#~koios~
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hello, please may I have a prayer for aid in my exams this week? thank you :)
Of course! I have a prayer specifically for Mnemosyne for exams, so I’ll do this one as a prayer to multiple gods (unless you want something more specific)
For aid during exams
Hear me, gods of knowledge,
Owl-eyed Athena, who grants us with wisdom and guidance,
Golden-robed Mnemosyne, who allows us to remember and use our reasoning,
Koios, pillar of the north, who holds domain over intellect and allows us to question.
If I have honoured you through my learning, hear this prayer, great gods of knowledge,
I ask for your aid during this exam, to allow me to access all the knowledge I have gained during my studies, and to be with me during this time
I ask for your favour with a token of my praise, I offer to you (offering)
#~mnemosyne~#~athena~#~koios~#greek pantheon#hellenic deities#hellenic devotion#hellenic gods#hellenic pantheon#hellenic polytheist#hellenic prayer#hellenic religion#hellenic worship#hellenic pagan#mnemosyne#koios#coeus#athena deity#athena#athena worship#hellenic polytheistic#hellenic titans#hellenic polythiest#hellenic devotees#hellenism#hellenic polytheism
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ToA Theory 1 - Apollo's Waking Visions
First official theory post, here we go! :D
Alright. So. After rereading The Dark Prophecy, I started wondering about something. In TDP, Apollo experiences waking visions, where he conks out for a bit and has prophetic visions.
I found this interesting because, well...isn't Apollo supposed to be cut off from prophecy? With Python back in control of Delphi?
Because think about it. Python controls Delphi, the root of all earthly prophecy. This would include Dodona, Trophonius, Herophile, and Sibyl - sure, they aren't strictly connected to Delphi, but it's pretty heavily stated that Delphi just straight-up Makes The Future. It's prophecies are The Big Deal and you Should Listen.
Meanwhile the other Oracles seem more guiding and "beware!" instead of "this is how it's gonna be".
(sidenote: found out there are MORE oracles and I wanna know WHERE THEY ARE IN RRVERSE CANON because I want my boy Branchus okay??? Okay. Branchus's oracle was second only to Delphi let's give Apollo's first boyfriend the attention he deserves!)
So of course, like all great members of this fandom, I started thinking.
Let's do a little family history first. ;)
Buckle up. We go down a deep rabbit hole 😎
Apollo and Artemis are twins, born to Leto and Zeus. Zeus's parents are Kronos and Rhea. Leto's are Koios and Phoebe.
Rhea has connections to Dodona, as we learn in-series, but she doesn't really seem to be all that involved with prophecy.
Her siblings, meanwhile...ho ho ho, they are a WHOLE NOTHER STORY!
Let's start with Phoebe. Phoebe, like all first generation Titans, is the daughter of Gaea and Ouranos. She married her brother Koios. Her children consist of Asteria, Lelantos, and Leto. As well as Artemis and Apollo, her other two grandchildren are Hecate (Asteria) and Aura (Lelantos).
Her name means "bright" and is the root of Apollo's most famous epithet - Phoebus. She is often described as "golden-crowned" and is the Titan of bright intellect, the overseer of Earthly Prophecies, and is the second guardian of Delphi, after her sister Themis. She gifted Delphi to Apollo for his birthday after he defeated Python.
Classic grandmother move.
Anyway. There's a bit of Phoebe lore. Time for her elusive husband :3
Koios. His names means "question" or "questioning", probably because he's the Titan of inquiring intellect. He's also the overseer of Heavenly Prophecies, and has an oracle up in the North Pole guarded by an earth-dragon - you'd know this serpent by the name of Draco, the constellation btw. Additionally, Hyperborea (where Apollo goes in the winter times) is part of his domain.
eyes
Unfortunately, we have very little mythological lore on these two, and even less in the RRverse (I cling to that one (1) Koios scene) which sucks because I love them already BUT it does give me lots of legroom to mess around with canon >:)
Back to the theory now. As you may have guessed, I'll be taking us in a direction concerning Apollo's mysterious grandparents. But what does this have to do with Apollo's visions?
Well. Remember when I mentioned that Delphi is the root of all earthly prophecies?
...look at Phoebe's paragraphs. She's the overseer of Earthly Prophecies, right? So it makes sense she's been affected by Python's takeover too.
(if you've read my fics you'd know this already lmao)
Asteria, Apollo's aunt, is a little trickier. She, too, has a hand in divination, but mainly through the night/stars and dreams. <-will come back to that later.
Koios, again, is overseer of Heavenly Prophecies, and is heavily implied to be able to commune with Ouranos's spirit. This is, apparently, a Big Deal because nobody else is mentioned to be able to do this.
...Except...remember this throwaway line in The Hidden Oracle?
^Apollo can see Ouranos too.
Within this theory is a sub-theory, so to speak - that immortals with the gift of prophecy can see Ouranos, since they can see what cannot be seen. This would include Phoebe, Asteria, Koios, and Apollo.
And it'll make sense why they'd keep it to themselves. Kronos wouldn't have been happy to hear his dad was still around. Neither would Zeus, for that matter.
So here I was. Contemplating. Wrote a few fics based around this idea. And one in particular got me thinking (fic in question being When The Stars Align), and a little ways down the road I realized something.
If Phoebe, the overseer of Earthly Prophecies, would have been affected by Python's takeover...was Koios? Could he even be affected?
Because here's the deal: Koios is the overseer of Heavenly Prophecies. Prophecies from the Sky.
Phoebe's are of the Earth - the Earth that Python has taken control of. And Delphi is the root of Earthly Prophecies - not Heavenly.
That would be Koios's oracle, up in the North Pole with Draco.
...So that means Heavenly Prophecy must have still been in business during ToA.
But then comes the question: If it was still within the gods' control, why didn't they use it?
Well...Draco's there, for one. He's probably the Python-equivalent of the North, and clearly he's still there since no myth has spoken of his death (that I know of).
If you ask me, I just think the gods are too nervous/afraid to try Koios's oracle. They were too scared to face Python, after all, until Apollo arrived. I think they'd be scared of a serpent who comes and goes from the stars as he pleases.
And as for why Apollo hasn't done anything about it...well, I think his fight with Python left him rather scarred, don't you think? He probably went "yeah grandma's oracle is enough" and the only time he ever got close to Koios's was during his time in Hyperborea.
So getting back to the main theory now. (So many rabbit holes to dive into with this post. The ADHD Urge is real)
Since Heavenly Prophecies is still active, but Earthly is in Python's control, I conclude Apollo's visions come from the Heavenly source.
Could they have come from the now-working Dodona? Maybe. But Dodona's all about those windchimes and trees. It doesn't have the Vibe, so to speak, for granting visions.
And remember. Trophonius, Herophile, and Sibyl aren't destroyed/freed yet. They have Zero connection to Apollo at this point because Python cut him off from them.
...but he didn't from the North. From Koios's divine power.
Because remember. Apollo is the god of prophecy.
Not of Earthly Prophecies, like Phoebe.
Not of Heavenly Prophecies, like Koios.
Not of nighttime divination and dreams like Asteria.
Of. Prophecy.
Prophecy as a whole. The entirety. The whole enchilada.
Every part of prophecy he's the god of, be it tarot cards to the Oracle of Delphi itself.
In my opinion, I think whatever Koios's Oracle is, it has just as must power as Delphi. The only problem was that...everybody just left it be. Nobody considered it because:
1) scary dragon
2) scary titan ruled the place
3) honestly at this point I think it's just straight-up forgotten about. Like Branchus's Oracle. I think at one point Apollo himself mentions there are other Oracles besides the ones in-series, but there's so many that his mortal brain cannot comprehend how many.
If the Grove of Dodona nearly faded into obscurity, then I think it's entirely possible Koios's Oracle was forgotten about (or so we think...I'm gonna be chewing on this for a while.)
Coming back round to TDP...I think this is a reasonable explanation about Apollo's visions. To summarize:
Apollo is cut off from Earthly Prophecy, his usual source of foresight that he gets from Phoebe
The unused, near-forgotten-about Heavenly Prophecy side of Apollo ignites to steer him on the right path
This is possible because Apollo is the god of prophecy itself, and not a single subset of prophecy, so he's not limited in the same way Phoebe is
Koios's Oracle is still out there and kicking and I will die on this hill
One problem. What about Asteria? She can interpret the future from the stars...aka the Sky. Like Koios. So couldn't she provide some insight to the future, since she, too, is connected to Heavenly Prophecy?
This is where things get a lil' tricky. And where I really slap on my tinfoil hat and start headcanoning my way through lmao
Basically, I think that since Asteria became the island of Delos (long story) a good chunk of her power is ingrained there. She's not as strong as she used to be, so her foresight isn't as strong.
This, in turn, I think could also serve as a reason why Koios's Oracle is "asleep" so to speak and nearly lost to memory in the RRverse - in fact, I think Asteria and Phoebe are the only ones who bother to remember its existence.
And Leto, of course. But I don't think she wants her son to know of another Oracle with a giant snake guarding it. She's had enough heart-attacks, thank you.
(Same with Lelantos, tbh.)
Canon is my sandbox and I am making some sweet sandcastles out of it XD
TL;DR
Apollo's visions in TDP stem from Koios's source of Heaven Prophecy because Phoebe's source of Earthly Prophecy (Delphi) has been taken over by Python. Koios's source firmly knocks on Apollo's mental doors and decides to kick back into gear to help its titular patron's grandson out. Because Apollo is the god of prophecy itself - every bit of it.
Extras:
I find it fascinating how magic and prophecy are both part of the same family tree (Hecate & Apollo).
and yes. You should expect a fic concerning Koios's Oracle at some point. but no promises on when :3
Thank you for coming to Insane Theory Time With Alder. I hope there will be more lmao
Websites you can look into:
Koios (Theoi)
Phoebe (Theoi)
Hyperborea (Theoi)
#toa theory#ramblings of an oracle#the trials of apollo#trials of apollo#toa#apollo#phoebe the titan#koios#asteria#python#pjo apollo#pjo koios#pjo asteria#pjo python#toa python#toa apollo#pjo hoo toa#percy jackon and the olympians#the heroes of olympus
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Hello 👀
Do you have any thoughts on Phoebe and Koios? I love that side of Apollo's family and was wondering 👀
I have never thought much about them because well, there's barely anything about them in the myths but now I do have some thoughts!
So Koios means "query" apparently (according to theoi.com), and add it to the fact that Phoebe is very knowledgeable due to her prophetic powers. Imagine Koios having all sorts of fun and interesting questions for her and Phoebe loves nothing more than answering them and seeing satisfaction spread on Koios' face and that's how they fall in love. They both would be the nerdy couple of the Titans' generation lol. And if course Phoebe would definitely be heartbroken when Koios was banished to Tartarus. But there are versions where Zeus released some Titans, including Koios, so maybe it isn't that much of a tragic tale for them after all.
Theoi.com also says Koios possibly was the Titan of the north pillar of the world. There are no sources cited for this but hey, it can make way for some fun headcanons because you know what lays beyond the north? Hyperborea, which Apollo regularly visited! So did Artemis and Leto occasionally. The twins can have a little chit chat with their gramps before flying off to Hyperborea, as a treat <3 and Phoebe absolutely loves and dotes on her grandkids!! my hc is that Leto named her unborn children Phoebus and Phoebe after her mother (don't ask how she knew the gender-) it's very fitting especially if you consider the version where Phoebe gifts the oracle of Delphi to little Apollo 🥺
It's also very interesting that both the Titans are associated with knowledge, and all of that passed on to Apollo clearly. I had read in a paper a while back where the author wrote how Koios represented the knowledge of the sky while Phoebe represented the knowledge of the earth, and Apollo inherited the knowledge coming from both the sources. This may not have solid evidence in the myths, but I like to think that Apollo inherited qualities from both his grandparents. The prophetic ability from Phoebe and his inquisitive nature from Koios (hence why he is multi-talented, he always seeks to learn something new). Apollo would also be outwardly more affectionate towards his grandparents than Artemis haha they don't have a favorite twin but they definitely enjoy Apollo's company more because they have a lot in common with him.
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Titans rise again when they hear the romans are denying education
Koios escapes Tartarus solely powered by fury and spite about it. Kronos is following after vaguely awed by the speed in which Koios overthrows New Rome.
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#reading the house of hades#leto#apollo#artemis#pjo koios#percy jackson#stimmingrose#heroes of olympus#riordanverse
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Pjo Demititan Oc’s Moodboard Part 1
Ryan Altha- Son of Rhea, the residential psychiatrist and also co leader of demititans
2. Archon Theodore-Greek Son of Cronus and legacy of Hecate and Athena, ruler of Greece, and co leader of demititans
3. Larissa La Rue: Russian-American Daughter of Iapetsus (Bob) and adopted by Clarisse and Chris, leader of the Demi revolution army, bearer of the curse of Achilles, and host of Ouranos.
4. Yura Olsen Daughter of Oceanus and Legacy of Boreas, future queen of the sea and Sally’s girlfriend. She’s also mutiracial (Greenland Inuit, Danish)
5. Elena Foggo: Brazilian- American Daughter of Hyperion and Legacy of Vulcan (Roman Hephaestus)
6. Itri Bassey: Nigerian-Canadian Daughter of Krios and Legacy of Astraeus and Selene. Future Astronaut
7. Aarav Jha: Indian-Canadian son of Koios and a professor at a university.
8. Jung-Sung Han: Korean-Canadian son of Mnemosyne and a graphic novelist.
9. Ambriel Arlert- Daughter of Themis, blind, a vigilante, a lawyer, and the future president of the United States.
10. Aimillios- Greek-American Son of Pallas, Legacy of Hercules, and general of the Greek Army.
Thank you @sakuraazharuno for making them
#pjo#pjo ocs#pjo moodboard#Cronus#Koios#Rhea#Oceanus#hyperion#krios#themis#Mnemosyne#Pallas#demititans
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Blessing of Mars, Animal Style
#frank zhang#animorphs#blessing of mars#house of hades#telekhine#empousa#cyclopes#graphic novel#shark#skeletons#centurions#elephant#warthog#bat#earthborn#Koios
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Eclipse: Chapter 28
Fandom: Trials of Apollo
Rating: Teen
Genre: Family/Adventure
Characters: Apollo, Hades
Little more ichor warning here... Sorry about a delayed update tonight, various pieces of independant shit all hit the fan near-enough simultaneously in my life this afternoon/evening. I promise I always update these chapters the moment I'm free to do so!
I have a discord server for all my fics, including this one! If you wanna chat with me or with other readers about stuff I write (or just be social in general), hop on over and say hi!
<<Chapter 27
APOLLO XXVIII
Family quarrel
Meanwhile Bob says hello to
The sun and the stars
Apollo felt his lips twist into a grim smile.
“You didn’t foresee that, did you, Koios?” he asked, running across air – clean, blessed air – as though it were solid land and sending another brace of arrows at the titans. “I’m not the one who got too caught up in absolute futures – you are.”
“Less taunting, more killing,” Artemis scolded, loosing a steady hail of arrows herself. The sun had almost set, Sol taking her chariot down on the last stretch towards the horizon, and in the imminence of the rising moon, Artemis was beginning to glow brighter, a silver that outshone icy blue as Koios’ form became darker and darker.
Apollo managed a soft laugh, the scolding of his twin a familiarity he hadn’t felt in too long – not truly since before he was mortal – and it was a return to a normality that he hadn’t realised he’d been missing until it happened. He’d missed Artemis something fierce during his time as Lester, and they’d been a little off-kilter in the weeks since he’d re-ascended, partly because he’d been readjusting to being a god again, and everything that came with it, and partly because he’d been too busy worrying about Will and Nico’s prophecy, spending as much time as he could get away with desperately trying to find a loophole.
He'd found one, and the Fates had clearly agreed as the prophecy had almost completed without any intervention from the demigods, from mortals who had no place in Tartarus and would never have survived the Primordial’s wrath, nor anything else in the run-up to Tartarus’ rising.
It hadn’t left much time for reconnecting with his twin.
“You have no idea what you’re talking about!” Koios snarled, and Apollo had to jump back as the titan diverted almost all of his attacks on him. “You are still a child in the ways of the future, Phoebus. Certainties exist, they cannot be avoided no matter how hard you try, and you should not try. We are custodians of the future, guardians of it. It is not up to us to meddle.”
He wielded his massive sword as though it was a fraction of the size, hacking and slashing with a proficiency beyond almost any god (Ares would have something to say if Apollo ever claimed a titan was a better swordsman, but it was a close run thing), and Apollo ducked and leaped, disappearing and reappearing in rays of light.
Compared to Kampê, compared to Typhon and Echidna and evading Tartarus itself, playing keep-away was almost easy. Apollo’s reaction times were better, bolstered by the sun even as it dipped below the horizon, and his power was greater. Fresher. Renewed. He wasn’t at full strength, but nor was Koios – and Artemis was.
It showed in the extra power of the silver arrows, hitting a little bit harder, burying a little deeper where they scored a hit. Every so often, the simmering silver flames of his sister’s eyes flickered over to him, not an open concern but something, an awareness that Apollo wasn’t as strong as he should be. He smiled back, waving it away because he was fine – would be fine, once he spent a few more hours out in the Overworld, away from Tartarus and its constantly sapping miasma.
Even with his injuries to account for, Apollo hadn’t realised just how much he’d been weakened until he was back in the Overworld and no longer being subjected to a steady yet subtle drain. Even if he wasn’t at full strength, he felt powerful.
Koios, on the other hand, seemed to be weakening. It wasn’t that titans were inherently weaker in the Overworld, although they did tend to get a boost in Tartarus that gods didn’t, but he wasn’t getting the same degree of revitalisation. Apollo had no qualms about pressing his advantage, gold arrows falling thick like hail, dragging streams of golden ichor out of his grandfather’s form.
The titan refused to concede defeat. Apollo was glad for that – he didn’t know how to handle a surrender, didn’t know if he could trust Koios to keep any word he might make, especially when his life was on the line.
But Koios wasn’t completely done.
“If I go back to the Pit, he’ll obliterate me,” he said, voice low and rasping. “I risked everything to come out here, to see you, to see my daughter. Do you hate me so much you would be responsible for my destruction? What would your mother think?”
Apollo thought about his mother, her gentle demeanour yet intense stubbornness. What would Leto think of her children destroying her father? Apollo had never heard her mention him, but in their family that meant nothing. Most family did not even acknowledge each other in any sort of familial sense on Olympus.
“If you wanted to see Mother, then you should not have threatened Olympus,” Artemis said harshly, more silver arrows joining Apollo’s golden ones in their persistent hail of destruction. “This situation is of your own making.”
It wasn’t just Olympus, although Apollo of course didn’t want to see her fall. It was the demigods, Apollo’s son – his children – and many others he had come to care about. Demigods who, against a titan could not and should not be expected to fight.
For the demigods, for Olympus, Apollo could fight.
He stepped in, closer, and with a light spring jumped to land on the broad side of Koios’ sword, perching delicately on it even as the titan tried to dislodge him with some complicated strokes. Inside the minimal striking range of the weapon, he drew his bow back again, a brace of arrows nocked on the string, and let them fly.
At point blank range, not even Koios stood a chance of evading. All of them crashed into his head, impaling his eyes, his nose, his mouth. The force alone stripped most of the skin away, leaving the icy blue titan far more gold as ichor spilled down his front. Artemis leapt up into the air, as light and delicate as her beloved deer, and at the apex of her jump, released another arrow.
It punctured Koios’ heart and he jerked forwards, coughing awkwardly as he tried to expel the ichor that was no doubt pooling in the base of his throat.
“You don’t know… what you’re… doing,” he rasped, a warning that prickled Apollo’s skin for all that none of his foresight had shown him anything alarming that would come out of his grandfather’s death. Perhaps Koios really had seen something that had eluded Apollo himself.
“Putting down a rabid monster,” Artemis said, landing lightly behind him but moving before his eyes tried to find her. “It would hardly be the first time.” With that, she walked away, not even bothering to watch as their grandfather slowly began to turn to ash, too many wounds of varying severity for even a titan’s constitution to keep up with.
Apollo couldn’t look away, not as Koios took a stumbling step forward, reaching for him – for him to heal him. He watched, instead, committing to memory the sight of the gold-stained, icy blue titan as he staggered, falling to his knees and then slowly beginning to disintegrate, one limb at a time.
There was no saving him, not once the dust began, but Apollo felt no more attachment to his grandfather as he died then than he had when Koios had first sized him up. He was a threat – had been a threat – and needed eliminating.
The last light of Sol’s chariot disappeared beyond the horizon as Koios took one last, shuddering breath. Icy blue eyes bored into his, a desperate rage but no plea, Koios had more pride than to beg for his life, it appeared, and with the last of his strength, he threw the massive sword he carried straight at Apollo.
It was a last, futile, gesture. Apollo simply stepped to the side, and watched it sail past, burying itself in the side of Hades’ temple, where his uncle could do as he chose with it. When he looked back at where Koios had stood, there was no sign that he had ever been there.
“What about you, Iapetus?” he heard Artemis ask, and turned around to see his twin glowering up at the remaining titan. There was something almost comical about a delicate twelve year old girl glowering up at a ten foot tall titan, but Apollo knew better than to laugh. Artemis would punish him with far too many arrows in far too many delicate places if he did.
“I would prefer to go by Bob now,” Bob corrected. “Iapetus was the name of the titan who opposed the elder gods and would have continued to attempt to do so had I not been forced into the Lethe and given a new life as Bob.”
"Bob, then," Artemis allowed. "My question still stands: what about you?"
The titan looked at Hades, who stood beside him. "I would like to see Nico, first, and then Percy and Annabeth. I have no designs against Olympus."
"Nico will not be pacified until he sees you," Hades agreed. Apollo noticed he was rather less offended by the idea than he had been when he'd first learned of Nico's reason for trying to return to Tartarus. Perhaps the titan had grown on him slightly. His uncle glanced up at the sky, where the first glimmer of stars had begun to appear as a sliver of Artemis guided the moon chariot out of its stables. "We should return to the Underworld now. I have left it unattended for too long."
"What about Father?" Artemis asked. "He will wish to see you about this." The way she said the word left no doubt that she still did not approve of their quest, and knew that Zeus would not, either.
Hades let out a dismissive bark of laughter. "My brother will not wish to see me," he said, and Apollo wondered if he was the only one to hear a strain of old pain behind the derision. "He never does." Apollo found himself the subject of his uncle's gaze. "Come, Apollo. I presume you wish to see your son again." Before I pass judgement, went unsaid, the look in his eyes telling Apollo he was referring to Asclepius rather than Will. "Before dealing with my paranoid younger brother."
"The longer you delay, the angrier he will be," Artemis warned. "Don't make this any worse for yourself, brother. It has barely been two months since the end of your previous punishment. You shouldn't push him."
It was the reminder of the last time he was punished, disappearing without a word for six months, that convinced Apollo.
"I need to see my son," he said, meeting Artemis' disbelieving eyes.
"Apollo," she argued, and his shoulders slumped.
"I can't just disappear on him without a word," he said quietly, begging her to understand. "Not again."
She still didn't look like she approved, but she backed down. "Don't take too long," she warned, a plea of her own in her words.
"I won't," Apollo promised her, and she sighed.
"You'd better not." She turned to look at Bob again, and Apollo saw her eyes widen. Curious, he looked at the titan himself, and saw that Bob was looking up at the stars - specifically the newest constellation, the Huntress.
Zoë Nightshade, a long-time companion of his sister and, he remembered, a daughter of Atlas. A granddaughter of Bob.
"Hello," Bob whispered, barely audible. There was no response from the stars, the court of Ouranos forever separated from the mortal realm, but after a moment he lowered his gaze, looking directly at Artemis. "Thank you for honouring her."
Artemis looked taken aback at the thanks, not that Apollo could say he'd been expecting it, either. "Zoë was a long-time loyal friend and companion of mine," she said after a moment. "It was the least I could do for her."
Bob nodded in understanding. "Still, I thank you," he said, glancing back up at the constellation again before turning to Hades. "I am ready," he added. "Shall we?"
Hades turned away without a word, heading back into the temple. Bob followed, but Apollo hesitated for a moment, looking back at his twin. She looked resigned, although still clearly disapproving of his decision.
"Don't tarry too long," she pressed - Apollo could almost call it a plea. I don't want to lose you again, passed between them silently, and Apollo flashed her a grin that was far more confident than he felt.
"I won't," he said. "I just need to see my son, first." She still didn't look convinced, but she turned away.
"I will find you later," she told him, a promise that almost sounded like a threat, and he smiled wider.
"I will see you then," he replied, and watched as she turned to the silver of moonlight, flickering out of view.
"Apollo," Hades called quietly, and he turned away from where his twin had been to follow his uncle and Bob back down into the darkness of underground, passing the gigantic ice blue sword buried into the outer stones of the temple as he did. He didn't know how he felt about Koios, his grandfather yet a titan still determined to end Olympus. Perhaps he should have felt guilty, not even giving him the chance to see his daughter, and knowing that Tartarus would likely eliminate him for good the moment he regenerated, however long that would take.
He didn't, though. He couldn't, knowing that Koios was a permanent threat to the demigods, to his children and others like Nico and Percy who had been forced through too much already and deserved a peaceful life, not another titan determined to kill them. And... as Artemis had said, he was an Olympian. He could never have stood by and watched Olympus fall without at least trying to save it.
Passing back into the shadows was less disconcerting than Apollo was used to. Perhaps it was because, compared to Tartarus, it didn't seem all that dark at all. It certainly felt more welcoming. Hades guided them through the twisting passages of the temple, past the closed Doors of Death, until the atmosphere changed and they were no longer in the Overworld, but the Underworld.
Hades greeted Cerberus as they passed, ruffling the fur of one specific head as the massive hound grumbled in contentment. Apollo gave the three headed dog a wider berth, not overly keen on being either bitten or slobbered on, whichever Cerberus elected to do. Bob, on the other hand, greeted him as an old friend, and Apollo wondered at how much freedom Hades had given the amnesiac titan, if he'd been able to wander so far from Hades' palace and the associated janitorial duties.
Despite Cerberus’ enthusiastic greeting of Bob, they did not linger, passing the queuing souls waiting to receive their eternal fate – a sombre sight, and Apollo did his best not to scan them for any familiar faces, anyone he had known who had passed while he’d been unable to keep track. He failed, and caught glimpses of more than a few mortals he’d had an eye on – budding musicians, successful musicians, underappreciated poets…
Mortal lives were short; Apollo lost friends, proteges, interesting mortals near-daily as the Fates cut their threads and moved them on to the afterlife. It never made it any easier, but he took small comfort from the fact that at least none of his children seemed to have died while he had been in Tartarus (while he’d been mortal had been a different matter, and Apollo had been distraught to find one of his eldest mortal children, Ruth, had passed away shortly after her eighty-third birthday while he'd been rescuing the Waystation’s griffins from Indianapolis Zoo). He almost never came to the Underworld – technically, he wasn’t supposed to, and visiting the souls of the dead was entirely off-limits so there had rarely been a point to dropping by unless it was to bother Hades – and the eternal parade of the dead unsettled him.
Hades, of course, had no such qualms at all, and nor did Bob, the titan whose descendant had created humans, who held domains such as pain and mortality. The Underworld was a good match for him, Apollo realised, for all that he had no idea what the titan had planned after greeting Nico and tracking down the other demigods he had befriended to greet them, too. There was snatches of something in the future, a silver titan laughing with demigods that hadn’t yet been born, finding open plains and simply sitting and staring at the sky, at the sun and the stars as they passed, glowing something fierce, splattered with golden ichor that may or may not have been his own.
Possibilities, all of them. No certainties, nothing to tell Apollo what Bob would choose to do, but he did know that Bob had chosen not to join Koios’ ambition to destroy Olympus, that he had promised Artemis that he had no intention of doing so – and that those words had sung with the wholesome notes of truth. For the time being, Apollo would trust the titan – watch him, yes, but trust his word.
Iapetus had always been known for keeping his word, even if in the legends, in the histories he had scraped together later from his mother’s stories and even his father’s, when Zeus was still of a mind to tell stories, those promises had generally been of a darker, more brutal nature.
So far, Bob had done a good job of keeping the agreement they’d released him under, so Apollo figured it wasn’t too naïve to hope that his promise-keeping was applicable to all his promises, and not just ones along the nature of I will make you bleed, slowly and painfully, until you wished you could die.
They passed the Judgement Pavilion and swept through the outskirts of the Fields of Asphodel, the shades absent-mindedly passing out of their way, as though it just happened that they were wandering in those directions – although Apollo knew better, knew that it was Hades’ presence that was gently redirecting them around them rather than risking them coming into contact with the gods and titan. Hades’ robes, in particular, were a threat to the peaceful shades; Apollo didn’t know how, exactly, it was formed, but he would not have been surprised to discover it operated similarly to Stygian Iron, drawing in any souls it touched as it passed.
None of the residents of Asphodel deserved such a fate, and Hades was fair to his subjects despite the inherent unfairness of death. Only those that deserved to suffer suffered; the others were left to either a peaceful existence or the celebratory joy of an eternal afterlife. Even if Apollo hadn’t, on some level, already known that, having felt the depths of his uncle’s essence, the complexity of death with the black and white and grey in between, he would have to be blind not to recognise it.
Beyond the Fields of Asphodel, in the distance Apollo could see the razor-wire containment enclosure that fenced off the Fields of Punishment, their screams just as grating as they had been the last time he’d heard them. Every soul that was trapped there deserved to be there, for the atrocities they had committed during their lives, but that didn’t make Apollo any happier to hear their screams – especially when his thoughts turned to Asclepius’ amended punishment, and the likelihood that Hades would send his immortal son there. He hoped his uncle would be more merciful, but he was well aware that he had bartered as much as he could for Hades’ mercy in keeping his son out of Tartarus, and that there were only so many places in the Underworld where the punishment could continue.
Sisyphus was there for defying death. Asclepius had done the same thing, although at least he hadn’t imprisoned Thanatos to do it.
It still wasn’t a comforting thought.
Apollo tore his eyes away from the sights of various punishments, some milder than others but all torturous to the recipients, and did his best to ignore the screaming as his gaze was instead drawn to the brightest patch of the Underworld: Elysium.
Guarded by high, ornately decorated gates, the sounds of music, laughter and joy spilled out. Apollo assumed the gates prevented the sound of screams from entering and disrupting the valorous souls’ eternal lives, but it did very little to stifle the sounds of joy emerging. It was a startling contrast, but one Apollo gladly latched onto, for all the flicker of want stirred inside him. He had children in there – some lovers, too, but mortals in modern times tended to end up in Asphodel unless they did something truly spectacular. Elysium was a place for heroes, and while some modern mortals qualified, over the centuries it had largely tended more and more towards demigods and legacies. Apollo didn’t know exactly how many of his children had ended up there rather than Asphodel – or the Fields of Punishment, a thought he didn’t want to dwell on for any length of time – but he knew of some that had certainly reached Elysium.
Of that number, several were also some of the most recent, sudden, deaths; ones he had yet had time to fully finish grieving for.
“Apollo.” Surprised, he turned his head to see Hades had slowed to a halt and was looking at him. Puzzled, he paused next to him, aware of Bob stopped on the other side of his uncle, watching them curiously. The older god tilted his head towards Elysium, a graceful and almost regal movement – the king of the Underworld in every inch of his posture. It was a comfort, in a way, to see Hades in perfect control again. Apollo could still feel the freshly-revealed light in his uncle’s essence, knew that who his uncle was hadn’t changed from Tartarus, but he had always seemed in control and his struggles in the Pit had been wrong. “Go.”
His muses screeched to a halt. “Excuse me?”
Hades’ lips quirked up in one corner, an admission of amusement. “While I am in the process of upsetting my paranoid brother, I may as well add one more transgression to the list,” he said. “This is the only time I will do this, but go. Say the goodbyes you were unable to.”
Apollo gaped at him, then glanced back at Elysium, at the gates he’d never been allowed to pass.
The gates his uncle gestured towards, which soundlessly edged open in a silent invitation as the behest of the god. “You do not have long,” Hades warned.
Apollo needed no more prodding.
He split, staying with Hades and Bob because he knew there wasn’t much time, and that he had two still living sons in the Underworld to reunite with, both of whom would panic if he didn’t appear with Hades, but also heading towards the open gates, pausing in wonder as he stared up at them.
Was this the right thing to do? Would his children want to see him? Phoebe had never been the most devoted daughter, not since she joined Artemis’ Hunt, and all his children that had died fighting for Olympus, for him… did they resent him?
This was for closure, he told himself. A goodbye, Hades had called it, and the selfish, desperate part of Apollo pushed him forwards, through the gate and into Elysium.
Elysium was bright, not lit by the sun but something similar, the warmth and light of paradise, familiar from the echoes of Hades’ essence. Music played, songs ranging from older than Apollo himself to recent hits from the latest decade, and he slipped through the laughing, happy souls, many familiar over the millennia, searching for the few in particular he had not yet gained peace with.
He found Lee first; his kind, child-loving son had found himself a group of eternally-young demigods and was telling them stories, interspersed with strains of music from a perfect replica of the flute he’d had in life.
Michael was also listening, lounging in the lower boughs of a tree, with a bow held lazily in his hand and a half-full quiver on his hip. Some of the arrows were buried in targets a hundred feet away, but he seemed content to just sit and listen to his older brother tell stories for the moment.
Apollo approached him first, silently leaning against the base of the tree until his son noticed him, brown eyes widening in shock. “Dad?”
He had to catch him when he lost his balance and fell out of the tree, for all that he was just a shade, now, and wouldn’t get hurt even if he did fall.
He splintered further, slivers of himself going further into Elysium, finding children doing what they loved best, content in a way they’d never been able to be when they were alive. Some of them had grouped together – Robyn and Nathan had been of an age when alive, and of an age when they died fighting against Kronos, firm friends and as thick as thieves – while others had wandered further, meeting with old friends or even making new ones, now that they had all of eternity to do so, and no risk of losing the other.
Apollo sought out all of them, leaving a little bit of him with each as he found them to talk, to sing, to do whatever they wanted in a bittersweet goodbye (Michael hugged him, the first time his son had ever initiated one, and Apollo burst into tears while Lee laughed and disentangled himself from his enraptured audience long enough to join in).
Phoebe was the last one he found, running freely with many other familiar faces Apollo remembered from the Hunt, and he felt a pang of regret that Artemis couldn’t be with here, saying her own goodbyes to those she’d lost. His daughter did a double take as she caught sight of him.
“Apollo?” She hadn’t called him father since taking her vows; Apollo hadn’t expected that to be any different now that she was dead, but it was a marked contrast to the rest of his children, who upon realising he was there had called him various iterations of ‘dad’. “What are you- The gods can’t come here.”
“Phoebe,” he said, taking in the sight of her for what he knew would be the last time. Tears prickled at the corner of his eyes as he smiled at her, bittersweet but suddenly so thankful he could, one more time. “Hades let me in, just this once.”
Chapter 29>>
#trials of apollo#trials of apollo fanfiction#riordanverse#riordanverse fanfic#pjo apollo#pjo hades#pjo bob#pjo iapetus#pjo koios#pjo artemis#pjo cerberus#lee fletcher#michael yew#pjo phoebe
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Brother, you've always been the smart one. How would one get rid of a "protector of spirits" that was standing in the way of their plan?
-Hyperion
I assume you speak of one of my grandson's children? The..."theater kid" one?
I would recommend speaking to our brother who specializes in mortality more than I - that is, if Iapetus is here.
If not...well, you might need to sit tight.
#asks and replies#watch me push my nuanced koios agenda because rrverse gives us NOTHING/VERY LITTLE HAHA
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KOIOS
Zariel Tiefling • Sage • Monk
An intended vampire spawn. A mark from ages past. Dug up from the muck, wretched from Martyrdom, by a bony, metal clad hand. For there is no rest for the wicked, weary or wise when Fate decides to play their hand.
An intended vampire spawn. A mark from ages past. Dug up from the muck, wretched from Martyrdom, by a bony, metal clad hand. For there is no rest for the wicked, weary or wise when Fate decides to play their hand.
(He/Him only)
#ch. koios#i love one male oc ive made in. Years#its impressive how little i play men#but also he's trans and i love him so badly#he's gonna be a sun soul monk >:3c#bg3#baldur's gate 3
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I Said I Would Wait But I Can't, Soooo
Artemis Angst fic: based on this post by @worlds-oldest-teenager! Missing scene from The Secrets That Bind Us, aka What Was Artemis Doing in The Waiting Room While Hermes and Apollo Had Their Heart-To-Heart? Having a Breakdown That's What :)
Bloody Memories: who remembers my "Hyacinthus is Cabin 7's ghost" post a while back? Well here's the fic!
Branchus fic: fluuuuuffy. seriously. look up Branchus and read the story of him and apollo. it's so darn CUTE.
From Dusk to Dawn: Little more flesh out now this one! Apollo during TTC, from Phoebe getting poisoned to just how he knew Artemis was in danger
Swarms and Swears: Apollo & Athena time, ya'll
Triumvirate V Koios: yes he's back I lied hehe. Who will win: a power triad of god-emperors with lots of political and economic backing or one (1) grandpa who's grandkid they're targeting
A Titan's Demise: do I need to say anything else? HELIOS ANGST
Marsyas fic: hehe... @amiti-art here's your ask :) and I have a little twist prepared here...it'll make sense, trust me.
Leto & Asteria fic: Basically the prequel of the prequels. Leto's pre-curse days, her cursed days, Asteria running for her life, ect. the Delphic Family fic of all time. We have Koios name dropped. We have Phoebe. We have Lelantos. We have Perses. Aura is probably there too. The whole family's here to experience DRAMA
Koios Solo Fic: In mythology, Koios is driven mad and attempts to escape Tartarus - that is this fic :)
So yeah. Pick your fighter. Make propaganda for what you want to win. do whatever - we shall see who will win :)
#will koios win the landslide again? we shall see#toa polls#my fics#the trials of apollo#apollo#artemis#hyacinthus#branchus#from dusk to dawn#phoebe the hunter#aphrodite#athena#zeus#koios#nero#commodus#caligula#helios#marsyas
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The Titaness, chilling at a Mortal Spa while CC's is getting rebuilt: Brother, What are you doing here?
Koios, getting a Massage and drinking a Cocktail: I'm not fighting a War with all Prophecy Kids not on our Sides, thats what i'm doing here
Rhea: Understandable, Wanna join us ?
They're having a very nice vacation
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#reading the house of hades#percy jackson#bob the titan#pjo koios#stimmingrose#heroes of olympus#riordanverse
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Riordanverse Demititan Oc’s
Elena Fogo: Brazilian daughter of Hyperion(Titan of East, heavenly light) and Legacy of Vulcan( Hephaestus Roman)
Lucian Angel: British son of Eos(Titaness of dawn) and Legacy of Helios (Titan of sun).
Itri Bassey:Nigerian Daughter of Krios (Titan of South, stars, constellations) , Legacy of Astraeus(Titan of stars, dusk, and planets) and Selene (Titaness of moon)
Camira Sealgait: daughter of Lelantos(Titan of hunting and air)
Archon Theodore: Greek Son of Cronus(Titan of Time and king of the Titans) and Legacy of Athena and Hecate
Ambriel Arlert: Blind Daughter of Themis (Titaness of Justice).
Ryan Altha: Son of Rhea (Titaness of motherhood and Queen of the Titans).
Aarav Jha: Indian-Canadian Son of Koios (Titan of North, Intelligence and Knowledge).
Larissa La Rue- Rodriguez: Daughter of Iapetus (bob) (Titan of west, death and pain) and adopted by Clarisse and Chris.
Carlos Hernandez: Mexican son of Perses (Titan of Destruction).
Jun-sung Han: Korean-Canadian son of Mnemosyne(Titan of Memory and arts)
Yura Olsen: Daughter of Oceanus (Titan of the oceans), Legacy of Boreas and adopted by Amphitrite. She’s multiracial (3/4 Greenland Inuit and 1/4 Danish)
Aimillios Iroas- Greek Son of Pallas (Titan of War) and Legacy of Hercules
Jair Mammon: Black American son of Theia
Gunnar Nelson: Canadian Son of Menoetius and legacy of Nemesis
Kaito Hanabusa: Japanese-American son of Tethys and host of Pontus
Evangeline Bechtyl: Irish daughter of Phoebe and legacy of Apollo
Thank you for helping me @sakuraazharuno
@pjo-hoo-toa-freakazoid @yonemurishiroku @artistic-kombat-and-mythology @hazellevesquelover @justanotherweebgirl
@struggling-author @julchenawesome
@0lympian-c0uncil @tea924 @heroes-of-olympus-next-gen
#pjo ocs#demititans#Rhea#Cronus#hyperion#iapetus#chris x clarisse#clarisse la rue#chris rodriguez#koios#astraeus#eos#perses#themis#mnemosyne#greek titans#percy jackson#heros of olympus#bob the titan
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