The Trumpets of Mars (Imperium #2) - Chapter 29 (Final Chapter)

Irish Coast

Llassar pulled the small one-man boat onto the shore. He half considered finding a cove or outcropping to try and hide the boat, but it didn’t matter. If he didn’t find a way to get in contact with Salbuide and convince the King to join them, there was a strong chance the Ériu would never let him leave.

Even if some fisherman found the boat, they wouldn’t be able to get word to Emain Macha until Llassar had a chance to reach the city.

Despite being a prisoner, he had fond memories of his time here. The Ériu were, in some ways, more advanced than his own people, although still far behind what the Romans had accomplished. Unlike Monadhcarden with its tents and mud huts, the capital of the Caledonians, the circular city of Emain Macha was large, with a huge round building in its center. Llassar remembered marveling at its giant wooden roof, thinking, at the time, that it was the grandest building he had ever seen.

Like the Romans, the Ériu were builders. If the Consul was right, and they could convince them to join the Empire, they would pick up the Roman traditions faster than the Caledonians could, and could be a great asset to them.

Of course, they were nearly as mistrusting as the Caledonians when it came to outsiders and his stay here had been a long time ago. There was equally as good of a chance he might die here.

Llassar didn’t fear death, but he understood how important this was to the alliance. That, in and of itself, was an unusual feeling for him. He had almost thought Talogren had gone mad when he heard about his dealing with the Romans, but after spending time with them, he realized that, as always, his chieftain was a further thinking man than he was. His conversion into being a believer in their new empire had been swift, but total.

Stepping off the rocky beach and into the edges of the grasslands, Llassar began his long trek inland.

Battlefield, North of Venonis

“How many?” Ky asked as he and the surviving legates, along with a large contingent of guards, walked across the corpses scattered across the battlefield.

“We don’t know yet,” Carus said. “Thousands, to be sure. Maybe a full legion dead, with almost as many wounded. The largest losses were in Velius's legion, as they tried to seal that final break before we sprung the trap.”

“Have we found his body yet?”

“No, but the grave men have just started to separate out the dead and arrange for mass burials. They are pulling identifying items and any bodies of centurions or above for identification.”

“We need to reform at least one or two legions, in case there is another force coming north,” Aelius said.

“There isn’t,” Carus replied before Ky could answer. “We’ve had a lot of eyes on the city since this army marched. From what we’ve been able to gather, they moved ahead of schedule and basically stripped the city bare of supplies to feed this many men, since foraging would have been sparse. We’re even getting reports of some of the poorer sections of the city already running short of food. They couldn’t field another large force this soon.”

“It’s still a good idea,” Ky said to Carus before looking at Aelius. “You and Ursinus’s legions got hurt the least. Form up on the other side of the battlefield and set out pickets. Don’t do anything long-term, though. Once we’ve recovered the wounded and buried the dead, I want to begin the move south against Londinium before they can call for more reinforcements. This loss will be enough for the Carthaginians to take us seriously and they still have a giant pool of manpower to pull from. They’ll have a lot harder time landing new armies if they don’t have any friendly ports.”

Aelius saluted and left to follow his orders.

“I also want to get what Praetorians we have and our cavalry to begin pushing forward and as far east and west as they can. It’s unlikely we’ll be successful, but if we could keep word of this victory from reaching Londinium until just before we get there, they won’t have time to fortify the city or collect supplies before we can envelop it. The rest of you, get your men re-equipped and resupplied as best you can. I want us on the move in two days.”

Carus, and the rest of the commanders saluted and left for their commands, leaving Ky alone with Lucilla.

“You should take a moment and appreciate what you’ve done here,” Lucilla said.

“I wish we could, for the men’s sake, if nothing else, but we don’t have time. We are close to freeing the entirety of Britannia. We have the momentum. If we move now, a lot fewer of our men will die in the process.”

“I know. It’s just that it hasn’t been that long since your … condition, and you’ve been pushing yourself hard since the day you arrived here. I worry about you.”

“I know,” he said, putting an arm around her.

Holding her close, Ky looked out on the battlefield. It was a great victory, but it was only the beginning. Even when they finally freed the British Isles, the empire wouldn’t be safe. They wouldn’t be truly safe until the Carthaginians were dealt with.

This was just the beginning.