"Hm? What’s that?"

Orion squinted into the distance as a faint glimmer faded into view, emerging from betwixt the trees in the distance. A small, but luminous orb floated into the clearing where the two shared the fire, drawing curious gazes from both. Only Artemis eventually recognized its likely source, and it had her growling like an irate beast. She was as surprised as Orion, however, when her growling was returned in kind.

The low, rumbling growls of ferocious creatures lurking in the darkness put both of the hunters on edge. Artemis pulled her bow free of her torso and swiftly nocked an arrow while Orion slid his hunting knife from his belt. Both got to their feet and readied themselves, looking here and there for the first sign of whatever predator it was that had come to hunt the hunters.

It was not long at all before a powerfully built gray wolf stepped into the outskirts of the fire’s light. Its hungry eyes gleamed against the flickering of the flames, and it liberally displayed its full set of terrible fangs. It was joined soon after by another wolf, and then another, and another. One by one, a pack of eight came to surround the goddess and the hunter, all poised to pounce.

"It seems the smell of the meat has drawn some hungry fiends," said Orion, who seemed rather thrilled by the notion of challenging them all at once.

Artemis looked far less amused. She glared coldly at the tiny light, her eyes following it until it floated up and disappeared into the sky. "It wasn’t the smell," she asserted. Relaxing her stance, she stepped forward and, gripping her bow tightly, unleashed a powerful bark at the gathered pack.

She barked threateningly for several seconds while Orion watched on in amusement, her sound matching perfectly that which one of the wolves might produce were they so inclined. Instead, they appeared content to stand there growling menacingly, unmoved by her display.

The goddess ceased her efforts, her features softening in concern. "Orion," she said, pulling back her arrow. The wolves began to advance on them. "Run!"

She released the arrow directly into the head of her target, striking a perfect shot between its eyes. The other seven wolves rushed forward immediately. Orion turned to cover the goddess’ blind spot. He caught the first wolf to pounce by the throat, then tossed it aside to plunge his knife into the skull of the second assailant as it moved to snap at his leg.

"You’ll have to be quicker than that!" exclaimed the hunter, laughing as he pulled the knife free and kicked the third wolf to attack. Behind him, Artemis stalled one of their opponents with a shot to one of its hind legs and beat away another with a backhanded bow strike.

"I said run!" she shouted. "Go! Now!"

"Why would I do that?" replied the elated hunter, at the moment occupied with the task of wrestling one of the beasts to the ground. He managed to glance toward Artemis just in time to see her carried off by a black blur, and all at once, his mirth abandoned him.

"Huntress?” At first uncertain whether or not she had employed some sort of divine trick, Orion grew concerned when it became clear that he was alone with the four wolves that still survived. He brought the total down to three when he snapped the neck of his wrestling opponent, then spun to his feet with a kick that pushed back one of them and a punch that knocked away another. "Lady Huntress!" he shouted, and he darted off after her with the three wolves hot on his heels.

The goddess grunted and groaned as she struggled against the creature that had taken her. She could feel fur like needles against her fist as she punched it, and its ivory fangs dug into her arm, drawing out the holy ichor that flowed through her veins. She winced, punched, grumbled, kicked. At last, she was released.

She skidded to a halt in the dirt and rolled onto one knee, skillfully drawing and nocking an arrow with complete disregard for the wound on her arm. She found herself aiming at a great wolf that boasted the mass of a centaur and fur blacker than the night sky. Its menacing eyes were a sickly orange color and quite bloodshot besides. Its growl seemed almost to shake the ground beneath her feet. Its bark was almost a roar.

"You’ve found me first," Artemis said to the Alpha, the very quarry she’d been waiting to hunt. Its only response was another terrible bark. By the grace of Selene’s light, the arrow she had readied took on a brilliant silver sheen, but she was given pause as she drew it back.

. . .

"No tricks or spells, only guile."

. . .

She narrowed her eyes. As certain as she was that her sibling had violated their terms, she was the Goddess of the Hunt. On her honor, she would not tarnish the spirit of the game, nor would she admit to herself or any other that any beast in her forest was beyond her power to subdue. Her arrow lost its sheen, and once it had, she let it fly.

The Alpha opened its maw and snapped her arrow in half between its fangs. It coughed out the arrowhead and growled. Artemis prepared another shot, and the Alpha rushed her. She dodged right as it charged and managed to avoid its fangs and its claws to fire an arrow just beneath its leg. The creature’s steely mane deflected the shot, and the goddess cursed under her breath.

She rolled to the side as the Alpha attempted to smash her beneath its paws. All at once, she found herself on the defensive, rolling, dodging, ducking, and, eventually, flipping clear of its reach. It leaped and pounced at her, closing the distance between them as swiftly as she’d created it. Artemis went for an arrow, but found that there was not time to grab it. She dodged again. The Alpha followed her movements.

"Lady Huntress!"

Orion’s voice mingled with the barking of the trio of wolves that pursued him. He leaped over roots and ducked under low-hanging branches to keep his pace in pursuit of the goddess. The Alpha had left a trail of chaos and brokenness in its wake. Its path was easy to follow.

One of the wolves snapped at the hunter’s ankle. It missed him by a hair’s breadth, and the feel of its hot breath against his sweaty flesh moved Orion to force himself on faster. As confident as he felt in his ability to dispatch the trio that pursued him, he worried for the goddess and could not be delayed. But when she heard his call, she endeavored to warn him away even as the great beast threatened to tear her apart.

"Orion!" she shouted as she leaped out of the Alpha’s reach. "Stay away!” She gripped a branch and heaved herself up, but before she could climb any higher, the Alpha threw itself against the tree she hoped might be her salvation. The fierce show of force nearly uprooted the tree, but it managed to keep some of its roots in the ground.

Alas, Artemis still lost her footing and was thrown from the branch. She rolled upon landing in the leaves and was quickly on her feet, sprinting away from the Alpha and away from the direction of Orion’s call. Her enemy quickly caught up with her.

Artemis threw herself to the ground, turning about as she dropped in order to direct a powerful kick at her pursuer’s ankle. The blow succeeded in tripping up the Alpha, and it collided jaw-first with the ground and skidded a short distance. It unleashed a deep and guttural whimper on impact, but quickly returned to snarling. Artemis was quick to get back on her feet and take off through the trees. She’d won herself some distance, but the Alpha was up and seeking to close it before long.

As she sprinted across the forest floor, Artemis relentlessly scanned every inch of her surroundings, keeping track of her steps and seeking any factor in the terrain that might grant her an advantage over her foe. She knew that it would only barrel through any exposed roots in its path, and low-hanging branches would likely do little more than briefly annoy the creature. The woods had not seen rain for over a week, so the beast would not slip.

Through harried breaths and frantic thoughts, she struggled to focus her mind on what she’d learned about the Alpha thus far. It was terribly strong and impossibly swift, and its fangs seemed able to rend whatever they touched. Its fur rebuffed her arrows, and though she was sure that she could puncture it by relying on her divine power, she would not allow herself to do so. So, she had to rely on timing, aim, and skill; its most likely weak points were its eyes and its insides.

Her fingers tightened around her bow, and she clenched her teeth. Her mind went to work on a plan of attack, and once it was forged, she wasted no time putting it into action.

The first branch she knew she could reach became her target, and she ducked low mid-step in order to spring up and reach out for it. She caught hold of it and swung, flinging herself even higher so that she soared through the air like a falcon in flight. She impacted roughly against the trunk of a tree and clung to it. Following closely her every move, the Alpha slammed the tree as it had before, heavily taxing the roots. It held, but only just. This time, the goddess did not fall.

The tree, now leaning, made an adequate perch, and though it took her a moment to find her balance, Artemis managed to take control of her descent as she slid down the trunk. The Alpha raised up and pressed against it, barking and snarling expectantly as it waited to snap her up. She readied her bow and armed it with an arrow. She was meters from her enemy, then only feet, then inches. She struggled to steady her aim, narrowed her eyes, and gritted her teeth. At the last moment before foot met fang, she unleashed the shot.

The arrow pierced the Alpha’s left eye in short order, and the beast fell back from the sliding goddess. Her feet touched the ground, and she sprinted away while the Alpha thrashed to and fro, snarling and yowling in agony. It waged a futile struggle to dislodge the arrow from its eye, but the foreign implement would not be moved without taking with it the organ it had so thoroughly mangled. The Alpha’s only consolation was that the goddess’ aim had been just slightly off, and its skull had thus prevented the arrow from piercing further to do even greater harm.

"Orion!" called Artemis as she ran. "Orion?” She looked behind her to make sure that she was not yet being followed again. They must have moved quite far away from the hunter, and if he’d heeded her warnings, the distance would only be all the greater. Knowing him, though, he likely had not. Somewhere deep down she hoped she was judging him correctly.