King of Ithaca (Adventures of Odysseus)

With the mule still quiet beneath its cloak and the shore looking temptingly close, Damastor released the animal and shook the stiffness out of his aching limbs. But before he could take hold again, a sudden blast of wind tore the cloak from its eyes. Seeing the rushing water on either side it panicked and kicked out with its strong hind legs. There was a splash and a shout behind Eperitus; in the same instant one of the planks cracked and gave way beneath the stamping hoofs of the mule, tipping it headlong into the water and beyond any help the men could give it.

‘Halitherses is in the river!’ shouted Damastor.

The captain was already being dragged away by the strong current. Pausing only to slip his grandfather’s shield from his shoulder and the sword from his belt, Eperitus dived into the water after him.

Exhausted as he was by the day’s work and the struggle against the river, the freezing cold shocked him back into total wakefulness. The roaring waters threatened to pull him under, but he fought to keep his head above the surface. As he was swept rapidly away from the raft he turned to see the remaining men straining at the poles, still fighting to haul the damaged craft to the opposite bank.

Flailing against the current, he caught sight of Halitherses ahead of him. The old man appeared to be drifting, rather than struggling against the current, and Eperitus realized he must have been caught by the kick of the mule and was unconscious.

With a renewed sense of urgency, he summoned all of his strength and began to swim with the boisterous flow of the river. At first it was hard to control his direction, but by trying to pull ahead of the current he found he was able to angle himself towards the old warrior, who was drifting out into the middle of the river. Deafened by the rushing of the water and buffeted by its constant motion, he could barely stay afloat, let alone keep sight of Halitherses. Then, over the tumult of foam, he caught sight of dark shapes in the water ahead.

Rocks. They rose like broken teeth from the river, each one surrounded by a head of foaming water. Eperitus tried shouting to his friend over the roar, but knew it was useless. He hauled himself forward with all his might, desperate to gain precious moments over the current that was sweeping Halitherses to certain death. All the time he willed his captain to return to his senses, if only briefly, and realize the peril he was in.

Fortune carried Halitherses unscathed between the first two rocks. A moment later Eperitus plunged between them himself. Three more rocks rose up ahead of them, evenly spaced like the prongs of a fishing spear. Then Halitherses woke from his stupor and turned to see the murderous doom he was being swept towards.

With whatever wits and energy were left to him, Halitherses fought against the current and won Eperitus the fragment of time he needed to catch hold of him. He pulled him just wide of the boulders and kicked for the bank. His lungs on fire and his body numbed with cold, he angled towards a smooth rock that jutted out into the river like a jetty, offering them their only hope of shelter before the current carried them to their deaths. Though stunned and weak, the old captain had enough sense left to realize where Eperitus was aiming at and kicked out with him.

As they swept by it, Eperitus reached out and caught hold of the rock. It tore the skin from his palms, but he got a firm grip and pulled on it against the fierce current. Half senseless with exhaustion, he hauled them both to relative safety behind the shelf of smooth stone. At that same moment something reached down and touched his shoulder.

‘Take my hand,’ a voice shouted. ‘Quickly.’

Looking up, he saw Odysseus silhouetted against the bright sky. Eperitus shook his head and indicated Halitherses. ‘Take him first. I can hold on a while longer, but he’s weak.’

With what little strength he had left, Eperitus lifted the old man out of the swirling water and within reach of Odysseus, who caught him under the shoulders and hauled him up as if he was a baby. Moments later Eperitus felt a hand close around his wrist and Odysseus’s immense strength pulling him free of the river. He slumped onto the broad, flat top of the rock and vomited the liquid he had swallowed.

‘No, I didn’t use it,’ Odysseus answered when Eperitus asked him about the clay owl Athena had given him. He glanced about himself to ensure that nobody could hear. ‘It’s safe in my pouch. I’ll only call on her if Ithaca itself is threatened.’

They were drying themselves around a fire by the bank. Miraculously, Halitherses had only been stunned by the kick of the mule, and now sat opposite them eating barley broth from a wooden bowl, seemingly unaffected by his trials. The mule had been dashed to death in the rapids. Despite the fact that its load would now have to be shared between them, the men were all happy to be across the river alive and together.