Orcus is a Gryphon.
History[]
Orcus was hatched as the runt of his litter, being mocked and ridiculed because of it. Once he was old enough to breed, he refused to do so, not wanting his offspring to go through what he did. As gryphons take great pride in growing their families, Orcus was exiled.
The Nico di Angelo Adventures[]
The Court of the Dead[]
Shortly after resetting in Camp Jupiter, Hazel Levesque brings Nico di Angelo and Will Solace to the mythics' barracks to introduce the boys to the refugees. Orcus greets the visitors, but becomes upset when thinking they referred to him as a runt. Upon hearing their talking to them, Nico and Will agree to help get the Twelfth Legion Fulminata to accept them.
Later that day, he and the other mythics go to the Mess Hall for dinner, causing a tense atmosphere with the legion. When they leave, the legionnaires lighten up and talk loudly the second they are out of sight.
The following day, Orcus greets Nico, Will, and Hazel when they reach the mythics' quarters. When the boys see a path of Tartarus's skin in the middle of the room, Asterion explains that they are trying to grow Regeneration Pods at Camp Jupiter to avoid returning to Tartarus. Hazel reveals she knows about it but is keeping it secret. After Hazel reveals the Second Cohort has agreed to work with the mythics, the daughter of Pluto starts to ask about their strengths. Orcus states he likes to fly, so Hazel has him work on surveillance. The training session begins well, with Orcus using his agility as a defense, when one of the campers, Savannah, suffers a panic attack and is escorted to the infirmary. At dinner, the atmosphere is tenser than usual as the campers keep their distance from the mythics. However Hazel sits with them in.
The following morning, Hazel sends Orcus on a surveillance assignment, but he becomes shocked and overwhelmed with the Twenty-First Century and has a panic attack, cowering in the middle of Highway Twenty-Four. Hazel goes to the Mess Hall to get her brother and shadows travels back with Nico to the entrance of the Caldecott Tunnel. Nico has Hazel use the Mist to create a fake construction area so he can get to Orcus. However, when he does, Hazel loses focus and a truck speeds towards him. Just before being hit, Nico grabs him and shadow travels to the entrance of the tunnel. Once safe, Orcus reveals it has been centuries since he last regenerated, spending most of his last time caged, and became overwhelmed by the modern day. The sentries on duty, Yazan and Deion, feel sympathetic towards Orcus and offer to teach him about the modern world.
The following morning, when Arielle goes missing, he goes off to scout the area. He fails to find her and, the next morning, Quinoa is discovered to be missing. He wakes Nico and Will and the three inform Frank and Hazel. They recount what they know about Quinoa's actions the previous day and can find no confirmation from Terminus that the karpoi left the valley. Yazan swears he will keep Orcus safe. However, despite their best efforts, Asterion is taken. When Yazan is found unconscious, Orcus is worried until he wakes up. Semele takes charge and tells Orcus and Johan they will leave in the morning. Hazel tries to talk them out of it. After realizing Hazel is the next target, Frank suggests they hunker down in their vault and Hazel invites the mythics and asks Nico to lend her a cacodemon]. He agrees and the praetors decide to focus security on a single area for better chances at success. After persuasion, the mythics agree to stay one more night and everyone turns in.
By morning, everyone at Camp Jupiter begins to take the disappearances seriously after learning that Hazel is a target as well. A few even pledge to keep the remaining mythics safe. He tells anyone who will listen what happened about the previous night, however he embellishes his tale to make himself sound more heroic. Semele, Orcus, and Johan join Nico, Will, and the praetors to finalize the plan. Nico, Will, Hazel and the mythics will spend the night in the vault as Frank and a few legionnaires stand guard outside. All participants will have a cacodemon with them to serve as an early warning signal. Once night falls, the plan goes into motion. The mythics explore the vault as the demigods get the sleeping bags ready. Everyone is nervous, but focuses on the task at hand. At 3:00AM, everyone is awake and the cacodemons go into a panic. Soon, the daughter of Pluto pins someone to the wall and a disheveled woman becomes visible. After Hazel draws her blood, the group realizes she is a goddess. Everyone demands to know what the goddess did with the mythics, however she only states that she has brought them to the judged and sentenced before demanding Hazel come with her. The woman unleashes a blast of force that sends Will, Johan, and him flying into the wall. Everyone wonders what the officer's badge means as they go to check on the sentries. Once the group meets up with Frank, Hazel decides to go with Nico and Will to the Courthouse while the son of Mars and the remaining mythics stay behind to safeguard the camp. Nico and Will return, but Hazel is taken. He, the other mythics, and a handful of demigods organize a rescue mission.
In the Field of Mars, Nico, Will, Frank, and Orcus watch as Savannah, Yazan, Deion, Lucius, and Lavinia run around trying to catch the cacodemons. Later, when a woman claiming to know where Hazel is appears at the Caldecott Tunnel, Will, Nico, Deion, Orcus, and Frank race over to investigate. When they reach the entrance, they find the woman happily talking to the two sentries. Naomi gushes over his friends before explaining she ran into Hazel at Golden Gate Park and passes one what she knows. Frank has her come with them and tasks Deion with rallying the volunteers. Orcus leaves to continue surveillance and meets back up with the others when it is time to head out.
Once everyone is gathered, Naomi drives Nico, Will, Frank, Deion, Lavinia, Yazan, Lucius, Savannah, Semele, Johan, and Orcus to the enclosure as the demigods and mythics try to get a handle of their enchanted emotions due to the cacodemons. Once the group reach Golden Gate Park, they notice how densely packed the enclosure has become since Naomi found it, as well as the judges and some of their followers. The group notice slivers of fog moving around that Johan points out is the Mist, which they should not be able to see. Naomi leaves and the group heads toward the enclosure. As Orcus and his allies begin to charge, the Mist breaks. Everyone's senses are heightened because of the cacodemons and they start to burn. Everyone is relieved as the group watches as two gods appear and get rid of Mary Tudor, Tantalus, and Laverna. Not long after they charge into battle. As fighting and confusion breaks out between the imprisoned mythics and the forces of Pirithous, he and the others reunite with their allies and try to calm the mythics. After the mass illusion stops and Pirithous is captured, Orcus and his allies gather around the judge. After Dolus and Apate convince the judge to release him followers, everyone discusses what to do with Pirithous when Hecate arrives. Everyone bows to the goddess of magic as Pirithous explains his actions to Hecate. Everyone stays quiet as the judge crawls to the rock and is fused with it before being sent to the Fields of Asphodel. He watches as Hecate extracts Semele from Nico and returns her to her physical form. Semele then thanks her allies before going to see her son at Camp Half-Blood. Hecate thanks the demigods and mythics before leaving and they take the train back.
Later that day, everyone helps in setting up a farewell dinner for Nico and Will. As they eat, they joke around and afterwards, the praetors and mythics escort the boys and the cacodemons to the gates where Frank and Hazel reveal the mythics will stay at Camp Jupiter as an auxiliary cohort. He reveals that he will travel the world and they say their goodbyes.
Appearance[]
Orcus is a small griffin that has a black body of a panther cub, salt-and-pepper wings, and a snow-white raptor’s head with a bright yellow beak like a bald eagle’s.
Personality[]
As Orcus was born the runt of his litter, he feels sensitive when reminded of this. As he hasn't been on Earth in centuries and spent most of his previous life in a cage, Orcus is unused to the modern world, leaving to a panic attack in the Caldecott Tunnel when he sees traffic for the first time.