Chapter Six

The room was big and empty and the smell made Alexander gag as he entered. When his eyes adjusted to the darkness he called. "Hephaistion!"

There was a sound of a chain being moved coming from one of the corners and he saw something move in the shadows.

Alexander went over to the corner, what he saw made him put his hand over his mouth to stop him from crying out

Hephaistion was huddled against the wall, large cuts and angry bruising dotted his pale, dirty skin and he was shivering from being wet. He was blind folded.

Alexander crouched down next to him, and he reached out a touched Hephaistion's shoulder Hephaistion screamed through a gag that Alexander had not seen and pulled away.

Alexander tried to sooth his distressed friend but Hephaistion put up a fight. Finally he lay quiet, his energy spent.

Alexander tried pulling the blindfold off but it was tangled in his longer matted hair. He got Cassander to hold Hephaistion's head tightly between his hands, so that he could slip a dagger in between the blindfold and Hephaistion without cutting him.

His hand shook as he pulled the blindfold away, he thanked the Gods when he saw that the guards had not done much damaged to his face there was an evil looking gash on his forehead and his eyes were puffy and red and underlined with black circle from lack of sleep and sickness.

Alexander took the gag out of Hephaistion's mouth taking some lips skin with it is.

Alexander sat down next to him and began brushing his matted hair away from his face. Hephaistion tried looking at him but was limited by the collar around his neck.

Alexander reached up and tried pulling off him, crying as he couldn't break it off.

"Bring him here!" he yelled pointing to the Persian

Ptolemy shoved the Persian over to Alexander who caught him and pulled him down

"Take this off him." he yelled pointing at the collar.

The Persian took out a key and only Alexander hands on his shoulders stopped Hephaistion from cowering away as the Persian unlocked the collar from around his neck.

Once the collar was off and his hands and feet were unbound Hephaistion sagged against Alexander who took off his cloak and wrapped it around his thin shoulders.

"Come on let's get you home." he said

Taking Hephaistion's arm and putting it over his shoulder and wrapping his other arm around Hephaistion's waist he stood up Hephaistion screamed and fell to the floor.

"Hephaistion?" asked Alexander "What's wrong!"

Hephaistion brushed his damp hair out of his face with one hand and with the other was clutching his stomach his face twisted in pain.

He looked down and Alexander followed his gaze. Hephaistion hand was pressed firmly against his stomach and between his fingers ran blood. Alexander slowly pulled Hephaistion's hand away.

There was a line of ragged and poor stitching that ran from hip to the other hip, they had tried to gut him but failed so they had stitched him back up but some had come out and he was now bleeding heavily.

Alexander returned Hephaistion's hand to the wound he used his dagger to cut a strip of material and wrap it around Hephaistion's waist, there was blood everywhere and by the time Alexander had finished his hands were stained red.

Alexander looked up at the grinning face of the Persian. Anger filled Alexander and he let go of Hephaistion who had pressed himself back in to the corner afraid of what Alexander might do.

Alexander balled his hand up in to a fist and struck the General not once not twice but three times, while he was on the floor Alexander put his foot on his throat.

"I want this piece of filth taken and outside and beaten then I want him in here to take Hephaistion's place also send the doctor in here."

He added pressure on to the General's throat then stepped off him and moved away so that Ptolemy and Cassander could take him away.

Alexander returned to Hephaistion and helped him stand up. Hephaistion clutched weakly on to him, he stumbled and nearly took them both down.

Outside Hephaistion let go Alexander to protect his eyes from the rising sun then after a second he put it down and looked over to where a group was soldiers were gathered around, they were laughing, cheering and shouting verbal abuse.

"Come on you don't need to see this." Alexander said taking hold of Hephaistion's arm

Hephaistion shrugged him off and began to limp hand pressed to his stomach over to the crowd.

The soldiers moved aside to let him passed Alexander slowly followed behind, the solider in the middle was giving the Persian General a real good kicking but he stopped when he saw Hephaistion and moved back to join the rest.

The General was naked and huddled in a ball; he looked up at Hephaistion through swollen eyes and Hephaistion looked back. Alexander stood back with the rest, he like everyone was waiting to see what was happen.

Hephaistion's face was an unreadable mask of emotions he swayed and Alexander rushed forward to catch him as he fell into a dead faint.

They carried him to the wagon where the doctor would be waiting, Alexander waited to stay but he want to see that the Persian's punishment be carried out, so he kissed Hephaistion burning forehead and left.

As the doctor cleaned Hephaistion's wounds as he was cleaning the dirty away the doctor noticed the blood stain, bruising and tearing

He had seen this before when he worked as a young apprentice to the doctor of Phillip Alexander father, boys would come to him in trust to have them selves cleaned up.

A hand weakly grabbed his arm he looked down and found Hephaistion looking at him with pain filled blue eyes.

"Promise me." He said though despite his weakness managed to say it with firmness.

"I promise." the doctor replied

Back in the cell they had the Persian General bound and chained Like Hephaistion had been, they had not gagged him or blindfolded him and Alexander waved everyone out of the room.

Once everyone had gone Alexander stood in front of the General and began to wave the keys in front of his swallow face.

"It will be a long time before any one finds you my friend." he said

He turned on his heel and walked towards the door, suddenly the Persian began to laugh.

Alexander turned sharply "You have no reason to laugh!" he yelled

He stopped laughing but grained showing off the gaps where Alexander's soldiers had kicked him in the mouth causing teeth to fall out.

"You'll be pleased to know that he provided a much needed realise for me and my men."

"You lie how dare you." Alexander spat

The General shook his head making the chain rattle "No my lord the truth."

Alexander drew his sword and pointed it at the General.

"Why should I believe anything you say?"

The Persian General shrugged "Go and see for yourself."

"Then I wish you a slow and lingering death." spat Alexander

With that he hit the Persian on the head with the pommel of his sword and turned to leave locking both set of doors behind him.

As he walked back he found himself thinking about what the General had said about finding it out for himself.

He looked up and found himself in front of the wagon where Hephaistion was, he found himself pulling back the coverings and climbing inside.

The doctor was cleaning Hephaistion's back, when Alexander walked in. He went over to Hephaistion and genteelly spread his legs and looked between

When he was satisfied he stood up and forced a smiled then left leaving the doctor looking puzzled.

Alexander mounted Buccephalas and they set off.

About half way through the journey the came across a stream. Alexander took out the key and tossed them in to it and watched as the heaviness of them took them down into the blackness.

Once they got back to Babylon they took Hephaistion up to his room, Alexander tried to follow but the doctor pushed him away and close the door.

An hour later the doctor came out Alexander stopped pacing and went to stand next to him.

"I've cleaned all the wounds luckily there was no infections, he lost a lot of blood and I gave him something to help him sleep." he stopped

"Anything else?" Alexander asked

The doctor rubbed his chin Hephaistion's word echoed in his mind.

"No my Lord." he said bowing his head "If you will excuse me I have other patients."

"Yes of course thank you." Alexander said

He watched the doctor walk hurriedly away, he had noticed that the doctor had been a little nervous Alexander shook his head and went into the room.

Hephaistion was asleep on his back; his hands were resting on his bandaged abdomen and his face was turned away from the door.

He had been cleaned, shaved and somehow they had managed to comb out all of the tangles, when Alexander last saw Hephaistion his hair was reaching his shoulders now it was resting on them.

Alexander went over to the bed and kissed Hephaistion's cheek, Hephaistion stirred but didn't wake, Alexander reached inside his robed and pulled out a wooden box and placed it next to the bed.

He the pulled up the big high back cushioned chair next to the bed and flopped down in it he draw up his legs and folded them underneath him. He felt drained; Alexander hadn't slept while Hephaistion had been missing but him while tonight. He rested his head in his hand and yawned.

But something was playing on his mind, when he had looked at Hephaistion he found no traces of what the General had they had done.

He blinked once or twice till his he felt his eyes close.