A/n: I'm so sorry it took so long to update!!!! I've just been really busy and lost motivation to write. On the other hand this gave me time to come up with more ideas for what happens in this story, so I guess some good came out of the wait. Now, here's the chapter!

PoV: Hazel

When I regained consciousness, the first thing I noticed was the lack of metal, or rather, it's pull. My connection to metal was gone, and I could only describe it as strange. An ominous buzzing filled my head, like a fly was buzzing in my ear and wouldn't leave.

As I opened my eyes, I saw only Piper, Percy, and Frank awake. Frank sighed in relief when we made eye contact, and I smiled back before I realized where we were. Every demigod at Camp Half Blood was in the Mess Hall, and the tables had been moved into straight rows, with demigods tied to each one. While it seemed a bit simple, considering how strong most of us were, whatever was holding us in place wouldn't budge as I tried to break free.

That's when I decided to look around at my friends. Piper must've gotten her charmspeak to work at some point, because she had a gag in her mouth to keep her from talking. Frank had a few cuts on his arms and one down the side of his face, but they didn't seem too bad. Jason was still unconscious and had a bump forming in the back of his head; he must've hit something and it knocked him out, along with probably giving him a concussion. I couldn't see Nico or Dex anywhere, and I just had a few small scratches that were even insignificant compared to Frank's. Fitz was also still unconscious, and he just looked bruised.

The person who looked the worst was Percy. It wasn't any physical injury that looked so bad. It was his expression. He just looked... tired. Tired of everything. As if life had no meaning anymore. I knew he had missed Annabeth, and that they promised never to leave each other again, so losing this battle must've been hard on him.

As I sat there, the realization that Dex and Nico weren't there sink in, and, despite what was happening, it caused me to smile. I was still worried about Dex and if he'd woken up, but the fact that he wasn't here gave me hope that maybe they hadn't found him, or that Nico managed to get him out. Either way, he was safe for now.

I turned my head at the sound of footsteps approaching. As I saw the dark hood rising up from the stairs, a strange instinct told me I shouldn't act awake. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Frank slouch over, so I tried to force myself to relax as I closed my eyes.

I heard the footsteps walk on the pavilion floor come towards me before stopping near me. Trying to keep my breathing slow, I let him jerk my chin up as he inspected me before letting it drop. 

His footsteps stalked towards where Percy was sitting, "So, it's just you two still?" He asked. His voice sounded very similar to Fitz's, with a sharp, crisp accent.

 " I guess. Though, if you wanted us awake, maybe you shouldn't have knocked everybody out! "

I had to keep myself from cringing as I heard the sound of a hand hitting Percy's cheek hard. "You don't get to order us around. Maybe you were great to these people, but compared to us you deserve no more respect than a child."

" It was just a suggestion, " Percy grumbled, "Besides, why do you want them awake anyway?"

" Not all of them need to be. Just you, the curly haired girl, and Fitz. We don't care about anyone else. "

I felt someone's eyes land on me. Why I was important to the Neverseen's plans was unknown to me, but I had a feeling it had something to do with a certain child of Athena.

Percy must've come up with the same conclusion I had, because I heard him laugh, "You really think we know where they are? Annabeth doesn't tell me any of her plans when they're important! And Leo's just... well, Leo. How are we supposed to know? "

"Well, you're Miss Chase's boyfriend, the girl has an... interesting relationship with Mr Valdez, and Fitz, Dex, and a few others have gone missing. If Fitz is here, he has to know where the others are."

"Speaking of Fitz, are you guys related?" Percy asked with what sounded like a smile, "Cause you sound and look a lot alike. Not to mention the weird, evil brother he told us about. "

I didn't remember Fitz ever mentioning having an evil brother before, but the sound of another slap proved that he hit a somewhat sensitive topic, "Fitz is no brother of mine. He refuses to accept his role in our legacy."

" Hate to point out the obvious, but no one wants to accept their part in a legacy. Good or bad. "

The person who was apparently Fitz's brother sighed, "You're just like both of them. Unwilling to accept who they're supposed to be but become them none the less."

Percy started saying something, but was interrupted by Jason, who was groaning as he woke up. I dared a peek out at what was happening, and I saw a man with brown hair, weird, blue green eyes, and an evil smile walking over to Jason. I quickly shut my eyes again before he noticed me.

"Well, look who's awake," everything in his voice dropped with a sickly sweet sarcasm, " Sleep well? " he chuckled and I heard him approaching me again. Jerking my chin up again, it took everything in me not to tense up at his touch. I kept my mind as empty as I could, hoping it would help distract me from him.

I let my head fall as he removed his hand. More footsteps stalked forward, and I had to try very hard not to open my eyes, since the man may have still been watching me. "Alvar," a female voice asked. It was hard not to react since she was the one from the fight. The one who " liked me" or something, "Anything?"

 There was the sound of moving fabric as Fitz's brother - Alvar - shook his head, "She's still out."

Whoever this new person was came up to me. She was so close I could feel her breath in my neck. She turned my face to the other side before backing away, "She looks almost dead. Can humans really take that little?"

" Um, that's called sleep, " Percy interrupted, "And we're not humans."

"Yes yes, we know, Percy Jackson. I was just comparing you to my research on humans. Apparently, you're stronger, so if your friend really is dead, humans must be far weaker than I expected. "

"Hold on, 'research on humans'?" Jason asked, "What does that mean? "

 "You wouldn't understand, Mr Grace. My whole life is dedicated to my work, and I have learned more about humans than you ever will over the centuries. Anything I told you, you would refuse to consider, so what's the point?"

 The silence seemed to be answer enough for whoever was talking to us because she huffed and walked away, with Alvar's footsteps soon following. I still didn't care move in case Alvar was still watching until I heard Frank hiss, "You're good, Hazel."

I opened my eyes and say up, grinning slightly as I saw Percy and Jason's shocked expressions. " What? " I whispered.

"You were awake the whole time? " Percy asked, though I could see he still was upset, even with all his sarcasm and smiles.

I nodded, "I thought you knew."

" In our defence, you looked pretty dead. " Jason said, earning a glare from Piper, "What? Wait, Piper?!"

Piper shrugged before tilting her head in my direction, "Percy, " I started, "How'd you know Fitz had a brother?"

" I didn't. It was a guess. "

"Also, has anyone brought up Dex or Nico? "

"All I know is that they're frustrated since they aren't here. "

I sighed with relief as Jason cleared his throat, "So, I'm guessing that you know what those people are?"

Percy sighed, "Yeeaah. We do."

" And I'm really sorry, but right now isn't the best time to explain. " I added.

The group went quiet until Percy gave a grim chuckle, "You know, Hazel? You were right. They brought danger. We knew they might, and we let them in anyway. And it's my fault. Who knows what'll happen now. "

Okay, first things first: I know Alvar has teal eyes. I just wanted to see how realistic I could be in this chapter, and when you have you're eyes open for such a short amount of time, you won't be 100% accurate. Soooo...

Secondly, I just wanted to apologize again for this being so late, and that my updating will probably get worse, since I'm getting more busy lately. I'm really sorry, but it's just how things are right now. So, until next time!