So he gave Kateri the simplest explanation. "Dark-Hunters are immortal warriors who protect humanity from the preternatural beings who prey on them."
Kateri frowned. This was one of the moments when a sane, rational person would throw down the bull caca flag on the field. But ...
Sanity had waved bye-bye to her several hours ago. At this point, she was ready to go with space aliens, flying fat Elvi, and anything else someone wanted her to believe in.
Even Santa and the Tooth Fairy.
Heck, why not throw the Easter Bunny in for good measure.
And assuming that the Dark-Hunters were as real as all the other ... things she'd met since she got up this morning, she had a few questions. "So how does someone get to be a Dark-Hunter? Are you born to do it?"
"No. They're usually someone who dies during a brutal betrayal of some kind. One so violent and harsh that their soul screams loud enough to carry to Artemis's temple on Olympus. When she hears it, she goes to make them a bargain. For a single Act of Vengeance against the person who hurt them, they give her their soul and spend the rest of eternity hunting down Daimons for her."
"Daimon as in demon?"
He laughed bitterly. "Another very long, complicated story. Suffice it to say, they're soul-sucking vampires who serve the Atlantean goddess Apollymi. Since they collect souls and souls cannot live inside a body not their own, a Dark-Hunter is charged with killing the Daimon before the soul dies so that it can return to where it needs to be."
A shiver went down her spine at the thought of losing her soul. "You sold your soul to Artemis?"
"Trust me, it wasn't much of one, and it was no great loss. I really haven't missed it at all." There was a note of bitterness in his voice as he spoke.
But that got her to thinking.... "Then they're not worth anything?"
"Not as long as you're alive. But if you die without one, it makes your concept of hell look like a picnic."
Oh, okay, that didn't sound so pleasant.... "But if you're immortal, you can't die, right?"
"Easily. There are certain things no one survives."
This she had to hear. "Such as?"
"Beheading. Total dismemberment. Heart removal. Basically anything that utterly destroys a body, such as fire, and of course my personal fave-letting sunlight touch you. We tend to spontaneously combust into flames whenever that happens."
"Why?"
"You want the lie or the truth?"
Kateri wondered what made him ask such a question. Who would want a lie if they could have the truth? But her curiosity did get the better of her. "Oh, what the heck, let's live a little and hear both, shall we?"
One corner of his mouth twitched as if he started to smile, then caught himself. "Artemis tells everyone that it's because of her brother, Apollo, god of the sun. It's his curse that keeps the Dark-Hunters from daylight. But it stems from Apollymi. Since the Daimons can't go out in sunlight, she made it so that the Dark-Hunters who pursue them can't attack them unfairly. If the Daimons can't walk daylight, the Dark-Hunters can't walk daylight."
Made sense, but it stunk for the ones caught in the middle. "It sounds like Apollymi and the Greeks are still at war."
He inclined his head to her. "They are. The gods are worse than the Hatfields and McCoys when it comes to grudge matches. They don't know the meaning of the words 'Halt. Enough.'"
"And I still don't see how any of this ties in to me."
Ren paused at the opening of a cave. He pulled the knife from his boot. "Can you handle a knife?"
"I'm a better archer, but I think I understand the basic concept of stabbing someone."
His eyebrow shot up at that. "You can shoot a bow?"
Could she shoot a bow? Really? His astonished tone and expression seriously offended her. "Honey, I was on the 2008 Olympic archery team in Beijing. I didn't take home the gold, but I was ranked number four in the world. Compound, crossbow, or traditional ... whatever propels an arrow. If I can nock it, I can shoot it accurately. Never go to rubber-band war with me. You will be sorry."
This time he did smile, and it was devastating enough to make her forget all about feeling offended. Damn, he was gorgeous when he did that....
It lit his face and made him appear boyish and sweet.