Empire Under Siege Read Online Free

horse’s bridle. “Send the signal. Use the damned flags, no time for runners. The legion fathers are to detach the rearmost five cohorts; they will form on the Fifth.” Martius knew that this order abandoned the Second legion, who held the position directly west of the beleaguered Third, but he needed to buy more space and time. Three legions was the price he must pay for it. They would be hard pressed and unable to manoeuvre in any case. “Standard formation, ten deep and charge.”
    Villius nodded, licked his lips and turned to relay the instructions.  
    “Oh and Villius,” Martius said.
    “Sir?”
    “The cohorts from the first three legions will advance as soon as they have formed, the others will form behind and advance in support. Father Keint of the Fifth Legion will lead… on foot.”
    “Sir.”
    Turbis nodded and let out a snort. “So the others can advance behind, you can use them to form the legions into a fighting square if it doesn’t work?”
    “Yes.” Martius replied
    A puzzled expression crossed Turbis’s florid face, “But I don’t understand - why is Keint on foot?”
    “Villius.” Martius chose to ignore Turbis for the moment, time was too short for niceties. “The bodyguard cavalry are to detach from each legion and reform on command. We will meet them on the field. The fathers are to remain on foot to lead, with their runners only, understood?”
    Villius frowned, “But sir, as General Turbis says, the fathers…”
    “Will be trapped with their legions. Yes, I know.” Martius knew the legion fathers would understand the stakes - most would rather die with their men than face the infamy and shame of defeat; whilst the legions would fight all the more fiercely if their leaders were in danger. “Do as you are ordered, son.”
    His face flushing red, Villius turned to pass instructions to the flag operators.
    “Martius,” Turbis’s tone was commanding, perhaps showing his annoyance at being ignored. “What is the plan? Why are the fathers on foot?”
    Martius’s brow furrowed. “We need the fathers with their men. The infantry will never get there in time though; we need to do something, fast. If the damned Xandarian cavalry auxiliaries had arrived, we might not have faced this problem.” But there had been so little time to muster, the emperor’s orders had been so late coming. “We have two hundred cavalry with command. With the legion guards, we will number over five hundred. We will form up and charge.”
    “Martius…” Turbis dropped his voice to a whisper. “Command are mostly boys, old men, scribes and runners. Many have no battle experience.”
    “They soon will, old friend. They soon will.”

CHAPTER FIVE
Turbis

    TURBIS FELT THE FAMILIAR emotions of battle roiling through his mind and fought the urge to yawn. This always happened before battle, and Turbis had observed it in others many times; but it had always struck him as decidedly odd, for he certainly was not tired.  
    He found his body was eager for the madness of battle once more. Turbis wondered if too many years sat behind a desk, too many years in the pleasure houses of the capital since his beloved wife Symia passed, too much food and wine, would lead to his death. He knew he was not the man he had once been, but there was no more noble end than death in battle. And it was certainly preferable to death in a brothel. Sensing his time might have come, Turbis embraced the opportunity to create a fitting end to his legend.
    The last seven years had not been kind to Turbis. Where once he had been whip thin, the epitome of the imperial soldier, now he was bloated - a self-conscious and grotesque version of his former self. Turbis’s only real exercise was a regular stroll around the gardens of his town house, where he still tended the roses that Symia had loved so much.
    Riding beside Martius, Turbis couldn’t help but marvel at the man. Martius was fifteen years his junior but looked much younger than