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1.25.22 A decision was made and a specific day was appointed for the deed. And the empress, having heard the whole plan from Antonina, praised what had been decided, and by urging her on, spurred her to still greater enthusiasm. 1.25.23 And when the appointed day arrived, Antonina took leave of the empress and departed from the city, and was at Rufinianae, intending to begin her journey to the East on the following day, where indeed John also, to carry out the agreements 1.25.24, came at night. But the empress, denouncing to her husband the things being done by John with a view to tyranny, sent both Narses the eunuch and Marcellus the commander of the palace guards to Rufinianae with many soldiers, with instructions that, after investigating what was being done, if they should find John attempting revolutionary acts, after killing 1.25.25 the man at once, they should return. And so they were sent on this mission. But they say that the emperor, perceiving what was being done, sent one of John's friends to him, warning him by no means with Antonina 1.25.26 to meet secretly. But John (for it was fated that he should come to a bad end), having made light of the emperor's suggestion, met with Antonina around midnight, very near a certain garden wall, behind which she had in fact placed Narses and Marcellus and their men, so that 1.25.27 they might hear what was said. There John, with unguarded mouth, both confessed the matters concerning the plot and affirmed them with most terrible oaths, and Narses and 1.25.28 Marcellus suddenly fell upon him. And when, as was likely, a tumult arose, John's bodyguards (for they were standing somewhere nearby) immediately 1.25.29 came to his side. And one of them struck Marcellus, not knowing who he was, with a sword, and so John was able to escape with them, and to the city with speed 1.25.30 he arrived. And if he had dared to go straight to the emperor, I think he would have suffered no harm from him; but as it was, by taking refuge in the sanctuary he gave the empress full power to proceed with her plot against him. 1.25.31 At that time, then, having been made a private citizen from a prefect, he was removed from there and taken to another place, which is situated in the suburb of the city of Cyzicus; the people of Cyzicus call the suburb Artace. There he was invested, not at all willingly, with the garb of a priest, not of a bishop, however, but of one whom they are accustomed to call a presbyter. 1.25.32 But he was quite unwilling to perform sacred rites, so that it might not at some time be an obstacle to his returning again to office; for he was by no means willing to relinquish his hopes. And his property for the public 1.25.33 treasury was immediately registered. Of which the emperor indeed forgave him a large part; for he still held to his sparing of him. 1.25.34 There it was possible for John, having become heedless of all dangers, and possessed of great wealth, both what he himself had managed to hide and what had remained with him by the emperor's decision, to live luxuriously at his pleasure and to consider his present circumstances, with sober calculation, to be fortunate. 1.25.35 For this very reason, indeed, all the Romans were simply vexed at the man, because, having been the wickedest of all mortals, he was leading a life more fortunate than he deserved, and more so than before. 1.25.36 But God, I think, did not suffer the punishment of John to be limited to this, and was preparing for him a great retribution. And it came about as follows. 1.25.37 There was in Cyzicus a certain bishop, Eusebius by name, harsh to all who encountered him, no less so than John; the people of Cyzicus, denouncing him to the emperor, summoned him to 1.25.38 court. But when they accomplished nothing, since Eusebius surpassed them with his great power, some young men, having conspired, 1.25.39 kill him in the agora of Cyzicus. Now it happened that John had been especially hostile to Eusebius, and because of this the suspicion of the plot fell upon him. 1.25.40 Accordingly, men were sent from the senate to investigate this pollution; who indeed first imprisoned John in a dungeon, and then a man who had been so powerful a prefect, who had been enrolled among the patricians and had ascended to the consular chair, than which nothing seems to be greater in the Roman state, they made him stand naked,

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1.25.22 ἔδοξε καὶ ἡμέρα τακτὴ ἐπὶ τῇ πράξει διώριστο. ἥ τε βασιλὶς τὸν πάντα λόγον παρὰ τῆς Ἀντωνίνης ἀκούσασα ἐπῄνει μὲν τὰ βεβουλευμένα, ἐγκελευομένη δὲ πολλῷ ἔτι μᾶλλον ἐς τὴν προθυμίαν ἐνῆγεν. 1.25.23 Ἐπειδή τε ἡ κυρία παρῆν, ἀσπασαμένη μὲν ἡ Ἀντωνίνα τὴν βασιλίδα ἐκ τῆς πόλεως ἀπηλλάσσετο, ἔν τε Ῥουφινιαναῖς ἐγένετο, ὡς τῇ ὑστεραίᾳ τῆς ἐπὶ τὴν ἕω ὁδοῦ ἀρξομένη, οὗ δὴ καὶ Ἰωάννης τὰ ξυγκείμενα 1.25.24 ἐπιτελέσων ἐς νύκτα ἦλθεν. ἡ δὲ βασιλὶς διαβάλλουσα πρὸς τὸν αὑτῆς ἄνδρα τὰ πρὸς τοῦ Ἰωάννου ἐπὶ τῇ τυραννίδι πρασσόμενα, Ναρσῆν τε τὸν εὐνοῦχον καὶ Μάρκελλον τὸν τῶν ἐν παλατίῳ φυλάκων ἄρχοντα ἐς Ῥουφινιανὰς ξὺν στρατιώταις πολλοῖς ἔπεμψεν, ἐφ' ᾧ διερευνησάμενοι τὰ πρασσόμενα, ἢν τὸν Ἰωάννην πράγμασι νεωτέροις ἐγχειροῦντα εὑρήσωσι, κτείναντες 1.25.25 εὐθὺς τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἐπανήξουσι. καὶ οἱ μὲν ἐπὶ τῷ ἔργῳ τούτῳ ἐστέλλοντο. φασὶ δὲ βασιλέα τῶν ποιουμένων αἰσθόμενον τῶν τινα Ἰωάννῃ ἐπιτηδείων παρ' αὐτὸν πέμψαι, ἀπεροῦντα αὐτῷ μηδαμῆ τῇ Ἀντωνίνῃ 1.25.26 ἐντυχεῖν λάθρα. Ἰωάννης δὲ (χρῆν γὰρ αὐτῷ γενέσθαι κακῶς) τὴν βασιλέως ὑποθήκην ἐν ἀλογίᾳ πεποιημένος ἀμφὶ νύκτα μέσην τῇ Ἀντωνίνῃ ξυνέμιξεν, αἱμασιᾶς πού τινος ἄγχιστα, ἧς δὴ ὄπισθεν καθίσασα ἐτύγχανε τοὺς ἀμφὶ Ναρσῆν τε καὶ Μάρκελλον, ὅπως 1.25.27 τῶν λεγομένων ἀκούσειαν. ἐνταῦθα Ἰωάννης μὲν ἀφυλάκτῳ στόματι τὰ ἐς τὴν ἐπίθεσιν ὡμολόγει τε καὶ ὅρκοις δεινοτάτοις ἀπισχυρίζετο, Ναρσῆς δὲ αὐτῷ καὶ 1.25.28 Μάρκελλος ἐκ τοῦ αἰφνιδίου ἐπέστησαν. θορύβου δὲ, ὡς τὸ εἰκὸς, γενομένου οἱ τοῦ Ἰωάννου δορυφόροι (ἄγχιστα γάρ πη ἑστήκεσαν) παρ' αὐτὸν αὐτίκα ἐγέ1.25.29 νοντο. καὶ αὐτῶν τις Μάρκελλον, οὐκ εἰδὼς ὅστις ποτὲ ἦν, ξίφει ἔπληξεν, οὕτω τε Ἰωάννης διαφυγεῖν ξὺν αὐτοῖς ἴσχυσεν, ἔς τε τὴν πόλιν κατὰ τάχος ἀφί1.25.30 κετο. καὶ εἰ μὲν εὐθὺς ἐλθεῖν παρὰ βασιλέα ἐθάρσησεν, οἶμαι ἂν, οὐδὲν ἐπεπόνθει πρὸς αὐτοῦ ἄχαρι· νῦν δὲ καταφυγὼν ἐς τὸ ἱερὸν δέδωκε τῇ βασιλίδι κατ' ἐξουσίαν τῇ ἐς αὐτὸν ἐπιβουλῇ χρῆσθαι. 1.25.31 Τότε μὲν οὖν ἐξ ἐπάρχων ἰδιώτης γενόμενος ἐς ἕτερον ἐνθένδε ἀναστὰς ἐκομίσθη, ὅπερ ἐν τῷ προαστείῳ Κυζίκου πόλεως ἵδρυται, Ἀρτάκην καλοῦσι Κυζικηνοὶ τὸ προάστειον. ἐνταῦθα ἱερέως οὔ τι ἑκούσιος περιβέβληται σχῆμα, οὐκ ἐπισκόπου μέντοι, ἀλλ' 1.25.32 ὅνπερ καλεῖν πρεσβύτερον νενομίκασιν. ὁ δὲ ἱερουργεῖν ἥκιστα ἤθελεν, ὡς μή ποτε αὐτῷ ἐμπόδιον εἴη ἐς τὰς ἀρχὰς αὖθις ἰέναι· τῶν γὰρ ἐλπίδων μεθίεσθαι οὐδαμῆ ἤθελε. τὰ δὲ χρήματα ἐς τὸ δημόσιον ἀνά1.25.33 γραπτα εὐθὺς γέγονεν. ὧν δὴ αὐτῷ μοῖραν βασιλεὺς πολλὴν ἠφίει· ἔτι γὰρ τῇ ἐς αὐτὸν φειδοῖ εἴχετο. ἐν1.25.34 ταῦθα παρῆν τῷ Ἰωάννῃ, ἀφροντιστήσαντι μὲν κινδύνων ἁπάντων, χρήματα δὲ περιβεβλημένῳ μεγάλα, ὅσα τε αὐτὸς ἐτύγχανε κρύψας καὶ ὅσα βασιλέως γνώμῃ παρ' αὐτῷ ἔμεινε, τρυφᾶν τε κατ' ἐξουσίαν καὶ τὰ παρόντα ἡγεῖσθαι λογισμῷ σώφρονι εὐδαίμονα 1.25.35 εἶναι. διὸ δὴ καὶ πάντες Ῥωμαῖοι ἐπὶ τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ ἀτεχνῶς ἤχθοντο, ὅτι δὴ πονηρότατος γεγονὼς δαιμόνων ἁπάντων βίον παρὰ τὴν ἀξίαν εὐδαιμονέστερον 1.25.36 ἢ πρότερον ἔχοι. ἀλλ' ὁ θεὸς, οἶμαι, οὐκ ἤνεγκεν ἐς τοῦτο τὴν τίσιν Ἰωάννῃ ἀποκεκρίσθαι, ἐπὶ μέγα τε αὐτῷ τὴν κόλασιν ἐξηρτύετο. ἐγίνετο δὲ ὧδε. 1.25.37 Ἦν τις ἐν Κυζίκῳ ἐπίσκοπος Εὐσέβιος ὄνομα, χαλεπὸς ἅπασι τοῖς ἐντυγχάνουσιν, Ἰωάννου οὐδέν τι ἧσσον· τοῦτον Κυζικηνοὶ βασιλεῖ διαβάλλοντες ἐς δί1.25.38 κην ἐκάλουν. ἐπεὶ δὲ οὐδὲν ἤνυον, δυνάμει αὐτοὺς περιελθόντος Εὐσεβίου πολλῇ, ξυμφρονήσαντες νεανίαι 1.25.39 τινὲς ἐν τῇ Κυζίκου ἀγορᾷ κτείνουσιν. ἐτύγχανε δὲ Ἰωάννης τῷ Εὐσεβίῳ διάφορος γεγονὼς μάλιστα, καὶ ἀπ' αὐτοῦ ἡ τῆς ἐπιβουλῆς ὑποψία ἐς αὐτὸν ἦλθε. 1.25.40 στέλλονται τοίνυν ἐκ βουλῆς ἄνδρες διερευνησόμενοι τὸ μίασμα τοῦτο· οἳ δὴ τὸν Ἰωάννην πρῶτα μὲν ἐν δεσμωτηρίῳ καθεῖρξαν, ἔπειτα δὲ ἄνδρα ἔπαρχον μὲν δυνατὸν οὕτω γενόμενον, ἐς πατρικίους δὲ ἀναγραφέντα καὶ ἐς τῶν ὑπάτων ἀναβεβηκότα τὸν δίφρον, οὗ μεῖζον εἶναι οὐδὲν ἔν γε τῇ Ῥωμαίων πολιτείᾳ δοκεῖ, ἔστησάν τε γυμνὸν,