"Men are haunted by the vastness of eternity." "And so we ask ourselves will our actions echo across the centuries?" "Will strangers hear our names long after we're gone and wonder who we were how bravely we fought how fiercely we loved?" "Good day for the crows." "Remove your army from my land." "I like your land." "I think we'll stay." "I like your soldiers too." "They won't fight for you." "That's what the Messenians said." "And the Arcadians and the Epeians." "Now they all fight for me." "You can't have the whole world, Agamemnon." "It's too big, even for you." "I don't want to watch another massacre." "Let's settle this war in the old manner." "Your best fighter against my best." "And if my man wins?" "We'll leave Thessaly for good." "Boagrius!" "Achilles!" "Boagrius has this effect on many heroes." "Careful who you insult, old king." "My king, Achilles is not with the army." " Where is he?" " I sent a boy to look for him." "I was having a good dream." "Very good dream." "King Agamemnon sent me." "He needs to..." "I'll speak to your king in the morning." "But my lord, it is morning." "They're waiting for you." "Are the stories about you true?" "They say your mother is an immortal goddess." "They say you can't be killed." "I wouldn't be bothering with the shield then, would I?" "The Thessalonian you're fighting he's the biggest man I've ever seen." "I wouldn't want to fight him." "That's why no one will remember your name." "Perhaps we should have our war tomorrow, when you're better rested." "I should have you whipped for your impudence!" "Perhaps you should fight him." "Achilles." "Achilles." "Look at the men's faces." "You can save hundreds of them." "You can end this war with a swing of your sword." "Let them go home to their wives." "Imagine a king who fights his own battles." "Wouldn't that be a sight." "Of all the warlords loved by the gods, I hate him the most." "Is there no one else?" "Is there no one else?" "Who are you, soldier?" "Achilles." "Son of Peleus." "Achilles?" "I'll remember the name." "The ruler of Thessaly carries this scepter." "Give it to your king." "He's not my king." "Brothers in arms!" " Friendship!" " Friendship!" "Princes of Troy, on our last night together Queen Helen and I salute you." "We've had our conflicts before, it's true." "We fought many battles, Sparta and Troy." "And fought well!" "But I have always respected your father." "Priam is a good king, a good man." "I respected him as an adversary." "I respect him now as my ally." "Hector, Paris, young princes, come." "Stand." "Drink with me." "Let us drink to peace." "To peace between Troy and Sparta." "May the gods keep the wolves in the hills and the women in our beds." " For the gods." " For the gods." "You shouldn't be here." "That's what you said last night." "Last night was a mistake." "And the night before?" "I've made many mistakes this week." "Do you want me to go?" "Pearls from the Sea of Propontis." "They're beautiful." "But I can't wear them." "Menelaus would kill us both." "Don't be afraid of him." "I'm not afraid of dying." "I'm afraid of tomorrow." "I'm afraid of watching you sail away and knowing you'll never come back." "Before you came to Sparta, I was a ghost." "I walked, and I ate, and I swam in the sea but I was just a ghost." "You don't have to fear tomorrow." "Come with me." "Don't play with me." "Don't play." "If you come, we'll never be safe." "Men will hunt us, the gods will curse us." "But I'll love you." "Till the day they burn my body I will love you." "A beautiful morning." "Poseidon has blessed our voyage." "Sometimes the gods bless you in the morning and curse you in the afternoon." "Drop sail!" "Do you love me, brother?" "Would you protect me against any enemy?" "The last time you spoke to me like this you were 10 years old, and you'd just stolen Father's horse." "What have you done now?" "I must show you something." "Where is she?" "I swear by the father of the gods, I will gut you here if you don't tell me!" "My king!" "She left." "With the Trojans." "The fisherman here saw her board their ship." "The Trojans?" "With the young prince, Paris." "She..." "Get my ship ready." "Turn us round." "Back to Sparta." "High on the sail!" " Wait, wait." " You fool!" " Listen to me." " Do you know what you've done?" "Do you know how many years our father worked for peace?" "I love her." "It's all a game to you, isn't it?" "You roam from town to town, bedding merchants' wives and temple maids." "You think you know something about love." "What about your father's love?" "You spat on him when you brought her on this ship!" "What about the love for your country?" "You'd let Troy burn for this woman?" "I won't let you start a war for her." "May I speak?" "What you're saying is true." "I've wronged you." "I've wronged our father." "If you want to take Helen back to Sparta, so be it." "But I go with her." "To Sparta?" "They'll kill you." "Then I'll die fighting." "Oh, and that sounds heroic to you, doesn't it?" "To die fighting." " Little brother, have you ever killed a man?" " No." " Ever seen a man die in combat?" " No." "I've killed men, and I've heard them dying." "And I've watched them dying." "And there's nothing glorious about it." "Nothing poetic." "You say you want to die for love." "You know nothing about dying." "And you know nothing about love!" "All the same, I go with her." "I won't ask you to fight my war." "You already have." "To Troy!" "About ship!" "Set sail!" " I want her back." " Well, of course you do." "She's a beautiful woman." "I want her back so I can kill her with my own two hands." "I won't rest till I've burned Troy to the ground." "I thought you wanted peace with Troy." "I should have listened to you." "Peace is for the women and the weak." "Empires are forged by war." "All my life, I've stood by your side, fought your enemies." "You're the elder, you reap the glory." "This is the way of the world." "But have I ever complained?" "Have I ever asked you for anything?" "Never." "You're a man of honor." "Will you go to war with me, brother?" "I always thought my brother's wife was a foolish woman but she's proved to be very useful." "The Trojans have never been conquered." "Some say they can't be conquered." "Old King Priam thinks he's untouchable behind his high walls." "He thinks the sun god will protect him." "But the gods protect only the strong!" "If Troy falls I control the Aegean." "Hector commands the finest army in the east." "I'll attack them with the greatest force the world has ever seen." "I want all the kings of Greece and their armies." "Send emissaries in the morning." "One last thing." "We need Achilles and his Myrmidons." "Achilles." "He can't be controlled." "He's as likely to fight us as the Trojans." "We don't need to control him, we need to unleash him." "That man was born to end lives." "Yes, he's a gifted killer." "But he threatens everything I've built." "Before me, Greece was nothing." "I brought all the Greek kingdoms together." "I created a nation out of fire worshipers and snake eaters!" "I build the future, Nestor." "Me!" "Achilles is the past." "A man who fights for no flag." "A man loyal to no country." "How many battles have we won off the edge of his sword?" "This will be the greatest war the world has ever seen." "We need the greatest warrior." "There's only one man he'll listen to." "Never hesitate." "Nervous?" "Petrified." "You told me never to change sword hands." "Yes." "When you know how to use it, you won't be taking my orders." "Your reputation for hospitality is fast becoming legend." "Patroclus, my cousin." "Odysseus, king of Ithaca." "Patroclus." "I knew your parents well." "I miss them." "Now you have this one watching over you, eh?" "Learning from Achilles himself." "Kings would kill for the honor." "Are you here at Agamemnon's bidding?" "We need to talk." "I will not fight for him." "I'm not asking you to fight for him." "I'm asking you to fight for the Greeks." "Are the Greeks tired of fighting each other?" " For now." " The Trojans never harmed me." "They insulted Greece." "They insulted a man who couldn't hold on to his wife." "Is that my business?" "Your business is war, my friend." "Is it?" "The man has no honor." "Let Achilles fight for honor." "Let Agamemnon fight for power." "And let the gods decide which man to glorify." " For the Greeks!" " Forget Agamemnon." "Fight for me." "My wife will feel much better if she knows you're by my side." "I'll feel much better." "We're sending the largest fleet that ever sailed." "A thousand ships." "Prince Hector." "Is he as good a warrior as they say?" "The best of all the Trojans." "Some say he's better than all the Greeks too." "Even if your cousin doesn't come I hope you'll join us." "We could use a strong arm like yours." "Play your tricks on me, but not my cousin." "You have your swords." "I have my tricks." "We play with the toys the gods give us." "We sail for Troy in three days." "This war will never be forgotten." "Nor will the heroes who fight in it." "I knew they would come for you." "Long before you were born I knew they would come." "They want you to fight in Troy." "I'm making you another seashell necklace." "Like the ones I made you when you were a boy." "Do you remember?" "Mother tonight, I decide." "If you stay in Lárisa you will find peace." "You will find a wonderful woman." "You will have sons and daughters, and they will have children." "And they will love you." "When you are gone, they will remember you." "But when your children are dead and their children after them your name will be lost." "If you go to Troy glory will be yours." "They will write stories about your victories for thousands of years." "The world will remember your name." "But if you go to Troy you will never come home." "For your glory walks hand in hand with your doom." "And I shall never see you again." " My son." " Father." "Paris." "Father." " This is Helen." " Helen?" "Helen of Sparta?" "Helen of Troy." "I've heard rumors of your beauty." "For once the gossips were right." "Welcome." "Come, you must be tired." "Look." "He's grown." "He is strong." " Briseis!" " Paris!" "Beloved cousin, your beauty grows with each new moon." "Briseis." "A servant of Apollo now." "The young men of Troy were devastated when Briseis chose the virgin robes." "Father I know this is the last thing we need." "It is the will of the gods." "Everything is in their hands." " But I'm surprised you let him bring her." " lf I'd let him fight Menelaus for her you'd be burning a son's body, not welcoming a daughter." "We could send peace envoys to Menelaus." "You know Menelaus." "He'd spear their heads to his gate." "What would you have me do?" "Put her on a ship and send her home." "Women have always loved Paris, and he has loved them back." "But this is different." "Something has changed in him." "If we send her home to Menelaus, he will follow her." "This is my country, and these are my countrymen." "I don't want to see them suffer so my brother can have his prize." "It's not just the Spartans coming after her." "By now, Menelaus has gone to Agamemnon." "And Agamemnon has wanted to destroy us for years." "Enemies have been attacking us for centuries." "Our walls still stand." "Father, we can't win this war." "Apollo watches over us." "Even Agamemnon is no match for the gods." "And how many battalions does the sun god command?" "Do not mock the gods." "They're coming for me." "The wind is bringing them closer." "What if we left?" "Tonight." "Right now." "What if we went down to the stables, took two horses and left?" "Ride east, keep riding." " And go where?" " Away from here." "I could hunt deer, rabbit." "I could feed us." "But this is your home." "You left your home for me." "Sparta was never my home." "My parents sent my there when I was 16 to marry Menelaus." "But it was never my home." "We'll live off the land." "No more palaces for us." "No more servants." "We don't need any of that." "And your family?" "We'd be protecting my family." "If we're not here, what's the need for war?" "Menelaus won't give up." "He'll track us to the end of the world." "He doesn't know these lands." "I do." "We can lose ourselves in a day." "You don't know Menelaus." "You don't know his brother." "They'll burn every house in Troy to find us." "They'll never believe we've left." "And even if they do, they'll burn it for spite." "Then I'll make it easy for him to find me." "I'll walk right up to him and tell him you're mine." "You're very young, my love." "Look at that." "Take up your positions!" "My lord?" "Should we wait for the others?" " They brought us here for war." " Yes, but Agamemnon's orders..." "You fight for me, Eudorus, or Agamemnon?" "For you, my lord." "Then fight for me." "And let the servants of Agamemnon fight for him." "Black sail." "It's Achilles." "What's the fool doing?" "He's going to take the beach of Troy with 50 men?" "Make way there!" "Make way!" "Tecton, is the Apollonian Guard ready?" " Waiting at the city gates." " Good." "I'll be right there." "Lysander, how long before the army is ready?" "Half of our men are still coming." "We have to arm them..." " How long?" " Noon." "Make it sooner." "Patroclus!" "Put down your spear." " I'm fighting the Trojans." " Not today." "I'm ready." "You taught me how to fight." "And you're a good student." "But you're not a Myrmidon yet." "Look at these men." "They are the fiercest soldiers in all of Greece." "Each of them has bled for me." " Guard the ship." " But this is a war." "Cousin, I can't fight the Trojans if I'm concerned for you." "Guard the ship." "Trojans!" "All my life, I've lived by a code." "And the code is simple:" "Honor the gods, love your woman and defend your country." "Troy is mother to us all." "Fight for her!" "Myrmidons my brothers of the sword." "I'd rather fight beside you than any army of thousands." "Let no man forget how menacing we are." "We are lions!" "Do you know what's there, waiting, beyond that beach?" "lmmortality!" "Take it!" "It's yours!" "Fight positions!" "Archers!" "Forward!" "The man wants to die." "On my command!" "Break off!" "Break off!" "Look at him." "Look." "Row, you lazy whores, row!" "Greeks are dying!" "Row!" "Those men down there need help." "Now!" "Tecton, with me." "Flank!" "To the flank!" "Achilles!" "Achilles!" "Back to the city!" "Back to the city!" "The sun god is a patron of Troy, our enemy." "Take whatever treasure you can find." "With your permission, my lord." " Speak." " Apollo sees everything." "Perhaps it is not wise to offend him." "Warn the men." "Wait." "You are very brave or very stupid to come after me alone." "You must be Hector." "Do you know who I am?" "These priests weren't armed." "Fight me!" "Why kill you now, prince of Troy with no one here to see you fall?" "Why did you come here?" "They'll be talking about this war for 1000 years." "In 1000 years, the dust from our bones will be gone." "Yes, prince." "But our names will remain." "Go home, prince." "Drink some wine, make love to your wife." "Tomorrow, we'll have our war." "You speak of war as if it's a game." "How many wives wait at Troy's gates for husbands they'll never see again?" "Your brother can comfort them." "I hear he's good at charming other men's wives." "My lord, you let him go?" "It's too early in the day for killing princes." "Achilles!" "Achilles!" " Achilles." " Ajax." "You're as fearless as the gods." "I'm honored to go to war with you." "As am I." "If you sailed slower, the war would be over." "I'll miss the start as long as I'm here at the end." "I've got something to show you." "The men found her hiding in the temple." "They thought she'd amuse you." "What's your name?" "Did you not hear me?" "You killed Apollo's priests." "I've killed men in five countries, never a priest." "Well, then your men did." "The sun god will have his vengeance." "What's he waiting for?" "The right time to strike." "His priests are dead, and his acolyte's a captive." " I think your god is afraid of me." " Afraid?" "Apollo is master of the sun." "He fears nothing." " Where is he?" " You're nothing but a killer!" "You wouldn't know anything about the gods." "I know more about the gods than your priests." "I've seen them." "You're royalty, aren't you?" "Spent years talking down to men." "You must be royalty." "What's your name?" "Even the servants of Apollo have names." "Briseis." "Are you afraid, Briseis?" "Should I be?" "My lord." "Agamemnon requests your presence." "The kings are gathering to celebrate the victory." "You fought well today." "My lord." "What do you want here in Troy?" "You didn't come for the Spartan queen." "I want what all men want." "I just want it more." "You don't need to fear me, girl." "You're the only Trojan who can say that." "You have won a great victory, my king of kings." "No one thought the Trojan beach could be captured so easily." "A beautiful gift, Triopas." "You will be among the first to walk in the streets of Troy tomorrow." "My father, Neleus, had this urn made to commemorate his victory at Cyparisseis." "I present it to you in honor of an even more memorable victory." "Thank you, old friend." "Tomorrow, we'll eat supper in the gardens of Troy." "Leave us." "War is young men dying and old men talking." "You know this." "Ignore the politics." "Apparently, you won some great victory." "Perhaps you didn't notice." "The Trojan beach belonged to Priam in the morning." "It belongs to Agamemnon in the afternoon." "Have the beach." "I didn't come here for sand." "No." "You came here because you want your name to last through the ages." "A great victory was won today." "But that victory is not yours." "Kings did not kneel to Achilles." "Kings did not pay homage to Achilles." "Perhaps the kings were too far behind to see." "Soldiers won the battle." "History remembers kings!" "Not soldiers." "Tomorrow, we'll batter down the gates of Troy." "I'll build monuments on every island of Greece." "I'll carve "Agamemnon" in the stone." "Be careful, king of kings." "First, you need the victory." "Your men sacked the temple of Apollo, yes?" "You want gold?" "Take it." "It's my gift to honor your courage." "Take what you wish." "I already have." "Aphareus!" "Haemon!" "The spoils of war." "No argument wit you, but if you don't release her, you'll never see home again." " Decide." " Guards!" "Stop!" "Too many men have died today." "If killing is your only talent, that's your curse." "I don't want anyone dying for me." "Mighty Achilles, silenced by a slave girl." "Tonight, I'll have her give me a bath." "And then who knows?" " You sack of wine!" "Before my time is done, I will look down on your corpse and smile." "If they want a war, we will give them a war." "I would match the best of Troy against the best of Greece any day." "The best of Greece outnumber the best of Troy two to one." "Glaucus." "You have fought with me for 40 years." "Can we win this war?" "Our walls have never been breached." "We have the finest archers in the world." "And we have Hector." "Yes, we can win." "I spoke to two farmers today." "They saw an eagle flying with a serpent clutched in its talons." "This is a sign from Apollo." "We will win a great victory tomorrow." "Bird signs." "You want to plan a strategy based on bird signs." "Hector, show respect." "The high priest is a servant of the gods." "And I am a servant of Troy." "I've always honored the gods, Father." "But today I fought a Greek who desecrated the statue of Apollo." "Apollo didn't strike the man down." "The gods won't fight this war for us." "There won't be a war." "This is not a conflict of nations." "It is a dispute between two men." "I don't want to see another Trojan die because of me." "Paris." "Tomorrow morning, I will challenge Menelaus for the right to Helen." "The winner will take her home." "The loser will burn before nightfall." "Father I'm sorry for the pain I've caused you." "Do you love her?" "You are a great king because you love your country so much." "Every blade of grass." "Every grain of sand." "Every rock in the river." "You love all of Troy." "That is the way I love Helen." "I've fought many wars in my time." "Some were fought for land, some for power, some for glory." "I suppose fighting for love makes more sense than all the rest." "But I won't be the one fighting." "The sword of Troy." "My father carried this sword, and his father before him all the way back to the founding of Troy." "The history of our people was written with this sword." "Carry it with you tomorrow." "The spirit of Troy is in that sword." "So long as a Trojan carries it our people have a future." "The man who killed Tecton outside Apollo's temple I've never seen a spear thrown like that." "An impossible throw." "Don't go tomorrow." " Please don't go." " Paris fights tomorrow, not me." "Fifty thousand Greeks didn't cross the sea to watch your brother fight." "You know this." "You'd make a fine general, my love." "You've been fighting your whole life." "Let other men do battle this time." "You know I don't want to fight." "I want to see my son grow tall." "I want to see the girls chasing after him." "I can't lose you." "I won't survive." "I must see Paris." "Wait." "Wait!" "Helen, what are you doing?" " Let me go." " No." "I saw them burn." "I saw them burning on the pyres." "That's my fault." "It is." "You know it is." "All those widows." "I still hear them screaming." "Their husbands died because I'm here." "I'm going down to the ships." "No, you're not." " I'm giving myself back to Menelaus." " It's too late for that." "Do you think Agamemnon cares about his brother's marriage?" "This is about power." "Not love." "Paris is going to fight in the morning." " Yes." " Menelaus will kill him." "I won't let that happen." " It's his decision." " No." "I can't ask anyone to fight for me." "I'm no longer queen of Sparta." "You're a princess of Troy now and my brother needs you tonight." "My lord." "My lord, the army is marching." " Let them march." "We stay." " But the men are ready." "We stay till Agamemnon groans to have Achilles back." "As you wish." "Are you ready to fight?" "Are you ready to kill?" "To take life?" "I am." "At night, I see their faces, all the men I've killed." "They're standing there on the far bank of the River Styx." "They're waiting for me." "They say, "Welcome, brother."" "We men are wretched things." "I taught you how to fight, but I never taught you why to fight." "I fight for you." "Who will you fight for when I'm gone?" "Soldiers, they fight for kings they've never even met." "They do what they're told, die when they're told to." "Soldiers obey." "Don't waste your life following some fool's orders." "Go." "Are you sure you want to do this?" "I started this war." "Helen sit with me." "Prepare to halt!" "Prepare to halt!" "Halt!" "Move." "I see you're not hiding behind your high walls." "Valiant of you." "Ill-advised, but valiant." "You come here uninvited." "Go back to your ships and go home." "We've come too far, Prince Hector." "Prince?" "What prince?" "What son of a king would accept a man's hospitality eat his food, drink his wine, then steal his wife in the middle of the night?" "The sun was shining when your wife left you." "She's up there, watching, isn't she?" "Good." "I want her to watch you die." "Not yet, brother." "Look around you, Hector." "I brought all the warriors of Greece to your shores." "You can still save Troy, young prince." "I have two wishes." "If you grant them, no more of your people need die." "First, you must give Helen back to my brother." "Second, Troy must submit to my command to fight for me whenever I call." "You want me to look upon your army and tremble?" "Well, I see them." "I see 50,000 men brought here to fight for one man's greed." "Careful, boy." "My mercy has limits." "And I've seen the limits of your mercy." "And I tell you now, no son of Troy will ever submit to a foreign ruler." "Then every son of Troy shall die." "There is another way." "I love Helen." "I won't give her up and neither will you." "So let us fight our own battle." "The winner takes Helen home." "And let that be the end of it." "A brave offer, but not enough." "Let me kill this little peacock." "I didn't come here for your pretty wife." "I came here for Troy." "I came for my honor." "His every breath insults me." "Let me kill him." "When he's lying in the dust, signal to attack." "You'll have your city." "I'll have my revenge." "So be it." "I accept your challenge." "And tonight, I'll drink to your bones." " My lord." " Back to the line!" "Make him swing and miss." "He'll tire." "Brother if I fall, tell Helen..." "Tell her..." "I will." "Don't let Menelaus hurt her." "If he..." "You think of your sword and his sword and nothing else." "Get up." "Come on." "See the crows?" "They never tasted prince before." "Is this what you left me for?" "!" "Fight!" "Fight me!" "You coward!" "Fight me!" "We have a pact!" "Fight!" "Fight him, son." "Fight him." " Fight me!" " The Trojans have violated the agreement!" "Prepare for battle!" "This is not honor!" "This is not worthy of royalty!" "If he doesn't fight, Troy is doomed." "The fight is over." "The fight is not over." "Stand back, Prince Hector." "I'll kill him at your feet." "I don't care." "He is my brother." "Paris!" "Go!" "Get inside, Paris!" "Archers!" " Our men are too close to the walls." " Pull back, you fool!" "For Troy!" " Now!" " Loose!" "Get them in line!" "Get the men back into lines!" "Front line, push!" "Forward." "Forward!" "Forward!" "Apollonians!" "Now!" "Prince Hector!" "We need to retreat!" "My army's never lost a battle yet!" "You won't have an army if you don't fall back!" "Back to the ships!" " Back to the ships!" " Retreat!" " Back!" " Retreat!" "Go back!" "Back." "Back to the ships!" "Fall back!" " Men, fall back!" " Halt!" "Halt!" "But we have them on the run!" "We're in range of their archers." "Have our men gather our fallen." "Send an emissary to them." "They can collect their dead." "Would they have done the same for us?" "Go!" "Back!" "Fall back into line!" "You think I'm a coward." "I am a coward." "I knew he would kill me." "You were watching." "My father." "My brother." "All of Troy." "Shame didn't matter." "I gave up my pride my honor just to live." "For love." "You challenged a great warrior." "That took courage." "I betrayed you." "Menelaus was a brave man." "He lived for fighting." "And every day I was with him, I wanted to walk into the sea and drown." "I don't want a hero, my love." "I want a man I can grow old with." "They're laughing at me in Troy." "Drunk with victory!" "They think I'll sail home at first light." "Maybe we should." "Flee?" "Like a whipped dog?" "The men believe we came here for Menelaus' wife." "Won't be needing her anymore." "My brother's blood still wets the sand, and you insult him!" "It's no insult to say a dead man is dead." "If we leave now, we lose all credibility." "The Trojans can beat us so easily." "How long before the Hittites invade?" "If we stay, we stay here for the right reasons." "To protect Greece, not your pride." "Your private battle with Achilles is destroying us." "Achilles is one man." "Hector is one man." "Look what he did to us today." "Hector fights for his country!" "Achilles fights only for himself!" "I don't care about the man's allegiance." "I care about his ability to win battles." "He's right." "The men's morale is weak." "Even if I could make peace with Achilles, the man won't listen to me!" "He's as likely to spear me as to speak to me!" "I'll talk to him." "He'll want the girl back." "He can have that damn girl." "I haven't touched her." "Where is she?" "I gave her to the men." "They need some amusement after today." "Come on, give the bitch to me!" "Who's first?" "Trojan whore!" "What's this?" "A virgin's robe?" " You won't be needing that much longer!" " Hold her." "Better to be a Spartan slave than a Trojan..." "Achilles!" "Are you hurt?" "I watched you fight them." "You have courage." "To fight back when people attack me?" "Dog has that kind of courage." "Eat." "I've known men like you my whole life." "No, you haven't." "You think you're so different from 1000 others?" "Soldiers understand nothing but war." "Peace confuses them." " And you hate these soldiers." " I pity them." "Trojan soldiers died trying to protect you." "Perhaps they deserve more than your pity." "Why did you choose this life?" " What life?" " To be a great warrior." "I chose nothing." "I was born, and this is what I am." "And you?" "Why did you choose to love a god?" "I think you'll find the romance one-sided." "Do you enjoy provoking me?" "You've dedicated your life to the gods." "Zeus, god of thunder." "Athena, goddess of wisdom." "You serve them." " Yes, of course." " And Ares, god of war?" "Who blankets his bed with the skin of men he's killed?" "All the gods are to be feared and respected." "I'll tell you a secret something they don't teach you in your temple." "The gods envy us." "They envy us because we're mortal." "Because any moment might be our last." "Everything's more beautiful because we're doomed." "You will never be lovelier than you are now." "We will never be here again." "I thought you were a dumb brute." "I could have forgiven a dumb brute." "Do it." "Nothing is easier." "Aren't you afraid?" "Everyone dies." "Today or 50 years from now." "What does it matter?" "Do it." "You'll kill more men if I don't kill you." "Many." "My lord, there's..." "Tell the men to start loading the ship." "We're going home." "Gather the stores." "Agamemnon is a proud man." "But he knows when he's made a mistake." "The man sends you to make his apologies?" "What are you doing enthralled to that pig of a king?" "The world seems simple to you, my friend but when you're a king, very few choices are simple." "Ithaca cannot afford an enemy like Agamemnon." "Are we supposed to fear him?" "You don't fear anyone." "That's your problem." "Fear is useful." "We need you back." "Greece needs you." "Greece got along fine before I was born." "Greece will be Greece long after I'm dead." "I'm not talking about the land." "The men need you." "Stay, Achilles." "You were born for this war." "Things are less simple today." "Women have a way of complicating things." "Of all the kings of Greece, I respect you the most." "But in this war, you're a servant." "Sometimes you have to serve in order to lead." "I hope you understand that one day." "We're going home?" "We sail in the morning." "Greeks are being slaughtered." "We can't just sail away." "If it's fighting you still long for, there will always be another war." "These are our countrymen." "You betray all of Greece just to see Agamemnon fall." "Someone has to lose." "The gods favor our cause." "Now is the time to destroy the Greek army." "Their morale is battered." "Hit them now." "Hit them hard." "And they will run." "The Myrmidons didn't fight yesterday." "There must be dissension among the Greeks." "But if we attack their ships, we will unify them." "If they decide to attack us, let them." "Our walls can't be breached." "We'll beat them back again." "Yesterday, the Greeks underestimated us." "We should not return the favor." "You're confident about the meaning of these omens?" "The desecration of his temple angers Apollo." "The gods have cursed the Greeks." "Prepare the army." "We attack at daybreak." "Am I still your captive?" "You're my guest." "In Troy, guests can leave whenever they want." "You should leave then." "Would you leave this all behind?" "Would you leave Troy?" "Hold those barricades!" "Archers to the rear." "Achilles." "Achilles." "Now!" "Forward!" "Enough for one day." "Yes." "Back to the ships!" "Back to the ships!" "It was his cousin." "To Troy!" " Back to the city!" " Back to the city!" "To Troy!" "We were going to sail home today." "I don't think anyone's sailing home now." "Achilles." "You violated my command." "No, my lord." "There was a mistake." "I ordered the Myrmidons to stand down." "You led them into combat." "I didn't lead them, my lord." "We thought you did." "Where's Patroclus?" "Patroclus!" "We thought he was you, my lord." "He wore your armor, your shield, your greaves, your helmet." "He even moved like you." "Where is he?" " Where?" " He's dead, my lord." "Hector cut his throat." "Don't!" "Where are you taking me?" "Do you remember how to get here?" "Yes." "The next time you come here, follow the tunnel." "There are no turns, so you can't get lost." "Just keep walking." "When you get to the end, you'll be by the river." "Follow the river until you get to Mount Ida." "Why are you telling me this?" " lf I die..." " No." "...I don't know how long the city will stand." "If the Greeks get inside the walls, it's over." "They'll kill all the men, throw the babies from the city walls." " Please." " The women, they'll take as slaves." " That, for you, will be worse than dying." " Why are you saying such things?" "Because I want you to be ready." "I want you to get our boy, and I want you to bring him here." "You save as many people as you can, but you get here." "And you run." "I killed a boy today." "And he was young." "He was much too young." "That boy has just saved this war for us." " Eudorus." " My lord." "I need my armor." "No." "Don't go!" "Rope!" "Hector's my cousin." "He's a good man." "Don't fight him." "Please don't fight him." "Please." "No." "Hector!" "Hector!" "Hector!" "Hector!" "Father forgive me for any offenses." "I've served you as best as I could." "Hector!" "May the gods be with you." "Hector." "No father ever had a better son." "Hector!" "Apollo guard you, my prince." "You're the best man I know." "You're a prince of Troy." "I know you'll make me proud." "Hector!" "Remember what I told you." "You don't have to go." "You don't." "You remember what I told you." "Hector!" "Hector!" "I've seen this moment in my dreams." "I'll make a pact with you." "With the gods as our witnesses let us pledge that the winner will allow the loser all the proper funeral rituals." "There are no pacts between lions and men." "Now you know who you're fighting." "I thought it was you I was fighting yesterday." "And I wish it had been you." "But I gave the dead boy the honor he deserved." "You gave him the honor of your sword." "You won't have eyes tonight." "You won't have ears or a tongue." "You'll wander the underworld, blind, deaf, and dumb, and all the dead will know:" "This is Hector, the fool who thought he killed Achilles." "Get up, prince of Troy." "Get up." "I won't let a stone take my glory." "You lost your cousin." "Now you've taken mine." "When does it end?" "It never ends." "Who are you?" "I have endured what no one on earth has endured before." "I kissed the hands of the man who killed my son." "Priam?" "How did you get in here?" "I know my own country better than the Greeks, I think." "You're a brave man." "I could have your head on a spit in the blink of an eye." "Do you really think death frightens me now?" "I watched my eldest son die watched you drag his body behind your chariot." "Give him back to me." "He deserves the honor of a proper burial." "You know that." "Give him to me." "He killed my cousin." "He thought it was you." "How many cousins have you killed?" "How many sons and fathers and brothers and husbands?" "How many, brave Achilles?" "I knew your father." "He died before his time." "But he was lucky not to live long enough to see his son fall." "You have taken everything from me." "My eldest son heir to my throne defender of my kingdom." "I cannot change what happened." "It is the will of the gods." "But give me this small mercy." "I loved my boy from the moment he opened his eyes till the moment you closed them." "Let me wash his body." "Let me say the prayers." "Let me place two coins on his eyes for the boatman." "If I let you walk out of here if I let you take him it doesn't change anything." "You're still my enemy in the morning." "You're still my enemy tonight." "But even enemies can show respect." "I admire your courage." "Meet me outside in a moment." "We'll meet again soon, my brother." "Your son was the best I've fought." "In my country, the funeral games last for 12 days." "It is the same in my country." "Then the prince will have that honor." "No Greek will attack Troy for 12 days." "Briseis?" "I thought you were dead." "You are free." "If I hurt you it's not what I wanted." "Go." "No one will stop you." "You have my word." "Come, my girl." "You're a far better king than the one leading this army." "Achilles makes a secret pact, and I have to honor it?" "What treason is this?" "Consorting with the enemy king." "Giving him 12 days of peace." "Peace!" "Their prince is dead." "Their army is leaderless." "This is the time to attack!" "Even with Hector gone, we have no way to breach their walls." "I will smash their walls to the ground if it costs me 40,000 Greeks." "Hear me, Zeus!" "I will smash their walls to the ground." "That's good." "For my son back home." "Well, Odysseus." "You found a way to make the sheep invite the wolves to dinner." "Forgive me, Eudorus." "I should never have struck you." "You've been a loyal friend all your life." "I hope I never disappoint you again." "It's I who have been the disappointment." "Rouse the men." "You're taking them home." "Aren't you coming with us?" "I have my own battle to fight." "Let me march beside you." "No." "I don't want our men to be a part of this." "It's a beautiful night." "Go, Eudorus." "This is the last order I give you." "Fighting for you has been my life's honor, my lord." "Open the gates!" "Here." "Plague." "Don't go too close, my king." "This is the will of the gods." "They desecrated the temple of Apollo and Apollo desecrated their flesh." "They thought they could come here and sack our city in a day." "Now look at them, fleeing across the Aegean." "What is this?" "An offering to Poseidon." "The Greeks are praying for a safe return home." "This is a gift." "We should take it to the temple of Poseidon." " I think we should burn it." " Burn it?" "My prince, it's a gift to the gods." "Father, burn it." "Look at them." "You'd think their prince had never died." "You are the prince now." "Make your brother proud." "Briseis." "Where is she?" " Where?" " I don't know." "Please." "I have a son." "Then get him out of Troy." "Briseis!" "Paris!" "Andromache!" "Helen." "We must go." " Where?" " I'll show you." "Now." "Hurry." "Paris." "It's a long way." "Quick." "We must go now." "Briseis!" "Paris!" "Let it burn!" "Let Troy burn!" "Burn it!" "Burn it all!" "Burn Troy!" "Burn Troy!" "It's a long way." "Quick." " Come." " I stay." " No." " My father will never abandon the city." "I can't leave him." "The city is dead." "They're burning it to the ground." " What's your name?" " Aeneas." " Do you know how to use a sword?" " Yes." "The sword of Troy." "As long as it's in the hands of a Trojan, our people have a future." "Protect them, Aeneas." "Find them a new home." " I will." " Hurry." "Paris, Briseis wasn't in her room." "I'll find her." "Go." " I'll stay with you." " Go." "Please don't leave me." "How could you love me if I ran now?" "We will be together again, in this world or the next." "We will be together." "Go." "To the gate!" "Soldiers of Troy you men are warriors!" "To lead you has been my honor!" "My prince!" "The boatman waits for us." "I say we make him wait a little longer!" "Paris!" "Paris!" "Have you no honor?" "Have you no honor?" "Too late for prayer, priestess." "I almost lost this war because of your little romance." "You'll be my slave in Mycenae." "A Trojan priestess scrubbing my floors." "And at night..." "Get up!" "Hold her." "Come with me." "No!" "Paris!" "No!" "Stop!" "Please!" "Paris!" "Don't!" "It's all right." "It's all right." "You gave me peace in a lifetime of war." "Briseis, come." "Go." "You must." "No." "Troy is falling." "Go." "We must go." "I know a way out." "It's all right." "Go." "Briseis, come." "Go." "Find peace my brother." "If they ever tell my story, let them say I walked with giants." "Men rise and fall like the winter wheat but these names will never die." "Let them say I lived in the time of Hector tamer of horses." "Let them say I lived in the time of Achilles."