AN: It took me longer than I thought, but here is the next chapter.
As a note though, all previous chapters have gone through a rewrite of sorts. I decided some things needed tweaking, such as Artie's personality, some of her reactions, and her abilities. My website has also been updated because of this. So anyways I strongly recommend you reread the other chapters before you read this one.
Enjoy!
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The Fates Chosen
Chapter 4: Beginning of the End.
Camp Half-Blood;
Strawberry Fields:
Time waited for no one, and soon enough seven months has passed since she'd arrived at camp in August. She'd found a home at the camp, and made plenty of friends. Some from minor gods, other from other cabins.
She was especially close with the kids from the Demeter cabin, and there were two new campers in the Dionysus cabin that she didn't mind. Castor and Pollux were nice boys a little older than her.
Annabeth and Luke stayed close friends to her, but she was a rather social person. Being allowed to make friends and being out from under her relatives thumbs had changed Artemis greatly from the introverted girl she had been.
She was more social, and much more confident. She was still somewhat awkward and shy at times, but those were just traits that weren't going to disappear.
Even the occasional nightmare about her short time on the streets and the years with her relatives had become less to the point they rarely haunted her anymore.
"You're getting good with the plants," Demi, the current counselor of cabin four (Demeter). She had recently turned seventeen, and had been at the camp for nearly three years.
Most campers didn't stay long after they turned eighteen but it didn't mean they had to. Most just wanted to try life in the mortal world, despite knowing if their scent was strong more than a few monsters would find them eventually.
Artemis chuckled as they walked along the strawberry fields, tending to the strawberries. In the beginning her affinity for plants had been much harder to work with, and much more tiring as well. With help from Demetria and others she'd improved greatly.
The hardest thing for her to accomplish was keeping the chlorokinesis in control when she was in her happiest moods. At those time she still tended to get flowers blooming where she walked, but it had gotten to the point where it only happened when she wanted it to, or she wasn't paying attention to her emotions – happiness, excitement, and the like.
It seemed most demigod abilities were tied to emotions to some extent. It was proof that her relation to Aphrodite and Zeus had influenced the strength of her chlorokinesis. She wouldn't have had half the ability with plants that she did otherwise.
Around her and Demi the strawberries rejoiced and flourished.
"Thanks," she replied.
"You've been quiet lately," Demi said, placing a ripe strawberry in the basket she carried. "Is everything alright?"
Artemis shrugged as she placed a few berries into her own basket.
"I just...I've been having some dreams lately and I don't really understand them," she said, and Demi turned to look at her with understanding and concern.
"Sooner or later, Artie, we all have dreams like that."
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Artemis woke up early everyday, but that was a learned habit from her relatives that she just couldn't shake. She'd gotten into a routine of things and really enjoyed training, especially magic training. Alabaster was a great teacher even if he was distant and bordering on cold most the time.
By the end of the first month she'd discovered her ability to talk to snakes. Truth be told she already knew of the snakes, she'd talked to them before though she hadn't realized she was even speaking another language. If the ability came from Hecate or Athena was unknown, it was assumed it was because of both, who shared snakes as associated animals.
Though no children of Athena had ever been able to communicate with snakes. It wasn't that unusual for Hecate though, one of her most famous sons, Salazar Slytherin, was known for his ability to talk to snakes. It was chalked up to being a gift as Hecate's champion, but Artemis wasn't so sure. She'd been talking to snakes since she was younger, before she'd gotten the complete blessing of Hecate as her champion.
She decided not to mention it.
As the year passed by she got closer to Annabeth and Luke. She and Annabeth were similar enough they could bond over books, and she didn't mind listening to her talk about architecture. They also had a common godly ancestor in Athena, which got weird for about a second when Artemis realized Annabeth was technically her great aunt (give or take a great).
Artemis ended up spending a lot of time in the Athena cabin. Not only had it once been her mother's home for the time she was at camp, but she could relate to the children of Athena well. It made life at camp less lonely also.
With Luke it varied, but mostly they'd talk about camp, her art, his feelings for his father and the gods. About Thalia on rare occasions. She'd rarely talk about her Aunt and Uncle. About the days she spent on the streets before arriving close to Half-Blood Hill.
She did have other friends though. Alabaster and her were on good terms, but she wasn't sure she could really call him a friend. He was rather bitter, more so than even Luke, and she got the impression he didn't like her much. To be honest he was closed of, distant and at times down right cold to her. Still, she owed him a lot for putting up with some of her failed attempts at magic during lessons.
Gracie, the girl who taught her french lessons (she was nearly fifteen) had become a close friend in the first year. They bonded over their dislike of the color pink. Neither girl was over the top with their dislike of the color, they just preferred not to be seen wearing the color.
The only exception was light pinks, nearly pastel in tone, and that was Gracie's preference. Artemis just didn't like the color, period. Gracie was still a very girly-girl, what one might consider an intelligent valley girl, something which despite belief was possible. Gracie preferred other colors, like red; red was Gracie's pink in other words.
Demetria was like the big sister Artemis never had. She was the one who taught her the most when it came to controlling plants, and didn't mind if Artie whined about something that seemed trivial to even her later on.
Camp Half-Blood truly was her home now, and she'd have it no other way.
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June 2003;
Camp Half-Blood, Amphitheater:
The Summer of her tenth birthday was the strangest of her life so far. It had been the Aphrodite cabin's idea to hold a celebration in the amphitheater. Artemis got the idea the Aphrodite children had been wanting to do this for a long time now, but until then Chiron and Mr. D had refused their request.
Artemis thought they, or more like Chiron had agreed because it was a in celebration of the two oldest demigods at camp leaving to go to college in the mortal world. The two demigods lucky enough to make it past eighteen was Claire, daughter of Iris, and Xavier, though he was an unclaimed son; probably of a minor god or goddess. He'd been at camp longer than just about anyone else, his ten camp beads were proof of this.
It was sad and also made a part of her mad that Xavier, though she didn't know him personally, had been at camp for ten years and was never claimed. Xavier himself didn't seem all that upset, he looked rather excited to be leaving camp for college. The same could be said for Claire.
Xavier and Claire weren't the only ones leaving this year, but they were the first actually leaving because they got into a college. The others were just sick of spending their life at camp, and were getting older and older everyday. Some of them had been there as long as Xavier, some just as unclaimed.
The celebration itself was loud and lively, just like she'd imagine any dance or party thrown by the Aphrodite children to be like. They had even forced everyone into formal wear. No one was getting in without a dress or suit in other words. Even Artemis herself was forced into a dress by Gracie and Annabeth (Annabeth's excuse: 'If I have to wear one then you do to'; traitor).
At least the dress was modest, not that she had anything to show off – she was nine going on ten. Same as Annabeth, who's birthday was only about two weeks before hers. It was a darker silver short sleeve dress that came down a little past mid-thigh, a golden belt around her waist. Under her dress she wore black leggings, and black knee-high boots (she had fought Gracie on the heels, she refused any sort of heel other than a boot. In the end she won).
Her hair was somewhat messy as it fell down her back in loose waves. In her hair she wore a headband which was decorated with turquoise, purple, and green flowers - like a flower crown. She wore little to no makeup. Gracie had convinced her to put on some eye-liner, but she'd refused anything else the girl suggested. Gracie had given in since in her words 'it wasn't like she needed it anyway'.
For jewelry she obviously wore her charm bracelet, but she was also wearing a choker around her neck, which held a golden coin shaped pendant with a diamond encrusted crescent moon and star. It had been a Christmas gift from Luke last year. In her ears were a pair of owl studs that Annabeth had given her for Christmas last year as well.
Camp didn't really do much to celebrate the holidays such as Christmas. There was a dinner and if they wanted they could exchange gifts. That was harder than one might think since year-rounders didn't normally have the money to go out in the mortal world and buy gifts. Drachma or otherwise.
Annabeth had bought them through a catalogue that usually circulated during Christmas for anyone who wanted to buy gifts. Chiron usually took the drachma equivalent of the mortal price and when he sent in the orders he kept the drachma and sent in mortal currency. Artemis hadn't been able to get anything for anyone that year, but Annabeth's birthday was in July, like her own, so she'd been thinking of gifts she could get the blonde girl.
"So what do you think, Artie... too much?" Gracie asked as she appeared next to the raven haired girl, a cup of juice in hand. She wore a much fancier, eye catching, but still modest red dress.
She kept her hair down, straightened with side-braids which were pulled up to loop at the sides – sort of like mouse ears. It was hard to describe, but Gracie pulled it off, though that could in part be because of the butterfly clip in the main back.
Artemis snorted. "I don't think 'too much' is even in a child of Aphrodite's vocabulary, Gracie."
"Too true," she said, half smirking. "Maybe you should dance with someone. Luke and Annabeth are having more fun than you."
Looking over Artemis spotted the son of Hermes and daughter of Athena dancing, oblivious to the blush Annabeth wore or her growing crush. Artemis shook her head.
"I don't dance," she replied, and Gracie rolled her eyes.
"Please, if you can pull off sword-fighting, hand-to-fighting, and those fancy flips you pull from time to time, you can dance," she said. "Go dance with Alabaster, he looks lonely."
She looked over to where Alabaster stood looking very uncomfortable, and then looked back to Gracie.
"What about you? If I have to dance, so do you." she said, and Gracie laughed in amusement.
"Artemis, you wound me. I'm the daughter of Aphrodite, even with my quirks. I'm way ahead of you."
She pointed to where a boy was on the dance floor, not at all shy, and she made her way over to the gray eyed boy. She blinked, almost caught off guard. She'd probably met the boy in passing, since his stormy eyes led her to believe he was a son of Athena. He looked the part, though his hair was a rarity among the wisdom children; black.
She snorted, even as different from the majority of her siblings as Gracie was, she still proved she was indeed the child of the love goddess. Seeing her friend getting impatient with her from where she danced with the boy – who she didn't have a name for – she sat her drink down and made her way over to Alabaster.
Alabaster was hard to explain in words. He was a lot like Hecate in her mind, though Artemis had only met her patron once in her dreams. Still there was that resemblance, both personality wise and physically.
He was the eldest of his siblings, at least those currently at camp. Being nine (a year younger than her) it was unlikely he had any living older half-siblings in the mortal world. Than again as Hecate was considered a minor goddess it was very possible Artie was wrong.
Alabaster was a lanky boy, but already taller than her even if he was younger. He stood at a tall 5'1, well tall for his age group. His face was lightly freckled, and he had brown hair and stern jade eyes. If Artemis was old enough to see boys as anything more than annoyances or icky than she would have considered him cute.
He wore a suit but looked unhappy about it. Like some others he looked like he'd rather be anywhere else but at the dance. For most of the others that was because of the clothes they were forced into – the boys mostly since most of the girls enjoyed being able to dress up. She got the impression he just didn't want to be here.
One of his sisters must have badgered him into it.
"Hi, Alabaster," she said, smiling as she craned her neck slightly to look him in the eye.
She wasn't terribly short, several months at camp had done her body good. She'd lost the malnourished look, and gained some weight she'd desperately needed along with muscle. She'd always had an athletic build as slight as she was. She was on the short side in her opinion, only 4'9, and that was after she'd grown a little over two inches in the ten months she'd been at Camp Half-Blood.
"Hey, Gracie send you over?" he asked and Artemis chuckled, nodding.
"That obvious, huh?" she asked. "So, do you want to dance? I warn you though, I'm not used to dancing."
Alabaster half-smirked and gently took her wrist, leading her to the dance floor. "You'll be fine, I'll teach you."
Like she'd warned, Artemis tripped up many times, but just like with magic Alabaster turned out to be a good teacher. By the end of the party Artemis could say that being forced into a dress had been worth it, she'd actually had fun.
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It was the beginning of August, just after her tenth birthday, that her normal routine at camp changed. One morning she was woken early, earlier than she woke up on her own so it only took a quick 'Tempus' for her to realize it was five in the morning.
Artemis figured it had to be Mr. D's idea of a joke, waking her up so early. Grover, a satyr she'd gotten to know through Annabeth and Luke was the one to wake her. He was considered young as far as satyrs go, but she knew he was years older than her and every camper currently at camp.
He had curly brown hair and some growing in facial hair, along with brown eyes. He hadn't grown into his horns yet though. The poor goat, the first time they'd met he'd been so upset she thought he'd begin to cry. She knew it was because of Thalia, they looked enough alike that it had him tripping over her name. Luke and Annabeth had done the same in the beginning at the most awkward of moments.
After Grover stepped outside, Artemis quickly dressed in a black tank-top, black jeans, some lace up wedge-boots, and she threw on a red hoodie. As they walked to the Big House she couldn't help but feel nervous. Looking at her as if he knew exactly how she felt, and he probably did, Grover tried reassuring her.
"Don't worry, Artemis, you're not in trouble or anything," he said. "Mr. D and Chiron sent me to get you, Lord Hermes and Lord Zeus... well it's better if they explain it."
Artemis stared at him with wide eyes. "My father... was here?"
Grover shrugged. "I don't really know, maybe, or maybe he told Mr. D on Olympus. I just know Mr. D told me to get you."
Her nerves did settle down, but part of her felt annoyed that her father – of whom she'd never met – might have been at Camp Half-Blood but didn't feel the need to visit her. Not even a simple hello, or nice to meet you.
She knew the gods couldn't interfere with quests directly and that they couldn't raise their kids, but where in the definition of any of that did it say they couldn't drop by to say hello once in a blue moon? At least send a letter or a birthday present... she knew her mythos well enough to know Hermes was the messenger god for a reason.
Artemis sighed, shaking her head as they went into the Big House and entered the rec room. She knew thinking about it would just make the resentment grow and she did understand, it didn't mean she had to like it. She was startled to find not only Mr. D and Chiron there but Luke, then she remembered that Grover had said Lord Hermes had been there as well.
What could be so important though that they had to be woken up before dawn.
"Chiron, what's going on?" she asked, and Chiron wore a somewhat grim look in his eyes. Like he was unsure if she was ready to hear what he had to say.
"Finally you're here, Amy," Mr. D said, looking annoyed but that was just how he usually looked. She chose to ignore the fact he'd gotten her name wrong. "Apparently your parents believe you're ready for a quest."
Artemis raised an eyebrow, while Luke's eyes widened.
"A quest?"
Dionysus sighed, sitting his soda on the table. "Di Immortales, Chiron, did you teach the girl nothing?"
Artemis' face twisted in a mix of embarrassment and anger. "That's not what I meant. I know what a quest is, I just don't understand... this is about a quest?"
"Yes Artemis," Chiron answered. "Lord Hermes visited last night with Lord Zeus. They had come to tell me of a quest for Luke. Zeus has decided it would be a good first quest for you as well, Artemis."
Luke looked excited, but also a bit concerned. "This will be dangerous, Chiron. Is it really safe for Artemis? Her scent is bound to draw in a lot of monsters."
Chiron nodded, and Artie wasn't sure whether to be annoyed or not. She knew they were just concerned, she felt maybe they were right to be. At the same time she felt proud. Proud that her father wanted her to go on a quest. That he felt she was ready.
"You are right, Luke, and usually I wouldn't send someone so young. Artemis has improved in the near year she's been here, but I would prefer sending a demigod with more training. One who is a little older and mature." Chiron sighed. "I don't have a say though. Zeus made it clear he believed Artemis ready for her first quest. Lord Hermes was sure about the same thing in concern for you, Luke, and that you would watch out for your fellow demigods safety."
Luke didn't look like he knew how to feel about that, but he licked his lips and nodded. Inside he was a bundle of nerves and conflicting emotions. Artemis was stuck between the growing pride at her father's faith in her, and the nagging voice in the back of her mind wondering if it wasn't just some ploy to inflate his own ego.
Even if that was the case, she couldn't help but be excited and maybe a little smug she'd been given a quest.
"Yeah, Yeah, whatever," Mr. D said, waving his hand dismissively. "Just tell them what they need to know so they can go, Chiron. If we're lucky maybe they'll decide to stay gone."
Dionysus' words were pretty much ignored, but Luke gritted his teeth to not say something to get him or Artie killed by some selfish god. The god of wine and madness inspected on old bottle of wine... maybe even ancient old by the looks of it. He clearly didn't care for present company or subject of conversation.
"Right, Lord Hermes actually set the quest. You're to go and retrieve a golden apple of immortality. Uneaten of course," Chiron said. "You'll need one more quest member before you go though. You'll be able to choose who, but I'd prefer it to be one of the older campers."
Artemis and Luke both understood. Chiron was hinting at the fact he didn't want them asking Annabeth to go with them. She knew the only reason she was allowed on the quest was because of her father's insistence she go.
"What if the apple is eaten?" Artemis asked, though she didn't necessarily mean by her, Luke, or their undecided quest member. If they got the apple a lot could happen between there and camp.
Dionysus looked up, eyebrow raised. "I guess someone will be getting smited... smote... uh you get my point girl."
"Right, stupid question," Artemis muttered. "So what now?"
"Luke will act as leader of this quest since it was his father who brought the quest to me in the first place. He will consult the oracle in the attic," Chiron answered calmly. "Assuming he is sane once he returns you'll choose a third member and begin your quest at dawn."
The two demigods exchanged glances, and Grover munched on a tin can nervously. He hadn't said much if anything the whole time, just sat timidly, a look of fear for his friends in his eyes. Nodding his head the blond boy stood and headed for the ladder which led to the attic.
"Careful, Luke," Artie called out, and Luke gave her a small smile before disappearing up the stairs.
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He had never been in the attic before, though there were speculation about what exactly was up here. Some theorized that the Oracle, an old immortal hag lived in the attic and that was why the attic window would always give the chills to campers; they'd swear they saw the curtains move, or a shadow in the window somtimes.
Sometimes the curtains were drawn closed, others they was open so the sun could flow inside. Luke now knew that the campers were only partially right. The attic was a fairly large room, but also cramped because of the memorabilia stacked up in the room in an organized mess. The air was thick with tension and creepy vibes, but also smelled of stale air and snakes.
In the back nearby the window, sitting on a tripod stool, was who Luke could only guess was the oracle. She was definitely old and hag-like. But mummy's tended to be like that.
For a split second he feared the mummy would rear up and grab him the closer he got, but all that happened was her eyes began to glow around the marble eyes which had replaced her real ones, and green mist spilled out from her mouth.
The hair on the back of his neck rose as he began to sweat slightly. It was a terrible reminder of life before he left home. His mother would look eerily similar to this when she went into her rants, though without the mummy appearance.
He almost turned tail and ran, but he couldn't move no matter how hard he told his brain to. His motor functions were completely fried, he was rooted to the spot as he stared at the horrifying visage of the oracle.
In his head the almost ancient, hiss-like sounds continued, and a voice spoke: I am the spirit of Delphi, speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus Apollo, slayer of the mighty Python. Approach, seeker, and ask.
Luke wanted to be anywhere but where he was. Blinking rapidly he forced back his memories and swallowed before he was able to speak through his fear. His tongue feeling as if it weighed a ton.
"My fate, tell me my fate."
the mist swirled more violently around him and the junk in the attic before it began to form into three figures. All were very familiar females. The first made his eyes widen and become misty with tears he wouldn't let fall.
Raven black hair which spiked up and was cut short, barely brushing the base of the neck. Fair skin, freckles dotting across her cheeks and bridge of her nose, punk-rocker style of clothes, and electric blue eyes which demanded you pay attention to the danger she posed to your health.
She hardly looked as if she'd aged a day, still the twelve year old who'd scarified everything so her family could reach safety. The girl next to her held a similar aura, commanding and outright mischievous (though in her eyes there was a glimpse of uncertainty). It was easy to mistake the two girls for one another.
She had black hair as well, but the dark auburn highlights running through it separated the two girls. Her hair was longer and wavy, bordering on curly as it reached her waist. Fairer skin than the first girl who had a light tan compared to her.
They both shared the trait of freckles, but this girl had a lighter dusting across the bridge of her nose. Her eyes were just as attention grabbing, intimidating and electrifying as the first raven haired girl, but with swirls of stormy gray which lightened them a few shades. They were the kind of eyes you saw on someone who'd seen too much too young and was always thinking of something... be it a plan to take you down one way or another, or what next to add to a sketch book.
The last girl was just as confident with her stance, but was their polar opposite in coloring. She was much tanner than both girls, like the typical California girl. Her shoulder length hair was curled with loose but springy curls. Her eyes were big and stormy gray, and still shone with innocence and wisdom. It was obvious she'd seen stuff a child her age shouldn't be subjected to, but not near as much as the first two girls.
Thalia, Artemis, Annabeth, Luke thought with some surprise.
He wanted to say something, but he felt as if his tongue had swollen three sizes and every time he opened his mouth it was like trying to swallow his tongue; no words came out.
Annabeth turned to him first, smiling lightly as she spoke in the chilling voice of the oracle: Three shall go west to the garden of the setting sun.
Thalia spoke next, and he hid the chill that traveled down his spine at hearing not Thalia's voice but the rasping one: To return from the quest half of one.
Lastly Artemis turned to him, and Luke just wanted the oracle to shut up. He hated that it was using the visage of his most precious friends. His family. Thalia... the one they'd lost, the one Artie hadn't the chance to get to know. Annabeth, the baby of the group, or at least she had been before Artemis arrived.
Artemis had been quickly adopted into their make-shift family, even if she hadn't been with them before they had arrived at camp. Before Thalia had died and been turned into a tree. After a year it was easy to forget Artemis hadn't been with them before Camp Half-Blood, when being on the run and surviving together was all that mattered.
He had no control of the oracle though, and the impersonation of Artie spoke the last line: And the son of the thief will learn his fate is yet complete.
He didn't understand, and soon the forms of his friends disappeared and he was left with just the oracle. He knew as he stared ahead that his audience with the mummy was over, and shaking he turned and left the attic.
He'd gotten what he came for, the prophecy.
Three shall go west to the garden of the setting sun.
To return from the quest half of one.
And the son of the thief will learn his fate is yet complete.
Now if only he knew what it meant.