Jason Grace
If there was one thing Jason liked about Camp Half-Blood, it was the laid back nature of the place. It was the reason he chose Camp Half-Blood over Camp Jupiter. Sure, Percy was the hot shot before him, but he really didn't mind. He liked being just another camper. Then Hektor came and took all of that away. Camp Half-Blood was basically a military camp now, constant patrols, drills, and even aerial patrols using pegasus.
Now Jason was stuck trying to figure out another issue. The blackouts were getting worse. Now they lasted for hours instead of minutes. He'd be in one place, fully in control of his body, then he'd blackout and come to in a completely different place. It was like someone put a blindfold over his head and marched him over to where they wanted him.
Take what happened now for example. He was in the armory, supposedly doing weapons maintenance, but he was actually purposefully sabotaging every heavy weapon Camp Half-Blood had. Then he blacked out for who knows how long and woke up to every single weapon serviced and ready to go.
Jason stared at the rows of polished spears in front of him. They were aligned, clean, and in excellent condition. He could've sworn he had moved them in a way that it would be difficult to quickly grab one without knocking the entire stack over.
Confusion wasn't the only symptom when it came to blackouts, Jason often found himself nearly incapable of anything after because of the horrible headache that came shortly after a blackout. It felt like his head was going to pop like a balloon. The headaches would come in waves, increasing in intensity until he had to sit down and take a nap otherwise, he'd go insane.
The door to the armory opened, causing Jason to look over with a irritated expression. He narrowed his eyes at the person who walked in, partially because he wanted to be alone, partially because the sound of the door opening made his head hurt.
"Jason?" A voice that he definitely recognized asked.
Jason stared back at the dark eyes of none other than Nico Di Angelo.
"What is it, Nico?" He asked.
Nico rubbed the back of his neck, "I, uh, I got assigned to be your assistant."
Jason was confused. He was the link between Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter, and he did that job well, why would he need an assistant? He didn't mind Nico being his assistant since he was familiar with New Rome and all but Nico already had a job. He was supposed to be Will's medical assistant.
"I thought you were supposed to help Will in the infirmary?" Jason asked.
"I was but Hektor said that I was a bad presence." Nico said, "I tried to tell him that I really didn't cause any trouble but he wasn't having it."
Jason wondered why Hektor would do something like that. He knew it wasn't because of whatever he told Nico. By now, Jason had been around Hektor long enough to know that the guy always had ulterior motives, that was one thing he was good at, hiding his true intentions. It was the exact same thing with the whole Annabeth hunt going on, Hektor said that he had feelings for her, but Jason knew people didn't just randomly develop feelings for someone they hated. The only conclusion Jason came to was that Hektor was trying to break Percy's will to fight. Annabeth was that reason for Percy.
Then there was the fact that Hektor kept splitting up couples. Jason couldn't remember the last time he'd seen Piper except during meals. It seemed their schedules were designed to make sure they never were able to meet. Now Hektor was doing the same thing with Will and Nico.
"Well, I don't really have any work for you right now." Jason said, "If I'm being honest, there's not much to do, even on a busy day."
"Oh, okay." Nico said, "I'll be in my cabin if you need me then." He turned and started to make his way out of the armory.
"Actually, Nico, wait." Jason said.
Nico stopped and turned to look at him.
"Have you been having blackouts?" Jason asked the son of Hades.
"Blackouts?" Nico questioned.
"Yeah, as in like, you're in one place then next thing you know, you're somewhere else without knowing how you even got there?"
Nico nodded rapidly, "Yes! I thought it was only me, I never brought it up because I thought I was going crazy."
So that confirmed it for Jason, he wasn't the only one dealing with the blackouts. He wanted to make sure his demigod brain wasn't going senile, like Percy suggested before.
"I had Will check me out, he said there wasn't anything wrong." Nico said, "I know there's something wrong with me, I just don't know what."
Jason felt like the weight of the world was lifted off his shoulders, for days, he thought he was going insane. Now he finally was able to see that he wasn't going crazy after all.
He was about to ask something else when the door to the armory opened. Jason and Nico both turned to see Hektor walking in. Hektor wore his signature black and gold robe, but this time it had a golden apple stitched on the back. Jason didn't know what was up with Hektor and golden apples.
Hektor smiled at Jason, "Ah, there you are. I assume Nico has told you the news?"
"Uh, yes, but—"
"Good!" Hektor said, cutting him off and turning to Nico, "You're dismissed."
Nico shot a weary glance at Jason before making his way past Hektor and walking out of the armory. Hektor smiled at the son of Zeus.
"Now that he's gone, I'd like for you to see the squad off before they depart." Hektor said with an icy smile.
Jason didn't want to see the squad, he wanted nothing to do with this operation. He knew what was in store for Annabeth and he wouldn't wish it on his worst enemy. He knew Annabeth wouldn't willingly leave Percy and become Hektor's queen, which meant Hektor would have to force her. Jason figured that was the purpose of the sex dungeon underneath Hektor's palace.
"Jason?" Hektor tilted his head, "Are you here with me?"
"Uh, yeah, yeah." Jason said while shaking his head.
"Alright then, let's go." Hektor said, turning and walking out of the armory.
Jason followed him, looking around camp the whole time. He watched as the Hephaestus campers worked on upgrading the secondary perimeter of defenses around camp. The first perimeter consisted of spaced out guard towers manned by two campers each. The secondary perimeter was more technical, mainly automations and drones.
Jason looked to where they were going. Half-Blood hill had about twelve demigods at the top, armor and backpacks on. They all stood in a line, stiff and still, like soldiers. He couldn't tell who they were, but he knew Malcolm, Sherman, and a few other demigods he knew were amongst them.
"Good afternoon, sir!" They all called in unison as Hektor and Jason trudged up the hill.
"Afternoon." Hektor greeted, "Now, I'm sure all of you know why you are here. There's an urgent threat to camp, one that seeks to destroy you and every single thing you love. Annabeth Chase and Percy Jackson are out there, plotting the downfall of Olympus and all of demigod kind."
The line of demigods said nothing as they stared ahead with disciplined gazes. Jason had seen this type of thing at Camp Jupiter, it felt odd seeing it at Camp Half-Blood. This place just didn't have the military vibe of Camp Jupiter.
"The objective is simple!" Hektor said loudly, "Your orders are to capture Annabeth Chase, do not kill her! You may knock her unconscious but killing her will be met by the death penalty."
"What about Percy, sir?" One of the demigods asked.
Hektor grinned, "Capture or kill, your choice. I'd prefer a capture but if he proves to be too much trouble, slit his throat and dump him in the ocean."
Jason flinched at the mental image. Percy was one of his closest friends. He didn't want to see him dead.
He looked upon the line of demigods. He hated to say it, but Hektor chose a good selection. Sherman, Malcolm, and a few of the rather better trained and skilled demigods form various other cabins were there.
Sherman was a tough guy and an excellent fighter. He was a good swordsman but he was pretty good in any weapon Jason had ever seen him wield. He was big and strong but he had his downsides. Sherman was hot-headed, he got frustrated way too easily. Many other Ares children faced that same issue.
There were a few sharpshooters and medics from the Apollo cabin, along with a tech specialist from the Hephaestus cabin who worked under Leo. There was one child of Hermes, who Jason figured was the scout of the group.
The most dangerous of them all was Malcolm. He was second to Annabeth in terms of strategy and combat skill. Unlike Sherman, he was far more patient, he couldn't be baited as easily. He was going to pose the most issues to Annabeth and Percy, Annabeth in particular since he knew her, which meant he could predict her next moves somewhat accurately.
"Now, Jason, what do you suggest for them to do?" Hektor asked.
Jason couldn't afford to offer them good advice, they actually had a chance at capturing Annabeth and Percy. He needed to throw them off their trail.
"Well, Percy and Annabeth most likely are still in New York. I suggest they poke around downtown to see any clues as to where they are hiding." Jason said, "Annabeth can't stay underwater, so they must be on land somewhere."
Hektor grinned, "Good, let the games begin."
A/N: Quick question for you all, would you rather Jason turn on Percy and Annabeth or Nico and Jason working together to help them? I have two different plotlines thought up but i'm curious which one you all would want.