“Hunter?! Are you okay?!” Will was knelt down next to Hunter and was trying to wake him up. Hunter sat up and shook his head a few times in an attempt to clear it. He stood up slowly. He felt…lighter. Like a horrible weight had been lifted. Hunter thought about the dream he just had and smiled. “You’re smiling? He’s smiling. You’re asleep for thirty minutes. We assume you’ve gone into a coma and now you’re smiling.” Will sat back on the ground and sat there for a second, before laughing. He couldn’t help from laughing. Hunter started laughing too. He had never been so happy. The one dark spot in his mind was now gone.
“Alright let’s go. We’re running out of time.” Hunter was excited to keep going. He no longer had anything holding him back from fighting to the best of his ability. He grabbed the pendant and thought, ‘knife,’ just like Artemis had told him. In his mind Kate’s smiling face flashed in his mind. He opened his eyes and was holding the knife. He smiled and dropped it. In midair it disappeared and reappeared as the pendant around Hunter’s neck. “Let’s go, guys.” Hunter picked up his stuff and started jogging toward the gates of Hades’ Palace. He finally got there, and looked back to see the other three looking at him like he was insane. “I guess all I needed was a nap.” Hunter chuckled. He didn’t want to get into everything right now. It wasn’t the right time. Hunter was about to turn and enter the palace when from behind he heard a screeching voice.
“THERE! There they are! They’re at the gates! Get them!” Hunter turned and saw three furies flying toward him. They were horrible and ugly, and they were flying straight at Hunter. Hunter summoned Kate and took aim at the middle fury. The others prepared for a close range attack. He waited for the perfect moment, right before she would attack, and fired. The arrow hit the beast right between the eyes. It exploded into dust. “Alecto!” The other two cried as their companion disappeared. In a matter of seconds, Alecto was back and was ready to attack again. “This is our realm, mortal! We cannot be killed here!”
“Well, I tried.” Hunter dismissed his bow and quiver and picked up his stuff. “We need to go.” He said to the others. The four of them hurried into the palace and ran as fast as they could, taking turn after turn in the almost labyrinthine building. After the screeching died down, Hunter slowed down to a walk and then stopped completely. “We must have lost them.” He said as he slumped down against a wall, landing in a seated position. “Does anyone have any food? Not to be whiny or intrusive, but I’m dying here.”
“Yes, I do!” said Marina. She was still a little excited from the chase. She reached down into her pack and pulled out some ambrosia. She held it out to him.
“Uh…Marina. That’s ambrosia.” Hunter said staring at the substance. Marina looked at it and shrugged. “I don’t have godly parents, remember?” Marina’s eyes got big.
“Oh…yeah sorry. One second.” She put the ambrosia back and reached into her bag again. Kyle and Will took the same position as Hunter on the opposite wall. After a few minutes, Marina held out a granola bar to Hunter.
“How big is that bag?!” He said jokingly. He took the granola bar from her. “Thanks, Marina.” She smiled and nodded, still too excited to speak. Hunter devoured the granola bar like it was going to be his last meal. It’s very possible it was going to be. After he had finished eating, He stood up and stretched. Kyle, Will, and Marina were all sharing a couple of pieces of fruit that Kyle had saved from his Omni-tree. He waited for them to finish eating and then said, “Alright let’s go. Oh and guys? It’s been an honor fighting alongside you.” The four of them exchanged hugs and short words then made their way back to the main hall. They walked through and entered the throne room.