Astyanax of Troy

The blade came against my skin, and it felt great. I finally could see all these things crystal clear. I was free at last. I wished I had done this long time ago, but I was too young, and Troy gave me nothing to fulfill my desire. A year ago, Odysseus had taken me away from the deserted land. I had imagined all the knives and poisons I could use to reach to the light. Troy had been mean to me, both the people and the sand. The sand was a curse. It absorbed the sun light and burn my feet since I was able to stand on my own feet. It absorbed all the lives of animals and trees. The sand was evil because it wouldn’t absorb my life. My soul was burried within, but it still allowed me to stand and live. It hurt more and more to walk on the empty sand with an empty soul day by day.

***

So last year, when Odysseus’s confidant came to Troy to take me away, I knew that I could find a way. The confidant told me that Odysseus took me as a replacement of my dead grandmother. When I heard his words, there’s a silent whisper in my mind. A way out. I must find my mother. The land where Odysseus lived was amazing. This could have been Troy if I was a boy. He was a devil however. He had a cold heart. As cold as the pain left in my skin everytime he hit me. I had been trying to run away to seek for my mother. He caught me, but he liked me so he did not kill me. Equally painful,  he would hit and kick me, and desecrate my being as a girl. One day while doing it, he shouted to me, “You look just like your dead mother.” When I heard his words, there’s a silent whisper in my mind. A way out. That very afternoon I sneaked into the kitchen and took a rusty knife from the rack. The blade came against my skin, and it felt great. I was free at last.

Sisilana D. M. Poyk

A student of English Dept. Universitas Indonesia who plays a bit of cricket. This story is inspired by a greek tragedy title The Trojan Woman by Euripides. The story was written with a twist which positions Astyanax as a female character instead of a male character like in the original story.