The Heart of Alexander

Chapter Twenty Eight- Life and Death Without Joy

Did I truly witness what I just thought I did? Just as my vision foretold, I thought. I rushed to his side, dropping to my knees beside him. Hephaiston ran toward Alexander as well, slicing his way through the crowd of Indian men. He came beside me, snapping the front of the arrow in Alexander's chest and pulling out the back portion slowly.  Without hesitation, Hephaiston grabbed a portion of my skirts and tore it off, fashioning the fabric around Alexander's bloody wound and tying it. Even though his eyes were still closed shut, we earned an agonizing groan from Alexander. Hephaiston grabbed my face, forcing me to look into his eyes with my own puffy red ones. 

"My queen, stay here with Alexander. Alexander would never forgive me if something happens to you as well," Hephaiston demanded before running back into battle. 

I held his bloody body, tears threatening to pour out. This was all my fault. I had the vision and I could have prevented it. I was just too pathetic to care or take heed of the warnings. I caressed the side of his cut up face, getting blood coated on my fingers, but I didn't care for such things at the moment. His life was much more precious than that.

"Roxana!"

Perdiccas galloped in upon his stallion, his horse coming to a bumbling halt, "You need to move him to safety. They will try to capture him as soon as they can get their hands on him. We will try to hold them off the best we can,"

"Understood," I said with a nod. 

I staggered, getting up from the muddy ground and taking his good arm. I attempted to drag him towards the outskirts of the battlefield, back towards the river we crossed earlier. I fell, I slid, I cried. I watched warriors all around get slaughtered protecting their king. Just as well I saw Indian warriors get cut down to the ground in a split second by our own warriors and even some of the villagers. The least I could say was that I was proud of the villagers as I watched them defend their homeland to the best of their abilities. 

Slipping in the mud, I was soon covered in it, trying to drag my Alexander to safety. I felt hopeless, like my world was falling apart. I couldn't lose Alexander. Now that I knew I was in love with him, he couldn't leave me just yet. I sobbed and hiccuped, pulling Alexander to my chest as I cried, praying to be saved. But this time, I wasn't the one in needed of saving. Instead, it was Alexander. 

"Poor Roxana,"

My gaze lifted to Sibani who towered over Alexander and I. A smirk crept upon her face and her hand came out from behind her back, revealing a glinting blade. Realization hit me hard in that moment as I saw all the pieces slowly coming together. Sibani had set me up for failure. She had lured me into a trap with no escape except confrontation. This was her plan all along. 

"It amazes me how naive you are and so is your husband. Everything came together so perfectly it is unreal. All I had to do was tempt your husband, make you jealous to drive a gap between the two of you, and find a way to drag you into battle, which you practically did all by yourself. Now all that needs to be done is end your pathetic life, convince your husband to make me his new queen, bear his child, kill him and then my child will become the new ruler of his empire. Simple as that," Sibani explained, playing with the blade in her hands. 

"But why? Why not Ambhi?" I asked.

"Ambhi is a sad excuse of a king. He has no true control of his kingdom and if it wasn't for your husband, he would be surrendered to Porus instantly. Killing him would bring me no true power. No, Alexander is the conqueror of kings and I was always meant to have the best," Sibani chuckled darkly before pointing the knife at me, "All he will know is that you were killed in battle,"

Sibani stepped towards me, but I stumbled in the mud still holding tightly onto Alexander. I dared not leave him behind. Sibani quickly swiped the knife, the blade barely nicking the skin of my cheek. I reached for my sheath to find my dagger missing. Sibani held another dagger in her other hand, waving it before me. 

"Looking for this?" she laughed. 

She swiped again, this time slicing into my bicep. I cried out, clutching my now bleeding arm. Fear now sent shivers down my spine, almost like I never this wasn't going to end well. 

"Oh and I wanted to thank you for sharing your husband. Alexander was such a beast in bed and pleasured me well," Sibani commented, swiping this time on my leg as I scrambled back to my feet. 

I laid Alexander down before getting slapped hard in the face. I fell back into the mud, breathing heavily and failing to get up. I was weak, just like I was always told. I staggered, my eyes squinting to see Alexander's sword still in its sheath. I slowly reached for it. 

"Your death will bring me such great joy," Sibani huffed excitedly. 

Before she could drive her blade into my back, I yanked Alexander's sword from its sheath and met her blade half way. The sword was heavy and I faltered just a tad, but I held onto the hilt with all the strength I had left within me. 

"Oh, so that's how it is going to be? This should be entertaining," she replied before ducking the sword and whirling around to grab another fallen warrior's sword. 

Both blades met in the middle, both of us pushing against one another. I swung again, missing her while I was scraped again by the blade. My blood was now dripping down my skin as I slowly began to falter. With all my might, I jabbed the sword into her foot, causing her to howl in agony before bunting me in the head with the hilt of her sword. I collapsed, everything in me draining as I began to lose more blood. I wiped my mouth clean of the blood, my vision blurring in and out. I tried to reach out for Alexander's sword, but it was now too far away for me to grab. 

Sibani spat on me with a growl, "Bitch. Now it's time to die," she growled, raising the sword above her head. Closing my eyes, I awaited death and darkness to fall upon me, but nothing came. The clang of metal against metal resonated in my ears and above me was Titus defending me with his own blade. They growled at each other fiercely, battling one another in circles. 

Sweat beaded on his brow, he fought hard and bravely against Sibani. He looked worn, harboring several wounds of his own. Deflecting her sword and each individual swing, Titus proved to me he had grown into a warrior. 

"I serve only one queen!" Titus roared, clashing his sword against Sibani's

"Then you shall die too!" Sibani snarled. 

Looking over his shoulder, Titus screamed orders at me, "Go while I hold her off. You need to get to safety now before-,"

Without a moment's notice, Sibani's blade was driven deep into Titus, blood spurting from his chest. I screamed, crawling towards him desperately. His eyes widened in surprise as he dropped to his knees, the blade sticking straight through him. Sibani waltzed forward, gripping his hair and yanking her sword from his chest.

"I guess the only thing you will serving now is the dead," Sibani snickered, letting go of him and watching in triumph as he collapsed to the ground. 

I crawled over to his body, caressing his scraped cheek. His breathing was labored now, his eyes squinting to see me. A small smile crept up upon his face. 

"My debt to you has been paid. You saved my life and now I have saved yours," he stuttered, coughing up blood that bubbled in his throat. 

"No, Titus you can't," I stammered.

"You will forever be my queen, Roxana," he croaked. 

I felt as though I was breathless, silent tears falling from the corners of my eyes as she watched Titus take his last breath. Guilt took over my entire body while his now lifeless eyes pierced my soul. I wiped my tears, an angry growl escaping my throat at the thought of Titus being gone. I picked up the sword that belonged to Titus. Whirling around, I screamed with all that I had in me and drove the sword into the gut of Sibani. Realization flashed through her facial expression as she fell into the mud, her soul escaping and leaving behind just a lonely corpse. I spat on the body. 

"Your life brought me no joy either," I commented.