I Do Not Own Greek Mythology
I'll admit, shamelessly, that this version of Hector is inspired more from the movie Troy than Greek Mythology, but I think the point is still relevant.
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All the mourners had left the funeral pyre when she appeared.
The goddess had little love for mortals, almost as little love as she had for her own family, but Enyo admired this man.
Hector of Troy was a true warrior, unlike that fraud Achilles, the so called greatest warrior alive.
To the goddess of war and the waster of cities, she who was superior in war, even better than her brother Ares (not that anyone recognized it), Hector was the greatest warrior alive, or he had been. Achilles may be skilled, and Enyo would admit that he was a gifted killer, but Achilles had the blessing of the River Styx. With all but one spot on his body invulnerable, the man didn't actually need armor (though Enyo suspected he wore it both to cover up his weak spot, and wore the rest so that it wouldn't be obvious where it was). Hector however had stood toe-to-toe and shield-to-sword with he best Greece had to offer. Protesilaus, Ajax, Achilles, even Patroclus, Achilles student and cousin, was no slouch with a sword. Yet it took a man with invulnerable skin to kill him.
Even Heracles, the greatest hero before Achilles, has a fraud. Not only was he a demi-god, he was stronger than mortal men, lending him an unfair advantage against any opponent.
The only truly mortal hero before Hector was Jason, and not only did he have a group of others to aide him in his adventures, he hadn't been a good man in the end. And while Hector had the help of others himself, in all out war, that didn't quite count the same as a few adventures.
At least not in her eyes.
Hector was a good man. He had not wanted this war, revel in it as she might, Enyo knew only fools wished for war. He did not wish for glory, he was the first born son of King Priam, destined to be king after his father, what greater glory could there be than to be a king. He had a wife who loved him, a son of his own, what greater legacy could he leave beyond his own son.
Yet fight, Hector did. He fought for his people, for his home, for his family. He fought bravely, he fought valiantly.
No, thought Enyo, there was no finer warrior than Hector, no finer hero.
In a world of frauds, Hector was a true hero.
She supposed that was why Enyo had agreed to aide Ares when he took the field on the side of the Trojans, it certainly wasn't out of an familial love for the brother that held the seat on the Olympian Council that should be hers.
Stepping toward the pile of ash on the ground, Enyo waved a hand over it, even as a small urn appeared in her other hand. Ash flew from the pile, into the urn, and once she was done, Enyo capped the urn. She hoped Hades welcomed Hector into Elysium where he belonged.
"I cannot right the wrongs that have been, and will be, committed, nor can I bring you back or ensure you go where you belong," Enyo said softly, a rare tone for the goddess that had the blood of countless mortals on her hands. "But I can promise you, that you're legacy will live on, that none shall forget Prince Hector of Troy, Breaker of Horses."
Taking the urn, which contained what was left of Hector's ashes, Enyo disappeared.
She knew that soon, Troy would burn, a statement of her own power. Even if the thought saddened her.
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Hope you enjoyed.
I chose to have Enyo honor Hector both because she's not an often mentioned goddess, and because as an overlooked war goddess, who is said to be superior in War, she'd see this point that other overlook.
I truly believe Hector was one of the greatest heroes of Greek mythology. Not only is he a mortal, unlike all but a few, but it takes a man with invulnerable skin to kill him. He's certainly greater than Achilles, in my mind at least, and I'd say as great, if not greater, than Heracles (I can't put him in the top spot definitively because Heracles fought foes that he NEEDED his strength to defeat, but on that same note, what would Heracles have been WITHOUT his strength, its basically one of the reasons he's so great.)
As for Jason and Odysseus, arguably the most famous mortal, and truly Greek, heroes of mythology, while thier adventures were harrowing, he had them to help, and you can't compare a group of men fighting off several dangers with time in between due to sailing, the same as battles in war. I'd name Odysseus up there in great heroes, mainly because he fought in the Trojan war, survived a ten year voyage, and was essentially mortal (though I think he was descended from Hermes, could be wrong), but Jason...He's actually rather low in my opinions of Heroes.
Never saw what was so great about him, and my opinion only sank further when we read Medea in High School.
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