Highly encourage listening to the song considering it's called 'Madness'! Enjoy :)

Chapter Quote:
"Most good relationships are built on mutual trust and respect."
~Mona Sutphen
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Chapter 5: That Was Unexpected

Isabelle

When she woke up, the sun was shining down on the temple, but it still felt ominous around her. She couldn't wait to escape the place. Alec was sleeping on his back, bow lying across his chest. Isabelle knew the moment he sensed any danger, he'd be up like a shot, armed and ready to take down the threat. Bryn was staring down at her phone, biting her lip.

"What are you looking at?" Isabelle queried, sitting up.

"Nothing," she said, shoving her phone into her pocket.

"How long have you been awake?"

"Probably about five hours."

"You should've woken one of us. Then you could've gotten some sleep."

"I'm fine. I'm too anxious to sleep. Unfortunately, Adler can't fly us out of here so we're going to have to trek back and catch a flight to Vegas."

"Why are we going to Vegas?" Alec grumbled, his eyes still shut.

"Because on my brother and best friend are near there. They're the closest ones to us and each one can lead us to the rest, whether that be Bradley or Luke."

"You sure you're up to fighting after what you just went through?" Isabelle queried with no small amount of worry. Bryn was still visibly pale, but her eyes shone with a renewed brightness, a renewed spark. Whatever happened yesterday with Amara, it had given her some form of energy to keep trucking through this. It was admirable, not to mention impressive, but sooner or later, Bryn was going to crash from this high she was riding. Sooner or later, she would hit her breaking point if she kept going with taking a rest.

"I'm fine. If I could survive Tartarus, I can survive this. I'm ready to go whenever you two are," she replied. "I don't want to push you two but I also would like to get a move on. The faster we get to my family, the faster we can all go home."

Alec groaned as he sat up. "I'm all packed so Izzy, we're just waiting on you."

"Oh yeah, put all the pressure on me," she muttered, shoving things into her backpack. Bryn stood up, shouldering her own backpack before flying up to the roof of the temple. Alec walked out from underneath to see what she was doing.

"I see no civilization anywhere," Bryn admitted. "Not even a city and it's not hazy out so I can see for miles."

"So what exactly do you propose we do because it's not like we can just walk until we find people. That's crazy and we'd die before that happened," Alec pointed out.

"In all the histories I read, it always seemed that Macaria was never far from Melinoë. Maybe because they were sort of opposites of each other. There must be a way for them to connect because where we encountered Macaria wasn't far away from the temple. Of course, time moves differently with monsters and immortals so we may have gone through some sort of time warp."

"Are you speaking English?" Alec said, making a face at her.

She leapt down to the ground in front of him. "How long did it take you to find me and the temple?"

"Over two hours or so. Why?" Isabelle answered, walking over to join them.

"It took me less than five minutes to find this place. A time warp caused by immortals and monsters sometimes."

"What does that have to do with Melinoë?" Alec prodded.

"It means she's somewhere nearby and there must be a way for those two to link up without being far from the place they're stationing themselves at. A lot of immortals aren't like the gods who can travel wherever they want whenever they want. Their teleportation abilities are weakened." Bryn fell silent, staring off into the distance, but Isabelle could see the gears turning in her head. "Have either of you heard of the island of dolls?"

"Isla de las Muñecas? Yeah, it's supposedly haunted by a girl that drowned and cause the guy living on the island to go a bit mad," Isabelle said.

"And who's the goddess of madness?" Bryn replied, getting a gleam in her eye that said she was onto something.

It was Alec who had the answer. "Melinoë."

"There's got to be a way to get to Doll Island from here. It won't be in the temple, but..." Bryn trailed off, kneeling down and placing her hand on the stone. The siblings glanced at each other, slightly confused and slightly concerned at what their new comrade was doing. They'd heard stories about the great hero of the world: Bryn Winchester. Daughter of Zeus, Granddaughter of Aphrodite, great granddaughter of Hecate, and great-great-granddaughter of Apollo. A warrior whose skills were unparalleled, a warrior who had brought down the daughter of a Titan and a Titan himself. A warrior who had cheated death so many times that when she was finally caught, she was given a second chance.

And she wasn't the only one.

In the midst of the battle rescuing Bryn, Isabelle hadn't realized that the Eidolons had been the other legendary demigods: Luke Jackson, Silena Jackson, Bradley and Brady Winchester, Derek Michaels, and Hallie Argent. She hadn't known what they all looked like except the twins, and she'd been focusing on getting Bryn out of there on Brady's orders so it hadn't hit her that she'd been surrounded by legends until she'd gotten home and until she'd heard Bryn ask where her family was.

Isabelle wasn't sure what she had expected from the great Bryn Winchester. She expected her to have this charisma or enthusiasm for life; she expected this vivacious girl who knew everything and how to fight everything.

Bryn was very different.

She was quieter than Isabelle imagined, more calculating, more stoic. But she wasn't too upset about it because she'd seen this before. She'd seen it in her brother after the war and there was only one way to describe it: battle-worn. Not even the gods know what she'd been through in her life, what she'd experience in Tartarus. No one truly could. Only her friends and family came close and she needed them more now than ever.

But even knowing all that, Isabelle found the kneeling and feeling of the ground a little bizarre. But then Bryn stood up, rather excitedly, and said, "I think I know where it is. Follow me!"

Bryn ran down the steps of the temple with Isabelle and Alec struggling to keep up with her. She darted into the forest, leaping over rocks and sliding under logs and fallen trees, almost seeming to forget that she had companions with her until she skidded to a stop and turned around to wait for them.

"Where do you learn to run like that?" Isabelle asked as they started to go again.

"My boyfriend is a running back on his school's football team. He might have speed but I have agility, and we've had our fair share of races in the forest back at camp. It's the only way I can beat him in a race and even now he's starting to get better at it."

"Where exactly are we going?" Alec demanded, falling in-step with Bryn who had slowed down a bit so her comrades could keep up.

"I'll know it when I see it but it's in this direction," she answered.

"How do you know that?"

"Maybe I can sense the magic because I'm related to Hecate, I don't know. Just trust me!"

"I barely even know you!" he shot back. Bryn came to a stop and whirled on him.

"Okay, you know what, I know you don't like me and the feeling is mutual, but my family's lives are on the line and if you don't like how I'm leading things, then you get the Hades out of here. But I'm not going to let you and your animosity towards me hinder this mission. If you can't follow orders and get that stick out of your ass, then we'll get you to an airport so you can go. But otherwise, this is my family, this is my mission, and you volunteered to come, so you will listen to me. I'm not going to risk my family's lives over some stranger I just met. Keep up or stand down."

By this point she was nearly nose to nose with Alec who, despite being almost a head taller than her, seemed taken aback by her words but by no means was standing down.

"The last time I trusted a stranger, we lost our little brother. So excuse me if I want to make sure I don't lose my little sister," he snarled quietly.

"And I am truly sorry for that, but-"

"That stranger was you. You sent your brothers to tell us to prepare for a war. We did. We were told that when you and your army were needed, you would come save us. But when we needed you, you were nowhere to be found. So sorry if I'm having trouble trusting the person responsible for my brother's death."

"Alec!" Isabelle whispered harshly. "They had the battle in New York to take care of. If it weren't for them, we would've lost a lot more than we did. It was only because of them that we weren't caught entirely off guard when we were attacked."

"They came after us because she gave us away!" he barked.

"She came to us because she needed our help to save our kind."

"You convinced me to come on this quest so you could prove me wrong about her, but all this quest has done is prove to me that all she cares about is protecting her family. She doesn't care about us or the world."

"You're right, I would do anything for my family. My family is my world because for the longest time, I didn't have one. Even when I finally had my family together, most of us were broken. But I was protecting them before we became the family that we are today. Just like I will protect you two if need be. I'm sorry for your loss, I really am, because I know what that loss feels like, but don't punish innocents to punish me. I'm going to continue on this mission, whether that's with the both of you, one of you, or alone. I don't care what you two do, but this conversation is done."

Bryn turned around and continued on her path, walking instead of running. Her hand was gripping her sword so tightly that her knuckles were white. Isabelle knew that even though Bryn was angry, Alec's words had gotten to her. They'd gotten to her badly.

"What in Hades' name Alec?" Isabelle chastised.

"We're finding a way home. She's better off alone," he said, walking away from the spot.

"No, I'm going with her."

"You're what?" Alec turned to his sister, a mixture of bewilderment and annoyance on his face.

She crossed her arms. "I'm going with her. I don't blame her for what happened to Simon. It was beyond her control and based on what I've heard, she was most likely stuck in Tartarus when it happened."

"Why are you making excuses for her?" he demanded angrily, his eyes full of rage.

"Because while we might be kids of Ares, and we might be children of war, our mother was kind and forgiving and I want to honor her memory by giving Bryn the benefit of the doubt. She's been through hell, literally, and she shouldn't be going off on this mission by herself. I'm going to help her, with or without you."

Before her brother could stop her, she ran off to catch up with Bryn. Judging by the silence behind her, Alec wasn't coming with her. It hurt that her brother wasn't tagging along but she respected his difference in opinion. Of course, that didn't mean next time she saw him, she wouldn't be angry. She would be, and she would let him know it.

"Bryn, wait up!" Isabelle called out. The daughter of Zeus turned around in surprise but didn't stop; she simply walked backwards. She should've focused on what was behind her because in the blink of an eye, she was suddenly gone without a trace. Isabelle halted, entirely perplexed by what had just happened. Hesitating only a moment, Isabelle went to the place where her comrade had been when she herself was suddenly transported to a different place. Only a couple seconds later, she heard her brother swearing behind her.

"The hell just happened?" he muttered.

"I see you decided to come join after all," Isabelle mused, pushing herself up off the ground and brushing off the dirt. "Where are we?"

"Isla de las Muñecas," Bryn answered from a few feet away.

"Does anyone hear the whispering?" Isabelle queried, glancing over her shoulder when she thought she heard someone call her name.

"It's whispering but don't listen to it. This is Melinoë's territory and we're more susceptible to her magic because she's going to recognize us as demigods and will strengthen the magic to drive us to madness. Be on your guard and we can't separate. Whatever you hear, whatever you see, ignore it. If you want to question it, ask. If the rest of us can see it, chances are it's real and-"

"Bryn, look out!" Alec ordered, firing an arrow at the black shadow behind her. Bryn ducked, scrambling over next to Isabelle. The shadow solidified in front of them into a girl with long, flowing hair, half of which was black, the other half white. Her skin was the same tan color as Macaria, but her eyes... they were terrifying, black voids. Isabelle was enraptured by them. She couldn't look away.

"Hello younglings," the woman said.

"Melinoë," Bryn greeted, giving her a bow but not taking her eyes off the goddess. "It's an honor."

"Bryn Winchester. You're a sight for sore eyes. Last time I remember seeing you, you were paralyzed in Tartarus about to watch your friends die."

"How did you-"

"I escaped when Kronos came into power for those brief moments of bliss, but I can still travel to and from the Underworld. Dear old dad realized I joined sides because he neglected what I wanted so he said I could haunt here. But he has Macaria making sure I don't stray which is annoying. Please, come with me. It's so rare that I have visitors who can see and talk to me."

Melinoë sashayed off. The three demigods glanced at each other before cautiously following her. There was a mutual agreement that it would be better to avoid pissing off the goddess of madness. They followed her to a little shack located next to the water. Upon entering it, there wasn't much to see except for a table with four chairs and some broken dishware. The place was dusty, there were spiders everywhere which was noticeably freaking Bryn out, and a snake was curled up in the sink, eyeing the demigod with beady, black eyes.

"What can I get you to eat? Surely you must be hungry," Melinoë said, opening up a cupboard and grabbing some dusty packets.

"Oh, no, we're not hungry. We ate breakfast already," Bryn lied. Isabelle never condoned lying but in this case, it was understandable and preferred.

"We're just trying to get to California. To visit some friends, but we took an accidental detour and ended up here," Alec added. "If you could point us in the right direction to get to an airport, it'd be greatly appreciated."

"I want something in return if I help you," the goddess replied in a sing-song voice that was eerily beautiful. She stepped silently up to Alec and tried to run her fingers down his face, but he jerked back.

"Please don't touch me," he said firmly.

"If you want to mess with someone, mess with me. You'll have a lot more fun with what's going on in my head," Bryn challenged, staring down the goddess. "You've seen what I've been through."

"Yes, but you've come to terms with it. And it's hard to see the madness within someone when it's already made itself visible."

"What is she talking about?" Isabelle asked. Now Melinoë turned her full attention to the daughter of Zeus whose confidence began to falter visibly.

"It's not very often I've met someone whose encountered madness and survived it. What makes you tick Bryn Winchester?" the goddess queried, cocking her head.

"Let my friends get away from here to find transportation to the city," Bryn said, her voice stronger than Isabelle would've guessed it to be with how shaken she was starting to look. "Find what makes me tick and leave them be."

"Oh I already know what makes them tick," Melinoë said, waving her hand nonchalantly at the Greenwoods. Isabelle was slightly offended until her brother caught her attention.

"Simon?" Alec breathed, involuntarily stepping forward. Isabelle grabbed onto arm but he yanked it out of her grip. At that moment, Bryn stumbled backwards, her back crashing into the wall. She threw her arms out to either side of her in an attempt to stabilize herself as she went down.

"What are you doing to them?!" Isabelle demanded, yanking Melinoë away from Bryn. The void eyes turned on her, bearing down on her. Isabelle was suddenly running through the forest with a thirteen-year old Alec, and five-year old Simon, and her parents.

"Where are we going?" She heard herself ask.

"A safe place," her mom huffed out. "Come mija! We must hurry!"

At that point, her father halted and said, "Pegue as crianças. Eu lhe darei mais tempo."

Take the children. I will give you more time.

It was odd hearing her mother's Spanish and her father's Portuguese again. It'd been so long...

"You cannot take them on all by yourself!" her mother argued, on the verge of hysterics.

"I know, but if you and our children get to safety, then I will pass in peace, meu amor."

"Alec, take Isabelle and Simon and run. Run as hard and as fast as you three can. Your father and I will give you as much time as we can. Look for entryway made of spears. Cross its border and you shall be safe. I love you," Mrs. Greenwood told them in choked back sobs. She gave each of them a hug and a kiss, followed in suit by their father. "We shall see you soon. We love you. We will always love you. Now go!"

Alec pulled Isabelle's hand and with Simon in tow, dragged his siblings away. Isabelle had just lost sight of her parents when she heard the first scream. She cried out for her mom but either she couldn't hear her daughter or something terrible had happened. Deep down, Isabelle knew it was the latter.
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