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Phoibe (c. 443 – 429 BCE) was an Athenian girl and protégé of the Spartan misthios Kassandra during the early Peloponnesian War.

Biography[]

Early life[]

Born in Athens sometime in 443 BCE,[1] Phoibe left the polis when she was still a baby.[2] After her parents died under unknown circumstances,[3] she ended up on the island of Kephallonia, with only a wooden eagle she had named Chara to remind her of her mother.[4]

Befriending Kassandra[]

Phoibe: "If I can't come, then take Chara."
Kassandra: "Chara?"
Phoibe: "My pet eagle. She's my friend. Mater gave her to me. But she'll be your friend now, and it'll be like I'm there with you. You know, to remind you of me."
—Phoibe and Kassandra prior to the latter leaving Kephallonia, 431 BCE.[src]-[m]

Around 434 BCE, Phoibe was begging on the streets of Sami and met Kassandra, a Spartan exile and misthios. After being given some coins, Phoibe was taken in by the Spartan. She then grew up under the wings of the Kephallonian entrepreneur and Kassandra's friend Markos. In turn, the girl's personality and background resonated with the Spartan, and the two forged a fierce bond akin to that of a mentor and pupil.[1]

In 431 BCE, Markos borrowed a large amount of money from a crime lord known as the Cyclops of Kephallonia in order to purchase a vineyard. As Markos was unable to repay his debt, Phoibe and Kassandra were regularly harassed by the Cyclops' thugs, though they were initially unaware of Markos' loan. One day, Phoibe arrived at Kassandra's home, catching sight of her defeating two thugs sent by the Cyclops to collect Markos' debt and also to exact revenge for earlier instances of Kassandra causing trouble for the Cyclops. Phoibe subsequently informed Kassandra of Markos' purchase, directing her to the vineyard near the Statue of Zeus on Mount Ainos.[5]

ACOD Debt Collector 2

Phoibe rescued by Kassandra

Eventually, Kassandra's conflict with the Cyclops resulted in Phoibe being kidnapped by a group of the crime lord's thugs, who held her captive on Ktimene Beach. After Kassandra freed her, she informed her friend of a mercenary named Talos, hired by the Cyclops to eliminate her.[3][6]

After Kassandra had helped Markos with his errand, Phoibe met with her and asked the misthios why she let Markos boss her around. After Kassandra gave her an answer, Phoibe asked the misthios to assist with an errand of her own, namely to help her friend Kynna and her village Kausos, which had fallen under the curse of a blood fever.[7]

Sometime later, Phoibe unknowingly became a pawn of the Cult of Kosmos member Elpenor by providing his contact Krethos with information about Kassandra which allowed them to discover her.[8] This set in motion a series of events which ultimately pushed Kassandra to leave the island. After learning that Kassandra was going to depart from Kephallonia, Phoibe spoke to her at Sami's harbor, wanting to come along, but Kassandra refused to take her. In the end, they agreed to see each other again and Phoibe gifted Kassandra her wooden eagle Chara as a companion.[4]

Working for Aspasia[]

Phoibe: "You said you weren't coming back to Kephallonia, so I decided to leave too!"
Kassandra: "I said I wouldn't be coming back, but I don't remember saying you should leave."
Phoibe: "Well here I am!"
—Phoibe and Kassandra's reunion in Athens, 431 BCE.[src]-[m]
ACOD Phoibe Kassandra Reunion

Phoibe reunited with Kassandra

Knowing that Kassandra would not return to Kephallonia any time soon, Phoibe made the decision to leave the island herself. She traveled to Athens as a stowaway and found other children, similar to her, and they joined up, forming a gang. This ended when they met Aspasia, a hetaera and companion of Perikles, the leader of Athens. Aspasia offered Phoibe employment, and the girl jumped at the opportunity.[2]

It was during her time working for Aspasia that Phoibe was reunited with Kassandra, much to the latter's surprise. When Kassandra arrived to take part in a symposium organized by Perikles, Phoibe informed her that she had to change into a formal dress for the party.[2] Later, Phoibe was sent by Aspasia to Korinth to inform the hetaera Anthousa that Kassandra would be traveling there as part of her search for her long-lost mother. However, Kassandra arrived in the city before Phoibe and thus the two friends were again reunited.[9]

Plague of Athens and death[]

Kassandra: "Wait! Where..."
Phoibe: "I'll be right back. See you at Aspasia's!"
—Phoibe's last encounter with Kassandra, 429 BCE.[src]-[m]

In 429 BCE, when Kassandra returned to Athens after discovering information about her mother, she found the city in a state of chaos. Phoibe was running a task for Aspasia at the time and she briefly encountered Kassandra for the last time.[10]

ACOD And the Streets Run Red - Kassandra Finding Phoibe

Kassandra finding Phoibe's body

During the course of events, the Cult of Kosmos cornered Phoibe in the Odeon of Perikles and killed her. Upon discovering this, Kassandra was enraged and attacked Phoibe's killers. Kassandra then bid goodbye to her friend and gave her last rites, returning Chara to her. Before departing Athens, Kassandra asked her Sokrates and Hippokrates to give Phoibe a proper funeral.[10]

Phoibe was subsequently buried in a cemetery outside Athens.[11] Her tombstone was visited by Kassandra and Sokrates seven years later in 422 BCE.[11]

Simulation[]

When the Isu Aletheia created a simulation of the Underworld for the Kassandra to better learn how to wield the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus in her possession, she met a simulated Phoibe within. Having left Elysium to search for her parents in the Underworld, Phoibe encountered the Cyclops of Kephallonia who forced her to drink Lethe's water and forget most of her memories. When Kassandra found her, Phoibe did not remember her friend at first until the misthios recovered Chara for her.[12]

Kassandra subsequently agreed to help Phoibe to look for her parents and accompanied her to the Ixion Wheel, where Kassandra saved a woman attacked by guards. The woman explained that they were soldiers of the Cyclops searching for Phoibe and her family, and revealed that Phoibe's parents had gone to Elysium to find her.[13] Phoibe subsequently went off on her own to find the Keres to help the woman, but was captured by the Cyclops and his men. who took her to a recreation of Kephallonia.[14] After Kassandra saved her, Phoibe bid farewell to her friend for the final time and passed through the doorway to Elysium to be reunited with her parents.[15]

Legacy[]

During the 9th century CE, millenia after Phoibe's death, while Kassandra, who had been granted immortality by the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus, was exploring the Cave of Gold on the Isle of Skye, the Apple of Eden located there projected illusions from Kassandra's past. One of these specters was a recreation of Chara, Phoibe's wooden eagle, and its appearance caused Kassandra to stop and take some time to mourn her old friend.[16]

Personality and traits[]

Phoibe was a feisty girl with a passionate sense of independence. These qualities endeared her to Kassandra, but her stubbornness nonetheless challenged their relationship at times. Regardless, she managed to always maintain an optimistic approach in most circumstances.[17]

Behind the scenes[]

Phiobe is a character introduced in the 2018 video game Assassin's Creed: Odyssey, and is voiced by the Greek actor Olivia Lebedeva-Alexopoulou. Her name, Φοιβη, is Greek and derives from the word φοιβος (phoibos), meaning 'bright, pure'.

A replica of Phoibe's wooden eagle, Chara, can be interacted with in the modern day.

Gallery[]

Appearances[]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Assassin's Creed: Odyssey novel – Chapter 1
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Assassin's Creed: OdysseyPerikles's Symposium
  3. 3.0 3.1 Assassin's Creed: OdysseyDebt Collector
  4. 4.0 4.1 Assassin's Creed: OdysseyThe Big Break
  5. Assassin's Creed: OdysseySo It Begins
  6. Assassin's Creed: OdysseyA Fight with Talos
  7. Assassin's Creed: OdysseyThe Blood Fever
  8. Assassin's Creed: OdysseyThe Wolf's Fate
  9. Assassin's Creed: OdysseyTo Find a Girl
  10. 10.0 10.1 Assassin's Creed: OdysseyAnd the Streets Run Red
  11. 11.0 11.1 Assassin's Creed: OdysseyWe Remember
  12. Assassin's Creed: Odyssey – The Fate of Atlantis: Torment of HadesLost, but Not Forgotten
  13. Assassin's Creed: Odyssey – The Fate of Atlantis: Torment of HadesA Young Warrior's Ghosts
  14. Assassin's Creed: Odyssey – The Fate of Atlantis: Torment of HadesUndoing What's Been Done
  15. Assassin's Creed: Odyssey – The Fate of Atlantis: Torment of HadesThe Warrior, the Eagle Bearer
  16. Assassin's Creed: ValhallaAssassin's Creed Crossover StoriesWhat Dreams May Come
  17. Assassin's Creed: Odyssey

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