Awakened (Shadow Guild Hades & Persephone #2) - Linsey Hall Page 0,46

the scene was chaos.

Hades stood on the temple steps with his back to me, his cloak billowing in the gale. He gripped his bident in one hand and raised the other, his magic surging on the air. The scent of fire was so strong, I could have sworn there was a blaze somewhere nearby. Rocks rose up in front of Hades, levitating to form a wall between him and Poseidon.

The other god stood upon an enormous wave, his armor glinting like water. He clutched a trident in his hand, the prongs spearing at the sky. He thrust it toward Hades, and an enormous wave rose up from the sea and crashed against the stone barrier that Hades had created.

“I cannot let you do this!” Poseidon shouted. “It is against the order of things.”

“I was created for this. It is the order.” Hades’ voice carried on a roar across the waves.

Poseidon tried sending another wave at Hades, this one far larger. It curled overhead, the water forming a terrifying wall that loomed above us. Fear iced the blood in my veins.

Hades’ magic surged stronger, and his wall of rocks curved up, arcing over us. As the wave crashed against his wall of boulders, he looked back at me and roared, “Run!”

I did as he commanded, sprinting across the narrow strip of land that led toward the portal. In addition to the tidal waves he was creating, Poseidon had stirred up the sea. The gray waves crashed ferociously against the stone walls that plunged into the water on either side of me. They splashed up, soaking me, but I didn’t slow. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Poseidon watching me.

He raised a hand, and his magic flared, smelling of the salty sea and feeling like a rush of cold water against my skin. A wave rose up in front of him, coming right at me.

“No!” Hades yelled, and rocks rose up between me and the wave that bore down upon me, creating an impenetrable wall. Poseidon’s attack slammed right into it, but it held strong.

I glanced back at Hades, realizing that he had directed all of his energy toward me, and the rock wall in front of him had disappeared. His gaze was on me, dark with worry.

Poseidon noticed the hole in his defense and directed another wave toward him.

No!

“Hades!” I screamed. “Look out!”

But it was too late. The wave crashed over him, dragging him into the sea. Fear lanced me, rage on its heels. How dare Poseidon?

My magic swelled within me, searching for any forms of plant life. I could feel it in the hills around me, the scrubby grasses and stunted bushes.

They would do no good.

I reached into the sea, searching for the weeds that would surely grow beneath the depths. I found them, feeling my magic surge through my veins as I called for them. Though they were part of Poseidon’s watery domain, they obeyed me and rose.

I directed them toward the terrifying sea god, and the dark green weeds grew quickly, shooting from the depths. I felt the plants wrap around his limbs as if they were part of my own body. As they dragged him down in the water, the darkness inside me surged to life.

His roar was the last thing I heard, and the darkness inside me delighted in what I’d just done, flaring with joy and power. It surged through me, so heady that I almost swooned.

Suddenly, I felt invincible. Beneath the surface of the sea, I could feel Poseidon struggling against my grasp.

I smiled darkly and tightened the vines. I couldn’t drown him, of course. But I could tear him apart.

Tear him apart.

The words echoed in my mind, and deep in my soul, I felt the faintest objection. It rose, fighting to the surface until it screamed within me.

I couldn’t tear him apart. I couldn’t tear anyone apart.

That was awful.

I struggled against the urge, feeling the lust for power scream inside me.

It’s not me.

I repeated the mantra, trying to separate my conscious mind from the desire that roared inside me. I didn’t have to obey it. I didn’t have to be that person.

It took everything I had to shove down the urge to rend Poseidon limb from limb. I held him tight below the surface but didn’t harm him. But I wouldn’t be able to hold him for long. If I wanted any shot at defeating a god, I’d have to fight with everything I had.

Unfortunately for me, everything I

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