LAST TIME

"You should rest, sir," I said.

"Bloody right. But then there won't be anyone at the post to guard the borders. Also, my soldiers… They need someone to lead them. A lot of our numbers were lost today."

"I appreciate your sense of duty, Naupaulis," Triton said. "And I am sorry, but I am ordering you and your troops to return to Atlantis for the time being. The soldiers I have brought, along with Diaprepes and Azaes will take charge of this post till you and your soldiers are declared healthy enough to return." Triton said. "And this is an order as I said. So, you can't say no."

Naupaulis hesitated before nodding. "Yes, my prince."

"Good. Percy, you too. I am pretty sure that if mom has noticed your absence… which I am pretty sure she has, given that she was searching for you when I left… it would be in your best interests to return as fast as you can."

"Oh shit." I groaned.

Ch.23 Training with the Huntress

PERCY POV

"Hey mom," I greeted with a grin as she opened the door.

Her eyes lit up. "PERCY!" She exclaimed, giving me a bone-crushing hug as I reciprocated.

"Who is it, Sally?" A voice asked from inside and I instantly perked up. It was a male voice that I was unfamiliar with. I broke the hug and gave a questioning look to my mom. Before she could say anything, a thirty-something-year-old guy, with longish salt-and-pepper hair and a brown jacket over a black T-shirt appeared in the hallway, inspecting who it was.

He looked like an actor—like a guy who might play an undercover cop on television.

"Who are you?" I demanded.

"Oh honey, that is Paul, err- Mr. Blofis. He's in my writing seminar. Paul, this is Percy, my son."

"Mr. Blowfish?"

"No, no," The man corrected, interrupting us. "Blofis. It is nice to meet you, Percy." He said, coming forward and proffering his hand which I shook, just to be polite.

"Blofis then… might I ask what are you doing here?" I asked. My senses said that he was one-hundred percent mortal and not some monster or god in disguise.

"Ah, I was helping your mother with homework." He replied almost nervously.

I looked at the man, narrowing my eyes and flaring my power. Wind blew in the room, swirling around us. Thunder rumbled outside.

"I dislike lies, Mr. Blofis," I said in a whisper, making the guy shiver. "Now, I ask you again, what are you doing here?"

"Percy," My mother interrupted. "Can I talk to you for a minute? Excuse us, Paul."

She pulled me inside the house and led me into the kitchen before closing the door behind her. She looked a little nervous as well.

"Mom, what is it?"

"Percy, I… Paul and I… we are sort of dating." She mumbled and I raised an eyebrow. "I met him at the seminar and we just clicked, you know? He is a really great guy, Paul. He is helping me write my novel and through the course. And we—"

"Mom, are you happy?"

The question seemed to take her by surprise. She thought for a moment. "Yes. I really am, Percy. Being around him makes me happy."

I nodded, contemplating what to say next.

"So… you approve?" She asked after a moment of silence.

"If you are happy… I do. But that doesn't mean I won't judge the man myself."

"Okay… Fair enough. Just don't intimidate him or use your powers."

"Alright," I said, albeit reluctantly.

"Do you promise?"

"Yes, mom. As long as you are happy… but if he makes you sad, I give no guarantees."

My mom just smiled.

A couple of days after returning home and spending time with my mom, I decided to make my first visit to Artemis and the hunt. The main reason for the rather abrupt decision was that the goddess had IMed me early in the morning, nearly giving me a heart attack as she yelled my name.

She told me that she expected me to come to the hunt soon if I wanted to train under her and reminded me to pick Bianca up from the camp before coming.

So here I was, flying above New York on my chariot towards Camp Half-Blood at full speed just after having breakfast with my mom.

It took me only a few minutes to arrive at the camp and I carefully landed my chariot on the chariot track that had been built, startling a couple of campers, namely Silena and Beckendorf who were sitting cough kissing cough near the place.

I waved at them before making my way towards the Big House, leaving the love birds in peace.

As soon as I arrived, Chiron greeted me. "Percy, it is good to see you, child. How are you?"

"I am good, Chiron."

"I nearly had a heart attack when I didn't see you with your friends when they returned from the quest… all in hunters garb… even Annabeth."

He sounded sad. And I completely understood where it was coming from. Annabeth was like a daughter to him. She had been at the camp since she was seven. There was no other camper who had resided at the camp for as long as she had.

"Yes, Thalia and Annabeth joined the hunt."

Chiron smiled, "I am happy for them, especially Thalia. After suffering for so long, she deserves a family. The hunt will give her that. Anyway, I trust you are here to pick Bianca?"

"Yes, Artemis Iris Messaged me in the morning."

"Percy, Artemis will teach you a lot. Things no one ever could. Learn well from her. It is a once-in-a-century opportunity that she trains someone who is not one of her hunters, and for the first time ever, she is having a male student. Learn well. And, if you want anything else, I am always here."

I smiled. "Of course, Chiron. Now, where's Bianca… and for that matter, where is Mr. D?" I added looking around as I couldn't feel the wine god's aura anywhere.

"I will send for her. As for Mr. D, he was recalled to Olympus as war looms ahead. He has been gone for a week, but I expect him to come here for the weekend." Chiron said before instructing a Satyr to fetch Bianca.

That was when the doors banged open and Grover rushed in, looking excited and on cloud nine.

"Chiron, Chi- oh, Perce, you are here as well! You guys won't believe what just happened! He Spoke!"

"Calm down, my young satyr," Chiron said, frowning. "What is the matter?"

"I… I was playing music in the parlor," he stammered, "and drinking coffee. Lots and lots of coffee! And he spoke in my mind!"

"Who?"

"Pan!" Grover wailed. "The Lord of the Wild himself. I heard him! I have to—I have to find a suitcase."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," I said, interrupting him. "What did he say?"

Grover stared at me. "Just three words. He said, 'I await you...'"

I gave him a surprised look when Alexander spoke. #Pan… he is awake… or however you wish to put it. The incident in New Mexico and this is not a coincidence. He has chosen your friend to be the first successful finder, Percy. This is a big moment.#

'It could be a trap.'

#Unlikely. Grover is your friend but I hardly think that Kronos will use him to lure you somewhere after he has already tried it once and got his plans turned. It is real. Wish him luck from me.#

I grinned at my friend "That is awesome, Grover. I told you that you will be the one to find Pan."

Grover nodded enthusiastically.

"Wait, I can't let you go just like that," I said, before removing my tent and enlarging it. "Wait here," I told him before going in.

Inside, I went to the room I stored weapons in, before picking up a set of celestial bronze daggers.

'Alexander, can you…'

#Not this. Your friend doesn't know how to use these. Take the baton in the corner. He would use it much better.# He said.

I looked where he was pointing and saw a celestial bronze baton, about two feet in length, propped against a hoplon shield. I went towards it and picked the baton up before twisting the handle on a whim. The baton elongated, turning into a lightweight spear, five feet long.

'This is good. Perfect for Grover.'.

#It is. Now go and give it to him. You have Artemis waiting for you. You wouldn't want to disappoint your crush, would you?#

'Shut up.' I said and went out to Grover who was bouncing around, telling his plans to Chiron.

"Grover, take this with you," I said, shrinking my tent and tossing the baton to him. He caught it in his hand and looked at me questioningly.

"Why are you giving this to me?"

"To protect yourself, of course. Twist the handle." I instructed and Grover did as asked.

He yelped and dropped the weapon as the baton suddenly turned into a spear.

"Careful, child," Chiron said, wincing as the spear clanged on the ground loudly.

"Woah," Grover breathed. "Thanks, Percy."

"No problem, G-man. Go find Pan while I go to train with Artemis."

"You are starting today?" He asked, looking at me with wide eyes. "Tell me if you all need any help. I will come immediately!"

"Of course, stay in touch, G-man? Are you ready, Bianca?" I asked and Grover whipped around to look at the girl who had just entered the room with her little brother.

She smiled at me. "I am, Percy."

I looked at Nico who looked at me with gratitude.

"Then let us go. Artemis is waiting and I don't want her pissed."

"Yes," She said before turning to Nico and pulling him into a hug. "Bye Neeks, take care."

"Bye, Bianca," He mumbled.

Bianca ruffled his hair before giving me a nod.

"Alright, I will see you all later. Grover, keep in touch. Let's go, Bianca." I said to Bianca as I led her out of the room, ruffling Nico's hair on the way out.

I led her towards my chariot and gestured to her to climb in.

"Woah," she breathed. "Where did you get this?"

"Remember how Zeus declared that I would be gifted a chariot on behalf of the council by Hephaestus? Well, this is the chariot."

"Cool…"

"So, let us get going," I said before helping Bianca up. A minute later, I set course towards the Black Mountain Ponds near where the hunt was residing and we were off.

ARTEMIS POV

My day started well—Iris Messaging Percy early in the morning and startling him awake by yelling. It was almost funny to see him look so startled. In that, I also saw how trained he was. As soon as I had shouted, he had ripped the covers away and a dagger was already in his hands. His eyes were alert despite the startled expression on his face. The stupid boy had yelped before covering himself with his blanket, even though he was already wearing shorts and a loose sleeveless shirt.

I controlled my laughter, told him to come for his training session, and reminded him to bring Bianca back to the hunt.

After that, I went along, doing my daily chores while mentally laying out a plan for what to teach the boy.

There was no doubt he was exceptionally skilled in combat and there was hardly anything I could teach him in that area. His melee combat was simply unparalleled. I had seen him fight Atlas and Coeus. All I could give him was practice by sparring with him.

I would give a look at his archery as I wanted to witness what happened myself. Shooting an arrow backward while aiming forward was a feat that even I or my brother could not do despite being the gods of archery, considering such a thing was impossible. It disobeyed the laws of physics. I wanted to see how he did it.

The thing I could teach him was stealth. I was unaware of his skills in that part but I am sure that I would teach him something in that area. My stealth skills were, after all, unparalleled. Same with tracking monsters, following trails, etc. Anything related to the hunt. And then have him spar with the girls.

Speaking of my huntresses, I made a mental note to remind them not to mess with the boy. He was an honorable man and the opposite of everything my huntresses despised. He had even managed to befriend Zoe and Phoebe, the two huntresses who hated the male race the most among my hunt. Adding the fact that Hestia and Hera, the goddesses of the family, were firmly in his support, along with Athena, only lends credence to his excellent character.

After half an hour, I left my tent and went to the dining tent where several of my huntresses were already seated, including the newest additions to the hunt, Thalia and Annabeth, Percy's friends and students.

Both of the girls were sweaty despite the cold weather and I knew the reason why. It was because they trained early in the morning, a habit ingrained in them by Percy. On their second day here, I had heard noises early in the morning from the arena tent and went to investigate, only to see the two fighting each other, spear on spear with band weights tied on their limbs. Seven kilograms each.

Their movements were perfectly crisp and precise, with Annabeth being the better one in that area. But the other girl made up for it by sheer ferocity and strength.

I looked around the arena and saw two tires lying with ropes tied around them. They had clearly been dragged around the Arena as the tracks were still visible.

Anyway, back to the breakfast table, I waited for the rest of the huntresses to show up while eating my breakfast and watching as my hunters conversed while giving my input when I felt like it. The group was a bit subdued as it was early in the morning and some were half-asleep as they dragged themselves to the breakfast table and ate their meal. Not everyone was an early riser despite me trying to ingrain the habit in them.

When the last huntress, Euthalia, arrived at the breakfast table, I decided it was time to address them.

"Huntresses," I called and everyone looked at me, some while still chewing their food. "As I had told you a fortnight ago, a boy, Perseus Jackson, will be coming to train with us for a couple of days every week. And I expect you all to be civil with him at the very least. Do not try to torment him or, god forbid, attack him without a valid reason. And no, his gender is not a valid reason. You will treat him the same way you treat your fellow hunters. He is an honorable man, vouched for by several gods including Lady Hestia, Hera, and Athena. He is Lady Hestia's champion and it speaks volumes about his character."

"I can vouch for him as well. Percy is a good man." Zoe piped up. "He saved my life and I won't tolerate any of you tormenting him in any way or form."

"Thank you, Zoe," I said before turning back to the rest. "I will also make you all train with him in melee combat. You will all do good to learn from him as much as you can, especially with a war on the horizon."

"But my lady, he is a boy! What will we get by training with him? We could probably defeat him in minutes. He is just a weak male." Naomi sneered. She was one of the hunters who had joined in the 1960s when I had saved her from being raped.

Before I could speak up, Thalia and Annabeth snorted derisively and Naomi gave them a stink eye. "What?" She snapped.

"No, I just find it funny when you said that we could defeat Percy in minutes." Thalia snorted.

"You mean to say I can't defeat the boy?"

"Even if Percy is blindfolded with one hand tied behind his back, you won't be able to defeat him," Annabeth said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Impossible. You just say that because you are his friend."

"No, Naomi, they are not wrong." I interrupted before Naomi said something bad regarding Percy. Annabeth and Thalia were as loyal to Percy as Percy was to them, and I didn't want a fight breaking out between them.

"I have seen him fight, Naomi. Against Titans, the General himself, no less. As much as I hate to admit it, he would defeat you all… even if I am not sure about Annabeth's claim about blindfolded fighting. But he could definitely destroy you even with one hand behind his back."

"Lady Artemis, blindfolded or not blindfolded, it doesn't make a difference to Percy. I have fought him while invisible. Thalia and I have fought him with him being blindfolded. He can navigate a completely unknown room with obstacles flawlessly with his eyes closed. Believe me, a blindfold would hardly make a difference to him. And even we can both fight while blindfolded. He has taught us."

I raised my eyebrows. Just how skilled was this boy? Fighting even with one eye shut was a tough job, let alone completely blindfolded. If her word was to be believed, being blindfolded made no difference to Percy. Another thing I would test him on.

"Well, there you have it," I said. "The crux of the matter is that Percy Jackson is many things—but a weak or a vile person isn't one of them. Quite the opposite, in fact, as we have already established. If you do not wish to be near him or train with him, I won't force you to. But, for the sake of yourself and the hunt's survival, do not even try to harm him in any way or form regardless. Percy Jackson is under the protection of several gods and goddesses, some of whom will not hesitate to wipe the hunt out if he is harmed. Foremost amongst them is his father, Poseidon. So consider this a warning, girls."

There were grumbles by some of them but everyone reluctantly agreed.

"Thank you. Now finish your food and go through your daily routines and duties as assigned. When needed, I will call you." I said with a smile, hoping that no one would disobey me and try to harm Percy.

I seriously doubted that any of the hunters could actually harm the boy in any way or form. His senses were too keen to not pick the danger out. I had gathered that much from his first visit to the hunt itself. But, it was better to be safe than sorry. I knew that Poseidon wouldn't blink an eye before drowning the whole hunt if his beloved son was harmed in any way or form. And that was not considering what Hestia would do. She was a kind soul but when she was enraged… it was for the best that one didn't fall on the wrong side of her wrath.

I looked at the sun to check the time. It was nine thirty-seven. Percy should be on his way.

PERCY POV

It took us about twenty-five minutes to reach Black Mountain Ponds after taking off from Camp Half-Blood. We had flown all the way at near one mach speed.

I circled my chariot over the area, looking for where the hunt was exactly camping. It didn't take long for me to spot them and I instructed my AI to land at the border of the camp.

As soon as we neared the camp, I saw the huntresses get ready and aim their arrows at the chariot, following our descent.

"Phoenix, activate level one protection shields," I ordered.

"Level one shields activated, sir," The AI replied as a faint glow shimmered around the chariot before disappearing.

The chariot had three levels of inbuilt energy shields in it. The problem with it was that the shield needed 12 hours to recharge once it was drained. And the higher the shield level, the faster it drained. A level one shield would hold for two and a half hours, while the lifetime of a level three shield was about twenty minutes. But they were damn useful.

As I landed and stopped, three huntresses surrounded the chariot and aimed their arrows at us… specifically me.

That was when a voice shouted, "Lower your weapons, huntresses!" I turned to its source and saw Zoe hurrying towards us as the girls lowered their bows.

She gave us a smile before helping Bianca down. As I got off the chariot, I saw that even Artemis, Thalia, and Annabeth had arrived with a few other huntresses.

Artemis smiled at us. "Welcome to your home, young huntress. Welcome, Percy."

"Hello, Artemis. Hello everyone." I greeted them while Bianca bowed to the goddess.

"Lady Artemis," Bianca greeted, shooting me a sideways glance.

"Bianca, Zoe will show you around and help you get settled in. Percy, you can come with me. The rest of you, back to what you were doing." Artemis ordered and the girls dispersed.

"Come with me, Percy. Let us begin your training.

ARTEMIS POV

I led Percy to the shooting range tent I had prepared for him with several targets on both sides along with a lot of other equipment which was lying on one side of the tent field. It was a special tent, along with many others that Hephaestus had prepared specially for the hunt. These included the forge tent, the dining hall, the arena tent, the kitchen tent, etc. They were all massive from the inside despite looking like a normal tent from the outside. We had a fully portable camp-half blood with us, bar only a few things.

In my brother's way, it was simply awesome.

"This is a pretty nice tent you've got here… how big is it exactly from the inside?" Percy asked.

"Three miles in either direction from here. Four miles straight." I replied with a smirk as he gaped at me.

"Wow… that is twenty-four square miles."

"I usually use this one to make my girls run or for competitions amongst the hunt. Today, we will not be training but instead, I will be assessing your skills so I would know what to work with you on. First, we shall start with my best domain, Archery."

Percy gave me an incredulous look. "Lady Artemis, you do know that I cannot shoot an arrow straight."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "What have I said about using my titles, Perseus?"

"Artemis, you do know that I cannot shoot an arrow straight." He amended.

"So?"

"Assessing me on that is futile. I suck at it."

I raised an eyebrow "Yes, I know that you cannot shoot an arrow straight and your arrow shoots backward. But I want to see it for myself and see what you are doing wrong. Now, get started." I stated, gesturing to the bow and arrows that I had placed on a nearby table.

Percy reluctantly nodded and went towards it and picked up an arrow before holding his hand in the air. A fraction of a second later, a beautiful bow appeared in his hands. I blinked. For someone who said that he couldn't shoot an arrow straight, he surely had a damn good bow. A bow similar to the one that Zoe and I used, meant for strength and speed of the shot. I decided to call him out on it.

"Percy, you say that you can't shoot an arrow… then why do you have such an advanced and professional bow?l?" I asked.

"Ah… err, this is not a bow, well I mean this is but the weapon can take any form. Like…" He trailed off as the bow suddenly turned into a spear. From the spear, it turned into a war hammer. Then into a double-sided axe, followed by a scythe and a sword before turning back into a bow. "The storm-tamer can take the form of any weapon… but a single one at a time. I can't make a bow and arrow simultaneously."

"Where did you find it?" I asked, marveling at the sheer applications of the weapon. Many would probably trade an arm for such a thing!

"My dad gave it to me as a Christmas gift," Percy replied with a smile.

Trust Poseidon to give his kids the coolest stuff around as a Christmas Gift.

"Good, now let us see you use it," I said after a few moments, knowing what would happen. It did all the time with new hunters when they came for archery lessons for the first time. They picked up the coolest bows around thinking it would help them do better. Fun fact, it didn't, resulting in quite the opposite even despite my blessing. A good lesson that they learned by hands-on approach and now, so would Percy. The bow he had in his hand required a lot of practice to use perfectly along with the strength to pull that string. Even the slightest change in the wind could alter the course of the arrow when shot from a bow like this. Percy had the strength to wield such a bow but not the practice or even a shred of experience. I could bet that even if he managed to shoot straight, the arrow would not hit the target board, or at least not hit anywhere near the bullseye he wished to hit.

Or, so I thought.

I nearly choked on my spit when I saw the boy take a perfect stance and a perfect aim. If I had to take a bet according to his stance instead of inexperience, I would have said that the arrow would hit a perfect bulls-eye. And by all means, it should.

But when the boy released the arrow, I had to whip my head around as, true to his words, the arrow shot backward, hitting the bullseye of the target forty-five meters behind him instead of in the front.

How in the name of heavens was it ever possible. Perfect stance, perfect hold, perfect pull, perfect aim. And the arrow had shot in the opposite direction.

Percy looked at me and sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

I opened my mouth before closing it. What was I even supposed to say? I had assumed that the arrow getting shot backward would have been a combination of the wrong stance, wrong hold, wrong aim, and very-rotten luck, but here he was, showcasing a perfect stance and skill that I would only have expected off my most senior huntresses and yet, shooting an arrow backward.

"Err… Artemis?" He asked, waving a hand in front of my face and I jumped back.

"Yes?" I snapped.

"You kinda spaced out there for a minute."

"Oh, yes… shoot again. This time, release the arrow when I say," I said.

Percy gave me a nod before picking another arrow and taking a stance. He pulled the string and aimed, once again in a perfect manner. This time, I went near and inspected him from all angles. When I didn't find any faults in it, I asked him to release it, watching the arrow closely. The arrow had barely left the bow when it suddenly became flexible and bent itself like that particular snake taking a U-turn in the mobile game that mortals had invented. The arrow crossed Percy and became rigid again and set its path in the opposite trajectory that it was meant to go in.

I cursed under my breath. His archery skills were cursed. He should have been an excellent archer. But someone had cursed the boy… or one of his parents' lineage. And the problem was that it could have been any god in the universe. Also, such curses were usually permanent. Even if both Apollo and I blessed the boy, he would never be able to shoot an arrow straight.

"Well, it seems you have some sort of curse placed upon you. It is my unfortunate duty to inform you that you will never be able to shoot an arrow straight, regardless of what you do."

In response, the boy spaced out for a few seconds before shrugging. "Guess there isn't anything I can do about it. I will stick with other alternatives for archery."

I frowned. "Other alternatives?"

"Yeah, my throwing knives, guns, and ice spikes."

I raised my eyebrows. He couldn't do archery and so he had found not one, but three alternatives for it. But, shooting an arrow and shooting a gun or throwing a knife was different. Very different.

"Show me a demo," I asked, curious to see what he could do. It wasn't a request but it wasn't a demand either. Percy nodded and his bow disappeared before an armor covered his torso.

Now, if I hadn't been a goddess, I would've missed the next part. Percy was so practiced that he removed a throwing knife, aimed, and threw it in a single motion. And all of it happened in a fraction of a second. I hardly had time to process this when a thump sounded.

I turned to see the knife embedded hilt deep on the bulls-eye in the target board, thirty-five meters from where Percy was standing.

Before I could say anything, a loud bang sounded, making me jump. I whipped around and saw Percy had already moved a few meters away and was standing there with a celestial bronze pistol in his hand, its muzzle smoking. In the middle of the target board, twenty-five meters away from him, a bullet hole was visible, signifying he had hit the bullseye… again.

I turned back to him and saw him putting the pistol back. A second later, a trident appeared in his hands, and he shifted his position again, aiming for a target board, forty meters away. He jabbed the trident and an ice spike shot towards the board before hitting the bullseye once more.

Percy Jackson was damn fast.

Percy turned to me and smiled. "So… Do you want more demos?"

I nodded before smirking, "These targets were standing still. Let us see how you react to moving targets."

Percy nodded. "What do you want me to use?"

"Anything you want," I replied after contemplating for a moment.

Percy nodded before putting a hand in his pocket and removing a backpack from it. He opened it and pulled out a Rifle from it and pulled out the safety.

I gave him a nod before jogging off a little distance away to a big bucket filled with water balloons.

"Percy, I will throw these, and you blast them. The balloons must burst."

"That is too easy," Percy replied.

I smirked, "I will throw them randomly. You have to hit them before they hit the ground. Like this!" I yelled before throwing the water balloon in the air, my eyes fixed on the projectile which just burst a millisecond later, making water fall on the ground.

I blinked. How the hell… oh, of course!

"That is cheating!" I yelled. "You are not allowed to blast balloons using your powers!"

Percy pouted and I narrowed my eyes at him. He rolled his eyes before taking out a knife and giving me a go-ahead motion.

I picked up another balloon and threw it. This time, Percy hit it with a throwing knife, making water splash on the ground while his knife dropped a few meters away with multiple clangs. I gave him an impressed nod before I began throwing water balloons around like a maniac, challenging Percy more and more with each shot.

PERCY POV

After a whole hour of me shooting water balloons out of the sky, Artemis finally called me to a stop when I missed my fifth balloon.

Her throws had grown more and more difficult to shoot. By the time we ended, the ground was mucky, filled with puddles of water with balloon remains littered around. Even Artemis was a little wet from all the water being blasted out of balloons.

She had currently gone to change while I walked towards Annabeth and Thalia who had gestured to me to come over.

"Hey guys," I greeted. "How's the hunt treating you both?"

I observed them carefully. Their skins had a faint silver sheen to them, like all the huntresses, along with silver flecks in their eyes. The flecks in the eyes were much more visible in Thalia's case than in Annabeth's. They also looked… more fit, for the lack of a better word.

"It is great," Thalia beamed. "We haven't done a lot except a few hunts and training so far but it is fun being with the group. Even Zoe is fun to be around now."

I gave her an amused look.

"Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up, Jackson. We had our differences. We solved them. Now we are cool."

"No, that is actually good to hear," I said. "What about you, Annabeth?"

"Uh… yeah, it is fun and all. The company is great and we all are almost like a family."

"I sense a but coming there…"

Annabeth sighed, "I am feeling homesick, okay. I miss the camp. I miss the activities, my siblings, and most of all, Chiron."

"You do know that you can IM them any time," I said. "Chiron would never say no to you."

"I know… it is just… new. Also, there is another thing…" She trailed off, leaning back against the log behind her and looking straight at the sky.

"What, Annabeth?" Thalia asked.

"It is Zoe… every time I see her—"

"—you remember what she said about Luke." Thalia completed it for her. "Yeah, me too."

"Her words became prophetic, didn't they? Luke, in the end, betrayed us. Betrayed our friendship. Threw us away for something he perceived as greater."

I kept quiet. My friendship with Luke was barely existent when he betrayed me. We were hardly above acquaintances when he tried and failed to kill me with the pit scorpion.

Thalia and Annabeth on the other hand had formed a much deeper bond with him, forged through fires of dangerous situations and testing fights. The three had been on the run for months, living together, protecting each other, and caring for each other. They had been a family.

Annabeth and Luke had an even deeper bond. They had grieved for Thalia together after her being turned into a tree and lived at the camp together for five, almost six years until Luke betrayed the camp and joined the titans.

It was saddening to see Annabeth like this, missing the boy she once considered as family, so much.

"My words were born out of the hate for the male race," A voice, which I recognized as Zoe's, spoke from behind. I turned and saw Zoe walking towards us. I frowned. She was nowhere near enough to hear our conversation, even with her keen hearing. And she certainly was nowhere around when they were speaking.

"You were eavesdropping on us?" Thalia asked incredulously.

"Of course, not. You intoned my name and I heard you before finding your conversation interesting enough to listen into."

"That is eavesdropping," I said dryly. "But, how did you even do it? As far as I am aware, only gods and Titans can do that."

"I… don't know how, to be honest. But, I can feel if my name is intoned and even listen to what they are saying if it is repetitive. I can communicate with my mind as gods do. But, I can't shoot energy beams, teleport, or have a divine form as they do. It is rather complicated."

"What about strength and stamina?" I asked. She was the daughter of Atlas, after all.

"Yes, there has been a significant increase in both of them since I got reunited with my heritage. I also feel a significant power rush as the sun begins setting… that is usually a significant part of the evening from four or so till the sun sets."

#Well, this is certainly unheard of,# Alexander piped up. #Not the sunset part but the rest is unheard of. I think she might be part goddess-part demititaness- part nymph or some sort of weird combo due to her rather unique circumstances.#

'That is certainly interesting.'

"What about your blood? Is it Ichor or… normal red blood?" Annabeth asked inquisitively.

#That will not do shit knowing what blood she has.#

"Ichor," Zoe replied. "But the composition is a little different than what Artemis or other gods have. She has sent it to her brother for testing."

I just gave her a nod.

"Hey boy!" A voice shouted and I saw a huntress, who looked my age, glaring daggers at me.

"Yes?" I asked politely.

"My Lady was searching for you. She had called you. Come with me."

I frowned. "Why was she searching for me? She saw me sit here with them."

The girl looked afraid for a moment before she sneered. "Don't ask questions, boy. Come with me."

Zoe was frowning as well but before she could speak, I turned to her. "Alright, I will catch up with you three later," I said before giving a sign language message of 'Follow me.'

It was one of the basic communication methods taught to demigods. I was pretty sure that Annabeth would know it, even if Zoe and Thalia didn't.

He turned back to the girl who had come to fetch him. "Let us go, Miss… sorry, what is your name?"

"None of your business," she snapped.

"Eurydice, play nice. He is a guest."

"Yes, lieutenant," She replied stiffly.

"Well, let us go, Miss Eurydice. Let us not keep Artemis waiting."

"It is Lady Artemis to you, boy."

"No, it isn't. You can ask her." I replied. "Now, should we go or should I find her myself?" I asked, knowing exactly where Artemis was. I could sense her aura, but I wanted to see where she was taking me.

"Come, boy," She said, before leading me in the opposite direction of where I felt Artemis was.

I still followed her, knowing Zoe, Thalia, and Annabeth were just a few meters behind us.

She led me to a tent in the camp, only a few meters away from the border. Behind it, I could sense animals. Wolves to be precise.

Alexander snorted in my head, #Of all the traps she wants to lead you to, it of course had to be a wolf den. Go in, Percy. Let us have fun. I want to meet a certain wolf again who is in there.#

"Go in, boy," She ordered.

"You first," I replied.

"Lady Artemis wants you alone," She replied before trying to shove me inside. Trying being the keyword. She shoved me and was pushed back a couple of steps herself as I remained unmoved.

I raised an amused eyebrow at her. "You should learn how to push people properly."

"Go. IN!" She screamed.

I rolled my eyes, "Whatever,"

I pushed the tent flap open and I could feel Alexander's excitement growing. I don't know which wolf he wanted to meet and why, but I did know that Alexander's sacred animal was a wolf. Of course, it also fell under the domains of Artemis and Pan, but it didn't matter. Wolves would obey him even if his orders conflicted with Artemis's or Pan's. He was older than both Pan and Artemis. And there was also the little fact that he had created wolves.

As soon as I crossed the threshold of the tent, the flap was locked shut. All the voices from outside were cut out.

The inside of the tent was a forest. The weather was pleasant and sunny as wolves walked around the area. As I walked a couple of steps more, fully entering the habitat, their heads snapped toward me.

#Go ahead. No wolf would harm you. You are my champion. Flare your aura, concentrating on my powers.#

I walked forward tentatively, flaring my aura as the wolves gathered in a pack before howling together. Within seconds, several more howls sounded through the area and wolves came running out of the forest.

'What are they doing?' I asked Alexander.

#A salute. And calling their alpha… alphas if I am not mistaken. Don't show fear now, Percy. Cause you might just gain a pet.#

'What?'

That was when two loud howls sounded. The wolves howled again.

I felt two big wolves approaching through the forest. I held my breath as the underbush rustled slightly before two beautiful yet deadly wolves emerged. The smaller of the two had silver fur while the other had jet black fur. Both had golden-black eyes.

Both prowled forward with deadly grace which was even more terrifying considering their height. The silver wolf was four and a half feet tall while the black one was a solid five feet.

The black wolf was staring straight at me and I met his gaze unwaveringly, stamping down my nervousness. I might be able to take on armies but taking down so many wolves, that too immortal wolves of the hunt, was madness. If they attacked, I would have to teleport away… somehow.

I stared into the golden-black eyes of the wolf for what seemed to be an eternity. Neither of us moved a muscle during that time until the wolf bowed its head and came towards me before nuzzling my face.

#Congratulations, Percy. You just gained the companionship of the first wolf, Liekos. The Alpha of Alphas. The King wolf.#

"Woah," I breathed out loud as Liekos nuzzled me. The other wolves howled in harmony as the tent flap behind us was ripped open and Artemis, Zoe, Thalia, and Annabeth entered with their weapons drawn. The aura from Artemis was palpable.

She stopped in her tracks when she saw what I was doing while the silver wolf bounded towards her before licking her face. Artemis paid little heed to the wolf as she stared at me with wide eyes(the beautiful silver eyes that I so loved) and her jaw hung open.

Zoe was in a similar state, gaping at me while Thalia and Annabeth looked around with confusion.

"Hey, Arty," I said with a cheeky grin.

The goddess didn't even acknowledge her hated name. She was too stunned to respond.

And… DONE!

Hope you all liked it.

More about the wolves in the next chapter. And what all happens in the hunt and Percy's training with Artemis.

Also, A huge thank you to King of Prussia for beta-ing this chapter

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Oceaneas: Firstly, I never claimed I update LoSP every week. I said a fic, i.e. RoLP OR LoSP will be updated every week. As for the 'stop writing about stupid boring Potter' comment, you bring me thrice the followers I have on RoLP(nearly 7k atm) for this fic, and I will update this even more frequently. Till then, both the fics are equally important to me. I update both alternatively. This one week, and RoLP the next.

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Thank you everyone else for your lovely compliments and all the love for the story.

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