Glyn Iliffe - King of Ithaca (Adventures of Odysseus)

Mentor struck quickly, swinging his sword to slice open the neck of their leader. A mist of blood sprayed over the knot of soldiers behind him, who fell back as the body drove a wedge into their tightly packed ranks. A moment later the Ithacan guardsmen rushed into the gap, sinking their spear points into two more of the tall warriors.

The remainder turned and tried to push the weight of men behind them back into the great hall. Mentor picked up a spear and thrust it into the back of one man, then trod his body down into the dirt of the corridor floor as he hacked down another. His companions managed to gouge the life out of a further three before the mercenaries escaped back into the open space of the great hall.

Their victory had filled them with confidence and a fierce lust for more slaughter, but Mentor knew the Taphians would quickly return in more strength. Realizing that their best hope was to defend the upper levels, he ordered them back. Upon reaching the stairs they paused before a dead female slave who lay across the broad steps like a toppled statue, her arms hooked above her head and her eyes shut as if sleeping. Only the dark stain of blood still spreading through her clean white dress indicated there had been any violence. The guardsmen recoiled briefly at the sight of her, but Mentor waved them up the steps.

‘Protect the queen,’ he ordered, knowing that at least one of Eupeithes’s men had already found his way to the female quarters. ‘I’ll try to find Laertes. May the gods protect you!’

The men sprang up the steps while Mentor set off down the corridor, past the storeroom and the slaves’ quarters to the door that opened onto the courtyard. The dull clash of arms was audible through its thick panels.

Nervously, and hastily in case of pursuit, he opened the door and stepped out into the courtyard. The clouds had now dispersed to reveal sable patches of night sky and a curved splinter of moon. Spread across the courtyard, individually and sometimes bunched into small knots, were the dark shapes of numerous corpses, the debris of a battle that was now concentrated on the left-hand side of the broad enclosure.

There were around thirty men still standing, but the majority were Taphians, led by Polytherses. At their rear, running about on his spindly legs and shouting encouragement to his men, was Eupeithes. He was a fat, arrogant-looking man in his late middle age, with white hair and pale, mole-strewn skin that looked translucent in the weak moonlight. His clothing and armour were luxurious, reflecting the expensive taste for which he was well known, but remained unsoiled by battle. Although his home was filled with images of heroes and wars, his own bravery was nothing more than imagined and he had no nerve for the filth, the exertion, or the risk of battle.

As Mentor watched from the shadow of the palace walls, the two sides parted and he saw Laertes standing in the midst of five remaining Ithacan guardsmen. The old king raised his spear and invited Eupeithes to decide the fate of Ithaca by single combat. A number of the warlike Taphians murmured their approval and looked at their leader.

The merchant faced the challenge with a smile. ‘Laertes, my friend, don’t be angry. I haven’t forgotten the time you saved my life from the mob, or that you were once king of these islands, so I have no wish to see you harmed unnecessarily. And why should you and I fight each other for the throne? These Taphians have battled bravely to win liberty for their Ithacan allies – to save them from your folly, Laertes – and there can be no dispute who is ruler here now.’

Laertes stared at the merchant with disdain. ‘You’ll never be ruler, Eupeithes. Betrayal begets betrayal and your actions will only earn you treachery in return. Kneel before your rightful king now, and pray to the gods he’ll have mercy on you.’

Eupeithes stepped forward and waved his hand dismissively. ‘A king is but a representative, the bearer of a title and a position, but he is nevertheless a man who will ultimately die. A nation, however, is something which surpasses the individual. It outlives us all and must be honoured above any one man. I act for our nation and that’s why I must replace you, Laertes. You have failed your people with idle hands and a self-regarding mind.’

‘You see things with the eyes of a merchant, Eupeithes,’ Laertes replied. ‘You don’t see there are other things in this world beyond how much a man does or does not possess. You were born into a wealthy family who trained you to think about the acquisition of riches, to know what to buy and where to sell, and you have spent your life as a trader in goods. That makes you an excellent man to trust when it comes to money and making a profit.

‘I, on the other hand, was born into a ruling family. I was trained to think about the welfare of my people, to provide for them and protect them. From boyhood I was taught to fight and to lead troops; I was told how to take from the people in times of plenty, so that I could give to them in times of hardship; I was shown how to watch every part of my kingdom, from the harvest, to the work of the craftsmen, to the trading of the merchants and the scheming of the nobles, so that there was balance and harmony. And that’s how I’ve spent my life, be it for better or worse. But whatever truth there is in your accusations, I have kept this nation together. It’s only through you that Ithacans have spilled each other’s blood on the soil of their homeland. Only you , Eupeithes, have divided these islands and destroyed the one thing that has kept them together and at peace for so long. In your very first act you have invited our oldest enemies onto our shores, killed your compatriots and put the future of these islands into question. The biggest mistake I made was in allowing you to spread your lies amongst the people.’

As both groups listened to the king, his voice filled with authority despite his tiredness and wounds, Mentor heard the sound of others coming down the corridor behind him. Looking about himself, he snatched a long Taphian spear and a shield from one of the many bodies in the courtyard and retreated back into the shadows, pressing his body as close to the wall as possible. Just as he did so, Koronos walked out into the courtyard, followed by Polytherses and the remainder of the Taphians, who had broken in through the great hall.

Laertes saw the approaching reinforcements and knew that the battle was lost. Realizing their desperate situation and not wanting to waste more lives, he threw down his weapons in surrender and ordered his men to do the same.

Eupeithes had won a stunningly quick and complete victory. By clever deceit and ruthless determination he had overthrown the king and taken power. And as Mentor slipped away unnoticed through the palace gates, he knew that only the return of Odysseus could save Ithaca now.

Chapter Eleven

THE ROAD TO MESSENE

Mentor raised his head and looked at Odysseus. ‘There’s something else,’ he said. Despite his hardships, he sat tall and as straight as a spear. ‘The fishermen who helped me escape told me a galley had already left for the mainland. A force of Taphians was aboard, led by Polybus. Eupeithes knows that until you’re dead there will always be hope and resistance amongst the Ithacans. He also knows from the crew of your ship where you landed, so he intends to hunt you down while you’re still within his reach.’

After breakfast, they gathered in the shade of the trees where Odysseus had called them to council. Other than Eperitus, every member of the expedition had family and friends back in Ithaca. However, it was so incredible that their homeland could now be under the rule of Eupeithes that for a while nobody knew what to say.