The Huntress [2018 Archived]

Chapter 6

My mouth suddenly went dry. This was not the same woman Jamie and I had seen at the party. She was smaller, for one, much more compact and strong, but still willowy and slender.

Instead of cinnamon-y, brown hair, long black hair fell in a braid almost to her waist. She was wearing a simple white dress, a chiton, I suddenly remembered. I had originally thought it was a toga, but chiton seemed to fit her better.

The woman radiated extreme power. It slithered across the ground in dark vortexes, entrapping us. We couldn't move or think even as the hunter stalked closer to her terrified prey.

Her dark blue eyes glared at me. She had blood red lips that curved into a smile. In her hand, she gripped a silver bow.

She was terrifyingly beautiful.

"Who are you?" I spoke, amazingly calm, even though I suddenly already knew the answer. A slim silver circlet was nestled in her black hair. Even though it was in the middle of the day, it was dark as night. The crescent moon winked down on us from high in the sky.

"I am the Huntress," she purred in a sultry voice, stepping closer to me. "You know who I am. You know what I am."

"You are Artemis," I said, not stuttering once. The word flowed freely from my tongue as if it was hidden in the back of my throat all along. She was right. I knew who she was.

"Yes," Artemis's dark eyes glinted. Every hair on the back of my neck stood up. I fought the urge to run for my life.

"Y-you killed them," I stammered, my eyes landing on the silver bow she held in one marble hand. "You're responsible."

"You are responsible, Alexis Morgan!" she exclaimed, her dark cloak swishing in cold blasts of fury. Her cape shimmered, constellations rippling across its folds. "Your family, your pathetic city is responsible. I have waited for over a century, watching as this miserable village thrived, only to be destroyed."

A freezing feeling crept up my spine. "What do you mean?"

"When a divine creature has been wronged, the balance between mortal and god shift," Artemis growled. "I have been wronged in an act of pure evil. And perhaps it is only stories to you, Alexis Morgan, but if you recall, I let none of my trespassers walk away."

I remembered everything that I could from the ancient myths. It was true. Callisto the bear, Actaeon, even the kingdom of Kalydon. Artemis had let no one walk free.

But...but what could she be talking about? Gods weren't supposed to be real. What could I have possibly done to anger her?

"Your ignorance is amusing," Artemis huffed. Her hand dipped into her cloak and pulled something out. It was a silver arrow that gleamed brightly though there was no source of light around. The feathers were honed to aerodynamic perfection, its arrowhead was razor sharp. It flew straight, I knew. Because that arrow was the prize for Winshest's annual archery contest, a contest that brought archers from all over the world. The contest was the only thing that managed to keep Winshest's businesses afloat.

And it was mine.

"Hey!" I hissed. "Where did you get that?"

"If I had it, that would not be the problem," Artemis said, waving her hand. The arrow dissipated into the air. "You've stolen something from me. And now you will pay."

"What?" I cried out. "That was not stolen! That's mine! "

"It is rightfully mine," Artemis said, her red lips pulling back in a snarl. "And you have it."

I looked back at Sierra, Joel, and Jamie. They were staring at me, all three of them in shock. My friends would be no help to me.

"I am sorry," I apologized reluctantly. "I-I have something that is yours."