Interlude 1

Author's note: The interludes are scene setting and explanatory - please feel free to skip them and move on with the sexy parts of the story.

3000 years earlier.

“What do you mean they’ve been re-supplied?” The old war-monger Agamemnon smashed his fist down on the council-table, his weather beaten and scarred face bristling with rage. He looked round at his council of Kings for explanation.

“It was during their thrust at our ships last night”, replied Diomedes opposite him, a man who looked as if he was in no mood to be harangued by Agamemnon or anyone else. We pulled our forces to the water side of the city to protect our ships during the attack. I left a small battalion to the East to monitor that gate. They were routed and a caravan got through. The attack at the ships was a diversion”

“Fuck!!!”, roared the old man

“They’re getting supplied from Mysia”, explained Menelaus calmly, Its a days ride to the East, inland. We need to take that, or torch it, to cut them off.

“but we cant march off to Mysia. It would still take us a couple of days to take that. Its smaller but its almost as well defended as Troy itself. – you think the Trojans will just leave our camp and our ships alone while we’re gone?” protested Diomedes.

“I’ll go and take it”, volunteered Achilles, with the cool swagger of youth, by far the youngest of the Kings assembled. He seemed as if he believed in his own fabled immortality.

Agamemnon snorted. “You? Oh I have no doubt you could do it. You and your swarms of Myrmidons amount to more than half of our forces, but what happens when you leave and Troy sees us so depleted. You’d find nothing left here when you return lad. No, we need you here. We cant send thousands of men to Mysia and leave us **** on the beach.

“I’ll do it”.

Everyone turned to look at Odysseus.

“You,… and your Ithacans?” asked Agamemnon incredulously. Every soldier on the Greek beaches knew that Odysseus was the King of the smallest nation in Greece, and that his contribution to the war effort was a paltry pair of ships amounting to a grand total of 60 men. It was only Odysseus’ own reputation as a fighter that garnered any respect for that tiny nation.

“Mhm, yes. I’ll go… with my Ithacans.” said Odysseus smiling, “We will take the city in 2 days and we will relocate to there to hold it for the remainder of the war to stop it falling into Trojan control once more, and”, he held up his hand as if to ward off any protests, “we will replace our army here with more than twice their number of committed fighters”.

Agamemnon looked at him as if to object, or ridicule his plans then saw the mischievous twinkle in Odysseus’ eye and sighed. “Go then. Take this city. We will have need of you yet in this war, but for now, go and take this Mysia".