#ANOTHER AEOLUS

[dorothywonderland]

All you gotta do is not open this bag

[o3o-lapd-o3o]

no thanks to all the memes i can no longer hear the line

"we went through so much to get this"

in dangerous

without immediately picturing hermes playing 'ancient greek uno' with aeolus

and hermes in tears at having to keep drawing cards from either not having the right one or aeolus hitting him with draw 2's & draw 4's constantly

[urbestestwindgod]

my sixteenth century epic au where everything is pretty vague on the details except the piles and piles of aeolus sixteenth century epic au lore bc its my au and i can do whatever if like

(warning for a 30 tag yap in the tags but i can go on trust)

[mistyjessart]

The Odyssey Modern AU: Christmas edition

For your consideration: the Odyssey but as a Hallmark Christmas movie where Odysseus travels to New York for work and is trying to get home to Hawaii?? (I needed a long domestic flight shhhhh it was either this or Vancouver to Newfoundland) in time for Christmas dinner with Penelope and Telemachus after missing it for the last 20 years straight

The Trojan War is some really big business venture or something that took literally forever for them to sign but they finally did it!!

Polyphemus keeps them after work threatening to get HR involved because they accidentally ate his lunch that he left in the fridge, Polites and some of his other coworkers get stuck there but Ody and the rest manage to escape the office

Athena is Odysseus' boss (and childhood friend) who told him to get everything done more efficiently so he could leave earlier but noooooo he didn't listen and guess who's cutting it close again

The wind bag: Aeolus (from another department, maybe distribution??) sends them home with snacks that they forget to declare and Poseidon the airport security guard sees them after Eurylochus opens the bag in the waiting area and pulls them into the security room until they miss their flight

Circe owns a local motel and wanted to kick them out because she doesn't trust so many dudes around her employees after past incidents, but her and Athena's mutual friend Hermes gives Odysseus some of her favourite tea as a peace offering and he tells her about his wife and kid and she's just like "fineeeeee okay you're a wife guy, I guess I can find you a room"

She calls them a taxi to the airport the next day and the driver Tiresias just keeps giving them ominous life advice and seems to know like... way too much about them and also they're not entirely sure he actually has his license

Odysseus gets a call from his mom like "where are you we're waiting for you" and he's like "I'm on my way home I promiseeeeeeeeee I'll be there this time"

The sirens are various sales reps at the airport

Scylla (baggage check employee) keeps some of them cuz their bags are too heavy so Ody and the rest head to the gate without them

Eurylochus brings snacks again (thinking Chicharron-style snacks, ones you're not supposed to bring on a plane) and Zeus detains them

The suitors are just the neighbourhours who bully Telemachus like "oooOOOOhhhhh ssuuuUUURrreee your dad is tOOOOtally gonna show up to Christmas this year" and making jokes about his mom

Athena (who did leave early and catch the original flight) scares them away and reassures Telemachus that his dad is on his way (while texting Odysseus "see I told you so")

She finds out Zeus is the one detaining them so she calls her dad like "please can you at least send Odysseus on his way, you literally know him, he's just a dumbass sometimes" so Zeus let's Odysseus go catch his flight but keeps the rest of them in security

Calypso is some lady he's seated next to on the plane who hits on him for the entire ten-hour flight

Poseidon, who got transferred to the other airport, recognizes Odysseus from before and pulls him into security again and Odysseus just rips into him until he lets him go

The neighbours are bullying Telemachus while he's out getting last-minute ingredients for dinner when some dude turns up and tells them off and threatens to get their parents so they all run off

Penelope's just like... "who are you and what have you done with my husband, how are you actually on time"

Insert sweet and sappy Christmas dinner with the entire family until Odysseus' sister goes "wait... where's Eurylochus?"

Eurylochus turns up at the door the next morning like "ODYSSEUS YOU MF I HAD TO CATCH ANOTHER FLIGHT-"

[goldenroseeon]

Ah, my mother. Huh, I've never thought about meeting her.

That's great! Hmmm... Oh! I hear a lot of things carried by the winds. Any gossip you've heard over the years?

Oh, hello, hello! King Aeolus!

You know, as a king of winds, I figured it would do to meet you, being part aurae and all.

Though I haven't met her, my mother was a wind nymph, which is where I get it and all.

Hmmm... Well, I just figured I should drop by and say hi, know where I come from and all. I didn't exactly have a plan for what to do after. So, blessed king, how was your day?

Oh! Well isn't this a pleasant surprise! An aurae you say?.....hm...I could help you find your mother!

But back to the question, I'm doing great

[bambiilooza]

this girl ik who does classics at school asked me test her on her odyssey knowledge - she has atest when we get back - and i asked her who calypso was. and she said 'his wife right?'

i remember overhearing some classics students revising in libraray - they were extreemly loud rip - also say 'antonio was the one who killed the cows'

ANTONIO? IK THEY MEANT ANTINOUS BUT WHAT?

and he wasn't the one who killed the cows wtf

i was testing another girl with flashcards she made and on it, she thought polyphemus was aeolus' son??

one guy confused aeolus and eurylochus

idk if it's the students misremembering - it probably is - but WHAT THE FUCK ARE THEY TEACHING YOU GUYS IN THAT SCHOOL?? HUH???

and another person ik who has all her knowledge correct has a really - i don't wanna say wrong cua every interpretation is valid or whatever - that athena helps odysseus cuz 'she simps for him and is a pick me'

GIRL WHAT?

WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?

i don't do classics but i've read the odyssey and consumed a lot of media interpretation of it, and i am flabergasted at how actual classics students at my school view it

[idk-what-to-put-here-so-egg]

I’m gonna summarise Epic: the Musical songs in one sentence

The Horse and The Infant: the Greeks go stabby the Trojans and Odysseus has to kill a baby

Just a Man: Odysseus kills the baby lmao

Full Speed Ahead: you’re introduced to Odysseus crew and they’re all hungry

Open Arms: Polites shows Odysseus the world is kind

Warrior of the Mind: Athena enters Odysseus mind and mentors him

Polyphemus: they meet a polyamorous Polyphemus who wants to kill the crew for killing his sheep

Survive: The crew tries to kill Polyphemus but instead he pulled the uno reverse card

Remember Them: Cyclops go blind lmao

My Goodbye: Athena breaks up with Odysseus

Storm: A storm arises as Odysseus and the crew leave and find the wind God’s island

Luck Runs Out: Eurylochus questions Odysseus leadership

Keep your Friends Close: Aeolus gives Odysseus a bag with the storm and tells him not to open it but his crew opens it so bye bye Ithaca

Ruthlessness: Poseidon go 🌊 💥 on the crew and Odysseus manages to escape with 43 other men

Puppeteer: according to Eurylochus “woman scary”

Wouldn’t you Like: Hermes gives Odysseus drugs

Done For: Odysseus confronts Circe

There are other ways: Circe tries to seduce Odysseus but cos he’s a not cheating good guy he instead rants and somehow doesn’t die

The Underworld: Odysseus remembers all the deaths he’s gone through and has a mental breakdown

No Longer You: Tiresias reads the past and future and Odysseus has another mental breakdown

Monster: I’m the monster Rawr Rawr Rawr 🦖 🦖 🦖

Suffering: Sirens try to seduce Odysseus but fuck up miserably

Different Beast: Odysseus and the Crew go fuck up the sirens

Scylla: Odysseus fucks up 6 of his men

Mutiny: Eurylochus fucks up Odysseus and a Cattle from Helios

Thunder Bringer: Zeus goes fuck up the crew except Odysseus

[blitzsicedcoffee]

Okay but either Aeolus felt really sorry seeing Athena get pummeled by Zeus, or Hermes had to do some real good convincing her to give him another bag xD

Hermes: come on darling pleaaaassseee

Aeolus: But they opened it last time! What if he does it this time! Such a waste of my powers.....

Hermes: He won't I pinky promise!!

Aeolus: ......Okay.

Six hundred strike:

Ody: *immediately opens the bag*

Hermes: *eating popcorn then freezes* O_O........

Aeolus: You owe me a loooooot of Olympus bucks, friend.

Hermes: hehe.....*drops popcorn and runs*

[bb-bugspot]

The (My) NorthStar [Part 1]

(This was made with a few brainstorming ideas I had with @mas-away , go follow them right now and check their art!!)

After Hermes helped Odysseus leave the island of Calypso, and their talk while he was on his raft, he had gathered a bit of wood that he didn’t need and had decided to carve a little NorthStar of the size of his palm.

It was far from being as perfect as he wanted, but there wasn’t much he could do when being in the middle of the sea while trying to escape Poseidon and also keeping an eye out for possible dangers.

By the time he was done, it was already the second day being in the sea and knew that Hermes would visit later to bring him some food, something good he hopes, he’s been missing Ithaca’s dishes but he would soon be able to have them again.

After waiting for what felt hours upon hours, Hermes finally made his appearance with his characteristic giggle, swooping down and picking him up by the armpits and flying up in the air before going back down to let him back in solid surface.

“Hello there, my dear great-grandson.” The god chirped, watching as the mortal man regained his bearings before looking up at him.

“Hey, Hermes. Here for our daily talk?” He asks with a laugh as he sits down, making sure that his gift is hidden beneath his blanket, thanking to Athena that Hermes had been kind enough to give him one to cover himself in the cold nights.

“Why, but of course! I would never miss them, plus, I have to enjoy our time together before I let you continue your journey.” Hermes mused as he floated above the raft before setting his feet down, sitting cross-legged and making a show with his hands, more for the fun of it than anything, and making some food appear.

“And to feed you. I wouldn’t forget about such an important thing, as much as you’re ruthless, you’re still a mortal and feel hunger.” The dish that had appeared in his hands was none other than an Ithacan dish: Cuttlefish with rice.

Odysseus looked at the dish and swallowed a lump that suddenly formed in his throat, too focused on the food to even see the sympathetic look Hermes was giving him.

The mortal took a breath before rising the fork and taking a bite from the food, chewing, and swallowing before continuing to eat in silence; both him and Hermes stayed quiet about the tears that rolled down his cheek the moment he took the first bite.

After finishing that, keeping the bowl away and taking a moment to calm down, Odysseus sighed and looked at Hermes, who was whistling quietly while poking at a winnion that was in his lap. No doubt, Aeolus would want an update on the winds that were, ahem, borrowed from them, even if that wasn’t the word they would use for their bag being taken by the god of thieves.

Anything to help his family, anyways, so Hermes didn’t really feel guilty about it.

“Hermes.” Odysseus spoke, making the god look up and grin at him, the tooth gap clear and reminding Odysseus of his own when he was younger.

“What’s up, Ody?” He hummed, continuing to poke the winnion before deciding to let it take a small nap in his hands, little enough to fit in them and look almost like a ball of wool rather than a divine creature of the skies.

“I got something for you, like a gift, for so to say.” The mortal commented, although a bit bashful, clearly embarrassed, although by what? Hermes wasn’t sure, there weren’t many things he could be embarrassed about in the middle of nowhere, more so if he was gifting him something.

Which was another thing, what could he possibly gift the god, when not having really anything other than his sword, Athena’s brooch, the wind bag and now a bowl of Ithaca, to which Hermes was sure wouldn’t really survive in his journey.

He was pulled out of his thoughts when the mortal handed him a carved figure, well, not any carved figure, but one of the NorthStar. It was big, although not as big as his own palm but close enough. The rubbed the wood and felt a little something behind, turning it around to see a few words carved on it.

My NorthStar.

The god was at loss of words, looking up at him and back down to the carved star for several times before croaking out: “What is this?”

Odysseus rubbed the back of his head, suddenly feeling very self-conscious and interested in the water. “Well- You said to follow the NorthStar, and, well, back at Circe’s island you also guided me to the right path and helped me save my man, even if that..well, you know.” He cleared his throat, shaking his head and looking back at him with a small huff, tapping his fingers against his thighs in a nervous movement.

“So? Do you like it? It took me quite a while, mostly to carve out the words.” He added with pursed lips.

Hermes stared at him, dumbfounded before his face broke into a grin, a joyus laugh leaving his lips as he threw himself at Odysseus, the man letting out a startled shout as he was suddenly shoved against the raft to then be pulled into the air, twirled around in his great-grandparent’s arms as if he was one of the winnions.

Which reminded him that the poor thing had been sent flying the moment Hermes had made his happiness clear by being loud and quick on his feet.

“Like it? Oh, I love it, Ody! You did such a good job! Surprising, given your current circumstances but nonetheless, I’m very proud of you.” He commented with a giggle, putting him back down on the raft before lifting himself in the air.

“Well, I gotta go now! I must show everyone this little trinket, I’m sure Athena will be jealous!” He cackled before disappearing in a speck of shiny, little sparks around the purple-blue colored powder he left behind him.

Odysseus was, to say the least, baffled for a few seconds before laughing, shaking his head with a sigh as he laid down on his back. Soon enough he would be back home, to his wife and his son, and, hopefully, he could get to talk to Hermes more often too. He was not only part of his family by blood now, no, he was part of his family in his heart and mind too.

[sadiecoocoo]

Arcane jayvik epic au

Jayce is Ody they look really similar in act 2 and are both motivated by their loved ones and getting back to them/saving them in some way

Viktor could honestly be a lot of characters, especially how throughout season 2 his character had a lot of changes so if we follow some aspects of arcane with the epic story we could say that different versions of Viktor are different characters at the same time…

like I feel like Mage Viktor could either be Athena or Tiresias since they’re both kind of guides to ody and also Tiresias is a prophet

the herald could be Poseidon, he’s trying to stop Jayce from stopping the glorious evolution so hes being a bitch

S1 Viktor could either be Penelope or Polites. Obvious reason would be that both are often seen as ody’s love interests, though Polites isn’t canon. Also Polites’ death was a big changing point in Ody’s story, like Viktor’s was in Jayce’s. Jayce would also be trying to bring his Viktor back, similar to how ody is trying to get home to Penelope. So ig Polites and Penelope’s characters would be combined for this au

Mel would honestly also work as Athena since she is both really smart and good at war and fighting (you know she would beat the god games in record time). She could also be Calypso but I feel that’s doing her dirty

Ambessa would be Zeus, being a big problem but not the main person trying to stop Ody. Also the disagreement between her and Mel is similar to the God Games

Vi could be Eurylochus since she and Jayce are sorta pals but also whenever they work together things go horribly wrong

Caitlyn could be Circe she’s just giving me those vibes (honestly could switch her and Vi’s roles and tweak the epic story so Ody isn’t the one that uses the other way of persuasion)

Jinx could be Hermes cause she would absolutely be amazing at being a silly messenger god that shows up to help out and also cause chaos. She could also be Aeolus

Sevika gives me ares vibes

Lest as Aphrodite I need not elaborate (not rlly shipping her and Seviks tho but it can be seen as that if you want :))

Silco could be Polyphemus since the eye thing and also being the one to kind of kickstart everyone’s problems

Singed could be Antinous cuz of his role with manipulating Viktor and being the one to really create the herald (this one is kinda a stretch but idk)

Another version of Jayce could be Hephaestus, maybe Giopara (I honestly don’t know much about him so idk if that would fit) or the “dead” Jayce from Mage Viktor’s world

That’s all I can think of right now

All of these are open for discussion and I’d love to hear you guy’s thoughts on this!

[averagecontentenjoyer121]

Ships I’ve seen on my FYP since I’ve started posting about Epic the Musical, also I’ve learned how to color text after 8 months of having Tumblr.

Canon:

Odysseus x Penlope

Eurylochus x ctimene

Telemachus x Nausicaa: I think that’s it

Calypso x Odysseus: put this because, kinda, and I don’t remember the context for the post just remember seeing

Circe X Odysseus

Ares X Aphrodite

Perimedes X Elpenor

Crack ships:

Odysseus x Poseidon x Zeus: this is completely my fault one of my friends told me about @anniflamma’s "manwhore au" and I though, "There's no way this is real," only now to be living the akira meme whenever pops up on my FYP

Antinious x Calypso: first saw this on @irunaki’s blog, but the supports do make a good argument for it. Quote, “they match each other’s freak.” Can’t argue with that

Diomedes x Odysseus: Idk how this started or who first subjected me to this, but I know why I’ve seen it. I made ONE, say it again ONE post with Diomedes and Odysseus hanging out as friends and the algorithm said, “you wanna see them kiss don’t you.” Either way pop off I guess and have fun DioXOdy fans out there.

Polites X Odysseus: once again kinda makes sense, or atleast I can see how this started, because the song cut song Your Light 100% gives of gay vibes

Hermes X Odysseus: I think I’ve see like one post regarding this, but still.

Artemis X Aeolus: Once again Don’t know who started this one but I remember first seeing this on @irunaki’s blog. Also, one of my favorite pieces of art comes from @sloanslone because it’s so cute.

Aeolus X Hermes: Don’t remember if this is an actual ship or not but it does have a ship name. Coming from another banger piece art by @sloanslone there relationship is called Cinnamon I believe

I feel like I’ve seen some with Apollo X someone, but don’t remember.

Siren X Athena: this Banger comes from @coquexari and I absolutely love this one. It’s just been presented in such a cute way that I love it. And the art she’s made for it is also really cute.

Circe X Calypso: Once again first saw this one on @irunaki’s blog, but I will say I haven’t seen it since the wisdom saga came out.

Eurylochus x Ares: by @thequeenofthedisneyverse

Eurylochus x Zeus

Eurylochus x random guy that gets eaten by Scylla: by @calciumyum

Aeolus X Apollo

Telemachus x antinious: It does exist, but I don’t remember where I’ve seen it

Diomedes x Odysseus x Penelope: Hi @wolfythewitch

Also I’ve seen Femboy Telemachus

Gotten Hades (game) ship art

Etc etc.

[nothing-impt]

excuse me but wouldn't aeolus be a hummingbird and not a lawn flamingo 🧐

Imagine Keep Your Friends close and it’s just high pitch mosquito noises

(They’ll be another bird soon!)

[katerinaaqu]

Why didn't Odysseus's crew stage a mutiny against him in the Odyssey? (An analysis based on Homer's Odyssey)

It has been a while since the last time I did some Odyssey Analysis and here is an interesting question that goes on in this. A very valid question actually.

During the arduous trip in the Odyssey, the Cephallinians suffered greater loss than anything they suffered at the 10 year war at Troy. They lost almost all ships and all men were dying. They were reduced to a ship of a crew with less than 40 people and they didn't seem to get much hope. So of course one could ask; what was holding them back and didn't fight back against Odysseus apart from the indirect mutiny they did when he turned his eyes away from him to pray? Why their only mutiny was to disobey his orders and slay the cattle of Helios Hyperion? Surely more than 30 men could do plenty of damage to one man right? Why didn't they? And why is it important for the story?

So while thinking about it I came down with some possible explanations as to why that happened;

Odysseus was beloved to the gods

Regardless of their terrible situations, Odysseus probably still had the fame of someone beloved to the gods. He used to be directly communicating with Athena and was under her protection. Despite the fact that he was cursed by a god, there could be some sort of a thought running to their minds; what if we harm him and the gods strike us for it? What if there will be consequences for directly wishing harm to one who was blessed to be appreciated by gods? It could possibly be a risk that they didn't want to take. And it makes sense given how much Odysseus interracted even with minor gods during the trip (for example Aeolus or Circe). Quite frankly they might as well have wished that at some point Odysseus would appeal to yet another god for help.

Odysseus was beloved to his subjects

If you look at my other analysis here You can remember how beloved leader Odysseus was even to subjects such as slaves who in theory would have no real reason to be loyal to him. Odysseus seemed always to be a just and beloved leader and his men on the ship were not an exception. Regardless of whether they had lost faith hin him in his capability to bring him home or if they doubted his judgement, they couldn't get past the emotional connection; Odysseus had protected them during the war to the point of suffering the least possible losses, during the trip he was going to extreme measures to protect them (even the cruel misadventure in which Odysseus cut the rope from his ship to save the last ship from the Laestrygonians might as well have spoken volumes to the men that were saved). It would be hard for them to completely ignore that even in the face of mistrust. Somehow it would also be them thinking that they "owe him" till that part.

Odysseus was hiding stuff from them that could be important

Ironically the very source of their mistrust was protecting Odysseus. Odysseus didn't share with them the nature of the sack of Aeolus even if he seemed pretty clear that they couldn't touch it (and that led to their first tragedies). Later he hid the information that they would have to go through the Sirens till the very last moment where he warned them about it. Later he hid completely the information that they would go through Skylla and Charybdis. His men could think "How many more things did this man know on their way home and hid it from them?" if they captured or killed him in a mutiny how were they sure there weren't more dangers ahead that Odysseus was hiding from them and could either be informed the last moment or not at all? What guarantee did they have that Odysseus didn't know even MORE about their course? They had none. So ironically the very reason they began to mistrust him in the first place became the reason Odysseus was safe from their rage.

No one wanted to take responsibility at time of crisis!

Last and definitely not least comes for me the most important reason of all at least story-wise that shows how excellent writer Homer is into writing human nature. His men didn't stage a mutiny because no matter how displeased they were with his decisions, literally NO ONE wants to have the same responsibility to take decisions in time of crisis! Honestly, how many times do common folk feel themselves find a scapegoat usually to the face of their leaders when things go south? (and for good reason that is given that they are the ones with the responsibility to take decisions). When something goes wrong we blame the leader, the government or someone that has come forth and not only takes the decisions but also is responsible for the blame as well.

During their arduous trip Odysseus took some of the most painful decisions they could imagine in order to save what he could; he advised them to leave the Cicones and they didn't which led to their first tragedy; he tried to correct his mistake by appeasing the god Aeolus, he took the decision to sacrifice his ships in order to save the one he could knowing full well that they would never be able to fight against the Laestrygonians. He knew the 11 ships were lost cause so he acted fast cutting the ropes of his own ship and sailing away, making sure to save what he could even if that meant to the terrible loss. He traveled to the underworld even though he was alive, he chose Skylla over Charybdis knowing that the sacrifice would be too great but still not as great as to lose them all.

Regardless of their emotions at that moment; they put themselves in his shoes and realize that none of them would take the burden of leadership and take those decisions for them. Odysseus with his nerves of steel managed to save them so far even if they had so many losses and undoubtedly they realized that in his shoes they would never be able to act so efficiently and so fast. And knowing their own reactions against him; blaming him for the losses, they realize that none of them would have the guts to take not only the painful decisions but also the blame and hate that follows them. Odysseus was lifting on his shoulder as much hate and anger as very few others; not only his previous experiences at war and his actions but now his decisions of the trip. I have no doubt that even in their anger the men admired how he could carry it all.

Conlcusions:

Homer is a master of words and plot. I have no doubt that if he thought it served the plot he would have mentioned his men staging a full on mutiny against Odysseus or in one way I am almost certain he thought of the possibility being quite doable given as I said above that Odysseys was one man and the others were over 30. However knowing how great he is in protraying human emotions to his writing I think his choice of plot was deliberate.

Not only was Odysseus someone that could erupt not only controversy but also superstition given his close relationship with gods before, his leadership was always admirable regardless of the results (knowing his prudent nature and how plenty of his orders that were disobeyed ended up in a tragedy and let's face it Odysseus was also a brilliant fighter. I doubt anyone would easily take the first step to fight him one on one either!) and above all he was one of the best when it came on taking some really difficult decisions, carrying on his back not only the personal guilt he felt while taking them but also the anger of others and their retalliation. And in an amazingly human writing Homer speaks on times of crisis. When people do not wish to take responsibility at times of Crisis because they know full well that their decisions rarely ever would be painless!

Therefore they couldn't retalliate against him; they didn't want the responsibility of leadership or the blame for the losses. They didn't want to stand against authority directly either. So they took the indirect mutiny decision; when authority is not present they disobey or they break their will when the force of authority.

Could we perhaps one more time appeal to the usual theory of "unreliable storyteller" and speak on how Odysseus doesn't want to mention a mutiny in his story to Phaeakes because he doesn't want to appear as weak leader in their eyes?

We could but in my opinion this doesn't seem likely. Odysseus is already humiliated; shipwrecked and a beggar in their house. He mentioned how it was ellegedly his fault that the whole domino of reactions began when he mentions how he was yelling to Polyphemus being blasphemus that not even Poseidon could put him back together if he had killed him (which let's face it is too much given that gods had no probelm resurrecting some dead before). He had already mentioned his men not listening to him and disobedience was already a heavy thing. He didn't hide most of the unpleasant experiences during the trip so why miss the opportunity of shifting the blame to his men, saying that they stage a mutiny against him thus himself being unable to react instead of stating that he fell asleep during the prayer? To show that his men fear him so they do not dare to face him? Perhaps but it seems unlikely given the whole story in which Odysseus doesn't hide his bad sides from them.

What do you guys think? Let me know to your comments and reblogs below! ^_^

[nikoisme]

This sucks so bad I need to [remembers suicide jokes only worsen my mental health] ask Aeolus for another bag of winds

[bigidiotenergytm]

“Unless, of course, you apologize for my son’s pains and all his cries.”

Odysseus, cunning as he, looked up at the King of Seas with a draining fear. He felt his heart racing in his throat, clawing out to let him scream but instead, he breathed through his nose. In, and out, he needs to find his words. He needs to find a way out of this, for him and for his men.

“Lord Poseidon,” He bows his head, forcing himself to behave. To seem weak, to seem smaller and delicate, to present himself as prey when the wolf in him begs to hold his head high and be a predator

He holds his hands out in front of him, a prayer pose to the Einalic God of the sea. “Lord Poseidon, earth-moving, dark haired like the sea. Please,” He hates that word coming out of him. ‘Please’, to plead with a God is pitiful. How far the mighty fall. “I beg you, please, do not hurt my men, my people, for my mistakes. They have done no wrong in following a foolish king’s wills. They would not have acted without my word, this is not their fault.”

He takes a step forward, outstretching his hands further. “I ask that you allow me to appease you for my crimes. For our safe return, my men and I, I will give myself to you.”

Poseidon sees it.

King of Ithaca. Warrior of the Mind. The Cunning. Poseidon sees the things this Greek is trying to be. Trying to be, oh, so GREAT, and, oh, so bold— putting on yet another character of his. Playing the part. The role that Odysseus ASSUMES that the God of Seas wants. The king turns into the beggar. Spewing naivetes, spewing hopefulness. Each word from that silver-tongue DROWNS in it all. In insincerity. In the weight on his shoulders. He hides in it, that pride.

To SEEM weak. There's nothing seeming about it.

The grip around his trident tightens. Tighter, tighter, yet tighter. The man moves, only stepping closer to the three spears. The trident, moves. The cold metal etching across his tanned skin, all but too eager to sink itself into FLESH. It doesn't stop there. It doesn't stop until the middle spear presses itself right under one of Odysseus's eyes. Just deep enough to see a small trickle of man's blood caress that edge. Mouth-watering.

A prey presenting himself to a predator on a silver platter.

The God's head tilts. Black, oceanic strands blowing in Aeolus's winds. His cyan eyes narrow at Odysseus, shooting a cold within him from his gaze alone.

No. This mighty one hasn't fallen yet.

"Oh." The Sea God's head lifts. "You'll 'GIVE' me. How generous of you." Cocky, cocky King of Ithaca.

"And who are YOU," The blackness from his hair takes over his form. His weapon sinking into a pitch of the deepest ocean. "You insolent little Greek," His body shifts. The Sea growing larger as he all but CURLS around his prey. Forming behind the little king, a powerful stallion with multiple rows of sharp teeth only grinning. Closer, closer, yet closer. Until the huffs from his nostrils coats the shell of Odysseus's ear. "To believe I HAVEN'T CLAIMED YOU ALREADY?"

Odysseus of Ithaca's life only but belonged to him. "You will K͇̣͙̝̲̰̲͍̘ͅ ͉̞͔̩̱̭̫̦̻̭̯͍̞̣͇N͇̰̤͉̳͖̞̘͙̥͉̠̝̪̞͙ͅ ̝̱͇̞̣͇͍̼̤̘͇̣̖̰ͅE̲͉̭̰ ̹͓͚̲̳̺̩ͅE̖͍̰͈͇̹̲͍̝̦̲͓ͅ ̩̹̱̳͔̻̼͙̝̲̼̤̻͚L̝͙̞̤̮͇̻̼͍̻ ͈̻̠̹͎̱̣̥͎.̳̦̣̣̼̰̺"

"And your men will W̰̻͔̪̣̠̭͇͈̹̼ͅ ̝̝̭͉͓ͅA̮̱͇͓̭̪̳͎̫̥̘͙̞̳ ̬̰̯̝̼͓͇͕͎̰̞̗ͅṮ͓̱̟̭͇̟͙̗̠̝̙̗̳̭̥̙ ̣͉̰͕͖̥͙̲̰̮̱C͕̬̠͚̝͖̝̙̙̖̫̬ ͇͎̯H̦͕̞̱͉̬̗̹͇̳̬̹ ̹̫͎̩͔͔̝.͖͈̼̫̫̜̩͍̠̞"

[el-jarado]

"Everything's Changed Since Polites"

In light of the extensive re-litigation of the events of Storm Saga after the Thunder Saga, I find myself thinking about "Keep Your Friends Close" a lot recently, and how I think Odysseus was set up for failure from the get-go, and not because of his crew being bad.

Polites's absence is felt like a knife in Storm Saga but the whole gang is feeling it. When "Luck Runs Out" comes up, this is the first time Eurylochus has seriously questioned Odysseus's plan in the musical; probably the first time he's seriously questioned him in over a decade. And what passes between them is pretty telling to me.

Where is this coming from, my friend? I just don't wanna see another life end You're like the brother I could never do without And suddenly, you doubt that I could figure this out?

From what I've seen, Epic takes the approach that Odysseus, Polites, and Eurylochus have been together since they were children. Polites is Odysseus's best friend, but he was Eurylochus's friend too, and he's the first of all of them to die in battle since Odysseus started leading them. They're both reeling from that loss, but how it comes out is bad for both of them. Eurylochus, as we see, is someone who locks down when he's shaken; focus on immediate safety for his shipmates even if it prevents a better course of action (run when the other cyclopses show up, the food is not worth having to take on another dozen Polyphemus; get the crew the fuck away from the sexy witch before she turns the rest of them into pigs; avert starvation NOW deal with (more) angry gods LATER). He does not want Odysseus to get hurt dealing with something as dangerous as a god, and tries to express that. Odysseus withdraws into himself and lashes out at anything that tries to reach him when he's shaken; he's already lashed out at Athena when she takes him to task while he's still grief-striken over Polites, and here he doesn't hear his brother saying "please don't be reckless, I can't lose you too", he hears "you weren't good enough to bring everyone home, and we don't believe in you anymore." He's cold and dismissive to Eurylochus's doubts to cover for his own hurt, and that just makes those doubts worse.

It's exactly the wrong mindset to approach Aeolus in, and this is the part I've really been turning over in my head. Aeolus's game does sound too easy; all he's gotta do is not open the bag, while sailing on a ship staffed by 43 men he's been leading for ten years, many of whom he's probably known his entire life. The winions add the obvious catch in that they spread a rumor among the crew that the bag is a treasure Odysseus is keeping to himself before Odysseus can explain himself, but I think in many ways Aeolus's whole song is putting a finger on the scales. Aeolus, in presenting it to Odysseus, implies that some of his brothers are enemies and should be treated as such, and the winions, spreaders of mischievous whispers, keep telling him "never really know who you can trust." (And imply he should kill and sacrifice when it's convenient, the act that ultimately destroys all trust in the crew down the road.) And I think that's a malicious twist in the game just as much as "It's treasure~! Buh-bye!" :D

Odysseus went up to the island feeling sore and defensive after his last talk with Eurylochus, and when he's told to keep his friends close and his enemies closer, it's interesting to me that he doesn't think "I don't have any enemies on that ship, those men are my brothers" or even "who can I trust to help me with this?"

He thinks "I need to do this entire thing myself." It could be hubris, a quality Odysseus certainly doesn't lack for, but I think this is the shadow of Polites not being there again. Odysseus had to leave some of his men behind for the first time in ten years, and he thinks he's lost their faith because of it. He's guided to expect a betrayal and feels like he needs to do something amazing all on his own to show Eurylochus and the others he's still got it, Polyphemus was a fluke.

Part of my understanding of human nature has been that people respond to our expectations and treatment of them. I sincerely believe if Odysseus had taken Eurylochus and/or a few of his most trusted men into his confidence for managing the bag, the temptation to open it would have been greatly diminished or negated. Odysseus doesn't treat any of his friends as if they're worthy of his trust, because Aeolus got in his head and he's trying to prove something to himself and to them by doing this singlehandedly. However, people respond to how you treat them, and Odysseus not realizing the crew are just as shaken by Polites's loss as he is and treating them with suspicion makes worry fester into doubt.

Polites's loss is felt keenly again; he's not there to tell Odysseus he can relax, that kindness is brave and he should trust in his friends to support him instead of treating them like potential enemies (Ody remarks on being unopposed as if he was expecting otherwise, which is not the relationship he's had with the crew up to now), and he's not there to reassure Eurylochus and the crew Odysseus must have a good reason for his cagey, secretive behavior and they shouldn't listen to the winions continuing to suggest a little peek to make sure of things wouldn't hurt. (I take the continued presence of the winions in the song to imply they're harassing the crew with rumor the entire time Odysseus is keeping to himself and trying not to sleep.) I don't think Eurylochus would have wanted to look in the bag if he was brought in on protecting it, that's not his relationship with Odysseus, but when they're nearly to Ithaca, Odysseus hasn't said a word to anyone in days, nobody really knows what's going on but there's all these rumors flying and the Captain's acting strange...

It would not surprise me if Epic's interpretation is similar to the Odyssey where they're almost back when the bag opens, in which case it might be even more tragic as an Orpheus & Eurydice twist; I don't think it was a case where the bag would've been opened the moment Ody turned his back, I think he stayed awake for nine days out of wholly unjustified paranoia/trying to make a point he's still got it by doing everything himself, and Eurylochus and the crew celebrated too early when their destination was in sight. They thought they were home, there's no harm in having a look now, right? Wrong; Aeolus (probably deliberately) didn't specify when it would be safe to open the bag, and certainly didn't feel the need to warn Odysseus the magic winds inside would blow them miles away from where they opened it. Like Orpheus makes it out of the underworld and then ruins his hard work because he looks back just before Eurydice has, I suspect the crew was not trying to open the bag during the days Odysseus was depriving himself of sleep to watch it; it's at the seeming end of the journey that "they wanna get the bag open so they can have closure." Like most bad ideas, it is likely Eurylochus did what he did when it didn't seem like there was any obvious harm in it; Odysseus said don't open the bag until we're home, but Ithaca's in sight, what could it hurt to celebrate a little early?

To make a long story short, I think Ody and the boys were hosed with the wind bag trial from the start without Polites around, and it's not just because the crew fell for a rumor introduced to make the game harder and Eurylochus eventually acted on it; it's also because a god Ody just met told him not to trust his friends, and he believed the god he just met instead of them because he's still mourning his best friend and misread his other best friend's concern for his safety as a sign his leadership was faltering. God games are rarely if ever fair; the house always wins, and it's a lesson Ody learns slowly and painfully.

I'm also not gonna do another long post about my point that people, Odysseus included, keep forgetting making it back to Ithaca with Poseidon still royally pissed at them would've been very very bad, but making it back to Ithaca with Poseidon still royally pissed at them would've been very very bad!