The story of Atalanta:
King Iasus wanted a male heir so when Atalanta was born, she was left on a mountaintop to die. A she-bear who had just lost her cub heard Atalanta crying loudly and came to see what’s the matter. The she-bear then decided to take Atalanta as her own and raised her in the wild. Atalanta never knew there was something wrong, she was happy with Momma bear, eating honey and fish until she grew older. A few hunters were exploring the woods when they heard loud crying from a cave that sounded like a human, they investigated and then found out that there was a baby girl in bear pellets crying, they delicious that it was wrong to leave her be and ‘adopted’ her. Momma bear who was out hunting for food came back to an empty cave and was heart broken all over again due to the lost of another child. Having grown up in the wilderness, Atalanta became a fierce hunter and was always happy. She took an oath of virginity to the goddess Artemis; when two centaurs, Rhoikos and Hylaios, tried to assault her, Atalanta killed them. When Artemis was forgotten at a sacrifice by King Oienus, she was angered and sent a wild boar that ravaged the land, men, and cattle and prevented crops from being sown. Atalanta joined Meleager and many other famous heroes on a hunt for the boar. Many of the men were angry that a woman was joining them, but Meleager, though married, lusted for Atalanta, and so he persuaded them to include her. Several of the men were killed before Atalanta became the first to hit the boar and draw blood. After Meleager finally killed the boar with his spear, he awarded the skin to Atalanta. Meleager’s uncles, Plexippus and Toxeus, were angry and tried to take the skin from her. In revenge, Meleager killed his uncles. Wild with grief, Meleager's mother Althaea threw a charmed log on the fire, which consumed Meleager's life as it burned.[magic firewood; it was Meleager’s life-line] And again, Atalanta lost another Friend and decided that she was done with the human world. The human world however, was not done with her. Some time after the Calydonian boar hunt, Atalanta was rediscovered by her father. He wanted her to be wed, but Atalanta, uninterested in marriage, agreed to marry only if her suitors could outrun her in a footrace. Those who lost would be killed. Many young men decided not compete against her while others died in their attempt to win. Until Hippomenes came along,[ he thought that it was foolish for so many eligible young men to chase after a foolish girl but as soon as he sat his eyes on her, all was forgotten. He was in love.]he asked the love goddess Aphrodite for help and she gave him three golden apples to toss as Atalanta caught up, in order to slow her down. The apples were irresistible, so every time Atalanta got close to him, he would throw an apple behind him and in front of her, and she would catch them giving him a few seconds to spare. That was how Hippomenes won the footrace and came to marry Atalanta. Eventually they had a son Parthenopaios, who was one of the Seven against Thebes. However, when Hippomenes asked Aphorodite for help, she only asked for one thing in return. To honour her by placing a few cabbages at her alter. But Hippomenes was so consumed by his love for Atalanta that he had forgotten about his promise. So one day they were having a picnic at Zeus’s shrine, they were cursed by Aphorodite and started making out right in front of the altar, Zeus relized and felt disrespected and turned them into lions. It took eneons for the pair of lions to be caught but eventually they were skinned by another famous Greek hero.
