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at Achrida, the queen and her household and as many as were resting somewhere for his service, while they, sending advance messengers to Uroš, themselves slowly proceeded forward. And when they had arrived at Pologos, which they there in their language would call the grove of God, and were already going toward Lipainion, an ambassador was sent from there, who was also their mediator, George by name, whom a band of men lying in ambush had indeed harmed. And those around the patriarch, hearing of ambushes previously, were fearful; but then they were set precisely into great fear, lest some incurable thing be newly done to them; for those who thus lay in ambush for their own people, and especially for the notable and the rulers, would scarcely at least abstain from foreigners. And they heard from George that the matters concerning the embassy were completely discordant with the purpose of the emperors and otherwise unsound; for they were accepting the son for the marriage alliance as the one who would rule after his father, since the leg of the elder of the sons, Stephen, was broken and he was living an inactive life; but he, casting about for some other things, was obscuring the agreements, and the things concerning the road were otherwise difficult, as he himself, having been harmed, showed. And in turn those around the chartophylax—for the commands and demands of the Despoina were terrible, causing him to be anxious, seeing things thus—were also bending the enthusiasm of the patriarch and the archons, so that they should not proceed further; for neither were the matters of the agreements proceeding as achievable and favorable, but otherwise crooked and dangerous. Things being so, another terrible thing also happens; which indeed cast them into suspicion that by going forward they would suffer the worst things. For those inhabiting the country, going in lines, often stood over them as they sat and watched them as people who had come from somewhere else; but their purpose was to observe their things, for which purpose they might also attack at night and plunder them. Which indeed after a little came to pass; for attacking at night with silent foot, they plunder their horses and vanished as fast as their feet could carry them. And at dawn and under the first light they recognize what had been done, and seek the perpetrators, but their haste in seeking was in vain; for they could neither learn from them, since they were protecting their own people, and it was not expedient to investigate and demand energetically, lest even more should happen, having fallen among men in appearance, but beasts in manner. Nevertheless, having used their rulers for assistance—for they were unable to even move, their better horses having been lost—being furnished in exchange with those of the country not on equal terms, but not even close, they decided to move back. And indeed, since the counsel seemed good and more advantageous than harmful, they backed water, so to speak, and, stretching themselves to what was behind, they went as far as Achrida. And from there together with the queen they set out for Thessalonica, holding that marriage alliance and its compacts and agreements as nothing, they returned to the emperor.

7. The events concerning Dyrrachion and the earthquake that struck there. At that time, then, after a while the events concerning Dyrrachion also happened, pitiful and full of tears. For when the month of Kronios had begun, unusual noises continuously disturbed the earth, which someone might popularly call roarings, and they were clearly signifying an evil approaching from nearby; on one day at least the rattlings sounded more continuously and louder than before. Cowardice therefore falling upon some persuaded them to dwell somewhere outside the city, so that, if more should happen, they would escape. But night had come upon those daytime noises, and a heavy earthquake falls, and greater than those remembered. And that was not a tremor, as one might say, of the earth moving sideways, but a tossing up by pulses, so that in an instant that entire city was overturned from its foundations and fell to the ground. And those houses and structures of buildings, not holding up even for a short while, gave way and collapsed, the people being trapped within, with no one having anywhere to flee; for the continuity of the buildings 459

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Ἀχρίδαν, τὴν μὲν βασιλίδα καὶ τὸ περὶ αὐτὴν οἰκετικὸν καὶ ὅσον εἰς θεραπείαν αὐτοῦ που διαναπαύουσιν, ἐκεῖνοι δὲ προαγγέλους πρὸς Οὔρεσιν πέμποντες, καὶ αὐτοὶ σχολαίως τοῖς πρόσω προσέβαινον. Τῇ Πολόγῳ δὲ παραγγειλάντων, ἣν δὴ ἄλσος Θεοῦ ἐκεῖ νοι κατὰ γλῶσσαν εἴπειαν, καὶ ἤδη καὶ πρὸς Λιπαίνιον ἰόντων, πέμπεται μὲν πρέσβις ἐκεῖθεν ὁ καὶ μεσάζων ἐκείνων, Γεώργιος τοὔνομα, ᾧ δὴ καὶ λόχος ἀνδρῶν ἐνεδρεύσας προσεζημίου. Τὰς δ' ἐνέδρας καὶ πρώην οἱ περὶ τὸν πατριάρχην ἀκούοντες ἐδειλίων· τότε δὲ καὶ ἀκριβῶς ἐς φόβον μέγαν καθί σταντο, μὴ καὶ νεωτερισθῇ τι σφίσι τῶν ἀνηκέστων· τοὺς γὰρ οὕτω καὶ τοῖς ἰδίοις, καὶ μᾶλλον τοῖς ἐνδόξοις καὶ ἄρχουσιν, ἐνεδρεύοντας, σχολῇ γοῦν ἀποσχέσθαι τῶν ἀλλοτρίων. Ἤκουον δὲ καὶ παρὰ Γεωργίου τὰ μὲν εἰς πρεσβείαν πάντη τῷ σκοπῷ τῶν βασιλέων ἀπῳδά τε καὶ ἄλλως σαθρά ἐκεῖνοι γὰρ καὶ ὡς ἄρξοντα μετὰ τὸν πατέρα εἰς κῆδος προσίεντο τὸν υἱόν, τοῦ προτέρου τῶν παίδων Στεφάνου τὸ σκέλος κατεαγότος καὶ βίον ζῶντος ἀπράγμονα· ὁ δέ, ἄλλ' ἄττα κύκλῳ περιβαλλόμενος, τὰ ὡμολογημένα ἐπηλυγάζετο, τὰ δ' εἰς τὴν ὁδὸν δυσχερῆ τε ἄλλως καὶ ὡς αὐτὸς ἐδείκνυ ζημιωθείς. Ἦσαν δ' ἀνὰ μέρος καὶ οἱ περὶ τὸν χαρτοφύλακααἱ γὰρ τῆς δεσποίνης παραγγελίαι καὶ ἀξιώσεις δειναὶ εἰς τὸ ποιεῖν ἐκεῖνον φροντίζειν, οὕτως ἰδόνταἐπικλῶντες τὰς προθυμίας τῷ πατριάρχῃ τε καὶ τοῖς ἄρχουσιν, ἐφ' ᾧ μὴ πλέον προβῆναι· μηδὲ γὰρ ἀνυστὰ καὶ εὔοδα τὰ τῶν συναλλαγμάτων προβαίνειν, σκολιὰ δ' ἄλλως καὶ ἐπικίνδυνα. Οὕτως ἐχόντων, γίνεταί τι καὶ ἄλλο δεινόν· ὃ δὴ καὶ εἰς ὑποψίαν ἐμβάλλει σφᾶς τοῦ καὶ πρόσθεν ἰόντας παθεῖν τὰ χείριστα. Οἱ γὰρ τὴν χώραν ἐπῳκη μένοι, κατὰ στίχας ἰόντες, ἐφίσταντο καθημένοις πολλάκις καὶ ἑώρων ὡς 457 ἄλλοθέν που ἡκότας· σφίσι δ' ἦν σκοπὸς παρατηρεῖν τὰ ἐκείνων, ἐφ' ᾧπερ καὶ νυκτὸς ἐπελθόντες συλήσειαν. Ὃ δὴ καὶ μετ' ὀλίγον λαμβάνει τέλος· νυκτὸς γὰρ ἐπιόντες ἀψόφῳ ποδί, τοὺς ἐκείνων ἵππους συλῶσι καὶ ᾗ ποδῶν εἶχον ἀφανίζουσιν ἑαυτούς. Οἱ δ' ἅμ' ἕῳ καὶ ὑπ' αὐγὰς γνωρίζουσι μὲν τὸ πραχθέν, ζητοῦσι δὲ τοὺς δεδρακότας, ἀλλὰ ζητοῦσι μάταιος ἦν ἡ σπουδή· οὔτε γὰρ εἶχον μαθεῖν παρ' ἐκείνων, τοὺς σφετέρους ἐπειλυόντων, καὶ τὸ δραστικῶς ἐξετάζειν καὶ ἀπαιτεῖν οὐ συνήνεγκε, μὴ καὶ πλέον ἐπισυμβαίη, ἀνθρώποις μὲν τὴν ἰδέαν, θηρίοις δὲ τὸν τρόπον παρεμπεσόντων. Ὅμως τοῖς ἐκείνων ἄρχουσι χρησάμενοι εἰς βοήθειανμηδὲ γὰρ ἔχειν ὅπως καὶ κινηθεῖεν, τῶν κρειττόνων ἵππων ἀπολωλότων ἀντισηκούμενοι τοῖς τῆς χώρας οὐκ ἐπ' ἴσων, ἀλλ' οὐδ' ἐγγύς, μεταναστεύειν εἰς τοὔπισθεν ἐβου λεύοντο. Καὶ δὴ δοξάσης τῆς βουλῆς ἀγαθῆς καὶ συνοισούσης πλέον ἢ μὴν βλαψούσης, πρύμναν τε κρούονται, τὸ τοῦ λόγου, καί, τοῖς ὄπισθεν ἐπεκτεινόμενοι, ἕως Ἀχρίδας ᾔεσαν. Ἐκεῖθεν δὲ συνάμα τῇ βασιλίδι Θεσσαλονίκης ἐπιβάντες, κῆδος ἐκεῖνο καὶ συνθήκας καὶ συναλλάγματα παρ' οὐδὲν θέμενοι, πρὸς βασιλέα ὑπέστρεφον.

ζʹ. Τὰ περὶ τὸ ∆υρράχιον καὶ τοῦ σεισμοῦ τοῦ ἐκεῖ ἐνσκήψαντος. Τότε τοίνυν μετὰ καιρὸν καὶ τὰ περὶ τὸ ∆υρράχιον συνέβη, ἐλεεινὰ καὶ πλήρη δακρύων. Κρονίου γὰρ ἐνστάντος μηνός, ἀσυνήθεις ψόφοι τὴν γῆν ἐτάρασσον συνεχῶς, οὓς δὴ βοασμοὺς κοινολογῶν εἴποι τις, καὶ δῆλοι ἦσαν σημαίνοντες ἐπιὸν ἐγγύθεν κακόν· μιᾶς γοῦν ἡμέρας καὶ συνεχέστερον ἐπήχουν οἱ κρότοι καὶ μεῖζον ἢ πρότερον. Τοῖς μὲν οὖν ἐμπεσοῦσα δειλία ἔξω που κατοικεῖν τοῦ ἄστεος ἔπειθεν, ὡς, εἰ πλέον γένηται, ἀλυξείουσιν. Ἀλλὰ νὺξ ἦν ἐπιγενομένη τοῖς ἡμερινοῖς ἐκείνοις θορύβοις, καὶ σεισμὸς ἐμπίπτει βαρὺς καὶ τῶν μνημονευομένων μείζων. Ἦν δ' ἐκεῖνος οὐ τρόμος, ὡς ἄν τις εἴποι, γῆς κατὰ τὸ λέχριον κινουμένης, ἀλλὰ κατὰ σφυγμοὺς ἀνατιναγμός, ὡς ἐν ἀκαρεῖ πᾶσαν τὴν πόλιν ἐκείνην ἐκ θεμελίων ἀνατραπῆναι καὶ πεσεῖν εἰς τοὔδαφος. Οἶκοι δ' ἐκεῖνοι καὶ ἀναστάσεις κτισμάτων, μηδὲ τὸ βραχὺ ἀντισχόντες, ἐνεδίδοσαν καὶ κατέπιπτον, ἐναπολαμβανομένων ἐντὸς τῶν ἀνθρώπων, μηδενὸς ἔχοντος ὅπου φύγοι· τὸ γὰρ τῶν οἰκοδομημάτων συνεχὲς 459