Mardonius was speechless. He knew better than to argue with the most beloved representative of God on earth. Xerxes reeked of fear, trembling under moonlight like a young girl on her wedding eve. His father Darius would never have run, no matter the threat! It felt as if some great weakness had been revealed by the first setbacks of a campaign.

The sons of strong men could sometimes be hollow things, Mardonius knew. At least one of his own lads was not the man Mardonius wished him to be, relying too much on his father’s position and authority rather than his own. He had thought more of Xerxes, however. Mardonius wondered if he could have been blinded by the son’s manner and confidence at home. Perhaps Xerxes had always been weak. War revealed men. It rarely made them.

Silence stretched for what seemed an age. The young king frowned, looking at his general almost in challenge. Mardonius longed to speak. Yet he could only gape, his mouth opening and closing as words came and went like breath in him.

‘Majesty, I obey,’ he said at last. In the end, those were the only words demanded of him. Yet in a rush, he went on, driven to wild incaution.

‘Th-though we have burned Athens, Majesty. It is a great triumph! Our army has not been bested. We lost no more than twenty thousand at the pass. Please. Let me send back my second in command, Artabazus! Let him secure the bridge of ships. I beg you not to remove your light from us, Majesty. If you stay, I will deliver you victory, I swear it.’

The king did not reply and Mardonius felt cold as he sensed he had gone too far. Whatever weakness or cowardice had been exposed by the Greeks, Xerxes was still the Great King, ruler of forty nations, to the very edges of the world. He could not be gainsaid and Mardonius knew his life hung in the balance. He prostrated himself and waited, hands touching both sides of his head as he breathed against sand. After long enough to know he had displeased the young man who ruled an empire, Xerxes bade him rise.

‘Do you have anything more to say, general?’ Xerxes asked.

Mardonius shook his head.

‘No, Majesty. I obey. As you speak, I obey. Whatever I must do, I will not rest until the Greeks beg to surrender.’

‘How blessed I am to have you in my service!’ Xerxes said softly, dangerously. His mouth twisted in petty anger. ‘My decision is made. A king … orders the world as he sees fit. I do not need to watch as you carry out my commands. I brought you here. Complete my task! Bring them to heel, Mardonius. I want them to remember me.’