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to them, especially since they wished to be sent to the emperor, 7.37.17 was now possible; but they begged to postpone the action for some time, on condition that in the meantime they would indicate their present situation to the emperor, and with no assistance coming from the emperor in the interim, they would thus depart, having surrendered the city to the Goths, and having made their own withdrawal not without a pretext. 7.37.18 Since these things pleased Totila, a fixed day was agreed upon, and thirty men from each side were given as hostages for this agreement and the Goths, raising the siege, 7.37.19 proceeded to Sicily. But when they arrived at Rhegium, they did not cross the strait there until they had made an attempt on the fortress at Rhegium. 7.37.20 In command of the garrison there were Thorimuth and Himerius, whom Belisarius had happened to station there. 7.37.21 And since they had many and excellent men with them, they both repulsed the enemy as they assaulted the wall and, sallying forth, had the better of it in the engagement. 7.37.22 Later, however, being far outnumbered by the host of the enemy, they were shut up inside the circuit wall and remained quiet. 7.37.23 But Totila left a portion of the Gothic army there as a guard, expecting to take the Romans there later on through lack of provisions, and sending an army to the Tarentines, he captured the fortress there with no trouble, and the Goths, whom he had left in the country of Picenum, at that time took the city of Ariminum by treachery. 7.37.24 On hearing this, the Emperor Justinian planned to appoint Germanus, his own nephew, as general with full powers for the war against the Goths and Totila, and he instructed him to be in readiness; and when the report about this came to Italy, the Goths became greatly concerned. For a certain favorable reputation concerning Germanus 7.37.25 happened to be among all men. And all the Romans immediately became hopeful, and the soldiers of the emperor held out against both the danger and the hardship 7.37.26 much more still. But the emperor, I know not how, changed his mind and decided to appoint Liberius, a Roman, of whom I made mention in the preceding narrative, to the task instead of Germanus. 7.37.27 And he, having prepared as quickly as possible, was expected to sail away at once with an army. But since the emperor changed his mind 7.37.28 again, he himself also remained quiet. Then indeed Verus, with the men whom he had happened to gather about him as his most warlike, came to blows with the Goths in Picenum not far from the city of Ravenna, and he loses many of his followers and dies himself, having proved a brave man in this struggle. 7.38.1 About this time an army of Sclaveni, gathered to the number of no more than three thousand, crossed the Ister River, with no one opposing them, and with no trouble immediately crossed the Hebrus River and 7.38.2 were divided in two. One of their companies had eighteen hundred, and the other the rest. 7.38.3 So the commanders of the Roman army in both Illyricum and Thrace, coming to blows with each of them, although they were separated from each other, were unexpectedly defeated, and some were killed on the spot, 7.38.4 while others escaped in disorder and were saved. And when all the generals had thus been routed by both barbarian armies, though these were far smaller, the other company of the enemy 7.38.5 engaged with Asbadus. This man was a bodyguard of the Emperor Justinian, since he happened to be enrolled among the so-called Candidati, and he commanded the cavalry units which have from of old been stationed in the fortress of Tzurulum in Thrace, 7.38.6 being many and excellent. And the Sclaveni routed them with no trouble and killed most of them as they fled most shamefully, and capturing Asbadus they took him prisoner at the moment, but later they cast him into a flame of fire and burned him, after first flaying strips of skin from the man’s back. 7.38.7 Having accomplished these things, they plundered all the lands, both of the Thracians and the Illyrians, more fearlessly, and fortresses

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αὐτοῖς, ἄλλως τε καὶ παρὰ βασιλέα στέλλεσθαι 7.37.17 βουλομένοις, τανῦν πάρεστιν· ἐς χρόνον δὲ ἀναβαλέσθαι τινὰ τὴν πρᾶξιν ἐδέοντο, ἐφ' ᾧ βασιλεῖ μὲν ἐν τούτῳ τὰ σφίσι παρόντα σημήνωσιν, οὐδεμιᾶς δὲ μεταξὺ βοηθείας ἐκ βασιλέως ἐνταῦθα ἰούσης οὕτω δὴ ἀπαλλάσσοιντο, Γότθοις μὲν τὴν πόλιν ἐνδόντες, οὐκ ἀπροφάσιστον δὲ αὐτοὶ τὴν ἀναχώρησιν ποιησάμενοι. 7.37.18 ταῦτα ἐπεὶ Τουτίλαν ἤρεσκε, τακτὴ ἡμέρα ξυνέκειτο, ἄνδρες δὲ τριάκοντα ἑκατέρωθεν ἐν ὁμήρων λόγῳ ἐπὶ τῇ ὁμολογίᾳ δέδονται ταύτῃ καὶ Γότθοι τὴν προσε7.37.19 δρείαν διαλύσαντες ἐπὶ Σικελίας ἐχώρησαν. ἐπεὶ δὲ ἀφίκοντο ἐς τὸ Ῥήγιον, οὐ πρότερον διέβησαν τὸν τῇδε πορθμὸν, ἕως φρουρίου τοῦ ἐν Ῥηγίῳ ἀπεπειρά7.37.20 σαντο. ἦρχον δὲ τοῦ ἐνταῦθα φυλακτηρίου Θουριμούθ τε καὶ Ἱμέριος, οὕσπερ Βελισάριος ἐνταῦθα καταστη7.37.21 σάμενος ἔτυχεν. οἵπερ ἐπεὶ πολλούς τε καὶ ἀρίστους ξὺν αὑτοῖς εἶχον, τειχομαχοῦντάς τε ἀπεκρούσαντο τοὺς πολεμίους καὶ ἐπεξελθόντες τὸ πλέον ἐν ξυμβολῇ 7.37.22 ἔσχον. ὕστερον μέντοι πλήθει τῶν ἐναντίων παρὰ πολὺ ἐλασσούμενοι ἐντὸς τοῦ περιβόλου κατακλει7.37.23 σθέντες ἡσύχαζον. Τουτίλας δὲ μοῖραν μὲν τοῦ Γότθων στρατοῦ αὐτοῦ εἴασε φρουρᾶς ἕνεκα, τῶν ἐπιτηδείων τῇ ἀπορίᾳ χρόνῳ ὑστέρῳ ἐξαιρήσειν καραδοκῶν τοὺς ταύτῃ Ῥωμαίους, ἐς δὲ Ταραντηνοὺς στράτευμα πέμψας τὸ ἐκείνῃ φρούριον παρεστήσατο οὐδενὶ πόνῳ, καὶ Γότθοι δὲ, οὕσπερ ἐλίπετο ἐν Πικηνῶν τῇ χώρᾳ, πόλιν Ἀρίμινον τηνικάδε προδοσίᾳ εἷλον. 7.37.24 Ταῦτα ἀκούσας Ἰουστινιανὸς βασιλεὺς Γερμανὸν τὸν ἀνεψιὸν τὸν αὑτοῦ αὐτοκράτορα ἐβούλευσε πολέμου τοῦ πρὸς Γότθους τε καὶ Τουτίλαν καταστήσασθαι, καί οἱ ἐν παρασκευῇ ἐπέστελλεν εἶναι· ἐπεί τε ὁ περὶ τούτου λόγος ἐς Ἰταλίαν ἦλθε, Γότθοι μὲν ἐν φροντίδι μεγάλῃ ἐγένοντο. δεξιὰ γάρ τις ἡ ἀμφὶ Γερμανῷ 7.37.25 δόξα ἐς πάντας ἀνθρώπους οὖσα ἐτύγχανεν. εὐέλπιδες δὲ Ῥωμαῖοί τε γεγενημένοι εὐθὺς ἅπαντες καὶ οἱ τοῦ βασιλέως στρατοῦ τῷ τε κινδύνῳ καὶ τῇ ταλαιπωρίᾳ 7.37.26 πολλῷ ἔτι μᾶλλον ἀντεῖχον. ἀλλὰ βασιλεὺς οὐκ οἶδα ὅπως μεταμαθὼν Λιβέριον ἄνδρα Ῥωμαῖον, οὗπερ ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν λόγοις ἐμνήσθην, ἐς τὸ ἔργον κατα7.37.27 στήσασθαι ἀντὶ Γερμανοῦ ἔγνω. καὶ ὁ μὲν παρασκευασάμενος ὡς τάχιστα, ὅτι δὴ αὐτίκα ξὺν στρατῷ ἀποπλεύσει, ἐπίδοξος ἦν. ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ βασιλεῖ μετέμελεν 7.37.28 αὖθις, ἡσυχῆ καὶ αὐτὸς ἔμενε. τότε δὴ Βῆρος ξὺν ἀνδράσιν, οὓς ἀγείρας μαχιμωτάτους ἀμφ' αὑτὸν ἔτυχε, Γότθοις τοῖς ἐν Πικηνῷ οὖσιν ἐς χεῖρας ἐλθὼν πόλεως Ῥαβέννης οὐ πολλῷ ἄποθεν, τῶν τε ἑπομένων πολλοὺς ἀποβάλλει καὶ αὐτὸς θνήσκει, ἀνὴρ ἀγαθὸς ἐν τῷ πόνῳ τούτῳ γενόμενος. 7.38.1 Ὑπὸ τοῦτον τὸν χρόνον στράτευμα Σκλαβηνῶν οὐ πλέον ἢ ἐς τρισχιλίους ἀγηγερμένοι, ποταμόν τε Ἴστρον, οὐδενὸς σφίσιν ἀντιστατοῦντος, διέβησαν, καὶ πόνῳ οὐδενὶ ποταμὸν Εὗρον εὐθὺς διαβάντες 7.38.2 δίχα ἐγένοντο. εἶχε δὲ αὐτῶν ἁτέρα μὲν συμμορία ὀκτακοσίους τε καὶ χιλίους, ἡ δὲ δὴ ἑτέρα τοὺς κατα7.38.3 λοίπους. ἑκατέροις μὲν οὖν καίπερ ἀλλήλων ἀπολελειμμένοις ἐς χεῖρας ἐλθόντες οἱ τοῦ Ῥωμαίων στρατοῦ ἄρχοντες ἔν τε Ἰλλυριοῖς καὶ Θρᾳξὶν, ἡσσήθησάν τε ἐκ τοῦ ἀπροσδοκήτου καὶ οἱ μὲν αὐτοῦ διεφθάρησαν, 7.38.4 οἱ δὲ κόσμῳ οὐδενὶ διαφυγόντες ἐσώθησαν. ἐπεὶ δὲ οἱ στρατηγοὶ πάντες οὕτω παρ' ἑκατέρων τῶν βαρβαρικῶν στρατοπέδων, καίπερ ἐλασσόνων παρὰ πολὺ ὄντων, ἀπήλλαξαν, Ἀσβάδῳ ἡ ἑτέρα τῶν πολεμίων 7.38.5 ξυμμορία ξυνέμιξεν. ἦν δὲ οὗτος ἀνὴρ βασιλέως μὲν Ἰουστινιανοῦ δορυφόρος, ἐπεὶ ἐς τοὺς Κανδιδάτους καλουμένους τελῶν ἔτυχε, τῶν δὲ ἱππικῶν καταλόγων ἦρχεν, οἳ ἐν Τζουρουλῷ τῷ ἐν Θρᾴκῃ φρουρίῳ ἐκ 7.38.6 παλαιοῦ ἵδρυνται, πολλοί τε καὶ ἄριστοι ὄντες. καὶ αὐτοὺς οἱ Σκλαβηνοὶ τρεψάμενοι οὐδενὶ πόνῳ πλείστους μὲν αἰσχρότατα φεύγοντας ἔκτειναν, Ἄσβαδον δὲ καταλαβόντες ἐν μὲν τῷ παραυτίκα ἐζώγρησαν, ὕστερον δὲ αὐτὸν ἐς πυρὸς ἐμβεβλημένον φλόγα ἔκαυσαν, ἱμάντας πρότερον ἐκ τοῦ νώτου τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐκδείραντες. 7.38.7 ταῦτα διαπεπραγμένοι τὰ χωρία ξύμπαντα, τά τε Θρᾳκῶν καὶ Ἰλλυριῶν, ἀδεέστερον ἐληΐζοντο, καὶ φρούρια