In a large residence on the top of a hill, General Sulla, dressed in a white toga, was observing with scrutiny the young general in front of him.
The young general was 21 years old and was a very notable figure throughout Rome, with a reputation for being impulsive, and in recent days, with the cries of lament from prisoners that could be heard from his camp, rumors pointed to him as sadistic.
Septimus observed the old man in front of him with indifference. Sulla was a great figure in Rome with great military talent, but unfortunately he was 56 years old, a very advanced age in antiquity.
Considering that the general population did not exceed 40 years of life, and the upper class in Rome, with a better quality of life, could only reach 60 years with luck.
In the original history, General Sulla died at the age of 60, a natural death due to old age and complications from a harsh living environment.
By contrast, the long lives reached by Gaius Marius at 86 years old and Cinna at 84 years old were uncommon in the Roman upper class during antiquity.
Septimus, as a history professor in his past life, had long known that Sulla would not reach the same long lifespan as Marius and Cinna.
"I need your legions to besiege the city of Praeneste," Sulla spoke suddenly with seriousness.
Septimus grabbed his chin while thinking.
The city of Praeneste in 82 BC was excellently defended: its elevated position, its polygonal walls, and its steep streets made it almost impregnable to a direct assault.
In the original history, the city of Praeneste, after being isolated following the Battle of the Colline Gate, without supplies or the possibility of reinforcements, ended up becoming vulnerable to a prolonged siege, which led to its fall under the military forces of Sulla.
"All right, I will deploy my legions in two days to besiege the city," said Septimus with an indifferent expression.
Sulla frowned as he observed Septimus. With his years of military and political experience, there were few situations that intrigued him, and the actions of Septimus and his behavior truly confused him.
What was Septimus's ambition?
Money?
Septimus's fortune could be counted in millions of denarii; even before the war, his fortune with the monopoly of white sugar was considerable.
Status?
Dozens of prominent noble families would be willing to offer beautiful young women to become wives of Septimus.
And many other declining noble families would be willing to send all the women of the family as wives or lovers regardless of Septimus's reputation.
Power?
Septimus had several opportunities to join with the Scipio family to become a dictator for life and could even have become King.
On the contrary, Septimus decided to cut ties with the Scipio family and confront them decisively on the battlefield.
It can be stated that half of the civil war was fought and won by Septimus's legions. Although he gained a great fortune during the looting.
Sulla felt increasingly confident with Septimus upon confirming that his ambition was only limited to money.
In Sulla's opinion, the purpose of money and of forming legions is to gain power.
Sulla considered people who place money above power to be fools.
On the other hand, if Septimus was short-sighted and only pursued money and pleasure, his actions of forming a large number of legions were inconsistent.
A person who prepares a large number of legions at the beginning of a war can be safely said to have great ambitions for power or is simply a very fearful person seeking security.
Septimus's attitude and behavior were more related to a war-addicted sadist than to a coward.
On the contrary, Septimus's actions of abandoning unique advantages lacked sense for the vast majority of nobles, including Sulla.
Sulla set aside his unnecessary thoughts and made a gesture of farewell to Septimus.
Time would reveal the answer to the true ambitions of men and would answer Sulla's doubts.
Septimus left the city of Rome with his personal guards.
During the last years, the representative symbol of three decapitated heads impaled on spears had been improving and taking a complete form.
The practice of drawing the symbol on shields and the simultaneous drawing experience of a large number of clones had made the representative emblem more elaborate.
The drawing of the original emblem had a background of a valley that over time transformed into a dry branch that symbolized death.
The clone army also used three severed heads impaled on spears as standards during marches or in battle.
The notoriety of the clone army was well justified.
The emblem of the three heads impaled on spears had become a brand, and as a consequence, Septimus's grain trade outside the region of Campania was severely affected.
The region of Campania was an important source of grain, and during the war the price of grain skyrocketed; the sale of various simple cereals at a high price generated great profits.
On the other hand, Septimus realized that his grain shops throughout Rome were not making profits.
Roman citizens knew the reputation of the clone army and feared the symbol of the three heads impaled on spears of Septimus, preferring to go hungry or buy grain in more distant shops; the situation calmed when Septimus decided to remove his symbol from the shops and sell the grain under another identity.
Two days passed.
Thousands of soldiers in black armor left the military camp while marching in an orderly formation.
Septimus, mounted on a black horse, was at the front of a cavalry composed of his personal guard.
A cloud of dust was generated by the uniform march of thousands of clone soldiers.
The city of Praeneste was located about 35 km east of Rome, in an elevated position on the foothills of the Apennines, dominating the plain of Latium; this location allowed it to control key routes into the interior of Italy and gave it a natural defensive advantage by being built on the slope of a mountain.
The siege of the city of Praeneste would last quite a long time.
It was very likely that Norbanus and Marius the Younger were leading the defense of the city.
Septimus would not make the same suicidal mistake of besieging and attacking the city by force as he had previously done in the city of Rome.
Famous generals and the defenses of a well-protected city must not be underestimated.
Previously, Septimus's confidence generated a blind confidence that caused him to overestimate his abilities and attack the walls of the city of Rome.
Septimus underestimated a famous general like Sertorius.
The failure in the siege of the wall of Rome also served as a lesson for Septimus not to blindly trust his clones.
Clones are people of flesh and blood and cannot withstand stab wounds or break stone walls with their bodies.
On the other hand, the military power demonstrated by Septimus exceeded Sulla's estimates.
Septimus's army was concentrated in the region of Campania with 13 legions and in Rome with 8 legions, totaling 21 legions.
Septimus had 13 legions in the region of Campania to maintain control and security of his territory and also to face the army of the Samnites and the Lucanians.
The Samnites and the Lucanians were destined to rebel, and the Lucanians would inevitably pass through the region of Campania on their march north, which would provoke a great battle. Therefore, protecting the region of Campania with thirteen legions was indispensable.
The Samnites and the Lucanians had been in contact with Roman culture for generations and had adopted many Roman methods for training soldiers. The army of both tribes did not differ much from the Roman army.
In the original history, the Samnites deployed 6 legions and the Lucanians 3 legions, totaling 9 legions that would attack the region of Campania.