Read Hosker, G [Sword of Cartimandua 01] The Sword of Cartimandua for Free Online

his leader, totally fearless, prepared for anything. “Come on you lot. If Venutius gets here before dark we will have to fight our way out. Make sure the animals can carry us; treat them as you would your lover.”
    As they dismounted one wag called out, “Atticus already does.” The men laughed as the most unpopular man in the turma reddened. Marcus took it as a god sign; if they could joke they would fight and if they fought... Marcus would back this turma against any barbarians.
    Ulpius was tall and had to duck beneath the narrow gateway.  Behind him he heard his men leading their mounts through the gateway. The pathway took a sharp right, obviously a defensive strategy to assault an invading enemy from the flank. Behind the outer wall the land was flat and covered in huts and roundhouses laid out in no particular order or discernible pattern. His military mind took over as he followed the guard weaving between the huts. The fortress had an inner fortress and another steep ditch. To his right a forceful stream bubbled its way across the whole fort. At least defenders would be well supplied with water. Ulpius noticed how few guards there were and, apart from those he had met at the gate, what was disconcerting was that none of them looked up for a fight. He realised that any defence of the Queen would come from his handful of men. They passed through another gate, ignored by the warriors who lounged there and Ulpius could see the hall before them. Although not on the scale of a Roman building it was, none the less the most substantial structure he had seen so far in this land of round wooden huts. Ulpius was about to walk directly for it when his guard tugged at his arm.  “This way Roman unless you want to meet the queen with wet feet.”
    Looking ahead Ulpius could now see that the land was boggy and marshy; they were forced to walk a narrow path between the stream and the marsh. He began to understand the workings of the Brigante mind.  This would certainly slow up an assault.  If an enemy attempted to get across the marsh he would be an easy target.  If he took the route past the stream he would be an easy target. The hall was set on a knob of rock which rose higher than all but the earthworks.  It looked almost Roman in its design and construction.  Away on the right he could see further concentric circles of ditches marking out the western boundary. As he walked up to the hall he could see, in the distance, the outer defences; by his reckoning it was three thousand paces from north to south.  He could see much evidence of recent building and construction work.  A mighty structure but to defend it properly one would need a horde far bigger than the handful he had seen. He turned to his guards, “A fine hall.  It looks new.”
    “Aye Roman your Emperor had it built for the Queen.”
    “Did he also put the new defensive walls up?”
    One of the more surly guards sneered,”No Roman, that was our King Venutius.”
    Ignoring the implied insult Ulpius stored the key information. If Venutius had constructed the extra defences and if there still men loyal to the king then it was even more imperative that he escape with the Queen as soon as possible. The defensive qualities were even less if you were assaulted by the man who built the defences.
    His guards stopped him at the entrance of the hall. “Wait here Roman.”
    As he waited Ulpius turned around to survey the land around the refuge for the hall afforded a fine view across the country. The trees had been cut back for some distance but the only other natural defence was a small stream, easily fordable.  He gazed eastwards. That was the direction he would have to take. There was a small outpost at Cataractonium to the south but Eboracum was even closer, fifteen or sixteen miles. If his trooper had got there and raised the alarm and, if the tribune had reacted, the ala could be a mere three or four miles away. It all depended on Venutius and his army