The Slaying of the Hydra (1)
Heracles surveyed the bodies of the Nemean Lion and its monstrous progeny, now lying lifeless around him.
He then hefted the lion's corpse over his shoulder and began his walk toward the temple of the goddess Hera.
After all, proof was needed to report the beast’s defeat.
“A... Amazing. Look at that man carrying a lion’s corpse.”
“Isn’t that the Nemean Lion? But wasn’t that place crawling with monstrous lions?”
“Who is that man?”
“To kill a child of Typhon! Even Bellerophon only achieved such a feat by trading his life...”
Naturally, people were shocked to see the massive lion’s corpse.
News that a muscular giant had completely wiped out a pride of lions spread quickly.
Along the way, Heracles encountered a middle-aged man preparing to make an offering to the gods.
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“Amazing...! The Nemean Lion! Thank you so much! You have avenged my child!”
“...?”
“My name is Molorcus, a shepherd. I lost my child to that creature on your shoulder.”
“What brings you to me?”
“I would like to treat a hero like you to a meal. Would you join me at my home?”
Molorcus introduced himself as a shepherd who had been preparing an offering to the gods, praying for the Nemean Lion’s defeat when he stumbled upon Heracles.
Heracles paused and decided to accept the invitation to Molorcus’s home, where they conversed further.
“So, you’re headed to Hera’s temple?”
“Yes, I need to present this corpse as proof for the goddess’s task.”
“Why not wear its hide instead of taking the whole corpse? The Nemean Lion is famous for its thick hide, a fitting reward for a great hero.”
Taking Molorcus’s suggestion, Heracles began skinning the lion on the spot, adjusting it to fit his body.
This meant merely removing impurities and tailoring it to his body’s proportions...
Rip- Tear-
“Wouldn’t it be easier to use the creature’s claws to skin it? Why bare-handed... wait, how is that even possible?”
“Its claws couldn’t even scratch me. Ripping it by hand seemed easier.”
“What...?!”
Perhaps it was because the Nemean Lion was now dead.
As Heracles tugged on the hide, it tore more easily than expected, though it still required considerable effort.
He could tell that the hide’s strength had lessened significantly since the creature’s demise.
Draped in the lion’s hide, Heracles took his leave from Molorcus’s home and resumed his journey toward Hera’s temple.
“Is that the lion hide? So he’s the one who wiped out the pride of Nemean Lions?”
“That man who once lay prostrate before the temple of Hera has become a hero.”
“What a feat, rivaling Orion and Bellerophon...”
By the time he reached Hera’s temple, rumors about him had spread widely.
He hadn’t hurried back after killing the lions, taking his time to see the world along the way, so it was no surprise that word had gotten out.
“Welcome, Heracles. The oracle regarding your second task has arrived.”
The High Priestess of Hera seemed unsurprised, already aware of his completion of the first task and indifferent to the lion hide draped around him.
“The second task is to defeat the Hydra at the spring of Lerna in the southern region of Argos.”
‘The Hydra, like the Nemean Lion, is another child of Typhon,’ Heracles mused.
He thought about the Hydra as he left Hera’s temple.
The Hydra was a monstrous water serpent with nine heads, its entire body filled with deadly venom that could cause excruciating pain even to the gods.
The spring of Lerna, where the Hydra resided, was a magical spring and a sacred site gifted by Poseidon to a human lover, Amymone.
Yet, once the Hydra took residence, the water became so poisoned that it became infamous for its pollution.
As he pondered ways to counteract the venom, someone blocked his path.
A young man with white hair, looking somewhat frail and sickly.
“Heracles. I knew you’d be here.”
“Asclepius? I thought you were with Jason?”
“Jason? That guy is still training because of you. The other guys, too.”
Asclepius, the demigod son of Princess Coronis of Thessaly and the sun god Apollo, was akin to a peer to Heracles.
Acknowledged for his remarkable medical skills, he had been chosen by the gods from Thebes and taken to the underworld.
Whenever Heracles sparred with other aspiring heroes and broke their limbs...
“Let’s see. Breaking this bone immobilizes him. Shall I go a bit further?”
“Argh! Asclepius, you madman! Just heal me!”
“Hold on. Let me examine it a bit more for the advancement of medicine. Hmm. This bone is sticking out, so if I turn it like this...”
“Aaaaagh! What kind of quack is he to come here with medical talent?!”
He was a man always busy examining things, with a sparkle in his eyes.
Since he had little interest in martial arts, Asclepius was one of the few heroes who did not envy Heracles.
When it came time to leave the underworld, the two had become good friends.
“I rushed here when I heard you wiped out the Nemean Lion pride. Show me your wounds!”
“...I’m tired, but I’m not injured.”
“Hmm. I was hoping for something, but even that lion couldn’t hurt you.”
“It was nothing special. The hard part was dealing with Lady Hera’s tasks. Not like I asked to be born as Lord Zeus’s illegitimate son...”
As Heracles muttered with a vein popping on his forehead, Asclepius flinched and clamped his hand over Heracles’s mouth.
“Shh! Shh! Even in a whisper, don’t say things like that aloud.”
“...I know. But still, sending me animal dung was just...”
“What can you do? It rarely ends well when a mortal gets entangled with the gods.”
Heracles closed his mouth, still looking dissatisfied.
Watching his expression, Asclepius sighed and added,
“...Well, except for Lord Pluto, the god of mercy and justice.”
“That’s true. If it hadn’t been for a few words from my uncle, then...”
“What? You met Lord Pluto? Damn, I’m a bit envious.”
Their conversation gradually shifted back to Heracles’s task.
As Asclepius heard that Heracles’s second task was to slay the Hydra, he frowned.
“Anyway, I couldn’t create an antidote for the Hydra’s venom, so be careful.”
“...I’m aware.”
The Hydra’s venom was a poison among poisons, capable of bringing agony even to the gods.
Even his skin, fortified by the waters of the River Styx, might not be immune.
But if he avoided direct contact with the venom, perhaps he could withstand the poison mist...
“Oh, I’ve heard that the Nemean Lion’s hide you’re wearing is immune to Hydra venom.”
“This? Really?”
“Yes, since it’s also a child of Typhon. But if any part of your skin not covered by the hide gets touched, it’ll be dangerous. Here, this cloth is blessed with my father Apollo’s power. I hope it helps.”
“Thanks for that. Now, I’ve got a Hydra to kill. See you next time.”
The hero of strength shrugged off Asclepius and headed off to tackle his second task, the slaying of the Hydra.
“The next task after the Nemean Lions is the Hydra, I see.”
“That little baby has become a hero in no time.”
“Humans grow faster than expected.”
Naturally, I, Hades, along with the other gods of the underworld, had been watching his journey.
When word spread that Heracles had wiped out the Nemean Lions without a scratch in a single day,
the gods of Olympus and beyond took notice.
Chiron, Lady Megaera, and I suspected that no ordinary task would satisfy him, but other gods were probably shocked.
Some even seemed to think it was sheer luck.
“Though slaying a child of Typhon does make him a hero on par with Bellerophon, it won’t end well.”
“Even if Hades immersed him in the River Styx, the Hydra’s venom is...”
“Indeed. Even we gods would feel extreme pain if touched by the Hydra’s venom.”
For a god to be touched by the Hydra’s venom is nearly impossible.
At the level of the twelve Olympians, not even the lesser deity Mente could imagine being struck by it.
Any god with sufficient divinity could kill the beast from afar.
The only reason the Hydra, with its dangerous venom, hasn’t been slain is precisely because of this.
But for mortals, it’s a different story.
“Hades, do you think Heracles will die here? Will you help him?”
“...Is that what the others think?”
The goddess Lethe spoke carefully, worry evident in her expression, as I glanced at the other gods nearby.
Other death gods—Ceres, Moros, Mente, and Hypnos—exchanged glances.
“Well, would the River Styx water protect against the Hydra’s venom?”
“I’m not sure he’s the hero of prophecy, but slaying the Nemean Lion makes him a great hero...”
“Perhaps we could just keep an eye on him and send a divine beast to save him if necessary?”
“He does seem promising. While I understand Hera’s reasons, it does seem a bit harsh...”
Most believed that Heracles would fall to the Hydra.
But Heracles is the greatest hero in history; he won’t be defeated that easily.
Of course. Even if external factors intervene.
“For now, let’s watch. If he can’t handle this, we can’t take him into battle against the Giants.”
“But...”
“I’ve ensured that Hera won’t deliver a fatal punishment. She’ll torment him with tasks, but...”
How many trials could challenge a mortal, fortified by the River Styx and Hera’s milk?
Especially one trained by Chiron and who sparred with the Furies?
As long as there isn’t direct punishment from the twelve Olympians, Heracles remains an invincible hero.
I had no worries about Heracles.
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TL Notes:
The line "As long as there isn’t direct punishment from the twelve Olympians, Heracles remains an invincible hero" refers to the concept that Heracles, strengthened by the waters of the River Styx and protected by the gods, is nearly invulnerable. In mythology, while Heracles faces numerous deadly challenges during his labors, his status as a hero under divine favor—especially from his father Zeus and protection from other gods like Athena and Hephaestus—grants him a form of supernatural resilience.
However, direct punishment from the Olympians would be beyond what even Heracles could withstand. This reflects the hierarchy in Greek mythology: while heroes like Heracles are extraordinarily powerful, they are still ultimately mortal and vulnerable to the divine might of the gods. The twelve Olympians, being the highest-ranking gods in Greek mythology, have powers that far exceed those of demigods and heroes, even one as powerful as Heracles. Thus, his heroism is monumental, but he remains subject to the will and might of the Olympians themselves.