As he that hath his deth ful wel deserved. And right anon, withouten more abode, His banner he displaide, and forth he rode To Thebes ward, and all his host beside: No ner Athenes n'olde he go ne ride, Ne take his ese fully half a day, But onward on his way that night he lay, And sent anon Ipolita the quene And Emeli hire yonge sister shene, Unto the toun of Athenes for to dwell; And forth he rit; ther n'is no more to tell. The red statue of Mars, with spere and targe, So shineth in his white banner large, That all the feldes gliteren up and doun; And by his banner borne is his penoun, Of golde ful riche, in which ther was ybete The Minotaure, which that he slew in Crete. Thus rit this duk, thus rit this conquerour, And in his host of chevalrie the flour, Til that he came to Thebes, and alight Fayre in a felde, ther as he thought to fight: But shortly for to speken of this thing, With Creon, which that was of Thebes king, He fought and slew him manly as a knight In plaine bataille, and put his folk to flight; And by assaut he wan the citee after, And rent adoun bothe wall, and sparre, and rafter; And to the ladies he restored again The bodies of hir housbondes that were slain, To don the obsequies, as was tho the gise. But it were all to long for to devise The grete clamour and the waimenting Whiche that the ladies made at the brenning Of the bodies, and the gret honour That Theseus, the noble conquerour, Doth to the ladies whan they from him wente; But shortly for to telle is min entente. Whan that this worthy duk, this Theseus, Hath Creon slain, and wonnen Thebes thus, Still in the feld he toke all night his reste, And did with all the countree as hem leste; To ransake in the tas of bodies dede, Hem for to stripe of harneis and of wede, The pillours dide hir businesse and cure, After the bataille and discomfiture; And so befell, that, in the tas, they found, Thurgh girt with many a grevous blody wound, Two yonge knightes ligging by and by, Bothe in on armes, wrought ful richely; Of whiche two, Arcite highte that on. And he that other highte Palamon. Not fully quik, ne fully ded they were, But by hir cote armure, and by hir gere, The heraudes knew hem wel in special, As tho that weren of the blod real Of Thebes, and of sustren two yborne: Out of the tas the pillours han hem torne, And han hem carried soft unto the tente Of Theseus, and he ful sone hem sente To Athenes, for to dwellen in prison Perpetuel, he n'olde no raunson. And whan this worthy duk had thus ydon, He toke his host, and home he rit anon, With laurel crouned as a conquerour; And ther he liveth in joye and in honour, Terme of his lif; what nedeth wordes mo? And in a tour, in anguish and in wo,