Two Roman armies camp separately at Arausio

Mallius reaches the Arausio area first, establishes his camp, and sends Scaurus forward with the reconnaissance force. Caepio initially remains across the Rhône and resists the consul's authority long enough for complaints to reach Rome and senatorial envoys to return. Orders from the Senate eventually bring him onto the same side of the river, but not into the same camp or command structure. His veteran force remains physically and operationally separate from Mallius's newer army. The divided camps turn a dispute over status into a battlefield vulnerability.