The great god gave a terrible shout, to deter Achilles

From the battle for fear of the supernatural voice

Of a god and so to save the Trojans from being killed:

“Back off, son of Peleus, away from the Trojans. No longer

May you inflict the evil Fates upon your foes,

Or one of the deities of Olympos may destroy you.”

But Achilles did not quail at the god’s immortal voice;

Already the merciless Fates were hovering over him.

So without respect for the god he shouted back at him;

“Phoibos, why do you rouse me, even against my will,

To fight against gods, in order to save the arrogant Trojans?

Once before you tricked and decoyed me from the fighting,

The first time that you rescued Hektor from death,

The man the Trojans exalted so highly in their city.

Back off now, far away, and join the rest of the gods

At home, or I will strike you, immortal though you are.”

With that he left the deity far behind, pursuing

The Trojans who were still in flight before the city.

While he was chasing them, the heart of Phoibos Apollo

Was filled with anger and to himself he spoke these words:

“Alas, the man has taken leave of his mind. But now

Not even the son of Kronos himself or anyone else

Can tolerate such insane defiance of the gods.”

That said, he made himself invisible with cloud

And from his cloak of mist he shot a baleful shaft,

Which sped and struck Achilles’ ankle. Immediately pain

Penetrated his heart and toppled him, like a tower

That from the force of a subterranean vortex

Collapses on top of the deeply shaken earth;

So fell to the ground the handsome frame of Aiakos’ grandson.

Looking all about him he uttered this deadly curse:

“Who was it shot a dreadful arrow at me by stealth?

Let him have the courage to face me openly,

To have his blood and all his bowels come gushing out

Around my spear, to send him off to sorrowful Hades.

For well I know there is no warrior in the world

Who at close quarters can overcome me with his spear,

Even with an utterly dauntless heart in his breast,

A totally dauntless heart and a body of bronze.

Stealth is the weakling’s way to snare a better man.

Just let him face me, even if he says he’s a god

Who’s angry with the Danaans; I suspect in my heart

It is Apollo concealed in sinister darkness.

So my beloved mother once revealed to me

That by Apollo’s arrows I’d die a miserable death

Close to the Skaian Gate, and they were no idle words.”

That said, with unflinching hands he pulled the fatal arrow

Out of a wound that could not heal. Out gushed the blood,

As he was gripped with pain and his heart was yielding to death.