CHAPTER 1: SEA PRINCE AND THE SKY PRINCESS
Hello everyone. This is a new story that I am starting out and one that had been in my mind long before I published my other story. This will be majorly a PJO/DCAU crossover and only some elements of DCEU will be incorporated to weave my story uniquely.
This story will be a Percy Jackson/Wonder Woman pairing and I will modify the DCAU storyline to place them in focus. I hope you guys like it and I always appreciate constructive criticism and I hope you guys could review my work so the next time I can release an even better story.
If you have not read my other works, please check out that too and leave your comments about how I should take the story forward.
5th November 1986 - Smithsonian Museum, USA- 13:00 EDT
With Diana aka Wonder Woman
Diana Prince strode out of her office briskly into the hallway and was walking towards the entrance of the museum. She was headed out for an impromptu lunch break at a nearby café and as she had missed her breakfast, she was a bit hungry and in quite a hurry.
As she neared the entrance, she was surprised to see a large crowd of people and her work colleagues seemingly crowding around a tall man in a dark-blue suit who was talking with her boss, Robert Anderson current director of the Smithsonian Museum, who seemed quite elated and was fervently shaking his hand with what seemed stars in his eyes as he escorted the mysterious man inside.
As she neared the group, she saw that the mysterious man towered over everyone, even her. Diana was a tall woman standing at almost 185 cm and was wearing 3 cm high heels yet this man seemed to tower over her and by her guess, she felt he would be around 196 cm.
When the director's eyes fell on her he immediately called her "Ms. Prince I would like you to meet our largest benefactor to our institution and the person who has recovered some of the greatest lost treasures of the world, Mr. Perseus Jackson."
When he turned to face her completely, Diana's heart nearly skipped a beat while her mouth dried up.
He had a clear-cut angular face with a strongly defined jaw with a slightly husky Mediterranean complexion with pink plump lips and a perfectly angled nose. He was broad-shouldered with a beautiful black-as-ebony hair that seemed to be as wild as the sea. He also smelled of a unique salty sea scent coupled with the smell of freshly cut seaweed.
But what drew her attention were his eyes which were beautiful sea green and seemed as if waves were crashing in them. It was coupled with swirls of orange in its midst that made them look ethereal. They were flashing with so many emotions that even her ability as an empath had a hard time discerning his emotions.
While all of this could be easily discerned by even normal humans, only Diana's knee eyes could discern that he had the gait of a seasoned warrior ready to jump into action at any given moment.
He smirked with the corner of his mouth turned up and his ever-so-slightly crooked teeth were barely visible from behind the curve of his soft, pink lips.
He extended his hand towards and spoke in a deep baritone voice which had a slight British tilt on it "A pleasure to meet you, Ms. Prince. I have heard from the director here about the excellent work you have done to ensure that the Ancient Greek artifacts that I have secured are well restored and maintained. I would really love to visit the restored articles later to take a closer look."
As he finished speaking while his eyes never left her deep angel blue eyes, seemingly boring into her very soul.
Diana quickly recovered herself from her daze and plastered a disarming yet charming smile on her face all the while adjusting the big round glasses on her face. Tucking a strand of dark hair that had fallen from her neat bun behind her ears she replied confidently "I would love to escort you and act as a guide around my workstation Mr. Jackson once you are done with the tour and your business with the director has been concluded."
"Splendid." replied Mr. Jackson as he again shook her hand and said with a smile on his face that sent butterflies flying around her stomach though externally, she kept a calm demeanor "I shall endeavor to visit you as soon as possible. Have a good day, Ms. Prince". He then slowly walked away with the rest of the entourage.
She kept on gazing at his retreating back till the group had turned around the corner before she quickly looked at the note he had passed to her discreetly. Though Diana was left slightly dazed by the handsomeness and easy-going charm of Mr. Jackson she had not lost control of all her faculties.
When they had shaken hands, she could sense the barely restrained power that was thrumming just below his skin itching to be unleashed. What was the most surprising part of that fact was that it seemed somewhat familiar to her and was confident she had encountered it before though could not remember when or where.
She quickly made her way to a secluded corner in the hallway before she opened and read the note. She took a few seconds to realize that the note was written in Ancient Greek and when she did read it, she had to brace herself against the wall in shock. She had read it two more times before she was convinced that her eyes were not deceiving her.
"Συναντήστε με στις 8 μ.μ. Γουίλαρντ διηπειρωτικό 1502, κόρη του Δία. Θα κρατήσω το παράθυρο ανοιχτό."
Which translated to – "Meet me at 8 pm at Willard Intercontinental room 1502, Daughter of Zeus. I shall keep the window open."
To say she was shocked would be a gross understatement. She knew immediately that she was dealing with someone from the Divine world or at least someone who knew about it. He also was aware of her secret identity as Wonder Woman if the open window was anything to go by.
She knew that her dual identity Wonder woman would be exposed shortly and had prepared contingencies to deal with the aftermath. But this was a situation she had not even foreseen in her wildest dreams and she, to simply put it, was not prepared for this curveball.
What made her very uneasy was the fact that this man knew that she was the daughter of Zeus. It was a secret known to only 2 people before today as the ramifications of it ever seeing the light of the day were enormous and devastating. Not even her amazon sisters, with whom she had spent three millennia closely, had any idea about it.
She was now extremely wary and wanted immediately to confront that man but she knew it was foolish to do so in the open given his obvious reputation from what she had seen so far. She, thus, decided to meet him tonight at his hotel room and if he tried anything outward with her, she would show him the might of an Amazon and that they are not people to be trifled with.
She decided to forego lunch for now and learn at least something about the man from her contacts in the city so that she was not blindsided during tonight's conversation.
Though one of the reasons she wanted to meet him was definitely not because she found him attractive and hot.
With Percy- Same time
"Wow, she surely is very beautiful. She seemed to be radiating beauty despite her slightly baggy clothes and huge ugly round glasses. She has the scent but what if she is not the one and I have been reached another dead end." Thought Percy as he walked with the director monologuing about the newest pieces, they had on display with the rest of his colleagues interjecting in between, especially the female ones, who were quite eager to show him around the place.
Percy had been searching for Wonder Woman, since her public fight at the DC mall and the disaster with Maxwell Lord. He did not know what had transpired but the mist had been greatly affected during that time and its ripples were felt even in the Amazonian Jungles where he was searching for Lost Mayan and Aztec artifacts.
Though he was very rich and did not need to work, Percy traveled across the globe searching for lost treasures from the ancient civilizations and collecting them. He ensured the dangerous and magical ones were currently locked in a vault deep within the frigid waters of the Arctic so that they were never landed in the hands-on power-hungry maniacs.
He did not even want to think about the destruction of the damage even one of those items could cause if they fell into wrong hands. One maniac Hitler was more than enough for him.
"Suppose I'll get to know whether my guess is true or not. A simple test should do the trick. If she is not who I think she is, the mist should be able to deal with the fallout" Thought Percy as he returned his attention to the director's words with a bright and charming smile, even though internally could not wait for him to finish so that he could get prepared for the meeting with Diana tonight.
He knew that such meetings, especially between a daughter of Zeus and a son of Poseidon could be quite dramatic and explosive. He needed all his composure if he has to prevent them from leveling the whole hotel and surroundings to the ground.
Also, he too had been dazed by her beauty though he had managed to hide it well and had felt a bit guilty immediately. It had been decades since he had found someone attractive, and that too at the very first sight.
The immediate attraction had made his guilt exacerbate even further as he felt that this was nothing short of a grave betrayal to his late wife. He felt that this was an act that went against his very nature due to his fatal flaw of personal loyalty.
He noticed that they had reached the exhibit of a scaled own architectural model of the Pantheon at the Acropolis in all its glory he was hit with nostalgia and thought sadly with a deep ache in his heart-
"Oh, wise girl, I wish you were with me here. I miss you so much."
High above the Willard Intercontinental- 20:00 EDT
With Diana
Diana was floating in the sky above the hotel and had pensive look on her face. When she had reached out to her contacts about any information about the mysterious Mr. Jackson, she had not expected such high praise for the man nor the charity and the immense social work the Jackson family had been involved in during and in the aftermath of World War 2.
It did help they were one of the richest families in the world and owner of multiple corporations the most prominent of them was the largest logistics and courier company in the world - " Hermes Express".
Coming back to Perseus Jackson, he had an impressive resume of charity for a man barely past 27 years of age. Through the Sophia Jackson foundation, he rehabilitated thousands of girls affected by sexual violence and gave them a new life while through the Annabeth Jackson foundation he funded the education of orphans and people of the lower strata of society across the globe.
One of his companies "Apollo Pharmaceuticals" was also involved in cutting-edge medical and biological sciences to produce life-saving drugs and had a partnership with many 3rd world countries and governments to produce essential vaccines and medicines at a highly subsidized rate.
He had also funded the setting up and operation of a large number of hospitals to aid the underprivileged in very poor countries internationally in partnership with the Red cross. Domestically, he was involved in the large-scale charity in Gotham in partnership with the Wayne family to improve its public infrastructure and uplift a large pool of homeless.
He had met the current Wayne when he was working as a volunteer in the red cross during the final days of the Vietnam War and was supposedly very close to the family, with rumors circulating about him being named as Thomas Wayne's son's Godfather.
The Wayne family and the Jacksons had a long history of partnership when it came to charity and enrichment of society as a whole stretching way back from the time of World War 2. They had helped save and smuggle millions of refugees and prisoners from the concentration camps to Britain and the United States and had donated heavily in the reconstruction of the damaged cities across Europe.
The Jacksons had also been involved in resettling more refugees during subsequent Vietnam, Korean, and the various wars in Central America along with the help of the Wayne family. There were also rumors that they had also helped several German women escape the brutality of the Red Army when it had laid siege to Berlin with the help of the notorious "Dark Angel" or "Apollyon" as he had called himself according to various eye witness accounts.
Diana had not involved herself in the events of the world after Steve's death on that airfield in Germany. She had withdrawn herself from the world completely only going out to visit or lay flowers at Steve Trevor's grave at Hermes Hill British Cemetery near Albert, Northern France every six months.
She had stayed with Etta for a decade before she decided to travel the world. Once she had finished with her world tour, she decided to become an archaeologist as a hobby never remaining at one place beyond a decade always moving.
When the 2nd world war broke out, she helped in transporting the artworks and artifacts in museums across Europe to The United States to prevent their desecration or destruction in the hands of the Nazis. She later then began her career as a curator in the Smithsonian specializing in Greek culture.
She had been so disenchanted by the brutality and darkness present in men that she had not stepped in when war raged in continental Europe. She had been naïve to believe that all conflict would disappear if she killed Ares but all that did was further Global conflict, erupting into a war of epic proportions.
To her personally, it felt like mankind, was spitting on the great sacrifice of the man she had loved. Only after the recent events had she gained the confidence to step up to her mantle of "Wonder Woman" as she had finally let go of Steve and the guilt that was associated with his death.
She had heard of the tales of this Apollyon and of how brutally he had slaughtered the thousands of German soldiers in multiple concentration camps from where he had saved thousands of prisoners. Many thought him to be working for the allies but he proved them wrong when he strung the naked dead bodies of hundreds of the Red Army soldiers, who had all been trying to sexually assault the German women, all around the city.
They had their throats slit with their male genital organs cut off and unfurled a banner with words written in blood that should anyone assault innocents this would be the result. This incident would become so famous that the historians even had a name for it - "The Wreath of the Dead Men".
So, terrified were the Russians of this devil that they dare not make even an outward and lewd comment towards other women. Even the Americans, French and British forces who reached berlin later were wary of angering this deity/monster.
He had successfully stamped out any assaults against innocents, and with help of the Jacksons and the Wayne had them shipped to safe havens or had them temporarily set up in large camps protected by private guards and volunteers.
Though she agreed with his motivations to do good and protect innocents, she could not find herself condoning such barbarity no matter how deserving it might be. But for all his actions none had been able to take even a clear photo of this mysterious humanoid being or even managed to get a couple of words out of him.
Shaking her head to clear the morbid thoughts she focused on her current predicament at hand. He seemed extremely wealthy and was to many a messiah. But Diana knew very well how looks could be deceiving as she had experienced that with her battle with Ares and recently the incident with Maxwell Lord, so she was on guard and well prepared if the meeting went sideways.
The balcony door was open as he had said it would be but she could not see inside the suite as all the curtains were drawn shut. She was currently in full battle regalia with her sword sheathed at her hip, along with her lasso while her shield was attached to her back. She then slowly but discreetly landed on the balcony before she stepped into the suite of Mr. Jackson.
The inside of the room was lightly illuminated by the soft glow of the lamps placed around the room. There was a large table in the center with four luxurious couches that were placed artfully around it. The room was decorated luxuriously and bled of sophistication and opulence.
A set of collapsible wooden doors at the corner of the room led to the master bedroom which was now open but she could see that the bed was neatly made and showed no signs of being slept on. Diana searched for any sign of Perseus but did not find any so she decided to have a look around the room and made a note of the various exits should she be ambushed.
It was then that she caught the sight of a picture on the mantle of the fireplace. She picked it up in her hand and noticed that it was a picture of a man with black hair and a woman with piercing grey eyes and golden blonde hair who was carrying a small girl child in her arms who was swaddled in a red cloth.
The child had inherited the mother's Golden hair and had startling green eyes of the father who had one arm over his wife while both were fondly gazing at the child with such love that was possible only in the eyes of a parent.
The little girl was smiling widely showing off her toothless mouth. It was so beautifully taken and the picture was so clear that Diana couldn't help but let a small smile creep onto her face at the sight of the child. It had a small Greek inscription in the frame which translated to – "Our little Star.". She was about to place the picture back a voice interrupted her from behind "She is beautiful, isn't she?".
She immediately spun around to see Perseus striding towards her from the direction of the Bedroom. He was dressed in a casual red t-shirt that hugged his figure and showed off his toned swimmers' body, his hidden plane 6 pack abs, and his strong arms.
He wore slacks beneath and Diana couldn't help but notice the curve of his bums. He had a white towel across his shoulders and his hair seemed to be in the same eternal mess that made her want to run her hands through.
He also exuded such grace and finesse in his relaxed gait it made him look like one of the many gods she had seen in tapestries back home in Themiscyra. She was scandalized by her thoughts and shook her head to clear them though her heart seemed to beat faster when he stood near her, their arms almost touching.
He took the photo frame from her hands and looked at it, fondly and longingly with a hint of pain hidden deep inside which she would have missed had she not possessed empathetic abilities no matter how minor. He then spoke "This was my daughter Sophia and my wife Annabeth. She was a little bundle of joy and this photo was the only time she would ever stay still." Letting out a sigh nostalgically as he placed it back in the mantle.
Diana was slightly disappointed that he was married but squashed it quickly and asked in a neutral yet curious tone "Where are they now?".
Perseus replied in a flat tone "Gone. Dead. Taken away from me due to the ambitions and actions of a mad man." His voice turning bitter as he finished his tone clearly stating that he would not entertain any further questions on this topic.
Diana immediately felt her heart go out to him and wanted to apologize for dredging up old bitter memories though there was a traitorous part of her heart that felt relieved. "I am really sorry..." she started but was cut off by Perseus "No. it is fine. It's been decades since their death and I kind of got over it. Please take a seat and would like to have something?" as he shot her a strained smile.
She did need her lasso to find out that he was lying, but she was willing to let it go and focus on the issue at hand.
"Just water please." As she took her seat in one of the comfortable couches relaxing a bit but still did not let her guard down.
"Suit yourself," said Perseus as he handed her a glass of water while he poured himself a glass of rich red wine and took the couch opposite to her across the small table. He took a sip from his glass before he started observing her intently. He then looked her up and down silently once, before seemingly retreating into his own past memories.
Diana knew she was attractive and her armor further accentuated her curves and sizeable assets. So, she had been subjected to a lot of lustful stares from men though they took time to get used to it and to ignore the involuntary instinct to gut the person.
But the way Perseus was looking at her lacked any kind of lust or desire. It looked as if he were assessing how to effectively take her down if they came to blows and it made her feel slightly uncomfortable. She did not know if she wanted to feel insulted or relieved.
Nonetheless, she set down her glass of water after taking a sip and cleared her throat, and asked the question that had been plaguing her since he had passed her the note this morning.
"How did you guess that I was a daughter of Zeus?" she asked pointedly with one hand on her lasso. Perseus was a bit startled out of his memories but quickly regained his composure and answered, looking at her directly in the eyes "Your scent.".
Now, Diana had been long enough in the man's world to get to know of its quirks and various things that were borderline weird yet this weird answer took the cake. Of all answers, she was expecting this was not one.
She just blinked and shouted, "Excuse me!?".
Perseus was not perturbed as if he had expected such a reaction. Taking another sip of the wine he spoke flatly "Ozone and the smell of wild is what I could pick up from you during our interactions due to my enhanced sense of smell. All the children of Zeus or Jupiter if you prefer the Roman form, have a distinct smell of Ozone about them. I don't know from where the smell of the wild is from but I am guessing it has to do with the mother's side of your family. It is very nice and alluring." though he was slightly embarrassed and was scolding himself internally "what exactly is happening to me? This is not normal… how can I be so attracted to her at the very first meeting? Stupid head! Stupid mouth!"
"And you know this how?" asked Diana raising a perfectly manicured eyebrow though she was for some unknown reason fighting hard to hold down a blush. "How is he able to affect me so much? for god's sake he just told me how I smell."
Taking a moment to reorder his thoughts, he spoke carefully "Because I have been around two of them and have gotten to know them personally. And I am a demigod."
Silence permeated throughout the room as for the first time since the meeting began, Diana was gobsmacked and it showed externally by the opening and closing of her mouth trying to get words out.
Percy on the other hand continued observing her all the while sipping the wine from the glass as nonchalantly as possible. Finally, Diana broke the silence with her face set in a snarl as she began to speak.
"You lie ... That's impossible. Do you think this is some sick joke? The gods have long since withdrawn from the mortal plane and even amazons who are their ardent followers have not seen them for millennia." Spoke Diana angrily as she stood ready to use the lasso to draw out the truth and smack him hard across the face if he deserved it.
Perseus just placed the glass on the small table before lifting his right hand and said seriously "I swear on the River Styx that my name is Perseus Achilles Jackson, the demigod son of Poseidon and mortal Sally Jackson, and whatever I have told Diana, daughter of Zeus so far is the truth."
There was a boom of thunder in the distance signaling the solemnity of the oath, and since Perseus had not fallen over and died, Diana knew that Perseus was speaking the truth. A vow on the Styx was binding and final and there was no need to check its veracity with the lasso.
Her eyes had become wide like saucers and she landed back onto the couch in shock for the second time. For a 3000-year-old woman, two earth-shattering bombshells in a day were rare. She managed to whisper out "How is it even possible?".
Perseus again picked up his wine glass and after taking another sip asked with an iconic troublemaker smirk "What do you know about the Multiverse, Diana?".