Haytham’s hard face cracked a smile as we rode back to his tent. ‘Let me tell you about your scout and his wife. At the last count they possessed over two thousand camels that they hire out to the caravans as they pass through, complete with their own drivers. Byrd and Noora are among Palmyra’s wealthiest subjects.’
I was stunned. ‘I had no idea.’
‘Just because he dresses and looks like a pauper does not mean he is one,’ said Haytham.
‘Perhaps we should ask Byrd for a loan to pay for Silaces and his men,’ suggested Domitus.
But I did not ask Byrd for any money and when Aaron returned ten days later he also accompanied us on our journey to Judea. We did not follow the road west from Palmyra to Homs but instead headed southwest into the desert, riding across sand, flint and semi-arid steppe from oasis to oasis. Byrd and Malik were our guides, though Aaron had also become acquainted with the lesser-known paths across the vast expanse of emptiness that lay between Judea and the Euphrates.
It took us six days to reach the great Jabal al-Druz Mountains that lay south of Damascus. We gave the city a wide berth as it was no doubt teeming with Roman soldiers. But the Jabal al-Druz was stark, barren and largely empty of human life. Great volcanic outcrops towered over us as we threaded our way through narrow ravines and walked our horses across scree slopes below rock ledges and high cliffs. We saw few tribesmen and those we did see kept their distance from our ragged band.
Byrd and Malik took us west out of the mountains and onto the plain of Hawran, a great expanse of cultivated land dotted with villages and bisected by dirt roads and tracks. The contrast between this region and the Jabal al-Druz could not have been greater. We covered our faces with our headdresses to maintain our anonymity for we saw Roman patrols on the roads that were filled with travellers transporting goods. There were no wagons on these roads; Aaron informing us that donkeys or camels were used to move wares. He also told us that the main products of the plain were grain, olives, the vine and fruit. We passed a bearded man in his fifties I estimated, dressed in a short, sleeveless tunic leading three camels whose saddles were loaded with storage jars holding wine. He held a short stick and was tapping the side of the leading camel, speaking to it in a language I did not understand.
‘It is Aramaic, majesty,’ said Aaron. ‘The language of my people.’
‘And this man, Alexander, who we are to meet, he will speak this language?’ I asked.
‘Do not worry, majesty,’ he replied, ‘like you he has had a good education and speaks Greek fluently.’
We followed the course of a waterway named the Yarmuk River southwest until it emptied into a large river named the Jordan south of a great inland lake called the Sea of Galilee. For three days we travelled south along the east bank of the River Jordan, whose waters were deep and fast flowing. This river ran through a valley that is approximately two miles wide near the Sea of Galilee but became wider as we rode south, twisting and turning as we followed the course of the waterway. Flanked on each side by high mountains, the valley was filled with great clusters of thorns and thistles that grew to shoulder height. Aaron told me that most of the few villages in the valley were located on the eastern side of the river, near where tributaries flow into the River Jordan from the hills to the east.
There may have been few villages but there was an abundance of wildlife in and around the river, including leopards, boars and alligators. We also saw great herds of ibex and Surena used his bow to bring down a brace that we later skinned and cooked over an open fire. So far we had encountered no Roman patrols in the Jordan Valley.
‘We will,’ said Aaron, gnawing on a thighbone. ‘There is a large Roman garrison in Jerusalem and they quarter troops in the outlying towns and villages.’
‘Is Pompey still in Judea?’ I asked.
Aaron threw the bone into the fire. ‘No, majesty. He left soon after his soldiers had butchered their way into Jerusalem, taking most of the riches in the city back to Rome with him, along with Alexander’s family.’
‘And now Alexander is in hiding?’ asked Domitus, propped up against his saddle and warming his bare feet on the fire for the nights were cool in the valley.
‘He is in hiding, that is true,’ answered Aaron guardedly.
‘But you said that he had a hoard of temple gold, and now you say that Pompey captured the temple,’ said Domitus. ‘I hope we have not embarked on a wasted journey.’
At that moment we heard a snapping noise in the night and Domitus jumped up and drew his gladius from its scabbard. I reached for my bow and attached the bowstring, then whipped an arrow out of my quiver and stood with it nocked as I faced the direction the noise came from. Surena likewise stood with an arrow nocked in his bowstring, while Malik had drawn his sword and even Byrd had his long knife in his hand.
A voice called out of the darkness in a tongue I did not know and I drew back my bowstring to shoot the arrow in the direction it came from. But then Aaron called back in the same strange language.
‘It is quite all right,’ he said, smiling at us all. ‘It is friends.’
‘What sort of friends skulk around like thieves in the night?’ growled Domitus.
Aaron called out again and two men about his age came out of the night. They were dressed in tunics that came down to their knees, cloaks and head cloths. One carried a spear and the other had a long knife tucked in his belt. Both had full beards. Aaron greeted them warmly and after half a minute brought them over to me. Surena still had his bowstring drawn back and was pointing his arrow at them.
‘You can put your bow down, Surena,’ I told him. ‘They are friends.’
He did so reluctantly as Aaron introduced the ragged arrivals.
‘This is Ananus and Levi, majesty, two of Alexander’s most trusted officers.’
‘Officers?’ said Domitus loudly, still keeping a tight grip on his sword.
I raised my hand at him to be silent. ‘Tell them I am glad to make their acquaintance,’ I instructed Aaron.
Both Ananus and Levi nodded curtly at me and then stared at Domitus, who looked every inch the Roman he was. There was frantic whispering between them and Aaron, who managed to calm them. I did not understand what they were saying but assumed that they were surprised that a Roman was present. For his part Domitus kept a wary eye on them for the rest of the night, each of us taking turns to stand guard while the others tried to get some sleep.
Whether Domitus slept or not I did not know as I sat down on the ground next to him following my standing vigil. Thin shards of orange pierced the eastern sky to herald the dawn. The fire was nothing more than warm grey ashes now. Around it slept Malik, Byrd, Surena, Aaron and our two guests.
Domitus, his head resting on his saddle and wrapped in his cloak, observed the sleeping Jews across from him.
‘I doubt if they have a gold coin between them, let alone enough to pay your armouries to supply them with weapons.’
‘We do not know that,’ I said. ‘Aaron assures me that this Alexander has more than enough gold.’
‘And you believe him?’
‘We shall know soon enough.’
‘Have you noticed something about the river we have been travelling along?’ he said.
‘What, apart from it being full of alligators?’
‘There are no bridges across it. Not one.’
I was puzzled. ‘I don’t understand.’
‘Bridges are an indication of a people’s progress and wealth. You have seen the many bridges in Italy, and in Parthia are there not bridges that span both the Euphrates and Tigris? Well here there are none, which leads me to believe that these people are poor and backward.’
‘So were the followers of Spartacus,’ I reminded him, ‘including you when we first encountered you if I am not mistaken.’
He shrugged and then nodded at Aaron and his comrades. ‘Have it your own way, but I think we have wasted our time.’
With Levi and Ananus walking beside our horses we
continued on south and came to a great inland lake that Aaron told me was called the Salt Sea. It looked like a huge blue carpet that had been dumped on the earth in the space between steep, rocky cliffs. The waters of the sea were most wondrous, being oily to the touch. When my hand dried after I had immersed it in the water it was covered in a thick crust of salt.
Aaron stared at my hand. ‘The high salt levels means nothing lives in the lake, majesty. It is dead.’
As we continued on along the eastern shore of this great expanse of water, which was more blue than the waters of the Euphrates, I could not help but wonder why the gods had made it lifeless. I looked at Aaron and surmised that his people must have committed a great sin to be punished thus. I did not probe him as we veered away from the lake after an hour and headed east into the hills. It was midday now and the day was extremely hot, the air arid and stifling. We rode through a barren valley cut in the sandstone hills and then entered a deep, canyon-like wadi until we came to a stark promontory that rose up before us.
‘This is Machaerus, the Black Fortress,’ announced Aaron, ‘where Alexander awaits us.’
We dismounted and led our horses up the steep, tussock-strewn slope with some difficulty, arriving at the summit to stunning views of the surrounding terrain. The peak contained the remains of a stronghold with most of the perimeter wall still standing. But the gatehouse was just a pile of rubble, the remains of the smashed gates on the ground in front of it. Two guards armed with spears stood on top of the rubble but were scanning the horizon rather than looking at us.
‘This way, majesty,’ said Aaron, disappearing through the gap in the wall with Levi and Ananus.
Inside were more soldiers, or at least men in threadbare clothes armed with a variety of knives, spears, bows and swords. None wore any armour or helmets and some carried only staffs. I estimated their number to be around thirty. The position had some strength, or had done before it had been assailed and great lumps knocked out of the defences. The high, rectangular perimeter wall had towers in each corner and contained a large stone stronghold at the far end with store rooms and barracks extending from it along each wall towards the gatehouse. At the entrance to the stone building stood two more spearmen.
‘Alexander awaits us inside, majesty,’ said Aaron as Levi and Ananus sat down on the ground among men whom I assumed they commanded and began to chat and point at Domitus and me.
Surena was most unhappy when I ordered him to stay with the horses while the rest of us followed Aaron into the building.
The stronghold was a rectangular building fronted by a colonnade and had an arched roof. I followed Aaron past the guards and stepped into a small reception area, with rooms without doors on either side. The roof, what was left of it, comprised timbers overlaid with thatched reeds, though most of it was missing, allowing the sun’s rays to stream through. Damaged pots lay strewn across the dirt floor, along with broken spear shafts, a few twisted swords and a dented Roman helmet.
‘Not much to look at, is it?’
I saw a man of medium height with a beard standing in the doorway of one of the rooms on the left. Dressed in a light brown knee-length tunic with sandals on his feet, he looked most unprepossessing with his unkempt shoulder-length hair. He smiled and approached me, offering his hand in greeting. Aaron told me that he was a prince but he looked more like a goatherd. I saw Domitus scowl and shake his head and hoped that we had not wasted our journey as he had said.
‘I am Alexander Maccebeus and I am pleased to make the acquaintance of King Pacorus of Dura.’
I took his hand and found his grip like iron, much to my surprise. I also noticed that his brown eyes missed nothing, darting between my companions and me and registering slight surprise at Domitus, whom he no doubt recognised instantly as not being Parthian.
‘I am pleased to meet you, lord prince,’ I answered, ‘Aaron has told me much about you. I hope we will be able to do business with each other.’
‘I would offer you wine and hospitality,’ he held out his hands, ‘but alas my circumstances are somewhat reduced at the moment as you can see.’ His Greek was impeccable.
‘May I introduce my companions to you, lord prince?’ I held out a palm towards Malik. ‘This is Prince Malik of the Agraci, a friend and valuable ally to my kingdom.’
Malik bowed his head to Alexander.
Alexander next looked at Byrd.
‘This is Byrd, lord prince, my chief scout and also a valued friend.’
Byrd displayed his usual nonchalance when in the presence of royalty.
I went to stand beside Domitus. ‘And this is Lucius Domitus, the general of my army and the man who more than anyone is responsible for making Dura strong.’
Alexander’s eyes narrowed as he observed Domitus.
‘Lucius Domitus,’ he said, ‘that is a Roman name, is it not?’
‘It is, for he is a Roman,’ I answered.
Alexander nodded and then walked around the shattered room. He pointed at the broken roof, the debris lying on the floor.
‘The Romans did this when they invaded my country and conquered it. They butchered the entire garrison here and then sacked the holy temple in Jerusalem, slaughtering thousands as they did so. They carried away much gold from the temple itself and defiled its holy sanctum by their presence. They also carried off thousands of Jews as slaves, including my father, my brother and myself. This being the case, you can perhaps understand why I am slightly uncomfortable by the presence of one from a race that has inflicted so much misery upon my people.’
‘I understand your anger, Alexander,’ I said. ‘The Romans have also inflicted death and destruction upon Parthia and yet,’ I placed an arm round Domitus’ shoulders, ‘this Roman I trust with my life.’
‘Even though you yourself were enslaved by the Romans, for Aaron has informed me that it was so?’
‘It is true,’ I replied, ‘but I have Romans serving me loyally, Alexander. I have learned to judge men on their individual merits rather than appraise them according to which race they were born into.’
Alexander smiled. ‘Aaron has told me that you are fair in your dealings with others. Let us hope that is thus now.’
‘What do you want of me, Alexander?’
He walked over to face me. ‘Weapons with which to equip an army. I can raise the men but without arms they will be slaughtered.’
Alexander handed Aaron a sheaf of parchments. ‘These are the details of my requirements.’
Aaron quickly scanned the lists and his eyes opened wide as he did so. He briefly spoke his language to Alexander, who nodded.
‘Would you care to share with us what is written on those, Aaron?’ I said.
‘Yes, majesty. It is an order for helmets, swords, spears, daggers, mail shirts, arrows and quivers.’
‘For how many men?’ I queried.
Aaron licked his lips. ‘Ten thousand, majesty.’
Malik looked surprised and even Byrd raised an eyebrow. Domitus guffawed.
‘Ten thousand? How are they going to pay you, in goats? These people don’t have a pot to piss in. I told you we have wasted our time.’
Alexander spoke to Domitus in Latin. ‘Not all that is barren is empty, Roman.’
Domitus looked confused and then bemused. ‘And what does that mean?’
‘It means, Roman,’ continued Alexander, ‘that you see only what you choose to see. Be thankful that your king has more wisdom than you.’
Domitus was a great soldier but a diplomat he was not. He jerked a thumb at Alexander. ‘He’s clearly been in the sun too long. These Jews are thieves and beggars and we are better off without them, Pacorus.’
‘These Jews,’ said Alexander slowly and firmly, ‘outnumber you ten to one, Roman, so I would choose your next words carefully.’
I held up my hands. ‘Let us not argue. Alexander, I must ask for your forgiveness. My general’s words were intemperate. However, before I agree to supply you with the items you need I
would like to see some evidence that you will be able to pay for said goods.’
Alexander smiled. ‘I know that your armouries at Dura are capable of furnishing me with the weapons I desire, for Aaron has told me of your great army and its lavish equipment. Therefore I will show you that I have the means to pay for them.’
Ten minutes later, after being blindfolded, Domitus and I were being guided out of the fortress and down the steep slope that we had earlier ascended. Two of Alexander’s men led me and another two behind held on to Domitus, who did nothing but complain to them.
‘Careful, you sons of heathens, I could break my leg on these stones. Take off this bloody blindfold.’
‘You wanted to come, Roman,’ said Alexander, who accompanied us together with Aaron. ‘The blindfold remains until we have reached our destination.’
‘You didn’t blindfold Aaron,’ replied Domitus.
‘That is because I trust Aaron and do not trust you, Roman.’
‘Just be quiet, Domitus,’ I said. ‘The sooner we get there the sooner the blindfolds will be removed.’
We descended the slope and then turned right and walked along the bottom of a ravine for ten minutes or so before scrambling up another slope that was steeper than the one we had just come down. My helpers guided me along a narrow path that I assumed had either been cut in the rock or had been formed naturally. The surface was uneven and on a couple of occasions I tripped on jagged rock edges. Even in our Agraci robes it was still very hot and I could feel the sun on my face. Then the sun’s heat disappeared from my head and I was aware that we had entered a cave of some sort as our footsteps echoed around a chamber.
‘Take off their blindfolds,’ commanded Alexander.
My eyes did not need to get accustomed to the light because we were standing some distance into a tunnel in the hillside, the bright yellow light at the entrance around fifty paces behind us. Alexander’s men lit torches and then we walked further down the shaft. The cave was the width of five men and around ten feet in height, though the further we walked along it the lower the ceiling became until after a couple of minutes we were stooping.
Parthian Vengeance (The Parthian Chronicles) Page 32