Lucullus marched on the town of Itercatia (location uncertain), where more than 20,000 infantry and 2,000 cavalry had taken refuge. He called for peace talks. The inhabitants reproached him for the slaughter of the Caucaei and asked him if he intended to do the same to them. Appian wrote: "he, like all guilty souls, being angry with his accusers instead of reproaching himself, laid waste their fields". He then began a siege and repeatedly lined up his men for battle to provoke a fight. The enemy did not respond, save for one man who often rode into the gaps between the Roman armies and challenged them to single combat. Nobody accepted and he went back to making insulting gestures. Then the young Scipio Aemilianus accepted and luckily defeated this big man despite the size difference. This lifted the spirit of the Romans. However, the next night an enemy cavalry contingent which had gone out foraging before Lucullus had arrived ran about shouting while those inside the city also shouted. This caused terror in the Roman camp. The soldiers were sick due to lack of sleep and dysentery caused by the local food, to which they were not accustomed. Many died of the latter. When some of the siege works were completed the Romans knocked down a section of the city walls, but the attackers were quickly overpowered. They fled and, not knowing the area, many fell into a reservoir and died. The enemy repaired the wall. As both sides suffered famine, Scipio Aemilianus proposed peace and promised that it would not be violated. The Itercalati trusted him and gave Lucullus 10,000 cloaks, some cattle and fifty hostages as part of the terms.