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them, even if after these things Thomas had been proclaimed to them as irresistible through his great fame. Therefore he also attempts to make overtures to them in the following manner, having cunningly enticed them with what was welcomed as desirable by them, astounded as they were by his immense power. He sends, therefore, to them proclaiming peace, and much more an alliance, to take possession of the imperial power upon its fall. He makes, therefore, a treaty with the Hagarenes; with the knowledge of their leader, he is crowned with the imperial diadem by the patriarch of Antioch, Job, then having encamped a much-storied host with Hagarenes, Indians, Egyptians, Assyrians, Medes, Abasgians, Zichians, Iberians, Kabeiroi, Slavs, Huns, Vandals, Getae, and as many as partook of the abomination of Manes, and Lazians and Alans and Chaldians and Armenians and other nations of all kinds, he became master of all the east, finally, having approached the parts around Thrace, he proceeds to besiege Byzantium with well-armed cavalrymen and stone-throwers among the infantry at hand, being reinforced also with countless slingers and peltasts, and moreover strengthened by not a few siege engines. With these he often attacked the land walls and was driven back without success, as the emperor's son Theophilus came against them and contended mightily, and indeed as his father Michael at times sallied forth and attacked the enemy with his own hand. Whence Thomas, being at a loss, also proceeds to a naval battle, bringing a great multitude of merchant ships, and there he is similarly unfortunate; for these were consumed by the war-fire, the knowledge of which had been almost completely lost before, but was thus rediscovered at that time. A certain Kallinikos from Egypt, a prudent man and the only one knowledgeable at that time, speaking freely said to the emperor that he would work with him against Thomas by the sea, if he should so choose. Who, having skillfully prepared this, supplied it to the admirals. 2.3 But the wretch rebelled for three years. Of which rebellion a portent of ill-omened days was previously shown thus in the reign of Leo. A comet was seen in the sky in the shape of two moons brilliantly coming together and again being divided according to different configurations, from which a certain headless image of a man was formed, signifying somehow † of those who after these things introduced against the Christians the headless dogma of the seditious heresy, or also prophesied somehow that Thomas the fiend, as it seems, would frustrate the head and leader of the division possessed by others†. And in this affair both Olbianos and Christopher acted bravely, the latter having become *magistros* at that time, whose sons Barsakios and Nasar were *patrikioi*, and Katakylas, cousin of the emperor Michael and a *patrikios*, about whom it has been previously shown; through whom the poisons of the rebel were scattered. 2.4 And thus they say the affairs concerning Thomas are more accurately related. This *multion* at least, having been born of a wretched fatherland and an obscure fortune, for the sake of the necessities of life entered the city of Constantine and queen of cities, and having attached himself to one of the *patrikioi* (this was the aforementioned Bardanes), he was caught by this man on a charge of adultery indeed, which Nikephoros, who at that time had obtained the imperial power, devised to bring against him, being envious of Bardanes because of the nobility belonging to him; and fleeing the trial for adultery, which he indeed tried to commit but did not bring to fruition, he fled to Syria. And first indeed he denied the faith in Christ, and having spent a considerable time among them, some twenty-five years having been drawn out, he creates a false rumor for himself, suggesting that he was Constantine, the son of Leo and Irene. But this one, as it turned out, on account of the wickedness of his ways, was deprived of his eyes and the empire and disappeared from among men a short time after his fall, and his corpse was then placed in a certain coffin of the monasteries in the queen of cities. But this blood-guilty man, living among the Saracens, stirs them up with splendid promises, that he would make the [empire] of the Romans tributary to them

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αὐτάς, εἰ καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα τούτοις διὰ πολλῆς φήμης ἀνανταγώνιστος ὁ Θωμᾶς ἀνεδέδοκτο. διὸ καὶ πειρᾶται πρὸς αὐτοὺς κηρυκεύεσθαι τρόπῳ τοιῷδε, πανούργως ἐνδελεάσας, ὅπερ αὐτοῖς βουλητὸν ἠσμενίζετο, τῇ ἐκείνου παμπληθεῖ δυνάμει καταπλαγεῖσιν. διαπέμπεται οὖν πρὸς αὐτοὺς εἰρήνην ἀνακαλούμενος, πολλῷ δὲ μᾶλλον συνασπισμόν, τῆς βασιλικῆς ἀνθέξεσθαι ἀποπτώσεως. ποιεῖται τοίνυν σπονδὰς μετ' Ἀγαρηνῶν, εἰδήσει τοῦ αὐτῶν ἀρχηγοῦ ἀναδεῖται στέφος βασίλειον παρὰ τοῦ ἀρχιερέως Ἀντιοχείας Ἰώβ, εἶτα μετ' Ἀγαρηνῶν Ἰνδῶν Αἰγυπτίων Ἀσσυρί Μήδων Ἀβασίων Ζηχῶν Ἰβήρων Καβείρων Σκλάβων Οὔννων Βανδήλων Γετῶν καὶ ὅσοι τῆς Μάνεντος βδελυρίας μετεῖχον, Λαζῶν τε καὶ Ἀλανῶν Χάλδων τε καὶ Ἀρμενίων καὶ ἑτέρων παντοίων ἐθνῶν πολυθρύλλητον πανστρατιὰν στρατοπεδευσάμενος ἁπάσης τῆς ἀνατολῆς ἐκυρίευσεν, τελευταῖον μέρεσι τοῖς κατὰ Θρᾴκην προσεμπελάσας ἑλεπολεῖν τὸ Βυζάντιον ἐκβιάζεται ἱππεῦσιν εὐόπλοις καὶ πετροβολισταῖς τοῖς ὑπὸ χεῖρα πεζοῖς, ἔτι καὶ σφενδονισταῖς γε καὶ πελτασταῖς ἀμέτροις ἐπιρρωννύμενος, προσέτι μὴν καὶ πολιορκητικοῖς οὐκ ὀλίγοις τεχνάσμασι κρατυνόμενος. μεθ' ὧν πολλάκις τοῖς κατ' ἤπειρον τείχεσι προσβαλὼν ἄπρακτος ἀποκρούεται, τοῦ βασιλικοῦ παιδὸς Θεοφίλου αὐτοῖς ἐπιόντος καὶ διαγωνιζομένου τὰ μάλιστα, ἀλλὰ μὴν καὶ τοῦ πατρὸς Μιχαὴλ ἔσθ' ὅτε ὑπεξιόντος καὶ τοῖς ὑπεναντίοις ἐπιτιθεμένου αὐτόχειρος. ὅθεν ἀμηχανῶν ὁ Θωμᾶς καὶ ἐπὶ ναυμαχίαν προέρχεται, πολλὴν ὁλκάδων σωρείαν ἐπαγόμενος, κἀκεῖσε παραπλησίως ἐνδυστυχεῖ· αὗται γὰρ τῷ πολεμικῷ πυρὶ κατανάλωντο, τῆς περὶ τούτου παρὰ βραχὺ τὸ πρὶν διολομένης εἰδήσεως, τηνικαῦτα δὲ οὕτως ἀνευρεθείσης. Καλλίνικός τις τῶν ἐξ Αἰγύπτου, ἀνὴρ ἐχέφρων καὶ αὐτὸς μόνος εἰδήμων τότε, παρρησιασάμενος ἔφη τῷ βασιλεῖ κατὰ Θωμᾶ συμπονήσειν αὐτῷ παρὰ θάλασσαν, εἴπερ προέλοιτο. ὃς τεχνικῶς τόδε συνθεὶς τοῖς ναυάρχοις ἐπεχορήγησεν. 2.3 Ἐπὶ τρισὶ δὲ ὁ δείλαιος ἐνεωτερίσατο ἔτεσιν. οὗτινος νεωτερισμοῦ ἐπὶ βασιλείας Λέοντος τέρας τῶν ἀποφράδων ὧδε προδέδεικται. ὡράθη κομήτης κατ' οὐρανὸν ἐν σχήματι σεληνῶν δύο λαμπρῶς συνιουσῶν καὶ αὖθις διαιρεθεισῶν κατὰ διαφόρους συστάσεις, ἐξ ὧν ἐκτύπωμά τι ἀκέφαλον ἀνεπλάσθη ἀνδρός, δηλοῦν πως † τῶν μετὰ ταῦτα παρεισαγαγόντων κατὰ Χριστιανῶν τὸ ἀκέφαλον δόγμα τῆς στασιώδους αἱρέσεως, ἢ καὶ Θωμᾶν τὸν ἀλάστορα, ὡς ἔοικεν, κεφαλὴν καὶ ἀρχηγὸν ματαιάζοντα τῆς ἐξ ἑτέρων διαστάσεως κεκτημένων πως προεφήτευσεν†. ἠνδραγαθήκεσαν δὲ ἐν τούτῳ ὅ τε Ὀλβιανὸς καὶ Χριστοφόρος, τηνικαῦτα μάγιστρος γεγονώς, οὗ οἱ υἱοὶ Βαρσάκιός τε καὶ Νάσαρ πατρίκιοι, καὶ Κατάκυλας αὐτοῦ Μιχαὴλ βασιλέως ἐξάδελφος καὶ πατρίκιος, περὶ ὧν προδεδήλωται· δι' ὧν τοῦ στασιώτου τὰ φάρμακα διεσκέδαστο. 2.4 Καὶ οὕτως φασὶ τὰ κατὰ Θωμᾶν ἀκριβέστερον διεξιστορεῖσθαι. οὗτος γοῦν ὁ μουλτίων, ἐκ πατρίδος οἰκτρᾶς καὶ τύχης ἀφανοῦς γεγονώς, τῶν ἀναγκαίων εἰς τὸ ζῆν χάριν εἰς τὴν Κωνσταντίνου καὶ βασιλεύουσαν πόλιν εἰσῆλθεν, καὶ κολληθείς τινι τῶν πατρικίων (Βαρδάνης οὗτος ἦν ὁ λεχθείς) ἐγκλήματι μὲν μοιχείας παρὰ τούτου τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἑάλω, ἣν ὑπέθετο καταπράξασθαι τούτῳ Νικηφόρος ὁ τηνικαῦτα τὸ βασιλεύειν λαχών, τῷ Βαρδάνῃ βασκαίνων διὰ τὴν προσοῦσαν καλοκἀγαθίαν αὐτῷ· φεύγων δὲ τὴν ἐπὶ τῇ μοιχείᾳ δίκην, ἣν καταπράξασθαι μὲν ἐπειράθη, οὐκ εἰς ἔργον δὲ προέβη, εἰς Συρίαν ἀπέδρα. καὶ πρῶτον μὲν τὴν εἰς Χριστὸν ἐξήρνηται πίστιν, καὶ χρόνον συχνὸν ἐν αὐτοῖς διατρίψας, ὡσεὶ εʹ καὶ κʹ παρελκυσθῆναι ἐνιαυτούς, ψευδῆ φήμην ἑαυτῷ περιποιεῖται, Κωνσταντῖνον εἶναι αὐτὸν εἰσηγούμενος τὸν Λέοντος καὶ Εἰρήνης. οὗτος δὲ ἄρα διὰ τὴν μοχθηρίαν τῶν τρόπων μετὰ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν καὶ τῆς βασιλείας ἐστέρηται καὶ ἐξ ἀνθρώπων ἠφάνισται μετὰ βραχὺ τῆς ἐκπτώσεως, καὶ ὁ τοῦδε νεκρὸς ἔν τινι κατετέθη σορῷ τότε τῶν ἐν τῇ βασιλευούσῃ σεμνείων. ἀλλ' ὅ γε παλαμναῖος οὗτος ἀνὴρ μετὰ Σαρακηνῶν διαζῶν, ὑποσχέσεσι τούτους ἐπαίρει λαμπραῖς, ὡς ὑποτελῆ ποιήσειν αὐτοῖς τὴν Ῥωμαίων