Africanus

The Alps, traversed by men and animals alike, and amid winter? Unfathomable, and yet this is what the Senate of Rome is facing in the winter of 218 B.C. The forces led by Hannibal Barca have crossed the Alps, against all humanly possible odds, with 40.000 men and a handful of his war elephants. Co-Consul Publius Cornelius Scipio is a veteran and wealthy Pater Conscriptii who has been ordered by the Senate to seek out and defeat Hannibal before he reaches Cisalpine Gaul in northern Italy. However, Hannibal has outmaneuvered him by penetrating the Alps and arriving just north of the Ticinus River, ravaging and pillaging all in his path. Attempting to flank Hannibal, Consul Scipio marches back to Italy and summons his son Young Publius Cornelius Scipio from Rome. The young man is to initiate his military service under his father as Consul Scipio pretends to kill two birds with one stone. He means to stop Hannibal and teach his son the life of being a soldier. Things take a sudden turn on the 22nd of November of 218. Hannibal is spotted across the Ticinus. Consul Scipio, against his tribune's advice, decides to lead a large detachment of his army across the river to test Hannibal. As a precaution he has his son, now a Turma commander, support the rear with the aid of his loyal childhood friend Gaius Laelius and veteran Equites riders under his command. Their orders are to remain in the rear and under no circumstance engage in battle. The Turma's sole purpose is to protect Young Scipio, and Young Scipio's sole purpose is to protect the rear, nothing else. However, Hannibal, again, has other plans. As the Romans engage the Carthaginian van, they soon realize that Hannibal has played them for fools, they have fallen into an ambush. The Numidians, perhaps the greatest riders at the time, have wedged through the ranks and files of the Romans, quickly isolating the Consul. Meanwhile, Young Publius is forced to witness from the rear how the Carthaginians put in motion Hannibal's modus operandi in Roman lands with an insatiable hunger for slaughter. The Consul is soon wounded and unable to properly defend himself. Maharbal, Hannibal's loyal Second in Command, advances as he tries to claim the head of the Consul, piercing and slashing any who stand between him and his target. The Romans do what they can to little avail. No longer able to bear witness to seeing his father butchered before his eyes, Young Scipio orders his detachment to save his father. Pleading with his best friend to support him. "Orders are orders, Publius. Your father explicitly said so." - says Laelius, the rest of the Turma pays no attention to the pleading commander. Yet the adamant and impulsive young man will have none of this. Before they know it he spurs his steed forward and charges the rear of the now surrounded Roman van. The Turma immediately follows, not so much interested in saving the Consul as in following his orders. The Turma clashes with the Carthaginians, driving a wedge and creating an opening for the Romans to push through and retreat. The Consul escapes death, however, they must now outrun the world's greatest cavalry. The 1000 Numidians have launched a ruthless pursuit. A bridge separates both riverbanks of the Ticinus. Young Scipio knows, from his own father's words, how to destroy the bridge. The sole purpose for leaving his unit in the rear was precisely to stop Hannibal from crossing the Ticinus and buy them the time to retreat. But now, they are faced with a much more dire situation. Young Scipio and Laelius must immediately destroy the bridge before the Numidians can complete their crossing and swallow them whole. The winter rain has intensified the river current, the lesser of two evils. However, either will most certainly send them all to Hades. Through Young Scipio's leadership, they overcome the ordeal at the bridge, reaching the camp to prepare their retreat. Back home, the Senate dictates all, and they have dictated that Consul Scipio's Co-Consul, Tiberius Sempronius Longus abandon his siege of Syracuse and march forth to Placentia to aid Scipio. Unbeknownst to them that Hannibal and Scipio have engaged in battle. To Scipio's favor, Longus will bring an additional 22.000 men, but along with that army comes a troublesome dilemma. Rarely do two Consuls lead the same force, with Scipio now injured, and his son too young to lead an army, Consul Scipio finds his hand forced to capitulate to Longus who, above his desire for wealth, is his thirst for a Triumph, and he will do anything to attain it. What's worse, Hannibal knows the Romans. He understands their heart and their pride. He discerns that though the Senate may send aid, everything in Rome is done under the guise of love for its peoples, yet the real reason is power and influence. The Senate has begun a tug of war for said power and influence. Those allied to the Scipios and those who oppose them. Non more powerful than the Aemilius Paullus and Fabians, friend and foe to the Scipios. With the power struggle for the Senate unleashed, Hannibal doesn't even suspect he's the kindle that started the fire. For him, the Senate and Rome are one and the same - "Corrupted, foolish old men". For the Fabians, "Fear is a powerful ally, and this Hannibal will be our greatest tool". For Scipio and his allies, "Hannibal is a force of nature that threatens Rome's existence." Yet, what no one expects is how fate will forever bond Hannibal and the Scipios. Turning Hannibal into Young Scipio's greatest nemesis, mentor, and teacher. Unknowingly, Hannibal is about to unleash a force of nature greater than his own, and Rome will never be the same.