the search

Asina walked out of the tent that held Thalia Grace, her silver parka pulled tight up to her chin. The Hunters had entered the land beyond the gods for some unknown reason. Lady Diana was not with them, maybe because it was beyond the gods. She and a few other hunters were on a different hunt. Today, though, Asina was being paired with the daughter of Mania named Artemis, and Emily, to go find a missing demigod. Why there was a missing demigod in Alaska, Asina didn't even want to ask. She was not happy with being in Alaska.

The short Roman blinked uneasily in the bright daylight, then checked her watch. It was nearly nine at night, and the sun wasn't going down any time soon. She was glad time didn't go by Roman standards anymore, Alaska would have confused everyone. The snow also made everything ten times brighter, although Thalia had assured Asina that once they got down off the Cockedhat Mountain and to the Anaktuvuk Pass village, things would be warmer and there would be no snow. That was good, because Asina wasn't sure how much snow and daylight together she could take.

Putting her sunglasses on, Asina stuck her head in her own tent. "Oy, Emily, we've got an assignment. We're going out with the not goddess Artemis." She said, not really waiting for a response before heading to the fire to sit down and look at Artemis. "We're going off the mountain. To a village. You might have to interact with people. Mortals."

Emily groaned when Asina stuck her head inside their tent to bring the bad news. The cold up here dug right into her old leg wound and made it ache agonisingly. She gritted her teeth. "Okay give me a second." Em followed her friend out into the blistering cold, wishing that she might be able to stay inside where it was significantly warmer. Her limp despite her best efforts at hiding it happened to be distinctly obvious today, almost as obvious as the colour red on pristine white snow. "So what's the plan?" Emily asked trying to ignore the ache. There was nothing either she or the other Hunters could do about it, her leg in comparison to when she first joined happened to be much better. She could all too easily imagine how much more difficult being a Hunter would be for herself if she still needed to use her crutches to get around.
The Hunters would be slowed down significantly because of her, though sometimes their missions were delayed by Emily needing to rest as a result of her leg playing up.

She shivered in the cold, trying to sink inside her clothing to escape the biting chill. The land beyond the Gods certainly happened to be no picnic. Maybe next time they would find themselves somewhere warmer, Miami perhaps?  Whatever their mission was, she certainly hoped it involved going somewhere warm or at least warmer than this. She made her way closer to the fire, sitting so her right leg faced the fire. Maybe the heat would chase the biting chill from the leg then it would no longer ache as bad?
A desperate hope really but she had to try unless she wished to be in pain from now till whenever it decided to stop hurting. Worse, monsters would notice the injury and try to attack it. They already focused enough on Em simply because she was among the weaker Hunters and just that fraction of a second slower at evading because of fore-mentioned leg. This mission probably would not be an easy one for her, but then again when was anything ever easy for a Hunter?

Asina was fairly certain that Artemis did not want to listen to the plan, because before Emily had even made it out to sit down at the fire, the daughter of Mania had left the fire without a word. This was why Asina disliked the girl and considered her a major liability in the mission. It was a couple of minutes before Artemis came back, and Asina took a deep breath, looking between Emily and Artemis.

"We've misplaced a demigod hunter named Katy. So we have to find her. Last known civilian location was the Anaktuvuk Pass about twenty miles or so from here. Because it is a mortal town..." Asina sighed and folded her arms over her chest. "You two were chosen because you speak modern vernacular. Or something. I was chosen for tracking skills, but was told that my tongue is...conspicuous." She said the word distastefully. "Thou art both expected to help me blend in."

Emily nodded, so they were on a search and rescue mission. Not too bad, apart from the fact that it required going near the mortals. Em possessed a deep bitter hatred for the mortals which stretched back to the days long before she became a Hunter or knew what her father happened to be. Yet, such feelings she kept secret from the other Hunters. The Em they knew was all quiet, shy, quite easily startled and not prone to bouts of aggression. However Emily despised the mortals, she hated them for the years of torment she endured as a cripple. Just thinking about it brought back dark memories and fanned the flames of fury within her.

"Sure." Em found herself saying even though deep down she did not wish to go any where near the mortal town. Yet she must go, not only for her companions sake but also for the sake of Katy, who once saved Em's life so she sort of owed her badly for that. Emily was glad for both members of the team, because she'd worked with both at least once before so she knew sort of what to expect though Artemis tended to be difficult to predict.
Not that she could talk at least Artemis did things, Em on the other hand usually remained quiet as if uncertain whether to join the banter of the other Hunters or not. Her leg throbbed bitterly in the cold, a painful reminder as to who she once was and of her old life. She was somewhat reluctant to go among the humans but she didn't draw as much attention to herself as a daughter of Himeros would like Katarina. "Do you want us to do the talking?" Em asked in a quiet voice, as if she was afraid of being yelled out for suggesting something.

"yes, emily, asina doesn't have the most up to date tongue, no offense."

Asina really did not want to lose her temper with the child in front of her, but her pride was already wounded by being bluntly told that mortals would think her mentally ill or brain damaged. So when Artemis made the comment, her lip curled involuntarily in a snarl, and she flashed an ancient hand-gesture that Lady Diana would have most likely smote her for. "Insolent, ill-mannered, disrespectful..." She muttered, then snorted with irritation as she tried to regain her composure. "One of these days, Emily, she is going to say something and someone is going to harm her."

If someone had at that moment pointed out that Asina was known among the Hunters as being insolent, ill-mannered and disrespectful with a bad habit of pushing the line between sarcastic and turned into a pigeon, Asina would have stubbornly denied it. At least in comparison to Artemis, who Asina also disliked because of the girl's propensity for only talking when she was saying something insolent.

Oh, yes, and the insanity. Like the fact that the Hunter was walking, like she planned on walking down the mountain at all. "Emily, grab out go-bags." She said, her voice actually sounding calm. Then she let out a whistle like a New Yorker looking for a taxicab. In the winter that would have been suicidal on the mountain, causing avalanches, but the snow wasn't thick enough to cause an avalanche during this warmest part of the year. Asina hoped.

"Artemis! Are you planning on walking? It's fourteen leagues and time matters." She yelled, waving the Hunter back. The eldest Hunter squinted at the glare on the snow, then up at the still blazing sun. It was almost a shame that it was the land beyond the gods, Apollo would probably love the everlasting sun. That twit. It presented a problem, though, in that she needed enough shadow cast to cover the three Hunters. Well, there was that cave she had found the day before, it would easily fit the three of them. "We need to go 40 or 50 meters to our south."

Emily said nothing, she possessed no love for the mortals. She wasn't exactly thrilled with joy at the thought of having to talk to them. She remained quiet deciding to try and avoid getting herself involved in the mini-conflict between the two hunters. Em happened to be very good at keeping her head down to avoid trouble. She nodded quickly in agreement with Asina though she did hope that no one would harm Artemis, she might act a little odd at times but Em couldn't really talk there and besides she was a Hunter, they were a team despite coming from all periods of history.

"Okay" She stood up with some difficulty, despite being sat near the fire the cold seeped into her bones making her leg stiffen. Em gritted her teeth and went to go grab the required bags. Emily could not wait till they managed to get off of this mountain as at the moment, she wasn't having too good of a time up here.
She returned a few minutes later with three bags, Em dropped them in the snow, leaning more of her weight on her left, favouring that leg in preference to her right.

She hoped that Artemis would come back to the group when Asina called as it probably wasn't good for them to split off so early in their mission.
The hunters would just need to get on despite their individual quirks and differences.

Asina saw Artemis take two of the bags and shook her head. Emily was very nice, a good kid, but prideful in her own way. She didn't think the daughter of death would appreciate Artemis trying to take pity on her. "Emily is strong enough to carry her own bag without causing issues. Let us head out."

Asina blinked again as she started to walk, the sunglasses not doing nearly enough today to block the light. Even if they had the time to leisurely hike into the village, Asina would much rather shadow travel just to get away from the snow's glare faster. Which was a shame, because she really didn't enjoy the feeling of shadow travel either, or the fatigue that came from taking two people with her. And the possibility of getting lost. But 14 leagues wasn't too far.

The cave was a short walk away, but when they got to the mouth of it, Asina slowed. She ran a hand through her short hair as she remembered something some of the Hunters had commented on. Emily was afraid of tight spaces. Claustrophobic. To Asina it was a little strange, because she felt so at home under the earth, but then, there were other things Asina was afraid of.

Closing her eyes, she took a mental workup of the cave. It was empty, about twelve cubits long with the highest ceiling height of four and a half cubits. Structurally sound. "Emily, I know you dislike caves, but with this endless day, I must have enough shadow to make the jump. The cave is sound and will not falter, and it will only take us a minute."

Emily wasn't sure whether to be grateful that Artemis took her go bag from her or offended. The daughter of Death pride happened to be hurt by it, she always tried to prove herself equal and not let her injury prevent her from doing the same as the other Hunters. Em found herself unable to object to Artemis' kindness, it would be rude to respond to it in a disagreeable manner. She gritted her teeth in pain, the cold really disagreed with her old injury. "Thanks." She whispered to Artemis eventually, before responding to Asina.
"It is okay she can carry it for a bit." She informed Asina hoping to keep both sides happy. Yes her pride had been hurt but she was used to it, despite its sting. At least it wasn't as bad as her first months with the Hunters whilst her leg healed. Being carried on a stretcher really hadn't been her preferred mode as transport. Yet despite her numerous objections the Hunters wanted to move at their pace and not at the painfully slow pace Em once moved at. That and she kept stopping due to pain.

"Your kidding right?" Em objected, hoping that perhaps there would be an alternative route to entering the cave. The Hunter felt as if the weight of the earth was already closing in around her, making it more difficult for her to breath. "I... I don't think I can..." She hated showing weakness, the daughter of Death began to back up slowly, shaking her head, her breath and pulse quickening.
"No, no, no." Em struggled to keep herself from freaking out fully. She hoped that she might be able to control her claustrophobia. Evidently not. She fought against her inner demons trying not to panic. If she did the other Hunters might have to forcibly drag her into the cave, possibly kicking and screaming.

"Your kidding right? I... I don't think I can...No, no, no."

Asina made a soft tutting sound when Emily started to panic. The older hunter put her hands up in a placating manner, "Shhh, shhhhh, breathe. Take a deep breath for me, in through your nose, out through your mouth." She said, her voice a lot softer and gentler than usual. She slowly approached Emily, like one would a skittish horse, and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Shhh, shhhh, it's okay. It's not going to close in on you. Remember what you told me about fear? Facing fear? It's a good thing, but you can't let it control you. It's good to be suspicious of caves, but this one can't hurt you. Breathe, honey, come on, deep breaths. Don't hyperventilate." She said, keeping her arm around Emily to both comfort her and to prevent her from bolting off in another direction.

Breathing already became difficult, but she tried her best to follow Asina's instructions. She didn't want to enter the cave at all, being this close to the entrance of one was already uncomfortable for her. Em trusted Aisna however she still didn't believe that the cave would not close in on them. Emily flinched when she wrapped her arm around her shoulder, she wasn't overly used to personal contact and especially not when she was on the verge of freaking out.
"No, no, no." The daughter of death whispered pushing back , finding the stronger Hunter's arm in place to prevent her from withdrawing away from the cave in wild terror. "I don't want to go inside." Emily would quite happily stay outside the cave despite the brightness. At least then hopefully the ceiling or walls would not close in on her. "I can't." Em whispered. "Asina, Artemis I can't." She admitted bitterly.

Asina's anxiety levels were beginning to raise a little themselves, but not feeding off of Emily's panic, but due to the idea that she had no other idea how to get enough shadow for three people to travel in. When Artemis suggested covering Emily with their jackets, the older Hunter shook her head. "I need all three of us in shadow. Transporting another person takes a lot of energy, I can't do it and come back to get you. By the time we managed to get back, I'd be useless and would have to eat and sleep." She explained, running her free hand through her hair.

"Although... Emily, Em, could you go closer to the cave if you didn't have to go in it? Just right up near the mouth of it? We could cover you enough to shade and Arty and I could use the shade from the cave..."

Emily was glad that Artemis suggested trying something else. The daughter of Death hated no detested admitting to fear or being prevented from doing something. However such a thing like entering a cave was currently beyond her capacity. She would be find in going closer to the cave, provided that neither of her friends would try to drag her into the cave.
It was a far better solution than having to forcibly drag her into the cave, her fear would result in her being hostile to her allies. Em wasn't the greatest fighter, she was not even a decent fighter but even one as poor as her in combat when powered by a powerful phobia she could or would be able to put up a fierce struggle.

"Okay." She whispered her voice filled with panic, she took a few deep breaths trying to control her fear which overran her mind. "Just... Please promise me you won't drag me in there?" She whispered her voice rising to a shrill from terror. "Please... I... I cannot go in there... I just cannot."

Asina had been moving into place in the shadows as Emily inches closer. Then Artemis moved and nodded at Asina. There was a moment of confusion, then a sinking feeling in the pit of Asina's stomach, but she knew it was probably necessary.

It was still very startling when Artemis yelled and then Emily was pushed into Asina. She tried to grab for Artemis before Emily could move from her grip. She didn't have much time. Time was up. They dissolved into the shadow without Artemis, appearing in the mellow shaded area of a tree with the mountain in the background. Adina's head all but exploded with the pain that exhaustion brought, she bent over, then wretched for a few moments before straightening. Shadow travelling with a headache was not a good idea.

Emily was too startled to put up much of struggle, she let out a yell of surprise. The next thing she knew she was encased in darkness briefly before being deposited on the ground in the shaded area of a tree. Em rolled away from Asina, her heart hammering in her chest like a jackhammer, trying to control her breathing.
It was a while before she came to her senses and managed to calm down somewhat. The daughter of Death didn't look very happy, considering it was underhand trickery between the two of them which sent her through the darkness. Em felt more hurt than angry, hurt that her friends had made her shadow travel despite her objections to entering the cave.

It happened to only be after she'd recovered that Em realised much to her horror that it was only herself and Asina here. Either they'd left Artemis behind or she might be stuck in the shadows.
A fear of Em's every time she unfortunately happened to shadow travel. Yes ironic the daughter of death disliked dark spaces because it reminded her too much of being underground.

Asina was quiet for several moments while she regained her own bearings and let Emily process what had just happened. She could tell that the other demigod was upset, and she couldn't blame her. Artemis may have done Asina a favor, but it was a dirty trick, and one that cost them Artemis making the jump. "That was not my plan, Emily, but for what salt it is worth, I am sorry." She said, "I couldn't get Artemis, I needed to have been touching her. I imagine she will run to meet us in a few hours. I, uh, overshot the town. It looks like about two leagues. We should start walking. We do not have a lot of time to tarry."

Emily was quite for sometime after Artemis spoke to her. The daughter of Death happened to be very hurt by the actions of her friends, it came as a horrible shock to her. She knew it was for a good reason but even so she still felt hurt by their actions. Despite Em informing them of her inability to enter the cave they still tried it.
They still made her do something she would have preferred not to do. That was what hurt the most, that they still made her do it.

"Its alright." Em eventually replied her voice downcast and quiet. She trembled slightly but it was impossible to tell whether from fear, terror, adrenaline or anger. Perhaps even all four of them at once? At least now once they regrouped with Artemis they could hopefully complete their mission.
"Come on then lets move this two leagues." She said moving towards the town. Em had no idea how long a league was, it might be a considerable distance so it was best to start now.