Thersandros

By Jerrol Langford

Thersandros grows up in Argos, far from the city of Thebes where his father Polynikes had been the king, before being exiled by his brother Eteokles. When Thersandros was eight, the King of Argos formed an army and marched to Thebes with the intention of restoring his son-in-law Polynikes to the Theban throne. This war was called the Seven Against Thebes, because Thebes had seven gates, and King Adrastus divided his army into seven groups, assigned a leader to each group, and sent each of the Seven Leaders to attack a different gate. The Thebans defended their city and killed every man from Argos, except Adrastus, who escaped the battle because he had the largest, fastest horse, named Arion. From the day his father died, Thersandros has plotted to avenge Polynikes, but the other young men in Argos have no interest in a second venture against Thebes, because they all lost fathers in the first one. When he is sixteen, Thersandros visits the Oracle of Delphi, tells the Sibyl about his father, the Seven Against Thebes, and the difficulties he is having convincing the Sons of the Seven to avenge their fathers. The Sibyl goes into a trance and speaks with the voice of Apollo: "The sons will be successful where their fathers failed, if each son attacks the same gate as his father and Alkmaion is the commander." Even with a prophecy that guarantees their victory, some of the Sons of the Seven still refuse to risk their lives in a return to Seven Gated Thebes. In order to fulfill the prophecy, Thersandros needs all seven. If they go to Thebes with fewer than Seven Sons, they fear the result of the second attack will be the same as the first. Thersandros falls in love with Demonassa, the prettiest girl in Argos, but her brother, Alkmaion, one of the three Kings of Argos, vows that his sister will only marry a king or a King's Heir. Since Thersandros is neither, Alkmaion betroths his sister to the Prince of Tiryns. In order to marry his love, the son of Polynikes must find a way to claim the Theban throne that was taken from his father. To fulfill the prophecy, he needs the Sons of the Seven to join him. Each one is different and requires a different means of convincing. And Thersandros has to get all of them to Thebes, before the wedding can take place. 'We boast ourselves as even better men than our fathers; we took seven-gated Thebes, though the wall was stronger and our men were fewer in number' - Homer, The Iliad

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1688810528
• ISBN13: 9781688810525
• Release Date: August 2019
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 485 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 1.2" x 5.0"