Xena returns home to Amphipolis, only to find that her mother has been killed and the portal to Hell has opened in the middle of the town, which has released evil spirits in Xena's old house. Mephistopheles, the King of Hell, attempts to obtain the blood of Eli and invade the Earth realm.
Cast[]
Main Cast[]
- Lucy Lawless as Xena
- Renee O'Connor as Gabrielle/Gabrielle possessed by Mephistopheles
Guest Stars[]
- Adrienne Wilkinson as Eve/Livia
- Anthony Ray Parker as Mephistopheles
- Darien Takle as Cyrene
- Charles Mesure as Michael
- Tamati Rice as Raphael
Co-Starring[]
- Steve Wright as Villager #1
- Gilbert Goldie as Beggar
- Wayne Peters as Severed Head
- Justin Curry as Axe Victim
- Sara Ashworth as Ghoul #1
- Lutz Halbhubner as Ghoul #2
Summary[]
[]
Xena,Gabrielle and Eve arrive at Amphipolis now a ghost town.
Peering down from the heavens, the archangels Michael and Raphael observe Xena's journey home to Amphipolis with Gabrielle and Eve. Michael notes that Xena is finally returning home, unaware of what awaits her, while Raphael warns that if she fails, Hell could spill onto Earth. Michael reminds him that Xena, having slain most Olympian gods, is the only mortal ready to face this threat.
On Earth, Xena hums “Glade Ma Glade” as they ride, recalling that Eve’s grandmother Cyrene once held her as a baby and sang Amphipolis’s anthem. Gabrielle praises Eve’s grandmother’s courage, and Eve eagerly anticipates seeing her. Xena promises Eve she’ll love Amphipolis, full of life. But upon entering the city, the women are crushed to find that Amphipolis has become a ghost town.cold, empty, and windswept—completely abandoned. The lively city Xena remembers is gone, replaced by a haunting silence that unsettles them and hints that something has gone terribly wrong.
Eve tells Xena she felt Cyrene's spirit in pain.
As they enter Cyrene’s boarded-up tavern, Eve senses an evil presence. While investigating upstairs, Xena hears a cry and catches a glimpse of her mother being hustled around the corner by two villagers. She gives chase but runs into an empty dead end. Eve lights candles and a torch in a room when she hears Mephistopheles’ voice calling her. Startled, she sees no one, but then a Villager appears, urging to "light the fire." Two villagers drag Cyrene down the stairs and through Eve, causing her to vanish. Xena and Gabrielle arrive, when a trembling Eve informs Xena that she felt Cyrene’s spirit pass through her and knows her grandmother is dead.
Act One[]
Xena promises to set her mother free.
Eve explains to Xena and Gabrielle that Cyrene’s spirit is trapped and in pain, and that the house is haunted, filled with other restless souls. A devastated Xena heads to the mausoleum to find answers, There she finds Cyrene’s sarcophagus vandalized. Holding back bitter tears, Xena slides the cracked lid open and is horrified to find the remains of a charred body.
Gabrielle and Xena discover infested food with maggots.
Meanwhile, as a storm begins to build, Eve is strangely drawn to a spot in the courtyard of Cyrene’s tavern and confides in Gabrielle that she feels something terrible is coming. When Gabrielle offers her food and sets a plate down between them, the food is instantly infested with maggots. A sickened Gabrielle rushes off to the bathroom where chunks of rotting flesh begin falling from her hands, revealing more maggots. As the maggots continue to churn on the cursed spot in the courtyard, Eve begins to pray in the name of Eli to cast out the evil presence, pounding the ground until eventually the maggots disappear and Gabrielle’s hands are restored.
Gabrielle is attacked by Demons.
Gabrielle walls through a hall, She sees a strange symbol on the floor of a screaming face. Outside, Eve watches in disgust as the stone where the maggots were begins to smoke. When the smoke clears, the same symbol of the screaming face is on the rock. Xena tries to open the door to the tavern, but it will not open. Gabrielle hears voices coming from the symbol. She lies down and puts her ear against it, when suddenly hands reach out and grab Gabrielle and pull her into the symbol. Gabrielle lands in green, brackish water, where ghouls (who are rotting corpses) grab at her while shes screaming for help. Xena pounds on the door until finally it opens, Xena and Eve enter the hall where Gabrielle was pulled into the symbol, they hear Gabrielle screaming.
Act Two[]
Eve and Xena rescue Gabrielle from demons.
The Ghouls attack Gabrielle, declaring she must suffer until the messenger’s blood is spilled, and drag her underwater. Meanwhile, Eve suggests Gabrielle might have gone upstairs, but Xena realizes she is nearby. Xena sees the symbol on the floor and kneels down in front of it. Xena can hear Gabrielle yelling from behind it very faintly. Xena yells and slams her hand into the symbol and it passes through to where Gabrielle is. Xena reaches for Gabrielle. The ghouls try to grab Gabrielle and pull her under, but Xena has her hand and will not let her go and she's finally pulled up. Gabrielle's left in pain as the burning slime clings to her, so Xena helps clean her off outside.
Xena watches memories of the past after her brother died.
Xena reveals what she’s learned about Cyrene’s fate, Eve tells her she’s certain Mephistopheles is preparing for war, that the tavern is a beachhead for his attack on Earth, as well as that it’s no accident she’s present for this battle. Eve realizes Cyrene’s unrest allows Mephistopheles to hold her soul. As they discuss the curse, Eve senses the evil’s growing power and believes her presence there is no accident—Mephistopheles seeks her, the Messenger of Eli. Xena vows to protect her daughter. In another room, Xena experiences a haunting vision of her past, where her mother blames her for her brother Lyceus’s death. Xena is filled with guilt and sorrow.
Gabrielle possessed
Meanwhile, as Gabrielle is showering, blood wells up from stigmata puncture wounds in her hands and feet and she collapses. Blood also begins bubbling up from the steaming Hell mouth that has opened up in the courtyard floor. Suddenly, Gabrielle rises up, cold and demonic. All this escapes Xena, however, who is transfixed by a painful hallucination from her past. Eve’s powers kick in to save Xena from Gabrielle, who is now possessed by Mephistopheles. The King of Hell threatens he will not release Cyrene’s soul without Eve’s blood being spilled. Only then will he be able to enter this world and begin his reign on Earth.
Act Three[]
Xena refuses, Eve prays for Gabrielle’s soul repeatedly invokes Eli’s name until Mephistopheles is forced out of Gabrielle’s body, freeing her. Weakened but alive, Gabrielle embraces Xena. Xena vows to save her mother’s tormented soul, while Eve, drained from the battle, is left pale and sick.
Eve is tormented by her old self Livia.
Mephistopheles torments Eve as she prays at the Hell mouth by reminding her of her bloody past as the warrior Livia. Meanwhile, Gabrielle and Xena become joined together wherever they touch and must fight their way out of the haunted tavern.
After being freed from Gabrielle, Eve collapses near the portal, weak but continuing to pray to banish Mephistopheles. Xena stands before the portal, watching her daughter fight a battle in the spiritual realm that Mephistopheles taunts her she cannot win. Eve’s arms crack and chip as she persists, while Mephistopheles declares he seeks only her blood to manifest in the physical world, threatening eternal torment if Xena does not comply. Xena tells Gabrielle she must enter the spirit world to confront Mephistopheles directly. Using “The Pinch,” Xena allows Gabrielle to temporarily stop her heart so she can cross into the spiritual realm, placing immense responsibility on her to bring Xena back. Gabrielle, terrified but determined, agrees. Xena collapses into Gabrielle’s arms as the ritual succeeds, leaving Gabrielle and Eve on Earth.
Xena faces the king of hell in the spiritual realm.
In the spirit realm (Hell), Xena encounters her mother Cyrene, bloodied and grief-stricken, haunted by having killed her husband. Xena promises to free her mother, but Cyrene disappears. Mephistopheles appears and immediately attacks Xena, mocking her previous victories and the death of the Olympians. A fierce battle ensues, with Xena using her agility and combat skills, but Mephistopheles demonstrates his invulnerability in the spiritual realm. He taunts Xena with the idea that killing him would force her to take his throne in Hell.
By giving him exactly what he wants. Trust me.
Meanwhile, on Earth, Eve and Gabrielle struggle to care for Xena while she fights. Gabrielle is unsure what to do, and Eve attempts to find water to help revive her. Mephistopheles manipulates the situation, suggesting he could force Eve to spill her own blood if Xena refuses his demands, threatening that her daughter (Eve) will belong to him. He then steps up his pressure on Eve by surrounding her with a roomful of bloody victims from her campaigns as the ruthless Livia. Eve is shocked to see a reflection of Livia, who steps out of a full-length mirror to confront her. Livia instructs her to obey the will of Mephistopheles if she wants to release the innocent victims from their torment. Eve is exhausted and near death by the time Gabrielle revives Xena by releasing the pinch.
Act Four[]
Mephistopheles freed from Hell battles Xena
Though Eve is ready to sacrifice herself to stop Mephistopheles, Xena objects and vows to face the King of Hell in this world. Eve cuts her palm and spills a few drops of blood, unleashing Mephistopheles who emerges from the Hell mouth. Xena confronts Mephistopheles as he emerges from the portal, fully embodied in flesh and fueled by blood. A fierce battle ensues while Gabrielle and Eve watch anxiously. Mephistopheles taunts Xena, trying to lure her into taking his place as ruler of Hell, but she resists. After a tense struggle, Xena seizes the moment, shocking Mephistopheles when she plunges her sword right through his heart, causing him to vanish in smoke and ash. Gabrielle quickly moves to join Xena in the aftermath.
Cyrene is free and says farewell.
Instantaneously, Cyrene’s soul is released. Xena sees Cyrene with Eve, who gently holds Eve’s hands, noting how she has her mother’s eyes and stature. Eve laughs, touched by her grandmother’s affection, while Xena and Gabrielle move closer. Cyrene expresses her deep love for Xena, and remarks how she has never stopped hoping to see her again. Cyrene tells Xena she'll never really be gone: she'll always be in Xena's heart. Cyrene disappears. Xena reaches out, longing to hold her mother one last time. Though saddened by the moment’s brevity, she feels peace knowing her mother’s soul is finally free, and she smiles.
Tag[]
Its not over yet...
At Daybreak. Gabrielle asks what happens now, that Xena killed the king of hell. Xena tells Gabrielle and Eve she has a feeling it's not over yet. The three stand and look at a steaming fissure, the spot where hell opened up from.
Disclaimer[]
No maggots were harmed during the making of this motion picture, although a few were found stuck in Gabrielle's teeth.
Background Information[]
Behind the Scenes[]
- Originally this episode was set to be the season 6 opener, but was changed to Coming Home, because of the amount of editing in Motherhood, which ended up with material left on the cutting room floor, "Coming Home" therefore was reworked for the season premier, leaving this episode as the second episode of season 6.
- The slime covering Renee from the Hell Pit was made out of KY Jelly, pureed asparagus and vegemite. Lucy and Adrienne really were trying to help scrub her off in the shower, since the mixture smelled so bad.
Key Events[]
- Final appearance of Cyrene.
Trivia[]
- Mephistopheles was alluded to in "The Ides of March", and "Be Deviled", but was neither named nor referenced in front of Xena. He was not even alluded to in "Fallen Angel". In spite of this, Xena, Gabrielle, and Eve all know who he is upon hearing his name, even though they didn't know Hell existed until Callisto told them about it.
- Mephistopheles's association with witches is apparently also common knowledge, but in "A Wicked Good Time", the appeal of witchcraft is explicitly stated to be its lack of association with any particular god or godlike being.
Memorable Quotations[]
- "Gabrielle, what's wrong?"
"The legend. Xena, you killed the king of Hell. What happens now?"
"I don't know. I've got a feeling it's not over yet." - —Eve, Gabrielle, and Xena
- "I thought you were the God-killer Xena... How were the mighty Olympians so easily taken?"
- —Mephistopheles
- "I'm just a little distracted by your good looks."
- —Xena
- "Isn't this what you wanted? To face me on Earth-- and make me pay for all I've done to you?! Does the thought of taking my place on the throne of Hell suddenly not appeal to you?"
- —Mephistopheles
- "You cannot kill every demon from Hell!"
"I only need to kill one. And he will never expect me to..."
"To what? To what?!"
"To take his place. Mephistopheles said whoever kills the king of Hell must inherit the throne." - —Gabrielle and Xena
Appearances and Mentions[]
Mortals[]
Immortals[]
Places[]
Other[]
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| << Season Five | Season 6 | |||||||
| #01 | Coming Home | #09 | Return of the Valkyrie | #17 | Last of the Centaurs | |||
| #02 | The Haunting of Amphipolis | #10 | Old Ares Had a Farm | #18 | When Fates Collide | |||
| #03 | Heart of Darkness | #11 | Dangerous Prey | #19 | Many Happy Returns | |||
| #04 | Who's Gurkhan? | #12 | The God You Know | #20 | Soul Possession | |||
| #05 | Legacy | #13 | You Are There | #21 | A Friend in Need Part I | |||
| #06 | The Abyss | #14 | Path of Vengeance | #22 | A Friend in Need Part II | |||
| #07 | The Rheingold | #15 | To Helicon and Back | |||||
| #08 | The Ring | #16 | Send in the Clones | |||||