Mi enemigo tendrá doblada palma.
El cual, con otros del escuro bando
De los que son sujetos á aguardarte,
Está con rabia en torno aqui esperando
A que acabe, Marquino, de informarte
Del lamentable fin, del mal nefando
Que de Numancia puedo asegurarte,
La cual acabará a las mismas manos
De los que son á ella mas cercanos.
Throughout this scene, the pompous solemnity of the regular priests and the mock-heroic fury of Marquino are cleverly contrasted. Cervantes, who from his readings was familiar with all sorts of wizards and enchanters, makes Marquino a kind of old-world Merlin, kept, however, under necessary tragic restraint. The time had not yet come for the humours of "Don Quixote."