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with the army. But the rest and small-numbered of the Roman army they arrayed somewhere there for a show of numbers and positioned them towards the high ground, giving a signal that when these men attacked the enemy, those men too, with a very great war-cry and trumpets, should break out in a startling shout, with the mountains also echoing along, and thus they should approach the enemy's camp unseen during the night. And when such a signal was given, with the sun not yet lighting up the mountain peaks, raising a stout paean and shouting together "the Cross has conquered," they attack the enemy, with the others from the mountain shouting along with them. So the barbarians, being immediately struck with terror by the unexpected event, and having no opportunity either to form up or to see how great the attacking force was, nor to devise any other means of safety for themselves on the spot, they rushed to flight. So with the pursuing Romans shouting out for the generals and regiments and the commander of the Scholae who were not with them, just as it had been arranged for them, and with the fugitives being driven into greater fear and confusion, it happened that the pursuit lasted for thirty miles and the space between was strewn with countless corpses. Then indeed the shameless Chrysocher, fleeing with a few of those with him, when he recognized that a certain Roman was pursuing him, Poulades by 2.212 name, whom he had once taken captive at Tephrike and, because of his wit and charm, had kept as a familiar acquaintance, having seen and recognized him, he turned and said, "What evil have I done to you, O wretched Poulades, that you pursue me so furiously, desiring to kill me?" But he answered briefly, "I trust in God, patron, to pay you back today the reward for your good deeds." So the one went on like someone thunderstruck and damaged in his mind, while the other followed with youthful daring. But the one being pursued, encountering a deep ditch, and his horse not allowing him to leap over it, he is struck from behind by Poulades, who had caught up, with a spear in his side. And he, immediately spinning around from the pain, fell from his horse, and one of those with him (Diakonitzes was his surname) throwing himself from his horse, attended to the fallen man, placing his head on his own knees and lamenting what had happened. In the meantime, others also joined Poulades, and leaping from their horses, they cut off Chrysocher's head as he was already dying and expiring. They also bind Diakonitzes and count him among the other prisoners. So good tidings are immediately sent to the emperor, and with them was the head of Chrysocher. With the fall of Chrysocher, therefore, all the flourishing manliness of Tephrike withered away with him. And so the affairs concerning Tephrike had such an end, and in one hour the host of the Manichaeans, which had been raised to a greater height of glory, was dispersed like smoke. 2.213 And when Ignatius the patriarch departed this present life, the emperor gave the church back to Photios. At this time a plot is reported to the emperor by one of the conspirators, which had as its leader the patrician Romanos Kourkouas. And indeed, when the plotters were arrested, Kourkouas had his eyes put out, and the rest were blinded, tonsured, and exiled. The same emperor also recovered the fortress of Loulon, which was held by the Saracens. He added Melouos to it, and it proclaimed the emperor as master. He also sacked the Manichaean metropolis of Kameia in person. And when spring was already dawning, he took his elder son Constantine and campaigned against Syria. And having occupied Caesarea near Argaeus, the first city of the Cappadocians, and having encamped there, he trained the rest of the host with tactical exercises, but he detached a portion of the army and sent them out as scouts. He himself followed behind. But the lookouts and forerunners the
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στρατῷ· τὸ δὲ λοιπὸν καὶ εὐαρίθμητον τῆς Ῥωμαϊκῆς στρατιᾶς εἰς δόκησιν πλήθους αὐτοῦ που σκευάσαντες πρὸς τὰ μετέωρα ἔστησαν, σύνθημα δόντες ἵν' ὅταν οὗτοι προσ βάλωσι τοῖς ἐχθροῖς, κἀκεῖνοι σὺν ἀλαλαγμῷ μεγίστῳ καὶ σάλ πιγξιν ἐκπληκτικὴν βοὴν ἀναρρήξωσι, συνεπηχούντων καὶ τῶν ὀρέων, καὶ οὕτως ἀφανῶς διὰ τῆς νυκτὸς τῇ στρατοπεδείᾳ τῶν ἐχθρῶν πλησιάζωσι. καὶ τοιούτου δοθέντος συνθήματος, οὔπω τοῦ ἡλίου τὰς ἀκρωρείας αὐγάζοντος, βοῇ στιβαρᾷ παιανίσαντες καὶ τὸ "σταυρὸς νενίκηκε" συμβοήσαντες ἐπιτίθενται τοῖς ἐχθροῖς, συνεπαλαλαζόντων ἀπὸ τοῦ ὄρους καὶ τῶν λοιπῶν. εὐθὺς οὖν οἱ βάρβαροι τῷ ἀνελπίστῳ καταπλαγέντες, καὶ μήτε συστῆναι μήτε τὸ ἐπιὸν πλῆθος ὅσον ἐστὶ λαβόντες καιρὸν ἰδεῖν, μήτ' ἄλλο τι σωτήριον ἑαυτοῖς ἐκ τοῦ παραχρῆμα βουλεύσασθαι, ὥρμησαν πρὸς φυγήν. τῶν οὖν διωκόντων Ῥωμαίων καὶ τοὺς μὴ συνόντας ἐπιβοωμένων στρατηγοὺς καὶ τὰ τάγματα καὶ τὸν τῶν σχολῶν ἀφηγούμενον, καθάπερ αὐτοῖς συνετέτακτο, καὶ τῶν φευγόντων εἰς πλείονα συνελαυνομένων φόβον καὶ ταραχήν, συνέβη μέχρι μιλίων τριάκοντα γενέσθαι τὴν δίωξιν καὶ τὸν μεταξὺ χῶρον ἀπεί ροις καταστρωθῆναι νεκροῖς. Τότε δὴ καὶ ὁ ἀναιδὴς Χρυσόχειρ σὺν ὀλίγοις φεύγων τῶν μετ' αὐτόν, ἐπεὶ καταδιώκειν ἔγνω Ῥωμαῖον τινὰ Πουλάδην τὴν 2.212 προσηγορίαν, ὃν αἰχμάλωτον ἔλαβέ ποτε κατὰ τὴν Τεφρικὴν καὶ διὰ ἀστεϊσμὸν καὶ χάριτα συνήθη εἶχε καὶ γνώριμον, θεασάμενος αὐτὸν καὶ γνωρίσας, ἐπιστραφεὶς "τί σοι" φησίν, "ὦ ἄθλιε Πουλάδη, διεπραξάμην κακόν, ὅτι με οὕτω καταδιώκεις μανιω δῶς ἐπιθυμῶν ἀνελεῖν;" ὁ δὲ συντόμως ὑπολαβών, "τῶν εὐεργε σιῶν σου, πάτρων, τὴν ἀμοιβὴν" ἔφη "ἀποδοῦναί σοι κατὰ τὴν παροῦσαν ἡμέραν πεποιθώς εἰμι τῷ θεῷ." ὁ μὲν οὖν προῄει οἷά τις ἐμβρόντητος καὶ βεβλαμμένος τὰς φρένας, ὁ δὲ ἐφείπετο μετ' εὐτολμίας νεανικῆς. τάφρῳ δὲ βαθείᾳ ὁ διωκόμενος ἐντυχών, καὶ ὑπερπηδῆσαι ταύτην τὸν ἵππον μὴ συγχωρῶν, βάλλεται κατό πιν παρὰ τοῦ Πουλάδου φθάσαντος κοντῷ κατὰ τῆς πλευρᾶς. καὶ ὁ μὲν εὐθέως περιδινηθεὶς τῷ ἀλγήματι κατερρύη τοῦ ἵππου, τῶν δὲ σὺν αὐτῷ τις (∆ιακονίτζης τούτῳ ἦν τὸ ἐπώνυμον) τοῦ ἵππου ῥίψας ἑαυτὸν ἐπιμελείας ἠξίου τὸν πεσόντα, τοῖς τε οἰκείοις γό νασι τὴν ἐκείνου κεφαλὴν ἐπιθεὶς καὶ τὸ συμβὰν ὀδυρόμενος. ἐν τοσούτῳ δὲ προσγίνονται τῷ Πουλάδῃ καὶ ἕτεροι, καὶ καθαλλό μενοι ἐκ τῶν ἵππων τὴν τοῦ Χρυσόχειρος ἀποτέμνουσι κεφαλὴν ἤδη θανατῶντος καὶ ἐκλιμπάνοντος. δεσμοῦσι δὲ καὶ τὸν ∆ιακονίτζην καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις αἰχμαλώτοις συγκαταλέγουσιν. εὐθὺς οὖν εὐαγγέλια πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα ἐκπέμπονται, μεθ' ὧν ἦν καὶ ἡ τοῦ Χρυσόχειρος κεφαλή. πεσόντος οὖν τοῦ Χρυσόχειρος συναπε μαράνθη πᾶσα ἡ ἀνθοῦσα τῆς Τεφρικῆς εὐανδρία. καὶ τὰ μὲν κατὰ τὴν Τεφρικὴν τοιοῦτον ἔσχε τὸ τέλος, καὶ ἐν ὥρᾳ μιᾷ ἡ ἐπὶ μεῖζον δόξης ἀρθεῖσα ὕψος τῶν Μανιχαίων πληθὺς ὡσεὶ καπνὸς διελύθη. 2.213 Ἰγνατίου δὲ τοῦ πατριάρχου τὴν παροῦσαν μεταλλαξαμένου ζωήν, ἀπέδωκεν αὖθις τὴν ἐκκλησίαν Φωτίῳ ὁ βασιλεύς. κατὰ τοῦτον τὸν καιρὸν ἐπιβουλὴ μηνύεται τῷ βασιλεῖ παρά τινος τῶν συνωμοτῶν, ἔξαρχον ἔχουσα τὸν πατρίκιον Ῥωμανὸν τὸν Κουρ κούαν. καὶ δὴ συλληφθέντων τῶν ἐπιβουλευσάντων ὁ μὲν Κουρ κούας ἐπηρώθη τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς, οἱ δὲ λοιποὶ τυφθέντες καὶ κα ρέντες ἐξωρίσθησαν. ὁ αὐτὸς βασιλεὺς καὶ τὸ Λοῦλον φρούριον ὑπὸ Σαρακηνῶν κατεχόμενον ἀνεκτήσατο. προσέθετο δὲ αὐτῷ καὶ τὸ Μελοῦος, καὶ δεσπότην τὸν βασιλέα ἀνηγόρευεν. ἐξεπόρ θησε δὲ καὶ τὴν τῶν Μανιχαίων μητρόπολιν τὴν Κάμειαν δι' ἑαυτοῦ. Ἔαρος δὲ ἤδη λάμποντος, τὸν πρεσβύτερον τῶν υἱῶν εἰλη φὼς Κωνσταντῖνον ἐκστρατεύει κατὰ Συρίας. καὶ τὴν πρὸς τῷ Ἀργαίῳ Καισάρειαν τὴν πρώτην καταλαβὼν τῶν Καππαδοκῶν, ἐκεῖσέ τε αὐλισάμενος, τὴν μὲν ἄλλην πληθὺν τακτικαῖς ἐξεπόνει μελέταις, μοῖραν δὲ τοῦ στρατοῦ ἀποτεμὼν κατόπτας ἐξέπεμψεν. αὐτὸς δὲ κατόπιν ἐφείπετο. οἱ δὲ προόπται καὶ πρόδρομοι τὰς