"I am Zenia, daughter of Hestia, on a quest from the gods!" I shouted, hoping to sound like some kind of hero instead of a cowering little girl with all the blood rushing to my head.
"And I am Orion, son of Apollo, aiding Zenia on her quest." He identified himself.
"And why are you here exactly?" Asked the head woman.
"We have come to fetch the Hyppolyte's belt for her Lady Aphrodite." Orion said.
A chorus of laughter arose from the women. "And why do you think you are worthy of such a belt? It was a gift from a god, you know." Asked the main woman.
The heat, said Philana.
"Have you noticed the heat lately?" Murmurs arose among the crowd. "It's because Hades cheated on Persephone, and now she is making it hot until she finds a man to give her husband a taste of his own medicine. She wants him to be perfect, though, so we have enlisted the help of Aphrodite, goddess of love."
"How do I know you are telling me the truth?" She asked. Philana came out of the bushes and put her nose on mine.
"'Tis the hind!" A woman shouted. Everyone gasped and fell down, bowing to the deer.
"Oh, sweet hind, please forgive me for doubting your friend!" Exclaimed the leader, "Alcina! Release our guests at once!"
Alcina rushed up to where we were hanging and cut us free. We landed with a thud, but were uninjured, except for a rope burn around my ankle.
We all started marching. "My name is Klaus," Said the leader, "And I lead the Amazons. Are you children familiar with Artemis's hunters?"
"They fought with us in Manhattan last year when the titans tried to take over Olympus." Orion remembered.
"Shush, boy!" Klaus said, "I was speaking to the girl."
"My name is Zenia." I said, "And yes, I have heard of them."
"Well, we are the original hunters. You see, long ago, Artemis created us to forever purge this forest of evil. Keeping monsters at bay has been our mission ever since we were spawned. But then, no more than two and a half thousand years ago, she decided that she needed a group that could travel, so she made a new one. They travel around the world, saving people, while we guard the place of the Evil Eye."
"The place of the Evil Eye?" Asked Orion. Klaus ignored him.
"The place of the Evil Eye?" I asked.
"Yes, the Evil Eye. It is where misfortunes are created. Within a twenty-mile radius of our camp is where evils spring up and go to terrorize the world. We kill what we can." She replied.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"Anytime anyone gets sick, falls down a mountain, betrays a loved one is something that the Evil Eye has sent. He only sends bad things to the world. It is our job to stop as much as we possibly can." Said Klaus
"Wow," said Orion, "That wasn't in the history books."
"Would you please tell your little man-friend to hold his tongue in the presence of a woman?" Klaus exclaimed.
"She wants you to be quiet." I told Orion. He rolled his eyes.
"We're almost there." Klaus said.
But I was totally not expecting what I next saw. We were soon standing in front of a huge, elaborate white palace.
"Oh. My. God."