Odysseus was once a scared ninny to some, but to others he was an epic hero who could survive anything and make it through the direst circumstances. This is his second story, the untold story, his second great adventure; or digression. It all started after Penelope’s death. Odysseus’s mourning finally led him to get another crew and sail due South until something happened.
“Get a move on men. Release the sails and tie down all loose ropes; prepare to leave,” Odysseus barked at his crew. Though he had aged significantly since his return home, he still could give a young man a run for his money. His voice, also, seemed to have grown in magnitude along with his years. Anxious to feel the salty ocean breeze upon his face he raced to starboard and tied down a lose rope. When all the preparations were made, he lifted anchor and set a course due South.
He and his crew made good progress; the winds were with them and they moved quickly. They after stopping at Zacynthus to resupply and pick up some gifts from their host they continued on their course. They sailed on for many a day without any land insight and on the third day the wind died leaving the sea in a dead silence. Grumbling at their bad luck, Odysseus’s men staggered down to the belly of the ship. Upon reaching their unfortunate destination each took his spot and the drum beater struck up a beat to keep the rowers in time. After an hour of rowing the place smelt horribly and even the drum beater was sweating, not from exertion but from the boiling temperatures that existed down there. However the men’s grief was short lived as Odysseus directed them to an island. The men in their eagerness to leave their posts and breathe fresh air again beached the ship more than halfway upon the shore.
Once Odysseus had gathered all his men he pulled out his sharp sword and began hacking his way through the dense growth that this place seemed to be filled with. However the growth was short-lived as Odysseus and his men chanced upon a path; very narrowly cut through the forest. After following this path that twisted and weaved its way through the forest they came upon a primitive village. They were warmly welcomed and three pigs, four cows, and a sheep were slaughtered in honor of Odysseus. They feasted for a great number of days. Their glasses never ran dry; it seemed that even the rivers themselves were made out of wine. The livestock were also supremely cooked and it lifted Odysseus’s men’s spirits greatly to have a full stomach of fresh food and heady wine. The king then decided to call upon his bard to recite a poem to them. The bard began, “There once was a man who lived and breathed war, his every thought was of war tactics. He traveled from city to city plundering and sacking and looting every village insight. His men were always happy and he never was alone at night. Unfortunately as all things must come to an end so did his life of luxury. One night his night watchmen fell asleep on duty and allowed the opposing arm to sneak into his camp unaware. As you can imagine a fight broke out and terrified for his life he grabbed his sword and ran for the hills that were on the West side of his encampment. He was the only survivor and without his powerful army to protect him he ended up becoming a beggar. He roamed from town to town holding his burlap sack held by a tattered piece of rope. His clothes quickly turned to tatters. He lived in this life of misery until finally he called upon the gods for deliverance from his struggles and sorrow. One god heard him and she took pity on him; her name was Aphrodite and she swooped down to him and told him to travel to Ithaca. When he reached Ithaca he was supposed to seek out a man by the name of Cragiase. Setting off on his way he made good time until he was beaten by a group of thieves. Those thieves left him on that road stripped of all his belongings, though he had practically none. The thieves were just looking for a good time and saw him as a likely target. He ended up laying there upon that dusty road alone for three days before a traveler finally chanced upon him. Taking mercy on him he placed him upon his horse and with great care led him to the nearest healer. Upon reaching the healer the man left the beggar there to regain his strength. After he had regained his strength he left to continue his journey to find Cragiase. When he finally reached his destination he inquired where he might find Cragiase and learned that he had died just the other day. His heart saddened he walked to the top of a cliff where he looked out upon the vast blue sea. Whether it was fate or an angry god the piece of land he was standing upon crumbled underneath him and he fell to his death, he body crumpling upon impact.” With that the bard rushed out of the halls unsure if what the reaction to his story would be. The men all retired then and sleep peacefully. Upon daybreak the king lavish Odysseus with shiny cauldrons with tripods, vases and such. He then reluctantly left the king to his island and sailed away hoping to find something worthwhile. His men sailed on and along the way they stopped at every island they saw. Their boat was starting to ride low upon the water so at the next island Odysseus stopped and bought another boat which he loaded all his supplies and treasure on and roped it to his other boat. After him and his men set off they ran into a storm. The sea frothed like a raging monster and the wind howled like banshee. The storm was the worst in centuries Odysseus lost his loot ship as the ropes binding the two broke and the loot boat was capsized. However Odysseus didn’t lose any men and his ship came out in relatively well condition. He continued on his merry way until he landed on a very interesting island.
“We’ll stop here men,” Odysseus commanded. After beaching their boats in the harbor they wandered inland. When they had traveled about a league they smelt the sweetest aroma coming out of a cave. Mad with hunger they rushed for the cave but sensing trouble Odysseus held back and entered last. He was just in time to see hundreds of what looked like barbed tongues dripping with green noxious venom. They attached themselves to about half of Odysseus’s men and the venom killed the men instantly. The rest that were left and Odysseus ran toward the ship as fast as their legs would carry them. About halfway to their boats the men heard a noise behind them and saw the cave rise out of the ground and take the shape of a giant monster that looked like a cross between a spider and a snake. It immediately closed in on Odysseus and his men. However Odysseus using his genius gathered the men together and created a giant ring of fire using the men’s out stretched spears. The beast to afraid of fire to strike the men stalked them all the way to their ships. As soon as the men were close enough they stuck their spears in the ground and cast off their ships. Glad to get away from that forsaken island.
The rest of their travels went without incident. The treasure Odysseus had lost was replaced in tenfold and him and his men were content. Then Odysseus reached a strange phenomenon, he had reached the end of the Earth. He was amazed to see what
looked to be a giant waterfall which fell to unfathomable depths, if there was an end. Unconcerned with his own life he kept his course straight and headed toward the waterfall. It seemed to take hours for the boat to finally cross the threshold of the waterfall then anti-gravity seemed to set in as the boat rose up ward to the sky instead of down as it should. Intent on following the waterfall to its depths Odysseus flung himself from the boat. He continued falling until it seemed as if he wasn’t moving. Then time seemed to grow slower as every move he made was in slow motion. His clothes stopped flapping and the wind stopped rushing by him. He was suddenly hit with a bright light and even though there was no ground he was able to stand up and walk around on nothing. Light seemed to come from everywhere and no one point. At that instant Odysseus wished he had some wine to quench his thirst and a wine cup appeared in front of him suspended in midair. Scared to touch it Odysseus reluctantly reached out and grabbed the cup and drank the rich heady wine then when he had finished the wine the cup disappeared. “I must be immortal,” he thought to himself. Then he wished to see his house and walk in its halls again. Instantly he began speeding over islands and seas so fast all he remembered of the trip was a blur. When he finally reached his house he began walking around. He observed all his servants working and unfortunately he was unable to communicate with them as they could not see him. Saddened by this discovery he wondered if the people in the underworld could see him; maybe even his. With that he was whisked away to the underworld and to his immense relief he could talk to his wife and interact with all the dead. After saying goodbye to his wife and promising to be back Odysseus went to visit Mount Olympus and the gods that resided there. When he reached Mount Olympus he was greeted warmly by Zeus. “Well I see that you, Odysseus, are one of only a few humans who have actually achieved immortality. You will be like us in every way, except you will be unable to interact with the physical world.” Upon hearing this Odysseus was greatly gladdened, “Perhaps you could honor all my services by giving me some small piece of the world to control.” “Very well,” responded Zeus. “We will give a piece of land to control.” With that the gods granted Odysseus the modern day equivalent of the Americas. The Americas have been Odysseus’s brain child and that is why we have grown so prosperous.