Bianca di Angelo walked aimlessly through the Lotus Casino, looking around, searching. A displeased frown marred her face, as she looked for her younger brother, who had yet again escaped her. She had no idea why, but for the last few days she couldn't shake the feeling that someone was after them. But she had no idea who or why someone would search for them. She had warned her brother, yet Nico had run off again.
She loved her brother dearly, but after all that time they had spent inside this building she couldn't help herself but wonder why she was forced to watch out for him all the time. Where were their parents? Why couldn't she remember anything before they came to this place.
She had wondered about the mystery that was her life so many times before, but she never found any answers. And most of the time she could never finish her musings. More often than not she had to keep an eye out for brother.
She had already searched all of Nico's favorite activities inside the hotel and the casino, but so far she had no luck. Her brother was nowhere to be found. She was about to give up and return to their room, when she saw a very curious group in the lobby, arguing about something. Two boys, accompanied by 4 girls, all of them acting oddly. Two of the girls glared at every man and boy who passed them with great disdain, while another girl with blond hair threw angry looks at one of the other girls.
Only when she got closer she could hear what they were talking about. She carefully hid in the shadow of a large potted plant to avoid being seen, as she listened to their conversation. "We shouldn't waste any more time here." One of the boys said. "Clarisse, I believe you should return to your group, Luke should be worried by now." The other boy looked extremely surprised when he heard the name, but Bianca had no idea why. But she had recognized the boy who had spoken. It was the same boy she had seen in the lift the day before. The same boy who had muttered something about Apollo.
"Yeah, I better get going before Nymphy over there tries to start another fight she cannot win." The girl, Clarrise, looked mockingly at one of the silver clad girls, who glared right back. Then the girl left the group and walked towards the elevators.
"Okay, now that this is over we need to get back to my Quest."
"And how do you plan on finding them, Percy?"
"I have no idea. You girls are the hunters here, maybe you have some tricks to find your targets. Come on, Ariadne, please tell me you have an idea." Percy half asked, half begged,
Bianca was about to leave, since she did not feel all to happy with herself for eavesdropping on some people she did not even know. But she stopped mid step when she heard the next few comments.
"You only know their names, right?" Ariadne asked.
Percy nodded. "Yes. Alecto said their names are Bianca and Nico. She didn't tell me more about them. Stupid quests, always making things harder with these stupid riddles." Percy grumbled.
Bianca stared at them wide eyed, shocked when she heard him say her name. Was she right? Was there really someone after her and her brother? But this group, all of them looked like they were her age, at least not much older. Why would such a strange group of kids be searching for her and Nico? And who was this Alecto? The name sounded familiar, but Bianca did not know where she had heard it before.
"Why are we even helping this boy, Zoe? Lady Artemis has ordered us to capture him. We shouldn't waste our time talking about his quest."
"Quiet, Phoebe. I said we will talk about this later." Zoe chided harshly. "And you..." She turned to Grover with a sharp look. "You are a Satyr, shouldn't you be able to smell them?"
"I doubt it, with all of us here together. I smell, you smell... some of us even worse than others, since they live in the wild like savages." He looked over to Phoebe, as he whispered the last part to Ariadne. Meanwhile Phoebe looked ready to pounce him, though Zoe easily managed to keep her in check. "What I mean is that even if Bianca and Nico reek, Grover will always only smell us." Percy reasoned.
Bianca couldn't help herself but sniff at her own clothes. Just what did they mean when they said that this Grover guy could smell them? She had taken a shower just this morning, she wasn't smelly, thank you very much.
Meanwhile Ariadne slapped Percy lightly on the back of his head, before she said, "Idiot. If they are really Hades children then their smell should be very strong. Just like yours, but different." She scowled slightly at Percy, but her expression quickly returned to an almost mockingly sweet face. "And you never tell a girl that she smells, no matter if it's true or not."
"All right, all right." Percy held his hands up in mock surrender. "So, G-man, can you smell something different?"
Bianca knew that this was the moment for her to leave. If those people were really hunting her and her brother, then she had to get away. She had to find Nico and find a good place to hide. Oh how she cursed the curious mind of her brother now. Of all the times she had to disappear now.
She turned around, intent on walking away. At first she believed that she might escaped them, disappear in the crowd, but then she heard someone yelling at her to stop. Afraid of her pursuers she ran away as fast as she could. But they were hot on her heels, running faster than any normal child should be able to.
"Wait! Bianca, wait, we need to talk." One of the boys yelled after her. In her haste she even lost her hat, which hid most of her hair and face from view, revealing her silky black hair. But she did not stop. She was sure that nothing good would come of it. She ran around another corner, into a dimly lit corridor. But much to her horror she ended up in a dead-end. The only door was locked and she was trapped.
The whole group she had seen before appeared before her now, unreadable expressions on most of their faces. Then one of the boys. Percy she reminded herself, was coming closer, while the girls watched her curiously. Especially one of the girls, a girl with eyes just as dark as her own, watched her with an almost evaluating expression.
"Hey. We really mean you no harm. We only want to talk." Percy said, as he came closer.
But Bianca did not trust his words. Instead she tried to increase her distance to him, though all attempts were futile. She almost tried to hide in the shadow of the dimly lit place. She always felt better, safer, inside of the shadows. But suddenly it was as if the wall behind her had disappeared and she fell backwards into the shadow, much to her own shock and that of her pursuers. She saw Percy's last attempt to grab her arm, but he was too late and she was gone.
"Now we definitely know that she is a daughter of Hades. They are the only demigods known to have the ability to shadow travel." Zoe stated with a thoughtful expression. It had been many centuries since she had last met a child of Hades. And never to her knowledge had there been any of his daughters in the Hunt. She knew only hearsay about the powers of these demigods and that did not sit well with her.
Artemis had been quiet for some time, neither speaking to her Hunters, nor to Hermes, as the god visited her to deliver a message from her father. She had been shocked when she had found out that Apollo and some other gods had conspired against her and her Hunters, embarrassing them in front of all of Olympus. To find out that everything that had happened could be watched on Hephaestus TV was a shock for the goddess of the Hunt. Everyone was watching them, evaluating them. This was a whole new situation for her and her girls.
But at the same time she also appreciated the chance this had offered to her. She could watch her girls, Zoe and Phoebe... and Ariadne. She knew that they were safe. She even saw how Percy saved Zoe from a fate that would have been worse than death for the girl. Zoe would have had to leave the Hunt, had she lost her virtue that night. That was the rule. And Artemis knew that Zoe could not live without the Hunt. For millenia she had been her attendant, Zoe had served her faithfully. But at the same time she had more and more increased her own distance to the changes in the mortal world and the entire world outside of the Hunt. But despite all Artemis had expected of the son of Poseidon, Percy had protected Zoe, and for that she was grateful.
But even that gratitude knew bounds, and Percy was definitely pushing them. When he ended up sharing the same bed with Zoe he was definitely asking to get hurt. To the goddess his predicament was not caused by Zoe's strong grip, but by his unwillingness to leave the girl alone. In her opinion Zoe did not punish him enough for his plunder. But that could easily be remedied. She would make sure that he would spent some quality time as a Jackalope until she had to bring him to her father. It would teach him not to get this close to her Hunters.
She scowled when she felt a familiar presence coming closer. Another god. Not Hermes, he wouldn't return for some time after he tried to flirt with some of her girls. No it was someone she would have never expected to visit her. And now he was about to enter her tent, uninvited, but the gods never cared much for such minor offenses. At least he did not try to hide his presence.
"Poseidon, I must say I had not expected you to come here." She did not turn towards the entrance of the tent as her guest stepped in. She did not look at him, neither did she pay him the same respect she would shown her father, though the Big Three all demanded more deference than any other gods.
"I'm afraid you are mistaken, moon goddess, for I am not my father." The voice sounded younger, much younger than that of the god of the sea. Surprised she turned around to see her guest. What she saw was the greenish skin and black hair of Triton, son of Poseidon and Amphitrite. The god bowed mockingly before her, though Artemis could clearly see a glint in his eyes that she did not like at all. Triton was known to be a prideful man, so bowing to another god, a goddess no less, was clearly not his favorite pastime.
"What are you doing here? Playing messenger for you father? I have no time to waste on foolishness." Artemis snapped, as she watched him through narrowed eyes. But he did not flinch at her tone, neither did he show much of any reaction to her.
"My father does not know about my presence here. He does not know much of anything. Lord Zeus keeps him close at all times in order to keep him away from... my brother. At least until we all know for sure on whose side he is really on." He said the word brother as if it was something foul, his fist clenched.
Artemis looked at him almost disdainfully, as she picked up one of her hunting knives from a nearby table and started sharpening it in front of him. "And why exactly did you come to bother me? I have no time for this foolishness."
"This is about Perseus."
"What about Perseus?" She asked challenging.
"You should be careful, moon goddess, my father is not a person you would want to cross. None of your Hunters would be safe near any body of water ever again."
Artemis glared became murderous when she heard his threat. She had to give it to him, he had guts to say such things in front of her, in the middle of her camp and so far away from his own domain. But maybe he was just cocky. And stupid, like most men she had met so far.
"You must not interfere with Perseus current quest. Let him finish Hades' task." He smirked, obviously feeling superior to her, despite her being a member of the Olympian council and him being merely a minor god. But he knew that her weak point had always been and will always be her Hunters. She would not allow any harm to befall them.
"I have orders from my father. I will capture Jackson and drag him in front of the council." She retorted with a look that promised pain. Though she would not risk open conflict with Poseidon by harming his godly son, she would not tolerate his insolence either.
"Do not test me, moon goddess. Not two days ago I have fought with of a Titan. You and your girls are nothing in comparison. But do not fear your father's wrath. You shall capture my dearest brother." Just by watching his expression change, it was easy to see that Triton had little love for his half-brother, yet he was here to dissuade the goddess of the Hunt from interfering with Percy's quest. Artemis couldn't hide her curiosity about his reasons.
"You demand your brother's safety, yet with the same breath you speak of selling him out to me. What are your father's true intentions? Why did he really send you here?"
"It was not my father who has sent me. And my reasons are none of your concern." Triton said arrogantly, before he turned around to leave. "Heed my warning. Do not act before Perseus quest is complete or else there will be great consequences." The next moment he was gone, disappearing in a whirl of water, leaving behind nothing but moist air and the smell of the sea.
Artemis was fuming now, her silver eyes shining with hatred. The audacity of this god, of this man. To come to her camp and tell her what to do. His arrogance obviously knew no bounds. But what should she expect of one like him. Yet she couldn't help herself but compare Triton to Percy, his half brother. They were nothing alike. They only shared the some of their looks, but their personality was so different. Percy was respectful and had never shown this kind of arrogance. If she had to choose, she knew which son of Poseidon she would prefer. But who had sent Triton, if not his father? Who else had the power to command Poseidon's heir.
Clarisse was not having a good day. It had just turned out as shitty as the last day had ended. She knew that things were bound to go wrong, the moment she and her two quest mates had entered this casino. Luke had been odd ever since they had met her father. He even went off on his own. And Annabeth, always the faithful cheerleader, trusted all of his decisions. But of course she would trust him. They were like siblings, ever since they had come to the camp together.
And when Luke decided to explore this building alone, Clarisse was left alone with the daughter of Athena. And for all her intelligence, Annabeth just did not know when to stop annoying the daughter of Ares, so Clarisse left their room in anger. She needed to cool of, so she went to explore the Casino by herself, hoping that she might find a way to blow some steam.
And she found what she was looking for in the form of another demigod, a girl in silver clothing that looked at every person around her with great disdain. And though Clarisse did not confront that girl as soon as she saw her, she eventually bumped into her. And as two tempers clashed, they couldn't help but argue. Arguing lead to yelling, yelling lead to threats, threats lead to a full out fist fight. She couldn't remember who had won, but she knew that she woke up in a holding cell, the other girl in the cell next to her, still unconscious.
The other girl, Phoebe, as Clarisse found out later, woke up soon after her. And their arguing resumed, though they could no longer fight each other with more than words in their predicament. But Phoebe's friends arrived soon and bailed the girl out. And to her surprise, they freed her as well. Clarisse had no idea why, but just seeing that grin on the boy, Percy's face made her want to punch him. Little did she know that this was a trait she shared with her father.
But her streak of bad luck was not over yet. Far from it. The moment she had returned to the room she had shared with Annabeth and Luke she only found a message. Only a small piece of paper with a message, nothing else. She swore by her father that she would find those two and show them not to mess with a daughter of Ares. So they couldn't find her when they felt the urge to leave this place? Fine, let them run like cowards. But to tell her to return to camp alone, that they would finish the quest without her... that was a blow to Clarisse's pride that she would not accept.
Cursing her unfaithful quest mates, she stormed down the hall towards the elevators, intent on leaving the Casino. She wouldn't go back to the camp, no she would find the others and give them a piece of her mind.
She was already in the elevator, the doors closed shut, when a foreboding feeling overcame her. Like something was about to happen. Good or bad, she couldn't tell. One of the lights in the elevator was not working, so the small space was only dimly lit, something that increased her trepidation slightly. And before she knew what was happening some dropped on her. Right out of the shadows.
"What the..." Clarisse yelled loudly, as she pushed the person, a young girl, off her. "Where the Hades have you come from?" Before the other girl knew what was happening, the daughter of Ares had already grabbed her and started shaking the girl violently. "Just who do you think you are to come here like this and drop on me like this."
The other girl could only stare at her in shock. One moment she was in a dead-end, trapped by those strange people hunting her, and the next moment she was in an elevator, dropping on an angry and obviously violent girl.
A loud 'Ping' announced the elevator's arrival on the ground level and the doors opened wide, revealing the scene inside to all people who had waited. Bianca did not know whether it was good or bad luck, but the people standing in front of the lift just happened to be Percy and Zoe, who both watched Clarisse's actions with surprised expressions.
"Clarisse, stop it. You are hurting her dammit." Percy said, as he finally approached her and tried to free Bianca from her grasp. But his attempts were rebuffed several times. Just like her father, Clarisse's strength only increased when she got angry.
"Phoebe, help him." Zoe ordered sternly, clearly not amused by the scene they were causing. The grin on the other Huntress' face showed that she was almost too eager to do something that could possibly harm the other girl. It was obvious that Phoebe and Clarisse would not really get along any time soon.
Together Phoebe and Percy finally managed to separate Bianca and Clarisse, who was slowly calming down again. "Just what is wrong with you, Clarisse?" Percy couldn't help himself but ask her in astonishment. He really hoped that at least Ares children would be a bit more... socially acceptable. But as it seemed his hopes were all for naught.
Sadly his question just triggered Clarisse's volatile temper again. "What is wrong with me? You ask what is wrong with me? I tell you what. I had to go on a shitty quest with wing boy and his little fan-girl only to be abandoned by them now."
"Just why would your group abandon you?" Ariadne asked with a smirk. It was a rhetorical question. Clarisse would have jumped up and throttled the blond girl, but Phoebe still held her down forcefully. Her pride could not stand any more beatings today.
"They left me only a note, saying that they had to leave and that they have found a young demigod. They took the boy with them, so they could bring him to camp once they are done with their quest."
Bianca looked shocked when she heard that, already knowing who this young demigod is. "Nico..." She whispered almost inaudibly. But Percy heard her.
"Don't worry, I'm sure they won't harm your brother. The camp is a safe place for demigods after all."
"Big words from a demigod who has avoided the camp like it is a plague." Ariadne comment with a mirthful expression. She had been to the camp a few times when the Hunters visited the other demigods. But from all she knew, Percy was one of the few trained demigods, that have never even once sent food inside Camp Half-blood.
"I just never had the time..."
"What... what will you do with me?" Bianca asked cautiously. She had little hope that she could escape this group again, so she surrendered herself to her fate.
"I was tasked with bringing you away from this place." Percy replied vaguely. "No harm will come to you as long as I can prevent it." She looked slightly reassured by his words, but not by much.
"Who has asked you to do this?"
Percy was reluctant to answer, but Zoe took the decision away from him. "Your father. A man who has obviously abandoned you and your sibling, just like all males do."
"You really should not talk about my uncle like that. Believe me, he can get really nasty when he is angry." Percy replied cautiously.
"Your my cousin?" Bianca looked at Percy in surprise when she heard his words. Could it be? She had never seen any member of her family except her brother... or at least she did not remember anyone else. Not even her parents. Was Percy really related to her? And was it really her father who had sent him here?
"I think so." Percy replied, realizing for the first time that Bianca was indeed his cousin, though he did not know how such a relationship should be called, since it was from the godly side of their family. And the gods defied most definitions of a normal family.
"Percy, we got company." Ariadne said, as she saw several security men of the casino approach them.
"Damn. Looks like we have already overstayed our welcome." Percy looked slightly disappointed. He actually like the comfort of the hotel. Though he could do without the nasty surprises in the morning. "Time to leave." The others merely nodded. None of them objected.
"Sir, do we have a problem here?" One of the security men asked, as he stopped in front of Percy, his gaze on Phoebe who was still restraining Clarisse, though the daughter of Ares no longer showed any outward signs of her violent temper.
"No, we are just about to leave this place."
"I'm afraid that is not possible at the moment, sir." The guard replied almost monotonously.
Percy looked confused at first, before annoyance took over. "I do think we pass. It was nice here, but we have to move on. Got places to be, things to do and so on."
"That was not optional, sir." The guard said, this time with a hint of aggression in his voice. "You still have unfinished business here."
"I'll come back later for the rest of the entertainment." Several more security men approached them now, blocking their path towards the exit. Phoebe immediately let go of Clarisse and jumped up, craving a good fight. Clarisse did the same, for the same reason as the Hunter.
"Only you can attract a fight when you have a simple task like leaving a hotel, Percy." Ariadne said, as she stood next to him.
"It's my charm. I attract people who wish to hurt me."
Meanwhile Phoebe looked at Zoe, conveying her question without words. Both girls knew each other for long enough to understand the others intentions without the need for many words. "Fine. But make it quick." Zoe said with a hint of annoyance in her voice. Phoebe did not need any more encouragement and jumped forward to punch the nearest guard in the face. Not willing to be outdone by the other girl, Clarisse entered the fray as well. "Use the chance and start running. Fight your way out if necessary." Zoe barked at the rest of the group. They weren't like her Hunters. They were not disciplined and not all of them were properly trained. But she knew that they would obey her in this situation. Even Percy would and he was the one who challenged and undermined her authority the most.
The situation quickly turned into an all out brawl, as Phoebe and Clarisse enjoyed their chance to blow some steam by kicking the shit out of the obviously mortal security personal of the Lotus Casino. Percy grabbed Bianca's hand and started running for the exit, dodging several attempts to stop him.
"Phoebe, let's go." Zoe yelled, as they had nearly reached the exit. The other huntress was still busy, but complied with the order. She even took the time to drag Clarisse along, until they had finally reached their destination. But even outside the group continued running until they had put some more distance between themselves and the Lotus Hotel and Casino.
"Did we all make it?" Percy asked, breathing hard after running away in such a hurry. He looked around to see his current companions. Grover was still here, his faithful furry friend would most likely stay by his side until the very end of this insane adventure. Ariadne was there, too, looking almost gleefully happy about their grand escape. She could obviously be just as childish as her father. That made him wonder, when both Ariadne and Clarisse shared such obvious mannerisms with their godly parents, would that mean that he was like Poseidon? He really did not want to imagine that.
The daughter of the war god was also still with them... and was still trying to glare holes into Phoebe's head, an act that the huntress gladly reciprocated. Zoe just looked stoically at something above them, ignoring the rest of the group completely. And he was still holding Bianca's hand, after he had dragged her all the way. Just by looking at his group he had to wonder. 'This must be the oddest group of travelers since the Argonauts...' He thought as he let out a sigh. His life was just odd ever since he had met Apollo.
"Jackson, which day did we enter the Casino?"
"17th June... why do you ask?"
"Look." She pointed at a large display near another Casino. The current date could be seen in bold letters, shinning brightly. "20th June" Percy was gobsmacked when he saw that. "I could swear we only spent one night inside the Casino..."
"Looks like Hermes was right with what he told you, that place is surely odd." Ariadne commented.
"What will we do now? What will you do with me now?" Bianca asked shyly.
"We need to find you brother, then we will bring the both of you to your father." Percy looked thoughtful for a moment. He had absolutely no clue where Luke and his friend had taken Nico. But what if it wasn't even Nico and the boy was still inside the Lotus Casino? He really did not want to think about it. "Clarisse, any idea where your friends are going?"
"Those imbeciles are not my friends!" Clarisse stated hotly. "And they are headed for the Underworld, at least as long as they follow the Quest."
"This can't be a coincidence. Nah, doesn't matter. We will follow them. Seeing Hades has top priority anyways so it is in our favor to do so."
"Off to LA then." Ariadne said, almost bouncing with excitement.
"I know you are watching, Apollo, one day I will make you pay for getting me into this weird situation..." Percy muttered, thinking about his patron. To Apollo this must be awesome, but to Percy it is not. There were far better things to do then to travel with two Hunters that hated his guts, a violent daughter of Ares, a Satyr, his cousin and Apollo's daughter, to the Underworld itself. Hopefully Hades would not blast him for only showing up with his daughter in the possible case that Luke's new demigod friend was not Nico. But he also knew better than to try and predict the actions of gods... that would be truly futile.