With that the Red Knight of the Red Launds called to Sir Beaumains,Leave,sir knight,thy looking,and behold me,Icounsel thee;for I warn thee well she is my lady,and for her Ihave done many strong battles.If thou have so done,said Beaumains,meseemeth it was but waste labour,for she loveth none of thy fellowship,and thou to love that loveth not thee is but great folly.For an I understood that she were not glad of my coming,I would be advised or I did battle for her.But Iunderstand by the besieging of this castle she may forbear thy fellowship.And therefore wit thou well,thou Red Knight of the Red Launds,I love her,and will rescue her,or else to die.
Sayst thou that?said the Red Knight,meseemeth thou ought of reason to be ware by yonder knights that thou sawest hang upon yonder trees.Fie for shame,said Beaumains,that ever thou shouldest say or do so evil,for in that thou shamest thyself and knighthood,and thou mayst be sure there will no lady love thee that knoweth thy wicked customs.And now thou weenest that the sight of these hanged knights should fear me.Nay truly,not so;that shameful sight causeth me to have courage and hardiness against thee,more than I would have had against thee an thou wert a well-ruled knight.Make thee ready,said the Red Knight of the Red Launds,and talk no longer with me.
Then Sir Beaumains bade the damosel go from him;and then they put their spears in their rests,and came together with all their might that they had both,and either smote other in midst of their shields that the paitrelles,surcingles,and cruppers brast,and fell to the earth both,and the reins of their bridles in their hands;and so they lay a great while sore astonied,that all that were in the castle and in the siege weened their necks had been broken;and then many a stranger and other said the strange knight was a big man,and a noble jouster,for or now we saw never no knight match the Red Knight of the Red Launds:thus they said,both within the castle and without.Then lightly they avoided their horses and put their shields afore them,and drew their swords and ran together like two fierce lions,and either gave other such buffets upon their helms that they reeled backward both two strides;and then they recovered both,and hewed great pieces off their harness and their shields that a great part fell into the fields.
CHAPTER XVII
How after long fighting Beaumains overcame the knight and would have slain him,but at the request of the lords he saved his life,and made him to yield him to the lady.
AND then thus they fought till it was past noon,and never would stint,till at the last they lacked wind both;and then they stood wagging and scattering,panting,blowing and bleeding,that all that beheld them for the most part wept for pity.So when they had rested them a while they yede to battle again,tracing,racing,foining as two boars.And at some time they took their run as it had been two rams,and hurtled together that sometime they fell grovelling to the earth:and at some time they were so amazed that either took other's sword instead of his own.
Thus they endured till evensong time,that there was none that beheld them might know whether was like to win the battle;and their armour was so forhewn that men might see their naked sides;and in other places they were naked,but ever the naked places they did defend.And the Red Knight was a wily knight of war,and his wily fighting taught Sir Beaumains to be wise;but he abought it full sore or he did espy his fighting.
And thus by assent of them both they granted either other to rest;and so they set them down upon two mole-hills there beside the fighting place,and either of them unlaced his helm,and took the cold wind;for either of their pages was fast by them,to come when they called to unlace their harness and to set them on again at their commandment.And then when Sir Beaumains'helm was off,he looked up to the window,and there he saw the fair lady Dame Lionesse,and she made him such countenance that his heart waxed light and jolly;and therewith he bade the Red Knight of the Red Launds make him ready,and let us do the battle to the utterance.I will well,said the knight,and then they laced up their helms,and their pages avoided,and they stepped together and fought freshly;but the Red Knight of the Red Launds awaited him,and at an overthwart smote him within the hand,that his sword fell out of his hand;and yet he gave him another buffet upon the helm that he fell grovelling to the earth,and the Red Knight fell over him,for to hold him down.
Then cried the maiden Linet on high:O Sir Beaumains,where is thy courage become?Alas,my lady my sister beholdeth thee,and she sobbeth and weepeth,that maketh mine heart heavy.When Sir Beaumains heard her say so,he abraid up with a great might and gat him upon his feet,and lightly he leapt to his sword and gripped it in his hand,and doubled his pace unto the Red Knight,and there they fought a new battle together.But Sir Beaumains then doubled his strokes,and smote so thick that he smote the sword out of his hand,and then he smote him upon the helm that he fell to the earth,and Sir Beaumains fell upon him,and unlaced his helm to have slain him;and then he yielded him and asked mercy,and said with a loud voice:O noble knight,Iyield me to thy mercy.