"Tough roads ahead require even tougher hearts."

"My lady, let's take a break."

"Fine. Only for a short while though. We need to find them before Ares does."

The hunters of Artemis had been scouring the country for days now, looking for any leads on the whereabouts of Percy Jackson and his group. Starting from New York, they made their way down the entire east coast but once that was done, they started to make their way west. Currently they were in the woods of Seattle. It was their last hope of finding anything related to the demigods's whereabouts.

Thalia groaned as she sat down on a log to her side. She rubbed her sore legs that had been put to rigorous use the past week. She and the others had never been put through this much traveling in such a short amount of time before but no one had complained about it surprisingly. They were searching for Percy Jackson, the two time savior of Olympus and the only man the hunters and Artemis herself respected! Of course they were going to use every ounce of their will power to find him and the others. Especially her, who not only had her cousin she loved like a brother out there, but also her actual brother, Jason. She didn't know what she was going to do or say if they ever caught up to them. Would they come back with them? Or would they leave? She didn't know, all she wanted was for them to be safe.

Thalia hadn't been given the chance to talk with Annabeth yet, which was eating at her soul. Gods knows what that girl was feeling at the moment, her boyfriend leaving her a second time, on his own will non the less! The daughter of Zeus vowed at that moment that if she ever caught her cousin, she would give him one hell of a beating for leaving her best friend like that. Annabeth didn't deserve to be put through that pain a second time.

"What you thinking about?" Atlanta asked, sitting down next to her on the log. Thalia shook her head slightly, breaking away from the mental images of beating Percy to death.

"What I'm going to do if we catch up to them." She responded with a sigh. The girl next to her hummed as she played with a silver arrow in her hands.

"And what is that?"

"Either give them a hug or beat the absolute shit out of them." The daughter of Zeus responded evenly before the both of them bursted out laughing.

"I agree with you there. What was Jackson thinking leaving like that?" Atlanta asked after she settled down. She knew that demigod ever since they first met all those years ago on that snowy cliff. The loyalty he had towards his friends was next to none. And after seeing him go on all those quests and fight all those wars for the Gods, she thought he would forever be loyal to Olympus. It came quite a shock to her when Artemis spoke to them and said Perseus Jackson had betrayed Olympus and escaped with other demigods.

"Betrayed. I don't think he did that." Thalia spoke, reading her thoughts. "I think he just got fed up with everything."

"You mean being a pawn to the Gods."

Thalia nodded her head. She knew exactly what her cousin was feeling. That anger, that sadness of merely only being a tool for the Gods, your family. She hated her father for being like that not only to her but countless other demigods. It wasn't right nor fair and it was only a matter of time before his actions backfired. Percy leaving with other powerful demigods seemed to only be the start. The two hunters conversed for a while longer before their lady announced to the camp that they were hitting the road once more. The girls got everything packed in a flash before standing ready and waiting for their leader's command.

"Where to next, my lady?" Thalia asked.

"Alaska. It's our last bet at finding them." The Goddess responded. "Let's hope that we can find them before Ares." And with that the hunters were on the move once more, speeding through the forest at speeds that even the naked eye couldn't follow. In the shadows however, sat a gruff looking man who had countless scars across his face. He had a wicked smirk on his face as he realized his luck paid off in eavesdropping in on his sister's camp.

"Alaska, you say." His rough, deep voice spoke out. "What fun!"

~Line Break~

"Percy, we've been walking for hours now. Let's take a break." Hazel pleaded, rubbing her tired legs. Frank, in all his sweetness, picked her up and carried her on his shoulders. He was thankful towards his father for once for giving him a good physic. The others soon started to share Hazel's sentiment causing the son of Poseidon to finally relent to his group's pleas. They had been walking through the thick woods of Alaska for hours now and it was certainly starting to take its toll on them.

"Alright. Set up camp here for a bit. I'm going to go on that cliff over there to see if there's any towns nearby." Percy responded, pointing towards the east where a tall hillside overlooked the entirety of the forest. The group groaned in acknowledgment, not even caring about actually forming a sentence and instead plopped down on the soft ground. Percy smiled at their antics and began his walk towards the cliff. Alaska sure was something else. The vast mountains, the huge forest, hell, even the air smelt amazing here. It was definitely a different world compared to New York.

Arriving at the cliff, the son of Poseidon took it all in with wide eyes. The wind softly blew against his face as he looked out at miles upon miles of forest.

"Amazing." He thought to himself with a smile. This was peace. No cars, no people, no cities and certainly no Gods. It was all he could ever ask for. Sadly, he feared his group might not share the same thoughts as he. They were tired, hungry and ready for a warm bath and bed. He would like those things too but it seemed they were very, very far away from any sort of civilization. They wouldn't be getting those sorts of luxuries anytime soon but that was ok for him. He knew this journey would be the hardest one he ever partook in. There were no easy ways through this.

Spotting a lake a mile down towards the north, Percy mentally marked it before making his way back down the cliff towards the group where they all were still laying on the ground in exhaustion.

"See anything?" Leo asked, a protein bar stuffed in his mouth.

"Yeah, I spotted a lake a mile to the north. That might be our best bet for food and water." The son of Poseidon replied as he sat down next to Jason who was passing around snacks to everyone. Taking one from his cousin, Percy immediately ate the whole thing, the events from today finally catching up to his body.

"We're finally here, huh. Can't believe it." Travis said, looking up at the trees that towered over them. He and Connor were from New York just like Percy and just like the son of Poseidon they too were amazed at the nature Alaska had to offer. Huge trees, huge mountains, huge animals and huge rivers. Everything was fucking huge here! He hated to think just how bigger the monsters could be here. Hopefully they didn't run into any to answer that question.

"It's amazing." Katie responded, taking a drink of water from a canteen. "I've grown up in woods all my life but never did I think the land could be this big! I mean just look at that mountain over there!" She yelled with glee, pointing at one towering mountain that looked to be hitting the clouds at its peak but a closer look would reveal it to be snow actually. "I'm surprised a city boy like you is actually taking all this nature in stride." She teased Percy, throwing the canteen at him.

Catching it and finishing the rest of its contents, the son of Poseidon put it back in his bag before stretching his arms upward.

"I've been to Alaska before, you know." He responded back.

"Some trip that was." Frank muttered, taking a bite from his snack. Hazel giggled as she lightly slapped him across the shoulder. The group laughed as they remembered the stories Frank and Hazel had told them about their quest to Alaska. Some trip it was indeed. After another thirty minutes of resting, the group of demigods were back on the trail. This time actually having a destination in mind, the lake Percy had mentioned earlier. Hopefully it was stocked with fish for them to cook and maybe they could even take a bath and wash their clothes. That was something they all craved at the moment.

"Percy, did you see anything else while up there?" Will asked as he jumped over a large rock in his path. The man in question shook his head as he hacked away at some branches in front of him.

"Nope. Just trees, open fields and mountains for miles." He replied, causing the group to sigh in disappointment. Percy laughed at them as he walked forward. "Guys, I get that you all want to be in a town, go eat good food, and have a warm bath but that's just not going to happen right now, ok."

"You just want us to suffer don't you, Perce?" Leo asked, throwing a small pebble that the demigod swiftly dodged.

"Just be glad that we made it here alive, guys." Percy responded by throwing the pebble back at Leo that promptly hit him square in the forehead.

"Ow! Hijo de puta!"

The group laughed at the interactions and continued their antics as they walked down the mountain. Each talking about random things or gazing out at the landscape to pass the time. Katie especially seemed to enjoy it, opting to go off the trail at times to study a bug or tree that caught her eye. Travis was always the one to go after her and reel her back in line with the group, telling her that there could be monsters in the woods waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. It took them close to an hour to finally arrive at the lake as the terrain slowed them down greatly. If one of them were to mess up as they walked down the mountain and broke a bone then they were done. There was no hospital for miles and they had no ambrosia thanks to the monsters on the ship. It would certainly be a bad situation if it were to come to that.

"Holy crap! That's a huge lake!" Will noted, eyeing the body of water that glistened with the sunlight reflecting off of its smooth surface. Piper was the first to let out a gleeful yell as she ran towards the water, jumping into it without hesitation. Soon, all the others followed her lead, jumping into the water to get all the dirt and sweat off from their bodies. Percy stayed behind on land, electing to watch his friends have their fun as he looked around the area. It seemed he had picked out a good place to camp out. Obviously they had the lake for water, bathing and fishing but they also had the woods they had just came from to hunt. Walking a little bit more, the son of Poseidon soon discovered a small cave that was just big enough to fit his group. It seemed to be the perfect location for them to settle down for a bit.

Nodding in satisfaction, Percy turned around to head back but found himself in a bear hug by none other than Jason. The son of Jupiter laughed at his cousin's pleas as the both of them flew up in the air over the lake.

"Jason, you son of a bitch!" Percy yelled at his friend who only continued to drag in higher into the sky. He hated heights, Jason knew this, the others knew this, everyone fucking knew this! So why would he do this to him after all they've been through!

"Have fun, Perce. Relax. We've made it." Jason said in his ear. He had seen just how tired his cousin had been over the last two weeks, dealing with all this shit. Being responsible for such a big group who expected him to lead them to salvation. It must've felt like a ton of weight on his shoulders dealing with all that responsibility. Jason wanted to do everything in his power to help ease that burden for his cousin. He along with everyone else deserved it after everything they've been through.

"Wait Jason Nooo-" Percy yelled as he felt his friend's grasp on him slip, sending him into a free fall towards the water. Percy, speeding like a bullet, quickly crashed into the water sending him deep beneath it. Opening his eyes, the son of Poseidon looked around and found himself surrounded by fish.

"Who the fuck is this guy!?"

"Hey buddy! Get outta our water!"

Percy tried his best to appease the fish but they kept getting angrier at him which was weird. He had always been loved by sea life so why were these guys so different? Maybe since they were so remote out here in the wild, they had never seen humans before. Quickly apologizing to them, Percy raced to the surface where his friends all laughed at the look on his face.

"Man did you hear his scream as he fell!" Leo laughed, pointing at him with a teasing look.

"He was like oh my god, nooooo!" Nico mocked with a girly voice which caused the group to laugh even harder considering it was the son of Hades that made the joke. Nico never told jokes! Percy rolled his eyes but quickly gained a smirk on his face as he realized where they were.

"You all should really watch who you make fun of." Percy interrupted them, causing all to turn to him. "Especially when you're all in my ELEMENT!" He screamed before using his powers to send powerful bursts of water underneath them and sending them flying towards the sky. He laughed as he watched all ten of his friends crash into the water, sending water everywhere. Piper was the first to reappear above the surface and she did not look pleased in the slightest. Soon the others reappeared and shared the same look as she. But thankfully, they all didn't gang up on him and instead laughed aloud once more. Percy smiled as he looked around at his group of friends who had joy written all over their faces.

"It looks like we're on the right track towards a better life." He thought to himself as he watched his friends splash around. Looking up at the sky, Percy laid back against the water and floated, finally feeling at ease for once in his life.

~Line Break~

"We're here." Thalia breathed, eyeing the border that separated them from Alaska. This was their last hope of finding Percy and the others. If they weren't here then that was it and Artemis would have to report back to Zeus her failed mission. She didn't want that to happen for her godly sister, afraid of what consequences she might face if she returned to Olympus empty handed. From what she heard from others, her father wasn't in the best of moods at the moment because of Jackson.

"I don't like this at all." Artemis muttered, eyeing the border warily. The Olympians were greedy with power and had been used to having it for millenia now. To have her powers greatly reduced in an instant just because of some border worried her greatly. But she needed to do this lest she wanted to face her father's wrath. Why did Jackson have to make her do this!? Why couldn't he have just stayed put!?

"My lady?" Thalia asked, her hand on her shoulder reassuringly.

"I'm fine, sister. This is just something I really don't want to do. There's only two places that Gods such as myself rarely go and that's Tartarus and here, Alaska." The Goddess responded with a shutter.

"My lady, are we even sure they're actually here? I don't want to have you risk yourself if it's all for nothing." Thalia replied but stopped when she saw Artemis nod her head.

"They're here. I along with the wolves picked up their scent a couple miles back. They're here, it's just the matter of actually finding them now." She responded before noticing a small disturbance in the air. Goosebumps raced across her arms and the hairs at the end of her neck stood up, indicating there was danger nearby. The Goddess's eyes widened as she swiftly tackled her half sister to the ground as a large spear flew over where they had just stood. Thalia had the air knocked out of her as she was tackled but once she saw the spear that passed over her head, she was glad it was just that.

"Hunters, we're under attack. Defensive formation!" Artemis ordered, quickly standing back up with her bow in hand. The hunters all got into a circular, defensive position, waiting for the threat to reveal itself. The spear, which was now lodged in a tree, floated back into the air before flying back towards the owner that was in the tree line. Heavy footsteps shook the ground as the attacker approached, causing all the girls to prepare themselves for a fight. Drawing their strings back, they weren't prepared for what faced them as a man easily towering over ten feet and dressed in spartan armor approached them with his spear in hand.

"Ares." Artemis snarled as she reared back her bowstring even further. His arrival could not have come at a better time, just right as they finally picked up Jackson's trail. She guessed that her half brother had been following them for a while now but couldn't pick up his aura signature.

"What do we have here!? My little sister and her merry band of lesbians." Ares responded with a wicked grin adorning his face. The hunters all growled at the remark, one even releasing her arrow that would've hit its mark had it not been for the God of war to catch it with his bare hand and snap it in half. "Artemis, you better control your girls and teach them respect. To attack an Olympian without provocation, tsk." The God sarcastically said, clicking his tongue.

"What do you want, Ares?

"What else? I want the same as you. Jackson!" Ares madly laughed with open arms. "That brat has escaped my wrath plenty of times and since he's an enemy of Olympus now, I can finally show him why you shouldn't challenge the God of war!"

"We won't let you get to him!" Thalia interrupted, lighting wildly flashing in her eyes. Ares might be an Olympian but she won't let anyone, not even he, hurt her cousin. He and Jason were the only family she had left.

"Oh?" Ares smiled, approaching the group with his spear ready. "And you're going to stop me?"

"Damn right!" Thalia yelled back, finally releasing her notched arrow aimed at the war God's face. Immediately, the other hunters followed her lead, realizing arrows upon arrows at the God who simply dodged every single one. No man of that size should've had the ability to do that but this was different. They weren't dealing with no man and certainly no ordinary God. They were dealing with the God of war and he'll do well to show them why he earned that title.

"Shouldn't have done that, girl!" The God yelled madly, his red eyes glowing underneath his Spartan helmet. Faster than their eyes could keep up with, Ares dashed over to their left flank and immediately took out two of the hunters. His spear lodged through the spine of one before ducking under the swipe of a knife and thrusting the weapon upward into the girl's lower skull. The hunters reacted immediately by giving the God space, surrounding him while shooting their bows in the process. Some were able to hit its mark while the rest simply bounced off the godly armor that was already stained with fresh blood.

Ares spun as he moved his head an inch, watching an arrow fly by in slow motion before leveling his spear and throwing it at one particular hunter by a tree. He watched in satisfaction as the girl was lifted off the ground and flew backwards with such force before being impaled into the tree, the spear lodged into her throat.

"Three down!" He laughed as he willed his spear to fly back into his hand. Artemis, who now realized that their strategy wasn't working on him, ordered her hunters back while taking out her dual hunting knives. It seemed this would be a fight of close combat and she would be sure to deliver him one. With great speed and agility the Goddess dashed forward in a silver flash, aiming her weapons at Ares's throat. The war God snarled at the first real challenge of the day as he blocked the strikes with his gauntlets before sending his spear towards her torso. The Goddess dodged, backflipping into the air and shooting an arrow aimed at his shoulder.

Ares had no time to process the arrow as it connected, lodging deep into his skin. The God of war gave a blood lusted smile as he yanked the arrow harshly from his skin, golden ichor spurting out from the wound. He charged at her, dodging every projectile that came his way before engaging in close combat that no one beside Ares and Artemis could even keep up with. Sparks and the occasional glimmer of ichor were the only things that the hunters could see as they watched from above the trees.

"So this is the power of two Olympians fighting." Atlanta whispered in awe as she watched the ongoing fight. The power and shear force from the two immortal's attacks connecting causing her hair to fly back. She wanted to help Artemis but the speed of them was difficult to keep up with and didn't want to accidentally hit her with an arrow. So instead all she and the others could do is watch and silently cheer on their leader. Thalia who was next to her, tightly gripped her knives as she waited for the opportunity to join in on the fight. Her knuckles turning white from the harsh grip.

"We have to help her." She whispered, eyeing for a potential opening. Atlanta didn't understand her sister in arms. Sure, Ares was a tough opponent but Artemis has beaten him before in a fight. What would make this encounter any different? Her answer was soon answered as she watched Artemis be ferociously kicked away, flying fast into a tree that fell from the force. Ichor littered both the Olympian's bodies as they stared at one another, briefly catching their breath.

"You've grown weak, Artemis." Ares said, approaching her with his ichor and blood soaked weapon in hand. Said Goddess spit some ichor that was pooling in her mouth out and stood back up, ready to go at it once more.

"I won't let you get to him." She replied, circling the God like a wolf to its prey. Ares full heartedly laughed at the woman's defiance.

"Spare me your arrogance. You think you can beat me in your condition?"

"I've done it before, I'll do it again."

"Not this time. You don't have the power to do so this close to the border."

The two stared at one another, each eyeing for an opening. An opportunity. A chance to end this fight. It happened in a mere moment. Artemis, using the remainder of her strength, pushed off from the ground and charged at Ares. She aimed for his throat with her knives. Ares responded by pushing his gauntlets up in a defensive stance but he fell for the taunt as Artemis spun around to his right side and jabbed at Ares's opening. The God of war howled as the knives were thrusted deep into his ribcage, the force from her attack sending him flying backwards and inadvertently over the border into Alaska.

"Yes!" Artemis mentally cheered as she realized she gained the upper hand. Ares was now over the border, meaning his power was severely weakened. Now was the time to strike. She was about to order a command to her hunters to shoot at the God from afar with their bows but something caught her eye. Ares, who was sluggishly getting back up on his feet, pulled something out from his pocket. Some sort of red vial of sorts she could see.

"I didn't want to waste one of these but it's good to at least test them out. And who better than to do so on you!" Ares savagely laughed, downing the liquid contents in the vial. The God's body gave a sickening, loud crunch as it slowly grew bigger and bigger. His veins popping all over his muscles and ichor slowly dripping from his mouth as if he was some sort of rabid dog.

"What the hell?" Artemis exclaimed as she watched her fellow Olympian turn into something she had never seen before in all her years of living. "Girls, fire your arrows at will now!" She ordered, not wanting Ares to complete his "transformation". Whatever was happening to him, she didn't want to find out. Arrows upon arrows flew in the air towards the God who was still hunched over. The Goddess watched in shock as the arrows stopped in mid air, as if time was frozen around them. Ares, who now had a red and golden aura surrounding his body let out a brutal war cry that sent a massive shock wave their way. Artemis could only brace herself as she felt the massive gust of power roll past her, her feet sliding into the dirt. Her hunters were no better off as they were thrown backwards from the power of Ares with even some of the trees they sat upon being uprooted. Red fire surrounded the entirety of the forest, sending smoke and ash everywhere.

This was wrong. Everything about this situation was wrong. How has Ares gained all this power? How was he this powerful even though he was over the border? It shouldn't have been possible. The Goddess of the moon watched her rabid half brother slowly walk towards her, each step caving in the earth beneath him. His red eyes under his helm gleaming at her with such anger, such intent to kill. Artemis, for the first time in her life, actually felt fear towards Ares. This was the power of the war God and she did not want to stay and be subjected to it.

"Retreat!" She ordered her hunters who had no problem dodging and weaving through the trees with their superior speed.

"You think you can run from me." The God of war said, waving his hand and making the fire around them incircle them. Two of her hunters were unfortunately in the way of the fire, the burning red flame caressing their bodies and melting everything away. Artemis's eyes widened as she listened to their pained wails as they burned alive.

"Five." Ares laughed as he approached them, the fire making his silhouette look like something from a nightmare.

It took all of Artemis's willpower to not flash away and retreat but she couldn't leave her girls at the mercy of Ares. He would do unspeakable things to them that made death look like mercy. Instead, the Goddess got into a defensive stance, her knives gleaming against the fire and her eyes filled with determination. She would not allow him to kill anymore of her girls. The God of war stopped before her, his eyes looking around at the destruction he caused in such a short amount of time. Artemis could see him cock his head to the side as if someone was talking to him. The man groaned in annoyance before sheathing his weapon.

"Don't try to look for Jackson anymore, Artemis." He said. "It won't do you any good."

The Goddess watched as Ares walked away from the fight, his figure disappearing into the flames. Why would he stop the fight? It wasn't like him to give up when he had the upper hand. Deciding that it was best to simply run away, she and the remainder of her hunters climbed up the trees and ran as fast as they could. She felt bad about not being able to retrieve the bodies of her fallen hunters but the fire was only getting bigger and by now had eaten away whatever remained of those girls. Fear and anger churned inside her heart as she ran through the trees.

"I'll make you pay, Ares. I swear it on the Styx!"