by the hair of her head, they made great outcry
against her for vengeance, saying: "Slay her! Slay her!" And therewith
several made at her as though to do as they said and to slay her. But
Percival waved his sword before her and said: "Not so! Not so! For this
lady is my prisoner and we shall not harm her unless ye come at her through
me."

Thereat they fell silent in a little while, and when he had thus stilled
them, he turned to the Lady Vivien and said: "This is my command that I lay
upon thee: that thou shalt go into the court of King Arthur and shalt
confess thyself to him and that thou shalt fulfil whatever penance he may
lay upon thee to perform because of thy transgressions. Now wilt thou do
this for to save thy life?"

And the Lady Vivien made reply: "All shall be done according to thy
command."

Therewith Sir Percival released his hold upon her and she was free.

Then, finding herself to be thus free, she stepped back a pace or two and
looked into Sir Percival his face, and she laughed. And she said: "Thou
fool, didst thou think that I would do so mad a thing as that which thou
hast made me promise? For what mercy could I expect at the hands of King
Arthur seeing that it was I who destroyed the Enchanter Merlin, who was the
right adviser of King Arthur! Go to King Arthur thyself and deliver to him
thine own messages."

[Sidenote: The Lady Vivien escapes] So saying, in an instant, she vanished
from the sight of all those who stood there. And with her vanished that
castle of crimson and ultramarine and gold--and nothing was left but the
bare rocks and the barren plain.

Then when those who were there recovered from their astonishment, upon
beholding that great castle so suddenly disappear, they turned to Sir
Percival and gave him worship and thanks without measure, saying to him:
"What shall we do in return for saving us from the enchantment of this
sorceress?"

And Percival said: "Ye shall do this: ye shall go to the court of King
Arthur and tell him how that young knight, Percival, whom he made a knight
a year ago, hath liberated you from the enchantment of this sorceress. And
you shall seek out Sir Kay and shall say to him that, by and by, I shall
return and repay him in full measure, twenty times over, that blow which he
gave to the damosel Yelande, the Dumb Maiden because of her kindness to
me."

So said Sir Percival, and they said: "It shall be done as thou dost
ordain."

Then Sir Percydes said