Hercules: Heart of Chaos #2
Cry Havoc!
Ares has murdered Tharamus, the Olymipian god of learning for some unknown reason. Seeking to avenge his friend’s death, Hercules has agreed to join SHIELD and help them take down Ares’ Warhawks. Before the attack on the Warhawk’s South American compound, Hercules is run through training routines with a new crop of SHIELD agents that will be going out on the field with him. He earns the ire of SHIELD Agent John Farret who is annoyed that Herc doesn’t follow his instructions to the letter. The demigod also makes friends with a young new recruit who goes by Agent 223, who is related to famous commando who found during World War II.[1]
Eventually, the training comes to an end and Agent Farret orders everyone aboard some helicopters that will fly them to their mission. Along the way, Hercules warns young Agent 223 to be careful that being willing to sacrifice oneself for their army often leads to noble warriors dying before their time. He relates to the time that Herc joined Jason and the Argonauts on their quest for the legendary golden fleece. After a fantastic voyage aboard the Argo, they soon found the fleece hanging from a seemingly unguarded tree. Jason was over eager to obtain the fleece that he didn’t notice that a massive serpent rested at the tree’s trunk until it was too late. The massive serpent was powerful and many of Jason’s men sacrificed their lives to slay the beast. It took Hercules impaling the creature on a broken tree trunk to stop it. While Jason and the surviving soldiers cheered their victory, Herc was only able to look upon the dead and mourn their loss.[2] Hercules concludes his story by telling the youth that the noblest thing a soldier can do is to live. When asked what happened to the fleece, Hercules isn’t sure.[3] Agent 223 thanks Herc for telling his tale and reveals that his name is Roger Juniper, but his friends call him Buddy.
In South America, the Warhawks are running training drills when Ares is contacted by his spy within SHIELD. He warns the war god that a Hercules is heading his way along with an army of SHIELD soldiers. Ares thanks his spy for the heads up and promises that he’ll have a very special trap in store for his step-brother when he arrives.[4]
Meanwhile, the helicopters carrying Hercules and the SHIELD agents land on a battleship in the Gulf of Mexico, the staging ground for their attack. There, he meets with Agent Kara Palamas who has gone over the security footage during Ares’ attack at the Museum of Greek Antiquities. After Tharamus was killed there is a cut in the footage. The only noticable difference is the disappearance of a crystal that was in a display case near Tharamus’ body. Hercules recognizes the crystal as the Heart of Athena, a powerful artifact that can magnify any force projected against it. This deeply concerns Hercules, as Ares could use the Heart’s power to destroy entire countries. This information is relayed to their superior, Agent Alex DuPaul who shares his finding with top military and government officials. Given the magnitude of the threat, they all agree that violating the borders sovereign nation to shut down the Warhawks is necessary. As they plan strategy, Hercules worries about the number of soldiers who will sacrifice their lives this day.
Once the plan has been finalized, the battleship suddenly rises out of the Gulf and takes to the air, revealing itself to actually be one of SHIELD’s famous helicarriers. As the attack unit is deployed, Hercules once more reminds Buddy not to do anything foolist. Herc also can’t keep his mind off the fact that there is a spy among them and he still doesn’t know who they might be. When they touch down outside the Warhawk’s base, Agent DuPaul orders everyone to lock an load. When they arrive at the facility, they discover it is completely deserted. Hercules fears they are walking into a trap and his suspicions are confirmed when the Minotaur of legend comes charging out of the abandoned fortress. Hercules tries to keep the monster at bay, but with his diminished strength, the Minotaur is much stronger than he is.[5] When Herc is knocked into the trees, Buddy comes to his aid with guns blazing. Hercules tries to tell Juniper to run for it but it is too late and Bud gets himself gored on one of the Minotaur’s horns. Tired of losing his friends in battle,[6] Hercules charges at the Minotaur and manages to strong arm the monster. Focusing all of his strength, the demigod manages to snap the Minotaur’s back, killing it.[7] Surprisingly, Buddy is clinging to life in the aftermath of the battle. He tells Herc that he doesn’t regret sacrificing his life for the Olympian. After Juniper dies in his arms, Hercules cries out to the heavens.
While Hercules and the others were busy fighting the Minotaur, Ares and his Warhawks stole the SHIELD airships and use them to get onto the helicarrier without raising any alarms. They quickly take over the ship, making enough noise to interrupt Agent Palamas’ research.
Back on the ground, Hercules and the surviving soldiers return to their landing site and discover that there is only one airship left. They quickly reduce that the Warhawks stole the others and are now in control of the SHIELD helicarrier. One ship has been left behind as a message to Hercules from Ares. Even though this is surely a trap, Hercules is willing to face his step-brother. However, Agent Alex DuPaul insists on tagging along. As the two make their approach on the helicarrier their presence is detected by the Warhawks. In response, Ares has them fire an air-to-air missile at Hercules’ ship, blowing it out of the sky.
Recurring Characters
Hercules, Ares, SHIELD (Alex DuPaul, Kara Lynn Palamas, John Farret), Minotar
Continuity Notes
He is referring to Jonathan “Junion” Juniper, he first appeared in Sgt. Fury #1. He served on the Howling Commandos until his death in Sgt. Fury #4.
This of course is based on the Greek myth from the Argonautica. For more on Hercules’ adventures with Jason and the Argonauts see Marvel Preview #10, Incredible Hulk: Hercules Unleashed #1, and Incredible Hercules #117-118.
Time of this writing (January, 2023), the golden fleece has not been seen again. Per Incredible Hulk: Hercules Unleashed #1, Jason died upon discovering that the Argo was left to rot on the beach following its final voyage. Mourning the ship, he was mortally wounded when the rotting prow fell on him. He will be briefly resurrected in Ares #3.
The spy is revealed to be Alex DePaul next issue.
Hercules was stripped of much of his power and his immortality when he refused to return to Olympus with Zeus in Avengers #384. Kara also notices that Hercules is speaking differently. Herc stopped speaking in his Olympian affectation in Avengers #390.
At the time of this story, Hercules lost his close friend Eric Masterson, aka Thunderstrike. Possessed by the Bloodaxe, Masterson died in battle with Thor. See Thunderstrike #22-24. Also at this time, Herc believes the Avengers perished in Onslaught: Marvel Universe #1. They actually survived and are currently living re-imagined versions of their lives in a pocket dimension. They will eventually be found and returned to their proper reality in Heroes Reborn: The Return #1-4.
Although seemingly killed here, the Minotaur will later be trapped in stone and put in the town square of the village of Papaconstantinos in Greece. There, the monster will be revived by Dracula to fight Deadpool as seen in Deadpool: The Gauntlet Infinity Comic #3. How it cheated death is unexplained, but it’s a mythical creature so it was probably magic.
Topical References
Roger Juniper refers to his John “Junior” Juniper as his great uncle. This should be considered a topical reference. As the Sliding Timescale pushes the Modern Age forward in time, the amount of years between World War II and the present will continue to grow. Eventually, it will become impossible for Junior to be Roger’s great-uncle. As such, modern readers should interpret the situation as Roger being a direct descendant of sibling to Junior Juniper.
The computers in this story are all depicted as having CRT model monitors. This should be considered a topical reference as this is an obsolete technology.
