by Griff Hosker
“Sorry about that Gaius; he is new to the fort. He will recognise you next time. What brings you out so late?” As they walked to the Praetorium Gaius related the news of the horse raid and Agrippa’s death. He nodded, “Interesting that. You are not the first messenger will ill tidings tonight and Agrippa was not the only Explorate who arrived. A rider came in to day with news from Prefect Fulvius of the Ninth. Morwenna has returned with an Irish army and raised some Brigante to join an army of deserters. Can that be true that men who once followed the eagle now fight against it?”
“I have not seen it myself but both of my sons were attacked by Roman cavalry.”
“Are they safe?”
“Aye they are resourceful little buggers. They managed to kill three of their enemies and a horse. “He added proudly.
“I will wake…”
He got no further as Rufius entered the office, “I am always a light sleeper and when I heard the horse I thought it might have been another Explorate.”
“I am afraid our visitor has bad news for you.”
“Yes Agrippa died today at the hands of the traitors who dress as Romans.”
“I know he will have died well and we will have our revenge. Where was he when he died?”
“South of here pursuing the traitors who had stolen a horse herd.”
“That is what Decurion Livius feared that they would acquire horses and be able to range further.”
“Where is the Queen?”
“Travelling east from Mamucium.” Both the Centurion and Gaius started at that news. “If I can pick up their trail I might be able to do something.”
“My sons know where they went.”
“If they could describe it to me I might be able to…”
Gaius shook his head laughing wryly. “They would take you for they wish to be Explorates and if it had not been for them then Agrippa would have died in vain for we would not know the news. It is their mother who will be the one we need to persuade.”
“There is no point returning now Gaius. Stay the night and leave first thing.”
“Aye for they will have barred the gate and she will be like a she-bear tomorrow. I would not like to face a she-bear who has been deprived of sleep.”
When Gaius and Rufius rode into the farm the next morning Gaius had been rehearsing what he would say all the way from the fort. He realised that he had been rudely silent and the young Explorate next to him excluded. “Excuse me Livius my thoughts were elsewhere.”
“You don’t need to apologise sir. It must be a hard decision you are making to trust your sons to a stranger.”
Gaius shook his head vigorously. “You are not a stranger for you were… you are Marcus’ Horse. I would trust not only my sons but my wife to any who served in Marcus’ Horse for they are all like brothers to me. Tell me what Prefect Fulvius has planned?”
“He is bringing the second cohort to Morbium. With the information you have added he will head down to Eboracum to reinforce it. There is but half a cohort of legionaries there and half a cohort of auxiliaries. The rest are preparing to head north.”
“Yes this rebellion has come at a difficult time.” He saw the smoke from the farm. “Let me break the news to my wife.”
Rufius grinned, “Sir my father taught me well that a man does not interfere with a mother, especially a she-bear.”
Decius Macro and Marcus Gaius were waiting by the gate and he could see that they had their horses already packed. He frowned as he saw a third horse already packed. Gaelwyn was standing close by fussing with their saddlebags and he could see, even from a distance that Ailis was upset. Ailis was so strong in many ways; she had endured slavery twice, once as a young woman and the second time as a mother with her children taken as well. She had endured both stoically, far more bravely than Gaius and yet now she was crumbling.
Gaius dismounted and embraced his wife who had wiped away her tears before he had entered the farm. They hugged each other far longer than they needed and Gaius realised that Ailis thought he too was going away. That was who the extra horse was for. He whispered in her ear. “I am not going anywhere. I am staying and Rufius only needs the boys to show where they last saw the herd. They will be back before supper time.”
She stepped away her eyes wide with joy. “Thank you.” She turned to Rufius. “I will bring you some supplies Rufius, you look like you haven’t been fed for a week.”
Gaelwyn shuffled over his arthritic knee playing up in the damp weather. “Well Gaelwyn you sneaky old Brigante. How did you persuade her?”
“She didn’t take much persuading. She could see that more than her happiness depended on the boys helping and after that…”
Gaius wandered over to the two boys. “Just show Rufius where you last saw them and then return. We want you back tonight. “The two boys looked crestfallen. Gaius could see that they were prepared for a campaign. They both wore leather jerkins. Short swords hung from leather baldrics and they had their hunting spears as well as their bows and arrows. Gesturing at their equipment. “Did you think you were going to war?”
Marcus Gaius said lamely, “We thought we might hunt…”
“Hunt Brigante eh?” Just then Ailis came out with the supplies for Rufius.
“Thank you lady. Well boys the sun is burning daylight let’s be away. Say goodbye to your parents.”
“Bye!” They quickly hugged their mother and waved cheerfully at Gaius and Gaelwyn. They were eager to be away.
Gaius came up to Rufius, “Look after them Rufius.” In answer Rufius saluted across his chest and the look on his face was more than an answer. He nodded. “May the Allfather be with you.”
Chapter 17
Livius was becoming disenchanted with the game of cat and mouse he was playing with the Brigante scouts. As they had reached the high part of the moors it became harder to follow them without being seen. They had almost fallen foul of ambushes from hidden dells and all his Explorates bore minor wounds from falls, stones or arrows. The Brigante boys were proving excellent shots with their slings and had injured both Explorates and mounts.
It had been Metellus who had devised the strategy which made life easier for them. “We know they are staying on the road sir why don’t we leap frog them by sending a pair ahead on the road each day so that we are ahead of them and they can report to us when we arrive at an agreed point. Each day another two would leave so that we had a line of sentries, constantly changing. If the witch deviates from the route then they will know and they can backtrack to find where they left the road.”
“Good idea. We will run with that. Drusus, what did Prefect Fulvius say he was doing?”
“Well sir he didn’t see the point of just following the Queen, going further away from the barbarians in the north. He decided to turn around and head north. That way he could approach Eboracum from the north. He said the roads were better and he could bring down more cohorts if he needed them.”
“A risky strategy that. There is no legion at Lindum anymore. If she heads south there is nothing in her way.”
“Except sir he said that that they are not Brigante down there, they are Coritani and they seem quite happy for Rome to be here.”
“Yes but she could still cause chaos. I am arguing against myself here. It is our job to follow her no matter where she goes and it is now shorter to ride to Eboracum than Bremmetenacum. Right Metellus, as it is your idea you and Cassius take the first patrol. Drusus take your men north of the road and Marius take yours South. I will continue to follow and then leapfrog Metellus tomorrow with Decius.”
All of the Explorates were heartily sick of the weather they had to endure: they had relentless winds which whistled across the wild and empty moors, sudden snow flurries and insidiously dense rain which insinuated itself through however many layers they had managed to put on. The grazing, what there was, was poor and their horses were suffering as they had run out of grain. At night there was no shelter and they had to camp far enough away from the
road to avoid and ambush or night attack by the army they were following. Livius had to hope that the enemy was suffering as much as they were.
*
Morwenna did not view the journey as a hardship. She had endured worse when she lived in the cave. In fact she had bloomed and blossomed out in the fresh air. The frailty of motherhood had passed and she now looked not as a girl queen but a woman majestically approaching the best years of her life. She had enough horsemen now to raid the surrounding areas keeping their meagre supplies augmented. They had also had their numbers swollen by new recruits. Many were disenchanted Brigantes but others were deserters who had heard of the lucrative incentives being offered and they travelled from all parties of the frontier eager to, once more earn money for doing that for which they were trained. The wagons with the extra weapons purchased by the precious gold meant that they were better armed than one might have expected.
If anyone was unhappy it was Decius. This was not the life style he had envisaged for himself. He was certainly rich but where could he spend the money? Where could he surround himself with the trappings of a rich man? Certainly not here on this forsaken and desolate moor with rain slashing down like knives and, already, the tops flecked with the snow which grew day by day. His only consolation was that they could now see ahead into the rich populated valleys south of Eboracum. This was the rich hinterland which would swell both their coffers and their army.
Tadgh and Brennus were relishing their new roles as leaders of an increasingly large and polyglot army. They had already begun to boast of how they would deal with the Ninth when they met them in battle. Tiny and his leader had listened to their fantasies and kept silent for when they did voice an opinion the Brigante became both belligerent and violent. Although Decius was certain that Tiny could easily despatch any of the boastful warriors he did not want to risk an injury to the man who might save his life in the future. Privately they talked long into the night about how they would fight the Ninth. “General, the Ninth are fine warriors. They are well disciplined. They can withstand missiles for they go into testudo. When you attack they throw their javelins and then their pila and when you get in close you have no target to strike for they are armoured and their wicked blades can easily find holes, especially when their opponents don’t wear armour. The Brigante are talking out of their arses.”
“I have never seen them fight Tiny but what you say is confirmed by my father. Why when they fought the Iceni they destroyed an army of over eighty thousand warriors. I fear that we are too few and far too undisciplined.”
Tiny nodded. “We are growing but it is not enough and if they bring their ballistae and scorpions then all will be lost. If we had more deserters we might stand a chance for the men all know of the tactics of the legion and can copy them.” It was one of the longest speeches Decius had ever heard Tiny make and it made its content all the more telling.
“Listen Tiny we need to find some trustworthy men amongst our army. Not the rabble we had before but men who will fight when needed and be able to protect our gold effectively.”
Tiny’s eyes darted to the far side of the camp where the small wagon with their weapons and gold stood. “I have four such men who sleep with the wagon.”
“We need more and we need to be able to move and leave quickly if needs be.”
“It can be done.”
“And Tiny, not a word to the Queen.”
The next day they dropped down from the high moors to the relative shelter of the valley bottom and the temperature leapt making Decius feel almost warm. Ahead they could see the vale which lay close to Eboracum. They were less than two days from that rich plum which was just ripe for the picking. With just a cohort inside its walls it would soon fall. When Decius saw Nuada ride in the next day his spirits rose. He had missed the comforting bulk that was Centurion and Nuada’s arrival meant that his lieutenant was not far away. The Queen saw Nuada heading straight for Decius and she sent Tadgh to intercept him. His eyes narrowed in anger but Decius could not afford a confrontation at that moment. “Come on Tiny let us see what news Nuada has brought.”
Much to Tadgh’s annoyance Nuada waited until Decius and Tiny arrived before breaking his news. “Centurion is less than half a day away, “he pointed due north away from the road, “in that direction and he has a hundred horses.” He omitted the news of the scouts and his failure. Perhaps Centurion would have forgotten it by the time they met.
Decius’ eyes lit up. A hundred horses; it would give him his cavalry and enable him to slip away with his precious gold. Now that he was on the eastern side of the country an idea to take a boat re-emerged as a viable proposition. “Excellent news is it not your majesty? Now that we have horses we can range far further and eliminate these scouts who are dogging us.”
Tadgh snorted, “We have not seen them for the past two days. I think they have given up.”
“It makes no difference now for we are within half a day of the newly acquired horses and we are within a day’s ride of Eboracum,” he looked pointedly at the Queen, “if that is still your intention?”
“Eboracum is important but it is only part of a grander plan I have. It is important because the last time we came here we nearly captured it but failed because of Marcus’ Horse. Well we know that ala no long exist and we have left most of the Ninth behind us. Eboracum is a symbol of Rome’s power. We need to destroy it to give the people encouragement.”
Decius smiled inside. She had said people as though she cared for them which of course she didn’t. They were a means to an end; the end of Roman rule and the damned religion which ruled her life. However he could play act with the best of them. “Well tell us how do we destroy it?”
“The same way we destroyed Mamucium; by deception. You take the horses and pretend to be a new ala of cavalry. When they open the gates your men take them and we capture it.”
“Good plan but once again it is my men who take the risks while the blowhard Brigante come along and reap the rewards.” His insult was planned for he needed the Brigante to take the risks rather than his men.
Tadgh’s hand went to his sword as did Decius but the four huge Irishmen who flanked the Queen stepped between the two men; easy grins on their faces leaving the two men under no illusion as to what would be the outcome of a fight between the two of them. “Both of you, this is not a cockfight! I will use any of your Brigante or your deserters to achieve my ends. the Brigante will be with you pretending to be prisoners. It will assuage the fear of the garrison and put them at their ease. They will think that you are a successful General.”
Decius had to admit that it was a sound plan and stood a good chance of success. Tadgh would die at his hands but not until he knew that he could escape with his treasure. “Very well. Now let us ride to Centurion. Those horses need to be schooled as quickly as possible. Come along Tiny let us see these horses and their quality.” Trotting away Decius turned to Nuada. “When we reach Centurion I have a task for you.”
Nuada looked over at his leader intrigued by the statement. His failure to catch the scouts might be forgotten if he could ingratiate himself with Decius, perhaps he could even supplant Centurion as the number two? “Whatever you wish General.”
As they left Morwenna called over Brennus. “Send two men into the vicus at Eboracum. I want to know the strength of the force which awaits us. One man can stay in the vicus. If he could get into the fort and get some additional information then that might help us. Let us take a trick from the Roman spies and use our own.”
Brennus grinned. “I have two men who are perfect for it.”
When he disappeared to find his spies Morwenna called over Tadgh. “You are my General not that popinjay. Do not let him goad you again. When Aodh left you to guard me he did so because he trusted you. You let down his memory and my protection when you indulge these acts of bravado.”
Shamefaced Tadgh trudged away but he swore that he would watch Decius and, when the opportunity arose, he would have hi
s revenge.
*
It fell to Livius to discover that the army had left the road and changed direction. He quickly sent for the other two maniples and, when Drusus and Marius had arrived discussed their strategy. “We need to send a message to Morbium in case Prefect Fulvius is there and of course another message to the garrison at Eboracum.” He looked at his two decurions. “At least we don’t need to worry about Lindum now. Drusus, take a man and head to Morbium tell the Prefect of this change then rejoin us here; hopefully you will have information about Prefect Fulvius. Marius, take a man to Eboracum and stress to the Prefect that this woman has been here before and almost succeeded. When you have passed your message, on head back to rejoin us. I will keep your other trooper and try to discover what they intend.”
Marius looked over at Livius. “Tell me you aren’t going to try to get into the camp.” Livius was silent. “If Marcus, Julius or Gaius were here sir they would tell you that it would suicide to go in to the camp. They are looking for us and both Morwenna and Decius know you.”
“I know all that but at the moment we are just reacting to what they do. We need to anticipate. But I agree, at the moment it would be suicide but I still need the intelligence.”
Marius turned to Cassius, “Make sure he doesn’t go Cassius.” Cassius nodded, he would not let his friend go to his death.
*
When Decius found Centurion he was delighted with the mounts. “The Queen is coming. We can head in her direction slowly.” He gathered his inner circle together. “I fear that the Queen may have over reached herself and in that event I do not want to either end up on a cross or as a galley slave. “Nuada and Tiny, I want you to go back to the wagon. When the army moves off hang towards the rear of the column. Feign some damage and, when the army is out of sight head due east to the river. Nuada you and the guards wait with the gold. Tiny you return as though you have been scouting south towards Lindum. That way I will know where the wagons are when we steal a ship. If things go badly then Tiny will fetch you back into the fold once more. If things go well then we will join you Nuada, with a ship and we can sail away to safety.”
