nevermore_past | (no subject)

Who: Alexander the Great [Narrative, but can be open to Clio if you want, Charlie!]
What: The world is nowhere near done with you
When: Around 220 BC
Where: Alexandria, Egypt

The last thing he remembered was being horribly sick with fever. Burning up, hardly able to talk or lift his head or arms. Everything hurt, he felt like he was on fire. The generals kept asking, "Tell us, Alexander, tell us who?". But he couldn't respond, he could barely even think. And then his eyes closed, and there was only blackness and peace.

He'd expected to end up in Hades, to be judged and sent wherever they found him worthy. And he was, but he was given the choice, between the Asphodel Meadows and Elysium. It took him a little while, but eventually he chose Elysium, with a stern warning from Hades to always be respectful of his daughter.

Time passed, although how much, he wasn't sure. But one day, much like any other, he stopped as he was walking someplace, looking up and swearing he saw the cavernous ceiling tremble. He blinked, and then he was looking at...sky? Wait, that wasn't right. And it was bloody hot. And he was pretty sure the Underworld didn't smell like burning sand. He looked around, taking everything in as fast as he could. There were people everywhere, a marketplace nearby, grand buildings of stone clearly meant to impress. And for the first time in his life, Alexander had no idea what to do.

"Excuse me," he said, reaching out to grab a passing man's arm. "Excuse me, where am I?"

The man just looked at him like he was crazy. "Alexandria, of course," he replied. "You should get out of the sun, my friend."

"Yes," Alexander said faintly. "Yes, I'll do that. Thank you." He ducked into the shade between two nearby buildings, sitting down hard on the sand. Alexandria. His Alexandria. Still standing, still beautiful and thriving. He was still trying to wrap his head around everything, when he felt a chill across his back, and he turned to see a shade right behind him.

"I bring a message from Lord Hades," it said. "You have been given a great gift, Alexander. Few are ever granted the privilege of a second life. Use it wisely, or I will be displeased."

Alexander couldn't do much more than nod and say, "Of course", because what else was there to say? He watched the shade fade away, and looked down at himself. He needed clothes to better blend in, and a meal wouldn't go amiss right now. He didn't have any money on him, that he could tell, and if he had to work for it, so be it. He set off into the sunlight, marveling at the feeling of warmth on his skin once again.

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"No, I had no idea. And you didn't even have to explain anything, so I'm grateful for that." He squeezed her hand once. "I'm actually not, I'm just really good at hiding things. I had to have a great blank face for the army sometimes." He smiled then. "Do you remember my mother? She'll come back through sheer force of will, if she has any say in the matter. But it'll be strange, not seeing my friends every day."

He took her hand and stood up. "If you're sure. And I'd love to see the Library. I loved learning, even as a child."

She led him to the home she'd built, a stone throw away from her Library. "Of course I'm sure. Besides, I don't want to see you get into trouble because of the things you know, and don't know. You're just lucky they speak Greek now." She kept his hand as they walked, not wanting him to get lost and letting him know he had her, at least for the moment.

"And I do. If she's seen or I find her I'll point her your way. Or vice versa." Gently she led him into the house and motioned him to one of the rooms. "Go and get changed. I'll answer what you need me to when you get dressed."

"I guess I am," he said, falling into step beside her. "Too much I know, and not enough I don't know. Seems like it could end up badly."

"If she ever does, I'd appreciate that," he said, heading into the room she'd pointed him too. He changed into the clothes, peeling off the simple tunic he'd awoken in and making a mental note to burn it as soon as possible. He'd never be able to think of it as anything other than the clothes he came back from the dead in.

He came back out and said, "Alright. At least I look more normal now. So...lots has changed, I'm guessing?"

"Quite a bit I'm afraid." She'd arranged some scrolls for him and patted the stool beside her. "And I know it's not what you're used to, but I hope my homes' alright. Come sit. I'll explain what you've missed." She smiled then, "And you clean up well."

She waited until he'd sat down before giving him some of the scrolls that detailed the years he'd missed. She'd started with the years after his death, assured he was mostly curious about that. "Your empire's gone." She offered, knowing he'd figure that one out quickly, if he hadn't already. "But your legacy isn't."

"Your home is very nice," he told her, sitting down next to her on the stool. "I'm not...not really me, anymore, so like you said. I have to adjust. It's not all palaces and huge tents anymore." He smiled back. "Thank you. It's nice to have clean clothes and shake some of the sand from my hair."

He sighed. "I figured as much. They were fighting for control before I was even dead. Kept hounding me, even onto my deathbed. It must have really irked them, to never know. How long did it last?" Even before, he'd had a voracious appetite for knowledge, and he'd try and learn as much as he could from Clio before she got sick of having him around. "It was rather nice to see the city still standing and doing so well," he added.

"There's a bath nearby for whenever you feel like dealing with the crowd." She let him have the scrolls and poured him a bit of wine. She figured he may need it soon enough.

"Alexandria endures." she smiled to that. "Ptolemy's legacy, that." She sighed, "the empire? Until you died. Then the generals took pieces of it and ruled it in their own names. Like Ptolemy did with Egypt. Your legacy? Well you're sitting here, aren't you?" She smiled. "Your tales are still being sung, and people keep your training. Everyone speaks of great Alexander."