Entry into the Capital (5)
Once we merged our forces with Marius's, we had assembled a grand army of twelve thousand. For troops gathered in such a short time, Marius's contingent was impressively large. Of course, most were slaves we'd handed spears and shields to, but the fact that he'd managed to pull together that many men spoke volumes about his capabilities.
From this massive host, we detached a thousand barbarians and sent them ahead toward the capital. Their mission was to make the rumors of a barbarian invasion feel all too real.
We placed Usifer in command of them.
Usifer was a barbarian, but a cunning one with a sharp mind. He knew full well that acting recklessly here would only bring trouble down on his own head.
After Usifer's cavalry departed, we followed at a leisurely pace a day behind, heading south toward the capital. If the rumors had taken hold, the central empire was in utter chaos—a hellscape of pandemonium.
Farmlands lay abandoned, bandits roamed rampant at every turn, and refugees crammed every decent-sized city until the walls were bursting at the seams.
I felt a bitter pang watching this chaos, but to take on the Praetorian Guard, there was no other way.
"It's been completely devastated."
Marius, riding beside me, remarked.
A single whisper of war approaching had shattered this peaceful world. Corrupt and indolent as it might have been, no one could truly hate the tranquility of those landscapes. And I'd been the one to break it—in the name of defending the empire.
"The name 'barbarian' must evoke an unknown terror here. The northern provinces had Heigirt to contend with, but this is a place barbarians have never even set foot in, isn't it?"
"Just as you say, Governor. The empire's heartlands have been too peaceful for too long. They've drawn a line between themselves and the frontier skirmishes, treating them like events from another world. That's why a mere rumor turned everything topsy-turvy."
"What do you think the Praetorians will do now?"
"The barbarian force is smaller than expected. Once that's known, they'll come out beyond the capital, as you predicted. Unless they've already killed the emperor and seized power outright, with the political strife still ongoing, they'll want to flex their muscles."
Of course. That's why I'd spread the rumors. Win or lose, I had to lure them out of the capital first to stand any chance.
With a million citizens in the capital and the Praetorians hunkered down there, we had no real options. We couldn't very well lay siege to the capital itself.
"It'd be ideal if they play right into our hands, but we should prepare for the worst. Marching south like this, I've been surprised by how deep the fear of barbarians runs. Even if they learn our numbers are small, the Praetorians might just dig in their heels."
"That's possible."
"What if we cut off the capital's supplies?"
I asked. It would earn the wrath of the citizens, but it would force the Praetorians out without question. Severing water to a city of a million was a death sentence.
"Impossible. The capital's underground reservoirs hold enough water to last three months."
"Three months' worth?"
I was taken aback. Most cities didn't even have underground cisterns, and those that did were small-scale.
The empire's heart truly defied imagination. Water stored to sustain a million people for three months. Astonishing.
"Yes. If it turns into that kind of siege, we'll be the ones who break first."
He wasn't wrong.
I realized once more that if the Praetorians decided to hunker down, we were truly out of moves.
'Can't lay siege either. Frustrating.'
I shook my head.
Our army advanced south at an average of ten kilometers a day. The barbarian cavalry ahead moved at more than twice our speed, so the gap between us had grown enormous.
Imperial citizens who spotted our army made a fuss, claiming barbarians had passed through recently and asking when we'd drive them off.
I assured them the barbarians would soon be repelled and the Praetorians' rebellion crushed.
Well, the barbarians were our fabrication, so it wasn't exactly a lie. The only snag was the Praetorians.
We moved slowly, but we were busy on other fronts too. We'd sent messengers to the escaped emperor and to the governors and generals across the heartlands, who must have been anxious about the situation.
We did everything we could to prevent new sparks from igniting.
As our slow march neared its end after several days, a messenger arrived from Usifer. A barbarian cavalryman dismounted and knelt before me.
"A letter for Your Excellency."
Praetorian Guard has marched out of the capital and set up camp?
Rikius handed me the letter. The contents, scrawled on rough parchment, were quite surprising.
"The Praetorians have left the capital and pitched camp? Even with our light cavalry numbers, it's unexpected they'd commit so readily."
I could hardly believe it. But war has a way of defying expectations.
For instance, if the officers who'd murdered the Praetorian commander and seized control were glory-hounds, it wasn't impossible.
'Or Usifer provoked them well.'
Barbarians had a habit of taunting each other before battle to psych themselves up. Our empire did it too against barbarians, but for them, it was second nature.
Especially for a chieftain like him.
Either way, it was good news for me.
I scanned the positions of both armies noted on the parchment and turned to Marius.
"The Praetorians have taken the bait. Unlike our worries, they're coming out as planned. But they don't seem willing to stray far from the capital."
"From their perspective, leaving the capital empty and venturing deep would feel risky. In that case, herding them toward the Dali bridge on the mid-Tere River could work."
"Dali on the Tere."
I pondered it briefly.
The Tere River was the lifeblood of the empire's central provinces, flowing through the capital. Broad and abundant, the imperial government had built bridges at key points. Dali held the only bridge in the midstream.
"If we can drive them there, the Praetorians will have to bunch up to cross that narrow bridge, disrupting their lines. Strike then, and we can annihilate them for sure."
"The challenge is getting them there."
I decided to mull over tactics.
In the past, the Praetorian legions had been the empire's elite. During the golden age of the Archons, whenever emperors led campaigns, they marched under the golden eagle, facing the empire's toughest battles time and again. Entire Praetorian commands had perished in single wars, legions wiped out.
That brutal experience had forged them strong. In the empire's golden age, no one dared mock the Praetorian name. Facing them meant death.
But as the empire declined, so did the Praetorians. Fewer imperial campaigns, border duties handed to the new Mobile Field Army. They saw less and less action.
While frontier legions cried out under barbarian incursions, the Praetorians lounged in peace, growing complacent.
Now, most imperial citizens and legionaries called them the "parade-ground legion"—a nickname for a force that strutted in fancy gear and armor around the capital, good for show but nothing else.
Some senators even dismissed them outright.
Still, they weren't to be underestimated. They maintained ten thousand in and around the capital—not the strongest, but the empire's largest single legion.
I never forgot that.
Underestimate them, and we'd pay dearly.
After discussing with Marius, we decided to march obliquely between the capital and the Praetorians, cutting off their retreat while exaggerating our numbers. That left them one choice: north, with us hounding their heels, or cross the Tere south.
The former meant constant pursuit; the latter, shake us off via the river and loop back to the capital.
We followed the plan, taking National Road 30 south toward the capital before veering southeast. Only then did the Praetorians notice our approach and react in alarm.
Mounted on my white charger, I eyed their banners in the distance.
"Praetorians, indeed—even from afar, they gleam like they're on parade. Should've equipped my boys like that."
I smacked my lips, but their panic lifted my spirits. They clearly hadn't imagined the emperor's counterstrike coming so swiftly.
Of course not. Assembling a force to overwhelm them would take Marius and me at least two months.
And with barbarians breaching the border, I couldn't abandon the frontier.
To them, this was an "impossible enemy" dropped right in their laps.
Seeing my good mood, Rikius asked,
"Your Excellency, if the Praetorians spot us here, won't that be a problem? If they bolt for Dali now, we might not catch them in time."
"Leave that to Usifer. If he holds the Dali bridge just long enough, they'll be snared. Besides, the Praetorians are heavy infantry—they're slow; we won't need much time."
"Ah."
Rikius slapped his forehead, as if he'd forgotten Usifer. Victory in battle meant using every asset. Wasting mobile barbarian cavalry on mere luring was foolish.
As we spoke, an officer bearing a white flag galloped from the Praetorian lines. Curious about our identity, no doubt.
I waved off soldiers nocking arrows and let the enemy officer approach.
"I am Battalion Commander Parnetua of the Praetorian Guard. A great host has appeared near the capital without warning; we've come to learn your identity. Are you from the Atillca Legion, by chance?"
Atillca Legion.
Makes sense—they'd assume the only force that could appear behind them was that one. Marius's ragtag bunch lacked numbers, and Belgorod was tied up on the border.
But that was just their wishful thinking.
I laughed at his words. Leaping from my horse, my fluttering cloak revealed the bold red eagle emblazoned on it. The officer's face hardened.
"I am Governor Ain of Belgorod. And the gentleman behind me is Consul Marius. We've come to crush you. Atillca Legion? Yes, they're here too—as part of the suppression force, not your friends."
The officer paled at my words.
"But we heard barbarians crossed the border. How are you here, Governor?"
"That was a rumor I spread. The barbarians you saw are auxiliaries I brought.
Right now, we have the consul Marius, the Atillca Legion, and detachments from four frontier legions. You've crossed a line you shouldn't have."
I bluffed them hard. By my account, our army neared twenty thousand. Against Praetorians with little but numbers, that spelled certain defeat.
"Might Your Excellency be spinning tales? We are the Praetorian Legion. Even if you have twenty thousand, we won't yield easily."
"Ah, yes. You'll pit your ten thousand pampered rears—fattened in the rear echelons—against twenty thousand frontier-hardened troops who clash with barbarians daily.
Ha! Even a child wouldn't buy that as a joke. If you've got the guts, try it. We'll gladly meet you in battle."
I spread my arms wide, as if daring them.
"Governor, one question."
"Speak."
"Emperor Baccus lacks the qualifications to rule the empire. Why side with him?
If you join us, we'd gladly offer you the throne. Don't you want to be emperor?"
Parnetua asked.
I clasped my hands behind my back at his words.
"Emperor. The throne—every man dreams of it once."
He nodded.
"But if claiming it means ruining the empire, it's worth less than a pearl necklace on a pig. This empire that my brothers and I have defended with blood and lives. Sell it for a laurel crown? Hahahaha!"
I burst into wild laughter.
Parnetua bit his lip.
"I want the empire we've bled for to endure. To stand on this land a thousand years from now, into new millennia. So I reject your filthy offer of a throne.
Don't mistake our eagles for power-mad monsters like you. That's all I have to say. Now get lost. I'm not generous to the empire's enemies."
Parnetua wheeled his horse and rode off.
As the Praetorian battalion commander vanished, Consul Marius approached and asked,
"Fine speech. Didn't the throne tempt you?"
"If I'd chased advancement that hard, my head would've rolled to barbarians long ago."
Marius roared with laughter at my reply.
(To be continued)