Little Ray Of Darkness {HOO/Solangelo}

Chapter IX

Will jumped back from the tree. Lou Ellen looked around frantically for the source of the scream. Cecil took out his baseball bat and Nico grabbed his sword.

"What was that?" Lou Ellen asked, still looking around but seeing no one.

"I don't know." Will approached the tree again, slower this time. Once again, before he could place his hand on the trunk, the woman screamed again.

"It sounds so close." Nico glanced around, his sword still at the ready.

Cecil chuckled, "Maybe it's the tree screaming." He joked.

"Wait, Cecil, I think you're right!" Will exclaimed.

"I am?" Cecil looked at Will, confused.

Will got closer to the tree once again, but this time it was clear where the scream came from. A wood nymph came out of the tree, running to the opposite side that Will was on.

"Get away! Get away you scumbag!" She shouted at Will.

"Hey! Don't talk about our friend that way!" Nico put his sword at his side and yelled at the nymph.

"How can you be friends with this monster!" She motioned fearfully to Will, who looked slightly insulted.

"What did I do?" Will questioned.

"Oh you know exactly what you did Apollo!" She pointed accusingly.

Lou Ellen burst out laughing, "Wait wait, you think that Will is Apollo?"

The nymph looked confused, "What are you laughing about?"

"I'm not Apollo, I'm Will. My dad is Apollo. I'm just a demigod." Will informed the dryad.

"But you look just like him." She looked at Will, squinting her eyes.

"Why thank you. But I am not a god." Will laughed.

"Who are you?" Cecil asked the nymph.

She brushed her yellowish green hair over her shoulder, "I am Daphne."

"Oh!" Lou Ellen exclaimed, "Daphne! That's why you are afraid of Apollo!" The nymph pursed her lips and crossed her arms.

"Huh?" Cecil looked to Lou Ellen.

"You've never heard the story of Daphne and Apollo?" Cecil shook his head. Lou Ellen continued, "Well long story short, Eros, or I guess commonly known as cupid-"

"Oh gods not him." Nico muttered with a shiver, not meaning for anyone to hear him, but everyone stopped to look at him.

"What?" Will asked Nico with a tilt of his head.

Nico blushed and looked at the ground, kicking the dirt, "It-It's nothing. Just a bad experience with him, that's all." He said quietly.

Lou Ellen continued, "So Eros shot Apollo with his arrow causing him to fall in love with Daphne-"

This time Lou Ellen was cut off by the nymph, "So that rotten man chased me endlessly, no matter how many times I told him no!" She stomped her foot.

"Yes, right. So you prayed to the gods to help you escape. And you were transformed into the laurel tree. Correct?"

Daphne nodded, "And Apollo never bothered me again, because I was a tree. Eventually I became a wood nymph, so I am free to come and go from my tree. When the gods were moved from Greece to America, I came too. Now my tree is the biggest laurel tree in California." She bragged, but then became mad again, "But then that stupid lightning hit it cutting it in half, but it is okay now." She explained.

"So that's why it looks different from the picture!" Cecil realized. Daphne nodded.

"Okay, sorry about what my dad did but we really need to talk to you." Will stepped closer to Daphne.

"NO!" She yelled, stopping Will in his tracks.

"Please, Daphne." Lou Ellen said this time.

Daphne sighed, "I will speak to the three of you," She pointed to Lou Ellen, Cecil, and Nico, "But I refuse to talk to him." She glared at Will.

"But I'm not Apollo! I'm not like that!" He protested.

Lou Ellen spoke to the son of Apollo, "Will, just go sit by the creek. We will be done soon."

Will sighed and walked to the edge of the creek, grumbling.

Daphne smiled once he was gone and breathed a sigh of relief, "Now what did you want to talk to me about?" She settled down underneath her tree, leaning against the trunk. The three demigods sat on the ground in front of the nymph. Lou Ellen cleared her throat. Nico could tell Daphne felt most comfortable around the daughter of Hecate, so he let her explain.

"So as you can tell, the sun hasn't risen." Lou started.

Daphne glanced at the sky, then rubbed the trunk of the tree as if it were her pet, "Yes, it is not good for my tree, or for any plant. We need the sun to live."

"Well that's because Apollo-" The nymph huffed at his name, "-Has been captured by Zeus, we think. We are on a quest to find him. We found a clue that lead us here. Do you know anything?"

Daphne pursed her lips again, "I'm glad that he's gone. But unfortunately," She rolled her eyes, "my tree needs the sun to live. So I guess I will help you. Back during the 1930's to the 1960's if Zeus was angered, or irritated with any non-mortal being, but not angry enough to do anything himself, he would send them away to a famous mortal prison in California. I'm not sure what it was called but the nymphs have discussed rumors. Some say they were tortured, others say they were locked up like the mortals, but in a special section of the prison. I heard they stopped using the prison, once it was closed down. But I know that's the only place where people have gone missing by Zeus' hand." She told them.

"But that could be any prison! There are plenty is California." Lou Ellen sighed.

"No Lou, I know which prison she is talking about." Cecil said.

Lou Ellen raised an eyebrow, "You do?"

Cecil nodded, "It's easy! A famous Californian prison, that started in the 30's and was closed down in the 60's?"

She shook her head, "I still don't know."

"Alcatraz!" He finally informed them, excitedly.

"How did you know that?"

"I love history!" Cecil smiled.

"Huh. I didn't expect that from you." Lou stated.

Cecil shrugged, "Just because I'm not a son of Athena doesn't mean I can't like something academic."

"Hold on guys." Nico finally spoke up, "We don't know if Zeus actually put him in that jail. That could be just a random fact. Apollo could be anywhere!"

"Okay thanks for your input Debbie Downer." Cecil crossed his arms with a chuckle.

"But Nico think about it. The original haiku said that he was 'locked away' by Zeus. It makes sense that he would be in a prison." Lou Ellen said.

Daphne added her thoughts this time, "Apollo sent you to me. I'm just telling you what I know.

"But how would Apollo know that you know that?" Nico protested.

Lou Ellen had the final word "Nico that hardly makes sense. We are going to Alcatraz. It's the best shot we have."