RE: Odyssey

"You should spend the month here." My Father suggests, but I already steeled myself, shaking my head. "Then at least take Eumaeus with you. He will keep you safe."

"That I can do." Even if he's a swineherd, if taking him will put his mind at ease, I have no reason to refuse. It's not like I set out alone. "If he doesn't mind coming with me."

The ship Laertes offers needs fifty oarsmen and more sailors to operate.

One man more or less won't matter. They are already busy getting ready for the journey.

"It would be my honor to escort you, young master." Eumaeus bows, and I hope he won't use that word, ever again.

Ktimene looks even more upset with it than I do, but she stays quiet.

The harbor is full of life, and the salty smell of the sea is the only thing that helps me calm down.

Damn, this island has some crazy beautiful views. It's no wonder Laertes made it the seat of his kingdom. Ithaca is between other larger islands that belong to him, so he must rely a lot on his fleet.

The ship he offers is also a part of it.

It's not a famous trireme, those will need a few more centuries to appear. This is a penteconter, a sleek warship from the Mycenaean era and it's my first time seeing one in real life.

The myths I read had illustrations of them, but I'm a little nervous.

It's a galley with a single mast, rectangular sail, and one row of oars.

It's thirty yards long and four wide.

Considering his kingdom only has a dozen of these ships it's a lot of trust to put in me.

"Will you be able to find the harbor of Crisa?" He also sounds worried, and I can see why.

I nod, not too convincing. My only map is of this island, and nothing else.

He gave me another, but it's closer to a child's drawing than the accurate military maps I'm used to.

We'll have to thread along the coasts, like the era's sailors did.

And let's hope his sailors know their job well because the largest vessel I ever commanded was a tiny zodiac. Those are the inflatable motorboats the US Marines use.

"I bet he'll only steal the ship like the sheep." Ktimene still didn't make her peace with me, and now she's even more upset that I take her spear instructor with me.

"Ktimene." Our Mother scolds her with a single glance, and my little sister runs off in protest.

Between our tearful reunion and goodbye, only a day passes.

Even with the urgency of the lost sheep, Laertes wants me to stay longer, but I'm on the clock.

"Come here, Odysseus." Anticlea demands and closes me in a tight embrace. She is even harder to let go of. Growing up in the United States in the early 2000s, I only ever had an uncle.

He could pass as a father figure, but this is the first I have a mother.

She doesn't have the same doubts about my identity and this whole strange situation as I do.

She accepts me without question, like a long-lost son who finally returned. Her affection makes me reconsider my doubts too. These are feelings I never dealt with, and I don't hate them.

"Stay safe out there, and give my regards to my father." She whispers into my ears. Even if this is all an elaborate ruse by Athena, and it doesn't feel like home yet, this could be my real family.

It's giving me heartbreak that I have to go, but I'm doing this for them too.

If I'm not done with the events preceding the Trojan Wars, history will repeat itself, and I'll be stuck here as a loser.

"Don't let the Old Fox play tricks on you, Odysseus." It's Laertes' turn for a hug. "He's a world-famous thief but also a great warrior. He will know for sure if you're the real deal."

Right. They send me to confirm my identity.

They sure don't look like they doubt it anymore, and I only spent a day here.

Now I set out for a journey that might last two months.

"Don't worry, My King. I won't disappoint you." I promise him, though what can I expect?

I delved into the myths and legends of this era, searching for my parents and myself.

If I let things play out as they did in the legends, I'd carry the shame of a failed strategist forever, and be short on an arm. I have some pointers on how to avoid a complete disaster.

"I know you won't." Laertes releases me with a wink.

It's almost like he knows something that I don't.

Come on, I'm the only one coming from the future here.

But what if I change the course of history only to make it even worse? No, a beautiful loving mother and a strong father like them deserve a real hero of a son, and I'm here to deliver.

I have the perfect cheat thanks to my US Navy staff officer training. I learned about battles yet to happen and tactics that turned the tide of wars. So what if I face some challenges?

I have everything I need to write my name into Greek history as the greatest hero.

War never changes, so I can deal with anything, even if the details diverge from what I've read.

But that means, I must kick off the events as early as possible. And who knows, if Athena told me the truth, some things would generate the Chronos needed for her machine.

The sooner I speedrun the early successes of Odysseus, the faster I can escape from here.

That's my main goal after all. And the first step towards it is to set sails to my grandfather.

"You too, take care, Eumaeus." The slave of our family gets almost the same tearful goodbye as I do even though they wanted him to come with me. He gets a hug from both of my parents.

Still, he looks like he's missing something, and I have a guess who he's looking for. Ktimene is gone now, he can't say goodbye to her, which makes me smirk under my nose.

"Kids these days," I mutter, stepping on the deck of the small vessel. "I'll return with my grandfather's approval and the missing shepherds in two or three moons. That's a promise."

The winds are favorable, so we have to set out. This makes it easier to end this tearful moment, but I know I will be back soon anyway. The early successes of Odysseus shouldn't mean trouble.

If that loser managed to solve the incident with the sheep without my future knowledge, it might be too easy for me. We'll have to sail along the Ionian coast first.

Once we enter the Gulf of Corinth, we'll traverse around the Peloponnese Peninsula. From there, it should be easy to find Crisa's harbor. It's about 400 nautical miles.

While the Mycenaean Greeks didn't use the seven-day week, it will take us one or two weeks to get there. That's my estimate at least, and I'm good at math.

That should be enough to learn more about Eumaeus, and why his name sounds so familiar.