S. Turney - The conquest of Gaul

Longinus sat silently, and Tetricus looked distinctly uncomfortable in the combined presence of so many superior officers. Fronto opened his mouth to speak, but Balbus pitched in before him.

“Caesar, I appreciate that there has been no problem with the raising of your two legions at Aquileia, and that there may be no problem with raising auxiliary units here, but there are a couple of factors I would like to draw to your attention.”

Caesar nodded at him.

“Go ahead Balbus.”

“Firstly, it will cost us to raise any troops here. Geneva is not a wealthy city, so any funding of units and extra equipment they need will have to come from us. Also, we are expecting the Helvetii any time now. We will not have time to give the auxiliaries anything more than the most basic of training, and they will remain in that state when we leave, which is dangerous for the security of the frontier.”

Caesar frowned.

“The funding will not be a problem. My retinue brought a chest of denarii with them, raised in Rome for the very purpose of support of my Governorship. This is to be used sparingly, as it has to last, but should certainly be enough to cover these units.”

Balbus nodded approvingly and the General continued.

“I had not fully appreciated the problem of training time, this is true. However, I will find a way to delay them. Would two weeks extra be enough to get them through the basic drills do you think gentlemen?”

Fronto nodded. “Given the training manpower, three to four weeks in total should be enough to at least make them useful, if not competent. We would obviously have to devote their training specifically to the type of work and warfare we are expecting here. I think that gives us a little edge. I’ll confirm everything with Velius when he arrives.”

“Good.” Caesar smiled at the Tenth’s legate.

As the General continued talking, he leaned down to the table and began to write furiously. “Fronto, I am hereby placing Velius in charge of the training of all new units we can furnish in Further Gaul while the he’s still in the Province. When he arrives, have him quarter the legions and then report to me.”

Caesar cast his eyes over the paperwork and then looked up once more, this time focusing on Tetricus.

“Tribune, I want you to take charge of the engineering works here. Regardless of our defensive position behind the river, there are ways the Helvetii could outflank or otherwise outmanoeuvre us. The land between the lake and Mount Jura is unsecured, so I want a wall and ditch constructed between the two, close to the River’s south bank.”

Tetricus’ eyes widened. “Sir, that’s nearly twenty miles!”

“Yes, but the army has embarked on more ambitious projects than that before and succeeded. I want you to take the best engineers from the Eighth, along with as many labourers as you need, and start surveying for the best sites. There’s plenty of time, but I want the initial construction to be underway by the end of tomorrow. I will leave it to the discretion of you two as to how many men you can reasonably take for the job. I just want it done as quickly as possible.”

Caesar’s eyes moved on to Fronto.

“That means that you get the other engineering project, Marcus. I want the bridge completely dismantled. It’s a weak spot in our defences, and I need it removed. It’ll be a large task, as it’s a Roman bridge and not one of the local ramshackle constructions. Go with Tetricus and select some of the engineers for the task. In fact, I want you to liaise with the tribune on every aspect of the defences. Tetricus may be very clever and experienced with fortifications, but you will need to make sure that anything he comes up with is suitable for the disposition of the men.”

Fronto nodded.

“Of course, sir.”

He turned to Tetricus.

“I suggest we take a walk down by the bridge and the river before we go and sort the personnel out.”

Tetricus nodded respectfully.

“Perhaps sir, but I will need a little time first. I need to take stock of all our assets before we begin planning. I do think perhaps it would be better if we found our engineers first. They may have useful suggestions.”

Fronto shrugged.

“You’re the expert.”

Smiling benignly, the general turned to face the older commander of the group.

“Balbus, you know this territory and its people better than anyone here. I need you to liaise between all the more senior officers here and myself. I want you to give a great deal of attention to the maps and find any holes in our strategy, any weak spots, or anything else of which I have not taken account. Moreover, I want you and Fronto to come up with a reasonable plan for the disposition of the Eighth Legion and two training legions along the river and the defences Tetricus will be constructing. This brings me to you, Longinus.”

The commander of the Ninth frowned.

“Sir, I can’t really understand why I’m here and not with my legion.”

Caesar leaned back in his chair.

“I want you to command the cavalry attached to the Eighth, separately, along with the mounted auxiliary units. You will be in charge of placing scouts and running mounted patrols on the other side of the river and along the lake shore. Should there be a serious engagement, I will want you commanding the cavalry there too.”

He smiled with satisfaction.

“I will continue to base myself here, and the four of you will have access day or night. If I am asleep and you need me for anything, speak to one of my adjutants and they will wake me. I think that just about covers it unless any of you have a question or comment?”

As the four officers in the room remained silent, shaking their heads, Caesar nodded and dismissed them.

At the front door of the headquarters building Longinus split off to find the Eighth’s cavalry prefect, and Balbus spoke directly to Fronto for the first time; his voice deep, soft and weary.

“I get the impression from what Caesar says that your man Velius is a fair asset. He’s obviously not even considering my training officer.”

Fronto nodded, examining Balbus’ face for signs of disapproval, but the older man appeared to be stating it as fact rather than making a complaint.

“He’s a good man. A little too straight talking some times, but that can be useful. Caesar knows what he can do. The Tenth were undermanned when I took control and around a third of the legion were new recruits a month ago. Velius had them working together like veterans in no time. We have some good men in the Tenth.”

He smiled. “If it’s alright with you, I’ll head off with Tetricus now and find some men.”

Tetricus, following the other two at a respectful distance, cleared his throat. Fronto turned.

“Tetricus, we’re not Senators; we’re soldiers. If we’re going to work together this next couple of weeks, you’re going to have to relax a little. For a start, you can call me Marcus, and you can walk with us, rather than behind us.”

“Yes Marcus. It just feels a bit odd. Crassus doesn’t approve of his tribunes addressing him as anything other than sir.”

Balbus smiled.

“Crassus is very young. Once he’s fought across the continent and acquired arthritis in two or three joints, he’ll settle down like Marcus and I. And call me Quintus, too.”

Tetricus smiled. “I’m Gaius.”

Balbus patted Tetricus on the shoulder. “We have some good men in the Eighth too, but they’re used to being the only ones in the Province. You’ll have to put your foot down with them. They may be a little put out at being assigned to another officer, even if he’s appointed by Caesar. They’re proud of the Eighth and of being the guardians of civilisation here in the north.”