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he was saying it was, for those whose affairs had indeed come to such a point of weakness that they had been unable by any means to dislodge one hundred and fifty unwalled Persians. And he made it his business to rebuild in haste all that had fallen of the circuit-wall; but since he had neither lime at the moment nor anything else suitable for the building in readiness, he devised the following plan. Having filled with sand the linen bags in which the Persians had brought their provisions into the land of Colchis, he set them in the place of the stones, and these, being thrown there, served as a wall. And selecting three thousand of the fighting men, he left them there, for whom he did not lay up provisions for a long time, having instructed them to take care of the building of the circuit-wall; but he himself with all the rest of the army marched back. And since, as he was going from there by the same road, no supply of necessities became available for him, as he had left in Petra everything which the army happened to have brought from Iberia, he planned to go by some other route through the mountains there, where he learned that men dwelt, so that by plundering they might be able to survive. On this route a certain man of note among the Lazi, Phoubelis by name, ambushed the Persians while they were encamped, bringing with him Dagisthaeus along with two thousand Romans, who in a raid killed some of the Persians who were pasturing horses, and having plundered the horses, they made their retreat shortly after. Thus Mermeroes with the Median army went from there. But Goubazes, learning what had befallen the Romans both at Petra and at the narrow pass, was not afraid even so, nor did he abandon the guard in the pass near him, thinking that the chief part of their hope was there. For he knew well that, even if the Persians, having forced the Romans back from the Phasis river, should be able to cross the pass and get to Petra, they could inflict no harm from there upon the country of the Lazi, since they had no means of crossing the Phasis, especially as no ships were available to them. For this river has a depth as great as any other, and extends for a very great width. Indeed, so strong is its current that, flowing out into the sea, it proceeds by itself for a very long distance, in no way mixing with it there. Of course, it is possible for those sailing in that region to draw potable water in the middle of the sea. Moreover, the Lazi have built guard-posts everywhere along the river, so that the enemy might have no landing on the shore, even if ferried across in ships. And the Emperor Justinian sent the agreed sums of money to the nation of the Sabiri, and he presented Goubazes and the Lazi with other sums of money. He had also happened much earlier to send another army of considerable size to Lazica, which had not yet chanced to arrive there. Recithangus from Thrace was their commander, a man both intelligent and good in matters of war. So these things were in some such state. But Mermeroes, having reached the mountains, as I have said, was eager to fill Petra from there with provisions. For he in no way thought that the provisions, which they had happened to bring in with them, would suffice for the garrison there, which numbered three thousand. But since the supplies which came to hand were barely sufficient for the expense of this army, being no fewer than thirty thousand men, and from this they were able to send nothing of any account to Petra, he reasoned and found it was better for them that the greater part of the army should depart from the land of Colchis, and that some few should remain there, who were to bring many of the provisions they might encounter to the garrison in Petra, and use the rest sufficiently for themselves; therefore, having selected about five thousand men, he left them there, over whom he appointed three other commanders and Phabrizus. For it did not seem necessary to him that more should be left there, since there were no enemies anywhere. But he himself with the rest of the army went to Persarmenia and remained quiet in the districts around Doubios. But the five thousand, when they came nearer the borders of Lazica, beside a river

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ἔφασκεν εἶναι, οἷς γε δὴ ἐς τοῦτο ἀσθενείας περιεστήκει τὰ πράγματα, ὡς πεντήκοντά τε καὶ ἑκατὸν ἀτειχίστους Πέρσας μηδεμιᾷ μηχανῇ ἐξελεῖν δεδυνῆ2.30.18 σθαι. καὶ τοῦ μὲν περιβόλου ἀνοικοδομήσασθαι ὅσα καταπεπτώκει ἐν σπουδῇ ἐποιεῖτο· ἐπεὶ δὲ οὔτε τίτανον ἐν τῷ παραυτίκα οὔτε τι ἄλλο τῶν ἐς τὴν οἰκοδομίαν 2.30.19 ἐπιτηδείων ἐν παρασκευῇ εἶχεν, ἐπενόει τάδε. θυλάκους λινοῦς, οἷς δὴ Πέρσαι τὰ ἐπιτήδεια σφίσιν ἐσεκομίσαντο ἐς γῆν τὴν Κολχίδα, ψάμμου ἐμπλησάμενος ἐς τῶν λίθων τὴν χώραν ἐτίθετο, οἳ δὴ ἐνταῦθα βαλ2.30.20 λόμενοι ἀντὶ τοῦ τοίχου ἐγίνοντο. καὶ τρισχιλίους μὲν τῶν μαχίμων ἀπολεξάμενος αὐτοῦ εἴασεν, οἷσπερ τὰ ἐδώδιμα οὐκ ἐς χρόνου κατέθετο μῆκος, ἐπιστείλας τοῦ περιβόλου τῆς οἰκοδομίας ἐπιμελεῖσθαι· αὐτὸς δὲ 2.30.21 παντὶ τῷ ἄλλῳ στρατῷ ὀπίσω ἀπήλαυνεν. ἐπεί τέ οἱ ὁδῷ τῇ αὐτῇ ἐνθένδε ἰόντι οὐδεὶς τῶν ἀναγκαίων ἐγίνετο πόρος, ἅπαντα ἐν Πέτρᾳ λιπόντι, ἅπερ ἐπιφερόμενος ἐξ Ἰβηρίας ὁ στρατὸς ἔτυχεν, ἄλλην τινὰ πορείαν ἰέναι διὰ τῶν ταύτῃ ὀρῶν διενοεῖτο, ἵνα δὴ ἀνθρώπους οἰκεῖν ἔμαθεν, ὅπως ληιζόμενοι ἀποζῆν δύ2.30.22 νωνται. ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ πορείᾳ τῶν τις ἐν Λαζοῖς λογίμων, Φούβελις ὄνομα, Πέρσας αὐλιζομένους ἐνήδρευσε, ∆αγισθαῖον ἅμα Ῥωμαίων δισχιλίοις ἐπαγόμενος, οἳ δὴ τῶν Περσῶν ἐξ ἐπιδρομῆς ἵππους νέμοντάς τινας ἔκτειναν, ἵππους τε ληισάμενοι δι' ὀλίγου τὴν ἀναχώρησιν ἐποιήσαντο. οὕτω μὲν ὁ Μερμερόης τῷ Μήδων στρατῷ ἐνθένδε ᾔει. 2.30.23 Ὁ δὲ Γουβάζης, μαθὼν ὅσα δὴ Ῥωμαίοις ἔν τε τῇ Πέτρᾳ καὶ τῷ στενωπῷ ξυνηνέχθη γενέσθαι, οὐδ' ὣς ἔδεισεν, οὐδὲ τὴν ἐν τῷ κατ' αὐτὸν στενωπῷ φυλακὴν εἴασεν, ἐνταῦθα σφίσι τὴν κεφαλὴν τῆς ἐλπίδος οἰό2.30.24 μενος εἶναι. ἐξηπίστατο γὰρ ὡς, ἢν καὶ Ῥωμαίους ἐκτὸς Φάσιδος ποταμοῦ βιασάμενοι Πέρσαι τὸν στενωπὸν διαβῆναι καὶ ἐν Πέτρᾳ γενέσθαι δεδύνηνται, οὐδὲν ἂν ἐνθένδε Λαζῶν τῇ χώρᾳ προστρίψαιντο βλάβος, Φᾶσιν διαβῆναι οὐδεμιᾷ μηχανῇ ἔχοντες, ἄλλως τε καὶ 2.30.25 νηῶν οὐ παρουσῶν σφίσιν. ὁ γὰρ ποταμὸς οὗτος βάθους μὲν εἴπερ τις ἄλλος ἱκανώτατα ἔχει, εὔρους 2.30.26 δὲ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον διήκει. τῆς μέντοι ῥύμης αὐτῷ τοσοῦτον περίεστιν ὥστε δὴ ἐς τὴν θάλασσαν ἐκβαλὼν ἐπὶ μακρότατον κατὰ μόνας χωρεῖ, οὐδαμῆ ταύτῃ ἐπιμιγνύμενος. ὕδωρ ἀμέλει πότιμον τοῖς ἐκείνῃ ναυτιλλο2.30.27 μένοις ὑδρεύεσθαι πάρεστιν ἐν μέσῳ πελάγει. καὶ φυλακτήρια μέντοι τοῦ ποταμοῦ ἐντὸς πεποίηνται πανταχόθι Λαζοὶ, τοῦ μηδὲ ναυσὶ διαπορθμευομένοις τοῖς 2.30.28 πολεμίοις ἀπόβασιν ἐς τὴν γῆν εἶναι. βασιλεὺς δὲ Ἰουστινιανὸς Σαβείρων μὲν τῷ ἔθνει τὰ ξυγκείμενα χρήματα ἔπεμψε, Γουβάζην δὲ καὶ Λαζοὺς χρήμασιν 2.30.29 ἄλλοις δεδώρηται. ἐτύγχανε δὲ πολλῷ πρότερον καὶ ἄλλο στράτευμα λόγου ἄξιον ἐς Λαζικὴν πέμψας, οἳ οὔπω ἀφικόμενοι ἐνταῦθα ἔτυχον. ἦρχε δὲ αὐτῶν Ῥεκίθαγγος ἐκ Θρᾴκης, ἀνὴρ ξυνετός τε καὶ ἀγαθὸς τὰ πολέμια. ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ταύτῃ πη εἶχε. 2.30.30 Γενόμενος δὲ ὁ Μερμερόης ἐν τοῖς ὄρεσιν, ὥσπερ μοι εἴρηται, Πέτραν ἐνθένδε τῶν ἐπιτηδείων ἐμπιπλάναι ἐν σπουδῇ εἶχεν. ἐπαρκέσειν γὰρ τῷ ἐνταῦθα φυλακτηρίῳ ἐς τρισχιλίους ὄντι τὰ ἐδώδιμα οὐδαμῆ ᾤετο, 2.30.31 ἅπερ εἰσκομισάμενοι ξὺν αὐτοῖς ἔτυχον. ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ τὰ ἐν ποσὶ σφίσι γινόμενα μόλις ἀπέχρη ἐς τὴν δαπάνην τῇ στρατιᾷ ταύτῃ, οὐχ ἧσσον ἢ τρισμυρίοις οὖσι, καὶ ἀπ' αὐτοῦ οὐδὲν ὅ τι καὶ λόγου ἄξιον πέμπειν ἐς τὴν Πέτραν οἷοί τε ἦσαν, λογισάμενος εὕρισκε σφίσιν ἄμεινον εἶναι τὸ μὲν πλέον τοῦ στρατοῦ ἀπαλλάσσεσθαι ἐκ γῆς τῆς Κολχίδος, ὀλίγους δέ τινας ἐνταῦθα μεῖναι, οἳ δὴ ἔμελλον τῶν ἐπιτηδείων, οἷς ἂν ἐντύχοιεν, πολλὰ μὲν ἐς τὸ ἐν Πέτρᾳ φυλακτήριον ἐσκομίζεσθαι, τοῖς δὲ ἄλλοις αὐτοὶ διαρκῶς χρῆσθαι· 2.30.32 ἄνδρας οὖν ἐς πεντακισχιλίους ἀπολεξάμενος αὐτοῦ εἴασεν, οἷς δὴ ἄρχοντας ἄλλους τε τρεῖς καὶ Φάβριζον 2.30.33 κατεστήσατο. πλείους γὰρ ἐνταῦθα λείπεσθαι οὔ οἱ ἔδοξεν ἐπάναγκες εἶναι, πολεμίων οὐδαμῆ ὄντων. αὐτὸς δὲ τῷ ἄλλῳ στρατῷ ἐς τὴν Περσαρμενίαν ἐλθὼν ἡσύχαζεν ἐν τοῖς ἀμφὶ ∆ούβιος χωρίοις. 2.30.34 Οἱ δὲ πεντακισχίλιοι, ἐπεὶ ἐγγυτέρω τῶν Λαζικῆς ἐσχάτων ἦλθον, παρὰ ποταμὸν