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Chapters (76)
  1. Title Page
  2. Copyright Page
  3. I
  4. II
  5. III
  6. I - INVADER AD 43-70
  7. I
  8. II
  9. III
  10. IV
  11. V
  12. VI
  13. VII
  14. VIII
  15. IX
  16. X
  17. XI
  18. XII
  19. XIII
  20. XIV
  21. XV
  22. XVI
  23. XVII
  24. XVIII
  25. XIX
  26. XX
  27. XXI
  28. XXII
  29. XXIII
  30. XXIV
  31. XXV
  32. XXVI
  33. II - BUILDER AD 122-138
  34. I
  35. II
  36. III
  37. IV
  38. V
  39. VI
  40. VII
  41. VIII
  42. IX
  43. X
  44. XI
  45. XII
  46. XIII
  47. XIV
  48. XV
  49. XVI
  50. XVII
  51. XVIII
  52. XIX
  53. XX
  54. XXI
  55. III - EMPEROR AD 314—337
  56. I
  57. II
  58. III
  59. IV
  60. V
  61. VI
  62. VII
  63. VIII
  64. IX
  65. X
  66. XI
  67. XII
  68. XIII
  69. XIV
  70. XV
  71. EPILOGUE
  72. I
  73. II
  74. III
  75. IV
  76. Afterword

Severa extracted a letter from her purse and unfolded it; the bindings of the wooden pages creaked softly. ‘I have an invitation from one Ceriala Petilia, the cousin of a friend’s friend, who just happens to be the wife of a tribune. She has offered to host us while we are here. A good Roman woman. No more barbarians!’

‘Then all we have to do is find her,’ Karus said mildly.

Severa glanced about and saw a soldier crossing towards the gate. He was a centurion, as Brigonius could tell from the vine stick he carried. ‘You! Come here. I have an assignment for you.’ And to Brigonius’s astonishment she ordered a centurion of the sixth legion to carry her bags as if he was a common slave. Meekly he obeyed.

‘Marvellous,’ said Karus, but he sounded uneasy.

XI

XI

‘Let me get this straight,’ said prefect Tullio. ‘You want to build a wall.’ A brisk, bustling man of about forty with a shock of bright red hair, he was clearly used to command, and he easily dominated his cluttered office in Eburacum’s headquarters building.

Xander, his model set out on the floor of Tullio’s office, sat more nervously, Brigonius thought, than in the presence of the Emperor himself. ‘Yes, a wall,’ he insisted.

‘Seventy miles long.’

‘Seventy-one actually.’

‘With three legions.’

‘Yes.’

‘And you want to do this in three years.’

‘Yes.’

Tullio’s eyes bulged. ‘Are you twisting my cock?’ He leaned back and called through the door. ‘Hey, Annius! Get in here and listen to this. You’ll love it.’

Another soldier, evidently one of the prefect’s aides, walked casually into the office, polishing a strip of breast-plate armour with a bit of leather. He was a muscular man whose head was shaped oddly like a bucket, Brigonius thought, with a narrow chin, protruding teeth, a broad forehead and a mass of black hair. ‘What’s up, Tullio?’

Tullio turned back to Xander. ‘Go on, friend. Do your routine again. How many miles? How many forts and turrets? ...’ As Xander stammered out his plan once more, Tullio and his pal leaned back in fits of laughter.

To compound Xander’s mortification two small boys came running into the room, squealing. They both had red hair as bright as Tullio’s. They had been playing with short wooden swords, but when they saw Xander’s toy wall with its tiny fortresses and plaster hills they fell on it with delight. Xander, in a fussy panic, tried to keep the boys away, but he only excited them further and made things worse.

Amid this chaos Brigonius glanced around at his companions. Karus looked as if he was having trouble not laughing himself. Severa, however, seemed ready to burst into flame.