-1Chapter Twenty Five

Dende's eyes went wide and his face went pale. He looked at Hera, "Thena! Your mother's name was Thena!"

"Dende, calm down," Kami said sternly.

Dende, of course didn't listen, "That's impossible. That's insane!"

"Dende," Gohan stood up, "what's the matter."

"Dende!" Kami's voice shook the entire room.

Dende stopped wringing his hands, stopped stammering.

"Dende," his voice was softer now, less hostile, "will you and Hera please follow me."

"Wait!" Gohan protested, "We have a right to know what's going on too! Hera's our friend."

"Yes, please Kami! Don't turn us away." Videl agreed, standing next to her fiancé.

Piccolo looked at Mr. Popo. Mr. Popo looked up at Piccolo. Kami sighed, "Very well. But what you are about to hear has never been known outside this Look Out. And I intend for it to stay that way."

Gohan and Videl nodded. Hera looked at Dende. He was still gaping at Kami, his breath coming in short rasps.

"Mr. Popo," Kami smiled, "why don't you pour us some tea. I think we're going to need it."

They pulled enough chairs out of the rows to form a loose circle. Everyone was seated, everyone had a cup of fragrant tea in their hands. Kami waiting until all was quiet before he began.

"Many years ago, before Piccolo and I fused, before any of you were born (except you, Mr. Popo), I met a young woman and fell in love with her."

"How did you meet her?" Dende interrupted.

Kami smiled, "Through the orb. I was watching the earth, browsing, making certain all was at it should be, when I felt a great disturbance. The source of it was coming from a small, run down shack in the middle of a ghost town. I heard screaming, cursing, yelling. There was a sound like someone being hit, then crying. A little girl ran from the shack, blood coming from her cheek, tears coming from her eyes. She ran down the dirt road, her bare feet stumbling on the rocks. She ran until she couldn't breathe, until her legs gave out. She was seven years old, covered in dirt, cuts and bruises. I went to her, knowing I couldn't be gone for long, but I couldn't just leave her there. The sun was setting and there were wild animals around, not to mention men of a very unsavory nature.

"She was afraid of me at first, distrusting, but quickly warmed up to me when I offered her food. She ate like a ravenous beast, telling me she'd never had more than burnt toast and water, maybe some beans now and then. My heart crumbled. I wondered, how could someone be so cruel to a child. I still have trouble with such cruelty."

Kami paused. Dende shuddered and Hera reached out, put a hand on his arm. He looked down at her and gave her a strained smile.

Kami went on, "She told me she never wanted to go back, she hated her parents and they hated her. I knew of a place in the city, a reputable orphanage run by good people and I told her to go there, to tell them of the beatings, of the starvation. She did and they took her in, and had her parents arrested for child abuse. She grew up into a beautiful and strong young lady, happy and content with her new home.

"I visited her on a regular basis, finding myself growing closer and closer to her each day. When the time came for her to leave the orphanage, she came to me, crying, saying she was afraid to go out into the world alone. You see, no on ever adopted her and at 18 she was forced, by law, to leave. I told her not to worry, to get a good job, find a place to live and make a life for herself. But she didn't want to. She told me she wanted to be with me. And that's where I made a most tragic error."

It was amusing for the group to see Piccolo pick up a tea cup and sip tea. They knew he'd never in a million years do that and it was only Kami that could make him do so. Under other circumstances, Dende would have laughed, or made a mental note to tease Piccolo about it later. But he just sat there, his tea growing colder and colder as Kami's story went on. Hera kept stealing glances his way; what could be so upsetting to Dende about her mother's name?"

"I agreed," Kami continued, "and brought her here to the Look Out. Mr. Popo welcomed her, but cautioned me privately that I may be making a grave mistake. I assured him I knew what I was doing, that I was confident she'd never betray us.

Kami sighed deeply, "She lived here for two years and during those two years, we grew close. Very…very close." He looked past them, outside into the growing dark. "She was happy here, with me, exploring the rooms. She had so many questions. Could I teach her my powers? Could she learn to read minds? Were there any books in the library about turning invisible or flying.

"Eventually, she did get a job. I thought it best she associate with people of her own kind. She didn't want to at first, but I encouraged her, telling her she'd enjoy it, and she would always be back here at night. She found a good job and did enjoy it. But soon, she started asking me questions of a different nature.

"She wanted to know if I could teach her how to focus her energy, how to hurt people with it. I was appalled and confronted her about it. She said she'd discovered her parents were now living in a retirement facility not far from where she worked. She thought she was over the abuse, but discovering them still alive, she went mad. I refused to teach her and she was angry. She eventually calmed down, however, and our relationship saw no more disturbances. Not for one whole year.

"It was one year to the day we had a huge argument about her revenge, one year to the day when she walked in and told me she'd been given the option to transfer to another office. She'd be given a promotion and a raise. I was so very proud of her and she was so happy. We…celebrated that night. The next day, she was off to her new job. I waited anxiously for the evening when she would come and tell me all about it. But she didn't come. She was gone for three days. I was so worried, but I promised her I would never spy on her unless I had reason to. She came back the third night, acting a if nothing had happened. When I asked about it, she said she'd been asked to go out with some friends. She'd stayed over with them the past few nights. They were really nice but had some funny ideas about life and how it should be lived. When I asked her about their ideas, she wouldn't say.

"Things got worse from there. Over the next few weeks, into the next month, she had terrible mood swings and began again with her talk of revenge. Then she started asking if she could use her energy to destroy more than just her parents. She wanted to get even with the world, with the government for what they were doing to the 'common man'. I asked her where she got such ideas and she said there was this guy, a radical, who was taking her to secret meetings, meetings that were full of hate and rebellion. She was getting involved with a violet and dangerous crowd, a crowd that wanted anarchy. I confronted her about it. She became furious! She left, in a huff, and I didn't see her for nine months.

"I went against my own promise and spied on her. It was then that I learned she and this radical guy she'd met were getting very close. I was furious! I was so hurt! But I had no way of going to her without revealing myself to her new 'friends'. So I waited. And I waited. And I waited. I watched her off and on, wondering about her, protecting her when I could. And it was through my spying that something became painfully clear." Kami paused. He was causing Piccolo's hands to shake. With a trembling voice he continued, "She was with child. My child. And it was apparent she had no desire to tell me."

Hera found herself wiping tears from her eyes. Dende stared at the floor, too many emotions running through him to count. Gohan and Videl clung to each other's hands, Videl trying to hide the fact she was crying.

"Then, one cold winter morning, she appeared. She looked different. She had changed. Her eyes were cold. She was dressed in an oddly conservative manner. She was wearing no shoes on her feet and her hair and grown long. In fact, she appeared to have not taken care of herself at all. In her arms was a small bundle, wrapped up tightly against the cold.

"She said she came to tell me goodbye. She said all this was crazy. She'd told her new 'love' about me, about the Look Out and he'd become furious with her, telling her she was insane, that she'd someone been drugged into believing such outlandishness. I told her that was absurd; didn't she believe her own experiences. She wouldn't look at me. She just said that maybe it was for the best she left, never saw me again. But before she left, she handed me the bundle.

"'this is your daughter,' she said, 'I thought you had a right to know. My boyfriend isn't happy about her. In fact he wants me to get rid of her. Says she's an abomination. She doesn't have a name. I thought you should name her.' I held my daughter just that one time. She was so small. She was curious looking, mostly human but with some of my characteristics as well. Her mother looked at me and asked, 'is there any way you can make her look normal? My boyfriend told me if I couldn't get her fixed I have to get rid of her. Can you fix her?'

"With a heavy heart, I told her I could. But I only took away my physical characteristics she'd inherited. She looked human, but inside, she was full of gifts that her mother would never understand, gifts her mother would grow to fear and hate."

Hera shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Videl saw this, elbowed Gohan who just shrugged.

"I never saw them again. Not in person. But I watched over my daughter. I visited her at night when she was young, but kept my distance as she grew older. As far as I know, she has no idea her human father isn't her biological father."

Kami was quiet. Hera swallowed hard and cleared her throat before asking, "Kami? What were there names? The woman and her child? What did you name your daughter?"

Kami smiled at her, tears glistening in Piccolo's eyes. "Her name was Thena. And I named my daughter after the queen of the gods. Her name is Hera."