Hydras, Pumpkins and Fools, Oh My!

It was a damp and chilly night...

"Tell me again, Hercules. Why are we sitting out here, cold and damp, without a fire, in this gods forsaken patch of pumpkins, instead of being all cozy and warm inside Kora's Place?" inquired the shivering Prince of Corinth.

"Yeah, Herc. Explain again how Cheiron talked you into volunteering us for extra duty? Especially on a night with a full hunter's moon," Iolaus almost cried out as he grabbed his best friend by the chin and forced the demigod's face upward to take in the total glory of the gleaming orb that almost seemed to be smirking at them in their discomfort. "I could be out there laying in stores to help cover the Academy for the winter..." continued the blond bundle of energy who pointed toward the tree line on the far side of the farmer's property with his free hand. The frustrated hunter released his friend's face, then began nervously pacing to and fro between the neat rows of giant orange squash.

"Listen! Both of you...quit complaining. There's a hydra out here that's been stalking the local villagers. Cheiron says it comes out every thirty years or so, when there's not enough game in the area around its lair. You don't want it to eat anyone who you know, now do you?" admonished the demigod. "Besides, Iolaus...you WILL be getting some hunting in tonight, except I don't think hydra meat is edible," he added with a smile.

"You're talking about Iolaus, Hercules. If he can hunt it, he'll find a way to eat it," offered Jason, with a matching grin.

"Okay guys...quiet now. Cheiron said the hydra's been seen passing this way almost every night. We've just got to sit quiet and let it come to us, then we can follow the thing to it's den and report back on it's location," advised Hercules.

"Awwwww Herc, if we're hunting it, why don't we get to kill it?" protested Iolaus.

"Because Cheiron wants us to have plenty of back up when we go into its lair. As far as he knows, no one has ever killed a hydra before. He doesn't even know if it can be killed," advised the demigod who was a bit concerned as he watched his best friend's expressive face. He just knew that his daring friend's mind was busy trying to devise some plan to get around their headmaster's directions.

"We're not killing it tonight, Iolaus. So just get any thoughts of that kind out of your head," warned the demigod.

"Yes mother," teased the slightly miffed hunter.

"I asked you to stop calling me that. You know I don't like it," complained Hercules.

"Yes, Mmmmmmmaster," was the quick response from his grinning partner.

The chilled cadets passed the night with small talk and by eagerly devouring the midnight snack that Cheiron had the cook pack for them. Time inched it's way towards dawn and the cadets huddled closely together for warmth.

It was an hour or so before sunrise. The moon had completed its night's journey long before and the darkness became almost inky. "Where is this hydra?!?" a very damp, and totally annoyed, Jason demanded of no one in particular.

"It figures Cheiron would send us out here on the monster's night off!" added the equally annoyed blond hunter. "Especially with a guy who hasn't even learned the first thing about being a cadet...Never Volunteer for Anything," Iolaus said as he threw a wink at Jason.

The prince chuckled then winking back at his friend he said, "He's still young, Iolaus. We've got to give him a chance to learn by his mistakes."

Jason placed his hand on Hercules' shoulder to steady himself as he stood up and searched the area. When he found what he was looking for, he bent down and whispered his need to relieve himself as he nodded towards the pumpkin farmer's outhouse.

Just as the young prince made it to his destination, Iolaus realized their mistake. He excitedly tugged on the demigod's arm to get him to stand while exclaiming, "By the gods! I know why we haven't seen the hydra tonight!"

"Calm down, Iolaus...what are you talking about?" demanded Hercules.

"We've been sitting in wait for the hydra all night...but it's been sitting in wait for us too.... and we blinked first! Quick! Get Jason out of there while I distract it," Iolaus shouted at the demigod as he picked up his sword and prepared to run off.

Hercules reacted instantly as they both caught site of the giant, shadowy shape of the monster making it's way towards the outhouse. Iolaus headed straight towards the hydra waving his arms and screaming... "Hey...HEY! Over here big, ugly and STUPID!!!"

The hydra turned with amazing speed for a creature its size, momentarily distracted from its initial prey by the golden blur that was dancing in and out of its range.

The young hunter was trying to give Hercules and Jason enough time to load their bows or launch their spears at the beast. As he made his last turn to set the hydra up for a clean shot, Iolaus leapt over another large pumpkin. An angry, hissing, black cat darted out from under the vines, tangled himself between the hunters' legs, tripping the blond and slowing him down.

It was just the fraction of a second that the hydra needed to get rid of this small nuisance. Letting loose a triumphant roar, the hydra swatted the small blond with it's snake-like tail.

Iolaus felt himself lifted off the ground, felt himself airborne for a few moments, and desperately flailed out with his arm, to break his fall as he dropped back toward the earth. He felt himself land on the hard ground, then felt the snap and the searing pain as it radiated up his left arm. The momentum of his fall carried him downward until his head connected with across-section of log that was propped under the largest pumpkin, holding the huge squash off of the damp ground.

As he lay there amid the orange globes, he could hear the fading roar of the hydra as it beat a hasty retreat. Iolaus' limbs felt leaden. He couldn't move when the demigod knelt next to him and scooped him up off the cold ground. He heard the guilt-laden voice of his best friend repeating, "It's my fault if he's hurt...it's all my fault...I should never have volunteered...."

Before Iolaus could rouse himself enough to form the words that would reassure Hercules, the blond felt dizziness dragging him further away from consciousness and he felt his vision going. A bright colored vortex swirled where once the full moon had been, and the last thing he felt was himself being sucked into the dark center of the twisting mass...then total darkness....

When next Iolaus opened his eyes, he could just barely perceive the fading swirls of color from the vortex as it receded from his field of vision. He took quick inventory and noted that both his left arm and his head ached, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. The hunter jumped when he remembered the hydra that had sent him flying and he rose quickly to run back to help his two friends fight the beast. Staggered with the initial dizziness this movement brought on, he looked around expecting to see the monstrous beast, but all he saw was the demigod bent over something, busily pounding it into the ground with his fists.

As the demigod pounded he kept repeating, "My fault...they'll know it's my fault if you're hurt...I want them to know it's all my fault, that I did this...."

The demigod took one last punch and ran off towards the Academy Road. Iolaus shouted to him, "Herc...wait Herc...!"

"I told you to stop calling me that!" The enraged demigod shouted over his shoulder without stopping or turning back.

Iolaus made it to the spot he had last seen Hercules and he bent over to move some large leafy vines out of the way. What he found was a boy with wild blond hair, about his own age, dressed in fancy, brocaded 'court' clothes. He was cowering between some close rows of pumpkins, head down, hugging his knees to his chest trying to take up as small a space as physically possible.

Iolaus rested his hand on the boy's shoulder. He felt the youth cringe, attempting to make himself even smaller as he cried out, "Don't hurt me...please, don't hurt me."

"I'm not going to hurt you. I want to help," declared the hunter. He saw the boy cradling his left arm in a protective way so he added, "Here...let me see that arm; we might have to get you to a healer."

The boy could hear the apparent concern in Iolaus' voice so he dared to look up to see his rescuer. They froze, as they each came face to face with someone who looked like their mirror image. For the first time in his life, Iolaus was speechless.

"Who are you?" asked the stunned hunter when his wits returned to him.

"My name's Iolaus. Who are you?" returned the other boy.

"You can't be Iolaus...I'm Iolaus!" the blond hunter fairly shouted.

The other boy began to shake and almost wept when his look-alike raised his voice. "But I am Iolaus...I always have been," he protested weakly.

"Okay then, your name is Iolaus...I believe you. Just stop cowering. I'm not going to hurt you," assured the confused hunter. "Maybe you can tell me what you're doing out here in the middle of this pumpkin field dressed up in a fool's costume?"

The other blond boy seemed to take affront. He pulled himself up in as dignified a pose as he could muster under the circumstances and said "I beg your pardon. This is NOT a fool's costume...it's Jester's attire, specifically tailored for performances at the royal court of Corinth...thank you very much."

Seeing the hurt in the other boy's eyes over the unintentional slight, Iolaus apologized. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that...Hercules says that sometimes my mouth gets ahead of my brain. By the way...can you explain to me why Hercules was beating you up? That just doesn't make sense. I mean...I can't believe that was really Hercules. He's been my best friend almost all my life and he isn't like that."

"Well, I've known Hercules almost all my life too and I'm just lucky he didn't kill me tonight," exclaimed the still shivering blond boy.

"This can't be! Either the gods are playing tricks here or...I must be dreaming..." an incredulous Iolaus trailed off.

"Yes, well I wish this were only a dream...but it's not. Welcome to my nightmare, friend," said the other Iolaus as he held out his good hand to the hunter.

Iolaus took the other boy's hand and helped him up onto his feet.

"Can you help me get back to the Academy? My friend Kora will take care of me and hide me until we can make our getaway. You know, I've heard that there's no place like Rome, especially this time of year. If we leave soon we'll be there in plenty of time for the Saturnalia. Yes...that's what I'll have to do now... run away like the coward that I am," the young Jester babbled.

"Are you always this nervous? You will heal. It's only a broken arm. We'll just go back and make things right with Hercules. You'll see..." began Iolaus.

"You don't understand. There is no 'making things right with Hercules.' If I can't perform and make him laugh...I'm useless. And I really have to stop referring to him as Hercules...he hates that name. If I'm useless he'll kill me, and I'll have the same fate as all of the others. I'll either be hydra food or I'll be dead meat...that's all...just dead meat!" and the boy's shivering doubled as he said those last few words.

"If he hurts you like this and if you're so afraid of him, why do you do all this for him?" inquired Iolaus.

"Oh, if I'm not there to entertain him and make him laugh he gets nasty...really nasty and people suffer...you don't know the half of it," said the boy as he started shaking nervously again. "I couldn't stand it if he killed someone because of my failures."

"Then you're no coward. In fact, you've been doing something really brave for the sake of other people. But you've got to take care of yourself right now so calm down. Just let me get you to Kora's and we'll think of something," said the hunter out loud to the quaking blond. But he thought to himself, 'I still can't believe that Hercules would do something like that...there's got to be an explanation for this,' as they proceeded down the familiar road to the Academy.

The two blonds approached Kora's Place carefully. They didn't see the demigod but, just in case, the young Jester told Iolaus that they could enter through the rear delivery entrance. Hercules would never consider using a door that was for servants and working men.

Iolaus entered first to make sure the coast was clear.

There she was, standing next to the carving board giving instructions to the cook. Just as always, Iolaus' heart melted at the same moment his hormones kicked in...Kora...wow! He didn't realize how long he had spent just standing there staring but he heard a little gasp that called him back to reality. Kora had spotted him and was running towards him with her arms spread wide in welcome. She grabbed the hunter into a fierce hug, pushed him down on the bench next to the door, sat in his lap and offered him warm hugs and welcoming kisses.

"I thought I'd never see you again my sweet, sweet love," purred the petite blonde girl.

'This is Kora?' Iolaus' besotted brain questioned. 'The Kora I know???' Iolaus pondered as he enjoyed the moment.

Taking a good open-eyed peek as Kora thoroughly kissed him he thought 'Wait! Maybe this is some kind of trick...' But his brain short-circuited with all the lip action. The intrepid hunter began to get caught up in the moment, '...or treat!' he thought as he began to respond in earnest. 'This MUST be a dream...' His thoughts got cut off completely with a few more kisses.

The idyllic moment was interrupted by a low, insistent noise. Iolaus tried to concentrate and as his world stopped spinning he realized that the noise was the Jester sternly clearing his throat.

Kora jumped off of Iolaus' lap and threw her hand across her mouth to stifle a loud gasp when she saw the two blond boys glaring at each other. Blushing, the baffled girl exclaimed, "Would one of you care to explain?"

After being assured that the demigod was no where in the tavern, the young Jester said "Let's go to your room Kora, I need you to take a look at this arm and we'll tell you the whole story...at least as much as we can piece together."

The trio sat in the sparsely furnished room just off the kitchen. Kora splinted and bandaged the Jester's broken arm while he told what had brought him to such sorry circumstances in that pumpkin patch.

"You see," began the Jester, "when Hercules gets rid of his 'problems' he has two ways of 'disappearing' people. Tonight he was utilizing method number one. He was going to feed me to the hydra of Pleiades Mountain."

Iolaus excitedly exclaimed, "You know about the hydra!?!"

"Yes, of course. Hercules discovered its cave at the base of Pleiades' north side several years ago when we were very young. He's been getting rid of his enemies there ever since...well, many of his enemies anyway. He was going to take me there tonight. He said he wanted the hydra to kill me but I don't think he really meant it. I've been lucky so far...he hasn't ever gone that final step to actually do me in. But he did want to scare me good...all because Kora told someone that she prefers my company to his. He needed to eliminate me as competition. Now he thinks I'll be too scared to go anywhere near Kora again. Hercules knows what a weak and pathetic scaredy cat I am."

The Jester reached for Kora's hand and placed a soft, reverent kiss on her palm. "What Hercules doesn't know is that Kora is the only one who gives me the courage to go on. So, now it looks like the only thing left for me to do is to get us all out of Greece."

"And there's no one to stop Hercules or talk some sense into him? Where is Jason in all of this? Surely as his friend and as the prince..." Iolaus began.

The Jester laughed bitterly, cutting Iolaus off in mid-sentence. "King Aeson lost his throne almost a year ago. Hercules deposed him as King of Corinth and took over the city. He says it's his first step toward ruling the world and eventually Olympus."

"He keeps Jason imprisoned in a cell in the castle's dungeon to insure Aeson's cooperation. We can't leave him there. He was always a good friend to us in the past. I don't know how I could possibly get him out though. It's like a maze under that castle...a maze filled with frightful things," bemoaned the sensitive youth.

"Instead of running away, why don't you just bring Jason out and show him to his people. If you can prove to them he's still alive, they'll rally behind him and his father to overthrow this regime," Iolaus suggested.

"No they won't...the people wouldn't know him. That madman mauled his face so badly it's unrecognizable. Jason wears a mask to hide the scars on his face. The scars to his heart are even worse I fear," explained the Jester.

"So what do you want to do?" inquired the hunter.

"We've got to leave tonight, before HE comes looking for me. Kora and I have been planning an escape for some time now so we're ready to go. We've just got to get into the castle somehow and rescue Jason so he can come with us."

"Where will you go to escape from Hercules, especially if he plans on taking over the world?" asked the blond hunter who was finally beginning to grasp that this was not his world. This was a dimension of twisted evil that the hunter was only just beginning to discover.

"Like I said before, I've heard that there's no place like Rome, so I plan on taking Kora and Jason out of here and heading west," confirmed the determined Jester. "Will you come with us?" he asked.

"You know, I feel a little better knowing that this isn't my world. Something must have happened when that hydra hit me." Iolaus said.

"You saw the hydra and lived?" inquired a very surprised Jester.

"Yeah. But when he hit me, he sent me to this place and my friends must be frantic, not knowing where I am. If I go with you, they may never be able to find me. I better stay here. And I think I have a plan." Iolaus stated. "I'll switch clothes with you and I'll help you rescue Jason. Then, when you're safely on the road to Rome, I'll return here and stay as far away from Kora's as possible. We'll let Hercules think you're still here, in the hills around Corinth. This will give you a chance to get away." He added.

Kora went to check on her guests in the tavern while the young men switched clothes and made plans. She came back to invite them into the kitchen for a bite to eat before they hit the road. The sideboard was heavily laden with foods of every kind imaginable and Iolaus was taking it all in, trying not to drool while he decided what to sample first. That question was answered quite easily for at that moment Kora put a tray in front of them and both blond boys eagerly reached for the honey cakes it held, knocking their knuckles together as they each grabbed for the biggest piece. The Jester grinned, then said, "Life is uncertain..." and Iolaus completed the thought with a matching grin "...so eat desserts first!"

Iolaus was still licking the honey off of the fingers on his right hand while his left hand was reaching for a savory meat pie.

"Eat anything you want from the table, but whatever you do Iolaus...don't touch the meat pies," warned the Jester under his breath.

"Why? They're my favorite...and I'm sure Kora's are the best in this world or any other!" the hungry hunter was almost drooling as he again reached for the steaming pastries.

The Jester swatted the hunter's hand away from the pies, handing him a chicken drumstick in its place. Iolaus took the proffered meat, bit into it and continued, "I still can't believe your Hercules is like this. I mean...in my world, where I come from ...he's the sanest person I know...kind and helpful."

"I wish it were the same here...but it's not. Here he's known as a devil...a madman...a butcher...a real butcher in fact," said the Jester as an involuntary shiver ran down the length of his spine.

"How can that be?" inquired the hunter.

"You know when Hercules reached puberty Zeus wanted to send him into the Pit of Tartarus with old Chronos. That's when they found out he'd inherited the crazy traits of the family...but the old god's heart wasn't in it. He couldn't bring himself to kill or exile his own son. So Zeus sent him off to live with his sister Hebe. I got sent along too...you know...for amusement purposes."

Iolaus was puzzled. "Hebe...the Goddess of Youth? What good would that do for Hercules!" he exclaimed.

"Goddess of Youth??" the Jester laughed. "In this world Hebe is crazy. In fact, she's the queen of crazy. That's why Zeus made her the Goddess of Crete and Other Small Islands. He didn't want Hebe anywhere near the main land. Having Hercules with his sister, away from Greece but where he could still keep an eye on them both, was Zeus' best solution."

"Hebe is the crazy Goddess of Crete...okkaaayy! So..." prompted Iolaus who was trying to absorb this new bit of information.

"Hebe was trying to get a handle on Hercules, kind of feel him out, see where his talents lay because Zeus wanted her to keep her brother busy. He wanted Hebe to teach her brother to do something productive with his time besides plotting to take over the world."

"And what happened?" asked Iolaus.

"Well, Hercules was bored on Crete and he used to sit for hours playing with Hebe's hair...you know she's got this long, amazing hair that stands up straight when she's riled. So Hebe got it into her head to send him to school to be a barber. He excelled at this trade and Hebe let him get away with murder...literally. Like when he made mistakes while shaving people...he hates admitting to mistakes...he'd always make it a permanent 'big mistake'. Then he found a unique way to get rid of the bodies...he'd take them to the butcher's market and turn his 'mistakes' into minced meat...hence the filling for the meat pies."

Iolaus turned green and almost lost the food he'd already eaten.

"No one in Corinth knows about the pies except Kora and me and he said if we ever told... he'd kill everyone in town."

"That's demented!" exclaimed the hunter.

"Yes, and for our part we try to stop people from eating them. We put soap into the pastry dough sometimes when nobody's looking," said the Jester.

"How can people not know about something like this?" cried the hunter disgustedly.

"Well, if the people of Corinth do know about it they're too scared to say. But I understand that, behind his back, the people on the islands still call him the 'Demon Barber of Hebe's Crete,'" the Jester said with several serious and knowledgeable nods of his head.

Iolaus was overwhelmed with what he had just heard. He hung his head and rested it on the edge of the table. 'This world is even weirder than one of those in the Tragedies of King Stephanos that old 'Fiddle Face' is always pushing at us in Modern Greek Lit classes.'

Kora gathered some small items, tossed them into her carry sack and slung the pack over her shoulder. The Jester pulled his carry sack from underneath the bed and declared himself ready to go.

Iolaus wanted to keep their departure as secret as possible to give them a good head start on their journey. He instructed his two companions to climb out the window and head straight for the stable where Kora had horses waiting for them.

Kora and the Jester made it out of the tavern undetected and Iolaus waited until he could see that they were both safely inside the stable before he attempted to make his own escape. As he raised his leg to climb out of the window, the door to Kora's room came crashing in with a fearsome bang, followed by the unearthly bellowing of an enraged demigod.

"Herc...this is me...you really don't want to hurt me..." bargained the blond hunter as he found himself dangling about a foot off the ground at the end of the demigod's arm. His neck was in a vise-like grip and he began to get dizzy from the lack of circulation to his brain.

"I don't want to hurt you buddy...I just want to bash your brains in," growled this stranger in his friend's body.

Iolaus still couldn't believe that Hercules...any Hercules...could be so evil. As the demigod held him suspended he looked into the face so like that of his beloved friend, trying to gather some glimmer of goodness. All he saw looking back at him was evil...pure evil. No monster, not even the hydra he'd encountered tonight gave off the amount of pure badness that was emanating from this...this impostor. The eyes were the same color but they reflected no soul. Dead Eyes.

"And now, I'm really gonna break you...before I kill you," the demigod added with a leering smile. Iolaus looked at that much beloved face in total horror and took in the unfamiliar, thin beard of youth that made this Hercules look even more demonic.

Hercules pulled his free arm back to deliver a beating, but Iolaus saw a slim chance to escape and took it. With lightning fast reflexes, the hunter got a toehold on the table near the window and flipped himself over Hercules arm, breaking the demigod's vise-like grip on his neck. Iolaus continued the flip and went straight out the window leaving a momentarily stunned demigod behind.

The hunter landed unceremoniously on his butt on the cold ground below the window, but he scurried to his feet and ran to the stable before Hercules could take it all in.

Kora and the Jester had already mounted their horses. Iolaus hopped on the beautiful white steed they had waiting for him and they all took off with the demigod in hot pursuit, who yelled to them as they rode off, "I'll get you, my pretty, and you little toads too!"

As the trio reached the outskirts of the village, the Jester shouted assurances to Kora and Iolaus that the demigod wouldn't be following them on horseback. Iolaus shouted back that it wouldn't matter much...that even without a horse, Hercules was faster than any mortal and he was almost as fast as a mortal on horseback. With that admonition, the hunter urged them to speed up their mounts.

When the three companions arrived at Corinth Castle, Iolaus reminded them that they only had minutes, at best, before the demigod would catch up with them. They slipped into the castle through the employee's entrance, and beat a hasty path towards the deep dungeons in the bowels of castle.

As they opened each cell in their search for the prince, they were confronted with various types of equipment that would serve to facilitate imaginatively gruesome forms of torture...some were even currently in use. As much as they wanted to, the trio couldn't stop to help those poor souls. They could hear that chaos had erupted in the castle and assumed rightly that the enraged demigod had arrived.

There were only two cells left to search on this level. Iolaus turned the handle to one cell door, wondering if he would find Jason inside or just another piece of sadistic engineering technology. He wasn't counting on what he did find...what caused his brave, heroic heart to beat wildly in his chest and his knees to buckle...

For in this cell, Iolaus encountered the largest meat-grinding machine in creation. So large, that there were several slaves chained to it. The circular path of their enforced marching turned the gears that worked the grinding unit. Under the machine sat a huge vat, and in that vat had dripped a large mound of red and white-flecked, shimmering goo. The stagnant air reeked of death.

The Jester peered into the cell over the hunter's shoulder. Pointing to the mound he said, "That's what's being delivered tonight to Kora's Place for the meat pies."

A wave of nausea overcame Iolaus. He collapsed to his knees in the corner of the cell and became sick. The Jester laid a comforting hand on the hunter's shoulder and urged him on.

Iolaus rallied quickly. He knew he couldn't slow them up like this with the demigod practically breathing down their backs. Kora was calling from the passageway that she had found Jason and needed help to get the door open. They could still hear the commotion coming from above only louder now. The Jester estimated that Hercules was searching for them in the servant's quarters. Between the two of them, Iolaus and the Jester managed to break open the cell door where they found Jason sitting in the corner of the cell, frantically rocking back and forth while his nervous fingers picked at the white mask covering his disfigured face. The prince looked both frightening and frightened. They grabbed him and dragged Jason into the passageway with them.

"I'm sorry I got you involved in all of this Iolaus," the Jester offered apologetically as he adjusted his grip on Prince Jason's left arm.

"I didn't have to, but I chose to come with you and help. I guess that means I'm a volunteer. You've got nothing to feel sorry about," replied the hunter as he draped Jason's right arm more firmly over his shoulder.

Iolaus was now determined to get these three away from the unspeakable terror that was chasing them.

"Is there any way out of here at this end of the passage?" asked the hunter.

"No, this is a dead end," answered the Jester, who gave a nervous giggle when he realized what he'd just said.

"Then we'll have to get back to where we came in and hope that we don't run into Hercules on our way out," said the worried hunter.

They heard the commotion coming in their direction and realized that their escape route had been cut off.

Iolaus got his bearings quickly. "Are these the dungeon master's quarters?" he inquired as he pointed to a rather elaborately carved wooden door next to the staircase.

"Yes. Why?" responded the quaking Jester who visibly cringed as they heard the demigod getting closer and closer.

"Quick, get inside!" urged the hunter as he pushed open the door to the dungeon master's living area, dragging his confused companions in with him.

"If this is anything like the Corinth castle in my world, we'll find a secret passage to the outside in the corner of this guy's bedroom," Iolaus revealed.

"How could you possibly know that?" asked Kora.

"Because my Jason and I have used it on a couple of occasions to duck his bodyguards and just go fishing," replied the hunter with a sly grin.

Jason momentarily roused from whatever deep dark place his mind occupied, stared hard at Iolaus from behind his mask and stated flatly, "it's here too."

He was so grateful that something was finally going his way on this accursed night, the hunter thanked this Jason with a brilliant smile and a warm pat on the back.

Once they were all safely inside the suite, the two blonds pushed a large table over to block the door, then made their way to the bedroom. They pulled the stones away that covered the secret passage but, when the final rock was moved, the companions were almost deafened by a roar. An angry, monstrous roar let loose by the demigod who had just found Jason's cell empty. It shook the very foundations of the castle.

Then quiet...absolute quiet ...deadly quiet....

Followed by the low, sinister voice on the other side of the bedroom door murmuring in an almost emotionless tone, "I know you're in there. Did you really think you could escape from me, you silly little people? Now...I'm going to count to three and I'm coming in to get you. One..." the demigod began counting at the same time as he pounded on the door, putting his fist through it and showering the bedroom with splintered wood.

Iolaus and the Jester got Kora through the tunnel...they got Jason through the tunnel and just as the Jester turned to leave, Hercules counted "Two..." and broke completely through the door.

"There you are, you scurvy dog. Three. Now, I'm gonna rip your head off with my bare hands. I'm gonna run you through..." ranted the angry demigod as he charged at Iolaus.

The hunter's only thought was for his new friends to get away. He glanced around the room quickly, grabbed the sheet off the bed and threw it over Hercules' head, screaming over his shoulder for the Jester to go. That's when he heard the sickening sound of tearing material and saw the gleaming glint of candle light off of the long, thin-bladed dagger in the demigod's hand.

Hercules smiled, shook his head incredulously then, with a low-toned, maniacal chuckle, he murmured, "I can't believe you thought that sheet would stop me...hummmmm...well...it didn't." The chuckling turned to maniacal laughter as the demigod intoned, "Heerrreeeee's Herkey!"

Iolaus raised his arms to protect himself and the demigod's dagger caught him in his left arm above the gauntlet. The scruffy, bearded face of the demigod pressed right up against his, breathing into his face as he twisted the dagger over and over again into the hunter's arm.

"Herc...stop!!!! Herc...stop...please! You're killing me...you're killing me!" Iolaus screamed.

"You're dead meat anyway, pal," the demigod growled as he forced Iolaus back out into the passageway and began dragging him towards the room with the meat grinder. And then, for no reason discernible to the hunter, Hercules stopped walking, let go of the dagger and yawned, "Ho, hum...this is getting to be soooo boring.... You are way too easy a prey for me."

Iolaus didn't wait around to find out the reason behind the demigod's strange behavior. He took his chance and ran as fast as his legs would carry him towards the stairs, praying with every step that he would make it before he collapsed from the excruciating pain. It was then that he saw it...the same swirling lights and colors that brought him to this place. He headed straight for that swirling vortex and jumped right in, not even looking back to see if he was being followed....

"You heard him Jason. Iolaus thinks he's dying and that I'm killing him," whispered a visibly distraught demigod.

"He does not Hercules. He's delirious or dreaming. That hit on the head is probably affecting him somehow," assured the young prince.

"Jason is right Hercules," injected Cheiron whose quiet voice of authority got the boys' immediate attention. "With a head injury like the one Iolaus sustained, the outbursts you are witnessing are probably the result of his registering and reacting to the pain. Either that or he's hallucinating from the herbs I gave him before I set his arm."

"It's still my fault for volunteering us for extra duty. Iolaus said as much himself..." began the guilt riddled young demigod.

"He was only joking Hercules. Iolaus was winking at me behind your back when he said that," Jason informed his worried friend.

"Thanks Jason, but you don't have to make up stories to make me feel better," muttered the subdued demigod.

"He's not making it up," rasped the groggy hunter across a tongue that felt as if it were made of sandpaper.

Iolaus had felt Cheiron's gentle slapping on his face as he began to come to. Although he could tell he was comfortably cradled in the demigod's arms, he immediately wished that he had stayed unconscious. He felt pain and he knew that waking up would probably make the pain harder to handle. Yet the more painful self-accusation in his best friend's voice registered in the hunter's brain and he had to set the record straight. He couldn't let Hercules think, for even one second that he was to blame for what happened with the hydra.

Iolaus' left arm fairly screamed with pain that made the breath catch in his throat and tears come to his eyes. When he dared to open his eyes, he saw Hercules staring back at him with matching tears gathered in his lashes. But it was okay. This was Hercules...his Hercules with the warm, caring eyes. His Hercules without the scruffy beard.

"I'm hurting, Herc," gasped the hunter.

"I know, but I swear it wasn't me. I didn't touch you Iolaus. That was Cheiron hurting you. He set your arm. You broke it in the fall when the hydra threw you."

Jason lifted Iolaus' head off of Hercules's chest to give the his young friend a drink of Cheiron's herb tea. When the blond head was once again resting comfortably on the demigod's shoulder, Iolaus questioned, "now why in the world would I think you were hurting me?"

"You were doing a lot of talking while you were out of it Iolaus," the prince informed his friend. "It sounded like you thought our friend here was trying to kill you."

Herc sat holding Iolaus so Cheiron could finish working on his friend arm. The young cadet closed his eyes trying not to cry out with every movement. With his eyelids pressed so tightly together, he could see flashes of light and color behind the lids, and he began having flashbacks, recalling bits and pieces of the nightmare he had just experienced.

"I guess I'll have to send out another team tonight to track the hydra. You boys have done enough already and you have my thanks," said Cheiron as he worked on the blond's arm.

"That's not necessary, Cheiron. The hydra is in a cave near the base of the north side of Pleiades Mountain," advised the small blond cadet.

"How do you know that, Iolaus? We never got to track the hydra back to it's lair," quizzed Jason.

"I don't know how I know...but I'm telling you Herc...that's where you'll find it. Believe me," Iolaus assured his friends.

"Iolaus, Jason's right. How could you possibly know something like that with such certainty?" questioned the skeptical demigod.

Iolaus sat back, closed his eyes again and tried to find a reason why he was so sure about this. Flashes of memories, or the dream came back to him, feelings, senses and then it hit him. "Dead Meat!" the hunter cried out in a loud, excited voice that startled his companions. "Dead meat and smoke...that's what I smelled when the hydra swatted me with it's tail. The hydra smelled strongly of it and the only place for making smoked meats in this whole area is that little town at the base of Pleiades north side. The hydra's lair has to be close by for the smell to sink into it's skin like that."

"Excellent observation young man," said the smiling centaur. "Now sit back and rest while we get you some nourishment."

"I'll go get something special for you to eat from Kora's. It's the least I can do. You saved my life tonight buddy," offered Jason as he held his hand out to his friend before departing for the tavern.

Iolaus shook Jason's hand and replied, "No thanks are necessary, Jase. You'd have done the same for me."

Cheiron finished cleaning Iolaus up and, sensing their need for some privacy, he left the two best friends alone in the infirmary with an excuse to get more bandages for the hunter's head. Iolaus just sat quietly and stared after him for a while...not quite believing that this was real...that his ordeal in the other world was completely over.

Hercules couldn't bear the silence between them. "I'm sorry..."

"Sorry for what?" asked the hunter as he reached around with his good hand, grabbed his friend by the front of his shirt and stared him straight in his eyes. "You listen to me Hercules...if you ever punch me, hit me, break me or otherwise injure me in a fit of anger or disregard...then you'll be to blame and have something to feel sorry about."

"I would never do anything like that Iolaus..."

"I know that. And when you asked me to go with you last night I could have said 'no.' By me saying yes, I volunteered for the hydra hunt every bit as much as you did. I was out there with you because I wanted to be."

"You had me worried there for a while buddy. Especially when you were out cold but you still thought I was killing you. You know I'd never hurt you," assured the serious young man.

"I know Herc, and after tonight I know that I couldn't even imagine you ever would, not even in my wildest dreams."

Jason returned with a covered tray of food for his injured friend. "Kora sent this over for you. When I told her that you saved me from the hydra, she said this is the best way she could think of to reward you. She knows how much you like them..."

Iolaus lifted the cover and he immediately turned green in the gills. On the tray were a pile of steaming meat pies. And for dessert there was a large bowl filled with a mound of Kora's special shimmering, quivering cherry gellattio with little flecks of vanilla pudding throughout. The hunter, looking as if he were going to barf, cried "Oooohhhhh, take it away." Jason quickly pulled the tray away, covered it up and put it on an out of the way table.

"What is it buddy," asked the concerned demigod as he made ready to run for Cheiron.

"Please Herc...just a little bit of broth and bread for me..." groaned the hunter.

"Are you okay, Iolaus...?" questioned a very concerned demigod.

"If Iolaus is refusing Kora's food...there could be something seriously wrong with him," suggested Jason.

"Maybe this hydra thing was just too much for you...right Iolaus? But you'll be okay, right?" asked the worried Hercules.

As sick as he felt, Iolaus was tempted to tease his friend with a quick 'yes, mother' but he thought better of it and groaned instead, "I don't know if I'll ever be okay again."

"Maybe we need a vacation...a real vacation after this until Iolaus gets his health back. What do you think?" suggested the young prince.

"Vacation? Sounds good, guys," said Iolaus as the suggestion began to perk him up. "How about a trip out west? I've heard there's no place like Rome..."