A fisherman from the island of Seriphos arrived in Argos, drunk and babbling. He spoke of a young man of impossible strength who had slain the Gorgon Medusa—a creature whose gaze turned men to stone. The fisherman claimed the youth had done it not with a blade, but with a mirrored shield given by Athena, winged sandals from Hermes, and a helm of invisibility from Hades.

Perseus had come to Larissa to compete. He did not know Acrisius was there. He did not know the bent old man in the faded merchant’s cloak was the grandfather who had set him adrift. He had not seen the man since he was an infant wailing in a pitch-sealed chest.

Acrisius laughed. He summoned scholars who assured him the Gorgon was a myth, a fable to frighten children.