‘Back into the trees,’ I said, ‘same tactics as before.’
Except this was not the same as before. These Romans were obviously veterans, because they seamlessly advanced into the forest and then deployed into their centuries, shields locked to the front, overhead and sides.
They moved slowly to maintain their formations and our arrows could make no impression on them. Eventually I gave the order for those on foot to get back to camp as quickly as possible while those of us on horseback maintained a steady fire against the Romans. We did manage to inflict some losses on the Romans when some of them fell into the traps that we had dug, men screaming as they were impaled on stakes in the pits. Their testudo formations were momentarily broken, allowing us to shoot at exposed bodies, but then the Romans would lock shields once more and continue to advance. As they were doing so the rest of the men were evacuating the camp via the other side. Thus ended our fight with the garrison of Vanadzor.
We lost fifty men killed in the action and a further forty wounded, and had shot a great many arrows. We carried on moving east through the forest until we came to a vast expanse of grassland. It was now nearly dusk, but we rode across the plain for another two hours until it was dark and then made camp. We kept the horses saddled in case we had to make a quick escape, for I did not know if there were other Roman garrisons in the area. Fortunately we were not pursued, and so the next day we moved further east once more and pitched a new camp in another great forest that bordered Lake Urmia.
We stayed in Gordyene for six months, operating around Vanadzor and Lake Urmia, launching raids against the Romans and fending off the parties of horsemen they sent against us. After a while we split into three groups, Orodes leading one, Atrax the other and myself the third, riding far and wide to attack isolated Roman outposts and sometimes putting their small garrisons to the sword, at other times being beaten off or unable to storm the wooden towers that had sprung up all over Gordyene. We ambushed supply columns, taking any food the wagons carried. We killed the guards and drivers and torched the wagons, but when the snows came the tracks became impassable and there was no traffic on the roads. As it grew colder we were forced to build huts in the forest to house men and horses and rarely ventured out. We became unshaven, lice infested and filthy. My helmet lost its feathers and rusted, our boots were holed, but we kept our bows and arrows dry and our swords clean and sharp. During the winter we forgot about the Romans and concentrated on keeping our horses and ourselves alive. At the turn of the year Byrd and Malik actually travelled to a small town and purchased fodder from a corrupt Roman official, no questions asked.
When spring came the Romans once again sent out cavalry patrols to hunt us down, so we moved further east out of Gordyene and into northern Atropaiene. The Romans followed us. We were down to six hundred men by this time and were woefully short of arrows. We had eaten all of our mules and many of the men had sores on their faces and bodies due to the cold that we had endured during the winter. Occasionally we laid an ambush for our pursuers, killing a score or more before riding away. But such minor victories only reduced our numbers and ammunition still further. In truth we had become nothing but a group of bandits trying to stay one step ahead of our hunters. My plan to wear down the Romans had turned out to be a flight of fancy — it was we who were being ground down. As we moved further east we reached the shores of the great Caspian Sea, part of the northern frontier of the Parthian Empire. We continued our retreat, striking southeast but still pursued by the Romans.
To save the horses’ strength we were forced to spend days walking them instead of riding, the lack of good fodder having weakened them considerably. Most of them, including Remus, had become skin and bone. Only the horse of Byrd remained unchanged as it had always been a scrawny, thin beast. One day, as we were resting in a canyon by a shallow stream under a warm sun, Byrd and Malik rode into camp. Many of the men had stripped off and were washing or lying in the cool water, their first soak in weeks.
Byrd was agitated. ‘Romani cavalry very close.’ He pointed to the direction from where they had ridden.
‘How many?’ I asked.
‘I estimate two thousand,’ said Malik, now sporting a thick black beard, his robes torn and holed.
‘How long before they get here?’
Byrd shrugged. ‘An hour, perhaps less.’
I called everyone together — five hundred tired men and their equally tired horses. Some were lame and could not carry a man anyway, so I knew that this was the end. They all gathered round me in a big semi-circle; Orodes and Atrax were beside me. The prince was no longer the fired-up youth of last year; rather, he had become a more sober individual, thoughtful though still brave and loyal. I told them what Byrd and Malik had told me. A show of hands revealed that fifty of them had lame horses, which meant that they would not be able to ride to safety, and I also knew that none of us would abandon our comrades.
‘We have failed to stay beyond their reach,’ I said, ‘so the only course of action is to stand and fight them here.’
‘Well,’ said Orodes, ‘I for one am tired of running.’
There were murmurs of agreement.
Atrax smiled at me. ‘We’ve beaten them before.’
‘So we have,’ I replied.
We had no armour, many had lost their helmets and we averaged three arrows per man. Nevertheless, we saddled our horses and formed up into three groups, each one numbering a hundred and fifty and led by myself, Orodes and Atrax respectively. The remaining men and their lame horses were positioned to the rear. All our remaining arrows had been distributed among those who were in the front ranks. Our tactics were simple — we would charge the enemy and kill as many as we could before going to work with our swords. And after that… I smiled to myself. There would be no ‘after that’. I look around. So this is the barren place where I would breath my last. I reached inside my vest and touched the lock of Gallia’s hair. Together for all eternity.
I rode over to Atrax. ‘My apologies, lord prince.’
‘Apologies?’
‘I promised your wife that I would keep you safe. I have failed in that promise.’
‘Much as I love my wife, I would not be anywhere else at this moment. It has been an honour serving with you, Pacorus.’
Honour. How much blood had been spilt in name of that word? It had seemed so simple when I returned from Italy. I had always carped on to Spartacus and anyone else who would listen in his army that the only life worth living was an honourable one. He had smiled wryly and I thought that he was mocking me, but I now knew that he was much wiser than me and realised that in their hearts most men are corrupt and greedy. They talk of honour when it suits them and then ignore it when it is an inconvenience. But then, it was easy for me when I was riding with Spartacus. I had no kingdom to protect and I did not have to deal with other kings, whose ideas concerning how to conduct diplomacy were very different from mine. I had tried to be true to my beliefs and myself. At the end, that is all that matters.
The sound of horn blasts further down the canyon brought me back to reality. The Roman cavalry was deploying into line. I could see a forest of spear points and a great line of green shields that spanned the canyon. They were in no hurry to charge us. There was no need; we were few and they were many. They would take their time. Though we matched their line in length we could only muster a paltry three ranks.
I turned to Vagharsh. ‘Unfurl the standard, Vagharsh. Let them see it.’
He slipped off the waxed sleeve that protected the banner and then held it proudly on his right side. There was a slight breeze that ruffled the material but was not enough to display it fully. Orodes likewise commanded that the standard of Susa be unfurled. Ahead of us the Roman horsemen at last began to move forward. They were around half a mile distant. I looked around. Beside me Surena was placing an arrow in his bowstring, while Orodes was cutting the air with his sword and Atrax was sharing a joke with his men. I could see why his people liked him. He had an amiable manner and quiet courage that never faltered no matter how dire the circumstances. These qualities did not falter now.