Having made his way back from Nemea to Mycenae, Hercules requested an audience with King Eurystheus to discuss his next assignment.
No one in Mycenae, knowing the mission he had to undertake, expected to see Hercules again. And certainly not in such attire, as if he were a mere bandit. The news quickly spread among the citizens.
“What did you say?!” exclaimed the king frightened. “Do not let him approach me! The orders will be given from the lookout.”
Eurystheus did not expect at all to receive Hercules again. He knew he was virtuous, but was not aware of to what extent. He was beginning to fear him.
“Welcome back, Hercules! I was convinced that an old lion would not be a great test for you” he said, attempting to downplay the feat. “I have a new job waiting for you!”
“As you wish, your majesty” responded Hercules.
"Do you know Lake Lerna, not far from here? There lies one of the gates to the underworld. The gate is guarded by the terrifying Hydra. It seems that the creature has taken over the entire lake and attacks anyone who approaches it. I wanted to take care of the situation myself, but lately, I have been too busy. I send you to solve the problem.”
“It is time for me to depart then!” Hercules added, nodding and bowing to the king. With a small sneer, he turned and left.
As the hero made his way towards Lerna, news of his return reached the ear of Iolaus, Hercules' nephew. Impressed by the feat and with the admiration he had for him, the young man decided to sneak out of his home and follow him to be able to witness the next exploit with his own eyes.
Hera's Trap
Lake Lerna was no longer one of the tranquil and beautiful corners of the Argolid region. The Hydra, a massive nine-headed water serpent, had made it its lair. It had infested its waters, which once were clear and crystalline, now were murky and sordid. Anyone who approached the lake and lingered more than they should, was attacked by the creature.
By its appearance and dimensions, the monster was terrifying. In addition to having nine giant serpent heads, all capable of spitting the most lethal poison in the world, it was said that one of them was immortal. And as if that were not enough, the creature's greatest ability would soon be discovered.
The goddess Hera, full of rage at Hercules' success in the lion's feat, appeared at Lerna to prepare a welcome surprise. A surprise laden with malice, as she brought with her a fierce giant crab she decided to hide within the lake's waters. A deadly trap to ensure that Hercules could not leave that place alive.
The Power of Wounds
Hercules arrived at the lake and made himself seen. He wanted to draw the creature out to be able to observe it and prepare for battle. However, the Hydra rose suddenly from the water before him, spitting venom from all its heads. Hercules' reflexes and speed allowed him to dodge the attack, positioning himself right beneath one of them. With an elegant and dizzying gesture, he cut the head above him with a single sword movement.
The Hydra withdrew suddenly, pained by the wound, but just at that moment the giant crab emerged from the water to frantically assault Hercules. The hero immediately dodged, but those giant pincers repeatedly aimed at his body to slice it open and disembowel him. Within seconds, he switched his sword for the club he had and went on the offensive. Dodging the pincers, he stood in front of the crab and struck it with all his might using the club. From the blow, the shell was shattered into thousands of pieces, freeing the body which remained rigid and stunned. An instant later, it collapsed to the ground to finally die.
The Hydra, recovered from the first attack, approached Hercules again. As he dodged the new venom spits and continued moving the sword agilely to eliminate the heads that came close, he realised that something was amiss. He took distance from the water and saw, astonished, more than double the heads there had been at the start. From each neck cut by the sword, two new heads were reborn. It seemed impossible, but the Hydra was getting stronger as it was wounded.
He needed to take refuge and reflect on how to defeat the beast.
A Key Alliance
Hercules found a corner to hide, far enough from the reach of the creature. He was furious, as the task was not only to kill the Hydra but also the giant crab, which he had not been warned about.
“Uncle” said Iolaus, revealing himself.
“What are you doing here? Where did you come from?”
“I followed you. I wanted to witness your victory against this monster.”
“Do not approach the lake for anything! The Hydra is much stronger than I could have imagined! I don't know how I can defeat it.”
“I saw everything, uncle. It's not fair that they burden you with an extra test! If that's the case, I must be able to help you. Let me be your squire!”
Despite his nephew's offer of help, Hercules did not know how to win the battle. Both of them started thinking about what attack tactic to follow, but as effective as they were, they could not allow the Hydra to continue getting stronger.
The goddess Athena, in a new appearance just at the delicate moment they were in, enlightened the minds of the two men. Fire was the weapon they were missing and Iolaus would be essential to guide that battle towards victory.
A Heroic Tandem
The two warriors emerged from the hideout. Hercules wielded the sword, while Iolaus held a lit torch in his hand. They had studied the system of movements and went on the attack approaching the lake again.
Every time one of the heads approached to attack, Hercules advanced to cut its neck. Subsequently, Iolaus appeared from behind with the torch to burn the cut wound. In this way, with the scar cauterised, it was prevented that two new heads would emerge.
The two heroes continued advancing with that method, one head after the other. Finally, only one head remained, the central one, which was said to be immortal.
After the final chop and burn, the monster's body collapsed into the water. But the last head fallen on the shore of the lake continued to move fiercely, unable to control the movements or attacks.
As a final remedy, Hercules decided to dig a very deep hole in the ground. There he buried the head that could not die. Thus, it could no longer do any harm. The battle had been long and exhausting for both, but in the end, they had achieved victory.
The Fatality of Lerna
Before leaving the lake area, Hercules approached the dead heads of the creature. This time, he showed no honour to the rival, as the Hydra was not dead, theoretically. However, he dipped the blade of his arrows in the blood of the heads. A very poisonous blood that thus turned those arrows into lethal darts.
Once they had departed, Hera appeared again by the lake. Furious because the trap had not worked, she grabbed the corpse of the crab with rage and threw it with all her strength towards the sky. Today, that crab shines among the stars in the form of a constellation.
Finally, although the lake of Lerna had been freed from the beast, the dead body remained there in a state of putrefaction. Its poisonous vapours turned into sulphuric gas and gradually evaporated those waters. Today, only an infected dried-up swamp remains.
Hercules' second labour had been completed.
Continues with the Ceryneian Hind.
Honouring the Legend
The fierce battle of Hercules and Iolaus remains for posterity as one of the great legends of the ancient world. In order not to forget the great victory over the fearsome creature, we want to offer you this magnificent T-shirt that pays homage to the beast that once inhabited the region of Argolis, Greece.
All our items are 100% cotton and with the utmost respect for the environment. LũM always wants to respect the flora and fauna of our planet.
Thank you for your trust and may the adventure continue!
