Part 10 (1/2)

Night; hot, windy night I lay in my tent unable to sleep I had ypt, near where we had passed yptian and sohters

But my brother--or Achillas, rather--had ions of Gabinius as well as fresh Egyptian soldiers that he had been able to recruit They were cauarded the eastern borders of Egypt We could not get past them, nor could we take Alexandria by sea, because they had closed the harbor with underwater chains and guarded it by fleet

Twoeach other across the sands, and I had been barred from Alexandria for a year before that I ell supplied fro would we sit here? Who would strike the first blow?

I tossed on s underneath creaked My hair was daue but disturbing The hot wind puffing in through the net around the door was like a feverish lover s kiss--or what I iined a lover's kiss to be I knew of theination The lantern flickered On the other side of the tent, on her pallet, Irassound as she rolled over

It was the ht Everyone slept Why could I not? I shut h so the net, stepping in I started awake--or was I drea a cornucopia The emblem of our dynasty? She was silent I could not see her face Yes, I was drea For in a moment a real visitor came, and the sound as he lifted the tent flap was entirely different

”Mardian!” I recognized his blocky shape

”Shhhh!” He bent down and crept over toterrible has happened,” he whispered His voice was shaking

I sat up and put my arm around his shoulder, then I murmured, ”What? Spare ypt!” ”What?”

”Treachery! O treachery!”

”In the na and tell tell me!” me!”

”Ptolemy has slain Pompey!”

”But hoas all I could say in hty Pompey?

”They set upon hi

”It is all right You may speak in front of her” I had coood judgypt” Mardian decided to begin again

In all otten about the Ro the time of my exile, Pompey and Caesar had met in full battle at Pharsalus in Greece Caesar had won, but Pompey had escaped with his life and a handful of men I had known that, but had not cared Rome and its woes paled beforeto Egypt to regroup his forces; as Ptoleuardian--for so your father's will named him, he claims--Ptolemy owed him that loyalty, and a base of operations But they kneas doomed, and so they wanted to be rid of him”

”Continue,” I said ”How did you learn this?”

”A deserter from Ptolemy's ca hi, but I wanted to tell you first”

Dear, loyal Mardian ”I thank you”

”Thisfrom the beach He sahat happened Pompey washiht of his wife on the warshi+p They stabbed him and cut off his head before her eyes!”

Pompey--who had treated azed on in wonder--now beheaded! We had talked of Alexandria, and I had prouard it for you, and it will always be waiting for you We will guard it for you, and it will always be waiting for you

And when at last he caiven hiiven my promise the lie

”They are beasts,” I said ”It is beasts, not men, that I contend with Then I ht of the theht ”What of Caesar?”

”Their killing Po to this part of the world But they did not understand the likes of Caesar Caesar ca so swiftly that he arrived with very few troops Our informer heard that Theodotos presented Caesar with the severed head and Po to earn his approval Instead Caesar wept, then raged at them”

”Where is he now?”

”Caesar is in Alexandria, so this fellow says He has settled hier tothere?” Why was he lingering? Was Ptoleht he beco? Was Ptoleht he becouardian”?

”I do not know,” said Mardian

Iras spoke for the first ti as Caesar is there, Ptolemy does not rule,” she said ”That is in your favor”

”It can never be in one's favor to have a strong power occupying one's ho he wished to sleep on this bed,” I said

After Mardian had left, and Iras had lain back down, I stared at the ceiling folds of the tent They were lost in darkness, and the ju flames of the lantern only served to make the hidden parts of the tent seem blacker The hot as relentless The desert tribes intensity It was keepingAll I could do was lie still and sweat I was a prisoner in the oppressive night, shackled to my bed

Julius Caesar had defeated Pompey Julius Caesar was master of the Ro in the palace--my palace! He was daily in the presence of ? What was his purpose?

I would have to go there and presentas Caesar was there, Ptolemy and his nefarious Council did not rule I could appeal to a judge over their heads But I would have to go quickly Every day that passed with Ptole Caesar all to himself made the inside the tent, bu from fold to fold We had not used mosquito nets here, as ere not near swa closer; I heard hiht, where he landed I sat up quickly, grabbed my sandal, and, with one movement so swift the eye could hardly follow it, smashed him

Was that how Caesar smashed his enemies? They said he moved quickly and took his opponents by surprise He had never lost a final battle, even when outypt with only a few troops, relying on surprise to win the day with Pompey That must mean that he was now in Alexandria without ain the question: Why was he lingering?

What did I know about Caesar? Precious little Only that he was generally more popular with the people than with the aristocrats, that he had achieved his military successes relatively late, and that he was constantly involved omen, usually married women Mardian had once told me that every fashi+onable divorce in Rome seemed to involve an adultery with Caesar And his taste was not restricted to wo of Bithynia in his youth He collected works of art as well, Mardian confided, and prized them above his romantic conquests

My heart sank He would probably make off with some of our best artworks, then He would strip the palace of our Greek statues and our Egyptian furniture and paintings And that stupid Ptole, the first faint sounds of daybreak I could tell the hour by a subtle shi+ft in the way the air blew into the tent Before long they would awaken me, and by the ti the inforlad I had had tiyptian, an older warrior who had been in my father's army before the troops of Gabinius had arrived He looked ashamed, as deserters and spies and informers always do, even if they feel the cause of their erstwhileor hopeless

I had prepared al robes After all, he should feel that he had deserted to a queen, not a vagabond He prostrated hiravel, then lifted his head ”O great Queen of the east, my soul is yours and my body I lay before you to coht Traitors ht be useful, but they could never be trusted

It was as Mardian reported The black deed was performed by Achillas and a Roman commander, Septi of Theodotos, who had said, ”Dead men don't bite” Loyalty, honor, and debt were all wiped out by that practical advice And so Pompey was slain on the very shores where he had coht to expect a welco trunk had been tossed onto the sands and left there for his freedo up and down the shores hunting for driftwood, and was not able to find quite enough And so the body-- I stopped hi to Pompey even to allow us to picture them Tell me what happened when Caesar followed”

”I was not there I was sickened by what I had already seen I atching and waiting for an opportunity to desert I never saw Caesar I only heard that he was in Alexandria Theodotos had taken thethe head and ring to present it to hi about Caesar's ingratitude But that was only a few hours before I left”

”Where is Achillas now? And Ptole your aroes back and forth between the army and Alexandria Caesar resides in the palace in Alexandria The last thing I heard before I was able to escape was that he had angered the people of the city by landing as a Ronia and officials, as if he expected obeisance And Theodotos was ht to arbitrate between Your Majesty and Ptolemy”

Could it be true? On what basis could he claie, is the state of the city? Is it well guarded?”