Melinoë

**Melinoë** is the Goddess of Ghosts, Nightmares, and Funeral Rites from Greco-Roman mythology. She is the daughter of Hades and Persephone, though in Orphism, her father is said to be a disguised Zeus instead.

## Overview

**Melinoë** (Μηλινόη) is a chthonic nymph or goddess invoked in one of the Orphic Hymns and represented as a bringer of nightmares and madness. The name also appears on a metal tablet in association with Persephone. The hymns are of uncertain date but were probably composed in the 2nd or 3rd century AD.

In the hymn, Melinoë has characteristics that seem similar to Hecate and the Erinyes, and the name is sometimes thought to be an epithet of Hecate. The terms in which Melinoë is described are typical of moon goddesses in Greek poetry.

## Appearance

Melinoë appears as a fairly tall woman in her 20s, with pale skin, a heart-shaped face, and eyes as dark as thunderclouds. She has short and curly hair, with right side of her hair dyed black while the left side dyed white. She's said to speak with a British accent.

She wears high-fashion clothing, described as having walked straight out of a fashion magazine for business women. In ancient Greece, she was "saffron-cloaked", with a black-and-white mask covering her face and a veil covering her hair.

## Personality

Melinoë is often regarded as the most dangerous child of Hades and Persephone, inheriting as many of her parents' flaws as her brother inherited their virtues. She is known for her sadistic, ruthless, and merciless nature, having absolutely no sympathy toward those damned for their sins, no matter how big or small their crimes are.

Much like her mother, she's a natural-born warrior with an insatiable thirst for battle, often seeking warriors in Elysium or even other gods for battle.

According to her, she's "addicted" to the adrenaline rush during combat, even describing fighting as pleasurable and "orgasm-worthy" for her.

However, this doesn't mean she's an Evil God or is a deity hated by humans as her uncle/cousin Ares, but rather just as a fearsome figure who demanded both respect and reverence. She has a strong sense of justice, even if her worldview is rather black-and-white, and was often summoned by ancient Greeks and Romans for revenge against the shades of those who had wronged them.

She is also infamous for her nightly walks in the mortal world, during which she would visit cemeteries, graveyards, or haunted sights to purify the restless shades of their resentment, allowing them to enter the Realm of the Dead without regret.

## History

Melinoë was born the second child of Hades and Persephone, and the younger twin sister of Zagreus, the crowned prince of the Realm of Hades. Due to her brother's tragic fate, her parents were extremely protective of her, so tales of her were limited and mostly restricted to mystery cults such as Orphism, the Eleusinian Mysteries, or the Cult of Despoina.

During the Victorian era, upon the discovery of suspicious activities between the remaining Titans and even the minor gods, Persephone assigned her with a secret mission to infiltrate them and figure out what they were planning.

This eventually led to her finding out about the Tytanos Faction and the Khaos Brigade, and since then, she's been acting as her parents' spy within the organization up to the Second Titanomachy when her role was revealed. While this was to save her from Zeus' wrath, this also led to her becoming the enemy of the remnants of Tytanos after they found out she was a mole.

## Equipment

**Death Scythe**: Melinoë possesses a death scythe in the form of a one-handed Stygian Iron sickle, with glowing hieroglyphs engraved on the blade. It is attached to a chain wrapped around her right hand, which she incorporates into her fighting style in the similar manner to the *kusarigama* (lit. "chain-sickle") used by the Japanese *shinobi*.

## Trivia

* Her name "Melinoë" means "dark-minded" or "propitiation-minded".
* Melinoë's actions are said to be the reason why dogs bark at nothing at night.
* While her half-brother Nico is known as the [Ghost King], Melinoë is the Ghost *Goddess*.
* Melinoë would often, alongside Hecate, be called upon during necromantic rituals; as they both rule over ghosts. In ancient times, her name was occasionally used as an epithet for Hecate.
* According to Orphism, Melinoë was conceived on the bank of the Cocytus river.
* In Orphism, Melinoë's real father is said to be Zeus, who either transformed into Hades or a serpent to sleep with Persephone, though some interpreted the Zeus mentioned in the Orphic hymns as "Zeus Katachthonios" ("Zeus of the Underworld"), an epithet of Hades.