Chapter 6
Prompt: It Hurts
Title: Why Does Love Hurt so Much?
"Alexander, it is such a generous offer, I would accept it if I were you."
"I would too, if I were you, Parmenion. But I am Alexander."
"Isn't it wise to sign the treaty if Hephaistion were with the Persians though? "
"What do you mean, Parmenion?"
"He knows how you fight. It would be a great disadvantage to us."
"My father is right. What if Hephaistion was giving Darius advice? He could easily outwit us."
"Are you saying that he would betray us?"
"Maybe not by choice, but you know how cruel the Persians are."
"Hephaistion would never give in! Is that what everybody thinks? Do you all have such little faith in Hephaistion?"
"It is not a matter of faith, Alexander. Physical pain could often break the bravest man. You have seen it yourself."
"Craterus, but Hephaistion is not an ordinary man. He too is Alexander! To distrust him is to distrust me!"
Alexander looked around, and saw all the generals' gazes were cast downwards to avoid a direct eye contact with him. It was obvious that they all had a doubt about Hephaistion leaking vital information to the Persians. Alexander clenched his jaw.
"Very well! If that is what you all think, then we will change our plan. We will go straight south instead of crossing the Tigris River!"
"No, Alexander, let us stick to the original plan. I do not think it makes much difference at this point. Sooner or later, we will face the army of Darius, and this time, it is not like at Issus, there is no way for Darius to come behind our army without us noticing it."
"Ptolemy is right. We will never find out if Hephaistion is actually with the Persians or not until the battle begins. Unless Hephaistion leads one of the units of Darius' army, he would not be able to make a difference."
Perdiccas quickly supported Ptolemy. Philotas bored his sharp gaze into Perdiccas' face, but he did not confront with him being afraid of Alexander's outburst. The assembly ended with some unresolved feelings among the generals, but they all knew that it was not wise to push Alexander any further. Alexander looked at Perdiccas and Ptolemy thankfully and nodded to them as they left the king's tent.
After everybody had left, Alexander sat on a chair feeling exhausted. Looking at the treaty from Darius in front of him, Alexander's heart was pounding frantically. Although he had acted firmly and decisively before his generals, his mind was swaying between certainty and uncertainty.
'I know that Hephaistion is doing this with a reason and he would never betray me. I believe if I accepted this treaty, then I would trap him in the court of Darius. But, I cannot help doubting if I am doing the right thing. Could refusing the treaty lead Darius to execute Hephaistion? Did I shut the only door for Hephaistion to escape? I will still have to refuse it though, as I know that Hephaistion would rather be dead than survive with shame.'
oooOooo
While Alexander was making a hard decision, Hephaistion was anxiously waiting for an answer. It was a true trial of the trust between Alexander and himself. He felt as if he was sitting on a mound of needles waiting for the judgment of Hades. Whichever decision Alexander had made, it would not be easy for Hephaistion, at the end, he would have to choose either Alexander or Darius. Yet, the worst part was just waiting for an answer not knowing what the verdict would be.
"Would you like to go for a ride? You have not taken out your mare for a long time, have you? I think she is getting anxious. So is my steed."
"Yes, that would be wonderful. Thank you."
Hephaistion appreciated this offer of Darius', and eagerly accepted it. Darius trusted him, so he was free to exercise, and practise swordsmanship to keep his body in shape. Yet, it had been a while since Hephaistion had ridden his horse, and he had missed the carefree feelings of the wind on his face.
When they stepped outside of the palace, a groom was already waiting for them holding the reins of two horses in his hands. Hephaistion looked around, but he could not see anybody besides the groom.
"Are we going alone?"
Hephaistion asked the king with suspicion.
"Yes. What? Are you worried, Hephaistion?"
"No, I just thought it is rather strange for the king not to take any guards with him."
Darius chuckled.
"I am well capable of taking care of myself, and I believe you are, too. Besides, we are not going too far. We just go through the north gate, and run the field between the two rivers. Or should I be worried about you attacking me and escaping?"
"No, you should not."
Hephaistion blushed, and wondered if Darius could read his mind so easily. He was lying if he said that the thought of escaping had never crossed his mind.
"Very well. Shall we go?"
Darius mounted on his horse with an elegant one fluid motion, and Hephaistion followed suit. Although late summer air in mid-afternoon was hot and humid, as they broke their horses from an easy canter to a full gallop, the brisk breezes created a wind tunnel around them making the heat more bearable.
Still, both beasts and the humans were coated with a thin coat of perspiration. There was nothing in sight except the blue sky with floating white clouds and the green sea of tall grass. Hephaistion felt that he could ride forever till the end of the world. They ran the horses at full speed, and did not slow down until the breathing of the beasts became too harsh.
They gradually came to a stop at a small stream to let the horses drink and graze, while Darius and Hephaistion shared watered down wine from a jar.
"You were right, Hephaistion."
Darius continued without looking at Hephaistion's questioning expression, but fixing his gaze on his horse that was eating shorter grass by the bank.
"I received the reply from Alexander. He declined my offer."
Hephaistion sucked his breath. He was relieved to know that Alexander still trusted him, but at the same time he understood that he now needed to make a difficult move.
All of a sudden, the wind shifted from the northwest, and the temperature dropped down with the strong gust. When they looked up, the blue sky and white clouds were quickly taken over by dark storm clouds. The rumbling thunder followed the spectacular lightning show.
"We'd better head back. It looks like a heavy storm is coming this way."
They turned their horses around and ran as fast as they could. By the time they came half way back to the palace, they were all soaked to the bones. Big raindrops beat them down from all directions with strong winds.
The storm was so powerful that it was almost impossible to even breathe. Darius steered his steed to the right, and Hephaistion followed him right behind. They could barely see a small dome shaped building with a tower attached to it appearing in front of them through the thick curtain of the rain.
They went through the heavy wooden door at the lower level. As soon as they were in, the horses shook to get rid of the excess water making them hold onto their beasts a little longer. The place was dark with no windows. The only source of light was a dim glow coming through the stairway. After tying their horses to the wall, Darius guided Hephaistion to the upper level by climbing up the stone steps.
The upper part of the building was more spacious than it looked from outside. A smaller dome was overlaid on top of the larger dome, which gave extra height and an airy feel. Spiral patterns that looked like flower petals corrugated towards the center. It gave an illusion of standing at the very heart of the lotus flower when they looked up.
Arches of the glass windows subtly repeated the patterns. White lightning was refracted through the glass with various shades of blues. There was not much furniture in this one big open room. Except for thick woollen carpets on the floor, there was only a low-rise huge couch with vivid colored silk cushions that looked almost like a bed, and a chest.
Hephaistion did not know if it was because of the sudden drop of the temperature, or if it was because of the news that Darius brought to him, but he could not stop shivering. Darius opened the chest, and tossed a towel and a silk robe to Hephaistion, while grabbing one for himself.
"Here, dry yourself and change before you catch your death of cold."
Hephaistion hesitated for a moment, but he stripped down his rain soaked tunic and pants, and changed to a robe. It felt good being dry again. Darius tried hard not to look at the young Macedonian, but the temptation was too much. He could not help but steal a gorgeous view of the naked body.
After slipping into the dry robe, Darius closed the distance between them, and faced Hephaistion.
"I think I will have Bessus command the cavalries on the left flank at the next battle."
"But his experience of battle is close to none!"
"I know."
"Are you planning to…"
Darius cut in before Hephaistion could finish.
"I know that you will not betray Alexander. And you are feeling bad thinking that you must deceive me."
Hephaistion looked up at Darius in surprise. So, he had known the truth after all. Darius nodded to him, and continued.
"I would not wish to see you suffer any longer. After the battle, you may go back to Alexander. They would believe you that you did not come to me to betray your comrades if I were to lose the battle."
"Are you throwing away your kingdom for me? You cannot do that!"
"Yes, I can. I am the Great King. And it is worth it if that is all it takes to save your life. You were planning to die at the battle, weren't you?"
Hephaistion looked down and bit his lip. That was exactly the conclusion he had drawn a while ago after Darius told him that Alexander had refused the treaty, and the battle between Alexander and Darius became inevitable.
He would not betray Alexander, but he could not deceive trusted Darius either. The only way out of this mess for Hephaistion was to die with honor. Now, Darius read him again like an open book, and the king was ready to sacrifice his own kingdom to save his life. Hephaistion fought the tears that were threatening to roll out. Darius put his finger under Hephaistion's chin and lifted his face to make him look at him.
"It was short. It was only an illusion, but I was happy to have had you by my side."
Darius' dark eyes were filled with love and passion. Hephaistion could not fight any longer. A lone tear escaped from his eye, and Darius caught it with his thumb.
"May I?"
Hephaistion felt hot lips pressed against his cold lips, as Darius wrapped his arms around his torso, and pulled him closer. Every part of his body that touched to Darius' burned like it was on fire. When Darius deepened the kiss, Hephaistion had lost all his strength to fight against.
They staggered to the couch without breaking a kiss. Darius gently lowered Hephaistion on his back, and tugged the edge of the robe to pull it out, while making Hephaistion to raise his hands over his head. As soon as the king discarded his own robe, he entwined their fingers together.
They exchanged more hungry kisses before breaking away. Darius looked down upon Hephaistion's flushed face. The flash of lightning played the blue light and the shadow in Hephaistion's feverish orbs. Darius squeezed his fingers against Hephaistion's. When Darius saw the ring on Hephaistion's middle finger start to glow, he was lost in the wave of passion.
With Alexander, Hephaistion knew exactly what would happen next. They were experts on each other's bodies; they knew precisely where their most sensitive parts were. They knew when to speed up, and when to slow down to prolong the pleasure. Hephaistion could totally relax and enjoy the ride.
While with Darius, it was spontaneous. Everything was surprise. Hephaistion discovered his body responded the way he never thought it would. He melted under the expert's touch of the older man. As if to match the strength of the storm outside, they made a fiery love.
When the ecstasy finally took over his body, the sensation was so strong that Hephaistion almost lost his consciousness. Yet, he could stay coherent only long enough to feel Darius' gentle kiss on his forehead before slipping into a dreamless sleep. He felt so safe and protected in the warm embrace of the strong arms.
Darius held Hephaistion tightly against his body. He knew that this would be the first and the last time that they would lie together to make love. Yet, he was content. He felt that he had lived his life just to experience this moment. It was bitter sweet, but it was the most precious moment in his life.
This moment; securely holding the object of his desire in his arms, was everything. Nothing mattered in future. The only purpose he had now was the safety of his treasure. He would protect Hephaistion no matter what. As he too slipped into slumber with exhaustion, a smile lingered about the corners of Darius' mouth.
The storm had subsided, and the calm light of the silver moon had replaced the intense lightning flash. What Darius did not know was that he was not the only one who was watching over Hephaistion. Bessus was outside of the building and his forehead was pressed hard against the glass window. His monstrous face that was distorted with jealousy and envy was also looking at the sleeping beauty in the king's arms.
TBC
A/N: I am sorry for the late update, but I too have a real life :) You are so great! Thank you for all your support, and special thank you for those who commented but I could not reply in person.