Bryennios having ordered those around him to hold the reins, Basilakios alone was in pursuit, through ignorance of what had been done. But when he approached the enemy's palisade, his horse having stumbled, he fell to the ground, weighed down by the burden of his arms. Therefore, the enemy, swarming around, take him alive and lead him as a prisoner to the sultan. And having been brought into his sight, he did not submit to the sultan either as one who had now become a slave or as one led away captive. But neither did the sultan treat him as a slave or as a captive, but constantly bringing him forward he both questioned him about the emperor and showed off his own strength and tried to instill dread and terror. But he, while praising and magnifying all his things, advised him that to draw up in battle against the emperor of the Romans was disadvantageous for him. But so much for him; but the emperor, being compelled, went out with the rest of the multitude to view the state of affairs. Standing on some hills until evening, since he did not see an opponent, he returned to the camp. And immediately the Turks, swarming around, with volleys of arrows and by riding around, caused no small fear in the army, forcing them to get inside the palisade. It was a moonless night when these things were happening, and there was no distinguishing of strangers and acquaintances, of those fleeing and those pursuing. And throughout the whole night they were surrounding the camp with indistinct cries, so that all passed the night with their eyes open and sleepless. But when morning 147 came, a certain Ouzic contingent, having as its leader one Tames, a Scythian so-named, serving under Tornikios Kotertzes, deserted to the enemy; which cast the Romans into no small anxiety, suspecting the rest of the nation also as hostile. But some of the infantry, going out, killed many Turks with far-shooting arrows and defensive weapons for close combat, and persuaded them to withdraw from the camp. But the emperor, having sent swift messengers to Chliat, summoned the leaders there with the forces under them, wishing to decide matters immediately with close combat, and waiting for their assistance he wasted time in vain; for they were the ones who had especially practiced the Pyrrhic dance. But when he had despaired of assistance from these, suspecting there was some hindrance, he considered with those present to fight it out on the next day. But he did not know, it seems, that Trachaneiotes, having persuaded Rousselios also, who was eager to join the emperor, having learned of the sultan's arrival and his attack against the emperor, taking all those around him, ignobly fled through Mesopotamia into Roman territory, the wretch taking no account of his master nor indeed of what was proper. The emperor, therefore, having prepared his own arrangements for war for the morrow according to the agreement, was giving orders while still sitting inside the imperial tent, when, removing the fear arising from the Scythians present, I mean the Ouzes, he secured them with an oath customary to their religion. And while these things were being done and the soldiers were taking their positions armed on their horses according to ranks and companies, ambassadors came from the sultan proclaiming peace for both sides. And the emperor received them and spoke with them according to the law of ambassadors, but he did not receive them very kindly. Nevertheless, he assented and gave them a cross, so that 148 by showing this they might return to him unharmed, bringing whatever messages they might learn from the sultan. For, elated by the unexpectedness of the message, he had indicated that the sultan, leaving the place of his own camp, should encamp further away; and the emperor, in that place which the sultan previously held, would pitch his palisade and then would proceed to negotiations with him. But he was unaware that through high-mindedness he was throwing away the victory to the enemy, as those who carefully examine such things conclude, by sending him the most victory-bringing symbol, the cross. Not yet had an end nor a delay the of the

Βρυεννίου τοὺς ῥυτῆρας ἀνασχεῖν τοῖς περὶ αὐτὸν ἐγκελευσαμένου μόνος διώκων ὁ Βασιλάκιος ἦν ἀγνοίᾳ τοῦ πραχθέντος. Ἐπεὶ δὲ τῷ χάρακι τῶν ἐναντίων προσέμειξε , περιπαρέντος αὐτοῦ τοῦ ἵππου προσέσχε τῇ γῇ βάρος τῶν ὅπλων ἐπιφερόμενος. ∆ιὸ καὶ περιχυθέντες οἱ πολέμιοι αἴρουσιν αὐτὸν ζωγρίαν καὶ πρὸς τὸν σουλτάνον ἀπάγουσι δέσμιον. Ὧ καὶ εἰς ὄψιν παραστὰς οὔτε ὡς δοῦλος ἤδη γεγονὼς οὔτε ὡς αἰχμάλωτος ἀπαχθεὶς τῷ σουλτάνῳ καθυπετάγη. Ἀλλ' οὔτε ὁ σουλτάνος εἴτε ὡς δούλῳ εἴτε ὡς αἰχμαλώτῳ προσηνέχθη αὐτῷ, συνεχῶς δὲ παριστῶν περὶ τοῦ βασιλέως τε ἐπηρώτα καὶ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ἰσχὺν ἐπεδείκνυε καὶ εἰς ὀρρωδίαν καὶ πτοίαν ἐνέβαλλεν. Ὁ δὲ πάντα ἐπαινῶν καὶ μεγαλύνων τὰ αὐτοῦ τὸ ἀντιπαρατάξασθαι τῷ βασιλεῖ Ῥωμαίων ἀσύμφορον αὐτῷ συνεβούλευεν. Ἀλλ' οὕτω μὲν οὗτος· ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς ἀναγκασθεὶς ἐξῄει μετὰ τῆς λοιπῆς πληθύος εἰς τὴν τῶν πραγμάτων θέαν. Μέχρι δὲ ἑσπέρας ἐπί τινων λόφων ἑστώς, ἐπείπερ οὐκ εἶδε τὸν ἀντικαθιστάμενον, ὑπέστρεψεν εἰς τὴν παρεμβολήν. Καὶ αὐτίκα περιχυθέντες οἱ Τοῦρκοι τόξων βολαῖς καὶ περιιππεύσεσι φόβον οὐ μικρὸν τῇ στρατιᾷ ἐνεποίησαν, ἐντὸς γενέσθαι τοῦ χάρακος βιαζόμενοι. Νὺξ ἦν ἀσέληνος, ὅτε ταῦτα ἐγίνετο, καὶ διάκρισις ὀθνείων τε καὶ γνωστῶν, φευγόντων τε καὶ διωκόντων οὐκ ἦν. ∆ιὰ πάσης δὲ τῆς νυκτὸς περιηχοῦντες ἦσαν ὑλαγμοῖς ἀσήμοις τὸ στρατόπεδον, ὡς ἅπαντας διανυκτερεῦσαι ἠνεῳγμένοις καὶ ἀγρύπνοις τοῖς ὄμμασι. Πρωίας δὲ 147 γενομένης μοῖρά τις οὐζικὴ ἔξαρχον ἔχουσα Ταμῆν τινα Σκύθην οὕτως ὀνομαζόμενον, ὑπὸ Τορνικίῳ τῷ Κοτέρτζῃ ταττόμενον τοῖς ἐναντίοις προσερρύη· ὅπερ οὐκ εἰς μικρὰν ἀγωνίαν τοὺς Ῥωμαίους ἐνέβαλεν ὑποπτεύοντας καὶ τὸ λοιπὸν ἔθνος ὡς πολέμιον. Τινὲς δὲ τῶν πεζῶν ἐξιόντες Τούρκων ἀνεῖλον πολλοὺς βέλεσιν ἑκηβόλοις καὶ ἀγχεμάχοις ἀμυντηρίοις ὅπλοις, καὶ τῆς παρεμβολῆς ἐκστῆναι παρέπεισαν. Ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς ταχυδρόμους ἀποστείλας εἰς τὸ Χλίατ τοὺς ἐκεῖσε ἡγεμόνας ἐκάλει μετὰ τῶν ὑπ' αὐτοῖς δυνάμεων, παραυτίκα θέλων ἀγχεμάχῳ πολέμῳ διακρῖναι τὰ πράγματα, καὶ ἀναμένων τὴν ἐξ αὐτῶν βοήθειαν τὸν καιρὸν τηνάλλως ἔτριβεν· ἦσαν γὰρ οἱ τῶν ἄλλων μάλιστα τὴν πυρρίχιον ἐκμεμελετηκότες ὄρχησιν. Ὡς δ' ἀπεγνώκει τὴν ἀπὸ τούτων βοήθειαν, κώλυμά τι εἶναι ὑποπτεύσας ἐσκέψατο μετὰ τῶν συνόντων εἰς τὴν ὑστεραίαν διαγωνίσασθαι. Ἠγνόει δὲ ἄρα ὡς ὁ Τραχανειώτης παραπείσας καὶ τὸν Ῥουσέλιον συνελθεῖν τῷ βασιλεῖ προθυμούμενον, μαθὼν τὴν τοῦ σουλτάνου ἄφιξιν καὶ τὴν αὐτοῦ κατὰ τοῦ βασιλέως ἐπέλευσιν, ἄρας τοὺς ἀμφ' αὐτὸν ἅπαντας διὰ τῆς Μεσοποταμίας φυγὰς ἀγεννῶς εἰς τὴν Ῥωμαίων ἐνέβαλε, μηδένα λόγον τοῦ δεσπότου μήτε μὴν τοῦ εἰκότος ὁ δείλαιος θέμενος. Ὁ γοῦν βασιλεὺς κατὰ τὸ συγκείμενον τὴν εἰς τὸν πόλεμον παρασκευὴν ἐς τὴν αὔριον ἐξαρτύσας τὰ κατ' αὐτὸν διετάττετο ἔτι τῆς βασιλείου σκηνῆς ἐντὸς καθιστάμενος, ὁπότε καὶ τὸ ἐκ τῶν συνόντων Σκυθῶν, τῶν Οὔζων φημί, δέος ἀφαιρούμενος ὅρκῳ συνήθει τῆς αὐτῶν θρησκείας αὐτοὺς κατησφαλίσατο. Ἐν ὅσῳ δὲ τὰ τοιαῦτα ἐπράττετο καὶ οἱ στρατιῶται κατὰ τάξεις καὶ λόχους ἐπὶ τῶν ἵππων ἐφίσταντο ἔνοπλοι, πρέσβεις ἧκον ἐκ τοῦ σουλτάνου τὴν εἰρήνην ἀμφοτέροις ἐπικηρυκευόμενοι. Ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς ἐδέξατο μὲν αὐτοὺς καὶ λόγων αὐτοῖς κατὰ νόμον τῶν πρέσβεων μετέδωκεν, οὐ πάνυ δὲ τούτους φιλανθρώπως ἐδέξατο. Ὅμως δ' οὖν συνεπινεύσας καὶ σταυρὸν αὐτοῖς ἐπιδέδωκεν, ἵνα 148 τῇ ἐπιδείξει τούτου ἀβλαβεῖς πρὸς αὐτὸν ὑποστρέψωσι κομίζοντες ἀγγελίας, ἃς ἂν ἐκ τοῦ σουλτάνου πύθοιντο. ∆εδήλωκε γὰρ τῷ ἀνελπίστῳ τοῦ μηνύματος ἐπαρθείς, ἵν' ὁ σουλτάνος καταλιπὼν τὸν τόπον τῆς ἰδίας παρεμβολῆς πορρωτέρω στρατοπεδεύσηται· ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ τόπῳ, ὃς τὸν σουλτάνον εἶχε πρότερον, ἐπικαταπήξει τὸν χάρακα καὶ τηνικαῦτα πρὸς συμβιβάσεις αὐτῷ χωρήσει. Ἔλαθε δὲ τὴν νίκην ὑπὸ ὑψηλοφροσύνης τοῖς ἐναντίοις καταπροέμενος, καθὼς οἱ τὰ τοιαῦτα διακριβοῦντες συμβάλλουσι, τὸ νικητικώτατον σύμβολον, τὸν σταυρόν, ἀποστείλας αὐτῷ. Οὔπω τέλος ἔσχεν οὐδ' ἀναμονὴν ἡ τῶν