Hermes

Hermes (/ˈhɜːrmiːz/ IPA, Χερμεσ in Olympian) is the Greek trickster god. Son of Zeus and the minor goddes Maia, Hermes is the ruler of one of the most important sectors of the Olympian Galaxy. His talent for manipulating others to his advantage has put him in a love/hate relationship with Noriko Null: he loves to tease her, she hates his guts.

### Title

God of Travelers, Traders, Thieves, Trespassers, Tricksters, Commerce, Lawyers

### Relatives

Gaea (great-grandmother), Uranus (great-grandfather, deceased), Kronos (grandfather, deceased?), Rhea (paternal grandmother), Atlas (maternal grandfather), Maia (mother, deceased), Zeus (father), Demeter, Hestia, Hera (aunts), Hades, Poseidon (uncles), Persephone, Dikes, Aphrodite, Artemis, Enyo, Eris, Hebe, Ilithyia (half-sisters), Apollo, Ares, Dionysus, Hephaestus (half-brothers), Hekate, Selene (cousins), Harmonia, Adrestia (nieces), Phobos, Deimos, Eros, Anteros, Himeros, Priapus(nephes), Tyche (daughter), Pan (son), Hermaphroditus (son/daughter)

## Biography

Most of Hermes' past is unknown. Thanks to his silver tongue and his speed, he's been on every side of every conflict in the history of the Olympian Galaxy. Hermes fathered the goddess Tyche 7,000 years ago; after learning about her precognitive powers, he forced her to be isolated from the rest of the Galaxy for fear of becoming more powerful than her father.

Hermes has claimed to have stolen the Nexus from the Scribe, or to have stolen it from Ulysses, and to have cospired with Athena to engineer the activation of Noriko Null's powers. He also claims to have been responsible for Null's arrival on Myridia. None of these claims have been confirmed and could be lies.

After the fall of Demeter, Hermes tried several times to use the chaos to his advantage and gain power. During this time he tried to seduce Noriko Null, employed Talas Khanos as his new Oracle, and became Leiko Tanaka's lover.

He didn't try to stop Eris from taking over the body of Artemis, using the situation as leverage for an alliance with Hephaestus. His attempt to double cross him failed and he was imprisoned by Persephone for months. When she was defeated by the genetically engineerd Strife, he convinced her to return to the Underworld and leave her sector to him.

**SPOILER WARNING: Plot details after Beyond The Impossible #130-138**

With Eris now calling herself Diana and threatening to conquer the Galaxy, Hermes started a war that escalated into the Mortal Uprising when he came close to killing Noriko Null. Despite coming very close to conquering half of the Olympian Galaxy, Hermes was defeated by Noriko Null but managed to survive the God Eraser.

After several months in a coma, having lost all of his territory, Hermes quietly began spreading his influence on Earth, later becoming a secret ally of Shinoby Tanaka.

While Hermes maintains his anonimity and claims to be waiting for Noriko Null to die of old age before returning to action, it's unlikely he'll be able to keep a low profile for long.

## Powers

**Immortality:** Hermes does not age; he has kept his current apparent age for thousands of years.

**Flight:**Hermes can lift his own body telekinetically.

**Invulnerability:** By placing a mental lock on his molecular structure, Hermes can prevent his body from being harmed. He can survive for extended periods of time on the surface of a white dwarf star.

**Godlike strength:**Hermes is as strong as he thinks he is.

**Godlike stamina:**Hermes doesn’t need to eat, drink or sleep.

**Universal translator:** Hermes can understand any language instantly. People around him will have the same ability, but it will fade over time without prolonged contact.

**Transcendent speed:** Hermes can move so fast to give the impression of instantaneous teleportation across galaxies. He has been described as "the god who makes travel distances meaningless".

**Superhuman intelligence**: Hermes is one of the smartest beings in the galaxy. While not at the same level of a Nexus-powered individual when it comes to scientific and technological feats, he's well known for his cunning and strategy.

## Trivia

* He is the first god to have survived an encounter with the God Eraser
* He's one of the very few gods to know both the location of Earth and the full history of Noriko
* He owns the galaxy's fastest capital ship, the Talara (named from his famous winged sandals), however he has never been shown to use it, preferring to move under his own power. The ship was passed to his daughter Tyche.

## Defining episodes

* Untold tale of Vesta: is present during the exiled of Vesta
* Beyond The Impossible #52, "Who wants to rule Myridia": meets Null
* Beyond The Impossible #74, "Heroes and monsters": meets Leiko Tanaka to forge an alliance
* Beyond The Impossible #100, "Three months later": recruits the Vanguard for a mission against Hephaestus
* Beyond The Impossible #106, "God versus genius": is captured by Persephone
* Beyond The Impossible #130, "Sunshine": attempts to kill Null
* Beyond The Impossible #138, "Checkmate": defeated by Null
* Beyond The Impossible #194, "Ramifications": shown to be still active on Earth