But with Sah-luma it was different! Sah-luma must be guarded and
cherished; his was a valuable life--the life of a genius such as
the world sees but once in a century--and it should not, so Theos
determined,--be emperilled or wasted; no! not even for the sake of
the sensuous, exquisite, conquering beauty of this dazzling
Priestess of the Sun--the fairest sorceress that ever triumphed
over the frail yet immortal Spirit of Man!




CHAPTER XVIII.

THE LOVE THAT KILLS.


How the time went he could not tell; in so gay and gorgeous a
scene hours might easily pass with the swiftness of unmarked
moments. Peals of laughter echoed now and again through the
vaulted dome, and excited voices were frequently raised in
clamorous disputations and contentious arguments that only just
sheered off the boundary-line of an actual quarrel. All sorts of
topics were discussed--the laws, the existing mode of government,
the latest discoveries in science, and the military prowess of the
King--but the conversation chiefly turned on the spread of
disloyalty, atheism, and republicanism among the population of Al-
Kyris,--and the influence of Khosrul on the minds of the lower
classes. The episode of the Prophet's late capture and fresh
escape seemed to be perfectly well known to all present, though it