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And he was ordered to open and empty one of three sacks placed before him, then the second, and in succession the third. When he had done as he was commanded, the first poured out snakes and vipers and scorpions; the second, toads and asps and basilisks and horned vipers and other venomous creatures; and the third, beetles and gnats and wasps and some other stinging animals. And he stood speechless at the sight, but that cheerful man, bringing him very near, said, "These things have come and will come upon you because of the transgression of God’s commandments and the unholy deed done to the Emperor Romanos and to his bed." And these things came to pass thus. 2.510 But the Emperor Michael, being hindered by the demonic sickness, and being otherwise sluggish and dull in the handling of affairs, had the form and name of the empire, but all the real power of civil and military affairs was in the hands of John. Therefore, he immediately appointed his brother Niketas as duke of Antioch, whom, when he arrived, the Antiochenes did not allow to enter the city; for a short time before, a certain tax-collector, Salibas by name, who was put in charge of their affairs and had treated the people harshly, was killed by the populace of the Antiochenes. On account of his murder, therefore, lest they suffer something incurable, the fearful Antiochenes barred entry to Niketas. But when he assured them with oaths that there would be an amnesty of evils for them and that no one would suffer anything unpleasant on account of the murder of Salibas, they permitted his entry. But he, having seized the city and become master of its affairs, caring little or nothing for his oaths, killed about 100 men by beheading and impaling them, and after confiscating the property of eleven leading men, very wealthy and distinguished by birth, of whom the chief was the patrician Elpidios, he sent them as prisoners to Byzantium, writing to his brother John that his entry into the city had been prevented not on account of the murder of Salibas, but because of their goodwill toward Dalassenos. This became a spark for John's pre-existing suspicion against Dalassenos and it was kindled into a torch. And immediately he is brought before the emperor, and on the third 2.511 of the month of August of the second indiction, he is confined to the island of Plate. His son-in-law Constantine Doukas is also cast into a certain tower, because he was crying out against the injustice and denouncing the violation of the oaths and calling God to witness. And because of him three men from Asia Minor, noble and wealthy, also suffered, Goudeles, Baianos, and the so-called Probatas, their property being confiscated and assigned to Constantine, the emperor's brother. Then also Symeon the protovestiarios, one of the servants of Emperor Constantine, because he was not pleased with what was being done, but cried out against the injustice toward Dalassenos and the imperial violation of the oaths, is also driven from the city, and going to Olympos, he put aside his secular hair, being tonsured in the monastery newly built by him. In the same year, when an earthquake also occurred, Jerusalem suffered badly, with many people dying in the collapses of churches and houses, the earth shaking for up to forty days. In the month of September of the year #22φμγʹ, the 3rd indiction, a pillar of fire appeared in the east, showing its top inclined toward the south. During which days the Saracens also took Myra. And the Beroeans, who are also Aleppines, drove out the governor sent to them by the emperor. And Pankratios the Abasgian, ostensibly avenging the Emperor Romanos as the uncle of his wife, renounced the peace with the 2.512 Romans and recovered all the castles and forts previously given. And the Patzinaks, having crossed the Ister, plundered all the

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καὶ ὃς τριῶν παρακειμένων ἔμπροσθεν αὐτοῦ σάκκων λῦσαι προσ ετάχθη τὸν ἕνα καὶ κενῶσαι, εἶτα τὸν δεύτερον καὶ ἐφεξῆς τὸν τρίτον. τοῦ δὲ ὡς ἐκελεύσθη ποιήσαντος, ὁ μὲν πρῶτος ὄφεις καὶ ἐχίδνας καὶ σκορπίους ἐξέβρασεν, ὁ δὲ δεύτερος φρύνους καὶ ἀσπίδας καὶ βασιλίσκους καὶ κεράστας καὶ ἕτερα ἰοβόλα, ὁ δὲ τρίτος κανθάρους καὶ σκνῖπας καὶ σφῆκας καί τινα ἄλλα τῶν ὀπι σθοκέντρων ζῴων. καὶ ὁ μὲν ἐπὶ τῷ θεάματι ἵστατο ἐννεός, ὁ δὲ φαιδρὸς ἐκεῖνος ἀνὴρ ἔγγιστα παραστησάμενος αὐτὸν "ταῦτα" ἔφη "ἐπῆλθέ τε καὶ ἐλεύσεται ἐφ' ὑμᾶς διὰ τὴν παράβασιν τῶν τοῦ θεοῦ ἐντολῶν καὶ τὸ γενόμενον ἀνόσιον ἔργον εἴς τε τὸν βασι λέα Ῥωμανὸν καὶ εἰς τὴν αὐτοῦ κοίτην." καὶ ταῦτα μὲν συνη νέχθη τῇδε. 2.510 Μιχαὴλ δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς ὑπό τε τῆς δαιμονίας νόσου εἰργόμε νος, καὶ ἄλλως πρὸς μεταχείρησιν πραγμάτων νωθρός τις ὢν καὶ ἀμβλύς, σχῆμα μὲν εἶχε τῆς βασιλείας καὶ ὄνομα, ἡ δὲ τῶν πρα γμάτων ἐνέργεια ἅπασα πολιτικῶν τε καὶ στρατιωτικῶν ἐν ταῖς χερσὶν ἦν τοῦ Ἰωάννου. εὐθὺς οὖν προχειρίζεται τὸν αὐτοῦ ἀδελ φὸν Νικήταν δοῦκα Ἀντιοχείας, ὃν ἀπελθόντα εἰσελθεῖν ἐν τῇ πόλει οὐ συνεχώρησαν οἱ Ἀντιοχεῖς· πρὸ μικροῦ γὰρ φορολόγος τις, Σαλίβας τὴν προσηγορίαν, τὰ κατ' αὐτοὺς ἐπιτετραμμένος καὶ βαρέως τοῖς ἀνθρώποις προσενηνεγμένος κτείνεται παρὰ τοῦ δήμου τῶν Ἀντιοχέων. διὰ γοῦν τὸν τούτου φόνον, ἵνα μή τι καὶ ἀνήκεστον πάθωσιν, οἱ Ἀντιοχεῖς δεδιότες ἀπέκλεισαν τῷ Νι κήτᾳ τὴν εἴσοδον. ὅρκοις δὲ τούτου πιστωσαμένου ὡς ἀμνηστία κακῶν αὐτοῖς ἔσεται καὶ οὐδὲν οὐδεὶς πείσεται ἄχαρι διὰ τὸν τοῦ Σαλίβα φόνον, συγχωροῦσι τὴν εἴσοδον. ὁ δὲ τῆς πόλεως ἐπει λημμένος καὶ κύριος τῶν πραγμάτων γενόμενος, ὀλίγα ἢ οὐδὲν τῶν ὅρκων φροντίσας, ἀμφὶ μὲν τοὺς ἄνδρας ρʹ ἀπέκτεινεν ἀπο τεμών τε καὶ ἀνασκολοπίσας, ἕνδεκα δὲ τοὺς προύχοντας ζαπλού τους ἄνδρας καὶ γένει περιφανεῖς δημεύσας, ὧν κορυφαῖος ἦν ὁ πατρίκιος Ἐλπίδιος, δεσμίους ἐκπέμπει πρὸς τὸ Βυζάντιον, γρά ψας τῷ ἀδελφῷ Ἰωάννῃ μὴ διὰ τὸν τοῦ Σαλίβα φόνον κωλυθῆ ναι αὐτῷ τὴν εἰς τὴν πόλιν εἴσοδον, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὴν εἰς τὸν ∆αλασ σηνὸν εὔνοιαν. τοῦτο τῆς προαποκειμένης ὑπονοίας κατὰ τοῦ ∆αλασσηνοῦ τῷ Ἰωάννῃ ζώπυρον ἐγεγόνει καὶ εἰς πυρσὸν ἀνήπτετο. καὶ εὐθὺς ἄγεται εἰς τὸν βασιλέα, καὶ κατὰ τὴν τρίτην 2.511 τοῦ Αὐγούστου μηνὸς τῆς δευτέρας ἰνδικτιῶνος ἐν τῇ νήσῳ Πλάτῃ περιορίζεται. βάλλεται δὲ καὶ ἔν τινι πύργῳ ὁ ἐπὶ θυγατρὶ γαμ βρὸς αὐτοῦ Κωνσταντῖνος ὁ ∆οῦκας, ὅτιπερ ἐπεβοᾶτο τὴν ἀδικίαν καὶ τὴν παράβασιν τῶν ὅρκων ἐξήλεγχε καὶ τὸν θεὸν ἐμαρτύρετο. ἔπαθον δὲ δι' αὐτὸν καὶ ἄνδρες τρεῖς τῶν ἐκ τῆς μικρᾶς Ἀσίας εὐγενεῖς καὶ πλούσιοι, ὁ Γουδέλης, ὁ Βαϊανὸς καὶ ὁ λεγόμενος Προβατᾶς, δημευθείσης τῆς οὐσίας αὐτῶν καὶ Κωνσταντίνῳ τῷ τοῦ βασιλέως ἀφορισθείσης ἀδελφῷ. τότε καὶ Συμεὼν πρωτο βεστιάριος, ὁ τῶν θεραπόντων τοῦ βασιλέως εἷς Κωνσταντίνου, ὅτι μὴ ἠρέσκετο τοῖς δρωμένοις, ἀλλὰ τὴν εἰς τὸν ∆αλασσηνὸν ἀδικίαν ἐπεβοᾶτο καὶ τὴν τῶν ὅρκων ἀθέτησιν τῶν βασιλείων, διώκεται καὶ τῆς πόλεως, κἀν τῷ Ὀλύμπῳ γενόμενος τὴν κοσμι κὴν ἀπέθετο τρίχα, καρεὶς ἐν τῷ παρ' αὐτοῦ νεουργηθέντι μο ναστηρίῳ. Τῷ δ' αὐτῷ ἔτει καὶ σεισμοῦ γενομένου κακῶς ἔπαθον τὰ Ἱεροσόλυμα, τεθνηκότων ἀνθρώπων πολλῶν ἐν τοῖς τῶν ἐκκλη σιῶν καὶ τῶν οἰκιῶν συμπτώμασι, σειομένης τῆς γῆς ἄχρι τεσσα ράκοντα ἡμερῶν. τῷ δὲ Σεπτεμβρίῳ μηνὶ τοῦ #22φμγʹ ἔτους, ἰνδικτιῶνος γʹ, στῦλος πυρὸς ἐφαίνετο κατὰ τὴν ἑῴαν, τὴν κορυ φὴν κεκλιμένην φαίνων πρὸς μεσημβρίαν. καθ' ἃς ἡμέρας καὶ οἱ Σαρακηνοὶ ᾖραν τὰ Μύρα. ἐξεδίωξαν δὲ καὶ οἱ Βερροιαῖοι οἱ καὶ Χαλεπῖται τὸν παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως πεμφθέντα αὐτοῖς ἁρμο στήν. καὶ Παγκράτιος δὲ ὁ Ἀβασγός, Ῥωμανὸν τὸν βασιλέα δῆθεν ἐκδικῶν ὡς θεῖον τῆς γυναικὸς αὐτοῦ, τήν τε πρὸς Ῥω 2.512 μαίους εἰρήνην ἀπείπατο καὶ τὰ πρῴην δοθέντα κάστρα καὶ φρού ρια ἅπαντα ἀνεκτήσατο. περαιωθέντες δὲ καὶ τὸν Ἴστρον οἱ Πατζινάκαι πᾶσαν ἐληΐσαντο τὴν