Alexander (Vol. 2) (50 page)

The seer immediately noticed that Alexander was rather perturbed by the incident, as though it might be a bad omen for him, but he quickly put the King’s mind at rest: ‘Do not worry, Sire. In fact this is an excellent omen – it means that the city will be so rich and prosperous that people will come here from all over, looking for work and sustenance.’ Dinocrates, too, felt relieved by this interpretation and set to his work with renewed vigour, all the more so because in the meantime the chalk had arrived.

That night the King had a beautiful dream. He dreamed that the city had grown, that everywhere there were houses and palaces with wonderful gardens. He dreamed that the bay, protected by the long island, teemed with vessels at anchor unloading all types of goods from all parts of the known world. And he saw a causeway reaching out to the island where a high tower stood – a gigantic tower which spread light in the darkness for the ships approaching Alexandria. And he thought he heard his own voice asking, ‘Will I ever see all of this? When will I return to my city?’

The next day he recounted the dream to Aristander and asked him the same question, ‘When will I return to my city?’

Aristander turned his back to Alexander at that very moment because a sudden weight descended on his heart, the saddest of premonitions, but quickly he turned once more to face his King and with a tranquil expression on his face said, ‘You will return, Sire, I promise you. I know not when, but you will return . . .’

T
HEY SET OFF WESTWARDS
with the sea to their right and the limitless desert to the left, and after stopping just five times they reached Paraetonium. This was an outpost which functioned as a meeting-point for the people, in part Egyptian and in part Greek, who came from the city of Cyrene, and the nomadic tribes of the interior – the Nasamones and the Garamantes.

These tribes had split the coast up into sectors, and whenever a wreck took place it was looted by those tribes in whose sector the ship went down. The survivors were sold as slaves at market in Paraetonium. It was said that some two hundred years previously the Nasamones has crossed the mysterious, endless sea of sand and that they had reached, on the other side, an enormous lake populated with crocodiles and hippopotamuses with trees of every type which bore fruit in all the seasons. It was also said that this region housed the cave of Proteus – the god of many forms who lived among seals and who was able to predict the future.

Alexander left part of the army at Paraetonium, under Parmenion’s command, to whom he also entrusted Bar-sine. He went to say goodbye to her the evening before his departure, taking a gift – a necklace of gold and enamel which had once belonged to a queen of the Nile.

‘There are no jewels worthy of your beauty,’ he said, as he placed it around her neck. ‘There is no splendour which can compete with the light in your eyes, there is no enamel which can ever equal the magnificence of your smile. I would give any riches to be able to sit before you and watch you smile. It would give me more joy than kissing your lips, than caressing your hips and your breasts.’

‘A smile. That is a gift Ahura Mazda took from me some time ago now, Alexander,’ replied Barsine, ‘but now that you are setting off on such a long and dangerous journey, I know that I will worry constantly and I know that I will smile when I see you once more.’ She kissed him lightly on the lips and then said, ‘Come back to me, Alexander.’

The army moved on with a reduced contingent now and Alexander, followed by his companions, set off into the desert in the direction of the sanctuary of Zeus Ammon after having loaded up with water and supplies in sufficient quantities, carried by a hundred or so camels.

Everyone had advised the King not to undertake the journey in midsummer because of the unbearable heat, but he was now convinced that he could face and overcome any obstacle, recover from any wound, challenge any danger, and he wanted his men to be equally aware of this conviction. Following the first two legs of the journey, however, the heat really did become unbearable and the men’s and the animals’ water consumption increased to the point where there were concerns over their ability to reach Siwa safely.

To add to their troubles, on the third day a sandstorm broke out, severely testing the men and the animals and completely wiping out the road. After hours and hours of unbearable torment, the cloud of sand cleared and all they could see around them was the infinite, rolling extent of the limitless desert – the stones marking the route had disappeared and there was no other sign of which direction they should take. And the men, walking, sank into the increasingly hot sand to the point where their exposed feet and legs began to suffer burns. They had to wrap material from their tunics and their cloaks right up to their knees, just so that they could keep on going.

On the fourth day many of them began to despair and it was only the King’s example which kept them going. Alexander was at the head of the column, on foot just like the humblest of his soldiers, and he always drank last and was happy to eat just a few dates while making sure that everyone had what he needed to survive. In this way he gave all his men sufficient energy and determination to continue.

On the fifth day the water ran out and the horizon was featureless as usual – no sign of life, not even a blade of grass, no shadow of a living being.

‘And yet there are people out there,’ said the guide, a Greek from Cyrene who was black as coal and whose mother was almost certainly Libyan or Ethiopian. ‘If we were to die out here, the horizon would suddenly fill up as if by magic – men would appear like ants from all directions and in no time at all our bodies would be left, stripped of everything, to dry up in the desert sun.’

‘A truly pleasant prospect,’ said Seleucus, who was just behind them, barely managing to keep up and struggling onwards with his Macedonian wide-brimmed hat on his head.

Just then Hephaestion noticed something and called to his companions, ‘Look over there!’

‘They’re birds,’ confirmed Perdiccas.

‘Crows,’ explained the guide.

‘Even more pleasant,’ complained Seleucus.

‘But it’s a good sign,’ replied the guide.

‘You mean because our carcasses won’t go to waste,’ said Seleucus.

‘But no . . . it’s a good sign. It means we are close to an inhabited area.’

‘Close for someone with wings, but for us, on foot and without food and water . . .’

Aristander, also walking nearby, suddenly came to a halt: ‘Stop!’ he ordered.

‘What’s wrong?’ asked Perdiccas. Alexander also stopped and turned towards his seer, who had sat down on the ground and pulled his cloak over his head. A gust of wind blew across the dunes, the sand shining like molten bronze.

‘The weather is changing,’ said Aristander.

‘By Zeus! Not another sandstorm, please!’ said Seleucus in desperation. But the gust of wind became stronger and began blowing away the stifling air, bringing with it a vague hint of the freshness of the sea.

‘Clouds,’ said Aristander, ‘there are clouds on their way.’

Seleucus exchanged looks with Perdiccas, as if to say, ‘He’s delirious.’ But the seer really could feel the clouds approaching and it was not long before the grey weather front appeared from the north, darkening the horizon.

‘Let’s not get our hopes up too high,’ said the guide. ‘As far as I know it never rains here. Let’s start walking again.’

The column set off again into the blinding light, towards the south, but the men kept turning round to look at the clouds as they advanced from the north, ever darker, rent now and then by spasmodic flashes of lightning.

‘It may never rain here,’ said Seleucus, ‘but there’s plenty of thunder.’

‘You have very acute hearing,’ replied Perdiccas. ‘I can’t hear anything.’

‘It’s true,’ the guide agreed. ‘There is thunder. It won’t rain, but at least the clouds will provide us with shelter from the sun and the temperature will become bearable.’

An hour later the first drops of rain thumped into the sand and the air filled with the intense and pleasant smell of damp dust. The men, who had been at the end of their tethers, their skin burned, their lips cracked, seemed to go out of their minds – shouting, throwing their hats in the air, opening their dry mouths to capture even just a few drops before they were absorbed into the burning sand.

The guide shook his head, ‘You would all do better to save your breath. The rain evaporates in the sun even before it touches the earth and it returns upwards to the sky in the form of a light mist. And that is all we will have.’ But even before he had finished speaking, the sparse drops had turned into a light rain and then into lashing sheets of water that fell heavily in the midst of lightning and crashing thunder.

The men stuck their spears in the sand and tied their cloaks to the shafts to gather as much of the liquid as possible. They put their helmets and their shields on the ground, concave side up, and very soon they were able to drink. When the shower finished, the clouds continued across the sky, less dense and compact now, but still enough to provide them with shade for their march.

Alexander had said nothing up until that moment and he continued, lost in his thoughts, as though following some mysterious voice. Everyone turned to look at him, convinced now that they were being led by a superhuman being who would always survive wounds and adversity that would have killed anyone else, a being who could make it rain in the desert and who could even have flowers grow there, should he so wish.

*

The oasis at Siwa appeared on the horizon two days later at dawn. Across the blinding reflection of the sand, the men saw a strip of an incredibly lush green colour. They shouted enthusiastically at the sight, many of them crying on seeing this triumph of life in the midst of that infinite, arid landscape. Others gave thanks to the gods for having saved them from a terrible death, but Alexander continued his silent march as though he had never doubted that they would reach their goal.

The oasis was immense, covered with palm trees laden with dates and nourished by the wonderful spring which gurgled at its very heart. The water was as clear as crystal and it reflected the dark green of the palms and the age-old monuments of Siwa’s ancient and mysterious religious community. The men threw themselves into the water immediately, but the physician Philip began shouting, ‘Stop! Stop! The water is very very cold. Drink slowly, take small sips.’ Alexander was the first to obey, thus setting an example for the others to follow.

What they all found difficult to believe was the fact that they were expected – the priests were lined up on the steps of the sanctuary, preceded by their ministrants, who waved censers which smoked with incense. But by now the events of their journey had convinced them that anything might happen in this land.

The guide, who also functioned as their interpreter, translated the words of the priest who welcomed them with a cup of fresh water and a chest of ripe dates. ‘What do you want of us, O guest who comes from the desert? If you ask for water and food you will find them because the law of hospitality is sacred here.’

‘I ask to know the truth,’ replied Alexander.

‘And of whom do you ask these words of truth?’ the priest inquired once again.

‘Of the greatest of all the gods, of Zeus Ammon, who lives in this solemn temple.’

‘Then return to the temple tonight and you will know what you wish to know.’

Alexander bowed and moved over to his companions, who were setting up camp near the spring. He watched Callisthenes put his hands in the water and splash it on his forehead.

‘Is it true what they say? That in the evening it warms up and then at midnight it is actually lukewarm?’

‘I have another theory. In my opinion the spring water is always the same temperature – it is the air temperature which varies incredibly, so that during the day, when the air is very hot, the water seems very cold. While at night, when there is a bit of a chill in the air, the water feels warmer and even lukewarm at midnight. It’s all relative, as Uncle Aristotle would put it.’

‘Quite,’ said Alexander. ‘Have you had any more news about his investigations?’

‘No, only the things I have already told you about. But we will certainly have more news when the ships return with the new recruits. For the moment it seems he has found some trace of Persian involvement, but I already know what he would say if he were here.’

‘So do I. He would say that of course the Persians were interested in having my father assassinated, but even if they didn’t do it, they would spread word that they had so that future Kings of Macedon would think twice about undertaking hostile action against them.’

‘That is indeed most probable,’ Callisthenes agreed as he put his hands into the spring once more.

Just then Philip the physician arrived. ‘Look at what the men have found,’ he said, holding up a large snake, its head wrinkly and triangular in shape. ‘One bite can bring death in an instant.’

Alexander looked at it. ‘Tell the soldiers to be careful and then have it embalmed and sent to Aristotle for his collection. And do the same thing if you see any interesting plants, or anything with unusual properties. I will give you a letter to accompany everything.’

Philip nodded and moved on with his snake, while Alexander sat at the edge of the spring and waited for evening to fall. Suddenly he saw Aristander’s reflection appear in the water before him.