That left the famous spearman Odysseus on his own,
not a single Argive comrade standing by his side
since panic seized them all. Unnerved himself,
Odysseus probed his own great fighting heart.
– Homer
The Iliad, Book 11, lines 473-476. When his friend Diomedes is hit in the foot by an arrow from Paris, Odysseus decides to remain on the battlefield long enough to allow him escape. All of his fellow soldiers have fled, leaving him alone, and the Trojans are coming. But Odysseus shows her heroic qualities by staying in the fight.