A Tryst with Destiny

If I know anything about Alexander the Great that is not a good sign...

Unless he just means he failed to take India. IRL he took it but was forced back by his mutinous troops. Maybe the similarity between this timeline and the IRL one is that they ultimately failed

approximate boundaries

It was said that there were only two empires in the world. The empire of Chandragupt Maurya in the east, and the empire that Alexander forged from the West, but just as there cannot be two suns in the sky, there could not be two empires in the world both claiming the pedestal of supreme glory. Alexander had set his sights on the East, so he rode out from Persepolis to conquer to the Sindhu and beyond.

The momentous news from the West had not gone on deaf ears. Prime Minister Acharya Vishnugupt Chanakya had his ears on the affairs of the West. His spies were scattered over the collapsing realm of Persia. Among them was Guptachr Rudragupt.



One evening, the Acharya was busy writing what would be his seminal work, The Arthashastra - A comprehensive treatise on statecraft and economy. "THOSE orphans (asambandhinah) who are to be necessarily fed by the state and are put to study science, palmistry (angavidya), sorcery (máyágata), the duties of the various orders of religious life, legerdemain (jambhakavidya), and the reading of omens and augury (antara-chakra), are classmate spies or spies learning by social intercourse (samsargavidyasatrinah)..".

A knock on his door disturbed the Acharya from his work, normally he would answer such disturbances with scorn. He had made it a point that none would disturb him when he worked on his book. But if someone dared to do so, then there could be only one reason. "Guptachr Rudragupt!" the Acharya exclaimed, he opened the door of his chamber to find his spy, Rudragupt standing and panting. "Acharya.... I bring you.. dire news" "sit down Rudragupt".

After Rudragupt had relaxed himself, he began explaining his report to the Acharya. "I have been keeping my eye on the affairs from Persia as you had commanded Acharya. Darius has accepted the servitude of Alakshendra. Now Alexander has started to march East upon Bharata." "Tell me guptachr, what are Alexander's strengths and weaknesses that you have learnt of from Persia?" the question brought a sly smile to Rudragupt's face. "They say in the West that Alakshendra, is a son of God. They say that he is invincible in battle. In Persia, I saw this myth broken". The spy went on and described the two greatest weaknesses that plagued Alexander's empire.

From Greece to Persia, the empire faces revolts all around itself. The army is constantly replenished from new fighters from Macedon, but with each conscription Alexander's popularity in his homeland plummets. It was true, that the hoplites were near invincible in battle and are reputed to have brought down armies twice their size, but when it came to besieging a city, is where their weakness was shown.

"In the final days of the siege, Alakshendra ordered an assault on the city, with his beleagured troops. True, persepolis was starving and its citizens reduced to feeding on rats and cats, but Alakshendra's army was no better. Years went on his troops had not seen any hard fighting only peasant rebels fighting for the liberation of their homeland. Hence, their morale has weakened. Every fresh soldiers that comes from Macedon comes with dreams of glory only to bloody their hand in shame" said Rudragupt, "Are there any among the Persians who may be our ally?" Chanakya asked, steepling his fingers, "There is one. When Darius and his ministers all agreed to surrender to Alakshendra and accept their humiliating servitude, it was only Bessus a Kshatrap of the lands South of Herat, who resisted. They say he escaped the day Alakshendra and his army feasted in Persepolis, and left that city a bloody mess." "And he seeks to take refuge in our empire" Chanakya added. "Acharya, you already know!" "no, I merely estimated". Acharya Chanakya seldom smiled, but when he did, it was a terrible sight to behold.

His first act was to consult with Samrat Chandragupt Maurya. The samrat was the Acharya's superior, but between them, they were still master and student. When Acharya Chanakya came before the samrat, it was the samrat who bowed before the Acharya and touched his feet, like a pupil. "Uthisht Bharat!"(Arise Bharata), that was the blessing Chanakya would give to his pupil. "Acharya, why trouble yourself with coming to me ? You could have just called and I would come.." "We can discuss niceties another time Chandragupt. The time has come what we had forseen, Alakshendra marches North to the borders of Bharat" "So he has finally decided to declare war on us?" "I have taught you for over twenty years Chandragupt today your guru asks for a gurudakshina" "Tell me O Acharya, what do you demand" "My gurudakshina Samrat Chandragupt, is for you to defend the Bharat against the Yavanas. Bring me the news of victory, and that shall be my Gurudakshina." "With your guidance Acharya, Bharat will win against the Yavan" saying this, the emperor prostrated before the Acharya to seek his blessings and guidance "Uthisht Bharata!"

Edicts were made in every Janapad and in the five major cities of the empire. It was now war and wartime measures had to be implemented. Grants for scientific research were curtailed so money could be made available for mercenary contracts, two more mercenary armies were hired. One thousand Charioteers from the far South, and a thousand more Elamite charioteers from the borders of Persia. The citizens of Kashi and Indraprasth would be forced to work to complete the Catapults in time. Soon the army of Bharat would be able to stand with the best of militaries in the world.



The use of forced labor was to be shunned as far as possible. It reminded the people of the worst purges of Dhananand and his corrupt regime, but war brings out the worst. Samrat Chandragupt, who had come to power to end the tyranny of the Nandas would now have to make use of the same tyranny. To justify his actions, he would invoke nationalism :

"The nation beckons! lay down your ploughs to take up the sword. Put down your picks and take up the war hammer! Shudr, Vaishya, Brahman and Kshatriya, you are all sons of Bharata. This land that is your mother, is being threatened by invaders from the West ! Would you sit by and watch them ravage your mother ! Then how can you not sacrifice when your motherland calls for it ! If you die for the defense of Bharat, I assure you, you will be reborn as nobility!"

Chandragupt's speeches would arouse patriotic fervor in his people. In Varanasi and Indraprasth, thousands would give up their ploughs and tools to work on machines of war. But it was no easy thing to do. The cities shrank. Kashi and Kuru suffered a famine which killed over a hundred thousand of their people. This was the cost of building the massive catapults that would rain death upon Alexander and his army.



The famine was heavy on Chandragupt's conscience, he felt as though he had failed the people as their samrat. It was Chanakya who reminded Chandragupt of his duty, his duty as a samrat was to defend the realm. Later that day, the emperor and his prime minister sat to discuss strategy. The first priority was to delay Alexander's march so as to help the Mauryan army prepare itself.

"There are two options before us, one is of Tooshyudha, whereby we make use of espionage to weaken the enemy from within, the other is Kootyuddha, whereby we destroy the enemy's means of sustenance and undermine his power." "We may use both" Chandragupt said, "Our garrison in Herat is weak, but they are within range of harassing the very Northern borders of the Seleucid domains." "It is a good position to harrow the enemy, reports have come of the Persians planning to breed the horses from the region, for which they have sent colonizers to establish a pastoral village. We can stop them if we capture these colonizers". So began the Kootyudha.



"And what of the Tooshyuddha, Acharya Chanakya ?" "For that, we make use of our ally" "Who?" Chanakya smiled "Bessus". Kshatrap Bessus knew the region around Persia's northern borders well, for those were his domains before his exile. He knew of tribes living in the mountains North West of Persepolis by an inland sea. Chandragupt made a surplus of twenty mounds of gold available to him to buy their loyalty. These men who were loyal to Persian crown, would now turn against Darius and against Alexander. Through them would begin the Tooshyuddha.



"But these tactics will only delay the enemy, it won't destroy him" Chandragupt rightly noted, "Delay is key Samrat. It would give us time to concentrate our forces to the West" "But why Takshashila Acharya ?" To this Acharya Chanakya gave a long explanation :

"Remember Chandragupt, our war does not end with Alakshendra, if anything it only begins with him. Bharata is yet to be united, if this can be done through peace then it is fine, if not then we must use force of arms. If the kingdom comes in the way of the realm, then the kingdom must be annihilated. Victory over Alakshendra would show the rest of the realm our strength and capability. Kalinga and the Cholas would either bow to us or be destroyed. What better place to destroy them from than Takshashila? From there we can guard our Western frontier, attack the south along the Western coast, and it is an excellent centre of commerce, culture and industry."

History would record the wisdom of concentrating the entire army of Bharat on to Takshashila. For it was there that Alexander would mount his ambitious attack yet. "What course do we take to India, Alexander ?" asked Seleucus, "We shall go West to our side of the Indus, and from there follow the river north" Alexander replied "That would bring us to Taxiles!" "Which is precisely where I mean to attack!" "Do so, but only if you mean to doom us Alexander!" Seleucus exclaimed in shock, it was known from informants that Takshashila was where the Mauryans had assembled their best forces and built up a near impregnable defense. Only the full might of the whole Alexandrian army could defeat it, yet Alexander hoped to capture that city, with only twenty five thousand.

"I have led us this far Seleucus, Mesopotamia, Persia, Egypt, Phoenicia and Anatolia, all have fallen to our armies under my leadership. Then India too shall fall." "Not in Taxiles, my emperor. I implore you, to change course to the far North." Seleucus reasoned, for Herat was not well defended and considered ripe for the picking, its location in India's western frontier was considered of good strategic value. "To the North ? Where there are only deserts ? How do you think my men would survive the march ? By moving along the banks of the Indus, we have water and villages to replenish our troops to our march North." "Where your men would fight to the death" "No Seleucus, they would fight to win", Seleucus seemed overcome with doubt and fear "My liege, I implore you, this march is suicide. We may conquer india yet, but not here and not now. This is a mistake" "Seleucus! Do you doubt on the righteousness of this quest ? Or do you doubt that the sons of Macedonia lack in courage or strength ?" "Ask that to your own men Alexander, for twenty years Greeks have not known peace, every young warrior from Greece is being conscripted to keep your dream of empire. You have twenty thousand where you should have a hundred thousand marching with you. Why do you think more did not come ?!"

Alexander did not answer Seleucus question, rather on the night, he addressed his forces which were now seven day's march from Taxiles. Seleucus was speaking the truth, the men no longer had the spirit nor vigour which drove Alexander's conquests throughout the known world. It was here, that we would see Alexander's finest moment when he would give a speech to arouse his men :

"I observe, gentlemen, that when I would lead you on a new venture you no longer follow me with your old spirit. I have asked you to meet me that we may come to a decision together: are we, upon my advice, to go forward, or, upon yours, to turn back?

If you have any complaint to make about the results of your efforts hitherto, or about myself as your commander, there is no more to say. But let me remind you: through your courage and endurance you have gained possession of Ionia, the Hellespont, both Phrygias, Cappadocia, Paphlagonia, Lydia, Caria, Lycia, Pamphylia, Phoenicia, and Egypt; the Greek part of Libya is now yours, together with much of Arabia, lowland Syria, Mesopotamia, Babylon, and Susia; Persia and Media with all the territories either formerly controlled by them or not are in your hands; you have made yourselves masters of the lands beyond the Caspian Gates, beyond the Caucasus, beyond the Tanais, of Bactria, Hyrcania, and the Hyrcanian sea; we have driven the Scythians back into the desert; and Indus and Hydaspes, Acesines and Hydraotes flow now through country which is ours. With all that accomplished, why do you hesitate to extend the power of Macedon--your power--to the Hyphasis and the tribes on the other side ? Are you afraid that a few natives who may still be left will offer opposition? Come, come! These natives either surrender without a blow or are caught on the run--or leave their country undefended for your taking; and when we take it, we make a present of it to those who have joined us of their own free will and fight on our side."

The speech aroused the dormant lion in the heart of every Greek soldier who heard it. With spears and shields in their arms, the men cried the chant of victory and headed North along with their supplies and catapults. It was not long before they reached the hills of Gandhar and faced the garrison of Takshashila before them.

Oh Persia,declare your independence soon please

Samrat Chandragupt Maurya sat in meditation that day, praying to Goddess Kali. His mind battled on many fronts, but now was the time he focussed on just one battle. The one which Alexander brought to India. "Mother Kali, give me strength to face this battle". Upon finishing his prayers, he left the temple and prepared for war. Chandragupt's armour was made of bronze with a large lion's insignia in the centre. Before departing he would see his wife, the queen Durdhara one last time, and her child, the scion of his dynasty.

"Durdhara, the time we feared has come. This is my agnipariksha, and I must face it alone. If I do not return, take care of Bindusar, I would like to see him to seat the throne of Magadh after me" "Chandragupt, I have enough faith in my husband's abilities, to know that he will return and he will return victorious" Durdhara replied caressing her husband's face. "Now go and defend your country Samrat." The garrison of Takshashila would face the wrath of Alexander. He whose armies brought down two thirds of the known world, he who knew no fear. This would be a battle between the most powerful and the second most powerful empires in the world. Chandragupt went before his men to speak to them.

"Sons of Bharata ! The time has come, the time when every one of you must prove your worth ! Your motherland beckons you to defend her honor against the barbaric invaders from the West . These men, the Yavan, have no respect for other cultures, they defile places of worship, and destroy the temples, palaces and houses of the cities they attack. Persia stands before you men, testament to how a once proud and capable nation was brought to its heels and humiliated by the army of Alakshendra. Would you see this done to Bharata !?

I know there are some of you, lo many of you here, who are from far corners of the realm, who speak a language different from that of Takshahila, whose clothes, habits and even appearance are different. Remember this men, that just as many rivers meet into the single sea, so do all you meet into one realm, one Raajya. That is Bharatvarsh. Takshashila like Magadh, like Kuru, or Gandhar, or Avanti or even the forbidding jungles of Asvaaka and the Chola realms, are all one Bharata ! An attack on any province is an attack on all of the realm. We are duty bound as soldiers to defend the borders of our realm, and our borders spread to where-ever the culture of Bharat is spread !"

For the next two minutes, an thunderous applause went through the gathering. There were over a hundred and twenty thousand in the garrison of Takshashila, and a hundred and twenty thousand claps and cheers were heard. "Samrat Chandragupt ki Jay!" "Samrat Chandragupt ki Jay !" (Victory to emperor Chandragupt)

"We are here to defend against the Yavanas camped on that hill, to defend not only the sacred waters of the Sindhu from being defiled by these Yavan Mlecchas, but the whole sacred soil of Bharata ! We will fight to the death ! We will fight to win ! Jay maa Bharati!!" the soldiers chanted in unison, "Jay maa Bharati!" "Jay maa Bharati!" (Victory to mother bharat) . It was said that the sound of the chanting could be heard all over Gandhar. Even the hills shook that day when the garrison of Takshashila was aroused by Chandragupt.

"What goes in there Selecus?" Alexander asked when the sound of the applauses and chanting were heard "Sadrocotus is rallying the garrison my liege. He is invoking their love for the motherland" "That is good, we shall have more brave soldiers in our army, when we march further East to Gangaridae". Seleucus, did not bother with countering Alexander on that.

On their march to India, the Greeks had used a tactic which they had previously implemented in Persia to good effect, one of living off the land. This time, it would be to no avail. Far from reaving the countryside unstopped, the Greeks were mired every step of the way in their march from the South. Chanakya's spies had destroyed roads, poisoned wells, and incited hill tribes to attack Alexander's convoy.

Alexander's path had been kept a secret, but it was known for certain that he would have to come through Takshashila. So it was that Chanakya had every tribe and every village in Gandhar utilized to stall his advance. The army that did come was one which was beleagured, and weakened by desertions and mutinies. But Alexander would not be stopped, he ordered the killing of two hundred mutineers as an example to show what happens to those who would mutiny, where words failed the sword would be used. Hence, the soldiers instead resorted to desertions. Despite it all, Alexander successfully led his men up to the border of Takshashila.

Now the fighting would begin ...



Alexander had positioned his catapults in range to attack the city defenders and cause maximum damage before the phalanxes could charge through the ranks of defending infantry and cavalry. It was not possible given the difficulty in terrains, to create a hammer and anvil maneuver which won Alexander all his victories in battle, but it could be possible to destroy the army at its weakest point and drive them to the edge of the Indus, dispersing them and allowing the phalanxes their natural advantage over Cavalry and infantry. Shock and awe would be the principle of this assault.

Takshashila's location worked against it, with the mighty Sindhu to the East of it, and hills to its West. Takshashila was settled on plain land, where the Sindhu flowed the strongest. It could be defended with relative ease against any aggressor from the East, but for an aggressor from the West, Takshashila would have to rely on its walls alone. If defeated, there escape would not be easy since the soldiers would have to cross the Indus. The walls were only half completed when Alexander invaded Takshashila. For this, temporary wooden pallisades had to be built to work as defenses. Even so, Chandragupt succeeded in leveraging even these limited defenses to his advantage. The best defending troops were positioned behind their palisades in the least defended areas. While the shock troops, of the death batallion and the cavalry were positioned to flank the advancing Greek army. The strategy was to trap Alexander between the mountain passes, surround them with offensive troops on either side and then shower them with arrows making it unable to escape the counter-offensive.

But in order to do so successfully, it would be necessary to destroy the catapults that Alexander had brought. Damaged as they were, they could still inflict considerable harm if not destroyed in time. The Death Batallion notorious for its ferocity and daring was tasked with this.

The fighting began rather unexpectedly, with a rain of boulders by the Greek catapults. The shower of boulders had succeeded in killing several hundred of the garrison. Alexander excersized caution before advancing his infantry. He kept the bombardment coming. "The line is not to be broken !" the emperor ordered, the archers stayed in their defensive line. It was here that the Death Batallion would succeed in its job. They were the first to charge against the Greek infantry. "We are the minions of Yamraj and death stalks the death batallion!" were their words, the Greeks would learn the meaning of these words the hard way. In besieging a city, Alexander would often win the psychological battle before the actual battle. The enemy would be so struck with fear, it was said that men simply dropped their weapons and ran. Not in India!

The Greeks who believed their courage was second to none, saw their belief challenged. The axes of the Death Batallion came from the hill with the chant of death on their lips, taking the Greek army by surprise. Alexander had not expected the "decadent, barbarian, and backward" Indians to do naught but surrender to the mere presence of his army on its borders. "How could I be so wrong" he was noted to say, when the Death batallion cut through his siege engineers and their defenders. The Shock and Awe he had prepared for was put to a bloody end. He would now have to send Phalanxes against the axemen on the hills.

No sooner than the death batallion had charged ahead, were a hail arrows seen descending from the East. Hoofbeats were heard from horsemen charging from the East. It was the Kamboja horsemen who would use hit and run tactics to disperse the Greek army. Thus, Alexander was surrounded from two directions, from the North East the Death Batallion came down slashing and cutting through ranks of hoplites and siegemen. From the South East, horsemen charged on. However, these charges could not break the Phalanxes, the Greek hoplites in their armor and shields were dogged in their defense.

Chandragupt's plan was working. In reserve, he had two massive catapults stationed to be used only in an attack. This was still a defensive battle. Chandragupt at this point, did something strange, he ordered his men to feign retreat. Alexander interpreted this as a sign of things going his way. Against the better advise of Seleucus, he went for the charge, as the greeks came down from their hill camp, they were met with a hail of arrows raining upon them from all sides. Chandragupt's defensive line now shot to kill.

Not even in Thermopylae, the greeks said, not even in Thermopylae, were such a rain of arrows fired upon a Greek army. "Jay maa Bharati!" "Jay maa Kaali!" the troops shouted as they rained death on the Greek invaders. The Kamboja cavalry divisions turned, and joined with the Death Batallion and the mercenary charioteer companies, "The hammer and anvil" Alexander is said to have muttered with a pale face when he saw his army surrounded. The final attack of the offensive forces crushed the Greek hoplites.

In his final act of bravery and courage, Alexander redeemed himself from this defeat. He saw to his right his friend and companion Seleucus fighting with a division of Hoplites against advancing Kamboja horsemen. Astride his brave steed, he rallied his remaining cavalry men against the division of Kamboja cavalry at their weakest point. This freed Seleucus and his men. "Retreat !" he shouted, the bugles were sounded signalling the end of this fighting. "Retreat !!" Thus, the army of Alexander who had conquered the known world, humiliated the Persians and utterly subjugated Babylon, faced their first and final defeat.

Chandragupt Maurya, could finally give his mentor Acharya Chanakya, his gurudakshina.

The Alexandrian army was defeated and pushed back across the hills into Gandhar. Of the twenty thousand Greek hoplites who came with Alexander, twelve thousand were killed on the fields of the Punjab. However, they took as many as they lost that much they could be satisfied of, that the Greek armies fought well.

It was the most vicious war that the people of Bharata had ever seen. Not since the Mahabharat was a battle fought that was so vicious and so large. The world had not seen such a fight anywhere else, where the two empires who ruled the world, confronted each other in the most decisive battle in history.

Alexander whose men fought with him from Anatolia to Persia, fought and died for him on the plains of the Sindhu. Alexander took stock of the situation "We must rest before we march back to persia. The Indian troops would not follow us not immediately at least. We will rest for two days and make our retreat via the southern route back to Persepolis". "As you command my liege" Seleucus bowed and made his way out "Seleucus... You were right. I was wrong." "History will know of Alexander as the Great, not Alexander as the defeated. You have conquered most of the known world. You have brought greatness to our people, you have left a legacy that has earned you a place in the pantheon of greatness." Alexander did not seemed satisfied with that, the burden of twelve thousand Greek men murdered on the plains of the Indus was heavy on him.


Link to video.

His mind wandered to the past whence he remembered an Indian sage, who met him on the Indus while he was marching his troops North, he was the sage Kalyan Rishi. "Your war is futile Alakshendra !" he threw an animal hide to the ground, it was bent on both ends, and if one steps on one end, the other would spring up. "Your empire is like this hide Alakshendra! It is too large, if you step on one side, the other side immediately springs up. You have to stand here" said the rishi standing in the centre of the hide, "You must be at such a place where you can administer the far corners of the empire." Alexander did not heed the sage's advise seriously, though he respected his wisdom as Alexander respects all wise men. Now, in defeat he could see the worth of these words.

"We head to Babylon" Alexander declared. The men were relieved to know, but just as the troops were preparing to leave, something ominous happened. Elephants trumpeted in the distance, conch shells were blown. Chandragupt Maurya's army approached the encampment. Twelve thousand archers supported by a catapult, marched to the hills.

"The Indians have come !" shouted a soldier, "They want to give us a final fight, then we shall give them a final fight !" Alexander unsheathed his sword and prepared to mount his horse. It was Seleucus who stopped him "No Alexander ! Not this time, Greece is blessed with many courageous sons, but there will be only one Alexander." This time, Alexander did not oppose Seleucus' advice. Alexander left only one thousand of the bravest troops to defend the rear while he and the remainder of his army made their way South and West. First to Persepolis and then to Babylon.

"We fight for the honour of Greece!" the men shouted before marching to their doom. Outnumbered and outmatched, the beleaguered and still recovering Greek infantry was vanquished by the Indian armies. The Greeks did however, put up a good fight. Each soldier fought to the death to defend their leader and king, they would prove yet that this was the army that conquered half the world. Despite their best efforts, they could not protect Alexander completely. A stray arrow landed on Alexander's hip, injuring him badly. It was only later found out, that the arrow... was poisoned.

While Alexander retreated with his shoulders burdened with guilt and shame, Chandragupt returned to Magadh standing proud and strong having won against the greatest enemy India faced. Chandragupt was greeted by his son Bindusara with Prime Minister Chanakya standing beside him. Chandragupt as always touched the feet of his mentor, Chanakya. "I bring your gurudakshina Acharya, victory belongs to maa bharati. The greeks have been driven out beyond the Sindhu and are retreating away from Gandhar. Their strength has been utterly destroyed." "You have done well my student. One final task remains Chandragupt, the task of unifying all of Bharat under the rule of Magadh!"

Chandragupt felt a heavy burden on his shoulders, when Chanakya had said of the final task, he did not feel elated as he would have in his youth. The two talked in private where Chandragupt told his mentor of his desire for peace and to relinquish his rule in favor of his son and successor, Bindusara. "I feel my prime duties have been done Acharya, it is time that stronger shoulders take up the burden I carry." to this Chanakya replied, "You are the samrat Chandragupt, it is your sovereign right to appoint a new heir in your place. Remember only this, that whoever takes the throne you seat on is one who would be worthy. It is not blood that will decide this, but merit. I have given decades of my life to teach you the science of statecraft and guide you to this point. I hope that your son and successor can hold the torch you hold just as high".

As was the tradition since the time of the Nanda kings, Samrat Chandragupt sat with the crown prince and heir apparent, Bindusara. Together this diarchy would rule the empire for another twenty years.

Such a dramatic end to the Invasion.

Hey adhiraj, did you get my message?

Kshatrap Bessus took refuge in the Kamboja town of Herat. Over there he plotted and schemed, and dreamed for a free and independent Persia, free from the tyranny of Alexander. It took five whole years, but he finally managed to convince the emperor of India for help.

"It is in our belief, Kshatrap Bessus, that a righteous man must help defend and support those who come to their help. The Yavan are our enemy as much as they are your's. In your fight we are united behind you." He remembered Samrat Chandragupt saying, "We will aid you with gold and resources" "But samrat, gold alone cannot help me retake persepolis. I need command of more men, your men." "Alas ! Kshatrap, I cannot do more than this. We have to defend our own lands, much as you need to fight for yours".

Kshatrap Bessus knew better to argue with the emperor of India. With all his efforts he had achieved at least this much support for the cause of liberation for his people. 'Why throw in what we have for what we may have ?' he thought to himself. With forty mounds of gold, he could buy enough resources to field six thousand men. His army was composed of Persian volunteers. Refugees whose hearts burned with righteous indignation and desire for vengeance against the Greeks. For Darius though, they knew not what to think.

Bessus would tell them, that Darius is the traitor who sold out their nation, and let the Greeks ravage the wealth and pride of Persepolis, but there were many whose homes were saved because of Darius' surrender. Persepolis still stood, and its people were prevented from a painful death by starvation. Darius was said to have given his own food and clothing to sustain the poor of persepolis after the Greeks had feasted.

Bessus though, would not forgive Darius for not fighting. He remembered the day as if it were yesterday. When the legions of Greek hoplites faced down the garrison of Persia. Parthian archers and Elamite charioteers swore to defend the land of the Persians till death. The battle was fierce, the chariots charged ahead, shouting their fearsome war cry, the Greeks fought hard, the archers rained arrows after arrows on the invaders, the invaders in reply rained boulders from their catapults.

Fifteen thousand chariots met their death before the Greek phalanxes, but not before destroying the catapults, and not before beheading five thousand greek infantrymen. The archers did the most damage though. A handful of greeks who survived the carnage would retell the story of how the brave sons of Macedon and Sparta lived through the hail of arrows. Bessus commanded the bowmen, "We had won that battle, I knew it ! The Greeks were almost routed, their strength depleted to a cinder. Yet that spineless rat and his gutless ministers... a curse upon them !"

He marched his army down a perilous route from Herat due east and then hard to the South East. His army had to march in secrecy. Kshatrap Bessus knew these regions well, for it was his Satrapy. The lightly armed warriors were dressed in Indian armor, some of them were defecting immortals, who would rather die than serve the servant of the Greek empire. They helped train the untrained volunteers. But their armor was alien to them, even for the trained immortals, the spear and shield felt different. These were indian metal cast iron weapons, not like what was used in persia.

Bessus had prepared to surround Persepolis, and hope for its citizenry to rise in support of his army of liberation. It did not happen. The people of Persepolis had lost their spirit, their vigor which defended against repeated Greek assaults and blunted the pride of Alexander. When the rebel army came, they faced persians. Darius led them in defense of Persepolis. When Bessus commanded his troops to attack, half of them would not move. "I will not kill my Persian brethren, if that is the cost of this liberation, then I shall not fight !" said a soldier before he set to mutiny. Following him, others threw down their spears.



"This can't be happening.." Bessus muttered, his worst fear was coming true. The army which was supposed to be fighting the Greeks for the liberation of persia, was poised to fight amongst themselves. "Those who wish to abandon the cause of freedom, can join the cowards below" said Bessus, pointing to the army of Darius gathered below the hills of Persepolis. They did not raise arms against their fellow soldiers, they simply deserted and scattered away. Those who did not, defected to Darius.

With a handful of loyal soldiers Bessus made a suicidal charge against the defenders. Two thousand charged against seven thousand. The courage and valor which the rebels showed that day, would immortalize them. Bessus the commander, would not die that day. He was hit by a mace and knocked down, when he awoke, he found himself in a dungeon in Persepolis awaiting trial.

King Darius sat on the throne, the throne which was his by rights, but which now was usurped by Seleucus Nikator. "Do you, Bessus, Satrap of Gedrosia, accept the charges of sedition against the rule of Alexander of Mykedon, and his viceroy over Persia, Seleucus Nikator ? " Bessus stood in chains, but Bessus stood tall and proud and he said "Yes ! I accept the charges, I accept the charge with pride ! I am glad that I stood against the misbegotten rule of these treacherous Greeks and their lickspittle followers ! I am proud that I committed sedition on this misbegotten rule that is a blot on the pride of Persia ! Hang me, torture me, flay me ! I care not, for I will not die, I shall be martyred, and with my dying breath I shall awaken the pride of Persia in the hearts of every Aryan who inhabits this great land !"

Darius could not pronounce judgment on his bravest commander. Bessus was imprisoned once again, it was only after Seleucus' return from defeat in India, that judgment was passed. Bessus was crucified in the public square of Persepolis, a gory spectacle was made of his death, as his entrails were gouged from his body and his eyes, nose and ears cut out. Arrogant greek soldiers passed the corpse of Bessus and spat on it in turn. Persia mourned that day, but from this mourning would rise a new generation of patriots fighting for Persia's independence.

DKVM said:

Hey adhiraj, did you get my message?

Click to expand...

I did, and I'm glad that you like my story so much . Its just that I put a lot of thought into writing these last few updates. I got a bit carried away with playing the game I didn't take enough pics for the reports so I'm kind of stretching each small event. Mostly because this is one of the most interesting periods of Indian history and I didn't want to spoil it. Also, after the war, we actually got stronger because of the additional units we trained ! Not only that with the wartime measures in place we accumulated a surplus of gold which we channelized into research later on. Horseback riding is afoot and soon we'll have elephants .

The last picture is broken. But nice

Put it in a spoiler

In general on these kinds of stories, the real images are left out of spoilers. Look at RT's story for example. Also it isn't that bad and it is his story.

Regardless, I've put it in a spoiler, because its a big picture. This pic was taken from the wikipedia article on Bessus .

When I am Emperor of Persia once again, you will forever be immortalized brave Bessus.

Hey,I'm the emperor