Chapter Nine:
So apparently since I got the quest I was leader, and as leader: I had no idea where this Oak Grove Louisiana was, OR even how to get there in four days. The cash we had on hand would never pay enough for three plane tickets. Plus Lilly didn't like that idea of flying, “I get air sick.” she said.
“Cabs are too expensive.” I said.
“Train.” Darren replied simply, “A train is our best bet.”
“So then friend, where are we off too?” I asked with my hands on my hips.
“Simple, Chiron always has us go to Penn station. They made protective barriers around the station so if needed campers on quests could get off to an easy start.”

“Let's get on bus or something then!”

***

Ok lettme say that it was a looong walk before we found a bus stop. Yes I wanted to take a bus (less cash needed). It was smelly and a couple of raggy old men with tattered clothes and thinning white hair and scuffs for beards. We, Darren, Lilly and I sat in the front while the two men sat in the very back on opposite side of each other.

My suspicions were being aroused, my famous alarms were going off again as we sat down. I looked around it was sorta bright in the bus and I could see outside and it was busy at night, but nothing to make me nervous. I looked back at the men in the back, they seemed harmless so I turned around and just tried to relax.

As the bus went along it picked up a few more passengers. Nothing out of the ordinary, but when we arrived at Penn Station, things started to get interesting. We got off the bus and so did those two men that we sitting in the back. I looked over my shoulder and noted that they were tailing us. I leaned over to Darren as we walked and whispered, “Don't look now we're being tailed.”
“Be ready?”
I nodded, I looked at his face, “So much for an easy start.”
Darren chuckled, “We should be safe when we pass through the borders, they shouldn't have admittance into the building.”

We came to the somewhat busy doors and entered the building. I felt slightly better and we all causally walked up to the ticket counter. I was the bearer of cash so I went up to the ticket window.
“Hi.” I said.
“Hello.” The woman replied.
“Um I need to get to Oak Grove Louisiana.”
The lady typed up the info, “Yes mam; you will need to pay for three train rides and a bus fair or a cab to get to wherever. God that town in tiny!”
“Three train rides?”
The lady nodded, “Yes. One to Chicago Illinois, and then to Houston Texas then take one to to Shreveport, I can reserve a taxi for you if you wish to take you to your destination.”
I sighed, “Yes that'll do.”
“How many adults and how many children?”
I looked up at the ticket sales sign, “Uhhh, two adults, one child?”
“yes mam'. You'll have to purchace the next tickets when you reach the station.”
“Ok umm, how long will this trip take?”
“Oh a good three days.”
I mumbled under my breath and paid the fair.
“Have a nice trip!”

I smiled back at her and walked to Darren and Lilly and handed them their tickets.
“Chicago?”
I rolled my eyes, “yeah no direct route, we'll be going to Chicago and switch trains to Houston and then to Shreveport. Maybe then a cab then depending how much cash we have left by then.”
When I handed the tickets to Darren and Lilly I caught something in the corner of my eye. I looked up and, “What the-?”
There in a corner of the building were the two homeless looking men, just staring at us. I looked at Darren, “I thought you said monsters couldn't get in!”
“Well they don't!”
I looked back at the men and they were just standing and staring at us. I grabbed Lilly's hand and said, “Let hurry to the platform maybe we can loose them.”
Darren looked over his shoulder and saw the men, “That's not right.”
“Ya think?”

We got to our platform and I looked for our train and I looked on the arrival board, “TEN MINUTES?!” Lilly looked behind us, “There here.” She said.
Darren and I turned around and there they were, standing as if to challenge us.
“Who are you?” Darren asked, “And how were you able to pass our defenses?”

They spoke in dark voices in unison, “We are the Kobaloi and we have come for you.”
Just then Lilly sneezed and the men were in a puff of smoke and what they revealed were male versions of Tinker Bell, with purple togas and brown sandals instead of green. They kinda looked like human grapes with pointy ears. The Kobaloi were dismayed, “That kid did that!”
Lilly sniffed, “Sorry. I-I don't know how I did that.”

“Oh I know what you guys are now! You're a species of sprites that Greek parents told stories to their kids to behave. Cause they scared children and stole from them. You hang around Mr. D don't you?”
“Yes, and we were going to just take your valuables, and just give you a scare.” They said together, and they transformed into two hellhounds. Six heads, two bodies, three heads each. Yikes.
They barked, “We'll just kill you instead.” They growled.

Both Darren and I pulled out our bows simultaneously and threatened with our bows, “We do not want to fight.” I said, “Back off and we'll leave in piece.”
The hellhounds only growled. Lilly hung close to me, hardly not know what to do. Why did I bring her along? Oh that's right I couldn't deny that kid. If she was a Hermes kid I really didn't know what she could do, so I just let her cling to me.

“Darren you take one and I'll take the other?” I whispered, without looking at him.
He nodded and kept his aim on the hellhound on the left while I kept on mine on the right one.
One Mississippi... Nothing
Two Mississippi,
Three Mississippi,
Four Mississippi
Five-

The dogs lept into the air, I shot an arrow and I hit my mark just on the side of the neck on the far left one. The dog fell to the ground and winced and tried to paw at the arrow.
I looked down at Lilly, “Hey Lil' get out of here find a safe place and I'll come for you.”

I gently nudged her away from my body as the Kobaloi started to turn it's attention back on me. “Go!” I shouted. Lilly quickly ran towards the exit and I turned my attention to the hell hound. Kobaloi had followed it's gaze on Lilly but I fired an arrow and hit the Kobaloi on the neck of the far left one again. The Kobaloi shook his head and then it's hideous gaze came on me again. He ran at me with great speed, and tackled me to the ground.

My head hit the solid concrete, my head was aching but as I stared at those horrible ugly mugs, I was awake. The hellhound growled at me and licked his lips. I slowly reached for my knife on my belt.
“I hope you're scared.” The heads growled, I gripped the handle of the knife.
The other hellhound roared and I turned my head and saw Darren avoiding the huge paws of the hellhound pursuing him. My hellhound used his paw and hit my face so I'd look at him. I felt my blood trickle down my face, and the sting of the wounds.
“FEAR ME!” The Hellhound's head yelled at me. I sheathed my knife, but before I could stab him the Kobaloi stuck his paw against my shoulder and it dislocated it. I screamed in pain and looked at my shoulder and it was severely was out of place. I could hardly move my arm, and the knife fell limp in my hands.

I tried popping my shoulder back into place, but to no avail, I started to loose feeling in my arm. Suddenly a arrow shot into the middle head of the hellhound and the Kabaloi roared and tumbled away from me. I sucked up and twisted on my side grabbed my knife with my good hand and quickly stabbed the hellhound's middle head on the neck opposite of that golden arrow. I cried out as the hellhound roared in pain and it fell down slowly transforming back into this elvish form and then landed on me dead. I tried using my one good arm but that it didn't work well. The other Kabaloi fell down dead and Darren pushed the other Kabaloi off of me and they both simultaneously turned to ash.

I sat up and winched at my arm; Darren took a firm but gentle grip, “I'm going to reset it, brace yourself.” I bit down on my lip and waited. Darren took a firmer grip on my shoulder and counted, “One, two-”
POP!
I yelled in pain an held my arm gingerly, “Lilly?”

I heard the train already coming, and I couldn't see Lilly anywhere. “Lilly?” I slowly got up and Lilly appeared from a bench: I didn't even see her! “Is it safe?”
I saw the train coming up, “Yeah, it should be.”

The train pulled up and we all quietly filed in.