Now her beauty made total sense. But what would one of them want with a simple farmer? He couldn’t fathom it.

Bathymaas studied the man in the stream. Tall and well muscled, he looked as fierce washing as he had fighting Malphas’s demons. His reddish-brown hair was cropped short in back and longer in front. And while he was very handsome, it was his intelligent blue eyes that were searing. “Are you aware of the war that has broken out, Atlantean?”

He frowned. “What war?”

Malphas crossed his arms over his chest. “Are you familiar with the term ‘Chthonian’?”

Aricles shook his head.

It was the goddess who explained. “They are a handful of humans, Atlanteans, or Apollites who are born with the powers of a god so that they can protect their people from the gods who would abuse or take advantage of them. Each is endowed with the ability to slay a god and not upset the order of the universe or destroy it. But for every god they kill, they lose a degree of their own power. If they slay too many gods, they die.”

“And unfortunately, they got crossed up and have been going at each other’s throats for almost a year now.”

The goddess nodded. “There is no one who can protect their peoples while they war, and certain groups are taking advantage of their lax attention to prey on innocents. That is why I’m assembling a team that can temporarily take over their protection duties until the Chthonians come to their senses.”

Aricles narrowed his eyes as he understood why they were here. “You want me to fight for you?”

“Yes.”

Aricles laughed at the very idea. “No, thank you. I’m not a soldier. I’m a farmer.”

Malphas snorted. “Then why were you in an arena fight two days ago?”

“I wasn’t. You saw my brother.”

“That was your brother?” Malphas asked suspiciously.

“Yes. Galenus. I am Aricles.”

Malphas looked even more confused. “But you’re the one who fought off the demons just now.”

He shrugged. “Galen and I learned and practiced together. But he’s the one who loves the xiphos, not me.”

Malphas smiled at the goddess. “I think we found our last two.”

Aricles shook his head. “No, you haven’t.”

Malphas stepped forward, but the goddess stopped him.

“Go find this Galenus and ask him to join us. I want to speak to Aricles alone.”

“Yes, my goddess.” Malphas vanished without question.

Aricles left the stream and dried himself with the towel he’d left on the bank. “If you think you can change my mind, my lady … you can’t. I want nothing to do with war.”

“Do you know who I am?”

“Diafonia, Apollymi, Symfora…” He named all the warring goddesses of the Atlantean pantheon. “None of it matters to me.”