00:33The eighth labor of Heracles was to steal and bring back the four mares of Diomedes, king of the Thracian
00:39tribe of Bystones.
00:41The mares of Diomedes were aggressive fire-breathing, flesh-eating horses, trained from birth to eat human flesh.
00:49Called Potargos, the swift, Lampen, the shining, Cassanthus, the yellow, and Deinos, the terrible, they were usually chained to a
00:59bronze manger.
01:00Upon arriving at the island, Heracles waited till nightfall, when everyone was at sleep, to cut the chains and steal
01:08the mares.
01:09But no sooner had he done this, Diomedes found out and sent a troop of guards after him.
01:15Now Heracles needed a place to keep the animals, while he fought off the men, and unaware that the horses
01:21ate human flesh, he left them in the care of his young friend, Abderas.
01:26By the time he had killed the guards, and overpowered Diomedes himself, Heracles returned, only to find out in horror,
01:34that Abderas had been dragged to death, and devoured by the horses.
01:39Furious, he fed Diomedes to his own horses, which made them permanently calm, and founded the city of Abdera, in
01:46commemoration of his friend.
01:48He then took the now sane horses to Eurystheus, who left them to roam freely, as they could do no
01:54more harm, or in some versions, sacrificed them to Hera.
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