Chapter Seven: Who's The Hunter Now?
June 18th 2011 - 5 days before the Feast of Fortuna, 1530 hrs, The Dungeon, Amazons Headquarters, Seattle, Washington, United States - Hylla Ramírez-Arellano
Hylla Ramírez-Arellano didn't know how many days it had been since Otrera finally defeated her in their duel. Hylla was the Queen of Amazons, and now she was only a prisoner, of her own people.
Hylla knew things were going really bad when Terra brought Otrera back to life. Her throne was challenged immediately, and though she managed to defeat Otrera, and send her back to Pluto, Terra brought her right back.
Every night, Hylla would kill Otrera in a duel, only for the founder of Amazons to revive and challenge her again on the following night. An entire fortnight she held her ground, defeating Otrera in every duel, but she was exhausted. Until one day, Otrera managed to wound her severely. Hylla was told she was lucky to keep her right leg, but it all became too much for her.
When Otrera challenged her again the following night, she finally snapped. Otrera defeated her after two long hours of duel. Her spear had long snapped, and her daggers were nowhere to be seen. Otrera had her at the mercy of her blade, a slight push, and the tip of her spear would rip her throat open. By then Hylla could barely stand.
She was adamant though, she was completely exhausted, and had long known that moment was coming. In fact, she surprised even herself by standing on her feet against Otrera for as long as she did. Hylla fought bravely that night, she'd poured every ounce of her strength and skill into the duel, but she was simply too exhausted to keep fighting on.
Hylla refused to kneel, she refused to look away from Otrera's eyes, and she refused to show fear. But fate pulled a cruel joke on her. Otrera laughed, as she drove her spear into her left foot. Hylla screamed and went down, but Otrera wouldn't even let her have the dignity of death.
She was thrown into the dungeon, her lieutenant Kinzie was now Otrera's lieutenant. Kinzie did whatever she could to make things better for Hylla, which wasn't very much. Giving her a minute of break from the torturers Otrera sent and making sure she stayed alive - even though Hylla wished she didn't.
Otrera made her watch, as her sister Reyna was threatened into submission, out of the fear for her life. Not only did Hylla doom the Amazons, but also did she doom the Romans, all because she wasn't strong enough to beat Otrera.
Hylla was so disgusted with her own existence, but Otrera would never let her die, knowing her survival was the only thing they had on Reyna - the Praetor of New Rome. Sometimes Hylla could hear Terra's taunting laughter. Pathetic, weak, Hylla couldn't agree with her more.
Every day was the same now, being tortured by Otrera until she was satisfied, drifting between consciousness and darkness and wishing she was dead. Hylla had lost count of days, or any concept of time. Then, the door of her cell was swung open, and two people were thrown in.
She recognized one of them instantly.
June 19th 2011 - 4 days before the Feast of Fortuna, 1030 hrs, Crawford, Nebraska, United States - Thalia Grace
"Damn," Thalia muttered under her breath as she swung her trustworthy silver bow over her shoulder, the quiver strapped on her back was half empty. She thrived for battle, one of the main reasons she chose to become a hunter, because it felt that she belonged. However, when you kill someone, or rather, something, they are supposed to stay dead for at least half a decade. It's no fun at all if they just keep coming back, especially when her mistress Artemis the Goddess of Hunt was out of action, suffering Greco-Roman split persona.
The hunters were chasing Lycaon's werewolf pack, and now they were being chased by the wolves. It only took fifteen or so werewolves, a small fraction of Lycaon's pack to reverse the tide of the hunt, turning the hunters into the hunted. The Doors of Death were open, and Thanatos went missing, you kill monsters, only for them to return mere seconds later for you to kill them again, and again, and again.
Phoebe had managed to locate a massive wave of magical energy in Washington. It could be nothing, of course, but Thalia didn't have any other lead on Lycaon, so she decided to investigate. Then they were ambushed.
A small group of werewolves caught on their trail in Iowa and chased them all the way to Nebraska. Thalia wasn't particularly thrilled of being in Nebraska, having heard about the quest for her douchebag of a father's Master Bolt from Percy.
They were powerless in front of the werewolves, who would return seconds after their disintegration. So they ran, but they could never outrun the werewolves, not when they were the predators, and certainly not when they were preys.
The hunters were only feared by monsters due to their superior tactics, training, mobility, weapons and the presence of their Goddess. But all their advantages were gone now. Two hunters died so the rest of the hunt could get away.
Thirty hunters fought in the Battle of Manhattan, only eight saw Kronos' defeat. Twenty-two hunters fell during the three-day battle. After the war it was won, the hunt mourned for their fallen sisters and moved on, acting as if nothing had happened as they recruited the same way they've been doing for centuries. Offering young girls the lucrative promise of immortality and family, girls who were either too innocent or too broken to turn down the offer.
They filled their ranks quickly enough, seventeen new recruits joined the hunt, during the short year of peace between the fall of Kronos and the return of Gaea. Life carried on as usual, but something changed. Percy asked her whether she had seen Nico recently. And she had.
She saw the son of Hades three weeks ago. He looked even paler than usual as he visited her. His eyes were distant and unfocused, the sound of his voice was absently unreal. The last thing her cousin said to her before he too, went missing, was that she acted as if Bianca never even existed.
Maybe Thalia was wrong, maybe Artemis was. The hunt, what it stood for, why it was there, Nico doubted all of it. Thalia knew Nico blamed Artemis and her hunt for his sister's death as much as he had blamed Percy for it.
Thalia sighed. She committed herself to Artemis' service literally for the rest of the eternity the day before she turned sixteen, Nico was rarely in the land of living anymore and Percy found a new life among Romans after he was betrayed. The three cousins were drifting apart, so much for children of the Big Three sticking together.
"Where are we?" Her second-in-command, Phoebe asked.
"In the middle of absolutely bloody nowhere." A younger huntress growled with an edge in her voice. Thalia could understand it, it was a tough day for everyone, maybe her toughest yet since the Battle of Manhattan.
"We should stop here," Thalia ordered before things turn into a nasty fight, "Set up camp girls. I want groups of five standing guard and patrolling the perimeter in rotation with the wolves. Phoebe, my tent."
Phoebe followed her into the Lieutenant's tent. They sat on two chairs uneasily.
"We might have at least a few hours before the werewolves can find us again," Phoebe broke the tense silence, her voice strained, "We really should keep going to put as much distance as possible… but we are all exhausted. More than half of these girls had no proper training whatsoever six months ago, they are not really to face what might come."
"Do we have a plan?" Thalia sighed tiredly.
"Keep running and don't let them catch you." Phoebe shrugged, "Not much we can do before Thanatos is freed."
"If anyone can do it, it's Percy." Thalia sighed again, "I just hope in the end, everything would turn out to be okay."
"Someone is coming!" A huntress shouted from outside. Thalia and Phoebe quickly rushed out of her tent, their weapons out.
An alarmed huntress stood at the border of their temporary camp, an arrow already notched on the string of her bow, looking visibly tense. The wolves barked as all the hunters had now formed formation, all of their weapons ready.
Three people stumbled out of the forest.
The first was a girl. She was beautiful, with pretty chocolate brown hair that was pulled into a ponytail and a tanned skin. She seemed to be glowing, despite the fact that she was stained with dirt and blood, evidently she'd just been in a battle. Her eyes were constantly shifting between brown, blue and green glamorously. Thalia knew instantly that she was a daughter of the Love Goddess, and she was a warrior.
Following her closely was a short, slimly-built Latino boy with a goofy look on his face. He had curly black hair, dark brown eyes and pointy ears that gave Thalia the impression of a Santa's elf.
The third person had tidy, light blonde hair and electric blue eyes much like her own. He was a tall, muscular figure, with handsome features that would surely catch the attention of a lot of girls. He had a very serious expression on his face when he came into Thalia's view, she noticed a golden blade held tightly in his grasp. On the corner of his bottom lip, Thalia could see a small scar.
"Jason?"
"Th-Thalia?"
June 19th 2011 - 4 days before the Feast of Fortuna, 1030 hrs, Crawford, Nebraska, United States - Leo Valdez
Leo tried to tune in on the conversation, he really did, but in his defense, the view in front of him was very distracting. She was easily the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen, with those electrifying blue eyes of hers, and her beautiful shoulder-length black hair. Leo knew she was supposed to be his best friend's long lost sister and all, but he was crashing on her. Bad.
A disbelieving expression was still on her face as she talked to Jason. Clearly it was a huge shock to both of them. She looked thoughtful and somewhat confused. Electric pulses sparked in her blue eyes occasionally, Leo could see passion and impulses burning behind her eyes, and yet she had this composed, cold enigma about her that spoke of the complete opposite.
She wore silver hunting uniform, like the rest of the hunters, with a delicate silver circlet glowing above her. It made her appear even more distant that way, like a Goddess in mysteries, where mortal men may only catch a glimpse of her immortal beauty under the shimmering moonlight.
"Juno?" Unmistakable disgust crossed her face, just as it did in her voice at the name of the Queen of Olympus, "If I were you, I'd leave her where the Hades she is to rot."
"I can't do that," Jason shook his head, "Juno is my patron, it is my duty to come to her aid when she calls it."
"Don't be so naïve little brother," A sneer came from Thalia, "Juno doesn't care about you, or me. To her we are just expendable pawns, she'd throw any of us away without hesitation to save her own skin. You might be willing to give your life for her, but she won't even be willing to lift a finger for you."
"You may be right," Jason said, "But this is my quest, and I have to complete it, what I feel isn't important. Porphyrion will rise if we don't rescue Juno from him, and we wouldn't stand a chance in a fight against the Giant King."
"Fine, but I that doesn't mean I'm happy about it." Thalia growled before she leaned in and took a closer look at Jason, as if the full weight of the events that transpired in the last ten minutes just came crushing down on her, "But Gods - It's really you Jason. I can't believe it. I thought I'd never see you again."
"I can't believe I'm seeing you again either," A remarkably soft expression appeared on Jason's face, "It's been fourteen years."
The entrance of the tent opened, interrupting the tender moment between the two siblings, revealing Phoebe - If Leo remembered her name right, Thalia's lieutenant. She was carrying a handful of cups filled with hot chocolate. With a friendly smile at Piper and an extremely unfriendly one at Leo, Phoebe handed them their hot chocolate and went next to Thalia.
"Any sign of Lycaon?" Thalia asked.
Phoebe shook her head while giving an interested look at Jason. It was no secret that the hunters hated males, but the fact that Jason was their lieutenant's long lost brother apparently stirred more curiosity than distaste.
"What's going on?" Piper cut in, "Lycaon?"
"That lowlife and his pack of dogs have been chasing us," Phoebe explained, "Going on offensive would be suicidal since Thanatos being missing means we have no way to kill them for more than a few seconds."
The trio exchanged worried looks, which didn't go unnoticed by the two hunters.
"What? Something you'd like to share?" It was Phoebe's turn to ask now.
"Before we left for our quest," Jason spoke, "Percy told us to track down Lycaon and his pack. He said it would lead us to where we need to go."
"Wait, Percy?" Phoebe asked in surprise, her eyes had gone wide, "You know him?"
"Yes," Jason replied with a confused expression, "Wait, you guys know him as well?"
"Yeah," Phoebe muttered, shooting a side glance at Thalia, "Can't believe he never told you. What's he playing at?"
"I don't know," Thalia said, though she didn't look too pleased with her cousin, "Percy is a lot smarter than people give him credit for, he must have known Jason is my brother. Though it confuses me why he never told me or chose to direct you to us by sending you off a wild chase on Lycaon's tail, I trust him judgment. Without him, none of us would be standing here now. He must have done it for a good reason."
"Gods would only give us riddles, and I was hoping our friends wouldn't be the same." Leo murmured, "Does that mean you guys know Zoë too? She popped up a few weeks ago literally out of nowhere, been staying in New Rome as Diana's ambassador."
"Zoë? As in Zoë Nightshade? Long black hair, dark eyes?" Thalia asked, her eyes were wide, but it was something more than just shock, anger, confusion, fear, joy, they were all there.
Leo nodded.
"Oh Artemis…" Thalia's hands went up to cover her mouth. Next to her, Phoebe had turned as pale as paper. "B-But that's not possible…"
"Why?" Leo asked, still confused, but Jason and Piper seemed like they have come to the realization.
"Because she's dead." Was Thalia's shocked reply.
"The quest to save Diana?" Jason asked, his suspicions were confirmed when Thalia nodded.
"But why…" Piper spoke up, "Why would Percy keep this from us? And why does he find us to meet? Especially now?"
"I may have the answer to that." Said Phoebe. All heads snapped to her. "I think… I think Percy thinks that Gaea is too powerful for us to defeat, that the only way to survive is if Greece and Rome are united. Think about this, Thalia, you are a daughter of Zeus and lieutenant of the hunt. Jason, you are the Praetor, you are siblings and you are both powerful and influential, a lot of people would rally behind you. Maybe, just maybe, the two of you can become the bridge to finally bring Greece and Rome together."
"Do you know how insane that sounds?" Jason asked in disbelief, "I can accept the fact that Percy is a Greek, but it's only because he has earned my respect, and I am a lot more liberal than most of my fellow Romans. If Greeks and Romans become aware of each other's existence, we could be looking at another Trojan War except it would be far worse because no one will be able to stay out of it this time!"
"I have been alive for a very long time," Said Phoebe, "Including Zoë. And I have already lived for centuries when Rome was built. I remember a time where Olympus and demigods are united. If anyone can make that happen again, it's Percy. But I do hope he would hurry up and set Thanatos free, otherwise we are no different from lambs for slaughter."
"Wait," Thalia suddenly said, her voice was urgent with a sharp edge in it, "Jason, how did you guys come across here? Only the most skilled hunters can find our camp, and, believe me, people don't stumble across us with sheer luck."
So Jason told Thalia everything that happened during the quest, including their search for Lycaon, the werewolves' surprise attack, getting away on Festus, their plan to visit Aeolus for some answers in Chicago and being attacked by a dozen werewolves right after landing.
"The werewolves chased you here…" Thalia's eyes widened in realization, her voice becoming louder and louder, "No, you didn't find us. This, this was all a part of the plan. You are here so Lycaon can have his pack surround us and wipe us all out with one strike!"
Thalia leaped into action, jumping off her seat and summoning Aegis, sprinting for the exit, her movement was a blur, followed by Phoebe. The trio followed the hunters out, only to see Thalia shouting orders loudly, and hunters rushing to their posts, weapons out.
"Phoebe," Ordered Thalia in a sternly composed voice, her expression was cold and hard, "Organize our defenses as quickly as possible, time is against us. Leo, make yourself useful around here, I'm sure we could use a son of Vulcan's help. Jason, Piper, come with me, we need to figure out what we are up against."
"Tartarus." Spit a small, pale Italian boy.
"Nico di Angelo," Bellowed an authoritative voice darkly, "Impressive, you know who I am."
"What do you want?" Nico demanded.
"Good question, Nico di Angelo," Bellowed the same authoritative voice, "The answer to your question can be split into many parts, but in this case, I want to make you an offer."
"I know exactly what you are going to say, Tartarus." Nico snapped, "You want Percy for some agenda, and you are going to tell me you will release me from this pit if I help you get Percy. I will never betray my friend, Tartarus, so do yourself a favor and save it."
"Really?" Said Tartarus in a haunting voice, "Well tell me, demigod, are so loyal to Percy Jackson that you would choose him over your sister?"
"Don't you dare talk about my sister!" Nico shouted angrily.
"But you are tempted," Tartarus laughed, "I can see it in your eyes, Nico di Angelo, I just made you an offer you can not resist, even it comes at the expense of Percy Jackson. Remember, I am a Primordial, all I have to do is to snap my fingers, and you can return to your world, along with your sister. Providing… that you are willing to fight for it."
AN: I'm incredibly sorry for disappearing for so long. For those of who want to know what happened to Hazel... it'll be the first thing next chapter, I promise. I'm going to be really busy for a while, so I can't say when I'll be able to update next, but I'll try my best. You are welcomed to make a guess what Tartarus wants Nico to do, it's not spying for him or giving him information or anything like what Gaea's forcing Reyna to do.