Jason isn't going to stay dead
In Blood of Olympus, Jason tells the story of the Gods' arrival to fight against the Giants to his and Piper's grandchildren. A pretty good sign he's gonna get resurected- That was just inner narration.
- You know, if Rick wants to get going on that big, inter-mythology crossover he's been teasing for a while, a Greek demigod waking up in Valhalla would be a pretty good starting point...
Dare Enterprises is involved in the Triumvirate's actions
In "The Last Olympian" Percy has a vision of Rachel and her father talking, when "He gazed at the New York skyline as if he owned it- which wasn't true. He only owned part of it". He may not be fully aware, but as a wealthy landowner in New York, it's highly likely he's involved in the Emperor's plans. Other Roman Emperors are still around
For those familiar with the Imperial Cult (the thing supporting the Triumvirate, supposedly), the cult wasn't just for the evil emperors, but was around for the better ones too. Created by the senate and the original Octavian (Augustus), Julius Caesar was name Divus Caesar and arose (accordingly) to godhood after his assassination. After his death, temples were dedicated to Augustus and he, like his predecessor was deified by the senate. Many others, of course, were deified by their successor and the senate as well (historically, this didn't include Nero, but Nero is crazy enough to get around this minor obstacle and probably had some worshippers behind the scenes). The Imperial Cult as a source of divine-making fuel, however, probably isn't one-sided. By this logic, other Roman Emperors might have stuck around, and they might be much more willing to help as well... After all, if there can be good Titans and a good Giant, why can't there be good emperors?- The Five Good Emperorsnote (Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius) might be the key to defeating the Triumvirate. Gods know that the thought of facing Trajan alone could probably send Nero running into the Labyrinth in terror!
- Adding onto that, the Five Good Emperors are part of the same dynasty as Commodus - one of them was his father. (Marcus Aurelius)
- It would also be interesting to see Julius Caesar classic, since he's the most famous Roman emperor. Maybe all of his followers refer to him as Caesar, and the party tries to figure out which one he is before realizing that it's him And it would be funny if Octavian of the present really did look exactly like Octavian of antiquity.
- To add to this, here is a little known fact; Constantine, Rome's first Christian emperor, still had a pagan imperial cult dedicated to him. In fact according to The Other Wiki (see here
), the Imperial cult continued all the way until the time of Anastasius I in the 6th century (albiet in a form more resembling Catholic veneration of saints than outright worship). So I guess there is at least one Christian emperor still walking around?
The reason of Apollo and Calypso's mutual dislike towards each other.
Apollo seems to dislike Calypso and the feeling seems quite mutual. In the book, Apollo said he always voted against freeing her from her imprisonment. I think Apollo, being the arrogant guy he is. tried to hit on her at one point and she rejected him. So out of spite, he tried to make sure she never made it off the island. One of the two remaining members of the Triumvirate is Caligula
If you're going for the most insane Roman Emperors he falls pretty nicely in line with Nero and is part of the Julian line too.- The third member could be Diocletian.
- Hazel: "The nuns at St. Agnes taught us that Diocletian was a huge villain, right alongside Nero and Caligula." House of Hades page 265. Maybe some foreshadowing.
- While the third is implied to be Caligula, the second is not Diocletian but instead Commodus.
- The second prophecy refers to the "master of the swift white horse." Caligula had a prized white horse named Incitatus, which is Latin for "swift", and he is known for appointing said horse to his Senate.
- Meg mentioned the last emperor was Nero's "kinsman". Caligula was Nero's uncle.
- It's definitely Caligula- the prophecy mentions "walking in his boots", and Caligula's name means "little boots".
- And it is in fact Caligula. Caligula scared Apollo even as a mere mortal and he a god.
The Diary of Luke Castellan will have some sort of effect on the story
For all of Apollo's many sphere of influence, these books seem to be focusing on his status as god of prophecy. In The Diary of Luke Castellan, Luke and Thalia Grace meet an elderly son of Apollo, Halcyon Green, who used his ability to see the future to save a young girl's life, and Apollo punished him severely for meddling where he didn't belong. He was imprisoned in his home, forced to wear the skin of the Python, lost his voice, and forced to watch as leucrotae used his voice to lure demigods in to murder. Hal died helping Luke and Thalia blow up his home with Greek fire so they could escape, but not before giving Luke his diary, full of his prophecies. We know the diary is extant, because Riordan in his capacity as camp scribe was able to publish Luke's first entry. The foreword of The Demigod Diaries mentions that Hal's house has been mysteriously rebuilt. Thalia, who would be able to find the place again, is also a servant of Apollo's twin sister. And we know Riordan is not above pulling a Chekhov's Gun from his short story collections. Perhaps, at some point, Apollo, in the middle of his father's harsh punishment, will be forced to revisit the punishment inflicted on his own son? Zeus and Apollo are pulling a Memory Gambit
- Alright. Let us suppose that Zeus, Apollo, and the other Olympians had some clue as to what the Triumvirate is up to, but couldn't directly interfere due to the Triuvirate's stranglehold on the Oracles. So Zeus strips Apollo of his divine powers and knowledge, thus as a corollary bestowing on him the mortal gift of free will. He then drops him in a spot where his fate will become entwined with Meg's, and hopes for the best.
- Zeus probably will claim it was all his plan, because he's Zeus.
- Adding to this, it would make sense that he chose Apollo, rather than ordering a demigod quest. Not only do they not have any prophecies thanks to Python, but the emperors have been watching the demigods for ages, and probably have strategies prepared to deal with Percy, Jason, etc, such as how Caligula's troops couldn't be charmspoken. However, Apollo is an unknown, impossible-to-predict variable (with incredible amounts of knowledge about the mythological world), and in Meg, he's got a powerful, well-trained demigod who's familiar with the emperors and how they operate.
- Confirmed on both counts—he claims it was his plan all along. Whether it actually was a plan...
- Zeus probably will claim it was all his plan, because he's Zeus.
The Triumvirate are the media depiction or conspiracy theorist of the Illumnati
Not sure how crazy are the WMG are allowed to be but with Triumvirate having playing a major role in the economy they may even feed on conspiracy theory as a form of belief. This may have something to do with civil religion and the Apotheosis of Washington. (Do they get their own pantheon or they are stuck with Greco-roman mythology with the early books mention something about the founding fathers )With the increasing (if tangential) references to Christianity, and the establishment of a Crossover Cosmology, it's almost inevitable that Abrahamic figures might pop up at some point, and who better to butt heads with Apollo than Lucifer himself? Both beings...1. Are incredibly egotistical
2. Associated to some degree with Light and glowing heavenly bodies (the Sun and Morningstar)
3. Were considered one of the most awesome individuals in their respective lore before falling from grace.
4. Were kicked out of their realms by their divine father figures.
5. Are very good with words (Apollo being the god of poetry and song; Lucifer being the "Father of Lies")
As for what Lucifer wants with Apollo...well, not all WMGs are perfect
- Well, Satan is generally considered a master manipulator, so him associating with someone like Lester - who may one day be Apollo once again - isn't hard to imagine. Lester needs all the help he can get, and we all know about how the devil loves to help... for a price. And a god could afford a great deal... Also, in some traditions he's considered one of the greatest musicians ever as well.
- Building on the above, Satan will either be in charge of Triumvirate Holding's PR Department or heading a rival corporation that's interested in seeing the former's downfall, resulting in an Enemy Mine situation between Apollo and Old Scratch.
- Jossed
Tartarus (Primordial) will reappear.
He'd no doubt want revenge for the defeat of Gaea, so who's to say he won't involve himself in whatever war begins now? The locations of the other Triumvirate members
Near the end of The Lost Oracle, the characters speculate that the three Emperors are each based out of a different third of the country, and that since Nero is in New York (in the eastern third of the country), the second is in the middle third (speculation: either St. Louis or somewhere in Texas). Logically, this means the last is somewhere in the western third, so why not Las Vegas, which is already known to house something out of Greek myth (the Lotus Hotel and Casino)?- It is heavily implied that the next oracle is in Indiana though that doesn't rule out the second triumvirate member's base being in St. Louis or Texas.
- Jossed; the second Triumvirate member IS based out of Indianapolis Indiana, and the third is in California.
Meg is a daughter of Gaea
Meg is said to be a daughter of Demeter, but it's strange that she can command Peaches, a karpoi, when they say that they hate Demeter. It also seems strange that Nero adopted her out of all the other demigods who work for him. What makes her so important that he'd kill her father and take her in before she was eleven? Children of non-Big Three gods are powerful, but not very many of them visibly manifest their powers before puberty, Harley being an exception. Sure, Demeter claimed her, but that might to be to protect her and prevent her from being persecuted.- It's possible that Nero just happened to get his hands on her first, but this is also a valid guess.
One of the Triumvirate may actually be Good All Along or long gave up the thoughts on revenge and is just enjoying all the power he holds
It would make for a more complex thought - I mean, Nero is Obviously Evil. If Caligula is another member he would be Obviously Evil. But one who honestly doesn't care about revenge and just likes having a lot of economic power would make an interesting dilemma - treat him like he's evil or consider "eh, he's learned his lesson".- Jossed Commodus is batshit crazy.
- Jossed even more: Caligula killed Jason Grace. You don't get allowed in the hero club for doing that. this isn't Marvel and he ain't Clint Barton.
Jimmy's father is Shango
.The Yoruban people are mentioned, Jimmy is one himself from Nigeria, Apollo tells Thalia that he comes from another tradition, Jaime is shown using a double bladed axe that uses lightning - signs seem to point to Shango. The Yoruban pantheon will be the next series after Magnus Chase
Riordan introduces Olujime, a Yoruban demigod, and just expects us to accept the fact that there are other types of demigods out there and not elaborate? No way! He mentioned Annabeth having an uncle and cousin in the last book of Heroes of Olympus, suddenly the next series after the demigods and magicians novellas is about said cousin. Riordan likes to foreshadow things.- Likely, a lot of people have Yoruba blood in the states (even in Brasil!) and Eshu will probably be the villain.
Georgina is an Oracle
She survives with Trophonius's message inside of her without any care or relief, when Apollo said that the Dark Oracle's survival rate is dismal even with aid. Trophonius calls her his sister because of their similar stations. When Apollo thinks that she's his daughter, Trophonius just smirks and leaves, suggesting that he's wrong.- Well if she is an oracle, she is definitely not the Erythraean Sybil since it is established that that one is in the American southwest, likely Vegas. And Rachel is the oracle of Delphi so she is either the Sybil of Cumae or a new sixth oracle.
Iphigenia, as in, the daughter of Agamemnon, is a hunter of Artemis
Thalia refers to one of the hunters as Iphigenia, and as the hunters of Artemis are immortal, she could have been around for a long time. One version of the myth has Iphigenia being replaced by a deer instead of killed, and while there is a greek tragedy that says that she became a priestess of Artemis in Tauris, I'm going to ignore it and say she became a hunter instead. Meg will betray Apollo
Her leaving Nero offscreen feels way too easy.- Agreed.
- It makes sense - she'll betray Apollo because she's more afraid of Nero (or the third) than she is Commodus. She'll happily side with him against Commodus because he doesn't scare her - Nero does.
- What I think will happen is that Meg will kill the third member of the Pantheon, frame it on Commodus, and then at the end of the book, Nero kills Commodus to deny Apollo the chance to do it again.
- At least partially Jossed—Commodus is killed by Apollo, and Caligula is killed by Frank.
- Jossed.
We'll see another member of a separate pantheon in the next few books
Someone will pop up whose the kid of or a member of another Pantheon. Possibly Celtic given that The Ship of the Dead mentioned them a couple of times.- Jossed. Although Apollo does mention the Celtic pantheon once or twice in the final book.
Grover is going to die
No one important's died in the Riordanverse in a while, and something had gotten Annabeth and Percy really upset at the end of Ship of the Dead. Grover's death certainly qualifies, plus given the theories that the third emperor is Caligula someone has to die horribly.- The emperor may have been Caligula, but it wasn't Grover who Caligula brutally murdered. It was Jason.
Frank is going to die
See the above, plus factor in his little wood of life.- Jossed: wrong Roman Praetor.
Apollo will only defeat Nero... specifically, The Beast
So hear me out. What I think will happen is that the third member of the Triumvirate is built up as being even worse than Commodus and Nero, so bad that even Nero fears him and has Commodus as a buffer between them. But Meg is with Apollo right now... the keyword being right now. She's there on a secret mission - to kill the third member of the Triumvirate. Nero will then frame Apollo for it (at least to Commodus), then kill Commodus and frame Apollo for it (while denying him the pleasure of killing Commodus again). Thus, Apollo will end up defeating Nero.- Meg killing Caligula is jossed. Frank killed Caligula and badly injured Commodus; Apollo finished off Commodus.
The Triumvirate can potentially block the Gods from seeing their own children
While it's known that the gods aren't always the best parents (ie, Apollo thinking it would be a good idea to check up on Louis XIV long after he died), it seems really weird that they might not notice something, especially after they were called out on it. But why would they not notice? Well, maybe because the Triumvirate have become gods of their own sort, they can block the other gods from seeing them, allowing them to control children like Meg. (Really, just how come Demeter of all people would be like that? Unless Zeus forbade her from interfering, but why wait until now?) The series will conclude with Apollo having his Godhood restored, but, not wanting to leave the demigods he's grown to care about behind, he will become the new director of Camp Half-Blood in Dionysus's old place.
The series seems to be building up that Apollo is becoming more and more human and starting to get attached to these demigods. What better ending for him then to be able to stay with them, but keep his godly powers? Particularly helped by the fact that, in Camp Half-Blood Confidential, it's revealed that Apollo was the one who gave Chiron the idea for Camp Half-Blood in the first place, so he would be the best God to run it. It'll probably be another punishment nominally-speaking, but, naturally, Apollo won't see it that way. Plus, hey, the campers deserve a Godly director who actually gives a damn.- Jossed, but he will be coming by to check in on them.
The series won't end with the Triumvirate defeated.
I believe that Apollo will free Meg from Nero's control, bring back the oracles, defeat Python, and ascend back to godhood, but the Triumvirate won't be defeated in Trials of Apollo. They will be defeated in a book that crosses over all 5 of the book series. When you think about it the Romans were just as much of an enemy of Egypt as they were for the Greeks, so I think the House of Life will want to get in on this and I imagine Magnus would want to help his cousin. Percy, Jason, Carter, Sadie, and Magnus will be the narrators and it will be the longest book Rick has ever written. It can be called "Clash of the Pantheons".- It's also possible that one or two Emperors, like Commondus, are defeated, but are replaced a la Ocean Master and Black Manta. Adding to the idea of the Triumverate battling others is their use of the Yoruba Demigod Olijume as a gladiator and their mention in Magnus's book somewhat frequently.
- Jossed; all three are defeated.
One of the Triumverate once wielded Riptide
Rick never did mention much of the sword's 'tragic history', and he's been getting better at doing callbacks recently. Perhaps the third emperor, who is probably Caligula, once had it. Perhaps he even magically takes it and uses it to kill Grover or Frank.Cassandra will appear eventually
Apollo laments his mistakes, and thinks that he'll have to go around fixing every one of them. Directly ruining a single person's life, especially for something as petty as spurning him, will haunt him. She won't be a member of the Triumvirate, because even if they're Genre Savvy enough to know that Cassandra Truth exists, they won't believe that she's really Cassandra due to her curse.- Jossed.
We'll eventually see Octavian's family in Book 4
And while it will not excuse Octavian's behavior, we will get an understanding of why he was that way.- Jossed.
Hylla, not Raina, is Bellona's daughter from the prophesy
The protagonists jumped to conclusions very quickly. Or maybe both of them will go into the tomb, just to be safe.- Jossed, it was Reyna.
Apollo will encounter one of his mortal exes
And it will be incredibly awkward.- Jossed
Granny Zhang will appear in Book 4
She'd be there to support her grandson, and would supply confirmation of Chinese mythology being true in the universe as had been the pattern in previous books.She had mentioned the mythology before, but it would be more clear here that it is real, and not just stories.
Granny Zhang: And I thought the Jade Emperor was a jerk.
Apollo: Don't remind me of him, he make Zeus look reasonable.
- Jossed, she hasn't appeared in person since The Son of Neptune.
Alcyoneus will appear in Book 4
He played a pretty massive role in Son of Neptune, but we never did find out what happened to him in Blood of Olympus. Plus, Medea appeared in Book 3, and Lityerses appeared in Book 2, so this theory has some merit as Rick is using more villains from Heroes of Olympus that had unused potential. And Book 4 would be most appropriate for him to appear in, since he largely antagonised Camp Jupiter and Hazel and Frank (who are appearing in the Tyrant's Tomb).- Jossed.
A child of Bacchus will appear in Book 4
Because we've never gotten to know a Dionysus/Bacchus half-blood before, and now would be an interesting time to show us what they can do.- Well Dakota did show up in Book 4....and died.
Aristophanes is related to Meow-Dad from Rick Riordan Presents
He's absent during The Tower of Nero because (according to Mr. D) he had a meeting with a cat (Bast) and a severed head (Mimir). Perhaps they're comparing notes about the upcoming major crossover? Nero rescued Luguselwa from being sacrificed to Lugus
Lu says that she works for him because he rescued her, and she owes him. Since her name means 'beloved of Lugus', and if the Gauls were known for human sacrifice, she was supposed to be sacrificed to Lugus. For whatever reason, Nero saved her, and she owes him her life. Apollo knows "future" pop-cultural references because he's the god of prophecy.
Kind of self-explanatory. But it especially applies with references to music — since he's the god of music and poetry as well — hence his ability to sing Love is an Open Door from Frozen (released 2013) and reference My Shot from Hamilton (released 2015) when the series supposedly takes place in 2011. Doesn't explain everyone else's ability to make "future" pop culture references, but it definitely makes sense for Apollo, at least a little bit.