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knowing what was advantageous for the nation, and he advised that Chosroes, being his son, should not be preferred for the rule, being insatiable and unjust, insolent and most arrogant, but that another son of his should be appointed to rule the nation. But when some of those in high positions opposed his words and enraged the Persians against him, his son, whom he had preferred for the rule, and his mother were killed by the multitude in his presence, and he himself had his eyes cut out and was thus imprisoned. But Chosroes was chosen for the rule by the entire nation; and for a certain time he was kindly disposed toward his father, not releasing him from guard, but providing 187 every care for him there. But he accepted none of the things sent to him by his son, but rather repaid his kindnesses with insults. Chosroes, therefore, seized with anger on account of these things, ordered his father to be beaten on the flanks with clubs and die. This caused hatred to arise among the Persians against Chosroes; and he marched out against Baram, and suspecting that some of the magnates with him were attached to Baram, he killed them. But when the army mutinied against him, he, being afraid, flees with a few men and came to the Romans. When Maurice learned this, he ordered the general of the region to receive Chosroes with royal care and hospitality. And he sends Narses with troops to ally with Chosroes and restore him to his own rule. Narses, therefore, joining battle with Baram, won a glorious victory, killing many of the Persians, and taking about six thousand prisoners, whom he brought to Chosroes; and he shot them all down with javelins. And as many of the nation of the Turks who were among the prisoners, allied with Baram, he sent them to Maurice, many of whom 188 bore crosses on their foreheads, their brows having been tattooed and black ink poured into the marks in the form of a cross. When they were asked about this, they said that a good while before their race was being destroyed by a plague, and some of the Christians among them had suggested this to them, and that none of those who had done this had been endangered by the plague. Baram, therefore, being defeated, secured his safety by flight; and Chosroes returned to his own rule and country. And it is said that before the victory, when the Roman general was planning to arrange the war otherwise, Chosroes objected to joining the battle according to his plan, but suggested another way; and the general said that to fight in this way was disadvantageous, and Chosroes would not abandon his purpose, so that the general, being provoked, mocked Chosroes, calling him unskilled in generalship and ignorant of battle arrays. And he, stung by the jests, being also knowledgeable of the 189 movement of the stars and from this boasting to know the future, said, "If we were not constrained by circumstances, you would not have dared, general, to assail the great king with jests. But since you are proud of the present, hear what indeed has been planned by the gods for the future. Terrible things, know well, will flow back upon you Romans. And the Babylonian race will hold the Roman land for a triple cyclical week of years. And after this, for a fifth week of years, you Romans will enslave the Persians." And when these things are accomplished, the eveningless day will come among men. But so much for that. And the emperor Maurice proclaimed his son Theodosius emperor at Easter, crowned by the patriarch John. And the church of the forty holy martyrs, the construction of which was formerly begun by Tiberius but left unfinished, he himself completed. And when peace had been made with the Persians, he moved the forces from the east to Thrace and he himself 190 went out from Byzantium to see the things ravaged by the barbarians. At which time the sun was also darkened, and a certain woman in Thrace gave birth to a child having neither eyes nor eyelids

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τῷ ἔθνει γινώσκει συμφέροντα, καὶ συνεβούλευε μὴ τὸν Χοσρόην υἱὸν αὐτοῦ ὄντα προκριθῆναι εἰς τὴν ἀρχήν, ἄπληστον ὄντα καὶ ἄδικον, ὑβριστήν τε καὶ ἀλαζονικώτατον, ἀλλ' ἕτερον υἱὸν αὐτοῦ προχειρισθῆναι τοῦ ἔθνους ἄρχειν. ἀντιπεσόντων δὲ τοῖς λόγοις τούτου ἐνίων τῶν ἐν ὑπεροχαῖς καὶ κατ' αὐτοῦ τοὺς Πέρσας ἐκμηνάντων, ὁ μὲν υἱὸς αὐτοῦ, ὃν εἰς τὴν ἀρχὴν ἐκεῖνος προέκρινε, καὶ ἡ μήτηρ ἐκείνου ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ ἀνῃρέθη παρὰ τοῦ πλήθους, καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ἐξεκόπη τὰ ὄμματα καὶ οὕτω καθείρχθη. ὁ δέ γε Χοσρόης εἰς τὴν ἀρχὴν ᾑρέθη παρὰ τοῦ ἔθνους παντός· καὶ μέχρι μέν τινος φιλοφρόνως πρὸς τὸν πατέρα διέκειτο, τῆς μὲν φρουρᾶς οὐ λύσας αὐτόν, πᾶσαν δὲ θεραπείαν αὐτοῦ ἐκεῖσε 187 ποιούμενος. ὁ δὲ οὐδὲν τῶν παρὰ τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτῷ στελλομένων προσίετο, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὕβρεσι μᾶλλον τὰς φιλοφροσύνας ἠμείβετο. θυμῷ οὖν διὰ ταῦτα ληφθεὶς ὁ Χοσρόης, ῥοπάλοις ἐκέλευσε κατὰ τῶν λαγόνων τυπτόμενον τὸν πατέρα θανεῖν. τοῦτο μῖσος ἐγγενέσθαι τοῖς Πέρσαις κατὰ Χοσρόου ἐποίησεν· ὁ δὲ κατὰ Βαρὰμ ἐξεστράτευσε, καὶ ὑποπτεύσας τινὰς τῶν παρ' αὐτῷ μεγιστάνων τῷ Βαρὰμ προσκεῖσθαι ἀνεῖλεν αὐτούς. τοῦ δὲ στρατεύματος κατ' αὐτοῦ στασιάσαντος, δείσας ἐκεῖνος μετά τινων ὀλίγων ἀποδιδράσκει καὶ πρὸς Ῥωμαίους ἀφίκετο. ὃ μαθὼν ὁ Μαυρίκιος κελεύει τῷ στρατηγοῦντι τῆς χώρας ὑποδέξασθαι τὸν Χοσρόην βασιλικαῖς θεραπείαις καὶ δεξιώσεσι. στέλλει δὲ Ναρσῆν μετὰ στρατευμάτων συμμαχῆσαι Χοσρόῃ καὶ ἀποκαταστῆσαι αὐτὸν εἰς τὴν οἰκείαν ἀρχήν. συμβαλὼν τοίνυν ὁ Ναρσῆς τῷ Βαρὰμ νίκην ἤρατο περιφανῆ, πολλοὺς μὲν τῶν Περσῶν ἀνελών, ζωγρήσας δὲ περὶ ἑξακισχιλίους, οὓς τῷ Χοσρόῃ προσήγαγεν· ὁ δὲ κατηκόντισεν ἅπαντας. ὅσοι δ' ἐν τοῖς ζωγρηθεῖσιν ἦσαν τοῦ Τούρκων ἔθνους τῷ Βαρὰμ συμμαχοῦντες, τούτους ἀνέπεμψεν εἰς Μαυρίκιον, ὧν πολλοὶ 188 ἐπὶ τῶν μετώπων σταυροὺς ἔφερον, καταστιχθέντων αὐτοῖς τῶν ἐπισκυνίων καὶ μέλανος ἐγχεθέντος τοῖς στίγμασιν εἰς τύπον σταυροῦ. οἳ περὶ τούτου ἐρωτώμενοι ἔλεγον πρὸ καιροῦ ἱκανοῦ λοιμῷ τὸ γένος αὐτῶν διαφθείρεσθαι, τινὰς δὲ τῶν παρ' αὐτοῖς χριστιανῶν ὑποθέσθαι τοῦτο αὐτοῖς, καὶ μηδένα τῶν τοῦτο πεποιηκότων κινδυνεῦσαι ἐκ τοῦ λοιμοῦ. ὁ μὲν οὖν Βαρὰμ ἡττηθεὶς φυγῇ τὴν σωτηρίαν ἐπραγματεύσατο· ὁ δὲ Χοσρόης εἰς τὴν ἰδίαν ἀρχὴν καὶ χώραν ἐπανελήλυθε. λέγεται δὲ πρὸ τῆς νίκης, τοῦ στρατηγοῦ τῶν Ῥωμαίων ἄλλως διατιθέναι σκεπτομένου τὸν πόλεμον, τὸν Χοσρόην ἐνίστασθαι μὴ κατὰ τὸ δοκοῦν ἐκείνῳ συγκροτῆσαι τὴν μάχην, ἀλλ' ἄλλον ὑποτιθέναι τρόπον· τὸν δὲ στρατηγὸν ἀσύμφορον εἶναι λέγειν τὸ οὕτω μαχέσασθαι, καὶ τὸν Χοσρόην τοῦ σκοποῦ μὴ μεθίεσθαι, ὥστε παροξυνθέντα τὸν στρατηγὸν ἀποσκῶψαι πρὸς τὸν Χοσρόην, ἀστρατήγητον αὐτὸν εἰπόντα καὶ ἀδαῆ πολεμικῶν παρατάξεων. τὸν δὲ δηχθέντα ἐπὶ τοῖς σκώμμασιν, ὄντα δὲ καὶ ἐν γνώσει τῆς 189 κατὰ τοὺς ἀστέρας κινήσεως κἀντεῦθεν αὐχοῦντα γινώσκειν τὰ μέλλοντα, φάναι "εἰ μὴ ὑπὸ τῶν πραγμάτων ἐτυραννούμεθα, οὐκ ἂν ἐθάρσησας, στρατηγέ, τὸν μέγαν βασιλέα βάλλειν τοῖς σκώμμασιν. ὅτι δὲ τοῖς παροῦσι μέγα φρονεῖς, ἄκουσον τί δῆτα τοῖς θεοῖς ἐς ὕστερον μεμελέτηται. ἀντικαταρρεύσει, εὖ ἴσθι, ἐς τοὺς Ῥωμαίους ὑμᾶς δεινά. ἕξεται δὲ τὸ Βαβυλώνιον φῦλον τῆς Ῥωμαϊκῆς χώρας τριττὴν κυκλοφορικὴν ἑβδομάδα ἐτῶν. μετὰ δὲ τοῦτο πεμπταίαν ἑβδομάδα ἐτῶν Ῥωμαῖοι Πέρσας δουλαγωγήσετε." τούτων δὲ διηνυσμένων τὴν ἀνέσπερον ἡμέραν ἐνδημῆσαι ἀνθρώποις. ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν ταύτῃ. Ὁ δὲ αὐτοκράτωρ Μαυρίκιος τὸν υἱὸν Θεοδόσιον ἀνηγόρευσε βασιλέα κατὰ τὸ πάσχα στεφθέντα ὑπὸ τοῦ πατριάρχου Ἰωάννου. καὶ τὸν ναὸν τῶν ἁγίων τεσσαράκοντα μαρτύρων πρῴην ἀρχθέντα κτίζεσθαι παρὰ Τιβερίου, ἀτελῆ δὲ καταλειφθέντα, αὐτὸς ἀνεπλήρωσεν. εἰρήνης δὲ γεγονυίας πρὸς Πέρσας, τὰς δυνάμεις ἐξ ἑῴας ἐπὶ τὴν Θρᾴκην μετήνεγκε καὶ αὐτὸς 190 ἐξῆλθε τῆς Βυζαντίδος τὰ ὑπὸ τῶν βαρβάρων κατεστραμμένα θεάσασθαι. ὅτε καὶ ὁ ἥλιος ἐσκιάσθη, καὶ γυνή τις ἐν Θρᾴκῃ παιδίον ἔτεκεν οὔτε ὀφθαλμοὺς οὔτε βλέφαρα ἔχον