AN: A nice fluffy little one shot that came to mind as I was mulling over ideas. Nothing serious, just a drabble, and hey its also my first completed post, even though it is a one-shot.
Disclaimer: I don't own PJO or the MCU!
( - )
It was a beautiful day; the sun was shining, the birds were singing. A gentle breeze was rustling some of the park's trees, masking the fumes from the nearby traffic with the glorious smell of nature.
It was idyllic, and really he felt like there was nothing that could spoil it.
Not the rumble of the nearby busy road. Nor the beeping of horns he could hear in the distance as irritated taxi drivers vented their frustrations at the city's slow roads, and at other drivers.
He was at peace.
More than that though, he was happy, perhaps happier than he had ever been before.
"Daddy, daddy, up!" A sweet, childish voice called out, breaking him out of his reverie as Percy Jackson instead looked down at the beaming smile on his daughter's face, her golden blonde hair gleaming in the midday sun as she reached out with her small arms and demanded that he pick her up.
Smiling, Percy gave in to his daughter's request. A slight chuckle leaving his lips as he bent down and gently scooped her up. A slight 'eep' leaving her mouth at first, before she began to giggle, even as he settled her on his broad shoulder.
"You spoil her, you know that don't you?" The familiar voice of his wife piped up next, the amused tone and cadence eliciting a wider smile from him as he glanced over at her, and gave her a sheepish smile.
It was true.
The little girl had him wrapped around her little finger.
It was almost embarrassing really. He had faced down gods, and eldritch monstrosities whose very names have long been lost to the collective memory of humanity.
He had seen and done more than perhaps any other, and had gone through things that would break a lesser person.
Despite all that though, despite all he had achieved and all he had survived. Here he was, at the beck and call of a five year old child.
He wouldn't have it any other way.
"I don't know what you mean." Percy replied lightly, his smile widening as he felt his little girl thread her small hands through his short dark hair, even as she tried in vain to plait his short tufts of raven black hair.
"You know exactly what I mean." His wife replied easily, a soft smile on her slightly angular face as she reached up and laid a soft, loving kiss on his cheek, before she then sent their daughter a sunny smile and stroked some of her golden curls out of her face. "Just as I know you need a shave." She then continued, her hazel eyes shifting back down to look him in his own sea green eyes.
Percy laughed at that and scratched his short bristly beard idly. Just a few years out of the army and he was already losing some of his previously fastidious grooming habits. "Just trying something new, besides it's not that bad."
"I'll be the judge of that." His wife said with a smile, a mischievous light entering her eyes as she allowed her hand to trail down from his cheek, across his muscled chest and down his arm, before she gently took his hand in her own. "It tickles."
"Oh, I see how it is." Percy laughed, giving his wife's hand a slight squeeze, before the two of them once again continued their walk through the park.
In response his wife just gave him a smile, even as she flicked some of her honey blonde hair over her shoulder, and then looked at him sultrily, through lidded eyes. "Oh, you will..."
"Well that sounds ominous." Percy smiled, his gaze shifting from his wife as he instead looked around at the rest of the park. His eyes, through sheer instinct, quickly darting around, as his gaze flickered on to each of the people in the area, looking for anything suspicious. Before it then moved over to take in the nearby trees, and the small carousel he could see in the distance.
"You'll just have to wait until tonight to find out." His wife shot back, her bright eyes sparkling with mischief now.
Smiling at that, Percy tore his gaze away from his surroundings and returned her mischievous smile with a crooked grin of his own.
Things had changed.
It had been what. six nearly seven years, since he had made a life for himself here in the city.
Since that time he had met the woman of his dreams, gotten married and now had a child.
For the first time in his life he had found peace.
There was no more fighting for his life, no monsters, no more world ending events, and most importantly no gods and their crazy bullshit.
All of that was gone now.
This place, this world that he now resided in. It was a peaceful one.
Sure there were still wars, and still crime. there always would be, no matter where you went. But there was nothing as high stakes, nothing like he had he been embroiled in before.
In fact the strangest things he had heard about here, were still pretty basic and tame compared to the things he used to have to deal with on an almost daily basis.
Some billion playboy, weapons designer, had made himself some kind of over the top, toy suit that let him fly around and play hero. Who cares, he had had to deal with the Children of Vulcan and the new madness they whipped up in their forges every other week.
A shady government organisation had apparently engaged in human experimentation during World War Two, because of course they did, and whipped up a legitimate super soldier.
One that was cringingly, almost overcompensatingly, called Captain America. Big deal, he had had to deal with the complicated, and at times insane divine world, and all of the politics, backhanded deals and shenanigans happening there. Hell he had a brother that was a divine horse that could run at almost the speed of sound. That, and he was also a friggin demigod. Compared to all of that, some barely competent, propaganda dispensing, toy super soldier was practically a nonentity in his mind.
On top of that, there was rumours going around about a mad scientist that had apparently messed up an experiment and turned himself into a giant, green rage monster. Huh, as if that rumour even garnered more than a raised eyebrow.
Try dealing with a Titan, it makes the urban myth he had heard about this 'Hulk' character, sound like a gentle walk in the park by comparison.
The rumour about the Norse God which had come to earth though… well that one had caught his attention, or at least it had until the stories of him actually being an alien or other such nonsense had started spreading around too.
Considering there was no Mist here, and that he hadn't even caught a whiff of the divine in the seven odd years he had been here, he didn't think it was too surprising that he simply dismissed the nonsense about Thor, the God of Thunder and Prince of Asgard, parading around a small town in New Mexico in cosplay, as the nonsense it clearly was.
No, in the end this world was pretty boring and bog-standard, or at least compared to the place he had come from. Sure there was weird shit happening, but stuff liek tha tdid happen. Scientists and engineers pushed the boundaries of acceptability and whipped up all kinds of dangerous and stupid stuff in thier laboratories and workshops.
On top of which there were always whack jobs out there claiming aliens had abducted them, or that they were time travelers, or even that they were a Pharaoh in their last life.
With a planet of nearly seven billion people on it, there were sure to be at least a couple of thousand nutjobs.
Besides he was a displaced demigod, call him foolish, or call him arrogant, but he doubted things got much odder than that. Plus, in the seven years he had spent here, he had certainly not seen anything to prove him wrong about this place being boring and run of the mill, and honestly, he wouldn't have it any other way.
"Daddy!" His daughter suddenly called out gleefully, her hand pointing over his shoulder at the nearby carousel and the ice cream stand he could see next to it. He could already imagine what the little munchkin wanted. "Can we get some ice-cream?!"
Laughing slightly at the pleading note that had entered her voice, Percy sent his wife a crooked smile. "Well can we mum?"
Pretending to think, a finger resting lightly on her chin. His wife looked up at their daughter for a moment, before looking back at him, and then back up at their little girl. "I don't know…"
"Please mummy?" His little princess pleaded.
"Yeah please mummy…" Percy laughed, his eyes crinkling up at the edges as he saw her resistance start to give way.
"It's not fair if you both gang up on me." She complained, an amused sigh leaving her lips. "But fine. Only one scoop though, I don't want you ruining your appetites. I've got a beef casserole in the oven back at home, slow cooking."
"Yay!" Their little girl cheered.
Laughing at this, Percy scooped her light frame off of his shoulders and passed her back over to her mother. With a slight pout taking over his little angel's face as she found herself back on the ground next to her mum as opposed to being up high and on his shoulders.
"Cheer up sweetie." Percy smiled, mussing up her blonde curls with his hand.
"Daddy!" The little girl whined as she tried to dodge out from under his hand.
Chuckling at this, Percy looked back up at his amused wife. "So what flavours are we all having?"
"Blueberry, with extra blue!" His daughter chirped up immediately.
"That's my girl!" Percy laughed. A part of him was delighted that she had taken after him in regards to having blue food whenever she could.
"Of course that's what she wants." His wife sighed good-naturedly. Her lips curving up into a smile, even as she poked him gently in the ribs for emphasis. "This is what you call being a bad influence."
"Daddy's a bad influence!" His girl nodded solemnly, before another bright smile spread across her face as she burst into another giggling fit.
"Hey now, no ganging up on me either!" Percy laughed. "Now honey, sweetie, the love of my life, do you want an ice-cream too?"
"We're laying it on a bit thick aren't we?" She replied dryly, her lips quirking upwards again as she tried to fight off a smile. "But since you're already going you can get me a mint choc chip ice-cream, with a flake."
"I could have guessed." Percy shook his head. "So that's two blueberry ice-creams with extra blue, and a mint choc chip one with a flake. Got it."
"Love you daddy!" His daughter replied sweetly.
"Love you too sweetheart." Percy grinned, mussing up her blonde curls again, much to her displeasure, before he kissed his wife on the cheek and headed over to the nearby ice-cream cart.
"Such a daddy's girl…" His wife sighed as he walked away.
Laughing at that comment, Percy continued across the last twenty feet or so between him and the stand, and joined the small queue.
His life was good at the moment.
Perfect even.
Looking around at that thought, he couldn't help but smile as she saw his wife take their daughters hand, even as the two of them wandered off of the main path and instead over to the nearby carousel. By the looks of it their daughter wanted to try it out.
Chuckling at this, Percy turned away for a moment. Only for him to whip back around a moment later his eyes widening, even as a sudden explosion sounded out, and screaming suddenly erupted all around him, even as several fast moving things flitted by overhead.
Twisting around fully now, Percy's gaze immediately moved over to where his wife and daughter were both still standing. His eyes wide as he already started running in their direction.
He didn't know what was going on. But whatever it was, he knew his family was safer with him there.
Another explosion sounded, this one far closer than the others, even as the familiar cracking of gunfire started to sound out, the nosie adding to the ongoing clamour and panic around him.
Shoving several people roughly out of his way, Percy was only a half dozen steps from his family. His nervous green eyes locking with his wife's scared eyes for a single moment, even as she began to turn and shield their wide eyed, scared looking daughter with her body.
"…" Percy started to shout.
Only for his voice to get drowned out as another several shadows flew by overhead, and the carousel exploded, raging hot fire erupting outwards from the ride in an explosive, concussive wave of heat, flame and death.
"Percy…!" He heard his wife scream, even as the fire radpily overtook and consumed both her and their daughter.
Seeing this Percy's mind went blank, even as the wall of force, heat and fire hit him, the force of the blast lifting him clean off his feet and sending him twisting and spinning backwards, and through a nearby tree.
They were gone.
That was the only thing he could think as he lay in the ruined remains of the tree. Ignoring the fast moving shadows flitting about overhead and the men, women and children running around in panic as they all desperately tried to find shelter from whatever this ongoing attack was.
It was all meaningless to him in the face of what had just happened.
In the face of what he had just lost.
"No…" Percy croaked softly, his heart sinking and his mind grinding to a stop as he struggled to comprehend what had just happened.
"No…!" He rasped, ignoring the way his shirt and jeans were currently on fire, and burning due to the fireball that had first consumed his wife and child, before it had then flung him however many metres back and through a tree.
Feeling the sudden empty pit in him roar back to life, Percy's heart began to beat again, but faster than he could ever remember it beating before.
He felt hot.
But this heat was not from the fire.
No, what he felt was a burning, bubbling, uncontrollable rage. A grief fuelled anger and hate the likes of which he had never experienced before.
His veins felt like they were pumping molten lava throughout his body.
His vision began to darken, even as the once blue sky also began to dark. Vast greyish black clouds forming far, far overhead. The clouds swirling and rumbling ominously.
"No!" Percy growled, his previous emptiness giving way to pure, unadulterated rage, even as the grief that had been about to consume him was replaced with a writhing, gnawing, burning hate.
"NO!" Percy shouted, his clenched fists slamming into the earth on either side of him.
A shockwave suddenly exploding outwards from him. The grass and concrete all around him practically exploding even as concussive waves of force rippled out from his position, knocking anything and everything around him, away from him and on to the ground.
Vaguely he could see several nearby tower blocks and skyscrapers explode. The thousands of gleaming window panels that had once covered their vast forms like the glittering scales of some legendary beast, shattering as one, even as great chunks of the buildings began to fall to the ground.
All around him, he could almost feel the panic and despair intensify.
He didn't care though.
Pushing himself unsteadily to his feet he could feel his heart, which felt like a white hot ball of molten rock in his chest, beating out a fierce and violent tattoo within him, even as the burning hot veins on his now bare arms began to bulge and swell, and tiny golden cracks began to appear on his olive skin, with faint wisps of golden light starting to leak out of these cracks.
"NO!" Percy roared, his vocal cords screaming in anguish, even as the golden cracks started to appear across the rest of his body, his smouldering clothes falling down around him leaving him fully nude now, as he clenched his hands into fist and then slammed them into the ground in front of him in fury.
( - )
Overhead the dark clouds exploded in anger, thunder booming out across the almost pitch black sky, even as wrathful bolts of pure lightning tore form the sky in their thousands and bombarded the city below. Bolts of the condensed energy blowing through the flitting chariots of the Chitauri hordes that were currently attacking the city, and ripping the colossal flying leviathans to pieces even as they continued their mindless assault on the city.
Around the city itself, gale force winds suddenly started to blow, vast torrents of wind swirling around and flinging vehicles, people and the even large chunks of buildings around, even as a colossal category 5 hurricane rapidly began to form for seemingly no reason. With its epicentre being a seemingly innocuous park, just one of the many sites across the city that had come under fire from the invading army, and thus been faced with the collateral damage caused by the ongoing invasion of the city.
Elsewhere, even as the power and size of the hurricane continued to build, buildings began to collapse one after the other, life falling dominoes, and vast chasms began to form in the streets as an earthquake, which would later be measured at 10 on the Richter scale, suddenly rocked the entire state. With the initial ripples causing landslides all across the coast, even as huge sinkholes began to form and the earth itself across the entire city began to rupture, even as parts of the city began to crumble and sink, as if the earth itself had become akin to water.
Further off in the distance, several large explosions could be heard by millions as once dormant volcanoes flared up again due to the sudden rattling of the tectonic plates, even as dozens of active volcanoes across the hemisphere let lose their previously restrained fury and projected tens of thousands of tonnes of ash, fire and lava across the countryside around them.
Perhaps worst of all however, was the monumental tidal wave that suddenly formed from seemingly nothing. With the rapidly forming wave draining the estaris and rivers, and diminishing the height of the nearby ocean itself, as it suddenly loomed large and covered the city of New York in dark, imposing shadow even as it continued to rise. Millions upon millions of tonnes of water rising up in a wall over two hundred metres high. A wall that then hit the city with the fury of a god, and swept through everything in its path.
It was a calamity the likes of which had never been seen before.
One that would go down in history as the event that not only wiped the entirety of New York off of the maps, but that changed everything…
( - )