§5.15.1μελλόντων δʼ αὐτῶν εἰς χεῖρας ἰέναι προελθὼν ἐκ τῆς τάξεως τῶν Τυρρηνῶν εἷς τῶν Ταρκυνίου παίδων, Ἄρρους ὄνομα, ῥωμήν τε κράτιστος καὶ ψυχὴν λαμπρότατος τῶν ἀδελφῶν, ἐγγὺς τῶν Ῥωμαίων ἐλάσας τὸν ἵππον, ὅθεν μορφήν τε καὶ φωνὴν ἅπαντες ἔμελλον αὐτοῦ συνήσειν, λόγους ὑβριστὰς εἰς τὸν ἡγεμόνα τῶν Ῥωμαίων Βροῦτον ἀπερρίπτει, θηρίον ἄγριον ἀποκαλῶν καὶ τέκνων αἵματι μιαρόν, ἀνανδρίαν τʼ ἐν ταὐτῷ καὶ δειλίαν ὀνειδίζων, καὶ τελευτῶν εἰς τὸν ὑπὲρ ἁπάντων ἀγῶνα προὐκαλεῖτο μόνον αὑτῷ §5.15.2συνοισόμενον.
As they were about to come to blows, one of the sons of Tarquinius, named Arruns, who was the strongest in physical strength and the most brilliant in spirit of the brothers, coming forward out of the ranks of the Etruscans, rode his horse near the Romans, to a place where everyone was likely to perceive both his appearance and voice, and hurled insulting words at Brutus, the commander of the Romans, calling him a wild beast and polluted with his children's blood, while at the same time reproaching him with unmanliness and cowardice, and finally, challenged him to single combat, to engage with him alone in a contest on behalf of all.
κἀκεῖνος οὐκ ἀξιῶν τοὺς ὀνειδισμοὺς ὑπομένειν ἤλαυνε τὸν ἵππον ἐκ τῆς τάξεως, ὑπεριδὼν καὶ τῶν ἀποτρεπόντων φίλων ἐπὶ τὸν κατεψηφισμένον ὑπὸ τῆς μοίρας θάνατον ἐπειγόμενος.
And Brutus, not deigning to endure the reproaches, rode his horse out of the ranks, ignoring even his friends who tried to deter him, and hastening toward the death decreed by fate.
ὁμοίῳ δʼ ἀμφότεροι θυμῷ φερόμενοι καὶ λογισμὸν οὐχ ὧν πείσονται λαβόντες, ἀλλʼ ὧν ἐβούλοντο δρᾶσαι, συρράττουσι τοὺς ἵππους ἐξ ἐναντίας ἐλαύνοντες καὶ φέρουσι ταῖς σαρίσαις ἀφύκτους κατʼ ἀλλήλων πληγὰς ἀμφότεροι διʼ ἀσπίδων τε καὶ θωράκων, ὁ μὲν εἰς τὰ πλευρὰ βάψας τὴν αἰχμήν, ὁ δʼ εἰς τὰς λαγόνας· καὶ οἱ ἵπποι αὐτῶν ἐμπλέξαντες τὰ στήθη τῇ ῥύμῃ τῆς φορᾶς ἐπὶ τοῖς ὀπισθίοις ἀνίστανται ποσὶ καὶ τοὺς ἐπιβάτας ἀναχαιτίσαντες ἀποσείονται.
Both carried away by a similar passion, taking no thought of what they would suffer, but only of what they wished to do, clashed their horses, riding from opposite directions, and both dealt inescapable blows to each other with their pikes through both shields and breastplates, the one plunging his spear-point into the ribs, the other into the flanks; and their horses, entangling their chests from the force of their charge, reared up on their hind legs and, throwing back their heads, shook off their riders.
§5.15.3οὕτω μὲν δὴ πεσόντες ἔκειντο πολὺ διὰ τῶν τραυμάτων ἐκβάλλοντες αἷμα καὶ ψυχορραγοῦντες, αἱ δʼ ἄλλαι δυνάμεις ὡς τοὺς ἡγεμόνας εἶδον συμπεσόντας, ὠθοῦνται σὺν ἀλαλαγμῷ καὶ πατάγῳ, καὶ γίνεται μέγιστος ἁπάντων ἀγὼν πεζῶν τε §5.15.4καὶ ἱππέων καὶ τύχη περὶ ἀμφοτέρους ὁμοία.
Thus indeed, having fallen, they lay pouring out much blood from their wounds and breathing their last, while the rest of the forces, when they saw their leaders fall together, rushed forward with a shout and a clash, and there arose the greatest contest of all, both of infantry and of cavalry, and the fortune on both sides was equal.
Ῥωμαίων τε γὰρ οἱ τὸ δεξιὸν κέρας ἔχοντες, ἐφʼ οὗ τεταγμένος ἦν ὁ ἕτερος τῶν ὑπάτων Οὐαλέριος, ἐνίκων τοὺς Οὐιεντανοὺς καὶ μέχρι τοῦ στρατοπέδου διώξαντες ἐπλήρωσαν νεκρῶν τὸ πεδίον, Τυρρηνῶν τε οἱ τὴν τοῦ δεξιοῦ κέρατος ἔχοντες στάσιν, ὧν ἡγοῦντο Τῖτος καὶ Σέξτος οἱ Ταρκυνίου τοῦ βασιλέως παῖδες, ἐτρέψαντο τοὺς ἐπὶ τοῦ λαιοῦ ὄντας Ῥωμαίων κέρατος, καὶ πλησίον τοῦ χάρακος αὐτῶν γενόμενοι πείρας μὲν οὐκ ἀπέστησαν, εἰ δύναιντο ἑλεῖν τὸ ἔρυμα ἐξ ἐφόδου, πολλὰς δὲ πληγὰς λαβόντες ὑποστάντων αὐτοὺς τῶν ἔνδον ἀπετράποντο.
For the Romans who held the right wing, on which Valerius, one of the two consuls, was stationed, defeated the Veientes and, pursuing them as far as their camp, filled the plain with corpses, while the Etruscans who held the position of the right wing, commanded by Titus and Sextus, the sons of King Tarquinius, routed those on the left wing of the Romans, and getting near their entrenchment, they did not refrain from making an attempt to see if they could capture the fortification by storm, but receiving many wounds from those within who stood their ground against them, they were turned back.
ἦσαν δʼ αὐτοῦ φύλακες οἱ τριάριοι λεγόμενοι, παλαιοί τε καὶ πολλῶν ἔμπειροι πολέμων, οἷς ἐσχάτοις, ὅταν ἀπογνωσθῇ πᾶσα ἐλπίς, εἰς τοὺς περὶ τῶν μεγίστων ἀγῶνας καταχρῶνται.
Now there were guards there, those called the triarii, veterans experienced in many wars, whom they employ as a last resort, when all hope is despaired of, in struggles for the greatest stakes.