Quest of a Goddess

Chapter 3

Once again, she was violently ill.  It seemed to her that she had been so almost from the beginning of this nightmare voyage.  From the instant that the Greek fleet had left sight of land, this storm had descended upon it.  Dark roiling clouds the color of sable covered the sky obscuring the sun, moon, and the stars, indeed nearly all light.  Except for the enormous jagged bolts of lightening which split the sky followed closely by the ear splitting roar of thunder.  Rain fell in unceasing torrents, the wind howled, and titanic, dark waves rose and fell as the Greeks and their captives continued to sail to the West.  Although Athenais was far from the only one suffering from seasickness, she could not understand why.  She had dwelt near the sea all her life, and sailed on it repeatedly and had never been sea sick before.  Agathon had even joked that she must be part sea -creature; she was so comfortable on the water.  At the mere thought of Agathon, Athenais’ eyes filled with tears and she felt a stabbing in her heart.  He was gone, had crossed over Styx.  She had last seen him sprinting toward the gates and the lower city as the screams and smoke had drifted back toward them.

FLASHBACK

It seemed as if nothing could tarnish this most golden of days.  The people of Troy had awakened from slumber and mounted their walls to find the plain in front of the city empty and silent.  The battlements suddenly irrupted in a cacophony of sound.  Shouts, weeping, prayers, and questions rang out from the crowds.  The soldiers among them shouted for order and finally managed to bring it to the chaos.  Scouts were immediately dispatched to the Greek encampment on the shore.  They returned quickly, joy, and astonishment warring on their faces.  The news they brought to Priam and his councilors quickly made its way throughout the city.  The Greek encampment was empty save for the debris and refuse that the army had left behind.  The menace that had hung over Troy for nearly a decade was gone almost as suddenly as it had appeared. The only remaining intact structure was a gigantic wooden horse.  Suitably guarded, Priam and his council made their way down to the beach to examine it.  After some very loud and heated debate, all of the major priests but one agreed that the horse was an offering from the Greeks to Poseidon for a safe voyage home.  The dissenting priest, one Laccoon, had been devoured by a sea serpent after loudly declaiming the horse a Greek deception.  His untimely demise was viewed as the anger of Poseidon against one who had decried an offering to him.  The decision was made to drag the figure back to the city and keep it always as a memorial of the city’s victory over the Greeks.  The king then declared that evening a celebration would be held in honor of the lifting of the siege and the subsequent return of normality to the city.

That night, the Trojan people celebrated, as they had not in over a decade.  Indeed, not since Paris had brought Helen to the city from Sparta had there been such a festival.   They laughed, cried, drank wine, danced, and made love in the streets, in their homes, and on the rooftops.  On a secluded balcony in the palace, Athenais and Agathon stood together alone and quietly enjoyed a flask of wine.  They did not speak, but they had known each other long enough that speech was mostly unnecessary between them.  She had spent much of the last ten years with the other priestesses of Athena pleading with the goddess for her aid and forgiveness.  Agathon had distinguished himself as a soldier and captain in the army.  The time that they had managed to make for each other had often been spent in much the same fashion has they were spending this evening.  Finally, just before midnight when the noise from the city began to fall away, Agathon cleared his throat and turned to Athenais.  Smiling, she quirked an eyebrow in a questioning gesture.  Agathon seemed to gather his courage and then began to speak.  “Athenais, we have known each other since we were children.  I think that I have been in love with you since the first time we met, even though it felt as if you were flailing the skin from my bones with your tongue.”  She chuckled throatily at the memory.  Agathon continued, “Now that this war is over, I feel as if I can finally follow the desires of my heart.  I plan to leave the army and work the land I have earned as well as continue with my studies.  In addition to that, I want to start a family at last.  Would you make me the happiest and luckiest man on this side of the Styx and become my wife?”  Her mouth dropped open in shock.  She had hoped for this for years, but never dreamed that it would happen.    Her eyes blurred with tears and as she fought to clear them she noticed the nervousness in Agathon.  “Of course I will marry you,” she cried out joyfully.  “We will join our lives together and live in happiness and peace for the rest of our days.”  It was at this moment that screams and smoke began to reach them from the previously quiet and peaceful city. 

END OF FLASHBACK

Once again, I apologize for the delay in posting this.  The rest of this chapter will be posted tomorrow.