The Sword and the Throne

by Henry Venmore-Rowland

  ‘An unexpected sight then.’ She frowned at not receiving the anticipated high praise.

  ‘And there was I going to all sorts of trouble to look nice for you,’ she pouted.

  ‘You do look fantastic, but I still didn’t expect to see you.’

  ‘After the way you cut Julius and me dead at Salonina’s party.’

  ‘Well, technically it was my party,’ I said.

  ‘But we both know it was Salonina’s way of making her grand entrance into society. One day she’ll learn to relax a bit more at these occasions,’ she said, stretching her back as she spoke. And I dare any man in my position not to have let his eyes drop ever so slightly towards those delicate breasts that reached upwards as she stretched. Hastily I looked away.

  ‘Why are you here, Domitia? If you’ve come from Julius, he knows he’s dead to me. I completely understand why he came north with Otho. He was a praetor, it was his duty. But he did not have a duty to betray his friend.’

  She laughed gently. ‘Caecina Severus, the man who thinks he is so much cleverer than the rest of us! If I was coming on behalf of Julius, don’t you think I might have just knocked on your door rather than meeting you secretly in the dead of night?’

  ‘Why are you here then?’

  ‘You were half right, actually.’ The girlish act was coming to an end. ‘I am here for Julius’s sake, but he doesn’t know I’m here. In fact, he mustn’t.’

  ‘Why not?’ I asked suspiciously.

  ‘I’m getting to that. Now we know that your man has been scurrying round the Aventine, poking his nose into anything and everything…’

  ‘We?’

  ‘Yes, we. You’re not the only ones to have spies in the city. We know you’ve just met with him, so you’re now a member of an exclusive little club here in Rome.’

  ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ I said, getting ready to leave.

  ‘Vespasian,’ she said quickly. ‘You’ve heard about Vespasian.’

  I froze. I didn’t like where this was headed.

  ‘What have I heard about Vespasian?’ I asked tentatively.

  ‘Oh don’t play games with me, Caecina. You’re not a brash little boy any more, and I’m not the little girl you and Julius played with all those years ago. You know as well as I do that Vespasian is considering challenging Vitellius for the throne.’

  ‘And what’s that to you, or Julius for that matter?’

  ‘You’ve made it perfectly clear that Julius has no future so long as Vitellius is emperor, or rather while you are at his side. You get a feeling of satisfaction and revenge from holding Julius back, and good for you. But my interests lie with Vespasian.’

  I closed my eyes, remembering. ‘Of course, your mother.’

  ‘Well done, Caecina,’ Domitia said sarcastically. ‘My mother was a Flavian. Vespasian and Sabinus are actually my second cousins once removed, or something like that. Not that Julius remembers these things; he was never going to be even half the politician you’ve become.’

  The pieces were beginning to fall into place.

  ‘I am a consul. I rule the man who rules Rome. Thousands of men have died so that I could get where I am today, good men whose feet Julius isn’t worthy to kiss. And you think I would throw all of that away, just because you asked me?’

  ‘Gods, no. Who said anything about throwing it all away? Vespasian can’t take all the eastern legions to Rome. The Jews, the Egyptians, the Parthians, they’d all rise up the moment he crossed the Hellespont. Now if there was a man here in Rome that we could rely on, one with influence over the emperor and over his legions, Vespasian would make him as rich as Croesus.’

  I pushed the curtain aside. ‘Out of the love I once had for you, Domitia, I’m going to pretend this conversation never took place.’

  I was half out of the litter when she caught me by the wrist. ‘You haven’t heard the other part of the reward yet,’ she said.

  ‘And what would that be?’ I said tiredly.

  ‘Me.’

  * * *

  I slept uneasily that night, Domitia’s words turning over in my mind. I still couldn’t believe that there might be another civil war within months of our victory at Bedriacum. Even if I did believe it, there was nothing I could do but sit and wait and see what the gods had in store for us. Domitia’s offer had been enticing, but I pride myself I am not a slave to my passions. There was no way I was going to make war inevitable by abandoning Vitellius. Useless man that he was, he had been true to his word. I was a consul of Rome, Totavalas and Demetrios were busy making me and themselves rich. How would I profit any better by serving Vespasian?

  Pushing those honeyed words to the back of my mind, the next morning I had my body slave dress me in my consular toga. I had a duty to perform in the Senate house that day. After a tedious session of listening to my clients’ complaints and petitions, passing judgement and promising to look into their petty requests, I was finally free to leave the villa.

  Not that it was an earth-shattering piece of legislation I had to present. It was rather amusing really, compared to the banal grievances that my clients brought to my door, anything from inheritance claims to a collection of tradesmen asking me to revoke a Gaul’s licence to sell fish, on the grounds that the stench of his rotten wares was driving away customers. As I approached the Senate steps the citizens, noble and humble alike, hurriedly moved to get out of my way. I miss those days, now that I live alone, without friends and without respect. But then I am always reminded by my fellow senators that it is the office, not the man, that they admire. If I could go back and give the younger Caecina Severus one piece of advice, that would be it.

  Inside the seats were already beginning to fill, since this was the last day of Senate business for over a week. Vitellius had made the next few days a public holiday to celebrate, of all things, the unity of the empire, during which time the mob would be entertained with yet more magnificent games and free bread. The nobles would watch the games too and then return to their indolent lives. After that, Valens would take the consul’s chair for the month of Augustus, leaving me free for other duties.

  The Father of the House, the oldest serving senator, banged his staff on the marble floor, calling the house to order. ‘The Senate will hear the motion brought to us by the consul Aulus Caecina Severus.’

  I rose, and the senators eyed me keenly. There were a few faces I recognized in the sea of old men in front of me. Agricola was there of course, on the praetors’ bench. So too were my erstwhile governor Verginius Rufus, General Paulinus and Vespasian’s brother Sabinus. All of their eyes were fixed on me.

  ‘Conscript fathers,’ I began with the formal words, ‘I have come to submit a new piece of legislation before you: a radical step that will free Rome of a band of parasites we could well do without.’ There were some worried glances among those senators who had made their fortunes as money-lenders. Commerce was certainly frowned upon among the nobles, but the days when noble blood guaranteed a seat in the Senate were long gone. The house was filled with new men, some of whom were even the sons of freedmen and grandsons of slaves. They had no such scruples.

  ‘Our august emperor, Vitellius Germanicus, wishes you to consider his proposal to banish all soothsayers and fortune-tellers from all Italia.’

  Sighs of relief on all sides, and some even laughed. It was hardly the most revolutionary piece of legislation to come before the Senate, but I had a part to play, and the men sitting there had theirs too.

  ‘For too long these men have fleeced honest citizens with their babble, supposedly messages from the gods. The peasant in the field or the simple man in the street, wishing to know what the future holds, is quite content to hand over his coins for a white chicken, or a dove, or whatever he can afford. Out comes the knife, a quick poke around the entrails, and the soothsayer gives the answer he thinks will best please his customer. And at the end of the day he probably takes the remains of the sacrificial animals to the butcher, s
elling a few cuts of meat and having the rest for his supper!’

  The senators laughed sycophantically.

  ‘Would anyone care to speak against the motion?’ I asked.

  An old-fashioned-looking man rose to his feet, wearing just a senatorial robe with no warming toga beneath, a traditionalist of the Catonian school, I guessed.

  ‘I only ask, Consul, whether the temple priests of Italia are to be driven out as well, under the terms of this motion? Our priests and augurs help us to interpret the will of the gods. Are you suggesting they are wrong to do so?’

  ‘Not at all, Senator. Those men are sanctioned by the state to carry out these practices. This law is aimed at the vagrants and amateurs who look into the future for a living, rather than as a calling. The emperor has no desire to offend the gods or attack our customs. He only wishes to save his citizens from swindlers and conmen abusing their faith.’

  The farce was drawing to an end. In reality to pass the motion all I had to do was announce that it was the emperor’s will, and the senators would fall over themselves to vote as Vitellius wanted them to. But for the sake of the republic, or at least for the sake of appearances, new laws must be put to the Senate, proposed and discussed before they can be voted on. Hence my long-winded speech on the subject, dressed up as a defence of the people’s purse-strings only to make my words more enjoyable to deliver. Vitellius had only proposed the law after an encounter with one such soothsayer on his journey through Gaul, when the man had condemned Vitellius for holding a banquet on an inauspicious day!

  The wizened senator put the motion to the vote, and hand upon hand went up in favour of the bill. ‘Against?’ No hands were raised.

  ‘The motion is passed. Further business…’

  But the old man was interrupted. There was a clattering of hoofbeats outside the doors to the Senate house and a murmur from those who stood outside, watching the proceedings. In ran an imperial courier, his shoulders slumped forward as though he had been in the saddle for many days.

  ‘I carry a message for the Senate and People of Rome,’ he announced. The men whispered among themselves.

  ‘Read it,’ I told the man. The rider took out his scroll and broke the seal. He began to read aloud, taking deep breaths when he could.

  Senators,

  It is my duty as Governor of Moesia to report the rebellion of the Third Gallica Legion, at the command and instigation of their legate, Dillius Aponianus. Having only recently arrived from service in Syria, the legion has called upon their former general, Vespasian, to contest the right of Vitellius Germanicus to the imperial throne.

  Saturninus

  There was immediate uproar in the building. Many senators jumped to their feet to denounce the legion, while others were too busy arguing among themselves to make a show of outrage until their friends dragged them to their feet. All eyes were turned to Vespasian’s brother. Sabinus did his best to look shocked.

  ‘Silence!’ I shouted, the staff hitting the ground again, the elderly man calling for order.

  As the hubbub began to die down, I stood with my hands raised, demanding to be heard.

  ‘One legion, one single legion, has dared to mutiny, to rebel against our emperor. They have not done this for love of the empire, Senators, but love of power and carnage and war. Gods, have we not decided upon an emperor who loves his city more than himself? Did Vitellius not put aside the gaudy title of Caesar? Are we not blessed to have an emperor who was reluctant to serve, a man who had to be persuaded that Rome was in need of him?’

  Some of the senators murmured their agreement. Others smiled, watching me perform a show of loyalty in the hope that the rest would follow.

  ‘Soldier, has the news been sent to the palace?’

  ‘No, Consul. The governor ordered me to inform the Senate first.’

  I was puzzled. Why would a loyal governor specifically instruct his courier to first tell the Senate of a legion’s rebellion against their emperor, rather than the emperor himself?’

  ‘Then with the Senate’s leave,’ I said, addressing them all, ‘I will go to the palace and carry out the wishes of our rightful emperor.’

  The courier and I left, accompanied by a round of polite applause. I took the courier’s letter, and his horse, and rode straight to the palace. Valens was in the grand hallway, waiting for me.

  ‘Have you heard the news?’ I asked immediately.

  ‘I have, and so has Vitellius.’

  ‘What? How?’

  ‘I have a network of spies among all the legions from Hispania to Moesia; the benefits of a lifetime of making friends in the army. How did the Senate react?’

  ‘As you’d expect,’ I said. ‘Some of them didn’t know how they were meant to react at first, but I assured them it was just a one-off, a Syrian legion that had only recently transferred, that’s what the governor said in his message.’

  ‘If only it were,’ Valens sighed.

  ‘You mean there’s more? Tell me, Valens. I have a right to know.’

  ‘Calm down, boy. Saturninus has toyed with the truth a bit. I’d heard he’d reported the mutiny in a message to the Senate, but I’ll bet that message doesn’t mention the fact that he decided to join the rebellion the next day?’

  ‘You guessed right,’ I said darkly. ‘How far has this thing spread?’

  ‘I don’t know. It’s these damn trade winds, the only news we’re likely to get this season will be from Moesia. There’s no way of knowing what’s going on in Syria, but they’ll know everything that happens in Rome. Sabinus will see to that.’

  ‘Do we arrest him?’

  ‘And have the people say Vitellius is scared of one poxy legion?’

  ‘You’re right,’ I admitted. ‘We’ve got to show confidence. Shall we summon some cohorts and auxiliaries to help deal with the situation? We daren’t leave Rome unprotected. If the mutiny spreads the Danube legions could cross the sea from Dalmatia or Greece.’

  ‘What other troops do we have?’

  ‘The men we left behind on the Rhine. They’ve been recruiting, so the remaining veterans could come south. Four thousand from my province and the same from yours? We daren’t use the legion of marines though, they’d probably join the mutiny!’

  ‘True. That bloody Vespasian. We’ve only been here five minutes and now we might have another war on our hands.’

  ‘That’s probably what Otho and his men said.’

  ‘Very funny. Now, I don’t want you worrying Vitellius with any rumours about Vespasian. As far as he’s concerned, it’s just the one legion, even if the two of us know that there are others who might join him. The happier Vitellius is the easier our life will be, understood?’

  ‘Of course,’ I said. I saw no need to tell him of Totavalas’s discovery. If the Third had started a mutiny, Galba’s old legion would surely join the moment they heard the news. The tide was beginning to turn, and I had to choose a side.

  * * *

  I had an unenviable task to carry out that evening. It was time for Salonina to leave Rome so that she’d reach my estate in the north in time for the birth. Only I couldn’t go with her, not now the news from the east had turned the world upside down. I was dreading the encounter, not least because it was the first time we had seen each other in private since our rather public quarrel. She didn’t take the change of plan well.

  ‘Salonina, be reasonable!’

  ‘Reasonable? You promised!’ she screamed, flinging another dish at me. My arm was still bleeding from where she had caught me unawares with her first missile.

  ‘I know I promised, but that was before I knew how busy I would be as consul. With a man like Valens sharing the power, how can I leave Rome?’

  ‘That’s not what I heard,’ she said accusingly.

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘I heard you were seen climbing into a woman’s litter, down by the forum.’

  ‘Who told you this?’

  ‘So it is true!’

&n
bsp; ‘Salonina, this is important. Who told you?’ I demanded.

  ‘I had you followed; I wanted to know you were safe. And all the time you were seeing someone else,’ she shouted.

  ‘Will you let me explain, woman?’

  ‘What is there to explain? You’re having an affair, and that’s the end of it.’

  ‘Listen!’ I barked. ‘I am not having an affair. There was a woman in the litter, yes, but she’s one of my informants.’

  ‘And I suppose you can’t tell me her name?’

  ‘Of course I can’t.’

  ‘How convenient!’

  ‘Salonina, she told me that General Vespasian is rebelling, and there’s a good chance he could unite all of the east behind him. That’s why I need to be here in Rome. I can’t disappear up north when I’m needed here, the future of the empire will be decided in the next few days. I can’t leave now.’

  ‘What if you’re lying?’ Salonina asked.

  ‘I’m not, but I can’t have people hearing I knew about the rebellion days ago. Vitellius would have my head. I’m not abandoning you, Salonina, I promise. It’s just… bad timing.’

  ‘If you would let me stay here…’ she began.

  ‘Salonina, we agreed that you would go back to Vicetia for the birth. All my family have been born at the estate, and it’s a tradition I’m not about to break.’

  ‘But you’re not coming with me,’ she said, her chest heaving. Gingerly I approached her and took her by the hand. She had exhausted herself chasing me round the room, and I guided her to a chair.

  ‘Of course I’ll be there, but it’ll take you at least ten days to travel comfortably in your carriage. I can use the courier system and be at Vicetia in less than half the time. I will be there for you, I promise. Do you think I want to miss the birth of another child?’

  ‘I can’t tell any more,’ she sobbed.

  ‘You’ll have Aulus for company on the road, and when we’re back in Rome I’ll throw the biggest party the city’s ever seen!’