Another soldier cursed as the point of a thrown spear burst through the board of his shield. ‘Bastards!’ he screamed up the slope, shaking his own spear at them.

‘Silence!’ the optio bellowed. ‘Keep quiet and stay in your place!’

The Tungrians were moving as well, their slingers dropping stones on the rampart of the fort. It was awkward for the auxiliaries with the large flat oval shields to put a stone in the sling and swing it properly, so the Tungrians worked in pairs. One man covered his comrade with his shield while the other laid his shield down and lobbed missiles at the enemy. There were a few slingers among the Selgovae and stones whizzed through the air in response. They were harder to see than an arrow, let alone a javelin, which made it more difficult to dodge them. A Tungrian was down, kneecap badly bruised or broken by a stone.

‘Hey, reckon the legion is busy.’ Vindex was pointing past the enemy at a dark smear rising from the valley beyond. ‘There’s another,’ he added a moment later. The Legate Quadratus and his troops must be further forward than expected, already putting houses to the torch.

‘They’re breaking,’ Crispinus said, the words almost a question because he did not believe what he was seeing.

The Batavians were still fifty paces from the main line of Selgovae, but that line was dissolving as more and more men streamed back across the saddle.

The tribune slammed his spurs into the side of his horse, drawing blood and sending it shooting forward. ‘Charge, Cerialis! Charge!’

Flavius Cerialis obviously had the same thought. ‘Charge!’ he yelled, pushed his horse through the line of his own men. ‘Charge!’ The Batavians started to yell, raising a great angry howl as they broke ranks and sprinted up the slope, spears raised ready to throw, but their targets were fleeing ahead of them. The trumpeters did their best to sound their curved cornu-horns, but the notes were ragged and thin as the men ran to keep up.

‘Wait,’ Ferox told Vindex. ‘If they have the men and the wits to use them, they’d have a thousand warriors crouching just beyond that crest ready to hit us.’

Aelius Brocchus had not followed the tribune and gaped at the suggestion.

‘Trust a Silure to think like that,’ Vindex said.

‘They’re just barbarians,’ Flaccus said, but there was doubt in his eyes along with the excitement of the moment.

They watched as the Batavians surged up the last few yards on to the crest, led by Cerialis and with Crispinus now amongst them. They did not halt, but kept going, disappearing from view.

Aelius Brocchus let out a long breath and grinned. ‘Good job we are not still fighting the Silures. I’ll bring up my men.’ He headed down the slope.