Children played in the rich brown soil between grass huts, their laughter mingled with the sounds of gulls who flew overhead. Dark skinned women, dressed in colorful sarongs, their long black hair waving in the light breeze worked among the huts. Their songs, sung in an unfamiliar tongue lent a nuance of peace to the scene. Dogs lay in the late spring sun, content to be near the humans they loved. Sira felt welcomed. She walked among the huts drinking in the pleasure of the morning.

Then one of the dogs began to howl. Then another joined in the unearthly lament, only to be joined by yet another. The forest creature, set out of her element on this land of sand was reminded of the wolves that protected the earth's children. But these were not wolves. They were dogs; dogs not given to baying at the sky. What could have so unnerved them to cause this joining of canine voice that set fear to tickle her spine?

Then the sound stopped. The sudden lack of sound hurt the empath's ears, and her hands flew to cover them. Through her fingers another sound was heard. The sound of people crying, children screaming, animals shrieking. A newborn baby's distinctive wail tore at her sensitive mother's heart. The forest creature looked about her. The dogs lay kicking in the throngs of death, and beside one of them lay a child twisted in an unseen agony of pain. Where moments ago a woman knelt beside her garden, a song on her lips, lay a contorted perverted human shell.

Her brown spotted feet wished to run. But try as she might, she seemed riveted to the soil, as if her feet had grown roots to hold her in place. Everywhere she looked was death. A painful agonizing death. People ceased to be people, discarding in their haste to leave the pain behind, the shell that once housed their living soul.

Were they all dead? But no, she still heard a scream. Where was it coming from? Then she knew. It came from her own lips to echo back at her from the empty huts and tease her tormented mind with its promise of life still here.

"Sira!" the hunter shook her. "Sira, wake up. It's only a dream. Sira!"

Hercules knelt beside her. "My sister. Wake up. Sira," he called gently to her. "Sira, Sira."

She knew someone called to her, but how was that possible? No one lived to make the call. Was it the earth calling her home as well? She hoped it was. Then perhaps the terror would stop.

The demigod sent his mind to the empath. Tapping the mind of the hunter almost as lost in confusion as the healer's he pulled his mind to the girl as well. Using the earth's power the child of the forest had awakened in him so long ago he used her own tricks to try and reach her mind.

Her screaming stopped, but she couldn't wake. Tears scored her cheeks and wrenched great choking sobs from her, and still she remained entranced in the nightmarish world her mind had created.

"What's wrong with her?" the King of thieves asked. His own voice shook with shock.

"It's a dream," the hunter explained, "but she can't seem to leave it behind."

"She's in hysterics. Shake her."

"We've tried that," Hercules announced in exasperation.

The empath pulled back from the hunter and opened her mouth to scream.

The slap was not really hard. The man who delivered it had no wish to harm her.

"Autolycus, you bastard!" the hunter started to make a grab for the thief.

"Iolaus," the girl moaned.

"It's all right, Sira. I'm here," her golden one assured her. "It's just a dream." Along with his words he sent his mind to soothe her.

She rubbed her palm over her cheek. There was a stinging there she couldn't understand. She felt so confused and disoriented. The hunter rocked her like a baby, shushing her and crooning to her like he might a small child.

The demigod kept a hand on her and his mind open to her. "I'm here also, my sister. It was only a dream."

She began to cry softly now, which only tore at the hunter's heart all the more. "Autolycus," he growled out

between clinched teeth, "when I get my hands on you, you're a dead man."

"She was in hysterics. She was going to scream again. I didn't hit her hard. I just wanted to bring her out of it." The hunter's glare was unrelenting. "I'm sorry, Iolaus. I wasn't trying to hurt her."

"All right Autolycus," the son of Zeus stopped him.

"Well, it worked, didn't it? That's all I wanted. I� Well� I'm sorry." He rose from his crouch beside the others and walked to the far side of the cargo hold.

Why did I slap her? he asked himself. I really didn't mean to. I didn't want her to scream again, that's for sure. He shivered as he remembered her scream waking him from a sound sleep. He realized he was shaking. I guess I was a bit unnerved, myself. I don't think I could have taken much more of that. No, I definitely didn't want her to scream again.

He heard the ship's crew coming and moved to head them off. That poor kid doesn't need all these well meaning fools to upset her even more.

Still lost in the terror of her dream, the empath lay whimpering against the hunter. She realized she'd been more entranced than asleep. A sense of dread swept over her at the realization. She'd had these kind of entranced dreams before. They were a warning of events to come. She voiced her fear.

"You can't know that, my sister," the brother of her soul reasoned with her. "Besides that, your dreams aren't always clear enough to really predict the future." He gave her a reassuring smile. "We've changed the future before; why not again?" He smoothed the hair from her cheek. "We do make an unbeatable team."

"We do have an unblemished record, do we not?" Her words were shaky, but there was a hint of her inner strength in the words.

Tang handed her a mug of tea. No one had been aware he was even there. "You drink, Sila. It warm you."

"Thank you, Tang." She took the mug in hands that shook slightly. "Did I wake everyone up?"

"Yeah," the hunter chuckled, "clear back to Corinth."

"Was I screaming?"

"Oh, yeah."

She touched her cheek. There was no pain or sting there now, and yet she seemed to remember something. "Did someone slap me?"

"Don't worry. I plan to deal with him, myself." There was anger in the hunter's words.

"Autolycus?"

Hercules took her hand. "He wasn't trying to hurt you, Sira. He wanted to bring you out of your trance. I think he was a little unsettled, himself. He did have quite a shock."

Sira could imagine how it must have been to be awakened from a sound sleep by a woman's piercing scream. "Do not be angry with him, Iolaus." She sent her mind to caress her mate of the soul's mind. She could sense his churning emotions. "My protector," she whispered with her mind.

"Forever, my love," his mind responded.

The healer sat on a crate on deck. Knots sat next to her. She'd tried three times to get the hang of an intricate knot he was showing her. She laughed at herself. "I am defeated."

"Nah. Try again. Here, let me show you." This time the girl lightly touched the sailor's mind as she watched his hands. "There, you see?" He showed her the completed knot.

"Now let me try." She took the rope from him.

Tang sat next to the healer placidly cleaning vegetables. Hercules and Iolaus were practicing their fighting skills, an exercise Sira often joined in. She loved to watch them. Many of the moves they had worked out were nothing short of acrobatic.

"I did it!" the healer exclaimed. "I did the knot, finally." She held her completed work out for the sailor to see.

"Good. Now remember what you did and do it again."

Sira wore a look of contentment as she concentrated on her hands. "There. I have done it again."

The hunter landed hard on the deck. "Damn!" he swore in exasperation. "I can't get that one right."

"Balance all wrong," the little cook told him. "You must find center of gravity."

"That's what we're trying to do," the demigod chuckled.

The cook set his knife and the turnip he was pealing aside and stood up to hold his hand out to Sira. "Come, we show them."

"Me? I do not know how to do anything so complicated."

"You have natural balance. Feel with your mind. It will guide you."

Sira reluctantly stood. "I do not know about this."

"Close eyes. Remember what they trying to do. Do the move in your mind. Picture it being done. See with your mind where your feet will go; where your hands must be."

She did as she was instructed. After a moment she opened her eyes and nodded. Tang left her to stand near the demigod. "Ready?"

She started forward. As she did Tang dropped to one knee and braced himself. Sira's hands went to his shoulders and she balanced there, bringing her legs up in a kick out behind her. The little man placed his hands near her waist to help balance her then lifted as she thrust up into a flip and landed on her feet ready to kick or throw a punch at the nearest opponent. The move was done in one fluid motion. As Sira landed Tang was on his feet in a fighting stance.

"That's it!" the son of Zeus exclaimed. "That was beautiful. So what are we doing wrong?"

The little man showed the demigod where to brace the person and when to lift. "You try with Sila. She know how."

The big man nodded and braced himself. "You ready?" he smiled at the healer. She moved forward and the move was made without a hitch. "I've got it now. I was lifting too soon." He grinned at the hunter. "Sorry, old friend."

The golden one rubbed his backside. "Yeah."

"Come on, let's see if we can get it right now."

"Well, be careful this time. You drop me one more time I may deck ya."

"You mean you'd try. Stop stalling and get to moving." The hunter made his move and they were successful. They tried once more. "Thanks, Tang. That's great. Where'd you learn that?"

"My country. My father a master."

The little man showed them a few other moves which the four of them worked on together.

Sira felt invigorated by the exercise and her success both with the knots and with the complicated moves the ship's cook showed them. She seemed to have shed her gloom of the night before like a colt sheds its winter coat. Only those closest to her knew it was never that easy for her sensitive heart and soul to forget what she remained convinced was a premonition.

The King of thieves had carefully avoided the others. He was feeling guilty about what he'd done the previous night. The empath waited for an opportunity to talk to him, but he managed to elude her. Finally she decided to seek him out. She found him in the crew's quarters playing chips with one of the sailors.

"Autolycus, I would like a word with you, please," she requested.

"What? Now? I'm winning."

"Please."

"Ah, I got you again, my friend," the thief prodded the sailor.

"We go again," the sailor insisted.

"Let me talk to the lady first, then I'll beat you one more time." The dark haired man stood and followed the healer to the cargo hold. "Look, if this is about last night, I'm sorry. I�"

She turned to face him and placed her hand on his arm. "It is about last night, " she interrupted him.

"I�" he started to interrupt her back but she went right on.

"I wanted to thank you."

"You what?" He couldn't believe what he'd just heard. "You what?" he repeated.

"I wanted to thank you. You are a good friend to care enough to help me."

"I� Well, I� I didn't hurt you too bad, did I?"

"No, my friend, you did the right thing. It is not always easy for me to leave an entranced dream behind."

He nodded. "Now if you can just get Iolaus to understand."

"He does. He is not angry any longer. He is very protective of me, but he understands now why you did what you did." She smiled at him. "Now you can go finish your chips game." He nodded and started to turn away. "Autolycus?" He stopped and the healer placed a kiss on his cheek. "Thank you."

He nodded again, then started to say something, and didn't. She gave him a warm smile then left him where he was. He turned to watch her walk away, and as he did he touched his pointer finger to the place where she'd placed the kiss. His face seemed to tingle there.

After their evening meal the healer helped Tang clean up. She was restless and nervous. She'd been unable to completely shake the uneasy feeling her dream of last night had left her with.

She turned her mind to other things. "Earlier when you spoke of your father you sounded sad. You must miss him very much." She had sensed loss in the little man. She knew without being told his father was dead.

"I miss," Tang agreed.

"You have no family?"

"No. I fight. My father teach me. But fighting make enemies. They kill my family."

"I am sorry, my friend."

"Long time ago. What I learn from my father not for hate. Not to deliberately hurt others. Still when my family killed, I became just like those who kill them. Four years I search, and I kill them all. When last one die, however, I still feel the same. No better. It not bring my family back; it only disgrace them. I find work on ship. I help cook. I come to this country and start over." He shook his head. "Not always easy to forget the past."

During their sailing of the day they had passed two small islands. Captain Bradous seemed to grow more nervous with each league south they sailed.

He ordered a man to the crow's nest to keep a look out. The nervousness of the ship's master seemed to infect them all and they all looked to the sea often, searching the horizon for any sign of another ship. The danger was real and the sailors knew it. There was no law out here on the open sea, and those who'd chosen to use the earth's water ways to further their terrorist exploits were well aware of this fact. Out here they were free from social restraint. If anyone survived their attacks, telling of them would make no difference. Who would do anything to try and put a stop to their brutal and murderous ways?

The only protection a ship on legitimate business had was to be stronger, and in some cases more brutal than the pirates themselves.

The wind held for them and the ship skimmed through the brine smoothly. The sky was laden with a thin layer of high clouds that dulled its brilliance to a slate gray, and shortened the visibility with its haziness. The empath kept her mind open to the sea. No one needed to tell her that their safety might lay in spotting the pirate's ship first.

The Alcmene was a larger ship than most, but the Captain assured them it wasn't the largest, and it had been his personal experience that pirate vessels were among the biggest and fastest on the seas.

The child of the forest didn't rest well during the night. Her slumber wasn't disturbed by Hadean dreams, but she feared it would be. She also feared a ship might find them in the night and her mind refused to embrace a deep sleep that would shut her mind from sensing the approach of danger. She woke early to the realization that it was raining. Not a storm like the one which had threatened their very existence only days before, but a light steady rain with little or no wind.

With a squeal of delight she ran to the deck. It rained in a steady light drizzle. She laughed as the drops touched her skin. With a quick leap she grabbed the ropes and scurried to the crow's nest. The sailor who would be assigned there for the morning hadn't yet taken his position. The darkness still held the morning at bay and nothing could be seen from the wicker basket beyond the blackness of a rainy night.

The creature of the forest turned her face to the sky and let the soft, silver shards of cloud washed liquid earth renew her energies and bring the comfort of the earth to her. With each drop she seemed to gain strength and energy. She gave the earth's prayer of thanks to the sky for the renewal the moisture would bring to the mortal plane.

The healer still occupied the crow's nest when the demigod came on deck intent on taking his place in the wicker basket. The healer hadn't known it would be his turn at the nerve racking task of searching the horizon endlessly for signs of another ship. The endless hours of looking over the vastness could leave a man lightheaded and sick at the stomach. It never failed to strain a man's eyes and had even been known to leave some temporarily blinded. Captain Bradous never asked his men to stay aloft long enough for this to occur. Still, it could be a tiring duty.

The big man looked up to the rigging as he felt the healer's mind touch his. With a smile he climbed up to her. "What are you doing up here in the rain, funny face?"

"I am letting the sky's generosity renew my energies, funnier face."

"Mind if I join you?"

"This is a very small basket, and you are a very large man."

He laughed "So we'll just have to stay close. I don't bite, you know."

"Well, in that case you may indeed join me."

He lifted himself over the side of the basket. "Have you been watching for signs of pirates?"

"I cannot see far enough to see much, but yes, I have searched the sea."

He put his arm around her as he pointed to the east. "The sun is reluctant to make an appearance this morning." A slight lighting of the blackness along the edge of the ocean was all that showed the coming of the day.

"It does not wish to get itself wet."

"I think it's just afraid it won't be able to chase away the clouds. So rather than be defeated it would rather hide behind the ocean."

Sira smiled up at him. "There is an old yosemin tale that tells how the sun came to be."

"Will you tell it to me?"

She leaned back against his shoulder where his arm rested around her. "The earth came first in the great long ago, far before the remembered time. Beyond what is our world now were particles of dust that floated in a black sea of nothingness. Into this nothingness came an all powerful god. A god who was fire. This god was not a well liked god. He was too hot tempered and ill mannered. He was often given to evil and injustice and soon made enemies of the other gods who also occupied the great nothingness. He was so persecuted that he fled. In fear he pulled the particles of dust together to form a huge ball that he might hide from the other gods within its density. His heat fused and solidified the dust to form the soil of the earth. When it was complete the fire god found that the bits of dust had all been part of another god who'd also been hated by the same gods who hated him. The dust god was really a goddess of rare beauty and power who'd been sentenced for eternity never to be whole again. As a goddess she had been loved and admired for her beauty, and many had vied for her affections. But two gods in particular had found her irresistible and had fought over her for many millennia. Their fighting was a danger to the other gods who soon grew tired of the constant disputation. The goddess was told to make a choice between the two warring gods. But she could not. She did not love them. When she failed to make a choice the father of all gods used his powers to scatter her far and wide so that none could look upon her beauty and be tempted to fight for her again.

"When the fire god brought her parts together and saw her beauty he fell instantly in love with her. But still she did not find him to her liking. She did, however, agree to let him hide within her since he had been the one to make her whole once again. He was content to be near her at first and all seemed well. This, of course, is our mother earth. Now, once again whole in her beauty, the other gods began to bicker over her. Then the sky god came to see for himself why so many were so taken by the goddess. He took one look at her and she took one look at him and they became lovers.

Now the fire god was angry. He had hoped someday he would win the fair goddess' favor. In despair he hurled a great ball of fire at the sky god, hoping to kill him. The fireball burned a hole in the sky god and stuck there, never to be released. Each day the sky god turns in his pain, trying in vane to dislodge the fiery shaft of agony he must endure because of his love for the beautiful earth goddess. When he is turned away it is our night. The fireball lights the sky's handsome face. But when the sky's back is turned the fireball lights the many small holes his heat has made. And the moon is the backside of the fireball. The earth must live with the heat of the fiery god that still dwells within her. The ball of fire that is a part of the fire god pulls the water the earth mother uses to cool herself away from her in an endless attempt to force her to his evil will. But her lover, the sky steals the water away from the fireball and sends it back to his lover the earth. He also sometimes obscures the fireball from his beautiful lover behind the mists so that she might, for a short time at least, forget the pain her lover the sky must endure, and so that she might forget the evil she unwittingly allowed to possess her inner core."

The demigod tightened his grip on her. "Your people have many tales that explain why things are as they are, don't they?"

"Yes. There is another tale that tells us of the beginning. Both, we believe, are written in the great book of clan that has now been returned to its people. Someday I will tell you the other tale as well."

"So not all yosemins agree how the earth mother came to be?"

"There are other tales. In the time before the remembered time, back when there was only the clan of the wolf and the lion, there were other peoples who also shared the mortal plane with us. My people were nomads who followed the sun and the great herds for their survival. These other peoples had an influence on the people of the earth. It is no longer known which of our tales are the true yosemin ones and which have been adapted to our legends from outside influences. When the earth's people broke up into smaller clans much of our real history was lost. It is not known what beyond the forming of the original twenty clans is recorded in the book of clan we found at the old temple in the Neberous forest. We are almost certain at least two stories of how the earth god came to be are recorded there, but whether or not the origin of these tales is explained is unknown."

"Who will open the book to discover its secrets?"

"It has been suggested that I should be the one to do so because my blood line can be traced directly to the original clan of the wolf and the lion, and because I am, it seems, the last empath left to the people of the earth. Thysis seems to believe I am the chosen one; the one the earth has chosen to save her people, and therefore the honor of once again revealing the secrets hidden in the book of clan should be mine." She sighed. "Also there are few who still remember the ancient yosemin picture writing."

"But you do, don't you?"

"Yes. It was something I was taught when I became the Dea of my village."

"What exactly is a Dea?"

"She is the apprentice healer chosen by the healing elder to take her place when she is called to the earth. The Dea would become the healing elder of the village."

"Sounds like quite an honor."

"It is. It is also an awesome responsibility that cannot be denied. The healing elder is responsible for those chosen by the power of their earthly influence to go into the apprenticeship of healing."

"Why haven't you opened the book?" He brought his eyes away from his endless search of the sea to watch her face.

"I am not sure I should be the one to do so. I am no longer a true yosemin."

"What?! What are you saying?"

"I have chosen to follow the ways of my mate of the soul."

The son of Zeus laughed. "You think just because you no longer live in a yosemin village you're no longer yosemin? The earth never had a more devoted disciple, and I think to be more to the truth of things, your mate of the soul has chosen to follow the ways of the earth and her chosen one." Sira smiled up at him, but made no comment. "And he is not the only convert to the ways of the earth you have made, little empath."

She knew he referred to himself. "Yes, my brother, you and Iolaus are of the earth. Perhaps, as is sometimes the case, more so than your teacher, I think."

"It's not like you to second guess yourself. Are you still bothered by your dreams of the other night?"

"Yes. But I think more than that, I am bothered by the ways I have used the powers the earth has granted me."

"It's true that if you had continued to be the Dea of your village you might never have been shown that the earth's powers could be used in these ways. But since you have been led to explore the world around you, your powers have grown and intensified. That does not, however, mean you are using them in ways they were not meant to be used. Trust the earth to guide you. I've heard you say that to others, and it's good advice. You couldn't deny the earth if you tried, and since the earth still pulsates through you, you must have her approval. Believe in her to guide you to use her gifts for her benevolent design."

The girl took a deep breath and touched his mind with hers. No words passed her lips, but the touch of her mind was made in gratitude. "You have lightened my burden, my more that brother of the soul. The earth has chosen you well to side with her daughter."

"The three of us together in soul, my sister," his mind responded to her.

"Yes, the three of us as one." She turned once more to search the ocean around her. Her mind sensed no danger, but she seemed unable to keep her eyes from their endless search. No ship was found to disturb the peace of the emerging dawn. The rain still falling in a light sprinkle seemed not to mar the placid surface of the endless green main.

The child of the forest and the half god son of Zeus watched a grayness take over the sky. The day promised to stay dank and dark, and the girl was glad. Her mood no longer was, however. The liquid earth and her brother's words had done much to lighten her spirits.

The crew of the Alcmene wasn't as happy with the damp weather as the land loving yosemin. The rain had put a damper on the wind they relied on to move through the water. What little breeze there was seemed never to come from the same direction, and the men were kept scrambling to follow the vagrant puffs of air.

By midday the rain had stopped, but the ship was becalmed. The clouds didn't lift and their presence seemed to lend a hush to the ocean. The sails lay slack among the rigging. The crew paced the deck in frustration. Their nerves were on edge anyway, and with the ship in drift the tension became almost a visible force to be reckoned with.

The empath found Knots resting along the mast step and joined him. "Why is the crew so nervous?"

"We're in pirate waters unable to navigate." He explained as if his answer was a logical thing.

"But if there is no wind to move us, there is no wind to move the pirates either."

The big sailor grinned. "The logical mind of a landlubber."

"Is this not true?"

"Yes, but that will do little to relieve the tension. It's not a thing of logic. It's a matter of not moving when movement would give them something to occupy their minds and block some of the concern about the possibility of encountering pirates."

"What will happen if we are overtaken by pirates?"

"There's no way of telling. Some only want cargo, and will take it and leave the ship to go on its way. Of course they seldom leave enough food or water to sustain a bilge rat. But with the islands so close that's not so much of a problem. They might fire the ship." At her raised eyebrows he explained. "Burn it after the cargo is taken. We might be left to flounder in the sea as the ship burns or left dead on the burning deck. They might ram us and take the cargo while the ship sinks. They could board us."

"So they do not always kill the crew of the ship?"

"No. Sometimes the crew is sold into slavery. If the ship is better than the one the pirates have, the ship itself will be taken."

The big sailor wasn't saying something, but the healer knew what it was he found hard to say. She'd sensed it from his mind. She would hardly expect to survive a pirate attack unharmed. She might fetch a high price sold as a slave or be forced to entertain the pirate ship's crew. Knots watched her face a moment then looked away. He didn't want to think about what might happen to her at the hands of the murdering thieves who terrorized this part of the Sea of Crete.

As night fell the fog rolled in. It was a cold damp fog, so thick that the top of the mast was lost to view. The vaporous mist swirled about the rigging, looking for all the world like ghostly apparitions, come to haunt the becalmed ship. It tore to tatters as it shifted about the darkened poles of the spars, moving as if by a breeze only the undead could sense. The canvas lay slack along the vertical spars as moisture beaded on their oiled surface to create a steady drip, dripping sound.

The hunter and the healer strolled the deck as the sun was lost to the night. He'd bundled up against the cold, but the yosemin wore no cloak. She loved the feel of the damp air on her skin. She was soon soaked through from the dripping fog, but she scarcely seemed to notice.

It was late in the night when the empath woke with a start. She sensed the hour and wondered why she'd awakened. She could tell by the feel of the ship that the fog still held them in irons. She curled herself against the hunter and he pulled her tightly against him. He never really woke and his movements were governed more by his unconscious need to be close to the woman he loved than anything.

The healer sent her mind out to feel for the source of her sudden disquiet. Sensing something she strengthened her mind.

What to do? Should she sound a general alarm and rouse the ship? Should she wake Iolaus and let him wake the Captain?

She lay a moment longer, letting her mind and body absorb the feel of the man who lay beside her. She pulled the essence and the feel of him to her and stored it away. They were soon to face danger, and she wanted to remember this should they be separated in some way. "Iolaus," she shook him gently. "Wake up, my love."

"What is it, Sira?"

"There is another ship out there."

He sat up quickly. "You're sure?" He wasn't sure why he'd asked her this; he knew the answer. He rose, and pulling his vest over his shoulders went to wake the demigod.

"Where is this ship you sense?"

"Ahead of us."

"Well, at least we're forewarned. I'll wake the Captain."

The men were roused and each of them was issued a sword and a knife. Until the fog lifted and they could see what they faced, they could make no plans. They must wait now for a breeze to blow the fog away and perhaps blow them to a painful end.

The woman sat at a table in a small and unpleasant room. The house the old Captain had built here was of the old style with many small, dark and cramped rooms. The woman sighed as she threw her long dark hair behind her back in a movement that had become almost habitual. She hated the house and everything in it. Even during the day you must burn candles to see in many of the rooms. It was always damp, but especially on foggy nights like this one. There was always the faint smell of mildew in the air since it was impossible to keep the stuff from forming on the damp stone walls.

She leaned forward to study the scroll before her. She moved one of the pottery jars she was using to hold the rolled papyrus paper flat. She had most of it now. She leaned back to rub her tired shoulders. I guess I shouldn't have killed the old mystic before I learned all his secrets, she thought. But he was such a pitiful fool, shouting about good versus evil. What bilge. My powers can only be used for good. She laughed. "If that's true, it will do me no good. I have no intention of doing good," she told the empty room.

She turned slightly in her chair to look back at the little stand beside her bed. A tingle of pleasure went through her. "My little piece of the mighty King Jason; his beloved crown." It's so plain and simple for such an admired leader, she thought.

She shivered with anticipation as she rose and stretched. Walking to the stand she picked up the crown to study it. On impulse she put it on her head. She stood looking at her reflection in a polished sheet of metal that hung on the wall. "I could have loved you, Jason," she whispered.

She let her mind dwell on the former King of Corinth. When she'd first lured him to the old monastery at Fashidra, her only desire had been for revenge. Then something in his valiant fight against her torture had changed all that. Despite being abused, both physically and mentally, despite being humiliated, he'd fought her.

She turned to the left, then the right, watching the way the candlelight caught and reflected in the gold of the crown. "You've come a long way from the common little whore you used to be, but not far enough." She felt the old rage begin to build. Rage at the injustice of growing up with an ignorant, uncaring father and a prostitute mother who would stop at nothing to get what she wanted, not even at the expense of her daughter's innocence.

She remembered what it had been like to be twelve and to be forced by her mother to bring pleasure to a man. There had always been rage inside of her. She could admit that. Even when she was very young she could remember feeling hatred toward the people who'd made her existence intolerable. She knew she'd always been a mean, spiteful child, never able to make or keep friends. Always she must be in charge of all games they played. And the only games she'd liked were war games. When she wasn't allowed to be the leader she didn't simply walk away; she fought. She seldom lost, because of the brutal rage that seemed to grip her at such times. If she did lose, she never left it at that, but took her time to plot her revenge. It was always good fun to think up ways to hurt others.

She smiled now as she remembered the time she'd sat on the back of the most popular girl in the village to hold her down while she methodically cut the girl's hair off as close to the scalp as she could. She shivered with delight as she remembered the pleasure she'd derived from administering her vengeance on a girl who was all the things she'd always wanted to be.

Still, her real rage hadn't come until that night she'd lost a woman's most precious gift, to a man she couldn't stomach.

The hate and rage that somehow seemed to sustain her, swept over her to leave her feeling shaky. Never before had it been so powerful. Was the old mystic's spell working? She tossed the crown on the bed and crossed to the scroll. As she did, the intensity of her emotions seemed to ebb away. She sat at the table feeling weak and spent. What had caused such rage one moment, only to be lost the next? She looked about the room then turned back to the scroll. She chanted the words she'd been able to decipher so far, but nothing happened. She tried again, but still she felt no return of the powerful feelings she experienced only moments ago. In frustration she shoved away from the table and began to pace. Then she stopped to stare at the crown that lay on her bed where she'd tossed it. A frown crossed her face. Afraid to fully acknowledge the thought that was forming in her mind she crossed to the bed to recover the crown. Holding it a moment in her hands she once again let her mind dwell on the past. She deliberately cultivated the hate that was never far from the surface. With the crown in her hands she sat back at the table. The moment her hands touched the scroll she felt a wave of nausea pass over her that left her feeling giddy. Reading the words of the old text she swayed from the intensity of the power that surged through her. She was filled with an almost sickening force that knotted her stomach and left her feeling light headed.

The dogs in the other room howled and barked. She sighed in exasperation. She hated the dogs. They'd been the old Captain's. She'd only kept them around to guard her at night. Not that they had any loyalty to her; she tortured them too much for that. But true to their breed they were vicious with strangers.

She left the table, moving unsteadily across the room. She had no idea what the power she seemed to possess might be or how it might be used, but she wasn't ready to relinquish it quite yet. She jerked open the door to shout at the dogs to be still. "There's nothing out there, you bloody bastards. Shut up!" The dogs seemed not to even notice her. "Shut up!" she shouted again. Letting the anger and hate she felt for the beasts wash over her she felt the dizziness again. The dogs began to yip and cower in pain. Then the older one, the one she hated the most, fell, thrashing his life out on the stone floor. Within seconds the other dog joined him.

Venin grabbed the doorjamb to steady herself. What had just happened? She was stunned. How could this be? She tossed the crown back to the bed. As it left her hand the surge of power left her also. She slumped to the floor feeling drained and wasted. Her limbs felt numb and devoid of life.

"What could this be?" she asked herself. Slowly her strength began to return and she pulled herself up to stumble to her bed. She sprawled across it and reached for the crown of Jason. As she did, an evil smile split her face. With the evil smirk, all traces of her beauty were lost behind the hate she seemed to exude into the very air around her.

Captain Bradous ran an agitated hand through his hair. "How could you possibly know if there is a ship out there or not?"

"Believe me, Captain," the son of Zeus told him, "if she says there's a ship out there, you can believe there is."

The good Captain sighed in exasperation. "I have been told by the owner of this ship and by a man I greatly admire that I must follow your directions. I have tried to do this." He looked from one to the other of them, then gave the order to arm the men. Having done so he turned back to the others. "I still don't believe any of this, but there can be no harm in arming the men." Sira started to protest but he held up his hand to stop her. "Please don't ask me to believe that a person can simply know something like this."

The healer smiled at him. "I am telepathic," she stated simply. "I can sense the thoughts of the people on the other ship."

The Captain studied her face a moment. She was obviously very serious about what she had just declared. He turned to Hercules and Iolaus. "You believe in this?"

"We do," the demigod assured him. But what's more important, Jason believes it. That's why he told you to follow her lead."

The ship's master nodded. "Very well. We shall see."

"Well, supposing she's right and there is a pirate ship out there," the King of thieves inquired, "what are our chances?"

"It will depend on a great many factors," the Captain answered. "The wind most often comes from the south. So it will most likely be against us. If the pirate ship is a large one with more sail, we can't possibly hope to out run it. With the wind against us and a larger ship to pursue us, running would be foolhardy." The Captain sipped the tea the cook had brought to his cabin without being asked. "If they simply try to board us we'll have a fighting chance. Although, we'll most likely be outnumbered, we have some damn fine fighting men on board. We might stand a chance if they board us."

"What else might happen?"

"Sometimes they ram a smaller ship to cripple it. Then they storm it and take what they want, leaving the crew to go down with the ship, or taking them to be sold to a slaver. Sometimes they catapult burning embers aboard. While the crew fights to save the ship the pirates board and take what they want, again, sometimes leaving the crew to go down with the burning ship or taking them to sell to the slavers that frequent these waters."

"And sometimes not leaving the crew to go down with the ship or taking them to be sold?"

"That is most often the case, yes."

The master thief moaned. "I was afraid you'd say that."

"I say we fight them if they try to board," the hunter stated. "We do stand a fighting chance and I say we take it."

The Captain nodded. "Yes, I'm afraid that may be our only choice. Let's just hope we're given the chance to do so."

He turned to the healer. "Might I suggest that you stay below decks. The presence of a woman might well stiffen their resolve to have us."

The healer looked him in the eyes. "I know what you are implying. I am not shocked as you thought I might be. I am fully aware of the danger to me. I will not hide below decks, cowering in fear like a child. I can help repel an attack, and I will do so along with the rest of you. Your mind implies I might be a tasty morsel for the pleasure of the men on the pirate's ship. I say then, my presence might make the difference between them trying to burn or ram the ship. If I am such a precious commodity, would they be so willing to risk losing me to such tactics?"

The demigod's face was split in a humorous grin. The hunter put an arm around her waist and pulled her close.

Tang nodded. "You fight. I fight with you. I help keep watch over Sila."

The hunter stuck his hand out to the little man who took it in a surprisingly firm warrior's grasp. "Thank you, Tang, but it may well be her who looks out for you." The hunter pulled the healer into his arms and took her lips. "She's a warrior in the truest sense of the word." For some reason the healer didn't understand her mate's words filled her with pride. "Just promise me you will be careful," he whispered to her.

"Forever," her mind caressed his.

"Captain?" Knots stuck his head around the door. "It's coming onto light and the wind's quickening, sir."

"Thank you, Knots." The Captain turned back to the others. "Well, we shall soon see." He motioned to the door. "Shall we?"

"In the name of the earth, the sun, and the sky, we will be victorious." The healer gave the yosemin warrior's prayer.

"May the gods be with us," the Captain added.

A man from the crow's nest called down," She's a big one, sir." The Captain looked to the healer and inclined his head. "She's facing toward us with the wind at her back. We'll not be outrunning her. There's plenty of activity over there," he called down after a moment. "You can bet they know we're here."

"Come on down," the Captain called. "We'll be needing you down here with a sword in your hand."

The pirate's ship was headed straight toward them. They put more sail on and came forward swiftly. "I believe they plan to ram us," the Captain stated. "They're building up speed."

"Then if they damage the Alcmene, we'll just have to take their ship," the demigod stated.

"If there's enough of us left to try."

Sira went to stand at the rail of the ship. Her hair was braided and held in place with a scarf. She reached up to remove the rectangle of woven moss. It would be in her way if she must fight. She watched the ship moving swiftly toward them and sent a prayer to the earth.

"They're taking in the sails, Captain," Knots announced. "They've no intention of ramming us."

"I wonder what changed their mind. I was sure that's what they had in mind."

The demigod pointed to the healer still standing at the rail. "Maybe they've seen the error of their ways."

Now the ship came forward slowly. The wait seemed an eternity before the pirate ship came alongside them. "Turn over your cargo and we will let you go," a man called over to them.

"He's lying," both Sira and Autolycus stated at the same time, then they smiled at each other.

"We have no cargo to speak of. We search for someone on the outer islands," Captain Bradous called back. "We're on business for King Iphicles of Corinth. Will you stand aside?"

"I think you know the answer to that." Three of the men who stood beside the apparent leader of the pirates held planks ready to lower to the Alcmene.

"They have every intention of boarding us," Captain Bradous whispered.

"I say again, give us your cargo and the woman, and we'll let you live."

"I think you know the answer to that," the Captain answered.

"Then prepare to be boarded," the leader replied. "And you will be one of the first to go, dear Captain." He held up his hand to give the signal to lower the planks. Sira threw out her mind just as his hand fell. Her thoughts focused on the pirate leader and he screamed as both hands flew to his head.

"Call your men off," the healer's mind told him. "Call them off and the pain will stop."

The planks the men held fell to the rail of the Alcmene and men began to scurry across. Sira's mind hit two of them and they lost their balance to fall into the water between the two ships.

The demigod picked up the edge of another plank and shoved it off the rail, sending it and its occupants to join their friends already in the water.

Still others came over on ropes and the remaining planks. Sira heard the clash of swords and intensified her hold on the leader's mind. "Call them off and the pain will stop."

Tang fought before her, no sword in his hands. It was obvious he didn't need one. He sent a high swift slash of his hand at one man and another came at him from behind. Sira blasted the man's mind and he dropped his sword as he fell to his knees, both hands to his head. The empath grabbed up the sword and with a well placed blow of the sword's hilt on the man's neck he sprawled on the deck, out cold.

The son of Zeus kicked with a high swinging kick to a man's jaw and the empath heard a sickening crack of bone.

The hunter used his sword to advantage and blood welled from a man's middle. Sira looked up to see a man sneaking up on the master thief where he fought with another man. She rushed forward to stop the man and he turned to meet her. She threw up her sword to block his blow as her mind hit his. Then turning, she slashed back and down to knock the man's feet from under him. A hard kick to the chin as he fell rendered him harmless.

"Thanks," the King of thieves called to the girl.

The yosemin again intensified the power of the earth she exerted on the pirate Captain's mind. "Call off your men or your skull will split open like an overripe melon." She slashed the sword's hilt down on another skull and moved to the rail of the Alcmene.

The pirate Captain lay on the deck, both hands to his head, as he writhed in agony.

"Do it now!" the healer demanded. She sent pictures of his own bloody demise as his brain imploded in on itself.

"Retreat!" the leader shouted through his pain and fear. "Retreat!" Hercules threw a man to the deck. He landed with a thud. The hunter's punch dropped another man. "Retreat!" The pirates began to back away and a hush filled the air. Two of the Alcmene's crew made to follow the pirates

"No. Let them go," the demigod told them.

Sira began to slowly pull her mind back from the pirate leader as two of his men helped him to his feet where he stood swaying unsteadily, his eyes still squinting against the pain.

"Send two men over to recover your dead and wounded," the demigod called to the leader.

The pirates looked about him then at the fallen men on the deck of the Alcmene. "You played Hades with my men," he accused.

"You came looking for it." There was no sympathy in the big man. "You had a chance to stand down."

"Who in Tartarus are you?" One of his crew whispered something to him. "You're Hercules?" The demigod inclined his head. "Are you really on business for the King?"

"We are."

"Why would the mighty Hercules be doing something for the King of Corinth?"

"He's my brother," the big man stated simply.

"What did you do to my head?" Sira walked up to her more than brother where he stood at the rail talking with the privateer. "You said you didn't have cargo. She'd fetch a pretty dinar on the slaver's block. Or I might have kept her to warm my own berth." Sira had released enough of the man's mind to allow him to begin to recover his self confidence.

"You know that headache you've got?" the son of Zeus asked, then jerked his head to indicate the healer.

"What? She a witch or something?"

Hercules chuckled. "I'd be careful what I say. She has one heck of a temper. You have your men. Sail on."

"You're not going to board us?" the leader was shocked. He'd been sure they would take his ship.

"We have no use for you or your ship. We've other matters to attend to."

The leader stood in silence for a moment. "There'll be another time."

"You don't learn easily, do you? You should count yourself lucky. If we weren't on urgent business you'd find yourself below decks in irons. Still, if you wish to try for another time we'll be waiting, and you may not be so lucky a second time." Sira sent a little jab of energy to the man's mind to back up her brother of the soul's words.

"All right, witch woman," he moaned in pain. He turned his attention to the demigod once more. "I don't envy you her company."

She enjoyed the added force she put behind her mind's probe at his words. Then deliberately turning her back she went to Captain Bradous. He'd received a nasty cut to his right forearm. "Let me help," the empath offered.

The Captain had wrapped his arm in a cloth but it was now soaked in blood. "It'll be fine."

She took the injured arm in her hands despite his objection then shoved his good hand away. "Do not be stubborn. I can stop the bleeding."

"Really, there's no need. I can manage on my own."

She ignored him and removed the makeshift bandage with a gentle hand. Closing her eyes she placed her hand over the wound. She took a deep breath and sent her mind to the Captain. He stiffened in surprise and tried to pull away. She tightened her grip on him and kept a steady hold on his thoughts. After a moment he relaxed a little and she strengthened her mind's touch.

"How is this possible?" he whispered in disbelief. "No human can do these things."

"No, Captain, no human. I am yosemin."

The Captain drew in a quick breath. "I've heard of your kind. You're an empath, aren't you?"

"Yes, my friend, I am. Do not fear me. I sense your thoughts. If I had any desire to steal your mind or your soul, would I not have done so long ago?" She smiled at him. "There was a time I would have said the theft of another mind was impossible, but I have seen it happen. The stealing of a soul is impossible, I believe, although the joining of one soul to another might come close, since the soul is forever changed." She looked to where the hunter and the demigod stood. "But the joining of soul is a wondrous thing, bringing joy and love to those fortunate enough to experience it." She removed her hand from his arm. "See, the bleeding has stopped."

Without being asked the hunter brought her bag to her. She smiled her thanks to him then removed a clay jar from the pack to sprinkle a white powder over the Captain's arm before putting a fresh bandage on it.

"It should heal nicely, but if you wish I will heal it again later. It will be painful. I could take some of the pain away." The Captain only nodded.

Tang brought a bucket of water and the healer washed her hands. When she stood up from doing so the hunter stood beside her. He held the sword she'd used in the battle out to her. "Your sword, my dear."

She took the sword in her hand, then a startled look haunted her face. "Oh, Iolaus," she whispered as she leaned into him for support. "What have I become? For eighty years I was a healer. The thought of battling anything or anyone was the furthest thing from my mind. But now," she paused, "but now I actually derived a thrill from handling this sword. The other day when Tang and I exercised it was stimulating. It did not even faze me to hit those men on the head, or to send pain to the pirate leader."

She still held the sword and the demigod took it gently from her. She felt lost and confused. A gentle breeze fanned her face to soothe and comfort her. Gulls flew around the top of the mast, and their shrill, mournful cry was like a salve to the healer's anguish.

"I felt it," the hunter soothed her. "The earth mother is sending you comfort." The girl nodded.

"I felt it also, my more than sister," the son of Zeus assured her. "The earth is with you. I saw how you handled that sword. You were good. Damn good. But you weren't out to seriously hurt anyone."

"I should not find pleasure in your praise of my fighting skill, but I do."

"Your people used to be warriors. Perhaps a return to being so is what the earth wants for her people."

"Thysis seems to feel this is the case. But to become warlike would serve no purpose to my people or to any other."

"But being able to defend yourselves from the harm of others couldn't be a bad thing. You've gone out of your way more than once to show people how to use the earth's gifts to survive. Why should the children of the earth not do the same?"

"That is hardly the same, my brother."

"But it is. The yosemin have been given skills that could be used to defend themselves. They've been given the agility and concentration to become the greatest warriors of our time. If these abilities weren't important to you, then why did the earth make sure her people held these abilities even after they took to the forest to become farmers?"

Sira smiled at him. "You have been talking with our father of the soul far too much, my brother." She shook her head. "I cannot deny that even now the earth is with me. Perhaps what you have said is true. None of the earth's people can deny that if we are to survive as a race, we must change." She covered a yawn. "I must sleep for a time, to renew my energies. I think perhaps I will need them soon."

"Want me to come with you?" the hunter offered.

"Yes. No� Yes, but right now I must sleep."

He gave her a mischievous smile. "All right. Then I'll see you later." He kissed her lips lightly and she leaned into him. She almost wished she'd said yes, after all.

She made her way to the little curtained off corner of the hold. She stood just inside the small compartment. She wasn't seeing the room, but the battle with the pirates. "My life is so different from what I thought it would be," she whispered. With a sigh she took a seat on the mat that made up her bed. "You can show yourself, Ares. I know you are there."

A burst of light and the god of war stood before her. "Ah, my little warrior. I saw what you did today. You made me very proud."

"Why are you here, Ares?"

"How could I stay away when I see such perfection. You are becoming a true warrior." He offered a hand to her, and when she took it he pulled her to her feet. He gave her an earnest look. "Come with me, Sira. I will make you the greatest warrior since Xena. Together we will be unbeatable." Sira said nothing. The god of war still held her hands and she made no move to remove them from his light grasp. "I felt your emotions as you battled those men today. You enjoyed it, as did I."

"Venin has discovered the power of the crown, has she not?"

"Yes, just as you knew she would."

"Will you help us now?" He said nothing. "I have seen in a dream what she will do. Women and children will die."

The god dropped her hands and began to pace. "I can't stop the crown, Sira. I can't touch it. What do you want from me?" There was anger in his voice.

"Take us to Venin, then. Lend us your power. She must be stopped, my brother. Surely you can see that."

He sighed in exasperation. "I say only, you are headed in the right direction."

"Captain Bradous says there is no land where I feel her presence."

"Captains have been wrong before."

"Thank you, my brother. I sense your dilemma. At least now I know you have no more desire for Venin to use the powers of the crown for evil than I do."

"Your sense of perception is out of focus this time, little one. I don't give a tinker's damn what damage is done. I hope only to make a point with Zeus. It's time he treated me with the respect I deserve."

Sira smiled at him. His declaration did nothing to change her mind. She knew what she had felt from him. She understood why he had a dilemma. He'd made a stand in this. If he changed his stance now he would look weak. He wasn't supposed to care what might happen to the mortals of the world, but he did. He couldn't hide his feelings from his sister of the soul and they both knew it.

Sira put her hand over her mouth to cover a wide yawn. "I must sleep for a time." Covering another yawn, she took her place back on the mat. The god of war came to sit on the mat at her head. She gave him a questioning look. "I can help you to sleep. I've done it before. Remember when you were sick?"

"I remember."

He ran a finger gently across her forehead, then repeated the movement over and over in a slow rhythm that eased her tension and helped her relax. "My little warrior," he whispered as desire overwhelmed him to rob him of his senses.

"When I am old and alone and need someone, will you give up being the god of war and just be like this? I like you best like this."

"For you, I could almost say yes. But no, my sister, that is not a promise I can make. Still, gods don't grow old so easily, anyway."

She yawned. "But I am not a god, and I do grow old."

"When you come to me it will be as an equal. You will be a god."

"Sira, goddess of healing." Her words were low and slurred with sleep.

"Sira, goddess of war. Ruling beside me."

"Zeus likes me. He will let me choose what I want to be god of, will he not? Do gods pick, or are they chosen?"

Ares chuckled. "Sleep, my sister."

"When you are like this, I think you would make a good god of love."

The god of war chuckled again. "You talk nonsense. Your mind is muddled with fatigue. Sleep."
"My brother," she whispered.

"Sira, if I agree to stop Venin, will you come with me now?"

"Now you are talking nonsense. When I come to you it will be when I am free to love you completely. I could so easily love Ares, but I do not believe I can love the god of war."

"But we are one, little warrior."

"No. As much as you wish it to be so, it is not. I have felt both sides of you, and so have you."

"Yes," he sighed. "My life hasn't been quite the same since meeting you. I'm not so sure I like it, either." Sira jerked as sleep claimed her. He wasn't sure she'd heard his last statement. Damn, you almost agreed to help her, he thought. Why is it you can't seem to tell her no? Still, I had to tell her the direction so that she could lead Hercules there. If I want dear old Dad to get involved with this I must get him there as well. He watches over Hercules like a newborn pup. His being there should do the trick.

I shouldn't have come here. She brings out the worst in me, or the best depending on how you look at it, I guess. If you were honest with yourself, you'd admit you can't stay away from her. Still, my plan is working. I've got to keep my wits about me on this one. There'll have to be some careful timing. If Venin kills too many, Sira will never forgive me. But Venin must be allowed to use the crown enough to prove to Father he was wrong to interfere.

Ares shifted uncomfortably. If it comes down to humiliating Zeus or alienating Sira, which will I choose? He rose carefully so that he wouldn't disturb the sleeping girl. He stood over her, watching her for a moment. The emotions that washed over him left him feeling shaky. Tenderness was strong among the unfamiliar emotions. An almost uncontrollable urge to protect and comfort her assaulted nerves left raw from feelings he hadn't felt before and couldn't understand now. He pulled thoughtfully at his goatee. Which would I choose? Somehow he was afraid of the answer. With a flash of light, he was gone.

Hercules came to stand near the hunter where he stood at the ship's wheel. Iolaus studied his friend's face a moment. "Something bothering you, Herc?"

"No, I wouldn't say I'm bothered. I was thinking about Sira and how she handled our little game with the pirates."

"Yeah. I've kind of been thinking on that, myself. I almost lost it when she went after that man trying to get to Autolycus. When he turned around with that sword�" The golden one's words trailed off.

"I didn't see that part, but I saw her block his blow then use the sword like a staff to knock the guy's legs out from under him."

"Did you feel the pressure she was putting on their leader. Gods, I've still got a headache."

Hercules chuckled. "And she was directing the full force on him. We only got a portion of it."

"That poor bugger," the hunter laughed.

Hercules nodded. "I meant what I said earlier about being proud of her. Still, I can't help but worry. She seems determined to put herself in danger. When a person takes up weapons, they've got to face the fact that they're putting themselves in harm's way. It could happen to any of us at any time."

"I think she understands that, my friend. But like any good warrior, she does what her instincts tell her she must do. If you think about it, just being an empath makes her a warrior. She puts herself in danger every time she does a healing. I don't like it either. I'd much rather keep her home and safe at the cabin. But whether we like it or not, she's just not cut out for that kind of life. She'd go mad just staying home, just like we would. There's no way I want to be separated from her. Besides that, she wouldn't take no for an answer, anyway." The hunter grinned. "We'll just have to do the best we can to protect her, and trust in the earth to help us."

Hercules smiled back at him. "I guess you're right. I wouldn't want her to change, anyway."

"She handles a sword pretty well, doesn't she?"

"Too damn well. It's like she was born to it. She's just not had that much time working with weaponry." He shook his head. "She's not the same fearful little yosemin empath I found helping my brother on that grassy knoll."

"No, she's not. Pretty wonderful, isn't it?"

The half man, half god nodded. "Yeah, I guess it is, at that."

The forest's child woke to find Ares gone. Had he really been here, or did I dream it? she asked herself. She stretched and sat up to look about the room. No, he had been here. She still got a sense of him having been in the room. Did I really say something about him being the god of love? She shook her head as a wide smile crossed her face. I must have sounded like a fool.

She chuckled at herself then bounded to her feet. She felt rested and well. She knew they were headed in the right direction. She knew that Ares wasn't as cold blooded as he'd sounded in the shabby little room at the back of the unsavory house where they'd found Verinder dying. They'd fought a good fight with the pirates and been victorious.

"Forgive me, my mother. I do try, but I just cannot seem to put the warrior in me aside." She felt comfort flow to her and put her head back, her eyes closed. She drew a deep breath, as if trying to pull the feeling of peace deep into her lungs. A sense of calm possessed her and she reveled in the sensation. In good spirits, she left the hold to head to the companion way that would take her to the deck. Her stomach growled with hunger and she chuckled.

The others had eaten, but Tang had saved her plenty of food. The hunter took her in his arms and she wasn't sure he'd let her go long enough to eat it, however. Before he would let her go he made her promise she'd seek him out as soon as she'd eaten. It wasn't a hard promise to make.

She sat on the bench in the galley, Chi beside her and waited for Tang to heat her dinner. "How is Captain Bradous?" she asked the little man.

"He very stubborn man. He very quiet now that you heal him."

"Well, he must be in some pain."

"I think it more what you tell him and what he feel from you." The cook smiled at her. "You are empath?"

She nodded. "But do not be frightened, Tang. I cannot� Would not hurt you."

"I not frightened. We friends. You have good heart. You not harm your friends."

The girl gave him a warm smile. He handed her a plate of food and she ate in silence for a moment. "This is very good, Tang. Thank you."

"There more if you want. Fighting make you very hungry. You stop that man from harming me. Thank you."

"You would have done the same for me."

"Yes, but thank you all the same."

She held her plate out for a refill. He was right; fighting did make her hungry.

The demigod and the hunter joined them in the galley. "When you're done eating, Captain Bradous wants to see you. He's convinced there's no island where you say Venin is."

"Well, he is not going to believe me any more now than he did before," she offered.

Hercules chuckled. "Will you talk to him?"

"Of course. How is his arm?"

"He's not complaining, but he's in pain.

Sira stood once more in the Captain's tiny cabin. "I am sorry, Captain, but you will just have to believe me. She is there."

"So we continue to sail through pirate infested water to try and prove your point? I've sailed these waters before. I tell you, there is no island there."

"If you wish to think of this as an exercise in proving my point then fine. I do not really give a damn if you believe me or not. Just sail to where I have indicated on the map. Surely that is not too complicated."

The demigod laid a hand on her arm to calm her. He understood her anger and frustration. "We'll do this Sira's way, Captain. You have, after all, been commissioned to do so." He tempered his word with a smile. "What other choice do we have? The whole reason for this ship and its mission is to find Venin and retrieve the crown of Jason. Sira is our only hope of finding this woman. If we don't follow her direction, we could be searching these waters forever. You make a good point. The longer we're in this area, the greater our risk of encountering pirates again. The next time we may not be so lucky." He sighed. "Let's do as Sira directs, and see for ourselves if she is right. It's the only lead we have."

"Very well. As you have pointed out, we have no better place to look."

The empath laid her hand on the Captain's wounded arm. "I am sorry I became angry. Violence, especially the kind this woman is capable of perpetrating, tears my heart and soul to shreds. I know that Venin has found a way to use Jason's crown for her evil. You cannot know what this woman is like; but I know. We must find her as soon as possible." She sent her mind to touch that of the Captain. She wasn't expecting a warm welcome, but she found his mind open and responsive. "Let me relieve some of your pain," she offered.

He studied her face a moment. He was always startled by her dark green eyes. They held a dark lush cast to them that reminded him of dense forest. There'd been a wooded area near his childhood home, filled with tall evergreens, ferns and moss. He'd always loved going there. It always had the smell of growing things, just as Sira did. That was it. She reminded him of the forest near his home. He'd gone there often to find solitude and quiet. When his life seemed overwhelming, the wooded area could put it in perspective. It always gave him comfort.

He sighed. She really is a beauty, he thought. She has spirit too. If I'd been lucky enough to have a daughter, I would've wished she were like this young woman. A silent message passed between them, a message he wasn't really aware of, but she was.

"It does hurt. I would be grateful for your help," the ship's master told her in a grave voice.

"Iolaus?" she asked. "Would you bring my bag. I should change the bandage."

He'd not missed the look the Captain gave the healer. He knew they had reached some kind of understanding. "Of course, my dear."

"Would you like some help? the demigod asked.

"Yes, please, my brother. I would appreciate your help."

They both knew the Captain's injury wasn't really a serious one, although it had cut the muscle which added to the discomfort. They both knew Sira didn't need the demigod's help. The offer came more from the big man's wish to be near her. She was most happy to have him so. He laid his hand over hers where it rested on the Captain's arm.

The Captain looked from one to the other of them. "Are you two really brother and sister?"

Sira nodded. "Not in blood, but in soul we are. It makes an even stronger bond than blood ties can." Hercules touched the healer's mind with love and she smiled at him.

When the hunter returned with the things the yosemin had requested, she removed a small pouch from her bag and asked the hunter to take it to Tang. "Ask him to brew it into a tea. It will need honey in it since it tends to be bitter."

The hunter kissed her nose and turned to do her bidding. Sira sent her mind to the hunter and he blushed at the thought she sent him. When he returned with the tea Sira was just finishing up the bandaging of the Captain's arm. She made him drink the whole mug of dark green tea. "I know it does not taste very good, but it will ease the pain and help you to sleep."

The morning dawned sunny. There was a strong breeze that came from their aft quarter as they sailed by the lee. It helped to speed them on their way.

"If the wind holds we will make good time today," Knots stood at the tiller. His shoulder was much better and he only favored it slightly.

Sira sat on the deck of the cockpit. She smiled up at the sailor. Since telling the Captain of her origin she hadn't worn shoes. The big, red haired sailor kept looking at her feet. "The spots are lighter than they used to be. They fade in color when they are kept covered."

"Do all your people have them?" he asked, showing no embarrassment at having been caught staring.

"Yes, they do. My son is only half yosemin, and he also has the spots."

"Tell me more about your son."

Sira nodded. "I miss him very much. He is only six in human years, which makes his maturity that of about a ten year old human boy. As I said before, he is in apprenticeship with a yosemin elder. My chosen father and my son's grandfather." She heaved a sigh. "It is tradition and it is a needed thing. Hercus has a very strong mind and a very strong will. He needs to learn discipline, but I miss him so much. Our mind's touch is the only thing that makes it possible for me to be so far from him." She smiled at the sailor. "Forgive me for rambling on."

"No need to. I enjoy talking with you. How did you meet Iolaus?" She found herself telling the sailor about finding the wounded hunter. "It's truly a romantic tale. A bard's love story."

"It is funny you should mention that. We have a friend who is a bard. She swore she would write the story on a scroll to preserve it."

"My cousin's a bard," Knots commented. "She travels with the warrior princess, Xena."

"Gabrielle!" Sira exclaimed. "That is her. Our friend is your cousin."

"Well then, that makes us almost family, doesn't it?"

The healer smiled at him. "We were that anyway, Knots."

With the coming of the evening the wind changed to slow them down, but they'd come far. The healer was nervous. She couldn't seem to relax. Her sense of the woman they sought had grown stronger. Thoughts kept running through the empath's mind. How would they get to the island and take the crown from Venin? Sira was convinced she had found a way to use the crown to her advantage, and the healer was sure anything she might do with the crown would be unpleasant. Were there people living on the island as she had seen on the island where they had stopped for supplies? She was convinced there were, and that the thought of harming them wouldn't stop Venin.

"We are close," the healer told the Captain, Hercules, Iolaus and the King of thieves. They sat on the deck or on crates near the mast step enjoying the setting sun. "I cannot imagine how we are going to approach the island. It must be a small place indeed if it is not on any of the charts Captain Bradous has. We will never be able to sneak up on them."

The demigod nodded. "You're right, it must be a small place. I'm sure we'll be spotted soon after finding the island."

"So why not simply ask for supplies like we did at the last island?" The King of thieves rubbed a forefinger across his mustache in a gesture that had become habitual, when he thought he was being clever or charming.

"You're right, Autolycus. That's it," the hunter patted him on the back.

"Remember, Venin knows all of us. She is sure to recognize Hercules." She turned to her brother of the soul. "No offense, but you do rather stand out in a crowd."

He gave her a tolerant smile. "She doesn't know Autolycus."

"Yeah," the thief interrupted. "And if I have my way she won't."

"You could go in as a sailor to make the trade and see what you can find out," the demigod continued, as if not hearing the thief's statement.

"Knots is intelligent," Sira offered. "He could be of help also."

"Perhaps," the Captain suggested, "our King of thieves could just steal the thing back for us."

"Once we have the crown," the hunter rushed to complete the Captain's thought, "we could deal with Venin."

"Now wait one damned minute," the dark thief objected. "You'd stay here where it's safe and I'd scout ahead? Then I'd steal the blasted thing? What are you going to be doing back here, knitting?"

"We'll come in to clear up the rubbish," Iolaus smiled mischievously at the thief.

"I can link my mind with yours," Sira told him.

"Count me out. I'm no hero."

Sira rose from her place on the deck to stand before him where he sat on a crate near her. She put a hand on his shoulder. "Please, my friend, I beg you. We need your help. You may be our only hope."

"Uhhh!" the thief moaned. "Did you have to use the B-word?"

The chosen one walked a path along a ridge that looked down on a sea of teal green. The grass she trod sprang up behind her as if it wished to follow her. The sky shown with an impossible brilliant blue that turned the leaves of the nearby trees to a transparent spring green which almost hurt the girl's eyes with its gleaming brightness.

The morning dew still clung to the foliage to reflect the sunlight in a million tiny stars. The chosen one was awed by the ethereal gown the earth had donned. A sense of peace walked with the forest creature to brighten the morning even more.

Suddenly the sky turned dark as a strong wind buffeted her. The beauty of the morning was lost behind a sense of dread. She looked to the sea, but it had turned angry. She jerked around at the scream that filled her mind. No, not just one scream, but the screams of many. Dogs howled, and their shrill, mournful cry joined the cries of their masters to violate nerves and senses left vulnerable by fear and anxiety.

Her mind felt numbed by a force she'd never encountered before; a force of hate and evil that twisted her insides painfully. She watched the woman as she stood in the tall grass, a golden crown resting atop her dark brown mane.

"You must not do this," the earth's chosen one pleaded.

But still the force of evil crept forward to claim the morning's glory and stain the earth in red. Death stalked along with the ever widening stain of crimson to engulf the tiny bit of sand that made up the diminutive world of those now threatened by a benevolent spell turned horribly wrong by the hate and depravity of one woman. It spread like a malignant growth to warp and corrupt those left defenseless in its path.

Tears of pain and sorrow stained the cheeks of the nature child as she struggled to reverse the destructive tide of death.

The hunter took her into his arms to cradle her like a baby. "It's only a dream, my soul. It can't hurt you." His words were spoken in a rhythmic tone meant to soothe and comfort her. His mind reached out to her as well.

The demigod knelt beside them. "Is she all right?"

"She's had another nightmare. I felt her twisting and turning beside me so I tried to wake her."

"Sira, my sister," the big man called to her as he reached out to touch her arm as he sent his mind to her. "Sira."

The girl's mind snatched at the thoughts of those her soul was a part of. Slowly her mind began to back away from the fear and dread the dream had instilled in her. She cried silently against the hunter's shoulder, still lost in the unreal fantasy world of the dream that she knew without doubt was an omen of things to come.

When she was calmer the demigod rose to return to his own blankets. "Please, my brother, do not leave. Stay with us."

He sat back beside her. "If that will make you more comfortable, and it's okay with Iolaus, I'll stay."

The hunter reached out to grasp his friend's arm in a firm warrior's grip. "You know it's all right with me. Please stay. Your strong mind's touch will help." The big man laid down beside the healer where she lay in the hunter's arms.

The empath shivered, then shivered again. "She must be stopped. Too many innocent lives are at stake. I know in my heart she will not stop with the deaths of the people on this island she now inhabits."

"You're sure there are people living on the island?" the hunter asked.

"Yes, I can sense them there, now."

"That settles it, then. We have to get the crown away from this mad woman, and as quickly as possible," Hercules hissed. "You're right, Sira, she won't stop here."

The empath could sense his thoughts. How safe would Jason or his mother be now?

She reached out in the dark to touch his cheek. "I would never willingly let her harm our family. If we should fail to stop her here, we will return to Jason and your mother as soon as possible. I would use all my earthly powers to protect them, my more than brother."

He felt the meaning behind her words. She would be willing to give her own life to protect those she loved. "I would not wish that either, my sister," he whispered.

"It is in the hands of the earth. I have bonded in soul with both your mother and Jason. You know I could never step aside and let them be harmed any more than you could."

"Then," the hunter stated, "we'll just have to stop the insanity here. Even if we have to tackle Ares to stop her."

"I do not believe Ares will side with Venin. Not against me, at any rate. But I do not believe he would willingly help us, either."

"I'll do whatever it takes to stop her," the demigod announced. "It must stop here." His implication was clear. He wasn't sure how the healer might react to such a declaration. He needn't have worried. From her touch on his mind, he sensed that she felt the same.

"We will do what we must to stop her," Sira whispered. "I sense the earth in this. She will guide us."

"It's agreed, then," the hunter stated. "We stop her here."

It wasn't yet completely light when the call came that an island had been spotted. Sira, already up and dressed when the call came, went up on deck. The Captain stood at the rail straining to see the tiny strip of land. He turned when the girl joined him. "I owe you an apology. You've finally made a believer out of me. This island isn't on the charts and it's not one I've ever heard mentioned. What a splendid place to have a pirate hideout."

Sira seemed not to hear him. She'd closed her eyes to send her mind out. She must be sure the woman they sought was indeed here on this isle.

"She's there, isn't she?" the demigod asked from beside her.

"Yes, she is there." The same feeling of dread that had haunted her dream of last night crept over her now to leave her feeling sick and empty.

"Steady, my sister. You're not alone in this. We'll do this together, the three of us, like always."

"You mean the four of us," the master thief corrected the demigod. "I'm in." Sira sent her mind to the King of thieves and he smiled at her. "It was the B-word that did it. I never could say no to a woman."

The hunter squeezed her shoulder.

"Captain," the man in the crow's nest called down, "her ship is well out. There may be a reef."

The Captain turned to Knots. "Take the bow and look sharp. We won't go in too far. I refuse to tear the bottom out of this fine ship."

They came in well away from the pirate ship putting the land between them and it. While still well out they saw a tiny boat leave the shore to head toward them.

Hercules strained his eyes to see what the man in the crow's nest told them. "Sira, can you tell who's in the boat?"

"It is no one I know."

They waited impatiently for the boat to approach. When it was close enough a man hailed them.

"Can we trade for food and fresh water?" the Captain called back to him.

"What have you got to trade?"

"Ale and tobacco."

"Maybe we can work something out. Follow me in your boat. There's a tricky reef. I'll steer you through it."

The Captain turned to Autolycus. "Well, young man?"

The thief rubbed at his chin. "Right."

Knots came to stand beside the others. "Count me in."

The Captain nodded. "Very well." He ordered two sailors to ready the ship's boat.

Sira went to the King of thieves and took his hand in hers. "I will be with you in mind, my friend. Keep your thoughts and mind open to me."

The dark thief looked disgruntled. "Just how do I do that?"

"You are doing it now. Let yourself feel for a moment. Still your thoughts and let your mind drift. Do you feel me there?"

"Yes."

"The earth is with you, Autolycus. Do not take chances. For now, we wish only to get a feel for what we might face."

"Don't worry. I told you. I'm no hero."

She raised up on tip toes to plant a kiss on his cheek. "Go with the earth."

Knots pushed the ship's boat away from the ship and took up the ores. The King of thieves knew a moment of panic. "What have I gotten myself into?" he whispered. He felt the healer's mind on his and relaxed a little.

The child of the earth sat on the deck, her legs crossed, her brown spotted feet tucked under her knees. Closing her eyes she willed herself to relax. Within seconds she was entranced. She strengthened her mind's touch on the King of thieves. She knew when the boat landed safely on the sandy strip of land that hugged a quiet lagoon. She knew that people came to greet Autolycus and Knots to invite them to their village. She had known there were people here, but still she'd hoped against hope she was wrong. Her mind told her there were women and children at the village of grass huts the thief's mind told her was here. Her fear and anxiety deepened.

The master thief was amazed by the similarity of this village to the one on the other island where they'd stopped to barter for supplies after the storm. Somehow he knew the healer wouldn't be happy with this knowledge.

He could see a large stone building overlooking the village from its vantage point on a knoll above the valley where the inhabitants of the island had made their grass huts.

"Out of the way place for such a grand house," the thief commented to the man from the boat they'd followed to the island. "Who lives there?"

"It was built by the old Captain, many years ago. It belongs to his widow now."

"That your ship out there?"

"No. It belongs to the widow, also. The old Captain was quite a scoundrel and he wasn't above a bit of profiteering. That's why he built a home in such an out of the way place."

"And the widow? Is she a pirate?" The thief tempered his question with a smile.

"She's worse than the old Captain, if what her crew says is true. We just grow the food. The old man brought us here from other islands to work the land to feed him and his crew. He supplied the rum and a few other enticements and we grow extra food. Not a bad life, really. The widow's continued on in his footsteps."

"You get lonely here?"

The man laughed. Most of us haven't known any other life, really. None of the small islands here about see much company. We do get visits from pirates now and again." He chewed on his lip a moment. "Mind if I ask a question?"

"I owe you that. I've asked enough of my own." The thief laughed and the man joined in the good natured camaraderie.

The villager decided he liked this tall, dark haired sailor. "You fly an honest flag. What are you doing out here in the middle of a pirate's nowhere land?" The thief cleared his throat and gave the man a thoughtful look. "That's what I figured," the man chuckled. "You're not so honest after all."

The thief shrugged. "Well, you know how it is."

The man laughed. "Come on, you and your man can share a meal with us, then we'll talk business."

The boat was only gone a couple of hours. The King of thieves climbed the rope ladder to reach the deck of the ship. He took the offered hand of the demigod to help him up.

Tang brought him a mug of tea which he took with a nod of gratitude. "Well," he told them, "this Venin lives in a large stone structure on a knoll overlooking the village, which by the way, looks just like the last one we visited. She only has a couple of servants in the house with her. Her crew stays on the ship. If the crown is there I should be able to get in and get it."

"The crown is there," Sira stated. "I sense it."

The King of thieves nodded. "All right, then it's tonight. I'll sneak in there tonight and steal the crown back. Then it's up to you to deal with the witch woman."

"We'll all go to the island tonight," the demigod offered. "That way we'll be near should something go wrong."

"All right. But I go in alone. I work better that way."

"Agreed."

The remainder of the day seemed to drag. The empath couldn't leave the nagging feeling of foreboding that followed her like a lion stalking its prey behind.

Besides Autolycus, Hercules, Iolaus and Sira, Knots and Tang climbed down the rope ladder to reach the ship's boat. It was just short of midnight. They'd waited for the moon to wane before making a start. Until they were through the dangerous part of the reef they must stay on a predictable course. They couldn't be sure they weren't watched. Once they were past the reef they could land the boat anywhere, but until then they must go cautiously.

Captain Bradous had been dubious about the tiny cook being a member of their party. Sira had insisted. "His mind is strong, and I may need his strength before the night is over. Besides that, he is a better fighter than any of us."

"Very well," the Captain capitulated graciously. "I say again, you've made a believer out of me. If you told me Tang could sprout wings and fly to the island with you on his back, I'd believe you." Sira only smiled at him.

The child of the forest used her mind to help steer them through the reef. She'd gotten the direction through her mind's link with the King of thieves, but she also used her earthly powers now to feel ahead for the sharp treacherous coral that could so easily tear the bottom from their tiny vessel.

Once through the danger the demigod steered the boat away from the place where it had landed earlier. Turning at a right angle to the shore he brought them to land further along the beach and closer to where the master thief said the stone building stood. There were some rocks and brush close to conceal the boat, and they pulled it out of view among them.

The healer found a way up the cliff face to the top of the knoll where the stone building stood. They hid in the dense brush that covered the knoll behind the structure.

Sira got a sense of the size of the house. "How will you ever find the crown in that huge place?" she whispered to the thief.

"That's what I do best. You have a sixth sense about other things. I have a sixth sense about treasure. So, are you going to wish me luck?" He didn't wait for an answer, but started to move forward through a small break in the thicket.

"May the earth go with you," the healer whispered as her mind touched his. She also sent her mind to the earth with a prayer for his safety. She settled herself more comfortably on the sand behind the fringe of brush, watching the King of thieves with her mind rather than trying to see him with her eyes. They must trust to in special talents now.

The healer was sure she would know if he was in danger, and they were close enough to reach him quickly. Taking comfort from this she was able to relax a little.

Sira followed Autolycus' every move with her mind. She sensed the change in him the moment he'd left the bushes. His mind was focused now on what he must do. She found a new discipline in his thoughts. She knew the moment he was inside the house. He found his way in almost too easily. Not wasting a moment or a movement the master thief set about his task with an air of confidence.

Time seemed to stand still for those waiting in the shadows. Two hours now, and Sira could sense the thief's frustration. He'd thought he'd be able to get in and out quickly. The longer he was in there, the greater his chances of being caught.

Hercules linked his mind with that of the healer to follow the thief's progress for a time. Both the demigod and the healer held their breath with anxiety while Autolycus searched a room where a woman slept. The healer's mind screamed with tension, but the master thief seemed unfazed by the danger.

Still the King of thieves searched to no avail. "Sira," the demigod's mind told her. "Tell him to get out of there. It's almost dawn.."

She was surprised. She hadn't been aware so much time had passed. She sent a warning to the thief.

"I'm almost there; I can feel it," his mind shot back. "Just a little longer."

"Do not take chances, my friend," she warned with her mind. "Your welfare is more important.."

"I'm touched," was the thought she felt from him.

She waited what seemed like hours. "Please, Autolycus, you must get out of there. You can go back another time. Get out before it is too late."

"All right," he agreed reluctantly.

Sira let her breath out with relief. Then she snatched at the demigod's arm. He still sat next to her, his mind linked with hers. He knew instantly what had happened. The King of thieves had been caught.

Sira tightened her grip on his arm. "We have got to get him out of there."

The big man could sense the healer's panic. She, more than any of them, knew the torture Venin was capable of inflicting. In her healing of Jason after he'd been held prisoner by this woman, she'd gained an insight to Venin that not even the Argonaut had.

"We'll get him out, my sister," Hercules assured her. "Calm yourself. We'll get him out of there, before she can harm him."

After the initial fear of discovery the King of thieves' mind had cleared. His own coolness did much to help Sira bring her own panic under control.

She stood before him, clad in a very revealing black lacy negligee. Her long brown hair hung down her back, only slightly ruffled by her sleep. Brown eyes gave him an earnest appraisal. A man held his arms tightly, although he'd made no struggle.

"Who are you?" she asked him calmly.

"No doubt you've heard of Autolycus?"

"No. But I gather you think I should have."

"I'm the greatest thief in all of Greece. Perhaps in all the world. I am the King of thieves. Considering your line of work, I'd think you would know me by reputation if nothing else."

Venin chuckled. "The King of thieves, and yet you stand before me, fairly caught by a simple minded servant." The thief felt the man who held him stiffen at the woman's unkind words.

"I've been caught many times before, and yet until this moment I was a free man."

"Meaning?"

"There has never been a cell built that could hold me."

"Really?" The woman moved closer to run her hand over his chest. "Well, then, I guess I'll just have to kill you, won't I?"

"Like you killed Verinder?" he asked through clinched teeth.

"Ah, so now I know why you have come here. You're after the crown of Jason."

"I don't give a damn for the crown. I came because I wanted to see for myself what kind of low life it took to kill a boy in cold blood."

Venin ran a finger along the angle of his jaw. "It wasn't really like that. I gave him pleasure before I drove the knife into his ribs." Autolycus said nothing at this. He wanted to keep her talking to buy time until the others could reach him. He knew through his link with the healer's mind that they would come for him.

"So," she purred as she began to loosen the laces at the neck of his shirt. "Verinder takes the crown. I kill him, which I must tell you was far too easy to do. You steal the crown from me. Then what, Auto? You kill me? It's wonderful. We think alike." She rose on tip toes to run her tongue along his lower lip. "We should become partners. Think of what we could accomplish, you and I, with my brains and your cunning."

"I don't think so, lady. Somehow your partners always seem to wind up dead."

She threw her head back and laughed. "You're very entertaining." She ran her hand down below his belt. "Yes, you definitely have possibilities. I think I'll keep you around for a little while before I spill too much of your blood."

Her servant girl came forward leading a man from the village.

Hercules stopped the hunter from moving forward. "Wait. Someone's coming." They watched as two men approached the stone building. The sky was swiftly turning light, and the outline of the two men could easily be seen.

"Sira, can you tell if Autolycus is in immediate danger?"

"He seems to be handling himself for the moment. But we cannot be sure what she will do. She could pull a knife and cut him before he could take another breath."

The demigod sighed. "I know. I'm counting on her love of tormenting men to keep him alive a bit longer. Let's see what these men are up to before we go barging in there."

"Mistress," the servant girl interrupted.

"What do you want?"

"Forgive the intrusion," the man answered. "I see you have one man here. There are others on the island. One of our young boys sneaking out with his girl saw them. They're from that ship, I'll wager."

Venin turned to the King of thieves. The slap she gave him made a loud crack in the confined space of the hall where Autolycus had been caught. "Who are they?" she demanded. Her prisoner said nothing. She slapped him again. "Who are they?"

"Just some men from my ship. You didn't think I'd be fool enough to come in here alone, do you?"

"Somehow I just don't believe you." She turned back to the villager. "Just what did this boy see?"

The man turned to motion to the young man who hung back at the entrance to the hall. "Tell her what you told me, boy."

He came shyly forward. Without making eye contact he cleared his throat. "There were five men and one woman. They landed on the beach below the cliff by your house."

"A woman, you say? Why would they have a woman with them? I wonder." She didn't complete her thought. "Tell me, master thief, is Jason out there?"

"No. I told you, it's just some of my men. If there's a woman with them, it's one of yours."

"You're a fool. Do you think I can't stop them?"

"Shall I row out to your ship and get your men?" the man from the village offered.

"No, you moron. I don't need them. I have my own defense." She turned to the man holding the King of thieves. "Take him to the cell and make sure he's securely locked in." She turned back to the two villagers. "Go with them. I don't want my new play toy to slip away."

Before they could comply she leaned against her prisoner. "My dearly departed husband had a very effective cell built into this pile of molding stones. Just about everything else in this crumbling mound of crap is falling apart, but, I must say, the cell is secure. Be a good boy and I'll see you later." She moved her hand to below his belt once again to make her point abundantly clear.

"I look forward to it," Autolycus sneered in sarcasm.

The girl laughed. "You really are entertaining. If you're half as good a lover as you are a talker, we'll have lots of fun."

He laughed now. "You really think I'd be your lover?"

"Maybe not willingly, although I think you just might. But willingly or not, I'll have you. You're won't be the first man I've taken."

The master thief narrowed his eyes at her. "You really are sick."

She turned away from him. "Get him out of here, you fools!"

She watched them lead the tall, handsome thief away. Yes, she thought, he really might prove to be entertaining. But there's time for that later. Now I have to catch a former King.

She made her way to her room to change. Slipping her hand under her mattress she removed the gold crown of Corinth's best loved King. She rubbed the shiny surface with a forefinger. She'd experimented with the power the combination of her hate, the ancient mystic's scroll, and the crown could harness. She'd learned that the force of her power was directional. It was most strong in the direction she faced. She'd learned how to focus on the object she wished most to harm. She was confident that in time she would learn better ways to use her newly acquired power to perpetrate her evil.

Part of her problem was in finding victims on which to unleash her killing energy of hate and evil. The goats she used were not satisfactory. They were too confined and too docile. She'd not had the chance to test the range of her powers. For now the range seemed very limited, but her hope was with time she could learn to expand the range and boost the effectiveness of the evil.

"This will be a good chance to test this out on something besides animals," she told the crown. She smiled as a shiver of anticipation tickled her spine. The surest way to bring dear Jason out in the open is to inflict harm on others. He'll come to me, and when he does I'll have him in my powers once again. This time things will be different. I won't drug or starve him. I'll treat him well, only loving him when he's fully aware of my feminine charms. She laughed, then setting the crown on her bed she began to change her clothing. As she did she deliberately let her mind dwell on her past and the pain of her childhood. She knew she must build the hate that was never far below the surface of her seemingly calm exterior.

She took a moment to read the old scroll she'd taken from the lifeless form of the old mystic. "See? " she whispered. "I told you your spell could be used for evil." Taking a firm grip on the crown she left her room. With purpose she let herself out of the house and turned toward the village.

The hunter stopped them this time. They'd moved carefully closer to the house, taking their time and keeping to concealment. The hunter heard the door open and held up his hands to stop the demigod and the healer.

Knots and Tang were watching the house, their minds open to the healer in case they needed to warn her of danger. She'd felt the big sailor's warning just as Iolaus stopped them.

"She is headed toward the village. She has the crown with her." The healer turned shocked eyes on the demigod. "She plans to hurt those people."

Venin moved closer to the village. She'd learned she could control the strength of the crown's power by controlling her level of hate. "I'd say a little demonstration is in order." She smiled. I wonder if Hercules is out there. It would be a pleasure indeed to see his head explode all over the grass. She twirled around in the dirt path she was following to the village. The female just may be that healer he cares so much for. I'd like to get her under my powers.

She stopped in a grassy area on a slight rise overlooking the tiny village of grass huts. She brought the crown to her lips and kissed it before putting it on her head. Closing her eyes she began to chant the words of the old mystic's spell.

Sira gasped and reached out to steady herself with a hand on the hunter's arm. "She is using the crown." The healer moaned. "She plans to hurt the people of the village, just like in my dream."

Knots and Tang joined them in their place of concealment in the brush. "The men from the village have gone," Knots whispered. "There should only be the servant woman left in the house. Let's get�" he swayed on his feet. "I feel dizzy."

"So do I," Iolaus nodded. "What is it?"

"It is hate and evil," the empath moaned with a voice gone thin and reedy with the effort she was making to shut the power of the crown from her mind. "There is no time to help Autolycus now. We have to stop her." Without a word she began to run.

"Sira!" the demigod, and the hunter shouted together. The men began to follow her. She sent her mind to the earth to give her strength then sent her mind to battle the power Venin had harnessed.

The dark haired girl shook her head. What is wrong this time? she wondered. It's as if the power of the crown is diminished in some way. She looked down to see dark clouds forming out of nothing to blacken the sky. This has never happened before.

The master thief removed a thin piece of metal from the inside of the belt he wore. There was a slight hook at the end of the narrow metal shaft. Flexing his fingers he slipped his hand and arm out through the bars of the heavy metal door to feel ahead for the lock. Carefully he slipped the metal hook into the keyhole. Without realizing he did it, he took his lower lip between his teeth and stilled his mind to concentrate. Willing his fingers to feel the locking device through the slim shaft of metal, he turned it slightly to the left, then back to the right. He heard the click and a broad smile broke over his lips, then he chuckled. "All too easy."

Knots stumbled and fell to the grass. They all stopped beside him. "I can't move," he moaned. He put both hands to his head. "What's happening?"

"Stay here, my friend." The hunter put a hand on his shoulder. "It's only going to get worse the closer we get to her."

"I can't move. I'm sorry."

"Try to shut it out of your mind," the hunter called over his shoulder as he stumbled ahead to follow the others. He caught up to Sira and took her arm. "Wait. What's that sound?"

"It's the dogs of the village," the demigod supplied. "They're howling."

"It is my dream all over again," Sira cried. "Hurry, I must stop her."

Thunder reverberated against their eardrums as they fought a strong wind that seemed determined to keep them from their goal.

"That wasn't an animal," Iolaus shouted. "That was a woman screaming."

"This can't be allowed to go on," the half god son of Zeus shouted back. "Come on." He felt sick at his stomach. Without warning he turned aside and was sick.

Sira moved blindly on. Her entranced mind fought the powers of evil Venin exerted on the innocent people of the village. Lowering another barrier on her mind she strengthened the power of the earth that she sent out before her to combat Venin and the godly power of the crown.

Tang was ill as well, and when he was done he laid on the grass curled into a little ball, trying with his own strong mind to lend power to the healer. He knew he could go no closer to the source of his weakness, but he could help the healer all the same. Hercules and Iolaus stumbled on in the healer's wake.

They saw the woman standing on the grassy rise overlooking the village. Sira moved on, determined to stop the evil tide of death Venin spewed forth from her own cesspool of hate and evil.

Iolaus went to his knees in the grass to be ill. Blood showed at his nose.

"Stay here," the demigod commanded. Thunder shook the ground beneath them. "Iolaus, can you hear me?" The hunter only moaned. "Iolaus?"

"Sira. You have to help her, Herc. I can't."

"Just stay here. Don't come any closer. You're bleeding."

"Help her. Promise me you'll take care of her. Don't let her fall into the despair she did last time. Love her for me."

"Iolaus?"

The hunter shoved at him. "Promise me."

"You know I love her."

"Go. Help her."

With a nod the big man stumbled on. His head felt as if it might burst. Waves of nausea and dizziness assailed him to rob him of his god given strength. "Damn it, Ares. You've got to help her. You love her too."

The chosen one moved forward, her mind in battle against the evil that threatened to overwhelm her. "Venin! Stop this. You have us now. Do not harm these people."

The woman turned to the healer and Sira cried out as the full force of the crown flooded over her. "Where is Jason?!"

"He has not come this time. He is home protecting his family."

"I don't believe you. Tell me where he is and I'll stop this."

Sira anchored herself to the earth as she pictured tentacles leaving her feet to curl around the core of her mother earth. "I cannot let you do this. I will stop you."

Venin laughed. "You can't stop me. My power is stronger than yours."

Lightning streaked across the dirt path to scar the soil. The earth beneath the evil one's feet shook.

"I can, and I will stop you. I have no wish to harm you. Stop this now and I will not." Venin turned back to the village. Sira heard another scream, and tears of sympathy stained her cheeks. Looking to the village she saw a woman cradling a child to her. "No!" the chosen one moaned. "Not the children."

She sent her mind out in a powerful blast and Venin gasped with pain. Turning once more toward Sira she tried to strengthen the power of the crown so that she might use it directly against the healer.

Hercules was on the grass beside the healer. She looked up to see the blood that came from his nose. "Go back, my brother. The earth will stop her." He didn't seem to hear her.

She let another barrier on her mind down. She saw the master thief coming up behind the evil witch. The power of the crown was much weaker behind her than in front of her. Sira sent love and the benevolence of the earth mother to combat the evil and hate of the woman who fought her, then moved closer to her. The demigod made it to his feet and stumbled forward in the wake of the girl he loved so completely. The ground shook beneath him and thunder shook the air. Sira strengthened her power of love and moved even closer.

Autolycus moved carefully forward, one step at a time. He knew if the woman were to turn around to face him he'd be lost to her evil. Just a little further, his mind shouted with the tension of what he was trying to do.

Venin could feel her powers growing weaker. No! her mind shouted. I can't let her win. Why must her powers be greater than my own? She tried to send more hate to the evil spell the mystic had conjured up from the gods only know where, but Sira's love blocked the hate.

Now the healer knew she had the advantage. She knew she could stop Venin. But at what cost? Would she be forced once again to take a life to save so many others? Would the earth condone what she must do? She knew now she would do what she must to stop the deaths of the people she loved and the deaths of those who lived here on the island.

A little further, the King of thieves thought. At a sound behind her Venin started to turn and the master thief reached out to try and snatch the crown from her head. When his flesh touched the crown he screamed out as a painful force jerked his hand and arm back and threw him back to land painfully on the dirt path.

As if in slow motion, the crown flew into the air then seemed to hover there before starting a slow descent back to earth. The demigod reached out to snatch the crown from the air just as Venin jumped to try and retrieve it. Fighting his illness and the pain the crown sent through him, he turned and placed the crown on the healer's head.

It all happened too quickly for the healer to lessen the power of the earth she'd used to combat Venin. As the crown touched her head the demigod was thrown back several paces. Venin screamed and tumbled to the ground. Sira also lost her footing and landed painfully on her knees in the grass.

The healer's mind sent out love and healing in an overpowering blast that wrenched a scream from Venin and Autolycus. The force swept over the village like a strong wind, to flatten huts and knock people to the ground. But the power that hit them with such force was the power of good. Healing came to help those left near death from Venin's evil. It swept over the hunter and their friends from the ship, and the healer's golden one rose to his feet to try and reach her.

Where death and pain had stalked the island before, now love and goodness swept it aside. The clouds gathered in a whirlpool of swirling wind to form a funnel cloud shot with zigzags of blue-white lightning.

Venin rose to stumble away from the direct path of the earth's powers, intensified by the godly influence on the golden ring that rested on the healer's head.

The hunter went to his knees on a ridge overlooking the valley. He would swear later that he could see the waves of power that rippled and spun out in an ever widening circle, like the ripple on a pond caused by the dropping of a stone on the placid surface of the water

With an effort the healer began to slow her mind, trying to bring the forces she commanded under control. She knew she was hurting those around her. She turned to the village to send them healing. Please, her mind pleaded, do not let any of them be dead. The lifeless child the woman cradled to her took a gulping breath and began to cry. The mother would swear later that the child had indeed died, and the healer's powers brought her back to life.

Sira tried to lessen her power, but she seemed possessed by it. "I must stop!" she cried.

Ares stood before her. "Stop it, Sira," he demanded. He cringed in pain as she turned her attention to him. "Stop it, now. You'll ruin everything." He reached out with the intention of knocking the crown from her head.

"No!" she screamed."

Too late. The god of war was thrown back with great force. Sira could smell burnt flesh. The crown fell to the grass beside her and she slumped forward. Her breath came in great gulping gasps. Unable to rise she crawled to the god of war. He jerked with spasms of pain. The healer still couldn't seem to stop the force that possessed her. Rather than lessening with the removal of the crown, it seemed to intensify. Ares cried out.

"Zeus!" the healer called out. "Help me stop this. I know you are there. Show yourself. This is your fault, damn it. Stop being peevish and help us."

Sira took up the god of war's hand. It was charred and blackened. Before her eyes the burn disappeared. Ares jerked his hand away from her.

The grassy area was filled with light and the King of the gods stood over her. He reached down to pull her to her feet then into his arms. With a rush the power she could no longer seem to control was gone. Without the support of the god's powerful arms she would have fallen, as weakness flooded over her.

The god of war jumped to his feet. "See what your interfering has done?" he hissed at his father through clinched teeth.

"My interfering? My interfering didn't cause this," the King of the gods shot back, "yours did."

Hercules took Sira from his father's arms. "Are you all right, my more than sister?" His voice was filled with fear. She managed a weak nod.

The hunter came running up to her. "Sira. By the earth, my soul, are you all right?" He put his arms around her as she leaned against the demigod.

"I think she's going to be fine, Iolaus," the big man soothed his friend.

"The crown wouldn't have hurt anyone if you'd kept your hands off of it!" the god of war's anger was poorly concealed.

"I wouldn't have needed to touch it if you had left well enough alone in the first place," his father shot back. "You take this god of war thing too far."

"Too far?! You made me the god of war in the first place. But since I am, I have every intention of doing my best, and you should bloody well stay out of it."

"That's enough, Ares. Son or not, I'll�"

"You'll what? Ares interrupted him. "What will you do? You're a stubborn old fool who's outlived his usefulness. Why don't you step down before you do any more damage?"

Zeus' hand flew out, palm up. Lightning shot from his hand to take the god of war in the chest. He flew back to land hard against an embankment.

Sira jerked out of the arms of the demigod and the hunter to run to the god of war. She knelt beside him. "Are you all right, my brother?" She reached to touch him.

"Don't, Sira. I don't need your help."

The King of the gods came to stand over his son. "Get up. This isn't over."

The empath spun around to face him, putting her body between the King of the gods and his son. "Stop this! What kind of father hurts his son? You should be ashamed." Her anger gave strength to her voice. "You are both in the wrong. You were both fools, and your foolishness almost cost the people of this island their lives. Not once did either of you give a thought to the consequences of your actions or the effects they might have on innocent lives. You created a killing machine by fooling with things that were not yours to meddle with." The god of war started to object. "Shut up, Ares!" she shouted at him. "Right now, both of you remove your hold on the crown. Turn it back into what Jason made of it; a symbol of justice and humanity."

Neither god made a move. "Do it now!" the nature child demanded. "Then I want you to apologize to each other. You are father and son, for the love of the earth. To treat each other like this is shameful. Now, are you going to do it, or do I get mean?"

Zeus turned to Hercules. "Does she often get like this, Son?"

"She does have a temper," the demigod confirmed.

"What exactly does she mean by getting mean?"

"I don't think you really want to find out, Father." Zeus nodded gravely.

"Look, damn it," Sira interrupted, "while you are fooling around, Venin is getting away."

"Tang and Knots went after her," the hunter supplied.

"Well, Ares," the King of the gods said, "shall we humor the girl?"

"May as well, I suppose. It wouldn't be fair to Iolaus not to. He has to live with her."

"Oh, you make me so damned mad." The healer stormed away to stand with her back to the others. She sent her mind out. Do not let her get away, she prayed to the earth. Then turning her thoughts to the village she sent her mind to search for any who might need her help. She was grateful to find her services as a healer wouldn't be needed.

The King of thieves came to stand beside her. "Are you all right, Sira?"

"Yes. I will be." She turned to take the hand he'd used to knock the crown from Venin's hand. It showed no mark or injury and she looked up to study his face.

"You healed it while you wore the crown. It wasn't bad anyway, then all of a sudden it was as if it had never been hurt."

She smiled at him. "I need to go after Venin. She cannot be allowed to escape."

"I'll help you."

"The crown must be released first."

"That's already been done. But you're shaking like a leaf. You're in no condition to go after Venin, especially alone."

She hadn't noticed until he mentioned it that she was shaking. The hunter came to put his arms around her and she leaned heavily into him. "We have to stop her, Iolaus."

"I know, my love. Hercules has gone to find the others."

The empath turned to the two gods. "Thank you for removing your influence from the crown."

Ares stepped forward to hold the gold band out to her. She hesitated taking it. "It can't hurt you now, my little warrior."

She searched his eyes. "You are all right?" She took the crown and handed it to Autolycus, then reached out to take the god's hand that had been so badly burned. She examined the palm, then turned it over for a moment before turning it back to look at the palm once more.

"It's fine, my sister. Your earthly powers cured it even before my godly powers could."

"I tried to warn you."

"I know. I was angry, but it doesn't matter now. You got your way without my help. But then somehow I knew you would."

"You cannot fool me, my brother. I felt you there helping me."

"I wasn't really helping you as much as cheering you along. I got caught up in your magnificence." He gave her a dazzling show of even white teeth as he smiled.

"Why do you not just try getting along with your father?"

"No, my sister. Don't try to fix it. There are some things even you can't heal." She sighed in frustration but said no more. He brought her hand to his lips to kiss the palm then each fingertip. "Good-bye, my little warrior. I look forward to your next battle." Dropping her hand he stepped back. In a flash of light he was gone.

Sira walked to where Zeus stood a little apart from them. She smiled at him. "He is your son."

"Yes, I know, and there are times I'm very proud of him. Then others�" He left his thought incomplete.

"Have you ever told him you are proud of him? He said nothing. "I met Amanda," she offered.

The King of the gods turned to her. "How is my daughter?"

"She has gone to the earth. I thought you would know."

"No. No, I didn't know. And you're right, I should have." He shook his head. "I haven't been much of a father to any of my children."

"It is too late for Amanda, but not for the others."

"You're like Alcmene; you want things in a tidy little bundle, wrapped in a pretty ribbon. It can't always be that way."

"No, Father, it cannot, but we can at least try our best to put the ribbons there."

He nodded. "Yes, daughter, perhaps you're right. Perhaps we should try the ribbons, anyway." He smiled at her, then took her into his arms to hug her. "Does Hercules know about Amanda?"

"No, but I think he should."

"Yes, daughter." He hesitated. "Will you tell him?"

"Yes, Father, I will tell him."

"I must go," he whispered. "You're very powerful, my little yosemin. Protect my son."

"You know I will," she smiled at him. "Come see us at our cabin in the forest. You will be most welcome."

He stepped back. "I just might do that." With a smile he was gone.

The hunter and the master thief came to stand on either side of the healer. The hunter took her hand. "Ready, my love?"

She squeezed his hand in return. "Let us find the others."

They followed the trail left by the others as they followed the murderess. They moved past the stone house the old Captain had built on the knoll overlooking the village.

"So, Autolycus," the hunter asked, "how did you get away from Venin?"

"She put me in a cell the old Captain had built in that moldy pile of rocks." The thief shrugged. "It was easy from there."

"She did not hurt you?'

"No, Sira, she didn't get the chance."

The empath nodded. "I am glad. You are right in what you are thinking. She would have if she had been given a chance."

"You're reading minds again."

"Sorry."

"It's okay. I'm kind of getting used to it." He reached to take her other hand.

Sira closed her eyes for a moment. "Hercules wants us to hurry."

The men exchanged looks over the healer's head and quickened their pace. They found the others on a wide sandy beach on the far side of the island.

"Where is she?" the hunter questioned.

"She set out to her ship in a small boat," the demigod told him. "Tell them what you told me, Knots."

The big sailor nodded. "She was well out, almost past the reef. A big wave seemed to well up from nowhere. It was a huge thing. It crashed down on her and the boat. She was smashed under that massive wall of water." The sailor shook his head. "In all my years at sea I've never seen anything like it. Tang and I scrambled for high ground. With a wave that big it should have covered the beach, but it didn't. It never even made it to shore."

Hercules and Sira looked at each other.

"The water mother swallowed her," the child of the earth whispered.

"Well, if it did," the King of thieves commented, "it spit her back out." He motioned with his head.

Debris and seaweed floated on the incoming wave. "Nasty taste?" the hunter offered.

They stood watching as the sea slowly moved the bits of wood and plant life on its surface closer to the shore. When it was close enough the demigod waded out to what might be the remains of the woman who'd been so filled with hate. He couldn't be sure. There was so much seaweed floating on the waves he couldn't tell if this was just more of the same twisted in a tight knot of spume.

When he got closer he could see her hair floating with the shiny water plants. The half man, half god carried her to the beach to lay her still form on the damp sand. He started to remove the clinging pulpy vines.

"Do not rip them," Sira objected. Seeing how rough her brother of the soul must be to tear the plants away from the girl, tore at the healer's sensitive heart. She knew Venin was gone; still, what remained of the woman here on the mortal plane should be treated with gentleness. She knelt beside the girl and gently began to untangle her from the clutches of the vines. It seemed to come away easily at the healer's touch, as if it released its victim of its own volition.

"What a waste," Knots whispered. "She was a beauty."

Sira gently pushed the hair from the girl's face and closed the unseeing eyes to the sunlight. "To the east, mother soil, protect her body. To the west, water mother, protect her thoughts. To the south, mother of trees, guide her forth. To the north, mother earth, protect her soul." She gave the yosemin prayer of death.

Tears shown in her eyes as she studied the girl's pale features. She wondered if there was anyone, anywhere, who would mourn the passing of this woman. "How sad that someone could live so long on the earth and leave nothing behind to note that life. No one to remember her with gladness. No legacy except that of pain and hate." The tears spilled from the empath's eyes to splash on the sand at her knees. No sooner had it touched the soil, then it was gone, absorbed by the mother of the chosen one whose sensitive soul could mourn even the death of one as evil as Venin had been.

"We going to have company," Tang warned. A boat had set out from Venin's ship. "Could mean trouble."

"If it's trouble they want, it's trouble they'll get," the son of Zeus replied.

The boat was rowed steadily on as they watched. When it was close enough to shore two of the three men in the boat jumped out to pull it onto the sand.

One of the men walked up to them. "We saw what happened." He stood looking down at the lifeless form of the woman who'd been his Captain. Sira could sense no grief in the man at Venin's passing. "Never saw anything like that wave." The man shook his head. "We'll take her out to sea and give her a seaman's burial if that's all right with you." Hercules nodded. The man motioned for the others at the boat to come for the body.

The hunter helped Sira to her feet and steadied her there with an arm around her. The man from the boat motioned to his friends and they came forward with a tarp. Sira turned away.

Hercules put an arm around her waist so that she was braced between him and the hunter. Not so much for the physical support, although she felt the need of that also, but more for the mental support. She could feel the minds of the two men she loved comforting her with a strong mind's touch.

"Let's get out of here," the son of Zeus stated. "We'll head back to the ship."

The six of them turned away from the beach. Sira turned back to watch the men carrying the tarp covered body to their boat, then with a sigh she started toward the sandy bank that would take them to the ridge they must cross to reach the other shore where their own boat waited.

"What about the village?" she voiced.

"Once you're settled on the ship," the demigod told her, "I'll come back to check on them."

"You get Sira to the ship, I'll stay and see if there's anything I can do for the village," Knots offered.

"I stay also," Tang added.

"I have sent my mind to them and feel no need for my healing. Still there may be someone who will need my help."

"Somehow I don't think so, my sister." Hercules tightened his grip around her waist. "You've already healed them, just as you did the rest of us." She looked up at him as if not understanding what he meant. "When you had the crown you sent love and healing to all of us. I wasn't doing so good there at the last, but one blast from you and I was fine."

"It was the same with my hand," the master thief added.

"I felt it also," the hunter reassured her. "I think you sent healing to the whole damn world." Sira said nothing, but she leaned a little heavier against him.

They walked on, but after a moment the healer stumbled. The hunter sent his mind to her to find hers sluggish and muddled. He knew she must sleep the healing sleep to renew her energies. He couldn't begin to know what it must have taken for her to fight Venin and the power the crown lent her. The hunter was worried. Sira was most vulnerable now; she needed love and protection to soothe her. The weakening of her energies always left her despondent as it exposed her emotions. Emotions left sore and bruised this time by what she'd been forced to do.

She stumbled again, and the demigod turned to pick her up. With a smile to the hunter who nodded his approval they didn't stop.

"Is she all right?" the King of thieves asked.

"She will be, once she can sleep."

The healer rested her face against the demigod's broad chest and touched his mind with hers, drawing on his strength to help her. She must keep going a little longer. She still must reach the ship, but doubted she would be able to.

"Don't fight it, my more than sister. Sleep. I promise to take care of you. Iolaus is here to help. Sleep." The big man soothed her with his mind. She reached out her hand to the hunter and he took it with his. He opened his mind to her to let his love flow between them. The love both of them offered her surrounded her in its protective cocoon, helping to shield her from her own emotions, and allowing her to look past them.

"Like old times," the hunter smiled at her.

"Like when we left the glade where I found you."

"Thank the gods of Olympus and the earth you did."

The half god son of Zeus sat on a mat on the floor in the curtained off corner of the cargo hold of the Alcmene. Two days had passed as the healer slept the healing sleep that would renew her energies and help her find a way to deal with the events that had taken place on the tiny island they were still anchored near. Someone had sat with her most of the time. Whether she was aware of their presence or not, he didn't know, but somehow he believed she was. Autolycus had been with her a great deal. He seemed unable to stay away from her. Iolaus had convinced him that touching her might help.

"She draws energy from those around her, even in sleep. Lay with her. Your arms around her will bring her comfort." The King of thieves had turned a shocked look on the golden hunter of the forest who'd laughed at him. Later, Hercules had found the King of thieves had taken the hunter at his word and fallen asleep with the girl in his arms.

Chi spent most of his time with her as well, as if the cat sensed her need for comfort and the power the earth offered her through one of its creatures.

The big man eased his position then sent his mind to the healer. He found her sleeping soundly in the trance of the healing sleep. Reassured he relaxed.

The room filled with light and the god of war stood before him.

"Ares."

"Little brother," the god acknowledged.

"Why are you here?"

"To check on Sira." The dark godly warrior knelt to rub a knuckle across the girl's cheek. The touch was light; not meant to disturb her. The demigod knew the touch was more to soothe the god's concern more than to help Sira.

"She's all right, brother," the half god assured him.

Ares looked up to study his brother's face a moment. He nodded then turned back to the sleeping girl. "I've just come from Zeus. He sure thinks a lot of her."

"I gathered that."

"She has a way of getting under a person's skin, doesn't she?"

"She does, at that."

"I never meant for her to get hurt."

"She didn't, really. She depleted her energies, but the healing sleep will do much to restore them."

"I would have helped her if things had turned ugly." The demigod said nothing. "I know you don't believe me, but it's true."

"No, I do believe you."

"She didn't need my help. Even before she had the crown she was more powerful than Venin."

"I know."

"Putting the crown on her was quick thinking."

"I knew with its power combined with hers there'd be no stopping her. I didn't, however, know just how much power it would lend her."

"I went to the village afterwards. She cured the whole damn place within seconds."

"I know." The half god studied his brother's dark features. "Did Father call for you?"

Ares looked up. "Yeah."

"For a reprimand?"

"That's what I figured it was going to be." The god shook his head. "I think the old man's losing it."

"How so?"

"I was all ready for a fight. You know damn well all our discussions end in a battle of wills; they always have. Sometimes I think he enjoys battling me. Anyway, while some of our words were heated, there was no fight." He shook his head again. "He said something I'd never heard him say before. I still don't believe he said it."

"Just what did he say?"

The god rose and began to pace the confined space of the hold then turned to face the brother he knew so little about. The brother he'd hated at times, the one that seemed to be the King of the gods' favorite. Ares admitted to himself that he'd always been jealous of the love Zeus had for his bastard son and the seeming lack of feelings he had for his rightful offspring.

"He said he was proud of me," the god whispered.

Hercules could see the emotions that flashed across his brother's face. Not too long ago he would have sworn the warrior god had no emotions beyond hate and evil. But he'd seen a different side of the brother he'd always secretly feared. "Is that so surprising? You are his son."

"He's never really treated me as if I were. I always knew he cared more for you than any of us."

"I don't think that's true. He did try to protect me, but I think that was more because I wasn't a god than because I was his favorite. It seems to me he's been pretty tolerant of you."

"Yeah," the god of war sighed, "maybe he has, at that."

Hercules smiled at him. "So what did you say?"

"I just stood there with my mouth hanging open like some kind of fool." Ares chuckled. "Then I was really foolish."

"What?"

"I told him I loved him."

The demigod's eyebrows disappeared beneath his shaggy mane. "And?"

"He looked kind of funny for a minute. Then he just blinked out."

"He's always avoided emotions like that. Even with his grandchildren he was always restrained."

"He loved your children, you know."

"Yes, I think he did."

"He loved your mother also. In fact, I think he still does."

"She still has feelings for him, too."

"It's sometimes hard to realize your parents have feelings and needs also, isn't it?"

Hercules laughed. "Yeah, sometimes it is."

Ares knelt once more beside the sleeping healer. "You're sure she's all right?"

"I'm sure. Look, if you wouldn't mind staying with her for a bit, I could sure use some fresh air."

"I'll stay with her."

Hercules rose. "Thanks, brother."

He left the hold to go on deck. He hadn't really needed the fresh air, but he knew that Ares needed to be close to Sira.

The hunter looked up, then in two long strides he was with the big man. "Is Sira all right?"

"She's fine. Ares is with her." The hunter raised his eyebrows. "He popped in to check on her." He shrugged. "He was feeling vulnerable and needed to be near her. I hope you don't mind."

"Ares? Feeling vulnerable?"

"Hard to believe, isn't it?" Iolaus chuckled. "It is all right that I left him with her, don't you think?"

"I'm sure it is. He loves her, too."

The daughter of the earth walked hand in hand with the hunter and the half god son of Zeus along the sandy path that would take them to the village. Three days had passed since the morning the earth had worked through its chosen one to stop the evil Venin had spewed forth. The healer had completed the sleeping trance that renewed her strength. She'd once again built the barriers needed to protect herself from the flood of strong emotions her sensitive mind and soul were so vulnerable to. Death of any kind touched her healer's heart deeply. Being forced to battle even someone as warped and twisted as the dark haired woman had been, left her questioning herself and the use she made of the earth mother's gifts.

As they approached the village several people came to greet them with friendship. The healer had been concerned that the people would resent her for having a hand in the death of the old Captain's widow. Her fears were put to rest with the first friendly hello.

The man who'd led Autolycus through the reef stepped forward. "We are most happy that you've come to us." He looked directly at the empath. "We wanted the chance to thank you." Sira looked confused. "You saved us all. There's no way we can repay you for this."

"But I did nothing."

"You healed us. The power you sent to us reversed the damage done by the widow." Sira looked to the hunter then the demigod. They both smiled at her. "Would you honor us by sharing a meal with us?"

"It is I who would be honored."

They led her to the village and to a wooden chair set under a tree in the shade. "Rest here, healer, and we will serve you."

"That really is not necessary."

"But we want to."

She looked around her at the expectant faces that looked at her with such reverence. With a shrug she took the offered chair.

The apparent leader of the village turned to motion to his people and they went bustling about, bent on preparing a meal for the honored healer who'd saved them all from death.

Sira turned accusing eyes on the demigod and the hunter. "You knew about this, did you not? That is why you insisted on my coming to the village."

Hercules chuckled. "We also wanted you to see firsthand that the people here were all right."

A woman came shyly forward, leading a small child. Both child and mother were dark of skin their hair black and tightly curled. The mother seemed shy about disturbing her, but she also wore a look of determination. Sira smiled at her to reassure her. The woman went to her knees before the empath then bent forward to kiss her feet. The forest child looked startled. Not sure what to say she turned once more to the hunter and the demigod. They gave her humorous smiles but no solution to the problem of dealing with the woman who paid such homage to her.

Sira reached out to take the woman's shoulders. "You owe me no such honor. Please rise and sit with me as an equal."

"No, healer. I am not worthy of that. My debt to you can never be paid. I am your servant."

"No. If I helped you, it is because I wanted to do so. You owe me nothing for that."

"I felt you touch us, and when I did my daughter breathed again. She wasn't breathing. There was no life in her, but you snatched her back from the beyond."

The empath studied the woman's face. She truly believed what she had just said. The healer's mind on hers confirmed this. She'd touched the woman and child deliberately from the first moment she'd heard the child cry. But to restore life once it was gone? Was this really possible?

The mother wiped the tears from her cheeks. "I must serve you, honored healer. I owe you that much."

Sira let her breath out with a sigh. "Then if you insist on serving me, my orders to you are to go and live your life and to take extra special care of the child the earth has blessed with her favor."

"But I must serve you."

"You will be serving me, but what is more important, you will be serving the earth. These are my wishes."

The mother, still on her knees before the chosen one, sat back on her haunches. "Then if that is what you need of me, I will willingly give it."

Sira gave her a benign smile. "Thank you."

The woman rose, and taking the child's hand she smiled at Sira. Tears still slipped down her cheeks and she hurried away, afraid she was making a fool of herself.

She'd no more done so when another woman came forward, a baby in her arms. "Will you bless my son? He was born the same day the widow tried to kill us with her evil. It was that night. I was so afraid of what might come of the poison and hate we'd all been exposed to." The woman handed the baby to the healer who took him quite willingly. "The birth was like nothing, and as you can see he is quite healthy."

The empath pulled the blanket that swaddled the child aside to get a view of pink cheeks and dark brown eyes. Her face softened as she gazed down on the tiny being. "He is beautiful."

"Thank you, healer. Will you bless him?"

Sira kissed one sweet smelling cheek. "He is already blessed."

"Thank you, healer."

The earth's child handed the baby back to her. "I have done nothing, but thank you."

"I will bring you food and drink. You are not to lift a finger."

"That is not necessary." Sira was feeling most uncomfortable with the adoration of these good and simple people. She realized that some of it came from their need to deal with the fear they'd so recently experienced. They'd been left feeling vulnerable and exposed. Believing a powerful being had blessed them with her protection and love helped them to put their fear aside.

"They treat me like some kind of god," Sira complained.

"To them you are," the demigod told her.

Her hand tingled with a godly presence where once the same god had kissed it. She narrowed her eyes at Hercules. "I am going to get you for this." He only laughed at her.

It was dark before they returned to the Alcmene. They'd been sent on their way with gifts of food to make their journey home a comfortable one. Sira felt drained and tired. She couldn't wait to stretch out on her mats in the hold.

The hunter came with her. He knew she was tired. The healing sleep did much to restore her to health but it would take a couple more days before the full effects of using her earthly powers could be left behind. The empath had told him once that she retained something from every healing or every use of the power the earth mother channeled through her.

He'd found a time to walk away from the village with her, and in a secluded hollow they'd made love. Her lovemaking had been ardent and demanding, as it could be at times, but he knew this, while helping to slake her physical need of release had tired her even more.

He laid down beside her in their bed to take her into his arms. "You were great today," he whispered.

"I cannot help but feel sorry for those people. The hate Venin spewed at them affected them deeply. I may have restored their physical health with the help of the crown, but their mental health will take a little longer to find peace."

"Your being there today did much to help them. That's another reason we wanted you to visit the village before we set sail."

"You sensed their need. You are of the earth."

"I wish I could take the credit. It was really Hercules who first voiced it. Once he had, I saw it as well. Good people like these islanders shouldn't have to live in fear."

"That woman really believes I brought her child back from death."

"I know. Maybe you did. I was pretty close to death myself. The force that swept over me was� Well, I don't know how to explain it. I was healed instantly."

She tightened her grip on him. "I would not have wanted to go on without you. Thank the earth I did not have to try."

He kissed her forehead. "Sleep, child of the earth."

She smiled into the darkness of the hold and nestled down beside the hunter to make herself more comfortable. Within seconds she was asleep. The hunter sent a prayer to the earth for it's chosen one, then he also slept.

The empath stood at the rail of the Alcmene straining her eyes to try and get a glimpse of the harbor at Corinth. The hunter came to stand behind her. "It won't be long now, my love." She leaned back against him and his arms went around her.

"Can we return to the forest soon after we arrive?"

"Yes. I knew you would need to do so. If you want, we can leave tomorrow."

"No. That would be most rude. My need can wait a few days." She turned around in his arms to face him. "It will be good to feel the forest soil beneath my bare feet."

"Maybe we can find a nice tree to stop under for a short time."

A mischievous gleam filled her dark green eyes to take his breath away. She said nothing in words, but her mind said much. They both took comfort from their closeness.

The King of thieves also stood at the ship's rail a little apart from the lovers. He'd avoided getting too close to the healer. He told Hercules it was because Sira had beaten him five times out of five at the game of chips. Sira knew there was another reason he kept to himself. He'd avenged the death of a friend. Having done so had left his mind and heart open to the grief he felt at his friend's passing. His depth of loneliness tore at the healer's sensitive heart. She longed to offer him comfort, but her strong mind told her he would only resent the intrusion on emotions he preferred to keep to himself.

Avoiding the healer did little to hide his feelings from her, but she said nothing. He must find a way to come to grips with his feelings, and if he asked her she would be most willing to help him. Somehow she was sure he wouldn't ask.

The King himself met them at the dock. They put the gangplank out for him and he bounded up the ramp. "Well?" he demanded of his brother. The demigod pulled the crown from behind his back to hand it to the King of Corinth.

Jason joined them as well "You did it!"

"Was there ever any doubt?" the hunter teased.

"What about Venin?"

The demigod could see the lines of worry on his friend's face. He could only imagine what it must have been like to wait here, not knowing what was happening across the ocean. "She's gone, Jason. For sure this time. She won't bother you anymore."

The Argonaut nodded, then patted the big man on the back. "I want to hear all about it."

"And so you shall."

Sira went to Iphicles. "How is Reyna?"

He picked her up and swung her around. "She is much better, little sister. She made me promise I would bring you to see her as soon as possible."

Reyna's maid let her into the Queen's chamber. It wasn't the same room the Queen had used before. The hole in the floor had been repaired, but the Queen refused to use the room now. The door between her old chamber and the bed chamber she shared with the King had been sealed up and a new one built into the room on the other side of the kings dressing room.

Albida was with the Queen when the healer joined them. She hugged the child first. "Autolycus is downstairs. He would like to see you."

An excited light came into the girl's eyes. "May I, Reyna?"

"Of course. Invite him to dine with us. We owe him a debt of gratitude."

The girl bounded away. "Thank you, Reyna."

"I am sure Autolycus will find some way to turn what you just said to his advantage," Sira commented.

The Queen laughed. "No doubt you're right."

The empath took a seat at the table across from the Queen then reached out to take one of her hands. "So you are feeling better, I hear."

"Yes, much better."

"I take it the King still does not know why you were sick."

"No, but I plan to tell him when we have the celebration for his birthday. We only had a small gathering for his actual birthday so that we could wait to celebrate with all of you on your return. His present from me that night will be the news of the baby."

"I am glad. He should know. It is not fair to rob him of the joy. He should experience it with you."

"Can men do that?"

Sira laughed. "Yes, men can do that. How is the King's water clean up project coming along?"

"Slowly. Even with Parenthis and Jason to help there is so much to do." She shook her head. "He gets so tired that he falls asleep the minute he lays down. Still, despite all he has to keep him occupied he finds time for me."

Jason, Iphicles, Autolycus, the hunter, and the demigod sat around the large table in the King's hall. The tale the travelers had to tell kept the King and the former King listening. They hadn't completed the details when Captain Bradous was announced.

He was shown to a chair. "I didn't mean to interrupt. I wished only to report to the owners of the Alcmene."

"How'd our ship do?" the Argonaut asked.

"She's a fine ship. It was a pleasure to command her."

"Then perhaps you'd consider staying on as her Captain. We could really use you."

"I would be honored, my friend." The Captain stuck his hand out and the Argonaut took it in a firm grip. "You should have told me about Sira," he accused good naturedly.

"You wouldn't have believed me if I had."

The Captain laughed. "You're probably right; I wouldn't have. I saw it for myself and I still don't believe it. She led us right to this island that has never been charted." The Captain shook his head. "The way she uses her mind�" He didn't know how to go on.

"You don't have to tell me, old friend. I've had firsthand experience with her powers. She's a remarkable woman."

Sira relaxed in her room before dinner. The hunter hadn't yet come up to change. She'd bathed and dressed for the evening meal, then making a back rest of pillows she made herself comfortable. "Come in, Alcmene," she called at the knock on her door.

The mother of Hercules entered and Sira rose to hug her. "I'm sorry I wasn't here to greet you," Alcmene apologized. "I've been helping out at the foundling home since Reyna really isn't up to it lately."

"It is all right. I knew we would get a chance to talk later." Sira studied her face a moment. She could see the tension on her friend's face. "It is over now, my mother."

"She really is gone this time?"

"How long have you known who we sought?"

"Since just before you left Corinth."

"I wondered if that would be something Jason could keep from you."

"He did try, but he sometimes talks in his sleep. He never used to, before the time Venin held him captive, but now sometimes he does. I could see his worry and concern, then the things he said in his sleep. I put two and two together."

"You have not talked with him about this?"

"No. I guess in a way I was afraid to. If he confirmed my suspicions I couldn't pretend any longer that my conclusions were faulty."

Sira hugged the older woman again. "You should speak with him. You would both find comfort in doing so."

"You're right, we would."

"Then go find him now. I will make your excuses if you are late to dinner."

Alcmene planted a light kiss on the healer's cheek. "If I have my way, we will definitely not make it to dinner."

Sira smiled. "Then I will tell the kitchen to prepare a tray, but not to bring it up until you ring for it."

The older woman's eyes filled with a mischievous light. With a wink she let herself out of the room to go in search of the former King of Corinth.

Dinner was a quiet affair. Parenthis and Autolycus were the only guests. Jason and Alcmene hadn't come down, just as the mother of Hercules had predicted. Sira wanted a chance to speak to the King about the child they had rescued from the woman who'd abused Albida. She wasn't aware that Reyna now knew of the woman selling children, so she said nothing in front of the Queen. The King broached the subject for her.

"Sira, I wanted you to know we found the man who was involved with stealing those babies." Sira looked up to study the Queen's reaction, then relaxed when she saw that Reyna was aware of the situation. "He swears the fourth baby was one he found abandoned near the old temple. He's in custody now. If you would be willing to talk to him, perhaps we could know for sure if he is telling the truth."

"Of course. What about the woman who came to the foundling home? The one whose baby we did not have?"

"We're working on leads from the man. Once he was caught, he was most willing to talk. So far, we still haven't located the fifth child. He swears there were only four children he took from mothers, and the rest he says he either found or bought."

You will keep trying to find the other child?"

"Yes. We're not giving up on this yet."

The healer was thoughtfully silent for a moment.

"What are you cooking up in that pretty little head of yours?" the hunter asked her suspiciously.

"Two things, really. First, I was wondering if I could get a sense of the child from the mother or the man who stole the child. If I could, perhaps I could find it. Secondly, if the man is telling the truth and the baby we have at the foundling home is indeed an abandoned child, perhaps the mother of the yet unfound child would be willing to offer the waif a home. They both need each other."

"What if we find her baby?"

"She would, by then, hopefully, love the abandoned child enough to keep it anyway."

The King grinned at the hunter. "Your wife has that gleam in her eyes, my friend."

"So I see. If there's one thing I've learned, it's to humor her when she's into something like this."

"Good, then," the healer offered. "Tomorrow I speak with the man you are holding, then I speak with the mother." Sira turned to the Queen. "I hope this subject matter has not upset you."

"No. Iphicles and I have talked about this whole thing, and about you. I just hope you can help that poor woman." The Queen put both hands to her middle. "He and I will do whatever we can, and we've agreed not to stop looking for the baby. He's sent men to Epidaurus to check on a lead there. I only regret we weren't aware of this whole thing sooner."

"Speaking of which, has anything been heard of Ossagol?" Hercules asked.

The King looked uncomfortable and the Queen reached out to pat his hand. "It's all right, my dear. I know about him. I overheard you and Jason talking about it."

He squeezed her hand. "Ossagol was found in a cheap room above a tavern. Someone had robbed and killed him."

Sira sent her mind to comfort the King and he nodded at her. "I am sorry," she whispered.

"People said he kept flashing money around despite their warnings. Where he got money, I don't know. I can't find anything to indicate he was embezzling from the kingdom. Nothing is missing, so it must have been money of his own."

"One would wonder if he was inviting such an end," the King of thieves offered.

"If he had money, why was he staying in a cheap tavern room?" the hunter voiced.

"I say again," Autolycus said, "maybe he was looking for trouble."

The King sighed. "I guess we'll never know. Despite his betrayal, it wasn't an end I wished for him."

Reyna squeezed his hand again.

Hercules and Iolaus walked with Sira to the prison to talk with the man being held there. The empath remembered the last time she had been here to see the woman who'd abused Albida. The King had told her that the woman was being held in custody at a house here in the city. She was being well cared for, but he didn't think she had much time left. She'd become quite ill.

Sira stopped before the cell the guard led them to. A very tall, sparse man in his thirties was sprawled on a blanket in the corner. He rose to stare at her through narrowed eyes.

"I wish to ask you a few questions about the baby you stole and has not yet been found." The man squirmed uncomfortably. Sira gasped and reached out to steady herself by taking hold of the bars to the cell.

"That baby's long gone. I sold it to a couple headed toward Epidaurus."

The hunter took the healer's arm. "What is it, Sira?"

She ignored the hunter. "There were other babies you stole?"

"No. Just the four of them. Most times stealing babies wasn't necessary. People have unwanted babies all the time. Especially girl babies. I worked this whole coast. That fat pig, Darcy, wasn't the only person working for me."

"Will you tell the King the names and locations of these people who worked for you?"

"If he goes easy on me, I will. I've told him that already. He let's me off lightly and I spill my guts." The man shrugged. "He cooperates with me and I'll cooperate with him."

"Perhaps it is you who should cooperate. Perhaps being honest with him will buy your life, although I do not believe it is worth the price, and I wonder if King Iphicles will, once he learns you had a hand in the death of that child."

The man had slouched back against the wall of the narrow stone cell, but at the healer's words he jumped upright. "What are you saying?"

"I can read your thoughts and know that the child we seek is no longer on this mortal plane." Her voice was unsteady. The hunter took her arm and the demigod moved closer to her. She took comfort from them and continued. "You killed that child."

"No. I didn't kill anyone."

"You do not lie well. The King will have you drawn and quartered. I understand it is not a comfortable way to leave the earth behind." She narrowed her eyes at him. "I wonder what Tartarus is really like?" She turned to the demigod, then to Iolaus. "You have both been there, I believe. Tell our friend what he can expect."

"Wait one damned minute. I didn't kill that baby."

"Yes, you did."

"The King won't take your word on that. Who in the name of Zeus are you, anyway?"

"I am the King's sister. This is his brother, Hercules, and this is his comrade, Iolaus." Sira sighed. "I usually do not condone one life taken for another, but in your case it would be all too easy to see the justification in such a rash action."

"I didn't kill that baby. It just died. I took it; I admit that. I had a sell all ready, but the little brat up and died on me. Sweet Hera, I don't know anything about taking care of babies. That's why I needed help with them. But things were getting hot here in Corinth, and Darcy had too many as it was. People might get suspicious. I took the baby down the coast with me. It just died."

"Did you feed it? Did you keep him warm? You killed that baby just as surely as if you had choked the life from its body." The girl's voice had risen as she talked. The tension in the air was so thick it almost seemed visible. The demigod could feel his sister of the soul's emotions. Almost without her meaning to the girl's mind touched that of the man in the cell. He threw both hands to his head as he dropped to his knees.

"No! I never meant for the baby to die. I never wanted the kids harmed. I found homes for some of them. No." He began to whimper. "Stop this. I can't stand it. I'm sorry." Tears stained his cheeks, and he slid to the cold stones of the floor. "By the gods, what have I done?"

Sira was unrelenting. "Now you know some of what those mothers went through. Now you have felt the pain of what you have done. Now you feel that baby's death. How do you like it?"

The demigod took her hand. "Sira, my sister." Still the healer bombarded the man's unprotected mind with the pain and sorrow she herself was feeling. She deliberately thought of how she would feel if she lost Hercus. This man must pay for what he'd done. What she'd said earlier about not believing in a death for a death was true. Besides, this was a much better way to punish this man. Let him feel what his actions had done to others. He had a conscience, that much was clear. It only added to his discomfort now.

"Sira." The demigod sent his mind to her. He gasped at the emotions she used now as a weapon against this man. "Let it go now, my sister. You have done all you can." His mind soothed hers. "Let it go."

Slowly she felt the mind of her more than brother coaxing her back from the trance she'd deliberately put her mind in. She sensed the hunter's mind calling to her as well. She needed their comfort. She needed to feel their tie of the soul.

"I want the names of the people who helped you and I want to know how to find them."

"Anything. Just make it stop. I'm so sorry, so sorry."

Sira took a hold on the thoughts of the men she loved and rode them back. Her mind cleared as she released the mind of the man who still lay whimpering on the floor.

"I didn't know. I never meant for the baby to die."

"Bring paper and ink," the healer instructed. "I will record what he has to say. We must stop these people."

Over an hour passed before they left the prison. Clutched tightly in the girl's hand was a roll of parchment with names and directions on it. It was written in the picture writing of the yosemin, so the girl must translate the information to the King, but she had every intention of doing so as soon as possible.

The hunter had an arm around her shoulders, the demigod held her free hand. Her emotions were still strongly felt by both men. They rounded a corner, but rather than turning toward the palace the healer turned toward the city.

"Where are you going?" the hunter asked.

"To the foundling home. I want to see the child who is still there." She believed that this child was indeed found on the steps of the old temple. She had no home and no one who would love her. Out there in the city was a woman without a child. A woman whose child had been taken from her. They must comfort each other, the healer's mind shouted. Somehow this mother must be led to this child.

A breeze smelling faintly of the sea fanned the healer's face, and with it came peace. The earth was calling to her, sending its energy and love to soothe and heal her. She'd used her mind to break the spirit of a human being. She'd let him feel a depth of emotion too powerful to endure. The man who huddled in the corner of his cell

resembled very little the man they had first seen there. Sira knew some of the pain would ease and he would again find himself, but for now she'd left him as he was. For her to seek revenge for his misdeeds went against her training as a healer. She should have felt remorse for what she had done in a moment of anger. But try as she might, she felt none. The earth's offered comfort made it clear that there would be no reprimand from her mother. She began to wonder if Thysis was right, and much of what was taught as being the will of the earth hadn't simply come out of the pain and sorrow of a strong minded race of people who found themselves exiled to the deepest forest out of desperation and fear for their lives, as well as the preservation of their race as a whole.

Sira held the child to her. The nurse of the home told her that the woman whose baby had not yet been found came everyday to the home in hopes of being told her child had been found. She came with her husband, a stone mason here in the city. Every day she'd stayed to hold the child she wished so desperately was hers and not the child of some mother left in despair by the loss of her child. The rumors of what had happened here in Corinth were heard everywhere. The King had acted fast to stop the man and woman responsible for stealing babies. He'd also worked quickly to restore the children to their rightful parents.

The distraught mother couldn't understand why the mother of this child didn't come forth to claim her baby. As day passed into day the mother began to hope the mother never did come for the baby. She needed the child as much as the child needed her. She'd worked to keep her milk from drying up. It had been a painful process but one she did out of love and the belief that she would again need the milk for her son. Now she willingly gave the nutrient rich milk to the little girl.

At first it had torn her heart to shreds to feel the tiny mouth at her breast and know the baby wasn't hers. Every day she'd cried and sworn she wouldn't do it again, but she couldn't stay away. She spent much of her time at the home caring for the little girl. She watched as the overly thin, sickly baby blossomed into a healthy, chubby little being that thrived on the love and the milk nature had meant for another.

The mother came slowly up the aisle to the healer. She knew this wasn't the mother of the child. She vaguely remembered the small beauty from the night she'd first come here looking for her son. She remembered the love and comfort the blond had offered her.

Now as she advanced on the healer she felt dread seep into her mind. Her step faltered. Somehow she knew what she would hear from this woman. She hesitated.

Sira went to her and held out a free hand to her. Without words she told her sad tale. Tears shown in the healer's eyes. This kind of sorrow burned her deeply, leaving a scar she knew would never truly heal. The demigod caught the woman as she began to fall.

"He's dead, isn't he?"

"I am sorry."

The scream filled the high ceilinged stone room and reverberated back to haunt the mother. Her husband took her from the demigod's arms and cradled her.

He cried openly with her. "You're sure?" Sira only nodded. The mason started to turn away. "Come, my love, we will comfort each other."

"Wait," Sira pleaded. "There is someone who needs you both very much." The father looked up to search her eyes. "This child has no family. They say here that you have been caring for and suckling her."

"No!" The father turned away. "I've just lost my son. Leave us to our grief."

The mother pulled away from him and came forward. Sobs shook her as she held her arms out to the baby. Sira placed the pink faced infant in her arms.

The father's breath caught on a sob and he started to turn away. The demigod stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "Don't let your grief take this from you. Your wife needs this child as much as the child needs her. Look at them." The mother had found a place on a bench to suckle the little girl. She rocked back and forth humming a tune to the baby.

"Let the death of your son stand for something. Give his existence a legacy that will live on in this child."

After a moment that seemed an eternity, the father nodded and went to sit beside his wife. He pulled the blanket aside so that he could see the little mouth taking the offered nourishment. He looked up to search his wife's eyes.

"Please, my love. I can't leave her behind. She's all I have to remember him by."

"We'll have more children."

"I don't care. I love her. Please don't ask me to walk away from her."

The man threw his head back as he drew a deep breath. "Then if they will allow it, we will take her with us."

The mother cried harder. The pleading look she turned to Sira tore the healer's heart. Sira went to her and placed a hand on the arm that cradled the baby. She sent her mind to touch that of the mother. She must be sure the earth approved of this. Reassured, the healer met the earnest gaze of the mother. "She is yours. Take good care of your daughter."

The mother closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. "Bless you. I will love her as my own. I already do."

Sira watched the couple leave, the mason's arm around his wife's shoulder so he could see the child. The demigod was beside the healer. She turned and his arms went around her. "It's all right now, little one. You can cry all you want." She seemed to take him at his word and did just that.

The hunter came to comfort her as well. "We should get her home and to bed. She's overdone it again."

"He's right, you know. You push yourself too hard."

"No, it had to be this way. There had to be an end to this for me, or I could not have rested."

"Well, now it's time to let it go."

They left the foundling home and turned toward the palace.

"Could we not find a place outside the city where I could smell the trees and grass?"

The demigod picked her up without a word and turned toward the main gates that would take them from the city. "We'll get you two set then I'll come back for a few things. Don't worry, all will be well."

The child of the forest rested her back against the slanted wall of the large tub that was a permanent fixture in the corner of the room she and the hunter shared here at the palace. Tonight was the night of the celebration. Secretly the healer wished they had gone on with the celebration while she and the others were at sea. Now, however, there was even more reason to celebrate. The crown of Jason had been returned to its rightful place.

With resignation the healer left the sanctuary of the tub to dry herself with a soft white towel. She eyed the dress she and Alcmene had chosen for the celebration with suspicion. It wasn't that she feared she didn't look well in the dress; she knew she did. She'd enjoyed the feel of the soft material when she'd shortened the dress she borrowed from her friend. But putting it on would give her no excuse to hide in her room.

"I wish I had stayed in the grove of trees," she complained to the empty room. After they'd left the city the demigod took them to a secluded grove of trees that overlooked the river. They'd stayed there for two days before returning to the palace. They'd only just returned this morning. Well, the healer consoled herself, tomorrow we will be leaving the city. She felt the old longing for the forest stir her blood. She needed time with her earth mother to renew her energies.

Alcmene had sought her half god son out when Sira told her they were leaving so soon. She hoped to persuade him to convince the others to stay longer.

"Sira needs to get back, mother. You remember how she became so tired and depressed when she tried to stay on the farm near yours?"

"Yes, I remember."

"It's like that now. She needs to be in the forest."

"Why? What is it about the forest that she doesn't find elsewhere?"

"I don't know. She takes energy and life from the forest. I don't know why this is so, but I know that it is. She's been away from it far too long."

"Then why don't you stay for a bit. It's been so good to have you here and to see the way you and Iphicles are getting along. I feel like we're a real family."

He hugged his mother. "You're right, Iphicles and I have grown closer. He's changed a great deal."

"But you're not staying."

"I seem to need the forest as much as Sira does."

"Is it the forest you need, or the forest creature?"

"I know you don't understand the relationship between the three of us. I guess I don't understand it either. Being with them has brought me the first real peace I've felt since Deianeira and the children were taken from me." He shook his head. "I'm not going to give that up, mother. Please don't ask me to."

She reached up to caress his cheek. "I'm sorry, Hercules. I'm being selfish. You're right, you should be with them. They seem to need you as much as you need them. And if it helps to ease your pain, then your place is with Sira and Iolaus in the forest she loves so much."

He pulled her to him and hugged her. "Thank you for understanding."

"You said that Iphicles has changed, and he has, but he's not the only one who has."

Alcmene tapped at the healer's door then entered at her call. "Oh, good. I'm just in time to help you with your hair."

"You look beautiful, my mother."

The older woman beamed at the healer. She wore a pale pink gown, trimmed in dove gray. Her hair was piled on top of her head in a cap of tight curls. "You should see the hall. It looks wonderful. Parenthis insisted on helping with the expense, and his generosity has made the place so beautiful."

"I would think the money could be better spent on the river project."

"Don't be peevish just because of your apprehension about tonight. You'll be wonderful. This ostentatious display is needed to reassure the people."

"You do not really believe that."

The older woman giggled. "Not for a minute, but Parenthis does." Alcmene studied the healer for a moment. "I meant to put your hair up for you, but you look so beautiful with it down." She turned the girl a bit to the left then to the right. "Maybe�" she mused. "Come sit here at the mirror and let's see."

She combed the healer's hair until it shown with a healthy light. Pink silk rosebuds adorned the pale green dress the healer wore. Alcmene pulled the sides of the empath's hair back and tied it with a pink ribbon, then wove pink rosebuds into the narrow braids on each side. The rest of the girl's hair she left hanging down her back.

"Stand up and let me see." Sira did as she was instructed. "Yes, it looks wonderful." The older woman went to the bag she'd tossed on the table and removed a small choker of pearls. She put them around the healer's neck then stood back to study her once more. "You'll be the most beautiful girl there tonight."

Sira smiled at her. "Thank you, mother." She kissed her friend's cheek.

"Don't be so nervous. You'll have fun."

Sira took a deep breath then let it out slowly. "I hope you are right."

"I'm always right. Now I must hurry; I have a place of honor on the platform with my son. I should be down there to help greet his guests."

The hunter was coming down the hall as the mother of the King was leaving the room. He stopped her to give her a warm hug. "You look beautiful, mom."

She kissed his cheek. "Thank you. Now you'd better hurry and change. The festivities have already started."

The hunter opened the door to the room he shared with the healer, but stood on the threshold looking in. "Say, young woman, have you seen my wife, Sira? She's about five foot nothing, long blond hair, green eyes?" He gave her a seductive leer. "You're mighty beautiful. Maybe I don't want to find her." He crossed the room in four long strides to pull her into his arms and kiss her thoroughly.

"Sorry, I have not seen your wife. But you are more than welcome to join me in my chamber, my lord," the healer teased back. "You are very handsome and you kiss divinely."

"Maybe we should just stay here and not go to this little gathering."

She kissed him. "Maybe you are right."

The hunter sighed. "Alas, we would be missed, I'm afraid."

"You will stay close to me, will you not?"

"Yes, so will Hercules. Don't be frightened. If you can't do this, then we'll just sit this one out."

Sira nodded. "Then you better get ready."

He kissed her again then hurried to bathe and dress. "Do I get the first dance?"

"If you wish." There was a frightened little girl sound to her answer.

"Have I told you how much I love you?"

"Not in the last ten or fifteen minutes you have not, and it has been far too long."

He returned to her only half dressed. He didn't tell her he loved her now, but his kiss and his mind on hers told her all the same.

The child of the forest and the golden hunter descended the stairs together, his arm linked with hers. Several people milled about at the front entrance to the main hall. Seeing them Sira hesitated.

"It's all right, Sira," the hunter whispered. "I'm here. No one is going to hurt you."

She took a deep breath to steady herself and they continued their descent. People turned to watch them. As they walked through the crowd Sira heard words of praise and admiration.

The big topic of the crowd was the recovery of the crown. Iphicles still refused to wear it, but it was on display on a raised dais, two guards on either side to keep an eye on it.

The King and Queen presided over the dance floor from their thrones on a raised platform along one wall. There were two richly upholstered, high backed chairs on the platform on either side of the thrones, put there for Jason and Alcmene. Other chairs were arranged around the outside of the room for those who chose not to dance. Several large tables were overflowing with food and refreshment.

The lovers found the demigod easily by looking over the tops of the other guest's heads, and made their way to him. He turned to dazzle the empath with a blue eyed smile. He held his hand out to her and she took it willingly. "You look wonderful, my sister."

"Thank you, my brother."

Soft music was being played by several musicians. The lively tune they were playing added a festive flare to the gathering.

Parenthis joined them. "You look lovely, Sira. You must save a dance for me."

The healer looked startled, then smiled and nodded to hide her confusion. The hunter squeezed her hand to reassure her.

The music changed and the King rose to offer a hand to the Queen. He led her to the dance floor. They looked beautiful together as he guided her across the smoothed stone floor. Jason and Alcmene joined the couple on the floor and soon others were dancing as well.

The hunter turned to the healer. "Shall we?" He held his hand out to her. She hesitated. It seemed so crowded on the floor. "It'll be all right. Come on."

With a deep breath for courage she took to the floor. She was graceful and light on her feet. What she lacked in dance skill she made up for in grace and dignity. After a moment she closed her eyes and let her mind guide her and she began to enjoy herself.

The grape baron turned to the demigod. "Your sister is quite the beauty."

"Yes. Yes, she is," he agreed.

When the dance was over the healer was smiling. She'd had fun, and gladly granted the demigod's request for a dance.

"You dance very well, my brother."

"Well, I had a few lessons once."

Sira smiled at him. "I had no idea."

"You seem to have lost your timid, lost little girl look."

"I never knew dancing could be such fun."

The healer found herself being asked for dances by people she'd never even seen before and found it hard to tell them no. She just couldn't bring herself to leave the protection of the hunter or the demigod.

She did dance with Autolycus. He steered her close to the stand that held the crown. "It's foolishness to display it like this," the King of thieves stated.

"Why? Iphicles has put it here to show the people the crown is truly back where it belongs."

"I'm aware of that, but doesn't he realize how easy it would be to steal it right from under his nose?"

Sira chuckled. "Is that all you ever think about?"

He smiled at her. "Yes, now that you mention it, I guess it is."

Sira danced with the former King of Corinth. "You're very popular, my dear."

"Would you believe, I wish I were not?"

"This is hard for you, isn't it? I mean, being around so many people." There was sympathy in his question.

"Yes. Crowds can be so overwhelming. Humans do not know how to shield their emotions. They bombard my mind. Keeping up the barriers needed to protect myself from others is not always easy. In doing so I must give up some of my perception of things that would bring me joy."

"You can't be yourself?"

"Yes, simply put, I cannot be myself."

"So even when you're not trying you can feel other's pain?"

"Not just their pain, but all emotions. Jealousy, hate, love. They are all in this room. I could, if I let myself, know what most of these people are thinking right now. I could sense what they think of me, or of the party."

"You've been hurt by peoples' unguarded thoughts before, haven't you?"

"Yes. It sometimes makes it hard to pretend to like someone. Ossagol was a perfect example. He took an instant dislike to me the moment he saw me. I was acutely aware of his dislike. In his case the feeling was mutual. But there are times when I might wish to get to know someone, then I feel how they think of me." She shook her head. "It is much easier to shield myself from smaller groups than larger ones."

"No wonder you were so frightened of coming here."

"I wonder if some of the hatred between my people and yours was not because of this. My people would wish to avoid yours to protect them from emotions that were painful. Your people would feel that my people wished to avoid them. That is not the best way to cement a relationship."

"Then once my people realized that the yosemin could read their minds, it was only natural to be frightened of that."

"Yes, it is human and yosemin nature to be frightened of things we do not understand. It is a necessary defensive tool. Still, it makes it hard for people to accept different races."

The Argonaut smiled at her. "Your intelligence never ceases to amaze me. If you want to slip quietly away, I'll explain to the others."

"Thank you, Jason. But there is something I wish to do first. Once I have, I may just do as you say, and slip away. I will touch your mind when I do, so that you will know where I have gone."

"Deal," he smiled at her. Sira smiled back at him. The dance was over so he escorted her back to the hunter.

Alcmene came to take his arm. "It's my turn," she teased him.

"Oh, my. Tomorrow I'm going to be really stiff and sore." He turned to the healer. "You won't leave too early, will you? I may well need a healer in the morning."

Sira laughed at him. "If you should, I will stay to help you, my more than friend."

"In that case," he swept his wife off her feet and back onto the dance floor.

The music stopped for a moment then the musicians played a fanfare. Two of the King's men moved the crowd back and rolled out a long narrow carpet that led to the platform where the King and Queen were once again seated.

Jason was the first to come forward. He gave a beautifully carved box to the King. Iphicles opened it to reveal a chess set of ivory from the orient.

"That's worth a pretty dinar," the kind of thieves whispered from behind the healer.

Others began to come forward with things for the King's birthday. Sira untied the cords of a small bag she carried over her wrist. She removed something then let the bag fall back around her wrist. Squaring her shoulders she stepped forward.

The hunter looked questioningly at the demigod, but the big man only shrugged. He had no idea what Sira was up to.

The empath stepped up to the platform ready to hand her gift to Clavus who waited to pass it to the King. Before she could Iphicles came forward and took the healer's hand to help her up the steps.

She handed him the object. "It is for the river project," she smiled at him.

He gave her a quick hug then turned her around to face the crowd. "My sister, Sira," he announced, then held up the ruby she'd given him for everyone to see. "It will be of great help with the expense of the river clean up project."

Iolaus grinned at the demigod who only shook his head, a smile on his face. The crowd cheered and the healer blushed.

"I thought she threw that thing into the ocean," Autolycus accused.

Sira returned to the hunter and he picked her up to swing her around. "Well done, my dear."

Hercules sent his mind to touch hers. She could feel the pride he felt in her.

The healer whispered something in the hunter's ear. "You're the star attraction and you want to leave?"

"Yes, please," she begged.

"Where do you want to go?"

"To the ship to say good-bye."

He gave her a tolerant smile. "All right. Shall we invite Hercules to join us?"

"Yes, please."

Before they could ask he came to them. "Let's get out of here," he whispered. The lovers laughed.

They made their way through the crowd. They stopped repeatedly as people waylaid them. Everyone wanted to meet the King's sister.

"I didn't know he had a sister."

"Where has she been all this time?"

The healer closed her mind to the melee, and holding tight to the hunter and the demigod she let them lead her from the hall. They left through the side door. Once the door was closed behind them the healer breathed a sigh of relief.

"Better?" the demigod asked.

"Much. Now I can breathe again."

They made their way to the Alcmene. The night was still young and they stayed with their friends late. The healer knew she would miss these men. Even the Captain joined in their fun and went so far as to kiss the healer's cheek when they at last called an end to their visit.

They left the ship by the gangplank and Sira took the hunter's hand to help guide her. She was blinded by tears and her strong emotions. Sensing her sadness the hunter sent his mind to comfort her and gladly helped her over the rough boards of the dock.

They let themselves in the side door and started down the main hall. Hearing voices in the King's hall they stopped. Autolycus and Iphicles sat at the table, a mug of tea before them both.

"There you are," the King smiled at them. "Come, join us a moment."

The King of thieves rose. "I must be going. I'm out of here in the morning so I wanted to say good-bye."

The demigod thrust out his hand and the master thief took it in a firm warrior's grasp. "Thanks for all your help, Autolycus."

The hunter also offered his arm. Sira wiped the tears from her cheek and hugged the darkly handsome thief. "I thought you threw that ruby in the ocean?"

"I almost did," the girl confessed. "I am afraid some of you has rubbed off on me. I just could not do it."

"Well, I must say, it was a pleasure to see you at work. If you ever decide to turn to a life of crime, look me up."

"I will do that." She touched his mind with hers. "You were a hero, after all," her mind told him." She smiled at him. "Go with the earth, my friend." With a salute of two fingers to his temple he left the room. "I hate good-byes," the healer whispered. The hunter put his arm around her waist.

"Let's see if we can find some food," the hunter suggested. "I'm starving."

"Come on," the King smiled tolerantly at his friends. "There's food in the kitchen."

"How'd the party go after we left?" the son of Zeus asked.

"How dare you sneak out on my party." Despite his effort at sounding angry he failed. "Things got quiet after you left."

"Does that mean we were the only thing keeping the party going?"

The King chuckled. "Autolycus and I had an interesting conversation. He really is a scoundrel, but I like him. He's only going to be gone a couple of days then he's coming back. I invited him to stay here at the palace. Albida is quite attached to him." The King took a grape from a bunch on the table and plopped it into this mouth. "Besides, I figured it was safer to keep him as a friend than to try and protect my treasury from him." They all laughed. "He's going to show me some better ways to protect it." The King wasn't sure what reaction he might get from his declaration. How far would they think he should trust the master thief?

"He's a good man. You can trust him," the demigod stated.

"Good. I felt that also, but hearing you say it relieves my mind even more." The King turned to the empath. "I wanted a chance to tell you that I've already sent men out to follow the leads you got from our friend in prison."

"Thank you, my brother, for taking fast action." The girl looked guilty. "How is he?"

"He's doing all right. He seems resigned to spending a long time in his cell."

"Thank you for not insisting on a stiffer penalty. I suppose he deserves worse, but I hit him pretty hard."

"I think he's learned his lesson, and you did nothing wrong. He needed to see just what he'd caused by his criminal behavior." He reached out to take her hand. "I also wanted a chance to thank you for the ruby. Autolycus told me where you got it. He thinks he may know of a buyer for it. That's where he's off to in the morning."

"I was glad the earth saw fit to put something of value at my disposal. I think cleaning the river will please the earth mother very much. I know the water mother will look on you with favor for your endeavor."

"I also owe you thanks for turning Parenthis around. He's more enthusiastic about this than I am, now."

"How did you know I had a hand in that?"

"I didn't. Not at first, but it just seemed too far fetched that he would change his mind so completely without some kind of outside influence. So I asked your husband if you'd had something to do with it."

"I only sent his mind pictures of what could happen if the river were allowed to flood. I gave him a night of tortured sleep, but nothing else."

"You don't have to defend yourself to me. I've felt your goodness."

She lowered her eyes. "Thank you, my brother."

"You three should have stayed around a little longer. You missed the big finale," the King commented, then tossed another grape in his mouth. "I announced the fact that we are expecting an heir to the throne."

The hunter choked on his tea. "Really? Congratulations, Iphicles." They shook hands. "Now we know why Reyna was so ill."

The King turned to the healer. "Reyna says you've known for some time. Why didn't you say something?"

"It was not my place to tell you. She was afraid to tell you because of what went before. I knew she would find the peace she must to feel free to share the news with you."

"When her time is near, will you return here and help her? I know it's a lot to ask, but we'd both feel better if you could."

"Yes. I would very much like to be a part of this. I have sensed the baby, and the baby is fine. The baby will be healthy, I am sure."

It was almost midday before the travelers could leave the gates of the city. Not that it mattered. They were in no hurry. They carried packs with them, leaving most of their things for Jason and Alcmene to take back to their farm. They could recover it later.

Reyna had cried over the healer's departure. "I'll miss you so much. How will you know when my time is near? I'm so frightened."

"You have no need to be frightened," the healer assured her. "Everything is fine. I would know if it were not. I can count the days. But should you need me before then, Iphicles can call me. His mind will find mine even over the miles."

The Queen nodded. She didn't understand this telepathic yosemin mind thing. She no longer doubted it, but she wasn't sure she wanted to rely on it, either.

The travelers made a camp in a grove of trees well off the road. It was late and the last of the light was fading as the hunter started the fire. There was a small trickle of water from a spring to quench their thirst and provide them with water for tea. The healer had sensed the water and led them to the grove of trees. She heated water then dropped Tassis root in the water to steep.

The night was warm. The healer slept for a time then woke to lay staring up at the dark canopy overhead. The hunter stirred then rolled over to hover above her. "Are you all right?"

"Yes."

"I could tell you weren't sleeping."

"I did not mean to wake you. I was only praying to the earth. Much has happened to leave me with a feeling of disquiet. It will take me time to come to grips with it all."

He kissed her. "I'm sorry you've been forced to question yourself. I've sensed your churning emotions. The earth is with you."

"Yes. That I believe. The earth works through me in strange and diverse ways that sometimes leaves me unsure of myself. But I am learning and growing. I must trust in the earth to guide me."

He kissed her again. "I wish I could say something to help."

"You have and you do." She raised up to kiss him then slid her hands down his chest under his vest. "Come to the spring with me. I am thirsty."

His lips seemed to seer her own, and her tongue sought his. "Are you thirsty for water or something else?"

"Both, my lover."

He rose and pulled her to him. She took her blanket and they left the camp to make their way to the spring. A furry forest creature scurried away at their approach and the silent sentinel of the night sky found his dinner. The earth turned slowly as the forest creature and her golden hunter made love beside a hidden spring.

The demigod reached from under his blanket to put a log on the fire, and noting the absence of his companions he smiled into the night before slumber again robbed him of conscious thought.

Iolaus, always the hunter, provided their first meal of the day. They sat around the fire enjoying the solitude of their hidden camp.

Sira stretched then moved to refill her mug with tea. She offered to do the same for the men then took her place back on the grass near the hunter. "If it is all right with you both, I would like to visit the little village where Amanda had her tavern."

"It's all right with me," the half god smiled at her. "I knew you'd want to see her again."

Sira sighed. "She has gone to the earth since we were last there. Still, I would like to see where her body rests."

"I'm sorry, Sira."

She nodded. "There is something you should know." She took a deep breath to calm herself. "Amanda was your half sister. A demigod like yourself." The big man sat in stunned silence for a moment. "I am sorry I did not say something sooner when you could have gotten to know her. I did not wish to hurt your mother by saying something in front of her, and Amanda's time was so short."

"I knew there were others out there. I've often wondered if I would meet one of them." He smiled sadly at the healer. "I'm glad you said nothing in front of mother. You're right, she would have been hurt." He sighed. "So being half god doesn't guarantee that I'm immortal?"

"No, my brother, but it should insure you live a long life. Amanda was over two hundred years old."

He smiled at her again. "I would like to see her final resting place, as well."

"It is not her final resting place, my brother. She was of the earth. The empty shell that housed the real Amanda is there, but her soul lives on elsewhere. Who is to say you will not encounter it someday?"

He took a sip of his tea. "I wonder if she knew I was her brother?"

"She knew."

They arrived at the little tavern late in the day. Amanda's granddaughter welcomed them, and one of her daughters took them to the old one's grave. Sensing they wished to be alone with her, the girl left them.

The healer knelt beside the mound of dirt and placed her hands on the soil. Opening her mind she simply let it feel. "To the east, mother soil, protect her body." The demigod knelt beside her and placed his hands over hers. "To the west, water mother, protect her thoughts." He joined his voice to hers. "To the south, mother of trees, guide her forth." Sira took the empath's healing crystal that had been her grandmother's and started to put it around her neck. The hunter came forward to take it from her and tied the leather cord to hold the crystal in place, then he too knelt beside her and joined in the yosemin prayer of death. "To the north, mother earth, protect her soul."

Tears flowed freely from the healer's eyes to fall on the soil at her knees. When the child of the forest removed her hand from the grave, new shoots of grass sprang up where her hands had been and where her tears had fallen.

Sira ran her finger lightly over the tiny new blades of grass. They curled around her finger, much like a baby might grasp the offered finger of its mother. Sira, child of the forest, the earth's chosen one, smiled. The disquiet she'd felt of late seemed to leave her on feathery wings, carried away by the light touch of the wind. She carefully removed her finger from the grasses' grasp, and not caring who might see she removed her moccasins. With a heart made light by the healing power of the earth she bounded to her feet.

"Let us find a place to make camp. Tomorrow we head to my father's cave. I feel the need to hug my son."

Coming Soon: Of Gods And Men, The Eighth Adventure In The Empath Chronicles

Comments and kind criticism are always welcome. E-mail me at [email protected]