A/N: I wish I could write replies to all my reviewers, but I have lost
track of the reviews. *Bad Terreis, bad, bad!* Hopefully, I'll be able to
respond to each review on the next chapter. And I'm sorry I kept everyone
waiting so long for an update. I am ashamed to say that my life has been
revolving around LoTR and Captain Jack Sparrow for the past few months.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Scene: Ares' Temple
Alex woke up to find himself in a huge room that was dark in spite of the many torches that lined the walls. At one end of the room was a throne which, at the moment, was being occupied by a dark-haired woman wearing a very revealing black leather outfit. He blinked a few times before remembering what had happened and then immediately began to look around for Tierney and Taryn.
"They're not here, you know," said the woman in a low voice. Alex turned blazing eyes towards her as she rose and slowly made her way towards him.
"Where are my sisters?" he asked, sounding so much like his father that he almost began to look for Rick O'Connell. The woman smiled slowly. Was she trying to seduce him? Yuck. Definitely not his type.
"Oh, they're safe. Ares has them in a different temple. And they'll remain safe as long as you remain cooperative."
Alex shivered as she touched his arm suggestively and he started to move away, but found that he couldn't. He eyed the woman suspiciously.
"Who are you?"
"Discord's the name. It's also what I do best. Well, except for one thing. Would you like to know what I really do best?"
"Not particularly," answered Alex, every inch his father's son. Discord's smoldering, sexy gaze instantly turned into a furious glare and Alex found himself being hurled across the room. She hadn't even touched him!
"Discord! You seem to have trouble remembering orders!"
"Oh, please. You can't order me to do anything, Ares. Well, unless it involves"
"ENOUGH!! LEAVE NOW!"
"Hmph. See if I ever help you again."
Alex didn't move. He didn't want to. Never in his life had he felt so helpless. Not even when he had been with Imhotep. That had been a different situation. This time, his baby sisters were involved.
"Well, are you going to get up or not?"
The arrogant tone in which the question was asked rekindled Alex's fury and he stood.
"There now, that's better. Come with me."
"Why?"
The god of war stared at Alex for a moment as if trying to surmise what sort of insect he was. Alex suddenly felt himself being pulled along as if he were on a leash. A very painful leash. Ares grinned when Alex finally fell to the floor, clutching his neck in agony.
"I'm running out of patience. Your pathetic attempts at resistance will only amuse me for so long. Now, you can come with me or I could summon Discord and she could have fun with you for a while."
Alex followed obediently, but only because he didn't want to know what Discord's idea of fun was. Ares led him through a narrow passageway before entering a rather small and surprisingly well lit room. A long slab stood in the middle of the room and something that was obviously a human body lay upon it, completely covered with material. Resting on a small pedestal just behind the slab was an item Alex knew all too well. He looked questioningly at Ares who rolled his eyes.
"Do I really have to explain everything to you mortals? I thought you had some intelligence, at least. Okay, here's what I want. You go over to that book and read whatever it is that will bring dead people back to life. Incantation, spell, recipe, I don't care what you call it. Just read it."
"Not a chance," replied Alex. Somehow, he knew that this god of war couldn't actually make him read from the Book of the Dead. Ares knew this, too, however, and he had a backup plan.
"That mother of yours. She's quite lovely, you know. I'll bet her daughters grow up to be just as beautiful. Shall we take a look?"
Ares waved his hand and Alex, to his astonishment, saw his sisters in what seemed to be some sort of movie or something. They were alone in another temple, obviously frightened but trying not to show it. He watched as the scene began to change and his sisters grew up right in front of his eyes. Two beautiful women were in the place of the children that had been there only a moment ago. Where was Ares going with this?
"Oh, yes. I was right. They'll make fine servants in my temple someday. Not now of course. Maybe in about eight years or so."
Alex's eyes widened as he comprehended the meaning behind Ares' statement.
"Ah, so you're not quite as dumb as I was beginning to think you were. Now, how about reading from that little book over there?"
Ares' only response was a glare and the god of war stepped closer to Alex before grabbing him by the shirt collar and lifting him up off the ground.
"I AM LOSING PATIENCE, MORTAL!!"
Alex attempted to speak, but could only succeed in choking, so tight was the god's grip on him. Realizing the situation, Ares lowered the young man to the ground and lightened his grip a little.
"If I read from the book, you'll release my sisters?" Alex asked. Ares grinned.
"You have my word," he replied. Alex wasn't sure at all that he trusted the word of this god, but he really had no choice. This was his only option and the best chance of getting his sisters to safety.
"Alright," he finally said. Ares led him over to the pedestal and stood next to him as he began to read, haltingly, from the Book of the Dead.
******************************Meanwhile
"O'Connell, we are doing everything in our power to get Alex and the girls back."
"That's not good enough, Ardeth!" yelled the American. Evie placed a hand on her husband's arm.
"It won't do any good to yell at Ardeth, darling. He isn't the one who took them. None of us could have done anything to keep them here. Ares is a god, Rick. From what I have been told, he has powers that not even Imhotep possessed."
"Your wife is right, Rick," Xena said as she finished sharpening her sword and returned it to its scabbard. She walked up to Rick and regarded him with cool blue eyes.
"The only thing we can do is get to one of Ares' temples. He'll be more likely to listen to me if I do a little damage there. It's a full afternoon's walk, so I suggest we start. We're only wasting time by standing here and arguing about something no one could have prevented."
She swung herself up on Argo and looked down at Gabrielle.
"I'm going to ride ahead and make sure the road is clear. If Ares makes another appearance, which I highly doubt, just whistle for Argo. I should be able to hear you. I won't be too far ahead."
Gabrielle nodded in agreement and Xena took off down the road. The bard turned and faced the others.
"Well, I guess we better get going," she said. Ardeth joined her as she led the group, with Rick and Evie behind them and Jonathan, Autolycus, and Lynnea bringing up the rear.
"She seems to be everything the legends say," Ardeth said to Gabrielle. She looked up at him and smiled.
"Who are the Medjai?" she asked. Ardeth was somewhat startled by the straightforward question, but he realized he should have expected it.
"The Medjai are my people. A desert people with a heavy burden. It falls to us to make sure that He Who Shall Not Be Named does not awaken.....again."
"Again? Who is He Who Shall Not Be Named?"
"Perhapa it would be easier for me to refer to him as 'the creature'," Ardeth admitted. Gabrielle wasn't sure she liked that any better. It gave her the creeps, the way Ardeth said it.
"He's talking about Imhotep," Rick joined in the conversation. Gabrielle froze in her tracks.
"Imhotep?" she repeated. "The High Priest Imhotep?"
Now everyone stopped. Ardeth regarded Gabrielle with a new interest.
"What do you know about him?" he asked.
"I know he's the High Priest of Pharoah. I've never met him, though. Xena and I have never traveled as far as Egypt, yet. Xena does have a friend there, though, and she has been invited to the wedding of Pharoah Seti in three months time."
"The wedding of who?" Evelyn breathed, not quite believing her ears.
"Pharoah Seti."
"Who is Xena's friend?" Ardeth demanded, looking more ruffled than any of his friends had ever seen him.
"Oh, I can't think of her name. I'm usually good with names, too. Oh, Xena!"
Xena was coming towards them on Argo, a perplexed look on her face.
"What's going on here? I waited for you up the road. Why did you stop?"
"I guess we got distracted, Xena."
"What is going on here?" Xena repeated. She had immediately picked up on the tension surrounding the group.
"I was only telling them about the wedding we were going to in Egypt. Your friend's wedding."
"She's not my friend, Gabrielle. Not my close friend, anyway. And I never said we were going. I hate those big, fancy parties that royalty always throws. Besides, I'm not so sure I want to go to Egypt again. My last experience wasn't exactly pleasant."
"Xena, please. You must tell me who this friend of yours is. You have no idea how much this could mean to all of us. Who is your friend?"
Xena looked at Ardeth for a moment in surprise. His brown eyes burned with intensity and his hands held her upper arms in a strong grip. She had the feeling that something was very, very wrong.
"I met her long ago. Twelve years ago, in fact. She was only an overgrown child then and a servant in Pharoah's palace. Her name is Anck-su-namun."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N: Oh, oh, oh. Was that unexpected? I hope it was. I certainly wasn't planning on it until I wrote this last part of this chapter. But who is Ares resurrecting? And how did Xena get to know Anck-su-namun? I wonder.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Scene: Ares' Temple
Alex woke up to find himself in a huge room that was dark in spite of the many torches that lined the walls. At one end of the room was a throne which, at the moment, was being occupied by a dark-haired woman wearing a very revealing black leather outfit. He blinked a few times before remembering what had happened and then immediately began to look around for Tierney and Taryn.
"They're not here, you know," said the woman in a low voice. Alex turned blazing eyes towards her as she rose and slowly made her way towards him.
"Where are my sisters?" he asked, sounding so much like his father that he almost began to look for Rick O'Connell. The woman smiled slowly. Was she trying to seduce him? Yuck. Definitely not his type.
"Oh, they're safe. Ares has them in a different temple. And they'll remain safe as long as you remain cooperative."
Alex shivered as she touched his arm suggestively and he started to move away, but found that he couldn't. He eyed the woman suspiciously.
"Who are you?"
"Discord's the name. It's also what I do best. Well, except for one thing. Would you like to know what I really do best?"
"Not particularly," answered Alex, every inch his father's son. Discord's smoldering, sexy gaze instantly turned into a furious glare and Alex found himself being hurled across the room. She hadn't even touched him!
"Discord! You seem to have trouble remembering orders!"
"Oh, please. You can't order me to do anything, Ares. Well, unless it involves"
"ENOUGH!! LEAVE NOW!"
"Hmph. See if I ever help you again."
Alex didn't move. He didn't want to. Never in his life had he felt so helpless. Not even when he had been with Imhotep. That had been a different situation. This time, his baby sisters were involved.
"Well, are you going to get up or not?"
The arrogant tone in which the question was asked rekindled Alex's fury and he stood.
"There now, that's better. Come with me."
"Why?"
The god of war stared at Alex for a moment as if trying to surmise what sort of insect he was. Alex suddenly felt himself being pulled along as if he were on a leash. A very painful leash. Ares grinned when Alex finally fell to the floor, clutching his neck in agony.
"I'm running out of patience. Your pathetic attempts at resistance will only amuse me for so long. Now, you can come with me or I could summon Discord and she could have fun with you for a while."
Alex followed obediently, but only because he didn't want to know what Discord's idea of fun was. Ares led him through a narrow passageway before entering a rather small and surprisingly well lit room. A long slab stood in the middle of the room and something that was obviously a human body lay upon it, completely covered with material. Resting on a small pedestal just behind the slab was an item Alex knew all too well. He looked questioningly at Ares who rolled his eyes.
"Do I really have to explain everything to you mortals? I thought you had some intelligence, at least. Okay, here's what I want. You go over to that book and read whatever it is that will bring dead people back to life. Incantation, spell, recipe, I don't care what you call it. Just read it."
"Not a chance," replied Alex. Somehow, he knew that this god of war couldn't actually make him read from the Book of the Dead. Ares knew this, too, however, and he had a backup plan.
"That mother of yours. She's quite lovely, you know. I'll bet her daughters grow up to be just as beautiful. Shall we take a look?"
Ares waved his hand and Alex, to his astonishment, saw his sisters in what seemed to be some sort of movie or something. They were alone in another temple, obviously frightened but trying not to show it. He watched as the scene began to change and his sisters grew up right in front of his eyes. Two beautiful women were in the place of the children that had been there only a moment ago. Where was Ares going with this?
"Oh, yes. I was right. They'll make fine servants in my temple someday. Not now of course. Maybe in about eight years or so."
Alex's eyes widened as he comprehended the meaning behind Ares' statement.
"Ah, so you're not quite as dumb as I was beginning to think you were. Now, how about reading from that little book over there?"
Ares' only response was a glare and the god of war stepped closer to Alex before grabbing him by the shirt collar and lifting him up off the ground.
"I AM LOSING PATIENCE, MORTAL!!"
Alex attempted to speak, but could only succeed in choking, so tight was the god's grip on him. Realizing the situation, Ares lowered the young man to the ground and lightened his grip a little.
"If I read from the book, you'll release my sisters?" Alex asked. Ares grinned.
"You have my word," he replied. Alex wasn't sure at all that he trusted the word of this god, but he really had no choice. This was his only option and the best chance of getting his sisters to safety.
"Alright," he finally said. Ares led him over to the pedestal and stood next to him as he began to read, haltingly, from the Book of the Dead.
******************************Meanwhile
"O'Connell, we are doing everything in our power to get Alex and the girls back."
"That's not good enough, Ardeth!" yelled the American. Evie placed a hand on her husband's arm.
"It won't do any good to yell at Ardeth, darling. He isn't the one who took them. None of us could have done anything to keep them here. Ares is a god, Rick. From what I have been told, he has powers that not even Imhotep possessed."
"Your wife is right, Rick," Xena said as she finished sharpening her sword and returned it to its scabbard. She walked up to Rick and regarded him with cool blue eyes.
"The only thing we can do is get to one of Ares' temples. He'll be more likely to listen to me if I do a little damage there. It's a full afternoon's walk, so I suggest we start. We're only wasting time by standing here and arguing about something no one could have prevented."
She swung herself up on Argo and looked down at Gabrielle.
"I'm going to ride ahead and make sure the road is clear. If Ares makes another appearance, which I highly doubt, just whistle for Argo. I should be able to hear you. I won't be too far ahead."
Gabrielle nodded in agreement and Xena took off down the road. The bard turned and faced the others.
"Well, I guess we better get going," she said. Ardeth joined her as she led the group, with Rick and Evie behind them and Jonathan, Autolycus, and Lynnea bringing up the rear.
"She seems to be everything the legends say," Ardeth said to Gabrielle. She looked up at him and smiled.
"Who are the Medjai?" she asked. Ardeth was somewhat startled by the straightforward question, but he realized he should have expected it.
"The Medjai are my people. A desert people with a heavy burden. It falls to us to make sure that He Who Shall Not Be Named does not awaken.....again."
"Again? Who is He Who Shall Not Be Named?"
"Perhapa it would be easier for me to refer to him as 'the creature'," Ardeth admitted. Gabrielle wasn't sure she liked that any better. It gave her the creeps, the way Ardeth said it.
"He's talking about Imhotep," Rick joined in the conversation. Gabrielle froze in her tracks.
"Imhotep?" she repeated. "The High Priest Imhotep?"
Now everyone stopped. Ardeth regarded Gabrielle with a new interest.
"What do you know about him?" he asked.
"I know he's the High Priest of Pharoah. I've never met him, though. Xena and I have never traveled as far as Egypt, yet. Xena does have a friend there, though, and she has been invited to the wedding of Pharoah Seti in three months time."
"The wedding of who?" Evelyn breathed, not quite believing her ears.
"Pharoah Seti."
"Who is Xena's friend?" Ardeth demanded, looking more ruffled than any of his friends had ever seen him.
"Oh, I can't think of her name. I'm usually good with names, too. Oh, Xena!"
Xena was coming towards them on Argo, a perplexed look on her face.
"What's going on here? I waited for you up the road. Why did you stop?"
"I guess we got distracted, Xena."
"What is going on here?" Xena repeated. She had immediately picked up on the tension surrounding the group.
"I was only telling them about the wedding we were going to in Egypt. Your friend's wedding."
"She's not my friend, Gabrielle. Not my close friend, anyway. And I never said we were going. I hate those big, fancy parties that royalty always throws. Besides, I'm not so sure I want to go to Egypt again. My last experience wasn't exactly pleasant."
"Xena, please. You must tell me who this friend of yours is. You have no idea how much this could mean to all of us. Who is your friend?"
Xena looked at Ardeth for a moment in surprise. His brown eyes burned with intensity and his hands held her upper arms in a strong grip. She had the feeling that something was very, very wrong.
"I met her long ago. Twelve years ago, in fact. She was only an overgrown child then and a servant in Pharoah's palace. Her name is Anck-su-namun."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N: Oh, oh, oh. Was that unexpected? I hope it was. I certainly wasn't planning on it until I wrote this last part of this chapter. But who is Ares resurrecting? And how did Xena get to know Anck-su-namun? I wonder.