2017/8b.plaintext

   1 YEARNING FOR RESPITE THE ROMANS SUFFERED AS DAYS TURNED INTO WEEKS AND WEEKS INTO MONTHS, WITH CALGACUS AND THE CALEDONII PERFECTLY CONTENT TO LAY SIEGE IN THEIR OWN LAND. OUR KNOWLEDGE OF THIS DREADFUL PERIOD COMES FROM THE FOLLOWING ACCOUNT BY MARCUS FIDELIUS CATO.“ UNDER SIEGE FOR NINE LONG MONTHS, TRAPPED BY WALLS WE BUILT TO DEFEND OURSELVES. HERDED AND PENNED LIKE SHEEP WITHIN OUR REFUGE, THE FORT AT CARRIDEN. AGAINST US IS ARRAYED THE MIGHT OF THE CALEDONIAN ARMY, AND OUR NEMESIS CALGACUS IS GRINNING WHILE HE WATCHES US SQUIRM IN THIS HELL, BETRAYED BY OUR OWN LEADER SALUSTIUS. VOLUNTEERS ALL, SO MANY GOOD AND BRAVE ROMANS HAVE LOST THEIR LIVES, AND THE MORALE OF THE MEN HERE AT CARRIDEN IS WORSENING BY THE DAY. EXHAUSTED AND STARVING THE MEN CATCH WHAT THEY CAN TO EAT AROUND THE FORT, MOSTLY RATS, SOME CATS, ALTHOUGH THEY TOO ARE SKIN AND BONES. BRAVE BUT DESPERATE, SOME SPEAK PRIVATELY OF A MUTINY TO OVERTHROW SALUSTIUS, AND I AM TEMPTED TO AGREE WITH THEM. EVEN SO, FOR ALL HIS FAULTS, SALUSTIUS IS STILL A ROMAN AND I AM UNDER HIS COMMAND. EXHAUSTED THOUGH I AM, BEING A ROMAN STILL MEANS SOMETHING TO ME, EVEN SO FAR AWAY FROM LATIUM AND ITS GLORIOUS SUN. NEVERTHELESS, I FEAR THAT SOON THE MEN WILL TURN TO DARKER AND MORE SAVAGE METHODS TO FEED THEMSELVES AND IF NO PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE, I WILL SOON HAVE TO RECONSIDER WHAT I MUST DO TO GET AS MANY GOOD ROMANS SAFELY HOME AS POSSIBLE.” BIDING HIS TIME CALGACUS WAITED AND WATCHED UNTIL HE JUDGED THAT THE ROMANS WERE SUFFICIENTLY WEAKENED, THEN SENT A MESSENGER TO SALUSTIUS OFFERING PEACE IN EXCHANGE FOR THE LANDS OF CALEDONIA. ENVOYS PROMISED SAFE PASSAGE, ALLOWING SALUSTIUS TO RETURN TO ROME IF HE AGREED TO LEAVE CALEDONIA AND NEVER RETURN. THE CALEDONII HAD TWO CONDITIONS. ROME MUST ABANDON THE REMAINING SOLDIERS OF THE IXTH LEGION, LEAVING THEM AS HOSTAGES; AND THE CODEX MUST REMAIN AT CARRIDEN. ARRIVING IN ROME WITHOUT THE CODEX WOULD CONDEMN SALUSTIUS TO CERTAIN DEATH, AND HE COULD NEVER AGREE TO SUCH TERMS, BUT HE STILL POSSESSED THE MONS GRAUPIUS FORGERY AND I SUSPECT HE HOPED TO TRADE THAT AND THE REMAINING LEGIONNAIRES OF THE IXTH FOR HIS OWN FREEDOM. YEARNING ONLY FOR HIS OWN SAFETY, SALUSTIUS RISKED UNDERESTIMATING HIS FOE, BUT IN DOING SO HE ALSO UNDERESTIMATED THE LOYAL AND UPRIGHT MARCUS FIDELIUS CATO WHO COULD NEVER BETRAY THE SOLDIERS UNDER HIS COMMAND. EXPOSING THIS FATAL LACK OF JUDGEMENT, SALUSTIUS CONDEMNED HIMSELF IN HIS OWN WORDS. “DO I KNOW THE MIND OF A SOLDIER LIKE CATO? BY THE GODS I DO. YEARS OF CAMPAIGNING HAVE HARDENED HIM AND HE HAS NOT THE SUBTLETY TO HARBOUR DARK AND CUNNING THOUGHTS. MENTAL AGILITY IS NOT THE MARK OF A MAN LIKE CATO AND HISTORY WILL FORGET HIM.” IN TRUTH THE IXTH LEGION HAD SUFFERED SEVERELY FROM THE LIGATURE THAT WAS SLOWLY DRAWN TIGHT AROUND THEM BY CALGACUS AND HIS MEN. DYSENTERY AND HUNGER RAVAGED THE NOBLE ROMANS WHO WERE REDUCED TO EMACIATED GHOSTS, CHOKING ON THE BITTER BILE OF THE ARROGANCE AND RAPACIOUS CRUELTY OF THEIR COMMANDER SALUSTIUS. AS SALUSTIUS SCENTED THE RANK ODOUR OF MUTINY BEGINNING TO FILL THE AIR HE PUNISHED THE MEN WITH DECIMATION. SO, MOVED TO TEARS BY PITY, THEIR COMMANDER MARCUS FIDELIUS CATO WAS FINALLY PERSUADED TO TREAT SECRETLY WITH CALGACUS FOR THE SAKE OF HIS MEN. THUS IT WAS THAT CATO HIMSELF TREATED WITH CALGACUS. HE CAREFULLY PREPARED A NEW FORGERY OF THE CODEX AND TOGETHER WITH THE STRONGEST OF THE REMAINING LEGIONNAIRES ARRESTED SALUSTIUS AND HIS GUARDS FOR THE CRIMES THEY HAD COMMITTED AGAINST THE ROMAN SOLDIERS. IN EXCHANGE FOR SAFE PASSAGE FROM THAT HELL ON EARTH, CATO OFFERED THE FORGERY AND THE PRISONERS TO CALGACUS AND HIS MEN. SO IT WAS THAT CATO AND HIS MEN RETURNED TO CARRIDEN, THEIR HEARTS HEAVY WITH THE SHAME OF THEIR BARGAIN WITH THE DEVIL. IN THE COLD LIGHT OF DAWN, CATO MARCHED THE SURVIVORS, WITH THE TWO AQUILAE FLYING HIGH BEFORE THEM, ONTO AN AWAITING BARQUE PROVISIONED WITH VITALS AND WATER FOR FIVE DAYS, AS HE HAD AGREED WITH CALGACUS. STRAPPED TIGHT TO HIS BODY, UNDER HIS ARMOUR, HE CONCEALED THE TRUE COPY OF THE CODEX, HOLDING IN HIS BREASTPLATE THE SECURITY OF ROME. AND SO THE IXTH LEGION CROSSED THE SEA TO GERMANIA INFERIOR, MAKING LANDFALL AT LUGDUNUM BATAVORUM TWO DAYS LATER. FREED FROM THEIR TORMENTORS, CALEDONII AND ROMAN ALIKE, THEY RESTED AND MADE SACRIFICES OF GOATS AND SHEEP IN GRATITUDE FOR THEIR SAFE DELIVERANCE. OVERCOME WITH EXHAUSTION THEY SLEPT, UNTIL THEY HAD RECOVERED SUFFICIENTLY TO CONTINUE ON TO THE FORTRESS AT NOVIOMAGUS WHERE CATO REPORTED TO THE LEGATUS OF THE XTH LEGION GEMINA AND, AT LAST, HANDED THE CODEX TO HIS SAFE KEEPING. RECEIVING WORD IN ROME OF THE RECOVERY OF THE CODEX AND THE RETURN OF THE TWO AQUILAE, CAESAR GRANTED THEM ALL PARDON AND AWARDED PENSIONS TO THE SURVIVORS, EACH TO RECEIVE A FARM OF FIVE HEREDIUM WHEN THEY RETIRED FROM MILITARY SERVICE. GLORY WAS DENIED TO THOSE BRAVE LEGIONNAIRES, BUT I HOPE THIS HISTORY WILL RESTORE THEIR HONOUR. ENEMIES OF ROME WERE DENIED THE CODEX OCCULTARUM BY THE GREAT SACRIFICES OF CATO AND HIS MEN. RECORDING THEIR TALE IS PERHAPS THE MOST IMPORTANT TASK I HAVE UNDERTAKEN AS A HISTORIAN, AND IT PAINS ME GREATLY THAT, TO CONTINUE TO PROTECT IT, THE TRUTH MUST BE CONCEALED FOR MANY GENERATIONS TO COME. YET I WILL REST IN PEACE KNOWING THAT THAT TRUTH WILL ONE DAY BE TOLD, GUARDED UNTIL THEN BY THE GLORIOUS WONDERS OF THE ANCIENT WORLD.