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Alecto thus, amang the woddis dern,
Mony wild bestis den and depe cavern,
Into sic rage this ilk Queyn Amata
With Bacchus fury catchis to and fra.
And efter that this wikkit fals goddes
Thocht scho had scharpit weill eneuch, I gess,
The first fury of sa dolorus rage,
Fortyll distrubbill the forsaid mariage,
And quyte pervert or turnyt top our taill
Latynus howshald, purposs and counsale,
But mar delay, with wallowit weyngis sche
Wiskis from thyne onto the wallis hie
Of the curageus Rutiliane Turnus,
Quhilk cite the douchter of Acrysyus,
Fair Danas, fundyt for hir men and hir,
Drevin to that cost with the south wyndis bir;
Quhilk sted was sumquhile clepit Ardea,
Fra Ardea, a fowle, ȝit namyt swa,
And, to this day, the forsaid riall hame
Be fortoun brukis of Ardea the name.
Within tha hyghty boundis Turnus rycht
Lay stil at rest amyddis the dirk nycht.
Alecto hir thrawin vissage dyd away,
Al furyus membris laid apart and array,
And hir in schap transformyt of a trat,
Hyr forret skorit with runclys and mony rat,
And with a vaill ourspred hir lyard hair,
A branch of olyve tharto knyttis ȝar;
Of Iunoys tempill semyt scho tobe
The nun and trattes, clepit Calybe.
Befor the visage of this stowt ȝong knycht
Present hir self, with thir wordis on hicht:
“Turnus, quhat, wylt thou suffir this ondocht,
Thy lang travale and laubour be for nocht,
And thy ceptre and crown delyuerit be
To ȝon banyst new cum Troiane menȝe?
The kyng Latyn the spousage of Lavyne,
And thy dowry, bocht with thy blude and pyne,
Denyis forto grant the, or ellis ocht,
And to succeid in his realm hess besocht
Ane alienar, born of ane oncouth land.
Pass now thy way, and set the to ganestand
Thir perellis, but all thankis or gaynȝeld!
Sen thou art mokkit, go down bet in feld
The ostis of Hethruria, and syne
Defend in peax and rest the folk Latyne.
Almychty Saturnus douchtir aluterly,
As thou be nycht thus doith at quiet ly,
Bad me schaw planely all thir thingis to the.
Haue done therfor, assembil this cuntre,
Addres thy fensabill men in thar array,
Enarmyt glaidly move and hald ȝour way
Towart the portis or havynnys of the see,
And set apon ȝon sam Troiane menȝe.
Dryve thar chiftanys of this land, but hone,
Thar pantit carvellis byrn. So to bedone
The gret power of hevynly goddis dyvyne
Commandit hes, decret and determyn.
Lat Kyng Latynus feil to his awyn harmys,
And haue experiens of the, Turnus, in armys,
Bot he the grant to wife his child Lavyne,
And kepe to the hys promyss and convyne.”
The ȝyng man mokkand at the prophetes,
Herand sic speche, answeris with mouth express:
“It standis not so as thou wenys, but weris:
The messynger is nocht gone by myne erys,
Full lang or now, quhou that a strange navy
Arryvit in this Tibris streme fast by.
Fenȝe na cawsis me fortill effray:
Weyn not me list my purposs leif na nay,
Nor ryall Iuno, quene of realmys all,
List our querrell forȝet, nor thoil we sall.
Bot, O ald dame, thy vile onweldy age,
Ourset with hasart hair and faynt dotage,
Quhilk voyd is of all treuth and verite,
In sic curys invane occupyis the,
And the dissavis, as prophet, be fals dreid,
That gevis thi mynd tharon thou has na heid,
As forto treyt of batalis betweix kyngis.
Thyne occupatioun standis on othir thingis,
Quhilk suld haue cure of nocht alanerly
Bot goddis tempillis and ymagis to spy:
Thoill men of pess and wer carp and rehers,
Quhamto pertenys the batalis to exers.”
At sic wordis Alecto, hait as fyre,
Brynt in hir fury rage and felloun ire,
So that, the ȝong man spekand, suddanly
The trymlyng hynt all membris of his body;
His eyn stud abasyt in his hed;
This hellis monstre, full of wreth and fed,
Hyssyt and quhislyt with sa feill eddir sondis,
And hir figour sa grysly gret abundis,
With glowrand eyn byrnand of flawmys blak.
Turnus awondryng styntis and drawis abak,
And, as he purposit mekill mar to say,
Insted of haris scho rasit vp serpentis tway,
And of hir scurge the sound scho made him heir;
With rageand mouth syne said and fellown beir:
“Behald, is this my vile onweldy age,
Ourset with hasart hair and faynt dotage,
Quham eild, void of al trewth and verite,
Be fals dreid dissavys so?” quod sche.
“As forto treyt of batale betwix kyngis,
Behald gif it so be, consider thir syngis!
Lo me present, ane of the sisteris thre,
Infernal fureis of feirfull hellis see!
Se, I bar in my handis and power
The ded of batalis and the mortale wer.”
And sayand thus, at this ilk fers ȝyng knycht
Ane hait fyre brand kest scho byrnand brycht,
And in hys breste this furyus lemand schide
With dedly smok fixit deyp can hyde.
The huge dreid with this dissoluyt his slepe,
Our all his body bristling furth dyd crepe
The warm swait throw euery lith and bane,
And all enragit can eftir harnes frane;
Armour all wytles in his bed sekis he,
Armour our all the lugyng law and hie.
The gret curage of irne wapynnys can waid
Cruell and wild, and all his wyt invaid
In wikkit wodnes batale to desire,
Quharon he byrnys hait in felloun ire—
Lyke as quhen that the ingill of stikkis dry
With blesand sownd is layd to by and by,
About the sydis of the pot playing,
The licour sparklis for the heyt bulyng;
Within, the fervent bullyr violent
Of watir makyng reky froith vpsprent;
So swellis vp the skum and bellis bedene,
The veschell may na mar the broth contene,
Bot furth it poplys in the fyre heir and thar,
Quhill vp fleys the blak stew in the air.
And for alsmekill as Turnus thus was stad,
The gretast of hys chiftanys go he bad
To Kyng Latyn, and him declar, but wer,
The paix was brokyn, and he wald move the were;
To graith thar armour fast commandis he,
To defend Ital, and of thar awin cuntre
Thar ennemyss expell and dryve; as ȝit
He was eneuch for baith, he leyt thame wyt,
Baith to recuntyr the Latynys and Troianys.
Quhen this was said, and, on sik wyss as ganys,
The goddis callit tobe in thar helping,
Than bissely Rutilianys, our all thing,
Can athir othir fast exhort and pray
On thar best wyss for werfar to purvay.
Sum the maste semly farrand personage
Tistys to the feild, to preif his grene curage,
Sum on his ȝouthed, and his thewes gude;
Sum is movit throw hys ryall blude,
For hys progenitouris noble kyngis wer;
And sum war eik inducit to the weir
For hie prowes knawin in ilke landis,
And dedis wrocht maste knychtly with his handis.