manage to find where Basilisk and Man-Bull are hiding and recruit their help. The villains approach Hecate and Kyknos using a ruse involving Hercules being turned to stone. Hercules quickly revives and saves the villains by killing Kyknos, then prevents Ares from being resurrected by kicking over his altar. Hecate flees and Brooklyn is returned to normal. During the Spider-Island storyline, the Greek owners/operators of the bar where Hercules works have fled the dangers of New York City and returned to Greece, leaving Hercules in charge. He befriends an elderly African man named A. Nancy who loves stories. One night Herc is bitten by a bed bug that gives him spider powers, which he uses to fight crime. The Queen of Spider Island reveals herself to Herc and makes him her slave. She sends Spider-Herc against the X-Men, who were in town after fighting lizard people in the sewers. They try to reason with him, but he attacks them with the Sword of Peleus. Due to the mutagenic properties of Spider-Man's powers, Spider-Herc mutates into Herc-Spider mid-battle. Shortly after, the X-Men are trapped in a magic web, and the Greek goddess Arachne appears. Instead of fighting, it is revealed that Arachne is very attracted to Herc's new form and they embrace, while the X-Men are forced to watch. While Arachne is preoccupied, A. Nancy breaks into her home and steals her mythical woven tapestry. He reveals himself as the African spider god Anansi, a collector of stories, when he's attacked by Elektra, who takes the tapestry from him. Hercules is later cured of his spider transformation by Peter Parker, along with everyone else infected. Hercules later encounters Zeus, who was depowered by his wife Hera because of his infidelity and womanizing. During that time, he discovers Elektra stealing a museum artifact from the Hand. After battling the Hand ninjas, Hercules discovers, through Kingpin, that Elektra is stealing mystical artifacts for Baba Yaga, a Slavic witch who was summoned by the Russian mob, who plans to absorb the magic of the artifacts to gain a youthful appearance and increase her power. He manages to locate Baba Yaga after Elektra steals his weapons. Herc and Zeus infiltrate the witch's home and Herc, with Elektra's help, defeats Baba Yaga. He then lets Zeus absorb the magic from the artifacts, restoring his godly powers, and they part ways. Hercules is called upon to act