A Made-Up Greek Tale (that isn't another tragedy).
When the Colossus of Rhodes was a mere glimmer in the eye of Charos of Lindos, there was an exiled Prince of the House of Sisyphus who was given the impossible task of killing the Chimera.
The Prince wept as he knew this would mean his death for the Chimera was a lion, a goat, an eagle and a snake — a creature that had many backs, even more teeth, and whose breath ignited cities.
But Athena, who was Wisdom and Craftiness, had a soft spot for the Prince for his grandfather, Sisyphus, had been the craftiest man to ever live. So Wisdom whispered in the ear of the Sea and in reply, Poseidon brought forth Pegasus — a winged horse who sprung from a spray of sea foam that had touched the blood of Medusa (who had accidentally lost her head).
Wisdom came to the Prince.
'Bellerophon,' she said, 'I give you these three: Pegasus, whose feet are sure and wings are swift; the Shield of Perseus, whose face will protect you from fire; and the Net of Nemesis. This last item is the key to your victory and you must follow this or your death is certain: Tomorrow, you must meet the Chimera in the air and drag her into water, for the Chimera is of fire and will thus be extinguished. There is no other way.'
Bellerophon was relieved and slept soundly. But that night as he lay in bed, the Sphinx came to him.
'My Prince,' the Sphinx cried in a soft voice, 'You ride tomorrow to kill my mother. Is there no room for mercy, my Prince?'
Bellerophon heard the Sphinx in his sleep and his heart sighed. 'I would spare your mother if I could,' he said gently, 'but Wisdom dictates that I cast my net and drag your mother to her drowning — for you see, she cannot live in water, and I cannot live unless I follow these instructions.'
'Ah, a riddle then,' said the Sphinx, who was craftier than even Sisyphus. Bellerophon opened his mind to the Sphinx and she sat in silence till dawn whispered at the edge of the dark.
Finally, the Sphinx solved the riddle.
When the Sun crept in its chariot into the third window of the sky, Bellerophon leapt onto Pegasus and set off for the Flaming Rocks of Lycia (in present-day Turkey). Chimera, who had heard he was coming roared, hissed, snarled, shrieked; her many heads swaying to an invisible beat.
Jets of fire shot at Bellerophon — too many to count. It seemed that the Chimera's body had opened yet more mouths and each breathed fire. Pegasus danced in the wind, but there were still too many streams of fire. Bellerophon held his shield out and the head of Medusa mounted on it screamed— its head of snakes darted out, each snake catching a stream of fire and swallowing it.
The heads of the Chimera averted their gaze quickly, wary of Bellerophon's shield. Finding this to be no mere morsel to eat, the Chimera darted into the sky and fled Southeast. Pegasus sprinted into the air after her, Bellerophon's net streaming behind like the tail of a comet. Chimera had speed and the strength of a thousand eagles, and in the blink of an eye had crossed the Indus Valley and the shaking islands to their East. Still she fled Southeast till she came upon what would later be known as the New Low Countries*, and there her strength left her and she fumbled in the air.
Pegasus who had kept apace with her, tiring her like a hunter chasing a stag, burst through the clouds and Bellerophon leapt, net in hand. The net unfurled in adamantine bridles, and in the moment that it touched the Chimera, the beast knew the name of the net — Adrasteia, which means 'inescapable'.
And as Bellerophon began to drag the Chimera down towards the sea, the beast began to sing softly — each head singing a sad lullaby calling its other heads to sleep. In the corner, the Sphinx, who had secretly followed, sobbed for her mother.
With a light tap of Bellerophon's knee, Pegasus shifted course slightly and brought them down onto land. Where its feet touched the Red Dirt, a spring gushed out of the ground, and Bellerophon dragged the Chimera into the water. And as Chimera touched the spring, the net dissolved and Chimera became steam.
Wisdom, who had been looking from beyond, smiled and turned away, and in doing so missed something that slipped quietly from the steam — for the Chimera was only weakened by freshwater and could not be killed unless she had been thrown in the sea.
The spring had stripped the Chimera of its fire and heads, transforming the beast. In the steam, the Sphinx had given her mother a new wardrobe — the face and feet of a swan; the body and breath of a wolf; the venom and eggs of a reptile; and the ears of a dolphin.
And Bellerophon called the new creature, Platupous (or 'flat-footed') and that is how the Platypus came to be.
The Sphinx was overjoyed at Bellerophon's mercy and granted Bellerophon an answer to any question he had. And my dear Dylan, do you know what Bellerophon asked?
'Well, what's the plural of "platypus"?'
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* The New Low Countries, or 'New Holland', was the first European name for the mainland of Australia.
