War and Peace (Artemis)

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Well, each goddess was entitled to her own opinion, and obviously, they had both learned different things from different backgrounds. When there was a time to kill, Artemis would do it gladly, but a time to kill was different from a war. She never partook in wars back in Greece, except, of course, the Trojan War, where she hardly had much of a choice, because of her devoted loyalty to the city of Troy.

Artemis shrugged and leaned backwards, as if on an invisible wall. "Mortals should not be arguing in the first place, and neither should gods, but I suppose not everything can be perfect." That was her conclusion. She felt as though she had just repeated a line from one of Athena's speeches to her. Gods, Athena loved to comment on Artemis' recklessness. "A problem can also be solved with a treaty of some sort. But perhaps you are right. War is the only way to solve things, on some occasions."

"Well, of course there will be. The immortals hardly have much of a say in this, despite the fact that Hermes, my brother is an immortal headmaster," Artemis said, with scorn in her voice. She wasn't sure what to make of the fact that Hel was actually shooting with a bow and arrow, when just months ago she refused to even lay a finger on the weapon. Artemis smiled at the change. "I can be relied upon if I am being relied on by my allies. But what is this you are referring to now? Are you being general?"

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Hel nodded in agreement. “Indeed, arguing is pointless and childish, but as you say, there is no perfection in any of the worlds. The mortals merely mimic our behavior so we cannot fault them.” Mortals watched and did as the immortals did. They were like sheep that needed to be shown what to do, though often there were many who stepped up to take control as head of the herd, but they still needed a shepherd.

“Perhaps a treaty would work, but what stops a man from breaking his oath? Treaties only work when the mortals involved are not apt to break their promises. There are many criminals and thieves that walk my halls. There are many oath-breakers among the mortals.” The Vikings never signed treaties, but they did make oaths and oaths were often broken. Then again, that was often the way with Vikings. They had mastered the art of fighting dirty.

“My father, Loki, is the Deputy Head, just under you brother, though I fear my father may view the war very differently than Hermes. I am sure he will be inclined to favor this war.” When mortals battled mortals, her father never seemed to be far away regardless of whether it was a battle of wits or a battle of swords. Hel did not doubt that Loki would be involved somehow.

Hel turned back to her archery, aiming at the target once again. “At this moment I speak in generalities. I do not have many allies for there are few I trust.” She let go of the arrow. “I appreciate the allies I have.”

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Artemis could only agree with Hel. Many mortals had grown up believing in the immortals, be they Greeks or Norsemen. The immortals were always expected to be far wiser and with a better head on their shoulders. Usually, it was the other way around. Mortals proved to be smarter in more situations than one.

"Perhaps," Artemis replied with one nod. "I do not see why. Sometimes immortals make far more mistakes than mortals would. It does depend, however on whom the immortals is." Artemis wouldn't claim to be perfect, but she would say that if she wasn't baited, she could be a well enough role model for a human.

"There are. I have seen far too many, be they mortal or immortal. The world in which everyone lives has become far more corrupt than one would choose to believe," she said, shaking her head, almost sadly. At least mortals didn't have powers, because if they did, the earth would be in chaos. It would be like six billion Lokis living at one time. What a dreadful thought.

Shrugging, Arty picked up her bow and an arrow, shooting another perfect shot. "My brother isn't the wisest of immortals, but he can prove to be a good leader if he starts thinking about everyone as a whole rather than just a certain group of people. I may not be his best admirer but I trust him when it comes to the welfare of mortals. Most of the time."

"As long as Loki does not get in Hermes' way, then I think it would be safe. Of course, unless Hermes makes a wrong decision."

Well, that was set then. Hel and Artemis were allies. "As do I, Hel."

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Hel nodded in agreement. “Indeed, that is sometimes the case. I tend to believe however that mortals are more prone to mistakes. They do not have the wisdom that comes with an eternal life as you or I might have. Perhaps we are better prepared for making decisions.” The Norse goddess believed strongly that wisdom came with time. Theoretically, the longer one lived, the more wisdom one had. More experience in the world meant more wisdom, or so she believed.

“There I believe you are wrong,” she commented lightly. “The world must have its dark moments so that the bright one shine with more brilliance. The sun always shines brighter after a storm. We must have opposites in all things.” She did not see as much corruptness as Artemis. Or perhaps it would be much fairer to say that while Artemis condemned the corrupt, Hel did not. She did not condone it, but did not condemn it for she knew that one must have corruption to have innocence. One alone could not survive.

Hel listened with contentment as Artemis spoke about her brother. Hel herself had no connection to Hermes and did not believe that she ever would, but it was interesting to hear about their relationship. Siblings were not always as close as she was with her own brothers.

“I am quite sure that my father will be underfoot, but I have no doubt that he will do what he can to help the mortal citizens of this town. He is quite fond of mortals after all.”