Artemis' grove was a beautiful place. Achilles felt like an intruder here, amongst all the calm deer and friendly bears. It felt all a little surreal. Yesterday, he had turned to Odysseus after Clytemnestra had left him spiraling. And yet.
Much of what the man had said rang hollow. All the words that Odysseus said, and the futures he spoke of, they sounded so right to Achilles' ears. And yet. As soon as Achilles said what the queen of Mycenae had told him the day before, it seemed like all of Odysseus wisdom collapsed.
As if Odysseus intelligence was not based on the speaker but on the listener.
And now he was here. The wisdom of a woman had frightened him. The wisdom of a man had failed him. Maybe the wisdom of a goddess could guide him.
A small fawn came up to him and nuzzled his hands. Agamemnon must have been an idiot to hunt here, and even worse, to boast of it. Achilles scratched all the animals a little. He liked the wolf with her two cubs the most, an unusual animal to seek shelter under Artemis abode.
And yet, he had not left the wolf a minute before he found himself before a small altar, seemingly overgrown and incorporated into a majestic tree Achilles had not noted before. How had he not noted it before?
There was no sudden gust of wind, no rustling of the leaves and no ray of sunshine illuminating the place. Suddenly, the air just seemed heavier. Artemis was there.
Achilles had been in the presence of gods before. Some older than the Goddess of the Hunt, but none as grand. Even his mother, old as the sea, paled in presence.
"You have come, Achilles. I am surprised. My brother said there was only a small chance of that happening, and he can usually see things clearly that are only a day away. He sees you die in Troy, in most of the lives you might lead."
Artemis looked at him as if he were something between dirt and prey, and Achilles was unsure what he should prefer out of those options. He knew the twin goddess lacked the power of prophecy her brother held, but then he did not think the gods would gossip about him as they apparently did.
And about prophecy, of all things. Now there was a topic to despise.
"Hail, Artemis. I have come to ask for guidance."
The goddess might have smiled, but you never knew with beings powerful and eternal.
"Ask."
A thousand animals roared the word, and yet it seemed no one spoke.
"In the fight ahead, can glory be won if honor is lost?"
There was amusement in the air to be felt. The goddess' feelings bled into the world, and it was a frightening thing.
"You ask the wrong goddess for such an inquest, little demigod. I am the Goddess of the Wild, and it was you humans who made me Goddess of the Hunt. The strong devour the weak. That is the truth. There is no honor, and there is no glory. All there is, is sustenance and sacrifice."
Achilles had feared the answer, and he had expected as much.
"Would your brother Appollo answer the same?"
Artemis looked at him, and Achilles felt like Atlas had left the world on his shoulder. But the moment passed.
"No, Achilles, son of Thetis. He would not. My twin would say there can be no glory without honor. But why are you looking to follow the truth of Appollo, patron of Troy? Why not my brother Ares, who proclaims that the victor is right? He would let you claim glory, even if you stood against him and Troy. As long as you won."
Achilles braced himself before his next question.
"And would Hera condone the sacrifice of Iphigenia of Mycenae in order to bring Aphrodite low?"
Achilles felt the world tear as he spoke. The gods suffered no challenge, and to offer insult was only for the foolish and the bravely foolish. Yet worst of all, it was not the Goddess of the Hunt baring her fangs at him, no. Achilles was faced with the Goddess of the Wild whose mother had been chased by Hera relentlessly as she carried Artemis and Appollo in her womb.
"I should kill you for that, Achilles of Phthia, and none of my brethren would dare challenge me for it."
"Would she?"
And it took all of Achilles not to simply disintegrate in the face of Artemis wrath. Until it passed.
"She would not. But she will press for war on Troy regardless, for Hera knows better than most that women are as oft seen as a price to be won as a price to be paid. My father is not kind, and that has made his wife bitter."
Sadly, all the pieces were falling into place as Achilles had feared. And still.
"I can offer you the head Agamemnon, and any who condoned the maiden's death."
"Why would I care if you are willing to kill Agamemnon in my name instead of his daughter, Achilles?"
"Is this not was this is about? The king of Mycenae offended you and you are extracting your dues in blood, Goddess of the Hunt. Aren't you also the Goddess of Women and Children? This sacrifice of princess Iphigenia, it is without honor."
Artemis laughed at him without guile, as if she never did anything else. It sounded unbearably cruel.
"There is no such thing as honor. All there is, is sacrifice. And you, Achilles, son of Thetis, you mistake the purpose of sacrifice. It is not value us gods are looking, it is worth. The king of Crete could offer up all his gold and it would not compare to the last piece of bread of a starving beggar. A sacrifice has to mean something.
"You do not care for Agamemnon, or for Menelaus, or for Odysseus. You care for none of these people, Achilles. You could kill the entire Greek army and it would not count for as much as for Agamemnon shedding a drop of his daughter's blood. A sacrifice needs to be worthy, and you do not value Agamemnon and all the other kings."
Artemis looked at him like a predator, and though this did feel natural and proper, it did not feel right.
"However, there is something you can offer up to me, Achilles of Phthia. You know it, too. Do want your honor, or your glory? I care for neither; but you do hold yours worthy, Achilles, do you not?
Achilles felt himself grow smaller. Older, too, all of a sudden. He did not like it. However, he liked the alternative even less. He knew himself, and he hated the gods could know him this well, too.
"Will I destroy any legacy I might have left behind with this?"
"My brother said you may live a long and happy life, and that with your departure here you may fill the void the begrieved son of beauty would have claimed in another life."
Achilles could only stare. He wanted to leave a legend behind, not a family.
"It means," the goddess continued, and Achilles thought she looked at him almost fondly, "your descendants will rule the lands from one pillar of Heracles to the other. Just continue being kind to wolves, and they will be kind to you and yours."
It was not what Achilles wanted from life, but it was what he would settle for after all. His mother would be delighted. Still, he could not help himself. And he doubted Artemis would kill him for something this insignificant after he brought up Hera earlier. And he needed it to be said.
"You are fickle and cruel, Goddess of the Hunt. I want you to know that."
Artemis laughed once more, and Achilles had never heard a more duplicitous sound.
"I am the Goddess of the Wild, Achilles. Us gods do not know how to be anyway else."
There was not much else to say. Achilles unsheathed a small knife and nicked his heel for a drop of blood which he then dropped onto Artemis' altar.
"To Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt and the Wilds, Watcher of Childbirth and Minder of the Moon, I sacrifice my ambition. I shall fight no wars and claim no glory. Let the winds rise and carry the ships of Greece to the beaches of Troy. And let there be no other sacrifices unless they prove more worthy than mine."
Achilles had barely spoken his last words ere he heard the leaves rustling for just a moment and felt the cold stream across his face for but a second. He rammed his knife down into the tree and into the stone, and he felt empty.
Artemis looked at him from above, old, and yet like a curious child.
"What will you do next, Achilles, my apostle?"
Achilles only looked at her.
"I will bribe the father and seduce the girl. After all, divine intervention is already on my side. Any advice?"
The virgin goddess just stared at him for a second before she had to snicker. Maybe it was the only true emotion she had shown Achilles today. And maybe all of them were true.
"Do not make your parents mistake, Achilles. Better invite Eris to your wedding. The Goddess of Strife is a necessary ally for a long and happy married life."
And she was gone. Achilles did not linger. He was not looking forward to his upcoming negotiation with king Agamemnon. Tomorrow he would marry princess Iphigenia and prevent her sacrifice at Aulis. Achilles did not know if he was looking forward to that, either.
Walking away, Achilles never looked back at the small altar and the only drop of blood he ever shed for the war on Troy.