The Silver Ring (PJO)

Chapter 25

"Your cabin is nice," Artemis mused as she let herself into the Poseidon cabin, then locked the door behind her, flipping on the lights.

It was nighttime, and I was staring at the ceiling, trying to get some sleep. But when Artemis barged into my cabin, I quickly got up, blinded by the fluorescent bulbs.

"Art-Lady Artemis, what are you doing here?" I asked as I quickly bowed. She was in her stunning twenty-year-old form again, making me self-conscious about how I looked in that moment.

"I'm here to get answers," she said, looking straight into my eyes.

I swallowed. That doesn't sound too good. "About what?"

"You." Then she started to walk towards me, making me nervously back up. 

"I know one certain thing: that all males are corrupt. But then, you come in, and act all selflessly. Why?"

I hit the back wall of my cabin, with no place to escape. She was still stalking forward like a predator. I chuckled nervously. "I'm flattered that you think of me as selfless. I just did what felt like the right thing."

"And yet, most males wouldn't do what you have done. They would've turned tail and fled, leaving everything to the weaker. What makes you not do that?"

She was now right in front of me, our bodies a hairs breath apart from touching. Before I could move away, she grabbed my arms and pinned me to the wall, forcing the breath out of my body. I could feel her cool breath on my face, making me lightheaded.

"And now, you've done another impossible task. You're the husband of the man-hating goddess. And lucky for you, I don't mind."

She said the last part in a whisper, almost making me think I imagined it. 

Then, she kissed me.

Her soft lips molded onto mine, and she pressed her perfect body onto mine, making a gasp come out of my mouth. She used the moment to force her tongue into my mouth, and explored. I was on Cloud 9, and I kissed her back after my shock wore off. 

We might have been kissing for seconds, minutes, or even hours, but I wasn't keeping track. Finally, when I was about to run out of breath, I tried to pull out of the kiss, only to learn that Artemis' hands were on the back of my head, preventing me from doing so.

Finally, she let me go. I was practically gasping for breath like a near-drowned person, and it took a few seconds to recover. Artemis was smirking at me, as though she found the whole situation amusing.

"So . . . you're not going to kill me?" I asked, rubbing the back of my neck nervously, having the feeling it was a dumb question.

Artemis stared at me incredulously. "Why do you think I kissed you?" she asked. "Of course, I could take that back . . ."

"No no no," I said hurriedly, waving my arms, "I'm okay with how things are going."

Artemis then flashed me another predatory smirk, then proceeded to walk around the cabin, inspecting it. "Thalia told me about your 'plan.'" She said "plan" like other people would say "stupidity."

"What about it?" I asked, walking towards the bed next to mine. On the sheets, laid my armor that I had procured from the armory. There wasn't much, only a okay-fitting breastplate and some armguards, since I preferred to be agile.

Artemis lifted up a seashell from a shelf and inspected it. "You're not going."

My hand froze in the middle of tracing a swirl. "You can't decide that."

Artemis laughed. "I can lock you up in my palace if I have to."

I turned towards her, glaring daggers into her back. "I can mist travel out of there."

In a flash, she was right in front of me again. I gasped in shock and fell onto the bed, barely missing the armor pieces. "I guess I'll have to restrict your powers, then."

"Why are you doing this?" I whispered.

Artemis crouched, so her eyes were level with mine. "I know a bad plan when I hear one, Perseus. Especially if it involves you. I'm afraid I can't let my husband go on a suicide mission."

When she said "husband," another feeling passed through me. I understood where she was coming from, but that didn't mean I agreed with her.

"It's my dad," I argued. "I can't just leave him there."

"Well, you can and will leave him there," Artemis said in a tone that left no room for discussion. "Besides, I need your help for finding—"

"The bracelet, I know," I said. 

If she was surprised, Artemis didn't show it. "That's right," she said. "I'm pretty sure a god stole it. Have any ideas?"

Before I could respond, there was a knock on the cabin door, cutting me off. Artemis started back for it, intending to unlock the door. I used this time to quickly shed off my clothing and start strapping on the armor. 

Artemis unbolted the door and opened it just a crack. "Yes?" she said to whoever was outside. 

It was Thalia. "Can I come in?" she asked. "I was planning to talk to Percy before he left."

My eyes widened in surprise as I started to quickly redress, planning to hide the armor behind the clothes.

"Sure," Artemis said. "Although I forbade him from going." She started opening the door, then turned around towards me the second I pulled my shirt down, concealing my armor and completely redressed. I tried acting casual, whistling a random song.

Then, I could see that Artemis had figured out what I had done, based on her face changing from suspicion to surprise. Maybe she realized that the armor was nowhere to be seen, or maybe the bottom of my armor was sticking out, since she suddenly ran at me the same time Thalia stepped into the cabin and closed the door.

Panicking, I mist traveled out of there a second before our bodies collided. The last thing I saw was Artemis' beautiful face full of anger.

Then I was out of there.