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1.14.24 "Trusting in themselves they have come against us. But having been foiled even now in such a hope, just as in the previous engagement, they will depart. And the multitude of the enemy, by which 1.14.25 they are especially terrified, it is right for you to despise. For all their infantry is nothing other than a crowd of pitiable rustics, who come to the battle line for no other purpose than to dig through a wall and to plunder the dead 1.14.26 and to serve the soldiers in other ways. For this reason they have no weapons with which they might harass their opponents, but they carry before them only shields of such a size that they themselves might be hit as little as possible by the enemy. 1.14.27 Therefore, by proving yourselves brave men in this danger, you will not only conquer the Persians in the present, but you will also punish them for their folly, so that they will never again march into the land of the Romans." 1.14.28 After Belisarius and Hermogenes had made this exhortation, when they saw the Persians advancing on the road against them, they quickly drew up the soldiers 1.14.29 in the former manner. And the barbarians, coming up to them, stood in a single line. Mirranes, however, did not draw up all the Persians opposite the enemy, but he stationed half of them, and allowed the others to remain behind. 1.14.30 These, relieving those who were fighting, were to attack the enemy fresh, so that they might all fight always in turn. 1.14.31 But he ordered only the company of the so-called Immortals to remain quiet, until he himself should give the signal. 1.14.32 And he himself, having stationed himself in the middle of the front line, placed Pityaxes over those on the right, and Baresmanas over those on the left wing. Thus both sides were arrayed. But Pharas came to the side of Belisarius and Hermogenes 1.14.33 and said "It does not seem to me that by remaining here with the Heruls I will do any great harm to the enemy; but if, hiding ourselves on this slope, then, when the Persians are in the midst of the action, we go up this hill and suddenly attack them from the rear, striking them from behind, we shall, as is likely, do them irreparable harm." He said these things, and since it pleased Belisarius and his men, he acted accordingly. 1.14.34 But neither side began the battle until midday. But as soon as midday had passed, the barbarians began the action, having postponed the engagement to this time of day for this reason, that they themselves are accustomed to take food only late in the afternoon, while the Romans do so before midday, so that they thought they would by no means hold out equally, 1.14.35 if they were attacked while hungry. So at first both sides shot arrows at each other, and the mass of missiles made a kind of cloud for a great distance, and many fell on both sides, but the missiles of the barbarians 1.14.36 were carried in much greater number. For they always fought fresh men in rotation, giving the enemy the least possible perception of what was being done; yet not even so did the Romans have the worst of it. For a wind blowing from their side fell upon the barbarians and did not allow 1.14.37 their arrows to fly with full force. But when all the missiles on both sides were now exhausted, they used their spears against each other and the battle became still more a hand-to-hand fight. And the left wing of the Romans was in the greatest distress. 1.14.38 For the Cadiseni, who were fighting there with Pityaxes, with many reinforcements suddenly routed the enemy and, pressing hard upon them as they fled, 1.14.39 killed many. When the men with Sunicas and Aigan saw this, they advanced against them at a great run. And first the three hundred Heruls with Pharas, coming from high ground upon the rear of the enemy, performed wonderful deeds against both the others and the Cadiseni. 1.14.40 And when they saw the men with Sunicas already coming up on their flank, 1.14.41 they were turned to flight. And when the rout became brilliant, and the Romans in that quarter joined with each other, 1.14.42 a great slaughter of the barbarians occurred. And on their right wing no fewer than three thousand of them perished in this struggle, and the rest with difficulty escaped to the phalanx and were saved. 1.14.43 And the Romans no longer pursued, but both sides stood opposite each other in battle array

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1.14.24 «θαρσοῦντες ἐφ' ἡμᾶς ἥκουσι. σφαλέντες δὲ καὶ νῦν «τῆς τοιαύτης ἐλπίδος ὁμοίως τῇ προλαβούσῃ ξυμβολῇ «ἀπαλλάξουσι. καὶ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν πολεμίων, ᾧ μά1.14.25 «λιστα δεδίττονται, ὑμᾶς ὑπερφρονεῖν ἄξιον. τὸ γὰρ «πεζὸν ἅπαν οὐδὲν ἄλλο ἢ ὅμιλός ἐστιν ἀγροίκων «οἰκτρῶν, οἳ ἐς τὴν παράταξιν ἐπ' ἄλλῳ οὐδενὶ ἔρχον»ται ἢ τεῖχός τε διορύττειν καὶ τοὺς τεθνεῶτας 1.14.26 «σκυλεύειν καὶ τἄλλα τοῖς στρατιώταις ὑπηρετεῖν. διὸ «δὴ ὅπλα μὲν, οἷς ἂν καὶ τοὺς ἐναντίους ἐνοχλοῖεν «οὐδαμῆ ἔχουσι, τοὺς δὲ θυρεοὺς τοιούτους τὸ μέγεθος, «προβέβληνται μόνον, ὅπως αὐτοὶ πρὸς τῶν πολεμίων 1.14.27 «ἥκιστα βάλλωνται. οὐκοῦν ἄνδρες ἀγαθοὶ ἐν τῷδε «τῷ κινδύνῳ γενόμενοι οὐκ ἐν τῷ παρόντι μόνον «Πέρσας νικήσετε, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ἀπονοίας κολάσετε, «ὡς μήποτε αὖθις εἰς γῆν τὴν Ῥωμαίων στρατεύσονται.» 1.14.28 Ταύτην Βελισάριός τε καὶ Ἑρμογένης τὴν παραίνεσιν ποιησάμενοι, ἐπειδὴ Πέρσας ὁδῷ ἰόντας ἐπὶ σφᾶς εἶδον, τρόπῳ τῷ προτέρῳ κατὰ τάχος τοὺς στρα1.14.29 τιώτας διέταξαν. καὶ οἱ βάρβαροι παρ' αὐτοὺς ἥκοντες μετωπηδὸν ἔστησαν. οὐχ ἅπαντας μέντοι Πέρσας ὁ Μιρράνης ἀντίους τοῖς πολεμίοις, ἀλλὰ τοὺς ἡμίσεις ἔστησε, τοὺς δὲ ἄλλους ὄπισθεν μένειν εἴασεν. 1.14.30 οἳ δὴ τοὺς μαχομένους ἐκδεχόμενοι ἔμελλον ἀκμῆτες ἐπιθήσεσθαι τοῖς ἐναντίοις, ὅπως ἀεὶ ἐκ περιτροπῆς 1.14.31 ἅπαντες μάχωνται. μόνον δὲ τὸν τῶν ἀθανάτων λεγομένων λόχον ἡσυχῆ μένειν, ἕως αὐτὸς σημήνῃ, ἐκέ1.14.32 λευεν. αὐτός τε κατὰ μέσον τοῦ μετώπου ταξάμενος, Πιτυάξην μὲν τοῖς ἐν δεξιᾷ, Βαρεσμανᾶν δὲ τοῖς ἐς τὸ ἀριστερὸν κέρας ἐπέστησεν. οὕτω μὲν ἀμφότεροι ἐτετάχατο. Φάρας δὲ Βελισαρίῳ τε καὶ Ἑρμογένει 1.14.33 παραστὰς εἶπεν «Οὐδέν μοι δοκῶ ἐνταῦθα ξὺν τοῖς «Ἐρούλοις μένων τοὺς πολεμίους ἐργάσασθαι μέγα· «ἢν δὲ κρυπτόμενοι ἐς τὸ κάταντες τοῦτο, εἶτα, ἐπειδὰν «ἐν τῷ ἔργῳ γένωνται Πέρσαι, διὰ τοῦδε τοῦ λόφου «ἀναβαίνοντες ἐκ τοῦ αἰφνιδίου κατὰ νώτου αὐτῶν «ἴωμεν ὄπισθεν βάλλοντες, τὰ ἀνήκεστα αὐτοὺς, ὡς «τὸ εἰκὸς, δράσομεν.» ὁ μὲν ταῦτα εἶπε, καὶ ἐπεὶ τοὺς ἀμφὶ Βελισάριον ἤρεσκε, κατὰ ταῦτα ἐποίει. 1.14.34 Μάχης δὲ ἄχρι ἐς ἡμέραν μέσην οὐδέτεροι ἦρχον. ἐπειδὴ δὲ τάχιστα ἡ μεσημβρία παρῴχηκεν, ἔργου οἱ βάρβαροι εἴχοντο, τοῦδε εἵνεκα ἐς τοῦτον τῆς ἡμέρας τὸν καιρὸν τὴν ξυμβολὴν ἀποθέμενοι, ὅτι δὴ αὐτοὶ μὲν σιτίοις ἐς δείλην ὀψίαν χρῆσθαι μόνον εἰώθασι, Ῥωμαῖοι δὲ πρὸ τῆς μεσημβρίας, ὥστε οὔποτε ᾤοντο 1.14.35 αὐτοὺς ὁμοίως ἀνθέξειν, ἢν πεινῶσιν ἐπιθῶνται. τὰ μὲν οὖν πρῶτα τοξεύμασιν ἐχρῶντο ἐς ἀλλήλους ἑκάτεροι, καί τινα τὰ βέλη τῷ πλήθει ἀχλὺν ἐπὶ πλεῖστον ἐποίει, ἔκ τε ἀμφοτέρων πολλοὶ ἔπιπτον, πολλῷ δὲ 1.14.36 συχνότερα τὰ τῶν βαρβάρων βέλη ἐφέρετο. ἐν περιτροπῇ γὰρ ἀεὶ ἀκμῆτες ἐμάχοντο, αἴσθησιν τοῦ ποιουμένου τοῖς πολεμίοις ὡς ἥκιστα παρεχόμενοι, οὐ μέντοι οὐδὲ ὣς Ῥωμαῖοι τὸ ἔλασσον εἶχον. πνεῦμα γὰρ ἐνθένδε ἐπίφορον ἐπὶ τοὺς βαρβάρους ἐπιπεσὸν οὐ 1.14.37 λίαν αὐτῶν τὰ τοξεύματα ἐνεργεῖν εἴα. ἐπεὶ δὲ ἅπαντα ἑκατέρους τὰ βέλη ἤδη ἐπιλελοίπει, τοῖς τε δόρασιν ἐς ἀλλήλους ἐχρῶντο καὶ ἡ μάχη ἔτι μᾶλλον ἐκ χειρὸς ἐγεγόνει. Ῥωμαίων δὲ κέρας τὸ ἀριστερὸν μάλιστα 1.14.38 ἔκαμνε. Καδισηνοὶ γὰρ, οἳ ταύτῃ ξὺν τῷ Πιτυάξῃ ἐμάχοντο, πολλοὶ ἐπιβεβοηθηκότες ἐξαπιναίως ἐτρέψαντό τε τοὺς πολεμίους καὶ φεύγουσιν ἐγκείμενοι ἰσχυρό1.14.39 τατα συχνοὺς ἔκτεινον. ὃ δὴ κατιδόντες οἱ ξὺν τῷ Σουνίκᾳ τε καὶ Ἀϊγὰν, δρόμῳ πολλῷ ἐπ' αὐτοὺς ᾔεσαν. πρῶτοι δὲ οἱ τριακόσιοι ξὺν τῷ Φάρᾳ Ἔρουλοι ἐξ ὑψηλοῦ κατὰ νώτου τῶν πολεμίων γενόμενοι ἔργα θαυμαστὰ ἔς τε τοὺς ἄλλους καὶ τοὺς Καδιση1.14.40 νοὺς ἐπεδείκνυντο. οἳ δὴ ἐπεὶ καὶ τοὺς ἀμφὶ τὸν Σουνίκαν πλαγίους ἤδη ἀνιόντας ἐπ' αὐτοὺς εἶδον, 1.14.41 ἐς φυγὴν ὥρμηντο. τῆς δὲ τροπῆς λαμπρᾶς γενομένης, ἐπειδὴ ἀλλήλοις ξυνέμιξαν οἱ ταύτῃ Ῥωμαῖοι, 1.14.42 γέγονε φόνος τῶν βαρβάρων πολύς. καὶ αὐτῶν κατὰ κέρας τὸ δεξιὸν οὐχ ἥσσους ἢ τρισχίλιοι ἐν τούτῳ τῷ πόνῳ ἀπέθανον, οἱ δὲ λοιποὶ ἐς τὴν φάλαγγα μόλις 1.14.43 καταφυγόντες ἐσώθησαν. Ῥωμαῖοί τε οὐκέτι ἐδίωκον, ἀλλ' ἐν τῇ παρατάξει ἑκάτεροι ἔστησαν ἀντίοι