IT IS THE YEAR A.D. 85-Veteran cavalry officer Aulus Artorius, rugged and battle-scarred, is stationed on the frontier of Germania, known as the Agri Decumates, during a bloody war with the Chatti, a barbaric Germani tribe. Artorius is attached to the newly created First Legion Minervia, a nascent and untried military force. The Roman cavalry and cohorts of the First Legion engage in bloody skirmishes on a daily basis. Artorius is also "married" to a Germani woman who has bore him a young son, a curly four-year old named Rubio. During a provisioning sortie to Moguntiacum, Artorius reunites with his old commander, Lucius Saturninus, governor of Germania Superior. Artorius learns of the governor's plan to overthrow the Emperor of Rome, the much-hated Flavius Domitianus, second son of the renowned Emperor Vespasianus. The story moves to Rome as Artorius returns for a much needed furlough. On his way home, he runs afoul of Gallic bandits, the angry sea, a haughty Tribune, a rebellious Senator, and the Emperor himself. He is unexpectedly separated from his Germani family for a extended period, when another war breaks out in the eastern provinces. An unpredicted military setback pushes Artorius to the brink of the afterlife and tests his loyalty, duty and allegiance to the Roman Empire... An adventurous tale of rebellion, warfare and Imperial intrigue set during the Roman Empire, by author of "The Eagle and the Albatros"