Styx

For the American rock and roll band of the late 1970s and early 1980s, see Styx (band).

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Styx is the network protocol at the heart of the Inferno operating system.

http://www.vitanuova.com/inferno/papers/styx.html

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In Greek mythology, Styx ("(river of) hate") is the name of a river which formed the boundary between earth and the underworld, Hades. It circles Hades nine times.

The gods respected the Styx and swore binding oaths by it. Zeus swore to give Alcmene whatever she wanted and was then obliged to follow through, resulting in her death. Helios similarly promised Phaeton whatever he desired, also resulting in his death. Gods that did not follow through on such an oath had to drink from the river, causing them to lose their voices for nine years.

Styx was primarily a feature in the afterworld of Greek Mythology, but has been described as a feature present in the hell of christianity as well, notably in the Divine Comedy. The ferryman Charon is in modern times commonly believed to have transported the souls of the newly dead across this river into the underworld, though in actuality it was the river Acheron that Charon plied.

Styx is also the name of a primordial goddess who represented that river. She was a daughter of Erebus and Nyx. With Pallas, she was the mother of Zelus, Nike, Cratos and Bia (and sometimes Eos).