And, while she prayed, the fire grew fiercer, and spread all over the dry, combustible furniture of which the pyre was build ed. And, while she was praying, a strong centurion came unto her, bearing some incense in his hand, and he said: "Thou invokest the accursed Galilean for him, and seekest by thy strong magic to harden him against the flame! Take thou of this incense, girl, and cast it into the fire to Jupiter, cursing the malefactor Christ, or thou shalt quickly follow the old renegade!"
Then she only prayed the more; and the man called another to him, and they seized the young girl, and, swinging her back and forth between them, so cast her through the circle of fire unto Am-nem-hat. And she arose and stood up beside him, and threw her arms about the old man's neck, and did kiss him lovingly, and leaned her head upon the old man's breast, and smiled upon him radiantly. And the idolaters being the more enraged, because they twain seemed to scorn the flames, piled yet other furniture and wood against them, until the greatness thereof hid them from view; and with a last farewell, commending themselves and Arius unto God, they breathed the cruel flames, and so died. But the pagans continued to pile on fuel until they were utterly consumed; and the high-priest, coming near, cast into the flame the manuscript of the Gospel of John, saying, "The law requireth all books of the Christians to be burned"; and the crowd pillaged the house, and found yet other sacred writings, which they brought and cast into the flames; and there were destroyed the original Epistles of John, which Theckla had copied for Arius.
Now when the centurion and the soldier seized upon Theckla to cast her into the fire, a young man ran forward from the outskirts of the crowd, shouting in terror and in agony, "Not her! centurion, not her!"
But the act was sudden, and before he could reach them, and before they heard his cries, it was done, and the girl was leaning on the breast of Am-nem-hat. And the youth fainted, and, with a wail of anguish, fell heavily upon his face along the ground. And the high-priest, seeing from his apparel that he was a man of rank, leaped forward, and raised up his head, and, looking upon his face, he saw that it was Harroun.
CHAPTER XVII.
CRUCIFIED UNTO THE WORLD.
Arius having been joyfully ordained to be a presbyter, and being uninformed of the martyrdom of Am-nem-hat and of Theckla, with gladness of heart and bright anticipations of coming happiness reached the city of Alexandria, and went first of all, as his duty was, to Peter, the bishop, whose return from Antioch had briefly preceded his own arrival. And, after the usual salutations had passed between them, the bishop, looking tenderly upon him, said: "Son, thou hast been ordained a presbyter, and hast been consecrated to the Master's service, and the Bishop Lucanius highly extolleth thy fitness for the holy office. But thou art young, my son, and the Lord hath laid a heavy cross upon thee. Hast thou received any recent news from our unfortunate city of Alexandria?"
"The last news I received was borne by thee when thou didst come unto Antioch bringing a letter from my betrothed, and that from the community, and the casket containing the perfect and beautiful copies of the sacred writings which Theckla wrote with her own hand for me. Why dost thou ask so seriously?"
"I did only precede thee by three days, my son; but upon my arrival heard the news of a sudden outbreak of persecution in which many of the pious were perfected, and their goods despoiled, the recital whereof will pierce thy heart. Thine old friend Am-nem-hat did bravely testify for Jesus even in the midst of the flame by which he was made perfect."
"I loved him much," said Arius, "and his long life hath ended gloriously!" Then a ghastly pallor came over the young man's cheek and lip, and he could only murmur, "And Theckla, bishop?"