“It is probably rude to ask someone with a very busy job that requires the bending of time and probably also space to accomplish to give you freebies,” says Yvette, in a stage-whisper. “Especially when you’re asking him to bend time and probably also space to help you break a fundamental rule of part of the foundation of the world. That he is extremely connected to. I’m not saying it’s not a dumb rule that doesn’t need it, just. I don’t think death-as-it-exists-in-this-world is the thing to hit it with. I think if he can’t do his job very bad things happen for everybody.”

Pout.

"Well, how about we stop wasting time and get going, then, shall we?"

And as he says that a number of glowing circles of light of various sizes start appearing on the floor around the chamber.

Naturally, she peers at the glowing circles of light with her eye!

“Oh. They’re not going to calmly negotiate about the way the Underworld should be arranged and who should be forcibly kept inside it, are they.”

"Nope," says Zagreus, popping the 'p'. He grabs the sword from his hip and stretches a bit. "Come at me."

Various creatures emerge from the circles. Specifically, a couple of floating torsos and floating skulls, as well as two piles of non-floating but still yellow-with-glowing-red-eyes skulls.

The god of death grabs his own weapon of choice and gestures at one of the skulls.

The smoky, glowing purple scythe that appears above said skull is probably indicative of something, but Zagreus dashes at approximately the speed of sound towards it and a single slice from his sword is enough to break it to pieces.

"Showoff," says Thanatos in a volume probably too soft for Zag himself to hear.

“For the record,” says Yvette in a loud voice from Zagreus’s shoulder, “This is a dumb and inefficient way of working out domestic disputes!”

... but it is admittedly pretty nice to watch two pretty boys kill things with great efficiency. Fortunately for her, she’s a starry blob, so no one can tell what she’s thinking.

If they have anything to say to that, they are both too busy slaying things to do so.

Thanatos's way of dealing with the wretches is slow but extremely efficient; anything that's still up by the time his mark goes off will no longer be.

But Zagreus definitely takes a more hands-on approach. He takes a couple of tries to get the hang of the gravity gift Yvette bestowed upon him but once he has he uses it to great effect. The great effect is often dragging wretches out of Thanatos's reach so that Zag can get the kill rather than Than, which obviously makes the whole thing take way longer than it needs to, but it works anyway.

The first time this happens:

"Are you kill stealing. Are you using my blessing to kill steal. That's so rude!"

No words, only death.

Death has words, though: "I have never known Zag to play fair, and would be surprised to see him start now," he drawls.

"Next time I'm helping Thanatos," sniffs the blob of stars from Zagreus's shoulder, loftily. "Because I know what sportsmanship is."

"As if Thanatos played fair, either!"

Oh now he can talk.

"You're just mad because you like my gravity warping effect and you're going to pout when I give it to someone else!"

"He's the god of death he doesn't need more advantages!"

"You're the god of life, do you?"

At that point wretches stop appearing.

"I think he's admitting that he does," she conspires, amused.

"'Course I do," he says, shrugging and relaxing his posture. "And I'm not god of anything. Twenty-five," he adds.

"Eleven," sighs the god of death.

"It was not a fair contest so I, as the unaffiliated and unbiased third party, do not declare a winner."

"He can kill these things with a look! I have to actually break a sweat."

"It doesn't matter," says Thanatos, floating over to where Zagreus is, his feet not touching the ground. "Here. Have this," he says, offering a heart-shaped jewel the size of a football also floating above his hands.