[A/N} I do not own Percy Jackson or anything associate with it.

Hecate speaks using three voices.

Adult voice is normal

Child is in Italics

Old woman is in bold

Secrets of the Moon

Ch. 28

Chains tugged on his wrist, an at first, Dante thought that he might be having some sort of nightmare. Then his head cleared, and he realized that he was not dreaming, but indeed he was manacled to something.

What the... Where am I? he thought groggily.

The last thing he remembered was receiving a kiss from some girl that had red eyes and fangs. Now he found himself arms stretch out and chained in between two stone pillars, lacking his shirt and his knives that ordinary were strap to his belt. He looked around and found himself in a middle of vast courtyard surrounded by dozen dusty brown skulls impale on spears.

It took him a second too recognized where he was. I'm behind the mansion that Ephialtes was using as a hideout, and the place where I was caught.

A figure stood in front of him a few yards away, with its back turned to Dante. A black wedding dress shielded the figure from the neck down. A dark veil covered the stranger's head. But that had been enough to tell Dante who he was looking at.

She is Abby's mom, Dante remembered.

He yanked on his manacles, but the chains refused to budge. Perhaps if, I only had more power? Looking up to the night sky, he found the moon, and although he felt a new surge of energy, still it was no good. Clearly the chains were designed with demigod strength in mind; ordinary chains would have budged by now.

The rattle of the chains attracted the attention of the goddess of magic. "Ahh! Awake are we?" Dante associated the sound of her voice to that of a child, which he fined disturbing. "It's about time. We were getting worried that Melanie might have suck too much of your life force away."

The goddess began taking steps toward him.

"Hecate!" Dante said.

"Hello again, Dante," she said, although he couldn't see her face, Dante was sure there was an evil grin behind her veil. "Sorry for the chains, but we can't have you trying to run away, can we now?"

For a second, Dante was stunned by her unexpected change of her voice. Great he was in the hands of a goddess with a multiple personally disorder. "Where are my friends? What have you done with them?"

"Their doing find, for now."

"I see," Dante frowned. "So what now, huh? I think if you wanted to kill me, you would have done it by now. So why don't you stop beating around the bush and tell me exactly what do you want from me."

"Uhh... we see that you do take after your mother after all," Hecate retored. "Speaking of her, thank you, we wouldn't have been able to get her out of the game without you."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well you see Dante; you were the one we wanted from the very beginning. However, we just couldn't take you from the camp, if we had, no doubt mommy would have come down here herself to get you back." She shrugged beneath her veil. "Fortunately, the daughter of Zeus was there, and she happens to be the hunters' lieutenant too. And by taking her hostage we knew you would come to save her, and to do that you would have to receive a quest. Once that was done, Artemis was force to stay in the sidelines just watching. Gods aren't allowed to interfere in a quest no matter what, especially when is their child's' quest. Do you get it now?"

"Wow... I have to say, that was very clever, "Dante conceded."Now what? You're planning on asking for bigger ransom for all us. The gods are not going to pay, we tried them already."

"No, the ransom was Ephialtes idea. He wanted to rebuild his tower and needed the funding. We have something else in mind for you though, as a matter fact we should probably get start it." Hecate stepped backwards then turned about, and clap her hands three times. "Ok girls, positions. Is show time."

Suddenly, the skulls burst into flames all around him, and the entire courtyard was illuminated by their light. About a dozen cloaked figures, Dante hadn't even notice, were kneeling down in between the torches. "Ok now don't be nervous now, this is when all those dance lessons pay off." Hecate said in her childlish voice. "Now we know is tradition to say, break a leg, before a performance, but we preferred if you girls don't break anything. Those bronze legs of yours are getting quite expensive to replace. So just be careful."

Then raising one of her hand, Hecate said loudly, "Let's get started. Music please." At her cue, classical music began to play. Where was it coming from exactly Dante had no idea.

As the music started the cloaked figures slowly stood up, and gently removed their cloaks, revealing all to be teenage girls wearing black tutus. Among them was the girl that had kissed him earlier.

The girls raise their arms above their heads and began to twirl around on the tips of their toes. Then they began to move their bodies in synchronized matter to the sound of the music. They jump, twirl, jump, and twirl some more.

Oh, hell no! Ballet! She's going to torture me to death, Dante thought as he desperately tried to free himself from his chains.

"Shhh! Young man please, quit that. Don't you know is rude to make noise while the dancers are performing," said Hecate. "Those are our daughters out there, so show some respect."

After what to him felt like an eternity watching the girls dance, Dante began to feel his eyelids getting heavier and heavier. Not wanting to put the effort to stay awake, he welcome the sweet escape of sleep.

(/)

Dante was standing in front of the mansion once again. Oh! Not this dream again, he thought. He knew it was a dream, due to the fact, that the mansion look to be in perfect condition, which it no longer did in real life. Why couldn't he just go back to his normal eating steak dreams again?

But fine might as well get it over with it.

He was about to start walking toward the mansion, when suddenly he felt someone standing behind him. He turned around, and fined himself staring straight at a familiar young girl with auburn hair and silver-yellow eyes.

Artemis.

"Mo... I mean Artemis? What are you doing here...?"

If the small goddess heard his question, she didn't show it. Her eyes were focused entirely on the mansion and its surroundings, as if she were assessing the situation.

"Did you bring me here?" he asked her. "Don't tell me, you want to have another chat right now?"

No response, she didn't even seem to acknowledge him.

Dante frowned, he didn't like being ignored. "Hey, I'm talking to you..."

That got him a response, as Artemis narrowed her eyes dangerously at him.

"I..." he swallowed, "Sorry... I'm just surprise to see you in this dream..."

Without a word Artemis walk straight at him and through him, like a ghost. For a moment, Dante was too stunned to move, then he turned around. "Hey wait, what's going on here?" he asked, running to catch up to the goddess, who was already at the front doors.

Artemis stood in the foyer and took a moment to look around. She was still ignoring Dante's questions, and whenever he tried to touch her, his hands would simply pass through her.

Satisfied that no one was in the foyer Artemis began to climb the staircase toward the second floor. Giving up on trying getting her attention, Dante choose simply to just follow her.

Once in the second floor Artemis head to the last room on the left. The one with the black door. Her eyes focus on the floor as she notice the blood seeping from beneath.

Without hesitation, she reached for the door and pushed open. Dante was about to warned her about the monster behind it, but when the door opened, there was no monster.

Immediately, Artemis ran into the room Dante followed and almost gasp at what he saw inside.

The room was exactly as he remembered, no big pieces of furniture, only a dim light coming from a lantern. The only difference was that instead of a big chair in the middle of the room there where two bodies laying on the floor covered in blood.

Artemis kneel before the bodies and gently touched their heads. Dante walked around her to get a better look. He was surprise to discover that the bodies were that of two teenage girls. Both girls show bruises, cuts, and several other types of wounds; clear signs that they had been brutally torture.

Suddenly the door of the room slam shut revealing a man standing behind it. He looked to be in his mid twenty's and was ruggedly handsome, with jet black hair and dark green eyes. His face seem somehow to retain a hint of his childhood innocence. "Lady Artemis, what an honor. I'm glad you could make it. For a moment, I was afraid you were going to stood me up," he said.

Dante notice the goddess body tense, and saw her hands turning into fist. "Tell me, are you the one who did this?" she asked coldly, but it was clear she was trying to keep her anger under control. "And also the one that has been sending those monsters after my hunters and kidnapping them."

Hunters? Those girls were hunters.

"Yes," he said, so calm. "I needed something to get your attention my lady. I knew that attacking your hunters and taking a couple of them would do the trick. The name is Sage, by the way. Nice to finally meet you."

Sage? Now where have I heard that name before?

"Why?" Artemis growled.

"Why? I just told you, to get your attention. You can say I fancy you my Lady," he said, then added. "I must apologize for the mess, but you took longer than I expected, so I got bore." He took some type of ceremonial dagger from the back of his belt and twirl it in his hand. "So, I needed something to kill the time with. By the way, you do know how to pick your girls. They were tough, I had to get really creative with them… to make them scream."

That was it Artemis self control went out of the window. Dante could felt the terrible strength coming from her, and the fury was worse, rage seething under the shadow of a righteousness hunger for revenge.

Without warning, she charged at the man at an incredible speed. Out of thin air two long silver hunting knives, similar to Dante's, form in her hands. She swung down one of them and met the blade of the man's dagger. The clash echo loudly in the room and sparks flew.

Taken aback by the sheer ferocity of the goddess attack he staggered back, and was force to put some distance between them. "Oh my," he said with a smile as if nothing had happened. "Have I done something to offend you my Lady?"

Artemis let out a fierce growl that sounded as if every beast in the wild was furious. Then she went for him again, but just as she was about to strike, he raise one hand and yelled. "Respini!"

Then as if the goddess had been hit by an invisible force, she was sent flying backwards. She would have slam against the wall, but in the last second, she flipped in the air and bounce of the wall and landed on her feet.

That's the same power Abby used, Dante realized.

Artemis narrowed her eyes at him. Pure animal hatred flared in her silver-yellow eyes. Then it was her turned to raised her hand, but unlike him, nothing happen. Her eyes opened wide, and for a moment she seemed surprised.

"If you are trying to turn me into some animal is not going to work," he gloated. "My mother is an expert when it comes to magic and her power trumps even yours in this place."

Artemis met the man's amused glare with one of full loathing. "So I can't turn you into a rotten. You think that's going to save you? I'm still going to rip you apart and feed you to my wolves."

He gave her another smile, "Got to love a girl who's not afraid to talk dirty," he taunted her. "But you're upset, I can see that. I know what wrong, duh, is so obvious. You hate to be confined in small places, right? We should probably move this outside, huh. Allow me." Once again he raised his hand, but this time toward the wall behind him. "Infernous!"

From the palm of his hand a fireball shot out and blasted a hole in the wall. He turned to face the goddess. "Coming?" he said before turning about and jumping through the hole. Artemis didn't waste any time and jump after him. Dante followed right after.

(/)

Sniffing the air, Artemis followed the man's scent into the courtyard. Then her fist tightened on the hilts of her knives, as the man, her hunter's murderer, was caught on her sight. Her unwavering eyes narrowed to vengeful yellow slits. Artemis sprung like a gazelle across the courtyard after him.

He was several yards away, but in a single jump, Artemis leap over and landed right in front of him, driving him to halt.

"You defile my hunters." Artemis hissed. "Do you actually think I would let you escape?"

"No, is just that I like to play hard to get," he taunted her one more time.

"Arrogant man," Artemis said sardonically. "Joke all you want, you will not be doing it for long." Abandoning all caution and restraint, she hacked at him.

He expertly parried the goddess slashing blades. Sparks flew in the darkness as steel met steel. Artemis thrust again, but he blocked the blow with his dagger. "Is that really the best you can do?" he kept taunting her. "No wonder why your hunters were so easy to beat, when they served such a weak goddess."

"You dare to call me weak," Artemis snarled back. "Foolish man, I'll show you weak."

She thrust, feinted, and parried, and quickly began to drive him back.

He lashed out, his dagger flickering quicksilver in the moonlight. Artemis whirled, turning against the blade, cutting her cheek on the razor edge. Her hand went to her face, and a golden smear glistened upon her finger tips. It was probably the first time in countless centuries since she had been wounded in battle.

"Got you there didn't I," he said, than he brought the dagger to his lips and lick the edge. "Umm... salty."

Artemis face curled in disgust. "What do you think you are doing?"

"Oh, you'll see soon enough."

This time it was him who came toward her with eyes smiling and hungry, like a predator going for the kill. Artemis whirled her knives, and the edges of their weapons met, sending bright showers of red, yellow, and blue flying above their heads.

Artemis and the man, Sage, circle each other in the middle of the courtyard, swinging and parrying, dancing beneath and between the blades whistling across the air. Dante could see that he was starting to be more cautious as he approached her, after all, Artemis knives were longer and he had the shorter range.

He sweated and strained, Artemis, on the other hand remained unaffected; the auburn hair girl struck and blocked, staying calm and watching his face as they fought, as if she were searching for something.

"Tell me, do you still think I'm the weak one?" Artemis asked.

Panting now, he kept striking at her, but his moves were slowing down, and his accuracy was suffering badly. He tried to make his body flow naturally, but his blows were off, he was missing, and Artemis was just playing with him now. It look to Dante like a cat toying with a mouse before the final kill.

Then one of his swings was too wide, and Artemis easily stepped out of range. Then, before, Sage even had the time to recover; she spun in a double circle and came out with a vicious side kick to his sternum. His eyes went wide with pain. Artemis, however, was not done yet. She struck again, by embedding one of her knives deep into his right shoulder. Then she pinned his calf in place and dropped her full weight on his knee; which surprisingly seem to be a lot more than the normal weight for a twelve year old girl. She shatter the bone with enough force that even Dante could hear when the bone disintegrated.

He only let out a gasped, but never scream. Sage careened backwards on one leg than fell on his back.

Dante was astonished to see how easily a small girl leave a man twice her sizes bloody and broken on the ground.

Artemis walked over to him and crouched. Then she grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, and pulled him up to where her face was only inches away from his. She pressed the tip of her other knife to his neck indenting the skin, a single drop of blood ran down his neck.

"Before you died, I want you to know something," she snapped, "That there won't be any punishment big enough for you in the underworld. I'll demand of Hades to cast your soul into Tartarus for these crimes."

Dante was surprised that despite the amount of pain he had to be in, Sage, still have enough strength to smile at her. His once perfect white teeth were now smear with his own blood.

His eyes gleamed, then suddenly he spat on her face. The gobbet of saliva and blood struck the goddess square on the mouth. She grimaced as she tasted some of his blood.

She finally gave into her fury, raising her knife to deliver the final blow, but before she could bring it down fire erupted all around. A dozen torches that seemed to be made out of skulls and spears form a big flaming circle around them.

"What's happening?"

Artemis inattention cost her dearly, as Sage took advantages of it to performed one final act of defiance. Reaching out with his left arm, he grabbed the goddess by the back of her neck. Then did the only thing no men or god had ever been able to do. He kissed her.

For the quick second that the kiss lasted, the fire on the skull torches flared up, and both Artemis and Sage glowed.

"No," Artemis blurted, pushing him away, her eyes wide with shock. "What do you think you are doing?"

Then as if someone had punched her, Artemis double over and clutched her abdomen, snarling like a wolf. "What have you done?" She took an enormous breath of air and went still, but a moment later she fell on her knees and bent over. Her skin flushed bright red, drained white and flushed again. She writhed in agony.

Sage laugh was hysterical. "It would seem my lady that you are not as inviolable as you always thought." He gave her one last smile than turned his gaze to the dark sky. "Mother, it is done."

Then he went very still and just like that he was gone. Disappear.

Artemis screamed in pain and Dante rushed to her side and crouched, frozen, paralyzed with shock. He had no idea how he could possibly help her when he couldn't even touch her. All he could do was watched how she convulse and twisted in pain.

He tried yelling for help, but only his voice, along with the hideous gasps and moans bursting from the goddess lips, punctuated the silence. Her skin was slick with sweat and cracks began to appear all over her body, revealing light underneath. Her body twisted and glow more and more out of control.

Then letting out one last painful scream she exploded into a brilliant ball of light. The pain had forced the goddess to revert to her true form and showed Dante what a supernova probably look like up close. He was sure that the light was so bright that even mortals would be able to see it from miles and miles away. Then suddenly the light subsided, and Artemis was back in her twelve year old form.

Dante was relief to see that she no longer seemed to be in pain. She lay quietly on the ground taking slow, deep breaths. Then the silence was broken once more, but by a different type of sound: the cry of a baby.

Artemis sat up with a start, and immediately, her hands travel to her mouth to hold back a gasp. Her eyes got wide and full of shock as she rest them upon a newborn baby laying right next to her.

(/)

Dante woke up shaking and still in chains, but he didn't care about that right now. His mind was still processing the dream he just had. "No it can't be true," he blurted.

He didn't want to believe that the baby he saw in the dream could possibly be him, because if it was, that meant...

"That man…that murderer was my… father."

To be continued…

[A/N} Well there you have it the big reveal. Anyway please let me know what you think of this chapter and about the way Dante was born. I really would like to know. There still some information about his birth that hasn't be reveal yet, but that comes in the next chapter. Well that's it for now. I really hope you all like it. Well, until next time. Seeya.