Ivan Yefremov - Thais of Athens

“Truth be told, Ptolemy is probably even wealthier. He is a wise and patient leader. He knows how to gather and wait. I think he will have you in the end, not Leontiscus, who is as passionate as Alexander,” the Cretan said at the completion of his story.

Thais raised her chin under Hesiona’s mischievous and loving gaze.

The first month of spring, Munikhion, had not yet started when Thais found herself on Nearchus’ ship yet again, along with her friend and Salmaakh. They sailed down the east arm of the Nile, through Bubastis to the First canal constructed on Darius’ orders, which connected Egypt with Eritrean Sea and Persia.

Three hundred years before, the Egyptian pharaoh, Neho, had ordered the construction of the canal. That was the same pharaoh under whom Finikian sailors carried out an incomparably heroic deed by sailing around the entire Libya, from Egypt to the Pillars of Hercules, then arriving back in Egypt.

However, the work started by the Egyptian slaves remained unfinished. Only two centuries later, Darius the First, with an enormous number of war slaves at his disposal, finished the waterway from the arm of the Nile to Succoth, located among the Bitter Lakes, not far from the Gulf of Heroes, which was a narrow branch of water between the Arabian and Sinai deserts.

In Succoth, Thais was to leave Nearchus’ ship and part with Hesiona for the first time. It would be for some time, possibly forever. Nearchus would then sail to the Euphrates to construct the fleet, in order to be able to sail to Babylon if necessary.

The possibility of defeat had its place in the thoroughly thought out plans of the great army leader. In that case, Alexander did not wish to repeat the difficult Anabasis [21] A famous march of Greek mercenaries, described by Xenophontus, when the Greeks were forced to retreat from Persia taking a longer more circuitous route. , the march of the Greeks toward the sea, across the mountains and plains of Cappadocia and Armenia. The Greek mercenaries were not being pursued by anyone at the time, yet they still lost many people. In this case, the huge Persian army would be right behind them. Alexander considered it the best strategy to retreat toward the Euphrates, put the army onto ships, and sail away from their pursuers. In the case of victory, Nearchus would meet them in Babylon. That was where Thais and Hesiona hoped to meet again.

They spent the last sleepless night before Succoth in Thais’ quarters. Chilly Sinai wind penetrated the heavy drapes, causing the weak flame of the luminary to flutter and encouraging the two friends to snuggle closer together. Hesiona remembered all the years spent at Thais’ household. They both cried aplenty, grieving for Egesikhora and for their own approaching separation.

Blinding sun rose from the dull hills in the east as the docking ropes were tossed to the pier. Ptolemy appeared in a Persian cape embroidered with silver, surrounded by a crowd of his friends. They greeted the new arrivals with loud shouts, which scared Salmaakh as much as it had during the Memphis symposium. Thais herself led the snorting and bucking mare to the pier and handed her off to the experienced stablemen. Thais and Hesiona were taken in a carriage along the north shore of a small salt lake to the east, where the camp of Alexander’s top captains was located on a ledge above a valley. The inevitable symposium ended early, since Nearchus was in a hurry. Thais returned from the feast by midnight with her eyes swollen with tears. She settled in a luxurious tent that had once belonged to some Persian nobleman, and was now prepared for her.

The hetaera could have never imagined that the grief from being separated from her former slave girl would be this strong.

The wound from the loss of Egesikhora and Menedem had not yet fully healed, and the Athenian felt particularly lonely here, on a deserted slope, before a march into the unknown. As if guessing her state, Ptolemy came to see her, despite the late hour. He captivated Thais with stories about Persia and she again fell under the spell of his intelligence, his articulate speech and incredible observance.

Since the beginning of the campaign, the Macedonian had kept a travel journal, capturing the amazing events efficiently and precisely. While Cretan Nearchus noticed primarily the nature of seashores, Ptolemy turned out to be not only a supreme military man, but also an explorer of traditions and everyday life of the people in the conquered lands. Of course, much of Ptolemy’s attention was captured by women, as well as traditions pertaining to love and marriage. These were also of great interest to Thais.

He told her about strange peoples living in the heart of Syria and Arabia. They treated women with little regard, and considered Aphrodite Pandemos to be a goddess of debauchery, since they did not understand her high gift to people. They did not understand it because they were afraid of love, which made them feel defective and apparently ugly, because they were strangely afraid of nudity.

These were the people whose women did not dare appear nude, even before their husbands. Unfulfilled in Eros, they were greedy for food and jewelry, and were afraid of death, even though their life was dull and unattractive. It was difficult to imagine that they did not understand drawings or paintings, and were unable to recognize images. It was useless to tell them about beauty created by artists. That was how they lived on the edge of the desert: without joy, in wars and riots.

“Do they completely reject women?” Thais asked, surprised.

“Not at all. They desire to have as many of them as possible. But all of it turns into crassness and rudeness. Their wives are slaves who can bring up only slaves. Such is the payback for their ignorant and frightened women.”

“You are right,” Thais said, becoming excited. “The Lacedemonian women enjoy much freedom, and there are no people braver than Spartans. Their heroics are legendary, as is the glory of their women.”

“Perhaps,” Ptolemy agreed reluctantly. He noticed the gold necklace around the hetaera’s neck and frowned. “Have you added any more stars after mine?”

“Of course. But not enough. Only one. I must be growing old.”

“Wouldn’t we all wish to grow old like that,” Ptolemy mumbled. “Show me.” Not waiting for her to respond, he pulled the necklace out.

“Twelve beams on the star. And letter mu in the middle. Does that stand for number twelve as well or is it a name?”

“Both a name and he number. But it is time. Dawn is coming from the hills.”

Ptolemy left without a word. Thais have never seen him this glum. She shrugged her shoulders in puzzlement as she slid under the light warm spread, and declined even a massage, which was offered to her by the new slave girl, Za-Asht, a Finikian. Za-Asht was ill-tempered and proud, with the stature of a priestess of some unknown god. She managed to win her mistress’ respect and, in her turn, grew sympathetic toward her. Za-Asht’s gloomy eyes warmed up considerably when they rested upon Thais, especially when her mistress couldn’t see her looking.

Thais spent the entire next day in her tent. The dull valley surrounding them did not inspire her curiosity, and the entire large Macedonian cavalry was swept up in the chaos of preparation for the next campaign. Hundreds more Macedonian soldiers arrived all the time and were temporarily settled on the fertile lands around the Delta.

The army was going to Tyre, the main gathering point, following an ancient road which passed through Edom to Damascus. The first stage of the journey was four and a half thousand stadiums long, according to the experienced guides and road surveyors.

This road went through deserted plateaus, tree covered mountains, valleys and river shores. It had been witness to the campaigns of many people, many forgotten bloody battles, and tragic marches of those taken as slaves. Giskosi, Assyrians, Persians, and many others had attempted to get to the wealthy and fertile Egypt over thousands of years. Even Scythians would have passed here, moving from the Caucasian lands in the distant east to the borders of Egypt.