FADE IN

On the ringing phone.

XENA:
     It's Justice Station. They want to know where we are.

GABRIELLE (takes a deep breath; loudly):
     Acknowledge.

Xena and Ares exchange a tense look.

The ringing stops.

METALLIC VOICE ON THE PHONE:
     Security call for team 10S, Xe-na and Gab-ri-elle. Justice Station cares about your safety and wellbeing. State your location, please.

Gabrielle gives Xena and Ares a panicky look. Ares crosses his arms; Xena looks grim.

PHONE:
     Team 10S, your status is currently unknown. State your location, please.

GABRIELLE:
     Umm...um-um-um!.. (gestures desperately at Xena)

PHONE:
     One moment please. We're sorry, we are unable to confirm location M:MMM. Justice Station cares about your safety and wellbeing. State your location, please.

GABRIELLE (frantically):
     Classified! I mean-- (clears throat) this is Team 10S, reporting. Location temporarily confidential, pending completion of assignment.

PHONE:
     One moment please. Acknowledged. Status update?

GABRIELLE (on a roll):
     This is Team 10S, engaged in a--a reconnaissance mission! Request signal silence until further notice.

PHONE:
     Status acknowledged. Request acknowledged. One moment please.

There is a brief pause. In the background, Xena gives her a thumbs up, then glares at Ares, who is clearly trying not to laugh.

PHONE:
     Signal silence approved. Proceed with reconnaissance mission. Signal silence will be terminated in 3 days; Justice Station cares about your safety and wellbeing.

The phone goes suddenly and completely dead.

XENA:
     That was some quick thinking.

GABRIELLE (breathing out slowly):
     Thanks for all your--help.

Ares silently passes her another beer. Gabrielle takes a swig.

GABRIELLE:
     Right. You were saying--something about your army? (turns to Xena) They must have quite a grudge against you now that you've switched sides.

XENA (with a crooked grin):
     I'm sure they do.

GABRIELLE:
     Aren't you going to tell me?

XENA and ARES (at the same time):
     No.

Xena and Ares exchange a long look; close up on Xena as we dissolve into:

Close up on Xena and Ares.

GABRIELLE:
     Are we going to do something productive or are you two just going to stare at each other meaningfully all day?

XENA (snaps out of it):
     Do something productive. (She reaches for one of the maps on the table and points to a spot) Zeb should be--right here.

ARES:
     How do you know?

XENA:
     A hideout she once told me about. An abandoned base on Artemis-7.

ARES (looks at her curiously):
     If you're so sure she's there, why wouldn't you just get your precious Justice Station to send a squadron after her? (grins rakishly) Unless, of course, working with me is more fun.

XENA:
     Because I don't have any information. Just--a hunch. Justice Station won't green-light a raid on a hunch, not without a confirmed location. (smiles) But you will. So, Ares--I've laid all my cards on the table. What'll it be?

ARES (after a moment's pause):
     As far as my army is concerned--you were never here. (after a brief pause, grins cockily) Unless, of course, you do decide to stay.

XENA (ignoring his last comment):
     What about your bodyguards?

ARES:
     Don't worry, I'll work it out. No one else needs to know. (he looks meaningfully at Xena)

XENA (slowly):
     Including Justice Station.

Ares and Xena look at each other for a moment; then Xena looks at Gabrielle, who spreads her hands in a helpless "what can I do" gesture.

Ares studies the spot on the map for a few moments, then looks up at Xena.

ARES:
     I'll do your little job for you. On one condition.

XENA (warily):
     What?

Gabrielle looks nervously from her to Ares. Ares gets up, opens another wall panel, takes out a helmet and tosses it to Xena.

ARES:
     It'll be great fighting at your side again.

XENA (grins):
     I thought you'd never ask. (more serious) Except that, of course, you don't want the boys to know I'm here.

ARES:
     They won't.

Xena thoughtfully takes the helmet, puts it on, and pushes a button on the side of the helmet, lowering a shield that conceals her face.

XENA:
     I'll do it.

Gabrielle stares at her and then at Ares; she seems to be in shock.

ARES (reaches toward a button on the desk):
     I'll tell Strife to ready the ship. (He glances at one of the blank screens, then at Xena and Gabrielle, who are sitting across from it.) Move out of sight, you two.

GABRIELLE:
     Xena, you know I can't go along on this--raid.

ARES:
     Not on your first day on the job.

GABRIELLE (annoyed):
     What I meant was, we need a warrant on Zeb.

XENA (to Ares):
     Without it, there's no way to bring her in. (to Gabrielle) All the evidence is here.

She takes the recorder off her belt and tosses the chip to Gabrielle, who catches it.

GABRIELLE:
     I'll be back. Don't do anything stupid.

ARES (to the computer on the desk):
     Open videolink, contact name: Strife.

GABRIELLE (continues with a sigh):
     Who am I kidding.

COMPUTER VOICE:
     Connection requested. Please wait.

Gabrielle heads for the door; instead, a different door opens beside it.

ARES:
     I suggest you take the exit without the guards. (glances at a screen on the wall showing an empty corridor) Straight ahead and to the right; your ship is near the airlock.

GABRIELLE (shakes her head):
     They really don't pay me enough.

XENA (takes off her helmet; to Gabrielle):
     Good luck.

GABRIELLE:
     Thanks.

She heads out into the tunnel.

Strife's image appears on the screen, in half-profile. He is eating popcorn from a bag. He turns to the screen, looking slightly annoyed.

STRIFE (chewing):
     Hey--this is my day off, you know. What's up?

Xena, who is sitting out of Strife's line of sight, gives Ares an amused look. Ares rolls his eyes.

ARES:
     We're off on a little fishing expedition to Artemis-7. Catching up with your old flame Zeb.

Strife drops the popcorn in shock.

CUT TO

Gabrielle climbs into "Argo" and closes the door. She takes a deep breath and closes her eyes for a moment.

GABRIELLE (opens her eyes, mutters to herself):
     Here we go.

She flips the controls. The roach takes off rapidly (we see it from inside, the image of the star-studded blackness of space in the front-view window suddenly in motion).

CUT TO

Ares' warriors emerging from an underground tunnel and boarding a spaceship. We see the letters on the spaceship's side: GOD OF WAR.

CUT TO

Ares and Xena in the cabin where we saw them before.

ARES:
     How does it feel to be back here?

XENA:
     Ares--this is business.

ARES:
     And let me guess--Justice Station doesn't approve of mixing business with pleasure?

XENA (softly):
     This isn't about Justice Station, Ares. It never was.

Close-up of Xena and Ares as they look at each other.

DISSOLVE TO

The ship roaring away into space

DISSOLVE TO

A big metallic hulk of an abandoned exploration base, in distant view, sitting in the middle of a desolate desert landscape, with several large rocks nearby.

The camera pulls back to show Ares and Xena watching the base on a screen in Ares' cabin on the ship. Another screen next to it is blank.

XENA:
     Let's get a good scan of the whole place.

Zoom in on the screen as we see the station from above, then back on Xena and Ares.

ARES (sarcastically):
     Tell me why someone would stick a military base in a desert?

XENA (shrugs):
     The whole planet's a desert. This was an exploration base--built when they were looking into settling the place. Who cares?

ARES (points to the screen):
     Their ship's gotta be in one of those hangars. I say we give 'em a couple of good blasts, take out the ship and take the gang while they're still trying to figure out what hit them.

XENA (shakes her head):
     No. Zeb could be on that ship. I need her alive. (looks significantly at Ares) The silver could be on that ship, too.

ARES:
     Good point.

XENA (looks thoughtfully at the screen):
     There--those rocks. (turns to Ares) We blast at them--blow them to bits--whip up a big sandstorm--use it as a distraction, land and go in. (mimicking him, with a grin) While they're still trying to figure out what hit them, of course.

ARES (grins back at her):
     I love it when you talk business.

Xena gives him a mischievous little smile. Then it fades quickly from her face and she looks away.

ARES (wary):
     Wait a minute. We land--in a sandstorm? How do you think the pilot's going to see the airfield?

XENA:
     Who needs an airfield? We land in the sand. Just make sure it's on the other side of those rocks. (gives Ares an amused look) I could do it.

ARES:
     Right. (raises his voice) Activate screen two. (The screen lights up as Ares continues) Full video link to control room.

CUT TO

Inside the station. A large room that looks like a warehouse or hangar, with stairs leading to a second level that has a grid metal floor. The place is lit by a couple of weak portable lamps and some light coming in from a window covered with a transparent plastic pane. Everything looks grimy, neglected. Three pirates, two men and one woman, are sitting on boxes and playing dice on another box.

PIRATE #1 (the woman):
     I'm telling you, this is the kind of stuff they used to play before they had computer games.

PIRATE #2:
     You know, there's a reason computers got invented. This is supposed to be fun?

PIRATE #1:
     It's supposed to kill time.

PIRATE #2:
     Unless time kills us first. (throws down the dice hard) Or boredom.

PIRATE #3 (looks at the dice):
     Eight. Pony up.

Pirate #2 hands him some copper-like chips.

PIRATE #3 (pockets the chips):
     Who knows how much longer we'll be cooped up here. I'm already starting to wish something would happen.

There's a deafening explosion outside. The pirates leap to their feet, knocking over the box with the dice.

PIRATE #1:
     What in the hell--

A chunk of rock hits the window and bounces off it. The pirates rush toward the window, where nothing is visible except a cloud of swirling sand. Another piece of rock hits the window and sounds are heard of pieces of rock hitting the wall.

PIRATE #3 (yells over the noise):
     What's going on? A storm?

PIRATE #2:
     No way I'm going out there!

Footsteps are heard. Zeb and several more pirates rush down the stairs.

ZEB (yells):
     Stay put!

CUT TO

Exterior view. The base is barely visible through the swirling sand. A blast from above raises more clouds of sand. Through their veil, we see the ship descending diagonally. It is almost touching the sand.

CUT TO

Inside the ship's control room. The ship is shaking and lurching violently; the lights dim for a moment. The pilot at the controls is furiously tapping at computer keys and flipping switches trying to steady the ship. Finally he grabs a manual steer in a desperate attempt to manage the landing.

CUT TO

A corridor in the ship; two of Ares' warriors are knocked off their feet and slide on the floor, muttering curses, as the ship lurches.

CUT TO

Inside Ares' cabin. As the ship lurches, Ares is slammed into a wall while Xena holds on tight to the back of a chair.

ARES:
     Got any more bright ideas?

XENA (gritting her teeth):
     I told you I could have managed a better landing--

As the ship lurches again, she loses her hold on the back of the chair and is thrown across the room into Ares' arms just as the ship comes to a standstill.

ARES (grins at her):
     Or maybe not.

XENA (extricates herself from his arms):
     All right. We're on.

She puts on the helmet, carefully tucking away her hair under it, and flips down the visor as we :

FADE OUT

END OF ACT THREE