Arms and the Women (58 page)

'For Athena's sake, Odysseus, remember what you are, man,' cried the Trojan. 'A prince of royal lineage with the blood of gods in your veins! How can we hope to meet with the nymph on equal terms if you abase yourself like this to what must be the vilest of her creatures?'

But Odysseus only looked up and said, 'Prince, bow down straight off. Even if you're daft enough to reckon you're above paying homage to divinity, at least be a man and give beauty the tribute it deserves.'

'Beauty!' exclaimed Aeneas. 'I've seen camels' backsides more beautiful than this. She makes Achates look like Lady Helen. Vile hag, take us at once to your mistress or I'll test the depths of your divinity with my sword.'

His weapon was out and at the creature's throat, but Odysseus leapt to his feet and knocked it aside, then, abasing himself once more, said humbly, 'Forgive this Trojan fool, lady. Grief and loss and wonderment at your great beauty have driven him quite mad. I beg you to enthrone yourself in your bower here and listen to the humble supplications of us poor mortals.'

The hag stooped and took the Greek's great head in both claw hands and raised it till she could look deep into his eyes.

'Tell me, Odysseus, what is it you see here?' she demanded in a voice more like the screech of some bird taught to mimic human tones than a real woman's voice.

'I see noble wisdom and gentle mercy compounded in a face of such loveliness it raises a man's great desire above even his awareness of his minute desert.'

'Desire? You desire me?' The hag opened her mouth wide to show her rotting gums as she cackled her derision. 'Then feast your lust, thou most cunning of Greeks. Will you not at least vouchsafe me a kiss?'

Her gaping maw looked to Aeneas like the entrance to Hades. He shuddered to the depths of his being at the thought of coming into contact with those chapped and spittle-flecked lips, of feeling that serpent-scaled tongue darting into his mouth.

But Odysseus was standing upright, in every sense as his light robe was inadequate to conceal. His arms went around the harridan, his mouth crushed down on hers while his hands pushed through the rents in her disgusting robe and caressed her sharp and calloused buttocks as though they were the soft pink orbs of a girl.

And suddenly, even as Aeneas raised his sword to bring an end to this obscenity, that's what they were, he stepped back in wonderment as the hag's skew and ancient frame straightened into the shapely form and slender limbs of a young woman and the hideous sunken features filled out and glowed with vigorous health and an unearthly beauty.

Nor did the wondrous alteration end here. The dark rock cleft from which she had emerged opened up into an airy cavern richly furnished within and overhung without by a rampant vine, heavy with ripening grapes. Bielding woodlands of alders and aspens and sweet-scented cypress grew all around, their branches melodious with chirruping birds. Four springs of the purest water ran bubbling under the trees and across neighbouring meadows, whose green and undulating grass was starred with many-hued violets. It was a scene to make even a god marvel.

Aeneas sank to his knees, speechless.

The divine nymph, Calypso (he could not doubt that this was she) was laughing and pushing the ardent Greek away.

'Odysseus, I had heard that you were ready to assail by cunning or by strength any foe who stood in your way, but I had not thought to find you quite so bold as this.'

'Lady, I cannot see a foe before me, and it was your own invite that led me on.'

'Perhaps. But you say you saw me as I am now, not as this poor creature beheld me?'

'Eyes that have looked on the dead in Hades have had all human scales removed,' said Odysseus seriously. 'From eyes that see as clear as mine not all the magic in the world could conceal divine beauty like yours.'

'You say so?' said Calypso, looking both amused and pleased. 'And what is it you want of me that you so rudely disturb my repose?'

'What do I want, lady? Well, I'd rather bring that up in private. Wouldn't want to embarrass the lad here, if you understand me.'

'This is effrontery beyond punishment!' exclaimed the nymph.

'I'm glad to hear you say that,' said Odysseus. 'How about reward, but?'

She shook her lovely head, not in denial but in mock-amazement, and said, 'Well, I will attend to you a while before I decide your fate. Come into my bower.'

She went into the cavern. Odysseus glanced at Aeneas, winked, and followed. The Trojan took an uncertain step after them but the encircling vine trailed its grape-heavy stems before him, sealing off the entrance.

Baffled, he retreated and sat on a mossy bank facing the cavern. After a while he felt so warm that he shook off the heavy fleece cloak, and when he looked up he saw that the sky too had been transformed and it was now a flawless vault of the deepest blue with the pulsating orb of the sun almost directly overhead.

Time passed. He marked its passing by the slow declension of the sun down the western sky. The lower it got, the more agitated he became. Whatever was happening beyond that vine, the nymph's decree was still in force, and that gave him till sunset to flee the island with all save his son, or stay and be destroyed.

At last, with by his estimate barely an hour to go before the sun lipped the horizon, his patience ran out and he rose and strode towards the cavern entrance with sword outdrawn. But before he reached it, the vine raised itself to the lintel again and Odysseus emerged, adjusting his tunic.

'How do, lad,' he said cheerfully. 'Sorry to keep you waiting. Eeh, for Priapus's sake, put that thing away. Waving it around like that all the time will get you into bother.'

Behind the Greek the vine was descending once more but not before Aeneas glimpsed in the depths of the cavern a low couch spread with soft furs and dishevelled silks on which reclined a long and lovely figure aglow with the soft pink freshness of a spring dawn.

Aeneas said accusingly, 'I'll sheath my sword, Greek, when I know the truth of what has passed between you two in there.'

'And you a grown man? Use your imagination. A gent doesn't tell, specially not when the other party's a bit of a goddess. Come on. We'll need to move. Not much time.'

Odysseus strode away. Infuriated, Aeneas began to follow. Then the fat Greek turned round and said, 'Best not forget thy cloak. Don't want to catch a cold, do you?'

Aeneas suddenly realized he was shivering. The wind had sprung up again, and looking up he saw that the sky was once more overcast and darker than ever with the onset of dusk. He glanced back. The cavern with its protecting vine, the rich woodlands, the crystal springs, the verdant meadows, all had vanished and been replaced by the desolate landscape of grey and black rock.

He seized his cloak and hurried after Odysseus.

'Where are we going?' he demanded. 'This is not the way back to the camp.'

'Bugger the camp,' said Odysseus. 'We're heading for that little bay where you sheltered your fleet. Soon be sunset and that's the deadline for getting off this place, remember?'

The sword was out again and Aeneas cried, 'What? You think to save your skin by flight?'

'No, it's more sailing I had in mind, 'said Odysseus. 'Hurry, or you'll not make it.'

'You are quite mad,' said Aeneas quietly. 'Do you really think I am going to sail away with you and leave my son and my father and all my comrades to their fate? Goodbye, Greek. I only regret I do not have the time to kill you.'

He turned and began to run back the way they'd come.

'Where are you going?' yelled Odysseus.

'Back to the camp to face whatever fate awaits me,' called the Trojan over his shoulder.

'But there's no one there!' bellowed Odysseus. 'They've all packed up and gone.'

His voice carried enough conviction to stop Aeneas in his tracks.

'What do you mean?' he demanded. 'Gone where?'

'Down to the bay to get the ships ready, of course. Don't you buggers ever listen to anyone? No wonder you lost the war. Come on!'

But still Aeneas did not move.

'They have left my boy?' he said brokenly.

'Don't be daft. He's down there too. But they'll be leaving you if you don't get a move on. Come on. Run! Imagine Achilles is after you. I've never seen anyone run as fast as you lot when the Big Man was on the rampage!'

They ran, with Aeneas soon too breathless to ask further questions. And at last they were descending the windy path to the bay where the Trojan fleet lay.

The Greek had not been lying. The strand and the sea were alive with activity. On the ships, sails were already being hoisted in preparation for departure. And best of all, as they reached the shore, Achates came hurrying towards them holding young Ascanius by the hand.

At sight of his father the boy broke free and rushed into the Prince's fierce embrace.

'My son, my son,' he cried. 'Why are you not in your nurse's care?'

'Don't fuss so, Father,' said the boy impatiently. 'And do hurry. Everyone's waiting for you. I'll go and tell Granddad you 're here.'

He pushed himself free then looked up at Odysseus.

'Who're you?' he demanded.

'Me? Friend of your dad's. Name of Odysseus.'

'Don't be silly. Odysseus is a villain and my father would kill him. Also he's ten feet tall with a lion's head and a serpent's tail and you're just an old fat man. Now do hurry, Father.'

The boy sprinted away.

'Nice lad,' said Odysseus. 'Need to work on his manners, but.'

Achates had reached them.

'Good, you're here,' he said. 'I got your message and we're just about ready to sail.'

'My message?'

'Yes. That old hag. The one you gave your ring to for authority. Here, you'd best have it back.'

He gave Aeneas a ring. The Prince looked at his hand in amazement to notice for the first time the ring was missing.

'How can such things be?' he asked Odysseus. 'And the nymph, she never left the cavern, for I kept watch.'

'That's one of the advantages of being divine,' said the fat Greek. 'Can be in two places at once. I should know. She were all over me.'

'Will you come aboard now, Prince?' said Achates. 'We are ready, and your message was most insistent we must be afloat by sunset.'

'Right. Fine. We'll be with you in two minutes.'

Achates turned away, paused, and glanced at Odysseus. No emotion showed on those craggy features but he nodded once then moved away.

'That 'ud be a thank you, mebbe?' said Odysseus.

'Do you deserve a thank you? No, I'm sorry. Of course, you must do. What is happening here must have something to do with what happened back there. But no time to talk about it now. We must hurry aboard and once safe at sea, then we can relax with a bottle of wine and, gentleman or not, you can tell me exactly how you contrived to persuade the nymph to change her mind.'

'Yeah, well, I'd love to. Except I won't be coming. I'm stopping on here a bit. Best all round. I mean, first storm and your lads 'ud be all for tossing me overboard.'

'No!' said Aeneas strongly. 'However you worked it, you have done me and my family such service here that I swear to the gods that nothing on earth or above it will make me withdraw my protection of you.'

'Nay, lad, I'd be careful how you chuck them oaths around,' said Odysseus kindly. 'I reckon you're one of them poor sods whose strings the gods will be forever pulling, and there's no arguing against them. So I'll stay. You push off now. Enjoy the rest of your trip.'

'But how will you leave, you who are so desperate to get home?' said Aeneas. 'At least let me take you to an inhabited island where you can find a new ship and a crew to sail it. Or failing that, let me leave you with one of our shore boats, so when the weather turns fair you can resume your voyage yourself.'

'No, don't bother. I'll be all right,' said the fat Greek lightly.

The Trojan stared at him long and hard, then said suddenly, 'You can't leave, can you? That was the deal you did. Calypso decided that she'd much rather have the great Prince Odysseus as her consort than a slip of a boy like Ascanius. She said she'd let him go if you stayed in his place. I'm right, aren't I?'

'Summat like that. No need to go on about it. Good grub, nice billet, plus all the extras.'

Odysseus smacked his lips lecherously and gave a broad smile.

But Aeneas still regarded him doubtfully.

'Back there,' he said, 'when you first saw her, tell me true, what was it you saw? A lovely woman in a beautiful setting or a nauseating old crone by a pile of rocks?'