Ch. 21
For three full days, they walked with little conversation. Whenever Perseus tried to start a conversation, he received only short, curt responses from Heracles. Rather than try to push it, Perseus decided to let him decide when he wanted to talk again.
As Heracles worked on building the fire, Perseus gathered wood for the night. They had a small bit a of meat left from a hare that Heracles had shot the day before. Heracles was mixing it into a stew with a some lentils they had picked up from a farmer they'd passed earlier that day.
Perseus dropped his third armful of wood down beside the fire and sat down on a rock across the fire from Heracles, who did not look up from the stew.
A few moments later, the son of Zeus pulled two bowls from his pack and filled one up, handing it across the fire to his companion. When Perseus didn't take it, Heracles looked up with a look of annoyance.
"Aye," he grumbled, "dinner."
"No," Perseus said waving him off. "I'm good."
Heracles let out an annoyed sigh and continued to hold the bowl out to him, "Eat. You'll need your strength if we are to make it to Tiryns before nightfall on the morrow."
"I said I was fine." Perseus muttered, "I think I'll just get some sleep."
Heracles' eyes narrowed a little but he seemed unsure of what to say.
"Besides," Perseus continued, "I can't stand to have another meal in awkward silence waiting for you get over whatever has your loin clothe all twisted up."
Heracles' eyes widened for a second before they seemed to smolder in the firelight.
"You would mock me after what just happened with the gods?"
Perseus stared right back at him, not intimidated by the hulking man glaring daggers at him from across their campfire.
"I tried asking nicely," Perseus began, "then I tried to be patient. I'm running out of options for getting you to just vent whatever you're upset about."
Heracles looked ready to jump across the fire and smack Perseus when his shoulders suddenly slumped and the wind seemed to be sucked from his sails.
"How could I not be angry?" He shook his head. "All my life, despite every terrible thing that has happened to me, I've stayed faithful to the gods. Even when it was the gods themselves making my life miserable, I never once blamed my father."
Heracles took a deep breath like he was exorcising the anger and resentment he'd been carrying for days.
"And yet it is Dionysus," he stared into the flickering flames of the fire, "that chubby, drunk, clumsy demigod who is offered godhood. You were the true hero in the battle with the giants but still, my father rewards that demigod."
Perseus had been well aware of what Heracles was angry about but he had been waiting for Heracles to say it.
"It simply isn't just or fair." Heracles finally said. "I just don't get it. Why does he get such a reward while we are sent back to these unfair trials orchestrated by Hera?"
Perseus didn't say anything for almost a full minute. Then he turned and reached into his pack of belongings and pulled something out and tossed it across the fire to his friend. Heracles caught it then looked at it quizzically.
In his hand, Heracles held a small piece of cloth, no bigger than his hand.
"What..."
"For your tears," Perseus cut him off.
Heracles was too dumbfounded to respond. Then he suddenly stood up, a look to raw anger covering his face. "You play too many games, my young friend."
Perseus looked up at him but made no effort to stand. He actually looked completely relaxed as he let the fire warm his bones in the chilly night air.
"I play no games. What do you want from me? To console you and tell you that it isn't fair Dionysus became a god while we got nothing? Well, you're right. It isn't fair but neither are most things that happen to us. That's just life." Perseus spoke, with the wisdom of a man far older than his age. "Perhaps we weren't rewarded on that day but I believe that if we continue on the path the fates have laid out for us, that we will find our just reward in the end."
Heracles opened his mouth to retort but the words seemed to get lost in his throat. Instead he stared at his young friend before shaking his head and returning to his seat. A silence descended on the two heroes for several minutes before Heracles grabbed the bowl of stew again and offered it across the fire to Perseus.
This time Perseus took it, along with a wooden spoon and began shoveling it into his mouth. Heracles scooped himself out a bowl and did the same. Neither spoke until they had both finished two bowls of stew.
"So, are we good now?" Perseus finally asked.
Heracles slowly set down his empty bowl, "Aye," he nodded, "we are."
"Good," Perseus smiled and grabbed his wool blanket and made himself a comfortable spot lying beside the fire. "Then back to Tiyrns tomorrow. Then we start the next adventure for that miserable little man, Eurystheus."
They arrived in Tiryns as the sun began its descent and the final rays of light stretched across the city before them. As they walked through the gates of the city, a familiar looking herald hurried his way down to meet them before they could get any closer to the king's palace.
Without a word, Heracles reached into his pack and pulled out a pair of dead birds and tossed them on the ground in front of the herald, their bronze beaks making metallic clanging sounds as they bounced off the stone road.
The herald stepped back, looking down at the dead birds with a mixture of fear and disgust.
"Send a messenger to Arcadia." Heracles said, "they will confirm that the birds are gone from their lands."
The herald's lips curled into an ugly looking sneer, "Yes, we have heard." He held a rolled up piece of parchment out to Heracles. The son of Zeus yanked it from the herald's hand, making him flinch.
Heracles handed the scroll to Perseus then looked up to find the herald still standing there.
"Go on," Heracles made a shooing motion, "go crawl back to your hole. We have the king's message. Go peel grapes for the for your sire or something."
The herald's face reddened but he didn't dare retort to the two powerful demigods in front of him. He spun around making his robes flap before walking speedily back towards the king's palace.
Once he was gone, Heracles glanced over to Perseus who had unravelled the scroll and began to read it.
"Capture the Cretan Bull," Perseus read. "Return it to Tiryns for King Eurystheus to add to his herds."
When Perseus looked over at his friend, he found a sour look on his face.
"What?"
"Minos," Heracles said with audible bitterness. "He is King of Crete. He is a petty little man, powerful due to his wealth but nothing else."
"And the Cretan Bull?" Perseus asked.
Heracles cringed a little as he recalled the story of the bull. It's not a pleasant story."
Perseus tilted his head, unsure why Heracles was hesitating to elaborate. "So," he turned up his palms, "most stories about monsters aren't. Let's hear it."
"Well," Heracles began with a look that seemed to say, you asked for this, kid. "Minos asked your father for a snow-white bull, to confirm his right to rule over his brothers."
"My father?" He asked surprised.
Heracles held up his hand, indicating there was more to the story.
"Your father did indeed send Minos the bull, with the understanding that Minos would sacrifice the bull to Poseidon." He explained. "But Minos thought the bull was too fine a creature to sacrifice and instead sacrificed a different bull to Poseidon."
Perseus' eyes went a little wide, "Oh," he shook his head, "I'm guessing that didn't go over well."
"In his rage, Poseidon had Aphrodite curse Minos' wife to fall in love with the bull." Heracles said awkwardly. "And fall in love with the bull, she did. Minos' wife Pasiphae gave birth to a half-man, half-bull. A monster known as the Minotaur. From what I've heard, Minos forced the inventor Daedalus to build a maze to contain the beast, which is where it still lives."
Perseus' face looked a little pale, "Oh," he said quietly, "so I guess my father has a bit of dark side."
"Minos disrespected him," Heracles countered, surprised that this was the part of the story that bothered him most.
"Yes," Perseus agreed, "but his wife didn't. Yet she is the one who was punished. That isn't fair."
"Sometimes the gods are not fair," Heracles agreed. "A good friend recently explained that to me."
Perseus glared at him but didn't respond.
"Let's get some sleep. We will make for Crete in the morning." Heracles said, gesturing in the direction of their small hut.
Perseus still said nothing but slowly began to follow his friend towards the closest thing they had to a home. His thoughts though, continued to race. He wondered about his father. To dish out such a cruel punishment to an innocent woman, just to get back at her husband... It bothered him. He knew there was nothing he could do about it and tried to force the thoughts to the back of his mind so he could get some rest after their long journey the past four days.
Line Break
The next morning they set out for Athens. Heracles was in desperate need of supplies for their journey and Eurystheus never offered any help for their quests. In Athens, they would be able to find supplies specific to their needs, more specifically, celestial bronze arrows. Heracles knew a demigod son of Hephaestus who could provide the demigod specific weaponry he required.
Perseus had no need for the arrows Heracles required. The magical pendant from his father always appeared with a full quiver of arrows and seemed to replenish itself when its supply ran low.
They managed to reach the massive city-state in just a day's travel. Despite having been to the city a handful of times in his life, Perseus was still awestruck when the view of the city appeared ahead of them. Laid out on the side of a rocky hill, the city was breathtaking. The Acropolis stood at the summit of the hill, looking down at the city below. The Parthenon's marble pillars seemed to glow in the fading light of the sun. Perseus knew the great statue of Athena, the Athena Parthenos, stood in the center of the temple, providing her protection to the city that worshipped her above all other gods, save for Zeus.
Below the Acropolis, the city spread out along the rocky outcrops and into the more level plan below. Large buildings were placed sporadically amongst many smaller ones. Bronze braziers burned through the city, illuminating many of the buildings in the fading sunlight. Large stone walls surrounded the city, protecting it from any potential invading army.
Perseus was shook from his reveries as Heracles began to walk towards the city, knowing this was just a mere pitstop on their way to their destination.
It didn't take Heracles long to find the blacksmith he was looking for. In exchange for a pouch full of drachmas, he was provided with several quivers full of arrows.
After finding lodging for the night, they found a ship the next morning that would take them to Crete for a few drachmas and labor on the journey. Heracles quickly agreed and they stepped aboard the ship, ready to the short journey to Crete.
They helped load the cargo being sent to Crete and spent the duration of their journey working basically as cleaning wenches, scrubbing the deck of the ship and keeping their heads down. Fortunately, the journey was not a long one. The winds were favorable and they made it in just over a day. Once they arrived, the two heroes kept their word and worked the remainder of the day unloading cargo for the ship's captain.
Once they'd paid their debt for their passage to Crete, they decided to head right for the palace, despite the sun already beginning to set in the west.
As they approached the gates, a deep voice yelled from above them.
"Halt! Who approaches the palace of King Minos?" The guard yelled, his bow in hand, though he did not have an arrow notched, yet.
"Heracles, son of Zeus!" Heracles announced back. "And my young companion, Perseus, son of Poseidon."
Perseus looked incredulously at him, "Why would you announce that? They're going to think we're mad!" He hissed under his breath.
Heracles smiled and shook his head, "Have faith, my boy. I am no fool."
The guard didn't respond. Instead he turned and whispered something to his comrade beside him. The second guard listened, then glanced down at the two heroes, before he turned and ran off, disappearing from the top of gate, most likely climbing down some sort of steps to return to the castle.
For a long time, or at least that was how it felt to Perseus, they just stood at the gates, waiting. The guard above them said nothing else, just watched them, making sure they stayed where they were. Finally, after what felt like an hour but was more likely about fifteen minutes, the gates of the palace groaned and began to move, parting and leaving a path ahead towards the palace.
Before they could consider walking through the gates, a man strolled down the stone road leading to the palace, flanked by two guards on each side.
The man was very tall and wore flowing white robes. On his head he wore a thin royal circlet of gold and his neatly trimmed beard was pointed like a spear blade. His eyes, a striking blue, seemed to glitter coldly. He stopped ten feet away from the demigods and appeared to be waiting for something.
Heracles bowed his head slightly and Perseus decided it was probably best to do the same.
"My lord, King Minos," Heracles said respectfully.
Minos studied them for a long minute before responding. "So," he said coldly. "A son of Zeus and a son of Poseidon, what has brought you to my kingdom at this strange hour?"
Perseus opened his mouth to respond but was silenced with a quick glare from Heracles.
"My lord," Heracles said still bowing his head, "We were hoping for a more hospitable welcome from family." He picked up his head and looked at the king with a knowing expression. "I had hoped a sibling would at least welcome my companion and I with a warm meal so we could tell you of our travels."
Minos' face was blank, giving no indication of his thoughts. Then his lips curled into a small, slightly amused smile.
"Very well, son of Zeus. Come, we shall eat and you can regale me with your story and reason for coming to my kingdom."
Heracles gave a gracious bow and followed as Minos and his personal guard turned and retreated towards the palace. Heracles and Perseus followed behind them, through the gilded doorway and into the immaculately decorated halls. On each side of the hallway were beautifully pained murals of the gods in battle, none depicted more prominently than Zeus.
Finally they reached a large room with an intricately carved wooden table that almost stretched the length of the room. Dozens of seats lined each side of the table but Minos strode to the head of the table, taking a seat in a large bronze seat that looked more like a throne than a chair. He gestured for Perseus and Heracles to the seats on either side of the table closest to him.
As soon as they sat, a trio of servants rushed from a room behind Minos and laid out plates full of meat, bread and fruits, all carefully placed around the plate to keep each food separated from the others. Large mugs full of sweet smelling wine were set down beside the plates.
They both looked at Minos who gestured with his hands towards the food, "I assume you have traveled far to come here. Eat, drink, fill your stomachs, then you can tell me your tale."
Both heroes couldn't deny their empty bellies, and began to eat, washing down the delicious food with the fine wine. Minos waited patiently, nibbling at his own food but mostly sipping on his wine while his guests filled their bellies.
Once their plates were mostly bare, Heracles took a long sip of wine and turned his attention back to the king.
"Thank you, my lord. You are a gracious host."
Minos nodded absently, obviously more interested in their story than Heracles' compliments.
Heracles decided to start at the beginning, at least from the point where he and Perseus had met. He told the king of their visit to the Oracle of Delphi, then of their journey to Tiryns where King Eurystheus gave Heracles his trials, one at a time, to prove the depth of his dedication to redemption. To their surprise, Minos didn't ask why Heracles was completing his labors to earn redemption. Instead, he just listened, waiting for him to get to the part that brought them to his kingdom.
"The Cretan Bull, my lord." Heracles said as his story reached the present. "King Eurystheus has commanded that I capture the creature and return it to Tiryns, where he can add it to his herds."
Minos listened to the whole story in silence. When he heard the reason the two heroes were in his kingdom, he sat stone faced, making both heroes tense.
If the king decided this was a threat or an attempt to steal his prized bull, they could easily end up facing an entire squad of bodyguards trying to cut them down.
Then Minos grinned and clapped his hands, "Thank Zeus," he said still smiling at them. "Nothing would please me more than to have you take that beast off my island."
Both heroes must have looked confused because Minos' smile only grew, "The creature has been wreaking havoc in my kingdom, uprooting crops and leveling orchard walls. You two are a true blessing from the gods if you're going to take that foul beast from my lands."
"Really?" Perseus asked without thinking. He was just too surprised, things never went this easy for them.
"Of course, my boy." Minos nodded, "I will send my guards to help you capture the beast if you wish. I'll even provide you with a ship to bring you back to Tiryns, if you can subdue and capture it."
Heracles smiled nervously at the king, "Thank you, my lord, but I'm afraid only my young companion and I can corral the bull. If word were to get back to Eurystheus that we had help subduing the animal, he might discount the trial and add another."
Minos turned his palms up, his smile never wavering, "As you wish it, son of Zeus."
Heracles looked like he had a great weight lifted off his shoulders, "Thank you, my lord."
Minos waved it off, "It is nothing. You are doing me a favor. And as a son of Zeus, it wouldn't be right to not aide my demigod sibling in his quest."
"Son of Zeus?" Perseus asked surprised.
Minos smiled, "Yes, my boy. I am a child of Zeus as well. While I would have had a son of Poseidon like you killed already had you showed up alone, since you travel with my brother, I shall forget the wrongs of your father, since they obviously are not your fault."
Heracles immediately noticed that Perseus' face turned an alarming shade of red and knew he had to act before Perseus did something that got them both killed.
"That is most gracious of you, my lord." He said quickly. "Should we seek shelter in the city and return in the morning to capture the bull?"
Minos just waved his hand, "I won't hear of it. You shall stay as my honored guests." He clapped his hands and a half dozen servants trotted into the room. "Show my guests to their quarters. Show them to the baths and make sure they have everything they need to rest comfortably."
Some of the servants began to clear away the table while the others gestured to the two heroes for them to follow them to their quarters.
"We will speak in the morning. Sleep well, my friends." Minos said as he stood from his seat and disappeared through an exit behind him.
Heracles glanced at Perseus, whose face was still red with anger. "Come, let us rest. We have much to do tomorrow and a night sleeping in a real bed will do us both some good."
Perseus scowled up at him but followed as they let the servants lead them into the palace and to their quarters for the night.
Line Break
They woke the next morning and were greeted with an incredible feast in the dining hall. Minos was nowhere to be found but the servants gestured for them to eat.
Neither of them resisted, devouring breads, meats and cakes until they both felt that another bite would cause them to lose the food they had already eaten.
After their meal, they were led into the throne room where Minos waited, seated on a throne of pure gold.
"My young friends," the king smile. "Are you ready to complete your trial?"
Heracles gave the king a slight bow and nodded, "Yes, my lord. Do you know where we can find the beast?"
"Of course," Minos gestured to one of his servants. "Where is the herd this morning?"
The servant kept his head down, "Grazing in the high fields, my king."
"Well," Minos said to the two heroes, "there you have it. You'll find the field at the peak of the hill located about a half day's trek to the north of the city. For the most part, the bull stays with the herd, but if it senses you are trying to capture it..." He trailed off.
"We'll handle it, King Minos." Heracles said gratefully.
Minos clapped his hands, "Very good. If you actually manage to capture it, there will be a ship waiting for you in the harbor. It will bring you back to Tiryns as quick as the winds will allow."
"Thank you," Heracles said gratefully. He turned and walked out of the throne room, Perseus on his heels. They stayed silent until they were out of the palace gates and headed north, towards their destination.
"So," Perseus began once they'd put the palace a good hour behind them, "that went surprisingly well."
"Don't," Heracles warned.
"Don't what?"
"Don't say that," he chided. "You will curse us by saying that. Whenever you begin to think things are going well, that's when everything goes to Hades."
Perseus rolled his eyes, "That silly..."
His words were cut off by the loud creaking of metal from a short ways ahead of them. From behind a small hill about one hundred yards ahead, the glimmering form of a giant appeared ahead of them. The monstrous figure stepped closer, blocking the sunlight and giving them a clear view of it's form.
Standing close to two hundred feet tall, the gleaming form of a metal man quickly closed the distance between them. A massive sword the size of a tall building was gripped in his right hand, swaying by his side as he strode towards the two heroes.
Heracles turned to Perseus and glowered, "And there you go. Well done, Perseus."
Perseus' pale face couldn't take his eyes off the gigantic metal man.
"What is that?"
Heracles sighed miserably, "That would be Talos. Creation of Hephaestus built to protect the island of Crete."
Perseus managed to go even paler, "Why is it coming towards us?"
"Well," Heracles muttered as he unslung his bow from his shoulder, "because why wouldn't he?"
A.N: Another chapter down... Hoping to get a few more out before I slow down a bit while I'm on vacation. But I am back, ready to finish some of these stories that people have had to wait way too long for. Thanks for sticking with me over the past couple years, it means a lot.