Odysseus gazed out upon the open sea. The vastness was daunting, but at last, their sails would be turning toward home. He would see his wife, his son, his home once again. All of them would. His heart began to swell as he spoke gently to himself.

"Six hundred men." He muttered. "Six hundred men under my command." His eyes focused on the horizon.

"With only one goal in mind."

"Make it back alive to our homeland." His men responded, and he turned with them with a thoughtful expression

"Six hundred men." He pondered. "Six hundred miles of open sea, but the problem's not the distance."

"It's what lies in between." His men spoke, their voices the rhythm of a shanty as their hands prepared the boat for the sea.

The king turned back to the sea, and he allowed himself at last to wear a full smile. At last, their war had closed its curtain, and they were setting sail home. "And Ithaca's waitinggggg!" He shouted as his hands rested on the side of the rail. He shouted it proudly to the sky and the sea alike. "My kingdom is waiting!"

"Our homeland is waiting!" His men cheered.

"Penelope's waiting for me, so full speed ahead, full speed a...heaaaddd..." He whispered as the sails unfurled, and the wind took them for months through the open sea.

"Captain." A deep, gruff voice spoke.

"Eurylochus!"

"Six hundred men... six hundred men with big mouths to feed." His hand rested on the captain's shoulder gently. "And... we've run out of supplies to eat." His knuckled tightened. "Curse the war, our food store's depleted!"

Odysseus turned to his first mate, eyes thoughtful for a few moments. He rested his hand on his shoulder, and the king's mind began to crackle with doubts as he spoke. "Six hundred men! There are six hundred reasons to take what we can!" His grip tightened, and his eyes burned with questions that Eurylochus lacked answers to. He had always relied on Odysseus and his quick mind. "So captain, what's the plan?"

Odysseus turned to the sea. He felt its salty spray and took in its spread cloudy skies. He smiled, and his eyes caught bird fluttering by towards some place.

"Watch where the birds fly!" He shouted in confidence. "They will lead us to land! There we'll hunt for food, my second in command!" As he turned and placed a hand in his shoulder. "Now full speed ahead!"

"Full speed ahead!" The tall tanned man shouted as the wind rushed by and took to the rapidly unfurling sails. His greatsword swung behind him and brushed his short shaved hair.

Odysseus could hear the chanting below deck as he marked to the helm, his eyes glittering with excitement at reaching home so very soon.

"We're up, we're off, and away we go!" Their voices like music.

"We're up, we're off, and away we go!" Their feet like drums on the wood.

"We're up, we're off, and away we go!!" Their hearts, a sonata to the homesick king.

"Captain!" He heard a delightful voice shout behind him.

He turned with a gleaming smile as his eyes met those of his trusted advisor and friend. His scruff goatee and hand-made glasses sat well on his tanned olive skin, and dark messy hair was kept only mostly at bay by his red headband.

"Polites!" The king shouted back as he turned to him as he leaned over the bow of the helm.

"Look! There, in the distance, I see an island! I see a light that faintly glows!" He pointed, and his voice was a breath of fresh air to the king and crew. "Maybe they're people lighting a fire. Maybe they'll share some food. Who knows?"

Odysseus was not so quick to trust as he gazed through the telescope he kept on his waistband, however. He had learned long ago the risk of approaching an unknown with kindness. "Something feels off here..." He muttered. He gazed in the distance to the lush island, and indeed, the fire glowed brightly through the steadily growing night sky. There was just one problem.

"I see fire, but there's no smoke." He whispered softly. Eurylochus was the first to bark up, and as always, he chose an aggressive solution.

"I say we strike first! We don't have time to waste, so let's raid the place and -"

"No." The king said with all his authority for a moment before smiling as he turned to his dear friend. "Polites gear up. You and I'll go ahead."

"You and I'll go ahead!" His eyes grew with excitement at the idea.

"We should try to find a way no one ends up dead." The king had grown so tired of bloodshed. They all had been dealt a dark enough hand. Good or ill, he wanted this to end cleanly.

No. All he wanted, deep down, was her touch.

"We don't know what's ahead!" Eurylochus shouted, his eyes burning with worry and anxieties of the dangers his friend could be walking into. His face was blazenen with fear, and a warweathered man could not stand the sight. He embraced Eurylochus.

"Give me 'til sunrise, and if we don't return..." he took a long breath before reigniting his burning bright smile, so full of confidence that it washed away the strong man's woes. "Then, six hundred men can make this whole place burn! Now."

Eurylochus turned to the sailors and hefted his sword high. "Full speed ahead!" And they answered.

"Full speed ahead!" And their oars were brush strokes in the ocean.

"Full speed ahead!"

So the king hefted his bag, and he doned his sword to his hip. Polites grinned at him, and the two looked out over the boat of racing men, all eager to go home.

"We're up, we're off, and away we go!" As the two descended to the smaller boat together. "We're up, we're off, and away we go!" The crew chanted right behind them, and he heard Eurylochus shout, "Full speed ahead!"