The Eagles Conquest

At once the fears Vespasian harboured about his wife's co

'This trader has been rather busy, sir,' Hosidius Geta said quietly. 'Meaning?'

'Meaning that he must be ru

'Do you have any objection to speaking your mind clearly?'

'None, sir.'

'Then please do so.'

'I think we're looking at something a little more sinister than some chancer hoping to turn a quick profit. The quantity of arms the Ninth has come across so far is too large. Whoever is backing this operation has access to money, some senior people in the arms factories, and a small fleet of trading vessels.'

'The Liberators emerging from the shadows again, no doubt,' Vitellius suggested with a mocking smile.

Geta turned on his stool towards him. 'You have a better explanation, Tribune?'

'Not me, sir. Just repeating a rumour that's doing the rounds.'

'Then kindly confine your remarks to ones that assist the deliberations of your betters. The rest you can save to impress the junior tribunes.' A ripple of laughter swept through the senior officers, and Vitellius' face flushed with bitter humiliation. 'As you wish, sir.'

Geta nodded with satisfaction, and turned back to the general. 'Sir, we need to inform the palace at once. Whoever is responsible for supplying the Britons with our equipment will run for cover as soon as word gets out about what we've discovered.'

'A despatch is already on its way to Narcissus,' Plautius replied smugly.

It occurred to Vespasian that the general wanted all those present to believe that he had already thought well ahead of his most seasoned commander. A message might well be en route to the chief secretary, but he doubted if it mentioned a word of Geta's conclusions. That message would hurriedly follow in the wake of the first, the moment the meeting closed. The speed with which Plautius moved on to the next item for discussion merely strengthened his suspicion.

At length Plautius pushed back his chair and ended the briefing. The legates and senior staff officers rose from their seats and filed outside to where their cavalry escorts waited to see them back to their legions. As Vespasian went to make his farewell to his brother, Plautius called him over.

'A quick word, if you'll excuse us, Sabinus?' 'Of course, sir.'

When they were alone, Plautius smiled. 'Some good news for you, Vespasian. You will have heard the Emperor is bringing a sizeable entourage with him.'

'Besides the elephants'?'

The general chuckled politely. 'Don't mind them. They're strictly for show and won't be allowed within a mile of the battle line, if I have anything to do with it. All generals have to make a show of obeying orders in public; in private we try to do what we must in order to achieve victory. Generals must be seen to obey emperors, whatever their relative military merits may be. Wouldn't you agree?'

Vespasian felt the blood drain from his face as fear and anger spilled over his self-control. 'Is this another loyalty test, sir?'

'Not in this instance, but you're wise to be cautious. No, I was merely trying to reassure you that your commanding general is not quite the fool you seem to think he is.'

'Sir!' Vespasian protested. 'I never meant to-'

'Peace, Legate.' Plautius raised his hands. 'I know what you and the others must be thinking. In your place I would feel the same. But I am the Emperor's man, charged with doing his bidding. Should I fail to obey his orders I'll be damned as insubordinate, or worse. If I fail to beat the enemy I'm also damned, but at least I'll have the defence that I was only obeying orders.' Plautius paused. 'You must think me contemptibly weak. Maybe. But one day, if your star continues to rise, you will find yourself in my position, with a talented and impatient legate anxious to execute the necessary military strategy without once considering the political agenda from which it emanates. I hope you remember my words then.'

Vespasian made no reply, just stared coldly at the general, ashamed of his inability to confront the man's patronising comments. Homilies delivered by senior officers could only be listened to in frustrated silence. 'Now then,' Plautius continued, 'the good news I promised you. Your wife and child will be travelling with the Emperor.'

'Flavia will be in his entourage? But why?'

'Don't feel overly delighted at the honour. It's a large party, well over a hundred, according to Narcissus' dispatch. I imagine Claudius just wanted to be surrounded by colourful types to keep him entertained while he's away from Rome. Whatever the reason, you'll get the chance to see her again. Quite a looker, as I recall.'

The cheap comment soured Vespasian even further. He nodded, without any attempt to convey manly pride in the possession of a wife of such striking appearance. What was between them went far deeper than any superficial attraction. But that was personal, and he would break the confidence of such an intimacy with no man. The thrilling prospect that Flavia would soon be travelling towards him was quickly submerged by anxiety about her inclusion in the Emperor's entourage. People were requested to attend the Emperor on his travels for one of two reasons. Either they were great entertainers and flatterers, or they were people who posed a sufficient threat to the Emperor that he dare not leave them out of his sight.

In view of her recent plotting, Flavia could be in the greatest possible danger – if she was under suspicion. Within the pageantry of the imperial court's travelling party, she would be secretly watched. The faintest glimmer of treason would result in her falling into the sinister claws of Narcissus' interrogators.

'Will that be all, sir?'

'Yes, that's all. Make sure you and your men make the most of the time while we wait for Claudius to arrive.'

The Eagles Conquest

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Once the fortifications were completed, three of the other legions were ferried across the Tamesis and moved into their allocated areas. The auxiliaries and the Twentieth legion remained behind to guard the army's draught animals which grazed over an enormous region on every available strip of pasture land. A string of small forts stretched out along the lines of communication all the way back to Rutupiae and occasional convoys of supplies trundled up to the front, returning empty apart from those bearing invalids destined for an early discharge and subsequent dependence on the corn dole in Rome. Most of the supplies were now being carried along the coast and thence upriver by the transports of the invasion fleet.

A huge supply depot had been established in the legions' encampment, and every day more rations, weapons and spare equipment were unloaded, carefully recorded by the quartermasters, and deposited within the meticulously marked-out grid laid down by the engineers. When the army next took to the field, it would be as well-provisioned and pla

The legionaries rested while they waited for the Emperor and his coterie to arrive, although there were still many duties to perform. The fort's walls had to be ma