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having succeeded to the rule, he maintained peace and alliance with the Romans, yet he held on to his ancestral domain, and was unwilling to give it back to the Romans, as his father's letter had willed. Monomachos, therefore, having found the letter in the palace, demanded both Ani and all of greater Armenia, as the successor of the emperor Basil. But when he, while acknowledging himself a servant of the Romans, was unwilling to relinquish his paternal domain, it seemed to the emperor that war must be made. And so, having gathered an army and entrusted it to Michael Iasites the *vestes*, 2.558 an *archon* who had previously been appointed to Iberia, he intended to make war on Kakikios; and he, having departed, hastened to carry out his orders as far as was possible. Kakikios, learning of this, and that instead of a friend and ally he had been judged an enemy, also gathered his own forces as best he could and defended himself against the attackers. But since matters were going badly for Iasites, Nicholas the *proedros*, the Domestic of the Schools, the *parakoimomenos* of the emperor Constantine, was also sent with a heavy hand, in order to overcome Kakikios by number and by force. And letters were sent from the emperor to Aplesphares, the ruler of Tibium and of Persarmenia around the Araxes river, urging him to ravage, as much as possible, great Armenia and the land subject to Kakikios. So that Nicholas departed and set to work, and he sent the letters to Aplesphares, writing himself and urging and inciting him with gifts and promises to put into effect the emperor's intentions. But he, having received the letters, replied that he would carry out what had been ordered, if an imperial letter should be sent to him providing him security to hold with certain and absolute authority all the fortresses and territories that he might be able to acquire by the law of war from those belonging to Kakikios. The emperor accepted the proposal, and with chrysobull documents confirmed all that Aplesphares had requested; and he, having received the document, set to work, and 2.559 after besieging many of Kakikios's strongholds and territories, he seized them. But Kakikios, being warred upon by the Roman force and being plundered by the ruler of Tibium, and having despaired of everything, made a treaty with the *parakoimomenos* and submitted to the emperor through him, surrendering the city. And he, having come to the emperor and been honored as *magistros*, and having received very profitable estates in Cappadocia and Charsianon and Lykandros, lived from that time on a peaceful and untroubled life; but Monomachos, seeking the fortresses and territories that had been captured by the Tibiote, as parts of Ani, since that man would not willingly give them up but held fast to the chrysobull writ, took up war against him, and again ordered the *parakoimomenos*, with the Roman force, the Iberian army, and the force in great Armenia, which the Aniot led, to make war on Aplesphares. He, therefore, having gathered all the forces, and having placed in command of them Michael the *vestarches* Iasites and his own servant Constantine the Alan, the *magistros*, sent them out against the Tibiote. But Aplesphares, being a most strategic man, if ever there was one, and able to scatter the enemy's acts of war and counsels, knowing himself not a match for the Roman force, did not draw up in battle against it, but shut himself within the walls, and having diverted the river flowing by, and having flooded the whole plain and turned it into a swamp, it being muddy and stagnant, he awaited the attack of the 2.560 enemies, having scattered foot archers in the vineyards surrounding the city, and having ordered them to hide and wait, until he himself should signal the call to arms with the trumpet. But the commanders of the Romans, judging both the shutting up in the city and the flooding of the plain to be an act of cowardice and despair, in disorder and scattered, some having dismounted from their horses,

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διαδεξάμενος τὴν ἀρχὴν εἰρήνην μὲν διετήρει πρὸς Ῥωμαίους καὶ ὁμαιχμίαν, κατεῖχε μέν τοι τὴν πατρῴαν ἀρχήν, καὶ ἀποδοῦναι Ῥωμαίοις οὐκ ἤθελεν, ὡς τὸ πατρικὸν ἐβούλετο γραμματεῖον. εὑρὼν οὖν ἐν τοῖς ἀνακτό ροις τὸ γραμματεῖον ὁ Μονομάχος ἀπῄτει καὶ τὸ Ἀνίον καὶ τὴν πᾶσαν μεγάλην Ἀρμενίαν ὡς Βασιλείου τοῦ βασιλέως διάδοχος. τοῦ δὲ δοῦλον μὲν ἑαυτὸν ἀνομολογοῦντος Ῥωμαίων, ἀποστῆναι δὲ τῆς πατρῴας ἀρχῆς μὴ ἐθέλοντος, πολεμητέον ἐδόκει τῷ βα σιλεῖ. καὶ δὴ στρατὸν ἀγείρας καὶ Μιχαὴλ βέστῃ τῷ Ἰασίτῃ 2.558 ἐγχειρίσας, ἄρχοντι φθάσαντι προβληθῆναι τῆς Ἰβηρίας, πολε μεῖν ἐπεσκόπει τῷ Κακικίῳ· ὁ δὲ ἀπελθών, καθ' ὅσον οἷόν τ' ἦν, ἔσπευδεν ἐκπληροῦν τὰ προστεταγμένα. ὅπερ γνοὺς ὁ Κακίκιος, καὶ ὅτι ἀντὶ φίλου καὶ συμμάχου πολέμιος κέκριται, καὶ αὐτὸς τὰς αὐτοῦ δυνάμεις ἀγηοχὼς κατὰ τὸ ἐγχωροῦν αὐτῷ τοὺς ἐπιόν τας ἠμύνετο. κακῶς δὲ φερομένων τῶν πραγμάτων τῷ Ἰασίτῃ, πέμπεται καὶ ὁ Νικόλαος πρόεδρος ὁ δομέστικος τῶν σχολῶν, ὁ τοῦ βασιλέως Κωνσταντίνου παρακοιμώμενος, μετὰ βαρείας χει ρός, ὥστε τῷ πλήθει καὶ τῇ δυνάμει καταγωνίσασθαι τὸν Κακί κιον. στέλλονται δὲ γράμματα τοῦ βασιλέως πρὸς Ἀπλησφάρην τὸν ἄρχοντα τοῦ Τιβίου καὶ τῆς περὶ τὸν Ἀράξην ποταμὸν Περ σαρμενίας, παρακαλοῦντα τοῦτον κατὰ τὸ δυνατὸν δῃοῦν τὴν με γάλην Ἀρμενίαν καὶ τὴν ὑποκειμένην χώραν τῷ Κακικίῳ. ἀπελ θὼν οὖν ὁ Νικόλαος ἐκεῖνος μὲν ἔργου εἴχετο, τὰ δὲ γράμματα πέμπει πρὸς τὸν Ἀπλησφάρην, γράψας καὶ αὐτὸς καὶ παροτρύνας καὶ δώροις καὶ ὑποσχέσεσιν ἐρεθίσας ἐνεργοὺς θέσθαι τὰς βουλή σεις τοῦ βασιλέως. ὁ δὲ τὰ γράμματα δεξάμενος ἀμείβεται ἐπι τελῆ ποιῆσαι τὰ κεκελευσμένα, εἰ γράμμα πεμφθείη τούτῳ βασι λικὸν ἀσφάλειαν παρέχον αὐτῷ πάντα ἔχειν ἐν βεβαίῳ δεσποτικῶς τὰ φρούρια καὶ χωρία ὅσαπερ ἰσχύσειε νόμῳ πολέμου κτήσασθαι ἀπὸ τῶν διαφερόντων τῷ Κακικίῳ. ἐδέξατο τὸν λόγον ὁ βασι λεύς, καὶ χρυσοβούλλοις γραφαῖς ἐπιβεβαιοῖ ὅσα ὁ Ἀπλησφάρης ᾐτήσατο· καὶ δεξάμενος οὗτος τὸ γράμμα ἔργου ἥπτετο, καὶ 2.559 πολλὰ τῶν τοῦ Κακικίου ἐκπολιορκήσας κατέσχεν ὀχυρώματα καὶ χωρία. ὁ δὲ Κακίκιος ὑπό τε τῆς Ῥωμαϊκῆς δυνάμεως πολεμού μενος ὑπό τε τοῦ ἄρχοντος τοῦ Τιβίου λεηλατούμενος, καὶ τοῖς πᾶσιν ἀπεγνωκώς, σπένδεται πρὸς τὸν παρακοιμώμενον καὶ προσ χωρεῖ τῷ βασιλεῖ δι' αὐτοῦ, παραδοὺς τὴν πόλιν. καὶ ὁ μὲν ἐς τὸν βασιλέα ἐλθὼν καὶ μάγιστρος τιμηθείς, καὶ χωρία πολυ πρόσοδα κατά τε Καππαδοκίαν καὶ τὸν Χαρσιανὸν καὶ τὸν Λικαν δρὸν εἰληφώς, εἰρηνικὸν καὶ ἀτάραχον τὸν ἀπὸ τοῦδε ἔζησε βίον· ὁ δὲ Μονομάχος τὰ ἐκπολιορκηθέντα φρούρια παρὰ τοῦ Τιβιώτου καὶ χωρία ὡς μέρη τοῦ Ἀνίου ἐπιζητῶν, ἐπεὶ ἑκών γε ἐκεῖνος οὐ μεθίετο τούτων ἀλλ' ἀντείχετο τῆς χρυσοβούλλου γραφῆς, ἀναι ρεῖται πόλεμον πρὸς αὐτόν, καὶ πάλιν προστάττει τῷ παρακοι μωμένῳ μετά τε τῆς Ῥωμαϊκῆς χειρὸς τοῦ τε Ἰβηρικοῦ στρατοῦ καὶ τῆς ἐν τῇ μεγάλῃ Ἀρμενίᾳ δυνάμεως, ἧς κατῆρχεν ὁ Ἀνιώτης, τῷ Ἀπλησφάρῃ πολεμεῖν. πάσας οὖν οὗτος ἠθροικὼς τὰς δυνάμεις, καὶ ἄρχοντα αὐταῖς ἐπιστήσας Μιχαὴλ τὸν βεστάρχην τὸν Ἰασίτην καὶ τὸν ἑαυτοῦ δοῦλον Κωνσταντῖνον μάγιστρον τὸν Ἀλανόν, κατὰ τοῦ Τιβίου ἐκπέμπει. ὁ δὲ Ἀπλησφάρης στρατηγικώτατος ἄνθρωπος ὤν, εἴπερ τις ἄλλος, καὶ ἔργα πολεμικὰ καὶ βουλὰς ἐχθρῶν διασκεδάσαι δυνάμενος, πρὸς μὲν τὴν Ῥωμαϊκὴν δύναμιν εἰδὼς ἑαυτὸν μὴ ἀξιόχρεων οὐκ ἀντιπαρετάξατο, εἴσω δὲ τειχῶν συγκλείσας ἑαυτὸν καὶ τὸν παραρρέοντα μετοχετεύσας πο ταμόν, καὶ πᾶσαν ἐπικλύσας τὴν πεδιάδα καὶ ἀποτελματώσας πηλώδη τε οὖσαν καὶ τεναγώδη, προσέμενε τὴν ἐπέλευσιν τῶν 2.560 ἐναντίων, παρασπείρας ἐν τοῖς κύκλωθεν τῆς πόλεως οὖσιν ἀμπε λῶσι τοξότας πεζούς, καὶ κρύπτεσθαι καὶ προσμένειν κελεύσας, ἄχρις ἂν αὐτὸς τῇ σάλπιγγι ἐπισημήνηται τὸ ἐνυάλιον. οἱ δὲ τῶν Ῥωμαίων ἄρχοντες τόν τε εἰς τὴν πόλιν συγκλεισμὸν καὶ τὴν τῆς πεδιάδος ἐπίκλυσιν δειλίας ἔργον καὶ ἀπογνώσεως κρίναντες, ἄτα κτοι καὶ σποράδην ἄλλοι μὲν τοὺς ἵππους ἀποβάντες,