He smiled a horrible smile.
“And then one day the Belgae, who will no longer have any reason to fear us, will take their cue from the Gauls long ago, and will cross the border and sack Italia.”
He waited for any objection from the three in front of him, but no one spoke.
“No. We must prove ourselves now. We must claim our stake in Gaul. However, I would prefer to even the odds.”
His finger moved down the map toward the more southerly Belgae lands.
“Here, in their nearest territory, is a Belgic tribe called the Remi. My scouts tell me that, while the Remi are far from the strongest of the Belgae, they are actually open to Roman negotiations, and if the Remi are, then it is possible that other tribes may follow suit. Basically I cannot formulate a full plan until after we have met with the Remi.”
The general, his face showing some signs of stress, slapped the area of the Belgae on the map with the flat of his palm.
“And herein lies my problem. I need to plan. I don’t like being unprepared for eventualities, but until I have seen for myself I have to rely on my gut feelings and the usual couple of tricks I have up my sleeve.”
Balbus shrugged.
“Then why not delay, Caesar? Send ambassadors to the Remi and stay here until you’re fully apprised of the situation? The Belgae won’t get any bigger in the meantime.”
The general shook his head.
“True: the Belgae will not increase, but there are two other potential problems. Given extra time it’s quite possible that more and more Germans will cross the Rhine and sign up to the Belgic cause. Even if not, it is possible they will decide they are strong enough, march over or through the Remi and come after us. That way we lose a potential ally, the incentive, and any hope of choosing the ground when we do meet.”
He sighed.
“No, we have to go now. Strike, as the smith says, while the iron is hot.”
Balventius nodded professionally and the Fronto cleared his throat.
“I was given to believe, Caesar, that you were waiting on other things yet too? Crassus for one thing.”
A dark look crossed the general’s face.
“With Crassus, what will be, will be. I had expected to have heard from him by now. It is entirely possible that the Belgae already have allies in the west; that they have successfully stirred up trouble against us there and that Crassus is already hanging from a tree with his eyes pecked out by the crows.”
He gave Fronto a very searching look.
“A possibility, I might add, about which I have somewhat mixed feelings…”
The legate had the grace to look down and avoid his gaze.
“But I have put a safeguard in place in case of Crassus’ failure and demise.”
He straightened and squared his shoulders.
“I cannot tarry for news of Crassus.”
Fronto narrowed his eyes.
“What safeguard?”
The general sighed again.
“Fronto, you’re one of my senior staff, but you really don’t need to know everything!”
Balventius cleared his throat.
“Caesar?”
“Yes?”
“Why am I present, sir? I’m not involved at a command level.”
The general returned to his seat and sank gratefully into it.
“You, however, are the man my senior staff saw fit to land with the task of arresting and questioning Paetus. And in that role, I have further use of you.”
Balventius merely sat straight and raised his eyebrow.
“My courier returned from Rome this morning.”
Fronto leaned forward.
“Slip of the tongue, Caesar? Courier‘s’, surely? You sent a half dozen riders.”
The general flashed an irritated look at the legate.
“I know what I mean, Fronto. Shut up.”
Turning back to Balventius, he pointed at him.
“Paetus’ family are now under my protection, though I cannot be seen to coddle them or Paetus becomes useless as a source of misinformation. Do you remember my niece Atia and her husband, Octavius?”
Fronto nodded.
“I met them in Rome at a party a few years ago. Nice, I remember.”
“Octavius passed on to the Elysian Fields a couple of years ago but, with the way things are in Rome, Atia maintained his bodyguards to protect her and the children. They number quite a few and Octavius chose good men. They have Paetus’ family under observation. The minute anything turns against them, they will be whisked away to the safety of Atia’s villa.”
He smiled.
“So. Balventius, I need you to start paving the way with Paetus. I want him thoroughly with us. I want him to be ready to sell his father to protect his wife if needed.”
He ignored the disapproving looks Fronto was throwing at him.
“And you, Fronto? I want you to start thinking of how we can use this. Bear in mind that the stronger I become and the weaker my enemies, the better position I am in to protect and advance your sister and yourself. Think hard.”
He stood again, scraping the feet of the chair across the floor.
“I think that’s it, gentlemen. Get yourself an hour’s rest or food. Fronto? Balbus? We reconvene with the rest of the officers in an hour. Time to start preparing. We march on the Belgae tomorrow.”
Chapter 4
(Durocorteron, in the lands of the Remi)
“ Curia: the meeting place of the senate in the forum of Rome.”
“ Pilum: the army’s standard javelin, with a wooden stock and a long, heavy, lead point (plural ‘pila’).”
Caesar’s sudden decision to move had caused a stir among the legions. They had been encamped around Vesontio for months and had become settled in their ways. Though everyone knew they would be moving off on campaign soon, the legions’ officers had been assuming they would wait for word of Crassus, and then suddenly Caesar had given the entire army one night’s notice. Every man had been short on sleep when they were called to attention by the cornicens and subsequently packed their gear, stowed their baggage in the wagons, secured the artillery for transport and systematically took down the defences, demolishing the palisades and infilling the ditch as was the tradition with a departing army.
Then had begun the interminable journey. In actual fact, the army had only been on the road for two weeks, but it felt like so much longer. A legion could travel fast, but out here with only native dirt tracks instead of good Roman paving, in unknown territory that had to be scouted in advance of the column, and with the ancillary wagons, staff, artillery and other clutter of seven legions and the command section, travel was painfully slow; sometimes as little as ten miles in a day.
But then, that was the price you paid for having your entire support system with you. This was no small punitive expedition, but a show of Roman power with a fully supported army. The merchants and tavern keepers in Vesontio had been sad to see such a rich source of revenue leaving their land, though they would live fat and wealthy for the next year at least; Caesar had ordered the quartermasters to stock up for the campaign and, with a great deal of foresight, Cita had purchased every last spare grain of corn available in a twenty mile radius around Vesontio. Back in that city, men would be rubbing their hands with glee while stacking their denarii.