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Meanwhile, the legionaries under cover of their mantlets
and fascines set to work to undermine the walls, build up a mound, and
assail the gates, while Otho's Guards rolled on to them with terrific
crashes huge millstones, which they had arranged for this purpose
along the walls. Of those beneath, some were crushed by the stones;
others, wounded by darts, were left mangled and bleeding to death.
Panic redoubled the slaughter, and the rain of missiles came all the
fiercer from the walls. At last they sacrificed the honour of their
party and beat a retreat. Caecina, ashamed of his rash attempt at
assault, was afraid of looking ridiculous and useless if he sat still
in the same camp. So he crossed the Po and made for Cremona. As he
was retiring, Turullius Cerialis with a large force of marines, and
Julius Briganticus[260] with a few cavalry, came over to his side. The
latter, a Batavian born, had held a cavalry command: the former was a
senior centurion, who was known to Caecina, as he had served in that
capacity in Germany.

Spurinna, learning the enemy's route, informed Annius Gallus[261] 23
by letter of all that had happened, the defence of Placentia and
Caecina's plans. Gallus was leading the First legion to the relief of
Placentia, for he doubted the ability of the weak force of Guards to
resist a long siege and the full strength of the German army. Hearing
that Caecina was defeated and making for Cremona, he halted at
Bedriacum, though he found it hard to restrain the ardour of his
troops, whose zeal for battle nearly broke into mutiny. The village of
Bedriacum lies between Verona and Cremona,[262] and two Roman
disasters have now given it a sinister notoriety.

In the same week Martius Macer[263] gained a victory in the
neighbourhood of Cremona. With great enterprise he had transported his
gladiators across the Po, and suddenly flung them on to the opposite
bank. There they routed the Vitellian auxiliaries and killed all who
offered resistance, the rest taking flight to Cremona.
But Macer
checked their victorious ardour, for fear that the enemy might be
reinforced and reverse the fortune of the battle. This aroused
suspicion among the Othonians, who put a bad construction on all that
their generals did. All the least courageous and most impudent of the
troops vied incessantly with each other in bringing various charges
against Annius Gallus, Suetonius Paulinus, and Marius Celsus, for the
two latter had also been placed in command by Otho. [264] The most
energetic in promoting mutiny and dissension were Galba's murderers,
who, maddened by their feelings of fear and of guilt, created endless
disorder, sometimes talking open sedition, sometimes sending anonymous
letters to Otho. As he always believed men of the meaner sort and
distrusted patriots, he now wavered nervously, being always irresolute
in success and firmer in the face of danger. He therefore sent for his
brother Titianus[265] and gave him the chief command.

Meanwhile success attended the generalship of Paulinus and 24
Celsus. [266] Caecina was tortured by his constant failure and the
waning reputation of his army. Repulsed from Placentia, he had lately
seen his auxiliaries defeated, and his patrols constantly worsted in
skirmishes more frequent than memorable. Now that Fabius Valens was
close at hand, he determined not to let all the glory of the war fall
to him, and hastened with more zeal than prudence to retrieve his
reputation. About twelve miles[267] distant from Cremona, at a place
called _Twin Brethren_,[268] he carefully concealed the bravest of his
auxiliaries in a wood overlooking the road. The cavalry were ordered
to ride forward down the road and provoke an engagement. They were
then to feign flight and lure the pursuers on in hot haste until they
fell into the ambush. This plan was betrayed to Otho's generals.
Paulinus took charge of the infantry, Celsus of the horse. A
detachment of the Thirteenth legion,[269] four auxiliary cohorts of
foot, and five hundred cavalry were stationed on the left flank.