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Alexander's destruction of Thebes was near-total. All that he allowed to remain were the temples, the ancient Cadmeia, and the house of the poet Pindar.
The rest of the rebellious Greeks immediately surrendered, and Alexander could once again turn his gaze towards Persia.
As was only natural before such a grand expedition, Alexander went to Delphi, seeking the wisdom of the god Apollo.
When Alexander arrived, he was told that Apollo's priestess was absent from the temple, this being a day when prophecies were forbidden.
But Alexander, believing that his will surpassed any sacred rules, marched to the priestess's quarters and began to drag her towards the temple, determined that she would tell him his fate.
"My son!" exclaimed the terrified priestess. "You are unconquerable!"
Satisfied with his boorishly-acquired prophecy, Alexander crossed the Hellespont.
Parmenion was waiting with the advance guard, but Alexander had more pressing matters.
He proceeded to Troy, where he anointed the gravestone of Achilles with oil. He and his friends ran races around the tomb, as though they were the heroes of Homer's Iliad.
The Persians had time for no such frivolities.
They assembled their forces at the River Granicus, trusting in its steep banks and fast-flowing waters to deter Alexander's onslaught.
Alexander gazed at the army arrayed against him: a host more numerous than any he had yet faced, the steeds of the Persian nobles strutting along the serried ranks, their riders eagerly watching for a glimpse of the invader they wished to slay.
Upon a single charge across the Granicus, Alexander would stake the fate of his entire expedition.