"Prince, no such woman lives, since immortal love must deal, not with
the flesh, but with the spirit. If a spirit worthy to be thus loved
and worshipped now wanders in earthly shape upon the world, seeking
its counterpart and its completion, I cannot tell. Yet were it so, and
should they chance to meet, it might be happy for such brave spirits,
for then the answer to the great riddle would be theirs."

Wondering what this riddle might be, Aziel bent towards her to reply,
when suddenly round a bend in the path but a few paces from them came
a body of soldiers and attendants, headed by a man clad in a white robe
and walking with a staff. This man was grey-headed and keen-eyed, thin
in face and ascetic in appearance, with a brow of power and a bearing
of dignity. At the sight of the pair he halted, looking at them in
question, and with disapproval.

"Our search is ended," he said in Hebrew, "for here is he whom we
seek, and alone with him a heathen woman, robed like a priestess of the
Groves."

"Whom do you seek, Issachar?" asked Aziel hurriedly, for the sudden
appearance of the Levite disturbed him.

"Yourself, Prince. Surely you can guess that your absence has been
noted. We feared lest harm should have come to you, or that you had lost
your path, but it seems that you have found a guide," and he stared at
his companion sternly.

"That guide, Issachar," answered Aziel, "being none other than the lady
Elissa, daughter of Sakon, governor of this city, and our host, whom it