King Minos of Crete angered Poseidon by greedily keeping the sacred bull meant for the sea god. To save her husband, Queen Pasiphae willingly took his punishment—cursed into a half-human, half-bull monster. Full of grievance, she returned to the bedchamber—only to catch Minos in bed with Poseidon's handmaiden Medusa. Minos sneered at her ugliness; Medusa demanded she hand over the queen's scepter. Furious, Pasiphae snapped the scepter in two and left the palace.
Wandering the streets, Pasiphae unexpectedly rescued Hermes, son of Zeus. Disguised as a cripple, Hermes was secretly investigating Poseidon's expanding influence in the mortal realm. Impressed by Pasiphae's monstrous strength and sense of justice, Zeus tempted her to stay by Hermes's side with a golden apple. Pasiphae returned to the palace, stripped it of everything she had built with her own hands, gave the grain to beggars, and taught the corrupt priests a lesson in the temple for Hermes—gradually earning his trust.
