Warriors of Poseidon 02 - Atlantis Awakening

was so loud that it nearly drowned out his words, screaming at her of danger and threat and dark, powerful evil.
     
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    She pointed a finger at Justice and pronounced the sentence she'd trained for ten long years to carry out. Tried on a little formal speak of her own. "Death magic. You stink of death magic, Atlantean, and it's my sworn duty to kill you."

Chapter 15
    Ven tried to put his arms around Erin, but she shot a look of fierce warning at him and, remembering the gazebo, he held up his hands and stood back, grinning. He never believed for a minute that she'd really kill Justice, but it wouldn't hurt old blue hair to get knocked on his ass.
     
    It was Riley who broke the standoff. The only one with no power at all, except the gentle talent of emotional empathy, stood there and faced them all down.
     
    Ven had never admired her more.
     
    "That. Is. Enough," she shouted, loudly enough to cut through all the edgy magic shimmering in the room. "All of you, cut this crap out. It's not good for the baby."
     
    Justice bowed to Riley, more deeply than Ven had ever seen him bow before, and then took two steps back and away from her. "I would not bring strife and discord to your presence, my lady," he said smoothly, flicking a glance at Erin.
     
    "Right," Erin snapped. "You'd just bring death magic. Into Atlantis. Into a temple, even.
    Near a pregnant woman. You're just a peach, aren't you?"
     
    Marie appeared from one of the corridors leading to the other rooms in the Temple. "Is there a problem?"
     
    The situation went from amusing to deadly in a heartbeat when Erin and Alaric both called power, preparing to strike Justice down where he stood. Ven had never been Atlantis Awakening – Warriors of Poseidon 02
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    particularly magically inclined beyond the simplest calling of the elements, but even he felt the whisper of the forces swirling around the witch and the priest.
     
    Justice must have realized it, too, because he reached back as if to draw his sword, but Marie was suddenly there, next to him, and she shot out her own hand, lightning quick, and caught his wrist. Then she started chanting something in such a quiet voice that Ven couldn't catch the words.
     
    Beside him, Erin gasped, then dropped her hands to her sides, as her head tilted upward as if pulled by the strings of an unseen puppeteer. He moved to hold her, fighting his way through a strange, liquid menace that curled around her like transparent mist. When he was able to put his hand on her skin, the mist vanished—or recognized a friend and dissipated—leaving him free to hold her tightly in his arms.
     
    She opened her mouth and sang out several notes in the pure, wondrous tone she'd used to heal Riley, and the silvery shimmer rose to surround her body, and Ven with it, like it had before. At the same time, an identical gossamer mist of light rose around Marie and enveloped Justice where he stood, somehow trapped by her delicate hold on his wrist.
     
    Abruptly, Erin closed her mouth. The final notes of her song trembled in the air and then floated, evanescent, down to Earth. Ven felt the sense of loss again, as though part of his soul disappeared with the music. He shook off the feeling and shot a look at Justice, who now knelt on the floor next to Marie.
     
    "It wasn't death magic at all, was it?" Erin asked, staring wide-eyed at Justice.
     
    Marie knelt in front of Justice and framed his face with her hands. "How did I never know this about you before, Lord Justice? You have been in this Temple on many occasions."
     
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    He shook his head, the blue braid hanging down in front of one shoulder until it nearly touched the floor as he crouched there. "There was no gem singer before, Marie. She must truly be a descendant in the direct line of the Nereids to recognize me."
     
    Conlan bit off a command. "Will someone tell me what in the nine hells is going on?
    Right now?"
     
    Marie slowly turned her head to look at Conlan. "Lord Justice has not been dabbling in death magic, your Highness. He is half Nereid. The Temple Goddess just called him home."
     
    An hour later, they reassembled in Conlan's war chamber, on neutral ground. Ven had spent most of that hour trying to think of ways to wrap Erin up in a cocoon of safety and keep her hidden from anything dangerous for, oh, say, the rest of her