Chapter Seven

The Forbidden City of Khalisahr, 326 BC

The Friend In Torment

Hephaestion felt the stone on the necklace slither on his throat and chest. It had suddenly become red hot and it throbbed, as if filled with some dangerous venom. He had difficulties with breathing and he felt his mind drift away as unconsciousness slowly claimed him.

"General Hephaestion! How are you?, "Stefanos worriedly called out to him.

He was unable to answer. He could still hear but his voice did not obey him. He moved his lips but no words could be heard from him. Strong arms held him in a forceful embrace. He was shaken back into reality, looking up into General Cleitus' dark and worried countenance. The black maned General roared at him.

"Hephaestion! You must stay awake. We all need you to command us if we are to find the King alive!"

Hephaestion held one hand on his throat and the other on his chest, desperately struggling for breath. It seemed like forever before he was able to answer his worried friends.

"Alexander is in some kind of dreadful danger, "he said. "I can feel it - here."

He put his hand over his heart and a tear fell from his eye. All the Companions felt his concern and sorrow. They all shared it with him.

King Alexander was important to all of them. They would be completely lost without him, lost in a country filled with innumerable dangers and enemies.

A rivulet of golden hair wafted before his eyes. A white hand held a golden goblet to his lips. A woman in a skye blue dress rimmed with gold appeared before him, offering strength and comfort.

"Drink this, Hephaestion. It will help you to regain your wits and strength.

He gulped down the sweet tasting herbal concoction. It tasted from the strange and unfamiliar fruits and berries of this unfriendly country, but it soon filled his veins with new strength and courage.

"Thanks, good Adelpha, "he answered when he had gulped it all down. "How can you be here in India, in this far away realm? I thought that you were bound to your place in Macedon."

"Yes, Hephaestion, so I am, but I am bound to you and Alexander as well. My necklaces allow me to feel your well being - and your suffering. Now when you need me, I have come to be at your side when you search for your friend."

Into The Forbidden City

Hephaestion held the necklace before him. It shone like a beacon, burning a flaming path through the slithering mass of thickets, roots and snakes before them. Nychta and Mavra padded at his side, together with Cleitus, Stefanos and Alexios. The fires from the necklace seemed to chase the thickets and venomous fogs away. After what seemed like an endless struggle through the hostile vegetation, the forbidden city of Khalisahr with its walls and onion shaped towers appeared before their eyes once more. There was a wooden door emerging in the thick stone wall. General Cleitus tackled it forcefully with his strong shoulder. It did not give way, but then he kicked it with wrath and anger. Now, it crumbled into splinters before his big, boot clad foot.

They all entered a long tunnel. It was dark and dank, its stony walls clad with moss, mould and mildew, glowing in all kinds of sickly green, yellow and blue colours. The necklace guided them. Its flaming glow chased the darkness away and allowed them to march along in a steady and secure manner.

At the end of the tunnel was a chamber. At first their nostrils were assaulted by strong scents of perfume and frankincense. Then a sinister sight appeared before their eyes.

Alexander lay unconscious, pale and wan on an enormous feather bed flooding over with fiery red, orange and yellow silken cushions. A Dark Lord sat on a high chair at the side, gleefully laughing at the King's torment. The King of Macedon was in the arms of an enormous woman with blue black skin and coal black hair, dressed in a dark blue gown and a blood red cloak. A belt, with many human skulls attached to it, rattled around her lithe waist like a macabre adornment. The poor skulls had tormented grins, and it looked as if they had been subjected to much suffering before they died. The dark woman had eight or more strong black arms, making her appear like some kind of dangerous and hungry spider.

Hephaestion had seen her likeness before, in several Indian temples.

She was Khali, the Goddess of Death and Destruction. Woe to the ones who had to face her in the real world!

Hephaestion held out the necklace as a token of protection. It shone like a flaming beacon in his trembling hand. Nychta and Mavra stood at his sides, ferociously growling. His friends were behind him, ready to back him up. Now he felt steady and determined.

"Release him, you minions of darkness!, "he called out to the dark Lord and his black haired Goddess. "I will not let you torment my Golden One any longer! He is mine, mine forever!"

Struggle Against The Death Goddess

The dark Goddess rose from her hapless victim. Alexander's head fell back on the cushions and his hands hung limp and listless over the edges of the bed. Hephaestion could not see if he was breathing at all. His friend looked as if he was already dead and gone.

At the sight of the dreadful state of his friend Hephaestion felt himself become consumed by an overwhelming sorrow, soon replaced by a flaming rage.

"NO! NOOOOO! This must not be!, "he called out loud, so loud that the Goddess of Death and the Dark Lord had to put their hands to their ears. "Release him, immeditately"!

"No, you loud mouthed one, "the Dark Goddess answered. "I am Khali, Goddess of Death and Destruction. What I have claimed I will never release!"

Hephaestion was not satisfied with that answer. He would never abandon his friend and King to such horrors. He felt the necklace around his neck, emanating a comforting warmth. It filled him with strength and determination as he leaped at the Dark Goddess. He grasped at her, feeling her lithe and strong body. She lashed out at him with her eight arms. They were so strong and agile that they felt like many more than eight.

Hephaestion had never met such a dangerous and devious enemy before.

Their struggle went on forever and ever. Nychta and Mavra joined Hephaestion, together with Cleitus and the faithful Guards. The dark Lord joined the Goddess of Death. They all fought in the chamber, until they were exhausted, worn out and panting from distress. The furniture was beaten into splinters and the fabrics and cushions were torn to shreds around them. The black panthers lay in a heap in a corner. Cleitus had joined them. The black maned General lay unconscious on the floor. Now only Hephaestion, Stefanos and Alexios struggled against Khali and the dark Lord. They were stumbling and trembling, soon to weak even to lift their hands and shield themselves agains the blows of evil and destruction.

Their enemies were winning the day.

King Alexander lay unconscious on the bed. He felt stronger now when the dark Goddess did not hold him in her suffocating and merciless embrace. Still, he could not open his eyes and he was unable to move. He could hear the sounds of a dreadful fight in the chamber, and then he felt the bed collapse in a heap of splinters and a cloud of torn fabrics and cushions around him. In all that turmoil he could feel a comforting cool arm embrace him and a friendly hand caress his troubled brow. At long last he opened his eyes, looking into sky blue eyes and a face sorrounded by a cloud of golden hair. A goblet filled with a sweet herbal concoction was held to his lips.

"Drink this, King Alexander. You need to regain your strength, and your friends need you!"

Alexander drank the concoction in several gulps. It tasted strongly of Eastern herbs and spices, also of sweet and fragrant jungle fruits.

It tasted even better than strong red wine. Soon he felt his strength and determination return. He rose on trembling legs, looking at the dreadful struggle on the floor. Hephaestion was in the arms of the dark Goddess, and the Guards were being slashed and stabbed at by the dark Lord.

Alexander looked around him, grasping for some kind of weapon.

There were none to be had.

The King of Macedon would never give in to helplessness. He prowled the debris of the smashed furniture. Soon he found a large splinter of hard black wood. It was sharp as a sword in one end, heavy as a club in the other.

The enemies did not see him. They were totally occupied with tormenting their hapless victims. Alexander leaped at the dark Goddess, impaling her with the makeshift sword. She fell with an anguished scream, lying still in a puddle of black blood. Then he smashed the dark Lord with the club end of his makeshift weapon. He went down like a big tree with black leaves falling onto the floor. His gown covered him like giant bat wings.

Alexander went to Hephaestion, lifting him from the floor. His friend soon recovered in his arms, opening his eyes and returned the fond embrace.

"Alexander. You are safe, at long last you are safe with me!"

Nychta and Mavra came and fondly licked their Dear Masters. Cleitus and the Guards recovered. They all turned their backs on the Forbidden city of Khalisahr, never to return to that dreadful place again.

They did not hear the ominous whispers behind their backs.

"Beware, Sikandar and Hephaestion. I will have my revenge. You will never be safe from me, never..."

A coal black shape rose up up from the darkness. It had eight arms and it was surrounded by dark shadows. Venomous cobras slithered around its feet.

It was impossible to kill the Goddess of Death and Destruction.

Khali would wait for them, eager to claim her revenge.

Conclusion

Happy Reunion

India, The land of the Five Rivers, 326 BC

Now they all were back in Camp. There was a sumptuous Royal Banquet in progress. Alexander and Hephaestion sat on a couch together, supported by red and orange soft cushions. They drank well watered red wine and ate soft, sweet fruits and vegetables, together with all kinds of well roasted meat on wooden spits. All the Companions shared the merriment with them. They toasted one another and sang songs of praise for Hephaestion, telling about his determination as he searched for his friend and King in the Jungle.

Nychta and Mavra rested at the feet of the King and his friend. They enjoyed a feast of their own, with rich food and clear, sparkling water. Peritas and Pollux joined them.

Just for now the dogs and the panthers were fond friends. The happy reunion called for such unusual friendship.

A golden haired woman dressed in a sky blue gown sat in the background. She carefully watched over all the company.

Two necklaces shone on the necks and chests of Alexander and Hephaestion.

"Take good care of my gifts, my precious charges "Adelpha told them. "You will need them again, another time and another day - but you will not know when..."

The End