Alicia sits in the loft area of Stark Tower. Tony sits across from her, a frown on his face. He's flipping through the file that she gave him earlier. His frown continues to deepen as he reads farther. Finally, he looks up.

The blonde leans forward, resting her elbows on her knees. "Loki has escaped and he is somewhere on earth."

Stark throws the file down on the coffee table. "I'm going to have a real problem with the guy if he tries to take over the world again."

Sighing, Alicia shakes her head. "That's the problem. We don't know what he's up to. He's on earth without a single ally, no weapons or means of controlling people, and no way of calling backup. He could be anywhere, doing anything he wants and we wouldn't have a clue."

They both sit in silence for some time before Tony laughs and leans back, smiling. "So we can't do anything until he's found. How about we talk about my nephew instead?"

"He's not your nephew anymore Tony," Alicia says. "and I know what you're going to say, but Ian is a lot younger than me. Nothing can happen, nor would I want it to. That's obscene." 

The thirty-five-year-old looks tired and defeated. It's not something Tony is used to seeing. He doesn't work often with Alicia. She usually only brings in case information, debriefs him, and then leaves. However, he's used to these brief encounters being filled with sarcasm and an easy-going atmosphere. Percy was once a strong bridge in their lives and the foundations were never quite torn down when the bridge collapsed.

The recent encounter with Ian just twenty minutes ago seems to have rattled her.

"This isn't like you," Tony chuckles. "I'm used to Steve being the buzzkill."

She smirks. "I'm sorry that somebody has to be serious occasionally, but work does have to get done eventually."

And just like that things slip back to something resembling normal. Still, the thought of the long-gone Percy lingers hauntingly in the back of their minds, making their laughs somewhat forced.

- O - O - O - O - O - 

Ian is jerked suddenly from his restless sleep as he is yanked up from his bed. His eyes widen as he finds himself suspended upside by a tail- no, a snake, before he is slammed into the wall by the window. His head hits a shelf and the room spins as he tries to quickly stumble to his feet. 

If soccer has taught him anything, it's that inaction can cost you the match.

As soon as he has righted himself though, he has to dodge to the left, nearly slamming into his desk as fire scorches the area where he just was. He stares in horror at the hodgepodge that is an animal. There's a fire-breathing lion with a snake tail one moment and a chihuahua the next. 

It's honestly debatable which he's more intimidated by.

"I thought you would be stronger than this, but you're no better than when we first met- no, I should amend myself; you're worse than you were then," an oversized middle-aged woman says from the corner. His eyes flick to her quickly and then back to the dog, miraculously deeming that the more dangerous of the two.

"I can assure you that I have never met you before," Ian says. "I think I would remember a lady and her crazy dog trying to melt my face off." 

But just as he says this his mind supplies him with something that could be considered a memory. The woman and this lion/snake creature attack in some kind of space-like hallway. There's a gaping hole in the wall behind him, revealing a very long way to the river below and allowing wind to play around him aggressively. 

He knows, though, that he's never been in that city before, that he's never been in that place before. The view around him is completely foreign (despite how familiar it may seem).

The woman comes closer. "How can you forget me, little old Echidna?"

"Little no. Old yes." Ian replies automatically. He curses himself internally, but he can't help his runaway mouth. "And isn't that an anteater or something?"

"NO! They named that stupid animal after me!" She snaps, then her crooked smile returns. "But you never do change, do you? Always so cocky, but you couldn't defeat us last time. What makes you think you can this time?"

Ian grimaces. "Why the hell would I fight you? I don't hit women.....or chihuahuas."

Echidna hisses and there is a blur of movement before pain erupts in Ian's right arm. The snake retreats back to the small dog and Ian presses himself again the wall. His vision blurs as fire seems to race through his body from the injury. He can hear the woman speaking, but he's unable to focus. "Now quickly, sonny, we need to get him back to our master before the poison kills him or it'll be our heads."

He closes his eyes against a new wave of pain and nausea that twists at his gut. He anticipates another blow, but it never comes. Instead, he hears the thunk of what can only be an arrow and a roar. Then suddenly he can hear more people in his room, a lot more people. There seems to be a fight of some kind going on, but Ian isn't able to bring himself to open his eyes and look. He sinks slowly to the floor breathing heavily. 

She said poison, didn't she? Yes, he can certainly feel the poison, and needless to say he's not too fond of it.

He hears Echidna scream and then a powdery substance hits him in the face. He wants to shake it off, but can't find the energy. There are multiple voices and it takes Ian a moment to realize that they're all girls. He hears someone shush them and is vaguely aware of someone moving in front of him.

He blearily cracks his eyes open. He's tilting sideways a bit, but he's unable to straighten up any. 

Before him is a girl who could easily be described as a punk from her choice of attire, long choppy black hair, and darkly lined eyes. The only things that seem out of place are her shining silver parka and the tiara-like thing perched atop her head. Her bright blue eyes shine from beneath her bangs and she stares at him in concern.

"Are you okay?" she asks, the worry slipping into her voice just slightly. 

He nods, though it's a complete lie. What can he say? It's pretty much a reflex to assure people he's alright even when he's not. It makes him uncomfortable when people worry about him. He's the captain. It's his job to worry.

The girl seems to know this. She narrows her eyes and he realizes that she's familiar to him, a face he's seen in his dreams. "Liar."

He smirks just a little, finally finding the strength to clutch his throbbing wound. He's weirded out sure, but at the same time, he likes his luck with this girl more than he likes his luck with whoever that was before. "S-sorry."

Wherever his demented attackers have gone, he's not too concerned at the moment. There's gold dust sprinkled throughout the room, but a small breeze from outside is already dispersing it. Otherwise, besides his shelf, the things he knocked off his desk, and the array of girls in silver parkas, his room is relatively unchanged. 

His eyes close again and he settles further into his spot.

She shakes her head with a small smile but then frowns when she takes notice of his lack of color again and the sweat that seems to be rolling off him in sheets. It takes her a moment to realize he's lost consciousness. She whips around to face the girls that she commands. "Call one of the wolves. We need to get him to camp."

There is a pause where many of them make disgusted faces before a girl steps forward. "With all due respect ma'am, he's a boy and not only that but a mortal as well. Why are we taking him to camp?"

"Because," the blue-eyed girl snaps. "He's a friend. Now hurry up. We don't have much time."

The girl sheepishly bows her head in submission. "Yes, Thalia."

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A/N Another update. Things are picking up. :) Let me know what you think by commenting. Don't forget to vote and follow.