scared? | a nico di angelo fanfic

chapter 11: summons

After Minos gave Nico a crash course on how to summon skeletons, Death Boy turned to him. "Can you elaborate on that 'soul for a soul' thing?"

"Nico—"

"Gladly, master," said Minos. "In order to achieve a life, you have to take one from someone who shouldn't have one; like someone who has cheated death."

"And who might we find to exchange?"

"Daedalus," Minos said immediately, with no hesitation. "That pesky mastermind is intelligent and hard to catch, but he always hid inside of his creation."

"The Labyrinth," Hoa realized. "The one we went through. Is it safe to go through there if we decide on going after him?"

Minos sneered at Hoa. "There's no we in this conversation, daughter of panic. It is only the Son of Hades and I."

She crossed her arms. "Well, I'm going regardless of whether or not you want me to. Are you going to answer the question or not?"

He looked away. "It should be safe, as he is still alive as of now. However, when he dies, we must evaluate the Labyrinth immediately."

"And why's that?"

"The maze is tied to his life force. If he dies, the maze dies."

"Thank you."

"Now, we shall go search for Daedalus," Minos said, his signature smile coming back.

Hoa's eyes widened. "Wait, then what's the offering for?"

"For me, of course." Minos spread his arms. "I'm the one guiding my master through everything that has happened as of now."

"Oh hell naw," the girl said, turning to Nico. "Can we get a second opinion?"

Nico nodded. "That's a good idea."

Minos pretended to look offended. "My lord, do you trust in me?"

"No," Hoa said.

"We just want to be sure that this will work," Nico said. "May you show me how to summon things?"

Minos bowed his head. "Of course, master. Now let us get started, shall we?"

~•~•~

After Hoa found a fashionable black cloak to put on Nico, he summoned two of the undead to dig a pit as directed by Minos. From the sidelines, Hoa watched the ghost warily, waiting for an excuse to attack him.

A shimmer of light appeared. Percy's face showed again, his eyes widening as he took in the scene. Hoa gave him a curt nod that he returned.

The willow trees loomed all around them, the starry sky showing itself through the spaces between branches.

They watched as the skeletal gravediggers went to work. Shovels swung and dirt flew. The night was foggy. It was warm and humid, and frogs were croaking. All the food sat at Nico's feet, which Hoa wanted to so badly snatch from him.

"Is it deep enough yet?" he asked in an irritated manner.

"Nearly, my lord," Minos called, hí form shimmering in the dark. "But, my lord, I tell you, this is unnecessary. You already have me for advice."

"Yeah, well, you aren't exactly the most trustworthy source with advice," Hoa said. "I'd rather ask Zeus for relationship advice."

Nico snapped his fingers, calling his skeletons back to him. "You are dismissed," he said. "Thank you."

The skeletons collapsed into piles of bones.