he distressed damsel, while Britomart and her nurse calmly rode
on, until they came to a castle, at whose gates one knight was
desperately fighting against six. Seeing this, Britomart boldly rode
to the rescue of the oppressed knight, and fought beside him to such
good purpose that they defeated their assailants. Then, entering the
castle, Britomart and her nurse proceeded to care for their companion,
the Red Cross Knight, who had received serious wounds.

Although he had noticed in the midst of the conflict that a golden
curl had escaped from Britomart's helmet and fallen over her breast,
and had thus discovered her sex, he courteously ignored it until they
were about to ride away together, when he respectfully offered to
serve as the lady's protector and escort. Thereupon Britomart
explained who she was, adding that she was in quest of Sir Artegall,
of whom she spoke rather slightingly, because she did not wish her
companion to know how deeply she had fallen in love with a stranger.
Judging from her tone that she did not approve of Sir Artegall, the
Red Cross Knight hotly protested he was the noblest and most courteous
knight that had ever lived, which, of course, pleased Britomart.

Meantime, Prince Arthur and Sir Guyon, with their respective
attendants, pursued the distressed damsel, riding through thick and
thin until they came to cross-roads. Not knowing which path the
fugitive had chosen, our heroes decided to part and ride along
separate ways. Thus, it was Prince Arthur who first caught a glimpse
of the fugitive, who still kept glancing backward as if afraid; but,
although he spurred on as fast as possible, he was not able to
overtake her, and had to pause at nightfall to rest. On resuming his
quest on the morrow, he soon encountered a dwarf, who reported he was
the servant of Lady Florimell, who had fled from court five days ago
on hearing a rumor that her lover, Marinell, was slain. The poor
damsel, while in quest of her lover, had been seen and pursued by an
ill-favored forester, and the dwarf feared some harm might have
befallen her. To comfort this faithful henchman, Prince Arthur
promised to go with him and rescue the unhappy damsel.

Meantime, undaunted by darkness, Florimell had ridden on until her
weary steed paused before a hut deep in the woods. There she
dismounted and humbly begged the old witch who lived there to give her
some food. Moved by the distress of the stranger, the sorceress bade
her d