"I agree. There has been no sighting of Poseidon's son. In fact, I met with Hermes earlier today. He's not even sure what part of the country he's in! Zeus has declared that if Poseidon's son does not return the bolt by the Summer Solstice, there will be consequences."
...
The ultimatum made Artemis consider her options, and any thoughts of the past were thrown aside as she assessed this new situation. "My hunters are moving East. I was already planning on avoiding Half-Blood Camp, so if need be, I can search for this demigod."
"You have a limited time," Athena warned.
"Yes, but my hunters and I stand the best chance of tracking down this demigod. We can reach the Appalachians in a day. Anywhere on the Eastern seaboard in another. If you can narrow the search range before we set out from the mountains, I could find this demigod. Put Zeus's fears to rest." Artemis reasoned, thinking over the scenario.
"Even if you do find him, I doubt he will have the Master Bolt in his possession. In addition, if we can't even locate the boy, his power must be obscured, even weak."
"Most boys are."
"I can name one who surprised you." Athena shot back.
Oddly, the pain that usually followed such a statement was absence, and Artemis found herself quipping back without pause, "A welcome surprise, after some hesitations."
The Goddess of Wisdom and Battle Strategy exited soon after, and Artemis walked back to the Hunters camp, in preparation to move out for the Eastern mountain range. It was odd, to walk among the trees with the sun bright behind her. Fully risen, the suns' rays flickered against the leaves, which glowed a thousand different shades of green. Unusually, camp was packed and her hunt moved with her at this time of day, exploring the wilderness. They had an extra hour to prepare today, and she didn't plan to give them any extra rest.
She stepped back into the campsite to find it completely gone, along with the wolves of the Hunt. Her hunters were lounged around in flattened grass circles, talking with each other. All their supplies and tents were magically enchanted to reside in mundane items that each hunter carried on their person. Hephaestus was a great ally at times.
"Hunters, good morning! Now gather round, I have news."
All bounded over to her like graceful hares, clearly energized. Even Zoe had a small smile on her face, as she elbowed Phoebe lightly as they walked over from the shade of a nearby elm tree.
Artemis stood where the gate to the campsite had once stood as her hunters fell into a loose semicircle around her. Phoebe and Zoe were together, as usual on her right. Next to them stood Elizabeth, Victoria, and Kathleen, all clothed in some bright, vivid color of the Victorian era. Angelina and Sarah both had an arm draped over Emily who supported her two friends with a tongue-in-cheek smile. Mara was bouncing on her soles, looking ready for a boxing match while Christina eyed her fellow hunter with resignation, as she shared a glance with Winnifred, Jennifer, and Anna, who all looked a bit out of sorts.
"I see not all of us are refreshed and ready for the day." Artemis remarked dryly. She watched the three hunters grumble quietly, and to her right, Zoe barked in laughter.
"MY Lady, I happened upon them whispering about Perseus in the middle of the night. Thine tale has besotted them it seems."
"Oi! You joined us Zoe" Winnifred cried, playfully sticking her tongue out to the Lieutenant. Artemis bit off a laugh as her Lieutenant colored slightly.
"Girls, focus please. I have some serious information." Artemis continued as she saw all her Hunters lost their bantering faces.
"I spoke with Athena this morning. Zeus's Master Bolt has been stolen. He has blamed Poseidon's demigod son, and we are tasked with bringing this demigod in. Although both Athena and I agree that this demigod, who is twelve, is unlikely to have stolen the Bolt, it will force Zeus to drop his charges against Poseidon."
The Hunters all nodded seriously, and Zoe spoke up from amoung them.
"My Lady, is that why we are moving East?"
"Yes and no. I had planned on moving East regardless of this information. We will proceed as planned to reach the Appalachian Mountains by day's end. After that, we will begin our search. The summer solstice is our deadline, and we have no leads on where this demigod is located, so we have no need to hasten anywhere for now."
Artemis found that to be both comforting and worrisome. The Solstice was only days away. They would have only two full days to even search for the boy. She was certain that Poseidon, and a couple other immortals would know his whereabouts, if Hermes failed to locate the demigod. But the mere idea of persuading Poseidon to yield his demigod son's location to her was laughable. The Elder God was unshakeable as the sea, and there were few immortals he would relent for.
Zoe voice cut across her thoughts, "My Lady, let's get to it. Thy knows how obnoxious, and arrogant boys are."
Artemis scowled, "I'm inclined to agree." Other hunters were nodding sagely to Zoe's comment. The Hunt had many dealings with demigods over thousands of years, and seldom were they welcome encounters. Suddenly dark memories of a long-gone demigod pooled into her mind.
She almost growled on the spot. Orion. She hoped for this demigod's sake that he wasn't anything like his dead brother.
They reached the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains by late afternoon. Artemis was proud of her hunters. They had marched all day through woodland terrain, without pause at a breakneck speed. The wolves would make their own way for a while. For the time being, Artemis could only relax as she bolted amoung the trees.
All around her, the Hunt scurried over fallen logs and weaved through the undergrowth with practiced ease. Artemis saw flashes of silver, blue, and a daring red in the low branches of some trees. There was only one hunter who she allowed to wear such a color. Ever since Phoebe had seen a woman wearing a vibrant red dress hundreds of years ago, she had donned the color, now in the form of a form fitting shirt on top of her tunic. Zoe swung alongside her, laughing as she raced her age-old friend.
It was a sight that never failed to warm her heart. To her right, her newest hunter, Angelina, nimbly skipped across two rocks to ford a stream. Artemis fondly watched her. Angelina had been with the hunt for a scant amount of time, but she was taking to it faster than Artemis had ever seen.
She reveled in it all. The trees, air, and rays of sunlight flashing by as Artemis bounded through the wilds, her Hunt all around her. Only Zoe and Phoebe seemed unfazed by the great distance they had covered.
Artemis's domains allowed the hunt to travel magically, but the hundreds of miles they had travelled was reflected in the forty or so miles they had run.
Artemis had finally called the hunt to a stop in the elevated highlands, near the Cumberland Gap. The area was heavily wooded but secure. The clearing Artemis found was very much so smaller than their previous campsite, but it was roomy enough to accommodate all the Hunt comfortably. Hunters shuffled forward alongside her, alert, with bows drawn, and Artemis had to admire her girls. Along were bone tired but still were ready for a fight. They hadn't run into any monsters on the journey to the Appalachian Mountains. A rarity, but a welcome one. It turned out that their cautions would not be needed, for the clearing was empty and calm.
"My Lady. Shall we rest for the day?" Zoe asked, leaning on her bow. Her lieutenant
Artemis found herself chuckling, "I think we shall."
Immediately after Artemis had said that, she heard a groan from behind her, followed by a dull thud. It was Angelina, passed out in the long wild grass of the clearing. Mara plopped herself down with Angelina, who was facedown while mumbling and rest her head on the girl's back.
The hunt dropped their guarded demeanors and suddenly, there was playful laughter and scattered conversations all around. Artemis settled herself against a tree trunk and slid down to rest upon the grassy ground to watch her hunters. There wasn't any reason to set up camp, and Artemis hadn't slept underneath the stars in a couple of weeks. It was a blissful feeling, and the hours passed quickly.
A fire was started, and the wolves had slunk in at nightfall, curling up next to her and the hunters. Artemis absentmindedly rubbed the head of the alpha wolf, who was nestled by her side. The hunt was settled around the fire, finishing off cooked rabbits, and retelling old tales of the Hunt. In hindsight, Artemis shouldn't have let her guard down.
"Zoe this'll be the twenty-fifth time you've told the story where you took on two drakons at once! It happened so long ago, even Phoebe is yawning during your tale!" Christina cried, pointing accusingly at a yawning Phoebe. Zoe sputtered in rage, and the entire hunt peeled in laughter. An ungodly choking noise came from Phoebe as she too struggled to bite back her amusement.
"Why I will flay thy's backside! You insolent little…" Zoe cried, playfully chucking a piece of roast rabbit at Christina, hitting her right in the forehead. "And thee too! Phoebe!" Zoe whirled her attention onto her age-old friend. Artemis couldn't hold back her laughter.
"My Lady!" Zoe frowned, "Even you?" Zoe harrumphed, crossing her arms.
"Hey, I have an idea!" Christina, "How about we all hear the next installment of Artemis and Perseus?" Artemis froze against the tree trunk, and accidentally squeezed the nap of the alpha wolf's neck. "I mean, while we have the time…we will be on a wild goose chase the next couple of days."
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