"Around the hill a warrior's destroying our men." "Gabrielle, no!" "I'm so sorry." "Can you ever forgive me?" "In the time of ancient gods, warlords and kings a land in turmoil cried out for a hero." "She was Xena." "A mighty princess forged in the heat of battle." "The power..." "The passion..." "The danger..." "Her courage will change the world." "XENA, THE WARRIOR PRINCESS" "Why were you fighting these people, Dach?" "We thought they might be on their way to Zoras." "You were wrong." "These two are on a journey..." "A quest." "And they're our allies in our fight against darkness." "My name is Najara." "I'm Gabrielle." "This is Xena." "You've suffered much, Gabrielle, but you've retained your good heart." "And you have chosen to fight the darkness within you." "What courage that takes." "Please, forgive us." "How do you know all that?" "The jinn told me." "The jinn?" "Yes, they're my guides through life." "Are they spirits?" "They're the jinn That's all I know." "I'd love to stay and talk more to you but I know my men are anxious to move." "Bonacar!" "I hope you find what you're looking for." "Once again, please, forgive us." "It was an honest mistake." "What's she doin'?" "Would you like to join us on our mission?" "What's your mission?" "To fight evil, wherever we find it." "Can you be a little more specific?" "We're riding against Marat." "Marat of Crete?" "You know him?" "I've heard of him." "He's a dangerous man." "Yes, he is." "My men thought you were working with him." "That's why they attacked you." "What's he doing in Phoenicia?" "Hunting for slaves to bring back to Crete." "A raiding party of his men are on their way to harvest human beings from the village of Zoras." "About a day's ride from here." "We're going to stop them." "We can do it without you, but the jinn think that you should come and I would love that." "What do you think?" "I suppose we could travel with you a while." "Xena's a skilled healer." "I'm sure she could tend to your men." "Since it was all a misunderstanding, sure." "You're both very kind." "Are you looking for Marat's men?" "No, I'm just enjoying the scenery." "You do that too?" "Yes, all the time." "Najara..." "How long have you been hearing the jinn?" "Since I was a little girl." "At first, they frightened me." "After a while, I began to trust them and now they're my best friends." "They're so wonderful, so full of love and goodness..." "Where do they come from?" "The light." "They're sent to me so that I can fight the darkness." "It's quite a responsibility." "Well, I think we've smelled the flowers enough." "Come on." "Let's get back to the others." "Strive on our labors for thee" "Long may our voices sing" "Praises to thee we'll bring" "Glory to thee" "Ever and ever" "Well, it's a good thing our fight against evil doesn't depend on our singing." "We should all get some sleep." "My men are very grateful for the care you gave them." "You both would be very valuable in my hospice." "Where is your hospice?" "Up here It's only a dream, now." "It would be a place where anyone could come to be healed Poor and rich alike." "We would care for lepers, those too old to tend for themselves, men and women with diseases of the mind as well as the body." "It's sole purpose would be to relieve suffering." "There's so much good to be done, and so little time to do it..." "About tomorrow..." "Of course." "Marat's men should be arriving by morning." "We need to move on the village at dawn if we want to stop them." "How do you know about this raid?" "One of Marat's personal slaves escaped, came to me and informed me of his plans." "When?" "You don't trust me?" "Take my sword and command my army." "Don't let them do anything you don't think is right." "You can keep your sword." "But I will take command of your men." "Wonderful." "I can't tell you how much I love the challenge of winning your confidence." "And you should listen to her." "Don't trust me too soon." "Xena's wiser in that way." "Sleep well." "Oh, we will." "You're a tough sell." "I'm not going into any village with any army unless I'm sure I'm doing the right thing." "I understand." "I don't know what to make of her." "So that's the village?" "It's too quiet." "I'm going in." "Don't move until we get the signal from Xena." "Quit fighting us!" "That's it!" "Bonacar!" "Gabrielle!" "You fought with great courage." "That can be a virtue, but only when it's used on the side of the light Against darkness." "The capture and selling of people is wrong." "Listen up!" "It shames both its victims and those who would profit from this evil." "Slavery paves the path to darkness." "We can offer you initiation into the way of the light." "Let us help you." "Do you think it got through to them?" "I hope so." "Turning people away from their dark side is the most important thing I do." "Who knows..." "Some of these men, one day, might be great leaders of the light." "Forgive those people, they're confused and misguided." "Don't let hatred poison your hearts." "Now, go to your homes, and live good lives." "Thank you." "Bless you." "Thank you." "I love you, Xena." "It's a great curse to have seen one's own death." "The jinn told you?" "Yes But not everything." "Your vision of death..." "Does it...?" "Yes." "It includes Gabrielle." "Does she know?" "No." "That's fortunate for her." "Do you think it can be avoided?" "Of course." "I believe our destiny is in our hearts." "But it will take drastic measures to change an event you've foreseen in your soul's eye." "Xena?" "There you are." "Listen, I don't know what your plans are, but Marat controls a village about a day's ride from here." "He uses it as a center for his slave trade." "That's where I'm headed." "Would you like to join me?" "Yes." "Sure." "Wonderful." "Gabrielle..." "You've been awful quiet." "You all right?" "Yeah, I was just thinking about yesterday Amazing." "Yeah, amazing." "Swans!" "Looks like they're headed for Kuta lake." "Let's go see them up close." "We'll catch up with you at Revo falls." "Will you join us?" "No, thanks." "I'm not one for bird-watching." "I guess I was wrong." "Well, maybe they're circling?" "Do swans circle?" "I don't know." "Why don't you ask the jinn?" "They're not with me right now and I don't think they know much about swans." "Can I ask you something?" "Personal." "Of course." "You seem so happy..." "It's like what you're doing has so much meaning for you..." "Am I right?" "I don't think about it much, but now that you mention it Yes, I'm very happy." "You're not?" "I just..." "I don't know if I'm on the right path in my life." "You fight for good." "What other path is there?" "You mentioned opening a hospice." "That would be a good way, too." "Why don't you do that?" "I don't mind if you start without me." "You see, if I do that then Xena and I have to go our separate ways." "She's not the hospice type." "Yes, I see." "She's on a different path." "Well Perhaps you need to commit totally to your life with Xena." "You two do a lot of good." "We do." "Najara..." "Does the violence ever bother you?" "I assume that you've killed before?" "Yes, as little as possible, but sometimes it's inevitable." "I don't think I could get used to that." "Gabrielle, you need to make a full commitment to the light." "It will give you faith that what you're doing is right." "The light..." "I need something." "Swan..." "Let's get a closer look." "Marat's main slave center is here." "We'll hit it in the morning from the east, so that the sun will be at our backs." "The most important thing is to make sure the people being held as slaves are not harmed." "Remember..." "There are children among them." "Let us move swiftly." "So, where's Marat?" "He rarely comes into the slave center." "He has a stronghold in the foothills east of the village." "Then that's where I'm headed." "I thought we'd all go after him once we've taken the village." "He could swoop down while you're in the middle of freeing the slaves." "It could get messy." "But going after Marat alone..." "I'll take my chances." "Look, I've learned you should listen to Xena when it comes to this sort of thing." "All right!" "Xena will go after Marat, while we take the village." "What is your plan of attack?" "When do we head out?" "I'm heading out before dawn." "You stay with Najara." "Are you sure?" "Sure." "I need you there to make sure those children are safe." "Xena?" "The jinn?" "No..." "I recognized your footsteps." "The jinn haven't visited me all day." "Sometimes they disappear for weeks at a time." "I'm never angry, though." "I understand." "They're very busy." "There's so much darkness in the world..." "Najara, your hospice Why don't you start it in the village you're going to take tomorrow?" "Now I understand." "You don't plan to return after your mission against Marat." "You want a place to leave Gabrielle." "She'll die if she stays with me." "You said it would take something drastic to change our destiny Maybe this is it." "As soon as she realizes you've left her, you know she'll follow you." "I see such joy in her eyes when she talks to you about your mission..." "She's been looking for meaning." "I think you can give it to her." "It hasn't always been good for her being with me." "I seem to hurt her." "I know she forgives you." "I promise I'll do everything I can to justify your trust." "You better." "Thanks." "Goodbye, Gabrielle." "There you are, my friend." "You're welcome." "This must have been a very difficult time for you all." "Don't carry it with you." "Live life to its fullest." "Seize every day as an opportunity to do good." "And remember You're always free to turn to the light that drives away all darkness." "We'll make sure you have some food for your journey back home." "And some of my men will escort you at least, part of the way." "As you travel, I want you to tell all you meet who are sick and suffering, that I am here, That I am opening a hospice here to care for them." "Goodbye And may the light illiuminate your way." "Thank you." "For you." "Oh, thank you." "You're slave traders..." "What shall I do with you?" "I'll tell you what I want to do." "I want to forgive you and love you all as brothers." "But I can't do that unless you turn to the light." "And there's no reason why you can't." "We'll be glad to initiate you into the way." "Just let the light in..." "and the darkness will be gone." "Are you really going to open a hospice?" "Yeah." "Right here?" "Now?" "Of course." "I wanna be initiated into the way of the light." "Good morning, Marat." "Do it." "Get it over with." "Do what?" "What you do to all the people you defeat." "Cut their throats if they don't turn to the light." "What did you say?" "I've heard all about you, Najara..." "How you give your captives three days to turn good before you execute them!" "If you think I'm gonna pay lip service to your mumbo-jumbo just so you can kill me anyway when you decide I'm not being sincere you're dead wrong!" "Where'd you hear all this?" "I talked to a couple of men who escaped the massacre at Tyre when you sent twenty men to your light." "Come on, Najara..." "Kill me now and get it over with." "Do it, you filth..." "Flowers cannot blossom without the light of the sun." "Nor can the human soul flourish without the warming glow of the eternal spirit." "Gabrielle..." "Walk into the light, and look no more on the darkness." "All right." "Yes." "Show us our course" "Lead us to glory" "And through the darknest night" "Strengthen our will to fight" "Justice our cause" "Faith is our beacon" "Xena?" "I'm glad you came." "Najara..." "I didn't expect to see you." "There's been a change of plans." "Why is that?" "I captured Marat." "Congratulations." "He told me some interesting things about you." "He said that you offer prisoners three days to turn to the light and then you kill them." "He's a slave trader." "You don't believe him, do you?" "Come on, Najara How about it?" "Do you execute unarmed men without a trial?" "Definitely not." "You see, Xena?" "I liberate their souls." "What does that mean?" "Gabrielle, we're talking about thieves, slave traders, murderers and pirates Not decent people." "So you execute them without a trial?" "A hearing?" "What hearing or trial did these men here the people they were going to enslave?" "In order for good to triumph, we must eradicate evil." "I always give evildoers a chance to turn to the light, but if they refuse or I sense their conversion isn't sincere I send them to look onto the light." "Najara..." "Come on, Gabrielle." "No!" "Gabrielle has turned to the light." "She's my responsibility now." "As you said yourself you hurt her." "That's not going to happen again." "Najara, don't do this." "Get out of the way, Gabrielle." "This is between Xena and me!" "Stay out of it." "The light will triumph, Xena." "Quit preaching and fight." "All right..." "Xena!" "In the name of the light!" "I smite the darkness!" "What?" "No!" "You'll have to kill us both." "You don't understand, Gabrielle That darkness inside her will destroy you one day." "Put the sword down." "Najara..." "You and I, we'll walk out of here together." "You're just saying that to protect her." "Xena's dark side frightens me." "I need to move on, but I could never live with someone who killed her." "There would be no going back from that." "All right." "All right." "Get the slave traders and let's move out." "Some water..." "I hate that." "I got my butt whipped, didn't I?" "Well, it serves me right for trusting someone who talks about being good all the time." "You know what?" "She's a tough girl but she's got a weakness." "It's the same one I've got." "What are you thinking about?" "You're so close to being this ultimate force for goodness but that little bit makes you so wrong." "Shat should I do with those slave traders, Gabrielle?" "What would Xena do?" "She would make sure they were out of business." "She would turn them over to the local government." "But what if the local government supports slavery?" "Probably not a problem because Xena kills most of them in combat anyway." "Xena only kills if it's absolutely necessary." "And I only kill evil people." "Why is she better than me?" "Don't you think those people deserve a fair trial?" "But some fool may find them innocent." "But with your way, innocent people could die." "You're right, Gabrielle." "I'm sure I've made mistakes before, but all I've done is send them to the light." "The eternal powers will correct any mistakes I've made." "Gabrielle?" "Xena..." "Are you all right?" "I lost one of those good chewing teeth, but other than that, I'm fine." "Xena, we should get out of here." "No." "She's too dangerous a girl to leave on the loose." "She likes killing too much." "But she beat you up so badly." "Well, that's another reason." "Xena..." "That's gonna hurt." "Najara!" "So glad you could make it." "Be careful, Najara." "She's snapped." "Do you expect me to believe you're going to let her die?" "Well, let's just see, shall we?" "I just asked her to come with me right now and you know what she said?" "She said she'd rather stay here and try to reform you." "Seems that your zealotry is less scary than my dark side." "Sniveling ingrate..." "But if I can't have her, nobody's gonna have her." "It's part of that drastic change you talked about and it's sure gonna change by my destiny." "I knew you were no good for her." "You see, it's a little more difficult with a millstone like her around your neck, isn't it?" "You probably wouldn't care if one of your soldiers died." "They'd just go up to that big, old light in the sky." "But you might miss Gabrielle, huh?" "Najara, hurry!" "If ya don't mind my saying, your focus is a little off." "Xena!" "Don't kill her." "Looks like she saved both our lives today." "Xena..." "Can you get me off this thing?" "You take her from here." "The slave traders are going to get a fair trial." "They'll probably bribe their way out of it." "The soldiers say that you wiped out a village last year and many innocent people died." "They lied." "Could be a bit of a problem..." "Those men were pirates." "They sunk many passenger ships for sport." "They had to die." "But you believe what you want, Gabrielle." "Be happy." "Well, these people aren't your biggest fans." "Can't please everybody." "Did you tell her about the vision?" "No." "That would hurt her and I don't ever want to do that." "That's your job." "I forgive you, Gabrielle."