All our leather goods got mouldy. The Greeks and Macedonians, coming from dry countries with nice climates, were astounded. The barbarians, huge, red-haired, and furry as bears, begged to go back to their mountain homes before they melted away.
Alexander took pity on his troops of mountain men, and he did send quite a few of them back. Pharnabazus couldn’t stand the heat, but he was determined to remain by his brother-in-law’s side.
We stayed in our camp two more weeks, then we moved inland, trying to find some shade. Porus had taken his family to the mountains where he usually spent the summer months. He left the palace for us if we pleased, but Alexander was shy about staying somewhere without his host. I could understand that. We wandered about the city, but we stayed at the camp with the soldiers. And Roxanne.
She was beginning to get on my nerves. She would simply not accept her role of fourth wife. Well, I suppose it sounds ridiculous, but I didn’t like the girl. She was too sly, too cunning, and too much in love with Alexander’s power to leave him alone. And most of all she wanted to do away with the competition, which is the real reason I didn’t like her.
The competition being Chiron and me, of course. She still hadn’t caught on to Plexis. Plexis who shared our tent – although, believe me, it was so hot that nobody slept together. We stayed as far apart as possible. We lifted up the tent walls and slept with the night breeze cooling our bodies.
One night, someone slipped in the tent and tried to kill Chiron. He had been poorly, cranky with the heat and whining, so I had put him at the foot of my bed. He wasn’t in his little hammock. We woke up when Axiom screamed. He had never screamed before. The sound catapulted Alexander out of bed, and he stood naked in the middle of the tent, his eyes wild, asking, ‘What is it? What is it?’
Chiron started to wail, and I had to grab him before he rolled off the bed.
Axiom stared at Chiron. Then he stared into the hammock Chiron usually slept in. His eyes rolled up in his head and he dropped to the floor.
In Chiron’s hammock was a small cobra.
I felt faint when I saw that. Alexander lifted the slithery reptile out of the hammock with the point of his sword then he tossed it in the air and sliced its head off with a quick slash.
Plexis, who could sleep through anything, sat up and blinked. He yawned, looked at the headless snake next to his pallet, and lay back down. Then he shot upright. ‘What in Hades is that?’ he yelled, scrambling to his feet.
‘A cobra.’ I clutched Chiron tighter. ‘The tail doesn’t sting, it’s the fangs that have the poison.’
‘I know that!’ said Plexis. His broken arm was still in a sling and he moved it gingerly.
Axiom was sitting on the floor rubbing his face. ‘When I woke up, I glanced in Chiron’s hammock, as I do every morning. I saw a huge snail. I was shocked. I thought, ‘what happened to Chiron?’ and I poked the snail. It reared up and hissed at me. I swear, for a moment I thought that Chiron had been turned into a snake. I hate snakes,’ he said in a shaking voice.
‘I don’t hate them, but it’s best to watch out. These snakes are more deadly than the vipers you have in Greece. Their poison is a neurotoxin, I believe,’ I went on, oblivious to the fact I was holding Chiron so tightly he was crying, and I was gibbering. ‘When they bite, you have to rush to the hospital and get an anti-venom shot. They make those with horse’s blood you know, it’s really quite interesting …’
Alexander sat next to me and pried Chiron out of my grasp. He handed the screaming boy to Brazza, then he took me in his arms. ‘Ashley, be quiet. It’s all right. Chiron’s fine and the snake is dead. Porus told me about such beasts. We will be careful. I have a surprise for you. Do you know what it is?’
I turned to face him, I still felt strangely cold despite the heat. ‘What is it?’
‘We’re going to go towards the great sacred river in the east. It may be cooler there. I’ve heard tales of trees so large a whole army can shelter under one, and there are sages who will speak of the mysteries of the world. I’ve decided to leave half the army here and take the other half west. In three months, we will meet and sail down the Indus.’
‘That sounds nice,’ I said cautiously.
‘I thought you would like the idea.’
‘Well, I have an even better idea. Let’s go home now.’ I was staring at the serpent, my face stiff.
He looked at me in shock. ‘You don’t want to come with me?’
I glanced up at him. The tone of his voice made me flinch. ‘I’m sorry. Of course I do. But can you promise me something?’
‘It depends,’ he said warily.
‘Install Roxanne and her court in Porus’s palace until we return. I think she’s responsible for the snake in Chiron’s bed.’
He started to say something, but thought the better of it. ‘Fine,’ he said shortly and left the tent. The sun was starting to rise. It was going to be a busy day.
We travelled through the summer’s heat towards the heart of India. The men would have liked the voyage a great deal more if the weather had been clement, but the sky was a hot brass bowl cupped over our heads, and when the sun didn’t shine it rained; waterfalls of water fell upon us. We all took off our clothes and went naked. That was the first thing that lifted our spirits. When the sun shone, we draped the light, brightly coloured Indian cottons over our heads, and I devised parasols for everyone.
It made the army look positively friendly. A bunch of naked men carrying red and pink parasols.
Feet were the next problem. Damp, sore, infected feet. We had to wear sandals all the time. The leather rotted quickly, so the sandal maker was the busiest man in the army during the march.
Snakes were not much trouble. The vibration the army made as it walked warned the serpents that we were coming, and they cleared the area. But the scouts were bitten often, and we lost nearly ten men to cobra bites. The horses were hot, but they didn’t suffer from snake bites. However, any cut that wasn’t immediately disinfected became a dangerous wound. Usse and his doctors made antiseptic every evening when we camped and supplied the whole army with salves and creams.
The ground was so wet that we slept in hammocks. It was nice, except when it rained. At first our hammocks filled up like bathtubs. Then we traded our cloth hammocks for the open-weave kind. We all slept better after that.
We managed to stay more or less healthy, but there were cases of malaria that the doctors treated with fever nuts and a drink made from ginger, cinnamon and grapefruit.
The land was rich and we didn’t suffer from hunger, but food spoiled so quickly that we had to be very careful. We lost a few soldiers to food poisoning.
We crossed four rivers, endless plains, skirted the mountains, and arrived in front of the mighty Beas River after four weeks’ march.
Chapter Sixteen
We were exhausted. The heat and the humidity were unrelenting. Mosquitoes buzzed everywhere, and I was as cranky as Chiron. He was seven months old. He sat up by himself, and I’d invented a sort of saddle with a little roof over it so he could ride and still be in the shade. However, I’d nearly run out of mosquito cream and Usse couldn’t find any more citronella. The mosquitoes drove us crazy. They were dreadful.
We sat on the banks of the Beas River and we stared at the churning, muddy expanse of water with the flat plains stretching after it. Flat as far as the eye could see. It wasn’t even a particularly pretty place, and we all decided, ‘This is it. We’re not moving another inch.’
All of us except Alexander, of course.
It was like being with a huge, hyperactive, unnaturally healthy five-year-old. He was full of energy. The heat, the mosquitoes, the dysentery – none of this got to him.
He darted into a huge clump of reeds and speared a three metre cobra, pulling it out by the tail. He decided it wasn’t quite dead when it suddenly twisted around and tried to strike at him. He danced backwards with a pleased laugh and teased the monster before dispatching it with a careless
chop, hardly even looking at it.
We all looked at him. I could hear the other men’s thoughts. They went along these lines: ‘It’s all fine for him. His father was a god, his ancestors were immortal.’ ‘Look at that fool, nothing can kill him. If the snake bit him the snake would probably be the one to suffer the most.’ ‘Look at us, covered with mosquito welts, bleeding from the arse, our feet a mass of soggy blisters, and our hair growing mould. Even the lice in our hair have mould on them. And look at that guy! Can’t he sit down and relax?’ ‘What’s he doing now?’ ‘Shit! Is there another snake in that bush?!’
The men around me all jumped backwards as the female cobra shot out of the tall grass. Alexander had somehow found the nest. There was a moment’s mass hysteria as everyone panicked and tried to climb into everyone else’s arms. Including the horses. Then Alexander, crowing loudly, leaned over and grabbed the snake. Cracking it like a bullwhip he snapped the head right off, making it sail ten metres in the air to land with a ‘plop’ in the river.
‘There are eggs here too!’ he cried happily.
We looked at each other. It was time for someone to say something, but nobody knew quite what, or how. Most of the men looked at me, hopefully, but I just smiled wryly. No way. I had to live with the guy. I wasn’t going to be the one to announce the mutiny.
It was Coenus who stood up and accepted the burden. I reached over and squeezed his hand affectionately. He looked down at me and his mouth quirked. He cleared his throat.
Alexander wiped his hands on his thighs and turned to us, smiling. The smile slid across his face like oil though, he knew us too well.
‘What is it?’ he asked, frowning.
‘My king,’ began Coenus, then stopped. He drew a deep breath and started again. ‘Iskander. I speak on the behalf of the army, on behalf of the soldiers, and on behalf of your lady wif …’ He stopped when I jabbed his leg.
‘Not me,’ I whispered.
‘On behalf of the rank and file,’ he continued, rubbing his leg. ‘We have succeeded beyond our wildest dreams. You have recaptured the crown of Persia, which is yours by right, and we have reached the very heart of Indus. Now it is time to return, my king. We would go back and see our families. We are tired, our bodies and spirits are broken and wounded. We cannot go on. Please, sire, the sign of a great leader is knowing when his men want to stop.’
There was silence after his speech. Some men were weeping, though. They saw in Alexander’s face his desolation and bitter disappointment, and they felt his heartbreak as strongly as their own fatigue.
‘I’m sorry,’ whispered Coenus.
Alexander looked down at his feet. Two bright patches appeared in his cheeks. He blinked hard, biting his lips. The face of a thwarted child. However, he raised his head and faced them. The child tried to take over, but the king held on. ‘Very well,’ he said. ‘I agree. We will return.’ He stopped and drew a deep breath. ‘But I will go on.’
There was a shocked murmur, and he held up both hands. ‘No, listen to me. I will go on to the sacred river. It is a ten-day march from here. While I am gone I want you to construct twelve altars to the twelve great gods of Olympus. Make them of grass and green wood, and when I return in twenty-four days’ time we will burn them and sacrifice to the gods.’
There was a furious cheering from the soldiers. Now everyone was weeping. The adventure was over, we were going home.
Coenus, Plexis, and I accompanied Alexander to the river Ganges. Riding with us, were Usse, twenty cavalry, thirty Indian guides, two translators, and Chiron, of course.
The trip was actually easier. After crossing the Beas River the land sloped gently upwards. We were heading towards the mightiest river in India and the fabled city of Patna, a city that rivalled even Babylon, the biggest city the ancient Greeks could imagine.
The weather seemed to favour us, sending light rain but no deluges, and clouds kept the heat bearable.
We marched as quickly as our horses would take us, and in ten days we came within sight of the holiest of rivers, the sacred Ganges.
Our Indian guides and translators prostrated themselves when they saw it. They remained kneeling for an hour, moaning and chanting while we stared, quite awed by their fervour. Then we trotted down the rocky road leading to the river bank, where we were met by the great rajah of India himself, the Rajah of the Ganges.
He had heard of Alexander’s coming and knew we were unarmed. Therefore he met us simply, with only one thousand of his three thousand elephants and only fifty thousand of his hundred thousand cavalry.
And only thirty of his one hundred wives. Next to him, Porus was a monk.
Alexander’s spirits lifted. We spent three days being fêted in a magnificent palace on the banks of the sacred river. Every night there was a feast. There was music and dancing all day and all night, and the king asked Alexander to accept humble presents such as fifty horses, a new tent, a white elephant, and at least a ton of silks and cottons for his wives.
Alexander stared in fascination at the bevy of beautiful women surrounding the king. ‘I have but one real wife,’ he said, ‘my lady Ashley. Although I do have two other wives I married for politics. Did you do the same?’ he asked.
The rajah laughed, a rich sound that came out of his thick torso. He was a very large man, his skin was shiny brown, his black hair hidden beneath a light blue silk turban. ‘No, I married my wives because they were the flowers of my kingdom, the most beautiful women in the world. If you wish I will offer you an Indian woman to take as a wife.’
Alexander looked at me hopefully. I mouthed ‘No!’ silently but very definitely.
‘I’m sorry, but I must decline,’ he said with a trace of mischief in his eyes. ‘I think your women are far too beautiful for me. If I took one back my whole army would insist on getting Indian wives as well.’
‘I understand completely,’ said the rajah.
‘Of course, if you had fifty thousand such flowers you wanted to give away, well, then I really couldn’t refuse.’
The translator wiped away the sweat from his brow as he said this, but the rajah had cottoned on to Alexander’s humour and smiled broadly. ‘I will give the order directly! Tomorrow fifty thousand beautiful women will be at the gates of the city, waiting to accompany you.’
Alexander scratched his head. ‘Well, I couldn’t possibly make such delicate flowers march. You’ll have to throw in fifty thousand elephants.’
‘Elephants?’ the rajah’s eyebrows lifted. ‘Why not horses?’
‘If there’s anything I know about beautiful women, your Highness, it’s that they never travel without at least a ton of clothing, jewellery, make-up, maids, and sometimes their own mothers.’
‘True, so true.’ The rajah sighed. ‘I have to withdraw my offer then, with great regret.’
‘Your biggest regret is not getting the elephants,’ I muttered to Alexander.
He winked at me.
‘Are you happy?’ he asked, as we lay in each other’s arms. The palace was cool. Our room overlooked the river Ganges, and I was entranced by the scene unfolding before me every morning.
Ochre steps led down to the river’s edge. As the sun rose it touched the stone, turning it to molten gold. A trumpet would blow in the temple next to the river, and sixty or seventy trumpets would answer from the depths of the city. Flocks of white birds would flap into the air seemingly cast aloft on the notes of the music.
The people of the city awoke and went to the stairs to make their ablutions in the flowing water. Hip deep, they stood in the river and washed their bodies and hair. The children sat on the steps as their mothers poured the water over their heads, scrubbing them clean. The women washed their long, black hair then braided it tightly to dry in waves. Afterwards, everyone bowed towards the river before throwing a bouquet of flowers or handful of rice into the waters.
The city was built along the river banks. The buildings were painted bright colours; cotton and silk awnings glowed. Smal
l boats plied the water. There were fishermen, traders, and even ferryboats to take people back and forth. The little boats had yellow or red triangular sails. The boats were painted bright colours, and the fishermen threw nets into the water to catch silver fish.
Special stairs had been built for elephants. The great beasts would lumber down them, swim across the river, then climb out on the other side. The elephants were decorated as richly as the women. Jewellery hung from their foreheads, they were painted bright colours, and they had gold rings on their tusks. Even their ears were pierced and hung with jewellery or garlands. Their drivers were proud men, who often had their sons on their laps as they rode the great beasts. Many of the drivers had carefully trimmed moustaches and goatees. They wore tight jackets made of bright silks, and their sons wore identical costumes.
Flowers grew everywhere. They climbed on vines into the palace itself and bloomed under spreading trees in the markets and in the streets. They clambered onto roofs, down terraces, spilled into the windows and were trained over doorways in an opulent, fragrant profusion of blossoms. Everywhere was colour and perfume. The marketplace reeked of curry and saffron, cardamom and cinnamon. Metres and metres of marigolds strung in bright orange ropes decorated everything. There were birds in cages singing sweetly.
Alexander and I sat in the marketplace on the wall of a marble fountain and watched in wide-eyed wonder as a caravan came to deposit its goods in front of us. The caravan came from the mountains of Kashmir. We examined the fine wool – as soft as cobwebs and warm as embers. Alexander offered me a delicately woven shawl of the precious stuff. Then he bought me two sapphires, as blue as my eyes. He had them set in earrings for me. The trader showed us strings of amber, amethyst, jade, and even some rubies.
Alexander decided to bring back a ruby for Roxanne, and he had it set in a bracelet for her. Then he bought some of the cashmere cloth for Stateira, the wife he’d left in Babylon. He’d send it back by post. It would reach her in roughly a year and a half. Surface mail. Special delivery.
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