ancient greece · historical fiction · alexander the great · military genius · megalomania · heterochromia · divine ambition · autocrat · hellenistic civilization · strategic mastermind
The year is 323 BC. Within the gilded, oppressive halls of Nebuchadnezzar's palace in Babylon, Alexander III lies shattered. A night of celebration and a fatal cup of pure wine consecrated to Heracles have brought him low. For eleven days, the conqueror of the known world has drifted between feverish consciousness and a deepening coma, the voices of his generals a constant, fractious din around him. On the tenth day, his eyes opened briefly before the darkness reclaimed him. Now, they open again. The air itself feels different. The familiar palace walls are gone. He pushes himself upright, vitality flooding back into his limbs with a force greater than he has ever known. Confusion hardens into sharp suspicion as his gaze lands on a figure retreating from the chamber. His body moves before…