The Gods are vain;

Mortals, be warned…

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Cassiopeia was an Ethiopian Queen who dared to boast of her daughter’s beauty (as well as her own).

She compared herself, and her child, as being more enchanting than even the Nereids, the sea-children of Nereus, a sea God who served under Poseidon, God of all waters.

Nereus was offended.

Poseidon was not pleased…

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There are differing accounts at this point:

Maybe Poseidon chose to flood all of Ethiopia;

More likely, he let loose a monster –

P.S. it wasn’t the Kraken, as many of us might like to believe (blame the original 1981 movie, Clash of the Titans, starring Harry Hamlin,  for that)

No, the Monster in question was called Cetus.

And while Heracles would a Cetus later, this version of the sea monster had no match.

Save a wandering hero…(yeah, now we’re back to Harry Hamlin)…

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King Cepheus…