Heracles when driven mad by the goddess Hera
Murdered
his three children and his wife Megara
The
Delphic oracle punished him for the murders
By
ordering him to perform the Twelve Labors
The
labors were set by his cousin king Eurystheus
For
His second labor he needed his nephew Iolaus
Because
his task was to kill the many headed Hydra
Which
was known to dwell in the swamps of Lerna
It’s
not clear exactly how many heads it possessed
Some
claim they know but mostly they only guess
What
was known by those who looked it in the face
When
you cut off a head two more grew in its place
If
that wasn’t enough the Hydra's breath was lethal
To
smell its footprints was enough to kill a mortal
He
sought out the fearsome monster in its own lair
He
forced it into the open with fire arrows in the air
But
then the fight began to go in the Hydra's favor
Twining
its heads around him despite his endeavor
Hydra
called upon an ally, a huge crab for assistance
The
crab bit Him on the heel sapping his resistance
On
the verge of failure things looked bad for Heracles
He
called Iolaus the son of his twin brother Iphicles
Iolaus
who had driven Heracles to Lerna in his chariot
Looked
on in anxiety as his uncle was tied in a knot
With
Heracles tangled Iolaus rushed in to save the day
Grabbing
a burning torch and dashing into the fray
So,
cutting the hydra’s heads off was Heracles aim
And
Iolaus would sear the wounded neck with flame
This
prevented and further heads from sprouting
So,
Heracles cut off the heads with Iolaus cauterizing
Finally,
Heracles lopped off the one immortal head
Burying
it deep below a rock to ensure it was dead
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