Written by The war god Ares kept a flock of monstrous birds with iron talons and beaks. Their bronze feathers could detach and rain down with deadly force like arrows. These creatures dwelled deep in the mountain gorge near Lake Stymphalia – a desolate place where waters vanished into an underground chasm leading to Hades’ realm. Barren cliffs encircled the lifeless lake; only a central island grew tall reeds where Ares’ birds nested, feeding on human flesh before launching their bloody hunts.
King Eurystheus commanded Heracles to journey to Lake Stymphalia and drive these avian terrors beyond the sea.
Accompanied by Iolaus and armed with his poison-tipped bow, Heracles trekked into the mountains. After days traversing treacherous slopes, they reached the gorge cradling the ominous lake.
A deathly stillness hung over the landscape: bare stones devoid of grass or flowers, windless waters unbroken by fish or ripple. No lizard basked on sun-warmed rocks. As Heracles and Iolaus sat by the shore, an unnatural drowsiness overcame them.
“Something’s wrong,” Heracles murmured, his breath labored. “My heart falters… my bow slips from weakened hands…”
Enchanted sleep claimed them both.
Then came a metallic clangor as crimson-plumed birds rose from the reeds. Circling like a vortex, their swarm darkened the sky, casting bloody reflections on the water below.
A sudden clatter awakened Heracles – Athena had sent a peasant’s wooden clapper, the kind used to scare birds from crops. The hero sprang up, roused Iolaus, and ordered him to shake the noisemaker. Its rattling echoes multiplied through the gorge, startling the birds into chaotic flight.
Protected by the impenetrable Nemean Lion’s pelt, Heracles loosed arrow after arrow. Bronze feathers showered downward as stricken birds plunged into the churning lake, their heavy plumage dragging them under.
The survivors ascended in panic, abandoning Greece forever to settle on a distant storm-wracked isle.
“Away, before the death-sleep takes us!” Heracles cried. Casting Athena’s clapper into the boiling waters, the heroes fled the cursed lake.