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A Few Good Missiles

Ever felt like you're floating? That probably means you're crazy.

8

Mid Afternoon, north of Argos

The Coalition army under command of Callisto was encamped again after their earlier battle, but they were still ready to fight at a moment's notice. For Callisto it seemed impossible that it had been five days since Hercules came to the centaur village and took Solan. In those five days, open war had broken out all over Greece. She shook her head as six days before she had lived in peace and here she was commanding armies in a battle against Hercules, and the real trip was that Hercules not Callisto was the bad guy.

While Callisto was called commander by the soldiers and officers, it was clear to anyone paying attention that what had formed during the earlier battle was in fact a partnership between Xena and Callisto.

Callisto and Xena stared over a map as Xena said, "Hercules pulled back roughly 3 miles north."

"Isn't that a little close?"

Xena added, "Not if the battle isn't over."

Callisto eyed Xena once and she understood exactly what she was getting at, "I don't think he's coming on foot. He's got something else going…"

"The catapults?"

Callisto paused, "His catapults? Yea? Where were they?"

Xena and Callisto both took notice of a whistling noise as Xena answered, "We're about to find out!"

A shot landed outside the tent as Xena and Callisto hit the dirt dodging shrapnel. Rolling to her feet Callisto took off outside the tent with Xena following close behind. She shouted as the men started to run, "Where are you going? Come back, form the line, stand your ground and for Zeus sakes get some distance between you! I'm not losing whole units to one rock!"

Charging up and down the line with Xena at her side she shouted orders at the men to keep them in line, so they would not panic. A panic would be all Hercules would need to send his army into the camp and take Argos. Callisto suddenly saw another one coming as she leapt forward avoiding the brunt of it, but the effect sent her flying against the ground cutting up her arms in the process.

Xena charged out to her while Iolaus emerged from among the men. Xena asked, "Are you alright?"

Iolaus grabbed under Callisto's arms and started to take her away from the battle as Xena took over command of the battle for a moment. She shouted, "Fall back 100 paces!"

Xena and the army began pulling back as another shot rained down killing an Athenian and wounding three others. It was mess, the blood and screams as death rained down from above; sickening impacts across the field.

Callisto was still bleeding somewhat as she shoved Iolaus, "Get off of me!"

"Callisto, you're hurt!"

Callisto snorted, "So? I need to get back to front."

Drops of blood slipped off her forehead and down her check as she reached her hand under her leather top. Iolaus saw a bloody stick as she removed her hand from her breast. Callisto cast it aside as she said, "That sure stings…"

Iolaus placed his hand on Callisto's shoulder, "Are you sure?"

Callisto removed his hand not liking to be touched, "I'm returning to the front."

Iolaus wanted to argue with her, he could see that Callisto bleeding profusely, but she wasn't going to listen. Gabrielle emerged from the tent as Callisto eyed her, "Don't you dare try to tell me what to do!"

Gabrielle replied, "Listen Callisto, how about we bandage you up real quick and then you can return to the front."

Callisto snorted. She would not be talked out of the fight. This was her fight, her war.

Gabrielle pleaded, "Callisto, you're bleeding from you head! Go get treated!"

Callisto shouted, "No!"

Iolaus slowly approached the blonde warrior, "It's for you own good!"

Callisto said to him taking her eyes of Gabrielle, "I have never run away from fight and I won't start right nooo….." Gabrielle knocked her out with her staff.

Gabrielle noticed Iolaus, "What are you smiling about?"

"She did that to me a couple days ago."

"C'mon, let's get her inside and treated."

8

Xena had an ace up her sleeve just in case things go this way, and sure enough five Ballista's were being rolled forward, each with a load of logs. She momentarily recalled the death of Dagnine at the hand of these weapons.

8

The Catapults continued to smile as Hercules smiled arrogantly with the knowledge that he was pounding his enemies into oblivion. Hercules lost his smile as he saw something in the distance move closer. What it was, he did not know. But suddenly it flew by him and impaled itself into four soldiers killing them instantly.

Hercules saw another one of them coming, he could feel the fear of his men behind him, but then suddenly it changed into awe, as Hercules reached out and snatched the large log from the hair. Using his strength he turned the tree around and focusing with all his might he threw the log like it was a javelin, back into the direction it came.

8

Xena's eyes cast upon an object in the horizon, it wasn't a catapult shot, she knew that much. Then suddenly her eyes cast upon her own Ballista as she realized it was one of her own shots coming back at her, she shouted, "Everyone down!"

Borias was to Xena's left as he fell to the ground as the log went over head killing four soldiers. Then he cast upon another one that impaled a centaur. A third one managed to take the leg of a soldier. Another one soared back at them crashing into the Ballista rendering it useless.

The other Ballista's had stopped firing as the soldiers had run for cover, meanwhile Xena noticed a sudden quiet as she helped Borias to his feet, "He's stopped firing the catapults."

Borias stated, "I wonder for how long?"

"I don't know, but I'm not going to look a gift horse in the mouth, we should shift the camp around so Hercules don't have a solid target, but we do not want him getting to close to Argos."

"Agreed"

8

Half hour later Callisto awoke seeing Gabrielle bandaging her. Her head hurt like fire as she discovered blood in her hair. Callisto stated, "You've got balls Gab!"

"It was the only way to treat you. Nothing serious I think, no broken bones."

Callisto shot Gabrielle an angry stare, but she let it go, after all she was trying to help her. She asked, "So how goes the battle?"

"Xena fired ballista rounds at Hercules. Apparently Hercules threw them back at us killing quite a few men."

Callisto grunted, "Figures, now let me up so I can return to the front."

Gabrielle interjected, "You should rest."

Callisto roughly grabbed Gabrielle by her green top, "Thank you for patching me up, it means a lot to me that you would take care of me, but I will tell you this now. If you don't get out of my way I will throttle the life out of you for hitting me in the head."

Gabrielle relented as Callisto released her

As Callisto left the tent she said, "Thank you." Gabrielle put the remaining bandages up and grabbed her staff, preparing to return to the field as well.

8

About an hour later, Ares came within sight of Argos. 'Good' he thought, maybe he could talk to Xena and figure a way out of all this mess. Maybe find out who was really behind all this, and maybe just maybe, get his mantle back.