“Triumphant,” Claudius replied, unable to suppress a smile.
Slaves dried him off and wrapped him in his robes as he continued to speak with the freedman, who was one of his closest advisors. “I w…wonder if I would have made my brother proud.”
“Undoubtedly, Caesar,” Narcissus asserted. Those two words meant much to Claudius, for Narcissus was not prone to false flattery and always spoke his mind to the emperor. “I have no doubt that the noble Germanicus is looking down upon you now from Elysium and feeling great pride in his younger brother.”
“He was the great soldier,” Claudius remembered. He always felt invigorated after a plunge in the baths, and for a short time his limp was barely noticeable as he walked down the long corridor towards his private study. “And y…yet he never gave me cause for jealousy or resentment.”
“Your brother loved you very much,” Narcissus replied earnestly, for it was true. Claudius and Germanicus had always shared a very close bond, one that he’d never had with any other members of his family. “I think he would acknowledge that your leadership style was understandably different than his, though no less important.”
“From the official reports, as well as my o…own observations, I daresay we found my brother’s best qualities in our General Vespasian. Your recommendation that he be given a legion command has proven to be some of your soundest advice to me.”
“My loyalties have always been to Rome and to you,” the freedman stated.
Claudius noted the emphasis on the empire before him, something he actually appreciated.
“Though relatively young, I knew he had unlimited potential,” Narcissus added. “It just had to be unleashed in the proper environment.”
“Conquering a province certainly proved that,” Claudius remarked. “From the way Plautius and Sabinus talk, you would think Vespasian defeated our enemies single-handedly.”
“In some ways he did,” Narcissus said. “He captured more than twenty enemy strongholds with minimal losses amongst his legionaries. I suggest we keep him close to us. His humble birth may have slowed his early advancement, yet he proved himself a master of warfare in Britannia. He is also extremely loyal. I believe great things await him.”
“Yes,” Claudius confirmed, “great things indeed.”
Adela marveled at the construction that was already underway in the new Roman city that her husband was now mayor and magistrate of. Though the roads were still little more than hard-packed dirt with drainage on either side, she knew that in time they would be paved over. The center of the town had already been covered with cobblestones, with more permanent structures in the Roman style springing up at random.
It had been almost a year since Cursor left with the invasion force, though with the preparations that had to be made, Adela scarcely saw him during the two years of buildup following his appointment as commander of the army’s cavalry corps. She had struggled immensely with her husband’s decision to return for one last campaign, even after he swore to never draw his weapon in anger again. That he had been compelled by the emperor to take the posting had helped Adela to forgive Cursor, though it did nothing to stop the bitter tears she shed on many a night.
Though she hated that he had been compelled to serve in battle once again, her feelings over time merged into a paradox of both sorrow and pride. She deeply admired her husband’s devotion to duty and extreme personal bravery. After the initial landings, most of the news that reached Rome concerned the legions, though occasionally skirmishes fought by the cavalry would also be noted. As long as they continued to win battles, and she never had to see her husband’s name on the casualty lists, that was enough for Adela.
Upon hearing that the emperor’s triumph was set for that spring, she had decided that it was time to join her husband and start their new life together. He had written to her, telling her about his appointment as magisterial mayor of the new township of Aquae Sulis. She had noted a change in the demeanor of his letters. Like Plautius, Adela noted a far more exuberant manner in which Cursor now spoke. While their household goods would take a couple months to arrive, she had booked passage as far as Juliobona1 in northern Gaul.
By chance, there happened to be a small shipping vessel bound for Aquae Sulis with a cargo full of salt, apparently to be used in the making of fish sauce. Since the only other way was to take a larger vessel to the main Roman settlements in the east and then risk a rather lengthy trip by land, Adela had elected to seek passage on the small ship. Though there was little to no room, and she was confined to sleeping amongst the salt casks, it mattered little to her. It took the vessel two days to round the southwest corner of Britannia, and then another day along the lengthy river that led to Aquae Sulis.
There was no port to be seen, only a handful of docks used by fishermen and the occasional merchant vessel. The climate was definitely cooler than what she was used to, and she wrapped her traveling cloak around her close as the ship dropped its small boarding ramp. Unsure where she was supposed to go, Adela stepped onto the dock, taking a moment to regain her balance before walking onto the grassy embankment with its dirt path that led into the settlement.
“Can I help you, ma’am?” The voice of the soldier startled her, but Adela was glad to see a Roman face. The man was in his plain red tunic, though his metal embossed belt and vine stick told her that he was a centurion.
“I’m looking for my husband, Tribune Cursor,” she said, causing the man to laugh.
“Of course, I know him well!” he said excitedly. “You must be Adela. The name’s Lucius Taurus, I’m one of your husband’s centurions. He sent me down to check on the salt shipment that just arrived. Come, I’ll take you to him.”
Adela let out a sigh of relief, glad that she had not been dropped in some foreign territory with no one who spoke Latin, much less knew who her husband was. Taurus’ name seemed familiar, probably from one of Cursor’s letters over the past three years.
They found him talking with a surveyor next to a large stone building that appeared to be about halfway complete. He still wore his military tunic, as he had not brought any civilian togas with him during the campaign. Cursor was reviewing with the surveyor where they intended to run the sewer lines through the town when he looked up and saw his wife. His face broke into a broad smile and forgot all else in the world. Without a word, he took his wife into his arms and kissed her deeply, paying no mind to the fact that she was disheveled from the ride across the channel and along the river over the past few days.
“I…I wasn’t expecting to see you!” he said.
“My place is with you,” Adela replied, running her fingers along the side of his bald head. They kissed again and Cursor excused himself to the surveyor, taking his wife to his private quarters within the building.
“My dear,” Adela said, taking her husband’s hand as they walked the streets of the growing town later that afternoon, “I have not seen you looking this happy and content in many years, if ever.”
“Perhaps the waters from the thermae springs do have healing properties after all,” Cursor said with a short laugh. He then let out an audible sigh, though his smile still remained. “I think I have finally found that which I sought all these years. I had to wade through the fires of hell, forced to break a sacred oath, and wield my sword once again. And yet, here I am, able to create instead of destroy. This is what I want; to bring civilization and a better life to very end of the empire. It doesn’t look like much now, but I hope to lay the foundations of a great city here, one that will rival even the imperial metropolises in Italia.”