Chapter 238 Strategic Deployment
"This is what His Majesty Augustus meant." Aetius said, pushing the golden eagle emblem onto Luca's desk. "I just brought it here to grant it to you in the name of Augustus. The legion under your command will be the Eagle Flag Legion recognized by the Empire, the absolute main force, in recognition of your outstanding performance in Sicily."
Looking at the eagle emblem lying quietly on the table, Luca was not too happy. He wondered if this was another cunning trick of Aetius.
Seeing that Luca was just looking at the eagle emblem and was reluctant to take it, Aetius guessed what Luca was thinking at the moment. Luca still didn't trust him and was afraid that taking the eagle emblem would cause unnecessary trouble.
"Sir Luca," Aetius immediately explained, "You can rest assured, because I have no ill intentions at all."
Aetius's eyes looked sincere, but Luca was still a little skeptical. He hesitantly reached out to grab the eagle emblem placed in front of him, holding it in his hands and examining it carefully.
This is a newly carved one. Compared with the previous ones, this not-so-big eagle emblem looks lifelike. It is a proof of the strength of a legion. If it is obtained, it will be a great affirmation of the legion and its commander.
Whether it was in the early days of the empire hundreds of years ago or now, the eagle flag is still a symbol of honor. In order to obtain this eagle emblem, countless legions and people have gone crazy for it, even at the cost of their own lives.
Luga had also been a member of the army fighting for the Eagle Flag. His innate sense of collective honor made him feel that as long as he could take a look at the Eagle Flag from afar and then prove that the Eagle Flag indeed belonged to his legion, he would feel extremely proud and think of himself as a hero. He would involuntarily straighten his chest when walking on the road.
But the eagle emblem was here, in Luka's hands, so real, so real that his hands could clearly feel every different touch of the eagle emblem. He was a little dazed, and the signals transmitted from his body kept transmitting to him, confirming the authenticity of this.
Isn't this the glory he has always dreamed of? Luka asked himself, holding the golden eagle emblem, but for some reason, he felt resistance in his heart.
"Are you sending away beggars?"
Luca didn't know what was going on, so he casually threw the eagle emblem in front of Aetius.
The smile on Aetius' face froze instantly. He hurriedly picked up the eagle emblem and examined it carefully. Unlike Luca, he now regarded the eagle emblem as a treasure.
"If you say this is just to make up for your mistakes, that would be too ridiculous, Lord Aetius." Luca leaned back in his chair, facing Aetius who was constantly wiping the eagle emblem. It was not difficult to tell from his actions that this eagle emblem was really precious.
"Sir, are you still obsessed with what happened that day?" Aetius let out a long sigh. The eagle emblem in his hand was intact, without even a trace of damage, which at least proved that this thing was of top quality.
"We could have won a small eagle emblem openly, instead of giving it away secretly like giving alms to a beggar. What do you think of me?" Luka became more and more angry. He wanted to stand up suddenly, but he stopped halfway and had to sit down again after a while. "Sorry, I'm rude." Luka rubbed his red and hot cheeks and pinched his nose bridge tightly with his index finger and thumb. He tried to calm himself down with the pain. He realized that he was too out of control and there was no possibility of negotiation at all.
Luca suddenly grabbed the wine glass on the table, which contained half-cooled warm water. He shook his arm violently and splashed the water in the glass all over his face. The soldiers around were stunned, and even Aetius thought he was possessed by a demon. For a moment, his behavior was different from usual.
Under everyone's surprised gaze, Luka reached out and wiped the water stains off his face. Now he felt much calmer. He put down the empty wine glass, picked up the wine pot and refilled the wine glass with water in front of everyone.
"Okay, let's forget about this matter, and don't mention it again." A glass of water made Luca completely different from what he was just now. He was extremely calm, and even raised the corners of his mouth slightly to outline a faint smile, which was completely different from what he was just now.
"My God, he must be crazy." Aetius stared at Luca, whose mood had changed. In his eyes, he seemed no longer to be a human being, but a monster, a possessed demon.
"Sir Luca?" Aetius tried to call out.
"That's enough. I'm listening." Luca lowered his voice and snapped his fingers behind him. Andrew, who was standing behind him, hurried forward and handed him a huge rolled parchment. Luca took the parchment and spread it out on the table between him and Aetius. The four corners were pressed with tools. The parchment had maps of cities from Sicily to Carthage in Africa. He faced Aetius and said, "You came here to discuss this matter with me. Of course, I have to be prepared. Look, I have prepared a map for you and I am all ears to your advice."
"Oh, oh, so that's how it is." Seeing Luca stunned for a moment, Aetius hurriedly came to his senses. He carefully put the eagle emblem in his pocket, deliberately preventing Luca from seeing this finely crafted eagle emblem.
Aetius looked at Luca and said slowly: "It is still a little too early to formulate a battle plan now, because we need enough soldiers to participate in it, and of course the navy is indispensable."
"The navy has the fleet of Hermanus of the Eastern Empire. He has more than a thousand large and small warships under his command, which is more than enough to transport troops."
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"But we need infantry." Aetius continued, "Gaiseric will certainly not think that we will let them go after he returns to Africa. I'm sure he saw our struggle clearly at that time, and he is naturally aware of our current entangled situation, and he will definitely prepare to protect himself."
"Africa has fertile soil and has always been an important tax-paying province of the empire. If its economy is used in the military, he can easily recruit or hire an army that is strong enough to compete with us." Aetius's warning was not alarmist, because Luca was also very clear about this. Letting Geiseric go would be like letting a tiger go back to the mountains. It would be extremely difficult to defeat and kill him in the future.
(End of this chapter)