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was in command of the garrison at Ariminum, he was pressing the army forward. For he wished to trouble neither Ariminum nor any other place held by the enemy, so that no time would be wasted by him, nor the most urgent action be hindered by a secondary task. And since the enemy, because their commander had fallen, were keeping quiet and no longer offering obstacles, Narses, having bridged the river with less fear, transported the entire army across with no trouble. And abandoning the Flaminian Way from there, he went on the left. For since Petra Pertusa, as it is called, the natural strength of whose fortress I have described in the preceding account, had been occupied by the enemy long before, the routes for the Romans, at least those along the Flaminian Way, happened to be impassable and altogether without exit. Therefore Narses, for these reasons, leaving the shorter road, went by the one that was passable. So, for the Roman army, the matter of the march stood thus. But Totila, having already learned what had happened in Venetia, at first remained quiet in the regions toward Rome, awaiting Teias and the army with him. But when they arrived, and only two thousand horsemen were still missing, Totila did not wait for these, but setting out with all the rest of the army, he went to meet the enemy in a suitable place. And on this journey, learning both what had happened to Usdrilas and that the enemy had crossed at Ariminum, he passed through all of Tuscia, and coming to the mountain called the Apennine, he encamped there and remained very near a village which the inhabitants call Taginae. And the Roman army, with Narses leading, not much later also encamped on the Apennine mountain and remained, being about one hundred stades distant from the enemy's camp, in a place that was level, but surrounded somewhere nearby by many hills, where they say that Camillus, while commanding the Romans, once destroyed the host of the Gauls, having conquered them in battle. And the place bears testimony of this deed even to my time by its name and preserves in memory the suffering of the Gauls, being called Busta Gallorum. For the Latins call the remains from the pyre "busta." And here there are very many earthen mounds over those dead. And immediately Narses, sending some of his trusted men from there, instructed them to offer advice to Totila to lay aside hostilities and at some point to consider peace, reflecting that he, ruling a few men who had been gathered recently and with no law, would not be able to fight for very long against the whole Roman empire. He also told them this, that if they saw him intending to fight, they should with no delay command him to set a fixed day for the battle. So when these envoys came into the presence of Totila, they did what they had been instructed. And he, playing the young man, declared elegantly that they must fight in every way, but they, interrupting, said, "But, noble sir, set a specific time for the engagement." And he immediately said, "Let us join battle in eight days." The envoys, therefore, returning to Narses, reported what had been agreed upon with them, but he, suspecting that Totila was devising some trick, prepared as if to fight on the next day. And indeed he guessed the enemy's intention. For on the following day Totila himself appeared with his whole army. And now the two sides were sitting opposite each other, no more than two bowshots apart. There was a small hill there, which both sides were eager to occupy, thinking it was strategically placed for them, both so that they might be able to shoot at the enemy from higher ground, and because, as I have indicated, hilly areas were somewhere there, for this reason it was impossible for anyone to encircle the Roman camp by going to its rear, except by a single path, which happened to be beside the hill. For this reason it was necessary for both sides to consider it of the greatest importance, for the Goths, so that in the engagement they might encircle the enemy and put them in a perilous position, but for the Romans, so that

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Ἀριμήνῳ φυλακτηρίου ἦρχε, πρόσω ἤπειγε τὸ στράτευμα. οὔτε γὰρ Ἀρίμηνον οὔτε ἄλλο τι χωρίον πρὸς τῶν πολεμίων ἐχόμενον ἐνοχλεῖν ἤθελεν, ὡς μή τις αὐτῷ τρίβοιτο χρόνος, μηδὲ τῷ παρέργῳ τῆς χρείας ἡ σπου8.28.12 δαιοτάτη διείργοιτο πρᾶξις. τῶν δὲ πολεμίων ἅτε πεπτωκότος σφίσι τοῦ ἄρχοντος ἡσυχαζόντων τε καὶ οὐκέτι ἐμποδίων καθισταμένων ὁ Ναρσῆς ἀδεέστερον γεφύρᾳ τὸν ποταμὸν ζεύξας διεβίβασε πόνῳ οὐδενὶ 8.28.13 τὸν στρατὸν ἅπαντα. ὁδοῦ δὲ τῆς Φλαμηνίας ἐνθένδε ἀφέμενος ἐν ἀριστερᾷ ᾔει. Πέτρας γὰρ τῆς Περτούσης καλουμένης, ἧσπέρ μοι τὸ τοῦ ὀχυρώματος καρτερὸν χωρίου φύσει ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν δεδιήγηται λόγοις, κατειλημμένης τοῖς ἐναντίοις πολλῷ πρότερον, ἀπόρευτα Ῥωμαίοις καὶ παντάπασιν ἀδιέξοδα, ὅσα γε κατὰ τὴν Φλαμηνίαν ὁδὸν, ὄντα ἐτύγχανεν. ὁδὸν οὖν ὁ Ναρσῆς διὰ ταῦτα τὴν ἐπιτομωτέραν ἀφεὶς τὴν βάσιμον ᾔει. 8.29.1 Τῷ μὲν οὖν Ῥωμαίων στρατῷ τά γε ἀμφὶ τῇ πορείᾳ ταύτῃ πη εἶχε. Τουτίλας δὲ πεπυσμένος ἤδη τὰ ἐν Βενετίαις ξυνενεχθέντα Τεΐαν μὲν τὰ πρῶτα καὶ τὴν ξὺν αὐτῷ στρατιὰν προσδεχόμενος ἐν τοῖς ἐπὶ 8.29.2 Ῥώμης χωρίοις ἡσυχῆ ἔμενεν. ἐπειδὴ δὲ παρῆσαν, μόνοι τε δισχίλιοι ἱππεῖς ἐλείποντο ἔτι, τούτους δὴ οὐκ ἀναμείνας ὁ Τουτίλας, ἀλλὰ παντὶ ἄρας τῷ ἄλλῳ στρατῷ ὡς τοῖς πολεμίοις ἐν ἐπιτηδείῳ ὑπαντιάσων 8.29.3 ᾔει. ἐν δὲ τῇ ὁδῷ ταύτῃ τά τε τῷ Οὐσδρίλᾳ συμπεπτωκότα καὶ Ἀρίμηνον τοὺς πολεμίους διαβεβηκέναι μαθὼν, ὅλην μὲν Τουσκίαν ἀμείψας, ἐν ὄρει δὲ τῷ Ἀπεννίνῳ καλουμένῳ γενόμενος, αὐτοῦ ἐνστρατοπεδευσάμενος, ἔμενεν ἄγχιστα κώμης, ἥνπερ οἱ ἐπιχώριοι 8.29.4 Ταγίνας καλοῦσιν. ἥ τε Ῥωμαίων στρατιὰ Ναρσοῦ ἡγουμένου οὐ πολλῷ ὕστερον ἐν τῷ ὄρει καὶ αὐτοὶ τῷ Ἀπεννίνῳ ἐνστρατοπεδευσάμενοι ἔμενον, σταδίους ἑκατὸν μάλιστα τοῦ τῶν ἐναντίων στρατοπέδου διέχοντες, ἐν χωρίῳ ὁμαλῷ μὲν, λόφους δὲ ἄγχιστά πη περιβεβλημένῳ πολλοὺς, ἵνα δή ποτε στρατηγοῦντα Ῥωμαίων Κάμιλλον τῶν Γάλλων ὅμιλον διαφθεῖραι 8.29.5 μάχῃ νενικηκότα φασί. φέρει δὲ καὶ εἰς ἐμὲ μαρτύριον τοῦ ἔργου τούτου τὴν προσηγορίαν ὁ χῶρος καὶ διασώζει τῇ μνήμῃ τῶν Γάλλων τὸ πάθος, Βουσταγαλλώρων καλούμενος. βοῦστα γὰρ Λατῖνοι τὰ ἐκ τῆς 8.29.6 πυρᾶς καλοῦσι λείψανα. τύμβοι τε τῇδε γεώλοφοι τῶν νεκρῶν ἐκείνων παμπληθεῖς εἰσιν. αὐτίκα δὲ στείλας ἐνθένδε Ναρσῆς τῶν οἱ ἐπιτηδείων τινὰς παραίνεσιν ἐπήγγελλε ποιεῖσθαι τῷ Τουτίλᾳ καταθέσθαι μὲν τὰ πολέμια, βουλεύεσθαι δὲ εἰρηναῖά ποτε, διαριθμουμένῳ ὅτι δὴ αὐτὸς, ἀνθρώπων ἄρχων ὀλίγων τέ τινων καὶ ὑπόγυον νόμῳ οὐδενὶ ξυνειλεγμένων, πάσῃ τῇ Ῥωμαίων ἀρχῇ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον διαμάχεσθαι 8.29.7 οὐκ ἂν δύναιτο. ἔφη δὲ αὐτοῖς καὶ τοῦτο, ὥστε δὴ αὐτὸν, εἰ πολεμησείοντα ἴδοιεν, μελλήσει οὐδεμιᾷ ἐγκε8.29.8 λεύεσθαι τακτὴν διορίσαι τινὰ ἡμέραν τῇ μάχῃ. ἐπειδὴ γοῦν οἱ πρέσβεις οὗτοι τῷ Τουτίλᾳ ἐς ὄψιν ἦλθον, τὰ ἐπιτεταγμένα ἐποίουν. καὶ ὁ μὲν νεανιευόμενος ἐκομψεύετο ὡς τρόπῳ αὐτοῖς παντὶ πολεμητέον εἴη, οἱ δὲ ὑπολαβόντες «Ἀλλ', ὦ γενναῖε» ἔφασαν «ῥητόν τινα «καιρὸν τῇ ξυμβολῇ τίθει». καὶ ὃς αὐτίκα «ὀκτὼ 8.29.9 «ἡμερῶν ξυμμίξωμεν» ἔφη. οἱ μὲν οὖν πρέσβεις παρὰ τὸν Ναρσῆν ἐπανήκοντες τὰ ξυγκείμενα σφίσιν ἐπήγγελλον, ὁ δὲ Τουτίλαν δολώσεις ὑποτοπάζων ἐπινοεῖν 8.29.10 παρεσκευάζετο ὡς τῇ ὑστεραίᾳ μαχούμενος. καὶ ἔτυχέ γε τῆς τῶν πολεμίων ἐννοίας. ἡμέρᾳ γὰρ τῇ ἐπιγενομένῃ αὐτάγγελος παντὶ τῷ στρατῷ παρῆν ὁ Τουτίλας. ἤδη δὲ ἀλλήλοις ἑκάτεροι ἀντεκάθηντο, οὐ πλέον ἢ δυοῖν διέχοντες τοξευμάτων βολαῖν. 8.29.11 Ἦν γέ τι γεώλοφον ἐνταῦθα βραχὺ, ὃ δὴ καταλαβεῖν ἀμφότεροι διὰ σπουδῆς εἶχον, ἐν ἐπιτηδείῳ σφίσιν οἰόμενοι κεῖσθαι, ὅπως τε βάλλειν τοὺς ἐναντίους ἐξ ὑπερδεξίων ἔχοιεν καὶ ὅτι χῶροι λοφώδεις, ᾗπέρ μοι δεδήλωται, ἐνταῦθά πη ἦσαν, ταύτῃ τοι κυκλώσασθαί τινας τὸ Ῥωμαίων στρατόπεδον κατὰ νώτου ἰόντας ἀμήχανον ἦν, ὅτι μὴ διὰ μιᾶς τινος ἀτραποῦ, ἣ παρὰ 8.29.12 τὸ γεώλοφον ἐτύγχανεν οὖσα. διὸ δὴ περὶ πλείονος αὐτὸ ποιεῖσθαι ἀμφοτέροις ἐπάναγκες ἦν, Γότθοις μὲν, ὅπως ἐν τῇ ξυμβολῇ κυκλωσάμενοι τοὺς πολεμίους ἐν ἀμφιβόλῳ ποιήσονται, Ῥωμαίοις δὲ, ὅπως δὴ