Chapter 2

Percy's POV

It had been 4 days since we left camp half blood and I still can't figure out why Artemis would give me an offer to come on a hunting trip with them. I was sitting on a small log by my tent drawing on a pad of paper at the hunters camp. The hunters camp was set up like a giant U with the mess hall and armory at the end.

The only thing that did not fit the pattern was my tent which I had set up to the right of the tents so as to make sure that I was not intruding on the hunters 'space'. I wasn't told to do this but I did any way because the way I saw it I was not supposed to be here and so did most of the huntresses if the looks they were giving me were anything to go by.

So I decided it would be best to keep some distance from them so they wouldn't have an excuse to kill me. Thalia said they wouldn't do anything unless I broke the rules they were several but the first and most important 2 were 1) I was not allowed to go in the hunters tents and vice versa 2) I was not to flirt with any of Artemis's hunters.

Getting back on topic why would Artemis want me to come with them I had no ability with a bow whatsoever, I was clumsy, loud, and a boy. They hated boys and I was probably the worst hunter alive so 'why would they let me come' I kept asking myself again and again. I was taken out of my thoughts when a soft voice to my left said "Perseus."

Artemis POV

Percy turn to see me walking up to him in my 16 year old form. The day we left camp Percy seemed to be caught off guard by this since I usually looked around 12 he had asked Thalia about it when he thought I couldn't hear him. She told him that I looked the average age of her hunters which was now 16 since they started recruiting from the Romans most of which were around 17 or so since the younger ones had to finish their time in the legion before they could join.

Percy quickly stood up and bowed "Lady Artemis what can I help you with?"

"There's no need to bow Perseus I just came because we found where the dracena are hiding it's an old warehouse a mile to the east and I would like to have your input on our strategy meeting." I said

"I'll be there in a moment lady Artemis" he said bowing again.

At the sight of that "I thought I told you you didn't need to bow and second you don't need to call me lady Artemis you have saved Olympus twice you can call me Artemis when it's just the two of us there no need for formalities." I said.

Percy was caught a little off guard when I said this but then a mischievous smile tugged at his lips "Then how about we make a deal I'll stopping being so formal if you just call me Percy, I'm only called Perseus by my enemies."

"I'll think about it now hurry up Perseus Thalia will be mad if you take to long".

"Yes lady Artemis" Percy said with a small smile I narrowed my eyes and frowned at him as I turned to leave I smiled 'why am I smiling' I thought 'he completely ignored what I said. He just looked at me with those amazing sea green eyes with a smile and ignored what I said I don't care how handsome he looked he…wo where did that come from.'

I came out of my thoughts when Thalia said "So is Percy coming."

"Yes he should be here in a minute or two" I said "lets start and we can fill him in when he gets here."

Percy POV

'did she just smile no it must just be my imagination' I thought shaking my head I tossed the pencil and paper in my tent and started walk to the mess hall where the meeting was supposed to be. When I was two or three tents away still he was able to hear Artemis and her hunters talking "We will attack when the sun first comes up, dracena don't like the light so hopefully they'll be a little disoriented" a girl said who I recognized as Beca daughter of Athena.

"There are two separate rooms in the warehouse. From the evidence Thalia and I found on our scouting mission there should only be forty or so of them and we have just as many hunters, but there are 2 things that keep bugging me. 1 is we found these massive drag marks leading to the main doors which look big enough to fit a small plane through and 2 It's not like dracena to use any sort of dwelling in the woods they prefer mountains and caves, why would so many of them come so far into the woods".

'she has a point' I thought I heard twig snap to my left, as I looked for the source of the noise I froze. Standing not 5 feet away from him behind one of the tents was the biggest wolf I had ever seen it was almost 6 feet tall with a mix of auburn and pitch black fur. As I was about to raise the alarm when the wolf looked straight at me and ran off into the woods.

"You girls wouldn't have to have a giant six foot wolf as part of your hunting wolves would ya" I asked walking into the mess hall.

"No, why?" Thalia said.

"Because I just saw one hiding behind one of the tents but he bolted when he saw me, now I'm no expert but wolves that large aren't natural" I said flatly.

"You're right they're not, but our hunting wolves should have at least warned us of its arrival" Artemis said worry clear on her face I could tell that it worried her that something so dangerous could get in and out of camp almost completely undetected.

Artemis quickly put on a neutral expression and said "Alright everyone get some sleep we're getting rid of this nest tomorrow" and with that we went to bed

Artemis POV

We arrived at the rear of the warehouse early the next morning the back was pressed up against a cliff so that the bottom of the windows on the top floor were level with the ground. The windows facing us were so dirty we couldn't see through them, thankfully one of the windows were cracked just enough so that we could see inside. It was dark inside despite the fact there were widows around the whole room except for the wall to my right which divided the warehouse into 2 separate rooms.

Just below the windows on our side was a small catwalk 'perfect' I thought 'this will give us the high ground' slowly I opened the window and stepped onto the catwalk test to make sure it would hold her then I motioned for Percy and the hunters.

As soon as the last hunter got on the catwalk the room was filled with the sound of machinery the catwalk went flat against the wall dumping Me, Percy, and the hunters on the ground 10 feet below. As We struggled to stand lights flashed on, our original estimate of forty was wrong there were close to 70 dracena all armed with bows, swords, and spears. At seeing this I only had one thought 'they knew how did they know'