reason, damsel, that you came into this court; you know it as well as I do. I wish to God that you had not come here, for you never enter the fellowship of worshipful folk to do good, but only to do harm. And the knight who has achieved the sword will be destroyed through the sword, and that will be a great loss—for there is not a knight of equal prowess alive today. He shall do unto you, my lord Arthur, great honor and kindness. It is a great pity that he will live only a little while longer, for I do not know anyone alive today who can match his strength and hardiness.”
Meanwhile, the knight of Ireland, Lanceor, fully armed himself and positioned his shield on his shoulder; he mounted his horse and took his glaive in his hand, and then rode a great distance—as far as his horse could go. And within a little while, up on a mountain, he caught sight of Balin, and cried in a loud voice: “Wait, knight! You shall wait, whether you wish to or not. And that shield you bear before you shall be no help,” said the Irish knight. “I am coming after you.”
“Perhaps,” said Balin, “you would have done better to wait at home. Many a man thinks he can rebuke his enemy, but often he is the one who is shamed. From what country do you come?”
“I have come from the court of King Arthur,” said the knight of Ireland, “and I have come here to avenge the shame you did this day to Arthur and his court.”
“Well,” said Balin, “I see I must meet your challenge, although I am sorry that I have grieved King Arthur or any of his court. Your quarrel with me is a small matter,” said Balin. “The lady who is dead did great wrong to me, or else I would have been as loath as is any knight alive to slay a lady.”
“Prepare yourself,” said the knight Lanceor, “and face me; only one of us shall win this contest.”
Then they fixed their spears in their spear-rests and came together as fast as their horses could run. The Irish knight smote Balin on the shield so that his spear splintered, and Balin smote him right through the shield so that his hauberk broke. So he struck him clean through the body and knocked him back over his horse’s crupper; then he immediately turned his horse and drew out his sword, not realizing that he had already slain him.
When he saw him lying dead as a corpse, he looked around him and became aware of a damsel who came riding on a fair palfrey as fast as her horse could run. When she saw that Lanceor had been slain, she made great sorrow out of measure and said,”
CII.6
“Ah, Balin! You have slain two bodies in one heart, and two hearts in one body, and two souls you have lost!” Then she took the sword from her love who lay dead and fell to the ground in a swoon. When she arose she made great dole out of measure, and her sorrow upset Balin greatly.
He went to her to have taken the sword out of her hand, but she held on to it so tightly that he could not take it out of her hand unless he hurt her. And suddenly she set the pommel on the ground and drove the sword through her body. When Balin saw her do this he was very heavy in his heart and ashamed that so fair a damsel had destroyed herself because of the death of her love.
“Alas!” said Balin. “I am sorry for the death of this knight because he was so beloved of this damsel, and there was great true love between them.” He was so sad he could not look at them; so he turned his horse and headed for a fair forest.
Then he became aware that his brother Balan was riding his way. And when they met they took off their helmets and kissed each other and wept for joy and for pity.
Then Balan said, “Brother, I hardly expected to have met you here by accident, but I am very glad that you have been delivered from your dolorous imprisonment. A man in the Castle of Four Stones told me that you had been released, and that man had seen you in the court of King Arthur, so I came into this country, as I thought I would find you there.”
Then Balin told his brother about the adventure of the sword and the death of the Lady of the Lake, and how King Arthur was displeased with him. “And because of this he sent this knight after me who here lies dead. And the death of this damsel grieves me sorely.”
“It does me as well,” said Balan, “but you must take the adventure that God will ordain for you.”
“Truly,” said Balin, “I am very heavy-hearted that my lord Arthur is displeased with me, for he is the most worshipful king that reigns now on earth. I will win back his love or else sacrifice my life in trying. King Rience is currently laying siege to Castle Terrabyl; let us go there in haste to prove our worship and prowess upon him.”
“I would like it well,” said Balan, “if you would do so. I will ride with you and risk my body in this adventure with you, as a brother ought to do.”
“Now let us leave here.” said Balin, “It is good that we met!”
CII.7
As they were talking, a dwarf from the city of Camelot came up on horseback as quickly as he could; he found the dead bodies, over which he made great mourning, pulling out his hair for sorrow, and said, “Which of you two knights has done this deed?”
“Why do you ask?” said Balan.
“Because I would like to know,” said the dwarf.
“It was I,” said Balin, “who slew this knight in self-defense. He came hither to chase me, and either I had to slay him or he would slay me. And this damsel slew herself out of love for him, for which I am sorry. For her sake, I shall owe all women good will and service all the days of my life.”
“Alas!” said the dwarf. “You have done great damage to yourself. For this knight that lies dead here was one of the most valiant men that lived. Trust well, Balin, that the kin of this knight will chase you throughout the world until they have slain you.”
“As for that,” said Balin, “I do not fear them greatly. But I am very sorry that I should have displeased my lord King Arthur through the death of this knight.”
As they were talking together, a king of Cornwall came riding by with the high king, King Mark. When he saw these two dead bodies and understood how they had died—as explained by the two knights—the king made great sorrow for the true love that had been between them, and said, “I will not leave until I have raised a tomb on this spot.”
Then he set up his pavilions and sought throughout the country to find a tomb, and in a church he found one that was fair and rich. Then the king had both the knight and the lady put into the earth and laid the tomb over them, and wrote both their names on the tomb: “Here lies Lanceor, son of the king of Ireland, who by his own request was slain by the hands of Balin” and “This lady Columbe, paramour to him, slew herself with his sword for dole and sorrow.”
As this was happening, Merlin came along and saw all King Mark’s doings. “Here shall be,” said Merlin, “in this same place the greatest battle between two knights who are the truest lovers that ever was or ever shall be. But neither of them shall slay the other.” Then Merlin wrote the names of the knights who should fight in that place upon the tomb in letters of gold: Sir Lancelot du Lake and Sir Tristram.
CII.8
“You are a marvelous man,” said King Mark to Merlin, “to speak of such marvels. You are an unpolished and unlikely man to tell of such deeds. What is your name?” said King Mark.
“At this time,” said Merlin, “I will not tell you. But at the time when Sir Tristram is caught with his sovereign lady, then shall you hear and know my name,
