Voices were raised in her shimmering silver throne room. You could tell there was panic in their voices.

"My queen.." the grumpy old man bowed before her, "..it's been a year, and we are still no closer to stopping those shadows from wiping out our land... These shadows are destroying our crops and making our livestock I'll... I don't think help is arriving from Xenthos... It's been too long, and not even a letter has returned..."

She sat up straight in her throne, her long, soft, Platinum colored hair framed her face. Her blue eyes look as if nothing but stress had field them. Her magenta royal dress shimmered around her voluptuous figure. She wore a golden armband on her forearm. It had a sapphire stone, with a trident engraved in it. It looked ancient, and well taken care of. She looked as if she was in her late twenties. She was beautiful.

"Silence Sigurn..." She gnashed her teeth with stress, ". .. we have to wait for Selene to return... I.."

She fell silent, as the door creaked open. As the door creaked, the two of them looked into the hallway, as silhouettes began to emerge from the softly lit room.

"My queen..." Her voice called out first form amongst them, "I have returned.." she bowed, as her companions followed closely behind her.

"Selene .. my daughter .. you've returned.." the woman on the throne grinned, "and you brought... Friends?"

Selene lifted herself to her feet, her white hair fell into its normal form. Her cloak still covered her armor.

"Yes.  I've brought help from Xenthos..."

"How did you get here so fast?" The queen asked, "I expected that it would have taken you another year before you returned..."

"That's my fault..." Keenio moved in front of Selene, "my friends and I here, have come from the mirrors that we've been working on..."

"You .. boy .. what makes you think you can just speak so freely? Selene is royalty.. you speak when spoken to-"

Before she could finish, she looked into his spiky white hair, and peered into his teak blue eyes.

"...you .. are .." she felt her heart drop, "...impossible.... You can't be..."

Keenio stood before her unphased, her threat meant nothing to him.

"So.. you must be queen Annaleece..." He broke his silence, "the woman begging for MY help..."

The queen seemed slightly aggravated, his tone was improper to her. She thought he was a barbarian, or at least she would have thought that, if not for Balthazar standing towering behind Veronica, Theseus, Zalpa, and Akida.

"...so... You're the king of Xenthos..." She huffed, "..fate does work in mysterious ways .." her voice was calm now, as if his earlier offense had not mattered to her.

"..my name is Keenio Shadowspire..." He gave a stern, serious tone, "I hear you're having problems with shadow monsters, and that you're offering us the Map and the key to the Vault of Deimos..."

He was direct, and right down to the point. He was ready to discuss this mission. After all, all that mattered to him was the mission.

"..yes .. I am offering these things, along with a whole treasure chest of gold and silver..." She nodded, "but .. I didn't expect you..."

"..and?..." Keenio responded with an irritated glare, "..what does that mean?..."

She looked at him. Trying to understand him. There was something special about Keenio for sure, it made her calm, however, as Keenio looked back into her blue eyes, he could sense a deeper feeling inside of her, a longing for something .. but he didn't know what it was.

"...Keenio..." She nodded, ".. it's been so long..."

Keenio was confused. He didn't understand her cryptic words.

"..I've never met you before..." Keenio frowned, "..don't you dare act like you know me..."

"...oh, but I do..." She responded, "...however.. this is not how I figured we would meet..."

Keenio bared his teeth in frustration. Like he was a cobra, ready to strike. He wanted to lash out, because, he didn't know what she meant. Why would Keenio have any reason to meet her before now? He was only here for the mission, and the map.

Annaleece then looked at Keenio's chimera gauntlets, then looked at his waist, where she could see the silver hilt of Starfang.

"...well..." She kept her eyes locked on Starfang, "...damn it Deimos.. why did it have to be him? Why now? What was your plan..."

"Deimos?" Keenio responded, "you know about the Hero of Greece?"

"More than KNOW about him..." She sighed sassily, "..I once traveled alongside Deimos... He was...." She blushed, "..he was important to me... Even though he chose her..."

"..her?.."

"...nothing... It has nothing to do with you or me .." she responded, "..that's a story for another time.."

"..when you said her..." Veronica responded, and stepped forward, "..did you mean Annabeth?"

Upon looking at Veronica, Annaleece was in awe. She looked as if she had seen a ghost. Her soft white skin, tired pale with shock.

"...no way .. you're .." she looked into her Violet eyes, "..by Deimos... You're the spirit of image of her... Yet, you have his hair..." She held up her hand, and felt her aura from where she was sitting, "...so... It is true... She did have a child from her, and now, generations later, their blood line is still strong..."

"What?!" Veronica felt uncomfortable, "...what does that mean? I know Annabeth is my ancestor, but, you said THEIR... What do you mean by that?"

"You don't know?!" She was surprised, "...how do you not?!"

"...please lady Annaleece..." She kindly bowed her head, "tell me what you know... I am very curious..."

"..what a sweet girl..." She then shifted her gaze between Keenio and Veronica, "..interesting .." she scratched her chin, just as Keenio does when he's thinking hard, "...so... That was your goal all along..." She mumbled. "...hmm, tell me girl..." She smiled, "Is Keenio here, your boyfriend?"

Keenio answered for her with a nod. Annaleece noticed, and so did the old, grumpy, Sigurn.

"...so, I guess in the end, he still cares about me too..." She was lost in her thoughts for a moment, almost as if Mourning over someone, or something, "... You really were the greatest Hero and Leader in all of the world..."

"Would you focus please?" Keenio growled, ".. I'm wasting time..."

"..so impulsive .." Annaleece smirked, playfully, "...just like me, just like him..."

"What are you talking about?!" Keenio but down hard on his own teeth, "...like you and who?" He then shook his head, "..now I'm getting off topic.." be took a deep breath, and returned to his intimidating glare, "Annaleece, Queen of the Fae, what is going on? Tell me about this mission..."

"By the fallen gods..." She frowned, "..so much like him..." She shook her head, "would you give me a moment here? I'm processing something..."

Keenio crossed his arms, and tapped his foot, fighting his frustration. His friends remained silent behind him. Nobody likes talking when Keenio is this frustrated.

"..so inpatient..." She shook her head, and stood up form her throne, "...just like your father..."

"...my father?..."

"Did you hit your head or something?" She walked down to him, "..how could you forget?.."

"By Odin's eye!!" Keenio clenched his fists in frustration, "would you just shut up, and tell me what I need to know!!"

"..such a rude boy..." Annaleece scoffed, teasingly, "...it's not proper for boys to talk to a queen like this... And it definitely isn't how you should talk to your mother..."

"..mother?..." Keenio's heart dropped, "..what do you mean?... That's impossible... You... Can't... Be.... No way..."

Everyone gasped. She circled around him, taking on his form, memorizing him and comparing him to something else. Keenio couldn't believe her words. He always thought his mother was a farmer girl, at least that's what his uncle back at Athens said.

Stilphius always just looked at him when he asked, and told him he didn't know. Keenio never had memories of his mother. He always assumed that she died giving birth to him. It was another lie that his uncle Marcus always told him.

"..what's wrong Child?" She gave a soft warm smile, "..is something on your mind?"

"It's just...." He huffed, his heart racing, unsure what to believe, "...I was always told that my mother died giving birth to me... So you can't possibly be my mother... She's dead.... Uncle Marcus even had a headstone at the cemetery in Athens..."

"...is that what he told you?" She chuckled, "of course Marcus would say that.... I mean, that IS what I told him to say to you..."

"...you mean?... He... Lied to me?"

Annaleece looked at him and nodded. She grabbed into his shoulders delicately. Keenio didn't want to believe it. But the more he thought about it, the more he thought about how Selene interacted with him in Xenthos. As he did that, he felt a strange pull on his chest, a dry feeling, with a spark of pain.

"...why would you have him lie like that to me?"

Annaleece continue to look at him. She felt another pull on her heart. She felt a darker feeling, as if she was empty now, like her heart was weighing her down.

"...it was no easy choice..." She gave a saddened, full stare, ".. my mother... She... Forced me to do it... I didn't want her to dis-own me..."

She was fighting back tears.

"As soon as you were born... I gave you to Marcus... After all, my mother, Queen Aria... She did kill your father.. and she was going to kill you..."

"..you mean..." He felt his heart drop further, "..you and my father... Me..." He felt odd, like his whole world was changing, "...queen Aria killed him? And then she was going to kill me?... Why?..."

"Because... You weren't a full Fairy... And there for... My mother wouldn't allow you to live amongst us... She hated me for it..."

"...you mean... My own grandmother...." He clenched his fists so tight he began to bleed, his fury was rising, his body twitching, "...she.... I... But..." In his emotions, his aura turned bronze, and so did his eyes, "...she wanted me... Dead...."

His aura felt so powerful that everyone in the room nearly dropped to their knees. The pressure from his emotions... It was almost too much to bare.

Struggling to even move one step, Veronica fought through the pressure of his aura. She could feel his aching heart. And it almost moved her to tears. As she reached him, she pulled his face into her chest, cradling him, trying to claim him down.

"...that's such a horrible thing to do to a child..." Veronica gave an angry glare, "..what was wrong with her mother? How could she even think to want to kill her grandchild? Without even giving him a chance?"

His aura, began to claim itself, the pressure seemed to leave everyone in the room, just as quick and sudden as it had effected them.

"..I'm sorry my child.... It must be a shock for you..." A brick of regret was in her words, "... But I AM your mother, and I always thought about you... Ask Selene, she was robbed from even seeing her baby brother..." She gave a calm comforting voice, ".. that's why 16 years ago, when I was crowned Queen, I altered many laws in Elfame... Now we allow the fae to have children with other races... Now things are better..."

Theseus, Zalpa, Akida, and Balthazar, all seemed to shift to Keenio's side. This was a revelation like none that any of them have heard in their lifetime.

"..so what? You could of atelast looked for him..." Theseus's nostrils flared, "..what kind of mother, freaking abandons their child like that.." he was red with fury, "..and you say you became queen and changed things 16 years ago..." He voice was lowered, and narrowed, "..and in that time, you didn't even bother to seek your own son out! And now, when my friend finally meets his mother, you say that, you were supposed to kill him?!" He seemed to express how Keenio was feeling, it was their bond as brothers, "who the hell says THAT to their kid!?"

"...but I..." She silenced herself, "..I had no choice... And I tried looking... I went to Athens, and Marcus told me you went missing."

"...and you didn't bother to check with your Xentidos Branch leader?!"

"But... The Xentidos  Branch Leader didn't tell me anything... He even told me to give up searching!!"

"And you DID!!" Veronica's face said it all, she was pissed, "YOU FREAKING DID!!!" Veronica hissed with pure hate for Annaleece, "...if only your damned Mother saw what Keenio became!"

Keenio was still silent, lost within his own head.

"I almost don't even want to accept this mission anymore..." Akida broke her silence, "..your mother was a terrible woman .. and you're a terrible mother..."

"But I..." Annaleece felt her whole heart shatter, "..I had no choice..."

"You ALWAYS have a choice..." Keenio collected himself again, ".. you could have told me, you could have kept searching...hell... You could have even come to Xenthos yourself... Instead of sending Selene..." He stood up, his heart hardened, "...we can discuss this whole matter some our time..." His serious tone was focused on one thing, and one thing only, "..I'm not here to discuss what you should have done, I am here for one single purpose..." He stood in front of everyone, and peered deep into Annaleece's soul, "..in here for the mission... So shut up.. and tell me what I am up against... Also .." he deepens his tone, "The Price just went up on this job... I want 6 trunks of gold and silver... And your promise that you will tell me everything... For now I have many questions, and I'm demanding every single answer..." He forced his negotiations, "..and I still want BOTH that map and that key for Deimos's vault.." he backed away, "..I have my own destiny to face..."

Annaleece whimpered, and seemed, intimidated, and terrified.

"No my queen!!" Sigurn spoke finally, "don't you dare agree to this THUG'S negotiations..." He hissed, "..this BASTARD shouldn't matter at all to you great lady, your ancestors wouldn't agree to this at all!! What's gonna happen if this HUMAN gets into the Great One's Vault? It would go against everything your mother would stand for.."

"Silence Sigurn..." She hed up her hand, finally clam once more, "...don't forget, I am the one in charge here.." she looked at Keenio, sincerity flooded her face, the pain in her chest resumed, "...Keenio... My Son... The Grandmaster of Xenthos, the King of Xenthos..." She hmbly bowed, "..please forgive me for the pain I've given you, it wasn't my intent. I have wronged you in the worse of ways.. And I may never stone... However, first, may I make a pledge to you, not just as the Queen of the Fae, but as the Mother of such a Fine King...." She breathed, "I pledge that I will spend the rest of my Entire life, trying to find a way to earn your forgiveness. Please grant me one single chance to make this right. For this is a wrong that I would be honored to right..."

".... Fine..." Keenio huffed, "I accept this pledge..." He relaxed his hands, his heart was now that of stone once more, "..but this is your only chance..."

"As you wish..." She bowed, "now, for your request.." she sat back down on her silver throne, "..I agree to these terms..." She nodded, not even wanting to haggle, "...this will be my first step in making things right with you, King Keenio of Xenthos, Prince Keenio Silver..."

Keenio nodded.

"But first," she whistled, and two handmaidens entered the Throne Room, "these two will guide you all to your rooms, while in Keenio's company, all of you, including your elf friend here, are to be treated as royal guests... While you stay in Elfame..."

They all nodded. And Keenio and the judges left the hall. Leaving Selene, Annaleece, and Sigurn alone again. They were silent, until the throne doors were shut.

"Mother... Keenio is home..." Selene stood up, "... My baby brother his finally home..."

"He's a bastard.." Sigurn grumbled, "and a half-breed, he isn't worthy of our Fae blood..."

"Sigurn..." She flared at him, "...Keenio is my son... He is the reason I changed so many things in Elfame... You WILL treat him just was well as you treat Selene and I, either that or I WILL execute you... Do you understand?!"

Sigurn bowed out of fear, his hands trembled with weakness.

"As you wish my lady..." He frowned, and made his way to the doorway, "...I promise to be on my best behavior... Nothing with come to harming him or anyone who travels with him.." as he walked out of the door, he then mumbled, bitterky, "..Like Hell I will... This is madness... It's unnatural..."

Alone in the throne room, Mother and Daughter stood before each other.

"So.. mother..." She looked into her mother's eyes, "..are you happy again?"

Annaleece smiled, thinking about Keenio, and of Veronica.

"...Deimos... It all makes sense now..."

For years she carried this pain inside of her. She truly didn't want to give Keenio up when he was born. It crushed her then. But back then, she was more terrified of her mother. Back then, things were different. When Queen Aria was alive, she had a strong outlook on children's born with fae blood, she hated half breeds, she especially hated humans born with fae blood. She always believed that the Exiled fae would have bred wit humans to make a more powerful race, and that that offspring would kill her people, it was a very popular belief then, it made it difficult for the Xentidos to work in Elfame, because they would regularly send elves and humans both to Elfame. It wasn't very popular at the time. Aria ordered all half reese to be executed immediately after birth, and she was ruthless in enforcing this law.

It made things difficult when a human impregnated Annaleece, at the time, Annaleece was doing diplomatic missions to Pangea.

She was on a mission in Athens, and she was very weak and frail then. And usually people were nice and polite. One man began shaking her, and following her all over Athens .  Her worst fears were about to be realized. When she tried escaping through an alleyway, she ended up cornered, as the man tried to attack her, a pickaxe crashed through the back of his head.

She was terrified then, but this man saved her. He proved to be powerful and kind, but he also seemed to enjoy a simple laid back life. It was alien to her at the time. So, while she still did her missions, she began spending time with the man, and eventually started feeling a bond, and in that bond, Keenio was conceived. After her mother found out, she ordered the man executed immediately, and her guards. Captured him and beheaded him without mercy.

Queen Aria was furious that Annaleece was  pregnant, and that the child was half human of all things. She didn't want to kill her daughter, so she told her that when he child was born, that he will be tossed out into the sea for leviathan to consume, and that she would never claim a half bred bastard as a child.

After hearing that threat, Annaleece went to the Xentidos Branch in Elfame, and ordered that when she gave birth, that her child would be given freely to Marcus Shadowspire of Athens, and that her mother was not to know. She also asked that they make it look like the child didn't survive. When they asked her how much she was willing to pay,  she told them to name their price. And so, because she wasn't allowed  to give gold to the Xentidos, that she would offer them to pay in another way. The price was great enough for them to accept immediately.

The deal was, that after 9 years of growing up on Marcus's farm, that the child was to be taken to Xenthos, to train and join the Xentidos. The arrangements were made swiftly and easily. They felt as if it were a sign of some sort, that the Starchild would be born. This deal was the best Annaleece could give them, and they accepted happily.

Then 9 years after he was born, he was taken. Just as planned. In the end Keenio was always destined to become a member of the Xentidos.

She thought about all the tales of Keenio that she had heard. Even the bards in Elfame sing of him and Elizabeth's exploits. She didn't give him his name, she didn't have the time to. The more she thought about Keenio's name, it brought pride into her heart. She began to smile. Lost in her mind.

"Mother!!"

"Huh... What is it dear?.."

"..are you okay?"

".. I'm just thinking..." She smirked, "...those songs. The tale about how he killed Lemos... If those tales are all true.. well .. I think I made the right choice... The Xentidos really are an interesting Order..."

"From what I've seen, he's truly become a living legend... And did you see his sword?.."

"..yes... It's Starfang..." She nodded, "just like the tales said... Just like Deimos told Annabeth... It means, that HE is behind this... And that isn't good for any of us... The humans will need us more than they think..." She thought to herself, "...and Keenio's going to be in the middle of it again... And the prophecy.... If it does end like that... I...I just got him back... I got my son finally... I can't lose him so soon... Not like I lost his father..."

"I wish I would have met him you know... But Does Keenio remind you of him if any way?"

"...that dedication...." She smiled, "he stared me down, just like him... It was like being visited by a ghost... I wish Keenio could have met his father... I wish he could have met me..."

"Well he did say he was going to give you a chance..." She snorted cutely, "..and just think, he even has a good girlfriend... I definitely approve of her..."

"..she does seem strong willed doesn't she... Just like her ancestors. Maybe she should meet Morganna le Fae... I'm sure she would like to see her.."

"But Morganna is so terrifying...I don't know if she could connect with her..."

"...I'm sure it would be fine... After all, I think it's time for the shift towards the future Deimos fought for... And I especially owe him that..."

"I haven't heard you talk about Deimos in quite some time... Does Keenio really remind you allot about him?"

"If the songs and stories are true, then yes... Keenio reminds me allot about Deimos .. and I still owe everything to Deimos... We all do... After all... We only exist still because of his aid against Olberon... Without him, Olberon would have killed us all... And forced us into Ahriman's army..."

"...it sounds like Deimos did allot in his life... Won't you tell me the story once more?"

"No...not now..." Annaleece smiled, "that's a story for another time.."

"..damn..."

They remained there in the throne room, talking. Annaleece was catching Selene up on all the events she missed while she was in Pangea, and Selene was telling everything about her experiences in Pangea, especially Xenthos.

Meanwhile, back in their room together. Keenio and Veronica were during together huddled on the couch in each other's arms.  As Keenio remained traped in his mind.

"..well Keenio .." she brushed his white hair with her hands, "...even I didn't expect that..."

"....yeah..." His voice was soft, as he thought, "... I guess I'm not human after all ..."

"What do you mean? You're still human to me..." She kissed him, "...your the most human person I've meet in a long time you know?..."

"Yeah..." He smiled softly, "...I guess your right... Thank you... It means allot.."

Keenio felt as if his whole world was shifted once more. He felt conflicted within himself. He was unsure how he should feel about this new knowledge. Right now though, as he sat in Veronica's embrace, he allowed himself to give in to his feelings here. Her company always made him feel whole, even in moments like this when he felt so hollowed out.

That was their first night in Elfame. It was a peaceful night. It was the quiet before the first storm.