In the Veil of Vengeance

by Kasondra Morin

  Artemis sneered. “You? A simple dryad? Protect me? How amusing. The tree spirit wishes to stand in the way of an all-powerful immortal. I am not a Harpy. I can’t be chased off with a stick and magical twigs!”

  Jace jerked back as if slapped. Her words, though plain, cut with the force of a sword. “You are inviting death if you leave now.”

  Artemis vibrated with rage. “It’s you that is inviting it if you do not remove yourself from that door.”

  Jace threw up his hands in exasperation. “Fine. Go. Search out your brother in this weakened state and die for all I care.” He stepped aside, holding a hand out to signify her freedom.

  Artemis stared at the muscles in his torso as they moved with each angry breath, so she wouldn’t have to meet his gaze. A new feeling rose up in her chest to her throat into a lump that threatened to choke her.

  Regret. Shame. Sadness.

  The emotions all blurred together when they wrapped around her windpipe and halted her breath.

  Without another word, she walked out.

  Chapter 10

  Jace heard every movement as she walked out of his forest. The angry hisses of her breath as she pushed the trees he’d brought closer as a barrier to shield them. To protect her. He listened with his eyes closed until he heard no more. The resulting silence left a hole as big as the doorway in his chest.

  His hands curled into fists by his sides. Should he run after her? Would she even accept an apology right now?

  He sighed and forced his muscles to relax. Of course, he would chase after her. He would pack a bag, like a sane person rather than marching out ill equipped, and then go with her to find Ares. Jace should’ve expected that Artemis would rush off when her twin was in danger. It’d been only a short time that she’d been without her powers and it was as if she hadn’t fully accepted that fact. She would do what she had always done until she had no choice but to embrace her new existence.

  As he packed, he tried to remember everything he knew about the God of War. It was difficult picturing the feminine Artemis sharing her life, a womb even once upon a time, with what had only been a brute in Jace’s eyes. His wars had waged into their forests for as long as he could remember, trampling and burning everything in the wake of their battles.

  Though he’d never seen them together, stories surrounding their relationship were epic and well-traveled. When the pair fought as one, legions bowed in terror. Jace recalled a particular story where Artemis and her Amazons were backed against a ledge by a herd of rogue centaurs when Ares rushed to his sister's aid. The dirt at the sight of the massacre was still stained with blood a decade after the siblings' triumph.

  By the time he had finished packing, he'd spilled honey, splashed the gross tea, and knocked the bowl of yarrow onto the floor… again. He had several hours of cleaning to do when he got back if he was going to take care of Artemis as she kept healing.

  Jace paused and shook his head at himself. He was already planning to “be back” because he could not accept any other outcome. If she was taken…

  Air flooded into the room as the front door opened in a rush.

  “You came back!” Jace exclaimed. He set the full bag down and turned around.

  A tall, slender figure loomed in the open doorway. Light filtered through the graying skin on enormous, bat-like wings which sprouted from her back between the shoulder blades. Red eyes, rimmed in black, focused directly on him.

  Jace covered his nose against the stink of sulfur and brimstone preceding the creature.

  Zeus had resorted to Furies.

  “Which one are you?” Jace took a step backwards when the snake at her throat began to pulse and move.

  “Daughter of spirit and earth who fed on blood from birth,” she hissed between large fangs.

  “That must make you Alecto.”

  Tears of blood trickled down her face. “I seek the goddess of warriors.”

  Jace glanced around sarcastically. “You're going to have to be more specific. Athena? Enyo? I haven't talked to them in ages.”

  Alecto roared in frustration and swiped at him with her claw-like hand. Jace barely jerked out of the way in time. He cringed when his shredded tunic fell open. Any exposed skin would only fuel her desire to see him split open and bleeding.

  “I do not come for you, dryad.” Her eyes glowed with hatred. “But you will sustain me while I search for the goddess.” She lunged forward again.

  Jace ducked and rolled out of the way. He had to think fast. Artemis was out there, weak and alone. Furies rarely worked solo so he could assume Alecto's sisters were on the prowl as well.

  His eyes settled on the iron fire poker under his workstation. The metal warmed his hand as he gripped it tight. “I'm not in the mood,” he exclaimed as he swung.

  Red-hot iron slammed into Alecto's side and Jace heard bone crack. He hoped it was her ribs and not his hand from the jolt of impact. The Fury shrieked. Jace dropped the poker and covered his ears as glass shattered around him.

  Ears ringing, he looked up just in time to see a backhand headed for his face. He couldn't move in time and his head swam as he ricocheted off of the nearest wall.

  He'd at least injured her. He could smell it. The scent of death permeated the air.

  “I was going to kill you quickly,” Alecto rasped. “But I think I'll draw it out; make you suffer.”

  Jace forced his shaking vision to focus on his many jars. He would never outmuscle a Fury. He had to fight smarter, not harder. Very few things could harm such a creature, mostly because they were already half-dead. Their partial immortality made them all but impossible to kill.

  Jace stumbled to the chest where he kept the most potent items in his collection. He grabbed around frantically at his storage of magical herbs. A small container of salt taken directly from around the Sea of Death bumped into his hand. Acquiring it had been an arduous and expensive process, but a small pinch would purify enough water to cleanse an entire home. And it would be volatile if combined with the concentrated evil contained in a Fury.

  He ripped the lid off and threw the contents into Alecto's face.

  She screamed as her skin hissed and burned where the white crystals landed. Pockets of flesh sizzled as gaping holes appeared and grew. Blood flowed from the wounds, spreading the hazardous salt over a wider area. Her screams grew louder until the house shook from their force.

  Jace dove at the abandoned poker and lifted it over his head. He was unsteady on his feet, blinking at the creature, trying to focus. But it was difficult, the world was fuzzy at the edges.

  With another cry of pain, Alecto turned and rushed from the room.

  The poker clattered to the ground. Jace looked around at the mess of blood and broken glass. His eyelids felt especially heavy and all he wanted to do was rest.

  He shook his head and winced. He touched a sore spot where the witch had hit him hard enough to cause a concussion. Jace stumbled to the door, but the forest just beyond it tipped sideways.

  Or that was him, landing gently on his side. His beloved plants had reached out and cradled him so that his fall wasn’t painful.

  In his final moments of consciousness, he called for the only dryad he trusted.

  “Aralissa.”

  Chapter 11

  Artemis winced as another small stone wedged its way between her toes.

  Flying was so much easier than traveling on foot. When she considered she may never fly again, her emotions threatened to overwhelm her. She would prefer death over never feeling the wind against her skin. Nothing could ever take the place of her ability to fly. Her wings were more than a source of power, they were part of her soul. She felt as if she were missing a limb or an organ. She stumbled again on an overgrown root and screamed in exasperation. She had never been so clumsy, it was this… this body! Even when she ran, her wings carried her over small irritants like rubble and thorns. For Artemis before, running was simply flying closer to the ground.

  She limped over t
o a nearby stream and ripped off her sandals. A sigh of relief erupted when she plunged her feet into the cool, running water. In the few minutes she'd been walking, she'd managed to snap a strap on her sandal and tear a toenail completely off. She glared at the shoes sitting on the bank beside her. How did humans manage to wear open-toed anything without totally mutilating their feet?

  And the other gods like to pretend we're the only ones with special abilities, she scoffed.

  Her heart dropped. If she did have some power in her blood, and still struggled like this, what would become of Ares? Her throat clenched as she remembered him curled on the ground at her feet. In all her years, she'd never seen him look so helpless and vulnerable. She survived because Jace had found her and cared for her.

  Jace.

  Her eyes closed and hot tears slipped down her cheeks. Regret nagged and pulsed in her chest like a living thing. She shouldn't have walked out like she did. She should have turned around gone back to him before she found herself lost in the forest.

  The tears came more freely as she admitted to herself she was, in fact, lost in the woodlands she had once called home.

  Sobs wracked her body. The effort made her sick to her stomach and more tired than she had been when she sat down. The sound of running water combined with overwhelming exhaustion. She brought her feet up out of the stream and curled her knees toward her chest.

  “What am I going to do?” she whispered.

  Fallen leaves rustled somewhere to her right. She froze. If another one of Zeus' hired operatives attacked she was as good as dead.

  Her breath panted from her nose as she clamped her mouth shut over the whimper of fear threatening to escape. She reached for her sword, her fingers moving slowly in an effort to pull it from the hilt silently.

  The sound grew louder and she could see the bush beginning to move out of the corner of her eye. Whatever it was, it must enjoy fear. The other mercenaries had swooped in without preamble, but this felt as though it was toying with her. Apparently, this creature preferred to soften its prey with terror.

  She demanded, “Show yourself!”

  A head poked out a few feet from where she sat, causing her to scramble backwards with a yell.

  The deer's ears tilted forward in alert confusion. Many-pointed antlers announced his status in the forest.

  Artemis let out a hysterical giggle.

  “Hello there,” she said as she gasped for breath. “You scared me.”

  The buck's muscular body tensed as he prepared to bolt.

  “Wait,” Artemis implored. “Please don't leave me here alone.”

  The animal seemed to consider her request. He dropped his head, putting his antlers forward in defense, as he stepped cautiously closer.

  She held a hand out, palm up. “See, you know me.” If only she'd brought some food on this journey. Of course, it was hard to remember to grab anything useful while attempting to storm out in anger.

  He sniffed at her hand. In a fluid motion, he bent his head down in supplication recognizing her as the Queen of his forest.

  “There,” Artemis sighed. “That's better, right? Will you stay with me?”

  The stag had always held a special place in her heart. It had been one of the key symbols associated with the original Artemis, and she too claimed it for herself.

  She reached out to pet the buck's soft hair. “I'm lost,” she whispered.

  The admission spurred the animal into action. He took a few steps forward before turning his head to make sure Artemis was going to follow.

  She shook her head with a soft sigh. “I need to rest my feet a little longer.”

  The buck gave an annoyed head toss before coming over and laying down by her side.

  She dipped her abused appendages back into the running water.

  “You need a name,” Artemis said conversationally. “Hmm. How about Dare? It’s fitting because your presence comes when I needed it most.” She swished her feet back and forth. “I think I should turn around and go back to him.”

  Dare lifted his head and turned an ear in her direction. He snorted loudly, seeming to express displeasure in the decision.

  Artemis watched a branch sweep by in the current. She sympathized with the lack of control it would have felt if it could. “He cared for me, kept me safe. I owe him my life and I walked out like a sulking child during a disagreement. He didn't deserve to be treated in such a way.”

  Her eyes closed. She felt a soft thump in her lap and looked down. Dare had brought over her sandals and placed them in her lap, as if saying it was time to go.

  She glanced over in surprise. She hadn't heard him move. A beast of that size should have made some sort of noise simply by shifting, but he'd managed to get up and get her shoes without her knowing. It struck her as odd but she shrugged it off as human inattention.

  Her heart beat faster again. Such a pathetic human trait would make her vulnerable to attack in a way she hadn't worried about in years. She didn’t notice things outside of her thoughts or peripheral, where before, her magic protected her. What would become of her if she never got her wings back? Would she be able to maintain her title or would that mantle pass to another? Would she become fully human or would her life be forfeit?

  Dare huffed and scraped a hoof at the ground.

  “Okay, okay. I'm coming.” She winced as she forced her painful, swollen feet into her sandals. “Go slowly,” she admonished.

  Head held high, Dare turned and led the way.

  Chapter 12

  Jace could hear someone talking. He groaned in annoyance. He'd been sleeping just fine and now someone was trying to wake him. It was rude.

  “I need you to open your eyes,” the voice was saying above him.

  He started to drift back off, sinking slowly into the quicksand of sleep.

  “Jace!” was shouted loud enough to make him jerk with surprise.

  His eyes blinked open. What little light came from the fire felt like red hot knives in his brain. He closed his eyes with a hiss of pain.

  “I know, but I need you to drink this for me.”

  A cup of liquid bumped against his mouth and he sipped on reflex. Recognizing the taste of a medicinal blend, he swallowed against the urge to spit and gag.

  “There you go,” preceded a cold cloth being placed on his forehead.

  He could feel tiny bits of energy lighting up inside his body as his awareness returned. His muscles tensed as he remembered what had landed him on the floor.

  “Oh oh oh. Shh. You're safe.”

  Realization clicked on inside Jace's brain. “Aralissa, you came.” He opened his eyes to squint at the dark-skinned dryad holding his head in her lap.

  She chuckled softly. “Of course I came. I'm not sure the trees would have allowed me to ignore such a desperate plea from one of their favorite guardians,” she teased.

  He tried to sit up before pain slashed across his head again. He gestured for the cup again, drinking the whole thing down. It may have tasted disgusting but, like he'd told Artemis, it would help heal. And he couldn't waste any more time.

  He must have tensed again because Aralissa tightened her hold infinitesimally. “Slow down. You're no good to her if you run out half-cocked. Tell me what happened.”

  “Fury,” he spat out like the word offended his taste-buds more than the medicine he’d forced down.

  Aralissa's eyes flew wide. “A Fury? Here? And you lived to tell the tale?”

  Jace cleared his throat with a cough. “I got lucky.”

  “I agree. You'd be stupid to run out after using up all of the luck you'll ever have for the rest of your life.”

  Jace shook his head. His wince wasn't as deep. The medicine was working efficiently. “I have to go after her.”

  Aralissa frowned but allowed him to sit up. “Your Artemis is under watchful care. She will be fine until you’re well enough to protect her again.”

  He reached for his satchel. “She needs the medicinal mixtures
in this bag. She’s all alone. And still healing.”

  Aralissa nodded. “Her wings, right? That's why you needed the backless dress?”

  Jace froze mid-step. “Wait, how do you know these things? I never disclosed who the dress was for or why I needed that particular style.”

  “You think the very goddess of the Amazons could go walking through the woods like a common nymph and no one would notice? You think no one would talk?” She leveled a look at him. “You know the trees better than that.”

  Pieces of the conversation formed and fit together in Jace's mind. He'd been blind to think Artemis was well-hidden in his home. All three attacks had happened on his proverbial doorstep. His first mistake had been allowing Madora to live. She would have revealed everything to Zeus in a desperate attempt to avoid his wrath. Zeus would know everything by now.

  Jace's heart dropped into the terrified depths of his core. “When you said someone was with her, did you mean the other dryads?”

  Aralissa crinkled her nose in confusion. “What good are dryads against those who wish to harm a goddess?” Then she blushed, realizing she’d dismissed his ability to guard Artemis.

  But Jace was too busy imagining the worst to feel that blow to his ego.

  Ice filled his veins. “Aralissa, it is very important that you tell me who is with Artemis. Her life depends on it.” Every nerve and tendon were prepared to bolt but he had to stay and find out what he was up against.

  “He took the form of a stag but one of the dryads saw him transform,” she stammered, picking up on the tension emanating from Jace's taut body language. “I thought he was here to help.”

  “Who!?” he shouted.

  “Zeus,” Aralissa yelled back in confusion. “The dryad said Zeus is watching over the goddess.”

  Jace cursed and sprinted out of the house.

  Chapter 13

  Artemis paused, propping herself up against the next tree, breathing heavily.

  Dare turned and stomped in annoyance.