Artemis

Artemis, the twin sister of Apollo, was the goddess of the hunt and the moon.  She was the daughter of Leto, a titan woman, and Zeus.  When she was young she swore never to marry and asked her father Zeus for three things - to be an eternal maiden, to have fifty fine and swift nymphs, and to have a pack of dogs as companions.  Zeus gave her what she asked for. She got herself got a silver chariot drawn by four reindeer with silver horns.  She was a graceful and elegant goddess, but fierce as well.  Once, for example, a male hunter spied on her in the woods.  When she found out, she turned him into a stag and was attacked by his own pack of dogs.

Artemis and her twin, Apollo, were very different yet alike in some ways.  They were both Olympians and were very protective of their mother, Leto.  One myth went like this:  A kingdom was once ruled by a queen named Niobe who had 14 children, seven girls and seven boys.  They were celebrating and honoring Leto.  That's when Niobe made her mistake.  She suddenly shouted to her people, ''Foolish people!  Why honor Leto when you can honor me your queen!  I am far better than her for I have 14 children while she only has two!''  Leto heard this and called on her children, Artemis and Apollo.  When they found out about Niobe's disrespect they made their move quickly.  The twins flew down to the kingdom.  Furious, they shot the seven sons of Niobe with their powerful bows.  Before Niobe could finish a sentence, her seven daughters fell dead.  Niobe couldn't stop crying.  Finally, out of pity the gods turned her into a rock.  Even then the rock was wet everyday with tears of grief from Niobe.

What do you think of this story of Artemis?