δι' ἐρημίας πολεμίων πορευόμενος → he marched on without finding any enemy, his route lay through a country bare of enemies
fendo: ĕre v. defendo, fustis, the primitive word of the compounds defendo, offendo, infensus, and infestus; cf. Prisc. p. 923 P.
fendō, ĕre (primitif inus. de defendo, offendo, etc.), pousser : Prisc. Gramm. 11, 21.
