Chapter 7: Kenzie

I was amazed that Hestia was right when Nico really did show up. I was thrilled that we felt the same way about each other, but scared as well. Nico wouldn't leave me, I knew that. But I didn't want to endanger him either. If something happened to him, I could never forgive myself. Many times I had tried to learn my fate, but each time I was turned away. Each time I asked a child of Apollo, all I saw was pity in their eyes. I got the idea that Nico knew something, but wouldn't tell me. I honestly didn't blame him. What was coming for me must really be awful. I was the daughter of the goddess of daemons and Zeus wanted me killed as soon as time would allow. Confession time. I seriously did consider joining Kronos in the Titan War. He promised to keep me safe in exchange for my services to call up monsters for him. In the end though, it wasn't my animosity for the Titan that drove me to say no. It was my mother. If Olympus fell, none of the gods would be spared. We were alone in the world with only each other, and I couldn't let her down for selfish motivations. So it came that I accepted the death looming in my future as simply part of it. I knew that Zeus would probably sentence me to the Fields of Punishment, the coward. But what was there to do? There were no easy answers. Instead, I put my energy into here and now.

"Nico?" I asked.

"Hmm?" he answered.

"Where are we to go?"

He was quiet for a moment, then said, "I know a place in the desert where the time stands still. We would be safe there."

I shook my head. "Not the Lotus Hotel and Casino."

"I suggest that we try Los Angeles," he said then. "Dad lives there so if we encounter too much trouble, we can hide out in the Underworld until things have cooled down."

It sounded pretty reasonable. "Isn't Los Angeles full of monsters?"

"Yeah," he muttered. "So I suppose that's out of the-"

"No it isn't," I said, sitting up. "It's perfectly reasonable. "

"Really?" he asked, eyes lighting up.

"Yes. Monsters aren't a problem for me. They like me. So that'll be fine. And as for avoiding Artemis' Hunters, it's a good idea to be close to your dad so we can make a quick getaway when needed." The more I thought about it, the more it made sense. "It's brilliant, Nico!" I cried.

He grinned. "Well, now we know where we're going. We can shadow travel in the morning. Your hellhound and I both need a rest if we're to be in best shape for tomorrow."

"Okay," I said. "But first things first."

He looked at me, puzzled. "What?"

"You need to know why my mother was banished and sent to Tartarus, how she was able to escape, and why I'm running in the first place." I said it all perhaps a touch too fast, but cut me some slack, okay? I was nervous.

Nico looked at me very seriously. "I don't care what happened, Kenzie. It won't change hoe I feel about you."

I blushed. "You need to understand what Zeus is up against and what you've committed yourself too," I said sternly.

He sighed. "Alright. Fill me in."

I hesitated. It was difficult to know where to begin. Then I found my voice. "Nimn, for that was my mother's name, was the goddess of daemons and monsters. She was one of the original children of Kronos who later became the gods of Olympus. She fought for Zeus and turned Kronos' own army against him, greatly aiding Zeus beyond anything yet seen. But when the war was over, Zeus began to fear her power. At last, he set a wicked scheme in play that altered the world forever. He framed her for the death of one of his mortal sons and banished her in the name of justice." My voice was bitter. "Instead of simply being thrown off Olympus, she was sent to Tartarus with her father. All memory of her legacy was erased from monuments, ballads, mortal minds, and written records. Her children hunted down like animals and destroyed, one by one. Each one was sentenced to the same fate as her. It was a fate worse than death."

Nico's eyes were wide and horrified. "But how did she escape?" he asked in a hushed voice.

"Kronos freed her when he rose to power," I said. "He wanted to use her power to help him win, and surely if she had agreed to help him, you would have lost the war. As it was, she made him free her before she gave her answer and took off as soon as she was able. About a year later, she met my dad and had me. Dad was a mythology teacher at one of the local high schools. But he was killed by The Hunters of Artemis while saving my life. His sacrifice alone permitted me the chance to escape. Mother was just an hour too late when she arrived. I was four, but they never hid anything from me. I ran to the place where I was supposed to go if something like this happened and met Nimn there. She sent me to an orphanage where my scent would be masked by that of other humans, but it didn't work. I lasted two years before running away. I've lived on the streets of New York like a wild animal ever since then; too scared to interact with other people for fear they try to kill me the second I showed my face."

"Oh Kenzie," Nico whispered and pulled me to him once more.

I tried to hold the tears back. I really did. But when I spoke again, my voice trembled. "The monsters were the only ones who didn't try to kill me. They protected me instead and helped me. In the end, Ankah stayed with me."

"Oh my gods," he said in a low awed voice.

"Yeah. So if you join me Nico, it won't matter who your father is. You'll be sentenced too."

"I don't care," he said fiercely. "It isn't right what he's convinced the other gods to go along with. She's his sister! Doesn't he care at all about her?"

"No," I answered. "He both hates and fears her. But somewhere buried deep, I believe he longs for her forgiveness."

"Let us hope so," he answered grimly. "Otherwise, we'll be sooner dead than not."

I voiced a hollow laugh. "Let us hope that Nimn is watching over us. If Artemis tries anything, I'm sure she'll want her revenge for the death of my father."

"At least it's impossible for The Hunters to track shadow traveling," Nico muttered.

"A good thing indeed," I agreed, "else we'd be running for our lives right now with arrows raining down on us."

"We'll stay here for the night then?" he asked.

I shook my head. "No, we're in Connecticut. Just down the other side of this hill is an abandoned house that used to be the home of May Castellan."

"What!" he exclaimed.

"She was kicked out last year," I explained. "She was going insane and the place was a mess. People were concerned and she's gone now."

"If you say so." He rose, took my hand and pulled me to my feet and kissed me briefly again. "Percy and I have been there once before, and if it's in any a better state, I'm ready and willing to give it a shot."

I nodded. When had he and Percy been here? I was going to ask, but something in Nico's face told me not to. I wondered briefly, if the memory was simply unpleasant for if something had happened between his and Percy's friendship. It was probably the latter of the two. Nothing seemed to scare Nico enough to the point of not wanting to commune about it. I woke Ankah and hand and hand with the great hellhound, we embarked on a quest. A quest to outwit the gods, and one to stay alive.