Apollo; a thousand realities

APOLLO

And the darkness is immortal. Where light exists, it is pure, blazing, fierce; but light exists almost nowhere, and the blackness itself is also pure and blazing and fierce.

I am the great silent spaces between worlds.
Carl Sagan

T ⤟—⤠ X ⤟—⤠ V ⤟—⤠ J ⤟—⤠ Z

Disclaimer

This biography may contain mature content.

Mature language, referenced drug usage, death, [child] abuse, neglect and abandonment, and sexual themes.

This character is 100% IC at all times, excluding those spent with OOC players [fawns and newbies]. His thoughts and opinions do not reflect my own, but I do take responsibility for how he is played.
I reserve the right to remove him from situations that I am uncomfortable with.

Contact me via Discord -
snarpo#6387

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Fading tabs by WhenDeerAttack.
Layout inspired by Unplugged's base Evergreen.
Various codes pulled from Unplugged's CSS Quick Reference.
Music, in order left to right:
Woodkid - I Love You | Woodkid - Ghost Lights | Trevor Morris - The Lost Temple | NIER OST - Song of the Ancients (Popola) | Jeremy Soule - Beneath the Ice

Mantle

After several hundred years trapped beneath the surface of Gurundurah, Apollo's body has adapted to life in the high-pressure, low-oxygen Caves in such a strange way that he is virtually unrecognizable to those that had known him on the surface. Prior to entering the caves, Apollo appeared as a melanistic, antlerless ungulate. Since then his body has lengthened, his fur thickened and overtaken by the bacteria that live in the Caves, and gone through various hormonal changes that changed his biology and lifestyle.

· Eyesight is very, very poor. Nearly all is dark except direct sunlight. Eyes are "blank" and cloudy; glaucomic. Has a sensitivity to large amounts of light, and so favors darker areas. Visual 1, Visual 2.
· Thick fur, double insulated, comparable to an otter's. Guard hairs line the thick fur underneath and prevent water from reaching his skin and keeping him dry, even when submerged.
· Has several scars running across his flank, neck, and legs.
· Covered in bioluminescent bacteria that grows and lives in his fur, giving him glowing "markings"
in twisting patterns. Apollo has named such bacteria "Gloom."

Mutual symbiotic relationship between Apollo and the bacteria; Gloom feeds off of dead skin and potentially harmful organisms and plant matter, i.e. algae and harmful bacteria that would otherwise cause sickness, provides an extra layer of protection against water - Gloom creates a hydrophobic shield around hair follicles, and produces oxygen. Apollo is resistant to almost all common physical illnesses, has a steady supply of oxygen to keep him alive and is, essentially, waterproof.

Bioluminescent strains of fungi may also grow on Apollo's body, in areas where bacteria has failed to ward off water particles in extreme situations. If they do, they are normally kept on his shoulders, neck and head and trimmed off in other areas.

· Roughing up his fur is the equivalent to scratching dandruff off; Gloom flakes off of his hair follicles and floats about in the air, capable of reattaching to anything except plant matter. Dislikes physical contact for this reason.
· Gloom also grows on his hooves, mainly due to the fact that traipsing around the section of the Caves where he resides leaves you covered in it.
· The amount of light that Gloom gives off is directly connected to Apollo's current emotional state. The more agitated he is, the brighter it will shine.
· Gloom is often groomed to grow as patterns and markings, particularly around his shoulders.

Snake-like mouth; cobra neck mechanic.

· Two curved, hollow, serrated fangs that are tucked inside his mouth at all times, only emerging when immensely threatened.
· Neck fur has the capability to "flare" out like a cobra's to make himself appear bigger. Bioluminescence flares, a tactic used to intimidate potential threats.
· Snake tongue, capable of use as a sensory organ although he does not rely on it as much. Colored dull grey.
Regarding venom:
· Hemotoxin. Induces blood clotting, then destroys red blood cells. Highly toxic in smaller individuals, depending on dosage.
· Glows a very light blue, the same color as Gloom.

Once, attempted to return to the surface. Encountered a rogue scouting party, who saw him as an ill omen, and attempted to kill him to prevent any bad luck that would befall them. They only succeeded chasing him back into the Caves, sticking a few arrows in his back.

· Arrows have been embedded in his pelt so long that they cannot be removed without severe pain. Scar tissue has grown around the arrowheads.
· Fletching was claimed by Gloom, making the arrows glow.

Is often seen wearing a bejeweled mantle that is tied around his front and back, a distinguishing characteristic that he was a priest from his ancient homeland. Similar to a pallium, such as the one that the modern Pope wears, and the cloak that was worn by ancient Romans.

Core

Considerate. Unhibited. Spontaneous. Wise, cautious. Curious. Forceful. Impatient. Secretive.
Imaginative, maladaptive. Distrustful. Judgmental.

· Hardened by hundreds of years of fighting to survive, both in the Caves and the turbulent lands of the surface. Takes no bullshit and reveres practicality. Indulges in futile passtimes occasionally but does not make habits out of them.
· Enjoys watching over children, telling tales and baking them sweets, generally giving them the childhood that he never had.
· Considerate of other's beliefs and, though sparingly, tries to be careful to not cause any discomfort for them.
· Ruled by an overactive imagination that frequently leaves him in spells of daydreams that last for hours on end, no matter what he was doing beforehand; fantasy-prone personality. Gets lost in daydreams specifically about alien lands, things that he has heard of but never experienced, tales that he has always known since his childhood. Often used his imagination as a coping mechanic during his early childhood to escape from reality.
· Does not relay information about his personal life or experiences to strangers, or to anyone, easily. Takes to lying if the individual in question pesters him about such. Believes strongly in the old mantra "Mind your own business."
· Despite his rather crippling caution, is always open to new experiences and knowledge and is fueled by curiosity, often to the point of danger and potential harm.
· Believes the caste system in Gurundurah to be hideously barbaric. Strictly judgmental of individuals that are proudly anchored to the system. Believes it to be borderline slavehood, terribly corrupted and inhumane and that no individual has free choice. Apollo believes that the system runs as "Exist as this, only as this, or die, or face a fate worse than death." Blames the presence of mind-shattered criminals and other "unwanted" individuals that have their own region on the peninsula to be the result of a sickened society.

⤟—⤠ History ⤟—⤠

· Was once a faithful follower of Costa, the Gurunduran god of famine, pestilence, death, and fate. Served as a temple priest and funeral director, overseeing and conducting various ceremonies, guiding families who had lost their own through loss, even performing exorcisms on spirits that had not been properly collected by Costa. Did not take the god as a Patron, for the system wasn't in place when he walked the Earth; instead, was inducted into the priesthood at an early age.

· Lived a rather turbulent yet quiet life on a farm from the time he was born until mid childhood. His mother died shortly after giving birth to Apollo, leaving him and his drug-addicted father to work for their lives. Grew up sheltered without any contact with others. His father only fed and watered him enough to keep him alive, often going days between meals, and never did any sort of activity with him besides ordering him to clean and gather crops, scolding him for minor mistakes, and being a constant reminder that he was the reason his mother died. Eventually, his father tired of his presence and took him to one of the major cities, abandoning him to a cloister.
· Apollo narrowly avoided becoming a slave by spinning a tale that he could talk to ghosts, and was immediately placed into training to become an acolyte of Costa.

· Once the High Priest had passed, Apollo was nominated to replace him. Believed firmly in the presence of Costa in every and all things and had an unbreakable faith. A few years into his priesthood, Apollo began to have vivid dreams with images of sprawling caves with ceilings like the night sky and walls covered in shifting symbols, often with the figure of a lurking vulture somewhere in his peripherals. In these dreams, he often heard an otherworldly voice telling him to follow, beckoning him when he awoke.
· Eventually these dreams became so vividly detailed that he was left with a lingering feeling to explore after waking. One day, simply left the church in a random direction and traveled for weeks on end, eventually coming to a cave deep in the Farlands, the dangerous badlands to the north of other regions, sustaining through several scuffles with local criminals that earned him some scars.
· Entered the cave after he believed that Costa had called him into the Caves for a higher purpose, despite the fact that the Caves were believed to be only traveled by the souls of the dead. Spent several years journeying twisting caves, all the while searching for the reason he had been called. Noticed that his pelt began to glow as bacterium and microorganisms that lived on the cave walls clung to him, and foolishly believed that he was becoming a spirit. Fled to the surface where bandits had made camp at the mouth of the Cave and attacked him, believing that he was a bad omen. Driven back into the deep caves where the bandits dared not to tread, realized that he could not leave until he had found his purpose.
· Tried communicating with Costa several times, but was met with silence. His faith in the God began to wane until he attempted to leave the Caves, lost in his purpose, but it was far too late for his body to not adapt to the alien environment and prevent him from leaving. Blind, he could not navigate his way to the surface, and would have been attacked and killed on sight even if he could.
· Remained in the Caves for an indeterminable amount of time, bitter and lost, until he happened upon what seemed like a mirror - a conduit to The Endless Forest.
· Has conflicting thoughts that the Forest is an afterlife, and that he has died.

· Distrusts all Gods and Divine beings at fault; believes that they are tricksters and will, eventually, betray their subjects. Inherently distrusts bird-like and vulture-like beings, as they remind him of Costa. Selectively distrusts individuals that appear to be blessed by a God or other divine being, or have divine traits and abilities, including forms of magic, ichor, and alien appearances.
· Holds a mistrust for Undead as they have always been painted in a negative light and he believes that their spirits are not at rest and will only cause harm to others. May spontaneously find the desire to properly kill them and pass their souls to the afterlife.