Prologue: The Slain Guardian Dragon
A black dragon lay dead, blood pouring from it in torrents. Its skull had been shattered by some tremendous blow, and from the ruin of one of its heads—among a hundred—milky brain matter mingled with crimson gore, streaming down like a river.
It was an utterly colossal beast, bigger even than Smaug from the movies. What the hell was this thing????
"To dare slay the dragon I set to guard my garden... Heracles, you've truly lost your mind."
"..........Huh."
I stared blankly at the severed head, several times larger than my own body, blood still gushing from it. That's when a stunning golden-haired beauty with the most impeccable malice descended amid a blaze of light, glaring at me like she wanted to kill me right there.
I had no idea what was going on, but apparently I was Heracles. Wait, hold up—someone explain this to me. What the fuck is happening????
"This won't do. Prepare at once to head to Mount Etna. Hera will not be the one to impose trials upon you—it shall be I."
".........Huh.......... Lady Gaia herself????"
"Indeed. Or will you defy me as your father did?"
"No, I wouldn't dream of... What kind of trials?"
A voice in my head informed me that the dazzlingly beautiful woman before me was the goddess Gaia. It seemed to be the actual knowledge of Heracles. But Gaia giving trials to Heracles? Mount Etna?
"You shall learn upon arriving at Mount Etna. My eldest daughter, Adamantia, awaits you there."
".........Pardon?"
Who the hell was Adamantia????? Was this really the Greek mythology I knew??? It didn't feel like it.
In that moment, I sensed that something was profoundly, terribly wrong.