The Sands of Saturn - Chapter 3

Ky made his way from meeting the Carthaginian general to Velius’s command tent. During the day, he was out among the lines, making sure his men were on guard for a Carthaginian counter-attack to break the siege and ensuring they had all of the supplies they needed. Ky guessed that, after their meeting about the Carthaginian prisoners, the Legate was still in his command tent, reviewing the next day’s orders with his subordinates.

On top of having a good mind for strategy and impressive personal bravery, one of the things Ky found most useful in him as a subordinate was his strong organizational and command skills. If merit had led the Roman legions prior to Ky’s arrival, he would have been in command of all of Rome’s forces and not fools like Globulus and Eborius, both of whom fell beneath their impressive incompetence.

Aside from Lucilla, he might be the person Ky trusted the most to run things when he wasn’t around, all of which was what led him to the legates’ tent.

“Consul,” Velius said, turning away from the map he’d been looking over.

“Our guest is very impressive.”

“Really? I found him tedious. All he would say, over and over, was that he would not betray his empire. He assumes any privileges we give him is some sort of ploy to soften him up to speak to us.”

“Is he wrong?”

“Yes. Well, no, it would be a helpful side effect, but we would do it either way.”

“True, but he doesn’t know that. The Carthaginians usually just massacre all enemy survivors, so it’s doubtful he’s had many opportunities to consider this from the other side.”

“True. Still, I don’t think we’ll get much out of him.”

“Maybe, maybe not. We have to keep trying. Everything in Ramirus’s reports says that he was one of the Carthaginian’s premier commanders until fairly recently. Being shipped out to a backwater corner of their empire is a pretty big message of disapproval, and one-time insiders being pushed to the outside don’t stay loyal for long.”

“I don’t know. Considering the size of the force and how big of an annoyance we must have become, this isn’t as much of a step down as it once would have been. And he seemed pretty adamant about remaining loyal.”

“True, but we have to keep trying. I think the Carthaginians will help us out, though.”

“How so?”

“They have a bad tendency to blame the commander for failures and take outsized retribution for those failures, regardless if the commander is to blame for a loss. It’s why they have so many leaders better at covering their own asses than actually leading armies, and probably what caused him to start losing favor in the first place. There’s a chance they’ll take some kind of drastic action, making him an example for other commanders. Even though they’ve made so many examples over the years, I’m not sure what they’d hope to accomplish doing it again. But it seems to be their way.”

“And if they don’t.”

“Then we try something else. Isolation can break a man down, faster if it’s seen as preferred treatment instead of a punishment. He’ll get all of the negatives that come with isolation without being able to use stubbornness and resentment as a shield against it. We’ll have Ramirus’s more … diplomatic interrogators and continue working on the general. One way or another, we need to find out what he knows. Ramirus has decent sources on the continent, but most of what we get from Africa is second-hand at best. He has real information about the state of the rest of their empire, which will be important once we get past securing Britannia and start looking to the next step. Right now, we’re blind to pretty much everything happening outside of Hispania or the Germanic coast.”

“I’ll make sure he’s kept apart from the rest of his men.”

“Actually, I’m going to be moving my flag to Ursinus’s legion and I want you to send him over there. Sit down with Ursinus and make sure he knows how to deal with the general before you leave.”

“I’m leaving?”

“Lucilla is headed back to Devnum tomorrow. I’m sending your legion, the fourth and the ninth legions with her, along with any Caledonians who don’t return home with her. You’re to hold outside Devnum until we hear from Llassar. His big play with the Hibernians is military assistance against the Carthaginians and any of the southern rivals they’ve managed to turn into client states. If he’s successful, you’ll need to be ready to get your men across the straight to make good on that offer. Llassar knows the people there, so I suggest you take his counsel seriously, but you’ll be in charge of our forces. I need you two to work together to get the people there to at least sign an alliance with us and, if possible, get them to join the new empire under the same terms as the Caledonians. Llassar knows what to do on that front, so work with him and get it done.”

As he spoke, Ky could see Velius’s expression change from one of displeasure, when he thought he was being removed from the final stages of the fight against the Carthaginians on this island, to excitement at the idea of running his own military action. It was a big step up for him as a commander, since under the previous senior legates, he’d gotten very little taste of independent command.

“I’ll see to it at once.”

“I know you will. When you get to Devnum, start working on securing the boats and logistics to get your men across as soon as they’re called for. I have faith in you, Velious. Don’t let me down.”

***

Emain Macha

The throne room was just as Llassar remembered it, only smaller. It was still a large single room, its wooden timbers bent into a circular shape, making it unique among the places he’d been. When he’d come as a younger man, Llassar remembered being astounded by the size of this one room, its curved walls seeming to stretch forever.

Of course, that was when he only knew of life among his people, whose largest huts could hold thirty men at best. Now he’d fought beside Romans, stood in their great forum which held two hundred men, well spread out among the benches carved out of marble.

He’d been impressed with the permanence of the building, its wooden walls and thick beams seeming like they’d last forever compared to the dried mud and leather of the buildings in Caledonia. The Romans had changed his perception on that front as well. Where his people built out of mud and these people built out of wood, the Romans built out of stone. He’d like to think his interactions with the southerners hadn’t colored his perceptions of the world, but clearly they had.

Now this mighty capital with its architectural wonder seemed quaint, almost provincial. It was strange that it took crossing the straights to the land of the Ériu for him to realize his perceptions had changed.

That wasn’t the only change he was expecting. When he’d been here last, Eochaid Sálbuide sat on the throne. A powerful man, his thick black beard making his dark eyes seem almost black, hooded under unruly eyebrows. He was a warrior king, much like Llassar’s own liege, Talogren. Llassar had watched the king of the Ulaid fight with a giant axe, cleaving men in two as he led his warriors into battle.

Surprisingly, he was also a wise king. He ruled with an even hand, often choosing diplomacy and even guile over combat when it offered a better outcome. Llassar had been impressed enough by him that he even described his ruling style to Talogren, in hopes that his chieftains might temper his much more aggressive approach with some of the Ulaid kings' methods. It hadn’t taken, of course. Talogren was who he was, and Llassar couldn’t fault the man for that. It was what drew him to the Ky, who seemed to possess some of the qualities, although in a very alien way, different from the Ulaid, Caledonians or Romans.

He’d been sad to hear of Sálbuide’s passing. He hadn’t been much older than Llassar was now, when he’d known him fifteen years before, and should have had many years left to lead his people. More surprising was the man who now sat on the throne, looking down on him.

Conchobar was as unique as Sálbuide, in his own way. Not as huge as Sálbuide or his son Fergus, although not a slender man either. He was Llassar’s age and the two had spent time together during Llassar’s time here. The thing that stood out in his memory about Conchobar the most was how clever he was. In that, he was closer to the old king than Fergus, who was aggressive to the point of recklessness, ever was.

In some ways, Conchobar’s ascendancy might help Llassar convince him to join the new alliance, although any plans he’d had of out reasoning the Ulaid King was immediately gone. Conchobar was a smarter man than Llassar. There was no way he’d be able to outwit the new king, that was certain.

“I am surprised to see you, Llassar. I had thought when we released you back to your people, you had learned to keep to your own land and off of ours. Did you get lost again?”

“I didn’t get lost. I came to speak with King Sálbuide. We’ve heard about your troubles with new invaders to the south and I was sent to offer him aide.”

“King Sálbuide has joined his forbearers.”

“I know, and I am sorry to hear about his passing. While I am surprised to see you on the throne instead of Fergus, my mission has not changed. I still bring an offer of help against your enemies.”

“Fergus is a traitor. He sold his people out to Eochu Feidlech and his new benefactors. They slaughtered his father and our largest army, taking half of our lands with them.”

“I am … surprised,” Llassar said.

That was an understatement. Fergus had been the jewel of his father’s eye, and knew it. He’d always been loyal to his father, if a bit spoiled by the man’s affections. Llassar could hardly fathom the idea of Fergus turning on the king.

“A lot has changed since you were last here. Old alliances have been broken and sons have betrayed their fathers, all drawn by promises of power and gold by these new people in the south. Which is why I find the timing of your arrival so concerning. We are beset on all sides, but have managed to hold off our rivals so far, and now you appear, a ghost from the past when on the heels of their last failed assault, promising to help us out of the goodness of your heart. How do I know you aren’t in league with Fergus and his new allies, sent to distract us or have us drop our guard?”

Things were worse here than Llassar had realized. He spent time with the Carthaginians sent to incite his own people against the Romans and heard their promises for himself. Things were different for the Caledonians, whose hold on their lands had always been precarious in the face of Romans better-armed and larger armies. He’d understood why Talogren had allowed himself to be swayed by him, but he couldn’t fathom why Fergus would have done the same. The Ulaid was the strongest kingdom on the whole island and he was set to inherit everything from his father. It made no sense that he’d throw that away to join the scattered smaller kingdoms and their foreign allies.

“We’ve dealt with these foreigners. They’re called the Carthaginians, and they made us many of the same promises they made your people. Instead of taking them up on their offer, we joined with the Romans and pushed the Carthaginians back, almost completely off our island, in fact. It is because of them that I’m here at all. While I hold your people in high regard, I am not hear out of love for them or the goodness of my heart. We are in a war for survival against the Carthaginians with our new Roman allies. To succeed in that war, we can’t allow them to conquer this island and build up strength on either side of us. I am here because our interests align. Helping you is helping ourselves.”

“You made an alliance with the Romans?” Conchobar said, sounding genuinely surprised.

Llassar understood his surprise. Although the Romans and the Ulaid didn’t interact very much and then only through minimal trading, they knew about the long-standing animosity between the Romans and his people.

“From the outside, I’m sure it does seem unthinkable, but you’ve been experiencing a similar assault on your territory that the Romans have. They were desperate for assistance and looking for a way to fight back against the Carthaginians.”

“I can understand why they’d want your help, but I can’t understand how your people would willingly join them in some kind of alliance. You weren’t being invaded, and had them as a buffer between you and these Carthaginians.”

“They offered us concessions we couldn’t turn down. Instead of constantly wondering if this is the year they push north with their greater strength and wipe us out, taking our land, we had the chance to join them as complete equals. We have as much of a say in the new empires course as the Romans do.”

“And you thought we’d be as desperate as the Romans, willing to make concessions we might never have been willing to make before? You hope to make your new empire overlords of my people, perhaps?”

“No. While I have been charged to offer you a chance to join our empire, it would be as an equal member, not a subject. You would have an equal say in crafting the laws that govern the empire as a whole and you’d maintain control of your land, as long as your laws fall within the bounds of the laws of the empire. In return, we offer assistance in your battle to the south, in both men and material, right now and more once the military situation is settled on our island. As a member of our alliance, you’ll have access to new markets, a wider manpower pool, jobs for your people, and to new inventions that will change how your people live.”

“Lies,” Conchobar said. “You offer nothing more than the Carthaginians. At least they were honest with their demands that we subjugate ourselves to them. You come with your hand out, offering freedom, while holding a knife to our throats. Throw him in the dungeon.”

“You’re making a mistake, Conchobar. The Carthaginians will roll over your people and salt the ground you stand on.”

“I would rather have my people die standing than live kneeling. Take him.”