Weakened by grief and wounds, but defying death to the last, he sinks into coma without having named his successor. When Homer's heroes fell, their fellow warriors held funeral games, racing and wresting for rich prizes to honor the dead. Now Alexander's generals, no longer united by his magnetic presence, begin their struggle for the glittering prize of his vast dominions. One-Eye and his flamboyant son. Asia, Egypt, and Greece are the arena.
New contestants enter the games.
A silent onlooker is Bagoas, the Persian boy, who wants no prize, except the chance to serve his dead lover's memory.