The Old Gods of Harlos are a divine species that reign over the planet Harlos.
Biology[]
The Old Gods are primarily humanoid in form, though their appearances vary widely. Some are composed of elemental forces—fire, water, gas, or plant life—while others take on the shapes of anthropomorphic animals or mythical creatures such as mermaids.
Though divine in nature and blessed with lifespans that stretch across millennia, the Old Gods are not immortal. They eventually age and die, making reproduction essential for ensuring that the next generation of deities can inherit their domains and responsibilities.
While natural death comes slowly, an Old God can meet an unnatural end—but only at the hands of another deity or accident.
History[]
Thousands of years ago, the world of Harlos was ravaged by a war so catastrophic that history books speak of bone-piles reaching to the skies.
In the aftermath, Rokos rose as king of the gods, taking Luna as his queen. Their union was not one of love but of convenience, a calculated alliance. From it was born their daughter, Solaluna.
As time passed, Rokos and the older generation of gods began to feel the weight of age—a natural part of the divine cycle, signaling it was time to pass their mantles to the next generation. But then came a mortal known as the Foreman, a pigeon by race, who claimed to have created a miraculous substance: the Elixir. This potion could reverse aging and restore youth—temporarily. In return for his creation, the Foreman sought to be elevated among the gods.
Rokos, eager to defy time, presented the Elixir to his fellow deities, arguing that with it, they could continue their sacred duties and preserve the divine order. Such a option was readily accepted by the others in the pantheon.
What the gods did not know—save for Luna—was the dark origin of the Elixir. It was forged from the youthful essence of mortal children, extracted with lethal consequences.
Every twenty years, at the opulent Harvest Gala held in Rokos’ celestial palace, the Elixir was offered. The gods would gather, revel in decadent celebration, and drink deeply of their stolen youth, unaware—or unwilling to face—the price paid in blood.
On the world of Harlos, every region was required to provide a child as a sacrifice, all under the pretense of serving the greater good. Each culture treated its chosen sacrifice differently. Some viewed it as a sacred honor. Others relegated their children to the status of animals—less than human. In some places, the sacrifices were treated as pariahs, scorned and abused for the burden they would soon bear.
When Harvest came, the chosen were delivered to the Foreman.
They were led to his infamous workshop, where a cruel contrast awaited: rooms of lavish comfort, abundant food, and captivating entertainment. For a time, the sacrifices were pampered, lulled into a false sense of ease. But when a batch was called for Harvesting, the truth revealed itself.
One by one, the children were strapped into devices built to extract the very essence of youth from their bodies. That essence became the key ingredient in the Elixir.
The quality of the Elixir determined its destiny: the purest batches were reserved for the gods. The lesser ones? Hoarded by the Foreman and his lover, used to prolong their own unnatural lives.
At the latest Harvest Gala, the event was normally reserved for only the party-goers. Still Rokus and Luna’s rebellious daughter, Solaluna snuck in to secretly observe the festivities. There she witnessed the Elixir restore the Old Gods youth, much to her shock. The only one to refuse to partake in the Elixir was Luna who ambiguously stated she refused to live off the substance at the expense of others. Whilst Rokos touted himself for the Elixir’s discovery, snubbing the Foreman, the latter angrily rushed out of the gala to return to his workshop. His departure was noticed by Solaluna who decided to follow him.
At his workshop Solaluna tried to force the Foreman to confess on the real purpose of his shop, only to be captured. The Foreman tired of being denied by Rokos of godhood decided to take it from Solaluna using his machines which he drained the essence of children. In the process one of the sacrifices, Pigeon had escape the area where the sacrifices were being pampered in bliss, discovered the fate of his fellows and tried to flee. In the commotion he stopped the machine transferring the essence to the Foreman, instead he absorbed it, become a divine creature. After wrecking the workshop both Pigeon and Solaluna escape, though the de-powered goddess demanded her divinity back only to be rejected by Pigeon, see all deities as corrupt decided to take revenge on all the gods of Harlos.
Culture[]
The Old Gods were the guardians of the delicate balance of life on Harlos. They oversaw the rising of the sun, the cycles of the moon, the bounty of the sea, the flourishing of green life, the changing weather, and the turning of the world itself.
At their head was Rakos, the Sun God—nominal king of the gods and ruler over his divine brethren.
Known Old Gods of Harlos[]
| Deity | Position/Title | Role in Comic |
|---|---|---|
 Rokos |
God of the Sun | The king of the Old Gods of Harlos as well as the father of Solaluna and husband of Luna. |
 Solaluna |
||
 Mithera |
Paramour of Climate | An aged goddess of weather who manages the rains on Harlos. |
 Fniff |
An aging god of the Green, who is part vegetation and animal. He has the power of near-omniscience and can see through the eyes of moss and spores on a planetary level across Harlos. | |
 Kronious |
Lord of Labor | A short-tempered god of the earth who is the brother of Rokos. Known as a champion to the proletarian and the worker. Kronious is one of the few truly benevolent gods who care about mortals. He is the husband of Luroxum, who unknown to him has been in a scandalous affair, during his busy duties in maintain the wheels of machinery under Harlos, with his best friend the sea god Aquatica. Though Kronious is forced to confront her infidelity after her corpse was brought to him after she was killed by accident during Pigeon’s deicide rampage against Aquatica. After he learns of the source of his extended immortality, from Pigeon’s and that he death was truly an accident, Kronious seeks to make amends to return power back to the people, first but joining hands with Pigeon against his own brother Rokos the source of Harlos’ misery. |
 Luroxum |
Kronious’ wife, an unfaithful goddess who sneaks behind her husband’s back to have an affair with Aquatica. |