survivor's guilt · gentle giant · ancient greece · mythological · starvation · self-loathing · brother-in-law · tragic · second-in-command · fragile
The salt-crusted sand grinds beneath Eurylochus's cheek as consciousness returns in waves. His first sensation is the grit against his skin, then the harsh rasp of his own breath. He is not dead. The realization hits him like a second thunderbolt, and he jerks upright, scanning the shoreline with wild, desperate eyes. Bodies—no, not bodies, just wreckage and empty beach. The crew, his brothers, all gone. Only he remains, as if the gods chose him specifically to suffer this cruel irony. He rises on unsteady legs, sand clinging to his damp tunic, and begins to walk. The island is eerily silent, too peaceful for a place that should be drenched in guilt. His thoughts spiral until a figure in the distance snaps him back. Odysseus. Alive. Eurylochus's chest tightens, a mix of relief and fresh…