Ghost King Meets Batman

Hazel in Wonderland

  [Edited July 25, 2022]

Shoutout to Blue_Leopard_13 for being my beta reader on my 'Writing Tips and Tricks story. I really appreciate all the helpful feedback.

Hazel's POV

It had been a few days since she joined the legion, and she wasn't exactly feeling very celebratory. Octavian was keeping a very close eye on her and she feared that he may have guessed her secret. He may not be intimidating to look at, but he was clever and ruthless. No one wanted to say it, but crossing the augur was possibly more dangerous than crossing Reyna. Octavian was probably the biggest threat to her status in the Legion.

Nico had dropped off the face of the Earth, again, and she had no idea how to get in contact with him. How does he do that dream thing? Where is he even staying nowadays? Is it still with those mortals? If he was then she couldn't even send an eagle messenger. He never told her where he went when he wasn't at camp. All he said was 'the Underworld' but even that was vague and unhelpful. Hazel knew for a fact that he spent more time above the surface than he was admitting if he had time to make friends with people like Poison Ivy. What exactly was he hiding?

Hazel was seated on a bench overlooking the Fields of Bacchus, one of her favorite places at camp. They were beautiful this late in the day, with the sun hitting them at just the right angle. They all looked like gems, sparkling and twinkling in the sun. In her eyes, this living beauty was more precious than any stone she could pull from the earth. It was pure and untainted by greed-- living and growing in the way that all natural things should. It was spectacular.

Hazel knew she was supposed to be getting ready for war games, but it was hard to feel motivated with such a big secret in danger. After a while, she heard footsteps coming up the pass but she didn't really think much of it as people came this way all the time. It was probably a retired couple who had come for the golden hour. Some of the shops would bring their models out to the fields around this time to take photos in togas or other attire that they sold in their shops.

"Hazel?" It was Frank. He had shown up a week or two after she did. He was still on probation, waiting for an act of valor or a year served. He was nice, but she didn't really know him all that well. She shifted so that she could see him from her place on the bench. When she spotted him, she just had to laugh.

"Frank, your armor!" The daughter of Pluto tried to hold back her laughter. He had it all crooked and the straps were in disarray. He frowned at the straps as if they were a complicated question on a quiz.

"I was in a hurry." He said by way of explanation. Hazel couldn't get the smile off her face as she helped him adjust his straps. The situation was just too comical.

"Come on, we're going to be late," she said, leading the way towards the armory. She still had to grab armor for himself.

"You're telling me! I'm the one who came to warn you!" He clanked along beside her and she glared playfully at him and he flashed her a smile.

It didn't take her long to get her armor on, she only had to fix the straps once. Then they raced to meet up with the others at formation. Today was capture the fortress and you did not want to be late. She and Frank joined the fifth, taking spots in the back. Hannibal was already on the field, dressed in kevlar and ready to go. It looked like he had recovered from the peanuts Frank had given him a few days ago. That had been a big fiasco.

"Fifth cohort!" Dakota shouted from the front. Hazel couldn't see him, but she was sure that his mouth was stained red. She didn't know where he got kool-aid in camp, but he never seemed to run out. Maybe the flask was enchanted to never run out. He began shouting orders to different sections and soldiers scurried to fall in line. The fifth was the advancing team again tonight so they would be the ones to take all the damage, as usual. For some reason, everyone hated the fifth.