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Two Acts of Troy
The Tales of Aquarius, Aquila and
Gemini
Chapter 3: The House of Atreus
There was a curse
that befell the House of Atreus and it was caused by pride and violence.
It originated with Atreus' grandfather who was a son of Zeus. His
name was Tantalus and he was the King of Lydia.
Zeus invited his son Tantalus to Olympus. He was the only mortal
who had ever been invited to feast with the gods. Although Tantalus
was used to opulence and comfort, he had never seen anything so
beautiful as the palace in the clouds for it was open to the sun
and stars and gentle breezes, and the high pillars which divided
room from room were the warm amber and rosy hues of sunrise. The
palace had a spectacular view of all the mountains, rivers and mortals
on earth, so the gods could feast while watching their entertainment
far below.
"I still don't think he should have done it," Hera judged a mortal
that Tantalus did not know as the gods watched while nibbling ambrosia
and sipping nectar. "He must be punished!"
"His family has suffered long enough," Apollo said. "He was defending
his father's honor, for that is how things have always been. Athena,
what do you think?"
"How silly," thought Tantalus, although he said nothing. "They have
nothing better to do than to spy on mortals and manipulate their
lives. How petty the gods are. Why I'm sure they're so petty that
they don't recognize things that directly affect them," he thought
in disgust.
"Why don't you come to my palace and be my guests for a feast?"
Tantalus said interrupting the debate. "You could see what life
is like for mortals." They thought this was a good idea and agreed.
Tantalus was very pleased with his plan and returned home to earth
taking with him Zeus' golden hound and the leftover nectar and ambrosia.
He didn't have permission to take any of this, but he was sure that
the gods didn't know.
When the day of the feast arrived the palace looked beautiful as
the gods sat around Tantalus' long banquet table. The servants brought
lovely plates and set them before the gods. Demeter took a bite
and gasped. The other gods looked at the food and recoiled in disgust.
Tantalus had been so certain that the judging gods wouldn't know
what they were served that he had killed and boiled his only son,
Pelops, and served the pieces to the gods to make them cannibals
of men.
"How dare he!" exclaimed Demeter. "We must make an example of his
punishment so no one will ever insult us again."
The gods' voices rose in a chorus. "Kill him! Torture him!" they
said.
"Take him away," Zeus said to Hades. The black robed god of the
underworld looked through Tantalus as he silently swept him away
while the king screamed out in terror.
As they entered Hades' domain, Tantalus saw a beautiful pool of
water over which hung trees heavy with ripe fruit. "You will stay
here forever," said Hades, standing Tantalus in the middle of the
pool; then Hades disappeared.
"This is real punishment," mocked Tantalus. As he hadn't eaten and
was very hungry he reached up to grab a pear. All that filled his
hand was air, for the wind blew the branch away from his reach.
He tried to grab an apple from another tree, but it, too, was blown
away from him. He bent down to get a drink of the cool, clear water
in which he stood. As he approached, the water receded, leaving
his feet in mud. When he stood, the water returned. After many tries
he realized that although abundance surrounded him, he was doomed
to never again quench his thirst or satisfy his hunger.
Meanwhile, Zeus collected all the body parts of Tantalus' son Pelops,
reconstructed him and restored him to life. He was whole except
for a missing shoulder, for it was that shoulder that Demeter had
eaten. As a replacement, Demeter had a shoulder fashioned out of
ivory and Pelops wore this throughout his life.
"Who is that handsome young man with the ivory shoulder?" mused
Princess Hippodamia. "It would be too sad if he were to die like
all the rest." King Oenomaus was not interested in having his daughter
married and, whenever a suitor came to request her hand, the king
would challenge him to a chariot race. If the suitor won, he could
marry Hippodamia, if Oenomaus won, the suitor would be killed. But
Oenomaus never disclosed the secret of his success; Ares had given
him horses that could not be beaten, so Oenomaus had tricked many
young men out of their lives.
By now the Princess was aware of her father's treachery and was
tired as well of having no husband. When she discovered that the
man with the ivory shoulder had come to win her hand, she decided
to help him. "Myrtilus," she whispered, "I need your help."
Her father's charioteer had been at the palace since before Hippodamia
was born and, knowing her father's trick, he was saddened by the
apparent fate of the young princess. "Please help the man with the
ivory shoulder to win. Here is some money. After he wins, he will
pay you more." Myrtilus agreed to help and, taking the money, he
removed the bolts that secured the wheels of King Oenomaus' chariot.
Meanwhile Pelops was receiving help from yet another source. The
gods also knew of Oenomaus' trick and, to overcome the king's advantage,
Poseidon gave Pelops horses that were faster than those of the king.
The morning of the race bloodthirsty crowds lined up along the route
as usual to see the fatal chariot race. But though they would have
their taste of blood that day, it was royal blood that would flow.
As Pelops readily took the lead, Oenomaus found himself in the unfamiliar
position of trying to come from behind. He lashed his horses to
a frenzy and, coming to a sharp turn near the end of the distance,
the horses went out of control and pulled in different directions.
The strain on the wheels made the crippled chariot explode into
fragments and the horses dragged Oenomaus to his death.
That night Myrtilus came to Pelops' quarters in the palace. "Congratulations
on your victory and your upcoming marriage. I have known the princess
since she was born and she will be a fine wife. I have come for
my final payment, as promised by Princess Hippodamia."
Pelops silently turned to face the charioteer. He knew too much
and he wanted money. Maybe he would continue wanting money or he
would tell what he knew. Pelops picked up Myrtilus and threw him
over the cliff into the sea. As he fell, Myrtilus screamed his revenge,
"May you and your descendants be cursed by your treachery!"
Pelops' reign was successful beyond compare for his campaigns conquered
innumerable lands, which became known as the Peloponnesus, and with
his military success he sired many children. Of all his children,
his favorite was his son born to a conquered slave woman. The boy's
name was Chrysippus.
Hippodamia watched the growing affection between Pelops and Chrysippus.
"How dare he feel more for a bastard than for his legitimate sons!"
she said, sulking in indignation. "He spends more time with him
than with our sons Atreus and Thyestes." Time stoked the fires of
her jealousy until, raging out of control, she murdered Chrysippus
in the night. But her plan backfired, for it was her sons, Atreus
and Thyestes, who were blamed. Empty-handed but escaping with their
lives, the young princes fled their father's wrath for the land
of Mycenae and there they married and set up their households.
Now it happened that Myrtillus, the charioteer killed by Pelops,
was the son of Hermes, and he had been watching the family events
unfold ever since the murder of his son. In his cleverness, Hermes
planted the seed for revenge. He brought a golden ram to Mycenae
and told the brothers that whoever owned it would be king. Atreus
captured the ram and quickly thereafter, he became the king.
To the jealous Thyestes, everything Atreus had was superior to what
he had; his station in life, his power, his wealth, his home, his
children, his wife. "Oh, to have what Atreus has!" Thyestes thought
and it became his obsession. In his strategy, his first successful
step was the seduction of Aerope, Atreus' wife. After that he knew
it would all come easily, for Aerope gave Thyestes the golden ram.
Thyestes claimed the kingdom of Mycenae, but his rule was not long
lived, for Zeus came to the aid of Atreus. "Abide by the oracle,"
Zeus commanded and both brothers agreed.
"Thyestes may rule until the sun moves backward on its course,"
proclaimed the oracle. Thyestes gloated over his apparent victory
for when had the sun ever turned backward on its daily journey?
Smug and secure on the throne of his stolen kingdom, Thyestes quickly
got used to privilege.
It had only been a short time since the oracle's proclamation when,
in the middle of the day, the sun was covered by a growing orb of
black. "The sun is moving backward in the sky," the people screamed.
"Where is Atreus? Zeus is telling us that Atreus must rule." Atreus
returned to power and banished his brother.
After a few months, feigning reconciliation, Atreus called for Thyestes'
return. In his brother's honor, he prepared a feast and at the festivities
he seated Thyestes next to Aerope. Vessel after vessel of wine was
poured and Thyestes kept drinking as his goblet kept being filled.
The food was served and Thyestes gluttonously stuffed himself. As
he sat back with a full belly and another full cup of wine, Atreus
rose to speak.
"My dear brother, and my dear wife, I have looked forward to this
day since the day you both betrayed me. I am delighted that you
enjoyed your dinner. Wouldn't you like to know the ingredients?
It was made by boiling Thyestes' two sons!" Atreus watched his brother
sicken and pale.
"I curse you and your sons Agamemnon and Menelaus!" Thyestes screamed
and ran from the palace.
Atreus was unaffected. "And for you, my dear wife. I reject you
as my wife. You will rot in Hades." He called his guards and they
dragged her away, never to be seen again. Atreus sat back down alone.
He smiled as he poured himself another glass of wine.
"How can I extract my revenge, all knowing oracle?" Thyestes asked
the question that dominated his waking and sleeping moments.
"Father a child on Pelopia," was the response. Pelopia was Thyestes'
daughter; and so to revenge his sons, Thyestes brutalized his own
daughter. In the middle of the night Pelopia was raped, but in the
process she stole her unknown assailant's sword.
Without a wife, King Atreus chose his niece Pelopia as his consort
and he was very happy when she gave birth to a son. They called
the boy Aegistheus and he was Atreus' favorite.
The passing years brought Aegistheus to the brink of manhood. Through
these years, Mycenae had been plagued with famine. The oracle said
the scarcity would not end until Atreus brought Thyestes back from
exile. Complying with the exact words of the oracle rather than
the intent, Atreus sent his guards to search out his brother. They
brought him back to Mycenae and imprisoned him, and Atreus sent
his son Aegistheus to the prison to kill Thyestes.
The door to his cell opened and a solemn young man stepped inside.
"Who are you and what do you want?" Thyestes asked the visitor.
The young man stood menacingly silent. His only response was to
play with his sword. Thyestes' attention, too, focused on the sword.
That had been his sword, the one taken by Pelopia.
"You must be the son of Pelopia. She gave you the sword, didn't
she? That was my sword. I am your father." Aegistheus' eyes registered
a reaction, but his face went steely again. "Bring Pelopia here
and you will see that I tell you the truth." The young man was visibly
confused. He turned and left the cell, only to arrive a short time
later with his mother.
Pelopia looked at Thyestes' eyes. "Father?" she asked as she approached.
"Yes. But I am also this boy's father. You took my sword that night."
Pelopia threw her head back in anguish. Looking at Aegistheus, she
grabbed the sword out of his hands and held it by the blade as she
plunged it into her breast and died.
"Don't kill me, I'm your father," coaxed Thyestes in a soothing
voice. "Kill Atreus, for he caused the death of your brothers and
uncles. He caused the pain of your mother and sister. He caused
your father and grandfather to be exiled for years. He stole our
throne. Kill him and let your father go."
Atreus was eagerly awaiting his son's return when Aegistheus walked
up to him and plunged his sword into his heart. Thyestes was freed
from prison and took over the throne of Mycenae, while Atreus' sons,
Agamemnon and Menelaus left Mycenae to escape their death.
Tales of
the Immortal Night ©2003, J.J. Kuhl
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