King of Ithaca (Adventures of Odysseus)

Eperitus drew the sword from his belt and moved towards the Taphian, determined to cut him down, but at the same moment Antiphus appeared next to the mercenary and shouted for them to come. Suddenly they could hear the sounds of battle from the courtyard and realized that the man at the gate was Mentes, his features hidden by the mask of blood. Eperitus ordered Arceisius to help Halitherses then, half-turning to the remainder of the Ithacans, pointed his sword at the gates. No words were needed. As a single body they ran towards the palace, cheering in their hunger to meet the Taphians in battle. Most of the men had lived under their cruel regime for too long and wanted revenge; the guards who had accompanied Odysseus to Sparta had dreamed of this moment for months and were no less fervent in their bloodlust. Within moments they were cramming through the gates and into the courtyard.

Diocles and his Spartans were desperately holding off a great press of Taphians, but as the Ithacans joined them the enemy’s advantage was lost and they backed away. Dismayed by the loss of the gates and the number of men pouring in through them, they retreated across the compound and re-formed before the pillared threshold of the great hall, ready to confront the assault. Meanwhile, the last man through the gates was the bronze-smith, who had left Eumaeus with the waiting townsfolk and returned to the fight. He was accompanied by a dozen new recruits from the city, who had found their courage in the dawn light and decided to risk everything for their true king.

They formed up to face the enemy horde, absorbing Mentes, Antiphus and the Spartans into their ranks. Eperitus looked about in surprise at the carnage within the courtyard, where the corpses of several Taphians lay as if sleeping. Then he saw their opened throats and realized that Odysseus and the others must have been busy with their daggers whilst their hosts slept. It explained the smaller force of Taphians who faced them – their numbers were now evenly matched – but raised his concerns about the whereabouts of his friend, whose bloody corpse could be amongst the trampled bodies.

‘I hear Halitherses is injured, and that you’re leading us now.’

Eperitus turned to see Antiphus. He was barely recognizable, bathed in gore and armed with the strange weaponry of a Taphian warrior.

‘Yes, unless Odysseus is with you,’ he answered, hoping the prince would suddenly appear from amongst the throng of men.

‘He and Mentor are inside the palace, searching for Penelope,’ Antiphus explained. He briefly summarized all that had passed since they parted company the night before. It seemed Odysseus’s plans had been more successful than expected, despite his being captured as they were about to open the gates. Athena had been faithful to her beloved Odysseus.

As they spoke a flock of arrows fell amongst them. Most of the townsfolk had no shields and quickly took shelter behind the guards, who instinctively moved forward to form a wall against the enemy archers. Antiphus took a few of the men to retrieve the bows and arrows of the dead Taphians by the gates, then, taking shelter behind the ranks of their colleagues, began to return the fire of their opponents. The exchange of arrows inflicted casualties on both sides, but the Taphian archers outnumbered the Ithacans and most of the fallen were amongst the unshielded islanders. Seeing this, the mercenaries were happy to remain safely ensconced before the doors of the great hall, waiting for the time when the advantage of numbers would weigh in their favour. Then they would engage them in face-to-face combat, when the recruits from the town would prove easy prey for the long spears of the fully armoured enemy warriors. Realizing this, Eperitus picked up a discarded spear and stepped out between the two opposing armies.

The Taphian arrows stopped and were replaced by jeers and insults from their ranks. It reminded him of the day he had first met Odysseus on the foothills of Mount Parnassus, when he had killed the Theban deserter. Kissing the shaft of his spear as he had done then, he launched it at the massed ranks before him. A man toppled backward with a scream, the spear held fast in his groin, and suddenly the Taphian jeers were replaced by a triumphant shout from the Ithacans. Drawing his sword, Eperitus led them into the attack.