I'm really glad that everyone enjoys this story. I'm going to be honest, there are only about two more chapters ready to be posted, and after that this story will update similar to my Warriors fics- once in a blue moon. I'm very sorry about all the wait, but I only write when I have inspiration, and my inspiration strikes at the worst times. Needless to say, I will try desperately to get more chapters out in a timely fashion, but it really doesn't help that I'm working on a bunch of projects at once.

But enough of my chatter. I hope you enjoy this next tid-bit. It took me forever to write, and it needed a LOT of referencing before I said never mind and just plowed through, paving the way for my own headcanons. Have fun catching references!

But before you start reading, say hello to Hatsunation the co-writer of this book. She created the idea, and is also the creator of Mr. John Doe.

~Blaze

Kat collapsed happily onto a couch, brushing her hair from her face and sinking into the plush cushions. After teaching the kids how to jump, she had moved on to a large variety of other physical activities, spending hours showing off her prowess. It felt good to be around normal people, being better than others. She was having the best time of her life.

Kat relaxed into her seat. She hadn’t felt so happy and self-satisfied in a while. She looked around, her ADHD getting hold of her again. Jumping up, she strolled into a side room, searching around for anything and nothing. She grabbed a water bottle off of a table, drinking it down while walking around. When she finally stopped, she noticed that she had entered one of the back rooms. It was an old-fashioned library, with old, leather bound books covering the shelves and a safe, musty smell layering the air. Kat stepped inside, looking at the titles and trying to see if anything would be good to read. Maybe she could borrow it for a while and return it at a later date.

Kat paused as she noticed a boy sitting on one of the chairs. His light-green hair wasn’t surprising, but his style of clothing reminded her of the stuff she saw in her history class, what people used to wear in the 80’s. But he was reading Dracula. That book was awesome.

“Hi! I just wanted to tell you that I approve your choice of literature. Dracula is awesome.” Kat reached on the table and picked up one of the lotus flower cookies that were sitting on a tray. They were just so delicious!

“Dracula is pretty good. I like the whole vampire thing myself. The shape shifting is really appealing to me.” He looked up at her, seemingly annoyed.

“Can I ask you something? Are you cosplaying? Because that outfit is seriously 1980’s.” The Aphrodite kids were seriously bad influences. She knew more stuff about fashion then she cared about.

“What’s cosplaying? Also what are you talking about? It’s 1985. My clothes are brand new. My brother Soren just brought them for me.” Kat narrowed her eyes. What was this kid talking about? He must really be in character or something.

“Dude, it’s 2014. Don’t worry, you can break character for a little bit. I just wanted to know where you got it from because it looks really good. If your brother made it, tell him I want one custom made. The Aphrodite kids would love it.”

“2014? Break character? What are you saying? These clothes are easy and cheap to get. My brother worked hard to get me a whole new wardrobe after a hellhound splattered blood on my favorite shirt.” Kat blinked.

“Something like that would cost hundreds now. It’s stitching is perfect! Also, you’re a demigod? I didn’t know there were demigods down here in Nevada. Chiron never told me. Are you on break from camp? Do you live down here?”

“Camp? No one ever told me about a camp. Isn’t Chiron supposed to be with the gods? I don’t live down here. I’m hunting a monster that killed my mother. My brother and I, we’re both sons of Apollo. Also, it cost  $5 for this shirt you know.” Kat stared.

“Wait wait wait! Ok,” $5 is not a lot of money! What the hell are you…” Kat racked her mind. It felt suddenly cloudy, and she found it hard to sift through her thoughts. He had said… he said something about it being 1985… and he was wearing really old clothing, and wasn’t cosplaying… and… and….

Kat growled as she couldn’t connect her thoughts. It felt as though something was blocking her mind, preventing her from thinking. Kat leaned forward, grabbing a lotus flower and popping it into her mouth. She turned to look at him, noticing him chewing on one as well. They stared at each other, just eating.

Kat shook her head. What was she thinking a second ago? “Want to play basketball with me? I saw you by the courts earlier and heard you were good.” Kat paused before sticking out her hand. “I’m Kaitlyn Ardere. You can call me Kat.”

“I’m Rowan Silver. I’m just called Rowan.”  Rowan looked up at her with a little smile. “It’s nice to meet you.”  Kat grinned as they shook hands. At least during her visit she would make some friends.

~~~~~~~~

Kat wandered into the food area, stomach rumbling. She had expended so much energy in such a short amount of time that she was craving sustenance. She opened the fridge, taking out the makings for a cold-cut sandwich, and placed them on the table. What fancy hotel had cold cuts in the fridge? She shrugged, figuring that it was for the kids to eat.

Kat headed for the cutlery, only to frown. A boy with shaggy black hair was glaring icily at a box he was holding in his hands. He turned it up and down, frowning at it, just staring and not opening it. Another turn proved it to be a box of Celeste frozen pizza. Kat shrugged. Everyone in this building was weird.

“Excuse me, I need to get to the drawer behind you.” Kat was impatient to get back to her game.

“I’m a bit too preoccupied to complete that action…” He muttered. “Where on earth are the hinges for this thing?” Kat raised her eyebrows, watching him continue to examine the box.

“Seriously, you don’t know how to open it? Here, just do this.” She grabbed it from his hands and “skillfully” opened the flaps, letting the pizza slide out onto her hand. “Just in case you can’t figure out the rest of it, here.” She ripped open the package, grabbed a plate from the counter, and plopped the pizza onto it. “Now will you move?” Kat was trying really hard not to be sarcastic.

“I suppose it’s the least I can do,” Kat opened the drawer as he finally moved out of her way. She grabbed a spoon, closed the drawer, and turned to see him poking at the frozen pizza. Kat finished covering her sandwich in mayo, putting the last pieces of it together and lifting it off of the plate.

She looked around the room, holding the sandwich and searching for something to sacrifice the food to. There wasn’t any open flame pit like at camp, and she knew that it would be weird to sacrifice over the stove or something. What could she use to “cook” her food for the Gods? Kat spotted a microwave out of the corner of her eye, and she felt a grin sneaking onto her face. Well, it made more sense then the electric stove, and it was less degrading than putting the food on the table or in the trash… Kat pulled a piece of the sandwich off, found a plate, and put it in the microwave for 20 minutes.

“Sorry Hermes, but this is kind of the best I can do for right now. Please accept this offering.” Kat spoke to the ceiling before turning and noticing the kid still standing there with the pizza in his hand. “Are you still stuck on that? The instructions are on the back, didn’t you read them? Its a freaking frozen pizza, stop acting like you’ve never seen one before.”

“Because I haven’t seen one before” He muttered. Kat stared at him for a moment, looking up from her “sacrifice”. She was frozen with surprise, something niggling at the back of her head.

“Pizza has been around for a while. Dude, you would need to be from before the 1900’s to not know what pizza is. How could you not know, it’s practically the food of the Gods!” She watched as his frown grew.

“What is a dude? My name is John, not dude. What’s with your clothes? Are you a witch?” Kat slowly finished biting into her food.

“What year were you born? If you don’t mind me asking, but there is something…” Kat broke off, thinking back to an earlier circumstance. Something danced at the edge of her mind, a familiar situation like this one, where a conversation wasn’t adding up.

“...1833… What are you trying to get at?” Kat’s mind worked furiously, trying to process the hints. Many of the people she had met believed that they were from different time periods, dressed and acted like they lived in the past, and like right now, acted like they knew nothing of modern day appliances and culture! Her hand drifted towards a tray of lotus flowers as she thought.

“No! Kaitlyn, do not eat that flower.” Kat, startled, knocked the tray off the counter and sent the flowers all over the floor. That voice sounded oddly familiar, like one from her dreams...

“What the hell was that?” She spoke out loud, ignoring John’s cry of ‘What was what?’

“Kaitlyn, you need to leave. We need you out here. It’s not safe anymore.” Kat paused.

“Who are you?” She asked. To her annoyance, she couldn’t hear anything anymore. Angrily, she looked at the table and picked up her card, resting her hands on the table. That was when she really looked at the name on the card.

‘Lotus Casino Greencard’. The Lotus Casino- lotus flowers- the lotus eaters! Weren’t those the people that trapped their victims on an island with the taste of their flowers and nectar? Didn’t Percy and Annabeth run into them in Nevada?

“Oh shit.” Kat groaned.

John’s face turned red for some unknown reason, “W-what’s going on?”

Kat sent him a calculating look. “Are you a demigod?” She spoke bluntly, remembering that the kid she talked to earlier was a demigod. She figured that if she was needed, so was everyone else in the building, and if she was taken over so easily, then they must have been as well.

“Oh, not you too,” he groaned. Kat rolled her eyes.

“They had demigods in 1830-whatever you’re from. You must be one, you know about demigods.” Kat grabbed his arm, pulling his pizza from his grasp and leading him from the area. “I know you don’t think much time has passed, but this is the Lotus Casino; as in the Lotus eaters poisoned us and you’ve been in here for a century or two.”

“That’s impossible. You’re mad just like my mother,” he yelled, trying to pull away from Kat, “Why are you so strong?!”Kat stopped in her tracks, turning his body towards hers.

“This is serious, John. This might be a matter of life and death. I need you to tell me what your mother told you. All of it… well the abridged version. While we walk. I need to find Rowan.” Kat pulled him along again, looking for the basketball courts.

“So you’re insane like Rowan too! Why am I surrounded by crazy people?!” he yelled to no one in particular. Kat rolled her eyes, dragging him along.

“For the love of Zeus, PLEASE tell me who your father is. Who is it? Who did your mom marry? Which Greek God was it?” Kat was starting to get a little annoyed that he wasn’t answering her questions.

“... Hephaestus,” he said quietly, “She said Hephaestus.” Kat, who at that point was trying to eavesdrop on other people’s conversations to find other demigods, hadn’t heard what he said.

“I’m sorry who did you say?” She said loudly, pulling him around a corner.

“I’m not saying it again!” he retorted, “It’s foolish.” Kat resisted the urge to slap some sense into him.

“I can prove to you that its true. Can you just tell me who it is?”

“Like I said it’s Hephaestus! Are you satisfied now?” he fumed. Kat nodded at him before pausing, staring above his head. A large red anvil-and-tongs appeared over his head, glowing brightly for a brief moment before slowly fading to a light glow. Kat frowned. Usually the symbols were very bright for a long time after they appeared.

“What sorcery is this?” he started to back away slowly from Kat, still trying to pull himself free. Kat grabbed his other hand and pushed him gently until he was pinned on a wall, unable to escape her grasp.

“This is not… well I guess it might technically be magic…. Wait you sidetracked me! This is all real, I promise. What your mom said was true. It is real, you are a demigod, this casino drugs people and keeps them alive forever… just because apparently, I’m not sure why actually the Lotus eaters just do it…” Kat started rambling, trying to think of reasons why being a demigod was real.

“Yes, I know what this place is. My mother told me. I just thought she was being… mad,” he admitted quietly, “What year is it?” Kat looked him in the eyes.

“It’s 2014. You’ve been in here for a long time.” Kat finally let him go, walking into the next room and heading straight for her backpack. “Now its time to get you out of here.”

John hesitated to follow but eventually accompanied her, “I suppose I have.” Kat rummaged through her bag before her hand closed on her knife. She had taken to carrying it everywhere with her, just in case. Apparently it might come in handy. She carefully held onto it.

“I’m going to need your help. Did anyone besides Rowan say that they were demigods? We need to get them out of here. Oh crap, a bellboy. Quick, grab a flower and pretend you are eating it.” Kat reached over to the nearest tray and picked up a flower, using a well practiced move to break off a part of it with her hand and drop the excess.

“W-what?” John stuttered, trying to process just what exactly was happening. Kat rolled her eyes and simply pulled him along.

“This will take waaay too long to explain.” She scanned the crowd, suddenly aware of a distant rumbling sound. Was the building shaking? Was there an earthquake? Poseidon must’ve been mad.

“Rowan!” Kat crowed, noticing the green haired hippie guzzling water and holding a basketball. “Rowan we need to talk to you. It’s urgent, come now.”

“It’s you again!” Rowan took the hint from her and the rumbling. He grabbed his bow and slung the quiver full of arrows over his back before taking out an arrow to use like a dagger if needed.

“What’s happening?”

“I think its an earthquake or something. I’ve never heard a noise like that. So mister 1980’s, did you know that we are in the Lotus Casino? Yeah, it’s 2014 and I’m busting you two out of here so we can find out who the hell wants my help.” She paused, before backtracking. “Well it’s a long story, but I’ll explain on the way.” She  began picking her way through the crowd, maneuvering around gaming kids. She snorted at two kids making out in a corner.

“I wonder if they’ve been making out for a century. That’d be awkward.” She commented, her ADHD taking its toll once again.

“It’s disgraceful,” John shuddered, “But why exactly are you so focused on getting out of here?”

“We need to leave first because if the Lotus Eaters find out that we are not under their spell, they will probably do something really bad to trap us here again, and then prevent us from remembering ever again. Second because according to the voice in my head, something is happening that I am needed for, and I figured you guys wouldn’t want to stay while I bust myself out.”

“You sound crazy.” Rowan commented from behind her. Kat shrugged.

“You’re still following, aren’t you? Hush.” She had just started working her way to the front of the lobby when a loud crash echoed from the building. Kat stopped, eyes darting everywhere.

“What the fuck was that?” Kat’s body trembled as the whole building shook once more. People around them were actually looking up from their activities, and a few actually seemed alarmed. Kat’s eyes traced a trail up one of the green walls, where a large crack was forming. Another crash had dust raining down from the ceiling, sheetrock chunks breaking off of the walls to litter the floors and people’s heads.

Kat turned to her companions. “I know I really need to explain things, but I think there is something really bad happening outside. I know its a lot coming from someone you just met, but we all have one thing in common- we are demigods. Now, can I ask you guys to trust me? At least until we get to safety.”

“Eh, fine.” Rowan shrugged.

“There isn’t really a better option, is there?” John asked rhetorically.  Kat smiled grimly at them both.

“Then I advise that you follow me and- OH SHIT DUCK!” Kat cursed loudly as suddenly a loud noise penetrated the air. Everything exploded in the air around them, chunks of plaster, wall, glass, and furniture flying around and covering everyone and everything. Kat grabbed onto Rowan and John and threw herself onto the ground, covering her head. She chanced a look up and had to shield her eyes, the bright daylight blinding her with a white glare.

All she could hear was roaring, destruction, and panicked screams of people being crushed by the building. Kat gasped loudly as something large and flat fell on her back, knocking the air from her body. All she could do was bear with it, coughing in dirt and dust and hoping for it to just end.

A few moments later led to complete and utter silence that juxtaposed the loud noise in a way that made Kat’s head spin. Nervously she remained still, afraid of the silence and what might happen during it. She strained her ears after a moment, noting movement and rustling a few feet away, near where the lobby entrance used to be. A moment later she stilled completely, hearing stomps right next to her head.

She resisted the urge to move or make a sound as a loud sniffing noise came from above her. She felt the air shift on her back and felt her hair moving all around. She hoped that Rowan and John would not move at all.

“There’s nothing moving, boss. Everything here smells dead.” Kat winced as she heard a sharp, grating laugh permeate the air. Something large shifted a few feet away from her, shaking up more dust.

“Everyone move on. We destroyed the casino and everyone in it. That’s one of the last public places that a demigod could have been. Now we move back to New York.” More harsh laughter filled the air, and all she could hear for a few moments was the sound of stomping and moving. She didn’t dare open an eye to take a peek, choosing to sit in silence. Was everyone really dead?

Kat waited for an immeasurable amount of time, straining to hear the steps disappear. When they were finally gone, she carefully pushed  the sheetrock off of her body and surveyed her immediate surroundings. She was sitting in a large pool of rubble, unidentifiable liquids and dust coating the area. Everything was red and white. Kat could see bodies covered in chunks of wall, and debris covered everything. A thick layer of dust coated the air.

Kat looked up, wondering how the hell people hadn’t noticed the destruction. Even the Mist covering something like this up would be improbable. What she saw had her seize in shock.