The First Daughter

Chapter 22:


Somehow I fell asleep, feeling like I was somehow pinned in the realm of darkness. My head started to thump to the beat of my heart. I tried to move my wrists but they laid where they were planted. I slowly began to get a sense of what was around me. I started to realized that I was in another dream. I wanted to wake up and drag myself from my sleep, but my body wouldn't let me. I was aware of my surroundings: my back laid flat against a cold hard metal table.


Metal table?


Wait I was in a warm soft hammock in Eliza's tent: How did I get on a table?
I was dreaming again: My wrists were pinned down by a strong and thick fabric that had rubbed my skin raw. I felt little tiny bumps, the sound of cart wheels were below me, and I felt air pass by me; I was being moved!
Was I dead or something?
No, they had restraints on my hands, they had to assume that I could wake up.
Who was they?
What did they want with me?


I struggled to open my eyes and once I did I saw above me hospital like walls and ceiling, complete with rectangle lights that illuminated the hall. But it was moving somewhat quickly down this long hall.
I couldn't move my head up or down: it felt like it took too much power to move. I felt drained; completely and utterly drained. I rolled my head to the side, banging my head on the top of the table. Pain shot through my web of nerves in my head and slowly became numb into my neck. I was still being moved on the table and I saw doors as I passed by.


They were labeled with different names and there were even symbols on the doors showing how deadly the things or maybe,
People...


were on the other side and apparently a skull and crossbones meant that it was the deadliest of them all. It started at a low scale,


Just a number on the door:


Danger level 21: these doors only had a simple pad lock: maybe higher numbers meant that you were less powerful to a certain scale.


Then


Danger 20-18: these doors slowly, more and more became more secure. This was a pattern: the lower the number the higher security.


When it came to the doors with 10 or less: The doors were guarded by men with semi-automatic weapons and body armor, and heavy anti-escape measures. My hunter senses kicked in and I heard different noises and my eyes tried to follow every one of them, I felt now like I was in real danger: This wasn't a dream anymore: This, was real. I tried to move but I was still too weak, too tired, too drained. Cameras whizzed around, guns cocked, energy buzzed, EKGs pulsed on, people screaming, fear, anger, aggression, caged animals that wanted to get out.


I wanted to leave too!


I wanted to get away!


I gathered what strength I had, and pulled against my arm restraints to no avail. I tried to pull my legs up but they were tied down too. I screamed pulling myself as much as I could: I am a captive here. Nobody should put anyone in a cage, especially me. I was a Daughter of the greatest Hunter, now I have become the Hunted. I screamed louder and my screams attracted people, with white lab coats: one with a huge needle filled with an orange serum. I managed to get one hand free and I thrashed it around wildly to protect me, but my victory and my shield were quickly neutralized as the huge was stabbed into my neck.


And then I woke up...


***


I bolted from my sleep covered in sweat: the fear in the dream still in my being: It could have been real. But it wasn't: I woke up, this was real. I leaned forward running my hands through my hair trying to bring myself back into the world. I pulled myself out of the hammock and pulled on my black jacket. When I pulled my jacket through the sleeve a loud explosion sounded and I lurched forward at the shock wave sending through the tent. I turned and found that Lilly was already gone. I pulled up the collar of my jacket, collected my bow, quiver full of arrows and clipped my belt with readied knife clipped to it.


I slung my quiver over my shoulder and hurried outside. I pushed away the tent door and was set off balance by and nearby explosive. I put up my arm to guard my face and ran to the Command Tent. I tumbled through the door and found Gaius and Eliza talking and looking at a map of Camp Jupiter. Gaius looked at me and Eliza looked up at Gaius and followed his gaze behind herself. Eliza smiled slightly but she remained serious, “Hannah! Glad you're awake!”
Gaius nodded and added, “Hannah, you're friends Darren and Lilly are already on the Battle Field, go find them: Our scouts outside the city have spotted The Hunters coming to the city and it is best that you are not here when they arrive.”


I was confused and apparently I wore it on my face and Eliza explained quickly that Darren filled them in on the details. I made a mental note to next when I am on a quest to discuss to the other people with me on what information to share and what not to share.
Well, I guess that The Hunters hunting me down was no real secret. I nodded and ran out of the tent and hurried down Mars' Hill with my bow readied.


***


I shifted into auto-pilot as soon as I stepped into the city limits of New Rome, it felt like my consciousness took a step back and I hardly knew what I was doing when I was doing it. I somehow navigated the streets as I fought off the shadow creatures, as we all took to calling them. One came around the corner and the next thing I knew one of my Mother's arrows had implanted itself in the Shadow Creature's chest. I kept moving: the resistance started to thicken, more Shadow Creatures came around me but my auto-pilot was no match for them: One jumped above to try and tackle me to the ground but my knife somehow came into my hand and stabbed the creature. I pressed through the streets in my auto-pilot. It wasn't until I saw Darren that I snapped out of it, and my conscious suddenly came back.


I picked my knife up from the ashes of the last Shadow Creature that attacked me, “Darren!” I called out. Darren turned and waved back and a Shadow Creature jumped out of nowhere behind Darren, I trued to get it with my bow but a blast of green energy beat me to it. I lowered my bow and Lilly rounded the corner.


“You've gotten better with your magic.” I commented.
Lilly shrugged, “Once you do it the first time it's not that hard to pick up on. I don't know what Hecate was talking about this stuff being this hard.”
I looked over Lilly's shoulder and a sea of Shadow Creatures was coming from the direction of the center of the city. I readied myself for a fight, then Lilly and Darren followed suit.
“Well, let's do this!” Lilly shouted.


I cocked a smile and the sea came at us full force, arrow, arrow, arrow, arrow, Mom's quiver never came out empty. I slowly shifted into automatic pilot again and felt like I blacked out but somehow managed to stay awake. My memory blurred as the endless amount Shadow Creatures I fought dissipated into ash. I turned my head and saw that a creature was about to attack Lilly from behind while she was distracted by the other creatures around her. I acted like a computer; I saw the problem and corrected it with deadly precision: My knife flew in my fingers and gripped the knife, throwing with deadly accuracy: The knife plunged into the back of Lilly's secret attacker and it fell into a cloud of ash.


I wavered in my stance for a second, I felt my consciousness somehow slipping. But I managed to stay in my half wake state, and fumble for another arrow. My eyes rolled closed, my arm pulled out an arrow and as I turned my eyes rolled open again I saw a shadow creature jumping for me I reached up my hand and a zap of green energy vaporized the shadow creature into oblivion. I wanted to turn my head to Lilly and give her a nod of thanks bu something....


Was controlling me.


I looked ahead, but it wasn't me controlling my head or body, it was someone or something. “It's time to finish you off Daughter of Artemis.” A voice said in my head. I began to walk to this river that flowed through the city: I tried to fight but this thing was stronger and managed to drag myself over to the river. “What do, you want?” I managed to grumble.
“I have been sent by the Master.”
He kept dragging half my body while my other half was fighting with myself.
“Hades...” I growled bringing my eyebrows down.
“Not quite.” He replied.
“What?”


The creature didn't answer and continued to drag me along to the river and I looked ahead and saw a bridge. “Let. Me. Go.” I demanded.
“No.” It replied.
I fought with everything I had.
I had managed while I was limping to the bridge, to gain control over my right arm and grabbed one of my Mother's arrows and before this thing knew I took it and stabbed my left leg to stop him.


Pain seared through my left leg, I screamed in agony and stumbled forward, and I started to feel like I was in control again. “Very well.” the creature replied, and I felt the presence leave, and the black vision on the side of my eyes left and the semi-consciousness left. I panted and held my leg that was bleeding out and curled on my side.
I whimpered for a medic, writhing in pain, letting tears fall from my eyes. I heard footsteps come up and I opened my eyes and through the blur of tears I saw Lilly in front of me, just standing there.
“Lilly,” I groaned, “What are you doing....?”


Lilly slowly and like a robot, raised her arm and flat hand and pointed it at me. My vision cleared and I could see fear in Lilly's eyes but calm in her body. One second I knew what was going on, “Leave her alone!” I cried out, “Lilly you have to fight it!”
Lilly's lip quivered as tears flowed from her eyes, “I... I... can't!”
Her hand began to glow green and swirled.
“Lilly!” I cried out, “You can stop it!”
One blast from Lilly's hand collided with my chest, and before I even hit the ground I was immersed in blackness.

Notes

PLOT TWIST.

Hannah dies...