Chapter 24 - Hunter

“And then we came back to camp. We figured that you and Philippa and Den—“ Will glanced around the room. “Where is Denny?” Hunter sighed and looked at Philippa a second.
“Denny wasn’t…real.” Hunter said, standing up. Everyone looked at him like he was crazy.  “Denny wasn’t actually a satyr. He wasn’t actually the satyr that brought you here, Kyle. He wasn’t actually a he.”
“Hunter, what are you talking about? We all saw him. I remember him coming to my house and bringing me here.” Kyle said with a nod. Hunter took the sunglasses off his shirt and slipped them on.
“Do you, though?” Hunter sighed and thought about Denny. Apate. The satyr that she transformed into. Everyone in the room gasped and he looked down to see hooves. “See? Denny was Apate in disguise. We kind of…trapped her in the underworld and in exchange for us letting her go, she gave me…these.” He said, pulling off the sunglasses and breaking the disguise.
“Is she working with Echidna or Prometheus?” Chiron asked in his calm voice. “You letting her go might have been a bad idea.” Hunter studied the ground. Chiron was right, but pissing off another god was NOT on Hunter’s to do list. He needed all the help he could get against Prometheus.
“She didn’t say that she was and if she were, then she could have just killed us.” Marina said in Hunter’s defense. Hunter smiled a little at Marina and then realized she had some explaining to do.
“Marina, why didn’t you tell us that you could control fire?” Hunter said, looking from Marina to Kyle. Marina looked a little sad, but Kyle looked angry. He looked betrayed and Hunter completely understood.
“I…I just—“
“I imagine she was afraid of being judged.” Chiron said. Hunter turned toward him in surprise a little. “The last demigod that could control fire made a mess of things.  Since then, we’ve always been afraid that another one would show up and make another mess. I think Marina has done splendidly even with her gift.” Hunter sat down and looked across at Marina.
“So, that bull just blasted you with fire and you just stood there? It didn’t hurt or anything?” Marina sighed.
“I felt it. I felt the heat. It just didn’t burn me like it would you.” She took a little breath. “And then I forced it up into its throat.” She glanced over at Kyle who turned away and ran his fingers through his hair.
“Where did those things come from?” Kyle asked, changing subjects.
“How did the fleece disappear? What happened to it?” Hunter leaned over the table a little. He hated not knowing. That stupid casino had made this way more difficult than it could have been.
“Peleus. He flew off with it one morning.” Will said, leaning back in his chair, idly spinning his trident in his hand. “We don’t know why or where he is now, but Peleus’ mother was Echidna. It’s possible she called for him and he ran. Despite him being raised and trained here.”
“Without the fleece our borders are weak. It’s possible that the monsters could be staging an assault on the camp.” Chiron’s face seemed older. It always did when he became concerned. At least, concerned to this degree.
“Echidna is angry. We kill her children constantly.” Hunter said quietly. “She’d attack us, but Prometheus thinks bigger. He’s going to attack  Olympus and with our forces split like they will be, here and Manhattan, he’s going to make short work of us.”
“Let’s just hope the gods can force Typhon back down. Maybe they can help.” Chiron sat down in his wheelchair. “Get some rest, children. We’ll need to start planning tomorrow.”
As Hunter slept that night, he dreamed again. He was in the middle of Manhattan. There was the restaurant that Chiron took him to on his 9th birthday. There was the arcade that Hunter went to when he was 8. He walked there from camp and Chiron was worried sick. Hunter was most upset because it ruined his score on Ms. Pacman. Hunter stood and everything seemed to move around him. The image zoomed from the city to near outside the city. There stood an army of Cyclopes and hyperboreans. Monsters and the few people he had seen in his other dream. The image shifted again he saw a mob of monsters, some that Hunter had seen before, but several he hadn’t. They were marching and Hunter knew exactly where they were. They were a lot closer then Hunter was expecting. They would be there within the week.  Hunter tried to wake up, but the image shifted again. It didn’t stop this time. His head started hurting, like someone was trying to break into it with a hammer. Suddenly the image shattered and he was in a dark room, Artemis standing in front of him.
“Hunter, I gave you direct orders and yet you defy them!” Artemis stepped forward and looked down at him, her eyes burning a hole through him. “I told you to meet up with the Hunters. Yet here you are. Sleeping back at camp.”
“Camp isn’t safe!” Hunter stood up, surprising Artemis a little. “You’re busy fighting Typhon, but I’m here trying to take care of everything else! Camp is in danger. It’s about to be attacked by an army bigger than I have ever seen. Manhattan, and that includes Mt. Olympus, is about to be attacked by an army of titans, monsters, giants, Cyclopes, and all that other stuff. Too many to count. Instead of you climbing onto my back like a howler monkey, shouting into my ear, think about what’s at stake! You might not have any kids at camp, but think of the priorities! Now, wake me up.” He said firmly, folding his arms across his chest, his breathing a little heavy. She paused for a moment before snapping her fingers.
Hunter woke up and slipped on clothes, immediately leaving his cabin. “Chiron! Chiron!” Hunter said, bursting into the Big house. “They’re close.” Hunter ran his fingers through his hair. His dream was so short, but he had been sleeping for hours. He could tell. “In my dream. Echidna to the north of camp. She’s marching with an army of monsters. Prometheus and his army are on their way to Manhattan. We need to do something.” Hunter said, almost pleadingly. Chiron looked at him and a pensive look spread across his face.
“We need to split our forces up. We have no other choice.” Chiron said, standing up out of his wheelchair and starting to strap on armor. “I’ll send messages to anyone I can get a hold of. Maybe we can get some reinforcements.”
“To the border!” Hunter heard ruckus outside. Without saying anything, he left the Big house and ran. He sprinted toward the border, past Thalia’s Pine. The patrol was locked in combat with a giant golden beast. Hunter had seen it before. He happened to still carry a piece of him around. Hunter drew his daggers and ran at the Nemean Lion. It roared and swept its paws, knocking several campers off their feet. Hunter jumped and sank his knife into its back, the Nemean Lion claw, sinking through its original owner’s flesh. It roared in pain and reared back, but Hunter kept a tight grip. The Lion growled and then started running. Hunter straddled the lion and rode him down the street. With every pick up in speed the dagger cut a little bit deeper into the Nemean Lion’s metal hide. Hunter didn’t want to let this thing live. The next time this thing was killed, it was going to stay dead. For a long time. Hunter grabbed a handful of the lion’s mane and pulled the knife out, stabbing again and again into the back of its neck. He could feel the beast slowing and finally it collapsed into a pile of dust, leaving a thick golden hide behind. Hunter brushed himself off. If they’re attacking this soon, we might not have people left to send to Manhattan. Hunter thought to himself as he picked the hide up. It was light and before his eyes it transformed into a dark brown leather jacket. If Hunter was going to war, having an invincible jacket was certainly going to help. Hunter slipped it on and walked back to camp, watching the injured being hauled into the infirmary. All of this was because Prometheus. Prometheus opened Tartarus. Prometheus rallied the monsters. He was attacking. Hunter’s home was threatened. Hunter entered the Big house and looked Chiron right in the eyes.
“I don’t care who else is going, but I am going to Manhattan and I am going to kill Prometheus.”