35 Greece 34
'King Xerxes says: when I became king, there was among these countries one that was in rebellion. Ahuramazda bore me aid. By the grace of Ahuramazda I smote that country and put it down in its place.'
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-Babylon, Inner Southern Palace, 465 BC-
It had been a year since Xerxes' death. In that time much had changed, especially so in the inner workings of the royal family.
Achaemenid kings were polygynous -- that is to say, they had sexual access to many women: consorts, concubines, and even slaves.
Women were gathered together within the Persian inner court to fulfill important functions in dynastic continuity as mothers. The presence of so many women meant that the hierarchy of the Achaemenid harem was complex.
In principle, it was headed by a chief queen, usually, the king's mother or, in her absence, the most favored (or influential) wife, who gathered about her the other royal and noble women -- secondary wives, royal sisters, royal daughters, and other females.
In the luxurious and vibrant summer palaces of Babylon, sat a woman on a high-backed throne, wearing a crown and an enveloping veil covering the lower half of her face. Leaving exposed her eyes which were beautifully lined in kohl, highlighting her hypnotizing onyx eyes.
Surrounded on her elevated terrace by various servants who provided shade from the glaring sun hanging loftily in the crystal blue sky, this woman was the epitome of beauty, wealth, and elegance combined into one.
She was Damaspia, an Achaemenid, Artaxerxes' wife, Queen of Persia.
Various women relaxed and socialized on a lowered platform below the Queen's elevated terrace. These women were concubines. Features range from the caramel skin and voluptuous features of Egyptian beauty to the marble skin and blonde hair of Greek goddesses.
Concubines' standings were in constant flux, should a concubine give birth to the King's child, particularly a son, then their position in the harem immediately skyrocketed.
Recently, Damaspia noted with a slight frown, there had been a large influx in concubines to the royal harem. All women were sent from various corners of the empire to the newly crowned king to affirm their loyalty during the rebellion.
"Is something troubling you, my Queen?" Asked a girl beside the lounging queen. This girl had a pigtail and donned a short veil. She was Arya, Damaspias niece and closest aide.
"*Sigh* It is nothing, I'm just perturbed by the recent increase in concubines to my husband's harem," Damaspia said in a reserved tone. Previously, when her husband was simply the third prince and had no political power, it had just been the two of them, no consorts, no concubines, and certainly no threat to their lives.
However, Damaspia understood that sex for an Achaemenid king in a hereditary society was never purely for pressure. Sexual congress had significant political meaning and it had consequences - the production of offspring.
Sex affected the succession of the throne, indeed, the very survival of the dynasty, and therefore sex was not a random activity for the Persian king. By Damaspias accounts, there were currently over a hundred women in her husband's harem and counting.
Beckoning for a servant to lower a silver platter of dates, she picked one and expertly maneuvered around her veil, placing the sweet fruit in her mouth. Damaspia then said aloud to no one in particular, "By Ahuramazda's blessing let this dreadful rebellion end soon, I hardly remember my husband's face!"
Naturally, she was being dramatic, she perfectly remembered every feature of Artaxerxes strong and angular face. She still remembered the day her father told her she'd be married to the third son of King Xerxes.
She had immediately been in a daze. Her? Married to the famed third prince? It had all seemed like a dream. Artaxerxes reputation had spread throughout the court as a valiant lion slayer with a tactical mind.
Reminiscing on their wedding, the first time she had actually met him in person - a towering young man with broad shoulders, a strong jaw, and shining obsidian black eyes that seemed to always look at something distant, something out of reach.
It had only been her first look, and she was struck by cupids arrow, deciding then and there to support her husband in all things.
The following months had been pure bliss, with the newlyweds spending ample time together both in the bedroom and out, it wasn't before long that strong feelings developed between the duo. However, good things never last, and King Xerxes was killed.
Damaspia was still unsure as to what exactly unfolded during the night of the Red Apadana, but Dariaios lay dead and her husband lays claim to the throne. Without even saying their goodbyes, her husband had marched from Persepolis with an army that stretched on into the horizon and went to war.
"I'm sure the war will be over soon, my Queen. Ahuramazda watches over the King with a watchful eye." Arya reassured her queen, having been distressed at the sight of Damaspia's increasingly depressed mood.
Releasing a slight smile at the encouraging words of her friend, Damaspia decided to think about a more positive topic.
"It is true that Amytis recently gave birth?"
Glad at the change in her aunt's demeanor, Arya responded, "Yes, I hear it was a healthy baby boy."
"Is that so... I'll have to pay my congratulations in person then," Damaspia said with gusto. Standing up and off her throne, the Queen walked down the elevated terrace and strolled out and into the palace grounds, to perform her duties as the most powerful woman in the empire.
'I pray for your victory, my husband.'
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-Greece, Athens, 465 BC-
Ever since the Persian defeat at Plataea and Mycale in 479 BC, the Athenians had been pursuing aggressive empire-building ambitions of their own.
Shortly before Xerxes' death, and with Persia in a state of civil war, the Aegean islands of Lesbos, Chios, and Samos managed to wriggle free from Persian rule. Athens decided to offer them 'protection' which soon morphed into defensive ownership of the Delian league, an alliance of Greek poleis (Greek for city-states) determined to rebut any further Persian interference in the Aegean.
The Delian League was intended to be an association of equal partners, but Athens quickly dominated it and turned its own substantial navy power on the member states, making them provinces of a fast-expanding Athenian empire.
The Athenians systematically grabbed territories and demanded tribute from the people whom they made dependants and subjects. The profits of their empire-building resulted, of course, in the glorification of the city of Athens itself.
It gleamed in white marble, with palatial structures dominating its skylines, and various intertwining streets connected to the city's lifeline, it's port. The bay of Athens port was packed to the brim with trading vessels, fishing boats, and triremes, all adding to the vibrant hubbub of the metropolis that is Athens.
The creation of the Delian League and the rise of Athens as a wealthy naval power played badly with the Spartans, who were rightly threatened by the aggressive power-grabbing protection racket that the Athenians were successfully operating.
The famed Ecclesia of Athens was currently underway, an ancient assembly held by the people of Athens for declaring war, military strategy, and electing the strategoi and other officials. A mass gathering of thousands of people on the hill of Pnyx, where an elderly man was on the stage.
The man was dressed in the iconic Greek chiton and white robe, his face filled with wrinkles and not a hair on his head, and spoke, "Citizens of Athens! 15 years ago today, the Persian barbarians invaded our homeland and raised our glorious city to the ground!"
The citizens of Athens, outraged by the mention of their would-be conquerors let out thunderous roars of indignation.
"Death to the Persians!"
"Uncultured swine!"
Smiling at the intended effect his words had on the people of Athens, the elderly man continued on, "The Delian League has brought a matter to Athens! That being the tyrannical actions of the Persians on the Ionian coast! For too long has Persia held control over our greek brethren across the sea! For too long has the Persian spear reached into Greater Greece!"
Fully enamored by now, the crowd of Athenian balloters was in full swing, clapping and cheering at the man's words.
"Does Athens want war?!"
In response to the elderly man's zealous shouts of holy war, the Athenians responded:
"War!"
"War!"
"War!"
