During the Greek Mythology unit in my L.A. class, we learned about the 12 labors of Heracles (or as in the Roman translation and in Disney: Hercules). We were then assigned to create a monster (complete with a profile and picture) that would later be used as the 13th task of Heracles. I created Nycto.
She looks human and that's her actual form. She was a creation by Phobos, god of fear, as a tool he was going to use to terrorize mortals; but Hermes did something to mess it up as a part of a prank which resulted into Nycto. She loves to scare people but does it more as a way to have fun than for any malicious intentions. She lives in the dark forests very far from Mycenae. Her special ability is that she can create a special type of mist that can make illusions for whoever gets trapped in it. The victim then hallucinates about their greatest fear.
I tried to make an opponent for Heracles that wouldn't test his quick thinking and/or strength, but instead, make his challenge a little more physiological…I'm not exactly sure if I was able to do that very well, so give me your opinion on the matter.
Ok, I've kept you waiting long enough, here it is, Heracles' 13th Labor: The Mist of Fears
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Many of you might've heard about the mighty Heracles, a brave hero with amazing strength who had to complete twelve labors given to him by his cousin, King Eurytheus, as a way to repent him of a terrible deed he had committed. But you've probably never have heard that Heracles had done a thirteenth labor. A labor that didn't test his bravery, or his strength, or his fighting skills; but instead, it tested the strength he carried in his mind…
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Heracles grumbled to himself as he left the palace belonging to his cousin, King Eurytheus. How I wish I could throttle that no good scrawny little coward. He thought. And wipe that irritating grin of his pointy, beady eyed face.
His big meaty hands were balled up into fists and as he passed by the crowded streets he started to notice the frightened looks people were giving him (no doubt because of the murderous look he had in his eyes). Forcing himself to relax he continued to remind himself why he needed to complete this task. This is the last task. Just this last one and I'll finally be free.
King Eurytheus had sent for Heracles to be woken up at the crack of dawn to give him his thirteenth and final task. Unfortunately, the hero was not a morning person, and to be woken up at three in the morning was not exactly the best way start of the day for this particular hero unless you wanted a good beating, which is what Eurytheus almost received.
And so, a very grouchy Heracles walked into the throne room and was quickly given his final Labor: to bring back some of the mist created by Nycto, creator of fears, who lived in the very heart of the forest about a day's journey from the city.
Heracles had allowed himself a little bit of cockiness about this particular task. Getting a sample of some mist would be the easiest thing he'd ever done. And after every monster he had come up against there wasn't a creature on this earth he was afraid of.
By the time Heracles reached the forest, the sky was slowly but surely darkening and soon, the only thing that provided him with light was the soft glow from the full moon. He hiked in the darkness for about half an hour, waiting for Nycto to reveal herself, he was deep into the forest but no sign of the monster could be seen anywhere.
Heracles was about to give up and try again the following day when he felt a cold chill shoot up his spine and a thin cloud of mist started to circle his feet. He stood still, waiting for an attack as the mist gradually increased until it surrounded him completely and was so thick, he couldn't even see the ground under his feet or the tree branches above his head.
A female voice rang through the air. "Ah, so the mighty Heracles has decided to come to my territory at last." The voice was sweet and soft like a lullaby; yet Heracles couldn't help but notice the hint of mischief it carried.
"Show yourself and fight." Heracles demanded, brandishing his giant club. He changed his stance, ready to attack the first thing that came near him.
There was a moment of silence before the mist parted in front of him to reveal a beautiful young woman in her early twenties with raven black hair that fell down to her waist in gentle curls. She wore a dark indigo dress that reached her ankles, revealing bare feet.
She smiled and her large blood red eyes sparkled with silent amusement. "You seem surprised. What? Where you expecting a shriveled up old hag with claws and poisonous breath? Many people do."
Heracles gripped his club tighter and narrowed his eyes. "Do your worst."
Just a second after he said that, he noticed that she held no weapons, and she didn't look like she was very strong. She seemed delicate to him in a way, but her eyes; those hypnotic ruby orbs told him a completely different story.
As if reading his mind, Nycto smirked. "There are different ways of fighting brave hero. Physical strength and weapons are useless in this particular battle as you'll soon find out."
That said she turned around and walked away, the mist curled around her and she disappeared again.
When she was out of site Heracles cried out in agony and he clutched his head. He felt like his skull had been smashed against a boulder. He suddenly saw flashes of images that seemed too real. He saw himself going into a mad rampage, killing his friends, his family, everyone he cared about. The real Heracles yelled at his fake double to stop, but it was as if he didn't exist. The fake Heracles had wild eyes that weren't quite so human. They were more like a terrible beast that had finally gotten out of its cage. The night he had killed Megara and their children came flooding back to him. He had thought he could escape that part of his life forever, but now, Nycto brought it back to haunt him.
And as fast as it had happened, it stopped all together. Exhausted and shaking all over, Heracles collapsed onto his knees. Around him the mist gradually receded until it disappeared completely.
"Not every fear is something you can touch mighty Heracles." Nycto's voice rang out once more. He looked up to see the mistress of fear calmly appear from the shadows to stand in front of him.
"What did you do?" Heracles whispered as he struggled to his feet.
"Surely even you can recognize your own fear Heracles." Nycto said. "Your fear is the untamed darkness in you. You're afraid history will repeat itself and you that you will commit another horrid deed like you did all those years ago. That no matter how many good deeds you do, your past mistake will make those actions seem like nothing."
Heracles got a pained look on his face at her words. As much as he hated to admit it, he realized she was right.
Nycto gave the hero a sympathetic smile. She took out a little jar made out of dark glass and placed it in his large hand. "I believe you'll need this to complete your quest." Then with a wave of her hand, she created a thin layer of mist to cover the ground around them.
Heracles eyed the mist apprehensively and Nycto giggled. The action, he noticed, made her look more like a child. "Don't be so paranoid, it's not going to make an illusion this time."
Hesitating a little before deciding to trust her, Heracles gathered up the mist and squeezed it in the little jar before sealing it. He turned back to Nycto. "You're the first creature that hasn't tried to kill me in a while."
Large ruby colored eyes twinkled in amusement. "That's because I don't kill people. I scare people out of their wits because I find it funny."
Heracles raised an eyebrow. "I don't mean to offend you or anything, but you've got a very twisted sense of humor."
Instead of showing anger at him, Nycto laughed softly. Her laughter was surprisingly sweet and pleasant. "I take no offence in it. I'm very aware of how people view my sense of humor." She turned to leave but then stopped and looked back at the hero with the amazing strength. "Make sure to open that jar when you present it to King Eurytheus. He'll receive have a very… unexpected surprise."
Hercules gave her a suspicious look. There was something about the way she said that that made him a little uneasy.
With a mischievous smile and a wink, Nycto once more disappeared into the shadows of the forest.
Heracles looked at the tiny jar in his hand and then at the place where Nycto had disappeared to. Then, putting away the small jar, he started the journey out of the forest and back to Mycenae.
"So, did you get it?" King Eurytheus demanded from his seat in his grand throne.
At first glance, the Mycenaean king was scrawny and small, with thinning gray hair and a pointy beard. But if you looked closer...umm…well…actually there wasn't really anything relatively good about the king. He was unkind, selfish, and arrogant; but although he looked only slightly intimidating from his position at the throne, Heracles knew not to be fooled, for Eurytheus was a coward at heart. Honestly, the man freaked out if a tiny spider caught him off guard. How his cousin had been able to keep his throne this long was beyond the hero's comprehension.
"Well?" Eurytheus asked, frowning. "Did you get what I asked or not?"
Gritting his teeth, Heracles took out the little jar from the pouch he had stored it in and held it up for the king to see. "This was given to me by Nycto herself and inside it contains a sample of the infamous Mist of Fears."
Eurytheus' small beady eyes scrutinized the little jar suspiciously. "I'm not convinced." He finally said. "Open it to prove to me that what you say is true."
Heracles blinked. Had Eurytheus ever even heard of what the mist does to the person it surrounds? "Umm…Eurytheus, I'm not sure that's the best-"
"That's an order, Heracles!" Eurytheus roared impatiently.
Heracles narrowed his eyes and a smirk pulled the corners of his mouth. He shrugged innocently. "Alright, but remember, you ordered it."
There was faint squeak followed by a pop as the cork was pulled out from the jar and almost immediately, a thick cloud white mist flowed out of it and headed straight towards King Eurytheus.
Eurytheus' eyes widened slightly as the mist started to surround him. He started to regret making Heracles unleash it from its little container. Appearing form the mist and standing in front of him, was Eurytheus' worst fear. Or to be more specific, his worst fears.
Before him stood Cerberus, the huge three headed dog that guarded the gates of the underworld; the Minotaur, who haunted King Minos' labyrinth; the Hydra, a fearsome serpent who re-grew two more heads if one of them was cut; and about a hundred hairy black spiders the size of mangoes.
Had anyone told Eurytheus that these monsters were part of an illusion, he wouldn't have believed them; for he could easily smell Cerberus and the Minotaur's hot putrid breath fan out across his face and the Hydras poisonous stench of rotting corpses; and he would've felt the spiders' little hairs if one of them had touched him.
The color had gone from the king's face at this point and all he could do was tremble from the top of his gray head to the tip of his sandaled feet with utter terror at the beasts that were hungrily staring him down like their next meal.
All three of Cerberus' heads barked so loud and so suddenly, that Eurytheus jumped and felt the vibrations resonate in his thin chest. Able to feel his legs again he bolted from his throne faster than you could say 'Holy Hera!'
Heracles had never laughed so hard in all his life. He had to lean against the wall just to stay on his feet. The look of confusion on the guard's faces when they saw their king run around the throne room creaming while screaming at the top of his lungs in pure terror was absolutely priceless for Heracles and it only made him laugh harder. Neither the guards nor Heracles could see what the mist had created for Eurytheus, which made it even funnier for Heracles when he saw the guards were trying attacking the invisible foes.
Five minutes passed as the fake monsters chased down the king until Eurytheus finally spotted a massive ceramic pot in one corner of the room. Running as fast as his scrawny legs could carry him he reached the pot and threw himself in it as his last resort to escape the fake monsters. The mist, along with the creatures, started to fade. There was the sound of a bark, growl, hiss, and scuttling feet before they too faded at last.
Heracles wiped the tears from his eyes and strode over to the pot, which was shaking at the moment and peered inside.
Eurytheus' small body was curled up to fit the pot; his thin legs were tightly pressed against his chest. His face was death white and he kept muttering incomprehensive words to himself. He was definitely shaken to the core, but he'd recover eventually.
Shaking his head in amusement, Heracles turned to the guards, jerking his thumb in the direction of the shaking ceramic container.
"When he stops being such a coward and gets out of that jar, tell him I've completed my tasks and that I've paid my debt. I'm leaving."
And with his club resting on his shoulder and head held up high, Heracles strode out of the palace and out into the world beyond Mycenae, ready to start his new life.
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So, What do you think? Any positive critisism is accepted. Please leave a review!!