[Edited July 25, 2022]

When Nico had gotten back from lunch with Thalia, he was greeted with a hostage situation. He had shadow traveled to his room and heard shouting and gunshots downstairs. Nico snuck out into the hallway next to the stairs where he could hear things better.

"So, you expect me to believe that your newest son isn't here? Where is he, then?" An obviously amateur crook complained.

"I don't know, he does this sometimes. What is it you were saying you wanted again?" Bruce asked. He didn't sound worried in the slightest.

"Oh, uh... money! That's right. I want a hundred thousand dollars!" Bruce seemed to consider this. Attempts like this were made a lot and we'd all gotten used to them by now.

"How about no. You've just used up all your bullets, for one thing." He pointed out. There was some shuffling and the sounds of a magazine being slipped out as the robber checked to see how many bullets he had left. There came a huff that said Bruce had been right and the dude did not stick around after that.

"Everything ok in here?" Nico asked as he came in the room.

"Yeah, some low class wannabe criminal was trying to hit the big leagues," Dick said, untying himself.

"He didn't even tie us up very well. You could have done better." Damian told him, which he figured was meant as a compliment. He settled down at the kitchen bar and neatly folded his hands on the table.

"Thanks, I think."

"Did you learn anything from Thalia?" Bruce asked, brushing invisible dirt off of his suit. He leaned his back against the counter, watching him closely. Though that wasn't anything new. He always watched everyone closely.

"Nothing that I didn't already know. Leo is almost done with his ship and then things will be getting pretty busy for me for a while." 

"Do you think you have a chance in this war?" Jason was examining the rope and frowned in distaste. He was probably offended that the guy hadn't even been a threat. He had been in the pantry the whole time since he wasn't supposed to be alive. 

"Slim to none." Nico admitted, "but don't worry, those are usually the odds."

"What happens if you fail, again?" Tim spoke up. He took the seat next to Damian, leaning as far away as he could from the boy without leaning on the next chair over. Dick sat on top of the counter, knowing that Alfred wasn't around to make him get down. Bruce was too distracted by what the middle child was saying to care about something like that.

"The end of the world as we know it. Possibly the end of humanity." The son of Hades sighed. He didn't really want to think about that option right now. We couldn't fail.

"How about this: you don't fail," Jason suggested unhelpfully.

"Oh, ok." he agreed, as though the thought had just crossed his mind. Jason gave him an annoyed look before ruffling his hair. Nico swatted him away in protest.

What affects your chances of winning?" Bruce asked.

"A lot of things. We have to assemble the seven of the prophecy. I think we have four of them, including Annabeth. I'm willing to bet that Percy is the fifth. I have no idea who the last two are. Hera will be probably ensure that they all end up together somehow."

"Who are the first three?" Dick cut in.

"Piper Mclean..." Bruce cut me off this time. His eyebrow was raised in surprise.

"You mean the daughter of Tristan Mclean? The actor?" Nico nodded in agreement. He had overheard Drew talking about her and that had come up.

"Yeah, her. She's a daughter of Aphrodite. I don't think Tristan knows, though. I overheard her telling him that she was doing arts and crafts."

"Camp Half-blood doesn't have that?" Dick asked.

"Not your usual arts and crafts. We have sculpting, ancient Greek pottery, blacksmithing, and practical things that we actually use."

"Blacksmithing?" Tim frowned, unconvinced. Nico took out his dagger coin and visualized his dagger. In an instant, he was holding a perfectly balanced, silver blade.

"A Hephaestus girl made this for me after I saved her in the Battle of Manhattan." She had been about to be trampled by a hellhound but he had killed it first. She gave him the dagger a few weeks later. It was a sweet gesture and she still waved when she saw him. People like her were the only reason he had stayed around camp as long as he had.

"It turns into a coin?" Bruce asked to clarify. He nodded and imagined it changing back, holding it out for him to see. He took the coin and examined it with interest. He clutched it tightly in his palm, seemingly testing it. When he was satisfied, he handed it back. 

"Who else do you need to find?" Damian asked gruffly, bringing them back on track. Nico noticed that he was watching his ring intently, knowing very well that that was where the sword that had taken his life was concealed. He winced at the memory of finding the younger boy dead in his room. It was not a fond recollection.

"Jason Grace, son of Jupiter. His family history is also pretty complicated. If I understood what Reyna was telling me, he was practically raised by wolves and then the Roman legion. It's a long story and I don't even know it all. It's best not to ask. Then Leo Valdez, son of Hephaestus who literally sets himself on fire when he gets too excited. He is an amazing engineer. He's spent the last several months building a vessel for this grand quest. All his own designs, he thinks. That's also complicated. Nico didn't understand it himself. Something about a dream boat and mysterious blueprints?

Then there is also Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena, who is the smartest girl I've ever met. She hates spiders like her mother and I think she has a big part to play in all of this," he finished. If the 'Mark of Athena ' she mentioned was anything to go by, Annabeth was one of the key components.

"Can they work together?" Tim spoke up. I nodded.

"They've already been on a quest together. Well, the first three have... and they have had months to grow closer. Annabeth can work with almost anyone, and she and Leo have been working on the Argo II for a long time now. Annabeth and Percy are dating and have been on many quests together."

"Are you sure that you aren't part of the quest?" Jason asked, spinning one of his knives on its side like a top.

The demigod considered it carefully, was he sure?  Maybe he was meant to be one of the seven. Maybe it wasn't his place to close the doors. He pushed that thought out of his mind. If it wasn't the son of Hades, then who? He would be a part of this war, but not the quest itself. He would write his own fate. Then he thought of the strange dream. Maybe, if he took this path, that future would no longer exist. Who knows.

"I'm pretty sure. I feel like it is going to be a combination of people from both camps. That just makes sense," he reasoned. Why else would Hera go to the trouble of bringing them all together as she did?

"When will you know?" Dick leaned forward, gripping the edge of the countertop.

"I don't know. Usually, whatever is supposed to happen happens. One time they tried to send Clarisse on Percy's quest and Percy ended up taking point on it anyway. That's a very long story." He said when it looked like everyone had questions.

"Sounds like a group of strong individuals." Bruce allowed, circling back to the original topic.

"Some of the strongest Demigods of our generation." He agreed.

"Are you not on that list?" Damian pressed.

"I don't know. I've never been on a quest before. I usually run interference and damage control for everyone else. I am pretty powerful, I suppose, but my powers are too creepy to use very often. Or in front of people. Mortals might interpret it as the apocalypse and panic."

"Really?" Jason smiled in amusement.

"Where do you think the idea for zombies came from?" It had been a son of Hades who went insane and started summoning the dead in busy crowd in broad daylight. No one could prove it because the bones turned to dust and they hadn't had cameras. People usually passed it off as an urban legend.

"We saw them the other day and they weren't that bad. Disturbing is probably a better word." Dick tried to assure him. Jason and Damian grimaced, being the only two who had come back from the dead.

"Disturbing." Nico repeated skeptically, "Ok, but that's not even close to all I can do." 

"What do you mean?" Jason sounded intrigued or disgusted, it was hard to be sure.

"I can literally order someone to die. Minos told me about it. If I deem them unworthy to live, I can literally banish their soul to the Underworld and they will be dead. My sword sucks out mortal souls." Damian grimaced at the reminder. "I can perform soul for a soul rituals. I can sense people by their soul." They were silent while they processed what he had said.

"Dick, you remember when you asked me how I knew it was you outside my door during the prank war? I could sense your soul."

"You have an instant kill power?" Jason sounded jealous. Bruce glared at him "What? That's frickin' cool!"

"It's actually a very slow process." Jason's jealous look faded into discomfort almost instantly.

"How slow?" He asked.

"What can a child of Aphrodite do?" Damian changed the subject, ignoring that Jason had ever spoken. The son of Hades was grateful for the momentary distraction. He didn't like talking about himself.

"It depends, really. Some can't do much of anything except look nice. Not very many of them seem to put a lot of effort into training. Some have what is called charm speak. They can convince people to do whatever they want by asking or telling them to do it. Piper has that. She once asked a dealership for a car and he gave it to her." He replied.

"Isn't she rich, though?" Dick frowned.

"She did it for attention." Dick nodded in understanding.

"What were you talking about when you said Leo catches himself on fire?" Tim grabbed an apple off the counter and took a bite.

"Ever century or so, there is a child of Hephaestus is born who is a fire user. They can't be burned by fire. They can light themselves on fire at will. A fire user started the great Chicago fire and I think the London fire as well. Leo is the first known fire user we've seen in a long time."

"What about Jason?" Todd glared at him so he clarified, "The other Jason."

"Jason Grace can summon lightning and manipulate the wind in order to fly. I don't know him very well so I'm not sure what else he can do."

"What about Annabeth?" Dick prompted.

"Annabeth is amazing. She has a laptop that can do almost anything. She wants to be an architect and knows everything about basically any monument you could ever want to know. She's great at math, mythology, and creative problem-solving. She is also the only demigod I know that fights with a dagger. She's been self-sufficient since she was seven years old and was practically raised at camp. Do not cross Annabeth. She is the queen of battle strategy."

"What other powerful demigods are there out there?" Bruce asked, probably wanting to catalog every last one.

"There is a semi- immortal demigod named Thalia who is pretty strong. She is also Jason Grace's half-sister. She can summon lightning, manipulate the mist, and is a scary shot with a bow. She was a pine tree for a few years there so none of us are really sure how old she actually is. She's also semi-immortal--long story. She and Annabeth were on the run together with Luke Castellan for a while. Do not make her mad either. She has a bad temper."

"Who else?"

"I don't know very many people at camp, so I'm not sure who all is powerful or not. Though, there is our Oracle, Rachel Elizabeth Dare."

"As in Dare Enterprises?" Bruce asked, shocked. He nodded in agreement.

"She once hit the titan of time in the eye with a blue plastic hairbrush. She lead the quest through the labyrinth because she was a clear-sighted mortal and could see the way through. She took the spirit of the Oracle into herself, knowing that it could drive her insane if the spirit wasn't freed from the curse. She agreed to go to a finishing school for her father if she could help with the titan war. She's harmless, mostly."

"They sound like amazing people," Bruce said once the younger boy had finished.

"They really are."

"Speaking of talented people. You still need to go and clear things up with the team." Bruce reminded him. He groaned at the thought. Nico would have so much explaining to do and a lot of back stories to create. He was not ready for it.

"Fine," he sighed in resignation.

"I have already created your backstory. Witch's curse passed down through the generations, they'll buy it. You'll go there for a little while today and then you can do whatever you needed to do. You said you needed to go to the Roman camp?"

"Yeah, I need to see if Percy is there."

"You think he will be?"

"I think there's a good chance."

"I've been meaning to ask..." Dick trailed off, looking uncomfortable. His mouth worked to ask something but the words didn't come out.

"What?" He prompted, curious.

"How does it work that You and Percy are cousins but Annabeth and Percy are dating. Wouldn't Annabeth and Percy be related too? Like, great niece or something?" Nico frowned. He had no idea what that would make Annabeth, but Tim had nodded so he assumed the older boy was right.

"Well..." Nico hesitated, thinking of a way to word this, "Your godly side doesn't really count, since they don't have DNA, but children of the big three tend to not get involved with each other. It is just... an unspoken rule. Anyone else, besides your own half-siblings, is fair game."

"No DNA? How does that work?" Damian interrupted in his usual manner.

" I don't know. Some of us are born magically. Children of Athena are born from thoughts, for instance. The rest I'd rather not ask." Damian nodded to show that he accepted the answer.

"What time do you want me to go to the Mountain?" He asked, standing and stretching. Half of the question was lost in a yawn.

"We'll go together at 6:30. You're free to do what you want until then."

"Wanna spar?" Tim asked with a grin.

"You're on!" He agreed readily. nico never passed up a chance to improve anymore. He knew that he would need all the help he could get in the pit. Tim was an ideal opponent.

Of all the siblings, Tim and Nico were probably the most evenly matched in both skill and size. During his time with the bat family, he had become a very skilled fighter and could hold his own for the most part. The demigod had learned many vital skills that put him high above the other demigods in terms of skill.

He had been drilled in parkour, survival, tracking, shooting, multiple forms of basic to advanced combat, competency under pressure, bomb disposal, melee weapon tactics, manipulation, interrogation, communications, along with some of the deadlier extreme sports. Bruce also taught him emotional and mental control and awareness, a skill he never would have pursued on his own. Training was intense, but rewarding.

Nico had been introduced to things slowly over the last year and his training slowly got more intense as it had gone on. Shooting, combat, and survival had been the first things he was introduced to. Once he mastered the basics, Bruce started shoving more things his way. He had been told that he was a quick learner and a dedicated pupil.

Nico had learned during his relatively short life that you had to absorb info quickly in order to survive. Monsters didn't care how long you'd held a sword, you were only a walking meal to them. The son of Hades was dedicated because fighting was his life. For his brothers, it was just a dangerous hobby. They didn't have to go out every night and fight crime. In his case, though, the fights found him and there was no way out except through. You can't reason with a hellhound. 

His Demigod readiness for combat and strategy made him somewhat of a prodigy. "He caught onto things as quickly as Tim, mastered them like Damian, incorporated the skills like Dick, and practiced them like Jason" Bruce had once mentioned to Diana. Even Batman was impressed. It was exceedingly difficult to impress Batman.

Nico didn't think that what he was doing was so impressive. He was learning from the best in the business, after all. It is said that Tim was becoming an even better detective than Bruce and Jason was a better fighter. Dick was all set to take over the cowl, being the oldest (whether he recognized this fact or not). Damian was the most in control at any given time and his mastery of weapons was unparalleled. Bruce was freaking Batman.

Nico didn't make all the mistakes his brothers had made because they told him how to avoid them. They were all so skilled and willing to pass on what they had learned over the years. The demigod had his heightened abilities and excellent teachers. His demigod inclination to fighting and combat as well as his increased strength and agility gave him an unfair advantage. Of course, he was learning faster. It helped that he was legally dead twice already and taking online school. There were little to no distractions from his training and prepping.

The thing that he was the worst at would be bomb disposal and some of the more extreme sports. 

 There were a few that he only tried once, like surfing, though that wasn't even really that extreme. He also hadn't been any good at skiing, snowboarding, or free climbing. Acrobatics also wasn't really his thing, though what little he could do helped a lot with parkour.

I had refused to try skydiving; that was asking to be smited. However, he did learn how to cave jump and then climb his way back up. Nico had insisted on learning that one, despite Bruce's misgivings. After all, Tartarus is basically one huge cave. They didn't need to know his reasoning, though. He explained that he had wanted to learn anything that would help him in the mythological world.

The only family member that he couldn't hold his own against in a fight was Jason. He was crazy good. Even Bruce had trouble against him sometimes. Maybe it had something to do with the Lazarus pit? Nico had heard the story of his rebirth and it confused him. Nico had always wanted to know where the reviving pit was but he could never find it. Perhaps father knew where it was.

The son of Hades decided to look into it if he had time. It might give Jason some answers. He didn't know if he was really searching for answers, but it was just an idea. He was sure Thanatos would at least be interested in this fountain of life. Speaking of which, where is Thanatos?

Nico followed Tim down into the cave with a sinking feeling in my stomach. He hadn't remembered to look for Thanatos. Something told me that it wasn't his place, but that hadn't ever stopped me before. Nico hoped the god of death was alright.

When they got to the arena, the pair faced off. Neither one of them really liked making the first move so we spent a few seconds circling each other.

Eventually, Tim got tired of waiting and lunged for him. Nico dodged, and the fight began.

Fighting against any of his brothers was brutal. None one held back. You often walked away bruised and in pain. Pain was the best teacher. Anyone who was to see their torsos after one of rheir fights would probably think that we were being abused or something. We would be absolutely covered in bruises.

The fight went on for a while, with neither one of us getting an upper hand. His side ached from a well-placed roundhouse kick and his head throbbed from a punch to the face. The son of Hades had managed to minimize most of the damage, but Tim had gotten in a few good blows while he was trying to recover. Tim hadn't made it out without a scratch either, though. Nico had nailed him in the chest with a swift kick and he had swept his brother's feet out from under him. Nico had tried to take advantage of the fact that Tim was on the ground, but he was expecting that and pulled the older boy off his feet.

Nico did a backward roll back onto his feet. The pair circled for a few moments before they lunged at each other and started exchanging blows. There was no fancy acrobatics now, we both just stayed firmly planted and tried to take as little damage to vital areas as we could.

His increased speed allowed him to keep Tim on the defensive most of the time. Nico was getting tired, though and he knew he couldn't keep this up much longer. He had to end this fight, and quickly. When he saw an opening, he took it.

Tim made to punch him in the face but Nico grabbed his wrist. The older boy stepped up onto one of his brother's bent knees and threw his other leg up over Tim's shoulder. He used his momentum to swing forward and flip Tim forward onto the floor. Nico made sure to tuck as much as he could as to not hurt himself.

Once Tim was on the ground Nico pulled the hand that he still had hold of up and locked his legs around his throat and chest. It was, effectively, a chokehold and an armbar. Each time he fought Nico would tighten or adjust his grip until the other boy had no choice but to give up. It was rare he would be in a position where he would win in a fight against any of the bats. This had mostly been lucj and good timing. If it had been early on in the fight, the move wouldn't have been nearly as effective. Tum would have still have had enough energy to force his way out. 

Nico heard clapping behind them and noted that Bruce was leaning against a railing watching us. He stood and helped Tim up.

"Good job, you two. That was impressive. Nico, I think you're just about ready to go out into the field, if you wanted to. WIth supervision, of course. Maybe even as more than a consultant." Bruce praised. Nico nodded though he wasn't sure if that was what he wanted. Bruce didn't seem to want an answer tonight, so he still had time to think about it.

"Tim, nice roundhouse kick. I see you've been practicing." Tim nodded, taking a long drink of his water.

"Go get showered and change, Nico. It's time to go and talk to the team." The son of Hades nodded, though a sense of dread came over him. Nico had forgotten about that during the fight.

He tried not to think about the team as he got cleaned up or changed. Nico pulled on mhis Ghost uniform, finding that it fit better than it used to. He must have gained some weight, most of is muscle. Alfred would be pleased, at least.

When he was done he met Batman in the cave. The vigilante was waiting next to a Zeta tube, looking through Gotham local news reports and such. He never stopped working, it seemed.

"You ready?" Batman asked as the demigod approached.

"Define ready." He returned, nervously. He didn't know if he could handle a possible rejection right now.

"You'll be ok. They can be pretty judgemental, but I think they will open up to the idea."

"Oh, great," Nico replied sarcastically, "I feel so much better." Batman lead the way through the portal and he followed reluctantly behind. There was a flash of light and then they were in the Mountain.

It didn't take long for the team to gather. A lot of curious glances were thrown his way, but the attention was mostly on Batman.

"Ghost will be temporarily on the team, for now."

"Why?" Beast Boy asked. His voice didn't betray what he was feeling.

"His abilities are... unusual. They source from magic that he says comes from a curse on his family. This curse is passed down through the generations. He will report here until he has proven that he can control his powers well enough to not endanger civilians." Batman supplied.

"Will he stay here?" Artemis asked.

"No. I have agreed to let him leave under the condition that he wears a tracking device, and checks in with me daily. He will come to the cave three times a week for training." Nico was relieved to hear that he wouldn't be stuck there. That is the worst thing that could happen.

"Ghost, you know where the training room is, why don't you go and utilize it?" Batman suggested. His tone left no room for debate. The consultant sulked off towards the training room, knowing that they were going to talk about him once he was gone. The thought made him anxious so he went up to the hologram dias and turned it on. He pulled out his sword and began hacking down enemies in swarms. He knew he shouldn't overdo it because he had just trained some with Tim, but fighting helped to calm him and he got carried away.

A short while later he realized that he had an audience. Nico didn't pay them any attention, though, and kept fighting. His mind had gone into battle mode and all he knew was death. It was kill or be killed. Nico must have killed a hundred enemies before someone shut down the program.

He looked over to see who it was and saw Aqualad looking at him with pity. Nico sheathed his sword and walked over to the side of the platform to get down. Artemis was waiting there for him with a bottle of water. He didn't take it at first, not knowing if it was for him. He sat on the edge of the platform tiredly and she pretty much shoved it in the demigod's face.

"What is with you and not taking food or water?" Artemis asked as he hesitantly took it from her.

"Such things come for a price. I like to know what I'm paying up front," Ghost said easily. The heroes looked uncomfortable with his response.

"You will pay nothing here, my friend," Aqualad assured him.

"We just want to know some things about you," Wally said from the edge of the light.

"Ah, but that is a price. Information is one of the biggest commodities I deal in. Everyone wants to know something," he pointed out.

"You sell information?" Came a curious voice from the crowd. It was Garth. He hadn't been there when he'd talked about being an information broker. Or maybe he was and hadn't been paying attention. Nico couldn't remember.

"And services."

"Services?" The green boy asked again.

"He's an on-call coroner," Conner said gruffly and with disdain dripping off his words.

"I could be a prostitute." Nico countered, taking a drink of the water. Connor wrinkled his nose but said nothing.

"What else?" Artemis asked.

"Well, I could also be dead," he suggested, knowing full well that that wasn't what she meant.

"Ghost." She complained.

"Fine. Let's see. Sometimes I perform seances. Speak to the dead. Sometimes I do odd jobs. Sometimes I steal, if I have to," he shrugged. He had stolen when he lived in the labyrinth. Sometimes he would surface in a town and he'd have to pickpocket tourists for money for food. It wasn't something he was proud of, but it had happened. He had to eat somehow.

"You don't have to," Conner growled.

"The hell I don't! I'm not exactly employee material and the businesses in Gotham can tell. They have a nose for that sort of thing. I can't seem to get a steady job. Plus, I can't rent my own apartment in a good neighborhood because I'm not old enough. Orphanages in Gotham don't work because families don't want kids with records and most of them have a record of stealing to survive. So I exchange info, act as a medium, and stuff like that for food. At least I'm not a mercenary or something. I never take enough to hurt anyone and I don't kill human beings. What do you want from me, man?" Nobody spoke for a while.

Nico finished up the water and threw it in the trashcan about fifteen feet away. He had really gotten better with his aim. Nico nodded in satisfaction. Impulse stared at the trash can in utter amazement.

"Why didn't you become a mercenary?" Miss Martian asked.

"Because I don't like killing people?" Nico said as though that should be obvious. He wasn't a killer.

"What about your obsession with dead things? I mean, your name is literally Ghost." Wally pointed out.

"What, you think my pass time is making Ghosts? No. I see ghosts."

"Like, The 6th Sense?" Artemis frowned.

"The what?" She waves the question away.

"One of the things the curse allows me to do is see or summon ghosts. The name seemed appropriate."

"Do it. Summon a ghost." Conner dared him.

"No."

"Why not?" Artemis frowned. Nico eyed her wearily. This was going to be interesting.

"Ok, but you won't like how I do it. Has anybody got any happy meals?" Nico chuckled to himself.

"What?" Wally frowned in confusion.

"I don't know. The dead seem to like them. Any food and drink will work."

"We're not paying you..." conner started but he cut him off.

"Not for me, for the dead. Ghosts need something to keep them on this plane of existence, to remind them of having a mortal life. Food works best."

"Will some stale bagels and a 2 liter of coke work?" Wally asked. Nico nodded and he shot off.

"What else do you need?" Artemis sounded skeptical.

"This is the part that you all won't like," the demigod said in warning.

"What is it?" M'gann asked for the team.

"We need to dig a grave."

"This isn't for a human sacrifice, is it?" Impulse joked as they were digging a hole.

"You can't summon the dead with the dead. Would you want to go somewhere where you knew someone was just killed?" Nico asked, pausing my efforts to make eye contact with the boy. He wrinkled up his nose and shook his head.

They had dug the hole in the tree cover of the exterior of the mountain. It was starting to get dark and they had lanterns so they could see what they were doing. Nico looked at the hole, it would do.

"Come on, that's deep enough," he said climbing out of the pit. Wally had gathered some more coke and a variety pack of chips. The dead would like those more than the bagels.He opened the lid of the coke and poured it into the hole. Wally cried in indignation, saying that he was wasting it. Nico poured every last drop of coke they'd brought into the pit. Nico opened the bag of bagels and dumped it in. The food thumped against the bottom of the grave. Then he started opening each chip bag one by one. when he was done he turned to the team. 

"This is the point of no return. Once I start the ritual, I can't stop until the end," Ghost warned. The older members of the team exchanged glances.

"I want to see it," Zatanna spoke up for the first time, "Call it professional interest." Nico eyed her for a few moments before shrugging.

"Just remember, you wanted this." Nico summoned his sword and it appeared in his hand. Somebody yelped at it's appearance. Nico turned his body to the grave and started chanting the summoning ritual in Ancient Greek.

The fog of asphodel began to gather around the group as he continued the chant. He could feel the heroes getting restless around him as the fog started to gather into shapes. A few of the weaker-hearted members made their leave. This was not what they had expected. They had thought that he was lying.

The mixture began to bubble. The grave filled up with coke on its own, even though physics should have made that impossible. The bagels looked like giant cheerios in black milk. The chips were floating, unbothered by the liquid. By all rights, they should have been dissolving.

When I had almost finished the chant, figures started appearing in the fog. He allowed the first figure to approach the pool and held all others back. None dared approach at the sight of his blade, lest their souls are lost forever. There were some shocked gasps from the team as the apparition knelt to drink. As the offering touched his lips, he became solid. Well, more solid than fog. Nico recognized him. It was Hal Green he smiled at him.

"Hal." Chost greeted. He smiled at him in recognition. Masks wouldn't hide his identity from the dead. They'd be able to sense who he was no matter what he looked like. He pointed at the son of Hades and then made an explosion motion with his hands. Nico had asked him if he knew how to make Greek fire since that was how his house had burned down. He hadn't and pointed him to Thalia. Nico nodded.

"You know him?" Artemis sounded appalled.

"Hmmm? Oh yes, I have talked to him before. He died in a fire. It was a tragic accident." He said, telling a partial truth.

"Can you hear him?" Artemis asked again. She seemed to be the only one who wasn't speechless.

"Normally, yes. But Hal was mute in life so he is still mute. Normally we could all hear him." Hal waved before fading away.

"What the hell."

[Whoo! The team got to see Nico's powers! It's about time, am I right? Stick around for more shenanigans!]