A/N: Told you I was gonna be more active. Enjoy the chapter and leave a review, good or bad.

Chapter 7

Cassandra

Stepping into the big house, she found Annabeth with frazzled hair. A cup full of soda sat in front of her, a bottle of rum off to the side. noticed Cassandra in the threshold.

"Before you ask, no they both aren't here. Gone without as so much as a note. Not even any evidence that they were here." Annabeth chuckled softly. Downing her drink and pouring another soda. Picking up the rum, she poured an egregious amount of it into the cup. Slamming it down she looked at Cassandra.

"How go the defenses?" She asked, covering her mouth with a fist as she burped. Cassandra walked over and sat across from her.

"Leo is handling it well, not surprising to be honest." She stated. Annabeth nodded, leaning back in her chair.

"That's good." The room descended into an uneasy silence. Cassandra fiddled with her hands, trying to find the right words.

"Forgive me miss Chase, but shouldn't you be out there? You are also very experienced in this aspect. The campers need you." Cassandra urged her to action. Annabeth chuckled.

"The campers need all of us. Percy and Thalia. Anything less and we risk destruction." She revealed solemnly. She reached down and rolled a coke over to her. Cassandra obliged her and sipped it. "I'll be out soon to help. Don't worry, even buzzed I'm the best battle planner we could hope for."

Cassandra stayed silent, before clearing her throat.

"Perhaps IRIS messaging Percy would sort this out?" She suggested. Annabeth nodded.

"Yes…I'll try. You may go, I'll be out in a bit." She explained, fiddling with a golden drachma. Cassandra bowed her head and moved to the door. Annabeth got her attention one last time, however. "One last Cassandra. If it goes wrong, you and your hunters are to evacuate the children. Is that understood?"

Cassandra straightened up and nodded.

"It will be so. I will give my life for them." She assured. Annabeth's gray eyes seemed to peer into her very thoughts. She stopped staring and put her gaze back to the gold coin.

Cassandra closed the door behind her, once again enveloped in the defense preparation. A camper running past spotted her, changing course and sprinting towards her. Panting he almost yelled.

"Lady Cassandra! Come quick! The campers and hunters are at each other's throats!" He exclaimed

Cassandra pinched the bridge of her nose in irritation. 'One thing after another' she thought.

"Lead me to them!" She ordered, taking off towards the center of the camp.

At the Amphitheater she saw two of her sisters and a handful of campers facing off. Not surprising as it usually always happened when the hunters showed up. What was interesting was one of the campers stood in front of the hunters, facing the other campers. He was holding a shield but no sword. His head was bearing down on the other campers, like a hawk. The campers seemed to be shouting about how they were responsible for what was happening.

"What in the God's name is going on here?!" She shouted, grabbing the attention of both groups. Her yell drew the attention of others in the area, stopping what they were doing. She turned and told the observers to 'Get back to their duties'. One of the belligerent campers pointed a sword at her, holding it by the middle of the blade.

"Oh great, another one to deal with!" He turned to face her. "Look at this shit! All this is happening because you girl scouts showed up and now Percy is missing! I'm starting to see a pattern. Maybe we should just kick you guys out, it would sure solve a lot of problems! Of that, I am sure!" His entourage cheered in agreement. He then looked to the camper on the hunters side. "Andrew, what are you doing defending them?"

Andrew looked at her and back towards the hunters.

"We need them. We can't afford to have internal struggles." He motioned to the camp at large. "You really think it's a good idea to try and divide us? Worse yet, completely shun the support we have?" The male camper snarled at Andrew.

"Fucking white knight! You're just as bad as them!" He seethed.

"And you're out of your mind son of Ares, you think Clarisse is gonna support you?" Andrew retorted.

Cassandra had heard enough and stepped in between them.

"Enough! I won't have us fighting with each other." She ordered. The male camper got in her face.

"I don't take orders from you sister!" He said with venom in his voice. He pushed her away, almost immediately triggering the other two hunters to push back. Soon both parties were throwing punches at each other. Cassandra tried her best to break them apart, but received a wild punch for her troubles. She stumbled out of the scrap and down to a kneeling position. Looking at the ground, her shield charm was dangling, catching a drop of blood from her nose. Andrew rushed to her side and asked if she was ok. He helped her to her feet and went to examine her nose, but stopped when he saw the charm. His eyes widened. He almost reached for it before speaking in a nervous tone.

"How do you-" He was cut off as a kick from that sun of Ares sent him flying a few feet back. Cassandra used her legs to trip up the camper, him hitting his face hard on the dirt. She began to deliver punches to his face before a huge weight threw her off, the breath forced from her lungs.

Her eyes wandered as she attempted to breathe. The hunters seemed to be getting the best of the campers. Andrew lifted a camper up and proceeded to body slam him, the sound akin to a sack of potatoes hitting the ground. She was pushed to the ground as the son of Ares straddled her waist.

"You fucking cunt!" He cursed, raising his fist high to throttle her. Her hearing caught rapid footsteps approaching.

"Get the fuck off of her!" Andrew shouted, diving to body spear him off. Cassandra got back to a crouching position, observing Andrew and the camper roll around and trade blows. She quickly ran over and put the camper in a headlock, wrestling him down the ground. He tried to roll away but she wrapped her legs around him and held on. Andrew appeared over both of them as he raised his shield up to strike. Cassandra's eyes widened as she realized what he was about to do.

"Break this shit up." A calm authoritative voice ordered. It was gruff but feminine. She saw two armored campers grab hold of Andrew, yanking him away before two more campers wrenched headlock apart, pinning her to the ground after. She looked to see the rest of them restrained by armored campers. Craning her head up she saw none other than Clarisse, daughter of Ares, shaking her head with hands on her hips.

"I must say Cassandra, I did expect a greater deal of restraint from you and your hunters." She looked towards the campers. "And a greater deal of resilience from my kin and comrades." She motioned her hands towards her, the guards bringing the whole group over. "Now which one of you baboons started this shit?" Cassandra and the hunters began to explain, the campers also voicing their 'incorrect' versions of the story. Clarisse sighed and pulled out her spear, the electricity sparking with a loud hiss. "I'm gonna ask again. And this time I want the truth and only one person talking." She pointed at Cassandra. "You. Speak."

"Your half brother was blaming the hunters for what was going on. Wanting to kick us out. I tried to de-escalate but was pushed. After that it was a domino effect." Cassandra revealed the truth. Clarisse looked towards Andrew, who nodded in agreement. She glared daggers into her brother's eyes, causing him to look down in shame.

"I see. Very well." Clarisse motioned to her guards who let her, Andrew, and the hunters go. She walked up to her brother. "You and I are gonna have a long talk." She lifted him up like he weighed nothing and began to drag him to the training grounds.

The now free group watched them as they went. Andrew looked over to one of her sisters and reached out in concern.

"You're hurt, let me help you real quick." Andrew offered, taking a step towards her. The hunter quickly lashed out and batted his arm away.

"Don't touch me!" She snarled at him. Cassandra sighed and walked over as Andrew took a step back.

"You can't be too shocked, Andrew. Hunters have good reason to shun boys. Here sis let me look at you." She explained, looking over her sister. She had some minor cuts and bruises. Cassandra looked for some medical supplies in her pack, but found it missing. She looked around for it before Andrew held out some medical supplies from his own pack. She rolled her eyes but accepted his help. Using his bandages, anti-bacterial, and ice packs she treated both of her sisters. The two hunters thanked Cassandra and went back to their jobs, giving Andrew a suspicious look. Cassandra and Andrew shook hands.

"Thank you for getting that asshole off of me. And for sticking up for my sisters." Cassandra thanked with a genuine tone of respect.

"Of course. Someone needed to step in." Andrew replied. They soon went their separate ways. One thing on Cassandra's mind still bothered her. What was that reaction to her charm? 'Could it be…'

Percy

Percy thanked the taxi driver as they got dropped off by the edge of a forest. Him and Thalia still had a good way still to go before reaching their stopping point. Thalia shouldered her pack and motioned him to head into the woods.

The forest was vast and thick. White blankets of snow broken by evergreen trees, like sickly green fingers poking out of dead skin. It was silent. Only the crunching of snow beneath their boots and the occasional songbird, calling in the deep. Despite the quiet, Percy found himself calm. He suspected Thalia did too, quiet was good. Demigods rarely had such calm, especially in the outside world. He took an icy breath in, the chill going down his spin ending at his lungs.

"Good thing we have nice weather eh perce? No wind, no clouds, nice and sunny. Kinda wish camp could have other weather besides summer." Thalia mused, spreading her arms out to soak in the sunlight. Percy nodded, looking up to the clear blue sky.

"Yeah it would be nice. Maybe you can call up your dad huh? Have him hook us up?" Percy joked. Zeus could do it in all honesty. If he would do so is another issue entirely, however. Thalia laughed.

"Yeah yeah as if. Unless…" She raised an eyebrow. They both shared a hearty laugh at her antics.

*snap*

They both wheeled around and drew their weapons, the motions being instinctual at this point. Even the songbirds seemed to hold their breath. Both demigods' eyes scanned the area. Nothing was moving, nor making any sound. Thalia walked ahead and tried to use her senses to pick up anything out of the ordinary, but nothing was out of place.

"Hmm…must've been some animal." She guessed, turning around. "Come on, let's get to our stopping point."

Percy nodded and capped Riptide, giving one last scan before hurrying after Thalia.

Katie (Aka Ember)

Katie and her team stayed hidden even after the pair walked away, in case they had doubled back. She looked to Ryan who had accidentally stepped on the branch that almost got them spotted. He slowly lifted his rifle and peered through his scope, trying to hide his profile as much as possible. She could see him scan the area, his movements very faint to not draw attention.

"Clear." Ryan spoke softly into his mic rigged on his plate carrier, colored in a digital snow camo. She heard the rest of them take deep breaths and resume their natural breathing rhythms. Ryan turned to look at her, his face hidden by the white masks they were wearing. "Did you see that?! Where the fuck were they hiding those things?!" He exclaimed in disbelief.

Cassandra did in fact see it. The sword? Sure. But that spear? No way she could hide that on her. It was like it had appeared out of thin air. She signaled the others to move up, Ryan taking point. Thankfully this forest was pretty well empty in case they engaged in combat. 'Probably why they had gone into it' She wagered. They followed their target's footsteps, making sure to be off trail to avoid being lured into a trap. She did notice one of the footsteps was significantly lighter, barely sinking into the snow. They tracked them late into the evening, sometimes catching far glimpses of them.

Soon the sun began to set, draping the snow covered forest in a warm glow. Ryan signaled them to stop, waving his hand for them to hide.

"OK they're setting up camp." Ryan observed. Katie rallied her team to her.

"We're gonna wait until dark and they set up a fire. The flicker should hide our movements. We'll strike all at once. Ryan switch to non lethal and cover us from the edge of the clearing. Andre and Sarah, you handle the girl, deadly force only as a last resort. I'm gonna keep the boy busy until the girl is subdued. Then we'll all converge on him. With luck, we can pull this off quick and without too much trouble." Katie laid out their next plan. Sarah and Andre bumped fists at their part in it. Ryan nodded and traded out his rifle for a shotgun, loading rubber slugs. They took off their packs and put them in a pile to not limit their movement. They all took their positions and waited as the sherbert glow began to darken more and more.

Percy

Percy finally got his tent set up after taking 15 minutes longer than it should've. Thalia was content on watching him struggle after only a couple of minutes, Artemis' hunters tents basically set up themselves. And to top it all off, they were bigger on the inside than the outside. 'Damn illogical magic' He bemused. He went and joined Thalia by the fire, sitting across from her.

"Hey thanks for the help, cousin." He joked flatly, the sarcasm practically oozing from his lips. Thalia chuckled and shook her head softly.

"Hey you didn't ask, and it was a good show. Percy Jackson demigod of legend, bested by a simple tent. Tragic." She teased. He rolled his eyes and pulled out a hotdog, can of beans, and a bun. Thalia pulled out some mac and cheese with some sausage. Prepping their meals, they relaxed their muscles and most importantly, their eyes. Being alert all day with the sun reflecting off the snow had put a serious strain on their eyes, throbbing with a dull pain. Thalia opened her eyes and looked at Percy.

"Say, what did you write in that note you left?" She inquired.

"Huh? Oh yeah let me see." He replied, pulling out a folded piece of paper. "Dear Annabeth, me and Thalia will be gone on a quest. We have to find out what this is all about and hopefully fix it before it becomes a problem. Love Per-" His eyes went wide as Thalia swore. He squeezed his eyes shut in disbelief.

"That's the fucking note you were supposed to leave isn't it?" Thalia asked, more of a statement. Percy pinched the bridge of his nose in self disappointment. Thalia picked up a nearby stick and began to hit him. "You. Dumb. Mother. Fucker! Annabeth is gonna kill you and then me! For all they know, we got killed and dragged away!" She berated, Percy just taking the blows.

"I'm sorry I could've sworn I left the note." He pleaded. A faint shimmer appeared over the campfire, stopping them both.

"Percy? Percy, can you hear me?" Annabeth's face soon appeared in the rainbow shimmer. Her hair was frazzled. Her eyes were dark and stormy, full of worry. He stood up and got closer to the fire.

"Yes Beth I hear you. I'm so sorry me and Thalia left like that. I thought I left a note but uh…I forgot to actually leave it." He confessed sheepishly, holding up the note. Thalia went to stand beside Percy, giving a shy wave.

"You both have explaining to do. LOTS of explaining." Annabeth interrogated them. Percy explained their thinking. Thalia helped where she could, but Annabeth still found their thinking flawed. "You literally have no idea where to start. Not even where to go! You are in the middle of a forest. Great. Where do you plan on going next huh?"

"I don't know Annabeth. But I have a feeling whoever we're after will find us." Percy surmised. A feeling he'd been having ever since the diner. He hadn't seen that group since, but still…those eyes. Annabeth drew his attention back.

"Oh good let the people that may be trying to kill you, find you first! Gods Percy that's not a plan, that's a suicide mission!"

"Maybe Annabeth. But we can't just sit in camp and wait for this to blow over when they already have infiltrated camp. Let them chase us and leave camp alone. They're after Thalia for a reason, and we need to know what that reason is. We'd do the same if it was you." He pleaded with her. Annabeth sniffled.

"I've lost you before Percy and damn it all I don't want to lose you again. I don't want to lose either of you." Annabeth reminded him. It wouldn't be the first time both him and Thalia would be taken away from her.

"You're not gonna lose either of us Annabeth. We both have each other, the two most powerful demigods alive. We don't intend on being killed. Trust me Annabeth. Trust Thalia. You don't have to agree, you don't have to understand. All I ask for is trust. Can you do that, my love?" He assured her. Annabeth was silent for multiple excruciating moments.

"I trust you Percy. And I trust you Thalia. Both of you better come back. I love you. Both of you." Annabeth said, her words making Thalia's eyes widen in genuine shock. She had never used those words on her. Both Percy and Thalia began to understand the gravity of their situation. Percy affirmed his love, as did Thalia after some hesitation. Annabeth gave them one last worried gaze before swiping through and ending the call. Both of them stood in silence. Percy in thought, Thalia still in shock.

"Let them find us first huh?" Thalia joked dryly.

"What else can we do?" He replied.

Thalia's ears perked up at a distant sound before tackling Percy.

"GET DOWN!" She yelled. An arrow flew just over their previous positions. She rolled off of him as three figures came running out of the tree line, clothed in white, wearing white masks. "Percy it's them! On your feet!" She shouted, her spear and shield appearing in her hands, rushing at the two closest opponents.

Percy got to his feet and whipped out Riptide and his shield. A lone figure ran at him, sliding under his shield bash and tripping him. He quickly rolled back to his feet, blocking a thrust aimed at his face. This person was quick, too quick for a mortal. Trading blows he managed to parry their sword, thrusting his shield into their stomach, sending them back with a sharp grunt. He quickly spared a glance to Thalia, her struggling to fend off her two attackers, a tall one seeming to land powerful blows on her shield almost sending her to the ground.

His own opponent got up and readied their sword, their off hand and arm covered in a metal articulated armor sleeve, ending in sharp finger tips. He faced off against them, taking a defensive stance anticipating another charge. As he took a step forward he noticed that their eyes began to glow. Faintly at first, growing more intense into a sickly green, like poison was radiating from the mask. He then had a piercing migraine form in his head, the pain pulsing even behind his eyeballs. Looking back towards the figure he was shocked to see two more circling him, all with the green glow. His migraine flared up, a strangely familiar feminine voice rattling in his skull. 'Something bothering you?'

"It's you!" He realized, Katie laughing.

"Aww you remembered me." She teased, rushing at him while the two copies disappeared. He struggled to land blows as his focus was repeatedly broken by the taunting she put in his head. 'Come on! You're pathetic!' He soon found an opening, trapping her sword arm with a grapple. As he moved to shield bash her, a loud bang rang out, a sharp heavy strike hitting him in the back of the knee. He felt a burning pain rush up his entire body, forcing him to his knees.

She grabbed his free arm and headbutted his face, sending him to the dirt. She then straddled him, her knees on both of his arms, pinning them to the ground. She put her sword to his neck and pushed the point enough to draw a drop of blood. His head was still rattled by the head but as he looked up, the eyes once again glowing bright.

"Yield." She said, the same demand broadcasted into his head. He gritted his teeth. Before he could retort he saw Thalia go flying and hit a tree, her struggling to get up before another figure came up and kicked her back down, putting a shotgun to her head. Thalia froze as the two others started to restrain her with ropes and plastic cuffs. A sword point brought him back to Katie. "Surrender or we'll blow her brains out."

"PER-" Thalia's voice was cut off as her mouth was gagged, her eyes full of panic. Percy looked back up towards Katie, a venomous look still plastered on his face before letting go of his sword and shield.

"Good boy." Katie teased. She leaned down and grasped his head with her metal hand. "SLEEP." The words echoed over and over in his head, bouncing around, growing in volume. His eyes began to close, her glowing eyes peering into his.

"Sleep."

Katie(Ember)

Katie smiled as the boy finally fell asleep, rolling him over and handcuffing him. She dragged him over to his female companion. The girl began to scream, muffled by the gag, doing her best to wiggle towards him. The girl nudged him, and when he didn't move, glared angrily at her.

"Relax girlie. He's only asleep." Katie assured. She motioned for Sarah and Andre to move them both closer to the campfire. As they moved them over, she went and patted Ryan on the shoulder. "Thank you for the save Heat, he got the better of me there." She thanked Ryan, using his code name. He nodded and lightly hip bumped her.

"Of course Ember. Someone has to keep an eye on you, after all." He teased, hearing the smile in his voice. She rolled her eyes, though she doubted he could see it. They both joined Sarah and Andre by their two captives. The boy was still asleep and the girl sitting on a log, glaring daggers into all of them. Katie moved a log and sat across from her, the rest of her team standing guard by the two. She sighed as she sat down, stretching her arms out.

"Match? Can you bring the packs here?" She asked Andre, being sure to use codenames around the two. Andre nodded and ran off into the tree line.

"You two are tricky to find. Almost lost you when you switched vehicles. No matter. So what brings you to New York? Business or pleasure?" Katie asked. The girl continued to glare at her. Katie slapped her forehead in realization. "Oh my mistake, you can't talk. Thermite, do you mind?" She motioned for Sarah to take off the gag. As soon as it was off, the girl began to curse and threaten them. Katie shook her head in disappointment.

"Hey hey enough of that. You're wasting your time. What's your name? That's a start." Katie suggested. She stopped yelling and stared for a moment.

"Thalia." She snarled. Katie nodded and put a hand to her chest.

"Ember. Nice to meet you, despite the fight and all. What's your boyfriend's name if I may ask?" Katie was genuine in her greeting. Thalia's face exploded in a blush.

"No! He's not my boyfriend! He's my cousin. His name is Percy." Thalia corrected. Katie nodded her head in understanding.

"Ahh I see. Strong name, as is yours. So who do you belong to?" Katie asked, pulling out a granola bar. Thalia looked confused.

"Belong to?" She repeated, not understanding the question.

"Ya know fiends, Lavender Court, unaffiliated? Who do you serve? Or answer to I guess?" Katie explained. Thalia wracked her brain looking for the correct answer. She had no idea what she was referring to.

"Unaffiliated I guess." Thalia chose the neutral option. Match returned to the fire and dropped the bags, handing one to Ember.

"Thank you. Now…unaffiliated, Thalia…" Katie muttered to herself, tapping away on a tablet. Thalia heard Percy groan and start to stir. Katie also noticed the movement.

"Ahh now our sleeping beauty will soon be with us." Katie teased.

Percy

Percy woke up to warmth on his face, opening his eyes to be facing the campfire. He heard Thalia's worried voice.

"Percy? You ok?" Thalia's voice was far more worried than he had heard in a long while. He tried to rub his head but found his hands restrained.

"Besides the headache and a sore knee, I'm fine." He stated. Standing up slowly, his eyes closed in pain, he rubbed his sore knee with the other one. "Are they gone?" He asked. His eyes opened, eyes meeting Katie's.

"How was your sleep?" Katie asked, he could hear the smug smile in her voice behind the mask. He tried to rush her but found his arms grabbed by two sets of hands. He snarled curses at Katie.

"How dare you fucking restrain us! Let us go now! Get your hands off me!" Percy struggled against his captors, grunting and growling. A short figure in military gear stepped in front of him. Their shotgun was slung around their shoulders, as they reached to undo their helmet. Percy recognized the guy when he took his mask off. His blue eyes were like the heart of a fire, beating with heat with every blink. Percy noted his eyes start to glow, a soft luminescence compared to Katie's. He put a hand on Percy's chest. Percy felt a heat enter his chest, rising up and down to his stomach and cheeks respectively. Percy found himself unable to tear his gaze away from the beautiful face. And most shockingly, he didn't want to look away. The man's face was the only thing he could see, the calm glow flashing in time with the pulses of heat in his body

"Please sit Percy. Please?" The man spoke softly, the words seeming to kiss all over his head and body. Percy slowly say down, the man's hand softly guiding him down. The man softly smiled and fixed Percy's hair. "Thank you." He thanked. As soon as he turned away, Percy instantly felt his senses come back to him, Katie across the fire smiling.

"Now that you are back with us, what is your purpose for being in New York?" Katie asked, holding a tablet. Percy wasn't sure if they were good guys or not. Would they just kill him and Thalia as soon as they were done asking questions. Maybe try to torture camp's defenses? "Percy? You there?" Katie's voice broke his thoughts.

"We came looking for you." Percy admitted. He had an idea. Something was special about these people. They weren't regular mortals, that was for sure. And neither were Percy and Thalia. They had powers, and so did he. Perhaps him and Thalia could try and blend in. Not demigods, but people just like their captors. "We encountered someone like us, and we had to know if there were even more of us. It looks like we were right."

Katie hummed and went into silent thought.

"I suppose that's why you were detected as soon as you entered New York. Probably ran into an undercover agent." Katie surmised. She rubbed her chin in thought. "Yes. We are just like you. And there are many more like you, still." She laughed a bit. "It's a good thing we found you first. If you'd encountered a fiend, they might have killed you or done worse." She revealed.

"Who are you guys?" Thalia asked. Katie shook her head.

"Not yet. We have protocols for this. We need to be sure of your gifts." She denied Thalia any answer. Soon Percy heard a familiar ringing sound emanating from Katie's pocket. She grabbed it and sighed after looking at the screen. "Excuse me for a moment." She walked away from the fire, the flickers giving her white clothes a ghostly appearance.

Thalia and Percy were left alone with the other three figures. Percy looked at the boy who had made him sit down.

"You. What did you do to me?" He interrogated the boy. Despite being annoyed, he was genuinely curious. The closest thing he could compare it to was charmspeak. But his previous experiences with that were never that intense. The boy smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind his ear, his feminine features amplifying his smile.

"Nothing you need to be concerned about. Oh and uh sorry about the rubber slug to your knee. I was just protecting her." He apologized, munching on a piece of jerky. Gone was the glow or voice in his head, just the appealing features, not too dissimilar to a child of Aphrodite. Percy heard Thalia utter something under her breath.

"Damn child of Aphrodite." She muttered through gritted teeth. The boy looked at her in confusion.

"Hmm?" He hummed, an inquisitive look on his face.

Thalia simply shook her head and didn't respond.

Katie soon came back to them, sitting back on her log.

"You two ready to prove yourselves?" She declared. Percy and Thalia looked at each other. "You ready to do some hero shit?"