A/N: Just a clarification that had to be made. The Orion incident has already happened. Now back to the story.

3rd Person POV

As the 500 strong monster army gathered around the camp, a clear look of shock passed on the faces of Perseus and the hunters. They just stood there, looking at their impending doom, too scared to move. The monsters just watched in glee at the look of fear displayed by the small group of defenders. Empousa archers came forward, at least 50 of them, notched arrows, and began firing, expecting the shield spell to break like earlier. When it didn't break after the 8th volley, the monsters looked surprised.

Perseus quickly saw what was happening and broke the silence. "Miladies, the shield will still hold up for another half an hour before it crumbles. We need to act quickly."

Artemis nodded and said, "This was your plan, right? I declare that you are to command us temporarily for the duration of the fight. Emergency rights, no complaint girls."

The hunters in turn groaned and started protesting. "Milady why are you giving a boy the right to command us. He is most probably getting us killed and will take glory to himself" they said.

"I am sorry Miladies, but I overheard what you were saying" Perseus said; the hunters were taken aback. He continued, "Miladies I swore an oath on 3 holy rivers to protect you until my dying breath. I shall not let a hunter die as long as I draw air into my lungs. As for glory, I don't want any, as it is I hate power and titles and also I am just doing my duty, there's no glory in carrying out one's duty." The hunters were now looking at him with...guilt? Well, that's new,Artemis thought.

He turned his attention towards the army. They had abandoned the idea of shooting the shield and were now full-on bashing into it in hopes of breaking it. He assessed the situation before asking, "Miladies, how fast can you shoot until your quiver runs out?" he questioned.

"I have a quiver of 200 arrows and can empty it within 5 minutes. My hunters can do the same in 7 minutes. Why do you ask?" Artemis answered and then inquired.

"Milady, the spell has sensed a greater number of enemies than expected so it has strengthened itself, meaning earlier one could shoot from within but not from outside, but now it has sealed itself from inside also. So I have to create small openings so as to let monsters in while we shoot at the monsters that enter. Once your quivers are empty, I shall close the openings while you refill and continue the process until the spell breaks altogether or the monsters have been defeated." He explained.

The others were looking at him with surprise because it was a plan worthy of Athena.

"I hope you know what your doing Perseus." Artemis added while he simply nodded."

"I shall make 3 openings, one guarded by me, the other by Milady Artemis and Milady Zoe, and the last one by the Hunters. Please ready your bows. Shoot when I say go" Perseus said while he took out his bow.

Everyone notched arrows, Perseus concentrated and 3 archways shimmered into the spell as monsters started pouring in.

"GO!" he yelled. All of them started firing arrow after arrow at the monsters. The hunters were doing well while Artemis and Zoe were struggling a bit. Meanwhile Perseus, well let's just say he scared the Tartarus out of the monsters he was facing. He was firing arrows, his water arrows to be exact, at inhuman speeds, about 100 arrows a minute that too with great accuracy. Within 3 minutes, the army had dwindled to 300 monsters. Perseus saw that even though their quivers still had arrows, the hunters were already tired, heaving and panting, having fired so many arrows in just 3 minutes. He closed the archways but this time they did not become one with the spell, meaning they were weaker than the rest of the spell, a weak point. As the final monsters that entered were finally shot down, the hunters promptly just dropped on the ground on their knees, out of breath. Artemis, although not as tired as her hunters, was also out of breath. But Perseus just held his ground, ready to take on another round.

"Perseus...how did...you shoot so...fast? My brother...and I had...had cursed children of Poseidon...to have bad aim...after him" wheezed out Artemis.

"For now, let's just say I practiced a LOT" he replied. "Miladies, the spell has gotten significantly weaker, especially the archways. The next time I open the archways, it won't close. Also, the spell itself may break in about 20 minutes considering the amount of beating it is taking. Miladies, heal up as much as possible, restock supplies to the max and prepare for the attack. I believe this is going to be our final stand against the army." He added in a much serious tone.

Artemis and Perseus stayed back as the rest of the hunters quickly ran back to camp to stock up on Nectar, Ambrosia, and weapons and arrows. Artemis was watching the monsters outside as they tried to break the spell by ramming into it. Perseus was in deep thought when his face morphed into one filled with steely determination. He looked at Artemis and cleared his throat, enough to get her attention.

"Milady, I see that you are worried about your hunters. I was earlier not able to protect my sister and mother, the 2 most important people in my life. But now you have given me a purpose, to once again protect people you hold dear. Believe me Milady, this time I shall not fail. I promise that not one of your hunters shall die before me. I will be the first one to be on the battlefield and the last one to leave" assured Perseus.

Artemis looked shocked at first then smiled at him. Yes, Artemis, the man-hating goddess was smiling at him. A genuine smile, which was earned by his resolve. "I trust you, Protector. But don't die out there. It would be a shame if Earth was to lose one of its best males." Perseus flushed red at that compliment. They soon fell into a comfortable silence.

5 minutes after they left, the hunters returned, all stocked up. They gave Artemis a piece of Ambrosia, a flask of Nectar, and a quiver containing 200 arrows. But Perseus received only a bottle of water, much to Zoe's dissatisfaction. "What is the meaning of this? Why did Perseus here not receive Ambrosia or Nectar?" Artemis asked angrily. "Milady why should we waste our supplies on a boy. Also, he isn't even as tired as us and probably doesn't even need it." said one of the hunters.

Artemis was angry. For the first time, she was angry at her own huntress for ill-treating a male. Perseus sensed this, "Milady, it's fine. She is right. I don-". "Oh SHUT UP Perseus! All you ever do is think about others. Tell me when was the last time you thought about yourself. For once stop being so selfless. Just yesterday you almost died fighting Gration, and you almost passed out after casting the 3 layer shield spell. Those 2 are reasons valid enough for you to receive the godly food from our reserves" Artemis spat out. Everyone paled at that. Now she turned to face the hunters. "Girls, Perseus is trying his level best to help us out of this situation. You on the other hand are just mistreating the very person you owe your lives to. I know you all hate males, but have you not noticed how different he is? Fine! You won't give him his rightful share, so be it. I shall share my own part with him."

She at once broke her piece of Ambrosia into half and gave it to Perseus, who was reluctant at first but one look at her 'serious' face, and he at once took it and put it in his mouth. Once he had finished eating, Artemis gave him her flask of Nectar and ordered him to drink half, which he did (totally willingly and not because of the look she gave him). The hunters had already eaten and drunk the godly foods and now Artemis did the same with the half piece and half flask.

Once they were all finished, and their fatigue was gone, Perseus declared his new plan. He would only open 2 archways this time, but there was a high chance that the spell between the archways will be broken because of the weakening of the spell there due to 2 open spaces on either side. The hunters would guard one archway, Artemis and Zoe will be guarding the other while Perseus would climb the nearest tree and use his lightning powers to snipe monsters. The hunters were highly displeased on his part. He is most probably trying to hide while we fight to our death, most of them thought. Girl, were they wrong! [See the feminism ; ) ]

"Are you ready, Miladies?" Persues asks and the hunters nod and fall into their stance. Artemis and Zoe do the same. Perseus concentrates and the archways shimmer and disappear. At once, the monsters start pouring in. The girls start firing arrows while Perseus scales the nearest tree. They were still doubting him when the girls saw flashes of lightning vaporizing unsuspecting monsters at random, this somewhat made them trust him a little, very little, but nevertheless trusted him.

For 30 seconds, all went according to plan but from there, things just fell off a cliff. The spell between the archways collapsed and out of the 250 remaining monsters, 150 of them started to force their way in. Seeing this Artemis, Zoe, and the hunters combined and started firing arrows with renewed vigor. But it was not enough, they were being pushed back, fast. The monsters were gaining ground, newfound confidence in gaining ground made them push harder. The hunters meanwhile were tiring rapidly. Though all the monsters were not attacking at the same time, though there was a goddess fighting and the hunters were tough, no one in a group of 12 could possibly take on 60-70 monsters, or could they?

They were backed up to the point that they were only a few yards away from the first tents. All of them, including Artemis, had given up hope. But then the tide of the war changed. The monsters suddenly stopped advancing towards them and turned to focus on a new target, seemingly towards the way Perseus went. As the hunters' heads turned towards the direction, they saw something that instilled hope, confidence, and fear. Perseus was standing, Moonlit was drawn taut, in a shooting stance that literally radiated flawlessness. He was surrounded by an aura like no other. It was a helix of sea-green, electric blue, and soft white light. His bow was also shining, emitting a similar aura.

"YOU SHALL PAY MONSTERS! YOU SHALL PAY FOR TRYING TO HARM MY CHARGE" he bellowed. As he drew the string even further, not one but 3 arrows appeared at once. The hunters just stood there transfixed as he released the 3 arrows and all 3 found their mark. Instantly the first 3 monsters turned to dust. He continued his assault as he released tri arrows each time. Inch by inch, he had started backing up the monsters. Within a minute he had killed 40 of them, alone.

The hunters just stood there for a minute, forgetting about the army, marveling at the skill possessed by Perseus. Not even Artemis could fire 2 arrows at the same time with that much accuracy. They were brought back to reality when an Empousa archer's arrow found its mark and hit Perseus on his thigh. He screamed in pain but didn't back down. He just pulled out the arrow and kept firing 3 arrows at once, but his wound was taking effect as he started losing the ground he had covered. Seeing this all of the girls rushed to his side and yes this included the hunters who were unhappy with him.

They stood side by side as they started shooting in sync. Zoe meanwhile pulled Perseus aside and poured Nectar on his wound as others covered them. Instantly the wound closed. He got up and bowed to Zoe, thanking her. With his wound closed, Perseus was once again on the front foot pushing back the monsters. This time he had the hunters backing him and hence they were quickly removing monsters. Perseus and Artemis were in the lead, the former releasing 3 arrows while the latter released 2 at once. Soon the 150 monsters were reduced to just 30. But then something happened. The Minotaur, which had been hiding behind the army came forward, put a hand on the shield spell, and started muttering something. The spell shimmered once and disappeared. Now all the monsters, around 130, charged at once.

"Vlacas!" shouted Perseus. He turned to Artemis, who was standing beside him, and gave her the bow. "Milady, focus your Godly energy on this bow and shoot the monsters. I shall keep my oath since I will be charging the monsters head-on. Please cover my back. And it would be nice if 5 hunters continue shooting and 5 defend the archers with close-range weapons" he said as Artemis nodded.

Then he turned towards the advancing monsters, his beautifully scary aura returning, and charged at them with his newly redesigned silver twin swords. As he charged, he saw Artemis using his bow with grace, picking monsters at random. As he met the first monsters, he immediately set into an algorithm of moves. He attacked with the sword in his left hand, while he gracefully defended slashes with his ice pick gripped sword. Slash, jab, parry, defend, rollover, punch, jump, repeat. This is what he followed after he stabbed the first hell hound. The rest was a blur. About 5 minutes in, he summoned a lightning bolt towards him vaporizing every monster in a 10 feet radius. Then he heard a scream which made his blood boil. He turned to see Zoe fall to her knees, an arrow embedded in her stomach. As he got distracted, pain flared up in his whole body as he saw a sword point jutting out through his stomach. He heard someone yell "NO!". He turned around to see the monster which stabbed him from behind smiling with glee but soon turned to golden dust as a shaft of moonlight hit him. His vision had started to go blurry but when he saw Zoe again, rage filled him. His vision cleared and the pain subsided. He let out a roar and charged the remaining 50 monsters and the Minotaur itself.

Zoe POV (Betcha you were surprised)

Looking at Perseus's fight made me forget my own, his skill was beyond any demigod, he was already better at archery than Artemis. Heck, he was just as skilled with swords. I saw that not just me but the hunters and even Artemis herself had stopped fighting and were marveling at his gracefulness in battle and the ferocity of his attacks. The monsters had long ago stopped attacking and were solely focused on Perseus, or so we thought.

When he stood for us a warm feeling came over me, a feeling of being safe, a feeling of hope. Seeing him fight, I made a mental note, even if the world is to end, do NOT get on his bad side. I looked at Milady Artemis, she was looking at Perseus, mighty impressed by his skills, but at the same time looked conflicted. I immediately understood what she was thinking. The last time she admired a male's skills and trusted him, things got hairy. Orion looked trustworthy and was very skilled, but that bastard was rotten to the very core. He had tried to woo Artemis just so he could marry her, break her oath, and himself become immortal and then would dump her. Let's just say he was very close to succeeding before Apollo saved her by killing him. Ever since then she had been very cold towards males. But Perseus had seemingly changed that. And I somehow knew he would never betray her trust.

I was jolted out of my trance of watching Perseus as pain shot through my body. I screamed and looked down to see an arrow embedded in my stomach. As I looked up and met Perseus' eyes and fell down. The last thing I saw was Perseus getting stabbed as he was distracted by me. "No..." I mumbled before all went dark.

Artemis POV

I was engrossed as I watched Perseus fight. His skill, for once I admit, was above mine. As much as I was impressed, it triggered memories of him. That bastard had tried to woo me through his skill and had almost been successful. Apollo saved me, but I was oblivious to what he was trying at the time and I, to my greatest regret ever, turned him into a constellation. Later when I came to know of his plan and I realized what I had almost done, I built up walls around my emotions so as to never let this happen again.

But those walls seem to be faltering in front of Perseus' mighty personality. I started to have strange new emotions that I had never experienced, not even with him. And the emotions that had resurfaced came back stronger as if I would never be able to repress them again. The cause of this was Perseus and his compassion and selflessness. How could someone not respect a person who is willing to lay down his life without a second thought in order to protect people who he has not known for more than a few hours?

The scream beside me brought me back to reality. Zoe was on her knees with an arrow in her stomach. I was too shocked to react but heard her mumble 'no' and when I looked up I saw Perseus get stabbed while he was distracted by Zoe's scream. This time I found my voice as I screamed "NO!". I quickly drew Moonlit as a beam of pure moonlight appeared and shot the monster that had stabbed him. He staggered but when he saw Zoe on the ground, he stopped and pulled the sword out of himself, wincing in pain as blood leaked out. It was evident that he was running solely on adrenaline, and it hurt me to think how much pain he will experience once the adrenaline wears off. He then just picked up his swords and charged the monsters.

I did my best to help him by shooting them but there was a limit since the hunt was out of arrows and I was the only one shooting with Moonlit. Even in his depleted state, he pressed on, cutting down monster after monster. With a scream, he stabbed the ground with his swords which sunk to their hilts. The ground shook as he displayed the powers he possessed as the son of the earthshaker. The 30 monsters that were left fell down, even my hunters dropped to their knees to steady themselves. Suddenly lightning crackled as the 30 monsters were blown to bits by it. Now only the Minotaur was left, which was hiding behind the monsters.

"For harming my charge, you shall die by your own weapon" declared a very pissed off Perseus so loud that his voice reached me from around 40 feet away, causing the Minotaur to shudder once before regaining its composure. The Minotaur just grunted and charged straight in. Perseus just pulled out his swords, sidestepped, blocked its axe with one sword, and cut off one of its horns with the other. As the Minotaur grunted in pain, Perseus sheathed his swords, picked up the fallen horn, and with inhuman speed charged the beast. Before the Minotaur could react, it found its own horn driven through its heart as it turned to dust. Perseus had defeated a highly feared monster in 30 seconds flat. Then it dawned on me.

WE HAD WON. WE WON WITH JUST 13 FIGHTERS.

Perseus made 2 promises which he kept. One, he was actually the last of us to leave the battlefield. And most importantly, none of the hunters (bar Zoe, who would live even though the arrow would leave a scar) had even a scratch on them. All the 10 hunters looked at Perseus with newfound respect. But at that time, I realized, my respect for Perseus had grown into something more. But this was much, much stronger than what I felt with Orion.

I pushed aside this thought and ran towards Perseus who was limping towards us, wincing with every step he took. I put a hand around his shoulders and eased him to the ground next to Zoe and shouted at the hunters to bring 2 stretchers, one each for Zoe and Perseus. As I turned my attention back towards him, Perseus was looking towards me with unfocused eyes.

"Milady, the hunters, are they alright? Did anyone...did anyone...die?" he asks with a lot of effort. I was surprised. Even in this condition, the first thing he asks is how the hunters are. He, no doubt, is the best male out there. A role model for others to follow.

"Thank you, my Protector. For it was your bravery, courage, quick thinking, selflessness, and power that saved us all. Rest knowing the fact that not one huntress, except Zoe, received even a scratch. As for Zoe, she will live. Her condition is much better than yours. I declare that after this, you shall be known as the Savior of the Hunt" I said calmly. Even though he was a male and might fuel his ego, he had earned them. It was true, without him, we would be either dead or captured.

"No" he replied quietly. I thought I had misheard because I asked what. "No" he repeated. "Milady I hate power and titles. Also, I had help from you and the hunters. I do not want any titles."

This boy was everything that I thought men were not. He was the literal opposite to me and my hunt's idea of males. I silently thanked the Fates for making me meet him when I needed to find a Protector.

I smiled a genuine smile and said, "You continue to impress me Perseus. It shall be as you want. Now rest. You are severely wounded and exhausted to the point you can't even see properly."

He tried to smile back but grimaced, indicating broken ribs. So he just nodded and closed his eyes and instantly passed out. For a brief second, my heart stopped, thinking he had died but eased up when I saw his chest rise and fall.

6 Hunters came back with 2 stretchers. 4 of them were the ones who had fought the army while the 2 others were healers. They immediately put Zoe on one of the stretchers but the 2 healers hesitated to put Perseus on a stretcher. When I saw this, it angered me.

"Why are you hesitating?" I told them harshly. "He is the Protector of the Hunt and hence a member of the hunt. If not for his overly humble attitude and non-existent ego he would be known a the Saviour of the Hunt, the Hero of the Battle of the Hunt."

"Yes Milady, we shall treat him as one of us. But what do you mean by Savior of the Hunt?" asked Ealsiya, a daughter of Apollo, curiosity evident in her voice. I smirked and gave her a look that 'you will see'. The 2 girls then proceeded to put him on the stretcher and both him and Zoe were carried to the Infirmary. As we reached the camp, everyone started celebrating; that is until they saw Zoe and Perseus. They instantly became concerned, mostly towards Zoe but the younger hunters and the 10 who had seen him fight were worried about Perseus too.

Time Skip (1 Hour)

I was sitting between two beds at the Infirmary. On my right was Zoe. Her wounds were not severe hence a cup of Nectar was enough to heal her and she immediately fell asleep once she was healed.

But the dilemma was Perseus. Within 36 hours, he fought off Gration, fought off a 500 strong monster army, killed about 300 monsters alone, killed the Minotaur, saved the Hunt thrice (counting the Lydian drakon), almost died twice by heavy wounds, and had already spent most of the time either fighting or being in the Infirmary.

This time it took around 30 minutes and 4 hunters to stabilize him. Turns out his left lung had not healed completely after yesterday's fight and now both of his lungs were injured, making him feel pain from taking in each breath. But treating him in water was helpful and he soon fell into a comfortable sleep.

Seeing that it would be some time before either woke up, I left the Infirmary to check on the rest of the Hunt. As I reached the dining hall, I could hear a heated argument going on. As I entered, I found that the 10 hunters who fought alongside Perseus and most of the younger hunters arguing with a group of 8 older girls while others stayed neutral. I cleared my throat to announce my presence and everybody fell silent.

"May I know what the topic of the argument is?" I asked. "Milady, they were disrespecting Perseus. They called him a pervert, liar, manipulator, and coward. They said that he must have done nothing and must have hidden behind the hunters. Now they are saying that even though he did nothing he would claim credit for it all. We argued saying he actually fought on the frontline and he deserved credit for saving our lives thrice" said one of the hunters who fought the war.

I was surprised that in the brief interaction they had, Perseus had grown on the hunters and now they were defending him. But I was also angry at the other group who were bad-mouthing him. "Girls I think you have the wrong impression of him. What you said about him was wrong. Also, he rightfully deserves credit. I think it's time I officially introduce him. Girls he is Perseus Achilles, son of Poseidon, the bane of Gration, slayer of 300 monsters, killer of Lydian drakon, slayer of Minotaur, hero of Hunt's war, Savior of the Hunt."

"Milady I don't think he will like these titles. We better not say this in front of him" said Zoe, entering the dining pavilion. "Zoe you sure you are okay" I asked and she nodded before sitting down.

"Milady, I bet he must have cast some spell on you. There is no way you would treat him that way, not after Orion. Also, why would a male decline credit for something?" said the older girl in the group.

My eyes flashed with anger, causing the group to flinch. I know if I spoke, I wouldn't be able to control my rage. Thankfully, Zoe saw this and spoke for me.

"Palena, DO NOT compare him to that rascal. He has earned Lady Artemis's respect in the right way. As with titles, he hates them and tends to get irritated by their usage" she said. "In fact, I should let you see yourselves. When he comes, Milady will call him Hero of the war and the Savior of the Hunt. I bet 10 drachmas that he will decline the title." My look changed from that of rage to one of amusement and I nodded.

Bets were placed. The 20 younger girls were not allowed to participate. 18 girls placed bets against the motion while the 10 who fought with him placed bets with the motion.

A younger hunter 9 years of age asked, "Milady you never told us what happened on the battlefield. Just that we won." I realized that it would be time before Perseus is able to come here so I started to explain what happened after we left with the 10 hunters. After about half an hour of explaining, with inputs from Zoe and the 10 huntresses, I was out of breath and the others were slack-jawed.

"So MIlady, what you are saying is, he planned the assault and you just followed his orders?" asked one. "And he put a 3 layer shield spell much stronger than yours and which also held off 500 monsters? asked another. "He swore to be the last one to leave the battle and he actually did it?" "Also he pushed back a horde that Lady Artemis and the hunters weren't able to push back and he is actually better at archery than the Goddess of archery herself?" "He got stabbed, still managed to kill the Minotaur in 30 seconds and the first thing he asks is about the hunters being alright?". Many more questions like these followed.

"To sum it all up, yes. He did all these things. And he still refuses to acknowledge them" I replied. "The shield was made by his 3 elements and I still doubt that he is hiding more. Also, considering the fact that he can shoot 3 arrows simultaneously and accurately compared to my 2, it is safe to say he is better than even me in archery, though I believe he will never flaunt and will not even acknowledge this."

"He is like a big brother- selfless, caring and strong" said a young huntress, smiling widely. "In fact, if he is going to stay with us, I will acknowledge him as big brother and I don't care what others say about this" she continued while jumping up and down at her declaration.

I smiled inwardly. Perseus has already won over this girl. Not a single doubt I had that he was very, very different from other boys, especially him. "Me too" said another girl and soon the whole hunt except the said 8 started saying this. I was genuinely surprised by the speed of his acceptance by the hunt.

"Ok girls, hold your horses. This shall be his gift when he officially becomes the Protector tomorrow, after all, he did lose his sister. I hope you girls can fill in for that. Keep it a secret till then. And now, OFF TO BED" I said as I smiled a small smile. All of them smiled back and started leaving for their tents. I looked at Zoe who was thinking something, she looked at me and smiled as if she had made a big decision.

As we left the dining area, I heard the 8 hunters grumble among themselves about 'filthy male and manipulator' and 'will get back at him and return purity of the hunt'. When I heard this, I became uneasy but chose to ignore it as I retired for the night.

A/N: Ufff! Such a long chapter.

It took a hell lot of time and my hands are literally dying from all the typing. I guess occasionally it is nice to have long chapters but not regularly. Hope you enjoyed it. If yes, then the pleasure is all mine and even more so if you review and fav.

Ciao.

-KK42069

5147 words (except bold font)