"Didn't I have wings the last time I was here?"
"Hmm?" Anubis looked at him.
"Wings," repeated Nico. "I know I was tripping on acid, but I distinctly recall having a pair of big black wings. So why don't I have them now?"
Anubis shrugged. "Sometimes the Duat changes you more into what you need to be when you enter. At other times, you're free to remain as you are."
"What do you mean 'what I need to be'?" Nico wanted to know.
Anubis gave him a tolerant look and began to explain as they continued walking. "The Duat isn't a place like your world. Ideas go much further here, time runs different in different places, and both fate and tradition are able to influence those who enter."
"Why?"
"That's just how it is," Anubis told him.
"So what's the significance of me having wings?"
Anubis hesitated before answering. "I do not know," he then admitted. "Your wings looked similar to a vulture's -"
"And vultures are associated with death," Nico remembered.
"Not always. Not in Ancient Egypt. They were seen as protectors," said Anubis.
"Then me having vulture wings might be a good thing instead of straight-up morbid?" asked Nico hopefully.
"Perhaps." Anubis spared a rare smile for Nico. Despite everything that had happened and his guilt for nearly killing Nico with the powerful locating spell that had turned out to be three times more powerful than he'd expected it to be, Anubis was quite proud of his host. Nico had been through so much in his relatively short, time-warped, and twisted up life. More than most people ever had to deal with, and it seemed like fate just kept heaping more and more on top of him. Nico didn't just meet it head on, which would have been impressive enough on its own, he also met it with a positive attitude, something very rare for someone so closely linked with death.
"I wish I had them now," said Nico, his face lit with a dreamy, childish look. Through their link, Anubis could feel Nico's enthusiasm and excitement for whatever he was about to say. "I bet I could move so much faster if I could fly. I'd be all like whooooosh and be out of here in no time," he said, pantomiming a gesture that Anubis thought was probably supposed to signify an airplane as he made the accompanying sound effect. "And I wouldn't even have to worry about Zeus smiting me, would I? He doesn't get any authority in the Duat does he?"
"No, he doesn't," confirmed Anubis. "But don't be too hasty in your wish. You wouldn't have any idea how to work your wings, would you?"
"I've flown before, remember?" responded Nico. "On Dedalus' wings. That was fun."
Anubis looked away so that Nico wouldn't see his smile grow wider. It wouldn't do to have anyone, even his host, thinking that he was going soft. But it was hard not to have a soft spot where his host was concerned. Or where his host's friend Sadie was concerned either, but the way Anubis felt about Sadie was completely different . . . and it was probably better not to dwell on that now.
But Nico . . . Nico was kind of like the little brother Anubis never had. Anubis knew it was a mistake to think about a mortal that way and tried not to, but he really couldn't help it. In the past few months he'd gotten to know Nico better than he'd ever known anyone else before, be they god, goddess, or mortal, and he couldn't help it. He liked Nico a lot. The kid was a little awkward and weird, and a little OCD as well, but he wasn't a bad kid. Anubis actually thought he was funny and . . . well . . . cute, but he was careful never to let Nico know that, lest he be on the receiving end of one of Nico's angry Italian cursing sprees. There were times that Anubis found himself wishing that Nico wasn't his host, but that Nico was a god too. It wouldn't have mattered to Anubis if Nico was on the Egyptian pantheon, or Greek one, or some other one entirely. He was pretty sure they'd have ended up being friends eventually. There were only so many immortal beings who played Mythomagic, after all. Anubis had asked every single one of them and found less than a dozen in the entire world.
It made him feel incredibly guilty that he'd nearly killed Nico with that stupid ritual. And it didn't make him feel any better that Nico didn't blame him. It had still been a lack of foresight on his part. He should have foreseen that the book might have been split up. He should have thought to include safeguards against that in his spell. He didn't even know what he would have said to Carter and Sadie if he'd killed Nico, let alone to Percy.
The thought of having to tell Percy was enough to make Anubis shudder. Gods didn't normally fear mortals, even if said mortals were sorcerers or demigods, but Percy Jackson was one that any wise god would do well to make an exception for. Anubis had learned from Nico's memories that Percy had once beaten Aries in a one-on-one fight and gone up against Kronus himself. He also knew that Percy had the curse of Achilles and therefore only one weak spot. He was also pretty sure he knew where that weak point was. Nico did his best never to think about it, knowing that Anubis had access to all of his thoughts and memories, but Nico was too smart and knew Percy too well not to have figured out the general area where Percy's weak point would be, and therefore Anubis knew too. But even with that information, it would be a mistake to underestimate Percy. Anubis hoped to never have a reason to face Percy as an enemy, and he knew that Percy also saw Nico as the little brother he never had . . . aside from that Tyson character. Well the fact remained that Nico was very important to Percy. If anyone hurt him they'd have Percy to deal with. Anubis was sure no one had forgotten what happened to that crazy Aziza woman, and the tiger fish incident.
Nico kept up a light conversation as they walked, most of it about inconsequential stuff, which was good, because Anubis was a little distracted. He kept the largest part of his consciousness there beside Nico, so that he could protect his host if something attacked, but the other fragments of his consciousness were having to work overtime as strange developments began taking place. Bast had returned to the Duat to scout out the area around her former prison, and Sadie had gotten into trouble and needed help, and with his host stuck here in the Duat, there was frustratingly little that Anubis could do to assist her. Anubis had to wait until Sadie ran past a cemetery before he was able to even talk with her, and even then all he was able to do was give her a knife and some directions. And a birthday kiss, which he wasn't able to enjoy nearly as much as he hoped he would have, due to the fact that he was concurrently talking with Bes and getting him to go pick Sadie up early, as well as noticing that Nico's strength seemed to be waning and that his eyelids were fluttering, and he was stumbling every third step.
"Let's stop for a few minutes and rest," said Anubis finally, when he was able to shift his concentration back to his host, once Sadie was on her way to the Underground, and Bes was on his way to go pick her up.
"No."
Anubis regarded his host, non-plussed. "And why not? You are clearly tired."
"Because every minute I spend here could end up being an hour or more," said Nico. His expression darkened with stubbornness. "So if I rest for five minutes here, that could be five hours in the normal world."
This was true, but it was also true that Nico needed to rest.
"Besides," Nico continued, looking around them. "This part of the Duat is pretty much a barren desert. It's kind of pointless to sit down in the middle of a sand covered wasteland. The sun here will bake me just as much as if I'd kept moving."
Anubis froze. He hadn't considered the Duat's sun and its effects on his host, but now that he was paying attention he could see that Nico wasn't having an easy time of it. His normally pale skin was flushed and his hair was slick with sweat.
"You look terrible."
Nico looked at him incredulously. "You're insulting my looks now? Really, Anubis?"
"You know what I meant." Anubis took off his jacket and handed it to Nico. "Drape this over your head."
Nico shook his head. "That will just make me hotter."
"It will shield you from some of the sun's rays. You're likely to get sun poisoning if you continue as you are."
"Sun poisoning? You mean sunburn?" Nico gave a dry laugh.
"No, I mean sun poisoning."
"Since when is the sun poisonous?" Nico wanted to know.
"I've seen enough people die from over-exposure to the sun that you should trust me about this one," said Anubis, then he sighed.
Nico reluctantly draped the jacket over his head then took a sip of nectar from his canteen. "Are we any closer to getting out of here?" he asked.
"We still have a fair ways to go," admitted Anubis.
"Okay. Are you going to tell me what else you've been doing while we've been walking?" Nico knelt down and then sat, carefully keeping Anubis' jacket angled between himself and the sun. "I can tell when you're not paying attention to what I'm saying you know. Not that I'm mad since you're probably doing something important. I just want to know what's going on."
It was a reasonable demand, and there was no reason Anubis saw not to tell him. "I managed to speak with Sadie. She was in danger -"
"Then go to her," said Nico immediately. "I'll be fine on my own. Hurry and -"
"I cannot move freely through the mortal realm, if you'll remember," Anubis reminded him. "Only in places of death, or inside of your head. And I already assisted Sadie all that I could."
Nico started to stand. Anubis nudged him with one foot, urging him to stay down.
"You should rest."
"I should get out of here and help them, that's what I should do," returned Nico.
"Sadie is no longer in immediate danger," Anubis told him. And it was true. Bes had picked up her, and Carter, and that other guy who wasn't nearly as handsome as Anubis' projection of a human body was. He had seen when they drove past a roadside memorial for someone who'd been killed in a car wreck, where their friends and family had left flowers. It counted as Anubis' territory, but barely, but it had sufficed. Sadie didn't seem to have seen him standing there by the side of the road, on top of the dying flowers as they drove by, but Bes had noticed him and nodded to him, conveying a great deal of information in a single look, as only gods could.
"What happened?" Nico asked.
"Her grandparents became possessed by two gods who are not on our side," Anubis told him.
"They went after her family?" Nico was on his feet before Anubis could stop him.
"She escaped."
"But they still have her family?" Nico's eyes blazed with dark fire.
"No. The gods were exorcised. Her grandparents should be safe now."
Naked relief crossed Nico's face. The subject of families always seemed to get him quite worked up, and even though Anubis had spent several months in his head, he still didn't understand why. Yes, he knew that Nico had been deprived of his own family, but that didn't explain why he cared so much about other peoples' families. He had gone out of his way to protect Percy's mother in that last stretch during the Battle of Manhattan. And he hadn't really liked Sadie at all until learning that she'd had the chance to walk away from Carter and Egyptian magic and have a normal life, but chose to stay with her brother instead. Anubis wondered if this was one of those irrational human things that could be explained with psychology and decided to look into it, but that would have to wait until he could spare some concentration for it.
"Her grandparents may be traumatized by the experience, but at least they're alive," continued Anubis. "Sadie was picked up by Bes, the god of dwarves and a friend of Bast. They are currently on their way to Russia to find the second part of the Book of Ra. I also gave Sadie something that she will find useful once they have combined all three parts."
"I see. So are you going to tell me now what's got you worried about the third part of the book, or are you going to sit on that information a little longer too?"
Anubis started then made a face. His link with Nico didn't work exactly the way most links between the Egyptian gods and their hosts worked. Usually the gods could control what their host gleaned from them, but had free access to all their host's thoughts and memories. Somewhere along the line of accidentally fusing his soul to Nico's, the link had started working both ways. Nico couldn't consciously access most of Anubis' thoughts or memories, but on the subconscious level he'd picked up quite a bit of Anubis' knowledge which he'd started using instinctually. And while Anubis could shield his thoughts from Nico when he wanted to, and hide information that he thought it wouldn't benefit the kid to know, lying to him outright was nearly impossible. He should have known better than to hope Nico wouldn't notice earlier.
"The final part of the book is hidden in a place where I felt traces of my father's magic," confessed Anubis, deciding to be honest now. Holding out any longer wouldn't help anything, and would only agitate Nico and make him even more suspicious.
"Is it booby-trapped?" Nico asked, his eyes narrowing.
"Quite possibly. Even if it's not, that doesn't mean there aren't dangers surrounding it," Anubis told him. "In fact, it's probably more likely that there are great dangers around it if Set didn't take the time to booby-trap it."
"So . . . are you worried that it's not booby-trapped, or that it is?" Nico wondered.
"I'm worried about what my father's reaction will be when I tell Sadie and Carter where to find it," confessed Anubis. "He is the one who hid it. That much is obvious. It would be naïve of me to think he wouldn't learn that it was his son who guided his enemies there."
"Sorry," muttered Nico, looking away. "I didn't know your reasons for keeping that from me were personal."
"Don't be sorry," Anubis told him. "It's not your fault. Besides . . . I knew the time would eventually come where I had to declare my allegiances. To be honest, I doubt my father expects anything more from me. He never seemed to have high standards for me . . . or really have standards from the beginning."
He felt a flash of empathy through his link with Nico, and was grateful for it - both the empathy and the link. Nico of all people knew what it was like to have a powerful, standoffish, self-absorbed, power-hungry, and quite possibly evil father that he didn't know how to talk to. Without their telepathic connection, Nico would have been forced to rely on words to convey his sympathy and support, and Nico wasn't the greatest speaker when it came to talking about feelings.
But almost immediately, Anubis was distracted from the moment of camaraderie he was sharing with his host . . . by the annoying cat of all people. What was happening, Anubis couldn't tell. All that he could feel was a sort of general telepathic call for help. A divine SOS, or something of the sort. From the stupid cat.
"What was that?" asked Nico, looking alarmed.
Anubis looked at him sharply. "You felt that too?" he asked.
Nico nodded. "Was that . . . was that Bast? Is she calling you?"
"Yes. She sent out a distress call to every god on our side, it seems." Anubis sighed. "It would be negligent of me not to check and see what's wrong with her, but I don't like the idea of dividing my consciousness even more. Too much is happening . . . why couldn't that stupid cat just have done her job?"
"How far away is she?" asked Nico.
"You're not coming," Anubis told him.
"How far away is she?" Nico repeated.
"You are not coming," said Anubis again. "If the stupid cat got herself into trouble then she can either get herself out, or make do with help from a fragment of my consciousness."
"She wouldn't be calling for help if she could get herself out of it, would she?" demanded Nico, raising an annoyingly valid point. "And who's to say that you'll be able to help her without me there? You're stronger when you're working through me. You said it yourself."
Anubis didn't like it . . . but Nico was probably right. There was all kinds of trouble that Bast could have gotten into on her mission . . . and the general area where her mission was supposed to be was pretty close to another exit from the Duat. It was further away, but when Anubis calculated the speeds in which the areas they'd be traveling through ran, compared to the speeds of the areas he'd been planning on taking Nico through, there wouldn't be that great a difference in the amount of time it would take. It would just increase the probability of running into nasty, dangerous gods and creatures by a lot more than Anubis would have preferred, and they'd have a lot further to travel. And Anubis liked this even less, but Nico was clearly in no shape for that long a journey. Not if he had to make it on his own two feet.
"Alright. We'll go help the dumb cat," decided Anubis.
"Both of us?" Nico asked.
"Both of us," said Anubis. "On one condition."
"I'm sensing that I will not like this condition."
"Probably not. In fact, I know you won't," said Anubis. Then he shape-shifted into one of his alternate forms, and moments later stood before Nico in the form of a giant, black jackal, the size of a small horse. "If you want to come you will allow me to carry you on my back. Otherwise we'll never make it in time."
Nico looked irate at this indignity. "Are you sure you can't just tell the Duat to change me into my winged form, because that's what I need to be right now?"
"Get on already," growled Anubis.
Nico grudgingly obeyed, climbing onto Anubis' back carefully when Anubis crouched down to make it easier for him. He lay almost flat on the giant jackal's back and wrapped his arms around Anubis' neck tightly so that he wouldn't call off. Moments later they were racing across the scorching sands, on their way to help the stupid cat.