midnight
Go , find a land to possess ; and when with thy sword and with thy bow thou hast done this , return ye to me , bringing a crown in thy left hand , and in thy right will I place the hand of Agitha with the bright hair , whose eyes are as stars . '' `` O king ! '' answered the Chylde -- `` thou who holdest the fate of princes in thy hands , and the shadow of whose sceptre stretcheth over many nations -- the uplifting of whose arm turneth the tide of battle -- swear unto me , by the spirit of mighty Woden , that while I am doing that which thou requirest , and ere I can return to lay a crown at thy feet , swear that thou will not bless another king , for an offered kingdom , with the hand of Agitha , in whom my soul liveth ! '' Then did the wrath of the king wax terrible ; his eyes were as consuming fires , even as the fire of heaven when it darteth from the dark clouds of midnight . His countenance was fierce as the sea , when its waves boil and are lifted up with the tempest . In his wrath he dashed his heel upon the floor ; and the armour of conquered kings , the spoils of a hundred battles , rang round the halls of Ida . `` Shall the blood of my brother , '' he cried `` stain the floor of his father ?