The army marched expedita, with the minimum baggage, but that still meant hundreds of tents, and hard tack, salted bacon and other food to last nine days, after which they would have to rely on replenishing supplies from the well-stocked granaries in the forts along the road. All of the cavalrymen had sacks of fodder tied behind their saddles, the big bags making the animals look clumsy and misshapen. One and a half thousand ridden or led animals and twice that number of men on foot including the slaves soon churned the roadway into mud, getting worse as more and more passed the same spot. The infantry marched in a hollow square, with the baggage train protected inside, but this just spread the trampling over a wide area either side of the road. As always the men in the back had it worst, held up the longest by any delay ahead of them, and squelching through cloying mud heavy enough to trap a boot and rip it free. The legate let them stop and camp just beyond Bremenium, and men from the fort brought out enough dry kindling and timber for fires to be lit.

The fourth day saw gaps in the cloud, with tantalising glimpses of sun, before the next shower blew in across the hills. It was mostly rain apart from an hour’s swirling snow in the middle of the day. Men slipped as they trudged up and down through the hill country, and when the legate stopped and joked with them they no longer laughed as loudly.

It was during the snowstorm that Ferox for the first time saw warriors watching them. His men had been reporting them all morning, and he did not doubt them, but the weather made it hard to see far. He was surprised that it had taken so long, and guessed that enemy scouts had been there for some time, although with the Stallion’s men it was hard to know what to expect. They had seen Votadini quite a lot, but those little groups of armed men on ponies were never shy of calling to them or coming in to talk. They were locals, wanting to assure the Romans of their friendship – and keep an eye on the army to make sure that it behaved in a friendly way. They said that Trimontium was under attack, but holding out, and that the Stallion had promised his followers a great victory in the days to come, greater than they could imagine, and that this would be just the first. The Votadini shrugged when they repeated his claims, doubtful and cautious at the moment, but not so much that they were sure such a thing could not happen.