Death's Son (And All Its Jobs)

Chapter 1

Nico knelt in front of his father's throne, having come the moment he was called. Hades himself sat in the throne, his fingers drumming against the armrests.

"Yes, father?" Nico finally asked, breaking the silence. "Do you have a job, sir?"

"A job? Yes, yes I do." Hades seemed distracted as he looked down at his only living son. "But first, before you complete the job, you will need to go on a side task."

"Of course, father." Nico bowed his head. "What would this task and job be, sir?"

"Persephone told me how you got her daughter back." Hades scowled at the girl's mentioning. "Said she bribed you to help."

"Yes, sir, she did." Nico frowned. "I killed the man that took her if that is the job, sir. He's dead."

"I know he's dead, Nico. Who do you think I am?" Hades made a hand gesture in his annoyance. "That has nothing to do with this. What this has to do with is what she bribed you with."

Nico paled.

Hades smirked. "Ah, so you know what I'm talking about. You think I didn't know? Of course, I realized that my son was doing Egyptian magic! It was deep in your mom's blood, boy. Very deep. It...It almost saved her, you know. If she had time to cast that spell..."

"You aren't mad?" Nico asked. "You aren't mad about...about him?"

"About that jackal?" Hades scowled. "I've always hated that dog. But he treated you well, I assume? You didn't end up dead."

"No, sir. We actually became friends." Nico admitted. "But...what does this have to do with anything?"

Hades took a minute before speaking. "You aren't that great at Egyptian magic by yourself, are you?"

Nico shook his head. "It's not my best, I'm afraid."

"For this job, you'll need all the powers you can get," Hades informed. "It'll be dangerous. I'd rather have you come back alive then on your way to Elysium."

"I...I can train with the other magicians, sir." Nico muttered.

"That's not what I had in mind." Hades sighed. "Look, Nico. I shouldn't beat around the bush. I want you to host Anubis again, this time under my orders."

Nico felt a strand of hair fall into his face, felt his heart momentarily stop. His vision went clear, his senses went on high alert. "Are you serious?"

Hades nodded. "It will do the job."

"Host...Anubis again..." Nico stared at the floor. "You want me to?"

"Don't let the other gods know, of course," Hades replied. "But yes, I want you to. You can get this mess sorted out for me in no time."

Nico nodded. "Okay. Yeah, I mean, of course, sir. I'll see to it as soon as I leave here."

"Good." Hades gestured for him to leave. "I'll give you the job when you get back. Don't take too long, Nico. There is a time limit."

"Right, of course." Nico nodded. "I'll be going, sir." He felt the shadows start to move over him, felt himself smile. He never admitted it, but he missed Anubis. He missed his friend.

As he disappeared from his father's throne room, he went to the one place he knew Anubis would always be. The cemetery near where the Kanes lived.

Nico stepped out of the shadows of a mausoleum, his boots hitting the dirt and scattering a few birds. In front of him, rows of tombstones stretched out into the distance. Family members visited the dead, left flowers at the graves. Some spoke as if the dead could hear them, others sat silently. None noticed Nico.

"Here we go." Nico sat with his back to the mausoleum and let his legs spread out in front of him. He intended on waiting until nightfall, waiting until he could speak to Anubis privately. A couple hours of sleep and then it would be time, but a mortal woman decided to ruin his plans.

"Oh, sweetie." the woman looked to be almost as old as him (biologically). White hair, thin glasses, a cane to help her walk. "Are you okay? You're so skinny, you must not have eaten in awhile."

Nico looked up to stare into her eyes, to stare into her soul. Not a monster, just a mortal woman. "Oh, I'm fine. I'm just waiting for a friend is all."

He had thought he was good at lying, but the woman waved his excuse away. "You don't need to lie to me, young man. I see this is a place where you have shade from the heat. You don't have anywhere to go, do you?"

Nico messed with his skull ring. "I...I'm okay, ma'am. Thank you for the worry."

She reached into her purse before holding out a bag of chips, her wrinkled hands smelling like the dirt. "I don't have money, I'm sorry. But I have these if you're hungry."

Nico couldn't help but smile, smile at the good that still rested in some people. He took the bag, his weak hands shaking. "Thank you, ma'am. It means a lot to me."

"Now, you promise to take care of yourself." she pointed at him with her cane. "You're a young man, you've still got a life in front of you. You better live it."

Nico nodded. "Yeah, I'll try. Thank you." He opened the bag, tried to stop his stomach from growling. Having been doing jobs for his father, it had been awhile since he had eaten. "Thank you, ma'am."

She gave him another smile before hobbling off, leaving him in the darkening graveyard. As soon as she was gone he dug into the chips, wondering what the mist had shown her. What had she mistaken the green veins that ran through him for? It was obvious they weren't normal, but she hadn't even batted an eye.

Sighing, Nico finished the bag of chips. Night was coming, and with that his talk with Anubis. He hadn't spoken to him since the time they were fused at the soul, a time that seemed so long ago.

Nervous wasn't the only word to describe his emotions, but it was a big part of them.