This is the continuation of my previous post, 12 Labors of Hercules.
Labor 7: The Cretan Bull
Hercules sent Crete to capture the Cretan bull. It is said be the father of the Minotaur by Pasiphae, wife of the Cretan king Minos. In some myths, the white bull was sent by Poseidon to Minos to be sacrificed, but Minos, in awe by the animal’s beauty, sacrificed another bull instead, angering the god. Poseidon asked Aphrodite cause Minos wife to fall in love with the bull. She, as a result, gave birth to the half-man, half-bull, Minotaur. Minos had Daedalus, a craftsman, construct the Labyrinth to hold the Minotaur. Poseidon passed on his rage to the bull, driving the animal wild.It ravaged the lands of Crete.
Hercules captured the beast after a long wrestling mach. He took it back, across the sea to Tiryns, to present it to Eurystheus. Some say it escaped or was set the beast free afterwards. It then roamed around Laconia and Arcadia, crossed the Corinth Isthmus and ended up in Marathon,where it was captured and killed by Theseus.
Labor 8: The Horses of Diomedes
Hercules was to steal the horses of Diomedes. These were four man-eating mares belonging to to the giant Diomedes. There, he stole the king’s horses and drove them to the sea. When Diomedes discovered this, he and his subjects pursued Hercules. Hercules wrestle with Diomedes and fed him to his own mares. Hercules then harnessed the untamed mares to Diomedes’s chariot and drove them all the way back to Tiryns. They were released into the wild after the king saw that Hercules completed the task. . They moved into the Mount Olympus, where they were eaten by more monsterous beasts.
Labor 9: The Belt of Hippolyte
Eurystheus ordered Hercules to bring him the belt of Hippolyte. Hippolyte was queen of the Amazons, a tribe of women warriors. The belt was made of leather and was gifted to her by Ares because she was the most skilled Amazon. She wore it across her chest and it was used to carry her weapons. Eurystheus wanted Hippolyte’s belt as a present to give to his daughter, and he sent Hercules to bring it back.
Hippolyte met with Hercules, and agreed to give her belt to him. But Hera, who kept track of Hercules, changed into an Amazon and spread a rumor among the Amazons : that Hercules wanted to kidnap their queen. The Amazons rushed and attacked Hercules. During the fight Hercules killed Hippolyte and took the belt.
Labor 10: Geryon’s Cattle
Eurystheus sent Hercules to a far away with the order to fetch the cattle of Geryon. Geryon was a giant with three upper bodies and was the son of Chrysaor, the son of Medusa. He owned a herd of red cattle, kept under the watchful eye of Eurytion, a son of god Ares, and the two-headed dog Orthus.
When Hercules reached the Strait of Gibraltar , he setuppillars on both sides to mark the long distance he had traveled. When he arrived, both Orthus and Eurytion attacked him as he approached the cattle. Hercules killed both of them. Geryon tried to stop him as he herded the cattle towards his ship . Hercules managed to kill him by shooting a poisonous arrow through all his three bodies.
While journeying home he encountered a thief trying to steal the cattle. After defeating the Cacus he sacrificed the cattle he tried to steal to the gods as a thanks for his victory. Later a bull escaped. Hercules chased after it and found it with Eryx, a son of Poseidon and Aphrodite. He was annoyed with Hercules and challenged Hercules to a wrestling match. Eryx, of course, lost. Hercules managed to bring Eurystheus only one ox from the entire herd, which the Mycenaean king sacrificed to Hera.
Labor 11: The Apples of the Hesperides
Eurystheus commanded Hercules to bring him golden apples which belonged to Zeus, king of the gods. Hera had given these apples to Zeus as a wedding gift. The tree was tended by nymphs known as Hesperides and guarded by a ferocious hundred headed dragon named Ladon. Above the garden was the titan Atlas, who held heavy burden of holding up the sky.
When Hercules reached the Garden, he offered Atlas to relieve him of his huge burden if he retrieved the apples. Atlas agreed ,however, when he returned with the apples he was unwilling to relieve Herculesthe burden. Instead, he offered to take the apples to Eurystheus himself. Hercules began to complain that his shoulder ached from the huge load and pleaded Atlas to take his position for a little while. The gullible titan agreed. As soon as Hercules was relieved from holding the heavens, he walked off with the precious apples.
On his way back home, Hercules again had to endure a lot of adventures. He met a giant named Antaeus, son of Gaia and Poseidon, who loved to wrestle his guests and then kill them. As they fought, Hercules realized that the giant’s strength renewed each time he fell to the ground, thanks to his mother Gaia. Hercules then, held the giant high up in the air and crushed him to death in his arms.
Labor 12: Cerberus
Hercules was ordered from Eurystheus to bring from the hound of the Underworld Cerberus, the hideous three-headed guard dog of Hades. Before setting off to complete his task, the hero was initiated into the Eleusinian mysteries. Hercules presented himself before the Hades and explained his mission. Hades allowed Hercules to take Cerberus with him, provided that he would capture him with his bare hands and that he would return him back, after showing him to Eurystheus.
Hercules stood by promise. After a violentfight, he managed to capture the the hound. With Hermes, he ascended to earth from a gap near Troezen, a small town in Greece on the Argolid Peninsula. Then, after presenting Cerberus to Eurystheus in order to receive due credit, he returned him to Hades. In some stories they say that the King was so terrified that he hid. Hercules had then released Cerberus and the hound ran back to the underworld.
Heroes of Olympus 