CHAPTER XVIII
THE JUDGMENT OF THE GODS
Three more months had gone by, and the great host of Pharaoh was
encamped beyond the Southern Gate, and the warships of Pharaoh were
anchored thick on either bank of the Nile. There they lay prepared for
battle, for spies had reported to them that the general, Rames, Lord
of Kesh, was advancing northward swiftly, though with so small an army
that it could easily be destroyed. Therefore Abi waited there to
destroy it without further toil, nor did his terrible Queen gainsay
him. She also seemed content to wait.
One evening as the sun sank it was told to them that the troops of
Rames had appeared, and occupied the mountains on the right bank of
the Nile, being encamped around that temple of Amen which had stood
there for thousands of years.
"Good," said the Queen. "To-morrow Pharaoh will go up against him and
make an end of this matter. Is it not so, Pharaoh?" and she looked at
him with her glittering eyes.
"Yes, yes," answered Abi, "the sooner the better, for I am worn out,
and would return to Thebes. Yet," he added in a weak, uncertain voice,
"I misdoubt me of this war, I know not why. What is it that you stare
at in the heavens so fixedly, O Kaku?"
Now the eyes of the Council were turned on Kaku the Vizier, and they
perceived that he was much disturbed.
"Look," he said, pointing with a trembling finger towards the skies.
They looked, and saw hanging just above the evening glow a very bright
and wonderful star, and near to it, another, paler star which
presently it seemed to cover.
"The Star of Amen," gasped Kaku in a voice that shook, "and your star,
O Pharaoh. The Star of Amen eats it up, your star goes out, and will
never be seen again by living man. Oh! Abi, that which I foresaw years
and years ago has come to pass. Your day is done, and your night is at
hand, O Abi."
"If so," shouted Abi in his rage and terror, "be sure of this, Dog--
that you shall share it."
As he spoke a sound of screams drew near, and presently into the midst
of them rushed Merytra, the wife of Kaku.
"The vengeance of the gods," she screamed, "the vengeance of the gods!
Listen, Abi. But now this very evening as I slept in my pavilion, who
can never sleep at night, there appeared to me the spirit of dead
Pharaoh, of Pharaoh whom we slew by magic, and he said: 'Tell the
murderer, Abi, and the wizard-rogue, Kaku, your husband, that I summon
both of them to meet me ere another sun is set, and Woman, come you
with them.' Death is at our door, Abi, death and the terrible
vengeance of the god!" and Merytra fell down foaming in a fit.
Now Abi went mad in the extremity of his fear.
"They are sorcerers," he shouted, "who would bewitch me. Take them and
keep them safe, and let Kaku be beaten with rods till he comes to his
right mind again. To-morrow, when I have slain Rames, I will hang this
magician at my mast-head."
But the Queen only laughed and repeated after him:
"Yes, yes, my good Lord, to-morrow, when you have killed Rames, this
magician shall hang at your mast-head. Fear not, whatever chances I
will see that it is done."
Merytra, recovered from her madness, lay upon a bed, when a woman
entered and stood over her. Looking up she saw it was the Queen.
"Hearken to me," said the Queen in an icy voice, "and tell the words I
speak to Abi. The time is accomplished, and I leave him. If he would
look again upon Neter-Tua, Morning Star of Amen, the Great Lady of
Egypt, let him seek her in the camp of Rames. There he shall find her
in the temple of Amen, which is set upon the mountain in the midst of
the camp."
Then she was gone.
Merytra rose from the bed, and called to the guards to lead her to
Abi. So loudly did she call, saying that she had a message for him
which must not be delayed, that at length one went and told him of her
words, and he came to her.
"What is it now, Sorceress?" he asked. "Have you dreamed more ill-
omened dreams?"
"Nay, Pharaoh," she answered, "but the Queen has fled to Rames," and
word for word she repeated what had been told her.
"It is a lie," said Abi. "How can she have fled through a triple line
of guards?"
"Search, then, and see, O Pharaoh."
So Abi searched, but though none had seen her pass, and none had gone
with her, the Queen could not be found.
It was midnight, and while they still searched, by the light of the
moon a tall figure clad in tattered robes, who bore a thornwood staff
in his hand, and had a white beard that fell down below his middle,
was perceived walking to and fro about the camp.
"Who is that fellow?" asked Abi, and as he spoke the figure cried
aloud in a great voice:
"Listen, Councillors, Captains, and Soldiers of Egypt, to the command
of Amen, spoken by the lips of his messenger, Kepher the Wanderer.
Lift no sword against Rames, Lord of Kesh, for he is my servant, and
shall be Pharaoh over you, and husband of your Queen, and father of
kings to come. Seize Abi the usurper, the murderer of Pharaoh, his
brother, and Kaku the sorcerer, and Merytra the traitress, and lead
them at the dawn to my temple upon yonder hill, where I will declare
my commands to you in the sanctuary of the temple. So shall peace be
upon you and all Egypt, and the breath of life remain in your
nostrils."
Now hearing these fearful words, and remembering dead Pharaoh's
prophecy of a Beggar who should bring a message to him, Abi drew his
sword and rushed at the man. But ere ever he came there, the Wanderer
was gone, and lo! they heard him repeating his message far away.
Thither they ran also, but now the words of doom were being called
upon the ships, and on their prows they saw his tall shape stand--
first on this and then on that.
"It is the gods who speak," cried the priests, "let us obey the gods!"
and suddenly they flung themselves upon Abi and bound him, and Kaku
and Merytra they bound also, waiting for the dawn. But of the tall,
white-bearded man in beggar's robes they saw and heard no more.
At that same time Tua slept in a chamber of the temple upon the hill,
while Asti watched her. Presently a wind blew in the chamber, and
Asti, looking up, became aware of a Shape that she knew well, the very
shape of Tua who slept upon the bed.
"What is your will, O Double?" asked Asti.
"My will is that you give me rest," answered the Ka. "My task is
accomplished, I am weary. Speak the secret words of power that you
have, and let me return to her from whom I came, and in her bosom
sleep till the great Day of Awakening."
So Asti, knowing that she was commanded so to do, uttered those secret
words, and as she spoke them the glorious Shape seemed to grow faint
and fade away. Only Tua rose upon her bed, stretched out her arms and
sighed, fell back again and slept heavily until the morning. Then she
awoke, asking what had befallen her, for she was changed.
"This has befallen, Queen. That which went forth from you by the
command of Amen has returned to you again, its duty done. Rise up now
and adorn yourself, for this is your day of victory and marriage."
As the sun rose Tua went forth more beautiful than the morning, and at
the gates of the temple found Rames awaiting her, clad in his armour,
while from the mists below came a sound as of an army approaching.
"What passes?" asked Tua, looking at him, and there was more love in
her blue eyes than there is water in the Nile at flood.
"I think that Abi attacks us, Lady," he said, bowing the knee to her,
"and I am fearful for you, for our men are few, and his are many."
"Be not afraid of Abi, or of anything, O Rames, though it is true that
this day you must lose your liberty," she answered with a sweet and
gentle smile, and he wondered at her words.
Then, before he could speak again, two of the captains of his outposts
ran in and reported that without were priests and heralds, who came in
peace from the army of Abi.
"Summon the officers, and let them be admitted," said Rames, "but be
careful, all of you, lest this embassy should hide some trick of war.
Come, Queen, it is to you that they should speak, and not to me, who
am but a general of your province, Kesh," and he followed her to the
inner court, where, in front of the sanctuary, was a chair, on which,
at his prayer, she seated herself, as a mighty Queen should do.
Now, conducted by his own officers, the embassy entered, bearing with
them three closed litters, and Tua and Rames noted that among that
embassy were the greatest generals, and the most holy priests of
Egypt. At a given sign they prostrated themselves before the glory of
the Queen, all save the soldiers who bore the litters. Next, from
among their ranks out stepped the venerable High-Priest of Amen at
Thebes, and stood before Tua with bowed head till, with a motion of
her hand, she commanded him to speak.
"O Morning-Star of Amen," he began, "after you left our camp last
night a messenger came to us from the Father of the Gods----"
"Stay, O High-Priest," broke in Tua. "I did not leave your camp who
never tarried there, and who for two long years have set no foot upon
the holy soil of Egypt. No, not since I fled from Memphis to save
myself from death, or what is worse--the defilement of a forced
marriage with Abi, my Uncle, and Pharaoh's murderer."
Now the High-Priest turned and stared at those behind him, and all who
were present stared at the Queen.
"Pardon me," he said, "but how can this thing be, seeing that for
those two years we have seen your Majesty day by day living among us
as the wife of Abi?"
Now Tua looked at Asti, who stood at her side, and the tall and noble
Asti looked at the High-Priest, saying:
"You know me, do you not?"
"Aye, Lady," he answered, "we know you. You were the wife of Mermes,
the last shoot of a royal tree, and you are the mother of the Lord
Rames yonder, against whom we came out to make war. We know you well,
O greatest of all the seers in Egypt, Mistress of Secret Things. But
we believed that you had perished in the temple of Sekhet at Memphis,
that temple where Pharaoh died. Now we understand that, being a
magician, you only vanished thence."
"What bear you there?" asked Asti, glancing at the litters.
"Bring forth the prisoners," said the High-Priest.
Then the curtains were drawn, and the soldiers lifted from the litters
Abi, Kaku, and Merytra, who were bound with cords, and stood them on
their feet before the Queen.
"These are the very murderers of Pharaoh, my Father, who would have
also brought me to shame. Why are my eyes affronted with the sight of
them?" asked Tua indignantly.
"Because the Messenger of the Gods, clothed as a Beggar-man, commanded
it, your Majesty," answered the High-Priest. "Now we understand that
they are brought hither to be judged for the murder of Pharaoh, the
good god who was your father."
"Shall a wife sit in judgment on her husband?" broke in Abi.
"Man," said Tua, "I never was your wife. How can I have been your
wife, who have not seen you since the death of Pharaoh? Listen, now,
all of you, to the tale of that marvel which has come to pass. At my
birth--you, O High-Priest, should know it well--Amen gave to me a Ka,
a Self within myself, to protect me in all dangers. The dangers came
upon me, and Asti the Magician, my foster-mother, speaking the words
that had been taught to her by the spirit of the divine Ahura who bore
me, called forth that Ka of mine, and left it where I had been, to be
the wife of Abi, such a wife, I think, as never man had before. But
me, Amen, my father, rescued, and with me Asti, bearing us in the Boat
of the Sun to far lands, and protecting us in many perils, till at
length we came to the city of Napata, where we found a certain servant
of mine whom, as it chances, I--love," and she looked at Rames and
smiled.
"Meanwhile, my Shadow did the work to which it was appointed, ruling
for me in Egypt, and drawing on Abi to his ruin. But last night It
returned to me, and will be seen no more by men, except, perchance, in
my tomb after I am dead. Judge you if my tale be true, and whether I
am indeed Neter-Tua, Daughter of Amen," and opening the wrappings
about her throat, she showed the holy sign that was stamped above her
breast, adding:
"The High-Priest yonder should know this mark, for he saw it at my
birth."
Now the aged man drew near, looked, and said:
"It is the sign. Here shines the Star of Amen and no other. Still we
do not understand. Tell us the tale, O Asti."
So Asti stood forward, and told that tale, omitting nothing, and then
Rames told his tale, whereto Tua the Queen added a little, and,
although ere they finished the sun was high, none wearied in listening
save only Abi, Kaku, and Merytra, who heard death in every word.
It was done at length, and a great silence fell upon the place, for
the tongues of men were tied. Presently, the High-Priest, who all this
while had stood with bent head, lifted up his eyes to heaven, crying:
"O Amen, Father of the Spirit of this Queen, show now thy will, that
we may learn it and obey."
For a while there was silence, till suddenly a sound was heard in the
dark sanctuary where stood the statue of the god, a sound as of a
stick tapping upon the granite floor. Then the curtains of that
sanctuary were drawn, and standing between them there appeared the
figure of an ancient, bearded man, with stony eyes, who was clad in a
beggar's robe. It was he who had met Tua and Asti in the wilderness
and eaten up their food. It was he who had saved them in the palace of
the desert king. It was he who but last night had walked the camp of
Abi.
"I am that Messenger whom men from the beginning have called Kepher,"
he said. "I am the Dweller in the wilderness whom your fathers knew,
and your sons shall know. I am he who seeks for charity and pays it
back in life and death. I am the pen of Thoth the Recorder, I am the
scourge of Osiris. I am the voice of Amen, god above the gods. Hearken
you people of Egypt--not for a little end have these things come to
pass, but that ye may learn that there is design in heaven, and
justice upon earth, and, after justice, judgment. Pharaoh, the good
servant of the gods, was basely murdered by his own kin whom he
trusted. Neter-Tua, his daughter, and daughter of Amen, was condemned
to shame, Rames of the royal race was sent forth to danger or to
death, far from her he loved, and who loved him by that divine command
which rules the hearts of men. This is the command of the gods--Let
these twain be wed and take Egypt as their heritage, and call down
upon it peace and greatness. But as for these murderers and wizards"--
and he pointed to Abi, to Kaku, and to Merytra--"let them be placed in
the sanctuary of Amen, to await what he shall send them."
So spoke Kepher the Messenger, and departed whence he came, nor in
that generation did any see him more.
Then they took up Abi, Kaku, and Merytra, and cut their bonds. They
threw them into the dark sanctuary before the great stone image of the
god. They shut the electrum doors upon them, and left them there
wailing and cursing, while the High-Priest of Amen joined the hands of
Rames and of Tua, and declared them to be man and wife for ever.
Now, after these things were done, the Pharaoh and his Queen drove
through the hosts of Egypt in their golden chariot, and received the
homage of the hosts ere they departed northwards for Thebes. At
nightfall they returned again and sat side by side at the marriage
feast, and once more Tua swept her harp of ivory and gold, and sang
the ancient song of him who dared much for love, and won the prize.
So in the dim, forgotten years, their joy fell on Rames and on Tua,
Morning-Star of Amen, which still with them remains in the new
immortal kingdom that they have won long and long ago.
But when in the morning Asti the wise dared to open the great doors
and peer into the sanctuary of Amen, she saw a dreadful sight. For
there at the feet of the effigy of the god lay Abi, who slew his
brother, and Kaku the sorcerer, and Merytra the traitress, dead, slain
by their own or by each other's hand, and the stony eyes of the god
stared down upon them.
