382

having fought and having fallen in the contest itself. But Leo, wishing to accomplish some other brilliant deed and to overshadow the misfortune that had occurred from the strife, taking his own army, and taking with him those who had survived the rout of the men commanded by Prokopios, besieged the castle of Tarentum, which was still held by the Hagarenes, and enslaved all the people in it, from which he both benefited the military sufficiently and brought spoils to the emperor. But in these things he did not propitiate the emperor, but having learned the cause of Prokopios’s slaughter, he both relieved him of his command and sent him into exile to Kotyaeion, where he had his home. And when Baianos, the first of his grooms, and certain others who had served him, brought an accusation of treason against him, his sons Bardas and David, learning of this, killed Baianos, and fearing the emperor's wrath for their audacity, they took their father with them and set out to flee to Syria. When the emperor learned this, he sent the commander of the Hetaireia with some soldiers, ordering him to hasten and seize them. And they, having made haste, overtake them in Cappadocia 2.233 riding hard for Syria. But intending to prevent them from proceeding further, they found them resisting. And a skirmish occurring, his two sons fall fighting, but he himself was taken alive and brought to the emperor and was handed over to the laws. Having been condemned, therefore, he had one of his eyes put out, and one of his hands was taken away, and for the rest of his life he grew old in exile in Mesembria. And while things were thus being managed for the emperor by his generals in the west, the Arabs from the south, thinking the emperor was at leisure, took courage and decided to take up affairs at sea again. So, having built ships in both Egypt and the coastal cities in Phoenicia and Syria, they intended to campaign against the Romans, having first sent scouts to learn how the emperor's affairs stood. But the emperor was not unobservant, but all that was being done in Syria was known to him. Therefore, having himself also built a fleet worthy of battle, he kept it in the capital and awaited what was to come. And so that the fleet, being idle, should not become disorderly (for according to the poet, vain leisure brings forth nothing good), he appointed them to serve in the rebuilding of the church then being raised in the imperial court in the name of our savior Jesus Christ the God and of the arch-commanders and of Elijah the Tishbite, being ready, so that when 2.234 the fleet of Syria should appear over the borders, they might be sent prepared for battle against them. And the emperor thus made his arrangements; but the Saracen scout, having reached the capital and seeing everything well-prepared, returned to those who sent him and reported all that he had seen. And they, being dismayed, embraced peace. But the Carthaginians, fearing again because of their previous defeats, learning of the emperor’s quiet, and being alarmed lest a Roman fleet should suddenly be sent against their country, built a sufficient number of ships. But when spring dawned and they learned that no force had been sent from the emperor, supposing the emperor to be occupied with other matters, they campaigned against Sicily, and indeed putting in at the city of Syracuse they besieged it, and they were ravaging and plundering the country outside. And when the strategos of Sicily made these things clear to the emperor, immediately the naval force that had been prepared beforehand and was attending to the building of the church is sent to Sicily, with Adrian the patrikios as admiral; who, having set sail from the capital, but not sailing in a straight course, with difficulty came down to the Peloponnese, and at Monemvasia, having anchored in the so-called harbor of Hierax, he awaited a favorable wind. And as he was wasting much time

382

ἀγωνισάμενος καὶ κατ' αὐτὸν τὸν ἀγῶνα πεσών. ὁ δὲ Λέων θέλων τι καὶ ἕτερον ἀπεργάσασθαι λαμπρὸν καὶ τὸ ἐκ τῆς ἔριδος συσκιάσαι συμβὰν ἀτύχημα, τὸ οἰκεῖον στράτευμα λαβών, καὶ τοὺς διασωθέντας ἐκ τῆς τροπῆς τῶν ταττομένων ὑπὸ τὸν Προκόπιον συμπαραλα βών, τὸ Τάραντον κάστρον ἔτι παρὰ τῶν Ἀγαρηνῶν κατεχόμενον ἐξεπολιόρκησε καὶ πάντα τὸν ἐν αὐτῷ λαὸν ἠνδραποδίσατο, ἐξ ὧν τό τε στρατιωτικὸν ὠφέλησεν ἀποχρώντως καὶ τῷ βασιλεῖ προσή γαγε λάφυρα. ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐξιλέωσεν ἐν τούτοις τὸν βασιλέα, ἀλλὰ μαθὼν τὴν αἰτίαν τῆς τοῦ Προκοπίου σφαγῆς τῆς τε ἀρχῆς τοῦ τον παρέλυσε καὶ ἐξόριστον εἰς τὸ Κοτυάειον, ἔνθα τὴν οἴκησιν εἶχε, παρέπεμψε. Βαϊάνου δὲ τοῦ πρώτου τῶν ἱπποκόμων αὐτοῦ καί τινων ἄλλων τῶν ἐξυπηρετησαμένων αὐτῷ γραφὴν καθοσιώ σεως ἐνστησαμένων κατ' αὐτοῦ, μαθόντες τοῦτο Βάρδας καὶ ∆αβὶδ οἱ παῖδες αὐτοῦ τὸν μὲν Βαϊάνον ἀναιροῦσι, φοβηθέντες δὲ τὴν ἐκ βασιλέως ὀργὴν διὰ τὸ τόλμημα, ἀνειληφότες καὶ τὸν σφῶν πατέρα, ὥρμησαν πρὸς Συρίαν φυγεῖν. ὅπερ πυθόμενος ὁ βασιλεὺς ἀπέστειλε τὸν τῆς ἑταιρείας ἄρχοντα μετὰ καί τινων στρατιωτῶν, ἐντειλάμενος καταταχῆσαι καὶ κατασχεῖν αὐτούς. οἱ δὴ καὶ ἐπισπεύσαντες καταλαμβάνουσιν αὐτοὺς ἐν Καππαδοκίᾳ 2.233 συντόνως τὴν ἐπὶ Συρίαν ἐλαύνοντας. μέλλοντες δὲ κωλῦσαι τού τους προσωτέρω χωρεῖν εὗρον ἀνθισταμένους. καὶ συμπλοκῆς γενομένης οἱ μὲν δύο παῖδες αὐτοῦ μαχόμενοι πίπτουσιν, αὐτὸς δὲ ζωγρίας ληφθεὶς ἤχθη πρὸς βασιλέα καὶ τοῖς νόμοις ἐξεδόθη. καταψηφισθεὶς οὖν ἐξεκόπη τὸν ἕνα τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν, ἀφῃρέθη δὲ καὶ τὴν μίαν τῶν χειρῶν, καὶ τὸ λοιπὸν ἐν Μεσημβρίᾳ ἐξόριστος κατεγήρασεν. Ἐν ᾧ δὲ οὕτω κατὰ τὴν ἑσπέραν διὰ τῶν στρατηγῶν τῷ βα σιλεῖ κατεπράττετο, οἱ ἐκ μεσημβρίας Ἄραβες σχολάζειν τὸν βα σιλέα νομίσαντες ἀνεθάρσησαν καὶ πάλιν τῶν κατὰ θάλατταν ἅπτεσθαι πραγμάτων διέγνωσαν. ναῦς οὖν τεκτηνάμενοι κατά τε τὴν Αἴγυπτον καὶ τὰς ἐν Φοινίκῃ καὶ Συρίᾳ παραλίους πόλεις, κατὰ Ῥωμαίων ἐκστρατεύειν διενοοῦντο, σκοποὺς πέμψαντες πρό τερον ἐφ' ᾧ μαθεῖν πῶς ἔχει τὰ βασιλέως. ἀλλ' οὐδ' ἀλαοσκο πίην εἶχεν ὁ βασιλεύς, ἀλλὰ πάντα διέγνωστο αὐτῷ τὰ ἐν Συρίᾳ πραττόμενα. ναυπηγήσας οὖν καὶ αὐτὸς στόλον ἀξιόμαχον συνεῖ χεν ἐν τῇ βασιλίδι καὶ τὸ μέλλον ἐκαραδόκει. ἵνα δὲ μὴ ἀργὸς ὑπάρχων ὁ στόλος ἄτακτος γίνοιτο (τίκτει γὰρ κατὰ τὸν ποιητὴν οὐδὲν ἐσθλὸν εἰκαία σχολή), ἐν τῇ ἀνοικοδομῇ τοῦ κατὰ τὴν βα σίλειον αὐλὴν ἐγειρομένου τότε ναοῦ εἰς ὄνομα τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τῶν ἀρχιστρατήγων καὶ Ἠλίου τοῦ Θεσβίτου διωρίσατο αὐτοὺς ὑπουργεῖν, ἑτοίμους ὄντας, ἵν' ὅταν 2.234 ὑπερκύψῃ τῶν ὁρίων Συρίας ὁ στόλος, ἐμπαρασκεύους αὐτοὺς ἀποσταλῆναι πρὸς τὴν ἐκείνων ἀντιπαράταξιν. καὶ ὁ μὲν βασι λεὺς ᾠκονομήσατο οὕτως· ὁ δὲ τῶν Σαρακηνῶν σκόπος καταλα βὼν τὴν βασιλίδα καὶ πάντα εὐτρεπῆ κατιδών, ἐπανελθὼν πρὸς τοὺς πέμψαντας ὅσα εἶδεν ἀπήγγειλεν. οἱ δὲ καταπτήξαντες τὴν ἡσυχίαν ἠγάπησαν. Καρχηδόνιοι δὲ πάλιν διὰ τὰς προηγησαμένας ἥττας δεδιό τες, τὴν ἡσυχίαν τοῦ βασιλέως μαθόντες, καὶ πτοηθέντες μή πως αἰφνίδιον Ῥωμαϊκὸς στόλος κατὰ τῆς αὐτῶν ἐκπεμφθῇ χώρας, ναῦς ἱκανὰς ἐτεκτήναντο. ἦρος δ' ἐπιλάμποντος ὡς οὐδεμίαν δύναμιν ἐκ βασιλέως πεμφθεῖσαν ἐμάνθανον, ὑποτοπήσαντες πρὸς ἄλλους ἄσχολον εἶναι τὸν βασιλέα ἐκστρατεύουσι κατὰ Σικελίας, καὶ δὴ πρὸς τὴν πόλιν τὰς Συρακούσας προσσχόντες ταύτην ἐπο λιόρκουν, καὶ τὰ ἐκτὸς ἐδῄουν τῆς χώρας καὶ ἐληΐζοντο. τοῦ δὲ στρατηγοῦ τῆς Σικελίας δῆλα ταῦτα θέντος τῷ βασιλεῖ, εὐθέως ἡ προευτρεπισθεῖσα ναυτικὴ δύναμις κἀν τῇ κτίσει τοῦ ναοῦ προσ εδρεύουσα πρὸς Σικελίαν ἐκπέμπεται, Ἀδριανὸν τὸν πατρίκιον ἔχουσα ναύαρχον· ὃς τῆς βασιλίδος ἀπάρας, μὴ εὐθυπλοῶν δέ, μόλις κατῆλθεν εἰς Πελοπόννησον, κατὰ δὲ τὴν Μονεμβασίαν ἐν τῷ καλουμένῳ λιμένι τοῦ Ἱέρακος προσορμίσας ἐπίφορον προσεδέ χετο πνεῦμα. ἐπὶ πολὺ δὲ χρονοτριβοῦντος αὐτοῦ