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Character guide · first on-page appearance: Iron Gold
Who is Apollonius au Valii-Rath?
Apollonius au Valii-Rath is the Minotaur, a Gold warlord imprisoned in Deepgrave after fighting the Rising. He is Tactus and Tharsus’s brother. Darrow’s expedition releases him in the hope that his hatred of other Society leaders can be turned against the Ash Lord.
Darrow forces the alliance by implanting a bomb in Apollonius’s head. Apollonius wants revenge and his family’s power back. Darrow wants to turn the Society’s leaders against each other.
Current status
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Alive
Alive
Alive
Appearance and personality
Apollonius enjoys music, extravagant speeches and the idea of becoming a legendary warrior. He trains hard in captivity, but his imprisonment is far more comfortable than the official records suggest. A corrupt warden supplies luxuries and enslaved Pinks.
Apollonius believes exceptional people deserve power and privilege. He can forgive his brother when it helps him regain control, then punish someone less useful with extreme cruelty. His charm does little to soften the way he treats people beneath him.[1]
Attributes and abilities
Apollonius is a formidable fighter who knows how to inspire his soldiers. During the breakout, he almost strangles Darrow before Tongueless intervenes and the tranquilizer works. When he returns to his army, he restores its confidence by remembering individual soldiers and appealing to their lost honor. Only 911 remain of a force that once numbered 250,000.
Darrow needs an implanted explosive to force Apollonius to cooperate. Promises of revenge and restored power keep the alliance going, but Apollonius frequently exceeds his instructions. His knights nevertheless save the attackers on Gorgon Isle.[2]
Apollonius studies Darrow’s use of the Willow Way and prepares counters. At the Hanging Coliseum, he overwhelms the weakened Darrow with sustained seven-move attacks. Darrow has become predictable, and Apollonius is ready for him.
Apollonius leaves the dockyard battle burned, with a broken arm and a missing ear. Virginia later wounds his knee and face in a trap on Phobos. Help from outside the fight keeps him from being captured or killed.[3]
History
Book 4
Iron Gold
Before the expedition, Apollonius fought beside the Ash Lord’s forces in the destruction of southern cities on Luna. His capture placed him in Deepgrave for six years. Prisoner 1126’s official conditions hide a private arrangement with Warden Yancra, whose corruption gives him comfort and victims. Darrow’s party enters using a false rescue story and extracts him with other prisoners to obscure the mission’s true target.
Once a brain bomb forces negotiation, Apollonius describes betrayal by the Ash Lord, the Carthii and his own brother Tharsus. Darrow offers restoration and a chance to seize Venus. Back among his followers, the Minotaur reclaims Vorkian’s garrison, takes Tharsus prisoner and forgives his brother after securing cooperation. He mobilizes the remnant of his army when the hoped-for quiet route to the Ash Lord proves unavailable.
His knights rescue the Howlers during the assault. Inside, Apollonius reveals that he arranged the earlier attack that left Magnus incapacitated. The discovery that Atalantia has secretly commanded the war destroys Darrow’s expectation that killing the Ash Lord will end it. Magnus reveals the children’s abduction and bites a poison tooth; Darrow authorizes burning, and Apollonius ignites him.
Before leaving, Darrow disables the bomb with ten minutes left. He keeps hostages as insurance and leaves Apollonius free to fight for Venus. Apollonius now has a chance to rebuild his power inside the Society.[4]
Book 5
Dark Age
Apollonius’s seizure of Venusian dockyards creates a strategic problem for Atalantia: damaged ships remain unrepaired, and the Rim gains bargaining power. On Mercury, he secretly follows Lysander to observe the Mind’s Eye. After witnessing Lysander’s blinded fight, he offers an alliance directed against Ajax, Atalantia and Atlas, with Darrow remaining a future rival. Lysander initially refuses.
After Heliopolis falls, Apollonius meets Lysander again in the Ladon. He explains that drones followed much of Lysander’s journey and that the EMP disabled his own shielded armor. Lysander accepts the alliance. He wants Apollonius’s fighting strength while keeping political control; Apollonius wants revenge and lessons in the Mind’s Eye.[5]
Book 6
Light Bringer
Having acquired Sevro, Apollonius uses a threatened hunt to draw Darrow to the Venusian dockyards. He has supporters among Martian exiles and dockworkers, a supply arrangement with Atalantia and concealed assistance from Lysander. He also controls the confrontation more completely than Darrow expects: the atomic brought as insurance has been discovered.
Apollonius defeats Darrow’s familiar technique at the Hanging Coliseum, but an explosion interrupts the duel. A separate deterrent destroys the truce with the Carthii and brings a larger battle into the docks. Sevro and Aurae help Darrow and Cassius escape. Apollonius survives with substantial injuries, accepts a settlement recognizing Valeria’s dockyard ownership and joins the attack on Mars.
On Phobos he reinforces Lysander and confronts Kavax’s forces. Virginia lures him into a countertrap during the withdrawal, wounds him and tries to capture him. The attempt fails, and Holiday is injured in the escape. Later, Apollonius withdraws toward the Julii dockyard citadel instead of joining the most costly stand. Lysander assigns him Phobos in the final settlement, securing an ally whose ambitions remain his own.[6]
Relationships
Darrow
Darrow forces their alliance with a bomb and offers Apollonius revenge. Apollonius admires his ability to lead, but remains an enemy of the Republic.[7]
Apollonius uses Sevro to draw Darrow into a duel. He wants the glory of defeating him in person. Darrow escapes before the rivalry is settled.[8]
Lysander au Lune
Apollonius offers Lysander military support in exchange for help against his enemies and instruction in the Mind’s Eye. Lysander initially refuses, then agrees after Mercury.[9]
Lysander helps Apollonius hold his dockyard position and later gives him Phobos. Territory and power keep Apollonius invested in their alliance.[10]
Tactus au Rath
Meeting Apollonius and Tharsus helps Darrow understand the cruelty Tactus grew up around. Their treatment of weaker people reflects the family life Tactus had described.[11]
References
- Iron Gold, chapters 28, 34, 45–46, 52. ↩
- Iron Gold, chapters 28–30, 34, 45, 52–54. ↩
- Light Bringer, chapters 8–9, 17, 26–27. ↩
- Iron Gold, chapters 16, 28–30, 34, 45–46, 52–54, 60, 65. ↩
- Dark Age, chapters 6, 39, 92. ↩
- Light Bringer, chapters 4–9, 17, 20, 25–28, 30, 32–33. ↩
- Iron Gold, chapters 28–34, 52–54, 65. ↩
- Light Bringer, chapters 4–9. ↩
- Dark Age, chapters 39, 92. ↩
- Light Bringer, chapters 5, 17, 28, 32. ↩
- Iron Gold, chapters 46. ↩