Such a decided reply troubled Big Nest considerably, and brought Rurik to confusion. He begged the Vladimir prince insistently to make war on Chernigoff. Big Nest promised “to mount his horse,” and commanded his warriors to assemble. Even Novgorod took the field at his order. But at the same time he received with pleasure envoys from Chernigoff, who declared that they had no thought to offend him. Big Nest dismounted, and commanded the Novgorod men to return to their city. We can understand easily this action of Big Nest. The demand made on Chernigoff, not only to abstain from seeking Kief, but also from entering Smolensk lands, showed the cause of the fear which disturbed Rurik, and concerned even Big Nest, though he considered it without direct interest. This question touched Drutsk, Vitebsk and neighboring places which, because they were near Chernigoff borders, were seized frequently by Smolensk princes. If the Chernigoff princes could not get these lands themselves, they preferred that the Polotsk princes should have them. The great point was that Smolensk should not get them. Now David, Rurik’s son, had seized Vitebsk, and therefore was in open enmity with Yaroslav of Chernigoff. To end this quarrel, Rurik promised to discuss the question with his brother. He laid down the condition that Chernigoff should not take arms till negotiations were finished. But the Chernigoff princes, who had prepared for war some months earlier, being roused now by Roman, were unwilling to wait for the end of negotiations between Smolensk and Kief, and began war that same winter to win the Smolensk border, where it touched their possessions on the Polotsk side. Yaroslav of Chernigoff sent forward Oleg, his nephew, and the Polotsk princes helped him. David, Rurik’s brother, sent against them his nephew, Mystislav, son-in-law of Big Nest. The first battle came out very strangely. The Chernigoff princes were thrown into confusion, and their banners were trampled by Smolensk. When Oleg’s son, David, was pursued by Mystislav of Smolensk, and Oleg was growing weak from attacks of the enemy, the Smolensk men were put to flight by a Polotsk onset. Since Smolensk was now beaten by Chernigoff, the Polotsk warriors ceased to pursue other Smolensk men, and turning, fell on the rear of Mystislav’s regiment and trampled it. Mystislav himself was following one of Oleg’s divisions. When he turned, after stopping pursuit, he thought that he would see his own men, that Chernigoff was conquered, but, to his amazement, he found not his men, but Polotsk warriors in front of him. They recognized him, and he was seized at once. Others, returning from the pursuit of Oleg of Chernigoff, beheld from afar the Polotsk triumph, and fled, as did all the men of Smolensk.