Duty and Honour (a 300 fan fiction)

This is War

In 490 BC, news reached the Spartans that the Persian king Dareios would attempt to attack Greece and bring it under his rule. But before the Spartans could and would react, news was brought to them that the Persian forces had been repulsed at Marathon. A bold soldier named Themistocles had planned to attack the Persians before they had a chance to set up camp on Greek soil. King Dareios was mortally wounded in this battle. He was succeeded on the throne by his young son Xerxes, who was said to be a king favoured by the gods, a god-king.  Less than ten years later in 480 BC, the Persians, led by Xerxes, were back and this time they would not give up so easily.

The sun is already high in the sky on this beautiful summer day when Filomela sees the approaching riders from her family's home. "Diona, Linos! Come in quickly!", she calls for the twins. They had recently turned five. Right now she doesn't need to worry about her older sons Nelus and Pyrros, for they are both in warrior training. Despite Pyrros tests coming up soon, Filomela is in high spirits because her husband told her that their son is a strong warrior and will make it no problem. She hurriedly pushes the children into the house. The sun seems to have disappeared from the sky with the arrival of the foreign riders. "That is a bad omen", Filomela wonders out loud. She knew immediately that there would be trouble. She assigns one of the maids to look after the children while She goes into town to see what the strangers are up to.

A large crowd has formed in a large square in front of the main education building, so she moves towards it. What she can see is that their unwanted visitor is throwing the skulls of defeated kings at the feet of the King, Leonidas, and is urging him to join his cause. She can make out that he is Persian and is supposed to deliver a message for his king Xerxes. The king does not immediately take him up on his offer, but asks the envoy to walk with him a little way.

Just as Filomela is about to go after them, she is held back by a very familiar voice: "What do you think you're doing, dear?" She whirls around quickly to her husband. "Dilios! You can't scare me like that!", she clasps her hand theatrically to her chest. "I just wanted to see what our strange visitors wanted", She tries to placate him as she sees him looking at her with a disapproving look. "You'd better go home, Filo. I don't know what these Persians want, but it can't be anything good. I'll come home and tell you what I know. All right?" She knows that he's just worried about her and doesn't like to see his wife standing in the middle of the action, so she just nods. "I'll see you tonight, darling", He says, as he gently runs his hand through her hair and gives her a soft but loving kiss. He breaks away from his wife and walks in the direction King Leonidas disappeared to earlier. She watches him go until she can no longer make him out among the masses of people. Slowly, she walks back to their house.

Once there, she can't sit still. The rest of her day consists of restless wandering. She waits impatiently for her husband to return and for news about the Persian visitors. But the more she steps out of the front door to see if she can see Dilios coming towards the house, the longer it seems to take before he actually arrives. When he finally appears between the neighbouring houses, the moon is already in the sky and the twins are already fast asleep.

"Filo...", he hugs her as soon as he sees her. "Is everything all right?", he asks, surveying his wife's worried face. "What's the matter, Dilios? What happened? I've had a bad feeling all day about our unannounced visitors." He gives a heavy sigh and walks into the house with tired steps, making his way to their bedroom. He motions for her to follow him. As he lets the bedroom door slam behind them, he says wistfully: "Your hunch was not wrong. The man was an emissary of Persia, he wanted Leonidas to join his king to subjugate the rest of Greece. Leonidas did not agree and killed the emissary and his men. He wants to take the field against the Persians, but must first consult the ephors. A decision will be made tomorrow. We are at war with Persia, whether we like it or not!" Not knowing how to react to this news, she hugs Dilios and says: "If the troops have to go out, you'll go too, won't you?" He just nods and strokes her back reassuringly, he knows how worried she is in case he has to leave, even if it's just a very simple errand she is still always worried. "Return!", "Always!", they make this little agreement every time before he has to leave, even though it's not certain at this moment that he has to leave, Filomela still feels like she wants to hear it from him now, that he will return to her.

The next morning, she is woken up by her husband moving under her. "Filo, my arm fell asleep", he murmurs in his sleepy voice. She has always liked his voice, especially when he spoke in that soft, peaceful tone. She reluctantly moves her naked body away from his, so he can move his arm again. Furthermore, she opens her eyes slowly and looks into Dilios's smiling face. "Good morning, darling", she presses a kiss to his lips before hoisting herself up and gets out of bed. "We should see about getting some breakfast. Besides, I'm sure the twins are chipper by now." Dilios just grumbles something unintelligible in her direction, but then starts to peel himself out of the bedclothes as well. She only hears him step behind her, and the next moment she feels him put his arms around her waist. He presses a soft kiss to her cheek. "You are still as beautiful as you were 16 years ago", he says in his Incredibly attractive, raspy morning voice. "And I love you just as much as I did 16 years ago", Filomela replies, snuggling up to him. Their peaceful moment of togetherness is interrupted by a thump at the front door. Dilios quickly throws on something and hurries to the front door, while Filomela finally set about organizing something for breakfast.

She hears Dilios talking animatedly to the unexpected visitor before he appears in the kitchen. "We have a visitor, dear", he says, with a slight smile on his lips. When Filomela sees the man enter the kitchen behind Dilios, her breath is immediately taken away. "My king!", she says in surprise and bows her head respectfully. "Filomela, please! We've been over this", Leonidas comes up to her, beaming, and almost crushes her with his tight embrace.

Since the Wilderness Test, King Leonidas and Dilios have been inseparable friends. Filomela also considers the King a friend and is always happy to see him with them. But today she fears that it is more than just a friendly visit. Leonidas leaves her and joins Dilios at the dining table. As she doesn't want to disturb the two men in their conversation, she looks for the maid to give her instructions on how to look after the twins. When she re-enters the kitchen, there is almost an icy silence between the two men. Neither of them seems to have noticed her presence, because Dilios says in a hushed voice: "I can't do that to Filo, and you know it Leonidas!", "And I! Do you think I like doing that. I don't want to do that to my queen, either! But we have no choice, Dilios!", "I know...I'm sorry Leonidas. I was momentarily unaware of my duty, and I shouldn't have spoken out of line." Leonidas places a hand on his shoulder. "I know, my friend, and be assured of one thing: I share your concern. There is no other choice. We must go!" Filomela tries to swallow the rising lump in her throat and says softly: "So it's war, then." Both men instantly look in her direction. "Filo...The Ephors won't let us go to war because of the Carneia. But we must go against the Persians, so I am looking for 300 men to go with me to Thermopylae and fight the approaching Persians there. Dilios will be one of those men."

After She had digested the initial shock, the two men had finished their conversation and Leonidas joined Filomela in the living room where she was staying with the twins. "I know you are worried, Filo. Maybe we won't come back. Potentially soon many wives will be widows and many children fatherless. But we must face the Persians, and our chances are good. Dilios will come back", he smiles at her unconvincingly and then, without saying another word, leaves our house.