Claudius' ban

9

The next evening Verita (the Latin nickname of Philianna) said goodby to everyone and she left with two of the guards, the two slaves whom, Pianna gave to her daughter, in a cargo ship towards Nerigos. One day after her departure, another written report came in to Julius. It was send by one of Jared's men.

''Sir! I have investigated this case. That Pianna is a noble woman from a Jewish town in Nerigos. That town is a client kingdom of the Kingdom of Nerigos. Pianna's kingdom is wealthy with agricultural resources. Two of the seventeen hired guards left yesterday with Verita, who is the chief slave of Pianna. According to the guards that left behind, she was send back as ruler in Pianna's place. She was about to be married to a noble young men. The Hebraic town in Nerigos is almost bankrupt, but they still have much gold and silver hidden as a reserve. The delegation in the Paris country will soon leave back to Nerigos. They were only there to visit the daughter of Queen Pianna, Princess Tamila. Tamilia is unmarried. According to their costums, Tamila is the heir of Pianna. But that's uncertain now that one pretender to the throne is demanding marriage with Pianna. The local Parisian government is not involved with this case. They only permitted Princess Tamila to construct her village. Verita is the daughter of a previous chief of their coastal kingdom. So, Sir, I'm not sure how this will turn out. It can be that Verita will take her father's heritage, which will result in more conflict. And those people are now in Roman territory, so the conflict might turn out in bloodshed..  or.. things will go at ease. I am awaiting your instructions Sir..''

At the same Julius received a message from the Governor. There were around 24 Roman citizens from Gaul who desired to settle in the new Roman colony, which was the Capital of the Province. They would come with ther household. Together they would constitute around 429 people. Also, there were rumors of 301 Hebrews who were fleeing to Roman Britain to escape persecution in their home towns. The governor also heared that at one of the towns in the North of the Coritanian country, there was a small Hebrew community. Julius was commanded to keep that community in check. If needed, he had to arrest the local Rabbi and imprison him in the capital. No deviance from the Roman culture was to be tolerated within Britain.

Julius became scared. The arrival of Hebrew refugees would bring a lot of criminality and illegal immigration. Also, the ethnic tensions would also bring civil unrest. He didn't want to deal with the issue at the time. He instead, wrote a command to Jared, to leave the Nerigoan migrants alone. He was however commanded to station himself at the harbour. If Queen Pianna wanted to leave or others of the household, they were to be arrested and brought to the capital. If they didn't attempt to leave, they were to be left alone and if needed protected.

Jared received the message. He was confused. Yet, he did as was ordered unto him. The 20 men with him settled camp at the harbour. The remaining 15 guards were also informed about the order. One of the guards leaked the information out to Anna. And Anna in turn warned Tamila and Pianna. They all became frightened. Tamila told them not to talk about it with the others.

''We shouldn't act in panick now... this situation can easily escalate....''

''True... but what do we do..''

''Hold on....''

''The Roman general Publius Ostorius Scapula is the governor of Britain at the moment. His father was connected to the Praetorian guard: the private police of the Emperor. I heard that his father was also stationed in Egypt. So this man has experiene in politics and in the military. He must understand how dangerous this circumstance is''

''He is loyal to Rome.. remember that..''

''Exactly! That's why he will act in the agreement with Rome... ''

''So?''

''If Rome can expand their territory and influence any further.. wouldn't they do it?''

''Of course they would..''

''They got a big army for that...''

''And that's their weakness...''

''How weakness?''

''The Romans will have to unify the British tribes under one Provincial government, and gain their trust, if they ever want to incorporate Britain in their civilization! For now.. they can use military power in the South of the Island.. but they cannot persist in only using violence. They will have to interact.. sooner of later..''

''This order to keep us in Britain comes from the governor. No centurion or other lower placed miliary agent is permitted to act on their own. The general has to be alert of everything''

''So what does Ostorius want?''

''Money... and influence.. submission..''

''He needs to secure the harmony among the British tribes... he wants co-operation..''

''Then we'll give it to him...''

''Pay him tribute...''

''I don't trust him..''

''Neither do I.. but this is not a case of trust. This is a case of practical reality. Ignoring this order might get us killed and we'll never get out alive...''

''She's right''

''But we'll wait for a while.. after Verita has arrived in Nerigos, she will send us a message back and she'll send supplies..''

''If we act to soon, it will look suspicious. Also because we shouldn't even be aware of this order in the first place''

''She's speaking truth! Let's be wise as serpents, as Christians would often say''

Two days passed and Philianna arrived in Nerigos. She was glad to be at home again. She missed the place. The elders in town recognised her and received her warmly. She wasted no time and moved into the abandoned farmhouse. It was still in a good state. Inside she relived her youth, both bad and sad moment. Instantly, she felt disconnected from the place. It didn't felt nor seem comfortable nor homely at all. It felt strange, awkward and even hostile. It was now that she was confronted with the abuse she endured at the hand of Pianna, with the consent of Anna, her mother. She, however, didn't feel any bitterness. She had let it go. She found closure.

''Go into town... and bring Olisipo's son Oty here. I want to see him speedily''