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they were carrying off wealth, served by wagons and animals. For a long time, therefore, it seemed good to the emperor and his counselors on this account to send out and burn the regions inland and somewhere far from Selymbria; but for many reasons they hesitated and postponed the undertaking. To this, I think, there also corresponded at that time a vision of a dream that had appeared to one of 608 the palace staff three years before these things happened; for the dream showed Persians riding on camels standing on the eastern shore from Scutari and beyond, and suddenly the camels flying through the air and carrying their riders to the opposite shore. And these things happened in the month of Anthesterion, when the Emperor Michael, stumbling at their outrages, having with him a few of those who had come up with him unexpectedly from the west, sending to his father, asked that the cavalry expedition against them be conceded to him, if he would not otherwise and on his own initiative wish to be an ally; for the country had already been plundered, and was clearly on the verge of being completely destroyed, unless someone should intervene. But the small force around him was an impediment, and prudent delay seemed better at the time than a dangerous haste. But he was busying himself more with something else.

(22) For when the Persian Isaac (for this was his name), whom we previously related was sent to the Italians in the west without their knowledge to the emperor, and that he wished to make a treaty with him through a marital alliance concerning the daughter of Melek, and, having been discovered, was peacefully sent across again to the Italians along with his own people, so when this man, sending again 609 from the east, pressed for the treaty, promising many other things that would be advantageous to the affairs of the Romans, and not only that, but also that he would bring over the enemies and former apostates, the Turcopoles, by means of messages to them, if only their wives and children, who had been sent from the Alans to the city, were present, the emperor, wishing by all means to render the forces of the Italians weaker, received the embassy, and giving humane responses, he considered how he might properly arrange these matters. It is perhaps not a bad idea for us to take up beforehand and declare about the girl, whose daughter of Melek she was, and how she happened to be living in the city according to Roman customs. Azatines, then, that sultan of whom we spoke in the previous accounts, while Persia was still established, when his father Iathatines, whom the Persians obeyed, was out of the way, entered into the greatest disagreements with his own brother Rhoukratines; for the latter disputed the rule and continued fighting, so as to turn to the Tochars who were already meddling in the affairs of the Persians, and having taken sufficient forces from there, to bring what harm he could upon his brother. But Azatines, being worn down by them, decided to go over under a treaty 610 to the previous emperor, Laskaris. The latter received him, treating him humanely and honoring him with what was fitting, but he did not judge it necessary to detain him, being anxious about his own affairs, lest the Tochars, who until then had been hostile to the Persians, becoming familiar through their alliances with Rhoukratines, should gain control of them, and be in a position to attack the affairs of the Romans from close by. For this reason, having convened the council around him, he ordered them to deliberate about the matters at hand, abstaining from one thing and one only, that of detaining Azatines; for this counsel would be of one unfaithful to the emperor, and choosing to deliberate for the harm of Roman affairs, thus doing and saying something like one who advised demolishing the coping-stone of the fortifications while wishing to preserve them. So, when it had been thus forbidden by the emperor that Azatines should be detained 611 among the Romans, and the council agreed, the one who had come over immediately departed again, but he did not enjoy imperial assistance so as to overcome his brother. But when the latter again waged war more vigorously and

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διεφόρουν πλοῦτον, ἁμάξαις καὶ ζώοις διακονούμενοι. βασιλεῖ μὲν οὖν ἐδόκει καὶ βουλευταῖς ἐκ πολλοῦ πέμπειν διὰ ταῦτα καὶ κατακαίειν τὰ ἄνω καὶ πόρρω που Σηλυβρίας· ἔτι δὲ πολλῶν αἰτιῶν χάριν ὤκνουν καὶ ἀνεβάλλοντο τὴν ἐγχείρησιν. ἐς τοῦτο δ' ἀπεκρίθη τότ' οἶμαι καὶ ὄψις ὀνείρου φανεῖσά τινι τῶν 608 ἐκ τῆς τάξεως τοῦ παλατίου χρόνοις τρισὶ πρότερον ἢ ταῦτα γε νέσθαι· Πέρσαι γὰρ ὀχούμενοι καμήλοις καθ' ἑῷον αἰγιαλὸν ἀπὸ Σκουταρίου καὶ τὸ ἐπέκεινα ἵστασθαι τὸ ὄναρ ἐδείκνυ, ἐξαίφνης δὲ κατ' αἰθέρα τὰς καμήλους πετομένας καὶ τοὺς ἐπιβάτας φε ρούσας πρὸς τὴν ἀντίπεραν γίγνεσθαι. καὶ ταῦτ' ἐπράττετο μη νὸς Ἀνθεστηριῶνος, ὅτε βασιλεὺς Μιχαὴλ ταῖς σφῶν ἀτασθα λίαις προσκόπτων, ὀλίγους περὶ αὐτὸν ἔχων τοὺς συναναβάντας ἀπὸ δύσεως ἐκ προσπαίου, πέμπων πρὸς τὸν πατέρα ἐκχωρεῖ σθαί οἱ τὴν πρὸς ἐκείνους ἀφίππευσιν, εἰ μὴ ἄλλως καὶ αὐτόθεν θέλοι ξυμμαχεῖν, ἐζητεῖτο· τὴν γὰρ χώραν ἤδη προνενομεῦσθαι, καὶ ἄρδην φανερὰν εἶναι ἀπολουμένην, ἢν μή τις ὑπέρσχῃ. ἀλλ' ἡ περὶ ἐκεῖνον ὀλιγοχειρία ἐμποδὼν ἦν, καὶ μέλλησις προμηθὴς σπουδῆς ἐπικινδύνου τὸ τηνικάδε κρεῖττον ἐδόκει. Ἄλλο δέ τι μᾶλλον ἐπραγματεύετο.

(22) ὡς γὰρ ὁ Πέρ σης Ἰσαὰκ (τοῦτο γὰρ ἦν ὄνομα), ὃν καὶ τὰ πρότερον ἱστο ροῦμεν τοῖς Ἰταλοῖς κατὰ δύσιν συνόντα πέμπειν παρὰ τὴν ἐκεί νων πρὸς βασιλέα αἴσθησιν, καὶ σπονδὰς πρὸς αὐτὸν συντίθε σθαι θέλειν κατά τι γαμικὸν κῆδος τὸ ἐπὶ τῷ τοῦ Μελὴκ θυγα τρίῳ, καὶ φωραθέντα μετ' εἰρήνης καὶ αὖθις ἀντιπεραιωθῆναι πρὸς Ἰταλῶν συνάμα καὶ τῷ ἰδίῳ λαῷ, ὡς γοῦν καὶ αὖθις 609 πέμπων ἀντολίηθεν οὗτος κατήπειγε τὰς σπονδάς, ὑπισχνούμε νος πολλὰ μὲν καὶ ἄλλα τοῖς Ῥωμαίων συνοίσοντα πράγμασιν, οὐ μὴν δὲ ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς καὶ πρώην ἀποστατήσαντας Τουρκοπούλους ἐκ μηνυμάτων τῶν πρὸς ἐκείνους προσάξεσθαι, ἢν μόνον γυναῖκες ἐκείνων ἐπισταῖεν καὶ τέκνα τὰ παρὰ τῶν Ἀλα νῶν πρὸς πόλιν ἀποσταλέντα, βασιλεὺς ἐξ ἅπαντος θέλων τὰς τῶν Ἰταλῶν δυνάμεις ἀρρωστοτέρας ἐγκαθιστᾶν δέχεται τὴν πρεσβείαν, καὶ φιλανθρώπους τὰς ἀποκρίσεις διδοὺς πῶς ἂν κατὰ τρόπον ταῦτα καταστήσειε διεσκέπτετο. οὐδὲ ἡμῖν ἴσως χεῖρον προαναλαβεῖν καὶ δηλῶσαι περὶ τοῦ κορίου, τίνος μὲν Μελὴκ θυγάτριον, ὅπως δὲ κατὰ πόλιν ἐν τοῖς Ῥωμαίων ἤθεσι προσέκυρσε διαιτᾶσθαι. Ἀζατίνης μὲν οὖν σουλτὰν ἐκεῖνος περὶ οὗ ἐν τοῖς προτέροις λόγοις ἐλέγομεν, ἔτι τῆς Περσίδος καθε στώσης, ἐπεὶ ἐκποδὼν ἦν αὐτῷ ὁ πατὴρ Ἰαφατίνης, οὗ δὴ καὶ Πέρσαι κατήκουον, εἰς διαφορὰς μεγίστας πρὸς τὸν ἴδιον ἀδελ φὸν Ῥουκρατίνην καθίστατο· διημφισβήτει γὰρ τῆς ἀρχῆς ἐκεῖ νος καὶ διετέλει μαχόμενος, ὡς καὶ εἰς Τοχάρους ἀποκλῖναι ἤδη τοῖς Περσῶν ἐπιχειροῦντας πράγμασι, καὶ τὰς ἀρκούσας δυνά μεις ἐκεῖθεν λαβὼν τὰ δυνατὰ τἀδελφῷ ἐπεισφρεῖν. καταταχού μενος δ' ὑπ' ἐκείνων Ἀζατίνης ἔγνω κατὰ σπονδὰς προσχωρεῖν 610 τῷ προβεβασιλευκότι τῷ Λάσκαρι. ὁ δ' ἐκεῖνον καὶ ὑποδέχεται προσενεχθεὶς φιλανθρώπως καὶ τιμᾷ τοῖς προσήκουσιν, οὐ μὴν δὲ ὥστε καὶ παρακατέχειν δεῖν ἔκρινεν, ἀγωνιῶν περὶ τῆς σφετέ ρας, μή πως ταῖς πρὸς τὸν Ῥουκρατίνην συμμαχίαις οἱ τέως ἀλ λοτρίως τοῖς Πέρσαις ἔχοντες Τόχαροι κατοικειωθέντες ἐγκρατεῖς μὲν αὐτῶν γένωνται, τοῖς Ῥωμαίων δὲ πράγμασι προσβάλλειν ἔχοιεν ἐξ ἐγγίονος. ταύτῃ τοι καὶ τὴν περὶ αὐτὸν συγκαθίσας βουλὴν ἐπήγγελε βουλεύεσθαι περὶ τῶν προκειμένων, ἑνὸς ἀπι σχομένους καὶ μόνου, τοῦ τὸν Ἀζατίνην παρακατέχεσθαι· τὴν γὰρ βουλὴν εἶναι ταύτην ἀπίστου μὲν πρὸς βασιλέα, ἐπὶ πονήρῳ δὲ καὶ τῶν Ῥωμαϊκῶν πραγμάτων βουλεύειν προαιρουμένου, ὅμοιον ἄρα ποιοῦντος καὶ λέγοντος ὥσπερ εἴ τις τὸν θριγγὸν κα ταλύειν ἐβούλευε τῶν ὀχυρωμάτων καὶ θέλων ταῦτα διατηρεῖν. ὡς γοῦν οὕτως ἀπείρητο βασιλεῖ μὴ παρὰ Ῥωμαίοις τὸν Ἀζατίνην 611 κατέχεσθαι, καὶ ἡ βουλὴ συνεφώνει, ἐπανέζευξε μὲν αὐτίκα καὶ αὖθις ὁ προσχωρήσας, οὐ μὴν δὲ καὶ βασιλικῆς ἀπήλαυσε βοη θείας ὥστε περιγενέσθαι τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ. ὡς δὲ καὶ αὖθις ἐκεῖνος ἐνεργέστερον ἐπολέμει καὶ