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Election Results - 77 BCE
(The Year of the Consulship of Gavrus and Quintilius)
(The Year of the Consulship of Gavrus and Quintilius)
C. Promenadius Verres Liberus' bid for the consulship fails due to insufficient support! The consuls-elect are M. Lucilius Gavrus and T. Fulvius Quintilius, two men of no factional allegiance! Little is known about these two save their desire to secure their reputations for posterity! [-2 Prestige, -2 Popularity to C. Promenadius Verres Liberus]
I. Vibius Malleolus secures his election as curule aedile! [+2 Popularity to I. Vibius Malleolus]
L. Aetius is elected for a second term as quaestor! Several young men in Rome are heard to grumble! [+2 Prestige for L. Aetius]
Of the remaining quaestorships, 10 go to men of no declared faction, 6 go to Optimate candidates, and 3 go to Populare candidates.
Of the remaining aedileships, two go to men of no declared faction and the third goes to a Populare candidate.
Of the ten praetorships, five go to men of no declared faction, three go to Optimate candidates, and two go to Populare candidates.
The terms of A. Furius Camillus, S. Aurelius Severus, T. Lucillius, M. Hilarius Fimbria, I. Vibius Malleolus, and M. Icilius Damasus end. All return to Rome.
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Pirates of the Mediterranean
The Sea
The Sea
The city of Ephesus reels from a daring pirate raid, the third in as many years!
An entire rag-tag fleet descended upon the unsuspecting metropolis in the dead of night!
They burned port buildings! Slaughtered the defending militia! Looted the city treasury! Enslaved Roman citizens!
Survivors reported the symbol of the bull on their attackers! The symbol of the island of Crete, a haven for the lawless!
The pirates grow bolder and stronger with each passing day! Their depredations savage Roman commerce, even as their slave markets bolster Roman agriculture!
What is to be done?
GM: This is an ongoing event. Until it has been resolved, any character traveling in the Eastern Mediterranean may be subject to special consequences. Additional consequences may arise over time.
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The Agenda of 77 BCE
The City of Rome
The City of Rome
- Outgoing consuls S. Aurelius Severus (Olligarchy - Undeclared) and F. Pollius Priscus (NPC - Undeclared) are to receive proconsular imperium over a province in the coming year and must receive their assignments.
- Outgoing praetors (5 Optimates, 2 Populares, 1 Undeclared) are to receive propraetorial imperium over a province in the coming year and must receive their assignments.
- The rebellion in Hispania Ulterior conducted by P. Sidonius (NPC - Populares) continues with no end in sight. The military forces currently in Spain are presently without leadership. Should additional forces be assigned to Spain? Who should lead them?
- The Dalmatae continue to menace Roman settlements in Illyricum. Should additional forces be assigned to Illyria?
- The ongoing pirate problem in the eastern Mediterranean is getting worse.
Manius Lollius Paneca stands, his voice filled with anger.
"Under the banner of the Bull, Rome is made a mockery of, its safety threatened by mere pirates! We can not stand to see Romans bent before Cretans, and so it must be that the haven of piracy is brought to heel with all due force. Ephesus bleeds from this threat, and so too does the Republic itself!
I call upon the Conscript Fathers and our honored Consuls to dispatch a force or delegate to install order within Crete and to once again make our seas proper for commerce to go without fear and loss."
"Under the banner of the Bull, Rome is made a mockery of, its safety threatened by mere pirates! We can not stand to see Romans bent before Cretans, and so it must be that the haven of piracy is brought to heel with all due force. Ephesus bleeds from this threat, and so too does the Republic itself!
I call upon the Conscript Fathers and our honored Consuls to dispatch a force or delegate to install order within Crete and to once again make our seas proper for commerce to go without fear and loss."
"Honored Conscript Fathers, several momentous events have occurred during my tenure as Propraetor of Gallia Cisalpina, most of them to the detriment of the Republic. A matter of the utmost importance has arisen within the past year, but it has yet to be addressed, or to my knowledge even considered. For this matter to continue without a response and resolution would be most unfortunate for the good of the Republic. All true Romans would agree that we need a solution to this sudden concern that we were unprepared for.
I am of course referring to the organization of Cyrenaica as a province of the Republic. I am certain you all understand now the issue at stake here, but I shall further explain the matter for the sake of formality. There are currently 8 praetors of the Republic, and 2 consuls. After these ten men serve their terms, they become propraetors and proconsuls respectively, as we all know. Enough men to govern 10 provinces, the number the Republic has. Or had as it were, since the incorporation of Cyrenaica means the Republic now has 11 provinces. Thus the Republic now finds itself short of officials to govern all its provinces. The term of a propraetor or proconsul may be prorogued to overcome this issue, but such is merely a temporary solution. To permanently solve the matter, we must increase the number of praetors to be assigned.
Yet merely increasing the number of praetors by one is an untraditional method. To increase the number of praetors by two would be more traditional. Yet then we would have a problem in the opposite direction, too many propraetors rather than too few. But a solution to this dilemma presents itself to us presently. The vile Cretans harass and raid the merchants of the Republic, causing much consternation in the eastern seas. An end must be brought to these pirates, and Crete incorporated to ensure that never again can they threaten good Romans. If Crete were conquered and incorporated, then the Republic would gain its twelfth province, and two praetors could be added, to govern Rome's two newest provinces, in a way befitting tradition.
But pirates and provincial governance are not the only concerns facing Rome. Most troublesome and threatening are the recent actions of, previously consul now proconsul, Severus. The reforms of wise Sulla have been struck down, just as I warned a year ago. Not only did he grant unnecessary strength to the Plebeian Tribune, but he also struck down the laws restricting the repetition of elections, allowing some men to accumulate power much faster. The ambitions of Proconsul Severus are now plain to see, for it cannot be denied that the removal of such reforms certainly allow him to raise himself ever higher without restriction. Despite the efforts of myself and others to halt the desecration of Sulla's memory and legacy within the year of his death, agents of chaos, ambition, and disorder allowed such a travesty to develop.
But though the laws of Sulla's reforms may be gone, their spirit is not. Myself, and my fellow Optimates, will not cease in our pursuit of a stable and prosperous Republic, free from the tyranny of the mob and the whims of powerful men. We will restore the reforms of Sulla, and turn Rome back from this dangerous course it has been misled upon by the ambitions of a few. All good and true Romans should join such a noble and righteous effort.
In summary, I propose that Gnaeus Servilius Geminus ((NPC Optimate Praetor)) command the Legio XVII and subdue Crete, to end the threat of piracy and secure a new province for the Republic so that we may increase the number of Praetors."
I am of course referring to the organization of Cyrenaica as a province of the Republic. I am certain you all understand now the issue at stake here, but I shall further explain the matter for the sake of formality. There are currently 8 praetors of the Republic, and 2 consuls. After these ten men serve their terms, they become propraetors and proconsuls respectively, as we all know. Enough men to govern 10 provinces, the number the Republic has. Or had as it were, since the incorporation of Cyrenaica means the Republic now has 11 provinces. Thus the Republic now finds itself short of officials to govern all its provinces. The term of a propraetor or proconsul may be prorogued to overcome this issue, but such is merely a temporary solution. To permanently solve the matter, we must increase the number of praetors to be assigned.
Yet merely increasing the number of praetors by one is an untraditional method. To increase the number of praetors by two would be more traditional. Yet then we would have a problem in the opposite direction, too many propraetors rather than too few. But a solution to this dilemma presents itself to us presently. The vile Cretans harass and raid the merchants of the Republic, causing much consternation in the eastern seas. An end must be brought to these pirates, and Crete incorporated to ensure that never again can they threaten good Romans. If Crete were conquered and incorporated, then the Republic would gain its twelfth province, and two praetors could be added, to govern Rome's two newest provinces, in a way befitting tradition.
But pirates and provincial governance are not the only concerns facing Rome. Most troublesome and threatening are the recent actions of, previously consul now proconsul, Severus. The reforms of wise Sulla have been struck down, just as I warned a year ago. Not only did he grant unnecessary strength to the Plebeian Tribune, but he also struck down the laws restricting the repetition of elections, allowing some men to accumulate power much faster. The ambitions of Proconsul Severus are now plain to see, for it cannot be denied that the removal of such reforms certainly allow him to raise himself ever higher without restriction. Despite the efforts of myself and others to halt the desecration of Sulla's memory and legacy within the year of his death, agents of chaos, ambition, and disorder allowed such a travesty to develop.
But though the laws of Sulla's reforms may be gone, their spirit is not. Myself, and my fellow Optimates, will not cease in our pursuit of a stable and prosperous Republic, free from the tyranny of the mob and the whims of powerful men. We will restore the reforms of Sulla, and turn Rome back from this dangerous course it has been misled upon by the ambitions of a few. All good and true Romans should join such a noble and righteous effort.
In summary, I propose that Gnaeus Servilius Geminus ((NPC Optimate Praetor)) command the Legio XVII and subdue Crete, to end the threat of piracy and secure a new province for the Republic so that we may increase the number of Praetors."
Propertius, on campaign in Illyricum, writes a report to the Senate, which reaches it shortly after the elections.
"Most honored Conscript Fathers, I write to you not with the intent to bore or to sway, but to inform.
"Judging by the simple fact that the rebellion in Illyricum remains alive, I have, naturally, assumed that some venerable Conscript Fathers in that most honored body have questioned my leadership.
"When I arrived in Illyricum, imbued with the powers vested in me by the most honorable Senate, I believed that the Dalmatae, though devoid of the qualities of a civilized people, would at least display some ancient sense of honor that most peoples, even uncivilized ones like themselves, possessed. I was gravely mistaken. The Dalmatae have refused to give me battle; they have refused to honor my legionaries with the pride of having defeated the enemies of Rome. The savage people that burn Roman villages, murder Roman men and children, and rape and enslave Roman women, are running this way and that, knowing full well the prowess of a legionary with his pilum, and the rightful vengeance that now fills his heart.
"Thus have we learned the enemy's tactics. We believed a war, like those fought against the Carthaginians or the Greeks, to be the surest path to victory. Again, we were wrong. A different war must be fought. I have embraced this. The men placed under my command embrace this, and understand what must be done. Battle will be joined this year, and ultimate victory secured.
"This, on my life and the lives of all my honored descendants, I swear to the Senate and people of Rome."
"Most honored Conscript Fathers, I write to you not with the intent to bore or to sway, but to inform.
"Judging by the simple fact that the rebellion in Illyricum remains alive, I have, naturally, assumed that some venerable Conscript Fathers in that most honored body have questioned my leadership.
"When I arrived in Illyricum, imbued with the powers vested in me by the most honorable Senate, I believed that the Dalmatae, though devoid of the qualities of a civilized people, would at least display some ancient sense of honor that most peoples, even uncivilized ones like themselves, possessed. I was gravely mistaken. The Dalmatae have refused to give me battle; they have refused to honor my legionaries with the pride of having defeated the enemies of Rome. The savage people that burn Roman villages, murder Roman men and children, and rape and enslave Roman women, are running this way and that, knowing full well the prowess of a legionary with his pilum, and the rightful vengeance that now fills his heart.
"Thus have we learned the enemy's tactics. We believed a war, like those fought against the Carthaginians or the Greeks, to be the surest path to victory. Again, we were wrong. A different war must be fought. I have embraced this. The men placed under my command embrace this, and understand what must be done. Battle will be joined this year, and ultimate victory secured.
"This, on my life and the lives of all my honored descendants, I swear to the Senate and people of Rome."
C. P. Verres Liberus stands, clapping too loud for his own ears.
"By the Gods, we see a man of tradition! I could not have said it better myself! To better expand the number of Praetors, let us conquer Crete and be rid of that odious den of pirates. I stand by the motion proposed by Senator Camillus!"
"Let the Cretans see the bodies of their people and say 'woe to the men who incur the wrath of Rome'."
-M. Icillius Damasus
Further more, M. Icillius Damasus, fresh back in Rome, begins a campaign to put Tiberius Pinarius Claudius in full command of the legions of Hispania
-M. Icillius Damasus
Further more, M. Icillius Damasus, fresh back in Rome, begins a campaign to put Tiberius Pinarius Claudius in full command of the legions of Hispania
Hilarius addresses a letter to be read before the Senate.
"Conscript Fathers,
I, M. Hilarius Fimbria, outgoing Quaestor, am trapped in the province of Macedonia due to the blockade of pirates in the eastern sea. Less scrupulous men might cower behind provincial manors and wait for the storm of dissipate - but I am a man of action, having served side-by-side with Sulla himself, and have seen first hand the grisly results of raids by the Cretan tormentor. I cannot, as a man of morals, allow such matters to continue.
I, therefore, ask that the Senate bestow upon me Military Tribuneship once more so that I may, in accordance with my sacred duty to defend the Republic, might take part in the crushing of the Cretan menace in sub-ordinance of a Legate of the Republic - and so I may return to the city of my birth unmolested."
"Conscript Fathers,
I, M. Hilarius Fimbria, outgoing Quaestor, am trapped in the province of Macedonia due to the blockade of pirates in the eastern sea. Less scrupulous men might cower behind provincial manors and wait for the storm of dissipate - but I am a man of action, having served side-by-side with Sulla himself, and have seen first hand the grisly results of raids by the Cretan tormentor. I cannot, as a man of morals, allow such matters to continue.
I, therefore, ask that the Senate bestow upon me Military Tribuneship once more so that I may, in accordance with my sacred duty to defend the Republic, might take part in the crushing of the Cretan menace in sub-ordinance of a Legate of the Republic - and so I may return to the city of my birth unmolested."
Gaius Aurelius Faustus took the floor.
"Honoured Conscript Fathers, like any true Roman should be, I am disgusted at the lawlessness of the Cretan reprobates. We cannot allow it to be said that Rome does not retaliate to wrongs done unto her, nor that her justice is lacking or slow. I therefore propose that we send a delegation to make our demands clear. All Roman citizens must be released. Those responsible must be turned over to Roman justice. All ships engaged in piracy must be destroyed. We must make it abundantly clear that failure to comply with these demands will bring upon them the full wrath of Rome.
"In the intervening time it would seem prudent to build a navy."
Fausts paused here.
"As the imperium of our Republic stretches across the Mediterranean it is incumbent upon us to maintain the peace and prosperity of Roman citizens from one end of it to another. We cannot allow those under our protection to be spirited away to foreign slave markets with impunity. We cannot allow merchants to have their goods stolen, their wares destroyed. This happens under the auspices of this body all for the lack of a navy. No more!
"I call upon my fellow senators to approve the construction of a fleet."
Faustus yields the floor.
"Honoured Conscript Fathers, like any true Roman should be, I am disgusted at the lawlessness of the Cretan reprobates. We cannot allow it to be said that Rome does not retaliate to wrongs done unto her, nor that her justice is lacking or slow. I therefore propose that we send a delegation to make our demands clear. All Roman citizens must be released. Those responsible must be turned over to Roman justice. All ships engaged in piracy must be destroyed. We must make it abundantly clear that failure to comply with these demands will bring upon them the full wrath of Rome.
"In the intervening time it would seem prudent to build a navy."
Fausts paused here.
"As the imperium of our Republic stretches across the Mediterranean it is incumbent upon us to maintain the peace and prosperity of Roman citizens from one end of it to another. We cannot allow those under our protection to be spirited away to foreign slave markets with impunity. We cannot allow merchants to have their goods stolen, their wares destroyed. This happens under the auspices of this body all for the lack of a navy. No more!
"I call upon my fellow senators to approve the construction of a fleet."
Faustus yields the floor.
C. P. Verres Liberus stood, wobbled (his gibbles jibbling), before finally standing like the rotund pillar of stank he was and spoke.
"Senator Faustus brings about a valid point. To sink pirates, one would need a navy! Considering our navy is incredibly limited, no longer the flotilla that crushed Carthage, we should fix this so that we may rain down the fires of Vulcan onto those undignified savages.
Furthermore, I recommend that talks may be begun with the Cretans, so that we may know better how to rule over them when the time comes. I recommend our dignified orator, gracious proconsul, and valued peer, Severus.
As well, I motion that the senatus consultum de Bacchanalibus, established in 568, be removed as an unnecessary restriction of piety and celebration of the Gods."
"Senator Faustus brings about a valid point. To sink pirates, one would need a navy! Considering our navy is incredibly limited, no longer the flotilla that crushed Carthage, we should fix this so that we may rain down the fires of Vulcan onto those undignified savages.
Furthermore, I recommend that talks may be begun with the Cretans, so that we may know better how to rule over them when the time comes. I recommend our dignified orator, gracious proconsul, and valued peer, Severus.
As well, I motion that the senatus consultum de Bacchanalibus, established in 568, be removed as an unnecessary restriction of piety and celebration of the Gods."
I second the motion from the Senator. Rome's navy has been ill-funded and underdeveloped since we bested Carthage, the last great naval power in these lands. How can we fully protect our merchant vessels and our citizens on the open waters from pirates if we have no means to protect them when they are at sea? The power of our legions is unmatched, but last I recall, cannot swim great distances! We need a navy, and due to the urgent need, I will personally pledge part of my own wealth to help aide with the construction!
-M. Icillius Damasus.
Rising from his seat within the Moderate faction, Sextus Aurelius Severus decides against arguing further over his character with the less noble factions of the Senate. Not only was it unbecoming, maybe he should be taking cues from them? If they truly believed he, by all measures an old and loyal Roman was a threat to the Republic itself, maybe he should've been more ambitious in his actions?
"Honoured Conscript Fathers, allow me to be the first to welcome M. Lucilius Gavrus and T. Fulvius Quintilius into their roles as Consuls. May Jupiters might and the wisdom of Minerva's wisdom guide your paths."
"I would also thank this august body of the great trust it places upon mineself especially the greatest faith Liberus seems to place there, but would note that though my skills of oratory and wisdom have no peer" There is a glimmer of self-deprecating humour in his tone,"I find the notion of leading both the Legions of Hispania and making peace in Crete a physical impossibility. As such, I would move that men, both younger and more able in the arts martialis be endowed with these tasks whilst I be allowed to begin my retirement somewhere quiet and out of the way."
"I would however support Senator Faustus' motion for the reconstruction of the Fleet. It remains a wonder how in these times of tumult it has fallen so low as to allow the deprecation of pirates, but that, and our other problems should sort themselves out with some haste once we've once more the mightiest fleet in the Mare Nostrum."
Ceding the floor, Severus considers his future steps.
"Honoured Conscript Fathers, allow me to be the first to welcome M. Lucilius Gavrus and T. Fulvius Quintilius into their roles as Consuls. May Jupiters might and the wisdom of Minerva's wisdom guide your paths."
"I would also thank this august body of the great trust it places upon mineself especially the greatest faith Liberus seems to place there, but would note that though my skills of oratory and wisdom have no peer" There is a glimmer of self-deprecating humour in his tone,"I find the notion of leading both the Legions of Hispania and making peace in Crete a physical impossibility. As such, I would move that men, both younger and more able in the arts martialis be endowed with these tasks whilst I be allowed to begin my retirement somewhere quiet and out of the way."
"I would however support Senator Faustus' motion for the reconstruction of the Fleet. It remains a wonder how in these times of tumult it has fallen so low as to allow the deprecation of pirates, but that, and our other problems should sort themselves out with some haste once we've once more the mightiest fleet in the Mare Nostrum."
Ceding the floor, Severus considers his future steps.
Aetius stood up and began to speak.
"I echo the sentiments of our Honored Fathers, while we fight enemies to our east and west even pirates now hoover above our proud republic like carrion birds looking for an opportunity to pick at our flesh. However, they have made a critical mistake for the Republic will show them the error of their ways, these sea rats should not only be subdued but their haven occupied and annexed directly for the honor and glory of Rome. We will bring down the so called banner of the bull and replace it with the battle standard of our proud legions and avenge Ephesus!
I remain confident in Ilyria, although our alleged disorganization in Hispania is rather troubling. Additional forces should be sent, as for who should lead them..."
Aetius gave a rather curious stance to several Optimate aligned senators
"I leave that to this body to decide regardless of my opinion on the matter."
"I echo the sentiments of our Honored Fathers, while we fight enemies to our east and west even pirates now hoover above our proud republic like carrion birds looking for an opportunity to pick at our flesh. However, they have made a critical mistake for the Republic will show them the error of their ways, these sea rats should not only be subdued but their haven occupied and annexed directly for the honor and glory of Rome. We will bring down the so called banner of the bull and replace it with the battle standard of our proud legions and avenge Ephesus!
I remain confident in Ilyria, although our alleged disorganization in Hispania is rather troubling. Additional forces should be sent, as for who should lead them..."
Aetius gave a rather curious stance to several Optimate aligned senators
"I leave that to this body to decide regardless of my opinion on the matter."
Agenda Results - 77 BCE
(The Year of the Consulship of Gavrus and Quintilius)
(The Year of the Consulship of Gavrus and Quintilius)
T. Pinarius Claudius, the "new Scipio," is appointed legatus of the legions of Hispania Ulterior and charged with the prosecution of the war against Sidonius. An additional legion is dispatched to furthest Spain from the other Spanish province to serve as the propraetor's reserve, outside of young Claudius' authority. [+1 Prestige, +1 Popularity, +2 Legions to T. Pinarius Claudius]
S. Aurelius Severus, an outgoing consul and man of the people, is to be assigned proconsular authority in the coming year. Despite a spirited campaign to have him assigned to the pirate problem in the eastern Mediterranean, Severus' allies in the Senate confirm him as proconsul of the rich province of Africa, making him governor of the Republic's breadbasket. [+4 Prestige, +4 Popularity, +2 Legions to S. Aurelius Severus]
His co-consul, the much unremarked-upon F. Pollius Priscus, is dispatched instead to Crete as part of his duties as proconsul of Macedonia. The Senate charges him with securing the pirates' vessels, a massive indemnity, and hostages. He is given one ship, his bodyguard of lictors, and a small cadre of diplomats. One of his retinue returns to Rome a month later with a substantial ransom demand from the pirates. [F. Pollius Priscus captured; -1 Prestige, -1 Popularity to all Senatorial characters]
The overwhelming majority of the other favorable propraetorian positions are secured by Optimate propraetors, with the few Populare propraetors are consigned to poor, unremarkable provinces like Sardinia et Corsica. [+1 Wealth to all Optimates]
An effort by C. Promenadius Verres Liberus to rescind the century-old prohibition on the Etruscan rite of Bacchanalia falls short in the face of massive public outcry. He is roundly denounced by a legion of Roman patrician mothers as attempting to promote the degeneracy of the Roman youth and the dissolution of the class structure. Despite this, his efforts are well-received among the people, who appreciate the effort. [-1 Prestige, +2 Popularity to C. Promenadius Verres Liberus]
By special decree of the Senate, the Roman Navy is resurrected. Construction begins on two fleets of 100 ships each. While special contributions from some of the more generous members of the Senate help speed things along a bit, the vast majority of the necessary funds are drawn from an increasingly stretched state treasury. Construction proceeds slowly under the auspices of G. Aurelius Faustus, and no serious progress is expected this year. [+2 Fleets to the Republic in 2 years]
GM: This event is now concluded. All normal orders are due by Monday, December 5, at 1200 EST.
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"The capture of the former Consul F. Pollius Priscus shows just how great the need is for the navy in order to combat these pirates. They dare attack Roman ships and take hostage a most revered member of our society? Once the navy is completed, I say we set sail a hundred ships to show the Cretan pirates that the power of Rome will not go unchallenged!"
-M. Icillius Damasus
-M. Icillius Damasus
Seated on his Table of Office at Zama Regia, Sextus Aurelius Severus considers the recent weeks events with the studious air of a philosopher king, attempting to recall the tiniest of details from the senate meetings he'd participated in. No matter how he spun it, it would appear his enemies had made a move on him only weeks before, a move he'd avoided by sheer happenstance.
He was of course thinking of the much spoken of 'pirates' that had oh so conveniently captured his former Co-Consul Priscus when he'd undertaken the journey men like Liberus had insisted he partake in. Not a suspicious or paranoid man by any measure of the words, Severus still found the chain of events more than slightly suspicious. Not only had members of the 'conservative' Senate seemed insistent he travel towards Crete, but the man whom had sailed in his stead had been captured and put for ransom with alarming speed and disregard for his status as a Proconsul of Rome. That chain of events led him to conclude there had been a plot for his life or wealth... a plot he'd avoided by the skin of his teeth.
Should the Senate not pay for the mans ransom with some haste, Severus' fears would be well founded indeed, and he might have to take action to secure his own position and future of his family.
Frowning, the Proconsul of Africa looks down on the letter he'd been writing during his musings.
Deeming it sufficient, Severus rises from his chair and stretches his ageing muscles, before turning to a model of a city on a nearby table with a smile. He had grand plans for his stay in Africa... grand plans indeed...
He was of course thinking of the much spoken of 'pirates' that had oh so conveniently captured his former Co-Consul Priscus when he'd undertaken the journey men like Liberus had insisted he partake in. Not a suspicious or paranoid man by any measure of the words, Severus still found the chain of events more than slightly suspicious. Not only had members of the 'conservative' Senate seemed insistent he travel towards Crete, but the man whom had sailed in his stead had been captured and put for ransom with alarming speed and disregard for his status as a Proconsul of Rome. That chain of events led him to conclude there had been a plot for his life or wealth... a plot he'd avoided by the skin of his teeth.
Should the Senate not pay for the mans ransom with some haste, Severus' fears would be well founded indeed, and he might have to take action to secure his own position and future of his family.
Frowning, the Proconsul of Africa looks down on the letter he'd been writing during his musings.
Letter said:
Deeming it sufficient, Severus rises from his chair and stretches his ageing muscles, before turning to a model of a city on a nearby table with a smile. He had grand plans for his stay in Africa... grand plans indeed...
The tenth legion had arrived two days earlier than Severus’ latter along with his proclamation as legate of the fourth and tenth legion, sadly though he last legion was still out of his reach. Not that it truly bothered him, he had been shocked that he was even made legate to begin with, having been sure that some senator would seek the assignment to earn glory. Tiberius wasn’t quite sure what it was, simple politics in Rome, or did the senate just doom this to be a failed mission and as such wish to avoid the shame. Tiberius, far younger than most to have had such a position as legate over multiple legions, and to be given charge to conduct the warfare against Sidonius, a chance to truly put his name on everyone’s lips before he I enters Rome.
Now Tiberius stood in his red tunic, looking over a map of Hispania Ulterior that was placed upon his table, two pieces of wood, with the symbols IV and X placed down on the river on which they camped. It didn’t take long before he was joined by the tribunes, and high ranking officers of the legions who gathered around the table after saluting.
Tiberius held back his inner smile as he nodded. “Ave.” He said as he looked back down at the table, sighing. “Alright, we are camping along the river.” Tiberius said as he motioned to the two pieces, “We know that this part of the region we are camping in is fairly subdued, however over here to the west the closer we are to the Lusitanians the more unruly the province. So we are going to strike directly into the center of the rebel lands.” Tiberius began moving the pieces along the road towards the western border of the province, “The legions will approach west through the main highway, it will allow easy supply lines to be kept open as long as the governor supports us with his legion to keep the lines open.”
Tiberius looked over the map once more, giving himself a slight nod. “The Lusitanians have friends in the region, the tribe isn’t united and Sidonius needs their support if he wishes to continue this rebellion. We will conduct a campaign of terror through not only the Lusitanians, but every single one of their friends and allies, we will enslave their people, fill the streets of Rome with their women, children and old. We shall take every single item of worth in their villages and burn them to the ground, we will conduct such a campaign of terror that Sidonius will be forced to respond to it if he wishes to keep their support.
If Fortuna favours us then he will be forced to give battle to keep the Lusitanians in line, and if Mars does not abandon us, this rebellion will be over by winter.”
Gaius, a tribune from the IV spoke up “And what if more tribes join them in rebellion, as happened in Illyricum.”
Tiberius simply returned with a smile. “After we have burned their homes and salted their fields they will need new food supplies, drive them into desperation and force them to act, and we will be ready to decimate them when they do.
Dismissed.”
Now Tiberius stood in his red tunic, looking over a map of Hispania Ulterior that was placed upon his table, two pieces of wood, with the symbols IV and X placed down on the river on which they camped. It didn’t take long before he was joined by the tribunes, and high ranking officers of the legions who gathered around the table after saluting.
Tiberius held back his inner smile as he nodded. “Ave.” He said as he looked back down at the table, sighing. “Alright, we are camping along the river.” Tiberius said as he motioned to the two pieces, “We know that this part of the region we are camping in is fairly subdued, however over here to the west the closer we are to the Lusitanians the more unruly the province. So we are going to strike directly into the center of the rebel lands.” Tiberius began moving the pieces along the road towards the western border of the province, “The legions will approach west through the main highway, it will allow easy supply lines to be kept open as long as the governor supports us with his legion to keep the lines open.”
Tiberius looked over the map once more, giving himself a slight nod. “The Lusitanians have friends in the region, the tribe isn’t united and Sidonius needs their support if he wishes to continue this rebellion. We will conduct a campaign of terror through not only the Lusitanians, but every single one of their friends and allies, we will enslave their people, fill the streets of Rome with their women, children and old. We shall take every single item of worth in their villages and burn them to the ground, we will conduct such a campaign of terror that Sidonius will be forced to respond to it if he wishes to keep their support.
If Fortuna favours us then he will be forced to give battle to keep the Lusitanians in line, and if Mars does not abandon us, this rebellion will be over by winter.”
Gaius, a tribune from the IV spoke up “And what if more tribes join them in rebellion, as happened in Illyricum.”
Tiberius simply returned with a smile. “After we have burned their homes and salted their fields they will need new food supplies, drive them into desperation and force them to act, and we will be ready to decimate them when they do.
Dismissed.”