Silver Saffron

Twilight had fallen. The horses neighed with fatigue. It was time to stop. The men saw a resting place; their bodies were exhausted and dusty. The shadow of the Kashmir mountains towered over the great plain with its low grasses. Emperor Alexander, helmet in hand, brandished his sword in front of the crowd. The moon slipped in and out of view, its face ablaze. It projected a silver hue onto the blade's edge, illuminating the entire plain with a blinding ray. Early the next morning, the men could not believe their eyes. The ground was covered in a purple coat. Millions of saffron flowers had appeared over the course of one night.