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9.1.1 So then, having thus settled the affairs concerning John and Gregory Gabras, the emperor departed from Philippopolis and seized the passes between Dalmatia and our own country. And having traversed the whole mountain-ridge of what is locally called the Zygos, not on horseback (for the place, being hilly and full of ravines and overgrown and almost impassable, did not always permit this), but going through it all on foot and surveying with his own eyes, lest some unguarded spot escape his notice, through which a passage might often be easy for the enemy, he ordered ditches to be dug in some places, and in others commanded wooden towers and small forts to be constructed of bricks or stones where the terrain allowed, measuring out himself the distances between them and their sizes. And in some places he even ordered trees reaching to the sky to be cut at the root and laid down on the ground. And so, having blocked off the enemies' passages, he returned to the great city. 9.1.2 But the account perhaps presents such an arrangement as easy to the listeners; but how much sweat the emperor then endured, many of those then present and who are still surviving even now bear witness. But not much time had passed, and more accurate news concerning Tzachas was reported to him, that none of the things that had happened to him both at sea and on land had turned him from his former purpose, but that he was using the insignia appropriate to emperors, calling himself emperor, and inhabiting Smyrna as if it were a palace, and was preparing a fleet with which to ravage the islands again and to reach Byzantium itself, and if possible to be elevated to the very imperial throne. 9.1.3 The emperor, having these things confirmed daily, determined it was necessary not to give way nor to grow soft in the face of the rumors, but to prepare himself through the remaining part of spring and the winter after it, in the coming spring to stand firmly against him and to hasten by every means not only to bring all his plans, hopes, and enterprises to naught, but also to drive him from Smyrna itself and to rescue from his hand whatever other places he had previously seized. When the winter had already passed, since smiling spring was already at hand, he summoned his brother-in-law John Doukas from Epidamnus and appointed him megas doux of the fleet. And having given him a chosen army of land troops, he urged him to make his way towards Tzachas by land, but to entrust the command of the fleet to Constantine Dalassenos, having ordered him to sail along the coast, so that reaching Mitylene at the same time they might join battle with Tzachas from both sea and land. 9.1.4 So Doukas, upon reaching Mitylene, immediately constructed wooden towers and, sallying forth from there as from a base of operations, stood more strongly against the barbarians. But Tzachas, who had previously entrusted the guard of Mitylene to his brother Galabatzes, since he knew he was not sufficient for battles with such a man, arrived quickly and, having drawn up a battle formation, engaged with Doukas. And as the battle became fierce, night broke it off. And from then on for three months Doukas did not give in, both assaulting the walls of Mitylene each day and joining in glorious battles with Tzachas from sunrise until sunset. 9.1.5 And Doukas had no advantage from so much labor;

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9.1.1 Οὕτω μὲν οὖν τὰ κατὰ τὸν Ἰωάννην καὶ Γρηγόριον τὸν Γαβρᾶν αὐτοκράτωρ οἰκονομήσας ἀπάρας τῆς Φιλιππουπόλεως τὰ ἀναμεταξὺ ∆αλματίας καὶ τῆς ἡμεδαπῆς τέμπη καταλαμβάνει. Καὶ τὸν ὅλον αὐχένα διαδραμὼν τοῦ οὑτωσί πως ἐγχωρίως καλουμένου Ζυγοῦ, οὐκ ἐποχούμενος (οὐ γὰρ ἐδίδου τοῦτο ἐς ἀεὶ ὁ τόπος ὀχθώδης τε καὶ χαρα δρώδης ὢν καὶ συνηρεφὴς καὶ μικροῦ ἄβατος), ἀλλὰ πεζῇ ἅπαντα διερχόμενος καὶ οἰκείοις περιαθρῶν ὀφθαλμοῖς, μὴ διαλάθῃ τι ἀφύλακτον δι' οὗ ῥᾳδία τοῖς πολεμίοις πολλάκις ἡ δίοδος γένηται, καὶ οὗ μὲν διώρυχας ἐπιτρέπων γενέσθαι, οὗ δὲ καὶ ξυλίνους κατασκευασθῆναι πύργους καὶ πολίχνια, ἔνθα ὁ τόπος παρεῖχε, γενέσθαι διὰ πλίνθων ἢ λίθων ἐπέ ταττε, τὰ ἀπ' ἀλλήλων διαστήματα καὶ τὰ μεγέθη αὐτὸς διαμετρῶν. Ἔστι δ' οὗ καὶ οὐρανομήκη δένδρα ῥιζοτομη θέντα κατατεθῆναι εἰς τὸ ἔδαφος διετάξατο. Καὶ οὕτω τὰς τῶν πολεμίων διόδους ἀποταφρεύσας ἐπάνεισιν εἰς τὴν μεγαλόπολιν. 9.1.2 Ἀλλ' ὁ μὲν λόγος ῥᾳδίαν ἴσως τὴν τοιαύτην οἰκονομίαν τοῖς ἀκροαταῖς παρίστησιν· ὁπόσον δὲ τὸν ἱδρῶτα ὁ αὐτοκράτωρ τῷ τότε ὑπέστη, μαρτυροῦσι πολλοὶ τῶν τότε παρόντων καὶ εἰς ἔτι καὶ νῦν περιόντων. Ἀλλ' οὐ πολὺς παρεληλύθει καιρὸς καὶ τὰ κατὰ τὸν Τζα χᾶν ἀκριβέστερον αὐτῷ ἐπηγγέλλετο, ὡς οὐδὲν τῶν συμ βάντων αὐτῷ κατά τε τὴν θάλατταν καὶ τὴν ἤπειρον τῆς πρότερον γνώμης ἀπέστησεν, ἀλλὰ τοῖς προσήκουσι βασι λεῦσι χρᾶται παρασήμοις βασιλέα ἑαυτὸν ὀνομάζων καὶ τὴν Σμύρνην οἰκῶν καθαπερεὶ βασίλειά τινα στόλον εὐτρε πίζει ἐφ' ᾧ τάς τε νήσους αὖθις δῃώσασθαι καὶ μέχρι αὐτοῦ φθάσαι Βυζαντίου καὶ εἰς αὐτὴν δὲ εἰ δυνατὸν τὴν τῆς βασιλείας ἀνενεχθῆναι περιωπήν. 9.1.3 Ταῦτα ὁ αὐτο κράτωρ βεβαιούμενος ὁσημέραι δεῖν ἔγνω μὴ ἀναπίπτειν μηδὲ μαλακίζεσθαι πρὸς τὰ θρυλλούμενα, ἀλλὰ παρασκευά ζεσθαι διὰ τοῦ ἔτι λείποντος ἐαρινοῦ καιροῦ καὶ τοῦ μετ' αὐτὸν χειμῶνος, κατὰ τὸ ἐπιὸν ἔαρ καρτερῶς πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀντικαταστῆναι καὶ σπεῦσαι διὰ πάσης μηχανῆς μὴ μόνον φροῦδα τὰ ἐκείνου ἀναδεῖξαι ἅπαντα, τὰς βουλάς, τὰς ἐλπίδας, τὰς ἐγχειρήσεις, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτῆς ἀπελάσαι τῆς Σμύρνης καὶ ὅσα ἄλλα προφθάσας κατέσχε τῆς ἐκείνου χειρὸς ῥύσασθαι. Τοῦ χειμῶνος δὲ ἤδη παρῳχηκότος, ἐπεὶ προσμειδιῶν ἤδη τὸ ἔαρ παρῆν, μεταπεμψάμενος ἀπὸ τῆς Ἐπιδάμνου τὸν γυναικάδελφον αὐτοῦ Ἰωάννην τὸν ∆ούκαν μέγαν δοῦκα τοῦ στόλου προεχειρίσατο. Καὶ ἠπειρώτας δὲ στρατὸν ἐπίλεκτον ἐπιδοὺς παρεκελεύσατο αὐτὸν μὲν διὰ τῆς ἠπείρου τὴν πρὸς τὸν Τζαχᾶν πορείαν ποιεῖσθαι, τῷ δέ γε Κωνσταντίνῳ τῷ ∆αλασσηνῷ τὴν τοῦ στόλου ἡγεμο νίαν ἐγχειρίσαι ἐντειλάμενον αὐτῷ τὴν ᾐόνα παραθέειν, ἵν' ἅμα τὴν Μιτυλήνην καταλαβόντες ἐξ ἀμφοῖν θαλάττης τε καὶ ἠπείρου τὸν μετὰ τοῦ Τζαχᾶ συνάψωσι πόλεμον. 9.1.4 Καταλαβὼν τοίνυν τὴν Μιτυλήνην ὁ ∆ούκας παραχρῆμα ξυλίνους κατεσκεύασε πύργους καὶ ὥσπερ ἐξ ὁρμητηρίου τινὸς ἐκεῖθεν ἀφορμῶν καρτερώτερον τοῖς βαρβάροις ἀντι καθίσταται. Ὁ δὲ Τζαχᾶς τὴν τῆς Μιτυλήνης φρουρὰν τῷ ἀδελφῷ αὐτοῦ Γαλαβάτζῃ προαναθέμενος, ἐπεὶ μὴ ἐξαρκοῦντα τοῦτον πρὸς μάχας τοιούτου ἀνδρὸς ἐγίνωσκε, θᾶττον φθάσας καὶ πολέμου σχῆμα διατυπώσας ξυμμίγνυ ται τῷ ∆ούκᾳ. Καρτερᾶς δὲ τῆς μάχης γενομένης ἡ νὺξ ταύτην διέλυσε. Κἄκτοτε ὁ ∆ούκας διὰ τριττῆς σεληνιακῆς περιφορᾶς οὐκ ἐνεδίδου καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν προσβάλλων τε τοῖς τείχεσι Μιτυλήνης καὶ μετὰ τοῦ Τζαχᾶ λαμπροὺς πολέμους συναίρων ἐξ ἡλίου ἀνατολῆς μέχρι δυσμῶν. 9.1.5 Καὶ οὐδὲν πλέον ἦν τῷ ∆ούκᾳ τοῦ τοσούτου καμάτου·