An Account of King Eurystheus and Hercules’s 13th Labor

Hercules 13th Labor

When Hercules returned to King Eurytheus’s palace after completing his twelfth labor, he was quickly assigned another task.

“Fetch me the golden roses in the forest of Corinth.” King Eurytheus commanded. This was a very dangerous task, a task that no man had ever succeeded, a task of great skill and of wisdom. Of course, Hercules was no ordinary man. He was a man who had remarkable strength and an amazingly fast mind.

The golden roses were planted deep with in the forest of Corinth, at the bank of a lapping river. King Eurytheus knew this task would not be as simple as it seemed. This forest was guarded by a gorgon. A gorgon the size of 50 men, with the strength of a 100 men, and magic of a god. King Eurytheus believed that this task could and would never be done… But in the end, Hercules proved him wrong.

So on Hercules went, his adventure began to unfold. Hercules left with nothing other than the clothes on his back and the sword in his hand. When Hercules reached the city of Corinth the wonderful people and the fascinating architecture amazed him. After explaining his goal to the people of Corinth, Hercules was showered with offerings. The people offered Hercules food, wine, and even offered daughters in marriage. People warned Hercules of the powerful gorgon that transformed people into golden roses. Others warned Hercules of the roses. A prick of their thorns will put you to sleep for eternity.

Continuing his voyage Hercules noticed the fine pottery, the tall bronze statues, the olives and tobacco growing, the massive temples… Everything was nice in Corinth, everything was beautiful. Hercules almost forgot about his mission, the beauty of Corinth was unbelievable.

It did not take Hercules long to find the gorgon. For its foul breathe made the forest smell terribly bad. The beast was colossal. Instead of two eyes, the monster had seven. This gorgon was extremely corpulent, and its fangs were dripping blood. Hercules stood in awe, amazement bewildered him.

“Ha ha ha!” Chuckled the gorgon, “Have you come for my roses?” Hercules stood taller and looked into the face of the wicked monster.

“I am Hercules, son of Zeus. And I have come for your roses” When the monster heard Hercules say he was son of Zeus he did not believe him. He roared with laughter. The monster gently pushed Hercules.

“Ha ha,” the gorgon laughed. “You’re son of Zeus? Ha ha! Lets see what you’ve got.” Hercules Rolled his open hand into a fist, and gave the monster his hardest hit. The giant tumbled back crashing into the tall trees. The monster stood up and hovered its hands over its head. Energy seemed to swim into the giant’s hands. A cool strong breeze ran threw Hercules. He drew his sword and was ready for anything. Without warning a blast of energy rushed towards Hercules. The monster was using his magic to try to change Hercules into a golden rose. Hercules thrust his sword up and when the energy hit his sword the beam simply bounced back and ran into the monster. The monster himself was transformed into a golden rose. An easy victory for Hercules.

The golden roses were beautiful they seemed to dance in the sunlight. Hercules ripped his shirt off and used it to hold the roses. He did not want to be punctured by a roses thorn. When he walked through the city of Corinth people cheered for him and yelled ” All hail the mighty Hercules!”

When Hercules returned to the palace King Eurytheus was surprised to see him. Hercules threw the roses onto the floor and left. King Eurytheus jumped from his throne and ran to the roses. His greedy hands grabbed the roses without care. He crumpled and fell to the floor. He was dead. The thorns of the golden roses had pierced his skin.