Apep

Concept art of Bayek fighting Apep in his hallucination

Apep, also known as the Serpent of the Nile and Eater of Souls as well as Apophis, is an ancient Egyptian deity of chaos and destruction. He is usually depicted as a giant serpent that devoured the hearts—and thus the souls—of the dead.

Mythology

Apep is locked in an eternal combat with the Egyptian sun god Ra, and the Egyptians believed they could see who was winning from the weather. Ra's victory was marked by sunny days, whereas stormy, dark days signified Apep's reign. When a solar eclipse happened, Apep was said to have eaten the sun, and priests performed rituals to help Ra overcome his enemy.

In Egyptian mythology, Apep shares his role as the Devourer with the female monster Ammit, a creature with the head of a crocodile, the front half of a lioness, and the rear half of a hippopotamus. They both watched as the heart of a deceased was weighed against the feather of Ma'at, and would devour the heart if it was heavier than the feather, thus rendering the associated soul restless and lost.

History

In 48 BCE, the Medjay Bayek of Siwa experienced a drug-induced hallucination in which he fought and defeated Apep with a glowing bow and arrows aboard Ra's solar barge. During his travels throughout Egypt hunting the Order of the Ancients, Bayek often found scepters stylized with a snake head that were believed to have been Apep's personal weapon. A decade later, when Bayek seemingly visited the Duat as part of his mission to end the Curse of the Pharaohs, he found Apep's skeleton in Apep Khat.

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Origins (first appearance)
  • The Curse of the Pharaohs (appears as a corpse only)
• Assassin's Creed Roleplaying Game – Forging History (mentioned only)

References

An image gallery is available for Apep