(slight warning for dark imagery and morbidity)
chapter seven: please just let this all be one bad nightmare
Percy's legs are screaming at him to stop, to just take a break but he can't, he can't because he needs to get away, get out of this place. He is running as fast as he possibly can because he knows that if he stops moving it will find him, that presence, that thing that is so inexplicably evil and he needs to get out, now.
The world around him is black and red, eerie shadows clinging to the edges and haunted voices whisper and then scream. He is sweating as he gasps for breath, his legs trembling and his hands clammy.
"Demigod."
Percy stumbles hard on something and tumbles, the skin on his palms scraping off against the ground and he scrambles for purchase on the torn-up earth. It feels rough, broken, and little pieces of rocks and brittleness cut into his shredded hands.
Get up, get up! Percy thinks frantically, somehow climbing to his feet. An instinct is screaming at him to not look for the source of the voice calling his name but Percy can't stop himself from trying. Wherever he is, Percy can't make it out well. He gropes blindly for Riptide in his jean pockets, shuddering with relief as his hands close around the magical weapon.
"Wh-who are you?" He whispers, his voice raspy. It echoes around like he's just shouted it. He's so tense he feels like his bones are going to break, confusion and anticipation for something coiled so tightly around his body that everything hurts.
Suddenly, the space around him blurs and shifts into focus and his eyes grow wide as he is finally able to see where he is. It's horrifying. Dark shapes-little mounds-that he had previously thought were rocks, are formed out of people; bodies pressed together so tight and intimately that they are nearly indistinguishable. Their limbs are bent in impossible ways, some of their necks twisted so far around that they've started to split open. And then the smell; wet, sweet mold and the stench of skin peeling off and rotting away and decay hits Percy like a brick wall and he doubles over and vomits.
He can taste it.
Something is wrong. Something is so, so horribly wrong.
Percy feels shudders run through his body and can hear his heart pounding in his ears. He grips his head as pain sears through it, stars exploding behind his tightly squeezed eyelids and can feel the blood from his hands coat his hair and face.
"At last. I have found you, Perseus Jackson."
Percy gasps and whips around. Despite the flames casting light on the horrid landscape, shadows creep closer and he still can't find the source of the voice. "How do you know me?" Percy clenches his fists, trying to stop shaking long enough to...do something. "Who are you?" The questions come out brokenly, his voice sounding strange to himself.
"The dead speak of you, Son of Poseidon. Their whispers reach my domain."
He's shaking even harder now, pain, fear, adrenaline coursing through his body. "What do you want with me?" Percy glances around, searching, but all he can see is darkness and fire and disfigured bodies. The smell of rotting flesh that is so strong that for a second, he panics even harder because it feels like he's eating it.
"Your body shall succeed where hers' did not," Percy's vision flickers as he feels a wave of nausea overcome him. "Your blood shall break the seal, demigod. Do not try to run and do not think you are free. Your life is mine."
Percy gasps as pain comes lancing through his chest, as though someone's just gripped his heart and squeezed between their hands. The world around him spins overhead and an inhuman roar fills his ears and finally everything goes black.
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"Percy!"
Annabeth grips her boyfriend's shoulders tightly, relief flooding her veins as he finally jerks awake.
Percy's sea-green eyes (her favorite color) peer back at her as beads of sweat trail down the sides of his face. He's shaking so bad, his chest heaving as his breaths come in uneven staccatos. He looks haunted, Annabeth thinks, something in her heart breaking.
"Percy?" She asks quietly. "You with me?"
"Should I get some water?" Leo whispers. Blessed Leo, who had woken both Annabeth and Piper up in a panic as Percy's blood-curdling screams split the air. He's standing close to the doorway and Piper murmurs something to him and wraps him a sideways hug.
"Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth murmurs, trying to keep her own concern under wraps. Annabeth hasn't seen Percy look this bad since one of their first nights back from Tartarus and she's scared.
Percy's eyes finally focus on her and she feels him relax somewhat. "Y-yeah." His voice is hoarse, dry. "I'm with you Wise Girl."
Thank the gods.
Behind her, Annabeth can hear Piper and Leo leave the room, and more voices from down the hallway. She can make out Jason's but the other two must belong to some of the Young Justice members.
"Shit." Percy curses, his voice cracking, and leans forward and buries his face in Annabeth's shoulder, wrapping his arms around her. "Shit."
Annabeth pulls him into a tight hug, running a soothing hand through his hair. "Tartarus?" She whispers. She can't count the times since they've defeated Gaea that they've been woken by each other's screams and sobs. Their nightmares are now a part of them, just like their bond from holding up the sky all those years ago had given them matching physical proof of their burden, Tartarus has given them something too.
Percy shudders in her arms. "No," He breathes softly. "Something worse."
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"Okay, but like, how does it work?"
Tim taps the holographic screen that's being projected into the air and pauses the media footage from the whole 'the-Justice-League-has-a-watchtower-in-spacefiasco (thank you Gordon Godfrey).
They're sitting around the living area in the Cave, other Young Justice heroes and displaced demigods spread around. Gar had told Tim earlier when he'd arrived that the misplaced teens had spent the morning largely either researching their world, coming up with possible ideas about who, or what, might have sent them here, and overall waiting to discuss more with Nightwing and the others. Tim has a feeling the demigods have either made a pretty solid guess about their situation or have stumbled across something on the internet that is bringing them to the same hunch Dick and Tim both have; somehow Batman and Gotham are all tied into this mess.
Tim glances at the time on the screen, wondering where Dick and the others are. It's later in the afternoon, the mornings of the weekdays and weekends designated for school, work, or any other personal activities that the heroes have going on before the evenings spent at the cave. Today isn't much different from the past several, aside from the fact that six demigods from another universe are hanging out with most of the other heroes who are waiting for their leaders to either start the sparring sessions or doll out field assignments. Dick had messaged Tim earlier saying he and Barbra were going to be arriving at the cave sometime around four, but it's already past four thirty and they still haven't shown up.
"It's a blend of a few different techs," Tim explains before taking a sip of his coffee. (It's in Bruce's favorite tumbler and has a horrendous amount of his favorite creme brulee coffee creamer in it. Tim had snapped a photo of it earlier and sent it to Bruce with an evil smiley face emoji, hoping that he'd receive a response but no luck. The lack of a response had left a slightly bitter taste in his mouth (despite the sugar in his coffee) and he'd had to remind himself that Bruce isn't like his parents; he's not responding because he can't, not because he just doesn't care to). "The JLA constructed it using a mix of Zeta platforms from Rann, Nth metal composed transmission systems, and element X which powers a Boom Tube and all that's supported by Kryptonian semiconductors."
Leo soaks in the information, clearly interested by any discussion of technology and mechanics. Jason, who's sitting next to his friend on the couch, looks at Leo with an expression that Tim interprets to be 'you're actually following this?'
To the side of where Tim is sitting with Jason and Leo, Gar is smashing the buttons on the PS-4 game controller, sitting crisscross applesauce on the floor in front of the t.v. He's somehow managed to successfully drag Nico into joining him and Jaime; the demigod wasn't eager initially but now seems to not totally hate it, if his small grin is anything to go by. He might possibly be making Gar regret his decision because Nico is absolutely destroying him. Jaime is sitting on the backrest of the couch with his own controller, his shoes on the cushions (Tim just knows that if Alfred were here he would have an aneurysm at seeing sneakers on the couch seat). The banter between the boys and the sounds from the video game are creating a cacophony of noise that almost drowns out humming coming from the fan above the kitchen stove, which is on because Bart decided to cook bacon (vegan, because respecting Gar) but the smell always gives Jaime a headache.
There's a slight gust of wind and then Bart is standing by Tim's shoulder, a bag of something in one hand. "If you didn't understand any of that, don't stress. Rob here's just a giant nerd. Banana chips?" Bart offers, and Leo reaches forward to snag a few.
Tim grimaces. "Ew, gross."
Jason grins at the speedster but declines the chips as well. "Yeah, none of that made any sense to me, but it sounds cool."
Leo leans forward excitedly. "Wait so does it follow the Earth's orbit or what?"
Bart wiggles in and squeezes himself next to Tim and the armrest of the sofa. "Nope, it's not in geosynchronous orbit so it stays stationary."
"A secret HQ in space huh," Jason says, shaking his head slightly in disbelief.
"Hey, Robin!" Cassie calls from the other side of the room as Leo reaches over and continues playing the video. Cassie's talking with Annabeth and Piper by the kitchen next to where Percy is seated on one of the kitchen bar stools, looking at something on the laptop Kaldur had lent them the previous night. The other dark-haired boy looks better today than he had when Tim had first met him, although there are deep shadows under his eyes, something Tim can relate to all too well.
"What's up?" Tim has to raise his voice to be heard over Bart's chattering and Gar hooting in victory and Gordon Godfrey's voice.
Cassie tilts her head slightly back and shouts, "when's Nightwing and the others getting here?" Tim knows she's asking for Annabeth, who had mentioned earlier that she wanted to discuss some things once Nightwing arrived.
Tim goes to reply just as the doors to the living area swish open and Virgil and Cissie walk into the room, the two of them, like Jaime and Bart, dressed in civies (since it's been established that no, these teenagers aren't here to kill them and yes, they're good people, and sure, you can wear regular clothes around them and you do have permission to tell them your first name). Both heroes stop chatting as Bart calls their names and beckons them over to where he and Tim are sitting, Jason and Leo waving in hello and sliding over to make more room on the sofa.
"They should be here anytime now!" Tim hollers back. He turns to the two newly arrived heroes. "Hey guys."
"Nico, what the heck!" Gar screeches as his character on the screen explodes.
"Whoops." Nico says without any remorse. They must have raised the volume on the t.v. because it sounds a lot louder now than it did before.
Cissie raises an eyebrow at the travel coffee mug in Tim's hands. "Are you drinking coffee at like, four in the afternoon?"
"What, that's what normal people do," Tim says back, taking a pointed sip of his drink.
"Bro, I don't know if there's anything normal about you, or us." Virgil comments, half joking. He looks over at the bag in Bart's hands. "Are those banana chips?"
"Is that like in a minute or an hour?" Cassie shouts back. Percy is showing something on the computer to Annabeth, while Piper is looking back and forth between Cassie and Tim like she's wondering why they don't just go to each other so they're not shouting across the room. (Which is a really good point but Tim's had to speak properly inside his whole life and since he's started spending most of his time either at the Manor or the cave, he's realized he likes breaking that rule).
"I have this really strong urge to start blasting some loud music, just to contribute to the chaos," Leo says in a tone that sounds partially joking, partially really serious.
"Leo, no," Jason responds almost immediately before the others can.
"Leo, yes," Bart grins wildly and suddenly he's got the tablet that's connected to the cave's music system in his hands.
"Dude," Virgil groans.
Tim ignores them in favor of yelling back, "I'm not sure, sometime in between?"
Jason looks like he wants to intervene but since it's Bart who is executing Leo's idea, holds himself back and instead turns back to the screen as a different video starts playing. "So how does the Justice League affect the world, like, politically?" Jason asks.
Virgil leans over to respond just as Leo taps something on the tablet and a pop song in Spanish starts playing.
Cissie places a hand over her eyes and says exasperatedly, "oh my gosh, really?"
There's a "good choice!" from Jaime who cheers his approval for the song before turning back to the game in time for Nico to totally obliterate his character. The sound of the video game clashes horribly with the music but both Bart and Leo are grinning.
"Leo!" Piper calls in the same way Tim's heard Alfred say "Master Bruce, are you serious?" that one-time Bruce had tried cleaning a pan.
(Tim still regrets that he hadn't had the chance to film the event. It went like this; Alfred will sometimes pour some white vinegar in a pan while it's still hot to clean it easier if the food sticks to it harshly. Bruce, who had, like Tim, watched Alfred do that multiple times, intended to do the same thing but instead of grabbing the bottle of vinegar (which is clearly labeled) had grabbed the bottle of rubbing alcohol Alfred keeps in the kitchen (because in the Wayne household, you never know). Tim is still amazed that the fireball (because extremely hot pan meets alcohol equals fire) hadn't seared Bruce's eyebrows off).
"Hey, I think the bacon's burning!" Percy shouts, pointing at the stove. There's noticeable smoke coming from the pan and now along with all the noise there's the faint smell of burnt food.
Annabeth quickly moves over to the oven, looking at the stainless-steel appliance and calls, "how do you turn this stove off?"
Cissie jumps up to go help her shouting, "hold on I've got it!" while Virgil points at the tablet and says "dude, lower the volume!"
"Bart, come take care of your food!" Cassie hollers while increasing the strength of the oven fan.
"Oh shoot," Bart dumps his bag of remaining banana chips on Tim's lap and in a blink is on the other side of the room next to Annabeth by the stove.
"Do I even want to ask?" A raised voice calls from the entrance into the room.
Tim, along with Jason and Cissie, look over to the entrance way where Dick, in uniform, is standing next to Kaldur and Barbra, all of them taking in the chaos with varying expressions of amusement and 'I shouldn't have expected anything different'.
"Oh, uh," Virgil starts and then looks at Cissie and just shrugs helplessly.
"Hey Cassie," Tim yells over the music from the video game and from the speakers, Gar's exclamation of "Nico, seriously?, and the conversation coming from the kitchen. "Nightwing's here!"
Barbara rolls her eyes and walks over to where the tablet is laying on the coffee table beside them, clicking it on and turning off the music. The cave becomes significantly quieter and Jaime pauses the video game after noticing the three older heroes by the doorway.
Cassie hits a button on the microwave and shuts off the fan, quieting the cave further.
"Thank you," Cissie says with feeling.
"Cool, now that we can hear ourselves think," Dick says looking at the Young Justice members present. "Get ready to hit the mats for some sparing, Artemis and Conner will be joining you soon." Dick nudges the Atlantean beside him. "Kaldur, you wanna corral these hooligans over to the sparring room?" Dick turns to where Annabeth and Percy are leaning against the kitchen counter and nods at their questioning look. "The rest of us will join in a bit."
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Jason motions with a pat on the empty seat for Piper to sit next to him on the couch, returning her smile when she does. The others have taken seats around the sofa, Percy and Annabeth sitting where Virgil and Cissie were before all the heroes except for Robin had left with Kaldur. (Jason does hope they'll get the chance to join them after their conversation; it would be really interesting to spar with another child of Jupiter, (well, Zeus) even if they're from another universe). Leo is on Jason's other side, Nico across from him next to Robin. Batgirl, or Barbra, as she'd told them to call her, is sitting on one of the barstools she pulled over from the kitchen, Nightwing standing beside her.
Annabeth begins the conversation without preamble. "The 'symbol in the night' thing, you guys think it's somehow related to the Batman, don't you?" She pulls the laptop that Percy was using earlier towards her and turns it around so they can see the screen. It's open on the webpage Nico had read from last night and shows the picture of the bat symbol shining into Gotham's night sky.
Nico looks at the three heroes. "What does this mean?"
Nightwing sighs like he was expecting this and replies, "to be totally honest? I'm not sure." He doesn't sound terribly concerned, more like this is just a mystery that they need to solve and make sense of. (Which is pretty accurate but Jason definitely feels concerned by this whole situation. Not that he's trying to show it).
Annabeth looks at Percy and Jason can tell she was hoping for more.
"Do you think the voice was telling us to go find uh, Batman?" Percy asks, gazing at the picture on the computer.
Barbra crosses her legs and frowns, one white sneaker kicking slightly up and down. "If they were, they have bad timing- Batman isn't here."
Piper leans forward. "Not here as in…?"
"He's off-world," Robin responds. "With the JLA. We haven't been able to communicate with any of them since they've passed through the Boom Tube and into deep space."
What the heck, Jason thinks. Really, it shouldn't surprise him considering he's met a Martian, a kid who moves crazy fast, and a dude from Atlantis, but it's said so casually that it does.
"Cool," Leo nods. He could either be saying it sarcastically about their predicament or genuinely about the thought of a thing that allows people to travel through space, Jason isn't totally sure.
"Have you been able to come up with any ideas on your end?" Nightwing asks.
Annabeth frowns, frustrated. "Not really. There are some pretty crazy stories from Greek and Roman mythology, some that we've even been a part of, but alternate universes?" She shakes her head. "Not really part of them."
Nightwing brushes his hair back from his face before letting it tumble down again. "Well. Miss Martian is working on some theories, but if it is some villain from our world, they've kept their actions incredibly discreet."
"Were you able to hear back from the other people who work with magic?" Jason questions. Saying that makes him really miss Hazel and his chest hurt; his nightmares last night were full of her screams and watching her collapse on the ground, over and over.
Nightwing gives a slight shake of his head and leans his hip against the armrest of the couch. "No, not yet. But hopefully we will soon."
"Do you know when Batman will be back?" Percy asks. He pauses slightly before he says 'Batman', like he's trying to figure out answers just by saying the name.
"It could be tomorrow, or in a week," Barbra replies. She smiles sympathetically, but Jason can tell that Batman's absence isn't something that's just affecting the demigods. "With these types of missions, it's kind of impossible to predict."
"Oh," Percy sighs.
Annabeth groans and leans her elbows on her knees, pressing the palms of her hands into her closed eyes. "This whole situation should be impossible," she mutters. "It's like a freaking thermodynamic miracle."
"A what?" Nico blinks.
"It's like oxygen spontaneously turning into gold," Barbara explains.
Jason raises an eyebrow, because that didn't really explain anything. "Like…?"
"Basically, it's an event that's super unlikely," Robin continues. "Like, the odds are so astronomical they're effectively impossible."
"Right," Annabeth nods, inclining her chin in Barbra's direction. "I.E. oxygen suddenly becoming gold."
Jason looks between the three of them and exchanges a knowing smile with Piper.
Leo coughs, noticeably fake, into his hand. "Nerds."
Piper rolls her eyes at him. "You are not one to talk," but her smile is fond.
"Anyways," Nightwing says, slighting grinning at Barbra, before turning back to them all. "Until we either hear back from the JLA or Batman, I think the best thing we can do is continue to wait. I know it's not ideal but-"
"It wanted Percy," Nico says suddenly, jerking his head up. He's scowling, like he's remembering something unpleasant, something not good and Jason can feel his shoulders start to tense. "Look, before we were, kidnapped, or whatever, that thing wanted Percy for some reason."
Jason, like the others in the room, turns to look at Percy, who's looking at Nico with a slightly uncomfortable expression. (Jason gets that; knowing that some unknown creature is targeting you isn't something that brightens up your day. And after the nightmare that Percy experienced last night, the one that woke them all up and brought Conner to their rooms, not something that brightens your night either).
Jason can see the heroes looking at the other demigod curiously out of the corner of his eye, but they don't say anything as Percy shifts in his seat.
"Nico, I mean, we know that," Percy starts, tucking some of his hair that's just long enough behind an ear before it falls back into his face. "But I don't see what that-"
Nico shakes his head, his face determined. "No, Percy, that's exactly it, think about it. Kronos. Gaea. Both times you were a central piece to prophecies that basically told us some super bad ancient being was going to use you to come back from the dead and rise again."
Jason clenches a fist; although it's from a time that is now passed, hearing how deities looked at Percy, how both sides look at them as tools and objects to use for their whims, angers him.
Percy frowns, glancing briefly in Nightwing and Barbra's direction before turning back to him. "Dude, we all were a part-"
"Oh," Annabeth breaths; her eyes are wide. "Oh, Hera."
Jason is now as lost as both Leo and Percy look, while Piper stiffens beside him.
"Annabeth," she says, leaning towards the daughter of Athena. "What are you thinking."
"Nico," Nightwing interrupts softly, catching the younger boy's attention. "You said your friend, or sister, told you that magic was involved, right?"
Nico nods and Leo leans over to Jason to whisper, "Jace, what are they talking about?"
Jason isn't sure, but he has a clue, one that he desperately hopes the others aren't thinking as well. "Hold on," he mutters back to Leo.
"It was hard to make out with everything that was going on," Nico says. His voice is steady despite the fact that Jason knows he's more worried for Hazel than any of them. "But she definitely said magic, dark magic, and now I think," he pauses slightly, before continuing. "I think she was trying to tell me your blood-"
"'You blood will break the seal'," Percy whispers. His normally tan skin is pale, and Jason can feel concern corroding away in his chest. "My nightmare last night, oh my gods."
Jason can still remember the look on Leo and Piper's faces last night while they stood by the door outside of the room giving Annabeth some space with Percy. Conner, (as Superboy had told them was his actual name, which makes way more sense) had shown up only minutes after Leo had woken the girls, looking concernedly at the partially closed door while Nico explained that this was normal. (It makes Jason feel bitter, sometimes). Jason's not sure if Annabeth had told Piper what Percy's nightmare was about, but even so she grips Jason's hand and he can tell she's clearly worried.
Nightwing looks at them steadily, Robin unmoving on the couch and Barbra is frowning, her ankle still.
"Guys," Leo says, his tone and expression serious. It looks out of place, not Leo-like, to Jason. "What are you talking about? What is going on."
Annabeth closes her eyes for a moment before looking at the son of Hephaestus. "I think something, some god or goddess or titan, wants to return from the dead, and they need the blood of a demigod strong enough to do so."
"One that's already awoken Mother Earth," Nico adds quietly. "And one that has been acknowledged by the incarnation of Tartarus himself."
"Woah," Robin murmurs.
Sometimes Jason forgets exactly just what Percy, and Annabeth, have lived through. But looking at their matching haunted expressions, he knows that they haven't.
"Percy," Barbara says softly, gaining his attention after a moment. "I know how awful it is to recount a nightmare." There's an empathy in her eyes that makes Jason believe her. "But I think you probably should."
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a day late but here you go! a ? plot ? omg. (also i legit feel like half the time i'm writing these characters im just describing my crazy family) credits to the watchmen comics for the concept of thermodynamic miracles and to my younger sister for that wonderful tidbit about the alcohol and the pan (and by thanks i mean what on earth possessed you to do that i'm shocked you still have hair on your head. (guys, please, please do not attempt to clean a hot pan over an open stove with alcohol)) thank you so much to everyone who's reviewed!