Yuku free message boards

I wish there were more than two options. Because my answer would be "It depends" or "I don't know." (Apollo, did you deliberately leave that option out so that people couldn't take the easy way out? )

I do think that Ares joined with submitted to Dahak because he was scared out of his mind when that pillar of fire rose up behind him. You could see it in his face. I'm not sure what kind of power Dahak had over him other than his own terror of something unknown and (possibly) more powerful than himself -- but there you have it.

Now, how would things have been different if Xena had agreed at the start of the episode to lead Ares' army against Hope and Dahak? (And by the way -- I do think that's one exceptional circumstance under which she might have agreed. Remember, even Gabrielle isn't adamantly opposed to it. When Xena says, "Ares is right," Gabrielle replies, "About leading his army? Xena, are you sure that's best?" -- not, "About leading his army? Xena, are you out of your ever-loving mind?") Obviously the fear factor would still have been there, but the situation would have been different in at least two ways:

(1) With Xena at the head of his army, I think Ares would have had a lot more confidence in his ability to win. I mean, look at the schmo he was giving orders to on the beach. With a guy like that as my commander-in-chief, I wouldn't want to go to war against ... *thinks hard, trying to pick the most unthreatening deity imaginable* ... Lachrymose, let alone Dahak.

(2) With Xena fighting at his side, Ares would have been much more embarrassed to chicken out. Plus, while I certainly don't think he consciously loves her at that point, I do believe that a part of him would feel that if he went down fighting side by side with Xena, that would be a worth end.

For these reasons I voted for the first option, though I don't agree with the way it's worded. And it's really much more of a "probably" than a yes.

Well, you know ... to a god who has always assumed that he would live forever, the idea of death has to be even scarier than to a mortal. Especially since we don't know if the gods have any kind of afterlife. And maybe neither do the gods.

As for what Ares is afraid of ... you know, it's weird, because you're right, there are some elements in Sacrifice II that would seem to suggest that Hope and Dahak cannot, as yet, do anything to the Olympians (including Ares). Otherwise, why would Hope need that dagger? And yet Ares' behavior also clearly suggests that he's completely terrified of Dahak, and that Dahak can do something to him. I wonder if a large part of it is just the fear of an unknown menace?