Hercules (Kevin Sorbo) and Iolaus (Michael Hurst) are persuaded by young Krytus (Chris McDowell), whose older brother has been killed in battle, to come home with him to the city of Tantalus where the bodies of slain warriors have been mysteriously disappearing from the battlefields. Krytus tells them that the trouble began with the death of Hercules' cherished friend King Memnos, whose son Daulin (Erik Thomson) is now king. When they arrive in the city, Daulin warmly greets Hercules and confirms that indeed someone or something is stealing the bodies of the dead soldiers. Hercules is shocked when Daulin reveals that following his father's death, his sister Poena (Amber-Jane Raab) suddenly turned against him and formed an army to oppose his reign. Unable to fathom the cause of this bloody family war or the reason for the missing dead, Hercules leaves Iolaus in Tantalus and sets out for Poena's encampment across the river to speak with her directly.
Upon his arrival, Hercules is greeted by his longtime friend Jarton (Reb Brown), who is serving as Poena's first lieutenant. Hercules is troubled to find Poena, the young woman he was so fond of as a child, preparing to lead her troops into battle. He is stunned to hear that she believes her brother murdered their father in order to assume the throne. Hercules goes to the site of a recent battle to investigate the vanishing dead and discovers huge sharp-clawed paw prints belonging to Graegus, Ares' ferocious dog. He is staggered when the ghost of his friend Jarton appears and reveals that Ares has possessed his dead body as a way of manipulating Poena. He continues that it was Ares who killed the king to start a family war, simply to feed the casualties to his bloodthirsty hound.
Hercules races back to the encampment to stop the forthcoming battle. Meanwhile Iolaus, who has come to warn Hercules that Daulin is planning an attack that evening, has been captured by Jarton/Ares. Hercules finds Iolaus bound and hanging upside-down in a cave, but before he can free his friend, he is attacked by the snarling foul-tempered beast Graegus. As Hercules battles the vicious dog, the distant sound of a battle horn is heard. Finally, using a vine as a make-shift lasso, Hercules leashes the beast and rescues Iolaus. The two race out of the cave towards the armies of Daulin and Poena, who are facing off against each other on opposite sides of the river. Hercules and Iolaus try desperately to stop the bloodbath, but the warriors on both sides begin charging. Suddenly, the ghostly figures of the fallen brothers, sons and fathers of Tantalus rise up out of the river and bring the battling armies to a halt. Hercules informs the soldiers that it was actually Ares who killed their king to start this needless war.
Jarton/Ares appears on the riverbank and provokes Hercules into a raging one-on-one battle. Finally, Hercules realizes that his own hatred and rage is giving strength to his nemesis. When he stops fighting back, Jarton/Ares is slowly rendered powerless. Temporarily defeated without the bloodshed of war, Ares disappears, leaving Daulin, Poena and their armies in peace.
Starring: Kevin Sorbo (Hercules)
Guest Starring: Michael Hurst (Iolaus), Reb Brown (Jarton), Erik Thomson (Daulin), Amber-Jane Raab (Poena), Chris McDowall (Krytus), Richard Vette (Aelon), Steve Wright (Mercenary #1), Jon Brazier (Mercenary #2), Lewis Martin (Mortis), Mark Nua (Ogre), Joseph Hassell (Sentry), Stephen Hall (Lead Soldier), Jean Hyland (Mother), Patrick Kake (Hercules Double)
Written by Andrew Dettmann & Daniel Truly
Directed by Bruce Campbell