The Odyssey: A Short Story

Odysseus and his tired men land upon a barren island, surrounded by crystal waters. They anchored their ship and shuffled off, in weary silence. The island was only a raised chunk of smooth white rock, with an igloo shaped cave. “We have learned our lesson with Polyphemus, we must stay clear of that cave.” Shouted Odysseus. Some men agreed with him, but others muttered in disagreement. They group decided to settle down for the night, as they longed to sleep on solid land once again, even for just one night. They set up a camp and lit a fire, none talking as each slowly fell asleep. The long trip had run its course on the remaining men, leaving them with no hope, giving them no voice. There was nothing to talk about these days, with no hope
of returning home. The men wondered what their children looked like, how their wives were doing. But they also wondered if their wives had moved on, if their children remembered them. About a mile away, in a marble cave, a glittering blue-green dragon stirred. The smell of wood-smoke hit his nostrils and his heavy eyelids fluttered open. “Men,” he thought to himself. “I’ll deal with them tomorrow. With a sign, he fell back to sleep. His name was Thanatiforos. He was 170 feet long, a shiny teal dragon with horn and scales of glistening steel. He was seemingly invincible, he could pierce his challengers from 20 feet away, he could roast them with white-hot fire. He had but one weakness: he was missing a steel scale. Odysseus’ men woke before the sun rose.
All they could see was an orange light emanating from the marble cave far away. It was only instinct now - to run to fire. It did not take long for the group of them -around 30- to get to the white stone cave, with no gift in hand. Running was easy for them now, they had had much practice. It seemed, though, that they had forgotten the rules of hospitality. A homeowner must allow a guest into their home, but the guest must bring a gift. The men arrived at the open entrance of the dragon’s home. “Let us enter,” one of the men said, facing the rest. “We do not have a gift, but we have nothing. Perhaps he who lives here will offer us sanctuary.” The men agreed, and entered the cave. Onward they kept, for hours. The long cave’s walls began to grow narrower as they walked, until they spotted the shimmering scales. Some of them knew who the scales were from, but none said anything. They approached the dragon, curled in his sleep, his thunderous breaths disrupting nervous air. The crew crept around, keeping silent for fear of their lives. Suddenly, one of the soldiers whimpered audibly. The men rushed to cover his mouth, but it was too late. The dragon grabbed the man from his comrade’s grip, crushing his bones with sharp white
teeth. Miles away, Odysseus awoke, alone, surrounded by his men’s belongings. “Have they been murdered?” He yelled into the sky, fearing that Polyphemus’ prayer had been answered so soon. He turned over every blanket, looking for mutilated bodies of his crew, but finding nothing. He sat down. He had learned, in these years, to think clearly. The leader turned, and his mouth dropped open. His men had done exactly what he told them not to do. They had gone to the dragon’s cave. “I should have told them,” he mused, “this is exactly what happened with the winds of Aeolus, and with Scylla and Charybdis.” His head in his hands, he continued to think. “If I fear telling my men the truth, they will fear trusting me. A good leader hold the trust of all his men with great care.” With that, he set out to recover his men. Some short miles away, the 29 men were shoved up against a wall. The dragon, slithering around the perimeter of his circular home, wondered aloud. “How shall I kill you all? There are a good many of you. I can pierce you through the heart, or fry you, or eat you whole.” A brave but stupid man shouted; “Have you no conscience, to just eat a man whole, to end his life so quickly.” “Ah,” the beast snarled. “Do you not see? I have no regard for your life. Eating you is as easy as eating a chicken.” The men’s eyes widened as they looked beyond the dragon, to the entryway blocked by his barbed tail. There stood Odysseus, in full armor, holding a spear and a bow. “I have come to retrieve my men.” He said defiantly. The dragon laughed. “Well, you won’t need these.” He tore the warrior’s weapons from his shaking hands and threw him into the lump of men. “Do not worry, warriors, for death is a kind god. He brings the sweetest sleep, and he casts the darkness from which life is reborn.” He speared five men with each sharp antler, their bodies hanging like clothes set out to dry. He turned, and swept his barbed tail around the room. Four men were not quick enough to jump, and their bodies were swept into the corner as if by a broom. Odysseus launched into his battle strategy, throwing torches from the wall at the dragon’s feet. He knew that the dragon’s feet were a weak spot, and if he threw the torches, the dragon would lift off the ground, and he would be able to shoot his arrow into the dragon’s flesh. One of his men snatched his bow, tossing it to Odysseus. The remaining men continued to throw the torches at its feet, until he finally lifted off the ground. Odysseus knew about the dragon’s missing scale, the only way to kill him. He knew it would be on his stomach, the most protected place on his body. When the dragon moved, he could see it. A grey square of flesh, uncovered by steel. Odysseus motioned for his men to distract the dragon as others were being beaten by its wings. He ran under the massive monster, he strung his mighty bow and pulled the arrow back. The arrow whistled as it soared through the air, magnetic to the small patch of exposed flesh. The metal arrowhead sunk deep into his skin, disappearing into the dragon. “MOVE!” Screamed Odysseus to his men. The eight men that were still able to move scurried out of the way. He picked up as many of his injured men that he could and signaled for the rest to follow him. They left the cave in silence again, walking the few miles back to their ship and grieving their friends, the ones they’d been with for years. With heavy hearts and eyelids, they sailed on, waiting to fall prey to another monster.