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he was planning, as he showed, things that were not suitable for those with him. For when he and the Romans sent from the emperor ran aground in only two ships, the rest having been captured, he departed from there with them and, having put in at Proconnesus, he strips all the Romans whom he had with him as allies of their arms, and having left them naked and unarmed he orders them to go to the emperor and report what had happened. When they came upon these things, except with difficulty and by force, seven Genoese ships appeared, by which they took courage and themselves sailed out together and announced to the emperor that Muriscus himself, unless enough ships were at hand to contend against the enemy, would not be eager for the imperial service, holding his piratical wandering and the profits from it of the greatest importance. 585 But he did not profit from such plans, but when he had equipped two ships somewhere around the strait of the Hellespont, the enemy learned of this, with Philippos their leader, and marched against him as fast as they could, and somewhere around Artake, the port of the Cyzicenes, near Alonion, they engaged and fought for a considerable time, and they overcame Muriscus, as his men were exhausted. And there was great slaughter, with Muriscus alone being saved because of an old friendship with Philippos; for the latter, having once been captured long ago at sea by Muriscus while he was practicing piracy, had met with favor, so that he was sold for a moderate price. For this reason he in turn proved not at all ungrateful to him, but for a small sum of three thousand gold pieces sold him at Tenedos to his uncle who was present there. But the Almogavars, taking courage from their bold deeds, ferried across not a few of their Persian allies from around Atine, about two thousand. When the Romans from the east also joined them, having become a thronging multitude, they set out. And while they carefully avoided the difficult terrain of Ganos, 586 they overran the surrounding areas from Gallipoli up to Tzurulum, and they ravaged everything within, killing in great numbers so that thousands fell, enslaving animals and yoked plowing oxen, and this at the time of plowing, when some were being slaughtered, while as many as managed to flee for refuge entered into the city. But they, having wrought the greatest of evils, when they heard that Heraclea was closed off (for the people there, despairing of safety, and especially urged on by their leaders, had managed to tear down as much of the town as they could, and to set everything as fuel for fire, and to be shut up in Selybria), just as they were, they immediately attack Rhaedestus. And as many as they caught outside, they killed without pity, so that very many people lay fallen from the three churches all the way to Rhaedestus itself, and besieging the tower where many were shut in, they wished to take it. And since it was impossible for them to take it by fighting, they tried to subdue it by agreement. But not even thus did they succeed; for this reason, despairing, they returned.

12. At that time also, as the Augusta Eirene was returning from Thessalonica and covering the journey in about ten imperial stages, 587 it was announced to the emperor, who sent a message for her to turn back; for it was not possible for her to complete her return, since affairs in the west had been thrown into confusion by the attack of the enemy. But he himself, contending as best he could against such great wickedness (for the Turks had already seized Hexamillion, a fortress so-called, with whom was also Rocafort the Catalan), the emperor sent Marules, the general of the army, having given him as many forces as the occasion furnished, and he was ordered to take up position around Apros. To them Rocafort in secret, as if sending to the emperor, along with his own people numbering about two hundred, promised a defection, provided that so many thousands of gold pieces be sent for the purpose of enslaving his own men and handing over all the Persians; and they set the amount to be given at five thousand. But the general of the army, sending with other gifts

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διενοεῖτο, ὡς ἔδειξε, τοῖς μετ' αὐτοῦ τὰ μὴ πρόσφορα. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ αὐτός τε καὶ οἱ ἐκ βασιλέως πεμφθέντες Ῥωμαῖοι ἐν δυσὶ καὶ μόναις ναυσὶν ἐπώκελλον, τῶν λοιπῶν ἁλωμένων, ἀπάρας σὺν αὐτοῖς ἐκεῖθεν καὶ τῇ Προικοννήσῳ προσσχών, γυμνοῖ ξύμπαν τας τῶν ὅπλων Ῥωμαίους οὓς εἶχεν ἐντὸς συμμάχους, γυμνούς τε καὶ ἀνόπλους ἀφεὶς ἰέναι τε παραγγέλλει πρὸς βασιλέα καὶ δη λῶσαί οἱ τὰ γεγονότα. ταῦτ' ἐπιστάντες ἐκεῖνοι, πλὴν μόλις καὶ μετὰ βίας, Γεννουϊτικῶν ἑπτὰ φανεισῶν νεῶν, αἷς θαρρή σαντες καὶ αὐτοὶ συνεκπλέουσι καὶ τῷ βασιλεῖ ἀγγέλλουσιν ὡς οὐδ' αὐτὸς Μουρίσκος, εἰ μὴ νῆες ἀρκεταὶ πρὸς ἀντιπαλάμησιν ἐπισταῖεν τῶν ἐναντίων, οὐ πρόθυμος ἂν εἴη ἐς τὴν βασιλικὴν δουλείαν, τὴν πειρατικὴν περιπλάνησιν καὶ τὰ ἐκεῖθεν κέρδη περὶ 585 πλείστου ποιούμενος. ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀπώνατο τῶν τοιούτων δὴ βου λευμάτων, ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ δύο νῆας ἐξαρτυσάμενος περί που τὸν τῆς Ἑλλησπόντου πορθμόν, μαθόντες οἱ ἐναντίοι περὶ τούτου, σὺν οἷς Φίλιππος ἀρχηγὸς ἐκείνων, ὅσον τάχος ἐπ' ἐκεῖνον ἐξήλαυ νον, καὶ περί που τὸν Ἀρτάκην τῶν Κυζικηνῶν ἐπίνειον κατὰ τὸ Ἀλώνιον συμβαλόντες ἐφ' ἱκανὸν διεμάχοντο, καὶ περιεγένοντο τοῦ Μουρίσκου, τῶν περὶ ἐκεῖνον ἀπειρηκότων. καὶ γίνεται φόνος πολύς, αὐτοῦ μόνου Μουρίσκου περισωθέντος ἐκ παλαιᾶς φιλίας Φιλίππου· κἀκεῖνος γὰρ πάλαι ποτὲ ὑπὸ Μουρίσκου ἁλοὺς κατὰ θάλατταν πειρατεύοντος ἔτυχεν εὐμενοῦς, ὥστε καὶ ὠνῆς ἀπεμποληθῆναι μετρίας. διά τοι ταῦτα καὶ αὐτὸς ἐκείνου ὡς ἥκιστα ἔτυχεν ἀχαρίστου, ἀλλὰ μικρῶν τριῶν χιλιάδων χρυσίου ἀπεμπόλησε τοῦτον πρὸς Τένεδον θείῳ ἐκείνου ἐκεῖ παρόντι. Ἀμογάβαροι δὲ ταῖς τόλμαις ἀναθαρρήσαντες οὐκ ὀλίγους τῶν περὶ Ἀτίνην Περσῶν συμμάχους διεπεραίωσαν, περί που χιλιά δας δύο. ἐπιμιξάντων καὶ Ῥωμαίων ἐξ ἀνατολῆς, ἀθροῦν γε γονότες πλῆθος ἐξώρμησαν. καὶ τὰς μὲν δυσχωρίας τοῦ Γάνου 586 καὶ λίαν διεφυλάττοντο, τὰ πέριξ δὲ καὶ διαδραμόντες ἀπὸ γοῦν Καλλίου μέχρι καὶ Τζουρουλοῦ, τὸ ἐντὸς ἅπαν κακῶς διετίθουν, κτείνοντες παμπληθεὶ ὡς εἰς χιλιάδας πίπτειν, ζῶα καὶ βοῦς ἀροτῆρας ζευγίτας ἀνδραποδίζοντες, καὶ ταῦτα ἐν καιρῷ ἀρότου, ὅτε οἱ μὲν ἐσφάττοντο, ὅσοι δὲ καὶ ἔφθασαν προσφυγόντες, ἐν τὸς τῆς πόλεως παρεδύοντο. αὐτοὶ δὲ τὰ μέγιστα τῶν κακῶν εἰργασμένοι, ἐπεὶ ἀποκεκλεισμένην Ἡράκλειαν ἤκουον (ἔφθασαν γὰρ οἱ τῇδε τῷ ἀπογνῶναι τὴν ἀσφάλειαν, καὶ μᾶλλον παρὰ τῶν ἡγεμόνων ἐξοτρυνόμενοι, καταβαλεῖν μὲν ὅσον ἴσχυσαν τοῦ πο λίσματος, πυρὸς δὲ τὰ πάντα θέσθαι δαπάνημα, κατὰ Σηλυ βρίαν δ' ἐγκλεισθῆναι), ὡς εἶχον εὐθὺς Ῥαιδεστῷ προσβάλλουσι. καὶ ὅσον μὲν ἐκτὸς προκατέλαβον, ἀνοικτὶ κτείνουσιν ὡς κεῖσθαι πεσόντας ἐκ τῶν τριῶν ἐκκλησιῶν μέχρι καὶ αὐτοῦ Ῥαιδεστοῦ παμπόλλους ἀνθρώπων, τὸν δὲ πύργον πολλῶν ἐγκλεισθέντων περικαθίσαντες ἤθελον ἐξελεῖν. καὶ ἐπεὶ ἀδύνατα ἦν σφίσιν αἱ ρεῖν μαχομένοις, καθ' ὁμολογίας ἐπειρῶντο χειροῦσθαι. ἀλλ' οὐδ' οὕτως εἶχον· ταύτῃ τοι καὶ ἀπογνόντες ὑπέστρεφον.

12. Τότε καὶ τῆς Αὐγούστης Εἰρήνης ἐπαναζευγνυούσης ἐκ Θεσσαλονίκης καὶ σταθμοῖς βασιλικοῖς ὡσεὶ δέκα ἐξανυούσης 587 τὰ τῆς ὁδοῦ, ἀγγελθὲν βασιλεῖ πέμψας ἀπήγγειλεν ὑποστρέφειν· μηδὲ γὰρ ἀνυστά οἱ πρὸς τὴν ἐπάνοδον εἶναι, τῶν κατὰ δύσιν πραγμάτων ἐκ τῆς τῶν ἐχθρῶν ἐπιθέσεως συγχεθέντων. αὐτὸς δὲ ὡς δυνατὸν ἀντιπαλαμώμενος πρὸς τοσαύτην κακίαν (ἔφθα σαν γὰρ καὶ τὸ Ἑξαμίλιον, φρούριον οὕτω λεγόμενον, προκα τασχόντες οἱ Τοῦρκοι, οἷς δὴ συνῆν καὶ ὁ Ῥομοφόρτος Κατελά νος), ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς παραπέστειλε τὸν ἐπὶ τοῦ στρατοῦ Μαρού λην, παραδοὺς δυνάμεις ὅσας ὁ καιρὸς ἐσχεδίαζε, καὶ περί που τὴν Ἄπρω περικαθῆσθαι διετάττετο. οἷς δὴ ὁ Ῥομοφόρτος ἐν ἀπορρήτοις ὡς δῆθεν πέμπων τὴν πρὸς βασιλέα ἅμ' ἰδίῳ λαῷ περί που διακοσίους ποσουμένῳ καθυπισχνεῖτο ἀπόκλισιν, πλὴν χιλιάδων χρυσίου τόσων ἀποσταλεισῶν ἐφ' ᾧ τοὺς περὶ αὐτὸν δουλαγωγηθῆναι καὶ τοὺς Πέρσας ἁπαξάπαντας προχειρίσασθαι· καὶ εἰς πέντε χιλιάδας τὸ δοθησόμενον ἵστων. ὁ δ' ἐπὶ στρατοῦ πέμπων σὺν ἄλλοις δωρήμασι