Perfect 😂 (and Here I Was Gathering Atlantis References For Other Reasons 😆 Amazing!)

Perfect 😂 (and here I was gathering Atlantis references for other reasons 😆 amazing!)

Didn't even hesitate or try to hide it a little bit, it's all about the good business 😂 Poor Odysseus just wants to sneak out to go home, he can't with these people anymore hahaha

Sorry I just couldn't resist!!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Don't you tell me this wasn't perfect?! Hahaha like come on everyone thought of that! 😂 (inspiration from Paris The Musical song "Business" because I just heard that specific song for the lolz 😆)

Tags

the odyssey the iliad Greek mythology memes paris the musical homer iliad incorrect odyssey

Achilles and Patroclus: Friends Lovers or both? (An analysis based on Homeric Epics and some ancient sources)

Yet another analysis requested by my dearest friend @artsofmetamoor while we two explore the complexity of human relationships in our own projects including romantic relationships of various kinds, including homosexual and homoerotic material as well as more traditional notions of family and kinship along with the complexity of values such as companionship and friendship, which we hold in the same regard as in the above so here's one of the most discussed relationships in greek literature. Buckle up with me because it is gonna be a looooong ride!

Achilles and Patroclus are two figures of greek literature and mythology that sparked discussions and analysis from the very first time they were introoduced as characters in the homeric poems in 8th century BC and not for their heroics in Trojan War but rather the nature of their relationship. Not to mention in modern day times we also start the rather overused and kinda ridiculous joke of "Historians say" around. But there might be some truth in some concerns in regards to their relationship.

A small history of their family

Achilles and Patroclus were related by a distant ancestor, Aigina. Aigina had a son with Zeus named Aeacus who in turn got married and had Peleus, who has the father of Achilles. Patroclus comes from the same line for Aigina later marries Actor and has Menoetius with him. Menoetius marries his cousin Damocratea, also possible daughter of Zeus and had a son named Opus who in turn had Patroclus, making Patroclus and Achilles de facto first cousins by the line of Aegina

(Yes...sorry "Troy" haters out there...hahaha Patroclus really WAS Achilles's cousin! ^^; Not that it ever stopped anyone in greek mythology!)

Patroclus was ellegedly exiled from his homeland when he accidentally killed his playmate and he fled to the court of Peleus where he got adopted by him thus the two characters lived most of their childhood together. Patroclus by most accounts is quite older than Achilles so in a way he was also assigned not only as his playmate but also as his "squire" or protector in various occasions. Needless to say that of course the two of them developed a very strong bond together.

Greek Text

To be honest, every time some person who does support the theory of them being lovers is being asked on it and that person claims that "the greek text is quite simple really". Allow me to disagree though. It is not. Quite frankly if it were, it wouldn't have sparked the conversation even to ancient greeks themselves of their time!

Arguably Homer never explicitly describes them as lovers in his poems (as opposing to other figures in the text that are undoubtedly sharing sexual relationships in the Iliad such as Hera and Zeus, Paris and Helen or even, ironically Achilles with Briseis once she is returned to him). However one would be a liar if they denied certain insinuations of a romantic involvement betwen the heroes.

Φιλέω-ώ= to love < > φίλος=friend, companion (Substantive), beloved (epithet)

Quite frankly Homer as we said before he a master of words and none of his words is picked at random. And the term φίλος is no exception. The word is being explicitly used in Homer by various of characters. The term can be translated interchangably from either "friend" to "beloved" depending the context. One of the most infamous and touching moments this word is being used is at the lament of Achilles when his mother asks him to speak up on why he laments so hard:

Achilles And Patroclus: Friends Lovers Or Both? (An Analysis Based On Homeric Epics And Some Ancient

With heavy groans, fast in feet Achilles responded to her: "Oh, my mother! The Olympians have done what they had predicted for me! But what joy remains for me, for my beloved comrade Patroclus is gone! I lost him! The one that I valued most among my other companions, equally to my own life!"

(Translation by me)

In here the concept of "φίλος" is clearly an epithet or plays the role of one since the actual word that we are looking for as a substantive is the word "ἑταῖρος" which stands for "companion" or "comrade" (a term used generally throughout the poems to indicate bonds in army or of friendship or even husband and wife at some cases). In here it clearly means "beloved" by the general text for the word "φίλος" is not used as a substantive. Other cases such as this appear in other parts of the poem even with the fullest form φίλτατος which means "the most beloved"

However it needs to be noted that the term φίλος as the essence of "friend" comes directly from this term "to love" which means someone "you are close with" someone "of your own kin" someone "dear to you". The ancient greeks do not seem to be making a distinction between love as in lovers and love as in family or relatives when using this verb and the words coming from it (one good example is Thetis referring to Achilles as "φίλον υἱὸν" which means "beloved son" and here has no romantic implications at all). The term is being used interchangably throughout Homer to speak about characters with close relations of kinship that are not linked to romantic essences at all. For example the way Menelaus adresses Odysseus as such in the Odyssey:

Oh, how strange! That has come to my house the son of a man much beloved to me; who for my sake has suffered so many ordeals!

(Translation by me)

In here Menelaus again is usingthe term φίλος but he doesn't speak out of romantic intentions at all. He speaks with the warmest words but in here it is the most intimate form of friendship and kinship and is followed by the implication of gratefulness, how he adds up how Odysseus suffered "for his sake" aka to fight the war and be lost afterwards. And before someone says "it is not the same amount of warmth" one must think again because before Menelaus speaks about how because of the agony he feels for his friend he does not eat or sleep properly and given that it has been 10 years already since the last time they saw each other that is a damn long time.

But all of them I do not grieve as much, even if I mourn for them, as much as I do for one man, because of which I both detest sleep and neglect to eat, for there is no one of the Achaeans that suffered more than what Odysseus suffered and endured

(Translation by me)

So not only Menelaus feels like Odysseus suffered the most out of them (and strictly speaking one can look at fates of other heroes like Diomedes to see they are not far behind in suffering) but that the way he constantly wonders about his well-being makes him unable to sleep or eat and that seems to be happening for years and years which shows the true depth of their friendship.

So no, strictly speaking the word "to love" is not used by the greeks to imply only romantic love and it can be used pretty intimately even if it is not referring to romance. And the difference can be perceived by the same writer as well not just some play that was written several centuries later in which, inevitably, we could talk about some alterations of meaning to the words over the course of time

However there seems to be another phrase used to express intense feelings of love which is κεχαρισμένε θυμῷ which means "dear to my heart" and in Iliad ironically that phrase is spoken by no other than Briseis herself!

Oh, Patruclus! Dearest to my wretched heart!

(Translation by me)

This interesting shout of love coming from Briseis is also interesting for it could be implying both emotions of romantic love but also of affection in general. Which is another phrase that researchers have looked upon in search for hidden meanings of romance but once again it was often used either as such or with the term "φίλος" instead to speak of relationships of family or kinship. But grieving scenes such as the one of Briseis might also be indicator of romance although not exclusively referring to that.

The Lament

Quite frankly speaking, Achilles's lament is one of the most infamous and well-known in greek literature exactly because of its explicit nature. We do see characters lament in plays before but it is not as frequent to see lament SO strong coming from a male character and so openly (see for example in the Odyssey how Odysseus tries to hide his own tears many times or how his men are wrapped up in veils in lament for their own lives and their fallen comrades' but by n large the male lament is more subtle, more silent). Achilles is different. For example when he is first told about the news of Patroclus's death the result is nothing less but the ultimate emotional collapse:

So they spoke and black mist of distress covered him: With both his hands he gathered smoky sand and he poured it over his head and disfigured his face: his nectarous chiton turned black with ashes. And he himself dropped in the dirt and stretched over his lying (here: the corpse) friend/beloved pulling out his hair in lament. The slaves given as war price to Achilles and Patroclus, released a great cry of sadness and they approached all to the sides of mourning Achilles, beating their chests with their hands, and their knees each. Also Antilochus with them was lamenting and pouring tears holding the hands of Achilles: for he was moaning with his noble heart: worried that he would cut his throat with iron (here: a knife).

(Translation by me)

There is no words to express such an intense display of pain given by Achilles from second one when he receives the news of the death of Patroclus. He immediately pours ash over his head (quite a common trope for mourning done by many characters before.) and "disfiguring his face" which means he was digging his nails down his cheeks which was again a trope of mourning in greek literature. The intensity of his lament is so great that Antilochus feels the need to hold his hands just in case he would want to comit suicide in his pain!

Ironically for most part in this lament does it mention that Achilles was making any sound at all during the process, which somehow makes it even more disturbing to think that Achilles simply drops to his knees, covers himself in ashes and scratches his cheeks while lamenting over the body of Patroclus hardly making any sound at all. It is the slave women who arrive later that release the cries that undoubtedly are within the soul of Achilles. Somehow his lament is extreme and yet no audible hint exists for most part of the text EXCEPT the final one where it says "moaning with his noble heart". It almost seems that his body does most of the talking till the women arrive and cry out like he so much wants to and then his mouth also makes sounds. It is not a scream; it is a moan. It is possible of course that the clip refers to Achilles constantly moaning but I do like this as a possible food for thought that if Achilles was firstly responding to pain with his actions and then with his voice and in a way the moment he actually made a sound was the moment Antilochus truly began to worry!

There is a certain theatricality to this scene of lament and drama which of course as many analytics before me would say, it seems to be hinting to some other infamous laments of mythological characters and more specific the laments of Apollo. Apollo is one of those figures for whom we have no doubt he was lamenting his lovers and some classical examples are Hyakinthus and Cyparissus both of them transformed into a flower and a tree respectably. The associations of Achilles and the grieving god seem to be more than just a possibility here. Which of course enforces even further the idea of them being lovers. It is also the amount of time that Achilles mourns plus the intense way that he refuses to let go of the body of Patroclus to which he seems to be holding on from the 18th rhapsody when he first finds out of his death till the moment that she arrived with his armor one rhapsody later. Quite a gruesome scene is when she enters the tent and finds Achilles crying while clasping Patroclus onto him:

And she found her dearest son still lay there, clasping Patroclus and crying woefully and his comrades around him mourning

(Translation by me)

And at this point Thetis hasn't yet given nectar and ambrosia to the body of Patroclus to prevent the sepsis from happening, which happens a few lyrics later. So Achilles was holding the dead body for the entire day even after it was cleaned and prepared showing the intense pain Achilles was expressing and going through. And he seems unwilling to part from him till Patroclus's spirit itself arrives in his sleep and requests a burial so he can rest.

Of course it needs to be noted that intense lament is not exlusive to lovers in greek mythology. To name a few Athena grieves intensely the loss of her friend Pallas and by some accounts she does take her name as her epithet post-mortem. Antigone intensely mourns her dead brother and laments his disgrace when she finds that the ritual burial she performed had been disturbed. And the acting of killing oneself out of sorrow again is not strictly remaining to the love affairs. For example Ismene killing herself after learning the deaths of her family members in general and Antigone in particular. Another most prominient example is king Aegeus who throws himself into the sea when he sees the black sails of the ship coming from Crete, thinking his son was dead.

So the exessive expression of grief are not just dedicated to lovers or husbands and wives in greek literature but rather it is expanded to all people who mourn someone dear to them regardless of the nature of the bond between them. In the case of Achilles of course he does seem to be having a specially strong mental breakdown every time some important person in his life that is said to be romantically involved with him dies or is taken from him starting with Briseis for whom he expresses his emotions many times in the Iliad and she is the first reason of his anger, of course Patroclus and Penthesilea for whom he apparently has feelings for a few monets after he sees her face after she dies. In Posthomerica it is even said that his lamentover her dead body is "the same as the one over Patroclus" and of course Antilochus later according to the Epic Cycle when he died protecting his father, caused another explosion of anger to Achilles which was fated to be his last one.

It is possible since his love is clearly stated in the cases of Briseis and Penthesilea that the same can have occured for Antilochus and of course Patroclus which was the most heartbreaking of them all and for good reason. In fact the case of Patroclus seems to be that he plays every role in the life of Achilles. He is his friend, his companion, his squire, his advisor so why not his lover too.

The Same Urn

Now of course where people surely think they have a clear case of romantic bond seems to be the request of Patroclus to be burnt but his bones to be kept in the same urn that is to be used for Achilles as well. The passage happens in the 23rd rhapsody:

And one more thing I ask for you to excecute; do not place my bones apart from yours, Achilles, but together just like we were raised in your chambers, when I was brought to your land by Menetoios as a little boy from Opois because of the grievous manslaughter, for when I was a child I was foolish and killed the son of Amphidamas without wanting to, for I was mad over a game of dice: there I was accepted to the chambers of the horseman of Peleus who kindly took care of me and named me your squire. And the same way I want for my bones to be together with yours in the same golden box, the one your divine mother prepared for you.

(Translation by me)

So apart from the fact that it is a highly emotional scene, seeing your dead companion arriving at you and begging to be let go (this is literally Patroclus saying "Let me go, Achilles...just let me go" for Achilles literally refuses to give up his body not even for a burial) it is also the scene that seems to be winking to the fans of the idea of them being lovers as a proof that they are together. And quite frankly I can absolutely see why and it would be foolish to ignore this possibility especially given how tenderly Achilles calls him "my beloved" (or "as loved as my own life") after the whole request is done from the spirit of Patroclus which is more than clear indication for many accounts and that makes perfect sense.

The custom of co-burial was known in Greece from the earliest times of its civilization till the end. We often find urns contain bones of multiple individuals and yes more often whatnot they are maritable partners and the obsession of words that mean "together" in this passage such as; "μή (...) ἀπάνευθε" (not apart), "ὁμοῦ" (at the same place, together) or "ἀμφικαλύπτω" (cover each other) seems to be pointing to the direction of a romantic relationship and it won't be the only time someone is co-relating the mingling of ashes and bones with "marriage" (and example is The Hunchback of Notre Dame, where Victor Hugo describes the way Quasimodo and Esmeralda's skeletons turn into inseparable dust as "Quasimodo's Marriage")

However on the counter-talk, co-burials were also common among family members (which is exactly what Achilles and Patroclus are). Ironically from the excavations to Mycenae several co-burials were discovered that were not related by blood but they were theorized to be connected to some relations of adoption (which again seems to fit the case of Achilles and Patroclus from the time Patroclus was brought in and ellegedly adopted by Peleus)

I am also convinced that the fact Patroclus gives us some good portion of his background story here was not just a random thing. It seems that Patroclus places emphasis on why he wants to be in the same urn as Achilles; because they were raised together, they were together all their lives and he wants them to be together in death as well. It absolutely could be a romantic insinuation on Patroclus's part however it seems equally possible that the background story serves as a lever to make the public understand how the two of them were raised together and wished to remain together. It almost feels like Homoer wants either to stimulate the idea that the past is an extra point towards their romantic relationship or yet another point of the closeness of their kinship or both (to me it seems the latter)

However another factor to this urn seems to be Antilochus. Antilochus who was close to the age of Achilles, the one who was in charge to bring the news of Patroclus's death to Achilles and the one that we saw consoling him and trying to prevent him from doing something foolish seems to be added to this circle. In fact in some future sources he is featured as the reason Achilles died, for he was driven in yet another furious attack against the Trojans, forcing them to fall back when he saw him fall dead protecting his father from the Ethiopian king Memnon. In some accounts, even possibly Homer included, is insinuated that Antilochus was also included in the funerary urn with Achilles and Patroclus although in the Odyssey it is clearly stated that his bones are not in it:

Your mother gave me this golden amphora (here an urn with two handles); a gift from Dionysus she said to me, made by the renounced Hephestus, in which lie your white bones, radiant Achilles, mixed with the ones of dead Patroclus son of Menoetius, but without Antilochus, whom he honored above all his comrades after Patroclus died.

(Translation by me)

So in the Odyssey it doesn't seem like they were indeed in the same urn (unless somehow Nestor could tell the bones apart and took them out? hehe) but they all thee of them are joined in one tomb and worshipped as heroes. So in a way Antilochus seems to join them just not in the same box. However the three of them are indeed seen together in the underworld as one trio literally. They are apparently joined after death according to what Odysseus saw in the underworld.

Once again seems like the romantic as well as the kinship theories could be true interchangably or even at the same time.

Ancient Greeks on their relationship:

As I mentioned above many ancient writers and not just the infamous "historians" everyone mocks on the internet, seem to have placed their own guesses and opinions on the relationships of the two heroes.

Aeschines seems to be contemplating the idea they are lovers (aka he says that Homer "hides their love") and he even reads Patroclus's story as "an intercourse they had once". He names their relationship έρως aka romantic love (eros). Aristotle in Nicomachian Ethics and Rethoric he uses the term "comrade" to talk of them, choosing to focus more on their friendship. His teacher Plato though was a different story. He was convinced that they were not only lovers but he had also figured their roles in their relationship as presented in his Symposium, naming Patroclus as ἐραστής aka "the one who gives love" and mentions how Achilles is in love with Patroclus. Plato remains one of the most...great "shippers" of the two having no doubt about their love affair. To the other end is Xenophon who is adamant that they are not lovers, in his own Symposium. A large number of greek writers seem also to comment on both possibilities, it seems to me quite interesting how many different readings the homeric poems provide.

Conclusions:

I have no doubts that Homer, even though not clearly speaking about it (for example referring to sexual acts) he seems to be insinuating that the two of them were sharing romantic bond or feelings for each other (it needs to be noted that it is not entirely clear that if there WERE romantic feelings that they were confessed or known by both parties, which could potentially mean the two of them loved each other romantically but did not fulfill their love which could be another tragic note to their story) Homer seems to be sending several hints to his viewers/readers that one could interpret them as lovers given the tender dictionary they use between each other and for each other, allowing his...fans to decide for themselves. It is also highly possible that he too saw them as star-crossed lovers, for he gives them all the elements of various other stories that involve homoerotic romance, even the tragic end to their story.

However I am equally sure that he also wanted to say that their friendship was of equal importance. There is no doubt that Homer considered them close friends (for he gives us a small hint of their backstory, how they grew together) and their story is being projected like many other duos and characters in the Trojan war that are linked together with bonds of kinship and companionship; stories that flourish at war. He might not straight out tell us that they are the case of story "from friends to lovers" but he absolutely seems to be letting us know that their kinship is there!

And I am grateful to Homer for his writing because it seems to me he wanted both sides to equally enjoy the story; whether they are those who do think their closeness is romance and those who think it is close kinship, strong family bonds or friendship. I am almost convinced that Homer deliberately used that as a way to please both sides of the audience or to give a more tragic aftertaste to their story since closeness is much more impactful to the face of separation.

I like them both and in fact I support them simoultaneously for honestly there is no best lover than your best friend; someone you can trust with everything you have. If I had to support one form of love, this would be it but at the same time I do support the idea that friendship is already a powerful bond of two people and that romantic love in this case would come as a bonus. Somehow Homer does seem to entertain this idea in his writing given again the extreme tenderness and the tragedy of these two while at the same time leaving the door open for his audience to speculate, make interpretations and enjoy the story in their own perspective.

If that is not art I dunno what is.

Okay guys this is only but scrapping the surface of this relationship that lasted for 3000 years now! Hahaha but I hope you like this! It took me several hours to synthesize but I hope you like it.

Tags

greek mythology achilles patroclus katerinaaqu analyzes

332 notes View Post

yararts-stash

3 months ago

anonymous requested:

MODER in THE RITUAL 2017 | dir. David Bruckner

Tags

the arms Love this creature design! Moder bastard offspring of Loki creepy and awesome

14K notes View Post

yararts-stash

1 year ago

Oh boy another amazingly written roller coaster for this poor character!! 😭😭 And the guy really must be so suspicious of everything and everyone after all these long years of struggles and suffering, so of course nightmares must be a constant demon now, haunting his mind among others, especially since his captivity situation is still fresh 😢 and he doesn't have Calypso's spells clouding his mind either!

And gosh the way the nightmares start in absolute chaos as he runs through the night... an obvious reference to how they choose to attack Troy at night which plagues his guilt, mixed with all the blood of the dead at his feet... Man the fact that he realized the wetness was not water by the thickness and smell of it, plus the armor must only make his running more desperate!

This is like the night of the living dead only much more chilling and dark, the way you point out the deep suffering of the people who were attacked and slaughtered, which is something Odysseus' mind and guilt amplify even more in his nightmare 😰 I also really like the fact that all the faces are distorted and hard to recognize, because there were so many deaths and too much for Odysseus to count and recognize, so what really hits his mind is the general suffering and screaming of all the people which fuels even more the "nightmare" aura of this!

Oh boy the way he panics and starts slashing... To get the approaching suffering figures away from him... And man the image of the wooden horse burning in the distance is such a good touch, almost as if it's mocking him and his decisions! Also the fact that the figures moan his name point out more to his inner guilt...

Oh and he slashes his comrade without meaning to... 😭 In a way this is a very deep symbolism, because even if indirectly so, part of him believes Polites died along with his other men by his hands, therefore this is his mind sinking in the belief he killed them, even before Eurylochus appears to accuse him of such...

Also as I said before this greatly reminds me of that idea where Kai dreams he kills Caleb by accident...

Oh man and what a grim sight for Polites... The way his body looks decomposed as a reflection of the way he died at sea, bloated and eaten by fish, and the dead glassy eyes must be so traumatizing to see! 😰 And now with the gash made by Odysseus' weapon... The way he laments how cold he feels is heartbreaking as well 😭

Man this definitely is perfect for a horror short and yet, it's so full of such emotion and it's as sad as it is scary... Also the fact that the figures are coming out of the pool of blood like reaching out to Odysseus from the depths of death itself! Of course since the last moments with Eurylochus were of tense bitterness the accusations out of his mouth will echo through Odysseus nightmare as well .. and even worse since he also looks like the decayed corpse reflecting his death by the Gods at sea 😢

This also reminds me of a scene of Vinland Saga, where Thorfinn has a dream/vision of the underworld and has to face all the people he has killed in battles, wars and raids, with the corpses actually crying reaching for him as if begging for him to take them out of there:

YouTube

Askeladd Saves Thorfinn in Valhalla - Thorfinn Cries for His Sins

Vinland Saga Season 2. Thorfinn dragged into hell by pople that he killed. Thorfinn meets Askeladd in hell afterlife.#vinlandsaga #askeladd

(Now I also wonder how bad are the nightmares that Caleb could have, of the comrades who died during the rebellion, as well as the enemies he killed... Because even tho it was the heat of war and it happens, some of those enemies were also lads fighting for better opportunities and lifes...)

Oh gosh and now all his men who died throughout the long journey... The giant holes being the spears of the giants who caught them like fish 😢 which is extra dark with the missing limbs, and oh man the six men who were devoured by Scylla being there as well... the gore is so graphic and yet I love it how you deliberately made it connect to the type of death they suffered...

I can only imagine the sounds of anguish Odysseus is making in bed while having these terrible visions... And as if these corpses aren't enough he suffers with the visions of the Goddesses as well! Circe arriving seems like she's symbolizing his Karma... And the consequences of his choices, which is definitely something that is on the back of Odysseus mind and makes sense to be personified through the Goddess in this nightmare! I also love her look of the red hair and green eyes, somehow it connects her to wild nature! Green of the plants, red of the fire and agressivness of animals!

Oh man and the apparition of Calypso is definitely his most recent terror... I love how she's standing tall shadowing him because her oppression, imprisonment and rape of him is still fresh in his being. And even with the honey eyes she seems so predatory still! Especially as she moves so quickly next to him! Being forceful and accusing him of abandonment as Odysseus remembers well how she ignored his wishes and just assumed her own version of reality!

The way he tells Calypso how she violated him so full of grief, while it transitions to Cassandra accusing his people of doing the same is such a gut wrenching moment in the best way! Especially with her drenched in blood too 😰 And this probably hurts Odysseus even more for the fact that he's so devoted to the Gods, so to see a priestess who devoted her purity being defiled by his men was probably so vile...

And now they are really coming one after the other, including the man that Odysseus knew he could have saved, but let drown on his own as revenge for how he put his baby son in danger to take him to war... It's interesting how Odysseus notices him being younger now, as if he notices the years of life he didn't get to live.

And of course the accusations that he kept his will to return home to his family over everyone else's survival and well being, which since this is his own nightmare it's like it's him who feels guilty of such a thought! Despite him retorting back how much he sacrificed for them too deep inside this thought stings him as well! Or at least that's what your writing makes me feel in this moment!

Oh man and finally comes the part which stings him the most! The fear that Penelope might have moved on while he's still fighting to return home to her... And of course it's Calypso's image telling him that, the same way she has kept trying to hammer it into his mind all these years.

I also loved that even in the middle of all these deformed and destroyed corpses, it still seems to be the corpse of poor little mangled Astyanax that terrifies Odysseus the most with the way he screams, probably because it was one of the most traumatic deaths for him, the death of a little pure innocent who reminded him so of his own son 😢

And again such a nice surrealist touch for a dream, the way curtains appear in the middle of nowhere in a bloody pool, and with his worse fear gaining shape on the other side. It makes so much sense that Penelope looks like his last memory of her and it's such an interesting detail that the other man has no real identifying features other than being young and strong! Is this Telemachus? Or another man she has married in the way she leans into him? Either way ouch! Such harsh words!

And the thought of his bed being there is also such a cruel touch of his brain! But definitely not as cruel as Penelope talking to him with such words! His brain throwing him the worst case scenario imaginable and again it seems that Penelope words are a personification of his own accusations to himself, only said by his beloved because they hurt more that way... Especially as he remembers his parents... and the way she calls him by his sacker of cities and butcher titles 😢 and oh boy him even remembering the sirens here hitting the peak of his suffering!

Him being engulfed by his dead comrades and others, while he tries to literally claw his way out of this situation to attempt to keep living, it's the perfect wake up call from this nightmare, which is only more heartbreaking as he sees Penelope getting more distant 😢

Poor guy looks so exhausted waking up from his dream, it's like he goes to bed to get more tired instead of properly resting...

And I love your descriptions of his reactions like his breathing and how he's sweaty and even feverish after suffering such a trauma in his sleep. And it's so fitting that although he acknowledged he is in a safe environment between people who wish to help, his mind is still on high alert at all the details and he immediately notices the light that was not supposed to be there, even with the drowsiness of his restless sleep! Nausicaa definitely had a jump scare there! Never sneak on a traumatized war man like that 😂

And gosh nightly visits! That's a bold young princess 😂 but gosh to her credit I can imagine that the sounds of panic that Odysseus was doing might have been indeed quite worrisome! The detail of him being so scared of her hearing him speak in his sleep is both interesting from the perspective of him wanting to hide his identity, but also his trauma of how Calypso practically probed his inner thoughts out of him forcefully!

And gosh talk about hitting the nail! Nausicaa definitely had no idea of the wound she poked when she asked him about the guilt he carries inside! Which is so apparently painful in the way he immediately attempts to lie! Or at least to give her some truths in other directions! Basically dodging the question in a smart yet sad way.

And the poor guy definitely scoffs at how he is called wise now... I like how he even throws the word with irony like an insult because of all the situations that brought him there alone! But it's also so very human of him that although he regrets the way things have happened he still admits that he would do it all again just for the chance to be back to his family faster... Also it gives him such an interesting duality because it makes sense he would be proud of himself for the feat of winning a war so fast and almost by himself! It's definitely still incredible and worthy of admiration for his mind and wits! And even if it kills him that the slaughter and blasphemies happened I really love the mix of shame, regret and self acknowledgement running in his mind... And again it's so human of him to contemplate his own mortality especially now that he's so eager to return home after so many years!

I also like how he's implying that his wisdom is in fact his experience and in a way he is not wrong, the same way he is not wrong in pointing out that experience is not always wisdom, and yet it's so natural for him to be happy that people recognize his talents despite being so very exhausted the poor guy... Especially since he thinks his sorrows are also the results of his actions...

But man the girl in love 😂 (now I also imagine Caleb with silver strands still making the town girls sigh 😂) she is so ready to marry him, the poor cute young one hahaha she is also such a nice contrast with Calypso, clearly has the innocence of a young girl with a strong crush and no wonder that Odysseus feels flattened by it! But I so love how you still make his trauma show itself in the way he runs away from her touch, still to hurt from his rape.

And the girl was so awkward with his reaction as well! She's clearly uncomfortable with his discomfort which is a very good sign! Gosh she definitely can't imagine how much Calypso did to him indeed! And once again Odysseus throws half lies and different truths to avoid the painful subject that still hurts him so... It's heartbreaking that the ending of his dream haunts him when he thinks of Penelope!

It's so cute how he mentions Telemachus being her age! Perhaps he could be a nice suitor for her 😆😆 and she has such a girlish reaction as well, being almost offended that he assumes what she would regret even if it was not his intentions hahaha but if course one can see why she fell for him and his wits and will after all!

And his jokes to try and lighten the mood are always great despite it bearing truth! I like how he can admit that flattery can inflate his ego too much!

I love how Nausicaa asking about Penelope being so beautiful after all those years is mirroring the way Calypso asked him, but here it's not in a red flag dangerous way, but rather just a young girl getting sad about not being able to get her first love or crush. Odysseus describing how he loves his wife not only for her physical beauty but for all of the things that makes her herself is very touching ❤️ and it's also so cute how Odysseus doesn't want to hurt the girl's feelings, hahaha and the way he suddenly pulls his covers up all shy 😂

Oh man that image of the figure in the corner is so scary no wonder the poor guy is in need of a light for some comfort from the scary ghosts in his head! It's so sad it's like a little boy looking for some comfort in the light! Once again reminds me of Caleb begging for the candle when he was still too traumatized from his imprisonment 😢 oh gosh and the way Odysseus almost cries when she tells him that the lamp can stay there... Nausicaa is definitely such a great difference from the Goddesses and poor Odysseus feeling bad that he can't give her what she wishes from him because of her kind gesture of being decent and respecting his choice! The way he's so touched by her is very emotional!

Oh man that's such a great final detail the way he at least feels alive and like himself again with these nightmares, that although terrifying and plaguing his mind are still more natural than the spells Calypso put on him to numb him... His relief for not being used anymore is overwhelming!

And gosh him still imagining Polites suffering in cold and pain 😢 and giving him one last thought and apology before attempting to sleep again... His will to survive is always the most incredible thing, but also touching in the sense that part of him cannot let his comrades deaths or his struggles be in vain by dying, even if he tells himself he'll see them, but only when the time is right... And thankfully the lamp does help!

Gosh girl such an explosion of emotions as always written in such a touching way! The way you describe such human reactions always gets me in the feels!! Marvelous job girl truly!! It's criminal that this does not have more notes!! 👏👏✨✨✨💖💖💖💎💎💎💎✨✨✨✨

It's also such an amazing tribute for man's mental health awareness, in this or in any other month it's perfect! (Made me eager to get to the part of Caleb healing in our story as well ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹) Also a very interesting touch to research the name of the comrades who are anonymous in the Odyssey! Hahaha Big Polites with a kind heart gives me Ballard feels now! And Eurylochus as Diego of course 😆 And again I really like Circe's look! ✨✨

Screams and Shadows in the Night

Odysseus spends the first night in Scheria, hiding his identity from everyone and yet his dreams are not peaceful as everything he ever feared or made him tormented come to visit him as screams and shadows in the night...

He was running once more. That’s all he knew. His breath was hissing in his ears and his leg muscles were hurting from the effort. He could hear the clang of metal as he was fully geared up in his bronze armor. He could also hear the screaming. Screams were coming from every direction. His feet seemed to be ankle-deep in water which was making his march more difficult. However, no, that was no water. He recognized the familiar and not at all pleasant scent of metal and he knew the liquid was thick. It was blood. He could almost feel it clotting on him. There were momentary flashes of fire in the darkness and then more screams… Soon faces and people followed. Screaming distorted faces came to get him. They were mixed people; soldiers and civilians that seemed to be rushing at him. He raised his sword which he had no idea he had before, and slashed. He slashed again and again as more blood gushed out of wounds and showered him. All he could do was keep cutting as more dead bodies fell down. He recognized the fires and screams of Troy. He could almost see the wooden horse; his creation, burning in some long distance along with the walls of Holy Troy. He swore people moaned his name as they fell dead.

“Get back! Back!” he cried desperately, “Leave me alone!”

He slashed again and then his eyes widened in horror.

“C-Captain…”

He recognized the tall figure with the dark brown hair and brown eyes or rather what seemed to be left of them as they were glassy like fish eyes as his head was leaning to the side soullessly with the slash he had just inflicted open at his throat; blood gushing out of his lips.

“P-Polites…” he croaked out

“Odysseus…” Polites moaned, “Why…why…it’s…cold…”

His skin was pale and soft; unnaturally green as if it had been underwater. He was bloated at places as the flesh was already hanging at other places. Some parts of his body seemed to be bitten by the fish of the sea.

“No…no…no…” Odysseus whispered taking a step back and another and another

Suddenly from the depths of the bloody pool came more hands, one or two tried to grab him by the ankles. He turned around to see the thin figure of Eurylochus. His skin was also grayish, seaweed was coming out of his black mouth as water was gushing out of it.

“Captain…” he growled unworldly, “This is all your doing! Your fault! You doomed us all!”

“No! Eurylochus! Please…” Odysseus cried, “I didn’t…I…I didn’t mean…”

As screams and moans increased accompanied by the sounds of swords and cracking of bones coming from a distance, more faces and bodies kept coming out of the bloody pool around him… More men appeared; some of them bore wounds on their bodies that looked like giant holes, something only spears enormous for human hands could cause, a few others had limbs missing and 6 out of them had their skulls crushed; parts of their brains missing or jaws shattered beyond recognition. And more bodies covered in algae and seawater appeared.

“Lycaon…Alkimos…Amphialos…Antilochus…Amphidamas…” Odysseus whispered as tears burnt his eyes, “No…please…no…Perimedes…no…”

He tried to back down but he couldn’t. There was a circle of dead men coming closer and closer, moaning unworldly and calling his names. The hellish choir of screams and cries in the background was making his ears buzz.

“I told you not to do that…!”

At the sound of that soft, mellow soprano voice, Odysseus turned around. At a distance he recognized the tall figure of Circe as her auburn red hair and green eyes left little doubt of her identity.

“Circe…please!”

“You doomed yourself, Odysseus!” Circe whispered, and even if she did, her voice echoed clearly in his ears, as if she spoke inside him, “I had warned you…you didn’t heed my advice”

“No! Please, Circe! I didn’t do it…I…I didn’t…”

Circe pointed her white finger towards him in accusation.

“Their blood falls upon you! It’s time you paid!”

“No!” Odysseus yelled in panic, “I beg of you, Circe, please help me!”

“I told you, darling…”

The new, deep voice made his blood run cold as he turned towards the other side to see the dark figure of Calypso standing tall as if she were a shadow, behind the sea of people that were approaching him. Her honey eyes almost shining in the darkness.

“I told you to stay with me…” she repeated, and suddenly she was right behind him as if it took just a blink of his eyes to do so, “You could have been immortal! You could have been happy with me…and yet you abandoned me! I loved you and you abandoned me.”

“No!” Odysseus cried out, “You were scaring me…you kept me prisoner…you…” he chocked on the words, “…You violated me…!”

“Like your own people violated me?”

Yet another figure manifested behind him, making him jump out of his skin. He recognized that slim, small figure. Her robes of the priestess were stained with blood as was her face.

“Cassandra!” he croaked out

The she-prophet both blessed and cursed by Apollo glared at him; a thousand accusations shining in her eyes.

“Your schemes brought your people at my doors! They defiled me! They violently took my virginity away! The one that I had offered to the gods for eternity! They made me a slave!”

“I didn’t do it! I am not at fault!”

“What about me then?”

Odysseus turned his head again and he never thought to see that face again in his life. That face so much younger than his, gray and loose from water covered in mud and algae from the sea.

“P-Palamedes…” Odysseus croaked out, “No…no!”

A bony accusatory finger stretched towards him.

“You…” the unworldly husky voice croaked, “You…killed me!”

“No! You drowned!” Odysseus panicked, “You fell and drowned…I saw it!”

“Yes…” Palamedes retorted, “You did nothing…your hand did this!”

“That’s a lie!” Odysseus screamed beyond himself, “I wasn’t…I didn’t… You… You hurt my son! You nearly killed him! And you dragged me into that hell! If it weren’t for you I…I would be at home now! With my son! With my wife!”

“That was all you ever cared for…” Eurylochus spoke again, “No one else mattered to you…no matter how much you cheated, stole or killed you didn’t care…”

“No! No!” Odysseus now yelled as tears of rage filled his eyes, “I…I did so much for you! I…I fought monsters for you…I sold myself for you! Bastard! I did so much for you! Don’t you dare to say that to me!”

“You took Troy by trickery!” Cassandra spoke as well, “You fought at night and you destroyed thousands of lives…”

“And for what?” Calypso continued, “To return to your wife…the wife that doesn’t wait for you…the wife that is happier without you!”

Her eyes shone dangerously, almost like coals over embers of fire.

“Your dearest wife just lives happily without you!”

“NO! DAMN YOU WITCH! DAMN YOU!”

The baby cry made his blood freeze as he looked down at the bloody river and saw the mangled body of the baby grabbing his ankle. The scream that was released from his own lips couldn’t have been produced by a human!

“NO!”

He violently kicked himself free out of the grasp beyond his wits in terror as he ran towards a curtain he had no idea there was there and then he opened it to face the most terrifying sight of them all. Penelope was there, as beautiful as the day he left her, leaning onto a couch. There was a male figure behind her, he couldn’t distinguish his features as he was hidden in the shade of the curtain (and of the olive canopy of the bed…HIS bed…the bed he shared with his wife…) but he seemed tall young and vigorous. Penelope leaning against him like a dove looked at him in contempt.

“Why did you come back?” her melodious voice full of accusation, “We were better without you…happier without you!”

“Penelope! No, joy of my life this cannot be! You promised me…we promised to each other…! No! This can’t be!”

“How long will I cry for you? How long will I wait for you, Odysseus? How many more people will I bury that waited for you?”

Anticlea…his mother…his father probably would follow… Tears of horror fell from his eyes as the unworldly screams increased mixed with the horrendous song of the sirens that pierced his eardrums.

“No! Penelope! How could you!”

“You deserve to die for what you’ve done!” Penelope replied merciless.

Her voice was no longer sweet; no longer warm. She was colder than ice and sharper than any sword, spear or tusk that ever pierced his tormented body.

“You…Sacker of Cities…like any butcher you took so many lives and destroyed even more! So just you would get out of war fast without being called a coward! You will pay for what you’ve done!”

The horrendous room seemed to be growing distant and the living dead seemed to have surrounded him now…

“Come…Odysseus…” Polites moaned

“Join us to hell…” Eurylochus growled, “Come with us as you should have done a decade ago!”

More moans and groans surrounded him as skeletal hands, more terrifying than any claw he ever saw, came closer and closer. Odysseus was mad beyond words.

“NO! LET ME GO! UNHAND ME! NO!”

Horrified beyond description he looked up at the direction of Penelope who was growing all the more distant from him.

“No! PENELOPE!”

He punched and kicked maniacally, he hit someone with his elbow and he swore he must have uprooted some arm or some handful of hair. He no longer cared.

“NO! YOU SHALL NOT DRAG ME DOWN WITH YOU!” he bellowed, “I WILL SURVIVE, DO YOU HEAR ME?! I WILL SURVIVE! I WILL SURVIVE! NO! NO! NO!”

As the bodies engulfed him his breath stopped and his eyes turned black…

Odysseus gasped and shot up from his sleep violently breathing in and out

His wide chest was hurting from the amount of effort he was putting at the violent palpitations that were supposed to bring Oxygen to his body. His clothes were drenched from his sweat and his forehead was burning as if he were feverish. He looked around frantically at the room as he tried to remember where he was. He remembered he was in Scheria, the island of the Phaeakes. He was finally on a friendly land with people that seemed willing to help if he let them in. The room was simple and yet comfortable where he slept softly for the first time in more than two weeks. It looked cozy even if Odysseus was nowhere near at comfortable at that moment. Then his mind, already moved by fear he realized the only reason he could see was that there was light in his room! Fast like a snake he turned around to grasp the throat of the intruder who dared to invade in his room only to receive a girly whelp of surprise and feel the tender flesh beneath.

“It’s me!” Nausicaa rasped out, “It’s me…!”

She was standing over him in her nightgown, covered in white and in her white veil, holding a ceramic lamp that was the source of light. With the traces of the dream still in his mind, Odysseus came back to reality. He sighed in relief as he released her.

“Princess…” he gasped, “Gods forgive me…forgive me, I didn’t mean…”

“Forgive me the intrusion…” the maiden spoke again in a whisper, “I heard you from down the hall moaning and gasping I thought…”

Odysseus felt his heart being clenched by fear.

“Did I…Did I speak in my sleep…?”

He had hidden his identity from his hosts and managed to remain anonymous. If his dream forced words in his mouth then…

“No…” Nausicaa whispered honestly, “Nothing I could make out anyways but you seemed pretty bad…”

“Thank gods…” Odysseus sighed in relief, “Forgive me for the scare, princess… I did not aim to alarm you in the middle of the night. It was just a nightmare… Just shadows and screaming in the night…”

Nausicaa placed the lamp by his bed and sat at the edge of it.

“They say that night horrors visit us when we have guilty conscious. Do you have things you regret, kind guest?”

She could have stabbed him in the heart; it would have hurt less.

“No, princess” he lied, “no more than everyone has, anyways. However the trip…the shipwreck and the tides…adventures…sadness and horror…can break any man…”

He mopped his sweat off his forehead with his hand. He swore he could still see the blood.

“I have my regrets like any other human…and my fears too…”

At least that was true enough, he knew. Nausicaa looked at him sincerely and nodded.

“You are a curious case, kind stranger. My father was impressed by you. You certainly hide wisdom”

Odysseus scoffed a bit, in a humorless manner. Yes, wise… Wits that match the gods they had said…a man of many wiles they had said… And yet here he was; stranger in a strange land…alone without companions afraid to even reveal his name to hosts because of over a decade of torment and sorrow…

“My wisdom brought me here,” he thought bitterly, “my arrogance and selfishness… I wanted, so badly, to go home and I committed a war crime for it! I could still be at war in Troy now…but I would still be Odysseus of Ithaca…the king of Cephallinians… But I would still be honorable despite my reputation…I would be…I would be me… Not a nobody hiding among strangers…not a ragged beggar and a ragged man”

And yet, did he have regrets for his actions? He surely did, but would he really make things differently? Odysseus realized that he wouldn’t. He would regret the slaughter of Troy to the rest of his days, he knew it, but would he have taken another route to take it? Somehow he doubted it. He still knew he would come up with a scheme to take it as fast as possible. Quite frankly, Troy was his biggest regret but also his biggest pride. A mortal man taking a city almost by himself? If the slaughter and the atrocities to the gods hadn’t happened Odysseus realized that he would be proud of his idea to overstep the rules and fight in the night. If the slaughter didn’t happen so brutally he could even feel pride at his plan… He moaned pitifully as he passed his hand over his face once more. He saw a few white hairs on his hand from his beard. Yes, he realized once again, he was just a pitiful human doomed to grow old and die. His years of torment had changed him…and he wasn’t sure if it truly was for the better…

“I am no longer young, princess…” Odysseus said in defeat, “Wisdom can have also the name of experience which always comes with age; even if experience doesn’t always equal to wisdom, your compliment is definitely a balsam to any old man’s heart…”

He remembered being praised for his wisdom. He felt so proud back then! Even now he felt wild pride people recognizing the skills he believed he possessed. However now, after 20 long years Odysseus was tired…even this joy was not enough to heal the cracks to his soul. What wisdom did to him during all those long years he roamed about the seas? At the moment he felt like the worst among the fools that ever lived on the planet. Nausicaa blushed softly. Odysseus watched her brush a lock of hair behind her ear, averting his eyes.

“I certainly do not think you are old as you say…my father does not think so either. If you wished so, you could stay here forever and relax…finally be free from your torments…”

She looked at him for a brief second before shyly lowering her eyes again.

“And I would gladly become your wife as my father also wished”

Odysseus looked at her. Even in the dim light he could see how beautiful she was. Soft and clean wheat colored skin and long brown hair, large brown eyes that could wake the passion in any man’s heart; Odysseus was both flattered and in wonder how she saw him; a mortal maiden to the beginning of her youth seeing him a shipwrecked beaten up man to the beginning of his old age, and thinking how she wished to be his wife. She wasn’t an immortal goddess who might as well take interest in experiencing the fleeting nature of humans, this was a human maiden; someone like him. Usually maidens of humans would be attracted to youth, beauty and strength. The fact that she seemed genuinely interested in him both flattered and alarmed him. Her hand made a move to touch him. He gasped and avoided her by leaning back.

“Don’t…” he said softly, “Please don’t…”

Nausicaa averted his eyes once more, clenching her veil around her.

“Did that goddess you mentioned do that much to you…?” she whispered

Odysseus lowered his eyes.

“Is not something I can easily talk about, Princess…however that’s not the only reason…”

It was a half-lie and he knew it but he was also telling the truth.

“I have a wife…she is waiting for me back home…”

For a moment that horrifying dream came to his mind but he shook it off.

“I have also a son who could be about your age… Please, do not get me wrong, kind Nausicaa…you are a very beautiful and attractive young woman, the woman who could awake passion and loyalty to any man but…”

He sighed.

“…But I am not for you. That is not what you wish either…trust me you would regret it later and so would I. I love my wife more than anything in this life. I could never betray her in such a way as to abandon my plan to reunite with her.”

Nausicaa looked to the side once more.

“Do not think of me as reckless…you cannot tell what I would and what I wouldn’t regret…”

“The thought never crossed my mind, Nausicaa…” Odysseus said softly, “But, trust me, you confuse your pity and sympathy for me for love…”

“I never pitied you…” Nausicaa said, “In fact, your strength and will to survive is only to be admired of and you have proven yourself a bit today…”

“Please say no more compliments, princess, for this old man might become too flattered and arrogant while he should stay humble!” Odysseus whispered in an attempt to make some humor out of the situation

He knew himself. He could say many things but no one could deny he knew his good and bad sides. He was easily flattered. He loved to hear that people appreciated his talents. He was so used at both ends of the spectrum; people berating his methods and people admiring his skills that he was capable of absorbing flattery like a sponge. His onyx eyes looked at the maiden in a paternal way.

“My answer will still be no, beautiful Nausicaa… I desire nothing more than go home to my wife and son…please, understand, it has been so long…”

“Is your wife so beautiful then…?” Nausicaa smiled sadly

“And even more”

“Even after all those years…?”

Odysseus smiled softly.

“That…I do not know” he admitted, “However Nausicaa…I had the chance meeting women who were renounced for their beauty and even then I chose my wife. She might not have been as famed as those women for her beauty, despite the fact it was great anyways, but the reason I chose her was her wits, her craftsmanship…her personality that drew me to her… This type of beauty will never fade…not even in a hundred years… I wish you, beautiful Nausicaaa to find a husband that makes you feel the same…”

Nausicaa sighed softly. That sigh made Odysseus almost blush. It was as if she had told him; “I already found a candidate…but I cannot have him…”. He also felt shy that moment and drew his covers over his chest. If that maiden was truly in love with him in such a small amount of time…even if she knew literally nothing of him… That interest was indeed sweet and flattering how even at his age and even after beaten up by the sea and time he was still aspiring love and passion and yet… Nausicaa stood up, fixing herself a bit.

“Is there anything I can do for you, kind guest?”

Odysseus looked at the corner of the room where shadows played. His imagination was playing nasty games with the light and shadows and he could almost see a tall figure there…terrifying and dead…covered in blood and sea… His black eyes looked at the princess pleadingly.

“Yes…please can you leave me the lamp…?” he asked, “…So the shadows of the night will not visit me again…?”

Nausicaa smiled in sympathy.

“Of course…”

She placed the little ceramic by his bed.

“The oil should last throughout the night…”

Odysseus lowered his gaze and almost teared up in gratefulness. He hoped Nausicaa hadn’t seen it. She certainly was different than Circe and much different than Calypso. She respected his wish and backed away. He felt grateful to her and sad at the same time how he wasn’t that type of person to give her what she wanted. She didn’t deserve the heartbreak but he had confidence in her. She wasn’t broken like he was. She could find a better match… He collected himself so she wouldn’t notice his tears that were forming to his eyes, threatening to come out.

“Thank you…” Odysseus whispered, “Truly…”

“Sweet dreams, stranger…” she whispered

That I doubt…he thought bitterly watching her leave his chambers and leaving him in peace. His mind ran back to the island of Calypso. The nights he was numb and the few hours of sleep he managed to get were silent like death. In a way it was redemptory of the nightmares he got almost every night but at the same time now Odysseus felt both relieved and horrified that his nightmares returned. Of course the nightly screams were making him almost lose his wit in sorrow and terror and yet now he felt like he finally was returning to himself; he was becoming again Odysseus; a human with feelings and regrets and memories. He was no longer an empty sack for the use of a goddess…and yet… He looked at the corner. The light was enough to show to him there was nothing there and yet as the flame flickered he could still imagine the tall figure of his friend Polites there…

“Odysseus…” he had moaned in his dream, “…It hurts…it’s cold…”

As tears flew once more from his already tear-burnt eyes, Odysseus held his head as he leaned forward on his bed.

“I know…” he whispered, “I know my friend…I’ve been there….I know… I’m so sorry…f-forgive me…”

He knew he would join them one day…then he would face them properly and apologize properly for what happened…but not yet…not yet. He had promised to himself he would survive no matter what… He would join them…just not yet…

Eventually he fell asleep…with the flickering light of the oil lamp by his side…

Sending away the horrors of the night… The Shadows and the Screams

***

So guys yet another short fic I made out of a random inspiration but it couldn't be more fitting since in June we are supposed to memorize the Men's Mental Health Month which is often forgotten in the background, unfortunately. Now I am not the type of person to do many "month related things" because I believe no month can include so many messages but I felt someone needed to make something for mental health related and trauma especially for men as it is often overlooked or brushed off.

So as the title implies, Odysseus is having nightmares about everything that he feels guilty of or things that traumatized him and gets a nightly visitor.

In the Odyssey, Odysseus spends the first night in Scheria anonymous without telling anyone who he is. The king was so impressed by the way he talked and conducted himsel that he suggested him to marry his daughter which he had declined. Then he is offered a bed to rest for the night so this is basically where the scene takes place

I name a few of Odysseus's comrades here. Unfortunately most of his comrades remain anonymous in the Odyssey minus Eurylochus, Polites, Elpinor and Perimedes (the lattest is the one who secures him even further during the sirens adventure, helping Eurylochus). The rest of the names are apparently mentioned by the Byzantine writer John Tzetzes (Ιωάννης Τζέτζης) in his book "Allegories of the Odyssey". They are the names of the other 5 survivors, except for Eurylochus, that escaped Polyphemus cave.

I don't know why but I imagined Polites big and strong looking man for this one. In fact most of adaptations of Polites make him very big and muscular man instead and I liked the idea of him being more intimidating looking and yet with a kind heart. Opposing him, I imagined Eurylochus with not so much evolved physique and his height about the same as Odysseus, making him also average-sized man. Again I have no idea why.

Circe's description is a random thing that doesn't need to be final. I was just inspired by the classic song "Jolene" in which speaks of a woman of Auburn hair and Green eyes. It might change in the future.

Calypso is mentioned to my other fic "Survivor's Guilt and Survivor's Duty" which you can read in 3 parts at my pinned post (at the same post you can see my outtake of Palamedes to my other 3 part story "Guilt"

Soooo yeah that's it! I hope you liked the gore and the drama. Please let me know!! ^_^

Tags

odysseus greek mythology the odyssey Inspiration katerinaaqu writing

91 notes View Post

yararts-stash

1 month ago