(A/N) I promised this rewrite a long time ago. Unfortunately I have problems with being indecisive and rewriting the same chapters over and over and over until I'm "satisfied". And by satisfied I mean, I just decide "fuck it this is good enough". I wrote so many different versions of the first chapter for this in different settings and with different dynamics, this is the first one I've written that I didn't have to rewrite over and over to settle on surprisingly. This rewrite is going to be far more focused than the original - I won't be hopping around PoV all the time for example. All my stories will be getting rewrites. I will eventually make an archive story which will contain all the pre-rewrite stories for those who liked them, but I cannot write, and do not think the same way I did back then, so they will be frozen in that state. Some characters may be slightly OOC from what we know - I'm not a very funny person unfortunately. This story will be split into different 'books' although I haven't decided if will separate them, or just compile as one story.
For now...
Book 1: The Torn Soul
Chapter 1
The hunters had invited me to Zoë and Bianca's funeral. It felt wrong to attend, and I could tell most of them were displeased with my presence. I ignored the glares. To be honest, I considered not attending at all, but then figured it be best not to ignore an 'invitation' directly from a goddess: Annabeth thought so too.
She was invited as well. I didn't know how to feel about that.
Many of the hunters had gone up to the podium at camp which they'd borrowed for the proceedings, eulogizing their long and storied memories with the late lieutenant, as well as giving regrets of not being able to welcome Bianca properly. Thalia headed the procession alongside Artemis, but she looked uncomfortable under the eyes of her new sisters. None seemed disgruntled or jealous of her position despite being a new member, surprisingly.
"And so we lay to rest, at long last, Zoë Nightshade, the daughter of Atlas and Pleione. My ever faithful and longest-serving lieutenant," Artemis picked up a silver shroud that was draped over the altar, her face solemn but still. The shroud itself was a beautiful sight to behold. Cloth of shimmering silver, embroideries in black and gold thread of forests and mountains, with depicted events strewn across like a small tapestry. Her sisters had truly done her honor in the shroud they made for her during the quest.
Artemis took the shroud, wrapped it around two golden drachmae, and placed it into a great fiery brazier. The flames itself went bright and silvery in color as soon as the cloth made contact. I thought for a moment I could see the shape of a crescent moon in the flames but it vanished in a poof of smoke as the cloth fully caught flames.
When the shroud was burned, the other, belonging to Bianca, was raised by Artemis who declared, "May Bianca Di Angelo also have peace. We did not know her long, but her death affects us as any of our ranks might. A tragedy to be lost so young, but let us remember that she died heroically to right her own wrongs so that the other questers could survive to see it through."
The shroud itself was beautiful in its own right. Just a single large scene, I recognized, standing at Westover Hall shielding a boy – presumably her brother Nico – as arrows were embedded into the Manticore. The scene was no less detailed than Zoë's shroud and certainly painted a romantic picture.
I'm certain that even if they did not blame me for Zoë's death, some most likely blamed me for Bianca's. I couldn't fault them, even if Zoë herself had disagreed with me.
Bianca's shroud burned silver as well, but there were hints of black in the fire that most likely went unnoticed by the others. Of course, I knew exactly what that had meant following Nico's abrupt disappearance into the ground.
"I thank you all for coming to Zoë and Bianca's funeral," she gave a very pointed glance with her scary yellowish-silver eyes at both Annabeth and myself, "This is truly a tragedy, although I suspect, one we will become all too familiar with in the coming years."
A few murmurs rose out of some of the hunters at that note. It was definitely a reality, but one no one had really wanted to talk about.
"As we all know, Olympus is on the brink of war. Of course, we have known it for far longer than most, what with the monster activity of recent. However, Olympus has finally come to accept this due to recent events," she spoke sternly. Despite her young appearance, she still exerted a great deal of authority and power in her words, "Today we shall drink and mourn, but I trust every single person here will be preparing for the war that's coming on the morrow. We must all be vigilant, so as not to fall for temptation or deception."
She made a not so discreet glance, more at Annabeth than myself, but I didn't miss as her eyes flicked to me momentarily. Other hunters stared at us, but I tried to ignore it.
"As you know by now, I have appointed my next lieutenant. Thalia, the daughter of Zeus joins our ranks. Going forward, should I be indisposed, the Hunt will follow her word as if it came from me directly."
Talk about no pressure. It was no wonder the normally stoïc and dangerous Thalia Grace was looking so nervous as she stood there on the platform by Artemis – almost unrecognizable outfitted in the more traditional Greek dress for the funeral with just the unfitting tiara in her short hair to separate her. I never would have thought I'd ever see her dressed in anything so… un-punk? I guessed it was probably just for the formal occasion though. She'd still looked entirely unrecognizable in the past few days at camp wearing the normal hunter's garb, but not quite so strange as now.
"We will be having drinks after this in our cabin. Our two guests are welcome to join us."
Wait what?
Oh no.
Artemis's cabin was unlike any of the others at camp. It was enormous on the inside, giving the perceived feeling of open space with what looked like no roof – even though it certainly had one on the outside. An open hearth burned warmly in the center. I wasn't sure where the smoke went, but you certainly couldn't see it from the outside. The walls were adorned with all kinds of taxidermy and hunting trophies. There was a massive tusk which I was pretty sure came from an elephant hanging off one, as well as several of what appeared to be Minotaur horns. That did slightly put a dampener on the pride I felt for my single accolade from that beast. On the wall opposing the front door there was a stairway that I assumed led to their sleeping quarters with a door beneath it, closed firmly shut.
I didn't really want to come in in the first place, but Annabeth had practically dragged me by the arm. I didn't miss all the glares and spiteful looks some of the girls threw my way; however, I had yet to receive any violence or outright hateful comments, so I considered it a minor win. There was no way I could ever feel like anything but an intruder in there.
I didn't voice my discomfort, but Thalia definitely noticed it. As the hunters talked and joked between themselves, mostly just ignoring me and tuning my existence out, while others were intent on trying to convince Annabeth to join them, Thalia came and sat by me, holding two cups.
She held one out to me, which I took with a nod, but I paused as I looked down at the red liquid, "Wine?"
She was already drinking when I said that, just shrugging with her shoulders. Putting down her cup, she made a sour face and scrunched her nose, "Lovely stuff. No one told me joining an ancient hunting group involved drinking wine."
"Perhaps I shouldn't," I said, feeling the sharp smell of alcohol cut through my nose making me recoil momentarily, placing the cup on a table. Looking around, I saw other girls with pitchers of water swirling it into their drink, "I think you're supposed to dilute it by the way."
"Really?" she looked down at the red liquid and made another face, "Can I just drink water?"
"This isn't normal wine, Thalia," I heard a stern voice over my shoulder. I turned around and let out a nervous gulp. Moving to bow, the lady held out a hand to stop me.
"At ease. A word, Perseus, if I may," she didn't elaborate on the wine as she looked past me at Annabeth who was laughing with some of the hunters, one of whom looked remarkably like her – clearly a daughter of Athena. Seeing her here made me wonder if she really had made the right decision in not joining the hunt, as much as I hated the thought.
I followed Artemis away from the crowd. She led me to the door beneath the stairwell, opening it with just a twist of the handle to reveal a very simple looking office.
"You can sit there," she pointed to a chair on one side of the desk as she sat in front of a ruled notepad with a pen beside it.
Gods use notepads?
She didn't waste any time cutting to the chase as I settled down uneasily, "I know you didn't want to come to this Perseus, but I thank you for doing so. I will make this brief and you can go wherever it is you'd rather be."
I felt a little confused when she outstretched an arm, revealing a small glass jar with what appeared to only be a single capsule inside it.
"Take it tonight before you go to sleep. Someone wants to speak with you but we cannot talk of this in more depth in the physical world for… legal reasons. This will aid me in making the dream connection smooth, and bypass the laws. As should be obvious, tell no one of this or there will be repercussions," her tone left no room for discussion. I wondered what could possibly so dangerous to require such a level of secrecy. The curious part of me knew that I couldn't possibly decline, but what logical side of me existed was frightened beyond reasonable belief. Annabeth would be proud that logic was surfacing in my mind at all.
So I took the jar and nodded my head silently as I shoved it in my pocket.
"You may leave now-" she paused herself for a moment, before saying, "A word of recommendation."
Too afraid to speak, I just looked at her.
"The girl is unreliable. A strong maiden, and a smart one, but reliable she is not. You realize that, I know you do, but you refuse to acknowledge it."
I processed her words silently. I couldn't deny them, as much as I wanted to argue in Annabeth's favor. She still held faith and hope that Luke survived the fall. Even though I knew that to be true for certain now, it sucked. After all that happened, she still trusted Luke and took the sky from him, only for him to abandon her there to pass the weight off to Artemis. He used her, and she still held faith in him.
"I understand," I tentatively nodded.
"Well, if you wish, I can try to make it a non-issue. I'm sure I can convince-"
"No!" I blurted, before clamping a hand over my mouth after interrupting the goddess. Images of tiny furry creatures flashed through my mind in an almost traumatizing experience. However, Artemis held no anger, just a tight-lipped smile.
Shrugging, she leaned back in her chair, "You're sure of that, I can tell. I hope you made the right decision. And of course, continue to make them. You may leave. Sleep well."
Her face didn't display any emotion anymore as she picked up the pen and starting scribbling something down on the paper in fancy cursive Greek that I could not read.
As I left her office, I saw some of the girls talking to Annabeth animatedly. No doubt they were slowly trying to pressure her into joining them. I had half a mind to storm over and drag out of the cabin with me, but I didn't exactly have a death-wish. Also, it wouldn't exactly ingratiate me with the hunters.
"What really happened?" A girl, bound by bandages around her torso asked me directly, drawing a couple of hushed looks from those who were paying attention. Phoebë I think she was? She was one of the scarier hunters, I remembered, but now she just looked confused and lost. I think she was looking for something – or someone – to blame, but the story Artemis told placed none.
Even though the cabin was designed to feel like an open space, I felt more boxed in, and under pressure than ever. I looked at Phoebë. Of all the hunters, she had been the most broken up about the whole thing I could tell. I'd heard she was the eldest huntress, older than Zoë herself. I couldn't imagine losing a friend all of the sudden without being able to say goodbye to them after knowing them for such a long time.
And what could I possibly say to her? I was there to watch her friend die.
I wasn't even supposed to be there.
Perhaps it was my fault, I engaged in combat with Atlas first. Could I have done differently?
I moved to leave the cabin, not finding it in me to respond. No-one stopped me, but I held short as my hand pressed against the wood. Looking back, I saw Phoebë, as confused as when she'd asked me the question.
"Honestly, I don't know anymore," I muttered to myself. No one could have possibly heard me, but my eyes met Phoebë's once again. Pursing my lips, I just gave a short nod and pressed against the wood to open the door very slightly. She turned away without response.
So I left.
I couldn't help but imagine some kind of glee rushing through the cabin as soon as I was gone.
Realistically, of course, they'd just continue to mourn their two lost comrades. My presence was just a distraction, only serving to confuse more so.