FOUR

THE MYSTERIOUS SHORE

Soon the Greek ships came upon a hilly island, thick with trees. No humans seemed to live there. Hundreds of wild goats could be heard bleating from the island’s gloomy thickets.

Odysseus ordered his men to drop anchor in the shelter of a mist-covered bay. By the time the Greeks had lowered their sails, night had fallen. The moon was hidden by clouds. In the pitch dark, the men lay down on the sandy shore and slept.

When daylight came, the men woke to see woodland nymphs, the daughters of Zeus, driving wild goats down from the hills. The hungry Greeks eagerly grabbed their bows and spears and slew more than a hundred goats.

All day, the Greeks lingered on the island, feasting on roasted meat and drinking sweet wine. As the sun went down, they stared at a mysterious shore across the water. Smoke rose from fires on the side of a mountain. The murmur of deep voices and the bleating of sheep wafted through the twilight.

Who lives there? Who stokes those fires? Odysseus wondered silently. Are they friendly or lawless men?

Darkness fell, and the Greeks slept once more on the sand. When he was wakened by the rosy dawn, Odysseus stared again at the mysterious shore in the distance. Though he was yearning to set sail for Ithaca, a strange curiosity had taken hold of him.

Odysseus woke his men. “I must know who lives on that far shore,” he said. “With a single ship, I will lead an expedition to find out whether they are savages or civilized humans. Then we will continue our journey home.”

Odysseus chose his bravest men to go with him. They untied a ship from their fleet and pushed off from the island.

Soon the Greeks were swinging their long oars into the calm face of the sea, rowing toward the mysterious shore. When they drew close, they dropped anchor beneath a tall, rocky cliff.

Odysseus filled a goatskin with the best wine he had on board, made from the sweetest grapes. “This will be our gift to repay the hospitality of anyone who welcomes us into his home,” he said.

He ordered some of his men to remain with the ship, then led the rest up the side of the cliff. On a ledge high above the water, they discovered a large, shady clearing. On the other side of the clearing, creeping vines hung over the mouth of a cave. The Greeks pushed past the vines and stepped inside.

The cave was filled with young goats and lambs. Pots of cheese and pails of goat’s milk were everywhere. But there was no sign of a shepherd.

“Hurry!” said one of Odysseus’ men. “Let us grab provisions and leave!”

“Yes! We should drive the lambs down to our ship before their master returns!” said another.

“No,” said Odysseus. “We will wait awhile….I am curious to see who lives here.”

The Greeks made a fire and gave an offering to the gods. Then they greedily took their fill of milk and cheese. Finally, in the late afternoon, they heard whistling and bleating.

“Ah, the shepherd returns,” Odysseus said. “Let us step forward and meet this man.”

But when they peered out of the cave, the Greeks gasped with horror—for the shepherd was not a man at all. He was a monster.