Hosker, G [Sword of Cartimandua 02] The Horsewarriors

by Griff Hosker

  “Will do.” Riding back to the two turmae he ordered bows to be strung.

  Marcus turned to his men and said quietly, “Be on guard we don’t know what is up there yet. “He signalled them forward and then shouted. “First Pannonians coming into camp!”

  The silence was eerie and Marcus could now see the figure which did not move. Agrippa shouted out, “Wake up you dozy bugger it’s the Decurion Princeps.”

  The fact that no-one had run and no shower of arrows had fallen on them made them relax a little. If it had been Brigante they would now be in action. Agrippa was the first to realise that the reality was far worse than what they had imagined. He gave a gasp of horror which caused every trooper behind him to draw his weapon. Then Marcus saw what Agrippa had seen. The figure was not a sentry but the head of a Roman trooper sat hideously grinning from the top of a spear. The grin had been inflicted post death with a slash of a knife across the mouth. As they drew closer they saw all forty of the turma on forty spears. In the centre was Drusus his lifeless eyes staring out at them. Agrippa remembered the last words spoken by his decurion and swore a silent oath that he would have his revenge on the barbarians who slaughtered his friends and comrades.

  Marcus turned in his saddle and yelled, “To me! To me!”

  Decius, Lentius and the two turmae were there in a heartbeat. There were no words to be spoken but Marcus knew that orders had to be given. “Turma one alternate troopers, half set up a picket line the rest of you search around and see if you can pick up signs.” He turned to Lentius and Decius, “Get your men to take these,” he paused a catch in his voice, “troopers down and see if you can find their bodies. These warriors will be buried with honour.”

  It was completely dark by the time the tasks had been completed. Decius brought the worst news. “They have dismembered the bodies you can’t tell one man from the next.”

  Marcus nodded, a cold anger coursing through his veins. “Build a pyre. In the morning we will send them to the Allfather.”

  Later as they sat together they pulled together what had happened. Agrippa sat with them for he knew exactly where they had been prior to the massacre. “So the river was on our left. There was nowhere for anyone to hide except in the rocks near the river.”

  Marcus looked sadly at the sole remaining trooper from turma two. “It seems likely that is where they hid.”

  Lentius spoke up, “And we found some pits dug they must have hidden there. Looks like they might have hidden under the turf. No-one would have been able to see them.”

  Marcus nodded, “If only they had had Gaelwyn with them. He would have been able to smell them.” He gestured to the north, “The ground to the north looks torn up by horses. It looks as though they waited out of sight and then when our men retreated they would only have one way to go, right into the enemy.”

  “The lads did well though sir.”

  Marcus nodded. They had found a nearby grave and over thirty bodies lay there. Drusus may have been ambushed with no hope of survival but he and his men had fought to the last. “He will be remembered and, Lentius, he will now be with Ulpius and they will talk of the times of glory.”

  Lentius smiled sadly not daring to speak in case he broke down. There were now just three of them left from Ulpius’ turma, himself Marcus and Gaius. Thirty of their comrades had died in this desolate outpost of the Empire.

  They lit the fire in the early dawn and they stood with heads bowed each with their own thoughts for the friends they had lost. Macro had found the tracks in the last darkening of the previous night and Marcus had sent him off as the rest of the vexillation prepared to leave. As they mounted he saw him to the west signalling. “Right men we ride and before we return home we will avenge our comrades.”

  It was noon when they crossed the river. It was much narrower and shallower this far from the sea. Marcus began to recognise some of the features from his patrol with Ulpius Felix. He turned to Decius, “We are not far from Brocavum.”

  “Typical. I bet the bastards are there already. This could be a waste of time.”

  “I don’t think so. They had mounted men but they were mainly on foot. We have been going at a healthy pace. We could be closer than you think. Besides I was going to head down that way soon. I expected a messenger from the prefect before now.” He signalled Agrippa. “Agrippa, take Macro and scout ahead of us. I think they are close. When you find them send Macro back to me.” He looked sympathetically at Agrippa. “We will all be revenged on them Agrippa not just you. Use your head.” Agrippa nodded and he and Macro raced off.

  Decius smiled as Macro passed him. “Look at that mad bugger. He thinks all this is a lark.”

  “Yes Decius but he has not lost any comrades yet. It is still a game to him. You can only realise the stakes when you have gambled. Had it been Gaius and Drusus who had perished he would have a different attitude. Let us hope he always thinks of this as a game.”

  Decius looked at Marcus. They might be of similar ages and experience but there the resemblance ended for Marcus was a far deeper thinker than Decius would ever be and, as he chewed on some salted horsemeat he was glad. Action not words that was his motto.

  It seemed like a few hours before Macro came racing back along with Agrippa but in reality it had been less than half an hour. “Found them sir. There is a small lake in a natural bowl with hills around it and they are resting. They are going slowly because they have litters. It seems some of them are wounded.”

  “And they are not all mounted sir!”

  Agrippa glared at Macro but Lentius grinned and said, “You’ll get used to him Agrippa. He tends to open his mouth and then think.”

  Decius mumbled,” I’m not sure he even knows what think is.”

  “There are about a hundred of them with about twenty wounded.”

  “What about the approach?”

  “There is one hill which overlooks it and they have two men there. I think we could sneak up and kill them. The hill would hide us and we could take them.”

  “What tribe are they?”

  “From their standards they look to be Carvetii but some of them are mailed with similar shields to our own.”

  “That bastard Aed! I knew we shouldn’t have given them ideas and help to become better warriors. It’s a bit thick being hit by the weapons we gave them using the tactics we taught them!”

  “We had to Decius; they were our allies remember/”

  “Treacherous allies.”

  Marcus turned to the men. “Leave your supplies here we go in armed and ready to move. I don’t want any to escape. “He turned to one of the older troopers. “Metellus you stay here with the mule train and guard them.” When the older man looked disappointed Marcus added. “You have had much glory. Let the younger ones find their strength. There will be other battles.”

  The men began to prepare for battle. They tucked their cloaks into their sheepskins and put their food and water skins along with their sleeping blankets in neat, ordered piles. Metellus began to strap the tents and other supplies onto the mules. Once that was done he lashed each mule to the one behind. Although he was to remain behind the decurion had not said he could not follow slowly.

  “Lentius you take your turma right. Decius left. I will go through the middle. Gaius take Macro and Agrippa, they know where the sentries are. Dispose of them without the Carvetii becoming suspicious. Can you handle that?”

  “Not a problem sir. I wondered why you were not using me. My back is fine, “he glanced at Decius, “that salve I was given helped.”

  “Good lad, now be careful.”

  The three of them tethered their horses some way from the hill. They left their helmets with their horses. There was gorse and scrubby, stunted trees to disguise their movements. They noticed that the sentries sat talking to each other and would only turn around occasionally. The three of them spread out and went up in short bursts. Whenever one of the sentries started to turn they lay flat and managed to get within thirty pa
ces. Agrippa was the smallest of the three and they had agreed that he would take the sentry on the left; he would crawl up and slit his throat. Macro would throw his javelin at the one on the right while Gaius would have his javelin in reserve in case either man missed.

  As soon as Macro’s javelin thudded through the sentry’s back Agrippa leapt up. His sentry looked at his stricken comrade and he began to shout when Agrippa’s hand covered his mouth and his razor sharp knife sliced through his throat. If those by the lake had noticed anything it would have been a momentary movement for Agrippa and Macro sat in the same places as the dead sentries. Gaius raced down the hill and signalled to Marcus who was just out of sight below the skyline.

  The three turmae came in an extended line. The hill masked their movement and they would make an unwelcome appearance on the hill top. Gaius gathered their horses and took them to just below the top of the hill. Out of sight he said,” Any movement yet?”

  “They haven’t noticed us but it looks like they are beginning to move. A couple of them are heading towards the hill on the other side.”

  “Right as soon as we attack our job is to get those men so mark them.”

  Marcus halted the men in a line and Gaius explained what he intended to do. Marcus nodded his approval. He silently drew his sword. There would be nothing spoken until they were noticed. The closer they came to the enemy the more chance they had of inflicting heavy casualties. The horses walked over the hill and then, on the other side they began to trot. Their momentum naturally increased their speed and they were halfway down before they were noticed. Gaius and his comrades were already racing around the lake to the other side unnoticed by anyone.

  The Carvetii were surprised but they did not panic. Their leader quickly shouted an order and twenty warriors planted their spear hafts into the ground so that their points were a deadly hedgehog. Without breaking stride Marcus signalled the man next to him to move right while he edged left. He would not risk the blades and there were not enough to deter them. Because the land was steeper on the right Lentius’ line hit first and there was a mighty clash of sword on sword. On the left the wounded were protected by a thin line of warriors and Decius soon found himself through them and at the water’s edge with a line of bodies scattered in untidy heaps. Marcus and his turma had been split by the hedgehog and were being forced back. Decius shouted above the din, “Leave the wounded we can finish those bastards off at our leisure. To me! Protect the decurion,” His men formed up behind him and the phalanx thrust through the heart of the defenders. It was the final act which turned the tide. Some of the men flung down their weapons and tried to race into the water only to be struck by arrows. Within less than a half hour it was over and the lakeside was red with blood. The auxiliaries were in no mood for prisoners and went around despatching the wounded, not as an act of kindness but to ensure their demise.

  On the far side of the lake the three cavalry men had spread out and the two men they were pursuing were jinking left and right to avoid capture. Gaius rode his man down and thrust his javelin into his unarmed back. Agrippa and Macro had a slippery opponent who managed to find the places the horses did not like. He suddenly turned and ran towards the skyline. With horror the two troopers realised that it was a small cliff. The Carvetii jumped down a short cliff. The fall turned his ankle but he was able to hobble away. Macro and Agrippa knew their horses could not make the leap and Agrippa cursed as he knew that the man was escaping and would raise the alarm. Suddenly Macro produced a sling and took out a lead ball. He spun it quickly around his head and then released. The Carvetii warrior thought he had escaped and did not turn around. The missile plunged into the back of his skull and he died instantly.

  “Nice shot!”

  “Used to hunt rabbits and squirrels when I was little. How do you think I got this big?”

  By the time they reached the lakeside Agrippa and Gaius knew the size, number and even sex of every animal Macro had killed. Agrippa looked at Gaius and shook his head. “Just think Agrippa by the time we have finished this campaign young Macro will be able to give details about every one of the three thousand warriors he is going to kill.”

  “Sorry sir, er Gaius but I was pleased. It was a good shot wasn’t it?”

  “Yes son and this is just gentle ribbing. A word of advice; be a little less when you tell Decius or you’ll be shovelling horseshit from here to Alexandria.”

  Marcus had made his troopers strip the bodies of all armour and arms although this was a distasteful and unpleasant task it was vital that it was done. As he explained to Decius, “We don’t need these arms and this armour but they do. If we leave the bodies as they are then another hundred warriors will become as well armed and armoured as these. With the legions hunting them they will not find the time to make such fine weapons.”

  “Yes sir but what will we do with them?”

  “Pack them on those horses and take them with us. When we have left them at the fort we will have some remounts for Cato Aquilinas to train up.”

  One of the sentries suddenly shouted and every man became alert, scanning the skyline and gripping his sword. Decius let out a snort of relief, “Thank Allfather it is just Metellus. I will have his guts for breakfast scaring me like that.”

  “Yes but it shows that all of the men are keen to get into action and can think for themselves. This is not the sullen rabble we had after Gaius was flogged. They have their spirit back.”

  With the arrival of the pack mules and once the horses had been loaded with arms and armour they set off. As they drifted over the skyline they saw the carrion birds swooping overhead. By nightfall the wolves and foxes would have joined in and soon there would just be bones to show where a warband died and a reminder to the rest of the tribe that the Pannonians took revenge very seriously. “Where to sir?”

  “South, it is time that we gave our report to the Governor. I don’t think there are more warbands north of the river. This was the only sign. If we head due south we should find ourselves closer to Stanwyck. My decision.”

  Gaius murmured to Macro and Agrippa, “If he decided to ride to Hades then the men would follow him.

  West of Eboracum

  Julius Agricola found Fabius Demetrius to be a most disagreeable and opinionated young man. It was obvious he thought himself superior to everyone including the general. Early on in their trek north Agricola had had to censure him for inappropriate remarks to both centurions and his own men. It also galled him that he was a very poor officer; his men obviously hated him and there was no rapport between them. For all of that however the general recognised that he was a good cavalryman and he was able to keep an effective screen ahead of the legion to discourage ambushes. His thirty eight men were also very well drilled and confirmed his opinion of the ala; if the rest were as good, but better led, then they had a good chance of defeating their tricky enemies...

  For his part Fabius hated his duties. He hated having to take orders especially from those he felt were inferior to him and that was most of the army. When he became a general he would improve discipline. He had noticed that the general addressed his centurions by their first names and drank with them! They were plebeians and rough plebeians at that. He hated the land. It was treeless, cold, wet and windy! He longed for the lands around Capua where he had grown up, the blue water the beautiful trees, the olive, groves, the vineyards. He hated the food and drink. The wine was just up market vinegar and the slop they served was beneath his contempt; he would not serve it to his dog! The only thing which kept him going was that he would soon be rejoining his father and under his command. It kept him keen to move the legion along which, ironically, also pleased Agricola and his men who yearned for the comradeship of the ala and other officers who could be pleasant.

  Isurium Brigantium

  Quintus Petilius Cerialis sat with the ex-prefect of cavalry discussing how the new settlement might be strengthened when Stanwyck was reduced. Although he had been impressed by the extensive fort
ifications the Governor knew the fortress could be reduced in days not weeks. He had two legions for the twentieth was but a day away and he had siege engines. He had no doubts that it would fall and this time his men would tear down the towers and the walls. They would demolish the buildings and fill in the ditches. The two soldiers were working out the best way to defend the new administrative capital of the region.

  “Eboracum can supply soldiers to put down any rebellion.”

  “Yes Governor but it takes time to get to Eboracum doesn’t it?”

  “You would like regular patrols from Morbium then?”

  “It is but hours away,” he paused significantly, “they saved us last time.”

  Quintus drank deeply the wine; it was a good one for he had brought it himself. “I suppose a wall and a gate would make you secure enough from border raiders. Yes that will be no problem.” He relaxed back into his couch. “They are a good unit of cavalry, I am impressed. You have done a good job.”

  Flavius shook his head, “It was Ulpius who made them what they are. Oh I allowed him to have a free hand and encouraged him but what you see is the result of that long vexillation during the winter. It made them what they are.”

  “He was an interesting character I believe.”

  “He was that.”

  The Governor gave a half embarrassed laugh. “I did hear a rumour that he was Queen Cartimandua’s lover and they were to have a child?” If a silence could echo then this one did. “Oh so it is true. I would have liked to have met him.”

  “When you meet his decurions it is like meeting the man for they are all like him.”

  “Good. Well I had better turn in we begin the assault tomorrow. “I have sent for Rufius,” he looked around him and then lowered his voice; “you know he may be a damn good officer but he is not exactly likeable is he? No don’t answer. Too much wine. Do finish it off there’s a good fellow.”

  At the officer’s briefing the next morning Fabius saw his father but it would have been most inappropriate to speak as technically he was still part of Agricola’s staff.” Good. We are all here then. Excellent.” He took out a detailed map of the area and spread it out in front of the officers, all the tribunes and senior centurions were there and it was a crowded tent. “The ninth will begin the assault today. We already surround the fortress. My engineers assure me,“ two elderly officers nodded vigorously, “that it will fall within two days. The ninth will assault once the gates are breached. The onagers and ballistae will be brought up today. I want the Batavians to defend the engines,” their prefect nodded and spoke to his senior centurion quietly. “The twentieth will be in reserve to the west. They are close enough to close on any advance to relieve the fortress. Demetrius I want your cavalry to the north and west. Has your vexillation returned?”