Wife to the Winds [4/4]

                                    

                                          
╭─━━━━━━━━━━━━─╮
⭒❃.✮:▹ Traveler ◃:✮.❃⭒
Epic: The Musical
╰─━━━━━━━━━━━━─╯
a/n: whew! this is it y'all, the final and last part of the WTTW series. I hope you guys enjoyed it as much as I did <3  animation for this part (and honestly the main inspiration for this entire series) is posted above
sidenote: In this AU, when Odysseus left for war Telemachus was 9 years old.
ˏ⸉ˋ‿̩͙‿̩̩̥͙̽‿̩͙ˏ⸉ˋ‿̩͙‿̩̩̥͙̽‿̩͙ˏ⸉ˋ‿̩͙‿̩̩̥͙̽‿̩͙.·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .‿̩̥̩‿̩̩̥͙̽‿̩͙ˊ⸊ˎ‿̩̥̩‿̩̩̥͙̽‿̩͙ˊ⸊ˎ‿̩̥̩‿̩̩̥͙̽‿̩͙ˊ⸊ˎ
The rolling sea churned beneath the ship as waves sprayed mist over the deck.
By this point you had gained full respect of the crew—especially those who owed their lives to you.
Now as the ship rocked over rough waves, you steadied yourself by the railing, ignoring the heated discussion unfolding between Odysseus and Eurylochus.
Polites was caught in the middle, a concerned spectator of their throwing words. He would cast you a nervous glance every now and then as a silent call for help.
But you wouldn't know. Your eyes were locked onto the dark clouds circling overhead in the sky and the ever-approaching mountain-like formation of Aeolia.
Even among the chaos of the storm the sky palace loomed like a beacon—massive and otherworldly against the darkening horizon.
Aeolus' island was unlike anything you'd ever seen. It floated above the waves with its lively beauty, anchored to nothing but the whims of the winds themselves.
Approaching footsteps behind you grew louder. You turn to see Odysseus and Eurylochus approaching with their argument trailing along them.
"I can't have you planting seeds of doubt every step of the way," Odysseus said to his Second in Command, every word spoken edged with unyielding authority. "I can't have you disagreeing each route. I need you to agree and comply without question or we risk all of us dying in this. Do you understand?"
A tense silence settled between them. For a moment Eurylochus held his gaze, the frown on his face fading to resignation.
"Okay," he muttered almost reluctantly.
Odysseus seemed to release a breath he didn't know he was holding. "Thank you."
A shout from one of the men broke through and all of you turned. The crew had managed to hook several ropes onto the cliff edges of Aeolia, securing the ship in place.
Odysseus turned to you, his features darkening as he prepared to leave for his encounter with Aeolus.
"Stay here," his command carried a weight of finality. "This is no place for you nor is it safe."
Frustration welled within but you bit back any protest.
Watching Odysseus hoist himself up the ropes, you felt the weight of all that had happened over the past months—the times your instincts had protected the crew, the risks you'd taken.
'Would he be on this journey at all if not for me defying his orders?'
You turned to Eurylochus and Polites who were already watching you with a mixture of concern and uncertainty.