Macro shrugged. ‘Depends.’

‘On what?’ Murena said, cocking his head at the officer.

‘Your average German takes a number of cuts before he drops,’ Macro said. ‘Sometimes you’ll give one a good few stabs and he’ll still be charging at you and foaming at the mouth. You don’t actually see them shuffle off to the Underworld. They drag themselves off to die somewhere nice and quiet. But they die all the same. We have a saying in the Second: Swords can’t tell the difference between Germans and Greeks.’

‘I see.’ The freedman shifted awkwardly on his feet, clearly unsettled by the violent turn the conversation had taken. ‘And what precisely does that mean?’

‘A stab’s a stab,’ said Macro. ‘Give a man a good twist in the guts and he’s done for, whether he’s a whacking great barbarian or a skinny little toga-lifter.’

Murena wrung his hands as he turned away from Macro towards the gardens and the pair of Praetorian guards hovering under the arched walkway. ‘What a pity the great Capito did not heed such sagacious advice.’

‘Sagacious?’

‘Yes, almost synonymous with judicious.’ Seeing the quizzical look on Macro’s face, the freedman rolled his eyes. ‘Never mind,’ he went on. ‘My point is, you have lots of experience of slaying the barbaric enemies of Rome.’

‘More than most, I’d say,’ Macro said, puffing out his chest.

‘Good. Because I have a task for you.’

Macro frowned as anxiety spilled through his guts. ‘Task?’

‘Yes. A task. For me.’

Macro gritted his teeth. ‘Find someone else to do your dirty work. I take orders from my centurion, my legate and the Emperor. No one else.’

The freedman laughed and inspected his fingernails. ‘I hear you haven’t set foot in this city for a while?’

‘Thirteen years or so.’

‘Then I will give you the benefit of the doubt just this once. Rome is different now. I may be a simple freedman, but you would do well to treat me with respect. I have a certain influence within these walls. Enough to rescind your decoration. . and your promotion to centurion.’

‘Centurion?’ Macro repeated with a start. ‘What are you talking about?’

Murena produced a scroll, and Macro noticed the imperial seal on the wax. The freedman opened it and read aloud, ‘Orders from his Imperial Majesty to the Legate of the Second Legion, instructing the immediate promotion to centurion of optio Lucius Cornelius Macro. A position that interests you, I believe?’

Macro frowned at Murena.

‘Sadly, I cannot dispatch the letter until you carry out a certain task for the Emperor,’ Murena explained.

‘What kind of task?’ Macro said uneasily.

Murena smiled wanly. ‘Permit me to elaborate. You were there at the arena earlier today to receive your decoration. A proud moment, sadly marred by the defeat of our dear Capito.’ The freedman tutted. ‘Highly embarrassing for the Emperor. Capito was not only the finest fighter in the imperial school and therefore the personal property of Claudius himself, he was the sixth imperial gladiator to fall at the hands of Britomaris.’

Murena circled the officer. Macro eyed him warily. ‘These are stressful days for the new Emperor,’ the freedman continued. ‘There are many doubters in Rome. Some of them are openly hostile to Claudius. Not just men of the Senate, but in the Forum and the taverns too. I speak frankly now. The Emperor was not a unanimous choice. The vagaries of bloodline and birth-right mean that no man can wear the laurel crown without facing nefarious challenges to his supremacy. You heard the rumbles of discontent in the crowd after Capito died. A defeat like this threatens to undermine our regime in its infancy. We must demonstrate to the mob that Claudius is the strong, decisive leader we have craved since the golden age of Augustus.’

‘So invade somewhere,’ Macro said with a shrug. ‘That usually does the trick.’

Murena laughed like a tutor humouring a brash student. ‘Thank you for that truly enlightening insight, optio. Your genius makes me wonder why you haven’t elevated yourself higher up the ranks.’

Macro fought a powerful urge to punch Murena in the face.

‘Rest assured, plans are afoot for the near future,’ the freedman went on. ‘But the more pressing problem is Britomaris. Six gladiators defeated! That is more than a stain on the Emperor’s name, it is a veritable boil: one we must lance before it overwhelms us. We cannot afford any more defeats by this barbarian. Whoever faces him next must triumph, demonstrating to all that no one defies the Emperor, and that Claudius is the right man to occupy the throne.’

Macro said, ‘What about getting Hermes to fight him? He’s just about the toughest gladiator there’s ever been. He’d chop up a thug like Britomaris as quick as boiling asparagus.’

‘Out of the question,’ Murena said flatly.

‘Why?’

A pained expression wrinkled unpleasantly across the freedman’s bony face. As if he were chewing on a mouthful of rotten fish guts, thought Macro.

‘I must confess, I am not a fan of Hermes. Neither is Pallas. We find him somewhat brutish. However, the problem with Hermes is not one of style. Indeed, in the event Capito died, another of the Emperor’s advisers — a wretched, snivelling fellow by the name of Narcissus — had arranged for Hermes to fight Britomaris next.’

‘So what’s the problem?’ Macro asked.

‘This morning, Hermes suffered a. . a rather unfortunate accident.’

‘Accident?’ Macro repeated.

‘He was robbed in the street, would you believe.’ Murena shook his head. ‘Thugs broke several of his bones. The man’s in no condition to fight. But we cannot wait for Hermes to recover from his inconvenient beating. We need a substitute urgently.’

Murena finished circling Macro, stopping directly in front of him.

‘You will train a substitute gladiator to fight Britomaris,’ he said.

Macro looked quizzically at him. ‘Why me?’ he stuttered. ‘I’ve never worked at a ludus. You’ve more than enough doctores at the imperial establishment for the job.’

‘Ordinarily, yes. But this is no ordinary fight. We must send a powerful message to the mob, and what better way to do that than by having a hero of the Empire employ his military know-how to destroy a barbarian like Britomaris?’ Murena teased out a twisted smile.

Macro shook his head firmly.

‘It’s too risky,’ he said, ‘training someone up, I mean. You’re better off just picking one of the gladiators from the imperial school. That lot are supposed to be the best swordsmen in Capua. You’d have far better odds on one of them defeating Britomaris than some wet-behind-the-ears recruit.’

Murena sucked his teeth. ‘Unfortunately the imperial school is severely depleted. Caligula has used most of the best men up in the arena. He’s left us with just a few stragglers, none of whom would be fit for this purpose.’

The imperial aide folded his hands behind his back and walked the width of the central aisle, his gait slow and methodical, as if pacing out the perimeter of a building. The sound of his sandals against the floor echoed throughout the hall.

‘Happily, Fortuna smiles on us.’

Macro clicked his tongue. ‘Hard to believe.’

A flicker of a smile crossed Murena’s face before he continued. ‘It appears we have a ready-made candidate. A young man with military experience who was instructed by a gladiator as a boy. A man who, I am reliably informed, demonstrates utter fearlessness when facing raw steel. A rare quality, as I’m sure a man of violence such as yourself will appreciate. With the right guidance, he could be just the ticket.’

‘A soldier, eh?’ Macro said. ‘What’s the lad’s name?’

Murena looked down. ‘Marcus Valerius Pavo.’ He pulled a face at his sandal, as if he had trodden in a puddle of sewage. ‘Although you may well be more familiar with his father’s name, Titus?’

Macro felt his guts tie themselves into a knot. ‘The Legate of the Fifth Legion?’