The king had regained some colour

The king had regained some colour, but he was still unconcious and his eyes were closed.

'We have to empty his stomach,' said Philip. 'Quickly. Otherwise he won't make it. Leptine, have you prepared that decoction?'

'Yes.'

'Go and fetch it hten.I'll continue with the massage.'

Leptine arrived with a phial full of an intense green liquid.

'Right, now give me a hand here,' ordered Philip. ' You Hephaestion, hold his mouth open, he must drink this.'

Hephaestion, did as he was told and the physician administered the liquid, pouring it into Alexander's mouth.

For a while there was no sign of reaction but then came a spasm and a violent retching as the King brought up the contents of his stomach.

'What is that mixture?' Leptine asked , even more frightened now.

'An emetic which now is working as we can see, together with a medicine which will force his body to react.'

Alexander continued to vomit for a long time, while Leptine held his forehead and the servants cleaned the floor bellow the bayh tub. Then there came a series of violent convulsions which wracked his body and were accompanied by terrible rattling noises from his throat as he struggled to breathe.

Philip's medicine was a powerful one, which provoked this violent reaction in the King's body, and it also debilitated him considerably. He came through it, but the convalescence seemed interminable and involved frequent relapses, accompanied by persistent and insidious fevers which slowly consumed him for days and days at a time.

It took months for there to be any sign of improvement and during this period the morale of the army suffered greatly. Rumours of his death continued to spread among the men, elaboated and seemingly confirmed by the parallel rumour that no one in command dared coomunicate the news officially. Finally, as summer moved into autumn, Alexander was able to get up and appear before the troops to give them heart, but he had to return to bed immediately afterwards.

He would stay in his room for hours, pacing back and forth , as Leptine followed him aroud with a cup of broth, begging him,' Drink my Lord, drink this and it will make you better.'

Philip came by every evening for his daily visit. The rest of the morning was spent out in the camp because many soldiers had fallen ill with the change of climate and food. Many of them had diarrhoea, others fever, nausea and vomiting.

From the book: Alexander: Child of A Dream. By Valerio Massino Manfredi. Translated by Iain Halliday

The hunt began at first light

The hunt began at first light and, in accordance with the King's wishes, even the younger members of court were there to take part. Alexander with his friends Philoyas, Seleucus, Hephaestion, Perdiccas, Lysimachus and Leonnatus, as well as Ptolomy, Craterus and others. Eumenes had also been invited, but he asked to be excused on the account of a stomach upset and he showed a note from Philip the physician, prescribing absolute rest for a few days together with an astrigent cure based on hard-boiled eggs. King Alexander of Epirus had sent for a pack of hound from his kennels. There were special hunting dogs with an excellent sense of smell which were set loose now by the beaters who had taken up position the night before on the edge of a wood up on the mountain. The ancestors of these hounds had been brought from the East more than a hundred years before and had settled extremely well in Epirus. The best kennels were in the land of the Molossian people, and so the hounds, too, became known as Molossians. Their strentgth, their large build and their ability to withstand pain made them the best possible breed of dogs for hunting big animals. The herdsmen had reported the presence of a lion in the area, a male which had already carried out several massacres among the sheep and the catle. Philip had waited deliberately for this special occasion to give chase to the beast – to initiate his boy into the only pastime befitting an aristocratic and to offer his Persian guests a diversion worthy of their rank- They had set out from Pella three hours before dawn and as the sun rose they found themselves at the foot of the mountains separating the valley of the Axios from the valley of the Ludias. The beast was hiding somewhere in the midst of the oak and beech woods that covered the massif. The King nodded and the chief huntsmen blew theis horns. The sound, intensified by its echo, travelled high to the wooded peaks and the beaters heard it. They egged the dogs on, following on foot, and then they too set about making noise, beating the metal rings on their javelins against their shields. The valley resounded with the howling of the pack of Molossians and the hunters readied themselves, forming a semi-circle over an arc of perhaps fifteen stadia. At the centre was Philip with his generals: Parmenion, Antipater and Cleitus the Black. The persians were all arranged on the right flank and everyone was amazed at the transformation in their appearance. No more embroidered tunics and showy gowns, now the Satrap and his Immortals were dressed and equipped like their nomadic ancestors of the steppes: leather breeches, jerkin, hard cap, two jabelines in a holster, a double-curved bow complete with quiver and arrows. To the left of Philip stood King Alexander of Epirus, lined up together with Ptolemy and Craterus, and after them came the youngest hunters – Alexander, Hephaestion, Selecus and the others. Wisps of fof floated down along the river, spreading like a gossamer veil over the green, flower-filled plain, which for the most part was still in the shadow of the mountain. Suddenly a great roar ripped through the peaceful dawn, drowning out the far-off barking of the dogs – the horses neighed excitedly, stamping and snorting, so it was difficult to keep them still. From the book: Alexander: Child of A Dream. By Valerio Massino Manfredi. Translated by Iain Halliday

They'd long passed the stage

They'd long passed the stage of luxuriously undressing each other. Clodagh was already naked under the duvet when Dylan came to bed and a swift, thirty-second swish of lycra and cotton had him stepping out of his clothes.Clodagh lay back, closed her eyes and submitted to being kissed for a few minutes; then, as always, Dylan moved to her nipples. When he finished at that, there was a silent,unacknowledged struggle- Because this was the point at which Dylan usually liked to shimmy down her body to administer cunnilingus, but Clodagh couldn't bear it. It was so boring and simply wasted minutes to the whole procedure. Tonight she won, managing to head him off at the pass. She proceeded directly to fellatio, treating him to between four and five minutes of it, and its cessation was his cue to climb aboard. For a special treat - birthdays and anniversaries Clodagh would go on top. But tonight wasn't the deluxe version, just the standard missionary one. She clasped Dylan to her in a smooth ballet of comfortable familiarity. Once she was into it, it wasn't so bad, she decided. It was the anticipation that distressed her so. As always, Dylan waited for her to pretend to come before gathering space, pumping away as though a stopwatch was being held over him. It's about time we did this room up again,Clodagh thought, as he machined back and forth in a panting, whimpering blur. The carpet could probably stay, but I'd really like to paint the walls 'Ph God,'Dylan begged, shoving his hands under her buttocks and banging himself into her at ever-faster speed. Automatically, Clodagh obliged with an absent moan. That should hurry things along. Purple and cream walls, perhaps.Then Dylan was spasming in ecstasy and collapsing with a groan. The only break from the norm was that they weren't interrupted by either of their children, clamouring to join in. Fifteen minutes from start to finish, and all over for another month. Clodagh sighed with contentment. Thanks God he wasn't one of those men who insisted on pleasuring you all night long.She'd have to kill herself long ago if it had been the case From the book "Sushi for beginners" by Marian Keyes

'You've been at Femme for

'You've been at Femme for -' Calvin looked at the stapled pages in front of him. 'Four years?' 'Four years next month,' Lisa murmured, with an expertly judged mix of deference and confidence. 'And you've been editor for nearly two years?' 'Two wonderful years,' Lisa confirmed, fighting back the urge to stick her fingers down her throat and gag. 'And you're only twenty-nine,'Calvin marvelled.'Well, as you know here at Randolph Media we reward hard work.' Lisa twinkled prettily at this patent lie. Like many companies in the Western world, Randolph Media rewarded hard work with poor pay, increasing workloads, demotions and on-a-second's-notice redundancies But Lisa was different. She'd paid her dues at Femme, and made sacrifices that even she'd never intended to make: starting at seven-thirty most mornings, doing twelve, thirteen, fourteen-hour days, then going to evening press dos when she finally switched off her computer. Often she came to work on Saturdays, Sundays, even bank-holiday Mondays. The porters loathed her because it meant whenever she wanted to come to the office one of them had to come in and open up and thereby forgo their Saturday football or their bank-holiday family outing to Brent Cross. 'We have a vacancy at Randolph Media,'Calvin said importantly.'It would be a wonderful challenge, Lisa.' I know, she thought irritably.Just cut the chase. 'It will involve moving overseas, which can sometimes be a problem for one's partner.' 'I'm single.'Lisa was brusque. Barry wrinkled his forehead in surprise and thought of the tenner he'd had to hand over for someone's wedding present, a few years before. He could have sworn it was for Lisa here, but maybe not,perhaps, he wasn't as on-the-ball as he once used to be... 'We've looking for an editor for a new magazine,'Calvin went on. From the book "Sushi for beginners" by Marian Keyes

In front of the wood-burning stove was a big pile of shavings and bark from timber Hjörleifur had sawn up. There was a cork mat on the floor, but it was impossible to see what colour it was under all the layers of dirt. A rag rug under the table was the same greyish-brown shade. The cloth on the kitchen table was stiff with congealed grime. The window panes had been half-heartedly wiped in the middle so that it was just about possible to see out. There were no curtains. Instead Hjörleifur had installed shelves in front of the windows, on which were rows of tins and potted plants. An old-fashioned zinc bathtub stood in the middle of the floor, and washing was hanging in front of the stove. There were piles of dirty dishes everywhere. Mella suspected that Hjörleifur never washed up, simply using the plate and mug nearest to himas needed. A yellowish- green sleeping bag lay on the kitchen sofa. The ceiling was black with soot, and the paraffin lamp hanging from it was covered in dust and spiders' webs. Both women declined the offer of ecological herbal tea. "Are you sure? Hjörleifur said. "I make it myself. It's high time you started eating in an environmentally friendly way, if you don't already. Only 10 per cent of us will give birth to children sufficiently capable of coping with life to ensure that our genetic heritage will survive for the next three generations. From the book "Until thy wrath be past" by Asa Larsson

They went out into the internal portico

They went out into the internal portico and walked around the central courtyard, in the shadow of an elegant colonnade of Pentelic marble with Ionic capitals. In the middle there was a well with a low brick wall around its edge in whichthere was a deep groove worn by years of friction from the rope. A servant was hauling up a bucketful of water at that moment. 'We have four slaves, two for cleaning and two for serving at table. We often have guests from other schools and some of our pupils stay here with us for a time.' They then went through an arched doorway:'This is the political science sector, where we already hold the constitutions of more tan one hundred and sixty cities in Greece, Asia, Africa and Italy. And here,' he continued as they walked along a corridor on which there were other doors, 'we have the naturalistic sector with collections of minerals,plants and insects. Finally, in this other area.' he continued as he accompanied his guest into a large hall.'we have the rare animals collection. I had a taxidermist come from Egypt, he is an expert in sacred cats and crocodiles, and he works extremely quickly.' Lyssipus looked around and was increasingly fascinated, not so much by the stuffed animals – snakes, crocodiles, vultures – as by the anatomical drawings. In which he recognized the skill of a consumate artist. 'Obviously we have to be very much on our guard against forgeries and scams of all kinds,' continued Aristotle. 'Since word has spread of our collections, we have received the most outlandish offers – Pharao's rats, basilisks and even centaures and sirens.' 'Centaurs and sirens?' repeated Lyssipus in amazement. 'Precisely. And we are even invited to inspect these wonders before we purchase them.' 'How can it be?' 'Elementary taxidermy. It is not by coincidence that the offers come from the most part from Egypt, where embalmers and taxidermists have thousands of years of experience. For these craftsmen sewing the torsoof a man on to the body of a foal, ably concealing the stitches with skin and mane and then embalming everything is nothing at all. The end results of such a masterful handiwork is really quite impressive, I assure you.' ?I can well believe it.' From the book: The sands of Ammon. By Valerio Massino Manfredi. Translated by Iain Halliday

On their return from a hunt

One day, on their return from a hunt, Aristotle met them at the entrance dressed in a strange way -he was wearing high leather boots that came halfway up his legs and an apron with a bib. He inspected the animals they had killed and chose a female boar that was obviously pregnant. 'Please have that brought to my laboratory,' he said to the chief huntsman and nodded to Alexander to follow him. This meant that the lesson about to take place was for the prince alone. The tutor's orders were immediately carried out and the boar was placed on a table alongside which Theophrastus had arranged a series of surgical instruments, all perfectly sharpened and polished. Aristle asked for a scalpel and turned to the young Prince. If you're not too tired I'd like you to help with this operation.Yo'll learn many important things. Over there are the materials necessary for writing, he added pointing to pen, ink and some sheets of papyrus on a lectern, 'that way you'll be able to take notes and remember everuthing you see during the dissection.' Alexander put his bow and quiver down in a corner, took up the pen and the papyrus and moved towards the table. The philosopher made an incision along the sow's belly and, inside the animal uterus, there appeared six small boars. He measured them one by one. 'The two weeks from being born,' he observed. 'Here, this is the uterus, or the matrix where the fetuses take form. This internal sack here is the placenta.' Alexander managed to control his initial repugnance for the smell and the sight of the bloody innards and began to take notes and even to draw. You see? The organs of a pig or a boat, which is the same thing, are very similar to those of a human being. Look: these are the lungs, the bellows that allow us to breathe, and his membrane which separates the upper part of the innards, the noble part, from the lower part is the phren and the ancients believed that this housed the soul. In our language all the words that indicate the activity of thought or fo reasoning or even madness, which is the degenaration of thought, derive from the term phren. A membrane.' Alexander would like to ask what moved the phren, what regulated its rhythmic rising and falling but he already knew the answer - ?there are no simple answers to complex problems.'And he choose to say nothing. 'Now this id the heart: a pump like the one used to empy the bilges on ships, but infinitely more complicated and efficient. This is the home of feeling and intellect because its movement accelerates if a man is under the influence of anger or love, or simple lust. In truth, my heart's movement accelerates even if I simply walk up the stairs, and this demostrates that it is the centre of all functions in the life of man.' Índeed,' Alexander agreed, staring in bewilderment at his tutor's bloody hands as they rooted through the innards of the boar. 'A plausible hypotesis might be that when life's intensity increases it is necessary for the blood to circulate more quickly. And there are two systems of circulation – the one that comes from the heart and the one that goes back to the heart, completely separate, as you can see. In this respect,' he added, placing the scalpel on the tray, ' we are very much like animals. But there is one thing in which we are clearly different,' he added. 'Hammer and chisel,' he then said to Theophrastus who immediately handed over the instruments, and which a few sharp experts blows Aristotle opened the animal's skull. 'The brain. Our brain is much larger. I have always thought that all those twists and turns were to help disperse body heat, but human does not seem to produce any more heat than any of the animals. It is a problem I will have to give some thought to...' Aristotle had finished and he passes the instruments to Eheophatrus to clean. He then washed his hands and asked Alexander for his bnotes and sketches. 'Excellent! He said. 'I couldn't have done better myself. Now you may consign this beast to the butcher. I am very partial to sausage and offal, but unfortunately for some time now I haven't been able to digest them very well. Have them grill me some chops for supper, if you don't mind. 'From the book: Alexander: Child of A Dream. By Valerio Massino Manfredi. Translated by Iain Halliday