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and astonished by the violent rush and impetus of the Romans, they are utterly routed and fall all together, so that not even a messenger (as the saying goes) was left from the disaster, with Inargos himself also having fallen during the attack. But having gathered much booty and numerous horses, they decided not to return to Chosroes, but taking the road leading to Roman territory and making a swift journey, they escaped unnoticed and were saved in their own lands. But another account has it that after the victory against the Persians, upon their return Chosroes received them kindly, and when after a short while the end of his life reached him, he enjoined his son and namesake and king after him to give an alliance to the Romans and to send them home. And so Scleros, in one of the aforementioned ways, reaches Roman territory, finding Bardas Phocas being acclaimed as emperor, and he himself likewise being acclaimed by his companions. And finding matters thus arranged, he was of differing and various opinions; for he judged himself too weak to maintain and sustain the rebellion by himself alone; 2.442 but he thought it very ignoble and 2.442 unmanly to join Phocas or the emperor. After much deliberation, therefore, with his companions, in the end he considered being acclaimed as emperor alone hazardous and unprofitable on account of its impossibility, but to approach one of the potentates and to scorn the other he condemned on account of the uncertainty of the future. He decided, therefore, as far as possible to win over both powers, so that in case of failure with one, he might have the other as a helper and supporter. He himself, therefore, sends letters to Phocas, requesting a joint enterprise and a division of the empire, if they should be able to defeat the emperor. But secretly he sends his son Romanos to the emperor as if he had deserted, having reasoned and judged very shrewdly, so that if Phocas should prevail, he himself might be the savior of his child, but if the emperor's side should prove stronger, he himself, being excused through him, might be rescued from danger. And so Romanos, giving the appearance of flight, goes away to the emperor; whom this man received very kindly and joyfully, and he immediately honored him as magistros and used him always as an advisor in the wars. For indeed, after the retreat of Scleros into Syria, the emperor, being freed from his worries and taking up the administration more manfully, when he learned that the parakoimomenos was not pleased with what was being done but was muttering and was expected to do terrible things, if he got the opportunity, he deposes this man from his 2.443 authority and orders him to remain at home, but again, seeing that he was not keeping quiet but was always plotting strange things and hastening to recover his former authority, he places him in exile across the Strait, having taken away also the greater part of his property, so that, not having the material resources, he might not manage to do anything irreparable; but he himself, deprived of his counsel, and being in need of friends and helpers in the circumstances, then genuinely welcomed Romanos, knowing him to be a shrewd and energetic man and most capable in matters of war. But Bardas Phocas, when he learned of the reported return of Scleros, sends letters declaring those very things that were to his liking, and he confirmed his promises with oaths, saying, "if we obtain what we hope for, you will rule Antioch and Phoenicia and Coele-Syria and Palestine and Mesopotamia, but I will be ruler of the queen city itself and of the remaining nations." And Scleros, receiving the words with great joy, and trusting in the oaths, goes away into Cappadocia to Phocas, ostensibly to fulfill the joint enterprise. But that man, having caught him inside the net, strips him of the imperial insignia and sends him to the fortress of Tyropoion, having placed a not inconsiderable guard around him. And he himself, giving a part of the army to Kalokyros Delphinas the patrikios, sends him against Chrysopolis, across the strait from the queen city. As for the rest

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καὶ τῇ ῥαγδαίᾳ φορᾷ καὶ ῥύμῃ τῶν Ῥωμαίων καταπλαγέν τες τρέπονται κατὰ κράτος καὶ πίπτουσι πανσυδί, ὡς μηδ' ἄγγε λον (τοῦτο δὴ τὸ τοῦ λόγου) περιλειφθῆναι τῆς συμφορᾶς, πε σόντος καὶ αὐτοῦ Ἰνάργου κατὰ τὴν προσβολήν. λείαν δ' ὅτι πολλὴν περιβαλόμενοι καὶ ἵππους συχνοὺς οὐκέθ' ὑποστρέψαι πρὸς Χοσρόην ἔγνωσαν, ἀλλὰ τῆς ἐπὶ Ῥωμαίους ἀγούσης ἁψάμενοι καὶ συντόνῳ χρησάμενοι τῇ ὁδοιπορίᾳ ἔλαθον διαδράντες καὶ εἰς τὰ σφέτερα ἤθη διασωθέντες. ἕτερος δὲ λόγος ἔχει ὡς μετὰ τὴν κατὰ Περσῶν νίκην ἐπανελθόντας ἐδέξατο φιλοφρόνως αὐτοὺς ὁ Χοσρόης, καὶ ἐπεὶ μετ' ὀλίγον τὸ τῆς ζωῆς αὐτὸν ἔφθασε τέλος, ἐπέσκηψε τῷ υἱῷ καὶ ὁμωνύμῳ καὶ μετ' αὐτὸν βασιλεῖ συμμαχίαν δοῦναι τοῖς Ῥωμαίοις καὶ οἴκαδε πέμψαι. καὶ ὁ μὲν Σκληρὸς ἑνὶ τῶν εἰρημένων τρόπων τὴν Ῥωμαίων καταλαμβάνει γῆν, εὑρὼν Βάρδαν τὸν Φωκᾶν ὡς βασιλέα ἀνευφημούμενον, καὶ αὐτὸς ὁμοίως παρὰ τῶν συνόντων ἀνευφημούμενος. Οὕτω δὲ τὰ πράγματα εὑρηκὼς διακείμενα διάφορος ἦν καὶ ποικίλος ταῖς γνώμαις· ἑαυτὸν μὲν γὰρ ἀσθενέστατον ἔκρινεν εἰς τὸ καθ' ἑαυτὸν μόνον συνέχειν καὶ διακρατεῖν τὴν ἀποστασίαν· 2.442 προσχωρῆσαι δὲ τῷ Φωκᾷ ἢ τῷ βασιλεῖ λίαν ἀγεννὲς ᾠήθη καὶ 2.442 ἄνανδρον. πολλὰ γοῦν γνωματεύσας μετὰ τῶν συνόντων, τέλος τὸ μὲν μόνος ἀνευφημεῖσθαι ὡς βασιλεὺς παράβολον καὶ ἀλυσιτε λὲς διὰ τὸ ἀδύνατον ἐλογίζετο, ἑνὶ δὲ προσφοιτῆσαι τῶν δυναστῶν καὶ τοῦ ἑτέρου καταφρονῆσαι κατεγίνωσκε διὰ τὸ τοῦ μέλλοντος ἄδηλον. ἔγνω οὖν κατὰ τὸ δυνατὸν καὶ ἄμφω προσκτήσασθαι τὰς ἀρχάς, ἵν' ἐξ ἀποτυχίας τὴν ἑτέραν ἔχῃ βοηθὸν καὶ συλλή πτορα. γράμματα μὲν οὖν αὐτὸς ἐκπέμπει πρὸς τὸν Φωκᾶν, κοινοπραγίαν ἐξαιτῶν καὶ τῆς βασιλείας διανομήν, εἰ καταγωνί σασθαι δυνηθεῖεν τὸν βασιλέα. λάθρᾳ δὲ Ῥωμανὸν τὸν υἱὸν ἐκπέμπει πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα ὡς τάχα αὐτομολήσαντα, λίαν ἐντρε χῶς λογισάμενός τε καὶ κρίνας, ἵν' εἰ μὲν ὁ Φωκᾶς ὑπερέχῃ, αὐ τὸς εἴη σωτὴρ τοῦ παιδός, εἰ δ' ἐπικρατέστερα τὰ τοῦ βασιλέως ὑπάρξει, αὐτὸς δι' ἐκείνου παραιτηθεὶς τοῦ κινδύνου ῥυσθείη. καὶ ὁ μὲν Ῥωμανὸς δόκησιν φυγῆς παρασχὼν ἄπεισι πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα· ὃν οὗτος φιλοφρόνως ἄγαν δεξάμενος καὶ περιχαρῶς μάγιστρόν τε εὐθέως ἐτίμησε καὶ συμβούλῳ διὰ παντὸς ἐν τοῖς πολέμοις ἐχρῆτο. καὶ γὰρ δὴ μετὰ τὴν εἰς Συρίαν ὑποχώρησιν τοῦ Σκληροῦ τῶν φροντίδων ὁ βασιλεὺς ἀπαλλαγεὶς καὶ τῶν διοι κήσεων ἁπτόμενος ἀνδρικώτερον, ἐπεὶ ἔγνω τὸν παρακοιμώμενον μὴ ἀρεσκόμενον τοῖς δρωμένοις ἀλλ' ὑποτονθορύζοντα καὶ δεινὰ δράσειν, εἰ καιροῦ λάβοιτο, ἐλπιζόμενον, τοῦτον μὲν κατάγει τῆς 2.443 ἐξουσίας καὶ οἴκοι μένειν προστάττει, αὖθις δὲ μὴ ἠρεμοῦντα ὁρῶν ἀλλ' ἀεὶ μελετῶντα ἀλλόκοτα καὶ τὴν προτέραν ἀπειληφέναι σπεύδοντα ἐξουσίαν ὑπερόριον ἀνὰ τὸ Στενὸν τίθησιν, ἀφελόμενος καὶ τὰ πλείω τῆς οὐσίας αὐτοῦ, ὡς μὴ κεχορηγημένην ἔχων ὕλην φθάσαι τι δρᾶσαι τῶν ἀνηκέστων· αὐτὸς δὲ τῆς ἐξ αὐτοῦ μονω θεὶς συμβουλῆς, καὶ φίλων δεόμενος καὶ συνεργῶν ἐν ταῖς περι στάσεσι, τότε γνησίως τὸν Ῥωμανὸν προσεδέξατο, ἄνδρα εἰδὼς ἐντρεχῆ καὶ δραστήριον καὶ τὰ πολεμικὰ ἱκανώτατον. Βάρδας δὲ ὁ Φωκᾶς ὡς τὴν τοῦ Σκληροῦ ἐπάνοδον προσαγ γελθεῖσαν ἐπύθετο, γράμματά τε ἐκπέμπει αὐτὰ ἐκεῖνα δηλοῦντα τὰ ἐκείνῳ πρὸς τρόπου, καὶ ὅρκοις ἐπιστοῦτο τὰς ὑποσχέσεις, "εἰ τῶν ἠλπισμένων τύχωμεν" λέγων, "σὺ μὲν ἄρξεις Ἀντιοχείας καὶ Φοινίκης καὶ Κοίλης Συρίας καὶ Παλαιστίνης καὶ Μεσοποτα μίας, ἐγὼ δὲ ἄρχων ἔσομαι τῆς βασιλίδος αὐτῆς καὶ τῶν ὑπολοί πων ἐθνῶν." δεξάμενος δὲ περιχαρῶς ὁ Σκληρὸς τοὺς λόγους, καὶ τοῖς ὅρκοις θαρρήσας, ἄπεισιν ἐν Καππαδοκίᾳ πρὸς τὸν Φω κᾶν ὡς τάχα πληρώσων τὴν κοινοπραγίαν. ἐκεῖνος δὲ τοῦτον ἔνδον τῆς σαγήνης λαβὼν ἀπαμφιέννυσί τε τὰ τῆς βασιλείας πα ράσημα καὶ εἰς τὸ φρούριον τὸ Τυροποιὸν ἐκπέμπει, φρουρὰν οὐκ ἀγεννῆ περιστήσας αὐτῷ. αὐτὸς δὲ μέρος τοῦ στρατοῦ παρα σχὼν Καλοκυρῷ πατρικίῳ τῷ ∆ελφηνᾷ ἐκπέμπει κατὰ τὴν ἀντί πορθμον τῇ βασιλίδι Χρυσόπολιν. τὸ δὲ λοιπὸν