RIPTIDE - Percy Jackson/Heroes of Olympus, Pirate AU fanfic

8 | New Faces, New Friends?

"There." Jason pointed towards a blonde headed woman slipping away.

"Should I follow her?" Asked the young boy who was with them.

"No." The answer was curt. Jason turned back towards the two. He stared at Piper for a minute, and then, as if seeming disinterested, turned and started walking away.

Piper hesitated. "Does he always do that?" She was talking to the boy accompanying them, the one she had seen last night at The Regal.

"Yep."

"Really? That's all I get. A yep ?"

The boy suddenly stopped walking and turned to her. "Your name is Piper McLean, right?"

"Uh, ya."

"Im Connor Stoll, pleased to meet you." He stuck out his hand in a gesture of awkward friendliness. "You do know what Jason is right?"

Piper furrowed her brow. "Is there something I'm missing?"

Connor glanced at the tall, blonde man in front of them. "Walk with me."

Piper had a bit of trouble keeping up with the taller men, since her legs weren't as long. She huffed out of annoyance, but kept her distance from Jason. "So what is it you wanted to tell me?" Piper asked, rolling her eyes in the process.

Connor smirked. "Don't get too cocky, some of the crew doesn't take it kindly."

Her reply was layered in sarcasm. "What are they gonna do? Throw me overboard?"

"Ya, in a locked box."

Suddenly Piper didn't feel like saying anymore. "Have they- Have they actually done that before?"

"Yes." Connor's face was grim, as if he was remembering the moment. "It was about two years ago. A buddy of mine was caught stealing from the treasury and-" Abruptly he stopped. "I can tell you that at a later time."

The silence ran on and Piper could almost feel the tension crawling across her skin. "Um, so about Jason?"

"Ya." Connor looked relieved at the change of subject. "He's our assassin. He's called The Reaper, after our Captain's favorite painting."

Piper's interest was always peeked at the mention of the captain, but she avoiding asking about him. "I've never heard of 'The Reaper' before."

Connor looked at her intensely and she slowly realized that there was probably a good reason why. "Oh..." She glanced at the blonde man in front of her and started to realize why he rarely ever spoke, and why his gaze always made her uncomfortable.

He had a scar on his left upper lip that she didn't notice until recently and a curious tattoo on his hand.

Piper tried to find her voice again so she could ask a question. "Wha-" She cleared her throat. "What's the tattoo mean?"

Connor focused in on the markings. "That's our brand. Everyone from the Hellsing has one." Slowly he rolled up his sleeve to reveal a deformed skull with crossed swords on his upper arm. "It let's people know who we are. Without actually telling them. You could call it the mark of the dead."

Piper glanced down at her own arm, tugging at the sleeve.

"Don't worry." Connor said. "You'll get yours soon. You just have to prove yourself. Lead a mission and come out successful. That's when you'll get your mark."

"I've never really been a leader. What if I fail?"

Connor's face tightened. "Let's just hope you don't."

Piper was about to say something but Connor cut in. "The blonde woman. I'm pretty sure that will be your mission. She has something of importance. Something the captain wants. I'm not sure what exactly it is, but the captain seems determined not to let it get away."

"The captain." Piper tried to ease into the question. "What's he like? Have you ever spoken to him?"

"There's this thing McLean, and it's when you're around the captain, you don't speak unless spoken to. Unless obviously, you're Nakamura or Ms. Dare. Those rules don't exactly apply to them."

Piper shuddered all the way down to her toes. She tried to hide her fear but apparently Stoll had noticed.

"I'm sorry." Connor ducked his head. "But let me give you some advice. Make sure you want to be here. Because there's no leaving once you bear the mark."

Piper glanced at Jason again once more. If she decided in the middle of everything she didn't want to be apart of the Hellsing anymore, and tried to leave. They'd send their best assassin after her, and she was pretty sure she wouldn't come out of that fight alive. But Piper had sunk too far into this deep hole to back out now. Besides, it couldn't all be that bad.

🔱

Hey! I have a question for you guys.
Are you...?

I would love to know. \(^o^)/

Also more detailed backstories. Woot!