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█ ⎯ locations; camp half-blood, new york city, victorian mansion ⎯ wc; 931 ⎯
xxxxxON THE MORNING the quest had been given, the entirety of camp half-blood was buzzing with the words. the members may have been aware listening to gossip or hearing such from a passing conversation, but there was yet a name to be said. the children of the gods seemed to be acting in such a way that everyone was on edge. the oracle never left the attic of the big house, nevertheless moved an inch. they had walked down the steps of the big house and blew into an angelic, milky white conch shell. their call had been heard by children eating their breakfasts early in the morning. the camp had never been more silent as the oracle read off their prophecy. their prophecy consisted of mystics and mysteries, claiming, "those that behold good and evil, must retrieve the staff of dark might, though the night be a fight, may their plight be right." dumbfounded, children ate their breakfasts in silent or secret whispers, dropping names and gossiping over which campers would be sent. the teacher of children, chiron alerted the oracle to take their place back within the shade of the big house's porch, which they obliged. the two discussed the specifics not too long before the second meeting was called and satyrs were sent to summon the chosen fourteen.
xxxxxTHE FOURTEEN were called inside the big house and to be sat around the circular plastic tables. it was almost humorous the way the dining room looked, filled with those gigantic tables and folding chairs. the drinks provided were out of boxes, cans of soda and sparkling water propped on the counters of the kitchen. dionysus, more fondly called by mr. d by campers, strolled into the room with his chalice of diet coke, capturing the eyes of the fourteen, who seemed to have a mixed reaction as to why they were here. some were anxious, picking at their hands or fiddling with gadgets beneath the table, some were neutral, minding their own business and waiting patiently, but some seemed to be seething that they were called upon, standing against walls with their hands folded in their pockets with down-trodden expressions to hide their distaste. "the oracle has called upon you fourteen for a reason. it's your problem to figure out how you fit, i truly don't care how or when you do it, but they said it was detrimental," he started, sipping from the chalice that seemed to hide his secret diet coke. he fished a note out of his pocket, unfolding it quite loudly that bothered few of the demigods. "giannis alexander, son of zeus, georgia sinclaire, daughter of athena, mr. undergrove, son of eleous, jaiydn elks, son of hermes, osiris jung, son of hades." he paused, clearing his throat and glancing over his audience to make sure they were still listening. now some looked bored, but he picked up again. "ms. hayes, daughter of hecate, sunisa knight, child of poseidon, taehyung hwang, son of.. well, my son." momentarily his face darkened, glancing at the son he'd have to wish goodbye to. "miss laureaux, daughter of aphrodite, celeste yu, daughter of hermes, hyun oh, son of (insert god,) nova liu, daughter of the muse urania, (pride), child of (god,) and finally, miss shin, daughter of fortitude." with raised eyebrows, dionysus's eyes glided over the rag-tag group of quest-goers. there were too many children to go unnoticed, but if their sacrifice was what was needed, then so be it. a few rolled up pieces of paper were handed to sunisa knight as mr. d shook their hand before he took his leave. was his only job to take a headcount? some found this to be normal, and others were even more offput than they were before.
xxxxxIT HAD TAKEN almost two days for the fourteen to agree that they would leave the same day to reach the mansion. there was an argument, whether traveling together was a good idea or if they should all travel on their own. the address given on one of sunisa's papers was an address, shown by a large, city block house on the outskirts of new york city, but that was al they'd seen. so they agreed to go their separate ways, but still aim for the same day to return to this mansion the quest had given directions for. they traveled alone, or together in small groups, but their plans had worked. whether some traveled along the routes to the city or trudged straight through the woods surrounding and protecting camp half-blood. the group of demigods met up outside of their target, which looked much larger and ominous in person. it was an old-fashioned victorian mansion, with columns and what seemed to be almost four floors to the house. no tenant dare live there, supported by some of the window shudders being broken off and desperately sun blanched. the house was topped with a small gargoyle statue, that seemed to watch the individuals approach with curious, life-like eyes. the steps were dirty, peeling off the paint, and broken, but the porch seemed fine, minus for a few holes here and there. the trees surrounding the lot were dead, rotten branches on the ground and haunting trunks of trees still standing despite becoming homes for many animals throughout the years. with the last individual to enter the property, the large black gates, rusted and old, swung shut almost like the wind had pushed them. there was something wrong about this house, for sure, but it still managed to beckon with almost a familiar hand.
