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which held the Bulgarian royal palace, pitched its camp. This happening suddenly 2.394 cast the Scythians into astonishment and helplessness, and Kalokyros, the originator and cause of the present evils, not even enduring to hear the sound of the trumpet (for he too happened to be staying there), since he perceived that the emperor himself had arrived to be the agent of the war, secretly slipping out of the city, he deserts to the camp of the Rus. Seeing him, and learning of the emperor's arrival, they fell into no small confusion. But recovering themselves nevertheless, as Sviatoslav delivered many words of exhortation and spoke things suitable to the occasion, they arrived and encamped opposite the Romans. Meanwhile, the army with the emperor, arriving at the plain before the city, suddenly falls upon the enemy who were expecting nothing, and they catch men numbering about eight thousand five hundred, practicing armed drill outside the walls, who, having resisted for some time, then, being worn down, fled; and some were ingloriously slain, while others were saved in the city. And while these things were being done, the Scythians who were inside the city, perceiving the unexpected attack of the Romans and the engagement with their own men, each one, as the occasion permitted, taking up the nearest weapon, went out to help. The Romans, meeting them as they made their way in a disorderly and scattered fashion, killed them. Therefore, being unable to resist even for a short time, they turn 2.395 to flight. But as the horsemen of the Roman phalanx rode ahead and blocked the road leading to the city, they were slain, fleeing scattered over the plain and being overtaken, so that all the level ground was filled with corpses, and prisoners beyond number were taken.

And Sphangelos, who commanded the entire army in Preslav (and he was ranked second among the Scythians after Sviatoslav) and fearing, as was likely, for the city itself, having shut the gates and secured them with bars, went up to the wall, and with all kinds of missiles and stones he defended against the attacking Romans. Night, therefore, coming on, broke off the siege, and at dawn the *proedros* Basil appeared with all the multitude behind him; and the emperor, becoming overjoyed at his arrival, goes up onto a certain hill, so that he would be clearly visible to the Scythians, and the multitudes, coming together, surrounded the city. But when, though the emperor exhorted them many times to yield from their resistance and not be utterly destroyed, they were not persuaded to come down from the wall, the Romans, filled with righteous anger, took up the siege, both keeping back those above with arrows and setting ladders against the walls. And a certain valiant soldier, holding a sword in his right hand and holding his shield above his head with his left, was the first to climb up one of the ladders, and warding off the missiles with his shield, and defending himself with his sword against those attacking and hindering him, he goes up over the battlements, and having scattered all those there, he provided a safe 2.396 ascent for those behind; imitating him, another, and then another, and many others went up. And when a shield-wall was formed, the Scythians, being overpowered, threw themselves down from the walls. And many other Romans, in emulation of the first ones and in different places, were climbing up to the wall by means of ladders. And while the Scythians were in confusion, some unobserved came to the gates without difficulty, and opening them, led the army in. And in this way the city was taken, and the Scythians, fleeing through the narrow streets and being overtaken, were slain, and women and children were taken captive. And Boris, the king of the Bulgarians, was also captured, together with his wife and children, still wearing the insignia of royalty, and he was brought to the emperor. To him the emperor humanely

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ἥτις εἶχε τὰ τῶν Βουλγάρων βασίλεια, τὴν στρατοπεδείαν ἐπήξατο. τοῦτο αἰφνι 2.394 δίως γενόμενον τοὺς μὲν Σκύθας εἰς ἔκστασιν καὶ ἀμηχανίαν ἐνέ βαλε, Καλόκυρος δὲ ὁ τῶν παρόντων κακῶν πρωτουργός τε καὶ αἴτιος, μηδὲ τὴν τῆς σάλπιγγος ἠχὴν ἐνωτίσασθαι καρτερήσας (ἔτυχε γὰρ καὶ οὗτος ἐκεῖσε ἐνδιατρίβων), ἐπείπερ ᾔσθετο τὸν βασιλέα παραγενέσθαι αὐτὸν αὐτουργὸν ἐσόμενον τοῦ πολέμου, λάθρᾳ τοῦ ἄστεος ὑπεκδὺς πρὸς τὴν παρεμβολὴν ἀποδιδράσκει τῶν Ῥώς. ὃν ἰδόντες οὗτοι, καὶ τὴν τοῦ βασιλέως πυθόμενοι ἄφιξιν, ἐς ταραχὴν οὐ μετρίαν ἐνέπιπτον. ἀναλαβόντες δ' ὅμως ἑαυτούς, τοῦ Σφενδοσθλάβου πολλὰ παραινετικὰ ῥήματα καὶ τῷ καιρῷ δημηγορήσαντος πρόσφορα, ἀφικνοῦνται καὶ παραστρατο πεδεύονται τοῖς Ῥωμαίοις. τέως δὲ τὸ συνὸν τῷ βασιλεῖ στρά τευμα εἰς τὸ πρὸ τῆς πόλεως πεδίον παραγενόμενοι αἰφνιδίως μη δὲν προσδοκῶσι τοῖς πολεμίοις ἐμπίπτουσι, καταλαμβάνουσι δὲ ἔξω τειχῶν τὴν ἐνόπλιον παιδείαν γυμναζομένους ἄνδρας εἰς ὀκτα κισχιλίους καὶ πεντακοσίους ἀριθμουμένους, οἵτινες ἐπὶ χρόνον τινὰ ἀντισχόντες, εἶτα καταπονηθέντες ἔφευγον· καὶ οἱ μὲν ἀκλεῶς ἀνῃρέθησαν, οἱ δὲ εἰς τὴν πόλιν διασώζονται. ἐν ᾧ δὲ ταῦτα ἐπράττετο, οἱ ἔνδον ὄντες τῆς πόλεως Σκύθαι, τὴν ἀπρόοπτον ἐπέλευσιν αἰσθόμενοι τῶν Ῥωμαίων καὶ τὴν πρὸς τοὺς σφετέρους συμπλοκήν, ἕκαστος ὡς ὁ καιρὸς ἐδίδου τὸ προστυχὸν λαμβάνον τες ὅπλον ἐξῄεσαν εἰς βοήθειαν. οὓς συναντῶντες οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι, ἀσύντακτον καὶ διεσπασμένην τὴν πορείαν ποιοῦντας, ἔκτεινον. διὸ μηδ' ἀντισχεῖν κἂν ἐπὶ μικρὸν χρόνον δυνηθέντες κλίνουσιν 2.395 εἰς φυγήν. προδραμόντων δὲ τῶν ἱππέων τῆς Ῥωμαίων φάλαγγος καὶ τὴν ἐς τὴν πόλιν φέρουσαν ἐπιτειχισάντων, ἀνὰ τὸ πεδίον ἐσκε δασμένοι φεύγοντες καὶ καταλαμβανόμενοι ἀνῃροῦντο, ὡς ἅπαντα τὰ ὁμαλὰ πληρωθῆναι νεκρῶν, ζωγρίας δὲ ἁλῶναι ἀριθμοῦ κρείτ τους.

Σφάγελλος δὲ ὁ πάσης τῆς ἐν Περσθλάβᾳ στρατιᾶς ἐξη γούμενος (ἐτάττετο δὲ δεύτερος μετὰ τὸν Σφενδοσθλάβον ἐν Σκύ θαις) καὶ περὶ αὐτῆς ὡς εἰκὸς δείσας τῆς πόλεως, τὰς πύλας ἀποκλείσας καὶ μοχλοῖς ἐξασφαλισάμενος ἄνεισιν εἰς τὸ τεῖχος, καὶ παντοίοις βέλεσι καὶ λίθοις τοὺς ἐπιόντας Ῥωμαίους ἠμύνετο. νὺξ μὲν οὖν ἐπιγενομένη διέλυσε τὴν πολιορκίαν, ἕωθεν δὲ ὁ πρόεδρος Βασίλειος ἀνεφάνη μετὰ τοῦ κατόπιν παντὸς πλήθους· καὶ ὁ βα σιλεὺς τῇ τούτου ἐλεύσει περιχαρὴς γενόμενος ἄνεισιν ἐπί τινος γεωλόφου, ὡς εἴη τοῖς Σκύθαις καταφανής, τὰ δὲ πλήθη ἐς ταυτὸ συνελθόντα ἐκύκλουν τὴν πόλιν. ὡς δὲ πολλὰ τοῦ βασι λέως παρακαλοῦντος ἐνδοῦναι τῆς ἐνστάσεως καὶ μὴ ἄρδην ἀπολω λέναι, οὐκ ἐπείθοντο κατιέναι τοῦ τείχους, θυμοῦ δικαίου πλη σθέντες οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι εἴχοντο τῆς πολιορκίας, τόξοις τε τοὺς ἄνω θεν εἴργοντες καὶ κλίμακας τοῖς τείχεσι προσερείδοντες. καί τις στρατιώτης γεννάδας, ξίφος τῇ δεξιᾷ κατέχων καὶ τῇ λαιᾷ ἄνωθεν τῆς κεφαλῆς τὴν ἀσπίδα προβεβλημένος, πρῶτος διὰ μιᾶς τῶν κλιμάκων ἀναρριχώμενος, καὶ τῇ μὲν ἀσπίδι τὰς βολὰς ἀποκρουό μενος τῷ δὲ ξίφει τοὺς ἐπιόντας καὶ κωλύοντας ἀμυνόμενος, ἄνεισι διὰ τῶν ἐπάλξεων, καὶ τοὺς ἐκεῖσε πάντας διασκεδάσας ἄδειαν 2.396 ἀνόδου τοῖς κατόπιν παρέσχετο· ὃν μιμησάμενος ἄλλος καὶ αὖ ἄλλος καὶ πολλοὶ ἕτεροι ἀνῆλθον. καὶ συνασπισμοῦ γενομένου οἱ Σκύθαι κατισχυόμενοι ἑαυτοὺς ἀπὸ τῶν τειχῶν κατεκρήμνιζον. πολλοὶ δὲ καὶ ἄλλοι Ῥωμαῖοι κατὰ ζῆλον τῶν προτέρων καὶ ἐν διαφόροις τόποις διὰ κλιμάκων ἀνέβαινον εἰς τὸ τεῖχος. καὶ τῶν Σκυθῶν θορυβουμένων ἔλαθόν τινες ἀμογητὶ πρὸς τὰς πύλας ἐλ θεῖν, καὶ ταύτας ἀναπετάσαντες εἰσῆγον τὸ στράτευμα. καὶ τοῦ τον τὸν τρόπον τῆς πόλεως ἁλούσης οἱ μὲν Σκύθαι ἀνὰ τοὺς στε νωποὺς φεύγοντες καὶ καταλαμβανόμενοι ἀνῃροῦντο, γυναῖκες δὲ καὶ παιδία ᾐχμαλωτίζοντο. ἑάλω δὲ καὶ Βορίσης ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν Βουλγάρων ἅμα γυναικὶ καὶ τέκνοις, ἔτι τὰ παράσημα φέρων τῆς βασιλείας, καὶ εἰς βασιλέα ἀπήχθη. τούτῳ δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς φιλαν θρώπως