A Gift from the Gods

13

Agamemnon had yet to make amends with Achilles and the Myrmidons. They had gone into battle multiple times over the weeks and lost dearly every time. Zephyra had resolved she would stay with the Greeks for the rest of the war. But after? She wasn't sure. For now, the Greeks were losing, but that could change with the drop of a goblet.

But when she was in Achilles' bed, dread and confusion dissipated. She felt safe. Wanted. Not that she didn't feel safe or loved at home, but it was different. Priam had the Kingdom, Hector had Andromache and his soldiers, and even Paris had his whores. Zephyra had little to call her own. Until now.

She dozed in the late morning coolness rolling off the ocean, Achilles on a stool watching her. It had become a sort of habit for them. She loved having him watch her as much as he loved watching her. There was a sense of peace between the two. No obligation or role to play. They could simply be together. They both reveled in that, even with a ware at their gate and a camp full of strangers.

Eudorus came for Achilles that morning when Zephyra was in the early stages of truly waking for the day, but Achilles still hushed his right hand man as he came into the tent. Achilles stood, brushing a curl from Zephyra's face, and left. She turned to her side and glanced at the entrance with half closed eyes.

"Ready the ships," Achilles said, "we leave in the morning. We're going home."

"Yes, milord," Eudorus said.

Zephyra was awake at that. They were going home? What did that mean for the war? For her family? What would happen to her?

"Agamemnon is a proud man." Odysseus' voice rang through her thoughts. "But he knows when he's made a mistake."

"The man sends you to make his apologies?" Achilles said. "What are you doing enthralled to that pig of a king?"

"The world seems simple to you, my friend, but when you are a king, very few choices are simple. Ithaca cannot afford an enemy like Agamemnon."

It had never been put so simply for Zephyra before. Of course he was right, but Zephyra had never realized the depths of those choices. It wasn't just collecting dowries for princesses. It was more. Enemies and allies, citizens and nobles. Life and death.

"Are we supposed to fear him?" Achilles said.

"You don't fear anyone. That is your problem. Fear is useful. We need you back. Greece needs you back."

Please, please don't ask him to stay. The dreams had stopped, if only for a few days, but she was beginning to feel hope for all people caught in this war.

"Greece got along fine before I was born, and Greece will be Greece long after I'm dead."

"I'm not talking about the land. The men need you. Stay, Achilles. You were born for this war."

Even now it seemed impossible to escape the destiny the gods played out for them.

"Things are less simple today," Achilles said.

"Women have a way of complicating things."

"Of all the kings of Greece, I respect you the most. But in this war, you are a servant."

"Sometimes you have to serve in order to lead. I hope you understand that one day."

Zephyra moved from the bed, wrapping the thin blanket around her body, and met with Achilles outside. Both men stood when she arrived, Odysseus bowing to her and taking his leave. Could he possibly know who she was? No, definitely not. He was just being cordial. Right?

Achilles approached her, kissing her forehead and offering her his wine. She took it and sipped, watching Patroclus approach in a new fury.

"We're going home?" Patroclus said, almost accusing Achilles.

"We sail in the morning."

"Greeks are being slaughtered. We can't just sail away."

"If it's fighting you so long for, there will always be another war. That I promise you."

"These are our countrymen. You betray all of Greece just to see Agamemnon fall. Worse yet, you betray us for your whore."

Achilles stepped forward and struck Patroclus across the jaw with the back of his hand. Zephyra took a step forward, but stopped herself. Patroclus's words were harsh and did not deserve that punishment, but it wasn't her place to say otherwise.

"Hold your tongue," Achilles said. He stepped back, changing his countenance. "Someone has to lose."

Achilles ushered Zephyra into the tent with him.