At length came the end of the year, and on the appointed day the
messengers appeared in the wide White Hall of Arthur's castle, and
all alike declared that they had no news whatever to declare
concerning the maiden Olwen.
Then Kilhugh was very angry, and said in hasty words: "I alone am
denied by my lord the gift I ask. I will depart from hence at once,
and take with me the honour of Arthur, whom men call the most
honourable King." But Kai, one of the knights, reproved him for his
angry speech, and offered to go forth with him and any others who
would accompany them, saying:
"We will not part till we have found the maiden, or till thou art
forced to own she is not among those who dwell on this earth."
So Arthur chose six of his knights to go forth with Prince Kilhugh
upon his quest.
First came Kai, whose offer had but just been spoken. An excellent
spy and sentinel was he, for he could make himself as tall as the
tallest tree in the forest, and so scan all the country round. He
could hide himself under water, and lie hidden in lake or river for
nine days and nights if need be. Such fire was in his nature that
when they needed warmth his companions had but to kindle the piled
wood at his finger; he could walk through torrents of rain as dry as
on a summer's day; he could go for nine days and nights without
sleep, and no doctor could heal the wound made by his sword.
Next came Sir Bedivere, close brother-in-arms to Kai, the swiftest
runner, save Arthur himself and one other, in all the land.
One-handed was he, yet he could give more wounds in battle than any
three warriors together.
Then followed Uriel, who understood the speech of all men and all
beasts; and Gawain, who was called the "Hawk of May," because he
never returned from any undertaking until it had been performed by
him.
The fifth to answer Arthur's call was Merlin, a master of magic, who
knew how to put a spell upon the knights that would render them
invisible.
Last came Peregrine the Guide, who knew how to find the way as well
in a strange country as in his own.
"Go forth, O Chieftains," said the King, "and follow the Prince upon
this quest; and great shall be the fame of your adventure."
So the Seven Champions rode forth through the great gates of the
palace, and set out with high hearts to seek for Olwen, daughter of
Thornogre Thistlehair, Chief of the Giants.
II. How the Seven Champions found Olwen
of the White Footprints
Onward and onward rode Kilhugh and the six knights until they came at
length to a vast plain, stretching in every direction farther than
the eye could reach. Over it they rode, and at length perceived
through the misty air the towers and battlements of a great castle
far away on the borders of the moorland. They rode towards this
castle all day long, but yet they never seemed to get any nearer.
All the next day they went on riding, and still the castle seemed as
far away as ever. The third evening brought them no nearer. At
length Sir Gawain exclaimed: "This must be Fleeting Castle, which can
always be seen from a distance, but can never be actually reached."
Now, on the fourth day, to their surprise, the castle no longer
advanced before them as they approached, and soon they were able to
draw rein before it, and to wonder in amazement at the thousands of
sheep which fed upon the plains surrounding its massive walls. Near
by sat the shepherd with his dog, tending this enormous flock. The
shepherd was a giant in size, and was dressed in the skins of wild
beasts. The dog was larger than a full-grown horse; he had the
shaggiest of coats, and, though an excellent sheep-dog, was
destructive enough elsewhere, for with his fiery breath he would burn
up all the dry bushes and dead trees in that region.
The Champions looked somewhat doubtfully at this great animal, and
Kai suggested to Uriel that as he knew all tongues, he had better go
and speak to the shepherd.
"Not I," answered Uriel. "I agreed when we set out to go just as far
as thou, and no farther."
But Merlin came to them, and explained that he had cast a spell over
the dog, so that he could not hurt them. So Kilhugh and Kai and
Uriel went together to the shepherd, and asked him very politely who
owned that countless flock of sheep, and who lived in yonder castle.
"Where have ye lived not to know that?" cried the shepherd.
"Everyone in the world ought to know that this is the Castle of
Thornogre Thistlehair, Chief of the Giants."
"And who art thou?" they asked.
"I am Constantine, the brother of Thorn ogre Thistlehair," replied
the man, with an angry look. "A fine brother indeed has he been to
me! He has taken from me all my lands and possessions, and now I am
obliged to earn a living by feeding his sheep."
Then he asked them why they came, and when they replied that they
were seeking for Olwen, daughter of Thornogre Thistlehair, he sadly
shook his head.
"Alas!" he said, "no one ever tried to find her and returned from
this place alive. Go back at once, lest ye all perish also."
"That will we never do!" cried Kilhugh; and the Champions echoed his
words.
Then Constantine inquired who Kilhugh was, and when he heard, he
cried out that he was his own nephew, and begged that he and his
comrades would spend a night at his house, and to this they readily
agreed. And as a mark of affection Kilhugh gave his uncle a golden
ring; but it was much too small for the giant, who put it forthwith
into the finger of one of the gloves which hung from his belt as a
sign of his rank as chieftain. Then he signalled to his dog, who
immediately began to drive the sheep towards home.
When they reached the house the giant entered first, and gave his
wife his gloves to hold. She soon pulled out the ring, and at once
began to question him about it; so he told her that their nephew
Kilhugh, with six comrades, was even then dismounting at the door.
Then the shepherd's wife was glad, and ran forth with hands
outstretched to clasp him in her arms; but so big and strong was she
that, as Kai quickly saw, no knight could survive her embrace. So as
she threw her arms round Kilhugh's neck, he snatched up a log of
firewood, and pushed it into her arms instead of the young prince;
and when she unloosed it, it was twisted out of all shape. It was
somewhat to their relief, therefore, when she took them into the
house without further embracing, and set them down to supper. This
was a very frugal meal, and served with great simplicity, for
Thornogre had not left his brother so much as a silver goblet or a
single chair in his barren hall.
When they had supped, the shepherd's wife asked Kai and Uriel to stay
behind after the rest had gone out to the courtyard, and, taking them
to the chimney-corner, she opened a great stone box. As she lifted
the lid, to their amazement a beautiful boy with golden, curly hair
rose up from within.
"Pity indeed," exclaimed Uriel, "to keep so handsome a child shut up
here. What hath he done?"
Then the lady wept, and answered: "All my three and twenty sons have
been killed by Thornogre Thistlehair, Chief of the Giants; and now my
only hope of keeping him alive is to hide him in this chest, where he
has lived ever since he was born." And she wept to think that her
boy would never have a chance of doing valiant deeds and of becoming
a great knight. Then Kai bade her be of good cheer and let the lad
come with them, promising that he should not be slain unless he, Kai,
were killed as well.
She agreed to this very gladly, and asked them why they had come to
that region. But when she knew they had come to seek for Olwen, she
advised them strongly to go home, since in that very quest all her
three and twenty sons had perished.
They laughed at her fears, however, and asked if the maiden ever came
to the shepherd's house.
"Yes," said the shepherd's wife; "she comes every Saturday to wash
her hair. She leaves behind her all her jewels and rings in the
water which she uses, and never asks for them again."
Then they begged her to ask fair Olwen to visit her at once, and she
agreed, on condition that they would not carry her off against her
will.
To this the Champions agreed, and sat waiting in a hall for the
coming of the maiden.
Very fair she looked as she approached, dressed in a robe of
flame-coloured silk, and wearing a jewelled collar of gold round her
neck.
More yellow was her hair than the flower of the broom, and her skin
was whiter than the foam of the wave; and fairer were her hands and
fingers than the blossoms of the wood-anemone amidst the spray of the
meadow fountain. The eye of the trained hawk, the glance of the
falcon were not brighter than hers. Her bosom was more snowy than
the breast of the white swan; her cheek was redder than the reddest
roses. Whoso beheld her was filled with love of her. Four white
trefoils sprang up wherever she trod; therefore was she called Olwen
of the White Footprints.
Having entered the house she sat down by Kilhugh, who at once loved
her greatly, and began to pray her to come away with him, and be his
wife. But Olwen, though she returned his affection, answered that
she had promised her father not to go away without his leave. She
also told him that Thornogre knew that her bridal day was fated to be
the day of his death, so that he would withhold his leave as long as
possible. She advised him, however, to go to her father, and to
grant him everything he demanded, and so in time he should win her
hand; but if he denied the giant's least request, he would lose both
her and his own life.
When she had said this, she returned to the castle.