Carrhae (42 page)

I looked into her blue eyes. ‘Am I responsible for all those things?’

Her look hardened. ‘No, you are not. Had you been responsible for Mithridates and Narses being vomited into the world then I would have said yes, but you cannot blame yourself for what has happened since we returned from Italy. It has been your destiny.’

I chuckled darkly. ‘My destiny? My doom, more like.’

She stood up. ‘Come on. No more despairing. We have a war to win.’

I stood up and pulled her close, her full lips inches from mine. ‘Perhaps you should be lord high general.’

She kissed me tenderly. ‘I would like that. What will you do now?’

‘We wait for Atrax and then march to Hatra to fight the Armenians.’

The King of Media arrived the next day with five hundred cataphracts, their squires, four thousand horse archers and five thousand foot soldiers. Media’s soldiers wore blue tunics and grey leggings but it was the first time I had seen Atrax’s professional foot soldiers.

‘I have spent the last three years equipping and training them,’ he said with pride as I rode with him, Demaratus and Herneus as we inspected his troops on the Plain of Makhmur, the great flatland across the Tigris opposite Assur, which could accommodate an army with ease. Following Domitus’ relief of the city I had sent a second despatch to Atrax telling him that he need not rush to our aid. This had allowed him to bring his foot soldiers with his horsemen. At the same time I had also sent a courier to Hatra to assure Gafarn that Assur was safe and asked him not to engage the Armenians until I arrived.

Each of Media’s foot soldiers was ensconced in a helmet with a large neck protector and cheekguards, a short-sleeved scale armour tunic, similar to that worn by his heavy horsemen, thick leather greaves over leather boots and a large oval shield faced with hide painted black and sporting the white dragon of Media. But the most remarkable thing about these soldiers was that their main weapon was a mace, a short length of wood topped with a spiked iron head. They also carried swords and daggers but these troops were obviously equipped and armed to literally batter their way through an enemy formation.

‘The Armenians have heavy foot soldiers,’ said Atrax, ‘so these men have been created to fight and destroy them.’

‘They do Media credit, majesty,’ remarked Demaratus.

‘They certainly do,’ I agreed.

The next day we left Assur for Hatra. I hoisted myself onto Remus in the palace courtyard while outside the city twenty-three thousand foot soldiers and four and a half thousand horsemen marched west into the desert. Beside me Gallia was on Epona with the Amazons drawn up behind us. Herneus and his officers stood at the foot of the palace steps, flanked by the high priests from the temples and the city officials. The city governor stepped forward and bowed his head.

‘You have saved this city, majesty,’ he said to me, then looked at Gallia and bowed once more, ‘and this city will talk of your warriors with reverence and awe for generations, highness.’

‘It was an honour to have fought beside the men of Assur,’ she replied, breaking into a smile.

I leaned forward. ‘I will have your lords and their men returned to you as soon as I get to Hatra, Herneus. And Silaces and his men too.’

He nodded. ‘Thank you, majesty.’

‘One more thing, Herneus. King Aschek and the army of Atropaiene will be arriving here soon on their way to Hatra. Aschek has a tendency to dally when he should make haste, therefore please do not encourage him to stay here and enjoy what will be I’m sure your excellent hospitality.’

He smiled wryly as I raised my hand to those assembled before me. ‘Shamash be with you all,’ then I tugged on Remus’ reins and rode from the courtyard with Gallia and the Amazons following. The city had given thanks to the gods for its deliverance, cremated the dead and had now returned to the greater battle that was the daily struggle for survival.

The march to Hatra was uneventful.

Byrd and Malik scouted with their men and Atrax sent parties of horse archers far and wide in case there were any more Armenian forces in the area but they reported seeing nothing, and when we arrived at the city three days later I learned that the Armenian host that had been advancing from Nisibus had suddenly retreated in haste back to the city. There were thus tens of thousands of horsemen and foot soldiers camped around Hatra with nothing to do but eat up their rations and cover the ground with animal dung.

Marcus established the Duran camp to the north of the city near the city’s northern gates. These gave direct access to Hatra’s vast royal quarter housing the mansions of the kingdom’s richest and most important nobles, the Great Temple dedicated to Shamash, the treasury, the palace and its accompanying gardens, and the royal barracks, armouries and stables. A high, thick wall reinforced by one hundred and fifty towers along its length surrounded the entire city, while a separate wall encompassed the royal quarter. It really was a formidable fortress and one that even an enemy with siege engines would find difficult to reduce.

While Domitus settled the legions and Demaratus’ men into camp I rode with Gallia, Spartacus and Atrax to the palace. As ever it was a place of calm, order and authority; Kogan’s guards in their smart uniforms standing at every pillar and doorway. Clerks and city officials went about their business without any fuss and priests spoke in hushed tones in the corridors.

We walked into the throne room where Kogan himself stood by the dais, along with Vistaspa and a very frail Assur, his hair and beard now totally white. Courtiers standing around the sides of the hall bowed their heads as we made our way to the dais. A rather gaunt Gafarn rose and stepped onto the floor to greet me, and then Gallia and Atrax, while a smiling Diana greeted her son and then embraced Gallia. Orodes, who surprisingly had been standing beside Kogan, came forward and shook my hand, as did Nergal who followed him, while Praxima kissed my cheek. I nodded to Peroz who was standing on the other side of the dais and I also noticed Silaces in the assembly. Worryingly, the sour-faced Apollonius was also present. I hoped Gafarn had not denuded the garrisons of the towns of western Hatra, which were closest to Roman Syria.

The welcomes over, Gafarn returned to stand on the dais.

‘King Pacorus, hero of Assur,’ he said in a loud voice, ‘Hatra salutes you.’

His words were followed by warm applause and I felt myself starting to blush, though as I raised an arm in acknowledgement and turned left and right I noticed that my sister, Adeleh, was not clapping. She had obviously been taking lessons from Aliyeh on how to bear a grudge.

Gafarn stilled the applause. ‘Tonight we will give a feast in honour of King Pacorus and his valiant wife, Queen Gallia, whose warriors stood like a rock to turn back the Armenian tide at Assur.’

Fresh applause broke out and Gafarn and Diana both rose and beckoned us to accompany them as they walked from the throne room to their private quarters. I walked beside Diana as Orodes took the arm of Gallia behind me, followed by Nergal, Praxima, Peroz and Spartacus, who had an arm around the shoulders of his brother, Prince Pacorus.

‘Spartacus fought well at Assur,’ I said to Diana. ‘He is turning into a fine young man and good soldier.’

‘Dura agrees with him,’ she said, linking her arm in mine. ‘He is happy?’

‘It was difficult at first but he has calmed down and applied himself to his duties. Prince Peroz has helped him enormously, for which I am grateful.’

‘What about the Agraci girl?’ asked Gafarn.

‘I wouldn’t worry about that,’ I replied, ‘it was a just a passing fancy. He’s too busy to worry about women.’

The feast that night was truly spectacular. The banqueting hall was crammed with tables at which sat the city’s nobility, Hatra’s senior officers, Assur’s head priests, as well as the commanders of the assembled armies. Dozens of slaves served food heaped on great silver platters while others poured beer and wine into jewel-encrusted gold and silver drinking vessels. My mother made a rare appearance, dressed in a pure white long dress, her hair oiled, curled and fastened in place with gold hairclips, with additional gold at her neck, on her fingers and round her wrists. She sat between me and Gafarn in the place of honour at the top table, laughed and talked, and was once more the Queen of Hatra. I was truly happy that, if only for one night, she was once more the forceful, gracious and witty woman who was the mother I remembered. Everyone was happy it seemed, even Adeleh, though she said nothing to me. But it was a most agreeable occasion and contrasted sharply to the gathering that was held the next day in the office adjacent to the throne room.

Kogan started by giving a very long and detailed account of the numbers of troops in and around Hatra, which, not including the city garrison, numbered two thousand, seven hundred cataphracts, sixty-six thousand horse archers and twenty-three thousand foot soldiers. And these figures did not include the troops that Aschek would be bringing from Atropaiene, which would undoubtedly swell the number to a combined total of over one hundred thousand soldiers.

‘What news do you have of Surena?’ I asked Gafarn.

He leaned back in his chair. ‘My sources inform me that he continues to strike at the Armenians from Gordyene.’

‘And what of the Armenians?’ I probed further.

‘Their forces have dispersed from Nisibus, apparently,’ he replied. ‘They retain a large garrison there but their army has dissipated, it would seem.’

‘Surena holds their attention,’ I said.

‘He fights his own private war,’ stated Orodes disapprovingly. ‘He has answered none of my summons to present himself to me here. It is as if Gordyene has once more been lost to the empire.’

‘We must recapture Nisibus,’ stated Gafarn.

I was not so sure. The Armenians had tricked us once and nearly taken Assur. They had now seemingly dissolved their army they had mustered there, leaving only a garrison behind. Perhaps they hung the prize of Nisibus before us like a fisherman dangles a piece of bait on his rod.

‘No,’ I said.

They all looked at me in surprise.

Gafarn was stunned. ‘No? Have not we mustered this army here, at Hatra, with the sole purpose of curbing the Armenians, brother?’

‘It is as Gafarn says,’ added Orodes.

I shook my head. ‘The fact that the Armenians have retreated from Hatra indicates that they do not wish to engage us in battle. They tried to capture Assur and nearly succeeded, but if they were intent on forcing a battle they would have kept their army together and marched it against Hatra.’

‘Then what do they want?’ asked a confused Atrax.

‘To let Crassus fight their war for them, after which they can pick over the bones of Parthia like a vulture,’ I replied. ‘Artavasdes is not his father, who would have sought victory without any aid.’

Gafarn was unconvinced and began stroking his beard with his hand.

‘Crassus is, and always has been, the biggest threat,’ I said. ‘Defeat him and the Armenians can be dealt with at leisure.

‘Gafarn, you must return the horse archers that Apollonius has brought here back to your western towns, and send Silaces and Herneus’ lords back to Assur.’

‘You would weaken the army by doing so, Pacorus,’ said Atrax.

‘The Armenians may attempt another attack against Assur to give them a strategic crossing point over the Tigris,’ I replied. ‘From Assur they could strike into Media and southern Gordyene, as well as west at Hatra. And the towns of Ichnae, Nicephorium, Carrhae and Zenodotium need reinforcing as they will be in the path of Crassus and his army.’

‘Crassus has not even arrived in Syria,’ said Gafarn irritably.

‘He soon will be,’ I said.

‘And that is why we need all the troops we can muster here, at Hatra,’ he said resolutely.

‘One hundred thousand soldiers,’ I said slowly so everyone could understand, ‘cannot remain at Hatra indefinitely. For one thing they and their animals will quickly exhaust the city’s granaries and will have to disperse anyway. Send Apollonius and his men back to the west and Silaces and the lords of Assur back east. When Crassus arrives in Syria we will march west and meet him at the border.’

‘And the Armenians?’ queried Orodes.

‘The Armenians, my lord,’ I replied, ‘will sit and wait for the outcome.’

Gafarn was shaking his head. ‘They will attack Hatra while our attention is diverted towards Crassus.’

‘It does not matter,’ I said. ‘They will not be able to storm the city but will rather have to mount a siege against it. And how will they water their men and animals? The nearest source is the Tigris, some sixty miles away.’

I could tell that he was still unconvinced but the truth was that we were wasting our time sitting on our backsides at Hatra. If the Armenians were serious about assaulting it they would have already done so. I was therefore relieved when a guard knocked and entered the room to interrupt the uncomfortable silence. He bowed to Gafarn and then whispered something in his ear.

‘Well give it to him, then,’ he said, exasperatedly.

The guard walked to my side, bowed his head once more and held out a papyrus scroll. I took it and unrolled it. It was from Spandarat at Dura and informed me that he had heard from Haytham that an Egyptian army was mustering at Emesa in preparation for an attack against Palmyra.

‘Problems, Pacorus?’ enquired Orodes.

I threw the missive on the table. ‘It would appear that we have been duped again, my friends. That letter was from Dura. An Egyptian army is assembling at Emesa and intends to march west to capture Palmyra, and in my absence Dura no doubt.’

‘Why would the Egyptians attack Dura?’ asked Gafarn.

‘Why? Because Egypt is under the Roman heel and dances to Rome’s tune. Just as we watch the Romans so do they observe us. Crassus has always coveted Dura and now he sees a cheap and easy way to take it: with an Egyptian army that he has no doubt hired.’

‘What will you do?’ asked Atrax.

‘I must return to Dura with my horsemen,’ I replied. ‘Haytham will fight, of that I have no doubt, but he cannot defeat an army of horse and foot on his own. He will need my support.’