A/N: And another one.

A NEW DEMI GOD

After we returned form the land of the dead, the star lit sky was warm, and there was a gentle breeze. Nico was quiet most of the time, probably letting me gather my wits and think straight. And what he was doing was nice, and considerate. He was sort of handsome. (Well, let's just say that a girl who's almost 4000 years old is just too old.) But he really was kind. (Besides the fact that he got me into this whole disaster.) Other than that, he was fine.

We ended up at Santa Monica California. The ocean air was perfect. I could smell the salt in the air, and the Fish N' Chips restaurant with delicious food. I couldn't resist, and I sort of made him buy me some. I had never tried it before, and I was surprised. The fish was (thankfully) not too greasy. The chips I could tell were real potatoes. I of course gave him some, but I could tell he didn't like it very much.

"I'm not a son of Poseidon, I don't eat fish." That was his reply. He was kind of grumpy.

"Okay, I guess that's a good reason," I said sarcastically. "How do we get to New York?" I asked him eating a piece of fish.

"People usually use a train, Airplane—but that might not be a good idea considering the fact that you stole Artemis' bow—or you could travel by bus. Or by Taxi."

With that last remark he reached into his pocket and pulled out a golden Drachma. He said something, then lifted the coin, and said, "Except our offering." A few seconds later, I said, "Nice magic trick."

He scowled—which was his main occupation—and then a gray taxi came into view. It was kind of blurry—because of the mist—and the tires looked flat. When I ducked my head to get in I noticed their faces. They all wore old lady clothes and had no eyes. The lady in the drivers seat was arguing with the one holding what was an eye that looked like it was for all three. The third was quiet.

I sat down, and the ladies took one look at Nico, and the first lady said,

"Sorry, not for him. No refunds!" The second lady said, "Where would you like to go ma'am?" The third said, "That's what I was supposed to say! You get to hold the eye, and I speak!"

While they were arguing I slid out of the taxi. I could see them driving off crashing against a blue Mail Box. (So much for a ride.)

"So, do you want to shadow travel?" I asked Nico clapping my hands together.

"If I traveled that far, I would go blind. I don't feel like being like those old hags." He said referring to the sisters inside the taxi. "We'll go by bus. No guarantees for your safety."

"Well, I guess I've lived my life. We'll take the bus."

We got two tickets on an old looking bus with graffiti all over it. The name of the bus was Silverado. Curious of how or where our first stop was going to be, I said,

"We would like to know where the first stop is?" The old man grunted.

"Okay, thank you for your time." I said sitting back down again. A few more people filed into the bus. We sat by the emergency exit just in case. One lady that sat across from us looked very suspicious. She had a small lap dog and a green purse. She wore a purple shirt and blue sweat pants. She smelled really bad. In front of us there was a young mother with her little boy. The little boy leaned over his seat and was staring at my sword.

"Mom, that girl has a sword!" He said to his mother. I quickly hid the sword and smiled. I elbowed Nico, and said,

"I thought you said people can't see through the mist!" I did not know that he was asleep, and he opened his eyes wearily, and said, "Some can. He may even be a demi-god. Probably minor. If his parents were really important, monsters would be attacking."

Right after Nico said this a monster leaped for the boy. It was the ladies lap dog. It turned into a ferocious monster. Everyone in the train was screaming. I stood up, attracting the attention of the monster. Nico grabbed the boy, and stood in front of him. The boy looked like he was maybe six, frightened, the boy tugged his shirt.

Meanwhile I faced the monster. It leapt at me, but I dodged. When it leapt again, it met its target. Because I was daughter of Achilles, it did not hurt. The monster was stunned because there were no teeth marks. I swung my sword slicing the monsters head off. We exited the train with the boy and his mother.

His mother looked like she knew what was going on. She was very beautiful. She held her boy's hand like it was the last time they would see each other again. We ran as far as we could, and stopped at a dirt road.

"I knew this time would come, thank you." The mother said sadly. She put her arm over his shoulder while we walked. "I thought for sure that he was too young. That's what they told me. I should have brought him to the camp."

"It's all right. You never know when they'll come." I said trying (the best I could) to relax.

"Dallan, say hi," The mother said nudging her son. "He used to be so friendly. I would have thought that who his father is might make him strong." She said patting Dallan's back.

"Who is his father?" I asked just wondering (hoping it wasn't too personal).

"Apollo." She said.