drove straight against Patroclus, who stood and threw a heavy stone at
Hector; which missed him, but killed his charioteer. Then Patroclus
leaped on the charioteer to strip his armour, but Hector stood over the
body, grasping it by the head, while Patroclus dragged at the feet, and
spears and arrows flew in clouds around the fallen man. At last, towards
sunset, the Greeks drew him out of the war, and Patroclus thrice charged
into the thick of the Trojans. But the helmet of Achilles was loosened
in the fight, and fell from the head of Patroclus, and he was wounded
from behind, and Hector, in front, drove his spear clean through his
body. With his last breath Patroclus prophesied: "Death stands near
thee, Hector, at the hands of noble Achilles." But Automedon was driving
back the swift horses, carrying to Achilles the news that his dearest
friend was slain.

After Ulysses was wounded, early in this great battle, he was not able to
fight for several days, and, as the story is about Ulysses, we must tell
quite shortly how Achilles returned to the war to take vengeance for
Patroclus, and how he slew Hector. When Patroclus fell, Hector seized
the armour which the Gods had given to Peleus, and Peleus to his son
Achilles, while Achilles had lent it to Patroclus that he might terrify
the Trojans. Retiring out of reach of spears, Hector took off his own
armour and put on that of Achilles, and Greeks and Trojans fought for the
dead body of Patroclus. Then Zeus, the chief of the Gods, looked down
and said that Hector should never come home out of the battle to his
wife, Andromache. But Hector returned into the fight around the dead
Patroclus, and here all the best men fought, and even Automedon, who had
been driving the chariot of Patroclus. Now when the Trojans seemed to
have the better of the fight, the Greeks sent Antilochus, a son of old
Nestor, to tell Achilles that his friend was slain, and Antilochus ran,
and Aias and his brother protected the Greeks who were trying to carry