| “ | Mother! What's happening outside? The people! The fires! | ” |
–Calliope, moments before death. | ||
Template:Infobox gods Calliope was the beloved daughter of Kratos and Lysandra. She, along with her mother, was unknowingly killed by Kratos as part of Ares' plot to harden Kratos' heart and make him a more powerful warrior in the process.
History
Early History
| “ | You will die... and Calliope will live! | ” |
–Kratos, fighting the Hades Phoenix. | ||
Calliope was born and raised in Sparta, living with her mother, Lysandra, in the country. At birth, it was revealed Calliope suffered from a skin disease set out by Ares, which deemed her weak on in the eyes of Spartan law, sentencing her to be sacrificed. She was only saved from her fate when Kratos set out on a quest for Ambrosia, after having consulted a healer who gave him The Fire of Apollo . The healer was hinted to be a disguised Zeus, Calliope's grandfather.
By the time Kratos returned to Sparta, he narrowly saved Calliope from being thrown to her death. Though the King of Sparta insisted that the law be upheld, Lysandra pleaded for Calliope's life and reasoned that if they can prove that a sip of Ambrosia can save a life, then he will have the final sip. Convinced, the King upheld his promise to Kratos, who then used the Ambrosia to cure Calliope.
While Calliope was easily frightened by her father's violent nature, in truth, Calliope, along with her mother, were the only people to not fear him. She was quite close to her father, always anxiously awaiting Kratos' return from his campaigns to protect Sparta. On one such occasion, Kratos spent enough time with his daughter that he was able to carve a flute for her to play. As Calliope reached adolescence, she became an extremely talented flute player, composing many lilting and emotional melodies.
Calliope's Flute
Calliope playing her flute.
This is a standard wooden flute. Kratos carved it for his daughter Calliope in the past, in one of the times he stayed long enough to see her between wars. In God of War: Chains of Olympus, Kratos is often "haunted" by a strange flute melody. Eventually, he recognizes it as the melody of the flute of Calliope.
Death
Both Calliope and her mother were in a village of worshippers for Athena when Kratos and a battalion of his soldiers arrived. Having since declared his allegiance to Ares, Kratos ordered his men to destroy the village and leave no survivors. Kratos decided to personally enter the goddess' temple and brutally slayed all within with his own Blades of Chaos, his blood frenzy made him blind to whom he was killing, until it was too late; Calliope and her mother, having been brought in the temple by Ares, were killed by Kratos. It was revealed that it was Ares' manipulation to make Kratos the ultimate warrior that led to their deaths, since he thought Kratos' family held him back. Ever since the massacre Kratos endured immense depression and guilt and has continually sought forgiveness and freedom from his nightmares for his actions that day.
Post-Mortem
After her death, Calliope, instead of being condemned to be amongst the rest of the departed souls of the Underworld, was allowed to live among the pure souls of the Elysium Fields, at the base of the Pillar of the World. Calliope lived well among the lush and peaceful surroundings, and was even allowed to wander beyond Elysium's boundaries, throughout the nearby Temple of Persephone, and Calliope took to playing her flute on the dock to the River Styx.
Calliope watches her father carve her a flute.
When Helios, the God of the Sun, was torn from the sky by Atlas, his Fire Steeds drove the sun into the Earth, plunging the entire world into darkness. Without Helios, Morpheus was unopposed and sought to seize permanent power, extending his black grip over the land and enveloping all in darkness. The power of Morpheus affected even Kratos, as he became haunted by a strange lingering melody. Kratos could sense it was familiar, and eventually realized it was Calliope's song, having been allowed to come through the black fog of Morpheus all the way from the Underworld.
Kratos continued to hear the music on his quest to liberate Helios from Atlas' grip. His journey eventually took him into the Underworld, and, eventually to the Temple of Persephone. Kratos spotted Calliope on the temple docks, playing her flute. He called out to her, but Calliope merely turned around and re-entered the Temple. Kratos desperately followed his daughter throughout the temple, and eventually found Elysium's divine gates. Kratos consulted with Persephone, and at this time resolved to simply abandon mankind and the Gods to their fate at Morpheus' hands so he could spend the rest of his days in peace with his daughter. After giving up all his magical abilities and weapons, and, in turn, his sins, Kratos became worthy of Elysium and was allowed to enter.
Upon arrival, Kratos and Calliope happily reunited. The reunion was cut short, however, as Persephone revealed the scope of her plans to use Atlas to destroy the pillar holding the world, which would destroy both Earth and Olympus, and kill all life. When Kratos realized Elysium would fall too and Calliope would die again, Kratos was forced to make the impossibly painful decision to forever forsake his place with her and pushed her aside. Calliope was helpless to watch as her father massacred all the other souls in Elysium; regaining his abilities in the process, becoming the Ghost of Sparta once again and he departed to face and defeat both Atlas and Persephone.
After Kratos ended Persephone's life and bound Atlas to a fate of having to carry the Earth upon his shoulders forever, a depressed Calliope was seen, having lost the will to play the flute which her father gave her.
Later Appearances
Images of both Calliope and her mother were created in a twisted illusion by Ares, during his final battle with Kratos, in an attempt to break Kratos' spirit by forcing him to witness their deaths once more. Kratos, however, was determined not to let them die again, and, beating the odds, defeated and killed an army of his Doppelgängers, saving his family in the process. Ares, however, responded to his victory by re-taking control of the Blades of Chaos he bestowed on Kratos years ago, and commanded them to impale Calliope and her mother, slaying them both. While distraught, Kratos broke through the illusions and avenged both himself and his family upon Ares by killing him and taking his throne as God of War.
In God of War II, Gaia, in a very short moment, used a vision of Calliope to speak to Kratos when he was impaled by Zeus.
In God of War III, during Zeus' battle with Kratos, the God-King sent Kratos plummeting into his own psyche. As a result, Kratos was again forced to relive his own fears and nightmares. Under the guidance of Pandora, Kratos eventually encountered his wife Lysandra, and daughter Calliope. Finally freed from his own torment, Kratos hugged his family, allowing both himself and his family to forgive him for his actions. Kratos then broke free of Zeus' hold, and killed him.
A note left by Calliope was also found near the Three Judges, which read:
"The fires! The people screaming! I was so scared. Why didn't Father protect us? The Judges say I have to go now to Elysium and that it will be nice there. I miss my family."
Etymology
The name Καλλιόπη "Calliope" means "beautiful voice", appropriate for the Muse of epic or heroic poetry.
Trivia
- Calliope appears at Kratos' death in Bit of War.
- Since Kratos is a demigod, and Lysandra is a mortal, Calliope is 1/4 a god, and 3/4 human.
- Calliope would have been an adult when Kratos started his revenge on the Olympians. Since Calliope was approximately 8 when she died, she was killed six months before Kratos started serving the gods, plus 10 years of servitude to Zeus and the gods of Olympus and 12.6 years of Kratos being the God of War. That means Calliope is (chronologically) 31 by the end of God of War III.
- Calliope appears in the Super Bowl trailer for God of War: Ascension, 'From Ashes'.
- It is unknown if she returned to life when the Gods were defeated. It also unknown if the souls of Elysium were able to come back like the ones in the Underworld were able to.
