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But Koutzimpaxis, as was said before, having arrived otherwise than for the good of the Romans, for which he had been sent, gave the impression of acting. For the beginning of his appearing to eagerly turn away from the emperor's interests for the sake of the Alans and indeed to be trusted by them was Tuktaï's demand to the emperor concerning him, and since he and the Alans were sought together, as belonging from the beginning to the rule of the Tochars, especially since he himself, along with other commanders, was serving as an ambassador from the emperor to that ruler. The Alans, forming the opinion that these things had happened for their own sake by chance and automatically, and accepting it very much, suborned the ambassador in every way. And he who was until then to tame them for the emperor, entirely, as it seemed, became one of them, and he ingratiated himself with them to such an extent that he even took another sister of their leader Kyrsites as his wife. The ...... The Alans, having seized the watchtowers of Neada, fortified the place sufficiently with their wagons, in which indeed they were transported. And having shut up their women and children and all other property there, sallying forth from there as if from a secure base, they inflicted all sorts of terrible things on the Romans, but they were sparing only with regard to slaughters. And Koutzimpaxis was heard to have done these things, even if the emperor, still having confidence in him, did not at all consider the reports acceptable; for he too was deluding the hopes of the emperor, that he was not doing these things to the detriment of the Romans, as he was heard to say in his own defense to some of the emperor's men. On the other hand, in the east, Attaleiotes was also proclaimed a rebel, and letters arriving declared his rebellion. These things, as it seemed, did not greatly pain the emperor, but taking thought for the affairs in the west, he did not relax, and especially since the army around the Emperor Michael had been scattered, and because of this, having nothing he could do, he sent for his father and emperor and urged him, if it were possible for him, to campaign himself and to encamp in the west somewhere around Rhaedestus and beyond. There was an impulse for this, but as he considered whence forces would be assembled for him (for it was not possible for them to be furnished from the public treasury because of the lack of funds, as they said), a voluntary assembly from the city was eagerly awaited. For which reason the majority did assemble, and money was collected. But what was collected was not sufficient for such needs, and the whole affair was neglected.

5. At this time also a famed tome full of mockery is thrown. For it was not supposed by the one daring to throw it that the tome could be given into the emperor's hands in any other way, unless someone, hiding within the palace itself, should place it on the very throne where the emperor was accustomed to sit, it having been placed under his two-headed pillow, the one who dared to place it having taken great care to remain unseen. But when the chief of the bedchamber, Hatzikes, as he most usually did, entered to arrange the things of the throne, customarily adorning the seat, he had chanced upon the tome, it being his opinion that it had been placed there by the emperor as containing some secrets, he, without being meddlesome, without reading it, just as it was, thus handed it to the emperor. And indeed it seemed at first that in handing him the unknown object he was doing something strange and worthy of thought, if he was presenting to him as having been placed by him that which the emperor did not know had been placed. Meanwhile, the emperor, having taken it and gone through the beginning, understood the whole of the writing as one understands the fabric from its fringe, and from this, being, as was likely, between wanting to know and not, he was terribly distressed and was at a loss. For if all men by nature desire to know, as the love of the senses also testifies, to know about oneself, and that being an emperor, for whom it is possible because of insidious flattery to hear from no one things considered beneficial, if they should be contrary to his opinion, and for whom there is also the power of strength from his rank to smooth out his will in every respect, with no one opposing because of the customary reserve of not seeming to offend the emperor, how could he not also yearn to learn the matter

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δὲ Κουτζίμπαξις, καθὼς ἐρρέθη τὰ πρότερα, ἐπιστὰς ἄλλως ἢ ὡς ἐπ' ἀγαθῷ Ῥωμαίων, ᾗ καὶ ἀπέσταλτο, δόξαν παρεῖχεν ποιεῖν. ἦρξε γάρ οἱ τοῦ ἐπὶ τῷ δοκεῖν Ἀλανοῖς ἐκθύμως ἀποστραφῆναι τὰ βασι λέως καὶ δὴ καὶ πιστεύεσθαι ἡ τοῦ Τουκτάϊ πρὸς βασιλέα καὶ περὶ αὐτοῦ ζήτησις, καὶ ἐπεὶ συνάμ' ἐζητοῦντο αὐτός τε καὶ Ἀλανοὶ ὡς ἀρχῆθεν τῇ τῶν Τοχάρων ἀρχῇ προσήκοντες, αὐτοῦ γε καὶ μᾶλλον σὺν ἑτέροις ἄρχουσι παρὰ βασιλέως πρὸς ἐκεῖνον 575 πρεσβεύοντος. ταῦτ' Ἀλανοὶ ὡς πρὸς αὐτῶν ἐκ τοῦ τύχης καὶ αὐτομάτου γεγονέναι δόξαν καὶ λίαν ἀποδεξάμενοι, ὑποποιοῦν ται παντοίως τὸν πρεσβευτήν. καὶ ὁ τέως ἐξημερώσων σφᾶς βασιλεῖ ὅλος, ὡς δόξαι, ἐκείνων γίνεται, καὶ ἐς τοσοῦτον οἰ κειοῦται σφίσιν ὥστε καὶ ἄλλην τὴν τοῦ πρωτεύοντος ἐκείνων Κυρσίτη ἀδελφὴν ἀγαγέσθαι ἐς σύζυγον. ἡ ...... Ἀλανοὶ τὰς τῆς Νεάδος σκοπιὰς καταλαβόντες τόπον διαρκῶς ὀχυροῦσι ταῖς κατὰ σφᾶς ἁρμαμάξαις, αἷς δὴ καὶ διεκομίζοντο. γύναια δὲ καὶ παιδάρια καὶ πᾶσαν ἄλλην περιουσίαν ἐκεῖ συγκλείσαντες, ἐντεῦθεν αὐτοὶ ὡς ἐπὶ βεβαίῳ τῆς ἱδρύσεως ἐξορμώμενοι τὰ πάν δεινα διετίθουν Ῥωμαίους, μόνον δὲ φειδωλοὶ περὶ τὰς σφαγὰς ἦσαν. καὶ ταῦτ' ἠκούετο εἰργασμένος Κουτζίμπαξις, εἰ καὶ ὁ κρατῶν ἐπ' ἐκείνῳ ἔτι πληροφορούμενος οὐδ' ὅλως τὰ τῆς φήμης παραδεκτέα ἡγεῖτο· καὶ γὰρ κἀκεῖνος περιεβουκόλει τὰς ἐλπίδας τῷ βασιλεῖ, ὡς οὐκ ἐπὶ πονήρῳ Ῥωμαίων ταῦτα πράττοι, ἐξ ὧν ἠκούετο πρός τινας τῶν τοῦ βασιλέως ἀπολογούμενος. ἑτέ ρωθεν δὲ κατ' ἀνατολὴν καὶ ὁ Ἀτταλειώτης ἀποστατῶν ἐκηρύσ σετο, καὶ γράμματα ἀφικνούμενα τὴν ἀποστασίαν ἐδήλουν. ταῦτα μὲν οὐ λίαν, ὡς ἐῴκει, ὠδύνα τὸν βασιλέα, τὰ δὲ κατὰ 576 δύσιν διὰ φροντίδος ποιούμενος οὐκ ἀνίει, καὶ μάλισθ' ὅτι καὶ τοῦ στρατιωτικοῦ τοῦ περὶ τὸν βασιλέα Μιχαὴλ διασκεδασθέντος, καὶ διὰ ταῦτα μηδὲν ἔχων ἐκεῖνος πράττειν, τὸν πατέρα καὶ βα σιλέα πέμπων ἐξώτρυνεν, εἰ δυνατά οἱ εἴη, αὐτὸν ἐκστρατεύειν ἐκεῖνον καὶ κατὰ δύσιν περί που Ῥαιδεστὸν καὶ πρόσω στρατο πεδεύεσθαι. ὁρμὴ δ' ἦν πρὸς τοῦτο, ὁπόθεν δέ οἱ δυνάμεις συγκροτηθήσονται σκοπουμένῳ (οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐκ τοῦ κοινοῦ ταμιείου ταύτας γενέσθαι ἐπιτελεῖς διὰ τὴν τῶν χρημάτων ἀπορίαν, ὡς ἔλεγον, δυνατὰ ἦν) ἡ ἐκ τῆς πολιτείας ἐκαραδοκεῖτο ἐθελουσία συγκρότησις. ὅθεν καὶ συνεκρότουν οἱ πλείους, καὶ συνελέγοντο χρήματα. ἀλλ' οὐκ ἦν πρὸς τοιαύτας χρείας ἀρκούντων τὸ συν αγόμενον, καὶ ἠμελεῖτο τὸ ξύμπαν.

5. Ἐν τούτῳ καὶ φάμουσος τόμος πλήρης χλεύης ῥιπτεῖ ται. καὶ οὐ γὰρ ἄλλως τῷ τολμῶντι ῥίπτειν ὑπείληπτο εἰς χεῖρας δεδόσθαι τὸν τόμον τῷ βασιλεῖ, ἢν μὴ ἐν αὐτοῖς τοῦ τῶν ἀνακτό ρων ἄλλο τις λαθὼν ἐκτεθείη ἐπὶ τὸν αὐτὸν θρόνον οὗ εἰώθει κα θέζεσθαι βασιλεύς, τοῦ ἀμφικεφάλου ὑπεντεθειμένου οἱ, πολλὴν τοῦ λαθεῖν πρόνοιαν ποιησαμένου τοῦ θεῖναι τολμήσαντος. ὡς δὲ ὁ τοῦ κοιτῶνος προκαθήμενος ὁ Χατζίκης εἰωθὼς ἐκ τοῦ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον εἰσῄει τὰ τῆς καθέδρας διευθετεῖν, φιλοκαλῶν συνή 577 θως τὸν δίφρον προστετυχήκει τῷ τόμῳ, δόξαν οἱ πρὸς βασι λέως αὐτὸν τεθῆναι ἅτ' ἀπόρρητά τινα περιέχοντα, μηδὲν πολυ πραγμονήσας, μὴ ἀναγνούς, ὡς εἶχεν ἐξ αὐτῆς, οὕτως ἐγχειρί ζει τῷ βασιλεῖ. καὶ δὴ ἔδοξε μὲν ἐκ τοῦ παραυτίκα ἀγνῶτ' ἐγ χειρίζων ξένον τι καὶ φροντίδος ἄξιον ἐργαζόμενος, εἰ ὃν βασι λεὺς οὐκ ᾔδει τεθέντα, ὡς θέντι οἱ παρέχοι. τέως δὲ λαβὼν βασιλεὺς καὶ τὴν ἀρχὴν διελθών, τὸ πᾶν τῆς γραφῆς ὡς ἐκ κρα σπέδου τὸ ὕφασμα κατενόει, κἀντεῦθεν μεταξὺ τοῦ θέλειν γνῶ ναι καὶ μὴ ὡς τὸ εἰκὸς γιγνόμενος δεινὰ ἐποίει καὶ ἐν ἀμηχάνῳ ἦν. εἰ γὰρ πάντες ἄνθρωποι τοῦ εἰδέναι φύσει ὀρέγονται, ὡς καὶ ἡ τῶν αἰσθήσεων ἀγάπησις μαρτυρεῖ, τὸ περὶ ἑαυτοῦ, βασιλέα καὶ ταῦτα ὄντα, εἰδέναι, ᾧ ἔνι μὲν καὶ κολακείας ἐνεδρευούσης παρὰ μηδενὸς ἀκούειν τὰ δοκοῦντα ξύμφορα, ἤν οἱ παρὰ γνώμης εἶεν, ἔνι δὲ καὶ κράτος ἰσχύος ἐξ ἀξιώματος τὸ θελητὸν ἐς ἅπαν ἐξο μαλίζειν, μηδενὸς ἀντιξοοῦντος διὰ τὴν ἐκ συνηθείας ὑποστολὴν τοῦ μὴ δοκεῖν βασιλεῖ προσκρούειν, πῶς οὐ μανθάνειν κἀκεῖνον τὸ πρᾶγμα γλίχεσθαι