Oedipus

Oedipus Rex was one of the Suits in Ulysses Dies at Dawn. He was played by Gunpowder Tim.

## Description

Oedipus is described as 5'10" with chestnut hair. His eyes have been surgically self-removed and replaced with a pair of data ports.

## History

### Pre-Album

Oedipus was born to Laius, Mayor of a Thebian district, and Jocasta Rex. While his parents were wealthy, they were also paranoid and placed the baby Oedipus into one of the poorest orphanages in the City where he grew up believing his parents to be dead and unimportant. Oedipus worked hard to escape the slums, training as a medical doctor - however the Olympians were secretly supporting him to improve the image of what was really a failing orphanage scheme.

Oedipus started researching the Sphinx disease, a degenerative disease that caused accelerated aging and which affected the poorest residents of the City, killing thousands of infants within a week of infection - including in his home district. Oedipus discovered the disease was a by-product of the process used by the Olympians for their immortality, particularly the oxidant waste. He also discovered a cure, though it was too expensive for any of the sufferers of the Sphinx disease to purchase. As Oedipus was finishing the cure, and was considering releasing the information on the cause and petitioning the Olympians to change their methods to prevent the disease, an unidentified man broke into Oedipus' lab. The man pleaded with Oedipus to change his mind about taking on the Olympians, however Oedipus refused and killed him.

Oedipus then began to campaign for the Olympians to change their immortality process to eliminate what was causing the Sphinx disease. The Olympians promised they would attempt to do so, though they didn't actually intend to. They touted Oedipus as a hero, showering him with wealth and prestige, and set him up with the socialite Jocasta Rex. Oedipus married her, unaware she was his mother.

Eight years later, information was released from the Acheron by the Teiresias terminal revealing that Jocasta and Laius Rex were Oedipus' parents, causing a major scandal due to Oedipus marrying his mother. Jocasta fled to an area of Outer Thebes known as a common suicide location. Laius' disappearance shortly prior to Oedipus' announcement of a Sphinx cure was also linked to the death of the unidentified man in Oedipus' lab, causing another scandal over Oedipus having killed his father.

The backlash saw Oedipus disgraced, and he planned to leave the City, heading off world. Without the having the funds for this already, he ended up recruited to open Ulysses' vault by completing the Trial of Wits.

## Trivia

* Oedipus lives in the Thebes district of The City.
* Jocasta, Laius and Teiresias are all characters from the myth of Oedipus. Laius and Jocasta are the King and Queen of Thebes and Teiresias is the blind priest who reveals to Oedipus he killed Laius, though the fact that Laius is Oedipus' father is not known at this time and Teiresias does not comment on the relation of Jocasta to Oedipus in the myth, in contrast to the album.

## References

1. ↑ Album liner
2. ↑ "Trial By Wits"
3. ↑ Background image for "Trial by Strength" and background image for Favoured Son
4. ↑ Background image for Riddle of the Sphinx and the album liner
5. ↑ Riddle of the Sphinx
6. ↑ Background image for Favoured Son
7. ↑ Riddle of the Sphinx
8. ↑ Riddle of the Sphinx and background image for "Trial by Strength"
9. ↑ Background image for "Trial by Strength" and background image for Favoured Son
10. ↑ "Trial by Wits"