A FEW WEEKS LATER
News spread around about the mysterious young vigilante. Videos of him putting out the flames only making him more and more famous. Some called him water boy, tide man or the young Deep. Some people even came to the wild conclusion that he was the Deep's sidekick.
Which said superhero didn't bother denying. Being associated to all these deeds only meant he could get back on the seven sooner.
"So how exactly are we supposed to find this kid?" MM asked Butcher as they drove on a port near the Hudson River.
The leader of the boys wordlessly pulled out his phone from his pocket and handed it to his friend.
MM took it and pressed the video. It was shaky most likely filmed by an amateur, but it clearly showed a teenger who's hair went from blonde to black jumping into he murky water, and not coming back up for several minutes.
"So he's like the Deep?" Hughie confusedly spoke up from the backseat.
"If the deep could control massive ammounts of water and aparently shapeshift." He added as an afterthought.
Kimiko ignored the conversation all together. She gazed out of the window with an angry expression. Kenji might never be able to use his hands or his powers again, but at least he was alive. Even though he was now imprisoned.
All thanks to that random boy who simply decided to fight one of the most powerful member of the seven.
She hoped to thank him, if he actually did it out of the goodness of his heart and not for a pissing contest against a fellow supe.
Frenchie layed a hand on her shoulder. She gently grabbed it as well. The two sharing a small smile, she wasn't sure where that relationship was going, but perhaps it wouldn't be that bad.
"How do we even contact him? We can't just yell our heads off in the middle of the port."
"You leave communication to me Hugh." Smirked Butcher. Not reassuring anyone even a little bit.
The group made they're way upon the thankfully empty bridge and looked down.
"If this jeune homme¹ can breath underwater then how do we know he's even here?"
Butcher turned to Frenchie and with a small smile. Casually pulled out a hand grenade pulled off the pin and dropped it down with a small *sploush*
Everyone looked at him wide eyed and quickly leaned away from the explosion as a few dozen gallons of water violently flew in the air. Billy looked down at the water completly unnafected.
"If this doesn't grab his attention nothing will."
"Yeah if it doesn't attract the attention of the cops first, what the FUCK BUTCHER!" MM yelled at his leader's reckless action.
Well more reckless than usual at least.
"What? Ah come on you know me MM. Always got a plan." Butcher stated confidently tapping his temple.
Hughie opened his mouth to add his two cent, but no one managed to put in a word. As hand burst throught the boards and latched onto Butcher's ankle.
"Ah balls."
"BUTCHER!" Hughie yelled as the man was suddenly pulled throught the wood down into the bay.
Billy was dragged throught the water flipping and spinning in all directions. His ears nearly bursting from the sudden changes in pressure. He had no bearings, until he hit solid ground?
Butcher gasped for air, he made a disgusted noise as his hands met the sludge mixed with the dirt at the bottom of the bay. He looked up seeing the water churning and spinning above him unnaturally into a protective dome.
"You know i'm really starting to lose my patience with you." A young voice spoke up.
Butcher turned to the young man of earlier. He floated above him with his arms crossed.
"First you nearly slaughter an innocent whale and then you drop a grenade in my sleeping spot. What is wrong with you!" He demanded.
Butcher smiled as if his life didn't currently lay in the hands of the boy in front of him.
"Sorry, it's hard to get the attention of you super powered cunts."
He floated down inside the bubble. Somehow perfectly dry.
Butcher blinked at yet another unnatural sight. Even by supes standards that was weird.
"Well i'm here ass, what do you want?"
Butcher responded the question with another question as he slowly started circling around. Percy doing the same.
"Why'd you save that guy? Going up against a member of the seven like that. It's not a small offense."
"Well let's just say I don't enjoy needless killing." He replied studying the casual man.
"Is that so, I thought your lot was supposed to love senseless violence?" Was Butcher's passive agressive reply.
"You don't know a single thing, about my lot." Percy dangerously replied.
"Sure I don't." Butcher shot back sarcastically, not afraid in the slightest.
"Well back to my original point. When a misbehaving supe needs a good spanking. They call me, and my rag tag group of crazy bastards." He explained invitingly spreading his arms.
"Is that what you came here to do? Effective." Percy snarked.
"No no no, you my young friend. Are offered the chance to serve your country."
"Drop the half assed patriotic bullshit act, doesn't work on me. What Do you actually want?"
Butcher studied him better, so he wasn't an idiot. Good to know.
"Okay full on honesty then I can respect that, got it. Truth is you seem like a powerful asset and my team and me to some extent want to give you a chance. So you." Butcher elochently pointed at Percy.
"Can help us put an end to the literal sea of corruption plaguing super hero society."
Percy marched closer to Butcher. Standing at nearly a full head under him.
"You try go trick me and i'll punch straight throught you." Percy casually stated. He didn't actually mean that, he'd beat him into an inch of life for sure, but the more seriously he was taken the better.
"Naturally." fake mused Butcher "Okay then, I just need your full name and we've got ourselves a deal."
Percy grabbed the outstretched hand.
"Perseus Jackson."
VOUGHT TOWER AT THE SAME TIME.
Homelander paced in front of the seven shaped conferance table. He was fairly far away from everyone seated there.
But his presence incapsulated the entire room. So much it was nearly suffocating. He turned around and no one met his seemingly friendly gaze. Fully aware of what it hid, well all except Stormfront, who found the expression quite arousing. Knowing full well that it hid murderous intentions.
"So not only did we not get out hands on Butcher and his Crew." He turned to Maeve. "But you couldn't keep your eyes on fucking teenager!"
"He caught me by surprise, one moment we were talking and the next a wave was sling shoting me nearly a mile away. Do we even know anything about a supe who can control water?" She demanded meeting any gaze except Homelander's.
"No, I asked everywhere I could I even gave his description to our best illustrators but nothing came up. Kid's a ghost."Ashley sheepishly announced.
"How the hell do we not know anything?" Homelander accusingly demanded. His tone now quiet, but it was all the members of the seven could hear besides they're racing hearts.
"I'll look more into, right now even." Nervously laughed Ashley hurriedly leaving the room with a frightened expression.
Homelander sighed frustrated.
"Okay all of you leave right now, we'll carry on later."
No one argued, A-Train refraining from breaking the sound barrier to get away.
Maeve glanced at Stormfront who remained behind, more specifically she glanced at the conceler on her cheek. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion, but she didn't bother voicing any theories. Especially with John in this mood.
"You were perfect Liebling² very assertive. You should feel proud." Stormfront said hugging Homelander from behind.
Homelander turned around and stroked her still somewhat bruised cheek. "I'll feel proud when he's dead for what he did." He whispered with barely restrained rage.
Stormfront grabbed his hand. "We can rip him apart together." She smiled.
Homelander smiled back. His previous anger temporarily melting away.
"Want to go see Ryan? I bet he'll have all the states down in a day or two."
"I bet you he's already done memorising them." Genuinely chuckled Homelander.
His smile faded "but I can't right now." He huffed.
Stormfront tilted her head to the side. "Aww why not? Want me to keep him company?"
"I would love that, you'd be doing me a huge favor."
"Of course i've got a few ideas on how you can pay me back anyway."
"I just have to sign some stuff to ship out to some, dumbass kids who got cancer." The couple shared a chuckle.
"I'll be right back when i'm done."
With that Homelander flew away from his lover to fulfill his chores.
His appartement was still being fixed from his latest devil's tango with Stormfront.
Luckily his desk was relatively intact, if not a little schorched. He reached for the pile if hats and T-shirts je was supposed to sign, but he dropped mid air.
His paperweight was gone.
"You know."
Homelander spun around to the new unfamiliar voice, his eyes glowing crimson.
It was a teenager, seventeen at the very least. Tall a bit lanky with green eyes and short curly brown hair. He wore a dark overcoat scribbled in some satanic nonsense. Or at least that's what Homelander's stereotpyical mental conditioning told him.
"I've seen a lot of different depictions of Atlas, but one made to look like the owner of it, might just be the most narcissistic thing i've ever seen." The boy said holding up a tiny bronze colored statue modeled after Homelander in the iconic position of Atlas holding the world upon his shoulders.
Homelander analysed the teen his eyes turning to they're normal pure blue. He noted that the boy was clearly a supe. That paper weight was colored like bronze, but it was actually solid Osmium. The densest metal in the world. Homelander liked to see guest try And fail to lift it.
Yet there was this boy holding five hundred pounds worth of it like it was a trinket. He even threw it in the air and caught it again like a ball.
Homelander plastered on a million dollar smile. "You know young man you don't have to break in for an autograph you could just buy one. It's for a good cause." Homelander stated like a salesman.
"Not interested." He said suddenly appearing next to Homelander setting down the small Homelander shaped Atlas on his desk.
Homelander looked where the boy used to be and back where he was now. His confusion growing when he was gone once again.
Now he was hanging from his library. His foot braced against the wooden shelf. A book open in his free hand. He hummed "I half expected it to be blank." He commented putting the book back in it's place.
Ten feet off the ground.
Homelander had enough he flew towards the boy as fast as he could without blowing a hole in his appartment, but he burst into a gust of mist and dissapeared.
He let out a small frustrated growl.
"John John, i'm just trying to strike a conversation." The smug voice came from behind him. Homelander spun around his eyes glowing again.
His chair slowly spun around, the teenager seated in it.
"What the fuck do you want!" Snapped the older man.
"Nothing much" he said kicking up his feet on the desk, "just a small partnership. We have one ennemy in common John Gillman. Born in 1981 to aparently no one in particular. Grown in a lab until the age of adulthood where you served on your first mission. A couple of eco-terrorists to my knowledge. Sadly in all your conditioning nobody bothered teaching you how to act in such a situation. Leading to several murders and even more indirect deaths, but you got away scot free. Not a single repercussion, that reminds me of a lot of people, but that's not the point. You want everything to know about the guy who bruised your little girlfriend? I can give it to you, but naturally I want something in exchange."
"What are you on about." Homelander coldly demanded hiding his shock to the casual way he listed well kept secret information.
"The one who hurt Stormfront and honestly would have a killed her in a heartbeat had he known what she was. Can't say I blame him, well he's an old ennemy of mine. We come from relatively the same place with similar upbringing, only difference is he's more powerful than I ever could dream of being." Explained the boy with some reluctance.
"What's his name!" Homelander thundered barely restraining his heat vision. The boy didn't even flinch.
"He is called many things, but his real name is Perseus Jackson. Before you fly off to find him, just don't. You won't find any sort of background on him. Just like you wouldn't find mine."
"And why is that." Homelander asked floating back onto the ground.
"Because he's from another universe entirely." Casually informed the boy. Homelander blurred and reappeared in front of the desk. Slapping it away in a loud crash. Making the boy briefly spin in the chair before he stopped himself with his foot.
"Don't you dare fuck with me! I'm the goddamn Homelander. I can do whatever the hell I want to you and get away with it!"
"You know it's kind of funny how you expect literally everyone to grovel in front of you. Like your some sort of god."
Half of the chair near the boys face melted as his heat vision effortlessly burned throught it. It was a warning shot, but he at least expected a burn to appear on his cheek.
But his freckled face was still perfectly intact.
"You see i'm not physically powerful enough to even scratch the guy. Back in my world no one wants to even try, but you? You won't hesitate to rip him a new one. And you might be strong enough to do so."
"You point me in the right direction and i'll come back for you right after!"
The boy smiled "please i've never actually been in this room since the beginning. With everything I know about you I wouldn't be dumb enough to do so. This is basically a fancy zoom call, but before you fly off the handles. Let me show you something."
Suddenly the room melted away. Homelander demanding to know just what was even going on.
Just as fast as it left, the room changed into another familiar setting.
It was Williamsburg bridge, but it was all in dissaray. Cars parked in random spots or flipped on they're sides.
A group of teenagers in Spartan like armors crouched in cover behind a few taxis.
One arrow whistled like an instrument. Right when it hit it's mark a super sonic explosion vaporised the monstruous creatures and sent several cars tumbling out of the way.
Homelander's confusion grew at the sight of the monsters and demon advancing in what seemed like an unbreakable Phalanx.
A half man half bull lead the charge. A lone teenager lept from the cover and sprinted towards the beast at inhuman speed.
The bull man smashed his fist in a limo at the sight of this particular teenager. Bending it in half like a pretzel.
A brief battle ensued between the two, the Minotaure ending up impaling himself on the shaft of his massive axe.
Next he turned to the army advancing on him.
Next came an absolute carnage. No one could stand in front of this warrior. Each beast and monsters falling to his blade. Homelander was very attentive now, there was no way 'his' mind was under anyone's control.
So this must have been an illusion projected like a memory? Was the wild answer his mind came up with. There was no other plausible explanation. His mind was uncontrolable.
He raised an eyebrow as the boy started laughing maniacly. Slaughtering another hundred monsters, his ally was soon stabbed in the back. He rolled his eyes as he defended the downed soldier. If she was a liability than she had no worth.
He fended off other monsters until he faced a blonde haired man on skeletal horseback.
The two battled. The mere clash of they're blades shaking the entire 2227 meter long bridge, Homelander, much to him frustration and dismay could barely keep up with the speed of they're blades. It was like trying to keep up with literally a hundred swordsman.
Finally the blonde golden eyed man, slammed the back of his scythe into the ground. Casually blasting away the boy who remained unnafected as he simply rolled back onto his feet with the momentum.
Several cars flew away like soft balls. Even his allies flew off the bridge to they're deaths.
The boy soon planted his sword into the ground. A gigantic geyser blasting throught the metal and concrete like cardboard.
Leaving a 50 foot long chasm between him and his ennemy.
Just like that Homelander was back in his office.
"You see why I need your help now. Your the only one I can actually expect to cause damage here."
"Let's say I believe this whole shit."
"Don't care if you do." Deadpanned the young demigod.
"What could you possibly give me in exchange?"
"Believe me, once you meet him. Killing Jackson is all you'll want, but what I can do is make sure no bad informations about you ever come out. Like half of the people you murdered this week alone."
Homelander considered this. "What's even your name?" He calmly asked.
The demigod smirked "Alabaster C Torrington. Son of Hecate and the best ally you could ever hope for."
"... Fine i'll kill this, Percy Jackson and then what." He asked shrugging a little. His calm expression clearly saying "tell me everything or i'll kill you."
Alabaster smirked. "We'll stay in touch."
With that the final illusion dissapeared. Leaving Homelander alone with the images he saw. And the thoughts that would be plaguing him from them.
Deep underground the tired Alabaster left his meditative trance and cracked his neck. "He's in." He calmly stated.
"Good" a Deep rumbling voice echoed from the tunnel. With all of the upcoming chaos it will be easy to get our revenge on this blasted son of Poseidon."
"I still don't get why your helping me."
"My ways are beyond your comprehension mortal, but perhaps as time goes on you'll realise what my true motives are."
Menacingly chuckled the voice. Alabaster looking afraid himself as the tunnel shook slightly.
Hopefully this plan wouldn't meet his end, but that didn't mean he wasn't ready for anything if it meant giving the son of Poseidon what he deserved.
¹jeune homme is (young man) in french.
²Liebling is German for (darling)
Fun fact I managed to calculate the size and the ammount of water of the geyser used to destroy a part of Williamsburg bridge (while the visual novel doesn't cover all events it clearly depicts Percy using water in that instance. and i managed to get it's weight too.
First the chasm between Percy and kronos was 50 feet or 15 meters long since no one tried to go by the sides to keep the fight going it's clearly obliterated too. The bridge is 36 meters wide and 41 meters away from the water.
Putting those measurements in a cubic meter calculator was left with a geyser that's 22140.0001 cubic meters. Now in one cubic meter 1000 liters of water can fit. So the ammount of cubic meter Times the ammount of water it Can fit in one meter. is 22140000 liters of water.
This we can convert to tons in order to know how much water Percy moved. Which would end up being 7818 tons of water. Or 5848769.2392 gallons for those wondering.