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He indeed also assented to the request, and they agreed with the ambassadors that the union should take place at Baimi, a Macedonian place. The Kral, therefore, when he learned of the agreement, setting out from his own territory, went towards the agreed-upon place. But the emperor, as if wishing to inspire some astonishment in the Kral, or rather to provide proofs of guileless and pure friendship, having abandoned coming to the appointed place with preparation and an equivalent army, and having selected three hundred of his own men and a few of the notables besides those appointed for service, while the Kral was still tarrying in the middle of his own territory at the place called Radobosdion, the emperor was announced suddenly approaching. At first, therefore, he was alarmed, fearing the emperor's approach, lest it not be in friendship. But when he learned the number of followers and the emperor's intention in coming with so few, he both greatly admired the emperor for his guileless intention and his candor towards friends, and rejoiced with himself for having acquired such a friend. He both feasted him very lavishly and royally, and kept him with himself for seven days. And having shown great friendliness and having behaved most moderately and as is proper towards a master to the emperor, after the seventh day he himself remained in his own territory, but sent the rejoicing emperor home rejoicing. And during this meeting, a strong friendship also arose for the megas domestikos with the Kral, who had given proof of himself. 1.476 29. And the emperor, coming from there to Thessalonica and not tarrying long, came to Byzantium. And not many days later it was announced that Domenikos, son of Andrea Cattaneo, who ruled New Phocaea which the emperor had granted as a favor, having become heir to the property when his father died, and he was rich, puffed up by his wealth, had planned to seize Lesbos from the Romans to create a dominion for himself, and having manned eleven triremes from Genoa with his own money and having enlisted one from Sicily and having persuaded the Delians to provide five, he sailed against the Lesbians without a declaration of war. And he took the Mytileneans by storming their walls, falling upon them unprepared and striking them with terror by the unexpectedness. And he gained control of all the other fortresses that were on the island. And they did attempt Eressos and Methymna, but proving weaker than the walls, they desisted, and now these alone preserve their goodwill and servitude to the emperor. The emperor, learning such things about Lesbos, reproached the Latins in Galata, who were Genoese colonists, for their great wickedness and revolutionary activity, and protested that contrary to the agreements with the Romans and their own council and people, they act with their own villainy and knavery, from which they cause not only losses, but also toils and dangers for the emperors of the Romans. To which they themselves could not reply that they were unjustly accused. And he himself, 1.477 in twenty days in all, equipped a fleet of eighty-four ships, of which forty-four were biremes and triremes; and the rest were monoremes. And cargo ships also followed, carrying both foot soldiers and grain and the other necessities for the army. And when all things were prepared and nothing was still lacking, setting sail from Byzantium, they sailed for Lesbos. And when they were near Kallipolis on the Hellespont, the Latin scouts from Lesbos who were present there with a fast-sailing long ship, watching for the emperor's approach, arriving before them on account of both the speed of the ship and their pressing on the voyage most eagerly, reported the emperor's naval approach as being not long after. But to them, not knowing the number of the imperial ships, it seemed they must fight against the emperor; and they prepared as if they were going to fight a sea battle. But the Delians, seeing them preparing, made their opinion very clear to their own admiral, saying that they were able to take up arms against all other men rather than the emperor of the Romans. For which reason indeed, and before engaging in battle, their plan clear to him
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μην καὶ ἐπένευε πρὸς τὴν ἀξίωσιν, συνέθεντο μετὰ τῶν πρέσβεων ἐν Βαϊμὶ τὴν ἕνωσιν γενέσθαι χωρίῳ Μακεδονικῷ. ὁ Κράλης μὲν οὖν, ἐπεὶ ἐπύθετο τὸ σύνθημα, ἐκ τῆς οἰκείας ὁρμηθεὶς πρὸς τὸ συντεθειμένον χωρίον ᾔει· βασιλεὺς δ' ὥσπερ ἔκπληξίν τινα βουληθεὶς τῷ Κράλῃ ἐμποιῆσαι ἢ μᾶλλον ἀδόλου καὶ καθαρᾶς φιλίας πίστεις παρασχεῖν, τὸ μετὰ παρασκευῆς καὶ ἀντιῤῥόπου στρατιᾶς εἰς τὸν ὡρισμένον τόπον ἐλθεῖν καταλιπὼν, τριακοσίους τῶν ἰδίων ἀπολεξάμενος, καὶ ἐκ τῶν ἐπιφανῶν τινας ὀλίγους χωρὶς τῶν πρὸς ὑπηρεσίας τεταγμένων, ἔτι περὶ μέσην τὴν οἰκείαν διατρίβοντι τῷ Κράλῃ κατὰ τὸ Ῥαδοβόσδιον προσαγορευόμενον, ἠγγέλλετο ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐξαίφνης προσιών. πρῶτα μὲν οὖν ἐθορυβήθη δείσας τὴν βασιλέως ἔφοδον, μὴ οὐ κατὰ φιλίαν εἴη. ὡς δὲ ἐπύθετο τὸν ἀριθμὸν τῶν ἑπομένων καὶ τὴν γνώμην βασιλέως ἣν ἔχων μετὰ τοσούτων ἥκει, ὑπερηγάσθη τε τὸν βασιλέα τῆς ἀδόλου γνώμης καὶ τῆς πρὸς τοὺς φίλους ἐλευθερίας, καὶ συνήδετο ἑαυτῷ τοιοῦτον κτησαμένῳ φίλον. εἱστίασέ τε αὐτὸν φιλοτίμως μάλα καὶ βασιλικῶς, καὶ παρακατέσχεν ἑαυτῷ ἐφ' ἡμέραις ἑπτά. πολλήν τε ἐπιδειξάμενος φιλοφροσύνην καὶ μετρίως ἐς τὰ μάλιστα καὶ οἷα δεσπότῃ προσενεχθεὶς τῷ βασιλεῖ, μετὰ τὴν ἑβδόμην αὐτὸς μὲν ὑπελείπετο εἰς τὴν οἰκείαν, βασιλέα δὲ χαίρων χαίροντα οἴκαδε ἀπέπεμπε. κατὰ ταύτην δὲ τὴν συντυχίαν καὶ μεγάλῳ δομεστίκῳ ἐγένετο πρὸς Κράλην φιλία ἰσχυρὰ πεῖραν ἑαυτοῦ παρασχομένῳ. 1.476 κθʹ. Βασιλεὺς δὲ ἐκεῖθεν εἰς Θεσσαλονίκην ἐλθὼν καὶ οὐ πολὺ ἐνδιατρίψας, ἧκεν εἰς Βυζάντιον. καὶ οὐ πολλαῖς ἡμέραις ὕστερον ἠγγέλλετο, ὡς ∆ομένικος ὁ Ἀνδρέου τοῦ Κατάνια, ὃς τῆς νέας Φωκαίας ἦρχε, βασιλέως παραδόντος κατὰ χάριν, τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτῷ ἀποθανόντος, κληρονόμος τῆς οὐσίας καταστὰς, πλούσιος δὲ ἦν, τοῖς χρήμασι φυσηθεὶς, Λέσβον διανοηθείη Ῥωμαίων ἀφελόμενος, ἰδίαν ἑαυτῷ περιποιήσασθαι ἡγεμονίαν, μίαν καὶ δέκα ἐκ Γεννούας οἰκείοις χρήμασι πληρώσας τριήρεις καὶ ἐκ Σικελίας μίαν προσεταιρισάμενος ∆ηλίους τε πείσας πέντε παρασχεῖν, ἀκηρύκτως ἐπέπλευσε Λεσβίοις. καὶ Μιτυληναίους μὲν εἷλε τειχομαχίᾳ, ἀπαρασκεύοις προσπεσὼν καὶ καταπλήξας τῷ ἀπροσδοκήτῳ· ἐκράτησε δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων φρουρίων συμπάντων ὅσα ἦν κατὰ τὴν νῆσον· Ἐρεσσοῦ δὲ καὶ Μηθίμνης ἀπεπείρασαν μὲν, ἥττους δὲ ὀφθέντες τῶν τειχῶν ἀπέσχοντο, καὶ νῦν ταῦτα μόνα τὴν πρὸς βασιλέα εὔνοιαν καὶ δουλείαν ἀποσώζει. τοιαῦτα περὶ Λέσβου πυθόμενος ὁ βασιλεὺς, Λατίνοις μὲν τοῖς κατὰ Γαλατᾶν ἀποίκοις οὖσι Γεννουϊτῶν πολλὴν ὠνείδισε τὴν πονηρίαν καὶ τὴν νεωτεροποιΐαν, καὶ διεμαρτύρατο ὅτι παρὰ τὰ συγκείμενα Ῥωμαίοις καὶ αὐτῶν τῇ βουλῇ καὶ τῷ δήμῳ οἰκείᾳ χρώμενοι μοχθηρίᾳ καὶ πανουργίᾳ πράττουσιν, ἐξ ὧν οὐ ζημίας μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πόνους καὶ κινδύνους τοῖς Ῥωμαίων βασιλεῦσι προξενοῦσιν. οἷς οὐδὲ αὐτοὶ εἶχον ἀντειπεῖν ὡς δικαίως οὐ κατηγοροῦνται. αὐτὸς 1.477 δὲ ἐν ἡμέραις εἴκοσι ταῖς πάσαις τεττάρων καὶ ὀγδοήκοντα νεῶν στόλον ἐξηρτύετο, ὧν ἦσαν αἱ τέτταρες καὶ τετταράκοντα διήρεις καὶ τριήρεις· αἱ λοιπαὶ δὲ μονήρεις ἦσαν. εἵποντο δὲ καὶ νῆες φορτηγοὶ ἄγουσαί τε στρατιώτας πεζομάχους καὶ σῖτον καὶ τὰ ἄλλα ἐπιτήδεια τῇ στρατιᾷ. καὶ ἐπεὶ πάντα παρεσκευασμένα ἦν καὶ οὐδὲν ἐνέδει ἔτι, ἄραντες ἐκ Βυζαντίου ἔπλεον ἐπὶ Λέσβον. γενομένοις δὲ αὐτοῖς κατὰ τὴν Καλλιούπολιν τὴν πρὸς Ἑλλήσποντον, οἱ ἀπὸ τῆς Λέσβου τῶν Λατίνων σκοποὶ οἳ παρῆσαν αὐτόθι μακρᾷ νηῒ ταχυναυτούσῃ, φυλάσσοντες τὴν βασιλέως ἔφοδον, πρότεροι ἐλθόντες διά τε ταχυτῆτα τῆς νηὸς καὶ τὸ μάλιστα ἐπισπεύδειν τὸν πλοῦν, ἐμήνυον βασιλέως τὸν ἐπίπλουν ὡς οὐ πολὺ ὕστερον ἐσόμενον. ἐκείνοις δὲ τὸ πλῆθος μὴ εἰδόσι τῶν βασιλικῶν νεῶν, ἐδόκει μαχητέα πρὸς βασιλέα εἶναι· καὶ παρεσκευάζοντο ὡς ναυμαχήσοντες. οἱ ∆ήλιοι δὲ ὁρῶντες αὐτοὺς παρασκευαζομένους, ναυάρχῳ τῷ σφετέρῳ τὴν γνώμην κατάδηλον ἐποίουν, φάσκοντες ὡς πᾶσι μᾶλλον ἀνθρώποις ἢ βασιλεῖ τῷ Ῥωμαίων ὅπλα ἀνταίρειν εἶεν δυνατοί. οὗ δὴ ἕνεκα καὶ πρὶν καταστῆναι ἐς τὴν μάχην, φανερὰν αὐτῷ τὴν βουλὴν