HPLN: Chapter 55

I waited, pacing up and down the corridor. The screams from the room at the end of the hall were getting more frequent as the contractions got closer and closer together. Lanassa was in labor, and I was barred from the room as the physicians and midwives did their work. That was standard practice, though I wasn't totally sure why. There were cultural connotations, of course, but the reasoning behind those cultural connotations eluded me. Either way, I could do nothing but pace up and down the corridor as my wife struggled to deliver our son into the world without my presence.

Of course, I didn't have to do this. I could be getting drunk on the Grappa I'd invented, and letting the whole process blur past until it came time to hold my newborn son. Unfortunately, I had decided that wasn't what I was going to be doing. It was possibly a dumb decision, but it really was the only one I was able to make in this situation, as it wasn't a situation about me, but about Lanassa. Without being able to have a drink, I returned to my pacing, trying not to think about all the things that could go wrong with the birth in this more medically primitive time period.

True, I had done a decent amount to improve things, introducing antiseptics, improving hygiene, and creating anti-inflammatory medicines based on hemp. Childbirth was still an inherently risky proposition, even so. Honestly, I felt powerless, and if there was one thing I hated, it was feeling powerless. It was why I had never enjoyed scary movies or haunted houses back in my Old Life before being sent to the past. Unfortunately, it was also the reality of the situation I was currently in.

"Thank the Gods for Ptolemy." I muttered as I paced.

It was true. My Elder Son had taken Eurydice down into the City to visit the Market so that she wouldn't be underfoot this afternoon. I had no idea how I would be able to manage my fears about potential birth complications with my Chaos Gremlin of a Daughter underfoot. Of course, they'd also had to shut her cat, Timoleon, in her chambers to take Eurydice into the City, which meant it was likely that Timoleon would pee on the floor or furniture to show his displeasure, but that was a matter for the serving staff to deal with.

And now I was rambling in my own mind. I let out a sigh at that thought, only to immediately cringe as a loud, groaning scream echoed from the chamber at the end of the hall, followed by the cry of an infant. My heart leaped in my chest as I heard my Second Son being delivered. Now would be the difficult part, having to wait for my wife and Newborn Son to be inspected, cleaned, bandaged, and swaddled. My pacing paused as my heart pounded in my chest. In many ways, I was more anxious about this than I had been about actual battles for a very long time. The minutes passed as my heart thundered like a pounding drum, before the chamber door opened and a procession of midwives and physicians emerged.

I raced over to the gaggle of professional medical people and flagged down the lead Physician, an elder with a salt and pepper beard named Hermotimos of Melitos. The man turned toward me and gave a slight bow as I approached.

"My King, your son is born. Both he and the queen are all right, but they both need their rest. Especially Queen Lanassa, as the birth took multiple hours, and she will need to regain her strength. I would suggest to the Palace cooks that red meat be prepared for the next few days. It should help replenish the blood lost in the birth." Advised Hermotimos.

"Yes, yes. Can I see them?" I questioned.

"You may, but only for a moment. As I said, the queen needs to rest." Answered Hermotimos.

"Thank you." I nodded.

"There is the matter of payment. I believe we discussed a sum of thirty Drachmae for the afternoon?" Queried Hermotimos.

"For the safe delivery of my son and the health of my wife, I will pay you forty-five." I waved off.

"Forty-five? That is most generous of you." Remarked Hermotimos.

"Indeed. It is only right that I reward those who have given good service appropriately." I affirmed.

"Then shall we wait here for your return, My King?" Asked Hermotimos.

"Do so. I will not be too long." I confirmed.

And with that, I moved past the gaggle of medical professionals and into the Chamber where my wife had given birth to my Son. The chamber smelled of blood and offal, though only faintly, as it was offset by the incense being burned. A servant was gathering up a number of soaked and bloody rags into a washbin, presumably those had been used to either aid in the birth, clean up my Wife and Son, or aid in bandaging my Wife. Lanassa was lying in the bed, propped up on a number of pillows, with my newborn son latched to her right breast. The boy was chubby, as babies were wont to be, with a mop of curly, reddish-gold hair, the kind that ran in my latest family.

"Husband." Greeted Lanassa with a weak grin.

"Wife." I beamed back.

"Well, don't just stand there, come meet your son, Agathocles." Insisted Lanassa.

I moved to the bedside, and Lanassa handed my newborn son, swaddled in various colors of cloth, over to me. As I held Agathocles for the first time, I couldn't help it. I'd not been there for this for Ptolemy, Eurydice, or Olympias. I'd either been drunk, on campaign, not present in Pyrrhus' Body, or some combination of the three when my other children had been born, and the moment overwhelmed me. The phrase just slipped out of my mouth without even thinking about it.

"Hi, Agathocles, I'm Dad." I remarked, a stupid grin on my face. Fortunately, Lanassa had drifted off to sleep right after she'd handed Agathocles off to me.

I would have never lived that down otherwise. . .

XXXX

Much of the rest of the year passed by with me being involved in various administrative duties. Some of it was arranging for the various apprentices of various commanders that had joined my army and fleet for the Athenian War to have something to study while at peace. I began to realize that a more formalized academy might be a good idea, only to stumble into the problem of the Spartan Agoge. Sparta was, currently, anyway, the only Polis with a formalized training system for officers. It was also a laughing stock and badly in need of reform. I would need time to go on a charm offensive with various nobles and officers if I wanted a proper academy to take, and unfortunately, I didn't have time. I had only the autumn and winter to get my forces ready for a spring campaign into Cyrenaica.

That was what the bulk of my time, when I wasn't with family, was spent doing. Laying in supplies, overseeing army recruitment, and planning for a campaign. The plan, as it currently stood, was to sail south to the coast of Cyrenaica, land near the port of Appolonia, and take it, before marching straight on to Cyrene. Once Cyrene was taken, the rest of the Pentopolis would fall fairly easily. It was the heart of Cyrenaica and gave its name to the region for a reason, after all. This lightning strike would no doubt bait Magas, who would most likely be campaigning in Egypt Proper, into returning from Egypt to retake his lost territory, and we could fight him on ground of our choosing, destroy his army, and solidify our control over Cyrenaica. That was the plan. It was simple, but effective, I thought.

Aside from Military matters, the rest of the time I wasn't spending with my family was spent managing our hemp production. We had multiple plantations and a paper mill off the ground and producing by September, but the plan I had called for more than that to fill the needs of the bureaucracy and the medical needs of the Kingdom. I would, after an effort, get one further hemp plantation ready by the time the year ended, though it would need to wait until the planting season of two-seventy-seven to actually sow a crop in.

The rest of my time was largely spent with family. I had written to Olympias in Pergamon to inform her of the birth of her half-brother, Agathocles. She had written back letting me know that she and Achaeus were likewise expecting a child, though the Physicians claimed it was too early to consult an oracle to find out the Gender of their child. Apparently, she had only missed her monthly blood and spoke to her physician just before my letter had arrived. I was going to be a grandfather.

I would need to get Olympias and Achaeus a gift, though. Some time spent with them would also not go amiss. Perhaps I could take the family to visit Pergamon when my Grandchild was born? Barring war or disaster, that might just be a good idea. I could also use the visit to reaffirm my commitment to the alliance with the Seleucids, which was always a good idea, especially since I was intervening in a Civil War in Egypt, and the Egyptians were one of the Seleucids' main rivals. It would be good to assure Antiokos Asianos that I had no intentions of taking Egypt's side should Ptolemy Kerounos start a war over the Levant or something, just as it would be good to see my Daughter and Grandchild.

Being a possible new grandfather made me feel old, of course, but time spent with my children did much to put that thought out of my mind. Ptolemy was growing into a fine young lad, and we spent some time riding after I got the letter back from Olympias. Eurydice was still a terror, and we celebrated her sixth birthday as a family. However, it seemed she was somewhat less of a terror than she had been previously. When I asked why she was getting up to less mischief than usual, though, Eurydice got a really serious look on her face as she told me.

"I'm a big sister now. I have to be more responsible." She intoned solemnly.

"But not too responsible, aye?" Joked Ptolemy, holding Agathocles and giving Lanassa a break.

"Of course not. Just enough to keep an eye out for Agathocles." Huffed Eurydice.

"Of course. Happy birthday, My Little Tempest." I offered.

"The cooks made sweet pastries for your birthday. I can't partake, unfortunately. I still need to shed some of this excess weight." Sighed Lanassa.

"Please, you're beautiful, as always." I scoffed.

"Charmer." Accused Lanassa.

"Always." I smirked.

"Oh, it smells like my brother is in need of a change of swaddling. I wouldn't want the smell to put us off those pastries." Cut in, Ptolemy.

"Right, I'll call a servant to change him." Sighed Lanassa.

Shortly afterward, with my younger son changed, and the sweet pastries brought out, the family sat down to enjoy the treats together. They were good, sort of like baklava in that they were a combination of pastry and honey. In the end, it was a good time with my family. One of the things that made all the administration and wars worth undertaking. I was glad that I had the time this year for such things. I wouldn't likely have much time for it next year. After all, come the spring, I would be off to war once again, looking to aid Ptolemy Kerounos in exchange for gaining Cyrenaica for Epirus.

I had best get my family time in now, while I could because I damn sure wouldn't have time to do that in Egypt. . .

XXXX

AN: All right, so here's the next chapter. We see the birth of Pyrrhus' second son, Agathocles, a bit more of Pyrrhus the family man, and a tiny bit of administration. Notably, Pyrrhus has reached a stumbling block when it comes to the idea of a formalized military academy. Of course, this was primarily a family time update, since it featured the birth of Pyrrhus' second son and Eurydice's sixth birthday.

A note on Agathocles' hair color. Some of you might think that having reddish-gold hair is odd for an ethnically Greek Prince. However, you would be wrong. The Molossian Dynasty to which Pyrrhus belonged was known to have such hair. In fact, his name, Pyrrhus, means Fiery Red because of his hair. He had it, and so did Neoptolemus, his cousin, who Pyrrhus overthrew to become king.

As for place names, we only have a few in this chapter. Miletos is on the Aegean Coast of modern-day Turkey in the modern-day Didim District of Aydın Province. Apollonia in Cyrene is on the site of Modern-day Soussa in Libya, and Cyrene is close to the site of the modern-day town of Shahhat in Libya, on a ridge of the Modern-Day Jebel Akhdar uplands. The rest of the Cyrenaican Pentopolis as a whole is on the Mediterranean coast of Modern-day Libya in the aptly named Cyrenaica Region.

At any rate, the next chapter will be an interlude showing the start of the Second Brother's War in Egypt before we return to Pyrrhus for the beginning of his Egyptian Intervention Campaign.

Stay tuned. . .