That night I wandered through the ancient, gigantic palace, hand-in-hand
with my well-beloved, pointing out its many marvels, explaining the
curious inscriptions upon its colossal foundation-stones, and, taking
her to the summit of the Temple of the Seven Lights, showed her the
giant city by night. Happy were we in each other's love; yet happier
still when, seven days later, amid feasting and merry-making, that was
continued throughout a whole moon, we were made man and wife. Our rule
has, I believe, found favour with the people. We fear not invasion nor
rebellion, because our impregnable country is still the Land of the No
Return, at any moment when we choose to block the one single gate by
which it may be entered.
As Prince of Ea I have complete control of its ancient treasures, and at
Azala's instigation have sent many wall-sculptures, and other relics of
interest, to various national museums in the European capitals. To
Paris I sent a colossal block of black stone, strangely sculptured,
representing the great feast held by Semiramis after she had built the
walls of Ea, which she declared unbreakable. To Vienna we dispatched
the stone, triangular altar of the Fire-god, Gibil, which stood at the
entrance of the House of Lustre. To Berlin went a conical stone,
bearing a beautiful hymn to Baal in well-preserved cuneiform character;
and to the British Museum, in London, an institution to which my father
had sent many relics he had collected, I presented a collection of
ancient gems, among them being the little chalcedony cylinder, in order
that all should be enabled to inspect the strange heirloom, the
possession of which led to the discovery of a long-forgotten
civilisation.
The visitor to England's national collection of antiquities may discover
it in the Assyrian Room, reposing upon its tiny cushion of purple
velvet, fashioned from the papakha of the Goddess of Love, the couch of
Istar, a mute relic of one of the greatest monarchs the world has ever
known. Before it a neat black tablet, with gold lettering, gives a
translation of the injunction regarding the placing on the breast of the
first-born the device known as the Mark of the Asps, together with a
statement as to its date. Many, perhaps, have seen it during the past
twelve months, but none know its real history, which I have here written
for the first time. After reading this record they may possibly linger
before the case containing it a trifle longer, and reflect upon the
curious chain of incidents which caused the ragged, wandering Dervish,
who carried it forgotten in his charm-case, to become ruler of a land
the existence of which was hitherto unknown, and to secure as wife the
sweetest woman his eyes had ever beheld.
With Azala as my wife, mine is a life of happiness unalloyed. Of a
verity ours is a rose-garden of peace. The only murmur of discontent
ever heard within our kingdom is because the shaft of white brilliance
no longer shines to remind the vanquished of the cruel but beautiful
queen they idolised as Goddess of Love, and to give them promise of
freedom from the Moslem yoke. But the light that had shone on
uninterruptedly through forty centuries has never burned since that
memorable night when I quenched it, and never will again.
Its extinguishment was emblematic of my complete conquest of the Land of
the No Return. I have closed for all time the ever-vigilant Eye of
Istar.
The End.