The Legend of Perseus: The Labors

Ch. 16

Ch. 16

Perseus felt something in his stomach.

On a normal day, he would have assumed it was just Heracles' cooking, which left a lot to be desired.

But today he knew that wasn't it. It wasn't indigestion from under cooked meat or one of Heracles' mystery stews.

No, this was unease about the plan Heracles had laid out two days prior. Though he couldn't find any faults with it, he just had a feeling it was a bad idea. He wasn't really sure why he felt that way but something about it seemed wrong.

They'd woken up at the crack of dawn and Heracles went right to work. He began at the edge of the stables and had been digging ever since. Midday was approaching and the heat was becoming more and more intense. Perseus tried to help but Heracles insisted he conserve his strength since they would only have one shot at this.

So Perseus just leaned against the stable's wooden fence and allowed the shade of the overhanging tree to shield him from the sun's harsh rays. Heracles was drenched in sweat as he continued digging. Perseus couldn't help but shake his head when he thought about how much they would have given for this heat just weeks earlier. The weather down in Elin was so different than what they'd trekked through on their last trial. Though it was a bit warm for his taste, he had no complaints after their capture of the Erymanthian Boar.

Heracles had made it almost halfway to the river from the edge of the stables, creating a trench roughly five feet deep and five feet wide.

He stopped digging and leaned back against the side of his trench, trying to catch his breath and get a break from the relentless heat. Perseus tossed a canteen of water in his direction which the son of Zeus caught and immediately inhaled.

"You want more?"

Heracles took a deep heaving breath and shook his head, "No, I'm fine. I need to keep working. Maybe you should go find Phyleus and tell him we've started the work."

"Ah, I dunno," Perseus yawned loudly. "It might be better if I stay rested."

Heracles sent him a half hearted glare and Perseus relented. He hopped the fence in one quick jump. When his feet hit the ground, they slid out from under him and he flopped onto his back, the squish of his landing had him screaming immediately.

He could hear Heracles roar in laughter, falling into his trench as he continued to howl in amusement.

"What the HADES!" Perseus bellowed as he jumped back to his feet. His back, which he'd left bare in the baking sun, was covered in a mixture of fresh and old manure. He bolted back over the fence and towards the river, grabbing a hunk of the feces on the back of his arm and tossing it at Heracles on his way to diving in the river.

He hit the water and began scrubbing his arm of the foreign substance. When he felt sufficiently clean, he was about to surface only to freeze when he found himself face to face with a pretty girl, only a few years older than him.

"What the..." he started to say before he noticed the elfish ears and slightly greenish tinge to her skin. He realized he was looking at a nymph. A river nymph to be exact. And this nymph did not seemed particularly pleased to be meeting his acquaintance.

He tried to speak but realized that wasn't possible under water. He created a bubble of air around him and tried for a friendly smile.

"Uh, hi, my name is..."

He was cut off, "I know who you are, Perseus, son of Poseidon."

"Oh," Perseus felt quite uncomfortable. Most nymphs he'd met were actually really nice. Water nymphs were especially nice to him, so this one's reaction was a little confusing. "Um, did I do something wrong?"