The Plea of Apollo || COMPLETED

WILL II

He knew he was dreaming. That was the only way he could be back on the battle field, Romans and Greeks fighting against Gaea's monster army. His clothes were suddenly black, the outfit he had put on when Cecil, Lou Ellen and he had been watching the Romans before they had joined forces.

"What's going on?" He questioned himself when a body suddenly slammed into his. An arrow flew by where his head had been half a second before.

The person that had knocked him over turned out to be Nico, ugly flowery shirt and all.

"You can't just stand there, Solace! You're going to get killed!"

This had not actually happened during the battle, which was why Will remained on the ground confused when Nico took to stabbing a monster that had strayed too close to them. For some reason he knew something horrible was about to happen. No good dream could come out of a war between Gaea.

Suddenly, fire and shrapnel exploded high in the sky above them. One of the onagers had gone off, he knew, but that didn't stop the destruction from following. Left and right monsters where exploding into dust; however, just as many campers fell from the celestial bronze and gold laced in the explosives. Horror flooded the healer. Who would have fired the weapon when their own side would be hurt?

"Octavian," he cursed.

It was that moment he heard a thud. Some way or another Will had not a scratch on him, but that had been because there was a wall of shadows blocking him from the deadly shrapnel. Looking to his left, his heart stopped beating when he say the fading form of Nico on the ground next to him.

"Nico!" A scream tore itself from Will's throat. Everyone around him was dead, so his cry echoed in the silence. "I told you not to use your powers! You knew if you used them one more time it would be over..." A sob escaped him.

The son of Hades was indeed fading. His arms and legs were already gone, the rest of his body slowly being eaten by the shadows. Somehow the dark-haired demigod managed a smile before disappearing completely.

"NO!"

The scene changed much to his relief. He couldn't stand watching his friend die, even if it was just a nightmare. Will was now in the infirmary, sitting on a stool next to the bed that Nico occupied and was currently fast asleep in.

This was where I was sitting before I nodded off, he thought.

"Hello there, son!"

He spun around to see the glowing form of his father, golden hair and blue eyes identical to his own. The god was standing there with a smile on his face that rivaled the one Will always threw around. He wore a bright orange polo along with sky blue surfer shorts and average white tennis shoes. It was strange seeing the god dress like twenty-something year-old Will, but not as strange as seeing him in a Greek toga.

"Um," he said when his shock wore off. "Hi, dad. What brings you to into my dreams?"

"I came to give my most worthy son a prophecy. Sorry about that nightmare, by the way. It's a good thing I showed up and dispelled it though."

Will was taken back. Did Apollo just say he was going to give him a prophecy? "Wait a minute! I thought the gift of prophecy still wasn't working. I mean, I'm flattered and all, but Rachel said two days ago when she left with the Romans that she was going to work with Ella and try to recreate the Sibylline Books because the spirit of Delphi was extinguished."

"The spirit of Delphi is not gone, Will. It is simply trapped by a foe I vanquished centuries ago. As my punishment for my act of blessing Octavian, the worst mistake of my immortal life," the god winced, "I was sent by Zeus to free it again. However, I underestimated Python's strength. He was expecting me, and... Well, I'm a little stuck. Gods can make their own prophecies you know, which is why I devised one using a musing I heard from Ella the Harpy."

"Hold on a second," he stared at his dad. "You mean to tell me you went to rescue the spirit of Delphi and now you're Python's prisoner too?"

Apollo actually flushed, turning to look at the son of Hades rather than his own son. "When you say it like that it makes me look silly, doesn't it? You'll accept the quest to free the spirit and I though, right?"

Part of Will was embarrassed that this guy had claimed him as his father. "Of course I will."

His eyes lit up with happiness. "Great. Now, before I lose strength, the prophecy goes like—"

The dream suddenly dissolved, and Will fell onto the floor of the real infirmary with a small thud. "Ow," he muttered as he took in his surroundings. Nico was still sleeping like he was dead, the sky was still blanketed with stars, and the only thing he could hear were the loud snores of another camper from nearby.

"Did I seriously wake up because I fell off the stool?" He questioned himself as he picked himself on the floor and lied down on an empty cot next to Nico's. "It's just like me to miss the prophecy my own dad was going to give me because I slipped off a chair. Wait until Chiron hears about this."