Read Eagle in the Snow for Free Online Page B

he was right.”
    “But the Sarmatians used stirrups too,” I said.
    “They did, but they used their horses for skirmishes, raids and ambushes. They never charged, shoulder to shoulder, in a mass. No man on foot can stand up against that.”
    I was silent. I was interested but I could not see where this was leading.
    He said, “The Sixth must stay at Eburacum as a mobile force in case your heather catches fire again. The Second must stay at Rutupiae to guard the Saxon Shore. That leaves the Twentieth. They are below strength, badly led and under-paid. They have little discipline and no fighting skill. You will take over as their general. Call yourself legate in the old style if you wish. Keep the name of legion and keep the Eagle too, if it is of help. Organise them how you will. Appoint your own officers. But forget the battle drill they taught you in the old legion. You will need bows not javelins now. What I want is a field force of six thousand men, part horse, part infantry, trained and disciplined to fight masses of cavalry in the open, one moment, or build and man a line of forts the next.”
    His eyes were on me and I could not look away. “How long will you give me?” I asked. I could hardly take in what he was saying.
    “Be ready in a year and expect my summons after that.” He handed me a parchment. “Here is a commission, signed by the Emperor. The name has not been filled in, but I will do that before we eat.”
    I said, “Does the Emperor know that I am not a christian?”
    “Oh, yes. Why else do you think a man of your ability has stayed up here all these years?”
    “But did he not mind, sir?”
    Stilicho smiled. “I persuaded him to bend his own laws a little.”
    He stayed for the midday meal, talking all the while, and then left. His last words were typical. “I will order two cloaks for you in Eburacum. It is well to assume the dignity with the power. The one always helps the other.”
    I stood outside the gate and watched him go. He was the last Roman general ever to see the Wall under arms.
    “We must drink to the occasion,” said Quintus. “The world is at your feet. From legate to emperor is only a step.” He gave a mock salute, but there was an anxious look in his eyes.
    “Don’t be a fool,” I said, irritably, for I was nervous with excitement. “What lies did you tell him to make him do such a thing?”
    “I told him the truth: that we were the only two honest men upon the Wall. He believed me. You do not lie to a man like that.”
    “No,” I said.
    “When will you leave?” His face was beaded with sweat.
    “In two or three days.” I turned and walked slowly towards my house.
    He followed, even more slowly. “I see.” His voice was expressionless.
    “I want you to come with me to command the cavalry.”
    I could hear his footsteps quicken. “Good,” he said, and there was joy and relief in his voice. “I always knew I could be a second Maharbal if I had the opportunity.”
    Saturninus, when I told him the news, stood very still. “Will you take troops from the Wall, sir?” he said. I shook my head. “No, you are Praefectus here now. But I will take your youngest son, Fabianus, if you will let me.”
    We said our farewells inside my residence and then, alone, I stood and looked at the shrine that had meant so much to Aelia and wondered, for a moment, if what she had said had been true, and that I would see her again, and that this long, intolerable ache was, indeed, only the symptom of a temporary parting. Then I went out into the sun and inspected my men for the last time.
    Outside the south gate Quintus was waiting with a group of horsemen. He and Saturninus gave each other a long look. They had never been friends. There had been a curious constraint between them for years that I had never attempted to probe or understand. We, who spent our lives in small communities, had long ago learned that it was wise not to ask too many questions.
    Saturninus said, calmly,