Artemis

Goddess of the Hunt, the Wilderness, Wild animals, Nature, Vegetation, Childbirth, care of Children, and Chastity.

Artemis was the daughter of Zeus and Leto, and twin sister of Apollo. After spiteful punishment from Hera delayed their birth, it’s said that at no more than a few days old Artemis herself helped her mother give birth to her twin brother. They were known to be close, and protective of one another and their mother. Alongside her brother, she was one of the 12 ruling Olympians.

Artemis was known to be very protective of her own purity, as well as the innocence of her priestesses, and could be extremely cruel to anyone who crossed them. She delighted in the hunt and in harsh punishments, including against her own priestesses if they were defiled, such as Callisto who had the misfortune of bearing a child of Zeus. She was often presented as a hunting goddess of the woods, surrounded by her chaste band of nymphs. Among her retinue was the woman who would in later Ages be remembered as the Roman goddess Diana.

Artemis was known to have connections with the Amazons, a legendary tribe of warrior women, and may have even been their patron goddess, providing them guidance and strength in battle. At her shining best, Artemis was a proud protector of women, and an embodiment of fierce female independence — the quintessential virgin goddess. She was also a patron of healing and disease, particularly among women and children. Though it was believed she sent both good health and illness upon the women and children she protected.

Artemis’s most enduring myths concern her defence of chastity. When Actaeon, a young hunter, saw her bathing naked, she transformed him into a deer and let him be ripped apart and devoured by his own hunting dogs, who did not recognise their master. Any who man had the temerity to attempt rape did not live to tell the tale. Even Orion, a long-time hunting companion, was killed when he tried to take off Artemis robe (although some suggest it was Apollo protecting his sister on this occasion).

Likewise, when Artemis’s own attendant Callisto gave birth to Zeus’s son, she conspired with Hera to transform her into a bear, with the intent that her own son hunt her down and kill her. Callisto was only saved because Zeus interfered and rescued them both.

However as wrathful as she could be against those foolish transgressors of her most sacred vow, Artemis rewarded those who kept it. So as to devote himself to a chaste life, Hippolytus scorned Aphrodite after which the goddess of love made his stepmother fall in love with him. This set in motion a chain of events which led to Hippolytus’ death. However, Artemis called upon Asclepius and resurrected Hippolytus as a new man, who subsequently ruled in Italy under the name of Virbius.

In the First Age, Artemis lived as Melany Alvarez Tai Terrones