deercountry | 13 . autumn catch-all

[ He actually settles as Nico tells it, soothed by the inane differences of universe. A life for a life would be a tidy way to do things; an afterlife you can walk into, with guards you can distract, bears no resemblance to the River at all. Gods, plural, is always a trip to hear. ]

Equivalent exchange, [ mutters God, again like it's funny. ] If only.

[ Still: he looks at Nico differently, now, on hearing he's the kid of a god. With open interest. To that speculation he tips his head in a half-shrug, but zeroes in on the one thing he has not himself managed to do: ]

Did you pull them out of the ocean?

[ Everyone knows his beef with the ocean, by now. ]

[ There's a lot he knows about John's universe, though some of it may only be known to the God and his closest few. He has wondered if there was some power behind the River, an unseen being, like with the rivers of the Underworld. ]

Do you use thanergy like the other necromancers in your world, or pull from some other source? [ Nico would believe it if he did, one doesn't become God without being different from everyone else.

The teen isn't surprised to be looked at in that way. There are quite a few differences between the way he does things and the people of some alternate, future universe. ]

His soul, yeah. I was kind of able to track it from afar, and there's a cave in the deepest part of the sea where it went. There was a strange sensation, like a dream-like feeling of being close to home. I summoned his ghost while it was in the cave, and tried when he left - only to find I couldn't.

Bit of both. [ He appreciates the question; it's a good one, shows knowledge of the basics. John tips his head in thought as they walk. ] I use thanergy like everyone else, but I don't have to source it externally... no dipping into bones, no grabbing local deaths. I mean, I can, but I don't need it. That's small potatoes, you know?

[ What he finds much more interesting is the idea that this kid has dipped further than him into the local afterlife. John looks at him in frank, open surprise, and then nearly-incredulous attention. ]

You've been to the cave? Or you were working at range from the surface?

[ Nico hums in understanding at the answer. He has asked Palamedes a lot of questions about how it works for him, so it makes sense that John can do more. ] Makes sense. Wouldn't be the God of it if your powers worked like everyone else's. Can you turn someone living into a ghost and banish them to the River? Like.... without the physical act of destroying their body.

[ It's a very specific question, he knows, but can't help asking it anyway. Dark eyes look up at John, a small shake of his head to the first question. ]

At range. I can sense the souls of the people I'm closest to, no matter the distance. Mostly, I can sense when they die and... I guess one way to explain it is, if they're at the bottom of the River, I can pick up on their specific souls even through all the others and layers in between.

What, yank the soul out and yeet it somewhere else? [ every time God says yeet a hundred religious scholars scramble to write that down. the Nine Houses is a silly place. ] Sure. There's not much point to a body without a soul, though... you just have a really detailed puppet to keep alive.

[ And then you get other fun problems like possession, but that's not for the Necromancy 101 class. He exhales a slow breath and rocks back on his heels a moment: he's impressed. ]

Makes sense. [ Should be literally impossible for anyone but him, maybe Cassie at her best, back before they lost her. Good to know how his local competition stacks up. ] I can do the same, give or take some details... think of me more as a high-powered generalist. Jack-of-all trades, but I'm always losing the signal for the noise. Love to see the finesse.

How did the summoning go? Your guy have anything interesting to say?

[ A ten thousand-year-old God just said yeet - not even Nico does that, and he's a teen in the 21st century. ] Not exactly. More like turning his whole being into nothing but a shadow, body and all.

[ There was no body left for any kind of possession or puppetry. Everything was transformed and sent to the Underworld.

They play by different rules, though John's own abilities seem more in line with his own in comparison to Palamedes'. ] Got it. From what I know so far, you seem to be on the same level as my dad, just without all of the others deities to get in your way.

Mostly just confirming what I felt, he was kind of like a drifting thing - not quite all there and unable to grasp everything happening around him in the cave.

[ He tips his head in acknowledgment, agreement. He can't turn anybody to shadow, but he can appreciate the style. ]

We should collaborate some time. I'd love to see how you work... and maybe Mariana won't start slinging monsters at me for stepping foot on the beach, if I come along as your backup.

[ He means it, though not as demurely as he says it. John does want to understand the shape of things, here, and it's impossible to trace specific Sleeper souls once they're too deeply swallowed in the jumble. He can't conceptualize their fate without running into the gaps in his knowledge.

But there's one soul in particular he needs to understand. And there's a lot he could do once he learns to bridge the gap. ]

[ Nico doesn't technically remember doing it, just losing control of himself and hearing the story from his friends. ]

Sure, I'd be interested in seeing some of your work up close, too. Relationships between gods are more complicated than god and demigod, but I could try to help with that.

[ After all, he didn't simply just try to stroll into Mariana's domain without some sort of permission first. If John's never dealt with other gods, it could have been seen as an invasion to try to go in without some sort of communication.

A lot of people are angry at John, maybe they have the right to be. But to Nico, everyone fucks up, even gods. ]

[ He exhales a breath of wry amusement, tips his head in consideration. ]

Well, it does sound like I could use some help on the diplomacy front.

[ And it's funny enough to be halfway charming, the idea of leaning on gangly teenagers to keep from getting smote by angry squids. Cracking the secrets of necromancy across the multiverse. Actual collaboration, with someone who brings something to the table he can't yet swing on his own. ]

It's a plan.

13 . autumn catch-all

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