[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
trembled inwardly.
'Then, when the bold company thought they must be undone by the terrible sound, it stopped. The
warrior host looked at one another and saw that they were covered in the sweat of fear, for none of them
had ever heard a cry like this: tortured beyond endurance, beyond hope.
'Before they could wonder who might have made a cry of such wounding torment, the high-topped
doors of the hall burst open and a tremendous wind swept through the hall - a fierce gale like those which
rage in the wintry northern seas. The warrior band braved the icy blast and when it had abated at last,
they looked and saw a lady standing in their midst. The stranger had the look of a queen, and she was
dressed all in grey from crown to heel; her face was hidden beneath a hood of grey, and she had three
grey hounds beside her.
'Manawyddan was first to recover his wits. He approached the woman, his hands open and inviting. "I
give you good greeting," he said, speaking in a kindly voice. "You are welcome here, though you may
find the companionship of women more to your liking. If so, I will summon the maidens of my court, that
you may be made comfortable in their presence."
"Think you I have come seeking comfort and pleasure?" the Grey Lady snapped haughtily.
' "I was merely offering you the hospitality of my court," replied Manawyddan. "Unless you tell us, we
will never know why you have burst in among us. Was it to put an end to our enjoyment?"
' "You may keep your hospitality!" remarked the woman tartly. "I have done with all kindliness and
generosity. The gentle pursuits I once enjoyed are more bitter to me now than death and ashes."
' "Indeed, I am sorry to hear it," Manawyddan replied sadly. "Tell me what I may do to restore warmth
and tenderness to your heart, and rest assured that before the sun has set on another day, I will have
done all anyone can do. What is more, the men who even now fill this hall are no less ready to aid me in
this endeavour."
'This handsome offer was thrown back in the king's face, for the lady offered only a grim, mocking laugh
in reply.
' "Lady," said Manawyddan, "why do you persist in this uncouth behaviour? I have made a king's vow to
do all that can be done to aid you in any way you desire. I am certain that my men and I can meet and
overcome any difficulty, end any oppression, right any wrong, and thus redress whatever hurt or harm
has befallen you."
'This heart-stirring speech received the acclaim of all who heard it. The noblemen lauded their monarch
and pledged themselves to the Grey Lady's service.
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'But the strange woman scorned their pledges. "Can you raise the dead, O Great King?" She laughed,
and her laughter was bitterness itself. "Can you restore life to a corpse on which the carrion crows have
feasted? Can you make the blood flow once more in the veins when that blood has soaked the earth, and
the living heart is but a lump of cold meat in the breast? Can you, O Wondrous Manawyddan, return the
warm gaze of love to an eye which has been cut out and thrown to the dogs?"
'Hearing this, Manawyddan's great heart surged with grief for the lady's plight. "Lady, your sorrow has
become my sorrow, and your woe my own. But know this: the full weight of the sadness you feel now,
seven times that much will be visited upon the one who has caused your lament."
'At this, the mysterious lady bowed her head and professed herself well pleased, knowing Manawyddan
would honour his vow to the last breath in his body. She then began to tell the king what had transpired
to bring about her ruin. The warriors pressed close around to hear - and between the telling and the
hearing, it was difficult to say which was the more distressing.
' "I was not always the grey hag you see before you now," the lady said. "Once I was beautiful, but
mourning has made me old and dry before my time. Listen, then, if you would learn the reason for my
travail.
' "I am the daughter of a mountain king called Rhongomynyad, a ruler both wise and good, who fell ill of [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
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trembled inwardly.
'Then, when the bold company thought they must be undone by the terrible sound, it stopped. The
warrior host looked at one another and saw that they were covered in the sweat of fear, for none of them
had ever heard a cry like this: tortured beyond endurance, beyond hope.
'Before they could wonder who might have made a cry of such wounding torment, the high-topped
doors of the hall burst open and a tremendous wind swept through the hall - a fierce gale like those which
rage in the wintry northern seas. The warrior band braved the icy blast and when it had abated at last,
they looked and saw a lady standing in their midst. The stranger had the look of a queen, and she was
dressed all in grey from crown to heel; her face was hidden beneath a hood of grey, and she had three
grey hounds beside her.
'Manawyddan was first to recover his wits. He approached the woman, his hands open and inviting. "I
give you good greeting," he said, speaking in a kindly voice. "You are welcome here, though you may
find the companionship of women more to your liking. If so, I will summon the maidens of my court, that
you may be made comfortable in their presence."
"Think you I have come seeking comfort and pleasure?" the Grey Lady snapped haughtily.
' "I was merely offering you the hospitality of my court," replied Manawyddan. "Unless you tell us, we
will never know why you have burst in among us. Was it to put an end to our enjoyment?"
' "You may keep your hospitality!" remarked the woman tartly. "I have done with all kindliness and
generosity. The gentle pursuits I once enjoyed are more bitter to me now than death and ashes."
' "Indeed, I am sorry to hear it," Manawyddan replied sadly. "Tell me what I may do to restore warmth
and tenderness to your heart, and rest assured that before the sun has set on another day, I will have
done all anyone can do. What is more, the men who even now fill this hall are no less ready to aid me in
this endeavour."
'This handsome offer was thrown back in the king's face, for the lady offered only a grim, mocking laugh
in reply.
' "Lady," said Manawyddan, "why do you persist in this uncouth behaviour? I have made a king's vow to
do all that can be done to aid you in any way you desire. I am certain that my men and I can meet and
overcome any difficulty, end any oppression, right any wrong, and thus redress whatever hurt or harm
has befallen you."
'This heart-stirring speech received the acclaim of all who heard it. The noblemen lauded their monarch
and pledged themselves to the Grey Lady's service.
Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
'But the strange woman scorned their pledges. "Can you raise the dead, O Great King?" She laughed,
and her laughter was bitterness itself. "Can you restore life to a corpse on which the carrion crows have
feasted? Can you make the blood flow once more in the veins when that blood has soaked the earth, and
the living heart is but a lump of cold meat in the breast? Can you, O Wondrous Manawyddan, return the
warm gaze of love to an eye which has been cut out and thrown to the dogs?"
'Hearing this, Manawyddan's great heart surged with grief for the lady's plight. "Lady, your sorrow has
become my sorrow, and your woe my own. But know this: the full weight of the sadness you feel now,
seven times that much will be visited upon the one who has caused your lament."
'At this, the mysterious lady bowed her head and professed herself well pleased, knowing Manawyddan
would honour his vow to the last breath in his body. She then began to tell the king what had transpired
to bring about her ruin. The warriors pressed close around to hear - and between the telling and the
hearing, it was difficult to say which was the more distressing.
' "I was not always the grey hag you see before you now," the lady said. "Once I was beautiful, but
mourning has made me old and dry before my time. Listen, then, if you would learn the reason for my
travail.
' "I am the daughter of a mountain king called Rhongomynyad, a ruler both wise and good, who fell ill of [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]