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With a start, Theseus woke up. In the distance, he could see the thirteen other tributes and the sailors. Beside him lay Ariadne, peacefully sleeping.
Theseus couldn’t quite shake off the dream he had. It had been about Athena, that he was sure off. Which probably meant the goddess wanted something from him.
Come on, what had she asked for?
He looked at the sleeping princess beside him. He felt cold as he remembered what it was: The goddess had told him he should leave the island as fast as possible. Without Ariadne.
Why again? He couldn’t remember. But if she really said that (Did she?) the goddess had to have a reason for it.
He got up, careful not to wake his companion. He pulled his cloak over his shoulders while he padded over to the man on guard.
‘Theseus?’
‘Sh!’
‘Sorry. What’s the matter?’ The man whispered.
Theseus stared at the sleeping princess in the distance. ‘I had a nightmare.’
The guard nodded. ‘That’s to be expected, after what we went through…’
‘Listen for a moment, dimwit,’ he sissed, ‘I had a dream about the goddess Athena. It was vague, but I think she told me to leave, leave right now, and leave without… without Ariadne.
‘Without the princess?’
‘Sh!’
‘Sorry! Sorry! But… man, that’s…’
Theseus tore his eyes away from the girl. ‘Wake everyone and tell them to go aboard,’ he told the guard. ‘We leave immediately.’ His heart was racing in his chest. What am I doing? He thought, as he ran back to Ariadne.
Painfully slowly, he began to pack the stuff he had left next to her. A pair of sandals, a vial of wine, a simple bag...
‘Theseus!’
One of the male tributes came over to him. ‘What is going on? The guard says we have to leave because Athena told you so.’
‘I… I think I had a dream,’ Theseus mumbeld, his head spinning with doubt. ‘Athena told me to go, leave the island, without…’ He looked at Ariadne. His heart sank.
The man fiddled with the fabric of his chiton. ‘How awful. But… if Athena said it, we should go. We can’t take the chance.’
Theseus softly tucked the princess under the thin blanket he had brought. ‘I am not sure,’ he squeezed out. ‘I don’t know, perhaps it was just a dream…’
‘We can’t take that for granted. I’d rather leave than bring the anger of the goddess upon us. That… that wouldn’t be good for the princess, either.’
Theseus cursed himself. Why, why had he awoken everyone? Now there was no way back.
He leaned down to kiss Ariadne on her forehead. ‘I think the princess would have woken up if the goddess didn’t want us to leave,’ the youth stammered.
‘There are no signs against leaving either,’ Theseus agreed. He gave the princess a second kiss, and a third one, before slowly turning around.
If it hadn’t been for the tributes all running aboard, he could have never made it back to the boat. He felt too much doubt.
When they were asail, Theseus stared at Naxos, which was getting further and further away. ‘I don’t think I really… loved her,’ he muttered to the tribute next to him. ‘Not the way she loved me. But I did care. I cared about her!’ He yelled to the waves. ‘I cared! You hear me? Whoever told me to do this, or whispered the idea into my ear, just know that I cared about her!’
A gust of wind came and caressed his face. It smelled sweet, like grapes right before they were plucked. ‘...thank you.’
‘We’ve got the wind in our back,’ One of the sailors exclaimed.
‘... Then we’ll reach Athens when morning comes,’ Theseus continued. He walked to the middle of the ship. ‘Or otherwise in the afternoon.’ There was no thinking of the princess now. He had to take care of his crew. If the goddess really told him to leave her there, she would have a plan. Then Ariadne would be safe.
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Theseus took a deep breath when he stepped into the throneroom. He felt exhausted. ‘I followed the gods orders,’ he whispered. ‘I did all they asked. And this is what I get.’
A sailor nodded along. ‘It’s a terrible loss. But you are the king of Athens, now…’
Theseus seized the man by the throat. ‘Listen up, bastard. I lost two people I cared about, loved, in a very short time. That doesn’t weigh up to becoming king. Perhaps you’re little family should die, see how you feel!’
He felt his shoulders grow heavy. Shock made his skin crawl. He let the man go, feeling odd. ‘I… so... sorry.’
The man whimpered and ran away.
Theseus took a deep breath. No time to think about him. ‘I’ve got things to tend to,’ he announced. ‘The kingdom needs to be protected. Nothing will come in between that.’
An advisor held up his hand. ‘What about Crete?’
‘I wanted to start an alliance with Crete,’ Theseus answered his fathers’ - his advisor. ‘I think… that might be our priority now.’ Unless... No, no, no. No time for doubts.
He had made a choice. Now he had to stick to it the best he could.