From: davideml@bellsouth.net   
      
   5-09    Seeds Of Faith   
      
      
      
   First airing was Oct 10, 1999.   
      
   The story starts out in a tavern and a follower of Eli is trying to convince   
   the villagers that the   
   time of the gods has passed. They argue back about retribution from the gods.    
   Xena and Gabrielle   
   come in and try to calm things down but a fight ensues. Afterward Xena blames   
   Gabrielle for   
   starting the fight.   
      
   Ares appears and Xena says he must be bored to appear at a village squabble.   
   He notices she's   
   pregnant. Xena tells him Gabrielle is responsible. He says he would have liked   
   to have  seen that.   
   Xena asks him again why he is there. He talks about a movement that incites   
   people to disobey the   
   gods. Xena mentions the Twilight, and tells Gabrielle what it is. As Ares is   
   leaving, Xena accuses   
   him of being afraid. He says he would hate to kill her and her child, and   
   disappears.   
      
   Xena is talking to Gabrielle about starting the fight. Gabrielle says she made   
   a bad call. They are   
   with Eli's followers going somewhere. He says their teacher is Eli.   
      
   In a temple (of Ares) Eli is telling people the only weapon they need is love   
   as they are burning   
   weapons of war. He sees Xena and Gabrielle. They say they are looking for him.   
   He also notices Xena   
   is pregnant. She tells him the people think he is going to lead them in a war   
   against the gods and   
   they are going to be killed.   
      
   Gabrielle and Eli go to eat but Xena says there is something she has to do. A   
   man in a red robe and   
   a small skull on his hat runs to another temple and tells Ares the first   
   temple is being desecrated   
   and he expected a fireball or lightning to strike down Eli. Ares decided to   
   pay Eli a visit.   
      
   Gabrielle and Eli talk about Gabrielle's violence. She says her heart tells   
   her Eli is right but   
   her head says sometimes you have to fight. And that Xena is wrong and she is   
   not becoming numb to   
   the violence.   
      
   Ares appears and he and Eli trade barbs about war and peace. Ares tells him to   
   walk away and he'll   
   save a lot of lives, including his own.   
      
   Callisto appears to Xena. She tells her not to interfere with Eli. He has a   
   destiny to fulfill and   
   he has to face it alone. Four of Ares' men sees Xena and attack her. She   
   knocks out three of them   
   and puts the Pinch on the fourth to find out which way the army is coming from.   
      
   Eli is praying and Callisto appears, saying she has been sent in answer to his   
   prayers. She tells   
   him how beautiful heaven is. He calls her an angel and says the same thing   
   about earth. She tells   
   him the gods must fall and he is the hammer. She kisses his cheek and says in   
   everything he does   
   'they' are always with him. He realizes he must die for his beliefs.   
      
   Xena finds Gabrielle and Eli. She tells them Ares' army is coming and   
   Gabrielle is to protect Eli   
   while she goes to try to stop them.   
      
   Xena meets the army on a rope bridge and kills them one by one as they try to   
   get her. She   
   eventually cuts the ropes and the bridge falls into the river.   
      
   Eli is preaching again and Ares appears. Twice he tries to kill Eli with his   
   sword, but Gabrielle   
   stops him. Eli insists she must not use violence to save his life. He turns to   
   Ares and is stabbed   
   and dies. Gabrielle cradles him as he does and cries out loud. Ares disappears.   
      
   Xena comes back and sees them together. A woman says Gabrielle let Ares kill   
   Eli. When Xena asks   
   her, Gabrielle yells out three times not to blame her, that she only did what   
   he asked. Xena says   
   people like her and Gabrielle are the reason people like Eli can exist.   
   Gabrielle runs away hurting   
   and angry.   
      
   Gabrielle is in the desert throwing her sais at a dead tree. Ares appears and   
   tells her not to be   
   so hard on herself, because Eli was selfish to put her in that position. He   
   says he can see into   
   her heart and she tried to do the right thing. He wants to show her what it   
   would feel like to have   
   the power he has. He causes a reddish aura to surround her letting her feel   
   his power. Afterward,   
   he says that's how he feels every moment. With that power she can change the   
   world, and asks if   
   that isn't what she's always wanted. He disappears.   
      
   Xena sings the funeral dirge as she lights the funeral pyre. Gabrielle is   
   there with a long black   
   scarf wrapped around her, then she walks off without saying anything.   
      
   Callisto appears and Xena blames her for Eli's death. Callisto says Eli will   
   be reincarnated into a   
   new body. Xena says he liked him just fine in the old one, and Gabrielle is   
   suffering because of   
   her game. Callisto says she cares about both of them. Xena demands she take   
   her to the Dagger of   
   Helios, which can kill gods.   
      
   Gabrielle is talking to Eli's ashes. She says she isn't betraying him, but is   
   going to use Ares'   
   knowledge for the greater good. And for him to have faith in her.   
      
   Callisto takes Xena to get the Dagger of Helios but she tries to talk her out   
   of killing Ares. Xena   
   isn't buying it. Callisto tells Xena to listen to Eli because he sacrificed   
   himself to make it   
   easier for people to follow the way of peace. Xena answers like sheep to the   
   slaughter and invites   
   her along to see the twilight of the gods.   
      
   Ares is telling the villagers that Eli is dead and so is his crusade. They all   
   begin chanting Eli's   
   name. Ares threatens to kill someone and Gabrielle intervenes and throws her   
   sais at him. He avoids   
   them. He begins throwing villagers around. Gabrielle gets his sword but he   
   disarms her and starts   
   to kill her. Xena saves her when her Chakram breaks off the end of the sword.   
   She gets the Dagger   
   of Helios to Ares' neck but can't kill him because she sees Eli's reflection   
   in it and sees flash   
   backs. She lets Ares live and drops the dagger. He gets it and puts it to her   
   neck. She says he   
   won't kill her because then there will be two martyrs. Ares tells Gabrielle he   
   could have given her   
   the world but she says he can't give what he doesn't have.   
      
   Xena apologizes to Gabrielle. Angel Eli appears and says their faith in each   
   other is the greatest   
   miracle.   
      
   Callisto appears and says it's time for her to be reincarnated and she can   
   think of no greater   
   mother that Xena. Xena asks if it was Callisto all along. They both decide to   
   give back what they   
   took from each other. Callisto puts her hand on Xena's stomach, then is sucked   
   into the baby.   
      
   Eli says "love is the way".   
      
   .....   
      
   FINALLY!  An actual good episode. And the 100th.   
      
   A lot going on in this one. Good to see Ares back. Xena is looking especially   
   pregnant.   
      
   But first, a few of the little things that were weak -   
      
   Why did Ares have so much trouble killing Eli? Why not just use a fireball as   
   was suggested by his   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)