The sun was rising in the east, as if the horizon had burst into flame. As the light grew, Aristides looked across the plain, seeking any sign of some greater force readying itself to ambush him. The dust rising made it hard to see their main camp. He had his own reserves ready to come running, but it would be to help him retreat in good order. He would not be drawn into a major battle, not without a plan of action. No, this morning was just two fighters, testing one another’s resolve and courage. A few deaths here and there, a little blood splashed on the ground. Pausanias would be watching, learning all he could. Perhaps the Persian general would be as well.

Aristides muttered a private prayer to Athena. She too had to be watching her children: her love felt in the dawn shadows and warm air. All eyes were on Aristides as he raised his hand overhead and dropped it sharply. With that simple gesture, he sent his people into danger.

Xanthippus glanced at the rising sun, frowning at the amount of time it had taken to bring the fleet around the island of Samos. He’d wanted to have his ships in place to blockade the Persians by dawn, but progress had been slow. Though the moon had been near full, individual crews took a dim view of rowing in the dark, where hidden rocks could rip their hulls out. Worse, the wind had strengthened, blowing against them and forcing a snail’s pace. Half his ships had ceased all progress to block up their sides with leather sheets and oar-gaskets. If it had not been for the sheer sorcery of oared craft moving against the gale, Xanthippus might have longed for merchant ships, with higher sides and larger sails. Yet for all the constant threat and risk, triremes were still daggers of the sea, a wonder of the world.

They had not approached unobserved. He had seen the first bonfire lit on the highest point of Samos while they were still some way off. It was hard not to smile at the thought of panic in the Persian crews as they saw that light. They had been hunters once, when they’d come down a different coast on the other side of the Aegean, with their king and an army greater than nations. After their defeat at Salamis, they had gone to lick their wounds, hiding themselves across a hostile sea – and the Greeks had come out, seeking them, ready to finish the work. Xanthippus smiled. It would be a good day.