WHAT BEFELL LORD DE OV
Eleanor De Gubium was not mistaken as to the fate of Lord De Ov. On the
day when the battle of Poictiers was fought and won he had been under
the necessity of surrendering, rescue or no rescue. In fact, no sooner
was the haughty baron saved from the danger of perishing by the sword
of Eustace the Strong than he incurred the danger of dying by the lance
of John de Helennes, that squire of Picardy whom I had met at Mount
Moreville, when he was attached to Sir Lancelot de Lorris, and when he
was intrusted by that gallant knight with his bloodstained banner to
convey to one of the ladies of Poix.
It seems that at Poictiers, John de Helennes fought in the division
of John of Valois, and bore himself bravely; but when he saw his
countrymen dispersing on all hands, and perceived that the day was
irrecoverably lost, he bethought himself of flight; and meeting his
page with a fresh horse, mounted, with the object of making a speedy
escape. But in this endeavour he was destined to be rudely interrupted;
for Lord De Ov, smarting from wounds of the depth of which himself
was quite unconscious, being by this time remounted and not in the
most celestial mood, no sooner observed the squire spurring away from
the lost field, than, setting his spear in rest, he dashed after the
fugitive with the hope of taking him prisoner.
"Sir squire," cried the English baron, in a loud and menacing voice,
"I pray you return and meet me fairly. You cannot escape thus; for my
steed is the fleeter of the two; and if you turn not I will smite you
in the back, like a craven."
"By my halidame, you never shall!" cried John de Helennes on hearing
this challenge; and, halting, he wheeled round his steed to meet his
pursuer face to face.
Now it was the object of Lord De Ov to fix his lance in the target of
John de Helennes, while John's object was to strike his adversary's
helmet--a mark much more difficult to hit, but which, when hit, makes
the shock more violent and difficult to resist; and, when they met with
all the force they were capable, Lord De Ov failed to fix his lance in
the squire's target, while John, striking his antagonist fairly and
truly on the helmet, brought him to the ground with such violence that
the baron rolled over and over, grasping the grass with his hands as he
did so. Upon this the squire sprang from his horse, and, drawing his
sword, advanced on his prostrate foe.
"Surrender yourself, rescue or no rescue," said the squire, eager to
insure himself a captive who, from his appearance, was likely to pay a
handsome ransom.
"First tell me your name," replied Lord De Ov, who, seeing the
necessity of making the best of circumstances, immediately placed his
temper under control.
"My name is John de Helennes," said the squire, "and I pray you to tell
me who you are."
"In truth," answered the other, "I am Lord De Ov, and have a handsome
castle on the river Wear, near Durham."
"Lord De Ov!" exclaimed John de Helennes, who was delighted to hear
that his vanquished foe was a personage of rank and wealth; "I well
know your name as one of the great barons in the North of England; and
you shall be my prisoner."
"Well," said Lord De Ov, "I willingly surrender myself, for you have
fairly conquered me; and I will be your prisoner, rescue or no rescue."
"In that case," said John de Helennes, "I will place you in safety,
and, as you appear to be wounded, I will take care that you are healed."
Having thus arranged matters to his satisfaction, John de Helennes
sheathed his sword, and, having bound up the wounds of Lord De Ov,
placed him on horseback, and led him at a foot pace to Châtelherault,
and there rested for fifteen days while the captive lord's wounds were
healed and medicine administered.
Gradually, under the kind treatment of his captor, Lord De Ov began
to recover from his wounds and bruises; and when he was sufficiently
strong to travel, John de Helennes placed him in a litter and conducted
him safely to the ancient house of the Templars at Luz, where the
cure was completed. But it was not until twelve months had passed that
Lord De Ov was recovered so thoroughly as to think of returning to
England. At the end of that time, however, though still somewhat lame,
he prepared to depart from Picardy. Before leaving he paid, as his
ransom, the sum of six thousand nobles; and, on the profit which he
made out of his noble captive, John de Helennes became a knight. It is
not necessary as yet to tell what became of Roger, Lord De Ov; it is
sufficient to say that he was rapidly approaching the edge and crisis
of his fate.