s
also, clad in the garments which the Roman soldiers are accustomed to
wear. And setting off with the whole fleet, he sailed at full speed
straight for Hadrumetum. And when he had come close to it, he sent some
men stealthily and declared to the notables of the city that Germanus,
the emperor's nephew, had recently come to Carthage, and had sent a very
considerable army to the citizens of Hadrumetum. And he bade them take
courage at this and open for them one small gate that night. And they
carried out his orders. Thus Paulus with his followers got inside the
fortifications, and he slew all the enemy and recovered Hadrumetum for
the emperor; and the rumour about Germanus, beginning there, went even
to Carthage. And the Moors, as well as Stotzas and his followers, upon
hearing this, at first became terrified and went off in flight to the
extremities of Libya, but later, upon learning the truth, they counted
it a terrible thing that they, after sparing all the citizens of
Hadrumetum, had suffered such things at their hands. For this reason
they made raids everywhere and wrought unholy deeds upon the Libyans,
sparing no one whatever his age, and the land became at that time for
the most part depopulated. For of the Libyans who had been left some
fled into the cities and some to Sicily and the other islands. But
almost all the notables came to Byzantium, among whom was Paulus also,
who had recovered Hadrumetum for the emperor. And the Moors with still
less fear, since no one came out against them, were plundering
everything, and with them Stotzas, who was now powerful. For many Roman
soldiers were following him, some who had come as deserters, and others
who had been in the beginning captives but now remained with him of
their own free will. And John, who was indeed a man of some reputation
among the Moors, was remaining quiet because of the extreme hostility he
had conceived against Sergius.

XXIV

At this time the emperor sent to Libya, with some few soldiers, another
general, Areobindus, a man of the senate and of good birth, but not at
all skilled in matters of warfare. And he sent with him Athanasius, a
prefect, who had come recently from Italy, and some few Armenians led by
Artabanes and John, sons of John, of the line of the Arsacidae,[66] who
had recently left the Persian army and as deserters had come back to the
Romans, together with the other Armenians. And with Areobindus was his
sister and Prejecta, his wi