AN: Thank you so much for reviewing! I wrote a slightly longer chapter this time because you deserve it *air kisses* Some of the things that happened in Alissa's life are made up, other's are true, unfortunately. I hope you enjoy this chapter and think it good enough to warrant a review :) Here's your disclaimer...

Leo: Not again!

Me: Oh come on, Leo, one more time?

Leo: But I did it last time

Me: Pwetty pwease *puppy dog eyes*

Leo: Fine

Me: Yay!

Leo: MadiRoseFangirl does not own the recognizable characters or this world. Even the plot mostly follows the book. She doesn't even own the laptop she writes with—

Me: LEO! You promised you wouldn't tell

Leo: Sorry!

Okay okay, you can read the story now...

An expression of awe covered Leo's face as Will and Alissa showed Leo all the cool things about camp. Greek warships moored at the beach that sometimes had practice fights with flaming arrows and explosives, arts and crafts sessions where you could make sculptures with chainsaws and blowtorches, and the monster filled woods. They showed him the cabins, the dining pavilion, and the sword arena.

"Do I get a sword?" Leo asked.

Will glanced at Leo like he found the idea disturbing. "You'll probably make your own, seeing as how you're in Cabin Nine."

"Yeah, what's up with that? Vulcan?"

"Usually we don't call the gods by their Roman names," Alissa said. "The original names are Greek. Your dad is Hephaestus."

"Festus?" Leo looked dismayed at that. "Sounds like the god of cowboys."

Will looked like he wanted to facepalm. "He-phaestus," he corrected. "God of blacksmiths and fire."

"So the flaming hammer over my head," Leo said. "Good thing, or bad thing?"

Alissa glanced at Will nervously, waiting for him to answer Leo. Please don't make me answer, she pleaded silently.

Will took a while to answer. "You were claimed almost immediately. That's usually good." Hence usually.

"Ah… look, it's nothing. Since Cabin Nine's last head counselor died—"

"Died? Like, painfully?"

"I ought to let your bunkmates tell you about it," Will said. Great way to put him off of questions you don't like. The curse wasn't nothing at all, Cabin Nine has had the worst luck ever since Beckendorf died.

"Yeah, where are my home dawgs? Shouldn't their counselor be giving me the VIP tour?"

"He, um, can't. You'll see why." Will forged ahead before Leo could ask anything else. Alissa stayed behind with Leo.

"Curses and dead," Leo said to himself, though Alissa could hear. "This just gets better and better."

"Camp isn't all bad," Alissa promised. "Wait till you see the lava rock wall, it rocks." Leo grinned at her joke.

"Glad to see some humor at this camp," he said. Alissa smiled shyly.

"I don't normally let people hear my jokes," she said. Wait a minute, that sounds like flirting. Dangit, Alissa curses. "You know," she tried to amend, "Cause I don't like talking to people. Not cause…" she trailed off. Leo's grin widened.

They were halfway across the green when froze in his tracks.

"What's wrong?" Will and I asked at the same time.

"That old lady…" Leo said. "What's she doing here?" Alissa squinted her eyes in the direction he was staring, not seeing anything.

Will tried to follow his gaze. "What old lady?"

"Dude, the old lady. The one in black. How many old ladies do you see over there?"

Will frowned. "I think you've had a long day, Leo. The mist could still be playing tricks on your mind. How about we head straight to your cabin now?" Alissa nodded her head in agreement.

"Just messing with you, man." Leo pulled some gears and levers from his pockets and started fiddling with them. Alissa frowned. She could tell he was lying so they wouldn't think he was crazy.

"Let's go see Cabin Nine," he said. "I'm in the mood for a good curse."

Leo whistled as they approached the cabin. From the outside, the Hephaestus cabin looked like an oversized RV with shiny metal walls and metal-slatted windows. The entrance was like a bank vault door, circular and several feet thick. It opened with lots of brass gears turning and hydraulic pistons blowing smoke.

"They got a steampunk theme going on, huh?" he said. Alissa had never seen the inside of Hephaestus cabin before, she really did feel like she was on a VIP tour as soon as they stepped inside.

Inside, the cabin seemed deserted. Steel bunks were folded against the walls like high-tech Murphy beds. Each had a digital control panel, blinking LED lights, flowing gems, and interlocking gears. A fire pole fame down from the second floor, even though the cabin didn't appear to have a second floor from the outside. A circular staircase led down into some kind of basement. The walls were lined with multiple kinds of power tools—Alissa could not name most of them—plus a huge assortment of knives, swords, and other implements of destruction. A large workbench overflowed with scrap metal—screws, bolts, washers, nails, rivets, and a million other machine parts.

Leo picked a long implement from the wall. "A week wacker? What's the god of fire want with a weed whacker?"

A voice in the shadows said, "You'd be surprised." Alissa jumped and flinched away from the unexpected voice. She sighed silently in relief when no one seemed to notice.

At the back of the room, one of the bunk beds was occupied. A curtain of dark camouflage retracted and Alissa could see the guy who'd been invisible a second earlier. The guy was covered in a body cast. His head was wrapped in gauze except for his face, which was puffy and bruised. He looked like the Pillsbury Doughboy after a beat-down

"I Jake Mason," he said. "I'd shake your hand, but…"

"Yeah," Leo said. "Don't get up."

Jake cracked a smile, then winced like it hurt to move his face. Alissa could tell that Leo wanted to ask what happened, but he didn't

"Welcome to Cabin Nine," Jake said. "Been almost a year since we had any new kids. I'm head counselor for now."

"For now?" Leo asked.

Will cleared his throat. "So where is everybody, Jake?"

"Down at the forges," Jake said wistfully. Alissa didn't know Jake very well, but it was obvious he wanted to be there with them. "They're working on… you know, that problem."

"Oh," Will changed the subject. "So, you got a spare bed for Leo?"

Jake studied Leo, seizing him up. "You believe in curses Leo? Or ghosts?" Alissa knew she did, she couldn't even stay in the dark alone without freaking out.

"Ghosts? Pfft. Nah. I'm cool. A stor spirit chucked me down the Grand Canyon this morning, but you know, all in a day's work, right?" Alissa's eyes widened. The Grand Canyon? Jeez.

Jake nodded. "That's good. Because I'll give you the best bed in the cabin—Beckendorf's."

Alissa gasped quietly. "Whoa, Jake," she said. "You sure?"

Jake called out: "Bunk 1-A, please."

The whole cabin rumbled. A circular section of the floor spiraled open like a camera lens, and a full-size bed popped up. The bronze frame had a built-in game station at the footboard, a stereo system in the headboard, a glass-door refrigerator mounted into the base, and a whole bunch of control panels running down the side.

Leo jumped right in and lay back with arms behind his head. "I can handle this." Alissa giggled.

"It retracts into a private room below," Jake said. Alissa's mouth fell open.

"Oh, heck, yes," Leo said. "See y'all. I'll be down in the Leo Cave. Which button do I press?"

"Hold on," Will Solace protested. "You guys have private underground rooms?"

Jake probably would've smiled if it didn't hurt so much. "We got lots of secrets, Will. You apollo guys can't have all the fun. Our campers have been excavating the tunnel system under Cabin Nine for almost a century. We still haven't found the end. Anyway, Leo, if you don't mind sleeping in a dead man's bed, it's yours."

Leo's expression changed. He sat up, careful not to touch any of the buttons. "The counselor who died—this was his bed?"

"Yeah," Jake said. "Charles Beckendorf." The name hurt Alissa emotionally; he had been a good friend to her.

"He didn't, like, die in this ed, did he?" Leo asked uncertainly.

"No," Jake said. "In the Titan War, last summer." Alissa shuddered to remember the war, it still haunted her and would continue to do so for a long time.

"The Titan War," Leo repeated, "which has nothing to do with this very fine bed?"

Alissa facepalmed.

"The Titans," Will said, like Leo was an idiot. "The big powerful guys that ruled the world before the gods. They tried to make a comeback last summer. Their leader, Kronson, built a new palace on top of Mount Tam in California. Their armies came to New York and almost destroyed Mount Olympus. A lot of demigods died trying to stop them."

Alissa shuddered and felt like crying as Will mentioned California. He glanced at her as he said it as if to check if she was okay. She wasn't. California is where her half brother (on her mother's side) lived. He had moved away to live with his dad when he was around two or three years old. Alissa was only a year old. She had gotten in touch with him two summers ago and he turned out really cool… until recently. Something happened to turn him into a jerk and he blocked her number. Will moved to put a hand on her shoulder as nonchalantly as he could. She flinched ever so slightly under his touch.

"I'm guessing this wasn't on the news?" Leo said in response to Will's story.

Will shook his head in disbelief. "You didn't hear about Mount St. Helens erupting, or the freak storms across the country, or that building collapsing in St. Louis?"

Leo shrugged. "Guess I was busy."

"Doesn't matter," Jake said. "You were lucky to miss it. The thing is, Beckendorf was one of the first casualties, and ever since then—"

"Your cabins been cursed," Leo guessed.

Jake didn't answer but it was obvious Leo was correct. Jake was in a body cast, there was an explosion mark on the wall, a stain on the floor that might've been oil… or blood. Broken swords and smashed machines kicked into the corners of the room, maybe out of frustration. The place did feel unlucky.

AN: Sorry to bother you again. Would you like to vote on who should give the disclaimer next? Just tell me who you'd like to hear from! Though if the person is only in Blood of Olympus, I may not know who it is... Anyway. If you would like a character of yours to cameo in my story just submit a full name and description. Including personality and looks. Thank you for reading, please review