Parthian Vengeance (11 page)

Outside the city the air was even colder and the river was shrouded in a thick mist. Though this was not atypical for the time of year I prayed that it was not an ill omen for the coming campaign. Legionaries marching six abreast were filing over both bridges when we arrived at the river where Domitus was standing talking to some of his officers. He raised his cane to me, dismissed them and walked over.

‘Glad you could join us, hope we didn’t disturb your sleep.’

‘Very amusing, Domitus. Where are Byrd and Malik?’

He grinned. ‘You know them two. They left while Somnus was stilling entertaining me.’

‘Is that a whore?’ suggested a grinning Surena.

Domitus pointed his cane at him. ‘Watch your mouth, puppy.’

I turned to Surena. ‘Somnus is the Roman god of sleep, for your information. Now kindly be quiet.’

‘Anyway,’ continued Domitus, ‘Byrd and Malik are across the river with their scouts just to make sure we don’t have any nasty surprises.’

I doubted that. Directly opposite the bridges was Hatran territory, patrolled and garrisoned by detachments of my father’s army.

Domitus continued. ‘Orodes and the rest of the horsemen are waiting until my boys are over, then they will cross. It will be a while yet, though.’

I looked at Surena. ‘You and I will ride over to the other side and see if we can catch up with Byrd and Malik. Bring a score of your men along. Vagharsh, you stay here with the rest and join Orodes when he crosses over.’

Vagharsh nodded. Surena ordered the first twenty men behind us to follow him as we walked our horses to the first bridge. The officers halted the legionaries marching onto the bridge to give us passage to the other side. And so, wrapped in our white cloaks for the chill and mist showed no signs of abating, we cantered over the bridge and into my father’s kingdom and headed south, riding parallel to the great column of marching soldiers.

Two hours after I had left the Citadel the mist finally began to clear from the river. Orodes had brought over the cavalry and now parties of horse archers were sent into the east to cover our left flank and ahead to act as a vanguard. I was not overly concerned about being surprised, as we were still in Hatran territory and south of that lay the Kingdom of Babylon. Still, with Dobbai’s warning ringing in my ears I was taking no chances. Soon the rays of sun had burnt off the last vestiges of the mist to reveal a cloudless sky. It would be a glorious spring day, ideal for marching, not too hot and with a slight northerly breeze. I had to confess that it felt good to be marching with the army again. At last I would settle things with Mithridates and Narses.

By noon most of the horsemen were walking to preserve their animals’ strength. The only horsemen still riding were on patrol. Malik and Byrd rode back to the army, their clothes covered in dust and their horses breathing heavily from a long ride. They both dismounted and joined our small group of myself, Orodes and Domitus. Domitus always walked despite being general of the army and despite my efforts to persuade him otherwise.

‘No enemy anywhere,’ reported Byrd, ‘land empty.’

‘I’m sure my stepbrother has his spies watching us,’ said Orodes.

‘If they are, then they are very well hidden,’ said Malik.

The land along the riverbank was highly cultivated and populated, but further inland the fields and irrigation ditches gave way to flat, barren desert until one encountered the cultivated land on the western bank of the River Tigris. There were few inhabitants of the land between the rivers apart from nomads.

‘Mithridates will soon learn that we have left Dura,’ I said. ‘The disadvantage of being a city on the Silk Road is that the traffic is an efficient carrier of gossip as well as goods. It doesn’t matter. After all, we want to goad him into action.’

Nevertheless Orodes shielded the army with a thick screen of patrols as we marched south along the Euphrates. As usual each night the army sheltered in a camp surrounded by an earth rampart surmounted by a wall of stakes, constructed after the Roman fashion. Each day the stakes were taken down and loaded onto mules for transportation to the next night’s camp site. It was a time-consuming process to erect and then disassemble these camps, but it ensured that the army and its wagons and animals were safe from any night attack. Not that there was much risk of that – Parthians as a rule did not fight at night.

‘I would not put it past my stepbrother to launch a night attack,’ remarked Orodes as we relaxed in the command tent after another day’s march.

‘No army near,’ said Byrd.

‘I doubt he will even fight,’ added Malik, his black robes matching the tattoos on his face.

‘What was he like, as a child, I mean?’ I asked.

‘Pacorus wants to know if he had horns on his head and a forked tail,’ said Domitus, cramming a biscuit into his mouth.

The biscuits that we took with us on campaign were called Parthian bread, though they were actually rock-hard wafers that reportedly lasted for years. Domitus said that they were excellent for patching shields.

Orodes leaned back in his chair. ‘Cruel, I would say.’

‘Nothing else?’ I asked.

‘Oh, he was spoilt and indulged by his mother, my stepmother, and by father. But then, there is nothing exceptional about that. But he was possessed of an evil nature. He made trouble just for the sake of it and inflicted injury on those who were helpless and could not fight back, slaves mostly. That is why he dislikes you, Pacorus.’

‘Because Pacorus was a slave?’ offered Domitus.

Orodes nodded. ‘Yes. He could not accept that one reduced so low could rise up and become great. Made worse by you having taken the crown of Dura from him.’

‘I did not take the crown from him,’ I said bitterly. ‘I found it lying in the gutter, such was the state he left my kingdom in.’

Domitus continued to munch on his biscuits. ‘Most poetic. Hopefully we can track down the bastard, kill him and get things back to normal.’ He looked at Orodes. ‘No offence meant.’

‘And none taken, my friend,’ replied Orodes, ‘the world will be a better place without Mithridates in it.’

Everyone agreed with him, though if we did end the reign of Mithridates then without a doubt Narses would seize the high crown for himself. But not if he too was dead. One battle at a time.

It took the army ten days to reach the spot that brought us parallel to where the Tigris and Ctesiphon lay fifty miles to the east, and still there was no sign of the enemy. Perhaps Mithridates had abandoned Ctesiphon and fled east to Narses’ capital at Persepolis. I hoped not – it was five hundred miles from Ctesiphon to the capital of Persis. On the other hand, if he had then Narses would have to abandon the siege of Elymais and Gotarzes would be relieved. All these thoughts went through my mind as the army stocked up on its water supplies for the march east across the desert. Fourteen thousand soldiers, two thousand squires and their two thousand camels, over two thousand mules, the drivers of the wagons, a thousand camels carrying spare arrows and their riders and over six thousand horses consumed a lot of water each day. At least it was spring and not summer for the heat of these areas in the hottest months was fierce. Fortunately the camels and mules were hardy creatures. Indeed the mules were capable of tolerating extremes of heat and cold and surviving on sparse rations of food and water and only a few hours’ sleep each night.

After a day of rest we set off east across the desert. Byrd, Malik and their scouts rode far ahead of the army and patrols of horse archers covered our flanks and formed a vanguard. I walked with Orodes and Domitus at the head of the army, the cataphracts leading their horses behind them, the squires tending to their horses and camels.

It was another glorious spring day with just a slight northerly breeze and a small number of puffy white clouds dotting the blue sky. Once again there was no sign of the enemy anywhere and I began to think that we would take the city of Seleucia, which lay on the west bank of the Tigris, unopposed. Directly opposite Seleucia, across the river, was the palace of Ctesiphon. It was a large palace complex filled with treasure but it was of no use to us. All I was interested in was confronting Mithridates. We covered fifteen miles the first day and another fifteen the next and once again we marched across empty desert. The army camped for the night behind its earthen rampart and wooden palisade, the men wrapping themselves in their cloaks as the temperature plummeted after the sun disappeared from the western sky.

Two hours after night had fallen Byrd and Malik rode into camp at the head of their scouts. They thundered up the main avenue that led directly to my command tent. As usual I was in attendance with Orodes and Domitus when the pair burst in, their faces unshaven and their clothes dirty.

‘Mithridates’ army approaches,’ said Byrd.

‘At last,’ grunted Domitus, ‘I was beginning to think that we would have to tramp for hundreds of miles to get our hands around his neck.’

‘How far away is he?’ I asked.

Malik walked over to a water jug on the table, filled a cup and handed it to Byrd. ‘Twenty miles, perhaps less.’

Byrd gulped down some water. ‘Many horse, no foot. There are more of them than we have.’

I smiled. ‘There’s always more of them than us, Byrd.’

Malik filled another cup and drained it. ‘We saw the banner of Mithridates but there was no sign of Narses.’

‘He must still be besieging Elymais,’ said Orodes.

This was better than I expected. My enemies had made the fatal mistake of dividing their forces, allowing me to defeat each in turn. I began to feel very confident.

I walked past Malik and Byrd, clasping their arms in turn. ‘I am in your debt, my friends. You bring good tidings. We should be able to see our opponents. Come.’

We all filed outside and stared into the east. Sure enough, the horizon was illuminated by a red glow – the campfires of Mithridates’ army. At last we would finally settle the differences between us. I slapped Orodes on the arm.

‘Well, my friend, by this time tomorrow your stepbrother will be dead and the empire will need another king of kings.’

‘Narses will take his crown,’ replied Orodes mournfully.

‘After we have dealt with Mithridates we will march east, link up with Gotarzes and go after Narses. He will never wear the high crown.’

‘And then?’ asked Domitus.

‘And then, what?’ I replied.

‘It is no small thing we do, Pacorus,’ said Orodes.

I scratched my head. Orodes was a loyal and brave friend, one whom I held dear, but on occasion he could be insufferably correct. Even after all the treachery of Mithridates and Narses he still clung to his strict interpretation of protocol. I knew that he was appalled by the notion that we had as our objective the deaths of Mithridates and Narses. Perhaps a part of him still believed that bloodshed could be averted and we could all settle matters to everyone’s mutual benefit. I knew this to be fantasy and deep down so did he, but he liked to think the best of everybody, including his vile stepbrother.

I laid a hand on his shoulder. ‘I did not cross the Euphrates lightly, my friend, but the dagger thrust that killed Godarz began a course of events that can only have one end – my death or that of Mithridates.’

Orodes’ black mood did not lessen my sense of satisfaction that we were about to fight Mithridates. I had disliked him ever since our first meeting at the city of Esfahan years ago, a loathing that had been instantly reciprocated. And now I had him. He may be king of kings but Mithridates was also a liar and a coward, and tomorrow all would be settled.

I rarely slept much before a battle and this night was no different. Domitus, Byrd and Malik wiled away the rest of the evening talking of past battles, Domitus as ever sharpening his
gladius
with a stone. Orodes retired to get some sleep and wrestle with his morality. He was probably the most upright individual in the empire. I excused myself and walked among neatly arranged rows of tents that each accommodated eight sleeping legionaries or a similar number of horsemen. Sentries stood guard and centurions stalked around with their trusty vine canes. The air was filled with the comforting aroma of leather, cooking fires, horses, mules, camels and animal dung. I stood for a moment and closed my eyes and was transported back more than ten years to when I was in Italy with Spartacus. After all this time I still missed him. I reached inside my shirt to touch the lock of Gallia’s hair hanging on a chain round my neck. Together for all eternity.

I continued my tour of the camp, exchanging pleasantries with Companions and talking to other soldiers who were veterans of more recent campaigns. The horsemen were quartered with their animals in the northwest corner of the camp. Many of the Parthians in their ranks thought it most odd that they and their horses should be confined so. The camps of Parthian armies comprised an assortment of different-sized tents arranged in a random fashion. As it was the Parthian custom not to fight at night the notion of surrounding a camp with defences appeared a waste of time and effort. That may be, but no adversary of Dura would ever catch its army unawares by launching a night assault.

When I arrived at the quarters of the armoured horsemen their squires were still busy checking scale armour and helmets. If they were lucky they would get four or five hours sleep before they had to rise to get their masters ready for battle. I also found Surena with a group of his subordinates clustered round a brazier. They stopped their conversation when they saw me and bowed their heads.

‘As you were,’ I said. ‘Surena, walk with me.’

We ambled among other groups of men gathered round fires, indulging in the idle chatter and boasting that most men partake of on the eve of battle. Tomorrow each one would fight secure in the knowledge that they trusted one another and that the man on either side of him in the battle line could be relied on not to desert him. It was no accident of speech that men were organised into companies, for at the end of the day men did not fight for causes, politics or gods; they fought for each other, their companions. And they preferred to fight and die among their friends.