Ah!!! I'm back! At last!

Shangri-La is a very beautiful place, very lovely.

It gives me lots and lots of ideas in writing this story....

Okay! Finally, the chapter you've been waiting for long.....

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Chapter 17

Briseis' eyes widened with fear and fret as Achilles' eyes closed slowly, breaking the only contact between the two souls. Achilles' hand fell to her lap, and she felt hopeless. But Briseis could not give up. She reached for Achilles' wrist on her lap, and felt his pulse. And to her surprise, there was his pulse! It was very weak, and she knew Achilles could not survive for long.

She sat there, thinking of ways to help Achilles. There was little hope, and she needed time.

But what she did not have now, was exactly she needed.

I must take him back to the tent first. Briseis decided.

So, she found a rope and tied up Agamemnon, and she tried to lift her lover up. Achilles was very heavy, and she could not move him. She stood there helplessly, with tears brimming in her eyes. Her lover was on the verge of dying, and yet, she could do nothing about it.

But she had her legs, and she decided to waste no time. Out of the maze- like ship she ran, leaving traces of blood on the corridor as a symbol to find her way back. Through the meeting hall of the ship she ran. She climbed down stairs which were cracked and jumped onto the sand clumsily. She ran towards the campsite of the Myrmidons, tripped when she arrived. To her luck, Eudorus was there to help her up.

'Good to see you back, my lady,' greeted Eudorus, delighted to see Briseis back. Achilles had been throwing tantrums on everyone he saw and the girl could stop the act of his lord.

'Achilles...' Briseis panted, 'Achilles...'

'He's in the tent.' Said Eudorus.

'No! He's in Agamemnon's ship. He is dying!' Briseis said hurriedly. 'You must save him!'

Eudorus looked at Briseis anxiously. 'Our lord is immortal. He won't die.'

'His heel...' Briseis reminded.

Eudorus closed his eyes with frustration. 'Go call for Patroclus and the men. We are going to take him out. You must lead the way.'

Briseis shook her head, 'No, I've left traces of blood on the corridors. Follow them, and you can find your lord. Then take her to the tent. I'll find help. ' She ordered, then turned and ran. She knew exactly what she must do.

Briseis ran to the edge of the beach, and looked around. The nearest tents belonged to the Myrmidons. No one would see her left. She walked on the rocks near the cliff carefully, and slowly, she reached a cave.

This cave was discovered by Hector, Paris, Chryseis, and her in the adventurous time of their childhood. Briseis climbed a few rocks, and fitted herself through the cave. It was not really a cave actually. To be exact, it was a tunnel. Except the four, no one knew about this tunnel. This tunnel led to the woods behind the walls of Troy.

It was pitch dark inside the passageway. Briseis had always thought of it as wide when she was young, but now, she had grown a lot and found that the tunnel was actually quite narrow, although she could fit in. The tunnel twisted and turned. Briseis hurried along it, stumbling now and then on the uneven floor. After a few hundreds of steps, there was a marble door, but was very old and looked it had never been used for hundredths of years. She was already under the city of Troy, and she was starting to go up the hill as the tunnel began to rise.

It took ages, and Briseis was weak. She could feel her legs were not under her control anymore, and were moving by themselves faintly. She wanted to increase the speed, but her pace became slower and slower instead. At last, she came to an opening.

The exit was on a very large and old oak tree. Slowly but intent-to-be- hurriedly, Briseis climbed out. It was already dawn. The moon was setting the sun was gradually rising. The sky was pink without any clouds. Briseis breathed in deeply and started to make her way towards a cave nearby.

'Oenone!' Briseis said loudly when she reached the cave.

And out of the cave walked a beautiful lady. She had blond hair, and green eyes. She was wearing a beautiful green gown, which match the colour of her eyes. 'Oh, my dear!' said the lady. She had a singing voice like the birds. 'It's been years since I've seen you! You looked even fairer than the last time I saw you. I thought you couldn't be any more prettier.'

Oenone was a wood nymph that was friends with Briseis. She had been living in the same cave in the woods since Briseis first met her. Oenone had a talent for healing any mortals even on they were on the verge of dying. And that was the reason Briseis came.

But Briseis knew it would be very hard to convince the nymph the heal Achilles, seeing that Oenone had been deserted by her lover that had swore to love her. Ever since then, Oenone swore not to heal any man.

Achilles was a man. Not just a man, but had been a womanizing one. It was even more difficult to ask the wood nymph to do that.

Briseis hugged Oenone back. 'Yes, it's been a long time.' She forced a smile at the nymph. 'You never grow old. Only your beauty within grows.'

Oenone smiled at the compliment, but said miserably, 'beauty, to me, worth nothing but like trash. I need beauty no more.'

Briseis did not know what to say to comfort her friend. 'Have you saved any man since then?'

Oenone shook her head, and a fire of rage burned in her green eyes, 'No. Men are too filthy to be healed under my hands. I have sworn not to touch any of them again.'

'How about a demigod?' asked Briseis suggestively.

'My decision will still stand,' said Oenone shortly. She suddenly turned to look at Briseis suspiciously. 'Why do you come here? Are you going to ask me to heal a man?'

Briseis looked down at her worn feet, and nodded softly.

Oenone sighed heavily, and asked in a more gentle tone, 'who is this man? Is he important to you? Hector? I can consider of healing him, seeing that he is also one of my friends. But don't ask me about the womanizing Paris.'

Briseis shook her head softly, 'No... he's important to me... in another way.'

Oenone's brows furrowed. 'No. I will not heal him. I will not save your lover.'

Briseis knelt down at Oenone's feet. 'I love him!' she said, and a tear slowly slid down her face. 'I-'

'You must learn that men are always unreliable and unsettled! He will leave you as soon as he is tired of you!' Oenone cut Briseis off heatedly.

Briseis closed her eyes. 'Please.' Achilles' dying face flashed through her mind. 'I can die for him... I am willing to...'

Oenone's features softened. Her friend was in love. In love so deeply that she would not even care for herself. It was proved by her feet. It was blistered and worn. There were wounds on it, and they were bleeding hard. Oenone felt like crying. She would never have loved the man as much as Briseis had loved Achilles. Maybe she should not blame the whole world of men because of one man's wrongdoing. She lowered herself at Briseis' feet, and with a warm glow of light from her palm, Briseis' feet were healed.

'Who is this man?' Oenone asked Briseis gently. 'This man is so fortunate to have my lovely friend Briseis to love him so much to die for him.'

'His name is Achilles.' Briseis answered tentatively, hoping Oenone could accept the fact that her friend was in love with a womanizer. 'Please,' Briseis begged, 'save him.'

Oenone frowned and shook her head. Quietly, as though any words could bread Briseis apart, she said, 'Briseis... you know I cannot save him. Maybe this man is just playing with you,' Briseis felt the hot tears streaming down again. 'Oenone, please.'

'This man was born for the war; he was prophesied to die here. Maybe the day has come.'

Briseis looked at the grass and remained silent. Achilles' life was slowly washing away by time every second, and yet she could not do anything to convince her friend to save him. She felt so useless.

'Maybe he's gone already.'

'No!' Briseis screamed. She could not bear to know it. A pain-like grief weighed on her already weak and delicate body, and she collapsed, collected by the soft, green grass. 'If Achilles is dead, I shall die too.' She said. 'Oenone, if you are not willing to save him, at least give me a deadly poison.' Briseis asked. If she went back to the tent and found that Achilles was dead, she would use the poison to end her dear life.

Oenone stood up, and walked into her cave. Briseis was already very grateful. Oenone's poison was always very sweet and would let one die peacefully. Oenone seldom used the poison, as they were precious, and there were only a few.

To her astound, Oenone returned with two vials. She hand them to Briseis, 'Briseis. This is an exception. I am saving your man because I cannot bear to see my dear friend to wept or cry. I would never like to see you die too.'

She hand her a glass vial that was with a crystal stopper. 'This is the poison of the flower of the oak tree. It's a deadly poison. One drop, can already kill a village of people. I hope you don't need it, but keep it.' According to men, oak trees never had any flowers. But they did not know that a certain oak tree, the oak tree that Briseis had emerged from the tunnel, had flowers that may blossom once a thousand years, and it was made into the poison that was handed to Briseis.

Another vial had cork stopper. 'A drop of this vial can save any mortal who is on the verge of dying.'

Oenone turned to walk back to her cave. But before she entered, she said, 'There is a horse, Aethion, in my stable. You know which one?' Briseis nodded. 'It's a gift from Penthesilea, the queen of the Amazons. She goes as fast as the wind. When you get there, just tell her to go home. She can find her way back.'

Briseis thanked her and hurried to the stable. There stood a pure white horse with green eyes. 'You master asked you to lend me a ride.'

Aethion let Briseis mounted, and, swift as the wind, raced towards the Aegean's camp. Briseis was surprised. She did not even told the mare where did she wanted to go, and Aethion already knew. So Aethion stopped before Achilles tent in a moment, and Briseis dismounted. She patted Aethion, and told her to go back to Oenone, which the mare did.

Briseis turned and hurried towards the tent of Achilles. She felt afraid. What if Achilles was already dead? She would then be needing the poison... But she did not want to die yet...She wanted to be alive, together with Achilles, and had a wonderful life spending time with him.

She paused in front of the tent, and after a deep breath, flew the flaps open.

The first person she saw was Patroclus. He looked sad and down with a face with grief, 'Briseis...'

Briseis felt her heart stopped beating.

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Now I cannot promise you that Achilles won't die.... (Smiles evilly)

Anyway, please review if you want to know what is coming.

Thanks! ;)