‘Yes,’ Arbandes said, his voice like a child’s.

‘Splendid.’

It took a while to rally the men, for some had chased off into the night. The camp was in chaos, the tents collapsed or burned and two of the waggons tipped on their sides. There were corpses everywhere, scores of them, and other bodies still moaning.

‘Leave them,’ Arrian commanded, when a trooper went to one wounded man and raised his sword. ‘We haven’t the time, and it might delay any pursuit if they stop to care for them. If they don’t, well, these men are their kin, not ours.’

Vindex nodded. ‘Boy’s learning,’ he said to Bran in the language of the tribes.

Apart from the warrior killed defending the pavilion, none of the attackers had fallen and the few wounded were all able to ride. Less than an hour after Vindex and his men had pushed their way out of their hiding place, the whole column set off into the night. The prince was sullen and silent, hands still tied behind his back, although riding with ease, a trooper on either side. The two women were on a pony, the younger one clinging to the other.

‘They’re his slaves,’ Arrian explained to Ferox. ‘Bought ’em just a few months ago and could not bear to be parted from them, even though he was travelling light.’

‘Think we’re on the wrong side,’ Vindex muttered.

The convoy was not due for half a day, so they rode directly back to camp. Some Arabs found them, just before noon, but kept their distance. About a hundred of the prince’s men appeared late in the day and shadowed them. The horses needed a rest, even more than the men, so they camped that night, and kept a careful watch. The next morning there were twice as many horse archers ahead of them. Arrian kept the column together, and one of the troopers held a drawn sword by the prince’s neck. When some riders approached, empty handed to show that their intentions were peaceful, Arbandes gestured to them to leave.

‘That’s right, lord prince. No need for trouble, is there?’ Arrian said.

XXIII

In front of Nicopolis

The day before the Ides of May
The thirty-fifth day of the siege

PRINCE ARBANDES WAS very obliging, especially when he learned that his sister was already in the Roman camp. Crispinus would not permit them to meet, not yet, and installed the prince in Cerialis’ camp, but informed him of Azátē’s presence and hinted at his – and Rome’s – sympathy to her cause, while making clear that this was not set firmly in stone. The legatus regretted the misunderstandings that had occurred so far, both between the Romans and the leaders of Nicopolis and the royal family of Osrhoene, and hoped that sensible men of good spirit could find common ground. Although guarded, the prince was granted every available comfort, in addition to his slaves to keep him company.

In the morning, Arbandes went with Arrian to the western siege ramp and showed himself to the defenders, asking to speak to the strategoi. They duly appeared, and the prince spoke at length about the need for friendship and hoped that they would admit a token Roman garrison.