The horrible sounds of the raid filled the rest of the night and much of the early morning. Cassandra had covered her ears and closed her eyes, yet she couldn't hide from the horrors of the attack. Vision after vision slammed into her, showed her the deaths of many of her siblings, laid bare the carnages performed on the palace and its staff. When her father was captured as he fled to an altar of Zeus and murdered in a grisly manner, Cassandra shared the King's last painful thoughts. As a Greek general disemboweled Hecuba, it felt as if it'd happened to Cassandra.
By the time three Greek soldiers, covered in light soot and splatters of enemy blood, entered the temple and spotted Cassandra, all she'd witnessed through her visions had left her a husk of a human.
She didn't fight as a Greek hauled her to her feet. He turned her head from side to side then flashed a toothy grin. The soldier yanked on the pin holding her dirtied peplos in place.
A shudder went through Cassandra as she realized what the man meant to do, but she hadn't the strength to save herself.
One of the other Greeks stopped his hand. "No, you can't."
The soldier holding Cassandra rolled his eyes. "If you must, you can have her first."
"Hey, not again!" the third yelled.
The second soldier shook his head. "None of us can have her."
"Why not?" the first asked.
The second Greek studied Cassandra. "I think she's one of the princesses." He pulled her away from his friend.
The third soldier sighed. "So? There are plenty of others. We're allowed at least one."
The second soldier wrapped an arm around Cassandra. "No. Odysseus wants them all brought to him."
The first Greek pouted. "He won't miss one."
Without further comment, the second soldier led Cassandra from the temple.
After a short time had passed, the other two Greeks followed. They grumbled about their lot and made some rude comments to the soldier who directed Cassandra.
Cassandra's capturer didn't respond. He focused on Cassandra and used gentle gestures to steer her to their destination.
They reached the hill that had featured in one of Cassandra's recurring visions. On top, a brute of a man struck a Cassandra's youngest sister.
Like what had been prophesied, two soldiers held her upright between themselves. Other soldiers lined the surrounding area. All cheered as Polyxena was hit time and time again.
Between blows, the man taunted the princess. He wanted her to cry, to beg for mercy. Twice, he offered to stop his abuse if she barked like a dog.
Polyxena ignored his words, looked past him with a bored stare.
Each time she refused his wishes, the man's next assault was harder. In a matter of hits, Polyxena's once beautiful face became a misshapen, bruised mess.
Then he struck Polyxena's nose, and with the explosion of blood came the young woman's first scream.
At the sight of the blood that dripped from her sister's face, Cassandra's numbness faded. She slapped at the soldier that held her.
Her actions surprised the Greek, and she broke free.
She raced for Polyxena.
She'd only taken four steps when two soldiers restrained her. Cassandra hit and struggled, but their grip didn't falter.
The man who'd hurt Polyxena looked over his shoulder at the commotion Cassandra had caused. He nodded at the soldier who'd brought Cassandra from the temple. "And who is this?"
The soldier stood straighter. "Another princess."
The man, who Cassandra assumed must be Odysseus, smiled. When he did, his weatherworn features softened but didn't make him any more pleasant to gaze at. "Glad to meet you, Princess." Odysseus gestured to the smoldering city below. "How have we done?"
Cassandra hurled an insult in response.
Odysseus frowned. "I see."
Lightning fast, he punched Polyxena in the mouth.
Polyxena groaned, but it was Cassandra who shrieked as if she'd been hit. "No, leave her alone."
Odysseus looked at the mob of his soldiers. "What do you think?"
The men booed and jeered.
Odysseus shrugged. "I don't think that will happen. Unless..." He turned to Polyxena. "Will you plead for release, Princess? Will you accept your new position, that of my King's slave?"
With a busted face and soiled peplos, Polyxena raised her head high. "Never," she said. Her voice dripped with contempt. "I'd rather die."
"No," Cassandra cried, but no one paid her any mind.
Odysseus chuckled. "Is that so, Princess?"
Polyxena held her stance.
"Neoptolemus," Odysseus called, and a young man who resembled Achilles, though he had a different shaped nose and longer hair than the demigod, stepped out of the group of soldiers.
Odysseus stepped aside and pointed at Polyxena. "Take your revenge, my boy."
Without flourish, Neoptolemus walked behind Polyxena and removed a dagger from a sheath around his hips. He pressed the blade against the princess' throat, whispered in her ear, and dragged the weapon across her tender flesh. A slit opened, and blood gushed out.
The soldiers holding Polyxena aloft dropped their hold, and the young woman fell to the grass.
Cassandra screamed and kicked at her capturer.
The soldier released her.
No one stopped her as she hurried to her sister's side.
Neoptolemus backed away, his broad features absent of satisfaction, and allowed Cassandra to cradle Polyxena.
Though her sister had died before Cassandra had reached her, Cassandra still rocked Polyxena and sang her songs Agatha (dead for many years now) had taught them in their youth. When those ended, Cassandra talked about the splendid times she'd shared with her sister and apologized for letting their relationship change during the war.
Prayers followed, and Cassandra vaguely registered that the few soldiers who hadn't grown bored with her display of grief and wandered back toward the fallen city joined in her words.
As her final act, Cassandra rearranged Polyxena's offset peplos to give the dead princess some dignity in death. With that done, Cassandra bent over her sister's body and bawled. Not just for Polyxena, but for all those who'd died.
While absurd, she blamed herself for the outcome of Troy. If she'd been wiser, if she'd been like all the other mortal women who'd caught a god's attention and had surrendered to the sun god, Hermes would have never been able to deceive her. And Apollo wouldn't have felt betrayed enough to curse her, and all Cassandra's warnings would have been taken seriously.
Polyxena's skin grew frigid as Cassandra held her. The sun dipped in the sky, and smoke from parts of the city dispersed.
The soldiers around Cassandra murmured to each other and shifted on their feet. More than one called to Cassandra to draw her away from Polyxena's body.
As dusk approached, a pair of sandals stepped into Cassandra's line of sight. She recognized them but didn't respond. She wanted death, deserved it even.
Odysseus bent to eye-level with Cassandra. "You need to stand, Princess."
She remained silent.
Odysseus sighed, then stood.
Cassandra thought he'd leave her be, but his hand tangled in her hair. With one solid yank, he ripped her away from Polyxena.
Cassandra yowled and slapped and clawed at Odysseus' face. He let her struggle for a moment before backhanding her much like Priam had the day before, in the same spot.
Cassandra wailed, and her actions ceased.
Odysseus grinned, and a soldier laughed. "Much better, Princess." He set her on her feet and straightened her peplos. "When I give you an order, you will follow it, or suffer the consequences. What I did to your sister will pale compared to what I'll do to you."
"Come now, Odysseus," a voice called from behind the cluster of soldiers.
The men parted and let through a well-armored man with wavy red-brown hair and hard blue eyes. He studied Cassandra, then offered her a brief bow.
"Excuse my general, Princess. War makes him forget his better nature."
Odysseus grunted but didn't argue.
The man moved closer to Cassandra. He smiled. "It's remarkable how you resemble your brothers."
His words drew a comment from Cassandra. "My brothers?"
"Yes, the two I killed some time back. Antiphus and Hipponous."
Surprise widened Cassandra's eyes. She dropped her head, but the man caught the reaction.
He grinned again.
"Yes, Princess, I'm Agamemnon."