"Is that the best you can do?" Xena yelled at her. "I thought you were a god? You’re nothing but a joke!"

"Then laugh THIS off!" Gabrielle yelled back as she threw out one hand at Xena, and a black cloud drove her to the edge of the lake, where it was especially muddy.

Xena jumped up from the mud, hollering as she did, "So now you want to throw your powers around! Well just remember, I’ve been taking care of gods WAY before you ever thought about being one."

Gabrielle threw out a ball of fire toward Xena, yelling back, "Take care of this!"

Xena leapt and rolled to the side, avoiding the flaming orb. She rolled twice more and came up with her chakram in hand. And without missing a beat sailed it at Gabrielle.  Gabrielle hurled a fireball at the chakram, but when it hit, the chakram split into two, each circling away and then back at Gabrielle.

Gabrielle sent a fireball to one half of the chakram, knocking it off course and into the ground. She then sent a second one at Xena. 

Just as the second half of the chakram was about to hit Gabrielle on her blind side, and just before the fireball was about to blast into Xena’s face, Ares appeared, and with twin blue energy orbs of his own deflected away both the half-Chakram and the ball of fire.  And before either Gabrielle or Xena could react, he hit them both with two more spheres, but with only enough energy to knock both women off their feet.

"Don’t move! Either one of you! I’ve got plenty more where those came from!"

"Ares!" Xena and Gabrielle yelled together.

"What in Hades do you think you’re doing?"

"Have you lost your mind?"

"Have  * I *  lost  * MY *  mind? Look at you two. Just look at what you’re doing! You’re giving Dahak exactly what he wants! You’re both trying to KILL each other!"

As they slowly got to their feet, Xena and Gabrielle suspiciously eyed the other. "What are you talking about?" Gabrielle asked.

"Can’t you see what’s happening? This evil energy Dahak has been spreading around is starting to affect both of you. Xena, you said had a feeling that something bad was going to happen. And even though you said Gabrielle didn’t feel it, I knew she had to.  Well, now you know what it is. Dahak has been spreading his evil presence slowly and relentlessly. And it has affected everyone! My followers are fighting among themselves, and even I can’t control them. Poor Aphrodite is beside herself. Every couple she’s made fall in love is fighting."