Hello everyone! This is my first post on ! I spent a lot of time on this story. More coming soon! ENJOY!

-cahill161

Chapter 1

Up until recently, I hated my life.

If you're a mortal, then you probably think that when I say Hate my life, that I have problems with a friend, or that I don't have good grades in school, or whatever. But trust me, it was pretty bad until I found out that Artemis was my mom.

Yeah. I said Artemis. The girls-rule/hunting/wild animals/moon goddess is my mother.

My name is Tara Hayes. I'm twelve years old and I live in Camp Half-Blood. My father is Allen Hayes, a professor at Stony Brook University. We used to live in Oregon, but we had to leave for certain monstrous reasons. This is my home, and this is my story.

My dad was driving me home from middle school. Overall, I had a pretty bad day. I flunked my test, got stuck in Dean Maxson's locker, (long story) punched a teacher, (longer story) and got a softball in the face. (painful story) Even worse, my dad knew about it, and I was pretty sure he was about to give me that talk about the stuff you did bad that parents seemed so skilled at. Instead, he was silent.

"Well?" I asked.

He looked at me in the mirror. "Well what?"

"Aren't you going to give me the talk?" I said. "You know, "Young lady, I'm very disappointed in you. You've really let me down, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera?"

For a moment, a look of anger flashed in his eyes. Then he just sighed and looked away.

"I'm tired, Tara."

"Really? You slept 'till ten. How could you be tire-"

"Not like that!" he snapped. "I'm tired of you getting in trouble so much. Remember last week? I had to go to an hour-long Parent-Teacher-Principal Conference because you threw an orange at Kenny Newfield! I only just kept you from getting expelled! Is it really too much to ask for you to have a quiet school day for once in your life?!"

I was shocked. Allen Hayes, my father, the most levelheaded person I know, just lost his temper at me. It was the first and last, thank the gods. But it was still bizarre.

Dad spoke again, this time with a soft and quiet voice.

"I'm sorry, Tara. I'm tired. Physically." I rolled my eyes at that, but I let him keep talking. "I had a long day. But don't worry. The move is in a week. You'll have fun in Manhattan.

"Yeah," I replied.

The truth? No, actually. I loved the outdoors. I loved the wide open space, the huge green pine trees, and the smell of grass freshly rained on. That's what makes up Oregon, you know? It seemed New York was the exact opposite of those things. And just to make matters worse, my birthday was in three days, right after we get to Manhattan. I would not enjoy myself. But what made me hopeful, was that Dad had always told me that I had a special place that we would go to for my thirteenth birthday. Maybe I was just clinging on whatever hope that the East Coast wouldn't be completely terrible. Maybe I was actually excited. Whatever I felt, it couldn't have prepared me for what this secret place actually was.

I lay in my bed at 10:47 PM, just thinking. Whenever I had a bad day, (I had a lot of those) I think about things. It always calmed me down. That night, it was about my mother.

Whenever I asked dad about her, he gets a faraway look in his eyes. He would always say that her name was Diana, that she had bright silvery hair that seemingly glowed in moonlight, was quick and intelligent, like a fox, had a regal and serious atmosphere around her, but also was kind and compassionate. Dad always told me that she left when I was one year old, but he also said that I would see her again someday. When I was six, I heard dad's description of her for the first time. It made me think that she was a fairy queen and that when the time was right, she would pick me up and take my father and me to her castle and happily ever after. I read a lot of fairy tales when I was six.

I used to ask dad, "Why can't we be normal? Why do can't I have a mommy?" No matter what, he would reply, "I don't know, but I doubt that we can ever be completely normal." It got really annoying. But still, he was right. We would never be normal. And eventually, I drifted off to a not-so-dreamless sleep.

That night, I had my first demigod dream.

The thing about dreams for us, they're never just dreams. They're either a glimpse of what's yet to come, usually bad, a hallucination-type nightmare that's seems chillingly real, or a subconscious chat with a friend, ally, or godly parent, or whatever. This time, it was a mix of all of them. I was suddenly inside a huge, creepy-looking cave facing monsters, six telekhines, I think, alongside a boy and girl my age. The boy had short brown hair and a splash of freckles across the bridge of his nose. The girl had blond hair tied back in a ponytail with uneven black streaks, as if someone had smeared charcoal on parts of her hair. I had a hatchet in each hand and a silvery bow and quiver filled with arrows slung on my back. The other two kids had swords and shields. Everything was made of a strange dull yelllowish material, save the bow and arrows. Valuable deadly weapons? I don't know.

A telekhine took a swing at me with its spear. I caught the spear at the hilt with one of my hatchets and dragged it to the left, unbalancing the telekhine and causing it to fall over. While it was down, I threw one of my hatchets into its gut. I winced, sure that it was going to cause blood and organs and other icky stuff to spill out but instead, it just dissolved into a neat pile of shiny golden sand. At the same time, another telekhine charged at me. I tried to warn myself, (Look out, um, me!) but it kamikazed directly into my spine.

"Tara!" the girl cried. She grabbed a little knife from her belt and threw it at the monster. It hit him directly in the eye and he dissolved into beach matter. The two kids ran up to me. I could almost feel the impact on my back.

The scene shifted.

I saw a dark haired girl sitting in an apartment around a table. Next to her was a thin, scarecrow-like kid with pale blond hair and two other kids. One of them had a red stain ringed around his mouth. A tie-dye accident? Maybe fruit punch gone overboard? They had a map of Long Island on the table with a little area circled on it. A pure gold knife was stabbed in the center of the circle. Literally. Pure gold. The blade looked like genuine 18 carat. There were notes every here and there like, Take this highway. Naval Assault? (this was x'ed out) and Over the hill! Donut crumbs were scattered on the map. I felt a sense of heightened caution and anxiety. This place was hostile. I didn't belong here.

The scene shifted again.

I sat cross-legged in a large tent. Silky rugs and cushions decorated the floor. Right in the center, a brazier made of gold crackled and popped comfortably with, strangely, zero smoke effect. Atop a polished oak display stand, rested a huge bow shaped like gazelle horns. Lots of animal pelts decorated the tent walls, from tiger to hare and everything in between. But what really drew my attention was the woman sitting in front of me. She had beautiful silvery hair, striking eyes, and had a certain air about her. Sort of a mix between feminine noble and feminine intimidating. I didn't recognize her, but I know that description. I couldn't believe it.

I've finally met my mother. I sat before Diana.

"Hello Tara. It's been a long time," she said. Her voice was warm and comforting. It made me temporarily forget my troubles.

"Mom." My voice was shaky. "I-"

"Wait." She held up her hand to stop me. "First, please listen to me." She took a deep breath.

"Millenia ago, I took an oath. I swore that I would never become smitten or become attracted with a boy. I lived through that oath for thousands of years. Through my first arrow to the downfall of Sparta, I have never fell for a boy. Until I met Allen Hayes."

She shook her head in admiration. "That man is remarkable. We-how do you say it-went out for a couple of weeks until I had to go. I had to meet an amusing male named Perseus Jackson after you were born. I'm so sorry I left, but you will have an important role in the exchange."

"The exchange?" I said. "What the heck is the exchange? Diana, you show up out of nowhere and tell me about my dad and something I don't even know! I guess you being human, you didn't even guess that I would have some questions. Is that it?!"

Artemis smiled. "I am not Diana. Nor am I human. I am Artemis. Goddess of the moon, the hunt, and wild animals."

I was stunned, Not because my dad changed her name, (I guess Diana is a more believable name than Artemis) but because my mother was a freaking goddess. I didn't drop to my knees in prayer or anything like that, I said something like, "Um, okay."

Artemis looked amused. "Are you surprised?"

My shock turned into annoyance. "Um, yeah! Would you be surprised if you found out that your mother is an all-powerful goddess?! I think you would!" About then, I remembered something from history class. About Zeus and Leggo, no Leto being the godly parents of Artemis. "That is, if you were a mortal all your life and you found out that your mother was an all-powerful goddess."

Artemis smiled again. "Nice save. Look, I sense that you have many questions. I can't answer many of them, but I'll answer one."

One question? Whatever! "Fine. What is the exchange?"

Artemis' smile melted. "I'll give you this, it's a very dangerous gamble. If it doesn't work, the gods will fade and your world will crumble."

Her head jerked to the side. I heard the howl of a wolf, then sounds of combat erupted.

"My camp is under attack! I must go and defend my hunters. We shall talk again, Tara, but remember," she reached out to stroke my cheek, and suddenly I felt like a little kid again, "I will always love you. No matter what."

Then everything went black.