The 'Giant' Hunter named Orion

He looked very human, but I could sense an aura of divinity radiating from him.

The stranger rose to his full height, putting his dagger back into the scabbard hanging from his belt at the same time. I never took my eyes off him and studied him closely.

The first features I noticed about him were his deep teal eyes and his short and messy bronze-coloured hair. Then my eyes studied his chiselled face, taking in his well-defined features such as his high and sharp cheekbones, his slender nose and his thin and masculine lips.

I had to admit that he was very handsome.

I looked at his figure and I have to say it fitted perfectly with his face. He was tall and leanly muscular, with broad shoulders and strong arms. He wore a simple sleeveless brown tunic, black pants and a pair of brown hunting boots. A length of leather acted as his belt.

I noticed that at the side of his pants, hanging next to the scabbard of his hunting dagger, was a club made of stone and wood. I gripped my bow slightly tighter instinctively, alerting myself that this hunter was armed and who knew what he could try to do to me.

When my eyes travelled upwards to meet his greenish ones, he suddenly took a deep bow while I stayed in my upright position. He was still bowing when he said, "Greetings, great goddess Artemis - Lady of the Hunt, Mistress of the Wild and Maiden of the Moon. I am honored to be in your presence."

He stood upright once again while I remained in my still position. Our eyes stayed locked on each other, his dark teal meeting my midnight blue.

Well, it was a good thing he knew exactly who I was. No need for any introduction from me. But I did not know him. As I kept my guard on, I asked cautiously, "Who are you?"

The stranger cleared his throat before he answered, "My name is Orion, and I am a son of the ocean god, Poseidon, and the mortal princess, Euryale."

So this stranger was an offspring of Poseidon. That would explain the green tint in his eyes and the divine aura radiating from him. But there was something else about his name that seemed to ring a bell in my mind. I had a sure feeling that I've heard of that name before.

And then it clicked.

"I heard of you," I said slowly. "You are a lover of Eos."

I never did like Eos the Titaness of Dawn with the rosy fingers, golden arms and white-feathered wings. She was, in my opinion, one of the vainest and snobbiest deities I personally knew. She was just as proud as Hera's sacred bird, the peacock. And another reason why I wasn't overly fond of her was because of her uncontrollable lust for handsome men. Being a virgin goddess, I would naturally disapprove of such acts and get completely sick of hearing Eos boast about her many different lovers.

And it was during a celebration on Mount Olympus where she boasted of a new lover of hers; a giant named Orion. She spoke of how handsome he was and how he was such a good and skilled hunter. Not wanting my annoyance to get to me at that time, I snorted silently and just walked away from the conversation.

I wasn't impressed by her description of this lover of hers. First of all, I know that no matter how skilled he, or anyone, was in hunting, no one could ever top me, or they would face the consequences if they dare tried to challenge me. Secondly, I detest giants very much, thanks to an experience I had with one a few years back. And thirdly, no matter how handsome a man is, I knew that I would never seek interest in one.

But now that I was face-to-face with this giant hunter himself, I can see that she wasn't lying about him being handsome.

The hunter, Orion, pursed his lips and shook his head. "Not anymore," he muttered.

Not anymore? I wonder what had happened to make this man walk away from the great and glorious Eos. And I especially wonder how Eos was taking it right now. But I pushed that thought aside. That was not something important to think about right now.

"I thought you were supposed to be a giant?" I asked him incredulously.

Giants (most of them usually being an offspring of Poseidon) were normally about forty to sixty feet tall, and some were famous for becoming enemies of the pantheon. Two in particular had been enemies of mine. But Orion looked absolutely nothing like a giant. He most certainly was not forty to sixty feet high. He was just a few inches taller than me, my forehead probably reaching his nose.

He seemed to blush at my question, and he answered almost shyly, "I take my growth after my mother. I grow as fast as a mortal."

Ah, so that explained it.

I did not ask him anymore questions and a silence hung between us for a while. We held our gazes on each other for a few seconds before I moved my eyes away to look around my surroundings. Orion seemed to be waiting for me to speak again.

I landed my sights on the dead buck at his feet. Gesturing towards the body with a tip of my chin, I claimed, "That was supposed to be my game."

Orion looked at the buck at his feet and then back to me. "My apologies," he said. "I really didn't know that you too were after it. I would have let you have the kill if I did."

I didn't say anything in response. Instead, I simply walked towards the buck and kneeled beside it, ignoring his presence for a while. I placed my bow on the ground right next to me, making sure that it was close enough to grab in case of a surprise attack. With my hands free, I hovered both of them above the dead creature and summoned all my power into it.

Slowly, the buck's body became wrapped completely in white linen cloth. It was a habit of mine to wrap the bodies of my game, so that it didn't dirty my chariot when I brought them back to Mount Olympus to be cooked. When that was done, I summoned even more of my power and the cloth-wrapped body suddenly disappeared into thin air.

"Woah," I heard my only spectator breathe in a mixture of surprise and awe. "Where did it go?"

Picking up my bow and rising to my full height, I replied, "I transported it to my chariot, so that I don't have to come back for it when I return to Mount Olympus." Then, after adjusting the strap of my quiver on my shoulder, I said, "Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be off."

I had only just run a few steps east when I heard Orion suddenly call out, "Wait! Allow me to follow you!"

I stopped in my tracks to turn back and look at him with a raised eyebrow. I was confused by what he had said. Allow him to follow me? What did he mean by that?

When he stopped a few feet away from me, he suddenly kneeled with one knee on the ground. After taking a deep breath, he said seriously, "I wish to join you, Lady Artemis. I wish to join your service and become one of your hunters."

Both my eyebrows furrowed when he told me of his request and my confusion turned into disbelief. What? He wants to be one of my hunters? I barely even knew him for five minutes and he was already asking me for something of the utmost importance.

Still eyeing him sceptically, I proclaimed, "The chance of being one of my hunters is not simply given as easily as it was asked." Orion nodded his head to show that he understood that part, and I continued on. "There are several expectations that I have for those who wish to be part of my retinue."

I silently breathed in air and walked closer to him. Orion stood up almost instantly, causing me to halt my steps. Luckily, I didn't make my movements look too defensive. While he stood still, I circled around him like a predator circling its prey, examining whether or not it would make a good meal. Instead, I was trying to determine if his body fitted one of a good huntsman. It did, in actuality.

"First of all," I said as I looked at his legs. "They must be capable of running long distances with speed and agility and without tiring too easily. I don't really favour hunters whose legs weaken after just a few minutes."

"I think I am capable of that," he answered confidently with a smirk. "I have been able to best other men in speed. And it would take me hours before my legs wear out."

I pursed my lips at his jolly response. I couldn't help but think of how vain and proud he sounded, but I pushed that thought aside. When I stood in front of him again, I said, "They must be able to use a weapon. Preferably a weapon of their choice, be it that they are skilled at it." With a tilt of my head, I gestured to the club that was hanging from his belt and said, "I assume that is your favoured weapon?"

Orion looked down at the club before looking back up and nodding to me. "It is," he said, before adding, "And yes, I am very skilled at wielding it."

I nodded my head in understanding and thought of more of my considerations for hunters. It didn't take me long to remember the one condition that was deemed to me as the most important one.

"Of course, if you do know, most of my hunters are expected to be virgins and they most swear an oath of chastity to me," I said bleakly.

The very minute I ended my sentence, his expression took a downturn. His small smile disappeared, his eyes looked at me as though he was ashamed of something and his broad shoulders slumped.

That was supposed to be the end point for him. Of course, thanks to Eos, I was very well aware of the fact that he wasn't a virgin. Who knows? He might have lost it to some other before Eos. He could even have been with plenty before her. Furthermore, I wasn't too determined of the fact that he would consider swearing an oath of chastity to me. I mean, he was a male after all, and the son of one of the most philandering gods.

I was going to tell Orion that because he couldn't meet that requirement, then his chance of being my hunter was gone. And then I could properly be on my way and continue hunting. But I stopped short by the sight of how genuinely disappointed he looked. I wasn't exactly sure if it was a ploy or not, but I immediately felt pity for him nonetheless.

Ugh! What is this? Why was I feeling sorry for a 'giant' hunter who I met just a few minutes ago? I should just deny his allowance there and then, but something inside me was barraging me to maybe reconsider.

I exhaled in mild irritation and asked, "Tell me, Orion. Do you really do wish to become a hunter of mine?"

He was quick to reply, "I really do. Right now, I have no use of my hunting skills except for my own personal gain. I wish to give you my service with my capabilities. I too wish to expand my knowledge of hunting under your guidance."

"And how am I supposed to know whether or not you're speaking the truth?" I questioned him as I crossed my arms, bow still gripped in one hand.

Looking up to meet my gaze, he asked, "You do not trust my intentions?"

I arched an eyebrow and told him straightforwardly, "Trust doesn't come to those who only met just five minutes ago, Orion. Trust especially didn't come to me when you suddenly asked to join me as a hunter. If I wish to trust you, it would take a lot of time."

A look of thoughtfulness came over his expression and his eyes looked down at his feet as he considered the words he would say next. I inwardly huffed in mild annoyance, but I kept my facade blank.

"I know very well to not lie to you, because I know very well that you would be able to see through my deceit easily," he suddenly exclaimed knowingly. After a deep breath, he added "And if it takes time for you to acknowledge my goodwill to be at your service, then so be it."

The depth of his words made the silence that followed afterwards feel heavy and awkward for me. I know he wasn't going to let this go so easily but I tried to stay still and keep the words from pouring out of my mouth. Unfortunately, resistance was futile.

In a sigh, I muttered, "Maybe I'll make an exception for you."

One part of me protested that because he wasn't a virgin and he was a total stranger, I shouldn't give him the chance. But the other part of me tried to reason with good excuses like how I may actually have good use of his skills and how I might be able to make good of my time by mentoring him.

Orion's eyes widened slightly and his jolly smile returned to his lips. I silently snorted to myself about how fast his emotions had changed from negative to positive. Glad to know that his persistence had paid off, he took a deep bow and exclaimed, loud and proud, "I thank you a thousand times, great Lady Artemis. You truly do not know how thankful I am for this chance to serve you."

As he was not looking, I rolled my eyes to both at how excessive his words of thanks were and also to how I had impossibly been so soft to give him the chance.

First you let Apollo off for forgetting his promise to you. Now you let a giant that you don't even know to join you in your hunt. Good thinking, Artemis. NOT.

When Orion finally straightened up once again, he saw me walking away to the east. I didn't hear him follow me, so I stopped to look behind at him. He was still standing there, looking at me confusingly with an eyebrow raised.

I raised an eyebrow back and asked, "Well? Are you coming or not?"

Both his eyebrows lifted up then and his eyes widened once again as his mouth gapped open just a little bit. "Now?" he asked in astonishment. "I can start my service to you now? Right this very minute?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "Just because I allowed you to be an exception, doesn't mean I'll let you have easy access. Right now is only your trial run. Of course, I want to see how well you perform."

"Now?" he asked again in the same astonished tone.

I nodded my head and simply replied, "If not now, then when?"

He remained astonished for a few more seconds and I remained still, waiting for him to get out of his stupor and finally join me. That is, if he wanted to. But sure enough, a small appeared on his lips once again and he followed me.

While he walked a few inches behind me, I was internally trying to convince myself that maybe this decision wouldn't be so bad.

Author's Note:

Nothing important here, but I thought I would share with you something interesting.

Just yesterday night, I was out shopping in the city by myself and I went to the underground subway station to catch a train home. As I walked, a poster caught my eye, and I could not believe this.

It was a poster regarding the creation of two new tunnel boring machines that was to be used to create new underground subway tunnels. There had been a competition for primary schools (or elementary schools) to give names for these two new machines.

One school won the competition, giving the names ATHENA and ARTEMIS.

A lot of people had been staring at me funnily, probably wondering why the hell is some random teenage girl just staring at an irrelevant poster with her mouth hanging slightly open.

I don't know whether to be proud or to be gobsmacked...

Muse of Fanfiction