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sent out warships, and when the besieging Agarenes learned that these were coming against them, they lifted the siege of Raousion and attacked Longobardia; and they took the city of Bari and, using it as a base, they gained control of all Longobardia. When the other nations, who were being oppressed by these Agarenes, as has been said, learned what had happened at Raousion, and that the enemy had abandoned the siege because they feared the alliance from the emperor, they too sent an embassy, asking for an alliance and placing themselves under the rule of the Romans. And the emperor received the embassy and came 426 to the aid of those who asked, both through the aforementioned fleet and through the king of the Franks. For he wrote to him to join the Roman army in the war against the Agarenes; by whom the army of the Agarenes was defeated and their leader, called the Sultan, was captured, whom the king of the Franks took away to Capua. where, having spent two years, he was never seen smiling by anyone, so that the king marveled and promised to give a reward for the news if anyone reported the barbarian laughing. Then someone at some point said he saw the Sultan laugh. So the king, having summoned the barbarian, asked the reason for his laughter. And he said he saw a wagon wheel, of which one part was near the ground, while the other was raised high, and then the high part was brought down to the ground, and the part near the ground was raised high. "And so, figuring that human affairs are also moved and shifted in this way, I laughed out loud, reasoning that it is not impossible for my own affairs to be so arranged, and just as from a height I was brought down to lowliness, so again perhaps from a humble state I might be lifted to a height and become lofty." Thus he spoke. And the king, taking the truth of his words to mind 427 and pitying the Sultan for his change of fortune, both befriended him and gave him freedom of speech, and thinking the man was intelligent, he also shared his counsels with him. But he, being cunning, went after the king with deceit. For the king, having recently acquired the cities of Capua and Beneventum, was afraid that they might at some point lay claim to their freedom. And that barbarian, knowing this, approaches the king and says, "If you want your rule over these cities to be secure, move the most notable men among them elsewhere, and the populace, left to itself, will no longer contemplate any revolutionary action." The king, therefore, thinking the advice was beneficial, set to the purpose, and chains were forged in secret. Then that wicked man also conversed with the prominent men in the cities and behaved as if he were rather friendly and tells them in secret that "the king wants to put the most distinguished citizens in chains and move them to his own country, and proof," 428 he said, "of my words is the forging of iron chains and manacles and other bonds." Therefore, when they found this to be true, they supposed he was well-disposed toward them, and when the king went out to hunt, they bolted the gates of the cities and no longer admitted him inside. And he went away to his own land, but the Sultan found his freedom as a reward from those citizens. Having departed, therefore, and having again acquired his former rule, he marches against the aforementioned cities of Capua and Beneventum. But they, being hard-pressed by the siege, send to the king, earnestly begging him to forgive them and be their ally. But when he did not receive the embassy, saying he rejoiced in their destruction, they sent another embassy to the Emperor Basil, begging him to help them in their peril. And he promised, and the ambassador was returning, to encourage his fellow citizens to be of good courage. But he was captured by the enemy, and the Sultan, learning where he was from and what sort of good news he was bringing to the citizens, says to him, "If you wish to live, announce to those who sent you, when they appear on the wall, that the emperor has refused the alliance; for if you do not do so, 429 know that you will die at once. But he

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πολεμιστηρίους νῆας ἐκπέπομφεν, ἃς ἐπιέναι σφίσι μαθόντες οἱ πολιορκοῦντες Ἀγαρηνοὶ λύσαντες τὴν πολιορκίαν τοῦ Ῥαουσίου τῇ Λογγιβαρδίᾳ προσέβαλον· καὶ τὸ ἄστυ τῆς Βάρεως εἷλον καὶ οὕτω κεχρημένοι ὁρμητηρίῳ πάσης τῆς Λογγιβαρδίας ἐκράτησαν. γνόντα δὲ καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ ἔθνη τὰ παρὰ τῶν Ἀγαρηνῶν τούτων, ὡς εἴρηται, πιεζόμενα τὸ γεγονὸς κατὰ τὸ Ῥαούσιον, καὶ ὅτι τὴν ἐκ βασιλέως συμμαχίαν δείσαντες οἱ πολέμιοι τῆς πολιορκίας ἀπέστησαν, πρεσβεύουσι καὶ αὐτοὶ συμμαχίαν αἰτοῦντες καὶ ἑαυτοὺς τῇ τῶν Ῥωμαίων ἡγεμονίᾳ ὑποτιθέμενοι. καὶ ὁ βασιλεὺς τὴν πρεσβείαν προσήκατο καὶ ἐπε426 κούρησε τοῖς αἰτήσασι διά τε τοῦ προειρημένου στόλου καὶ διὰ τοῦ τῶν Φράγγων ῥηγός. ἐπέστειλε γὰρ ἐκείνῳ συλλαβέσθαι τοῦ κατὰ τῶν Ἀγαρηνῶν πολέμου τῷ τῶν Ῥωμαίων στρατεύματι· ὑφ' ὧν ἡ τῶν Ἀγαρηνῶν κατεπολεμήθη στρατιὰ καὶ ὁ ἀρχηγὸς αὐτῶν ἑάλω σουλδάνος καλούμενος, ὃν ὁ ῥὴξ τῶν Φράγγων ἐν Καπύῃ ἀπήγαγεν. ὅπου δύο διατρίψας ἐνιαυτοὺς οὐκ ὤφθη παρά του μειδιάσας οὐδέποτε, ὥστε τὸν ῥῆγα θαυμάζειν καὶ εἴ τις ἀπαγγείλῃ αὐτῷ γελῶντα τὸν βάρβαρον, δώσειν τι ἐπαγγέλλεσθαι τῆς ἀγγελίας μισθόν. εἶπεν οὖν τίς ποτε ἰδεῖν τὸν σουλδάνον γελάσαντα. καλέσας οὖν τὸν βάρβαρον ὁ ῥὴξ τὴν αἰτίαν τοῦ γέλωτος ἤρετο. ὁ δὲ τροχὸν εἶπεν ἁμάξης ὁρᾶν, οὗ τὸ μὲν πρόσγειον ἦν, τὸ δ' ἦρτο μετέωρον, εἶτα τὸ μὲν μετέωρον κατῆκτο πρὸς γῆν, τὸ δὲ πρόσγειον μετεώριστο. "οὕτω δ' εἰκάσας καὶ τὰ ἀνθρώπινα πράγματα κινεῖσθαι καὶ μεταφέρεσθαι ἐξεγέλασα, λογισάμενος ὡς οὐκ ἀδύνατον οὕτω διατεθῆναι καὶ τὰ κατ' ἐμαυτόν, καὶ ὥσπερ ἐξ ὕψους κατηνέχθην εἰς ταπεινότητα, οὕτως αὖθις ἴσως ἐκ χθαμαλότητος εἰς ὕψος ἐπαρθῆναι καὶ γενέσθαι μετάρσιος." ταῦτα μὲν εἶπεν ἐκεῖνος. ὁ δὲ ῥὴξ καὶ τὴν τῶν λόγων ἀλήθειαν εἰς νοῦν εἰλη427 φὼς καὶ τὸν σουλδάνον τῆς μεταβολῆς κατοικτείρας ᾠκειώσατό τε αὐτὸν καὶ παρρησίας μετέδωκε, καὶ συνετὸν τὸν ἄνδρα οἰόμενος ἐκοινώνει καὶ βουλευμάτων αὐτῷ. ὁ δὲ περίεργος ὢν δόλῳ τὸν ῥῆγα μετέρχεται. ὁ μὲν γὰρ ῥὴξ τήν τε Καπύην καὶ τὸν Βενεβενδὸν τὰς πόλεις νέον κτησάμενος, ἐδεδοίκει περὶ αὐταῖς μήποτε τῆς ἐλευθερίας ἀντιποιήσωνται. ὁ δὲ βάρβαρος ἐκεῖνος τοῦτ' ἐγνωκὼς πρόσεισι τῷ ῥηγὶ καί φησιν "εἰ βούλει σοι τὴν τῶν πόλεων τούτων ἀρχὴν βεβαίαν προσεῖναι, τοὺς λογιμωτέρους τῶν ἐν αὐταῖς μετάγαγε ἀλλαχοῦ, καὶ οὐκέτι τὸ πλῆθος καθ' ἑαυτὸ γεγονὸς οὐδὲν φρονήσει νεώτερον." συνοίσουσαν οὖν τὴν συμβουλὴν ὁ ῥὴξ οἰηθεὶς ἔθετο τῷ σκοπῷ, καὶ ἀσυμφανῶς δεσμὰ ἐχαλκεύοντο. εἶτα καὶ τοῖς ἐξόχοις τῶν ἐν ταῖς πόλεσιν ὡμίλει ὁ πονηρὸς ἐκεῖνος ἀνὴρ καὶ ὥσπερ φιλικώτερον προσεφέρετο καὶ ἐν ἀπορρήτοις λέγει αὐτοῖς ὡς "ὁ ῥὴξ βούλεται τοὺς ἀξιολογωτέρους τῶν πολιτῶν ὑπὸ δεσμοῖς ποιησάμενος εἰς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ χώραν μεταγαγεῖν, καὶ πίστεις," 428 ἔφη, "τῶν λόγων τὸ τὰς σιδηρέας ἁλύσεις χαλκεύειν καὶ χειροπέδας καὶ ἄλλα δεσμά." τοῦτο τοίνυν ἐκεῖνοι ἀληθὲς εὑρηκότες, εὐνοεῖν αὐτοῖς αὐτὸν ὑπειλήφασι, καὶ ἐξελθόντι πρὸς κυνηγέσιον τῷ ῥηγὶ τὰς πύλας τῶν πόλεων ἐπεζύγωσαν καὶ οὐκέτι τοῦτον ἐντὸς εἰσεδέξαντο. καὶ ὁ μὲν ἀπῆλθε πρὸς ἑαυτόν, ὁ δὲ σουλδάνος παρὰ τῶν πολιτῶν ἐκείνων ἀντιμισθίαν εὕρατο τὴν ἐλευθερίαν. ἀπελθὼν οὖν καὶ τὴν πρότερον ἀρχὴν αὖθις κατακτησάμενος, ἐκστρατεύει κατὰ τῶν εἰρημένων πόλεων τῆς τε Καπύης καὶ τῆς Βενεβενδοῦ. οἱ δὲ τῇ πολιορκίᾳ πιεζόμενοι στέλλουσι πρὸς τὸν ῥῆγα, συγγνωμονῆσαι σφίσι καὶ συμμαχῆσαι θερμῶς ἐξαιτούμενοι. ὡς δ' ἐκεῖνος τὴν πρεσβείαν οὐ προσήκατο, ἐπιχαίρειν εἰπὼν τῇ ἀπωλείᾳ αὐτῶν, πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα Βασίλειον ἑτέραν πρεσβείαν ἐστάλκασι, παρακαλοῦντες ἐπαρῆξαι αὐτοῖς κινδυνεύουσι. καὶ ὃς ὑπέσχετο, καὶ ὁ πρεσβευτὴς ἐπανῄει, θαρρεῖν παρεγγυήσων τοῖς συμπολίταις αὐτοῦ. ἑάλω δ' ὑπὸ τῶν πολεμίων, καὶ μαθὼν ὁ σουλδάνος ὅπῃ τε ἦν καὶ οἷα κομίζει τοῖς ἀστοῖς εὐαγγέλια, φησὶ πρὸς αὐτόν "εἰ ζῆν ἐθέλεις, ἀπαγορεῦσαι τὸν βασιλέα τὴν συμμαχίαν τοῖς πέμψασί σε ἀπάγγειλον ἐκ τοῦ τείχους προκύπτουσιν· εἰ γὰρ μὴ οὕτω 429 ποιήσεις, ἴσθι αὐτίκα δὴ τεθνηξόμενος. ὁ δὲ