"To thee I owe my life and my kingdom," said the potentate, giving him "Peace," and wringing his hand warmly. "Kheira hath related unto me the mercy thou didst show towards her; and it was thy word of warning that enabled us to repel and defeat the Kanouri." "Then thou didst escape, O signet of the sphere of elegance!" the young Arab cried, turning to the Sultan's daughter. "Yes; though I was hard pressed by two of thine horsemen I took the secret path, and thus were they baffled." "The Director of Fate apprised our fighting men of their danger," said the Sultan; "and they returned on the same night. The breeze of grace blew, the sun of the favour of Allah shone. The news brought by Kheira was quickly acted upon, and the defences of the city so strengthened, that when at noon the assault was delivered, our cannon swept thy tribesmen from the pass like grains of sand before the sirocco. For six hours they fought; but their attempts to storm the city gate were futile, and the handful of survivors were compelled to retire, leaving nearly a thousand prisoners, including Nikale himself, in our hands." "And how was I rescued?" Hatita asked, after briefly explaining how his conversation with Kheira had been overheard. "On the day following the fight, we went unto the shrine of Sidi Okbar to return thanks to Allah, and there found thee dying of heat and thirst. Thou didst sacrifice thy life to save our ruler and his city, therefore we brought thee hither," she said. "And as a reward," added the Sultan, smiling upon them both, "I give unto thee my daughter Kheira in marriage." Then, taking their hands, he placed them in each other's, and added, "Thou hast both the verdure of the meadows of life. May Allah preserve thee, and grant unto thee long years of perfect peace, and an eternal rose-garden of happiness. In order that thou shalt have position fitting the husband of thy Sultan's daughter, I have ordered our Palace of Kyoukoi to be prepared for thy reception. Therefore, wipe off the rust of ennui and fatigue from the speculum of thy mind, and follow me; for a feast is already prepared for the celebration of this betrothal." And the happy pair, hand-in-hand, passed onward through the private pavilions--bewildering in their magnificence of marble and gold, and green with many leaves--to the Great Hall of the Divan, where, standing under the royal baldachin of yellow silk brocade, the Sultan of Abea rejoiced them with his favours, proclaiming Hatita, son of Ibrahim, as the future husband of Kheira, and appointing him Governor of the City in the Sky. CHAPTER THIRTEEN. THE BLOOD-RED BAND. A series of exciting adventures that befell me four years ago were remarkable and puzzling. Until quite recently, I have regarded the mystery as impenetrable. Indeed, in this _fin-de-siecle_ decade it is somewhat difficult to comprehend that such events could have occurred, or that the actors could have existed in real life.