Lee Spitzer - Acoetes' Tale lyrics

On a voyage to Delos The ship I sailed on Stopped on an island We spent the night And in the morning I went to check the winds When I returned I saw my crewmates Dragging a captured youth He had a girlish beauty Seemed drunk and drowsy And stumbled as he walked I looked in his eyes And something told me This was a god I told my crew this Asked the youth forgiveness But the crew what they did was mock I tried to resist They tried to cast me overboard The rigging saved me from drowning The youth woke up Asked where he was And where they were taking him The crew all laughed And lied to the boy "Anywhere you want to go son" So the boy said "Set the sails for Naxos For it is my home." With Naxos to the east I set sail accordingly But the crew said "Fool, go west" So I surrendered the wheel For I shall only do What the boy says The boy feigned tears Began to cry "This is not where I wanted to go How can grown men Trick a young boy?" But the crew just mocked us both The ship stood still No matter how they rowed The ship would not advance And vines sprang from the ocean Held fast the ship The boy was Dionysus The crewmen wanted to scream But their screams were silenced When they turned to fish Their skin became scales Their arms became fins Their legs became tails And they were cast away Into the sea Prey for the sharks And I feared for my life But the god he spared me For I did him no harm And we sailed to Naxos Where the god he taught me His mysteries