Part 19 (1/2)

”I have been playing cards all night. And where are you going?” inquired the stranger of Kil Arthur.

”I am going around the world to know can I find a man as good as myself.”

”Come with me,” said the stranger, ”and I'll show you a man who couldn't find his match till he went to fight the main ocean.”

Kil Arthur went with the ragged stranger till they came to a place from which they saw a giant out on the ocean beating the waves with a club.

Kil Arthur went up to the giant's castle, and struck the pole of combat such a blow that the giant in the ocean heard it above the noise of his club as he pounded the waves.

”What do you want?” asked the giant in the ocean, as he stopped from the pounding.

”I want you to come in here to land,” said Kil Arthur, ”and fight with a better man than yourself.”

The giant came to land, and standing near his castle said to Kil Arthur: ”Which would you rather fight with,--gray stones or sharp weapons?”

”Gray stones,” said Kil Arthur.

They went at each other, and fought the most terrible battle that either of them had ever seen till that day. At last Kil Arthur pushed the giant to his shoulders through solid earth.

”Take me out of this,” cried the giant, ”and I'll give you my sword of light that never missed a blow, my Druidic rod of most powerful enchantment, and my healing draught which cures every sickness and wound.”

”Well,” said Kil Arthur, ”I'll go for your sword and try it.”

He went to the giant's castle for the sword, the rod, and the healing draught. When he returned the giant said: ”Try the sword on that tree out there.”

”Oh,” said Kil Arthur, ”there is no tree so good as your own neck,” and with that he swept off the head of the giant; took it, and went on his way till he came to a house. He went in and put the head on a table; but that instant it disappeared,--went away of itself. Food and drink of every kind came on the table. When Kil Arthur had eaten and the table was cleared by some invisible power, the giant's head bounded on to the table, and with it a pack of cards. ”Perhaps this head wants to play with me,” thought Kil Arthur, and he cut his own cards and shuffled them.

The head took up the cards and played with its mouth as well as any man could with his hands. It won all the time,--wasn't playing fairly. Then Kil Arthur thought: ”I'll settle this;” and he took the cards and showed how the head had taken five points in the game that didn't belong to it.

Then the head sprang at him, struck and beat him till he seized and hurled it into the fire.

As soon as he had the head in the fire a beautiful woman stood before him, and said: ”You have killed nine of my brothers, and this was the best of the nine. I have eight more brothers who go out to fight with four hundred men each day, and they kill them all; but next morning the four hundred are alive again and my brothers have to do battle anew. Now my mother and these eight brothers will be here soon; and they'll go down on their bended knees and curse you who killed my nine brothers, and I'm afraid your blood will rise within you when you hear the curses, and you'll kill my eight remaining brothers.”

”Oh,” said Kil Arthur, ”I'll be deaf when the curses are spoken; I'll not hear them.” Then he went to a couch and lay down. Presently the mother and eight brothers came, and cursed Kil Arthur with all the curses they knew. He heard them to the end, but gave no word from himself.

Next morning he rose early, girded on his nine-edged sword, went forth to where the eight brothers were going to fight the four hundred, and said to the eight: ”Sit down, and I'll fight in your place.”

Kil Arthur faced the four hundred, and fought with them alone; and exactly at midday he had them all dead. ”Now some one,” said he, ”brings these to life again. I'll lie down among them and see who it is.”

Soon he saw an old hag coming with a brush in her hand, and an open vessel hanging from her neck by a string. When she came to the four hundred she dipped the brush into the vessel and sprinkled the liquid which was in it over the bodies of the men. They rose up behind her as she pa.s.sed along.

”Bad luck to you,” said Kil Arthur, ”you are the one that keeps them alive;” then he seized her. Putting one of his feet on her two ankles, and grasping her by the head and shoulders, he twisted her body till he put the life out of her.

When dying she said: ”I put you under a curse, to keep on this road till you come to the 'ram of the five rocks,' and tell him you have killed the hag of the heights and all her care.”

He went to the place where the ram of the five rocks lived and struck the pole of combat before his castle. Out came the ram, and they fought till Kil Arthur seized his enemy and dashed the brains out of him against the rocks.

Then he went to the castle of the beautiful woman whose nine brothers he had killed, and for whose eight brothers he had slain the four hundred.