Roman names follow the Greek, where applicable. Relevant information from the Olympus Bound series appears in italics.
Aion: A minor Mithraic divinity associated with the proto-god of Orphism (see “Protogonos”). Sometimes portrayed as a snake-twined, lion-headed man with wings.
Aphrodite/Venus: Goddess of Erotic Love and Beauty. One of the Twelve Olympians. Born of sea foam after Kronos castrates his father, Ouranos, and throws his genitals into the ocean. Wife of Hephaestus and lover of Ares/Mars. Mother of Eros. Called Laughter-Loving, She Who Turns to Love, Mother of Desire. Attributes: dove, scallop shell, mirror. Modern alias: Esme Amata.
Apollo/Apollo: God of Light, Music, Healing, Prophecy, Poetry, Archery, Civilization, Plague, and the Sun. One of the Twelve Olympians. Leader of the Muses. Twin brother of Artemis. Son of Leto and Zeus. Born on the island of Delos, but counts Delphi, site of the famous Pythian oracle, as his most sacred precinct. Called Phoebus (Bright One), Delphic Diviner, Pythian God, God of the Golden Lyre. Attributes: silver bow and arrows, crow, laurel wreath, lyre. Modern alias: Paul Solson. (Killed by Saturn’s Mithraists in the modern day.)
Ares/Mars: God of War, Bloodlust, and Manly Courage. One of the Twelve Olympians. Son of Zeus and Hera. Lover of Aphrodite. Brother to Hephaestus. Often considered the father of Eros. Called Man-Slayer, Battle-Insatiate. Attributes: armor, spear, poisonous serpent. Modern alias: Martin Bell. (Killed by Saturn’s Mithraists in the modern day.)
Artemis/Diana: Goddess of the Wilderness, the Hunt, Virginity, Wild Animals, Hounds, Young Children, Childbirth, and the Moon. One of the Twelve Olympians. Twin sister of Apollo. Daughter of Leto and Zeus. Born on the island of Delos. Worshiped in Ephesus and other cities of Asia Minor (modern Turkey) as an aspect of the Great Mother, robed and crowned with animals, rather than as a virgin huntress. Her many epithets include Huntress, She Who Loves the Chase, Far Shooter, Protector of the Innocent, Lady of Clamors, She Who Helps One Climb Out, the Face of Death, and more. Attributes: golden bow and arrows, hounds, deer, bears, hawks. Modern aliases: Phoebe Hautman, Dianne Delia, Cynthia Forrester, Selene DiSilva, Selene Neomenia, and more.
Asclepius: Hero-God of Medicine. Son of Apollo and the mortal princess Coronis. Worshiped in the Eleusinian Mysteries and many other cults. Called He Who Soothes. Attribute: snake-twined staff.
Athena/Minerva: Goddess of Wisdom, Crafts, and Justified War. One of the Twelve Olympians. Virgin. Daughter of Zeus and Metis. Called Gray-Eyed, Protectress of Cities, Savior, Promakhos (frontline soldier). Patron goddess of Athens, to whom she gifted the olive tree. Attributes: helmet, spear, owl, shield or aegis with Gorgon’s head. Modern alias: Maryam.
Cautes: Minor Mithraic divinity. A torchbearer who symbolizes Birth and Day. Attributes: upright torch, rooster.
Cautopates: Minor Mithraic divinity. A torchbearer who symbolizes Death and Night. Attributes: downward torch, owl.
Cybele/Magna Mater: The Great Mother, originally a primal nature deity from Asia Minor, later incorporated into the Greco-Roman pantheon. Sometimes associated with the Titan goddess Rhea. Mother of all gods, humans, and animals. Attributes: tall crown, lions, pine tree.
Demeter/Ceres: Goddess of Grain and Agriculture. One of the Twelve Olympians. Daughter of Kronos and Rhea. Sister of Zeus. Mother of Persephone. Called Bountiful, Bringer of Seasons. Attributes: wheat sheaves, torch.
Dionysus/Bacchus: God of Wine, Wild Plants, Festivity, Theater. One of the Twelve Olympians. Son of Zeus and Semele, a mortal. Called Phallic, Releaser, He of the Wild Revels. Attributes: grapevine, ivy, thyrsus (a pinecone-tipped staff), leopard. Modern alias: Dennis Boivin.
Eos/Aurora: Goddess and embodiment of the Dawn. After falling in love with Tithonus, she asked Zeus to grant him immortality—but forgot to ask for eternal youth, as well. Tithonus grew so old and shriveled that he turned into a grasshopper.
Eros/Cupid: God of Love. Son of Aphrodite and Ares. Commonly portrayed as a winged infant, although sometimes as a youth. Attributes: wings, myrtle bow. Modern alias: Philippe Amata.
Gaia: Primeval Earth Divinity. Mother to all. Consort of Ouranos the Sky.
Hades/Pluto: God of the Underworld, Death, Wealth. Son of Kronos and Rhea. Brother of Zeus. Husband of Persephone. Called Receiver of Many, Lord of the Dead, Hidden One. Attributes: helm of invisibility, bird-tipped scepter. Modern alias: Aiden McKelvey. (Killed by Saturn’s Mithraists in the modern day.)
Hekatonkheires: The Hundred-Handed Ones. Giants cast into Tartarus by Zeus during the Gigantomachy.
Helios/Sol/Sol Invictus: God and embodiment of the Sun. Also identified with Apollo, who has dominion over the Sun. The Romans revered him as Sol Invictus, the “Invincible Sun,” and celebrated his birthday on December 25. “Sol Invictus” was also a common epithet for Mithras. Attributes: seven-rayed crown.
Hephaestus/Vulcan: God of the Forge, Fire, and Volcanoes. One of the Twelve Olympians. Son of Hera, born parthenogenically. Husband of Aphrodite. Lamed when thrown off Olympus by Zeus, walks with a crutch. Called the Smith, the Sooty God, He of Many Arts and Skills, Lame One. Attributes: hammer, tongs. Modern alias: Flint Hamernik.
Hera/Juno: Queen of the Gods. Goddess of Women, Marriage, and the Heavens. One of the Twelve Olympians. Daughter of Kronos and Rhea. Sister and jealous wife of Zeus. Mother of Ares/Mars and Hephaestus. Known as “white-armed.” Attributes: crown, peacock, lotus-tipped staff. Modern alias: June Ferarra.
Hermes/Mercury: God of Messengers, Thieves, Liars, Travel, Communication, Hospitality, Eloquence, and Athletics. One of the Twelve Olympians. Son of Zeus and a nymph, Maia. Herald to the gods. Called Messenger, Giver of Good Things, Trickster, Many-Turning. Attributes: caduceus (staff twined with snakes), winged sandals, winged cap. Modern aliases: Dash Mercer, Scooter Joveson.
Hestia/Vesta: Goddess of the Hearth and Home. Eldest daughter of Kronos and Rhea. Sister of Zeus. Virgin. Once part of the Twelve Olympians, she gave up her throne to Dionysus. She tended the sacred fire at the center of Mount Olympus. Attributes: veil, kettle.
Khaos: Primeval embodiment of Chaos. From the same root as “chasm,” the name means the void from which all other primeval divinities sprang.
Kronos/Saturn: A Titan. With the help of his mother, Gaia (the Earth), he overthrew his father, Ouranos (the Sky), to become King of the Gods. Swallowed his children to prevent them from taking his crown until overthrown by Zeus, his youngest son. Father/grandfather of the Olympians. Also identified as the God of Time. Called “the Wily.” Attributes: sickle. (Also the Father—or “Pater”—of the Host, a secret order dedicated to Mithras.)
Leto/Latona: Goddess of Motherhood and Modesty. Daughter of the Titans Phoibe and Koios. Lover of Zeus. Mother of Artemis and Apollo. Called “neat-ankled,” Gentle Goddess, Mother of Twins. Attributes: veil, date palm. Modern alias: Leticia Delos. (Dead of natural causes in the modern day.)
Magna Mater: See “Cybele.”
Medusa: One of the snake-haired Gorgons, whose gaze turns men to stone. Some stories identify her as a virgin priestess of Athena, raped by Poseidon.
Metis: Goddess and personification of Wisdom. After receiving a prophecy that Metis’s child would overthrow him, Zeus swallowed the goddess after impregnating her. Later, Metis’s daughter, Athena, emerged fully armed from Zeus’s skull.
Mithras: God worshiped by a Mystery Cult during the late Roman era, especially popular with soldiers in the Roman legion, who believed Mithras moved the celestial spheres and shifted the equinoxes, allowing for the world’s passage from one Age to another. He also provided a means of individual salvation for his followers. Epithets include Sol Invictus. Attributes: Phrygian cap, bull, and the other symbols of the tauroctony. (Also the primary deity worshiped by the Host, a secret order that associates Mithras directly with Jesus.)
Mnemosyne: Titan goddess and personification of Memory. Often identified as the mother of the Muses.
Muses: Nine minor goddesses of art, knowledge, and inspiration, each presiding over her own field: Calliope, epic poetry; Clio, history; Urania, astronomy; Thalia, comedy; Melpomene, tragedy; Polyhymnia, religious hymns; Erato, erotic poetry; Euterpe, lyric poetry; and Terpsichore, choral song and dance.
Orion: Son of Poseidon and a mortal woman. Artemis’s only male hunting companion. Some tales describe him as blinded and exiled after raping Merope, a king’s daughter. Other myths say he raped one of Artemis’s nymphs. He was killed either by a scorpion or by Artemis’s arrows, then placed as a constellation in the sky. Called the Hunter. Modern alias: Everett Halloran. (Killed by Selene DiSilva after attempting to re-create the Eleusinian Mysteries through human sacrifice.)
Orpheus: Legendary musician of the ancient world. When Eurydice, his wife, was killed, he journeyed to the Underworld to win her freedom through the power of his song. He is also credited with introducing the ancient world to the Orphic Mysteries, a cult that believed in reincarnation.
Ouranos/Uranus: Primeval Sky Divinity. Father of the Titans. Original ruler of the world until castrated by his son Kronos/Saturn.
Persephone/Proserpina: Goddess of Spring and the Underworld. Daughter of Demeter and Zeus. Wife of Hades. Called Kore (“Maiden”), Discreet, Lovely. Attributes: wheat sheaves, torch. Modern alias: Cora McKelvey.
Poseidon/Neptune: God of the Sea, Earthquakes, and Horses. One of the Twelve Olympians. Son of Kronos and Rhea. Brother of Zeus. Father of Orion, Theseus, and other heroes. Called “blue-haired,” Earth Shaker, Horse Tender. Attributes: trident.
Prometheus: A Titan. After molding humans from clay and granting them life, he gave them fire—despite Zeus’s prohibition. As punishment, the Olympians chained him to a rock and sent an eagle to eat his liver every day for eternity. Called Fire Bringer, Chained One. Attribute: fennel stalk of fire. (Killed by Saturn’s Mithraists in the modern day.)
Protogonos: A proto-god worshiped by followers of Orphism. Usually portrayed as a winged, snake-twined young man standing on an eggshell, holding a torch. In some mythologies, he created the world from a primordial egg. (See “Aion.”)
Rhea/Ops: A Titan. Goddess of Female Fertility. Queen of the Gods in the Age of Titans. Helped Zeus, her youngest son, overthrow his father, Kronos. Mother and grandmother to the Olympians. Sometimes associated with Cybele/the Magna Mater. Attribute: royal scepter.
Saturn: See “Kronos.”
Typhoeus: Storm Giant cast into Tartarus by Zeus in the battle between gods and giants. Now Tartarus’s guardian.
Zeus/Jupiter: King and Father of the Gods. God of the Sky, Lightning, Weather, Law, and Fate. One of the Twelve Olympians. Youngest son of Kronos and Rhea. After Kronos swallowed his first five children, Rhea hid baby Zeus in the Cave of Psychro. After reaching manhood, Zeus cut his siblings from his father’s gullet, defeated the Titans in the Gigantomachy, and began the reign of the Olympians. He divided the world with his two brothers, taking the Sky for himself. Husband (and brother) of Hera, but lover of many. Father of untold gods, goddesses, and heroes, including Artemis, Apollo, Hermes, Ares, Dionysus, and Athena. Called Lightning Bringer, He Who Marshals Thunderheads, Raging One, Omnipotent, and more. Attributes: lightning bolt, eagle, royal scepter.