I smiled at him. ‘To beat the enemy, Domitus, as always!’
‘It’s too early to be a smart arse, just answer the question.’
I turned to Malik. ‘You see, lord prince, how my subordinates disrespect me.’
‘Alas, Pacorus,’ replied Malik, winking at Domitus and shoving porridge into his mouth with his fingers, ‘there is no respect left in the world, I fear.’
He and Domitus were good friends and would lay down their lives for each other, while Byrd had become like a brother to Malik. Indeed, all of us gathered at the table were brothers, having shared hardships and shed blood over the years.
‘Guard!’ I shouted.
One of the legionaries standing sentry outside the tent appeared and saluted.
‘Go and find Marcus Sutonius and Surena and bring them here.’
He saluted and left. I turned to Domitus.
‘The problem with you, Domitus, is that you have no sense of humour in the early morning.’
‘And the problem with you,’ he shot back, ‘is that you talk too much. You should be more like Byrd, who says very little but what he does say is worth listening to. Isn’t that right, Byrd?’
As ever Byrd cut a dishevelled figure in his scruffy robes, with long straggly hair and unshaven face. But his eyes were alert and his mind quick.
‘Plenty of time to finish breakfast and beat enemy,’ he sniffed. ‘They in no hurry to leave their camp.’
Malik finished licking his fingers. ‘It’s true, we rode right up to the perimeter of their camp and saw very little activity.’
‘Good,’ I said. ‘It appears that they anticipate an easy victory.’
‘And they will have one unless Pacorus shares his battle plan with us,’ said Domitus.
The tent flaps opened and Marcus and Surena entered. I invited them both to sit at the table as I rose and waited for them to be seated. The Roman Marcus Sutonius was the commander of my siege engines. He, the hundred men under him and their machines had been captured and enlisted into my service when a Roman army had invaded Dura. At first they served with reluctance but then enthusiastically when they discovered that life at Dura was pleasant enough and infinitely better than serving in the Roman army.
I ordered more food to be brought from the kitchens, which Surena and Marcus accepted greedily. Sitting side by side they presented very different appearances. Surena was tall and powerfully built with broad shoulders and muscular arms, while Marcus, nearly twice his age, was shorter and carried some fat mainly around the stomach on his wiry frame. His short hair was thinning on top.
‘Very well,’ I said, ‘this is the plan. I intend to finish Mithridates and his army once and for all. Therefore our tactics today will be hammer and anvil.’
Orodes raised an eyebrow but said nothing while Domitus was nodding his head in agreement. Marcus was confused, as he did not understand what it meant. Domitus enlightened him.
‘What the king means Marcus, is that my two legions will act as an anvil and the army’s horsemen will be the hammer. In between the two will be the enemy, battered into fragments by a series of hammer blows.’
I continued. ‘The foot will deploy behind a screen of horse archers who will advance and goad the enemy into launching an attack. Once they do the horse archers will fall back through the ranks of the legionaries.’
‘What about your cataphracts, lord?’ asked Surena.
‘Pacorus was coming to them,’ said Orodes.
‘They are the hammer,’ replied Domitus.
‘Hammer?’ Marcus was still confused.
‘The cataphracts will be divided into two bodies,’ I said, ‘one deployed on the right and the other on the left. Each body will be positioned directly behind the two legions, so that when the enemy horsemen chasing our horse archers run into the locked shields of the Durans and Exiles, the heavy horsemen will advance forward to envelop the flanks and rear of the enemy.’
Marcus nodded in admiration. ‘A most ambitious plan, sir. And the enemy will be willing participants in their own slaughter?’
‘He has a point,’ said Domitus.
‘All we have to do is draw them in,’ I replied, ‘and when I dangle the bait in front of their noses they will fall into our laps easy enough.’
Orodes frowned. ‘Bait?’
I smiled at him. ‘Me, of course.’
Orodes looked most alarmed. ‘You?’
‘Of course. Domitus is always saying that everyone in the empire knows me on my white horse with a white crest in my helmet. Well then, it will be easy enough to lure the army of Mithridates into our trap if his soldiers see me riding in front of them. I will command the horse archers.’
Domitus had drawn his dagger and began toying with it. ‘The plan has merits.’
‘Prince Orodes will command the heavy horsemen deployed on the right, together with his own bodyguard.’
Orodes nodded solemnly. He would have seven hundred and fifty men under his command on the right, which left five hundred cataphracts on the left wing. I pointed at Surena.
‘And you, Surena, will command the cavalry on the left wing.’
Surena stopped eating his porridge, wiped his mouth on his sleeve and beamed at me.
‘Yes, lord, it will be an honour.’
Orodes looked at Domitus in alarm while Byrd and Malik seemed disinterested. It was Domitus who put into words Orodes’ concern.
‘That is a big responsibility for a junior officer.’
Surena shot my general a disdainful glance. Domitus respected Surena for his bravery and loyalty but thought him headstrong and reckless, and far too young to lead half a dragon of cataphracts. But I saw great promise in Surena.
‘It is true that Surena is young for such responsibility, but his shoulders are broad and I believe that he will rise to the task.’
Surena stood up and bowed his head to me. ‘I will not let you down, majesty.’
‘Just make sure you don’t. Now go and prepare your men.’
He beamed at me once more, bowed his head and then turned smartly and tripped over a chair leg to sprawl onto the floor. Blushing, he quickly jumped to his feet and raced from the tent. Domitus raised his eyes to the heavens.
‘I hope you know what you are doing,’ he said to me.
‘Have faith, Domitus. You know he is a brave young man and a good officer.’
Domitus turned his dagger in his hand and examined the edges of the blade. ‘I don’t doubt that, but don’t blame me if he tries to win the battle by himself and charges straight at Mithridates, leading half your heavy horse to their destruction.’
‘What of me, sir?’ enquired Marcus.
I walked over and laid a hand on his shoulder. ‘You, my friend, will stay and protect the camp. I will place all the squires under your command, just in case some of the opposition attempts to storm the camp while we are occupied on the battlefield.’
It was doubtful that the enemy would detach a part of their army to attack the camp, though as it was led by Mithridates I would not put any underhand stratagem past him.
‘I would join you with the archers, Pacorus,’ said Malik.
‘I would be glad of your company, my friend,’ I replied.
Byrd was free to do as he wanted. He could not use a bow and carried no weapons aside from a long knife tucked into his belt. In all the years that I had known him I had never seen him fight, though I was mightily glad that he was part of this army for his abilities as a scout. Daylight was spreading across the desert as we made our way outside to take command of our men. The sky was blue and cloudless and the air windless, though still surprisingly cool.
I walked with Orodes to his tent where he would don his scale armour. Already columns of legionaries were marching out of the camp to head east to face the enemy, and around us squires were assisting their masters into their scale armour and encasing their horses in their armour protection. I would not be wearing my scale armour today, my Roman cuirass and helmet sufficing to lead the horse archers. We embraced each other and I left him to organise his men.