400 BC: The Story of the Ten Thousand #[nn]

Synopsis

Harvests have been bad in Greece, and Aeneas persuades Eustachius to join a mercenary force in Cyrus the Younger's war for the Persian throne. When Cyrus is killed in battle, and the Greek mercenary captains are slain by treachery, Cheirisophus and Xenophon quickly emerge as the Greek leaders. They set off with the ten thousand, determined to march and fight their way to the sea and thence to home. Aeneas and Cheirisophus are among those lost along the way, but at length Xenophon leads six thousand men home to Greece, and Eustachius returns to his family and farm.