[center][color=87e3ff]Marlen Ross ~ Child of Apollo[/color] ~ [color=#4a766e] Iliana Remington-Taylor ~ Daughter of Demeter[/color][/center] [hr] Marlen was just looking around and not really sure where in the almighty fuck they were meant to go. To the big building where all the other people were going? It [i]looked[/i] important, to be sure. But a lot of these buildings looked convoluted enough that they were fucking with Marlen’s ability to gauge their importance at a glance. If they squinted, they could see a house made of glass off in the distance. But then someone walked up to them. [color=87e3ff]”Huh? Oh. Yeah… I just got here. Not really sure what’s what. Did a god send you here too?”[/color] They asked. Iliana cocked her head to the side. She wasn’t expecting a question like that, but she figured it was best to answer the person. [color=#4a766e]”Well, yes, but I came here several months ago. My mom is Demeter and I was sent here for my own protection. Are you hungry or do you want to find a cabin? I can’t remember which cabins are open. I only know the location of mine and a few others. If you’re hungry, the main hall is right here. We get all of our meals here.”[/color] That was one thing she really needed to work on though, knowing whose cabins belong to whom. Maybe she could ask Nelly for help on that since she had perfect memory. [color=87e3ff]”Yeah. I haven’t had real food in days,”[/color] They said. Though, Marlen didn’t consider what they had on that damn boat to be real food because it [i]didn’t[/i] come out of a can. They were used to eating not-so-great food on the road. [color=87e3ff]”Name’s Marlen. I’m Apollo’s kid.”[/color] The instant Apollo’s name came up, Iliana’s eyes lit up and her entire demeanor changed from shy to cheerful. [color=#4a766e]“Apollo’s your dad?! Oh, he’s amazing. He’s done a lot for me . . . after some things happened before I came to camp.”[/color] She almost mentioned her injuries from her captivity, but managed to stop herself. As happy as she was to meet another one of his children, she wasn’t ready to talk about her ordeal to a complete stranger. Maybe if they got to know each other better, she might be willing. For now, it was baby steps. It was then she remembered Marlen mentioned they hadn’t eaten well in awhile. [color=#4a766e]”You must be famished then! Let’s get some food in you then,”[/color] Iliana said before taking their hand and leading them into the Main Hall. She saw that people were still inside. Letting go of Marlen’s hand, she turned to him. [color=#4a766e]”Get whatever you like. There’s plenty of variety. Do you want me to keep you company or I can leave if you want.”[/color] The last thing she wanted to be was a bother. [color=87e3ff]”Uh-“[/color] There [i]was[/i] a lot of food in here. Most definitely not the kind of food a person would get out of a can or out of a vending machine, which was pretty damn unusual to Marlen. [color=87e3ff]”You’re fine, just… Hm.”[/color] Marlen grabbed an apple and a bottle of water. They weren’t that hungry at the moment, but they figured they might as well get full while the food’s there. Instead of eating anything fancy that this camp probably ate on the regular, they went for the bare minimum. [color=87e3ff]”There we go,”[/color] They said, with a loud [i]crunch.[/i] Looked like Marlen didn’t need much. Then again, didn’t say they had some food already? Not one to question their choices, Iliana merely nodded. Besides, she loved apples too. She couldn’t cook for the life of her, but she liked making salads, which included a fruit salad. [color=#4a766e]”Okay, shall we try to find you a cabin then? If you have any questions, I can try to answer them since I’ve been here for several months.”[/color] She thought about asking for help about available cabins from Andy or Wes, but both were preoccupied and she did not want to interrupt them. Marlen made a [i]pff[/i] sound. [color=87e3ff]”I dunno, is that what I’m supposed to be doing? All I heard was there were other godly kids here. Didn’t plan on staying too long, unless we’re meant to? Are we?”[/color] Their questions made Iliana think. Honestly she didn’t know how long they were meant to stay there. Her mother or Athena never mentioned how long they would live there. [color=#4a766e]Honestly, I don’t know the answer to the last question. All my mother told me was to come here with my adopted brother and another friend at the time. My friend did leave, but only because he wanted to finish college. As for what we’ll be doing here. Mostly it’ll be to train. Tonight we’re having a New Year’s Party since for the past few months we’ve been rebuilding due to an incident that happened here that caused a lot of damage. I know I need help with controlling my abilities. So I am glad I am here. Being here has helped me more than living with my brother’s family, although I am really grateful to them. I lost my father at a young age and since my mom couldn’t take care of me, they took me in. My brother is Athena’s son. Just so you are aware, always be honest with him. He’s an expert lie detector. His name is Heath and he’s a tall man with shoulder length blonde hair.”[/color] Iliana was rambling for once, and realizing she was, she clamped her mouth shut and blushed a little. Maybe Nelly was having an effect on her. Suddenly, she felt a tingle go up her spine and she looked to see another new face at a table, with a plant she instantly recognized as a Minthe. She saw what he did before turning back to Marlen. She didn’t know the guy, but he felt familiar. Still she didn’t want to ignore Marlen. [color=#4a766e]”So was there anything else you’d like to know?”[/color] Well. That was a lot. Marlen stared at her, eyes wide. [color=87e3ff]”Uh… [i]Yeah.[/i] There is… Training for [i]what?[/i] Did I come all this way just to get drafted into the Greek god army? And- What incident? What did I get myself into here?”[/color] Apollo hadn’t said shit about what was going on in this camp. He didn’t tell Marlen about fighting or about people dying or anything like that. Maybe they could get away with defying a god if this turned out to be a mess after all. Iliana heard what Marlen asked, but she was still a bit embarrassed by all she said. A few minutes later, she finally answered them. [color=#4a766e]”Well, uh, . . . hmmm. I was never given those answers about our reason for training in general. I was just told why I had to train. Believe me I need it since I have powers that hurt others.”[/color] She left that last part a bit ambiguous for she didn’t lie, but she didn’t want them to know she had hurt and killed before. It was the biggest reason why she never condone Alex’s actions since she had done the exact same things. Thinking of the Valises, she couldn’t help but be envious of them, but that was in the past. She certainly didn’t blame others for disliking them, but she just never could. Wanting to get outside, she turned to Marlen. [color=#4a766e]”Are you ready to find a cabin now? And about those last two questions, well, as for the incident, are you sure you want to know? It wasn’t a good thing that happened. And I am afraid I can’t answer that last one about what you got yourself into, sorry.”[/color] [color=87e3ff]”Whatever you [i]can[/i] tell me, please and thank you.”[/color] Marlen held up a map of the place and started walking. [color=87e3ff]”Going that way, so yeah, lemme see what’s not taken.”[/color] They’d probably just sleep in a tree, though. As they walked, Iliana tried to think how to explain what happened. She really didn’t want to go into that much detail. And even though she knew what happened to the others, she didn’t know how to talk about them. Should she even mention what happened to them? Maybe she can just summarize? Yes, that was probably best. [color=#4a766e]”Well, a couple of months ago there was a battle here. There were a lot of monsters and everyone in camp at the time got involved. It happened in the middle of the night, so all of us were taken unaware. Not all of us survived it, but most did. A few left the camp after that. All of us were injured in some form though. I was one of the lucky ones, I only suffered a broken leg. Even though I am no healer, I tried making more healing ointment using flora I grow in my own Greenhouse. It can only help with minor injuries though. As we were healing, some of us, who were able, started rebuilding. The gate was built to help protect the camp.”[/color] She kept quiet after that. She saw the map Marlen had. She didn’t remember there being a map of the camp. She wouldn’t worry about it and just followed Marlen. [color=87e3ff]”That’s rough, man,”[/color] Marlen commented, seeming to know exactly where they were going. [color=87e3ff]”Never seen anything like that myself, but I can fix stuff if someone’s hurt. Y’know, Apollo and such.”[/color] They were walking in a straight line towards the cabins. [color=87e3ff]”I bet I can figure the rest of this out myself, if you’re busy.”[/color] Iliana was glad they were willing to help out. That was a good sign for sure. Once he mentioned he was going to be okay from here, Iliana nodded her head. [color=#4a766e]”All right. Oh, there is a New Years party tonight. I forget where it’ll be but I wanted to make you aware if you decided to go. I am trying to be more social so I’ll be going. For how long will be the question. It was nice meeting you Marlen. Hope you find yourself a decent cabin.”[/color] With that, Iliana smiled and waved before departing. [color=87e3ff]”Yeah. Thanks…”[/color] Marlen watched her skip off and looked down at their map… …They were [i]definitely[/i] sleeping in a tree tonight.