AN: Thanks to all the reviews, I don't get a morning off. Oh well, I'm not really a fan of golf. Warning: For all you Emily/Ward fans, sorry. They only kiss 3 times this chapter, but don't worry.

I looked around, already lost in the dark, dark forest. Turning around, I tried to walk back into camp. Imagine my surprise when I hit an invisiwall. Artemis must love using an invisiwall, I thought bitterly.

I turned around, facing the path Artemis had forced me into. Then I noticed something strange.

There was a silvery path going through the forest, following the path I think Thalia must had taken.

"Thank mo- Lady Artemis," I said silently as I took off, running. I knew Artemis had done this to make my job easier. The faster I found her, the faster I could get back to Camp Half-blood and relax.

The path was pretty straightforward, lacking in any weird Tarzan moves or whatever. I didn't see any animals, which I thought was odd. Hunting season maybe?

I lost the path a couple times, so I had to backtrack and find it again. This meant I had to pay strict attention the ground, so I couldn't daydream or anything fun like that.

After a couple hours of running, I was exhausted. I must have run at least 50 miles today alone. Forgetting about my backpack and supplies, I fell over and entered an state of REM that was so deep, I almost needed a life vest.

"Ah ha! We have you! You'll never escape from us, Arte-" the lady's voice was harsh and gloating. She stopped mid sentence. "Umm, honey?"

The guy spoke up. "Yeah?"

"THIS ISN'T ARTEMIS! THIS ISN'T EVEN A GODDESS!" the lady screamed, hurting my eardrums.

"She's wearing silver camouflage! How was I supposed to know that it wasn't Artemis?" the guy defended himself angrily. "She has that weird aura that Artemis does!"

"That's called the Blessing of Artemis, you fool!" the lady yelled, and I could imagine her shaking her head the guy. Then, she gasped. "Silver camouflage, Blessing of Artemis, silver circlet that totally clashes, Oh my Zeus! We caught the lieutenant of the Fools of Artemis or whatever! This is perfect! She'll have to come rescue her! She might even be on her way now! I thought I sensed someone following the path we set. Foolish goddess. Well, let's catch her. This way, darling." the lady's voice chuckled evilly, and I woke up gasping. They were coming for me!

'There's a slight chance I could outrun them,' I thought as I got up. Then I realized that I could barely move, thanks to my sore muscles. Artemis! I could IM her, whatever that means.

Quickly (not really), I fumbled around in my backpack, looking for the IMing instructions. Finally, I found a piece of paper with instructions written on it. It read:

Instructions For IMing:

1. Find a rainbow or other reflective surface.

2. Drop a golden drachma into said reflective surface.

3. Say, "Oh Iris, Goddess of the Rainbow, please accept my offering!"

4. Say the name of the person you want to talk to.

5. Speak to the person of your choice.

6. Swipe your hand through the reflection to dissolve the connection.

Have a good day!

As I read the directions, I noticed that my backpack had a mirror, with a weird gold coin taped to it.

"Thank you!" I said to no one in particular, noticing that I could speak out loud again.

I angled the mirror in the sunlight (which I wasn't used to) until it reflected the sunlight into a mirror about the size of an iPhone onto a nearby tree. It was at about eye-level, so I set the mirror on the ground and gently placed the strange coin into the rainbow. To my utter shock, it went right through like a vending machine. I eve her it clink as it reached the bottom of wherever it went.

"Ummm. Ok. Oh Iris, Goddess of the Rainbow, please accept my offering!" I read off the paper.

"Please say who you want to call." a misty voice said, from the tree.

"Artemis. The Greek godd-" I started, not sure if I needed to specify which Artemis or not. Surely, there must be hundreds in the world, even if it is an odd name.

"Please hold while I connect." Soft music played in the background and I looked around anxiously. The people from my dream could be here any second!

"What do you want?" Artemis's blurry face filled the screen. Her hair was ruffled and she had a slight slur.

"Were you asleep?" I asked.

"Obviously. Now hurry up before I turn you into a smoarrel." she mumbled.

"Lady Artemis, they've captured Thalia!" I yelled, trying to wake her up.

Well, that worked.

"Who did?" she asked urgently. She seemed wide awake now, and took a step closer, to hear better I guess.

"It was-"

"That would be us." Before I could react, some heavy pressure was applied to my back and I was forced on the ground.

"Gerrof meh oo dirty at!" I mumbled around the dirt in my mouth. Whoever was behind me laughed and what felt like a boot was placed square on the center of my back. It was the exact same laugh from my first Olympian dream. I tried to push up, but it was like having a mountain lying on me.

"Hello again Artemis. Checking up on your daughter? How touching." a female's voice said. It had the same cadence as the girl in my dream but sounded different somehow. It still sounded familiar, but I couldn't remember where I had heard it before. Maybe I had grass in my ears or something.

"Who are you and what do you want?" I could hear the fury in my mom's voice and I could imagine her blurring angrily.

"You know who I am. And what could I possibly want? I have all I need. You, on the other hand," the lady continued, clearly gloating. "you must want something. Could it be your daughter, by any chance?"

Artemis snorted. Oh no.

"'My daughter'? I feel more of a connection to the last rabbit I shot than I do to her. Kill her. I don't care." her voice was nonchalant, and I felt a ripping sensation in my soul. My own mother telling people that she didn't care if I lived or died?

"Maybe that's true, maybe it's not. But I bet I have someone you do care about," the lady said, snapping her fingers. I heard a sharp crack and then some muffled yelling. It sounded like-

"Thalia? Let her go this instant!" Artemis shouted angrily. "She's innocent! Whatever problem you have with me, we can settle it face-to-face. Let the maiden go!"

The lady sighed, contentedly.

"I knew you'd react like this. So, I propose a trade. I'll release this girl, but I get you instead. You'll be a much more interesting play-thing. Immortality, you see. So, do we have a deal?"

"Mom! No don't do-" I tried to yell. Whoever had his boot placed on my back stomped on my arm and I felt a bone crack.

"What did you do?" I heard Artemis shout over my screams of agony. And yes, there was some profanity mixed in there.

"Nothing. Why do you care anyway?" the lady asked, trying to trick her into revealing her affection.

"Of course I care!" My heart leaped and I stopped swearing for a second. "That's my lieutenant you have!"

Her final rejection made something snap in me. She cared more for a stranger than she did for me. Suddenly, the burning pain in my arm didn't feel so bad anymore. I was so filled with anger that I didn't have room in me for any other emotion. I stopped yelling and I relaxed my muscles.

Then, I pulled the sweetest move ever. Instead of pushing up, I twisted OUT and grabbed whoever and jerked his leg to the side. He fell heavily, and I leapt up, seeing red. I punched whoever the girl was, not looking at her. I noticed Thalia, hovering there in midair, her eyes wide with shock. Instead of helping her like I should have, I turned to look at my mom

"I hate you!" I had just enough time to yell that before I saw something swing at me out if the corner of my eye. Too slow to dodge, I had just enough time to close my eyes before what felt like a semi hit me on the side of my head.

Unconsciousness wasn't immediate, so I could feel it as whoever it was kicked me in my side, over and over again. Finally, barely conscious and hurt in so many ways, my body just shut down.

AN2: So, how'd you like it? Extremely violent, I know, but its been one of those days. Thank you so much for the reviews! Seriously, you guys have no idea how much they mean to me. Sorry to all of you who believed that Ward and Emily would kiss (then again, did anyone really believe that in the first place?). I'll update at 76, so keep the love coming. P.S. check out my other story if you want. No big deal. I promise it is not nearly as nerdy as it seems. P.S.S. Don't hate Artemis too much. She has her ways. Bye and thank you all so much (again)!