Episode 110: Heracles of Thebes – (1)
Do you know how the prophesied hero, Heracles, was born.
As time passed and the great hero he had been waiting for failed to appear, an anxious Zeus came up with a plan.
'What if, instead of waiting for a hero like Perseus or Cadmus to emerge, I intentionally raise a great hero from childhood?'
Instead of watching the journey of a hero unfold, if one were to receive the full support and blessings of the gods...
A hero with divine blood would be fundamentally different from other mortals, possessing far superior strength from birth.
Thus, one parent of this hero had to be a god, creating a demigod. The higher the godhood of the parent, the stronger the demigod would be.
That meant the strongest demigod would be born from Zeus himself.
Mother Earth, Gaia, likely suspected that the hero would be connected to the Gigantes.
The hero had to be raised in the realm of the gods, beyond Gaia’s gaze.
In places like Olympia, where Zeus himself held a sanctuary, or Delphi, under Apollo’s domain, or Athens, the city of Athena.
The demigod couldn’t be killed right after birth. They needed to be born into a family with some wealth and power.
They also couldn’t be raised too far from Thebes, where heroes were nurtured, lest the demigod die before reaching Thebes.
'That woman will do nicely. The queen of Thebes, who serves my brother Hades...'
And so, Zeus chose his candidate, with a bit of his personal preference mixed in.
That candidate was Alcmene, wife of the king of Thebes, Amphitryon.
"Oh? You’re back early today, dear?"
"Hmph. Yes, it seems so."
Disguised as Amphitryon, king of Thebes, Zeus approached Alcmene and conceived a child with her.
Of course, Alcmene didn’t realize this at first but found out later...
"No... Which god visited you? Surely, it couldn’t have been Lord Pluto, the god of Thebes..."
"Sob… It must have been Lord Zeus."
"...If it’s the will of the gods, then we have no choice. Have they tasked us with raising the child?”
Thus, the child they bore, Heracles, was held by Zeus and suckled on Hera’s milk.
To escape the wrath of the queen of the gods, the child wandered from place to place, including the underworld.
"...The child keeps disappearing and returning. This time, he’s been gone for an entire month..."
"Could it be that the gods require this child?"
"Last night, a goddess appeared in my dream and told me the child's name would be Heracles."
Fortunately, Heracles grew up safely. Amphitryon invited many renowned teachers to instruct him.
They taught him archery, horseback riding, how to wield a sword and spear, how to play the lyre, and many other arts.
However, there was one problem...
"Your Majesty, I cannot teach that child any longer."
"What? Even someone who studied in Mycenae can’t manage it?"
"He learned everything I had to teach within a month. There is nothing more I can offer..."
"How does it make sense for a child his age to break stones with his bare hands?"
"They say he’s never been injured, not even once."
"I even saw his wooden practice sword shatter when it hit him during a sparring session..."
Heracles was simply too extraordinary.
With the blood of Zeus, Hera’s milk, and the power of the River Styx coursing through him, Heracles was far beyond any ordinary person.
After witnessing Heracles shatter a steel sword with his bare hands, Amphitryon realized that they could no longer manage the child.
"Being Zeus’s child, normal human education won’t suffice."
"Do you think Heracles heard the maids whispering about him being a monster behind his back?"
"Let’s take him to the temple. I’ve heard many children train at the temple from a young age..."
After much deliberation, Amphitryon and his wife decided to take Heracles to the temple of Pluto.
If they entrusted Heracles to Pluto’s temple, which was known for selecting and training future heroes, they could rest easy.
* * *
Whoosh—
"The moment Heracles approached..."
"All the statues began to glow..."
"For the gods to welcome him like that, he must truly possess the qualities of a great hero."
As Heracles entered Pluto's temple, he was immediately transported to the underworld.
The air felt different from that of the mortal world, and the sky and surrounding landscape seemed strange. A cold chill brushed against his skin.
Whoosh—
"Hey! Watch out!"
Heracles saw an arrow flying toward him from somewhere.
The arrowhead aimed straight for his chest, but he simply watched it without any sense of danger.
Thwack—Ting—
The arrow couldn’t pierce his skin and was deflected. With his body strengthened by the River Styx, ordinary mortals could not wound him.
Heracles turned his head toward the source of the voice… There, a blonde youth was panting as he ran up.
Perhaps around the same age? The young man, appearing to be in his mid-to-late teens, stared in disbelief.
…Just like everyone else who had witnessed Heracles’ immense strength and impenetrable skin.
"Huff… Huff… No way… The arrow bounced off? What kind of divine blessing is that?"
"Did you shoot the arrow?"
"Ah, yes! Sorry about that. I was practicing archery and accidentally shot it."
"Practicing archery?"
"Yeah. This is the training ground for heroes, after all. But why isn’t Chiron coming? He should be here soon... Anyway, follow me."
The blonde man’s expression of shock only lasted a moment before he approached and spoke as if he were familiar with Heracles.
Heracles smiled. He liked how the man wasn’t overly scared after seeing him get hit by an arrow without being harmed.
"Are there many people here who have bodies that can’t be hurt?"
"Not really... But there are heroes who can deflect arrows with their swords, heal their wounds, or shoot down incoming arrows..."
"Is this Chiron you mentioned the wise Chiron?"
"Yep, that’s right! The real wise Chiron, just like in the history books! His lower half is a horse, you know?"
On the way to meet the centaur Chiron, Heracles learned a lot.
First, the man in front of him was named Jason, and he was royalty from Iolcos.
He also learned about the training ground in the underworld and the intensity of their daily training...
"...Yesterday, there was this huge monster..."
"Jason, is that the new hero beside you?"
"Ah, Chiron, sir!"
Soon, a centaur appeared, with the upper body of a man and the lower body of a horse.
"I am Chiron. What is your name, child?"
"...Heracles."
"Hm. You’re speaking rather casually to your elder, Heracles."
Though he was smiling, a vein seemed to bulge on the centaur’s forehead as he gently patted Heracles on the head.
Would this centaur be any different from all the other teachers Heracles had gone through?
* * *
This is the underworld, the throne of Hades.
Several years ago,
Since Heracles arrived in the underworld, I had been receiving regular reports about him from Chiron.
At first, Chiron was curious as to why I was giving him special treatment,
But once he heard that Heracles had suckled on Hera’s milk and bathed in the River Styx, he understood.
Looking at the updates he sent me about the hero’s progress...
- Heracles dueled with the hero Bellerophon for over ten bouts and was defeated. However, the duel was under the condition that if a weapon touched him, he would lose. In a real battle, he would be even more formidable...
- When he mentioned that his body didn’t feel like it was getting stronger, I had him lift a boulder larger than most houses as part of his training. It might be a bit heavy...
- Now, among my students, the only ones who can last even a moment in a duel against him are Theseus, Atalanta, and...
- Lord Hades, Heracles has won one-on-one duels against every hero except the great hero Cadmus. I’m sure Heracles will become the greatest hero among all my students!
The last report was that Heracles had defeated all heroes in one-on-one duels except for the great hero Cadmus.
As expected, the prophesied hero. So, he’s already surpassed Bellerophon and Perseus?
He hasn’t defeated Cadmus yet, so... perhaps he’s as strong as a lesser god?
It was a good decision to have him bathe in the River Styx.
Hmm. Speaking of the Styx, the goddess herself is coming in.
She’s holding a parchment with Hermes' seal on it. Did my nephew send news from Olympus?
"Hades, Eros and Psyche have had a child together."
"A new god has been born? That’s something to celebrate. Is there any other news from Olympus?"
"Other than Apollo being released from his punishment by Poseidon and returning to his duties, there’s not much. At best, the Gigantes haven’t stirred, and Gaia seems to be conserving her strength, possibly plotting something. Oh, and apparently, Dike has been going overboard with her actions lately..."
So, Apollo has returned and we must watch out for Gaia’s schemes.
Dike’s behavior? She’s probably lecturing the Olympian gods about justice again.
Overboard? Even if Zeus himself came, I wouldn’t consider restraining Dike.
"By the way, how is that... son of Zeus who bathed in my river coming along in his training?"
"Do you mean Heracles? Speaking of which..."
It’s about time for another report on Heracles...
Just as I was thinking that, a messenger entered, handing me a parchment scroll.
"Lord Hades, this is a regular report from Chiron at the hero training ground."
"Hmm."
I unrolled the parchment and found some strange content.
"Lord Hades. I find it rather humiliating to admit my own incompetence, but there is an issue I must report."
Incompetence? The greatest educator who has trained countless heroes, calling himself incompetent?
What in the world could this be about?
"Heracles has completely lost his motivation. No matter what I do, I can’t rekindle his drive. Please, if you can offer any assistance..."
Comments
Post a Comment