Character » Nessus appears in 13 issues.
Deianira of Calydon was the second known wife of Hercules. She was the daughter of Oeneus, King of Calydon and his wife Althaea. Some accounts suggest she was actually the daughter of Dionysus, patron deity of Oeneus. She was at some point abducted by Nessus the Centaur. When Hercules killed Nessus.
Nessus is a centaur and it was he who was responsible for Hercules' mortal demise. When Hercules and his wife Deineira were attepting to cross a broad river, Nessus offered to ferry them across, one at a time, on his back. Taking Deineira first, Nessus attempted to abduct her but was stopped when Hercules shot him with an arrow that had been dipped in the blood of the Hydra; the most poisonous substance in all mythology. With his dieing breath, Nessus told Deineira he was sorry and that he wished to amke ammends. He then told her that his blood was a powerful elixer that could be used to insure the love of Hercules, a noted philanderer, if ever his eye should wander. She then collected and saved a portion of Nessus' blood. When Hercules did indeed stray, Deineira soaked a tunic in the dead centaur's blood and gave it to Hercules to insure his love and fidelity. The blood-soaked tunic had a different effect, however. The Hydra's blood caused Hercules to feel indescribable pain the moment he put the tunic on and no matter how hard he tried, Hercules was unable to remove it. Finally, wishing to end his torment, Hercules built his own funeral pyre, lit it and jumped onto it. The pyre was then struck with the Thunderbolts of Zeus ending Hercules mortal life as he was transported to Olympus where he was made a full-god by Zeus. In modern times, Hercules has encountered Nessus again at least once when he entered Hades to free Zeus.
Herakles/Heracles, more commonly known as Hercules, is probably the most well-known of all the Greco-Roman gods. Hercules was born a demigod with physical strength surpassing even that of the gods. The greatest and mightiest hero of ancient Greece, Hercules' name is synonymous with strength.
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