42

to those who were advising. Therefore the emperor, having persevered there for six days, since he had nothing else to do, having made all of Beroe into plunder, men, women, infants, sheep, cattle, and everything else that could be moved, made his return to Adrianople.

57 From there, having selected a noteworthy force, he had sent it against the fortresses in the region of Achrida, which a short while before had been subdued by the Bulgarians, to see if somehow they might be subjected to Roman rule again. Indeed, having arrived there with their forces, the Roman commanders easily overcame the fortresses with engines and city-takers; for the Bulgarians are quicker to abandon the garrisons in the towns, if they should see the enemy and become entangled in more warlike circumstances. In no long time, then, they subdued the majority of them. But the emperor also, having gathered the army around him, proceeded against the towns in Rhodope, and he took Peristitza with his engines, and after it Stenimachus, and in addition to these, Kritzimos, all of these being very strong and situated at the front of the Rhodope mountain range and guarding all that was behind. And he also came to Tsepaina in the dead of winter, but the difficulty of the place and the cold of the season did not allow him to persevere there for even a short time. But when spring shone forth, he sent out orders to Alexios Strategopoulos and Constantine Tornikes, whom the emperor John had honored as grand primikerios, being in Serres and having the army, that they should gather all the troops and come against Tsepaina. This indeed they also did, but they proved to be bad generals in this undertaking; for having encountered neither enemy armies nor men worthy of fighting, but having heard only crashes and noises and listened to the sounds of horns, they took to flight in a disorderly manner, leaving all the baggage and most of the horses to the Bulgarian shepherds and swineherds. Thus, then, having become fugitives, they reached Serres again, being destitute of horses and arms. The emperor, therefore, on account of these things, was filled with anger, and in his wrath ordered those very men, in whatever state they were, to proceed to the same battle again; but they were unable to perform the deed.

58 But when these things had happened thus, something more serious also befell, threatening much harm against the Romans. For the commander of the force of Melenikon, Dragotas by name, both by nature, as a Bulgarian, harboring ill will against the Romans, and also bearing more than his natural disposition on account of his enmity toward the emperor—for he had hoped to obtain great things from him; for he did not judge worthy the things bestowed on him by the emperor John, even though these were many—plotted open rebellion. And so, having gathered all the soldiers and others in Melenikon, and also very many others from the surrounding regions, he encamped by the town of Melenikon and besieged it and strove eagerly to sack it. And in this town, appointed of the defenders were both Theodore Nestongos and John Angelos, both of them skilled at guarding towns and turning back the enemy. And nothing else distressed those inside the town—for they were well-supplied with necessities—but the lack of water, in the summer season the most necessary of all things and in its scarcity most grievous. But they—for the water had not entirely failed them—fought steadfastly against their opponents and resisted and shot with arrows and wounded with stones and fought with all other weapons. On hearing of these things, the emperor received the news with displeasure, but having taken the best counsel, with all speed he gathered the whole army and reached Serres on the twelfth day, having traversed so great a road in a short time and

42

τοῖς ξυμβουλεύουσιν. ἡμέρας οὖν ἓξ ἐκεῖσε διακαρτερήσας ὁ βασιλεύς, ἐπεὶ μὴ εἶχέ τι ἕτερον δρᾶσαι, λείαν τὰ Βερόης ἅπαντα ποιησάμενος, ἄνδρας γυναῖκας νήπια πρόβατα βόας καὶ σύμπαν ἄλλο κινεῖσθαι δυνάμενον, εἰς τὴν Ἀδριανοῦ τὴν ὑποστροφὴν ἐποιήσατο.

57 Ἐκεῖθεν γοῦν ἐπιλεξάμενος ἀξιόλογον στράτευμα περὶ τὰ ἐν Ἀχριδῶν φρούρια ἐπεπόμφει τὰ πρὸ μικροῦ τοῖς Βουλγάροις κεχειρωμένα, εἴ πως καὶ αὖθις τῇ τῶν Ῥω μαίων ὑπαχθεῖεν ἀρχῇ. ἐν αὐτοῖς γοῦν ἀφιγμένοι σὺν τοῖς στρατεύμασιν οἱ τῶν Ῥωμαίων ἡγήτορες μηχανήμασί τε καὶ ἑλεπόλεσι ῥᾷον τῶν φρουρίων περιεγένοντο· οἱ Βούλγαροι καὶ γὰρ θᾶττον τῶν ἐν ἄστεσι φυλακῶν ἀπαλλάττονται, εἰ πολεμίους ὁρῷεν καὶ μαχιμωτέροις συμπλακεῖεν τοῖς πράγ μασιν. ἐν οὐ πολλῷ γοῦν τὰ πλείω αὐτῶν ἐχειρώσαντο. ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁ βασιλεὺς τὸν περὶ αὐτὸν συναθροίσας στρατὸν περὶ τὰ ἐν Ῥοδόπῃ ἄστη κεχώρηκε, καὶ εἷλε μὲν Περιστίτζαν τοῖς μηχανήμασι καὶ μετ' αὐτὴν τὸν Στενίμαχον καὶ ἐπὶ τούτοις τὸν Κρυτζιμόν, ὀχυρώτατα ταῦτα πάντα καὶ εἰς πρόσωπον κείμενα τοῦ τῆς Ῥοδόπης ὄρους καὶ τὰ ὀπίσω πάντα φυλάττοντα. ἀφίκετο δὲ καὶ εἰς Τζέπαιναν ἐν ἀκμῇ χειμῶνος, ἡ δὲ τοῦ τόπου δυσχωρία καὶ τὸ ψυχρὸν τοῦ καιροῦ οὐδὲ μικρόν τι εἴασεν ἐν ταύτῃ προσκαρτερῆσαι. ἐπεὶ δὲ τὸ ἔαρ ἐπέλαμψε, προστάγματα πρὸς τὸν Στρατη γόπουλον Ἀλέξιον καὶ τὸν Τορνίκην Κωνσταντῖνον, ὃν μέγαν πριμμικήριον ὁ βασιλεὺς τετίμηκεν Ἰωάννης, ἐξ έπεμψεν, ἐν ταῖς Σέρραις ὄντας καὶ τὸ στρατόπεδον ἔχον τας, ἵνα τὴν στρατιὰν πᾶσαν συναγαγόντες κατὰ τῆς Τζε παίνης ἀφίκοιντο. τοῦτο δὴ καὶ ἐποίησαν, κακοὶ δὲ ἐφάνησαν ἐν τούτῳ τῷ ἐπιχειρήματι στρατηγοί· μήτε γὰρ πολεμίων ἐγκύρσαντες στρατιαῖς μήτε ἀνδράσιν ἀξίοις τού τοις μαχέσασθαι, κτύπων δὲ καὶ μόνων καὶ ψόφων ἀκη κοότες καὶ ἤχων κερατίνων ἀκροασάμενοι, ἀκόσμως ἐχρή σαντο τῇ φυγῇ, πᾶσαν ἀποσκευὴν καὶ τοὺς πλείους τῶν ἵππων τοῖς ποιμέσι καὶ συβώταις τῶν Βουλγάρων καταλι πόντες. οὕτω μὲν οὖν ἐκεῖνοι φυγαδίαι γεγονότες τὰς Σέρρας καὶ αὖθις κατέλαβον, ἵππων καὶ ὅπλων γυμνοὶ τυγχάνοντες. ὁ μὲν οὖν βασιλεὺς διὰ ταῦτα θυμοῦ μὲν ἐπέπληστο, καὶ προσέταττεν ἐξ ὀργῆς αὐτοὺς ἐκείνους, ὅπως ἂν ἔχοιεν, περὶ τὴν αὐτὴν καὶ αὖθις μάχην χωρῆσαι· οἱ δὲ ἀδυνάτως εἶχον τῆς πράξεως.

58 Ἐπεὶ δὲ ταῦτα οὕτω συνέβη, συνεπεπτώκει καί τι τῶν βαρυτέρων καὶ πολλὴν τὴν κατὰ τῶν Ῥωμαίων βλάβην ἐπαπειλοῦν. ὁ γὰρ τοῦ Μελενικιωτικοῦ προεξάρχων στρατεύματος, ∆ραγωτᾶς τοὔνομα, καὶ φύσει μὲν ὡς Βούλ γαρος δύσνοιαν τρέφων κατὰ Ῥωμαίων, ἔτι δὲ καὶ πλέον φέρων τοῦ φυσικοῦ διὰ τὴν πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα ἀπέχθειαν- ἤλπισε γὰρ ἐξ αὐτοῦ μεγάλων τυχεῖν· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἔκρινεν ἄξια τὰ παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως Ἰωάννου ἐκείνῳ κεχορηγημένα καὶ ταῦτα πολλὰ γεγενημένα-ἀποστασίαν φανερὰν μεμε λέτηκε. καὶ δὴ πάντας τοὺς ἐν Μελενίκῳ συναγαγὼν στρα τιώτας τε καὶ λοιπούς, ἔτι δὲ καὶ ἄλλους παμπόλλους ἐκ τῶν πέριξ χωρῶν, παρεκάθισε τοῦ Μελενίκου τῷ ἄστει καὶ ἐπολιόρκει τοῦτο καὶ ἐφιλονείκει πορθεῖν. ἦσαν δὲ ἐν τούτῳ τῷ ἄστει προτεταγμένοι τῶν φυλασσόντων ὅ τε Νεστόγ γος Θεόδωρος καὶ ὁ Ἄγγελος Ἰωάννης, καὶ ἀμφότεροι δέξιοι ἄστη φυλάξαι καὶ πολεμίους ἐκτρέψασθαι. ἐστενοχώρει δὲ τοὺς ἔνδον τοῦ ἄστεος οὐδὲν ἄλλο-καὶ γὰρ ηὐμοί ρουν τῶν χρειωδῶν-ἀλλ' ἢ ἡ τοῦ ὕδατος ἔνδεια, ἐν ὥρᾳ θέρους τὸ ἀναγκαιότατον τῶν ἄλλων κἀν τῇ σπάνει βαρύτατον. οἱ δὲ-καὶ γὰρ οὐ πάντῃ τούτους τὸ ὕδωρ ἐξέλιπε-καρτερῶς τοῖς ἐναντίοις ἐμάχοντο καὶ ἀνθίσταντο καὶ ὀϊστοῖς ἔβαλλον καὶ λίθοις ἐτίτρωσκον καὶ πᾶσιν ἄλλοις ὅπλοις ἐμάχοντο. Τούτων ἐν ἀκροάσει γενόμενος ὁ βασιλεὺς δυσφόρως τὴν ἀκοὴν ἤνεγκε, βουλὴν δὲ βουλευσάμενος τὴν ἀρίστην, ὡς εἶχε τάχους ἅπαν ξυναγηοχὼς τὸ στρατόπεδον δωδε καταῖος τὰς Σέρρας πέφθακεν, ἐν ὀλίγῳ χρόνῳ τοσαύτην διανύσας ὁδὸν καὶ