upper hand until Hercules' cousin intervenes, making no real difference himself but inadvertently giving Hercules his sword, which allows him to fight Xena on equal ground and defeat her. However, Hercules refuses to kill Xena, telling her, "Killing isn't the only way of proving you're a warrior". Touched and inspired by Hercules' integrity, and by the fact that he too suffered the loss of blood kin as she did and yet chooses to fight in honor of them, she decides to join him and defeat her old army. In "Unchained Heart", Hercules tells Xena that there is goodness in her heart, and the two of them share a brief romantic relationship, before Xena decides to leave and start making amends for her past. Fictional character history Initial turn to evil Several years prior to the series pilot, "Sins of the Past", Xena commits numerous horrible deeds from terrorism to piracy and murder, and at one point becomes known as the "Destroyer of Nations". Her journey down the path of evil arguably begins when her beloved brother is killed during an attack by the warlord Cortese. Xena vows revenge and she becomes estranged from her mother as a result. Sometime later, she acts as the captain of a pirate ship, doing everything from raiding other ships to ransoming hostages. It is during one ransom attempt that she encounters the young, handsome and brash Roman nobleman named Julius Caesar. Caesar is an experienced warrior and military commander with grand ambitions. He and Xena have a passionate love affair and plan to join forces. Caesar, however, betrays Xena. Caesar has Xena beaten and then crucified (with her legs broken) on a beach to die of exposure—that is, until she is saved by an Egyptian slave girl named M'Lila. M'Lila had originally stowed away on Xena's ship and subsequently befriends her and teaches Xena her first pressure points. After saving Xena, M'Lila takes her to a healer who treats her injuries. While the healer is treating Xena, Roman soldiers burst in and try to kill Xena, but M'Lila shields Xena, takes a fatal shot from a crossbow and dies in Xena's arms. This event drives Xena to the side of evil completely and despite her injuries she manages to kill the soldiers but warns the last one before he dies, "Tell Hades to prepare himself; a new Xena is born tonight." First steps towards