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"No no no no no no—Polites y-you can't leave me like this—You promised!.." Odysseus choked out those words, sobbing, cradling his lights face as if it were the most delicate thing in their small world.
He could see the life drain from his friend's eyes. He couldn't bear to hear the sounds of battle in the distance; he could only hear his Polites.
Polites reached out to his captain's face to caress it for one last time.
"Captain.."
"My light, please, don't call me that, I am not your captain, I am Odysseus, your friend—I am yours... J-just not right now, please... Just stay with me,"
Polites smiles—despite all the pain he's going through, he can't let his smile falter in front of the man he held so close to his heart.
He takes Odysseus' face and pulls it close to his chest, like a hug, and whispers, "Do you remember that pine tree we would always visit when we were still children, Odysseus..?"
Odysseus clenches his fists, not in anger but rather, in sorrow, the guilt gnawing at him, as he remembers what he had done to it. But he still replies with a simple hum, he can't seem to speak.
"I know you feel guilty, for cutting it down, but do understand I forgive you. However, can you do me a favor?"
"Y-yes of course, I will do anything as long as it is in my power, Poli.."
"Can you.. bring my daughter to that place? I'm afraid I haven't shown it to her..."
Odysseus is shocked, his friend had a daughter. He doesn't remember Polites being with a woman—he would have told him!
He rose a little higher from where his head rested upon his light chest to face those beautiful hazel eyes looking back at him with such gentleness.
"A daughter? Polites, how could you have not told me that you had one? Or even telling me you had a woman in your bed?!"
Polites eyes shifted from a calm and relaxed face to a worried one, he cupped Ody's face and gently put it back down, "I'm sorry, I haven't told you.. But please know I have never laid in bed with a woman, my daughter is adopted."
Odysseus relaxed at that, but he can't help but wonder why he did not tell him earlier.
"I-I never told you because you were always so busy with Telemachus and Penelope—I didn't think you would care, Ody.."
Polites pushed Odysseus back up, telling him everything he was too scared to tell was much more painful for him to bear than the agonizing feeling of being crushed.
He started to remove a necklace from his neck and put it in Odysseus' hand.
"Polites, what is this..?"
"It's the key to a special chest in my room, find it, and you'll find answers to everything about my life.. I'm afraid I can't hold on much longer."
"N-no, Polites—my light—you'll get through this alright? Please Polites, just—please.."
Polites looked Odysseus in the eye and his poor love, tears were falling. He cupped Ody's face, smiled, and whispered,,
"I will always love you, my dearest, Odysseus."
With that, his hand faltered, and his eyes closed, forever.
Odysseus killed the Cyclops. He was devastated, he was mad, he was broken. He didn't even try to spare the cyclops its life this time for it had not spared his.
This time, they were now sailing off to Ithaca, no stops, no other turns—just straight ahead.
The sun had set and the moon had risen. Odysseus went to Polites' room, in search of that chest.
He opened the door and was met with a neat room, despite how clumsy and untidy Polites could be, his place just surprised him. Everything had its own area—even.. wooden carvings?
He had not known his light had taken such interests. He takes a closer look and finds a chest, which he presumes is the one Polites spoke about.
He carries it to Polites' bed and he takes a seat before reaching towards his neck to grab the key Polites had gifted him before his passing. He places the key into the keyhole and turns it; he hears a click so he gently opens it and is met with two notebooks, a few letters, and two wooden carvings.
He takes one of the carvings and it turns to be a carving of a little girl, on its stand is the name 'Historia'. He doesn't think much about it and puts it aside, taking the other carving into his hand, this one was a carving of a man.
He looks closer and realizes with an 'oh' that it was a carving of him, Odysseus. He wonders why Polites hid this talent, the carvings were just amazing, and the effort and detail he put into them would make you think that Polites was actually an experienced sculptor.
He puts the carving on the side and takes out the book. It's kind of worn out but rather thick. He opens it to a random page and finds out that this is a diary, on the page it reads:
"I don't know how to start this page but today was crazy man!! Like I was just walking around the forest and I found a baby girl in the forest—like who leaves a child out there in the wild?"
Odysseus couldn't agree more, who would do that?
"So I, of course, took the child as my own after realizing nobody came for her, I'm just built like that, truly, Polites you are so inspiring."
Wow, does Polites often talk to himself like that? But anyway, it's funny and cute. Odysseus continues to read it,
"But I don't know how to care for a child like—how do you?? I don't know I never had one and so I brought her to meet my mom who wasn't too far away and she promised to help me raise the child! Anyway, I've decided to name her 'Historia' you know? I got it from that one conversation me and Ody had when we were.. Kinda close? I guess that one time when he jokingly said that if we 'would' marry and adopt a girl she would be named 'Historia' while if he were a boy he would be named 'Adonis' or something like that... It is kind of weird why we were thinking about that"
Odysseus doesn't think it's 'weird'.
"I really do want to tell Odysseus about her but he's probably too busy with that Penelope of his."
Now this sounds like Polites is jealous.
"Like—I dislike but like Odysseus at the same time—he's so charming and handsome, his personality is just amazing and I am really gay for him but he would probably toss me aside if he finds out. "
What.
"And all because of Penelope, ever since she came to our lives she became his top priority. I miss the old Odysseus, this new version of him low key pisses me off. It's always Penelope this! Penelope that! WHEN WILL HE SHUT UP ABOUT HER???!!"
Ouch.
"That's like the only reason why I've been ignoring him these days, but I don't hate Penelope... I'm just saying that Odysseus is just losing brain cells by being with her."
Ok, maybe that was true, I mean, you can't blame a man for loving his wife yeah? Polites is right, he only talks about Penelope.
"Goodness, Historia's crying again—I'll write later."
Wow, Odysseus missed this much of Polites' life. Odysseus always thought he knew Polites inside and out, turns out he only knows little of Polites.
And his friend had feelings for him? He even hid it from Odysseus for what reasons? Because he thought that he'd abandon him?
Goodness no! Well.. Maybe when he was younger he would have but still, it hurts knowing that Polites slowly lost trust in him.
Odysseus reads and reads every night despite all the challenges he had to face. Turns out Polites did have romantic interests in him, ever since they were still kids.
And that song about 'Open Arms' was actually a song he wrote for his daughter before he left her with his mom so that he could go to war. His daughter had turned 4 at the time.
Odysseus wishes he could go back in time just to fix all the problems Polites had to face without him, but, it's too late for that.
Months passed by and they've finally reached Ithaca, they almost drowned in a storm but that's alright. As long as most of them were still there, alive and happy.
However, a particular girl still awaits for someone. She sees a man in the distance, wearing a cloak. She wonders, is that him?
The man reaches her and takes of his cloak before asking, "Is Charis at home?"
"Y-yes, how do you know my grandmama's name?"
The stranger smiles "I just do, however, can you bring her to me?"
"uh.. Sure I guess.."
The girl walks back into her house and fetches her grandmother to meet the stranger she had just encountered.
When she comes back with her grandma, her grandmother was in shock.
"Odysseus? Is that you sweet child?"
"Haha, yes.. It is me, aunt Charis.."
Charis hugs Odysseus before turning to the girl and introducing her to Odysseus.
"Historia, this was your fathers closest friend, Odysseus, king of Ithaca."
Historia raises a brow and asks, "That Odysseus? The one he spoke so fondly of?"
"Yes, oh, and pray tell Odysseus, where is my son?" Charis looks up at Odysseus, smiling, and her eyes hopeful.
Odysseus tenses up before shaking his head and explaining "Polites, he is no longer with us.."
"Ah,"
"What..?"
Odysseus explains what had happened to the two, Charis eyes start to water, and Historia..
Historia is shocked, she's devastated—ten years of awaiting for her father and turns out he died a few months earlier in attempt of keeping the king alive. She hates it. Why had her father loved Odysseus so much he chose to die in the battle just fir the sake of the king? It was unfair. Truly, unfair.
Historia's thoughts are interrupted when Odysseus calls for her and explains that her father asked him to take her somewhere before his passing.
He takes her to a clear place in the forest with a tree stump in the middle. She asks what was so special about the place but Odysseus just walked towards the stump and sat by it. He gestured for her to sit beside him and so she did.
He started to talk about everything he knew about Polites, and everything Polites had written down on his diary. And so, Historia listened.
Hours passed by and it was getting late, he took Historia back to her home and bid her and Charis farewell but before he could leave, Charis gave him a letter, saying that before Polites left, he had written a letter for Odysseus and left it in her hands so that when Odysseus returned she could give it to him if Polites died.
Odysseus gladly took it and promised he would visit again one day.
He finally reached back home, it was silent, Penelope, Telemachus and the whole palace was probably asleep by then. He sat on a bench in their garden and opened the letter to read it. And it said,
" Hello, captain. By the time you read this letter, I probably died but you haven't, and for that, I am glad. I wrote this letter just to let you know, I am always there for you, even in death. I pray you take care of my daughter for me. I would like to bestow upon you my diary, for I, trust no one but you, with my life. I know this is pretty short but you know, simplicity is beauty. Stay kind my friend, and I hope you greet the world with open arms, for me."
At the end of the letter, a phrase caught Odysseus' eye, and made him smile. It read,
"For My Dearest, Odysseus"