Perseus was born of Zeus and princess Danae, held captive by her father who feared the prophecy of being slain by his daughter's son. Unwilling to risk angering the gods he placed the two on a small boat and let them drift in the ocean until they came upon the island of Seriphos. The fisherman Dictys took them in and helped to raise Perseus. Polydectes, Dictys' brother and king of the island, took a liking to Danae and plotted to send Perseus away so that he might court her. And so Perseus was sent to claim the head of Medusa. Medusa was the only mortal Gorgon who was vain of her beauty and deflowered by Posidon in Goddess Minerva's temple. She was then punised with hair of snakes.

For a while, Perseus wandered aimlessly without hope of accomplishing his mission when the gods Hermes, Athena and Hades came to his rescue. Hermes gave Perseus his cursed sword, Athena gifted him a polished bronze shield and from Hades, Perseus recieved the Helmet of Invisibility. He was told to seek out the three witches, also refered to as the three Fates of the Loom. Three old crones who share a single eye, of which Perseus took until they gave him directions. He traveled to the cave they foretold of and used his polished shield to view the gorgon medusa. At her decapitation, Pegasus and the golden bow sprang from her neck.

On the way back to the island, Perseus stopped at the city of Ethiopia, ruled by King Cepheus and Queen Cassiopeia. The vain Queen who claimed ultimate beauty drew the rage of Posidon who sent his sea beast Cetus/Kraken to bring the kingdom to ruin. An oracle stepped forth to annouce that they must sacrifice the princess Andromeda to assuage the beast. Mounted on Pegasus and with head of Medusa, Perseus slew the beast, released Andromeda and claimed her in marriage.

Upon returning home to Seriphos, he slew Polydectes to stop his violent advances to Danae and made Dictys king. Persues returned his gifts to the gods of whom they belonged and gifted Medusa's head to Athena who mounted it on Zeus' Shield. Perseus did return to Argos for the games in which his grandfather was participating. His diskus throw veered and killed him, completeing the oracle.