The warlord Kirilus has just checked on the young women his soldiers captured to sell as slaves, when Ares appears. The god of war tells him of how pleased he is with the work Kirilus has done to assemble his army in such a short time. He then tells him he has found his successor. The warlord is upset. He tells Ares that no man could do a better job with his army. Ares tells him the one who will replace him isn’t a man. Kirilus realizes he means Xena. When Ares leaves, the warlord begins to make plans to prevent that from happening. Xena and Gabrielle are in a tree not from Kirilus’s camp. They heard the cries for help and are there to rescue the women. They notice a man come from out of the woods and confront the guards. When he begins to get into trouble, Xena jumps down from the tree and goes to help him. She brings him back to where Gabrielle is and treats his injured arm. When Gabrielle calls out her name, the man looks surprised. He tells Xena that he’s her father, Atrius. The warrior doesn’t believe him. Xena heads back to the camp. While she fights the guards, Gabrielle frees the captives. One of the women runs away from the group, and the bard orders the others to wait there. Xena arrives and sends them on into the woods. When Gabrielle catches up to the woman, one of Kirilus’s men starts after him. Atrius appears and knocks the man out. Xena arrives just in time to see that. Atrius insists on trying to help her and Gabrielle return the women to their village, but she refuses his help and continues to deny he’s her father.
Ares returns to Kirilus. He taunts the man about loosing his captives and about Xena taking over his army. Kirilus says he won’t take orders from Xena. The god of war tells him he won’t have to. He’ll be dead. When Xena and Gabrielle stops the group for a rest, the bard goes and talks to the one who ran away. Rhea explains that when Kirilus’s men came and grabbed the women, she volunteered to go. She tells Gabrielle that she did it for her sister. Gabrielle also manages to get Xena to talk about her father. She has a happy memory of him, but says that she was fine with him leaving. Suddenly Atrius appears on horseback. He’s being chased by a couple of men, as he calls for Xena’s help. The men accuse him of stealing the horse. Atrius insists that he won it from them. As the men are heading back to the village they came from, Xena stops them and they confirm that Atrius did win the horse.
Kirilus sends one of his men out with a dart blower out to kill Xena. But the warrior snatches the dart from the air, before it can hit anyone. She then locates the man and breaks the dart blower. Atrius corners the man. He’s angry that the man tried to kill Xena. They fight, and Atrius disarms him. Gabrielle enters the clearing in time to see Atrius stab the man, who was surrendering. When Xena approaches, the bard tells her what she saw. But Atrius says it was self defense – the man had a dagger. Xena rolls the man over, and sees the dagger on the ground. Gabrielle is puzzled. She didn’t think the man was armed. Atrius tells Gabrielle that he realizes that she and Xena are a team. And once the former captives are returned to their village, then he will leave. Gabrielle talks to Rhea and comes to a decision. She goes to Xena and tells her that she will take the women on to the village while the warrior and Atrius wait for Kirilus and his army.
written by Adam Armus and Nora Kay Foster
directed by Charles Siebert
music by Joseph LoDucaGuest Cast: Kevin Smith (Ares), Tom Atkins (Atrius), Stephen Lovatt (Kirilus), Sonia Gray (Rhea), Nancy Broadbent (Areliesa), Lutz Halbhubner (Tarkis), Heidi Anderson (Slave Girl), Robin Kora (Village Elder), John Manning (Ranch Hand #1), James Marcum (Warrior #3), Mark Perry (Warrior #1), Tony Williams (Warrior #2)
LogBook entry by Mary Terrell