XVII

The siege lines outside Nicopolis

Eleventh day before the Kalends of May
The tenth day of the siege

‘BEST BE CAREFUL, sir!’ The soldier was missing his front teeth, so that there was a whistle when he spoke. ‘They take a shot now and then just on the off chance.’

‘They’d love to bag a centurion!’ his comrade added. He had a very deep voice, so that it was a shock to see it coming from a boy with legs like sticks and a face so thin that the cheek pieces of his helmet hung loose.

‘I’ll be careful,’ Rufus replied. He was getting to know more of the legionaries as he did the rounds of all the work sites and other parties. Caecilius had warned him that he would be surprised by how many little detachments and groups with special duties would get created in the first few days, and it was truly amazing. As the primus pilus kept reminding him, all his book learning of siegecraft did not fully prepare him for actual operations. That was true, and Rufus was revelling in learning more of the reality, of realising that he had simply not thought of so many of the problems involved. Solutions had to be found for each one, which often created new problems and new demands for men to labour making or carrying, and more calculations to be made of angles, weight and force.

‘You’ll work hard and sleep little,’ Caecilius had told him and he was right. Rufus had never enjoyed himself so much in his entire life. This was engineering with a purpose and not mere theory, and no matter how beautiful a concept might seem it was no good at all if it could not be made to work on the ground. He enjoyed being part of something bigger than himself, of seeing the high walls of Nicopolis as a challenge to his wits and knowing that he and the rest of them would meet that challenge and win. For the very first time, he felt as if he belonged in the legion and he was surprised how much he enjoyed that. Even Caecilius was a good deal less gruff, approving of his enthusiasm and impressed by his ability to make complex calculations in his head.

Rufus had stepped beyond the covered shed so that he could measure the angle of the ramp’s surface. It had looked wrong earlier today, and although Caecilius had dismissed his concern, he wanted to check. Even a slight shift changed the force needed to push a tower up once the ramp was finished, and altered the way its weight pressed down.

‘Do you want a shield, sir?’ the first legionary asked. Rufus knew that he had heard the man’s name earlier on, but could not bring it to mind.

‘Thank you, but no – I need both hands.’

‘Cover him, Lucius.’

‘You do it,’ the deep voice said in what it must have thought was a whisper.