Ghost King I

A shining knight appears

Will stood on the cracked sidewalk and looked up at Number 11 Grimmauld Place. Next to him, Mrs. O'Leary, whom he was "taking for a walk" (he somehow convinced Percy) woofed tiredly, which was a bit of problem as her barks made the ground vibrate. The ten foot dog was a bit suspicious, he thought, and he needed to get her somewhere she could sleep. But that wasn't his main priority. Nico had been here, he knew. Somewhere near him, his friend was being imprisoned. The very thought of it made him angry. How could anyone do that to Nico? He was just a kid!

A kid with a lot of trust issues, Will might add, and likely this situation wasn't helping a whole lot with that. He could imagine Nico shutting down completely, not talking to anyone. Sadly, it was a fairly believable thought, as the kid hardly ever tried to make nice with anyone. He had been impressed when he got the Iris Message from him. If Nico was actually going to the trouble of connecting with someone, then he must be in trouble. To him, it seemed like Nico just didn't want anything to do with people.

Will walked up to the door and shook the knob. It was, predictably, locked. Of course. He tried kicking the door a few times, but it showed no signs of giving in. Will squinted. Was there something else keeping him out? As far as strength went, he was stronger than most after the whole Styx ordeal, and he hadn't expected that a pathetic door like this would keep him out.

He glanced up and down the road, which was luckily deserted, and then unsheathed his sword, his bow and arrow were concealed, he was prepared for close handed combat. Will tried to keep his sword low and out of sight as he slashed through the door's hinges so that it swung in with one easy kick. Grinning to himself, he stepped into the grimy house and studied his handiwork. It looked like he could just put the door back up and it wouldn't look too suspicious that someone had forced their way in. Will picked it back up and propped it into place, but he wasn't too concerned. With the house in a state like this, a door could easily blow down any day.

Mrs. O'Leary lumbered through, knocking the door down again and busting the frame of the door so that it looked like someone had run a tank through it. Will brought her just in case.

Well, maybe that was a bit suspicious. Will groaned, but there was nothing he could do about it. Should he contact Nico now, then? As Mrs. O'Leary settled in the kitchen for a good nap, he fingered a golden drachma. No, he didn't know if Nico was alone, and he could get him in more trouble by letting his captors know that he had contacted someone. He'd have to find him without inside help.

Will started examining the floor for signs of life. The whole place was covered in dust, and he could see his and Mrs. O'Leary's recent prints. Mrs. O'Leary had made giant clouds of dust with each footstep, and she was now sneezing contentedly in her sleep. Even though her breathing was creating small tornadoes on the floor, she hadn't disturbed the footprints that littered the ground.

Will swung off his backpack and dropped it with a thud next to Mrs. O'Leary, who didn't stir. In it was all of the stuff he'd brought for Nico, but he if he was going to run into a monster, it would be a tad inconvenient to have it over his shoulder. Instead, he followed after the prints as they wandered upstairs and ended, seeming to walk straight through a wall.

Confused, Will extended a hand to touch the slightly damp and disgusting boards. Even for demigods, going through solid objects was just plain odd. Cautiously, he applied weight to the wall, but it didn't seem to give in the slightest, no matter how rotted they looked... and smelled. Will wrinkled his nose.

Anyways, he'd need to get through the wall. If it was decayed as much as it seemed to be, it wouldn't be a big deal, and he'd be able to bust through in a matter of minutes. Will took a step back and gave the wall a good, firm kick, one that had knocked many a demigod off their feet last summer. To his surprise, it didn't budge. "What the Hades?" he asked, arching an eyebrow. Then he started pounding it with his fists. "Fall down already!"