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and wickedness, whether otherwise truly, saying that he both suffered this and endured movement, to this one he said "release from the bonds," and at the same time he released him, but to Seon, "the divine does not wish you to be released indeed from the guard," and at the same time he gave to him the ransom that had been given to him on his behalf, and enclosed him in the guard until he gave up the ghost. 24 When a second time had now passed and he heard that three myriads were marching against the Romans, Michael, desiring to reverse the defeat again, having gathered both Thracians and Macedonians up to forty thousand, he went out eagerly against him. And when he had encamped at a certain grassy plain called Celarium, just then Amer, outgeneraling him, was going further 178 from the well-trodden road, hurrying toward Chonarion. In this, having drawn nearer and having joined hands and engaged in a vigorous battle, he forced the emperor to flee and not to stay. But he tried to flee, as long as he supposed the horses' running to be at its peak and not interrupted. And indeed, as it was steady midday and no little heat was scorching from the sun's blaze, they are forced to ascend a certain mountainous place, called Anzen, difficult to access and not easy to traverse due to rough stones. Fleeing there, the emperor encamped, and Amer, following at his heels, encircled him, wishing to take him as in a net. And he would have taken him captive, but the strength of the imperial regiments, fighting back stoutly, and the elevated and commanding nature of the place saved them for a little while. There, as they were struggling and fearing the danger for their lives, Michael forced Manuel to give advice that would save them both. And he, having advised him to take off the things by which the emperor is recognizable, said that, having taken on the appearance of a private citizen with picked men pre-eminent in strength, he should break through the enemy phalanx and get outside of them openly. And when Michael inquired a second time about the remaining crowd and army, how they might be saved, "But may it be," he says, "that you, emperor, are saved unharmed, and God will care for them; for it is not of equal consequence for the emperor and for some Roman to become a captive to the enemy." Therefore, the emperor, having changed his clothes and 179 having become completely dependent on Manuel, hastened to follow, as he with others broke through the phalanx. But when they came to the dangerous point and somewhere near the enemy battle line, deserted by his strength and his hands in his fear, he was content to remain behind, but not to run ahead of him. And when Manuel, having cut through the phalanx and gotten safely through, could not see the emperor, he again took the road back, fearing the danger on his behalf. And when again there were engagements and great fear fell upon the Saracens, Amer decided to withdraw further, seeking some streams and pastures, and sounded the recall; at which time Michael, having found an opportunity, was barely saved from there safely, and returned to the capital. 25 So a second time barely passed, and again Amer, marching out with forty thousand troops, at once ravaged and enslaved both the Armeniac theme and Amisus toward the sea in the absence of anyone to stop him; at which time indeed he is said to have suffered the same as that foolish Xerxes, and to have ordered the sea to be beaten with rods, because it was not spread out further but, coming upon him plundering nearby, had hindered him. At which Michael, being distressed and anxious, ordered Petronas, who was the brother of the empress and was administering the generalship of the Thrakesion theme, with all his strength, taking with him the forces of the 180 Romans, to advance somewhere against him and not to overlook for long the land of the Romans being plundered. The son of Bardas then commanded the imperial regiments and the scholae, still a mere child

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καὶ μοχθηρίαν, ειτε καὶ αλλως ἀληθῶς, τοῦτό τε πάσχειν καὶ κίνησιν ὑπομένειν εἰπών, τούτῳ μὲν "λυτροῦσαι" εφη "τῶν δεσμῶν," καὶ αμα ἀπέλυεν, τῷ δὲ Σηὼν "οὐ βούλεταί σε τὸ θεῖον λυθῆναι δὴ τῆς φρουρᾶς," καὶ αμα ἐδίδου τούτῳ τὰ λύτρα τὰ δοθέντα αὐτῷ ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ, καὶ τῇ φρουρᾷ ἐγκατέκλειεν αχρις ου τὴν ψυχὴν ἀπεστάλαξεν. 24 ̓Επεὶ δὲ δεύτερος ηδη χρόνος παρέδραμε καὶ μυριά- δας ηκουε τρεῖς κατὰ τῶν ̔Ρωμαίων ἐκστρατεύειν, τὴν ητταν αυθις ὁ Μιχαὴλ ἀνακαλέσασθαι ἐπιθυμῶν, Θρᾷκάς τε καὶ Μακεδόνας μέχρι τῶν τεσσάρων συνηθροικὼς μυριάδων, ἐξῄει πρόθυμος κατ' αὐτοῦ. ὡς δὲ κατά τι χορτοφόρον πεδίον Κελάριον ουτω λεγό- μενον κατεσκήνητο, αρτι δὴ Αμερ αὐτῷ καταστρατηγῶν πορρω- 178 τέρω τῆς τετριμμένης ῃει ὁδοῦ, πρὸς τὸ Χωνάριον ἐπισπεύδων. ἐν δὲ τούτῳ ἐγγύτερόν τε γενόμενος καὶ χεῖρας δὴ προσβαλὼν καὶ πόλεμον συνάψας νεανικὸν φεύγειν ἀλλ' οὐ μένειν τὸν βασιλέα ἠνάγκαζεν. ἀλλὰ φεύγειν μὲν ἐπειρᾶτο, εως τὸν τῶν ιππων ἀκμά- ζειν δρόμον ἀλλ' οὐ διακόπτεσθαι ὑπελάμβανεν. καὶ δὴ σταθε- ρᾶς τε μεσημβρίας ἐνούσης καὶ καύματος οὐκ ὀλίγου θάλποντος ἐκ τῆς τοῦ ἡλίου φλογώσεως, κατά τινα ὀρεινὸν ἀναβαίνειν τόπον βιάζονται, ̓Ανζῆν ουτω λεγόμενον, δυσπρόσοδόν τε καὶ τραχέσι λίθοις οὐκ ευοδον. ἐκεῖσε δὴ φεύγων ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐνηυλίζετο, καὶ ἐκ ποδὸς ὁ Αμερ αὐτῷ ἐπακολουθῶν περικυκλοῖ, ὡς ἐν δικτύῳ θέλων λαβεῖν. καν ελαβεν αὐτὸν δορυάλωτον, ἀλλ' ἡ τῶν βασι- λικῶν ταγμάτων ἰσχὺς καρτερῶς ἀπομαχομένη καὶ τὸ τοῦ τόπου ἀνεστηκός τε καὶ ὑπερέχον μικρόν τι τούτους διέσωσεν. ενθα καὶ τὸν περὶ ψυχῆς αὐτῶν κίνδυνον ἀγωνιζομένων καὶ δεδιότων, βου- λὴν ἠνάγκαζε τὸν Μανουὴλ λέγειν ὁ Μιχαὴλ τὴν ἀμφοτέρους δὴ διασώσουσαν. ὁ δὲ τὰ δι' ων ἐστὶ φανερὸς ὁ βασιλεὺς ἀφελέσθαι συμβουλευσάμενος, καὶ ἰδιωτικὸν ἀναλαβόμενον σχῆμα μετὰ λο- γάδων ἀνδρῶν καὶ δυνάμει προεχόντων τὴν τῶν ἐχθρῶν εφη φά- λαγγα διαρρήξαντα εξω τούτων γενέσθαι περιφανῶς. ὡς δὲ καὶ περὶ τοῦ παραμένοντος οχλου τε καὶ στρατοῦ δεύτερον ἐπυνθάνετο, οπως δὴ σωθεῖεν, ὁ Μιχαήλ, "ἀλλὰ σὲ μὲν γένοιτο" φησίν, "βασιλεῦ, σώζεσθαι ἀβλαβῆ, θεῷ δὲ μελήσει περὶ αὐτῶν· οὐ γάρ ἐστιν ἐπ' ισης βασιλέα καὶ ̔Ρωμαίων τινὰ αἰχμάλωτον γενέ- σθαι ἐχθροῖς." ἀλλαξάμενος ουν τὴν ἐσθῆτα ὁ βασιλεὺς καὶ 179 περὶ τὸν Μανουὴλ ολος γενόμενος εσπευδεν ἐπακολουθεῖν, τού- του μεθ' ἑτέρων διαρρηξάντων τὴν φάλαγγα. ἀλλ' οτε δὴ κατὰ τὸ δεινὸν ἐγένοντο καὶ παρατάξεως πλησίον που τῶν ἐχθρῶν, ερη- μος τῷ φόβῳ δυνάμεώς τε γενόμενος καὶ χειρῶν ἐναπομένειν ἠγάπα, ἀλλ' οὐ προτρέχειν αὐτοῦ. ὡς δ' ὁ Μανουὴλ τὴν φά- λαγγα διακόψας τε καὶ περισωθεὶς τὸν βασιλέα οὐκ ειχεν ὁρᾶν, αυθις τὴν κατόπιν εθει ὁδόν, τὸν ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ κίνδυνον δεδιώς. ὡς δὲ πάλιν ἐγένοντο συμβολαὶ καὶ πολὺς φόβος συνέπιπτε τῶν Σαρακηνῶν, εγνω δὴ πορρωτέρω χωρήσειν ὁ Αμερ, νάματά τινα καὶ χορτάσματα ζητῶν, σημήνας τὸ ἀνακλητικόν· οτε καὶ τυχὼν ἀδείας ὁ Μιχαὴλ μόλις που ἐκεῖθεν διεσέσωστο ἀδεῶς, καὶ πρὸς τὴν βασιλεύουσαν ἐπανήρχετο. 25 ∆εύτερος ουν μόλις που παρῆλθε χρόνος, καὶ αυθις ἐκστρατεύσας ὁ Αμερ σὺν τεσσαράκοντα χιλιάσι στρατοῦ ὁμοῦ μὲν τὴν ̓Αρμενιακὴν ὁμοῦ δὲ καὶ τὴν πρὸς θάλασσαν ̓Αμισὸν ἐξε-πόρθει τε καὶ κατεδουλαγώγει τῇ τοῦ κωλύοντος ἐρημίᾳ· οτε δὴ καὶ ταὐτὸν ἐκείνῳ τῷ αφρονι Ξέρξῃ λέγεται παθεῖν, καὶ κελεῦσαι ῥάβδοις τύπτειν τὴν θάλασσαν, οτι μὴ πορρωτέρω προκατεστό- ρεστο ἀλλ' ἐγγὺς αὐτὸν λεηλατοῦντα καταλαμβανομένη κεκώλυκεν. ἐφ' οις ἀσχάλλων ὁ Μιχαὴλ καὶ ἀδημονῶν ἐκέλευσε τὸν Πετρω- νᾶν, ἀδελφὸν τῆς βασιλίσσης τυγχάνοντα καὶ τῶν Θρᾳκησίων τὴν στρατηγίδα διέποντα, παντὶ σθένει συμπαραλαβόντα τὰς τῶν ̔Ρω- 180 μαίων δυνάμεις χωρῆσαί ποι κατ' αὐτοῦ καὶ μὴ παρορᾶν ἐπὶ πολὺ τὴν τῶν ̔Ρωμαίων καταληϊζόμενον γῆν. ὁ τοῦ Βάρδα τότε τῶν βασιλικῶν ταγμάτων τε καὶ σχολῶν ηρχεν υἱός, παῖς ετι κο- μιδῇ