Chapter Text
Lightning struck, thunder boomed, and then there was nothing.
And then there was something. And that something was not the Underworld like Eurylochus was expecting. Instead it was sand beneath him and the sun beating down on him.
He was alive. He had survived.
When Eurylochus made his choice on the sun god’s island, he did it fully expecting death for his actions, he knew what he was doing perfectly well, his crew did too.
… The crew.
He whipped his head around in a panic. Did anyone else…?
“Is anyone out there?!”, he yelled, getting up on his feet. “Anybody?!”
He was only greeted with the sound of crashing waves and seabirds crying overhead.
… He shook his head. There was noone there. Just him alone on this unfamiliar beach. A curse almost slipped out his mouth, and he felt like crying.
Once again, people kept dying all around him, and he was one left standing. Why? Were the actions he had taken so awful that to continue living was deemed a more cruel punishment than death?
What was this a punishment for? Opening the bag of winds? Slaying the cattle of the sun god? Treason?
Another thought hit Eurylochus.
Odysseus.
The one who warned against doubting him. The one who begged him not to kill that cow. The one who he mutinied against.
The one who chose to let everyone die just so that he could get home.
He must have survived that lightning blast, that was the point of his choice, right?
Where was that son of a-
“Captain!”
… Nothing.
Eurylochus cursed under his breath and finally worked on collecting his thoughts, survival mode kicking in despite his unwilling spirit.
He was on an unfamiliar shore, probably an island, all alone. No ship. No supplies. No shelter.
Think.
First he’d have to determine if this place was safe. He didn't want anything coming to get him, not that’d he object to that-
So that was that. Scout.
He’d check the forest behind him first. If any dangers were lurking around, they’d be there, since the beach was too open to hide anything.
There wasn't much upon further inspection. No signs of civilization or people anywhere. So he was all alone.
At least food didn't seem like it would be a problem, he spotted some plants that looked edible, and there was a healthy population of boars and even deer. He hesitated to get close to any of them, what if there was another cattle incident? So he ignored his aching stomach for the time being.
Water seemed to be not much of a problem either with there being streams around the woods, he thanked the nymphs for that.
Shelter was dealt with too before nightfall, a small one made of fallen logs would suffice, at least for now.
So, with the immediate survival concerns being settled, Eurylochus sat by his shelter, sharpening a large piece of wood he found into a makeshift spear, his only weapon as his broadsword was lost at sea it seems.
With each strip of wood dropping on the sand, a new thought emerged, and oh, how Eurylochus wished he could just shut his brain off for once, just postpone the terrible reality that had befallen him.
Since when being alive had become such a torment?
Ever since your captain gave his name away, ever since your captain embraced ruthlessness, ever since your captain decided that getting back home was more important than anything else, ever since your captain-
He shook his head.
“Stop it.”, he said out loud, the first words he had spoken in hours.
Better not to think about it. But the more Eurylochus did not think about it, he felt like he was going to explode. He had never been one to keep his thoughts to himself.
Sometimes it was to a detriment. Like when he planted those seeds of doubt in the crew, that was his doing, right?
“No. Just… don't.”, he told himself again.
But all that anger, all that uncertainty, all that regret, all that-
It kept bubbling inside him, threatening to overflow.
… A hare had just wandered on the beach in the distance. And there was the feeling that governed quite a few decisions Eurylochus had made in the past. Hunger.
He got up on his feet, holding his newly crafted spear and slowly approached the hare, still oblivious to his presence and intentions. He winded up his arm, aimed and threw the spear.
It did hit its mark, the skewered animal dropping on the ground. Picking up the hare, Eurylochus inspected it. It seemed alright to eat, and it didn't really look divine in a way.
He thanked Artemis and pulled the spear out. “Alright, a fire should be next in order, it will be getting dark soon anyway-
Eurylochus stopped himself noticing something on the ground near him.
Drag marks in the sand and human footsteps.
“Huh?”
They seemed to be leading further down the beach. Something or someone – the size of the marks suggested the latter – had washed up here too and dragged away… Could it be Odysseus?
Eurylochus practiced caution following the trail. It didn't seem to go too far from his camp, which he couldn't determine if it was good or not. He didn't yet know if the thing he was following was dangerous or not. If it was indeed Odysseus who was dragged through here, he hoped for his sake that it wouldn't be dangerous.
He considered his previous condition. Stabbed all the way through the abdomen, the wound rendering him unconscious for several days, how many Eurylochus wasn't certain, he didn't count in the hopeless state he had been in. And he was pretty sure he saw the bandage get stained red again during the run for the ship, just before the encounter with Zeus.
The part of him that still cared for his captain, his brother, hoped that he was alright.
The other part, that angry festering one, wanted to unleash all that fury upon Odysseus for what he had done. He wasn't sure which one would prevail in the end.
For now, he had to focus. For all he knew, he was fretting over nothing, and he was simply following a beast to its den. And he has had enough of beasts of all sorts lately.
The trail ended at a rocky part of the coast, where a tall cliff loomed, and what seemed like a house was carved into it, torchlight coming from the alcoves.
Someone lived here. But was it friend or foe? He was so tired of foes the whole time. Who wouldn't be after everything?
Dread formed a pit in Eurylochus' stomach. What if this was another cyclops? Another Circe? Something unbeatable? He may have somehow survived Zeus, but he wasn't foolish enough to believe that he would be that lucky next time.
He decided that’d be better if he watched for a bit, just in case whoever occupied this place was home, he didn't want a repeat of the cave incident.
And he was right to wait first. At the far side of the coast, a fancifully dressed woman whose presence seemed to light up the area rounded the corner of the cliff. Eurylochus was unsure if he could trust her, but he could use the help. If she tried anything funny, he could probably run for it and escape. He hoped.
“Hey there!”, he called out, getting the woman’s attention. Bright azure eyes bore holes in his soul and he almost reconsidered this. She didn't say anything, simply watched him, with an air of curiosity, no fear at all.
He wasn't sure where to start, so he went for the first thing that came to mind. “I washed up on this island, and uh, I hoped you could tell me if you happened to find any others?”
The woman hummed, a strange kind of smile painting her lips. “Maybe I did.”
“Really? Does it happen to be a man this tall-”, Eurylochus started, bringing a hand up parallel to his neck, “messy hair, looked injured?”
She nodded. “That seems about right.”
He internally sighed in relief. Odysseus was alive.
“You have him?”
The woman nodded again. “I do indeed.”, she said simply.
There was something about her tone… whatever it was, Eurylochus didn't like it. He made a move forward despite his better judgment.
“I have to see him-”
“I'm afraid you can't.”, she said with a too sweet smile, bringing a hand up to his chest to stop him. Something about the contact felt electrifying, almost like the lightning that almost consumed earlier, and he shuddered.
“What?”
“Don't get me wrong, you are… good looking, but not as good as him. No offense.”
The implications swirled in Eurylochus' head, and he felt sick.
“I just asked to see him, not to join you in… I don't want to know what you meant by that.”
“My answer remains the same, sailor, you can't see him. Now, I will remind you that you are on my island. I am currently tolerating your presence, and my patience is wearing thin, so that’d be your cue to leave.”
Eurylochus breathed out, disdain on his features. “Fine.", he said, turning away.
He really didn't want to, but the small part of him that still valued his life told him to obey. There’d be other chances to catch Odysseus alone hopefully.
Leaving that part of the beach, he wasn't aware of the very person he was looking for standing by an alcove, watching him go.
Lightning struck, thunder boomed.
It was dark and cold. His vision was blurry and his eyes stung from the salt water. There was light, getting further and further away. It was almost peaceful.
By the time Odysseus realized he was drowning, it was too late to do anything, and his body too weak to even attempt to swim to the surface. Darkness followed soon after.
In the meanwhile, his mind wandered.
It wasn't unlike the time he had gotten dangerously sick in the fourth year of the war. The camp was being sieged and all hands had to be on deck. Odysseus could barely stand straight with his head burning up with fever. He took up watch duty anyway.
Counted the scouts like sheep to be penned and shot at them. And then there were soldiers. One scout must have gotten away, how'd he miss them?
Still he shot, one, two, three. By the sixth, he could barely aim.
“Captain, you are wasting arrows, they're gone.”, his second in command had told him, but his hazy mind barely registered.
More were coming. He shakily raised his bow and squinted, almost blinked from the sweat dripping from his forehead. He couldn't miss this shot.
“Captain, that's enough, hey-”
A hand on his shoulder was enough to offset his balance, and it sent Odysseus toppling, almost falling off the rampart.
His vision skipped a few scenes, one moment the ground was rushing up to meet him, and the next he was being carried through the camp. He never liked being carried, even as a kid.
When he was finally being laid down , Eurylochus was staring at him. “Don't go dying on us, captain. I’d hate to tell Penelope that her husband died because he was being an idiot.”
Of course, he dumbly responded with the only word from that sentence that caught his attention. “Penelope…”
Oh, how he missed her. The things he’d do for her, the things he did do for her.
“Penelope…”, Odysseus whispered, his throat feeling scratchy. Where was she? He had to see her. He had to-
There was that light again. It must have been her.
He managed to turn his head and peel his eyes open, just a bit. The light seemed blinding, but he had to keep his eyes open.
There she was. Exactly as he remembered, and how longed to reach for her.
“Penelope.”, Odysseus said again, painful hope tinging the word. He wanted to reach out but he couldn't move, why couldn't he move, he had to-
She was walking away, taking that light away with her.
“No… Don't- Penelope…”
Darkness dragged him away from reality once more.
He had been in the dark for way too long. And by that he meant literal dark. Torch light barely reached the cell he was being held in.
He really had to focus on his breathing the way his arms were pinned above his head. Oh, and he was sure some ribs were broken. Overall, he had to focus on his breathing.
A bit hard with his head pounding and his body aching everywhere. If he wasn't chained in that position, he would have toppled over weeks ago. And any position would be more comfortable than this one at this point.
Well, not that Odysseus trusted his counting ability with there being no daylight in the prison, but he was sure it had been at least two weeks. If the guards’ words were any indication.
He shifted his position a bit in hopes of getting more comfortable, but that just elicited a whine of pain to escape his lips. He had lost count of the injuries the Trojan had inflicted upon him.
At this point he would welcome unconsciousness but it just wouldn't allow him that. So Odysseus remained fully aware of the pain he was in and the fact that no one was going to come for him.
He’d rot in here, and he'd never see Ithaca’s shores again. He’d never see Penelope and Telemachus again.
With his mind hazy from blood loss and pain, he barely registered that someone had walked into his cell, around two people, he didn't even recognize their voices. They kept whispering above him, but it seemed way too loud in his ears.
“... Keep it down, will you?”, he mumbled, swatting away the hands prodding him (when was he untied?).
“We’re getting you out of here, just hold on, alright?”
All that just sounded like ringing in his ears with throbbing at the side of his head refusing to go away.
A hand on his cheek. Friendly touch. That felt nice. He leaned into it, allowing his eyes to slip shut. He was so tired.
“Nope, we’re going to need you to stay awake, alright?”, the hand tapped his cheek several times.
Odysseus just wanted to cry. Why couldn't he just rest? He was just so tired.
“I will lift you now, brace yourself.”
Not that that prepared him for the agony that shot through his entire body at the movement. He cried out in pain, and he had to choke back a sob.
“You’re doing good, captain.”
“Just don't pass out yet.”
“‘m so tired…”, Odysseus whispered, voice scratchy from disuse. It was so nice and warm. He leaned his head into the person’s chest and sighed.
“No! Stay. Awake.”, the jostle that followed did nothing. He just wanted to rest. He felt safe, so he'd take the chance.
“Wake up!”
And his eyes flew open. But he wasn't where he was before. Not in someone's arms, but lying on a rather hard surface.
Several things remained consistent from before. For starters, his head still hurt and his body did too. Right. Stabbed. The culprits lost to either the divine lightning or the ocean. Another was that it still felt like his mind was still treading through murky waters, lost and confused.
What did not stay the same? He was now alone. Where was he anyway?
Some sort of cave? No, it seemed way too tended to and lived in. A house carved into stone seemed like a more accurate description.
But where was that?
Odysseus tried to concentrate on his hearing. Waves crashing in the distance. Not far from the sea then. And… voices?
One was an unfamiliar female one, and the other… it couldn't be…!
He forced himself up to his feet, clutching his side, and stumbled towards what seemed to be the exit.
And just in time to see his own once second in command walk away from a strange woman.
“... Eurylochus?”