His Undoing

A Fire In The Tides

She sighed, feeling a wave of calm encompass her after getting mad so easily. It was as if this man had a string that went straight to her nerves. She lifted her dress higher and the sea came up to kiss her ankles, swirling in a small whirlpool around here. She felt his hot gaze on her but continued to face her sea and the moon. 

"What is your name?" He asked. 

She frowned at the question, knowing that he knew, but answered, "Mara. I am Mara." 

"Mara," he whispered, sending chills down her spine. 

"Yes. And you are Poseidon," she told him, feeling a flutter in her stomach at the name. She squished it down as she squished her toes in the wet, heavy sand.

He cleared his throat. "I am," he said gruffly. She was standing in a pool of swirling water, sparkling in the moonlight. She loved how it felt and a smile encompassed her face. His gaze was still set on her, but she ignored it, debating on going back inside. Surely Nat and Nyx were wondering where she went. She turned and walked toward the stairs leading up into his mansion by the sea, taking care to not look at him. She collected her shoes and moved for the door. 

"Goodnight, Mara," he said softly to her, almost a whisper, to which she simply nodded her head and disappeared inside. 

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And you are Poseidon. Poseidon. The way she said his name made him crack a wide smile and he ran his fingers through his hair, pulling one leg up to rest his elbow on. He looked down at the beach where she had been standing, the pool of water still there, waiting patiently for her return. With a wave of his hand, he dismissed the pool back to its home. He stared at where she had been standing, a feeling of longing tugging at his heart. He shook his head, jumped down onto the sand, and tugged at his shirt, ripping the buttons off so they flew into the sand. He undid his belt and let his pants and boxers fall, stepping out of them. Poseidon charged on powerful legs into the sea, diving to the depths. There he sat, images of her in his mind. He pushed off of the sea floor and charged further out into the water, putting distance between the two of them as quickly as he could. 

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Mara tugged at her skirt and ran her hand over her thigh, smoothing it down. Zeus lazily dragged his eyes from her chest down to her red pumps and then back again, not even realizing she was talking. 

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" He met her eyes finally, and flames danced in them, causing him to suck in a breath. I thought she was a water Goddess, he thought to himself. She held his gaze, unwavering, challenging him. He noticed her fingernails had changed to a red color. 

"I asked you how long we were going to be waiting here, but you can't seem to take your eyes away from my chest to answer a simple question," she hissed at him. 

"Ah. We are waiting until Poseidon arrives," Zeus said lazily, reclining back in his chair. 

"And is he always so...punctual?" She asked, irritated. 

"Not usually. If he isn't here in- say 10 minutes- we will continue on and I will split the duties evenly as I see fit," Zeus said nonchalant, looking at some papers in front of him. The doors burst open then and in walked a man who too beautiful for his own good. Poseidon, in the flesh. 

"Nice of you to show your face, brother," Zeus said. Poseidon just stared straight ahead at his brother, no emotions cracking through the mask that was his face. Mara glared at him, arms crossing even tighter over her large chest. 

"Alright. First things first. You two are to split the duties of the sea. I don't care how you do it, but don't involve me. If you want to divide it into a chore wheel or play darts, I don't care. Agreed?" Zeus huffed. 

"Agreed," Poseidon said, stonefaced. 

"Sure," Mara mumbled, arms dropping to her sides in defeat. 

"Poseidon dismissed," Zeus said, picking up a stack of papers in front of him. 

"I may be out of touch for a while," Poseidon said quietly. 

"And why would that be?" Zeus questioned. 

Poseidon's eyes darted to Mara for just a moment before returning to Zeus', "Just will. Got some s**t to take care of." 

"So be it. I want a report on my desk in a week of whatever 'activities' you engage in," Zeus turned his gaze to Mara, dismissing his brother yet again and Poseidon turned on his heel and retreated out the door. Mara's eyes followed him on his way out and she was staring at the closed door when Zeus cleared his throat. She jumped and turned back towards him. "Now. Onto your test." He pressed a button and the doors behind them opened again. A small young woman appeared. 

"Yes sir?" she asked. 

"Take Mara here to the affinity test. And get me her results right away," he told her lazily. 

"Right away, sir," the woman said and took Mara's hand, leading her out the door and through an intricate series of hallways then finally outside. The passed several gardens and then came up to a beautiful building. "This is the training facility but it's also where we test abilities," the woman said quietly and gestured towards the door. Mara opened it and stepped inside. 

The building was gigantic, a full track, a field, a weight room, a swimming pool, a sauna, and several other rooms towards the back. The woman led Mara past all the gods and nymphs that were working out. She slid a key card through a reader at a door in the far back that was labelled "APTITUDE TEST. AUTHORIZED USE ONLY". The woman hefted the door open and the facility lit up, one row at a time. It was a room of mirrors, one wall was entirely composed of weapons, with another glassed in room on the far end. She handed Mara a sweatsuit and pointed towards a door. 

"You can change in there, leave your clothes in the locked that is in there," the woman said, and turned, walking away. 

Mara did as she was told and then exited the small locker room, walking towards the woman.

"You'll start with the weapons. Each exercise begins with the sound of the bell and ends with the same bell. Do not exceed each time for each exercise. If you do not feel any pull towards an exercise, you can make this signal and we will move on to the next one," she said, waving two fingers in a circle in the air. 

"Can we skip the weapons? I have no pull for them...and they look a little...scary," Mara bit her lip nervously. 

"You have to at least touch them to feel the pull," she said. "Observe. And step back." 

The small woman went over to the wall and picked up a large sword before moving over to a green tile. The sword dwarfed her and it looked as though she could barely pick it up. The simulation began, a digital person materializing at one end of the room with their own sword, running full speed at the small woman. She charged at him and they met in the middle, swords clashing. The woman moved quicker than the eye could follow, blocking everything the simulation threw at her and then she landed a final blow, cutting the head off of the simulation that fell to the ground and then disappeared. She walked back over to the weapon wall and returned the sword. Mara clapped for her, amazed at the lithe young woman. 

"In here, you don't let your mind rule you. You rule your mind," she said. 

"Who are you?" Mara asked. 

"Josephina. I am a Daughter of Athena," she answered. 

"Oh Athena is your mother? That's ama-"

"No no. I am not related to Athena. Daughters of Athena is a warrior group made up of all women who are trained by Athena to become powerful warriors. But I am a wood nymph. Normally, we are pacifists, but I have an affinity for weaponry and was recruited by Athena herself," Josephina smiled proudly and Mara couldn't help but smile in return. 

"Okay. I'll try," Mara said, approaching the intimidating wall. She perused the weapons and ended up picking a small throwing knife, holding it this way and that in her hands. 

"Step on the green tile and the simulation will begin. I am going to be right there in that room, but we can communicate via intercom. Good luck," Josephina said and headed back into the room. She sat at a large desk, flipped several switches, and then typed into a computer. "Whenever you're ready," she said through the intercom. 

Mara took a long, deep breath, and stepped onto the green tile. Soon, a figure materialized and charged towards her. All at once, the world around her seemed to slow down, and Mara held the blade side of the knife in her hand, her eyes locking onto the place where the simulations heart would be and she threw the knife as hard as she could. She completely missed, the knife going well over the head of her target and it charged at her a moment longer before falling to the floor and disappearing again. 

"What the hell!" Mara screamed. 

"On to the next, Mara. Nothing here will hurt you unless you engage it! Don't be afraid. Just breathe and channel your power!" Josephina encouraged. 

Mara sighed and rolled her shoulders, "Okay. What's next?"

"Speed. You're going to put on that bracelet over there and then see how fast you can sprint from one wall to the next, running the length of the room. But the bracelet will remain for the rest of the test," she said. 

Mara did as she was told and slipped the bracelet around her wrist. She reached back with her hand and one leg so that her finger tips and the heel of her foot rested against the wall and she closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. Then she opened them and charged forward, running as fast as she could, the room becoming a blur around her. She touched the far wall and turned, sprinting back to the starting point. 

"Perfect! Affinity for speed," Josephina said over the intercom. 

"Really?" Mara asked, excited. 

"Well...all Gods and Goddesses, do," Josephina said nervously. 

"Oh. Then why..." Mara frowned. 

"To get you in the spirit," Josephina's eyes sparkled. 

Mara smiled back at her. 

"Alright. Next test- the elements," Josephina said. "We will start with air. Step onto the blue tile on the far side of the room." 

Mara did as she was told and stood on the light blue square. Suddenly the air around her blew into a whirlwind, ruffling her hair and her clothes around her, and she was thankful she wasn't in that skirt that Thanatos had lent her.

"See if you can manipulate the air current. Try to make it move or stop," Josephina's voice came through the intercom again. 

Mara inhaled deeply and pictured the wind lifting her off of the ground, pushing her hands down as if to force the air down beneath her. Sure enough, it spun down and circled around her feet, lifting her into the air and holding her there. Mara let out a victorious laugh, grinning from ear to ear. The air died down but Mara still hovered until she flipped her hands over and lowered them slowly, her feet descending to the floor. 

"Air affinity. Check. Next is fire. Please step on the orange tile. If you do not feel a pull, please do not engage in this exercise as the fire will burn you," Josephina said. 

Mara moved onto the red tile and felt a warmth growing around her, the air seemed to crackle around her and it smelled like an amazing beach bonfire. Mara nodded excitedly and Josephina hesitantly hit a button on the desk. The ground around Mara exploded into fire, and this time she didn't even need to use her hands- the fire crept up her body, engulfing her, but she felt nothing more than a comforting warmth. She looked at her hands, covered in the flames, and shot them out, a steady stream of that same flame shooting out from them. 

"Fire affinity!" Josephina yelled proudly. They went through earth and water, Mara's affinities for both even stronger than the pull of fire. 

"Now we are going to try god specific weapons," Josephina announced. "We will start with Poseidon since we know you are a sea Goddess." A door opened to another room and Mara saw that there were cameras in every corner so she could be watched. A golden trident sitting in the center with a beam of light around it. Mara walked into the room, eyes locked onto it, a smile playing at her lips as she pictured the gorgeous man holding the weapon, his muscles bulging and wet from the sea. She held it in her hand, surprised at how light it was. "Simulation begins in 3, 2, 1.." 

Another simulation appeared in the corner of the room, but this time Mara charged it, using the trident to lock onto the figure's arm. She threw it up with ease, spinning, and then she impaled it with the trident with such force that it stuck into the ground, even after the simulated attacker disappeared. 

"Trident is a go," Josephina said. "Next is the weapon of Hades. The bident." 

The trident was replaced with a similar looking weapon, but this one had two points instead of three and they were lethal, like the blades of two swords, twisted to look like flames. Mara picked it up and spun it in her hands, looking at the black, tarnished metal. Her hands moved of their own accord to grip the weapon, and it erupted in flames. Mara grinned and got in a defensive stance, facing towards the spot the other attacker had come from. Instead, it appeared behind her, and she had to tuck and roll to get away from it. She jumped to her feet again and charged the attacker with the flaming weapon. She slid on her knees, aiming low, but the simulation jumped and swung a sword down at her face. She pulled back and the sword caught her across the chest, drawing blood. She growled, on all fours with the bident in her hand. The she jumped up, fury in her eyes, landing on the figure, and with one swift, sweeping motion, she disconnected the head from its body. 

"Bident, check. For this last one, I have to tell you that if you do not feel a pull, do NOT engage! It can be dangerous!" Josephina yelled into the intercom this time. The bident was replaced with a staff, a staff in the shape of a lightning bolt. It was a half foot taller than Mara, and she circled it before reaching a hand out to- 

"MARA. Don't touch it unless you feel it ca-" Josephina began but before she could finish, Mara grabbed the weapon and twirled it like a baton in her fingers. Slowly, a storm seemed to roll into the room, lightning cracking around Mara, and a fresh rain falling. 

Mara nodded at the camera in the corner that was watching her and the simulated man appeared again, holding a staff as well. Mara felt the lightning flowing through her as she held the staff. She spun low and a thick bolt of lightning shot out and hit the simulation, causing it to burst before her eyes and disappear. Mara giggled and the storm building in the room seemed to copy her laughter with thunder. 

The door slammed open and there stood Zeus, eyes full of rage, hands fisted at his sides, and he stepped towards her menacingly.