Interlude V

Olympus Academy of Hunters was chaos the day Artemis arrived.

Usually, she'd find organized group of hunters moving around the Academy, ignoring her and going towards class or training. Now, she found groups ready to go to war.

"You." Artemis said to a young boy with curly hair, carrying with him a small pouch with what appeared to be bolts, screws, and loose metal. A metal hammer hung from his belt. "What is going on."

"I'm not entirely sure myself, to be honest, I just heard that—"

"You are speaking to Lady Artemis, boy, the Lady of the House of the Moon." Her lieutenant Phoebe said with venom and anger, "You will treat her with respect!"

"Yes, yes, whatever, my lady." The boy said, "I don't know what's going on, my lady, I heard that Percy Jackson was the cause though. Some say he left, others say he escaped. All I know is that the House of Wisdom is furious because he nearly killed one of theirs. Oh boy…and I wanted to have a calm week…"

"What do you mean nearly killed one of them?" Artemis asked.

"Well, I'm not sure to be honest…Apparently the House of Wisdom tried to arrest Percy Jackson because he had kidnapped the Daughter and Son of Hades, as well as the Lady Athena's daughter. I call bull, Bianca and Nico have always been close to Percy, Annabeth however…"

Artemis was furious.

How dare the boy kidnap a girl? An innocent girl? No doubt he had overwhelmed her, done the same thing as his father and charmed one of the girls only to later toss her to the side.

"Jackson…" Artemis growls, thinking on how much she had begun to hate the boy.

"Will you help us, Lady Artemis? It looks like some of my brothers, us from the House of Fires, are being forced to choose sides. Some are on the side of the House of Wisdom and want Percy brought back for trial, others say that it's impossible he could have overwhelmed four hunters without being trained, and that something else is occurring. Please, Lady Artemis, you need to help us before this descends into an all-right war!"

"I will do what I can." Artemis said, eyes narrowed, "I must speak to Chiron."

With that, she began to walk away towards Chiron's office.

As she walked, she saw various Hunters arguing, glaring, and even outright fighting each other. A few were being carried out towards the infirmary, while others tried to hide from what appeared to be a furious group of Hunters belonging to the House of War.

"Olympus is divided…" Artemis realized, "Divided over that Jackson boy. Poseidon…once I find you…"

She arrived at Chiron's office, and didn't even have to knock as the door opened to reveal a tired man with ashy blond hair, sharp features and a great staff on his back with two snakes intertwined.

"Oh, Artemis…" the man said, "What bring you here?"

"Hermes." Artemis greeted her fellow Olympian. "Didn't expect you here either." The man was one of the most powerful Hunters alive, one that was usually underestimated amongst the others of the Pantheon. Artemis knew different, however, the man was sharp, quick, and incredibly hard to read.

A master thief through and through capable of stealing Enlightenment if the rumours were to be believed now treated as a glorified mailman.

"Zeus saw it sensible that I deliver an arrest warrant for one Perseus Jackson." Hermes sighed, "I swear, he grows more paranoid every day. Ever since Masterbolt was stolen…"

"How is that going?" Artemis asked. The theft of the Spear was still one of the major talks of the Pantheon. Hermes, while he tried to hide it, was clearly impressed and intrigued that someone could have snuck past the Olympians and stolen the most powerful weapon in existence.

"Zeus refuses to let me partake, he still hasn't forgotten my past and fears that I will…what did he call it? Recede into my natural tendencies." Hermes said with clear disdain and frustration, "He doesn't understand. I grew up a thief, around thieves! I stole things that nobody has even heard of, and instead of letting me lead the investigation he has me delivering messages! I could crack this thing in a few days…"

"The Jackson boy deserves to pay for what he's done. Did you hear that he kidnapped Athena's daughter, harmed a girl from the House of Wisdom and is now hiding behind Hades?"

Hermes snorted.

"If you really believe that, Artemis, then nothing I or anyone can say will change your mind. However remember that the boy, while his mother was Darkened, his father is still Poseidon. Some will have a grudge against him only for that, others will try and find a way to get a grudge against him to justify their hatred to their father, and others…well, others are simply assholes. Remember where you come from. Au revoir!"

Hermes tapped his forehead with finger, gave her a smile, and in a burst of speed ran away from Olympus, leaving behind a blur of gold in his wake.

Remember where you come from.

Artemis thought about those words, trying to smother the feeling of doubt and guilt she began to feel. She remembered what Poseidon had done for her, but she also remember what Zeus had done, how he had taken her in after…

"I'm loyal to Zeus…" she quietly said to herself. "Loyal to Olympus…to the pantheon…"

"I see you are conflicted." Artemis rose her eyes to meet Chiron's who looked older than the last time she had seen him. Bags were prominent under his eyes, he leaned hard into his wheelchair, and his hair was greasy and unkempt.

"I see you look terrible." Artemis said. Chiron chuckled, and they shared a quick hug.

"Welcome back, Child. Come, I believe that we must talk."

"Yes. We must." Artemis turned, motioning to her Hunters to wait outside as she closed the door behind him.

"Even after so many years, Poseidon's shadow follows us and judges us. I only hope he deems us worthy." Chiron said as he took a place behind his desk and began to pour two cups of wine.

"Zeus is hellbent on finding him. He has my Hunters and the Amazons on high alert, and even the Sons of the Sun are aiding." Artemis said, "We should be focused on finding his spawn."

"If the rumours are true, then Perseus is in the safest place he could be." Chiron said, "I don't know who's idea was to go to Underworld, but it was a brilliant one. Hades will train him, he owes it to his father, and he is surrounded by Hunters who some claim may be more powerful than some in the Pantheon. Any attempt to find him would be met with failure."

"I know." Artemis said, angry at the fact that she couldn't look for the boy.

"What ails you?" Chiron asked and Artemis smiled. He had always been good at telling when she was conflicted.

"I don't know what to do." Artemis admitted. "My loyalty has always been with Olympus and the Pantheon, I have always answered to Zeus and done everything he has asked me. Never have I failed an assignment, nor has any other leader of the House of the Moon. Yet…yet he sends us on this wild goose chase that will end in failure, he wastes us in doing something he knows will prove impossible and no doubt when we fail he will humiliate us, me, and—"

"Let me stop you right there." Chiron said, raising a hand. "Who are you?"

"What?"

"Who are you? Are you a Hunter, or are you a Child?"

"I'm a Hunter!" Artemis said, anger tinging her voice.

"Exactly. You are a Hunter of Olympus, Leader of the House of the Moon and member of the Pantheon. No one, not even Zeus, can force you to do anything. Sure, he is the leader, however leadership comes with a heavy burden. Mistakes are common amongst everyone, yet the mistakes of people in position of leadership tend to lead to places where no other mistakes lead. He is scared, paranoid, making him even more prone to error. At the rate he is going, he will dive off a cliff before he realizes he's wrong.

"You are a Hunter, Artemis, and as a Hunter we have two main jobs. Protect the weak, Fight the corrupt. Those are the things you need to focus in, not in Zeus orders, but on your orders. Follow him blindly, and you will fall with him into the abyss."

"But its Zeus, Chiron! He's the leader, aren't we supposed to follow his orders too?"

"The relationship between a leader and his followers is two ways, my dear. Sometimes the follower must stop following and challenge who leads. That is how we move forward. The moment we start to follow blindly, we will never see our end coming.

"Zeus is paranoid, and while I mourn the boy he was, I fear the man he is becoming. Tell me, why do you think he sent you to hunt for Poseidon, even knowing it would be a failure?"

"He wants Poseidon."

"Yes, but why you? My dear, I respect you, I really do, but you stand no chance against Poseidon, few in the pantheon could hope to even stall him. So, why would he send you? Why not Hephaestus, who could temporarily give him pause, or Hermes, who could distract him? Why are you here, why is Athena plotting traps with Ares, why is Aphrodite consulting with spies?"

Artemis came to a horrible realization.

"He doesn't trust me…"

"On the contrary, my dear, it's because he trusts you. He sends you and those he trusts away, while he keeps people like Hermes, Hephaestus, and Apollo on a tight leash, as they were the closest to Poseidon. Use that trust, Artemis, I beg you. Help Zeus, help him let go of his resentment. There are dangerous days ahead, and we must be united."

"But Perseus Jackson—"

"Percy Jackson is inconsequential for the moment. There is nothing you will gain from him aside from angering Poseidon, and if Poseidon is angered I fear that a civil war will tear us apart before the Titans even—"

"Titans?" Artemis asked, shocked.

Chiron winced.

"Yes. Titans." He said, "Right now, its on a need to know basis. The attack on Tartarus was thought to be done by Titan loyalists, however we have come across information that true titans were behind it. We don't know how many, nor where they are, but they want something from Tartarus."

"We must go there immediately! If the titans really are back…"

"Which is why you must convince Zeus to let go of this chase against Poseidon and aid Hades. If Underworld falls, only the Gods know what destruction the Tartarus escapees would bring. Besides, there are things…"

"I will do what I can." Artemis said. She stood, and was about to leave, however before she could she stopped herself. "Chiron, I was tasked with finding a book. Apparently there is things there that can…help us. It was written by Poseidon and I heard it could help us defeat these new monsters that are popping up. I think it was that book he always carried when he began to talk about destiny…"

Chiron looked contemplative for a second, then his eyes widened in realization.

"Ah." He said, "Interesting…"

"Do you know where it is?" Artemis asked.

"Yes. However, what will you do with the information?"

"We need to find it, Chiron. If it gives us an edge in this war…perhaps it could even make Zeus more amicable if he realizes that we have a chance."

"Do you believe that?"

"I have to believe it." Artemis said, sadly. "I just have to believe that Zeus is not completely lost. I've done so many things in his name, killed thousands of monsters... I need to know it was all for a purpose. I need to know that Zeus only began to act this way because he is afraid of this threat. If we have an edge, he will regain his confidence and we can be united."

Chiron sighed, finding logic in her argument.

"Last I heard, Perseus Jackson had it in his possession." He said.

"There it is. Inconsequential was it?" Artemis smirked.

"You will not get into Underworld, Artemis." Chiron said. "Get to Zeus first…"

"No, I can't get into underworld, not alone." She said, as gears began turning in her head. "Underworld is most likely being targeted. I can take my Hunters and move there. Hades won't turn us away. I can get the book from Jackson and with that I can convince Zeus to let go of his paranoia."

"Don't harm the boy, Artemis." Chiron said warily.

"I won't harm him if he cooperates. Yet he is a boy after all…" She thought slightly disgusted, "I have my mission now. Thank you, Chiron, my Hunters and I will use the premises for tonight and tomorrow we shall head to Underworld."

"You're not the person who you think you are, Artemis. I saw you grow, I saw you cry, and I saw you become a woman. I never saw a girl who would let her hatred and resentment take over. Remember where you come from, Artemis, and beware of where you're heading. Stop Zeus from falling too deep into the abyss, but please don't fall in it yourself."

Artemis nodded, and left the room.

"Let's go." She said to her hunters, who were waiting for her.

Remember where you come from.

There it was again. Hermes had told her, and now Chiron had told her.

Where did she come from? From Olympus, of course. Yet why did she feel so uneasy?

Percy Jackson. Everything was about him. He had what she needed to help Zeus and the Pantheon, to cure this divide. He was hiding behind Hades, fuelling the divide. He had even angered Athena by kidnapping—

"Did he really kidnap her, though?" Artemis thought. "Zeus is paranoid, Athena is in love with him…could it be a lie? Hermes…what do you know?"

Artemis' head began to turn. There was too many things going on, but she had a single purpose that hadn't changed.

Find Perseus Jackson and put an end to all this madness.