Evangeline stood outside Westover Hall waiting for Percy, Annabeth, and Thalia to arrive from camp. She didn't come with Mrs Jackson and the others because she was already in Maine. The brunette had yet to go inside the school since she was waiting for the others, Annabeth insisted that they all go together.

Soon enough she caught sight of Mrs Jackson's car arriving. Thalia and Annabeth got out of the car while Percy talked to his mother. When Evangeline came close enough to the car she heard their conversation.

"Percy," The mother spoke. "Are you sure you don't want me to wait?"

"It's okay Mom," he answered. "I don't know how long this will take."

The woman nodded, then her eyes lit up as she saw the brunette. "Hi, honey."

She felt the tips of her ears burn hot as all the attention was toward her. "Hello, Mrs Jackson."

"How are you?" Sally asked.

"I'm fine," Evangeline answered.

"Oh, well, I hope so." The woman smiled. "You look beautiful."

Evangeline's eyes widened as a blush crept up onto her face. "T—Thank you, Mrs Jackson."

Percy cleared his throat. "Okay, bye Mom." He shut the door of the car and made his way toward the daughters of Hades, Athena, and Zeus.

"Percy, your mom is so cool," Thalia commented as the four began making their way to the castle.

"She's pretty okay," Percy shrugged. Earning a smack on the arm from Evangeline, he let out a noise of pain before shooting her a glare. "Anyway," he continued where he left off. "Did you ever get in touch with your mom?"

Thalia stopped in her tracks, tilting her head back as she shot a glare towards the boy. "If that was any of your business Percy-"

"We'd better get inside," Annabeth interrupted the daughter of Zeus. "Grover will be waiting," with that she grabbed Thalia's arm and began dragging her towards the castle, with no doubt a lecture planned.

The oak doors had already been opened when the duo made it to the castle, revealing walls lined with weapons, antiques, flags, and more. But the school itself gave off a bad impression, even for a military school.

None of them were given to speak aloud about the odd vibes before the doors slammed shut before the group, confirming their suspicions the school was far from normal.

"Who would send their kids here?" Evangeline mumbled as she looked around.

They began exploring the school immediately, only to run into a man and woman marching towards them.

The duo had grey hair and dressed in military uniforms with red trimmings. However, the woman had a wispy mustache and the man a shaven-clean. "Well?" The she-man demanded, crossing her arms across her chest as she questioned the demigods. "What are you doing here?"

Percy began stumbling over his words. "Ma'am, we were just—"

"Visitors are not allowed at the dance!" The man snapped, causing the boy to jump at the sudden volume change. "You shall be eee-jected!"

Evangeline knitted her eyebrows at the French accent, but his eyes were something she'd never seen a mortal with before. One was brown, and the other was blue, unusual for a human.

Thalia sighed as she stepped in front of the other demigods, a snap echoed throughout the hall from the daughter of Zeus. A gust of wind had ripped from the girl's hand and flooded the room, washing over the teachers.

She smiled. "We're not visitors sir," she gestured to the three demigods standing behind her. "You know us, I'm Thalia, this is Annabeth, Evangeline, and Percy. We all go to school here, remember?"

The duel-eyed teacher narrowed his eyes at the teens. Finally, he stopped the staring contest to look at his coworker. "Ms. Gottschalk, do you know these students?"

The military woman looked like someone had just woken her up, her eyes quickly scanned across the four as realization formed. "I believe I do, sir." A frown appeared as she looked at them once more. "Annabeth, Evangeline, Percy, and Thalia. What are you all doing away from the gymnasium?"

They weren't given the chance to answer before a certain curly brown-haired boy ran down the hall and towards the group, his breaths heaving. "You made it! You-" he stopped abruptly upon noticing the teachers. "Oh, Mrs. Gottschalk, Dr. Thorn. I, uh-"

"Yes, Mr Underwood?" Dr. Thorn asked with a slight harshness in his tone. "What do you mean they made it? These students live here."

The satyr swallowed. "Of course, Dr. Thorn. I just meant I'm glad they made... the punch! They made the punch and it was delicious."

The teacher glanced at Grover but didn't argue further. "Yes...the punch was excellent. Now, run along all of you, and don't leave the gymnasium again!" They all followed after the satyr and left the teacher.

They stopped in front of a door with the word gym written on the glass. "That was close," Grover sighed in relief. "Thank the gods you got here!"

"So," Percy started. "What's the emergency?"

Grover started smiling. "I found two."

"Two half-bloods," Thalia's eyes widened momentarily. "Here?"

The satyr nodded. "A brother and sister," he continued as his smile widened. "They're ten and twelve, I'm unsure of their parentage but they're strong. We're running out of time though I need help."

"Monsters?" Annabeth assumed.

"One," he agreed. "he suspects but I think he's not positive yet. Today is the last day of term, he won't let them leave the campus without finding out. It could be our last chance, but whenever I try to get close, he's blocking me every time!"

"Right," Thalia cleared her throat as she looked through the gym door. "The half-bloods are inside the gym right now?"

Grover nodded.

"Then, let's dance." She turned her attention back to Grover. "Who's the monster?"

"You just met him," the satyr looked around as if waiting for their monster to pop out. "The vice principal, Dr. Thorn."

"There they are," Grover pointed out two kids arguing on the bleachers.. "Bianca and Nico di Angelo."

The girl wore a floppy green cap in an obvious attempt to hide her face while smiling at the boy who was her younger brother. They shared the same silky hair, olive skin, and habit of using their hands as they talked.

The boy began shuffling the cards, he held in his hand as his sister's smile turned into a scowl as she lectured him, but she always seemed on high alert and constantly looked around as if something was doomed to go wrong any second.

"Let's grab them, and get out of here," Percy stated making his way towards the demigods before Evangeline pulled him back by his arm.

Dr Thorn had appeared beside the children, his blue eye seemingly glowing as Evangeline saw his eyes. Judging by the harsh glare the creature was sending them, he knew who they were and was waiting to see what they had come for.

"Don't look at the kids," Thalia ordered, drawing everyone's attention away.

"We have to wait for a chance to get them, pretend we're not interested." The girl instructed. "Throw him off his scent."

"How?"

"We're four powerful half-bloods, our presence alone should confuse," she explained. "Mingle, act natural, do some dancing but always keep an eye on those kids."

Annabeth's nose scrunched up. "Dancing?" The blonde muttered.

Thalia nodded, smirking until she heard the music. "Ugh," she complained. "Who chose Jesse McCartney?"

"Who's Jesse McCartney?" Evangeline asked Percy who just shrugged in return.

Grover's face flashed a look of hurt. "I did."

"Oh my gods, Grover," The daughter of Zeus rolled her eyes. "That's so lame, couldn't you have played Green Day or something?"

"Green who?" The satyr and the brunette asked in unison.

"Never mind, let's go dance."

"But I can't dance!"

"You can if I'm leading," Thalia ordered. "Come on, goat boy."

Thalia grabbed the satyr's hand, leading him to the dance floor.

"I can't believe she's back," Annabeth mumbled, a small smile lacing her lips as the three demigods watched Grover step over the daughter of Zeus's feet.

"I'm going to go check out the place, don't do anything that you guys would do," Annabeth told them, as she walked off disappearing into the crowd.

"Hey!" Thalia called out to the duo, earning their attention from their blonde friend who was currently being spun. "Dance, you two!" She ordered. "You look stupid just standing there."

Evangeline shot her a glare. "Very funny, sparky."

Evangeline didn't know if it was the lighting or something else but she swore she saw a blush on Percy's face. So when he didn't do anything, she took his hand and led him to the dance floor before he could understand what was happening, their hands interlocked while her free hand rested on his shoulder, and she began leading the dance.

She noticed how nervous he looked. "Relax, seaweed brain. I won't bite you or anything."

He flushed. "Y—Yeah," he cleared his throat. "I know."

"Your mom seems nice,"

"She is," Percy decided to change the topic. "How's Hades?"

"He's been avoiding me. Like at breakfast yesterday, he wasn't even there, so I had to eat with Persephone... all alone."

"Somehow I can't imagine Hades having a normal family breakfast with you," Percy admitted.

She shot him a look. "He's not that mean and scary as everyone makes him out to be,"

"Kind of like his daughter," The son of Poseidon smiled.

She looked away hoping that the blood that had rushed to her cheeks wasn't visible. She rolled her eyes to distract herself as she dipped the son of Poseidon who turned red. Evangeline smirked as she saw the surprise in his face.

Silence settled over the two as they danced.

Percy had noticed that Evangeline had changed since he had last seen her. Her hair had grown a little longer and reached till her shoulders it had also gotten darker he started seeing the resemblance between her and Hades now, she looked more mysterious than she was before. Her skin had gotten paler almost like a ghost.

"They're gone," she suddenly spoke, snapping him from his gaze. "The kids are gone.

Her hands dropped from him as she began scanning the gym. The siblings were gone, along with Dr. Thorn but the door next to the bleachers had been thrown open.

"We need to follow them," he said.

"But what about the others?"

"There's no time, if we go get the others there's a chance we could lose them. We won't be able to catch up."

The two began making their way through the dancers, arriving at the bleachers only to find a floppy green hat with scattered cards on the gym floor. Through the corner of her eye, she was able to see the monster hurrying the siblings out the door by their necks.

They walked through a dark hallway where a painful grunt and scuffling could be heard. Percy uncapped Riptide and spun it briefly.

They quickly jogged to the end of the hallway, only to be met with nobody. The whole situation felt like a maze as Percy opened the door that led them straight back to the entry hall. Evangeline saw the kids frozen on the steps staring at them.

"It's okay, we're not going to hurt you," Percy spoke calmly as he sent a reassuring smile to them. "I'm Percy this is Evangeline and we're going to take you somewhere safe."

Bianca's eyes widened and her fists clenched while looking at something behind them. The children of Hades and Poseidon turned around only for Percy to be hit in the shoulder and slammed into the wall behind the di Angelo's.

Evangeline moved in front of the kids, as the demigods gripped onto her for support. She checked Percy to see if he was conscious or close to passing out.

"Perseus Jackson... Evangeline Merlyn," Dr. Thorn spoke as his voice echoed as his voice echoed throughout the hall. "I know who you two are."

The creature emerged from the shadows and into the dim lighting, his face ghoulish instead of a typical older man. "Thank you, for coming out of the gym," he said. "I hate middle school dances."

Percy attempted to lunge at the monster, but the creature was out of reach. A thorn shot out somewhere behind the vice principal like it had been thrown for him. Evangeline was barely able to catch it coming her way, she ducked quickly as the projectile landed half an inch above her head.

"All four of you will come with me." Dr Thorn commanded. "Quietly and obediently, if you attempt to make noise, call for help or attack. I will show how accurately I can throw."

Percy held onto Evangeline as they followed behind Thorn, Bianca, and Nico walking behind the children of Hades and Poseidon as instructed. The raven-haired boy's head suddenly fell onto Evangeline's shoulder, his eyes closed.

"Jackson," The vice principal hissed as he glared at the boy. "What are you doing? Keep moving!"

"It's my shoulder," he said as they began shuffling forward once again. "It burns."

"Bah, my poison causes pain." He said. "It will not kill you, walk!"

The four demigods were heard outside and through a snowy path in the woods, the only light provided was the moon and the dimly lit lamplights.

"There is a clearing up ahead," Thorn explained. "We will summon your ride there."

"What ride?" Bianca demanded as she made her way beside Percy, gripping his jacket but staying wary of his sword.

"Silence you insufferable girl!"

"Hey, don't talk to my sister that way!" Nico called with shaky lips and tone as he made his way beside Evangeline, gripping the girl's shirt.

"Halt," The monster commanded. He made the demigods stop in a clearing somewhere in the forest, on a cliff overlooking the sea where the vice principal led them.

Thorn continued making them walk towards the cliff edge. She was only able to see mist and darkness instead of water. Percy stumbled when they walked forward once again, luckily Bianca helped stabilize him before he could face plant into the snow.

"The package," Thorn spoke drawing the demigod's attention to the cell phone against his ear. "It is ready to be delivered."

She was able to see Percy's head tilt towards the water behind the creature, resulting in their monster laughing once he caught the action. "By all means, son of Poseidon," The vice principal gestured to the water with a maniac grin. "There is the sea, jump and save yourself. "

"What did he call you?" Bianca questioned.

"He'll explain later," Evangeline shot down the demigod.

"You do have a plan, right?"

"I would kill you before you reach the water," the monster said. "You do not realize who I am, do you?"

"Do I look like I do?" Evangeline asked in an obvious tone.

Thorn glared at the girl, as she caught a flicker of movement behind him, and another missile whistled extremely close to Percy's ear that it nicked his ear. Something had sprung up behind Dr. Thorn like a catapult, but more flexible... almost like a tail. She still didn't know who he was.

"Unfortunately," Thorn said." You are wanted alive, if possible. Otherwise, I promise you would already be dead."

"Who wants us?" Bianca demanded the creature with a strong voice. "Because if you think you'll get a ransom, you're wrong. We don't have any family, Nico and I... We've got no one but each other."

The man let out a false sympathetic noise. "Do not worry little brats." He snapped, throwing away the sympathy. "You will be meeting my employer soon enough. Then you will have a brand-new family."

"Luke," Percy breathed as his grip tightened. "You work for Luke."

The creature's eyes turned into narrow slits when they landed on the children of Poseidon and Hades. "You have no idea what is happening Perseus Jackson. I will let the general enlighten you. You are going to do him a great service tonight in he is looking forward to meeting you and Evangeline."

"The general?" Evangeline questioned. "Who's the general?"

She didn't get an answer, instead, the man looked at the horizon with a smirk. "Here we are," he spoke. "Your transportation."

A searchlight appeared, briefly blinding the half-blood as she shielded her eyes while the sound of the helicopter blades grew closer. "Where are you taking us?" Nico asked.

"You should be honored, my boy!" The monster spoke. "You will have the opportunity to join a great army! Just like that silly game, you play with cards and dolls."

"They're not dolls! They're figurines! And you can take your grand army and-"

"Now, now," Thorn interrupted the boy while the boy held onto Evangeline. "You will change your mind about joining us, my boy. And if you do not, well... there are other uses for half-bloods. "We have many monstrous mouths to feed, the great stirring is underway."

"The great what?" Percy asked as he stood up to his full length.

"The stirring of the monsters," He said with a crooked evil smile. "The worst, most powerful of them are waking, one's not seen in thousands of years. They will cause death and destruction in ways mortals have never known, and we shall have the most important of all. The one who will bring about the downfall of Olympus!"

"Okay," Bianca whispered while lightly rolling her eyes. "He's gone insane."

"Evangeline," Percy mumbled. "We need to jump off the cliff into the sea."

She shot him a look. "Okay," she spoke looking around she felt like someone else was there with them.

Bianca spoke up again. "Oh, super idea you're insane too."

The daughter of Hades shot her a tired look before she was knocked to the ground by an invisible force, one she recognized to be Annabeth and her invisibility cap.

Thalia soon appeared in the brunette's line of sight, her spear raised as she let out a war cry. "For Zeus!"

Evangeline got to her feet grabbed the siblings and made their way to the trees. "Stay here," she commanded, "Don't let him see you, and don't get in the way of anything."

Bianca arched a brow. "What?"

"Just don't move, okay?" Evangeline asked her.

"I wanna see the fight!" Nico said.

"No." She told him.

Bianca swallowed, as she looked around, she stayed quiet for a moment before saying. "Okay, but you need to tell us what's going on later."

The brunette nodded turning her attention back to the battle at hand, she was able to witness Thalia jabbing at Thorn's head. The manticore let out a snarl, swatting the spear aside as his hand morphed into a giant paw with claws that slashed against Thalia's shield Aegis, a gift from Zeus.

"You know what? On second thought maybe you should stay here with us." Bianca panted.

Evangeline saw that Grover had sprung into action, his reed pipes lifted to his lips as he played a frantic jig. Grass began breaking through the snow as grass weeds wrapped around Thorn's legs, trapping him in one spot.

She saw Thalia racing forward. Thalia's spear raised as she jabbed the weapon into Thorn's paw hand. "For Zeus!" She yelled once again, summoning lightning directly into the spear which shocked the manticore.

The monster let out a roar as his shape shifted, his face still human but his body had transformed into that of a lion. his tail, leathery, and spikey swung deadly thorns in multiple directions.

The force of his charge alone threw the daughter of Zeus off, sending Thalia tumbling through the snow. "Thalia!" Annabeth cried. The girl lay on the ground motionless, the only clue she was still being the rise and fall of her shoulders.

"Who are you people?" Bianca asked as she looked at Evangeline. "And what is that?"

"A manticore?" Nico gasped.

Evangeline turned her head to the boy. "You know what that is?"

He nodded. "He's got three thousand attack power and plus five to saving throws!"

The brunette blinked, she stared at the boy then turned her attention to his sister who held a terrified look.

Thorn clawed away Grover's weeds, his attention turning to the siblings and Evangeline as a snarl escaped. The daughter of Hades had finally caught her breath when she saw thorns being shot their way.

She clapped her hands together and a dark black wall emerged from the ground, reflecting the projectiles. When she removed the solid wall, Percy was thrown at her and the son of Poseidon landed right on top of her.

With a thwack sound, Grover suddenly appeared beside the duo as he landed on the ground with a thud.

"Yield!" The vice principal roared, but Thalia was already up and charging against him. "Never!" For a second they thought she would be able to run him through until the helicopter from earlier appeared out of the mist. The searchlights blinded the girl as the manticore swatted her away with its tail. Her weapons flew off in different directions as Thorn prepared for another attack.

Annabeth had managed to make her way across the field with Aegis on her arm. The blonde successfully blocked a spike from hitting the raven-haired girl as she slid next to the older girl, using the demigod's shield of protection against Thorn.

The manticore let out a laugh at the sight. "Now do you see how hopeless it is?" He demanded. "Yield, little heroes."

And then the piercing sound of a hunting horn blew through the air, signaling the arrival of a group Evangeline thought she would never see again.

"I know that sound," Evangeline mumbled, Percy turned his head towards her head in confusion.

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