(A/N) Sorry, guys about not updating I was preoccupied with schoolwork and my other fanfiction that I'm currently working on. Sorry about the shortness of this chapter.

Disclaimer: Never owned anything but the plot here

Reyna knew something was wrong the moment she stepped foot back into Camp Jupiter, after being away for a few days at Camp Half-Blood consulting about tactics against demons. Jason, Nico, and Will had returned to the camp, defeated, and told them that the demon simply was impossible to kill. They'd tried everything after trapping it, from bullets to Celestial Bronze to Imperial Gold to even Stygian Iron, attempting to kill it from all different angles and in all different ways, but somehow the creature had managed to evade their grasp and escape. They knew it would be more careful about its kills this time around, however the three campers had relayed some very unsettling information that the demon had relayed; it wasn't alone. It'd freed its brothers and sisters after bargaining with the gods, its siblings' freedom for Artemis' freedom, and the gods couldn't say no or risk offsetting the balance of the things that Artemis reigned over.

However when she arrived home, exhausted and worn from the week's work, she didn't arrive at the same Camp Jupiter that she'd left seven days prior. Tension hung thick in the air, and all of the soldiers from all different cohorts trudged along with expressions that were pinched tight with worry. The Lares' purple glows had turned slightly darker with the heightened anxiety, and they all chattered apprehensively to one another. Even the young boy Lare, whom everyone had simply called 'Joseph', and his ghostly dog huddled tightly by the more aged Lares. The worst had to be the fauns, though. They skittered whenever someone approached them, the fur of their goat legs fluffing up and their small tails raised in overwrought alertness. Even Don seemed a little jumpy and worse for wear, probably because the goat-man had gone out and shaved his afro, the thing that he cared about more than he cared about grass or even munchies. His head looked a bit small as it whipped back and forth, his eyes darting around like a caged animal's. When Reyna approached, attempting to ask what the matter was, he bleated in fright and practically galloped out of sight. The other fauns began to bleat and bray in terror at Don's hasty retreat, and they leapt into the air at the slightest unexpected sound.

The civilians didn't seem affected by it, so that must've meant the soldiers were simply sullen because of how the normally outgoing house spirits and goat-men were acting. She made her way over to the Principa, her heart fluttering in her chest as she kept one hand on her gladius and the other clenched tightly at her side. She had to admit that she was more than grateful when Frank burst out of the large building she was heading towards, dashing towards her with Hazel in hot pursuit. They halted in front of her, panting, and she could see that this dilemma was affecting them more than most of the demigods, though Frank was the one that seemed worse for wear. Sweat beaded on his forehead and his hair was a bit longer than his usual crew cut allowed, and even a bit of stubble was roughening his jawline, his brow wrinkled in what seemed to be a semi-permanent anxious expression. By the look of Hazel she was beyond worried about her boyfriend's state, and Reyna couldn't blame her; he looked like crap.

"I'm so glad you're back, Reyna. Things are falling apart around here," the son of Mars sighed, his voice edged with a very sharp uneasiness.

"What's wrong? Why are the fauns and Lares acting so…?" the Praetor shook her head, unable to find a word that could describe their behavior. Frank's frown only deepened, and he motioned for her to follow him back into the Principa. "Hazel, will you excuse us?" The daughter of Pluto looked like she was about to protest, but she reluctantly left to take care of her Centurion duties when Frank nodded to her. The walk was silent, and tension crackled like lightning all around them, with everyone they confronted looking more than uncomfortable, though that could've just been the unnatural and rather out-of-season chilliness. Reyna sure hoped that it was the heat. Once the two Praetors had carefully closed the door behind them, the immediately got down to business.

The Twelfth Legion's golden eagle stood proud and strong, its ruby eyes flashing and its wings spread, its beak open in a silent screech as it regarded them from its stand. The jelly bean bowl on the desk was empty, signifying that a certain someone had eaten them all during the time of stress, and was too stressed out to even have it refilled. Frank began to pace, looking at ease as he could get in his purple Praetor's cape and Camp Jupiter T-shirt. His bow and quiver were slung over his shoulder, making the son of Mars look like he was preparing for war, and for all Reyna knew he might be doing just that.

"It's not just the fauns and the Lares that are acting up," he sighed finally after wearing a hole in the floor in his pacing. Reyna stiffened a bit at that, but didn't interrupt as he continued, "The unicorns are beyond terrified and they stampeded whenever someone tries to get close, and we've run out of medical supplies. Hazel is only barely able to keep them at bay because of the precious metals in their horns, but the process is still too dangerous for anyone to attempt." He rubbed his temples, the large shadows under his eyes suddenly seeming a bit darker than they were before. "The lions in the arena are cowering in their cages and won't come out even if there's a tastily inviting demigod standing out in the middle of the Coliseum. Heck, we even had one of the kids on Probatio wear a belt of steaks and they still didn't come out. The horses are going insane, unable to be ridden much less hooked up to a chariot, and Arion, in a fit of terror, zoomed off and we haven't heard of him since. Heck, Hannibal is so worked up that not even Bobby can calm him down, and we haven't played the war games since you left because the eagles flew off."

Reyna chewed on her lower lip; this was worse than she'd previously thought. What could happen that would frighten even the military trained medical eagles and the strong, brutal Hannibal? "Is there anything else?" she dared to ask, and by the look on Frank's face there was more to be told.

"The birds have stopped singing and Terminus is fretting so much that he hasn't told anyone to move rocks or trim grass of cut their hair! And it's so cold around here all of a sudden. I think the gods are trying to tell us something, and Rachel even came to see if it would trigger any of her Oracle-ness, but she has nothing. The gods are silent, and if this is a warning of some sort then we're unprepared as all Hell," the son of Ares replied.

"Maybe you should drop by the baths and unwind. I've got this," Reyna told him, resting a hand on his shoulder. Frank gave him a look that portrayed unfathomable gratefulness and darted off to get clean, for he also smelled quite a bit and probably hadn't bathed in a while. As the door closed behind him she swore she saw a shadow flit across the path, though it must've been her eyes playing tricks on her.

-Ω-

Perseus hated Camp Jupiter almost as much as the demigods hated him for being there. He was responsible for all of the strange occurrences that were going on, however the Romans didn't need to know that. Nico had explained that the valley was mostly devoid of trees, but the son of Hades told him that he'd come across a decent-sized wood if he kept traveling eastward. It's where most of the fauns lived, though they didn't live there any longer ever since the black-haired monster had moved in. Come on, was he really that ugly? He could handle their company if they resumed business as usual, but it was very difficult for demons to integrate themselves into the ecosystem. He knew that they wouldn't tell though; they didn't even know what he was or what he looked like, since they'd fled almost immediately after he'd stepped foot into the camp (The guards had been painfully easy to slip past). Seriously, it's been like a mass exodus of animals and magical creatures from the wood, to the point where it was kinda funny.

It wasn't funny anymore, since now the demon had to live off of animals. It was torture, and Perseus wondered if leaving to go hunt humans in the outside world was worth getting slaughtered by his family. In the end safety had won overall, but he was still contemplating leaving. Animals tasted so foul. Their blood was too thick and too bitter, and it was like asking for skim milk and in return getting tobacco sauce. The meat was so awful that he could barely choke it down, and as he sat devouring a very unfortunate squirrel, having gone mad from hunger after refusing to eat that terrible disgustingness more than he had to, he swallowed hard and nearly gagged. The meat always had hairs in it, and the course fur was very irksome when he was attempting to rip out its organs with his teeth.

He would've drank some water to wash it down, but no, his body just had to be insistent on being on an all-flesh-and-blood diet. So now he couldn't even wash down the utterly wretched aftertaste that lingered in his mouth. He had the urge to just lick the grass to get rid of the awfulness, but he wasn't that desperate. The best meal was an unsuspecting deer, and he made sure that he only hunted males that hadn't acquired a mate; the extras, if you will. Therefor he wouldn't ruin the ecosystem by killing them all off in a week, which he certainly wanted to do. Even so, that would blow his cover and that would leave a lot of explaining to do on both his and Nico, Jason, and Will's part.

Every month that passed, they required that he send them a fire message and give them status updates, and if he forgot they'd personally come to Camp Jupiter to find him, and he didn't want them blowing his cover. He didn't know when this would end, and it took him a moment to process the fact that he could possibly be here for eternity, because demons were immortal and they never, ever forget. Was survival really worth this half-life he was living? Sooner or later the Romans would find him and send him out into the world like a lamb to slaughter, and he didn't know how long he could persevere; he missed Mrs. O'Leary and was very lonely without her company. He may die of loneliness if his family didn't get to him first.

"Hades help me," he sighed, curling up on his bed of moss, grass, and leaves that he'd created as the sun began to peek over the horizon. He shifted away from the light and farther into the shadows, hoping that this stay would just be temporary. Slowly, he drifted to sleep. Little did he know that a certain god of the underworld had heard his prayer.