thou shalt be for all unreckoned time.

"Now prepare thee, prepare! even as though thy last hour were at hand,
and thou wast to cross to the Land of Shadows, and not through the Gates
of Glory into the realms of Life made beautiful. Prepare, I say!"

XXVI

WHAT WE SAW

Then came a few moments' pause, during which Ayesha seemed to be
gathering up her strength for the fiery trial, while we clung to each
other, and waited in utter silence.

At last, from far far away, came the first murmur of sound, that grew
and grew till it began to crash and bellow in the distance. As she heard
it, Ayesha swiftly threw off her gauzy wrapping, loosened the golden
snake from her kirtle, and then, shaking her lovely hair about her like
a garment, beneath its cover slipped the kirtle off and replaced the
snaky belt around her and outside the masses of her falling hair. There
she stood before us as Eve might have stood before Adam, clad in nothing
but her abundant locks, held round her by the golden band; and no words
of mine can tell how sweet she looked--and yet how divine. Nearer and
nearer came the thunder-wheels of fire, and as they came she pushed one
ivory arm through the dark masses of her hair and flung it round Leo's
neck.

"Oh, my love, my love!" she murmured, "wilt thou ever know how I have
loved thee?" and she kissed him on the forehead, and then went and stood
in the pathway of the flame of Life.

There was, I remember, to my mind something very touching about her
words and that embrace upon the forehead. It was like a mother's kiss,
and seemed to convey a benediction with it.

On came the crashing, rolling noise, and the sound of it was as the
sound of a forest being swept flat by a mighty wind, and then tossed
up like so much grass, and thundered down a mountain-side. Nearer and
nearer it came; now flashes of light, forerunners of the revolving
pillar of flame, were passing like arrows through the rosy air; and now
the edge of the pillar itself appeared. Ayesha turned towards it, and
stretched out her arms to greet it. On it came very slowly, and lapped
her round with flame. I saw the fire run up her form. I saw her lift it
with both hands as though it were water, and pour it over her head. I
even saw her open her mouth and draw it down into her lungs, and a dread
and wonderful sight it was.

Then she paused, and stretched out her arms, and stood there quite
still, with a heavenly smile upon her face, as thoug