Once Marcus hears the rumors of the Eagle, he devises a plan for finding it. What is his plan?

When Marcus learns that the Eagle of the Lost Ninth Legion, his father's old command, is being held by Celtic tribesmen, he determines to get it back. Marcus grants Esca his freedom, and Esca agrees to accompany him as a friend. They travel through Scotland with Marcus disguised as a Greek oculist, or eye doctor. When the two men find the Eagle in the Holy Place of the Epidaii, Marcus learns the fate of the Lost Ninth from a deserter and an old Celtic warrior.