Did Aaron kill Chris? Clarisse's boyfriend, who knows... I surely don't and neither will you for a time.

Any guesses welcome.

A harsh slap to the face woke Aaron from his...well, mild coma. He recoiled from the blow, trying to focus on the world as his head screamed, his mouth tasted of blood and the world spun. It was an awful set of feelings, one he only endured for about a minute as the scent of something flowery washed through his body, soothing his everything. The world settled all at once, and he saw the worried eye of Meggy looking down at him.

"Your not dead, I was worried." Her tone was pained, so much so his heart ached more then all of his injuries had combined.

Reaching out stiffly, he pulled the girl into a warm hug. "I'll live, I was just forced to use too much magic. Anymore and my soul would have been in jeopardy. That spell he was casting, Alabaster I mean, it scared even Agnes. She had me cast a reversal spell that forced my body to expel not only all the magic I could wield from the Spirits but also some of my life force. The result was the pain, passing out and physical damage from channeling so much magic. Had I done twice as much magic, give or take, it would have permantly damaged my body and soul. As it is I need to avoid casting spells till I recover."

Slowly, he managed to sit up, only to realize he was in a lavish... hotel room? The curtains were made of silver silk, the walls were a deep purple and there was a flat screen TV playing some pop music. There was even a series of bookshelves covered with fantasy books and, if he was really seeing things right, books on actual magic.

"Amazing, huh?" Meggy was beaming a warm smile, gesturing broadly across the room. "I was amazed too when they brought me in here but it's like this room was made for us... which I think it was."

He instantly frowned. " What is this place? Where are we?" He focused, ignoring the small twinge of pain that came from tapping into his aching magical senses. "I can feel magic, it's strong. Like as strong as an Olympian strong but it feels... weird, like nothing else."

Meggy frowned. "My powers are acting weird, it's like something is trying to numb my empathy. I can't feel this places emotions, like I can at camp. It's like looking at the sun. Meggy doesn't like it, she feels unsafe but also at peace. It's strange." Her eyes, eye, widened. " Meggy found this place by accident when we were running from Alabaster and the others. I could feel the magic, just like you taught me. When I saw the sign I knew we had to go in. This is that Hotel you told me to look for, the Lotus Hotel and Casino."

Aaron almost threw himself out of bed, excitement and wonder in his every aspect. "That's wonderful, we can just find the kids and get out... if I knew what they looked like. Sigh, and being immersed in this amount of magic I imagine even my prayers would be blocked. Lovely, we are on our own. Still, I imagine they look like their father. We are looking for a boy and girl. a brother and sister."

Nodding, his sister turned to the door. "Meggy can smell Demigods, so maybe I can sniff them out... unless the magic here blocks their scent. I can't tell. I have never been somewhere with so much concentrated magic."

"To be fair neither have I, my statements about it blocking our prayers is really a guess based on what I know of magic." He focused trying to reach out to Agnes but felt... nothing, not a single damn thing. " I can't contact Agnes, so I think this place really is blocking me. We really do need to focus, Hades said this place can taint even the strongest of minds and I include ours in that."

"I understand, Meggy will be sure and sharp and not let this place mess with her head."

" Good... I guess I could shower before I go and look for the kids and get something to eat. My magic is low and without Agnes to channel, I am not particularly powerful. We are at a severe disadvantage if we are attacked again."

"""

Meggy noticed the smell of demigods the instant they entered the casino proper. It was strong, incredibly so, more then any demigod she had met bar her brother Percy. Problem was, the scent of Lotus was obscuring the scent, making it damn near impossible to track it down. The best she could do was say that there was indeed demigods in the building...

The other issue.. well...

"I smell at least a dozen demigods here, not just the ones we are looking for."

Aaron frowned. " This place must be an indiscriminate trap. demigods and mortals alike... that's not good. I wish I could free them all but we are not here for that. We might come back for them but for now let's go and find these kids."

The sounds of gaming systems and cheers, happy kids and chatter made it hard for Meggy to focus. She frowned and decided to just look at every kid individually. "What does Lord Hades look like?" She whispered. "They might look like him, so that could help us find them, right?"

"He has brilliant black eyes that radiate intensity. He has silky black hair, incredibly pale skin and he radiates power. He gestures a lot with his hands, so there is that."

She nodded and started looking for kids that fit that description, her eye roaming the entire Casino as fast she could. She was grateful for having practiced magic, even if she was a newbie at it, it made it easier to ignore the allure of the bright lights of the machines, the delicious smell of lotus and the happy laughter of the people playing peacefully. The allure was strong, stronger then anything she could have imagined. If she had not been warned, she would have been doomed, she knew that...

Aaron held her hand as they moved through the building, looking for the two kids that matched the description of Hades. There were actually a few kids that matched that very image, but a quick sniff made it clear they were purely mortals and the similarity was purely chance. Dark hair and eyes were not exactly exclusive to that god.

They searched for almost an hour before they, both she and Aaron, were close to outright quitting ... and then they found them. She knew right away that these kids were Hades' kids, their auras were so powerful that walking within fifty feet made Meggy's head ache. She turned to them, following the pull of their scent, their aura, and boom there they were. Meggy saw Bianca first. She was beautiful, short and petite with dark hair and wild near black eyes. Her hair was covered in a floppy green hat, and her face was covered in freckles that only made her more adorable. Though she was pale, her Mediterranean features were clear, everything sharp and hawkish. Her brother was the same, only with his hair being short and his features being more Greek then hers though he lacked freckles. They were both very beautiful, oddly so, Meggy was reminded vaguely of her demigods siblings.

The girl was almost shaking, looking from side to side with an odd expression of discomfort, perhaps from the crowd, where as her brother was playing peacefully with some figurines, oblivious to his sister's discomfort.

"Aaron, there." She pointed with her chin, making Aaron turn to the kids.

He gasped a little. " They look just like him, the similarity is startling." He walked up to the table they were sitting at alone, a smile on his face with Meggy following behind. " Hi there." He said kindly. "My name is Aaron, what's yours?"

The girl blushed a little. "Bianca DiAngelo... and this is Nico, my little brother."

"I saw you two sitting here alone and just wanted to see if you minded some company. May we sit with you?" He gestured to Meggy. "This is my sister, Meggy, she's very nice."

Bianca shrugged. " Sure, why not."

And so they sat down but not more then a minute later Nico bounced up with the biggest smile on his face. "Hiya there, how old are you, is she really your sister you look nothing alike, will you play Mythomagic with me?"

"In order fourteen, she's my adopted sister and of course. Haven't played Mythomagic in a dogs age."

The boy's smile doubled in size, all but shaking with excitement. He all threw the cards at Aaron and they started to play. It wasn't a very hard game, but Nico was very, very good making him hard to beat.

"So, Bianca, how long have you two been here? Meggy and I just got here a few hours ago."

Meggy watched as Bianca frowned. " Um... I... um... not sure. Maybe a month?" Meggy could sense the girl's emotions were unclear, as if she genuinely wasn't sure.

Leaning in, Meggy smiled at the girl. "Have you been having fun?"

"Oh loads, this place is great..."

"Then why do you look so uncomfortable?"

She sighed, turning away. "I, something feels wrong. I can't explain it past that. I don't mean to sound like a part pooper, but I feel wrong. Does that make sense?"

Meggy nodded. "I feel it too, and your not wrong. This place is... odd. My brother feels it too."

Aaron nodded, placing down a card. " I can, it's sort of numbing. Maybe it's just the smell? That weird perfume in the air, maybe if we go outside for a walk we can clear our heads and figure everything out together? I wouldn't mind a nice walk in the sun, take it in before coming back here?"

Bianca blinked, as if the idea had never occurred to her. "Sure, that sounds fine. Come on, Nico, let's go for a walk."

As if she was more his mother then sister, Nico nodded and stood up. "Alright, Bianca. He was beating me anyway."

'''

Laughing, Aaron helped Nico pack up his cards. "Sure was, but your very good at this game. I just got lucky." The kid was sweet and smiled at him, beaming warmly and with such depth that it left Aaron just a tiny bit uncomfortable.

As one group, the new friends walked towards the exit. The Lotus bellhop saw this and suddenly hurried up to them. "Well, now, are you ready for your platinum cards?"

"We're leaving, but we'll be back shortly. We're just going for a walk, soak up some Sun." Aaron's smile was winning, disarming the man who just nodded.

"Oh sure, sounds great. See you back shortly!" He beamed at them with a wickedly kind smile before walking back to his seat, and they walked out of the building into the sweltering heat of Las Vegas. Aaron gasped a little as, suddenly, his cold connection to Asphodel returned with a rush.

Agnes's voice echoed in his mind. "There you are, the Land of the Lotus eaters has become so much stronger. In my day it was easy to avoid so long as you avoided the flowers but now..." He felt her shiver, even as a ghost. "You found the kids, I can feel Hades' power radiating from them in waves. Even for his kids, they are incredibly powerful."

Now that he wasn't distracted by the Lotus Casinos' magic, Aaron sensed it in the kids too. Cold, Dark power washing off of them like waves. His skin tingled with it, as if just by being around each other they made each other stronger. He would have to remember that.

Meggy, sweet Meggy, for some reason walked away from them and grabbed at a newspaper box, grabbing a paper from it. "Bianca, who's the president."

The girl frowned. "Roosevelt, why do you ask?"

"And what year is it?"

" Nineteen thirty Six... I think." Bianca's tone was close to nervousness again, and Aaron wondered if she was sensing where they were going with this.

Meggy handed the paper to Bianca. "This is today's newspaper. Look at the date."

Bianca shakily read out the date. "October Fourth, Two Thousand and... five... no, that's not... this has to be a trick, how could be there for Seventy years!" She all but screeched out.

Aaron sighed, just as Nico hurled himself at his sister, hugging her to calm her down. "That place was enchanted, it skews time and messes with the perception if it's passing."

"Enchanted?" Nico and Bianca said at once, him with excitement, her with disbelief and terror.

Aaron summoned the paper to him right from her hands, making her back up in terror. "Yes, Enchanted, Magic exists and it is used for good and evil. We were sent to free you from this place and take you north to safety."

"Why, why us... why you?"

Aaron could not help but shrug. " Your father is a god, yes a literal god but I am forbidden to tell you who he is. What I can say is that he is paying me, since I am unbiased and loyal. Other then that I am unsure of why I was asked to do this. I just know that I am to help you both get to your safe place in Washington. D.C."

Bianca's already pale skin went the color of milk. " A god that's... insane you can't believe that... I... oh god, or ugh, can I even say that?" She moaned out.

"COOL!" Nico said, looking excited.

"No, not cool!"

Nico danced around like he needed to use the restroom. "Does Zeus really have lightning bolts that do six hundred damage? Does he get extra movement points for—"

"Nico, shut up!" Bianca put her hands to her face. "This is not your stupid Mythomagic game, okay? There are no gods!"

Aaron sighed, raising his hands to summon flames that danced merrily. It took a lot of focus, he was still tired and drained but this was such an easy spell he could just barely manage it in his current state. "The world is complicated and being a demigod is dangerous. Many of you die so young. My brother, stepbrother, is a demigod like you two. Meggy's a cyclops and I am a witch. We have seen the dangers, so trust me it is all too real. We were attacked before we found you, it was nearly fatal for me. I can only cast so much magic, so in defending us I nearly died. Also, I am pretty sure I killed one of our pursuers. He was a demigod like you."

The girl recoiled. "You killed him?"

"To defend Meggy and myself, I did. They would have forced you to work for the Titans and start a civil war. I couldn't let them so we fought, we won. It sucks but that is the nature of this world. Now, we need to get you kids to safety otherwise we will be attacked by monsters or who knows what else. Will you go with me?" There was nothing but silence, so Aaron kneeled before the kids. " I swear by the River Styx that at this moment, I have no intentions of harming you or your brother. I truly am your ally and am trying to get you to safety."

The sky rumbled, Bianca and Nico both shuddered. " I could feel that, it felt... real, binding. I can't explain it past that. You really have to mean that oath, and you can't break it can you?"

Aaron nodded. "I must mean it, or I would suffer the consequences for it. Death or worse, it just depends. Do you trust me now? Do you trust us?"

Bianca nodded. " I don't know how I know I can trust you, but I just know... we will go with you, but I reserve the right to walk away if you prove to be untrustworthy."

"I wouldn't have it any other way." He stood and held out his hand. "Now, let's go, we have a long train ride ahead of us. It will take a few days, in which I can tell you as much or as little as you want. Maybe show you both some magic, some tricks to protect yourselves. I will be visiting you in your safe place from time to time."

Both kids looked oddly excited for that, even Bianca. Then, together, they walked towards the train station, both kids nervous and excited and ready to start this new page in their lives."

Chapter end, tell me what you think in the reviews.

This was fun to write.

Love, your Ninja Overlord,

Mika.