The History of
Xena: Warrior Princess

Episode Name: Armageddon Now, Part II

Iolaus saves Alcmene from Callisto's first attempts to kill her and he flees with the pregnant mother of Hercules to a barn. In bits and pieces Iolaus tells Alcmene about her son's future, and they realize he may be the two-year-old Iolaus who steals pies in Corinth. But when Callisto approaches the barn Iolaus tries to steal the amulet of Hind's blood and coat his knife with the blood. He very nearly succeeds but Callisto recovers the amulet and destroys the barn with Alcmene in it.

Callisto then vanishes, and Hercules and the Sovereign watch as Iolaus buries Alcmene. Hercules realizes that he and the Sovereign continue to exist only while they are in the world between worlds, but the Sovereign sees escape as a way of achieving death and an end to all his misery. He slowly realizes as Hercules explains how the two worlds co-exist in parallel that his wife and children died at the same time Hercules' wife and children died. The thought enrages the Sovereign and they start fighting.

Iolaus in the meantime is able to follow Callisto into the future because of Ares' spell. He has recovered the knife (coated with Hind's blood) and finds himself in the town of Cirrah just before Xena's army approaches on the fateful day when nearly all the inhabitants are destroyed. Iolaus understands that Callisto has come to save her parents, and he makes his way to their house, hoping to kill the goddess in revenge for her killing of Hercules. But just as he is about to attack Callisto, Xena's soldiers (sent to scout the town for recruits) take him prisoner.

Hercules and the Sovereign wake up after having knocked each other unconscious. They watch as Iolaus is brought before Xena and her lieutenant, Darphus. Xena receives a visiting king who gives her a gift, a rare and valuable jewel known as the Chronos Stone. The stone allows its holder to travel through time, but neither the king nor Xena (nor Iolaus) recognize it for what it is. Hercules had used and destroyed the Chronos Stone in "The End of the Beginning", where he had rescued Serena from Ares' service and won mortality (and life) for her (though she went on to marry someone else).

Iolaus tries vainly to persuade Xena that she has a great future ahead of her as a hero. This is the old Xena, still consumed by hatred and evil. She doesn't believe him when Iolaus warns her that Darphus will one day betray her (though he doesn't realize this cannot happen since all the events leading up to that betrayal -- connected with Hercules -- will never happen). As Xena tries to kill Iolaus he struggles to find some spark of humanity in her, and he nearly wins her confidence when he mentions Solan.

But Darphus intervenes and Xena orders him to attack Cirrah. Iolaus uses the opportunity to escape. Nonetheless, troubled by Iolaus' warning that something terrible is about to unfold, Xena orders Darphus to get the women and children out of the town before destroying it. Darphus goes off to lead the attack.

In Cirrah, Callisto finds her family but she is unable to persuade them to leave the town. Her parents fear her and take her younger self to hide in a barn, a place Callisto knows will lead to their deaths. She follows herself and her mother into the barn and tries to persuade them to leave. When one of Xena's soldiers enters the barn, Callisto kills him to protect her mother and her younger self. But her father enters right after the soldier and attacks her, and Callisto accidentally kills him. When her mother goes berserk with rage Callisto kills her, too.

Iolaus arrives after goddess-Callisto has left her younger self to die in the barn, which by now is on fire. Darphus in the mean time has ordered that everyone in the town be killed, and that it be burned to the ground. Iolaus rescues the young Callisto and unites her with her uncle. "You know, it may help if you cry," Iolaus suggests to the girl, obviously hoping to change her future. "I shall never cry again" she says.

Seeing no hope, Iolaus follows Callisto into the future again, arriving back at Ares' temple in the present. But Ares doesn't know Iolaus, and he revels in the thought of Xena ruling the known world, having gone on to conquer every nation she could find. Iolaus goes to Corinth, passing through a landscape of horror filled with the bodies of thousands of crucified men. In Corinth he watches helplessly as Gabrielle, a brave but ineffectual rebel, is crucified and tortured.

As Iolaus wanders off in despair Hercules watches and somehow realizes that he can project his thoughts to Iolaus. He tells Iolaus to get the Chronos Stone, which is now the headpiece of Xena's staff, and Iolaus once he realizes he is really hearing the thoughts of Hercules forms a plan to attack Xena on her throne and get the staff away. In the meantime, Hercules notices a storm is forming in the world between worlds, and he begins to set up lightning rods to draw a bolt of lightning down to reopen the gateway. The Sovereign taunts Hercules and stands too close to one of the rods, getting struck by lightning and knocked unconscious again.

Iolaus steals the Chronos Stone from Xena and uses it to go back to the moment in time when he is fighting Callisto outside the barn. He appears before Alcmene inside the barn and uses the spare minute he has to get her to safety. After making sure Callisto has left, Iolaus bids Alcmene farewell and returns to the present.

He is once again in the courtyard of Ares' temple, and Callisto attacks him, for she realizes that she has now failed in her mission. Callisto destroys the Chronos Stone and almost kills Iolaus, but Hercules has by now managed to reopen the gateway and he emerges in time to fight her off from his friend. Gaining the upper hand, Hercules throws Callisto into the gateway and she vanishes with a shriek. In the world between worlds the Sovereign wakes up in time to see the gateway vanish on his end as well.

Hercules and Iolaus breathe a sigh of relief, and Hercules buries Iolaus' knife (still coated in Hind's blood) deep in the stone railing of a stairway. They walk off and do not notice Hope watching them.