Chapter II

The Main Hall on Mount Olympus looked just like Xena remembered. The gods that had survived the Twilight hadn't bothered to redecorate. They had only cleaned up the mess that Xena and Athena had made. Xena looked around, she didn't see any sign of the God of War.

"Where is he?"

"In his chambers. No one wants to go in there. Cupid and I placed him on his bed and no one's dared enter since," Aphrodite admitted. Until the Twilight, the death of a god was a fairly foreign concept for the Olympians. "I don't have to tell you that most of the gods would not be comfortable with you being up here. But, you should have your chance to say goodbye. I wouldn't deny you that."

Xena headed down the pathway that led out of the main chamber and toward Ares' Olympian apartments. She turned when she realized that the Goddess of Love was not following her. "Come on, I may need you."

"For what?" Aphrodite apprehensively joined Xena.

"You never know." Xena picked up the pace as she neared Ares' private walkway that was lined with purple irises.

Xena pushed the door open and entered the God of War's sanctuary. It had been over thirty years since she had last crossed that threshold, a half of a lifetime for a mortal, an inconsequential span for a god.

"Xena. . ." Aphrodite's voice begged not to have to go any farther.

"It's fine you can wait here, but don't take off."

The blonde goddess nodded, the sun bounced off her golden locks, Xena hated the sun for still shining.

Xena walked down the hallway, her boot heels clicked on the black marble floor. At the end of the corridor, she paused at the door to the master suite. Her hand rested on the silver doorknob. She considered just turning around and walking away. She wondered how long she could pretend he was still alive. She could go back to Earth, live out her life with Gabrielle, maybe she'd see him in the afterlife. What happened to dead gods anyway? If she didn't see his body, then maybe she could just make believe that he was off busy with war or that he had finally gotten over his ridiculous obsession with her. She could live in denial, couldn't she?

No! She couldn't pretend! She felt a chasm in her soul already. She imagined it was only going to grow larger every day she spent without him. Even if she managed to lie to her brain, her heart and soul would always know the truth.

Xena turned the knob and bit down on her lip as she prepared herself for what she knew lay on the other side. Pushing the door open, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she lifted her eyelids, she saw him there. So, still. It was the first time in her life that she could see him but couldn't feel him, how many times had it been the other way around? The first tear started in the corner of her right eye. She tried to fight it but it was a useless battle. It trickled out of her eye, down her cheek, rested on her chin a few seconds before splattering coldly onto her breast. Xena covered her mouth, she didn't want Dite to hear her sobbing. Her feet felt like they were mired in quicksand as she tried to make her way to his bed. . .to his body.

"Hey," she choked out as she sat on the bed next to him. By the gods he was the most beautiful man she'd ever beheld. His perfect lips were already losing color. This wasn't right. It was not supposed to happen this way. He was a god. She wasn't supposed to have to bury him! She reached up and touched his black silken hair, just as soft as ever. She traced the beard that ran along his strong jawline.

"No.' She shook her head. Xena ran her hand along his silver studded vest. His key pendant caught her attention. With a strong tug, she ripped the necklace off of his neck and tied it around her own.

"I am going to fix this. Do you hear me? Where ever you are, I am coming to get you. This is not how this ends, I won't accept that." She squeezed his bicep, it was as stiff and cold as the leather gauntlets that adorned his wrists that were crossed over his abdomen.

"Ares, I said so many nasty things to you. Those words, they were meant more to convince myself that I didn't love you than anything else. I lied to myself. I told myself that all I felt for you was lust, sexual lust and bloodlust, but we both know better."

Xena reached down and kissed him gently on the lips, they were not pliable but he tasted the same.

"Wake up," she screamed.

He didn't budge. She smacked him hard across the face. Nothing. She was losing it, fast. She straddled him and fisted his vest in her hands. She tried to shake him awake. Still, he did not respond.

"Areeeeeees!" She screamed. "Get up! Come on, I know you're in there!"

Hearing Xena scream, Aphrodite came into the bedchamber. She found Xena atop the dead god.

"What do you need? Ambrosia? I'll get it. Nectar? Whatever it takes?" Xena pleaded with the corpse.

"Xena, don't" Aphrodite came to her side.

Xena whipped her head around to face the goddess.

Aphrodite hadn't seen such a murderous glare on Xena's face in decades. She pulled her hand back, afraid of the mortal, driven mad with grief.

"Who did this? Aphrodite, who fucking did this? How do I fix it? Where is the ambrosia? Just give it to him okay?" The last question sounded like a little kid who was desperately seeking anyway to fix a broken toy.

"Xena, ambrosia won't work. It's too late."

"Who did this?"

"Xena, don't! It's not worth another war."

"Who? Dammit! Who?"

"Xena that's enough. Let's get you back to Earth."

"No, I won't leave him. Not like this."

"Xena, you can't stay here,"

"Ice, we need to put his body on ice. You remember?"

Aphrodite assumed she was referencing the time Ares had put the warrior and the bard in the ice cave. But Xena had to know that this was different. They were held in stasis at the brink of death. Ares was already dead.

"Xena he is dead."

"I know! But we need to preserve his body. I am going to bring his soul back to me, or die trying. Either way, we'll get to be together."

"As much as a I love a tragic romance, Xena, that is just not going to happen."

"Why, what do you know that I don't? What are you not telling me? Dite?"

"Xena, this was Michael's doing!"

"Michael? The archangel?"

"They said that you couldn't do it when you should have. So, they had the job finished."

"The Twilight? They wanted all of you dead? Is that it?"

"No, not all of us, just those they feel threatened by. And, well, Ares did kill Eli."

"Yes, but revenge, vengeance, that goes against Eli's message. He wouldn't order Ares killed." Xena answered.

"Apparently, his angels aren't as pure of heart as he is."

"Michael did this?"

"Not personally," Aphrodite smoothed Ares' hair. "That goes against their code."

"Who then?"

Xena heard footfall at the doorway

"I did, Mother. It is my way. Your misguided feelings blinded you. You gave him his godhood back. God could have let him live out his life as a mortal but he wasn't satisfied with that, or rather, you weren't. He wasn't a danger as mortal but when you gave him his immortality back, he started amassing worshippers again. Your job was to pave the way for the one god, instead you gave him back his thunder." Eve stood at the threshold unapologetically.

Xena lunged at her but before she could even get off the bed, Aphrodite had them soaring through the aether with Ares' body. Finally, Aphrodite re-materialized them in the icy mountains that bordered the Norse lands.

"What are you doing?" Xena spat at the goddess.

"Giving you time to regroup. You're grieving, If I had let you kill Eve, you wouldn't be able to live with yourself."

"You're right. How could she do this?"

"She is their messenger."

"Yes, but it is the message of love."

"Eli, maybe, but I'm not too sure about some of his servants. Anyway, you wanted to put him on ice, well, this is as far north as I can take you."

"Thank you." Xena hugged Aphrodite.

"What is your next move?"

"Not sure, I am going to need some time to think about it. Can you seal this place from prying eyes? Can Eve find him here? Does she have the ability to kill all gods or was it a one shot deal just to do away with Ares?"

"I am not sure about Eve, Xena. But, I can seal this from normal mortal eyes for sure."

"Then do it."

"Okay, do you want me to take you back to Corinth?"

"No, I need you tell Gabrielle what's going on. Tell her not to worry but tell her I won't be back for a while. Not until I have seen this through."

"You sure you don't want her to help you?"

"No, I am going to have to pull from a part of myself that she can't handle. It's better for her if she's not here."

"But is it better for you?"

"I'll worry about me later. Right now, I am only worried about one thing." Xena bent and gave Ares one final kiss.."

"Where should I take you?"

"To the gates of Valhalla."

"Are you sure about that?" Aphrodite remembered Xena's last encounter with Odin.

"If Michael wants a war, I'll give him a war the likes that Heaven has never seen!"

Aphrodite didn't know which was colder, the icy cave or Xena's malicious smile.