Old Styx

Old Styx
Species/Race	Styx
Gender	Male
Hair Color	Black (Graying)
Eye Color	Black (Brownish-Red Flecked)
Skin Color	Sallow
Occupation	Leader
Family	Crawfly (Son or Son-in-Law) Rebeccas (Granddaughters)
Status	Deceased

The Old Styx (called this because of his advanced age) is one of the rulers of the Styx. He makes appearances in each of the books as a prominent antagonist. He is the father of the Crawfly, and the grandfather of the Rebecca Twins. As the head of the ruling Styx family, he is a member of the Styx Panoply Council and is possibly its leader. He is usually accompanied by his young assistant, and has an office in one of the upper levels of the Styx Citadel. True to his name, his skin is wrinkled and yellowish like old parchment, and his black hair is streaked with grey.

Appearances[]

Tunnels:[]

The Old Styx makes his first appearance towards the end of Tunnels, where Chester Rawls is led to a room in the Hold by the Second Officer to receive his sentencing. Chester is deceived by the Old Styx's ancient appearance and half-believes that he might be kinder than the others, until they lock eyes- his eyes are cold, dead and ruthless. He dispassionately reads out Chester's sentence in a monotone, and tells him that as he is not worthy of service in the Colony that he will board the Miners Train and be Banished to the Deeps. With that, he turned a deaf ear to Chester's pleading and had him led away by the Second Officer.

Deeper:[]

The Old Styx, one of the Rebecca Twins, and a group of uniformed Styx stand upon the roof of Admiralty Arch, Trafalgar Square, observing the Topsoilers below. He praised the Rebecca Twin for her part in dealing with Sarah Jerome and having the Renegades of the Deeps exterminated, saying that both she and her sister have their father's (The Crawfly) instincts. With that, he unveiled to his comrades the plot to spread the deadly Dominion virus on the surface and kill off the Topsoilers, using a weaker strain as a demonstration of their power. During his conversation with Rebecca, the Old Styx mentions that the Crawfly was responsible for the Dominion plot, which they are now bringing forward. He also reveals that the Styx are responsible for spreading several pathogens throughout history, including the influenza virus. After giving a speech about how the Styx will purge the Topsoilers and claim the surface for themselves, he and Rebecca have doves carrying the virus released into the sky above London. The virus causes chaos across Britain and even reaches other countries such as the United States, proving dangerous to the weak and elderly. The reduced Dominion strain also plagued the residents of Humphrey House, the recuperation home where Celia Burrows was staying

Freefall:[]

In the aftermath of the finale of Deeper, the Old Styx immediately set about organizing the Styx forces around the Pore to search for the Dominion phials, alongside his young assistant. Tom Cox was also present, and gave the Old Styx his condolences for the loss of his grand daughters. He had the three Limiters responsible for allowing Sarah Jerome to knock the Twins off the edge of the Pore punished by stripping the officer of his rank and gear, and had them step into the void.

Tom ventured that the twins may have survived. The Old Styx was amused by this, commenting on legends that a man survived the fall. He then told his assistant to send Limiters to the Bunker with the intention of recovering samples of the Dominion virus.

After Drake and a group of Coprolites bulldozed their way through the Bunker walls with a Coprolite mining vehicle and destroyed the Dominion testing facilities, the Old Styx and Tom Cox were present to see the aftermath. By now, both the Old Styx and Tom knew who was responsible for this and resolved to eliminate Drake once and for all.

Later, Drake and Celia Burrows confront Ben Wilbrahams (a Styx agent) and demand a meeting between them and the Old Styx, to which the Styx seemingly agree. In return for the Dominion virus, the Styx would leave Mrs. Burrows and her family alone. Drake, Leatherman and his men surround a hill in Highfield Common whilst Mrs. Burrows waited atop the hill for the Old Styx, and remained in constant radio contact with her. Oscar Embers and Mrs. Tantrumi approach Mrs. Burrows pretending to be an elderly couple, and mock her when she recognizes them. They activate a sub aural bomb disguised as a trolley, which knocks out Mrs. Burrows, Drake, Leatherman, his men, and every other human and animal on the Common. The Old Styx and a team of Limiters removed their earplugs and had Mrs. Burrows and Drake's men taken away.

The Old Styx and his assistant were present when Mrs. Burrows was finally broken by a bank of six or seven Dark Lights activated at once after she was taken down to the Colony. He told the shaken Second Officer that there wasn't much left of the woman, who had been rendered comatose by the damage. The Second Officer (who had become fond of Mrs. Burrows in the brief time they spent together) asked the Old Styx for permission to take her home, where she would be looked after by him and his family. The Old Styx agreed to this, but commented that it would be kinder to let her die in the Hold.

He was later seen at the edge of the Pore, where Limiters and Stalkers were being sent by parachute into the void. He tells Tom Cox that they learned that the Rebeccas are still alive. He then had a pair of Limiters throw Tom into the Pore to "honor his commitments".

Closer:[]

The Old Styx goes to the Second Officer's house to collect Mrs. Burrows's body to be taken to the Laboratories. The officer's family is shaken by the experience, as they know the Old Styx is high-ranking. The transaction is successful, and Mrs. Burrows is taken by cart to be dissected at the labs.

Near the end of the book, he receives a message that the Plague Snails in the Eternal City have been wiped out. He summons a bunch of Styx for a meeting, in which he rages to the point he throws a metal canister at a soldier and swipes everything off his desk. His rage is only inflamed when he learns Drake destroyed half of the Laboratories. However, the Rebeccas appear and present him the Dominion phial, along with news of the Darklit New Germanians and Elliott drinking the vaccine. He is pleased, and prepares some "forward planning" for Drake - having the Darklit Prime Minister shut down the hospitals that received the Dominion vaccine.

Spiral:[]

On the surface, the Old Styx buys a factory in Kent, England, which will be used as a base of operations. He and the Rebeccas enter the factory, which is being used for the Styx's new Phase. With the Dominion plot abandoned, the Styx shift their focus on bringing as many Darklit hosts to the factory for the Styx women to impregnate.

Terminal:[]

The Old Styx is shown to be at the Donut, a major control center in England, along with other Styx. He applauds Danforth for the work he has done. However, Danforth, who is actually pretending to work for the Styx, activates his tooth radio. The Old Styx doesn't know this, and the Armagi attacks continue as the Recall War rages on.

The Old Styx's final appearance is at the end of Terminal. He, along with the Armagi and an army of Styx, surrounds St. Paul's Cathedral, where Elliott is. He is told by Alex to kill Elliott, who is trying to hold off the attack. However, Parry's men shoot him in the back of the head, killing him.

Quotes[]

"The Topsoiler's souls are rotten to the very core- their morality is that of the insane- and they ruin our promised lands with their excessive consumption and greed. Their time is drawing to a close, and the Heathen will be purged."
"Send a detachment to the Bunker to extract samples of the Dominion virus from the corpses there. If we can re-culture it, we can keep the plan on track. Wouldn't want the Topsoilers to miss their day of reckoning, now, would we?"