The Song of Achilles

At her temple a starburst of white gleams like bone, the scar from the time her father hit her with the hilt of a sword. Nine months later, her womb yielded two sets of twins: Clytemnestra and Castor, children of her mortal husband; Helen and Polydeuces, the shining cygnets of the god. Aeneas, his name is, a child of Aphrodite herself.” “What about Hector?” Achilles’ eyes never left Odysseus. “Priam’s oldest son and heir, favorite of the god Apollo. Finally: panicked runners, bringing news of retreats and wounds among the kings.