Okay people, I feel like I do this a lot recently, but I really wish to say that I am sorry about the delay for this chapter. Life has the habit of messing up all my plans and when it isn't life, my friends and family do a good job at keeping me busy and away from writing.

But as promised, here is the next chapter...

The forest around them was devoid of any sounds, no animals, not even the wind in the branches could be heard. Almost eerily, as they walked on. This was their hunt and their prey was near. They just knew it. They would get the monster and with it, they would find the prison of the goddess in chains.

"We shouldn't waste our time here!" Thalia exclaimed hotly, "The prophecy said we need to move west!"

"And what else did your oh so great prophecy foretell?" Percy asked her, his annoyance obvious in his tone and the sour expression on his face.

"I… don't remember all of it..."

"Idiot air head," Percy said, as he stalked away.

"Ass," Thalia called after him, but he ignored her and walked away, to find the trail of their enemy. "Is he always like that?"

Zoe, who was near them, only shook her head, as she watched Percy's retreating form. "You are the fool, Thalia Grace."

"Shove it, girl scout. No one has asked for your opinion," Thalia replied sourly. As if the traitorous son of Poseidon wasn't bad enough, now she also had to endure the lieutenant of the Hunt, a girl she had disliked from the moment they had first met, so many years ago. Worse yet, Zoe and Percy are usually working together. A man hating huntress and the traitor!

"You still don't understand a thing. Percy would rather not be here," Zoe told her.

Thalia snorted, as she grimaced, "Of course not. Why would a traitor wish to free an Olympian goddess."

"You are just as narrow minded as your father," Zoe muttered. "Percy has always served Olympus loyally as Apollo's champion. But your father's paranoia has forced him into the role of an enemy of Olympus."

"Yeah right. He would rather be somewhere else, plotting Olympus downfall," Thalia replied stubbornly.

Zoe paused for a moment, as she sought for the right words to make the girl understand. But that seemed a task of epic proportions, as Thalia had obviously inherited her father's thick skull. So she decided that the unmasked truth was the only way to try and make her understand.

"Percy would rather be out there, trying to save his best friend. Ariadne, the daughter of Apollo has been kidnapped by a Titan and Percy would much rather search this whole world to find her, than to work for those gods who have branded him a traitor just for existing."

Thalia did not reply immediately. Instead she looked pensive, if only for a short moment. She had obviously not known about this. As far as Zoe could tell, the daughter of Zeus had only a bare minimum of the information she would need for a qualified assessment of their situation. But neither the gods nor her fellow campers had obviously seen the need to tell her everything. Oh well, maybe they were at fault as well, seeing as none of Percy's group had been especially forthcoming with information either.

"Then why is he here, when his friend is in danger?" The words sounded more accusing than she might have intended, as she looked more subdued than before. It pleased Zoe to see that there might be more sense in the girl than in her father.

"Because Zeus himself has threatened to kill every last person Percy cares for," Zoe replied, her voice mirroring the loathing she felt for the ruler of Olympus.

Thousands of years of loyal service and only now she had come to realize how cruel the masters she serves truly are. She had been sheltered in the Hunt, protected from the intrigues and petty games of the gods. For all the faults of the Olympian Council, Artemis had always protected her girls. Almost too well, too zealously. But Zoe was still sure that Artemis was one of the few good gods among the Olympians, why else would she do all in her power to protect her girls? But the others, even those who claimed neutrality in the schemes were far worse than anyone could have imagined.

"We are at war. None of us can expect to survive for ever," Thalia finally replied.

"Stubborn fool," was Zoe's only reply. "Come now, let's find this Thorn guy. He is our only lead at the moment."

"Just what makes you think that Thorn knows where Artemis is? Don't get me wrong, I want to kill him more than anyone else here. He has killed Annabeth and he will pay, but why should he know where they are keeping Artemis?" Thalia asked.

Zoe did not answer her. She had already turned away and approached the other two hunters in their group. It only angered Thalia more, not that it was particularly hard to do that.

"There!" one of the hunters shouted. They had found the trace of Thorn and like bloodhounds, they would not stop until they have caught their prey.

But surprisingly it was not one of Artemis' hunters, who lead the charge, as one would have expected during a hunt, but it was Percy, who seemed more determined than the others to see this quest done. With his sword in hand, he raced through the forest as fast as his feet would carry him, so he could find the monster they were looking for. The rest of them had difficulties keeping up, except for Zoe, who was far more agile and faster than the rest of them.

Again Thalia cursed her own perceived weakness in this situation. The years as a tree had left her body in a sorry condition, her strength was barely existent and her endurance had been far below average. Even the hard training after her return from the near dead existence, could not undo all that had happened. And she hated it. Too feel inferior to anyone, especially the great traitor. It insulted her pride as a daughter of Zeus. Her father was the strongest god, dammit, so she should be among the strongest demigods. In this group she felt like the dead weight that slowed them all down.

Percy was totally oblivious to the mental struggle of his cousin, as his focus was solely on Thorn. He had to find him. He had to make him talk. The sooner they could save Artemis, the sooner he could turn his attention to finding Ariadne. That was all that mattered at the moment. Not the war between gods and titans, not the delusions of the megalomaniac king of Olympus. Only his friend in need. The rest could turn to dust for all her cared.

"Come here, Thorn! Stop hiding you coward," Percy yelled.

He had just left the forest and entered a barren field. He was sure that the monster was here. Thorn had chosen this place for their fight. He had lead them here. Maybe it was a trap, but a trap looses most of its danger when you know its there. And Percy was prepared for anything. Or at least he hoped as much.

"Bravo, Champion of the Sun! You've found me. Consider it your greatest accomplishment as a hunter… and your last," Thorn said snidely, as he appeared on the field. "And you brought your little friend as well. Two of my master's foes at once. Not even the General will be able to deny me my rightful place in the master's army!"

"A manticore," Zoe said, as she saw Thorn in his real form, "This will be a challenge."

"I don't have time to pretend he is a challenge," Percy said impatiently. "Keep his tail occupied, I will cut the rest into tiny little pieces."

"Careful, Percy, Zeus' daughter will be here any minute. The gods already fear your strength, show too much and they will be forced to act," Zoe cautioned him. She had no idea how powerful he had really become. But Apollo had helped him with the boost he had received from Helios' flames and it was clear that a demigod who controls the water and fire would be more powerful than any other.

Another one of their group had caught up. But it wasn't Thalia, it was Clarisse. Ares' daughter was grinning like a madman as she saw Thorn. She gripped her spear tightly, barely able to wait for them to attack the beast.

"We attack together, Clarisse. Avoid the spikes and the tail, devastate the rest," Percy told her.

"Finally, time for revenge," Clarisse said, "Last time you escaped me, Thorn, this time I will see you turn to dust!"

One last look at his companions was enough for Percy. They were as ready as they could get. And as the flames on his blade flickered to life, he charged at his enemy with the intention to maim. Thorn would talk, but he wouldn't need to be in one piece for that.

As the demigods attacked their dangerous foe, two Titans watched them from afar. Rhea and Asteria had come to watch over the ill fated quest Zeus had started. It wasn't that they disliked the idea of saving the goddess Artemis or putting Atlas in his place, far from it. Both would serve their plans quite well, but this quest put unnecessary strain on the already burdened mind of the queen's chosen.

"He has grown powerful. What a little meddling can do to a simple demigod," Asteria commented, as she watched Percy's fight. "To think that he has managed to recruit both campers and hunters to his side and get them to work together… a century ago we would have decried any such notion as preposterous."

"We have to disabuse ourselves of our believes when it comes to this particular demigod," Rhea said, an amused smile playing on her lips. "My grandson has learned the hard way that power has to be earned. His growth will only further rile up my foolish sons, but he is already beyond their reach."

"They will kill him. Sooner or later," Asteria warned. She frowned, as her words left her queen unaffected. On the contrary, her worry only amused Rhea more and more.

"Zeus can't kill him. Poseidon can't claim him… and Hades… he cares little for the boy these days. He has his own progeny to keep an eye on."

"That girl… she is close."

"Of course. Death is never far from battles. But she will not deter Perseus on his path," Rhea said. "But I believe, that it would be in our best interest for them stop wasting their time. Zeus' daughter has nearly caught up to them. We can't have my chosen reveal too much too soon. I wish to keep some surprises for that fool Atlas."

"My queen, how may I be of service," another woman appeared at Rhea's side, kneeling, her head bowed deeply in subservience.

"Atalanta, end this fight, but be subtle about it. They wish to capture the manticore alive," Rhea commanded sternly.

"At once, my queen," Atalanta replied and sprung to action, her bow in hand.

An amused chuckled escaped Rhea, as she watched her servant enter the fray. Maybe this was a bit too much. Perseus alone would have been able to defeat this enemy. It would have been a long and arduous fight, but victory was a certainty. But he had shown his ability to adapt to those around him. He fought well alongside Artemis' precious lieutenant and Ares' wroth daughter. And Apollo's golden children were just as good as his servants. Yes, she knew that she had made the right decision to get involved in his life. Her wariness had been unfounded.

"It is as good as over. The daughter of war has fatally wounded her prey," Asteria said. "They have to be quick, Thorn is not long for this world now. I still don't understand why you forced Apollo to keep Artemis' location a secret. Why make this difficult for him?"

"To placate my foolish son," Rhea replied simply. Her darkening expression and the displeased note in her voice only showed a fraction of the true extent of her displeasure with Zeus. She had such great hopes for him, it was why she had protected him from her husband, why she had not prevented her children from ending the Titans' rule. Had she known the consequences of her actions, had she known that Zeus would grow up to be his father's son and not his mother's child… It was too late for regrets now.

"So much trouble, only to convince a spoiled little boy that neither Apollo nor Perseus are in any way connected to Kronos' revival," Asteria muttered. "I pity Apollo and his brothers. No one deserves such a father. No wonder they are rebelling now."

"Apollo is rebelling, his brothers are too complacent or fearful to act on their own. But the golden boy has always been one to act first and think later. He is a creature of passion in some ways. I guess that is part of his charm," Rhea commented.

Asteria hummed in agreement. She actually liked her nephew. There was so much of Leto in him. In Artemis as well, for the matter, though the goddess pretended to be her father's perfect daughter a little too well. But Apollo… he had come back to them. He had accepted his role in the bigger play and though he had kept a rather large and dangerous secret, Asteria was glad to have him back. Lelantos felt the same, though her grumpy brother would never admit that having a part of Leto back among them was a great thing for their family.

"And once Apollo is back with us, we will have a nice and long chat with him about keeping secrets. Had I known about Selene before, we might have been able to save her. Now all we can do is protect her daughter… once we know where she has been brought to," Rhea continued.

"Hopefully the girl can withstand the burden you are about to place on her fragile shoulders. She had not been raised for the throne you plan to give her," Asteria replied cautiously. "She had been a mortal girl for all her life..."

"We have no choice. I will not fill our depleted ranks with Zeus' petulant daughter. Ariadne will play her part. Help her, if you wish. Ease her way into the much larger world she is about to enter. Go and help Apollo," that last part had been an order. One that left no room for arguments.

Asteria acquiesced to Rhea's command. With a graceful bow she quickly left, to find her nephew and his children. Just like Rhea's chosen, their hunt had only just begun. And as the Fates play their wicked games with all of them, both groups now hunt for the moon… but in the end there can only be one to take Selene's powers and neither group favors Artemis...

Percy, meanwhile, watched with grim satisfaction as Thorn thrashed helplessly on the ground. The manticore had been beaten, his limbs mangled and his venomous tail cut off and turned to dust. It had been a good fight, albeit a short one. Zoe and Clarisse had been a great help, but it was the brief interference of another huntress that turned the tide in their favor. He had recognized her, of course. Atalante. He wasn't sure how he was supposed to feel about his grandmother's continued meddling in his life, but he wouldn't complain about the aid of this huntress. Twice now she had helped him and he would not be ungrateful by rejecting her, due to his unease about his grandmother's interference.

"Not so haughty now," Clarisse spat at the monster. Her hands were still on the hilt of her spear, which was buried deeply into the monster's chest. She only waited for a chance to end the manticore. With this her honor would be restored and the shame of loosing another camper in the fight against him would be washed away.

"And now, my dear friend, we talk," Percy said, as he crouched down next to Thorn's head. "A little bird has told me that you have recently signed on as a soldier in the army of an old friend of mine. He has recently begun to rebuild his army and I would really like to talk to him about one of his current guests."

"Pah, begone you puny demigod. Atlas will crush you for this! He will avenge me," Thorn yelled at him in crazed anger. "You all will die!"

Atlas… that was unexpected. Percy had actually expected Kronus' forces to be behind this. Luke and his peons, maybe with the help of some more monsters. But this was… unexpected, but it would not bother him too much. Maybe this was even better. Though he had no idea how he was supposed to stand up against a Titan, Atlas was obviously preferable to Kronus.

"Atlas… where is that coward?"

"He will brake you. Just like he has broken that blond bitch I brought him as a gift," Thorn sneered. The monster chuckled, before his body shuddered and his breathing became a gurgling sound. Moments later Thorn was dead and all that remained was the golden dust, that the wind quickly carried away.

The demigods watched almost impassive as the fearful monster expired. None of them felt pity for him. None of them would mourn him. It wasn't as if he was gone for ever. Thorn would be back, sooner or later. But at least he had revealed some secrets before he died. Valuable secrets.

"So she is alive!" Clarisse exclaimed almost triumphantly.

"Who is alive?"

Thalia had arrived, just as the monster died. She was out of breath and livid, ready to punch the next best person she could find. And her ire quickly found a target, when she saw Percy's smug grin. He was obviously amused by her late arrival.

"YOU!" Thalia yelled, as she approached Percy, "This was your doing! You ordered your minions to keep me away! Why?"

It was true. Percy had actually asked Kayla and Sherman to delay Thalia and Malcolm, should they find Thorn. And by the looks of it, they had done a marvelous job. And judging by their grins, they had a lot of fun doing it. They had not just managed to keep Zeus' proud daughter away, they had also delayed the rest of Camp Half-blood's delegation. Yet strangely enough, the two boys looked hardly bothered by it.

"You are a burden, Grace. You think that you are all powerful. Well think again. A few months ago you had been a tree, but now that you are back as a demigod, you suddenly think that you can rival our strength. Let me tell you something, you are weak," Percy told her pointedly.

"You arrogant bastard!"

"But we got what we have come for. Now we know our target. Atlas keeps the goddess near his former prison," Zoe said. Her voice wavered lightly, as she thought about this turn of events. She had not spared a single thought on her father for many centuries, but now she would be forced to face him.

As she looked around, she saw that none of the others seemed particularly eager to face a Titan like Atlas in battle. Even her fellow hunters, who had just returned from scouting the area, looked slightly paler than usual, as they heard about this revelation. Zoe resolved that it would have been better to come alone and send the rest of the girls with Phoebe and Apollo. But it was too late for that now. They had no idea where Apollo and his small army of demigods had vanished to, they only knew that they were in pursuit of Eos. Now she would have to send them away, to pick off the stragglers during the fight against Atlas, just as she had done before their fight against the manticore. They wouldn't like it, but it would be for their own survival.

But there was one more thing. Someone had helped them. Zoe had barely seen the person. She was sure that it had been a woman, another huntress. She doubted that it had been one of hers. But who else? And why?

"We should talk," Percy was suddenly next to her, a hand on her shoulder, as he gestured for her to follow him away from the group. Zoe only nodded minutely, before she went with him.

"So?"

"I believe it would be best to inform you now, before something happens that we all might regret," Percy said. There was a reluctance in his voice that Zoe had not experienced before. "You have seen her, our little aide, who had blinded the manticore with her arrows."

So Percy knew about this huntress. But who was it? Another Titan? She shouldn't be surprised if that was actually the truth. The son of Poseidon had somehow managed to turn himself into a major target for all gods and titans.

"I believe that it was Atalanta..."

"Atalanta?" Zoe growled. She remembered that girl. She had been one of Artemis' blessed hunters, but she left. But Zoe was sure that Atalanta had been killed, after she and her lover had defiled a temple with their unrestrained passion. "Why is she here?"

"Well you have already met Lelantos, so it shouldn't be a surprise that there are other Titans, who have… decided to bestow their attention on me… I don't know why exactly, but Atalanta has been sent to watch over me… by the Titan queen Rhea."

Zoe was speechless. Rhea? As in Kronos' wife Rhea? As in the mother of the six oldest gods on the Olympian council? This woman was meddling with Percy's life… this was bad. Really bad.

"Why? Why is the Titan queen intent on protecting you, Percy?"

"Beats me," he shrugged. "She has been a part of my life for some time now, though in recent months she has followed my wish to stay away. But that did not stop her from sending someone else." Percy sighed, as he looked back towards the rest of their group. The other seven demigods were oblivious to their conversation, which was good enough for him. The less people know the better. He had only told Zoe because he trusts her and wants her to be able to trust him in return.

"Should Thalia find out about this, nothing will stop her father from murdering us all. Do any of the others know about this?"

"No, I don't think so. There are only two others who know the truth. Apollo and Calypso," Percy told her.

"Why Calypso… no… don't mention it," she shook her head in revulsion. Of course her harlot of a sister would worm his secrets out of him. Zoe could only wonder how long it had taken her to succeed. "And Ariadne?"

"No. I wanted to talk to her about everything, especially after our P.E. teacher has turned out to be a servant of Rhea, but Eos came and… well you know the rest." He shuffled a bit uncomfortably. He is a good friend to Ariadne, not even Zoe could deny that. Keeping secrets must have been hard on the son of Poseidon, who values loyalty greatly.

"I see," Zoe mumbled. "We should hurry. The sooner we find Lady Artemis, the sooner we can placate Zeus and put this mess behind us for some time."

"Yeah. Can't wait to get rid of Zeus' precious little daughter..."

"You and her have more in common than you might think," Zoe told him. She did not like Thalia Grace, she could barely even tolerate her. But she shared some traits with Percy. Maybe that was why they clashed so horribly at the moment. They could be equals in most ways, but the Olympian power struggle would force them to become enemies in the near future… "Such a waste..."

"What?"

"Doesn't matter. Let's get back to the others. We have to get to Garden of the Hesperides. Only there we will find Lady Artemis and her captors," Zoe said. This was only the beginning of their journey, yet she feared that this might also be their last...

A/N: So much for today.

First up, I don't hate Thalia, so please spare me your hateful posts about how she has appeared this time. She barely knows enough to understand the situation she has been thrust into. From her POV Percy is a traitor, all the people she trusts tell her as much. And she is a rather stubborn one... her attitude will change with time, when she understands what is really happening.

The fight between Percy and Thorn sadly did not make it into this chapter. I just did not have the time to meet with my stuntmen and coordinators to plan and recreate the fight to make it believable enough. But seriously, I rather publish the chapter like this, instead of including a crappy fight scene.

Well now Percy's group has a goal. But that does not mean that they will arrive the day after tomorrow and save the day. It's still a long way to go and there are more than a few foes standing in their way.

Next chapter we will see both Apollo's little army, as well as Deianira's army. Things will become troublesome...