Chapter 5: A Big Problem
Percy couldn't understand what to make of the message. It was from General THUNDERBOLT FUCKING ROSS, the United States Secretary of State, and one of the most feared military generals in the entire USA. Now, he was asking him for a job worth 20 mil. Shrugging at the thought of earning lots of cash, he typed back to Ross's email, saying,
I'm game, me boy Ross!
In other words, I'm accepting your job. The pay better be good.
He sent the email back to Ross before calling Jessica, telling her, "The whole plan we have for tonight will have to be put on hold. I've got a new client."
"Who is it?" the legacy asked.
"General Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross."
"What does the US Secretary of State want from a mercenary-assassin-vigilante?"
"Dunno. If his job's legit, I'm taking it. Hold down the fort for me if you can."
He exited his hideout and turned off his phone, taking a walk around Hell's Kitchen to collect his thoughts.
Flashback...
Percy got back to Alias Investigations with the duffel bag. He showed the radio and the shotgun to Jessica.
"Where'd you get that?" she asked him, gesturing towards the miniature double barreled shotgun on her desk.
"Someone was generous enough to give it to me." he lied. Percy then proceeded to put the radio back in the bag along with the shotgun and stepping towards the doorway.
"Where're you going?" Jessica asked.
"Gonna figure out how it works." Percy replied before stepping out of the office with all of the things he got from the pawn shop. He then walked back to his apartment and turned on the radio...or at least tried to.
"Gods damnit, how does this work?" he growled, turning some dials and tapping it a little.
Moments later, he managed to get it to work.
While handling some files, Director Fury's office was visited by Pietro and Wanda.
"Can I help you two?" he asked the twins.
"Director Fury, I think we know who Deadpool is." Pietro answered. "Does the name Perseus Jackson ring a bell?"
It did. The SHIELD Director's eye twitched at the name.
"Um...yeah. Missing person case." Fury stuttered a little, something they never expected from him.
"He was our friend." Wanda explained. "He was experimented on like us in Sokovia."
"If that's the case, then perhaps you can reach out to him. I'll see if I can get the drop on his location. In the meantime, you two, along with Mr Lang, Agent Wilson, and Agent Barnes, stay put in this base."
The twins collectively said "Yes, sir" before exiting the office, leaving Fury alone again for his godly mother, Nemesis to flash in. He was defintely NOT happy.
"Is this a joke?" Director Fury essentially demanded his mother. "Is is true that the most dangerous assassin I've ever seen in my whole damn life is the legendary Hero of Olympus?"
"Nick," Nemesis sighed. "Pandora's Jar isn't the only problem right now. Turns out the greatest love story in Camp Half Blood is nothing more than a big fake. Perseus was never loved by that child of Athena."
"How did the gods react?" Fury asked this time.
"One half didn't care, the other half was shocked. Needless to say, they won't care unless they want to. We're gonna need Perseus's help to defeat the Titans again. He'd know what to do. After all, I did lend him most of his...Oh shit."
"You did what?" Fury demanded...again.
"Umm...he's got the red and black outfit because of me, and the katanas, and the magical satchel...that's it."
"So you're tellin' me the best Greek demigod in the 'saving the world' business is now a mass murdering merc because of YOU?!"
Fury had difficulty controlling his voice, but he kept it down to prevent anyone from thinking that he was talking to himself.
"Nick," Nemesis sighed. "the boy needed a purpose to live. What was he going to do when he lost his mortal family?"
"Maybe do anything that doesn't involve threatening global security for the sake of cash!" Fury argued.
"Like what, Nick? Moping about his dead mother, risking the likelihood he'll kill himself?! We need Perseus to save us all once again and to keep him alive, he needed a purpose."
Fury got fed up with the arguing and just slumped back down to his office chair, then he spoke again,
"What if he doesn't want to play the hero anymore? What if he just wants peace?"
Nemesis didn't speak a word. His argument made some sense. She stuttered out instead, "He...He wouldn't abandon the world now, right? Billions of innocent people..."
Fury shook his head. "At this point in time, he believes the Fates want nothing more than to let him suffer. He'd let the whole world die if it means he gets his peace."
"So...what do you suggest?" Nemesis asked.
"Get him a family in the Avengers."
Later that night...
Deadpool wandered, in full costume, around Central Park while waiting for General Ross. As he did, he let his phone blare out,
Shoop, shoop shoop...
He sat on a bench as the song played, earning him some weird looks from the other tenants of the park. On cue, a middle aged Caucasian man in a tuxedo walked right into view, backed by a group of soldiers with M4's.
"You must be THE THUNDERBOLT Ross." Deadpool quipped, standing up from the bench and stretching. "Didn't have to bring in your band of Merrymen."
"The president insisted on giving me an escort, but don't worry. He doesn't know about this." Ross spoke. "So, Deadpool, as the so called 'Merc With A Mouth', are you up for the challenge I'm giving to you?"
"Damn right!"
"Good, because I'm taking you on a job to assassinate arms dealer Ulysseus Klaue off the coast of South Africa."
"...Okie!"
Ross sighed at Deadpool's childlike demeanor. "Okay then, Deadpool, follow us if you may."
As he followed Ross and his men to who knows where, the mercenary had another flashback.
Percy didn't tell Jessica he just found out one of the hideouts of the Dogs of Hell was in, well, Hell's Kitchen, right near the pawn shop. He put on a black jacket, black shirt, brown gloves, black jogging pants, and white rubber shoes. He hid Clint's shotgun inside the jacket, wore a hockey mask to keep his face unnoticed, and walked out of the apartment in order to get to Hell's Kitchen via taxi.
"Why the outfit?" the driver, Dopinder, asked in his thick Indian accent.
"Oh, it's Christmas day, and I'm after someone on my naughty list." Percy replied casually from the co driver's seat.
Dopinder just shrugged and kept driving. Percy noticed a picture of a beautiful Indian woman around the driver's age, just hanging on the dashboard.
"Nice." he said, pointing at the picture.
"Smell good, no?" Dopinder said, thinking Percy mentioned the air freshener right next to the girl's picture.
"Not the Daffodil Daydream, the girl." Percy corrected.
"Ah, yes. Her name's Gita." Dopinder explained. "She would've made a good wife for me." he sighed sadly.
"What happened?" the demigod asked.
"My cousin, Bandhu, stole her from me." Dopinder said with so much depression in his voice. "But, I couldn't compete with him. He has a better job, has more money, and is just more handsome than I ever will be."
Percy couldn't help but relate to the cab driver, given what happened at Camp Half Blood.
"Dopinder," he started. "what if I told you that I feel the same way you are right now? Only difference is that I'm the one who's more handsome, richer, and overall better."
"Hmm?"
"Yeah, a girl dumped me for someone who's worse than me."
Dopinder sighed. "Sorry to hear that."
The taxi suddenly stopped. Dopinder checked the money, "Okay, it's $27.50."
Percy winced. He forgot his wallet, opting to get the shotgun instead.
"Okay...I forgot my wallet, so how about a high five?"
Dopinder shrugged and slapped Percy's hand. He exited the cab, but the driver handed him a calling card before driving away. Percy walked towards where he'd find the Dogs' base.
Deadpool pondered about the memory as he climbed aboard a humvee with General Ross and the soldiers.
Meanwhile, in his old hometown of Brooklyn, Steve Rogers, along with Natasha Romanoff, proceed to investigate more magical anomalies. Both were aboard the Staten Island Ferry. What Captain America and Black Widow didn't expect was to see strange, dog-like sea creatures swimming alongside the ship they're on, and nobody else seems to notice.
"Nat, what is that?" Steve asked the Russian spy sitting next to him.
"Hmm, I don't know. Should we contact Fury?" Natasha replied.
"Maybe...this could be the magical anomaly we're looking for."
"Let's go."
Both Avengers, in disguise, stood up from their seats to take a closer look at the strange sea dogs. As they walked down the stairs, they heard the sound of waves churning, of people panicking. Steven and Natasha looked down on the floor and noticed that the ferry was beginning to tilt to its side.
"Uh oh."
They heard barking behind them. Steve and Natasha turned to see the same sea dogs they saw before...four of them, but they were more different than the two Avengers expected. They were 7 feet tall with little sprouts of black hair and fish flippers for limbs. They were armed with two pronged fishing spears.
"Am I seeing things...or am I seeing four giant dog seals with spears?" Natasha asked.
"I see them." Steve spoke, confirming her suspicions. "I'm pretty sure they aren't Norse."
The giant sea dogs lunged with their spears, forcing Captain America and Black Widow to roll out of the way. They fought back against the creatures, with Steve throwing punch after punch to stun them, whereas Natasha pulled out a Glock she (somehow) hid underneath her jacket and fired at the creatures. She backed away when the spear wielding sea dogs barely even flinched, while Steve tackled one of them to a steel wall as violent waves suddenly struck the ferry, causing the two Avengers to nearly lose their balance, while the big sea dogs remain totally still.
Regardless, Steve and Natasha fought back by disarming two of the big sea dogs and using their own fishing spears against them. They stabbed the creatures through the chest and they quickly crumbled to dust. That still didn't stop the ferry from tilting to its sides back and forth.
"Okay..." Steve gasped, almost losing his footing. "what's going on here?"
"Don't know." Natasha replied.
A big wave struck the ferry, causing the Russian spy to tumble into the arms of Captain America...literally. A flash of light flashed right in front of them. The light died down to reveal a tall, angry looking man with long white hair, a long flowing white beard, crystal blue eyes, wearing Greek battle armor and holding a huge trident.
"Who are you?" Steve asked, no fear in his words.
"I am Oceanus, filthy mortal!" the Titan screamed out...when a sudden blast of energy struck both Steve and Natasha from behind. It was Wolfgang von Strucker, holding a HYDRA energy pistol. He smiled as Oceanus flashed them away with the two Avengers, essentially abducting them. The waves stopped, putting the ferry back to normal.
Deadpool wasn't exactly comfortable with flying. The sound of thunder made him wince, even though it wasn't supposed to be storming at that time. He sat there in the AC-130 with Ross and the other soldiers. Meanwhile, said soldiers were now askng him various questions.
"Is it true you were the one who assassinated that warlord in Somalia?" one soldier asked.
"Pretty much. Why else would your boss call me for help?" Deadpool replied. He then pulled out his phone and let his favorite song: Shoop by Salt n Peppa, play.
"Is it true you fought four of the Avengers and escaped?" another one asked, making the others mumble to one another incoherent chatter.
"I escaped FIVE of them!" Deadpool corrected. "Stood no chance against yours truly, the destroyer of destroyers and joker to end all jokers."
All the other soldiers looked very impressed. The sound of thunder is heard and the plane shook a little, making the mercenary wince.
"Afraid of a little thunder?" Ross asked.
"Nah. Just a little ticked of what might come after."
The US Secretary of State shrugged him off before looking at his watch.
"We'll land in T minus 5 minutes. Best get ready to do your job, Deadpool." Ross told him. The mercenary wasn't listening, as he was now snoring away...then awoke seven seconds later.
"ALRIGHT, LET'S DO THIS!" he yelled, scaring the other soldiers. "Now, please strap in." Deadpool told them as he stood up and grabbed a parachute before walking to the closed up ramp at the back of the plane.
"What are you doing?!" Ross yelled. It was too late. Deadpool opened the ramp down. They were pretty close to the shore of South Africa already...and the mercenary jumped, parachute strapped in. He pulled his chute halfway down, letting his descent slow down as he scouted some cargo ships off the coast of South Africa.
Deadpool was ready for a fight.
