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was fanning a threat. A young eunuch boy in attendance on Michael secretly saw these things, who recognized the entering emperor by nothing other than the royal purple sandals as he crept under the bed (for he had been hidden from the emperor there); at any rate, after the arrival of the emperor, he told both his own master Michael and indeed the *papias* everything that had happened. Having heard these things, the *papias*, seized with immeasurable fear, along with Michael, prepared a tested plan. Michael pretended to be excessively concerned about the sins against his soul, so that he might confide these things to some holy man through one of his most faithful servants, Theoktistos, who after this was honored with the conspicuous dignity of a patrician and was entrusted with the care of the imperial inkstand, by which he was known as the *kanikleios*, by whom also Michael's matters of guardianship were confirmed as being with a trustworthy man. Then, however, the outcome according to the request of the pretext was suspended by an imperial order, and the wicked plot proceeded to action. For Michael, having explained the details of the attack to Theoktistos, and having secretly conveyed a deep plan to those who had shared with him in the ambush, he insisted that he would reveal their conspiracy to the emperor if they should neglect the undertaking now. 1.20 From there, having prepared a common plan, they devised the undertaking as follows: to slip in by night through the Elephantine Gate, where the doxology was dedicated to God, intending to impersonate priests with their vestments and secretly brandishing swords, and then thus to make their way to the right side and attack the emperor. For a certain old custom had been in effect, for the priests to wait through the night outside the palace until their appointed entry towards dawn. Therefore the conspirators entered as priests, following the real ones; and the priests entered the oratory chapel, but those left behind lay in wait secretly in a dark place, so that they might attack the emperor at an opportune moment. When the morning hymn began, the emperor came down to the chapel as was his custom. The hour at dawn almost exposed the ambush, if the daring of the attackers had not fanned their triumph. For immediately, with fervent and sharp courage, armed with swords, they rushed contrary to their plan and extended their swords against the chief of the priests, mistaking him for the emperor, having been led astray by the appearance that then presented itself; for as it was a very harsh winter, the emperor was using a raised covering on his head, and in the same way so was the leader of the company of priests; from which it truly happened that the conspirators made their attempt against him. He, terrified by the sudden rush of the attackers, shouted loudly that the emperor was someone else, against whom they had directed their attack. And for this reason he uncovered his head as a manifest sign (for a bald patch surrounded it), so that he might not draw the blow upon himself by misrepresentation. So the emperor, having entered and found the altar, and seizing its cross or, according to some, the chain of the censer, being at a loss for any defensive weapon, was about to resist. Nevertheless, having become visible to those who were to dispatch him, they immediately cut him to pieces with their swords as he held a cross in his hands, as if to ward off the blow with this. On account of which, he uttered to one of the murderers, a man of huge size, who was nicknamed "one-and-a-half" according to his gigantic size, binding with an oath the one he had taken hold of. But he heard a pitiless voice like that against the sons of Antimachus, who answered him with an oath that he would live no longer. And immediately bringing his sword down on the collarbone, he cut through his arm, so that even one of the arms of the cross was almost cut through; and then he thus deprived him of his head. But at that very hour a voice from the air struck some sailors traveling at sea, that Leo the emperor had perished here; who, putting the report together and considering among themselves the night and the hour after this, the truth

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ἀπειλὴν ἐπερρίπιζεν. ταῦτα προσεδρεῦον τῷ Μιχαὴλ εὐνουχικὸν παιδάριον κρύφα τεθέατο, ὅπερ τὸν εἰσιόντα βασιλέα οὐκ ἄλλοθεν ἢ ἀπὸ τῶν βασιλικῶν ἐκ κόκκου πεδίλων διέγνωκεν ὑπὸ τὴν κλίνην ὑφέρπον (ἐκεῖ γὰρ τῷ βασιλεῖ διεκέκρυπτο)· μετὰ γοῦν τὴν ἄφιξιν τοῦ βασιλέως τῷ τε ἰδίῳ δεσπότῃ Μιχαήλ, ἀλλὰ μὴν καὶ τῷ παπίᾳ ἅπαντα τὰ συμβεβηκότα διέλεξεν. τούτων κατήκοος γεγονὼς ὁ παπίας καὶ ἀμέτρῳ κατασχεθεὶς δείματι σὺν αὐτῷ Μιχαὴλ βουλὴν δοκίμην ἐπισκευάζουσιν. προφασίζεται ὁ Μιχαὴλ τῶν κατὰ ψυχὴν ὀφλημάτων ἄγαν κεκτῆσθαι διὰ φροντίδος, ὡς ἄν τινι τῶν εὐαγῶν ταῦτα ἀνάθοιτο διά τινος τῶν ὑπηρετουμένων αὐτῷ πιστοτάτου Θεοκτίστου, ὃς μετὰ ταῦτα τῷ τοῦ πατρι κίου περιβλέπτῳ τετίμητο ἀξιώματι καὶ τὴν ἐπὶ τοῦ βασιλικοῦ καλάμου ἐγκεχείριστο πρόνοιαν, δι' οὗ κανίκλειος ἐδοξάζετο, ἐφ' ᾧ καὶ τὰ τῆς ἐπιτροπείας τοῦ Μιχαὴλ ὡς εὐγνώμονι ἐβεβαίωτο. τότε δὲ τὸ κατὰ τὴν αἴτησιν τῆς προφάσεως πέρας ἀπήρτητο βασιλικῆς ἐκ διατάξεως, καὶ τὸ σκαιώρημα εἰς ἔργον προέβαινεν. ἀκριβολογησάμενος γὰρ τῷ Θεοκτίστῳ ὁ Μιχαὴλ τὰ τῆς ἐπιθέσεως, καὶ διαπορθμεύσας κρυφιομύστως τοῖς κεκοινωνηκόσιν αὐτῷ τῆς ἐνέδρας βαθεῖαν διάσκεψιν, ἐπισχυρίζεται κατ' αὐτῶν τὴν κοινωνίαν φωράσαι τῷ ἄνακτι, εἴπερ καταμελήσειαν ἄρτι τῆς ἐγχειρήσεως. 1.20 Ἐντεῦθεν κοινὴν βουλὴν ἐπισκευασάμενοι τοιῶσδε τὸ ἐγχείρημα συντιθέασιν, παρεισδῦναι νύκτωρ διὰ τῆς Ἐλεφαντίνης πύλης, καθ' ὃ τὰ τῆς δοξολογίας θεῷ ἀφιέρωτο, ὡς ἱερεῖς ὑποκριθησόμενοι τοῖς ἐπενδύμασιν ξίφη τε λαθραίως χειρισόμενοι, εἶθ' οὕτως πρὸς μέρος τὸ δεξιὸν ποιήσασθαι τὴν ἀπόνευσιν καὶ ἐπιθέσθαι τῷ βασιλεῖ. παλαιὸς γάρ τις τύπος διεδεδραμήκει, ἐκτὸς τῶν βασιλείων τοὺς ἱερεῖς νυκτὶ διακαρτερεῖν μέχρι τῆς πρὸς ὄρθρον διωρισμένης αὐτοῖς εἰσελεύσεως. ὡς ἱερεῖς ὅθεν οἱ στασιῶται εἰσῄεσαν, τοῖς ἀληθέσιν ἑπόμενοι· καὶ οἱ μὲν ἱερεῖς εἰσήλθοσαν τῷ εὐκτηρίῳ ναῷ, οἱ δὲ περιλειφθέντες ζοφώδει χώρῳ λεληθότως προσήδρευον, ὡς ἂν εὐκαίρως ἐπίθωνται τῷ βασιλεῖ. τοῦ δὲ ὀρθρίου ὕμνου ἐνστάντος, πρὸς τὸ εἰωθὸς καταίρει βασιλεὺς τῷ ναῷ. ἡ ὥρα τῇ ἕῳ παρέθηγεν τὸν λόχον δημοσιεύουσα, εἰ μὴ τόλμα τῶν ἐπιτιθεμένων τὸν θρίαμβον ἀνερρίπισεν. αὐτίκα γὰρ ζέοντι καὶ τομῷ θάρσει ξιφήρεις παρὰ τὸν σκοπὸν ἐναυτομολήσαντες κατὰ τοῦ τῶν ἱερέων ἐξάρχου τὰ ξίφη προέτειναν, τὸν βασιλέα τοῦτον ὑπάρχειν εἰκάσαντες ἐκ τοῦ τότε προσπεσόντος σχήματος ἀποπλανηθέντες· χειμῶνος γὰρ δριμυτάτου καθεστηκότος ὁ μὲν βασιλεὺς κατὰ τὴν κεφαλὴν ἐκέχρητο διανεστηκότι καλύμματι, τὸν αὐτὸν δὲ τρόπον καὶ ὁ τοῦ τῶν ἱερέων καταλόγου προηγούμενος· ἐξ οὗ συνέβαινεν ὄντως τοῖς στασιώταις κατ' αὐτοῦ τὴν ἐγχείρησιν ἐπιδείξασθαι. ὃς τῇ ἀθρόᾳ φορᾷ τῶν ἐπιτιθεμένων καταπλαγεὶς σφοδρὸν ἀνεβόησεν, ἕτερον εἶναι τὸν βασιλέα, πρὸς ὃν τὴν ὁρμὴν ἀπῃώρησαν. διὸ καὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν ἀπεγύμνωσεν οἷα καταφανὲς γνώρισμα (φαλάκρωμα γὰρ αὐτῷ περιΐστατο), ἵνα μὴ τὴν τομὴν ἐκ τοῦ παρείκοντος ἐπισπάσοιτο. οὐκοῦν ὁ βασιλεὺς εἰσῄει τῷ ἱλαστηρίῳ περιτυχών, καὶ τούτου τὸν σταυρὸν ἢ κατά τινας τὴν τοῦ θυμιατηρίου κρεμάθραν δραξάμενος, ἐξαπορῶν τινος ἀμυντηρίου ὀργάνου, ἀντιτάξασθαι ἔμελλεν. ὅμως καταφανὴς γενόμενος τοῖς αὐτὸν διαχειρισομένοις, αὐθωρὸν τοῖς ξίφεσιν ἐκερμάτιζον σταυρὸν ἐν χερσὶ κατέχοντα, ὡς ἐκ τούτου γε τὴν τομὴν ἀποπέμψασθαι. ἧς χάριν πρός τινα τῶν μιαιφόνων, ὑπερμεγέθη ἄνδρα, ᾧ τὸ ἓν καὶ ἥμισυ κατὰ τὸ γιγάντειον προσωνομάζετο μέγεθος, ἐπεφθέγξατο ὅρκῳ περιδεσμῶν οὗ ἐπελάβετο. ἀλλ' ἀμείλικτον ὄπα κατὰ τοὺς Ἀντιμάχου παῖδας διήκουσεν, ἀντειπόντα ἐνόρκως αὐτῷ μηκέτι βιώσεσθαι. καὶ εὐθέως τῇ κατακλεῖδι τὴν σπάθην καθεὶς τὴν χεῖρα διέσπασεν, ὥστε καὶ τὸ σταυρικὸν σχεδόν τι κέρας διακοπῆναι· εἶθ' οὕτως αὐτὸν καὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς ἀπετύχισεν. κατ' αὐτὴν δὲ τὴν ὥραν φωνή τις ἀερόθεν ἐνήλατο ποντοποροῦσι ναυτίλοις, ὡς Λέων ὁ βασιλεὺς τῇδε διαπεφώνηκεν· οἳ συμβαλόντες τὴν ἀκοὴν τήν τε νύκτα μετὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὥραν καθ' ἑαυτοὺς ἐννοήσαντες τὸ ἀληθὲς