A Quest of Eight; A Heroes of Olympus Fanfiction

The Blood of Olympus; Ghost Party

Y/n's POV

"We're almost there," Piper told Jason. "You're doing great."

"Worst idea ever," Jason grumbled and leaned up against the nearest tree to take a break. "Hazel's magic is too good. If I have to fight, I'll be useless."

Jason, Piper, Annabeth, and I were sent to infiltrate a gathering of evil spirits at the top of this hill. All we needed to do was gather some information, but to do so, we needed to look the part. Us three girls were dressed in white sleeveless gowns and laced sandals. Jason, on the other hand, was a different story. Hazel used the mist to disguise him as Iros, an evil spirit was long ago. The bad thing was, Iros was an old man, so now Jason was exhibiting wrinkled hands and arthritis ridden legs.

"It won't come to that," Annabeth promised. "We infiltrate the party, get the information we need, and then get out."

"But we can rest for a second. Catch your breath, Jason," I advise and stop my trek up the side of the hill. I set my amphora down on the ground while I waited for Jason to re-gather himself, and Piper and Annabeth did the same. Each of their amphoras held their swords though while mine was empty. Since my sword was already concealed as my necklace, I didn't need to hide it.

"Are you sure this is the right hill?" Jason quizzed. "It seems kind of quiet."

"The ruins are up there," Piper assured him. "I saw them in Katoptris. And you heard what Hazel said."

"The biggest gathering of evil spirits I've ever sensed," Jason recalled. "Yeah, sounds awesome."

"I hope our disguises hold up. The suitors were nasty customers when they were alive. If they find out we're demigods-"

Piper cut Annabeth off. "Hazel's magic will work."

"Well if I look as old as I feel, then the disguise must me perfect. Come on. Let's get going," Jason urged. As we continued hiking, my mind wandered, as it often did. This time, it brought up some of the nightmares I'd been having ever since we left the House of Hades. Nico had warned us that being there would stir up some of our worst memories, and he was right. Practically every night I woke up with my forehead beaded in sweat and gasping for breath. A few times my eyes were filled with tears. I waved those thoughts away and focused on climbing to the summit, taking lead as we hiked.

"Almost there," Annabeth murmured. "Let's-"

BOOM! The whole hill rumbled. At the summit of the hill, cheers and roars echoed loudly, making me stop in my tracks. I still couldn't see anyone, but since I had just heard them, we were getting close. Really close.

"What was that explosion?" Jason wondered.

Piper shrugged. "Don't know. But it sounds like they're having fun. Let's go make some friends."

At the top of the hill scattered throughout the ruins, were spirits, Lares, and even some mortals. Most of the partiers were gathered around banquet tables being served by the maidens. However, a solid group of them were gathered around a fountain that spewed sand. One of the ghouls, who had an arrow through his neck, heaved a marble bust into the fountain, and as soon as the statue passed through the sand, it disintegrated, turning the sand the color of ichor. The entire mountain then rumbled with a boom.

"That guy just disintegrated my dad," Jason uttered. "Who does he think he is?"

"I'm guessing that's Antinous," Annabeth assumed. "One of the suitors' leaders. If I remember right, it was Odysseus who shot him through the neck with that arrow."

"You'd think that would keep a guy down," Piper commented. "What about all the others? Why are there so many?"

"I don't know," Annabeth responded. "Newer recruits for Gaea, I guess. Some must've come back to life before we closed the Doors of Death. And some are just spirits."