Part Two.
The Winning of a Sword.
Chapter One.
How an injured knight appeared at King Arthur's court.
How Grifflet tried to help and how the king was sorely wounded when he went to get revenge for them both.
One warm spring day, Arthur and his court were making their way through the forests of the Usk.
Among the knights then present were the sirs Gawain, Ewayne, Kay, and Peleus.
The men stopped to find a patch of shade to rest in when suddenly there came through the trees.
A sad sight.
It was a bleeding knight being held on his horse by a golden-haired page.
Arthur's men gathered around to help.
They demanded to know what had happened to their guest, whose name turned out to be Sir Miles of the White Fountain.
The page told them that he and Sir Miles had gone out one day in search of adventure.
They had come upon a valley where three beautiful women were tossing a golden ball to one another.
The women had pointed them to a stone bridge crossing a violent stream.
There the women had assured Miles he would find enough adventure to please any man.
He and Sir Miles had gone to the bridge, the page explained.
Far beyond was a dark castle with a tall straight tower.
Just on the other side of the bridge was an apple tree.
Its branches were hanging low with a large number of shields.
In the middle of the bridge was a single black shield.
Beside it was a hammer of brass.
Next to the shield was a sign that read, Whoever strikes this shield does so at his own risk.
Sir Miles had grabbed the hammer and hit the black shield.
The castle's great doors had fallen open and a knight dressed entirely in sable armor had come charging out to the center of the bridge.
For Sir Miles's boldness.
The knight had said he would take away Sir Miles's shield and hang it with the others in the apple tree.
Of course, Sir Miles had fought back.
He was seriously wounded and soon lay quietly in the dust.
The sable knight had reached down, taken Sir Miles's shield and hung it in the apple tree.
Then he turned and rode back to his castle.
The page had led his master away through the forest until they came upon Arthur.
Arthur thought it was very impolite to leave a fallen knight upon the ground and to take away his shield.
All of the other knights agreed.
A boy named Grifflet was particularly upset by this story.
Jumping up, he begged Arthur to name him a knight.
He wished to go back to that bridge and fight the Sable Knight.
Arthur hesitated.
After all, Grifflet was only an untrained boy.
But, perhaps remembering his own youth, Arthur eventually agreed.
Grifflet left early the next morning.
He was gone for the whole day.
When he returned, he explained that he had also encountered the three women, had also been sent to the bridge for adventure and was also left wounded and bleeding.
His stolen shield now hung somewhere in that tree.
The Sable Knight had not wanted to fight someone so young and untrained and had politely lifted the wounded Grifflet back up on his horse.
But Arthur didn't care.
Angrily, he swore that the Sable Knight must be punished.
This time, he would finish the task himself.
Early the next morning, Arthur put on his armor.
He climbed onto a white horse and set off for that valley where he would find the women playing catch.
When they saw Arthur, they stopped playing and walked over to him.
When he, too, asked them for their advice for a man seeking adventure—
They begged him not to seek it quite so fast.
Rather, they invited him to stay and visit with them for a little while.
Alas, I cannot, Arthur explained.
I must go and find the rude Sable Knight.
He has hurt my friends and taken away their shields.
A few miles farther into the dark forest, Arthur came upon a smoky spot.
Three sooty men with knives in their hands were threatening an old man with a beard as white as snow.
With an angry sword, Arthur quickly drove the men away.
Upon turning to ask the old man if he was all right, Arthur realized the old man was none other than the wizard Merlin.
Why, it seems to me that I have saved your life, Arthur exclaimed.
Do you think so? the wizard asked.
Take me with you as you continue this adventure.
Perhaps I shall offer you some help as well.
Arthur and Merlin rode for a while.
They found the violent river, the bridge of stone, the lonely castle in the distance and the apple tree hung with both clean and bloody shields.
Arthur hit the Sable Knight's black shield so strongly that it was as if twelve shields had been hit at once.
When the Sable Knight came out, he and Arthur fought violently.
Both were amazed at the great skill and power of the other.
This went on until Arthur's sword broke.
The sable knight, seeing this, hit Arthur with one final blow to the head.
The powerful blow went through Arthur's helmet, making his brains swim like water and causing him to fall.
When the sable knight let his guard down, however, Arthur tackled him.
Grabbing his helmet and unlacing it, Arthur saw that his enemy was none other than King Pelennor, whom Arthur had driven into the forest.
Arthur was so surprised at this that he also let his guard down.
Pelennor tackled him in return.
He would have finished him off too, had Merlin not stepped in, saved Arthur's life and taken the seriously injured king away.
