Wild Goose Chase in the Old World (fiction, continue 16)
Posted on: November 22, 2008
Confronting a most difficult decision
In those two years of wandering within his Empire, The Imperial Monarch had to reorganize his army and civil administration before attempting a hazardous decision that might take him far away and for many years from his base. The first impulse of Artax was to pursue Iskandar and then lead personally the Macedonian trained divisions. The problem was that Iskandar had already crossed the Khyber Pass and was ascending toward Kashmir, a very high altitude region covered with snow most of the year. Arlax reflected that his army was too spoiled for these kinds of exertions and physical hardship; his only hope was for the Macedonian trained divisions to rebuff Iskandar insanity and backtrack toward Afghanistan. Once again God satisfied the wishes of his Son and the officers of Iskandar refused to climb any higher and preferred a descending maneuver.
This timing of the refusal to continue was wrong: snow was melting and it was advisable to linger a month or two more for better terrain conditions. Iskandar resumed his climbing with a few hundreds of his tribe warriors; he reasoned that his army would follow him by taking this bold decision but it didn’t work. Actually, Iskandar preferred a modest but independent life in harsh weather than facing military court martial.
Artax started his journey north, sort of within his borders as he was told. The idea was to initiate his troops to a climate comparable to Kashmir. Suddenly they were amid the steppe. Soldiers who were familiar to the desert south of Persia claimed that it was a desert with a twist; the weather was much colder and there animals lived there. One particular mammal looked like an oversized goat with a donkey-like face and functioning like donkeys but with heavy, thick and long hair. It was fun for a while capturing and mating these lovely and hard working specimen.
A scholar advised the Son-God Incarnate that if they advance a little forward then they might reach what is currently known as the North Pole. The idea of planting the Imperial standards at the farthest point up north was excellent but needed further reflection.
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