Gods and goddesses accumulated many followers throughout the years. Sometimes, entire families would honor a certain immortal like following a tradition. Because of this being so commonplace, there were immortals who did not pay much attention to those who prayed to them; however, there were still some on Mount Olympus who were often engaged with their followers. Among these was Artemis. The goddess spent most of her time around the maidens who honored her. Together, they would go and protect the animals of the wild, mythical or not. Occasionally, Artemis let her followers go on missions of their own, but one was taking far too long. Mount Olympus could feel the goddess's worry. It spread to the other Olympians as though it was their own emotion. This led to the queen going to check on Artemis one day. The younger goddess was watching over some followers when she approached. Seeing the queen, Artemis bowed her head.

"Hera," she greeted, "it's an honor for you to meet with us."

The queen raised her hand, gesturing to the mortals. "You don't need to be so formal, Atali. They can't see me."

Instantly, the other goddess relaxed. Her expression showed more concern.

"I'm worried, Valka," she said. "One of my maidens is putting herself in danger."

"Do you know where she is?"

"Yes, but she won't leave. She says she needs to do this."

"Do what exactly?"

"I'm not sure." Atali paused, lips pursed in frustration. "I'm not even sure if she knows. She just said that she wants to help and that's all she's told me. I don't like for there to be secrets kept in our groups."

Valka was quiet as she considered this. "Maybe she just wants to prove herself to you. Once she thinks she has, this might all be resolved."

Atali was not so sure that she agreed, but she still nodded her head. "I hope so."

"Stoick and I will be hoping for her safe return."

"Thank you. I appreciate that."

The queen left to tend to her own duties as Atali continued thinking about her worrisome follower. She was unaware of how many immortals were noticing that something was wrong. Even Dagur could tell that there was an issue in her realm. He just did not know the details. The trio of heroes started leaving Ephyra and he turned into a large vulture again.

"I think we need to head to Arcadia," he said. "Seems like something's going on there."

"Is a lot of fear there?" Snotlout asked.

"Anger mainly," Dagur informed him. "It doesn't seem human."

Understanding, the mortals hopped up onto his back. They waved goodbye to the subjects and the Minotaur as they flew away. When they were in the air, Hiccup glanced down.

"Which goddess are we helping?"

"Artemis," Dagur said. "One of her followers is in trouble…or something. It's hard to tell."

"What do you mean?"

"Sometimes, immortals can sense when something's wrong with another one of us. It's not that distracting or anything, but you can still tell. She's really worried about this mortal."

"Why doesn't she just go over there?"

"She's got a lot of followers. It's not easy for the more popular gods to speak with everybody. At least that's what they say."

"You don't believe them?" Snotlout inquired.

"Not sure. I don't mind getting my hands dirty if I want to know something. I'd rather just see what's going on than guess like they do."

"Maybe if you get a bunch of followers, you'll be busy too," Hiccup commented.

Snotlout glanced at him. The thought of Dagur being too busy for them was a little saddening. Even Hiccup did not seem to like the suggestion, but he still wanted to acknowledge it as a possibility. Maybe all of this had a time limit. Eventually, the immortal would move on and leave them. Dagur paused, thinking about what the Berkian had said. It was possible that having more followers could make things different. That was never something he had worried about in the past. Few mortals would view him as someone to follow so devotedly. It was almost strange to consider a reality where they did. The world itself might collapse if anything so bizarre were to occur. Dagur supposed that the idea should not have amused him so much. Maybe that was why mortals normally avoided him. He snapped out of these thoughts as he saw the new area come into view. The group landed and Snotlout started looking around. There was a loud noise that made Hiccup think another monster was about to attack. When nothing happened, he saw Snotlout frowning at his stomach.

"That was you?" the smaller boy asked, shocked.

"This is what happens when you fight giants and a jerk king wants to poison you instead of feed you. Aren't you hungry too?"

Hiccup had not thought of food since being in Ephyra. The whole place made him feel a little nauseous, but now that they were no longer surrounded by death, the pangs of hunger were harder to ignore. Fighting the Minotaur also used more energy than he was accustomed to spending.

"Well, am I now. Thanks," he commented sarcastically.

"Don't blame me. If you're going to be a hero, you'll have to get used to eating like one."

Dagur tapped his chin in thought. "How often do you need to do that?"

"Eat?"

"Yeah."

Snotlout shrugged. "I don't know. I guess it depends on what we're doing." He stopped, seeing the immortal frowning in confusion. "You forgot that we have to eat, didn't you?"

"No! Maybe…I'm used to fighting, not the in-between stuff. My soldiers normally eat before we start a battle. If you're about to starve, say something because I'll just keep dragging you off on missions until you both look like Hiccup."

The little Viking frowned slightly at him. Dagur did not notice and glanced around at the surroundings.

"There's probably a yak or something around here that you could eat."

Snotlout nodded, already licking his lips in anticipation. "On it! I'll find that while you two start a fire. Then we can search for the one follower."

"Call out if something's wrong," Hiccup requested.

The bigger boy smirked. "Won't need to."

With a wave, he started running into the forest. While he did, Hiccup began setting up a fire pit to roast whatever Snotlout brought back. He looked up at Dagur curiously.

"I've never thought about it, but do immortals eat? I heard Sisyphus mention ambrosia."

Dagur plopped down on the grass. "We don't really need to. There's ambrosia to drink and nectar to eat, but we don't have anything else."

"Do you need those?"

"Sort of. It's not like you mortals who start getting hungry after…what? A week?"

"Sometimes less than that."

"Ah, okay, I'll have to remember that. Well, we don't just start getting hungry after a little while like you. Our time's different from yours anyway. Maybe a few months to you would be enough for us to start feeling thirsty or hungry."

"What happens if you don't have ambrosia or nectar after those months? Would you somehow die?"

"Kinda takes the fun out of being immortal if we can die," Dagur said, laughing. "We wouldn't, but we'd start feeling pretty weak."

"Has that ever happened to you?"

"I tried testing it out once because I was bored, then I got bored of the test and just drank some ambrosia. I saw it happen to someone that Hades was punishing, though. Was pretty brutal. It was one of the minor gods. I almost felt bad for the guy."

Hiccup got quiet and appeared thoughtful. There was so much about the immortal that he wanted to know. He put some more sticks in the fire, then looked at his prosthetic.

"Could something like this happen to an immortal?" he asked. "I never understood how Hephaestus didn't have an arm or a leg."

Dagur tilted his head at him. "It's a mix. He was born with one leg, but he lost his arm."

"What could take the arm off a god?"

"We can get wounded."

"Really?"

"Yeah, but it's not easy. The injuries heal pretty fast unless they're caused by other immortals or some really powerful monsters. Then you've got a problem."

"Would it hurt?" Hiccup asked, then glanced down unsurely. "That seems like a weird question to ask when we're talking about losing limbs, but I guess I'm just not sure if it's more of an inconvenience than anything else for gods."

"We can get hurt too." The redhead looked off into the forest like his focus was somewhere else. "Unlike injuries, pain isn't only from monsters and immortals."

Hiccup nodded quietly, feeling concerned. He wanted to ask the war god to elaborate, but it seemed like this was all he was going to say on the matter. Dagur had started taking out another knife to sharpen.

"Well," the mortal said, "if there's ever something Snotlout or I could do to help out, I hope you'll let us know."

Dagur glanced up from the blade. His gaze was intense, searching for any signs of Hiccup just saying what he thought the immortal wanted to hear. The boy did not flinch from the stare since he meant every word. Dagur saw this and let out another laugh. It was a mix of amused, doubtful, and yet touched.

"I'll keep that in mind," he commented.

The duo stayed near the fire as Snotlout kept searching for some food. He was so hungry that even a cyclops sounded good. Well, maybe he was not quite that famished yet, but after a few more hours, he could have been. Snotlout's eyes were scanning the area for anything that did not belong. Something would move and as soon as it did, he would pounce. At last, he spotted a deer. Smiling, Snotlout got ready to throw his ax. Before he could, he sensed someone behind him. He was tackled to the ground and a hand was clamped against his mouth. The boy's eyes widened when he saw a dark-haired girl. She had a worried frown on her face. He rolled, making it so that he could stand up again.

"What was that for?!"

"Shh," she advised. "You can't kill that deer. It'll cry out and you'll draw attention."

"Whose?"

The stranger looked like she did not want to elaborate further. Snotlout crossed his arms.

"If you're going to mess up my dinner, can I at least know why?"

"How can I trust you?"

"You're the one who attacked me. How am I suddenly the untrustworthy person here?"

Snotlout narrowed his eyes at her, then realization dawned on him. He kept his voice low as he spoke.

"Wait, are you a follower of Artemis?"

She nodded. "Yes, I'm Atalanta. Why?"

"I'm Heracles. We're looking for you."

"Who's 'we?'"

"Me, my cousin, and Ares."

Atalanta's eyebrows lifted in shock. "Why is Ares looking for me? Is he mad?"

"No, he's just worried because Artemis has been stressed out over you lately."

"That doesn't sound like Ares."

"Well, maybe you don't know him as well as you think you do."

"Maybe," she admitted. Her expression turned slightly regretful. "Artemis has really been stressing?"

"Yes, that's why we're here. We want to make sure everything's okay and tell her the good news."

"Well, I'm fine, but everything's not okay."

Snotlout put a hand to his chin pensively. "Ares sensed that there was an issue that wasn't human."

"He's right. Something is going on here. The gods are in danger."

"What?!"

"Shh!"

Snotlout put both hands over his own mouth. "Sorry," he said underneath them.

Slowly, he removed his hands and looked around. It seemed like no one had heard him or at least was about to attack.

"How are they in danger?"

"Monsters are starting to work together. You've got centaurs, satyrs, and everything else on the same side. I've never seen them do this before. It's not natural. They don't need to form teams if they just want to hurt people. The plan's got to be bigger than that. They need to be stopped."

"I agree. Let us help you. We can get to the bottom of this together."

Atalanta shook her head. "No, I have to do this alone."

"Why? It'll be easier if you've got us all here."

"If I do it alone, I'll be able to repay my debt."

"Who do you owe?"

"Atal—Artemis."

Snotlout looked confused and Atalanta sighed.

"I just need to do this, okay? You wouldn't understand."

"I might understand more than you'd think."

Atalanta looked at him, eyes skeptical. She could tell that he was not trying to deceive her. The warrior knew that he was right about more backup being useful. It was possible that having someone else around could lead to additional success. Unfortunately, it was just as likely that Atalanta would get overlooked if this other mortal showed up and started making a name for himself.

"If you want to do this, I won't try to stop you," Snotlout assured her. "This is your mission. Our mission is just making sure you get back in one piece…preferably one that's still breathing. Is that fair?"

He extended his hand. Unsurely, Atalanta shook it.

"Alright, but you'll need to be quiet. Can you do that?"

Snotlout nodded and Atalanta started leading him off to the left.

"I should get the others," he whispered.

"No, I don't want them getting involved. Just you. If another immortal's here, Artemis will never think I was trying to help her. She might even think I've gone to a different god for help. It's just you or none of you."

Snotlout's mouth curved down slightly. "But we're a team."

"It's your call, Heracles."

Before he could answer, Atalanta ran off. She was really fast. Snotlout huffed and started running after her. Maybe if things were not too bad, they could handle this on their own. The pair kept running through the forest, beginning to notice distant sounds. Being that far away, Snotlout could not make them out yet. The closer he got, the clearer they became. They sounded like a mix of walking and talking. Snotlout tried to get a better look at what was there, but the trees obstructed his view. He stopped when he saw that Atalanta had. She was crouched low near some bushes and Snotlout joined her. Hiding there, they could see what was going on around them. Satyrs and centaurs were gathered. They looked like they were distressed.

"How long do we have to do this?" one centaur asked.

"Be patient," a satyr chastised. "You'll anger the king if you talk like that."

"Can't help it. We're under attack. This plan is a waste of time. It's not working fast enough."

"Quiet," a louder voice hissed.

The mortals saw several cyclopses and giants approaching. Their presence made the other monsters turn meek. A cyclops went over to the talkative centaur, glaring at him.

"We'll wait for as long as His Majesty decides and we won't question it. Is that understood?"

Fearfully nodding, the centaur stopped talking. More creatures began to gather and Atalanta's face turned ashen. She had not anticipated seeing so many.

"Come on," she whispered. "Who do you all work for?"

Snotlout saw the group become larger, but a pit formed in his stomach when he saw minotaurs.

"Atalanta," he whispered, "we need to go."

"Why?"

"Minotaurs have—"

Before he could finish his sentence, a minotaur sniffed the air and grunted. It looked right in the direction of the two youths. They ducked down, but it was too late.

"Mortals!" it cried.

Snotlout let out a sigh, then finished, "enhanced senses."

He and Atalanta stood up from behind the bushes, both in fighting stances. A satyr ran at them, but Snotlout grabbed it by the horns. He used the creature as a weapon with which to hit a centaur. Both creatures were knocked to the ground. As they were, Atalanta drew a sword and deflected an attack from a cyclops. With a swift move, she cut its side. The monster cried out, calling more of the others to join. Snotlout and Atalanta stood with their backs facing each other. They were surrounded on every side. A minotaur lowered its head, prepared to gut them. When it started to run, Snotlout got ready to grab its head. Suddenly, a giant put its leg between the mortals and the other creatures. The attackers looked up at him in confusion.

"What are you doing?"

"They can be an offering to the king," the giant suggested.

The monsters' eyes filled with intrigue and started backing away. Snotlout frowned at them.

"I don't really plan on becoming an offering," he said.

Snotlout's grip tightened on the handle to his ax, but he saw an unreadable expression on Atalanta's face. Abruptly, she sheathed her weapon and held her hands up. She glanced his way, silently revealing the plan. If they kept fighting, they would learn nothing. This would get them one step closer to figuring out what the monsters were doing.

"I must be losing my mind," Snotlout thought.

He lowered his weapon as well and held up his hands. The monsters came up to both mortals, forcing their arms behind their backs. Snotlout scowled as ropes were tied around his wrists. He and Atalanta got pushed through the crowd until they saw a cage. Its material seemed bizarre. As they got closer, they realized that the cage was made of bones. They started to pull back, but neither youth had much time. They were immediately tossed in and the door was closed, then locked.

"It's good you came when you did," a cyclops stated. "We'd been upsetting the king lately, but I'm sure you'll improve his mood."

The monsters chuckled and gathered around the cage, continuing their discussion. When they were gone, the mortals looked at one another. A slightly regretful expression was on Atalanta's face.

"Sorry, Heracles. I didn't plan for all this to happen. If you want to call Ares, I understand."

Snotlout hesitated before shaking his head. "We're in this together, Lanta. I won't call them if we can handle this alone."

The other warrior sent him an appreciative smile and looked back out at the group.

"I just hope this will help us be able to stop them."

Snotlout followed her gaze. He also hoped that this would work. If anything got too risky, he would call for Dagur and Hiccup. Until then, the warrior supposed that he would accept being the monsters' prisoner. Anything was worth it to learn more about their plans and leader. Before the day was over, Snotlout would at least have some of his questions answered. These monsters had just picked the wrong mortals to turn into offerings.

Arcadia is actually where Atalanta is from in most versions of the story. Like in this, she is a follower of Artemis, but the reason will be revealed in the next chapter. She was a skilled hunter and athlete, being particularly fast. Hoping to remain single, she said she would marry anyone who could beat her in a race. Unfortunately for any slow suitors, she killed those who lost. Finally, someone decided to just cheat. That someone, Hippomenes, prayed to Aphrodite and used 3 golden apples to distract Atalanta. He would throw them whenever she was about to pass him so that she'd stop and check them out. After all this, there was a (probably very tense) wedding.