Chapter Text
C H A P T E R O N E
P E R C Y ' S P O V
Percy pushed himself further into the moldy wall as the two men approached.
He hated being like this. Weak. A coward. Especially when he was anything but.
But after everything they had done to him. Percy just felt, small. They treated him like a frightened baby animal. They weren't afraid to punish him either.
One man dragged a whip behind him a cruel glint in his eyes while the other held a syringe filled with plain liquid. Percy knew it wasn't water. It was something made to knock him out.
"C'mon big boy, show us your neck and nobody gets hurt." The first man sneered. Percy shamefully bared his neck.
The second man was clearly new to this, as he shuffled over nervously. He quickly and clumsily inserted the needle into Percy's neck. By now Percy was so used to it he didn't even flinch.
He closed his eyes and felt his body began to sway as the already dull lighting faded. The last thing he heard was the drip drip of water falling from the ceiling in the left corner before darkness claimed him.
~~~
Percy groaned as he came around. His head lolled to the right and he looked at the hazy figures on the far side of the room. Percy noticed his hands and feet were restricted by thick leather and another strap snaked around his waist. He knew there was no point in struggling.
Percy shivered at the cold through his thin ripped shirt. Percy noticed the man from before guarding the exit door while scientists bustled about. One of his least favorites, Dr. Holland approached him.
Good morning Perseus. Are we feeling alright?" Percy was never sure if this annual question was sarcasm or not, so as usual, he stayed silent. "Today we are testing Serum G6-278. This has been adjusted to increase the reactions of what we have already given you. There should only be minor side effects. Nothing you can't handle." Dr. Holland gave him a thin smile before another scientist handed Dr. Holland a fancy syringe and like all needles, inserted the bubbling yellow liquid into the bloodstream via his neck.
Percy grunted as a strange sensation washed over him. His hands involuntarily rolled into tight fists and his toes curled. His breathing deepened as his body tried to take in and adjust to the invader. His back arched as pain shot through him, restricted by the leather around his waist. Percy scrunched up his face as he fought the urge to cry out. He would not give them that satisfaction.
Warmth flooded through him and set his veins on fire. Percy barely registered the alarms blaring, blending in with the shouts of panic and a red light washed over his face.
Black spots danced across his vision and Percy was tempted to give in when a memory washed over him.
Percy cradled Annabeth close to his body as he tried to shield her from the onslaught of Monsters. A giant tidal wave rose up around the couple to help him. He winced as the jagged glass shores cut into his legs and the river sapped his strength instead of giving him more. But still, he held on. For her.
But reality toyed with him as his exhaustion grew.
What was the point? They were going to die down here anyway. Why not get it over and done with rather than prolong the inevitable?
Slowly the waves died and they were overrun.
Annabeth lay silent in his arms as he gazed at her. Not dead, but close to it.
Percy's eyes shot open as he was shaken violently.
"Wake up Perseus!" Dr. Holland towered over him. Percy realised his cheeks were wet with silent tears. Another scientist was fumbling with his straps. Percy felt as if the energy had been sucked from him. "Put this on." Dr. Holland barked as he shoved a bundle of clothes into his chest.
Percy looked down at the HYDRA uniform with utter distaste. He would not wear it.
"No." He stated.
"If you will not put it on voluntarily, I will make you." Dr. Holland threatened, his frail fingers hovering over his chest.
As one of their earlier experiments on him, Dr. Holland had figured out how to link their minds together and gave himself the leading link so he could control Percy, but not the other way around.
Percy thought that was the most fun he'd had at the HYDRA base, considering that through most of the test runs he had enjoyed taking control over things they tried linking him with and creating chaos. Percy soon discovered it wasn't so fun to be on the receiving end.
The Doctor had placed a sensitive board in his chest that reacted to pressure in certain places, triggering his control over Percy. He activated this now when Percy still didn't move.
Percy's eyes dulled as the familiar feeling of his body being taken over ensued. He was drowning in himself again, his mind fogging over as he was pushed into the back seat of his own head.
Percy efficiently pulled the dusty uniform over his threadbare clothes and then stood up straight with actions that weren't his own. Inside he was kicking and screaming. Anything was better than this. Anything other than not having control. Because this was what scared him more than anything. Losing control of himself. They had made him do terrible things under the influence of control.
"Good Soldier." Dr. Holland commented. Percy had gained many names here. Soldier was one reserved for times like this to prove he was a pawn and couldn't do anything about it.
"Now listen here. HYDRA base: Experiment Lab 3.0 is under attack by enemy force S.H.I.E.L.D. Your mission is to attack and defend base for as long as possible." Dr. Holland informed. "Understood?"
"Yes, Sir." Percy gritted out. He might have been frightened and weak, but that didn't mean he couldn't spit some venom. He had his moments.
"Good. If the base is lost then you escape and meet at rendezvous point 3. You have 24 hours. Otherwise, we will act accordingly. You do not wish for this to happen." With that being said Dr. Holland turned curtly on his heel and hurriedly gathered his equipment before escaping.
Percy marched through the door and into the thick of the fighting, right in time for a red, blue and silver shield with a star marking to come flying at him. Percy caught it with an 'oomph' as it knocked him back a few paces. An enemy soldier approached from behind and he threw the shield back to hit the soldier straight in the chest. Glancing back he saw a curved line of blood appearing.
There was time to mourn what he had done later. Now he has orders to obey.
A blonde man advanced towards him and Percy could have given a few words about his choice of clothing. Did he cut up the American Flag and turn it into a suit or something? All in all, Percy thought he looked ridiculous.
"If you stand down we will not hurt you." Blondie tried to reason.
Wouldn't hurt me. My ass. Percy thought bitterly. All anybody had done to him for years was hurt him.
"Well pardon me if I don't believe that." Percy said and swung a fist at the man's face. Blondie dodged and aimed a punch at Percy's torso but he jumped back. Blondie swept Percy's feet out from under him.
As he went down Percy felt a stray bullet puncture his shoulder, spraying blood.
HYDRA had spent more time experimenting on him than teaching him how to fight and he was still clumsy on his feet after his very recent run-in with Dr. Holland's tests. Percy tumbled to the ground. Next thing he knew, Blondie had his shield back in hand.
"Sorry." And then Blondie smashed his shield into Percy's face.
This is so not my day. Was all he thought before succumbing to darkness.
S T E V E R O G E R ' S P O V :
Steve stood in front of Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D. He'd caught wind of an upcoming attack on a new HYDRA base that S.H.I.E.L.D had sniffed out and he wanted in.
"Come on Fury. Let me go. I can be of help and you know it." Steve reasoned. He needed to get out and do something before Stark drove him crazy. What better way to do it than take down another enemy base?
"Fine. But you only go for one reason." Fury paused. Steve stood quietly, not actually having expected Fury to agree so easily. He gestured for Fury to continue, intrigued by what the director might have to say. "S.H.I.E.L.D also has reason to believe that at this base may be experimenting on test subjects."
"Like the Super Soldier Serum?"
"Exactly. If they have succeeded then you are to find this subject and subdue them, taking away the extra risk from my team. Bring them back to Stark Towers and have Dr. Banner run a few tests in them. Keep them sedated until you find a proper holding cell. We will take it from there." Fury informed Steve.
He could definitely do that.
"Yes, Sir."
"Good. Meet the team downstairs in 10. The team will brief you with what we have in possible subjects. Dismissed soldier." Steve left Director Fury's office and suited up.
~~~
Steve lead the group through the doors. Noticing movement out the corner of his eye his fluidly threw his shield, knocking out the spy before the shield rebounded back to him.
He silently flicked his hand, signaling to move in. A red light flashed as alarms rang through the surprisingly empty halls. Steve noticed he'd missed a person and they had their hand firmly on the alert button. A S.H.I.E.L.D member quickly took them out.
Suddenly doors slid out open and out marched the HYDRA soldiers defending the base.
"I think we definitely found the right base Captain." Someone commented from beside him.
"Take the base." Steve said before throwing his shield in a challenge.
After a few minutes HYDRA numbers were dwindling, but not without casualties to his own team. The doors slid open again and emerged from them was a man- no. A teenager Steve recognized from one of the test subject files he'd been shown.
Perseus Achilles Jackson.
He was decked out in a HYDRA uniform which made Steve wonder if he was here voluntarily or not. His posture was stiff but a little clumsy. Perseus looked Alert but seemed
completely dazed, as of unaware of his surroundings.
Steve analyzed this and threw his shield again. Steve paused, surprised as Perseus caught the shield and raised a single eyebrow at it.
Steve noticed one of his own sneaking behind Perseus and winced as Perseus threw the shield back without looking, catching him in the chest.
"If you stand down we will not hurt you." Steve said, advancing cautiously. His mind ran over the best possible ways to safely detain him.
"Well pardon me if I don't believe that." A sour look came over the teens face.
What had they done to him?
He took a swing at Steve's jaw but Steve ducked under the hit and aimed one at Perseus' stomach, but the teen leaped back just in time. Taking the moment, Steve swung his left foot around to knock his opponent off of his feet. As Perseus went down a bullet came flying, knocking into his shoulder. A small spray of blood missed Steve as he retrieved his shield and stood back over Perseus' groaning form.
"Sorry." Steve said sincerely. Obviously, the boy was not going to come peacefully. With that thought, he knocked the teen out with a swift contact of shield to face.
~~~
Steve stood with his arms crossed as the medical crew wheeled the teenager into the lab room where Dr. Banner was waiting for him. They'd had to give him an extra bonk on the head to keep him under as they had no extra sedatives. Also, they had no idea how it would clash with what could already be in Perseus' system.
Steve watched as they moved the raven-haired to teen from the stretcher onto a bed. During the flight back to Stark Towers the medical crew had wrapped a hasty gauze around Perseus' wound to staunch the bleeding until further action could be taken. Dr. Banner - Bruce - began unwinding said gauze after he had his examination equipment ready.
The bullet wound was efficiently stitched and Bruce began the checkup. He tore open Perseus' shirt and gasped, turning to face the window Steve was standing behind. Bruce beckoned him in. Steve complied.
What Steve saw on Perseus' body shocked him. Scars. Lots and lots of scars.
"Bruce, how?" Steve asked. The discolored skin left barely any space for the kids natural tan to shine through. Ugly shades of yellows, blues, purples, and greens marred his back.
Scars carved into his skin.
"I don't know. I haven't had enough time to examine him yet." Bruce replied.
"Are they all from HYDRA?" Steve asked incredulously.
"I don't think so." Bruce drawled out the o's.
"What do you mean?" Steve stared at Bruce. How else could this have happened?
"Judging from some of the overlapping of some of the scars, they are from quite young, preteens and older. Did Fury tell you how many years HYDRA has had him?"
"Estimated about 5 years." Steve supplied.
"These are definitely older. The only scars I can tell that might have been in the last 5 years are a few of the slashes on his chest and arms. On his neck," Bruce turned Perseus' neck to the side, "Are several puncture wounds. They've been so repetitive and in the same area that it may have left permanent scars."
"Just another bunch to his collection."
"They were made from needles mostly."
"Mostly?" Steve raised his eyebrows.
"I can't tell. But what I can tell, is that this kid has had no easy life. The needles were probably from injecting him with serums. There is a patch of stitched skin over his chest, I'd suggest asking him about it when he wakes up." Bruce suggested. "Help me flip him over. We might as well check his back. His shirt is ruined anyway. He shouldn't miss it."
Steve and Bruce carefully pushed Perseus onto his stomach, tilting his head to the side so his airways weren't blocked. Bruce, this time used the surgical scissors to cut away the rest of his shirt.
"Woah." was all Bruce said. More scars than on his front littered his back.
"Are these burns?" Steve asked, completely shocked. Bruce nodded wordlessly. "And these," Steve traced a few of the deep grooves in the teens back. His muscles tensed at the contact. "Are they..." Steve looked closer and frowned. "Whip marks?"
"Apparently so." Bruce agreed solemnly.
"What the hell?" Steve muttered.
"I predict that he will wake soon. We should move him to a different room. We have no idea how he'll react to leaving one lab table and waking up in another. If he's staying with S.H.I.E.L.D then we want him to be as comfortable as possible if we want him to trust us." Bruce announced.
"But where do we move him to?"
"This is Stark Tower. How many rooms does the kid need? I'm sure we can find something. You watch the kid, I'll go find Tony."
Steve nodded and pulled up a metal seat.
Who could have done this? To a kid no less! Why would HYDRA pick on him to be a test subject? What was going on with him back at the enemy base? He seemed there, but not there.
So many unanswered questions. Steve stared at the assortment of scars. Whips and burns and brandings. What looked like little notches in his back where it looked like the skin had been flicked out and then healed over. Thin and jagged lines, probably made from knives. Judging from all of this the kid must have some form of PTSD. No way he couldn't.
And yet when Steve examined Perseus' wrists, he found no slash marks, no sign of self-harm. It was sad and the sight of the kid's body was enough to make the bile rose in his throat. While lost in his thoughts Steve hadn't realized that Bruce had come back with Tony.
"Woah." Was all Tony said, clearly at a loss for words.
"Agreed. We would like to find out what happened to him when he wakes up. Just not in a lab table." Bruce hinted at wanting Tony to offer a room.
"Oh right. Well, I've got a level of containment cells on the-"
"A nice, room Tony. A nice room." Steve interrupted, standing again.
"Of course. I've got rooms on the 64th floor. All empty, well, almost empty. It's still got lockable doors and one-way windows too. Like house arrest. Only nicer." Tony shrugged.
"Perfect." Steve and Bruce said.
"That's our thing." Tony warned, pointing a pen between himself and Bruce. "Get your own thing, Rogers."
Steve merely ignored him and lifted Perseus up bridal style, nervous of aggravating the numerous wounds. Then he carried Perseus to his new bedroom.