Week 13 Story Planning: Diomedes

I didn't expect to read Diomedes' name among those Dante placed in the Inferno, especially for fraud. I'd like to write a story about how he got there, why he's still there, and what he's planning to do about it.

Diomedes is one of the most badass Greek heroes around. Notable especially in this context is the fact that he fought gods, especially Ares and Aphrodite, and was a favorite of Athena. He had impenetrable armor crafted by Hephaestus, and a shield and helmet enchanted by Athena, the latter of which he could then use to blast flames at anyone unfortunate enough to fight him.

"He fights with fury and fills men's souls with panic.  I hold him mightiest of them all; we did not fear even their great champion Achilles, son of an immortal though he be, as we do this man:  his rage is beyond all bounds, and there is none can vie with him in prowess."

So ultimately, I don't believe Diomedes would be sitting around in the eighth circle of the Inferno without choosing to be there, and I would like to explore that. 

Part 1

• Diomedes arrives in Circle 8: Fraud, finds Odysseus, and recounts his journey from Elysium and into the Inferno up to that point. 
• D was hanging out in Elysium with his old friends and ex-enemies, fellow heroes and famous good guys from other Greek legends. After a few thousand years, he's bored with the perfect nature of Elysium and itching to go exploring and waging war again. Coincidentally, a messenger shows up at that time with a message: Satan has a claim on your soul, and you're due to be punished for your crimes in the Inferno. D agrees to go along because he sees it as a change for excitement and adventure, and possibly getting back to Earth. He's also curious about those crimes. 
• Recount continued: D arrives on Charon's boat. Minos judges him and sends him to the eighth circle, but doesn't say what the circle's theme or punishment is. On the way, D notably walks through Circle 2: Lust. There, he sees Aphrodite being punished and made an example of for the other sinners there. He also sees Cerberus in the third circle, and Ares in the seventh.
• Back in the present, D wonders why he's been put in the circle of Fraud. He's not too affected by the punishment there, since he's used to being around shooting flames and fireballs. Odysseus explains their shared crimes as "Counselors of Fraud": the theft of the Palladium, persuading Achilles to sail for Troy and therefore causing Deidamia to die of grief, and the stratagem of the Trojan Horse. 
• D figures he's spent enough time here, and decides he'd like to head back up to Earth to see how his former kingdom is doing. Odysseus warns him of the Inferno's enforcers and how, even if he did escape, he'd be relentlessly pursued. Diomedes decides the only way to stop this is to atone for his three crimes. 

Part 2

• Diomedes' first crime, the theft of the Palladium, has already been atoned for since he returned in life. 
• The second crime he atones for by clawing his way back up to Circle 2: Lust. On the way, he grabs Cerberus and sets him loose in the Circle 2 to make his job easier. He finds Deidamia and rescues her. He also helps Aphrodite out, who returns the favor by telling him Athena, D's favorite goddess, is in Circle 6: Heresy. 
• The third crime, the Trojan Horse, is trickiest. D decides the Trojan Horse represented strategical warfare a la Athena. So of course, he has to go fight Athena. 
• He either does that and wins, and escapes in the aftermath, or decides to take Athena to the ninth circle so they can both deal with Satan together.

Tony Kline: Dante's Divine Comedy
Badass of the Week: Diomedes
Wikipedia: Diomedes
Wikimedia Commons: Diomedes