Demigods Assemble (PJO/MCU)

Chapter 49

Percy

Percy wanted to do a lot of things. He wanted to cheer in triumph, he wanted to kiss Annabeth, he wanted to hug Grover, he wanted to high-five Peter—he wanted to celebrate, because even though there were still quite a few monsters to take care of, Echidna, Phorcys, and Keto were gone. Victory was as good as theirs. Nothing should have held him back, but all Percy had the strength to do was try to keep his eyes open as he cried out in pain and collapsed, even with Thalia trying to hold him up. Riptide clattered to the ground.

"Percy!" Annabeth yelled, rushing forwards.

"I tried to get him to let me skewer her," Thalia said, "but he insisted."

Every nerve in Percy's body was on fire and every inch of him ached. He was bleeding basically everywhere, probably internally as well as externally. He knew for a fact he had some broken ribs and limbs, and he was pretty sure that lump protruding from his shin was bone. His mouth was coated with blood, making it hard to swallow. Percy wanted to compare the pain to that of holding the sky or bathing in the River Styx or the various curses he'd suffered from in Tartarus, but it wasn't quite that bad. Still, it was no picnic. It was taking all of Percy's willpower to stay awake.

Thalia propped Percy's head against her legs and Annabeth knelt next to him. After a moment, Grover and a maskless Tony and Peter joined her, and Percy was staring up at five very concerned faces. Annabeth was crying, but there was a big smile on her face.

"Hey, Wise Girl." Percy tried to grin but coughed painfully.

"You're such a Seaweed Brain," she choked through her tears, gently stroking his hair. She kissed his forehead and his bloody lips. "I'm so glad you're alive."

"He won't be much longer if we don't get him immediate medical attention," Tony said. He pressed a finger to his earpiece. "Solace or Simmons, get out here with as much ambrosia and nectar as you can. Percy's hurt badly."

"I'm fine," Percy said, trying to play it off. "We've still got to kill the rest of the monsters." He attempted to sit up but only succeeded in sending more pain shooting through his body and he fell back against Thalia.

"Oh, no you don't!" Annabeth snapped, pressing a gentle hand to Percy's shoulder to keep him down.

"We'll take care of them," Grover reassured Percy.

"You stupid Kelp Head." Thalia shook her head, but she was smiling. "You fell sixty stories."

"Did I really?" Percy raised his eyebrows. "I don't remember."

It was true. He'd blacked out almost immediately after falling off the roof when he hit that windowsill. He'd regained consciousness a few minutes later thanks to a minor electrical shock from Thalia, seen Echidna, and convinced Thalia to help him defeat her.

"Well, not really," Peter piped up. "I don't know what happened, but you slowed down about four stories above the ground, almost to a full stop. And then you fell the rest of the way."

Thalia gasped. "So it worked!"

Annabeth frowned. "What worked?" Behind her, Tony and Grover were keeping monsters away and searching for Will.

Thalia suddenly looked sheepish. "Something I was working on with Jason a bit . . . He and I could both summon lightning, but he could also manipulate wind. He was teaching me how to do it. I didn't get very far, and I haven't practiced since he died . . . But when I saw you fall, Percy, I knew I had to try."

"So you used the winds to slow his descent," Annabeth realized.

Thalia nodded. "I only had a split second to do it before monsters attacked up on the roof. That's why you still fell four stories." She looked guilty, like she was mad she didn't do more.

"You saved my life, Thals. Thank you," Percy croaked. He coughed some more, clutching his stomach.

"How did you get down here so quickly?" Peter asked Thalia.

Her face turned green, but before she could answer Annabeth gasped. "I saw someone jump off the roof. That was you?"

Reluctantly, Thalia nodded. "I used the winds again to reach the ground safely so I could check on Percy."

"Aw, Pinecone Face, you did that for me?" Percy cooed, grinning drunkenly. "Even with your fear of heights?"

Thalia frantically shushed him but it was too late, and Annabeth snickered at her. Peter was staring at Thalia blankly, but then he put two and two together and smirked. Thalia sighed through her nose and settled for punching Percy's shoulder. In response, Percy yelped in pain and Thalia winced. "Sorry."

"I'm here, how is he—holy Apollo." Will stumbled into view, stopping short as he saw Percy. Nico was right behind him as an armed escort, his eyes wide at the sight of Percy.

Will got right to work, kneeling next to Percy with his supplies and beginning to examine his wounds. "How did this happen?"

"He fell off a building," Peter stated matter-of-factly.

Will just shook his head and continued working. He coaxed some nectar into Percy's mouth, and Percy sighed in relief. His vision darkened and he found it harder and harder to keep his eyes open. Annabeth and Will's voices faded into silence as Percy drifted into the realm of Hypnos.

Percy floated in and out of consciousness after that, not really sure what was real and what wasn't. When he finally woke up for good, he guessed he'd been out for a while, because he was cleaned up and back at the Avengers' upstate facility in their little medbay. He was still in tremendous pain, but the godly food and drink seemed to have done the trick. He didn't feel like he was about to die, which was nice. He liked not dying.

Two women were sitting on either side of Percy, talking over him in hushed tones. They were both holding one of his hands and one of each other's over his legs. The sight of them made him happy, and when he tried to squeeze their hands, Annabeth and his mother turned and sighed in relief to see his open eyes.

"Oh, my boy, you're okay!" Sally cried, throwing her arms around Percy's neck. Percy grimaced as the movement jostled him and Sally recoiled. "Sorry, dear."

"It's okay, Mom. How long—"

"Just a day," Annabeth answered, running her thumb over the back of his hand. "Simmons wanted to put you in a medically-induced coma and Will almost agreed, but the ambrosia and nectar healed you up well enough that you're now out of the woods. We think Apollo helped a bit, too."

Percy grinned. "Good. Fred owes me."

"Please try not to fall off any more buildings or bridges, dear. My heart can't take it," Sally pleaded. Percy could see the pain in her eyes and felt bad for making her worry.

"I'll do my best," Percy promised. "But you know I'll always come back. Nothing can keep me away from Estelle."

Sally smiled. "She and Paul are back at the apartment. He wanted to come too, but he couldn't leave her and we didn't think it would be a good idea to bring her with everyone here."

Percy nodded and then frowned. "Wait, what happened after I passed out? The monsters, how did—Where is everyone?"

"Waiting for you to wake up." Grover smirked as he entered the room. "Think you're up for some visitors?"

With Annabeth's help, Percy sat up higher in his bed. "Send them in."