The Well at the World's End: A Tale

  CHAPTER 1

  An Adventure in the Wood Under the Mountains

  Now was the night worn to the time appointed, for it was two hoursafter midnight, so he stepped out of his tent clad in all his war gear,and went straight to the doddered oak, and found Redhead there with butone horse, whereby Ralph knew that he held to his purpose of going hisways to Utterbol: so he took him by the shoulders and embraced him,rough carle as he was, and Redhead kneeled to him one moment of timeand then arose and went off into the night. But Ralph got a-horsebackwithout delay and rode his ways warily across the highway and into thewood, and there was none to hinder him. Though it was dark but for thestarlight, there was a path, which the horse, and not Ralph, found, sothat he made some way even before the first glimmer of dawn, all themore as the wood was not very thick after the first mile, and therewere clearings here and there.

  So rode Ralph till the sun was at point to rise, and he was about themidst of one of those clearings or wood-lawns, on the further sidewhereof there was more thicket, as he deemed, then he had yet come to;so he drew rein and looked about him for a minute. Even therewith hedeemed he heard a sound less harsh than the cry of the jay in thebeech-trees, and shriller than the moaning of the morning breeze in thewood. So he falls to listening with both ears, and this time deemsthat he hears the voice of a woman: and therewith came into his mindthat old and dear adventure of the Wood Perilous; for he was dreamywith the past eagerness of his deeds, and the long and lonely night.But yet he doubted somewhat of the voice when it had passed his ears,so he shook his rein, for he thought it not good to tarry.

  Scarce then had his horse stepped out, ere there came a woman runningout of the thicket before him and made toward him over the lawn. So hegat off his horse at once and went to meet her, leading his horse; andas he drew nigh he could see that she was in a sorry plight; she hadgathered up her skirts to run the better, and her legs and feet werenaked: the coif was gone from her head and her black hair streamed outbehind her: her gown was rent about the shoulders and bosom, so thatone sleeve hung tattered, as if by the handling of some one.

  So she ran up to him crying out: "Help, knight, help us!" and sankdown therewith at his feet panting and sobbing. He stooped down toher, and raised her up, and said in a kind voice: "What is amiss, fairdamsel, that thou art in such a plight; and what may I for thine avail?Doth any pursue thee, that thou fleest thus?"

  She stood sobbing awhile, and then took hold of his two hands and said:"O fair lord, come now and help my lady! for as for me, since I am withthee, I am safe."

  "Yea," said he, "Shall I get to horse at once?" And therewith he madeas if he would move away from her; but she still held his hands, andseemed to think it good so to do, and she spake not for a while butgazed earnestly into his face. She was a fair woman, dark and sleekand lithe...for in good sooth she was none other than Agatha, who isafore told of.

  Now Ralph is somewhat abashed by her eagerness, and lets his eyes fallbefore hers; and he cannot but note that despite the brambles andbriars of the wood that she had run through, there were no scratches onher bare legs, and that her arm was unbruised where the sleeve had beenrent off.

  At last she spake, but somewhat slowly, as if she were thinking of whatshe had to say: "O knight, by thy knightly oath I charge thee come tomy lady and help and rescue her: she and I have been taken by evil men,and I fear that they will put her to shame, and torment her, ere theycarry her off; for they were about tying her to a tree when I escaped:for they heeded not me who am but the maid, when they had the mistressin their hands." "Yea," said he, "and who is thy mistress?" Said thedamsel: "She is the Lady of the Burnt Rock; and I fear me that thesemen are of the Riders of Utterbol; and then will it go hard with her;for there is naught but hatred betwixt my lord her husband and thetyrant of Utterbol." Said Ralph: "And how many were they?" "O butthree, fair sir, but three," she said; "and thou so fair and strong,like the war-god himself."

  Ralph laughed: "Three to one is long odds," quoth he, "but I will comewith thee when thou hast let go my hands so that I may mount my horse.But wilt thou not ride behind me, fair damsel; so wearied and spent asthou wilt be by thy night."

  She looked on him curiously, and laid a hand on his breast, and thehauberk rings tinkled beneath the broidered surcoat; then she said:"Nay, I had best go afoot before thee, so disarrayed as I am."

  Then she let him go, but followed him still with her eyes as he gat himinto the saddle. She walked on beside his horse's head; and Ralphmarvelled of her that for all her haste she had been in, she wentsomewhat leisurely, picking her way daintily so as to tread the smooth,and keep her feet from the rough.

  Thus they went on, into the thicket and through it, and the damsel putthe thorns and briars aside daintily as she stepped, and went slowerstill till they came to a pleasant place of oak-trees with greenswardbeneath them; and then she stopped, and turning, faced Ralph, and spokewith another voice than heretofore, whereas there was naught rueful orwhining therein, but somewhat both of glee and of mocking as it seemed."Sir knight," she said, "I have a word or two for thy ears; and this isa pleasant place, and good for us to talk together, whereas it isneither too near to her, nor too far from her, so that I can easilyfind my way back to her. Now, lord, I pray thee light down and listento me." And therewith she sat down on the grass by the bole of a greatoak.

  "But thy lady," said Ralph, "thy lady?" "O sir," she said; "My ladyshall do well enough: she is not tied so fast, but she might looseherself if the need were pressing. Light down, dear lord, light down!"

  But Ralph sat still on his horse, and knit his brows, and said: "Whatis this, damsel? hast thou been playing a play with me? Where is thylady whom thou wouldst have me deliver? If this be but game and play,let me go my ways; for time presses, and I have a weighty errand onhand."

  She rose up and came close to him, and laid a hand on his knee andlooked wistfully into his face as she said: "Nay then, I can tell theeall the tale as thou sittest in thy saddle; for meseems short will bethy farewell when I have told it." And she sighed withal.

  Then Ralph was ashamed to gainsay her, and she now become gentle andsweet and enticing, and sad withal; so he got off his horse and tiedhim to a tree, and went and stood by the damsel as she lay upon thegrass, and said: "I prithee tell thy tale and let me depart if there benaught for me to do."

  Then she said: "This is the first word, that as to the Red Rock, Ilied; and my lady is the Queen of Utterbol, and I am her thrall, and itis I who have drawn thee hither from the camp."

  The blood mounted to Ralph's brow for anger; when he called to mind howhe had been led hither and thither on other folk's errands ever sincehe left Upmeads. But he said naught, and Agatha looked on him timidlyand said: "I say I am her thrall, and I did it to serve her and becauseshe bade me." Said Ralph roughly: "And Redhead, him whom I saved fromtorments and death; dost thou know him? didst thou know him?"

  "Yea," she said, "I had from him what he had learned concerning theefrom the sergeants and others, and then I put words into his mouth.""Yea then," quoth Ralph, "then he also is a traitor!" "Nay, nay," shesaid, "he is a true man and loveth thee, and whatever he hath said tothee he troweth himself. Moreover, I tell thee here and now that allthat he told thee of the affairs of Utterbol, and thine outlook there,is true and overtrue."

  She sprang to her feet therewith, and stood before him and clasped herhands before him and said: "I know that thou seekest the Well at theWorld's End and the deliverance of the damsel whom the Lord ravishedfrom the wild man: now I swear it by thy mouth, that if thou go toUtterbol thou art undone and shalt come to the foulest pass there, andmoreover that so going thou shalt bring the uttermost shame andtorments on the damsel."

  Said Ralph: "Yea, but what is her case as now? tell me."

  Quoth Agatha: "She is in no such evil case; for my lady hateth her notas yet, or but little; and, which is far more, my lord loveth her afterhis fashion, and withal as I deem feareth her; for though she hathut
terly gainsaid his desire, he hath scarce so much as threatened her.A thing unheard of. Had it been another woman she had by this timeknown all the bitterness that leadeth unto death at Utterbol." Ralphpaled and he scowled on her, then he said: "And how knowest thou allthe privity of the Lord of Utterbol? who telleth thee of all this?"She smiled and spake daintily: "Many folk tell me that which I wouldknow; and that is because whiles I conquer the tidings with my wits,and whiles buy it with my body. Anyhow what I tell thee is the verysooth concerning this damsel, and this it is: that whereas she is butin peril, she shall be in deadly peril, yea and that instant, if thougo to Utterbol, thou, who art her lover..." "Nay," said Ralph angrily,"I am not her lover, I am but her well-willer." "Well," quoth Agathalooking down and knitting her brows, "when thy good will towards herhas become known, then shall she be thrown at once into the pit of mylord's cruelty. Yea, to speak sooth, even as it is, for thy sake (forher I heed naught) I would that the lord might find her gone when hecometh back to Utterbol."

  "Yea," said Ralph, reddening, "and is there any hope for her gettingclear off?" "So I deem," said Agatha. She was silent awhile and thenspake in a low voice: "It is said that each man that seeth her lovethher; yea, and will befriend her, even though she consent not to hisdesire. Maybe she hath fled from Utterbol."

  Ralph stood silent awhile with a troubled face; and then he said: "Yetthou hast not told me the why and wherefore of this play of thine, andthe beguiling me into fleeing from the camp. Tell it me that I maypardon thee and pass on."

  She said: "By thine eyes I swear that this is sooth, and that there isnaught else in it than this: My lady set her love, when first she sether eyes upon thee--as forsooth all women must: as for me, I had notseen thee (though I told my lady that I had) till within this hour thatwe met in the wood."

  She sighed therewith, and with her right hand played with the rentraiment about her bosom. Then she said: "She deemed that if thoucamest a mere thrall to Utterbol, though she might command thy body,yet she would not gain thy love; but that if perchance thou mightestsee her in hard need, and evilly mishandled, and mightest deliver her,there might at least grow up pity in thee for her, and that love mightcome thereof, as oft hath happed aforetime; for my lady is a fairwoman. Therefore I, who am my lady's servant and thrall, and who, Ibid thee remember, had not seen thee, took upon me to make thisadventure, like to a minstrel's tale done in the flesh. Also I spaketo my lord and told him thereof; and though he jeered at my lady to me,he was content, because he would have her set her heart on theeutterly; since he feared her jealousy, and would fain be delivered ofit, lest she should play some turn to his newly beloved damsel and doher a mischief. Therefore did he set thee free (in words) meaning,when he had thee safe at Utterbol again (as he nowise doubted to havethee) to do as he would with thee, according as occasion might serve.For at heart he hateth thee, as I could see well. So a little beforethou didst leave the camp, we, the Queen and I, went privily into aplace of the woods but a little way hence. There I disarrayed both mylady and myself so far as was needful for the playing out the playwhich was to have seemed to thee a real adventure. Then came I to theeas if by chance hap, that I might bring thee to her; and if thou hadstcome, we had a story for thee, whereby thou mightest not for veryknighthood forbear to succour her and bring her whither she would,which in the long run had been Utterbol, but for the present time wasto have been a certain strong-house appertaining to Utterbol, and nighunto it. This is all the tale, and now if thou wilt, thou mayst pardonme; or if thou wilt, thou mayst draw out thy sword and smite off myhead. And forsooth I deem that were the better deed."

  She knelt down before him and put her palms together, and looked up athim beseechingly. His face darkened as he beheld her thus, but itcleared at last, and he said: "Damsel, thou wouldst turn out but asorry maker, and thy play is naught. For seest thou not that I shouldhave found out all the guile at Utterbol, and owed thy lady hatredrather than love thereafter."

  "Yea," she said, "but my lady might have had enough of thy love bythen, and would belike have let thee alone to fall into the hands ofthe Lord. Lo now! I have delivered thee from this, so that thou artquit both of the Lord and the lady and me: and again I say that thoucouldst scarce have missed, both thou and thy damsel, of a miserableending at Utterbol."

  "Yea," said Ralph, softly, and as if speaking to himself, "yet am Ilonely and unholpen." Then he turned to Agatha and said: "The end ofall this is that I pardon thee, and must depart forthwith; for when yetwo come back to the camp, then presently will the hunt be up."

  She rose from her knees, and stood before him humbly and said: "Nay, Ishall requite thee thy pardon thus far, that I will fashion some talefor my lady which will keep us in the woods two days or three; for wehave provided victual for our adventure."

  Said Ralph: "I may at least thank thee for that, and will trust inthee to do so much." Quoth she: "Then might I ask a reward of thee:since forsooth other reward awaiteth me at Utterbol."

  "Thou shalt have it," said Ralph. She said: "The reward is that thoukiss me ere we part."

  "It must needs be according to my word," said Ralph, "yet I must tellthee that my kiss will bear but little love with it."

  She answered naught but laid her hands on his breast and put up herface to him, and he kissed her lips. Then she said: "Knight, thou hastkissed a thrall and a guileful woman, yet one that shall smart forthee; therefore grudge not the kiss nor repent thee of thy kindness."

  "How shalt thou suffer?" said he. She looked on him steadfastly amoment, and said: "Farewell! may all good go with thee." Therewith sheturned away and walked off slowly through the wood, and somewhat hepitied her, and sighed as he got into his saddle; but he said tohimself: "How might I help her? Yet true it is that she may well bein an evil case: I may not help everyone." Then he shook his rein androde his ways.