Run

That's all Sally could do.

She was prepared to have to find a way to hide her son's scent. But she wasn't prepared to do that so early, he was still a newborn, not even a day old. She should've had years to prepare, at least until he was six. That was what she thought, but when she saw her baby and his sea-green eyes, she knew it would be earlier. She knew something inside her was telling her to be wary but she didn't listen to it, as she wanted to enjoy her child.

But the moment she stepped out of the hospital she saw it. A cyclops. Her lover said it was because she was "clear-sighted", that she could see through the veil his family put up. But the monster originated from his realm, she assumed that he was a protector.

Until she heard it, the growl. Her eyes widened and she quickly understood this cyclops was untamed, probably a cast-off. She whistled a cab, even in the dead of night New York was very much alive. She told the driver to drive to the northwestern part of the city.

When they arrived at the destination, Sally realized she had no money on her person's. The driver who had seen this many times sighed and stepped out the car. The moment he did he was grabbed by the cyclops, it happened to follow them all the way to the Bronx.

While it was busy, unfortunately with the cab driver, Sally placed her baby in the passenger seat and she hopped behind the wheel and drove off. Surprisingly, her baby boy was fast asleep during all of this.

She got all the way into Westchester before the gas ran out. She looked into her rearview mirror and still saw the same monster, it wouldn't stop its pursuit. She scooped the bundle and ran into the nearby forest.

As she ran she could feel the cyclops gaining on her. While trying to escape she came upon a devastating conclusion, they wouldn't make it.

This caused her to pause as the realization hit her like a truck. She would die and her supposed lover was nowhere to be found. This was how her last seconds of her life were to be.

No one would miss her, she had no other family. Her parents had died when she was 5 years old. She was sent to live with her uncle, who died from cancer during her last year of high school. She dropped out and worked small jobs in order to take care of herself. She and her son's father met one summer and fell in love. Sadly he had to go away, apparently even if she's in danger.

She was brought out of her thoughts when she heard the roar from the monster and felt her back being sliced. Adrenaline rushed through her body as she sprinted as fast as she could through the forest, clutching her son tightly to her chest.

She kept running until she saw a large body of water. Her eyes widened and she turned to look for a sign. She saw it and ran up to it. It read NEW CROTON RESERVOIR and Sally began to have hope.

"Poseidon! Please help us!" She yelled.

She waited for what seemed like an eternity but no one came. Another roar was heard and she turned around to see the cyclops cornering her. She had nowhere else to run, this was her final attempt for safety. She closed her eyes preparing to wake up in the underworld but nothing came.

When she opened them she saw the monster turned to the forest again. She tried to run while she had the chance but froze when she heard the cyclops wail. She looked at it's lower leg and saw a silver arrow sprouting out of it. Not even a moment was spared as another arrow was lodged into forehead, effectively turning it into yellow dust.

Sally left out a sigh of relief now that the monster was gone, but she immediately felt sick. Then she remembered the cyclops got to her back before it was killed. She fell down on her knees hard and began to breathe heavily, she had no more energy to go on.

She was determined to stay alive though, she had to for her newborn son. Sally knew that if she died now there was no way her son will survive. But her survival was getting harder and harder by the second as her vision was getting blurry.

When she tried to still herself and focus her vision she felt a godly aura. She looked up expecting to see her lover but her hopes were dashed. Instead of sea-green eyes she saw silver eyes. Along with auburn hair and a silver uniform.

"Lady Artemis." Sally managed. "Please could you help me."

The twelve year old girl walked forward, seeming to age with every step she took until stopping at 20. She knelt next to dying mother and looked at her wound. It was a fatal one, no way for her to be saved. But Artemis wouldn't let her see it on her face.

"I'm sorry," she started "but your wound, there isn't any way to-"

She was cut short as Sally thrusted the bundle out of her arms into the goddess's. It pained her externally and internally to do so. And though it was a long shot, this was the only way for her son to survive.

"Could you help me...by taking care of my baby." Sally whispered.

Artemis didn't see the child at first and was startled when Sally gave it to her. She was immediately determined to fulfill this dying woman's wish. She would accept this infant girl into the hunt. But when she moved the cloth she found a male baby. She looked back at the woman who was staring wistfully.

"I know he is a male, the species that you hate. But if you can raise him he could be a better male, one that fits your criteria." Sally momentarily forgot her wound and gave a bitter laugh and then winced. "If you truly decide to raise him, I think you'll be the best mother for him."

The goddess looked at her in shock. She never thought about being a mother, she had her hunters and she was more than content with that. She turned to the boy and realized she could possibly raise the perfect male. It then registered in Artemis that this must be killing the woman inside, to give up her first and only child.

"What is your name?"

"My name is Sally Jackson. My son's name is Perseus Jackson."

Artemis nodded and knelt beside Sally once more and placed her hand on her forehead.

"I, Artemis goddess of the Hunt, condemn this spirit of Sally Jackson to Elysium when she moves on from the mortal world."

When she removed her fingers, Sally's forehead glowed a golden color, signaling that the words of Artemis were received. When the glow receded there was a silver bow left on her forehead, almost like a stamp.

Sally smiled weakly. "Can I…hold him…one last time?"

"Of course."

Artemis handed her the baby as Sally held him while leaning her injured back on a nearby tree. Perseus was still sleep even after everything that has happened. Sally made the decision to not wake him, to have him see Artemis' face only and recognize her as her mother. She began to play with his fingers with a small smile on her face.

"You know you're a heavy sleeper." She whispered. "I'm grateful though, I don't want you to see me in this state. When I was pregnant with you I hoped for you to be someone great, even better than your father. That's...why I named...you Perseus. Now I know you'll be someone great with your new…mother. But also I know you'll never be like your father. You won't leave those you care about to die, but rather take their place in death. But I hope you live a great long life. I just want you to…know that…I always will lo-"

Sally started coughing sporadically, not able to continue her farewell. This lasted for a few seconds until she stopped and closed her eyes. A single tear ran down her cheek as she took her last breath and went limp. The baby started to slip out of her arms but Artemis caught him.

She had tears streaming down her face as well. During Sally's farewell she looked into the woman's memories and saw her hardships. She also saw how her uncle "loved" Sally as well. The life of Sally was one that she didn't deserve. She was another maiden who was taken advantage of by a god.

Artemis snapped her fingers and Sally was wrapped with a silver cloth with her symbol on the top. She wouldn't place Poseidon's on her for obvious reasons, he has just been added to her long list of males she hated.

She did however send the body through the reservoir giving her a burial at sea. She placed a drachma on her body and pushed her into the water. She prayed that the judges would recognize her blessing and send Sally to Elysium.

She turned around with slightly puffy eyes and began to walk back to her camps, where she and her hunters are staying in. While walking the bundle she carried began to stir. A couple seconds later, he began to cry. This is a first for Artemis but she thought that Perseus was crying louder than a normal baby.

She decided to try something, "Hush little one, everything will be alright." That quieted the baby down and made him open his eyes. She gasped, as she saw the most beautiful sea-green eyes. When their eyes met he smiled and snuggled into her grasp, making the goddess's heart flutter.

She knew immediately why the monster came after him so early, he was a very powerful demigod even if so young. The aura he gave from crying alone proved that. Yet Artemis couldn't keep the smile off her face as she realized she would finally have a child, even if it is a male. She figured she would replace his godly blood from Poseidon with hers, that will be payback for what the sea god allowed to happen.

When she finally arrived her Lieutenant noticed her first and swiftly ran up to her. When she noticed the baby, and somehow it's gender. She gasped and took a step back.

"M- Milady? Is that that a baby?"

She was going to continue stuttering out questions but Artemis held up her hand stop them. "Zoe, can you gather the hunters around the campfire, I have something important to say."

Zoe nodded and sprinted off to find every last hunter, eager to learn what's going on.

In a few minutes all the hunters we're seated at the campfire. Some were talking quietly amongst themselves, but were instant silenced when they saw the baby boy their mistress was playing with. Few were watching intently, making assumptions on this boy.

Finally with a small smile, Artemis looked up and realized the entire Hunt was watching her. She blushed slightly out of embarrassment but regained her composure quickly.

"I would like to tell you of what has just happened not too far from our camp. I was patrolling outside to make sure there wouldn't be any mortals or monsters, though there shouldn't because this is a unique area. Although, when I was near the reservoir I heard a woman cry a man's name for help. I wasn't going to check it out until a heard a monster's roar.

Once I heard that, I knew that whoever the woman was, was calling for help from a god or other male deity. I ran as fast as I could and witnessed a cyclops cornering a young woman. I straightaway fired an arrow into it's back, when it turned around I fired into his leg, and to finish it off I shot him in between the eyes."

The hunters gave a cheer for Artemis, learning that she saved a female from a horrible fate, yet it still left questions unanswered. "Milady, why do you have that baby?"

Artemis gave another small smile, "Once I killed the monster the woman recognized she had a fatal wound and dropped on the ground because of it. I approached her and learned she was a mother. Her child was a demigod, a boy and a very powerful one, and she wanted me to become it's mother."

Eerily the hunters gasped at the same time and stayed silent trying to figure out how they feel about the situation. Phoebe, one of her oldest hunters, spoke up first,

"But, milady, he is a male. Aren't we supposed to hate males."

"Yes, and tonight I hate them more than ever, but he is too young. How can we hate him when he isn't even a day old. He isn't crooked, faithless, or rotten, but we can raise him to be honorable and pure. We can teach him to protect and respect women. Together as a family. Here, I want everyone to hold him."

Artemis passed Perseus on to Zoe first. She studied it like it was a science experiment, but then he snuggled into her arms making the Lieutenant smile.

"What's his name?"

"Perseus. Perseus Jackson."

"I like that name." She turned to the baby, "I'm going to call you Percy for short."

She passed on the baby to the other hunters, each seeming to like the idea of raising the perfect male.

"He seems a little advanced for a baby only a couple hours old. He's already giggling and smiling." Lauren inquired, she was a daughter of Athena so she was always asking questions.

"My guess is that he's a really powerful demigod, or maybe that he's too smart for his own good."

"Who's his godly parent?"

"I am."

"Who was it before?"

All heads snapped to the goddess, growing anxious to learn of the god who abandoned their own son.

"His father," Artemis started, growing angry as she spoke, "is Poseidon, god of the seas."

It still felt wrong to say on her tongue. The goddess of the moon had felt that the sea god was one of the better ones. But not only did he just knock up a young maiden, he also left her to face the dangers by herself. His actions solidified the notion that all men are evil, that is until Percy has grown up.

But there was more to worry about, like what will Lauren do now that she knows she's holding a son of Poseidon. The son of her mother's rival.

But all she did was grin triumphantly, like she just learned the science to invisibility. "Let's see how Poseidon feels when he learns his son was raised by a daughter of Athena."

She passed on the infant to the others, each playing with him a little before giving it to their sister. After a couple more hunters Artemis held Percy once more, who was wide awake and playing with her uniform.

She twirled his little hairs in between her fingers while looking at her hunters with an arched eyebrow, "So we can all agree on keeping him right?"

The ones in question looked at each other until they all nod in unison. Zoe was the one to speak for them, "We will help raise the greatest male to ever walk the Earth."

Artemis smiled and stood up, "That's nice to hear. Now we already ate, so why don't we get to sleep and prepare for the future with little Percy." She turned to her tent and made her way to it.

The hunters listened and quickly shuffled out to their tents to sleep for the night. Some were whispering about what they'll do with Percy while others focused on how cute he was already. Zoe was quiet but had a small smile, looking forward to raising Percy and also the fact her nickname for him already stuck.

Artemis entered her tent, looked around, and realized she needed somewhere to place the baby to sleep in. She made space next to her bed and summoned a wooden crib. The wood seemed to be made of the same material as Artemis' favored bow, and gave an ethereal glow in the dimly lit tent.

She placed the baby, who already fell into deep sleep again, into the crib. She internally sighed, she hoped this wasn't a sign showing he'll be a lazy male growing up.

"Well Perseus, I guess this is a new chapter in our lives. I can only wonder if it will be a positive one."

As a response, Percy turned away from her and slept facing the side of the tent.

She rolled her eyes, receiving the action as a sarcastic comment. If anyone was to look at her face, they would see a stoic expression painted across her face.

But inside she has never been more excited.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of hopefully an awesome book. This isn't my first time writing, but certainly my first at publishing.

I know for a fact I'm not the best, but I do see myself as somewhat skilled. But I would love and encourage constructive criticism so I can write better and give you guys an overall better story.

I would like to have Percy to have a romantic interest in each of my stories. Some I already have a definite match but others, like this one, I'm very skeptical.

Annabeth is a definite no. In my eyes Percabeth is only acceptable if Rick Riordan himself writes it. Any other time it just doesn't make sense. The personalities don't match at all and they don't share the same interests. They grew up together and saved each other's lives countless times so that's going for them. But that's really isn't strong enough to make a fanfiction with Percabeth in it, unless I make one of them out-of-character.

For this story I can only see Percy being with Bianca right now. I'm having Zoe as a motherly or sisterly figure so not her. Maybe I could do something with Reyna. But I would appreciate hearing your ideas.

This story is going to be a little sad at first, but expect epic action scenes. Percy will be different from the books in some ways but his backstory is different from PJO so he can be different. I'm striving hard to not have this like any other Percy-being-raised-by-the-hunt story, so predict as much as you want.

As for who made my cover, it was an awesome duo that goes by the name of Xx_Anaklusmos_xX. They did an amazing job.

Again thanks for even reading. Share to others, like it, add it to your library.

You won't regret it.