'Yes, sir,' Fulvius replied sourly.
'I will not warn you again,' Cato growled through clenched teeth.
'Now get out of my sight. I want you to do a spot inspection of the first three legionary cohorts, and report back to me once you've done. Go.'
Cato saw a glimmer of anxiety in the veteran's eyes. Then he stood at attention, saluted and strode off to carry out his orders. Cato shook his head, then turned and marched back to his tent, barking at one of the orderlies to bring him some bread, meat and watered wine for breakfast. As he sat and stared down towards the rebel camp, he considered the stand-off once again. Ajax had the grain fleet, and therefore no need to attack the Romans, while Cato risked the loss of the grain fleet if he attacked, as well as having the added concern of commanding toofew men to guarantee victory. Yet time was on the rebels' side, and there was no avoiding the conclusion that Cato would have to attack, whatever the odds.
As he was dipping the last hunk of bread into the bowl of wine, he noticed a movement down at the enemy camp. A small column of riders had emerged from the sprawl of tents and haze of smoke from the camp fires. They passed through their picket line and continued steadily up the slope towards the Roman camp. Cato soon lost sight of them behind the rampart and left the table to fetch his mail vest, helmet and sword belt from the tent, before making his way down to the rampart facing the rebel camp. By the time he reached the rampart the duty centurion had ordered his men to stand to. A cohort of legionaries were spreading out along the beaten earth of the walkway to face the approaching horsemen. Cato glanced at them as he climbed the ladder on to the platform constructed over the timber gates. Fulvius was already there and nodded a greeting to Cato as the latter joined him.
'Looks like the rebels want to talk,' said Fulvius.
Cato saw that there were ten of them, wearing good tunics, scale armour and Roman pattern swords — the spoils of Centurion Marcellus's column. One man carried a long standard with a bright blue pennant, which he waved steadily from side to side as he and his companions walked the mounts forward.
'Nice to see them observing the appropriate formalities,' Fulvius muttered. 'Just like a proper army, eh, sir?'
'Well, they certainly look the part, in our kit.'
'Our kit?' Fulvius's expression darkened.' Oh, yes…Want me to order some of our boys to loose some slingshot in their direction?'
'No,' Cato replied firmly. 'I don't want them touched. The rebels have hostages.'
Fulvius shrugged. 'Assuming they're still alive, sir.'
'They're alive.'
The riders stopped fifty paces from the gate, and then one edged his horse a little closer. Cato saw that he had the dark features of the east, and he wore a curved sword at his side.
Fulvius cupped a hand to his mouth and bellowed,'Stop there!'
The rider reined in obediently.
'What do you want?'
'My general wishes to talk with your commander. Here, in the open.'
'Why? Tell us what he wants and go!'
The rider shook his head. 'That is for my general to say'
'Bollocks to him,' Fulvius muttered and drew a deep breath to shout his answer.
'Wait!' said Cato. He turned to Fulvius. 'Keep the men on the rampart, but have a cavalry squadron brought up to the gate, mounted and ready to charge. If I raise my left hand, send them out at once. But only if I give the signal. Is that clear?'
'You're not going out there?' Fulvius arched an eyebrow. 'For fuck's sake, sir. It's a trap. They'll get you out there and cut you down before turning tail and running.'
'Why would they do that?'
'To undermine the column, sir. Take out the commander and it's bound to hit morale, and disrupt the campaign.'
'If it is a trap and they kill me, that makes you the new commander.' Cato looked at him steadily. 'Are you saying you're not up to the job? I thought you wanted it. Maybe this is your chance.'
Centurion Fulvius had the good grace to let a look of shame flit across his features before he composed himself and shook his head.
'Not this way, sir. You watch yourself out there, understand?'
Cato smiled to himself as he turned away and climbed down from the tower. At the bottom he turned to the section of legionaries manning the gate.' Open it up, but be ready to close it quickly if you get the order.'
As the men removed the locking bar and hauled the gate inwards, Fulvius called to one of his officers and gave them orders to have one of the mounted squadrons called to the gate as swiftly as possible.
Cato puffed his cheeks and marched out of the camp, between the two ditches on either side, and on to the clear ground. Ahead of him the horsemen watched in silence. When he reached a point halfway between the gate and the waiting rebels, Cato stopped and called out to the man who had spoken for them.
'I am Tribune Cato, commander of the Roman column and the Roman fleet. Where is your general?'
There was a sudden movement from the rear of the group of horsemen as a rider spurred his horse forward and galloped it up the gentle slope. Cato sucked in a deep breath and his muscles tensed, ready for action. He let his hand drop towards the handle of his sword, where it hovered for an instant before he willed it to settle by his thigh. Straightening his back, he stood his ground and stared defiantly at the approaching horseman. At the last moment the rider reined in, less than ten feet from Cato, showering him with grit. The sun was behind the rebel and Cato had to squint and then raise a hand to shield his eyes. For a moment not a word was spoken, then the rebel gave a soft, menacing chuckle.
'The gods are kind to me, Roman. So kind.'
'Ajax?' Cato felt his heartbeat quicken.
'Of course. You remember me then?'
'Yes.'
'And you remember what you did to my father, before you had me sold into slavery?'
'I recall that we executed the leader of a gang of pirates.'
'We?'
Cato froze as he realised his mistake. Macro was in enough danger already, if he was still alive. He cleared his throat.' The Ravenna fleet was charged with destroying the pirate threat.'
'It's funny, I seem to recall things being a little bit more personal than that. You see, I recall — very, very clearly — the names and faces of the two officers in charge of my father's execution, and they were there again when I was led away into slavery with survivors of my father's fleet. You were one of those men. The other I have already had the great pleasure to encounter once again.'
Cato felt his throat tighten and he concentrated on the man in front of him, fighting to control his expression. 'I take it your hostages are still alive.'
'They are. For the present.'
'Get down off your horse,' Cato ordered. 'I do not care to speak to you with the sun in my eyes.'
'Very well, Roman.' Ajax swung his leg over the horse's back and dropped to the ground close to Cato, but Cato did not flinch. Out of the glare of the sun, he could now see the man clearly. Ajax wore a simple tunic, plain boots and a sword belt slung across his shoulder.
Tall, broad-shouldered and powerfully built, he was young, but his features were more lined and scarred than the face Cato dimly recalled from years earlier. There was something about the eyes, too.
They were watchful and far-seeing, and Cato guessed that his time in the arena meant that Ajax was a man who missed nothing and was capable of reacting to any threat in an instant.
'More comfortable?' Ajax sneered.
'You wanted to talk to me,' Cato responded flatly. 'So talk.'
'I'll get to the point when I am good and ready. Before then, I am curious to know what you think of our little situation. It is not without dramatic interest, wouldn't you agree?'
'I am not interested in your games, slave. Just speak your piece and go-'
'Slave?' Ajax frowned briefly.' Not any more. Not when your emperor concedes to my demands.'
'State your demands then, before you bore me any further.' Cato slowly folde
d his arms, loosely, with his left hand on top in case he needed to signal his men.
'I will, but first, tell me how it feels to be responsible for all of this.'
Ajax gestured at the two armies. 'All the bloodshed during this rebellion. Surely you cannot sleep easily with all this on your conscience.'
Cato did not reply at once, then spoke with deliberate emphasis.
'This is your doing, Ajax. The retribution that Rome will visit on your followers will be your responsibility, not mine. If you surrender now, and give up your hostages, I give you my word that I will plead the case for leniency to be shown to your followers.'
'While I go the same way as my father?'
'Of course. How could it be otherwise? After all that you have done.'
'You are too generous.' Ajax laughed drily. 'You should take some of the credit.'
'Really?'
'Oh yes. You see, every day since you and your friend made me a slave, I have vowed to have my revenge. If I am honest, I never really expected to have the chance, but it kept me alive and kept my wits keen when so many others might have died in the arena. So, I have you to thank for that. You…' He pointed his finger at Cato's chest.
'It was you who made this rebellion possible, and you who will be the cause of Rome's humiliation. And,' Ajax's eyes flashed with inspiration and he smiled, 'and yes! It is you who will be the cause of your own greatest torment. But I am getting ahead of myself.' He paused and then pulled a red strip of cloth from inside his tunic. 'I have decided to give you a demonstration, Roman. To prove that I am serious, and to discourage you from any rash course of action.' He turned and pointed to the beached ships. 'You see that one on the end, apart from the others?'
Cato looked, and nodded.
'Good. Then watch.' Ajax extended his arm and waved the strip of red cloth slowly from side to side as it rippled gently in the light breeze. There was an answering signal from the deck of the grain ship, and moments later Cato saw a tiny glitter and a thin trail of smoke. The spark quickly spread as a handful of men scrambled from the bows on to the sand. A tongue of flame shot up from the main cargo hatch and within moments the ship was ablaze and a cloud of smoke billowed over the decks. Ajax turned back towards Cato.
'There. Every one of the remaining ships is ready to be fired the moment I give the signal. You had better bear that in mind in case you are thinking of making a surprise attack to seize the grain fleet.
Now then, on to my demands.' Ajax raised his hands and counted them off.' One, you send word to your governor that he is to issue a proclamation, in the name of Emperor Claudius and the senate, declaring that all slaves on the island of Crete are to be set free at once. Before you protest, I know that he has the authority to do this.
Whether Rome ratifies it or not is not my concern. By then, my followers and I will be long gone. If the governor is not here with the proclamation in his hands five days from now, I will start destroying all of the ships. Two, after we have the proclamation, signed, sealed and delivered by the governor in person, you will allow my followers and me to board the ships and sail unhindered from this bay. Once we have decided on a safe place to land we will hand the ships over to you.'
'What's to stop you burning the ships after you have reached wherever it is that you intend to sail to?'
'Nothing.' Ajax smiled. 'You'll have to trust me.'
'Trust you?'
'You have no choice. And there's one other thing.' Ajax looked straight into Cato's eyes, and his lips parted in an icy grin. 'I imagine that you are won de ring about the fate of the hostages… your friends?'
'Why should I?' Cato replied evenly. 'They are as good as dead already'
'Your face betrays you. I think they mean far more to you than you would ever admit. If not, then the last demand I shall give you will be the easiest to comply with. Three, I will send a man back here tomorrow, at dawn. You will give him your response to this question.'
Ajax paused, savouring the moment. 'I want you to choose who I will let live, Centurion Macro, or Julia Sempronia. It is your choice, Tribune Cato. You will tell my man who is to live and who is to die when he comes. If you fail to give him an answer, then I will have them both put to death, in full view of your camp, and I give you my word that their deaths will be long and painful.'
An icy dread filled Cato's body. He could not think, could not utter a response. So he stood and stared.
Ajax read his reaction well and nodded with satisfaction. 'Until tomorrow then, Tribune.'
He remounted his horse and spurred it back towards his followers, and then led them back down the hill at a gallop. Cato stood still and watched them, tracking the small band as it wound through the rebel camp, around the end of the bay towards a small hillock on the peninsula stretching into the sea. Only then did he turn and walk slowly back towards the gates of the Roman camp.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
We have to attack tonight,' Cato decided, after he related the demands made by Ajax.
The other officers in the tent stirred uneasily. Outside, the noon sun beat down on the Roman camp. The wind had died away during the morning, so that the air inside the tent was stifling. Cato had summoned his senior officers the moment Decius Balbus, the navarch, had reached the camp, after his gruelling ride from the bay where his squadron lay at anchor. Cato had made up his mind to attack the rebel camp as he had made his way back to his headquarters after confronting Ajax.
Centurion Casca, the prefect of the cavalry cohort, responded first. 'Sir, you said that the enemy would set fire to all the ships at the first sign of an attack.'
Cato nodded. 'That was what Ajax said, and I believe him.'
'Then why attack? The fleet will be burned and the people in Rome will starve. Surely the priority is to save the grain ships and send them on to Rome as soon as possible.'
'Even if that means agreeing to his demands?'
Balbus scratched his chin and thought a moment before speaking.
'If you attack, and he destroys the fleet, then we will have a political disaster on our hands. If you agree to his demands, then Rome will avoid starvation. You will, of course, be condemned for bowing to the will of this rebel and his army of slaves. I imagine that, the emperor and the senate will show you no mercy' He paused and looked directly at Cato. 'It seems to me that the choice is between the lives of many in Rome, or your shame and exile or execution, sir.'
Cato smiled slightly. 'You are right, and the choice is mine.
However, I think there is something else you have to consider. What if we go along with Ajax, and he still destroys the grain ships?'
'Is that likely?' asked Fulvius. 'Why would he do that?'
'It's simple,' Cato replied.' He hates Rome with every fibre of his being. And he hates me almost as much.'
'You? Why, sir?'
'It's a long story, but the key to it is that Ajax holds me, and Prefect Macro, responsible for the crucifixion of his father, and for his own enslavement. This is as much about having revenge on us as it is about winning his freedom.'
'Forgive me, sir, but are you certain of this?' Fulvius continued in a cautious tone. 'Is there a danger that you are exaggerating your influence over this man's actions?'
'I have thought about it carefully. I've been over every detail of the man and his words that I can recall from our encounter earlier this morning. I am certain that he means to do me, and Rome, as much harm as possible. Ajax lives for revenge. When he spoke to me, every word was calculated to increase my fear for my friends. He wants to see me tormented for as long as possible before delivering the final crushing blow. I could see it in his eyes.' Cato winced at the memory of the glint of madness in the gladiator's gaze. 'I am sure of it. He will burn those ships the moment he is confident that he and his followers are beyond our reach. If I am right, then we have nothing to lose in risking an attack. Those ships are doomed if we do anything else. That is why we must try to save them as soon as possible. I'm hoping that if we make t
he attempt tonight, we may catch the rebels by surprise.' Cato let the words of his argument sink in for a moment.
Balbus still seemed unconvinced. 'If the attack fails to take them by surprise and they set fire to the ships, then the emperor is not going to be persuaded that the rebels were planning on doing it anyway. Claudius will want the heads of those responsible for the destruction of the grain ships, sir.'
Fulvius rounded on the navarch.' Then we'll bloody well have to make sure the attack is a success, right? You and the navy do your bit, and we'll do ours.'
Cato briefly felt his heart warm to his subordinate, before he responded, 'Balbus, if it puts your mind at rest, I will assume full responsibility for ordering the attack. I'll have that in writing for any officer here that requests it.'
The navarch nodded and replied flatly, ' Thank you, sir. I would appreciate it. On the off chance that the attack goes tits up and the ships are burned.'
Cato sighed wearily. 'Well, there's no point in having more of us paying the price of failure than necessary, is there?'
'No, sir,' Balbus agreed easily. Then he tilted his head slightly to one side with a questioning expression. 'There is one thing though.'
'Oh?'
'Why is there a need to attack tonight? It seems a bit rushed to me.'
Cato stood still and stared back at the navarch. This was the point of the meeting that he had feared. The question was fair, and although the answer he had prepared was well reasoned from a tactical point of view, he knew that his personal feelings had played the most important part in reaching his decision. If these men were to risk their lives in an attack, it was only right that Cato took them into his confidence and told them the full truth. He cleared his throat to address them in a voice unclouded by emotion.
'Most of you know that the rebels took the governor's daughter and Prefect Macro prisoner some time ago. Ajax let me know that they are still alive, and being held in his camp.'
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