Tricks of Gods and Lives of Mortals

Leonidas awoke drenched in sweat. He sat up, wiped his brow and moved quickly from his bunk and toward his desk. The three nights since their departure from Piraeus had wrought three new dreams. Leonidas reached for his stylus and began recording his latest dream. He recalled the violent reds and the powerful oranges. He saw conflict, destruction and pain.

Dreams had visited Leonidas for the past year. At the beginning, he had paid little attention to the vague images in his mind, but of late, he had been convinced that they were telling a story. Initially, the dreams had been joyful and filled with hope. However, over time, they had morphed slowly from hope to excitement, then fear, and now conflict. Details remained a mystery to Leonidas - all he knew for sure was that Pernicus needed to be on the ship.

Leonidas finished documenting the night's dream. After carefully returning all his scripts to his bag, he ventured out onto the deck hoping to clear his mind.

"You're out late Sir," greeted Alexus "something on your mind?"

"Always," replied Leonidas "but nothing important".

Both men returned to their thoughts. From experience, Alexus knew a serious Leonidas was best left alone. They had been shipmates for the past four years, visiting numerous places. In recent times, they had travelled together on risky voyages in search of long lost treasure. The low survival rates on such expeditions had enhanced their returns.

Alexus recalled one such voyage, two years ago to the island of Kerkyra. They had joined the ship Ploutos in search of treasure. They had found the treasure, but at no small cost. In recovering the riches, they had been attacked by an inhumanly brutal force, which savaged the crew. Only a handful had returned to the ship, and they had done so with wealth in their hands rather than their injured companions. Guilt ridden and shamed, they had limped to the nearest port. During their slow escape, Alexus had noticed Leonidas change.

Alexus surveyed his captain's ship and felt a pang of jealousy. A few months ago, they had been equally wealthy, and now, he was a ship hand again.

"You spent your money much better", muttered Alexus remorsefully.

Leonidas laughed. "You don't need to spend your money to attract women and wine; you just need to carry it well. You never did learn that Alexus."

Leonidas' thoughts returned to his dreams and his desire to tell reveal them to others. He knew most people would not understand and he knew telling Pernicus would be a mistake. Pernicus had always been superstitious and fearful of the 'Gods'. Telling him would give him the excuse he was searching for to leave the ship. Leonidas sighed and remembered the free spirited and innocent youth who had arrived in Athens six years ago. He regretted that deceit came so easy to him now.