Oh my gods! Thank you for the amazing responses I've received, from all the readers, and especially the reviewers! I've replied to each and every one of them, and you could go see yours at the end notes. This work has achieved more than the rest of my stories in a short period of time, so, if anyone's interested, you could go see the others. (SHAMELESS PLUGGING) Thor: The Dark World and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. never happened, 'cause this is my world.
Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson or the Avengers.
Older men declare war. But it is the youth that must fight and die.
-Herbert Hoover
Chapter 2: Hindered Moments and Organized Places
Director Nick Fury of SHIELD felt a headache blossom in his head.
"What do you mean, the guy disappeared for almost ten months?
Agent Maria Hill nodded. "Percy Jackson was off the grid for almost ten months. SHIELD tracked his call to their apartment on his eighth month, one that originated from Alaska. The call was meant for his mother, Sally Blofis née Jackson. And there were also records of his misbehavior on different schools."
"Great," muttered Fury. "We've got another wayward kid."
"Jackson's father is 'lost at the sea,' as his mother put it," Hill continued. "He had a stepfather named Gabe Ugliano, who, after the whole Percy Jackson being an international criminal but not, disappeared and did not leave any trace at all. Percy Jackson got another stepfather four years after, Paul Blofis, who married Sally Jackson a month ago." Then Hill smiled wryly. "Percy Jackson seems still in his senior year in high school."
Fury sighed. "Dig deeper. Find all the files you can get your hands on this mysterious Percy Jackson.
Tony Stark woke up to the urgent-not-urgent voice of JARVIS.
"Sir, it seems that Doctor Banner have been trying to reach you this past three minutes. I suggest that you answer the phone call."
Tony groaned, letting his head fall back to the pillow (where did that come from?), smelling the last night's scotch all around him, but the bottles (yeah, plural) were gone now, leaving his working table empty and clean.
He yawned sleepily and blinked, feeling a steady drum beat inside his head, pounding, and trying to will himself to wake up already but he really, really need coffee right now.
"JARVIS," he muttered, "tell Brucie to wait. Oh, no, answer the goddamn call and I'll tell him myself."
He pushed himself up and stretched, hearing his bones crack from the night's abuse falling asleep on the chair. He's not as young as he used to be. He got up and walked into the kitchen, feeling more awake but not quite enough, and reached for his beloved coffee maker.
"Tony?" asked Bruce tentatively from the other line. There was a creak and a thud as Bruce does who-know-what.
"Mmm?" Tony said, feeling the coffee flow in his veins and power up his system, like a computer being plugged at an electrical socket. "What's up? You don't usually phone for a social call—and when you do, it's not for a social call."
"Well, I've decided something today," Bruce said, a resounding thud and a resolved click in the background.
Tony squinted, sipping his coffee. "Wait, wait, hold on a moment. What are you doing? 'Cause I got a feeling that you're doing what you aren't supposed to do." A pause. "Right?"
There's a hush of static as Bruce sighed exasperatedly. "Yes. I'm packing."
Tony felt giddy. "Ohh, you're packing. Which leaves two options: You're leaving 'safe haven,' as you put it, and will go further and save some town and heal some people. But you're calling me, so that leaves the second option." He felt a grin spread over his face. "You're moving into the tower!"
The genius could practically see the roll of his eyes as the scientist huffed. "I've considered the offer last night, and, well… I've got to admit, I'd love to have to stay at the tower. And the lab," he added excitedly.
Tony laughed the most sincere one he had for the first time in months. "Sure, and we could be Science bros. Thanks, really."
Bruce laughed. "No, I'm the one who should be thanking you. Bye." There was a beep as the call disconnected.
"Oh, and JARVIS?"
"Yes, sir?"
"Book a flight for Brucie here. Then send Happy for him when he lands on the airport. Oh, no, I'll personally see him and welcome him."
"I've already booked a flight for Doctor Banner exactly two minutes ago, sir. I only had to call Master Hogan for the car."
Tony rubbed his hands together, feeling gleeful. "Get ready for your new lab, Bruce."
Percy sighed as he plopped down on their living room's couch, feeling the weariness seep from his body. The apartment was empty except for him, and he could hear from the near silence the traffic of the New York streets below them. It was Friday, and Anna—she should be visiting him now.
He shook his head, and tried to clear his thoughts of her.
It had taken hours, hell, days to comfort his mother that yes, he will be fine without them as they discussed what to do with Paul and Sally's honeymoon after their wedding.
"Percy, honey, are you sure?" Sally had asked worriedly.
"'Course, mom," he had said, cupping her face between his hands. He'd grown tall, taller than his mother over the last months. "I'm seventeen now." He'd smiled at her reassuringly. "'Sides, you can count on Annabeth and Grover checking on me every so often." His eyes glinted mischievously.
Her mom caught it, and she laughed, with just a tinge of sadness in it. She hugged him, hard, almost crushing his ribs. "I'll miss you, Percy," she murmured against her shoulder. "Just don't do anything stupid in our apartment. Or anywhere else, okay?"
"And my car," Paul called.
He laughed, feeling his eyes sting. "Yeah," muttered Percy back. "I'll miss you, mom. And your pancakes and cookies too."
They flew to Maldives for their honeymoon, and they'll possibly stay there for a few weeks, leaving Percy alone in their apartment. Percy, on the other hand, decided to go finish his stupid senior year. But, he thought now, it was better than his recent years at schools.
He sighed as he opened the television, surfing over the channels to watch Doctor Who. He missed plenty episodes, sure, but he still loved to watch it.
Donna's got attitude, he recalled, but he decided to still like Rose than any other companions the Doctor had.
He wondered where he could get a TARDIS and fly her to Maldives, and to surprise his mother and Paul that he'd landed to the supposedly peaceful place earlier than the plane. But the ride would be bumpier, he thought as he laughed, and there's a chance that he will land at the wrong place or at the wrong time.
Or maybe he could go back in time, and fix everything right.
He shook the thoughts away and stood up to make his dinner. If making dinner means ordering pizza.
He did, calling from the cheapest pizza parlor he knew, and ordered some Coke while at it. While he waited, he went back to watch the Doctor, Amy and Rory planned something while River's inside the exploding TARDIS.
His pizza arrived, and he relaxed back into the couch, not bothering to eat in the kitchen, eyes still glued to the TV. He was seeping his Coke when someone knocked on the door. Three sharp knocks that meant business. And probable chaos.
Percy tensed, putting down the drink alongside the pizza box, and closed his mouth that was half-way to biting the pizza slice he'd been holding. He headed for the door to answer it, trying to quell the feeling of foreboding. Maybe it was just the delivery guy who forgot something.
The demigod opened the door to found a man in an expensive business suit, with brown hair and blue eyes. The man held himself professionally, with a smooth, blank face, and a ramrod straight back but with an air of calmness Percy certainly didn't feel.
Percy fiddled with the pen in his pocket while he tried to smile disarmingly at the man. "Yes, sir? I'm afraid my parents aren't here right now."
The man smiled, but not unkindly. "I'm Agent Coulson of Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement Logistics Division, or S.H.I.E.L.D., if you will, Mr. Jackson, and I don't need your parents."
Percy felt his mental barriers rise with the implication. "If you're trouble, please go away. I had enough of this to last for a lifetime or two."
The man took a deep breath and smiled that infuriating smile of his. "I'm afraid that I could not, Mr. Perseus Jackson. You are sorely needed in this time." The agent looked grim, smile gone now, looking serious.
"Okay." Percy mentally told himself to calm down, because things were definitely not okay. "Okay, uh… why don't you step in and make yourself at home?" He spread his arms wide, trying to diffuse the tension in the room. "Welcome to my humble abode."
Agent Coulson stepped in the living room and raised an eyebrow at the mess at the coffee table, the pizza box open with a slice half-eaten, and at the half-empty glass of Coke.
"Hey," protested Percy. "The guy's eating dinner!"
Amusement fluttered across the agent's features, the first positive expression he saw this night. Then it was gone as someone knocked on the door again. Gently.
The demigod glanced at the agent, who looked as baffled as he was. So, not one of them, then. "I'll answer."
Agent Coulson nodded, and followed him to the front door. When he hesitated too long, there was a knock again, sharper this time.
"Coming," he muttered irritably. Then his jaw dropped open when he saw who were the persons standing outside. Not exactly persons. More like divine beings. Or gods, if you like to be blunt. Gods.
He threw a sharp glance behind him at the agent and faked a grin. "D-Dad!" He cleared his throat. "And Uncle Z! So nice of you to come to my house. Watcha doin'?"
By the way Zeus glared at him darkly, he rather guessed he took a step too far. But he allowed it nonetheless, by way of protecting his true identity to the mortal. He was wearing a clean, crisp suit, his majestic (Percy thought otherwise) beard neatly trimmed, and his golden blonde hair swept back.
Poseidon, however, smiled at him, though the demigod thought it looked rather tired and weary. He was wearing a bright orange Hawaiian floral shirt, paired with khaki Bermuda shorts and Birkenstocks sandals. The cap, which he always wears, was now gone. He might look like he's chilling out on the seaside, but his grim expression said otherwise. He was a stark contrast to his brother, who looked ready to attend a meeting with America's highest ranking leaders.
"Umm… Agent Coulson, this is my father Poseidon and my Uncle Zeus. Dad, Uncle, this is Agent Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D."
Poseidon's eyes twinkled mischievously. "It is our mother's joke to name us after the Greek gods. Now, I think that you have something that concerns my son?"
Agent Coulson nodded, looking dumbstruck, but he tried not to let it show.
"Now, if you please, Percy," thundered Zeus, voice filling the room easily. "I need to talk with Agent Coulson, he nodded to the agent, "while you, my brother, will talk to your son. Privately," he added.
"The kitchen will do," said Percy to his father. He snagged the half-eaten pizza and the Coke on the way, Poseidon following close behind.
"So," sighed the demigod, "let me guess: they need me."
Poseidon nodded. "Unfortunately so. You've been, ah, discussed about, and they want you with them with the upcoming war."
Percy glared. "No. Not again. I will not be used like that again."
"Percy, my son, please," said Poseidon, turning his eyes on him. "You have to. And no doubt that some of them will be able to help with what happened last week. They are not exactly a perfect team, too."
Now Percy know where he got the puppy eyes everyone had been talking about. Those puppy eyes will make anyone agree to what Percy wants—even she couldn't always resist them.
And there's no mistaking of what happened last week means. It's an unspoken agreement that anyone should never never spoke of them. In front of Percy.
The demigod balled his fists and looked away. "Fine. As long as anyone isn't involved." As long as anyone wouldn't get hurt. "Not on my watch."
"We promised," Poseidon said, looking like a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders, "you are the only one involved. And the Avengers, obviously."
Percy furrowed his brow. "Wait, what? The Avengers?"
"Didn't I tell you?"
"Obviously, you didn't."
Poseidon smiled. "In a few minutes, Agent Coulson will ask you to join the Avengers." The god frowned. "And as much as brother dislikes the idea of mortals discovering demigods and gods, the Avengers will fall apart, unless a demigod, a hero of Olympus will join them."
The god's eyes grew distant, as if he was reciting an old dictum from a memory. "The Hero of Olympus, its savior, who trudged through the pit of hell, who endured two wars, will endure another, for the sake of his city, for the sake of the world, and for the sake of the universe."
Percy sat back in his chair, completely stunned. He clutched the glass of Coke as if his life depended on it. Save the city? That he can do. Save the world? Been there, done that. But the universe? Oh, for Hades' sake, he didn't even know the half of the universe.
"Arrggghhh…" he groaned unintelligibly, holding his head in his hands. "Me again. Why me again?" he moaned to no one in particular. "There's… plenty of demigods there, and I just want my normal life back. Well," he amended, "as normal as my life can be."
Poseidon nodded sympathetically, though he gave no answer to any of his questions. Not that the demigod was probably expecting that. The god stood and clapped him on the shoulder. "A bit of advice: best not to tell the Avengers about Agent Coulson. And just remember that you are not alone," he said, smiling, and vanished into mist, leaving nothing but the faintest scent of the ocean breeze.
But he is alone.
Composing himself, he walked back to find Zeus and Agent Coulson staring at him expectantly. After his father had left him to his thoughts, he considered it for a long time thinking it through, weighing the pros and cons. Just one question nagged at his mind: What about mom and Paul?
The agent was staring at him and Zeus with wide eyes, unable to speak. So the god must have told him.
Zeus glared at him, and said, "Where's my brother?
Percy shrugged. "He left after giving me some choices that I would most likely make now." He turned to Agent Coulson. "Right?"
The agent composed himself and straightened his back, nodding. He looked professional once again, no longer staring at him like had just fallen from the heaven. "Your father," he noted. "I didn't see him go out at all."
Percy grinned. "You probably know how."
Agent Coulson smiled. "So, Mr. Jackson. What is your choice: do you join the Avengers, or not?"
The demigod took a pizza slice, and chewed on it earnestly. He shrugged helplessly, grinning, all teeth and feral. "I don't have a choice, do I? 'Course I'll join. One question," he narrowed his eyes and leaned forward, "what about mom and Paul?"
Agent Coulson nodded, understanding flickering across his eyes. "You can visit your parents every time you want."
Percy sighed. "Fine by me, I guess. Just… let me pack my things."
"Someone will fetch you tomorrow," said Coulson, standing up and heading for the door.. "See you in a bit, Mr. Jackson. Thank you for your cooperation, my Lord," he said to Zeus, bowing his head. "And I would appreciate it if you will not tell anyone about my secret. All will be revealed in true time."
The door closed with a final click, and the god vanished into thin air, leaving the demigod to finish his dinner. Oh well.
"Sir, an unidentified number is trying to reach you."
Tony sighed, hands still tinkering with his suit, adjusting its modifications and turning to some parts that needing fixing. If the caller and JARVIS meant unidentified number, it was probably S.H.I.E.L.D.
Nick Fury's voice sounded over the speakers. "Stark.
The genius made a noncommittal voice in his throat to show that he was listening, not looking up.
"I heard that your tower will be a tower for the Avengers."
"Of course you heard about it already." He hissed when one of the fused electrical wires sparked and made contact with his skin. "Nothing escapes S.H.I.E.L.D." He grinned sharply. "Except me, of course."
"Except you, of course," muttered Fury, voice sounding odd. Like he sounded tired. Bone-tired. Weary, for once.
"You know," said Tony, "I've already got Bruce going. Like, a sudden change of heart. He never considered the offer to stay in the tower, but just this morning I received a call from him, and he's packing his things, saying, and said, 'Hey, buddy, I've decided I'll move to the tower and shit.' And then we're okay."
"We've got a team meeting tomorrow," Fury informed him. "At the Helicarrier."
Now Tony caught the tone. "Yeah, Nicky, what happened? You're like you've been ran over by ten thousand trucks and sound like shit."
"Loki… agreed to give us information. In turn, he will be given… protection until the Asgardians decides his fate, however 'weak, puny and minuscule' we are, as he put it."
Tony straightened from his work, attention now completely focused on the Director. "Our Resident Evil God actually agreed to give us information for his safety?"
"Yes," Fury's voice crackled from the speakers. "Just that I want you tomorrow, Stark. Eight a.m. sharp."
Then he withdrew, call ending with a soft beep.
"J?"
"Yes, sir?"
"Hack into S.H.I.E.L.D. files about Rock of Ages. There's a possibility that they had recorded what Loki said about the invasion." Turning to leave his work, he said, "Loki had left it off easily and…" He frowned and trailed off. In fact, now that he did think about it, he did leave it off easily. Like he wasn't even trying. Like… he intended to fail the invasion.
He'd seen what Thor can do as an Asgardian. And what Loki had shown was probably only half of the extent of what he was capable of doing. That blue-eyed, murdering psychopath …
"Sir, if I may?"
"Yes, J? 'Cause that's an awfully short time you got when you hacked in the S.H.E.I.L.D. files. Don't tell me you did just that. Oh, no, please tell me you did that, because it's totally cool."
"You doubt me sir?" said the AI, sounding amused. "However, S.H.I.E.L.D. has number one priority on tracking. Subject is called Percy Jackson, but he didn't seem to be in last week's list."
"Percy Jackson, huh?" He scratched the growing rubble in his chin. He should've shaved this morning. No, scratch that, he should've shaved last Sunday. Anyways, what day is it?
"JARVIS? Day?" asked Tony absently.
"Today is Wednesday, sir. May I inform you that Miss Potts ordered to lock down the lab if you didn't eat and sleep for three days in maximum, sir."
He scowled at the ceiling. "And what makes you think that the order will be followed?" he asked archly.
"You gave Level 4 access to Miss Potts, sir, as she is also your CEO in Stark Industries," the AI pointed out. "And… I also have discovered one more thing."
"What?" he asked, irritated.
"Percy Jackson matches the identity of the teenager that helped you destroy the Doombots one week ago," the AI answered.
"Huh," said the inventor. "He's that one? Track him down. I still didn't get to talk to him after he disappeared."
"Already doing that, sir," JARVIS replied. "And download complete for the files of Loki Laufeyson."
"Open it," said Tony, and the blue holograms flickered into life from empty air.
The files contained very little, if you didn't count about the video footage of the Chitauri attack. He'd seen them all, alright. Watched them a few times. But what caught his attention was the profile's eye color and what it followed after.
Eye color: Was seen with blue eyes, but reverted to green once the invasion has finished.
"Sounds familiar…" he murmured. Blue eyes, like…
"Barton, sir," the AI confirmed. "The agent was also seen with blue eyes when he was being controlled by Mr. Laufeyson under the influence of the scepter."
"Right," said the inventor triumphantly. "Also had the same thoughts. Great, J."
"I learned only from the best, sir," answered JARVIS smugly.
"Open a new project on my private servers. Run it through the strongest security protocols. No one and nothing will know of this."
"Understood, sir," answered JARVIS smoothly. "What shall be the project's name?"
Tony thought about it for a moment, thinking of a name that will be fitting to the project. Something deadly and dangerous, something secretive. He liked creating cool names for his projects. It will made them even more awesome.
"Project Night's Bane."
Annnnnd… finished! One chapter down! As promised, here are the replies:
Monkey dragon: Thank you, and thank you too for being my first reviewer! And I'll promise, this will turn to be an amazing story. Just wait. ;)
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GodofMischief: Thanks very much! But no, this will not be a Tony/Percy story. So sorry to disappoint you, but a plan has been set in motion. :( :)
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aviendhaphiragon: You do? Thank you! And thanks for answering my doubts.
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So, what do you think of the new chapter? Review my dears!
Before I sign out, I ask for your advice, 'cause I really wanna do this:
Should I continue this, even if my mom disapproves and tries to stop me?
~BloodDarkerThanCrimson out.