Coming Home

Summary
Xena, Gabrielle and Eve travel to Amazon territory upon receiving an unexpected summons from Ares. As the three approach a clearing, they witness several Amazons, led by their courageous queen Marga, battling a battalion of soldiers. Varia, a strikingly beautiful and deadly warrior, is fighting five of the soldiers single-handedly. When more troops arrive, Xena, Gabrielle and Eve join the fray and help drive them off. As Marga thanks the trio for their help, Varia eyeballs Eve, noting that she looks familiar. Following introductions, Marga reveals that Ares has been attacking the Amazons. Baffled by Ares' motives, Xena heads to his camp to investigate.

When Ares hears of his soldiers’ defeat, he is furious and demands that the Amazon village be taken by nightfall. In a heated exchange with one of his captains, it becomes clear that Ares has been hiding the fact that he is no longer immortal and has lost the supreme powers he once enjoyed as the god of war. Moments later, a Fury disguised as Xena approaches Ares, who welcomes her with open arms and pleads for the restoration of his godhood. Back at the village, Marga informs Gabrielle of rumors that Ares is after the ambrosia he believes the Amazons possess. Assuming Ares to be immortal, Marga is puzzled by what she’s heard. Meanwhile, Ares asks Fury Xena to get the ambrosia for him so he can avoid going to war with the Amazons. Fury Xena alternatively proposes that she head up his army and take the village by force. Though wary of Xena’s sudden support, Ares leans in for a kiss just as Fury Gabrielle arrives on the scene.

Back in the Amazon village, Varia compliments Eve on her impressive fighting skills and tries without success to challenge her to a fight. Meanwhile, Fury Eve joins Fury Xena and Fury Gabrielle in Ares’ tent just as Fury Xena is insisting that once the ambrosia is seized, Ares must share it with the three of them. He agrees, totally unaware that the Furies have been manipulating him from the start. As soon as he’s gone, the three Furies gleefully discuss their plan to pit Xena and Ares against each other, thereby avenging the deaths of the Olympian gods and clearing the way for them to rule mankind.

Eve is tending to a wound when Varia approaches and the two compare battle scars and war stories. Meanwhile, the real Xena and Gabrielle can’t understand why Ares is convinced that the Amazons have ambrosia, but decide to pay him a visit and find out. Arriving at his tent, they are baffled when Ares orders them to prepare for battle and they quickly deduce that the Furies must be responsible for his behavior.

Xena and Fury Gabrielle, the real Xena yells his name. Confused, he turns to look back at her, but his view is blocked by Fury Xena who drags him off to fight. Xena and Gabrielle manage to buy a little more time for the Amazons by hurling a boulder over the edge of a cliff to slow Ares’ troops down. Meanwhile, back at the village, the Amazons arm themselves while Varia watches Eve show off her most impressive moves. Suddenly, Varia presses her sword to Eve’s throat, recognizing her as Livia. When Xena and Gabrielle return, they find Eve at knifepoint, encircled by the villagers. Eve confesses that during her days as Livia, she attacked the Amazons, murdering many of their best warriors and selling others into slavery. Marga insists Eve must die for her actions but with Ares’ soldiers fast approaching, Varia and Xena take Eve and bind her to a post in the meantime. When Varia exits, Eve apologizes to Xena.

As Xena and Gabrielle head out to find Ares, Fury Xena is belittling him into such a rage that he dives for her, threatening her life. She vanishes and when Ares looks up, he sees the real Xena, who tries to make him realize that the Furies are driving him mad. Unable to convince him, Xena dodges his blows and escapes, concluding that Ares must kill her in order to be released from the clutches of the Furies. Back in the village, Eve easily unties herself and saves Varia’s life by intercepting a sniper’s arrow. Meanwhile, Xena challenges Ares to a one-on-one fistfight. As their battle escalates, Xena sends her chakram flying and the two fall into a frigid pond. Ares forces Xena under the water until she appears to be lifeless. Suddenly, the Furies emerge out of Ares, but they are quickly decapitated by Xena’s chakram as it flies back by. Ares, realizing that he’s been duped, drags Xena ashore and resuscitates her with Gabrielle’s help. In the end, Eve gets a pardon from the Amazons for having saved the lives of Marga and Varia, and Ares and Xena share a friendly kiss before parting ways once again.

Disclaimer
Xena & Gabrielle's psyches were harmed during the production of this motion picture.

Background Information

 * Philip Tallman was nominated for the 2001 Golden Reel Award for "Best Sound Editing - Television Episodic - Music" for this episode.
 * Sela Apera, who plays Queen Marga, previously appeared with Lucy in the Hercules episode "The Gauntlet". She played the woman found by Salmoneus to take care of the baby saved from Darphus.
 * They filmed a final scene with Marga banishing Eve, but didn't include it in the episode. The scene they did use had actually been written for the fifth season finale "Motherhood", but when they didn't use it there they recycled it for "Coming Home".
 * Missy Good, the writer of this episode, was a writer of fan fiction of the show on the internet. One of the producers read her work and liked it so much that he asked her to write an episode.
 * This is the first episode in which Varia appears

Memorable Quotations

 * "Where's the fun in that? Now, get moving. I want those Amazons on their knees by the end of the day. Go " - Ares
 * "Maybe he wants to see you again. After all, he does have a thing for you. " - Gabrielle

Guest Stars

 * Kevin Smith as Ares