Chapter 1 - A Goddess Scorned, A Love Unchained - For you, I Let The World Burn.
0%
100%

In the skies above there stands a godlike home for godlike beings, the structure is massive sitting on top of the mountains, like it ruled the sky. The air full of divine energy, it is a place where no mortal can walk. Olympus pierces the heavens, bathed in eternal twilight, the scent of ambrosia thick as gods sit upon their indestructible paradise.

But the atmosphere is then disturbed by roaring footsteps; it sounds as if the marble floor is on the brink of collapse.

A lean and tall goddess built like she is meant to hunt (6'2"), with calloused hands from archery. Auburn colored long and flowing hair braided with living vines and threaded with wolf teeth. with silver-greyed eye slit-pupiled like a beast's when it is enraged. She wears a short chiton just so she has freedom of movement, to hunt more efficiently. Her bow and arrows carried in quiver on her back bounce as each thundering steps cause a shake into the hallways of Olympus.

Then- a coin flipped through the air, catching the light. "My, my, Artemis, what has got your chiton on a twist? Did Apollo sing off-key? Haha! Oh, I'm only kidding, as if that's ever going to happen... But if it does, please do tell, I'll make a fool out him!" A god lithe and androgynous (5'11"), leaning against a pillar, with a look like he just fell out of bed. His hair messy with the color of platinum blond as it flows through the wind as it glows. And his eyes are like gold shining in the shadows. He wears a short tunic suited for traveling, paired with his hat with wings placed on the sides and his signature winged sandals, he is the symbol of speed.

"Not now, Hermes. " Artemis doesn't stop her raging footsteps, she doesn't want to deal with a god known to be a trickster.

"Wow, you look terrible. You look almost as pissed as the time Zeus turned your favorite nymph into a bear." Hermes' smile turns into a grin as he follows her like a mischievous child. "Callisto was innocent-unlike you." Artemis fires back with her words.

"Hey, I tried to warn her! But 'Hey, maybe don't date the guy who turns into a shower of gold' isn't exactly a catchy pickup line. I mean come on; you have to agree with me on that one, right?" Hermes' Smirk grows wider still flipping his coin.

"... That was Danaƫ." Artemis' veins are about to pop just talking to this trickster.

"Eh. Zeus' exploits all blur together. Anyways, you still haven't answered my question! What's gotten you so... active this early in the morning?" Hermes asks once more but Artemis just keeps walking furiously on the long hallway, so he moves faster than an eye can blink and goes in front of Artemis stopping her in her tracks. "Come on spill the tea!" Hermes' eyes glow like an excited child.

"I swear on the Styx, Hermes, if you don't move-" Artemis gets cut off by Hermes. "Oooooh! Styx-swearing! Must be serious. What's next? Are you going to turn me into a stag like poor Actaeon? I mean that is if you could catch me, which we know that's never going to happen pfft!" Hermes aggravates Artemis more and more. "Don't tempt me." Artemis looks like she is serious on turning Hermes into a stag.

"Pfft. You'd miss me. Who else would remind you that your sacred deer keep flirting with Apollo's cattle? Not so sacred if I do say so myself." Hermes just keeps taunting Artemis by bringing up the past.

"... That was one time! ... Ugh just talking to you angers me further! ... Look, it's about my animals, okay?! They've... been dying." Artemis finally stops in her tracks.

"...Well, you can't blame a mortal, they have to hunt to survive... Is THAT really the reason why you're so peeved? Because if it is, you're crazy." Hermes looks disappointed.

"Not because of that you idiot, they're dying rapidly fast! So much so I think the animals in one area of a forest might go extinct! Which is exactly why I am about to go down the mortal realm and check that particular forest out, but you keep on stopping me!" Artemis finally explains the situation to Hermes; Hermes has a look of shock on his face.

"Huh... That doesn't sound so funny." Hermes stops flipping his coin as he now wears a concerned face. "No, it's hilarious" Artemis hissed at Hermes clearly irritated. "Tell me, Messenger- what use are you if you don't notice your own domain collapsing? Are you just lazing around?"

Hermes raises an eyebrow. "Hey, I deliver messages, not miracle cures. Besides, aren't you the protector of animals? Perhaps you may be the one that's lazing around."

Artemis clicks her tongue and forms a fist.

"Fine." Artemis steps at the edge of Olympus. "I'll handle it myself."

"Without another word, she jumps from Olympus- plummeting towards the Mortal World, the wind screaming in her ears as she is falling in a speedy rate.

Hermes peered over the ledge. "Wow. She's really pissed over some deer... But then again she's supposed to protect those little guys."

The coin landed on his palm. Heads.

"...Eh, Zeus will hear about this eventually." Hermes then goes on his usual ways.

✽ ✽ ✽

The Mortal World - A Forest Drenched in Twilight

En skipped through the trees, like a playful child. While a massive boar slung over her shoulders. Her humming was horribly off-key, but she's thankful An thought her how to hum. It calms her mind; she doesn't know why humming puts her at peace. But she is uninterested as to know why, she just keeps humming.

"Mmm... An is going to love this big boar! It took a while to catch it since it was pretty lively, but it was all worth it!" En drools just from thinking of eating the boar she caught.

"And then, after that, I will catch another! Maybe even bigger! I love hunting~" En continues to hum as she skips around the forests, she loves her life now and she won't trade anything for it.

Then an arrow is shot down right in front of her stopping En in her tracks.

"Wahh!" En drops the boar as she falls down onto the ground from the shock. "W-where did that come from...?" En looks around looking for a clue to where the arrow came from.

En looks back and sees a figure emerge from the shadows.

"You." Artemis slowly walks from the shadows as the light hits her, showing her contours.

"Oh... Uh... Hello..." En has trouble speaking, this is her first time seeing another person besides An.

Artemis pulls out her bow and pushes the tip to En's chest, pinning her on the ground.

"You massacred wildlife, my beasts. Do you have any idea the punishment you are about to receive?" Artemis interrogates En, showing the anger she has for her.

"Ow ow ow! Stop! Stop!! You're hurting me!" En cries out as she holds Artemis' bow trying to get it off.

En wonders why she's hurting so much, but what she has only adapted to is the Big Bang, the concept of a rapid expansion of spacetime from an intensely dense singularity. But not the concept of Physical Trauma, as Artemis is only pinning her down and showing no signs of killing En yet, En can't do anything.

Artemis examines En as she is trying to escape from her control.

"I've been watching as I fell, there were no other mortals beside you... Where exactly did you come from? ... Well, that doesn't matter, I will give you a fate worse than death." Artemis reaches her hand so she can grab En's neck.

But En retaliates, she managed to push Artemis' hand out before she could grab her, then she kicks Artemis' shin, Artemis loses grip on the bow from the surprise of a Mortal defying her.

En takes the chance to free herself of Artemis' control as she breathes heavily. She knows Artemis means harm, and has to tell An.

But Artemis just stands there, giving a petrifying glare towards En. En has antagonized the Goddess of the Hunt, which En is unaware about.

✽ ✽ ✽

The Cave - A Feast Interrupted

An rotated the boar over the fire, the fire crackling and the turning of the boar is the only thing that has sound in the silent cave.

"En is taking a while, maybe she caught a buffet instead of a boar..." Silence fills the cave once more, his thoughts out loud.

"Actually, I'll just go look for her right now." As An stood up wiping the dust off him-

The Entrance of the Cave explodes, with En flying towards An as rubble covers her.

"An... Scary lady..." En points at Artemis slowly walking towards both of them with her Arrow on her Bow ready to shoot.

"I didn't think it would be this soon... As I thought, I can just never predict when this just might happen. Doing the same exact movements as the last reset to ensure when this incident might happen just seems impossible..." An mutters to himself.

"So, the butcher has a partner." Artemis says angrily as she steadily walks towards An and En.

An focuses on the present knowing he can't change what has happened already.

"En." An calls out to En.

"Y-yes?" En says in a worried voice.

"I want you to run, run far away from here." An says as he stands his ground.

"W-What? But An... What about you...?" En is nervous for An.

"Please, run." An clenches his fist.

"You better listen to him; you might get a chance to escape me... Pfft, who am I kidding, I've been told that I am a really capable hunter." Artemis aims her bow at An.

TO BE CONTINUED.

Footnotes

Bookmarks

You must be logged in to see your bookmarks.

Comments

Express your thoughts

You're reading

Chapter

Reader Profile

Theme
Aa
Original
Aa
Paper
Aa
Quiet
Aa
Bold
Aa
Focus
Aa
Calm
Font Appearance
Font Size16px