Ophiouchus

* Elisabeth von Staufen
* Ferdinand de Castilla
* Richard DiMercurio
* Alexia DiMercurio

*"What am I? That's tough to say, but I suppose humans would refer to me as 'God'."* - Ophiouchus to Alexia

**Ophiouchus** (Greek: Ὀφιοῦχος) is the original patriarch of the Ivrean Line of Valkyries.

## Appearance

Though his appearance changes through time, Ophiouchus does have a few traits that stay relatively consistent. He always has white hair and golden eyes. His height, age, and weight can be changed whenever he feels like it. In contemporary times he is fond of wearing white kimono-like robes and pieces of Samurai armor. It can be assumed that his hair color and eye color are truly his own since his descendants are able to inherit these traits.

## History

Ophiouchus is a higher being who was present for the creation of the universe as well as the birth of humanity. He may or may not have aided in these processes. In Christianity he is considered a Seraph, the next highest power after God. Pre-Christianity religions consider him a God and he even has his own Zodiac constellation, the "serpent bearer"--a reference to the link between Seraphim and serpents (or hydra).

Regardless of his place within the religions of humanity, Ophiouchus was one of the Celestials that had a say in the contingency plan to save humans from The Count. He approved of the plan, seeing it as an easy way to gain control of a reaping-vessel.

After effectively 'signing off' on the plan, Ophiouchus disguised himself as a human and ended up marrying the (now mortal) Morrighan and starting the Ivrean line of Valkyries. While waiting for his plan to come to fuition, Ophiouchus popped in and out of human history, playing different parts and often checking on his descendants. When Alexia DiMercurio was born with the *Teufel Augen* he tweaked various parts of her life to drive her to the edge of sanity--allowing him to take over her body. Alexia became Ophiouchus' vessel, though unknown to her, while he collected human souls that he planned to absorb later to become to most powerful being in the universe.

Throughout the story he periodically takes control of Alexia's body. Ophiouchus was the one responsible for the laboratory massacre as well as several other killings. His celestial power causes Alexia's hair to turn white and her golden eyes to glow anywhere from red to orange. Though he is indestructible, he is "deactivated" by Dominic Everett, his own descendant and an incarnation of the The Great Monarch, when the chain tying him to the mortal world is cleaved, leaving him unable to interact with any aspect of human life.

## Trivia

* The original Cataclysm took place before the common era however Ophiouchus did not descend to Earth until 688 C.E.
* Ironically, Ophiouchus' descendants were fervently Catholic despite their blood ancestor being a god himself.
* Ophiouchus mentions that his bloodline has become cyclical, this can be taken in both a historical context and a genetic context.
	+ The Ivrean line has a tradition of first cousins of the opposite sex having an unusually strong bond: Alfonso IX/Berengaria, Frederick/Elisabeth, Fadrique/Leonor, and Luke/Alexia. In all of the cited pairings, the male cousin harbors a debilitating possessiveness toward the female cousin.
	+ Color schemes repeat themselves: Alfonso IX's mother Queen Urraca had black hair and red eyes while Alfonso had black hair and golden eyes; Alexia's father Richard has black hair and red eyes while Alexia has (after the timeskip) black hair and golden eyes.
	+ Maternal sacrifice: Irene Angelina's mother Herina gave her life to save her family, Irene's daughter Elisabeth sacrifices herself to save her family, and Alexia sacrifices her life to protect her son Dominic.
	+ The first three Ivrean Valkyries ended up marrying their soulmate.

* While all three bloodlines intermingled, the Ivrean line is the only one to display the divine features of Ophiouchus himself.
	+ Herina Palaiologina, Euphrosyne Angelina, Irene Angelina, Alexios Angelos, Beatrix von Schwaben, Kunigunde von Böhmen, Marie von Brabant, Elisabeth von Schwaben, and Alfonso X have white hair.
	+ Alfonso IX, Fernando de León, Alexia DiMercurio, and Dominic Everett have the *Teufel Augen* or 'devil eyes' which are gold in color.
	+ Urraca of Portugal, Beatrice of Burgundy, Frederick von Hohenstaufen II, Philip von Schwaben, and Richard DiMercurio have the proto-devil eyes (red irises).