Sword of Rome: Standard Bearer Read Online Free PDF

Tiber. Britain would not be built in a
day, but Rome would build it up, the centurion thought to himself .
    “They’re from the north. They’ve got a
language, dress sense and cuisine all of their own – which you’d want them to
keep for themselves. With their red hair, pale skin and rasping war cry they’ll
be some of the scariest foes you’ve ever encountered. And their women are even
scarier. Indeed this trio are probably down from their
home to get away from their wives,” Teucer expressed,
half in jest. “But these picts could prove
formidable. They fight hard and dirty. Think of this agent as being protected
by Roscius , times three. Caesar and Rome would do
well not to poke the hornet’s nest of the tribes in the far north.”
      Oppius and Teucer had little time
to worry about barbarians from the north however, as they were soon attacked by
local brigands.

 

 
 
    12.

 
    Rain began to spit down again from a slate coloured sky. Leaves rustled and then bracken snapped.
    They appeared quickly, in two pairs, from
either side of the dense woodland that the road ran through. All four of the
young men had their bows drawn. Oppius briefly
thought to himself if the youths had camouflaged themselves, or it they were
naturally grimy and feral. Both Oppius and Teucer knew that they were at a disadvantage and resisted
reaching for their weapons.
    The apparent leader of the brigands stepped
forward and occupied the middle of the road. The youth had a sinewy body,
harelip and sadistic aspect, which shone as brightly as the dagger he held up,
after slinging his bow back over his shoulder.
    “This here is our road – and you need to pay a
toll.”
    Teucer fancied that he would gladly have paid the toll if he thought that
it would have gone to the upkeep of the road.
    Oppius assessed the situation. The youths would be easy to best, just as
soon as they lowered their bows. With three of them still training their bows
on the two of them it was likely that at least one of them would not escape
falling to the brigands. Already the centurion noticed how their arms were
tiring though, whilst also grinning inanely as they thought about what they
would spend their booty on. They would also soon switch to holding their
daggers too as greed overtook them and they searched their victims for any
valuables they possessed. The two brigands to his right, nearest to him, looked
strong but unskilled. He would allow Teucer to deal
with their leader in front of him and the pock-marked barbarian to his left.
    “Let’s not fuck about. What have you got on
you?”
    Both soldiers, thinking the same thing, merely
raised their arms – willing to be searched – rather than retrieved their
valuables themselves. The lead brigand paused however, just as he was about to
search Teucer .
    “Do I know you?” he asked, squinting
suspiciously at the archer.
    “Doubtful. I probably would have killed you if
we had met before.”
    “No, I do know you. You’re Adiminus .
This, lads, is the brother of our chieftain. Caradog should reward us if we bring him back with us,” the youth remarked, his harelip
curling even more, in a smirk.
    “How is my brother?”
    “He’s doing a lot better than you, by the
looks of it,” he replied, with a snigger. His companions grinned at his joke
too. Two of them slung their bows over their shoulders and removed their
hunting knives.
    “And how is my mother?”
    “She’s dead. She crossed over a year ago.”
    “Give her my regards, when you see her.”
    “What? You should be worried about the kind of
regards your brother is going to show you. He’ll welcome you with a campfire –
and then cook you on it,” the brigand replied, letting out a laugh.
    They all now looked at each other and laughed.
It was the distraction that the professional soldiers had been waiting for. In
one swift, smooth movement Teucer gripped the brigand
by the throat in one hand and plucked an arrow from the quiver on his back