Chapter 3: Oizys

As soon as you take the trinkets you understand their purpose, and that your benefactor is Night herself: Nyx, daughter of Chaos.

For Nikias: Crush a bead and apply the powder below the eyes, and you shall recieve a glimpse into darkness.For Iantha: Crush a bead and run the powder through your hair, and you need not fear dropping your guard.For Kouru: Crush the eye, whisper your question to the night air, and I will answer.You wake, fear subsided, though the memory lingers like a strange dream. Around you, the soldiers are both packing the boat and preparing to bury the soldiers who washed up on shore. It seems the rest of the tentacle was distributed for breakfast. Oizys is gone.

I hope everything went all right, Sinon says when he sees you're awake. We woke up to see you all sleeping and assumed you took the little girl back home before dawn.

Helenus looks first. Weirdly heavy. Nice carving.

Cassandra follows up. I don't know if it makes sense, but it feels realer than other bracelets I've had.

Helenus also confirms that Athena's wrath was not aimed at this ship, and that the dolphins were a gesture of good faith from Amphitrite.

The men gather appropriate coinage for the deceased Greeks's eyes, and help arrange them for burial. While they work, others dig a grave in one of the hills on the bluff, and Sinon does his best to paint a grave marker on the nearby stone - an image of four men flanked by flame (supposedly of Troy) and the waves that caused their end. Mikros and Kallon find some wine for a decent libation, allowing Nikias to make the offering.

Iantha notices some of the villagers regarding the soldiers at a distance with confusion and caution, but nobody makes a threatening move. Kouru finds rubble on the beach, certainly pieces of various wrecks, but nothing more distinct than the men discovered last night. As they scout, they can hear Cassandra's voice pick up near the shoreline.

Lady Athena Areia, we know not whether these men angered you or were caught in the path of your wrath, but they were soldiers. Even the most base know to follow orders. Thus direct them on one last time, so they may reach the Dread Gates. Take mercy on us lowly ones, who bury them trusting the Lord of the Dead will judge them rightly.

Oh He who Welcomes Many Guests, accept our meager offerings on behalf of these souls. May they rest in the land most suitable, their names surviving as warnings or hope.

It's a simple burial, but resources and time are fairly short. A few men sing while others close the tomb. Your crew is confident they know which direction to disembark. The question now is whether you wish to make an offering to ensure safe travels - and if so, of what, and to whom?

The leader from the night before raises a wary eyebrow.

Well, the girl is gone. I'm not sure how you did it, but that was what we asked. And it'd be poor hospitality to deny you. What are you looking for?

The man takes note and returns to the village to check. He's gone a bit longer than you'd have expected - long enough that if they're curious, Iantha and Kouru can catch up with you. When he returns, he has a goat and two younger men with him.

It's been a while. Troy traded with us for some time, but we guessed you put them under seige. Soon enough it wasn't safe to venture out, but there's some soreness here because of how the war impacted our waters, how they didn't give us good information soon enough, and we lost some good men. And our village's oldest woman recieved several dreams that the war was their fault. So frankly, screw them. I am Andros, and these are my sons Giorgios and Dimitrios. My wife and some other women are gathering what food we can spare. I hope you like dried fish. He smirks at his own joke (or what he seems to think is a joke) and scratches the back of his neck.

I asked around. There's a rumor you killed that beast in the waters. If you did, we'll take as many of its hooks as you were able to save. They're much better for fishing. And we could use a pair of bows and some arrows. They say you soldiers don't consider it honorable, but our hunters use them, and judging from the fires we saw in the distance, you probably got new weapons anyway. And, of course, we want to know what happened.

It takes a few hours for them to gather the supplies you've requested, but you meet again closer to the center of town. By the time the exchange is made, Andros and his son are joined by many members of the village, including the old woman they mentioned. They offer to share a communal midday meal with you. Once everyone is settled, Andros speaks up.

So, ten years, and it's just over like that? Is there even anything left of Troy?

Andros takes a long draw of some water. Well, the gods give, the gods take away, I suppose. We didn't mean to cause undue trouble last night. I'm sure you understand.