The Will of the Senate - Senate Deliberations III

[Death the destroyer of worlds]

Tribune Numerius Aureolus,

You walk a tight rope between respect and insubordination. Remember, you have not yet earned the respect of high office, and a fall now might yet be quite deep. Nevertheless, your arguments are persuasive and I will let your disobidiance in this matter slide considering your accomplishements on this mission.

I apologize if I have miscalculated the number of ships required to transport your legion (I count avatars for free, by the way). Those fleet engagements did us more harm than I realised. I can imagine how uncomfortable you must have been on the long and dangerous voyage and I applaud your men for fighting such a valiant action at the end of it (ships, like troops, may be retrained in an emergency. What specifies an emergency is something the consuls must decide for themselves, but I advise reluctance on their part). Your strategy was sound, but your tactics still have some of the recklesness of youth in them.

The death of the last general responsible for the death of an Roman consul, my friend an co-consul Amulius Coruncanius, pleases me greatly and spreads fear amongst our enemies at a critical moment in the continuing story of our Republic, the resurgence of the Republic of Carthage. I will make the appropriate offerings tonight to bring his spirit to rest and I hope it slightly eases the grief of my friend, the general Tiberius and his family. The destruction of the kingdom of Macedonia might have appeared like a reckless exercise by some in this house, but it has shown our enemies that Rome will not give up the pursuit of them no matter how far they flee, nor will we stop the pursuit untill they surrender or perish.

I will speak out on the strategy the consuls will follow and the renewed Carthagian threat when I resume command of our armed forces.