"I'm looking for the Oracle of Gaia." "I'm the oracle." "My mother died before she could explain the riddle of my life." "Your father is the King of Athens!" "You carry the sacred Lexicon inside of you." "The Lexicon is a riddle, indeed, but you will eventually unravel its mysteries, and when you do, our enemies will be swept away." "What does it do?" "It leads to the doors of Olympus." "Why was he within range of enemy fire?" "We have averted an assassination attempt on the King." "But who will command the King's armies now?" "His son, Lykos." "Submit, son of Aegeus, or your friend dies." "No!" "A serpent with a line of yellow diamonds running down its spine." "The serpent is coiled round the waist of a maiden... with long, plaited hair." "They are dancing in a circle." "A blind prophet watches the dance." "He wears a crown of white flowers." "In one hand, he holds a scythe, in the other, an olive branch." "A ring?" "They dance to the speed of time." "The ring of the Magi." "Where is the ring?" "I don't see a ring." "The five maidens are your five fingers, and the serpent is the sacred ring." "You know where it is." "No." "A beast!" "A beast!" "What sort of beast?" "Son of Aegeus!" "What sort of beast?" "I don't know." "Then we will have to probe deeper." "Wait!" "Let me take his seed." "Why would you help us?" "To save him from your clumsy method." "I'll have a better chance than you, if you let me do it my way." "If you fail, I'll kill you." "Your needle might kill him." "My mouth will only leave him spent." "Are you strong enough to fight?" "No." "What do you mean "no"?" "You have to fight." "Wake up, Mercenary, or we will die here." "Stop!" "Wake up!" "Don't hurt him!" "No!" "For my brother." "Preparing another of your plays, Lykos?" "Don't I look like the real thing to you, Mother?" "Take it off." "Would you have me lead the King's armies in a tunic?" "Don't be ridiculous." "I didn't put you in charge so you could lead." "I feel ready, and I'm full of ideas." "That's very funny." "Now, listen carefully." "You will attend each and every strategy meeting, but if you so much as open your mouth," "I'll send you to Priest Xerxes for another of his purges." "I'll lose the respect of my generals." "You can't lose something you don't have." "Your job is to watch and listen and report back to me." "Come here." "Remember, we're a team, you and I." "We rely on each other." "And when we've solved the riddle of the Lexicon, your day will come." "I promise." "We must move the Abyssinian archers to bolster the west wall." "Won't that leave the east wall too exposed?" "The east wall is taller." "But if King Minos' foot soldiers surprise us with another night attack, moving across no man's land like silent snakes, they'll have time to climb before they're seen." "We'll need to take that risk." "Our King's impetuous tactics have left the west wall vulnerable and him on a sick bed." "It's time to change our course." "Please, General Proteus, show a little sensitivity." "This is war, Lord Pallas." "I have no time for milk teeth and mealy-mouthed mandarins." "My men are dying, in droves." "What is your view, Prince Lykos?" "As Commander in Chief, this is, technically, your decision." "You're not seriously suggesting that we listen to a boy." "Lykos?" "We're wasting time." "General Priam, move the Abyssinian archers to the west wall before nightfall." "No." "I mean... yes." "The Prince has his father's tactical flair." "What I meant was move them as you suggest, in broad daylight, so that the enemy scouts see." "But then, quietly replace them with the regiment from Thebes." "Utter nonsense." "The regiment from Thebes is in no condition to face the enemy." "Oh, they'll be quite safe." "The enemy won't attack the west wall, seeing it guarded by Abyssinian archers." "But the men of Thebes look nothing like Abyssinians." "Have them swap armour." "Subterfuge?" "From a distance, they will look the same." "But we will offend Apollo, god of light and truth." "And earn the respect of Ares, god of war." "When the enemy climbs the east wall at night, believing it's unguarded, the real Abyssinian archers will be waiting for them." "Enough." "This is war, not theatre." "It worked in the Elysian campaign." "Thrace camouflaged its men and won." "That's ancient history." "But it might just work." "Are you suggesting...?" "Yes." "As you said, General, it's time to change course." "Out of my way!" "I am your king!" "How dare you!" "I am perfectly all right!" "Can you tell these idiots to leave me alone?" "It's wonderful to see you out of bed, dearest, but you shouldn't push yourself too hard." "I am the King of Athens." "I walk in step with the gods." "I don't know a man alive as strong, as powerful as you, dear heart." "I still catch my breath at the sight of you standing tall." "Most men would curl up and die from your wound, but you shrug it off as if it were a scratch." "Call my generals together." "I have fresh plans for a bold counter-attack." "How exciting." "What sort of plans?" "Tomorrow, we throw open the gates of Athens and charge the enemy." "I see... but aren't Minos' troops well-entrenched?" "If we die, we die like Athenians, with fire in our hearts." "And what becomes of your family, dearest?" "No more cowering behind the walls of Athens." "Every last man fights to the death." "What's this?" "A tonic." "If we hurry, we might reach the foothills of Breva by nightfall." "And then?" "North to Athens, of course." "In that case, I'll say goodbye." "I'm heading south, back to the forest of Troezen." "Why?" "It's my home." "And when do you plan to seek out your father, the King?" "What makes you think" "I have any interest in meeting the King of Athens?" "Because he's your father." "And what about the Lexicon?" "What makes you think" "I have any interest in the Lexicon?" "Wait, wait!" "Are you serious?" "Perhaps you don't fully understand." "Inside you, if you can only figure it out, lies the power to open the doors to Olympus, and anyone who enters Olympus, home of the gods, becomes a god." "So, in short, you, Mercenary, have the power to turn mortal men into immortal gods." "Really?" "What do you mean "really"?" "I'm happy as I am." "So you think you can just go back to your simple life in the forest of Troezen and no one will bother you?" "Yes." "And the priests of Gaia, their allies, acolytes and associates will just leave you alone to hunt and fish and sleep in the sun?" "I'll take my chances." "Your mother brought you up in hiding because she knew you'd inherited the Lexicon." "You leave my mother out of this." "And now you're out in the open, you will be hunted down, tortured, bled, starved, and generally kept on the very edge of death until you give up the Lexicon." "And why do you care?" "Do you want to be a god?" "No." "No, I want to stop the war and save Athens." "War?" "Don't tell me you didn't know that King Minos' armies have Athens surrounded." "King Minos?" "Oh, Mercenary, you really have led a sheltered life." "So let me get this straight." "Even though Athens is in the grip of a bloody war, you want me to march into the King's palace and say, "Hello, King, you don't know me, but I'm your son"?" "Yes." "Well..." "You're making this very awkward, Mercenary." "Goodbye, Oracle." "I'm not leaving you!" "You won't like the forest of Troezen." "No, we are not going to the forest of Troezen!" "His son?" "Are you sure?" "The visions were very clear." "You bled him?" "Just to see if he was genuine." "Once I'd established that," "I intended to bring him to you, of course." "Of course." "But instead, you let him go." "And the ring?" "He appeared not to know about the ring." "But you could tell he was lying." "Yes." "I'm reasonably sure he knew where it was." "Reasonably?" "Perhaps that's your problem, Priest Cyrus, you're too reasonable, grown fat on the sweet juice of my benevolence." "You need sharpening up." "And maybe a little help from the Paladin." "Please, ma'am, there really is no need to involve the warrior priests." "I am more than capable of finding the Mercenary myself." "Athena's trail of blood and roses will light your path." "In fact, I'm reasonably sure he's headed south, back to the forest of Troezen." "Thankfully, you don't have to be reasonable." "You just need to keep step with the cloven hooves of the east wind." "Kouros?" "Fire!" "The fields are burning!" "Water." "An older son, Aegeus?" "Water." "I need to drink." "Was she fair or dark?" "Hmm?" "And why didn't you take her as your queen?" "I am in no mood for riddles, Medea." "You knew my son didn't have Lexicon inside him because you'd already given it up!" "Why?" "The Lexicon is not just a riddle, it is a curse, an angry, dangerous beast." "Coward!" "I didn't know you then!" "If I had, I would have trusted you to guide me." "But instead, you lied to me." "What else could I do?" "My people look up to me because they believe I was chosen by the gods." "What was her name?" "I don't know." "She was a chance encounter." "You disgust me." "Why can't I walk?" "How long have I been asleep?" "Not long enough." "What does that mean?" "These are troubling times." "I need room to manoeuvre." "You?" "There." "17,000 times heavier than a common honey bee, yet twice the proportional speed of the average seagull." "A seagull." "Are you hurt?" "What's that got to do with it?" " You were flying." " Genius." " Who are you?" " Oh, wait, don't tell me." "You must be the offspring of Hermes, god of quicksilver." "Let me help you off with that." "Touch it and I'll set loose the marauding hordes of Photius." " It's an old man." " "It?" What are you, a harpy?" "No." "I'm a woman." "In that case, out of my way, harpy." "I'm not in your way." "You made these wings?" "More dazzling brilliance." "Indeed, I did, son of Hermes." "But not well enough." "Hold this." "Apollo, god of light and the sun, truth and prophecy, healing, music, poetry, plague, archery, colonization, medicine, herds and flocks... and intellectual inquiry... take me, Daedalus." " Daedalus?" " Daedalus!" "Take me, your humble servant... as penance... for my son." "Oh!" "What do you think you're doing?" "Let go." "Pull him up!" "It's Daedalus the inventor!" "He's a genius." "We should move under cover." "Minos' men!" "Quick!" "Get me out of this." "Minos' men?" "Really?" "Are you sure?" "What did they see?" "How are our generals?" "Argumentative as always." "Anything I should know?" "No." "I did as you asked... watched and listened." " We missed our session today." " Yes." "I'm working on something else." "Go to sleep." "My dear Prince, it appears that your strategy worked." "The timing, location, even the number of men, all exactly as you predicted." "General Proteus is both embarrassed and delighted." "In fact, he's so delighted, that he's taken most of the credit." "What?" "From now on, he's sure to hang on your every word, in case he can come up with more brilliant ideas." "Perhaps we should stop and rest." "Holy mother, have you brought me together with the son of Aegeus so that he can lead me to the King's door?" "If that is your wish, why does he fight me so?" "Please, holy mother, help me persuade him to go to Athens, but most of all, give me the strength and the courage to avert your sacred vision and..." "King of Athens!" "King of Athens!" "...Kill his father... the King." "Son..." "Icarus..." "No..." "No..." "You must pay tribute to the gods." "Apollo, father of light, will deliver you from your pain." "Gods?" "Gods care nothing for us." "You cannot carry your grief alone." "What do you know of grief?" "I know that your son wouldn't want you to suffer." "The ring of the Magi." "You know what this means?" "You don't?" "No." "Do you expect me to believe that?" "Where is it?" " I don't know." " Yes, you do, or you wouldn't be drawing that symbol... a symbol you've seen before." "Wait." "Wait." "That's it, isn't it?" "You've seen it before, but you can't remember where, right?" "Something like that." "You've got the ring of the Magi!" " No!" " Yes, you do!" " Where is it?" " I don't know!" " Guess!" " Guess?" "What good is that if he doesn't know?" "He does know!" "Why is it so important?" "It belonged to King Aegeus." "Actually, he stole it." "Exactly." "What does it do?" "No one knows." "Then why do you care?" "Because it's extraordinarily powerful." "But what good is that if you don't know what it does?" "I, like everyone else on this Earth, would like to find out." "Where are you going?" "To look for the ring." "Where?" "In the forest of Troezen." "Oh, I see." "You've had this plan all along, haven't you?" "You're going to go home and fetch the ring so that your father, King Aegeus, knows who you are when you knock on his door." " His father is King Aegeus?" "!" " Quiet!" "Don't you talk to me like that, young lady." "I'll have you know I consort with kings!" "It's hidden somewhere, isn't it?" "You're not coming with me, Oracle." "You're an Oracle?" " No." "We have to stay together." " Why?" "The gods brought us together for a reason." " How do you know?" " I'm an Oracle!" "Look, Daedalus fell out of the sky and into our laps." "Don't you think that's a little odd?" "I mean, it's Daedalus!" "Fate?" "No." "Impossible." "But if the ring is in the forest of Troezen, you must take me to it right away." "Come on." "I'll lead the way." "No point in arguing with a woman, son." "Now... tell me about your father, the King, and how it is you came here in the forest with only a harpy for company." "The black dove means we've lost them, doesn't it?" "All I'm saying is we don't need to deliver the bad news yet." "No!" "It's... beautiful." "Thank you." "The Commander-in-Chief should carry a sword worthy of his status." "And the Prince must always be ready to assume the throne." "Sit." "There's nobody here but us." "Aren't you at least a little curious?" "There's nothing wrong with seeing what it feels like." "Prince Lykos." "The military council of Athens offer you this ritual honour." "A sacrifice to celebrate our great victory, as thanks to the holy father, Ares, god of war." "Strike clean." "Strike at the heart." "What's wrong with him?" "Did he lose his nerve?" "No, I don't think that's it." "What then?" "He didn't want to hurt him." "On the contrary." "I think he wanted to hold him." "Are you suggesting...?" "But he's heir to the throne!" "You're an example to us all, Prince Lykos." "I do hope I'm not disturbing you." "I've brought something which would help your followers greatly." "A scribe to collect your thoughts and ideas as a daily memorandum to those who walk in your shadow." "If you approve, he will become a trusted and loyal servant... eager to please, whenever, wherever." "Kiss your Lord and Master." "What is your name?" "Kimon." "Stand, please, Kimon." "What would you like us to work on first, Uncle?" "Uncle?" "The impossible challenge involved stringing a thread through a conch shell." "The conch, as I'm certain you're well aware, is a veritable labyrinth of tiny twisting passageways." "Completely impregnable I hear you say." "Well, think again." "I smeared a little honey around one hole of the shell, and then tied the thread to a carpenter ant and sent it through the other." "It was only a matter of time before..." "Son of Aegeus?" "Where did he go?" "Very odd." "He was just here, spellbound by my account of the Cocalus challenge." "Mercenary!" "Mercenary!" "Come to me..." "Come..." "Come." "Come to me." "Come." "Come to me." "Come to me." "Come..." "Come where?" "Come." "Come..." "Come to me." "Come to me." "Don't look at her!" "Help me hold him down!" "She's a siren, Mercenary!" "A demon nymph!" "She'll lead you to Hades!" "No!" "Let me go!" "Don't look at her!" "She wants to help me!" "Can't you see she's not human!" "Cover his eyes!" "The eyes!" " I'm trying!" " Try harder!" "Medea." "I need a company of men, our very best troops, spies, too, for a special mission." "How many men?" "20, 30." "Trackers, too." "They might need to split up and search different parts of the forest to the south." "Search for what?" "No one can know about this, Lord Pallas." "You understand?" "I'm afraid you're talking to the wrong man." "Your son, Prince Lykos, is our Commander-in-Chief now." "No one can do anything without his consent." "He's made that very clear." "Now that we know just how gullible the enemy is, we can experiment." "Lykos." "A word, please." " I wouldn't be surprised if..." " Lykos!" "What is it mother?" "A moment of your time, please." "Of course." "I'll come and find you as soon as I've finished setting the day's agenda." " Now." " As you can see, I'm very busy." "But Kimon will make sure to remind me to come and look for you." "And I don't see why we shouldn't plan some stealth attacks of our own." "Something bold, something daring." "This is a very dangerous crossing." "Genius." "Let me go home on my own and I'll return once I've found the ring." "I've saved your life twice, Mercenary." "Don't you think that now, finally, you should just accept that you're safer with me?" "And frankly," "I don't trust you to find he ring on your own." "Mercenary!" "You dare look for me." "I will colour your soul and make you mine." "Are you all right, Mercenary?" "Tracks." "What happened?" "What?" "You didn't see it?" "See what?" "It seems the gods don't want me to find their ring." "Gods?" "Mother." "Abyssinian archers ambushing the enemy at night, Lykos?" " It worked, Mother." " That's not the point." "Morale is returning." "Our generals feel confident again." "And where does that leave your father?" "If we make progress, win important victories, and hand him back the army in better shape than he left it, won't he thank us?" "It's not him I'm worried about, it's his court." "If they get the idea they can do better without him, we'll all be in terrible danger." "I will protect us, Mother." "No one will hurt me." "I carry the sacred Lexicon." "I doubt that even the promise of the Lexicon will help you." "You might win a few battles against King Minos, but believe me, your court, its priests, noblemen and generals, aren't as easy." "Is everything all right, Majesty?" "For the first time in my life..." "I have my mother's respect." "How do we get down?" "Climb." "Is there no other way?"