Prologue:

The Fates waited impatiently in Zeus' temple for the Gods to arrive. Olympus was no longer the shining example of power that it once was. So much damage had been done during the war against Dahak. The Pantheon's power levels were at an all time low and it showed.

The temples weren't as bright, in fact, they were rather dingy looking. There just wasn't enough power for anything other than the essentials, and what power was available was completely unstable. Time was running out. They had to act quickly before the unstable power matrix caused more damage. There were all ready ripples showing on the outskirts of Olympus. The veil separating this reality from the next was wavering. Some of the younger Gods were already ill because of it. A few were even unable to maintain a corporeal form. They resembled nothing more than poor, tattered ghosts, wailing on the edge of oblivion.

Once all the Gods were present, Zeus arrived in a subdued flash of golden light. He regarded the Fates suspiciously. "Why have you summoned us here? You've never wanted to meet all of us together before."

The eldest sister stepped forward to face Zeus, "Dahak will not stop until all the Olympians are destroyed. You know this. And with none of you having access to a clean power source all of Greece is in danger. We've looked at every possible solution and only one has any chance at success. There are no guarantees, too many variables exist in the threads. But we think this will work."

Ares paced restlessly, "What will work? We've tried fighting Dahak and he's too strong. Even at full power we weren't strong enough to defeat him, just to make him retreat for a time." Ares stopped pacing long enough to glare at the Fates, still smarting from his defeat at Dahak's hands. "With the power levels where they are now we'd be lucky to defeat a mouse."

"He could not be defeated because he has opened a rift in the veil and is directly linked to the power of Chaos beyond. For Dahak to finally be defeated permanently, the rift must be sealed and his connection to Chaos severed. Therefore, a new Godhood must be formed and a new God created. We cannot do this, you Zeus, must do this. There is also a task for you Ares, and all the other Olympians."

The Fates heard the Pantheon of Olympus talking amongst themselves, none were willing to give up what little power they had to help form a new God, but none were foolish enough to say anything directly to the Fates.

"What new Godhood?" Zeus asked quietly, "And who is to be this new God?"

The youngest of the Fates stepped forward, an uncharacteristic frown upon her usually sunny face. "All mortals pray to their Gods, but seldom get an answer directly. When someone's heart is broken, their feelings hurt or suffer in any way the emotional pain is enormous. This pain generates power, more so than even war or love. That power is raw and without form because it isn't directed towards one God. While it is the province of several of the younger Gods, it isn't sent in the form of prayer. Merely released by the one suffering, this power goes directly beyond the veil and becomes one with Chaos. None of you can access this power because it wasn't given to you by the person releasing it." She looked at all of the Gods of Olympus, and drew a deep breath, "You must create the God of Chaos."

Discord snorted, "No God is capable of handling that kind of power. Dahak is the only one I've ever even heard of trying it. Why don't we just tell our worshiper to direct the power to us and we'll use it defeat Dahak."

From the babbling the Fates realized most of the rest of the Gods agreed with Discord. The middle sister faced the Gods and waited calmly for the Gods to stop chattering amongst themselves.

After several minutes of waiting the arguments were getting worse. Finally losing patience the Fate yelled, "Cease this useless babbling at once! We don't have time for your insipid little games. You can't use this power, it doesn't belong to you. And it cannot be directed. Mortals are not capable of that, Gods themselves are not able to do such a thing. The power from one mortal is beyond your comprehension. The power from several hundred thousand would obliterate all of you. That is why the choice of this new God is so important."

She looked to her sisters and they nodded agreement. A look of sadness on her face she turned back to the Gods. "He must be completely selfless, without greed, corruption or malice. He won't be able to use this power either, merely channel it. He must also be able to give something back to the mortal it came from, Hope. The feeling that they are not alone, that someone, somewhere, understands and feels their pain. Could any of you do this? Are you capable of such devotion to mortals with nothing in return? No temples, no offerings, no prayers or praise?" She looked at each of the Gods in turn, but none would meet her eyes. "I thought not."

She turned back to Zeus and Ares, "Ares, God of War, next to Zeus you are the strongest of the Gods. The new God will need someone to protect him, keep him grounded or he may be lost in the power flow. We have chosen you to take him as consort." Ares looked startled but said nothing. "When the time comes, it will take both of you. Him to channel and you to direct the power to defeat Dahak. Are you agreeable to this? We need to know now, before we continue."

Ares looked to his father, and then back to the Fates, "I don't have much choice do I? Dahak must be destroyed. If this is what it takes then I'll do it."

The Fates looked pleased, and smiled faintly at Ares. The eldest once again faced Zeus and spoke quietly. "We have searched through all of the threads and one stands out from the rest. His thread in the Tapestry only exists where it intertwines with other mortals. On his own it appears he was never born. As far as we can tell, he IS Chaos. His name is Joxer of Corinth."

At this, several of the God's were startled into derisive laughter. "That mortal is a fool, he can't become a God."

Zeus glared at the Pantheon and it quickly fell into silence. Zeus nodded to the Fates, "Please continue, you won't be interrupted again."

"Thank you Zeus. Joxer has been intimately acquainted with Chaos for his entire life. Nothing ever goes right for him. He has never been loved, not even by his family. His "friends" leave a great deal to be desired. They ridicule and belittle him, never thinking about the pain they cause. He stays because he has nothing else and no where to go. Despite this, he is a warm, caring man, who has never hurt another soul and tries to help whenever he can. What we are going to do to him is no kind of reward for his purity, he deserves so much more. But being who he is, he would never think he deserved any kind of consideration. Now, all we have to do is convince him that we need him to become a God. This won't be easy. And becoming Consort to the God of War will be even harder to convince him of."

Ares, shocked to hear Joxer named, spoke out, "How is it possible for him not to have a thread? And how can a mortal *be* Chaos? He has two brothers, are they the same?"

"No Ares, they are completely mortal. We do not know how he came to be. Only that he is. Mayhap Chaos itself caused him to come into being."

"Joxer is one of my worshipers, I could order him to accept the Godhood and become my consort. He would obey a direct order from me." Ares felt a strange disquiet at his own statement, but he knew it to be true.

The eldest shook her head, "No Ares, he must give his consent willingly. But we would like you to bring him to us, along with you and Zeus we will explain it to him."

Ares nodded to the Fates and looked to his father. "Go Ares, meet us in my garden. I don't think we need to have everyone there."

"Ares," the eldest called, "remember, he must give his consent willingly." Without another word, Ares flashed out of his father's temple and went to find Joxer.

Zeus looked out upon the Pantheon of Gods sternly. "What task do you have for the rest?"

"They must create a power sink here on Olympus. Joxer will channel all of the excess power there until it is needed in the final battle with Dahak. Taking up his Godhood will be painful for him. We're hoping by tying him to Ares he will be able to stand the sudden rush of power."

Aphrodite, who had been quiet during the meeting, finally spoke up. "I know Joxer, he would never back down from any task, no matter how much pain was involved. But shouldn't I make him and Ares fall in love with each other? Won't that make the bond stronger?" She honestly hoped the Fates would say yes. She hadn't always been kind to the young mortal but he'd never held it against her. She wanted him to have some kind of happiness.

"Thank you for your offer Goddess of Love. But their love for each other must also be willing and grow into being on its own. Any spell may be broken, and this match must last for eternity if we are to succeed. It will be centuries before the final battle is to be staged. And the one who will stand before Dahak as the receptacle of the power has yet to be born. But until that time there is much to be done. All Gods of Olympus must see to their followers and helped rebuild all that has been lost. We will come before you again as the Tapestry dictates."

With their final words, Zeus and the Fates left the temple to await the arrival of Ares and the soon-to-be God.

Part 1

Ares flashed into his main temple in Thrace still reeling from the Fates' revelations. Joxer of all people was to be made a God and his consort? While Ares would be one of the first to admit Joxer went hand in hand with chaos, this was unbelievable.

Settling in his throne, Ares tried to calm his thoughts. 'Worry about that later. First I have to find Joxer and convince him to come to Olympus with me willingly.' Ares focused his power on his scrying mirror and set it to look for Joxer. The fog clouding the mirror cleared as an image came into view.

Joxer, sleeping on the ground next to a small campfire. Across the fire from him Ares could make out the form of Xena lying cuddled up with Gabrielle and just a few feet away, Hercules was asleep beside Iolaus. 'Of course he's with them. Where else would he be?' Ares groaned and began to mutter to himself. "I have to get Joxer away from them so we can talk. I think I'm going to need a distraction. DISCORD!!! Front and center. NOW!!"

Eris, the Goddess of Discord, appeared before Ares, barely managing to stay on her feet. Ares watched as she closed her eyes and swallowed hard. She had a definite greenish cast to her skin and he could see beads of sweat forming on her upper lip. "What do you want Ares?" Discord asked in a shaky voice. "I'm busy."

"Are you all right Discord? You look worse than usual, green is not a good color for you." Ares' sarcastic tone did nothing for Discord's headache.

"I'm fine Ares. What did you want?"

Ares took a long look at his twin. What he saw made him uneasy. Discord's power signature fluctuated wildly, and her aura was fading in places. "Maybe you should go back to Olympus Eris. I'll handle this on my own. Are you strong enough to get back by yourself or do you need a boost?"

Discord looked at Ares suspiciously. "Why are you being nice to me Ares? You are never nice!" Slowly backing away from her brother, Discord began to gather her power to transport herself back to Olympus. If Ares was being nice to her, Tartarus was probably freezing over and she didn't want to get the blame for it.

"Your power is all over the place Discord. I don't want you anywhere near Joxer in this condition. We need him alive and well to defeat Dahak. There's no way to know what will happen if you lose control here in the mortal realm. Go back to your temple and rest. Conserve your energy, we may need it later."

Discord had a look of worry on her face as she asked, "Do you really think this has a chance of succeeding Ares? I mean, Joxer? He can't even walk without tripping over his own feet! How can he help us defeat Dahak?"

"I don't know, but the Fates say he is the only one who can. There is no other way. Go home Discord. I'll do it myself."

Still quietly gathering her strength, Discord snickered, "Speaking of 'doing it', where are you going to take him on your honeymoon?" With that she flashed back to Olympus, finally having had the last word.

Ares clenched his fists and tried to remain calm. Pounding Discord into a greasy spot on the floor would be fun, but it would have to wait. First he had to talk to Joxer.

*****

Xena awoke suddenly, she heard someone creeping quietly into their camp. Barely opening her eyes, she saw that Hercules was also awake. He nodded once to let her know he too had heard the intruder and was ready when she was. Moving slowly, Xena got her hand around the hilt of her sword and prepared to strike. "You aren't going to need that Xena. I'm not here for you."

Upon hearing Ares' voice Xena rolled and was on her feet in front of him, sword drawn.

"Ares!" Hercules roared. "What are you doing here? Haven't you caused enough trouble? We have nothing to say to the traitor that worked for Dahak. Why don't you go back to Olympus, or don't they want anything to do with you either? I can't say I'm surprised. The God's may be useless but even they wouldn't want a snake like you in their midst." Hercules sneered at Ares, Ares' own actions just proved him right about the Gods and how much they could be trusted. Not at all.

"Why don't you wake up the entire country Hercules?" With a broad sweep of his arm, Ares indicated the rest of the occupants of the camp, now wide awake. "Believe it or not, the entire universe does not revolve around you and Xena. I'm not here for you. Why don't you mind your own business and leave me to mine?"

Hercules and Xena stepped in front of their respective partners. No way was Ares going to get anywhere near either of them. Turning away, Ares looked to Joxer, still sprawled out on the ground gazing confusedly at his friends. "Joxer, I need to speak to you about something. It's very important. Will you come with me?" Ares spoke quietly, not wanting to upset the would-be warrior.

"Um, sure Ares. What ever you say." Ares reached down and helped him to his feet. Joxer felt a momentary shiver of fear run down his spine. Why would Ares want to talk to him about something important? Especially since Hercules and Xena were standing right there. But Ares was his God, and he wasn't about to refuse him anything he wanted.

Gabrielle moved from behind Xena, "No Joxer. You stay right there. Ares, Joxer has nothing to say to you. Go away. We don't want you here."

Joxer felt a familiar surge of anger, he was a 'man', a 'warrior' by the Gods, and if he wanted to speak to his God he would! Gabby didn't worship any God since she had found 'The Way', she had no business telling him what to do! The anger faded as quickly as it had appeared. He loved Gabby, he wanted her to be proud of him. She only told him what to do because she cared. "Okay Gabby." Joxer said meekly. "I'll stay here. I'm very sorry Ares, but I can't go with you. I'm sure someone else would be better anyway."

"There is no one else Joxer, and you gave your consent. Let's go." Ares grabbed Joxer's arm and flashed out of the campsite back to his temple in Thrace.

"Xena, what is he going to do with Joxer?" Gabrielle asked worriedly.

"I don't know Gabrielle, but we're going to find out."

Hercules stared at the spot Joxer had disappeared from. "Let's go to Ares' temple in Thrace, that's where he usually stays when he's not on Olympus." The four friends quickly broke down their camp while discussing the best course of action to save their friend.

*****

Ares still had a firm grip on Joxer's arm when they arrived in Thrace. Holding him steady until he adjusted to the shift in location, Ares materialized a comfortable chair next to his throne and guided Joxer to it. "Have a seat Joxer. We have a lot to talk about and if I know your friends they're already on their way here to take you back. We need to talk before they get here. Translocating can be unsettling to a mortal, are you all right?"

Ares sat in his throne, looking carefully at the mortal. He didn't see anything particularly special about him. He was skinny, had very pale skin and lank brown hair. All in all, just another mortal. Then Ares looked into his eyes and saw something different. Joxer met his gaze without flinching, something no mortal could do. Even most demi-gods had trouble looking a God in the eye.

Ares kept staring into his eyes until Joxer finally began to squirm. "I'm fine Ares, really. Um, so what's going on Ares? I mean, uh, what did you need to talk to me about? I've been making offerings at every one of your temples I come across, I didn't forget one did I? If I did, I'm really sorry. I'll go make an offering right now. Um,..."

Ares concentration was finally broken by Joxer babbling something about offerings. "No Joxer, you didn't miss making an offering at one of my temples. Now be quiet and listen to me, this is serious." Joxer's entire body went rigid and his mouth snapped close. It was obvious he had more to say but would bite his own tongue off before he said it. Ares leaned forward and rested his arms on his knees, watching Joxer's face intently. "How much do you know about the war with Dahak Joxer?"

"Xena and Hercules told me that you were working for Dahak and tried to overthrow Zeus. Then something happened and Dahak went away and you were stuck here and everyone hates you because you're a traitor." Joxer looked as though he'd stepped in something vile, and quickly continued. "I don't hate you of course. I didn't believe that story about you and Dahak. I don't tell anyone I still worship you because that would make my friends mad at me and they get mad at me all the time anyway and I don't like that so I keep quiet and sneak into your temples to leave my offerings but I don't want to..."

Ares had trouble keeping up with the constant stream of words coming out of Joxer's mouth but one thing stuck out from the rest. "Why didn't you believe the stories about me working for Dahak Joxer? Everyone else does."

Joxer looked at Ares stupidly, "Well, you're Ares, God of War. You don't work for anyone but yourself. Especially not someone who would boss you around. I know you want to be King of the Gods but Dahak would never let you do that so why would you help him get something you wanted for yourself?"

Ares laughed loudly, "Joxer, you are the only one who managed to figure that out. I'm impressed."

Joxer preened at the praise from his God for a moment and then began to squirm nervously again. "Um, Ares, is that what you wanted to talk to me about? I mean, can I go now? Not that I'm not having a good time talking to you but I'm in enough trouble with Gabby and Xena and if I don't get back soon they're really going to be mad."

Ares stood and said quietly, "No Joxer, we're not done yet. There are others who need to speak to you. Will you go with me to see them?"

"I guess so, as long as it doesn't take much time."

Ares reached out to help Joxer out of his chair and began the translocation.

"Where are we going, Ares?" Joxer asked.

"Olympus." Ares replied and barely managed to keep a hold of the mortal when he fainted. Lifting Joxer into his arms Ares spoke to the unconscious mortal, "I hope they're right about you Joxer, I really do." And with that final thought he relocated them to Olympus.

Part 2

Hercules and Xena discussed strategies for fighting Ares while Gabrielle and Iolaus packed up their camp and made ready to travel to Thrace. They were all worried about their friend but for different reasons. As the four walked rapidly up the road towards Thrace Xena asked Hercules the question that had been buzzing around in her head since Ares and Joxer had flashed out of the clearing. "Why would Ares take Joxer? If he wanted leverage against one of us, it would have been better to take Gabrielle or Iolaus. He knows we'll come for Joxer, we wouldn't abandon him, but it still doesn't make sense. Do you think this has something to do with Dahak?"

Hercules stopped dead and whispered, "A warrior's heart."

Iolaus turned pale and shook his head, "No, no no no."

"What's going on guys, what about a warrior's heart?" Gabrielle asked worriedly.

Hercules looked at Iolaus while he answered the blond bard. "If a warrior's heart is sacrificed to Dahak he can take over that person and escape from Tartarus."

"Gods, so that's why he wants us," Gabrielle said breathlessly. "He knows we'll come for Joxer and then he'll sacrifice one of us to bring back Dahak. What are we going to do?"

Xena grabbed her young friend, "You are going to go back to the campsite and stay there. I don't want anything to happen to you."

Hercules nodded, agreeing with Xena. "Iolaus, I think you should go with Gabrielle. I got you back from Dahak once, I don't want to have to do it again."

Iolaus just stared at his friends, still shaking his head, "No. He doesn't need one of us. He has Joxer."

Gabrielle patted Iolaus on the shoulder, "Joxer isn't a warrior, sacrificing him won't bring Dahak back. Xena, if Ares needs to sacrifice a warrior maybe we should all stay away from him. I mean, he wouldn't kill Joxer would he?"

Hercules snorted at her. "If he doesn't get his way of course he'll kill Joxer. That's the way he is. We can't leave Joxer with him, we have to save him."

Xena grimaced, but spoke what was on her mind. "I know we should save Joxer, but at what cost? I don't want to lose him either, but wouldn't it be worse to have Dahak return?" Three of the four stared at each other, none wanted Joxer to die, but which was worse?

Iolaus stared at his friends in shock. "I can't believe you guys are that stupid."

Gabrielle, trying to calm Iolaus down, rubbed her and up and down his arm. "Iolaus, Joxer wouldn't want us to save him if it meant Dahak would return." Iolaus just stared at her. "It's okay Iolaus, we'll think of something."

Iolaus' face went hard and he knocked her hand away. "Of course Joxer wouldn't want us to save him if it meant Dahak would return. That's the problem!"

Hercules looked at his lover. He'd never seen him act this way towards their friends. "Iolaus, I know what happened to you still haunts you, but we have to think about what's best for everyone. Not just Joxer."

Iolaus' laugh had a hysterical tinge to it. "I don't believe it. None of you understand at all do you? The very fact that Joxer would rather die than be saved if it meant Dahak's return is the problem. Don't you see?" The others just stared at him. Iolaus actually snarled at them, "That means Joxer has a warrior's heart. It has nothing to do with how strong you are or how well you fight. It's about your heart. The willingness to sacrifice yourself for others is what Dahak needs. Joxer would make the perfect sacrifice."

"Gods, what are we going to do?" Gabrielle cried. "We have to stop Ares from bringing back Dahak!"

Hercules and Xena immediately went in battle plans while Gabrielle just stood there with a sick look on her face. The last thing she wanted was for Dahak to return, and for it to be Joxer? That was just too much for her mind to handle.

Iolaus looked at his 'friends' and his 'lover', he was totally disgusted with all of them. "Oh. Now you want to save Joxer, but it was okay to let him die to save yourselves. Guess what? None of you would be a good enough sacrifice for Dahak. You make me sick."

Hercules moved towards his lover with his hand stretched out, but Iolaus backed away. "Don't you touch me. None of you touch me. I'm ashamed of all of you, and I'm no better. I don't understand how Joxer put up with us all this time. I have to get out of here. Aphrodite!!"

A bright flash of light proceeded the arrival of a God, but it was Cupid who appeared, not Aphrodite. "Mom's busy Curly. What's up?" Cupid got a good look at Iolaus' face and grew concerned. "Are you okay Iolaus? You don't look so good."

Iolaus just laughed bitterly. Now truly worried, Cupid ran his hand through Iolaus' blond curls and read his thoughts. What he saw made him ill. "Mom!! I need you!!" Cupid cried to the night sky.

In a flash of light and rose petals Aphrodite appeared. "What's wrong Hon? Ooohhh Curly, you look awful! What's wrong sweetie?" Aphrodite wrapped Iolaus in her warm embrace and he began to cry. She looked at her son and knew it was bad. The only time Cupid looked this much like his father was when he wanted to kill something. "Ssshhh, it'll be okay, let me see what's wrong huh?"

'Dite looked into Iolaus' mind and she would have been shocked to learn that the look on her son's face didn't necessarily come from his father. "Cupid. Take Iolaus to my temple. I'll be there in a minute. I have to have a talk with some idiots first." She handed Iolaus to Cupid and watched as he wrapped his arms and his wings around Iolaus and took them to her temple on Olympus.

Aphrodite glared at the three remaining, "What in Tartarus were you thinking? You hurt Curly, I HATE it when people hurt Curly! Let's go. We need to talk. Actually, I'm going to talk and you're going to listen for once!"

With a wave of her hand Aphrodite transported them all to her temple on Olympus. Cupid was sitting on one of the pink couches scattered around the room cuddling a still shaking Iolaus.

Hercules made as if to go to him but Aphrodite shook her head no. Looking at her son she said, "Hon, take Curly over to your place. I need to have a 'talk' with these three losers and he doesn't need to hear it. Try to cheer him up okay?"

Cupid glared at Hercules, he really wanted to teach the demi-god a lesson. "Yeah Mom, I'll see ya later." Cupid flashed out of the temple taking Iolaus with him.

"Okay, I'm going to talk and you three are going to listen. Try to keep up okay?"

Gabrielle looked at the blond Goddess and dismissed her. Turning to Xena she said, "Xena, do you think Iolaus is right? Could Ares actually sacrifice 'Joxer' to bring back Dahak?"

Aphrodite looked at Gabrielle in shock, "Sacrifice? There isn't going to be a sacrifice! Ares just needs to talk to Joxer about something."

"Uh huh, Ares needs to 'talk' to Joxer. Why don't you let us handle this Aphrodite." Turning back to Xena, Gabrielle picked up their conversation where she'd left off.

'Dite actually saw red for a moment. Gabrielle never saw the ball of energy that struck her in the back, sending her crashing into the wall. "Handle that 'Gabby'. Gods, you give blondes a bad name. No Xena, you stay right where you are. It's about time you guys learned that you can't going around insulting the Gods without consequences."

Hercules moved towards his sister, determined to stop her before someone else got hurt. 'Dite hit him with a blast that froze him in place. Xena, knowing that discretion was the better part of valor, kept her mouth shut and went to check on Gabrielle.

'Dite paced around her temple, waving her hands in the air. "You guys don't know what's going on. But of course you don't care about that. You just jump into the middle of things without thinking."

Xena, having determined Gabrielle would be all right, looked at the Goddess of Love. "Why don't you tell us what's going on then."

Hearing Cupid call her, she replied to Xena's question, "Because, at the moment, it doesn't concern you. Not everything that happens does you know. I have to go take care of a few things. Don't try to leave this room. All of the doors and windows are sealed. Someone will come later to explain things to you. Just try to stay out of trouble 'til then." 'Dite left her temple in a shower of rose petals, she had to go help put her favorite blonde hunter back together.

*****

Ares' arrival in Zeus' gardens put a sudden halt to the conversation between Zeus and The Fates. Seeing Joxer unconscious in Ares' arms, the eldest spoke sharply. "We said willing Ares! Not unconscious!" Waving her sisters off of the marble bench they had been sitting on she spoke tersely, "Put him here Ares. Now what happened?"

Ares laid Joxer on the bench before replying. "He gave his consent, but when I told him we were coming here, he fainted. He should wake up soon. I need to speak to my father for a moment. Would you excuse us please?"

Taking Zeus by the arm, Ares led him a short distance away. "Joxer was with Hercules when I found him. He and Xena know Joxer is with me. They still believe I was working for Dahak. They might be a problem."

Zeus sighed deeply. He loved both of his sons but he could wish they would get along better. "I'll speak to him Ares, but first let us see to young Joxer. I must say, he isn't what I expected."

"One moment Father. When I found out Joxer was with Hercules, I called Discord. I wanted a distraction. Father, she could barely stand up and her power signature was shifting so rapidly I couldn't keep up with it.I sent her back here to her temple. How many of the others are still in control?"

"Only yourself, Aphrodite, Cupid, Hephestus, Hera, Hades and myself have any kind of control left. Poseidon and Gala are affected but aren't having any real problems as of yet. Athena, Artemis and Apollo are doing fairly well, but I don't think they should leave Olympus unless it's an emergency. The more power they use the worse they get. We're all going to have to work together or Dahak will win." Patting his son on his shoulder, he smiled at him. "But we haven't lost yet. Come, let us see how our young savior is doing."

Zeus and Ares returned to where Joxer still lay sleeping on the bench. "How is he doing?" Zeus asked The Fates.

"He is fine, merely sleeping." Brushing Joxer's dark hair from his forehead, the eldest spoke quietly, "Such a fragile body to rest all of our hopes upon." Gently shaking his shoulder, she woke Joxer up. "Joxer, it's time to wake up now. You are safe here and amongst friends."

Joxer groaned and rolled right off of the marble bench onto the ground. "Ow, where am I?" A tousled dark head popped up over the bench and dark brown eyes grew wide at the sight of the five people staring at him. "Um hi. I'm Joxer, Joxer the Mighty. Maybe you've heard of me?" The last was said on a plaintive note.

Ares stepped forward and helped Joxer to his feet. "Yes Joxer, they have heard of you. Let me introduce you." Keeping a hold of Joxer's arm, he didn't want him to faint again, he introduced the others. "Joxer, this is my father, Zeus." Zeus inclined his head and smiled at the young mortal. "Nicetomeetyousir." Joxer managed to get out in one breath. Ares pointed at the three sisters, "And these are The Fates, Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos." Joxer turned a ghastly shade of white and swayed. Ares levered him back down onto the bench and materialized a goblet of wine. Pressing it into Joxer's hands, he helped him take a drink. Managing a sickly smile, Joxer nodded to The Fates. "Uh, it's nice to meet you?"

The second Fate, Lachesis, smiled at Joxer. "Rest easy, young mortal. We merely wish to speak to you of something of great importance. Thank you for agreeing to meet us."

Nodding at the others, she said, "Come, let us sit and discuss matters." Zeus sat on one bench, The Fates perched together on another, while Ares took a seat next to Joxer. He decided it would be best to stay close in case Joxer decided to faint again. Atropos, the eldest, looked Joxer over and spoke for all of them. "We have a story to tell you Joxer. Will you listen without interruptions? We will answer all of your questions after. Is this all right with you?"

Joxer nodded his head violently. "Of course ma'am. Whatever you say." "Very well then. Dahak, as I'm sure you know, has been causing a multitude of problems, but not only for mortals. The Gods of Olympus are also suffering the consequences of Dahak's presence. The Gods use the power mortals give them. The power comes in the form of prayers, dedications and offerings. This power is used for many things. To control the weather, help crops grow, healing, answering prayers and doing all of the things the Gods must do. Now mortals get this power from the realm of Chaos. A place of pure energy. No one really knows how the Chaos power interacts with mortals. What we do know is that no one, God or mortal, can use this power directly. Until Dahak. Somehow he has opened a rift in the veil that contains Chaos and is using it to try to take over Olympus. If he succeeds, all of Greece will fall. And in time, the entire world will kneel at his feet. We want to stop him, but cannot."

Joxer's eyes got bigger and bigger, but he said nothing.

"We think we have found away to block his access to Chaos and that is why we need you." Atropos looked to her sisters and they had a whispered conversation. "Zeus, would you take us to our cave? We think the next part will be easier explained there."

"Certainly Atropos."

Ares arose and helped Joxer up. "Hang on to me Joxer, it'll be all right." The weak smile Joxer turned to Ares belied the strength of the grip he had on Ares hand.

Zeus moved all of them to the cave where The Fates kept The Tapestry of Life. The three sisters stepped up the tapestry and waved the others forward. Clotho, the weaver of life, picked up the explanation. "This is The Tapestry of Life. All of the threads detailing a mortal's life are contained here. Even the Gods themselves move to the actions we weave. We searched through all of the threads trying to find a way to defeat Dahak. His thread is not part of the weave, if it were we would have ended his atrocities long ago. While we searched, we came upon your thread. Come, can you tell which is yours?"

Joxer looked at the tapestry in awe. It was huge. Larger than a house, containing all the colors he'd ever seen and many he had not. The pictures in the weave moved constantly, ever changing. When one thread ended,another took its place. One particular thread caught his attention. It appeared scattered throughout the weave. It was of no discernible color, but seemed to shift and change. Joxer touched that thread with a trembling finger. "This one is mine, isn't it?"

Clotho took Joxer's hand in hers and gently folded his fingers into his palm. "Yes Joxer, that is your thread. Do you see how it is different from the others?"

Joxer tilted his head to one side and studied the weave with half-closed eyes. "It keeps changing color and it's scattered. It doesn't follow a pattern like the others."

Clotho nodded in agreement. "That's right Joxer. We think that because you are different, you are more closely connected with the Chaos energy. We are hoping that will allow you to sever Dahak's link to Chaos and weaken him so he can eventually be defeated."

Joxer looked down at the slim hand holding his own and then over at Ares. Ares smiled at him and nodded once. Taking a deep breath, Joxer looked Clotho in the eye. "What can I do to help?"

Clotho dropped Joxer's hand only to hug the young mortal to her. "Thank you Joxer. We were hoping you'd say that." Stepping away from him she smiled brightly. "Why don't we go back to the gardens? This can be a gloomy place and I want to feel the sun upon my face."

Joxer smiled back at her and then turned to Ares with a questioning look upon his face. Ares reached out to take Joxer's hand. "Come on, I'll take you."

Once they were all assembled back in the garden, Zeus materialized goblets of icy cold wine, bread and fruit. "Let's eat while we talk. Serious discussions go better with a full stomach."

Joxer accepted one of the goblets, but turned down the food. His stomach was doing flip-flops and he honestly didn't think he could eat anything. Waiting a moment while the rest got settled, he asked in a quiet voice, "What do you need me to do?"

This time it was Zeus who answered him. "We believe that if we can create the God of Chaos that he will be able to block Dahak's power. The Fates have decreed that you are the best choice to become this new God."

The mouthful of wine Joxer was trying to swallow went down the wrong way and he choked. Ares pounded on his back while Joxer tried to force some air into his lungs. Waving Ares off, he finally got his breathing under control. "You want 'me', to become a 'God'? I'm not sure that's a good idea. I mean, of course it's a good idea. I'm sure you don't have bad ideas, but maybe someone else would be better. I'm not exactly that good of a fighter and I'm very clumsy. I might hurt someone. I'm sure Hercules or Xena would do a much better job."

Lachesis spoke before the rest had a chance to say anything. "You saw your thread Joxer. No one else has a thread like that. No has 'ever' had a thread like that. You are the only one who has a chance. No one else will do."

Joxer stared intently at the ground between his feet. His voice when he spoke was barely above a whisper. "What if I do it wrong? What will happen?"

Atropos knelt on the ground in front of him and raised his face to hers. "The thread of your life determines what happens. I don't think you 'can' do this wrong. We, my sisters and I, believe that the Chaos energy itself caused you to come into being. Your brothers are ordinary mortals, completely different from you. You are the only one who can help save us and Greece. Will you do it?"

Joxer smile sadly, "I can't say no to that, can I?"

Atropos kissed Joxer on his forehead. "Thank you Joxer, we knew we could count on you. But you will not be alone. We will all help you." Atropos returned back to her seat by her sisters. "There is one other thing Joxer. Because you were not born a God there is much you don't know about how God's control and direct power. Once you accept your Godhood the Chaos energy will immediately be attracted to you. Therefore, we think it would be best if you had an anchor to help you maintain your control. We asked Ares and he has agreed to become your anchor. But for this to work you must be bonded together."

Joxer looked back and forth between The Fates, Zeus and Ares. "What do you mean by bonded?"

Ares answered him. "I agreed to take you as my consort. For eternity." Even Ares, God of War, wasn't quick enough to catch Joxer when he passed out cold.

*****

Aphrodite flashed into the main room of Cupid's temple and immediately went looking for her son and Iolaus. She finally found them in Cupid's bathing chamber. Cupid was holding a very ill Iolaus, who was trying to vomit up his toenails. Aphrodite turned her back on the two men. "Eeww! That's like so gross! What's wrong with Curly?"

"Mom!! Somebody put a whammy on him!"

"What do you mean somebody put a whammy on him? What kind of whammy? I'm the only one who gets to put a whammy on my Curly!" 'Dite paced around the bathing chamber muttering under her breath. "Somebody is gonna pay for this!"

"Later Mom. First we have to take care of Iolaus, he's getting worse. Would you call Asclepius? Maybe he can do something."

"Sure thing, hon. 'Asclepius'! I need you!" Aphrodite's voice, while usually high pitched and shrouded in inane giggles, would have done justice to one of Ares' generals.

Asclepius rarely got such a call from 'Dite, so he came to her immediately. The sparks of his power signature hadn't even faded when he started asking questions. "What's wrong 'Dite? Oh no, you aren't pregnant again are you?"

Aphrodite marched right up to Asclepius and started poking him in the chest with one tiny finger. "If you ever want to get lucky this century Asc, you'll take that back right now!" Pointing to a still heaving Iolaus, she said, "It's not me, it's Curly!"

Asclepius just stood with a puzzled expression on his face. "Who is Curly, and how did he get pregnant? Mortal men don't usually do that." Cupid groaned and hung his head.

'Dite threw her hands up in the air and snarled. "Men! God or mortal, doesn't matter. And they say I'm clueless!" Visibly calming herself, 'Dite spoke in a slow, steady voice. "He isn't pregnant Asclepius. Somebody put a whammy on him and it's making him sick. Can you help him or not?"

"I don't know, let me take a look. Cupid, can you put him on the bench over there please?" After Cupid got Iolaus situated on the indicated bench, Asclepius took the mortal's face in his hands and began reading him. "Huh, you're right. Somebody did put a whammy on him. Actually, it's more of a geis. His soul is bonded to Hercules', if they separate, he'll get sick and eventually die."

Aphrodite paled, "Can you tell who put it on him Asclepius?"

Brushing the hunter's blonde curls off of his forehead, Asclepius said "It's not a signature I recognize. It's most definitely not one of us. About the only thing we can do for him now is to make him as comfortable as we can."

'Dite thought for a moment, "Would it help if we brought Hercules to him?"

Cupid shook his head, "I don't think so Mom. Iolaus is so angry at Hercules right now it'd probably only make him feel worse." "I have to agree with Cupid, 'Dite. It isn't the physical separation that's hurting him. It's the emotional one. We either get these two to work out whatever is wrong or get whoever put the geis in place to remove it. Neither one has much hope of success. We don't have a clue who put the geis on him and he's too sick to try to work out relationship problems with Hercules. It's too bad."

"What's too bad Asclepius?" "I'm sorry 'Dite, but he isn't going to live long at this rate. A couple of days, a week at most. I can give him something for the pain and the nausea, but there isn't anything else I can do." Asclepius looked at Iolaus thoughtfully. "Maybe Hercules knows something about this 'Dite. Why don't you and Cupid talk to him. I'll stay here and do what I can."

Aphrodite knelt next to the bench Iolaus was lying on, she looked at him for a long moment and then kissed his cheek. "Hang on Curly. I'll do whatever I can to help you." Rising to her feet, Aphrodite, Goddess of Love, looked to her son. "Come with me Cupid. It's time we had a 'talk' with your Uncle."

*****

While Zeus and The Fates made plans for Joxer's ascension into Godhood, Ares watched his soon-to-be consort sleep. After having passed out once again, it was decided that they should just let Joxer sleep for a while. Ares had materialized a sleeping couch and made sure Joxer was comfortable before beginning his silent contemplation of the young 'mortal'. But was 'mortal' even the right word? To all of Ares' senses Joxer seemed to be mortal, but he was different at the same time. One, he could look a God in the eye, and he had recognized his own thread in the Tapestry of Life. Even the God's couldn't do that. Oh, once it was pointed out to them, they could always find it again. And they could pick out the threads of their worshiper's lives, but never their own. Joxer made a small sound in his sleep. A sound of contentment and peace. Ares watched as a myriad of expressions crossed Joxer's face. Wonder, awe, joy and pride chased each other across that smooth, pale face. On a whim, Ares decided to slip his consciousness into Joxer's dreams. Maybe he could learn more about the man he was to spend eternity with. Although, the fact that Joxer had fainted after finding out he was to be Ares consort, was vaguely disturbing. With unaccustomed care, Ares slid into Joxer's dreams.

*****

Joxer was having the most wonderful dream. He knew it was a dream because nothing this exciting ever happened to him when he was awake. There was Zeus, The Fates and the entire host of Olympus begging him to join them. To become one of the Gods of Olympus. To be the one who saved them and all of Greece from the evil of Dahak. And Ares, God of War, the God Joxer had worshiped his entire life, was asking him to become his consort. To spend eternity at his side. Joxer was on the verge of humbly accepting Ares' proposal and his new Godhood when his family and friends appeared before him. Joxer cringed inside, he knew what was coming. This was no wonderful dream, it was a nightmare.

His father Jonus knocked him to the ground and began kicking him while Jett explained to their mother who Joxer was. When Jett finally managed to convince her that Joxer was one of her son's, she pushed his father aside and took his place kicking Joxer into submission. All the while screeching at the top of her lungs. "You can't be a son of mine! You're worthless and weak! I've never seen a more pathetic excuse for a warrior!" Joxer, who had curled into a tight ball once his father began kicking him, raised his head enough to look up at his friends for help. Hercules had turned his back on Joxer so he could keep an eye on his step-mother and Ares. He didn't trust them standing at his back. Iolaus was standing at Hercules' side, but kept looking over his shoulder at Joxer. He looked like he wanted to help but couldn't leave Hercules' side. Xena just shook her head sadly and sighed at him, then turned and gazed lovingly at Gabrielle. Joxer didn't want to look at Gabrielle but he couldn't stop himself. Gabby looked down on Joxer, her lips twisted into a smile of derision. Her voice was so scornful it flayed the skin from his bones. He tried to cover his ears, but nothing could block out that cutting voice. "Joxer, how could you possibly think that the God's of Olympus would want anything to do with you? You're nothing but a fool. They're obviously just using you. And Ares? Why would he ever want you? He's being forced to take you as his consort against his will and he'll hate you for it. You'll spend eternity as the consort of a God who despises you." Gabrielle sighed deeply, "Of course, eternity probably won't last very long for you. You do know he's going to kill you the first chance he gets. But who could blame him? No one would want to stuck with you forever."

The words went on and on but Joxer just let them roll over him. Even the fact that Jett had taken over for their mother didn't register. He'd heard it all before, and had lived through worse beatings at the hands of his family. Maybe, just maybe, Ares would kill him and he'd finally get some peace.

*****

Ares was amused at the tone of Joxer's dreams. There was the skinny little man, with all of the Gods of Olympus, himself included, kneeling at his feet. 'Begging' him to become a God and save them from Dahak. Ares was less amused when his dream-self started spouting bad poetry and asked Joxer to spend eternity as the consort of the God of War. Before Ares could do anything about the humiliating display, Joxer's family and the two most troublesome demi-gods in Greece and their mortal side kicks showed up in Joxer's dream. Ares decided to wait, he was sure that Joxer's family and friends would be next in begging Joxer the Mighty for his aid.

Shocked didn't even come close to describing what Ares felt when the dream took a drastic turn into a nightmare. An obviously familiar one to Joxer.

Joxer even didn't try to fight off his family's vicious physical attack or his friend's emotional one. But the pain Joxer felt when that little 'bard' told him that Ares was being forced to marry him and would undoubtedly hate him for eternity, providing Ares didn't kill him on their wedding night, was staggering. Enough was enough, Ares rose up out of Joxer's dream to wake him. As Ares reached out to touch Joxer, he was disturbed to see tears slowly coursing down that pale, anguished face. Changing his mind, Ares sent a small ribbon of power down into Joxer's dream. The dreams of mortals was Morpheous' domain, but Ares would make it up to him later. Ares was certain of one thing. When Joxer did wake up, the two of them were going to have to talk. A devious smirk crossed Ares' dark, handsome face. Once Joxer became his consort, any insult to Joxer was an insult to Ares. And Ares would see to it that anyone doing so would regret it. For a very long time.

*****

Hercules paced restlessly. Back and forth, back and forth. All the while complaining at the top of his impressive lungs. Where was Iolaus? Which god had done what to make his 'Little Buddy' act out the way he had? Why were his ditsy blonde half-sister and nephew so angry at him? How were they going to out of this room?

Then Gabrielle, once she had regained consciousness, began helping Hercules find things to complain about. Frankly, they were driving Xena crazy. She just couldn't take it anymore. Xena decided she'd rather face a nest of pissed off Harpies than listen to these two talk for one more minute. "Would you two 'please' shut up? You aren't accomplishing anything! Except for giving me a fucking headache!"

Hercules looked shocked at Xena's tone of voice. In a not so subtle whisper, Gabby said, "You know, cramps." Then the little Amazon decided to try to soothe her lover's fragile nerves. "Xena, I know you're upset, but that's no reason to take it out on us. We all have a right to be angry right now. Aphrodite stole Iolaus, threw me across the room and then trapped us in this, this..." Gabrielle looked around at the stunningly pink temple and shuddered, "place. Once we find a way out of here you'll feel better." Hercules, staying well away from the irritable warrior princess, just kept nodding his head to show his agreement with everything Gabrielle said.

Once Gabrielle stopped to take a much needed breath, Hercules added, "Don't worry Xena, we'll make them pay for this."

Xena growled her frustration. Now it was her turn to pace around the room. Once she'd finally calmed down a little she tried to explain the situation in a way the others would understand. "Gabrielle, you know I love you right?" The bard smiled brilliantly. "And Hercules, you're one of my best friends." Hercules folded his arms across his chest and flexed. "I don't want this to sound bad, but neither of you really seems to understand the situation here." The demi-god and the Amazon frowned at this statement. "Gabby, Aphrodite threw you into a wall because you insulted her and then turned your back on her. You can't do that and not expect to get hurt. She may be the Goddess of Love, and she acts like she doesn't have a brain in her head, but she is still a God. You're lucky she didn't kill you."

Gabrielle was totally confused at this point. "But Xena, you insult the Gods all the time."

Xena knelt in front of her lover, taking those small hands into hers, she tried to will understanding into that pretty blonde head. "Yes I do, if I feel I have reason. A very good reason. But I never turn my back on them and I always have an escape route."

"Well, you don't have an escape route this time, do you?" Gabrielle asked waspishly.

Xena tried to keep her temper in check. "Escape to where Gabrielle? In case you haven't noticed, we're on Olympus. Even if we could get out, there's no where to go. Aphrodite will be back and then we can convince her to let us go."

"That still doesn't change the fact that one of the Gods did something to Iolaus and then 'Dite and Cupid took him away." Hercules stated stubbornly.

This was going to be harder than Xena originally thought. "Hercules, we were the only ones who hurt Iolaus. Cupid and Aphrodite only showed up when he called them."

Hercules felt a sudden flash of anger. "How did 'we' hurt Iolaus?"

Xena mumbled to herself, "I can't believe it, he's even blonder than she is."

In two long strides Hercules was across the room and had Xena by the arms, shaking her. "What did you say? Maybe you were in on it with them. You are Ares' daughter after all. I was a fool to trust you."

Gabrielle jumped between the two warriors and started yelling into Hercules' face. Hercules just yelled back louder.

'Dite and Cupid, wavering between feelings of unbelievable shock and fits of delight, watched the three 'friends' in action. But when Xena crawled into a corner and began smacking her head into the wall, 'Dite decided enough was enough. She needed answers, preferably before they all killed each other.

Aphrodite, Goddess of Love, and her son, Cupid, God of Love, didn't seem very lovable when they popped into view in a flash of sullen red power. Hercules literally roared at his sister, "Aphrodite!! I demand you return Iolaus to me at once!"

'Dite hit him high and Cupid hit him low. The demi-god was frozen where he stood. "Demand this, 'stud'." 'Dite sneered. "For once, you are going to shut up and listen. I have some questions for you. You will answer them. If you don't do as you're told, I'm gonna pound your ass into next week. Do you understand me?!"

Cupid's jaw dropped and he stared at his mother. A grin worthy of Strife slowly crept across his beautiful face. "Way to go Mom!"

'Dite flashed an evil grin of her own at her son. Hercules was suddenly very nervous. "Listen up Jerkules, sweet cheeks is sick, he might even die. Somebody put a whammy on him. I want to know who and I want to know why. Start talking, I don't have all day." Aphrodite crossed her arms across her middle and started tapping one tiny foot in irritation. "Chop, chop 'stud', or should I say 'dud'? He's getting worse while you stand there looking like an idiot."

Hercules, never one to let brains get in the way of brawn, finally answered, "I don't have any idea what you're talking about. I suggest you let us go before you get hurt. You know Father hates it when one of you messes with me." Hercules smirked at his sister, knowing he was going to win.

The very air surrounding the Goddess began to burn. Cupid, one of the few people, God or mortal, who knew what his mother was capable of, sent a silent cry for help to his father. It was hard to get answers out of a corpse, and Iolaus was running out of time.

*****

In Zeus' garden, Ares, Zeus and The Fates were making plans when they heard Cupid's cry. In the same instant, they felt a surge of power coming from Aphrodite's temple. Ares looked at his father, "Uh oh, 'Dite's on a rip. Wonder who's going to die this time?"

Both of the Gods looked to The Fates, "No one is scheduled to die at 'Dites' hands this day." Atropos said.

Zeus sent his mind coursing to 'Dites' temple. He cringed when he saw his half-mortal son's presence there. "It's your brother, Hercules. Xena and her little friend are there too. One of us had better go see what's going on."

Ares shook his head at his father. "You had better go. We all know how he feels about me. And it's about time for Joxer to wake up, he and I need to have a serious talk."

"Very well, I'll go take care of this." Zeus straightened his shoulders, took a deep breath, and left for the scene of destruction.

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