The demigod walked along the river. He'd had no chance to speak with the Dea and her mind had remained closed to his even during the midday meal. The last meal of the day had come and gone while the healing apprentice was at her lessons in the healer's hall. He'd come to the river just as the sun was leaving the sky, hoping against hope that Dasay would find a way to join him.

The Dea slipped quietly from the back door of the healer's hall and into the dense forest behind it. She felt almost light headed with excitement. She'd found it almost impossible to contain that excitement at the midday meal. She'd longed to feel the arms of the half god surrounding her with an offering of his love. She'd caught his eyes on her several times as his mind tested hers for a response she'd longed to give.

Opening her mind now she felt ahead for the touch of the village elder's mind on hers and was relieved not to find it there. She moved quickly through the forest and around the village.

The demigod heard her coming and turned sharply to search her face. With a moan she flew into his arms to melt into him. He knew she was crying and was touched by her depth of feeling.

"It's all right, my love. I'm here now."

"I have missed you so much. It would not have been so hard if I had been free to touch in mind with you, but Fahr seldom lowers his vigilance."

"Something's going to have to be done about that. I can't take this sneaking around any longer."

"I know. Our time apart has done much to help me find peace, and if you would still have me I am ready to make our feelings for each other known."

He picked her up to twirl her around. "You'll go into promise with me, then?"

"Yes."

"And if it means openly opposing Fahr?"

"Then so be it."

He found a place on the grass to sit then pulled her down beside him. "I've been so worried I'd lose you."

"I have had the same concern. I will take the vow with you so that my people will see my feelings are genuine. Between us there has already been a vow. Still, I would want to continue to be the Dea if my people will have me. It will mean we will not always be able to be together as much as we would like."

"I understand that. And you have to understand I can't give up my love for Sira and that I will at times be away with my family."

"Yes. I do understand this and I am glad. I would not want you to give up your family for me or anyone else."

"When can we ask permission to enter into the vow of promise?"

"At the full moon is traditionally when couples come before the council."

"Damn, the moon's just now waning."

"I know, but it would be the proper thing to do."

"I like the sound of us being referred to as a couple." He took her hand in his, fingering the silver band he'd given her when he'd last been in the village.

She searched his face and he looked up to search hers. With a moan he pulled her into his arms, and for a time there was no sound. Well, not much anyway. She healed him while they were as one in mind and body, then sat behind him to place her hands over his shoulder, sending the earth to him. Outwardly the wound was healing nicely, and yet beneath the surface she could sense something. Her hands became hot as she worked to bring him healing. When she ended the healing she wasn't pleased.

"There is something in your shoulder I do not understand. I fear I do not yet have the knowledge and mind strength to heal you properly. Will you not reconsider and ask Sira for help?"

He shook his head. "I can't, Dasay."

"I sense your reluctance and the reason for it. You should not put yourself in danger because you fear you will grow closer to her. It would make no difference to me, my lover. If the only way you can make love to her is through me, then I accept that."

"It's not just her or you, Dasay. I can't take a chance on… On..."

"On your love for Sira taking on a physical side?"

"Yes. I'm not made of steel. I have to be honest with you, Dasay. If I'm not, our vow will mean nothing. I… I lust for her. Sometimes it's all I can do to keep my hands off of her, my hands or my lips. I dream of being with her. Not all of those dreams are during my sleep. You can't know how many cold baths I've taken."

"What you feel for her is not wrong, my love."

"Yes, it is. She's not mine for the taking, Dasay. She belongs to another. Iolaus is more than a brother to me. I could never stay around them if I were to give in to this."

"I do not believe that, and neither do Sira or Iolaus."

"They say that now, but when it happens? It's morally wrong, but even more than that it would be a complete betrayal of the love the three of us share. The four of us share."

The girl's heart soared at being included in the demigod's feelings. "It is not morally wrong in the yosemin society, and I still do not believe Iolaus or Sira would see it as a betrayal."

"But I would." His words were whispered. "Besides, Sira hasn't been well lately, and now she'll have to heal Thysis."

"What?! There is something wrong with Thysis?" Cold fear swept over the healing apprentice.

"Yes. He's not saying what's wrong, but both Hercus and Sira sense something. Even I've seen that he's slowed down a little."

"I did not know. I am a healer and I have been with him much of late, and I did not know."

"Don't blame yourself, Dasay. He'd too damned good at hiding his thoughts and feelings."

"Do you not see? This is all the more reason why you should seek help from Sira? I am not yet ready for this. What if I make a mistake? There has been so little chance to use my teachings. I am not like Sira; I do not have the natural ability she seems to have. I do not know instinctively what must be done."

He pulled her into his arms. "I trust you, Dasay. Besides, our love will make the difference."

She sat up to pull her knees up under her chin, his arms still holding her in his offer of comfort. "Promise me that should I not be able to help you that you will go to our sister."

Now he lowered his arms to rest them in his lap. "I'm not ready to make that promise."

"Hercules."

"Let's wait and see if this gets better, okay?"

"I wish I could travel for a time with Sira. There is so much I could learn from her. I understand her reluctance to stay here where there are those who do not accept her, but it limits what she can teach me."

"Then once we've taken the vow of promise, come with us. Not to stay away. I know your duty and loyalty lie here, but you could come with us for a time."

"I am afraid that I would not be welcomed back into the village if I were to leave."

"I know Fahr is being stubborn, but surely there would be no one who would try and keep you from returning as the Dea of the village."

"Fahr is not the only one to oppose the empath and those who travel with her. My people are frightened by things they do not understand. Too long we have been hidden away here in the mountains. The thing that was meant to save us has, it would seem, sealed our fate instead."

The demigod smiled into the night. "You have been hanging around Thysis, haven't you?"

"I have also been reading. Even some from the book of clan, although if Fahr knew of that he would try to have me barred from the council hall."

"Why? Why does it bother him that you're learning about your people? Won't learning these things make you a better teacher of the youth?"

"Yes, but Fahr has been too much in authority. He fears the old ways, those from before the remembered time. He wishes his Dea and the healers to be ignorant and submissive."

"What's he so afraid of? Can't he see this village and every other yosemin village is in danger?"

"No. He only sees that now the order of things is changing, and with that change some of his power over his people is slipping away."

"Why have Tella and the others allowed him so much power? Isn't it the council that should be in power?"

"Yes, but Tella is young. Most of the council is young. Most of the old ones who kept a tighter rein on Fahr are gone now. Fahr has a very strong personality. It is easy to fall under his spell." The girl turned to face him now. "I should know, I had fallen under that spell until a certain tall hero came into this village and stole my heart away."

He reached to pull her once more into his arms. She hadn't dressed after their lovemaking. She'd slipped her shawl over her shoulders to keep the chill of the night away, but nothing else covered her. With hands that shook slightly, the half god pulled the woven moss garment aside. She sat before him, her dark bronze skin shining in the moonlight. Her hair had escaped her braid to fall around her in dark, rich scented folds that shown gold and red in the silver shine of the moon. Her eyes, a deep brown, were black in the shadow of her brows, and they seemed to hypnotize him as he watched her. His pulse quickened and his breathing became irregular, and still he watched her. He didn't touch her in a physical way, and yet his mind made love to her, as did his eyes and she threw back her head as a slight moan escaped her lips.

He moved slowly, coming closer to her. Close enough to smell the lilac on her skin. Close enough to smell her woman's scent and his pulse raced. He let his mind entrance him with memories of how she would feel in his arms, how her lips felt against his own, how her flesh against his stirred him and intoxicated him, and still he didn't touch her.

It was these memories of her that had kept him going the last few weeks. The memories of Dasay, not of the empath. Maybe for the first time he'd been able to separate the two. He'd made love to her tonight in a frenzy of lust and passion, but now he wanted to make love to her senses.

He ran a finger gently down her arm and he realized she was trembling. He knew she wasn't cold because her flesh was warm to his touch. He touched her thigh gently with one fingertip, then traced the cord that ran down the leg to her knee. She sat cross-legged before him, and he bent forward to kiss one tiny brown spotted toe before taking it into his mouth to caress it with his tongue.

She ran her fingers through his hair, liking the way the moonlight turned it to silver. She shivered at the sensual feel of the shoulder length strands slipping through her fingers. He kissed her knee then raised up to watch her eyes as his hand moved up over her knee to her thigh, and still higher.

She braced herself against him with both hands on his chest as he leaned forward to take her lips gently with his own. Her breath was sweet and inviting, and he ran his tongue over her lower lip, then past it as she parted her lips to him.

She could feel his strength through her hands, but also in her mind's touch on him. It was this sheer power that had drawn her eyes to him that first time he'd come here. He wore his strength about him like a cloak, not flaunting it, but more because it was such a part of him. She remembered sitting on the bench behind the healer's hall talking with him where he sat on the ground at her feet. His yellow leather jerkin did little to hide his bulging muscles, and her eyes had been drawn to them again and again. Never before had she seen a man with such physical perfection. She hadn't even known such a thing was possible. Seeing him had stirred her blood and left her feeling weak and light headed.

He kissed the swell of her breast first on one side, then the other. He raised back up to take her lips once more and she pushed her lips tightly against his. Her hands caressed his hair and his neck, then down to his chest and still lower. He moaned as she ran a finger down the hair on his chest to stop just below his navel where the hair came to a dark, thick v-shape.

He laid her gently down on the leaves and pine needles that carpeted the forest floor but still he didn't take her. Instead he teased her with his lips, tongue, and hands. He kissed her neck then trailed kisses lower and she arched her back to receive him.

Her hips moved in invitation but he didn't take her offered love yet. He wanted to remember every inch of her; he wanted to taste every inch of her. She moaned with her need of him and the sound fired his blood. Still he forced himself to go slowly.

He watched her eyes as he lowered himself to her. He couldn't see her pupils in the darkness but he watched as her eyes grew round and large as he took her slowly. Slowly, he reminded himself. The need to push their lovemaking to its end was like a force of its own that he found hard to fight, but fight it he did.

Slowly he loved her, kissing and caressing her. Slowly he let her tension build until she thought she would scream with it. Then his pace quickened just a little, then a little more. Her hips moved beneath him now, adding her own urgency to their need. His breath quickened to match hers, his hips moved faster over her and she grabbed his arms to steady herself. She cried out just as he threw back his head with a moan of release.

She trembled beneath him, her mind and her soul entwined with his, and tears filled his eyes. He'd made love to her. For once he hadn't thought of Sira as his body's needs were met. For the first time he'd been able to shut his longing for the empath away and make love to Dasay the way it should be done. The way he'd wanted to from the first.

He could still sense Sira there, her love still a part of him, and yet it had been Dasay he wanted, Dasay he'd loved tonight, not Sira.

"I love you, Dasay."

She put her arms around his neck and he lowered himself down beside her. "Come to the river with me. I must freshen myself before I return to the healer's hall."

"Now? I wanted to hold you for a little while."

"It will soon be morning. I must get back."

"I hate this."

"I know. But soon we can be together more openly"

"Why can't we just go tell the council now?"

She sat up beside him, combing her hair with her fingers. "Because the full moon is the right time to ask. Be patient, my lover."

"I hate waiting for anything I really want."

She laughed, and the sound lingered on the damp night air as she rose to head toward the river. He rose to follow her then stood on the riverbank watching her as she bathed. She'd pulled her hair into a semblance of order then braided it again, piling the braid on the top of her head and holding it there with a small stick she'd pealed the bark from.

He loved her firm tight breasts and the rounded curve of her hips. She was taller than Sira, but not overly tall for a yosemin. She looked so young, and by yosemin standards she was. Yes, she was young, and yet not too young. He felt his blood stir once more, and rising he came to her in the river.

Their lovemaking was fast and hard now as time was running out for them. He helped her dress afterward then walked with her back to the healer's hall. With a quick kiss she slipped into the hall just as the sun peeked over the horizon.

He waited for a time to be sure she was safe, then he returned to the cottage the village had built for them and to the bunk he hadn't yet used.

Rastist raised up to watch him for a moment, but other than a smile he gave no indication of finding the demigod's late arrival unusual.

Melay stood just at the entrance to the hall watching as the Dea slipped into her room at the other end of the long row of doors that led to the sleeping quarters of the healers. She really hadn't meant to spy on the girl. She often rose early, and this morning was no exception. With a determined breath she walked silently to the Dea's door and tapped lightly.

Dasay froze in her tracks. She used her mind to sense who might be waiting on the other side of the door. Her heart fell when she sensed the healing mother. Guide me, mother earth, she pleaded, then bracing herself she opened the door.

"Ah, Dasay. I know it is unusual to bother one in their chamber and especially at such an early hour, but I wonder if I might have a word with you."

Best to get this over now, the girl thought. "Of course, Mother, please enter." She stood aside to allow the elder to enter her room then shut the door quietly behind her.

"I did not mean to spy on you, my child, but I was just leaving my room when you were entering yours. Rather early for a stroll, would you not say so?"

"Yes, it is rather early."

The old one smiled slightly. "Still, it is a wonderful time to seek a oneness with the earth. The dew on the grass and the new sun seem to bring out the earth mother in all her beauty."

"Yes, I have always liked the early morning."

"Of course. You know, my dear, you are looking a little tired this morning. Perhaps you did not sleep well. Why do you not take your time in joining us in lessons today and get some rest?"

"That is very generous of you, Mother."

The elder rose from her seat on the edge of the girl's bed to stand before her. Reaching up she removed a small twig from her hair. "All I ask is that you are careful, my child. Be sure of what you do. You hold a place of importance here among the earth's people. They need you desperately. Think of what you are about before you risk all of that."

The girl closed her eyes for a moment. "I have given it a great deal of thought, my mother."

The elder nodded then raised up to place a kiss on the girl's cheek. "I trust you, then. Remember that I will be here if you should need me."

Dasay wiped the tears from her eyes then nodded. "That means a great deal to me. I will not forget."

"Good. Now you rest and I will make your excuses."

"Thank you, Mother."

"I am very proud of you, Dasay. You have far more courage than I ever had. You will make a good teacher to our young healers." The elder hesitated for a moment longer at the door, then with a smile let herself out silently.

The healing apprentice stood staring at the door for a moment, then with a smile she began to remove her dress.

The half god had only been asleep for a short time when the hunter and the empath left their room. Finding the half god still sleeping, the child of the forest went to him to check for signs of fever.

"He's not sick, my Lady, only tired. He just got in." Rastist had a hard time keeping the humor from his voice.

Sira shook her more than brother of the soul and he woke reluctantly. "Why do you not sleep in the other room? It will be quieter there."

He put his arms around her neck and pulled her to him to kiss her lips. "I love you, Sira. I don't mean to hurt you, you know."

"I know that. I understand. It is not easy for me, but I do understand. Come on, my brother, you are only half awake. Let us get you to the other bed."

"I made love to her tonight. To her, but now I feel I've hurt you even more."

"Do not be foolish. I am glad you have found a way to separate us. This is as it should be. It does not mean you love me any less, only that you are finding a way to love us both at the same time. Maybe building a barrier between us was a wise thing after all."

"She's agreed to go into promise with me. At the full moon we'll ask permission to take the vow. Will you be there with us, then?"

"Of course. It is a solemn vow, best taken before those you love and who love you."

She sat on the edge of her bed beside him. He was clad only in a pair of woven moss pants tied loosely over his hips. She loved the way his chest hair darkened as it descended over his tight muscles.

"Your eyes betray you, my sister."

"I have never tried to deny that you stir me in a very physical way, my brother. Now sleep. In sleep there is healing."

"I'm fine. Dasay's taking good care of me."

"As it should be."

"Don't be hurt."

"I am not hurt. I love you, my soul. For now that is enough." She caressed his forehead, then unable to resist she bent to kiss his lips lightly. She felt him jerk with sleep, then soothed his hair from his forehead once more. His face was slightly flushed and she knew concern. She'd had the chance to reach beyond the boundaries on his mind while his defenses were down with his fatigue. She'd not done so, since to invade the thoughts he so obviously wished to keep hidden would have been a breech of ethics to say the least. Now she wondered if she should have done so anyway.

She knew he'd chosen to seek the help of Dasay to deal with whatever was troubling him and she admitted that had hurt her feelings a little. Why must he be so stubborn? She watched him now in sleep and her heart softened toward him. She could understand his wish to keep some distance between them, and he'd all but said that that distance helped him to feel a freedom with the Dea he hadn't felt before. He was right, that any barriers that now existed between him and her would be lost in a healing. But if the barriers had been built before, they could be again, right? What was it he feared? Could he really fear a physical relationship with her? If that were to happen would it be such a terrible thing?

She drew a quick breath as fear gripped her. If their love for each other were to become a physical thing, it might not be an insurmountable obstacle for her or for Iolaus, but could the same be true for Hercules? Was it that he feared he could not live with his guilt? Would he feel he must leave them to protect them? Could she live without him? She knew without doubt that she could never survive such a rending of her soul unscathed. The ripping away of that part of her that he held would tear her apart. To lose him would leave her soul torn and bleeding. She knew that part of her unrest of late came from her need of Ares. His leaving her had torn her deeply, and his hold on her was nothing to that part of her the demigod held.

Hercules would not be dead to her, but he had grown strong enough now to shield himself from her. And that would be worse than losing him to death. Would he feel he must also hide from the others? Would he sever his tie with Dasay as well? She wasn't ready to risk losing him to his own guilt. Better to trust Dasay to heal him than to risk the harm that could befall him should a healing between him and herself leave him loving her even more than he did now and thus unable to find peace with being near her.

"Guide them, my mother. Give Dasay the strength and wisdom to heal him. Protect one of your own, earth mother."

She left the room and the hunter came to put his arms around her. "Is our big friend all right?"

"Yes, only tired."

"Good. Are you hungry? Clea brought over a mammoth sized pot of venison stew that smells wonderful. Want some?"

"At least a gallon. I am starving."

He kissed her nose. "Me too. Come on, oh mighty dragon slayer. You'd better join us now before it's all gone."

The old sailor grabbed the pot of tea and joined them at the table. "I sure hope Hercules isn't hungry when he wakes up. I could eat a fair share of that stew myself."

The hunter took a large spoonful of the savory meat dish then blew on it to cool it. He wore a look of satisfaction as he tasted it. "So, little empath, are you going to talk with Thysis today?"

"Yes, whether he likes it or not."

"That's one conversation I'd like to listen in on."

"He can be very stubborn, but so can I."

The golden one grinned. "That's what I meant." The girl smiled at him as she tasted her own bowl of stew. "Don't be too hard on him."

"He has it coming, worrying me like this. So where will you be, my love?"

"I thought I'd spend the day in the meadow with Hercus and the other apprentices." He turned to the old sailor. "Want to come with me? The young boys who have chosen hunter as their trade will be practicing their fighting skills. Their master is really quite good."

"I guess I could look in. This old dragon slayer might have a thing or two to show the boys, himself."

The three of them left the hut as soon as the morning clean up was complete. Sira left a note for the demigod letting him know there was food waiting for him when he woke.

Iolaus took the girl's hand as they stepped from the cottage. "Shall I walk you to Thysis?"

"I wish to speak with Nemesis first, then I will seek out my father. Go ahead. I will touch mind with you later."

He stopped to pull her into his arms. His kiss was lingering and caught more than one villager's eye. Smiles were seen as the people looked away to give the lovers privacy. "I'll be here if you need me, Sira. I'll keep my mind open to you. You need only call."

"Thank you, my soul. It is a comfort to know you understand."

He kissed her once more before he released her. "In a little bit, then?"

She nodded then moved ahead of them to call at the former executioner's door. She entered at the welcome call from the brown haired beauty. The once goddess looked pale and drawn. The faint scent of vomit clung to the air and the healer went to her to put her arms around her.

"It is all right, my sister. This part is almost past. The middle months of pregnancy are always easier."

Nemesis began to cry. "I knew you'd sensed something. In the meadow when you arrived, you sensed it, didn't you?"

"Yes. I wanted to speak to you sooner, but there was no time. I never meant to pry."

"I know. I'm glad you know. Keeping this to myself has been so hard. I'm so frightened."

"But why? You have friends here. Clea would have helped you through these trying months. Dasay could have helped with your illness."

"But if they know, I'll have to leave here. But they'll know soon enough, won't they? I can't hide this forever. I'm already beginning to show a little. I thought I'd found a home here for Evander and myself. I felt safe here. But now…"

"Why would you have to leave?"

"They're not going to let me stay when they find out I'm with child. You know better than I do how these people feel about this kind of thing."

"But you have done nothing wrong. In the eyes of those here you are mated with Ares. The people will see this as a manifestation of your love for each other. It is something to rejoice about."

"They've been wonderful about Evander, but another half god son? Will they be so welcoming to another?"

Sira smiled at her. "You sell your new friends short, my clan sister." She held out her hand. "May I?"

The once goddess nodded and Sira placed her hands over the girl's stomach. She closed her eyes and willed her mind to open. She felt ahead to the life growing in the protection of its mother's womb. The empath began to sway slightly as she saw with her mind not with her eyes. After a moment she opened her eyes to dazzle the former executioner with a show of dark forest green.

"Your child is well, my sister. I sense nothing but perfection."

"Is it a boy or a girl?"

"Are you sure you want to know?"

"Yes. Maybe the people won't feel so threatened by a female demigod."

"It is not a female." Nemesis slumped forward and Sira once again took her into her arms. "It is not a demigod, either."

Now the dark haired girl pulled back. "What do you mean? This is Ares' child, Sira."

The empath smiled at her. "I know that. I never doubted that it was. I got a very real sense of the father in my mind's touch on the son."

"Then what do you mean, he's not a demigod?"

"He is the mortal son of Ares. Remember when you first were with Ares again? He was not a god then."

"That time at the river. When he told me he could get his godhood back. I must have conceived then, before you healed him." There was wonder and disbelief in her words. "The mortal son of Ares." Now her words were whispered. "He'll hate me for this."

"What are you saying? How can you believe that of Ares?"

"A mortal son. The mortal son of the god of war? He'll hate the child."

"This is a child of Ares, not of the god of war. He had a child of the god of war and now he will have a child of the other side of him, a side he no longer denies. He will love the child, and the mother."

The girl turned away to hide her pain. "He doesn't care about me. He has his precious godhood and his sword back, that's all he cares about."

"I have not seen him since that time, either, but I have touched in mind with him a few times. He is lost and lonely."

"Sure. Then why doesn't he come back like he promised he would?"

"Have you called to him?"

"No! And I'm not going to, either. If I have to beg him to come back it will mean nothing. He said he cared about Evander and me and that he'd come back to me. He lied, just like all his other lies."

"He is afraid you will no longer love him. Now that he is once again the god of war he fears you will hate him as you did before."

"But I told him I would still love him. I never really hated him. He seemed to understand that."

"And you said you would be waiting for him with open arms."

"I have been waiting. I've done nothing but wait."

"But have you welcomed him? Have you called to him to let him know you need him?"

"He should know that."

"As you should know he loves you and fears that you will no longer accept him now that he is once again the god of war. There is much at stake here for him, my sister."

"For him? What about me? What about Evander? He promised Evander he'd come back."

Sira sighed. "Yes, he did, and I still believe he will. Time is different for a god. He may not fully realize how you and Evander count each day he is gone."

"Hercules said that too."

"But you do not believe it?"

"I guess I do. I remember that much from being a god, but it doesn't make waiting any easier."

"Then stop being so stubborn and call to him. You have good reason to, now. He should know about the son you now carry."

"I'm afraid I don't share your optimism about the way he'll feel about such an obvious show of his own mortality. Behind the godly part of all of them is a mortal part, but none of the gods want to be reminded of that. I didn't when Hera stripped away my godhood to reveal the mortal part of me hiding there. It gives a vulnerability to the gods that is hated by them all."

"I wonder, my sister, if you really know Ares at all."

Nemesis turned to face her. "Maybe I know him better than you think."

"And you wonder why he has not returned to you. You say you love him, then you think so little of him." With a sigh the empath stepped to the door of the hut. "If you wish, I will speak to Tella about your situation. I truly believe he and the others will welcome this child as they have welcomed you and Evander. If this should not prove to be the case, then you are welcome to come with us when we leave. I will not abandon you or your children, my sister. Do not be fearful. Just savor your time with child. It will be over all to soon, then you will have a tiny life to protect and love that will also be gone far too soon." She stepped from the hut and let the suede covering fall back into place.

The former goddess ran to the door to pull the covering back. "Sira!" The healer turned back to her. "Thank you. I'd very much appreciate it if you would speak with Tella. I can't stand not knowing any longer."

"You are wise in this, my sister. Your fear and unrest has only added to your illness. I will seek the council leader out today."

"Thank you, Sira."

The need to speak with Thysis burned within her, but she chose to go in search of Tella first. She knew she was stalling, putting off what must come later. She wasn't so sure she wanted to know what ailed her chosen father. What if it were something she couldn't help him with? She put these thoughts aside to call at the council leader's door. Tella himself pulled the heavy leather covering aside.

"Sira. How pleasant of you to call. Come in. I was just about to share tea with Bethie. Will you join us?"

The empath kept her eyes lowered in respect to the elder's station. "That would be most kind. I do hope I am not disturbing you or your mate."

"Of course not. Please, make yourself comfortable."

Sira bowed to the council leader's wife. "I am most honored, Mother."

Bethie set two steaming mugs of tea on the table, but held her own. "I can step out if you wish time alone with Tella."

"No, please join us. What I have come here to speak with you about is best done openly." Her host and hostess raised their eyebrows, but they waited for the chosen one to continue. "I have just come from my clan sister, Nemesis. She is with child. The child of her mate, Ares."

Bethie smiled broadly as she took her seat at the table with the others. "How wonderful. A baby in our village."

"My sister fears that she will no longer be welcomed here."

Tella sat forward, setting his tea aside. "Why would she fear this?"

"She fears that you would not welcome a second son of Ares."

Now the elder laughed. "We welcomed Nemesis and Evander to our village in the hopes of adding new strength of mind to our village. Any who are strong of mind are an asset to our little hamlet. If Evander were to find a mate with one of the earth and produce a strong minded child, well, think of the possibilities. But even if this should not be true, the yosemin people have long feared the gods of the Mountain. They have the power to wipe us from this earth as if we had never been. It is a comfort to know we have at least one of the human gods on our side. Believe me, Daughter, there was much discussion and debate before it was agreed to allow your clan sister and her half god son entry into our little world. Your clan sister has added much to our village. She has a strong mind herself, and her love for others seems boundless. She is now a part of us. We could not but wish her joy and happiness with her new child."

"The child she carries was conceived while Ares was not a god. The child is mortal."

"I see. But still, Ares, even as a mortal was very strong of mind, was he not?"

"Yes, very." Sira smiled at the elder.

"So there is every reason to believe his mortal son will also be strong of mind."

"I would say there is great hope of that."

Now the elder sat back. "Well, then."

Sira laughed. "You are very wise, Father. There are some who will not share your open mindedness about this."

"There are some who did not share it before. I cannot say that all the earth's people feel the same about this. Still, Nemesis has been granted protection under your clan banner, and I will see to it that no one takes that from her. I would suspect her life with us would go on much as it has thus far, with one exception, that is."

"And what would this exception be?"

"I suspect the women of the village will hound the poor girl without mercy now. A baby in the village is something to celebrate." Sira nodded, her face lit with a smile.

Bethie rose to fill her husband's mug and that of the empath. "Well, I, for one, have every intention of spoiling that child at every opportunity. There is so much to plan for. How soon will the baby come into the world?"

"In about six moons."

"Then we should get busy. Nemesis will need baby things for her new son. She will need a cradle and clothing. Blankets and bedding. Is this not exciting?"

Tella gave his wife a playful smile. "You see, Daughter? Poor Nemesis will never be allowed to do a thing for her new son. I do hope this means Ares will find time to visit us again."

Sira sent her mind to thank the elder. She could sense the earth surging around this elder of the council. His mind touched hers with warmth and friendship.

"I will speak to Nemesis myself, this afternoon. We must set her fears to rest. The poor child must have gone through much these last few months."

"Thank you, Father. It will mean much to her to hear the welcome in your voice and feel it with her mind." She set her mug of tea aside. "With your permission, Father, I must seek out my father Thysis. There is something of urgency to speak with him about."

The elder stood so that Sira could. "Of course, my child. Give him my regards, as well." Sira thanked him once more. "If there is something I can do, chosen one, please fill free to call on me."

"Thank you, Father."

She found Thysis sitting at the table under the tree where he'd built his home. He looked up to welcome the empath.

"Sira, how pleasant. Come and join me in a game of chips. There is tea brewing in the kitchen. Bring it and two mugs. The morning is pleasant and we have much to catch up on, do we not?"

Sira sighed. For the moment she decided to play his little game and went to the kitchen to fetch the tea and the asked for mugs. She returned to him to set the tea on the table beside the chips he had already dealt. She poured the tea, then stood watching his face for a moment. His skin seemed gray and dry, and she felt compassion building within her for this man who was more than a father to her.

"Sit, my child. I believe you have the first play."

She took a seat on the bench across from him and took up her chips. After a moment's study she took the next chip from the remaining pile on the table and discarded another. "I wish to speak to you about what it is you are hiding from me."

The elder took the chip she'd discarded and left one of his own on the table. "Not everything that is in my mind is for others to know."

Sira took a chip from the pile. "I think perhaps this is something I should know. I could help you, my father."

"Are you going to discard?" The empath did so and the elder took the chip she laid down. "There is nothing you can do for me in this, my daughter." He looked up to catch her eyes on him. "Nothing." He placed a chip on the table and the empath took it up.

"How can you be so sure of this? I should at least be given the chance to find that out for myself." She placed a chip on the table then placed her remaining chips face up to win the game.

The elder sighed. "You have more luck than the earth herself. I was so close to winning this game."

The girl reached out to take his hand. "Please, my father, you are tearing me apart."

The elder sat back to rest himself against the back of his stool. "Within me is a growth." The healer gasped. The fear she'd known since first sensing her father's illness swept up and out to consume her. "Yes, now you know why I have kept this from you. I have been fighting the growth with my mind for a long time now. I have been able to add many months to my time here on the earth mother by keeping the thing from consuming me as quickly as it might have. Now, however, I no longer seem to be able to stop the spread of it."

Sira reached out to take his hand. "But I might still be able to help you, Father."

"No. I refuse to allow you to put yourself in danger to try and save me. I am old. I have lived my time here on our mother earth."

"We do not even know if what is growing inside of you would be harmful to me. There are some things an empath can take to herself and still fight without putting herself in danger of being infected with the malignancy."

"No. That is not true and you know it. I cannot allow you to even touch upon this thing inside of me. Your mind is far too strong. I will not put you at risk, Sira."

Tears stained her cheeks. "I can go carefully. I would know if this is dangerous to me, and I promise I will be honest with you. Some growths can be cured, Father. You must at least allow me to try."

"I cannot. I regret that I was not able to keep this from you longer. Perhaps my mind is also affected now and I have lost some of its strength."

"No! No, that is not true. At least let me feel for this thing. There can be no harm in that."

"I cannot. When I go I think that Hercus should come with you for a time. His mind still needs direction, and you are the only one who can still guide him with his strength of mind."

"Father."

"It is the way of the old to go before their children. Do not grieve for me, Sira. You opened my heart to the earth once more, and have brought me much joy and happiness."

"Please, Father. I might still be able to save you. Can you not see that I must at least try? I cannot sit aside and watch you fade away without at least trying to help you." He shook his head. "I am a healer, I must at least try." Still he shook his head. She threw back her head and screamed. The sound hurt the elder's ears, but the despair behind the scream tore at his heart.

"I do this to protect you, Sira, not to hurt you. Please understand."

"I do not. Why has my family turned their backs on me? Why have you forsaken me?"

The demigod heard the scream, not with his ears but with his mind and jerked upright in his bed. Not bothering to dress he threw his mind out to search for the empath then left the hut on the run.

Thysis stood to take the empath in his arms. "I have not forsaken you and neither has the earth. It is love that guides me now, chosen one. Love for you and for your family."

The hunter stopped in mid sentence as his mind was blasted with the empath's pain. Not waiting to explain, he ran for the village, his son close on his heals.

Dasay gasped at the intensity of the emotions that assailed her. Leaving the other girls looking puzzled she left the healer's hall, following the empath's mind to find her.

Hercules came up behind the empath to put his arms around her. "What is it? What's happened?"

She turned in her father's arms to bury her face against the half god's broad chest. "He will not let me help him. My soul is torn."

The demigod searched the elder's eyes. "To allow her to help me would put her in danger. I cannot allow that."

Hercules nodded. "Sira, it'll be all right. You're entranced. Let it go, my sister."

The hunter ran up to them. "Is she all right? Sira, my soul, what is it?" The girl only cried harder and the half god turned her toward her mate of the soul.

"She's entranced. She's just found out she can't help Thysis."

The hunter turned pale and his son behind him gasped. Dasay put her arms around the apprentice hunter.

"But we do not know that I cannot help him because he refuses to let me try. Not all growths are incurable."

The Dea swayed on her feet then reached a hand out to the elder. "You are ill with a growth?"

"Yes. I have known for some time. It would be far too dangerous to let Sira try and help me. She, too, might be exposed to the ravages of this invasive malignancy."

The empath turned on him. "But we will never know if I could have helped because you do not trust me to be careful. I am the one trained in healing. What use are all those years of sacrifice if I am not to be allowed to use my powers to heal my family? I lost one family to my inexperience. Now you want to take another from me?" There was anger in her voice. "You and Hercules. You say that you love me, then you turn your backs on me leaving me in pain. You must understand the need to heal that overcomes me. It is not that I always want to heal, it is that I cannot always help myself."

The demigod lifted her into his arms to carry her back to the hut, but she fought him. "Let me go. I want to go to the river. I must be with the earth."

"Then I'll take you. I won't leave you alone when you're this upset."

"I do not want your help. It is too hard to keep my mind from you. You wanted these damned barriers between us, now you have them. Leave me alone."

The half god turned hurt eyes to the hunter then handed the empath into his arms.

"Herc."

"Save it, Iolaus. She's right. Stay with her." With that he turned away and left them.

The Dea wiped the tears from her eyes as she watched him walk away. She wanted so desperately to go to him, but Fahr was among those who'd gathered around Thysis' hut.

Sira turned to her son. "Stay with your grandfather. Try and talk some sense into him."

"It will be well, my mother."

The hunter gave the elder of the clan of the wolf and the lion a look of understanding then turned toward the river. "It's all right now, little empath. I'm here."

"I am so confused, Iolaus. I cannot think clearly."

"I know. It's all right now."

She cried silently in his arms, and with her tears came the strength to fight the trance her fear and pain had put her in.

The dark god of war paced his temple. He'd gotten an all too real sense of Sira's cry and, cloaked in his godly guise he'd rushed to her. Seeing her cared for by first Hercules then Iolaus he'd kept his presence unknown. It worried him that Sira was unaware of him, however. She must be confused indeed to not know that he had come at her call. He'd stayed to watch Nemesis and Evander help to move the people along as Thysis and Hercus disappeared into the elder's hut.

Evander had grown and he'd missed it. He almost took a chance and appeared to them, but his own fear kept him from doing so. After a moment he went to the river. The hunter held the empath like a baby, soothing and comforting her as she cried.

So, Thysis is sick. I wonder if I should offer to help him. But he's too stubborn for that. He'd never turn his back on his beliefs just to save himself. But more than that, I respect him too much to even offer.

Hercules isn't looking all that good these days. He's lost weight and he looks older somehow. It's not like Sira to turn away from him. Should I seek him out? Damn. He left the river to appear in his temple, and after a moment he began to pace.

Hercus shot his grandfather of the soul a look from lowered eyes.

"If you have something to say, apprentice, then do so, but kindly stop looking at me like that."

"I wonder if you are being fair to my mother. She is smart enough to be careful. Could there really be any harm in letting her feel for what is growing inside of you?"

"There could be. Some healers have given their lives in cases like these. Are you willing to take a chance on your mother suffering this fate?"

"I trust my mother. She is an empath. You have said yourself she is one of the strongest since before the remembered time."

"For me to go to the earth would not be such a bad thing. I have lived my life. Yes, there were things I wished to complete before I went to my mother, but there are others now to complete the tasks I cannot. Death holds no fear for me."

"I was not thinking of you so much as my mother. She has seen enough death. The earth has called her to this healing. Is it really your place to turn away from the earth's wishes?"

The elder sighed. "If she could not help me, then what? She would then have to face my end anyway."

"Yes, but then she would have found a peace with her need to heal you and could go on to accept the will of the earth."

"I am tired, my grandson. Go seek Hercules. In her trance your mother was unnecessarily cruel to him."

"Very well, grandfather." The boy went to the door then stopped just inside, holding the leather covering aside with one hand. "I am no more ready to lose you than my mother." With that the boy left the hut.

Thysis turned away to hide his own emotions, but there was no one to know of them besides himself. With a sigh he went to his bed.

Hercus found his uncle of the soul sitting in the forest. He'd not gone toward the river perhaps in fear he might encounter Sira. The boy came to stand before his uncle and the half god looked up at him.

"My mother did not mean to hurt you, my uncle."

"Yes, she did. I deserved it."

"You are shutting her out?"

"I… Well, I've asked Dasay to go into promise with me, and to be fair to her I have to build some barriers between your mother and myself."

"I see. That is not the only reason, but I sense your reluctance to speak of this other reason. My mother has not been herself since the healing of Ares. She feels lost right now, and the touch of her loved ones upon her soul helps her to feel whole."

"I know. It won't be like this much longer. Once I take the vow of promise with Dasay and the other thing I won't talk about is cleared up, then things will be different."

"It is hard to wait for a promise of health when one is in pain."

"I can't believe Thysis is dying. I…"

"It is hard to believe. He always seems so vital and alive."

"I can't stand the thought of being without him. His mind is always there to guide me."

"To guide all of us, my uncle." The boy's voice broke and the half god took him into his arms.

"I guess you'll feel this the deepest, won't you?"

"He has been more than a grandfather to me."

The golden hunter of the forest and the child of nature he loved so completely stayed by the river until darkness claimed the mountain valley that lovingly held the village of Zirrith. The earth's chosen one found comfort in the world around her, and with little effort she kept her mind open to the strength the earth sent to one of its own. Guilt rode the empath for her harsh words to both Thysis and Hercules. The pain of knowing she was not to be given the chance to help the man she claimed as father still tore at her mind and soul. The need to heal burned deep within her, and it took a real effort to push it aside and not let it overwhelm her. Left unchecked it could drive her mad, or at least the old tales told. Too much of the knowledge of the ways of the empath had been lost to time, and the rarity of those gifted with the ability to take another's pain upon themselves and fight it with their own body, mind and soul.

That she would wear the scars of the ripping away of a part of her soul for all time to come, she understood. Now all that remained was to find a way to live with that pain as she watched the elder of her clan fade away. She'd spoken with the hunter of her desire to stay here in the village now, or follow her father to his cave if that was where he chose to go to meet the earth. Too short a time was left to her to hear the old stories and to grow closer to the man who had come to her in her loneliness and fear to help her rebuild her family. His tutoring of the mind as they'd waited to meet each other and combine their powers to combat the evil sorceress who hunted the yosemin people had opened her mind to the real power and strength lurking in the deep recesses of her mind, and in so doing opened a new world to her.

In her loss of family and her flight from the horrors around her she'd begun to shed her innocence. Still more of her ignorance had pealed away as she fought the sorceress who had once been, at least in part, yosemin. Her travels with her soul's mate and her brother of the soul had chafed away still more, and opening her heart to Ares had left little of the timid naivete she'd once possessed as the Dea of her village. She'd matured and grown into someone quite different than she'd ever expected, and in this change was much to admire. But also in this change had come a realization of grief and the effect it could have upon her sensitive mind and soul.

Calmer now, she suggested they return to the hut the villagers had built to welcome her and her family. She knew the hunter was hungry and that later he would be cold. Spring had finally come to the mountains, but still the night kept the promise of the winter that would surely follow the all too short summer season here in the high country.

The lovers walked hand in hand through the tall trees near the river and to the village. The smoke of many cooking fires still lingered in the air around them bringing the forest's child memories of her own home in the village of her birth. There were calls to them, not so much of greeting, but of understanding. Others would now know of what had torn the anguished scream from her. The community was too small and too closely tied to hide something like this for long.

Her family waited for her when they came to the hut. Hercules, Hercus, Nemesis, and Evander. Rastist and Dasay were there also. As she came closer her son came to walk beside her. She held out her hand to him and he took it in his. He was as tall as his mother now, and even through her pain she marveled that he could have grown and matured so quickly in his nine years here on mother earth. His hand was strong and firm, and she got a sense of power from her son that surprised her. The light was dim and yet not so dim that she couldn't see the muscles of her son's arms bulging through his sleeveless, woven moss jerkin. His blond hair hung down his back in curls almost to his waist. He held it from his eyes with a pale blue band embroidered in silver thread in the design of his clan banner. His shirt was dark blue, his leather pants a rich brown weave similar to the pants his uncle of the soul preferred. His feet were covered with suede moccasins. From the top of his right boot she could see the bone handle of a large hunting knife. At his waist he wore a belt and scabbard that held a smaller knife, the mate to the one in his boot. When he was hunting he carried a leather whip made by his own hand, as were his clothes and other weapons. She'd watched him practice with the whip as Xena had taught him, and his accuracy with it was almost frightening. His Uncle Ares had given him more instruction in its use, and as with everything he set his mind to he learned quickly the art of using the whip as a weapon of defense or of survival. The bow he carried to the hunt was large and heavy, and the arrows he'd fashioned were long and sturdy with a tip made from the glassy black stone of a volcano that his godly uncle had given him.

Pride for her son swelled inside her, and in that pride a reason to fight the pain in her heart began to mend and soothe her. In the boy the promise of his grandfather living on could be sensed. The boy and the man were so closely linked that they had become as one in a bond closer than that of blood.

The empath's heart ached for the pain the boy would endure at the loss of his beloved grandfather, tutor, and mentor. Of all of them, the boy knew the old one best. And he'd known so little of grief in his short time on this mortal plane. Now mixed with the healer's own grief was the longing to shield her son from the cruel bite of life's reality.

The girl came to stand before the demigod and he looked up to search her eyes. He reached out to caress her cheek and she leaned into his touch. "I am sorry I was cruel, my more than brother."

"It's all right, my sister. I understand."

"Still, it was wrong of me to take my pain out on you."

"Somehow we'll find a way to get through this together. All of us."

The empath nodded then turned to Dasay. From the Dea she'd sensed fear that she would blame her for the demigod's decision to limit his mind's touch with his sister of the soul. It had been Hercules' idea and Sira knew it. He was using the barriers as a way to fight his guilt in loving both the Dea and his brother's wife. For him the shielding of his feelings for Sira gave him a crutch to lean on, for Dasay it left him more able to love her as an individual, but for the empath it left only a void where once a strong mind had loved and cared for her.

Sira offered her arms and the healing apprentice went into them. She'd stayed with Nemesis and Evander after leaving Thysis' hut. She didn't give a damn whether Fahr approved or not, and when Hercus and Hercules returned to the hut she'd stayed to heal the half god.

Fahr hadn't intruded on her mind for once, and she'd opened it to the power of the earth as she called upon the blue-white light of healing on her lover's behalf.

Tella had stayed with them for a time, as well. He'd found a chance to speak with Nemesis. His words had lifted a heavy weight from her shoulders, but it was hard to rejoice now that she knew about Thysis.

After a while the council leader had excused himself to go to the elder of the clan of the wolf and the lion. The two of them were friends, and he felt the need to be close to Thysis. He'd been shocked and dismayed to learn of his friend's illness. Thysis welcomed him. They didn't talk of what had happened that morning or of the future. They'd played chips and talked of the book of clan much as they had so many times in the past few months.

"Please do not hate me, Sira."

"I could not."

"There is food for you and your mate. Melay and the healing apprentices brought meat and bread. Clea and Clavus brought fruit and vegetables."

"Thanks to all of them."

"I am sorry, my sister."

"That means a lot to me, Dasay." The empath turned to the hunter. "I know you are hungry, but I do not feel like eating. I think I will go to bed if that is all right."

He came to take her into his arms. "I wish you'd eat. It might help."

"Maybe later."

He nodded, then took her hand to lead her inside. He stayed with her until she fell asleep then joined the others outside the hut. Hercus had built a fire then made tea for them all. No one spoke of leaving. The hunter made himself comfortable on the ground near the fire and Dasay brought him a plate of food. He felt drained. Sitting on the bed beside Sira he'd almost given in to his fatigue and joined her. His need to speak to the others was all that prevented him from acting on his desire.

Once he'd eaten and drained his third mug of tea he leaned back to rest his back against the pack his son had put there for just such a purpose.

"I want to thank you all for sticking around. I wanted a chance to talk to all of you. Sira and I have decided to stay here with Thysis or to follow him to his cave if that's where he wants to go… To… Well, you know. This whole thing is tearing Sira apart. It would mean a lot to her if we could all be with her in this. She gains strength from those she loves."

The demigod took a seat beside his more than friend of so many years. "You don't have to ask that of us, Iolaus."

"I figured that, but I did have to ask. There have been some things going on with Sira that I don't really understand. I know you're a part of some of that, Herc." The demigod started to interrupt but the hunter held up his hand to stop him. "It's all right, you don't have to explain. I figure it's something you and Sira are going to have to work out between you. All I wanted was to let you all know that your help in this would be appreciated."

Hercus cleared his throat. "Grandfather has voiced his desire to stay here for his remaining time so that he can continue his work with the book of clan. I must spend as much time at his side as I can if I am to learn enough of the old writings to continue his work once. . . once he is gone." The boy's voice broke as unshed tears filled his eyes. When he went on it was in a whisper. "When I am finished with that I would like to return to you and Mother."

The hunter's heart seemed to skip a beat as compassion for his son threatened to overwhelm him. His own voice was filled with emotion. "I'd like that, Hercus. It seems I never got to know you as a boy. I'd like the chance to get to know the man."

"Thank you, Father. If it is all right with you, I would like to go now to the council hall. Perhaps I can find some peace with my grief in indulging in familiar tasks."

"Of course, Hercus."

The boy rose to stand a moment beside the fire. His father looked up at him in wonder. His son had grown up so quickly. How had he missed that? He now looked so much like his father had in his early days at the academy. The hunter had come of age there with Hercules and Jason. Seeing his son as he was now reminded him of his own youth. Pride in his son swelled in his breast, and through his mind to touch his offspring. Hercus nodded to his father, acknowledging his father's mind touch.

Sira turned in her bed, then a smile crossed her lips. "I felt your presence there at the river this morning, my brother."

"I came at your call, little warrior."

"I have missed you so much."

"I was never far away."

"Will you hold me for just a little bit?" Her voice broke. "I am so torn." The dark god pulled her into his arms to cradle her like a baby. "I have heard of your influence in the world, my soul."

"I've become soft. I've stopped more wars and fights than I've started. Your influence on me is having a very negative effect."

The healer chuckled. "I would say it is having a very positive effect."

"I guess it's all in how you look at it."

"You know of Thysis' illness."

"Yes." There was pain in the single word.

"He will be missed."

Tears slipped from the girl's eyes. Iolaus had left a candle burning when he left her, and the empath's tears shown golden in the flickering light. The god bent forward to kiss one tiny droplet from her cheek.

"I will come to you when it is time. Perhaps I can be of some help to you."

"Your love helps me a great deal. I will need you then more than ever."

"I could offer to heal Thysis."

"He would never allow that, my brother. He would hate and resent the idea, but I love you for making the offer."

"There's not much I wouldn't do for you, little one."

"Knowing that gives me comfort and hope."

He rocked her gently, letting his love for her comfort and soothe her. After a bit she slept again, but he didn't leave her even then. He needed to be close to her as much as she needed to feel his closeness.

He stayed with her until the others entered the hut, then laying her gently on the bed he bent to kiss her lips lightly.

"I love you, my brother." Her words were whispered and sleepy.

"I love you, my soul." With that he was gone.

Night slipped slowly toward morning. Dasay had stayed to heal the demigod once more before returning to the healer's hall. As she passed the council hall she saw a dim light still burning there and almost stopped to check on Hercus. Then deciding he'd gone there to be alone with his pain and fear of the future she moved past the hall and on to the healer's hall.

The hunting apprentice straightened his back then rubbed at his shoulders. His eyes hurt with the strain of working out the intricate picture writing of those who'd gone before in the time before the remembered time.

He felt defeated. He'd come here hoping to find something to help his grandfather. Near the middle of the old tome were references to the art of healing that he and Thysis hadn't yet gone over. He'd come here tonight in hopes of finding something that might convince his grandfather to at least let Sira use her mind to find out if what grew inside of him might not be stopped. So far, he'd found nothing that he didn't already know of healing from his mother.

Rubbing his eyes, he rose to light yet another candle. Then returning to his task he was soon lost in his endeavor. The moon was gone from the sky and the stars were fading when he sat back again, excitement and triumph plainly written on his youthful features. He'd found a place in the ancient book of his people that dealt with ailments and the possibility of curing them either with the offerings of the earth or by healing. It was noted that many growths of the body were fast growing and very dangerous not only to the one infected but to an empathic healer. The growth could be passed from one to the other in the transfer. But it was also noted that not all growths were so dangerous. These were slower growing and could be bombarded with the white light of healing and thus removed from the body with no danger to the healer.

"So Mother was right." The boy smiled broadly. "I knew it. Now if we can just convince that stubborn grandfather of mine."

The boy had read everything in the section of the old book that dealt with healing, and much of what was said he already knew. He was a little surprised that the book fell short of talking about the types of healing he'd known his mother to do. The healing of Jason's mind after he'd been kidnapped, the possibility of leaving a transfer before its completion then returning to the transfer soon after. The healing of his father after they'd found him in the blue chamber, the healing of Ares. These kinds of healings, the healings more of the mind than of the body were not mentioned in the book. Could it be these things were not known of? Could his mother have taken the art of healing to new and more diverse possibilities than the old ones had thought possible?

He rose to stretch, then blowing out the candles he yawned. He would sleep for a bit then speak with his grandfather. He made up his mind as he made his way through the sleeping village that he'd say nothing to his mother of this. If she knew, and Thysis still refused to allow her to at least ascertain the extent of the growth and the possibility of healing it she would only be more hurt. One thing he'd read in the book of clan that bothered him was the suggestion that to keep an empath from a healing she'd been sent by the earth to perform could cause real damage to the healer. Hints of madness left the boy with a real fear of for his mother's own health.

Sira woke early to a dull ache in her right temple. She felt tired and sore of body, and yet she knew the stiffness was of her mind. Nausea nagged at her stomach with icy fingers. Rising, she stood in the room for a second looking around while not really seeing her surroundings. She felt dirty and soiled. Taking up her pack she let herself quietly from the room. It wasn't fully light yet and she felt ahead with her mind to make her way through the larger main room of the hut and to the leather covered door.

A few huts showed light in their windows and some were shrouded in the blue smoke from their cooking stoves as she made her way across the village clearing then on to the forest and the trail that would take her to the river.

Not stopping at the pool by the village she moved upstream, crossing over a low ridge where the river turned white as it spilled over rocks before smoothing out and deepening just before crossing near the village. She found a pool further upstream that offered her some privacy and she lowered her pack to the grass, standing on the sandy bank of the river as she breathed in the moist air of the coming morning.

She pulled her dress over her head and tossed it aside as she slipped off her underthings. Going to the pack she took out a cloth and soap, then bracing herself against the snow fed current she waded into the pool. The deep green icy water took her breath away and she gasped with pleasure at the feel of the liquid earth surrounding her. She took her time bathing her body and washing her hair. There was healing in the primitive ritual of cleansing one's body. When she was done she swam for a time for the sheer pleasure of being here among the splendors of her mother earth. Too soon she must return to the real world and face what she had kept hidden behind strong mind barriers.

She rinsed out her dress and underthings then dried her body with a rag from her pack. Needing the comfort the soft fabric could give her she dressed in the silk undergarments Iolaus had given her before putting on her woven moss pants and wrap around top. She'd never worn the pants in the yosemin village. The garments spoke of the outside world and she'd packed them away when they'd visited the village before. Now she needed the feel of something familiar to her.

Sitting on the grass she combed out her hair as she watched the sun slip over the far mountain peaks to shower the forest in yellow gold. Sensing the hunter's mind on hers she sent her mind to reassure him then closed her mind once again to what awaited her once she returned to him and the others.

She'd scented and soothed her body with a jasmine scented lotion before dressing and now she took time to rub the plant based moisturizer into her feet. These were simple tasks that did much to clear her mind and bring her strength.

Her nausea of earlier was gone now and she realized she was hungry. Packing her things away she took up her pack and her wet clothing, and with a sigh she retraced her steps to follow the river back to the village.

She sensed eyes on her and knew her choice of clothing had raised more than one eyebrow. With a slight smile she realized the daring act of defiance in wearing her pants had had its desired effect. She felt more herself now.

Her stomach growled as she caught the smell of the cooking fires. Yes, she was definitely feeling better now. She hung up her wet things on the rope strung between two trees Iolaus had put up the day they arrived. Then taking up her pack once more she entered the hut. The hunter came to her in two long strides and she melted into his arms.

"By the gods, you smell wonderful." His hair was still damp from his own bath taken with heated water in a large wooden tub.

"So do you."

"You sound more yourself today."

"I am better."

"Thank the earth for that. I was so worried about you."

"I am sorry, my soul. I was so lost yesterday. This will not be easy for me. Please promise to bear with me if I seem distant. I must keep a tight hold on my emotions. The need to heal can be an overpowering force. It will take much of my strength to fight this."

"There are plenty of us to draw strength from when you need it."

"I sense that. Even Ares has offered his strength to help me through this. We must also think of Hercus. He will be deeply affected."

"I know. I wish there were some way to shield him from this. He's so young in the experiences of life. Gods, it's so hard to believe he's so mature and grown up in so many other ways. When did he become a man?"

"I know. I have asked the earth the same question. What miracle has done this wondrous thing to our son? Nine years only has he been on the earth. Never before have I known of a child growing and maturing at such speed. The earth must hold a special mission for him to have brought this to pass."

"Is it wrong to want to keep him young still? Is it wrong to want to protect him from the pain of grief?"

"No, my soul, it is not wrong. It is love."

He took her lips with his then nodded. "You must be starving. There's still meat and bread left from last night. How about some of that to tide you over until I can whip up some culinary delight to tempt your taste buds?"

She chuckled. "Lead me to it."

He placed the plate of cold venison on the table next to a cutting board and a sharp knife then took a loaf of bread from its cheesecloth covering to place in on a plate next to the meat. A pot of tea came next, and a clay jar of honey along with that. He brought two mugs to the table, and filling them both he added a generous portion of the flower sweetened honey to his tea before taking a seat across from the woman he loved.

She placed a generous portion of the roasted venison between two pieces of bread and offered it to the hunter.

"Go ahead."

"I can make another."

He shrugged and took the offered sandwich. He waited until she'd made one for herself to take his first bite.

He chewed in silence then took a generous gulp of tea to wash it down. "Not too bad. Not as good as your roast venison, but not bad at all."

He went to the shelf over the counter and took down a bowl of fruit. Selecting two large red apples he returned to the table. Taking out his knife he began to cut the skin from the first one. He took his time, cutting away the peel in one long spiral before slicing the apple open and scooping out the seeds. He handed it to the healer with a smile of love and she took it from him with a smile in return.

The half god swung his legs to the floor then sat for a moment on the edge of his bunk. He ran his fingers through his hair, then with a wide yawn he left the hut only to return after a moment.

Iolaus left the table to fetch another mug, plate, and apple. Motioning to the bench beside him he filled his friend's mug with tea. Sira handed him a sandwich as the hunter began to peel the other apple.

Hercules smiled at her. "Like old times." How many times had they shared just such a meal at the hidden cabin in the forest? They were so close that words weren't needed between them, and many of their daily tasks were done in a haze of camaraderie like a well oiled machine.

The demigod was feeling much better from the three healings he'd received and he'd lowered some of the barriers he'd kept between himself and the empath. She was fully aware of the lowering of some of his restraints and sent her mind to thank him.

He looked up to smile at her. He could sense turmoil behind her smile, but he could also sense a returning of the strength she possessed. He'd been frightened by her devastation of yesterday. He'd seen what grief could do to her. He'd made up his mind during the long evening that should it come to that he'd release all his barriers and open his mind to her completely. Now that he no longer felt the need to hide his own illness from her he felt more open to allowing their minds to once again join, and in so doing mend the tear in their soul's touch. The barriers had been erected once and they could be again. If she needed his strength to get through this then she would have it. He would wait and test the waters as it were, but if she were to fall any deeper into the abyss her sensitive mind could throw her into he would be there for her.

The hunting apprentice rolled to his side then forced his eyes open to look around the hut he shared with his mentor. With his mind he guessed the time to be midmorning. He still felt tired, but there was much to do today. With a sigh he sat up. His grandfather had left water for his use and food awaiting him. He smiled to himself. Thysis had known he'd come in late and had let him sleep in without reprimand.

He used the water to bathe then dressed in suede pants and sleeveless jerkin both dyed a dark brown. He'd washed his hair and now he took a seat on the bench by the table to try and tame the shiny, curly locks into order.

When he was finished he took time to rinse out his things then took them to a rope behind the elder's hut to hang them out to dry. His grandfather's things were there from earlier, and since they were dry he took them down. Folding them neatly he put them away. Taking up a thick slice of bread and a thicker chunk of meat he left the hut. With his mind he located the elder of his clan and went in search of him.

Thysis sat cross-legged on the grass in the forest meadow that led to the village. The boy touched his grandfather's mind lightly before approaching him. He sensed a welcome and joined the elder. The old one motioned to the grass before him and the boy lowered himself, his legs already crossed.

Without words the boy and man joined their minds together as they had so many times before. For the first time the elder opened his mind to his illness and his one real regret. He'd wanted more time with the boy to direct his mind and more time to teach him from the book of clan.

Still without words, the boy told his grandfather what he'd learned in his nightlong vigil. The man felt pride in his pupil. The boy had done well and his grandfather was impressed with his logical thinking.

He listened with his mind to all the boy had to say, then without commitment suggested he should follow his student's example and read this for himself. Behind the suggestion was something else, something deeper and perhaps more primitive, the will to live. So my grandfather of the soul is not as ready to leave this plane as he professed. In the realization came a glimmer of hope.

It was well past midday before the man and his pupil left the meadow to return to the village. Hercus had missed his morning exercises with Clanis. Once he and Thysis had eaten he left the elder at the council hall and made his way to the meadow where the boys practiced their skills in hunting and weaponry. He stood a little aside to watch them for a moment, still concealed among the trees that surrounded the meadow.

His friend Dentax had taken a few of the younger boys aside to show them the use of the bow and arrow. I should be instructing the younger boys. Then he smiled. In years, there were few younger than himself. Maybe Tella was being truthful, and the reason for delaying his admittance to the coveted status of senior apprentice was more due to his age than his bloodline. He found it hard to believe he was so close in age to the clumsy youths who followed the lanky Dentax around like puppies after their mother.

With a quick decision the boy turned from the meadow to skirt along its edge before disappearing in the forest. He needed a chance to clear his mind, and like his father nothing fostered a clear mind and oneness with the earth like hunting. Until those in power in the village forbade him the chance he would hunt. It was something he did well, and while pride was considered a weakness of the simpleminded he admitted he took pride in his skills, first taught him by his father and his Uncle Hercules then practiced at Xena's side for a time. Ares had done much to teach him skill with weaponry, and his hunting master Clanis had helped to hone his skills both physically and mentally. He was a warrior, and nothing the village elders did could take that from him. Young he may be, and with that youth had come little chance to test his skills. With time and maturity came skill, but his strong mind and level head helped here, as did his physical strength. Tang had helped him to learn the importance of finding one's center of balance. His mind's strength made learning these things easy and applying what he'd learned even easier.

It was early afternoon when he returned to the village. He stopped at the healer's hall to leave meat for them. He'd taken two bucks within moments of each other. One was younger and not so impressive a kill, but it would give his family meat for several days, and him a hide to tan. He took great pleasure in working with leather. His grandfather had often suggested he could make a living from this if he were not allowed to be a hunter. He had no desire to be a craftsman. He was a hunter and a warrior, and if he were to be denied this pursuit in Zirrith he would seek it elsewhere.

He asked a woman in the village to call at the hall for him. As a junior apprentice he could have called at the door himself and found no reproach, but since he simply couldn't think of himself in this way he asked another to make his presence known to the healers. Lea came at the call then called for the healing mother to receive the meat. The young apprentice stood aside watching Hercus. She'd long thought of him as quite interesting. She found his deep blue eyes and blond hair stirred her in a way she was unfamiliar with. On the few occasions he'd had a chance to notice her at all he'd treated her with openness and friendship.

He looked up to catch her eyes on him now and blushed slightly. He was fully aware she found him attractive. Sometimes his strong mind could be a curse.

Hercus had called for the earth's blessing in his hunt and in the meat he'd taken, but now the healing mother blessed it once again before allowing the girls to take it within the hallowed halls of healing.

Fahr stood outside the door to his hut looking on with a look of displeasure plainly marring his features. The boy had no real right to hunt and certainly no right to the prayer of thanks the healing elder bestowed upon him at his generosity.

Not giving a damn whether the village elder approved or not, Hercus took up the remaining buck then deliberately passed before the elder on his way to the hut his family now used.

"The earth has been generous in her gifts, village elder. Food has come to my arrow." The words spoken in the native yosemin dialect were the hunter's call upon returning from the kill. It was not his place to use it and he knew it, but he just couldn't resist.

"You take too much on yourself, junior apprentice. You would do well to learn your place."

"I have known my place for a long time, Elder. Perhaps it is now up to others to open their minds to it as well." Not waiting for the angry reply his mind told him was forthcoming he walked on.

Fahr's anger was poorly concealed. He'd watched the boy return to camp one buck over his shoulders, the other pulled behind him with a leather cord. It was a heavy load for a man, let alone a mere boy. Despite his dislike of Hercus he found himself admiring what he'd just witnessed, and with that realization came an even deeper anger.

Hercus called at the hut and his mother came to greet him. She gave the prayer of thanks to her son then blessed the meat. Mother and son skinned the deer then began to butcher it. Half of the meat was set aside to be given to Nemesis and to Clea and her husband. No one in a yosemin village went without. It was not proper to ask for a handout, but the necessity of doing so seldom arose. Those who hunted gave to others, sometimes to the exclusion of themselves or their family, just as those who farmed or raised animals gave to others. Trading was common and since all the earth's people were taught one skill or another there was always something to be traded.

Before they were done with the deer Hercules, Iolaus and Rastist returned with a sled loaded with wood for their fire. They'd worked throughout the day to gather the wood for themselves and for Nemesis.

Now that the labor was done Hercus couldn't seem to keep his mind from his worry. He'd hoped that upon his return he'd find that his grandfather had come to his mother to ask for her help. He used his mind to search for the elder and knew he was back at his hut. Had he still chosen not to seek healing? And if so, why?

Hercus stayed at the hut to share the last meal of the day with his family. He took his turn at the outdoor fire where a large portion of the venison he'd supplied was being cooked. His mother had cut some of the meat into long thin strips that were now cooking in Clea's smoker along with her portion of the meat. When it was done the long dried strips of meat would last a long time wrapped in a wax covered cloth. It could be eaten as it was or used to flavor stews and soups.

The apprentice had just decided to return to the hut he shared with Thysis when the elder came walking slowly toward them. The boy jumped to his feet, no longer able to hide his

nervousness. Sira also stood to offer her seat on a bench near the fire to her chosen father.

She brought him tea without being asked then took a seat on the ground near him. When he was comfortable she squared her shoulders. The time had come to apologize to the elder of her clan. Before she could form the words he turned to her.

"Your son is very wise, empath." Sira looked puzzled. "He took the time to search the book of clan for any reference to healing that might be among the teachings of those from before the remembered time. There is much to confirm what you already know and much that is not foretold of that you also know." The elder looked up to nod at his grandson of the soul. "In the book is a reference to the healing of an ailment that sounds very much like my own." Sira searched the old one's eyes. "It would seem you were right, and there are times when a growth of the body can be healed without danger to the healer." Sira closed her eyes as tears slipped from them to stain her cheeks. "You are stronger of mind than any I know. Perhaps you could touch upon my illness and determine whether it is curable without putting yourself in danger?"

She moved forward to rest her head on his knee. "Will you at least let me try?"

"You are sure there can be no danger to you in this?"

"I would know if there were."

"Will you promise me that you will back away if there should be even the slightest chance of infecting yourself?" She nodded. "Will you promise to be completely honest with me on this?"

"I give you my word, sworn on the soul of my grandmother, I will take no chances with my own safety."

He sighed a deep sigh. "I was prepared to go to the earth. Death no longer holds any fear for me. You brought this peace to me as you brought the earth back to me. When we visited my old village I made my peace with Mela and with my past. To go to the earth with an open mind and soul is our final victory. But I find myself still wishing for time to complete certain tasks that nag at me. If you can forgive me for the pain I have caused you in this and see fit to make the effort I would very much like to at least try for the chance at life."

Sira's shoulders shook with the sobs that she couldn't control. "To be told I could not heal when the earth had called me to do so left a deep and open wound within me. Your words have sealed that wound and given me an easing of pain. The need to heal can be overpowering and I will still be greatly saddened if I cannot help you. But to find that out for myself will ease some of the force that controls me at times like these. I am sorry I was cruel with you, Father."

"You were not so much cruel as honest. Something I should have tried to be."

Sira looked to her son. "You are indeed wise, my son. You knew just the thing to lead your grandfather in his hour of need. Your heart is truly of the earth."

"He taught me to look to the past for answers, so in a way he found the truth himself. I am glad it was through me that the earth found a way to point this out."

Hercules moved to the bench beside the elder and the old one smiled at him. "You may not have lost a chips partner after all, my son."

"I was thinking more that I might still have a chance to get to know my father better."

The old one nodded then turned back to Sira. "I hate to be impatient now, but when could we do this thing?"

Sira laughed. "Now, if you wish. I need only to touch your mind and allow the earth to lead me to your illness."

He nodded again. "Then let us do it now while my family is here. Their strength will help us both with whatever the outcome of this endeavor may be."

The others gathered closer to the elder and the empath. Evander slept in the hunter's arms, and he didn't stir as Iolaus moved to sit beside Sira. Nemesis sat at the demigod's feet and he put his hands on her shoulders. He needed the comfort as much as she did. The next few minutes would tell them much.

The empath used the methods she'd learned as a child to open her mind to the earth. Within moments she was entranced. She chanted the yosemin word for earth over and over as she willed her mind to search ahead to find what drained her father's strength. Her hands on his knees grew hot, and the elder felt an almost painful tingle of energy surge up from them to engulf him. A white light glowed around the child of the earth to bring the energy to the others as well. Hercus stood behind his grandfather to place his hands on the elder's shoulders.

The fire burned down to coals. Rastist replenished it then turned the roasting meat once more. He was fascinated by the scene being played out before him. The energy in the air seemed to grow wider and wider until he could feel it on his skin as a slight tingle. Others of the village came to surround the clearing at the front of the hut. With them was the healing mother and the Dea of the village. No one spoke or offered to interrupt those closest to the old one and the empath. Could they have felt the girl's energy as he was feeling it now and come to seek out its source?

A dark figure clad in black leather now stood behind the others. His dark hair shown in the light of many torches as a dark rich black as it curled around his ears. In one ear a long silver earring caught the light. This new arrival's strength and power were worn as a badge of superiority for all to see. The old sailor knew he looked now upon the god of war.

He'd long wondered what the warmonger might look like. As a warrior upon the sea and the land the old one had gotten a feel for the god of darkness, but he'd never sworn his allegiance to him other than by his strong sense of weaponry and fighting skill.

Ares moved to stand beside the old sailor who turned the meat slowly, seemingly unmoved by the presence of a god.

"How is it you see me when no one else can?" The words were felt in the sailor's mind rather than heard with his ears.

"Perhaps because we both recognize one of our own," was the whispered reply.

"Perhaps you're right. You have sworn an allegiance to the empath?"

"I have."

"Good, she may well need your warrior's heart in times yet to come."

"It is hers for the taking, Lord."

Ares inclined his head to the old sailor, then as quickly as he'd appeared he was gone.

Sira pulled her mind slowly away from that of her father of the soul. She went slowly so that she could leave him with some of her energy. She'd been dismayed by the ravages of the old one's body perpetrated by the growth within him. She'd taken her time to be sure that she got a true sense of what she might face in a healing. The growth had taken its toll and had grown large, but not too large. It was dangerously close to Thysis' liver but she was now convinced it had not yet invaded there or even grown around it to a dangerous level.

When she finally left her trance she opened her eyes to search those of her father. She'd led his mind to hers and he knew the truth as she did. She was convinced she could heal him successfully without danger to herself.

He nodded at her and she rested her cheek on his knees. "I will be ready to heal you when you are ready to be healed."

He ran a finger lightly over the tears on her cheek. "The earth is with you, my daughter. You are sure this will not be harmful to you?"

"I am sure that the growth can be eliminated without danger to myself. There is always danger in a healing. There are always things that can go wrong, but we are linked already and our minds are strong."

"Would it be too much to ask for your help tomorrow?"

"No. Tomorrow will be a good day for a healing."

Hercus did nothing to hide the tears in his own eyes. He, too, had followed his mother's mind to the conclusion of her mind's probe. His grandfather had been granted another chance at life and he would take that chance.

Hercules looked from one to the other of them. "Does this mean I haven't lost a chips partner after all?"

Sira laughed. "It would seem it may be quite a time yet before you can claim to be the master chips player in our family."

The half god jumped to his feet then pulled the empath into a tight embrace. "You can heal him?"

"Yes."

"Thank the earth."

A cheer went up from the people. "Thank the earth!"

Any healing was a cause for celebration. Still, the elder could sense that this show of support went way beyond that. He was loved by many here in the tiny little mountain village and he was touched by the people's show of their feelings.

The hunter was next to hug Sira then offered his hand to Thysis. Too excited to sit still he'd placed Evander in Nemesis' arms.

Fahr, standing just beyond the circle of well wishers turned in annoyance. He'd not admitted it to anyone and not openly to himself, but he'd felt a lightening of his mind when he'd learned that the elder of the clan of the wolf and the lion was not long for this mortal plane. With the news that he was not to be rid of the annoying old man so easily he felt betrayed.

He watched as Hercules stopped to talk for a moment to Dasay. He narrowed his eyes at them, his mouth set in grim lines of anger. The girl was not for Hercules. The thought of her with the half god turned his stomach. The man was tainted with godly blood, the blood of a human, and worse yet, the stigma of illegitimacy. In the elder's narrow minded thoughts this made him unclean, a thing to be despised, not admired. He'd given Dasay a chance to come to her senses and he'd thought she had. Now he wondered if that were really the case.

Sira and her golden hunter had taken blankets to the forest. Starting tomorrow they must be separated for a time. Tonight they would be together. The child of the night used her keen eyesight and mind to find a place to spread their blanket well away from the village. The hunter stood watching her in the moonlight as she patted and straightened the woven moss quilt. It was a woman thing; they all did it. It didn't seem to matter that within moments it would be in a complete tumble, the blanket had to be just so before it was laid on. It was like the patting thing that women did to a baby's back whether they were burping the child or not. It was instinctive to pat the child's back. Men didn't do it. They might burp a little one but they could hold a baby over their shoulder without patting it. He smiled into the night. It was these simple little things women did that made them special. He'd watched women around children, theirs or someone else's. It didn't matter; they were still mothers. Even women who'd never had children of their own were mothers. Women seemed always to serve others. Not because they were subservient to them, but just because it was their way to be helpful, to be doing and planning. Women could be strong and tough. Xena was a perfect example of the warrior spirit that could dwell within a woman, but even the warrior princess had that certain quality that set her aside from the men she fought and conquered.

He still remembered seeing her pat and straighten a blanket just as Sira was doing. He'd seen her eyes soften when she watched a child at play. So who were the true leaders of this mortal plane? Was it really the gods of Olympus, or the males who strutted around with a superior air? Or was it the woman behind each man and within the hearts of the gods who really made a difference? Even Ares was softened by a woman. Zeus, perhaps the greatest god of all, could be swayed by the gentle hand of a woman. No matter how tough they were, the simple things a woman did just because she was a woman touched a man in some way.

The golden one went to his knees beside the empath and she looked up to smile at him. That simple gesture could make or break a nation. The look in her eyes could tame the most savage of men. He leaned forward to taste her lips. The fate of the world could be sealed with just such a kiss.

The empath woke to the sound of a mockingbird. She loved to listen to the sound of the comical little gray bird. He worked so hard to attract a likely female with the borrowed songs of other birds. She rolled over to look for the one who serenaded her so sweetly. He'd found a place to sit atop a branch undisturbed by the humans who slept below him. It was a good omen for the healing to come.

The hunter still slept. Careful not to wake him the girl slipped from beneath their blankets to make her way to a spring among the rocks. It was snow fed and by midsummer it would be gone, but for now it would serve her well. She stripped her clothing off to stand beside the pool. With a cloth from her pack she soaked her body, then lathering the cloth with soap she washed. She smiled as she took her time to cleanse her body. She knew the hunter had come up behind her and now stood watching her.

"You could wash my back for me."

He came forward to kiss one damp shoulder. "I could, but it might take longer for you to finish."

"I am not in too much of a hurry."

His hands slid down over her buttocks, then forward to slide over her tight smooth stomach.

"I could use a bath myself."

She turned in his arms to slip her hands up under his vest then out to slip it off his shoulders. He hadn't yet put his boots on and slipping his pants off was easy. The empath soaped the cloth then soothed it over his chest, then lower. She loved the feel of his skin beneath her hands. Her mind touched his, and her hands sent a tingle across flesh left sensitive by his desire. This tiny forest creature never failed to stir his blood. In the years they'd been together the excitement she brought to him had only intensified.

He kissed her neck and her damp tendrils of hair tickled his nose. Her scent intoxicated him and he took her lips with hunger. She slipped down him to kneel before him and he began to tremble. He'd had women before her. There'd even been love, but there had never been this sense of being one. It wasn't just their love for each other; it was the blending of their souls that made them both complete. Without her he was only half a man. She seemed to be the best part of him, and when he was with her he was all the things he'd always wanted to be.

He took her upper arms to pull her up and into his arms. Then tipping her back she put her legs around him, giving herself to him completely as their minds and souls touched and intertwined. He was entranced with his love for her and he was glad. To open his mind to her was the greatest pleasure of all. As his mind's touch deepened on her their release came as one.

Here in the dense shadows of the forest, among the ferns, the dark rich soil beneath them was as it should be. She was the forest, and it was she. In their lovemaking they gave thanks to the earth that had brought them together, paying homage to the god she worshiped in the most primitive of ways.

They walked hand in hand back to the village. They were greeted with wishes for good healing.

Dasay sat on the bench behind the healer's hall, Fahr beside her. He'd been less than nice to her. Anger seethed within her now. She didn't deny his suggestions, nor did she confirm them.

"What I do is not your business, Elder. I appreciate your concern for me. The warrior of the clan of the wolf and the lion was hurt recently while saving a village from a dragon. He has asked me to heal him, and I will do so."

"Then heal him here in the healing shelter. Sneaking off into the night is shameful and degrading to your station here among our people."

"Spying on me and intruding upon my mind against my will is also shameful. Sira has not been herself of late and Hercules does not wish to burden her with his illness when she has her father to worry about. Still, if she were to know that he is ill she would be hurt that he has chosen me to help him."

"I find your excuse very poor indeed."

"I was not making an excuse. I was stating a fact."

"You will not assist the empath in her healing of Thysis. You will not heal Hercules again. You have your future to consider, Dasay. What if the people of this village find out what I have?"

"That I am helping a friend with the healing powers of the earth? Is that not why I am a healer?"

"You are fooling no one with your innocent act."

She rose. "If I am asked to be a part of the healing of Thysis, I will help. It is the least that I can do. And it is an opportunity to learn from the empath that I refuse to waste. I will continue to heal Hercules until I am sure he no longer needs my help."

"I am warning you, Dea."

"Do not threaten me, Fahr. I would not wish to do battle with you. We have been friends in the past. Let that alone soften your heart. Come to the healing shelter. Your mind is strong. Turn that strength to good. Show the people that you accept the empath and her family. Open your heart to the earth."

He rose swiftly to strike her cheek. The sound rang loudly through the early morning air. Her hand flew up to cover the deep red mark his hand had left.

Tears slipped from the corners of her eyes. "I pity you, Fahr. How lost you must be." Her words were whispered. Then she turned to walk with dignity to the healer's hall.

She felt empty and lost. She'd never thought he'd strike her. She'd never before been hurt deliberately at the hand of another.

The elder shook with reaction. He hadn't meant to hit her. He'd felt betrayed by her words. Why couldn't she see the danger these outsiders represented? He'd watched her walk away with Hercules last night. He'd wanted to follow her to confront her for what she was doing to him, to his people, but he'd been afraid to do so, afraid of the truth.

He hadn't slept. He'd waited for her to return to the healer's hall and it was still early when she had. She'd stayed for a time with Hercules, but they'd walked from the village together and she knew they'd been watched. She'd only stayed by the river to heal him with a promise to try and slip away the next night. She hadn't known Fahr waited for her. He'd stepped from the shadows behind the healer's hall to grab her arm and she jumped with fear.

"I need a word with you, Dea."

"This is neither the time nor the place. Come to the hall in the morning and I will sit with you, here at the bench."

"I know where you went tonight."

"Everyone does, I made no secret of it."

"I forbid you to see him, Dasay."

"I have chosen not to obey that command." She'd pulled from his hand to make her way toward the back door of the healer's hall. Fahr came after her.

Hercus walked from the forest near the hall. "Hello, Father. Dasay. It is a pleasant night, is it not?"

The elder turned in anger to face the boy. "How is it, you keep popping up?"

"I was unable to relax. There is much excitement to keep my mind from relaxing. I took a walk to clear my head."

The Dea slipped into the hall then turned back to call to Hercus. "Goodnight then, Hercus. I hope your walk has helped you find the peace needed to sleep."

Fahr took a step closer to her. "I will be here tomorrow to speak with you."

"Until tomorrow, then."

She hadn't waited for any more. She let the leather covering fall back into place over the opening to the sleeping chambers of the healing apprentices then moved swiftly to her room.

Hercus stood his ground. "Shall I walk with you to your hut, Father?"

The elder had turned sharply away to storm across the clearing and to his cottage.

Fahr looked toward the healer's hall. Should I go and apologize to her? he asked himself. His hand still tingled from the slap. He still wasn't sure why he'd done it. To have her admit she'd been with Hercules before this had hurt him deeply. Perhaps what she'd said was true and she was healing him, but he couldn't believe it. He'd seen the way they looked at each other. He took a step toward the hall then stopped himself. No, maybe this will put a stop to her defiance. Maybe this was a good thing, after all. He hadn't really meant to hit her, and at first he'd felt remorse that he had, but now he pushed these thoughts aside. You did what you had to do, he encouraged himself. It was harsh, but not so harsh as what might happen to her if she must be taken before the council.

The chosen one and her mate of the soul returned to their hut for the first meal of the day. Hercules and Rastist had it almost ready for them. The empath took a mug of tea from the old sailor with a nod of thanks, then returned to the outdoors to enjoy it. It was just too lovely in the morning sun to stay inside. She looked up to see her son coming toward her. He looked so grown up. It gave her a wistful sadness to realize he wasn't her baby anymore. His infancy had been far too short.

"Greetings of the morning, and wishes for good healing, my mother."

"Greetings, my son. How is your grandfather of the soul this morning?"

"Nervous."

"Would he like to join us for the breaking of the fast?"

"No, but he has requested you come to him when you have completed the first meal of the day."

She smiled at her son. "I bet you will join us."

He grinned at her. "Of course. Why else would I be here so early? I am very tired of my own cooking."

She rose to link her arm through his. "Then come along, my son."

Sira found the elder of her clan at the outdoor table under the tree at his hut. "Greetings, my father."

"Sit, my daughter."

She watched his face a moment. "Is something bothering you?"

"You are sure there can be no harm to you in this healing?"

She took his hand in hers. "I am sure, but I promise you that should I find I am mistaken I will halt the healing." He nodded. "You should eat something. I wish time to call at the healer's hall, then we could meet at the healing shelter."

He nodded again. "I am too nervous to eat, but I will be waiting for you when you are ready to heal."

"I know this is hard for you. I know you are a private person not given to being fussed over or waited upon. It will be over before you know it, and when it is you will be free of the pain and weakness the growth has brought to you."

"You are right. I am very tired. It will be good to rest once this is completed. I wish time to explore the book of clan and time to reflect. I have spoken with Hercus of this. It was his suggestion that he stay for a time with you and his father. It will give him a chance to learn from your strength while giving me a chance to find peace with the changes in myself."

"If he were here he could help you with many things."

"Yes, but he now needs this chance to get to know his family. Your mind is far stronger than mine. He needs that direction. He needs to find peace with his differing halves. Who better to teach him this than Iolaus? He is human, and yet he is of the earth. Take Hercus with you for a time. We will all know when it is time for him to return."

"Very well, my father. You are wise in such things. But you must make me a promise. I do not want you overdoing. I want you to rest and gain back your strength so that when Hercus returns you can teach him as you have before."

He smiled at her. "I promise. I sense a new life before me. A life granted me by the earth and given me by her daughter. Too long I have thought my life was at an end."

The chosen one called at the entrance to the healer's hall and was granted entry by the healing mother herself.

"Sira, how good of you to call. Please enter. I had hoped you might find time to come by."

"I wanted to ask if you might be persuaded to add your strength to the healing of Thysis."

The old one motioned to a seat on the bench along the wall. Sira waited until Melay had taken her seat to join her.

"I was in hopes you would ask. There is so little chance to use our skills here in the village. Everyone is far too healthy." She laughed at her little joke. "Thank you for this chance to use the earth's power in healing. I would imagine there is another you would like to speak with." She rose and the empath rose in respect. "I will send Dasay to see you."

"Thank you, my mother. I look forward to being in mind with you."

"Maybe this old bird can learn a thing or two, eh?"

"You flatter me."

The elder laughed again, then with a wave she left to go in search of the Dea.

Dasay came through the hide covering that separated the sleeping chambers from the main hall. She approached the empath with lowered eyes to take the bench on her left. Sira studied what she could see of the girl's face in the dim light. "What has happened?"

"Nothing. You wanted a word with me?"

"I wanted to ask if you would be willing to help in the healing of Thysis."

The girl sighed. She'd known this was coming. Until this morning she'd wanted this chance more than anything, but now things had changed. She needed time to think of what to say.

"Dasay?"

Still she didn't answer. It was all she could do to keep the tears away.

Sira reached to turn her face toward her. The moment her fingers touched the girl's trembling chin the empath gasped. "Who hurt you?" Dasay said nothing. "Who has hurt you, my sister?" Now the tears welled up in the girl's eyes and Sira turned her face more toward her. Now she could see the darkening skin on her left cheek. "Fahr."

"I do not believe he meant to hit me. He was angry. He forbade me to participate in the healing and ordered me not to see Hercules. He was angry that I had."

"You must take him before the council. He had no right to strike you."

"No. No, I cannot do this. Hercules and I have agreed to go into promise with each other. If I take Fahr before the council and he carries through with his threat to expose our relationship, the chances of our vow being granted are small. We only need a little time. We will ask for permission to take the vow at the next full moon."

"Why wait? Fahr would not dare to harm you if the vow were granted."

"The full moon is the proper time to ask. Besides, we want our family with us when we do. A strong show of family support just might make the difference in the request being granted."

"I will not allow Fahr to hurt you again, Dasay."

"I will avoid him for now. I will help in the healing and I will continue to hel . . . see Hercules, but I dare not push further in my defiance of Fahr. At least until Hercules and I can be joined in promise."

"We have another concern. If Hercules finds out that Fahr has struck you, he will not sit still about it."

"He must not know. I can cover the mark with powder. Please tell me you will not say anything. If Hercules were to hurt Fahr he might be forced to leave here. And if he were forced to go, I would go with him. I have a responsibility here to my people. I have been a fool in this. I forced myself on Hercules then forced us to sneak out to be together. I have put him in danger, not to mention myself. He asked me before to take the vow of promise with him and I would not. Now our time is short."

"We could go before the council today. The healing can wait a few hours."

"We will await the proper time. It will show a commitment to our feelings for each other."

"You must promise me you will come to me if you need help. I will know if Fahr hurts you again. I will speak up if I must."

The healer nodded. "I will be careful, my sister."

The empath was disturbed. Violence was not something accepted among the yosemin people. What Fahr had done was a serious breech of conduct, but even more than this his action gave insight into his deeper feelings and emotions. What could have driven him to take such harsh action against Dasay? Surely something more than his hatred of outsiders must be behind it. With boldness Sira made her way to the council hall. She called at the entrance to the hall but was given no welcome. It was not that she couldn't enter. It was not so protected as the healer's hall. After a moment's hesitation she stepped past the hide door covering to make her way down the long central corridor. She called again once she reached the open area where the council platform resided. She should not go past here before asking permission. After a moment she called again. She could sense the village elder's presence and suspected he was deliberately ignoring her call.

"I sense you are here, village elder. May I enter further into this most sacred of places?"

The white haired man stepped from his workroom to walk toward her. There was no welcome in his stance or on his face.

"Is there something you wished, empath?"

"A word with you, please." The elder said nothing, only waited. "I have just come from the healer's hall. The Dea has agreed to help in the healing of Thysis, as has the healing mother. It is a wondrous start to our endeavor to heal, is it not?"

"Let us be open with each other, empath. I have no liking for you or the outsiders you bring here. I asked Dasay not to be a part of this and resent that she has agreed to continue against my wishes. From what I can see, your influence on the girl has been nothing but negative, just as I predicted it would be. Release your hold over her and allow her to return to being the Dea that this village deserves for its years of service to her."

"Since you wish to be open I will try to follow your example. Dasay owes nothing to this village, rather the village owes her for the strength of her mind and her willingness to use that strength for the betterment of the earth's children. I have no hold over her beyond that of love and honesty. Within her lies the possibility of greatness, which you have tried to smother with your refusal to allow her the simple rights and privileges of life itself. I have seen the bruise on her cheek, and while she tried to keep its origin from me I got an all too clear picture in my mind of the hand that put it there. Leave her alone, Fahr. I will not allow you to hurt her further. If I have to blow this damned village apart with those truly of the earth on one side and those who practice hate and deceit on the other, then I will do so. Care to hazard a guess about who will come through the explosion unscathed?"

"I do not take well to threats. You have no right to come here, no right to even be among us. You are not yosemin. You are corruption in its purest form."

"I mean what I say, Fahr. The lines are being drawn even as we speak. Your bigotry and prejudice have seen to that." She turned to walk away.

"I warn you, empath. I will fight for this village with my life if I must."

Sira turned back to him. "For the village? Or your own selfish needs?" Once again she walked away.

Tella had been in his workroom when Sira came to the hall. He'd had the door closed and hadn't heard her first two calls. He'd risen when she'd called out to Fahr. He hadn't meant to eavesdrop on their conversation. He'd turned away to give them privacy, but the hall seemed to hold and capture sound and it was not easy to shut out sounds from near the council platform. He'd started to make his presence known when the anger in Fahr's voice made him pause. He'd been shocked by Fahr's words and by Sira's accusation about the bruise on Dasay's cheek.

Could the village elder really have gone so far? Tella had long thought of Fahr as a one dimensional thinker, lost in the ways of the village that he and his father had established. But he'd never thought of Fahr as fanatical. He was aware of his dislike of what the village leader deemed an outsider but he'd never thought that dislike would turn to hate.

Fahr stormed passed the hall that led past the workrooms and out the back door of the council hall and Tella stepped from his workroom.

Sira met Thysis at the shelter beside the healer's hall. Iolaus was there as well and he'd started a fire. The apprentice healers lined the shelter to offer welcome. There were mats and blankets there for their use as well as food and water.

Sira gave the apprentice healers the greeting of healing. Melay waited at the front of the line of girls and Dasay stood beside her. Hercules waited also, standing slightly back and aside from the others. Sira would miss his help in the healing. She'd begun to rely on his strong mind's touch and tie to her to aid in her healings, but with her sensitive mind she'd known he would not be a participant in this healing. She sent her mind to him lightly and he didn't turn her thoughts away, neither did he pull them to him. With resignation she came to kneel before Melay.

"Healing mother, I ask permission to use the powers of the earth to heal one of her children."

"In the name of the earth I grant you leave to use the gifts she has granted you."

Now the empath rose to go to her father of the soul. "Father. Together we will seek to find peace with the earth."

She motioned to the woven reed mats that covered the dirt floor of the shelter. Now Hercus stepped forward to offer his arm to the elder. It was a symbol of his respect. Just as gravely, Dentax also stepped forward to side the half yosemin apprentice. Thysis took a hand from each of them to help him to the ground. Dentax stepped back to allow Hercus to kneel beside his grandfather of the soul as a whispered prayer was given.

When Hercus stepped back to make room for his mother Dentax walked slightly behind him in a subservient pose well below his station as a senior apprentice. Now Dasay stepped forward to offer her hand to Sira, and when she knelt beside the elder the apprentice healer joined her.

Fahr turned away from the healing shelter to storm away. Tella stood watching his back for a moment then followed him. Fahr disappeared within the council hall and Tella followed him

"Village leader, I wonder if I might not have a moment of your time."

The white haired man was just about to enter his workroom but he stopped now to await the council leader. "I have some things to take care of, elder."

"It will only take a few minutes."

"Very well." Fahr motioned to his workroom then waited for Tella to enter. "Please make yourself comfortable."

The council elder did so. He wasn't really sure what he would say to Fahr. He'd watched the Dea closely, and when she'd knelt beside the empath he'd gotten a good look at her cheek. He'd been shocked by the dark marks she'd tried to hide behind makeup.

"What is it you wished of me, council leader?"

Tella took a deep breath to calm himself. "Is there anything you might wish to speak with me about?"

"Like what, council leader?"

"You seemed angry when you left the healing shelter moments ago."

Now Fahr sighed. He sat back in his chair to drum his fingers on the armrest. "I fear for this village. I fear the empath and those whom she calls family will have a negative effect on the village as a whole, and on some of us in particular."

"I know you have long had a special interest in the Dea and the healers of the village."

"They are what makes us special. Without the healers we are nothing. The healers of a village have long been revered and worshiped as the true bringers of the earth to the people."

"But Dasay only grows stronger from her association with the empath. Surely that is a good thing?"

"Stronger? Or less focused? Stronger? Or insolent and selfish? She learns to question the teachings of our people and to disobey those in authority over her, just as the empath does."

"Dasay is only now learning what life has to offer her. A little rebellion can be a healthy thing. As for the empath not bowing to authority over her, is there any who can truly say they are her masters? She is the strongest of us all. She is an elder in her own right. She is quite possibly the last of the empaths, and she is the chosen one written of in our legends. Whom should she submit to?"

"The old books and legends speak of the coming of an empath who will bring new life to our people, a woman of strength who will lead us and show us the way, a woman who will be the hope of our future. I do not believe Sira is that empath."

"She has brought back the book of clan. She has humbled the gods of the mountain and she has brought back our warrior spirit. She is a direct descendent of the original clan. These are the things spoken of in our legends. They are the signs of the chosen one. What other proof do you need, Fahr?"

"We have had this discussion before, have we not? I really am busy, old friend."

"Then I will come to the point. I hope your zealousness has not taken you too far, old friend. The empath and her family are well liked here."

"Meaning what?"

"Meaning that your place as leader of this village is one that could be taken away if the people were to find your… How shall I put this? Your actions have gone beyond those of your standing as the leader of the village."

Fahr narrowed his eyes at the council leader. "Is that a threat?" There was disbelief in the question.

"No, it is a warning, only. A warning from one friend to another. I know how deeply you care about this village and its people. You have devoted your life to us; not one citizen of Zirrith can deny that. The problem is that times are changing, whether the empath is here or not, whether her beliefs are different than yours the changes will still come with or without her influence. As a good leader you must learn to change with them."

"Why must it change, Tella? We have done all right here hidden in the mountains. We are a village of strong, healthy people. The earth is still with us. Why must we change that?"

"Because change is coming. Maybe the change will be subtle, but maybe it will not be. Perhaps you and I will go to the earth before this change, but what of our future generations? We have lost so much of the power the earth granted her people because we were unable to keep the bloodlines fresh. The only solution to keeping what remains of the earth's power within us is to improve our bloodlines. To do this there must be new blood. It has been written of in our legends. The strong of mind are the most likely to produce strong minded offspring. Can you think of any stronger than Sira or her son? Hercules possesses a mind stronger than many of us. Perhaps his blood is not that of the earth's people, but the strength he could add to a child of the earth would be powerful indeed. Evander is another example of those who might just be able to bring the earth's people back from the brink of extinction."

"What good will it do to strengthen our minds if our blood lines are tainted by the blood of outsiders? We would no longer be children of the earth."

"Hercus is only half yosemin, and yet his mind is almost as strong as his mother's. Is he not yosemin? Not even you can deny that the earth works through him. Evander has only been here a short time, and yet already I sense the earth in the little half god. It is not the blood itself that makes us the children of the earth. It is the earth working through us that marks us as her children."

"I do not see it that way. You yourself have seen Dasay's potential. Her mind is the strongest of the healers born into this village in a very long time. Mated to a strong minded yosemin male, her children could be the hope of our future. With carefully controlled breeding we can still insure our future and the future of our race as a whole."

"I believe that is the same thing I have been saying."

"No. You miss the point. This can work only if we were to produce yosemin children. Children pure of yosemin blood and shielded from the outside influences of this world."

Tella sat back in his chair. He felt defeated. "To deny one of our children the right to choose whom they wish to produce children with is wrong. If Dasay or anyone else wishes to make that choice for himself or herself, then so be it, but it is not something that can be forced upon them. We have tried that with little result. What good is it to produce strong minded children from embittered and resentful parents? Sira's grandmother was an example of what can happen if we deny our youth the basic rights of life. Melay is another example."

"Questa produced the empath you worship."

"Yes, at her own expense. One life for another, Fahr? I cannot but see that as counter productive."

The village leader rose. "I do not mean to be rude, Tella, but I really so have things to do."

The council leader took the hint and rose also. "Very well, Fahr. Perhaps you are right to end this conversation. It seems to be getting us nowhere."

He left the man's workroom with shoulders that slumped slightly, making him look older than his hundred and fifty years. He admitted he felt old. Now Sira's threat of the village splitting behind two strong lines didn't seem like such an empty threat after all.

The healing was going well although Sira hadn't transferred yet. She chose first to bombard the invasive growth with the white light of healing thus weakening it before taking a part of it to her. She still felt no indication that what she fought could, in the transfer, infect her own body, but she had no desire to take a chance on this.

Hercus had joined the others in the healing, and his mind added much to the earth's power the empath called upon to combat the illness of her chosen father. Dasay had helped for a time while Melay stayed with the apprentice healers, but now it was the elder who sent her mind to help the empath.

Dasay, still entranced in the healing stepped away to lay her hands on the demigod's shoulder. He jumped with the intensity of the energy that flowed to him. It was dark now and only Sira, Hercus, Thysis, Melay, and Hercules were there. Iolaus and Rastist had gone to the hut to prepare food for them. No one would see her lending the earth's healing power to the half god.

She stepped away from him when the hunter and the old sailor returned with tea and a thick hearty stew to give them strength. Among the things the villagers had given those who healed were bread, cheese and fruit. Hercules built up the fire to keep the tea warm, then kneeling beside the empath he sent his mind to touch hers, not in healing, but to suggest she back away and let herself and Thysis rest.

After a moment she responded and used the demigod's mind to pull herself away from the healing. When she finally released her hold on the elder she slumped against the half god and he pulled her into his arms.

"You go too quickly, little one. There's plenty of time. You need to conserve your own energy."

"I love you, my soul."

He soothed the hair from her face. Her words touched him deeply. He'd felt the energy in the air around her during the day of healing. He'd gotten a clear sense of her in that energy. Until this moment he hadn't realized how much he'd missed that in closing a part of his mind to her. "I love you, too."

He laid her down beside Thysis, then not yet ready to end his closeness with her he laid down beside her. She rolled to him and he took her into his arms.

"Do not hate me for needing you even now."

"I don't hate you, my more than sister. Nothing could ever make that happen."

Dasay came to sit beside the half god. With her mind she let him know that what he was doing now was all right with her. She felt no anger or jealousy that he now gave love to Sira.

He reached to take the girl's hand. "Thank you, Dasay. I can't help this. I love her."

"I know that. I love her, also. Someday you will believe me when I assure you that your love for Sira takes nothing from me. Stay with her for a time. Melay is exhausted and needs to rest. I will stay with the other girls tonight."

Hercus joined his father at the fire to accept a mug of tea. He was tired, but exhilarated by the healing. His mother's strength of mind never ceased to amaze him. He'd found new and diverse ways of tapping the power stored in his own mind as his mother had pulled more and more of the earth from each of those who helped her.

"How you doing, son?"

Hercus looked up to smile at his father. "Good. I have learned so much. It will be good to be with you and mother for a time."

"I'm looking forward to it."

"It seems my mother's powers have grown since last I assisted her in a healing. I cannot wait to see what the next few years will bring her."

"Or you, son. You've changed so much in the few years you've been on the earth."

The boy smiled at his father again but made no comment. He took up a bowl of stew and went to Thysis. Setting the stew aside he helped the elder to sit up with a pillow at his back for support.

"I have brought you something to eat, my grandfather."

"First I want water."

The boy took the drinking flask his father handed him then helped the old one drink.

"That is much better. Thank you, my grandson."

"Up to a little stew?"

"Yes. I am hungry." He took the tea Iolaus offered him. "Thank you, my son."

Hercus watched his mother for a moment. "Should we wake her to eat?"

"Let her sleep. Her energy is renewed in sleep."

Thysis was right, Sira did wake in the morning feeling better. At some time in the night the demigod had left the shelter, but the warmth of his companionship after the healing lingered on. She rolled over to sit up. She hadn't transferred with Thysis and therefore didn't have to maintain the physical touch. Still, in doing so it kept the two of them linked, which added to the healing. She'd kept her foot on the elder during the night and would continue to do so until the healing was complete.

Iolaus came to sit beside her and she reached for his hand. He searched her eyes with concern. "I am well, my soul."

He nodded. "Want some food?"

"Maybe after I wash up."

"I get to help you, right?"

"Of course."

He brought a pan of warm water, soap, and a cloth to her then helped her bathe. He helped her put on fresh clothing, and when she was comfortable he brought her a mug of tea.

He sat watching her as she sipped at the steaming, dark liquid. She smiled at him. "What?"

"I was just thinking how beautiful you look when you're in a healing."

"I always think of the fun we have after the healing." He blushed slightly and she laughed.

He leaned forward to take her lips. "Want a sample now?"

"Yes, but we are not alone."

"Damn." He kissed her again.

Hercus sat near the fire nursing his own mug of tea. He smiled over it now. He loved to see his parents together. Their love seemed to fill the air around him to make him feel secure and loved himself.

The empath healed well into the afternoon, then with Hercus and Dasay beside her she made the transfer. Iolaus stood over them nervously. This was when Sira was most vulnerable. If something went wrong now in the early stages of the transfer the healer could be hurt, as could the one being healed.

Hercules came to take his friend's arm. "She'll be all right."

"I hate this part."

"I know. She's doing okay."

"I wish you were in there with her. She relies on you so much."

"If things turn bad I'll be there for her."

The hunter paced by the fire now. He didn't understand this distance thing between Hercules and Sira and he didn't like it. He'd seen the hurt in her eyes from it. He wanted to push his friend about it but he didn't.

As evening fell Sira struggled to fight the thing that grew within Thysis and now to a lesser degree herself. She fought it with energy and light, chipping away at the thing slowly. She'd been in the healing since morning and could feel the fatigue that weakened her now.

It was Hercus who convinced her to stop. Thysis was also exhausted and the boy used this to touch his mother and help her to let go of the struggle. She slumped down on the mat beside the elder, too tired to fight it any longer. Her legs were so stiff from sitting cross-legged that she couldn't straighten them out without the hunter's help. Tears of fatigue slipped from her tightly closed eyelids to stain her cheeks. The golden one brought her water but she refused anything else. Turning on her side she curled herself around the elder she called father and was almost instantly asleep.

Dasay was also exhausted. She'd stayed the entire day beside Sira and Thysis lost in the healing along with them. Never before had she been so long in a healing. She'd learned much in the healing of Ares, but in that healing there had also been anger to combat. Now in this healing there was only love and two people struggling against the odds to heal.

She'd wanted to go to the river with Hercules tonight, but now she simply didn't have the energy to do so. She laid down beside the others and the demigod covered her with a blanket. She reached to take his hand, then bringing it to her lips she kissed his fingertips.

"Rest, my love."

"I am sorry I am too tired to heal you."

"I'm fine. Just rest. They'll need you tomorrow."

The empath ran along an incline. Fear rode her in her struggle, fear that she would be too late, and fear of what she'd find at the top of the ridge. It was here that she would fight, and here that she would lose her hold on the earth. She knew the dream too well now. She could predict what would come next. She fought to stop it before it could come to this, but she couldn't make herself wake up. Even in her dream she was tired, the struggle to reach the ridge harder. She jerked then sat up, almost breaking the physical touch with Thysis.

He'd grabbed for her at the last moment. Iolaus was with her at once, but if not for the quick thinking of the elder the bond would have been broken between him and the empath.

"What is it, my daughter? What has frightened you?"

"It was the dream again. It has been some time since I had it, but it was the same."

"I sensed your fear and woke. It is over now, daughter. Lay back beside me and gain your strength."

"I almost lost my touch on you."

"Only the physical one. The mental bond was still there. We might have lost some ground, but there would not have been any real damage."

"I am sorry, my father."

"There is nothing to be sorry about. Rest."

"No. I need to heal again. Now is the time to strengthen our bond."

"But you are not yet healed from before."

"I need the earth to help keep me focused."

He sighed but made no further objection.

Hercules had stayed at the healing shelter for a time then returned to the hut to bathe and eat a meal. He felt tired today. His strength had been returning since the healings, and he'd believed he was getting better. Now, however, he wasn't as sure. His hand no longer went weak when he reached for something but today his shoulder ached again.

He knew he should return to the healing shelter, but his bunk looked so inviting. I'll nap here for a time then return, he told himself.

Morning still found Sira entranced in the healing. Hercus left it for a time to bathe and eat. He watched his father pacing by the fire. Lines showed on the hunter's face. Somehow the boy hadn't realized just how hard this could be on him.

"She is doing all right, my father. Progress has slowed, but not stopped."

"I wish she'd go slower. This is so hard on her."

"I know. I will try and convince her to slow it down a little. You are right, there really is no hurry other than the fact that my grandfather hates being so exposed to the whims of others."

"He must also be tired."

"He is."

The boy sighed then rose to stretch. He was tired also, but now he wanted to help his mother leave the healing for a time. He made himself comfortable beside the elder, putting his hands on his side. Within moments he was entranced.

It took him nearly an hour to convince his mother to end the healing session and almost as long to help her leave her trance.

When she at last opened her eyes she looked around her as if not seeing anything. She'd laid down at some point in the healing and now she rolled to her side. She cried out as tight muscles gave way painfully. Her middle ached with a will of its own, giving testimony to the growth she now fought inside of herself.

Iolaus helped her to drink some water then sat holding her head as she tried to relax.

"Is Hercules here?"

"He went to get some sleep. He'll be here later."

Tears slipped from her eyes and he wiped them away. He hated this. Seeing her in pain tore at him and left him feeling vulnerable.

Dasay left the shelter to make her way to the healer's hall. She intended to bathe then sleep. She'd slept during part of the night but she still felt drained.

Once Sira slept, Hercus insisted his father also try and get some rest. "She may need us later. Go eat, then rest. I will call you with my mind if she should need you before you return."

Reluctantly the hunter did as he was told. He wanted a bath, but he also wanted a chance to speak with the demigod.

The son of Zeus rolled to the side of his bed then sat up. He braced his feet against the floor as a wave of dizziness overtook him. His head ached with a tightness that encompassed the right side of his neck and down into his shoulder. His mouth felt dry, his tongue swollen. He moved to the bucket on the table to take a long drink from the gourd left for just such a purpose. Rastist was gone from his bunk. The half god was surprised he'd slept so long. He hadn't slept soundly. He remembered bits and snatches of dreams and he'd gone to the water bucket twice during the night. He hadn't meant to stay away from the healing shelter and felt guilty that he had.

The hunter pulled back the hide door covering then stood in the stream of sunlight that flooded the room. Hercules blinked in the brightness with eyes that ached.

"There you are. Sira's been asking for you. She could use your help you know."

A stab of fear shot through the half god. "Is she all right? She hasn't harmed herself, has she?"

"No." At the fear in his friend's voice the hunter's conscience pricked him. He hadn't meant to frighten Hercules. "No, it's just that… Well, you know, she's come to rely on you in a major healing. She could use your strength."

The big man let his breath out in relief. "But she can heal Thysis without my help, right?"

"I'm not sure, Herc. Hercus says things have slowed down. Sira is pushing herself really hard. I'm concerned for her."

"I'll help if she really needs me. Try and understand. I do have my reasons for not being a part of this."

"What? What reasons?" At the stubborn look that came to his friend's face at the question the hunter got mad. "So you find some woman to fill your bed and you turn your back on Sira?"

"You know that's not true. I say again, I have my reasons." The half god's face softened and he gave the hunter a half smile. "You'll just have to trust me on this and try to understand."

"Oh, well, that certainly clears that up, doesn't it? I'm sure Sira will understand. She's a very understanding type, isn't she?"

"I've already told you…"

"No, Herc, you haven't told me anything. I know you've been avoiding Sira, and myself. I know you've insisted on putting up barriers between you and her no matter how much that hurts her. What I don't know is why."

The son of Zeus said nothing. He couldn't think of what to say without revealing too much or making the hunter even angrier.

Iolaus threw up his hands. Grabbing his pack he headed for the door.

"Iolaus, wait."

The golden one didn't wait. He was angry, tired, hungry, and dirty. He knew that in his present mood he'd be better off away from the source of his anger. He would bathe then return to the healing shelter to eat and rest. Then at least he'd be near Sira if she needed him.

Hercules paced the floor of the hut for a time. His shoulder ached with a throbbing dullness, and the pain in his head had only gotten worse. He wasn't hungry, either. In fact, his stomach felt unsettled.

He tried to think past the pain in his head. Should I be there in the healing with Sira? He'd asked the question over and over. He'd almost given in that first day when he'd felt better and hadn't been so concerned for his own health. Now that he was in pain again he was glad he'd resisted the impulse. Now it went beyond trying to keep the barriers between him and the empath. He couldn't let her know he was ill. Not now, not when she had Thysis to worry about. And no matter how he tried to overlook it, he was just too unsure of himself to believe that if he were to grow closer to Sira that he could still keep his hands off of her. If he were ever to lose sight of what that could do to him and the others and let himself go then he'd lose far more than he'd gain.

How could he jeopardize the love he had now? How could he jeopardize losing the family he'd grown to love and depend on? He couldn't seem to control the needs of his body at times. Being with Dasay had only made that worse, not better. It wasn't always easy for a man to hide his body's reaction to a woman. How could he ever look Iolaus in the eyes again if he were to lose this battle?

Then there was Dasay to think about. Was it fair to make a commitment to her when his thoughts for another woman weren't always pure? It wasn't in their everyday routine that he felt so out of control. It was at times like yesterday when he'd held her. That was when he longed for her and the longing became so overwhelming. What would it be like in a healing, especially if he were the one being healed? Besides, she didn't help. She was so natural and open. She made no bones about the fact that his body excited her. She was a child of the forest and felt no shame in her body or the body of others.

He smiled now. She was so free, so real. He blushed as he realized he'd let himself do it again. Why can't I think of her without being so damned in love with her? He took up the ax he'd left near the door after gathering wood the last time and left the hut.

Rastist looked up from his seat near the outdoor fire. Mind if I come along?"

"No, I'd appreciate the company." What the big man thought but didn't say was maybe it would help him keep his mind off of Sira.

They found a deadfall to gather seasoned wood. The yosemin people never cut down a tree unless they had to. They might build their huts with logs, but they preferred mud bricks since it meant the forest was left unharmed. If they must cut trees they went far afield to find them and they gleaned them from rich stands of trees, taking one here and another there so no large gaps were left to mar the forest or deprive an animal of shelter. Just like they never hunted close to home. They went deep into the forest and meadows to find game. There were deer that would come into the village totally unafraid of the people who lived there, grassing sometimes right alongside the livestock.

Rastist worked steadily to bring the fallen logs out of the brambles and to where Hercules could use his ax to advantage. The bite of the ax sounded clearly in the mountain air and the morning passed. The demigod's precision and accuracy with the ax was astonishing, and the old sailor stood watching him in awe as log after log was cut and split. The power behind the big man's swing was almost frightening with its force.

When there was plenty of wood ready for the ax the old trader began to stack the split logs onto a sled they'd brought for the purpose. The sun was at its zenith before the demigod put the ax down and wiped his brow on his forearm. He felt exhilarated. The hard word had loosened his stiff muscles and taken away the pain. He'd found no weakness in his shoulder and no weakness in his strength. Maybe the pain of earlier was just a reaction to the last healing that had been so intense because Dasay was still entranced before she began.

Rastist handed him a drinking flask. "We supplying wood for the whole damn village?"

Hercules grinned. "Mostly for us and Nemesis. We'll need more at the healing shelter, too."

"It's pretty wonderful how the village takes care of everyone, isn't it?"

"Yes. Widows and children eat first in lean times. The able bodied men see to that, even going without if they have to, to insure those with no man to help them get their fair share." Taking up his ax he swung it over his shoulder, then leaving it on the sled he began to help Rastist load the rest of the cut wood.

"We put much more on that thing and we won't be able to haul it."

The demigod looked around him for a moment. There was still a fair amount of cut wood but it would be safe here for now. "All right, my friend, enough for now."

"Good, you look done in." Hercules chuckled. He could see that Rastist was the one tired from the hard work.

"But you're still fresh as a daisy. Maybe you'd like to come back for the rest of this wood after we get the sled unloaded?"

The old sailor stopped in his tracks. "Unloaded. We really have to unload the thing?"

"If you're going back for the rest of this we do."

"Well, I don't want to outdo you, you being the hero and all. I guess the rest of this can wait a day or two."

"Thank you, mighty dragon slayer." They both laughed as they put their backs into pulling the sled back to camp.

After they'd gone over half the way Rastist called a halt. "I need a drink. Next time you find wood, make it where there's an easy trail back to camp, will you?"

"I'll do my best. I can get this the rest of the way. You take it easy."

"I was only kidding. I'll make it."

They hadn't gone much further when Nemesis came running up to them. "Thank the earth, Hercules, I've been looking for you. Is Evander with you?"

"No, Nemesis, I haven't seen him all day. What's happened?"

"The girl slumped to a rock to put both hands over her face. "He's missing. I've looked everywhere."

"Get a hold of yourself and tell me everything." He came to kneel before her and pull her hands away.

"Oh, Hercules, he's gone again."

"When did you see him last?"

"This morning. He was playing out in front of the hut. I was tired and I laid down. I told him to stay close. I fell asleep and when I woke up he was gone."

"He's probably with Clea or Clavus.

"I've looked there. I've looked everywhere. He's gone."

"Sira will be able to find him. Come on." He took her hand. "Leave the wood for now, Rastist. If anyone can find Evander, it's Sira."

The sailor nodded as he took up the ax and their water flasks to follow the others back to the village.

"I shouldn't have trusted him, Hercules. When he didn't come back I should have known he was up to something."

"That's not fair, Nemesis. We don't know that Ares had anything to do with this. The boy may have wondered off. We'll find him. Iolaus is the best damned tracker there is, and Sira will be able to get a sense of him. Stay calm."

They found Sira awake and alert. Hercules had feared she might be lost in the healing and be of little use to them. He knelt before her, and within moments even as he explained she'd closed her eyes to send her mind out looking for the boy.

"He is at the river," she announced moments later.

"But he can't swim," the pain in the former executioner's voice was a living thing. She turned and ran toward the river.

Hercules started to rise then stood a moment to watch Sira. She showed no real concern for the boy's safety.

"He's all right, isn't he?"

"He is not alone. He is with someone."

The demigod knew without her saying it that someone was Ares. He nodded then followed the distraught mother from the village. He found her returning, the boy in tow, one hand gripped firmly in one of hers.

"He's all right?"

"Yes. He was calmly waiting on a rock for me to find him. He says he was waiting because he knew I was coming." She stopped to kneel before the boy. "You really scared your mother. You know better than to wonder off into the forest alone. You must always tell me where you're going."

"I wasn't alone. I was with my father."

The girl stiffened. "He was trying to take you away again, wasn't he?"

"No, we were just talking. I miss him. He said I could call to him so I did."

The boy's mother looked to Hercules then back to her son. "Have you seen him before this? I mean since Aunt Sira healed him?"

"Yes. All I do is call to him and he comes to see me." Nemesis stood up and sent a pleading look to Hercules.

He shrugged. "Next time, how about telling your mother before you leave the village with your father? You know, so she won't worry about you?"

"All right, Uncle Hercules. We would have this time but she was sleeping so well. Father said not to wake her."

The former goddess went pale. "He was there? At the hut?"

"Yes. He stood and watched you for a long time. I had to take his hand to get his attention, then we just went to the river." The boy shrugged, not in the least concerned by his mother's agitation. With a laugh he bounded ahead to chase a butterfly.

Nemesis turned to Hercules. "You're a big help."

"You agreed to let Ares see his son. What did you want me to say?"

She only shrugged then followed her son back to the village.

Iolaus sat on the woven reed mats in the healing shelter next to Sira. When she'd awakened he'd helped her with her needs then convinced her to let Thysis sleep for a time before returning to the healing.

Evander crawled into his lap to lay his head back against his chest. The hunter raised his eyebrows at the healer. "I see your mother found you."

"I wasn't lost. I was with my father." The child let out a very mournful sigh. "Sometimes I just miss him so much that I call to him."

Sira's heart ached for the boy, and looking up to watch Nemesis she knew her heart wasn't the only one torn by the boy's simple declaration.

Iolaus wrapped his arms around the little demigod. "Yeah, I kind of miss him too."

"Want to see the rock he gave me?"

"You bet I do."

The boy stood to fumble with the leather pouch tied to his belt. It had become a permanent part of his wardrobe and went wherever he went. Iolaus helped him untie the string and Sira spread a corner of her blanket out for him to pour the contents of the pouch onto. Very carefully he poured the stones from the pouch then sifted through them with a grubby finger until he found the one he wanted. He held it out for the hunter's inspection.

"That's a pretty one. Maybe Aunt Sira can tell you what it's called."

The boy showed the bit of rock to the empath. She took it to turn it around in her hands.

"You are very lucky, Evander. This stone was once part of a tree." At the boy's skeptical look she continued. "We yosemin call this kind of rock Nquer Rathon. It means fallen tree."

Thysis was awake now, and with the help of Hercus he sat up to take water and rest his back against a pillow. Sira kept one foot against his leg to maintain the physical touch.

"Would you like to hear how this bit of wood became rock?"

The boy nodded with excitement. He loved to hear the empath's clear even voice as she told him a story of her people.

Hercules went to sit behind Dasay and she leaned back into him as his arms went around her. Nemesis took a seat on a bench near them, ready to indulge her son now that he was safely back with her in the village.

"Back before the remembered time, before the gods of the mountain, even before the Titans, the earth was covered with thick forests of tall trees and lush underbrush. The earth god's surface was dotted with many lakes and rivers. Animals roamed freely over the land. Not the animals of now, but huge beasts, more lizard than animal. It was beautiful and peaceful. It rained almost every day, but between the rains there was warm sunlight from the earth's lover, the sky."

The chosen one eased her position on the reed mats to make herself more comfortable. The boy's eyes never left her face. "Mother earth was young and impatient. She had grown bored with the same old ways day in and day out, year after year, century after century. So she decided to do something about the boredom. Within her middle lived a god made of fire and heat. He was not a well liked god and had tricked the earth god into hiding him inside of her. She convinced this god to make her insides boil with his heat. He was all too willing to do so and her insides soon turned to liquid. She got so hot that the liquid began to boil, and like a boiling pot of water it began to spill up and out of her. The heat melted rocks and the molten rocks shot to the surface to spill into the forests.

The earth thought the changes within her were good and she shook herself with the fun. The shaking made trees fall. The heated, liquid rock burned forests, and the smoke from the hot rock and the forests along with ash from both covered the sky. So thick did it become that the burning fireball in the sky could no longer reach his lover, the earth.

"And still the earth shook and spit forth the molten rock. The mountains formed that we call volcos. The volcos grew and spit their destruction for many, many miles. As the rock was spit from the volcos it released minerals, poisons, and more ash into the air and onto the soil. Trees were sometimes made sick, their growth stunted and marred by the poisons. They fell and were buried by the shaking and shifting poisoned soil. In pain at what his love was doing to herself the sky turned its back on the earth, which only hid the burning ember in his side which took away the warmth it could give her surface. Tired of this new game, while still liking the control he had over the earth god the fire god within her returned to his place inside the earth's middle only to show himself once in awhile as a reminder of what he could do to her if he chose.

With his fire cooled the earth grew very cold. Ice began to cover her. More trees were killed because they could not survive the cold and ice. What animals hadn't been killed by the poisons and fires now froze or died because they couldn't find food. The fallen trees were pressed into the poisoned soil by the weight of the ice. The minerals and poisons in the soil and air turned the fallen trees to stone.

"Seeing what she had done to herself, the earth god felt remorse. She had been young and foolish, but where once she had been beautiful and green, now she was ugly and cold. She went to the sky to ask her lover to once again turn his face to her and bring back the burning ember in his side to shine on her. But for this favor she must pay a price. She must let him come closer to her at times, which meant the burning ember in his side would turn her surface hot. In doing so he could prove what a powerful god he was. She begged him to shed his tears upon her to wash away the poisons and to clean her surface. But for this favor she must pay a price. She must let him shed as many tears as he wished, which at times meant that she would flood. In doing so he could prove his true love for her by his sadness at not being able to be with her. She knew she had no choice and agreed to this.

"Next she went to the god of wind and asked him to blow his breath across her and to blow away the ash and smoke in the air so that the sky could warm her and his tears could wash her. For this favor she must pay a price. She must let him blow her trees down once in awhile. In doing this he could prove how powerful his breath could be. The earth god agreed because she knew she must.

"The wind god blew across her, and when the ash and smoke were gone the sky god cried at the sight of his beautiful lover left ugly and scarred by her foolishness. He came close to her to warm her and to show his love and the ice began to melt. The volcos were now cooled and the rocks inside of her were now solid again.

"Mother earth looked about her at the fallen trees and she was saddened that her foolishness had killed her beautiful forest then turned them to stone. So she gave a blessing to the fallen giants that had once graced and glorified her surface." Sira paused for effect. "So you see, the Nquer Rathon you now possess has been blessed by the earth mother. The blessing will come to those who possess the bits and chunks of fallen trees that are all that can be found of the once giant trees here in the remembered time."

The boy was entranced by the tale and had sat quietly throughout the telling of it. With a smile the empath handed the stone back to the boy. He took it and turned it over and over, looking at it with awe. Then he ran to his mother.

"Did you hear the story, Mommy?"

"Yes, Son, I heard it. You must take good care of the stone your father gave you. It's a gift from the earth mother. When next you see your father you must thank him."

"Thank you, Father," the boy stated into the air. He'd known his father was near to hear the tale the empath told. Sira had felt his presence as well, but said nothing.

Nemesis didn't catch on, and perhaps it was better that way. The telling of the tale had eased her tension at thinking Ares had taken her son once more. Still, she waited for the dark god of war to come to her because he loved her. So far, he was still apprehensive about doing so.

Sira had sensed the former executioner's thoughts and known she was ready to blame Ares for the boy's disappearance. Would she never understand the god she'd fallen in love with? No wonder he was afraid to come to her.

Sira healed the elder of the clan of the wolf and the lion. Dasay left for a time to meet Hercules in the forest. They'd made love then she'd healed his shoulder once more. It was only slightly painful after the workout he'd given it in gathering wood. Once Sira had finished her tale of the trees turned rock he'd gone back for the wood sled. He'd unloaded it with the help of Clavus and Rastist then shared some of the wood with the yosemin.

It was well past moonrise when Dasay returned to the healing shelter to help Sira once more. When she did return Iolaus left his place beside the elder to sleep for a time. He'd taken over in the healing when Melay grew too tired to help. Hercus still used his earthly powers to help his mother and his grandfather of the soul. Iolaus had been awed by his son's power of the mind. His time with the elder had been well spent. There had been times when the hunter resented the fact that he must be separated from his son. He'd trusted Sira in this, but he hadn't liked it. Now, while he still resented having missed so much of his son's development, he was glad the boy had found the direction he'd needed to cope with the strength of his mind and the powers the earth had granted him.

He looked forward to the next few months when Hercus would be with them. He could learn much from his mother, and maybe even something from his father and his uncle of the soul. If nothing else the boy was good company, and maybe he could teach his father a thing or two as well.

The healing went well and the empath was well pleased. She took her time, not pushing herself so hard. She'd sensed enough improvement now that she no longer doubted her ability to heal her father completely and so she could relax a little. She ate before resting, and the food also did much to improve her outlook. She was seldom hungry while in a healing, but her body still needed food to fuel it. She'd not felt hungry now, but once she took a few bits of the soup Iolaus made for her she decided she could eat after all.

The hunter helped her bathe while the elder kept his back turned. The old one was embarrassed by the simple ritual. He hated being stuck here with so many people around him all the time. He hated being fussed over by anyone and he hated the embarrassment of having to have others help him with his own personal needs. These were private things, not for others to be a part of. He grumbled about it to them all but no one seemed to pay that any mind. Still, they fussed over him like he was an infant.

With the night, Sira healed once more, bringing more of the growth to herself. It seemed much easier to bombard the thing within herself, and since it responded better to the healing energy this way she took some of the growth from Thysis with each healing then killed it from inside herself. She admitted it was an unorthodox way of healing, but as long as it was working she stuck to it. Much of Hercus and Dasay's healing came to her now rather than to Thysis. And while the elder didn't say it, she could sense that he was just as glad to have it that way.

Four more days the empath healed the elder. She took her time to be sure all traces of the growth were gone before she agreed to go into the time of physical touch. The elder was quite ready for the end to the healing and voiced his desire to have the time of physical touch as short as possible. Sira nodded to humor him. She had every intention of keeping control of the healing and planned to use her mind to keep a very close eye on herself and Thysis. If there was any indication of the growth returning she would transfer once again whether her father of the soul liked it or not.

Hercules had stayed close to the healing shelter, helping where he could. He didn't help with the healing, but he did help Sira with some of her needs and Thysis with most of his. The elder seemed to find it easier to accept help from his son of the soul than from the rest of them, and the half god was happy to do what he could. He and Dasay spent most nights in the forest. His shoulder was much improved now, and the apprentice healer announced she was done with the healing the same day Sira and Thysis went into the time of the physical touch.

The girl was a little apprehensive about her healing. She still seemed to sense something in his shoulder she couldn't explain, but in the last five healings it hadn't changed and Hercules swore he felt wonderful.

The girl could attest to his renewed energies. Their lovemaking was lively and active during the first part of the night, then tender and comforting during the last of the time they were together. The girl wasn't sure which she liked the most, but decided to simply enjoy each and every moment she could spend with her lover.

Fahr had kept his mind from hers since the healing began and she'd reveled in the freedom this gave her. She dared to hope that he had come to his senses and decided to leave her alone. It wouldn't be long now before she and the demigod could go before the council to ask for their permission to go into promise with each other. In the back of the girl's mind a daring plan was forming that she hoped wouldn't bring her trouble at a later time. If the council would let her be in promise with Hercules, perhaps they would also allow her to leave the village for a time to travel with Sira and the others. She longed to be near the demigod without the worry of what the villagers might think, but she also wanted a chance to get to know the empath better. She'd learned much in helping with the healing of Thysis, but it only served to make her aware of just how much she didn't know about the art of healing. Unlike Sira, she simply didn't have the natural knowledge that came with confidence in her abilities. She'd been more than a little surprised that Hercus was much more able to help his mother in the healing than she'd been. How had the boy learned so much about healing in such a short time? He was male, and males were not supposed to be able to heal. And yet Hercus did. Maybe Sira had been right in saying that men could heal and that they should be allowed to enter the healer's hall as apprentices. Perhaps there had never been a male empath in the history of her people. But to say they couldn't heal had been proven wrong by an empath's son.

When the time of the physical touch was complete, the healer took her time to make the break between herself and her father of the soul. With their strong minds they could have made the break sooner, without harm to either of them. But while Thysis was free of the growth that had plagued him for so long, he was still weak and tired. The severing of the physical touch could be wrenching for both parties. There was time to go slowly and allow the elder to build his strength before the first tentative dropping of their hands that would begin the real trial they must complete before the healing was really and truly over.

It was night before the break was complete. Hercules helped the elder to rise then steadied him until he could move more freely. He came with the old one to his hut then stayed to help him bathe and take a meal before retiring to his bed.

The empath and the hunter went to the forest near the river. Sira bathed first then ate a simple meal of bread, cheese, and fruit they'd brought with them. They stayed by the river, lost in their love for each other. The hunter was sweet and tender to her, giving her pleasure before his own. She fell asleep in his arms and he stayed with her by the water until dawn. Then carefully he lifted her into his arms and made his way to the village.

Hercules met him on the edge of the clearing, and seeing the look on his friend's face the hunter handed the girl over to him without a word. The big man took the sleeping empath from his friend then made his way to the hut. He laid her gently on her bed then pulled the blankets up over her. The look on his face was one of love, tenderness, and longing. The hunter watched his friend closely. He wasn't disturbed by the look because he was jealous, but more because he could feel his friend's pain. Maybe Hercules wasn't as ready to put an end to his feelings for Sira as he professed.

The half god looked up at the hunter, then lowering his eyes he quickly left the room. The golden one stood watching his friend's back. What had possessed him? Could he think I'm angry with him because he loves her?

He went in search of the half god and found him sitting on the bench outside the hut. Not sure what to say to the big man the golden one took a seat on a rock near him. Silence lay heavily between them.

"Is everything all right, Herc?" The half god took his hunting knife from the scabbard at his waist to examine the edge. Digging in his waist pack he took out a stone and began to put an edge on the knife. "Herc?"

"Look, Iolaus, I'm sorry about that."

"Sorry about what?"

"You know. There, in the bedroom. The… Well, you know."

"What's come over you? I thought we settled this a long time ago. I'm not stupid, Hercules. I know how you feel about Sira. That takes nothing from me, or from her. It doesn't change the way she and I feel about each other or the way I feel about you. Tartarus, Herc, she loves you, too. This isn't something that just came up. You've loved her from the first, you just didn't know it. What's happened to make that seem something to apologize for now?"

"Well, for one thing there's Dasay. I guess I thought having someone like her would make my feelings for Sira lessen. But the truth is, they've only increased. Don't ask me why, because I can't explain it."

"You don't have to explain it. It's the tie of the soul, between you and Sira and the tie between you and Dasay. It's the tie between Sira and Dasay. Just like the tie between you and I has grown stronger since Sira became a part of our lives. Don't you see? That's the answer right there. Sira became a part of our lives. Not just mine and not just yours, but ours. She made all the things that made our friendship so special to begin with all the more intense. It's not that we're going to turn odd about each other or something." The hunter smiled. "Although lately I have been admiring your big strong muscles and your cute…"

"Don't joke, Iolaus. I'm trying to be serious about this."

"Sorry. The thing is, it's just that we've finally felt the deeper tie our friendship made between us. We're not just friends, we're brothers. Closer even than brothers."

"It's just that sometimes what I feel for Sira is… Well… It's not that I don't love Dasay, because I do. I love her very much, more than I ever thought I could love a woman again. But what I feel for her is nothing like I feel for Sira. There's just no way to describe the way I feel for Sira. This thing's been eating away at me. I can't describe the feelings that Sira brings to me. The truth is, I don't understand them at all."

"Why try and understand it? You've done nothing wrong and you're not going to. You love Sira and that's okay. You've been honest with all of us about it, including Dasay. Why can't it just be like it was before? Can't we just go on loving Sira and being friends?"

"And if something were to happen between Sira and I? What then, Iolaus? How could any of us live with that?"

"I, for one, wouldn't give a damn if something did happen between you two. Nothing is going to change the way I feel about her or you. That's just a physical thing; it really has very little to do with love and the tie of the soul. Who knows? Maybe I'll have a roll in the hay with Dasay."

"See? That's just what I mean."

"I was only joking. You know what I mean. We're tied in soul whether we like it or not, all four of us. Tartarus, all five of us. We can't forget the way Sira feels about Ares. You think I give a damn?"

"Yes. You may say you don't, but deep down you'd care, you'd have to."

"Why? Why would I have to?"

The demigod stood. "Because if I had Sira I wouldn't want to share her with anyone. Not you, or Ares, or Dasay. Because I'm jealous of you now. Because I want her body and soul, because you're human no matter how much of this yosemin soul's tie stuff you spout off about. You were raised like I was. We were raised that this kind of thing is wrong. It's sick, it's immoral."

"Yeah, I was raised that way, and for a long time living that way kept me from telling you I love you more than a brother. That kind of thinking kept me from even seriously looking for love with a woman. I had this warped idea that if I didn't fall totally and completely in love in that first few minutes with a girl then she wasn't right for me. I damn near destroyed our friendship because I'd been with Xena and I thought I owed her my life and even yours to make up for the fact that I didn't really feel for her the way a man should feel about the woman he plans to spend his life with. I didn't really love her that way, but it didn't stop me from being jealous when I realized you cared so much for her. Think about it, old friend. Can you really say that thinking like that has made you any happier than you've been these last few years with Sira and I? Can you really believe that loving someone as completely as you love Sira is wrong?"

"It is wrong when she's not mine to love."

"Damn it, Herc, haven't you been listening? What I'm trying to say is she is yours to love. Yours and Ares', Dasay's, Evander's and Nemesis' and Thysis, Hercus, Alcmene and Jason, Iphicles and Reyna. She is love. That's what the earth helped me to see. She is love in humanoid form. Sure, now you say you wouldn't want to share her, but you only say that because you haven't really learned what she is and why she's here. You think I wasn't jealous of you at first? Think again. We're privileged, you and I and the others. We've been granted the chance to be near her and to love her. We're special enough that she can love us. There's not a day goes by that I don't thank the earth that I've been granted this wondrous gift. Me, Iolaus, thief in the streets, tag along of the mighty Hercules. I've been given a chance to love and be loved by something, someone as special as Sira. I found my peace with that and with her feelings for others. I'll always have to share her, always, because love not shared isn't love at all."

"I guess I'm just not ready to accept things like you are." His words were whispered. "I've tried." He walked from the clearing to disappear into the forest.

The hunter felt depressed. The thought that his friend was so confused bothered him more than he wanted to think about. Would Hercules decide he should leave them? He had few illusions about how much he'd miss his friend, but what it would do to Sira would be even worse. He went to sit on the bed beside the sleeping empath. After a moment he laid down beside her to take her into his arms. Still sleeping, she snuggled closer to him and some of his tension of a moment ago eased.

The son of Zeus found a place in the forest to be alone. Finding a place on the grass, his back to a rock he leaned his head back and closed his eyes. The words the hunter had said kept chasing themselves across his thoughts. Love not shared isn't love at all. Not shared. Not shared. He thought about presenting Dasay to his mother. What would she think? His mother was smart enough to realize how he felt about Sira. Would she condemn him for loving two women at the same time? But hadn't she had too loves at once? She'd still loved Zeus when she took Amphitryon as her husband. She still had feelings for Zeus now when she loved Jason so completely. Maybe he was being unfair to his mother. She'd accepted his life so far no matter how different it was from what she was used to.

Had she ever condemned him? Now that he was being honest with himself he had to admit she hadn't. She'd accepted the new life he'd found with Iolaus and Sira and had even embraced many of the yosemin ways. Was there anyone in his family that might think him improper for loving Sira and Dasay? Maybe not. And if something were to happen between him and Sira? Would they ever have to know of it? He'd been with other women. That was his business and no one else's. He smiled to himself. Maybe he was being too hard on himself. I'm not a saint. I guess I never have been. There has been a commitment between Dasay and I from the first. From that first day I walked into the village there was something more between us. We acted on that something and sealed the commitment. Now there would be the vow of promise between us.

The vow of promise wasn't like marriage, but more like an engagement. The important thing was it gave their feelings for each other validity. And what of the feelings he had for Sira? There had been a commitment there as well. Between them had been the promise that they would wait for each other. The promise that they would love each other no matter where that love might take them. The empath had stuck to that commitment. It was he who'd changed the rules and begun to question them.

He jumped to his feet. I've been so unfair to her. And yet through it all she's never complained or questioned me. What has she done? She's loved me just like Iolaus said.

"Forgive me, Sira." He whispered the words to the air, then feeling better he headed back to the village.

Dasay was there when he entered the cottage. She'd come to check on the empath. He grabbed her up to kiss her neck. "I've missed you."

"I have missed you too."

"Meet me tonight?"

"I will if I can."

"How long until the full moon?"

"Too long." The smile left her face for a moment. "You have been a little distant. I feared you might have changed your mind."

He sighed. "I guess I was getting cold feet. Not because I don't love you even more than ever, but just because I can't help but question myself." He took her lips. "Forgive me?"

"I love you, Hercules. Cold feet are not going to change that, yours or mine."

The child of the forest stirred then rolled to her side. A wide smile crossed her face. It was raining. She took a moment to assess her health. The healing sleep had done wonders for her. She made sure there was no trace of the growth she'd transferred to herself from the elder of her clan. Assured she was free from illness she bounded to her feet. It wasn't yet light and the hunter still slept in the bed he'd shared with her during her healing sleep. She tiptoed to the entrance of the hut then slipped out into the night. She twirled around as the icy droplets of water sent shivers of delight through her. She returned to the hut to take up her pack then left again to head toward the river.

She removed her clothing but didn't enter the water. The rain felt too good to leave behind. Stepping from the trees she tipped her head back to offer her face to the sky's tears. Her skin tightened in goose flesh and she laughed. "Wash me clean with your love, oh god of the sky."

She went to her knees in the wet grass to spread her fingers in the green strands of life. They moved to curl around her, caressing her flesh with welcome and love. "Os ingrasha hast, os ingrasha sysamos, os ingrasha cantos, pas meron z ive pas mznd anse sool. To the soil, to the trees, to the earth, my mother, I give my mind and soul."

Carefully, so she wouldn't harm the grasses that gave themselves to her she removed her fingers from the soil. Then taking up soap and a cloth she waded into the water of the river. The rain came heavier now, turning the surface of the deep green pool to gray and white. Taking a quick breath she lowered herself below the surface of the water then gasped as the snow fed flow took her breath away. She washed her hair then washed the rest of her, letting the rain wash the soap away.

When she was finished she washed out her things then put them back on wet. She shivered at the touch of the cold cloth on her body, but before she could return to the hut her things would be wet anyway. The cold didn't bother her. She reveled in each chilly drop of rain that touched her skin. With a laugh on her lips she returned to the hut, her step light. Once at the entrance to the cottage she placed her things inside but she simply wasn't ready to leave the enchantment of the rainy predawn. She walked for a time among the trees behind the hut, the muddy soil staining her feet with the earth she worshiped, the earth she drew her strength from. She noted a lightening of the sky before she returned to the hut to dip water from the rain barrels placed beneath the eaves of the hut's roof, using it to wash the mud from her feet. She entered the hut to take a blanket from a shelf to dry herself. Not concerned for convention she stripped then wrapped the blanket around her.

The demigod watched each move she made, stirred by her beauty as he always was. He knew she'd been in the rain because she loved it. The thought of her ability to find pleasure in the simple things around her touched him. Her lack of inhibitions moved him. She was the forest and the trees, the dark shadows beneath the ferns, the doe grazing in the meadow, the wildflowers and the snow capped mountains. She was all the things the earth gave her people in love. Iolaus was right, she was love.

She put water on to heat for tea then hung her wet things on a rope strung in a corner of the hut. Her moves were smooth and natural, like the wolves that protected the earth's people. She scoured the shelves and cupboards for something to eat. Finding roasted venison she cut off a large chunk, and standing before the fire waiting for the water to boil she bit off satisfying chunks of the meat to chew with even white teeth. Everything she did was real and natural; she wasn't impressed with effect or pretense. He'd noted a long time ago that she reminded him of a deer, delicate and wild.

She removed the water from the fire and put the tealeaves in before slipping into the room she shared with Iolaus to dress. When she returned she was dressed in pants and a long sleeved top of green. Her damp hair hung down her back almost to her knees.

She poured two mugs of tea, and taking one to him she took a seat on the edge of his bunk. "It is raining."

"Yes, I know."

"It is wonderful out there. I bathed in the rain then walked in the forest." He reached up to caress her cheek and she leaned into his touch. "Now that Thysis is better, I am ready to return to the cabin for a time. Once you and Dasay take the vow of promise we will go. Please try to follow us when you can."

"I will. I know I've been unfair to you. I don't really mean to be. I think maybe I'm beginning to understand things better. Will you be patient with me?"

"Of course. Someday there will be a time for us. Most of the time I am content to wait for our chance to be together."

"Most of the time?"

"Sometimes when you look at me as you are now, I do not think I can wait to truly express my feelings. I do not necessarily mean in a physical way, although that is a natural part of loving someone as I love you."

"If not in a physical way, then how?"

"With my soul. Loving you with my heart and soul and mind. To make love to you in this way would be good. To open my soul to you completely would make that part of me you hold complete." He held his breath. He wasn't sure what to say to her. "I know that you are not ready for that kind of love. Not yet."

"You are ready for this?"

"Yes. Since that time when you went to the underworld to look for Iolaus. Since I declared my love for you. Since I first acknowledged the truth that the earth had given me two mates of the soul. Yes, my soul, I am ready."

"I don't know what to say."

"You do not have to say anything."

He moved forward to take her lips with his. His kiss was tender and undemanding. She gave her tongue to him and he took it with his. Her hand gripped his biceps, and where it touched he felt a tingle. When he ended the kiss he pulled away to watch her face.

"I can't put what I feel for you into words. I don't understand it at all. I've loved before and I love Dasay now, but that's different somehow."

"I know. It is the tie of the soul. Go to the earth; she will help you. Find your peace with Dasay and the earth, then there will be time to find your peace with me and with Iolaus. You must promise me you will not forget that we love you, and that no matter what happens, we will keep on loving you. We will always want you with us, no matter what."

"I guess that's the problem, no matter how many times I tell myself that, I just can't seem to believe it."

She took his mouth again and there was passion in the kiss. Her hands tightened on his arms and her breath quickened. It took all her will to pull back from him. "I do not want to lose you, my soul. Not over a physical lovemaking between us. It is not wrong to be moved by the love you feel for me. Iolaus and I understand that. Dasay understands that. With the earth you will understand it also."

"I hope so. Right now I could take you into my arms and carry you into the forest. Right now I could make love to you with all my heart and soul. Now, before the earth and the gods of my people."

"And if you were to take me to the forest I would go willingly."

"That doesn't help, you know."

Now she smiled. "We would both get very wet if we did go to the forest. I am only now getting dry."

He smiled back. "You like making love in the rain, remember?"

"Believe me, I have not forgotten."

"Maybe you'd better not sit there so close."

She tickled the hair on his chest. "Chicken."

"I admit it. You scare the Tartarus out of me."

Her hands moved lower and he caught them before they could go too low. "Don't tease, Sira. I meant what I said."

"What makes you think I am teasing? I meant what I said also."

"Damn it, Sira. I just can't do this."

She leaned forward to kiss him again and her chest pressed against his with fire. With a quick kiss she jumped to her feet to twirl around the room. "The rain has enchanted me. Come to the woods with me."

"I can't."

"Not for that, just to be one with the earth. Just to let your unrest go for a time. Just to let the earth wash it away."

"If I get out there with you I may not be able to keep my hands off of you."

"Come anyway. Give it to the earth mother and let her heal you."

He stood to toss his blankets aside. He wore only a pair of loose fitting, woven moss trousers she'd dyed a dark blue for him. She loved to see him in shades of blue. It brought out the rich color of his eyes and made his sandy blond hair shine. With a laugh he took her hand and they ran from the hut and into the forest."

"Is it not wonderful?"

"It's damn cold, little Miss."

"Forget your physical discomfort. Let it go. Embrace the earth and the renewal the rain will bring."

He turned his face to the sky. The drops of moisture seemed almost warm now and he opened his mind to the beauty around him. The empath stood before him and he reached to untie the drawstring at the top of her blouse. She'd put nothing on beneath the now wet cloth that did little to hide her figure. His clothing was wet as well, and her eyes strayed to below his waist. With a moan he pulled her into his arms but he made no further advancement, and in his restraint he found a kind of peace.

He kissed her hair. "Thank you, my more than sister."

"I had to find a way to show you that it does not have to be a physical love between us. There can be love without that part."

"I guess I didn't believe it. But you took an awful chance bringing me out here."

"I did not take a chance at all. There were only three things that could have happened. One was what did happen; we found we were stronger than you believed. Two, we would enjoy ourselves and that would be the end to it. Three, we could be making love, here, now, on the wet grass in the rain. If that had happened I would not be ashamed. I would worry very much how you might react, but perhaps if this thing were ever to happen between us you would see once and for all that it really changes nothing."

"Maybe you're right. I guess I just need time."

"Then take all the time you need. I will be there for you when you are ready to open your mind to me once more."

"You're so beautiful, here like this in your natural element. Thank you."

"For being beautiful, or for giving you the time you need to deal with your conflicting emotions?"

He laughed. "Both. Although, if you were old and fat and ugly I wouldn't be so damn drawn to you."

"Yes, you would. It is the tie of the soul, not the look of the person." He laughed again.

The rain had stopped now, but the clouds hadn't lifted, giving the morning the look of winter rather than spring. The child of the forest took part of the morning to wash out her things then to tidy up the hut. Once she'd finished these simple things she went to the hunter's pack to take out a hunting knife he'd made. She'd asked his permission to trade the knife for a hide so she could make a pair of moccasins for Dasay. The hunter was more than willing to agree. He'd made the knife by hand for the purpose of trading. He'd kept it this long only because he took pride in the well crafted piece, while not being overly attached to the knife itself. He'd made the wooden handle from a hedge like, low growing bush with deep red wood and small, light green round leaves that grew on the lower slopes of the mountains where they had their cabin. He'd taken time to shape and contour the wood to fit a hand while leaving as much of the wood's natural beauty as possible.

The village tanner was most happy to make a trade and Sira chose a suede hide tanned and bleached to almost white. She made one more stop to trade a pottery bowl for blue, white, red and black beads.

Back at her hut she went straight to work, using her own foot as a reference then adding a little since the apprentice healer's feet were slightly larger than her own. She halted her work to fix a midday meal for her family, then when the clean up was done she returned to her work, taking it with her to call on Nemesis.

The former executioner was busy baking bread at her outdoor oven but welcomed the chance to talk with Sira. The news of her expected baby had quickly gone through the village. Where the girl had feared censorship she'd found friendship. The people seemed joyful that she would soon be adding to their numbers. She'd been surprised by how many of the villagers voiced there hope that Ares would now be a more regular visitor.

"Everyone seems to think a lot of Ares."

"Is that so surprising? He can be very charming."

"He can also be damned annoying."

"Yes, he can be that also."

"He was there the other day at the healing shelter, wasn't he? When you told Evander about the rock that used to be a tree, Ares was there."

"Yes."

The girl let her breath out with a deep sigh. "Why doesn't he come to me?"

"You had just accused him of trying to steal Evander away from you. Something like that could make one believe their fear that now that he is the god of war again you will hate him as you did before."

"You think he knew what I feared?"

"Yes."

"If he'd only told me he was taking Evander for a walk."

"Then he would have taken the risk of you refusing him. Perhaps he did not wish to take that chance." The girl sighed again. "He knows that you are afraid, my sister."

She stopped what she was doing to stare at the empath. "I guess I am a little. What if he has changed back to what he was before? I don't want to love him if he's like that again."

"But this way you will never know, will you?"

"You don't believe he would harm Evander or the child I carry now, do you?"

"No. I cannot say that the anger that made him the god of war of old has not returned at least in part, but I can say without a second thought that he has retained much more of what he gained in mortality than he has lost in godhood."

"Sometimes I lay awake at night thinking about how it felt to be in his arms." She hugged herself now. "His power even as a mortal was so … so comforting. The way he'd look at me with those expressive brown eyes. He can speak volumes with his eyes alone. I can't stand the thought of seeing the hate and evil there like it could be before."

"And he cannot stand the thought of seeing the hurt and hate in your eyes that was there before."

The empath left her work on the moccasins to fix the last meal of the day. Thysis and Hercus had agreed to join them in the meal and Sira planned to fix her father's favorite things. She cleaned and snapped beans then seasoned them with shaved, dried nuts. She boiled potatoes, then once the venison steaks were done she removed them from the pan to add the water to the meat drippings to make a sauce she thickened with flour. There was fresh bread from Nemesis to sop up the sauce and honey cake for dessert.

When the meal was complete the hunter and his son washed the dishes while the others sat outdoors by the fire. Sira took up her work on the suede shoes once more, using the fire to heat a nail driven into a wooden handle then sharpened to a fine point. The hot metal made the lace holes around the shoe that would allow the empath to attach the sole of the moccasin to the top. She would use a larger nail to make the holes that would hold the leather cord that would lace the calf high boots to the healer's slender feet.

The shoes were to be a present to the girl for the taking of the vow of promise. She'd already sewn a deep blue shirt of woven moss for the demigod. She'd done much of the work while in the time of physical touch, giving no explanation of whom the shirt was for. The next task on the moccasins was the beadwork, but for that she needed better lighting, and when the lace holes were complete she put the work away in her sewing basket.

When Thysis was ready to return to his hut Hercus and Hercules walked with him. The demigod left them at the hut to make his way to the river. He'd sensed the touch of the Dea's mind on his and knew she'd join him there soon. He felt excitement as a tingle in his middle. His encounter with Sira in the rain had eased some of his tension about the feelings he had for both women. He was honest enough with himself to admit he'd been more than stirred by the empath, but he'd never lost sight of the danger letting himself go might mean. He'd been aware of Sira's mind on his, guiding him with gentle persuasion. She'd kept him strong with that mind's touch. While she would not have turned him away, and while she was just as moved by him as he was by her, she'd kept her head and helped him keep his. What she'd taught him by this was that she was his for the taking, but that she could be strong when needed and in her strength she could help to boost his own restraints. The control she kept over her mind was something that never failed to amaze him. The only time she didn't have this control was when she was entranced. Then her powers of the mind were drawn to other extremes, whether it be healing or something else. He was doubly glad he'd sought the Dea for help with his shoulder. In a healing, would either of them have been as restrained as they'd been this morning? He was afraid of the answer to this question.

He sensed Dasay before he heard her and stepped from the grove of trees and bushes where they usually met to greet her. His arms went around her in a tight embrace. He pulled her clean flowery scent deep into his lungs, as if wishing to imprint it there for all time.

Hand in hand they walked beside the river. There was pleasure in simply being together and the half god was content with that alone for the moment. Their minds touched in love and companionship as they walked through the night and it was past midnight before they returned to the grove of trees to make love on the grass.

The village leader eased his position on the sand beneath a tree near the back entrance to the healer's hall. He was cold and uncomfortable and had toyed with the idea of going for a cloak over and over again. Still he hadn't, fearing that if he did he'd miss the Dea's return. He'd deliberately kept his mind from the Dea's of late. He'd wanted her to feel comfortable again with her thoughts. He'd chosen tonight to put into action a plan he'd been considering since the morning he'd confronted the healer about her feelings for the demigod. As evening approached he'd walked into the forest behind his hut then turned to make his way to the back of the healer's hall, waiting there to see if the girl might not sneak out once the other girls in the hall were asleep. He was prepared to be here for as long as it took to catch the healing apprentice in what he considered her betrayal. He hadn't had to wait long. He'd almost confronted her before she left the village clearing. Maybe it wasn't too late to talk some sense into her. His anger kept him from doing so. He wanted to vent that anger in making her pay for her betrayal of him. His mind tightly closed to the girl, he'd followed her to the river instead. He'd stayed hidden in the shadows as she'd met the son of Zeus. He'd almost confronted them as he'd watched the girl melt into the hero's arms. His anger flared then seemed to harden as it burned within him and brought the taste of bile to his throat.

She'd defied him. She'd broken not only his commands, but also the laws of her people to meet with an outsider. He had little doubt they'd been lovers although he had no proof of this. She'd hugged and kissed the demigod then walked with him to the river. Fahr had been unable to hear the conversation between the girl and the demigod. It wasn't so much what they did that tore at his heart and convinced him there was more to their relationship than what he was witnessing now. It was something in the way they touched, something in the way their bodies blended even as they'd turned to walk hand in hand along the trail to the water.

The elder left the forest to return to his hut. He felt sick and empty inside. What was left now? he asked himself. He'd had plans for the healing apprentice. He'd seen in her a hope for the future of his village. Now that was lost. And to an outsider! What the girl did was wrong. She'd broken her trust with him and with her people. He wasn't a fool; he knew that many of the earth's people found a physical pleasure with someone while not being in commitment with that person. He'd been young once, but these thoughts he pushed deeper behind barriers he'd erected long ago.

If his own plans for the girl could not be met, was he willing to let them go with grace? Anger welled up to choke him. No, by the earth god, he was not. He would not allow this open defiance from her of all people. If he let this slide he would lose even more of his hold over the people he'd devoted his life to guiding and protecting. Maybe it wasn't really his place to be their leader. It was the council's place if the truth were known. But for a time there had been so few worthy of such a responsibility on the council that he'd found it easy to take the roll of leader among his people. He'd craved power even as a child, and his strong mind and even stronger will had found it easy to manipulate others. He'd been comfortably in power over this small band of earth's people for a long time.

He thought back to the moment he'd sensed the first warnings of a slip in his control. It was the first time Thysis had come here. He'd come alone on a pilgrimage to find the scattered bands of those who still worshiped the earth. Thysis believed in the old ways. His teachings more closely followed the ways of those from before the remembered time. Fahr had read the book of the forming of Zirrith. He was aware of much of the old thinking and the old ways of the earth's people. His grandfather's father had begun the changes that were carried on by his son, then Fahr's father, and now him. His great grandfather had been the council leader in his time, a man considered very strong of mind. He'd had very narrow views of what he wanted for his people, and his strong will had brought about many changes in the thinking of his people. No one still lived who remembered those times and Fahr himself would never have known of them if many of the changes instigated by his great grandfather hadn't been recorded in the book of Zirrith. Fahr's father had removed these pages from the back of the original book. The pages written in his great grandfather's hand then his grandfather's that told of the new order and the reasons behind his ancestors' thinking. Fahr had for a time recorded some records in the old book. He'd been fascinated by the evidence of the old ways practiced in the village since its conception. He still possessed the pages his father removed from the book and now he kept records of his own with the old pages in a leather cover. He'd always meant to remove the few pages of his writing that were still in the original book, but had never done so. Now it was too late. Others knew of the book now and had seen the pages he'd written on. He'd tried for days to remember just what he'd recorded there, but it had been so long ago, done when he was still an apprentice. Since no one had questioned him on the book he'd decided that what he'd written was unimportant.

Thysis had seen at once the subtle but persistent changes Fahr's ancestors had instigated here in the village. He hadn't minded voicing this knowledge, either. The old one had brought them news from other villages and when he'd left them he'd told others of the village. Trading had once again been opened between the scattered little hamlets, a fact that disturbed Fahr. He didn't want outsiders to jeopardize his little monarchy here among the mountains. When Thysis had later returned with his grandson of the soul and chosen to stay, Fahr had protested loudly. For perhaps the first time the council had voted differently than he wished. Tella was far too open to the old man's stories of how it used to be and to Thysis' predictions of doom for the earth's people if drastic changes weren't set into motion as soon as possible.

It had been Thysis' idea to instruct their youth in the art of combat, and again, despite Fahr's objections, the council had sided with the old one. The people were too ready to believe the elder's tales of the empath he called daughter. Through his mind's touch on Sira, Thysis missed little of what went on in her life, and the people loved to hear him tell of the empath's adventures.

Fahr hadn't believed them. There hadn't been an empath among the earth's people in a very long time. Then to hear of her unbelievable deeds, her power, was galling. If there was indeed an empath, why hadn't his village been blessed with one so strong in the earth's powers? Even Thysis agreed that this village was one of the last large communities of full blooded yosemin still practicing many of the old customs and traditions. Fahr hadn't wanted to believe anyone could be as powerful as Thysis claimed his daughter to be. Then when he learned that the empath was to come to the village he'd seen a chance to bring that power to his village, and in so doing he hoped to find a way to bend the empath to his ways and make of her a symbol of the power he possessed and the righteousness of his village.

He'd fought against allowing Nemesis access to the village. He hated anyone not of his people and feared he'd find no ally in one who was once a god. In this he'd been right. He'd felt betrayed when he'd realized Sira was not the humble, docile, meek little healer he'd thought she would be. He'd always seen healers as followers, easily led and molded into what he wanted them to be. Sira was anything but meek. He'd felt a challenge in her from that first moment he'd set eyes on her in the meadow outside of the village. She was a rebel, and not to be trusted. She'd brought with her, others who defied his beliefs and undermined his hold over the people of Zirrith. It gnawed at him that the people of the village had so welcomed Hercules as one of them simply because he'd asked for clan standing.

He thought of his people as fools incapable of independent thought whose only chance for survival lay in his strong leadership. He needed this power over others, for without it he was nothing. It was his ability to manipulate people that gave him his power and his confidence. Like so many small minded people, he fed on the hold he had over others, using it to make himself whole. Without the devotion of his people he was just another child of the earth no better than the whole, and this he couldn't tolerate.

The need to strike out at the things that tormented him sent a shiver over nerves raw with fear. And in his fear a plan began to unfold.

With the morning some of the elder's anger had taken its proper place in his mind. He waited behind the healer's hall for Dasay's return. It had been almost dawn before she slipped through the forest and into the hall.

Fahr waited until he saw a light in the main room of the large structure. There had been a dim light in the girl's room for a time but it was gone now. He made his way to the front door of the hall, and not waiting to be welcomed he entered. No one was in the main room of the hall and he turned toward the kitchen.

Melay was startled when she looked up to find him standing in the doorway to the hall's kitchen. "Fahr? What in the name of the earth do you think you are doing?"

"I need to speak with you."

"You have no right to enter here."

"I am the leader of this village and therefore I have every right."

"I will not have the girls finding you here. Come outside."

The healing mother opened the side door of the hall that led from the kitchen to the garden. With an annoyed snort the village leader moved past her and into the dwindling darkness. Melay followed then let the leather door covering fall quietly back into place.

"What is so urgent that it could not wait the day and the proper protocol?"

"Your deceitful little Dea." The words were spit out in anger. "You have not taught her the meaning of her station very well."

"Her teaching is my business. Pray you stick to yours."

"She has been sneaking out of the hall right from under your nose and meeting with Hercules." Somehow the healing mother had known this moment would come. The village was too small to keep a secret for long. "What she does goes against her people. She is supposed to be the hope of the future. What hope is there for this village if those who will soon be in power have no respect for authority, no morals?"

Now what? the old healer wondered. She wanted a chance to speak with Dasay. If she were to help the girl she needed to know what was to come of her feelings for the son of Zeus. She wasn't so concerned for the morality of the girl sneaking out to be with her lover as she was with the impact it could have on the Dea's future here in the village.

There were those who would condemn her actions, and in so doing the girl might well lose her edge as a healer. Her power as a healer lay in the peoples' ability to trust her. Melay had, since opening her heart to the earth once more found a lot in her people to admire. They were far more open minded than Fahr was or she had been. If Dasay and Hercules were willing to make a commitment in their feelings for each other the girl stood a good chance of keeping her credibility in this. If their feelings were not strong enough to withstand a commitment and were based solely on the needs of their young bodies, the Dea's future might be grim indeed.

Now Melay wished she'd spoken to Dasay when she'd first become aware of the girl's nocturnal activities. Could she stall Fahr long enough to give herself a chance to speak with Dasay?

"How do you know this?"

"I saw them together."

"I believe it is improper conduct to spy on another."

"I had good reason to do so. Dasay is young and far too easily manipulated. Are you so ready to leave this village with no healer? You are old and will not be upon the earth much longer. Are there any who are ready to take your place besides Dasay?"

"You insult me, Fahr. Why can you not leave the girl alone?"

"She has given away the most precious part of her womanhood to a stranger, an outsider, and in so doing lost her soul."

"You are far too melodramatic, Fahr. She is only doing what you have done before; satisfying her body's needs with someone she has feelings for."

"You turn my stomach. Do not think I do not know about your own fall from morality."

"I do not give a damn if the entire population of the world knows that I have finally found comfort in the arms of a man I love."

"Now I see where Dasay gets her willingness to throw herself away on a whim with the first male to come along, who is immoral enough to seduce her. She is far too naive to fight him. It is up to us to help her."

"Did you ever stop to think she might love him?"

"He is a human. Not even that. He is the half breed bastard son of an immoral human woman and one of the human's false deities."

"Is it not considered against the teachings of the earth to feel such bigotry?"

"He is dirty, tainted. It is the duty of us all to protect our youth against such influences. Dasay is not mature enough to see that he is using her. She has led a sheltered life that has not prepared her to fight such evil."

Melay took a deep breath to calm herself. "So what do you plan to do about this?"

"We must stop her before it is too late. If she can be made to see reason now before it goes any further, perhaps she can still gain the forgiveness of the earth and continue on here as the Dea."

"And if it has gone too far for that?"

"Then I will take it upon myself to discredit her. I will not subject my people to the harm she might bring to them by her unearthly association with evil."

Melay was shocked. She'd known Fahr since he was a child. He'd always had a narrow minded view of life and of his place here among those of the earth, but what he'd said here tonight bordered on fanaticism. She felt a tingle of fear deep in the pit of her stomach. Was she ready to fight this man? Was she strong enough to do so? She doubted she was, but she knew someone who was. Still, the damage such an altercation might have on the Dea's position here in the village might be irreversible.

"Let me speak with Dasay. You are right in that it is up to us to protect her. How sure are you that she and Hercules have been in a physical way with each other?"

"If you are asking me if I stayed around to watch them copulate, I did not."

"Really, Fahr, is it necessary to be so vulgar? Since there is no proof that the thing between them is more than a friendship we must give her the benefit of the doubt. I will speak with her and see what might be done."

"I will discredit her if I must, old woman."

"Well, it can at least wait for me to speak with her, can it not, old man?"

"You push your luck, Melay."

"I have little to lose, Fahr. Can you say the same?"

"Then speak with her. This will stop, Melay. If you should prove powerless to stop it, then I will."

"Very well. Give me time to touch in mind with her. We shall see what we shall see."

With a sigh of annoyance the village elder left the healing elder without another word. She stood watching his back until he was out of sight before turning back to the hall and the preparation for the morning meal the elder had interrupted.

With the morning meal underway the healing mother went to the Dea's room and tapped on the wooden door that secured it. She waited a moment then tapped again. The healing apprentice opened the door to her.

"Yes, my mother?" The girl had been up and was now bathed and dressed. "I am sorry I was late again this morning."

"There is something urgent I must talk with you about, my daughter. I have the other girls busy with the morning rituals. Would you walk with me?"

Dasay could hear the concern in the elder's voice, but more she sensed it in her mind's touch on Melay. "Has something happened?"

"Not here. I can think better when I can shut out the noises of the hall. Besides, what we discuss should be shared with the earth."

The girl took up her shawl and followed the old one from the hall using the back door that led more quickly into the forest. Fear rode the healing apprentice now, but she said nothing as Melay led her deeper into the tall trees that soon hid the village from view.

The elder led the girl to a tiny grove of ferns and berry bushes just now showing the first small green promises of fruit to come later in the year. It was obvious the elder had been here before. Somehow Dasay never thought of the elder outdoors. She'd never really gotten to know this tiny woman who now led her to a well placed rock then motioned for her to sit. The girl waited for her mother to take a seat first then lowered herself down beside her.

"Please, my mother, what has happened?"

"Fahr came to speak with me this morning."

The fear that had tingled in the girl's middle spread up and out to take her breath away. "He knows." It was a statement, not a question.

"He followed you and Hercules to the forest."

The girl blushed with embarrassment first, then the slow creeping of anger. "He had no right to do this."

"No, he did not. Still, he did and has come to me with this. It is none of my business, but please believe I only ask this because I care for you and would help you if it were within my power to do so. I need to know your intentions in regards to Hercules."

The girl left the rock to take a seat on the grass at the elder's feet. She'd seen Sira use the earth to give her strength, and right now she needed that strength. "He has asked me to go into promise with him and I have agreed. We wait now for the full moon to ask the council's permission to take this sacred vow."

The old one closed her eyes as relief flooded over her. "Then there is hope. If your encounters with Hercules were to become public, there will no doubt be some who will condemn you for not waiting for the vow to step out with him and some who will condemn you for doing so even after the vow since you are not mates. But still more will use their hearts to see your feelings are genuine and understand."

"So Fahr has decided to make my relationship with Hercules public."

"He has threatened to do so, yes."

"So what should I do now?"

"Do you still wish to be the Dea of our village?"

"How can you ask that question, my mother? Of course I still wish to take my place when the time comes. Is it so wrong for one who heals to also wish for love?"

"No. There are some who would say that it is, but I do not. I allowed the elders of this village to rule my mind, my heart, and my soul and I gave up my chance to find that youthful happiness with a man I truly cared for."

"There is no reference in the book of clan or the book of our village that says healers should be denied the simple rights of life."

"No, perhaps not. But you are special, my daughter. The place you hold among us is a sacred one. Those in power over others, those who have a place of honor in our society should conduct themselves with honor."

"You are saying I should not have met with Hercules without the knowledge of my elders?"

The old one smiled. "That would have raised a few eyebrows, would it not? You are not the first young girl to put the cart before the horse, as it were. Affairs of the heart and soul are complicated and not easily explained. No one who can truly be honest with themselves could say they might not have done the same thing if they were in your shoes. The important thing now is to go to Tella and be open with him. No more lies, Dasay."

The girl blushed. "And should he condemn me and take me before the council himself?"

"I do not believe this will happen. Tella is not Fahr. If you can take the vow of promise with Hercules before Fahr does anything drastic, then his accusations will be hollow ones and not worth making."

"The council must grant the right of promise. Fahr could try to discredit me then."

"Yes, there is a chance he will do so. But if you have already spoken with Tella, any action against you by Fahr will seem like petty jealousy."

The girl nodded. "I will go for Hercules then we will seek out Tella. Thank you, my mother. Your support in this has touched my heart."

"Fahr agreed to give me some time to speak with you. Go now, before he changes his mind and does something rash." The apprentice healer rose from the grass then offered a hand up to the elder. Melay took the offered hand then used it to rise and pull the girl into a tight quick hug. "Now go."

Dasay nodded, then moving through the forest she made her way to the hut built by her people to welcome the empath and her family. She called at the entrance to the hut and Sira herself pulled aside the hide door covering.

"Dasay. Greetings of the morning, my sister." The empath frowned. "What is it?"

"Forgive my intrusion and for being direct. Is Hercules here?"

"He has gone to the forest to gather the rest of the wood he cut the other day. Come inside and tell me what has upset you."

Dasay took the empath's offered hand and followed her into the hut. Hercus rose to nod to her, then moving to the fireplace he poured two mugs of tea, bringing them to the women.

The apprentice healer took hers absentmindedly. "I need to speak with Hercules. Fahr has found out about…" She hesitated now, sending a look to Hercus.

The boy completed her thought for her. "About your feelings for my uncle of the soul?"

The girl nodded. "I must be frank because Melay believes there is little time. Fahr followed me to the forest then waited for my return to the hall to go to Melay. He has threatened to go before the council with this."

Hercus headed toward the door. "I will go for Hercules."

"There is no need, my son," the empath stopped him. "I have touched in mind with him. He is on his way here now."

Dasay set her tea on the table untouched. "Melay thinks we should go to Tella."

"He would be an important ally and I believe he would understand your position in this."

Hercules came through the door to shoot a look first at Dasay, then Sira. "What is it?" Sira explained quickly and the half god came to take the healing apprentice in his arms. "Come on. Let's get to Tella before Fahr does."

They left the hut to head across the clearing toward the elder's hut. "I'm sorry, Dasay. I never wanted you to get in trouble by this."

"It is not your fault, my lover." They stopped before the door to Tella's hut and the girl called. Bethie came at the call.

"Dasay, Hercules. Greetings of the morning."

"Greetings, Mother. I am sorry to bother you." Dasay took a deep breath to calm herself. "Is your mate at home? I wish to speak with him if I am not intruding."

"Your visits would never be an intrusion, but I am afraid that he is not here. The council has been called together. He left only moments ago."

The girl's knees turned weak and Hercules reached to steady her. "Thank you, Mother, for your time. Good morning to you, then." He started to turn away, Dasay's elbow in his hand.

"I hope everything is well. I can tell Tella of your wish to speak with him when he returns."

"Thank you. That won't be necessary." Bethie stood watching them as they walked away, a frown between her brows.

"So now what?" The girl's voice was thin and reedy with fear.

"We go to Sira first."

The chosen one looked up with concern when they returned. "What?"

Hercules steered Dasay to a seat at the table. "The council's been called. We were too late."

The hunter took the empath's hand and she closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them. "Thysis has not been summoned yet, neither has Melay."

Hercus rose. "I will get Nemesis to call for Melay, while you go for my grandfather. We will meet you at the council hall. I should also have been summoned to stand with the apprentices. It sounds as if Fahr is trying to keep any who might defend Dasay away from the council hall." The boy left the hut and the other's followed him through the door.

Thysis greeted them at the door to his hut. He listened to the reason for their call with narrowed eyes. "I have not been called to the council hall. But I am on the council. I have the right to be there. Come, this is far from over."

Iolaus still held Sira's hand. "What might happen to Dasay and Hercules if Fahr tells what he knows of their feelings for each other?"

Thysis sighed. "For most of the council and most of the people in the village the issue will not be that they have feelings for each other, but more that they acted on these feelings in a physical way without benefit of a commitment between them."

"But there has always been a commitment," Hercules objected.

"Yes, but only between you two. Or at least that is what Fahr thinks. I have known of this commitment almost since the first, as has Sira, and more recently, Melay. That should count for something. Melay has been called to the council?"

"Hercus went for her," the empath assured him.

They approached the council hall and Thysis held up his hand for silence. "Let me go first. We need to be sure of Fahr's intentions before we are too bold. Wait here."

He squeezed the Dea's hand then entered the council hall from the main entrance. With slow deliberate steps he approached the raised platform near the back of the hall. The young male apprentices of the village lined the walls of the large structure. If the council meeting was to be an open one the people of the village would be summoned to take the benches that skirted the aisle he now trod.

Tella looked up to smile at him. Thysis, you are well?"

"Yes. Why was I not informed that the council was meeting?"

"It was suggested that you might not be up to joining us."

"I can just imagine whose idea that was."

Tella looked uncomfortably toward Fahr. "I am glad you are here. Please join us. Even though we need only ten of the twelve members of the council to hold a session, it is good to have your wisdom with us now."

"Why has the council been called together on such short notice?"

The council leader looked uncomfortable again. "Fahr has called us together to ask for our help in a delicate matter."

"Such as?"

"Well… He…"

"Stop stuttering, Tella." Fahr's voice carried throughout the hall. "I called the council together because I have found out that Dasay has been, shall we say, less than appropriate in some of her behavior of late."

"Meaning what?"

Fahr sighed in exasperation. He hadn't wanted Thysis here for this. "Since you force me in this, I will be blunt. Dasay is accused of immorality."

"I see. On what grounds?"

"I have seen her leaving the healer's hall late at night to meet with Hercules in the forest, then not returning until almost dawn."

"So you were spying on the girl? She has told me herself that you have also intruded on her mind even when she did not wish the intrusion."

"It is the duty of all of us to protect our young. I did what I thought was best for Dasay."

"So you were aware that she might have a special interest in Hercules."

"Yes. For some time now."

"Really? Why is this the first the council has been made aware of it if there was reason for concern?"

"I do not answer to you, Thysis."

"But he does have an interesting point," Tella interrupted before Thysis could voice the sharp retort on his mind.

Fahr stiffened but inclined his head at the council leader. "I felt I could handle the situation myself. I have always kept a close eye on Dasay. She is, after all, the daughter of a man I counted as my friend, and she has no blood relative to watch over her. I come before the council now, not to condemn the girl, but to ask for help for her. She is young. Her life has been sheltered. She knows little of the world and of outsiders. What defense does she have against the persuasions of worldly men?"

"Humph." Thysis' disgust was plain. "Just how far has your spying gone, Fahr? Can you be so sure that there has been any real reason for such concern?"

"I have seen Dasay meet with Hercules. I have seen them kiss."

"Hardly grounds for the council to be called. Why not simply speak with us and save the theatrics?"

"The girl sneaks out at night to meet him. She stays away all night. What conclusion would you draw?"

"I would not spy on them in the first place, neither would I draw conclusions. I would have spoken with Dasay personally and been blunt."

"Perhaps I have more tact than you."

"Or none at all. Dasay has told me that you forbade her association with Sira or any of her family, and most especially Hercules. She was forced by you to sneak out to see a man she has feelings for. One would have to wonder why you take such a personal interest in Dasay."

"Please, gentlemen," Tella interrupted. "This is hardly the time for bickering between us."

"Thysis, you also knew that Dasay was seeing Hercules?"

"I have known from the first. They have been open with me about it and I find no immorality in their feelings for each other. Between them there has been a commitment since the first and they await the full moon now to ask permission to go into promise with each other."

"I see."

Fahr jumped to his feet. "That changes nothing. The fact remains that Dasay has been with Hercules without the vow of promise. She has lost her way. It is up to us to help her find it once more. She should be blamed for this as much as Hercules should be blamed."

Dasay pulled from the demigod's arms. They'd been listening at the door to the hall but now she'd heard enough. Not waiting for permission to enter she pushed through the leather door covering to make her way down the center aisle.

Hercules made to follow but Sira put a hand on his arm to restrain him. "Not yet, my brother. Wait for the proper time to make your entrance. It will be more impressive."

"I can't let her face this alone."

"She is stronger than you think. Besides, she is not alone."

Dasay lowered her eyes to those on the council platform as she came to stand beside Thysis. "If I am being accused of something, should I not be present to hear the accusations?"

"Dea," the council leader greeted her, "the council has not yet been formally called to order. But since you are here, you are right. You deserve to know why we have been called together."

"I already know why. I have heard the discussion about me. Before this goes any further you must understand the case against Hercules that Fahr is trying to make is a false one."

"Then you do not deny that you have met with Hercules in the night."

"I do not deny it. What Thysis has said is true. Between Hercules and myself there is a commitment."

"I say again," the village leader voiced, before the girl could go on, "that makes no difference. To be with a man, any man without a vow of any kind is wrong. Dasay is our hope for the future. She is the strongest of our healers. Without her we would be left without a healer to guide us."

Melay stepped from the shadows behind the council platform. "Forgive me, but I was under the impression that I was still the healing mother here and for now the strongest healer of our village."

Fahr turned sharply around to pin the elder with a look of annoyance. "You have been many summers on the earth, elder. Soon you will step down. Who then will take your place?"

"Dasay, of course."

"To be a healer one must have the trust of the people. How much trust will the Dea warrant once the people are aware of her indiscretions? She has not considered this in her immature desires for a man far too experienced for her sheltered upbringing." He turned to face the rest of the council. "I have warned you of what allowing outsiders into our village might bring. Now perhaps you will listen to me."

"Hercules is not an outsider." Thysis' voice was firm. "He is my son. He has clan standing and is under the sanction of this council."

Sira turned to Hercules. "Now, my brother."

The demigod entered the hall coming to stand beside the Dea.

Fahr took two steps forward. "What are you doing here?"

"I have a right to be here. As a member of the clan of the wolf and the lion I can't be turned away from the council hall."

"You damn well can when it is in session."

"But it isn't. Not yet, anyway. Besides, since I'm implicated in this I should be present to stand with Dasay."

"You have done enough damage already. Leave the girl alone. Let her return to her people and to the duties she has trained for since childhood."

"I have no intention of taking her from her duties. She is the Dea. A fact, I might add, that makes me very proud of her. As for leaving her alone, I'm afraid that's impossible. I love her, and I have asked her to go into promise with me."

"You have no right!" the village leader shouted.

The demigod ignored his outburst. "Between us there has been a commitment since the first." The half god's voice was calm. "Our souls have touched since that first moment I set eyes on her when I first came to this village."

"Do not insult us with your foolishness. You are not mated in soul."

"No." The son of Zeus turned to face Dasay. "No, we are not mates of the soul. I wish with all of my heart that we were. The earth has seen fit to lead us in different directions in this. But still, we are mates of the heart. I know where her duties lie. I know that someday I may lose her to her soul's mate. And yet I love her too much to walk away from her."

"Her loyalty must be to this village."

"This village, or you, Fahr?" At Thysis' words the village elder's face twisted.

"She has broken our rules, and so has your supposed son. They have sinned against the earth and her people. You brought the outsiders here. You are little better than they are. It is not for the healers of the village to give themselves to a mate or to anyone in promise. They must devote their time and powers of the mind to the village. Dasay owes the village her strength. From her womb may come our salvation."

"That would be her choice, not yours. The ancient writings of our people are clear. There is no reason a healer should be denied the right of promise or of mating with a man of their choice. Besides, what strength of mind might a union between Hercules and Dasay bring?"

Tella stood to put a restraining hand on Fahr's arm. "If I may." He looked first at Thysis, then Fahr, then the rest of the council. When he knew he had their attention he turned back to those who stood before the council platform "I must ask you, Hercules, if you have asked Dasay to go into promise with you, why has it not been done before now?"

"I asked Dasay once before to accept me and she refused. Now, however, she has consented. We await the full moon to make the request formally."

"May I ask why she refused you at first?"

The demigod took a deep breath then let it out slowly. "Because she feared she might be condemned by her people."

"But why?"

"Because of who I am. The truth is, I'm not worthy of her. In that Fahr is right. I also believe that at first she feared she would lose her sense of loyalty to her people to anger if those she has devoted her life to were to condemn her for following the earth and her heart." He turned to Melay. "My mother, please forgive me if I sound rude to you in this, for that is not my intention, but the truth is, an example of how the earth's powers could be warped and turned away from those of love and compassion was there before her eyes. There have been those who gave up their calling so that they might be with the man they loved and those who gave up their lives for it. But perhaps even more tragic was the example of one who had given up the earth behind her anger at the injustice of being expected to have no devotion except that of producing strong minded children at the expense of her own happiness." The elder smiled at him then inclined her head to let him know his words had not hurt her. "But even more important, Dasay refused me at first because she is smart enough to know there are those here in this village who will never see me as anything but an illegitimate half breed."

"No, Hercules." Dasay took his hands in hers. "No. I am the one not worthy. I love you. I want the vow of promise with you. I was foolish to say no before. I feared the wrath of Fahr more than anything. He has been good to me. I feared he would have the power to turn the people against me." Now she turned back to face the platform. "From the time I knew that I was a healer, before my family was taken from me, I wished for a chance to help my people. To be a healer is all I ever wanted to be. To be honored as the Dea of this village fulfilled a dream for me. I wish with all my heart to go on as the one chosen to teach the young healers of our village. But the earth has seen fit to fill my heart with love not only for healing but also for this man who stands before you. In him I have found a part of me that was missing. In his family I have found a family. I was wrong to do what I have done, but only in the fact that it went against the laws of this village. In the eyes of the earth there was no wrongdoing. She brought the two of us together in a tight bond of the heart and even the soul. I, too, wish that we were mates of the soul. To find that with this man that I care so much for would indeed complete my soul."

Fahr started to object but Tella held up his hand to stop him. "You hold a place of honor, Dea. The people look up to those they honor and therefore we must try our best to set a good example for others. To leave the healer's hall without the permission of the healing mother was disrespectful to her. To knowingly conduct yourself in a manner you knew to be subject to reproach was thoughtless. However, perhaps your conduct can be understood. In our village the ways of old regarding those who heal has been warped somehow. We have put unfair and unearthly demands on our most precious gifts from the earth. In so doing, each and every one of us on this council must be held at least in part responsible for your actions. There should not be one of us who cannot understand the demands of the heart and the desires of the body. We have also not done justice to our commitment to those who have taken the earth as their god, forsaking all other gods to be filled with the earth. Again, we on the council must take responsibility for the actions of the warrior of the clan of the wolf and the lion.

"I am not saying that what you have done, Dasay and Hercules, was right. It was not. Still, there was a commitment between you that you were both afraid to voice. You were at least honest with Thysis in this, which gives the commitment validity. I would gather from Melay's presence here that she was not so unaware of your nocturnal activities as some might think. I must also be honest and say that I suspected there was something more between you two than met the eye." Now he smiled as he turned to the council. "I declare this session of the council officially in order so that we might consider the question of whether Dasay, of the clan of the beaver and Hercules, of the clan of the wolf and the lion might take the vow of promise."

Fahr jumped to his feet. "You cannot do this! It is wrong. It goes against our laws, our traditions. What of the future? What of our people?"

"It is time to make a stand, my old friend. We can no longer afford to harm the sensitive hearts of those who choose to heed the earth's call to healing. Too much damage has been done in the past with this narrow minded view. I do, however, caution all of you to consider this carefully before you make your decision. There is much to consider, not so much because of the right or wrong of what these young people might or might not have done, but because your decision here today will set the stage for the future of our village and perhaps even the earth's people in general." He took a deep breath then focused his eyes on the Dea. "Who will stand with Dasay in her request for permission to take the vow of promise?"

Melay left the council platform to go to the girl. Thysis stepped closer to her. Sira, Iolaus, Clea, Clavus, and Bethie were the first to come forward from outside the council hall where they'd been waiting. Then behind them came several other villagers. Hercus stepped from behind them to take a place beside his parents and with a quick breath for courage Dentax came to stand beside him.

Tella smiled. "And who will stand with Hercules?" Now the people moved closer to the demigod. Iolaus came to stand at his right, as did Nemesis. Sira stood next to Iolaus and one more of the council members came to join the others there. Rastist was there towering above those of the earth, his dark skin shining, his many golden adornments catching the flicker of the many candles that lit the hall in a smoky haze. Clanis, the hunting instructor joined those who stood with the demigod, then several of his apprentices sided him.

"Very well, then," the council leader nodded. "I would like to see a show of hands from those who are for the union between those who stand before you now to ask for the vow of promise." Fahr and two others kept their hands at their sides. A majority vote was all that was needed and Tella didn't even try to hide his smile as he turned back to those assembled before him in the council hall. "Then it is the decision of this council that you, Hercules, warrior of the clan of the wolf and the lion and you, Dasay, healer of the clan of the beaver will henceforth be honored as those in promise with each other and the earth."

Fahr's anger was a visible thing. Sira could sense it in the air around them. An enemy had been made here today.

The half god turned to scoop the healer into his arms to take her lips with his. The room exploded with cheers and Tella laughed. The council leader waited for the noise to lessen then he held up his hand for silence. "There is something else the council must decide on. Grave charges have been brought against the Dea. We must decide if these charges will be considered or dropped."

The village leader sat forward now. Much depended on this decision, his hold over his people, not the least of them, as far as he was concerned.

"Who now might speak?"

Fahr stood. "I speak. The charge is immorality. It is a grave charge indeed. We must not let this show of disrespect go unpunished. I call for a vote. And should the charges be considered valid we must consider the punishment strongly."

The vote was taken. Fahr and one other raised their hand in favor of considering the charge against Dasay now made formal by the village leader's declaration.

The village leader jumped to his feet. "Come, my friends. Think of the future. Do we want someone who has no respect for our laws and no respect for authority to be free to teach our people?

Tella interrupted. "The vote has been taken. It will stand as it is. The charges of immorality are dismissed."

Fahr started to walk away and one of those who'd stood with him against the union between Hercules and Dasay tried to take his arm to stop him. The village leader jerked his arm away to storm from the hall.

Dasay moved forward. "Please, may I address the council?"

Her heart pounded in her chest. She'd been stunned by the response of her people. She hadn't noticed the absence of Hercus as she'd fought to stand before the council with dignity. Now she knew he hadn't been there. He'd been rousing the people to come to support her. Perhaps he'd taken a chance on the village turning against her, but they would soon know of the charges against her anyway, and by then it might be too late for anyone to help her. She was further stunned by the vote of the council. So many had voted to allow her to go into promise with Hercules. At this thought she felt lightheaded. She was in promise with him. In promise with Hercules. It had happened.

"Yes, Dea?" Tella could see and sense the girl's nervousness.

I am still that, the girl thought. I am still the Dea. "I have a special request to make of the council, if I may."

Tella sat back in his chair, "This has been the most unusual session in all my years on the council." He shrugged. "Make your request."

"I would like the council's permission to go away for a time." Now a hush melted over the room. "Not to stay away. I wish with all my heart to be the Dea here. I wish now to travel for a time with the empath. She is perhaps the greatest healer of all time, and certainly the greatest of our time. There is so much I can learn from her. We have been in lessons of the mind for a long time, but to be with her would teach me even more." She turned to Melay. "I mean no disrespect, honored mother. You have done well by my sisters and me. Still, there is much we do not know here in our healthy little hamlet."

"Yes, my daughter. Yes, to study at the feet of the empath would be good. You have made me very proud, and I look forward to the future when you will take my place as the healing mother. You will be far better at it than I was. Your heart is filled with love and compassion, not anger and hate. For what it is worth, I give my permission for you to go."

Tella nodded. "What say you, empath?"

Sira came to stand beside the Dea. "I would be honored to take Dasay as my pupil to be trained in the ways of the earth and the ways of healing. In her I have found a sister of the soul, and our tie will do much to help our lessons."

Eleven hands were shown at the vote.

"Very well. In the name of the earth, you, Dasay, Dea to the village of Zirrith, are granted permission to go into apprenticeship with your sister of the soul, Sira of the clan of the wolf and the lion. May your studies bring much to you."

Dasay knelt at the feet of the empath. "By the earth, I request you take my hand and guide me in learning the way of our mother."

"You agree to abide by the earth and her teachings, my sister?"

"I agree."

"Then it shall be done. The earth is well pleased, my pupil. May you learn and grow strong with the power of the earth."

Sira took the Dea's hands to pull her to her feet and into a tight embrace. With tears in her eyes the apprentice healer turned back to the council. "I will do my best to please you and the earth."

The council leader smiled at her. "I am proud of you, my daughter. I believe our people are also proud of you." He swept his hand out to indicate those who had filled the hall. "Their show of support did much to make the council's decision easier. I am most impressed."

The girl turned to go to Hercus. "Thank you, my brother." She hugged him.

"I did little. Your love has touched the people. I only had to inform them that you might need their help. They came of their own free will."

"Still, you did this for me. I shall not forget it."

He hugged her again. "You know now you are really my aunt more than a sister. After all, you are in promise with my uncle."

The girl gasped as the significance of his words hit her. "I am. I really am." He only laughed at her.

Iolaus came to hug her. "Welcome to the family, my sister."

The girl began to cry. "I do not know what to say. It has been long since I had a family. Long since I felt the tie of such closeness. Thank you, my brother."

There were congratulations and slaps on the back. The demigod was a little surprised, himself. He hadn't known so many would support the quiet little healer he loved. He was even more surprised to find that much of the support of the people had been for him as well."

Sira lay in the arms of the hunter. The bed was warm and comfortable, and beyond the wooden door that closed it away from the demigod and the old sailor turned trader who'd devoted his life in service to the empath. Dasay had stayed long at the hut, not ready to leave her promised one too soon. It had been her idea to return to the healer's hall for the night. The lovers had seldom been more than a few feet apart, touching often as if they couldn't get enough of the tingle of love that came to them in these simple acts.

The golden one raised up to kiss the child of nature. "A dinar for your thoughts."

"I was just thinking how good it is to be here with you like this, with our friends and family near us."

"Yeah. That was pretty good there today when the people stood up for Herc and Dasay."

"It was wonderful."

"Imagine Hercus thinking of going for everyone. When the people started showing up I was afraid we'd have a lynching on our hands. Then when it was plain they'd come to support their Dea, well, it was something to see."

"I do not think anyone expected such a response."

"Especially old Fahr. Did you see the look on his face?"

"I saw it. Maybe it is a good thing that Dasay is leaving with us."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Fahr is a man eaten up with hate for any he deems different or by any who oppose him. He is a strong man, but his strength comes from the power he has over others, not his oneness with his own worth. There was a shift in power today. Battle lines were drawn."

"He's only one man, what can he do?"

"Perhaps a lot. He does have standing in the village, but more than this he has a tendency to be violent. He has already struck Dasay once."

"What?!" The hunter sat up in the bed. "When? He hit her? I'll take the son of a satyr apart with my bare hands."

"It was before the healing of Thysis. Fahr forbade her to help in the healing or to see Hercules again. When she refused to do so he struck her."

"Why didn't you say something? I think maybe Hercules and I should have a little talk with a certain village leader."

"I said nothing because that is precisely what Dasay did not want to happen. A show of violence could have done more damage than good. But now things have changed. Now I believe I will keep a close eye on Fahr until we leave here."

"I still say we should talk to him."

"It may come to that, but let him make the first move."

"He did when he hit her."

"Wait for now. Say nothing to Hercules. My mind would know if Fahr were up to something. Things may well cool down once we leave here. The people of the village deserve their peace of mind. Let us not take it from them with an open declaration of war."

"I'm not going to let him hurt her again."

"No. Neither will I."

"What's it between him and Dasay, anyway?"

"I am not sure. I believe there is more than meets the eye there, but…"

"But you're not going to share your suspicions with anyone, right?"

"Not yet, at any rate."

He chuckled as he took her lips. "I wonder if Herc is sleeping out there? He's pretty happy with himself."

"He is not sleeping. He has a right to be happy. He deserves some happiness."

"He said something to me today that I want to share with you. He said that since you came into his life and filled his emptiness with love, he's been able to find peace with his grief for Deianeira, Serena, and the children, and now his heart is free to love another." Iolaus sat up once more. "Are you crying?"

"Yes."

"Silly girl. That was supposed to make you happy."

"It did."

He kissed her again. It was late before they slept, and the hunter silently thanked those of the village who'd put the wooden door on their bedroom.

Loxias moved silently through the forest, keeping to low ground and deep brush that he melted through without a missed step. He could be a hunter and a woodsman when he chose to be. His bare feet felt each twig, each rock, before he put enough weight on either to make a noise or trip himself up. He stopped on the ridge to look down into the clearing near the cave where Carneus and the others camped.

No one stirred in the dim light of a morning not yet fully realized. The scene was a peaceful one, and after a moment the little man moved up and over the ridge. A thin tendril of smoke lifted from coals still left from the night fire. He wanted a mug of tea or two then some food. Nothing moved at his approach save the wolf pup still tied to his stake near the cave entrance. The defender of the forest raised up on stiff legs at the man's approach, the hair raised on the canine back, teeth bared. No sound came as a threat from the pup, however. He'd learned that a growl could get him kicked. Still, he couldn't help but show his disdain for the little man who slipped unnoticed to the fire.

Loxias knelt beside the fire to stir up the coals. Rewarded with a red glow he began adding bits of bark to them to coax a tiny flame that soon took hold of the tiny twigs he fed it. When the fire was burning again he took up the pot and moved to the trickle of water that stained the cliff face near the cave. The wolf pup moved further away at his approach and the man sent him a nasty look. The water that cascaded gently down the cliff dropped into a shallow natural stone pool that acted as a basin to hold some of the water before it spilled over and through a crack in the rocks to disappear. The water lasted most of the year, and after heavy winters it had been known to still fill the basin as the next thaw gave it new life. When it did dry up there was a spring just back of the cliff itself that could supply those camped here with water. Across a ridge that intersected the one he'd descended to reach the cave was another opening into the cliff face; this one a man made one scraped from the sandstone to reach the mineral deposits hidden there. At one time, gold had been found here and worked from the earth. Even now bits and flakes of the heavy metal could be found, but not in enough abundance to make working the mine profitable. On the mine side of the ridge there was also a spring. It didn't always make it through a long dry summer either, and Loxias could envision those long ago miners hauling water from the cave side of the ridge to the mine side, something he was glad he'd never had to do. Filling the pot, the little man set it to heat on a flat rock set within the fire ring for just such a purpose.

Loxias rose to stretch tired muscles. He'd traveled most of the night not so much because he had to as because he enjoyed using his keen night vision to maneuver through the forest. It was something he was proud of.

He smiled at the thought. Lately he'd found a new pride in many of the yosemin traits he'd despised before. He looked down his front to pick at a slight tear in the new woven moss tunic he wore.

Before approaching the yosemin village, he'd bathed, then washed his hair and clothing. He took time to clean the filth from his nails, then spent almost two hours combing and working the tangles and brambles from his long hair before pulling the front back into a braid, while leaving the rest down his back to hide the missing clan marking.

The clan amulet he'd stolen, from an old man he'd murdered for his purse, securely in place he'd approached the tiny village. The village dogs heralded his arrival. A very old and very tired man came forward to greet him then offered him entry into the village. This was a very small band of the earth's people huddled together in the dense forest holding precariously to a life of old, their bloodlines mixed and blended so often they could no longer claim the strong minds of their ancestors.

Still, these few remaining people, none younger than fifty earth years farmed and scratched out a living from the forest around them. Loxias had been welcomed and fed, given clothing and a place to rest. He'd stayed for two days among the earth's people, eating their food and talking with them mostly about the empath.

News had carried even to these isolated outposts of earth's people, thanks mostly to the traveling traders who seemed to have doubled their territory over the last five years or so. Loxias heard again the rumor that the book of clan had been returned to the people by the empath. He'd never given a damn about such things, and yet now he felt a stir of excitement to think that the book of old, the book known to be the most complete record of those of the earth, their traditions, their beliefs, their legends, had somehow resurfaced after so many generations.

What would it be like to read from that book? He smiled to himself. Not that he could read. He couldn't read Greek, let alone some ancient language of those from before the remembered time.

Bringing his mind back to the reason he'd sought entry into the village in the first place he stirred the conversation from the book of clan itself to the restorer of the book, the empath. He'd visited five villages over the last two weeks. Part of the problem he'd encountered in his search for the healer was the fact that most villages had no idea where their fellow earth's people's villages were hidden. The only ones who knew this information for certain were the traveling traders who moved from village to village, sharing supplies and information as they made their way over mountains and hidden valleys. So far, he hadn't even been able to establish the whereabouts of the traders, let alone the empath.

It was generally known that the empath traveled with her Anmchara and brother of the soul. The latter was reputed to be the demigod, Hercules, but Loxias wasn't prepared to believe that part. He knew the empath had a son. Carneus had been most pleased at that little tidbit of information. He'd now charged Loxias with finding the empath's son as well as the healer herself. Would finding the one find him the other? He wasn't so sure that it would. The empath was said to travel without the boy, so he wasn't so sure he'd find them together. However, it was likely that if he could find one of them, he could learn the whereabouts of the other.

Several times now he'd heard the name Thysis mentioned in association with the empath. As near as he could ascertain, Thysis was an elder of the clan of the wolf and the lion, very strong in the ways of the earth and the ways of the old traditions. He wasn't sure yet what tie there was between the empath and the elder beyond their clan tie, but still, it was yet another clue in the mystery of the empath's whereabouts, and he'd stored the information away for reference.

He made his tea, then taking a mug of it he went to sit on a rock near the cave. He toyed with the idea of waking Spherule to cook a meal, but decided to wait for him to rise on his own. The simple minded man could be hard to deal with when he was disturbed, and his anger was often directly reflected in the taste of his cooking.

Loxias sighed as he took a seat on the rock. He was tired, but at least his two week investigation had finally paid off something useful. He was almost positive he would be able to find the elder Thysis' whereabouts. That would at least be a place to start a serious search for the empath. That is, of course, providing his information of an association between the two of them was correct. If this didn't pan out, he'd already made up his mind to center his search not so much on the empath herself, but on the traveling traders. If he could find them and learn the whereabouts of other villages, he could search them for news of the empath. Perhaps the traders themselves would know her whereabouts

. If nothing else came of it finding the scattered little hamlets of earth's people would give him and the others more places to raid in the future.

He sighed again. He almost wished Carneus would take his advice and raid the villages for their livelihood rather than insisting on this latest get rich plan. Loxias still suffered from his disturbing dreams of destruction, which had the power to leave him feeling apprehensive. Now along with these dreams came a new dream that frightened him even more. He would wake to the howl of a wolf in his ears and remember that in the dream the defenders of the forest's people were chasing him. His hatred for the wolf pup tied to a stake here at the cave doubled with his fear of the dream that never quite left him even while he was awake.

He wouldn't admit it to anyone else, but he'd almost begun to admire the empath. The tales he'd heard of her couldn't all be true, but some of them surely were. He was still apprehensive about even trying to deal with her. The stories he'd heard of the ancient yosemin powers were awe inspiring to say the least, and this empath was suggested as being a throw back to that time of old. Maybe Carneus's idea to use her son as a means of gaining her cooperation would work. He understood even better than Carneus the tie yosemin people had to their families, and using the son to manipulate the mother had merit. Still, if she was as powerful as the rumors stated, they were playing with fire. And while Carneus refused to give the danger credence, Loxias wasn't prepared to make that same mistake.

He'd considered more than once simply not returning to the cave and the leader of the band of miscreants he'd traveled with for almost ten years. By the gods! He could recruit a few thugs and cutthroats of his own to raid the scattered villages of the yosemin.

But why stop there? There was no money to be had in these raids, at least in that Carneus was right. The real reason they'd chosen to attack and rob the yosemin outposts was because of their shared hatred of the earth's people and because these simple people seldom resisted.

Loxias admitted he was basically lazy. It took a lot of energy to hold together the type of men he'd need to make any kind of profit from strong arm tactics. He'd never been a leader, preferring instead the lack of responsibility associated with the role of follower. Still, he considered himself far more intelligent than Carneus and it was galling to be ordered around by him.

He admitted to himself now that his lack of ambition was what kept him here, just as this same failing had set him apart from those in the yosemin village where he'd spent the middle years of his youth.

He shrugged mentally. What the Tartarus, he'd stick this out for a bit, yet. One thing he and Carneus agreed upon was that there was surely still some gold left in the old mine just over the ridge. The trouble lay in locating it with as little physical effort as possible. Maybe Carneus's idea would work after all, and he wouldn't have to worry about making a living ever again.

Hercules set his pack outside the door to the hut. His water flask was already filled, as were the two water skins waiting beside his pack. Sira left the room she'd shared with Iolaus, her own pack ready for their departure. The demigod took it from her with a smile to place it with his own things.

"Is your husband just about ready?"

Before she could answer, the hunter himself stepped through the bedroom door, his pack over his shoulder. "I'm ready. Is Dasay here yet?"

"Not yet."

Hercus stuck his head through the door to the outside. "She is on her way now."

Sira smiled at the look of pleasure the boy's statement brought to the half god's face. It had been two days now since her more than brother of the soul had taken the Dea into promise. Two days of hectic preparations for their departure. Two days in which the demigod and the healer had seldom been apart. The girl had returned to the healer's hall each night, but only when the lateness of the hour demanded she do so.

They'd seen nothing of Fahr since the council meeting that had gone so against his wishes. Thysis told them the village leader was in seclusion for the time being. Sira hoped he stayed that way until they were safely away from the village.

Rastist began to throw sand over the outdoor fire. Everyone seemed in agreement that an early start was preferable.

The demigod gave Dasay a quick hug as he took her pack from her. "You ready?"

"I am ready."

He could sense her nervousness, and could understand it. She'd never been away from the village, and the step she was taking was a big one. There was no way of telling what tricks Fahr might be up to in her absence. That she felt concern for the welcome she'd receive upon her return, he understood.

Tella, Nemesis and Evander, Thysis, and Melay waited near the now extinguished fire to bid them farewell.

Sira hugged each of them in turn, lingering over her good bye to her father of the soul. She'd used her mind the night before to make sure he was still free of the illness she'd healed. She'd made him promise he'd be honest with her if he felt any concerns in that regard. Hercus' farewell to his grandfather was also a long one. The boy had spent last evening with his grandfather of the soul. He hadn't been away from the elder in a long time. He was excited at the prospect of traveling with his parents, while sad that doing so meant being separated from the elder.

With waves and blessings for good travel the group set off. They would travel through the meadow that had brought them here, traveling west then turning slightly north to head toward the cabin of the hunter and the empath. The earth's chosen one felt a stir of excitement at the prospect of being in the forest she loved so much. It was already late in the year, and if they planned to stay at the cabin during the winter there would be little rest for any of them as they prepared for the cold weather.

They would need to hunt and even trade in the little settlement three days walk from the cabin. Gleaning from the forest would help a great deal. Sira knew well the things to plant in her garden that would grow quickly, giving her time to harvest and preserve it before the first frost. Nothing had really been said about staying in the high isolated glen where the lovers had found the peace in which to build their home, but the empath hoped they would. She'd been feeling much better of late, and yet there was still something that seemed to nag at her at times. Something she couldn't quite put a handle on. Being home would be good for her and she knew it. Still, if the others didn't wish to try and winter in the frozen mountains, she meant to suggest they travel to Acubus. She longed to see their friends there. And besides, she needed a new wool blanket that only Calla could make soft and comfortable enough to please her. Wool was of the earth and therefore good, but to the yosemin a woven moss cover was much softer than most wool blankets were. All, that is, except the blankets Calla made from the wool of her own sheep.

As they left the clearing around the village and stepped through the thick screen of brush and trees that concealed the village from view, Fahr was there to meet them. Dasay walked between Hercules on one side and Sira on the other. The empath could feel the girl stiffen.

The elder waited for them to approach him then stepped forward. "I would like a word with you, Dasay." The apprentice hesitated. "Come, surely you can spare a moment to speak with me." The girl inclined her head and stepped forward. The demigod made to follow. "I mean alone," the village leader clarified.

Hercules looked to the Dea and she nodded at him. He stood watching them walk a little away from the group. "What does he want?"

"Maybe just to say good bye?" the old sailor suggested.

Sira watched Dasay, never taking her eyes away from the girl. After a moment the empath narrowed her eyes, then not caring that it was eavesdropping she sent her mind lightly forward.

"The bastard," she whispered under her breath.

She moved forward before the others could react. Angry now, Sira strengthened her mind's touch on the girl with comfort and the elder with a warning. Fahr turned to look at her. In that look the chosen one saw and sensed hate. But what concerned her even more was the desperation in the look.

"We are not through speaking with each other," the leader's voice was harsh at her approach.

"I believe you are." Sira reached to take the apprentice's arm to lead her away and Fahr reached to stop her. The empath's mind blasted out at him as the hunter jerked the elder aside.

A hand around the white haired man's neck, the golden one hissed through clinched teeth. "I wouldn't."

"Unhand me, you pig. You stink of human."

The hunter gave the man a shake. "Try and touch either of these ladies again and it will be done with your last breath."

The leader jerked free then stood staring at the empath. "You use your mind as a weapon. You are as barbaric as the filth you associate with."

The punch took him square on the chin and he flew back to sprawl on the ground. Dasay stood staring at him, disbelief in her eyes. The elder had always seemed so dignified, so lofty in his place as the leader of the village. Now for the first time the girl saw him as just a man, lost in his own opinion of himself; an opinion that was based on his power over others rather than on his own self worth. The hold he'd always had over her began to slip as she watched him shove aside Hercus' attempt to help him up. The demigod's punch had been a hard one, and already a welt showed on Fahr's chin.

The elder rose then stood swaying on his feet for a moment. "I warn you, Dasay. If you leave here now you will never be welcome in Zirrith again."

"There was a time I would have believed that. A time I would have believed you." She shook her head. "I will go for a time. And when I return we will talk. You were good to me at times, and I will not forget how much your friendship meant to me especially during those first few years after I lost my parents. I would like to continue our friendship, if you will allow it. But for now I must seek what training I can from the empath. In sensing the things she is capable of I have come to realize I am not fit to teach our youth. In time I will be given that responsibility whether I am ready or not. Now, while there is time, I must find the true meaning of the power of the earth and find a way to channel that power for the good of my people. You and I are not so different, Father. We both have the best interests of this village at heart. I wish we could have agreed on what is the best way to protect our people. But even though we do not, we can still work together for the betterment of all of us."

Fahr narrowed his eyes at her. "You are a fool. Worse than a fool, you have lost all reason. You give yourself to this man…" Iolaus restrained his large friend, not without effort. Oblivious to the threat of the half god's anger the elder rushed on, " ...with little regard for the consequences of your folly. You are now as tainted as he is." With that he turned to storm away.

Now Rastist also put a hand to stop Hercules.

"Let me go," the son of Zeus demanded. "I'll take the bastard apart."

Iolaus tightened his grip. "Let it go, Herc. He's not worth it." With an effort Hercules began to calm himself.

Dasay stood watching Fahr's retreating back. "Why does he hate me so much?"

Sira put an arm around her shoulder. "He does not hate you; only what you do. To him you have betrayed his trust."

"It is not like that."

"Of course not. I did not say his reasons for reacting this way were rational. Love can make us do strange things at times."

"Love?"

"He does love you, my sister. In his own manipulative, possessive way it is love."

"You mean as a father."

Sira hesitated. Was that what she meant? Rather than answer she turned to Hercules. "Are you all right, my more than brother?"

"I'm damn mad. You should have let me show him a thing or two."

Dasay went to put a hand on his arm. "It is better this way. I refuse to let him spoil my first trip away from home."

The big man rubbed a knuckle across her cheek. "If he'd hurt you…"

"He no longer has the power to hurt me."

"Just what was he saying to you?"

"It does not matter now."

He nodded, then pulled her into his arms for a quick hug before retrieving both their packs.

Sira linked her arm through that of the hunter as they turned northwest to cut across the meadow. They traveled steadily until midday, crossing a small stream then stopping just beyond it to rest and refresh themselves.

Hercus made the fire to heat water for tea. Sira placed roasted venison, cheese, and bread they'd brought from the village on each plate then handed them to Dasay to serve. The apprentice healer kept looking around her. They were stopped on a ridge that afforded them a wide view of the morning's travel and that yet to come. The empath held out a plate for her but Dasay didn't notice.

"Dasay." The girl drew her eyes away from the expanse to give the empath a sheepish smile. "It is hard to believe the world is so big, is it not?"

The Dea nodded. "I was thinking just that."

"I know."

"It is almost frightening."

Sira thought for a moment. "At first, perhaps. At least you are not alone in it."

The healer turned to study the empath's face. "You were once, were you not?"

"Yes. When I fled my village after it was destroyed. I was lost in illness and grief at first and did not really know anything else. But when the illness began to subside, then it hit me."

"How horrible that must have been. What were you going to do?"

"Thank the earth I was spared the necessity of deciding."

"When you were called to heal your soul's mate?"

"Yes, although I did not know he was thus at first. I suppose my soul knew, but I refused to give credence to what my soul was telling me from that first touch of his mind on mine. Then to be lost in the world, alone with a human, lost in a healing I was not sure I was strong enough to bring to a successful conclusion." Sira shook her head.

"But now you have learned to love the world around you."

"Yes. There are so many things to bring one pleasure in the earth. I do not think I could be tied to only one small corner of the world now. I get so restless just staying in one place all the time. This," she swung her arm out to encompass the mountains that surrounded them, "this calls to me with a sweet and tender voice."

"You are this, the mountains, the meadows. You are the earth."

Sira smiled at her as she handed her another plate of food. "Better eat up. The bigness out here gives one an appetite as large as itself."

They stopped early for the night. There was no real hurry to reach the cabin, and with the empath's usual insight she'd seen the healer's fatigue. The girl wasn't used to traveling and the day of doing so was catching up with her.

When they found a small grassy clearing among tall pines and protective brambles the decision to stop was made. Near them was a spring offering clean clear water bubbling up from under a sandy basin.

The apprentice healer gratefully lowered her pack to the grass then joined it there. With a sigh she rubbed at tired feet. The moccasins she'd worn were showing the beginning of holes at the heel and the ball of the foot. Sira sat on the grass beside her to remove the suede shoes and send healing to the tender flesh beneath.

"How can you walk all this way without shoes?"

Sira laughed. "My feet are tougher than the trail."

"No, they are not. Your feet are soft and smooth."

"They are still tough in the sole. I have never worn shoes if I did not have to. There is too much of the earth to miss in covering one's feet."

"You and Hercus." Sira laughed again. "Sure you can laugh, but my shoes have had it and this is only the first day."

The blonde reached for her pack, pulling a package from within. "Here. Maybe this will help. It was meant as a present of promise." She took another package from her pack and tossed it to the demigod. Catching it easily he came to sit beside them. "Well, open them."

The demigod opened his first to remove the blue shirt he'd seen her sewing during the time of physical touch with Thysis.

"I thought this was for Thysis."

"I never said that, but I did let you think so. It is a good thing I could sew on it during the healing since you two could not await the proper time to take your vows."

The big man hugged her. "Thank you, my sister. It's my favorite color too."

"It is also my favorite color. It brings out the blue of your eyes."

Dasay removed the parchment paper that held her own gift. She drew a quick breath at what fell from the porous paper. "They are so beautiful, Sira." She looked up with tears in her eyes. "Thank you, my sister."

"The sole is triple layered, so they should last a little longer than your others."

"They are too beautiful to wear."

Sira laughed. "Then what good are they? You will need them to help protect your feet. Between the soft layers of suede is a harder piece of leather, and between the three layers is a thin layer of moss. They are made for travel."

"You must have spent hours working on them."

"It was a labor of love, my sister."

The tears escaped the girl's eyes to stain her cheeks. "I will treasure them forever."

"You will wear them. Seeing you use them will thank me far beyond words. If you insist on being sentimental about them, once the bottoms are worn through I can always replace the sole with new leather, or you can keep the tops among your things."

"I am going to try toughening my feet, too, now that I will be traveling more. But you are right; I will need to protect my feet most of the time at first. Thank you." She hugged the empath.

Hercules sent her a look that said much of his appreciation for her acceptance of the Dea.

Sira rose. "Rest your feet for now. I will heat water for you to soak them."

"I can help you with the meal."

"No need. There are plenty of able hands to do so. For tonight, you are to rest."

"But…"

"No argument," Sira interrupted her. "I will make up your bed in a little bit and you can nap if you wish."

"Are you being a healer again, my sister?"

"Of course. I enjoy it, you know."

Dasay laughed. "Then I would not want to spoil your enjoyment."

Sira turned to the demigod. "You have chosen a very practical promised one, my brother."

He laughed as he pulled her into his arms for a hug. "Thank you. I'm rather pleased with her, myself."

A fire was started and it was Hercus who skinned the rabbits he'd taken with his bow. He set them to cook over the fire, then while they cooked he washed and sliced several of the white tubers he knew his mother enjoyed. The empath and the Dea had found them just off the trail shortly after they left their place of nooning. And while the others waited patiently the girls had dug them from the soil. Once the potato like roots were sliced Hercus rolled them in a mixture of flour and cornmeal, then dropped them into a hot skillet. With more of the bread from the village everyone should be satisfied.

Sira bathed at the spring, then leaving her soap and cloth there she returned to camp. Dasay was more than happy to follow her sister's lead, and limping slightly on her sore feet she also bathed. When she returned to camp the empath had made up her bed for her. Dasay blushed as she saw that the demigod's blankets were made up with hers. Sira had spread two ground sheets beside each other, then covered them with their blankets and lastly their cloaks. At the head of the girl's blanket was a cloth sack of clothing to use as a pillow. The men never used a pillow on the trail. The soft cloth around their ears tended to muffle sounds and lull them into too deep a sleep. Better to sleep lightly and be able to hear the sounds of the night should one of those sounds herald danger. Sira preferred relying on her other senses to warn her of danger and used a pillow whenever possible.

Dasay eyed the bed then shot a look at Sira. The empath pretended innocence and the Dea's blush deepened. She wasn't sure what to do. She was only in promise with Hercules, not mated to him. She knew full well that in her village any display this open announcing her private relationship with her promised one would be considered scandalous. Still, the old books suggested that the vow of promise was designed just for such a purpose. It would seem the original reason for the vow was to allow those of strong heart tie to be together as mates until a true soul's mate might claim their soul. It made sense. How few really found their true soul's mate? Should the earth's people go through life devoid of love and companionship? The feelings she had for Hercules might not be those of a soul's mate, but her love for him was strong and demanding. Should she deny these feelings?

With a mental shrug she turned away, then stood watching the bed once more. The hunter came to bring her a mug of tea. He gave her a wide smile when he saw where she was looking.

"Take a nap if you want. I'll make sure we save you some food."

"I was not thinking of that. It is just that… Well, Hercules'… That is..."

Iolaus laughed. "It's our way of letting you know that your vow of promise is accepted in the traditions of those who wrote it into their law before the remembered time. You may not have the complete tie of soul that Sira and I do, but you're just as married to Hercules as Sira and I are married."

"But it was not that kind of vow."

"Not out loud, but in your hearts. You can't tell me it wasn't that in your hearts."

The girl took a deep breath as a little tingle of excitement and awe teased her. "No, I cannot tell you that. Still, the vow..."

The hunter stopped her before she could go on. "Did Sira ever tell you how we took vows?"

"No."

"It was while we were still in the healing, when we first met. There was no one there but us. No one, save the earth, to hear our commitment to one another. But the vow we took that day couldn't have been more real or more binding if a hundred people had witnessed the taking of it. It wasn't so much what was said, as the emotions behind it, those in our heart and soul. We've never taken any formal vow in any formal ceremony, and yet each time we touch, each time our minds, our souls, our bodies touch we renew the promises we made to each other and to the earth that morning in that secluded glen in the middle of nowhere."

The girl wiped a tear from her cheek, then hugged him tightly around the neck. He held the tea aside to keep it from spilling. He was a little surprised by her sudden show of emotion.

"Thank you, my brother. You have touched my heart and seen my inner most feelings for your more than brother. Now we truly are brother and sister."

Now he gave her a mischievous smile as he handed the tea to her. "All I ask is that you and Herc try and keep the late night noises to a minimum."

The girl blushed deeply as she lowered her eyes. "Very well, my brother. But you and Sira must make the same promise. Hercules has warned me how little sleep I should expect from you two."

The hunter laughed. "You're going to fit in here very well, little sister." He laughed again. "I always wanted a sister."

The night was pleasant and when the after dinner clean up was complete the earth's chosen one and her golden hunter left the camp to go for a walk. After a moment the son of Zeus and the daughter of the clan of the beaver also left camp. The old sailor added a log to the fire, then taking up the teapot offered some to the empath's son. The boy held his mug out for the offered tea.

"Thank you, my friend."

The old one scratched at his chin. "I guess there's going to be a lot of nights like this, you and I sharing our company while the others walk."

The boy laughed. "You know, I will just bet you are right."

"Well, at least it's good company."

The boy saluted him with his mug of tea. "I was just thinking the same thing."

"I, for one, have had enough walking for one day. Who would have thought that your relatives would be so fond of walking?"

The boy laughed again. "I would venture to guess that in your younger days you were also."

The trader smiled. "Now that you mention it, I guess I was. And I'll bet your day will come too."

Hercus saluted again. "Here is to that day."

"How old did you say you were?" The boy chuckled but gave no answer. "Now that I think about it, I might just be fond of walking again if the right woman came along to walk with me." The boy laughed, and the old one's own laughter joined his.

Morning came too early for the demigod. He woke feeling stiff. A dull ache nagged at his temple, his mouth was dry. He rolled over to watch the Dea in sleep. By the gods, she's beautiful, he thought. Her dark brown hair fell around her in thick silky waves of flower scent. Her dark skin shown with youth and health. Her full lips were slightly puckered like a child's mouth in sleep. Seeing her here beside him stirred anything but childish thoughts in his mind. He smiled again, remembering how shy she'd been to return to the camp and the bed they would share. She'd kept them out late, hoping the others would be asleep before they returned to camp.

The camp was quiet when they slipped through the brush. As quiet as they tried to be, Hercus looked up from his blankets at their approach. The boy missed little, and his uncle felt pride in the boy's caution. He'd sensed the young mind on his even before they'd reached the camp. The boy had sensed their approach even before hearing it. But checking on who was now in the camp was a wise precaution.

He'd felt the Dea hesitate beside him and he'd tugged on her hand. He went to his knees on the blankets then pulled the girl down beside him. "It's all right."

With a nod Dasay slipped quickly beneath the blankets and into his arms.

He longed to touch her, but hated to wake her. They'd taken to their bed so late. As if reading his desire, she opened dark brown eyes to grab at him and take his breath away. The tiny golden specks in her eyes seemed to hypnotize and intoxicate him.

"Greetings of the morning, my promised one." The girl closed her eyes for a moment as the caress of his words stirred her.

"My promised one," her whispered words touched his sensitive emotions.

"I still can't believe it's true. I keep waiting to wake up and find it's all a dream."

She sighed. "I know, but if it is, let us never wake."

He rolled over and up to take her lips. "I need to bathe at the spring. Care to help me?"

"It is my duty to do so as your promised one."

"I hope you don't mind performing that duty."

"I will make the best of it."

He took her mouth again, this time parting her lips with his tongue. "There are rewards for doing your duty, you know."

"Then let us go. I cannot wait any longer for my reward."

He rose to offer her a hand up, but when he stood he felt dizzy for a moment. The lightheadedness only lasted a moment, and he played it off by pretending to stretch before offering Dasay a hand to help her rise. Hand in hand they left camp to make their way to the spring.

They lingered over the morning. It was pleasant here among the trees. No one felt the need to hurry. The cabin had waited this long, a few more days wouldn't matter. Sira helped the healer wrap her feet in soft woven moss before putting on her new moccasins. The girl's feet were a little red, but not blistered. They could take it slow today, and should her feet begin to hurt again they could always stop for a day or two.

Pretending it would be a real burden, the demigod offered to carry her. Secretly he hoped she'd take him up on the offer, but she only shoved playfully at him. "I would not want to put you out."

"Well, you are heavy."

"I thought you were the strongest man on earth? I should have known that was nothing but a bard's tale. Well, if you are too weak to carry me I wager Iolaus could do it."

The hunter stepped forward and bowed to her. "At your service, my Lady."

The half god swept her into his arms to nuzzle her neck. "Sure he could carry you. But could he do that?"

"Of course. Everyone knows of his legendary reputation as a lover. It is even written about in the book of clan."

The demigod laughed as he set her back on her feet. "I'm defeated, then."

The morning passed pleasantly as they walked along the game trail Hercus had found. The half god dropped back to walk beside the empath. "My little girl's really blossoming, isn't she?"

"Yes, my brother, she is. Your love has made a big difference in her, as getting away from the village has."

"I knew she was lovely and sweet, but I hadn't realized she had such a sense of humor."

Sira linked her arm through his. "She was never given a chance to show it before. Can you imagine how the Melay of old would have reacted to a sense of humor?"

The demigod laughed. "I'm glad we rescued her from that."

"So am I."

They didn't stop at midday to eat. They did rest for a time for Dasay's sake, but their morning had started so leisurely that no one was really hungry. The healer's feet were doing much better today, and after a rest the travelers moved on still heading northwest. They would soon be into higher country as they crossed the mountain that separated the forest where the cabin awaited them and the forest that held the village of Zirrith.

Carneus paced before the late afternoon fire. Loxias had been in the yosemin village since the night before and the leader of the renegade band was getting impatient. This village might just hold the information they would need to bring his latest scheme to reality. He sighed as he kicked dust up with each step. The rains of a few days ago hadn't been strong enough to keep the ground damp for long. The sun had shown strongly the last few days and already the spring grass was starting to turn dry. He hated the summer months. The dry heat always irritated him and filled his nose with a sneezing tickle. Maybe this year he could spend the summer in a city, behind thick cool walls, with a woman to fan him and well cooled ale to quench his thirst. Maybe the woman will be the empath herself. He chuckled at his own musings.

Loxias waved a farewell to the village of Zirrith. They'd suggested he stay the night with them, but he'd declined the offer. Something about the place gave him the creeps. The people here were far too strong of mind to suit him, and he'd been hard pressed to keep his mind closed to the real reason he was in the village. He'd only talked briefly with the elder Thysis. The old one seemed to be deliberately avoiding him, and considering the kind of information he needed, maybe that was best. The elder wasn't going to tell him anything anyway, and he was just too astute to suit the little thief. It had taken longer, but Loxias was pleased with the information he'd gleaned from the simple people of the earth. He'd learned much from the little boy, Evander. Evander and his mother weren't yosemin and couldn't sense his thoughts. He'd used them cleverly to gain information. He'd cut wood for them and even hunted to provide them with meat. The mother was all too easily duped by his little game. He'd had to labor a little, but the reward for doing so was a good one. He could return to Carneus with the first solid information he'd gathered since this whole thing started.

He'd begun to doubt the possibility of finding the empath and her son, but now he was sure they could. He'd never believed Carneus' plan would work, but now he was beginning to believe it would. One thing that bothered him the most was the knowledge that the rumors had been correct. The empath did travel with the son of Zeus.

There was no way Carneus and his little band of misfits could hope to fight the demigod to capture the girl and her son. He hoped their yosemin hating leader had something else in mind to pull that part of the plan off.

While asking guarded questions with an innocent air Loxias had also made a few inquiries about the possibility of a strong minded person sensing the gems and minerals of value in the earth. He'd never quite believed that part was possible although Carneus insisted it was.

He'd been relieved to find that it was possible. Now he began to understand that his own limited success in finding bits of gold in the old mine hadn't been luck, but still another facet of his yosemin heritage.

Night had come before he reached the camp of his fellow goons. Carneus jumped to his feet at his approach. "Well?"

"Let me rest a minute. I need some tea and a meal, then we'll talk."

"What did you find out?"

"In a bit, Carneus. I said let me rest."

The leader narrowed his eyes at his partner with anger. He'd bloody well waited long enough. He started to demand an immediate response, but something in the other man's turquoise-green eyes made him hesitate. Not bothering to wait to see if the leader would push his luck, Loxias pushed passed him to take up the teapot. He filled a plate with beans and a large hunk of the venison roasting over the fire, then making himself comfortable on the ground, a rock at his back, he began to eat, using his fingers to scrape up the beans and licking them clean as he ate. He hadn't bothered to clean his hands first, and his annoying habit of refusing to use utensils grated on the leader's nerves as always.

Crude little bastard, Carneus thought. When this is over he might just find his throat cut. His irritation poorly concealed, the leader took a seat on the other side of the fire. He fidgeted impatiently, a fact that Loxias was fully aware of but chose to ignore.

The leader threw his long black hair over his shoulder with an irritated jerk of his hand. He hadn't bothered to braid it after bathing that morning in the stream they'd camped by. He needed to comb it first, but lacked the ambition to do so.

Loxias finished his meal. Then wiping his hands on his pants he searched through the pile of wood near the fire to find a small twig. With his knife he pealed the bark away then trimmed the end before beginning to chew it. He'd started stick chewing after a meal as a way to clean his teeth, but now it had become more a habit than anything. He often chewed a stick during the day, finding a comfort in the act that he seldom even thought about anymore.

This habit also annoyed Carneus. His annoyance growing, he jumped to his feet once more, leaving the camp before he lost all reason and tried to act on his desire to have his hands around Loxias' neck.

It was late before the leader of the band of cutthroats and his partner took to their bedrolls. Morning would come too soon, he was sure. He wanted to be on the trail before full light. He rolled over as excitement stirred him. It wouldn't be long now.

The travelers made their camp near a small brook, fed by the spring thaw that would soon disappear with the coming of summer. Their second day on the trail had been hot and sticky. The hunter filled their water flasks then the two water skins. Rastist and Hercus were still gathering wood and Hercules was making the fire. As on the day before, Sira insisted Dasay rest while she made the dinner preparation.

The Dea had done much better today, but it didn't take a yosemin's sensitive mind to know the apprentice healer was just about done in. She simply wasn't used to the riggers of the trail yet. She was young and strong and not unused to hard work. Sira was sure she would soon get used to walking for hours at a time, but for now she needed consideration and no one really minded giving it to her.

The hunter took up the water skins and the flasks and returned to camp. The half god stood to come to him to offer his help. Iolaus tossed one of the flasks to his friend. They'd done things like this hundreds of times. The demigod's reaction time was so quick and his sense of depth so precise he could easily catch an arrow in midair. The big man reached out to snatch the flask from the air but it dropped at his feet instead. He looked down as his face turned slightly red.

Iolaus frowned. He couldn't remember the last time his friend had missed something like that. He'd seen the half god touch the flask, but it was as if his hand couldn't close over it.

The son of Zeus bent to retrieve the flask then turned away to put it near his blankets. The hunter and the empath exchanged looks and the golden one shrugged.

"I'm going to wash up before dinner." The demigod took up his pack to head toward the brook.

Dasay watched his back with a slight frown between her brows. "What just happened?"

Iolaus also watched his friend's departure. "I guess he was embarrassed that he missed the catch."

"That does not sound like him," Sira offered.

"Well, we all miss once in awhile."

"I mean to be embarrassed about having done so."

Dasay joined the others at the fire. "Perhaps it is having me see him miss?"

Sira shrugged. "Perhaps."

Hercules walked along the brook until he found a screen of brush that grew almost to the water's edge. Setting his pack aside he pulled his black shirt up over his head. He felt a stab of pain in his right shoulder as he did. He knew a moment of fear then calmed himself. It must just be sore from the traveling, he soothed himself. Reaching back with his left hand he rubbed at the shoulder. He couldn't reach the two, still red scars left from his little dance with the dragon of Melfast. But where he did reach was sore to the touch. It must be the pack. He almost laughed at the simplicity of the problem and its solution. I'll just carry the pack over my left shoulder. I can use Dasay's need to rest as a means of resting myself. He nodded, feeling better.

He'd been shocked when he'd missed catching the water flask. He'd felt it slide into his hand, but when he'd tried to close his hand over it his fingers had gone numb and lifeless. The loss of feeling had only lasted a few seconds, but those few seconds had frightened him more than he cared to admit.

He moved his shoulder, trying to loosen the stiffness. But when he tried to raise his right arm up over his shoulder he felt a stabbing pain in his back that spread to his neck and the base of his skull. Putting his concern aside with an effort he stripped off his clothes to wade into the snow fed brook. It was too shallow and narrow to allow him to submerge, but he'd brought a gourd with him to scoop the water up and over himself. Braving the cold he scooped up water and let it trickle slowly from the gourd down over his right shoulder. Again and again he repeated the process until he could move his arm without pain. Only then did he bathe, favoring the shoulder not because it hurt now, but more to protect it from hurting again.

When he returned to camp nothing was said about missing a catch, and feeling better the big man put his concern aside to enjoy the evening and the good company.

She stood on the ridge, the earth beneath her feet bucking as if trying to pitch her from its surface. Had she gone so far that the earth could no longer tolerate the feel of her? Why does it have to be like this? Even through the dream she wondered how she could use her powers for such destruction. A tree in the valley below her exploded in a whine of pain, and someone screamed as splinters showered them. The sky was dark with swirling clouds of black lit with jagged streaks of lightning. The wind buffeted her, adding its own pressure to shake her precarious hold on the pitching ground and she went to her knees painfully.

Her son screamed with the pain her powers brought him. She struggled to control the power, but rather than growing weaker it seemed to intensify.

She sensed rather than saw the demigod moving toward her. She could sense his struggle to fight the crippling effect of her mind powers. "No!" she screamed in warning. "No!"

She jerked up, struggling with her covers. She needed to get away, to run from the destruction she caused, to hide from herself and the earth.

The hunter put his arms around her but she fought him. Still lost in her dream, she feared for him.

"Sira, it's all right. It's only the dream. Sira."

The demigod stopped her from rising. "Sira, my sister." She cried out in her fear, hitting at him, wanting to be away from those she loved before she hurt them.

"Sira." He shook her slightly. "It's just the dream."

She slumped back against the hunter, her body wracked with spasms of fear. The dream had seemed more real than ever.

"I was hurting you," she sobbed. "All of you."

"It's over now."

"I had lost the earth. I could not control my powers."

The hunter pulled her onto his lap to cradle her like a baby. The demigod sat on their blankets to keep a hand on her, lending her his strength and sending her comfort. "It's over, my more than sister. It's over now."

"Why can I not remember all of it? There is an answer there, but it eludes me."

"Let it go for now, my sister."

"But I cannot. This is more than a mere dream. It is a sign of the future, a warning. If I could only grasp the message within the dream, maybe I could prevent it from really happening."

"When we get to the cabin, maybe we could all sit down and loan our minds to you. Maybe then you could get a real sense of the dream and what it means."

The girl nodded. "Yes. Yes, once we are settled, then I would like to try." The half god helped her to lie back down, cocooned in the arms of her Anmchara. When Hercules started to rise she clung to him. "Do not go. I need your comfort now, my soul."

The half god hesitated. He wasn't sure what Dasay might think of his staying to sleep beside his sister of the soul. Even as he formed the thought in his mind the Dea rose from her blankets to come to him. She'd brought his blanket and her own. She handed them to her lover then turned to go for her ground sheet, but the empath's son was ahead of her on that and he helped her spread it beside the others. He made sure his uncle and his uncle's promised one were comfortable beside his mother and father before he went to sit beside the fire. Stirring up the coals he was rewarded with a satisfying red glow. Feeding small bits of wood to this he soon had the fire burning well.

He'd been awakened by his mother's scream. He'd jerked upright in his bed, but before he could react the demigod was already at his mother's side helping his father soothe the earth's child. He was ashamed to admit the scream in the night had frightened him and rendered him momentarily frozen to his blankets. He'd gotten a sense of his mother's fear along with the scream and it had affected him more than he was comfortable with.

The old trader joined him at the fire, filling the pot with water from the water skin. "We'll have tea soon, then you'll feel better."

"I am all right."

"Then the tea will help me, okay? I didn't want to admit it, but that scream scared the Tartarus out of me."

"You do not have to pretend to make me feel better. I was frightened and I froze."

"So did I, my young friend. Something like that coming from the night to invade a mind dulled with sleep and the comfort of traveling with a group would be enough to frighten your Uncle Ares." The boy said nothing. "In the morning, ask Hercules; ask your father. Don't think they weren't startled."

"But it did not stop them from doing what needed to be done."

"Maybe their reaction time was a little faster than your own, or maybe it was the fact that they were already with your mother that held you back. Still, I can't help but think maybe you and I were both sleeping a little too soundly just because we'd grown complacent with the safety of our number. That can be a dangerous habit to get into, and maybe we've learned a lesson from the little banshee scream in the night, yes?"

"I cannot afford to be less than I should be."

"Meaning?"

"Your explanation is a good one, but that does not change what happened. I must be a little better than the average, just a little stronger than others, just a little ahead of the pack."

"Why?"

"Because I am different than the others."

"Because your father is human, your mother yosemin?"

"Yes, and because I am the son of the empath."

"Well, the great Zeus himself makes mistakes, my boy. Everybody does. Don't be so hard on yourself."

"I cannot afford to make mistakes."

"Then you have a real problem, 'cause it's going to happen no matter how good you are. No matter how hard you try. Worrying about making a mistake can keep you from being good at anything. It can make you afraid to even try." The old one removed the boiling water from the fire and added the tealeaves. "Being different doesn't make you inferior." The boy sighed but made no comment. "I've always been different. I always figured those differences, while setting me a bit apart also made me a little better." He poured the tea into two mugs and handed one to the boy. Taking his seat again he motioned with his cup. "Here's to being different, and using those differences to advantage." After a moment the boy smiled then saluted back.

The empath, still awake, had heard the conversation between the man and boy. Her heart had ached at her son's emotions. She'd felt the sting of being different, of not quite fitting in. She'd liked what the old sailor had said to her son. He had a way with children. She'd watched him with Evander and some of the yosemin children. It was a shame he'd not had the chance to raise his daughter. Would the steadying influence of a strong father have made it easier for her to choose a mate of better character, one who could accept Rastist and open his home to his own child's grandfather? She couldn't answer that question, but she could be happy that he was here now with his new family and with her child.

Hercules rose first. He'd awakened with pain in his head and shoulder. Unable to stand the confines of the bed he shared with the two girls he loved and his friend of childhood and more than friend of adulthood, he rose carefully so he wouldn't disturb them.

It wasn't light yet as he stumbled from camp to make his way to the brook. He felt dizzy and sluggish. Now what? he asked himself. He must ask Dasay to heal him again, but hoped to wait until they reached the cabin. There he and the Dea could hide behind the closed door of his room. There'd be no need to upset Sira with this if he could keep his illness from her until they reached the cabin. He stretched out on the grassy bank beside the brook to scoop water to his mouth. The icy liquid seemed to rush quickly through him with frozen fingers clawing at his middle. He rolled over, fighting the nausea that shook him. After a moment he felt better, and favoring his shoulder he rose to stand shivering beside the water.

He waited until he felt better before returning to camp to stir up the fire and add wood. He wanted the warmth of the burning wood to warm his outside and he wanted hot tea to warm his middle.

Iolaus was the next one to rise. He visited the woods then checked his snares before returning. He skinned the rabbits where he found them, then proud of his catch he marched smartly back to camp. He held up their breakfast to show the demigod then frowned at the look on his big friend's face.

"You okay, Herc?"

"Yeah. Just tired."

"Couldn't sleep after our little nighttime adventure?"

"Hasn't Sira been having these dreams a long time now?"

"Yes. Too damn long. I wish I knew how to help her."

"We'll try when we get settled." He stiffened in his mind. He couldn't take a chance on touching so deeply in mind with Sira. Not until Dasay could heal him again. But right now he was just too tired to try and sort it out.

They traveled on, headed more west than north now. There was a pass over the mountain that would add a few miles to their journey, but make the trip much easier. The demigod hadn't eaten anything at the first meal of the day. His stomach was just not up to it. He used the excuse that he'd eaten some cheese and bread while the others still slept. The tea had warmed him, but it had also left him feeling queasy. He carried his pack over his left shoulder but his back still ached.

Midday found the travelers stopped near a rocky outcropping that offered shade from the almost too hot sun. There was no water, but the water skins were full even if their flasks were not. Again Hercules didn't really eat. He made an effort to keep the others from noticing, but the empath did anyway.

She said nothing, waiting until her brother of the soul was looking the other way to study his profile. She tried touching his mind only to find it shut tightly against her. Since he'd begun to build the barriers on his mind to shield his feelings from her she'd found it hard to know what he was thinking or feeling. She sighed with frustration. Would he share with her if there was something really bothering him? There was a time answering that question would have been easy, but not now. Now he'd changed, and while he was convinced the change was necessary, she disagreed.

They moved on through the afternoon, stopping only once briefly at a spring while they filled their flasks and the one water skin they'd used at midday. It was Hercules who found them a place to stop for the night. It was early still, but finding the overhang with a spring close the half god suggested they stop. The truth was, he wasn't sure he could go much further. He left the others to make camp, using the excuse of looking the area over for a good trail out of the little canyon where they'd stopped. Once he was out of view of the others he slumped to a rock. Bending forward he buried his head in his hands, which pounded with a rhythm to match his heartbeat. After a moment he raised his head, grabbing quickly at the rock to steady himself as a wave of dizziness overtook him.

Too tired to scout around, he rested on the rock until he felt better. Then mustering his strength he returned to camp.

The Dea brought him a mug of tea, then searching his face she put a hand on his arm. "Hercules?"

He put the tea aside to pull her into his arms. "Later," he whispered in her ear, "when we're alone."

"Come lay down with me."

He slumped against her; he wanted to so badly. "I should help with the camp."

"It is well, my brother," the empath assured him. "Stay with your promised one. There are plenty of us to make camp."

Too tired to protest further he let the healer lead him to their blankets. He stifled a moan as he laid down, the movement bringing a stab of pain through his back and neck. Dasay laid down behind him as he lay on his left side. Placing her hands on his right shoulder she moved up close to him to press her body tightly against his back. With a sigh he closed his eyes, letting his mind seek hers as she sent healing to him.

He hadn't needed to tell her what was wrong; she'd known, and was doing what she could to help him.

Sira watched them for a moment. She could sense the energy in the air around her and knew that Dasay was in a healing with her brother of the soul.

Tears filled her eyes and she turned away. It hurt her to think he felt compelled to shut her out. She sent her mind to the earth with a prayer for him and for the Dea. It was the best she could do for now.

The hour was late, or perhaps early would be a better description, early of a new day. The empath sat by the fire, her mind refusing to relax enough to allow her to return to sleep. She'd slept for a time, but her dreams were filled with concern for the half god, half man who still slept where he'd gone to his bed as they were making camp. He'd slept through the evening meal, and knowing he was ill Sira had been glad that he had.

Dasay said nothing about what troubled him, and when Iolaus asked her what was up with her promised one she said he was tired. The hunter had exchanged looks with the empath but said nothing more.

Still at the fire when the stars were gone the girl took up her pack to make her way to the spring. She felt the need of a bath.

Her son was up when she returned to camp and offered to comb her hair for her. He was gentle as he worked the tangles from the pale, silver-gold strands, then braided them in one long plait down her back.

Hercules rolled to his back then stayed where he was for a moment, taking time to get a sense of how he felt. He was relieved to find the pain in his shoulder and head were gone. He even felt hungry. He sat up to dazzle the empath and her son with a show of blue eyes and even white teeth then rose to stretch. There was a slight twinge as he moved muscles left stiff from his hours of sleep, but there was no real pain. With another smile at the others he made his way to the forest, returning with an armload of wood.

"You are rested now, my uncle?" The half yosemin boy handed the big man a mug of tea.

"Yes. I feel wonderful."

Sira frowned. Could I have been wrong? she asked herself. Perhaps he had only been tired, or maybe the healing Dasay had given him was all he had needed.

"I'm starving. What's for breakfast?"

Hercus rose in one fluid movement. "Rabbit, if my snares worked. I will check on them."

"Thanks, Hercus."

The morning passed pleasantly as the travelers continued to climb up and out of the canyon. It was still midmorning when they crested the ridge to look down into a green and fertile valley.

The child of the forest stopped abruptly as she drew in a quick breath of pleasure. Going to her knees in the grass she looked down into the mountain valley lined with rocky cliffs and tears filled her eyes. The valley was small, not much bigger than the clearing that housed the yosemin village. Four mammoth pine trees painted the sky with deep green pine needle brushes. It would take all six humanoids holding hands, arms out stretched to surround their massive red barked trunks. Water spilled from a rocky outcropping to fall freely into a small stream dwarfed even more by the trees whose roots it watered.

The rock enclosed valley called to the earth's chosen one, promising deep green fern shadows and rich soiled grassy folds. While the empath caressed the earth with her knees and her mind, the earth sent love and comfort to one of her own.

Iolaus scouted along the ridge to find a way into the valley. He'd sensed the emotions of the girl he loved so completely and he had every intention of getting her into the little parkland below. Sure, they could have skirted the valley and saved themselves trouble, but he wanted her to touch the grass and find peace there.

After several minutes he returned to the others to find Hercus just returning from the other direction. "There is a massive granite outcropping to block that way and no way down back there anyway. What did you find, my father?"

The hunter shook his head. No trail down. We can skirt the valley, but I didn't find a way into it."

Sira rose to take a hand from each of them. "It is better this way. It is better to leave it just as it has been since the beginning of time, untouched by man." Her words were whispered. "We will have the memory of its virgin state to fill our dreams."

Taking up her pack she turned aside to walk along the ridge, the valley to her left. The others followed her, letting her choose the way with her mind more than her eyes, for they were locked on the splendor only the earth could share with the tiny humans who dared to venture so far from the known trails to stumble upon such grace.

They stopped at midday to refresh themselves at a small waterfall. The water was snow fed and cold enough to hurt their teeth. The demigod took a long drink then wished he hadn't. The icy water seemed to cut a path through him and chill him deep down inside. He shivered as nausea threatened to betray him. Leaving the others to find a private place in the forest he stood swaying on his feet as dizziness took hold, and unable to keep his feet he went to his knees to be sick in the grass. Over and over again he was ill, until his throat screamed with the strain. With each wave of illness a sharp piercing pain shot through his right shoulder, up his back to his neck and through his head.

Weak and shaken he was finally able to stand and leave the stench of his vomit behind. Finding a place to rest on a fallen tree he used water from his flask to rinse his face. He had to get back before they came looking for him, but he felt too weak to manage it.

Drawing on his godly strength he forced himself to rise, and fighting to keep his step straight he did return.

He avoided the empath's eyes, keeping his head lowered. He pretended not to notice the nuts and dried fruit set out to break his fast. When they were ready to move on the hunter commented on his lack of appetite.

"I ate too much earlier, is all."

"You never turn down a meal."

"I'm just not hungry." There was a sternness to his voice that surprised his friend. Damn, the demigod thought. Keep it cool, or they'll know for sure something is wrong.

With each step the son of Zeus cringed with pain. His right side was on fire. One foot in front of the other. He lost track of time, of the trail, lost in pain and illness he walked on behind the others. His pack seemed to pull him down, his boots seemed too heavy to lift, and through it all was pain, a white hot pain.

Sira dropped back to walk beside the Dea. "What is wrong with Hercules?"

The girl shot her soul's sister a guilty look then looked back over her shoulder at the man she loved. Sira took her hand and led her from the trail with the excuse that they needed a nature break. Hercules sunk to a rock beside the trail, not really aware of what had given him the chance, but too grateful for it to question why it took both girls to visit the woods at once.

Once clear of the others Sira turned to the Dea. "What is wrong with Hercules?"

"Please, my sister. I promised him I would not say anything."

"It is too late for that. He is ill."

"I have been healing him."

"I know, but healing him for what?"

"Please, Sira, try to understand. He fears he will grow even closer to you. He is not yet ready to accept the earth in the feelings he has for you and I."

"I understand that far better than you might think. I have known for some time that he was hiding something from me and that while still in Zirrith you were healing him."

"He was much better."

"But he is not now. You must tell me." Still the healer hesitated. "He is very ill, Dasay. You must tell me. The time to keep your promise to him has passed. If you wish to protect him, you must tell me." The healer turned away to pace a few steps away then back. She couldn't quite meet the empath's eyes. "Dasay." The look the healer gave the empath touched the green eyed beauty. Still, she must know what was happening to Hercules if she were to help him.

"When you fought the dragon he was wounded."

"Yes, his right shoulder. Go on."

"He had pain and numbness after. There was some fever at first."

"What did you sense in your healing?"

"I told him I was not good enough to help him. I tried to convince him to come to you."

"Please, Dasay. What did you sense?"

"I am not sure. There was something there I could not understand. But he got better. I thought it was all right."

"Now he is ill again."

"I healed him yesterday, and again last night."

"And what you sensed before, is it still there?"

Tears spilled from the Dea's eyes. "Yes, I think so."

"To leave a healing incomplete can be very dangerous."

"But I thought it was complete. I thought I had done the right thing." She searched the empath's eyes with remorse, pain, and fear. "This is my fault. I was conceded and vain. I thought I could do this. Now he is much worse."

"Self recrimination is self defeating. You made an error in judgment based on your inexperience. Now it is time to correct that error."

"He will hate me for telling you."

"I would have known anyway. I have been called to the healing now."

"But he will never allow you to help him."

"He must." Sira turned back the way they'd come. "We must find shelter, then we will see."

"I am so foolish. I believe he is really sick, but now he does not even want my help."

"He is afraid that if you help him, I will find out he is ill. He loves you, and that may be the only thing that keeps him going. You must use your mind to send him strength until we can find a place to stop. I will send my mind to you, then you must link with him. He will not know that I am helping him yet."

"Mother earth, forgive me."

Sira turned back to her. "You must not blame yourself..."

Dasay interrupted before she could go on. "But it is my fault. I did not heal him; only masked the real problem for a time. You said yourself leaving a healing incomplete can be dangerous."

"Yes, but you can only be blamed for lack of experience, not deliberately trying to harm anyone."

"But that is just it, Sira. I am supposed to be a healer. I am not. But worse than that, I am guilty of over confidence. Our mind lessons gave me such hope. I have this over powering need to help people, to be a healer. But I lack the earth's powers to be so. How dare I put anyone in danger with my conceit! To do what I have is criminal to say the least."

Sira sighed. "No, my sister. The deep need you speak of only proves you are a healer. You have been called by the earth for this. You will learn. You will, someday, find the way to tap the real power the earth has given you. You must be strong now. You must follow the earth's lead and help me in this. Your close tie in soul to your promised one will make the difference. Do not turn your back on the earth now, now when you are needed so much. Healing is a tricky thing. It is not an exact science, it is trial and error and faith. No matter how much you know of the plants and herbs that heal, no matter how much you know of the techniques of meditation, these alone are not enough. The earth heals, Dasay, not you or I. We are only an instrument of the earth, sent to channel her powers of love and healing." At the girl's shuttered breath Sira hugged her. "We all make mistakes. It is part of the learning process. Now wipe your tears and return with me. We must find a place to stop."

"He will be all right, will he not?"

"If he will let me help him."

"But…"

"No," the empath interrupted. "He must. It would harm me as well if he were to refuse."

"And should he…"

"Then…" Now tears filled the empath's eyes. "I almost died once when I thought my soul's mate had gone to the earth."

"He really is your soul's mate also, is he not?"

"Yes. As hard as it is to believe, as unbelievable as it is that I should be blessed with two mates of the soul."

"He will never agree to letting you help him."

"We must convince him that a healing cannot possibly make us any closer. It cannot, you know. We are already as close as two people can be. Now the only thing that limits our soul's touch is a physical one."

"But that is his fear. That you and he might… Well…"

"And should that happen, my sister? Will it make a difference in how you feel about him?"

Dasay searched the pale features of her sister of the soul. "I have asked myself that question before, and I have given myself the answer that should be in my heart. I have said it out loud to myself and to him. Will I feel differently about him? No. Will it bother me if you and he were to become physical lovers? Yes, I believe it would a little. Would I let that interfere with our vow or our commitment to each other? No."

"We are lovers, already, he and I. Not in a physical way, but still lovers."

"I know that, my sister."

"We are mates of the soul."

"I know, and I have known from the first that the feelings he has for you are deeper and stronger than the ones he has for me. But I cannot and will not give him up. I am far too selfish to chance losing him because he is not fully mine. To have him even for a day, or an hour, that is more than I had before. To know him and to love him is enough."

"Then, my sister, we must convince him that the physical side of loving is not what is important. I say again, he can try to deny his feelings, but it is a waste of time and effort. He and I cannot grow any closer. The time for that is passed. In fact, it was over before it started. He and I were linked from that first sense I had of Iolaus."

Dasay took her hand. "Come, my sister. We must hurry."

Iolaus looked up as they returned to the trail. "Everything all right? You were gone so long I was getting concerned."

Sira linked her arm through his. "Sorry. We were talking and lost track of time. Let us continue our travels."

"Gossipy women. Talk, talk, talk. That's all they ever do."

The chosen one didn't rise to the challenge. Her mind was closely linked with the Dea's, sending her strength as they walked. Her mind also searched ahead for a place to stop. They would need shelter for the healing, water, and plenty of wood. It would need to be in a place with plenty of game to supplement their supplies.

They walked on into the afternoon. Now Dasay walked with her arm linked through the demigod's. She could sense the fever that robbed him of his strength and gave him chills bad enough to make his teeth chatter. His mind, muddled with pain and illness, he wasn't even aware that her mind touched his.

The day was stretching on. Sira fought the sense of panic that threatened to overwhelm her. The need to heal was a force she'd never found a way to fight. The need to find shelter in which to do the healing pressed in on her. They were in a rocky area that offered little of appeal. Should they find it necessary to stop where there was no water, then they must find a way to move on even after the healing had begun. Hercules was too heavy a man to be carried far. They could use a travois, but that took time to put together.

On they walked. Iolaus kept looking back over his shoulder. "What's wrong with Herc?"

Sira had been waiting for this. "He is ill."

"What? How ill? What's wrong with him?"

"I am not sure. I am searching for a place to stop so that I can find out the answer to that."

"Damn it, I knew it. Why didn't he say something?"

"Because he does not want me to heal him."

"Good gods! He's taking this standoffish thing a little too far, isn't he?" Sira didn't answer him. "This is stupid."

The hunter turned and marched back to his more than brother of the soul. He was frightened by the demigod's red, glazed eyed look. Without a word the hunter put an arm around him to help support his friend.

"Iolaus."

"It's all right, Herc. We'll find a place to stop soon."

"I'm sorry . . . to be so much trouble."

"Yeah, well, you should be. Why didn't you say something?"

"You have to . . . promise me . . . you won't let Sira heal me."

"Don't be an ass."

"Please, old friend. I love her too much now. I hate myself for loving your wife. It's wrong." He shivered from the fever. "It's selfish. Immoral."

"I never heard such asinine foolishness in my life. Loving Sira is the one really unselfish thing you've done in your life. Loving her wasn't done for self gain or gratification. You haven't expected anything in return. I don't give a hydra's hind end that you love her. Nobody does, but you. How could anything so giving, so wondrous be immoral?"

"She's not mine to love, Iolaus. I'm not hers to love."

"It's too late for that and we all know it."

The demigod stumbled and Sira cringed. She fought the need to go to him. Not yet. She must find them a place to stop. Her mind entranced with her need to heal, she sent her mind further ahead. Please, my mother. Please help us.

The ground dropped away before the empath. Below her was a green and fertile valley. It offered trees and a stream, and the child of the forest wiped away tears of gratitude as she saw it. An easy descent would lead them to the offered riches below.

"It will not be long now, my soul." Hercules looked at her with a mixture of love and passion in his eyes. "May I walk with you?"

He shook his head. "No. I can't, Sira." The healer closed her eyes as pain shot through her, and the half god reached out to wipe away her tears.

Rastist took the big man's right side, but when he tried to put the half god's arm up over his shoulders Hercules cried out. His face went white. Sira swayed on her feet and Hercus supported her.

Hercus tightened his hold on his mother. "Let us get down there before both of them collapse."

"I don't think . . . I can make it," the demigod's words were slurred.

"Lean on us, Herc." Iolaus tightened his hold on the big man. With a nod Hercules moved slowly forward. Drawing on his last remaining reserves of strength they made it to the valley. Hercus ran ahead to find them a place to stop. Dasay walked silently beside the men, her mind lost in fear for the man she loved.

Sira sensed her son's mind and changed their direction slightly. When they came to the grassy little indentation surrounded by brush and trees, she knew they'd found what she'd sought. A covering shelter could be put over them should it rain. There was wood and water, and the grassy valley would be home to many animals to feed them. Hercus was already gathering wood and putting a fire together.

"Dasay, make a bed for us." The girl just stood where she was. Sira pulled at her arm. "Make a bed, now."

The girl quickly spread a ground sheet over the grass, then a blanket to lie on and one to cover Hercules. The men lowered the big man to the bed. He moaned with pain as they did. Turning quickly aside he was ill in the grass.

Sira knelt beside him to place a hand on his arm. He jerked from her touch. "No, Sira. No. You have to stay away from me. I'll be all right in a few days."

Sira swayed slightly beside him. "No, you will not. I must heal you. I have been drawn to this, my brother. I sense your pain even through the barriers you shield your mind with."

"Please, Sira, if you love me, stay away."

The hunter knelt beside his friend. "You have to let her help you."

"No! No. It will spoil everything."

"What are you talking about?"

Rather than answer, Hercules doubled up with pain, writhing with the need for relief. "Go away. Let me rest."

Iolaus stood to pull Sira to him. "No!" she cried out. "No, I must help him." The hunter pulled her aside.

Hercus took Dasay's hand and pulled her to Hercules. Taking a seat on the ground beside his uncle of the soul he put both hands on his side. "Help me, Dea. He needs our help."

"I did this to him, to Sira. I did this."

"Stop feeling sorry for yourself and do what the earth has given you the power to do." Still the girl hesitated. "Help me! Now!"

With a sob the girl took a seat beside the man she loved, and sending her mind to him and Hercus she allowed herself to become entranced.

Sira hugged herself tightly. The need to heal tore at her. With her mind she touched that of her son. She cried out at what she sensed there. "He needs my help, Iolaus. I have to be allowed to help him."

"I know. Let me talk to him."

"Hurry."

The hunter knelt beside his friend once more. "Herc. Herc, listen to me." The son of Zeus didn't seem to hear his friend. He was lost in his pain and misery. "Herc."

"I can't Iolaus. I can't take the risk."

"What risk? I don't understand."

Hercules reached for his friend's hand, and gripped it with painful force. "I can't risk being driven away. You, Sira, Hercus. You're my family. Your home is mine now. The pain and loneliness... It's not so hard anymore. Not when I'm with you. The pain I feel at the loss of my children. Hercus fills that loneliness. The pain of losing my wives, that's bearable with Sira's love to shield it. You, my brother. I can't give that up. Not now, not when I need it so much. I can't walk away from you and Sira. It would rip my heart out. It would tear my soul apart."

"I don't understand."

"If I ever really acknowledged my true feelings for Sira, I'd be lost. If I ever once put my hands to her in love, I wouldn't be able to stop myself." His words were puffed out on waves of pain and illness. "Oh, gods, Iolaus, I can't help myself. The one thing that makes this so unbearable is my guilt. I love you too much to ever be comfortable with my feelings for Sira. I'm so sorry. I've tried to fight this. I thought when I found love with Dasay it would make the difference, but it has only made it worse. Now I have such guilt for her, too. How can I feel so strongly about Sira when I love Dasay so much? What kind of animal am I?"

"Don't do this to yourself, Herc. By the earth, my brother, I don't give a damn that you love Sira. I want you to love her; it's something we can really share. When you were married to Deianeira I wasn't really a part of that. The children, I wasn't a part of that, either. Then when they were taken from you, I could only imagine the pain you were in.

"When you found Serena I was so jealous, I didn't want to share you with her. I felt like the third wheel, the odd man out. I know that's selfish, but it's how I felt. But with Sira it's different, we can both love her, we can share her. Through our shared love of her we've grown even closer. Take her to bed. Make love to her, do it with me watching, I don't give a damn."

"You know you don't mean that."

"I do. Why can't you understand that this thing is bigger than the three of us? It's the earth and the gods and its magic. It's not just you or me or Sira, it's the three of us, bound together as one. I can't explain it. I gave up trying."

"I can't, Iolaus. Oh, gods, it hurts."

Sira cried out with her own pain. No matter how much Hercules shielded his mind from her, she felt his pain. The son of Zeus turned aside once more to soil the grass. There was blood in the foul smelling, greenish liquid he spit out.

"You're hurting her, Herc."

"Go to her. Take care of her."

"But..."

"Help her."

The hunter rose to take Sira into his arms. "It hurts, Iolaus. I am torn."

"He won't let you help him."

"Then I am lost. My soul bleeds."

"Sira."

"He is dying, Iolaus. His body fights a losing battle. It may already be too late to help him."

"No, Sira"

"If he dies… He is my soul." She cried out as the demigod twisted in a spasm of pain.

"What are you saying? Sira?"

"My soul will tear beyond repair."

"Stop this. You're entranced. Stop it."

"I must heal. I have been called to this. His pain is now mine. Our souls and our hearts are one. I will go with him where he goes."

"No! Damn it, Sira. You can't do this." He shook her slightly then pulled her into his arms. "Sira, by the gods, don't do this."

"I love you, my soul. Forever we will be bound in soul. Wherever I go I will still be a part of you. Loving you has been the greatest part of living. In you and our son I will live on."

"Stop this. This is mad. Sira!" She slumped to the ground and he let her down gently. "Hercules. You can't let this happen. Look what you're doing to her. You're killing her."

"She'll be all right."

"No. No, she won't. Don't you remember what happened when she thought I was dead?"

"But that was different. You're her soul's mate."

"So are you. Damn it, Herc, can't you understand that? You're killing her. You have to help her. I can't lose her, Herc. I can't lose you. Help her!"

The son of Zeus looked to the empath. She'd turned to her stomach, her arms spread wide to the earth. He'd seen her lay just like that on the riverbank near the cabin. When had that been? His mind was muddled. When had he seen her like that? When she was so torn with her grief over Iolaus. He'd feared she might die herself rather than live without her soul's mate. She had almost died. He remembered holding her and loving her as she slipped further and further away from him.

"Sira?" The empath didn't move. "Sira."

She sat up to face him. Her face wore no expression. That look, he remembered that look. It was a lack of life within her. He'd watched that look hour after hour when she'd thought Iolaus was dead.

"Sira."

"I cannot live without you, my soul. Forgive me, but I love you too deeply. My soul is yours. You will rip it from me should you die."

"I won't die. I'm half god remember?"

"But are you immortal? Do you remember the last time I healed you? You were close to death then, also. Are you willing to risk your life and mind to find the answer to the question of your mortality?"

"Don't do this, Sira. You have to understand why I can't let you heal me."

"It is better to die than risk life without me? It is better to go to the earth rather than fight for your life? Understand? How can I understand a love that would let you do this to yourself and to the rest of us?"

He doubled up as another cramp tightened his muscles and the healer cried out. "Sira?"

"I feel your pain, my soul. We are too closely linked for it to be otherwise." She put her arms around her middle, then turning aside she was ill.

"Sira."

"I love you, my more than brother."

"I don't mean to hurt you."

"I know. In death we will be free to be together."

"No. No, I don't want that."

"Come to the earth, my brother. I will be there waiting for you."

"Sira."

The hunter took her into his arms. "By the earth, Hercules, how can you do this to her?"

"Sira." The half god reached for her hand. "By the gods, forgive me, Iolaus. I can't let her die."

The hunter turned the woman he loved so completely toward his more than brother of the soul. She lay lifeless in his arms. Only her shallow breathing kept him from panic. Hercules reached out to her to place a shaky hand on her arm. As he touched her she screamed.

Energy shot out to shock the hunter and he also cried out. In a split second of blinding light and painful energy the transfer between the two people he loved was made.

Sira cried out again as she grabbed blindly for the demigod. She pulled herself into his arms, clinging to him as her body spasmed.

"Sira?"

"Open your mind. Let me in."

"I… I can't seem to do it."

She took his lips with hers, letting her love for him flow out to him. He opened his mouth to take her tongue. As he did his mind opened to her. She cried out once again. She turned him over to put her hands on his back. Heat seemed to radiate from him in visible waves as his body tried to fight the infection that ravaged it. She took the knife from her waist pack to cut his shirt away, all the while keeping her legs against him to maintain the physical touch.

On his back was a lump as large as his fist, angry and enflamed. The center was sunken in a deep purple abscess. "I need water and the green liquid. I have to open the skin and let the infection out."

The old sailor took up the teapot to bring to her. Grabbing her pack he began to rummage through it. He held up a bottle, but the hunter shook his head, and reaching for the pack took out the clay jar sealed with a bit of wood at the top. He poured a generous portion of its contents into the water.

"Soak my knife, and wet a rag with the water."

He took the knife and put it in the water, then handed her a steaming hot rag. It burned her hands, but she hardly noticed as she placed the rag on the demigod's back. He moaned at the heat, but didn't move. The rag held in place by the Dea, Sira washed her hands in the green liquid. Then taking up her knife she took a deep breath to calm herself.

She nodded to the healer and the girl took the rag away. "I am sorry, my brother. There is something in your back that does not belong there. It must be removed if you are to heal."

He nodded, but said nothing.

With hands that shook slightly the girl poised the knife tip over the abscess. With another deep breath the empath bit her lower lip to keep herself from crying out as she made two cuts in the dead and decaying flesh of the half god's back. He stiffened but made no sound. A foul smelling, bloody puss oozed up and over the girl's hands and Dasay wiped it away as best she could.

"I have to clean out the wound and find the foreign substance that your body is rejecting." He only nodded again.

Sira tried to be as gentle as she could. Each move of the knife sent pain through them both. At first she felt nothing in the open wound that could account for the infection. Still, she sensed it there with her mind. Then the knife tip scraped against something and the half god cried out. His cry mingled with the empath's own.

Blood stained the back of the girl's shirt, fever shook her. Her hands trembled, and perspiration dripped from her chin. The hunter reached to take the knife from her hand.

"No. Clean your hands in the liquid first. Then you can take over."

He did as she instructed, then taking the knife from her he took a deep breath to steady himself. Hercules jerked as the knife tip once again touched something in his back. Iolaus tried again.

"Wait, Iolaus." The half god squirmed. "Give me a minute."

"I'm sorry, Herc. I can feel something in there but I can't seem to get to it."

"Okay. Go ahead." Rastist held the demigod's shoulders still and the golden one steadied himself. The knife dug deep and Sira whimpered.

"Damn it. I can't do this." The hunter searched his soul mate's face. "I can't hurt you, Sira."

"It is well, my soul. Do what you must. It may be our only chance."

The hunter nodded. "Why does it always have to be this way? Why must you always feel the pain of others?"

"Because I am a healer. It is what the earth has given to me. I would not want it any other way. Now, go ahead."

Rastist laid across the big man's legs as Hercus steadied his shoulders. Dasay held both his hands in hers. Once again the hunter put the knife to the wound. The apprentice healer almost cried out as the half god tightened his hold on her. Sira took a firm hold on her brother's back as she moaned with the pain the transfer brought to her.

Cutting a slightly larger opening Iolaus dug deep. A welling of puss filled the wound to trickle out over the half god's back. Then with a rush, blood and puss seemed to fountain forth, and with it came a creamy, pale green tip from the dragon's claw.

"You have done it." Sira's voice was reedy with pain. She'd sensed rather than seen the removal of the foreign object that poisoned the son of Zeus. "Clean as much of the puss away as you can, then the wound should be cauterized."

Dasay gasped. "You mean to burn it?"

"It is one way of killing the germs. The wound will need to drain, but the infection must be stopped. It is already attacking his body."

The hunter worked to clean out the wound. Perspiration burned his eyes as he worked, but he kept at it until the empath took the knife from him. "That should do. If the wound should seal back up you must reopen it."

He nodded. "What will we use to cauterized it?"

The girl looked around her. At the trader's belt were four large metal rings put there more for decoration than for any real purpose. "There, on Rastist's belt. Heat one of the rings and straighten it out first. Then heat one end."

Before she finished explaining the old one had cut one of the loops from his belt. He put it in the fire, then using a bit of wood, scooped coals over it to heat it.

Sira laid down beside the demigod, her hand over the wound in his back. He shivered as waves of fever and nausea shook him.

"I'm so cold."

Dasay put a blanket over him, then another.

The half god reached for her hand. "I love you, my promised one. No matter what happens, you have to believe that."

"I know that. I have never questioned that. I am so sorry I have done this to you."

"No. You haven't done anything wrong."

"I could not heal you."

"That's not your fault, it's mine. I'm the one who insisted you heal me. You begged me to go to Sira." He moaned with the pain that wracked his body. "Don't blame yourself. I need your help. Sira needs your help."

"I would give my life for either of you."

"No. Promise me that should this thing be more than I can fight, you'll help Sira. She's going to need all the help she can get. Call to Ares if I… if it comes to that. He helped her once. I think he'd do it again." The girl cried openly, the big man's hand held tightly in her own. "You opened my heart again, little healer. What I've had with you is so good, so real. I'm so proud to be in promise with you."

Iolaus took the empath's arm. "It's ready."

She sat up with his help. "I need to do this."

"You can hardly sit up."

"I will know best what to do."

The hunter had wrapped the end of the hot ring with a bit of leather so it wouldn't burn his hand. Carefully he handed it to the woman he loved. He looked deep into her eyes, searching them with love and compassion. He felt ill, not only from the effort of working at the abscess on the demigod's back. It was hard enough to do something like that at any time, but when such gruesome work had to be performed on someone you held in your heart as a brother it was much worse. Still, the thing that made him feel so physically affected by his ministerings was the pain it caused the other half of his soul. No matter how close he'd become with the earth, no matter how he'd learned to accept this wondrous and fascinating creature of the earth herself, he knew he would never be able to accept the pain she must endure for others.

With a nod at her he went to sit at her back. He knew she'd need his support. The red stain on her shirt made him gag, but he swallowed it to send both physical and mental strength to her.

The earth's chosen one took a deep breath to bring her mind and soul to focus. "Hold him down tightly. He must not move. If he jerks away from this it could cause more harm than good."

Rastist, Dasay, and Hercus held the big man down. He was only half aware of what was happening. Sira strengthened her mind's touch on him. With another deep breath the empath put the straightened ring, still red with heat to the open wound. Her cry mingled with her brother's. The hot metal sizzled against raw tissue and the empath gagged at the odor of burning flesh. With shaking hands she tossed the ring aside then pressed her hand against the wound on the demigod's back.

"We should wrap it, but only loosely."

Her hands still shaking, she dug in her pack for a bit of string that she dusted with a white powder. She tried to be as gentle as she could as she packed the wound with the string. It must stay open to drain or the infection could be caught beneath the newly forming skin to attack an already ravaged body. The empath was concerned by how quickly the poisons had spread to engulf the half god's organs. She could sense the weakness of his blood. For now, the real fight must be to keep his body from shutting down and allowing the poisons to pool within him and eat away at his life's force.

Too weak to sit now she laid down beside the man she loved more than a brother. She wrapped her arms around him, sending him warmth and healing. Her son put his hand over hers, channeling his own mind through hers to lend his strength and mind power. He'd learned a lot about healing from his mother and from his attempts to heal injured animals, but he had no idea how to help the chosen one with the thing that faced her now.

The Dea took a place beside the man she'd taken in promise, and sending her mind to the empath she also used her mind more to aid the one who took a part of the poison that drained the big man to herself.

Lost in fear for the two people he loved so completely the hunter took the half god's head into his lap, using damp cloths to soothe his friend's fevered brow. The old sailor put a blanket over Hercules. He felt lost and helpless. He had no real idea how to help with the healing. He'd always considered his mind strong and he'd always tried to keep that mind open to new things and things he couldn't understand. He'd heard many stories of the yosemin girl who traveled with the bigger than life half god hero of the people, but he admitted he hadn't really believed most of them. His friend from the island had told a tale that touched his heart, and yet still he was skeptical of the real truth of the story.

He'd sensed the girl's mind on his, this he admitted. He'd sensed her energy in the air before. He'd spoken to the girl's chosen father at length while he lay in physical touch with the empath. Rastist had found it hard to believe what the elder told him, and yet Sira, while hearing all he said, never denied any of it. She'd even added a few things at times, as had the demigod and the hunter. He'd seen the elder of the clan of the wolf and the lion seem to gain strength and health in just days. He'd sensed the almost painful energy the empath generated while in the healing.

Still, despite these things he'd still not truly believed. Not until he'd seen the blood on the girl's shoulder. He admitted now that seeing it had frightened him for a moment. Not so much because he feared for her health as because the things she could do were beyond his understanding. How were these things possible? How could someone take another's pain and illness to themselves? Where did this power come from?

He built up the fire then left camp to go for more wood. The day had been almost too warm, but they were high in the mountains and the night would be cold. He brought back a load of wood then left the camp once more to set several snares. They had supplies, but not enough to last if they were stuck here for long. Somehow he knew it would be up to him to provide the others with wood and food. He'd left the camp with a feeling of helplessness, a feeling he didn't like. But now, now he felt a wave of… Of what? Comfort? Where had it come from? Now he understood his place and the roll he must take, a roll he was well suited for. He would be the one to care for the others' comfort. He could hunt and he could find wood. He could cook and carry water. Maybe he was needed here after all. His heart lighter and his mind more focused, he gathered more wood and returned to camp.

Continued