Adventure Story Page #6

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if you'll only let me.

No, Mother, I won't let you.

What harm has he ever done?

None.

Then why do you hate him?

I don't hate him.

If he's anything like you,

I think I might love him.

And yet you must?

I must.

Tell me,

did Darius hate his father?

No, he...he loved his father.

Why? What made you think...

I was just wondering.

-When did he die?

-Oh, it must be nearly 20 years ago now.

-Did you love him too?

-Yes. Very dearly.

Goodnight, Mother.

Goodnight, my son.

Hephaestion, Hephaestion!

There they are, straight ahead.

The chariots, the chariots!

They're coming now.

Let them pass, phalanx, let them pass.

(CAVALRY PASSING)

Destroy them, now! Destroy them.

Companion cavalry,

charge!

(SOUNDS OF BATTLE)

Darius. Darius.

Wake up, wake up,

we haven't a moment to lose.

Water, water.

(PANTING)

Only a sip, it's precious.

We shall have to ride through the day.

-That's enough.

-Please.

No, we can't spare it.

Now listen, Darius,

you must try to understand.

Alexander is only

an hour or two behind us.

-Did you hear what I said, sir?

-Yes.

He left the road at the last village

and is riding straight for us.

-The short way through the open desert.

-You said that was impossible.

I said no man in his senses

would try it.

-You remember what I said, Bessus?

-Yes, you were right and I was wrong.

-Now get up, sir, please.

-I said,

"He is neither a man nor in his senses."

Get on to your feet, sir.

Isn't it strange, Bessus,

that, as he is a god,

it should have taken him

so long to catch us.

He hasn't caught us yet.

If we can get into the mountains,

he never will.

Not even if he was Mithra himself.

Courage, sir, courage.

-How far to the mountains?

-About 800 miles.

(LAUGHING)

-How short a way you make it sound.

-We've already come twice that distance.

I've forgotten my empire was so wide.

-Let me go back to my cart and sleep.

-Wake up! Wake up!

Leave me, Bessus. Save yourself.

Thank you for all you have done for me

but leave me now, let me sleep.

Sir, your men are

waiting for your orders!

My men? How many men

have I this morning?

No more desertions? 300 is a large army.

With it, if I were Alexander,

I could conquer the world.

Darius can still reconquer the world.

Reach the mountains, you can have

an army of many, many thousands.

Less than a mile away,

riding straight for us.

-How many?

-About 50.

-Is Alexander with them?

-A black horse, a red cloak.

The Gods have delivered him

into our hands.

Darius? Darius, did you hear that?

Alexander is riding straight for us.

50 against 300.

Get the men into battle formation.

Sir, they are out of hand.

Some have ridden off, the others...

Darius, Darius, order your men to fight.

Soldiers of Persia,

hear your King Darius.

Soldiers of Persia, I, Darius,

great King of Persia and lord of Asia,

order you to lay down your arms

and surrender yourselves to Alexander.

(EXCLAIMING)

Where is my horse? Lead me.

-My King!

-I am your king.

Lead me to my horse.

Bessus, Bessus.

Why am I alone?

Come quickly, someone, come quickly.

The master of the world is dying

and he must name his successor.

Where are my attendants?

Mazeres, where are you?

(MUMBLING)

Someone must hear

to whom I bequeath my empire!

Who are you?

The enemy. Come here, my friend,

and listen.

I'm dying and you must listen

to what I have to say.

-I'm listening.

-I, Darius, great King of Persia...

(GASPING)

Do you still hear me, Greek?

I, Darius, great King of Persia

do hereby name,

as my lawful and true successor,

Alexander of Macedon.

And I solemnly adjure him in my name.

What are you all staring at?

Have none of you ever seen

a dead Persian before?

Darius, it wasn't you I fought.

Try to believe that.

If you can't,

try to understand

that what I have done, I had to do,

because I could not do otherwise.

He shall be taken to Persepolis.

He shall be buried in the tomb

of the kings beside his wife.

We must return to Babylon

and break the news to his mother.

I never thought it would end like this.

In a farm cart.

You remember Gordium?

The knot on the wagon in the citadel?

Yes, I remember.

The empire of the world in a farm cart.

-And there it is.

-Yes, there it is.

Darius.

I took your mantle once,

now you must take mine.

After all,

I never did solve that puzzle, did I?

How can a man

solve a puzzle with a sword?

Alexander, King of Macedon,

Captain General of Greece,

Pharaoh of Egypt, King of Babylonia,

Lord of the Lands, Great King of Persia,

and Master of the World,

does hereby pronounce that you, Bessus,

former Satrap and Prince of Bactria,

have been found guilty of all the crimes

of which you've been accused before him.

To wit,

first, that you did make an armed

and treacherous rebellion

against your rightful sovereign,

King Alexander.

BESSUS:
Alexander

is not my rightful sovereign.

Silence.

And that you did thereby cause the death

of many of his Majesty's loyal subjects

in the ensuing lengthy campaign.

Second, that you did for the aim

and purpose of making

the same armed rebellion,

usurped yourself the force

and sacrilegious style

of Artaxerxes the IV,

rightful Great King of Persia.

Third, that it was you who committed

the blasphemous crime of murder

against the royal and sacred person,

his late Imperial Majesty,

Darius.

For all these crimes,

he does now sentence you

to be taken from here

to the city of Ecbatana

and there to be put death

in whatever manner

the High Council of the Medes and

Persians in session there shall devise.

Bessus,

former Prince of Bactria, have you

anything to say against this sentence?

-I have a favour to ask.

-Ask it.

I am a soldier.

All that I have done,

even the killing of Darius,

has been done in fighting for my country

against my country's invader.

I'm ready now to meet my death.

But I would rather meet it as a soldier,

not as a felon.

Besides,

possessing, as I do,

a fairly close knowledge

of Persian judicial customs,

possibly closer than the present

Great King of Persia himself...

That's enough.

It is therefore not hard for me

to guess the sort of death

which the Council of Medes and Persians

may devise for a regicide.

It will be, to say the least,

uncomfortable.

I'm not afraid of it.

I would just rather not meet it.

The favour I ask,

is to be allowed a military execution

here in your camp.

The favour is refused.

(CHAINS RATTLING)

So much for King Artaxerxes the IV.

God help him.

-Alexander?

-Yes, Cleitus?

I think you might

have granted his request.

-It wasn't unreasonable.

-It was unreasonable.

-He killed Darius.

-Well?

You seem to forget

I'm his lawful successor.

He nominated me.

-(LAUGHING) In a delirium.

-He knew what he was saying.

-Well, who believes it anyhow?

-No one yet, but the whole world will.

I don't see why it's so important.

-Do you want to get home, Cleitus?

-You know I do.

Yes, I know you do,

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