t what will happen, Tua? Either the King of Kesh will kill him and
my two thousand soldiers, or perhaps he will kill the King of Kesh as he
killed his son, and seize the throne which his own forefathers held for
generations. Have you thought of that?"

"Yes, my father, I thought of it, and if this last should happen through
no fault of ours, would Egypt weep, think you?"

Now Pharaoh stared at Tua, and Tua looked back at Pharaoh and smiled.

"I perceive, Daughter," he said slowly, "that in you are the makings of
a great queen, for within the silken scabbard of a woman's folly I see
the statesman's sword of bronze. Only run not too fast lest you should
fall upon that sword and it should pierce you."

Now Tua, who had heard such words before from Asti, smiled again but
made no answer.

"You need a husband to hold you back," went on Pharaoh; "some great man
whom you can love and respect."

"Find me such a man, my father, and I will wed him gladly," answered Tua
in a sweet voice. "Only," she added, "I know not where he may be sought
now that the divine Amathel is dead at the hand of the Count Rames, our
general and ambassador to Kesh."

So when he grew stronger Pharaoh renewed his search for a husband meet
to marry the Queen of Egypt. Now, as before, suitors were not lacking,
indeed, his ambassadors and councillors sent in their names by twos and
threes, but always when they were submitted to her, Tua found something
against everyone of them, till at last it was said that she must be
destined for a god since no mere mortal would serve her turn. But when
this was reported to her, Tua only answered with a smile that she was
destined to that royal lover of whom Amen had spoken to her mother in a
dream; not to a god, but to the Chosen of the god, and that when she saw
him, she felt sure she would know him at once and love him much.

After some months had gone by Pharaoh, quite weary of this play, asked
the advice of his Council. They suggested to him that he should journey
through the great cities of Egypt, both because the change might
completely re-establish his divine health, and in the hope that on her
travels the Queen Neter-Tua would meet someone of royal blood with whom
she could fall in love. For by now it was evident to all of them that
unless she did fall in love, she would not marry.

So that very night Pharaoh asked his daughter if she would undertake
such a journey.

She answered that nothing would pleas