The Roman column slipped out of the eastern gate in the third hour before dawn.The men had blackened their faces and limbs with ash and charred wood. Since they would have to march quickly into position and then chase down the more lightly armed men in Bannus’ army, they had been ordered to leave their body armour behind. Each man carried his shield and was armed with a javelin and short sword, and wore a strip of white linen on his sword arm for identification. As the four cavalry squadrons trotted ahead and then turned to the left and moved round the fort’s defences, the infantry advanced as quickly as they could, out of step, so as not to give themselves away by the rhythmic tramp of Roman army boots. Macro and Cato marched at the head of the column. Cato was shivering in the cold night air and hoped that the march round the fort would warm him up so that he didn’t have to clench his teeth to stop them chattering. The auxiliaries had been threatened with dreadful punishment if they dared to speak and the column moved forward in silence, only the noise of their boots breaking the hush, until they turned off the stony track and then the sand muffled the sound almost entirely.

Almost at once they came across two bodies, sprawled on the ground. Macro halted the column and paused to turn one over with his boot.

‘Seems that the scouts have done a good job,’ he said in an undertone. ‘I just hope they get them all without any trouble. If not . . .’

‘They’ll do fine,’ Cato reassured him. ‘Every man in the cohort knows what’s at stake.’

‘It’s down to the gods then,’ Macro concluded as he raised his arm and waved the column forward.’I just hope Fortuna doesn’t think I’ve used up my allotment of luck.’

‘Of course you haven’t,’ Cato replied softly. He had grown used to Macro’s superstitious tendencies, and had long since given up any attempt to talk his friend round to a more rational view of the world. Cato even doubted that there were any such things as gods. But the belief in them certainly served a purpose, helping most men to bridge the gap between knowledge and experience, and Cato had resigned himself to having to humour the superstitions of others, and even be seen to go along with them.

‘Don’t you think I’ve run out of luck?’ Macro whispered. ‘I wonder, given all the shit that’s flown in my direction since we arrived in Judaea.’

‘No, sir,’ Cato replied patiently. ‘For the most part you have made your own luck. Fortuna has just topped it up from time to time. We really shouldn’t talk.’