u/ammymone3

SJM loves drawing inspiration from myths because it adds depth to the stories she tells.
So why doesn’t Nesta’s story seem to have an obvious mythological counterpart at first glance?
We expect to find a story that connects two characters in some way. But what if Nesta’s story is only the beginning, and it is meant to show us that her journey will have a much greater impact on the overall story?
I think Nesta is in the process of becoming a High Queen.
Let’s map Nesta’s development in ACOSF onto the myth of the Twelve Labours of Heracles.
The labours follow almost exactly the same order. Only the fifth and sixth labours have switched places.

**Labour One: The Nemean Lion 🗡**️🗡️🗡️
The lion is virtually invulnerable and extremely difficult to kill. In one version of the myth, Heracles makes three attempts, all of which fail. When he finally manages to kill the beast, he tries to skin it, but finds that its hide is impossible to remove. After three failed attempts, Athena advises him to use the lion’s own claws.
He uses a part of an animal that is itself a living weapon to create another weapon: armour made from the lion’s hide.

These myths can be quite difficult to read, and it takes some effort to understand what they are really about.

However, I think we can see a connection here to the way Nesta created her three weapons: the dagger, the sword, and the greatsword.

Labour Two: The Lernaean Hydra 🐴
In this myth, Heracles fights the Hydra and cuts off its heads.
Nesta cuts off the Kelpie’s head.

Labour Three: The Ceryneian Hind 💃🏽🕺
This labour involves capturing something elusive. Heracles accomplishes this by catching the hind in a net. Eventually, the animal is released back into the wild.

We can draw a parallel here with Nesta and Eris’s dance. The eldest son of the High Lord of the Autumn Court is so impressed by Nesta that he offers to marry her. We know how that ends.

THIS IS WHERE THE ORDER OF THE LABOURS CHANGES.

Labour Four: The Augean Stables 🤰 🏔️
This was one of the most humiliating labours, and it seemed almost impossible to complete.
Heracles had to clean the stables on his own, despite the unimaginable number of animals they housed. He accomplished this by diverting the course of a river, which sparked a debate over whether the labour should count.

Let’s map this onto Nesta’s story.
When Nesta discovers that the entire Inner Circle has kept the truth about the weapons she created from her, she feels HUMILIATED.

So she walks down the stairs and heads straight to Amren.
Feyre will later appear there, too. What does Nesta do? What is the real mess unfolding before our eyes? She tells Feyre that she will die giving birth to her child.

Does Nesta handle the situation the right way? No.

Does she solve the problem? Yes and no.
Feyre learns the truth, but there is still no way to save her.

Mess → Cleansing 🧹🧹🧹

But there is another mess here, and that mess is Nesta herself. She is an emotional disaster walking around in human form. So Cassian takes her on a pilgrimage into the mountains. I call it a pilgrimage because it brings her a form of cleansing.
Not complete cleansing, but it helps her nonetheless.
And let’s not forget that Nesta was supposed to complete this labour alone, just like Heracles. That is why Cassian didn’t help her directly: he knew she had to go through it herself. But he was always there by her side.

**Labour Five: The Erymanthian Boar ⛰**️
At this point, Nesta, Gwyn, and Emerie are kidnapped and forced to participate in the Blood Rite.
However, the whole ordeal lasts a week, and two important events take place during that time:

1. The ambush on the Valkyries
2. The ascent of Mount Ramiel

So, should we count this as one labour or two?
Sarah found a solution. While Heracles was carrying out his own labour, another hunt was taking place simultaneously: the Calydonian Boar Hunt, to which heroes had been invited. All of them, except Heracles, who had a hunt of his own to complete.

Let’s move on to the myth of the Erymanthian Boar.
This particular myth has strong elements of an ambush. Heracles and his friend open a jar of wine, which leads to an attack by the centaurs.
This myth is also closely connected to the story of Prometheus. Personally, I see this as a nod to Emerie and her cousin.

(Prometheus himself will appear in another myth, one that doesn’t take place in this book or in *ACOSH (*The book will be too short). Heracles will need to obtain something and ask a nymph for help, before eventually turning to Prometheus himself. I’m starting to feel like a seer!)

Now, let’s move on to the other myth taking place at the same time: the Calydonian Boar Hunt.
The greatest heroes were invited to hunt the Calydonian Boar. The finest warriors took part, but the biggest surprise was the presence of a woman: Atalanta, an exceptional huntress. She was the first to wound the boar, which caused outrage among some of the men.

Do I even need to explain this one?

Labour Six: The Stymphalian Birds 🦅🪽
In this myth, Heracles must kill the Stymphalian Birds. They are famous for their bronze beaks and metallic wings. They attack innocent people and animals and destroy crops. They are said to gather around a lake in Arcadia.
Heracles struggles with this labour, but he receives help from a goddess, which enables him to defeat the birds.
Nesta prevented Feyre and Nyx from dying. I think the motif of migration is fairly obvious here. Another important aspect of the myth is that Heracles could only kill the birds while they were in flight.
This strongly echoes Nyx’s wings.

Labour Seven: The Cretan Bull 🌹
Another labour, another animal. But let’s take a closer look at this one.
Heracles must capture a bull that is none other than the father of the Minotaur.
And what do we know about the Cretan Bull?
Poseidon sent it to King Minos to prove that he was worthy of being a ruler.

Is that the end of it?
Did Nesta do something extraordinary towards the end of the book?

Yes.
She visited her father’s grave.
Throughout the book, Nesta is emotionally conflicted about her relationship with her father. The Minotaur brings to mind the myth in which a hero must kill a monster and find his way back out of a labyrinth.
Afterwards, Nesta leaves a wooden rose on her father’s grave. It was a gift he had made for her. He must have put a great deal of love into carving it for his daughter.

Next labour: capturing the Mares of Diomedes! :D

Why is nobody shipping Eris and Emerie? 😩
They have such similar stories when it comes to their relationships with their fathers. They both live in environments that restrict them in different ways. Am I the only one who sees it?

Emerie loves spices, which already make me think of autumn. 🦇🍁
And Eris hates Illyrians, but they would be FIRE together. 🔥

And honestly, I’d love to see Emerie wipe the floor with Eris.
Just in a good way

ETA:
Eris endures his father’s torture, just as Emerie did.

Their relationships with their mothers are another thing they have in common. Emerie’s mother is dead, but Emerie was the one who buried her, and she had to live with the fact that everyone believed her father was a good man. A good man by Illyrian standards.

From what we know, Eris tries to protect his own mother as much as he can.

I really want to see how Emerie’s character develops when it comes to the Illyrians. They definitely need the same kind of transformation as the Autumn Court.

I love stirring the cauldron 😈