Heroes of our Time: The Lieutenant of the Moon

Chapter 10: An Unexpected Gift

Α~Δ~Ω ~ Α~Δ~Ω ~ Α~Δ~Ω

Dream state (Unknown time)

All I see is black.

My eyes adjusted to the darkness surrounding me. After a few minutes, I saw something glimmer in the distance. My feet moved on its own accord and soon the gleaming object was in front of me.

But it wasn't an object.

"My Lady!" I gasped and fell on my knees. I tried to reach for her but it felt like a hundred mile chasm was between us. "Lady Artemis! Can you hear me?" She didn't move.

She looked better than before. Her skin was fair, healthy even. The scars and bruises that decorated her can be seen nowhere. Her glow was enough to light a meter of space around her. Her face was calm like she was sleeping. It's as if she didn't went through a living hell.

A light formed behind me. Before I can look it dimmed again. I stood up . . . tried to. I was glued to the spot again like my dream before. The person's footsteps echoed throughout the cavern. The boy slowly approached us. The light Lady Artemis' was emitting caught the gleam of a sword. I stood my ground and tried not to get affected with the way he was carrying his sword. As if he was about to slice a head off.

"Artemis . . . Artemis . . ." He was directly in front of me. The light only showed the sword and his hand so I couldn't make out the features of his face. "Do you know the story of Prometheus?" The goddess didn't move. "I assume you do."

Prometheus is a Titan, descendant of Iapetus and Clymene. In the war between the Titans and the Olympians, he sided with the latter. The Titans were defeated and they were sent to Tartarus. Because Prometheus sided with the Olympians he escaped punishment.

He helped mankind develop different kinds of skills. He tricked Zeus into accepting the poor entrails of the mortals' offerings. Of course, Zeus got angry therefore he hid fire from them. Prometheus stole it from him and gave it back to mankind.

Zeus got angrier and so he decided to punish man and Prometheus. He ordered Hephaestus to make a woman later to be named Pandora. She had a jar with her—mortals tend to call it a box even though it's really a jar—and by opening it she unleashed all the evils into the world and only hope remained in the jar. Prometheus was chained to a rock on Mount Caucasus. Each day an eagle would come and consume his liver. But Prometheus is immortal so each night his liver regrew.

Zeus will only release if two conditions were met: one, an immortal must volunteer to die for him, and two, a mortal must kill the eagle and unchain him. The immortal who died for him was Chiron the centaur. He was accidentally shot with an arrow poisoned with Hydra's blood. Chiron can't heal from this but since he's immortal he cannot die. He then agreed to die for Prometheus' freedom. The mortal who killed the eagle and unchained Prometheus was Heracles.

That's what happening to Lady Artemis right now. She heals but this boy continues to torture her so she's going under the same pain every day.

I need to find her. Soon.

He swung his sword at me. I covered myself with my arms, waiting for it to strike. But it just passed through me. So I'm in a dream after all.

Someone shouted in agony. I looked around and realized Artemis took the blow. "How far are you willing to go to receive your freedom?" he asked.

"I will not accept your offer," the Lady spat. "I would rather stay here for the rest of my life than let them pay for what I have gotten myself into."

"How noble of you." He started to circle around us. "How long until you break? How long until you beg on your knees in front of me, asking to stop the torment?" He sliced at her face. Ichor started to flow from her forehead.