Quick and Simple...I must've been exaggerating or something.

By: Emerald (yada, yada, yada, you know...)

Oh yeah. This was quick and simple alright. A quick and simple mess-up+ACE- I

was back with Hope, bringing the Devil back. I was with Callisto, we weren't

crying. Actually, we were laughing. Thinking about Xena, and the next time

we're aloud to see her. I know, we had to be aloud to see her? Well, you

have ups-and-downs about joining the Devil if you'll even consider it. Hey,

my friend's life was on the line, okay? Bare with me+ACE- After me and Callisto

died down with the noise, Hope walked up to us.

Hope: Now that you two shut-up, I can talk.

Call: I don't care. I wanna know when we can see Xena. It's been a week

already+ACE-

Hope: Calm down, auntie. You'll be able to see her. Wait a minute, huh?

That's what I came to talk to you about. Yes, Xena is alive, but we're

having trouble getting ahold of her. She keeps escaping.

Me: Have you tried telling her the truth? That if she stays put she'll see

us.

Hope: I thought you said tell her the truth.

Me: WHAT?+ACE-?+ACE-

Hope: Relax, it was a joke.

Call: Now she's making up jokes that aren't even funny?

Hope: Be nice.

Me: Xena+ACE-

Hope +ACY- Callisto: What?

Me: Xena+ACE-

I pushed Hope and Callisto out of the way and ran to Xena who was standing

behind Ares. I hugged her.

Ares: Found her.

Me: How are you? What's up? Sit down. Make yourself comfortable.

Xena pulled away from me.

Xena: Get away from me.

Me: What?

Xena: Your working for Dehak? Your working with the force that killed my

son? How could you?

Call: Xena...

Xena: You, shut-up. I knew you would do something like this.

Me: Xena- it was the only way to keep you from going back to Tartarus.

Xena: I would've rather stayed there than have you live here.

Me: Xena..please...I didn't know what to do.

Ares laughed. Hope had a sigh of relief as I started to cry. Hope walked up

to Ares and hugged him. She kept her eyes on me and Xena the whole time and

smiled as she saw me crying. Xena closed her eyes and hugged me. Ares and

Hope rolled their eyes and Callisto came up to us and hugged us. I guess

you'd call it a +ACI-Group Hug+ACI-.

Ares: Alright, alright. Your time is running out, people.

Xena rested her head on mine.

Xena: Shut-up, Ares.

Later, I found me, Xena, and Callisto at a table talking.

Xena: Anyway, it was the hardest time I'd ever have down there. Did you know

you have to sleep on beds as hot as lava? Or as cold as ice? Sometimes you

don't even get a bed.

Call: Oh I can't wait until I'm dead.

Xena: Don't worry Callisto, Tartarus is too violent for you. Yea, even you.

Me: Yikes. That must be violent.

Xena: You two have nothing to worry about.

Me (proudly): Hades said I'd be a perfect person for the Elysian Fields.

Call: He did not. He said you have to be pure. +ACI-Like You+ACI-

Xena: It doesn't matter, anyway.

Callisto leaned over, looked at Hope, and was about to whisper something but

Ares interrupted.

Ares: See ya, Xena. We must get to work.

Callisto stood up.

Call: Oh C'mon+ACE-

Ares: Hey, you wanna yell, yell at Hope. She gave me the orders to +ACI-get rid

of Xena, time to get Dehak ready for his big Earth debut.+ACI-

Xena: I always knew she was a witch.

Me: Let's not get testy, Xena. We'll see you...

I looked at Ares pathetically.

Me: ...sooner or later.

Xena walked in the back of the temple. Not looking back at us, she waved.

Before long, Me and Callisto were in the same robes I was in before,

listening to Hope stand above the lava pit where we so recently died, making

her never-ending speech for Dehak to arise. Callisto and I kept looking at

each other, laughing at Hope. To my suprise, Ares was listening and

snickering to the jokes we were making about her. After that, it grew dark

as me and Callisto sat as far away from Hope and Ares as possible. About two

in the morning, everyone was sleeping and I was thinking about how the

centaurs felt since we just abandoned them so. And why Kymber was acting so

weird. She seems so familiar to me. And yet I wonder, when she's not around

me, her family says she's the sweetest and most loving kid they've ever

witnessed. And thats gotta be true coming from someone with a few kids of

their own. I started to talk to myself. You know, think out loud? Well, it

woke up Callisto.

Call: What's wrong?

Me: Nothing. I was just thinking about Kymber. She reminds me so much of

Sydni.

Call: Who's Sydni?

Me: My daughter.

Call: How many kids did you have, woman?

Me: A couple 10 or 12.

Call: What?+ACE-?+ACE-

Me: Calm down. It was a joke.

Call: Don't scare me, not in the middle of the night, anyway. So, you have

how many kids?

Me: Two daughters. One good, one bad. Yada, yada, yada.

Call: Where's Sydni, now? How old was she? Details, Gabby+ACE- Details+ACE-

Me: Okay, she was 12 when I found her, a day or two after I found her I

found out Ares was her father, then we had a big blow-off with a wedding---

Call: WAIT+ACEAIQAh- Back up, hon.. Ares is her father?

I buried my head in my hands and nodded. I opened one eye enough to see

Callisto's wide-opened eyes.

Call: Are you quacky? YOU and ARES? Had a kid? Please, for Zeus sake, tell

me your joking again+ACE-

Me: Shhh+ACE- We're going to wake up someone...and yes. But I didn't know that

he was who he was, I thought he was my old boyfriend, Toshipa, at the time.

As for Ares? I don't think he knew we would ever meet again.

Call: And when you two first met for the second time?

Me: Well, he didn't show any signs of ever knowing me before. Then again...

Call: Then again what? What, girl, what?

Me: Calm down. Then again he picked on me alot, calling me things like

+ACI-annoying blonde+ACI- and +ACI-brat+ACI- and stuff like that. So...

Call: So, they say that people tease each other when they like each other

but don't want to show it.

I shrugged.

Me: Ya know what I think?

Call: Whatcha think?

Me: I think...It's weird because I was telling you about Sydni and we ending

up talking about +ACI-The Signs You Can Look For When You Think The God of War

Likes You.+ACI-

Call: That is weird. Anyway, back to Sydni. What happened to her?

Me: That's what I was saying. She's alive, somewhere. But a couple of days

after we left she was kidnapped. Ransom. Someone left a note saying...I

can't remember. But I still have it.

Call: You do?+ACE-

Me: Yeah. Get my scrolls? There over there.

Callisto handed me my scrolls and I opened one called +ACI-New Girl in Town Part

Four+ACI- The note was curled up inside the scroll.

Me: It said, +ACI-Your young daughter, Sydni, is with me. I have her. She's safe

but I want everything you've got before you can have her back. Unless you

pay up, she'll die. You wouldn't be able to send me to jail because I work

with the fates...

My voice trailed off.

Me: +ACI-blah blah blah.+ACI- Anyway, the point is, we sent everything we had, and

he never sent her back. And...Kymber reminds me of her so much. It's only

been 2 years since we lost Sydni. And some nights I've had dreams that

Kymber was Sydni. She's old enough, ya know.

Before we knew it, it was morning and the sun was coming up. Callisto was

sleeping but I had stayed awake all night. I got out my scrolls.

Me (writing): +ACI-It was a warm day in Athens, the flowers were just beginning

to sprout. A sure sign of spring. The kids played and played. But one stood

out. Her name was Kymber....+ACI- Writer's block+ACE-

I put the scrolls down and looked up at the top of the temple. A hole let in

little light. I packed up all my blankets and pillows and sat. It was at

least 8:00pm and Hope still wasn't up. Callisto, me, and Ares kind of took

this as a break from mighty-darkness-worshiping all day. 9:00...9:30...

Call: Do you think she's dead? Maybe someone snuck in at night and killed

her.

Ares: Couldn't have been. You two were up all night yapping. He would've

been scared away by the sounds of your irritating voices.

Callisto was about to make a smart comment but she realized that he knew he

heard us last night and looked at me wide-eyed. I was already staring at her

with the same expression. I ran to her and pulled her to the side where Ares

couldn't hear us.

Me: A..aha...aaah+ACE-...I...c..ca..can't..talk..ne..eed...Awa..Awa..waaterr+ACE-

Call: Aaah+ACE- I can't talk...need water?

I nodded frantically. Callisto shoved the water jug in my face.

Call:Here+ACE-

Me: Thank you.

Call: Do you think he heard?

Me: WHAT DO YOU THINK?+ACE-??+ACE-?+ACE-?+ACEAIQAhACEAIQ-

Call: Ex-cuuuse me+ACE-

Me: SHHH+ACEAIQAhACEAIQAhACE-

Call: Me? Ha+ACE-

Me: Sorry. Just upset. You know we're dead right?

Call: Maybe dead in our minds. Do you know how embarrassing this is?

Me: Oh...yeah. I think I have a clue, Callisto.

Call: I'm so so sorry. I shouldn't have asked you about Sydni.

Me: It's not your fault, okay?

Call: Okay.

Me: Hmph+ACE-

Ares called from the other side of the temple.

Ares: Oh gi-irls+ACE- She's u-up+ACE-

Call: B..Be right there+ACE- (whispering to me) Do you really wanna be in his

presence right now?

Me: No+ACE-

Call: Then C'mon+ACE-

Me (mumbling to myself): That made no sense.

Call: Oh, quit complaining.

She pulled me, not letting me go, she spoke.

Call: We're ready+ACE-

Hope: Good. +ACo-yawning+ACo- Today Dehak will contact us.

Call: This should be fun.

Me: Could you..like...possibly, get your hand off me, Callisto?

Call: Oh. Oh? Oh+ACE- Sure.

Me: Thanks a bunch.

A couple minutes later, after failing to talk to Dehak, (Hope fell asleep)

we sat some more...waiting for Hope to awaken. I sat on a rock. Callisto sat

on the stable-like floor. Ares stood, being the pathetic, macho-man he

thinks he is. Callisto got up and got her blankets out. She laid on them.

Me: What are you doing?

Call: If she gets to sleep, I get to sleep.

I sighed.

Me: And if she wakes up?

Call: You know where I am..

Me: Well, if you get to sleep, I get to sleep+ACE-

I walked over to my things and pulled out my blankets. It got colder and I

sat up holding my covers around me.

Me: Why is she sleeping so late? It's not like her. She's usually up around

6:00am bugging me and Callisto to get up.

Ares: I don't know what's going on. She's been acting very weird lately.

Me: I've noticed.

I yawned.

Ares: Gabrielle?

I yawned again.

Me: What?

Ares: I heard you last night.

Me: I figured that.

Ares: You were right.

Me: Huh?

Ares: Kymber.

Ares walked towards me. He knelt.

Ares: Kymber is Sydni.

Me: What? How? How would you know...

Ares: Do you remember when you +ACI-thought she was acting weird+ACI- at that little

speech Callisto gave?

Me: Yes.

Ares: Well, It was me she was looking at when she looked over her shoulder.

When she nodded her head it was because I asked her if she was Sydni. Then

she ran into the hut like you saw.

Me: How did you know it was her?

Ares: Well, when Sydni was 12/13, she did alot of things that caught my eye,

when I saw Kymber do the same things, I figured, when she was kidnapped---

Me: You knew about that?

Ares: Uh, yeah. Anyway, I thought when she was kidnapped, maybe the centaurs

found her or something. She did the same things as Sydni, and was the right

age...I asked the rest.

Me: Sydni? My little Sydni? Does she know who I am?

Ares: I'm not sure. I just know that she remembers her mother...Toshipa, and

her father.

Me: You...

Ares: Me...

I sighed and yawned at the same time.

Me: You know I hate this, right?

Ares: Yes...I do,

Hope yawned in her sleep. She turned over. One eye open, one eye still

closed.

Hope: Good morning...

Ares: Maybe in your world. Good afternoon, Hope.

Hope: Really? Did Dehak call?

Ares: Nope.

Hope: Stop by?

Ares: What do you think, Hope?+ACE-

Hope: Sorry, I just have the feeling he's had it with me. Am I taking too

long?

Me: Please, girl+ACE- Your talking about him like he's an old boyfriend.

Hope: Heh, funny. Why is Callisto sleeping? We need her to go raze a village

for us+ACE-

Me: Raze a village?

Ares: Oh yeah, that.

Me: What?

Hope: We need sacrifices, mother.

Me: But innocent people?

Hope: The only ones we can get, we get...

Within a few hours, Callisto woke up, went out to capture people, and

brought them back. She hurried towards me.

Call: Gabby+ACE-

Me: What?

Call: I brought Kymber.

Me: You brought who?+ACE-?+ACE-

Call: Kymber+ACE- I know you wanted to see her, I thought I'd help.

Me: But you shouldn't have brought her here+ACE- Hope going to kill her+ACE-

Call: Hey, I'm a listener. You said he was Ares' daughter, too. Right? He

won't let Kymber die by his girlfriend's hands. Trust me.

Me: I'm trusting you, but if Kymber dies, you die with her.

Ares: Excuse me, Kymber is  here?

I guess he overhears everything.

Me: Yeah. Don't even go near her, Ares.

Ares: You do know Hope is going to kill her, right?

Me: Not if I have anything to do with it.

I ran up to Hope.

Me: Anything I can do?

Hope: Not really.

Me: Please? Get them ready for their death or something?

Hope: Actually, That would be helpful.

Me: Glad to help+ACE-

Hope: Go into their cages, put robes on the men and boys, put shirts and

long cloths on the women and girls.

Me: Okay.

Well, of course you know I went to the cage where Kymber and some other

people were. All the people I directed to sit on the floor.

Kym: Gabrielle+ACE-

Me: Shhh, go to the back of the temple through the right door, do not look

back, okay?

Take these..

I gave her clothes assigned for the women and girls. Once she was safe, I

had dressed everyone and went to the back of the temple where Kymber was

waiting, shaking and crying.

Me: Hey, don't worry. How did you get here?

Kym: Callisto.

Me: Oh, right. I knew that.

Kym: Gabrielle, I'm very scared. I don't know what to do+ACE-

Me: I do.

I stayed with her for a while. Then I went back to the main room where the

sacrifices were being....killed. In cold blood. By Hope's devilishly crazy

mind powers. I saw Andrew. He was the next to be killed. I ran to get him

out. When I reached his cage, I tried to open it and got an electric shock.

Hope must have had them...well...I don't know. She must have had them locked

electrically. Anyway, the point was he saw me. Kicking his back legs and

waving his front legs, Hope took him away.

Hope: I hope your not saving these people, mother. You know we need them,

right?

Me: Of course Hope.

I tried to save him though. It didn't work. Hope caught me and tied me to a

post that was coming out of the wall. I was hanging. My hands tied backwards

around the post, my feet tied together and to the post. I was really,

really, scared. I was right above a pit. A dark pit that seemed to go on and

on and on and on and on and on and on. Scary. At any given time, Hope could

untie me with her powers, and let me fall. Any given time. But mostly, I was

worried Hope would find Syd--Kymber.

Me: Hope?+ACE- I'm really, really sorry+ACE-

Hope spoke to me through my mind so she wouldn't have to yell.

::::Mother, you lied to me.::::

I knew Hope could read my mind so I thought my answer to that...not that

there was much of one.

::::Sorry 'bout that. I will never happen again?:::::

::::You don't sound to sure of yourself::::

::::Would I lie?::::

::::Obviously::::

::::Ouch. Please, just get me down+ACE- Tie me up down there. You try being up

here+ACE-::::

::::Try it yourself, mother::::

She untied me. I was floating and I knew it was over for me. To my suprise

she let me down and tied me up on the floor. It was getting darker and

Kymber had no food. It was night and everyone was sleeping. I called

Callisto. She came over to me. Before I could say anything, she spoke.

Call: No. I will not untie you. they will know I did it and we will both be

killed.

Me: I don't want you to untie me. I want you to get Kymber. Bring her food

and water. Some decent clothes, maybe.

Call: She's still alive?

Me: Yes. Go, now+ACE-

Callisto nodded and ran to the back of the temple where I had told her to

go. Soon, Callisto came back with Kymber who was sleeping. Callisto was

holding her. I looked around.

Me: I did not say bring her here+ACE-

Call: Well, I had to get her out of there. She must've cried herself to

sleep. There were thousands of spiders in there+ACE- She was on a high altar,

Gabrielle. I wasn't going to leave her there.

Suddenly, Kymber moved. She opened her eyes and screamed. Callisto put her

hand over Kymber's mouth.

Call: Shhh+ACEAIQ- I'm a good guy. Me, and your mom are working together to save

you.

I tried to get Callisto's attention without yelling so I could tell her I

hadn't told Kymber I was her mom. It didn't work. Callisto lifted her hand

off of her mouth.

Kym: Impossible.

Call: What?

Kym: You found my mom?

Call: Found her? I've known her for quite some time, Kymber.

Kym: Where is she?

Call: Over there.

Callisto brought Kymber to me.

Kym: That's not my mom, stupid+ACE- That's my friend. Put me down. You've got

the wrong Gabrielle. My Gabrielle lives with Xena and does not work for

Dehak.

Me: Actually...I don't work for Dehak. And I'm not aloud to live with Xena

anymore. I am your mother.

Kym: And I just won a beauty pageant...

I thought.

Me: Well, not now you didn't, but when you were 7, you did. You told me that

yourself.

Kym: But...anyone could've known that.

Me: Okay, here's something you told me you never told anyone to before. When

you were 4, the town had a party and you started dancing. But, you danced

right after you ate and when the song was over, you threw up.

Kymber widened her eyes.

Kym: Mom?

I smiled.

Kym: Mom+ACE- It all adds up, you look like her, you talk like her, wow+ACEAIQAh-

Me: Wow, alright.

Kym: Who's your twin? Or, who's your evil twin?

Me: Hope...

Kym: Hope??+ACEAIQ-?+ACE-?+ACE-?+ACEAIQ-?+ACE-

Call: SSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHH+ACEAIQAhACEAIQAhACEAIQAhACEAIQAhACEAIQAhACEAIQAhACEAIQAhACEAIQAhACEAIQAhACEAIQ-

Hope: It's too late for Shhh, Callisto.

Me: Hope.

Kym: Hope+ACE- Sister?

Hope: Sister?

Kym: I'm your sister.

Kymber spoke slowly like Hope was a 2 year old. Hope looked at me and

laughed evily.

Hope: Is this true, mother? Is this....child, my sister?

I smiled sheepishly.

Hope: Well, well. Does it have a name?

Kym: I'm not an +ACI-it+ACI-. My name is Sydni.

Me: I thought your name was Kymber?

Sydni/Kymber: Nah. My name is Sydni.

Hope: Well, Sydni...nice to meet you.

Callisto laughed under her breath.

Call: Can't we all just go to sleep, now? We'll talk tomorrow.

Hope: No, no, not yet. someone wants to meet you, Sydni.

Syd: Who?

Hope: His name is Dehak.

Hope grabbed Sydni and Callisto grabbed Hope. I guess it was tough for her

because she let go. Hope walked over to the pit and lifted Sydni. She threw

her. Down, down, down, and down some more. I screamed bloody murder. Then I

broke out in tears. And then I saw something rising from the pit. Sydni?

Yes+ACE- It was Sydni. But how? I scanned the temple. I found my answer. Ares...

Me: Thank the Gods.

Callisto pointed at Ares.

Call: No, Thank that God.

Me: Yeah, whatever. Untie me+ACE-

Call: Fine.

Callisto untied me and when I was free, I ran to Sydni and picked her up.

Syd: Mom? Please, your embarrasing me+ACE- I'm 14+ACE-

Me: No, your 15.

Syd: In a couple of days, yeah.

Me: Oh, well. Okay.

Sydni looked at Ares.

Syd: Memories..the painful memories.

Me: I know what you mean, I really do.

I was about to get up but I turned around and a knife was at my throat.

Callisto was holding it.

Call: Oh, Gabby+ACE- I'm back...

...To Be Continued...