RE: Odyssey

Ithaca is a tiny island for a seat of a legendary kingdom, but I have to explore it alone.

"I must return to the Olympos." That's what Athena claims before popping out of existence.

I can still hear her voice.

"I will convince Hephaestus to build you the Chronos Kyrexis."

That's what they call the machine that sent me into the future before bringing me back as part of the Tachyon Lance. That's what she said, at least. I'm still not convinced by that story.

And she claimed that Tachyons don't exist, but this magical bullshit Chronos does.

What's the difference? One is a hypothetical science-fiction material, the other is a myth.

Neither should work, but here I am, on an island near a crash site that won't happen for another 3000 years. And I'm hungry.

The air is warm and clean, and the forest smells of olives and pine. There is no sign of all the smog and industrial crap I could never escape. It's so clean, it makes me dizzy.

The place is almost untouched by civilization, and there is no sign of that crazy battle with the Spetznaz I was in. I still have a map of the island somewhere in my pockets, and an MRE.

"Okay, that has to come first." It's a 'ready-to-eat' meal I'm sure is yet to expire because it will be three millenniums before it's made. "I can look at that map while I stuff myself with food."

I'm glad I brought it since the GPS and all the other gadgets on me are dead.

I almost lost my life too, if not for this body armor, but it has to go.

It has more holes than material left and would stick out in the Mycenaean era like a sore thumb.

The uniform too. I'll have to find some clothes before someone sees me.

"Uhu." The sound makes me jump, but it's only the owl Athena left behind.

Well, she said she'll keep an eye on me. That's one way to do it, but it's more into my meal.

The bird lands on my shoulder and its beak strikes at the crackers.

"Shoo, that's not for you." We argue as I set up the FRH.

That's the flameless heater to make the whole thing edible, and I need some water to make it work.

Only my flask is gone and all I see is salt water around.

Crackers it is then, as much as the owl left for me to eat, and I'll deal with the rest later.

I unfold the paper map for the first time.

It's much smaller than I expected, but it doesn't have to be huge to show all the details.

The entire island is like 18 miles at its longest, and 4 miles wide.

It's almost cut in half by the deep bay of Molos, with only the thin isthmus of Aetos connecting the parts. The desalination plant marked on it won't appear for a while.

"Great. That means the island has no rivers or lakes. Hmm, there's the Kalamos Spring in the north." The B-52 crashed in the southwestern part so it's at the other end of the island.

"Mount Neritos is in the north too." That's where Athena told me to find Odysseus' parents and their palace. Tiny island or not, that will be a long trek without water and a proper meal.

I remove all the useless gear and hide them under a tree, marking the area for later.

"You never know," I explain to the curious owl stealing my last crackers before setting out.

The isthmus is quiet, but I avoid the road, and it takes me until late in the night to reach the hill.

After all the action from before, — or in the future, — it takes a toll on me.

And I thought I was in good shape.

For someone serving as a staff officer, for sure. Sigh.

A small structure sits on top of the next hill, and square-ish houses dot the island here and there.

I wouldn't call it a palace or even a castle in the modern sense, but it fits the description.

"So what now? Do I waltz in and say I'm your time-traveling son?" I ask the bird who spent the day circling over my head, looking for more things to eat. Now it's sitting on my shoulder.

Even if it's a magical creature, it won't tell me more than you'd expect from a regular owl.

I should have asked the goddess if it had a name, but she didn't tell me it would stay behind.

"Uhu-hu." That is all, thanks for nothing.

Barging in, wearing a bloody uniform from the future seems like a bad idea.

And it'll take many years for the settlements marked on the map to exist.

"Let's hope someone hung out their clothes to dry for the night." A few houses dot the island, built from stone, or carved into the hillside.

As a staff officer, my training didn't include infiltration and stealth. But from the comfort of my battle station, I often participated in such missions from afar.

The best would be to aim for the structures on the outskirts. The furthest away is a hut that smells terrible. From the noises, they keep the pigs here, so it's no wonder.

"Well, the people have to eat." With no water on the island, there can be no farms, so it's either fish or the animals they keep. "I hope the swineherd has something I can borrow. Bingo."

At first glance, they're all bedsheets though. I doubt people in this climate need too much fabric to cover themselves at night. Are these clothes then?

I spent countless hours looking into Greek mythology, but it was text for the most part. Pictures or illustrations eluded me, including the clothing of the Mycenaean age.

"How do I wear these?" I mutter to myself, then almost get a heart attack when the owl decides to jump into the air from my shoulder. Its wings are loud, but fast.

"Damn it, don't scare me like that." I scold the bird but it's already far away. I talk in ancient Greek without realizing but it saves me from trouble.

"Forget scaring, I'll pierce you right through if you make a move." It's a woman's voice, and despite the warning, I spin around to face her in the dark.

She holds a spear and looks like someone who knows how to use it. It's the second time today that my life is in the hands of a Greek woman, and I'm not a fan.

"Hey now, let's not do anything hasty." I hold up my hands while trying to come up with something believable. "I got lost, and the smell led me here."

"And who are you?" She asks as a door opens behind her, and I get a better look at her face in the light escaping the little building. It's the first time I see her, why is she so familiar?

"Ktimene! Who is that?" A man backs her up with a staff. I can forget to wrestle the spear from her now, though it was only a fleeting idea anyway. Screw it, what else can I say?

"I'm Odysseus. I'm looking for my father, Laertes."