Helios

=Helios=

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Those Who Challenge the Sun
There are few things that can push the Sun itself into a vengeful rampage, but the horrid act the accursed Odysseus and his men committed was worse than anything I had thought imaginable. They violated the sanctity of the immortals when they set foot on my island, and I Helios, the Sun God will never forget the destruction of the treasures hidden there.

One could search for an eternity and still never find such perfect beasts as my beautiful cattle. I took great pride in my cattle such noble beasts they were. They were my most precious possessions, and I kept them on a secluded island in hopes of saving them from the evils of mankind. I curse the day that vile Odysseus and his sinful men set foot on my island. I did not think a king such as Odysseus would be foolish enough to harm the noble animals of a god, particularly after the warnings Circe gave him. After all, no man lacks so much sense that they would risk bring the wrath of the Sun itself upon them.

I’ll never forget the atrocity that happened next. The so-called “great” king fell asleep, and as soon as his mutinous men were free from his gaze, they attacked my cattle! I could only gape in shock when Lampetie related the dark news to me, and I instantly looked to my island. I could only watch in horror and fury as they surrounded my helpless animals and slaughtered them one by one. I felt as if each blow inflicted on the joys of my heart pierced me as well. I could only collapse and weep after the deed was done. Those cattle had meant more to me than anything else, even ambrosia and nectar. I could not believe what I had just seen. As I wallowed in my misery, I could only wonder how Odysseus, the King of Ithaca, who the Olympians spoke so highly of, particularly Athena, could allow this to happen. Did he have so little authority over his own men?

Gradually, my sadness was replaced with anger, and a beast-like rage I did not even know I was capable of welled up inside me. Odysseus would pay! He and the heathen swine he called his comrades would suffer the wrath and revenge of the Sun himself! I took my plea to Zeus saying, "Zeus! Leader of the Olympians, you must punish this infidel Odysseus for the horrible crime he has commited against me! If you don't I swear upon the River Styx that I will never shine over the world until he gets what he deserves!"

Zeus sympathized with me, promising to shatter their hollow ship with a thunderbolt the moment they started to leave the island, and that he would marshal the winds to drive any survivors back to the Scylla. I hurried back to watch, I didn’t want to miss a single second of Odysseus’ well-deserved punishment. It was thrilling to watch his ship all but explode into thousands of tiny pieces, and I felt a sense of satisfaction watching his flail helplessly in the water like the vermin they were. Unfortunately, when I saw Odysseus clinging to the wreckage, I expected that Scylla or Charbydis would finish him off, and I left him to his torment. I was disappointed when I learned that he had indeed made it back to Ithaca and had a happy reunion with his family after all. I would have intervened again had Athena not been protecting him once more, but I suppose he has suffered enough. Even though his actions were unforgivable, an important god such as myself cannot afford to hold a grudge, especially since we will never die.

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