Darkfall: Part Five
From the Annals of Bastet

Hercules felt a sort of elation as he and Iolaus looked out over the waves of the sea. They had enlisted a small swift ship to take them to Egypt. The fact that he was focused and had something do made filled him with a new hope. The Ancient One had done something to "hide" him from the detection of Hera and then had taken on his guise. It was eerie to see two Hercules leave the tavern. The one wore the traditional shirt, vest and woven pants and the real Hercules was now dressed in black leather pants and jerkin over his bare chest. She had paled his brown skin. She had even changed his long hair to longer curling ringlets of black gathered in a tail at the base of his neck. The slight changes actually made him look very different.

Iolaus looked over at him and smiled to himself.

The smaller warrior could tell that his friend was more at peace. He had the old drive back. Iolaus laughed making the taller man glance toward him.

"What?" Hercules asked. "What's so funny?" he added with a breathy laugh.

"You," Iolaus replied. "We are probably going to our deaths. This'll be the most dangerous adventure yet and yet…"

"I'm excited," Hercules answered, finishing Iolaus' thought. "Aren't you?"

Iolaus laughed, almost a giggle. "Yah, I guess there's no accounting for taste."

Hercules shook his head. The breeze of the sea blew his hair into his face. "It's not a matter of taste. If it were up to me, I'd be home by the fire watching my children play and my buxom wife sewing my clothing."

"Yah, right," Iolaus answered.

"No really, wouldn't you?"

"That would last about one day," his friend replied. "We had that, remember? At least you did. You were always off somewhere."

"It's my destiny!" Hercules replied.

"I thought you said men make their own destiny," Iolaus corrected.

"Well, yes except for that," the tall man replied, laughing now at his friend's rolling eyes and shaking head. "No really. The gods gave me this strength for a reason."

"The Gods!" Iolaus said, snorting. "Now you are really pulling some lame excuses out of your hat for the reason that you don't settle down."

The two men turned as the captain of the ship called out that land was spotted. Both men grinned at each other as the horizon revealed the mystical Land of the Pharaohs coming into view.

"This is it," Iolaus said. "Finally we're going to put this creature back into his prison." Hercules shook his head but then frowned. "I wonder why the Ancient One never told us about this before?" he asked.

Iolaus frowned now too. The two men exchanged worried glances and then turned their attention toward the navigation of the ship toward the coastal city of Alexandria where the warriors would disembark and continue the journey toward their destination.

Ares looked up the length of the throne room. Flanked by his soldiers, he was entering as he had been ordered to do. The Queen of Heaven sat on her magnificent throne, with the dark Set beside her. As always, Set had a slight smile on his face.

"As I told you recently, my son," Hera said as the troopers neared, "I have a mission for you. And I command you do go alone."

"Mother," Ares said carefully, "It is my ardent wish to obey you but news has come to my attention that I believe may interest you and take precedence over any mission that you have for me."

A celestial eyebrow, perfectly formed, went up on the face of the Queen. She continued to gaze at her son but said nothing.

Ares walked up the stairs nearing her. As he did, he glanced briefly at the Snake god. "Mother, you should know that Hercules has gone to join the forces of Atlantis."

"There is an incursion of demons from another plane on the island," she replied seeming bored. "I'm sure your father's hero son has gone to save the day."

Ares smiled slightly. "But I believe that he does more than just go to help out with this problem. I believe that the bastard half god has gone to make a pact with the Army of Atlantis to prepare to overthrow your rule on this plane. He has joined with gods and spirits of several worlds, bringing together forces that could challenge your power." He picked his words carefully, seeing that he was achieving the effect he wanted as he watched his mother stiffen in her chair. Her eyes became wide with anger.

"That army is yours to command," she spat out. "Why are you allowing this?"

"I am keeping a close eye on things at this time," Ares said turning around to look down at his soldiers. He saw a flicker of anger flash across the face of his second, Whisper, as she listened to him seeming to betray his half brother. But the Amazon said nothing. The affect was so slight that only Ares could feel the confused anger coming from her. "I wish to see who will enter into this bargain," Ares finished, turning back toward his mother. She saw the old glint of war lust in his eyes. "When I know all the players, I will make my move." He paused to bow. "In your name of course. I am under your command."

Hera smiled broadly, shaking her head. "I have my son back," she said, "I see the old blood lust in your eyes." She turned toward Set. "There is nothing that I cannot do now."

Set did not seem as pleased. He smiled a thin smile in response but did not take his eyes off the dark War God. "Yes, we are so lucky," he said quietly.

"I would like to continue to stay here with you, mother," Ares continued. "And monitor this. Of course, you have the final word."

She bowed her head to him. "You will stay."

Ares bowed and turned, walking back down the steps. The icy reception from his troopers did not go unnoticed but he continued to walk through the crowd, letting them step aside for him. A few bumped shoulders with him in the faintest hint of defiance. The action would have infuriated him under any other circumstances but he was surprised to feel a surge of pride. His men and women were not mindless killers, he had husbanded in them the spirit of the warrior. His apparent betrayal offended them and they were not hesitant to show it. Hera and Set saw it too. He knew that this would validate his action all the more. It was vital that the two believed that he was turning back to the dark side. He felt a pang of anxiety. He always struggled with the call of the darkness. It was never fully gone from him but his love with Kendaa, the life of his son, his relationship with the Ancient One, the loyalty of great warriors, so many things kept him grounded on the path of redemption. But none of those things were available to him now.

He would have to go this alone for it to look plausible. He could not afford to bring even his men in on the secret as their mortal minds would be easily read by gods. He walked down the expanse of the throne room then turned and looked at his soldiers.

"You are all dismissed," he said curtly. "Take your places on guard duty."

He turned and left.

"Has he completely lost his mind?" Celaus whispered, looking into the firelight. His handsome face was tense with anger. He looked up at Whisper. The tall Amazon was leaning on the other side of the hearth, looking at the fire also and finishing the last of a goblet of mulled wine. She shrugged but the young man could tell that she was troubled. He looked over at Mace who straddled a wooden chair, his arms crossed on the back of the chair. "What do you think? Can you believe that he could betray us that way?"

The tall, blond warrior looked up at his compatriot. "Did he?"

Both warriors looked over at him with a frown. "He informed Hera of Hercules' actions. He's turned on his half brother. I can't believe it." Celaus shook his head. "I just can't believe it."

Whisper looked over at Mace, narrowing her eyes. "You seem unaffected by this change of heart," she said.

Mace took a drink of his water. He was avoiding the fermented grape these days after being thrown in the waddling pond at Whisper's command. He had taken to wine with the return of Set. The Snake God's presence was not only frightening because of the resentment that Set bore Mace for his betrayal, but the god had been, since his return, overly courteous to Mace. This could only mean that he was preparing a particularly gruesome revenge and the anxiety for Mace was acute.

So Mace drank and had drunk enough one night to be drunk still the next morning when he reported for duty. The War God said nothing but the look that he had given Mace, the warrior would never forget. The look was sobering enough, but the trip to the pond and the subsequent day of cleaning the floor of the barracks with a small brush finished the job. The tall man now sipped water and rocked back and forth on the wooden chair. He had been desperate for a drink until the scene in the throne room. The interchange between Hera and Ares sent a chill up Mace's spine. He was intrigued with the turn of events, but the real thrill for him was Set's reaction. When Mace was around his old master, he was vigilant. He kept his eye on the Snake God and when Set saw Hera's son betray Hercules, Mace saw the Snake God pale ever so imperceptibly. The reaction galvanized the warrior. He realized that something was going on. He could feel it.

Then Ares had sequestered himself from his troopers. Mace realized that the seclusion and silence meant that whatever the War God was doing had to be done alone.

So Mace stared up at the second in command. "I have traded one dark lord for another. They're all pretty much alike," he said slowly. "It was just a matter of time before Ares showed his true colors."

Whisper bared a canine briefly, disgusted by the man. She took the ewer of wine down from the hearth shelf and handed it to him. "Here," she said, "knock yourself out, literally," she said and walked away. Celaus trailed behind her looking at Mace with the face of hurt puppy. The look was so pathetic that Mace laughed. He looked down at the wine in the jug, the fruity scent of the brew called up at him.

He tossed the jug into the fire, the hiss of the wine in the flames and the shatter of crockery made him feel better. He stood up, pushing the chair aside and stretched almost languidly. He was looking forward to rest.

Mace turned to see Set standing in the shadows of the room behind him. The warrior started, then calmed himself with deliberateness when he saw the reptilian smile of his past master. Set enjoyed being the object of fear. Intimidation was like a sexual pleasure for him.

"Well, my son," Set said in his deep hissing voice. "I miss you, you know." He paused to go over to the fire and lean against the stones of the hearth. He looked into the flames. "You were the jewel in my crown then." He seemed lost in thought.

"And now you are the jewel in someone else's," Mace replied, preparing for the fury he knew would come.

But Set only smiled. "Yes, I am. I am the jewel in the crown of the Queen of the Heavens," he said. This made him laugh. "The Queen of Heaven. The Greeks are so filled with pathetic pride. Their gods are just the same." The Snake God looked into the fire's light. "Ha, all I have to do is sit back and wait. I think her son is going to kill her. Or she will kill him when she finds that he is betraying her." He looked up at the warrior. "You felt it. I felt it. Something happened today. Ares is up to something and I will find out what it is. Take your rightful place with me again. Help me become the ruler of this plane again, ruler of many planes." His eyes narrowed. "What do you say?"

Mace had not moved since the god had entered. He was not sure he had even breathed. He took deep breath now and looked at Set, gazing into the blackness of the Snake God's eyes. "Ay, sire," he stated barely above a whisper. "I'll join with you against the Queen of Heaven."

"And her son, Ares?" Set added.

"And her son, Ares," Mace pledged.

Set smiled, showing white fangs with his grin. "Excellent. You will personally bring down the Greek God of War."

Mace smiled back. "Count on it, my lord."

Darkfall: Part Six

Hercules and Iolaus got off the boat in the exotic port of Alexandria. Both men loved traveling and seeing new things. The life of adventure fit them more than they liked to admit. As the two walked along the streets of the city, they realized again that this was one of the crossroads of the world. Every manner of item and food could be found here. Spices from the far eastern lands and materials from as distant as Atlantis were being bought and sold here. Even the architecture reflect the building styles of a myriad of cultures. Exotic eastern houses were built next to Greek style dwellings. And next to that might be a bare lot where the tents of desert people had their homes in back and their market fronts on the street. The streets were crowded as the two men shouldered their way through heading toward a camel dealer that they knew from their dealing with a past adventure.

It did not take long to get to the market stall of the dealer. Both men when into the tent of the Ahkmed, well known for his many fine camels and many fine wives, several of each had he offered to the Greek heroes at one time or another. Hercules asked the servant on duty to announced them to his master. The young man went scurrying to the back while a large burly guard kept an eye on the two as he stood at the door of the large tent.

In a short while, a small round man swathed in the colorful silks of the desert tribes came out with outstretched arms. He smiled as he looked at Iolaus and then frowned as he looked over the taller man.

"Alas, my friend," Ahkmed exclaimed, "you have changed somewhat. Are you still the brave son of a god?"

Hercules laughed realizing that he did not look quite the same. He shook Ahkmed's hand and nodded. "For reasons that I cannot go into, I have altered my appearance. But I still have the heart of a warrior and I hope the friendship of the tribe of the Desert Lily."

hkmed laughed. "Of course, my friends," he replied, "one does not easily forget the man who slew the seven headed demon from the dark abyss."

"Men," Iolaus corrected. He looked over at his friend. "You see how they forget that part." He smiled back at Ahkmed who was looking astonished.

Ahkmed embraced Iolaus in a bear hug that took him by surprise. "Never! Never would I forget the golden warrior's brave actions. Come, come into my house. My house is yours, my family is yours. I have new wives. Do you wish to see them?"

Hercules motioned Iolaus to go before him. "After you, golden warrior."

No occasion of importance took place among the desert people unless food was served and women danced. So even though Hercules and Iolaus were eager to get on with the mission, they knew that they had to indulge their friend in the custom or he would be highly offended. The two lounged on sofas as food was brought to them and wine was served on tiny tables at their reach. Ahkmed was seated in a chair that almost had him at a recline, two women fed him as if he were helpless and another stood with wine at his side. This custom was personally offensive to the warriors who felt for the servitude of the women and had spoken before of what these women might make of the lives of the Amazons and had had a laugh or two over what the sister soldiers would have made of the servile desert females.

The furniture was laid out such that there was space in the middle. In this space, a young woman danced the rhythmic dance of the desert as music played. Though both Greeks found the food and entertainment delightful, they were impatient to get to business. They kept glancing at each other.

Finally, Ahkmed clapped his hands and the everyone and everything disappeared like magic. The wine was left for their convenience.

The sheik smiled as the last of his people disappeared behind curtains into the back of the tent.

"Now, my friends," he said lowering his voice, "you have allowed me to feed and entertain you but do not think that I do not see that you are anxious to be about your business." Both men started to protest but he waved them to silence. "No, no. I know you well and I know the ways of the Greeks. You are all business. Ordinarily, I would have these festivities last all night but I fear that the two of you might go mad." He sat back, taking a long drink of wine. "Now tell me what you require."

"Two camels and provision for the journey to Pharaoh's palace," Iolaus answered.

"You go to meet with Hotepnet?" Ahkmed asked frowning.

Hercules frowned now. "No, we hope to meet with the Pharaoh, Ptolemy."

"Ptolemy is dead," the sheik replied. He leaned forward looking from one man to the other. "And his death was not a natural thing, they say."

Iolaus shook his head. "What do you mean? Was he murdered?"

"Murdered? Most likely. But murdered in a way that is not of this world. Sorcery."

"And Hotepnet? Was he the heir? Was he involved, do you think?" Hercules asked.

Ahkmed looked around and leaned forward even more making the two men sit up and lean in to hear him. "These are bad times to come to the Land of the Pharaohs, my friends. We here in Alexandria are not as influenced by the nature of things at the palace but even here, we feel the dark grasp of the …," he looked around, seeming hesitant even to speak the words. "the snake."

Both warriors took in a quick breath. They looked at each other.

"Set?" Iolaus asked.

"Aya! Do not even speak that name in my home!" Ahkmed exclaimed trying not to raise his voice. "Now my home will have to be purified. Everything we have touched will have to be burned." He grimaced. "That thing! That thing is everywhere. It brings the darkness."

Hercules was about to use the name again but stopped. Then he asked, "what do you mean, 'it is everywhere.'?"

"It started last year, or maybe it was the year before, I do not know. The temples of the dark one began to have life again. The snake's house had lain unused for many centuries. The Pharaohs had forbidden the dark arts to be practiced anywhere in the upper and lower kingdoms. But then Ptolemy died without an heir and Hotepnet, the high priestess of the creatures whose name cannot be uttered stepped onto the throne without so much as the blink of an eye by anyone. It was well known that he was a black soul but no one did anything. He conjured his way to power. And now the temples of the snake are in ascendance. Darkness is light. Up is down." He threw up his hands in despair. "If I did not have a favorite wife whose family was here, I would go back to the desert across the sea. But alas, my business and my family. They are here."

Hercules shook his head, pursing his lips and sighing. "I don't know why this should come as a surprise. The darkness you speak of is everywhere. In Greece we feel the same dark spirit moving over the land." He looked up at the nomad. "Even without the help of the Pharaoh, we must go on with our journey. We still need the camels and the rations. We will need provisions to last us…," He looked over at Iolaus. "What do you think? Three weeks, a month."

Iolaus nodded.

Ahkmed nodded. "It is done. And may the father of all things go with you in your quest."

Ares materialized in the presence of his mother in her private chamber. He had been thinking for the last week or so about the scene in the throne room. Not much had happened but the soldiers were distant and Set was even more solicitous. Something else had changed but Ares could not put his finger on what was different among his troops. The more he thought, the more he became uneasy with the sequence of events. He decided to take a direct approach to the problem even though it might mean disaster.

Hera looked up from her handiwork. It had always entertained the other gods that a proud and powerful being stooped to do simple embroidery. "My son, why have you come to me unannounced?"

"Mother, I need to speak to you privately, without Set," he said directly. He went over to the chair next to her and sat down, dispensing with pretenses. "I need to know, mother. Have you lost your mind? Do you have any idea how dangerous Set is and that he intends to kill you? He has told me as much."

Hera had returned to her work. She did not bother to look up. "Do you think me so simple that I do not know his duplicity? I have ruled the gods, including your father, for a thousand eons. Do you think I did this by being foolhardy?" Her hand continued up and down as she stitched the material.

Ares shook his head. "Mother, I think you are in over your head," he said quietly. "You have made pacts with these creatures before and it never turned out. Never! What makes you think that this time is different?"

"I have you," she said smiling. Finally she looked up at him and for the first time that he could recall, she had a look of motherly love in her eyes.

The War God felt a tightening in his chest. This was an unexpected turn of events but it might be exactly what he needed. However, the doing of the deed was difficult. He leaned over toward his mother and spoke.

"Mother, you don't have me," he said sincerely. "You had me when I was too young and too stupid to understand. For years I followed around behind the other gods, playing your games of self involved manipulation of mortals and worlds and each other." He paused to watch her frown slowly. "But I got over it, mother. I kept wondering why I spent so much time trying to manipulate and outsmart mortals like Hercules. And it hit me. Because he had something I didn't. He had a purpose. He has a soul."

"We... we have souls," she whispered.

"Of what possible use are they to us, mother? Tell me," Ares answered sternly. "Can you imagine what judgment we will face when we answer to the One?"

"That will not be for eons, we will live forever," she said, almost like a child.

"Mother, you are a fool," Ares replied, sitting back. "The eons you speak of are like the years of mortals. Yes, we will go on for eons, but not forever. And I, for one, do not want to face the One and explain an eternity of iniquity. I have stood in the presence of an ancient one and known the impending judgment."

"Bastet?" Hera asked, looking disgusted. "She has no right to judge you."

Ares shook his head and smiled sadly. "She wasn't judging me, mother. She was enlightening me as to her judgment. All of us will go there, mother. Why can't you see that? Doesn't that scare you?"

The War God felt a chill go through him. His mother gazed over at him and the look of insanity crossed her face again. "Nothing scares me, child. If you are not with me, you are against me and I will crush you." It was eerie to watch her change so quickly from loving to vicious. The War God maintained his focus to keep the wounded son within from being wounded yet again.

"Can you crush Bastet? Can you crush Set? Will you dare to crush Gaia? You are upsetting the balance of things. You have done it before and it almost cost us all our world. I will not let you do that again, mother. If I have to destroy you, I will. And for that, I am willing to stand before the One in judgment, because I just do not see any other way." Ares looked over at her. His god senses were stretched to their limit as he focused on her, trying to keep her focused on him and keep awareness of what was around them in the event of intrusion by Set. He was also in some small way reaching out to Bastet for support as he realized that he was rewriting the plan that they had agreed upon in the tavern. He was playing a dangerous game.

"What do you want me to do?" Hera asked barely above a whisper. She looked genuinely afraid but the rapidness of her changes made him all the more suspicious. Ares sat up in his chair, looking across at the woman who was now wringing her hands and frowning.

Ares realized in the blink of an eye that she was really on the attack. He saw the glow around her that could extinguish higher beings. He had prepared for this eventuality but cursed even as he glowed himself to meet her power, for she was sacrificing everything in order to challenge him. He also realized that he had done the same. The force of their powers met in a swirl of confrontation that blackened the walls of the room and sent shock waves through the vast palace. Then, as quickly as the confrontation had taken place, silence settled in the room, now empty.

Set materialized in a flash of green light. He looked around, reaching out with his senses to piece together the recent events now echoing in the ether. He smiled as he looked around then he put his head back and began to laugh. His hissing laughter resounded through the halls of the palace.

"I have won!" he cried out between gulps. "Ha, I have won without even a fight!"

Darkfall: Part Seven

Hercules looked out across the rampart made around the encamped Atlantean legion. He sighed and focused on the figures in the distance. Figures sat in clumps, huddle around campfires here and there on the field. The sun was near setting, robbing the air of any warmth. The enemy might look human in form at a distance but the creatures were demons from another plane waiting for the army to come out and fight. Drusas, the commander of the Atlantean forces had kept the campaign focused on the offensive but the numbers seemed to keep coming. Riders had been sent to the royal city for reinforcements but Drusas was not even sure the rider had gotten through the enemy lines. Now Hercules had appeared at the gate, the Atlanteans had not been sure who he was until Corum had confirmed his identify as an ally. No one was sure how he had gotten through where others could not.

The Ancient-One-made-man narrowed his eyes then looked over as an officer approached him. He smiled.

"Corum," Hercules said, putting out a hand in greeting. "You're up and about."

Corum shook the warrior's hand and nodded. "No thanks to you," he replied grinning. "And I suspect you were holding back in the arena."

Hercules laughed under his breath. "I had a tough job. I had to make it look like we were deadly serious and yet not end up with one of us dead."

"I was deadly serious," Corum replied, a little annoyed.

The taller man only laughed again quietly. "And you were facing a half god."

Corum's eyebrows went up in surprise. Hercules laughed again. "You didn't know. Zeus, husband of the hostess of our entertainment, is my father."

"So Hera is your mother?" Corum asked.

"No, hence the constant desire of the goddess to roast me over a slow fire," the Greek replied.

Corum looked out over the parapet, checking on the enemy's numbers again. "What do you make of our friends?"

"I think they smell," Hercules said, echoing the complaints of many of the line soldiers that had engaged the enemy in battle over the last few days. "And I think you're in a poor defensive position."

Corum took a deep breath, trying not to let the observation make him angry as Hercules was right. The Atlanteans were known for their excellence in war strategy and tactics but they had indeed been caught by a force that moved quickly and came in great numbers. They could only conclude that their surveillance had been lacking.

Hercules looked over at him. "No, it wasn't your surveillance. How can you be aware of where they're coming from if they're coming from a different dimension?"

"So you read minds too?" Corum asked.

Hercules laughed under his breath. "It doesn't take a mind reader to figure out your thoughts. They would be mine too. We have to close up the hole between the planes."

"We?" Corum said. The soldier narrowed his eyes in looking at the larger man. "I will speak frankly. I clashed with you in the arena and know that you are a good warrior, perhaps the best here but Drusas and others, myself included, wonder how you got through a large force to get to gate and quite frankly we don't understand why you are here. Greece must have its own problems and how could you have gotten here so quickly after our duel. There are officers that suggest that you are not who you appear to be and may be an enemy." Corum's jaw tensed in anger as he glared now at the warrior who looked at him without change in expression.

Hercules smiled which was the last reaction that Corum would have expected. He seemed genuinely amused which made the Atlantean all the more angry. The tall man shook his head. "Sometimes our naiveté is so appalling," he said.

"Excuse me?" Corum responded, now truly angry.

Hercules looked back out over the enemy, his arms crossed over his chest as if they had been talking about the simplest of matters. The Atlantean was bordering on furious at the attitude that seemed almost patronizing. But he held back as he also knew the strength and speed of the man before him. The warrior's silence was enraging.

Hercules finally looked over at Corum. "Forgive my attitude, Corum. Yes, you are right. I am not who seem and it is an important lesson to me that I thought I could just appear without raising your suspicions. Sometimes immortals can be so naïve, thinking that mortals will accept anything without question. You are sophisticated men and wary, which makes you good soldiers. You of course would wonder."

Corum was again taken completely by surprise. "Perhaps I should take you the commander straightaway," he replied, trying to cover his reaction. He turned to lead Hercules down to the Headquarters tent then turned back to see the man leaning on the beams of the parapet, seeming to be in pain. His head was down, his arms outstretched to steady himself as he hunched over.

"Are you all right?" Corum asked, still suspicious.

Hercules straightened up and looked over at him. The look on the tall man's face was again one of amused embarrassment. "I don't believe this," was all that he whispered. "Yes, I'll come with you now."

The two men left the walls and went to the tent of the commander.

Ares coughed, spitting out the dirt that filled his mouth. He raised his head and looked around. He was face down in a vast desert. Heat pounded down on the black leather of his clothing. There was a nothing for miles in any direction. He got up onto his hands and knees, shaking his head to clear it. He looked around for his mother, thinking that she must have come to the same plane but there was nothing, no one. Harsh sun above and coarse sandy dirt below, he was alone.

Ares let his head drop for a moment, taking a deep breath. "Well, I pray that mommy is not doing any better," he muttered. "If she landed in the tropical paradise and is being served by handsome native boys on a beach by a blue sea, I am going to be very unhappy." He sighed again and got up.

In the distance he noticed a mountain peak on the horizon. For a moment, he stood attempting to will himself to the far point but nothing happened. "Damn," he whispered and began to walk. As he walked, he slipped off the vest, roasting under the rays of the sun. "Great, no powers to transportation. Susceptible to the elements. Dressed in black leather on the hottest plane in the Universe." He put the vest back around his shoulders realizing that he may need its protection from the sun. As he walked along, looking at the mountain in the distance, he recalled the moments when the two gods met in a struggle for power. At one point, he felt as though he and his mother were one. The blackness of her being chilled him for an instant. He shivered, even in the intense heat. He felt tired, used up by the enormous barrier he had had to put up not to be engulfed my her.

Ares stopped in his tracks, thinking that she might not have gone anywhere but was still on their home plane, having pushed him into another reality. He stood looking around and wave of anxiety overtook him. Then he shook his head and began to walk on. There was nothing he could do about this now. He needed shelter from the sun, food and water in his place. It was clear to him that his powers were limited and he would have to rely on the many skills that he had developed in his brief sojourns as a mere mortal. He had had plenty of practice and the day to day routine of the earthly was more familiar to him than he liked to admit.

"I have many skills," he said to himself. "Xena, old girl, if you could see me now." He began to laugh.

Lost in thought, he was trudged along, still bothered by the melding of his soul with that of his mother. He wondered how it would affect him, if at all, and if it might have affected her too. "Hope you learned some sense, mommy," he thought. When he looked up, he realized that he had covered more distance than he thought. The mountain was much closer. The lay of the land was changing now as small vegetation crunched under his boots. He looked around at some of the low growing plants and smiled.

Their presence meant water not far below the surface. He pulled out the knife from his belt and began to dig at the base of one of the plants. As he made a hole, he saw the soil begin to wet, and then water began to fill the small indentation. "Thank you God," he whispered and dipped his hands into the tiny pool. The water was colder than he expected. He drank, quenching his thirst, then stood up. As he looked up at the mountain, he realized now that it was even closer. Closer than it should have been.

He looked back were he had come and then at the peak that should be in the distance. It was even closer.

The War God sighed. "All right, I am not moving so it does not take a Socrates to figure out that the mountain is moving." He jumped back. Now a sheer cliff rising into the sky was close enough so that he could feel the movement of air as it rushed toward him. The peak was large enough that he could not possibly get around it in time. With its next move, he might be crushed. The only thing he could do was to run toward it and hope to ride wherever it was going, if he could get a firm hold on the rock face. He tore his vest off his shoulders to keep from losing it and began the dash, only to see the vast natural formation jump over him like a giant game piece. Dirt and rock rained down as it leapt over him and plopped down a thousand yards in the distance. He turned, watching the bizarre sight as the mountain leapfrogged away from him and he was left on the flat land again. At least now, he had water.

Darkfall: Part Eight

Set lounged on the throne of the gods of Greece, looking down at the elite guard of Ares. He glowered at the troopers who were no less pleased to look up at him. Beside him stood Mace in full armor. On his breastplate, the sign of the rearing snake in black with eyes of green shining with some mystic inner light. Mace's affect was solemn.

Whisper looked up at Mace with open contempt, and then at Set. "We will never follow you," she said angrily. "Restore Ares to us."

"And why should I do that," Set asked raising a patronizing brow, "even if I could? He was planning the death of his mother all this time. Mace knew it." He waved a hand at the man standing beside him. "Let the gods of Greece, this pitiful little piss of land jutting into the sea, let them fight amongst themselves. I have my eyes on the same prize that Hera did, as Ares himself did. The domination of this plane and others as they fall before me. Join me in victory. There really isn't anything else for you to do accept go home to your respective lands. I will allow you to do that if you wish." He paused for effect, looking down at them again with a gracious smile.

There was a stony silence from the troop. Mace leaned forward toward the Snake God. "Sire, let me speak to them."

Set looked up at him with condescension. "They won't listen to you. You betrayed your master."

"I returned to my master," Mace replied stiffly. "And I can get them to see what sense there is in following the victor."

Set waved a hand. "Very well then. I can afford now to be generous."

Mace moved down the stairs and strode over to where the troopers stood in close formation. He looked from face to face, and then stood in front of Whisper, at the head of the rest. "Well?" he said quietly. "You can stay and serve or you can go but I have a suspicion that you won't get far."

"Set can't take all of us," Celaus whispered from behind his new commander. In the night, the troopers had chosen Whisper to take the War God's place when the news of confrontation between the two gods had reached the barracks.

"Set can squash us all like bugs," Mace answered, lowering his voice. "And do not think that he cannot hear us right now."

Celaus' eyes widened for a moment then he looked down and returned to standing at attention.

Mace looked Whisper in the eyes. "Serve the master as I do," he said.

"Do you?" Whisper asked. She studied the face of the man known also as the Tiger.

"Yes, it is said in an ancient book of wisdom that a man cannot serve two masters," he replied.

"I know that book," Whisper replied. She looked down for a moment, sighing. "I am in command of these men now. We serve the War God and the War God served his mother and her ... associate. As we have not been discharged from the duty and Ares may yet return therefore we will continue to do our duty."

Mace smiled thinly. There was murmuring in the ranks but she raised her hand and silence prevailed again. "Excellent," Mace said and turned to the Snake God. "These troopers are yours to command." He walked back up the stairs and stopped half way up, bowing his head slightly. "And what is your command, sire?" he asked.

"Do you think that I trust you?" Set said to him. The Snake God stood up. He seemed even taller and more formidable than before. "Do you think I trust any of you?" he bellowed. The sound reverberated through the plush hall. He glowered at the men and women below, his eyes glowing with an unholy light. He looked from face to face.

"I think you enjoy the abuse of power," Mace answered meeting his stare. "And it pleases you to play games of intimidation and fear with mortals."

Set stepped down the stairs to where the Tiger stood. He towered over the tall man both because he was tall himself, and because he stood on a higher step. "Do you fear me?"

Mace's jaw tensed. He swallowed hard and looked up into the black soulless eyes. "Yes, I fear you," he said. Set smiled. "I also hate you."

Set smiled widened. He patted the man on the cheek. "And yet you follow me again." His eyes narrowed as he looked down at Mace. "You may hate me or not. It makes no difference to me but obey and you will be rewarded. Defy me and I will punish you in a manner beyond your worst nightmare," he answered and swept past him. The Snake God walked through the middle of the troop, taking in the anxious mood of the men and women around him. Their grief and fear were like an elixir that energized him.

"Prepare yourselves for a campaign," he ordered as he marched out of the hall. He turned as the great doors to the hall swung open at his silent command. "We go to Egypt in the morning. It seems I have unexpected business there. But for tonight, ready your weapons and armor and get rest." He turned and walked out. The doors closed behind him.

Mace and Whisper exchanged glances and Whisper nodded to the unit. The warriors stood down and made their way in groups to the barracks. The Tiger and the Whisperer made their way to the barracks behind the others.

"I hate camels," Hercules said as the two men made their way across the sands on the backs of the odd, lumbering beasts.

Iolaus smiled. "And that is the, what, fourth or fifth time you have told me that today," he said, giggling. "The mighty hero of the Greeks reduced to a sniveler by a pack animal." He took a sip from his canteen and looked over at his friend again and laughed. The look on the big man's face continued to be a sour grimace at being jostled around by the ride and assaulted by the smell.

"I hate camels," Hercules said again and growled.

The two men had been three days in the desert now. They had just started again as the sun began to set. They traveled from sunset to sunrise and slept during the heat of the day. The map that Ahkmed had given them showed the oases that he knew of in the region but he had not been able to give them any precise directions as they were unable to tell him where they were going. Both men had abandoned their other clothing and were now wrapped and hooded in the burnooses of the middle eastern peoples. They also had on shirts of linen and loose fitting pants that were gathered below the knee where they still wore their boots up to the shin.

The journey was long and boring. Iolaus regaled his friend with stories of various women that he had met in travels away from Greece and his friend. Hercules laughed at the growing embellishments that his friend put on each succeeding story.

"The woman actually had three breasts," Hercules commented, snorting at the absurdity of the picture.

"Yes, and they were not small little things either," Iolaus replied, cupping his hand at his chest to show a picture. "And the biggest one was in the middle!"

Hercules laughed again. "Where do you get this stuff? That is crazy!"

"Any crazier than the spider woman that almost sucked my face off, or the girl that turned me to stone," he answered. "We should write a scroll, you know."

The tall man was still laughing and shaking his head. "Nobody would believe us, Iolaus."

"That's true. Maybe we can tone it down a little." He was laughing now too. He looked over at his friend's face. Hercules was gazing out over the endless sands, his face still smiled but the smile was sad. "You're not too sure about this, are you?"

"I'm not sure about anything anymore," his friend replied somberly. "Maybe after this one, we can go home. Just go home and rest. Maybe we won't have to write a scroll. Maybe by then it'll all be over. Let Set have the world. I'm done. After this one, Iolaus, I am done." He looked away.

Iolaus was taken aback by the gravity of his tone. The two men rode along silently for a long while as the sun set and the stars came out. The smaller man wracked his brain for some words of comfort but knew there was not much that he could say. The best tonic for his friend's mood was success.

They stopped in a small cluster of palms where there was water. The two men filled their canteens and ate a small meal of bread and cheese and then continued on. The desert was beautiful at night with stars and a huge moon above and the sand below, reflecting the moon's light faintly. The miles gave way to their efforts and Iolaus reckoned by reading the night sky that they would reach the area that was suppose to contain the valley of the temples, as Bastet had explained, in the next day. By sun up they could see mountains in the distance. They continued until mid morning, and finally found an area of dunes that could shelter them from being seen in the distance. There the two men dismounted their camels with Hercules continuing to mutter grudgingly about his dislike for the animals.

Iolaus got his camel to kneel and made a small tent that extended from its side onto the ground. There he readied himself to sleep away the hottest part of the day.

"Now, don't keep insulting our steeds," he said settling down after a drink of water and a few bites of dried meat. "They're sensitive. I think yours will want to come home with you to Greece. Make a nice addition to the farm."

Hercules shot a chilling glance at his friend as he prepared his mount in the same way and ate a little. He said nothing, causing Iolaus to giggle all the more at his discomfort.

"Yours is a girl, you know," Iolaus said, lying down and pulling the burnoose around him. His friend said nothing. Soon both men were asleep.

Darkfall: Part Nine

The Ancient One in the guise of the Greek hero stood in the Commander's tent. The meeting had just started, all officers were assembling, filing in quietly and taking their places along the walls. They glanced curiously at the warrior standing before the campaign desk of Drusas, high officer of the Atlantean forces.

"I brought him at once when he admitted that he was not Hercules of the Greeks," Corum said.

Drusas sat at his desk and looked up at the tall man suspiciously then over at Corum who had taken his place by his commander's desk.

"Good work," he said, then he looked back at their prisoner. "So, who are you?" The commander had a handsome face, dark hair and blue eyes. The lines of worry and scars on his right cheek from battle made the young face older.

The Greek smiled. "You come right to the point, good. We will need that kind of leadership in the days to come." He paused and closed his eyes, seeming to sleep for a moment. The air became slightly cooler, there was an odd sense in the air. Drusas stiffened and got up quietly, backing away from his desk and drawing his sword along with others. Corum moved to shield him, drawing his sword also.

But the Greek only took a deep breath and opened his eyes, now a bright green. He began to shimmer with a blue light and his figure began to blur. The form of the man transformed before the eyes of the astonished soldiers into the tiny form of a black cat, one gold earring hanging from her ear and a blue light surrounding her.

To the surprise of the Ancient One as she prepared to address the men around her, the officers in the tent knelt one by one. The cat looked over at Drusas as he knelt behind the campaign desk, now visible to her tiny figure.

"Great one," Drusas whispered. "We never even hoped to have an audience with ... the incarnation of the great warrior, Sekhmet. Bastet, you are the mother of our army, the first warrior whom we train ourselves and our sons to emulate."

He stopped and lowered his eyes.

The green eyes of the cat glowed. "Hello, my blessed ones," she purred. "I am overcome with feeling at your honoring of me." She walked under the desk, rubbed gently against the chair as she passed, and approached the two men behind the desk. She padded up to the commander. "Please, rise. No warrior should kneel to any but the One."

"Who?" Corum asked as he got up.

Bastet looked down for a moment. "We have been so remiss in our duty to our children," she said. "It seems like only a moment ago, when I challenged Set and his brothers in defense of all beings." She looked up. "Then the younger gods came and man spread over the world, taking his place as the dominant being of mortals," she continued. "We retired to the ether, we attended to other things. The universe was ready for the young. But we were not good parents." The little feline's head drooped. "We were not good parents then and we still are not. Men suffer and the young gods fight and no one has told the children of their true father and mother. The One." The cat looked up at the men who towered over her now. Officers had gathered around the desk, closing in to see the mighty being in the guise of an animal. No one spoke.

"My beauties," she went on, "I will need your strength and courage as warriors. Your lord Ares has challenged Hera. They are lost in time and space, away from this plane. Set is now unchecked in his power. The demons surrounding you are coming from another plane. I will give you the means to close the hole so the forces here will be contained. Four legions are on their way now from the Royal City. They will be here by dawn tomorrow."

Drusas began to speak but stopped.

"Yes?" asked the Ancient One.

The commander smiled, chagrined. "Forgive me, Ancient One. I was going to ask how you know all this but ..."

The cat smiled and laughed with a tinkling sound that made the men around her chuckle softly. "Don't be embarrassed, my son. I am glad that you are thinking critically. Take nothing for granted and ask questions."

"Thank you, Great one," he replied.

The cat turned and jumped up onto the desk, looking around at the men. "I wish to transport your legion to the Land of the Pharaohs. There you will join the real Hercules and his companion in the fight against Set. We have much to do in the next few hours." She looked at the resolve in the faces of the men around her.

Mace took a deep breath and relaxed his arms and legs. He had been in bed for an hour but sleep eluded him. He turned over on his side and sighed, thinking about the evening.

The troopers had readied their arms and equipment, prepared for the campaign, and finally settled in to get much needed rest. Mace had watched at a distance as Whisper supervised the preparations, encouraging the men and women who were angry and despondent over the disappearance of their liege lord and the seeming betrayal of their comrade. Whisper had not said anything for or against Mace as she circulated among her soldiers. Her silence on the subject had them confused, but some had begun to follow her lead. They stopped grumbling and put their minds to the campaign ahead. The feeling that there was more to the turn of events then was being expressed was becoming evident. Whisper's face also reflected the caution she felt about talking about how anyone felt. She used Set's name often in referring to the upcoming campaign, signaling her subordinates that he might be monitoring them.

Mace thought about all this and the brief looks that the soldiers had been giving him early in the evening as he stood off to the side in the barracks. They didn't trust him and he fully agreed with their suspicion. He could not reassure them that he was trying to play the dangerous game of seducing Set into trusting him, at least trusting him enough to reveal any plans. Mace knew Set's lack of trust in him, the Snake God had never trusted anyone, even his brothers. But the dark creature also was entertained by the game of intrigue. Mace also hoped to play on the ancient one's belief in his unquestioned superiority. Humans were beneath him. This hubris could be Mace's weapon.

But as the warrior tossed in his bed now, he had a feeling of dread beyond the sum of the events. He was thinking about this as he finally drifted off to a troubled sleep. He was the last of the warriors that had been awake.

As quiet settled over the barracks, a slithering figure slid under the door and made its way to the first bed. It reared up silently and struck at the first warrior, biting the woman's leg swiftly. The warrior moaned once then her body relaxed completely and her breath resumed a deep normal rhythm. The snake continued from bed to bed, its companion came in and started its task down the other side of the row of cots.

A large cobra crept into the room of the Amazon leader and struck her on the hand that she had draped in sleep over the edge of the bed. Whisper woke long enough to see the serpent gaze at her and then descend from its rearing posture. Whisper tried to open her mouth to speak or move to get up and warn someone, but in the instant that the venom coursed through her, she realized that she had lost the ability to command her own actions. She was trapped in her own body. She looked over at Mace asleep and could only stare at him horrified, not knowing now what would happen next.

The serpents completed their tasks and withdrew and the Snake God entered, walking down the aisle between the bunks to the next room where Mace and Whisper slept. The tall figure came in silently. He glanced over at Whisper whose wide eyes were the only sign of alarm she had. Set smiled and walked over to where Mace lay. He sat down by the sleeping man placing his hand over Mace's mouth, grinning as the eyes opened and the warrior grasped his hand, struggling to get free. Set leaned down, surrounding the man with an unholy power that pinned him to the bed.

Set removed his hand and looked into Mace's eyes. "Scream all you want," he said. "Your brave little soldiers here are now under the spell of the serpent. Did you really think that I would take you with me without insuring complete control over all of you?"

Mace bared his teeth in frustrated anger. "I thought you were just stupid enough to think that we would follow you without such shackles," he growled. "You have always underestimated humans."

Set continued to look down, amused. "You know, I think you're right. I have been a bit vain in that area but I have learned from my brothers, and from the foolishness of Hera. I will have you. I will have your warriors. If I play this correctly, I will have Ares too, and when I'm done, it'll all be mine. And you, my little pet dog, will be there to witness the whole glorious affair."

Mace watched as the necklace that dangled from the Snake God's neck took form. Slowly, the gold became the green sleek form of the snake, curled around and clasping its own tail. It let go of its tail and dropped down, nearing Mace's face. The mouth opened and the snake struck quickly, piercing the cheek of the man and delivering its gift of slavery. Mace felt the will drain from him. He could no longer feel his body. Unless a part of him was in his field of vision, he had no idea where his limbs were or the position of any part of him. He felt a now familiar panic come up but could not even tell where that feeling was located within him.

Set sat up. "Yes, I think I prefer you bound to me with magic. I never could depend upon your baser instincts," he said. He watched as stream of blood trickled down the man's face onto the pillow below. The Snake God smiled broadly. "This is going to be exciting, don't you think?" He patted Mace on the cheek and then looked at the blood now on his hand. "I wonder how your friends are doing? Hercules and Iolaus are boldly coming to the rescue, alone in the night time desert. And Ares? Who knows where he is? The casting of immortal spirits in conflict, clashing, causing them to drift and tumble through this or that reality … that's always a nasty business. It'll teach our dark boy to go challenging his betters."

Ares began to stir from sleep. He had made camp in the wasteland and gone to sleep, leaving the decision of what to do about his situation until the morning light. In the darkness of his sleep, he had had a disturbing dream in which he was standing before an altar, his arms outstretched. On the altar lay the body of a woman. He could not make out her face. He realized he had a knife in his right hand and before he realized what he was doing he had brought the blade down quickly, piercing the woman's breast. The body writhed in agony and then became still. Ares looked down at the face, gasping as he saw the light go out of Kendaa's eyes.

"Oh, God," he cried and then looked up at the figure across the altar. It was Kendaa, now looking over at him. Her clenched fists were planted on her hips. Her lips were tight with anger.

"You have failed in your duty," she said angrily. "She is not yet dead. You promised to kill her."

Ares looked down to see the body of his mother. The knife protruded out of the chest but blood still pumped from around its blade. Ares looked into his mother's eyes.

The Queen of the Heavens looked up at her son. "You are such a disappointment to me, boy," she whispered in disgust.

Now Ares was waking even though he had no great desire to face the day in the wasteland but his heart was still pounding from the images of the dream and he needed to focus on what he little he could control. He wondered briefly at the meaning of the dream.

The War God turned onto his back and stretched, opening his eyes. He looked up to see pine trees towering over him. He sat up, and looked around. The desert wilderness had changed into a pine forest. He was in a clearing. Suddenly he realized that he had caused his and his mother's spirit to get caught in a cosmic loop, leaping from reality to reality as the two struggled, each in their own dreamlike state. He wondered how long this would last.

Ares got up, frowning and looked around. He tested his god senses and felt power surging back through him. "Excellent," he said quietly.

He took his bearings and was able recognize the reality he was in. He reached out to locate his home plane and smiled, sensing the fortress and the room somewhere in the distance within the reach of his will so he spirited himself back to the room where he and his mother had clashed.

Suddenly the feeling of being engulfed by some great malevolent force surrounded him and before he could rouse himself back to a safe place, he was falling. He tried to struggle for a moment, then realized that he had to embrace the blackness. He willed himself toward the vortex instead of away from it.

Darkfall: Part Ten

Hercules and Iolaus had left the desert now and entered into a series of crevasses that cut through a low mountain range. The path was cooler than the heat of the desert and they had pushed on from the night traveling to continue on into the day. Both were eager to get to their destination. As they plod along on the backs of the camels, both men looked up frequently to check for any ambushes from above. Wind and weather had worn a strange network of paths through the mountains that according to the map would eventually lead to a large valley where the ancient ones had built the temple enclosure for the prison of Set.

Hercules had continued to be quiet through the journey. Iolaus was uncomfortable with silence and chattered on about things that he had seen and done when the two men were not together but when they had entered the crevasses with massive rock walls rising up on either side, sometimes so close that they had to go single file in order to get through, the sound of Iolaus' voice reverberated on the walls and the effect was unnerving. Iolaus too had lapsed into silence.

"Why only Set?" Hercules asked out of the blue.

"Huh?"

"Why make a prison only for Set?" Hercules asked again. "He was one of three enemies of the Ancient Ones like Bastet and Isis. Why were there not three prisons?"

Iolaus had had the same nagging thought. He felt that there was something that was missing, that the two had not been told but he was hesitant to ask Bastet for fear of offending or angering her. At the same time, he regretted not asking as he felt that the two had the right to know. He also felt that she would not have been upset but, as usual, he had taken his lead from his friend. The confusion he felt was beginning to create anxiety.

"Why didn't you ask?" he said, hoping that Hercules would have a good reason.

"I don't know, why didn't you?"

Iolaus snorted, annoyed. "Because I am the side kick," he said. "You and Ares are the heroes and I am the side kick, for you that is, not Ares. He can find his own side kick."

Hercules looked over at him and laughed for the first time in several days. "You're not the side kick to me! We are both heroes. I watch your back and you watch mine. Equals. Brothers."

"Oh no! You have to be the hero," Iolaus replied.

"Where did this come from?"

"From the hero's scroll, very clearly stating that there are heroes and side kicks."

Hercules laughed again. "Well, what makes me the hero? Maybe you're the hero in this one," he answered.

"No, no," Iolaus. "Has to be you."

"Why?"

Iolaus struggled for words and finally blurted out. "You're taller!"

Hercules laughed so loud that the echo surprised both men. "Have you been eating fermented dates?" he asked. "I think you're losing your mind?"

Iolaus laughed now too. He looked over at his friend. "I knew I could get you to laugh," he answered.

Hercules snorted. "Whatever, but cut out the hero stuff, all right. Upsets me that people don't see how much you are a part of what we do."

"Well, it upsets me too," Iolaus replied. He grimaced affectedly. "But I have learned to embrace the pain."

Hercules laughed again. "Gods, maybe it's better that they ignore you." He had felt his spirits lift as they spoke. He put his head back and yelled. "Oh, Ancient One! What is the story with only one prison? Get back to me on that one, all right?"

Iolaus laughing now too so hard that he almost fell off his camel. He righted himself in the precarious seat and joined his friend in marveling at how the echo went on and on through the halls of rock.

They were still laughing when in the distance, they could see a break in the rocky corridor where the path opened up onto the Valley of the Temples. The two men spurred their mounts on with kicks. As they came into the entrance of the valley, they both stopped and looked at each other.

"Are you thinking what I am thinking?" Iolaus asked.

"Are you thinking that this has been way too easy and we need to be cautious about a trap?" his friend replied, looking over the vast space that lay out before them. Sheer granite cliffs rose up on all sides with what appeared to be few paths leading out of the valley. They could see temples on three sides cut into the face of the cliffs. A small square building lay in the middle. There was no movement anywhere. No birds flew overhead. They had noticed as they had stopped a while ago in the rock path that there were not even the smallest insects in the air or on the ground.

"Well, yes, I was thinking that and that I'm hungry," Iolaus answered back.

"I wasn't thinking about you're being hungry," Hercules retorted. "You're always hungry."

"So let's kill two birds with one stone," Iolaus said. "Let's stop here for a break, set up camp and watch what goes on or doesn't go on for a while before we enter the valley. This place makes me feel like the furies are walking around in my guts."

Hercules sighed. "I'll agree with you there."

They dismounted and took food from their saddlebags. In a while, they had made a fire to cook. The sun had set and in the distance over the far cliff the moon began to rise, a huge white orb in a blackening sky. As the two men sat on either side of the small fire, roasting the tubers that Ahkmed had given them, they marveled quietly at the beauty of the night. They were quiet also because the morning light would bring the final battle of the struggle to overcome Set. Both men were nervously aware of how easy the journey had been up until now. Iolaus took the first shift on guard while Hercules lay down to sleep.

Set stood next to his mount. The poor beast was nervous and snorted as it waited, pulling at the hold the Snake God had on its bridle. Set growled at the horse and pulled the bridle hard toward him. The snake around his neck had slithered over to his shoulder and struck as the horse neared it. Soon the mount was quiet under the same spell as Ares' troop.

The soldiers of the War God had gotten up from a dreamless sleep and washed, dressed and eaten in complete silence. They went about their business with emotionless faces, each trapped inside their bodies like prisoners. The armor they usually wore had been replaced by the black and green armor of the Snake God. On each breast plate was emblazoned the rearing snake.

Now the soldiers were assembling in the courtyard of the fortress. In the distance, Tosh roared, reacting to the unease that had fallen over everything. The plants in the throne room, like the plants here in the courtyard, were beginning to whither. Soon without the power that Hera had infused into the palace in the clouds the cold would overtake the fortress and kill all the lush flora. Tosh would be alone and in peril of freezing as he was not use to the cold and the thin air. He growled as he roamed among the dying plants, feeling the icy chill invade his prison.

Whisper stood at the head of her troop, stony faced on the surface but frantic within. She wracked her brain for a way out of this spell. The only thing that she could feel of her body was the site where the snake had bitten her. It was a strange sensation. She could feel a wound but could not place it because she had no sensation of where her hands were. It was as if she looked out the face plate of a suit of armor that surrounded her but that she could not control.

She heard Tosh's roar in the distance and had an overwhelming sense of dread for what would happen to the large tiger that had trusted the Amazons enough to give up his wild ways to live with them. Now the Amazons were lost, and he was prisoner like Whisper. She had a sense of hopelessness that she had never experienced. She wanted to cry but the face she wore would not respond.

Set mounted his horse and the warriors around him did the same. He rode over to the gate and it opened by magic.

"I'll take the same highway that the Lord of War," Set said. He looked over at Mace who rode now at his side. "I give you the power to speak," he added with a flourish of his hand.

The sensation of locating your mouth and having the ability to speak now was an odd one. Mace stared had. "What would you have me say?" he asked.

"Speak your mind," Set answered. "It is boring not to have company that can interact with me."

"I hope you are ground under Ares' heel like dust," Mace replied.

Set smiled but made no reply.

The troop had taken off into the air, transversing miles in seconds. The lands of the East flew by below. Soon the Mediterranean could been seen below them, then the sand of the desert of Northern Africa. The mounts were nervous now as they felt no bond with their riders. Set looked down and located the mountain range that held his prison. He smiled at seeing the valley, so tiny from the air that held the building that the Ancient Ones had built to contain him. He planned to raze the tiny temple to the ground and erect a temple so splendid that kings and priests would come from all over the world to worship their new Lord there. The other temples would be pleasure houses for his followers. He planned to have the temple of Bastet changed into a brothel. She had, after all, been worshiped as the goddess of joy. Perhaps he would recall the Amazons from the plane they were imprisoned on to be the slaves for the pleasure of his servants.

The Snake God laughed as he thought about these plans and drew his troop down onto the mountain top above the valley. He reached out to locate his prey down below but could not get a sense of the two men.

"Hmm, interesting," Set said as he dismounted. Mace and the other followed him. "I wonder where they are. Perhaps they have not gotten here or perhaps the nature of this place makes them invisible to my senses."

"Or perhaps they have found help that will crush you like an insignificant bug," Mace answered. If words were all he had to fight with, the tall warrior decided to use his only weapon as best he could.

Set laughed out loud. The hissing sound echoed through the valley. "Ah, my poor Mace," he said. "Insolent but ineffective." He looked back down at the valley and then at the rising sun.