Retrieving the Ninth Legion’s Eagle in Britannia
Chapter 5: Beyond Hadrian’s Wall
- Hadrian’s Wall stretches 130 kilometers from west to east across the country, a formidable line of forts and watchtowers, shutting out the unruly tribes of the north.
- One morning in early summer, Marcus and Esca ventured north of the Wall, a region once held by Roman valor before the tribes reclaimed it.
- Esca again wore the clothes of his own people. Marcus, disguised as a Briton with a newly grown beard, adopted the identity of “Demetrius of Alexandria,” an oculist, complete with authentic papers.
- They rode horses that had belonged to the Roman army, and Marcus’s medicine chest was tied to Esca’s horse.
- They traveled from coast to coast, moving slowly north.
- They hoped to find traces of the lost Legion. Rufrio Galario had taught Marcus the use of medicines, and Marcus diligently assisted any clients seeking his help.
- They reached as far as the Caledonian Mountains, where they “lost the trail” and decided to head back south.
- Three nights later, they stopped at the ancient fort of Trinomontium.
- Thirty years prior, Valentia had been under Roman control. Now, its streets were overgrown with tall grass and its roofs collapsed. There, Marcus made a fire. After eating, they settled down to sleep.
- Marcus woke early to find Esca kneeling beside him. “Listen,” Esca whispered. They heard someone whistling a familiar tune, one of the legion’s favorites.
- The man inquired about their presence, and they explained they had sought shelter from the rain the previous night. The man then asked if Marcus was the eye doctor, to which Marcus affirmed.
- The man was about 40 years old, tall and strong, with thick gray hair and skin painted blue. He introduced himself as Guern, the hunter. His home was a day’s walk to the west.
- Marcus: Demetrius of Alexandria
- Esca: Esca Mac Cunoval, of the Brigantes tribe.
- Marcus asked how he learned these songs, and Guern replied that he had learned them from a soldier who used to hunt with him when he was a boy.
Guern’s tribe had no need for an ophthalmologist, yet he invited them to his home. Guern’s wife, Murna, and his two sons watched quietly.
The next morning, Guern decided to shave. Marcus noticed an old scar beneath his chin, a mark left by the chin strap of a Roman helmet after long years of use.
Marcus asked him, “When were you a soldier in the legions?”
Guern reacted, replying, “I was second in command of the Ninth Legion.”
Marcus, who had served in the Second Legion two years prior until he was wounded, then asked about “The Eagle.”
Guern recounted the story of his father: sixty years ago, when the legion fought the Iceni tribe under Queen Boudica. The legion won, and she took her own life.
All of northern Britannia erupted in flames as the tribes attacked. The Ninth Legion won battles against the Brigantes and Iceni, then proceeded to Valentia to fight the Caledonians, though their numbers had dwindled to less than 4,000.
The legion threatened the men with death if they laid down their arms, but the men, disbelieving, engaged in a fight that resulted in the legate’s death.
“Your father called together the remaining men of the Ninth Legion, and we decided to try to bring the Eagle back to Eburacum. That night, under cover of the fog, we began to march towards Trinomontium. But the tribesmen found our trail and began to hunt us down.” Guern touched his left leg. “I had a wound I could put three fingers in. I could walk, but I couldn’t take it anymore. I hated being hunted, and it got the better of me. When it got dark, I hid in the thick grass. Early the next morning, I reached a village and found the threshold of the first house. Murna, who is now my wife, found me.”
Chapter 6: The Feast of New Spears
The men who carried the Eagle north were of the Epidii tribe, who live among the mountains on the west coast. Esca observed, “We have companions on the road.”
Esca noted, “There were five men, two of them carrying a dead animal, and several dogs.” The men were browner and smaller than those of the Valentinian tribes and, Marcus suspected, more dangerous.
Marcus went with the chief to the village, with Esca and the other men following. The village was situated on a hill above a lake. The chief led Marcus and Esca to his house, where a young man, the chief’s brother, came out to meet them. “Was the hunt well, Dergdian?” he asked. “Yes,” replied the chief. “And I have brought home an oculist and his spearman.”
Inside the house, it was very hot. A slave girl was preparing food, and an old man sat by the fire, looking at Marcus with piercing, glowing eyes. Then, a tall, dark girl appeared from behind a curtain.
“Let it wait, Fionhula,” the chief instructed. “I’ve brought home an oculist, so go and fetch the boy.”
Hope flickered in the woman’s dark eyes, and she disappeared behind the curtain. She returned with a little boy, about two years old, in her arms. As light fell upon his face, Marcus saw that the child’s eyes were very red and almost closed. “He will go blind,” stated the old man by the fire. It was Tradui, the Chief’s grandfather. “I have told you he will go blind, and I am never wrong.”
One night, Marcus observed the Chief carefully cleaning a heavy war spear, which was adorned with eagle feathers.
The Chief noticed Marcus watching. “It is for the Feast of the New Spears. For the warrior dance that comes next.” “The Feast of the New Spears is when your boys become men, isn’t it?” Marcus inquired.
“Yes,” said Dergdian. “The boys come here from all over the tribe when it is time to receive their weapons. We are the guardians of the sacred place,” Dergdian continued. “We guard the Life of the Tribe. This happens at the time of the New Moon.”
The next day, children and their parents began to arrive from the farthest reaches of the tribal lands. On the second night, the boys who were to receive their weapons departed.
On the third night, the tribe gathered around the lakeshore, watching the golden sky in the southwest. Marcus stood with Esca and Liathan, the chief’s brother, as the crowd waited in silence.
Suddenly, the new moon appeared, signaling the men to ascend the hills and descend into the valley on the other side. At the head of the valley stood a small artificial hill, surrounded by tall standing stones. “That is the Place of Life,” Liathan explained.
Soon, Marcus found himself standing in the shadow of one of the large stones. He looked at the hill and saw a door covered with the skin of a seal. Was the Eagle lost on the other side of that curtain of skin?
A sudden flame erupted, torches were lit, and several young warriors entered the empty space between the great stones. Then, the sealskin curtain was pulled back, and a man stepped out. He wore only a sealskin, his head adorned with a headdress, and more men followed him, all wearing animal skins or feathers on their heads. They danced in a circle among the tall stones. The circle then opened, leaving a man in their midst, who began to speak rapidly. Soon after, boys began to appear from the dark side of the fur curtain until fifty or more “New Lances” stood among the stones.
The last boy to emerge was followed by a man. On the man’s head were eagle feathers. A shout rang out through the crowd. Marcus stared at what the man held.
The Eagle was still attached to the end of his staff, though it had lost its silver wings. Marcus recognized it instantly: it was the lost Eagle of his father’s legion.
It was a ring, its green stone gleaming in the firelight. Marcus took it from him and held it gently.
Chapter 7: Retrieving the Eagle Standard
Marcus and Esca finalized their plans. Marcus informed the Chief that they would depart south the following day. Dergdian wished for him to stay until spring, but Marcus explained their desire to be in the south before winter’s arrival.
When night fell, Marcus and Esca lay down to sleep as usual. They remained quiet and attentive until the entire household was asleep. Then, in silence, they rose, left the Chief’s house, and headed for the sacred place, the Place of Life.
Upon arrival, they paused outside, listening. It was a dark, still night, and all was silent.
Inside the sacred place, a white stone stood in the center.
They found the Eagle by the far wall. As Marcus grasped it, he realized that the last Roman hand to touch the staff had been his father’s.
The staff was too large to carry secretly, so Marcus quickly began the difficult task of removing the Eagle from its top.
They walked towards the lake. Esca then removed his clothes and dived into the water. Marcus handed him the Eagle and watched Esca move along the shore until he could no longer see him.
When Esca returned, his hair wet and shiny, he was no longer carrying the Eagle.
Four hours later, Marcus and Esca bid farewell to Dergdian and traveled south along the lakeshore, then northeast through the mountains.
That night, they found themselves on the shore of another long lake and spent the night in a small village by the water.
The next day, as expected, seven tribesmen pursued Marcus and Esca, catching up with them as they rode into another village on the other side of the lake. Dergdian and his brother were among the tribesmen, their faces grim, carrying their spears.
Marcus and Esca watched as their bags and clothes were searched.
Marcus and Esca watched them ride away until they could no longer see them, then rode on. As they reached the other end of the lake, they saw the houses of a village and the blue smoke from campfires rising into the sky between the mountains. They had been there before.
“It’s time for me to come down with a fever,” Esca declared, beginning to sway from side to side, his eyes half-closed. “My head!” he cried, “My head is burning!”
“Sit a little further forward and move a little less,” Marcus advised, beginning to lead Esca’s horse.
The villagers came to greet them, glad to see them return. Marcus explained that his spearman was ill with fever and needed to rest for two or three days. He requested a place to stay away from their homes, to prevent the fever from spreading, and they offered him an unused stable.
For three nights and two days, Marcus guarded the stable. Twice a day, one of the women brought food and milk, placing it on a flat stone outside.
On the third night, Esca returned, carrying the Eagle under his arm, wrapped in the blue cloak. He had been sick for three or four days.
Holding the heavy golden bird in his hands.
Esca looked at a corner of the cloak. “The ring brooch! It’s gone!”
Esca remembered losing the brooch near a tree by the river and offered to go in search of it, but Marcus told him not to go, suggesting they should proceed to Valentia soon. “They will think better of it,” Marcus added.