Gallia galloped up with Praxima beside her. The cheekguards on their helmets were both fastened shut. She stopped in front of me and cupped my cheek with her hand.
‘Did you think I would sit idly by while my husband and my people fought for their homeland?’
I struggled to hold back my tears. It was so good to see her.
‘Where is Claudia, my love?’
‘Safe in the Citadel protected by Haytham’s men.’
‘Haytham?’
‘I will tell you later. Where is that toad Furius?’
His name refocused my attention back on the battle. I ordered the two cohorts from the garrison to attack the Roman shield wall that had been under arrow fire for some time now. As the men neared the enemy they began banging their javelins on the inside of their shields and shouted ‘Dura, Dura’ as they dressed their lines. I asked Orodes, who had taken Gallia’s hand and kissed it, much to her amusement, to deploy his men on the right of the garrison while my own cataphracts massed on the left.
Another blast of trumpets, this time from the Roman ranks, and suddenly the enemy legion to our left, the one we had assaulted, began moving towards their centre. It was still being peppered with arrows, but its men were now moving crab-like towards the river. Then there was another blast of trumpets from within its ranks, followed by shouts and screams. Its commander, realising that if he stayed where he was the result would be the destruction of his men, had decided to join the legion in the centre, the same legion that was being assaulted by Domitus. With horror I also realised that as he did so his men would in turn hit Domitus in the flank. The discipline of the Romans was magnificent as they shuffled towards their centre, all the time their rear, front and left flank under arrow fire.
I halted my horsemen and the two cohorts from the garrison. Domitus would not be able to break their centre now, not with another legion hitting his flank while his men battled the one in front of them.
I turned to Orodes. ‘We must aid Domitus.’
I rode over to Gallia. ‘You and your women will come with me.’
‘We will not charge them?’
‘Have patience, there is still time to dip your arrowheads in blood.’
I galloped back to Orodes with Gallia and the Amazons following. I left orders for the lords to continue their harassing fire, and then I took the heavy horsemen and female horse archers back around the Roman left flank to find Domitus and his legion. Dust was everywhere. It got in our eyes and down our throats, while the sun beat down mercilessly on our backs. Sweat stung my eyes and my limbs ached but I knew there was still much fighting left to do this day.
We had to take a circuitous route to Dura’s legion, as the lords and their men hovered around the Romans like flies on a dead carcass. They would have run out of arrows long before had it not have been for the camels that were ridden from camp by squires, each one laden with spare quivers, from which the horse archers could replenish their ammunition.
I found Domitus standing with the legion’s colour party grouped around the griffin, just behind the front line. He was having his right arm bandaged by Alcaeus. He looked pale and exhausted as he took a swig from a water bottle and raised his arm in acknowledgement. I halted Remus in front of him and glanced around. The corpses of Roman dead and some Durans lay on the ground.
‘We nearly broke them,’ he said, ‘but then the ones you were supposed to keep occupied hit us on our right flank, so I pulled the boys back. The enemy is shifting left, towards the river. What’s happening?’
‘We scattered their horsemen easily enough and then mauled the legion next to them, and I thought we had them. We are behind them and I was about to launch an assault on their centre when they started moving.’
As we spoke I could see the Romans slowly moving towards the river, still retaining their ranks and discipline, but as they did so they made no attempt to attack our own foot. Alcaeus finished bandaging Domitus’ arm.
‘Is it serious?’ I asked.
‘No,’ he seemed more annoyed than hurt.
‘I have other wounded to tend to,’ remarked Alcaeus, who then sprinted away to where he was needed.
Nergal rode up.
‘The men of Pontus have taken heavy casualties, Pacorus. We have been assisting them but the Romans have pushed them back.’
‘How far?’
‘Not far, two, three hundred paces perhaps, but it is unlikely that they will be able to launch another attack.’
If the Romans next to the river advanced and then swung left, they would hit Domitus in his left flank. I would have to take my horsemen to reinforce our left wing, which was now threatened with collapse.
‘Are the Romans still advancing?’ I asked.
Nergal shook his head. ‘No. They pushed back the men of Pontus, advanced a short distance and then stopped. Most odd.’
‘They’re saving their eagles,’ said Domitus.
‘What?’
‘They are saving their eagles.’
‘You are mistaken,’ I said. ‘There is no way across the river at this point.’
Domitus thought for a second. ‘Any boats?’
‘Of course not.’
He looked up at me. ‘You sure about that?’
I was wrong. As the Romans redeployed what was left of their forces to form a hollow square with one side open at the riverbank, small boats powered by oarsmen were ferrying the prized eagles to safety upriver. We had been outwitted, but there were not enough boats to evacuate their entire army. And as a continuous arrow fire was maintained against the three sides of the Roman square, I gathered the lords and officers of the army to decide our next course of action. The ground was littered with dead and dying horses and men, while our wounded were being ferried back to camp to be treated. It was then that I saw Surena at the head of a score of horsemen charging the enemy. He galloped up to the Roman front rank, shooting arrows as he did so, then wheeled sharply away as those following him took turns to shoot their bows. He rode well, but I would have words with him afterwards about disobeying my orders.
As we sat on our horses in a large circle the lords were all for finishing the Romans quickly.
‘Slaughter them all and then we can go home.’
‘Push them into the river and let them drown,’ said another.
Orodes’ blood was still up. ‘We can break them, Pacorus. They have been fighting for hours. One charge at one point with all our heavy horse and we surely break them.’ The others cheered him and he beamed in triumph.
I held up my hand. ‘I think I will ask them politely if they will lay down their arms.’
There was silence, then spontaneous laughter erupted, indicating that they all thought I was mad. Orodes looked very disappointed.
‘You do know who leads them,’ said Gallia.
‘That is why I think my idea will work.’
I gave orders for all arrow fire to cease as the lords and Nergal pulled back their men out of range of the Romans’ slingers and archers. We now formed a huge semi-circle around the Roman square, the men of Pontus next to the river, the Duran Legion on their right, now reinforced by the garrison, Nergal and his men next to them, and the lords and their horse archers deployed next in line extending all the way to the riverbank. An eerie silence descended over the battlefield. I sat on Remus next to Gallia, Orodes on my right. Malik and Byrd came through the ranks behind me.
‘Romani have taken their standards away on the river. A dozen boats,’ said Byrd.
‘They are five miles away now, Pacorus, maybe more,’ said Malik. ‘You want us to catch them?’
‘No, let them go. Our fight is here.’
I nudged Remus forward and walked him into the space between Parthians and Romans. I took off my helmet as I did so and halted about fifty paces from the line of locked Roman shields.