The Daughter Of Night

Chapter Forty-Nine - Apollo Goes On A Hike

Chapter Forty-Nine - Apollo Goes On A Hike
Posted: Tuesday 17th September 2024

Apollo

"Why the Demeter cabin?" Will was following me as I strode across from the me cabin towards the Demeter cabin.

"I have a question about trees," I stated.

"What do trees have to do with anything?" Will asked.

"It's not trees themselves, it's what they represent. What a specific tree would represent actually," I replied. I reached the door of the Demeter cabin and knocked loudly. Miranda Gardiner opened the door a few moments later.

"What?" She asked. Then she spotted me and blinked, "Oh hi Apollo."

"Hello," I replied, "what can you tell me about the oldest tree in the world?"

Miranda blinked. "Quite a lot actually, my sister is writing her thesis on it."

"Perfect!" I had finally had some luck. If I was right then this tree would be the perfect place to start my hunt for my son. If I was really lucky, he may even be there.

"What do you want to know?" Miranda raised an eyebrow.

"Where will I find it?" I asked, "Is it in Greece, Asia perhaps?"

"California," Miranda replied. "It's in the Inyo National Forest, it's a Great Basin Bristlecone Pine. You'd find it in the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest on the east face of the White Mountains. The second oldest tree is there too, it's called Met-"

"Thank you for your assistance!" I shook Miranda's hand vigorously and turned back to Will, "I'm going to California now."

"I have no idea what's happening," Will replied, "what's a tree got to do with Caius? What does it represent?"

"I believe that this tree is the tree of life," I stated, "and as the god of life, that would be Caius' sacred symbol."

*

The Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest was a desolate place and just from looking at it, you would not have expected to find the Tree of Life growing here. But there was an aura about the place that told me how ancient it was. Some of these trees were as old as me, some older. The trees were not particularly impressive to look at either, however. They were stubby things with few leaves and twisting branches.

Despite my godly senses assuring me that there was indeed something sacred here, I was still unable to pinpoint its exact location, so I set out to hike along the trail which snaked its way around the mountain. It was a warm mid-August evening and I knew that if I was Lester I would be sweating buckets, but thankfully gods do not sweat so I did not have to deal with that inconvenience. Tourists dwindled as the day grew later and the sun chariot drew below the horizon. The temperature plummeted to much colder lows as the night fell upon us.

Every step I took it felt as though my radar was pinging, letting me know I was on the correct path, until eventually I stepped off of the path, climbed a steep section of rock and emerged to find the tree I was searching for. And there, at its base was a young man with tousled blonde hair, my perfect godly nose and his mother's perfect almond-shaped dark eyes.

Even if I hadn't recognised every one of his features from a mile away, I would have been able to tell that he was a god. Not necessarily from his appearance, he wore basic mortal attire -hiking boots, a t-shirt and a pair of cargo pants- but from his aura. This man radiated power.

His dark eyes settled on me and he sighed.

"Leave me to my solitude please," he said, "I am planning."

"Planning what?" I asked. It was plain to me that we knew exactly who each other were. He was fully aware that I was his father, he was choosing to ignore it. "Have you been holed up here for seven months? That doesn't seem particularly productive."

"I was hoping that Nyx would have shown her hand by now," Caius said, "I don't know where to find her, I had hoped she would find me so that I could obliterate her." He blinked at me, "You're immortal again."

"Yes," I agreed, "were you keeping tabs on me?"

He shrugged. "So you know then?"

"Know about what?" I asked.

"Mother."

"Yes," my eyes fell to the ground, "I am sorry I was not there."

"You should be," he said.

"I am," I assured him. "Can I sit?"

He shrugged again.

I settled beside my son on the roots of the trees looking out over the darkened landscape. This place felt so serene and ancient I could understand how one could so easily spend seven months sitting in this very spot, watching the wonders of the natural world pass by.

"It is beautiful here," I said.

"I know," Caius said, "this is life at its most pure, at its oldest. This tree we are sitting on is more than 5,000 years old."

"Older than me," I offered.

"Tell me," Caius said, "how did you make Python fade with such ease?"

I almost laughed, but it didn't feel like the correct thing to do at that moment so I held it in, "that was not an easy feat to accomplish. I myself almost faded in the process."

"How did you bring yourself back from the brink?" Caius asked.

"Well, my oath on the Styx was trying to pull me apart, to destroy me as it rightly could. But then I realised, it doesn't matter how loud your oath is, it matters if you mean it or not."

"I mean my oath," Caius said, "I will destroy Nyx. If it means I too will fade then so be it."

"And you really think Ri- your mother would have wanted that?" I cocked an eyebrow at him.

"I thought you of all people would know how much Mother hated Nyx."

"Oh she hated her," I confirmed, "what I'm talking about is you setting yourself on a path completely fixated on revenge. Even if it costs your own life."

"My life is worthless without her here," Caius said. "I have no purpose, I have no direction."

At that moment, I saw my own hopelessness mirrored in Caius. We were the same, him and I. Without Ariadne here I too felt directionless. I could not allow him to destroy himself in pursuit of revenge, it was not what Ariadne would have wanted or allowed.

But, he was just as stubborn as his mother before him. I had never been able to talk her down and I knew I would not be able to set Caius on a different course. So I made myself a promise. If I were going to die, then I would do so ensuring that Ariadne's son had a chance at life.

"If slaying Nyx offers you purpose then I'm all in," I said, "but do not put your life aside. Ariadne gave her life to protect you. You are worth everything to me."

Caius looked at me again with his obsidian-coloured eyes, which looked so, so much like his mother's, and for the first time, I thought I saw them begin to soften.