Aen. 5.183Hīc laeta extrēmīs spēs est accēnsa duōbus,
Sergestō Mnēstheīque, Gyān superāre morantem.At this a happy hope was kindled in the last two, Sergestus and Mnestheus, of passing Gyas as he lagged. Aen. 5.185Sergestus capit ante locum scopulōque propinquat,
nec tōtā tamen ille prior praeeunte carīnā;Sergestus takes the lead and draws near the rock, yet he is not ahead by a whole keel's length; Aen. 5.187parte prior, partem rōstrō premit aemula Pristis.he is ahead by part, and the rival Pristis presses on part with her beak. Aen. 5.188At mediā sociōs incēdēns nāve per ipsōs
hortātur Mnēstheus: Nunc, nunc īnsurgite remīs,
190Hectoreī sociī, Troiae quōs sorte suprēmā
dēlēgī comitēs;But Mnestheus, striding amidships among his comrades themselves, urges them on: 'Now, now rise to the oars, comrades of Hector, whom I chose as companions in Troy's last hour; Aen. 5.191nunc illās prōmite vīrēs,
nunc animōs, quibus in Gaetūlīs Syrtibus ūsī,
Īoniōque marī Maleaeque sequācibus undīs.now bring out that strength, now that courage, which you used in the Gaetulian Syrtes, on the Ionian sea and in the pursuing waves of Malea. Aen. 5.194Nōn iam prīma petō Mnēstheus, neque vincere certō;I, Mnestheus, no longer seek first place, nor strive to win; Aen. 5.195quamquam Ō!—sed superent, quibus hoc, Neptūne, dedistī;and yet, oh!—but let those win to whom you, Neptune, have granted this; Aen. 5.196extrēmōs pudeat rediisse;let it be shameful to come back last; Aen. 5.196hoc vincite, cīvēs,
et prohibēte nefās.win this at least, fellow citizens, and prevent the disgrace.' Aen. 5.197Ollī certāmine summō
prōcumbunt;They bend forward with the utmost effort; Aen. 5.198vāstīs tremit ictibus aerea puppis,
subtrahiturque sōlum;the bronze stern trembles at their mighty strokes, and the sea-floor slips away beneath; Aen. 5.199tum crēber anhēlitus artūs
200āridaque ōra quatit, sūdor fluit undique rīvīs.then quick panting shakes their limbs and parched mouths, and sweat flows everywhere in streams.
Aen. 5.201Attulit ipse virīs optātum cāsus honōrem.Chance itself brought the men the honour they longed for. Aen. 5.202Namque furēns animī dum prōram ad saxa suburguet
interior, spatiōque subit Sergestus inīquō,
īnfēlīx saxīs in prōcurrentibus haesit.For while Sergestus, wild at heart, drives his prow on towards the rocks on the inside and enters the dangerous space, unlucky, he stuck fast on the jutting rocks. Aen. 5.205Concussae cautēs, et acūtō in mūrice remī
obnīxī crepuēre, inlīsaque prōra pependit.The crags were shaken, the oars, straining against the sharp reef, cracked, and the prow, dashed upon it, hung there. Aen. 5.207Cōnsurgunt nautae et magnō clamōre morantur,
ferrātāsque trūdēs et acūtā cuspide contōs
expediunt, frāctōsque legunt in gurgite remōs.The sailors leap up and with loud shouts come to a halt, and get out iron-shod poles and sharp-pointed boathooks, and gather up the broken oars in the flood. Aen. 5.210At laetus Mnēstheus successūque ācrior ipsō
agmine remōrum celerī ventīsque vocātīs
prōna petit maria et pelagō dēcurrit apertō.But Mnestheus, glad and keener for his very success, with a swift sweep of oars and calling on the winds, makes for the sloping waters and runs down the open sea.
Aen. 5.213Quālis spēluncā subitō commōta columba,
cui domus et dulcēs latebrōsō in pūmice nīdī,
215fertur in arva volāns, plausumque exterrita pennīs
dat tēctō ingentem, mox āere lapsa quiētō
rādit iter liquidum, celerēs neque commovet alās:
sīc Mnēstheus, sīc ipsa fugā secat ultima Pristis
aequora, sīc illam fert impetus ipse volantem.As a dove, suddenly startled from a cave, whose home and sweet nest are in the hollows of the rock, flies off towards the fields and, terrified, gives a loud clapping of wings in her dwelling, then, gliding through the quiet air, skims her liquid path and does not move her swift wings: so Mnestheus, so the Pristis herself cuts through the last stretch of water in her flight, so her very momentum carries her flying. Aen. 5.220Et prīmum in scopulō luctantem dēserit altō
Sergestum, brevibusque vadīs frūstrāque vocantem
auxilia, et frāctīs discentem currere remīs
Inde Gyān ipsamque ingentī mōle Chimaeram
cōnsequitur;And first he leaves behind Sergestus, struggling on the high rock and in the shallows, calling vainly for help and learning to race with broken oars. Then he overtakes Gyas and the Chimaera herself with her huge bulk; Aen. 5.224cēdit, quoniam spoliāta magistrō est.she gives way, since she is robbed of her helmsman.