Paris, urged by Aphrodite and accompanied by her son Aeneas, sails for Lacedaemon (sparta) where the Trojans are welcomed with gracious xenia by King Menelaus and Queen Helen. They feast at court for nine days until Menelaus departs for Crete and Helen's brothers ride out raiding, leaving Paris alone with the queen. Aphrodite fans the flames in Helen's heart, the pair come together in secret, and in the dead of night Helen boards Paris' ship with her handmaid Aethra and Menelaus' stolen wealth, abandoning her daughter Hermione as the fleet departs for Troy. Hera sends a storm that drives them to Sidon, which Paris sacks before sailing home to Troy laden with riches, where a lavish royal wedding is held and Helen is welcomed into the royal family, while Cassandra's warnings of danger, as always, go unheeded.