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Farewell Rome - Extract By Keith Perryman |
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“Why is it that these damned Romans never fight fair? Never man to man........ there’s always something fancy about the way they fight. Never an honest-to-goodness straight-forward trial of strength!”
Bordoc’s florid countenance was convulsed with hatred as he spat the words out. They were addressed to Lord Owein at a council of war which the Durotrigian commander had called in the Chief’s house at Dunum, situated near the centre of the fort. Like the many other houses there it was timber and thatch, but more rectangular than round, and it was larger than most. The council was attended by all chieftains and elders of settlements who were in the fort.
Owein sighed and gave a resigned shrug.
“Perhaps it’s because they’re nearly always severely outnumbered by their enemies. So they achieve, by using their various inventive and organisational skills, what we try to achieve by large numbers, individual bravery and brute force.”
Murdwin of Cerne, a normally jolly, rotund little man who had brought with him to Dunum two hundred bowmen and slingers, had concern written all over his plump features.
“But surely Owein, someone somewhere must have an answer to their cunning and dirty tricks. Our men on the ramparts daren’t show their heads for more than a second or two before a bolt comes ‘out of the blue’ and kills one of them outright. What can we do ?”
The fort commander straightened his back -“That is precisely why I have called this council, Murdwin. Whilst we hope that Volgrun will be able to make life difficult for the enemy by attacks from outside, we mustn’t sit back and wait for the Romans to scale the walls. At the moment our massive ditches are little advantage to us because we cannot shoot at the enemy as they clamber out of them.”
Gomigor, his great red beard more straggly and untidy than ever, had been sitting listening intently. In his deep country burr he broke in - “It seems to me, m’ noble Lord Owein, that we’ve got to destroy them catapults some’ow. If thee likes I could lead an attack on those in the south-west sector near our water-machine. And I tell thee, if I could get meself next to one of them new-fangled catapults with my old axe, I‘d make ‘n look a bit sick!”
Owein smiled. “But how would you get out of the fort to do that? We daren’t risk opening the gates.”
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