146This toil, this fight brought a rest of many days, and both sides laid down their arms and held off. 148And while watchful guards keep the Phrygian walls and watchful guards keep the Argive trenches, a feast day had come, on which Achilles, victor over Cygnus, was appeasing Pallas with the blood of a slaughtered heifer. 152When he had laid its entrails on the warm altars and the savour, welcome to the gods, had made its way into the upper air, the rites took their share; the rest was given to the tables. 155The chieftains reclined on couches and fill their bodies with roasted meat and relieve both their cares and their thirst with wine.
157Not lyres, not songs of voices, not the long pipe of many-holed boxwood delights them, but they draw out the night in talk, and valour is the matter of their speaking: they recount their enemies' battles and their own, and it pleases them to recall, by turns and often, dangers met and endured — for what would Achilles talk of, or what would they rather talk of in the presence of great Achilles? 164Above all, the recent victory over the conquered Cygnus was in their talk. 165It seemed a marvel to all that the young man's body could be pierced by no weapon, was unconquerable by wounds and wore down the iron.
168This the grandson of Aeacus himself, this the Achaeans were marvelling at, when Nestor speaks thus: 'In your age there has been only one who scorned iron and could be pierced by no blow, Cygnus. 171But I myself once saw Perrhaebian Caeneus endure a thousand wounds with his body unharmed, Caeneus the Perrhaebian, who, famous for his deeds, dwelt on Othrys; 174and, to make this more marvellous in him, he had been born a woman.' 175All who are present are struck by the strangeness of the prodigy, and ask him to tell the tale. 176Among them Achilles: 'Come, tell us! 177for all of us have the same wish to hear, eloquent old man, wisdom of our age: who Caeneus was, why he was turned into the opposite sex, in what campaign, in the struggle of what battle you came to know him, by whom he was conquered, if he was conquered by anyone.' 182Then the old man: 'Though slow old age hinders me, and many things seen in my early years escape me, yet I remember more.
184Nor, among so many deeds of war and of peace, is there anything that clings more firmly in my breast. 186And if long old age could make anyone a spectator of many deeds, I have lived two hundred years; 188now I am living my third age. 189Caenis, the child of Elatus, was famous for her beauty, the loveliest maiden among the Thessalian women, and through the neighbouring cities and through your cities (for she was of your people, Achilles) she was longed for, in vain, in the prayers of many suitors. 193Peleus too might perhaps have sought that marriage, but already marriage with your mother had either fallen to him or been promised.
195Caenis did not enter into any marriage, and as she walked along a lonely shore she suffered violence from the god of the sea (so rumour said), and when Neptune had taken the joys of his new love, he said: 'Your prayers may be sure of no refusal: choose what you will pray for!' 200(this too the same rumour reported). 201'This wrong,' says Caenis, 'makes my prayer a great one: 202that I may never again be able to suffer such a thing; 202grant that I be not a woman: you will have granted everything.' 203She spoke the last words in a deeper tone, and that voice could seem a man's, as indeed it was; 205for already the god of the deep sea had assented to the prayer, and had granted besides that he could not be wounded by any blows or fall by the sword.
208Glad at the gift, the Atracian goes off and spends his life in manly pursuits and roams the fields of the Peneus.