Disclaimer – Still own nothing. If I did, we'd be waiting for season 7 right now.

AN – Warning, this chapter has a lot of talking, cause guess what? I'm finally going to let you know what Hal went through when he was taken by Karen! I know, I sure took my time in telling you guys.

WARNING: This chapter does deal with a lot of emotions, and some self harm. It is barely touched upon, and I don't think it's that bad, but if it is not something that you are comfortable reading, I recommend you skip this chapter. This is also the first time I've ever written a story with something like this, so sorry if it's really bad. The song used is Demons by Imagine Dragons. Other than that, please review and

Enjoy!

When the days are cold, and the cards all fold, and the saints we see are all made of gold

Ben tried to keep his pace at a walk as he searched for his older brother, though it was hard. When Hal had left the basement, his Dad told him that it was okay, that Hal knew it wasn't his fault and he could talk to him later. Now it was later, and Hal was being as elusive as ever. He did however, easily find Maggie who was walking down the hall with Lourdes.

"Maggie, have you seen Hal?" Ben questioned, coming to stand in front of her.

"No, not since this morning. Why? What happened?" Maggie grew worried as she saw the concerned look on Ben's face.

"It's a long story. Do you have any idea where he might be?" Ben asked.

"Maybe the roof? He likes to go up there when he wants to be alone." Maggie suggested. Ben nodded and left the two women without another word. Finding his brother was the only thing on his mind at the moment, and will continue to be until he gets the answers he had been wanting since Hal was rescued from Karen over two months ago.

When the Overlord connected with him, and made him attack his brother, Ben got an glimpse of a memory. That Overlord knew something, saw something that happened to Hal, and he wasn't going to let his pig-headed brother push him away anymore. He had to know what happened to his brother.

FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS

I wanna hide the truth, I wanna shelter you, but with the beast inside, there's no where we can hide

Hal sat alone on the roof, his back against the cement railing. The pain in his jaw had subsided, though his lip still throbbed a little. The images he had seen in the Overlord's mind stayed in his head, replaying over and over. He was still confused as to what it all meant.

"Hey." Hal looked up and saw Ben coming outside onto the roof, shutting the door behind him.

"Hey." The older replied. The younger brother frowned at the quietness of Hal's voice. He walked over to Hal and sat down beside his big brother.

"You okay?" Ben asked when Hal didn't say anything.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Hal answered, though the blonde could easily tell he wasn't. He didn't even try to sound convincing.

"You sure don't look it." Ben stated. Hal ignored his brother's comment and asked a question of his own.

"How did you know I was up here?"

"Maggie. She said you had been coming up here. After what happened with the Overlord, I figured this is where you'd be." Ben told him. A nod was the only acknowledgement that Hal gave him.

Ben waited for Hal to say something, to do something, but he didn't. Hal seemed to act as though he wasn't there. The man was quiet, and very closed off. So, Ben tried to get his stubborn brother to open up.

"When the Overlord got into my head, and made me attack you, I saw something. It was a memory of his, and you were in it. He was there, wasn't he? During those 5 months? Hal, what happened?" Hal's only answer was a loud sigh, and the turning of his head to face the opposite direction. Again, Ben waited for Hal to say something, and again he was met with only silence.

It was times like these that Ben really wished his Mom was alive. She was the only one who could get through to Hal, get him to talk about what he was feeling. He was so much like her, that she knew exactly what to say or do to help him. You would think that their Dad would be able to do it, given that his son is exactly like his wife, but he hit the same wall everyone else did.

Hal had shown time and time again how strong he was. Ever since the invasion, Ben had only seen his brother break down once, the night before Anne found out what was wrong with him, the night he killed all those skitters. But even after that, Hal was quick to put his walls back up and assure everyone that he was okay. It was obvious he wasn't, and Ben knew that Hal was only vulnerable when he felt comfortable and safe enough to be, or he literally couldn't be strong anymore. So, Ben tried a different approach.

"You know, I still remember the day I was caught by the skitters. I tried so hard to forget, but I can't. I remember hearing them approach Nick's house, where I was hiding. I ran out to the backyard, through the fence. But when I went to cross the street, there was a skitter blocking my way. I turned to run the other direction, but there was another one waiting for me. They grabbed me, and I tried to get free, but they were too strong. Then a Mech showed up and stunned me.

"I woke up in a dark room with my hands zip tied behind my back. I wasn't alone, there were at least 10 other kids in the room. Every couple of minutes, the door opened, a skitter came in, pulled a kid out, and left. We were all too scared to say anything, the only noise was the sound of the kids whimpering. I remember hoping that the door would open and Dad would be there and would save me. But the next time the door opened, it was the skitter, and it was my turn.

"It dragged me down to another room. It pushed me down onto a table on my stomach. Strapped down my legs so when they untied my hands, I couldn't get away. Then, they tied my hands down to the table. I could hear the harness slide down the chute and land on my back. After that, I couldn't think much about anything. Felt like I was a zombie. I know it's not anywhere near what you went through, but I do know some of it." Ben explained.

Ben hoped that if he told Hal his own story, it would help him feel relaxed enough to tell him what happened. Yet, Hal stayed quiet, and didn't look at him. All Ben could do now, was wait, and hope that his brother would finally open up.

FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS

When you feel my heat, look into my eyes, it's where my demons hide, it's where my demons hide

Of all things Hal expected his younger brother to say and do, telling him about how he was captured and harnessed didn't make the list. He couldn't deny that after Ben had been rescued, he had been tempted to ask what all happened, but he didn't because he wasn't sure if he could stand listening to what his younger brother went through.

The entire time Ben was talking, Hal kept his gaze in the other direction, not just because he didn't want to see the look on the younger man's face. He also didn't want Ben to see the tear that had slipped from his eye, and traveled down his cheek.

While Hal was glad that Ben hadn't gone through anything close to what he did and knew it could've been a lot worse, he still hated that it happened at all. Hated that his brother was taken and harnessed, hated that neither he or his Dad were able to save him, and hated that he failed in keeping his promise to his mother. He didn't look out for his brother.

Hal knew what Ben was trying to do. He was trying to find a way to relate their experiences, trying to find a common ground where they could meet on even terms. He wanted Hal to open up, to confide in him, just like he did. And Hal slowly found himself wanting to tell his younger brother. He wanted someone to talk to, someone who might understand, even if it was just a little. So he did.

"After I boarded the ship, and after it took off, Karen led me to a room where there was a window. I could see our planet. She told me that we were going to lose the war, that the Espheni will kill us all, unless we surrendered to them. She wanted me to help her convince people that we could all live together 'peacefully'. I told her she was out of her mind. That was the first time she drugged me. Stabbed the needle right in my neck." Hal started. He didn't turn his head to let Ben look at his face. He kept his eyes on the horizon, using it as a focal point, and he continued.

"The drug, I don't know what it was, but it made me hallucinate. I couldn't tell what was real and what wasn't. It was like, I was seeing all the battles that we fought with the skitters, mixed in with a voice in my head telling me that we started it. That humans are the reason the Espheni attacked.

"Once the drug wore off, I was in a different room. Karen was there, and asked me again if I'd help her. I told her there wasn't anything she could do or say to make me help her. She said don't worry, that I'll change my mind soon enough. Then two skitters came upon behind me, and grabbed my arms. They pulled me back until I fell back onto that metal table. They tied me down with ropes, and I tried to escape, but they were too strong. And I was still feeling the effects of the drug.

"When I was tied down, Karen came over to me and told me not to move. Before I could ask her what she was talking about, a harnessed boy showed up, holding a scalpel. I begged her not to, though I didn't know what exactly they were going to do. Karen just put her hands on my head and turned it so the harnessed kid could, so he had access to the back of my head. And he made the cut. And it hurt, hurt like h*ll."

Hal stopped there for a moment, feeling his eyes start to become wet, and waited until he could collect himself. He didn't want his voice to start breaking, didn't want Ben to realize he was struggling not to cry.

Even though Hal still wasn't looking at him, Ben kept his eyes on his older brother. If he looked closely, he could see the scar on the back of his brother's head. And he knew that Hal was trying to hold himself together. He could see the signs. Keeping his face hidden, stopping suddenly, giving periods of silence, yet Ben didn't say anything. He just waited for Hal to continue.

"After the kid made the cut, I felt a pinprick in my shoulder. Karen was still holding my head still, so couldn't see what they were doing, but I knew it was a drug. Everything started going hazy. I couldn't feel the pain from the cut anymore, I could barely feel the table under me. Then, Karen's face changed to Anne's, then back to her. It was like I couldn't think clearly. Then I passed out.

"I woke up after, I don't know how long. I could feel a bandage on my head, and I was so sore. My head was pounding. Karen was standing on the other side of the room, with an Overlord. Apparently, the same Overlord that Dad just killed. He didn't look too happy with Karen. When she saw I was awake, she came over to me, gave me some water, and told me to rest. I asked her what she did to me. All she said was that I would see soon enough, but that she needed me to cooperate with her. I told her to go to h*ll. She drugged me again after that.

"Next time I woke up, I was in a different room. I was on the ground, and not restrained at all. I didn't know what was going on. There was a bottle of water a few feet away. I grabbed it and drank it all in one gulp. I waited for something to happen, for someone to come into the room, but no one did. It was when I started to fall asleep, that I heard this voice, in my head. It was asking me if all the Volm were coming, if they were going to work with us, and if I knew what their next move was. I stood up, and looked around for a source of the voice, if there was an intercom or something. But there wasn't."

"They were connecting to your mind?" Ben interrupted, unable to understand that if Hal could remember them doing that, why he was so surprised and slow to believe when they told him that was exactly what he was doing with the skitters.

"I, I guess so. I was so tired, and I thought it was just in my head, like I was still feeling the effects of the drug. So, I just ignored it. Then, I don't what exactly happened. All I do remember is that my headache got worse, worse than a migraine. I ended up lying on the ground with my eyes closed because the light made it worse. Then, I fell asleep. I had this weird dream, I can't remember what it was about, it was too long ago, but I do remember having the feeling like, the Overlords, truly think that we deserve what they're doing to us. We deserve to die.

"After I woke up, a skitter came into the room, and, and I was just done lying around. I waited till it was a few feet away from the door before I punched it the face and ran out of the room. As I started running through the building, I realized I wasn't in the spaceship anymore. I had no clue where I was, or when they even took me off the ship. Then, Karen found me. She started talking about how I wouldn't be able to find my way back, that she was trying to help me, that I needed to trust her. I let her get close, just enough to grab her and push her back against the wall hard enough that she fell to the ground when I let go. That was when the Overlord showed up.

"I tried to run past him, but a knife shot out of its hand and cut my side. Not deep, but it was enough to slow me down. It came at me again, and managed to cut me twice. That was when I fell to the ground. The Overlord stood over me, bent down, and pushed the knife against my ribs, like he wanted to cut me open, or something. Then, he stopped and looked over to the side, and I passed out.

"Every single time I woke up after that, I was lying tied down on the table. Guess they didn't trust me to be walking around anymore. I never saw the Overlord again, until today, I guess." Hal stopped again, remembering what happened the rest of his time there. He didn't want to talk about this part, he couldn't, not yet anyways.

Ben kept his eyes on his brother, and remembered seeing all the blood that he was covered in when Cochise found him. Now he knew how he got the cuts on his stomach and ribs, and he wished the Overlord was still alive just so he could kill it himself for hurting his brother. But Ben stayed still, waiting for Hal to finish.

The silent period stretched longer than any other period earlier and Ben had a feeling whatever happened next was worse than whatever happened before. It was then he realized that Hal said he remembered the skitters making the incision on his head four times. Hal only talked about the first time. Slowly, and quietly so he wouldn't startle Hal, Ben reached over and grabbed his brother's hand, trying to offer him some form of comfort.

It was that action that finally made Hal turn his head to look at him. Ben saw how his brother's eyes were red with unshed tears, and could barely make out the faint tear stains on his cheeks. He gave Hal an small, comforting, smile, and squeezed his hand. Hal squeezed back, then turned to look straight ahead.

"They kept drugging me. I guess they were tired of me fighting them. Though, I still remember them cutting that injury open over and over again." Hal said.

"Did those drugs cause you to hallucinate too?" Ben asked, seeing his brother's hesitation to go into more detail.

"Yeah." Hal replied, staring at the horizon with such intensity, trying to keep the memories at bay.

"Hal, what happened?" Ben pushed. Hal looked down at his lap, and his breathing deepened.

"None of this, leaves this roof. You understand me?" Hal practically ordered, turning his gaze to his brother. Ben saw the tension in brother's neck, and the pain his brown eyes. Unblinking, Ben nodded, and Hal turned his head again, and continued.

"The first hallucination, made me think that the invasion never happened. That it was all a dream. We were still living in Boston, and, Mom was still alive. I wanted to believe it so badly, but, it was all too weird. One of the things that gave it away was, everyone kept saying 'trust me' which was exactly what Karen kept telling me when I was awake. Then, I accidentally tripped over Matt's bike. I hit my leg on it pretty hard, and for a split second, I saw a skitter, in the bushes.

"I then kicked the bike as hard as I could, and the skitter appeared again. That was when I woke up. There was a skitter, standing over me, and an IV in my hand. Then Karen came over again, turned my head so I couldn't see what they were doing, and I felt the knife cut into me for the second time. I think they had the drugs in the IV, because I don't remember seeing or feeling a needle. That time, I thought I saw Dad, and you, and Maggie. You guys rescued me, and took me back to Charleston.

"I knew it was fake when I banged my arm against the hospital bed railing, and saw Karen, in the corner of the room. It was then I realized that, while I could still feel, that whatever I did hurt, it, it grounded me, somehow. The pain revealed if it was real or another hallucination. When I woke up from that, they made the cut the third time. I think, that, if Karen could already get in my head at that point, she was controlling whatever I hallucinated.

"After that, all the hallucinations stayed the same. That I was rescued, and you were all telling me to trust you, and at times, you guys would actually defend Karen's actions. Those were pretty big giveaways. But, the best way to find out, was to, to feel pain. So, I did whatever I could to hurt myself, just to see if it was real or not. It didn't take Karen long to figure out what I was doing, and she tried to manipulate the hallucination, so that I couldn't. In one of them, Anne strapped me down to the hospital bed so that I wouldn't hurt myself.

"Then finally, I woke up again, and that was when the harnessed kid, made the cut the fourth time. Before they could drug me again though, the alarm started going off. The kid, and the skitters that were there ran out of the room. The kid dropped the scalpel on the table, and I used it to cut the ropes. Once I got free, that was when I saw the power source. Then the building exploded and suddenly, I was running through the trees. I passed out and you know the rest." Hal finally finished the story.

Ben stared at his brother in shock. His big brother, the strongest person he knows, was constantly being fed a lie, had felt hope, only to have it taken away, over and over again. Not only that, he had resorted to self harm to find out if it was real or not.

"Hal, did you, ever hurt yourself while you were here?" Ben asked when he collected himself. Hal turned his head, tears now running down his cheeks, and Ben had his answer. He felt his own eyes fill with tears.

"It was the only way I could prove that this was real. It wasn't for very long, only the first two weeks." Hal tried to defend himself, but he knew from Ben's face that it was too late. His brother couldn't be convinced that he was okay with everything that happened to him. To be honest, he couldn't even convince himself anymore and he turned away, not wanting to see the pain he had just caused his little brother.

"Hal, I." Ben stopped, because he didn't know what to say, and tears started slipping from his eyes. He heard a choked sob, and looked up to see Hal fully break down in tears. He didn't hesitate to grab his older brother and wrap him in his embrace. He felt Hal weakly grab his jacket while his shoulder became wet with tears.

"Don't ever, hurt yourself again. This is real, I promise you. What happened there is over. You are safe now." Ben told him. He felt Hal's head nod against his shoulder, but was too lost in his breakdown to say anything.

After about twenty minutes, Hal pulled away from his brother. He had stopped crying not long ago, but didn't say anything. He brought his hands up and rubbed his face, pushing away the leftover tears.

"You okay?" Ben knew it was a stupid question to ask, but he couldn't think of anything else to say.

"Yeah, I'm good. Just remember, what happens on this roof, stays on this roof." Hal reminded the blonde. Ben nodded, and watched as Hal stood up.

"I'm starving. Want to go and see if it's supper yet?" Hal wondered, and Ben knew that his brother was already putting his walls back up. A part of him still wanted to talk about what just happened, but he knew he pushed as far as he possibly could, and Hal would only get defensive if he went any farther.

"Yeah, I could eat." Ben said, pushing himself up, and by his brother's side, the left the roof and headed down to the cafeteria.

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Your eyes, they shine so bright, I wanna save that light, I can't escape this now, unless you show me how

Hal didn't expect it to be so easy to slip away from the crowds. Even though it had been months since he had returned to Charleston, there were some people who still didn't trust him. In the beginning, Pope or one of his Berserkers, had actually followed him a couple of times, just to make sure he wasn't going to contact Karen or another Overlord and betray them.

This time though, he got lucky. Ben seemed to want to keep an eye on him, but also understood that he needed his space, which wasn't surprising considering the huge talk/breakdown that he had in front of his younger brother. He was so embarrassed about it now that the moment was over. He was the oldest, he shouldn't have unloaded his emotions on his brother like that.

Hal knew that he would have to be careful around Ben now. With him now knowing what all happened while he was held captive, and what he went through, the younger man was no doubt going to be watching him like a hawk. Ben may be subtler about it, but he was just as protective as Hal was of the people he cared about.

On the other hand, that talk did actually help. It felt so good to finally tell someone what was going on, and to not feel like he had to hide it. And it did reveal something else. Apparently, Ben had not caught the lie he told when his Dad asked if he found anything about the power crystal. He didn't have to worry about anyone suspecting what he was thinking, though, soon there will be one person he might have to worry about.

If he could truly sense the power source, and did have a stronger connection to it, then he would be the best person to find and destroy it.

"Oh, Hal, what are you doing here?" Dr. Kadar asked bluntly when he saw that the young man had entered his lab.

"I wanted to ask your opinion on something. It's about power sources." Hal told him.

"Sure. What do you want to know?" Kadar wondered.

"Well, obviously, power source gives off power, but, can you give power to a power source?" Hal asked.

"Depending on the source, sure. Like, if it runs out of power, you could give it more power to fill it up again. It could be as simple as charging a computer. With others though, it depends on the power, or energy they give off." Kadar said.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, power sources give off either positive or negative energy. Now, if a positive and a negative meet, they should be fine because they're compatible. They balance each other out. If a positive and positive meet, it could become too much and they would destroy each other, most likely in the form of an explosion, same thing happens with negative energy." Kadar explained.

It gives but cannot receive the Overlord's voice replayed in Hal's head. Then he asked another question.

"So, if an all powerful energy source, gives something energy, and if that something tries to return it, it would cause an instant explosion." Hal tried to understand.

"Well, it depends on how much energy is in it. The more of that same power, or energy the thing has, the more chance of an explosion. More power, more instability, faster the explosion occurs. Which would destroy both. Why are you asking me this?" Kadar questioned.

"No reason, it was just something I heard about from Cochise and it was stuck in my head." Hal tried to brush off. He knew if Kadar realized he was talking about the Espheni power source, and a possible way to destroy it, he would tell his Dad and his plan wouldn't work.

"Well, it's an interesting topic, especially with trying to find ways to destroy the Espheni power source, but, maybe just leave that up to me, and Cochise." Kadar suggested. Hal instantly caught what Kadar meant, let the experts handle it. The doctor may be a genius to science and math, but he sucked at reading into conversations. He didn't get what Hal was hinting at.

Hal nodded and left the room with the answers he needed. If the power crystal couldn't receive its own power, then all it would need was something that was given its energy to touch it, or someone. That had to have been why the Espheni kept the stone in a box, and why they used wires to connect the power source to their machinery. It was to keep the stone from being destroyed. And, that's how the Volm managed to break it, they used a piece of Espheni technology powered by the crystal. But to destroy it completely, it would take something with a lot of its power. Or, someone.

Just one touch, and he could destroy it, rendering the Espheni technology useless. Now the hard part, getting the mission to take care of the destroying the power source, and not letting anyone else know how he was planning to do it, and not knowing the possible cost of his plan.

Don't get too close, it's dark inside, it's where my demons hide, it's where my demons hide

AN – Long chapter, I know. I hope you guys enjoyed it, but know this is the first time I've ever written something with a problem like self harm, so I hope it wasn't to bad and I'm really sorry if it was. Don't worry, next chapter won't be as heavy, it will be a little shorter and should be up within the week. See you guys soon.