The fleet stands still

Weeks had passed since the day the Greeks had gathered at Avlida. The flags and sails of the ships hung unfurled. The wind would not blow. "Something is happening," the warriors and kings began to say.

Oracle Calcas

And as they were in the habit of asking the seer about any serious matter, they went and asked Kalcha, the unadulterated seer. The soothsayer knew the cause, but how to tell it, it was so bitter! But he could not do otherwise. And in the presence of all the kings, he opened his mouth and said:

The cause

- Glorified kings, the goddess Artemis commanded Aeolus to shut out all the winds in his cave. The goddess is angry with you, great Agamemnon, because you once hunted and killed her sacred stag. The winds will blow again if you sacrifice your daughter to her.

The despair of Agamemnon

- Not Iphigenia, great goddess, cried Agamemnon, throwing up his hands and entering his tent in horror. They say he was crying in there and didn't want to see anyone. He was a father and he was hurting his daughter. But he was also a king, how could he say no to his country? A day or two passed, and Agamemnon couldn't make up his mind.

The decision of Agamemnon

Outside his tent, the other kings were waiting and wondering what was going to happen.

Once Agamemnon came out of his tent and said:

- Greek kings, for the good of my country I have decided to sacrifice my daughter Iphigenia.

Iphigenia is coming

He then ordered Clytemnestra to quickly send Iphigenia to Avlida, in order to marry her, ostensibly, to Achilles.

When Clytemnestra brought her daughter, decked out for a bride, she found Agamemnon very sad. She asked him why, and he told her the bitter truth.

The bravery of Iphigenia

The mother falls at his feet, and weeps and is beaten, and begs him. And Iphigenia also wept, but she would not speak. Agamemnon is moved, too; he is heartily sorry, but his country is above his child. Then Iphigenia turns to her mother and says to her:

- Make heart, my mother, queen of Mycenae. And I will do my duty as a worthy queen.

Admiration

Everything was ready for the sacrifice. Adorned like a bride, Iphigenia walked towards the altar. There Calchas was waiting.

- "Do quickly, seer, what the country commands," said the shy daughter boldly. One of the kings said softly: "Well done, brave Greek girl!" They say it was Achilles.

Salvation

The soothsayer raised the knife, but then Artemis, like a cloud, came down and took Iphigenia up and disappeared. On the altar she left a deer and the seer sacrificed it.

The beginning of the campaign

They all turned to the ships, the flags were flying and the sails were billowing. So the Greeks set off for Troy.