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Chapter 10: Sending for help
It had been one hour passed since Apollo's arrival had forced the boy's to call off their attack and withdraw. The huntresses though battered and bruised, had suffered no significant casualties. But Artemis was pained to find that one of them was missing and could not be accounted for. She ordered a brief search for the missing huntress, but no trace of her could be found. Despite her feelings in the matter, Artemis knew that she could not afford to wait any longer, and led her huntresses to the safety of their new camp, with Apollo in tow.
Artemis watched as her huntresses set up camp. Just several weeks ago, these girls were vigorous and feared nothing. Now they were noticeably slower in setting up the tents and other commodities. Seven out of their original number, not counting the missing sister, had fallen in just the past week, cutting her number down to 23.
Artemis was even more pained to see the fear in their eyes. It shocked her more than anything, that these girls she had seen face down monsters that would make others tremble and run, would be so restless and nervous. Their eyes would jump to the sides of their view for no apparent reason, and they constantly looked up and scanned the border of the camp for any sign of an approaching group.
Because of this new behavior, they were noticeably slower in setting up camp. Even with Apollo there, they seemed hardly reassured. As they set up camp, they would jump at the slightest noise and some would drop whatever they were doing and draw their weapons, and then came a slow, tense moment of anticipation. They would hold this pose for a minute before signing and returning to their work, still glancing up at the surrounding area. The wolves and falcons that used to guard the camp had been killed with the first attack, and so Artemis was forced to order sentries to patrol the area around their temporary encampment.
Her tent was finally set up and its furniture moved within, and she entered it slowly, sitting upon the corner of her bed, as she has done so often in the past few days. Ever since Orion, the first and only man she would ever love, had returned, she had felt as though she were lost within an inferno. A hot fire burned her mind and her thoughts were filled with sorrow and regret. The Fates might be laughing now at the feelings they had caused her to feel, feelings that she had not felt for thousands of years.
The several wounded were being attended to in the tent next to her, and she heard a wail of pain as what might have been an arrow was removed from one of her huntresses. She knew Apollo would be attending them and would quickly ease the poor girls suffering. Sure enough, the cries coming from the next tent quickly died down and Artemis allowed a smile of gratitude for her brother to cross her face for just a moment.
Her thoughts came back to her latest confrontation with Orion, and the way she had come so close to showing him the truth. She simply refused to believe that he truly believed her to be the culprit of his death. She may have been the one to fire the fatal arrow, but surely he was being told that she had done so deliberately. He had to be being tricked by something she did not yet know, some trick of another god or so. Orion had always been so clear minded and sharp witted. Artemis was positive that he had to be being fooled by an outside source.
She did not have to glance up to know that Apollo had just returned from treating the wounded and stood at the entrance of the tent, concern on his face.
"Sis, may I come in?"
She nodded, her eyes not leaving the ground.
Apollo entered and sat on a wooden chair next to the newly lit fire in the center. He crossed his arms and stared into the blaze, as though the fire itself was giving him a new prophecy. Finally he looked up.
"Are you alright sister?"
"I'm fine," Artemis replied a little too automatically.
Apollo did not pressure her though, and continued to look into the fire.
"I was so close," Artemis whispered to herself.
Apollo raised his head again.
"Yeah…you were so close to getting shish-ka-bobbed by whatever Orion has become."
Artemis's head raised up quickly and her eyes flared with anger. Apollo's eyes widened at her expression.
"I was so close to making him see reason. If that boy had no attacked and thrown me off, I could have shown him the truth of what happened! The truth of what you did! Even then, when Orion recovered I still could have…" She trailed off, the fire dying down in her heart.
When she began to yell at him, Apollo lowered his head. He closed his eyes when she said "the truth of what you did". Artemis breathed in and out slowly, trying to regain her composure. But then she slowly signed and looked at her brother again, her rage broken over a recent fact.
"Apollo…if you had not come when you did, regardless of my personal feelings, some, if not all, of my huntresses could be dead. I thank you for that."
Apollo gave a sad smile at her moment of gratitude.
"Happy to be of service, sis."
Artemis nodded.
Artemis still could not believe that Orion had almost beaten her. Very few could have been able to fight an immortal Olympian so efficiently. Even though she had initially bested him, his warriors were in a league of their own. She had never seen boys with the skills and prowess that they demonstrated. They fought like a pack of well-coordinated, yet utterly ferocious wolves. One of them had arisen to defend Orion from what he saw as Artemis's attempted death blow, and had attacked the goddess himself. Artemis was shocked at the level of loyalty they had, which rivaled her huntresses. Artemis pondered just how Orion had come to raise such fine warriors, but this led to a shocking conclusion.
She had debated ignoring Thalia's worries and sending for help from Camp Half-Blood several times. But Thalia had warned about the skill of these boys, and Artemis herself could see that from the skill they showed, very few of the campers could stand up to them. They seemed to have the sword skill of Ares children, the bow skill of Apollo's children, and the strategic minds of Athena's children. The boy who had fought her away from Orion demonstrated all of these characteristics. Artemis still wondered how a mere boy could have at least distracted her from Orion, but it gave a clear warning that they were utterly lethal in combat.
But these were difficult times, and her huntresses were at the edge. They had just barely been able to hold the boys back, and Artemis knew that, however this ended, it would end in bloodshed. And she feared her huntresses would shed the bulk of it. Unless she could summon help from somewhere, Camp Half-Blood seemed the only place she could do so. The other gods would not be able to provide much assistance, and several of them would probably laugh in her face. Hera had always hated her, and Aphrodite would have loved to see her dissipated to the fields of Tartarus.
And so her mind was made up.
"Apollo, I have a favor to ask of you."
"Anything, lil' sister."
"I would like you to go to Camp Half-Blood and gather what support you think can help us. Talk with Chiron about our current situation, and request him to allow you to petition those fighters that you judge to be the most skilled. If they wish to help us, then we would gladly accept. But if they do not wish to, then they are free to stay."
Apollo nodded.
"So you will accept help from boys then?"
Artemis shuddered at the knowledge that there would be boys in that group, especially with the far more war-like tendencies of the male gender. But she needed help, and if it would save her huntresses…
"Yes Apollo. Anyone who is skilled enough who wished to help may come do so."
Apollo nodded and left to return to his sun car.
"Apollo!"
Apollo turned, waiting for the last minute instructions
"Wait in your sun-car, I will be sending someone to help you appeal. I feel she may be of great help."
Apollo nodded.
Artemis sent a call out and her loyal lieutenant arrived a minute later.
"You called for me, my lady?" Thalia asked.
"Yes Thalia, please listen to me."
Thalia nodded and stood straight, the desperation she detected in Artemis's voice shocking her.
"Thalia, I know that you have strong feelings about your friends at Camp Half-Blood. I know that you do not wish to see them hurt, and your protectiveness is admirable. But Thalia, I ask you to put aside those feelings for just a while, and go with Apollo to ask for their help."
Thalia's eyes widened.
"But Lady Artemis-!"
Artemis held out her hand to stop her plea.
"Thalia, I do not wish to argue with you. But you must see the situation as clearly as I do. We need help, and therefore we must go to the only place that might be able to help us. Thalia, please understand what I am trying to tell you…"
Thalia stood in shock for a moment, and then slowly nodded.
"All right. If you believe that this will help us…"
"I know it will Thalia. You will accompany Apollo to the camp and make the request for aid."
Thalia nodded and began to leave.
"And Thalia…thank you."
Thalia nodded and left. Artemis heard the sun car start and drive away, and then sent a silent prayer that the fates smile on them for just this once…
-Boys camp-
Lisa knew it was dawn. The little light she could see from under her blindfold confirmed it for her. She could hear the tell-tale chirping of birds arising from their slumber, and the feel the wet moist air of the early morning. And the sounds of from the boys around her sent their own signals to the air as well.
She sat with the blindfold tightly around her, upon her legs with her feet bound behind her at the ankles. She did not bother to turn her head, for all the sounds of the surrounding area…and smells…same to her senses with unimpeded keenness. Her hands were bound behind the small of her back, and while her mouth was free, she had no desire to say a word. Not to these beasts that had captured her.
She felt a small, lingering pain on the top of her head, where a boy had managed to club her with his sword butt and render her temporarily incapacitated. She had awoken in this state, in what she guessed was the center of the boys camp, judging from the sounds all around her and the gods-awful stench of men.
She heard the sounds of plates and silverware clattering and boys laughing and jostling. A while later, she heard the sounds of weaponry clanging together as the boys around her apparently passed the time sparring with one another. She did not doubt the male urge to prove themselves to one another, but their constant fighting might as well be the reason for their skill in combat. But she heard worse things as well.
Many times since the boys discovered her awakening, some had come over to ask her how she was feeling. By asking, they put their face close to hers and breathed deeply upon her and sprayed her with spit with each word. She heard things said about women and her sisters in the hunt that would have made the most sexist men pale in disgust. But she stalwartly kept her mouth closed.
It was near midday she guessed, that a boy approached her and roughly grabbed her by the sides of the head. She felt her head jerked to one side and the other. Then she felt her hair jerked back, to force her neck to be exposed. She shivered when she felt a tongue stroke its way from her breasts, across her throat and to her chin. Then a boy's voice gruffly spoke.
"Pathetic…I better get that money from Dillon for accepting this little dare…"
Lisa spat.
She heard a sound of disgust and someone viciously backhanded her cheek. She gritted her teeth, refusing to show pain, and a howl of laughter rang from around her.
"You might as well give up hope little girl. No one is going to be coming for you. Girls just don't have the courage to help even their own."
She did not reply.
She then heard several heavy footsteps approaching her, and she felt the blindfold torn off. She blinked in the bright light as it flooded her eyes and forced her to readjust. When she finally got her eyes adjusted she looked up and saw who had to be the leader of such a miscreant rabble that was these boys.
He was significantly older than them, about mid-twenties. His features were smooth and refined, and his armor was highly polished and gleamed in the sun-light. But what really struck her was the way his eyes examined her. They missed nothing, like that of a true hunter. And the way they seemed to radiate…they were the eyes of someone almost as old as Artemis herself.
"What is your name?" He asked.
Lisa was surprised that he asked it in a much more courteous way than what she had heard lately, and decided to humor him.
"Lisa."
"And you are one of Artemis's top hunters?"
Lisa could not resist confessing her skill.
"Yes. As a matter of fact, I am."
There was a collective chuckling around her. But the man in front of her remained as stoic as ever, his expression unchanging. A huge broadsword was strapped to his back and the man followed her gaze to it. He gave a amused smile.
"I am not going to kill you, nor anyone here. For the moment, you are of much better use to us alive."
Lisa gave him a confused look. The man chuckled and gave a signal to two boys standing behind him. They stepped forward and scooped her up from the ground, her lying within their arms. Lisa struggled, the first resistance she had put up today, but could not break from their iron grasps. The entered a small tent that was completely bare of any furnishings, and dropped her to the ground. She felt a booted foot smash the back of her head and her world went dark…
-Camp Half-Blood-
Chiron had just given the command for "release" and the Hermes kids let their arrows fly. The projectiles flew toward their targets with varying degrees of accuracy. Some were right on target, while others missed the target altogether. Chiron nodded his understanding to the ones who did not do so well and to lecture them on better form.
Outside the range, other campers were performing other classes. Clarisse of the Ares cabin was instructing a large number of younger campers from a variety of cabins.
Percy Jackson, the Hero who saved Olympus and the world, was instructing several newer campers in swimming. His girlfriend, Annabeth Chase, was sitting beneath a tree while a group of campers sat cross legged in front of her, reciting ancient Greek.
Chiron could not have been any more proud of these older pupils of his. It was always the pleasure of a teacher to see those he personally instructed go on to teach others in the same skills. It went to show that his legacy would indeed go on, if he ever where to die.
The Hermes kids had reloaded and raised their bows to fire. Chiron was about to give the command to frie when a man's powerful voice rang out.
"HOLD IT!"
Chiron turned, startled, to find Apollo standing just a ways behind them, Thalia standing next to him.
"Lord Apollo! This is much unexpected. What brings you here?"
Apollo gave a smile.
"I'm on a mission for my lil' sis, but first I better sort this mess out."
He approached each camper and corrected them on their stance and critiqued their grips and ways they aimed. Behind him, Thalia was anxiously fidgeting and had look of annoyed urgency.
"Lord Apollo, we really don't have time for this! Artemis is desperate and we really need to hurry!"
"Hold on a second Thalia!" Apollo shouted back. "Archery is an art and I don't like to see it so badly mangled."
Thalia gave an apologetic glance to Chiron, who looked as though he was used to it. He gave her a small smile and Thalia returned it. Chiron had a way of making everyone feel better. Besides, he knew just how picky about archery Apollo could be, and felt it prudent not to test him. Apollo finally stepped back from the group, which now held their corrected stances and grips.
"Fire!" Apollo commanded.
This time, the arrows flew much straighter. Everyone hit their target, though there was still some variance in the accuracy of their shots. There were murmurs of amazement from the campers and Apollo winked at one of the younger girls, an eight-year old looking one, who blushed and giggled.
Apollo turned back to Chiron and signed, running his hand through his hair. He gave a nod toward the big house.
"We might want to discuss this in private Chiron."
Chiron's eyebrows scrunched in wonder but he nodded in understanding. Apollo turned to Thalia.
"Thalia, why don't you go see to your friends and make your own appeal?"
Thalia nodded and quickly ran toward Annabeth, whose class was dismissed and the campers leaving. Chiron saw Annabeth jump up and embrace Thalia, with Thalia returning the embrace. They talked for a moment as he and Apollo walked toward the Big House, and the last he saw of them was Annabeth's worried face as she and Thalia ran toward where Percy Jackson was leaving the water, perfectly dry.
They entered the area used for meetings, Apollo taking a seat across from Chiron. A moment later, Thalia entered with Percy and Annabeth. The three took a seat in chairs at the side of the table. Apollo put his hands on the table and crossed his fingers.
"Chiron, I'm bringing an appeal, on behold of Artemis…"
Well, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I was gone for a week on vacation to Colorado, but now I'm back! I'll see if I can update this later this week. Until then, run fast, duck low, and wear Kevlar!