Echidna

Brother: Typhone

**Echidna** was a half-woman, half-snake creature in Greek mythology. She is also known as the "**Mother of all monsters**", as she gave birth to most of the Greek mythical creatures. She was the wife of Typhone, who was the "Father of all monsters" and the most fearsome and dangerous monster in said mythology.

## Description

Echidna was half beautiful maiden and half fearsome snake. Hesiod described "the goddess fierce Echidna" as a flesh eating "monster, irresistible", who was like neither "mortal men" nor "the undying gods", but was "half a nymph with glancing eyes and fair cheeks, and half again a huge snake, great and awful, with speckled skin", who "dies not nor grows old all her days."

Aristophanes (late 5th century BC), who makes her a denizen of the underworld, gives Echidna a hundred heads (presumably snake heads), matching the hundred snake heads Hesiod says her mate Typhone had.

## History

### Background

Not much else is known of Echidna other than that she is the serpentine daughter of Gaea and Tartarus. Echidna was born in a cave and apparently lived alone (in that same cave, or perhaps another), as Hesiod describes it, *"beneath the secret parts of the holy earth ... deep down under a hollow rock far from the deathless gods and mortal men"*, a place appointed by the gods, where she "keeps guard in Arima". It was perhaps from this same cave that Echidna used to "carry off passers-by".

After seeing Zeus kill and capture most of her children, Gaea mated with Tartarus and produced the mighty and terrible Typhone, whom was tasked of destroying the Olympian gods. But his first course of action was to mate with Echidna, and their union produced terrible monsters for future demigod heroes to fight. Echidna and Typhone bore many children, but none were was famous as they. The first was Orthrus, the two-headed dog that guarded the cattle of Greyon. Secondly was Cerberus, the three-headed hound who guarded the gates of the Underworld. The third was the Lernaean Hydra, the multi-headed serpent that grew two heads if one was cut off. And lastly the Chimera, a creature that had the heads of a lion, a goat, and a snake.

### Death

Echidna did not participate in the conflict between Typhon and the Olympians, but nonetheless, Zeus managed to repel the Father of Monsters, and buried Typhon under Mount Etna. Echidna and her children, however, were spared to continue challenging future heroes. Echidna was later killed by Argos, the hundred-eyed giant, while sleeping and her corpse remained in her cave ever since.

## Powers and Abilities

**Alpha Monster:** Echidna is an alpha monster; a superior member of all kinds of monsters who surpasses them all, in all variety of forms and breeds regardless of their nature. Having extremely more enhanced and unnatural abilities that could go beyond the known monsters in the respective existence, with appearances so greatly fearsome with physical qualities well beyond the norm that has caused great fear even to the monsters themselves.

**Dracaenae Physiology:** Echidna with this ability either is or can transform into a Dracaena, a divine half-dragon nymph monster which was present in Greek Mythology.

**Guardianship:** Guardians are often those who are of noble birth or a high position of great historical or legendary importance. They have taken/been given the responsibility to defend, protect and, if needed, avenge the focus of their protection, which can be an object, place, concept, or person (throne/crown, village/gate/country/planet, love/good/harmony, royal heir/chosen prophet, etc.) among other things.

**Life Mastery:** Echidna possesses mastery over all forms of life. They can create, control, and erase life itself, holding dominance over all they bring into existence. This power revives extinct species, give life to mythical creatures, and transforms barren lands into thriving ecosystems. Echidna wields dominion over life, bending their creations to their will.

**Mother Goddess:** As an archetype, the mother goddess, a goddess entity/figure who represents, or is the personification of, nature, motherhood, fertility, creation, destruction; or, who embodies the bounty of the Earth. Such figures are often times the literal mothers of the majority of younger generations of of gods and goddesses in the pantheon they are from.

**Nymph Physiology:** Echidna with this ability either is or can transform into a nymph (literally: young woman; bride, young wife), female nature spirit typically associated with a particular location or land-form or servants/retinue of more powerful being, often a deity. They dwell in mountains and groves, by springs and rivers, and also in trees and in valleys and cool grottoes. Although they would never die of old age nor illness, and could give birth to fully immortal children if mated to a god, they themselves were not necessarily immortal, and could be beholden to death in various forms.

**Pestilence Manipulation:** Echidna can create, shape, and manipulate pestilence, including pests, locusts that spoil crops, and flies that carry disease. They gain immunity to pests and viruses, but can also create, invoke, and control diseases and viruses.

**Rot Manipulation:** Echidna can manipulate decomposition, the process by which organic substances are broken down into simpler forms of matter. They can increase or decrease the rate of rotting, or stop, prevent or even reverse the effect.

**Slime Manipulation:** Echidna can create, shape and manipulate slime, ooze, and goo of every consistency or viscosity, whether sticky, slippery, etc.

**Water Manipulation:** Echidna can create, shape, and manipulate water, inorganic compound with liquid, gas (steam, water vapor), and solid (ice) states, including changing them from one state to others. More Skilled and powerful users can use water-related weather such as blizzards and rainstorms. Some users are able to completely control the temperature of the water at will.

**Wetland Manipulation:** Echidna can create, shape and manipulate the wetlands, marshes, swamps, fens and bogs, and everything in them, including all the aspects of the wetlands, from the purely physical ones and also mythical/conceptual ones. Wetlands are among the planets most animal and plant rich environments, with extensive natural riches and mythology surrounding them.