For a while, the journey passed in complete silence. The three riders had long since slowed from their hasty gallop out of the city of Athens to a more sustainable trot, but the specter of the city's destruction still hung over them like the massive plume of smoke that they could see from the city even when miles away.
Percy knew he was not the only one who had been adversely affected by the prominent city's demise. He remembered Alcaeus' tale well enough – he had lived in Pylos until it was invaded and he and his family were sold into captivity. There were likely many families in Athens that now faced the same fate at the hands of the Dorians that Alcaeus and his family had been put into themselves. He quickly glanced at the older man, but apart from a tightly clenched jaw, the man's face was impassive and stony, devoid of any real expression.
Looking over to his over quest companion, Percy took note of Kassandra's similarly blank expression. He knew that she was vigorously opposed to his decision to continue forward rather than travel back to warn King Perseus of the threat, but she was torn between her desire to protect her city and her loyalty to her king, who had ordered her to abide by Percy's decisions to complete their given quest. Percy hated having to place her in such a precarious spot, but he still felt he had made the correct decision. There was little chance that King Perseus, with the resources of a prosperous city like Mycenae behind him, did not know of the danger from the north or the fate that had befallen his rival. If they had doubled back to warn the king, they would gain little and lose precious time. Even with this rationalization, Percy still felt guilty for having created this dilemma for the young woman.
For himself, Percy wasn't sure what exactly he felt. It was like a void had been created in the center of his chest. There was a deluge of emotions that had been sucked into it, and all Percy was left with was exhaustion and confusion. For the first few hours, all he had thought of was what he could have done to prevent such wanton destruction, but he had come to accept the futility of that line of thought. There was nothing he could have done.
Then he thought of what he could have done to prevent Galene's death, as well as the deaths of the other rebels that he had fought alongside with. There was a sinking realization that one of the ways he could have saved them was to not join them at all. If he had not joined them in their quest for freedom, they would have never attacked the armory and been killed by Theseus. Perhaps they, as strong fighters, could have fled the city before its destruction. Inadvertently, he had caused their deaths.
"Perseus?" Alcaeus' voice came out of nowhere. Percy blinked. He looked down, seeing his mount look at him expectantly. A few steps ahead of him, both Alcaeus and Kassandra were looking back at him, the former with a curious look on his face. Without realizing, Percy had come to a full stop. He looked at his hands, lifting them and the reins they held up – they were slightly shaking.
Alcaeus trotted back a little to where Percy had gone to a stop, putting a reassuring hand on one of the younger man's shoulders.
"Are you alright?" Alcaeus asked, concern in his weary eyes. Percy quickly nodded, putting his hands back down and looking past the older man. Alcaeus stared at Percy for a few more seconds before nodding himself and maneuvering his mount to catch up to Kassandra, and in silence once more, the group began to ride forward.
"Where are we going?" Kassandra asked quietly, leaning over to Alcaeus.
"Perseus wishes to continue forward, which means we must ride toward Lemnos," Alcaeus replied, speaking quietly as well. "However, since our destination cannot be reached by land, our best chance of making it there is to travel to Kymi, a port city on the western side of the Aegean. From there, we can acquire a ship, which Perseus can guide, to travel to Lemnos."
The female traveler nodded, before leaning back and resuming her normal riding stance.
Alcaeus stared ahead, his eyes stony and showing little emotion. He knew that his younger companions had faced much turmoil in the past few days, more than they had in the past. He knew how much the death of the Athenian rebels and the subsequent sacking of Athens had affected Perseus, as had Perseus' decision to continue instead of heading back to Mycenae affected Kassandra.
Their quest had taken a turn for the worse, and Alcaeus feared that darker and more dangerous times awaited them. All he could do was support his fellow questers through them so that they could complete their quest.
"Let us stop for a rest," Alcaeus called out, startling both Perseus and Kassandra. He knew that all of their strengths had been flagging since they had speedily fled Athens, and with the moon bright in the sky, Alcaeus could see that they were well and truly alone, miles deep into the Greek wilderness with no potential threats around them. It was the for the best that they could take this time to regain their strength – they would need it, Alcaeus feared, for the trials and tribulations he imagined would lay ahead.
The sun was barely rising as the trio of travelers reached the first, outermost row of houses and buildings that marked the port city of Kymi.
Alcaeus immediately felt something was wrong. The city was eerily quiet, and while there were people on the roads, they were discreet and moved fast, making little noise and drawing little attention to themselves. It was an unusual display, in Alcaeus' opinion and experience, for a city like Kymi to have such low-key citizens.
Quickly handing off their horses to a hard-bargaining stall manager for what Alcaeus considered a meager amount of money – he was in no position to waste time hassling, so he accepted the offer – they set off down the streets of Kymi on foot. There was no need for mounts when they needed a ship to cross the Aegean.
"Let's buy some fruit to eat," he suggested, to which Perseus and Kassandra nodded. Alcaeus was specifically eyeing one of the few market stands on the main road of the city, which itself was unusual – normally, a bustling commercial center like Kymi would be filled, even in the early hours of the day, with those who wished to sell their wares and those who wished to buy exotic goods. There were only a few market stalls open at all – some were of the exotic kind, but many were just common goods like cloths and foods.
"How much apiece?" Alcaeus asked, eyeing the vendor with a critical eye. The man was dressed raggedly for someone that sold fruit in the heart of a center of commerce. Given his prime location, he could easily sell his wares – in this case, fruit – for an above-market price and pocket a tidy profit, but his worn clothes and messy countenance did not reflect that sort of reality.
"Two obols," the man warily replied sharply, eyeing the armed nature of Alcaeus and the younger companions that were behind him.
"Two obols?" Alcaeus repeated incredulously. "That is quite a high price."
"Take it or leave it."
Alcaeus made a big show of sighing, before withdrawing his pouch. Pulling out six small silver coins, he handed the money to the fruit vendor, who in turn nodded as Alcaeus reached for three of the ripest pieces he could find. As he did so, Alcaeus absentmindedly – or so he made it seem – began to make small talk.
"How is your business, friend?" Alcaeus began. The vendor glared at the strange traveler before placing down his own money pouch and putting both hands on his stall.
"These are tough times in Kymi," the vendor admitted, looking around. "There used to be many stalls here – a big market full of cheer and smiles. Now, there is nothing."
"Why?"
The vendor gave a mirthless chuckle. "Surely you have heard? The Invaders from the north are coming for us. In fact, many have already fled. The city guards are in a rightful panic." The man leaned closer, as if to tell a secret, so Alcaeus followed suit. "In fact, I have heard that Athens itself has fallen. Riders in the night rode through the city, crying out that the city was burning. There was a mass panic just hours ago, and this is what is left."
Alcaeus somberly nodded. There must have been riders that rode faster and harder than they did to flee the invading Dorians.
"And you, my friend?" Alcaeus asked, looking at the man and his stall.
"I have nothing left to lose except for my life and my stand," the vendor muttered, looking around. "If they come and kill me, nothing will have been lost."
For a single moment, Alcaeus felt a pang of pain and empathy, but he quickly quashed to keep his composure. Placing a hand on the man's shoulder, to which the vendor flinched once but did nothing about, he leaned in.
"May the gods watch your fortune, friend." Alcaeus backed away, taking his three pieces of fruit with him. "Stay safe."
"As should you," the vendor replied, regarding the stranger in front of him who had been unusually warm in tumultuous times. To the old fruit vendor, it was a harkening back to better times, ones with peace and fruitful joy unlike the present. Sighing, the vendor returned to his fruit as Alcaeus returned to his companions – the two men were destined, after all, for different paths.
"What was that?" Perseus whispered as Alcaeus returned to his other two fellow travelers. Kassandra quietly accepted the piece of fruit Alcaeus offered, biting into it and savoring its sweet juice, while Alcaeus handed Perseus a piece as well. The younger man nodded his acceptance as Alcaeus bit into his own piece and chewed, thinking of a reply.
"An understanding, of sorts," Alcaeus decided to say, "of the situation facing us. I fear we do not have much time left."
"How long?" Kassandra suddenly spoke up, her eyes showing her understanding of Alcaeus' words – she had put the pieces together and finally realized why Kymi was a shadow of its former self and why Alcaeus had been talking to a street vendor for so long.
"Hours, I presume," the older man admitted. "We must make haste to the port, lest we be unable to find a ship to leave this city before its doom."
"The Dorians are coming here as well?" Perseus spoke up, also realizing the predicament facing them, the city, and all that remained of Kymi's inhabitants.
"Indeed, young Perseus," Alcaeus confirmed, taking another bite of his piece of fruit. "Let us walk now."
The three made their way down the stone path of the city's main street. In the distance, they could already see the shining sea, sunlight reflecting off of the glinting water. It was a beautiful sight, Alcaeus had to admit, but considering the circumstances, they could hardly afford to dawdle on such sights.
A small commotion alerted all three questers, causing them quickly turn around warily, though not enough so to make them draw their weapons.
Alcaeus sighed as he saw a small child creep out of a nearby alleyway made by two buildings. The child had knocked down some bins that had been stacked in the alley, and now the boy, who Alcaeus reckoned could be no older than eight or nine, was staring up at them with wide brown eyes. He noted that the boy was wearing dirty, weathered clothing, barely big enough to fit him and certainly no protection against the elements. He noted the matted, filthy look of the boy's black hair and the dirt on his feet. An orphan, then.
Alcaeus also noted the look of pain on Perseus' face. He watched as the demigod walked slowly to the orphan boy, holding out his piece of fruit with just a single bite in it. The boy quickly grabbed it out of Perseus' hands and ran back into his alleyway. Before he disappeared from view, however, the boy stopped, turned, nodded his thanks quickly to Perseus, and scampered off into the darkness between the two buildings.
"Why did you do that?" Alcaeus wondered out loud, looking at the young demigod. Perseus still had a conflicted expression playing on his face, as if in physical pain.
"He seemed like he needed it more than I," the young man replied.
Alcaeus closed his eyes for a moment as he pursed his lips. "You know that we may be in a battle for our lives very shortly. Keeping your strength up at this crucial time is important."
"If I can't help a single child, what kind of hero am I?" Perseus retorted.
Alcaeus let out a chortle of goodhearted laughter, confusing the demigod. Beside them, Kassandra had a mirthful, if small, smile on her face. "Very good, Perseus," Alcaeus responded. "It is heartening to know that your heart is in the right place. Come, let us continue our way." Perseus nodded, even if he did still look a bit confused at Alcaeus' words.
Truthfully, Alcaeus had no issue with Perseus' actions – after all, what more would a small piece of fruit do in a pitched battle for their lives? Indeed, Alcaeus had seen a true glimpse of Perseus' inner self in that moment. Not everyone would have given their fruit to the boy, and certainly not King Perseus himself. No, it was a very rare hero that would do such things, and Alcaeus took heart in the fact that Perseus' was in the right place.
He could follow this hero anywhere – even to the gates of Death itself.
"That was, I think, the last one in the city," Perseus moaned as he came out of the building. A few hours had passed since their arrival in Kymi, and the sun was beginning to reach its peak in the sky. They had been going from ship owner to ship owner in the port, and none of them had a ship that they could sell or take on more passengers. Many, in fact, were already in the process of leaving, hauling precious cargo, crew, and passengers onboard as they feared the imminent invasion.
And it was a rightful fear. For the past few hours, as Alcaeus, Perseus, and Kassandra scoured the docks of Kymi, guards had been running through the streets in a near-panic. Evidently, the city authorities were beginning to raise a red flag, preparing their forces for what was almost certainly going to be a losing battle. There was little they could do against an invasion force that had made short work of Athens, one of the greatest cities in the land before the Dorians had arrived.
"That is unfortunate," Alcaeus nodded. Suddenly, a cacophony of horns blew throughout the air, startling the group and all in their vicinity.
"Is that…" Perseus left the question hanging in the air.
"Battle horns, by my reckoning," Kassandra whispered. "The battle must have started."
"Then we do not have much time," Alcaeus grunted, looking around. "The city will fall within the hour if they are meeting in battle in the plains outside of Kymi. We need to find a ship now."
"A-a-a ship?" a voice cried out from the shadows of one of the buildings that overlooked the docks. Alcaeus turned to see a haggard-looking man slovenly lying in the shade. He had a small jar beside him, one that Alcaeus suspected was full of drink. The man stood up, swaying slightly, before making a pitiful attempt of dusting himself off. His robe had a large stain on the front of it. "Well, I believe I can help you with that."
"No thank you," Kassandra began, but Alcaeus quickly cut her off.
"Do you have one?" Alcaeus nicely asked, putting on what he hoped was a genuine-looking smile.
The man burped. "Ha, feisty little girl, this one is," he laughed as he pointed at Kassandra. The woman in question glared back. The man – who Alcaeus was sure was at least partially inebriated – looked back at Alcaeus, putting on a more serious expression. It looked somewhat comical to the assembled group.
"Of course!" he roared, raising both arms, with one hand still clasping onto his drinking jug. "I am the proud owner and operator of, uh, the Kymite Justice."
"Really," Kassandra deadpanned.
"Truly, sweetheart," the man grinned back. "Now, what would you want to do with it?"
"We wish to requisition a ship to travel across the Aegean," Alcaeus evenly provided, making sure to not give away too much of their quest.
"Huh, across the Aegean?" The man picked at his dirty teeth. "Bit vague there, friend. You should probably be more specific to your captain."
Alcaeus gestured at Perseus. "This young man will be our navigator. You are, of course, welcome to join us on our voyage, but he will handle the rest."
"Mmhm," the man intoned, "and what of pay? I can't expect there to be too many ships out there for 'requisition' these days."
Grimacing slightly, Alcaeus nodded. "Indeed. I have," he made a show of checking his small money pouch, "ten dekadrachm for your services."
"Ten?" the man incredulously said, waving his arms in an exaggerated motion. "I can't ask any less than twenty. Why, my ship is in high demand. Surely you consider my ship worth more than just a hundred drachma."
"Twelve."
"Eighteen."
"Shall we split?"
"Sounds good to me." The man stepped forward, a dirty hand extended. "Fifteen dekadrachm." Alcaeus clasped hands with the man.
"A third up-front and the rest upon arrival," Alcaeus intoned, looking down at the man. The scrawny man seemed to consider it for a moment before muttering to himself and quickly nodding.
"I can do that," he agreed. "Now, to my ship – it is on the other side of the docks, far from any other. Cannot miss it."
The group of three followed the man down the wooden docks when the first arrow fell. All four came to a sudden halt, staring at the embedded arrow in the wood.
Then the screams began.
Creeping up the stone stairs that led down to the docks, Alcaeus saw the faintest hint of smoke rising to the sky and the quiet, but rhythmic beat of war drums.
"It is happening," Alcaeus hurriedly whispered. With a gulp, the man whose ship they were requisitioning nodded.
"Then we must move quickly." Before they could move again, however, a flurry of arrows landed in front of them, this time with fiery tips. The wooden in front of them caught aflame, and soon their path forward was engulfed by a spreading fire.
"We can go around through the city," the man quickly said, walking up the stairs to the stone path of the city proper. Following close behind, they slipped into the city, which was now largely devoid of anyone else.
In the distance, Alcaeus could hear the screams of men, women, and children, and his blood chilled at the thought of what was happening. It was almost enough to bring him to the past, but he forcibly fought the urge to hurl as he continued onward.
They had just gone past an empty shop when an armored soldier tumbled out of a nearby alleyway. The guard's metal armor was stained with crimson blood, and as he fell onto his back, Alcaeus could see a dagger sticking out of his chestplate. He shook his head as he saw the guard's face – a young man, no older than Perseus, and one that had died doing all he could to protect his city. In fact, Alcaeus was sure that his own son would not have been much older than the guard that had just died in front of them.
"Ohoho, what have we here?" a voice came from the alleyway. Alcaeus and everyone else in the group turned to see a group of men walk out of the alleyway. There were at least ten of them, armed with swords and dressed in misshapen assortments of armor.
"Dorians," Kassandra whispered.
"More fun," the lead Dorian laughed. "Go ahead boys!"
With that, the fight ensued. The odds were against them – it was Alcaeus, Kassandra, and Perseus' blade against about a dozen-odd fighters, though with some surprise, Alcaeus noticed the man guiding them to his ship also pull out a dagger from the folds of his robes. But what they lacked in quantity, they more than made up in quality. Kassandra herself was holding off two fighters, as was Alcaeus. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Perseus using nearby jugs of water to great effect against the nearly ten other men that were fighting the demigod.
Concentrating on his own opponents, Alcaeus dodged a thrust by one of the fighters before throwing out a wicked punch into the face of another, this one with no helmet. The man grunted and screamed as his nose broke under the impact of Alcaeus' fist, and taking advantage of the disabling of one opponent, Alcaeus focused his attention on the other.
Parrying a slash from the fighter, Alcaeus used his greater height and bulk to muscle his way into extreme close range with fighter. He sharply twisted his blade, forcing the man to follow suit, and with a great roar, he yanked his blade upwards, knocking the fighter's sword out of his hands.
The fighter was momentarily confused at his sudden disarmament before he spit outwards at the pain he felt when Alcaeus thrust his blade through the fighter's heart. Alcaeus had taken advantage of that one second by stepping back and cleanly thrusting his sword through the unarmed man, and he withdrew his blade just as quickly, letting the man fall to the ground, bleeding from multiple orifices as he did so. With a turn, Alcaeus gave a savage yell and cleanly slashed through the chest of the man whose nose he had broken earlier, his blade passing through part of the man's chest and neck. Blood seeped out of the fatal wounds as the second fighter fell to the floor to join his comrade in death.
Alcaeus huffed as he turned to help out one of his own comrades. He saw Kassandra finish up the second of her own opponents, while Perseus had handled his multiple adversaries with ease. He narrowed his eyes, however, when he saw the shipowner struggling against the last enemy, this one the lead fighter who had ordered the others into combat. With his dagger, the ragged man was barely holding off the barbaric fighter's longer sword.
As Alcaeus moved to help the man, he could feel that something was on the verge of going bad. His fears were confirmed when he saw the man stumble on a poorly paved rock, and with the momentary gap in his short-range defense that such a stumble created, the Dorian fighter pounced, stabbing his blade through the abdomen of the man.
Alcaeus pounced as well, quickly heaving his blade and slashing it across the fighter's back. The fighter grunted as he let go of his blade, still embedded in the man, and turned around, only to find Kassandra's dagger in his throat before she viciously removed it. With a splutter of blood, the last Dorian fighter's eyes widened and he fell to the ground clutching the gaping hole in his throat, unmoving by the time he hit the stone bricks.
Perseus rushed over to the panting man on the ground, still skewered by the Dorian fighter's sword. As the demigod made a move to remove the blade, the man stopped him, his breathing hard and laborious.
"No, no, it is fine." The man leaned backwards, taking a deep breath before coughing. "There is nothing you can do."
Alcaeus kneeled beside the man, sharing a look with Percy. The shipowner's injuries were grievous and there was little they could do, if anything, to even ease his pain.
"M-my ship," the man coughed out, blood leaking out of the sides of his mouth, "is just over there." He haphazardly pointed past a stone building down the street, and at the very of the road, Alcaeus could see a separate wooden dock, at which was moored a single ship. A boat, really, but at this juncture, Alcaeus did not care about the technicalities of whatever craft they used to leave Kymi.
"L-leave me here," the man quietly whispered, his voice hoarse. He shakily withdrew a pouch from his belt, holding it up to Alcaeus.
"That is the payment for your ship," Alcaeus intoned, looking at the pouch. "That is yours to keep."
The man struggled to shake his head. "It is of little use to me now." He tried to crack a smile, but between his bloodied mouth and teeth, it was more grotesque than comforting. "You will be able to make more use of it."
Perseus pushed the man's hand back down. "No," the demigod stated, his tone hard. "This is your rightful payment. We will not rob you of it, even at this time."
The man turned to Perseus, his face a mixture of different emotions. "I-I see." He closed his eyes for a few moments before opening them again. "Lean me against the wall of this building," he asked of the demigod, and Perseus acquiesced, helping the man sit up against the stone wall of a building to face a closed shop of mirrors on the other side of the road.
"You are a rare one," the man grunted, the pain from his wound only growing. "What is your name?"
"Perseus."
"A-ah, Perseus," the man nodded. "A demigod named Perseus. May the gods, and your father Poseidon, bless you on your journey. Now go, before more Dorians come."
Alcaeus nodded, and gestured for Perseus to follow. The demigod grimaced, but nodded, smiling at the dying man one last time before following Kassandra and Alcaeus to run down the road to the waiting ship.
The man smiled as best he could at their retreating forms. It was truly his luck to find people like them only on the day he died and his city burned. Turning, the man looked in the mirror across the street, taking in his own ragged, filthy, and horrendous appearance. A dying man, indeed.
In his mind's eye, however, he could almost see it – a young, handsome man, with jet-black hair, strong-white teeth, and a happy countenance. The man he once was, the man who had bought the Kymite Justice and had imagined a future of happiness ahead of him. The man he was before life hit him hard and things fell apart.
His friends had deserted him. His lover had left him. His strength had failed him. And now, he was left dying on the road of a burning city.
And yet, the man imagined, there was hope left for this cruel world if such people existed.
Go forth, Perseus, and be the hero the world needs in these times.
With that, the man gasped one last time and crumpled to the ground, his eyes unseeing as they stared at the red stone. The mirror across the road had no young, handsome man in its reflection – just a dead old man, worn and weathered by life's pains and anguish. Nameless, and yet, at the very end, remembered in hearts beyond his own.
The trio quickly reached the wooden docks that held a singular ship – the Kymite Justice. It was little more than a boat, but to Alcaeus, it could have been a grand trireme of the Mycenean Navy for all he saw – it was their ticket to relative safety.
Alcaeus quickly grabbed the rope that tied the Kymite Justice to the docks and threw it into the ship. Inside of the ship, which was more like a small boat, Perseus quickly expanded the mast. Kassandra took hold of the oars and handed one to Perseus, and Alcaeus smiled as he saw the ship ready to go.
He took one step into the boat when he felt a searing pain in his gut.
Looking down, he saw an arrowhead protruding out of his abdomen. In that moment, he knew it was all over. Alcaeus turned around to see archers on the top of the buildings close to the docks, and with another whip through the air, he grunted as he felt another bout of pain in his chest.
"Alcaeus!" Perseus screamed, rushing over to the fallen man. Kassandra attended to the wounds, her eyes wide as she saw her companion struggle to breathe.
With a yell, Perseus raised his arms. Two massive columns of water followed suit, and the demigod roared in anger as he flung it at the buildings, ignoring the screams of terror from the archers as the water slammed into them and collapsed the buildings they stood on. The ensuing force from the water being raised from its still spot in the docks pushed the Kymite Justice out of the docks, propelling it far faster than oars or wind could. Soon, they were clear of the city, and anyone still left on the shore of the city were little more than pinpricks in the distance.
Not that either uninjured occupant of the Kymite Justice knew this or cared. They were both huddled around their ailing comrade, unsure of how to precede.
"I think the arrow in his back broke when he fell," Kassandra muttered. "I don't know how to get it out." Perseus did not respond as he gently touched the shaft of the arrow that had struck Alcaeus on the front of his chest. He knew how to heal himself with water, but he did not know how to apply those healing properties to others – he was not even sure he could.
"Leave it," Alcaeus suddenly rasped, his eyes blinking rapidly. "There is nothing you can do."
Perseus violently shook his head. "No. No. No – we can do something. I do not know; perhaps we can remove the arrows and bandage you." The demigod began to rummage through the various crates onboard the ship. "There must be some supplies here we can use."
Alcaeus shook his head. "There is nothing short of the gods that can save me."
"Then we call the gods!"
Alcaeus laughed. "I wish it were that easy to summon a god. Even you, Perseus, do not have that power."
The demigod's eyes smoldered in anger. "There must be something we can do."
"There is nothing you can do."
"You cannot die! You have to find your family!"
Alcaeus laughed again, coughing up blood as he did so. "My family… when they were taken from me and I from them, I was sure of only one thing – that I would not see them again. I would have never found them again, if they were even still alive. That was nothing more than a dream; it was never meant to be more."
Perseus kneeled back down beside his dying friend. "You cannot give up like this."
Alcaeus smiled wistfully. "I wish that desiring something made it so. This is the pain of mortality, which all men must face. My day has come today, and while it is earlier than I would have wanted, it has come nonetheless. We are powerless to stop it. I now welcome the eternal slumber."
Perseus swallowed, his face hard.
Alcaeus gestured for Kassandra to lean in, and when she did so, he whispered in her ear. The young woman pulled back, and with the faintest tears welling up in her eyes, she nodded. Her expression betrayed her inner turmoil. Alcaeus smiled as much as he could, given his pain, and closed his eyes, sighing peacefully as he did so.
He could almost see them. His family… Alexander, his youngest son – a precocious child, but one that always had a spark of wonder in his eye. Eirene, his only daughter – already as beautiful and kind as her mother. Eutychos, his oldest child – a son that was on the cusp of manhood, and one that Alcaeus had hoped would be a good father. And there she was… his wife. Helena, a woman whose beauty he had yet to see a match to, whose fiery wit that he had yet to hear an equal to, and whose gentleness that he had yet to feel a peer to.
Yes, they were welcoming him into their fold once more. As Alcaeus began to drift towards them, he remembered one thing.
Perseus.
The demigod that had been given a quest, and in its journey, had proven himself a hero like those of times past. He was saddened that he could not accompany Perseus through the end of the quest, but he had done his best. They had come far, and he knew that Perseus would go even further. Alcaeus' journey had come to an end, but Perseus' was just beginning.
With that, Alcaeus relinquished his last hold on the physical realm and entered the warm embrace of his loving family.
In accordance with Alcaeus' last request to Kassandra, his body was cleaned and set adrift in the Aegean Sea, becoming one with the world once more.