Apollo entered the world fighting. His mother Leto, pregnant by Zeus, was hunted across the earth by Hera's wrath until she found refuge on the floating island of Delos. There, Leto gave birth to twins—first Artemis, who immediately helped deliver her brother. Apollo emerged radiant, and the island bloomed with golden light.
Four days old, the infant god tracked down Python, the monstrous serpent Hera had sent to torment his mother. At Delphi, sacred to the earth goddess, Apollo slew the beast with arrows that never missed. He claimed the site as his own, establishing the Oracle that would speak prophecy for millennia. The Pythian Games were founded to celebrate his victory—the triumph of light over darkness, order over chaos.
Yet Apollo knows heartbreak as keenly as glory. When Eros...