The Odyssey

Hear now the song of Troy,

and of the years the sea would not forget.

There was a city once...

Land ahoy!

Walls higher than any siege tower,

thick enough that no battering ram could crack them.

A city that should never have fallen,

crowned in gold,

its walls raised by the hands of gods.

Prince of Troy, Paris, set his heart on Helen,

wife of Menelaus, king of Sparta,

a woman already claimed.

He carried her away to have her as his own.

And so the kingdoms of Greece rose as one.

For ten long years Greece laid siege to Troy.

Spears broke, but their walls did not.

Among the Greeks walked a man who carried

no sword sharper than his mind.

He knew what the others could not see:

that Troy would not be broken.

It would have to be deceived.

Odysseus, king of Ithaca,

patient as the tide, cunning as a fox in winter.

A decades long war had ended,

but for Odysseus, the longest journey

was only just beginning.

The King!

King Odysseus!

Our men are gone, but Troy is fallen,

and our battle is won.

Where are we going?

Home. To my kingdom.

To my son. My wife.

You may join me.

Be an advisor in my court.

For your bravery in this terrible war, I will ensure

you will want for nothing for the rest of your life.

Thank you, my King.

It would be my honor.

The journey will not be easy.

I will swim if I must, but I will get home.

Trojans!

If the gods are willing.

Tell me, O Muse, the man of many devices,

who wandered full many ways after he had

sacked the great citadel of Troy.

Home, then.

Lest I have not honored the gods

enough to receive the reward I deserve.

Greetings, Odysseus.

The good man.

Goddess on high.

Clever, maybe.

Clever is better than good.

Not just clever.

Brutal, decisive, and ingenious.

Hiding your soldiers in the gift of a wooden horse,

your Trojan horse.

Taking the city by surprise from the inside out.

Your greatest work.

It did what it was made to do.

But I cannot look behind.

As any craftsman worth his salt, I pray

that my greatest work lies ahead.

Perhaps it does.

So home, then. Ithaca. To your wife.

Your city.

Yes, the only journey worth the fight.

Are you coming with me, Athena?

Or is there another reason for this visit?

I come to bring you a warning.

The gods, they are fickle, Odysseus.

They will not make your journey home an easy one.

Your trials will be their entertainment.

They know now that you are a clever man.

They are jealous.

They will use this against you to show their power.

Curse me or bless me, Goddess on high.

But be quick about it.

In due time.

And so begins your odyssey.

And the game of the gods.

Then pray for me, goddess.

For I must reach home.

For my kingdom.

My everything.

My son. My wife.

My world will be gone.

I am looking for men.

A crew for a dangerous journey.

One the gods themselves may turn their will against.

Once I am home, as king of Ithaca,

I assure you each will receive a suitable reward.

You will never want for anything for the rest of your lives.

You have the word of the king himself.

A generous offer and reward.

But are you as good as your word?

Polites!

You look a little bit past your prime.

-By the gods! -Old man.

After all this time.

All this time and you still haven't gotten any better

at motivational speeches.

Absolute crickets from you as well.

This is a man who has saved my life on numerous occasions.

A debt we have both repaid each other more than once

in a war that has lasted more than five years.

Although it's closer to ten now.

But these days,

I am much better collecting scars than I am glory.

But, you will find plenty of much younger,

probably not as bright men more than willing to join you.

But probably not here,

sipping goblets in the middle of the day.

And the rest here,

well, they know not the true cost of war,

though they may be eager.

-As once we were. -As we once were.

Listening to our fathers and our grandfathers stories.

And just more than willing to prove ourselves.

Can I trust them?

About as much as you can trust me.

All I know is that what's waiting for you back in Ithaca,

now that is your reward.

And you deserve it, too.

But for the rest of us...

Join me. I need men who I can trust.

Men with experience in battle.

No, no, no. I will not be going to any battle.

Or any wars. Ever again.

I am unpersuadable. I cannot be persuaded.

Did I mention the gold?

Well, did I mention unpersuaded?

When do we start?

As soon as we recruit two more.

-Two more? -Yes.

-Okay. Let's go. -Let's do this.

Alkimos the Navigator.

From what I heard, he was the one that saved a ship

of fishermen from a cyclone.

Really?

I've heard of you, King Odysseus.

What have you heard?

That you, sacker of cities, son of Laertes,

are favored by the gods.

Not all the gods. One or two. Maybe less.

You survived the Trojan War.

You're a king.

The King of Ithaca.

I have a family that comes from Ithaca.

I haven't seen them since I was little.

You know, my king--

I'm not king today.

But if you help me get home, I will be.

I'm a good navigator.

But you mentioned gold.

Did I?

Oh. You did. Yes. You mentioned gold.

He mentioned gold.

Hmm.

I don't seek gold.

I'm bored.

Bored of fishing boats filled with old men

with putrid smelling cargo.

I seek adventure.

New shores.

Like in the stories.

Stories about you.

Then join me,

and we will make stories that they will never forget.

And I promise you, it will be anything but boring.

And once we reach Ithaca, you can join my guard

and help me protect our fair kingdom.

My king.

Now, how are you at fighting?

I can handle my own.

But if you want a force to be reckoned with,

you want to recruit Eurylochus,

I've never seen another man fight quite like he has.

We'll pay him a visit next.

So what say you, Eurylochus?

I have killed a lot of men to protect my home.

War has plagued our country for many years.

How are you at sea?

I'm a fast swimmer, and even faster with a sword.

Hm. Is that so?

Hm.

But now that the war is over,

I've found work at a vineyard up the road.

The owner, he treats me well.

And his daughter, Talia, she's...

I just don't know if I can commit to a journey this long.

You will be in Ithaca before sundown two days hence.

We have to be.

And if you decide to stay in our fair kingdom,

you will live a life of ease in Ithaca.

And once there, she can join you.

If you teach me how to be as fast

as you, my king Odysseus, then I'm in.

And as I promised...