So far, the trip had been going well, even though everyone knew it wouldn't last long.
They had gotten the camp van from Chiron, stating that with a Halfblood on the quest with them, they would have to follow the regular quest rules.
Percy was driving and joking with his siblings, and Zoe was grouchily sitting in the backseat. Next to her sat Freya, but the goddess was bent through the space between the front seats, animatedly talking with her brothers.
After the fight, which Zoe could still not completely wrap her head around, her three unwanted companions had told her to gather her stuff, warning her that they would be gone for quite a while.
They had been driving for several hours, well into the night, when Percy finally decided to speak with the Halfblood.
"So, tell us about yourself, Zoe. While we have met before, I have not yet spoken to either of you," Percy said, looking at her in his rearview mirror.
Zoe ignored him, studying the beautiful blade on her lap, running her hands along the inlaid runes.
"It is a Seax, a traditional Vikingr short sword," Percy told her, seeing her admire the blade.
"Why did he give it to me? He does not know me."
"Well, there could be many a reason. Maybe he thought you needed a better weapon. Maybe he saw something worthy in you. And maybe, just maybe, it was because he simply wanted to," Percy said, a huge grin on his face.
"I would not think too much of it, Zoe. Sigurd has never been known for his ease of reading. As long as I have known him, he has made choices others thought foolish." This time it was Freya who spoke to her, her beautiful features marred by a look of apprehension.
The silent jab did not go over Zoe's head, but she let it slide. It was oftentimes, not all that smart to argue with a supposed goddess.
"What do the runes along the edges mean?"
"Well, Zoe, along the edges are five different things inscribed. Just above the hilt, is the word Fafnir, for the legendary creature slain with this sword. On the other side, you would find the word Garmr, the sword's name," He explained, taking a moment to switch between lanes. "On one side, along its length, you can find a certain sentence," He continued. "Blessaðr sé hinn víkingr, er lærðr hefir at halda hendi sína. Blessed be the warrior who has learned to stay his hand."
Zoe nodded along, as he spoke, tracing her finger along the runes with following his every word. "He sounds like he was a wise man," She said, loathe as she was to admit it.
"He was not the one to carve the runes," Freyr picked up, drawing an irate look from the Halfblood.
He continued nonetheless. "That honor goes to my brother here. The last set of ruins is spoken as 'Eyðingr Norðrborinn' or Perseus Northborn in your language. I was the one to give him the sword. Sigurdr trained under me and earned the sword. And now, it has passed on to you." It was with a weary smile that he looked at her.
"Thank you," Was all Zoe could say, finally realizing the importance of the gesture.
Upon her, had been bestowed a godly weapon.
It was two days later, in the middle of the night when the Giant and the Halfblood spoke again.
"Wake up Huntress. There is something I wish to show you."
With groggy eyes and a wary look, Zoe sat upright. They had camped out, nearly a mile off the road, in a small abandoned hut. It had taken her great effort to fall asleep, only to now be awakened by this male, who was seemingly persistent in his insistence to irritate her.
"What could you possibly have to show me that warrants waking me at this ungodly hour?"
"Just follow me." And with those last words, he started walking away.
"Damn," Zoe said, standing up with an angry grunt. Shivering from the cold, she went after him, walking in the direction he had left. Zoe trudged through the snow, only the sounds of her boots crunching in the snow recognizable around her. It had been a day prior, that a snowstorm had suddenly blown over the land.
This was not uncommon when in the proximity of the 'Lord of Winter'.
She did not like the moniker.
She had met Khione, the goddess of Winter. While she had not liked the Goddes in the slightest, she liked it even less to admit that this norse was stronger.
It had been a tough pill to swallow that more than the two known pantheons existed. But to admit that they were stronger than her own, it was not something she wanted to believe.
Perseus had explained to Zoe that he was the Norse Giant of the hunt, A Jotnar. If they were stronger, that would mean that he was stronger than her Mistress.
And this, she would not believe.
She had told him, with an angry huff, that she would not call him lord. She believed him to be far weaker than her Mistress. As she followed the man, seeing him only slightly, due to the distance and the still-blowing snowstorm, she took note, that the man did not leave behind footprints. Seeing him come to a halt, she stopped just a few meters behind him.
"Now, what in Hades' name did you want to show me, and make it quick, boy!"
Not taking any notice of how she had called him, he stuck out his hand before him, whispering something.
"Opna hliði, ó hliðvörðr veraldanna!"
Zoe could not understand it, but it seemed to trigger something in their surroundings.
As they stood there, she dropped her mouth in awe. Behind them, a pulsing form of light erupted. Blue, white, purple, and green seemed to mix with each other, forming the visage of a door.
With a grin thrown at Zoe over his shoulder, he stepped into the light.
He disappeared. "Come on, walk through the door. You're going to love this," Came the disembodied voice of Perseus.
Not completely trusting him, but also realizing that it would be unwise to disobey a God, Giant, whatever, she walked through the light. No matter which pantheon he was from.
As the light temporarily took over her vision, she kept on walking. Her vision came back almost immediately. Stepping out of the light, she took a look around.
She was in a huge open valley, with all kinds of trees surrounding it. Mountains stood along its edges. They were stood atop a circular, stone platform, lifted high by a formation of rocks. A tiny Jackalope hopped by her, drawing her eye. Kneeling, she stroked her hand along its back.
"I'm pretty sure his name used to be Anthony," Perseus said with a smile, lifting the mythical bunny. "Your Mistress turned him into a Jackalope when he stumbled onto your camp, back in the late fifty's. Don't worry," He said, noticing her shocked look. "I don't judge, I simply provide them with a safe place to live. I provide every animal with a safe place to live."
And it was true, all around her, she could see creatures running around.
An elk, its antlers a beautiful sparkling blue.
A giant red dragon flew over.
Further in the field, in a giant lake, she could see an extremely long, red serpent together with… The Loch Ness monster?
"Is that…"
"Yep, that's Nessi, and that giant serpent next to her is Vritra. Apparently, they've become good friends," He replied, amused by her awed face.
"But that's not why we are here," He said, snapping his fingers.
With only one movement, the landscape started reshaping. The circular platform, which they stood on, started shaking. As she looked over the edge, she could see the platform moving higher into the air, the animals in the field stopping their actions to watch.
Zoe had to jump backward, narrowly avoiding a stone spire rising up in the sky. She landed on her back, watching in awe as she saw the stone platform change around her, taking on the appearance of something more akin to Stonehenge.
"It's an arena."
She was taken back to reality when he spoke to her. The arena had now completely transformed.
"This…" He said, motioning around him. "Is where I once trained Sigurdr, and it is where I will now train you."
"I do not need training from you, I have been trained for thousands of years by my Mistress. What news could you possibly teach me, that she has not already?" Zoe was mad. Who did this male think he was, to just up and tell her that he would train her? "My Mistress waits for me, and you think I would waste my time, letting you teach me?"
"Time here works not as you believe. At this moment, Lady Artemis is in no danger. Land one hit on me, and I will let you leave. However, if you do not, You will let me train you, at least for now."
With an angry look, Zoe lunged at him, trying to punch him.
Percy merely moved an inch, tripping her.
As she stumbled by him, Percy looked back at her. "Good, play dirty. It will benefit you more than any fight with honor."
With an angry grunt, Zoe pulled her bow from her back, shooting a volley of arrows at the Jotunn.
Bending slightly sideways, Percy easily avoided the arrows.
And this is how the next half hour went by.
She would try to attack, he would dodge with a minimalistic movement. As time went on, Zoe got angrier with the minute, her movements becoming sloppy and uncalculated.
With a sudden jolt, Percy sent a swift kick her way. Two fast movements of his feet were all he needed to lay her low. With a small jump, he kicked her in her shoulder, knocking her off balance. Following up with a quick spin, he sent his other foot into her stomach, dropping the already unbalanced girl onto the ground.
"I win," He said, his laid-back smile still present on his face.
Zoe was at the very least slightly relieved not to see him rub it in her face. But still…
She could not believe that she had lost.
"Do not worry, Zoe. One of my domains is Duels. It's a very small list of Deities who can even land a hit on me."
With a roar of anger, Zoe was once again on her feet, a blue-white aura enveloping her. Rushing at him again, she swung the suddenly appeared sword of Sigurdr at his neck.
Looking at her, Percy decided that he'd seen enough. He had gotten all the information he needed. Staying rooted in his spot, he faced her attack head-on. With a sudden boom of sound that disturbed all the animals in the vicinity, he caught the sword.
With his bare hands.
Zoe was stopped in her tracks, a ripple going through her arms from the sudden stop of the sword.
"You will need to control that anger if you want to beat your father."
In shock, Zoe looked at the man. "How do you know that? Only my mistress knows that."
"Well, you see, we Jotnar have a tendency to walk the path of clairvoyance, even when it is not our domain," He explained, as he looked her right in the eyes. "You may not like me, yet, Zoe. And that is fair, but I am going to get you through this alive. I promise. And maybe, somewhere along the road, we might learn to call each other friends."
They had fought and trained the whole night.
Zoe had never despised any god as much as him, after their fight.
At least, she wanted to despise him. While she had not thought it necessary, he had trained her through the night. She had learned new things, even with all her years of experience.
And Percy had kept surprising her. He was nothing like the men she had known. He did not rub it in when he won and had even gone out of his way to treat her with respect, while she had been throwing nothing but insults at him.
She would not go so far as saying she trusted him. But maybe she would be willing to respect him.
It was the only logical thing to do, really, if she wanted to save her Mistress. Artemis had been more than a mother to Zoe and the other Huntresses, and she would be making sure that they got her back safely.
"By the gods, I am spent!"
The hours upon hours of fighting and training together had tempered Zoe's annoyance and anger. Yes, she was still angry at the situation, but her wrath was no longer pointed at Perseus. She would not dare tell him, her pride did not allow it, but she appreciated his help.
At the beginning of the night, she expected their fight to be easy.
She had drawn blood from Sigurd, after all, so she could do the same with his teacher.
And gods, was she wrong.
Sigurd had fought as a brute. He was strong, and fast, and his blows landed like a Cyclpos' club.
Perseus, while also quick and strong, was far better. He did not need a weapon to defeat her. They had fought for hours, and she had not once hit him, but she did feel like she got better. He had dodged and weaved, and to her annoyance, kept his hands behind his back the whole fight.
As she sat there, a bottle of water given to her by Perseus in her hand, she looked at him. "Can I ask you a question?"
A content look on his face, with his eyes closed, he gave a nod.
"What is this place? Why did want to train me?"
"We find ourselves in my home, in the realm between realms," He said, with a proud grin.
"We are on one of the far most branches of the Læraðr, Yggdrasil. In this place, intent matters. This place can be home to any who wish to protect," He said, his pride at his home clear on his face. "We are quite possibly in the safest place in all the realms. As for why I brought you here, that is easy. You wished to protect your mistress, and I will help you do so."
"But why do you help us? You are not Greek, you have no reason to be here," She said, genuinely confused. In her eyes, the Greek pantheon was not something most people would willingly mix themselves in.
"Well, for one, it's my job. But in this case, I have several reasons. Your Mistress, Artemis, is the goddess of the hunt, which means that she helps keep my domain safe. And in turn, I will keep her safe. Then there's the fact that Hades and Hestia asked me to. They are family, there is no world where I do not help my family. Although, between you and me, I would have helped anyway."
Zoe was taken aback, she had thought that he and his siblings had merely been sent. Ordered to help them, maybe even called into action by Zeus.
Never would she have expected them to help them because they wanted to, out of nothing but kindness and the simple fact that he was asked to. He could have easily said no. He probably would have if he was any other person.
"In any case, it's time we head back. We have a goddess to save," Perseus said, standing up and wiping the dust off his pants. If you would allow me, I can train you every night. I will help you get control of that weapon, and maybe even help you understand that aura from before."
Zoe could see on his face, that he was genuinely hoping that she would say yes.
And maybe she should. She had gotten angry and was overcome by the powers she had tried so hard to keep hidden. If he really could help her, then maybe it was worth it.
Besides, she was starting to appreciate the man's presence.
Maybe, just maybe, She would be able to call him a friend.
Artemis had awoken a few mere hours after her capture. Her head hurt from when she had been knocked out.
"Damn, where am I?" It took a while for her eyes to get used to her surroundings, her groggy mind trying to make sense of the situation.
"Ah, my dear, finally awake are we?"
Before Artemis stood a person she really did not want to see. Atlas, Titan of Strength, and Endurance, general of the first army.
"It is so nice of you, to finally join us, Godling. I have a job for you."
His manic grin sent shivers along her back.
Artemis was afraid.
She did not know what he was going to do to her, she was defenseless.
Steeling her gaze, she looked at him with a resolved look.
"Oh, do not worry, Godling, it is not like that," He said, seeming to be enjoying her fearful looks. "Think about it. I am here, so what would I be asking of you?"
His manic grin, once again, sent shivers across her spine.
And suddenly she understood.
He was going to place her under the Sky.
Seeing the realization cross over her eyes, Atlas brought his face close to her. "Exactly. And that is where you're going to spend the rest of your days."
As he gloated, he didn't see Artemis pull back her head. But he sure felt it, when she slammed her forehead to his jaw.
"OW! You bitch!" He grabbed her by her hair and started dragging her. She could slowly see the Sky approach.
"No one will come to save you, little Huntress. They will die before they even get close."
With a heavy grunt, he swung Artemis into the three stone creatures currently holding up the sky. As she was flung into them, she felt the crushing weight of the sky land on her shoulders.
"Settle in, little Godling. For you will never leave from here."
Hey all! I hope everyone had a great year change!
As always huge thanks to the usual three.
But besides that, I also want to give a huge shoutout to my friend Bravo.
He's a writer who I have been helping, and he's been pushing me to write for a while now, even if it's in fanfiction!;)
So, I'm trying to set up the last few characters for now, and am hopefully getting to the real juice of the story after that.
Thanks for reading the chapter, I hope you enjoyed it.
Check out TemplarHalo on AO3.
Check out Arkkkk on Fanfiction,net.
Check out Sol PJOFan on Fanfiction,net.
Spartan, signing off.