‘Enough. Enough, I beg you!’

‘Then tell us where Germanus is! You will then be spared’.

‘I know nothing about any Germanus’.

‘Liar!’

Agricola smacked Drustans about the face and then nodded to the carnifex to do his worst. The man took the branding iron and inspected the end carefully. Once he was satisfied that it would do what he intended, he buried the end into his makeshift caminus, waited until he judged the iron red hot and then applied it swiftly onto Drustans’ side. The man cried out to the point where he lost consciousness.

‘It will be a while before he is conscious. Let us go and eat. He will come round before dawn, I will make sure of that. But make sure that he has no water when he does...

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