Argos (18 page)

“So, Argos. Enjoying your new accommodations? A little different from a nice comfortable blanket outside your masters room in Ithaca, eh?” Amycus grinned and nodded to himself, apparently pleased with his wit. I suspected he might be a little unhinged. All this to extract revenge on a dog? Really?

If I thought he might be a little deranged, I swiftly changed that to a lot when he began to explain what was in store for me.

“You are probably wondering where you are.” His eyes darted to the left and right. When he was sure we were alone, he leaned in conspiratorially. “You are on the island of Doulikhion. I work here now. It took some convincing but eventually King Meges took me on. Not in the same role I had on Ithaca, of
course. That wasn't possible after the debacle that took place but this role is in some ways superior to my last. King Meges returned from Troy over a year ago. He brought with him some strange animals and an unquenchable thirst to see even more. He wanted to see them … together. You see, I put on shows for the king now. You are probably wondering what sort of shows?”

I sighed. Amycus wasn't about to tell me something I hadn't already guessed. Dogs can sigh you know. It's just that sometimes they aren't as obvious in dogs as they are in humans. If Amycus noticed, he gave no sign, his eyes feverish, lost in his own story.

“There are fights, Argos. Fights! Fights the likes of which you have never seen before. Dogs fighting dogs, dogs fighting wild boar, dogs fighting bulls. And then there are the others.” He leaned even closer, whispering now, a revolting aroma of rancid milk wafting over me at his words. I felt like gagging but composed myself. If Amycus leaned in even further, I just might be able to tear his nose off. That would certainly surprise him! Just the thought of it made me salivate, which was in itself a little unsettling. The fact that I was becoming excited by the prospect of disfiguring this man was disturbing.

“These other animals are magnificent. Some are huge. Some have claws and fangs that would dismember you or me in a blink of an eye. Just like that,” he said, snapping his fingers. “But,” he said, frowning, “we don't get to use those animals very often. Meges likes to save them for a special occasion. Too rare, he tells me. No matter,” said Amycus, grinning again, “all in good time.” Disappointment surged through me as Amycus sat back safely out of my reach.

“I have a feeling about you, Argos. It is not your fate to fall before any normal animal. That would be too good for you. Over too easily. I want this to last. My humiliation lasted years—I see no reason why I can't drag your suffering out just as long.”

He stood. With a last wink in my direction, he strode off into the gloom, leaving me alone save for the tens or possibly hundreds of other animals all growling, barking, howling, and snarling around me. I could think of better places to get a good night's rest.

Several days passed. Both my neighbors were removed from their cages, struggling and whimpering in fear. I heard the tell-tale sounds of a fight far above me. Human voices raised in cheers, some triumphant. There were roars of displeasure from members of the crowd, a squeal and then for a moment, silence. I knew the sound of death when I heard it.

A new inhabitant was placed in one of the adjacent cages, a dog like me. The other one remained vacant. I kept waiting for my turn but it didn't come. I was fed more filthy water and scraps of food that were fit only for the refuse pits. At first I refused to eat or drink but my baser instincts soon took over and I forced some down my throat, retching.

Out of boredom, I gnawed at the bars of the cage but it was futile. The bars, like the ones on the cage that had transported
me here, were thick wood. I suspected that my teeth would give out long before the cage.

I thought about my home often. I wondered if my master Odysseus had returned. I pined for him more than I ever had these last ten years. Being in this place just exacerbated my loneliness. I had a forlorn hope that Odysseus would return to Ithaca and, finding me gone, would immediately embark on a rescue mission. I dreamt of Telemachus, crying in the darkness, filled with despair, wishing that his closest friend would return to him. I thought of what might become of him without me. What evil mischief Poseidon planned for him. What might be happening right now, without me to stop it? I wondered if Eumaeus would scour the island looking for me? What would he do when I was nowhere to be found? Would he search further afield? Brave a ship and the dreaded sea just for me?

These thoughts occupied many of my waking hours but there were still many, many left to fill.

Eventually, when Amycus came for me, I was almost relieved.

H
e was not alone this time. Two burly handlers stood on either side of him. Both of them were armed with some type of weapon that consisted of a long wooden handle attached to a loop of stout rope.

“Be careful with this one,” said Amycus, grinning evilly, “he may be more dangerous than the others.”

One of the handlers—a large hairy man with hair the color of fire—scoffed. “He's impressive enough but certainly not the biggest I've seen. Nor the toughest. Looks a little underfed, to be honest.” He was right on all accounts. I'd seen larger dogs than me in my life. One of the dogs in the next cage was actually bigger. Toughest—well that was debatable. I don't think any other dog in the place had taken on a Hades boar and survived. But as for underfed, that was undeniable.

The other handler, a slightly shorter man with a belly big enough for three, laughed. “Not surprising there. Have you seen what we feed them? If I was a dog, I wouldn't touch the stuff.”

If he was a dog
, I thought,
I'd tear out his throat.

Cautiously, the fat one opened the cage door. I toyed with the idea of bolting but knew that it was pointless. Even if I got past all three of them, I knew that there was a locked door at the end of the corridor. I had heard it being locked and unlocked. Even if I had hands, I had no key to use.

My second option was to attack. I was fairly confident that I could kill one or two but not three, especially in my weakened state. They were armed after all. Had I been fully healthy and confident about the outcome, I would not have hesitated. Even then, it probably would've ended badly. My desire to kill Amycus was too great. In my efforts to tear him to shreds, the two handlers would be free to pummel me with their staves.

In the end, I decided to accept my fate. Perhaps there would be opportunities to escape above? Although unused to fighting my own kind, I was determined to live and would do whatever was required.

The fat one was surprised when I didn't move as he threw the rope loop around my throat. He tightened it immediately and then, holding on to the wooden handle, dragged me unresisting out of the cage.

“See?” said the one I decided to call Red. “Told you so.”

Amycus was staring at me, his gaze calculating. “That was a bit too easy,” he said. “He's up to something.”

“Dogs aren't that clever,” said Plump. “He's not up to
anything. Most of the fight's gone out of him. That's all.”

“Well, it had better return by the time we get upstairs,” laughed Red. “Otherwise, he's dead.”

“We'll see,” said Amycus slowly. “Yes. We will see.”

Amycus led the way with Red, Plump, and myself trailing behind. Plump kept a firm grip on his handle but I never gave him any reason to tug on it. Despite this, he saw fit to kick me a couple of times when my pace wasn't exactly what he wanted.

At the end of the corridor, Amycus took a thick ring of keys off his belt and unlocked the bronze reinforced wooden door. Outside was a darkened staircase carved from rough blocks of stone, lit only by one flickering oil lamp. He led us up several flights before we came to another, similar door. The sounds of many human voices rose, washing over me in a great wave as soon as Amycus opened the door. Beyond the door was a large chamber with only a few cages.

Plump thrust me into one and secured the door behind me. I spun around and found myself staring out through wooden bars at a great open air amphitheater. Several hundred people gathered in the surrounding tiers, cheering.

On the opposite side of the arena, I could see several cages identical to my own. The bars obscured their contents and the many unwashed bodies seated above me overwhelmed my senses. I had no idea what I was about to face.

King Meges—still a huge bear of a man (if anything, a little fatter)—and his retinue sat within a covered dais opposite me. Next to him sat his odious son, Elatus. Since last we met, he had grown into full manhood but if that had improved him in any
way, I could not see how.

King Meges suddenly stood and the crowd immediately quieted.

“People of Doulikhion, welcome. Today, you are in for a special treat. As you know, our neighbor, the great Odysseus, has not seen fit to return from our triumphant war with the Trojans. With him gone, Ithaca is no longer the power she once was. We need fear him no longer. Ithaca's star is falling whilst ours is in ascension. To illustrate who the real king is, I sent a war party to Ithaca to take something precious from Odysseus. And what better prize than his most beloved dog? You must have heard of him. The dog that defeated a Hades-spawned boar the size of an ox. The dog that defeated the fastest dog I had ever bred. His name is Argos, the hound of Odysseus.”

With that, the crowed reared up, cheering mightily. Meges let them enjoy their revelry for a few moments before silencing them with one upraised hand.

“And now, for your pleasure, mighty Argos will fight.” He gestured toward one of the handlers beneath him. The cage door opposite me was yanked open and a huge, snarling black dog charged out. Froth dripped from its jaws.

The crowd cheered again. Meges shouted them down. “This is Butal. Champion of his last twelve fights. Undefeated in battle. A worthy opponent, don't you think?”

The crowd roared their pleasure. This time, Meges didn't bother trying to silence them. Their blood was up. They wanted to see a fight. They wanted to see death. My death.

Meges gestured again and this time it was my cage door that
was opened. I stepped out gingerly, in contrast to the entrance made by Butal. A few people in the crowd laughed.

I confess I was a little surprised at this turn of events. I had expected something a little more … imaginative. Something awe-inspiring. But to be facing another dog? I was almost insulted. Not that Butal wasn't impressive. He was probably the biggest dog I'd ever seen with a neck almost twice the girth of my own. I felt nervous and a little intimidated but I had faced worse.

I had never killed one of my own kind before and had no desire to do so now. Butal was only here because he had been forced, probably beaten, into submission. A dog can never be blamed for its behavior. It is their human masters who molds them, shapes them, makes them what they are. In the hands of a kindly master like my own, Butal would have been a completely different dog.

But he had not been raised by Odysseus. Monsters in human shape had reared him and they had created something terrible.

I was, however, a realist. If I took the moral high ground and refused to fight, then Butal would kill me. And how would that help me in my goal to return to Ithaca and my family? I had no choice but to fight. It certainly wasn't a given I would kill him, either. By the looks of him, he was quite capable of killing me.

There was no more time to consider such philosophies, however as Butal charged forward, a vicious mass of insanity in dog form.

Our bodies smashed into each other head on, both of us desperate to get a grip on the other's leg or neck. Twisting away from his snapping jaws, I managed to fasten my teeth on his neck but he was wearing a thick leather collar and I could not
tear through it quick enough. I let go, primarily to prevent Butal biting my foreleg, and backed away.

Some wise humans say that moments of realization only come at times of extremity. Like a bolt of lightning. This certainly was my experience. In a flash, something changed within me, and I knew then that this was part of the gift Athena had given me.