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he might receive what we also promised; but if death should happen to befall even one person through negligence, we will all end our lives with his fall, and you will attain none of the things you hope for. 50.5 But if the oath that was proposed between us was not for deceit but was true, preserve our safety by every means, and know well that we too will fulfill all that we agreed with you.” 50.6 Having heard these things and having made them known to those around him, he persuaded them all to attack the enemy and drive him far away; who then, having surrounded us, from that time proceeded more leisurely. 51.1 We came to a certain place where there is a monastery of ascetic virgin women, which of old is named for Acrullius. 51.2 And having again encountered another guard of barbarians in the forecourt, the barbarians with us, after a brief confrontation with them, decided to go inside, as if guessing they would find something of importance. 51.3 We too followed them, looking suspiciously at those present and not yet having delivered our souls from the former giddiness. 51.4 As we entered the propylaea of the church, which is named for Saint George, we saw a certain barbarian seated on a small stool, having raised his eyebrows and holding a drawn sword, and those standing there were staring intently at him, showing themselves ready for his impulses, should he wish to do anything. 51.5 When we were before him, he asked those around us who we were and by what pretext we had escaped death. 51.6 They told him everything briefly, and taking us by our backs, they threw us face down on the ground at his feet. 51.7 But he, turning over the sword he happened to be holding in his hands, otherwise than it is meant to cut, struck each one of us once on our heads. 51.8 Then he ordered us to get up and be of good courage, and, he says, “Having this as proof of your safety, I guarantee that you should suspect no further harm.” 51.9 And ordering the barbarians who were standing by to throw open the gates of the church, which until then had been closed, he rose from his seat and, holding my father with his left hand, and with the other one of my two brothers, he went inside the venerable shrine. 51.10 And it was completely filled with pitiful people who had previously been imprisoned in it, about three hundred in number, as we learned later. 52.1 And no small multitude of bloodthirsty men entered with the enemy. 52.2 But he, immediately leaping in, went up onto the consecrated altar, on which the mystical service is performed by the priests; 52.3 and crossing his feet one over the other, as is the custom of the barbarians, he sat down, full of rage and madness, surveying the crowd of those men, and directing what he wanted to do with the malice of his mind. 52.4 And having seized my father and brother with each of his hands, and having ordered us to be guarded somewhere near the entrance by our captors, with a nod he commanded the barbarians to kill those men. 52.5 And they, as quickly as untamed wolves falling upon their prey, so hastily and mercilessly cut the wretched men to pieces. 52.6 And still seething with rage, they looked to that terrible judge, to see what he willed them to do about us. 52.7 But he for the time being prevented them from any attempt against us, and it seemed to us, being guarded right there, that both our father and my brother were killed along with the slain and that we alone had been deemed worthy of being spared. 52.8 Again, it began to occur to them, being guarded at the altar, to think this same thing about us. However, we had no way to resolve our uncertainty about each other. 52.9 For when the slaughter of those unfortunate men had ended, and the entire floor was filled with dead bodies, and in the midst of them the flood of blood formed a pool; that bloodthirsty man, having no way to get outside, commanded the corpses of the slain to be placed one after another in the ambulatories on either side of the church. 52.10 And when this was done, immediately and quickly him from the altar

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λάβοι καὶ ἅπερ ἡμεῖς ὑπεσχόμεθα· εἰ δ' ἑνί γέ τινι τύχοι δι' ἀμέλειαν ἐπιστὰς θάνατος, πάντες τῷ ἐκείνου πτώματι τὴν ζωὴν συμπεράνωμεν καὶ οὐδενὸς ὑμεῖς τῶν ἐλπιζομένων ἐντεύξησθε. 50.5 ἀλλ' εἴπερ μὴ πρὸς ἀπάτην ἀλλ' ἀληθὴς γέγονεν ὁ διὰ μέσου προτεθεὶς ὅρκος, πάσῃ μηχανῇ τὸ ἀσφαλὲς ἡμῖν συντηρήσατε, καὶ εὖ ἴστε πάντα καὶ ἡμᾶς πληρώσειν ὅσα πρὸς ὑμᾶς συνεθέμεθα.» 50.6 ταῦτα ἐκεῖνος ἀκηκοὼς καὶ τοῖς περὶ αὐτὸν γνωρίσας ἔπεισε πάντας ἐφορμήσαντας κατὰ τοῦ δυσμενοῦς μακρὰν αὐτὸν ἀπελάσαι· οἳ δὴ καὶ κυκλώσαντες ἡμᾶς ἔκτοτε σχολαιοτέρως ἐβάδιζον. 51.1 Ἤλθομεν δὲ κατά τινα τόπον ἔνθα μονή τίς ἐστι παρθένων ἀσκουσῶν γυναικῶν, ἥτις πάλαι τοῦ Ἀκρουλλίου κατονομάζεται. 51.2 καὶ πάλιν ἄλλῃ τινὶ κουστωδίᾳ βαρβάρων ἐντυχόντες κατὰ τὴν προαυλαίαν οἱ μεθ' ἡμῶν βάρβαροι καί τι μικρὸν συστάντες αὐτοῖς ἔδοξαν εἴσω χωρεῖν ὥς τι σπουδαῖον τοπάσαντες ἐφευρεῖν. 51.3 συνειπόμεθα 51.3 δὲ τούτοις καὶ ἡμεῖς, τοὺς παρόντας ὑποβλεπόμενοι καὶ μή πω τὰς ψυχὰς τῆς προτέρας σκοτοδίνης ἀπαγαγόντες. 51.4 ὡς οὖν εἰσῄειμεν τοῦ ναοῦ τὰ προπύλαια ὃς τοῦ ἁγίου ἐπικέκληται Γεωργίου, ὁρῶμέν τινα βάρβαρον σκιμποδίῳ ἐγκαθεζόμενον, ἀνασπάσαντά τε τὰς ὀφρύας ξίφος τε κατέχοντα γεγυμνωμένον, καὶ ἀτενὲς τοὺς ἑστῶτας βλέποντας εἰς αὐτόν, εἴ τι καὶ βούλοιτο πράττειν, ἑτοίμους εἶναι ταῖς ὁρμαῖς ὑπεμφαίνοντας. 51.5 ὡς οὖν κατ' αὐτὸν ἐγενόμεθα, ἤρετο τοὺς περὶ ἡμᾶς τίνες ἐσμὲν καὶ ποίᾳ προφάσει τὸν θάνατον διεφύγομεν. 51.6 οἱ δὲ πάντα συντόμως ἐξεῖπον, καὶ τῶν νώτων ἡμῶν λαβόμενοι πρηνεῖς τοῖς ποσὶν αὐτοῦ τῷ ἐδάφει προσέρρηξαν. 51.7 ὁ δὲ τὸ ξίφος, ὅπερ ἔτυχε ταῖς χερσὶ κατέχων, ἑτέρως ἢ ὡς πέφυκε τέμνειν ἀνθυποστρέψας, ἐπάταξε ταῖς κάραις ἐφάπαξ καθ' ἕνα ἡμῶν. 51.8 εἶτα ἀνίστασθαι καὶ θαρρεῖν ἐκέλευε, καὶ «τοῦτό» φησι «τῆς ἀσφαλείας τεκμήριον ἔχοντας μηδὲν τοῦ λοιποῦ δεινὸν ὑμᾶς ὑποπτεύειν παρεγγυῶ.» 51.9 τοῖς παρεστῶσι δὲ βαρβάροις τοῦ ναοῦ τὰς πύλας, αἳ τέως ὑπῆρχον κεκλεισμέναι, προστάξας ἀναρριπίσαι, τῆς καθέδρας ἐξαναστὰς καὶ τὸν ἐμὸν πατέρα τῇ λαιᾷ ταῖν χεροῖν, τῇ ἑτέρᾳ δὲ τῶν ἀπ' ἐμοῦ δύο ἀδελφῶν ἕνα κατέχων, ἔνδον εἰσῄει τοῦ σεβασμίου σηκοῦ. 51.10 ὁ δὲ ἦν ἅπας πεπληρωμένος ἐλεεινῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐν αὐτῷ προκαθειρχθέντων, τριακοσίων περί που τὸν ἀριθμόν, ὡς ἐν ὑστέρῳ κατεμανθάνομεν. 52.1 Οὐκ ὀλίγον δὲ καὶ μιαιφόνων πλῆθος τῷ δυσμενεῖ συνεισῆλθεν. 52.2 ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνος εὐθὺς εἰσπηδήσας ἀνῆλθεν ἐπάνω τοῦ καθηγιασμένου βωμοῦ, ἐν ᾧ παρὰ τῶν ἱερέων ἡ μυστικὴ τελεῖται λατρεία· 52.3 καὶ τοὺς πόδας συμπλέγδην ἐν ἀλλήλοις ἀνθυποστρέψας, ὡς ἔθος ἐστὶ τοῖς βαρβάροις, ἐκάθητο γέμων θυμοῦ καὶ ἀπονοίας, τόν τε δῆμον τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἐκείνων περισκοπῶν, καὶ ἅπερ ἐβούλετο δρᾶν, τῇ κακεντρεχείᾳ τῶν φρενῶν διοικούμενος. 52.4 τὸν ἐμὸν δὲ πατέρα καὶ ἀδελφὸν ἑκατέραις διαλαβὼν ταῖς χερσί, καὶ ἡμᾶς αὐτοῦ που πρὸς τῇ εἰσόδῳ φυλάττεσθαι παρὰ τῶν ἑλόντων ἐγκελευσάμενος, νεύματι τοῖς βαρβάροις ἀνελεῖν ἐκείνους προσέταττεν. 52.5 οἳ δὴ τὸ τάχος καθάπερ ἀτίθασοι λύκοι θήρας ἐπιτυχόντες, οὕτως ἠπειγμένως καὶ ἀνηλεῶς τοὺς ἀθλίους κατέτεμον. 52.6 ἔτι δὲ τῷ θυμῷ ζέοντες, τί καὶ περὶ ἡμῶν ἐθέλειν αὐτοὺς πράττειν, πρὸς τὸν δεινὸν ἐκεῖνον δικαστὴν ἀπεσκόπουν. 52.7 ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνος μὲν τῆς καθ' ἡμῶν αὐτοὺς τέως ἐπιχειρήσεως διεκώλυσεν, ἐδόκει δὲ ἡμῖν αὐτόθι φυλαττομένοις τόν τε πατέρα καὶ τὸν ἐμὸν ἀδελφὸν τοῖς κειμένοις συναναιρεθῆναι καὶ μόνους ἡμᾶς φειδοῦς ἀξιωθῆναι. 52.8 πάλιν ἐκείνοις περὶ ἡμῶν αὐτὸ τοῦτο, τῷ βωμῷ φυλαττομένοις, λογίζεσθαι ἐπήρχετο. πλὴν οὐκ εἴχομεν ᾧτινι πέρατι τὴν περὶ ἀλλήλων στῆσαι ἀμφιβολίαν. 52.9 ὡς γὰρ ἔληξεν ὁ κατ' ἐκείνους τοὺς δυστυχεῖς φόνος, πεπλήρωτο δὲ τὸ ἔδαφος ἅπαν νενεκρωμένων σωμάτων, μέσον δὲ τούτων ἐλίμναζεν ἡ πλήμμυρα τοῦ αἵματος· οὐκ ἔχων ὅπως ὁ μιαιφόνος ἐκεῖνος πρὸς τὸ ἐκτὸς γένηται, ἄλλο κατ' ἄλλο τὰ πτώματα τῶν κειμένων τοῖς ἑκατέρωθεν τοῦ ναοῦ περιδρόμοις ἐπιτεθῆναι διεκελεύσατο. 52.10 οὗ δὴ καὶ γενομένου θᾶττον εὐθὺς αὐτὸν τοῦ βωμοῦ