The search began. The first chest Heracles pried open groaned like an old man. Inside lay rows of swords, their blades dulled by rust. He lifted a few out, their weight heavy in his hands, but no shimmer of magic.
Across the attic, Gwen pulled aside a lid and laughed softly. “Armor. Enough to outfit an army.” He stacked the pieces neatly beside Heracles’s weapons, shaking his head. “Still no stones.”
Chest after chest fell open, each revealing something stranger than the last—tarnished goblets, maps inked with lands no longer on charts, and a pile of masks carved like beasts. The attic seemed endless, its dust hiding more than just forgotten things.
Then Gwen froze. Beneath a heap of cracked shields, a small wooden box glimmered faintly where sunlight touched it. He pushed the clutter aside and pulled it free.
“Heracles! Over here!” His voice carried a rare excitement.
Heracles crossed the attic quickly and knelt beside him. Together they unlatched the box. Inside lay necklaces and bracelets of pure gold, set with gems that caught the light and scattered it across the beams above. For a moment both boys could only stare, grinning like children at a fair.
Gwen lifted one necklace, gems glowing like captured rainbows. “What do you think?” he asked, half teasing, half in awe.
Heracles frowned, though his eyes betrayed wonder. “Valuable, yes. But not what we’re looking for.”
“True,” Gwen admitted, though he tucked the necklace back almost reverently. “Let it wait. Aurelia Isle first, treasure later.”
They pressed on. The attic swallowed the hours, and by the time sunlight slanted thin and sharp through the glass panes, hunger gnawed at them. Gwen stretched, dust clinging to his sleeves. “Stay here—I’ll fetch something.”
He vanished down the stairs, leaving Heracles among the piles. The stillness pressed close, and Heracles, weary, leaned back against a chest. His eyelids drooped, and soon the attic blurred into sleep.
“Heracles—Heracles—” Gwen’s voice tugged him back. A gentle shake stirred his shoulder.
Heracles blinked awake to see his friend smiling, a plate balanced in his hands. “You dozed off. Here—eat.”
Heracles yawned wide, taking the plate. “Thanks,” he muttered, sitting cross-legged.
They ate side by side, the clink of forks the only sound.
“We’ll rest a bit,” Gwen said, stretching out on the floorboards. “Then keep searching this afternoon.”
“Fine by me,” Heracles mumbled through a mouthful.
When the last bite was gone, they lay back shoulder to shoulder, eyes tracing the dusty rafters above.
“I’m stuffed,” Heracles groaned.
“Same,” Gwen sighed, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
Silence wrapped around them, broken only by the whisper of the wind against the roof. One by one, their eyes slid shut.
Heracles drifted into dreamless rest, but Gwen’s sleep was far from quiet.
He was flying. Wind rushed against his face, sharper and wilder than anything he had ever known. Beneath him stretched a body of feather and muscle, warm and alive—the back of a mighty Griffin. Its wings thundered through the sky, carrying him higher, higher, until clouds broke open around them. The world below shrank into a patchwork of rivers and mountains, glimmering in the sunlight like shards of glass.
A cry echoed—half eagle, half lion—powerful enough to shake the heavens. Gwen leaned forward, clutching the Griffin’s mane, and laughed aloud, the sound snatched by the roaring wind.
Then he saw it: an island rising from the endless sea, its cliffs glittering with treasure, its forests alive with golden light. Aurelia Isle. The Griffin dove, wings folding, and Gwen’s heart soared with it. For one breathless instant, he felt utterly free—master of the skies, chosen to share the bond between man and Griffin.
When he woke, the attic was still. Dust motes floated in a beam of sunlight. Heracles slept on beside him. Gwen lay quietly, staring at the rafters, the echo of wind and wings still burning in his chest.
He whispered to himself, barely a breath, “I have to see it. No matter what.”
Heracles and the Nemean Lion
The first epic in the Heracles and the Twelve Labors series — witness Heracles' legendary battle against the invincible lion. A tale of strength, fate, and immortal valor.
Heracles and the Dragon Hydra
The second chapter of the Heracles and the Twelve Labors series. Heracles faces the monstrous Hydra — a dragon-like beast with many heads, each reborn from the last. A mythic journey of courage, strategy, and divine challenge.
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