“Her Majesty the Queen waits without with a great company, and humbly craves audience of her good lord, the divine Pharaoh of the Upper and the Lower Land.”

Abi and Kaku looked at each other, and despair was in their eyes.

“Let her Majesty enter,” said the King in a low voice.

The heralds retired, and presently through the cedar doors appeared the Queen in state.  She was splendid to behold, splendid in her proud beauty, splendid in her dress, and in her royal ornaments.  On she swept up the hall, attended by Merytra, who bore her fan and cushion, for it was her pleasure that this woman should wait upon her day and night without pause or rest, although she who had once been so handsome now was worn almost to nothingness with toil and terror.  Behind Merytra came guards and high-priests, and after them the great lords of the Council, who were called the King’s Companions and the generals of the army.

On she swept up the hall till reaching the foot of the throne whereon Abi sat, she motioned to Merytra to place the cushion upon its step, and knelt, saying: 

“I am come as a loyal wife to make a humble prayer to Pharaoh my Lord in the presence of his Court.”

“Rise and speak on, Great Lady,” answered Abi.  “It is not fit that you should kneel to me.”

“Nay, it is most fit that Pharaoh’s Queen should kneel to Pharaoh when she seeks his divine favour.”  Yet she rose, and, seating herself in a chair that had been brought, spoke thus: 

“O Pharaoh, last night I dreamed a dream.  I dreamed of the Count Rames, son of Mermes, the last of that royal race which ruled before our House in Egypt.  I mean that man who slew the Prince of Kesh in this very hall, and whom, my Father being sick, I sent to Napata, to be judged by the King of Kesh, but who, it seems, overthrew that king and took his kingdom in the name of Egypt.

“I dreamed that this bold and able man, not satisfied with the rich kingdom of Kesh, has made a scheme to attack Egypt; to slay you, most glorious Lord, to proclaim himself Pharaoh by right of ancient blood, and more—­to take me, your faithful wife, to be his wife, and thereby secure his throne.”

“Without doubt, Queen, this turbulent Rames might think of such things,” said Abi, “and so far your dream may be true; yet it should be remembered that at present he is at Napata, which is a very long way off, and has probably only a small army at his command, so why should you trouble about what he thinks?”

“O Pharaoh, that was not all my dream, for in it I saw two pictures.  The first was of this bold Rames attacking Thebes, and conquering it, yes, and dragging me away to be his wife over your very corpse, O Pharaoh.  The second was of you and your army meeting him at the Gate of the South Land, and slaying him, and taking possession of the kingdom of Kesh, and its golden city, and ruling them for Egypt, until you die.”