Merry Christmas (early) friends! Here is the next chapter. Enjoy!
When Percy started having adventures through the multiverse, he thought the time of prophecies was over. Now, Barry Allen was spouting prophecy like Rachel Dare. Or, more like Ella since he only had fragments. Either way, it was creepy and annoying. Not that it was Barry's fault.
The Flash was safely tucked into a med-room cot at the moment, being pumped full of nutrients, antibiotics, and "the good drugs". Annabeth was holding a war council in cortex, complete with a white board and pizza. Because no war council was complete without pizza.
Joe and Julian were eying the horde of demigods with concern as they inhaled large quantities of food. Wally on the other hand heartily joined in, consuming 4 boxes of pizza by himself. Percy didn't really care what Team Flash thought. It wasn't like he was concerned about his figure or anything. All he cared about was that this pizza was good. Only thing that could make it better would be a blue Coke. Annabeth's voice finally drew his attention away from his food as she slowly wrote the two lines of prophecy Barry had spouted on the board.
"And how do you know it's a prophecy again?" Caitlin questioned as she switched out two of Barry's IV bags.
"Because he quoted some other prophecy verbatim". Annabeth was eager to answer questions, Percy could tell. She was in her element here. "While looking at the person it referred to. A son of the elder gods, shall reach sixteen against all odds. That was about Percy, given to the camp after World War II and fulfilled a little over 3 years ago now. Wisdom's daughter walks alone, the Mark of Athena burns through Rome. That was a prophecy about me fulfilled 2 years ago during the Giant War. Barry's speaking prophecy, believe me. We know it when we hear it".
Percy read Annabeth's neat handwriting on the board, "Wisdom's daughter caught in sewb..."
"Webs" Annabeth gently corrected. Percy squinted a bit and continued, "When intellect fails, niftys...no, sanity ebbs. That's not at all ominous. I like my sanity thank you very much". Though it was concerning, he didn't mention Annabeth's part in that prophecy. She wouldn't appreciate looking weak in front of the group (and would accordingly pummel Percy into the ground to prove otherwise). Piper interrupted his morose train of thought by jesting.
"You would have to have sanity to begin with to lose it". She smirked as she opened another box and flicked the pizza saver at Percy's face. He batted it aside and stuck out his tongue at her, ignoring his girlfriend's eye roll.
"There's obviously more. I've never heard of a prophecy that was only two lines" Jason noted, biting his thumbnail absently. "I don't like not knowing the whole thing".
"Welcome to Greek prophecies. You always know half of what you need to and understand nothing of what you have".
Hazel sent a lazy grin his way, "Of course our Roman prophecy was simple but hardly helpful in any sense. Go to Alaska. Unchain Thanatos. Be back by June 24th or die. Thanks for that, Mars".
Frank grimaced, "Yeah, my dad doesn't win any awards for best godly parent. Of course, he definitely doesn't take last place either".
"Wait, Thanos? Like the big purple infinity stone guy in the Avengers?" Cisco questioned, looking much more interested.
"No, Thanatos. Reaper of souls, Lieutenant of Hades. Wait, that's who the guy in the end credit scenes is? Man, how many more movies to you all have? Some movie called Guardians of the Galaxy is set to come out next on our Earth" Leo attempted to question Cisco about their version of the MCU.
"Anyways" Annabeth sent everyone a glare that said they were annoying children. Which they were but still, rude. "Back on topic. I think the greatest problem right now is that a metahuman from another earth is suddenly spouting prophecy like the Oracle. I mean, even she hasn't been giving prophecies since the Giant War began".
"Why not?" Iris asked, her journalistic instincts telling her there was a story here. But Annabeth just waved her off, "Another time. Caitlin, have there been any changes in Barry's brain functions?"
The doctor-turned-meta shook her head, "No, nothing unusual". She swallowed tightly and returned to her tablet. Annabeth moved on, asking Joe and Iris questions while Cisco and Leo argued about comic book movies. Percy glanced at Caitlin. Her face was mostly hidden by her long curly hair, but it wasn't enough to hide the scrunched up expression Percy associated as her thinking face. Curious, he glanced at Will. Turning at the weight of Percy's stare, the son of Apollo trotted over with a datapad when Percy inclined his head in a "please come over here" sort of way. Percy slid over to meet him in his delightful swivel chair to face the son of Apollo. "Looking at Barry's brain waves right now, is there anything similar to Rachel's or Ella's?"
Will shook his head slowly. "No, everything is perfectly normal. For Barry at least".
Percy thought again, remembering the trippy path through the multiverse, "What about during our trip back to Earth-1? When I put the suit on him?"
Will thought for a moment, then grabbed his datapad. "Yeah, it was wonky. We thought it was your brain waves, that your mind was just working in overdrive. At what point did you give him the suit?"
"About half way back".
Will pulled up Barry's normal EKG readings and compared them to the ones in the suit. "Holy Hephaestus" the son of Apollo muttered, connecting dots that Percy couldn't even see, "You're right. This was fairly normal on your scale of brain activity, but compared to Barry's it is just downright weird. Were you seeing things when returning?"
Percy couldn't really remember, which bothered him more than he wanted to let on. But he was certain there were images in the path between the speedforce and Earth-1. "Yeah. I can't really remember what they were, but..."
"Ahem". Crap. Annabeth was glaring at them, one hand on her hip and an exasperated expression on her face. "Something you want to share, Percy?"
He gave her his best crap-eating grin, "Nope. But Will does".
And that earned him a death glare from the son of Apollo. Great, Will needed to stop hanging out with Nico. It was just weird to see that facial expression on the constantly cheery demigod. But a moment later the glare was gone, replaced by childish excitement. "Maybe. I want to check this over with Caitlin first". He handed her the tablet, indicating to the unusual activity. "Is this what I think it is?"
Caitlin's expression lit up, thinking face gone in an instant. "Of course. Our earth's technology and Earth-12's mystical navigation elements created a unique trip through the multiverse. He could have seen things on the way back. Not to mention any lasting remnants from being in the speedforce".
Annabeth cleared her throat, "I'm not sure that Hestia had anything to do with it. If she was providing the navigation, she has nothing to do with prophecies. That's Apollo's domain". The daughter of Athena turned to look at Will, "You think this had anything to do with your dad?"
The demigod shook his head, "No, he's been out of touch since the Giant War. Probably on whatever punishment Zeus cooked up. This isn't him".
Caitlin deflated a bit, pouring over the datapad as if it held the secrets to the universe. Maybe it did. You never knew with Star Labs.
Cisco frowned, "What about the speedforce? Could he have gained the knowledge from his time in there?" When the rest of the group looked at him in confusion, he huffed and explained, "Speedsters can go forward or backwards in time. The speedforce exists outside of time and space". Annabeth was nodding in agreement, eyes already alight with understanding. "The speedforce trap forces you to relive your worst moments. It's not unlikely that speedsters might be able to see glimpses of the future while in there".
Annabeth slowly nodded, "So perhaps Barry isn't giving prophecies, but reciting them from some later date. Or the past".
Cisco nodded, "That would make sense. Maybe..." The meta was interrupted by an alarm blaring through the cortex. Pushing his chair to the computers, Cisco put down his soda and clicked on the flashing icon. "Um guys, we have a problem. Like, a 'the raptors can open doors' problem".
The main screen in the cortex blared to life, showing real-time CCTV footage on the left and the Star Labs satellite footage on the right.
"Schist!" Percy was already up and moving, grabbing his sword from the table and motioning to Wally, who had already suited up. "Let's go before it's too late to put the genie back in the bottle".
"What is going on? Is that a prison?" Jason questioned from the monitors.
"Yeah, the meta wing" Joe dialed a number on his cellphone and checked his gun.
"You'll need help". Annabeth's tone left no room for disagreement. The rest of the demigods concurred, grabbing their ever-present weapons.
"Yes, we do" Percy jumped in before anyone else could. "Cisco, could you get them outfitted with mortal steel and then send them through a breach?"
"I'm not a weapons manufacturer" the engineer grumbled before waving Percy on, "Yeah, yeah, I'm sure I can find something".
With backup lined up, Percy gestured to Kid Flash, who was already outfitted and read to go. "All aboard the Banana Train".
"You're hilarious" Wally grumbled, grabbing Percy and streaking through the streets of Central City faster than even Percy's hyperactive brain could comprehend. Finally, Wally skidded to a stop next to Iron Heights.
The entire area was chaos, with only two prison guards still moving and seven metas wreaking havoc. Percy recognized Baron Katana, and turned to Wally right before he ran off. "Slow down, Kid Flash. I need some information on these people before I jump into a fight".
Wally grudging obliged, stating the facts almost quicker than Percy could comprehend, "Molecula. Can change the vibration frequency of molecules. Weather Wizard. Self-explanatory. Trickster, likes bombs and explosives and is generally just really weird. Mirror Master and Top. She can give you vertigo just by looking at her, he can walk through mirrors. Last but not least, Peek-a-Boo. She teleports". And with that the speedster was off, making a beeline for Peek-a-Boo as she teleported around the guards. "Hurry up Cisco" Percy muttered under his breath before breaking the windows on the prison building just as Mirror Master made to get away. He then had to duck an explosive paper airplane (how?!) from Trickster, while launching himself at Baron Katana before a guard became a kabob.
"Hey Robo-Ninja. I was hoping we wouldn't meet again for a very long time". He parried the guy's deceptively heavy katana, having to step back a bit.
"Oh but I was expecting you, Perseus".
Okay. Weird. Percy decided to ponder this later as he barely avoided a table thrown by Weather Wizard. He had to keep moving: duck Top's gaze, avoid mirrors, oh look, there's Peek-A-Boo punching him in the face, block katana coming at leg, run around Molecule's weird energy field. Repeat. The cycle halted when Weather Wizard started a tornado in the middle of the prison yard, forcing Percy to back. Great. The sky, Percy's greatest enemy (behind math tests, monsters, and Great Prophecies of course). Something he couldn't combat. Luckily, he didn't have to. The tornado disappeared as quickly as it began.
"You call that a tornado?" Jason rose into the air behind Percy, winds dancing between his fingers and eyes lit with electricity. "Try this on for size!". And with that, Percy's greatest problem was taken care of. An arrow flew over his shoulder, trapping Peek-a-Boo's shirt to the nearby wall before she could teleport away. Clarisse and Nico launched themselves at her as she ripped the arrow out of her shirt. Top was currently treating Mirror Master to a trip down vertigo lane courtesy of Piper while Cisco watched her back, Frank and Leo contained Molecula, Annabeth and Wally outmaneuvered Trickster, and that left Hazel and Percy with Baron Katana. Percy took the heavy swordplay, trusting Hazel to slow down the blows when they were too much. She once made it look like they were falling off a skyscraper, keeping a firm hold on Percy to ground him as the Baron lurched and fell to the ground. Other times she just used the mist to pull back his blows, trapped his legs with copper wires, or step in with her spatha when necessary. Percy's vision tunneled, focusing only on blocking each swipe and stab of the katana while trying to get a hit in himself. The Baron's katana gave him greater reach, the thin sword whipping back and forth in precise motions almost faster than Percy's eyes could follow. That made it very difficult to take the offensive. Not to mention a button on the side of the Baron's hilt created an energy wave that knocked Percy on his feet. Only Hazel's quick thinking saved him from becoming sushi.
"Thanks" he panted before blocking another katana swipe. Hazel nodded and drew more wire out of the ground. The fight raged around them, both teams evenly matched. Lightning crackled and lit up the yard, illuminating the war waged around them. They were slowly gaining ground, until an explosion of orange and red lit up the sky like a sunset. Wally raced away to investigate, his report crackling from their earpieces seconds later. "Guys, we have a problem. I need some people over here. The foundation of the concert hall just exploded. And Wicked was in town tonight. I need civilian evac and fire management until the CCFD can get here".
Percy glanced over the yard. Top and Mirror Master, finally broken free of Piper's charmspeak, had slipped through a puddle. Weather Wizard was running away with Molecula, path obscured by mist. Nico and Clarisse made to run after them, but stopped as Percy gave instructions through the comms, "Nico, Jason, help evac civilians. Leo will take point for fire control with Annabeth and myself. The rest can work on tracking down and containing the escaped metas. Cisco, can we get a lift?"
"Sure thing". A breach opened again in front of them. Jason and Nico leapt through, with Leo not far behind. Percy struggled to get free as Baron Katana renewed his offensive in earnest, driving Percy further from the breach. "Not so fast, son of Poseidon. I need a word with you" he hissed, the slur of his words in contrast with the blur of his sword. With Hazel and Piper having to shift to Trickster and Clarisse still manically chasing after the escaping metas, Percy had no backup to slow the swordsman down. Rarely was the son of Poseidon challenged anymore in sword fights. But the Baron, well, Percy was wondering if he had wanted to be arrested in their first fight. Because the dude was good, not leaving Percy any time to think about using water. But the one thing that couldn't be contained was his mouth, so he let that run as he desperately held his defense. "I can understand that. I'm a delight. But I'm curious, how do you know who I am? Are you a monster? Or a Titan? Do you get the Daily Olympus delivered across the multiverse?"
"Of course not. I saw it". The Baron caught Percy's sword on his and pushed down and oh Hades he was strong. A push of that dang button threw Percy on his back, hard, the blade of Percy's mortal weapon lowered dangerously near his exposed neck as his katana trapped it. "Son of Poseidon. So much power, but not enough, never enough".
"Enough for what?" Percy hissed, terrified that if he more than breathed, the sword would pierce his neck.
"To stay out of trouble, of course. To get ahead. A divine hamster, caught in its wheel".
"I've tried life as a guinea pig. Wasn't fun" he whispered, pushing back in vain against the unyielding katana.
"No, I would suppose not. Not that life offers anyone a choice. But I bring great news. The revolution is coming. You don't have to be afraid anymore" the Baron's sword tip briefly caressed Percy's cheek, leaving a thin, weeping line of red directly under his eye. "For he is coming with the answer. Upon this steel he builds his church". The Baron was whispering now, face within inches of the demigod's. There was no way to miss the way the elderly man's face contorted, dazed reverence in his eyes followed by the predatory slide of his lip upwards, yellowed teeth bared in sacreligious mockery of a smile. Percy held his breath, certain that this was the end. Until suddenly the weight was gone, an arrow pierced through Baron's leg. The man didn't even cringe, just removed his sword calmly and stated, "The church is almost completed. I do hope you will remain alive until then. He wants you to be a part of a new era".
Black boots materialized next to Percy's head, then disappeared with Baron Katana in tow. He relished in breathing deeply for a moment, feeling the mud soak through his clothes and the rain wash away the lingering smell of leather and metal. He heard someone calling his name, but didn't bother responding until Frank was suddenly in his face. "Percy. Percy! Are you alright?"
He nodded, blinking away the blood in his right eye. Frank offered a hand up, and Percy gratefully accepted. "Dude, you weren't moving. I was afraid I hadn't made it in time". The son of Mars was wringing his hands, looking more like the boy Percy met at Caldecott Tunnel than the praetor his was today. Percy clapped him on the shoulder, then started towards Hazel and Piper, "Sorry about that, man. Just catching my breath. Either I'm getting sloppy or that guy is the god of really heavy swords". They approached the girls, who were covered in mud and ash. "Trickster?"
"Gone". Piper kicked at a mud clod. "The teleporting chick came and picked him up right before Baron Katana". Hazel grimaced and focused on returning the precious metal underground. "Cisco took Annabeth through. We will have to catch up on foot".
"Good choice". Percy nodded, scrutinizing both of them. They were both bruised, but no other injuries. "I'm sure there is a car around here we can...borrow".
Frank grimaced. "No cars, but there is something else..."
Ten minutes later, the four plus an unconscious Clarisse pulled up to the burning concert hall on Iron Heights Prison segways. Frank shifted to dog form as Percy removed Clarisse from his handrails and laid her gently behind a fire truck. The rest of the team was making headway on the fire, the evacuated civilians being treated in a row of ambulances. A few bodies were laid out on the lawn, covered with blankets. Percy dismissed that for now and strode up to Annabeth. "Anywhere you guys need some water?"
She nodded, barely glancing at him, her golden hair covered in black soot. "North entrance is causing problems. Leo is inside stabilizing the structure. Clear that exit for him, would you?" She then turned to Piper and Hazel, barking out orders as Percy jogged away. He pulled, waiting a second as water rushed to him from the river a mile away. Sweat and rain ran into his already clouded eyes, but he patiently called as much water as was necessary before sweeping it through the burnt-out north entrance. The fire was stubborn, but Percy was more so. With a hiss and lots of smoke, the fire finally extinguished.
Percy hesitated, then started up the stairs until he came to the concession stand. From there, he could descend into the utility rooms under the concert hall. Every once in a while a small pocket of flames would appear, small enough to have evaded his first efforts. Water bottles scavenged from the concession stand took care of those quickly. The stairs continued until he reached the generators, where Leo was shifting machinery and propping up the structural columns while surrounded by flames. His curly hair was black with ash but otherwise he was undeterred by the heat of the fire. Perks of being a Hephaestus kid and all that. Acknowledging Percy's unworded question, Leo nodded and Percy suffocated the fire with water. Leo waved his hand as he grew closer, "Hey man. I've got this, you can move on".
"Everything else is under control. You know Annabeth, she has us working like a well-oiled machine". Percy nonchalantly shoved his hands in his jean pockets. "Out of the others, I'm the best suited to heated situations. So let me do the grunt work and you can focus on the brains behind the clean-up". Leo nodded, a cheesy smirk lighting up his face as he turned to survey the damage. "Right. I like the idea of a grunt. Okay my loyal minion, focus on moving all this junk out from around these damaged columns. I'll focus on welding them back together".
"I'm not a minion" Percy muttered under his breath, gripping the corner of a water heater and shifting it to the side. They worked in tandem, Percy moving complicated-looking equipment and Leo making adjustments to the structural support columns. Finally, the son of Hephaestus nodded with satisfaction and gestured for the two to exit. When they arrived outside, Annabeth was directing an ambulance to a cluster of injured citizens while the rest of the group was rehydrating on the grass. Annabeth jogged over, grabbing a waterbottle from Piper, and plopped down on the grass. "All the injured are being treated. CCPD has this under control now". She paused to guzzle more water. "Did you get any of the prisoners?"
Frank mournfully shook his head. "No, we barely made it here. Their teleporter was causing issues".
"That's not exactly true". Nico hesitantly stated, directing their focus to Clarisse's resting place behind a firetruck. Next to her, Mirror Master was hogtied and gagged. "I caught him a couple blocks down the street. Mirror jumping is no match for shadow travel". The son of Hades looked smug, like he just stole Happy Meals from children. Jason gave him a high five as Will squeezed his boyfriend's shoulder in appreciation.
Annabeth nodded slowly. "This was planned. They chose to escape during the concert and planned the distraction. Like they knew we would all come".
"That's because they did". Percy waved Will away as he healed his cut with water. "Baron Super Sword told me so".
"The game is afoot" Cisco whispered, eyes showing equal parts dread and excitement. At the rest of the group's tired and confused glances, he clarified. "We knew someone was coming. Savitar told us Barry's greatest foes. One we hadn't heard of before: DeVoe. With Barry getting back from the speed force, it makes sense he would make his move now. While Team Flash is recovering".
"But you have a lot of backup. Isn't that a horrible idea?" Piper had a valid point. Team Flash was one thing. Team Flash plus the Heroes of Olympus was another.
Personally, Percy thought that if Baron Katana was this DeVoe character, a horrible idea like this was right up his alley. Of course he also thought the man was easily defeated. Which turned out to be 100% wrong.
"Unless we were the plan". Annabeth's thinking face was outshone by fierce competitiveness. Percy knew that look from chariot races and gingerbread house building. "He's playing us. Setting the chess board. And I don't think all the pieces have been unveiled yet".
Cisco nodded has he hung up with Caitlin. "Joe found something at the prison. Katana cut it into the floor with a screw. It's a prophecy. The full prophecy. And I don't think you're going to like it".
Percy shrugged. What else was new? He never liked prophecies on principle, but most prophecies were awful. Not in the 'Jason ate the last slice of pizza' way, but in the 'fire and brimstone and death' way.
Annabeth nodded, looking over the picture Caitlin sent. "As far as prophecies go, it's pretty typical". Ignoring Cisco's look of disbelief, she gestured at one of the lines. "And I think it just started. Half dozen gone, then starts the search. Seven prisoners broke out of Iron Heights, but only six escaped. They are the half dozen". She turned to Cisco, "Welcome to the world of demigods". The team shifted away, discussing the prophecy around the picture. Only Percy could hear his girlfriend breathe, "Shall we play a game, Mr. DeVoe?"