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>PHASE TWO BEGIN
I made a total hash of the formatting, apologies all
You breathe deeply, as you gaze out across the rolling fields and hills of Thessaly. Your cloak and chiton, today, brilliant white, still carry the fragrant aroma of the Dionysian Frankencense that you had finally completed just before dawn – a heady mix of unwatered wine, Corsican pinecone, and various other herbs and additives, it has a pungent and natural scent. While you’ve never suffered the true effects of the concoction yourself, even the limited exposure you had made your heart thump in your chest and your tongue loose for several hours. Only in the last few minutes, under the high Thessalian noon, have your thoughts steadied.
In the distance, the peak of Mount Olympus is wreathed in clouds of white; the same shade of your robes. You wonder whether your brother, Νίκων, misses his homeland…but you suspect not. He did not look back, when leaving the estates of his father, and you imagine that his mind and attention is focused purely on the task ahead, whatever it may be. His concentration and discipline, at times, was unsettling to you. In his thinking, you imagine it must be quite simple – you are placed at the head of the Hippomedon οἶκος, you will lead the οἶκος into prosperity, and you will patiently await his return, with prospective husband in tow. Shaking your head, you gently brush loose strands of your golden hair of your face. You hope it will be as simple as that – but you are quite sure that it will not.
Regardless, you pray for his safety once again, as you kneel before Mount Olympus, and plead for a friendly divinity to shield him from the predation of men and gods. Better yet, you hope, he escapes their notice entirely – standing, you brush the dirt from your white cloak. Despite the long hours of the previous night, you feel refreshed and ready to act as head of the Hippomedon οἶκος. Four of five local noblemen plan to attend your proposed feast, with the sole exception of Damachides, who resides to the west. You have nine days before the summit takes place, but you have already invested the time and resources to ensure a successful event. Your household staff have been appropriately notified, and the various bands of the First Platoon currently on patrol have been notified as well – they will return to the οἶκος in about 7 days time, to stand guard and show what strength in spearmen you have, under Argyros’ and Iudas’ suggestion. Even better, many of the local lords have already demonstrated openness and generosity upon receipt of your summons – you remember Cnotheos, brother-in-law to Seisames, who delivered several oenochoe of very fine wine, and Lyciboeus, who gifted your estate two study white bulls, asking for nothing in return.
>cont
