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FADE IN
Xena, Ares, Gabrielle and Eve stand in the Fates' temple. The camera slowly pans over the loom and the three Fates who are standing in front of the loom: Atropos, the crone; Lachesis, the young woman; and Clotho, the girl.
GABRIELLE (shivers slightly):
This place certainly...brings back memories.
Ares glances at her and looks away.
XENA (coldly):
So how exactly is this thing going to work? You change something about the past and all of a sudden we find ourselves in a different present? I've been through that before. As I recall, it didn't work out too well.
ATROPOS:
No, Xena--
LACHESIS:
This time, you will not be there--
CLOTHO:
You will observe.
The three fates each stretch out an arm and point a finger at a side wall of the temple. The air shimmers and solidifies into a silver-colored square.
LACHESIS:
Each of you can go back--
ATROPOS:
To one moment in your past --
CLOTHO:
--and choose to do one thing differently.
ATROPOS:
Then, you will watch your life--
LACHESIS:
--as it would have unfolded from then on.
XENA:
We all watch?
ATROPOS:
All of you.
LACHESIS:
And if you all agree that one of the lives you see would be better--
CLOTHO:
--you can choose to make it real.
GABRIELLE:
And then what's going to happen?
LACHESIS:
You will all go back in time--
CLOTHO:
--to the point where you made your different choice--
ATROPOS:
--and live out that life--
LACHESIS:
--and remember nothing of--
CLOTHO:
--this one.
Xena, Gabrielle, Ares and Eve exchange uncertain looks.
GABRIELLE:
I'm not sure we should do this.
EVE:
What have we got to lose?
ARES (glances at her uncomfortably):
She's right, you know. If we don't like the way it turns out, we could keep things as they are.
XENA:
All right, then. Let's do it.
GABRIELLE:
How much of these new lives are we going to watch? We could be stuck here for months!
ATROPOS:
To go forward in time--
She waves her hand, and a silver thread with a bead on it appears in Ares' hands.
CLOTHO:
--move the bead.
XENA:
So we each get a choice.
LACHESIS:
You do.
All four look uncertainly at each other.
GABRIELLE:
So who goes first?
ATROPOS:
Ares--
LACHESIS:
--you are an Olympian--
ARES:
Oh no. Ladies first.
Xena, Gabrielle and Eve look at each other.
XENA (sighs):
I'll go first.
CLOTHO:
Then all you must do--
LACHESIS:
--is touch the portal and think of a moment in time--
ATROPOS:
--and the vision will take you there.
CLOTHO:
For a moment, you can become your past self--
ATROPOS:
--but only until you have changed the one thing you wish to change.
LACHESIS:
Once that is done, you may no longer touch the portal again--
CLOTHO:
--or the vision will end.
The Fates step back. Xena comes up to the portal.
ARES (obviously trying to mask his unease):
Let's all get comfortable, shall we?
He waves an arm, and a couch appears before the portal. Ares, Gabrielle and Eve sit down, with an empty space left between Ares and Gabrielle and Eve sitting next to Gabrielle. Meanwhile, Xena holds out her hand and touches the portal. It begins to acquire colors, and shapes begin to emerge in it. The portal fills the screen.
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We are in a flashback from RETURN OF CALLISTO. Xena comes riding on Argo while Callisto is raising her sword over Gabrielle. Perdicus, knocked out by Callisto, lies nearby. Xena dismounts in a flip and kicks Callisto, knocking her down.
CALLISTO:
I longed to see you wailing over the body of your friend.
XENA (sneers):
Well, it's not going to happen.
Xena and Callisto fight, sparring with their swords and exchanging kicks.
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The camera pulls back to show Xena touching the portal, a look of intense focus on her face.
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In the portal, Xena leaps and flips in the air so that she is between Callisto and Perdicus, and then slams her boots into Callisto, sending her staggering toward her horse just as Perdicus gets up. Callisto looks around, then flips onto her horse with a loud cry and rides away.
GABRIELLE:
Oh, Xena--thank the gods!
XENA:
Wait here.
She mounts Argo and gallops away after Callisto.
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Xena walks back from the portal and sits down between Gabrielle and Ares.
GABRIELLE (gives Xena a stunned look):
That was your choice? To save Perdicus?
XENA:
Maybe this way, you can have the kind of life you deserve.
GABRIELLE (softly, almost to herself):
Without you... (snaps out of it and gives Xena an alarmed look, as if realizing that it looks like she's sorry that Perdicus was saved) It's just been--such a long time since I have even imagined what my life with Perdicus would have been like...
ARES:
Hey. Can we skip the sensitive chat and watch the action?
Xena and Gabrielle turn to the portal.
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Xena is chasing Callisto, both of them urging on their horses with cries of "Yah! Yah!" Xena leaps forward, tackling Callisto and punching her. She knocks Callisto off her horse and they both tumble down the hillside, as in RETURN OF CALLISTO, and roll down onto the quicksand. In a moment both are immersed up to their waist. Xena looks around in alarm.
CALLISTO (laughs):
We're both gonna die, Xena. How wonderful! We can spend the rest of eternity in Tartarus together.
XENA (smirks):
Always the optimist.
She pulls herself up and pulls out her chakram as Callisto looks on, then throws it so that it lodges itself in a rock, and throws her whip so that it winds itself around the chakram.
CALLISTO (laughs):
Oh, you're good, Xena!
Grabbing the whip, Xena pulls herself up from the quicksand while Callisto watches in dismay, sinking in deeper.
CALLISTO (reaches up):
Xena! Help me!
XENA (looks back at her scornfully):
Hold on.
Reaching solid ground, Xena unwraps the whip from the chakram and throws it to Callisto. Callisto grabs the whip and slowly starts to pull herself up while Xena looks on with a mix of hate, pity, and contempt.
CALLISTO (chuckles as she reaches solid ground):
Well, well, Xena...I knew you wouldn't let me die! You'd miss me too much, wouldn't you?
XENA:
Just be glad I stopped you before anything happened to Gabrielle--or her husband. Otherwise, you'd be spending eternity in Tartarus getting sand out of your leathers.
CALLISTO (now on the ground, on her hands and knees):
Oh, that's right...I didn't take proper care of your little friend. (laughs) Don't worry, Xena--I'll take another stab at it.
XENA:
I wouldn't count on that if I were you.
Xena knocks Callisto out with a powerful punch in the face, then uses her whip to bind her hands tightly behind her back, drags her to the top of the hillside and slings her over Argo's saddle before mounting Argo and riding off.
CUT TO
Xena and Gabrielle stand outside a village house. It's a bright, sunny morning.
GABRIELLE:
Xena...thank you for everything.
XENA (softly):
Thank you, Gabrielle--for everything you've brought into my life.
GABRIELLE:
You're going to be all alone now... (smiles) Well, except for Argo.
XENA (with forced cheer):
Don't worry about me. I've always been able to take care of myself. (chuckles) Besides, Joxer is probably going to keep me company, whether I want him to or not. (squeezes Gabrielle's hands)
Perdicus comes out of the house.
PERDICUS:
Xena. You're leaving?
XENA:
Good-bye, Perdicus. Take good care of Gabrielle. I know you're going to be happy together.
GABRIELLE:
We've already decided that when we have a little girl, we're going to name her Xena.
Close-up on Xena's face. She is smiling but obviously struggling to hold back tears. Xena and Gabrielle hug, then pull apart.
GABRIELLE (hesitantly):
What's going to happen to Callisto?
XENA (grimly):
This time, she'll never hurt anybody again.
CUT TO
A close-up of Callisto, with a large bruise on her face, smiling maniacally. The camera pulls back to show that she is standing on a platform with her hands tied behind her back and a noose around her neck.
CALLISTO:
Xena! I knew you'd come to see me off!
The camera pans to Xena, who stands in the front row of a large crowd of villagers. She is silent, her face is hard as stone. Pan back to Callisto.
CALLISTO:
You made me what I am--and now you're going to watch me die.
XENA:
You died a long time ago, Callisto--when you let hatred destroy your soul.
OFF-SCREEN VOICE (female):
Hang the bitch!
OFF-SCREEN VOICE (male):
Do it!
Xena's face flinches slightly. Pan to Callisto, who continues to smile. The trap door opens with a screech and we see Callisto's head jerking downward. Quick pan to Xena's face. She is calm but there is anguish in her eyes.
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Xena and Gabrielle avert their eyes.
GABRIELLE (pensively):
I wonder if that was the end of Callisto, this time...
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A country road at dusk. Xena is riding alone.
XENA (pats Argo on the neck):
I guess it's just you and me now, girl...
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ARES:
So you ditched the blonde. Good move. (off Xena's sharp look, holds up his palms in a "time out" gesture) Just kidding.
XENA (as if struck by a sudden thought):
I wonder...
GABRIELLE:
What?
XENA:
Callisto's in Tartarus now. You know what happened last time...
Ares clears his throat and squirms visibly.
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Night. Xena sleeps at a campsite.
DISSOLVE TO
Dawn. Xena opens her eyes and looks around, half-awake.
XENA:
Gabrielle? (her face crumples as she realizes that Gabrielle isn't there)
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GABRIELLE:
You're obviously still yourself.
XENA (somberly):
I suppose this time around, I didn't feel so much guilt over Callisto's death...there was nothing that (uncomfortably) anyone could use against me. (quick pan to Ares looking away uneasily)
GABRIELLE:
So Callisto never got out.
XENA (struck by an idea, looks at Ares):
And you never became mortal.
ARES (uncomfortably):
Hmm...
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A quick montage of images of Xena traveling alone, fighting some thugs, sleeping at a campsite.
CUT TO
Xena is brushing down Argo at a campsite.
XENA (quietly):
Do you miss Gabrielle? Huh? I know you and Gabrielle didn't really get along... But I still think you miss her just a little, don't you?
Argo neighs softly and nuzzles Xena.
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Xena, looking intensely uncomfortable, moves the bead. In the portal, now viewed from a distance, we see her battling some thugs while a village burns in the background.
XENA (raises her voice):
What about Gabrielle? Show me Gabrielle's life!
ATROPOS (off-screen):
Let Gabrielle touch the bead--
LACHESIS (off-screen):
--and then--
CLOTHO (off-screen):
--you will see.
Gabrielle lays her hand on the bead.
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Gabrielle sits at a table, working on a scroll, with a candle nearby. Perdicus comes up behind her and puts a hand on her shoulder, bending toward her. She looks up, smiling tenderly, and they kiss.
DISSOLVE TO
A crowded hall. Gabrielle, in a flowing blue dress, stands up on the stage.
GABRIELLE:
I sing the song of Xena,
Great warrior and great friend--
DISSOLVE TO
Wild applause in the hall. A close-up of Perdicus, sitting in the front row, applauding.
CUT TO
A middle-aged man in a purple cloak on the stage.
MAN:
And the first prize of the Grand Festival of Performing Bards goes to Gabrielle, the Bard of Potadaea!
Wild applause.
CUT TO
Gabrielle, smiling, stands on the stage next to the man in the cloak. He puts a gilded wreath on her head.
CUT TO
Perdicus and Gabrielle walk in the street. The wreath that is still on her head gleams softly in the setting sun.
PERDICUS:
Sweetheart, you were wonderful.
GABRIELLE (wistfully):
I just wish Xena could have been there...
PERDICUS (puts an arm around her shoulder):
I'm sure you'll see her soon.
GABRIELLE (turns to him and smiles shyly):
Perdicus, I have some other news.
PERDICUS:
What?
GABRIELLE:
I think I'm--going to have a baby.
PERDICUS (overjoyed):
Oh, Gabrielle!
They stop and hug.
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XENA:
Gabrielle, this is the kind of life you should have had. If I had only stopped Callisto in time--
GABRIELLE:
But what about you?
XENA (smiles tensely):
I'm sure I turn out all right.
Gabrielle takes her hand and puts it on the bead. The vision in the portal changes. Xena is sitting at a campfire with Joxer.
XENA:
See? I have company.
The camera zooms in on the portal until it fills the entire screen.
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XENA (pensively):
So Gabrielle is going to have a baby.
JOXER:
Yeah (grins) --can you believe that?
XENA (shoots him an impatient look):
I can. I mean, she is married.
JOXER:
Yeah, well--she told me that if it's a girl, she's going to name her--
XENA (smiles and lowers her eyes):
--I know--she told me. Xena.
A short uneasy silence.
JOXER:
Um, Xena--Gabrielle was asking me if I'd seen you--
XENA (tensely):
Yeah?
JOXER:
And she was, um--wondering why you never visit...she said you told her you would...
XENA (shrugs):
Well, she and Perdicus have their own life... I figure I'll just be in the way...
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GABRIELLE (looks incredulously at Xena):
Xena, what were you going to do? Never see me again?
Xena looks away guiltily.
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Xena sits at the campsite alone. The fire is starting to die down, its reflections lighting up her face.
Suddenly, she shivers slightly and looks up, her eyes widening.
XENA:
Ares...
Ares shimmers into view. He has the same look as in INTIMATE STRANGER--medium-length hair, the Season 1-2 leather vest.
XENA:
What do you want?
ARES (lounges casually against a tree, folding his arms on his chest):
So you ditched the blonde. Good move.
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Xena gives Ares a sharp look. Ares clears his throat and looks down.
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ARES:
Or, come to think of it, she ditched you, didn't she? You know, it's funny--all this time, I've been trying to figure out a way to get that annoying girl off your back. Turns out she didn't even need my help.
XENA:
Get lost.
ARES:
So. How much longer do you think it's going to be? I figure--oh, two months. Three, tops.
XENA (not looking at him):
Until what?
ARES:
Until you come back to your senses.
XENA (bitterly):
You mean, come back to you.
ARES:
Well--yeah, that too. Now that you don't have what's her name--Danielle--
XENA (snarls):
Her name is Gabrielle and you know it.
ARES (chuckles):
Don't worry, soon enough you won't remember it either. Anyway, now that you don't have that little pest messing with your head anymore--
XENA (looks up at him, her stare bitter and defiant):
Forget it, Ares. You're wasting your time. I told you--I'm never coming back to you, or to what I was. I'd rather die.
ARES (sighs theatrically):
So melodramatic. Oh well...you know what they say--never say never. See you around, Xena.
He vanishes in a flash of light. Xena stares thoughtfully into the dying campfire.
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Xena looks at Ares in dismay.
ARES (reluctantly meets her stare):
I can see this is going to be a long day.
Xena turns back to the portal and moves the bead forward. There is a quick succession of images of Xena riding, fighting, standing on the deck of a ship with Ulysses, battling in Ulysses' castle, paddling down a river in a canoe.
GABRIELLE:
Xena--what's this?
The camera moves in closer to the portal.
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As Xena paddles down the river, she suddenly sees a body float by with an axe in its back, then another. She pauses and looks around in horror, then starts paddling very fast.
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GABRIELLE (whispers):
The Horde.
Close-up on Gabrielle's horrified face as we:
FADE OUT
END OF ACT ONE
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