The Gathering

Chapter Twenty Two

Chris POV

Once Westley had explained how the Hephaestus kids had gotten out of control under their new leader Wick, I understood. There seemed to be a lot of bad leadership among demigods lately. He told us how Wick had declared Hephaestus the most powerful and, to prove it, began raiding the outposts of demigods. At first it was just supplies, but then he started taking the people also and pitting them against each other for sport. He had all but wiped out the Hermes kids, and upon closer unspection of the map, the Hypnos camp was no longer registering, so they must be gone now.

All the more determined, now that I knew what this monster had done, we set off to do something about it. Quite honestly, I'm not sure what we could do, but I knew something had to be done. What good would saving all of these demigods be, if the ones here were killed like pigs. Westley and Johnson already had their own horses so we set off at a feverish gallop. For two days all any of us could think and talk about was the justice that was to be served when we arrived. When we finally made it to the Nevada state border, knowing their camp would be less than a days ride away in Area 51.

During this camp, we finally got to have some real talks and find out more about Westley and Johnson. "Oh were both simple enough. I think I was one of the more honorable Hermes' children though, never really stole from someone unless they had something else than what I stole to turn to. I was wiht a special group of demigods when I got old enough, and they trained me well and taught me to be honorable, but I was forced to leave them and come here" Westley told.

"Myself, there's really not much to my story. I came from a small town in Alabama, and when I was only 3 my older brother Phillip brought me with him to the camp, and I've been here ever since" Johnson said.

"Well there's something right there. Where in Alabama did you come from?" Adrian asked.

"Dodge. It was a pretty small town, Phillip used to always say how everyone knew everyone there" Johnson said with a small chuckle to himself.

"Well we're not doing much now, so tell us what you do remember of Dodge" Adrian suggested.

"Potatoes. That's what most of the residents used as their income. Practically every meal was potatoes for me. Hash browns for breakfast, baked potato for lunch and scalloped potatoes for dinner. That's what my meals consisted of" He elaborated. Now that he mentioned it, I did get a very farmer feel from him. His wide shoulders showed a natural strength and his hardened face showed the arduous farm work.

"What about you Westley? Tell us about where you grew up" I asked genuinely.

"Well my life didn't start out so great. I was born down in southern Mexico because my mother was too scared to live here, even if it was under the protection of other demigods. She died soon after though, killed in a hit and run accident. From there I was passed around in the foster care system. My final home, before coming here was with a wealthy security company family. I had never known about my true heritage, but it was there that I had a dream from my father about here, so I took their helicopter and flew here" Westley told.

"Tell us more about the wealthy family you stayed with" I requested.

At that, Westley grinned. "I don't remember much, most of the homes blended together, but what I do remember was the owner's daughter. I called her Buttercup, as I accidentally had one day, mixing her's and the cat's name. Her real name was Robin. We were young and the best of friends. She had beautiful ash blonde hair and the purest sea blue eyes" Westley said. "I think she even had a crush on me, although I didn't want to become attached; I knew I'd be forced to leave soon. I should've cherished it more" He continued, now lost deep in thought.

"Well it's getting late guys. I'm heading off to bed. We have a big day tomorrow, you might want to rest up too" I advised.

I tried to heed my own advice, but I couldn't. My mind was too restless tonight, particularly wondering about Vande and our crusade. I felt trapped inside my tent, stifled by all my thoughts, and I just needed some air.

The cool breeze of night welcomed me and I was finally able to let loose and think freely. I came to a small cliff and plopped down on it, looking out over the ridges that filled this area. The moon shine brightly, high in the sky and full. My thoughts ran freely and uninterrupted, like the natural flow of a river. Westley was the large rock in this metaphor, apparently.

"Hey Chris. Everything okay?" He asked, emerging from his tent.

"Just couldn't sleep. It was too stifling in my tent" I said, ripped from my free flow and now stuck in a rut.

"We told you about us, but I didn't hear anything about you" Westley stated matter-of-factly. Well I guess I had to now. "Don't worry about Johnson though, I won't tell him I got the one-up"

"Well basically my entire life has revolved around a six fingered man. He killed my mother, so I went to the Ares camp, devoting my life to the sword so that I could get revenge" I told. I laughed a little to myself. Before Vande, I had never even told anyone about my mom, and now I was telling someone that was almost a complete stranger.

"Isn't that dangerous? Being in the revenge business, I mean. Not trying to kill him"

"Probably. But it's all I've known for so long, it'd be impossible to give up now, especially knowing that he is still out there" I admitted.

"Just remember that it may satisfy you in the moment, but it won't be worth the weight in the long run" Westley advised.

After that, we both stayed silent, engorging in our own thoughts. I was able to return to my even flow and Westley's rock was now a change in pace that helped me along the path.