[Haiku]

"East," the small ones sing

A cave of warmth and promise

Soft lies hide sharp teeth

---

So we sailed.

The wind was good. The men were in high spirits. And there was this guy — Polites. My best friend. The kind of person who saw the good in everything, even after ten years of war.

He had this idea. This beautiful, stupid, wonderful idea.

He said, "What if we didn't fight everyone we met? What if we greeted the world with open arms instead of a blade?"

I wanted to believe him.

I really did.

Then we found this island. Strange. Quiet. And we met them — the Lotus Eaters.

Friendly little creatures. Smiling. Offering flowers. My men almost got lost in that sweetness, but Polites? He kept his head. He asked them where we could find food.

"A cave," they said. "There's a cave. You could feast there."

"Now where do we find this food-filled cave?" Polites asked.

They pointed east.

Simple as that.

"See?" Polites grinned at me. "This life is amazing when you greet it with open arms."

I wanted to believe him.

So I let my guard down.

Big mistake.

---

[Haiku]

"East," the small ones sing

A cave of warmth and promise

Soft lies hide sharp teeth

---

We found the cave. Just like they said. Full of sheep. Fat, juicy, beautiful sheep.

No wine. No people. Just... a lot of cheese, a lot of wool, and a lot of food.

Polites kept smiling. "Open arms," he reminded me.

So we ate. We rested. We celebrated.

And then we heard it.

Footsteps.

Heavy ones.

Something was coming home.

Something with one eye.

Epic the musical: The TROJAN SAGA