==Artemis 2019==

TW: 18+ | Descriptions of Violence | Mature Language

Terra Lorenz, 5 Years Old

Leaves crackled in the dead of night as a masked woman in her mid-thirties began to pick up speed though the woods. She navigated the forest with perfect precision, ducking and diving under fallen trees. She used the cane in her hand to vault over a fallen tree, she landed on the very edge of a mountain face. Her pursuer grew closer, navigating the land she had traveled at twice the speed, with much less efficiency. She swung the young girl who was strapped to her back around to her chest. The school-aged child was nearly too big to fit in the make-shift holster that her mother had made for her.

“Mom, where are we going?”

No answer.

She wrapped her hands around the child and tucked and rolled down the mountain face. Using her cane as a leverage and a guide as she made her way to the bottom with little injuries. Upon landing, she shushed the child and swung her around to her back.

The cane at her side began to glow a bright purple glow. The insignia on it’s handle read “Atlas”, who seemingly heeded her call. A large visage of fog began to gather around the woman as she traversed the rolling plains of the White mountains.

She thought about her own parents, and how they would react if she arrived at their doorstep. Would they slam the door in her face? No matter what happened, they would take their next of grandchild, even if they refused to protect their daughter.

Other options came across her mind.

Her daughter, laying on her back, felt heavier than she should. A child cursed with the mark of half-Olympian blood and doomed to a life of tragedy. That is what the Oracle in her village told her. Once Zeus heard of her existence, he begged to meet the girl. “Mothers have to do what is best for their children”, she thought.

A figure began to cut through the fog, moving at inhuman speeds. She watched as a bolt of lightning granted him an extra boost of power, allowing the man ahead of her to run in circles. He gathered the fog into one place, creating a tornado and dispersing the fog with his staff, caduceus.

“There is no use running. Please come here, so I can see your face.”

The woman, now naked with the truth, approached Hermes, the messenger of the Olympian gods. He held his hand to her face, removing her mask and revealing her identity.

“Kimi Lorenz. I didn’t expect the leader of the tribe to be the one who ran. Nevermind the one to lay with an Olympian.”

Despite Hermes towering over her, Kimi puffed out her chest and met him face-to-face. He circled around her and met the little girl. She looked up at him with wide, confused green eyes. Hermes smiled at her.

“Don’t worry little one, I am not going to hurt you or your mother. Soon, this will feel like it was just a bad dream.”

Hermes tapped the girl’s forehead with his caduceus, causing her to fall into a deep sleep. Hermes turned his attention directly to Kimi.

“You were going to get rid of her because we found out about her, weren’t you? What do you have to gain with Olympian connections, after all?” Hermes inquired.

“Ultimate protection for my people. Besides, the girl is unskilled. I cannot bring myself to look at her.” Kimi admitted.

“Let me ask one thing of you. Relinquish the girl. Do not destroy her. Relinquish her, and we will leave you alone.”

Kimi let out a bothered sigh. “Take her. You know where.”

Kimi handed the sleeping girl to Hermes. He cradled her carefully, holding her head to remove the risk of getting whiplash.

“What is her name?”

“Terra.”

“Cute.” Hermes half-responded as he left Kimi in a puff of dust. He arrived at a small, sleeping village. He walked past the town hall, lights were on, but slightly dimmed. He arrived at a house buried in the woods. A letterbox read “Carl and Ellie Lorenz”.

He laid the sleeping Terra down at the door of her Grandparents house. She bumped her head on the side of the house, sparking her awake. She looked up at Hermes.

“Wh…Where is my Mom?” The girl uttered with tears in her eyes.

“Sorry, your Mother isn’t coming back.” Hermes spoke bluntly.

________________________________________________________________________

6 Years Later, Terra Lorenz, 11 Years Old

Beneath the rolling plains and rough countrysides of the White Mountains, there laid a lonesome village. Just over the summit, laid the chaotic isolationist village that Kimi Lorenz headed. This side of the mountain, the townspeople consisted of many faces, new and old with enough property to allow for their families to flourish. The village hid just far enough off the beaten hiking trail, it was protected by the fear of Kimi Lorenz, despite her ambivalence towards it’s people.

CRACK!

A branch broke under the light pressure of Terra’s quiet footsteps. She ducked and hid behind the nearby tree to wait for any signs of movement past her goal, which she stood just below. A large apple tree known to house the best apples in the village. She quickly scaled the tree after a quick search for anyone on the property. Her handbag was unclipped from her side as she began to fill her sack with apples. She filled her sack with as many as she could, and popped one in her mouth. It was as succulent as she expected. She quickly devoured the apple she held in her hand and threw it over on the ground as she always did whenever she snuck onto the farm. It made it appear that animals had broken through the farmer’s cleverly constructed defenses again. There was a final apple just out of reach. Terra held onto the closest branch, and began to outstretch her hand to claim her final prize. “How dare you steal from me again, girl!” A voice roared.

Once again, the farmer caught Terra in her act. She quickly deduced that the sound of her dropping the apple she had stripped must have alerted the man to her presence. He screamed at Terra like a dog barking up a tree. She took her chance when she had it, and slid down the tree. Smacking the man in the head on her descent. She bolted as fast as she could. Overflowing apples peeked out of the bag and rolled out one after the other. Terra peered behind herself, the grown man was quickly regaining the ground he had lost between the two. Terra reached the end of the farm. The last monument stood tall in front of her. The fence. As it approached her, she leaped from the ground and immediately scurried up the metal wires. The adrenaline came to a tipping point. In her rush to reach the top, she slashed her hand on the very top of the edge of the top of the fence. Apples came flying onto the ground like a hailstorm. Terra regained her footing, only to be ripped from the ground by the back of her shirt. The farmer held her up to his eye-level.

“Gotcha.”

He dragged her to the center of the town. Where they met a middle-aged woman with a sword draped across her back. She looked like warriors of myth who decided to revoke all her responsibilities and become a secretary instead.

“I caught her stealing my crops again! My family and I slaved away at the farm growing that Apple tree!”

“I understand your worries, sir. Ms. Lorenz’s family will be charged the appropriate amount for what was stolen off of your property.”

“Good. I hope you learned your lesson.” The man fussed as he left the town hall.

Terra was sent home with a warning. She knew her grandfather would be getting a call about her very soon, if not right after she left town hall. She took the long way back home hoping to prolong the stern talking-to she would receive when she arrived. When she reached her house, her grandfather, Carl, was in the front yard of the house, watering their plants. He seemed to sense Terra’s presence even before she arrived, but he let her take the walk of shame up to the front door.

“What? No good morning, Papa?”

She sat on the front steps. Her lip quivered as she struggled to find the words. Carl came close to look at her hand, he peered down at the large gash that was already beginning to heal.

“Wow, you’re a fast healer, kid. I don’t want to see any infections. Let’s get you bandaged up.” Carl commanded.

Their house was small, but livable. The largest room was Terra’s grandparents' shared study. Adorned with many Olympian artifacts. Carl told Terra many detailed stories about the artifacts he had recovered. They were special weapons that the Olympian gods used during the Titanomachy, the ten-year war between the Olympian gods and the Titans. In the very center of the study sat Athena’s shield. It was too large for any of them to imagine holding. On the other side of the study was Terra’s grandmother, Ellie’s large collection of assorted types of plants,

Terra winced as Carl poured a couple drops of cool running water over her cut. He wrapped her hand with a tight-fitting bandage.

“Why did you steal from that man? Did you think it was the right thing to do?”

“Well…You were complaining about how we didn’t have a lot to eat. Yesterday Grandma was talking to you about money. From the sounds of the conversation, we don’t have a lot, do we? I realized the gap the farmer had patched was broken open again, so I took my chance when I could…I’m sorry. I know stealing is wrong.”

“But why did you steal from him? I want to hear you say it.”

“Because we weren’t going to have enough money for food.” Terra mumbled.

“Grandma is out right now, we just managed to scrape by. I did some extra work for that farmer. It’s okay to want to help, Terra. You just need to know who to talk to. He’ll drop the charges because we are friends, I don’t think we will be so fortunate next time.”

“I’m sorry…” The feelings washed over Terra, swirling inside of her stomach and taking over her young mind. She looked up at her grandfather, who intently observed.

“Next time, you can come work with me and apologize. You can work on the farm with me, put those hands to work in a productive way. You hurt that man. Violence should only be used as a last resort, Terra. Always remember that.”

Carl stepped away to let the feelings sink in. Just like she was getting bandaged up now, that man was bandaged up messily by the woman at the library. The hit Terra had delivered to his head had done much more damage than she expected.

Carl returned with a book in hand that Terra had never seen. It read “Artemis”. He led Terra into his study, where they would often sit comfortably to read.

“What’s this story about? I’ve never seen that book before.”

“This is a book about the goddess of the hunt, Artemis. I found it hidden in an old temple nearby. Beat my daughter to it, alright!”

He quickly caught himself after his comment. Terra looked into the distance, dejectedly upon hearing mention of her Mother. All she remembered was bright, blue flames closing in on her. Carl continued on, brushing dust off of the ancient book. It had a faded red texture to it, and upon opening it, they were greeted with a beautifully sketched image that depicted armor. The words inscribed read “Artemis Armor”.

“Hey, doesn’t Artemis live close to here? Does that mean her Armor might be around somewhere?” Terra asked cheerily.

“What, willing to help me add something to my collection?”

“Nope, I’m starting my own!”

The next page held logs, presumably written by Artemis and her Nymphs about their encounters on Earth. They told of Artemis’s many encounters with humans. Artemis was a proud woman, who was exceedingly protective of her femininity. A story told about Actaeon, who saw Artemis and her Nymphs bathing. She turned him into a stag, thereafter he was hunted down and killed by Actaeon’s fifty hounds.

“Olympian stories always end in tragedy. What he did was pretty bad, but I don’t think he deserved to be eaten alive by hounds. Artemis kind of seems like a bad person…” Terra reflected.

“Gods take any perceived offense towards them to the extreme. Anybody who gets in their way is quickly put in their place. Sometimes punishments are harsher than others. Artemis, for one, is very prideful, but she will do what she can to protect and destroy those she views as good and evil.” Carl explained bluntly.