*/*/*
Apollo was having the most bizarre experience. And that was saying a lot, considering what the sun god had been through. It wasn't every day he got to discover not only was Moros awake and not in some seeing-all-the-timelines-at-once coma, but he had the god of impending doom, a being capable of erasing him with a flick of a finger, sulking while sprawled across a conjured table like a small child. "I really don't wanna do the Thief arc! That's so over done!" Came the protests from the long-haired deity. Apollo decided it was in his best interest to just nod sympathetically and continue to hope to not be smited. "Curse my sisters and their meddlesome ways." Apollo in an uncharacteristic move kept his mouth shut about how that it was Moros who was meddling and not the Fates. Arty and their mother would be very proud. "Bah. At least I can just erase the whole Seven mess. Though I might see if I can't work in camp improvements into the campaign somehow. Rome gets a whole city! With a college! No wonder there's sibling rivalry! If I simply must do the Thief arc, I guess it's as good a place as any to start off. A little taste of godly shenanigans for the level one party and all that." Moros got up, brushed himself up and seemed to cheer up "But! Nothing says I can't widen their perspective! Thanks Apollo. Now if you'll excuse me, I am late for my scheduled appointment to give belly scritches to Spot and remind him he is a good boy." And poof! Away went the overwhelming presence and ominous foreboding that followed Moros everywhere.
"… For once I'm not sure I want to know what just happened." Despite his words, Apollo decided to watch. He couldn't help it. He was curious damn it!
*/*/*
Chiron pinched the bridge of his nose feeling an immense headache building. "So, you're telling me you all met the most powerful deity in our pantheon, and not only did he just tell you who your godly parents were without you needing to be claimed, you four have been told that you are now apparently on a quest of both undefined length and objective for him."
"We're his IRL D&D party" Nico provided helpfully.
"Whatever that means," Clarisse shrugged "Moros wasn't exactly descriptive."
"We're gonna be sent on a bunch of quests and adventures to level up! And eventually we'll face the BBEG! And be heroes!" Nico's eyes were starry.
"… B B E- what now" Chiron felt like he was attempting to understand some alien language.
"Big Bad Evil Guy. BBEG! Every D&D campaign has one! It's The Law™". How Nico managed to put a trademark on spoken words was a question for the ages.
"Well traditionally quests are done by three people. But Moros' wishes override tradition... and logic." There was a rather smug sounding thunder rumble. Chiron pointedly decided to ignore that as he continued. "And for some reason, Miss di Angelo you've not been included in this?" Bianca gave a clueless shrug. Chiron, having literal lifetimes as a teacher, read her expression clearly. The older sibling was actually glad to be left out of the group. Strange. Something in the air made his horse hair's itch. Chiron would keep an eye on this. For now, it was best to let the new campers get settled in. "Well, since you're all aware of your lineage, I suppose you can go to the proper cabins, even if you haven't been officially claimed. Mister and miss di Angelo, while the lord Hades doesn't-" Chiron was interrupted by a loud POP! sound as a key tied to a scroll appeared.
Congratulations! You made it to Camp!
Quest Complete! Follow the map to your reward!
Chiron managed to not allow his eye to twitch at the cheerful message scrawled over the map. Curious, the adventuring group plus Chiron and Bianca followed the map. Into the Big House. Inside the group encountered the resident god on premises. Short, fat, balding in a Hawaiian shirt, and seemingly hungover, the man did not look the part of a deity. Chiron stopped the group there. "Before we follow your map any further, you should meet-"
"Dionysus. The god in charge of babysitting you brats. What are you even doing in here?" the surly stare was not friendly.
"The wine dude! You're my favorite Mythomagic card! Can I get an autograph?!" Nico produced the corresponding card from the ether. The so-called Dionysus for his part seemed to go from immense annoyance to surprised confusion over the course of that single sentence.
"He's also madness!" Percy provided helpfully from the back "My personal favorite was the whole turning people into dolphins thing."
"We're following a map to a quest reward from Moros" Grover answered Dionysus' original question as the old god tried to make sense of what to think about these intruders in the big house.
"Wait. What? Moros?" Mr. D couldn't stop the double take, suddenly looking much less hungover and far more awake. To be fair, being told the embodiment of all doom who could happily give Zeus the finger and face no repercussions was meddling in your vicinity does tend to do that.
"Yeah, big biker looking god. Made us his on-call adventuring party. Chiron can explain. I want to see that reward." Clarisse proceeded to drag the three boys to follow the map. Bianca looked helplessly between Chiron and Mr. D, unsure what to do. The centaur just sighed and the remaining three followed after.
The map led to a door that had decidedly not been in the Big House before. Inside was a several room house. Pocket dimensions were ever so handy that way. Percy's eyes gleamed at the rooms assigned to him. Everything was high quality and seemed to be tailored to him. He even had an aquarium! Complete with a super chibi sea serpent. Fear me! Came the cry from the noodle inside the tank. Percy just fed it fish flakes. You may live! For now!
"Seeing as how we're dealing with Moros, I am not sure why I am surprised." Mr.D had joined Chiron in having the kind of headache that only came into existence when dealing with the god of Doom. His eye twitched slightly at seeing a note on the pocket dimension's fridge.
Next Quest! Capture the Flag!
Optional subquest to be revealed!
"Capture the flag?" Percy asked.
"The game this Friday," Clarisse gave the resident adventuring party a look "You assholes better be siding with Ares Cabin".
Dionysus just gave a very long sigh. "He really has made them his brats." Mr.D's eyes flicked over Clarine, Gober, and unnamed brats one and two. He raised his eyebrow at Chiron.
"Percy, Nico, and Bianca" the horse provided. Peter, Nate, and Beatrice. Well not Beatrice. For some reason she'd been left out. And didn't seem overly upset at it. Even though there were extra rooms apparently for her, they were marked 'Guest'. Hmm.
"The brats can live here then, I don't care." Mr.D did not even begin to have the energy to attempt to argue Camp rules were more important than Moros' whims. "The Harpies will still find a way to eat them if they brake curfew, I'm sure. You brats do me a favor and keep the whole Moros thing on the downlow alright? I don't want the headaches from the screams of existential panic… Or a rebirthing of the dreaded 'Cult of the Rubber Ducky'. Don't ask." With that, he walked away, conjuring a Diet Coke in his hand and sorely wishing it was something much stronger.
"Welcome to Camp Half Blood. I shall see you all at dinner then" Chiron decided to make himself scarce before he could get dragged any further into whatever plots Moros might be hatching. Plus he had to figure out where to seat the newcomers. They knew their parents but had not been official claimed. Well Hermes' table was probably a safe bet. Thank the gods for the whole 'god of travelers' aspect of the messenger. The adventuring party plus Bianca made themselves comfortable. For the moment, they could celebrate their small success and look forward to seeing where this 'campaign' would lead them.
"So. Ares huh?" Percy questioned.
"You got a problem with that Prissy?" Clarisse's eyes narrowed.
"Nope. Did the hide in a jar thing really happen?"
"Ha! Yeah. Ares talks a big game but he's more a chihuahua than a Doberman."
"Hey, you gotta be careful around small dogs! They got ten times the piss and vinegar of big ones," Percy grinned.
"Especially chihuahuas," Grover added helpfully. Eventually the conch horn sounded through camp and the more experienced Grover and Clarisse dragged Percy, Nico, and Bianca to the various tables. Chiron stopped by briefly to tell the newbies where they would be sitting until officially claimed. Clarisse for her part went over to the Ares table, while Grover had to go up front to the head table. Aka the Dionysus table. Percy was glad he at least had the chibi goths for company.
"Hey new faces, didn't see you before." A face came into view. He was a few years older than Percy was, likely in college or just about to join. Surprisingly tall as well with a build like a whipcord. The face though was what Percy would remember the most. Dirty blonde hair, a smirk that stated he was thinking of at least twelve new pranks a minute, and a large angry scar going over one eye and down his cheek. "I'm Luke, head of the Hermes cabin. Our cabin is the usual stop for the unclaimed or misfit souls that aren't lucky enough to have a parent that also has a dedicated cabin." The message was clear. This new person was curious why he had not met these wayward demigods before only to find them at his table.
"Nice to meet you and the rest of the cabin," Percy nodded a greeting "We got put in the Big House. It's… special circumstances."
"Now that's a story and a half." Luke's eyes flashed
"Mr. D said not to talk about it," Nico's voice interrupted before the blonde could continue.
"Ohh, something hush-hush, is it? Now I have to snoop later." Luke gave an easy going laugh. "Fine fine, keep your secrets. Welcome to the Hermes' table. Just be sure to scrape some food into the fire as an offering to the god of your choice. They're needy and have to feel appreciated."
"Fine, but this garlic bread is mine," Percy refused to hand it over "Mine!" Nico followed suit, clutching his own, which just made Luke laugh more.