Chapter 2

I tried to keep from gaping at her. "Why would I be?"

"Because you escaped Smarts, you got away."

"Only because of you," I pointed out.

She shook her head. "No, I had nothing to do with it."

"What do you mean by that? You're a demigod too." I was starting to get really confused here.

"Maybe," she replied evenly. "So?"

"Why don't you come to Camp Half-Blood with me?" I blurted. "I mean, it's like the only safe place on earth for demigods."

She looked amused. "I know all about your camp Nico. My mother doesn't have a cabin there. You only have twenty cabins. There are many more gods than those. Many you probably haven't even heard of."

"Who's your mom then?" I challenged.

"Nyx, goddess of the night." Her silvery eyes looked into my gray ones and I flushed. She looked at me as an equal, not like the guy who was probably dying in that cell twenty minutes ago. She took no credit for what she had done; instead she acted like it was all part of her life, which it probably was.

"So you refuse to come to camp on account of that?" I asked.

Anger lit her face. "No, I'm not that stubborn. There are others, children of other minor deities that you in your ignorance are either unaware of or never pay attention to unless fate forces your attentions their way." She sounded so furious, so bitter, that I was taken by surprise. "You aren't fit to go back to your precious camp now anyway. I'm going to take you to them, but watch your tounge."

I frowned. "No, I can get back to camp. I'll just call Chiron for a Pegasus."

"No, you're not. You can't Iris message him here, there's no water and you need sunlight anyway."

I sighed. There was no way to defeat her. "I don't want to be a burden," I admitted.

"You won't be. Don't worry about that." She turned, took a few steps north, then spun 'round and beckoned to me. "Come on." Leaving me with little choice, I followed her.

I still wasn't feeling so great and she must have known that, for she walked at a relatively slow pace. I hobbled after her, trying not to slow our progress by any significant amount. After only a few minutes though, we reached the edge of a wood. I knew this couldn't be. I had seen the field stretching in every direction for ever it seemed. The girl must have seen me looking all confused, because she said, "It's an illusion. The mist is very thick here because we have our own hideaway here. There are more monsters than we'd like around, but mortals don't know it exists. Maybe that's why Gaia has an outpost here."

"So y'all have your own camp?" I questioned.

"No. It's more like a temporary HQ. I and a few trusted friends and allies go all over the country looking for demigods like us, those who don't have a place at your camp. We bring them here. They train and learn to survive as best they can. Then when they're old enough, they either can choose to stick around and help with the effort and defense or try out life in the mortal world. When you guys first started accepting campers from minor gods, we organized large groups to be moved to Long Island for that purpose. Many of them once lived with us."

"So you mean to tell me that Butch, Clovis, Lou, and the others… they used to live here?" I tried wrapping my head around that fact but it was too far out. None of them had ever made any sign of knowing about this. Then again, we hadn't asked.

"Yeah. How is Clovis?" she asked. Her voice sounded distant, as if her thoughts were far away.

"He's great. Sleeps most of the time, but he's alright."

She nodded. "I'm not worried about the others, but the children of Hypnos… sheesh. Our satyr just about had to carry him to camp."

I grinned. "That sounds like Clovis. You guys have satyrs?"

"Not many, most reside at your camp," she said indifferently. "A few bump into us looking for Pan or something and we convince them stick around." She sighed. "It's too bad his memory has passed; the first Olympian to die because people have forgotten him." The girl laughed bitterly as she ducked underneath some low hanging branches. I shoved them aside and followed her, panting slightly. "The minor gods are lucky they're too important to fade. They are needed and; thus, they must remain. I pity them, but don't tell anyone I said that." She stopped suddenly. "This is it."

As if waiting for that very signal, two teenagers in Greek armor moved out from behind some trees. Both had permanent scowls on their face and rippling muscles. The taller of the two was a boy of about fifteen with jet black hair and dark brown eyes. The girl next to him was much the same. Both had rather broad faces with rough features and sharp intelligent eyes. From the calluses on their hands and the expert way in which they handled their weapons, I guessed that their parent must have been on of war. They looked at me suspiciously, sizing me up.

"This is Anna and Clyde" the girl told me, pointing to each in turn as she named them. "Both are children of the goddess Enyo; the minor goddess of war."

Anna cracked her knuckles menacingly. "Who's this?"

"Nico di Angelo, son of Hades," she answered.

To my satisfaction, Clyde looked slightly nervous. "He's a son of an Olympian. Gods, we don't have impenetrable borders, we'll be overrun by the next nightfall! They've been tolerant so far only because we crush them every time they attack… But this?" he shook his head and kicked a small stone on the ground, sending it whizzing off into the darkness with surprising force. "An Olympian son will be just too tempting."

Anna nodded her agreement. "Why's he staying anyway?" she asked suspiciously.

The girl shrugged. "His leg was snapped clean in half when I got to him. It looks normal now, but it was infected and the only thing I did was put it in its proper place. I'm not sure what else happened, but I think he needs to stay until it's safe for him to travel again."

"Want me to fetch Elisa for him?" suggested Clyde. "She can heal just about anything."

She shook her head. "I'll fetch her myself. Now can we enter?"

Anna chuckled. "Password?"

"Have you seen my breakfast?" she answered, managing to keep a straight face while I grinned from ear to ear.

Clyde bowed with mock solemnity and they moved aside from the entrance. Two trees, growing about five feet away from each other, grew up and towards the sky. About ten feet up, they merged and became one tree. Twin trunks joined smoothly, wrapping around each other. A little way up, the merged completely and the interlocking branches seemed to stretch up into infinity. It was a majestic sight, and I wondered how such a thing was possible.

Another more urgent question presented itself to me though. "Listen, I forgot to ask or something, but whatever the case, what's your name?"

She looked away, her curtain of black and silver hair hiding her face. "Stella," she said at long last. "Come on, we need to get you looked at."

I wondered if this was symbolic or something, but I didn't get the chance to worry about it. She walked towards the tree, or trees depending on how you looked at it, and went through. For a fleeting moment, she seemed illuminated in a golden aura. It was gone the next second though as she passed through. She turned and beckoned to me. For a moment, I hesitated. But if she could do it then so could I. I took a deep breath, and walked through the trees. Instantaneously it seemed, my eyes rolled up into my head and darkness consumed me. Just before I hit the ground and blackness filled my vision, I felt the girl catch me.