that she had been betrothed to Aluccius, a young Celtiberian noble. He sent for her parents and her betrothed. He told the latter that his beloved had been treated respectfully and that she had been reserved for him so that she could be given to him unviolated. In return, he asked him to be a friend of Rome. Aluccius replied that he could not make a return adequate to his feelings. The parents had brought a lot of gold for her ransom. When she was given freely they begged Scipio to accept it as a gift. Since they insisted, he gave it to Aluccius as a wedding present. Back home, Aluccius enlisted a body of his retainers and gave Scipio a picked force of 1,400 mounted men. Scipio sent Mago and 15 Carthaginian senators to Rome. When he returned to Tarraco, he called an assembly of the allies, new and old. In 209 BC, the command of Publius Cornelius Scipio and Marcus Junius Silanus was extended. Scipio continued to try to win over various tribes and restore those who received their hostages. Edeso, the chieftain of the Edetani (who lived in today's northern Valencia, just south of the Ebro), visited Scipio in Tarraco. His wife and sons were in Scipio's hands. He wanted to become the leader of the pro-Roman movement. He asked for his wife and children back and said that he was the first chief to come to him. The others, instead were still interacting with the Carthaginians while reaching out to the Romans. If Scipio accepted his friendship, the other tribes would follow suit to recover their hostages and make an alliance with Rome. Scipio agreed, and the tribes north of the Ebro, who had not been friendly with the Romans, now joined them. Indibilis and Mandonius, the chiefs of the Ilergetes whom Polybius described as "two of the greatest princes in Hispania", abandoned Hasdrubal's camp. They had been the most trustworthy Carthaginian allies. However, on the pretext that he mistrusted them, Hasdrubal demanded a large sum of money and their wives and children as hostages. Polybius noted that, after their victory over the Romans, the Carthaginians 'treated the natives in an overbearing manner and their subjects turned from friends to enemies'. Hasdrubal realised that he needed to make a bold move to stop the wastage. Scipio wanted to engage the Carthaginian commanders separately. He advanced against