Inheritance - a sequel to Shelter

The Walls Keep Tumbling Down - Nico

Pressing his cheek against Will's chest, his body thrumming with post-coital endorphins, Nico listens to the steady rhythm of Will's heartbeat and succumbs to the heavy pull of sleep, a smile on his lips.

XxxX

A roar fills Nico's ears, his mind – deep, guttural, and all consuming. He can't see, the darkness surrounding him, so thick it could be solid, and then it speaks, sending a chill like an electric shock, racing through his nerves.

"You are ready?" the darkness asks, surprisingly gentle, feminine, coating the terrifying power in softness like satin lining a marble coffin.

Nico's heart speeds up, thundering in his consciousness like the drums of war. He tries to blink, to back away, to distance himself from the darkness in order to see it from a scale he can understand, but the struggle is fruitless. He can't even see his own body, can hardly even feel where it begins and ends. It reminds him of the sensation of shadow travel, of becoming one with the shadows, losing his substance, at risk of becoming a shadow himself forever.

The cold shock doesn't let up; it spreads, and it's all Nico can do to hold onto his wits. He's felt this before, the sensation of never-ending dark, of losing track of who he is and being reduced to a state of pure instinctual panic, the realization one is doomed and that nothing can change it, but instead of finding relief through death, the instant is prolonged indefinitely. Pure torture. Never-ending. Life in Tartarus. The curtain of mind-boggling darkness shifts making the dim glow of the Underworld – deep reds, blues, purples – seem blindingly bright before his vision adjusts. Nico finally finds his bearings. His father stands at the edge of the pit, the gaping maw that leads to Tartarus, looking down into it. His robes cling to the backside of his lithe frame, whipping around his front as if sucked into the vacuum, the merciless pull that Tartarus wields. Yet Hades stands motionless, his pale profile glowing against the dark backdrop, his frown as deep as his furrowed eyebrows.

Nico shifts his focus back to the darkness, his vision climbing, landing at last on pinpricks of light swirling deep in the folds of a giant dress, above it, a bodice, and then on the face of Nyx herself. The only feature he can make out are her eyes, twinkling and spreading like quasars, winking out when she blinks, then shining even brighter, distorting the light into points like a cross made of dagger blades.

His breath catches in his throat, dizziness making his vision blur even more. Only Nyx's voice breaks the spell and allows him to breathe again, his lungs screaming as they drag in the stagnant Underworld air.

"It it time. My children report that he will break the surface of the ocean floor in less than a day's time."

Hades nods, his frown growing even deeper as he stares into the dark abscess. "My own children no longer respond to my summons," he says, his deep voice sounding small next to the endless drone from the pit. His shoulders seem to sag as he catches his balance with his arms, and takes a step backwards.

Nico tries to call out to him, but finds he has no voice. Even though he can feel his body, it seems to exist on a plane separate from his father and the events unfolding before his eyes. Panic rises inside him again, his eyes burning as he can't close what doesn't exist here. He wonders if this is how it feels to be transformed into a statue, still aware, and yet unable to move or to have any influence on the living world.

The scent of flowers, of dried potpourri, of autumn, surrounds him like a warm blanket, tamping down his fear. Before he has a chance to consider where it comes from, light like a flash grenade flares up not ten feet from him and Hades turns, taking deliberate and slow steps away from the edge of the pit.

Hermes brushes dust from his bare arms, his sleeves ripped off at the shoulders, his shirt, hanging off his back in tatters. His suit pants are still intact, but coated and smudged with dirt and ash. He carries an iron cattle prod, sparking with blue lightning between its tips. He hovers a foot above the ground, the wings on his sandals and hat, working overtime against the pull of the pit.

"Lord Hades," Hermes says, his voice sounds like it's caught between despair and determination. "There is another issue. You cannot go into Tartarus now."

Hades scowls, his black eyes colder than ever, malevolent. "I must. There is no other option."

Hermes continues as if he hadn't heard Hades's response. "The fields of Asphodel have broken open. A cave in, an earthquake, whatever it was ... I think that as Tartarus rises, the Earth grows less stable, but the reason isn't important now. My point is that souls are pouring out of the Underworld. They're returning to the land above."

Hades, his voice like murder, demands in a whispered hiss: "Where is Thanatos? He is not chained again?"

Hermes shakes his head and swallows hard. "He's sending them back as fast as he can; I have been, too. They're still dead, as far as we can tell. The mortals don't seem to notice them yet, but for the ones with the sight ..." He trails off, then seems to pull himself together again. "Until we shore up the breech, they'll keep pouring out. It's too much for us to handle on our own. We need help. Olympus has the power if only they'd listen. I want to go to Apollo, convince him to force father to see reason. Dionysus and I would have his back, the three of us–"

"No!" Hades bellows. His face grows tight, his eyes even darker, as black as Nyx. Hermes touches down, the wings on his hat and sandals still working to keep him from Tartarus's pull. He sinks under Hades's glare until Hades holds up a hand to demonstrate his anger isn't personally aimed at Hermes. "I haven't been able to reach my children. I need you to go to them, find out why they haven't responded to my calls. You, along with them and Thanatos can shore up the breeches and return the dead to the Underworld. I must go to Zeus. I am the eldest brother and I must meet him face to face. Tartarus cannot be held back any longer. Soon, the whole world will be consumed and only a person of comparable power can convince Zeus to see the truth."

Nyx releases a long and drawn out sigh. It travels through the ground under Nico's feet; he can feel her exasperation. She seems almost amused by Hades's declaration, like she's rolling her eyes. "Very well," she says. "I will take on Tartarus myself. You had better be ready to pick up the slack on the other side or we shall both lose everything."

Nico's eyes grow wide with awe as his father draws his sword, flashing it. The color drains from Hermes's face as he follows the Stygian iron with his eyes. He bows his head in deference.

The warm scent behind Nico seems to wrap around him, pulling him backwards away from the scene, Hades and Hermes growing smaller until he can't make them out any longer. But instead of fighting to stay, Nico is glad to escape. If he never has to see the pit of Tartarus again, to never feel its pull, he would accept anything.

"Your father does not know your powers have been hidden. I did not know myself until you prayed to me." Nico holds his breath, understanding hitting him. Persephone is the only reason he was allowed this glimpse. "If you have true need, understanding this truth will lift the Mist veiling your powers. Go now and find a way. I cannot interfere any further."

Nico's mind spins as if he was a top Persephone set into motion and sent back into his body with a flick from her sharply pointed fingers.

XxxX

Nico sits up gasping, cold trickles of sweat sliding from under his hair and down his back. He meets Will's blue eyes, wild with fear, as Will crouches beside him, having just shoved Nico's feet into his shoes. The tent is gone, their backpacks at Nico's feet, and Porkpie whinnies in the purple mist of morning along the edge of the forest.

"What's happening?" Nico demands as Will grabs Nico's wrist and pulls him up.

"No time. We have to go. Now. I'll explain in the air."

Nico wants to resist, to tell Will to slow down, to explain things now, but he's well aware that when questing, getting out of immediate danger trumps slowing down. He climbs onto Porkpie's back behind Will, and holds onto Will's waist as the pegasus charges down the shoreline of the lake, finally lifting off with a stomach-sinking swoop.

Nico can feel Will shaking under his hands, like he's having trouble holding it together, about ready to fall apart at the seams. He doesn't like the sensation it gives him, too similar to the panic he had just experienced himself.

Once Porkpie reaches the cloud line, he levels out, and Nico demands to know what has Will so spooked. He keeps his hands from freezing by tucking them under Will's shirt, and pressing them against Will's stomach. "What happened? Where are we going?"

Nico can feel Will's heart through his stomach; it's beating so hard he's surprised when Will's voice comes out sounding steady.

"I – I don't normally have prophetic dreams," he says, making Nico raise his eyebrows. "I know it's weird. With Apollo being the god of prophecy and all, most people assume that his children all have access to his foresight. But in reality, it's usually other demigods, or mortals who have the sight, like Rachel, that can access that part of him. Most demigods have dreams and nightmares that show them monsters, their futures, but I don't."

"O-kay?" Nico says. He's not sure why Will feels the need to confess this right now. It doesn't have any bearing on the question he'd asked.

"I just had one, a prophetic dream. Gods, Nico." Will's whole body trembles under Nico's hands, shaking like a leaf. Nico presses himself against Will's back, tucking his elbows into Will's sides to keep him from falling off the pegasus. "We're heading to Las Vegas. I know where Lou Ellen is. In my dream, I saw her ..." Nico's blood runs cold, understanding hitting him like a snowball to the face. "... at the Lotus Casino. She's in trouble."

The words of Rachel's prophecy tumble around Nico's mind, clarity washing away confusion. "No! Stop! Porkpie, Stop!" Nico yells.

Victory if the charge resonates from the West. Eastern seeds sown will reap tears and new death.

The pegasus lurches mid-flight, and Nico tightens his grip on the pegasus with his thighs as Will slips to one side. Nico digs his fingers into Will's waistband, clamping his belt and keeping him up out of sheer stubbornness as Porkpie descends so fast it steals Nico's breath.

"No, Will," Nico shouts when he catches his breath, his voice, hoarse. "We can't. Death waits for us on this path."

Will struggles against Nico's grip, shouting back. "It doesn't matter. All quests carry that risk. We can't just leave her! It's my fault! All my fault ..."

Nico holds onto Will even more tightly. He half-hopes his grip will be tight enough to make Will pass out and stop fighting back. They need to talk reasonably, and right now Will isn't making any sense. Nico wants to kick himself for not telling Will about the new prophecy immediately after hearing it, or at least before they fell asleep. He only hopes whichever Fate is watching them, won't count the last half-hour as them charging out to the Lotus Casino instead of towards the Underworld.

Porkpie hovers over a grove of oak trees, apparently looking for a spot to set down, and Will finally stops struggling, his heart racing against Nico's chest, beating so hard it feels like it's trying to break free. Nico relaxes his hold, and presses a kiss to the back of Will's neck. Will answers with a reassuring squeeze to Nico's arm as Porkpie flies over the dense grove, speeding up as a green clearing comes into view.

Nico breathes in a sigh of relief, and the rest happens before he can release it.

Porkpie's back hoof catches in a gnarled branch, sending Nico and Will lurching forward, and then it's just Nico straddling the pegasus's back, a glint of blond hair disappearing over the side. In half a second, Nico shifts into the nearest shadow, stepping free at the base of one of the oaks, mere feet from Will – his blue eyes vacant, his limbs at odd angles.

Nico stares, unable to comprehend what he's seeing until a face rises behind Will, dark as teakwood, dark blue and purple wings folding around Will's body, as the god of death embraces him.

"Thanatos!" Nico screams as skeletal bodies and grinning skulls claw their way free of the earth. The god turns his amber gaze upon Nico, and then he grins.