192 TIMUR'S ACCOUNT OF HIS INVASION Now Burhan Aghlan 's adventure had been as fol- lows: When lie reached the fort of the Siyah-poshes, he found it empty, whereupon he incautiously pushed on to the defiles, following the footsteps of the enemy. Having left only a few troopers and a few foot-soldiers as a guard below, the infidels, rising from their am- bushes, fiercely assailed the true believers. Such was the cowardice and military incapacity of Burhan Agh- lan that he threw away his arms and fled without striking a blow. When the troops saw the flight of their leader, they lost heart and were defeated, and the infidels, following them closely, raised full many a true believer to the rank of a martyr. Of the amirs of the regiments, Daulat Shah and Shaikh Husain Suchi and Adina Bahadur displayed great valour, but after slaying many of the infidels, they finally drank the sherbet of martyrdom. Burhan Aghlan, however, escaped, leaving many horses and suits of armour a prey to the infidels. When Mohammad Azad arrived at the deserted fort of the Siyah-poshes with his four hundred men, he followed the track of the enemy toward the mountain. On arriving at the scene of Burhan Aghlan 's defeat and flight, he was attacked by the infidels who had defeated Burhan Aghlan, but he fought so gallantly that he routed them with great slaughter and recov- ered all the horses and armour which they had captured from the soldiers of Burhan Aghlan, besides taking much booty in the way of wealth and property. March- ing homeward, he met Burhan Aghlan on that very
