"Mistress? Never! But I may become the wife of that dreadful Assyrian."
Ramses sprang from his seat.
"Am I dreaming," cried he, "or has Set cast his curse on me? Thou, a priestess, guarding the fire before the altar of Astaroth, thou, who under the threat of death must be a virgin, art Thou going to marry? In truth, Phoenician deceit is worse than people's account of it."
"Hear me, lord," said Kama, wiping her tears away, "and condemn if I deserve it. Sargon wishes to take me as his first wife. According to our laws a priestess may, in very exceptional cases, become a wife, but only if the man is of kingly origin. Sargon is a relative of King Assar."
"And wilt Thou marry him?"
"If the supreme council of Tyrian priests command me, what can I do?" replied she, bursting into tears again.
"And what is Sargon to that council?" asked the prince.
"Very much, perhaps," said Kama, with a sigh. "The Assyrians will take
Phoenicia in all likelihood, and Sargon will be its satrap."
"Art Thou demented?" exclaimed the prince.
"I say what I know. In our temple we have begun prayers the second time to avert misfortune from Phoenicia. We had our first prayers before Thou didst come to us."