'Good spot for another ambush,' Macro commented as he considered the narrow street with alleys leading off it.

'If Ajax was still here, then those people wouldn't be,' Cato pointed out.

They emerged into an open space where a few market stalls stood. Beyond, a stretch of bare earth sloped down to the river. The remains of a handful of reed boats lay smouldering on the shore and a small crowd of natives stood in a cluster, wailing and crying. Cato led his men to the top of the riverbank and halted them, before continuing towards the villagers with Macro and Hamedes. The small crowd nervously parted before him and Cato saw several men sprawled on the ground, lying in their own blood which had poured from gashes in their bodies. Some women, slumped on their knees, leaned over the men, crying inconsolably.

'Looks like Ajax's work,' said Macro.

'Hamedes,' Cato gestured towards the crowd, 'ask them what happened.'

The priest approached them with open hands and there was a short exchange before he turned back to Cato.

'The villagers say that a column of armed men arrived here at dawn and took as many boats as they needed and set fire to the rest. These men tried to stop them, and were killed.'

'Must have been Ajax,' Cato decided. 'Ask them which way he went.'

Hamedes turned and spoke briefly before pointing upriver. 'That way, sir. You can still see them.'

Cato turned quickly to stare upriver. This stretch of the tributary meandered in a fairly gentle manner to the south and there, perhaps two miles away, he could see a handful of tiny fishing boats on the surface of the river, just about to disappear from sight around a bend in the river.

'Ask them if there are any other boats here, or nearby.'

'None,' Hamedes translated.

'What about another village?'

'There is one, half a day's march, downriver.'

'The wrong direction,' Macro growled. 'The bastard's given us the slip again.'

'This is not a very satisfactory state of affairs, is it, Prefect?' Governor Petronius tapped his finger on the report he had demanded of Cato the moment the small convoy had reached Alexandria. Even though Cato had secured some boats as soon as possible to pursue Ajax further up the Nile delta, he had lost track of him. They stopped at every village to question the locals and although a small group of reed boats had been discovered abandoned some forty miles north of Memphis, that was the last hint of the direction Ajax and his band had taken. Cato had continued to Memphis, whose inhabitants were greatly alarmed by the Nubian advance further up the Nile. Cato had commandeered one of the wide, flat-bottomed sailing vessels that plied the great river and set sail for Alexandria to make his report.

Cato stood in front of the governor's desk and considered how best to respond to such a rhetorical question.

'Sir, the fact is that we discovered Ajax's base of operations and succeeded in putting it out of action. We took his ships and accounted for over two hundred of his men. He has between forty and fifty followers left. However, I fear that he still poses a considerable threat to the Empire. I shall, of course, continue to pursue him but I will need to have your warrant to ensure the cooperation of the province's officials along the Nile. In addition, I will need men to complete the task. A mounted cohort should suffice.'

Petronius let out a bitter laugh. 'A mounted cohort, you say? A modest request, you might think. But tell me, after having lost one of my warships and its entire crew, as well as thirty of my legionaries, what makes you think I would be prepared to entrust you with any more men? Well?'

'You can't afford not to, sir.'

'Oh, I think I can afford not to. Especially when my forces are thinly stretched as it is. The Nubians have already advanced as far as the first cataract. That fool, Legate Candidus, sent three of his auxiliary cohorts to intercept the Nubian vanguard. They were crushed. I gather barely half of them managed to escape.'

'That is what I heard at Memphis, sir.'

'Then you will appreciate why I seem reticent to lend any more troops to you. Hunting this gladiator down is no longer a priority. I need to concentrate all available forces to strike at the Nubians, and drive them out of the province.'

'I understand, sir, but if we fail to destroy Ajax then you can be sure that he will continue his private war against Rome. He has already nearly cost the Emperor the province of Crete as well as disrupting the sea trade in the eastern Mediterranean. He cannot be permitted to trouble the Empire any longer.'

'Nor will he, once the Nubians have been repulsed. Then, and only then, will I even consider providing you with any more resources to track down this criminal. Do you understand?'

'Yes, sir. I just don't agree with you.'

'Disagreement is not a privilege that a subordinate can exercise, Prefect,' Petronius snapped. 'I am the supreme power here in Egypt. I act in the name of the Emperor and while you are here in my province, you will do as I instruct. That is the end of the matter.' He paused and smiled coldly. 'Well, not quite.'

Cato stood still and silent, waiting for the governor to elaborate.

Petronius rose from his desk and crossed his study to the opposite wall where a long map of the Nile had been painted, from the delta all the way into southern Egypt. Beyond the line marking the frontier, the details were few. He reached up and tapped the map.

'Candidus is concentrating his forces at Diospolis Magna. In addition to the Twenty-Second Legion, he has two infantry cohorts of auxiliaries and two cavalry cohorts. That is all that can be spared. I have scraped together every spare man that I can to join the army. Now it seems that Candidus is short of a number of officers. His senior tribune was the officer commanding the auxiliary force defeated by the Nubians. He was killed in the fight. Candidus is also short of the full complement of centurions. Several of them were on detachment to frontier posts acting as magistrates. They were lost when the Nubians crossed the border.' Petronius turned round to face Cato. 'It is my decision to attach you and Centurion Macro to the Twenty-Second Legion for the duration of the present emergency.'

Cato had seen it coming and had already prepared his answer. 'I'm sorry, sir, but I have my orders from Governor Sempronius. I am to seek and destroy the slave Ajax and his followers. Until that is achieved I am not free to carry out any other duties.'

Petronius's expression hardened. 'How dare you address me so haughtily, you upstart little prig. Who the hell do you think you are? You are an over-promoted junior officer. There is not a drop of noble blood in your veins. You have no family or connections in Rome worth a bent sestertius. You are nothing more than Sempronius's little pet. You would do well to remember that.'

'I hold the commission of prefect, sir.'

'Oh, you may well hold the rank of prefect, for now, but your patron won't be able to save you from cocking up one day soon. Then you'll be broken back down to a rank more suited to your lack of years and experience.'

'Be that as it may, for now I am under the orders of Senator Sempronius.'

'You forget yourself, Prefect.' Petronius smiled. 'In Egypt I act in the name of the Emperor. There is no higher authority. If I give you a command, it is as if Claudius himself gave it. Is that not true?'

Cato pursed his lips. The governor was correct. He had the authority to do as he pleased, until recalled to Rome. He could overrule the orders of Sempronius if he wished and there was nothing Cato could do about it. 'Yes, sir. That's right.'

Petronius nodded his head. 'Then the matter is decided. You, and Centurion Macro, will leave for Diospolis Magna immediately. My chief of staff has already prepared your letters of appointment. You can collect them as you leave my offices. Any questions?'