Heir of Aurelian

Months had passed since the Eastern Roman Empire had learned of Marcellus's rise to power, and it was now the dead of winter. For whatever reason, the leader of the Huns, who was a man by the name of Uldin, did not desire to meet with Aulus Pontidius Frugi until this very moment. After months of currying favor with the barbarians, Frugi was finally granted an audience.

Frugi currently stood in a Hunnic tent where the leader of their people sat in silence, facing the opposite direction. The man was surrounded by while by bodyguards who glared at the intruder with menacing gazes. It was only after several moments of waiting did Frugi dare to speak.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Aulu Ponitdius Frugi, Magister Militum of the Eastern Roman Empire. I have come to you on behalf of the Emperor Theodosius II to negotiate an alliance with your people.

While I know you are technically allied with the Western Roman Empire, I also know that the Emperor Honorius is now dead, and unless you have renegotiated with the usurper who has taken his place, then your loyalties to the West have ended."

Silence prevailed for several moments before the sound of laughter erupted from the man who was facing the other side of the room. Uldin turned around to reveal his heavily scarred visage as he laughed at the translator who spoke Frugi's words to him. He pointed at the translator and then to Frugi before speaking in his native tongue.

"Tell this Roman dog that I am not interested in fighting his wars for him. It is true that the deal between me and that fool Honorius has concluded, but that does not mean I wish to fight against the Western Roman Army or its current emperor. Ask this man if he knows how many forces this Titus Claudius Marcellus has at his disposal!"

The man translated Uldin's words to the Eastern Roman Representative, which caused Frugi to scoff in displeasure. He was dumbfounded that Uldin would even ask such a ludicrous question. Of course, he knew about the military might that Marcellus had been available to him, and it paled in comparison to those under the Eastern Roman Army's command. Thus, he wore a shit-eating grin as he informed the man of what he knew.

"Marcellus has approximately 54,000 roman soldiers beneath his command and all of which are either conscripts or part-time border guards. They stand no match against the forces of Theodosius, nor against your own army. Why should you fear this usurper and his army of unarmored plebeians?"

When the translated conveyed his thoughts to the leader of the Huns, Uldin broke out into a fit of laughter before cursing the Eastern Roman General as a fool. This response immediately took Frugi off guard, who could not understand why the man was laughing at him until the translator converted his words into Latin.

"You are a fucking idiot! You act is if you know everything about your enemy, but in reality you know nothing! The information you have provided me is months old. While you sat on your asses, this so-called usurper has trained his conscripts to be a capable force, and equipped them with the best arms and armor available.

I dare to say even my ten thousand riders are no match for the three thousand cataphracts that man has in his army! The Western cavalry would cut through my horsemen like wheat to the scythe should we be foolish enough to engage them in battle!"

When these words were translated to Frugi, he reacted in a fit of rage, condemning Uldin as a liar to his face.

"That is a lie! It takes many years to raise a troop of Cataphracts! How could he have mustered so many in such a short time span?"

Uldin broke out into laughter once more when he heard this. Apparently these fools had done little investigation into the rapid armament and training of Marcellus' forces. Though Uldin did not know what sorcery the Western Romans used to so quickly train men on how to ride their mounts, he knew that his scouts would not dare lie to him. He decided to impart a bit of wisdom to the representative from the Eastern portion of the Empire.

"My guess is these cataphracts were quickly raised by some foreign means. Though I doubt they would be the greatest asset on the battlefield with the limited time they have had to train. Come spring, when you finally launch your attack against the West, they will be more than capable of dealing with your armies.

It is not the Cataphracts you need to worry about, but the nine legions that have been raised from the Conscripts. I do not know what reforms Marcellus has put his armies through, but they are no longer organized to the same standards as Honorius' pathetic forces."

When Frugi heard that the 54,000 men of the Western Roman Army had been organized into nine legions, he felt as if he was hearing a historian speak of the long distant past. He could hardly believe Marcellus would do such a thing. He immediately questioned how the man knew this information.

"How do you know all of this?"

Uldin chuckled when he heard the translator repeat Frugi's words. He would not conceal the truth of the matter even if it angered the East.

"Because agents from the west have already sought to reincorporate us into their foederati, they boasted of their strength, and my scouts and merchants reported these claims to be accurate.

I don't know what expense Marcellus had spent on ensuring his army was well trained, and well equipped, but these are not the simple peasant conscripts you thought they would be. They are well armed and well organized. If you wish to press your boy emperor's claim on the west, it will be a costly affair, to say the least, and we will have no part in it. Now leave, or I will have my men tear you to pieces!"

Frugi felt like he should curse the man for his cowardice but chose not to, provoking a conflict with the Huns was the last thing the Eastern Roman Empire needed at the moment, especially since many of them had already "settled" in their lands. He could only sigh in defeat and leave the Hunnic encampment. The only good news to come from these failed negotiations was the fact that the Huns were not loyal to the West anymore.

Frugi could hardly believe what Uldin had said to him. It was one thing to conscript 54,000 peasants, but to outfit them with the equipment they needed to survive the horrors of war, and train them to the extent needed to emerge victorious, was a completely different thing. He began to wonder about how Marcellus could afford such an expense.

It was at this moment he realized something. There was a new product that had entered the Eastern Roman Empire recently, and it came from the West. While they were covertly planning to overthrow Marcellus, they still traded with the Western Roman Empire. This new product, which sold for a high price, was called "fortified wine" and was imported en masse from Ravenna.

Marcellus had gotten the idea to blend his distilled spirits with wine, and create a tasty beverage that had a greater kick to it. Because of this, he had made a fortune over the past few months, and used to it fund his rearmament process. To Frugi, this was the only explanation he could come up with for how the West had gained the capital to fund their new army and its development.

He immediately felt like cursing whoever the hell was responsible for this newest form of alcoholic beverage. Since he could not convince Uldin to lend his aid to the east. Frugi would have to return to Constantinople with his head hanging low. He had failed to achieve the goals that the regent had set out for him. The man in question would not be pleased when he learned of this fact.

However, this diplomatic visit was not a total failure as he learned the reality of the threat that lie on the western border. Fifty-four thousand legionnaires organized to the standards of the Principate, and armed with the latest weapons and armor, as well as sixty to eighty thousand gothic foederati guarding Noricum and Raetia. It was a mighty force to contend with, but still nowhere near in size compared to the troops the Eastern Roman Army had available to it.

Though Frugi had suffered a minor setback, he was positive he could still overcome the Western Roman Army through sheer force of numbers if he had to. However, the cost to this was leaving Anatolia and Palestine available for conquest by the Sassanids. Ultimately, this was not his concern. He would leave the boy emperor and his regent with this headache. Either they found a solution to deal with Marcellus, or they accepted his bribe and waited for a later date to strike.