
Not long after this, Perseus (Zeus' son) tried to rescue his mother Danae from King Polydectes by bringing back Medusa's head. To make a long story short, Athena and Hermes helped him out by providing him with magic winged sandals, a curved sword to slice off her head and a shield. Using his shield as a mirror, Perseus didn't have to look directly at Medusa and managed to decapitate her. From her head sprang the winged-horse Pegasus and the giant Chrysaor. Perseus used Medusa's head as a weapon during subsequent battles prior to returning to Athena. Athena then took the head from Perseus and threw it into her shield where it remained.

There are a few different versions of this story (with different reasons why Perseus beheaded Medusa,) but the players all stay the same.
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