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It seemed like a mere blink of an eye passed as Alexander passed from the realm of the living into that of the dead. He recalled staring up at the great fan in his room in Babylon as it beat above him, and the next moment he found himself here, alone in half light on the banks of a mighty river, shrouded by mist.
He did not need anyone to tell him what had happened and where he now stood.
Before him, a ferry appeared silently out of the gloom, and Alexander felt the silver coin in his hand. He spared a moment for all of the things that he still wished to do, the lands he had wished to see, but in truth, all of those dreams had become as ashes in his mouth, burned up in the great funeral pyre with his love.
He spared a moment of regret for the fate of his unborn child, left alone with only the machinations of his Generals and the bitch of a mother to care for him, but deep down he knew that any attachment he was likely to have felt for that child had died when its mother had sent Hephaestion to the one place Alexander could not immediately follow.
As he had promised long ago, Macedonia had lost its King, as he had followed him down into Hades.
He showed no hesitation as the boat docked, and climbed aboard, handing his coin to Charon and taking a spot at the bow. He spoke no words, simply staring out into the mist ahead, searching for any sign of his lover. He remembered another journey, across the Hellespont, where he had stood at the prow, proud and tall, spear in hand as they crossed the water, Hephaestion a silent support at his back.
There was no spear to be found in his hand this time, and his love was instead in front of him, somewhere. Now, his only goal was for them to be reunited.
The journey seemed to take both an eternity and mere moments, the swirling mists stealing all sense of time and space, until the opposite bank finally came into view.
A man stood there waiting, but it was not his Phae. Instead, a tall, broad shouldered man stood, arms crossed and feet firmly planted, watching the ferry as it docked. Alexander stood, and nodded his thanks to Charon, who made no motion in return, simply waiting for him to disembark before pushing back off, vanishing back into the mist and disappearing from sight.
Alexander stepped over to the man who was waiting for him, assessing him and feeling a strange kinship to him, even though he was quite sure they had never met before.
“Alexander,” the man spoke, his voice deep and strong.
“That is I,” he replied.
“It is good to meet you at last,” the other replied. “I have heard much about you.”
“You have me at a disadvantage then, as I do not know you,” he answered, a frown wrinkling his brow.
To his surprise, the man laughed loudly, the sound echoing across the empty landscape. “On the contrary, it seems you have spent much of your life emulating me,” he grinned. “But perhaps I should not have expected you to recognize me.” He stopped and turned to face Alexander, grin firmly in place. “I am Achilles, and I am honored to meet you.”
Alexander just barely stopped himself from tripping over his own two feet at those words, and he felt his cheeks flush.
“Then it is I who am most honored,” he responded. “That it be you who comes to greet me on the banks of the Styx.”
“Hephaestion wanted to be here, waiting for you as he had promised, but there are rules in Hades, and he could not leave the Elysian Fields. Instead, he bade me to wait for you in his stead, and to bring you to him. He felt that you would not mind the substitution,” Achilles laughed once more; and clapped Alexander on his back. “Now, come, let us waste no more time, as your Hephaestion is waiting for you in much more pleasant surroundings.”
“He was granted entry into the Fields then?” he asked, delighted, following Achilles as he moved across the barren landscape.
“Yes, as any Divine Hero should be,” Achilles replied. “Although he was confused as to what... or should I say who... had granted him that right,” he winked at Alexander, who merely shook his head in response.
“I could do no less for him, and he deserved it, perhaps more than I. For he was always part of me; the more even tempered, righteous part.”
Achilles just laughed again and clapped him on the shoulder, before continuing on his path.
Alexander followed him, a smile on his face as he thought of being reunited at last- and this time nothing would separate them for the rest of eternity.
The route was rough, but quick, and before Alexander knew it, the rocky ground gave way to a great stretch of dark water, and beyond them, he could barely make out islands of green, rising out of the water and shining brightly against the dark and dank surroundings of the rest of Hades.
“Only those who have been granted entry can safely cross these waters,” Achilles cautioned. “And once there, you will never be able to leave.”
“All that I need is waiting for me across these waters,” Alexander told him. “To be able to hold my beloved in my arms once more is my only desire. So long as I have that, I shall need nothing else.”
“Then come, let us not keep him waiting a moment longer.”
Together the two men waded out into the water, which never seemed to get deeper than waist height, no matter how far they traveled. The island rose like a green jewel before them, and the water turned to a rich blue as they got closer and closer.
Alexander could not tear his eyes away from the beach, where he could see two figures standing, waiting for him. He could not explain how, but he somehow just knew that Hephaestion was the one on the left. The other figure he did not know, but he could guess. As they drew closer, the figures became clearer, and Alexander smiled as he saw that he had been right. It was all he could do not to run towards the beach, although he lengthened his stride.
Beside him, he heard Achilles laugh at his haste, and he turned to shoot a glare at the man.
“Don’t worry lad,” he responded. “I did the same thing the first time I arrived to see my Patroclus waiting for me,” he gestured at the other man standing on the shoreline.
“I shall be honored to meet him,” Alexander replied.
“And meet him you shall, but I think that we will leave the lengthy introductions until later eh?” Achilles laughed again.
Alexander felt something pass over him as he got within a short distance to the island, and his whole vision shimmered for a moment. Without knowing why, he looked back at the way they had come, but the dark, barren shoreline had gone, replaced instead by a beautiful blue sky, broken only by a few white clouds, and the endless calm blue ocean.
He made to turn back around, to resume his journey, only to halt as a familiar pair of arms wrapped around his middle, pulling him back into a strong body. He closed his eyes in pleasure at the long missed feeling, as Hephaestion rested his chin on his shoulder once more, just as he had done a thousand times before.
“My Alexander,” he spoke softly, the sound only barely carrying the scant distance from lips to ear.
Trusting him to hold him, Alexander leaned back in that firm grip, turning his head enough that they could brush lips.
“My Hephaestion,” he answered in turn.
“I swore I would follow you,” he spoke eventually, breaking the silence.
“Yes, you did,” Hephaestion replied. “And while I wish I could say that I wished you had not followed me so quickly, I cannot lie and say that I am unhappy.”
“Without you at my side, there was no honor, no glory left for me to find. It was all tarnished.”
Hephaestion tightened his arms around Alexander before letting go with one arm, taking a step back from his love and using the other arm to turn him to face him.
“And now I am back at your side once more, and there is no force, god or mortal; that can ever tear us asunder.”
“My love,” Alexander’s voice broke on the emotion.
“Come My Alexander; let us at last go home.”
Alexander stepped closer to Hephaestion, and pressed a kiss against his lips, sealing their love, before letting him lead them both back into the Elysian Fields, and forever peace.