An Oblique Approach Read online

Page 10


  Maurice came up to him. Belisarius recognized him from a distance, even though it was still dark. Maurice had a rolling gait which was quite unmistakable.

  "Now?" asked Maurice.

  Belisarius nodded. The two men mounted their horses and cantered through the gate. The Army of Lebanon was camped just beyond the fort, where its soldiers could enjoy the shade and water provided by the oasis. Within a few minutes, Belisarius and Maurice were dismounting before the command tent occupied by Bouzes and Coutzes.

  The tent was much larger than the one Belisarius used, although not excessively so by the standards of Roman armies. Roman commanders had long been known for traveling in style. Julius Caesar had even carried tiles with him to floor his tent. (Although he claimed to have done so simply to impress barbarian envoys; Belisarius was skeptical of the claim.)

  Upon their arrival, the sentries guarding the tent informed them that Bouzes and Coutzes were absent. They had left the camp in the middle of the night. Further questioning elicited the information that the brothers had taken two cavalry regiments along with them.

  Belisarius uttered many profane oaths, very loudly. He stalked off toward the nearby tent, which was occupied by the four chiliarchs who were the chief subordinate officers of the Army of Lebanon. Maurice followed.

  At the chiliarchs' tent, a sentry began to challenge Belisarius, but quickly fell silent. The sentry recognized him, and saw as well that the general was in a towering rage. Deciding that discretion was the order of the day, the sentry drew aside. Belisarius stormed into the tent.

  Three of the four chiliarchs were rising from sleep, groggy and bleary-eyed. One of them lit a lamp. Belisarius immediately demanded to know the whereabouts of the fourth. He allowed the three chiliarchs to stammer in confusion for a few seconds before he cut through the babble.

  "So. I assume Dorotheus has accompanied the two cretins in this lunacy?"

  The chiliarchs began to protest. Again, Belisarius cut them short.

  "Silence!" He threw himself into a chair by the table in the center of the tent. He glared about for a moment, and then slammed his palm down on the table.

  "I am being generous! The Emperor may forgive the idiots, if he decides they are just stupid."

  Mention of the Emperor caused all three of the chiliarchs to draw back a bit. The face of at least one of them, Belisarius thought, grew pale. But it was hard to tell. The interior of the tent was poorly lit.

  Belisarius allowed the silence to fester. He knotted his brow. After a minute or so, he rose and began pacing about, exuding the image of a man lost in thoughtful calculation. Actually, he was scrutinizing the interior of the tent. He believed firmly that one could make a close assessment of officers by examining their private quarters, and took advantage of the opportunity to do so.

  Overall, he was impressed. The chiliarchs maintained clean and orderly quarters. There was no indication of the drunken sloppiness which had characterized the tents of a number of the former officers of his own army. He also noted the austerity of their living arrangements. Other than weapons and necessary gear, the chiliarchs' tent was bare of possessions.

  The general was pleased. He prized austere living on campaign—not from any religious or moral impulse, but simply because he valued the ability to react and move quickly above all other characteristics in an officer. And he had found, with very few exceptions, that officers who filled their command quarters with lavish creature comforts were sluggards when confronted by any sudden change in circumstances.

  He decided the pose of thoughtful concentration had gone on long enough. He stopped pacing, straightened his back, and announced decisively:

  "There's nothing for it. We'll just have to make do with what we have."

  He turned to the three chiliarchs, who were now clustered together on the other side of the table.

  "Assemble your army. We march at once."

  "But our commanders aren't here!" protested one of the cavalry chiliarchs. Belisarius gave him a fierce look of disgust.

  "I'm aware of that, Pharas. And you can be quite sure that if we fail to intercept the Persians before they march into Aleppo, the Emperor will know of their absence also. And do as he sees fit. But in the absence of Bouzes and Coutzes, I am in command of this army. And I have no intention of imitating their dereliction of duty."

  His announcement brought a chill into the room.

  "The Persians are marching?" asked Hermogenes, the infantry chiliarch.

  "The day after tomorrow."

  "How do you know?" demanded Pharas.

  Belisarius sneered. "Doesn't the Army of Lebanon have any spies?" he demanded. The chiliarchs were silent. The general's sneer turned into a truly ferocious scowl.

  "Oh, that's marvelous!" he exclaimed. "You have no idea what the enemy is doing. So, naturally, you decided to send two full cavalry regiments charging off on a wild goose chase. Just marvelous!"

  Pharas' face was ashen. To some extent, it was the pallor of rage. But, for the most part, it was simple fear. Watching him, Belisarius estimated the man's intelligence as rather dismal. But even Pharas understood the imperial fury which would fall on the chief officers of the Army of Lebanon if they allowed the Persians to march on Aleppo unopposed.

  The junior cavalry chiliarch, Eutyches, suddenly slammed his hand onto the table angrily.

  "Mother of God! I told them—" He bit off the words. Clamped his jaw tight. For a moment, he and Belisarius stared at each other. Then, with a faint nod, and an even fainter smile, Belisarius indicated his understanding and appreciation of Eutyches' position.

  The infantry chiliarch spoke then. The timber of his voice reflected Hermogenes' youth, but there was not the slightest quaver in it. "Let's move. Now. We all know that Coutzes and Bouzes agreed to combine forces with Belisarius' army. Since they're not here, that makes him the rightful commander."

  Eutyches immediately nodded his agreement. After a moment, reluctantly, so did Pharas.

  Belisarius seized the moment. "Rouse your army and assemble them into marching formation," he commanded. "Immediately." He stalked out of the tent.

  Once outside, Belisarius and Maurice returned to their horses. The first glimmer of dawn was beginning to show on the eastern horizon.

  Belisarius gazed about admiringly. "It's going to be a lovely day."

  "It's going to be miserably hot," countered Maurice.

  Belisarius chuckled quietly. "You are the most morose man I have ever met."

  "I am not morose. I am pessimistic. My cousin Ignace, now, there's a morose man. You've never met him, I don't believe?"

  "How could I have met him? Didn't you tell me he hasn't left his house for fifteen years?"

  "Yes, that's true." The hecatontarch eyed Belisarius stonily. "He's terrified of swindlers. And rightfully so."

  Belisarius chuckled again. "A lovely day, I tell you." Then, businesslike: "I'm going to stay here, Maurice. If I don't chivvy this army, they'll take forever to get moving. I want you to return to the fort and make sure everything goes properly. I think Phocas and Constantine will manage everything well enough. But I haven't worked with them in the field before, so I want you to keep an eye on things. Remember the two key points: keep—"

  "Keep a large cavalry screen well out in front and make sure the infantry gets dug in quickly. With at least half of them hidden behind the ramparts."

  The general smiled. "A lovely day. Be off."

  As Belisarius had expected, it took hours to get the Army of Lebanon moving. Despite his loud and profane comments, however, he was quite satisfied with the progress. It was unreasonable to expect an army of twelve thousand men to start a march more quickly, with no advance warning or preparations.

  By midday, the army was well into its marching rhythm. The temperature was oppressive. The western breeze which sprang up in the afternoon did not help the situation much. True, the wind brought a bit of coolness. But since the army was marching northeast, it also swept the dust thro
wn up by hooves and feet along the march route instead of away. At least the dust was not blown directly into the soldiers' faces, although that was a small consolation. Syria in midsummer was as unpleasant a place and time to be making a forced march as any in the world.

  However, Belisarius noted that the commanding officers of the Army of Lebanon refrained from complaining. Whatever their misgivings might be regarding this unexpected expedition, under unexpected command, they seemed willing to keep them private. He now took the time to explain to the three chiliarchs his plan for the battle he expected shortly. The two cavalry chiliarchs seemed skeptical of the role planned for the infantry, but forbore comment. They were pleased enough with their own projected role, and the infantry was none of their concern anyway.

  As evening approached, Belisarius concentrated on discussing his plans with Hermogenes, the infantry chiliarch. Hermogenes, he was pleased to see, soon began to evince real enthusiasm. All too often, Roman infantry commanders occupied that position by virtue of their incompetence and fecklessness. Hermogenes, on the other hand, seemed an ambitious fellow, happy to discover that his own role in the upcoming conflict was to be more than a sideshow.

  By nightfall, Belisarius was satisfied that Hermogenes would be able to play his part properly. In fact, he thought the young chiliarch might do very well. Belisarius decided to place Hermogenes in overall command of the infantry, once the Army of Lebanon was united with his own army. Phocas, his own infantry chiliarch, was a competent officer, but by no means outstanding. On the other hand, Phocas did have a knack for artillery. So Belisarius would put Phocas under Hermogenes' command, with the specific responsibility for the artillery.

  Belisarius pushed the march until the very last glimmer of daylight faded before ordering the army to encamp for the night. The Army of Lebanon, he noted with satisfaction, set up its camp quickly and expertly.

  After his command tent was set up, Belisarius enjoyed a few moments of privacy within it. He found the absence of Procopius a relief. For all the man's competence, and for all that his most sycophantish habits had been beaten down, the general still found his new secretary extremely annoying. But Procopius was now at the villa near Daras—and had been since Belisarius moved his army to Mindouos. The general had seen no use for him during an actual campaign, and had ordered the man to provide Antonina with whatever assistance she needed in running the estate.

  He heard a commotion outside and went to investigate. Maurice had arrived, along with Ashot and three other Thracian cataphracts. By the time Belisarius emerged from his tent, his bucellarii were already dismounted from their horses. With them, dismounting more slowly—pain and exhaustion in every movement—were eight members of the two vanished cavalry regiments. One of the eight was an officer, and all of them looked much the worse for wear. Even in the dim moonlight, the general could see that three of them were wounded, although the wounds did not seem especially severe.

  The officer limped over to Belisarius and began to stammer out some semicoherent phrases. Belisarius commanded him to hold his tongue until he could summon the chiliarchs and the tribunes. A few minutes later, with the leadership of the Army of Lebanon packed into the command tent, he instructed the returning officer to tell his tale. This he did, somewhat chaotically, with Maurice lending an occasional comment.

  Bouzes and Coutzes, it turned out, had not found the pay caravan. What they had found, charging all over the landscape looking for it, was half of the Persian cavalry, charging all over the landscape looking for it likewise. An impromptu battle had erupted, in which the heavily outnumbered Romans had taken a drubbing. The two brothers had been captured. In the end, most of the Roman cavalry had escaped, in disorganized groups, and were being encountered by Belisarius' own army as it marched forward into position. Though badly demoralized and half-leaderless, the surviving members of the two regiments had been so delighted to find a large formation of Roman troops in the vicinity that they were rallying to the standards of Belisarius' army.

  When the officer concluded his tale, Belisarius refrained from commenting on the stupidity of Bouzes and Coutzes. Under the circumstances, he thought, it would be superfluous. He simply concluded the meeting with a brief review of his plans for the forthcoming battle, then sent everyone to bed.

  "Things are going well," he remarked to Maurice, once they were in private.

  Maurice gave him a hard look. "You're playing this one awfully close, young man."

  Belisarius eyed him. Maurice was not, in private, given to formality and subservience. Even in public, he satisfied himself with nothing more than the occasional "sir" and "my lord." But he rarely addressed his general by his own name, and hadn't called him a "young man" since—

  Belisarius smiled crookedly. "I won that battle, too, if you recall."

  "By the skin of your teeth. And it took you weeks to recover from your wounds." Morosely, rubbing his right side: "Took me even longer."

  Thinking the tent was too gloomy, Belisarius lit another lamp and placed it on the table. Then, after taking a seat in his chair, he examined the hecatontarch's grim visage. He was quite confident of his own plans, despite their complexity, but he had learned never to ignore Maurice's misgivings.

  "Spit it out, Maurice. And spare me your reproaches concerning the two brothers."

  Maurice snorted. "Them? Drooling babes are cute, but they've no business leading armies. I care not a fig about that!" He waved a hand dismissively. "No, what bothers me is that you're cutting everything too fine. You're depending on almost perfect timing, and on the enemy to react exactly as you predict." He gave Belisarius another stony look. "You may recall my first lessons to you when you were barely out of swaddling clothes. Never—"

  "Never expect the enemy to do what you think he's going to do, and never expect that schedules will be met on time. And, most of all, always remember the first law of battle: everything gets fucked up as soon as the enemy arrives. That's why he's called the enemy."

  Maurice grunted. Then:

  "And whatever happened to your devious subtlety? That `oblique approach' you're so fond of talking about?" He held up a hand. "And don't bother reminding me how shrewd your battle plan is! So what? This isn't like you at all, Belisarius. You've never been one to substitute tactics for strategy. How many times have you told me the best campaign is the one which forces the enemy to yield by indirection, with the least amount of bloodshed? Much less a pitched battle which you're forcing?"

  Belisarius took in a deep breath and held it. The fingers of his left hand began drumming the table. For a moment, as he had done many times over the past weeks, he considered taking Maurice into his full confidence. Again, he decided against it. True, Maurice was close-mouthed. But—there was the first law of secrets: every person told a secret doubles the chance of having it found out.

  "Stop drumming your fingers," grumbled the hecatontarch. "You only do that when you're being too clever by half."

  Belisarius chuckled, snapped his left hand into a fist. He decided on a halfway course. "Maurice, there is information which I possess which I can't divulge to you now. That's why I'm pushing this battle. I know I'm cutting too many corners, but I don't have any choice."

  Maurice scowled. "What do you know about the Persians that I don't?" It was not a question, really. More in the way of a scornful reproof.

  Belisarius waved his own hand dismissively. "No, not the Persians." He smiled. "I wouldn't presume to know more about the Medes than you! No, it involves—other enemies. I can't say more, Maurice. Not yet."

  Maurice considered his general carefully. He wasn't happy with the situation, but—there it was.

  "All right," he said, grunting. "But I hope this works."

  "It will, Maurice, it will. The timing doesn't have to be that perfect. We just have to get to the battleground before the Persians do. And as for the enemy's reactions—I think that letter I sent off to Firuz will do the trick nicely."

  "Why? What did you say in it?"r />
  "Well, the essence of the letter was a demand that he refrain from threatening my shiny new fort. But I conveyed the demand in the most offensive manner possible. I boasted of my martial prowess and sneered at that of the Medes. I tossed in a few well-chosen remarks on the subject of Persian cowardice and unmanliness. I dwelt lovingly on the full-bellied worms which would soon be the caskets of Persian troops—assuming, of course, that the slimy things were hungry enough to feed on such foul meat."

  "Oh my," muttered Maurice. He stroked his gray beard.

  "But I thought the polishing touch," concluded Belisarius cheerfully, "was my refusal to build a bath in the fortress. Firuz wouldn't need the bath, I explained, because after I slaughtered him, I would toss his remains into the latrine. Which is where they belong, of course, since he's nothing but a walking sack of dog shit."

  "Oh my." Maurice pulled up a chair and sat down slowly. For the hecatontarch, the simple act was unusual. A stickler for proprieties was Maurice. He almost never sat while in his general's headquarters.

  "We'd better win this battle," he muttered, "or we're all for it." His right hand clenched his sword hilt. His left hand was spread rigidly on the table.

  Belisarius leaned over and patted the outstretched hand. "So you can see, Maurice, why I think Firuz will show up at the battlefield."

  Maurice made a sour expression. "Maybe. They're touchy, Persian nobles. But if he's smart enough to override his anger, he'll pick a battlefield of his own choosing."

  Belisarius leaned back and shrugged.

  "I don't think so. I don't think he's that smart, and anyway—the battle site I selected overlooks the stream that provides all the water for his camp. Whether he likes it or not, he can't very well just let us sit there unmolested."

  "You would," retorted Maurice instantly.

  "I wouldn't have camped there in the first place."

  Maurice's right hand released its grip on the sword, and came up to stroke his beard. "True, true. Idiotic, that—relying on an insecure water supply. If you can't find a well or an oasis, like we did, you should at least make sure the water comes from your own territory."

 

    The Storm - eARC Read onlineThe Storm - eARCThe Serpent Read onlineThe SerpentThe Chosen g-3 Read onlineThe Chosen g-3The Gods Return coti-3 Read onlineThe Gods Return coti-3Dogs of War Read onlineDogs of WarDagger (мир воров) Read onlineDagger (мир воров)The Mirror of Worlds coti-2 Read onlineThe Mirror of Worlds coti-2Loose Cannon: The Tom Kelly Novels Read onlineLoose Cannon: The Tom Kelly NovelsThe Road of Danger-ARC Read onlineThe Road of Danger-ARCHope Rearmed Read onlineHope RearmedThe War Machine: Crisis of Empire III Read onlineThe War Machine: Crisis of Empire IIIThe Military Dimension-Mark II Read onlineThe Military Dimension-Mark IIWhen the Tide Rises Read onlineWhen the Tide RisesUp From Hell Read onlineUp From HellWarlord g-1 Read onlineWarlord g-1From the Heart of Darkness Read onlineFrom the Heart of DarknessThe Fortress of Glass coti-1 Read onlineThe Fortress of Glass coti-1Goddess of the Ice Realm Read onlineGoddess of the Ice RealmThe Harriers Book Two: Blood and War Read onlineThe Harriers Book Two: Blood and WarKiller Read onlineKillerThough Hell Should Bar the Way Read onlineThough Hell Should Bar the WayThe Legions of Fire Read onlineThe Legions of FireRCN 11: Death's Bright Day (eARC) Read onlineRCN 11: Death's Bright Day (eARC)The Forlorn Hope Read onlineThe Forlorn HopeDinosaurs & A Dirigible Read onlineDinosaurs & A DirigibleBalefires Read onlineBalefiresForeign Legions Read onlineForeign LegionsThe Savior Read onlineThe SaviorThe Complete Hammer's Slammers: Volume 3 Read onlineThe Complete Hammer's Slammers: Volume 3The Far Side of The Stars Read onlineThe Far Side of The StarsThe Road of Danger Read onlineThe Road of DangerThe Heretic g-6 Read onlineThe Heretic g-6Out of the Waters Read onlineOut of the WatersThe Way to Glory Read onlineThe Way to GloryPaying the Piper Read onlinePaying the PiperThe Complete Hammer's Slammers Vol 2 Read onlineThe Complete Hammer's Slammers Vol 2Kill Ratio Read onlineKill RatioAn Oblique Approach Read onlineAn Oblique ApproachInto the Maelstrom Read onlineInto the MaelstromTyrant g-5 Read onlineTyrant g-5Elements 03 - Monsters of the Earth Read onlineElements 03 - Monsters of the EarthStarliner Read onlineStarlinerWith the Lightnings Read onlineWith the LightningsServant of the Dragon Read onlineServant of the DragonThough Hell Should Bar the Way - eARC Read onlineThough Hell Should Bar the Way - eARCA Grand Tour mth-2 Read onlineA Grand Tour mth-2The Fortress Of Glass Read onlineThe Fortress Of GlassSome Golden Harbor Read onlineSome Golden HarborAir and Darkness Read onlineAir and DarknessQueen Of Demons Read onlineQueen Of DemonsThe Heretic-eARC Read onlineThe Heretic-eARCMaster of the Cauldron Read onlineMaster of the CauldronThe Complete Hammer's Slammers, Vol. 2 (hammer's slammers) Read onlineThe Complete Hammer's Slammers, Vol. 2 (hammer's slammers)The Complete Hammer's Slammers, Vol. 3 (hammer's slammers) Read onlineThe Complete Hammer's Slammers, Vol. 3 (hammer's slammers)Master of the Cauldron loti-6 Read onlineMaster of the Cauldron loti-6Mountain Magic Read onlineMountain MagicOut of the waters bote-2 Read onlineOut of the waters bote-2The Jungle Read onlineThe JungleBelisarius I Thunder at Dawn Read onlineBelisarius I Thunder at DawnThe Heretic Read onlineThe HereticThe Sea Without a Shore - eARC Read onlineThe Sea Without a Shore - eARCThe Reaches Read onlineThe ReachesAn oblique approach b-1 Read onlineAn oblique approach b-1Death's Bright Day Read onlineDeath's Bright DayThe Sea Without a Shore Read onlineThe Sea Without a ShoreSome Golden Harbor-ARC Read onlineSome Golden Harbor-ARCInto the Maelstrom - eARC Read onlineInto the Maelstrom - eARCMistress of the Catacombs Read onlineMistress of the CatacombsVoyage Across the Stars Read onlineVoyage Across the StarsCluster Command: Crisis of Empire II Read onlineCluster Command: Crisis of Empire IIThe Savior - eARC Read onlineThe Savior - eARCThe Hunter Returns Read onlineThe Hunter ReturnsThe Mirror of Worlds-ARC Read onlineThe Mirror of Worlds-ARCThe Sea Hag Read onlineThe Sea HagWhat Distant Deeps Read onlineWhat Distant DeepsBirds of Prey Read onlineBirds of PreyPatriots Read onlinePatriotsGodess of the Ice Realm loti-5 Read onlineGodess of the Ice Realm loti-5Seas of Venus Read onlineSeas of VenusThe Tyrant g-5 Read onlineThe Tyrant g-5Crisis Read onlineCrisisArc Riders Read onlineArc RidersOut of the Waters-ARC Read onlineOut of the Waters-ARCIn the Stormy Red Sky-ARC Read onlineIn the Stormy Red Sky-ARCThe Mirror of Worlds Read onlineThe Mirror of WorldsThe Gods Return Read onlineThe Gods ReturnThe Dragon Lord Read onlineThe Dragon LordThe Spark Read onlineThe SparkLt. Leary, Commanding Read onlineLt. Leary, CommandingIn the Stormy Red Sky Read onlineIn the Stormy Red SkyThe Complete Hammer's Slammers, Vol. 1 (hammer's slammers) Read onlineThe Complete Hammer's Slammers, Vol. 1 (hammer's slammers)What Distant Deeps-ARC Read onlineWhat Distant Deeps-ARCGrimmer Than Hell Read onlineGrimmer Than HellCrown Of The Isles 02 The Mirror of Worlds-ARC Read onlineCrown Of The Isles 02 The Mirror of Worlds-ARCThe Far Stars War Read onlineThe Far Stars WarBridgehead Read onlineBridgeheadThe Fourth Rome Read onlineThe Fourth Rome