Sorry for the late update- I got on a roll with my story Heartland and couldn't help it. But enjoy this one!

Chapter Quote:

"There's a special place in my heart for the ones who were with me at my lowest and still loved me when I wasn't very loveable."
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Chapter 10: Just Like His Father

Derek

The son of Hades woke up with throbbing headache, so every time he would just go back to sleep. It was around the fifth or sixth time he woke up that he heard voices, multiple ones, and two that were familiar. But rather than make his presence known, he simply kept quiet. Besides, Derek didn't think he had the energy to talk anyway.

"How did you know how to unlock those cuffs?" Brady asked. It must've been Brady because Bradley was somewhere unknown with Silena.

"I recognized the scribing on them. Besides, when in doubt, blood usually works when it comes to chains like those," Bryn responded.

Bryn!

She was alive!

Derek's heart soared. Being controlled by Damianos, he'd been able to hear and see everything that the Eidolon was doing, but Derek hadn't been able to control his own body. But everything that Damianos knew, Derek did too now. If the Eidolon had known where Bryn was, Derek would have as well, but he hadn't. Not knowing where his sister had been all that time had been nerve wracking, so nerve wracking that more than once Damianos had told Derek directly to stop and relax, already a feat hard to accomplish when you were being controlled by a monster.

"She didn't have anything to do with you knowing that, did she? Considering it's one of her comrades who was using them?"

"She confirmed my guess, nothing more. She stays silent for the most part, only making herself known if I'm in trouble, like with Melinoë."

"How are we going to get him back to the car? It's a seven mile hike, I'm down for the count for a bit, and you can't fly us all the way there."

"Isabelle and Alec have gone ahead to the car. They left early this morning. They're calling Chiron to see if he can pull some strings with his centaur friends to get us back to the car."

"Do you always have a plan or are you just really good at winging things?" Brady asked, sounding slightly amused.

Bryn harrumped. "A bit of both I guess. Being a demigod, you kind of have to be good at both."

Derek figured it was time for them to know he was awake and alive, and kind of well. His head was still throbbing. He tried to say hi, but it just came out as a groan. It still got his friends' attention though.

"Hey!" Bryn exclaimed softly, appearing above him, her golden hair pulled back in a ponytail. "How are you feeling?"

"Not well to be honest," Derek groaned. "How long was I out?"

"As an Eidolon or as yourself? Because as an Eidolon, you were possessed a couple weeks. As yourself, you've been asleep for about twelve hours," Brady answered casually.

"Who are Isabelle and Alec?"

"Brady managed to get Isabelle and Alec and some others from a demigod camp in Brazil to come to my rescue up in New York when we had been taken hostage by the Eidolons. They got me out and took me to their camp. They joined me to come rescue you and the others. They're currently trying to get in touch with Chiron so he can get in touch with his centaur friends to give us a lift to our car."

"Where are the others? Have you rescued anyone else?"

"No, you're the first. I don't know where the others are. I was hoping you and Brady could help me find Bradley and Hallie. I can't get in touch with Bradley because the Eidolon is preventing me from reaching his mind, but since a twin bond is stronger than a normal sibling one, I was hoping Brady could."

"I haven't tried yet, but I could now if you want?" Brady offered.

"Only if you're up to it," Bryn told him.

"I can try too," Derek said.

"Only when you're up to it."

"Time is of the essence though, isn't it? And Hallie isn't being controlled by an Eidolon, so that should make things easier for us."

Derek closed his eyes, trying to reach his half-sister. He by no means intended to fall asleep, but he did. On the bright side, his objective of reaching his sister still succeeded. Derek landed with an 'oomph' on tiled floor. Moonlight flooded the room through open windows. Hallie sat in front of one of them, staring up at the twinkling stars.

"Hallie?" Derek asked. Her head snapped around to face him, eyes wide with surprise.

"Derek!" She exclaimed. "Are you okay? Where are you? I've been so worried about you!"

"I'm fine. I just got rescued by Bryn and two other demigods named Alec and Isabelle. We're in Death Valley. A fitting place to be considering I feel like death. How are you? Where are you?"

"Oh, she's with the Greenwoods. I remember them. They're good people, although Alec is a bit of a grumpy cat. I'm at Jal Mahal Palace. I'm okay, but I'd like to get out of these shackles," she remarked, holding up her hands which were bound in the same handcuffs that Damianos had had Brady in. "How's Bryn?"

"She's okay. Tired, and stressed, but okay."

"She hasn't done anything stupid, has she?"

"Not that I know of, but I'll get back to you on that once I'm sure. We're coming for you and Silena. We don't know when we'll get to you, but it'll be soon. I think it depends on who's closer to us. I fell asleep trying to contact you. That was unintentional but hey, still got the job done. When I wake up, I'll find out where Silena is."

"Are you up to fighting?"

"For my girlfriend, always," he responded immediately.

Hallie smiled. "How romantic. Well wake up and get going! Take care of yourself, take care of Bryn, take care of Brady, and I'll see you soon."

Derek woke up to Bryn, Brady and three centaurs standing over him. For a moment, the son of Hades thought he was still dreaming. At least until one of the centaurs nudged him with a hoof.

"What was that for?" Bryn asked in exasperation.

"Making sure he was alive," the centaur answered as Derek sat up.

"He was breathing," Brady pointed out.

"Maybe it was post-mortem breathing."

"That's not even a thing." Shaking his head, the son of Zeus said, "Derek, the one that kicked you is Harley. The centaur next to Bryn is Ducati. The one next to me is Yamaha. They're going to be giving us rides to our car. There are two more outside for Isabelle and Alec. You able to stand?"

"Yeah," Derek grunted, forcing himself up. He swayed a bit, but stayed upright. "Are the other two outside Kawasaki and Suzuki?"

"Yeah man! You know them?" Yamaha exclaimed.

"No, just a lucky guess." Derek had picked up on the fact that they were named after motorcycle brands. He had picked two off the top of his head; they just happened to have been right. With the help of Harley and Bryn, Derek got on the back of his centaur. Brady and Bryn simply floated a few feet of the ground and took position on the backs of theirs. They rode outside where Isabelle and Alec were waiting for them.

"You three ready?" Alec asked, squinting his eyes in the bright sun.

"Ready. Everyone, hold on," Bryn ordered, gripping Ducati's shoulders. Derek did the same. In the blink of an eye, they were galloping away, the desert and sky turning into a tan and blue blur. Within less than a minute, they were in front of a black Lexus.

"Before we go anywhere, let me make sure the car is functioning," Alec said, sliding off the back of his centaur. Taking the keys from his pocket, Alec got in the driver's side of the car and tried to get it to start.

Multiple times.

"It's not working. The car's too hot," Alec groaned as he got out. "We either need to wait for it to cool or find another way to get to our destination."

"Where are you five going? We could give you a ride there," Ducati offered. "I mean after all, you saved our skins from being wrecked by Tartarus so we owe you one."

Bryn gave them a smile. "It'd be smarter for us to go back to Camp Jupiter because Cora could help us, but I know a friend that's closer who might be willing to help us."

Isabelle cocked her head. "Who?"

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"Bryn Winchester and Derek Michaels! So good to see you two alive and well!" Pollux exclaimed, pulling them into hugs. "Although you both look like you've been through hell. What's happened since the last time I saw you? It's been what? A year? And who are your friends? Wait, is this Luke Jackson? You have to be. Tall, good looking, look a lot like your father to be honest."

"I'm not Luke," Alec stated, making a confused face.

"It's good to see you too, Pollux," Bryn interrupted, though seeming genuinely happy to see the demigod. "A lot's happened, but we'll catch you up later. This is one of my brother's, Brady, and then these two are Alec and Isabelle Greenwood."

"You have brothers? Where is Silena? And did you ever get Luke considering he's not here yet again?"

"Twin brothers. And it's a bit of a complicated story, but we'll tell you if you have time. We just need a place to recuperate and figure out our next move. If you're busy, that's fine. We'll go somewhere else. We know this was an unexpected visit."

"I don't mind at all. Please, please, come in!" Pollux moved aside, allowing the demigods to enter, but not before they thanked their centaur pals for the ride. Giving them the 'peace out' symbol, the centaurs ran off.

"This is a beautiful place," Isabelle complimented as they entered the familiar room. Derek relaxed more than he had in ages, glad to be in a familiar place.

"So where are the rest of you? Where's Silena?" Pollux queried.

"Currently being held captive by an Eidolon which is possessing Bradley. Another friend of ours is also being held captive by Luke who is also being possessed," Bryn explained.

"Weren't you trying to save Luke the last time I saw you guys?"

"Yes."

"He is definitely his father's son. Always getting into something. And always having an attractive blonde girl come save him. So, you all get freshened up and meet me back in here for some food, okay?"

Brady was the first to get in the shower because it'd been ages since he'd had one, and none of them were going to sugar coat it when they said they could smell him from all the way across the room. Derek took the other shower in Pollux's house, and Bryn took the third. Alec and Isabelle took his and Brady's when they were finished.

Finally, an hour and a half later, they were all in the kitchen, watching as Pollux made a massive pot of macaroni and cheese. Bryn, Brady, and Derek told the story of what happened before he'd been officially possessed. Then Bryn, Isabelle, and Alec told their story of what happened from the time Bryn had woken up and nearly taken out half the campers at Tribo do Divino to their encounter with the goddess of madness. Pollux listened intently, once in a while making a face or a noise of surprise during parts of the story.

"So let me get this straight," Pollux said after swallowing a mouthful of macaroni and cheese. "You two, Silena, and Luke fell into Tartarus, Bryn died and came back because the twins and this daughter of Hades got the Physician's Cure, and then you have a bit of a reprieve from saving the world until Eidolons decided to hitch a ride in your bodies and are now plotting world domination?"

"Sounds about right," Brady answered.

"Kaloí theoí..." Pollux muttered. "So where are you off to next?"

"Well, that depends on what Brady and Derek found out," Bryn said. Turning to face the boys, she said, "What did you find out?"

"Hallie is in Jal Mahal Palace," Derek said.

"And Bradley is somewhere in the Tianzi Mountains," Brady added. Alec groaned at the news while Isabelle pinched the bridge of her nose. Bryn looked one-hundred percent done with everything.

"So we have China and India," Pollux said. "One is thousands of acres and the other is a palace in the middle of water. It'd take forever to search the Tianzi Mountains, but Luke- or Balthazar- has Hallie, and he has all the powers Luke does, which means he'd be in his element," Pollux mused.

"We need to get Bradley and Silena first. Brady and I can hone in on Bradley's location and then we'll have Silena who can help us with fighting Balthazar," Bryn decided.

"I wish there was an easier way to do this, but she's right," Alec said.

"Then you all go get rested up. Stay as long as you need, and just let me know when you're ready to leave so I can send you with some provisions," Pollux said. For once, the demigods didn't argue with help. They were tired of carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders, especially Bryn and Derek who had been at this the longest out of anyone in the current group.

Isabelle and Alec crashed in the living room on the couch, having fallen asleep the minute they shut their eyes. Brady took the recliner and passed out almost immediately. Derek and Bryn took the guest room that had two twins bed in it. The minute they entered, Bryn pulled her friend into a bone-crushing hug. Taken aback by the sudden show of affection, he didn't hug her back immediately, but he came to his senses pretty fast and returned it.

"What was that for?" He asked when she pulled away.

"I missed you," she admitted. "And I wanted to say I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?" Derek stared at his friend when he recognized the expression on her face. With a sigh, he asked, "What did you do?"

"What do you remember from when I was fighting you when Damianos had control of you?"

"Uh, other than the fact that I'm bruised in quite a few places from where you hit me, not much. I mean your eyes turned gold briefly but-" Derek trailed off, an epiphany dawning on him. "You're-"

"Her name is Amara. She's the one they want to lead them, to join them. Before you yell at me, which I deserve for fraternizing with the enemy again, I made her swear on the Styx that she would just help me get her comrades out of you, Bradley, and Luke. She swore she doesn't want to join their party. In order for me to get her help, Amara asked to possess me so she could see how the world changed. She's saved my life a few times too. When we encountered madness, she stepped in and helped me fight back against Melinoë. If it hadn't been for her, I don't think I would've survived that. What I saw..." Bryn paused, terror flashing across her face as she thought back to what she had seen. "I wouldn't have been able to escape that on my own..."

Derek wanted to be mad. He was mad. But he was also glad that, for once, she'd told him what was going on, that she'd made another deal with the devil. He had also seen the fear, the horror, on her face when she remembered what Melinoë had shown her, and he hadn't seen that since Tartarus.

"I know you're mad, but you deserved to know. I kept secrets from you last time we had the weight of the world on our shoulders, and I don't want to do that again," Bryn said shyly. Derek pulled her into a hug. Bryn practically sank into his arms, wrapping her arms around him. It'd been ages since it'd been just the two of them. It used to be them against the world, and honestly, Derek sometimes missed that. He forgot that Bryn didn't tell him everything since Luke and Silena had come into their lives. He knew Bryn told Luke more than she told Derek; he'd known that for a while, which was why he hadn't always like Luke in the beginning. But he realized he'd done the same to Bryn; instead of telling her everything, he told Silena.

"I'm used to you making deals with evil immortals at this point," he chuckled softly. "But at least this time you told me. I'm assuming Amara can hear me, so she knows that if she screws you over and goes against her promise to you, I'm going to raise hell to take her down. Literally. I can literally raise it."

Bryn snorted. "I know you can. And she says to get in line because Brady already gave her the spiel."

"He talked to her?!" Derek exclaimed. "Wait, do Isabelle and Alec know?"

"Yes to the first, no to the second. Brady figured it out when we rescued you two. I've kept it from Alec and Isabelle because I don't think they'd handle it well if they knew. Just for now, let's keep it from them. Please. They don't know me like you and the others do. I'll tell them, I just... Alec and I just now got onto friendly terms. I don't want to ruin that by telling him what I did. Not until we have more of us back. We need all the help we can get," Bryn said, running a hand through her hair.

"I won't say anything. But you need to tell them at some point."

"I will." With that said, the two of them crawled into their beds, and Derek fell into a deep sleep within seconds.

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Sorry for the time it took to post this but I hope it was worth it!