Depending on your godly parent, you may be subject to some nasty and dehumanizing stereotypes upon your arrival at Camp Half-Blood.
Athena’s children are often branded as stuffy know-it-alls. Ares’s brood are seen as aggressive and ultra-competitive. And Hermes’s kids . . . well, let’s just say that they’ll find a way to ruin your day one way or another.
As for Apollo’s offspring? They’re known throughout the campgrounds as . . . *checks notes* highly charismatic, talented, courageous, sunny, warm, fun to be around, supportive to their friends and allies . . .
Wait, that can’t be right. Are Apollo’s children seriously the most well-adjusted and reliable demigods at CHB? Is the sun god lowkey the most stable parental influence that the Pantheon has to offer? Let’s shine a spotlight on a few of Apollo’s most accomplished kids and find out.
Will Solace, the Glowing Golden Boy
If Apollo’s kids are truly famous for their positive attitudes and friendly demeanor, Will Solace should take some, if not most of the credit. Not only is he the current head counselor of Apollo’s cabin and CHB’s most prominent healer, but Will is also one of the few campers who sticks around the camp during the off-season to handle emergencies. Or at least when his mother, the famous country singer-songwriter Naomi Solace, is on tour (Tickets on sale now!).
We’re very grateful that Will is always around to help campers new and old, whether they need to venture into hostile enemy territory with a skilled and experienced field medic or they just need to talk about their feelings.
Will was already the demigod everyone would turn to when they needed a helping hand, but in the past year, this child of Apollo has really stepped up. Between a life-threatening trip to deepest pits of Tartarus to confront a primordial goddess and a Mist-breaking battle with the malicious Court of the Dead, Will is well on his way to becoming a demigod hero just as legendary as his seniors Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase.
Now, you could say that Will was dragged into those recent conflicts by his boyfriend, Nico di Angelo. And yes, that might be somewhat true. But as we all know, routinely being whisked off on dangerous, death-defying adventures is a perk of dating any child of the Big Three. And certainly not a red flag.
. . . Maybe a yellow flag?
Kayla Knowles, the Ace Archer
Kayla is undoubtedly the top archer at Camp Half-Blood. If you disagree, take it up with her directly. But she didn’t inherit her skills with a bow only from Apollo. Her mortal father, Darren Knowles, is a highly accomplished archery coach.
Consider her accomplishments against Kronos’s Titan army during the Battle of Manhattan. Or during the assault on Nero’s Tower when Apollo/Lester was trapped in his super awkward teenage boy era. Kayla was able to juggle attacks from Nero’s forces while also tending to the wounds of said awkward teenage father. Healing an injured god between facing down massive Germani warriors? That elf dude from Middle Earth could never.
These days—when she’s not busy roasting her half-siblings—we’re certain that Kayla is spending most of her time training for a spot in the next Olympic Games. If you too are currently aiming for an archery qualification, we’ll we’re not quite sure what to say. Other than there’s no shame in silver!
Austin Lake, the Prodigious Performer
If Will Solace is the primary inheritor of Apollo’s healing abilities and Kayla reflects Apollo’s status as the god of archery, Austin Lake completes the trinity by adopting his father’s musical prowess. And thankfully for all of us, he’s taken up the saxophone, not the dreaded lyre.
Sure, Apollo can still cause even the most cynical teenage demigod to burst into tears with his sappy campfire ballads, but the so-called “god of music” better watch his back. Because Austin’s latest 17-minute jazz fusion solo vid has close to almost half a dozen hundred views on YouTube.
What can we say? Most great artists aren’t fully appreciated in their time. Although in Austin’s case, that might be because his genre of choice appeals mostly to the geriatric demo.
But hey, at least Austin’s musicality is useful in a pinch, like when he bravely busted out the sax to distract Nero’s followers while Apollo/Lester infiltrated the evil emperor’s tower. Not exactly the most welcoming crowd for an impromptu open mic, but no child of Apollo has ever succumbed to stage fright, not even in the most dire circumstances.
Miraculously, young Austin survived that hostile audience and is still jamming out at Camp Half-Blood to this day. And we can only assume that at least one of Nero’s goons developed a new appreciation of jazz fusion thanks to Austin’s performance. Certainly more danceable than whatever Nero’s been playing on his dorky fiddle.
Lee Fletcher and Michael Yew, the Fallen Friends
Unfortunately, not all of Apollo’s kids share a knack for survival in desperate situations. In recent years, two of Apollo’s demigod children met an untimely end before reaching adulthood: Lee Fletcher and Michael Yew.
Lee, the former head counselor of Apollo’s Cabin, made a name for himself when he stood firm against the assault on Camp Half-Blood by Kronos’s forces during The Battle of the Labyrinth. He even briefly led an attack on an Aethiopian Drakon with his fellow bunkmates. But tragically, Lee was felled by a strike from a giant in the deadly conflict.
Lee’s death marked a major turning point in the war between Olympus and the Titan Army. With demigod blood spilled on the grounds of Camp Half-Blood, many campers realized that they would need to rise to the occasion and put everything on the line in order to avenge their fallen comrades.
Michael Yew was one of the many demigods who were ready and willing to sacrifice themselves to save the world. As evidenced when he, along with other campers, drove an array of monsters off the Brooklyn Bridge at the cost of his own life during the climactic Battle of Manhattan.
But we don’t think Michael would want us to dwell on his heartbreaking final moments. We’re sure he’d rather be remembered as a loud, abrasive, and sometimes obnoxious firebrand who didn’t put up with any crap and routinely stood up to bullies twice his size. And one of the finest demigods ever to grace Camp Half-Blood.
Meg McCaffrey, the Unofficial Offspring
Yes, we know Meg isn’t technically the daughter of Apollo. But we felt inclined to include her on this list because her real godly parent, Demeter, never—
CRASH
Meg: Let me stop you right there!
Meg?! What are you doing here?
Meg: Trying to prevent this disingenuous slop from being published! “Unofficial Offspring? Give me a break.
Well, Meg, you did become close to Apollo during his weakest time. You traveled across the country with him. You had many adventures together. And even though you two had your fair share of turmoil, you both ultimately came together to defeat Nero, Commodus, and Caligula before they could take over the world.
Meg: I know exactly what you’re going for. Something like: Oh, isn’t it so heartwarming and adorable that the big, strong sun god took this poor young demigod under his wing and became the surrogate father she never knew she wanted. Ugh! Barf!
Let’s get something perfectly straight. I was the one who helped Apollo get back on his feet when he was trapped in a weak and puny mortal body. Doesn’t mean I thought of him as a parent or anything. He was my servant!
Oh, and by the way, he still owes me some drachma for the egg salad sandwich I got him during our trip to Indianapolis.
Apollo owes you money? Didn’t he gift you a unicorn?
Meg: Uh, yeah! And she’s bleeding me dry. I need every cent I can get. Horse food ain’t cheap. And neither is horn polish.
We’re sorry to hear that. Maybe you should have been more specific when you made your last wish to Apollo . . .
Meg: You’re totally right! I should have asked “dear old dad” for the ability to hit know-it-alls in the head with an arrow from 40 feet away like the rest of his kids.
Maybe next time . . .
And with that, let’s wrap things up, shall we?
What more is there to say other than, when it comes to Apollo, some apples fell far from the tree. Very far. But to us, they’re all golden. (Even the ones that were clearly bruised on the way down.)
Who’s your favorite child of Apollo? Be sure to let us know!