Percy, Annabeth, Grover, and Will returned two days after Christmas, with some not so good news. The Egyptians were having just as hard a time of it as the Greeks and Romans had been having in the past month, with them not completely sure if it was Carter or Anubis who was in the most danger. And then there had been rumors, whispers in the air of other groups fighting battles, one that seemed to be Celtic in origin out east in California, another that seemed to be Norse in origin up north in the Dakotas. Whatever the case may have been, Chiron thought it best to only help the Egyptians, as they alone could be trusted, he felt. But the next time they would see the Egyptians, it would be on a battlefield, where all four groups would meet.

"Scip, what should we do?" the dark-skinned boy asked as they saw their friend emerging from the shadows. Scipio glanced back at the dark, sinister-looking castle he had just left. He shuddered at the sight of it, and that made him even more uneasy as such things hardly ever freaked him out, one reason why he could stand meeting Nico. And there was that mysterious writing, it made him queasy. He turned back to Riccio and Mosca.

"The only thing we can do at this point, we have to get Nico and his friends here. Maybe they can help us make sense of all of this. And if it's something evil coming through there, then all the more reason to have some seasoned warriors at hand. Come on, let's get out of here, this place gives me the creeps." Riccio would have normally commented on the rare times Scipio showed an ounce of fear, but this time, there could be no joking, nothing about the place seemed right, much less safe. Riccio himself shuddered before turning to follow Scipio and Mosca away from the sinister towers, it would be nice to have the Greco-Romans around, but if Scip was getting freaked out by that castle and that writing he saw, was it actually safe to bring the others in, seasoned warriors or not? Even if it meant putting their lives at stake, especially Nico? They continued on against the bitter chill of the wind, never looking back, not seeing the castle flickering like a candle flame trying not to go out.