Sweat poured from the men, there was foam on the horses.
"It is hot!" whispered the heir.
"Listen, lord," said Pentuer, "this is not a good day for hunting in the desert. This morning the sacred insects showed great disquiet, then dropped into lethargy. Also my knife of a priest went down very little in the earthen scabbard, which means intense heat. Both these phenomena the heat, and the lethargy of insects may announce a tempest. Let us return, for not only have we lost sight of the camp, but even sounds from there do not reach to us."
Ramses looked at the priest almost contemptuously.
"And dost Thou think, O prophet," said he, "that I, having once commanded the capture of Musawasa, can return empty handed because I fear heat and a tempest?"
They went on without stopping. At one place there was hard ground again, thanks to which they approached the fugitives to within the distance of a sling cast.
"Hei, ye there!" cried the heir, "yield."
The Libyans did not even look behind, and waded on through the sand with great effort. After a while one might suppose that they would be overtaken. Soon again, however, the prince's party struck on deep sand while the Libyans hastening forward vanished beyond an elevation.
The Asiatics cursed, the prince gritted his teeth.
At last the horses began to stumble more and to be weary, so the riders had to dismount and go on foot. All at once an Asiatic grew purple, and fell on the sand. The prince commanded to cover him with a mantle, and said,