosen Priest of Chaos," he said. "A generation has been and gone since the great change first came over Inhiata. Once, a long time ago, we were just like you, human, mortals.

We spent our existence as farmers and fishers. At that time we were living under the rule of the Olympian Gods, beings who constantly demanded worship and sacrifices, but were hardly ever doing anything to improve our lives."

With these words he sent a glare to Ares and Discord.

"Then, one day a plaque came over this town, a sickness that was letting our people slowly wasting away. One by one, they all died. The `gods´ did nothing," he stated.

"Well, there was much we had to deal with at that time," Ares replied, it was a poor excuse, they all knew this, "and that is not exactly my or Discord´s field anyway. Zeus, Hera or Athena should have dealt with your problem."

"But it was also at that time when some of us began to hear something else calling out to us, from beyond this world," Lyraeus continued his resume of the past, as if he had not even heard him. "And they began to listen. It was then when we turned away from the Olympians who had betrayed us.

So came the change…. My father was the first who fully embraced it. He became our prophet our leader. We soon realized that, just as the land around usm, we had began to change, also in our appearance. It was glorious."

A few of the others scoffed at this statement.

"But we also saw that a few of us didn´t take part in this transformation. So we had to remove them. I took personally part in our quest to wipe them out."

"So let me see if I got this right… first you complain that the gods didn't interfere to save your sorry asses and then you go out and kill your people yourself," Callisto commented. "Yes that truly makes sense."

"They were no longer our people," Lyraeus replied, "they were drawbacks, leftovers of the past. The greatness Chaos offered us was far more than just a rescue from the plaque. No, we were changed, improved, made better than before."

"That is truly open for discussion," Discord remarked now.

"We are not longer simply mortals. We no longer age. Our life can take for all eternity."

"If that is true, where is your father now?" Xena1 asked him.

"Severe injuries can still kill us," he simply answered. "But his demise was no cause for sadness. He received the greatest joy and joined Chaos in the great beyond for all eternity. And it was his departing that then allowed further change to come. So in the end, it was for the best."

Yes, the creature named Lyraeus remembered how his father died. It was true that he had embraced the way of Chaos, but he ultimately resisted the decision to kill all of the townspeople who didn't take part of the change, who were still human. He resisted improvement, so he had to die.

"What exactly were you planning to do with the Necronomicon?" Ares wanted to know.

"To bring the Great Change over the entire world, to share our luck with everyone else," he replied.

"I understand."

They didn´t came to continue this conversation, because that very moment they were attacked.

xxx

It was precisely then, when the other group decided to start their assault. Their strike came suddenly, precise and brutal.

Ares was the first to be targeted, just as it was planned by them of course. A telekinetic attack hit him full force. He was thrown nearly ten meters through the air and landed beside the road.

Next came one of the Xenas, then the other one and Callisto. They all felt the invisible force, nearly pressing them to the ground, an energy they could barely resist. But in the end they were able to stand. Their enemies obviously wanted to take out the ones they saw as the greatest threat first. That meant in this case the warriors.

This time none of them had realized that they were being followed. The mist and the disturbances around them were blocking their senses. Not even Discord had discovered anything. But they adjusted quickly.

"They are close by," Xena1 stated.

"Yes, but it is hard to say exactly what direction," Xena3 replied, "except that it is somewhere right from us."

"I could tried to shield us all" Discord offered.

"No," Ares responded. "I don´t want them to know that you still have powers yet. That will be our trump card."

"Good idea," Xena1 replied. "While they are clearly similar abilities, whoever is doing this is not nearly as good as Hope. They won´t be able to take us out with telekinesis alone. We should wait for them to come closer and then we can get them."

"Just my thought."

The one the attackers mostly seemed to ignore was Discord. They probably didn´t know that she had kept part of her powers. Good, thought Xena1, Ares and Callisto nearly at the same time. This could really turn out as an advantage for them.

Their opponents came now finally out in the open. Since their telekinetic assaults had turned out not to be enough to bring them down, they obviously wanted to do it in person. The two Xenas, Ares, Callisto and the others were more than ready for this.

Most of them however were stunned as they saw who was leading the new group.

"Eve," Xena1 said, as she saw her daughter standing there in full battle armor, just like she would have done it a few months before, as she was still called Livia.

Callisto gave her a side-glance. She too remembered this name all too well.

But they were completely shocked as they recognized the man standing only one meter behind her.

"Perdicas," Gabrielle whispered, "that is impossible."

"It seems this place doesn´t stop reminding us of the past," Callisto said quietly. "I killed you," she stated louder in his direction."

"Yes you did," the man responded, "in my world and as it looks like in your own as well. But on the other side, there are far worse things than death." he said.

The last members of their group was a red haired woman they had never seen before. Discord nearly instantly realized that she was the source of the power that had just been attacking them... and another Gabrielle?

She was standing in a short distance to the others and her hand seemed to be shackled, a prisoner, Xena1 thought.

"Xena, how nice to see you again," Eve addressed them, "well, to be honest we have met another version of you actually just a short time ago. I killed her of course. Since then, we have also captured this Gabrielle here. And now here we have actually two versions of you at once. It seems it is just impossible to get rid of you for good, isn´t that right `mother´? "

"Hello Eve or should I rather call you Livia, going by the way you look?" Xena1 asked.

"To be honest, both is fine. I have accepted my heritage a long time ago. The Xena of my world and I both have, how shall I say? come to terms with each other. We are on the same side now, you know."

"Oh really, then why are you attacking us?"

"You just happen to have something I need."

While she had only been giving her glances before, Callisto was now starring at Xena with an open mouth as she heard what `Eve´ had called her.

"That.. that is Eve," she stammered. "She...she is..." She was pointing at both of them. "She is me and she is your..."

This had to be the first time they actually saw Callisto speechless.

"To put it short, yes. Eve is my daughter and she is also your reincarnation," Xena1 replied. "But this isn´t the Eve from my world."

"No, I am certainly not," Eve herself stated. "As amusing it is to watch this display, I have other priorities. You know mother, this doesn't have to result in bloodshed. You know your immortal allies are powerless here. Just give me the book and we can all go our separate ways in peace."

"You really expect me to give this to you after you have ambushed us?" Xena responded. "You may be my daughter, but I know exactly what you are capable of. Maybe you could have coersed me before you have attacked us on sight or before you boasted about killing another version of me. But now…. you have always been too impatient Eve."

"As you wish," she replied. "Kill them," she ordered her two comrades.

The following fight was intense, but quick and short.

Xena1 was fighting Eve with the sword, while Xena3, Ares Callisto and Discord were facing the red haired woman. Gabrielle and Sarah were standing in front of Perdicas.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked him.

"Your other self over there has just asked me exactly the same thing `Gabrielle´," he replied bitterly. The barely suppressed anger in his voice when he said her name, was clear for her. "Let us just say that things where I come from are not like you know them and I am certainly not here by choice."

It was at this very moment that Lyraeus attacked Gabrielle from behind. He tried to bite her with his sharp teeth, like one of the others had done it with Sarah, but she managed to fight him off and throw him down.

This however had distracted her from her other opponent, but as she turned back around, she saw that Perdicas had not used this chance to strike himself. Both he and Sarah were still standing in the same places as before. It seemed as if he in fact didn´t really wanted to fight them.

She realized however that Lyraeus had used that chance to escape. It didn´t matter, she thought. They had greater worries than him right now.

xxx

The woman named Delilah was right now sending out low leveled telekinetic attacks to her currently three opponents to keep them at distance. She had thrown Callisto to the ground a few moments ago, but the female warrior managed to get back up very quickly.

Truth was she didn´t have the energy left to do it again. That was something her opponents had also noticed.

"She cannot take all of us at once," Ares told them, "…keep coming and she will get tired."

This was exactly what happened then. Less than a minute later, he realized that he got what he had been waiting for.

"Discord now!" he called out.

The goddess quickly created a glowing orb of energy with her hand and threw it at Delilah. It hit her square and sent her flying to the ground.

Their other two opponents froze in open surprise. It seemed they had never thought that one of the gods would still have power left.

xxx

Xena1 used this moment to get behind Eve´s defense, disarm and overpower her. Now she was holding her sword at her throat.

"So `daughter´," she said, "maybe we should discuss the situation again, what do you think?"

Eve however was only sent her a hateful glare.

Perdicas didn't make one single aggressive move. Instead he looked nearly satisfied? They would ask him later.

For the moment it was over. They had won.

At this point however they were interrupted once again. They heard someone laughing, very close to them. It sounded somehow cheerful, nearly happy. Despite their surroundings and the sinister mist all around them, it somehow didn't seem menacing at all.

But they all knew only all too well that the first impression could be deceiving

"You..you are here," it said.

They heard it now only a few meters away from them. It was the same voice they had heard before, the one they had been following before the fight started.

Gabrielle and Xena nodded to each other.

She and Sarah walked closer, to where they thought to make out the source of the voice while the others kept an eye on their defeated opponents.

A few seconds later, they saw something.

It was the body of a young woman who was lying on her side on the ground before them. She had dark hair and very pale skin and she was completely naked.

Sarah could have sworn that she hadn't seen the body at this place a moment before. But that was probably the way the mist and this twisted land confused everyone. Or maybe she had truly not been there a second before, with the area changing around them it was hard to tell.

At first sight, you could think that the woman was unconscious, but both of them were quite sure that she wasn´t. Then, all of the sudden, she opened her eyes. She stared at them wordlessly.

"Ahm hello," Gabrielle greeted her.

"You have come to me," she said. "You have heard me."

"Yes," she answered simply. There was no doubt that it was in fact her voice they had heard.

Gabrielle saw now that this woman was not much more than a teenager, maybe 19 or 20 years old. ….At least that was what she looked like.

But as it was said, appearances could be deceiving. She couldn't even be hundred percent sure that this girl was even human.

"Here," she said, handing the young woman the cloak she had gotten from the cultists earlier, "this is for you."

"Oh, thank you," she replied, taking the clothes.

For a moment, she looked as if she didn´t quite know what to do with them, before she finally put it on.

While they were talking, they were slowly moving back to the others.

"What is your name? Can we help you?" Gabrielle asked.

"My name...my name...what is yours?" she returned the question.

"I am Gabrielle. This is Sarah."

The young woman smiled at them.

"Then my name is now also Gabrielle or Sarah," she stated. "Gabrielle Sarah...Sarah Gabrielle," she chanted softly.

Both of the women exchanged a puzzled look.

"No, those are our names. What is yours?" Gabrielle asked patiently.

"Names...names...names" the girl just murmured.

"Tell me, have you been out here for long? Are you lost?" the Bard wanted to know.

"Out here?...yes, for a very very long time. I don´t quite remember how long."

"We can tell," Sarah whispered quietly, but didn't say anything as Gabrielle gave her a sharp look.

"Oh, I know now," the young woman said, "My name is Sahrielle...or do you like Gahra better?" She began to giggle like a little girl.

In a few meters distance, Ares was watching the exchange in open amusement.

"Is something wrong?" Gabrielle asked him sharply.

"No, everything is alright," he replied, grinning.

"She seems to be a little confused," she said to Sarah.

"A little? She is completely nuts," she responded.

"Who knows how long she's been out here," Gabrielle reminded her. "We have to take her with us."

"I am not sure if that is a good idea."

"We can not just leave her here."

They both glanced at the two Xenas, Callisto and Ares.

"Okay," Xena1 answered after a few moments. Ares and Xena3 did, although a bit reluctantly, as well.

Finally it was on Callisto.

After a few more seconds she nodded as well.

xxxxxxx

Meanwhile in another reality, a being known as Hope was waiting impatiently for the return of the group that had left from this place some time before.

That place was a quite an impressive fortress, located somewhere in the central area of the land of Greece. It was one of the strongholds of the newly formed power that had taken control of this country a few years ago.

She was standing just outside the gate and let her supernatural senses sweep over its entire area, nothing.

Finally she had enough. She turned around and was walked straight back inside.

On the castle walls behind her were hanging the dead bodies of a few of the ones who had dared to cross the new ruling force of the land. It was a common sight in the Greece of today in this reality.

xxx

As she arrived in the throne-room, she was greeted by a woman looking identical to herself.

"Mother," she stated.

"And Hope, is there any news?" Gabrielle asked her with a curious, nearly playful, smile.

"No, Eve and the others had not returned to this realm yet," she answered.

"Really? You sound nearly worried, at least someone could think so if they heard you."

Like herself, her mother Gabrielle was one of the four Queens who were now ruling Greece and most of the neighboring regions, together with the God of War.

"Xena´s idiotic quests don't concern me," she replied, "or if Eve is getting herself killed on one of them in some foolish hunt for glory. But that doesn't mean she has to take Delilah down along with her. Or Perdicas," she said with a side-look at her mother.

"Oh I am not worried about Perdicas at all," Gabrielle answered. "It is just no longer between us like it once was. To be honest, I think I am growing tired of him."

Hope wasn´t completely sure if her mother was serious or just trying to save face. It didn´t really matter.

"Maybe we would both be happier if he died and stayed dead for good this time," Gabrielle stated.

"If you say so," she responded. "It would be really a shame if another one of Xena´s children would die." Hope grinned. "But this time she can hardly blame me for it, but only her own foolishness."