Son of Time
Chapter 1
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters nor plot, all rights belong to Rick Riordan.
Artemis opened her eyes to find herself standing in a narrow hallway. She looked around and saw a woman in a blue scrub pushing a bed-like cart. The nurse, she guessed, seemed to be in a frantic state, as if she was in a hurry to get the cart somewhere. Observing the cart more closely, she noticed a woman was laying on it wearing a pained expression on her face. The woman was clutching her large belly tightly, she was pregnant.
This was a dream, she quickly deduced once the nurse pushed the cart right through her as if she weren't even there. Artemis found this odd. Gods rarely dreamed, and even when they did dreams usually had a clear purpose. This dream, however, was not as clear as it should've been. Deciding that she had to get to the bottom of this, she followed the nurse into a room.
The room was quite small and the walls were painted a plain white. There was a bed large enough for one person with many machines surrounding it and two seats in front of it. There was a man standing next to the bed, a doctor she guessed, who ran over to the door once he saw the nurse rush into the room. With the help of the doctor the nurse quickly lifted the pregnant woman off the cart and set her down on the bed.
Once the pregnant woman had been set on the bed, the doctor and nurse quickly got to work. They worked in near-perfect harmony, using as little words as necessary, as if they had done this a countless number of times. Artemis allowed her focus to wander around the room, seeing as the doctor and nurse had things handled. There was a digital clock that read 8:49 on the wall. Just below the clock was a calendar which was set to the month of August, boxes that had numbers starting from one and going upwards were crossed out up until the number eighteen. The calendar also read 'Sydenham Hospital', probably the hospital she was currently in.
Although it hadn't felt like it, due to her being in a dream state, just over four hours had passed. Before the woman had finally been able to push the baby out. The clock that was on the wall now read 12:58. It was quite unusual, usually childbirth only took an hour or two, she would know. After all, she was the Goddess of Childbirth. The doctor, who had pulled the baby out, handed it to the mother. The mother was still panting as if she had just run a marathon, but a smile that seemed to brighten up the entire room was plastered on her face as she looked at the newborn in her arms.
"Beautiful." She whispered in a voice filled with love. Not even a minute had passed before the woman's eyes dulled over and her body went limp, nearly dropping the newborn had it not been for the nurse's quick save.
"Sally Jackson, time of death, 12:59." The doctor sighed sadly. Although it was quite sad that the mother had passed without even being able to enjoy her child, it didn't weigh on Artemis as this woman wasn't a maiden. It may have seemed harsh, but after a while you begin to realize just how common death is, especially when you're four thousand years old.
Suddenly, everything and everyone in the room stopped, even the sound of the beeping that was previously coming from the machines. It was as if someone had pressed the pause button on a remote control, pausing everyone except Artemis and oddly enough the newborn child, that is. The newborn, who was still in the arms of the frozen nurse, seemed to turn his head towards her, which should have been nearly impossible for a newborn. The newborn, who now that she could get a look at appeared to be a boy, slowly began to open his eyes. Just as they were nearly open, everything went blank.
Artemis woke up in her bed located in her private tent with a startled gasp. She looked around frantically, trying to spot anything out of the ordinary. Seeing that everything was normal, she let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. She felt a sticky substance coating her nightgown, quickly deducing it to be sweat. She quickly got up and changed, deciding that a good hunt would be just the thing to get her mind off of the weird dream, of which's purpose was still unclear to her. All she could confirm was that whoever that newborn was, he had an important role.
Just as she finished putting on her silver parka, she heard the crackling of a fire. It was the middle of the night, her hunters should have all been asleep by now. Quickly deducing that whoever had started the fire was an enemy, she summoned her bow, knocked an arrow, and quickly but quietly moving outside. She saw the small figure of an eight year old with brown hair sitting on a log in front of a fire with her back facing her. Realizing it was Hestia, she quickly willed her bow and arrow to disappear.
Without so much as sparing a glance at her she patted the empty space next to her and spoke. "Sit, Artemis." Although weary, Artemis sat down on the space Hestia had gestured to. Hestia gently grabbed her hand, instantly filling her with warmth, all previous weariness now lost within Artemis. "It is good to see you again, niece."
"It is good to see you again too, Hestia." Truthfully, Artemis had missed the feeling of warmth that Hestia provided. Recently she had been so preoccupied with her hunt that she has had no contact with any god other than her annoying twin, Apollo, who visited occasionally. Realizing that she wasn't up to date, she grew worried. "Is something wrong on Olympus? I don't imagine you came this late just for a simple visit."
Noticing her worry, Hestia squeezed her hand, successfully calming the Moon Goddess. "No Artemis, nothing is wrong on Olympus." She stated, much to the relief of Artemis. "I actually come here with a request."
"A request?" Artemis asked, completely bewildered. Never before had the peaceful goddess come to her with a request.
"Yes, a request. That is if you wouldn't mind helping me?" Hestia questioned calmly.
Artemis's eyes widened, realizing that she probably sounded rude. "Of course I wouldn't mind helping you out, Hestia!" Realizing she yelled it out, she quickly placed her hands over her mouth.
"I appreciate the enthusiasm." Hestia said, laughing softly. This caused Artemis to blush in embarrassment.
Quickly getting over her embarrassment, or at least trying to, she asked, "What is your request, Hestia?"
This caused her to stop laughing and become serious. "Today an old friend of mine gave birth to a child," She started. Artemis, not understanding where she came into play, gestured with her head to carry on. "After giving birth, she passed away." A woman passed away after birth? Sounds oddly familiar to the dream she had just before. Could it be that Hestia was talking about the same woman? Hestia, now noticing Artemis' faraway look, spoke up. "Artemis? Is there something wrong?"
"Huh?" Artemis look up, not realizing she had been lost in her own thoughts. "Oh no, it's probably nothing. But did she, your friend I mean, happen to give birth in the Sydenham Hospital?"
Hestia frowned. "Yes in fact she did. How did you know that?" She had never even mentioned the city it was in, much less the exact hospital.
"I... I had a dream," she said. She then proceeded to explain her dream in great detail. Once she finished she added her own thoughts. "I believe this child, whoever he is, is going to be very important."
Hestia, who was looking down in deep thought, glanced up at Artemis once she spoke. "Yes, he indeed will be," She agreed. "Which is why I wanted you to bring him back here. Since his mother died and his father can't take care of him, he would probably be put in an orphanage."
"Is his father a god?" Artemis asked.
"Yes, indeed he is."
"Which god is he?" Artemis pushed on.
"A very powerful one." Hestia answered cryptically, resulting in a frown from Artemis. But before she could pry any further, Hestia spoke up. "Anyways, seeing as you know where he is, please bring him back quickly and safely. It could become dangerous for the child if we wait any longer." Artemis frowned due to still having her question unanswered but nodded and flashed away.
It didn't take long for Artemis to find who she was looking for. Once she flashed into the hospital she appeared in a large room. On her right were dozens of pink cribs. On her left were the same number of blue cribs. She quickly figured that the colors were to differentiate between genders, with that she walked around the blue cribs checking each one by one. Soon after, she came across a crib with the same baby she saw in her dream. She quickly grabbed him, while making sure to be gentle, and flashed back to camp.
When Hestia saw her holding the sleeping baby, she smiled warmly. "Now that I've completed your request, I'd like you to answer my question."
Hestia seemed to contemplate this for a while before she smiled innocently. "Only if you agree to adopt him."
Artemis just stood there in shock for a minute, mouth agape. "What?" She asked incredulously. "Why in Hades' name would I do that?"
"Well he clearly needs a good parent if he's to grow up into a good man," Hestia frowned. "Besides I think it'd be a good experience for you."
"But what if he hits on my hunters? He is a male after all!"
Hestia sighed and stood up. She walked over to where Artemis was standing, still holding the baby, and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Relax Artemis, he is only a newborn. He can't even talk, much less hit on your hunters."
"But Hestia, you can't seriously be expecting me to do this!"
"Tell me, niece, has he done anything that could be considered vile?" At Artemis' nod she continued, "Then why are you so prejudice against a newborn child? You could raise him to be a better man than the ones you despise."
"Alright I guess he hasn't done anything wrong," She admitted. "But why don't you raise him?"
Hestia smiled sadly. "I'd love to," She admitted, "But I can tell he will have a difficult future, meaning he'll need to grow up strong. We both know if I were to keep him he wouldn't receive the proper training he needs."
Feeling guilt swell up at seeing her favorite aunt so sad, she reluctantly agreed. Once she officially adopted him, a strong silver aura began to glow around his body before dimming until it was barely noticeable. He then began to slowly stir in her arms, signs of waking. He slowly opened her eyes. They were a striking silver color, as if reflecting the color of the moon. Exactly like her eyes she realized, probably due to officially adopting him. Once he saw her he began to laugh adorably, making her heart flutter.
"Maybe this won't be so bad.." She whispered to herself. She then realized that he didn't even have a name. "Hestia do you have any idea what I could name him?"
Hestia thought for a while before responding, "His birth mother did once tell me that if she had a boy she would name him Perseus."
"Perseus," Artemis repeated slowly. "I like it." Hestia smiled brightly before thanking her and disappearing in a burst of flames along with the camp fire she had been sitting next to earlier, leaving Artemis alone with Perseus. She looked down at the newborn who was still laughing in her arms and let out a small smile. "What am I going to tell my hunters?" Deciding to deal with it in the morning, she entered her tent and went to bed.
Artemis woke up, her internal alarm clock telling her it was time for breakfast. She opened her eyes, and was surprised to see a little head resting on her chest. That's when last night's events came flooding back through her memory. Gently wrapping her arms around Perseus, trying not to wake the newborn, she got up and walked out of her tent heading towards the dinning area.
The camp was buzzing with activity, as usual. Some hunters were sharpening their hunting knives while others were chasing each other in playful manners, most though were at the dinning area eating breakfast. They shot her curious glances as they saw her walking around with a white blanket in her arms, not noticing it was a newborn.
She quickly made it to the head of the dinning area where she stepped up on the platform. "Gather around, everyone." She ordered loud enough so even those that weren't currently eating breakfast heard her. Once they had all gathered around and quieted down she spoke, "We have a new addition to the hunt." There were murmurs of excitement, all expecting a new sister in the ranks. Ignoring the chatter she continued, "His name is Perseus." It was silent for a few seconds as everyone processed what she had just said before everyone began shouting asking questions.
Artemis was about to yell at them to quiet down before her lieutenant, Zoe Nightshade, beat her to it. "QUIET! I'm sure Lady Artemis has a very reasonable explanation if you would just quiet down enough for her to speak." After sending Zoe an appreciative nod, she proceeded to summarize the previous night with Hestia. Once she was finished, everyone was quiet as they were processing what they had just been told.
Atalanta was the first to speak up, "So he's officially your son?" Artemis nodded. "Who is his father though?"
Artemis came to the realization that Hestia had left without telling her last night. "I... don't know." She sighed.
Zoe slowly walked to her mistresses' side and observed the now woken baby in her arms. "Can I hold him?" She asked almost hopefully. Artemis smiled and placed Perseus into her arms. "He has beautiful eyes," she noted. She then began to coo him affectionately, getting a laugh from Perseus. The rest of the hunters all began gathering around their new brother, all but one.
"You're all unbelievable!" Phoebe yelled. "Just because he's a child now doesn't mean he won't grow up to be as vile as the rest of his kind!" And with that the now livid huntress stormed off towards her tent.
All Artemis could do was sigh. She couldn't blame Phoebe, she probably would have had a similar reaction if she were in her shoes. She was glad that the rest of the hunters were fine with him though. In fact they seemed to adore him as they each fought to get a turn of holding the giggling baby.
She quickly called over Zoe from the group of mulling huntresses. "Zoe I'll be in my tent, could you alert me if anything were to happen?"
"Yes milady," She replied dutifully.
Just as she was about to head back to breakfast Artemis spoke up again, "Oh and Zoe? Take care of your little brother." She winked making Zoe give a small smile and a nod.
Author's Note: As you may have noticed, I have deleted all the previous chapters. I felt as if I was rushing a bit too much so I decided to redo this story. I also thought of a plot twist that I could incorporate into the story which would make it a whole lot interesting instead of just following the regular plot, cause let's be honest who wants to read the lightning thief and all the other books again. All I'm going to say for now though is Percy isn't going to be the 'Savior of Olympus'.
Anyways I hope you guys don't mind that I'm redoing the story. Tell me what you all think I could improve on and all that good stuff.
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