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was disguised, and to the multitudes were given things for the magnificence of a feast. But they themselves, having waited for some days, giving neither their personal service nor any of their property, wished to hire themselves out for money. But they indeed agreed for wages to campaign against those around Kallias; but finally, as it seemed, having changed their minds on account of the Genoese there, I think, taking with them from there Berenguer as well, together with their foremost men, they sailed up to the land of the Laz, having sent off only one of the triremes to their own parts as a notification. 543 But from this the emperor had a concern how he might proceed against those around Kallias, since indeed it was announced that aid was arriving for them, and it was also heard that they wanted to summon the Persians from the opposite shore. And those around the bastard, the full brother of Theuderic, were also expected to appear again. But nevertheless (30) nor was the young emperor Michael negligent, but he himself, having left Adrianople and having come to Pamphylos, sends out those around the Grand Hetaeriarch Doukas and the Grand Tzaousios Oumpertopoulos and thirdly Bossilas, men capable of preparing for war, against the Almogavars around Kallias, who indeed, having encamped at Brachialion, were ready to attack, should they appear anywhere. But they, having been freed from fears within (for they did not even allow the survivors of those who had been despoiled inside the fortress, but having loaded them as pitiful cargo onto their own ship along with their own wealth, they kept them under close guard) cunningly contrived the battle from there, and having driven out a very great booty of animals, as if suspecting no evil, they left it unguarded. But this was a trick; for they themselves also, both cavalry and infantry, skilled in the 544 handling of arms and unapproachable in appearance, lay in ambush. Then at least, while the elite of the Roman formations were under arms and expecting the battle, the majority, becoming greedy for the booty that had appeared, ran out in disorder. And immediately those lying in ambush set out in the best possible order and cautiously. For on both sides of one horse, two foot soldiers marched obliquely, armed with Italian bows; and they themselves, with light shields and javelins, native spears, which indeed in ancient times were called ancones, awaited the battle with confidence. Who indeed, having joined together, set up a mighty battle. And men fall on both sides, but for a time the Catalans get the upper hand, and they overrun and kill as far as the place of Monokastanon. And the report puts the number killed at two hundred, with leaders themselves also being wounded. Then the emperor, having learned what had happened from royal messages from abroad, both grieved greatly, and was in regret for not having pursued those Genoese at all and persuaded them to be allies against the Almogavars by satisfying them with the wages they demanded, setting out immediately as they were, but instead for having shown some stinginess and delay concerning the payments and now for grieving over what had occurred. For they were setting the wage at six thousand gold pieces to depart all together and to fight most 545 quickly, since those with Berenguer had already been captured; but the emperor, in sending it, trusted only the measure to make up the required amount. But when they, having placed what was given on the scales, tested it and the deficit was great, they became enraged, being otherwise also somehow regretful, and they sent back the wages. But Patroclus was the pretext for the deficits; for when the emperor made even these things up and sending urged them on, they however, having abandoned their plans, proposed their own commercial ventures, and were immediately engaged in them, and departed at once. But the emperor, having learned such things, entrusted the wages to his own men and was fitting out triremes, choosing to reverse the defeat. For strength had not failed the empire, but the ruling power was complete, even if the instruments were weak and the military forces, which have the relation of a body, with the empire having the relation of a soul, appeared incomplete on account of the poverty that had befallen them; for which reason they were also distraught and from a small movement were prone to convulse, in the manner of newborn creatures, which indeed, although the soul is complete

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μετημφίαστο, τοῖς δέ γε πλήθεσι τὰ εἰς δαιτὸς φιλοτιμίαν ἐδίδοντο. αὐτοὶ δ' ἐφ' ἡμέραις προσμείναντες, μήτε τι τῶν σωμάτων μήτε τι τῶν πραγμάτων δόντες, χρημάτων ἀποδόσθαι ἠβούλοντο. ἀλλὰ καὶ ὑπὸ μι σθοῖς μὲν συνεφώνουν ἐπὶ τοὺς κατὰ τὴν Καλλίου στρατεύειν· τέλος δ', ὡς ἐδόκουν, γνωσιμαχήσαντες διὰ τοὺς ἐκεῖ Γεννουΐ τας, οἶμαι, ἐξ αὐτῆς συμπαραλαβόντες καὶ Μπυριγέριον συνά μα τοῖς πρωτίστοις αὐτῶν πρὸς τὴν τῶν Λαζῶν ἀνέπλεον χώραν, μίαν μόνην τῶν τριήρεων πρὸς τὰ αὐτῶν ἤθη εἰς δήλωσιν ἀπο λύσαντες. 543 Βασιλεῖ δ' ἐντεῦθεν φροντὶς ἦν πῶς ἂν μετέλθοι τοὺς κατὰ τὴν Καλλίου, ἐπείτοι γε καὶ βοήθεια μὲν ἐκείνοις ἠγγέλλετο πα ραγίνεσθαι, ἠκούετο δὲ καὶ ὡς Πέρσας ἐκ τῆς περαίας καλεῖν βούλοιντο. καὶ οἱ ἀμφὶ τὸν νόθον δὲ τοῦ Θευδερίχου αὐτά δελφον προσδόκιμοι ἦσαν καὶ αὖθις φαίνεσθαι. οὐ μὴν δὲ (30) ἀλλὰ οὐδ' ὁ νέος ἄναξ Μιχαὴλ ἠμέλει, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸς ἀφεὶς τὴν Ἀδριανοῦ καὶ πρὸς τῷ Παμφύλῳ γενόμενος τοὺς ἀμφὶ τὸν μέγαν ἑταιρειάρχην τὸν ∆ούκαν καὶ τὸν μέγαν τζαούσιον τὸν Οὐμπερτόπουλον καὶ τρίτον τὸν Βοσσίλαν, ἱκανοὺς εἰς πολέμου ἐξάρτυσιν, ἐπὶ τοὺς κατὰ τὴν Καλλίου Ἀμογαβάρους ἐκπέμπει, οἳ δὴ καὶ ἀπὸ Βραγχιαλίου ἐστρατοπεδευμένοι ἕτοιμοι προσβα λεῖν ἦσαν, ἤν που φανεῖεν. οἱ δὲ τῶν ἐντὸς ἀπαλλαγέντες φό βων (οὐδὲ γὰρ οὐδὲ τοὺς περιόντας τῶν σκυλευθέντων ἐντὸς τοῦ φρουρίου εἴων, ἀλλ' ἐν τῷ κατ' αὐτοὺς καράβῳ ἐλεεινὰ φορτία συνάμα τῷ σφετέρῳ νηησάμενοι πλούτῳ εὐφυλάκτως εἶχον) τὴν μάχην αὐτόθεν σοφίζονται, καὶ πλείστην λείαν ἐξελάσαντες ζώων, ὡς ἂν μηδὲν ὑπειδόμενοι τῶν κακῶν, ἄνετον εἴων. τὸ δ' ἦν ἀπάτη· καὶ γὰρ καὶ αὐτοὶ ἱππεῖς τε καὶ πεζοί, ἀγαθοὶ τὴν τῶν 544 ὅπλων ἕξιν καὶ ὡς ἰδεῖν ἀπρόσμαχοι, ἐνεδρεύουσι. τότε γοῦν τὸ μὲν καθαρὸν τῶν Ῥωμαϊκῶν συντάξεων ἐν ὅπλοις ἦσαν καὶ τὸν πόλεμον προσεδόκων, οἱ δὲ πλεῖστοι περὶ τὴν φανεῖσαν λι χνευσάμενοι λείαν ἐξέθεον ἀσυντάκτως. καὶ εὐθὺς οἱ ἐνεδρεύον τες εὐσυντάκτως ἐς ὅτι μάλιστα καὶ πεφυλαγμένως ἀφώρμων. παρ' ἑκάτερα γὰρ ἑνὸς ἵππου δύο πεζοὶ ἐδοχμίαζον, Ἰταλικοῖς τόξοις καθωπλισμένοι· αὐτοὶ δὲ μετὰ πελτῶν καὶ παλτῶν, ἐπι χωρίων δοράτων, ἃ δὴ τὸ παλαιὸν ἄγγωνες ἐκαλοῦντο, τὸν πό λεμον ἀπεθάρρουν. οἳ δὴ συστάντες μάχην ἔστησαν κραταιάν. καὶ πίπτουσι μὲν ἑκατέρωθεν, τέως δ' ἐπὶ τοῦ προτερήματος γί νονται Κατελάνοι, καὶ μέχρι καὶ Μονοκαστάνου τόπον κατατρέ χουσι καὶ φονεύουσιν. ἡ δὲ πύστις ἐπὶ διακοσίοις ἵστα τὸν φό νον, πληγέντων καὶ αὐτῶν ἡγεμόνων. τότε βασιλεὺς ἐκ βασιλι κῶν ἔξωθεν μηνυμάτων μαθὼν τὸ συμβὰν ἤλγησέ τε σφόδρα, καὶ ἐν μεταγνώσει ἦν τοῦ μὴ παντάπασιν μετελθεῖν Γεννουΐτας ἐκείνους, καὶ μισθώμασιν οἷς ἀπῄτουν ἐξικανωσάμενον συμμα χεῖν πείθειν ἐπ' Ἀμογαβάρους, ὡς εἶχον εὐθὺς ὁρμήσαντες, ἀλλ' ὅμως περὶ τὰς δόσεις φειδώ τινα καὶ ὑπερημερίαν ἐνδειξάμενον νῦν ἐπὶ τοῖς ξυμβᾶσιν ἀλγεῖν. ἐκεῖνοι γὰρ ἐν ἓξ χιλιάσιν ἵστων χρυσίου τὸ μίσθωμα ἀπελθεῖν συνόλους καὶ μαχέσασθαι τὴν τα 545 χίστην, τῶν περὶ τὸν Μπυριγέριον ἤδη ἑαλωκότων· βασιλεὺς δὲ πέμπων τῷ μέτρῳ μόνῳ ἐπίστευε συμπληροῦν τὸ τῶν ἀπαιτου μένων ποσόν. ὡς δὲ στήσαντες ἐκεῖνοι ζυγοῖς τὸ διδόμενον ἐδο κίμαζον καὶ πολὺ τὸ ἔλλειμμα ἦν, ἐξωργίζοντο καὶ ἄλλως ἐν με ταμέλῳ πως ὄντες, καὶ ἀντεπέστελλον τοὺς μισθούς. Πάτρο κλος δ' ἦν τὰ ἐλλείμματα πρόφασις· ὡς γὰρ καὶ ταῦτα βασιλεὺς ἐπλήρου καὶ πέμπων ἐξώτρυνεν, οἱ δὲ ἀπὸ τοῦ λόγου τῶν βου λευμάτων κρουσάμενοι ἰδίας προύτεινον ἐμπορίας, καὶ πρὸς αὐ ταῖς ἦσαν εὐθέως, καὶ ἀπηλλάττοντο τὴν ταχίστην. Ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς τοιαῦτα μαθὼν τοῖς ἰδίοις παρέβαλε τὰ μι σθώματα καὶ τριήρεις ἐξηρτύετο, ἀναπαλαίειν τὴν ἧτταν αἱρού μενος. οὐ γὰρ ἰσχὺς ἐπιλελοίπει τῇ βασιλείᾳ, ἀλλὰ τὸ τῆς ἀρ χῆς τέλειον ἦν, κἂν ἠσθένουν τὰ ὄργανα καὶ ἀτελεῖς αἱ λόγον ἔχουσαι σώματος στρατιωτικαὶ δυνάμεις, τῆς βασιλείας λόγον ἐχούσης ψυχῆς, τῆς ἐπεισπεσούσης αὐταῖς ἐνδείας ἐφαίνοντο· παρ' ἣν αἰτίαν καὶ παρεφέροντο κἀκ μικρᾶς κινήσεως εἶχον σφα δάζειν, κατὰ λόγον νεογνῶν ζώων, ἃ δὴ τελείας οὔσης