 Supporting the senatorial faction against Antony, Octavian, in September 44 BC, encouraged the leading senator Marcus Tullius Cicero to attack Antony in a series of speeches portraying him as a threat to the Republican order.Risk of civil war between Antony and Octavian grew.Octavian continued to recruit Caesar's veterans to his side, away from Antony, with two of Antony's legions defecting in November 44 BC.