It was beginning to be one of the longest nights of Jason's life.

Which was why he was thankful there was barely any traffic tonight, which wasn't too surprising given that it was almost two in the morning. He was especially thankful none of them had to drive back to Camp; there was no way he could, with the cuts on his arms still stinging feverishly.

His mind wandered, dwelling on what had happened at Dare Enterprises, where he had the privilege (if one could call it that) of fighting some of the deadliest creatures ever known to man, and managed to keep all his limbs intact. Getting over the shock of living another day should've been easy by now, given how many battles and wars he'd been through.

But this fight had been the furthest thing from easy. Though it had been over an hour ago since they'd left, he couldn't stop thinking about his formidable foe. He'd fought some strange foes before, but none stuck out quite like she did. Despite her being apparently entirely human her strange, hackneyed but fluid slashes were so fast, he'd never been able to leave a defensive position (he made a mental note to thank Leo for improving his shield).

What gnawed in his head though was how angrily she fought him. As if she had a grudge against him personally. Her furious glare when she pushed her blade against his shield...what was going on in that head of hers? Or was he just over analyzing, still reeling from the stress of it all?

It was times like these that he wished Piper was with him. She would've been able to say something reassuring with her charm speak laden voice. He could always rely on her to have his back. But at the moment she was safe in New Rome where she was preparing for the upcoming semester. Jason would have to deal with it by himself for now.

"Almost there," Jules Albert said from the driver's seat, somehow able to focus on the road despite the fact he didn't have any eyes. He drove past a highway sign that confirmed that they had mere minutes until they reached Camp.

"Good." Jason turned around in his seat to face Calypso, who was checking a still unconscious Rachel on the right of her. To her left, Clarisse was still staring out the back window, checking if they were being followed. "Are you sure alright?"

"I think so," Calypso felt her forehead. "Her body temperature is normal, her heart rate is steady, so I think she'll be alright. But I can't tell you when exactly she'll wake u—"

Without warning, Rachel's eyes snapped open. She gasped, jerking upright as if she'd been pinched. Then she turned over and vomited right onto the carpeted limo floor. Clarisse flinched, but didn't even do as much as squirm, and patted the Oracle's back. "Relax, relax."

"Nico!" Rachel gasped as soon as she stopped retching. "Nico's-"

"I'm right here." Nico reached behind him and rested his hand on her arm. He wasn't a healer, but he hoped his presence would help to calm her a little. "You're safe. We're heading to camp right now."

"It…it wasn't a dream?"

A lump began to form in his throat. "No."

"Something's wrong," Rachel gasped. Her face looked pale and clammy, and she began to hyperventilate. "I feel…empty. Like something's missing...the Spirit! It's—"

"Don't think about that now," Jason interrupted. It would do her no good if she continued to panic. "All that matters is that you're safe."

"We're here," Jules Albert announced as he slowly pulled to a stop.

"Guys?" Nico pointed at something outside the window. "Looks like we've got visitors."

Jason looked to his right. At the top of the hill, in front of the camp gate, three figures were locked in conversation with the two guards on night duty: Will and Mitchell.

He unbuckled his seat belt. "You guys stay in the car with Rachel for now. I'll check out what's going on. I'll wave if it's safe. If it's not…you'll know."

"I'll go with you," Nico quickly grabbed his sword. "They could be trouble."

Jason nodded, exited the limo and jogged up toward Half Blood Hill, Nico trailing not far behind him. As soon as he was close enough, he quickly unsheathed his sword, and the three strangers immediately turned to face them.

Now that he could see them better in the torchlight, Jason decided to get a look at the strangers. Their leader; a blonde-haired boy whom he swore could've been a younger Kurt Cobain, looked at him with wide, fearful eyes. Next to him was a…boy? Girl? He didn't want to assume, along with a caramel skinned girl clad in a green hijab. Hijab girl wielded a large, menacing looking axe at her side, which immediately caught Jason's attention. So they can fight. But how well?

"Please," the Kurt Cobain lookalike pleaded. "I swear I'm not here to hurt you."

"Jason! Nico! You're back!" Will exclaimed. "Where's everyone else?"

"Drop your weapons then and we'll talk," Jason demanded. "The others will come as soon as these people do as I say."

Nico drew his sword as well. "Don't get any ideas, folks."

The blonde boy sighed, but the three strangers complied, slowly lowering their weapons to the ground. Jason turned around and signaled at the limo.

"Who are you?" Nico demanded, trying to give the appearance that he was anything but tired. "Do you have a satyr?"

"I don't even know what— Look, is Chiron still coming? He'll understand."

"He's coming right now," Mitchell said. "You know, you three came in at a rather inconvenient hour-shit…is that Rachel?"

An awake but still sick looking Rachel staggered toward the gate. Calypso and Clarisse supported by her the shoulders as they slowly made their way up the hill.

"Yeah," she greeted weakly. "Hey guys."

The three strangers stared at the girls as they got closer to the entrance. "Don't even move a muscle, or I'll run you through." Will warned as as the girls walked past the gate. "You alright, Jason?" he asked, eyes trailing over his bandages.

"I'll be fine. Nothing my body can't take."

"Good to know. Mitchell, I'll have to check on how she's doing. Think you can cover for me?"

"No problem."

With a nod, Will accompanied the girls as they walked to the Big House.

"Now," Mitchell began once they were out of sight, "Explain what you can now."

"Listen," the blonde-haired boy began. "You know Annabeth Chase, right? I'm her cousin, Magnus."

"I didn't even know Annabeth had a cousin." Jason replied. "How on earth do you know where Camp was?"

"I didn't. It's complicated, and it probably won't make much sense to you no matter what I say. Just get me Chiron, he's the Camp Director here, right? We're not planning any attack."

"What is going on here?" Chiron galloped over to the gate, still clad in his pink striped pajamas. As soon as he laid his eyes on the three strangers, they widened. "M-Magnus Chase?"

"You know me?" Magnus said, looking shocked.

Chiron gulped. He had never done that before in front of them. "I, Chiron, Camp Activities Director, hereby grant permission for Magnus Chase and his comrades to enter."

Jason's jaw dropped. Nico and Mitchell looked equally surprised as Magnus and his friends walked through the gate. Never before had Chiron granted passage to anyone so quickly.

"Thank you," Magnus said after taking his first steps on camp ground.

"You're welcome," Chiron replied. "I'm sorry for the trouble, it is our policy to not allow anyone new here without some questioning. How on earth did you three get here?"

"Freya sent us here," the hijab clad girl explained. "Some sort of portal she created in Boston that led directly to your camp."

"I assume she didn't send you here to tell me she's cancelled pizza night."

"Pizza night?" Nico asked. "Chiron, slow down a little. You know these people?"

Chiron's expression darkened. "Magnus here…is an einherji from Hotel Valhalla."

"Hotel Valhalla?" Jason exclaimed. "What the hell does a Hotel have to do with any of this?"

"It's the home for our fallen Norse heroes, and it is under siege," the green haired person explained. "Some magician group attacked our home. And, you're not going to believe this; they killed the Norns."

Even in the dim torchlight, Jason could see Chiron instantly turn pale. "P-preposterous. You're absolutely sure about this?"

"Would we be here if we weren't?" Magnus said grimly.

"What the heck's going on?" asked a familiar female voice. "Why's everyone up so—no way."

To Jason's surprise, and, given how loud they gasped, everyone else's, Percy and Annabeth entered through the gate. Behind them stumbled two younger teenage girls he didn't recognize.

"Woah, guys!" Jason exclaimed. "What are you doing here this late?" He glanced at the two girls, who each looked to be about Nico's age. One of them, a pretty Arab looking girl with tired, baggy eyes, looked like she'd been crying. "Who are your friends?"

"Long story," Annabeth said. "Magnus? Alex? How are you here?"

"Longer story." The hijab clad girl cut in. She extended a hand to Annabeth. "I'm Samirah, by the way. Magnus and Alex have told me a lot about you two."

"Same," Annabeth said. "I wish we could've met under better circumstances though."

"Well, well." Chiron said. "Magnus Chase and Sadie Kane at Camp Half Blood. I thought Ragnarok would arrive sooner than the day something like this happened."

"You must be Chiron," the Arab girl greeted. "My name is-"

"Zia Rashid. I've heard quite a bit about you too. I'm assuming Anubis directed you here? But I digress. It's late, and I think it's time we all get a good night's sleep before discussing anything."

"Sir?" Zia interrupted sharply. "With all due respect, I didn't sit in a taxi for a half an hour just to be told I needed to sleep. The fate of the gods-"

"Child."

"Everything we know, the balance of the entire world order is at risk, don't you understand!?" she said

"Zia…" Sadie said in a comforting tone. "I know you want to talk, but—"

"NOT YOU TOO!"

The whole group immediately fell silent. Everyone, including Jason, was aback by Zia's outburst. For a fleeting moment, anger boiled in him for being so rude to Chiron. But it eventually passed, replaced by pity despite not knowing what she could've been through.

Chiron had implied that the girls were like Magnus, strangers who should have never been able to even find Camp Half-Blood, much less step foot in it. Could they have just escaped from dangerous foes, like how he did?

"I'm…I'm sorry. I shouldn't have..." Zia trailed off, looking ashamed. Then she burst into tears.

Sadie walked up to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "It's alright, it's been a long night," she whispered in a gentle tone. She looked up at Chiron, clearly stunned by his appearance. "Um...Sir?" she asked nervously. "Annabeth told me Hermes Cabin is where newcomers stay, right?"

"You can stay in the Big House, actually," Chiron said. "I don't wish to wake up anyone else at this hour. Magnus, you and your friends too can join them. We shall talk in the morning when we're all well rested and fed. In fact…Jason, isn't the Argo III arriving tomorrow?"

"Yeah…" Jason said, realizing what it could mean. "They'll want to hear about this too, won't they?"

Chiron sighed gravelly, which gave away exactly how anxious he really was.

"Where's Dionysus, Chiron?" Annabeth asked. "He's going to want to hear about this."

"I thought the same," Chiron said. "However, as soon as Jason was called in, he was summoned to Olympus. I haven't heard from him or any of the other gods since."

That hasn't happened since I came to Camp, Jason realized.

Chiron. looked out into the horizon. "If fate has decreed that all of these heroes meet here, at this very moment…I can't imagine what could be coming."

As if his spirits couldn't get any lower, outside the camp it began to thunder.