The Chosen One

Part 2 - The Journey

The forest was the quietest Jonus had ever experienced. No birds, no insects, no small creatures scurrying around greeted the young woman as they had for countless mornings before. She hadn't slept much the night before, worrying intensely about what lay before her. She recounted Zeus's conversation with her over and over in her mind, but she still couldn't come to terms with what he said. The "way" he had said. She couldn't exist in a god's world any longer. She didn't understand it completely, but she no longer had any choice. She was leaving.

Joxer slept a few feet from her, his armour lying next to him. She looked down at her new companion, a confused expression on her face. This was the man to help her? He looked like he needed her help, not the other way around. Still, Artemis had chosen him for a reason and Jonus had faith in Artemis. Even after all that happened in the last day, she couldn't stay angry at the goddess for long.

Jonus rose and found her breakfast waiting for her by the edge of the stream. Jonus half smiled. Same as always, she thought. She sat on a log and began eating the fruit and cheese.

"A nicer day would have been good," Artemis said as she appeared before Jonus.

Jonus was momentarily startled. "Artemis!" She put down her pear and rose. "Uh, yeah. It is kinda cloudy." She didn't look at the sky.

Both women looked at eachother for a long time, the silence of the forest looming over them. Jonus wanted to say something, but didn't know what. More precisely, she didn't know how.

"Artemis, I..."

The goddess raised her hand, but remained quiet for a moment. "I brought something for you," she began.

Jonus raised an eyebrow.

Artemis held out her hand and a bow, arrow and quiver appeared at Jonus's feet. Artemis nodded towards them. "It's for you. A gift." Her voice was stiff, as though she were trying to control her emotions.

Jonus stared wide eyed at the Olympian. A gift? After yesterday's little tyrade against her and she brings a gift? Jonus was at a loss.

The goddess smiled. "It's a bow and a quiver to hold the arrows."

"Uh, yes, it is," Jonus answered. "But...why?"

"Pick it up."

Jonus slowly bent down and lifted the bow. She was amazed at the metal detailing that line the shaft. She touched it gently with her fingers. "It's...it's beautiful."

"Hepheastus did the metal." Artemis watched with joy as Jonus caressed the weapon. "Look at the top section."

Jonus gazed up the shaft and was shocked. Within one of the designs was a crescent moon with a star shining. She gingerly touched it, as though it would break if she touched it too hard. She looked over at Artemis. "Your symbol, the moon."

"Mmm," Artemis mumbled while nodding her head. "A way to remember me, always."

"I could never forget you, my protectoress." Jonus hung her head.

The goddess approached the woman. "And I you. Remember that. I will always be here for you, whenever you need me." She cupped her palm around Jonus's chin. "I love you, Jonus."

"And I you," the woman answered, taking the goddess's hand in her own. They held the pose a long moment before a rustling broke the spell.

"Uh, am I interrupting something?"

Both women turned to see Joxer staring at them, his face contorted into a confused expression.

Artemis smiled. "No." She turned back towards Jonus. "No, I think we're done here."

They released their grip of eachother. Jonus returned her attention to the bow and quiver, while Artemis walked towards Joxer.

"I have something for you also." She reached her palm out and revealed a small, round object with a glass covering.

Joxer stared at the object, then looked up. "What is it?"

"It's called a compass. It will guide you along when the clouds fill the sky."

"But why would we need to use the sun when we'll be following the paths and roads?"

"Because those don't exist within Amazon territory, not in any understandable fashion at any rate."

"Amazon territory?" Joxer's eyebrows disappeared under his helmet. "But I thought that we would be going to Dalanium to show Jonus how the world works."

Artemis shook her head. "No. You are to go to the Amazons. They can best teach her. But you, Joxer, will be her guide and give her time to adjust to her new world. That is what you will teach her. The Amazons will teach her skills she will need to live among them, if she chooses."

Joxer looked at the object still in the goddess's hand. "How does that thing work?"

Artemis then began to instruct Joxer on how to use the "compass".

Jonus and Joxer walked calmly along the worn road. Jonus was amazed at how well she was taking in her new situation. She thought she might cry, but hadn't. She knew Artemis would be around in some way to protect her, bringing a kind of piece of "home" with her. Jonus found comfort in that. But she had been confused by the fact that Artemis had placed only one arrow in the quiver for her.

"That, Jonus, is the arrow of life." She held up the golden arrow. "It comes from Cupid. Whoever it pierces will be given life."

"Eternal life?" Jonus had asked.

The goddess merely smiled. "You only get one of these, so use it wisely. You may need it someday."

Jonus still didn't understand why the goddess of the hunt had given her an arrow of life, but she gladly accepted it. Now she needed more arrows, at least she thought she did. The occassional tresspasser into the sacred forest had often carried many in his quiver. She had no idea how to actually shoot an arrow, but somehow she figured she had plenty of time to learn.

The mid afternoon sun finally poked through the thick clouds. By late afternoon, the sun was full and shining brightly, as though Apollo had given them a light to follow. They had stopped near a brook to have some lunch, a lunch that for the first time in one hundred years, had not come from Artemis. This was Jonus's first lesson: how to catch dinner. Joxer fashioned a make-shift pole and line and waited for a fish to come along. After about an hour of waiting, with her stomach growling intensely, Jonus ventured off into the woods to see what she could find. A little ways off, she came across a bush with intensely red berries. She closely examined the berries, smelled them and finally pulled one off. She was about to bite down on the fruit when Joxer cried out.

"No, wait!"

She twirled her head to see the warrior wannabe come crashing through the foliage, a concerned look across his face. Her features contorted into a questioning look. "Why? What's wrong?"

"Those, that's what," he pointed to the bush. "Those are boisson-berries. One bite of those could kill a horse."

Jonus's eyes widened and she immediately spit out the berry. "Pppthwa. That was close." She sighed and stood up. "Thank you, Joxer, you saved my life." She tentatively put her hand on his shoulder. She didn't quite know if that was the right thing to do. Touching gods and goddesses had not been exactly the norm in the sacred forest and since she had no one to touch, she had forgotten essentially how to do it properly.

"Oh, well, uh, you're welcome." Joxer's face reddened slightly. "Just all in a day's work of a hero, you know." His face quickly transformed into one of an arrogent, puffed-up fop, as though he always did things like this. "Just be careful, okay?"

"Sure," Jonus answered, quickly pulling her hand away. I'm not sure I'm going to like this guy, she thought. He seems too conceited.

"Come on, I finally caught some lunch for us." He turned and immediately ran into a large bush that attacked him furiously. Joxer fought and fought, slashing away, but the bush got the better of him. He came out of the match with leaves in his mouth and scratches all over his arms from its thorns. Of course, his pride had also been severely damaged. Jonus snickered. Then again, maybe not.

"Heh, crazy bush," Joxer mumbled. "Not the best place to put the thing..." He began walking back to the brook, Jonus in tow, still chuckling over the incident. Okay, so he's no Adonis, but he seems amusing enough, when he's not trying to be the hero.

Lunch consisted of two small perch fish cooked on sticks over a fire that took nearly as long to light as it did to catch the meal. Jonus wondered why in Zeus's name Artemis had chosen Joxer to be her guide and early teacher. She sighed deeply as the small flame again flickered out. Joxer placed his hands on his hips, his face a look of pure determination to get the fire started.

"Uh, can I make a suggestion?" Jonus inquired.

Joxer looked over at her. "Yeah?"

"Well, I know when Artemis made fires, the wood was really dry. Maybe it's just too wet. Why don't we go somewhere else drier to make a fire?"

Joxer's mouth contorted into a half-grin, half-grimace at the suggestion. Great. Just great. This is going to look really good to Artemis. I'm supposed to be the one teaching her, not the other way around, he thought.

Jonus could see that his pride was once again wounded. "But you know what? I'm not really that hungry. Maybe we could just save these for later." She hoped this would soothe him.

"No, I said I would get the fire going and I meant it." He bent down once more and began rubbing the sticks together furiously, renewed determination setting in. Jonus sat down on a nearby log and waited, looking at the trees and birds, while Joxer continued fruitlessly.

With a sudden flash of light, a roaring fire began burning from the damp would. Joxer fell backwards from his shock and excitement. He quickly brushed himself off. "There, you see? Just needed a bit of patience, that's all." He grinned, but not quite the grin of a conceited jerk, but something different. Jonus couldn't quite place it, but she had to smile in return.

"I guess you were right," she answered, picking up her stick and placing it over the fire. Out of the corner of her eye she could see a branch move slightly and a flicker of pale coloured hair. Jonus shook her head. Thanks, Artemis.

With the setting of the sun, Jonus completed her first day outside the sacred forest. Nothing exciting happened to them after lunch, unless one defined learning all the lyrics to Joxer the Mighty exciting. Personally, Jonus didn't mind the tune, but after a couple of hours of it being repeated over and over, she was about ready to kill Joxer.

"Patience," she muttered. "Patience." Her teeth were clenched so tightly her jaw hurt.

"Okay! One more time!" Joxer announced.

"Joxer!" Jonus started. "Uh, how about we look for a place to spend the night."

Joxer stopped dead in his tracks and stared down at Jonus, confusion all over his face. "What?"

"A place to spend the night. You know, somewhere to sleep?" Jonus didn't think that this was a foreign concept. She remembered many nights of going to bed with her sisters and her mother tucking them in. She did the same thing in the sacred forest.

"Oh...OH! Uh, yeah, right. Someplace to sleep. Right." Joxer quickly looked away, his eyes wildly darting around. Easy, Jox, remember she's new to this real world thing. "Well, there looks to be a clearing just up ahead." He trotted up, scanned the area and gestured for Jonus to follow. "Yeah, sure, this'll be fine," he said after she stood next to him. It was at that moment that he noticed the musky scent to her skin and hair. He breathed it in deeply, closing his eyes.

Jonus turned to say something when she saw that he wasn't paying much attention. She cocked her head to the side and watched him intently. His mouth seemed to curl a little at the edges and his expression became soft, happy. He slowly exhaled and opened his eyes. He then noticed Jonus looking at him, her expression of curiosity still on her face.

Think, Joxer, think. "Uh, I was...ah...well, I was...um..." Plato you're not. He brushed his hand through his hair nervously, his face completely red.

"Oh, I understand," Jonus said.

Joxer gulped. "You do?"

"Uh-huh." She nodded her head.

"Well, good." He paused, half afraid to ask, but needing to know the answer. "Understand what exactly?"

"This place reminds you of something, home maybe."

He snapped his fingers. "Yeah, that's it." He quickly went forward into the clearing, pulling out his sword to cut away some leaves to lie on for the night.

Jonus followed him, bending down to pick up bits of wood. "I used to get the same way whenever I passed by this one tree back in the forest..." Her voice trailed off and she stood motionless. She still had trouble dealing with the fact that she was now in a new environment with a strange man, without the comforts of her old home. She looked around. The forest had suddenly become quiet and still. She jumped when a bird chirped, swivled when a squirrel ran up a tree and very nearly screamed when Joxer touched her arm.

"Hey. It's just me, Joxer." He looked down at her, his brown eyes filled with concern. "Take it easy. You're shaking like a leaf."

Jonus breathed quickly. This was all too much. She just couldn't handle it any longer. She needed to go home, now! "I just want to go back. I just want to go home." Her voice was almost a whisper.

Joxer had no idea what to do, so he did only what he could. "Um, well, why don't we get some dinner first, okay?"

"No!" She violently shook away Joxer's hand. "I want to go back now!" She ran into the forest, but didn't know which way to go. The once clear sky had again clouded over and was dark. She went left and ran a few paces until the trees pushed in on her. She went back the other way, but soon became lost in a tangle of branches and leaves. Panic filled her mind. She had never been lost in a hundred years. She had always known which way to go and how far away anything was from anywhere. But now, well, now she had no idea of anything and she was scared.

"Uh, Jonus," Joxer called out softly. She didn't have to turn to know that he stood behind her. "Um, if you want, we can go back, but it'll have to wait until tomorrow. It's just too dark now."

Jonus didn't move. She was still terrified. The once quiet forest was now full of sounds that bombarded her ears. She tried to block them out, but they came through anyway. They sounded so foreign, so unnatural...except one. She heard an eagle. She raised her head upwards, listening for the sound again. It cried once more. "Phodyis," she whispered. He had died years ago, but she still remembered that bird, how it had come to her and brought her "presents" from the forest. He had been her pet and she loved him deeply. Although she knew it wasn't him, just the thought of him calmed her. Her breathing returned to normal and she felt a little bit better.

She slowly turned to face Joxer, a shy grin on her face. "You probably think I'm crazy. After all, I've spent my whole life almost in a forest. I should be used to it." She tried to laugh, but it came out all wrong. She looked at the ground.

"No, I don't think you're crazy, just maybe, well, a little overwhelmed at everything." He took a step forward. Jonus looked back up at him and returned the smile forming on his lips. She was still a little embarrased, but Joxer didn't seem to care. They walked back together to the camp site.

"Uh, Joxer," Jonus began.

"Yeah."

"This time for dinner, why don't I start the fire and you get the meal?"

"Hey, I told you I could start..." His voice trailed off when he saw the grin on Jonus's face. Then he understood and grinned back.

Onto Chapter 3

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