The Last Voyages: IC Inbox

[worthallthis]

There is no voice message here. Better hope you got the right box.

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[loveisall]

"It was a ruse," he explains. "He wanted to know where the rest of his men were. He asked about his ship and Odysseus knew he was being fooled, so he lied to him. Polyphemus knew the lie when he heard it and grew angry."

Godric swings another pawn out on the edge of the board, trying to free his bishop.

"Now, Odysseus had brought with him to the land a bit of fine wine that had been gifted to him. Polyphemus asked him his name and, cleverly, Odysseus agreed to answer if they drank together. But, he was not truthful. He cleverly told the Cyclops that his name was 'Nobody.' Polyphemus drank the wine, too foolish to realize the potency, and eventually fell asleep, too intoxicated to stay upright.

"Odysseus and his men took the sharpened spear and stabbed the Cyclops in the eye. Of course, Polyphemus woke and cried out, attracting his equally terrifying neighbors."

[worthallthis]

B matches and blocks that pawn. "Nobody," he repeats thoughtfully. If only he could get away with that. It seems like an entirely unobjectionable title, from inside, but he's pretty sure everyone else would complain about it.

[loveisall]

"Mm, there was a reason for it." He lets the bishop loose, taking it across the board, out of reach of the pawns, but aiming directly at his knight.

"When the neighbors came, they asked what had happened. He replies 'Nobody is trying to kill me' and they think him simply ill. They advise him to pray to their father, Poseidon, and left him alone. Polyphemus, blinded now, lifted the rock from the entrance and outstretched his arms across it, hoping to catch anyone who escapes."

Godric lifts his arms, demonstrating with a smile. "Odysseus' plan had worked, but he still needed a way to get out of the cave without being touched or caught by Polyphemus."

[worthallthis]

Apparently the cyclops' neighbors are pretty dumb, to think the guy blinded himself-- but then again, so is the cyclops himself for falling for a really stupid name. They could have used an asset around to handle things like this for them.

"Guessing he came up with one?" B moves a pawn out to block the bishop, though the bishop could take the pawn if Godric wanted to.

[loveisall]

He does take that pawn, setting it aside as he continues his story.

"Of course he does. He was a man who frequently had plans." He leans forward, elbows on the table, fingers linked together, chin on his hands.

"He and the other men hid underneath the sheep as they were let out of the cave and to graze in the fields. Polyphemus realized he had been tricked after it was too late."

[worthallthis]

"He knew he had people hiding in his cave. And he let the sheep out anyway. Polyphemus is an idiot," B states firmly, and takes the bishop with his knight, which might in fact be why he sacrificed that pawn. "Good for Odysseus, though."

[loveisall]

He tsks softly, but he spies an opportunity for his rook to jump forward, taking a pawn in front of him.

"Polyphemus might have been easily tricked, but Odysseus had a large ego. Just before departing, he called out, telling the Cyclops his real name as a gloat. Polyphemus calls out to his father, Poseidon, god of the sea, and asks him to take revenge on Odysseus."

[worthallthis]

That just means the same-side rook on B's end gets to take that rook, too. B makes a derisive sort of snort at Odysseus. "Gloating never gets you anywhere." Pride doesn't, in general, in his experience. (But then, his experience is a little out of the ordinary.)

[loveisall]

He's so wrapped up in his story that he doesn't notice it's his turn again until he sees B take his rook. Ah well, he's more interested in this.

He moves his pawn, advancing on that rook.

"Odysseus had many adventures on his way to his wife and child," he tells him. "But the main theme of them all is that Odysseus is very clever, and very arrogant."

[worthallthis]

B pops his rook one space closer to Godric's side, right next to the pawn. Either move or it lose it, buddy. "Not a great combination. Sounds like somebody who gets himself into a lot of trouble."

[loveisall]

He seems to hesitate over the pawn, but moves his remaining knight instead.

"Of course he did. It would not be an interesting story if he was well behaved and made intelligent decisions," he points out.

[worthallthis]

Bye-bye pawn. Even if that results in the knight taking the rook. He made the threat, he's gonna follow through on it. "It could be," B points out, maybe with a hint of a smile. "Sometimes bad things just happen and someone has to get through them."

He's read a lot of children's books, okay.

[loveisall]

He sacrifices the pawn and takes the rook. A little petty revenge in the name of having fun.

"Mm, is that true?" He rests his hands in his lap.

"Perhaps you should start telling the stories."

[worthallthis]

Godric gets a skeptical look at his right cheek. "You don't want to listen to me. Start and stop my way through that much talking." He's aware of how he sounds, chopping his sentences up into pieces, abrupt and jerky. That's no way to tell a story.

[loveisall]

"Don't make decisions for me," he tells him softly. "I enjoy listening to you, B. Please?"

He doesn't try to meet his eyes, but instead focuses on the board.

[worthallthis]

Ugh fine. B rifles through his mental collection of stories from the shelf behind him, and decides on: "Stand back, said the elephant. I'm going to sneeze. I hate to alarm you, but I don't wish to harm you, so you'd better stand back, I'm going to sneeze."

He might chop pieces of out the recitation, because it seems like a very long poem to recite. But he does have it memorized, and recitation is not exactly an unfamiliar passtime for the first half of the twentieth century. Plus, the rhyming rhythm makes it easier to say.

It's a decidedly silly poem, though. He hopes Godric appreciates what he does for him.

Another pawn takes the knight. That defensive line is there for a reason.

[loveisall]

Godric absolutely appreciates it and can't help but keep a smile on his face at it. It's a very silly rhyme with a very silly scheme and there's something that's just so perfect about it.

He's not even bothering with the game much any longer. B can have his knight; he got his revenge anyway. He moves a remaining bishop out, though cautious about those dangerous pawns.

When B's done, he grins. "That was perfect," he tells him. "Thank you."

[worthallthis]

The story, the poem, is long enough, and he's had to take a couple minute-long breaks in the middle-- that by the time he's done they've practically finished up the game. B is closing in on Godric's king a second time, mostly because he's good at doing multiple things at once, and Godric doesn't seem to care about winning.

"It's on the shelf," he says, and tilts his head at the brightly colored collection of kids books. "It's cute."

[loveisall]

"Cute?" he laughs. "I hear that word quite often around here."

He doesn't yield quite as easily this time, moving his pieces defensively to see how long he can last.

"Have you read Aesop's fables?"

[worthallthis]

He thinks, makes another move, circling around to try and find an opening. "Don't think so. Nothing called that in the books Steve brought."

[loveisall]

Godric closes rank on his King, taking one of B's pieces in the process. "WI will bring you a copy from the library. Aesop was a Greek slave who told stories about ethics and morality that were, over time, turned into stories for children. They are entertaining though, and give a set of rules to live by."

[worthallthis]

"Rules?" There's one way to get his interest. He could use some of those. He doesn't really have a sense of what ethics and morality even mean-- well, he does, but not consciously-- so that could in fact be pretty useful.

He moves a rook to take the piece that just took his, but he's running out of options, too.

[loveisall]

Seeing an advantage, Godric presses it, sliding his queen out from hiding to safely secure that rook.

"Ah, well, there is the story of the Lion and the Mouse. A lion was sleeping peacefully in the forest when a little mouse came across him unexpectedly. In her haste to get away, she panicked and ran across his nose, waking him. The lion placed his paw on the little mouse, intending on killing her. The mouse begged for him to spare her, saying that, one day, she would be able to pay him back.

"He laughed at her, but he was generous and he allowed her to leave. Later, he found himself caught in a hunter's trap. He roared so loudly that it woke the entire forest. The little mouse recognized that roar and found him trapped in the net. Using her little teeth, she set him free.

"'See?' she said to him. 'You laughed when I said I could help you. But even a tiny mouse can help a mighty lion.'"

[worthallthis]

He considers the board a moment, then moves his last bishop to a position to threaten the queen-- which would, if not blocked, threaten the king if he took said queen. "Don't discount the small or weak. And don't laugh at people," he guesses as the rule there.

[loveisall]

He isn't letting his queen go easily this time. He blocks it with a pawn, sacrificing it for the greater good.

"That's right. And no kindness is wasted." He thinks a moment. "I'll tell you one more. There was once a dog who had a bone from a kindly butcher. The dog was eager to go home and took the bridge. He happened to look down and see himself reflected in the water. But, being foolish and a little greedy, the dog thought that the dog in the water was real and that it had a bigger bone. The dog jumped in the water to try and steal the bone from the other dog, but ended up paddling for his life to shore. Of course, he lost his bone in the process and had to go home with nothing."