Brothers 31

'It was Darius who became king because - in accordance with what they agreed with each other - his horse was the first to neigh when the sun rose' - Ctesias

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-Aerian Highlands, 465 BC-

Leading the charge, Artxerxes urged his trusty steed onward, through the mud, blood, and rain all turning the earth to sludge.

Seeing the whites of the Bactrian's eyes, Artaxerxes hugged the back of his horse and braced for impact.

*Bubump*

*Bubump*

*Bubump*

Adrenaline soaring high, Artaxerxes could no longer hear the sounds of rallying shouts or battle cries, only the sound of his own heartbeat. Moments passed, and Artaxerxes felt the jarring jolt of impact, and the Bactrian's screams of despair pierced through the drumroll of his heart.

All around him, his army followed. Immortals crashed into the stalwart heavy infantry, Persian light infantry filled the gaps, and Greek hoplites expertly thrust their spears into the chaotic fray of battle.

All the while, the dense curtain of rain pelted the warriors, drowning any man unfortunate enough to fall face forward into the muddy and drenched earth.

Sitting upright, Artaxerxes tightened the grip on his saber, whitening his knuckles, and began slashing throats and maiming limbs.

With a heavy downwards thrust, Artaxerxes' blade dissected an infantryman's head between the eyes. Another slash across a man's neck abruptly ended his short life. Continuing through the dense battlefield, surrounded by a chaotic mix of Bactrians and Persians on all sides, Artaxerxes spotted a contingent of cavalry in the distant Bactrian rear.

Unable to spot the men's features due to the rain, Artaxerxes heightened his wariness for any possible cavalry charges.

"Agghhh!"

Hearing a man's scream behind him, Artaxerxes deftly maneuvered his horse to dodge an incoming blade.

'That was close... had he not screamed I may have been a goner there' Artaxerxes thought with a chuckle.

Readying his saber, Artaxerxes slashed toward the man's head, only for the man to block it with his whicker shield. Taking notice of the man's armor and realizing he was a member of Hystaspe's elite infantry, Artaxerxes raised his horse on its hind legs.

Shifting his posture and weight, the horse crashed down on top of the bewildered infantryman, turning him to paste.

Finishing off the poor man, Artaxerxes noticed the Bactrian cavalry force he had noticed was making its way onto the battlefield.

Turning to an Immortal cavalryman who had just finished off an opponent, Artaxerxes yelled over the din of battle, "You! Gather some of your brothers and meet me on the right flank of the battlefield, where those Bactrian horsemen are riding to!"

Hearing his Kings command, the Immortal immediately rides off, shouting all the while for black-clad Immortals to gather to their King.

Having issued his order, Artaxerxes kicked his horse into a gallop and bulldozed through any Bactrian who got in his way, while deftly maneuvering between any Persians.

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-Aerian Highlands, 465 BC-

Hystaspes deftly dodged any incoming spear or sword as he charged toward the Persian right flank. Behind him were 1,000 of his most elite infantry, all blooded and heavily experienced.

"Any sighting of that bastard!" Hystaspes yelled, curious if anyone could catch a glimpse of Artaxerxes through this downpour.

"I have no visual my King, but something tells me he will come to us should we engage!" Responded a hulking figure astride a black warhorse. This man was Bol, Hystaspes royal guard commander, and hazarpatish.

Hearing this, Hystaspes couldn't help but nod, his brother was hot-blooded, and should Hystaspes show himself, he would certainly appear.

"Very well, let's move!" Hystaspes shouted, directing his horse directly toward the right flank of the battlefield. After only a moments gallop - and the massacring of a few Greek hoplites who had gotten in the way - Hystaspes entered a clearing in the battlefield, where there was a battle all around them, and a few meters ahead was the man he had been looking for.

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-Aerian Highlands, 465 BC-

Riding through the battlefield and curtain of rain, Artaxerxes met his closest advisor and royal guard captain, Themistocles. Spotting him, Artaxerxes yelled, "A pleasure to see you on this fine evening!"

Decapitating a Bactrian who was attempting to spear his horse, Themistocles looked to see who had greeted him. Seeing his King, Themistocles laughed, "A fine evening it is my King! Where do you ride?"

"A detachment of cavalry is heading to the right flank, I'm going to reinforce and support them with my Immortals!" Artaxerxes responded. Midsentence, a Bactrian had charged up to him, screaming and shouting, which Artaxerxes decisively silenced with a swing of his blade.

"Sounds excellent my King. May I join you? As your royal guard, it is my duty to assure your safety." Themistocles said with a chuckle, knowing full well the King didn't need his protection.

"Of course Themistocles! I wouldn't want to keep all the glory to myself!" Artaxerxes shouted, already moving his horse into action, galloping towards the right flank.

Followed by Themistocles and a hundred or so of his Immortals, Artaxerxes suddenly found himself in a clearing, where no battle was taking place.

Across the few meters-wide clearing, Artaxerxes saw the man, the man who had rebelled against his authority, the man with who he shared both the same mother and father. His brother, Hystaspes.

Hystaspes wore an iron breastplate, and motifs of snarling winged dragons covered the armor. He donned a black cape that was soaked from the rain. His usually elegantly oiled hair and beard were drenched flat to his head and in disarray. Artaxerxes meanwhile wore a bronze-scaled armor, with a single eagle emblazoned on his breast piece. Like his brother, his golden cape and hair were soaked wet from the downpour.

"Brother! So good to see you again!" Hystaspes yelled through the din of battle.

"Aye, If only it were under better circumstances I may have offered you a drink!"

"If only! You stole my birthright, you bastard!"

"Don't be delusional brother! Father never named who would succeed after Dariaios, it could just have likely been me over you!"

"Hahahaha! It would have been me and you know it Artaxerxes! Father didn't have the will to disrupt the line of succession!"

"I suppose we'll never know, will we Hystaspes?"

"No, I suppose we won't!"

(A/N: Don't pay too much mind to the overuse of '!' I'm just trying to emphasize it's raining and battles all around them so it's tough to hear what they're saying)

Artaxerxes, having had enough of useless banter, said, "It doesn't have to be like this brother! Offer me a tribute of earth and water and we can end this entire war! We can return to how things were when we were children!"

His voice sore from yelling over the incessant sound of storm and battle, Hystaspes yelled," It's exactly as you say, Artaxerxes! Offer me a tribute of earth and water and ill accept your surrender!"

Hearing this offer, Artaxerxes eyebrows twitched in irritation. 'Like hell ill ever let someone have control over my fate, even my brother!'

The two brothers, stared at one another from across the clearing, sparks of lightning flashing as a backdrop to their epic starring contest. Almost simultaneously, the duo unsheathed their sabers, and readied their mounts, tensing for the upcoming charge.

Artaxerxes, speaking to Themistocles and his Immortals, told, "We're outnumbered but I have faith in your abilities men. Themistocles, take care of that bulky horseman, he seems to be Hystaspes hazarpatish. Immortals, deal with the enemy cavalry, should any of you interrupt my duel with Hystaspes, then you'll befall a fate worse than anything imaginable."

Hearing their Kings orders, the men unsheathed their blades and readied themselves, their gazes turning grim and their knuckles whitening over their weapons.

Hystaspes, having given similar orders to his men, readied for battle. The two brothers stared at the eyes of each other once more, perhaps searching for the young boys they once knew from their days of playing pranks and sleeping in their mother's embrace.

Finding nothing or perhaps refusing to, the twin Kings kicked their horses into action, shouting dual warcries consumed by the din of battle...

In moments, the duo was upon one another, slashing their blades with both hands. The sabers crashed, sparks flew, and blood sprayed. Artaxerxes, having been exhausted from a day's battle, had been pushed back, narrowly swinging his neck aside to avoid Hystaspes' sword.

Unable to dodge quickly enough, Hysaspes blade had shallowly slashed Artaxerxes neck leaving a gushing wound. Moving his horse back, Artaxerxes clutched his neck in surprise.

'Damn, I underestimated his strength!'

It had always been Artaxerxes in the training ground sparring and training, his brothers did the required amount but rarely more.

'Heh, surprised brother? I've trained all along during my time as satrap!' Hystaspes proudly thought, looking at his brother's expression with glee.

No longer holding back, Artaxerxes strengthened his grip on his blade and re-engaged his cockily smiling brother.

Maneuvering their horses with their legs, the brothers didn't need a hand on the reigns, using both hands in their fierce clash. One clash after another, both brothers fought and 'won' countless exchanges, leaving minor wounds on their opponent but failing to land a killing blow.

Hours passed...

Both brothers were out of breath and in near states of complete exhaustion as they fought on to simply lift their sword, neither wishing to concede first. Suddenly, trumpets blared, ripping through the cacophony of battle.

Momentarily taking a break from their battle, the bloody and weary kings looked around at the commotion. Their troops were withdrawing! Both sides were pulling back and abandoning the hilltop.

"My King! The sun is set and the men can no longer fight, the generals have called an end to the battle!" Themistocles said, wounded and hardly upright.

Hearing this, Artaxerxes didn't even have the energy to respond. Looking at his opponent who was even more exhausted than he was, Artaxerxes could only grunt in frustration, realizing that fighting in his current state wouldn't accomplish anything and that his army needed to rest.

Giving Hystaspes one last look, Artaxerxes turned his tired horse around and with his remaining Immortals, pulled out of the battlefield.

Internally, Artaxerxes thought, 'Tomorrow, tomorrow I will put an end to this...'