[It is with great bewilderment that Achilles faces the immense insect which presently lours upon him. It seems to him that he had merely blinked or looked away, and vanished was Patroclus like a fire which, once doused with water, leaves only gaping darkness where before danced the light. Vanished too is the familiar landscape of Mount Pelion, whose every ridge and shadow he has become acquainted with, and in its place unfolds a grand hallway whose breadth is dominated by this monster. He has not his spear, nor his bow and arrow, these weapons which in his capable hands might make a carcass of the fearsome beast. His best weapon now is his fleetness of foot, and so he turns and runs, thinking that to fight such a beast unarmed is not bravery but plain foolishness.
For all his godlike speed, the insect chases him still with its claws like scythes so eager to fell grain, and its pincers glinting like the heads of spears. As Achilles cuts around the corner, he sees someone along the corridor and shouts this warning.]
Beware! Swiftly there comes a terrible monster that has stolen into this house!
[Shall you run, or shall you fill your heart with fighting spirit?
Some may find in this boy the shadow of familiarity, from the golden curls growing wild atop his head to the effortless elegance of his limbs in motion. His style of dress recalls simplicity: no sandals bind his feet, while the excess fabric of his tunic, unpinned from his shoulders, is tucked underneath the belt which cinches his waist. His skin appears burnished by the sun, and already the edges of taut muscles lend sharpened angles to his body. In a word, he is radiant to look upon, the son of a goddess.]
( II. UNICORN HERDING )
[So too does Achilles set his nimble feet to work herding the unicorns over the lush castle grounds. Yet the curiously horned horses let him nowhere near: no matter how softly he approaches, they shy away. When he gives chase, they run all the more swiftly, and the moment he thinks he might at last close the distance between himself and one of their ilk, it seems the unicorn is suddenly ten paces beyond the reach of his furiously pumping arms.
Eventually comes the time when he must slow to rest, for his heart crashes in his heaving breast like the waves of a wind-whipped sea, and his cheeks bloom ruddy for this exertion which for him is so rare.]
This is impossible!
[These words fall rife with frustration, for he is one unacquainted with failure.]
Achilles
[It is with great bewilderment that Achilles faces the immense insect which presently lours upon him. It seems to him that he had merely blinked or looked away, and vanished was Patroclus like a fire which, once doused with water, leaves only gaping darkness where before danced the light. Vanished too is the familiar landscape of Mount Pelion, whose every ridge and shadow he has become acquainted with, and in its place unfolds a grand hallway whose breadth is dominated by this monster. He has not his spear, nor his bow and arrow, these weapons which in his capable hands might make a carcass of the fearsome beast. His best weapon now is his fleetness of foot, and so he turns and runs, thinking that to fight such a beast unarmed is not bravery but plain foolishness.
For all his godlike speed, the insect chases him still with its claws like scythes so eager to fell grain, and its pincers glinting like the heads of spears. As Achilles cuts around the corner, he sees someone along the corridor and shouts this warning.]
Beware! Swiftly there comes a terrible monster that has stolen into this house!
[Shall you run, or shall you fill your heart with fighting spirit?
Some may find in this boy the shadow of familiarity, from the golden curls growing wild atop his head to the effortless elegance of his limbs in motion. His style of dress recalls simplicity: no sandals bind his feet, while the excess fabric of his tunic, unpinned from his shoulders, is tucked underneath the belt which cinches his waist. His skin appears burnished by the sun, and already the edges of taut muscles lend sharpened angles to his body. In a word, he is radiant to look upon, the son of a goddess.]
( II. UNICORN HERDING )
[So too does Achilles set his nimble feet to work herding the unicorns over the lush castle grounds. Yet the curiously horned horses let him nowhere near: no matter how softly he approaches, they shy away. When he gives chase, they run all the more swiftly, and the moment he thinks he might at last close the distance between himself and one of their ilk, it seems the unicorn is suddenly ten paces beyond the reach of his furiously pumping arms.
Eventually comes the time when he must slow to rest, for his heart crashes in his heaving breast like the waves of a wind-whipped sea, and his cheeks bloom ruddy for this exertion which for him is so rare.]
This is impossible!
[These words fall rife with frustration, for he is one unacquainted with failure.]