Chapter 3

"Stop boy!"

I crouched down behind the nearest bush and scanned the area. What had Plutus seen? My eyes picked up nothing.

I subconsciously pulled my hood farther down my head.

I was moments away from questioning Plutus's call, but didn't have the time to as I felt the presence stronger than ever before.

They were here.

"We have to jump."

Those were the first words I heard as I saw four beings come to view.

Part of me glanced to my side. Only a stones throw away was a steep drop off, and traveling through the woods had let me know it led to sea

This made me question what I had heard.

I scanned the group in front of me.

A grown man and three kids.

I quickly identified two of the kids as the Di Angelo kids, also referred to as my targets.

The boy to their side was the one who had said the outrageous statement.

I mean, jumping?

I studied the kid, one I assumed to be a demigod by the way he stood defensively between the two younger children and who I assumed to be the monster.

A man with a snarky look and pointed hair. He stared at the three with disdain.

My hand glided over to the hilt of my sword.

I didn't know what monster this foreign looking man was, but I could tell he was at least somewhat capable.

Nothing I couldn't handle, however.

I thought about what exactly I was going to do.

Assuming I killed the man and got to the Di Angelo's, what would I do with the black haired kid?

It wasn't like I could kill him, and I was sure the girl for the dance would be here any moment, assuming they were together.

I was in the middle of deciding on my next move when the monster attacked.

I couldn't catch how, but I watched as a bundle of thorns were launched from behind the man, sent flying with considerable speed right past the black haired boy's face.

"Though I find your attempts at freedom amusing, godling, I cannot afford to let any of you escape." The man said in a French accent.

"He's fast." Said Plutus in my head, but I quickly waved him off.

He had done enough. It was time for me to handle this, myself.

I exited from cover of the bush.

The monster immediately noticed me, a permanent scowl fixed on his face as he studied me.

"Who are you?" He asked, obvious disgust present in his tone of voice.

I said nothing as I made my way towards the group of demigods.

I stopped as a volley of thorns was launched from the man's direction, forcing me to quickly weave my head backwards to avoid them.

Now that I was the target of the man's attacks, I could see just how fast he was able to launch the projectiles off.

I was wary.

"I asked you a question." Said the man dangerously.

I turned to face him.

Before I spoke, I said a quick prayer to Hades, hoping the cloak he had given me would truly alter my voice.

"Don't involve yourself with my business, creature." I spat out.

"I don't want to dirty my sword with something like you."

I didn't wait for him to respond as I finally reached the group of half bloods.

"Who are you?" Asked the one boy stood in front of Hades's children.

I watched as his hand drifted to his pockets.

Part of me wondered if he had some sort of weapon concealed, but I wasn't too worried.

He didn't seem like a threat.

That said, I did get a strange feeling from the kid.

By demigods standards, the aura he gave off was semi impressive. It was like a dormant storm.

I gave him a quick up and down look.

A crown of messy black hair and sea green eyes, fitted in the typical outfit of kids my age.

On the outside, he didn't look like much.

"Don't worry about me kid.

My business is with the two behind you."

The girl, Bianca spoke up.

"Woah woah woah, I don't even know who you are!" She said as she put a hand protectively over her little brother, Nico, who was standing there looking particularly scared.

"Matter of fact, I don't know who any of you are!"

Did she know nothing of her heritage? Hades had said he sent Alecto before me, but had she told the kids nothing?

I let out a mental sigh. I didn't have the time for this.

"Trust me, if you had to choose between coming with me and being abducted by that bastard," I said, pointing behind me to where the monster was standing.

"I'd be the better choice.

So if you wouldn't mind just shutting up and letting me do my job, it'd be the best for the both of us." I said slightly angrily.

"H-hey! Don't talk to my sister like that!" Said Nico as he stepped forward. It sounded like it took all of his courage to even muster out a word.

I groaned. Did they really have to be this difficult?

I was halfway through my response when I heard something fly through the air.

I tensed up as I unsheathed my sword and swiped upwards in one quick movement, deflecting yet another batch of thorns that had been sent my way.

"Ive decided to despose of you." Said the monster., stalking forward.

The green eye kid retrieved a pen from his pocket, but I paid it no mind as I was focused on the monster.

Something had changed about him.

"Be careful." Said the kid, apparently trusting me a little more as we both faced the beast.

"Thorne's powerful."

Thorne huh? It didn't really give me any indication as to what exactly he was, but it was a start.

The man spoke yet again in his annoying accent.

"I don't know who you are, mysterious man, but you appear to be hurting my plans. The three demigods are mine to be brought back alive.

You, however, are different. I can do with you whatever I please."

I sighed as I prepared my sword.

This was how it was going to be then, huh?

I glanced back towards Hades's children one more time.

I didn't doubt that I could handle Thorne without too much trouble, but I had to make sure they remained unharmed.

Prepared to fight, I took a single step forward, but before I could even attempt to attack, all hell had broken lose.

I watched as Thorne had sent a volley of projectiles towards the group of demigods as opposed to me, but before I could react to help them, a invisible force had knocked them off their feet and out of harms way.

What was that?

Before I could figure out what it was, I heard the steps of people advancing from behind a Thorne, and quickly two new faces appeared from the woods.

The one leading their charge being the girl from the dance, not surprising me.

However seeing her fitted with a large spear and a shield in her other hand had somewhat threw me off.

The shield especially so.

It was Aegis, I realized.

Or at least it had been designed after it.

Zeus's monstrous shield, the medusa-like design on its front making me even take a step back in slight shock, despite myself.

I watched as she yelled out, sending a solid jab for the man's head.

Even off guard, he was able to dodge the attack before swatting away the follow up, his human hand being replaced with what seemed like a golden paw. He was transforming.

The girl, Thalia her name was, continued her attack until Thorne finally got off the defensive, launching his projectiles from the tail that had now revealed itself from behind him.

Thalia was forced back by the sheer force, her shield being the only reason she had even survived.

I used this as an opening, rushing forward and jabbing for the mans back.

However, apparently he wasn't as clueless I had thought as he jumped back before firing off some more, making me duck underneath.

Without a shield, I was forced to dodge the man's thorns as even one seemed like it would do some considerable damage.

I didn't let up however as I followed up with another attack, but was surprised by Thorne's next move.

The man actually stepped into my swing, reaching my blind spot.

Without being able to stop my momentum, I was powerless to stop Thorne from punching his paw forward, sending me back and making me roll in the snow.

I groaned.

If I had my scythe, I had no doubt I would've been able to have already disposed of the beast.

I forced myself up to face the beast again, but noticed his attention had drifted away to me and towards the Di Angelo's, along with ocean eyes.

I also noticed another girl to their side, the same blonde headed one from the dance.

My heart dropped slightly as I watched him cock back his tail, imagining what the attack would do to the unarmed demigods.

I was powerless to do anything as the Thorne's flew, but was surprised to see the boy apparently had a shield of his own, though I wasn't able to see where it had come from.

However, it was barely able to stop the attack.

As soon as the attack made contact, the celestial bronze caved in on itself, making me unsure if it would even be able to stop a second volley.

That said, I didn't plan on giving Thorne the chance to follow up.

I pushed myself up from the ground and rushed forward, nothing from the corner of my eye Thalia was doing the same.

We reached the man at the same time, and as I was sure he was cornered thoroughly, he dealt with us with more expertise then I thought a monster was capable of.

Maybe I had underestimated him, I thought, though it was a little late.

Thorne used the both of his paws to catch my blade mid swing, simultaneously deflecting Thalias spear with his tail.

I retracted my blade and took a step back, preparing to follow up, but halted as I heard a strange song being played from my side.

I stupidly looked over to see the boy who had come with Thalia, and for some reason he looked strongly familiar.

He held what seemed like a instrument to his mouth and continued his song, and soon I saw the purpose.

Sprouting from the ground was a thick chain of vines that quickly wrapped around Thorne's lower half.

I was surprised however, to find some snaking their way up my own legs.

Did he think I was the enemy?

I tried to advance on the monster, but tripped over the new foliage, struggling to get free.

Thalia however was unaffected as she charged forward, but she too stopped as Thorne yelled out.

"Enough!" He said as his tail wildly whipped about.

My eyes widened as I raised my sword to deflect the spikes that flew my way, but it seemed like I wasn't the intended target.

In fact, it didn't seem like he even had a target in mind as the thorns flew in every direction, forcing everyone on the defensive.

I watched as Thalia retreated behind her shield, the boy with the music dropped to the floor apparently being hit in his lower leg, and the dark haired kid trying his best to defend his whole group with his deformed shield.

After finally breaking free from the vines, I quickly made my way behind the nearest tree as deflecting the projectiles with only my sword had proved to be more difficult then I had thought.

Eventually, Thorne finished his outburst as he finally broke loose from the roots.

I cautiously made my way out of my cover, scanning the clearing.

Thalia had her spear raised with her shield to her side, apparently still in shape to fight, but she was clearly waiting for an opening.

The boy to her side was clutching his leg in pain, seemingly out of the fight.

On the over side of the fight I saw the blonde ready with a knife, standing next to ocean eyes who had ditched his shield, his sword in hand.

Bianca watched with wide eyes, clear shock visible on her face, but she seemed safe enough.

But there was one missing.

My eyes wandered to Nico who had his head buried in the snow, shivering from what I believed to be fear as opposed to the cold weather.

Shit.

Being completely honest, my only care was the Di Angelos. What happened to the rest wasn't my job to worry about.

As Bianca seemed safe enough, I knew my next move would be to get Nico out of danger, and maybe I could get the both of them out of here as the others fought.

I took one step in the boy's direction, but it was too late.

Thorne had spotted him.

A cruel smile spread on his face.

"All of you, stop!" He commanded, and I wasn't surprised to see us all obey.

He pointed his crooked tail towards Nico, who had now raised his heads. I noticed the smeared tears across his face.

"Any moves from any of you, and the boys next breath will be his last." He said. I heard Bianca stifle a cry.

After scanning us all and seeing we had no intention of putting the boy at further risk, he let out another sickly smile.

I scowled. I had been careless, and this is where it had gotten me. I had treated Thorne, a manticore I now realized, as a mere monster, and now I was paying for it.

"Good."

The man stalked towards the child.

"You demigods have all given me quite the challenge, but I'm sure that shall all come to a stop as this brat's life is now on the line." He said as he reached the boy, picking him up by his collar.

"I'm sure you would all hate to see such a young soul perish. Am I wrong?" Something about his accent was seriously starting to piss me off.

"Even you, cloaked man. You seem to have something to do with these two." He said, nodding his head at both Bianca and Nico.

I felt the eyes of the other demigods on me, but my gaze never left from Nico.

"If that is the case, then I suggest you all lay down your weapons and come with me.

That is, if you want to see this boy live past this day." He said.

"Unless you believe that I am bluffing?

I'd be happy to test that theory."

I scowled.

I had really messed up.

"Please." Said Bianca. I watched as tears fell from her cheek. "Just listen."

I shook my head.

She didn't deserve this, I knew it too well. Hades had waited this long to reach out to the two, and now she was paying for it.

It was enough to make even me feel bad.

However, usually, it wouldn't have been enough to put myself at risk, even with her brothers life on the line.

But right now was different.

I couldn't afford to face Hades without both his kids, alive and well.

I'd have to figure something out later.

I watched as none of the demigods laid down their weapons, obviously wary.

With a sigh, I decided I'd be the first.

I threw down my sword into the snow.

Thorne smiled.

"Good.

Now I suggest the rest of you do the same. I'll give you to the count of three.

1…

2…"

As opposed to finishing his countdown, Thorne let out a primal cry as he dropped Nico to the floor, clutching his hand in pain.

He had been shot. An arrow, I quickly realized. But from where?

Thorne's head whipped around in every direction, a look mixed with confusion and anger as he looked for the attacker.

He seemed truly perplexed as it became clear it had been none of us.

Within the next few moments, he froze as a sound rang through the woods.

The call of a hunting horn, one that made my heart drop to my stomach.

Please don't be…

I watched as Thorne's previously intimidating expression switched to fear.

"It can't be!"

"The hunters!" Said the blonde haired girl.

I could imagine that my reaction to her confirmation wasn't too far off from Thorne's own.

Within seconds the monster had become a pincushion, arrows striking him in his vital points with scary precision, dropping him too a knee.

He wildly flung his thorns into the woods, but they either struck air or were met mid air by the hunters own arrows.

The first of the group to appear from the woods was a short girl with auburn hair. She appeared to be the only one unarmed.

Following her were many more, all equipped with either bows or knifes in hand.

I had yet to see the one I dreaded to meet the most.

"Preposterous!" Called out Thorne. "This is direct interference, going against the ancient laws!"

"Not so, foul beast.

It is within my right to hunt down creatures such as yourself, so I find my actions to break no such laws." Said the red haired girl, summoning a bow to her hand.

I watched as she raised her hand, waiting to give the signal to her hunters.

Before she could do it however, I decided this was the time to make my move.

I couldn't get caught up, especially with the hunters. If I wanted any chance to complete this mission, then I had to get the demigods and get out of here, before it was too late.

With Thorne distracted, I ran forward, picking up my sword in the process as I b-lined towards Nico.

Despite his predicament, Thorne was still able to notice my advance, raising to his feet.

As I reached him, I let put one firm slash for his neck, but before it could make contact, he had already disappeared.

The bastard had undeniable endurance, still able to move at such speeds while injured.

I noticed the head huntress staring at me intently, studying me, but I ignored her as I picked up Nico, not worrying about the manticore at all.

After all, he had bigger problems.

The girl dropped her hand, signaling the rest to open fire.

The sky was quickly filled with projectiles as the hunters riddled the beast with arrows as he tried his best to return fire.

I hauled Nico up from the floor and reared back, tossing him as far as I could to get him out of the battlefield.

It wasn't the gentlest of throws, but I'm sure he would much rather be bruised then dead.

My eyes then quickly darted to Bianca, still cowering behind the green eyed boy.

I was about to make my way over to her when Thorne let out another cry.

"Enough of this!

If I cannot take the demigods with me, then I shall kill them here." He stated as he charged towards Bianca and the other demigod.

I scowled as I burst into a sprint.

I would be able to reach them before the beast, but I wouldn't be able to do much besides get them out of the way.

As I ran, I heard arrows wiz by my ear, narrowly missing, but I didn't stop.

After all, if I had been the hunters intended target, then my back would've already been filled with arrows.

Just before Thorne was able to reach the two, I dove forward, rolling over Bianca and taking her with me, getting her out of the monsters path.

However, I couldn't say the same for the other kid.

I got up as Bianca was below me, looking up with a look of fear.

I glanced behind me to see Thorne seconds away from ending the unprepared demigod.

"Sorry kid." I whispered under my breath.

I knew that it would have been within my power to stop the monster, but my intention had always been to get the Di Angelo's, and escape. I didn't have time to play hero.

Even if that meant condemning this unnamed demigod to his doom.

However, before Thorne could even reach him he was tackled off his path as the blonde had either heroically, or stupidly, jumped onto his back, plunging her knife into his mane.

"No!" Yelled the boy as he rushed forward to help, his sword drawn.

He was stopped in his tracks as a arrow flew in front of his face, nearly piercing straight through his skull.

"Do not step into the line of fire." She commanded as the rest continued their barrage completely missing the girl and pelting the manticore with a constant stream of arrows.

However, this wasn't enough as it became clear what his intentions were.

A final hurrah towards the cliff side, probably planning on jumping off and taking the girl with him to her death.

And even though everyone knew what his intentions were, no one was able to stop him as he leapt into the air, quickly disappearing in the black fog beneath the edge.

"Annabeth!" Yelled the boy as he ran to the ledge at full speed, almost as if he meant to jump off after her.

I almost believed he would.

However, he was stopped as the girl spoke yet again.

"Do not be foolish boy. You know very well the girl is gone.

Gone, but not dead.

It would be foolish to waste your life now.

If you wish to help the young maiden, then I suggest you first help yourself." She said, hinting at the boy's obvious injuries sustained by the manticore.

The boy said nothing, but I guess the fact he hadn't jumped off yet showed he understood. Honestly, the command in which the girl spoke with was almost scary.

"You saved me." Breathed Bianca, and I just now realized she was still below me. I slowly rolled off, trying not to irritate my slightly injured leg as I got up.

"Don't mention it." I said gruffly.

I was halfway through the action of offering a hand to help her up when I felt something nudge my head, making me freeze.

I quickly deduced what it was.

The tip of an arrow head.

"Not another movement out of you, boy." Said a cold voice.

A cold, but familiar one.

I felt my breathing slow until it all together stopped as I help my breath.

"Lady Artemis." Said the voice.

"Permission to restrain the unidentified."

There was a pause before another voice responded.

"Permission denied.

I wish to ask the man a few questions before I decided what to do with him."

"Very well. Said the voice, but the arrow hadn't yet been removed from my head."

"Know this however, boy." She spat out the last word.

"Next time a male such as yourself believes they can interfere with the hunt of Artemis as you just did," she said, referring to me stepping in to save Nico.

"Know that Zoe Nightshade, lieutenant of the hunt shall make sure that is the last mistake you ever make."

-Line Break-

It didn't take long for the hunters to quickly set up camp in the area, posting up tents across the clearing and starting fires. In fact, they did it with a unnatural swiftness, but I guess that was to be expected.

As the hunters had strengthened the borders surrounding the enclave, the demigods had finally calmed down, obviously distraught regarding the fate of their comrade.

The green eyed boy especially so.

"It should've been me." He kept saying under his breath as he paced to the side of the nearest tent.

Apart of me wondered if I could have maybe did something different, possibly being able to have retrieved the two I came here for before things could escalate, saving not only my time but also their friend.

I quickly brushed it off.

What happened to the others wasnt my concern.

Besides, I had other things to worry about. Specifically, the only hunter who hadn't busied themselves with setting up, instead spending this whole time planted directly in front of me, glaring daggers and watching my every move.

The lieutenant.

Zoe.

As soon as the manticore had disappeared, she had turned her attention to me, as if I was the new threat.

It really did feel that way as she had immediately bombarded me with questions, however I gave her no responses, and if I did they were short and vague.

I liked to think it was because I was supposed to keep a low profile, and was only doing what was smart, but part of me just couldn't physically get myself to talk to her.

It may have only been a little less then a year since we had last talked, but down in the underworld it had felt like a lifetime.

I tried to tell myself I didn't miss her, but as I stated at her from underneath the darkness of my hood, I found it hard to look away.

I shook my head. I had to stay focused.

Besides, it wasn't like Zoe was too stoked to see me.

Though I knew she had no idea it was me, seeing her look at me like this did something strange to my heart.

Part of me wanted to take my hood off to see her reaction, but I pushed that thought away quickly.

Who was to say her attitude would change any once she knew who I really was?

I only shook my head slightly.

I couldn't get distracted.

I glanced behind me to check on the Di Angelo's.

They seemed a bit shaken, but they had calmed down a bit, holding each other tight.

I was glad to see they were sticking by me, at least for now.

"So you wish to tell me nothing useful?" Zoe asked with annoyance in her voice.

I turned back to face her.

"Nothing has changed, lieutenant." My voice masked my thoughts perfectly, the sentence coming out in a rude and gruff voice.

Perfect.

"I have no business with you, huntress.

No one told you to stand watch over me. I suggest you go like the other hunters and be productive."

Zoe's glare had immediately flared, and I wondered if I had said too much.

However, though her hand never left the hilt of her knife sheathed on her waste, she took no action.

"I shall do as I please." She replied, obviously holding back something much more vulgar to say.

I was surprised. It appeared that during the time we had spent apart, she had learned some sort of self control.

As I didn't respond, we went back to standing in silence, and Zoe continued her monitoring.

But to be honest, I didn't make it hard for her as i remained still, standing in between the two behind me and the hunter, shielding them from her view slightly.

I don't know what it was, but I felt myself feeling somewhat protective over them.

Though part of it was because it was my job, a part of me found that I had liked the two after only seeing them for a short time.

Maybe it was the way they sticked together.

Seeing a true bond between siblings was refreshing, as I didn't see much along the lines of loyalty lately. I had learned it was every man for themselves.

But maybe if I did my job the right way, these two wouldn't have to go through what I did.

I shook my head slightly.

Where were these thoughts coming from? I wasn't their savior, I was a bodyguard at most.

Once they got back to Hades, I had no more business with them. With one more look back, I made sure to keep that in mind.

Bianca had made it hard to keep the heartless mindset when she seemingly locked eyes with me somehow even from underneath my hood.

She had a look of trust.

I scowled and turned around.

If I was forced to wait here in the cold, I wouldn't waste my time being conflicted with myself.

Instead, I would use this time to study the group of demigods scattered around the camp.

Near the edge, I notice Thalia and the one who's name I still didn't knew talking, but it appeared more like a argument than anything.

The quick exchange ended with the girl stomping off angrily, wiping a single tear from her eye as the boy was left looking guilty.

I wasn't surprised. I had expected tensions to be high after what had just happened to their friend, and this just confirmed it.

My eyes drifted to the other boy that had came from the dance with Thalia.

During the time since the manticore had escaped, I realized why he looked so familiar.

It was because I knew him.

Grover Underwood.

My mind flashed back to the 8th grade where I had originally met the satyr.

At the time, he was more knowledgeable when it came to the Greek world, but even then I knew he wasn't the most confident one around.

From the brief time I had seen him now, not much had changed, though he did seem slightly more sure of himself even if he was still a little goofy.

I wondered if he would even remember me.

I was lost in the thought when all the light chatter around the camp came to a stop.

My eyes shifted to the cause, the auburn haired girl stepping out of one of the tents.

I raised a brow.

Who was she?

Zoe was still obviously lieutenant, however she seemed to hold some power as well. I wondered if maybe there had been a change in their ranking system, and maybe this girl was in a different position of power.

There was no noise as she walked to the space directly behind Zoe.

She gave a slight nod of respect.

"I wish to talk to the girl." She said, looking directly at Bianca. "As well as the son of Poseidon."

Ocean eyes perked up and looked slightly nervous.

A son of Poseidon? No, not just any child of the sea god, but the one I had heard about so much over the past two years.

That was him?

He didn't appear like much.

The strongest demigod of our time?

I mentally scoffed.

Zoe turned to the boy.

"Do as the lady says." She barked, and though he seemed hesitant, he started walking towards her.

With Bianca, she spoke with more care.

"It is okay, young maiden." She said, as it was clear she was slightly nervous. "She is to be trusted. Speak with her, and she will enlighten you."

Bianca nodded shakily and started moving.

However, I couldn't just stand by.

I put a hand out in her way to stop her.

"Hold on." I started.

"I have business with this girl.

You may be the lieutenant of the hunt, but you have no command over me." I spoke in a gruff tone.

"And you," I said, pointed my bandaged left arm towards the red head.

"I don't know who you are, but the same rules apply. If you want to take her out of my view, then you go through me first."

The already quiet camp went dead silent as soon as I spoke.

Everyone looked tense. Except the one in front of me.

The first to move was Zoe.

He right arm shot out at lightning speeds, aiming directly for my face with an open palm.

Her slap was only stopped by me shooting my own hand upwards and grabbing her wrist.

She looked furious, a killer look in her eyes.

The shorted girl behind her cleared her throat.

"I've tolerated you, so far, mysterious man. I've turned a blind eye towards your actions because you didn't seem to be directly opposing me and my hunt, even while interfering.

However, that was your last straw."

Before I could even blink, my legs were kicked out form underneath me and I was staring up at the high sky, the moon shining brightly as I laid on my back.

Moments later the girl creeped into my vision, a beautiful bow in her hand with a arrow notched above the center of my head.

How she knew where it was even with my hood on, I didn't know.

"Lay a hand on one of my huntresses again, and it will be the last breath you ever take, disregarding whatever your intentions here are."

My breathing slowed.

Was she gonna kill me? I didn't know, but I wasn't sure I could even stop her if she tried.

I pushed my ring to the end of my finger.

I stopped just before it fell off as Zoe appeared beside her, looking down at me with disgust.

"You appear to be ignorant on exactly who you are talking to.

Assuming you live past these moments, make sure you never make the mistake of talking to the Lady Artemis with such disrespect ever again."

I'm tired of typing "The Di Angelos" every time I have to refer to both Bianca and Nico at once, and I'm struggling to think of a shorter replacement.

But randomly, regarding Percy's age, he is 15. I may have stayed different in the past, but I'm confirming it now.

His birthday will be revealed later when it's important enough.