Demigods Assemble (PJO/MCU)

Chapter 34

Peter

From the moment Peter woke up the next day, he was tense. In that morning haze where he didn't know who, what, where, or why he was, the nervousness felt strange. But then he looked at his phone and saw the date and time. It was eight in the morning on July 21st. According to Echidna's visions, the fight would take place today, and it would end in Percy's downfall.

He dressed quickly and made sure his new Iron Spider suit was working correctly before fastening its housing unit around his wrist. Peter wanted to be ready for anything today, in case their plan failed.

When he entered the lounge for breakfast, it was clear that everyone was on edge. Mr. Stark was obsessively checking surveillance videos and Fury wouldn't put down his phone. Vision was perched in an armchair, meditating or something. The other Avengers were sitting or pacing around the room. The box of donuts sat untouched, at least until Peter arrived. Nerves or not, he was hungry.

When Percy and Annabeth joined them around nine am, Peter could feel the worry and nervousness flowing off of Percy in waves. Even without his sixth sense, he would have known. The son of Poseidon was so tense that Annabeth had to coax him into a chair and rip apart his donut for him, feeding it to him piece by piece. While Annabeth greeted everyone warmly and chatted amiably, Percy spoke only to Annabeth using as few words as possible. Since they didn't know about the prophecy, everyone kept trying to get him to relax and asked why he was so worried. Peter wanted to tell them to shut up, but then he would have to explain that he knew about the prophecy. And since he still hadn't found any other sons of Poseidon, he didn't want to say anything.

Percy's best friend, the satyr Grover Underwood, stopped in at ten am. Percy hadn't moved from his chair even when Annabeth went outside to talk to all their allies that had spent the night in tents. When Grover arrived, however, he was able to coerce a few words out of him. Peter was on the other side of the room where Sam and Bucky were bickering next to him, so he couldn't hear, but it pleased him to see that someone was getting through to him. Something told Peter that Grover knew about the prophecy too, which didn't surprise Peter. The satyr had been Percy's best friend for six years, the two had been through a lot together. It made sense that Percy would tell Grover about his fate.

It was noon when the first sign came. They had been getting steady updates from Fury's scouts every half hour, reporting that all was well and nothing had happened at the Empire State Building. At noon, the report never came, and as they were wondering what happened, the power went out.

The backup generator quickly restored power, but when Fury made some calls, none would connect. It was radio silence from his scouts, and it was making everyone even more nervous than before. In addition, Mr. Stark's surveillance feeds weren't working. They had no eyes or ears in New York City anymore. Something was happening.

"They want to draw us in," Nat said.

"We can't let them," Fury stated.

"But the civilians, this could cause hundreds of accidents," Carol pointed out.

"Echidna did this to try to lure us there, we can't let her. We have to wait until tomorrow." Fury insisted. "Emergency services will take care of the city. The civilians are not our responsibility yet."

Steve looked like he wanted to argue, but a glare from Fury silenced him.

Everyone outside the compound was getting restless, especially when the news spread that they had no idea what was happening in the city. A vein in Percy's forehead looked like it was about to burst. Most people started training to pass the time, especially the very ADHD demigods.

At one o'clock, things really started to get interesting, but Peter wished they hadn't. Everyone had made their way outside at that point, soaking up the summer sun and trying to distract themselves. Peter was talking with Mr. Stark, but he was right next to Percy and Annabeth and had a clear view of the Iris Message when it appeared.

"Percy, thank the gods!" Sally Jackson exclaimed. The message was very dark and it was hard to see her, but Peter could hear the desperation in her voice and the cries of Estelle in the background.

"Mom, are you okay? Where's Estelle?" Percy demanded, breaking from the trance he'd been in all day.

"She and I are fine, but the power has gone out in the whole city. It's been like this for an hour, they haven't been able to fix it," she explained. By now, everyone had gathered around the IM to hear what was happening.

"Just stay inside and don't do anything, you'll be safe there," Percy said.

"We will, but Percy—they took Paul!" she wailed.

Percy froze, and his voice was eerily calm when he said, "What?"

Even in the dark, Peter could see tears streaming down her face. "A Cyclops and some woman showed up a few minutes ago. They broke in and took Paul, I was staying back, trying to protect Estelle, I could've—"

"No, you took care of yourself and Estelle, you cannot blame yourself," Percy assured her.

"They didn't even come after me, they just wanted him!" Sally said. "He's never done anything, he's not a demigod or an immortal or anything, he can't even see through the Mist! Why would they take him?"

"To get to me." Percy gritted his teeth. "They know how much he means to you, and how much you mean to me. But he means a lot to me too, Mom, and I'm gonna get him back. I promise."

"Please be careful, dear. And make sure he's okay, I can't lose him," Sally choked.

"You won't," Percy vowed, his eyes swirling with rage. "I promise you, Mom. You won't."

Sally nodded and the IM faded away. Everyone stared at Percy as the mist dissipated, who seemed to be shaking with anger.

Frank was the first one brave enough to speak, saying, "Percy? What—"

He never got to finish because Percy, in a terrifyingly calm voice, said, "Someone get me to the Empire State Building right now."