Chapter 48

Can't we just get along?

At the Institute

The next day, Scott was outside washing his car when suddenly his phone started ringing.

Scott looked at his phone and saw it was Dean. He picked up, "Hello?"

"Hey" Dean said plainly.

"Hey" Scott said awkwardly, "What're you calling me for?"

"I kinda need your advice on something" Dean said in a low voice, as if he were embarrassed.

"Ok, well what is it?" Scott asked.

"You see, it goes like this" Dean summarized the previous day to him.

"You lost both matches?" Scott sounded shocked.

"I wish I was joking, but no. I haven't felt this embarrassed since my brother kicked my ass" Dean said sounding depressed, "It's like none of my plans work at all"

"First lesson you'll learn whenever you lead a team is that no battle plan ever survives the first contact with the enemy. You always have to be prepared to alter and adapt your strategy on site" Scott said.

Dean sighed heavily, "Well that's great and all, but do you have any advice about team morale or something like that?"

"Team morale?" Scott asked curiously.

"None of them listen to me, I mean I'm trying to be a good friend and be nice but they won't take me seriously" Dean said.

"Sometimes you have to be a strict leader, even if it means being mean" Scott admitted.

Dean thought about that for a second, "Is that why you're a dick?"

"What?" Scott misheard him.

"Uh nothing, I gotta go bye" Dean hung up.

Scott stared at his phone for a moment, 'I'm not a dick…..am I?'

At Camp Half-Blood

Dean showed up to the sandpits, his hand now completely healed, fingers and all. His ability to recover has been improving, especially with all these injuries that he sustains.

"Oh look, our great leader is here" Tim joked.

Jon and Billy laughed lightly.

Dean ignored him.

Across from them stood the team comprised of the Hephaestus cabin.

Chiron stood between the two teams waiting for him to arrive, "Now we can begin"

Dean stepped onto the sands and entered his stance.

Charley stood across from him holding his hammer and shield, "I heard you've been on a losing streak" he said before readying himself.

Dean looked frustrated, "Now's not the time" he said with a serious expression.

"Begin" Chiron signaled the start of the fight.

Dean began with three swift attacks. A left, a right, and a downward slash.

Charley deflected the left with his hammer, blocked the right with his shield, and blocked the downward slash with his hammer before he swung his shield.

Dean backed away, avoiding the shield, and slashed downward again.

Charley blocked the attack with his hammer.

They pushed against each other to test each other's strength.

"You think he's got this?" Jon asked.

Tim shrugged as he observed, "He's beaten him before, so probably"

As Charley began to push Dean back he noticed his opponent's attention was elsewhere. Dean's attacks seemed slower and lacked the proper force.

Charley went for a shield bash and Dean did the same to counter him.

Their shields clashed and Dean was forced to take a few steps back.

Charley advanced and swung his hammer downwards.

Dean covered himself with his shield with the little time he had. His knees buckled under the force of the blow.

Charley kicked Dean's shield sending him flying backwards.

Dean rolled backwards and back onto his feet.

Charley closed the distance between them and swung his hammer horizontally.

Dean blocked with his shield and stabbed forward.

Charley leaned to the side, to avoid having his shoulder skewered.

Dean then flipped his sword into a reverse grip and was about to stab downwards before Charley tackled him.

Charley landed on top of Dean with his shield on top of Dean's sword arm.

Charley then went to swing his hammer downwards.

Dean let go of his shield, to have a free hand, and grabbed his wrist before the hammer could get too close.

Once again, the two of them were caught in a power struggle.

"C'mon man, you can do better" Billy said wishing his friend would start kicking ass like he usually does.

"I think he's a little off his game" Tim made an observation.

Dean heard the little conversation on the sidelines and couldn't help but stare at his teammates with an annoyed expression.

Charley looked at Dean and noticed him gazing over at his teammates.

'I don't know why he's so unfocused but I'm not about to let this opportunity slip away' Charley thought before he headbutted Dean opening a gash above his brow.

Dean grit his teeth in anger. He shifted his weight and rolled over so he was on top and slashed downwards.

Charley blocked it with his hammer just in time.

Dean then began punching Charley in the face repeatedly with his free hand.

Charley bashed Dean with his shield knocking him off.

Dean got on his feet first and saw Charley was about to stand up. He moved as fast as he could and slashed horizontally to try and catch Charley right as he stood up.

Charley faked his motion and ended up using his motion to add momentum into a swing for his hammer.

Charley hit Dean's ribcage, and as the hammer struck his armor multiple loud cracking noises could be heard.

Dean was knocked down sideways as he cried out in pain.

Charley froze as he realized he finally hit his opponent.

Tim frowned, 'C'mon, he should have seen that fake coming' his friend must have trouble focusing if he didn't notice a simple maneuver like that.

Dean closed his eyes and clutched his side as little drops of blood oozed out of his chest piece. His ribs must have punctured through his skin.

"This fight is finished, Charley is the victor" Chiron said with a shocked expression, he thought Dean would be too far ahead of Beckendorf for him to beat him in single combat.

As soon as he said the word victor Dean's eyes opened with lightning flashing inside them. As he clutched his side he slowly got to his feet and as he did lightning began to spark around his glared at Charley with a look that made him afraid of what Dean might do.

Charley took a few steps back out of fear.

Jon observed Dean in fascination, he'd never seen his friend gaze upon an opponent with such intensity. It almost made him jealous that the two of them weren't on opposite teams, in his current state he would make a deadly opponent.

Chiron put himself between the two of them, "The fight is over" he said sternly, "See yourself to the medics"

Dean clenched his fist as rage built up inside him, the lightning around him increased in size and would appear more often. The lightning began to crackle, and the air around him began to smell like ozone. He held out his clenched fist which was crackling with lightning, "I'm not finished yet!" he shouted.

"This is a training exercise!" Chiron shouted to get through to him, "Not real battle, calm yourself"

He wanted to do anything but that, but Dean forced himself to calm down and as he did the lightning around him faded. Once it was gone Dean felt completely drained, like he overexerted his muscles or something.

"I'll be back" Dean told his team as he went to get patched up.

Charley exhaled deeply, still feeling a little jumpy.

Chiron faced Charley, "Don't worry Charley, you did nothing wrong. Give him some time, he'll get over it"

Charley gulped, "I hope so" he returned to his team.

Billy looked at his two teammates, "What….what was that?" he asked sounding dumbfounded, "He looked like he was about to incinerate Charley with his eyes"

"Looks like he has a lot of reserve energy" Tim pointed out, "That or he's been hiding his power from us, personally I think the earlier"

"I don't think we should piss him off anymore" Billy said worrying he might be a victim of a spontaneous lightning strike.

"I wanna see that again" Jon said with a smile, as if he couldn't wait to face it himself.

The next person from the Hephaestus cabin, Jake Mason, stepped forward.

"Regardless, let's focus on the task at hand. I got this one" Tim said cockily.

Jake drew his dual hammers from his back. The actual hammer heads weren't very large, but the handles were unnaturally long.

Tim analyzed his opponent's weapons, 'Definitely not your average hammer. The length gives him a good amount of melee range, and the small hammer heads allow him to maneuver swiftly'

"Begin" Chiron signaled the start of the fight.

Tim's train of thought was interrupted as Jake leaped and swung his dual hammers downward.

Tim raised his staff and blocked the attack by holding it horizontally. As the hammers made contact his knees buckled from the force of the attack.

'I guess all of Hephaestus' kids inherit the same strength' Tim thought. He lowered his staff and struck Jake in the chest with it knocking him back.

Jake then swung his right hammer low for a leg sweep.

Tim jumped over it.

Jake had anticipated this, and swung his left hammer towards his chest.

Tim blocked with his staff but was sent flying back. When he landed he tumbled a few times before he regained his footing.

Jake swung his hammers downward, not letting his opponent rest even for a moment.

Tim backed away letting Jake strike the ground, kicking up some of the sand in the process.

Tim pole vaulted over him to gain some breathing room, 'His offense isn't to be taken lightly, but what about his defense?'

Jake turned around right as Tim struck him in the face with his staff.

Tim then spun around, swung his staff low and swept Jake's legs.

Jake fell on his back.

Tim went to stab Jake's shoulder with the point of his staff.

Jake deflected the attack with one of his hammers.

Tim then spun his staff around and sliced Jake's thigh.

Jake rolled backwards to his feet and backed away from a swing from Tim's staff.

Tim kept the pressure on his opponent.

As Jake tried his best to defend himself it was clear his expertise was limited to offensive strategies.

'So attacking is all he's good at, well then this is gonna be too easy' Tim thought as he paused his attacks.

Jake didn't waste a moment and immediately went on the offensive again.

Tim dodged and blocked a few attacks before going on the offensive again.

Jake retreated as he tried his best to avoid any incoming attacks. He looked like a nervous wreck trying to keep up with Tim's fluid flow of movement.

Tim then stopped his attack once again to let Jake move. This back and forth change of pace started to amuse Tim.

'I wonder how long I can keep this up' Tim thought as he laughed inwardly.

Then suddenly Jake decided to throw one of his hammers, catching Tim completely off guard, and hitting him square in the face.

Tim dropped his staff and staggered back in a daze.

Jake swung his hammer and struck Tim on the side of his face.

Tim dropped to ground, out cold.

"Jake is the victor" Chiron announced.

"And another one bites the dust" Billy said shaking his head.

After being bandaged, and given ambrosia and nectar, Dean returned to spectate.

"Shouldn't you be resting?" Chiron asked.

Billy and Jon rested Tim on the sidelines.

"I'll rest when I'm dead" Dean limped next to Tim, "What happened to him?"

"He looked like he had it in the bag, and then he went splat" Billy laughed.

Next from the Hephaestus team, Nyssa Barrera stepped forward.

Billy smirked, "Piece of cake"

She looked like one of those female action heroes, except for that smiley face band aid on her chin. She had coco brown skin and was wearing a tanktop and a red bandana to tie back her dark hair.

Billy zipped over to Nyssa, "Well hello Hilary Buff" he flirted with a smirk.

Nyssa frowned, "My name is Nyssa, and I know who you are" she said with bitterness in her voice.

Billy had a reputation around camp for sleeping around, especially with the girls from the Aphrodite cabin.

"Well then you must know all about the magic I make in the bedroom" Billy said suggestively.

Chiron cleared his throat awkwardly, "Whenever you're ready"

"Billy, now would be a good time to shut up" Dean suggested.

"Shhhh, I'm wearing her down" Billy whispered to Dean.

Nyssa held a single hammer in her right hand. Whereas Charley's and Jake's were more angular and rough, hers was smoother and rounder. The head itself almost resembled a crocket head but larger and made of metal.

Nyssa held her weapon behind her back with both her hands, in a cute way, "Really?" She asked batting her eyes at him in a flirtatious way, "Tell me more" she said as she took a step forward.

Jon took out his phone, "I'm recording this" he said with giant smirk.

"No, you're not wearing her down" Dean whispered trying to get Billy's attention.

Billy went closer, "I've been told my penis grants wishes" He said as he winked at her.

Jon put his free hand over his mouth to stop himself from dying of laughter.

Nyssa pursed her lips, "Ooh, how does that work?" She took another step forward.

"Dude she's playing you" Dean whispered desperately trying to get his friend's attention.

Billy was barely a foot away from her now, "Just rub it a little and a genie will pop out" he said with a smile.

Nyssa had a lustful look in her eyes as she placed one hand on his shoulder, "That sounds…" her gaze lowered to his groin and then knee'd him there as hard as she could, "Disgusting" she said as her attitude returned to the way it was before.

Billy cradled his testicles and gasped but no sound came out of his mouth.

Both Dean and Jon winced.

"Damn! I think I felt that" Jon said as he laughed.

"That was for sleeping with my best friend" Nyssa then raised her hammer and hit him on the head knocking him right out, "And that was for not calling her again"

"I assume there's no need for an announcement here" Chiron said not knowing what to make of the situation.

Dean dropped his head and stared at the ground in shame, "Damnit"

Tim opened his eyes, "What happened?"

Jon stopped the video, "You just missed the funniest moment" he helped Tim up, "I'll show you later"

Nyssa returned to her team and their last member came out, Shane.

Jon put his phone away and leapt into the pit next to Billy. Jon then lightly kicked Billy to the sidelines.

Dean reached with his arm and grabbed Billy by the back of his chest armor.

Jon drew his axe and sized up his opponent.

Shane wasn't quite as tall as Jon, probably about 6-7 inches shorter, but like his siblings his muscles were bulging which made up for his lack of height.

He held a large 2-handed hammer that was about the same length as Jon's axe.

"Begin" Chiron said.

The two massive teenagers charged at each other.

Their weapons collided as they met in the center, the clash of the metal echoed through the forest for miles.

Jon and Shane pushed against one another in a test of brute strength. Neither gained or lost any ground, meaning their strength was evenly matched.

Jon never encountered someone with comparable strength to himself, which meant he didn't have to worry about holding back.

"Looks like he's gonna have his hands full" Dean speculated from the looks of things.

Shane slid the handle of his hammer upwards smacking Jon in the face with it.

Jon, in response, swung his axe low.

Shane jumped over the axe and swung his hammer downwards.

Jon deflected the hammer with his axe head and then thrusted it forward hitting Shane in the stomach.

Shane took a step back from the hit, switched his stance, and swung his hammer upward.

Jon went to block the attack but was knocked into the air from the force of the attack.

Billy watched him rise into the air, "He's movin on up"

Shane swung his hammer around in a circle, building up momentum.

Gravity kicked in and Jon began falling. He held his axe up high as he fell, preparing for a downward swing.

Shane swung his hammer upwards as Jon swung his axe downwards and the two weapons clashed.

This time the clash was so loud that Dean had to cover his ears from the high frequency of the ringing metal.

Once again the two behemoths were at a standstill.

Dean could clearly see that Jon wasn't getting anywhere simply using brute strength.

"Jon, you can't win by overpowering him. Try to tire him out and wait until he makes a mistake" Dean said trying to help his teammate.

You could literally see the defiance on Jon's face as he continued his straightforward method of attack.

Dean watched in utter confusion, "Am I talking to myself here?" He said out loud.

Shane spent most of his spare time in the forge where he would hammer at bronze and steel all day and night. Jon had no hope of overpowering such an opponent.

The two oversized teens kept on swinging at each other, back and forth, both trying to land a single powerful blow to knock out the other. But with their bulky weapons in the way it was hard to get a clear shot, which resulted in both of them wasting energy.

The match was down to who would run out of steam first.

As the two kept swinging, they both gradually slowed down, but Jon was slowing down a lot faster. He lacked the stamina that Shane had developed.

Jon swung his axe downwards, with signs of strain on his face.

Shane held up his hammer horizontally and blocked the attack. Then he turned around and swung his hammer around, removing the axe from Jon's hands.

As Shane swung clockwise, he flung the axe away from him, and struck Jon at the back of his knee joint making him go down on one knee.

When Shane went for a downward swing Jon grabbed the hammer in time to prevent the hit and pulled forward to try and flip him over.

Shane however shifted his weight and prevented this. Then he pulled his hammer back and held the long handle to Jon's neck, choking him.

Jon tugged on the handle of the hammer, gasping for air, but it was only a matter of time before he lost consciousness.

Jon was defeated, which meant they lost another match.

Tim felt conflicted, at this point he wasn't sure whether losing was a good thing or not.

"Shane is the victor" Chiron said.

The Hephaestus Cabin along with Chiron left right after it finished.

The team of troublemakers stuck around, not knowing what to do next.

Jon finally got up and immediately noticed Dean's piercing gaze.

Jon frowned, "What?"

"What do you mean what? The fuck was that?" Dean asked.

Jon walked up to Dean menacingly, "I fight my own battles"

Dean didn't seem the least bit intimidated by him, "That's not how a team works, you're supposed to listen to who's in charge"

'The strongest should be the one who leads' A voice spoke inside of Jon's head twisting his mind.

For a split second he was confused but then Jon recognized the voice of his father, "I don't take orders from anyone weaker than me" he said claiming his superiority.

"You better cut the shit before I show you who's weak" Dean warned him.

Tim and Billy backed away.

'He's mocking your strength boy, what're you gonna do?' Ares said fueling his anger.

Jon's eyes widened and he punched Dean in the face sending him flying back.

Dean crashed into a pine tree breaking off a big chunk of it and severely cracking it. His gaze rose and glared at Jon with lighting flashing in his eyes, "Fine, let's do it your way" he elbowed the tree behind him to break it and in result in came crashing down on top of him.

Dean lifted the tree over his head with both hands and threw it at Jon.

Jon pulled back his fist and punched the tree breaking it in half.

Dean suddenly appeared in front of Jon with a lightning bolt on his palm. He hit Jon with a palm strike that electrified him and knocked him back.

Jon felt his chest go numb for a moment from the shock. That must be the after effect of Dean's lightning bolts. Jon leapt towards Dean preparing to come down on him.

Dean jumped up at the last second, avoiding Jon who cracked the ground beneath him as he landed, and hit him in the face with a tornado kick.

Jon's head turned from the force of the hit. He looked at Dean, as blood slowly trickled down his chin, and charged furiously.

Dean backed away as Jon punched downward and made a hole in the ground.

Jon then pulled a boulder out of the ground and smashed it over Dean's head.

Dean felt dizzy from the sudden hit to the head. He saw three Jon's, all charging at him.

Jon then uppercut Dean in the gut.

Dean felt his stomach cave in from sheer amount of power of that attack. He clutched his aching stomach, 'I think he might be stronger than Kratos'

Jon then went to punch him in the face.

Dean tilted his head and watched Jon's fist slip by him in slow motion, 'Can't get hit like that again' he counterattacked by punching Jon in the center of his chest.

Jon planted his feet on the ground and took the hit like it was nothing. He went to grab Dean but he avoided his grasp.

Jon chased him, swinging wildly, and doing everything in his power to strike him down.

Dean used the full extent of his speed and agility to avoid Jon's attacks. Every so often he would counter with a swift punch or kick but Dean's attacks had little effect on his enraged opponent.

Jon threw a punch forward.

Dean moved out of the way letting him punch a hole through a tree.

Jon pulled his hand out of the tree, wrenched the tree out of the ground roots and all, and swung it at Dean.

Dean ducked jumped over it and towards Jon.

Jon surprisingly swung it again before Dean could land on his feet.

He hit Dean dead on sending him flying backwards to the point where he couldn't even see him.

Jon then looked around trying to spot Dean who he expected to be coming for a counterattack. He then saw an incoming lightning bolt.

Jon lifted the tree in his grasp to block the lightning bolt and then lowered it again to see if he could locate the son of Zeus.

Dean then jumped down from the branches above and came down on Jon with a double axe handle.

Jon dropped the tree and dropped to his knees from the unexpected hit.

Dean then struck him multiple times in the ribcage.

Jon got up and went to backhand him.

Dean ducked underneath his hand, went behind him, grabbed him by the waist, and performed a suplex.

The ground cracked under the weight and force of the suplex leaving Jon slightly disoriented.

Dean went on top of him and was about to start whaling on him but Jon grabbed Dean's hands and started squeezing.

Dean cried out in pain and lightning began to spark around his body.

Jon was electrocuted and knocked him off.

Dean went to get up and felt the bones in his hands were brittle and on the verge of shattering, 'My hands are basically useless, I can't even make a fist'

Jon leapt and went to bash him.

Dean didn't have enough time to move so he blocked with his arms.

When Jon struck his arms Dean felt an immense pain.

Dean swiftly backed away and instantly regretted losing focus, 'Jesus even blocking hurts' he thought as his arms began aching with intense pain.

Jon continued his pursuit while Dean tried his best to stay away.

'There's no way I can stop him if I'm holding back, looks like I have no choice' Dean thought.

Jon threw a wide hook that could have taken Dean's head off.

Dean ducked underneath it and threw a perfectly accurate kick to Jon's kneecap smashing it.

Jon grit his teeth and dropped to one knee.

Dean then put all his energy into one attack and kicked Jon in the face.

Jon fell face first into the ground but he didn't lose consciousness. He then slowly tried to get on his feet.

Dean repeatedly elbowed him in the back of the head until he knew he was out for sure.

Tim and Billy were completely motionless with fascinated expressions.

"Damn" Billy said.

"You actually stopped him" Tim sounded impressed.

Dean, who was breathing heavily from fatigue, began to walk away, "Gimme the biggest guy in the world, smash his knee and he'll drop like a stone"

After hearing the commotion Chiron arrived at the scene, "What is the meaning of this?"

After being bandaged up, and given some ambrosia, Dean explained what happened to Chiron.

Chiron sighed, "What am I going to do with you boys?"

Dean frowned, "Don't worry, I'm not doing this anymore" he stormed off angrily.

Chiron trotted after him, "Dean" he called his name but the son of Zeus didn't answer.

Chiron then ran to catch up with him, "You can't walk away from this"

"Of course I can, and I will. I knew this was a terrible idea" Dean said as he kept on walking.

"You can't expect your team to succeed without proper direction" Chiron said.

Dean stopped in his tracks and looked at Chiron with an angry expression.

"I told Jon what to do! He never hears a word I have to say. I knew they couldn't be a team, and you know what? They proved me right" Dean said spitefully.

"Dean" Chiron said trying to calm him down.

"I don't know what to do! Tim challenges my authority at every turn, Jon's brains are in his biceps, and Billy's head is in the clouds. I can't get them all on the same page, to think with one mind" Dean said in frustration.

"You shouldn't want them all to think the same. It's their different point of view that makes the team strong" Chiron said before he placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "A good leader understands this, a good friend accepts it"

Dean's expression softened as he pondered on his teacher's words, he may be right but that still didn't make him the most capable leader.

"Chiron" Dean sighed, "Just make Tim the leader, I'm not cut out for this"

Chiron couldn't help but smirk, the wording may be different but that was a sentence he's heard countless times over the ages.

"I'm going to tell you something that I told every other student of mine who thought they couldn't accomplish something. If you only do what you can do, you will never be more than what you are" Chiron said.

"You know even though I find your fortune cookie talk annoying that was really profound" Dean commended him.

"I'm not sure whether to thank you or scold you" Chiron said feeling amused by his retort, "Regardless, you understand what I'm saying right?"

Dean nodded, "Yes, you're basically saying I can do anything"

"Yes, perhaps not with ease, but with some effort anything is" Chiron said.

Dean sighed heavily, "Fine, I'll give it another go"

"Good" Chiron said with a relieved expression.

Dean turned around and began walking away, 'How the hell am I gonna fix this now?' he wondered as he scratched his head.

"Oh and Dean" Chiron called out to him.

Dean turned around curiously, "Huh?"

"This time don't ask anyone for help" Chiron said with a smirk.

"Heheh" Dean laughed sheepishly as a bead of sweat dripped down his brow, "Sure thing" he turned around and left in a hurry.

Author's note: It's been a while hasn't it lol I've had my hands full for the past month and a half. For a while I was thinking about making some small changes to the beginning but I decided not to because I just really want to be done with Part 1 already. I'll try to at least post one chapter a week but I make no promises, until next time!