THE DREAM OF RHONABWY
Iorwerth, younger son of Meredith, refused to live at ease in the palace of his brother, King Madoc. He rode therefore into Logres to steal a kingdom. He and his men plundered, and none could withstand them. But one day he vanished. Madoc sent men on all sides to seek him. But in vain they sought, and the searchers were foiled again and again, and found themselves often in strange countries.
Now Rhonabwy and two others made one search-party and they could come upon no traces and hear no news of Iorwerth. One night of rain they arrived at an old dark house. Heavy smoke billowed out of the hall over the mire and the dead thistle as they entered. The floor was all mounds and puddles, foul and slippery as a cattlefold, but carpeted in places with boughs of holly. At one side was a range of dark chambers full of dust; at the other a hag, too old to be quite human, bent shivering to feed a bad fire with lapfuls of damp chaff. Rhonabwy and his companions could hardly endure the cold smoke that poured from the chaff. Nevertheless, they did not go out again into the tempest of rain and wind, but lay down to rest on a couch that had given its choicest portions to the cattle for provender. The other two fell asleep in spite of the knotty bed and the vermin, but only when he had lain down on a yellow calfskin before the fire could Rhonabwy sleep.
While Rhonabwy slept on this calfskin he dreamed. With his two companions he was traversing a plain in North Wales towards the Ford of the Cross. As he rode he heard a noise such as he had never heard before, and turning round he saw a fierce youth of gigantic stature with curled yellow hair, riding on a chestnut horse. He was carrying a golden-hilted sword; his coat and scarf were of yellow satin sewn with green silk. The horse was caparisoned in the same colours; the green like that of the larch tree in April, the yellow like broom-flower. Fear overcame their admiration of this horse and horseman and the three began to fly, but in vain; for though the horse's breath drove them far away on its current it drew them back again right to his chest. They asked for mercy and the youth gave it, and they continued their journey in his company. Rhonabwy asked his name. He told them that he was Iddawc, who had stirred up strife between Arthur and his nephew Mordred, in mere youthful love of battles; and for that reason he was called Iddawc the Hammer of Britain. So Rhonabwy and his companions and Iddawc reached the ford together.
There Rhonabwy saw a city of tents and heard the cries of an innumerable army. On a flat islet in the Severn below the ford, Arthur the emperor was sitting between Bedwini the bishop and Gwarthegyd; and a tall youth with auburn hair and jet-black eyebrows stood before him, bearing a sheathed sword and wearing a coat and cap of jet-black satin. Riding a little into the shallows Iddawc and Rhonabwy and the other saluted those four upon the islet, and Arthur spoke:—
'Iddawc,' he asked, 'where didst thou find these little men?'
'Yonder, lord, upon the road,' replied Iddawc, and Arthur smiled.
'Why dost thou laugh?' said Iddawc.
'I do not laugh,' was the reply; 'but pity it is that men so little should be guardians of this island after the men who used to guard it.'
Then they stretched themselves out to rest on the grass under an alder, and Iddawc pointed out to Rhonabvvy a stone in the ring of Arthur, telling him that it had the power to make him remember all that he would see this day.
As they rested, Rhonabwy saw troop after troop of armed men riding down and encamping about the ford, and Iddawc told him who were the men and horses all in crimson; who were those riding upon black-legged white horses; and those who were all white except for the jet-black borders of their white scarves, the black shoulders of the white horses, and the black points to their snowy banners; and those who were jet-black with white points and borders. All were haughty riders and one of the knights on the black-legged white horses spurred so furiously into the river that he drenched Arthur and his counsellors. The youth standing before Arthur turned, therefore, and struck the knight's horse over the nostrils with the sheathed sword. Instantly the man reined in his horse with a scattering of foam like a mill-wheel, and drew his sword half out of the scabbard, asking loudly:
'Didst thou strike for insult or for counsel?'
'Thou dost lack counsel,' said the youth, 'thus to drench the Emperor.'
'For counsel then will I take the blow,' answered the knight, and mounted the bank.
'That', said Iddawc, 'was Adaon the son of Taliesin, wisest and most eloquent youth in this island. The quick-tempered youth standing before Arthur is Elphin the son of Gwyddno.'
In a little while Rhonabwy saw a tall man rise up and speak to Arthur:
'By noon, lord, we are to be at the battle of Badon, fighting Osla. I at least will set out at once, either with or without thee.'
'Thou sayest well,' said Arthur, 'we will go together.'
'Rhonabwy,' said Iddawc, 'that man of daring and mighty speech was Caradoc, cousin and chief counsellor to Arthur, a man who may speak as he pleases to any man.'
Then the army crossed the Severn and the river swelled over its banks with the multitude of men and horses. Iddawc and Rhonabwy and his companions rode with them, not dismounting until they looked up at Badon Castle and heard the wind roar in ten thousand beeches on Badon hill; whether this were Bath, or Baydon in Wiltshire, few care and no man knows. When they had halted, one knight in white mail with rivets of blood-red set the host in tumult by his wondrous and fierce riding. 'That,' said Iddawc to Rhonabwy, 'is Kay.' The tumult was stilled only by a prince lifting up the sword of Arthur in its scabbard that was like two serpents. When he drew forth the blade it resembled the gushing of flames out of the mouths of the serpents, and it was hard to look, and hard not to look, upon this marvel. 'That man', said Iddawc, 'is Cador Earl of Cornwall, who arms the Emperor.'
When all was quiet a huge red man rode up on a huge red horse, rough and hideous like his master, and dismounted before Arthur. He brought a chair large enough to seat three armed warriors, and a satin carpet which had an apple of ruddy gold at each corner and made any one upon it invisible. In the chair Arthur sat down, and Owen the son of Urien stood before him. 'Owen,' said Arthur, 'wilt thou play chess? '
'I will, lord,' replied Owen.
So the red man brought a chessboard of silver and golden chess-men, and Arthur began to play with Owen.
While they were deep in their game, Rhonabwy sitting among the beeches saw a white tent having a red canopy and on top a jet-black serpent painted, with red eyes and a red tongue in his open gorge. Out of the tent strode a yellow-haired page in coat and surcoat of yellow satin, greenish-yellow hose, and parti-coloured shoes fastened with golden clasps. His three-edged sword had a golden hilt and a gold-pointed black scabbard. He advanced to Owen and saluted him.
'Lord,' he said, 'is it by thy permission that the young pages and attendants of the Emperor torment thy Ravens? If not, beseech the Emperor to forbid them.'
'Lord,' said Owen, 'thou hearest the youth; if it seems good to thee, forbid thy pages and attendants.'
'Owen,' said Arthur, 'it is thy turn to play.'
So the youth returned to the tent, and Arthur and Owen finished the game of chess and began another. In the midst of this game Rhonabwy saw a goodly youth emerging from a yellow tent that had a bright red lion painted on top of it. He was ruddy, with auburn curled hair. His coat was of yellow satin red silk embroidery, his hose were white, his buskins black and their clasps of gold. He carried a huge three-edged sword in a gold-tipped scabbard of red deer-hide. He also strode up to Owen and saluted him, saying:
'Lord, is it by thy permission that the young pages and attendants of the Emperor torment thy Ravens? If not, beseech the Emperor to forbid them.'
'Lord,' said Owen, 'thou hearest the youth; if it seem good to thee, forbid thy pages and attendants.'
'Owen,' said Arthur, 'it is thy turn to play.'
So the youth returned to the tent, and Arthur and Owen finished the game and began another. At the beginning of this game Rhonabwy saw a goodly youth striding out of a great tent speckled yellow and adorned with an eagle of gold, having a precious stone on its head. His hair was thick and yellow, his cheeks ruddy, and his eyes large and like a hawk's, and he wore a scarf of blue satin fastened on his right shoulder by a golden brooch. His shoes of parti-coloured leather were clasped with gold. In his right hand he bore a mighty lance, speckled yellow and displaying a banner. Anger was in his speed as he came up to the chess-players and saluted Owen.
'Lord,' he said, 'most of thy Ravens are dead. Those that live are so wounded they cannot raise their wings a fathom above the earth.'
'Lord,' said Owen, 'forbid thy men.'
'Play,' said Arthur, his eyes on the board.
Till he had spoken to the youth, Owen did not regard the chess-men.
'Go back,' he said, 'and in the thickest of the strife lift up the banner and let come what pleases Heaven.'
So the youth returned, and where the Ravens most suffered, Rhonabwy saw him lift up the banner on his yellow-speckled lance. Immediately the Ravens clapped their wings in the wind with a noise that drowned the roaring of the trees. They were shaking off their hurts and their weariness and even death. They rose up into the air boldly and very angrily, and swept down together in a frenzy on Arthur's men. They caught the men by their heads, by their eyes, by their ears, by their arms, and soared with them on high. The air was full of the flapping and croaking of the triumphant Ravens and the groans of their victims struggling and wounded.
Arthur and Owen, still playing their game, marvelled at this conflict, and Rhonabwy noticed that Owen looked rather at Arthur than at the board. Then there galloped towards them a knight upon a dun horse, his right shoulder bright red, his legs yellow to the hoof. Both were in heavy foreign armour, and the caparison of the horse was bright red above and bright yellow below. Golden-hilted was the knight's sword and the scabbard light blue. His helmet was of gold set with precious stones, the crest a flame-coloured leopard with eyes of rubies. His blue-shafted lance was crimson red from haft to point with the blood of the Ravens. The face of the knight, even more than the leopard, astounded the heart of stoutest warriors.
Enraged but weary he saluted Arthur and said: 'Lord, the Ravens of Owen are slaying thy young men and attendants.'
'Forbid thy Ravens,' said Arthur, looking at Owen.
'Lord,' answered Owen, staring at the board, 'it is thy turn to play.'
So they played on and the knight returned to the tumult of men and Ravens, and the chess-players could not but hear the wails of men and the croaking of Ravens as they sailed with the men through the air and tore them and let them fall piecemeal to the earth. A second knight galloped towards them on a light-grey horse whose left foreleg was jet-black to the hoof. Both were in heavy blue armour. The knight's robe of honour was of yellow-diapered satin, blue-bordered; the horse was caparisoned in jet-black with yellow border. Three-edged and heavy was the knight's sword, and the scabbard on his thigh was of red leather; his helmet was gold, set with sapphires of great virtue and crested with a lion of flame-colour, having a fiery red tongue and crimson eyes; the ashen lance headed with silver in his right hand was steeped in blood. He saluted the Emperor and said:
'Lord, dost thou not heed this slaughter? Thy pages and thy young men and the sons of the nobles of Britain are being killed, and who is to defend this island?'
'Owen,' said Arthur, 'forbid thy Ravens,' and it seemed to Rhonabwy that as the Emperor spoke there was no other sound in the world. But Owen answered only:
'Lord, play this game.'
Owen lost, and they began another game. As they were finishing, Rhonabwy heard a greater clamour of armed men and a yet greater croaking and flapping of Ravens flinging down armour and shreddings of men and horses. A third knight was riding up on a lofty-headed piebald horse, its left shoulder bright red and its right foreleg pure white. Horse and man were in armour of speckled yellow, and both wore robes of honour, black and white and bordered with purple. The knight's sword was three-edged and golden-hilted; his yellow helmet was set with crystals, and its crest was a griffin with a stone of many virtues in its head; and his spear was ashen, the shaft azure, the head overlaid with silver and stained with new blood. He came in anger.
'Lord,' he said to Arthur, 'the Ravens have slain the men of your household and the chief men of the island. Command Owen to forbid his Ravens.'
'Owen,' said Arthur, 'forbid them'; and Arthur's hands crushed the golden chess-men like clay under Owen's eyes. Then Owen ordered the young man with the mighty lance speckled yellow to lower his banner. He lowered it and Rhonabwy saw peace and heard great silence. The Ravens gathered in ranks about the banner, and as their human fellows walked in and out amongst them not a beak or an eyelid stirred, and they looked wiser than any man that Rhonabwy had ever seen.
Rhonabwy now saw twenty-four knights come up to Arthur from Osla to crave a truce. The Emperor rose up and assembled his counsellors, Rhun the son of Maelgwn Gwynedd, Bedwini the bishop, Mark, Caradoc, Gwalchmai, Mabon, Peredur, Trystan, Morien, Cador, Adaon the son of Taliesin, and Cadyriaith, and men of Norway and Denmark and men of Greece and many others.
'Who is the tall auburn knight?' asked Rhonabwy.
'He,' said Iddawc, 'is Rhun son of Maelgwn Gwynedd.'
'And why,' again asked Rhonabwy, 'why is such a stripling as Cadyriaith admitted to this council?'
'Because,' answered Iddawc, 'there is no man throughout Britain more skilled in counsel.'
Then the bards came and recited verses before Arthur, but no man save Cadyriaith understood more of them than that they were in praise of the Emperor.
Next arrived twenty-four wayworn men leading each an ass, bearing gold and silver as tribute to Arthur from the Islands of Greece, and Cadyriaith rose and spoke, proposing that the asses and the gold and silver should be given to the bards as a reward for their verses, and that the truce should be granted to Osla.
'Rhonabwy,' said Iddawc, 'would it not be wrong to exclude so liberal a youth as Cadyriaith from the councils of his Lord?'
As Cadyriaith proposed, so it was agreed, and Kay rose up and spoke to the host:—
'Let whosoever will follow Arthur be with him tonight in Cornwall, and whosoever will not is Arthur's enemy.' Not a man, not a raven, remained still or silent at these words, and in the clamour of that host beginning to surge towards Cornwall, Rhonabwy awoke upon the yellow calfskin. His sleep was three nights and three days long when he dreamed this dream.