[Nico shrugs with his uninjured shoulder.] My hands still worked. It's what made the most sense. [And sometimes you have to make sacrifices to succeed. He gets that.

And yet, he also barely contains a shudder, remembering the complete lack of feeling from his shoulders to his elbows to about halfway down his back. It had been almost as unsettling as looking through his own hands, insubstantial as shadows, when he'd started to lose himself to the darkness after using his powers too much.]

Oh. [For what it's worth, Nico doesn't look even slightly skeptical. Worship of an oracle was common in the ancient greek tradition, and obviously he believes in all of that.] I guess I thought prophecies were supposed to be nothing but bad news. [Certainly, the ones he's been personally swept up in all have been.]