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Therefore bid thy scribes that it be written down, so that the Hesea who rules after thee may fulfil it in its season." "Cease," said the Hesea, "cease to pour out thy bitterness at that which should command thy reverence, oh! thou foolish child, who dost not know but that to-morrow the fire shall claim the frail youth and beauty which are thy boast.
Now, this letter from the Mountain that the head-priest Oros sent to your court a while ago?" and he selected a parchment from a pile which lay upon the table and looked at her. "Read," she said, "I would hear it again." So he read: "From the Hesea of the House of Fire, to Atene, Khania of Kaloon.
"I want to see her again; I cannot bear to be apart from her. I feel as though she were drawing me to her." "How can I tell you? Ask Oros; he is outside the door." So he went and asked him, but Oros only smiled, and answered that the Hesea had not entered her chamber, so doubtless she must still remain in the Sanctuary. "Then I am going to look for her. Come, Oros, and you too, Horace."
To-morrow, also, saying nothing of their sex, send a messenger to the Mountain and tell the Hesea that two old strangers have arrived mark you, old but that they are very sick, that their limbs were broken in the river, and that when they have healed again, I will send them to ask the question of her Oracle that is, some three moons hence.
For the petty wars between the Tribes and the people of the Plain they were not responsible, and those chiefs who carried them on were deposed, unless they had themselves been attacked. All the Tribes, however, were sworn to the defence of the Hesea and the College, and, however much they might quarrel amongst themselves, if need arose, were ready to die for her to the last man.
"It has been accorded as thou sayest," answered the Hesea, "by those priestesses who filled my place before me, nor shall it be refused to thy dead lord or to thee Atene when thy time comes." "I thank thee, O Hes, and I pray that this decree may be written down, for the snows of age have gathered on thy venerable head and soon thou must leave us for awhile.
Take the goods the gods provide you the glory, the love and the power and let the future look to itself." Before he could answer Oros appeared from round the rock, and, bowing with more than his usual humility to Leo, said that the Hesea desired our presence at a service in the Sanctuary.
"Aye," he said, "I bid her unveil, that I may learn the best or worst, who otherwise must die of this suspense. Howsoever changed, if she be Ayesha I shall know her, and if she be Ayesha, I shall love her." "Bold words, Kallikrates," answered the Hesea; "yet from my very heart I thank thee for them: those sweet words of trust and faithfulness to thou knowest not what.
Here Ayesha had halted and was engaged in the contemplation of this boulder-strewn path, as though she meditated making use of it that day. Now we drew near to her, and the priest who guided us fell back with our guard, leaving us to go forward alone, since they dared not approach the Hesea unbidden.
Of this priestess Oros would only tell us that she was "ever present," although we gathered that when one priestess died or was "taken to the fire," as he put it, her child, whether in fact or by adoption, succeeded her and was known by the same names, those of "Hes" or the "Hesea" and "Mother." We asked if we should see this Mother, to which he answered that she manifested herself very rarely.
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