Authors Note: I'M BACK. Man, it's been a long ten days, really missed writing actually lol. Hope I still have it in me. Hope you guys enjoy this chapter :)
Chapter 18: A monster killed a day, hopefully keeps the city safe for a week
The top of the mountain where the Oracle of Delphi resided was filled with mortals, most of them priests and worshippers who were hard at work with repairing the temple. Some mortals from the nearby city had already set up small shops to sell goods while others were cleaning out the inside of temple, some unwillingly. But when you have a shiny new Olympian god landing smack dab in the town square like a fiery meteor asking for priests and workers while also subtly threating everyone with bad fortune through prophecies, there isn't much one can do.
Suddenly, a silver blur shot through area, immediately slowing down to reveal Artemis, who turned to look behind her, a small smile on her face. Perseus then appeared behind Artemis through a shadow and tapped her on the shoulder, making her jump.
"Perseus! Don't scare me like that, and come on, powers? Really? Am I that fast for you." Artemis said grinning.
Perseus scoffed. "Says the one who used her godly speed, that's technically cheating." he muttered.
"You could have used it as well, what's the harm in that?" Artemis asked.
Perseus raised an eyebrow as he took in the scenery behind Artemis and then looked back at her. "I'm guessing you didn't notice the mess you left behind."
"Mess? What are you..." Artemis said, turning around to find most of the newly erected shops all toppled over and most of the surrounding trees bare of leaves. The mortals were all rooted in their spots, staring at the two gods fearfully. Perseus wasn't sure if it was their presence of the display of power. Or maybe a combination of two.
"Oh." Artemis said. "Looks like I have to work on my speed huh."
"And finding a 'suitable' animal for your chariot." Perseus said. "Just go with horses, it's not like uncle Poseidon will smite you for using them."
"But horses are his thing, and are easily domesticated. I want something original, something wild." Artemis replied.
Perseus sighed. "Go with your hunting dogs then. That's actually very original."
Artemis frowned. "I am not using my dogs for something like that. Also, easily domesticated. Now where is that Apollo, I want to run the hunt idea with father as soon as possible."
"He's probably inside." Perseus said, shuddering a bit. "This place is already giving me the creeps. Hope there aren't any snakes."
"One encounter with a demonic snake and now you're afraid of all snakes?" Artemis said, grinning.
"I'm fine with snakes...somewhat. I guess I'm indifferent with them."
Artemis shook her head fondly. "Don't let Athena hear you say that. She'll make you send an entire day in Athens with the Kekrops. You know... that's not a bad idea actually for a prank." she mused.
Perseus immediately paled on hearing the name 'Kekrops'. "Nope, no way I'm going to spend even a minute with those guys. That one time was enough, thank you very much. Come on, I think we are freaking out the mortals by standing here in front of them." he said, grabbing Artemis's hand and pulling her into the temple. They soon reached the inner room which was lit with torches of greek fire. Several alters and pedestals were set up, some of them already occupied with statues of Apollo. A large tapestry of a snake was displayed on a wall, its fangs baring down on two figures holding a sword and bow respectively. Apollo was also there, holding two sets of robes in each hand.
"Finally! I was wondering if my signal went through or not." Apollo said, gesturing Perseus and Artemis to come over. "I need your help with something."
"Statue comparisons?" Artemis asked.
"Nah, the statues look fine. Though it's a shame they can't be colored." Apollo said, dismissively waving a hand. He then held out the robes for the two gods to see. "These are the robes I want the new oracle to wear. Which would look nice, the white robes with a green trim or the gold robes with the white trim?"
Perseus and Artemis glanced at each other, the former shrugging his shoulders. "I guess the green one, but won't that be too much green?" Perseus asked, looking around at the prominent green décor.
Apollo frowned. "I was thinking the same thing. But the gold one is kinda too flashy I feel."
"How about white with a gold trim? That might work." Artemis said.
"Hmmm." Apollo mused. He then snapped his fingers and waved over to a small crowd of woman huddled in a corner of the room. "Ladies! Come here for a sec!" Apollo shouted.
"Candidates for Oracle of Delphi." Apollo whispered to the two gods. "All of them surprisingly have been blessed with the gift of the prophecy." he then addressed the crowd. "Okay, listen up. Eenie, meenie, minie, moe. Catch a satyr by the hoof. If he bleats, let him go. Eenie, meenie, minie, moe." Apollo muttered, pointing a finger per person. "You!" Apollo cried, pointing a finger at a woman at the far end of the group. "Are you a maiden?" he asked.
"Um, uh, yes...milord!" the woman squeaked out loud.
"Good. Here you go." Apollo said, throwing a newly summoned robe at her. "You're the new oracle. I'll come by later to fill you in with all the details!" he shouted, turning behind to face the gob smacked expressions on his friend and sister's faces. "What?" he asked.
"That's it? I kind of expected some over the top ceremony." Perseus said.
"Forget that. You can't just go choosing a random person for a job so sacred." Artemis said.
Apollo frowned. "I don't see the need for a ceremony or party honestly. And that was not a random pick sis." Apollo said, tapping his head. "I saw her in a vision. It showed me that she would be the new oracle for this place."
"...Oh." Perseus and Artemis said together.
"Besides, I do need your help with decorations and stuff. I'm thinking ornate gold streamers, maybe a small fountain, oh and definitely a hearth. We might have to open a one-way iris messenger over here as well; incase I need to relay some important stuff." Apollo said, guiding Perseus and Artemis out of the room.
"Why do you have a tapestry of us fighting the Python?" Artemis asked. "That doesn't even look like him."
Apollo shrugged. "They wanted to commemorate the event where the oracle of Delphi was released from the clutches of that beast. Though I could have asked you for descriptions. But hey, they did their best with 'big snake'."
Perseus sighed. "Big snake is a hell of an understatement."
"Probably, but what did Python actually look- Holy me! What happened here?!" Apollo shouted, staring at the dilapidated shops and vegetation.
Artemis blushed. "That was me, sorry about that."
"You could have helped them at least!" Apollo yelled, rushing to help the mortals out. Soon enough, with help from some shadow wisps, everything was set back in place.
"What even caused this?" Apollo asked.
"A race. Which I of course won." Artemis said, a triumphant smirk on her face.
"Godly speed is still cheating." Perseus muttered.
"Nope, and I'm pretty sure I'll still in if I didn't use my godly speed." Artemis said, bopping Perseus on the nose.
Perseus scoffed "You're mean, and you definitely know that. Tipsy you is much nicer, at least she doesn't tease me all the time."
Artemis stared at Perseus confused. "What is that supposed to mean?" she asked, while Apollo had a knowing grin on his face.
"Nothing really, not at all important. Just-" But whatever Perseus was going to say was interrupted by several cries coming from the mortals. Perseus created an attached blade from his vambrace for safety, only to find a red faced panting mortal. He was wearing quite expensive robes and jewelry, which made Perseus connect him to someone of nobility.
"I was told that the oracle of Delphi was back in business." the mortal panted. "I need a prophecy, now really. I'll pay whatever amount demanded."
"You really want a prophecy? Yikes, you must be really desperate." Artemis said, rolling her eyes at the betrayed look on her brothers' face. "What? We all know how prophecies are, hardly are there any good ones."
"I'll be the judge of that, girl." the mortal snarled. "Now step aside, I need- EEP!"
"You want me to be your executioner?" Artemis growled, nocking an arrow between the now cross-eyed mortal. "You have serious nerve, trying to-"
"Artemis." Perseus said gently, lowering the bow with his hand. "He doesn't know." He then gave a small smile to the mortal. "Normally I wouldn't interfere but since this is a first time, I might as well have to. I'm Perseus, and this is Apollo and Artemis." he said. "Oh, and we are Olympian gods."
The mortals face turned a bit purple on hearing this, and probably would have fired some tirade when a hint of recognition crossed his face. He then stumbled back, landing on his butt as he pointed a shaky finger to the trio. "Y-You're the new gods announced last week!" he sputtered. "I-I di-didn't notice, I wasn't sure how-"
"Which is why I'm not allowing anything to happen." Perseus said, helping the man up. "So, what's your name?" he asked.
"I-I'm Acrisius milord." the mortal replied. "King of Argos."
"Hera's city? No wonder." Artemis muttered. "Why do you want the consult the oracle in the first place?"
"I uh, need a son to carry on the throne of Argos. There is no way I'm going to hand it over to my brother. I only have a daughter, Danaë, so I really need a son!"
Apollo cleared his throat. "Well Acrisius, the oracle may have been selected but there is still some stuff and technicalities that have to be gone over with. I suggest coming back in the morning, tomorrow."
Acrisius opened his mouth but closed it again, probably not wanting to anger another god. "I-I see. Thank you, milords-...and milady." Acrisius said and then scampered away. The three gods distinctly heard him muttering 'I need a son; I need a son' over and over again.
"You're too soft with mortals Perseus." Artemis huffed, slinging her bow on her back. "Give it some time, and the mortals might think you're a pushover."
"Yeah, soft." Perseus said, thinking back to the funeral incident back in Kichyros. "I'm going to be avenging them out there soon, no time to be a pushover."
Suddenly, the sky rumbled with lightning flashing through. Three bolts of lightning struck the ground where the trio were standing, making them jump.
"What the...now what does Zeus need from us?" Perseus said.
"Beats me, must be an emergency meeting." Apollo said, his eyes suddenly widening. "Guys, our first council meeting! We are going to officially take part in our first council meeting! I'm going bye!" Apollo shouted excitedly and flashed away. Perseus and Artemis both sighed and flashed away as well.
Soon enough, the Olympian council was fully assembled. Zeus had a very brooding look on his face while Poseidon was writing down one liner's for his next date with Amphitrite. Ares and the female goddesses looked absolutely bored out of their minds while Apollo was jumping up and down on his seat. Hermes was busy going over a parchment muttering to himself while Perseus was glancing at his pretty bare throne, wondering what stuff he should put on it. So far, all he got down was a solar eclipse that changed to a lunar one every day.
"Olympians!" Zeus shouted, banging his bolt on his throne. "I have got several reports from my wind spirits that a drakon has emerged just at the outskirts of the village Dion. Or, what's left of it sadly.
This immediately got the gods attention. "What do you mean by what's left of it?" Demeter asked.
"The drakon has destroyed the village completely. There are some survivors but the village is basically a pile of rubble. The same can be said for the other neighboring villages as well." Zeus said in a somber tone. "The wind spirits have also mentioned that the drakon seems to make its way to Mt. Olympus. The base mountain." he said on seeing the confused faces. "I'm not sure if it will be able to enter the barrier though. But I'm afraid it will go out to cause more destruction and we don't have any heroes to track this think down and kill it. Best case scenario, we can-" Zeus was interrupted when a bronze dial emerged from the center of the room, just next to the hearth. It spun for a few seconds and soon an image of Mt. Olympus with its surrounding land was formed. At the base of the mountain was the drakon, who seemed to be banging its head on an invisible barrier.
"It has already reached the base." Ares said, getting up and summoning his weapons and armor. "Father, let me go and deal with the beast, I can see to it that it can be sent back to Tartarus."
"No, the Fates have not decreed you to attack the drakon. But I know who can." Zeus said, glancing at Perseus and Artemis. "The Fates decreed you two to hunt down the dangerous beasts and monsters roaming this land. Think of this as your first assignment. Hunt down the drakon, and make sure it doesn't break the barrier. I don't want to negotiate with Hades for Styx water knowing that the Elder Cyclops will definitely demand for it to fix the barrier. Happy killing!" and with that, Zeus disappeared.
"That was...unexpected." Hermes said, nervously smiling at Perseus. "Good luck out there cousin."
Perseus groaned. "Great, just what I need today. Killing a big demonic snake. I swear, the Fates are having it out for me now."
Hestia approached her son, worry etched on her face. "Seems like this is something I should probably get used to by now. Take care out there, I expect you to come back in one piece, got it?"
Perseus smiled. "Yes mom, I'll be back safe and sound."
"Good luck on killing the drakon kid." Ares said, patting Perseus's shoulder. "Oh, and a pro tip, go for its eyes. Drakons don't have a great sense of smell so blinding it would definitely help. Though doing that will be a real pain but I'm sure you and the moon girl will manage."
"Thanks Ares." Perseus muttered, walking over to Artemis who was already dressed for combat. "Let's get this over with. Faster we finish, faster we're done. You seem a bit disgruntled though?"
Artemis shrugged. "Didn't get to propose our idea to my father. Maybe if we do a good job with this, he might consider." Artemis said. She then smirked. "You really hate snakes, don't you?"
Perseus then let out a heavy sigh, as he put on his cloak. "Looks like there's no hiding it. But think of it in this way. Zeus might be happy and willing to put our plan into action if we do our job well. Plus, I doubt he'll say no to his little girl." he said, grinning at the last bit.
Artemis rolled her eyes. "You're getting more and more cheeky every day. Let's go, before I flip you over and break your backside."
Down at the base of Mt. Olympus, the drakon was still trying to break through the mystical barrier surrounding the mountain. Several strikes from its claws and head didn't seem to deter it though there were some faint cracks seen on the barrier. Perseus and Artemis were spying on the drakon behind a pile of rubble.
"That looks much bigger than the one Ares keeps." Perseus whispered, forming a shield and sword from his vambrace. "Shall we try the same tactic we used with Python?" he asked.
"It might work." Artemis whispered back. "Though I'm not sure how I'm going to attack the drakon from the top, unless you have any suggestions."
"I could create platforms, but the drakon might destroy them." Perseus said. "How about...levitating platforms? I could do those."
"If it's not that much of a strain for you, then yeah. We could do it." Artemis said, readying her bow. "But wait...can't you use that hellfire thingy to burn that monster up?"
"You mean this?" Perseus said, lighting his hand with the white colored flame. "I would, if I can actually use it. All I can do is this lightshow. Hecate reckons that I might need a fire user to try and wield it, so remind me to ask my mom about this. And I don't want to potentially hurt you as well"
Artemis let out a sigh. "Looks like our wild card is out of commission." she said. "Shall we begin?"
"We shall. Now!" Perseus shouted, flicking his wrist. The ground beneath them began to rumble which was noticed by the drakon, making him stop his barrage. A number of stone spikes erupted from the ground, some of them impaling the drakon. But it managed to break free, slithering away with help from its arms and letting out a roar. Artemis used this distraction to use the levitating platforms to her advantage, launching arrow after arrow on the drakon. Perseus then used his shadow wisps to hold the drakon down, and then charged at it. The drakon stopped struggling from the wisps on seeing Perseus, slowly growling out loud. It then let out a deafening roar, breaking free from the wisps and immediately charging at Perseus. Perseus narrowly dodged the ongoing charge, wondering why it seemed pissed off on seeing him.
"Artemis! Try to distract it, I kinda have a plan forming." Perseus shouted. Artemis then launched another volley of arrows onto the drakon, though it didn't seem to deter it at all. It kept on chasing Perseus, who was finding it quite hard to escape the drakons grasp, and focus on keeping the stone platforms afloat.
"Why is it after me?! I didn't even launch a single attack on it!" Perseus cried, slipping into a shadow, narrowly missing a set of claws. He then popped out behind the drakon.
"Maybe it likes you!" Artemis yelled, launching another set of silver arrows on the drakon.
"If it does, then it is showing its affections in the worst way possible!" Perseus yelled back, erecting a stone wall from the ground in order to block another barrage from the drakon. It roared out in pain, its sickly yellow eyes burning with pure fury as it glared down at Perseus.
"Artemis... I think now is a good time to take out its eyes." Perseus shouted.
"Bring it closer, it's too far off from my reach." Artemis said, balancing herself on the platform. "And keep these things steady, I might fall!" she yelled down.
"Got it! Let me just-" But whatever Perseus was going to do was stopped when a large tremor struck the ground. A large singular crack began to form just behind Perseus who immediately noticed it, with steam coming out from it.
"Percy...?" Artemis said, trailing her question.
"This is not me." Perseus thought, a bit of fear pooling inside him. "This is definitely not me."
A large groaning noise was heard along with a loud roar that sounded like that of a man's. A flaming beast erupted from the crack and stood opposite of Perseus. The flames died away to reveal the strangest looking monster Perseus had ever seen. At first glance, it looked like a lion but Perseus quickly realized that it was only just the body that was a lion. The tail looked to be that of a scorpion and as for the head it looked a lot like that of a lion with the mane and all. But the face was definitely human. A very ugly human.
"Ah...fove days in the pith and I in thes wurld? Vory nice." the monster said, letting out a yawn. "Yu must ve the bountee." it said, staring intently at Perseus. "I smell the night. Quit strong, but musked by, ugh, godly stench."
"Who in Fates names are you supposed to be?!" Perseus shouted, brandishing his sword at the moster while also checked behind at the drakon who was...smiling?
"Modher call I...manticore. Milurd say to brin yu to he. Will giv revard to I."
"Perseus watch out!" Artemis cried from above. Perseus looked behind to see a leathery tail coming at him in full speed. He quickly used both his vambraces to make a huge shield to block the blow but was instead sent flying back, crashing into a tree.
"Vondful drakun! Now, hol steel." The manticore said, flexing its tail. On flicking it forward, a volley of spikes was launched from the tail and heading straight to Perseus. Perseus raised his arms, bracing for impact. He heard some thudding noises but didn't feel anything at all. On lowering his arms, he saw that the shields were penetrating a silver translucent shield, its bearer just a few feet away on the ground.
"We have to work on your reflexes!" Artemis said, lowering down the shield.
"A goduss! I knew air smell fuuny." the manticore yelled, brandishing its teeth. "Yu pay!"
"What is that thing and what is he speaking" Artemis said, a look of slight disgust on her face.
"He calls himself the manticore...I think." Perseus said, getting up. "And his greek is worse than that of an average monster, that's for sure."
"Just what we need, another monster to make things difficult." Artemis said, looking back and forth from the drakon and to the manticore. "Shall we call for help, or..."
"Not necessary." Perseus said, changing his weapons into a spear and a shield. "The drakon is definitely going to go after me so I'll handle it. Artemis, can you take care of the manticore?"
Artemis immediately nodded. "Definitely. I doubt it'll be able to handle long range attacks, though I wouldn't have the added height advantage."
Perseus grinned. "You sure about that?" he asked, raising his hands to create a bunch of stone pillars. "Don't worry, I'll make sure they won't get destroyed."
"You're the best." Artemis said, lightly punching Perseus's arm. "Good luck with the armed snake." she said, launching on top of the pillars.
"Welp, looks like it's just you and me bud." Perseus said, staring down at the drakon. "I wonder if you can reach me with those grubby arms. Time to find out."
Up on Mt. Olympus, Hestia was pacing around the throne room, periodically glancing at the hearth and muttering to herself. Apollo was strumming a tune on his lyre, though he couldn't make anything cheerful due to his mood. And he was constantly distracted by Hestia's pacing.
"Hestia, you're going to make my eyes pop out of their sockets with them following you everywhere." Apollo complained slumping on his throne. "If you're so worried, why can't you like check on them."
"I could be asking you the same young man, since your sister is down there and knowing you, you probably want to go down there as well." Hestia said.
"No..." Apollo said. "I'm not that worried honestly. It's just two gods, albeit new ones, against a drakon. Nothing bad is going to come out of it."
"...That's it, I'm checking on them now." Hestia said, sitting by the hearth. She then snapped her fingers, which made the fire form an image within it. The hearth soon had a clear image of Perseus fighting head on at the drakon, it's arms unable to reach Perseus who was on top of its head.
"Looks like he's going with what Ares told him." Hestia muttered, her eyes narrowing. But where is Artemis?"
"What?!" Apollo cried out, falling headfirst on the ground from his throne. "What do you mean by where is she?" he asked, scrambling to get up.
"I'm trying to find her...here! She's...fighting a lion?"
Apollo was staring at the imagery, confused. "Huh? What is that supposed to be?" he asked, his eyes widening. "It's a trap! Diversion! They need help!"
Hestia sighed. "No they don't, look. Artemis is doing fine against that lion monster. It looks like a threat but I doubt it has fighting experience. As for Perseus..." Hestia's eyes widened in fear when she saw her son pinned down by a half blind drakon, its mouth dripping with poison. "Maybe a bit of help might be required?"
Back down, Perseus was struggling to get out of the drakons grasp, while also trying to move out of the dripping poisons way. He wondered if going full on true form mode would be of any help when he thought of using his hellfire. Granted it hopefully won't go overboard.
Perseus then lit the entire length of his arm on hellfire, the white colored flames immediately spreading across the drakons fist. It roared in pain as it let go of Perseus and began to trash around.
"Looks like you did use your wildcard." Artemis said, jogging up to Perseus. "Are you fine?"
"My body is aching, but nothing major honestly." Perseus said, getting up. "What happened to the manticore?"
"He's become a porcupine. Still breathing though." Artemis said, glancing at the frothing monster that was trying to pluck the arrows out of its back. "A shame that not all of them are easily killable. If every monster was like your everyday hellhound, then- Percy watch out!" Artemis cried, bringing Perseus and herself down to the ground as a flaming arm was launched above them, hitting the manticore instead which made it burst in a shower of dust. The two gods looked at the burning limb and then back at the drakon who was missing an arm and if looks can kill, then Perseus was pretty sure he would be dead. Even though he was a god.
"Did that drakon rip his own arm off to stop the hellfire from burning him?!" Artemis asked out loud. "That's kinda smart honestly."
"Yep...it killed the manticore for us as well." Perseus said. "That's nice of it."
The drakon snarled and began to slither quite effectively towards the two gods, leaving a trail of poison behind. It lunged for Perseus who quickly side stepped away but was met with the drakons tail. Artemis managed to get its attention by hitting it on its already injured eye.
"Perseus, can you please use your hellfire on this stupid thing and finish it already!" Artemis yelled, dodging ongoing strikes from the drakon.
"Can't! That thing is already set loose!" Perseus cried out, staring at the raging fire that was consuming the fields. "Stupid thing can't even be put out."
"That's it. I'm going nuclear." Artemis said, slinging her bow back.
Perseus momentarily stilled, looking at Artemis in confusion. "Nuclear, what are you..." Perseus asked, the implication immediately dawning on him. "You're seriously not trying to-"
"Yes I am! And I hope this works." Artemis muttered, taking in a deep breath. Her body then glowed a bright silver as thunder boomed overhead. Wind started to blow around and Perseus distinctly smelt the scent of a forest after rain. Artemis's entire body was then enveloped in a bright silver light that sent a shockwave everywhere and made Perseus close his eyes. After a few moments, he opened them to find a bunch of small normal fires everywhere and a pile of dust that was spreading with the wind where the drakon was. Artemis was still glowing silver as she stumbled around and would have fallen if Perseus didn't get to her first and helped her up.
"Easy there, that was a lot of power." Perseus said. "You feeling alright?"
"Hmm? Just a bit dizzy. Your voice sounds weird." Artemis said, frowning.
"Okay... good thing I have some ambrosia with me." Perseus said, bringing out the godly food from his pouch. "Here, you probably need all of it."
"Thanks." Artemis muttered, a bit of color returning to her skin as she ate the food. "Could have used my divine form to finish of this mess you know."
"Yeah... and leave a mess behind." Perseus said, gesturing at the mess. "And it seems like you technically cheated again arrowhead."
"Give me a break." Artemis groaned, lying on the ground. "The job is done. We did great."
Perseus let out a sigh. "Let's try to do some damage control at least, especially with- oh bloody Tartarus no!" he cried, scrambling up and running to bonfire of hellfire that was slowly spreading to a nearby forest.
"Um, uh...come back to me?" Perseus said, waving his arms around but nothing seemed to stop the fire. "Do you think I should call my mom or Hecate up?!" Perseus shouted.
Artemis didn't know whether to laugh at her friends' expense, or be mad that he was probably going to destroy a forest. "You said you were connected to it right? Try, I don't know...touching it or something."
Perseus just stared at the flames silently and then stepped into them. They felt really cold, sending shivers and goosebumps everywhere. But strangely and fortunately, the fire began to diminish until all that was left was a prickly sensation running up Perseus's hands.
"Huh, looks like my suggestion worked." Artemis said, grinning. "See, I'm actually quite smart when it comes to this stuff. I should be the goddess of quick thinking and smartness."
"Tipsy you is definitely better than normal you." Perseus muttered. "How much you want to bet that your brother is going to drag us in his new medical room for a checkup?"
"Five drachmas. And how much do you want to bet that your mother is going to hover over you for the next two weeks." Artemis asked.
Perseus blanched. "Two weeks is generous; I'm thinking of six months over here."
"That is not true young man!" Hestia shouted inside Perseus's head. "I was not going to hover over you anyways."
"Really..."
"...Maybe for a month, but definitely not more than that!"
"Well Artemis-" "shush" "Looks like you-" "Shhhh" "lost the...why are you-" "Shut up Percy!" Artemis whispered yelled.
"What?!" Perseus whispered.
"There's someone behind you who I think is watching us, and is not being discrete about it." Artemis said, glancing over Perseus's shoulder. "Act natural."
Perseus instead whipped his head around, and noticed a burly figure who was hiding behind a rather thin tree. The figure must have felt Perseus's gaze on him as he backed a bit. Perseus shot his hand forward, a shadow wisp forming out which caught hold of the figure, bringing it down on the ground.
"No way this can be a mortal, there shouldn't be any out here due to the magic surrounding this area." Perseus said, jogging ahead with Artemis. On closer inspection, the figure had more or less concealed his identity as he was wearing a hooded cloak and robes. Artemis pulled down the hood, only to stumble bac in slight shock and disgust.
"Uh... I don't want to sound rude but this guy looks somewhat ugly." Artemis said.
Perseus just stared at the figure. "He at least looks miles better than that manticore." Perseus said, shaking the man. "Hey, get up. Wake up!"
"Huh? Oh...I see you have found me. Thought a random monster got me but instead its...what are these?" the man grumbled.
"Shadow wisps, my specialty. Now, who are you and what are you even doing in this area?" Perseus asked.
"And don't try to fib your way out. We know you're not some random mortal out on a stroll." Artemis added.
The man had a thoughtful look on his face and sighed. "Very well, my name is Hephaestus and I am a god. I have heard about Mt. Olympus and the city resting on its peak. I even have some gifts for the Olympian council, as a sign for my goodwill and generosity."
Perseus and Artemis glanced at each other on hearing this. "Excuse us Hephaestus, just a moment." Perseus said, pulling Artemis aside.
"Trap?" Artemis asked.
"Possibly. Like, why would someone want to give us gifts? We get plenty of new visitors everyday sure, but at most all we get is some burnt offerings and that's it. But this guy over here has some gifts and is claiming to be a god... sounds kinda fishy to me." Perseus replied.
"Very true. We could drive him away...but he might try to come back as well if has some ulterior motive." Artemis said.
"Mhm. Best case scenario, we allow him to come on Olympus but make sure the gods are on guard, in case something pops up." Perseus said.
"That sounds smart. Okay, let's go back to him." Artemis and Perseus then approached Hephaestus again, who was still bound by the wisps.
"Well Hephaestus, not sure if this is good news for you but as Olympian gods ourselves, we formally allow you to visit Olympus and the council to present your gifts. Hope you have some good ones, some of the gods are very picky." Perseus said.
Hephaestus gave a small smile. "That is wonderful to hear. I'm sure that the gods will like what I have to give and I'm guessing you two are part of the council as well?" he asked.
"Yep. I'm Perseus, god of eclipse's and this is my best friend Artemis, goddess of the moon."
Hephaestus nodded. "My gifts then extend to both of you as well, I hope you like them. I don't have any domains to list but I hope to meet the Fates one day so I can get them."
"I'm sure you will. So, where are these gifts?" Perseus asked.
"They are back there actually. And are quite big to carry them over which is why I have a bunch of donkeys getting them here. It'll be a while before I get them up on Olympus." Hephaestus said.
"You want us to get them over there for you?" Perseus asked, smirking internally when he saw Artemis's confused and Hephaestus's nervous expressions.
"I don't like the thought of that, you might catch on with what they are and I would like to keep these a secret of course." Hephaestus said.
"Understandable. Well, hope to see you soon way upstairs." Perseus said, dragging Artemis who was still staring at Hephaestus with a hint of distrust, making the god squirm. The two then flashed away, reappearing in one of the gardens in Olympus.
"So, what do you think of that guy. Shady, or alright... and no calling him a stupid guy." Perseus asked Artemis.
Artemis shrugged. "He seems alright... but there is definitely something more going on. I do feel he has some kind of motive. We might have to just wait and find out."
"Yeah. Come on let's go back to the throne room. Something tells me we have a welcome party in our hands."
"You want me to teach you how to use fire powers?" Hestia asked, staring at the white flame on her son's hand. "On one hand, I would be thrilled to actually teach you something related with my powers. But on the other hand... this is a whole another thing on its own. I'm not sure if me helping will be enough."
"But you are the only fire user I know. If anyone can know, then you might." Perseus reasoned.
Hestia sighed. "Perseus, ever since the titan war I have hardly used my fire powers at all. Not even a fireball to attack someone as a joke. And why don't you ask Hecate about this stuff, wasn't she the one the Fates told you to meet up with if you had any doubts regarding the fire?"
"True... but she uses it differently, with her torches. She probably has it used differently than what I can do. And I'm supposed to be the god of it." Perseus muttered sullenly. "I can't even use it properly and I'm here asking for help. Just like my other powers. How nice."
Hestia smiled gently as she ruffled Perseus's hair. "Maybe this is a sign. A sign to discover this new power all by yourself, without any help at all. It will be a landmark achievement for you as well. And once you have mastered it, I can join you to see who can create the biggest wave of fire ever. Oh, and have fireball juggling contests! We can even participate in next year's talent show as a mother-son duo, do cool tricks with our fire powers. And maybe-"
"Okay mom, you already sold me on the mother-son act, no need to hype me up." Perseus said laughing. "But honestly mom, how serious were you for sending someone to help me and Artemis down there? Cause Apollo mentioned that he was almost sure she would berate him for still hanging around and doing absolutely nothing."
"Well... I might have only intended for him or Hermes to keep to a safe distance and only to interfere if things get messy. Which it didn't thankfully."
Thunder boomed outside, and two small thunderbolts struck the floor next to Perseus and Hestia.
"Looks like Zeus is finally ready to have an audience with us. Hope it goes well." Perseus said, him and Hestia flashing to the throne room where the other gods were also assembling in. Zeus was staring at Artemis who was standing in front of her father and gestured to Perseus to come forward. Perseus did and bowed to Zeus, standing alongside Artemis.
"The two of you have done very well in taking down the monster. Even with the supposed difficulty of that new type of monster coming into the picture, you both managed to kill them seamlessly. Even though the method on how you killed them was quite...interesting." Zeus said chuckling at the last part.
"He's going to cut points for cheating." Perseus whispered to Artemis.
"That was not some kind of game."
"As a reward for taking down a potential threat, I will grant each one of you a gift relating to any of your domains. Nothing grand or majestic mind you, something at least reasonable." Zeus stated.
Artemis glanced at Perseus with a big smile on her face, squeezing his hand. "Thank you father. Me and Perseus do have a wish we want together which wanted to run with you before. I hope it's reasonable-"
"Milord! I am so sorry for interrupting this meeting but there is someone outside wanting to meet you. Says it's an emergency!" Zeus's attendant Ganymede came in, panting.
Zeus narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean by emergency? To meet us? Tell that person to-"
"I'm coming inside." a voice echoed. Hephaestus himself came inside the throne room, a pack of donkeys following him all carrying large packages. "Good evening, Olympian council. My name is Hephaestus. It is a real pleasure to finally meet you all."
"What is that...thing?!" Ares asked.
Hera choked on her saliva on seeing the god. "No...No it can't be..." she muttered.
"Mother! Oh it has been quite a while since we have seen each other!" Hephaestus said, spreading his arms. "Of course I was just a wee baby, but a mother always knows their child right?"
Zeus's anger immediately disappeared and was replaced with pure shock. "Did he just call you mother?!"
"Oh, she never mentioned me... I'm not sure what you are really my king. Adopted father? But yes, I am her son. Must have been an oversight if she hadn't mentioned me."
Athena's eyes immediately widened on connecting the dots. "You must be that child Hera was supposedly pregnant with!" Athena exclaimed. "And you said that it was just a front!" Athena said, directing the last question to Hera who looked like she wanted to be anywhere but here.
"Huh, so Hera was actually pregnant back then." Perseus said, frowning. "I'm still confused as to how that happened.
"Forget about that. He had to barge in now?" Artemis said through clenched teeth.
"What I want to know is what exactly happened after you gave birth to him as well as him not showing up anywhere." Poseidon asked. This prompted Hephaestus to tell his entire backstory of what happened after he was born, how he landed in Lemnos and was raised by Thetis and his dream to visit Olympus. The gods were a bit fascinated by his story and wrinkled in disgust when they heard that Hera actually threw him off the window on seeing him for the first time.
"Hey Hepha-whatever. What's inside those boxes?" Apollo asked, jutting a thumb to the said boxes.
"Hephaestus my friend. And good question." Hephaestus said, wobbling to them. "My dear gods. As a symbol of goodwill and my generosity, I have made gifts for you specifically, new thrones!" he shouted, removing the rope and cloth securing the gifts. The gods were apprehensive at first but immediately did a one-eighty on seeing the creations.
None of the thrones were the standard gold ones with various patterns etched on them but highly customized and beautiful looking thrones. All the gods were psyched on seeing them and immediately pushed aside their old thrones to try out their new ones,
"Mortal skin, mortal skin! My throne has mortal skin cushioning oh this is wonderful." Ares said, tearing up as he nuzzled his face on his iron throne. "Look at the spikes, the barbed wire!"
"Forget that, mine has a giant lyre attached at the back!" Apollo exclaimed. "And it even works!" he said, strumming its chords.
"Finally, a bookshelf for my books attached on my throne. Why didn't I ever think of that?" Athena said, already summoning a pile of books to fit the shelves.
"It has a leg rest? Reclining and full body massage options?!" That's it, I'm permanently living on this thing." Zeus said, already putting in inputs for a massage.
"I am truly happy to see that my gifts are accepted by everyone truly." Hephaestus said. "Mother, aren't you going to try your throne?"
Hera stared longingly at her adamantine throne and then at Hephaestus. "I- I'm surprised you made this for me, especially after all I have done to you."
Hephaestus waved his hand dismissively. "Oh all water under the bridge, nothing that should be ever dwelled on. I hope you really like the throne mother."
"It truly looks beautiful. I think I'll try it." Hera said, sitting on the throne. Immediately, invisible cables lashed around her, binding her effectively to the throne. She tried to shape shift but the cables were magically infused and the more she tried to resist, the tighter the cables became on her skin.
"Looks like you do love the throne mother." Hephaestus rumbled. "Which is a good thing, because you are never going to get up off it."
Perseus who was watching Hephaestus closely while all this was going on, immediately noticed something was wrong when he saw Hera was struggling on her throne. "I knew I should have intervened before." Perseus grumbled. He then cupped his mouth and shouted. "Hey Aunt Hera! Why do you look so pale and uncomfortable on your throne!"
The other gods immediately stopped gushing on their thrones and stared at Hera who muttered out a weak 'help'.
"Oh great, what did you do now?" Zeus said, glaring down at Hephaestus who had a smug grin on his face.
"Nothing drastic of course. I just gave her something she definitely had coming for herself. And you might appreciate it my king. Now Hera will never speak or trouble any of you'll again for she will be sitting on this throne. Permanently."
"You ugly piece of flesh." Ares growled, taking out a spear. "Release my mother, or else-"
"Oh and did I mention that all these thrones would blow up if anyone tries to point a weapon at me?" Hephaestus said loudly, which caused the entire room to fall into mass panic. "Okay, bye!" Hephaestus said, wobbling to the door.
"Hey, Hephaestus!" Perseus shouted running up to him. "Look, I get your plight. I know Hera is a piece of work, but you can't-"
"If you agree with me, then you shouldn't be trying to change my mind." Hephaestus said. "Goodbye Perseus." And Hephaestus disappeared in a column of flames, leaving a slightly stunned Perseus behind.
The next few days were all dedicated to trying to get Hera off her throne. No one could outright destroy it as the elder cyclops confirmed that the throne would blow up if damaged. The only possible way to free Hera was to input a special pin into the locking mechanism, which would take at least a year to figure out due to the number of combinations and a cooldown system. Hera had approximately a month left until she was sent down to Tartarus, in a rather embarrassing way.
"We tried damn near everything." Zeus muttered. "Ares and Hermes got burnt up and chased away respectively. We can't even blow up the damn throne. Maybe we should just wait for Hera to reform, it'll only be a couple of centuries."
"MPHFGH!" Hera cried out.
"There has to be something that can coax him out." Athena said. "Perseus, didn't you and Artemis meet Hephaestus on the same day he gave us those thrones?"
Perseus nodded. "Yeah, but I didn't get much information on him back then."
Zeus suddenly straightened up on his throne. "Wait, you two actually met him before?' he asked Perseus and Artemis who both nodded. "That's it, you two can go and try to convince Hephaestus to release Hera over here. You two might be able to get him to sympathize." Zeus said. Perseus shrugged while Artemis groaned. "I will even consider your request properly and might even consider it." Zeus said, smiling when he saw her daughter perk up on her throne. "Good luck out there."
Later that day, Perseus and Artemis were outside Hephaestus forge in Lemnos, where a local had taken them. Willingly of course.
"So we just knock, or..." Artemis said, raising her hand. The door however slid open slowly, revealing a corridor that led to only one room.
"Well, now or never." Perseus said, the two entering the forge. They soon emerged at the workshop, where Hephaestus was working on what looked like a golden metal dog.
"I wondered if you two will show up." Hephaestus said, glancing at them from his work. "Looks like I was correct."
"I'm guessing you know why we are here then." Perseus said.
"Free Hera and Zeus might not throw you into Tartarus, blah blah, blah. I have already heard the same crap twice, I don't want to hear it again from the only two gods I have properly acquainted with."
"Welllll, we weren't going for the Tartarus part but freeing Hera. That's something we should discuss." Perseus said.
"Look Hephaestus." Artemis said, with a bit of authority in her voice which made both Perseus and Hephaestus look at her. "Hera is a downright witch, and another word starting with a B and rhymes with 'itch'. Me and my brother have been a source of her unnecessary resentment, especially my mother. But we didn't do anything like turn her into a human porcupine or poison her soup no matter how much we wanted to. Instead, we just looked the other way, not falling for her instigations on us and making her more or less a crowing crow, making her say the same dumb noises to no avail. You can do the same, show her that you are the better person by releasing her, make her the center of embarrassment and definitely don't hold a grudge or revenge thingy in you cause that hardly goes anywhere.
"Exactly what Artemis said. Because no matter what, it will leave you broken and empty inside unless you don't put the work and effort into mending it. You have to forgive. Or else it will probably end up like an unfinished machine, incomplete and rusted because no real work was put on it." Perseus finished.
Hephaestus just stared at his work bench, a lone tear running across his cheek. "You're right." He said, sniffing. "I'm not going to let this go unfinished, and I will show her who's the better person."
"Awesome." Perseus said, clasping Hephaestus's shoulder. Let's get you home."
Soon enough, Hephaestus had freed Hera after giving a long winding speech. The Fates even showed up to properly make Hephaestus a god and a part of the council, the latter met by some skepticism but quickly brushed it aside when Chaos's name was mentioned.
"Hey Hephaestus, I noticed that my throne looks kinda incomplete. Why's that?" Perseus asked.
"Oh yeah that." Hephaestus said sheepishly. "I wasn't sure what to add in terms of your domain being, what was it called, hellfire? So yeah, that stumped me so I was wondering If I can get some input on it."
"Yeah sure, no problem." Perseus said.
"Well, my wife is free from her throne and her captor is now an Olympian god and a part of the council." Zeus said, which was met by a few chuckles. "Sadly, we are not throwing a party as our new member doesn't do those at all. And our new wonderful thrones are booby-trapped free so three cheers for that."
"I should get some reward for all this mess." Hephaestus grumbled. "You all bothered me with showing up unannounced. Stupid winged shoe god broke the base of my very own throne."
"I offered a winged cap in return, that's a fair deal!" Hermes cried.
"If you want a consolation prize, you can maybe have Athena as your wife." Poseidon jokingly said. "You two will fit as well. You both like crafting, solving problems and are deep thinkers. You would be like a well-oiled machine"
"Oh shut up, Barnacle Beard." Athena grumbled. "o I'll make you kiss a monster, mark my words."
"Athena as my wife...that doesn't sound so bad." Hephaestus mused.
"Anyways, Perseus and Artemis. I still have your request to fulfill so would you like to share it now?" Zeus asked. Artemis nodded excitedly and got off her throne, Perseus not far behind her.
"Father, me and Perseus have put a lot of thought into this and I really hope you approve of our decision." Artemis said.
"Of course Artemis." Zeus smiled, giving a knowing wink to Perseus who looked at him confused. "I think I can confidently say that I will approve of this."
"That sounds excellent father." Artemis said, grasping Perseus's hand. "Me and Perseus...we wish to have our very own hunt."
"That is amazing news daughter. I'm honestly not surprised that you two want to...wa-wait, wait just a moment. You said what?"
"Me and Perseus want our own hunt. It makes sense as we do have that as a domain." Artemis said, frowning a bit. "Father, you seem a bit confused. Were you thinking about something else?"
"I...uh...um." Zeus stuttered, glancing nervously at the other gods, who were furiously trying to cover their faces so that Perseus and Artemis wouldn't see them laughing. "I thought the two of you...wanted to...that's why you're asking me...together..."
"Asking what?" Perseus asked.
"...Forget it! Forget I said anything at all! Last few sentences 'poof'! They don't exist!" Zeus exclaimed, his arms flailing around. "Okay...you two want a hunt, right? Just that?"
"We still have to go through some stuff for it, technicalities and requirements but yes. We want a hunt in general." Perseus said.
Zeus furiously nodded his head. "Okay, you two want a hunt. Done! Run by me all the details sometime in the future. Now if you excuse me..." Zeus said, immediately disappearing in a flash.
As soon as Zeus disappeared, the entire throne room started laughing out loudly which really confused Perseus and Artemis.
"Why are they laughing?" Artemis asked, glaring at everyone.
"No idea... but it's definitely not an inside joke cause even Hephaestus is laughing." Perseus said glancing at the newly appointed blacksmith god.
"Father thought...that you two wanted to...BWAHAHAHA!" Apollo cried out, clutching his stomach.
"These two don't even realize what's happening." Athena said, bursting into another fit of hysterical laughing.
"They are definitely as dense as boulders." Hestia said, shaking her head fondly.
And done. Phew, I'm surprised I actually managed a long chapter. I was worried I would end up with like 6k+ words but's it's definitely longer. Poor Zeus, don't worry, maybe what you were hoping for will happen one day for sure. Did anyone guess what Zeus thought Perseus and Artemis were going to ask of him? Let me know! So, this is definitely a filler chapter, hope you understood what the manticore was saying, that was very broken english(or greek). And I had to get Hephaestus out of the way which leaves us with our final Olympian goddess, our favorite goddess of love. Oooohhh. But yeah, the hunt is going to start up real soon, we are going to see some Twilight Avenger action and maybe...Pertemis fluff? Hell yeah!(Though I hope I can pull that off XD). Also, the poll results have come in and it seems like majority want the sperate book series which is awesome, cause more work for me XD. kidding, kidding but I will let you guys know this Saturday when the book will come out so stay tuned. Thanks to all you guys sticking around to read this story, really means a lot. See you guys in the next update. Bye!...\/