I am much pleased to see the reviews I have been getting. You folks don't know how truly it makes a writer happy to see his work is appreciated. I am getting happier and happier with all of you! You truly make a fanfiction writers day!

Well, here is chapter four. I hope you all are geared up and ready for the big revelation of this chapter. I actually debated revealing this later, but decided that it might have a more powerful effect if it was revealed early and Artemis would know just who it is that has declared open war on her. I hope you all enjoy! This is going to be the longest chapter yet by the way...

Chapter four: Battle and Revelation

-Artemis-

The arrows shot through the camp with devastating accuracy. Hunters were mostly able to dodge the ones meant for them, but that didn't mean that they were necessarily the main targets. No, some of the arrows were on fire, and that clearly meant the initial shots were meant for the tents. The assailants were obviously attempting to imprison them in fire within their tents and burn them alive. They must not have counted on the hunters being mostly outside packing up. The attack may have come a little later than they wanted, or maybe that is exactly what they wanted, to catch the hunters in the open.

Artemis took all of this in a microsecond. And then her bow formed in her hand, with an arrow already notched upon it. She raised it up to fire and strained all her godly senses to detect the people who would dare attack her huntresses. She spotted a rustling bush in the distance and fired an arrow directly into it, dimly hearing a scream of pain. No more arrows flew from that bush again.

Her huntresses were returning fire as well, but though they had super-human senses due to their powers as hunters, they could not see their assailants. And most were only able to get off a quick shot before ducking behind any cover they could to avoid counter-fire. Arrows were sticking out of every piece of furniture that had not been packed up, and several tents were already ablaze.

In front of Artemis, one of her huntresses had just managed to fire, when an arrow struck her square in the forehead. She was physically twelve, one of Artemis's newer huntresses. Artemis felt a pang of despair at the sight of her falling to the ground, and made a point of securing any of there dead for honorable burial after they fought off this ambush. But at the moment, she needed to worry about the slackening fire from the woods, almost as if the attackers were running out of ammunition. It was just the break they would need to recover.

"Thalia, gather as many hunters as you can and rally around the main tent! Pile as much equipment as you can, and make some kind of fortification...NOW!"

Her lieutenant hurried off to comply, screaming orders and dodging the occasional arrow. Soon, the huntresses were piling tables and other such things around the tent of Artemis, and carrying their several wounded and one dead into the tent itself. Inside Darren, the captured boy, was laughing at the sight of the wounded huntresses.

"What's the matter little girlies? Did you get a bobo?"

Thalia slapped him and warned him to remain quiet, or she would take his "manhood" away. Darren grinned again but remained silent...wisely silent.

Outside, Artemis was still squeezing off the occasional shot from her arrow, but doubted if she hit anything. Whoever had planned this attack had done so perfectly, and the attackers were in the best position available. They were sheltered by the trees, while the huntresses scrambled to make some fortified area within their otherwise open camp. Artemis had turned to enter the makeshift defenses when she heard the mock howling of wolves and war cries. Hearing the footsteps rumbling toward them, she cursed. And summoned her sword to her hip...she might need it very soon.

-Jason-

Jason howled with delight when he realized he scored a fatal hit on the huntress. He had the joy of seeing Lady Artemis herself give a face of sadness at seeing the huntress in front of her fall, arrow in her forehead. He wondered for a moment why a girl would even care if her sister was killed, and then fired again, this time at Lady Artemis herself. But the woman was as nimble as a cat, and was able to rush through their next volley without a single scrape.

His brothers were having the time of their lives, despite the brother killed by Artemis a few seconds earlier. He would say a few words over his body afterward. Jason spied Thalia, the bitch who got away, and grinned in the fact that now there was no where for her to run, and he had the full group of his fellow hunters behind him.

The huntresses seemed to be piling whatever the could get their hands on to make some kind of fortification around the largest tent, which Jason thought to be Artemis's, as well as where they were holding Darren. That boy deserves to have first pick of any captured huntresses tonight, Jason thought. If women were good for something, it was breeding and...well, the "first step" of breeding. But first they needed to get a hold of any huntresses, if they were not all killed when they closed on them.

Throughout this initial phase, the Lord was simply standing there behind a tree, not firing his bow, but calmly watching the huntresses act. The man was a master strategist, especially when hunting tactics were involved. When one thought about it, many jobs in the military though the ages were based off the stalking and ambush of the quarry. And Jason had not doubt that it would be so tonight. Tonight, the huntresses would die. And Artemis would fall from grace.

The Lord raised his hand for the brotherhood to stop firing, and they fired any arrows still on their bows. Then they ceased at his signal. The Lord observed the confusion of the huntresses, seeing that the enemy arrow fire had ceased. And then the Lord turned to them all.

"Brothers...the time is now. The ambush if complete and the huntresses pinned down. When I say the word, one group will lay down suppressing fire, the rest will close in and give them death by the blade...do you all understand?"

The brotherhood howled their compliance. They would happily jump in front of any arrow or blade aimed for their Lord. For it was he who saved them. He who gave them a home, and he who game the a family. And he was their father in so many ways.

The Lord turned toward the huntresses, who were now jumping behind their fortifications. It would do them no good...

"Now Artemis, you will feel the price of betrayal. After thousands of years...you will fall at last..."

He turned to the brothers and gave a huge roar of power. The brothers drew their swords, except for those delegated to remain and continue firing. The Lord himself drew a huge broadsword, and pointed it at the huntresses camp.

"NOW BROTHERS! KILL THEM ALL!"

They charged...

-Thalia-

Thalia heard the battle cries and the rampaging footsteps before they came into view. She gasped at the sight of them. Over twenty boys, armed with swords and some with two, came charging out of the woods. Thalia summoned her bow once more and raised it, aiming for the lead boy. He looked strangle familiar, though she could not see his face. But her arrow never had a chance to fire, as several of arrows whipped past her head, forcing her to duck.

The boys, whoever they were, had placed a group in reserve, obviously to make the huntresses keep their head down while the attack force moved in. And their aim was just as accurate as before, as Thalia heard a cry of pain and saw a huntress with an arrow in her shoulder. Thalia ricked looking up from their makeshift defenses to find the boys already on top of them. She swore and drew her sword.

The first boys over the wall were those wielding two blades. The huntresses managed to summon their swords as well, and a huge melee developed around the tent. Thalia's opponent was a black haired boy about thirteen, and despite his apparent age, he fought almost as good as her. He was wielding just one sword, unlike the others to first jump the barricade, and was able to counter most of her attacks. He obviously was very well-trained, and could thrust and strike at her vital organs with great ferocity.

But Thalia was a daughter of Zeus and a hunter of Artemis as well. Combined with this, the boy had no real chance, skilled as he was. Thalia made a faked blow to his throat, and when the boy raised hs sword to counter it, she thrust it through his armored chest, and made mushy meat of his heart. The boy stood in shock for a moment, and then fell, jerking only once before remaining forever still. Thalia took several deep breathes to calm herself, despite the fact that her sisters were being attacked all around her and some had not fared as well as her.

"Hey, you little bitch! Your gonna to pay for that!"

She whirled to find that boy who first attacked her the other day. He was wielding a single sword as well, but did not look like he needed much else, as a dead huntress, one of their best sword fighters, lay at his feet. The boy spat on the corpse before stepping over her, approaching Thalia with a grin on his face.

"Remember me, huntress whore? You aren't getting away this time!"

Thalia felt a deep, burning rage enter her.

"Well, come on over boy, and show me what you've got!"

The boy snarled his compliance and their blades clashed together with such ferocity that Thalia thought that thunder blasted. She and the boy became as hurricanes, attacking and parrying and stabbing and slashing. The boy would attack and throw her back, then she would rally and throw him back in return. The two of their swords clashed together so hard, that sparks were lying with their blows. The fighting around them seemed to be out of focus around them, as their whole being was concentrated on the sole objective of killing their opponent...

-Artemis-

Artemis never saw it coming.

She never saw the threat these boys presented. She had believed that no man or boy was ever capable of hurting her huntresses. No male would ever even come close, as these were. But her powers seemed be of no use against them. For some reason, whenever she concentrated on turning them into jackolopes, something stopped her. Some power was at work, and she did not like it at all.

And so she did the only thing she could. Fight for her sisters. Fight for their lives, the immortal lives that she had granted, as long as they did not fall to death or love. And she had already failed with several of them, their bodies ignored in the intensity of the fight. But she would not abandon her huntresses, her family.

The boy she had been fighting finally collapsed, his body raked by several cuts. Artemis showed no sympathy as he fell to the ground, wounded and breathing heavily. Artemis would have delivered a death blow to his skull, if not for the fact that he was temporarily out of the fight and her huntresses were being killed around her. As well as the boys attacking them, but not like she cared about them.

She was fighting another, this one with two swords. And he knew how to use them very efficiently, almost as if he were born wielding them. Artemis was forced to dodge blows from one sword and parry the other. She was a goddess and was quite able to fight with swords, despite her favoring the bow. But this boy was trained very well, and knew the advantage of using two swords over one.

Who are these boys, and how have they become such incredible fighters? That question jolted her mind several times during this fight. Her huntresses were unmatched in combat, and she herself was an immortal goddess. But these boys fought almost as if they were just like them. Just as fast, just as strong, and just as nimble. As if they were...gods forbid, boy hunters. That thought left a serious fester of disgust in her mind when she thought it. But she did not dwell upon it, as the boy suddenly jumped back from the attack.

Artemis took a step forward to strike him, but stopped when she sensed something. Something powerful was near, and it was coming right at her. She whirled around to see, through all the fighting, a large, powerfully built man approaching. Artemis sent out her powers in an attempt to enter his mind and see who he was, but found herself unable to do so. It was almost as if he were blocking her. But how?

The stranger approached her still, and it was almost as if the fighting going around him did not even exist, for him at least. The fighters still tangling together, boy male and female, never acknowledged him, nor did he pay any heed of them. It was almost as if he were a ghost that only she could see. He held a sword in one hand and a bow slung upon his back. His armor was identical to the boys around him, and, under his helmet, he wore some kind if cloth that covered everything but his eyes.

The man approached him. Artemis was shocked to see how well he moved, how stealthily. Just like a champion hunter that could hunt anywhere, and anything. Artemis kept getting waves of power emanating from this man, and her heart fluttered in it's wake. The man approached within ten feet of her and then stopped. He said nothing but merely observed her. Again, not one huntress or bot noticed them, but only she.

Artemis steeled herself. She could deduce one thing from this man. It was he who led these boys. He who was leading this attack on her hunt. And so it would be he who paid the ultimate price for this act.

"Who are you!" She demanded.

The stranger remained silent, though his sword slightly raised.

"I, Artemis, Goddess of the hunt, demand that you show your face, you male!" She said the last word in disgust.

The stranger did not move toward her at all. But he raised one had to his helmet and carefully removed it. He dropped it to the ground, and placed his hand on the back of his head, slowly pulling off the head wear that was covering most of his face. Artemis steeled herself for battle with this stranger, for once she saw his face, she was going to strike him down and make an example of him.

The man removed his headgear and his head was seen. Shoulder length hair revealed itself, and a slight beard was around on his face. And his eyes bore into hers. He had a smile on, but his eyes told her a different story.

But Artemis could not see this clearly, as her breathe caught in her throat. She opened her mouth to speak, but the words would not work, for her vocal cords seemed to have abandoned her. She struggled to form words for the man in front of her, but could not.

No...it's not possible!

The man smiled at her reaction.

"Hello Artemis..."

Artemis forced her head up and looked at the sky. She trained her eyes for that one constellation. That one reminder of the pain of that day, of the memory of that one member of the male gender that had actually captured her heart. The one so violently ripped from her by her over-protective brother.

And it was not to be found...which could only mean one thing...

She looked back at the man, and said the name that she had not said in so long..

"Orion...It can't...it cannot be..."

"Oh, my Lady Artemis, as you can see, it can quite indeed. And I have waited so long for this moment..."

Artemis felt her chest tighten with suppressed grief. Grief contained for over several thousand years, and now coming back in the worst possible way, in the worst possible situation. How can the fates be so utterly cruel?

"Orion...I don't know how...why are you doing this!" She practically screamed with both rage and grief.

Orion laughed.

"Is it not obvious, my once true love? The world is a far better place without you and the huntresses running around. You go around and speak of female superiority, when we all know that it is simply crazed delusions drawn by a traitorous little goddess."

Artemis almost coughed up her grief filled throat. She could not get words out easily from the inferno her heart had become.

"Orion...I didn't mean to...please..."

Orion raised his sword and took a fighting position.

"It is too late for that Artemis. I loved you. And you tricked me into thinking that you loved me. You toyed with my heart and then killed me when you were finished. And so I will make an example of you and any woman who dare to rend a man's heart to pieces."

He charged with his sword. Artemis barley got over her shock enough to block it. Orion gave her several more slashing blows before Artemis jumped back and put some distance between the two of them. Tears were now flowing freely down her cheeks.

"Orion...please...I can't fight you!"

"And then you shall die, you traitorous bitch!"

Orion redoubled his efforts, striking at her with super-human power. It was almost as if he himself had been made a god, or at least a god-like being. He came a her from all angles, striking and slicing and stabbing. And Artemis was having to use all her power to protect herself. Her tears were affecting her vision, and she could not hold them back.

Orion backed off for a moment to examine his prey. Yes, the goddess of the hunt was now the hunted. Orion smiled at the tears flowing down her cheeks.

"As the mortals say, crocodile tears will get you no where, my dear."

Artemis answered with a sob...yes, a full out cry of torment.

"Orion...please don't...I love you..."

"LYING WHORE! IF YOU LOVED ME YOU WOULD NOT HAVE KILLED ME!"

Orion rushed at her, and then thought better of it. Artemis saw the gears of his mind working, and he smiled a little, feeling satisfaction for some work she could not deduce.

"I think I shall call off this battle...for now. We may get more out of this if we let you and what's left of your huntresses go, just so you can give a little sport to hunt later. And don't think for a second that we cannot find you. For we are the best hunters of existence. And we can track you anywhere..."

Artemis did not reply. Only gave a weak shake of her head.

"Please don't..."

Orion raised his voice to his hunters, calling for an orderly withdraw. But he looked at Artemis in cruelty, a cruelty that Artemis did not think belonged on such a face as his.

"Do not think this is over. We have accomplished our goal. This battle was merely a warning. When we catch you again, there will be no mercy..."

And then he was gone, following his hunters with their somehow super-human speed. Some of them carrying their wounded and dead. But not many. Her huntresses had suffered grievously.

Artemis walked into her tent while her huntresses tended to their wounded and the now smoldering tents. Darren had somehow been rescued, and wounded and dead sisters of hers were laying all about her bed. And Artemis sat onto the bed...and wept harder than she had for millennium.

Well, that conclude the big fight. Orion has been revealed, and the huntresses have been badly mauled. And the brotherhood still lurks in the shadows, watching and waiting for their chance to completely wipe the huntresses out...

Some reviewers caught wind of who it was, and I hope that the revelation, though probably anticipated by many who read, still was very enjoyable. I sincerely try my best, and hope you all liked it...and last but not least...remember to review!