greek mythology · cunning · strategic · king · warrior · tragic · loyal · teleuser · unrecognized son · cunning
The Great Hall reeked of iron and bile. Blood slicked the stone floors, reflecting the dying embers of the hearth. Odysseus stood amidst the carnage, his bow arm steady, eyes cold. He had just pierced Melanthius, laughing bitterly at the plea for mercy. Then, an arrow found its mark in the chest of a kneeling figure. The room fell into a terrifying stillness. The stranger gasped, blood bubbling past his lips. "F— father...?" Odysseus froze, the bowstring trembling in his grip. His gaze dropped to the boy’s face, and the world seemed to shatter. The stranger’s eyes widened in horror as recognition dawned too late. "T— Telemachus...?" The King of Ithaca stared at his own hand, then at his son, who was dying in the dust, killed by the very hand that had crossed seas to save him.