HERACLES

EXCERPT

In those days, there lived in the forests of Nemea a huge and terrifying lion. It had the strength of ten ordinary lions and its hide was so tough that neither arrow, lance nor the keenest sword could pierce it. It was the offspring of Typhoon, the monster who had wrestled with Zeus himself, and the equally fearsome Echidna, half woman and half snake. Its brothers and sisters were the Lernaean Hydra, Cerberus, Chimaera, the Sphinx and other hideous monsters whom the gods themselves were afraid to face in combat.

When Eurystheus saw this monstrous lion in his dream, he let out such a shriek that the whole palace came running to see what else had befallen their “great” king.

But as soon as Eurystheus realized he had only been dreaming, he took courage and a crafty smile stole across his features. Now he knew just where to send Heracles so he might never set eyes on him again.

In a cracked and petulant voice he immediately called, not for Heracles, of course, but for Copreus, his herald. He called and called again, sounding more like an old shrew than a king, and when the herald was finally found and appeared before him he was ordered to go straight to Heracles and convey the command of the “mighty king of Mycenae”: to hunt down and kill the Nemean lion.

Copreus, whose name means “dung” in Greek, by the way, could hardly wait to deliver his master’s wishes. It was no small honour to give orders to such a hero.

When Heracles heard this he had no suspicion of the kind of lion he had been pitted against, and imagined he would be able to kill it easily. So, taking up the club he had used against the lion of Cithaeron, he slung his bow and quiver over his shoulder and set off for Nemea.

Copyright © by Dimitris Stefanidis. All rights reserved.