had been agreed upon, and he rewarded Goubazes and the Lazi
with additional sums of money. And it happened that long before this
time he had sent another considerable army also to Lazica, which had not
yet arrived there. The commander of this army was Rhecithancus, from
Thrace, a man of discretion and a capable warrior. Such then was the
course of these events.

Now when Mermeroes got into the mountains, as I have said, he was
anxious to fill Petra with provisions from there. For he did not by any
means think that the victuals which they had brought in with them would
suffice for the garrison there, amounting to three thousand men. But
since the supplies they found along the way barely sufficed for the
provisioning of that army, which numbered no less than thirty thousand,
and since on this account they were able to send nothing at all of
consequence to Petra, upon consideration he found it better for them
that the greater part of the army should depart from the land of
Colchis, and that some few should remain there, who were to convey to
the garrison in Petra the most of the provisions which they might find,
while using the rest to maintain themselves comfortably. He therefore
selected five thousand men and left them there, appointing as commanders
over them Phabrizus and three others. For it seemed to him unnecessary
to leave more men there, since there was no enemy at all. And he himself
with the rest of the army came into Persarmenia and remained quietly in
the country around Doubios.

Now the five thousand, upon coming nearer to the frontier of Lazica,
encamped in a body beside the Phasis River, and from there they went
about in small bands and plundered the neighbouring country. Now when
Goubazes perceived this, he sent word to Dagisthaeus to hasten there to
his assistance: for it would be possible for them to do the enemy some
great harm. And he did as directed, moving forward with the whole Roman
army with the River Phasis on the left, until he came to the place where
the Lazi where encamped on the opposite bank of the river. Now it
happened that the Phasis could be forded at this point, a fact which
neither the Romans nor the Persians suspected in the least because of
their lack of familiarity with these regions; but the Lazi knew it well,
and they made the crossing suddenly and joined the Roman army. And the
Persians chose out a thousand men of repute among them and sent them
forth, that no one might advance