Chapter 14

She had given Arthur her sword, the Sword of Damocles, forged by Hephaestus himself in the great forges of the Gods; it was the weapon she had taken the life of Mera with, the weapon that she had turned on Arthur as well. If she had not been armed with such a powerful, divine weapon, his triton would have been able to defend against the weapon of the sea God. As some of her Furies had seen, a normal, mortal, weapon would quickly fail against the power of his.

He was also armed, if need be, with a battle axe and her shield. She wanted him to be protected; she knew that he was feeling uncomfortable having trusted her with his one true weapon. He looked awkward, holding the shield of the Amazon Queen, but he put a brave face on for the sake of the woman in front of him.

"It's time," she said with a sigh, gesturing with her eyes that he should fall back to her personal dwelling, the bedchamber that they should have shared. He nodded and walked back, turning only once to take a look over his shoulder at Diana.

She tried to remain calm, to retain her regal and cold nature. She nodded to him, trying not to smile; there was no reason to smile right now. Perhaps yesterday, when they had shared a rare moment of sweetness, was a fluke; it was just a matter of two people who, at one time a life time ago, had been engaged to be married, who had been brought back together with all of the old emotional baggage, most negative but some positive, remaining.

It was only natural, she thought to herself as she took in a deep breath, holding it for a count of five before slowly exhaling. There was nothing to be taken away from their kisses; they were just innocent and misguided kisses, remnants of a time that is better left in the past where it belonged.

Diana turned around; she was being foolish. They were over; the time for Diana and Arthur, the unification of two ancient cultures, had passed. They would never be able to recapture the spark they had when they were younger, when they were still innocent and there was no blood on either his or her hands. She had to shake her head, trying to dislodge the thoughts of Arthur from her mind. His kisses were intoxicating, still a mix of skill and tenderness that made her want to melt, that made her want to be a student once more.

She held his triton in her right hand, a nervous look on her face. Triton and her had not agreed on how she would contact him once she got the triton, but she looked out over the seas, taking a steadying breath before wading out into the water.

The triton's handle extended, showing its true length at over six feet tall. She stood in the water, the waves reaching up to her knees, her dress pooling in the water around her as she waited. And waiting. And waited.

The sun was starting to set, getting low on the horizon as Diana remained waiting, with Arthur hidden in her bed chamber. Perhaps their plan had been seen through; if Triton was working with Circe there was the distinct possibility that she would have been able to help him see through their plan. There was also the option that Triton was taking the opportunity to have Arthur removed from Atlantis to solidify his control temporarily before returning with the triton.

Diana's mind went through the possibilities, each one worse than the one that proceeded.

As the glowing orb of the sun reached the edge of the horizon, just about to slip under and transform day into night Diana saw a ripple in the water line.

About time, she thought bitterly to herself.

Triton was even faster in the water than Orin; closing the gap between the edge of the horizon and where Diana was standing. She braced herself for what was about to happen.

Arthur had told her, made her promise, she would not hand over the triton under any circumstances. If he got the triton it was game over for Arthur. On her side, she had made Arthur vow that he would guide Donna, her younger sister, in leading the Amazons and their army against Triton if their plan were to fail. Now, her head was spinning with the thoughts of the future, and the memories of the past, added to all the pressure of the here and now.

"Don't you look simply… delicious," Triton hissed, his eyes devouring Diana's form, the way her dress clung to her hips and breasts, the things that Arthur may have noticed in another life time, but had never overtly commented on, other than to say she was beautiful, or breath taking. "Ah, and you got the weapon…" he sneered, feigning ignorance as to what was going on. Circe was going to work her magic on the boy who thought he could reign in Triton's world, he simply had to trust her, not an easy task in and of itself, but when such a prize was set before him, Diana, Queen of the Amazons, fabled daughter of his uncle, the God of War himself. Oh, with her and her army at his side, there would be no stopping him.

"Thank you, Triton," she said, trying to keep a gag of disgust, creeping up her throat mixed with bile, from coming out. He smelled horrible; Diana had first thought it was just his breath, but she was coming to realize it was him, his body, when out of the water. It turned her stomach, but she steeled herself against the physical reaction. Her mother had always taught her that it was the charge of the Royal Family to suffer for their people; the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.

"And what did you have to do to get that trinket?" he smirked, leering at her like a piece of meat. Triton enjoyed seeing her like this, dolled up for the purpose of impressing, if not distracting, him.

Circe had told him Arthur was hiding in the bedchamber, but had been directed to not worry about him. His original idea of having Diana murder her former love, solidifying her as his was quickly being supplanted by Circe's desire to have a new toy. This annoyed Triton, but ultimately, as long as he got what he really wanted, the rights to reign as King of whatever remained of Atlantis, and Diana as his Queen, he would be satisfied.

"What do you mean?" She turned her body away from him, the triton returning to its more compact size as she held it behind her back, out of his reach.

"Well," he stalked forwards, his legs splashing water up the front of her thin, white gown, as he went, making for several spots of translucence to show through. "I did not think he would trust you so much as to just give over his weapon…" Triton eyed her, grabbing her free hand and pulling her forward. "Did you seduce him? Did you kill him? Tell me, my Queen, what was the cost you paid to betray the man you once loved?"

She burned inside with his words. How dare he… How dare he comment on her history with Arthur? Her eyes narrowed and hardened for a flash before she consciously caught herself, remembering she had to play the game with Triton, otherwise she would risk losing more than simply her freedom. This was not about romance, this was not about Arthur, or her, it was about her people; Diana had to comply to save Themyscira from being sunken, again, this time with no way for her Amazons to escape, not to mention the thousands of refugees that the island had taken in, in part to absolve its guilt for the atrocities perpetrated by her aunt and to atone for the war itself.

"I merely asked," she whispered, forcing her eyes to go soft, the way she had seen Mera do several times when Diana and Arthur were trying to discuss politics and the redheaded mistress felt attention should be on her. "And he complied…" She left out the promise of letting Arthur kill him a second time, or the promise of Diana forever leaving him to brood in silence without contact.

"Oh, I'm sure he did," Triton said, reaching for her other hand, the one that held the trident. "For who could resist your charms, little Queen."

Diana was surprised by his strength, but able to temporarily resist, twisting her shoulders and hips in a manner that kept the hand holding the trident away from him. "I am sure I have no idea what you're talking about," she said with a soft smile.

"Oh, I'm sure you do," he said with a grin, pulling her towards him, this time by force. Diana could brace her legs all she wanted, but the damp sand grooved and he was able to drag her through to him. "And if not, I'm sure I can teach you..."