Artemis: The End of It All

Author's Notes: This chapter takes place about a week after the events of Artemis: Forget Me Not. It goes without saying that I have no ownership over TT characters. This is the final chapter of Artemis, and I apologize to all those who wanted deleted scenes, but I can't for the life of me find where I put them! I still have a general idea of what each scene was based on, so I will try to work some of the scenes into the sequel. This day, June 28th, is also the one year anniversary of when the first chapter of this story was published. It's a pretty big deal for me, but I know that you just want to start reading the last chapter, so without further ado, I present: The Epilogue!

The patrons of Denny's bar, which was located in a dingy sector of Jump City untouched by criminals and vigilantes alike, had found their bar to be the site of something- well, interesting. Not that they took the time to notice what else was beyond their scotch-and-sodas. Well, that's not entirely true. Jim noticed, that's for sure. He noticed it right off, and even better for us, he listened in on the conversation that would change his life forever. Would you like to see what Jim saw? You might as well, he did die because of this. You're positive you want to read on? Good, then, let's continue...

The interior of the bar was dim, seeing as whatever lights left standing from countless bar fights were not doing a good job of keeping the place lit. The aging owner was becoming less and less preoccupied with the upkeep of his establishment, and more and more concerned with marking off the days until his retirement. Despite the general disrepair of the place (I pity anyone who tries to use the restroom), the bar had proved it's usefulness. For example, it was the final meeting place of a mercenary and the dreadfully evil woman who had hired him.

The mercenary in question was sitting at a slowly leaning table in the corner of the room, sipping distastefully at a beer. The beer itself was good, but its taste had been soured by his impatience. She's late. he thought. If there was one thing that he absolutely hated, it was being made to wait. Waiting was necessary for his profession, but he certainly didn't like it. She requested the meeting, did she not? He frowned again, pushing his mirrored sunglasses back up the bridge of his nose. He took a brief second to glare at the bartender, who had stared at him a few seconds too long. You have nothing to stare at. It was true. He was dressed plainly and inconspicuously, with a long black coat, white shirt, and black pants. His platinum blond hair was pulled into a short, stiff ponytail. He just faded into the woodwork of the bar, and for right now, that was perfect for him. He took another second to glare at his watch face. I swear, one more second, and I'll-

The main door creaked open, and swung easily on its hinges, which were well on the way of popping right off of the wall. In stepped a woman, wrapped up to the neck in a thick, black cloak. The hood was pulled up to cover her head, and it was long enough to cover over her eyes. The only parts of her face left exposed was her long, thin nose, and her lips, which were colored a shade of red treading the line between chic and garish. Her pale, grayish skin was pulled taut over her cheekbones and chin, giving her an almost emaciated look. Despite the cloak pulled over her eyes, she spotted the mercenary almost instantly, and walked toward him with long strides. In her right hand was a gold, waist-length walking stick, which clicked noisily on the floor as she walked. Twice, someone dared to cross her path, and both times they parted from her way instantaneously, almost fearfully. She smirked at them, but said nothing. Finally, she reached the mercenary's table, and sat down at the chair proffered to her. "Well, Mister Wilson," she said. "We meet again." Her voice was silky and low, barely above a whisper.

He tipped his glass in her direction. "Madame."

She chuckled and took a capped flask out of her cloak's pocket. "Let's dispense with the niceties, shall we, Slade?"

He took a long drink from his beer. "Of course, Yaharé."

She gave a small nod in approval, and drank deeply from whatever was in her flask. She nodded at his glass. "What are you drinking?" she asked.

"Yuengling lager." He glanced at her flask. "And you?"

She smiled. "My own special Bloody Mary." She tilted the flask invitingly under his nose, before drinking from it again. "Would you like to try?"

He shook his head. "I'll have to pass. Although, I must ask how you make it."

She smiled broadly. "Oh, it's not too hard," she said. "You just hold the Mary." She held out the flask in her hand. "You sure you don't want to try?" She smiled. "It's still warm." he shook his head again. She shrugged. "Very well."

"So, Yaharé, you wanted to see me?"

She slipped a hand under the neck of her cloak, and pulled out a necklace she was wearing, one with a large, flat, circular pendant. Tiny whitish-gold arcs of light bounced around, seemingly contained inside the glassy pendant. She slid the pendant around her pale fingers, still not answering Slade's question. Slade glanced at the pendant curiously. "It's nice isn't it?" she asked, after seeing where his gaze was directed.

"It's pretty," said Slade, who batted the necklace away. "But I fail to see how it answers my question. Did you, or did you not, want to see me?"

She frowned, and tucked the necklace back under her cloak. "Well, it's good to know I haven't given my soul for only mere trifles," she murmured. "And yes, Slade, I did wish to see you." She drank greedily out of her flask, but said nothing more.

He took another impatient sip. She was keeping him waiting yet again. "And?"

She laughed. "Well, you asked if I wanted to see you, and I said yes. You have yet to ask me why I wanted to see you yet, though."

He exhaled sharply through his nostrils. "Why do you want to see me, Yaharé?"

Again, she avoided the question. "Do you remember why I hired you, Slade? I wanted things- taken care of. I must say, some things were most certainly not taken care of."

Slade was not amused. "I do hope you're going to become more specific with what exactly you want. I don't like guessing games."

Yaharé grew angry, and plunked her flask down on the table. Some thick, reddish liquid poured out of the spout and onto the tabletop. "You want me to be more specific?" Her grip on the flask tightened. "Fine. I am releasing you from my employ, because you, Slade, are an abject failure!"

Slade raised his eyebrow at her, completely nonplussed at her outburst. "I hardly consider successful years of spy work and careful infiltration of a village solely comprised of super-powered people; and their quick and timely extermination an- 'abject failure'."

Yaharé was unconvinced. "A good spy you may have been, but a successful assassin you were not! You led one Elemental out of the Sanctuary purposely, left one alive, and took another as your apprentice! Not only that, you killed the rest of them! I wanted to kill them. How am I supposed to have their souls if they are dead before I can get to them?!" She took a deep breath, and exhaled, hissing through clenched teeth. "I need more than three. I wanted what was left of them; I wanted their will; I wanted their soulless loyalty, their mindless reverence. When you came to me, and promised that you would retrieve the three, I believed you. But now I see that you are a broken mercenary, unfit for your responsibilities. That Slade, is why you an abject failure." She took a deep quaff of her 'Bloody Mary' to calm herself down. "Alive, Slade. Alive! Can you comprehend the word?"

"Just as soon as you comprehend that maybe shouting your plans to a bar filled with strangers might not be the smartest thing to do," Slade snarled back. "Who asked you to hire me? You did it of your own volition."

"I was under the impression that you would have done a better job! But no, you have disappointed me." She had expected her response to bring forth some feelings of guilt or shame in Slade, but they only seemed to make him laugh, much to her chagrin.

Slade sighed, his chuckles done away with. "I feel that we're moving around in circles, Yaharé. Instead of continuing this argument, why don't you just- leave? I'm not particularly enjoying your company, and I can't see what else you want from me anyway."

Yaharé simpered, revealing her pale teeth, which were tinted a dull pink from her drink. "Well, we are both adults, Slade. How about an apology for a job not well done, and I fulfill my plans without you." She chuckled. "Maybe when this land is mine, I'll be lenient with you."

Slade stared at her, emotionless and cold. "You'll get no such thing from me. You said that you wanted their village infiltrated and the inhabitants exterminated. You failed to specify any other conditions. So, if I decided to alter my plans in doing what I was paid to do, I should not have to grovel at your feet." It was his turn to grin. "So no apology."

Shocked was an understatement of the emotion Yaharé was feeling. She was being disrespected, by a subordinate! By a- human! "You will apologize to me," she spat, her voice now dangerously low. "You will apologize for your actions. You've disappointed me, and I demand that you apologize! You are lucky that you are not dead for your insolence!"

Slade laughed outright at that, angering her even more. "Empty death threats, Yaharé? Wasn't it you that said that we were both adults?"

Yaharé reached out her hand at a freakish speed, and grabbed him by the shirt collar, pulling his face close to hers. "You do not refuse me. Maybe you are superior amongst humans, but to one like me you are nothing. I am a soul reaver, a demon of hell! My human side is weak, but it is this side of me that you must listen to. If I desired your soul, it would be in my grasp now, you feckless man! You once served a purpose, now your spot is filled! You are useless to me now." She let go of his shirt, and pushed him back into his chair.

"You are nothing but an ancient hag of a half-demon," Slade said dismissively, straightening his shirt out. "And, I believe that I need to have a soul first before you can steal it away. There is nothing you can do to me; nothing you can take away. You are the disappointment. And if you try to touch me again, I will-"

"Do nothing," Yaharé said simply. "You can do nothing to one like me, especially when one like her is watching." She pointed a finger behind Slade's head to prove her point. He chuckled, and turned around. He had purposefully chosen a table situated in the corner of the room so he would not be caught off guard. There was no one there as he suspected. It seems that the half- demon is getting delusional in her old age. Yaharé smiled as she saw the figure in the black cloak shrink into the corner, disguised, but she wiped her smirk away before Slade turned around.

"You think I'm stupid, Yaharé? I have three of my men in here, not to mention I scoured it top to bottom before you even came in. There's no one watching us, Yaharé, you're only fooling yourself."

A voice behind him chuckled and slid the flat side of a dagger across his neck. "I think Slade's losing it in his old age, Master." Slade stiffened, already prepared to throw the adversary across the room. The person- a teenage girl- lifted the dagger away from Slade's neck, and stepped back before he could attack. She bent in a slight bow in Yaharé's direction, then sat down. Slade studied the girl. He had not seen her since- what had happened before-. Yaharé noticed him eying the cloaked girl warily. "Surprised, Slade? Her future was not as set in stone as you thought."

Slade made his face as unreadable as possible. "So, you have her as a servant. What did it take to get her?"

Yaharé smiled, and after she did so, the girl followed suit. "She was always willing to give her soul, you should know that. She swears loyalty to me now, not as a servant like the others, but as an apprentice." She waited for any reaction, any at all from Slade. All she got was a slight tic in his left eye, if that. "Is that all you have to say?" she asked him. No response. "I would expect this to sting, at least a bit. I mean, what was the point in separating her from the Pan-Ele girl-

"Artemis", Slade corrected her, "Her name is Artemis."

Yaharé waved her hand dismissively, and the girl next to her scoffed. "Her name is unimportant, as is she, for she is beneath me anyway."

"Well, she was certainly important enough for me to be hired to 'retrieve' her," said Slade mockingly.

Yaharé ground her teeth. Slade got under her skin like no one else could even dream. The girl next to her tightened her grip on her dagger upon noticing her master's discomfort. Yaharé chuckled and touched the girl's arm, telling her to desist without words. "Later, child. I'll let you kill something later." The girl seemed satisfied with this, and tucked the dagger away in her pocket.

"As I was saying," said Yaharé, "you do not seem to care much that I have succeeded where you have failed. I've noticed you to be a bit of a perfectionist, surely this knowledge must kill you."

"The only thing that just kills me," said Slade, "is that you spent a great deal of time and effort to lord your 'power' over my failed apprentice, who may I remind you, failed because she was outright stupid and impulsive. It also proves that you have proven to be so inept at exacting your plans of domination in the Plane that you've had to hire someone much more skilled that you -that's me, by the way- to cover up your own flaws, which is an attempt I assume, to enlarge your already monstrous ego. What's more, your particular choice of apprentice seems to be a direct attempt at infuriating the 'Pan-Ele girl', if and when you two meet, which in itself seems futile, since, and I quote, "she is beneath you anyway". Why do you do it, I wonder? Probably because your plans for 'domination' aren't quite working out, and this seems to be the only way to get your kicks."

The girl next to Yaharé flexed her hands, prepared to attack. "Just say the word, Master," she said, "and I will bury him where he stands."

Yaharé shook her head. "I appreciate your loyalty but rest assured, I will have something for you to kill later. Do not waste the effort on him."

The girl nodded. "As you wish."

"Command," Yaharé corrected. "As I command." She turned to Slade. "Do you see what I have made her? When she served under you, she was just a girl. She could be broken, and she could be defeated. She had some power, and even though you promised her more, you failed to deliver. If she had possessed more power and control, she never would have fallen. Thanks to me, she realizes that. I'm disappointed in your handling of her, the way you treated her like a puppet. She is so much more, you see, and much more capable than you gave her credit for. You inhibited her rage; I let it run free. You gave her room to develop; I will shape her as I see fit. You tried to have her best the Pan-Ele; I await the day when the two meet yet again, and the Pan-Ele's heart is ripped from her chest." She paused, certain that she was triumphant over Slade.

Slade however, merely cocked an eyebrow. "And I await the day when you realize how truly moronic you sound when you monologue like that, Yaharé."

"Fine," said Yaharé. "Refuse to accept your defeat. But whether you like it or not, I've already won. Even if the Pan-Ele has the Spearhead, and even if she can find the Weaver, I am five steps ahead. I will destroy the Spear once it is whole, and then I will have the power I should have had at birth. What's more, I will have the souls of the people who have stood in my way. I will be a full demon again, and this act will rip whatever's left of my humanity apart piece by piece." The girl next to her froze suddenly, and turned her head, so it looked as if she were glaring at someone over her shoulder, though no one was there. After a few seconds, she turned her head back to Yaharé, and gave her a slight nod, to which Yaharé responded with one of her own. "I will leave now, Slade. I hope our paths never cross again, unless it is when I have your hide hang in my domain. Apprentice, come."

Yaharé rose out of her chair, grabbed her walking stick, and started to leave. The girl trailed a few steps behind her. Slade rolled his shoulders, trying to rid the unpleasantness of the evening from his mind, when he noticed that the girl was still standing there. "I hope things haven't changed between us because of this," the girl said.

Slade shrugged. "I doubt it. You are still the same, still the lesser, still the apprentice; never the master, albeit to a different person. You know, for one with such ambition, I'm surprised that you haven't rebelled against Yaharé."

The girl scowled. "I owe her a debt which she hangs over my head, and I could not possibly rebel, because she could take it away in an instant. Still, the day is young. One day, soon, the very earth will quake at my feet." She smirked. "More so than it does already." She turned on her heel, and hurried out the door to reach Yaharé, who was on the other side of the bar. "Taunting the mercenary, apprentice?" she asked.

The girl smiled. "I couldn't resist. I'm sorry for making you wait, Master."

"I will let it slip, this time, because I'm feeling charitable. Still, though, your impudence did upset me; perhaps to relive my anger I can find myself a soul to steal." She traced her chin idly with a finger, surveying the occupants of the bar.

"I have one, Master," the girl said, dropping her voice to a whisper. "We were being watched, earlier, by that man." She pointed him out, unbeknown to him, as he had his back turned.

Yaharé was interested now. The evening had seemed dull before, but the prospect of a soul was too enticing to ignore. Especially one from here, a soul that was likely to not be missed. "Was he now? Well, we can't have that, apprentice. We will wait for this man, and show him just how wrong eavesdropping is. Yes, that will do nicely." She laughed, eager. "Well, apprentice, it seems that I no longer have to worry about finding you a 'something'. He will do just fine."

The girl's eyes gleamed at the prospect. She slipped a hand in her pocket, stroking the hilt of her dagger. "Good." The pair left, eying the man one last time. The man shuddered involuntarily as he finished his drink. Something was wrong, he decided. Very, very wrong.

Slade drained the last bit of his beer, watching the door. Yaharé and- her apprentice had left a few minutes ago, but he was still watching. Waiting. He still wondered how the girl had managed to sneak up on him; he had taught her better then he thought, he supposed. Well, better than she had shown while serving under him. He sighed as he reached for his glass, only to find it completely empty.

"Women troubles?" The bartender came up behind Slade, a rather risky thing to do, when you think of it, but he did so regardless.

Slade looked up at the older, scruffier man who was polishing a perpetually dirty glass as he stood there. "Excuse me?" Slade asked.

"The woman who just left, did you two, y'know, break up or somethin'?"

Slade shrugged. "I suppose."

"Married?"

Slade shook his head. "To her? No, thank god. Just some- radical differences of opinion."

The bartender laughed. "Heh, differences of opinion. That's what my ex- wife said. Both of 'em. Five years later, and I'm still busting my hump payin' the alimony. You know what I'm saying?" Slade nodded briefly, not interested in conversation. "Hey, uh, ya want to to top you off?" the bartender, tapping Slade's empty glass.

Slade shook his head. "I think I'll be going now, actually. Bye, good luck with the alimony."

"Yeah, right," the bartender responded, as Slade left the bar. "Good luck with the scarlet woman."

As Slade left the bar, he went over what he had seen and heard in his mind, analyzing it and finding out whatever could be used to his advantage. Had circumstances been different, he might have considered warning Artemis. But, then again, Slade thought, as he thought about the five, long scars on his chest, Artemis can probably take care of herself. Well- hopefully. For her sake. He chuckled. "The Pan- Ele isn't going to know what hit her."

The man Yaharé had been eying was still at the bar, staring into his empty glass. Thanks to his seat at the bar, he had overheard every word those three strange people had exchanged, and frankly, he was terrified. Not by the man as much, though he still gave him chills. Who wears sunglasses inside anyway? Weird people, that's who. And vampires. Maybe they're all vampires, that'd explain it. Like that woman, the who said that she was drinking blood. The 'soul reaver', whatever the hell that means. She was scary. So was her friend, the one with the knife. Geez, Bartender's not payin' enough attention if some bloodthirsty demon witch and a chick with a knife can just walk in here and talk about killing people. That guy too, he said he'd killed people. Lots of people, cause the demon witch told him to. Someone should really turn them in. Just think, three murderers caught on the same day.

Suddenly, the man was struck with an idea. "Hey, I should turn 'em in! I know what they look like; I know they were killing people, and they were talking about killing people. I could be the hero for once! Heh, and my wife can't yell at me for bein' here, cause if I wasn't here drinkin', there'd be three murderers walkin' free!" He laughed to himself, and signaled for yet another drink. Just because things were going in his favor didn't mean he shouldn't have a 'nip of courage' before he went over to the police station. You know, just in case the four other 'nips of courage' weren't enough.

"What do you mean you'll 'look into it'?!"

The police officer sighed. "Look Mac-"

"For the last time, my name's JIM!" Jim, who had finally stumbled his way to the police station, was decidedly irate at the fact that the police officer didn't believe his story. He tried to yell again, but only hiccuped. Hmm, maybe that last drink was a bad idea.

The officer sighed. "I'm going to ask that you calm down, sir. It's just that thanks to your- interesting story, we have circumstantial evidence, but nothing more. And even that evidence might not hold up in court, since it comes from a questionable source. The most I can tell you right now is that we'll keep an eye on this case."

Jim was not pleased. "Whaddya mean, a questionable source?! I'm a- perfectly honest person!" He tried to bang on the table to make a point, but he missed it entirely, only to hit his thigh instead. "Ow," he muttered.

The officer raised an eyebrow. "You said this took place at a bar, sir?" Jim nodded. "And while you were at this bar, did you have anything to drink?" He noted Jim tilting in his seat. "Of the alcoholic variety?"

Jim shrugged. "Well, I mean, I had a few. I just got laid off today, so I was in a pretty bad mood, y'know?"

"And how many is a few?"

"Umm... five? Yeah, five- I think."

"Uh huh." Suddenly, the man's outlandish story made much more sense. "Well, sir, you've given us a lot to research. I'll have one of our artists draw up some sketches based on the information you've given us. Thank you for your assistance." Please, for the love of all that holy, leave, so that I can enjoy what's left of my graveyard shift in peace.

Jim drew himself proudly. "That's more like it. See ya officer; let me know how the case goes, alright?" Somewhat awkwardly, he walked out the door. The officer waited for him to leave, before bursting out laughing. Another officer came up behind him. "I knew it," he said, "You were just messing with that guy, weren't you?"

The officer stopped, wiping tears of mirth from his eyes. "Couldn't help it, Lepinski, the drunk was askin' for it. I mean, why do I always get the nutjobs?"

Lepinski shrugged. "It's always the same at night. That when the crazies come out. Come on, let's get a cuppa, I'm beat."

The officer shrugged. "Yeah, hold on a sec." He looked down at the notes he had taken during the man's 'report'. No way am I letting these see the light of day; it'll look bad on my record. Without a second thought, he pushed them off his desk and into the trash can.

Jim stumbled down the sidewalk, searching for a cab. Finally flagging one down, he was about to step off of the curb when someone tugged on his elbow, and pulled him into an alley. "Hey, what's the big-" he managed to yell before someone tied a gag around his mouth, and pushed him to the ground. "So, human, I noticed that you were listening on me earlier this evening. I don't appreciate that, not one bit."

Jim's eyes widened as he saw the demon woman from the bar come into view. He screamed but it was almost entirely muffled by the gag. The woman laughed. "I think it's a little too late for screams, my soon-to-be soul." She stepped aside, and let the knife-girl come forward. "Go to town," the demon whispered, "Just clean up when you're done."

Jim flinched as the girl readied her knives. My wife was right; I never should have gone to the bar in the first place.

You see, unfortunately for Jim, Officer Lepinski was right. The crazies only come out at night.

END

Author's Notes and Thanks: Well, this is the end of it, folks, and although this chapter may lead to my death at the hands of crazed reviewers/ friends, I'm glad to have kept you guessing. Ahh, I love writing Slade, especially his delightfully cutting lines. It's amazing how Slade can kick major ass without even trying. Thanks for sticking with me and my first piece of non-school assigned prose! Just one last thing, as much as I like reviews, FanFiction won't let you review this chapter if you left a review for Chapter Twelve. You see, I pushed two chapters together, and that made every chapter move back a number. This should have been Chapter Fourteen, but thanks to my editing it's now Chapter Twelve. Since most people already left a review for Chapter Twelve, it won't let you review the Epilogue. Try leaving an anonymous review instead (with your penname); it should work. In case it doesn't work, and you just want to tell me what you thought of it, feel free to email or PM me. I love hearing people's opinions.

I'd like to take a moment to thank all of my wondrous reviewers: Chaltab(Thank you so much for the constructive criticism; it helped me a lot!); KuteIrishGrl(Thanks for the good reviews and funny deleted scenes story. Yays for you. I only wish I could fit that in the sequel, but most of the sequel probably won't take place in the Tower anyway. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Thank you though.) Dolphinluver21&longhairedhorse(loved editing for you guys, and I'd love to do it again!); Dash-Rendar(Thanks for making a character based on Artemis in your story! I still want the next chappie!!); TrippWire(Thanks for being bold enough to read an OC fic, and to leave nice reviews!) Luna Forest(thanks for your enthusiasm!); ravengal(Thank you for your kind reviews and general awesomeness! Hail the Brits! Sasgay!); Erica (glomps), my awesomely awesome previewer!; and lastly Ivanna and Amanda, who dove headfirst into this fic, put up with my writer's block, and are still two of my biggest fans! Yes, I know I am forgetting some people, so if I forgot you, please don't be offended. I love you all!

Now, if you people read my meanderings at the end of each chapter, you probably know that a sequel for this is well in the making. I'm planning for the sequel to be much longer (I'm hoping to break 100,000 words), and while still action-packed, I want to develop character relationships and how they influence the storyline. I'm hoping it won't be clear-cut from start to finish, as I know this fic was at times (my friends foresaw a confrontation with Slade way before it happened). It might surprise you how some characters behave, and it might even have you biting your nails at times (hopefully). And yes, Erica, it will have 'Romance' in the genre, but that's all you're getting out of me. I hope I will see you all reviewing!

Also, the entire story has undergone a comprehensive editing, from spelling and grammar, to weeding out the unnecessary parts or fleshing out the chapters (Particularly in Chapter 2, Chapter 3 parts 1&2, and Chapters 5&6). Chapters have been merged together, and minor changes have been made to the overall storyline. I like this clean and polished version much better, as I have done away with many of the mistakes I made early on in my writing career. So, check out the new stuff, I command you! Goodbye for now, I hope I will see you all shortly when the first chapter of the sequel comes out!

-Artemis out.