Dancing with wolves

Just as Davos was busily preparing his battlefield hospital, a Persian messenger arrived at the Greek camp. This time, the envoy was none other than the Persian commander most familiar to the leaders—Tissaphernes, satrap of Asia Minor. He brought hope that the Greeks could return home in peace: he would convey to the Persian King the leaders' desire not to fight, but only to go home.

The leaders received him gladly.

After Tissaphernes left, the mercenary leaders, seeing hope for a peaceful resolution, eagerly awaited his return.

After two anxious days of waiting, Tissaphernes came again to the Greek camp and read out the Persian King's latest decree to the leaders: the King had accepted the mercenaries' apology. Though many ministers opposed it, he had decided to have Tissaphernes lead the Greek mercenaries back to Greece, and agreed to provide markets along the way to solve their supply problems. At the same time, the Greeks must maintain order along the route, not destroy or plunder…

The leaders naturally welcomed this. They quickly reached an agreement with Tissaphernes, and both sides swore oaths in the name of the gods. Then Tissaphernes advised the leaders to be patient—he needed to return to report to the King and make arrangements for the army's return.

Not long after Tissaphernes left, the news spread throughout the camp. The soldiers cheered.

Davos, however, did not let down his guard. Although Xenophon's words some time ago had made him realize that the actual situation in Persia differed considerably from the guesses he had made based on Chinese history.

Just yesterday, Xenophon had visited again. After a few days of respite, he had finally composed himself and wanted to discuss the issue of democratic government in the city-states with Davos once more. But Davos was unwilling to dwell on that topic and skillfully steered the conversation toward the customs and practices of the various Greek city-states.

For the most part, Xenophon spoke at length while Davos listened attentively. During their talk, Davos asked about Tissaphernes, and Xenophon recounted some things he had heard from Proxenus, which left a deep impression on Davos.

When Tissaphernes served as satrap of Asia Minor, the Peloponnesian War was still raging. Tissaphernes chose to ally with Sparta, hoping to use Spartan power to strike at Athens and restore Persian rule over the Ionian coast's Greek city-states. In return, Sparta expected him to fund the construction of a massive fleet capable of rivaling Athens. But before long, he stopped the promised financial support. The Spartans protested to the then Persian King Darius II, who then appointed his second son, Cyrus the Younger, as military commander of all western Persia, fully backing Sparta against Athens.

Tissaphernes was stripped of military authority, but he seemed unconcerned. He got along well with Cyrus the Younger and soon became his friend. When the new King Artaxerxes ascended the throne, and Cyrus the Younger went to the capital to attend his elder brother's coronation, Tissaphernes reported to the new King that Cyrus was plotting rebellion. Cyrus was arrested and only released after the Queen Mother repeatedly begged for mercy.

After returning to Asia Minor, Tissaphernes began opposing Cyrus at every turn. Thus, when Cyrus the Younger raised his rebellion, the first person he tried to capture was Tissaphernes, but he had already fled and later appeared in the King's punitive army. When the King's left wing collapsed at the first charge of the Greek heavy infantry, Tissaphernes dared to lead cavalry around the hoplite phalanx to attack the Greek rear. Though he failed, among the routed troops his courage and decisiveness stood out. So it was that the King chose him as the Persian envoy to negotiate with the Greek army—clearly a mark of the King's favor.

What Davos heard about Tissaphernes came from Xenophon, who had heard it from Proxenus, who in turn had mostly learned it from Cyrus the Younger. Whatever one's opinion of Tissaphernes, facts were facts. After analysis, Davos concluded that Tissaphernes was a typical politician, accustomed to duplicity, skilled at assessing situations, and bold enough to seize opportunities. It would be hard to expect such a man to keep his word!

When Davos voiced this concern to Xenophon, Xenophon sighed and said: "Proxenus and the others are well aware of this; they won't let their guard down against Tissaphernes. But if we refuse to end hostilities with the Persian King, we may never get home. The Euphrates and the Tigris alone could cause us enormous trouble—we cannot cross such wide rivers successfully in the face of the enemy. Another great difficulty is the lack of sufficient food. Once we go 'foraging,' scattered soldiers become easy targets for enemy attacks…

Look, the Persian King has such overwhelming advantages. If he truly wanted to destroy us, there would be no need to supply us with provisions and have Tissaphernes swear oaths in the name of the gods on his behalf. Because if he later breaks his oath, he would not only be mocked by Persians and Greeks alike but also be abandoned by the Persian gods. Would a newly crowned king really want to be known as faithless? So we have no choice but to trust them. Only by cooperating with them can we ensure a safe return home!"

Davos could see that Xenophon was speaking more to convince himself. He sighed inwardly: the Greek mercenaries were in a weak position; even if the other side offered "poison," they had to swallow it.

…

Days passed. Davos's battlefield hospital began to take shape. Of the twelve wounded men, seven showed significant improvement after careful nursing and treatment.

In his remaining time, Davos learned Greek writing from Xenophon and commissioned Mesis, who went out to buy supplies, to bring back several lengths of linen cloth. He cut them into long, narrow strips and began experimenting with making leggings. Meanwhile, he drilled with his tentmates, learning combat techniques to unify his mental and physical responses.

Because of Asistus's recovery and Menon's attempted mutiny, Davos had grown close to Antonios. He visited Antonios frequently, seeking advice on the formation and command of heavy infantry… To understand the use of the long-handled reverse-blade polearm, he also learned from the peltasts, gaining deep insight into the characteristics of that troop type.

The success of the battlefield hospital made Davos's reputation as the "God-Touched One" deeply rooted in people's minds, and his modesty and eagerness to learn won everyone's goodwill. As he traversed the entire Menon camp, almost everyone came to know him.

Day after day passed. The Persians did not appear. Unease and suspicion gradually settled over the entire Greek camp. Davos used his busy daily routine to ease his anxiety. Unable to change the predicament of the Greek mercenaries, he could only change himself and enrich himself as much as possible.

After more than twenty days of waiting, Tissaphernes finally arrived with his army. With him came Orontas, satrap of Armenia, and his troops.

The Greek mercenary leaders, who had been anxiously waiting, led their army to join them on the journey home without much hesitation.

But as soon as the march began, things changed. The army of Ariaeus, which had previously stuck closely with the Greek mercenaries for mutual protection, now began to march and camp together with the Persian army. During the past twenty-odd days, the Persians had not been idle. They had repeatedly sent relatives and friends of Ariaeus and other commanders to visit Ariaeus's camp, promising that no one would be punished for their past offenses. In the end, they persuaded Cyrus's former officers.

This naturally increased the Greek mercenaries' suspicion. They kept a distance behind the Persian column, marching separately and using their own guides. At dusk, when they pitched camp, the Greek army and the Persians were about ten stades apart. They set up guards and watchposts on both sides, as if facing an enemy.

Tissaphernes did keep his word, providing markets for the Greeks every day. Of course, the mercenaries had to pay for their purchases.

Menon once tried to cut food rations for Heilos's squad in retaliation against Davos, but Mesis objected. Mesis had been reluctant earlier when Davos took two Egyptian slave women from him.

But soon afterward, Davos gave Mesis a Chinese-style massage using the trained slave women. Mesis became addicted, coming to the battlefield hospital every day demanding a massage, shamelessly claiming it was repayment for the debt for the slaves he had provided. In his heart, he hoped that once back in Greece, Davos would teach him this unique technique so he could use it on the prostitutes he had purchased—then his brothel would be packed to the rafters. So now, not only did he refuse to offend Davos, he tried to satisfy most of Davos's requests.