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which was everywhere confined by wooded glens and difficult places, and covered with such luxuriant forests as to seem impassable even for an unencumbered man, they made so level that not only their entire cavalry could pass that way without any trouble, but also they could campaign there leading as many of the elephants as they wished. 8.13.6 And there also came to them as allies twelve thousand Huns from the so-called Sabiri. 8.13.7 But Mermeroes, fearing that, being so great a multitude, these barbarians might not be willing to obey his commands at all, but might even do some irreparable harm to the Persian army, allowed four thousand to campaign with them, but after presenting the rest with much 8.13.8 money sent them to go to their ancestral lands. The Roman army was twelve thousand strong, but they were not all gathered in the same place; but three thousand were in the garrison at Archaeopolis, whom Odonachus and Babas commanded, both good at 8.13.9 warfare; and the rest, having encamped within the mouth of the Phasis river, were waiting, with this in mind, that if the enemy army should attack anywhere, they themselves, setting out from there, might bring assistance with their whole force. Benilus and Uligagus commanded them. 8.13.10 With them also was Ouarazes the Persarmenian, having recently come from Italy. He was followed by eight hundred Tzani. 8.13.11 For Bessas, as soon as he had captured Petra, was no longer willing to exert himself at all, but withdrawing to the lands of the Pontic people and the Armenians, he attended as much as possible to the revenues from his office, and by this pettiness he again jeopardized the Roman 8.13.12 affairs. For if, having just then been victorious, as has been related by me, and having taken Petra, he had gone to the borders of the Lazi and the Iberians and had blockaded the difficult passes there, no Persian army, it seems to me, would ever again 8.13.13 have gone into Lazica. But as it was, this general, having made light of this task, all but handed over Lazica to the enemy with his own hand, caring little for the emperor's 8.13.14 anger. For the Emperor Justinian was accustomed to be very lenient with his erring commanders, and as a result of this they were for the most part found to be acting unlawfully both in their conduct and in their administration. 8.13.15 Now there were two fortresses of the Lazi very near the borders of Iberia, Scanda and Sarapanis. These, being situated in certain difficult and altogether troublesome 8.13.16 places, happened to be exceedingly hard to approach. In former times the Lazi used to guard these with great labour, since no provisions at all grow there, but men used to carry in the necessary supplies on their shoulders. 8.13.17 But the Emperor Justinian, at the beginning of this war, having removed the Lazi from there, established a Roman 8.13.18 garrison of soldiers. These, not long afterwards, being pressed by the lack of necessities, abandoned these fortresses, since they were quite unable to live on millet for a longer time, as the Colchians do, as it was not their custom, and the Lazi could no longer hold out, traveling a long road and bringing them all the provisions. 8.13.19 But the Persians, seizing them, held them, and in the treaty the Romans got them back, having made the exchange of the fortress of Bolum and of Pharangium, just as all these things were related by me in the preceding books. 8.13.20 The Lazi, therefore, razed these fortresses to the ground, so that the Persians might not have them as strongholds against them. But the Persians rebuilt one of them, which they call Scanda, and held it, and Mermeroes led the Median army forward. 8.13.21 Now there was a city in the plain, Rhodopolis by name, which was the first to meet those invading Colchis from Iberia, being very easy to attack and most vulnerable. 8.13.22 For this reason the Lazi, fearing the Persian attack long before, had razed it to the ground. When 8.13.23 the Persians learned this, they went straight to Archaeopolis. But Mermeroes, learning that the enemy was encamped about the mouth of the Phasis river, marched against them. 8.13.24 For it seemed better to him, after first destroying these men

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νάπαις καὶ δυσχωρίαις λοχμώδεσι πανταχόθι ξυνεχομένην, ὕλαις τε οὕτως ἀμφιλαφέσι καλυπτομένην, ὡς καὶ ἀνδρὶ εὐζώνῳ δοκεῖν ἀπόρευτον τὰ πρότερα εἶναι, οὕτως ὁμαλῆ κατεστήσαντο ὥστε οὐχ ὅσον τὴν ἵππον αὐτῶν ὅλην πόνῳ οὐδενὶ ἐνθένδε ἰέναι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἐλεφάντων ὅσους βούλοιντο ἐπαγομένους ταύτῃ 8.13.6 στρατεύειν. ἦλθον δὲ αὐτοῖς καὶ σύμμαχοι Οὖννοι ἐκ τῶν Σαβείρων καλουμένων δισχίλιοί τε καὶ μύριοι. 8.13.7 ἀλλὰ δείσας ὁ Μερμερόης μὴ ἐς πλῆθος τοσοῦτον ὄντες οἱ βάρβαροι οὗτοι μήτε τι αὐτῷ ὑπακούειν ἐπαγγέλλοντι ἐθελήσωσιν, ἀλλὰ καί τι ἀνήκεστον ἐς τὸ Περσῶν στράτευμα δράσωσι, τετρακισχιλίους μὲν ξυστρατεύεσθαι σφίσιν εἴασε, τοὺς δὲ λοιποὺς χρήμασι πολ8.13.8 λοῖς δωρησάμενος ἐς τὰ πάτρια ἤθη ἀφῆκεν ἰέναι. ὁ δὲ Ῥωμαίων στρατὸς δισχίλιοι μὲν καὶ μύριοι ἦσαν, οὐ μὴν ἀγηγερμένοι ἐς ταὐτὸ ἅπαντες, ἀλλ' ἐν μὲν τῷ ἐν Ἀρχαιοπόλει φυλακτηρίῳ τρισχίλιοι ἦσαν, ὧν Ὀδόναχός τε καὶ Βάβας ἦρχον, ἄμφω ἀγαθοὶ τὰ πο8.13.9 λέμια· οἱ δὲ δὴ ἄλλοι ἐντὸς τῶν ἐκβολῶν ποταμοῦ Φάσιδος ἐνστρατοπεδευσάμενοι ἔμενον, ἐκεῖνο διανοούμενοι, ὥστε ἤν πη ἐπισκήψῃ ὁ τῶν πολεμίων στρατὸς, αὐτοὶ ἐνθένδε ἐξανιστάμενοι βοηθοῖεν δυνάμει τῇ πάσῃ. ἦρχον δὲ αὐτῶν Βενῖλός τε καὶ Οὐλίγαγος. 8.13.10 ξυνῆν δὲ αὐτοῖς καὶ Οὐαράζης ὁ Περσαρμένιος, ἄρτι ἐξ Ἰταλίας ἥκων. ᾧ δὴ Τζάνοι ὀκτακόσιοι εἵποντο. 8.13.11 Βέσσας γὰρ, ἐπειδὴ τάχιστα τὴν Πέτραν εἷλε, πονεῖν μὲν ἔτι οὐδαμῆ ἤθελεν, ἐς δὲ Ποντικοὺς καὶ Ἀρμενίους ἀποχωρήσας ἐπεμελεῖτο ὡς ἔνι μάλιστα τῶν ἀπὸ τῆς ἀρχῆς αὐτοῦ πόρων, ταύτῃ τε τῇ σμικρολογίᾳ τὰ Ῥω8.13.12 μαίων αὖθις πράγματα ἔσφηλεν. εἰ γὰρ εὐθὺς τότε νενικηκὼς, ᾗπέρ μοι εἴρηται, καὶ τὴν Πέτραν ἑλὼν ἐς τὰ Λαζῶν τε καὶ Ἰβήρων ὅρια ἦλθε καὶ τὰς ἐκείνῃ δυσχωρίας ἐφράξατο, οὐκ ἄν, μοι δοκεῖ, ἔτι Περσῶν 8.13.13 στράτευμα ἐς Λαζικὴν ᾔει. νῦν δὲ ὁ στρατηγὸς οὗτος τοῦ πόνου τούτου ὀλιγωρήσας μόνον οὐχὶ τοῖς πολεμίοις Λαζικὴν αὐτοχειρὶ παραδέδωκε, τῆς ἐκ βασιλέως 8.13.14 ὀργῆς ὀλίγα φροντίσας. εἰώθει γὰρ Ἰουστινιανὸς βασιλεὺς ἐπιχωρεῖν τὰ πολλὰ τοῖς ἄρχουσιν ἁμαρτάνουσι, καὶ ἀπ' αὐτοῦ ἔς τε τὴν δίαιταν καὶ τὴν πολιτείαν ἐκ τοῦ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον παρανομοῦντες ἡλίσκοντο. 8.13.15 Ἦν δὲ Λαζῶν φρούρια δύο πρὸς αὐτοῖς μάλιστα τοῖς Ἰβηρίας ὁρίοις, Σκάνδα τε καὶ Σαραπανίς. ἅπερ ἐν δυσχωρίαις κείμενα χαλεπαῖς τισι καὶ ὅλως δυσκό8.13.16 λοις δυσπρόσοδα ὑπερφυῶς ὄντα ἐτύγχανε. ταῦτα Λαζοὶ μὲν τὸ παλαιὸν πόνῳ πολλῷ ἐφρούρουν, ἐπεὶ ἐνταῦθα τῶν ἐδωδίμων τὸ παράπαν οὐδὲν φύεται, ἀλλὰ φέροντες ἄνθρωποι ἐπὶ τῶν ὤμων τὰ ἐπιτήδεια 8.13.17 ἐσεκομίζοντο. βασιλεὺς δὲ Ἰουστινιανὸς κατ' ἀρχὰς τοῦδε τοῦ πολέμου Λαζοὺς ἀναστήσας ἐνθένδε Ῥω8.13.18 μαίων φρουρὰν στρατιωτῶν κατεστήσατο. οἳ δὴ οὐ πολλῷ ὕστερον, πιεζόμενοι τῶν ἀναγκαίων τῇ ἀπορίᾳ, τὰ φρούρια ταῦτα ἐξέλιπον, ἐπεὶ αὐτοὶ μὲν ἐλύμοις ἀποζῆν ὥσπερ οἱ Κόλχοι ἐς πλείω χρόνον, οὐκ εἰωθὸς σφίσιν, ὡς ἥκιστα εἶχον, Λαζοὶ δὲ αὐτοῖς μακρὰν ὁδὸν πορευόμενοι φέροντές τε τὰ ἐπιτήδεια πάντα οὐκέτι 8.13.19 ἀντεῖχον. Πέρσαι δὲ αὐτὰ καταλαβόντες ἔσχον, ἔν τε ταῖς σπονδαῖς αὐτὰ Ῥωμαῖοι ἀπέλαβον τὰς ἀντιδόσεις Βώλου τε τοῦ φρουρίου καὶ τοῦ Φαραγγίου πεποιημένοι, ὥσπερ μοι ταῦτα ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν λόγοις 8.13.20 πάντα ἐρρήθη. Λαζοὶ μὲν οὖν ταῦτα τὰ φρούρια ἐς ἔδαφος καθεῖλον, ὡς μὴ αὐτὰ Πέρσαι ἐπιτειχίσματα κατὰ σφῶν ἔχοιεν. Πέρσαι δὲ αὐτοῖν θάτερον, ὅπερ Σκάνδα καλοῦσιν, αὖθις οἰκοδομησάμενοι ἔσχον, ὅ τε Μερμερόης ἐπίπροσθεν ἦγε τὸν Μήδων στρατόν. 8.13.21 Ἦν δὲ πόλις ἐν τῷ πεδίῳ, Ῥοδόπολις ὄνομα, ἥπερ ὑπηντίαζε πρώτη τοῖς ἐς τὴν Κολχίδα ἐξ Ἰβηρίας ἐσβάλλουσιν, εὐέφοδός τε καὶ ἐπιμαχωτάτη ἐς τὰ μά8.13.22 λιστα. διὸ δὴ αὐτὴν πολλῷ πρότερον δείσαντες Λαζοὶ τὴν Περσῶν ἔφοδον ἐς ἔδαφος καθεῖλον. ὅπερ ἐπεὶ 8.13.23 οἱ Πέρσαι ἔμαθον, εὐθὺ Ἀρχαιοπόλεως ᾔεσαν. γνοὺς δὲ ὁ Μερμερόης τοὺς πολεμίους ἀμφὶ τὰς ἐκβολὰς ἐνστρατοπεδεύεσθαι ποταμοῦ Φάσιδος ἐπ' αὐτοὺς ἤλαυ8.13.24 νεν. ἄμεινον γάρ οἱ ἔδοξεν εἶναι τούτους πρότερον ἐξελόντι