The Sword of Jupiter (Imperium #1) - Chapter 10

While the legionnaires finished off the last pockets of resistance,  Ky found Velius near the front of his troops, yelling and even kicking a  few to get his units pulled back together. Ky was fairly surprised by  the sheer chaos he found around him.

“Dominous,”  Velius said as soon as he saw Ky. “Your plan worked. When the  Carthaginian bastards crossed the ridgeline, and I saw just how many of  them we faced, I was almost certain we were done for. You should be  proud.”

“While I am pleased with our victory, the price we had to  pay is too high. It will take a while to recover from this. If the  Carthaginians were smart and followed up the attack, there wouldn’t be  enough clever tricks in the world to save us.”

“I don’t think they can. Ramirus  seemed to think this was the bulk of the ground forces the  Carthaginians had on Britannia. They will need to pull in additional  forces, maybe all the way from Africa. That will take time.”

“That’s some good news, at least. Are your victories always so … chaotic?”

Ky  was looking around at men searching through dead bodies for loot,  wandering off, and generally no longer functioning as an army.

“Usually.  At least they haven’t realized yet there’s still the Carthaginian  baggage train to be had. The men take their bounty very seriously and  look forward to a battle so they can claim their part of the spoils.”

Ky frowned at this statement.

“Do you have some men that will follow my orders and not join in on the looting?”

“Strabo’s men were at the front of the First Cohort and saw you in action. I’d be willing to bet they’d follow your lead.”

Ky hadn’t realized that Velius, who he’d lost track of when the assault started, had been close enough to the front to see him.

“I  need to take them with me to secure the baggage train. While I’m gone, I  need you to ensure the Carthaginian soldiers are allowed to surrender.  Find a place to contain them until I talk with the Emperor about them.  They are to be fed, given tents if possible, and be well treated. Is  that clear? Aelius should be nearby, make sure his men know this.”

“Yes, Dominous.”

While  Velius seemed a little thrown by the order, he took it in stride and  didn’t protest, which Ky appreciated. They may have won, but Ky still  had a lot of work to do and was already thinking about his long term  plans now that he’d thrown in with the Romans.

Collecting the  Romans, Ky ordered them to fall in behind him and marched towards the  baggage train. He wouldn’t have thought it possible, but when they  eventually arrived, they found the scene even more chaotic that the main  battlefield.

Some of the camp followers, many of whom had been  women, had tried to run towards the main Carthaginian forces and were  stopped short of the tree line. Ky had at first through they were also  digging through fallen Carthaginians looking for something of value.  What he found when he got closer disturbed him to his very core.

“Get off her!” Ky screamed, grabbing a man by the back of his neck, and sending him flying over some of the gathered men watching the scene.

All  of the men froze, staring at Ky in wide-eyed fear, allowing the women  to scramble off the ground and escape. Although a few of the assaulted  women ran back down the road away from the Romans, the bulk of them ran  behind Ky, pulling their torn clothing to cover themselves as best as  they could.

“Centurion!” Ky shouted without turning around.

“Yes, Dominous?” Strabo said, moving quickly to Ky’s side, his voice sounding wary.

“Take  your men and secure the Carthaginian baggage train and all prisoners.  If you see any more scenes like this, I expect you to step in. Civilians  who participated in the battle can go back to the city, but I want any  legionnaires to be held until I can talk to them. Arrange for the  captains to help transport, under guard, all of the Carthaginian  equipment and treasure back to the Seventh Legion. I want every weapon,  piece of armor, and clothing collected. No looting. Leave me five men  and get to it. I’ll see you back at the Seventh.”

The centurion  saluted, pointed out five men to stay behind, and moved quickly down the  forest road towards what remained of the Carthaginian baggage carts.

“You  five will escort these women to the Seventh Legion and inform Velius  that I want them held with the other Carthaginian prisoners until we can  figure out what to do with all of them. He is to set up a separate  holding area for women. They are to be guarded and have their safety  ensured.”

Ky stopped and looked at one of the men in the eyes to make sure he took the next sentence seriously.

“If anything happens to these women, I will hold you five personally responsible,” Ky said with menace in his voice.

“Yes, Dominus.”

Ky let his voice soften and said, “Show me the honor I know a Roman legionnaire has, and I won’t forget your service.”

“Thank you, Dominus. You heard him. Let’s go.”

Ky  left them to wrangle the terrified women, who’d at least been mollified  by Ky’s words enough to go with the Romans and headed back towards the  Roman legions.

By the time Ky got back to the battleground, the  bulk of the Romans were gone, with scattered parties working to collect  weapons and the dead. The Roman camp was a hive of activity when Ky  finally reached it. He was surprised, although he realized he probably  shouldn’t have been, to find the Emperor had arrived and was conferring  with Aelius and Velius.

“The man of the hour,” Germanicus said as Ky pushed through the tent flap. “I knew you’d come through for us.”

“You were the only one then. I was certain of nothing.”

“That’s  because you still refuse to believe the gods brought you to us in our  moment of need. I, however, have the wisdom to see the truth.”

The  Emperor gave a mischievous smile suggesting he was at least partially  messing with him. Ky couldn’t help but return the smile. So far he’d  mostly seen a dour, serious leader worried about his people’s survival.  It was interesting to see a window into parts of the man’s personality  he’d suppressed for expediency.

“Now that the immediate danger is  passed, there are many things I want to discuss with you. The most  pressing being the lack of discipline I saw in the legionnaires after  their victory. I found some of your men doing unspeakable things.  Murdering, looting, and abusing prisoners.”

“If there had been a  pressing danger, I assure you my men would have kept things in check,”  Velius said defensively. “After a battle like this, men need to vent  their anger and feel like they’ve benefited from victory. It’s how  soldiers are.”

The looks of agreement on the faces around him stunned Ky.

“Not  where I come from. We treat prisoners as human beings. We do things  according to laws, not on a soldier’s whim. I will not be a party to  this kind of thinking.”

Ky knew, of course, this wasn’t entirely  true. There’d been plenty of instances of atrocities among his own  people. The ideal, however, deserved to be upheld.

“I can only say  that we will listen to what you have to say and if at all possible,  we’ll do what we can to implement change. I think I can safely say that  all of my legates understand that you are the only reason there is still  a Rome at all. I hope I can infer from your statement that you plan on  staying with us?”

“Although I started to have second thoughts  about the decision; yes, I think I am going to stay. I want to warn you,  there are a lot of changes I’m going to suggest. Some of them, like  suggestions for new tools and technology, your people will see the  immediate benefits and will agree easily. Other things you are going to  question, or not even understand. There will be a few that will require  rethinking some of the core ideas of your people. I can’t claim that I  know what’s best for Rome, but I can tell you ways of doing things that,  in the long run, will allow you to not only survive Carthage’s attempts  to destroy you but maybe fight back and even win.”

“I can’t  promise you it’s going to be easy,” the Emperor said. “There are a lot  of powerful interests in Rome that like things the way they are and have  fought me on every change I’ve tried to implement to help Rome survive.  I’m fairly certain my ideas pale in comparison to what you’re going to  suggest. What I can promise you, is that I will take everything that you  suggest seriously. I’m also fairly certain that the legates here will  do the same.”

“Absolutely,” Aelius said.

“Yes,” Velius said.

“I  know what you’ve done for us. I trust you to help us, and I hope you  will trust us even when some other Romans fight against us.”

“I  think I can. These two men and their subordinates that I’ve met have  shown themselves to be good and honorable men, as have you. That’s a  good foundation to start with.”

“Excellent. Some of this will have  to wait, as there is still a lot to do in the wake of our victory. The  victory games of Sulla were postponed as we prepared for the  Carthaginian assault. I can’t think of a better time to celebrate them,  now that we have a new victory to celebrate.”

“Imperator, is this really a good time for a victory celebration?” Ky asked.

“It’s  the best time for one. You need to understand that the games of Sulla  are an important religious holiday for us, where we hold competitions  and games in honor of the victories the gods have granted us. Not  holding these games offends the gods. Don’t worry, besides a victory  parade and opening of the celebrations, nothing should take away from  what you want to start. The priests will run most of the actual  ceremonies. Hours ago the people of Devnum thought they were going to be  slaughtered by the Carthaginians. They need this.”

“I guess you have a point. When does the celebration happen?”

“We  will hold the triumph tomorrow morning for you and both legates.  Afterward, I would like you to be with the legates and myself during the  speeches to the people. After that, we can sit down and begin talking  about what you need. For now, the legions need to recover their dead,  and the injured need to see the physicians. Let’s leave them in Velius  and Aelius’s capable hands and return to Devnum.”

Ky looked at Velius, who held a hand in what Ky assumed was supposed to be a soothing gesture.

“We’ll be fine, Dominous. I understand your concerns about prisoners, and I promise I will personally ensure your will is followed on the matter.”

“I  know you will, Legate. You’re a good man, both of you. After all this,”  Ky said, waving his arm in the direction of the battle, “I don’t want  to abandon the men.”

“I have centurions to help deal with the  legions, my lord. You have more important matters to tend to. We need  you to focus on what only you can do and leave the rest to us mere  mortals.”

Ky started to protest, but the Emperor’s hand gripped his elbow, guiding him out of the tent.

“Would you escort an old man back to town, Ky?”

“Old  man? Remember, I’m the one that told you what to expect after your  recovery. I’m betting you feel better right now than you have in years.”

“Yes,  well … appearances must be maintained. Besides, it was all I could do  to keep my daughter from riding out here with me. She will want to see  you soon.”

“I’m not sure why she’d want that, but I’m happy to serve, Emperor.”

Germanicus  placed Ky’s hand on his forearm and patted it, giving Ky a knowing look  that he couldn’t interpret. Ky and the Emperor, along with some of his  personal guards, traveled to the center of town, and the government  complex that served as the forum, governmental offices, and personal  residence of the Emperor and his family.

Ky walked with the  Emperor to the forum, before turning to head back towards the quarters  he’d been assigned, with plans to have more documents sent up. Despite  how hard he’d pushed the Emperor to begin planning their next steps in  preparation for the next army the Carthaginians were certain to send, Ky  wasn’t one hundred percent sure what that plan actually was. While  there were a few things that he could think of off the top of his head  for quickly evolving their society, Ky was far from a historian or a  scholar. He - and by extension the AI, upon whose databases of later era  technology he’d be leaning heavily upon - needed more information to  build a plan. Information like what the current technological base or  societal norms were in areas from medicine, to military hardware, to  basics like how their craftsman and scientists thought. Once he and the  AI knew where they’d be starting, they’d be able to make a plan on how  to move things forward.

Ky had walked no more than a few steps  from the entrance to the self-contained area the Emperor used for both  his living area and offices when the door burst back open, and Lucilla  came running through it, only to slide to a halt when she saw Ky was  right outside. She clasped her hands together tightly in front of her,  seeming almost unsure of what she was going to do next when she glanced  at the guards who were very noticeably not looking at her.

That seemed to shake her out of her confusion as she looked up at Ky and said, “I’m pleased you’re back safely.”

“I was perfectly safe, my lady. It was very unlikely that anything used by the Carthaginians could have hurt me.”

“Ohh, I didn’t know that. So, you are like Achilles, then?”

“Achilles  is the name of a hero from Greek mythology and popularized by multiple  ancient authors, most notably Homer and Euripides,” the AI said at Ky’s confusion. “In  some versions of the Myth, Achilles’ mother rendered her son  invulnerable to mortal weapons. The methods used to achieve this  invulnerability varied based on the source, including the application of  fire or submersion in the River Styx, a waterway claimed separated the  land of the dead from the land of the living in Greek myth.”

“No,  my lady. My skin can be cut just like anyone else’s. The clothing that I  am wearing, however, has the ability to deflect most weapons the  Carthaginians could use against me.”

“Magic armor,” she half-whispered, her hand reaching out and stroking Ky’s arm.

She  seemed transfixed for a moment before pulling her hand back quickly and  taking a step back from Ky, her eyes once again darting around to look  at the guards standing by the doorway.

“No, that’s not what I …  It’s difficult to explain. I can assure you, though, that I am unharmed.  Did you need to talk to me about anything else? I was about to go to my  quarters and continue reviewing the documents your father gave me, to  learn more about your history. You’re welcome to join me if you’d like.”

“I couldn’t. It would be unseemly.”

“Ohh. Then, is there anything else I can do for you?”

“No … I … No. Thank you, though. Have a pleasant night.”

The  last was said as she backed away from Ky. He had trouble reading the  expression on her face and was concerned that he might have offended her  as she turned and fled back into the imperial quarters.

Ky  watched her close the door, perplexed at her behavior. With a shrug, he  turned and continued towards his own quarters, completely missing the  expression exchanged between the guards outside the Emperor’s residence  as he passed.

One of Velius’s men found Ky the next morning still  going over records. He led Ky to the outskirts of town, where Ky found  lines of men from both legions in formation to march. He’d had the AI  pull up information about triumphs the night before, from both the Roman  records and the AI’s historical documents.

The historical  documents showed that before the Emperor, triumphs were a way of  awarding generals who’d led victories with a public show of success,  while after the Republican era, it was usually reserved for a way to  honor the Emperor himself.

The man who led the legions would  travel at the head of the procession, which was a mixture of a military  parade and a show of captives from the victorious campaign. If the  leader had multiple legions under his command, and more than one legion  was taking part in the triumph - which was usually not the case - then  the legate over each legion would precede his men.

The Roman  documents showed that there had been no triumphs since their expulsion  from the continent. The last triumph was held for the Roman Emperor,  who’d managed to keep the Romans from being expelled from Iberia, at  least for a while. That triumph had been almost a century ago, and yet  it seemed everyone was still familiar with the process, like some  lingering cultural idea.

Ky greeted the two legates, who were  still passing orders to their subordinates on what needed to take place  when the event started.

“I’m not clear what I need to do for this,” Ky asked them once the pleasantries were out of the way.

“The Emperor has given you the place of honor, leading the triumph into the city.”

“Why? If this is a way to improve morale among your citizens, then it should be one of you. I’m a stranger here.”

They  exchanged a look and Velius said, “I don’t think you understand how far  word about you has traveled. I would imagine there isn’t a soul in  Devnum who hasn’t heard of you by now.”

“I’d say it goes further  than that,” Aelius added. “We received a rider from the returning  legions, and they asked about you specifically, wanting to know about  the rumors they were hearing. I’d wager by now even the smaller towns on  the coasts have heard about you.”

Ky closed his eyes and sighed.  While he did not like being so blatantly used, there was something to be  said for how upfront Germanicus had been about it, not denying or lying  about what he was doing. There was also no chance the Emperor would  stop doing it, leaving Ky with only two choices. Accept he was going to  do it and push back as best he could or take his chances somewhere else.

“It’ll  be easy,” Velius said at Ky’s expression. “Just stand in the chariot,  look serious and occasionally wave at the crowd. The procession will end  at the steps of the Imperial complex, where you’ll step off the  chariot, walk to the edge of the stairway and kneel in salute. The Princeps will then make a speech about our great victory and announce the start of the festival. ”

Velius demonstrated the salute to Ky.

“See,” Aelius added. “Easy.”

Ky shook his head as both men smiled at him in an almost gloating fashion.

“Fine, I’ll play my part in the Emperor’s play.”

“Just as we all do,” Velius said, slapping Ky on the shoulder. “Speaking of which, I think it’s time for the play to start.”

The  procession was just as unpleasant as Ky had foreseen. In his time, this  kind of thing wasn’t done. Everyone was born with a specific place in  society and a specific role to play. No one got accolades for doing what  was expected. The cheers from the crowd made him feel deeply  uncomfortable, but he forced a smile, waving at the people as the  chariot rode through the streets.

Arriving at the imperial  complex, Ky stepped down from the chariot and walked up to the steps,  kneeling as instructed. Lucilla and her brother stood behind their  father and slightly to each side. Lucilla beamed at Ky, a look of pride  on her face. Her brother, on the other hand, looked as if he’d eaten  something rotten. Behind the three in long rows stood men Ky didn’t  recognize, but who were obviously important.

Two more chariots  pulled up next to the one that had deposited Ky carrying Velius and  Aelius. Both men joined Ky on their knees in supplication.

“Rise and join me,” the Emperor said in a voice that carried.

Ky  hadn’t noticed before, but whoever designed the plaza that led up and  into the Imperial plaza had done so with fine-tuned precision. His voice  echoed off the cobblestones and marble buildings with acoustics  designed to carry it to a gathered crowd.

Ky stood and eyed where  Aelius and Velius went, trying to figure out where he was supposed to  go, following slightly behind them. The men split, one going to either  side of the Emperor. Ky chose to follow Aelius, who stood in front of  Lucilla, not wanting to end up in front of the Emperor’s son Caesius.

“Today  is a great day,” Germanicus said to the crowd that began to push  forward, joining the lined up legionnaires to hear the speech. “Our  mighty legions met the Carthaginian host before our city and have  returned victorious. Today the sons of Rome shed their blood on the  plains of Britannia; each a benefaction to the fields of Elysium; each a  sacrifice to the glory of the people of Rome.”

The Emperor’s tone dropped, and his presentation became noticeably more somber.

“I  heard your concern when the offerings to Mars were delayed, as we  prepared to repel the Punic invaders. I heard your worry that Mars would  be displeased, and you believed that he would punish us for our  impertinence. I asked you then to trust me, and I was humbled when you  gave me that trust.”

“Many of you have heard the rumors, the  whispered hopes that the gods have decided that now is the time; the  time that our prayers and sacrifices have finally been received with  favor. You’ve heard that Jupiter has drawn his blade and sent his  acolyte to lead the Roman people back to our rightful place. I tell you  today that those rumors are true; those hopes have been met; those  prayers have been answered.”

The Emperor turned and placed his hand on Ky’s shoulder, his voice once again becoming triumphant.

“Jupiter  has sent his avatar, sword in hand. This man led our legions to a  glorious victory, achieving a modern-day Cannae, with the Carthaginians  in the role of the defeated. I warn you, however …”

The Emperor  removed his hand from Ky’s shoulder and turned dramatically to the  audience, his voice taking on a warning tone. Ky was amazed at the rapt  attention the thousands of gathered people stood in complete silence,  hanging on the Emperors every word.

“… the threat has not ended.  To the south, the Carthaginian governor is already assembling a new host  to send against us. We stand on the edge of a blade, with the  destruction of the Roman people to either side. Much will still be asked  of all of you.”

A smile broke across the Emperor’s face as he once again placed his hand on Ky’s shoulder.

“Take  heart, my people. The gods continue to show us their favor. Ky, the  Sword of Jupiter, has agreed to stay and help us prepare for the evil  that comes for us. His help does not come without conditions set forth  by the gods. The gods have decreed that Rome must transform if we are to  survive. They warn us that all Romans must be prepared for great change  if we are to survive the coming storm. If we pass through the crucible  the gods have set before us, then a new and more powerful Rome will  emerge from the other side. The gods have asked if Rome stands ready to  face the greatest challenge in our long and storied history, and in your  name I have sworn that we are ready!”

“To  that end, I am naming Ky as Consul - with all the trappings that office  once held - to assist me in guiding our people into this new future.  With his help, like the phoenix of myth, Rome shall rise again from the  ashes. To celebrate our bright future, I declare today as the opening of  the Victory Games of Sulla, which from this day forth will celebrate  both the historic victory of that mighty warrior and the victory of the  sword.”

The Emperor grabbed Ky’s hand, raising it in the air as Ky fought to suppress the surprise and anger he felt welling inside.