he son of Anchises escape the notice of white-armed
Juno, as he went forth into the throng to meet Achilles. She called the
gods about her, and said, "Look to it, you two, Neptune and Minerva,
and consider how this shall be; Phoebus Apollo has been sending Aeneas
clad in full armour to fight Achilles. Shall we turn him back at once,
or shall one of us stand by Achilles and endow him with strength so
that his heart fail not, and he may learn that the chiefs of the
immortals are on his side, while the others who have all along been
defending the Trojans are but vain helpers? Let us all come down from
Olympus and join in the fight, that this day he may take no hurt at the
hands of the Trojans. Hereafter let him suffer whatever fate may have
spun out for him when he was begotten and his mother bore him. If
Achilles be not thus assured by the voice of a god, he may come to fear
presently when one of us meets him in battle, for the gods are terrible
if they are seen face to face."

Neptune lord of the earthquake answered her saying, "Juno, restrain
your fury; it is not well; I am not in favour of forcing the other gods
to fight us, for the advantage is too greatly on our own side; let us
take our places on some hill out of the beaten track, and let mortals
fight it out among themselves. If Mars or Phoebus Apollo begin
fighting, or keep Achilles in check so that he cannot fight, we too,
will at once raise the cry of battle, and in that case they will soon
leave the field and go back vanquished to Olympus among the other gods."

With these words the dark-haired god led the way to the high
earth-barrow of Hercules, built round solid masonry, and made by the
Trojans and Pallas Minerva for him to fly to when the sea-monster was
chasing him from the shore on to the plain. Here Neptune and those that
were with him took their seats, wrapped in a thick cloud of darkness;
but the other gods seated themselves on the brow of Callicolone round
you, O Phoebus, and Mars the waster of cities.

Thus did the gods sit apart and form their plans, but neither side was
willing to begin battle with the other, and Jove from his seat on high
was in command over them all. Meanwhile the whole plain was alive with
men and horses, and blazing with the gleam of armour. The earth rang
again under the tramp of their feet as they rushed towards each other,
and two champions, by far the foremost of them all, met between the
hosts to fight--to wit, Aeneas so