Chapter 5: The rage of Alexander

The king's troupes entered in a large line through the city entrance. Women and old men struggled through the crowd to get in the front line, hoping to see their beloved ones back alive, or at least their bodies. Outside the gates of the palace, the corpses were being placed for their relatives to recognize them.

Between the crowd a young girl tiptoed to see the soldiers. She saw the king and his party slowly entering the palace followed by numerous servants and she followed them. She struggled against the herd of desperate people, hit and pushed several times. Her highborn clothes and jewelry had caught the attention of the thieves that roamed in big crowds. She was so focused on not letting the king's party out of her sight, that she didn't realize two men were targeting her

"What a pretty necklace, isn't it?", one of them said as he pulled the golden ornament from her neck. The other one held her from behind

"Almost as pretty as her face", he said, grinning

"Don't touch me!" The girl cried, giving him a head-butt, which made him let go of her. When he did, she fell on her knees

"You little…"

The man pulled her by her long, red hair as she screamed. A second later, the girl dropped to the ground again. When she looked back, both men were beaten on the ground.

"Alexandros…"

"Are you alright?" The prince helped the girl up

"I'm ok", she said, fixing her clothes

They both followed from the distance the king and his men into the palace

"What were you doing out here?" Alexander asked, watching the girl tiptoeing every two steps. He faced into the direction she was looking.

She wasn't paying attention to his words

"…sister?"

"Yes?"

"I asked you a question…what were you doing outside the palace?"

"Oh, I…uh… I happened to be walking through the gardens when I heard the news of father's troupes coming into the city, so I went out to peek", she said, without looking away, still on tiptoes.

"…looking for someone?". Alexander raised his eyebrows

"I just wanted to see that father is ok…". She turned to him now, "What were you doing out there, brother?"

Alexander searched with his eyes for something in the crowd

"Same as you…"

They entered the palace and the gates closed behind them, then they headed towards the great hall. They stopped by the entrance and met with their father and his men. The king's wives, children and other members of the council also came to welcome him. Alexander and his sister observed king Phillip from the back of the small crowd that surrounded him. A man in a bloodied silver armor stood still by the king's side, so tall that he made the king look small. He turned to where Alexander and his sister were, and the princess smiled, shedding tears of relief.

The king took off his helmet and his golden locks fell down his shoulders.

"Your grace", General Attalus was the first one to welcome him.

"Attalus". Phillip gave him a tight, quick hug. "Where is Orestis?", he said, looking around

"Orestis!", the king called his name and he came right away, "any news of my son?"

"He's been found, your grace. I believe he is right here"

The king turned, looking for the prince.

Alexander walked toward his father, his sister by his side. The king smiled and walked towards them too, followed by the man in the silver armor.

"Father", they both said in unison, glancing down with respect

"You have disobeyed my orders again, Alexandros"

The prince didn't reply or move for a while.

"I am sorry, father"

There was a moment of silence, then the king's face relaxed.

"I don't want you to apologize, I want you to…"

"I am sorry…", Alexander interrupted "…that your orders are not aligned with the principles that you and my master have taught me, and therefore I cannot obey them."

The king scoffed, and then smiled proudly

"I raised you to be a king, but Macedon might be too small for you, my boy. One day you will need to find yourself a bigger kingdom."

Alexander looked up and smiled, speechless. It was the first time in years his father had complimented him. He thought maybe the war had softened him, or perhaps he was just getting old.

The man in the silver armor standing by the king's side removed his helmet, letting out his dark hair and the handsome face of a young man. The princess looked up at him, subtly. Her eyes met with his deep, green eyes, staring right at her. He smiled and she looked down again, trying to hide her smile.

"Ptolemy", the king turned to the young man. He didn't seem to hear him.

"Ptolemy", he repeated, "has war left you deaf?"

"No, your grace", he quickly turned to him

"Gather everyone for a small council meeting, immediately", commanded the king.

"Right away, your grace", the young man nodded.

Alexander looked at his sister and smiled

"It's a relief to see that Ptolemy is back, isn't it?"

"Y-yes", she stuttered, "I am glad everyone is back and safe", she replied nervously, making sure her father and Ptolemy were far away enough not to hear Alexander

"Everyone, but specially Ptolemy. Isn't that what you are trying to say?" Olympias joined in the siblings' conversation

"Mother…", said the prince, surprised

"Careful with your jokes, Alexandros, you don't want them to end up in the wrong ears", she looked at her daughter, bitterly. She would have gone on with the subject, but something else caught her attention.

Eurydice, the king's youngest wife, had come to welcome him. Before she could reach him, Olympias intercepted her.

"Phillip has called for a small council meeting…", she said

"Oh…". Euridice looked at her, disappointed," I won't be long, I just wanted to talk to him…to see if he is alright…"

"That means you cannot attend", Olympias continued in a loud voice, ignoring her words

"And neither can you...", Phillip jumped in, giving Olympias a glare. He then turned to his daughter, "Child, please take your mother with you, I think she is not feeling very well".

"Come, mother", she whispered as she held her hand. Olympias looked at the king's back with despise as he walked into the throne room, followed by the rest of the council. Alexander was the last one to enter.

They all took a seat at the table. All except Alexander, who was looking around.

"Your grace", spoke Attalus, "let us begin by debriefing the results of the…"

"hold on…" Interrupted Alexander "We can't start without Hephaestion". He scoffed, and looked at his father, "where is he?"

The king sat quietly at the throne. The prince looked at everyone sitting at the table, and they all looked away in silence.

"Father…?", Alexander's heartbeat raised. He waited for an answer. "Where is Hephaestion?"

The king remained silent. Alexander was losing his patience

"Answer me!", he yelled, "where is he?! Where is Hephaestion?"

Then he turned to the rest of the council, desperately seeking for an answer

"Where is he!?"

"We don't know", Phillip yelled back at him

"What? What do you mean you don't know; how can you not know? He marched with you, he was leading one of your battalions!"

The king gave him a painful look and tried to find the words to explain the events happened, but he couldn't.

By his father's silence, Alexander assumed the worst. He closed his eyes and bit his lip, containing his tears.

"So you just let him out there to rot? To be eaten by the crows?", his voice shacked, and his chin trembled as he spoke.

"We don't know he is dead for sure yet" said Ptolemy in a soft tone, trying to comfort him. He hesitated one more moment before he spoke. "We… we were ambushed on our way to Epirus, Hephaestion was in front and he saw the trap coming. He warned us and protected us, buying us time to escape…"

"It was his first battle as commander, you knew that! How could you throw him in the front line like that!", yelled Alexander, banging the table in front of his father with his fists

"He sacrificed himself to protect us. Do not dishonor him or his actions!", Phillip finally said

Alexander digested his father's words. He panted heavily, and his eyes became suddenly watery

"But…he can't. He can't die…we were supposed to become heroes…we were going to become a legend…together…how could he…"

His tears struggled to come out, he tried so hard to contain them that it hurt his chest. He clenched his fists and groaned in pain, shivering, and all that sorrow turned into rage.

"Damn it!", he shouted as he kicked the chair he was supposed to sit on, so hard that it broke, "Damn you!"

Philip thought he was yelling at him, and he understood his son's anger. But Alexander was not angry at his father, really, he was angry at Hephaestion.

"Where is he…", the prince panted heavily, "Where is his body…?"

"My lord," Attalus walked toward him with the intention of calming him down, "If you could give us some time to gather more troops and…"

Before he could finish his sentence, Alexander lifted him in the air by his robes, his face burning red with wrath

"Where… is he…?"

"Put him down, he was not there, you fool. Think before you threaten someone", said Ptolemy, grabbing the prince's arm, making him let go of Attalus

"You were there! How could you leave him! He was like a brother to you!"

"I didn't leave him! My troops didn't even make it there. By the time the ambush happened we were already on our way back…", he said, his eyes grey with regret

"Son", the king spoke, "I understand your sorrow. We have already started gathering a search party for Hephaestion, but the men have been marching for days, they need food and rest. And they need something to fight for…".

He paused to watch Alexander's reaction, and continued when he had his full attention.

"…There is a chance to end this war if we get enough support, but for that I will need your help. Not only your skills as a warrior, but your skills as a diplomat and a politician. Right now, you must let your personal business aside. A king always prioritizes his people and his kingdom before himself. As the future king, you…"

"I will not go anywhere!", Alexander did not let him finish his sentence. "Not until I find Hephaestion"

"Did you hear a word of what I said, boy?", King Phillip said, raising his voice, now standing up. "Do you think you are more important than anybody else? Is your grief more important than the mothers' and wives' and brothers' and sister's who moan the fallen soldiers in battle? You are not the only one who is suffering…do not forget that"

"I will go. With or without your support", the prince said with determination, "and if I die, you can find yourself another heir, since I am not fit…"

Everyone in the council gasped.

They looked at each other for a long, silent moment. Then Phillip sighed, defeated.

"I will give you 30 men, no more; a larger number will draw too much attention. Travel lightly, with no banners, and ride away from the main roads. You leave at dawn"

"I leave now"

"You leave at nightfall and you stay for the council meeting, or you go by yourself".

Alexander gazed at him, still breathing heavily, his nostrils widening with every breath. He finally accepted and sat on the stairs in silence, listening to the council meeting.

Several ours later the meeting came to its end. Alexander stormed out of the room to gather his men and prepare the horses, followed by Ptolemy and Parmenion.

"Be careful, son", Phillip said as he watched him walk away

The prince did not stop or look back

"Damn you, old man!"

Waver complained under the heat of a bright sun shining over the mountains

"Out of all jobs I could be doing in that lab…he sends me to pick up herbs? Who does he think he is? He'll see when I go back…Damn it!"

He tripped with a rock and rolled down the hill, losing all the little amount of herbs he had collected. He got up and looked at the empty basket, throwing it away and screaming in frustration.

He took a deep breath and sat on the ground under the shade of an olive tree, staring at the city of Pella's from the distance. What is that idiot prince doing? he wondered. He had not heard from Alexander since that morning when he left him with Attalus and the old physician, who had given him the only task of collecting herbs to brew healing potions. It had been a full day of work and so far, he hadn't learnt a thing. Instead, he had only acquired a bad sunburn and sweaty clothes.

"Damn him too…", he said to himself.

A sudden smell of burnt wood and flesh reached him. He looked for the place where the fire was coming, and he saw several pyres burning all the way from the hills to the temple of Demeter in the outside of the city. He walked a few meters towards the closest fire he could see.

It was a funerary pyre. An old couple moaned by the fire, both kneeling. A young man's body was slowly being consumed by the flames in the middle of the pyre. The couple turned to Waver when he passed by.

"Excuse me sir, ma'am…what happened?"

"There are so many of them… so many, that we cannot longer perform the funerary rites within the city", spoke the man, devastated

"He was our youngest son", said the woman, an empty look in her eyes

"I am so sorry for your loss…"

"The youngest of five. They all died before him, one after another", she continued. The tears burst from her eyes, but her face showed no expression.

"In a war?"

The man turned to him, surprised

"You are not from here, are you, boy?"

"No. Sorry…"

"Then run far away from here while you still can…"

"I don't really understand what's happening…"

"There is nothing to understand", the woman said, "War is war. And war takes everything away from you, and it never comes back. I can only pray to the gods for my son's soul to be reunited with his brothers'."

"No parent should bury their children…", said Waver, feeling deeply sorry for them. They somehow reminded him of his grandparents.

"No…no parent should", the woman replied, staring at her son's corpse.

Waver looked at all the other hundreds of pyres burning around the city. He took a deep breath and went up the mountain again. He recovered his basket and collected more herbs.

He continued until the night fell and he could no longer distinguish one plant from another.

The young mage made his way down the hill, and by that time, most fires were almost extinguished. He walked into the city, and saw a line of corpses lying on the ground, still awaiting to be claimed by their beloved ones. Widows roaming the streets like lost souls, and orphans begging for food all over the place. With every step he took, Waver was more determined to help these people. He was ready to tell Alexander he was willing to do whatever it took to help him.

Right before he reached the palace, the gates suddenly opened wide.

Alexander rode with 30 other men out of the city in haste. Waver stood there, watching him disappear behind the mountains.