In the cramped, dark quarters that served as her home on Mount Olympus, the goddess Discord paced back and forth like a caged tiger - if one could imagine a tiger that was very, very angry, and also clad in the kind of black leather ensemble that could generally only be found at a dominatrix convention.

"Stupid Athena," she muttered to herself. "Always acting so high and mighty."

While it wouldn't be unusual for Discord to make such a comment on any occasion, at the moment she felt particularly resentful towards the goddess of wisdom.

"Couldn't listen to me, could she? No, it was all 'I've sent the Furies to deal with the situation.' Like that's such a brilliant idea."

The "situation" in question was the prophecy by the Fates that Xena's daughter, Eve, was going to bring about the "Twilight of the Gods" - the end of the Olympians' rule. Zeus himself had died some 25 years earlier trying to prevent the birth of the child. Hera had vanished at the same time, apparently dead as well. Athena had led the gods since then, and it had been thought that the prophecy had been thwarted with the deaths of Xena, Eve and Gabrielle.

The problem there was that all three mortals had recently turned up alive and well. Xena and Gabrielle, not a day older, along with Eve, grown to adulthood. To Discord the solution seemed obvious: slaughter the girl. And if her mother and the bard got in the way, kill them too. What was so complicated?

"Why should we wait for the Furies to take their shot?" Discord asked aloud. "They always take forever to get the job done."

"Assuming they can get the job done at all," Ares, god of war, said as he appeared a few feet away from Discord. "As I tried telling Athena, Xena's beat the Furies before."

Discord looked with disdain at her unexpected, and quite unwelcome, guest. "Nobody cares what you think. If not for you, Xena's brat would have died as an infant. You helped them escape from the rest of us, who knows how many times."

"I had my reasons."

"What? Your 'undying love' for Xena?" If the scorn in Discord's words were any stronger, it would have had an actual physical presence. "You're pathetic!"

Ares looked at the floor. "You're right."

The simple ageement took Discord by surprise, but not enough to stop her from heaping more abuse on the war god. "More than just pathetic, you're incredibly stupid. You save Xena and she spits on you. You risk all your power, your godly status, and she laughs in your face. You're sick!"

"I know."

"And it's not just yourself that you're risking, you're risking all of the gods." Discord stalked angrily up to the large, leather-clad war god and hissed the next words in his face. "You're risking ME!"

Ares gazed down directly into the shorter immortal's eyes. "I'm sorry."

Discord was taken aback by the sincerity in his tone. It brought back memories of a time when their relationship had not been so filled with antagonism. Memories that Discord felt were better left buried.

"Why'd you come here anyway?" she asked as stepped away from the war god, turning from him so quickly that her long mane of dark hair whipped through the air as if it were alive. "What do you want?"

"To tell you that you aren't the only one who disagrees with Athena about leaving this to the Furies. Poseidon is assembling a group of us to go strike down Eve. He asked me to be a part of it. To give me a chance, as he put it, to stop acting like a seahorse's ass."

Discord smirked. "Think you can manage that?"

Ares let out a single, quiet laugh and raised a hand to stroke his black goatee. "No. Actually, I don't. I turned Poseidon down and asked him to take you instead."

"Me? In a group with Poseidon?" Discord could scarcely imagine such a thing coming to pass. The sea god, besides being one of the most powerful Olympians, was also arguably the most arrogant - quite a distinction considering the competition. He barely tolerated the major members of the pantheon, and usually didn't acknowledge the existence of any 'lesser' gods. "He agreed to that?"

"He needed a little convincing, but I talked him into it."

Discord said nothing and merely looked at Ares, the suspicion in her expression easy to see.

"You think I'm up to something, don't you?"

"When aren't you?" Discord replied.

"Fair point. But this is different. I need you to be part of that group, Discord. It may be the only way we can beat this prophecy."

"What are you talking about?"

"To kill Eve, we're going to have to go through Xena. There's no way around it. She'll defend her daughter to the death."

"I don't have a problem with that."

"Neither do the others," Ares continued. "But I do. You said it yourself, look at how many times I've intervened to help Xena. She's my weakness. And if it comes to the point where she's about to die...I don't think I could stop myself from saving her again."

Discord looked at the war god with pure disgust. "You can't be serious!" But even as she said the words, she knew he was. After all, he'd already fought Athena directly on Xena's behalf at Amphipolis.

Ares shook his head shamefacedly. "That's why you have to go. You have to be the one to kill Xena. Any of the others...I'd stop them."

"And you won't stop me?" Discord laughed in his face. "I'm supposed to believe that?"

Ares reached out and gently brushed his hand against the goddess's cheek. "Eris, I--"

"Don't call me that!" She slapped his hand away and drew back from the war god. It had been a long time since anyone had used her real name. A long time since he had called her by it. "You don't have the right. Not anymore."

"I know." He looked at the floor once again. "And that's my own fault."

Discord glared at him, making an effort to show only hatred in her eyes, not the ghosts of any other long dead feelings. "I'm not buying this, Ares."

"Look, I'm not going to pretend things will ever be right between us again," he replied. "But I can still remember how it used to be. And that's why you're the only one who can do this. I'll fight the other gods to save Xena...but I won't fight you. Not now. Not with so much at stake."

There was silence for a long time as the two immortals just stared at each other. Finally Discord spoke.

"When is Poseidon launching the attack?"

"Just over an hour from now. Meet the others in front of Hephaestus's forge, they'll be expecting you."

"Fine. Now get out."

Ares started to turn towards the door, but stopped. "You know, after this...the other gods are going to think differently of you. You'll get a lot of respect for killing Xena."

"Are you still here?" Discord asked scornfully. "I told you to get out."

"Yeah...you did." He paused and took a long look at her, his expression strangely melancholy. "Goodbye."

After he had left. Discord lost her mask of hostility. A huge smile stretched across her face and her brown eyes lit up with pure joy.

This is it, she thought. This is my big chance.

*************

Discord entered the dwelling of the Three Fates uninvited. She boldly approached the trio as they tended to the threads that represented the lives of all the beings in the universe.

"Leave us, godling," the most childlike of the fates said as she looked up from her weaving. "We're in no mood to entertain your questions."

"And it is as we've told all of your kin who have come before us in fear of the prophecy," the fate who appeared as a young woman added. "The Twilight is upon you all. Your reign is ending."

"Now away with you," the last fate, the crone, hissed.

Discord bristled at the contempt that the trio showed for her, but she wasn't going to let it spoil her mood. Ever since her conversation with Ares, she knew that she was going to be the one to derail the Twilight prophecy. She was absolutely certain of it. And she was also certain that she was going to be rewarded by the other gods for it; she could almost envision the other Olympians paying homage to her. The prospect excited her so much that she had decided to see the Fates before she met with Poseidon's group at the forge. Why should she just imagine her triumph when she could get a full blown preview of what was to come?

"Watch your words with me," Discord said to the Fates. "And don't order me around. You'll do well to stay on my good side."

The child fate sighed. "You've come to know the future then? Then hear what we've said countless times before. The Olympian reign is over. The child of Xena shall be your undoing."

"Check your threads again," Discord replied confidently. "Eve and Xena are doomed. Your prophecy is broken. And I want--"

"You want to know your future, godling?" the crone interrupted, her tone filled with annoyance. "Then here, take a good long look."

With a gesture from the crone, a scene opened up before Discord's eyes. Rather than merely telling her the future in cryptic statements, as the fates usually did, the Crone was actually showing Discord what was to come. The goddess saw Xena, Eve and Gabrielle by the seaside. Suddenly a great rumbling errupted from the ocean as Poseidon emerged from the depths, his watery form towering over the mortals. At the same time, Hades, Hephaestus, Artemis, Deimos, and Discord herself appeared on the shore behind the mortals, cutting off any escape route.

Deimos? That idiot is part of Poseidon's group too? Discord thought as she watched the scene. Though it took her by surprise, she dismissed it as unimportant. The only thing that mattered was Discord's own glory.

The scene continued as some of the gods on the shore let loose with a barrage of fiery missles at Xena, who expertly deflected them with her sword. One of the deflected missles went on to strike Poseidon...and then the unthinkable happened.

"No! No! That's impossible!" Discord exclaimed as she watched the scene continue. She looked on in horror as the gigantic sea god...died.

The Fates looked on impassively.

"What are you trying to pull?" Discord demanded. "Gods can't die from something like that! That wouldn't even faze Poseidon! It would barely bother me!"

"Eve is the key," the crone replied. "Xena is her protector. When she strikes to defend her daughter, Xena can kill even gods...such is the prophecy."

Discord shook her head in disbelief.

"Now, any god is as vulnerable to Xena as the weakest mortal," the middle fate continued. "She needs no special weapon. She could kill your kind with her bare hands."

The scene continued and Discord saw how the rest of Poseidon's group stood in shock at the sea god's demise. All of them were stunned, save for one who became completely unhinged by the turn of events.

Unforunately, that one happened to be Discord.

The goddess watched wide-eyed as the scene showed her charging toward Xena, screaming like a banshee, sword raised to strike.

Xena struck first.

With a quick and vicious swing, the warrior princess's sword sent Discord's head flying from her body. The echo of her screams continued even after her headless corpse fell to the ground.

"No," she said quietly as the scene faded from view, the desperation in her tone easy to hear. She raised a hand to touch her throat without even realizing it. "No. That's not going to happen."

"That is exactly what is going to happen," the child fate said. "It WILL happen. There is nothing you can do to change it. Do you understand? Nothing. Now leave us."

*************

After leaving the Fates, Discord wandered zombie-like through Olympus, her mind trying unsuccessfully to deal with the thought of her impending death. She had always assumed that the Twilight prophecy meant only the end of the gods' influence over the mortal world, not their actual destruction. As an immortal, there was nothing more terrifying to Discord than the concept of her own end.

I...I'll just stay away, she finally thought as a glimmer of reason managed to shine through the storm of panic in her mind. If I don't go--

"Ah, right on time, Discord."

She turned toward the voice and saw Hades, standing in front of the other gods in Poseidon's group. In a twist of irony that she was in no mood to appreciate, her mind-numbed wandering had taken her to the proper meeting place at the chosen time. The words of the Fates replayed in Discord's mind. Was there really nothing she could do to escape her death?

"Discord? Are you listening?"

"Huh? Uh, what Hades?" She was vaguely aware that he had been speaking to her, but she couldn't recall a word.

"I said it's time to go." He turned from her and looked to the other gods. "Ready? Now."

With that he vanished, as did the others, all of them teleporting to their seaside confrontation. Discord, her mind in such a haze that she felt powerless to stop the inevitable, meekly followed.

*************

Discord reappeared with the group behind Xena, just as the Fates had shown. As the other gods launched their fireballs, she did nothing. Then, as a single deflected fireball struck Poseidon, a thought occurred to her. A thought that she latched on to with all the desperation of a drowning woman grasping for a thrown rope. The Fates said that everything they showed me is going to happen? Fine! But that still doesn't mean I have to die!

As Poseidon's death cry faded to nothingness, Discord let out a deranged scream and charged at Xena. But while she appeared to have gone completely berserk, her mind was as focused and in control as it had ever been.

Timing has to be perfect, she thought, trying to force away the fear that was threatening to overwhelm her. Perfect...please let it be perfect.

Just as the Fates had shown earlier, when Discord reached Xena, the mortal's sword lashed out and sent the goddess's head flying.

Or at least, that's what it looked like to everyone present. There were, after all, plenty of witnesses to see the bloody scene.

And there were no witnesses at all in Discord's quarters on Olympus at that exact same moment. Nobody to see her materialize there safe and whole, nervously clutching her neck to feel for any wound. Nobody to hear her yell truimphantly. "I DID IT!"

Her exuberance was quite understandable. It had been no small feat to both teleport away with split second timing AND leave an illusionary double in her place. But that still wasn't all she had planned. Concentrating intently, Discord summoned all the godly might she could muster and made both Earth and Olympus quake, duplicating the rumbling from moments earlier when Poseidon had died. She wanted everyone to think she was dead too. It seemed the safest option for her while Xena was running around loose with the ability to kill gods.

After shaking the heavens rather convincingly, Discord fell to the floor, exhausted by the effort. Still, despite the strain, she couldn't stop laughing giddily. "I'm alive!" she declared aloud. "Alive, alive, alive!"

She knew she still had to figure out her next move, but that could wait. Her first priority was to simply savor the joy of survival.

That was a joy that many other gods would soon be denied.

*************

As the rest of the Twilight prophecy played out, Discord was content to remain a hidden observer. She watched quietly as her kin fell in defeat to Xena. Hephaestus, Hades, Deimos, Artemis, and finally Athena herself died at the mortal's hands. Discord cursed them all for failing to defeat Xena, but did allow herself some sympathy for each as well. After all, she had almost shared their fate.

Discord held far greater contempt for two of the gods that had survived. Ares had once again turned his back on his kin to help Xena, but at least he had paid a price for it. He had sacrificed his godly power and immortality for Xena, and was now doomed to live the short life of a mortal.

And then there was Aphrodite, Discord's most hated rival. The love goddess had aided Xena even after the mortal had killed her husband, Hephaestus. Unlike Ares, the bubble-headed blonde had been able to keep all her power and her immortality. This fact angered Discord greatly, and she swore that Aphrodite would pay for her treacherous actions.

Taking advantage of Athena's demise, Discord made a new home for herself in the deceased goddess's library. Besides helping her to keep hidden from the other gods, it also gave her the opportunity to study many scrolls that had been unavailable to her before. Of the most interest to her were Athena's writings on the limits and extent of godly power. Discord was able to learn of new ways to use her power, even some techniques that could be effective in battle against other gods. Her greatest discovery was a method that one god could use to drain the power of another. Not only would this increase the god's own strength permanently, but it would render the victim a mere mortal. A mortal that could be easily killed.

Discord studied this technique until she was certain she would be capable of doing it. It was then that she was ready to make her next move.

*************

Discord materialized silently in a shadowy corner of Aphrodite's favorite temple. She thought it was the most likely place to find her arch-nemesis. Her instincts proved correct, as she immediately caught sight of the love goddess, still dressed in the mourning clothes she had worn since Hephaestus's death. While the outfit was indeed black, it was also tailored to Aphrodite's idea of proper attire, which meant it was a tad too revealing to ever become standard funeral garb. Discord observed the blonde take a seat in front of what appeared to be a monument to her late husband. It was an impressive looking shrine, covered in precious metals and jewels, and topped by a well rendered bust of the deceased god of the forge. The bust appeared to be solid gold.

"Oh, Heffie," Aphrodite sighed aloud. "Why'd you have to get yourself killed? If you and the others could just have left Xena alone...what was so important about mortals worshipping us anyway? I mean, so what? I don't mind that people are going to stop praying to me. It'll give me more free time."

In the shadows, Discord shook her head in disgust. That blonde bimbo just doesn't understand, she thought. Our worshippers brought us prestige. Prestige that's lost forever now.

"So many dead," Aphrodite continued in a sad tone. "And the ones that are left won't even talk to me."

Gee, guess they're a little ticked that you sided with the mortal that's killed half of us and ended our reign.

"I'm so lonely." The love goddess seemed on the verge of tears.

Well, your misery will be over soon, Discord thought with wicked glee as she stepped from the shadows, into her old rival's line of sight.

The slack jawed look of amazement on Aphrodite's face didn't surprise Discord, but what happened next came as complete shock.

"DISCORD!" The love goddess's tone was inexplicably filled with delight. Moving too swiftly for Discord to react, Aphrodite grabbed her in a hug that nearly squeezed all the breath from her body.

"You're alive! You're alive! You're alive!" Aphrodite repeated as she actually lifted the other goddess off her feet and swung her around in a circle before releasing the embrace. "This is so cool!"

Too stunned to speak for the moment, Discord merely stared dumbfounded at the blonde. Tartarus! The bimbo's lost her mind. It was the only explanation that she could think of to explain her enemy's behavior.

"So what's the story? Where have you been? How'd you survive? I mean, I thought your head got chopped off." Aphrodite prattled on, still seemingly overjoyed by Discord's presence. "Oh, what's it matter? You're here and you're alive...ooh, so I guess I should take down your monument, huh?"

At this, Discord finally managed to speak. "Monument?"

"Yeah, I made one for each god that died fighting Xena, see?" Aphrodite swept her arm to point down the main hall of her temple, where there were a number of impressive looking shrines, similar to the the one for Hephaestus. "Yours is over here, come look."

Feeling quite confused, Discord followed Aphrodite to a shrine on the far end of the hall...and then her confusion increased a thousandfold.

"Do you like it?" Aphrodite asked. "I tried to make it how I thought you'd want it. We just have such different tastes...I wasn't sure if I got it right."

"Got it right?" Discord gasped. "It's...magnificent." Though in truth, she thought that description didn't begin to cover the work of art standing before her. The base of the shrine was carved from a block of obsidian, with the most intricate designs any artisan could produce decorating every side, accented with silver and diamonds. The centerpiece was a bust of Discord made of pure platinum.

"You really like it? Awesome!"

Discord tore her eyes away from the shrine to look at Aphrodite, who was beaming in apparent pride over the monument.

"Why did you do this? Why'd you make this for me?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Aphrodite replied, sounding genuinely confused at the question.

"Oh, I don't know...maybe because WE HATE EACH OTHER!" Discord exclaimed, her confusion leading to exasperation.

Aphrodite's eyes widened in surprise for a moment, then she let out a muscial laugh. "Don't be silly, I never hated you."

"We've been enemies for centuries!"

"Yeah, I know. Oh...you don't get it, do you?"

"Get what?"

"I'm the goddess of love. That's capital L-O-V-E. I'm like, not capable of really hating anyone. It's not my nature."

"But we've fought," Discord protested.

"Sure, but that's we were supposed to do. It was natural. I mean, me being all about love and positive energy, and you on the whole hate and conflict trip. What else could we have done? But it was nothing personal."

Discord once again found herself speechless.

"Don't get me wrong," Aphrodite continued. "You got me mad plenty of times, and I did my best to get back at you. I tried to fight just as dirty as you did."

"Right!" Discord put in, finally hearing something that she could agree with the love goddess about.

"But I never ever hated you. I always felt, you know, like we were sisters."

Discord rolled her eyes. "Practically everyone on Olympus is each other's brother or sister. That doesn't mean we can't hate each other."

Aphrodite laughed again. "I don't mean 'sister' like family. I mean we're sisters 'cause we're alike."

Discord paused and looked at her rival, wondering whether the blonde had always been delusional or if this was a recent development. "Yeah, we're really alike," she replied in a tone that dripped sarcasm. "We're almost twins."

"Make fun if you want, but I know how it's been for you. That's why I tried my best to make you a cool monument."

"What do you mean?"

Aphrodite's expression grew unusually serious, actually bordering on thoughtful. "I saw how the other gods treated you. Maybe you never noticed, but a lot of times they treated me the same way. They'd never ask me for my opinion whenever something important was up. And if I ever tried to speak up, they'd just laugh me off...or ignore me completely. Like I wasn't as important as the rest of them."

"Like...like you were just a joke," Discord said, surprised at how well the love goddess's words mirrored her own situation.

"Right. And I tried not to let it bother me, but sometimes...well, you know it really hurt. And if it was bad for me, I knew it had to be pure hell for you. I mean, I could ignore it most of the time 'cause I never cared about all the politics on Olympus and stuff, but you...I could tell you always wanted to be a major player."

Discord turned away from Aphrodite and back to the monument. Glancing down the hall, she noted that besides being so beautifully made, her shrine was also larger than almost all the others. Larger than Athena's. Larger than Poseidon's. Only Hephaestus's monument was larger than Discord's, and not by that much.

"Aphrodite," she said in a voice barely above a whisper. "You may never have hated me, but you do realize that I--"

"Hated me?" The blonde goddess interrupted. "Yeah, I knew. But that was okay with me, you were just being true to your nature. It was like, your role in the cosmos...and you always played it to the hilt. I really admire you for that."

"You admire me for hating you?"

"I admire you for being so darn good at doing your job. That's something you never got credit for from any of the other gods. And some of them didn't do nearly as well at their jobs if you ask me. Truth is, I was always thankful that you were around to keep me on my toes. Our rivalry made me a better goddess than I ever could have been otherwise. You were always the best arch-enemy a gal could ask for."

"Th-thank you," Discord replied. She was incredibly perplexed, both by how surreal the entire conversation seemed to her, and at the odd jumble of emotions now occupying the place insde her which had once been comfortably filled by simple, uncomplicated hatred.

"But now, with the way everything has changed, it's pretty pointless for us to go on being enemies. It's not my job to guide mortals' love lives anymore, and it's not your job to cause them problems, so what's to fight over?"

Discord could have easily come up with a long list of reasons to fight if she put her mind to it, but for the moment she decided simply to humor the other goddess. "Nothing, I guess."

"Then everything is cool! Trust me, we're going to be even better friends than we were enemies. We can hang out together...and maybe with the other gods that are left if I can get them to talk to me again. And if not, who cares? We can adapt. Hey, maybe we could find some really cool mortals and make them into gods so they could hang with us. A whole new pantheon! Not to be worshipped or anything. Just a group to party with."

Aphrodite chatted on excitedly about the idea, while Discord quietly thought about what she was going to do. She had come here with a specific plan in mind, a plan that she could still follow through on. The problem was, she was no longer sure she wanted to. No, I've come too far to just quit now, she concluded. With that thought, she started to manuever behind the blonde goddess.

"Ooh, the problem with making new gods is we'll need ambrosia," Aphrodite continued, oblivious to any suspicious movements on Discord's part. "And with all of it locked up in Ares's temp--"

The love goddess stopped speaking immediately when Discord's hands reached out and took hold of either side of the blonde's head. It was instant paralysis, something Discord had spent that last few weeks learning how to inflict upon other gods. Her original plan had been to paralyze Aphrodite partially, so that the love goddess would still be able to see and hear...and feel pain. But in light of their conversation, Discord felt that some mercy was in order and made the paralysis extend even to Aphrodite's mind.

She won't feel a thing, Discord thought. I'll drain all her power, and then when she's mortal, I'll kill her without waking her up.

Concentrating intently, Discord prepared to absorb the other goddess's power. It would only take her a few moments of meditation before she was ready to begin.

A few moments passed.

A few more moments passed.

The better part of an hour passed, and still Discord had not begun to drain Aphrodite's power. Instead, she just looked at the blonde goddess, who stood still as a statue before her.

"Damn you!" Discord finally yelled, despite the fact that Aphrodite couldn't hear her. "I don't care what you said, I'm going to kill you and I'm not going to feel guilty about it."

The paralyzed Aphrodite, naturally, did not respond.

"I had this whole thing planned perfectly, it's not going to be ruined now," Discord continued. "Once I take your power I'll be stronger than any of the gods that are left, and I'll rule over all of them. I may not have mortal worshippers anymore, but damn it, the other gods will finally take me seriously."

Reaching up to take hold of the taller goddess's head once more, Discord made ready to begin, but then dropped her hands back to her side.

"I can't," she nearly sobbed as she looked at the paralyzed blonde. "Not now." Discord shook her head. "Here you turn out to be the only one who does respect me, and I try to kill you? How low is that? Coming up behind you while you're happily babbling on about the future and making a new pantheon and ambrosia....wait a second." As Discord thought about Aphrodite's words, something began to bother her. What was that about Ares and ambrosia? Reaching out to the love goddess once more, Discord removed the paralysis.

"--le, it's...hey, how'd you get in front of me all of a sudden?" asked the confused, unparalyzed blonde.

"Never mind about that," Discord replied. "Just repeat what you said about the ambrosia. You said it's locked up?"

"Yeah, for some reason all the ambrosia is locked up in Ares's favorite temple. Hey, you know he could use some of that now that's he's mortal. That's pretty lucky for him."

Discord frowned. "I'm sure luck has nothing to do with it."

"Huh? Wait, are you saying Ares...?" Aphrodite let the question die as all the implications became clear to her. "But if he knew he'd need the ambrosia ahead of time, that means--"

"That means," Discord interrupted, "that from the beginning he was planning for the rest of us to die."

*************

Ares, tired from his long journey up the steep mountain path that led to his favorite temple, took a moment to reflect as he stood before the doors of the forbidding structure.

I really should have had this place built somewhere easier to get to.

Despite being unused to the limitations of being mortal, the former war god was in very good spirits. After weeks of travelling on foot, and concluding that he missed the power of teleportation terribly, he had finally reached his goal. Entering the temple, he quickly moved to the heavy iron chest that sat behind the altar. While the chest bore no conventional lock, powerful arcane forces held it sealed tightly. Only one being in existence could open the chest, the same being that had sealed it nearly a month earlier, Ares himself.

Placing his hand upon the chest's lid, the magic recognized him, even though he was no longer a god, and the invisible seal faded. Opening the chest, Ares saw the glowing ambrosia that was so crucial to his plans. It was the substance that would make him a god once more.

Thus, he didn't take it well when the ambrosia vanished into thin air even as he reached for it. "NO!"

"I am SO ticked off at you!" Aphrodite's voice sounded behind him.

Ares whirled around as his shock and rage fought a battle to see which emotion would determine his reaction.

Rage won.

"What did you do?" He demanded, his roar echoing throughout the temple. "Where is the ambrosia?"

"Don't you worry about that," Aphrodite replied, her tone petulant. "I'm mad at you! I know what you've done!"

The idea of his half-sister knowing anything at all was difficult for Ares to grasp. "I don't know what you're talking about, but what did you do with the ambrosia?" His words came slowly, through teeth gritted in anger, but then a horrifying thought struck him. "You didn't destroy it, did you?"

"No, I sent it to one of Heffie's old workshops. But never mind that, you...."

As Aphrodite went into a tirade against Ares, proving that she did indeed have some of the details of his plan, Ares merely breathed a sigh of relief at the knowledge that his ticket back to godhood was still intact. He held up his hand to his sister's face, halting the words he had already been ignoring. "Bring the ambrosia back now!"

The love goddess put her hads on her hips and frowned. "You seem to be forgetting who's still got all their power here! You'd better watch it or--"

"Or what?" Ares interrupted. Though he was no longer a god, he had no fear of Aphrodite. He knew she didn't have it in her to truly hurt anyone...not even him. Still, he realized barking orders at her would probably not get him what he wanted. He forced himself to use a more conciliatory tone. "Come on, Sis, am I supposed to be scared of you?"

The blonde pouted a bit before responding. "No." Then her pout turned into a canary-swallowing smile as she nodded to a point behind Ares's back. "You might worry about her though."

Ares turned around, and once again his shock fought a battle with another emotion to determine his reaction. Only this time the competing feeling was not rage. It was fear. In fact, in the most literal sense, it was mortal fear.

"Hello Ares," Discord purred as she sauntered towards him. The smile on her face would have been quite seductive, if the malice in her eyes had not been so plain. "My my, but don't you look..." her hand shot out and grabbed his throat. She pulled him down to his knees with inhuman strength and spat the last word in his face, "...powerless!"

Ares knew his only option was to try to reason with Discord, but that wouldn't be possible while he was fighting for every breath. He turned his gaze toward Aphrodite. "Help...me," he managed to gasp.

"Sure thing," the blonde replied while making quite a show of examining her nails. Creating a nail file out of thin air, she started to work on her cuticles. "I'll get right on it. Just give me a sec."

Fortunately for the former war god, Discord opted not to strangle him to death. Instead, she lifted him by the throat and flung him across the room. The impact against the hard stone wall was excruciatingly painful, but Ares made great effort to focus beyond the pain. He didn't have a choice. His situation was desperate.

"Discord!" he said as he rose painfully to his feet, leaning against the wall for support. "I can't believe it! I don't know why you're so angry, but I'm happy just seeing you alive."

He had barely finished the words before twin bolts of lightning flew from her eyes directly at him. He leapt to the side just in time to avoid the deadly bolts.

"The happiness is fading a little now," he remarked.

Discord advanced on him.

"Hold on! There's been a misunderstanding here!"

Discord laughed derisively as she backed him into a corner. "Forget it, Ares. We know everything. Your 'sudden' noble sacrifice for Xena was nothing of the kind."

"Yeah!" Aphrodite chimed in. "You had the ambrosia put away ahead of time!"

"Only by coincidence!" he protested.

"Don't bother lying," Discord replied. "I know everything. You see, after I found out you had the ambrosia, I wanted to confirm my suspicions. I went to see the Fates. That's the second visit I've made to them recently. They're very irritable. Seems they'd been annoyed not so long ago by a certain god who kept badgering them for every little detail he could get about the Twilight prophecy."

"That was you," Aphrodite added as she pointed accusingly at Ares.

"You started pumping the Fates for information when Xena turned up alive after so many years. You KNEW she'd have the power to kill gods! Don't deny it!"

Ares remained silent, not wanting to provoke Discord with any ill-chosen words.

"It's odd, if you think about it," the dark-haired goddess continued, her facial expression shfting from anger to smugness. "If you hadn't made the Fates so angry in the first place, they wouldn't have shown me exactly what I needed to know when I first visited them. They wanted me gone so quickly that they unwittingly showed me how to survive."

"That was lucky," said Aphrodite.

"For me. Not for Ares."

"You've got it all wrong," he said. "You don't realize what I was really doing."

"You were making sure that Xena survived to kill the others, while worming your way into her good graces so that you'd be spared. Then, when there were no gods more powerful than you, Olympus would be yours for the taking."

"Do you think I'd betray my family to rule over a pitiful collection of surviving immortals that have no worshippers?" Ares asked. "You're missing the big picture here. I'm trying to preserve our place as rulers of the universe."

Discord raised an eyebrow, then turned to Aphrodite. "This one ought to be good."

"I'm serious," Ares continued. "Xena has seen me help her time and time again. I've saved her daughter, I've saved the bard, and I've sacrificed my power for her. It's worn away at her suspicions towards me. She actually feels gratitude. I'm closer than I've been in years to winning her trust back."

"What's that got to do with anything?" Aphrodite asked.

"Xena and her daughter are supposed to end the Olympian reign, but if I win Xena to my side--"

"You get her daughter too," Discord finished.

"Exactly. After I had used the ambrosia to return my godhood, my plan was to continue to masquerade as a mortal, and make sure I'd won Xena's heart completely. Then she'd be able to accept me as a god again, and neither she or her daughter would stop me from recruiting new worshippers. And I'd convince them to let the other Olympians do the same."

"You mean the other Olympians that swear their allegiance to you."

Ares smiled at Discord. "I didn't say I wouldn't be rewarded for my efforts. But surely you realize this is the only way we can overcome the prophecy. We can't fight Xena, we need her to join us."

"But you set up our family," Aphrodite said. "You let my husband die."

"And you set me up, Ares. Do you think I'm going to forgive that?"

"No, you have that wrong, Discord," he said, ignoring Aphrodite. "I was trying to save you. The Fates weren't exactly clear on most of what they told me, but I thought your survival depended on you being in Poseidon's group when he went after Xena. When it looked like you had died, I thought I had gotten it wrong." Ares looked at the goddess with his best sorrowful expression. "You can't imagine how I mourned for you." He followed up that declaration with a warm smile. "But here you are alive. So my plan worked after all."

Discord laughed in his face.

"It's true," Ares continued. "I knew you wouldn't have trusted me enough if I'd told the truth, so I made you think that I wanted you to kill Xena." The former war god moved closer to Discord with a confident swagger in his step. It seemed to him that things were going well. He was still breathing after all. Without his powers, the only defenses he had were his wit, charm, and force of personality - but that was a formidable combination. "I wanted you to survive, Discord. I need you to serve as my right hand. All of creation can be ours."

"And is that what you told Deimos?"

His confident manner faded ever so slightly. "What are you talking about?"

Discord looked almost kittenish as she leaned close to Ares, placing her palm against the black leather vest that stretched tightly over his well-muscled frame. She started to move her fingers back and forth across his chest. "I didn't dwell on it at the time, being preoccupied with my imminent decapitation and all, but I did find it strange that Poseidon would have Deimos as part of his group. Deimos didn't have any more status on Olympus than I did." The goddess tilted her head coyly and smiled at Ares. "After thinking about it, I realized that Deimos would have needed someone to put in a good word for him. Someone like the god of war."

"I didn't--"

"Don't lie Ares," Discord said, cutting off his denial. "It's the only explanation. No other god would have done it for him. You set him up the same as you did me, because you didn't want any god with a hunger for power left alive. It was all about eliminating your potential rivals." She paused a moment. "I'm just wondering how you told Deimos that he was going with Poseidon's group. Did you tell him that he was the only hope to defeat the prophecy too?" She raised her hand to gently caress the side of Ares's face, much as he had done to her weeks ago. Her playful demeanor faded suddenly and her voice grew harsh. "Did you touch his damn cheek?" Discord dug her nails into Ares's flesh and tore four bloody gashes in his face.

The former god cried out in pain, still unused to the ease with which his mortal body could be hurt. Reacting with blind instinct, he instantly swung a backhanded fist that caught Discord squarely on the chin. Though limited to mere human strength, Ares was a powerfully built man, and the blow connected solidly.

Thus, the impact caused Discord's head to turn almost three inches to the side.

"Oh, that was wrong," Ares commented ruefully as the goddess slowly turned her face back to glare directly at him.

"YOU'RE DEAD!" The enraged goddess exclaimed as she pushed him roughly against the wall. She drew back one hand that began to glow with arcane power.

"LISTEN TO ME!" Ares shouted back defiantly. His situation was to desperate for him to waste energy on fear. "It doesn't matter about that now! If you kill me you're throwing away our chance to rule!"

Discord hesitated. "Your plan would never work. Xena may have some gratitude for you now, she may even fall for your 'reformed mortal' act, but she'll never accept you as a god again."

"Maybe not," he replied. "But that was only my best case scenario. My plan can succeed in more than one way."

"How?"

"Xena is grateful enough to let me get close to her while she thinks I'm mortal. Close enough to arrange an 'accident' for Eve. You know that Xena's power to kill gods only lasts as long as her daughter is alive. With Eve dead, there's nothing Xena could do to us."

Discord lowered the hand that had been ready to strike. She still was eager for revenge on Ares, but this plan of his...it could work.

Seeing the indecision in Discord's eyes, Ares spoke with all the considerable charm he had at his disposal. "Imagine it. A new pantheon. New worshippers." He leaned forward and whispered in her ear. "Imagine being more than Discord. Imagine...Eris, goddess of war. How long have you wanted that?"

Discord's eyes glazed over as she pictured how the future could be. In a universe ruled by Ares, war would be even more important in the grand scheme of things.

"With your help, I can't fail. We--"

"She won't help you!" Aphrodite interrupted angrily. "You're not getting away with this, Ares!"

"Stay out of this, blondie," he warned.

"No! You played with our lives! You let Heffie die!" The love goddess's eyes had an unusually stern look in them. "I'm not letting you destroy anyone else's family. I'll tell Xena what you're really up to."

"Don't let her, Discord!"

There was a moment of silent tension as Discord looked back and forth between Ares and Aphrodite. Her face was an emotionless mask.

"Discord won't help you," Aphrodite said confidently.

Ares started laughing. "You have a lot of faith in your worst enemy." He turned to Discord. "Come on. This isn't a hard decision."

The dark-haired goddess looked to each once more. She stared at Aphrodite for a long moment. Then, Discord started laughing as well. But her laughter lacked the arrogance of the former war god's. Hers was lighter, and sounded almost surprised. "It isn't hard." She turned back to Ares, as her laughter died away. "Not hard at all."

A gesture from Discord sent a bolt of energy to strike the ground at Ares's feet. The force of the impact threw him backwards into the temple wall once again.

Aphrodite clapped her hands in glee. "Told you so, Ares."

For his part, Ares looked up at the goddesses with a stunned expression on his face. "I don't believe this."

"It was unexpected, wasn't it?" a commanding voice asked from behind the goddesses.

Both Aphrodite and Discord whirled around. Ares slowly pulled himself to his feet. All three of them gaped in shock at the new arrival.

"Daddy?" Aphrodite gasped.

It was Zeus, king of the gods.

*************

There was equal bewilderment among Ares, Aphrodite and Discord as they looked upon the apparently very-much-alive ruler of Olympus.

"You're all quite surprised to see me, I'm sure," Zeus said in a bemused tone. "Suffice it to say that there has been much that you all have been unaware of."

"Your being alive, for example," Ares commented, barely concealing his annoyance. He'd had far too many surprises already.

"A necessary deception," the god-king replied. "And an educational one as well. It was most interesting to see how each of you reacted to the Twilight in my absence."

"Don't you mean, 'our' absence?" Hera said as she appeared next to Zeus.

"Quite right. My apologies, dear."

"Okay, this is way bizarre," Aphrodite said as she threw up her hands in confusion.

Discord remained silent and shrank back from Zeus and his wife. Though she was as much his family as Aphrodite or Ares, almost all of Discord's experiences with Zeus were of her facing punishment for some malevolent plan that had gone awry. She decided to let the others ask the questions, and not draw any more attention to herself.

"You see, children, both Hera and I have been aware for many centuries that the Twilight would come to pass. It was not something that could be prevented," Zeus explained.

"But you acted like it could," Ares said.

"Yes, at all times, lest you or your siblings should have decided to spy on us at an inopportune moment and thereby have learned the truth."

"And so we played our roles," Hera added. "Zeus as the maddened god determined to prevent the birth of Xena's daughter, and myself as the unexpected ally, atoning for my past misdeeds by helping Hercules protect Xena."

"Whoa," said Aphrodite as a thought occurred to her. She turned to Zeus. "Isn't Herc going to be mad when he finds out you were alive all this time? You let him think he killed you."

Zeus sighed. "I'm afraid having Hercules angry with me is nothing new, but it was necessary. His battle with me was his test. Now we need to be concerned with our own."

"The reason we staged our own deaths," Hera continued, "was to leave the rest of the gods to their own decisions as to how to deal with the end of the Olympian reign. This was your test."

"A test many failed," Zeus said with a frown. "Either trying to ignore what was happening, as if they could deny that the universe was changing, or rushing headlong into ill-planned strikes against Xena that cost them their lives."

Hearing the disappoval in Zeus's tone, Discord overcame her trepidation and spoke. "How could you just let them? You sat back and watched them all die. What kind of test is that?"

Zeus and Hera both turned at once to look at Discord. Their imposing presence made her shrink back again.

"You dare question us?" Hera asked, in a strangely neutral tone.

"She's full of surprises today, isn't she?" Zeus commented to his wife before turning his attention back to Discord. "This test is more important than you can imagine, child. The Olympians' time as rulers of the universe is over, but that leaves us with a vital question. Namely, is there now any point to our continued existence?"

"I don't like the sound of that," Ares said.

"Daddy?" Aphrodite asked with a hint of nevousness. "What do you mean?"

"Simply put, Hera and I together can control the life energies of all the gods of Olympus. We are quite capable of extinguishing that energy. Instant oblivion for us all."

Ares, Aphrodite and Discord felt a trembling in their hearts as they each noted the utter seriousness on the faces of Zeus and Hera.

"But, as to letting the others die," Hera said, "though their own choices led them to their deaths, it as as Zeus said...we control the life force of all Olympians. And we have already attended to the fallen."

Hera took Zeus's hand and a brilliant glow enveloped the room. When it faded, all the gods that had died in battle with Xena were present, each of them quite alive and well. Even Poseidon was there, in his seldom-used, far more human-looking form.

"HEFFIE!" Aphrodite ran to her husband and nearly knocked him over as she wrapped her arms around him and showered him with kisses. As she embraced him, her black garb of mourning shifted back to her more familiar lace-trimmed outift of nearly transparent pink.

"I missed you too, my love," Hephaestus said as he reluctantly held her back from delivering more kisses. "But there might not be cause for celebration."

Zeus directed the love goddess to move away from her husband and back to Ares and Discord. He then pointed to the newly arrived gods. "All of these who lost their lives to Xena have been judged."

Another glow filled the room at a gesture from Zeus. When it cleared, standing besides Hephaestus and the rest of Xena's revived victims were Apollo, Demeter, and the many other Olympians who had tried to ignore or deny the Twilight.

"All of these have been judged as well," Hera said, her tone turning sad. "None of them have given us cause to think our existence should necessarily continue."

Zeus pointed towards Ares, Aphrodite and Discord. "You three are the only ones left to be judged. You will decide the fate of us all."

Ares and Discord both looked at Aphrodite and then at each other. "Oh, damn," they both said at once.

"We shall begin with you, my son," Zeus pronounced as he turned to Ares.

"Now before you start, let's keep certain things in mind," Ares replied, enough oil in his tone to shame the best used-chariot salesmen. "Yes, I've plotted against you, Mom, and every other family member at one time or another--"

"Great opening statement," Discord interrupted.

"Quiet, I'm making a point." Turning back to Zeus, Ares continued. "I'm ambitious. I'm ruthless. I won't deny that...but when you're the god of war, damn it, that's what you're supposed to be. I think you should keep that in mind before you pass any judgement on me."

"Have no worries about that. Hera and I will judge your actions according to your own character, not in relation to any other god's."

Hearing this, Discord started to feel hopeful. She thought back to her earlier conversation with Aphrodite when the love goddess had spoken of 'following one's own nature.' If those were the standards by which they were to be judged, surely one of them would pass.

"Observing your actions proved interesting, to say the least, my son. Especially in the beginning, right after Hera and I began our charade. You aided Xena then, even though you hadn't yet learned of what she would be capable of."

"Before you had a plan to use her against any rival gods, you still protected her, " Hera put in. "Why?"

Ares looked slightly uncomfortable as he cleared his throat. "I think everyone here is aware that I have...feelings for Xena. It's never been a secret."

"And so you fought to save a child that you knew was destined to bring an end to your own power," Zeus said.

"I planned on finding a loophole. Some way to keep my power without--"

"Without killing the daughter of the woman you love," Zeus interrupted. "For you, that's almost noble."

Ares felt somewhat puzzled by the course the conversation was taking. His parents were seemingly expecting something from him, but he wasn't sure what. He remained silent.

"Then, when you learned of the power Xena would gain from her daughter, you hatched a truly audacious plan," Zeus continued. "Bold, risky, cunning...truly a plot worthy of the god of war."

"Good of you to notice." Ares's confidence increased at the compliment.

"But it was also a plot that, once again, left Xena's daughter alive," Hera said. "You said yourself that the ideal outcome would be that Xena and Eve would become your loyal followers."

"And so, once more, the dreaded god of war preferred not to kill a single young woman because of his feelings for her mother." Zeus's tone was plainly mocking.

"Now hold on," Ares protested. "There are good reasons to let her live. She'd be a valuable follower."

"Don't cloud the issue," Hera said dismissively. "Your sole reason for sparing her is due to your feelings for Xena."

"No, I wanted her alive because she's useful, I even said that if I couldn't convert her to my side I'd arrange her death."

Zeus laughed. "You only said that to try winning Discord to your cause. You were trying to save yourself from her vengeance."

"We know you didn't mean it, you soft-hearted fool," Hera added.

"I did!"

Zeus walked to stand in front of Ares. With their faces only inches from each other, he stared directly into his son's eyes. "Do you swear that you would have killed Eve if it would have accomplished your goal?"

Though meeting the gaze of Zeus could be difficult under the best of circumstances, and though the present circumstances were far from that, Ares nevertheless looked unflichingly back at his father. "Yes. If it had been necessary, I would have."

For a moment, there was a silence so complete that it bordered on the unnatural. Then, Zeus turned from Ares to walk to Hera's side. Both of them then turned to Aphrodite.

"Perhaps you will be the one that convinces us our existence should continue, daughter," Zeus said.

"What?" Ares exclaimed. "I failed? But I was telling--"

"SILENCE!" The sound of Zeus's command thundered throughout the temple, causing the building itself to shake, not to mention most of the assembled Olympians.

Hera was one of the few unaffected. "Now, as we were saying, it is your turn to be judged," she told Aphrodite.

Discord listened intently as Zeus and Hera spoke to Aphrodite. She was quite upset that Ares had failed, as the idea of her own life ending was just as terrifying now as it had been weeks ago. Damn lovesick idiot. What kind of war god worries about a mortal's feelings? He must have failed for caring too much about Xena.

"We thought at first that you would be one of those that tried to ignore the Twilight, daughter," Zeus told Aphrodite. "You were, after all, opposed to any conflict with Xena."

"Well, like, it wasn't her fault her kid was part of this whole prophecy thing. I wish everyone would have just left them alone. Besides, Gabrielle is my friend. I knew she'd be totally devastated if something bad happened to Xena."

"Yes, the bard," Hera said. "It was because of her that you took action. Do you realize that without your aid, Xena would not have had the chance to kill your sisters?"

Aphrodite turned to the crowd of already judged Olympians. She saw two red-haired goddesses, Artemis and Athena, standing together.

"Arty, I'm really sorry you got killed. I hope it didn't hurt." Then the love goddess's expression hardened. "Athena, what was up with you anyway? I mean, okay, I didn't want anything to happen to you, but...geez! If you hadn't been all 'kill Eve, kill Xena, kill, kill, kill,' things might have been fine. You were the one who got all the others worked up. You were the one who got Heffie involved. And you shouldn't have gone after Gabrielle like that either."

Watching from the sidelines Discord took some delight in seeing the usually haughty Athena dip her head in shame at her sister's rebuke. Way to go, Aphrodite. Discord blinked in surprise. Did I just think that? Shaking her head, she turned her attention back to Zeus and Hera.

"Don't concern yourself with Athena's actions," Zeus said as he took the love goddess's arm and gently turned her back to face Hera and himself. "She has already been judged. Now, we must judge you."

"You acted against your own best interests in the name of friendship," Hera said. "That's very appropriate for a goddess of your station. It could not have been an easy decision for you."

"No, it wasn't. But I finally figured I shouldn't try thinking about it at all and just do what felt right."

Zeus and Hera exchanged meaningful glances and turned from Aphrodite. The two of them stood apart from all the other gods and whispered to each other for some time. Finally, they looked back to the love goddess.

Discord felt relief as she saw the Zeus and Hera re-approach the blonde goddess. She must have passed. Everything is going to be fine.

Zeus put a hand on Aphrodite's shoulder. "Daughter, you have a good heart, and you have always acted according to that heart. Perhaps if more of us shared your kindly nature, that would be enough."

"Sadly, that is not the way of things," Hera added. "You have not given us sufficient cause for our existence to continue."

"NO!" Discord's shrill cry caught the attention of everyone in the temple.

"That is our judgement." Zeus showed no sign of being upset by the goddess's outburst.

Discord, by contrast, was extremely upset, and quite beyond caring about showing proper deference. As far as she was concerned, she was already dead. In light of some of her recent decisions, she entertained no illusions that she could pass Zeus and Hera's judgement, not after Ares had failed. "Your judgement is wrong! First, Ares isn't bad enough for you, then Aphrodite isn't good enough? That's insane!"

While Zeus and Hera looked impassively at the dark-haired goddess, all the other Olympians stared at her in shock. It was almost unprecedented for the king and queen of the gods to be addressed in such a manner. Even under circumstaces as unusual as this, with all the gods facing their possible destruction, most felt some decorum should be maintained.

Undeterred by everyone's scrutiny, Discord pointed at Aphrodite. "How can you say she's not good enough? She's so good it's sickening. Did you see the monuments she made? She made one for me. Me! Her worst enemy! Tell me that's not good!"

"We have already passed judgement on Aphrodite. Now, it is your turn." There was an edge in Zeus's tone that demanded obedience. "If you fail, we shall all pass into nothingness."

It's all over. Discord felt overwhelmed. In addition to facing her own demise, her placement as the last to be judged would ensure a final humiliation. All the other gods were there to witness her judgement. True, they had each failed their own tests, but now their last thoughts would be of Discord's failure alone. An epitaph of inadequacy.

"Observing you has been a lesson in the unexpected," Hera said as she moved to the younger goddess's side. "Your avoidance of death at Xena's hands was quite impressive, especially considering the little time you had to prepare an escape."

"And then you devised a very credible plan of action," Zeus added. "A way you could increase your own power and dispose of a hated enemy. Granted, it was not as grandiose as Ares's plot, but by the same token, it had a surer chance of succeeding. Yet you failed to go through with your plan. Why?"

Discord was sure the truth would doom her. She struggled to come up with an answer that would help her cause. "I was distracted...because I was thinking about Ares. Aphrodite had said something about ambrosia, and--"

"You gave no thought to that matter until after you'd abandoned your plan," Hera interrupted. "You had gone to Aphrodite's temple to steal her power and kill her--"

The goddess of love gasped loudly, causing Hera to pause.

"You had the means and the opportunity to kill her, and you did not." Zeus concluded. "And later, when Ares offered you the kind of power and status you always dreamed of, you chose to side with Aphrodite."

"I couldn't trust Ares. His plan wasn't a sure thing. And I wanted revenge on him for setting me up."

Hera laughed. "And even if we were to believe that, how do you explain your earlier mercy towards your hated rival?"

"You spare your worst enemy?" There was contempt in Zeus's tone. "Is that the kind of action appropriate for a goddess of your position?"

The expression on Discord's face was one of helplessness. She knew she had no excuse. "I...it was...." She was at loss for what to say.

"What? What possible reason did you have for your actions?" Zeus bellowed his words in an angry tone. ""Why did you spare her? WHY?"

"SHE WAS NICE TO ME!" Discord's answering shout was filled with defiance. It was bad enough she was going to die, she didn't need to be berated first.

Hera moved to stand next to Zeus. "That is your answer? We're expected to believe that a simple show of kindness can affect you so?"

"There was nothing simple about it!" Discord seethed as she spoke, using anger to block out her fear. She was determined to hold on to some shred of dignity in her last moments. "She knew I hated her. She knew that I've always hated her, but she...she gave me the one thing I always wanted." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "Respect."

Discord took a deep breath. Having more that she wanted to say, she marshalled her anger to find the strength to continue. "And another thing, Aphrodite knew how I felt. She knew because she felt the same way." Discord turned to face the assembled gods. "Maybe you all thought she and I weren't as important as the rest of you, but we always did our best! We played our parts!"

With some of her rage vented, a more subdued Discord, her eyes downcast, turned back and stood before Zeus and Hera. "I did fail in the end. I went soft on her because of what she'd done for me. That's not what I'm supposed to do, I know. But Aphrodite did everything right. She's the goddess of love and she acted like it." Discord raised her head to look directly at the faces of her judges. "And if that's not enough to pass your damn test, then to Tartarus with you both."

Standing with the other Olympians, Aphrodite looked at Discord and silently mouthed the words: 'Thank you.'

Zeus and Hera looked to one another and then back to Discord.

"Amazing," Hera commented as the corners of her mouth rose into a smile.

Zeus chuckled. "I knew you'd be one to watch closely, child."

Discord looked warily at the two, confused by their demeanor.

Hera reached out and laid a hand on the younger goddess's shoulder. "You've passed the test, dear."

"Huh?" The disbelief in Discord's expression was plain to see.

Zeus moved away from the two goddesses and addressed the assembled Olympians. "For more years than we can be bothered to count, we have lived as gods to the mortal world. Each of us declared that some aspect of that world belonged to us. Our actions, our behavior, our very thoughts became almost inseparable from that which we claimed as our own. We fell into our familiar roles. God of war, goddess of wisdom, and so on."

Keeping her hand on Discord's shoulder, Hera guided the still-disbelieving immortal to stand next to Zeus. Then, the queen of the gods spoke. "We came to let our roles dominate our nature, becoming rigid, inflexible."

"The mortal race has grown," Zeus continued. "They have no need for gods that are as limited as we have become." He turned to face Discord. "But you have proven that we too can grow."

"I did?"

"You are a cruel and petty goddess, my child. A vengeful, malicious, hate-filled creature." Despite the words, there was no rebuke in Zeus's manner. "Yet you were still capable of showing mercy, gratitude, even empathy to your worst enemy."

"When all your fellows faced their judgement, they reacted according to their nature," Hera added. "Embracing, for good or ill, the roles they have become locked into. You did not."

Zeus raised his voice so that his words echoed throughout the temple. "Thus, our judgement is that the Olympians shall live on. Hopefully, we shall all grow to find a new place in this universe." He glanced to Discord and smiled. "For now we can see that such a thing is possible."

The stoicism that the assembled gods had exhibited throughout the judgements of Ares, Aphrodite and Discord vanished at Zeus's pronouncement. Sighs of relief, joyous shouts and laughter mingled into a common din, until one voice among the group cried out.

"You saved us all, Discord!"

Those words served to make the entire crowd act as one. All the gods turned their eyes to Discord and began to cheer.

It was at that moment that the whole of what had just transpired finally became clear to Discord. A smile came to her lips and tears threatened to fall from her eyes. She was going to live. They were all going to live. And she was responsible for it. She closed her eyes and let the sound of the cheers wash over her, basking in the adulation.

Zeus finally raised a hand to quiet the group. "Let us return to Olympus."

As the gods began to vanish, each teleporting back to their realm, Ares approached Zeus and Hera. "Well, now that everything's right with the world and we're all going to live, fresh start and all that, it's only fair that my power should be restored, right?"

Zeus smiled and and put an arm around Ares's shoulder. "My son, now that our rule over the mortal world is over, I'm looking forward to a nice, quiet retirement. So you can't expect your mother and I to become involved in every little problem one of our children gets into."

"But--"

"Now, don't worry," Zeus interrupted. "You can ask Discord or Aphrodite to bring back the ambrosia. I'm sure you'll work it out."

Fighting back laughter, Zeus moved away from his son and took Hera's hand. They were about to teleport away when Discord spoke.

"Wait! I wanted to ask you something."

"Yes, child?" Hera replied.

"You said that together you have power over the life forces of all the gods. You brought back all that Xena killed. Does that mean you could bring back any god that died? Like Strife?"

Zeus raised an eyebrow. "We could. I must admit the thought never occurred to me. He met his end years before the Twilight was upon us."

"I was just wondering...if it wouldn't be too much trouble...would you?" Discord asked hesitantly.

Hera smiled. "It is a simple request. He will be alive and well on Olympus by the time you arrive." With that, Hera and Zeus vanished.

"Aw, that's sweet," Aphrodite commented. She had lagged behind as the other gods vanished. "I never knew you had a soft spot for Strife."

Discord smirked. "Are you kidding? I only want that little weasel back to see the look on his face when he hears that I saved us all." She turned to Ares. "Speaking of weasels, I never did repay you for trying to set me up."

"Now, hold on," Ares replied. "Seeing how things worked out, I think we can let bygones be bygones."

Discord's smile turned distinctly malevolent.

"Hey, come on!" The nervousness in Ares's tone was easy to hear. "This is your chance to show how much better you are than me. Be merciful. Keep on track with that whole 'growth' thing."

"Maybe I've done enough growing for one day." Discord backed the former god against the temple wall.

"Yeah, Ares," Aphrodite chimed in. "You wouldn't want her to get growing pains."

"Believe me," Discord said in response, "I'm not going to be the one feeling pain." The dark-haired goddess said nothing for a long moment after that and merely enjoyed ths sight of Ares sweating. Then, unexpectedly, she turned away. "Aphrodite, where exactly did you send the ambrosia?"

After the love goddess disclosed the exact location of the cave that contained one of Hephaestus's workshops, Discord turned back to Ares.

"You heard her. Now see if you can find it." Discord pointed at Ares and caused him to vanish from the temple.

"Did you send him to the ambrosia?" Aphrodite asked.

"No, he's going to have a good distance to travel before he gets there. More than enough time to make preparations."

"You're up to something," the love goddess said gleefully.

Discord assumed an expression of mock innocence. "Me?"

Both goddesses burst into laughter.

*************

The village of Lyonis was quite small and unremarkable, except that it was home to one of the finest weaponsmiths in Greece. The latest customer of that smith was in the midst of examining her purchase when her traveling companion approached.

"That looks just like your old chakram," Gabrielle said.

Xena balanced the round weapon on one finger. "It's a near perfect match. The weight, the feel...everything."

"That's nice, but did we come all this way, leaving Eve to stay with the Amazons, just so you could get a copy of your old chakram? I thought you liked your new one better."

Xena smiled. "I thought Eve would appreciate a few days without her mom around. The past few weeks with her have been wonderful, but she needs some time to herself. And this chakram isn't for me, Gabrielle. I got this for you."

"For me?" The bard's eyes lit up.

"You've become so accomplished with other weapons, I thought you'd like to learn how to use one of these." The warrior princess handed the chakram to Gabrielle.

"Aw," Aphrodite said as she appeared out of thin air next to the two women. "Nothing like giving a deadly weapon to show how much you care."

Both mortals were surprised by the love goddess's arrival, but adjusted quickly to her presence.

"Very funny," Gabrielle said. "It's good to see you again."

"What are you doing here?" Xena asked, her tone less friendly than the bard's.

"Xena, be nice."

"It's okay, Gab," Aphrodite replied. "This isn't exactly a social call. See, there are some things you two ought to know about Ares...."

And with that, Aphrodite begin recounting the details of Ares's plan to the two mortals.

Just as Discord had asked her to.

*************

Ares felt truly miserable. He was tired, cold, hungry and sore. The trip to Hephaestus's workshop had been shorter than the one to his own temple, but it had been a much more difficult journey. It certainly hadn't started off on the right foot. The treetop that Discord had transported him to had been exceedingly high. While he had managed to climb most of the way down without incident, he'd fallen the final fifteen feet. His right leg still hurt.

It doesen't matter. I'm here.

Limping into the cave mouth that served as an entryway, Ares followed the cavernous trail down to the hidden workshop.

There it is!

The glowing ambrosia drew him like a beacon. It sat in plain sight in the middle of the room. Ares all but dove for it, not wanting to lose it again. He swallowed mouthful after mouthful, feeling tremendous power course through his entire being. The heavens began to thunder.

"I'M BACK!"

Ares stood truimphantly, arms upraised. His leg was healed. His fatigue was gone. Divine power was his once more.

"Ares!"

The war god felt his elation fade when he heard his name called. He knew the voice. And he knew the tone far too well. Turning slowly, he saw Xena glaring at him. Gabrielle was behind her. Both had their weapons in hand.

"You think you can manipulate me and get away with it?" Xena snarled.

Before the stunned immortal could respond, Aphrodite materialized by Gabrielle's side.

"I told them what you did," the goddess said in a mocking, sing-song voice.

Aphrodite vanished as quickly as she appeared, even as Xena's trademark war cry echoed throughout the cavern.

"Oh, damn," Ares muttered, as battle was joined.

*************

"...and after she knocked Ares into that big metal casket, Xena caused a cave-in so that the whole cavern was sealed up! And she was, like, 'he can stay buried in there forever.' And that was it!" Aphrodite finally paused to take a breath. She'd been back on Olympus, excitedly recounting the tale of Xena and Ares's battle to Discord, for nearly a half hour, making the story even longer than the actual battle. "Gabrielle was a little bummed though. The chakram Xena gave her was broken in two. The pieces got left in the cave."

"She can get a new one," Discord replied. "The important thing is Ares is trapped there."

"You're sure he can't get out?"

"Absolutely. Sending the ambrosia to your husband's workshop turned out to be ideal. The perfect trap was already waiting there for Ares, and Xena was the perfect one to spring it."

"So, will he really be there forever?"

Discord shook her head. "I checked with the Fates before you got back. He gets out in about two thousand years."

"Ooh, that's a long time." Aphrodite surpressed a giggle. "I'm going to have Heffie tunnel in and build some booby traps around the inner chamber. That'll keep anyone from getting in and letting him out early."

"That's not necessary. Since Xena sealed him in there, she's the only one that could release him. Her or one of her descendants. It's some sort of side effect of the power she now has over gods."

"Well, I'm going to have Heffie work on it anyway." The blonde smiled slyly. "He gets frisky whenever he's working on a big project."

Discord rolled her eyes. "Fine, have your fun."

"Oh, I will. See you later, Discord." The blonde turned to leave.

"Aphrodite...."

"Yeah?"

The dark-haired goddess spoke hesitantly. "From now on, why don't you call me Eris?"

"Eris? Oh, yeah. That's your real name, right?"

Discord nodded. "It's what...." She hesitated once again, but then looked directly in the love goddess's eyes. "It's what my friends call me."

A huge smile spread across Aphrodite's face and her eyes sparkled with delight. She held out her arms. "Hug?"

Discord responded by making a face familiar to any parent who has ever admonished a child on the subject of finishing one's vegetables. "Must we?"

"You said we were friends." The blonde began to pout.

"How about a handshake?" Discord extended one arm in compromise.

Aphrodite took hold of the offered hand and pulled the other goddess into an embrace. Discord protested, but after a moment, though her face wore a grimace, she awkwardly returned the hug.

*************

And so, the Olympians lived on. To the surprise of many, Aphrodite and Eris, the goddess-formerly-known-as-Discord, did become the best of friends, though they forever argued over whether pink lace or black leather was the more sophisticated fashion statement.

Ares did remain imprisoned until the latter half of the twentieth century. When he regained his freedom, he found the modern world very much to his liking, but was once again frustrated to be opposed by formidable enemies. Besides his half-brother, Hercules, and the mortal reincarnations of Xena, Gabrielle and Joxer, the war god also ran afoul of the modern age's most unpredictable defender, the reborn warrior-goddess, Callisto. And then there was the trouble he had with a certain teenaged "chosen one" and her friends in Sunnydale, California.

But those are other stories.

The End.

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