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they were crossing over. However, they too, suspecting an attempt against themselves, neither crossed in groups, nor to the usual place of disembarkation, where they were also expected to stand and wait for the time being, they were disembarking, but at the same time, having seized many transport ships and filled them, they made their disembarkation obliquely, and at the same time they were disembarking and at the same time most were arming themselves, yet not for open battle, but only to secure for themselves an escape from the apparent dishonor. 321 But on both sides, the men around the great domestic, wishing to do something and also themselves to escape the dishonor that was about to be inflicted upon them by the reputation of cowardice, both armed themselves and mounted their horses. A rivalry and a kind of tribal battle broke out; for even if the armies differed in race, they were nevertheless led under one imperial authority, and the war was civil, as one might conjecture. Therefore they tested each other with skirmishes, and shot arrows from their bows. The great domestic, therefore, observing the actions becoming equal to a battle, feeling insulted, as if in his presence, he being such a one from the emperor, they were trying to fight him and daring to resist the imperial command, holding his spear in his hands, carrying a shield and wearing a breastplate, falls upon the Alans, appearing as if only to hold them back. And he thus was managing the suppression of the battle, but one of them in hiding imitates Pandarus and shoots an arrow, and deals a fatal blow, unlike that one. When this happened, the multitude was stopped and on both sides pain for some and fear for others arose; and some regretted their attack on the others, while the others, understanding 322 what sort of die had been cast for them, blamed those who had caused the trouble with the greatest possible apology to the Romans, and sought to defend themselves to the emperor. For they feared, as was likely, that this might be the beginning of great evils for them, living in the midst of the Romans, and at the same time they were ashamed, if the emperor, choosing to host foreigners as far as it was in their power, held good hope, while they themselves returned such hospitality, repaying good with evil. For these reasons, they sent to the emperor and supplicated him, and to the others they handed over both their horses and their weapons, and instead of hoplites and cavalry they were foot-soldiers and unarmed, until the emperor again received them as they supplicated, forgiving them. But so much for these things.

23. It happened before these events, on the same month and day of the previous year, that Venetian triremes from Aquileia attacked the city, yet not for such a need again, but on account of the goods that had been seized because of the arson at that time. They indeed, since when they sent to Thessalonica, where the emperor was staying, they achieved nothing, decided to pursue these matters otherwise, more energetically. And indeed, having prepared thirteen 323 triremes, with another seven pirate ships added, they attack Byzantium, and appearing at midday on a Saturday with the greatest possible bluster, and bringing with them the harshness of the pirates, having sailed into the harbor, the Horn, and anchored opposite the palace, they did terrible things to the inhabitants, and they set fire to some haystack standing there somewhere, not so much to the loss of the owners as for mockery. But the emperor, not having a counter-effort from his own triremes to set against them (for the navy had been extinguished for years; and if any still survived, as if the whole had not been utterly wiped out, they happened to have been sent out for other needs) was in doubt as to what he ought to do. Therefore, when he looked at their audacity and their contempt for him, this act of daring being not usual for them, at that time he deemed it right to resist and to try to do ill to the attackers, until they might learn that they were attempting something beyond what was proper; but when again he looked to the murders that would result from this and the opposition in vain and the necessary danger, he agreed with any course rather than that one. For it was not long before these too, having come to their senses, would turn back and beg for forgiveness. There was also

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διεπεραιοῦντο. πλὴν κἀκεῖνοι τὴν ἐφ' ἑαυτοὺς ἐγχείρησιν ὑπο τοπάσαντες οὔτ' ἀνὰ μέρος ἐπέρων, οὔτ' ἐπὶ τὸν συνήθη τῆς ἀποβάσεως τόπον, ὅπου καὶ κατὰ προσδοκὰς ἵσταντο διεφέξοντες τῷ τέως, ἀπέβαινον, ἀλλ' ἅμα πολλὰς φορτηγοὺς κατασχόντες καὶ ἐμπλησάμενοι ἐδοχμίαζον τὴν ἀπόβασιν, καὶ ἅμ' ἀπέβαινον καὶ ἅμ' οἱ πλείους ὡπλίζοντο, πλὴν οὐκ εἰς φανερὰν μάχην ἀλλ' ἐφ' ᾧ μόνον ἑαυτοῖς περιποιῆσαι τὴν τῆς δοκούσης ἀτιμίας ἀπό 321 δρασιν. ἀλλ' ἑκατέρωθεν καὶ οἱ ἀμφὶ τὸν μέγαν δομέστικον, θέλοντές τι πρᾶξαι καί γ' ἀτιμίαν καὶ αὐτοὶ ἐκφυγεῖν τὴν δόξῃ δειλίας ἐπιτρίβεσθαι σφίσι μέλλουσαν, ὡπλίζοντό τε καὶ τῶν ἵπ πων ἐπέβαινον. φιλονεικία καὶ μάχη τις φυλετικὴ συνερρήγνυτο· εἰ γὰρ καὶ γένει διέφερον τὰ στρατεύματα, ἀλλ' οὖν ὑπὸ μίαν ἀρχὴν τὴν βασιλικὴν ἤγοντο, καὶ ἦν ἐμφύλιος ὁ πόλεμος ὅσον εἰκάζειν. ὅθεν καὶ ἀκροβολισμοῖς ἀλλήλων ἐπειρῶντο, καὶ σα ρίτταις ἔβαλλον ὀϊστεύοντες. ὁ τοίνυν μέγας δομέστικος ἴσας ὑσμίνῃ καθισταμένας τὰς πράξεις κατανοῶν, ὑβριοπαθῶν οἷον εἰ αὐτοῦ παρόντος ἐκ βασιλέως, ὄντος τοιούτου, αὐτὸν πολεμεῖν πειρῶνται καὶ ἀντιτείνειν τολμῶσι πρὸς βασιλικὴν κέλευσιν, τὸν κοντὸν ἀνὰ χεῖρας ἔχων θυρεόν τε φέρων φορῶν τε θώρακα ἐμ πίπτει τοῖς Ἀλανοῖς ὡς ἐφέξων μόνον φανείς. κἀκεῖνος μὲν οὕτω τὴν τῆς μάχης διῳκονόμει καταστολήν, εἷς δ' ἐκείνων ἐν ἀφανεῖ μιμεῖται Πάνδαρον καὶ ὀϊστῷ βάλλει, καὶ καιρίαν οὐ κατ' ἐκεῖ νον τὴν πληγὴν δίδωσι. τούτου δὲ γεγονότος τό τε πλῆθος ἀνε στάλη καὶ ἀμφοτέρωθεν τοῖς μὲν ὀδύνη τοῖς δὲ δέος περιίστατο· καὶ τοῖς μὲν μετέμελε τῆς ἐπὶ θατέρους ὁρμῆς, οἱ δὲ ξυνιέντες 322 ὁποῖος ἀνέρριπται σφίσι κύβος, τοὺς τὰ πράγματα παρασχόντας μεθ' ὅτι πλείστης τῆς πρὸς τοὺς Ῥωμαίους παραιτήσεως ᾐτιῶν το, καὶ βασιλεῖ ἐζήτουν ἀπολογεῖσθαι. ἐδεδίεσαν γάρ, ὡς εἰ κός, μὴ σφίσι κατάρξοι τοῦτο μεγάλων κακῶν ἐπὶ μέσης τῆς Ῥωμαίων διάγουσι, καὶ ἅμα δυσωπούμενοι, εἰ βασιλεὺς μὲν ξε νοτροφεῖν ὅσον ἐφ' αὑτοῖς αἱρούμενος ἐλπίδος ἀγαθῆς εἴχετο, αὐτοὶ δὲ τοιαύτας ξενίας ἀνταπεδίδουν, κακοῖς τὸ ἀγαθὸν ἀμει βόμενοι. διὰ ταῦτα καὶ βασιλέα μὲν πέμποντες καθικέτευον, ἐκείνοις δὲ παρεδίδουν καὶ ἵππους καὶ ὅπλα, καὶ ἀνθ' ὁπλιτῶν καὶ ἱππέων πεζοὶ καὶ ἄνοπλοι ἦσαν, ἕως πάλιν βασιλεὺς αὐτοὺς ἱκετεύοντας δέχεται, συγγινώσκων σφίσιν. ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν ἐς τοσοῦτον.

23. Συνέβη δὲ πρὸ τούτων, τοῦ αὐτοῦ μηνὸς τῷ πέρυσι καὶ ἡμέρας ταύτης, προσβαλεῖν τῇ πόλει ἐξ Ἀκουϊλίας τριήρεις Βενετικάς, πλὴν οὐ κατὰ τοιαύτην χρείαν καὶ πάλιν, ἀλλὰ τῶν ἐνεχυρασθέντων πραγμάτων διὰ τὴν τότε πυρπόλησιν ἕνεκα. οἳ δὴ ἐπεὶ κατὰ τὴν Θεσσαλονίκην πέμποντες, ἐκεῖ βασιλέως διά γοντος, οὐδὲν ἤνυτον, ἄλλως ἔγνωσαν τὰ περὶ τούτων ἐνεργέστε ρον μετελθεῖν. καὶ δὴ τριήρεις μιᾷ πλείους τῶν δώδεκα ἡτοι 323 μασμένοι, προσθεμένων καὶ πειρατικῶν ἑτέρων ἑπτά, τῇ Βυ ζαντίδι προσβάλλουσι, καὶ μεσημβρίας σαββάτου φανέντες μεθ' ὅτι πλείστης κορύζης, καὶ τὴν ἀπὸ τῶν πειρατῶν ἀπήνειαν ἐπα γόμενοι, τὸν λιμένα τὸ Κέρας εἰσπλεύσαντες καὶ καταντικρὺ τῶν ἀνακτόρων ναυλοχησάμενοι δεινὰ τοὺς προσχώρους ἐποίουν, καί τινι θημωνίᾳ ἐκεῖ που ἱσταμένῃ πῦρ ἐνιᾶσιν, οὐ τόσον εἰς ζημίαν τῶν κεκτημένων ὅσον εἰς χλεύην. βασιλεὺς δὲ τὴν μὲν ἐξ ἰδίων τριήρεων ἀντιπαλάμησιν μὴ ἔχων ἀντικαθιστᾶν (τὸ ναυτικὸν γὰρ πρὸ χρόνων ἀπέσβεστο· κἄν πού τινες περιῆσαν ἔτι ὡς μὴ τοῦ παντὸς καθάπαξ ἐκλείψαντος, κατὰ χρείας ἄλλας ἔτυχον ἐσταλμέναι) ἐν ἀμφιβόλῳ ἦν τοῦ τί δεῖ ποιεῖν. ὅτε μὲν οὖν εἰς τὴν ἐκείνων ἀποβλέψειε τόλμαν καὶ τὴν πρὸς αὐτὸν ὀλιγωρίαν, οὐ σύνηθες σφίσι τὸ τόλμημα ὄν, τηνίκα καὶ ἀνθίστασθαι ἐδικαίου καὶ κακῶς πράττειν πειρᾶσθαι τοὺς ἐπιόντας, ἐς ὃ καὶ μαθεῖν σφᾶς ὡς ὑπὲρ τὸ δέον ἐγχειροῦσιν· ὅτε δ' αὖθις εἰς τοὺς ἀποβη σομένους φόνους ἐντεῦθεν καὶ τὴν ἐν κενοῖς ἀντικατάστασιν καὶ τὸν ἀναγκαῖον κίνδυνον ἀφορῴη, παντὶ δικαίῳ μᾶλλον ἢ ἐκείνῳ συνωμολόγει. μηδὲ γὰρ εἰς μακρὰν καὶ τούτους γνωσιμαχήσαν τας ἐπεστράφθαι καὶ ξυγγινώσκειν δέεσθαι. εἶναί τε καὶ