Chapter 7

Achilles POV

I closed my eyes and thought of what I had seen earlier in the day. The way her skin seemed to shine in the dimness and the way her long hair had framed her lithe body. Her breasts had been full and proportioned, the nipples as red as her luscious lips. She wasn't what men would call a classical beauty, but she was beautiful nonetheless. I let myself relax, my mind remembering the vision it had gazed upon and I smiled. It must have been divine intervention that had stopped me from taking her then and there. Her childish innocence prevented her personality from reeking of sexuality, but that didn't mean I didn't want her. On the contrary, I wanted her more than any woman I'd ever been with

"My Lord" I heard Eudorus call from outside my hut. My eyes flew open as I reminded myself of where I was. A moment later, he popped his head through the flaps, looking worried.

"The slave girl-" He faltered slightly on seeing my face at the mention of Briseis being named a slave. "The Trojan priestess has been released from Agamemnon's service" Inwardly I sighed in relief that Briseis would no longer be near Agamemnon, but I did not show it in my face. Standing up from the furs I had rested on, I made my way to the wash basin.

"And does he return her to me spoiled? To dine upon the crumbs that fall from his table, lick the wine that spills from his chalice and thus consider myself content and grateful?" I snapped at my second in command. He shifted slightly on his feet before continuing.

"He does not return her to my Lord. He has given her to his men for sport" Water soaked the sand as the basin crashed to the ground and I was upon my armor in a second.

"Pompous, sluggard bastard" I fumed as Eudorus waited outside "That man is no more fit to bear the title of King than a hog is allowed to dine at the table of men" One final lace was pulled and I was ready, when I heard a helpless, heart piercing scream. I rushed out of the tent and went quickly to Agamemnon's encampment, careful not to make a sound. They were passing her around in a circle, as though she was nothing more than a heifer for sale. I could tell that they were going heavy on the wine by the way they thickly laughed at her futile struggles.

"Come on, give the bitch to me" One of them yelled out and less than a moment later, Briseis was thrown into his arms, where he squeezed her tight and left her gasping for breath.

"Trojan whore!" He called her as he passed her to the next man, who laughed in his drunkenness. Each time she was passed to someone, a little more of her robe would be torn away, until they had completely torn away the first layer.

"What's this? A virgins robe!" The men crowed as one of them reached to the nearby fire.

"Won't be needing that much longer. Hold her down" The man I recognized as Haemon ordered the others as he turned to face Briseis. It was then I saw that he had in his hand a branding iron, just out of the fire. On seeing the brand, Briseis started to struggle harder as they held on to her. Using what remained of her strength; she pulled back and slapped Haemon away. He spat before hitting her square in the face, causing me to seethe with rage as I crept closer.

"Better to be a Spartan slave than a Trojan-" He never finished his threat to the beaten woman. I quickly leapt at him and forced the brand to the side of his throat, making him scream in pain as his flesh shriveled in the heat. As he collapsed, I held the iron in front of me, daring anyone to fight me.

"What's wrong with you, fella's? There's only one of him and ten of us" I recognized Aphareus, one of the men who had stolen Briseis. Before anyone could move, I drew my dagger and threw it at him, hitting him in the middle of the forehead.

"Nine" I recounted as he slumped lifelessly to the ground, the blood cascading out of his wound. All the men stared at me, none daring to take a step towards me. I threw the brand away and walked over to Briseis, who lay unconscious in the sand. I quickly placed one arm under her legs and one on her back and started to carry her back to my hut, thanking all the Gods who would listen that she wasn't as badly hurt as she could have been. She stirred slightly in my arms and moved closer to my chest, my arms tightening around her protectively. She came to just as we reached the abode, and squirmed when I had to bend down to get in. The closeness obviously unnerved her.

"Shhh" I tried to soothe her as I placed her on the furs. She eyed me suspiciously as I placed a wash bowl between us.

"Are you hurt?" I asked before I realized the words had come out of my mouth. Of course she's hurt, I chastised myself, just think of what could have happened if I hadn't been able to get there in time. "I watched you fight them. You have courage" I complimented her as I prepared a wet rag.

"To fight back when people attack me? A dog has that kind of courage" she spat at me. I leaned close and tried to wipe some of the blood off her face, but she slapped my hand away.

"Don't touch me" she whispered as I tried again, only to have the same result. Being a man of short temper, this did nothing to ease it. I threw the cloth at her in annoyance and it hit her firmly in the chest. She, in turn, threw it right back and seemed satisfied when it landed on my thigh. I took the cloth from my thigh and threw it into the basin, where she reached seconds later as I turned and presented a platter of food to her.

"Eat" I told her as I grabbed a piece of meat for myself. She stared at me and I placed the food in between us. She continued to dab at her wounds, wincing ever so slightly when the cloth touched her lip.

"I've known men like you my whole life" she said suddenly. So, the little girl thinks she has me pegged?

"No, you haven't" I told her honestly. So far as I knew, there were no men like me.

"You think you're so different from thousands of others? Soldiers understand nothing but war, the peace confuses them"

"You hate these soldiers?" I asked, curious as to what she thought of men who fought like I did.

"I pity them" she retorted, making my blood boil

"Trojan soldiers died trying to protect you," I told her, biting back my anger "perhaps they deserve more than your pity" My anger disappeared as I saw her ashamed face as she undoubtedly thought of her countrymen and family.

"Why did you choose this life?"

"What life?"

"To be a great warrior" I thought for a moment. No one had ever asked me this before. My mother had always told me that I was destined to be a warrior, and have my name shouted and feared by soldiers. It was the reason I had come to Troy in the first place.

"I chose nothing. I was born and this is what I am. And you? Why did you choose to love a God?" I paused for a beat as she looked at me "I think you'll find the romance...one sided"

"Do you enjoy provoking me?" The simple answer was yes, but I didn't want to aggravate her any more than she already was.

"You've dedicated your life to the Gods. Zeus the God of Thunder, Athena the Goddess of Wisdom, you serve them, yes?"

"Of course" she replied, indignant to the thought of not worshipping the most revered of the Immortals

"And Ares the God of War, who blankets his bed with the skin of men he's killed?" Answer this, priestess I thought as I watched her think of an answer.

"All the Gods are to be feared and respected" Her answer must have sounded weak to her own ears, as she avoided my gaze.

"I'll tell you a secret, something they wouldn't teach you in your temple" I moved closer to her and she slowly inched her head towards me.

"The Gods envy us. They envy us because we're mortal, because any moment might be our last. Everything is more beautiful for the doomed. You will never be lovelier than you are now" I paused for a beat, looking at her meaningfully "We will never be here again" She looked away from me and picked a grape from the platter I had placed in front of her.

"I thought you were a dumb brute. I could have forgiven a dumb brute"

"I don't need your forgiveness" I told her as I exited the tent.